Anniversary re-wind.

Joel and I were married three years ago on Star Wars Day (I was not informed beforehand that our special day was Star Wars Day until afterwards...bad Joel!) in New Albany, IN, just over the river from Louisville. It was a small ceremony, with an attendance of just 16 people.  It was perfect, and everything went mostly smoothly, even though we planned it from Germany. 

We spent our first Anniversary on a Mediterranean cruise, and on our second Anniversary Joel was deployed.  This year, we decided to keep it low key since we had traveled so much, but still wanted to do something new.  We had never been to The Melting Pot before, and that it might be fun to try out. 

Now, we don't frequent the chain places so much, but I must say we had a fun time eating here.  The waitress was super friendly and very informative, and cooking our own food was pretty fun!

I was really glad we decided to give it a try, but it was quite the dining experience.  It took us about two and a half hours to get through the cheese, salad, meat, and dessert courses.  While this food wasn't exactly on the diet, it was a fun experience.  The dogs, however, couldn't even be bothered to wish us a Happy Anniversary.  Jerks...
 

Working on my Fitness - Sucks

I don't know how much I have gone into this, but weight has been an issue for me as long as I can remember.  When I was little, little, I was a chubby kid.  Cue big chubby cheeks and Michelin Man legs.  It was adorable then, but I stayed this way until about 3rd grade.  Once third grade hit, I was in full tomboy mode.  I became skinny as a rail because I was just so darn active, always playing neighborhood basketball, riding my bike everywhere, etc.  It was great.  I never had to worry about weight.  This even carried through Junior High.  Only somewhere around 8th grade, I became more girly, and therefore much more self-conscious.


I stayed pretty active in high school.  I weighed anywhere from 115-120 pounds.  Even then, I thought I was "the fat girl."  I constantly grabbed my stomach "fat" and refused to wear a bikini in front of my friends.  (What I wouldn't give to have that body now).  My weight and self-esteem ebbed and flowed throughout my four years of high school, and by the end of my senior year, I felt pretty "ok" with myself.  I was about 115 lbs, finally got comfortable with doing something worthwhile with my hair, and even lipstick every now and then.  This was a big deal to the tomboy in me!  I never had a shortage of guys interested in me, although I always felt like I was the girl that the other guys didn't want, so whoever talked to me got "stuck" with me.  I don't know where this lack of self-esteem came from, but oh, buddy.  It was there.

See that confidence?  Where did it go?

In college, I definitely kept going back and forth with my weight.  I was ranging from 115lbs - 130lbs.  Whenever I saw that 130 something number, I would crazy yo-yo diet.  Starve myself, take weight loss pills that made me crazy, etc.  I got into a serious relationship, put on tons of weight while with him, and went on another crazy diet to lose the weight when we broke up.  See the cycle here?

College is O-V-E-R.  Weight battle still on-going.

Right around 23 - 24 years old, I realized that the yo-yo dieting wasn't working anymore.  I had to incorporate more fitness into my routine.  Of course, I made this realization way later than I should have.  I went into a pretty big slump (not depressed, just...a slump) and skyrocketed to my highest weight ever.  I weighed in at 167 pounds, which is definitely not healthy on my 5'4" frame.  I had to do something.  I ate better, exercised more, and dropped the weight.  My body of course had changed (hello boobs and hips) and I was down to a comfortable 135lb weight.  I knew I would never be as thin as I was, but this was a comfortable weight for me.  I could still eat some of the things I loved, but just balanced it with workouts.  I was ok with not having a flat stomach.  I was finally confident.

Wedding day.  Not the size I wanted to be.

This is where I was at when I met Joel.  I weighed about 140lbs when we were married.  That wasn't ideal, but it was "ok."  Somewhere along the way I forgot the fitness part of my routine, as well as that "sensible" eating part.  When Joel and I had been married almost 2 years and he deployed, I weighed in at about 150lbs.  It was bad.  This is not healthy.  I was not healthy.  Joel was gone for six months, and when he came home, I was back down to 138.  Once again, I felt good about myself and how fit I felt.  I promised to keep going.  But I didn't.
 

Me at my heaviest :(

I am almost 30 years old (eek!), but I finally realize that I have a problem.  I did not grow up in a family that valued physical health/fitness.  We ate everything a good family did: fried this and buttery that.  I didn't learn from my family good things like portion control, balance, and making fitness a priority.  I was just such an active kid naturally that I never had to put any real effort into it.  But, all that aside, I need to change.  I have an unhealthy obsession with food, and it's hard for me to say no when offered something.  So many important family and life events have revolved around food.  I really need to watch what I'm putting into my body, and stop yo-yo dieting: I need to eat in a way that is sustainable.  And frankly, I need to get off my my lazy butt and make fitness a priority.  No excuses!

Feeling confident and fit.

I heard someone say once that eating right was 70% of the battle and working out was 30%.  Whether true or not, I need to d something different.  Last week I weighed in at 155lbs.  That is 17lbs more than I weighed last August.  I know it's not going to be easy, but I need to make a lifestyle change.  I need to sustain this way of life, because I know things are only going to get harder as I get older.  I started back up the Couch to 5K program, and am on week two this week.  It's a small step, but I really do miss that feeling after completing a 5K.  I am also going to try and go on bike rides with Joel, and try to make more of our date nights activity orientated.  I know I said it before, but I really want to make myself accountable.  Even Joel doesn't know my real weight (although he may now...hi, honey!).  Wish me luck.  I have never made myself so vulnerable when talking about my weight.

Me, April 2013.  Just turned 29.

Weekend Update - Memorial Day Weekend Edition!

Wow...what a weekend will do!  I had off Friday through Monday, and it was a pain starting back up at work yesterday.  My body did not want to leave the comfort of my bedroom.  Luckily things are better with family back in Indiana, so at least for now I can breathe a sigh of relief on that end, for now.

Not a whole lot happened on Friday.  We are going to start remodeling our master bathroom soon, so we looked and priced out tile, flooring, cabinets, etc. (so exciting, I know you're jealous).  While I don't have a picture of exactly how it is going to look, this is the picture I am using for inspiration.  Minus the blue.

Saturday we grilled out and just hung around the house.  We bought frames for some pictures/art we wanted to put up, went though some old clothes and donated them, and, well...that was about it.


On Sunday, Joel and I settled in for our long anticipated premiere of season four of Arrested Development.  When I saw the first episode of this show way back when, I kind of hated it.  But, when Joel and I got together he convinced me to give it another try, and I am sooooooooo glad that I did.  It's seriously hilarious.  We decided to settle in and have an AD marathon, and Joel got a new ale to try for the event.

If you didn't know, Joel is from Portland, OR.  Although I have never been, Voodoo Doughnut has been voted one of the best doughnut shops in the U.S.  So this had to be good, right?  Wrong!  It's absolutely disgusting.  Warning: don't try it.  Even Joel couldn't finish it.

The verdict on Arrested Development?  Not as good (so far) as the previous seasons, but "ok."  Hopefully it gets better.

Monday we started off the day with a moment of silence for the service members that never made it home.  We both know people that paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country, and first and foremost wanted to pay tribute to them as well as thank God for each new day.

Then, we decided to go to the St. Louis Science Center and check it out.  It's free to visit, but parking is usually $10.  We happened to have a free parking pass that was set to expire this week, so we didn't let that go to waste.  It was...ok.  Clearly we went sans kids, and maybe it would have been more fun if we had some, but there was next to zilch for adults.  And this is coming from a science geek (*cough* Joel *cough*).

 

All in all it was a much needed period to just get things done.  I also got started running again, and even went on a bike ride around the neighborhood.  I know, right??  A friend of mine signed us up for a 5K obstacle course, and I refuse to look stupid and out of shape.  Hopefully this is just the kick in the rear that I need.

An Art Affair to Remember!

Joel and I love getting out and enjoying the weather when it's as gorgeous out as it has been, and last weekend (Friday in particular) the weather was simply perfect.  Belleville, a little gem in the St. Louis Metro East area, holds an art show that has been voted #1 or #2 in the country for quite some time now.

While I wouldn't consider myself an art expert by any means, I do think it's fun to look around and appreciate the talents of those that were displaying their work.  Belleville is a small-ish town (about 46,500 people), but they all came out in full force for Art on the Square.  I wish I would have gotten more pics in, but I was just having too much fun being there!

The crowd.

I love to see everyone come out to support this!

Most booths didn't allow photos, but luckily this one did.  These were hand painted boxes.

The beautiful fountain on the circle on Main Street.

A picture we bought to add to our collection.

Afterwards, we went to another Metro East Hotspot, 17th Street BBQ.  It was voted best BBQ in St, Louis, Top 10 BBQ spots in the U.S., and best BBQ ribs in the country, Among many other accolades.  While the BBQ is quite delish (but, sadly not my favorite), we had already eaten a little at the fair and weren't super hungry.  But we ordered the real star of this place: the corn muffins.  Best.  Appetizer.  Ever.  Sweet and soft and oh so warm, these are the real reason to visit this little BBQ joint.  And the honey butter...words cannot describe.

A rare slow moment for the place.

The best corn muffins in the world.

Carrie Underwood - Blown Away

First of all, thank to all for your kind words of support.  Things have settled down back in Indiana, but they're not "fixed" yet.  Hopefully things will work out.

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you some pictures from when I saw Carrie Underwood in concert.  The photos came out pretty well, and I know I love to see sneak peeks of shows that I am going to see.  Hunter Hayes opened up for her, and they we're both exciting to watch.  The last song Carrie sang was "Blown Away," and she actually had a tornado-ish on stage.  Crazy!

It's been a while...

Sorry it's been few days since I've been on here!  I got some potentially bad news over the weekend concerning my family back in Indiana, so while I am dealing with that, I will actually be taking a break from blogging every day.  Hopefully it will blow over soon, but until then, I don't want to go into too many details about what's been happening.

Joel and I had a lovely weekend, though.  We went to an art show Friday night, where we snagged a photograph on stretched canvas, and enjoyed the beautiful weather (pictures to come).  On Saturday, Joel went to see the New Star Trek movie (sans moi), and I had some much needed girly time.  And on Sunday, we volunteered at an event supporting my favorite non-profit, which I also plan to expand on later.

Right now I am just emotionally spent.  Add on to that the tragedy in Oklahoma and the potential for similar weather here this week, and I guess I am just not in the "bloggy" mood.  Hopefully I can get some pictures uploaded tonight so I can have something with more substance to write tomorrow.  In the meantime, I am so glad to have those of you who read this little piece of my world.  I love to write, and while I'm never going to be a published author, I love sharing my story.  So thanks.

Story of My Life - Day 17

Link up here!

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Day 17, Friday: A favorite photo of yourself and why

 

So, this may seem silly, but this is my favorite picture of just myself. Sure, there are a ton I like of me and Joel or me and our pets, but this picture was taken of me before I ran my first race (it was a "themed" run) and when I was at my happiest with my weight/self. I was tan, in shape, and really proud of myself for getting there. Hopefully I can get my rear in gear and get just as motivated to get back to my fitness level/weight here.