Wellness Wednesdays

Hi guys! To hold myself more accountable to "The Challenge" (see left) I am going to post some things I've learned over the past week on Wednesdays.

Not that I hold much love for Oprah (who the hell has time to sit and watch tv? honestly?) but, I actually did see bits and pieces of the past two days of the show... She's been lamenting over all the weight she's put back on. Honestly, sometimes her self-rightousness turns my stomach. But I saw enough of the show while passing through the living room to hop online to look at her website.

All of this self-reflection started after the move, but I didn't really have one of those serious kind of reality checks until I went home for Christmas... My mom has a photo of me and Levi from a year and a half ago when we went on the cruise in Italy...



Yep, that's a picture of a picture... but you get the idea... Anyway, my sister-in-law Holly (LOVE her) said, "WOW Holly, you were really skinny." (HATE her!) - just kidding I totally agreed with her. 1 1/2 years ago, I was 40 pounds lighter. Yep, you read that right... 4-0. INSANE.

Enter excuses... A: Sewing business took off (meaning more time spent on my rear), B: Selling the house and moving, C: 2 hurricanes worth of junk food, room service, and stress ... you get the point.

So, since we had a $3000 elliptical sitting in our game room collecting dust, I decided it was time to get off my ass and do something about it. And after much searching online for some help on getting healthy, I have discovered the following 3 things this week.

1. Taking time to say "No" to the kids, husband, school, email, phone, etc. for 30 minutes a day is more difficult than I remembered... and now I'm wondering how I EVER found the time to Jazzercise (laugh all you want, but it's fun for a closet dancer) for 2 hours a day.

This is the gist of "O's" new year... take more "Me" time. I've always said 'If momma aint happy, aint nobody happy' but it ended up meaning 'momma is going shopping and having a grande mocha latte' or some such stupidness.

2. D sized "Sistas" need more support while interval training... Unless I can convince myself into getting one of those "Full body lift and tucks"... The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

As soon as I think they can't get bigger, YIKES.... If only they were pretty... sigh.... breastfeed two children and see how pretty yours are.

3. It feels really good to have a plain sweet potato with cinnamon, a grilled chicken tenderloin with Mrs. Dash garlic and herb, and carrot sticks... and actually feel full enough to pass on the homemade beer bread I made. Feels REALLY good. Even that one shocked me!

I LOVE to cook. Esp. bake. And I love me some "Semi-homemade" cookin where most of it comes from a box... that box however is the source of most of the crap in my family's diet, so we're digging out some real recipes and trudging along. I will be posting the Bean Soup recipe that I came up with... as soon as I figure out actual measurements... (I usually just "wing it" when I'm seasoning things, so it may take me a while to write it down. )

So in an "Ode to Oprah" sort of way, I had an "a-ha" moment. The power of prayer can help us through all kinds of struggles. I've always sort of focused mine on being a better wife/mother, setting a Christian example to those I meet, praying for peace and our country, etc. I've even said stupid things like "God, please help me not totally flip out over this hurricane..." But I've never really asked (begged) for help focusing on "me" through each day. And only that day. And I've never really thought I should. It just always seemed pretty selfish... until now. Because I know that if anyone can help me figure out this mess, it's Him and only Him.

So until the next Wellness Wednesday, here's to water, sweat, and the power of prayer.