Weight Watcher Wednesday 2015...keeping it real

Welcome to 2015!

Its a new year and it comes with a clean slate. Right? Right! Please say 'yes' because I really need one. Don't you?

And I'm going to keep it real...very real! This past holiday eating season sucked big time!

Do I hear an 'Amen!'?
 
The truth is that since I got back from our vacation back in September, I have been struggling to get my eating habits back in order.  The horror! Then all of a sudden the holiday eating season began so yes, its been somewhat of downhill or should I say an uphill (on the scale) battle.

But honestly how does one fight through Halloween candy, weekly birthdays, cake/cupcakes, turkey and fixins', 7 nights of novenas (and other people feeding you), tamale making parties,  holiday parties, more tamales, homemade desserts (the best!), Xmas dinner, New Years...you get the picture.

I know, I know! I could of said 'No.' I could have stopped myself from grabbing the extra chips and dip or the extra piece of chocolate caramel bark (drooling), but I didn't! I have only myself to blame and I know that I am the only one responsible for what and how much I eat. Having said that though, I can't really say that I regret every single indulgence I've had over the last few months. People, I'm still a foodie!! Really, even after 4 years of this journey, I still love me an occasional binge of some really good food. Its life, its real, it happens...to all of us.

So yes, I've gained a few more pounds than I'm willing to admit, and that's even with me weighing in every week. I still have yet to miss a weekly weigh-in because I am still more afraid of not knowing the truth than to pretend its not happening. So just imagine the damage I could have done to myself if I had not.  Its been controlled chaos to say the least.

I had a text conversation with a friend recently about this and one of my texts to her said,
"...this battle NEVER ENDS!!!" And her response was..."tell me about it...this sucks!" Did I not mention that at the beginning? Yes it does!

I realize more so lately, that even after a few years of doing the same program, it can get very easy to get comfortable and "think" you're under control. Not so much. It will forever be a conscious choice that comes with some very uncomfortable consequences:

• the snugger jeans
• the 'longita' (spanish for stupid love handle- well kind of) that starts to peak its way over the waist again
• More importantly, its that feeling yucky and uncomfortable once again and that I remember with MUCH disdain :(

So my whole point to my honesty today is to tell you that I am actually grateful for kind of falling off the wagon right now. Its the reality of all of these little consequences that has strengthened my resolve to get back on program again. But its catching myself now when the damage is just a few pounds before it becomes a disaster. I have not worked this hard to let it all go to waist waste (my waist!) all over again.

In all seriousness, this is when I need Weight Watchers the most and I'm so grateful I still have my mentor to keep me encouraged and on track. As of today, I'm on way way down already so things are looking good. If anything, I just wanted to give those of you that find yourself in similar situations some hope and encouragement that all is not lost (or gained). Either way, once again, its a new year and a new chance to start over. Whatever your program is- go back to basics, find yourself with a fresh new attitude and look forward to the process. It will make all the difference when you encounter new challenges because they'll always be there. Just do it! Hey, I'm right there with you all!

From my little corner to yours...here's to getting back on track in 2015!!

Have a great day!

Weight Watcher Wednesday...Lifetime baby!!!

Its time for another Weight Watcher Wednesday update from me and its been a long time since the last one. I had promised myself the next update would be a good one and it is. Its been 3+ years in the making and the time has come...

I finally made it to Lifetime!!

Well first off let me explain that this happened about 2 weeks ago, but with Danny and Mikey culminations being our priority I hadn't had a chance to say anything really until now.

So what does making it to Lifetime mean exactly?

Well in Weight Watcher terms this means that I finally got down to my goal weight and once I did that I went through an additional 6 weeks of maintaining that goal weight at no more than +/- 2lbs during that time frame. Once I successfully did that then you make it to what WW considers to be Lifetime Member Status- a permanent member of the WW family!

So I completed all of this 2 weeks ago and my leader Char made a very sweet presentation and gave me the honors in front of my meeting group. I didn't really expect to get emotional about it, but I did. This was a HUGE moment for me! Something I have been working as most of you know for a very long time...A 'lifetime' as a matter of fact! (lol, I won't apologize for the pun there because it actually fits the description pretty well in my case.)

Having a great leader like Char has been key for me as well. She has been a wonderful support. This isn't the first time she's been my leader, but I found her again  at the Encino office when I needed someone the most. She was the one who most helped me to get through this last leg of this goal. She kept me accountable and honest all the time. She has helped keep me motivated when I was most discouraged and she gave me new things to try along the way. 

 THANK YOU CHAR!!

I have also yet to miss a weekly weigh in in the 3+ years since I joined and I have to say that has been the absolute thing that I am the proudest of and its been the cornerstone of my success. This little lady, Margie, is the one who weighs me in most of the time, and I wanted to thank her as well for making me laugh, for celebrating my good weeks and for commiserating with me those weeks when I needed to vent. Thank you Margie!

One exciting advantage to this special recognition is also a continued incentive for me.  Being a lifetime member now also means that as long as I stay at my goal weight (+/- 2lbs) I get free membership to their online tools and unlimited unpaid meetings. Yes! Soo now I can weigh in for FREEEEEE!!!! Wooohooo!!!

Like I mentioned I have been a paid member for 3+ years now, paying a fee month after month, and I don't even dare calculate the numbers to know what my total investment in myself has been. (investment being the operative word) It just doesn't matter really. It has been been worth every total penny!!!


So in no way does this mean that I have that my weight journey is over...Absolutely not! If anything the work continues now more than ever because this is when most Weight Watchers tend let it go and tend to gain their weight back. I just can't let that happen. The fact that it took this long to get here makes me appreciate my accomplishment that much more. I've worked to hard to let go of this now so I need to work harder now more than ever because I just can't go back! I just can't!

One thing I hope to transmit through my story for those of you who have been following my journey and those of you who are on your own journey at the moment is that you see that its really has taken me over 3 years to get here. I hope you keep that in mind for your own journeys. Weight loss is not an overnight thing! Its not necessarily a 3 year process...it truly is a lifetime process. It may be different for everyone and amongst every struggle you may come across its about keeping the big picture and your ultimate goal in the forefront of your mind. It can happen and it will but it does take some time and work- there is now way around it. But just remember...You are worth it!

So this also will now lead me to my next goal which is to become a Weight Watcher Leader, and I'm working on that as we speak. I would love to be able to help others achieve their goal like my leaders did for me. My next update will hopefully be about that happening sometime soon. 

From my corner to yours...Thank you for stopping by!

Weight Watcher Wed- My 3 year Anniversary

So I was looking back through my blog last night and realized I hadn't done a WW update in over year.
I found my 1st year Anniversary post and then also realized that this month was actually my 3rd year Anniversary being on the Point Plus Weight Watcher plan!!

Lol, I sound like a 12-step member-

"Hi! My name is Sandy"
"Hi, Sandy!"
"I've been..."

I guess its kind of like that, maybe?

Anyway, I can't believe its been 3 years, and its been full of literal ups and downs (on/off the scale), but always full of real life/food choices, and I love that Weight Watchers has allowed me to fit in my real life, and that's how this journey was supposed to be. I am at a different place now, and I can't help but feel that the changes have been so much more than physical for me. There is nothing that can measure the personal growth I have "gained" for every pound I have lost- physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually all around. 

So in keeping with this anniversary theme I decided to take new pictures to give a more complete  update.  I put on the same dress I wore for my 40th b-day (which I still love)  but at this point has been officially fitted and taken in via the sewing machine- there's no going back now!


 Feb. 2011                                            Feb. 2012 (38lbs lost)                             Feb. 2014 (52.8lbs lost)

                                                                                           

As of today I have lost a total of  52.8 pounds and I am 1/2 a pound away from my goal. Yay!
I'll be honest though, I was kind of upset at this morning's weigh in because I was hoping to hit my goal on this anniversary. I've been hovering up and down over this goal of mine for more than a few months now, and I can't seem to get to it yet...Ugghh!  But instead of getting frustrated, I had to take a step back, and look at my overall success and remember that this has been the first time in my life that I have kept off this amount weight for such an extended period of time! So for me- That's huge and the most important thing!

So I am telling all of you this for a few reasons:

1- I'm keeping this update real and very honest for both you and me-  I want you to see that its not always easy, that even with success come very real ups and downs, but its about riding those moments out and persevering to accomplish the overall goal.

2- This keeps me accountable- and honestly feeling very vulnerable!! It is not easy to put myself out there like this, but this accountability gives me the motivation I need to continue on WW.

3- This is a work in progress-  Its taken 3 years to get here, and I am still going at it. I can't stop now. I just know that I'm really afraid of going back. So for me, it will truly be an ongoing life process.

4- Patience- (My OLWord in action here as well) Weight loss takes time! There is nothing overnight about it. It is about making progress over time and not giving up! My hope is to inspire even its just one person out there who is on their own journey to never give up! Its about progress, any kind of progress. I have technically only lost 2.8lbs this past year, but considering the fact that in the past I would have probably gained all my weight back instead? Overall loss!! It is definitely progress in the right direction, right?!



So in regards to getting to my goal...I will get there! Maybe not next week (its my birthday weekend so there will be some celebrating going on), but I will get there...soon!

My hope in doing this update, is that you take away even a little something to inspire you wherever you may be in your journey be it weightloss or otherwise to help you succeed! I believe it all applies in one way or another, don't you?

And for all those who have always been there and continue to support me...I will forever Thank You!

From my little corner to yours...Thank you for stopping by!

Thanksgiving over stuffing waffles!

What!! Thanksgiving in January? Yes, we had Thanksgiving dinner all over again last night, but with a minor stuffing twist that turned out to be delicious and pretty creative.

This really isn't a recipe per say and there wasn't anything magical or back breaking about it either. I didn't have to make a full turkey, a ham or stuffing to get the same effect, although of course you could, but I happened to have all the pre-made items in my pantry/refrigerator to make this dinner feel like the a real Thanksgiving feast. Easy! Just like it should be!

I also happen to get this idea from Guy Fieri's Triple D show (Diners, Drive-ins and Dives), from one of the restaurants he visited and I couldn't wait to try it myself.  This restaurant in Syracuse, New York calls this "Jive turkey on a waffle." The gist of it is that once all the main turkey dinner ingredients are made they are all piled on top of a waffle made out of stuffing!

Yes, you heard correctly. A Stuffing waffle!! What a concept!

So here is what I did:

First, I began by warming up my waffle iron on the side.
In the meantime, I put the carving board turkey in the oven to brown for 10-15 minutes, warmed up the mashed potatoes and gravy, and then made the stove top as directed on the box.


Once I had the Stove Top cooked I spooned the stuffing onto the waffle iron, shut it and basically let it cook until ready like I would a regular waffle.









See It comes out all nicely browned and crispy!! 

You can make upto 2 waffles with 1 box of Stove Top which was just enough for us since the boys don't like stuffing, and I would probably do 1/2 a waffle per serving anyway.

Next I placed the turkey slices on top,

then I spooned the mashed 'taters next to that.

Then I poured the gravy over the whole thing...

Voila!

Winner, Winner...a Thanksgiving waffle Dinner!!

I also added lightly grilled deli ham slices since the turkey slices were pretty thin, some corn, and

 of course you can add cranberries or any another favorite Thanksgiving fixin' you'd like. 

But one bite of it all together and O.M.G!!!

I honestly can't say enough just how delicious it was.

*****

Here's an added bonus for all my Weight Watcher friends- Points Plus Values!
I actually went ahead and calculated the points for this dinner because I had all the information available for me to calculate it pretty easily:

Here's the breakdown:

Turkey (2oz- about 3 slices)                 2 points
95 % fat free Deli Ham Slice (1 oz.) - 1 point per slice ( I had 1 slice)
Stove top (1/2 cup or 1/2 waffle)      - 4 points
Costco Mashed Potatoes (1/2 cup)    - 5 points             (you can always make a lighter version)
Canned or gravy in a jar (1/4 cup)     - 1 point
Canned Corn (1/4 cup)                         - 1 point

Total points                                         14 points

Obviously you can adjust it to make them lower. You can have 1/4 of  the stuffing waffle and 1/4 cup of potatoes to adjust the points, and still have a very filling turkey dinner.  I also know its sounds kind of high but If you budget your points correctly throughout the day, these 14 points are totally worth every mouthful!

Jerry and I love watching Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-in's and Dives (aka- Triple D), and some of his kitchen shows. We think he's pretty funny, and his shows are a lot of fun, but most of all we love it because we (or 'I' really) have gotten a few of our family's favorite meal recipes just from watching these shows and trying them out for ourselves. So I thought it be fun to share it with you guys.

Its always nice to get creative with our food presentation for the whole family to enjoy!

Hope you'll like the idea enough to give a shot yourself in the near future. You can't go wrong!

From my corner to yours...Happy Thanksgiving on any night you'd like!!

Weight Watcher Wednesday- A personal update

I just wanted to do a personal update as its been a little over a year and 8 months that I joined Weight Watchers to start off my 40's right and I think I have accomplished that and more. Its been a hell of a journey, but worth every minute and dollar I have invested in myself. I feel like I have gifted myself with a new way of life and nothing tastes so sweet.

 

As of this morning...I did it! I finally made it to 50lbs lost!

Woohoo!!

Its taken me a while to get here, but I have persevered through real life situations, including that I have 4 boys at home I have to cook for on a daily basis, and the fact that I still love food as much as when I started, but I'm here and I feel sooo good!

This weight journey of mine has been life long, but I am proud of being able to accomplish this goal at this stage of my life. I wouldn't change anything I've gone through because it wouldn't have brought me here the same way.

This time I did it for myself and that's all that matters now, and of course, I am always grateful for the continued support and encouragement from my family and friends!! XO

But my work doesn't end here! I am on to my next goal with Weight Watchers which is getting to Lifetime status and after that my eyes are set on hopefully becoming a Weight Watcher leader. I feel like a have a story to tell and I'd like to help others reach their goals too. But as always I have to take one step at a time and it still may be a while before I get there, but its a goal I am reaching strong for.

Ultimately, I am still a work in progress...so I will still keep trying. Its so worth it! I hope you will too, whatever your goal might be :)

From my corner to yours...Have a happy Weight Watcher Wednesday everybody!

Weight Watcher Wednesday- Have a healthy summer!!

 Summer is one of those seasons that I feel kind of makes it a little easier for me to keep up my healthy changes and my weight loss. Although the days are longer and there is more time to eat than usual. That's not a good thing necessarily, but there are a couple of other advantages to that I'm choosing to look at as well. Its a great time to drink a lot of water, there is a variety of foods that I prefer to eat during the summer than in the winter, and because it gets darker later, there's also more time to find different activities or exercise to work off what I eat.

 Summer Fruits...

I love this time for fruits…along with added sunshine comes the added colors. They’re soo pretty! 

 Bananas are staple for me, and a must to have a home. A good banana and a glass of milk, for me, are a meal in itself. And that is low point lunch that can fill me up and leave me some room for something yummy later in the day. Grapes are sweet and just easy to eat on the go too!

 

I LOVE RASPBERRIES!! Don't you? 

They're great on their own and they're so tasty with yogurt and granola...OMG!!

Watermelon is another must for me. 

I can go through a whole watermelon in one sitting if I let myself. 

On a really hot day, its super refreshing and just delicious!

 (It digests really nicely, too)  ;)

 
Salads...have always been one of my favorites too!
Cobb salads with mostly egg whites, low-fat shredded cheese, ham and/or chicken has become one of our favorites at home that even my hubby loves. It has a lot of protein and picking the right low-fat dressing to go along with it can make it a great satisfying meal.

Exercise

Summer is a great time to get motivated to do more with your body. The weather just gets you out there to do more. Although, having said that, extreme heat can also slow you down. And I will admit that since I've started jogging, I too am not as motivated to jog even late in the morning because the sun is pretty strong, and makes it that much harder to keep up my endurance. So instead, I try to run on those early mornings, especially during this June gloom, when its still nice and cool in the am. I LOVE the feeling of that crisp cool air as it hits my face! 

If I can't get that run in, then I reverting back to a nice hearty walk and I've been taking those in the late evenings just as the sun is kind of going down. Another favorite time of day for me!! I'm also taking advantage of that time to take my boys with me. They don't walk as fast as I do, but they do keep up and now they can actually walk up to 2 miles with me if I nudge them along enough. I started doing that last year, and now we look for opportunities to walk to different areas in our neighborhood just for sake of walking. Like on Monday, instead of driving, we walked over to Christian's baseball game at his high school  a little over a mile from our house, and we walked back home part of the way too. It was a nice time of the day to do it and I felt like I got my exercise in for both the boys and myself. 

And then there's always the beach and the pool!!!

 

I cannot wait to get to the beach this year! I honestly discovered the beach all over again, a few years back, and I LOVE going with my boys and our friends. I'll be honest, I don't do much exercising there (or at the pool for that matter), but this year my goal is to hopefully be able to take a few walks along the beach while we're there. Walking on sand is soo much harder than walking on cement, that it makes for a much better workout! I'm looking forward to trying that out this summer.  And I need to get in the pool more often as well to take a few laps and work out those legs, which can never hurt!

So I hope you'll find the summer a great time to enjoy the great fruit that's out there and maybe you already have your favorite activity you'll take advantage of doing, but maybe you'll find a way to change that up a bit or try something completely different. Let me know what you end up doing. It would be fun to see what everybody's "thing" ends up being. 

All in all, I just hope you have fun doing things that can help you all stay or get healthy this summer!

Happy Weight Watcher Wednesday, from my corner to yours....

Weight Watcher Wednesday- Success Shout Out #2

So it looks like these might turn into a regular feature on my WW Wednesdays...and I hope you all don't mind. They will all be similar but different as this is an evolving post, and everybody's experiences and results are different as well.

I keep finding friends that are going through their own weight loss journey and succeeding in one way or another, and I think its important that I share any as many of these as I can. I feel that in sharing these different stories, although the goal may be the same, we will all find a different inspiration, or something that will resonate or click and that may work for us as well.

So this week, I'd like to give a "Shout Out" to my school friend, Emmy,  who I just found out has lost 80 pounds over the last 2 years!!! Wow!! What an accomplishment, but I'm not surprised. In reconnecting with Emmy on Facebook, I have come to find out that she has become an incredible athlete, and an exercise fiend. She never stops! So of course, I had to ask her what plan she was on or what her secret was so I can learn from her.

She let me know that she has been doing her own plan with her own philosophy as to how she's been succeeding.

This is what she told me, and I will let her tell you in her own words (some of it is paraphrased)

Emmy says:

"There are 3 ways to lose weight the right way:

1. THE BEST WAY & THE FASTEST: EAT HEALTHY & EXERCISE
2. EAT HEALTHY
3. PAY YOUR DUES: THAT WAS MY WAY. burn more to have a daily caloric deficit.

Sandy I LOVE to eat & I didn't want to have to go thru life missing out on good food. I've done all the diets & you know they don't work because people always put it back on...so you have to decide to make a lifestyle change & that is what I did.


MY WORK OUTS.
I fell in love with spin...you burn more in 1 class than most people do spending 2 hours in the gym & it's low impact. I SPIN A LOT (PAYING MY DUES - SO I COULD EAT. LOL) Then I do cross-fit on Saturdays to change it up so I don't plateau because after a while my body was so adapted to spin, I had to confuse it. Then I do Zumba so I'll have a fun workout & not get bored.


TAKING CHANCES
Instead of saying I CAN'T do that...I ask myself  'I wonder if I COULD do that'...and that's how I did my first triathlon...ever since then I want more. It's a rush crossing that finish line!

MY DIET:
THE BIGGEST CHANGE -
1. Switched to brown rice (can't tell this Asian girl not to eat rice. LOL)
2. Portion control - I still eat pretty much the same foods but just cut it in half.
3. Stopped eating out (restaurants don't care how much oil or butter they put on your food - just as long as it taste good).
4. I try to eat 500 calorie breakfast & lunch since I am by myself & for dinner i like to eat what the family is having. it's a pain in the ass cooking 2 different meals. (Emmy is hysterical btw)

Oh yeah, that's one thing i didn't do - weigh myself. I said I was gonna go by my clothes & not a number...'cuz I know me...if i didn't see an improvement it would discourage me, especially with all the stuff I do & they say muscle weighs more than fat.

Hope this helps -It's been a 2 year journey & still going. just remember it's a lifestyle."

                                                                 *************

Thank you Emmy for sharing all of this. You are awesome and you inspire me all the time!! I love that your message is also about not having to miss out on eating what you want...just find a way to work it off . There is always that misconception of having to deprive ourselves. It truly doesn't have to be that way.

Your idea of taking chances...that is staying with me! I hope to reach my goals using that idea.

Did you relate to something Emmy said? Did anything strike a cord with you to try or change?

Again, I hope that these stories help someone out there and show you that there are many ways of taking this weight loss journey and that it is truly a lifestyle change. Just go for it!

Thank you for stopping by and I wish you all a great Wednesday!

From my corner to yours...

Weight Watcher Wednesday- Success Shout Out

I want to do something a little different today with my WW Wednesday post today.  

I'd like to take this chance to do a quick "Shout Out" to a childhood friend of mine, Linnette.

She joined Weight Watchers

 about 8 weeks ago and has already lost 16.8 pounds! 

Way to Go, Linnette! 

 

You look great and you should be proud of yourself!!

Keep doing what you're doing!

I would love to know if anyone else out there has started a weight loss journey of their own with Weight Watchers or any other program. Please, let me know...I would love to share whatever has been working for you and bringing you success. Different things work for different people...the goal is to make a change in our lives.

Thank you Linnette for letting me share your success with others, and I hope it has motivated somebody out there today too! 

Have a wonderful Wednesday...from my corner to yours,

Weight Watcher Wednesday- Not giving up

Ok, So I can't give up! I know that, but this week continues to be a bit tough for me. After all the pushing myself to be on plan, working out to feel better and to get out of this funk, I weighed in today expecting to see some result and instead I gained this week. I don't get it! Ugghh!

Not sure what the HELL is going on, but please excuse me if I take this small chance to vent today. I'm frustrated! I'm down right now, BUT I will not dwell on it too much. Instead, I will also take this opportunity to remind myself that I can't give up.

                                      

I've worked too hard, and I ultimately know that all the hard work I put in will eventually show up and the working out is making me healthy no matter what. I'm in it for my health too!

Source: sweatyfitness.tumblr.com via Katie on Pinterest

                                                                                                                                                                          

I'm done with the griping
Thank you for listening
I hope that none of you will give up either...Fight On with me!!


Forward and onward...from my corner to yours,

Weight Watcher Wednesday- Temptations!!!!

 Have you ever had this feeling?

Hello everybody!! Today is a Weight Watcher Wednesday for me, and my Comadre and long time friend, Christina, sent me this very funny, but true depiction of what food temptation is all about.
 
Sweets, snacks.....Food!!

Decisions, decisions....To Eat it or NOT???!!!

Ugghh!

I had to laugh because I think we can all relate to this and the double sided conversations we have in our head when we get put in these food situations.  That "voice" in our head giving us justifications as to why its "ok" to eat said food, and the "rational" side of our head that knows exactly why we shouldn't!

And as a matter of fact, Christina couldn't have sent me this picture on a more appropriate day like today because I fell for that temptation this morning! I was tempted to make blueberry muffins, and so I did. That not so good "voice" in my head made it just sound soo good with a cup of coffee...Yumm! I made them as pretty and WW friendly as possible (egg whites, and non-fat milk), but they were still 3-4 points each.  However, by the time I finished one, my body had known all along that this had not been the best decision. Ugghhh!

On the other hand, I was glad to see my body is still letting me know what it wants to be given, so its always something for me to listen to and remember for next time.

And I guess since I'm checking in, here's a quick personal update:

I've reached 40.5 pounds lost and I'm still working hard! I have to be honest, I am starting to feel like I have been having to work a lot harder to lose a pound here and there. BUT I'm not giving up!
My body is forever changing and I seem to need more exercise and even more vigilance as to the foods I'm eating if I want to lose at a quicker pace. So I'm working on making that possible as my life gets busier and sometimes more challenging with all kinds of foodly temptations being thrown at me.

This picture is a daily reality for me!

How about you??

Anyway, I hope you all had a great Wednesday and may you all have a better time fighting off those pesky food voices!!

From my corner to yours,

 

Weight Watcher Wednesday- The Anniversary!!!

ITS BEEN A YEAR!!

Its actually been little over a year since I started Weight Watchers so its my 

1st Weight Watcher Wednesday Anniversary!!

As I look back at this past year and this journey, the first thing I realize is just how fast it has gone by. So I must have had some fun, right? I honestly did.

On one hand, it was a journey full of adjustments, frustrations, and disappointments at times.

 On the other hand, it was full of hope, learned control, proud moments and looser clothes!!

YAY!!!

 
I have to say I am very proud at what I have accomplished over this last year. More than losing the weight I have proven to myself that anything is possible if I put my mind to it.

 I have been dealing with my weight since I was a little girl, and before this year, I just kind of figured I would have to deal with being a plus size woman the rest of my life because losing weight was just so out of my reach. Its hard to do, but I did it!!

I DID IT!!!

My total loss for the year is 38 lbs

and

I have lost almost 4 pant sizes!!! (O.M.G!)

I could say soo much more, but I think I've taken you through my journey
 enough to know the ins and outs of my experience, but I want to share some pictures instead.

These pictures on the left are pictures from my 40th B-day party (one year ago this Friday).

 Thinking back, I couldn't wait to wear this dress..I loved it, and still do!

So, I figured the best way for me to see my change was to put the same dress on again last night,

  and have my son take a few pictures of me and compare them.

 

 

Ok, so there is a difference,
and it makes me happy to see it, but I also feel the difference in many ways. 

Not just in my clothes, but my spirit, and my energy!

But for me, I have so much more to go.
This process is NOT over!

My next goal is to reach WW Lifetime status and although I have some work to get there, 

 it is definitely attainable. I have to get there so I can keep those resources available to me

that will help me through those tough times and moments of weakness in the future.

In the meantime, I want to Thank all of you that took the time to stop by and read my WW Wednesday updates throughout the year.  I appreciate it more than you'll ever know and have felt your love and support through your comments. I've also been told by a few of you that I have inspired you to either join WW or to at least make a change in your lives. That's soo awesome!
Part of my goal in sharing these updates was to hopefully do just that,
so I am truly flattered and grateful.

As for the future of my updates, I will probably update on occasion but probably not as often as I have. And I hope to update whether its good or bad. Wish me luck!

Happy Weight Watcher Wednesday!

From my corner to yours...