BREE YOU LOOK ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC (and yes, I am yelling, intentionally)

You are looking a million dollars, and more importantly, sound really happy about your life.

Congratulations, you are a wonderful inspiration to us all.

Thanks everyone, and a hubba hubba from Scott, I feel very special. I had LOGOS (my children’s Wednesday night church extravaganza) and everyone commented on how thin I looked. I keep telling them to come here and they can be motivated too. But the simple answer (eat right, exercise more) doesn’t seem to appeal to them yet—well not all of them.

It snowed here tonight! I was just getting to church, and there were a few flakes swirling, soon it was coming down so prettily. Everyone was freaking out, this is Tennessee. The roads quickly became slippery, so we had to call all the parents and tell them we were closing early. On the way home, ten miles of curvy beautiful roads, there was an accident—right on the bottom of a hill with a curve on it. We were stopped for quite a while for no real apparent reason (the road wasn’t blocked). Eventually we got moving again and I made it home at 25 mph. It’s gorgeous outside. The girls ran right out to play in it and just came in with very rosy cheeks.

Looks like we’ll all be stuck here tomorrow (the roads are like glass). Luckily I bought lots of coffee before it snowed, got to have the important things. I can’t wait to make snowmen.

That sounds soooo cool Bree....something we never see here in San Diego......

Glad you made it home safe.....and enjoy the coffee

The first day of snow was awesome, but it snowed again last night and they called school of again. I need a valium. It’s melting so fast that you can’t stay dry, so the kids are in and out changing and getting bored. Thank heavens we have the Wii. I’ll be doing laundry for days. Oh well, it doesn’t happen often. And if they start fighting, I have windows to wash and shelves to dust. If that doesn’t fix them, there is always the bathrooms to clean. Maybe I’ll sneak out to play alone. Do you think I can make a snow fort big enough to hide in?

Would it be wrong to replace all my food calories with wine? Just kidding, sort of.

A nice Cabernet sounds good.....sure go ahead replace your calories with that.....that should solve the problem.....

Just kidding Bree....but a glass would be okay....

You mentioned the Wii....We got one for my 21 year old son for Christmas and we played it for a couple of days......(my arms is STILL sore from playing tennis....very fun!!!! and good excercise....I was sweating by the end! LOL

Enjoy the snow!

Right now they’re behaving, but they know I’m serious about the cleaning. My biggest pet peeve is when they fight while I’m working out. I’ve chosen shorter workouts with some time in between so I’m almost done by the time they figure out I’m busy. It’s a game now. I will win. OK, they just started fighting. Send help.

I left the gym today feeling lighter somehow. It almost felt like I’d forgotten something inside. It was wonderful. I’ve been feeling so wonderful lately. On my 100 days I said I truly love who and where I am right now, and I mean that. Even with the kids fighting, playdates falling through because of illness, life in general trying to get in my way, I am so happy. It’s more very satisfied and bubbly right under the surface. Just give me a reason to get giddy and I’m there. A reason to be miserable, and I’m here, being happy.

Something clicked again, this time more with life and my place in it. I’m not so serious, if my workout isn’t going to happen my way, I change my way, same with food. How hard is it really to change where or when I work out if it means my life will be smoother. Today I didn’t have time to finish my workout at the gym, weights took longer because there were more people there (on a Friday, what’s up with that?), so I’ll do my elliptical at home. I had to pick up my daughter and there’s no daycare at the gym. We were supposed to have a playdate, so I didn’t have as much time in between getting my little one and going to my friends as required to exercise and shower and eat. So I decided I could do my housework instead and finish the workout after I picked up the older child. How simple was that? The playdate fell through (the other little girl is sick and on the way to the doctor), so now I have an open schedule.

Not long ago I would’ve been flipping out that I’d not been able to finish the workout at the gym like I had planned, and I would’ve been crippled into doing nothing because I didn’t have time for plan B, plan C would never have happened. I’d have been upset at the clock and become a crab. Today, I’m still very happy. Life happens, and that’s a good thing.

Now I’m going to go play with my little one. She’s having fun, and I have time.

Love the flexible thoughts, Bree!

I have 3 boys (12, 10 & 9) and really understand how your life can be thrown around. But, like you, I’ve found that it is so much easier when you have a good think about making the most of a situation. I spend 2 hours in a carpark on Friday nights, waiting for my eldest to finish orchestra. Last night I had a brainwave, hey, I could WALK for this time!!! Obvious, I know, but sometimes it takes a sledgehammer with me!

It’s the obvious that is the hardest to see. Like Scott says, we like to complicate things that are really very simple. I’m trying to stop the mindless spinning. I’d rather miss something while relaxed than be uptight all the time and lose myself. And I honestly believe I see better when I’m relaxed. I know I’m a better example for the kids like this. And if the workout is a bit shorter than I had intended, the world is not going to explode.

Life happens, and that’s a good thing.

I see another one of ‘Bree’s bumper sticker’........

Keep it simple....be flexible.....don’t sweat the small stuff (and it’s all small?)

It’s sure better than the alternatives

I’ve been having so much fun on everyone else’s threads that I forgot to post on my own! Today I made it under 140 for the first time in 10 years. Any size from here on is almost miraculous for me. When I hit my goal weight I’m still planning on stealing my hubby’s motorcycle. It’s an 800cc, so I’ll feel a bit powerful and bad*** on it. No easy task for a 5’ soccer mom. I’ll take a picture when I get there. Only 15-18 pounds to go. I’m not sure what I’ll be at when I reach my goal, but I’ll know it when I see it.

I’m still on a high from all that I’ve accomplished, but something devastating happened the other day. I was doing yoga and was staring at my now thin ankles, and the thought came to me “man, my ankles are fat.”   What happened? I was all but kissing my knees in a position I couldn’t do easily in high school and I was having those thoughts surface. It scared me. I love my body and I don’t want to start feeling inadequate again, especially since I’m not any more.

I think part of the reason my ankles looked a bit bigger is because my legs are smaller, and no longer have such a drastic angle to them. I looked very closely at my ankles (commercial breaks during Inhale can seem very long) and honestly critiqued them. There wonderful. All bony and fully functional. I’ve had similar destructive thoughts try to take over, but logic is on my side and I can easily squash them. But the fact that these thoughts can still derail me for a moment is frightening. Guess I have more work to do on my inner voices.

Hey Bree -

Good job on talking yourself out of that critical feeling.  I think it is very common for women to feel hyper critical of themselves, even when to the rest of the world they look just fine.  I think it’s great that you’re recognizing that and calling yourself out.

Keep it up!

Laura

It would be so easy to just let myself get down and start all that over again, but no way. My haunches are raised and I will not go back down that path.

On another crappy topic, (I really don’t feel negative today, it’s just that’s what I need to talk about) parenting. My older daughter, usually described by others as a wonderful child always respectful, helpful, intelligent (she is), and every other attribute you could possibly ask for—turned into a bullying spoiled, entitled little well, brat today.

She was fine until after church, when she invited another family to go out to eat with us,   I had told her she could bring a friend. “Unfortunately” they could not make it. Don’t get me wrong, I’d have loved to take them, but mortgage is due and the cupboards are bare and we’re about to buy a new car. Bad timing is putting it mildly, not to mention the shock of being put on the spot in front of them and having to not act as shocked as I really was. I don’t have a great poker face, luckily I wasn’t facing them when she asked.

We made it through lunch and shopping at Wal-Mart (on a Sunday, this is more like monster trucks with dresses and heels) and came home to put everything away. I’d forgotten the list, so I only got what I knew we needed. I’ll have to go back tomorrow. Anyway, she promised her little sister, who thinks the sun rises and sets on the older child, that she would play with her. I didn’t realize this when she asked to go to a friend’s so I had to deal with a broken hearted 4 year old. (I later confirmed the promise with the older one.) She still refused to make good on her promise, but I knew if I forced the issue it would get very ugly between them and major crying would follow. (We do star charts, where each child can earn up to 5 stars a day for good behavior, attitude, etc… She lost a star for that crappiness.)

Now tomorrow we have a bowling party through church because of the holiday, it’s always a lot of fun and keeps the kids from getting too bored at home. My lovely older child invited not 1, but 2 friends to come along (see a pattern here?) and I get to pay for. I’m very bad at this on the spot crud, so I caved (bad mommy). After the party one of her church friends (the one who almost came out to eat with us today) was going to come over for a while. What an amazing day she had planned.

So why couldn’t she behave? I counted myself give her 12 warnings to stop being so mean to her sister and the dogs (call them, then get upset that they were bothering her—dogs and sister) not to mention me. She couldn’t help herself when I said she had to stop getting lippy, stop coming into the living room and telling us we were bothering her because we were reading. Then she tried to sneak grapes into her room (big no-no, too many bugs in the South to pull that) 3 times. After 3 last chances to save her wonderful tomorrow, she had to try for a fourth.

Now I have a very heart-broken 10 year old who thinks I hate her and her friends will think she’s a liar and not like her anymore. She’s been crying since she realized I wasn’t joking (too many chances, can’t be taken seriously). She has Destination Imagination practice tomorrow morning, but has to call her friends with the news first. I feel her pain, but how could I not put my foot down.

To make matters worse, my back-up (hubby) is in Florida for a conference all week. There’s no way I could back down on the first day if I have any chance for the rest of the week. I know I made the right decision, but it was hard. Normally, I’d also be a chaperone, so there will be lots of us missing out tomorrow.

Well, that’s my rant. I did need to get that out and it helps a lot.

But I still broke through the 140 barrier, so I’m still elated.