It's official!

I'm 40 years old now. :) I remember being a kid and my parents being 40 and it seemed so old. Then you get a little older, go to college, me a great guy, get married, have kids, and suddenly 40 isn't so far off!

It's not a secret that I've struggled with food and my weight for years. I've been very vocal about it and it wasn't until just recently that something clicked in my brain and it (slightly) changed the way I look at food and eating habits. I'm not perfect; I will still eat ice cream and chocolate; I love Mexican food and margaritas; pasta is my enemy but it's damn good, especially with cheese. ;) But I've learned I don't have to eat that every day and when I do I don't need to eat enough to feed a village. Moderation.

I've also recently started running which you know if you've been reading my blog (as few and far between as the posts have been.) It's not something I can say I LOVE but it is something that I can do so that a) I can eat the above mentioned foods, b) I can be healthy, and c) see small changes in my body and my outlook toward exercise. Plus, I get to run with a pretty cool chick.

I feel very blessed to be celebrating my 40th birthday. I've made it this far and I'm healthy, I'm happy, I'm wiser than I was a few years ago, I've learned to love myself more each day regardless of my weight, size, height - I am who I am (thanks Popeye) and you can love me or leave me.

I am blessed because I get to celebrate my birthday with my husband who is coming home (and who is actually moving back home from Tucson but shhh, it's still on the DL) and my two gorgeous, happy, healthy children on my actual birthday. Then a week later I will celebrate back in CA with all my friends and family (thank you Elizabeth for letting me celebrate my day on YOUR day.)

I truly believe it takes a village to raise a family and your family is not only those related by blood but those who you choose to have in your life to help support you, raise you up when you are down, and stand by you in times of struggle or pain. I choose/chose my friends for so many reasons but I love you all for just as many reasons. My family is amazing, supportive, and always there for me when I've needed a shoulder to cry on, someone to vent to, laugh with, enjoy all the amazing wondrous things of life (including births of babies - can't wait to meet my new niece Isabel any day now!) I love you all with all my heart. <3

So look out world, here I come! I'm 40, fabulous, and looking forward to another decade of life, experience, love, family, friends, joy, and anything else you can throw at me. Come on, whatcha got?!?

~with much love, always

Just a few more hours...

until..... birthday time!!!

Cheers moment

Ok, so this may sound really lame to some people but bear with me that this has never happened to me before. I've been running with a friend for a couple of months now at least twice a week. It keeps getting earlier and earlier because we live in the desert and it's 110* by noon - so we run at 6 am. We run a 5K and then stop at Starbucks on the way before finishing off the mile walk back home. I always order a Passion Iced Tea, unsweetened, extra ice because I'm not a coffee or caffeine drinker. Today, my friend ordered her drink first and the gal behind the counter looked at me and said "Same? Passion Tea, unsweetened?" I responded yes and she had it waiting for me at the register when I got there to pay. Holy cow! I've never been anywhere enough times to have someone remember my drink/food order. Like I said, kinda lame but I was thrilled that I had my Cheers moment. :)

On a side note... I'm going to be fricking 40 tomorrow!!!! Woot woot!

~with much love, always

Weigh In

Starting weight: 158.6 (2/24/11)
6/1/11: 157.6
6/17/11: 157.0

Slow and steady, right?

On a side note my running is getting better, easier and I worked out on the elliptical today because it is just too hot to run and I hate getting up at 6 am this much during the summer. :)

~with much love, always

Quotes

“The way you eat is inseparable from your core beliefs about being alive. Your relationship with food is an exact mirror of your feelings about love, fear, anger, meaning and transformation.”

—  Geneen Roth

No kidding.

~with much love, always

Quotes

“A man’s worth is measured by how he parents his children. What he gives them, what he keeps away from them, the lessons he teaches and the lessons he allows them to learn on their own.”

—  Lisa Rogers

~with much love, always

Water Pressure

I'm kind of a water pressure snob when it comes to taking a shower. When I go to a hotel that doesn't have good enough pressure for my shower, I'm supremely disappointed and will actually complain about it every time I take a shower (pisses Brian off, too, when I complain like that.) So, I really hate when I get up and am really looking forward to that nice, hot, strong shower and I forget that my sprinklers are on and it JACKS UP MY WATER PRESSURE!! Ugh, my morning kinda sucks now and I have to go to a meeting that is not fun (for a position that is a volunteer position no less.)

I need a job so I can get paid for all my hard work.
And, I need to remember not to shower when the damn sprinklers are on.

~with much love, always

“The roles we play in each other’s lives are only as powerful as the trust and connection between us.” ~Oprah

~with much love, always

Starting weight: 158.6 (2/24/11)
4/1/11: 157.0
6/1/11: 157.6

If I could only control my eating habits I think I would be super successful. I've been maintaining pretty well with the exercising I've been doing so it's all food at this point. The worst part is that I "know" all the correct things to do... I just don't do them. Sigh.

23 days and counting....

~with much love, always