The Weight Update

03/16/2008; 190.5 lbs. Six more pounds! (p.s.--Look at my kicky new haircut!)

Yeah, not as much as two weeks ago, but hey--that's 16.5 pounds in a month. I've lost four inches in my waist and hips. I've gone down a dress size, and I can wear medium tops. The most exciting news? Two weeks ago I had to try on pants in the Women's Plus department. This past Saturday? I bought pants in the regular Women's department. No, I'm never going to be able to shop in the Junior's department, but I'm 30 now--there's no need. Pretty soon, Cathryn will be in the Junior's department, and do I really want to dress like my daughter? I believe that you can look modern, chic and age-appropriate. But, I'm not going to get into that rant, at least not today.

Want to hear more good news? The nurse was able to draw blood on the first try. I was so ecstatic that I had to call Richie right then and there while the nurse was putting some information into the computer across the hall. I still have a bit of a bruise, but it was worth it, and now I don't have to worry about it for another six months.

Even though Richie has been telling me for three weeks that he can see the changes, I'm only just now getting to a place where I can look in the mirror and see a difference. Sure, I've certainly been feeling better since I started the program, and knock on wood, I haven't had a headache in a month. That's exciting stuff. And now that I'm fitting into smaller sizes, I can really appreciate the fruits of my labor.

None of this would have been possible without Richie backing me up. He has been so supportive of me doing this program, even though he told me before I started that I was beautiful just the way I was. He's never once tried to tempt me, and he's my biggest cheerleader, telling me everyday how great I'm doing. He's also very creative at coming up with new recipes so that our family can eat together, and I don't get bored with grilled chicken breasts and salads. (Although I confess, I am still pretty bored with salad, and actually welcomed brussel sprouts into my life.) I'm so grateful that he doesn't try to tempt me, and the sweetest thing we have in our house right now is peanut butter, even though I know how much he and Cathryn love chocolate. He just keeps telling me that he wants me to be happy.

Richie, Trey and Cathryn make me very happy. And you know what? I'm starting to feel that way about myself, now, too.

Being Healthy

02/17/08; 30 years old; 5 feet 8 inches; 207 pounds.
I'm very much not proud of this picture.

It's hard for me to look at this picture, and it has very little to do with the fact that I'm wearing horizontal stripes. I don't always like what I see when I look in the mirror, but I definitely don't see this. It's really sad, too, because I was so happy this morning when I was trying on a few things. I bought a dress yesterday that I was supposed to be working to get in for Easter, and when I tried it on, it fit. I was ecstatic.

But, that picture is the reason I went to the Metabolic Medical Center in Mt. Pleasant. It's a real doctor's office. I had to fill out all kinds of medical paperwork, like family medical history, eating habits (that one was difficult...), and my own medical history. They weighed me, measured me, made me do a Body Mass Indicator test, counseled me about my choices and then talked to me about possible plans to follow. (Y'all know I love a plan and a schedule!) The one I chose has me drinking 2 supplements a day, having soup and salad for lunch, and then a nice dinner of lean protein and veggies. The only thing that bothers me is that I have to consume FOUR to SIX CUPS of veggies a day. That is going to be the real challenge with this program.

The worst part of my visit? When they attempted to draw blood. I don't like needles to begin with, but my veins are also almost completely non-existent, which makes it worse. They poked. They prodded. They made me rink two more bottles of water, and use stress balls so that I could make some veins appear. They used the tiny butterfly needles. But my veins said, "No, no, no!" and kept rolling and hiding from three (THREE!) different nurses. When I was in tears, at the end of my rope, they finally gave up and told me that they would try again when I came back for my checkup in two weeks. Really, though, everyone was super nice. It certainly wasn't the nurses' fault that my veins were playing hide and seek.

In two weeks, I'll post another picture. I won't be wearing horizontal stripes, that's for sure.

The Great Blog Post-Dump of 2008

Much like people begin to purge their homes once the new year begins, I am going to purge my brain by dumping a lot of stuff right here in this post. You should expect me to talk about these again at some point in the future.

--Find a cure for my headaches. Don't tell me to cut out caffeine. I only have one 8oz cup of coffee in the morning. Someone actually said to me that they saw a news segment of how "regular" coffee has the same amount of caffeine as "decaf", and that I should just start drinking decaf. My response? "Why don't you just start drinking regular?"

--Live Healthier. Richie's been asking me to go walking with him when he walks the dog. I decided tonight to go. I realize that this is probably going to be the toughest thing I do all year. I have a heavy addiction to chocolate, and have been known to forgo dinner for dessert. I'm not talking about a diet here. Richie and I were talking today, and diets just don't work. If this is something I'm going to work at accomplishing, this is going to have to be a lifestyle change. Yes, I know this means giving up french fries.

--Good mommy vs. Bad mommy. Richie, Trey and Cathryn always say I'm the former. Me, in my infinite pessimism, give myself a vote in the latter.

--Become a better choir director. I want these kids to learn to worship through song and drama, and to lead others through the same. I want to put on a rocking spring musical, and another one at Christmas. I want to expose these kids to all kinds of music, and teach them to appreciate it.

--The Sims. Does anyone else play this game? It's the perfect game for control freaks who find themselves without people to control. It's also good for those folks who always thought it would be cool to be an architect, like Mike Brady but less square, but never could quite get the math. I fall into both categories.

--American Idol, or my struggle with obsession. I'm really struggling with blogging American Idol this season for two reasons: my involvement with the children's choir, and the general knowledge that American Idol just doesn't play fair just for the sake of "good" television.

--Blog more. About stuff that matters, not just my usual television-driven obsession-fueled rants.

I'm sure there's more, but I can't think of them right now.