It's been a busy month and we're only a little more than halfway through. I thought I'd pull together some odds and ends.
Emily had her "real" birthday. She asked for a hammock. This is an odd gift for a 9 year old, but we complied. We set it up in the backyard and she has spent almost every sunny minute in it since. Which has consisted of about two hours in the last week. We are on our way to the rainiest May on record. Some people say we need the moisture. I say I live here for the sunshine. We can agree to disagree. The weather doesn't care what I think anyway.
Emily has been begging for this interesting candle for years. It looks like this in action. Emily says it scared her and she thought it was weird. She asked if we can have regular candles next year.
The next day Jane had her first recital. 15 small children dancing to "Let it Go". It went completely as expected. Jane was so serious though. She really wanted to get those moves right. I was proud of her for being brave enough to perform in front of hundreds of people.
She kept reminding us that one performance=one bouquet of flowers. She was delighted to finally get them. And while we're looking at Jane's forehead (no bangs are allowed in recitals).... she had a tiny rock in it for a couple years. It created lots of scar tissue. Last month she finally decided it was time to get the rock out. At the hands of a talented doctor, the rock was removed and only a tiny scar remains.
And lastly, I hesitate to add this, but I wanted to record it for myself and for my girls.
Last week I finally reached my goal weight. The loss wasn't dramatic and no one will even comment on it because the difference was only a few pounds. I didn't even go down a pants size. But here's why it was important: 14 years ago I gained some weight after I got married. It was a brief foray into that weight zone and I never approached it again even while pregnant. I lost the extra 40 pounds within a year or so and then continued losing very slowly. By the time I got pregnant with Emily I was the same weight I was in high school. I was two pounds lighter than that when I got pregnant with Jane. After I finished nursing Jane, I got down to a little below that. The last year, I've tackled the last 10 pounds. It started with a Dietbet last spring. And then another in the summer. And another this month. All in all, I've taken 14 years to lose 60 pounds. This has to be the slowest weight loss story of all time.
I have to admit I was a little disappointed when I reached my goal. My body isn't perfect. It isn't totally devoid of fat. I still have cellulite. My legs are still short and stocky. I'm a solid size 6, which I saw being defended as "larger" in a Hollywood news article a couple weeks ago. But I have to call this weight loss gig over. Because I can't maintain a lower weight and because I will never be perfect. But (this is what I want my girls to know) I am healthy. My blood pressure is good. My cholesterol is good. My joints aren't carrying too much weight. My body doesn't limit my choice of activities. I don't have to be on the sidelines. That is what maintaining a healthy weight is all about. Not about looking like some photoshopped magazine cover.
I took my "after" photo for Dietbet this morning. I won't subject you to a 6 am selfie in my sports bra. Instead, I want to share with you what I feel is my real "after" photo. It is from Race for the Cure last summer. I don't look like an athlete, my form is terrible and I'm not perfect. But I had just finished a 5k 2 minutes faster than the year before. That's a way better feeling than being able to fit into a size two... I think... but either way, I'll never find out for sure. I'm good where I'm at.
