Comeback

Success is an powerful thing...but so is perceived failure. Have you ever felt like you couldn't quite get it together? Ever sat on your bedroom floor and cried because your jeans didn't fit without the help of a crowbar and a jar of Crisco?

Being a grownup can be really overwhelming. Career, family, household, social life; sometimes it feels like you're so far off the mark you're not sure if you'll ever figure it out. But here's the truth...nothing will change until you're brave enough to try to change it yourself and no one's going to do it for you. Time to be brave and make a comeback.

Game Plan

*Meal planning. I found healthy and totally delicious recipes on this website. Time to put them to use:

http://www.skinnytaste.com/

*Attemp not to eat every cookie/cupcake/roll that comes into my line of sight. Seriously. I need to exhibit a little self control and have visuals with goals in mind. I'm going to make this fella to help out:



*Couch to 5K starts today!

 

And last but not least, every good comeback needs a theme song. Here's mine:




*MUAH*

In Search of the Sparkle

It's been over a year since I stopped blogging. I'd like to tell you everything has gone fabulously, that I've dropped more pounds due to a diligent healthy eating and exercise program...but that hasn't happened. While the train hasn't derailed, it's definitely stalled on the tracks. Weight came back on...not all of it, but enough of it to give me a wake up call. I'm slipping further away from my goal and it's frustrating, but I have no one to blame but myself.  Life got busy and I chose to let it get in the way.

The last few weeks I've read so many inspiring articles about people obtaining their goals and it got me thinking..."What happened to my success?" "What are my goals"? "Where's my accountability?" and dammit "Where did my sparkle go?"

You see, it isn't all about weight loss, it's about feeling good. A sense of accomplishment and taking care of oneself. Distractions and excuses got in my way and I lost my direction but most importantly, I feel like I've lost of my sparkle.

Well, a princess can't be without her sparkle, so it's back to business I go. Time to dust of the cookbooks and the workout shoes. Time to stop feeling sorry. Time to start feeling better. That's right sparkle, I'm coming for ya.

*MUAH*

Back To Business

I'm grateful for awesome, loving family and friends... I'm grateful for understanding and caring coworkers... I'm grateful for time to rest... I'm grateful for the most patient, amazing husband ever... And now I'm grateful for getting back to business.

I'm still a little worn out and rough around the edges, but this week I'm going to start back with light workouts and my first full week back to work. I'm 17 pounds away from my "under 200" goal - so let's get things back on track! I'm looking for new recipes, exercise ideas and new places to visit, so please feel free to share. Here's what I'm loving lately:


Label M Salon Products - My very favorite Twin Cities salon - Bella Edina - is carrying the best new product line ever! It's straight from London and it's amazing. I've been using their Volume Foam and Dry Shampoo. The product is lightweight, high quality and actually does what it's supposed to do - a miracle! Bella is the only salon in the area to carry this line, so stroll on through and snatch some up:

Bella Edina
5015 Ewing Avenue South
Edina, MN 55410
(612) 928-7835

And while you're there you could always make an appointment with my stylist, (hair magician and very best friend) Ashleigh Banks or with one of the other lovely and highly talented Bella stylists.


Kioyonna - If you're a curvy girl, you've got to check out Kiyonna. I've never been disappointed by a purchase. These poeple know how to dress curves and manufacture one heck of a garment. I've got a huge "wish list" going. Check them out online, you'll thank me:

http://www.kiyonna.com/plus-size-clothing/New_Arrivals.html



Tradtional Medicinals Tea - I love coffee. I actually love the things I put in coffee like skim milk and sugar more, but those aren't always the best things for you. So I'm working on loving tea. It's not my favorite, but I'm learning. Traditional Medicinals is my favorite brand. It's an herbal tea line, and I'm now addicted to their Organic Green Tea with Ginger and Nighty Night Tea.


Yay for trying new things and getting back to old routines. Here's to a fresh start and feeling better! *MUAH*

Don't Worry, Be Happy.

It's been almost month since I last checked in and it's been a wild ride. So here goes...

The good news is I'm not allergic to dairy (yay for butter!) but the bad news is I'm going to need a little more than some Tums to solve my tummy ache.

My lack of energy and awful tummy pains brought me to my doctor. My doctor found a fibroid (a non-cancerous tumor) on my uterus. It's a common condition that tons of women deal with and is usually be resolved with a quick office visit. Unfortunately my case is not so simple. The fibroid is large and in a complicated spot, so I'll have to have open abdominal surgery to remove it and repair the damage it's done. So, after the 26th of August it'll be six solid weeks of rest for this girl.

Am I scared? Yep. Am I tough? Yep. Will I get through this and get right back to losing the 19 pounds that are standing in the way of my first big weight loss goal? Yep. And most importantly, will I feel better after all this is done? Yep.

I have an amazing family and group of friends. I feel loved and blessed and ready to go, and in the mean time I'm going to keep up with the healthy eating and exercise, because I've lost 45 pounds (yay for 45 pounds!) but I have more to go and I'm ready to be healthy on the inside too.

Well enough of that serious stuff...no need to worry, here's what's been keeping me happy:

Kiss Print Skirts and Little Black Tanks Tops

My Husband's "Peter Griffin" Laugh

Hilarious Parties with Hilarious Boys

Toes in the Sand

Chubby-Cheeked Baby Cheerleaders

Smiling Puppies

And Of Course...

*MUAH*

Temptation

"I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it." - Mae West

Staying on track is serious business. I've got vices and I'm certainly not going to pretend that I've suddenly acquired an iron-clad willpower. So what does one do to keep one's self in check? Here's what helping me stay focused this week:

Dessert
I've got a major sweet tooth. My tummy always thinks there's room for dessert but that doesn't go so well with the nutrition plan. Enter my newest find: Temptations by Jello - Strawberry Cheesecake. These are delicious and help to avoid a spontaneous Cheesecake Factory visit. Yum!

Shopping
I could shop all day, every day. I particularly enjoy shopping with other people's money so if you have any spare money laying around just waiting to be spent, let me know because I'd be happy to take it off your hands...
Anyways, as fabulous as a good shopping trip can be, it's an expensive habit (and nobody likes a big pile of debt) so I'm in constant search of the elusive "good bargain" but it's got to be good quality and uber cute.  My newest favorite find is Len. It's Len Druskin's outlet store and it's chock-full of cute clothes, jewelry, purses and shoes (I've still gotta shop people). It's the perfect place for a former "Galleria" girl, who's working on a budget...and who the hell isn't on a budget these days?

http://www.shoplen.com/

It's been a crazy week and it's easy to lose focus when you're in the middle of chaos. In an effort to keep the food and exercise in order, my newest source of motivation will be taking up prime real estate on my refrigerator door:

As you see I've got some work to do, so I better start with some beauty rest!

*MUAH*

A Dose of Perspective

Sometimes life is hard and sometimes life is easy-breezy. Sometimes life is neat and sometimes life is oh so messy.

I've been messy lately...and whiny...and lazy. I've been wrapped up in the comings and goings of not-so- important things and seem to have lost my focus and with it, my perspective.

I've been bouncing up and down between the same three pounds for a month because I've lost my focus. I haven't blogged in nearly a month because I've lost my focus. Quality time with my husband and family? I'm absorbed in my own nonsense and there went my focus. Finding the sunshine in a cloudy day? There's that focus again. Little things started to seem big and big things started to seem unbearable. Excuses started to get in the way. Life started to get "messy" and "overwhelming" and then things on my to-do list were getting shelved.

Well this weekend I was given a healthy dose of perspective. I heard very sad news about a very young person who lost their life to cancer. Gone like that. Nothing I have going on is that overwhelming, not even close.

Complaining seems to be an epidemic these days, and here's the truth - we all have a lot to look forward to and a lot to get done. So I'm going to do myself a favor, pull myself up by the my bootstraps and dig my focus out of that pile of negativity. Time to get back to business...starting with a trip on elliptical and a snuggle with my adorable fluffy pup and my favorite blue-eyed boy.


*MUAH*

Dear Sarah...

Dear Sarah,

This is your last week of boot camp. Final weigh-in and fitness assessment are next Tuesday. You've worked for months, losing weight and learning how to live - but it's time for new adventure. So here's a little advice for the next chapter...

*Don't forget to eat your fruits and veggies. They make you happy...and less chubby.
*Set new goals and work with everything you've got to make them happen.
*Don't be too hard on yourself. You've got work to do, but you've also got a lot to be proud of. Nobody's perfect kid, nobody.

*Don't forget where you were...

*Or how far you've come...

*Or where you want to be...

 

 

*Be bold. Because you've already posted a picture of yourself on the Internet in swimsuit, so there's not much left to hide.

*Don't forget to blog. Share your stories - your successes and failures, because you'll have some of both and writing about them helps figure it all out.

*Do want you can. Everyone else and everything else will sort itself out.


You've come a long way babe. I'm excited to see what you do next... XOXO, Sarah