That Warm Fuzzy Feeling

Today's realization was quick and to the point: Everyone needs help. (Hear that God? I'm finally catching on!)

Getting ready for Easter services, and my first church service in over two months because I'm a lazy piece of poo, was mind boggling. No longer bound by my "safe" outfits, I pulled out a pair of pants that hasn't seen light in years. Fit like a glove. And not the OJ Simpson glove that didn't fit because it had shrunk from the blood.... Like the original meaning - I was no longer pouring myself into them! Then I pulled out a shirt that I've never been able to get rid of, even though I haven't worn it since I left the Netherlands 7 years ago. I couldn't believe it. I was fabulous!

Even though I did the "girl thing" and changed outfits three times to find a better one (turns out it was too cold for that original outfit) I still kept thinking about how good it felt. Sometimes what motivates me is positive thinking. I know I look better and feel better than I did when I started 12 weeks ago. However, that's not where this message is going...

Needing the help of others refers to the comment that my friend Holly said to me, "You look GREAT!" Thank Holly! Sometimes it's the recognition from friends and family that keep me going. We're all human. We love it when people notice the good in us - the power of positive reinforcement!

Asking for help is no weakness. It might be what someone needs. Don't be afraid of being that voice for someone. I know Holly's comment will keep me going through the week. Who will you help? :o)

No picture of the awesome outfit, but here's my cute kid!

Welcome Back!

So, it's been a while since I last posted, and a lot has happened!

At the top of St. Paul's Cathedral

Mitch, Jack and I left our house on March 26th at 3:30AM to start our Spring Break trip. We flew to Chicago where we met mom and dad for lunch, and left them with a sweet little present named Jack. After 6 more hours of waiting in the airport, we were off to London. Laura, Mike, and Deb met us at the airport Sunday morning and we promptly crashed for a nap before dinner. Have to say that the risotto that night may have been the best meal we ate on the entire trip. :o)

At Jameson's. Clearly.

Laura participating in a whiskey tasting

Easily the best place we ate in Ireland

Over the next five days, we explored London and Dublin, while constantly checking the pedometer to see how far we'd walked. Our best day was just over 21,000 steps, which we calculated to be about 9 miles. Not too shabby! We saw the Tower of London, St. Paul's Cathedral, and the Imperial War museum in London (just to name a few) and St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Jameson distillery, and the Guinness storehouse in Dublin (again, just to name a few).It was so amazing to see all the sights, but especially fun to see them with Laura. It's been a while since we've been able to hang out and it was nice to have quality time.

I know Mom, Dad, and Megan felt the same way about their quality time with Jack. He had a BLAST with "Mama", "Boppi", and "Miggie". But by the time the week was over, I was pretty ecstatic to see him again. Though, it makes me understand how important it is for Mitch and I to leave him with others and take time for ourselves. Definitely don't do that often enough.

The best news out of the last three weeks is that even being away from Weight Watchers meetings for three weeks, and not even counting points for one of those weeks, I still lost 4.4 pounds! That brings the total up to 12.6 which is just over 5% of my starting weight. I'm pretty exited about that, too!

In the next few weeks I'm planning on training to RUN a 5K (hopefully by Mother's Day) and keep the forward momentum. Here we go!