I apologize for the hiatus

It's been awhile, over a week since I've posted anything, and I apologize. It's been a crazy and exciting couple of weeks. First, we have postponed the wedding to next summer. We have found our new venue and I'm really excited about it. Dancing Deer Mountain is gorgeous and I feel that we will be able to have a really awesome event out there, we also have a lot more time to save and plan, since we were so far behind on EVERYTHING. It also just works out better for everyone, which is a plus. I was looking forward to getting married in December, but it was starting to get so stressful that I wasn't sure if we'd be able to get everything done in time.

I have not been on the exercise wagon as much, and my eating wasn't the best, but I also didn't really backslide. I've held my own if anything. Thanks to the help of my new accountability buddy Jaime, I've been getting back on track and able to remember what I get so excited about when it comes to my goals and what I enjoy about my exercise schedule. I started my week yesterday with Push Circuit 1 and tonight I have Fire 30, Abs 10 and my C25K workout. I should probably get started on it soon, but I wanted to get a quick blog entry up to officially acknowledge my return.

In light of the extended wedding date, I have increased my goal from 30lbs of weightloss by the wedding to 60lbs! As I get closer to the original 30, I will then update my ticker, it's simply more motivating for me right now having 25lbs to go instead of 55lbs to go.

My eating is also going GREAT to day. I have yet to plan out dinner, but we went grocery shopping and the house has been restocked.

I hope everyone has been well the last couple weeks and I look forward to keeping you all posted on my journey. It hasn't been easy, but I've never felt this good about it before, or this encouraged. Thank you all.

Big decisions at the last moment

Today was a productive day. I went out to go look at invitations with my mom. The place we were going to go to look at them, Paper Plus, was closed. We had a brief window of time to go out and look for them and decided to try to go early in the morning on Monday before work since they opened at 7:30am, and instead try to go do some other wedding stuff. We went to Micheal's to look at what they had for possible wedding supplies, decorations and the the like. I had also remembered them having a lot of stuff in my colors.

We also were very inspired having just been at my co-worker/her employee, Brooke's, wedding the evening before. Especially when we found out that these flowers were in fact not real, but silk:

 

 We found some real awesome stuff, and also got a vision for the centerpieces more clear. It was so much fun doing wedding stuff with my mommers. We haven't done much of that yet, even with 3 months to go. 

We also found these on the wedding aisle. A DIY set that was exactly in my colors. They weren't exactly what we were talking about getting originally, but I love them. I feel a lot less anxious now that we have the invitations figured out. It also means that despite the set back of our original destination being closed, we were still able to achieve our goal. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

So we got the venue, the dress, the invitations, some of the decorations, the cake set up. But there's a lot that we are behind on, we don't have the caterer or the photographer. Also, we haven't figured out the officiant. We have a beautiful church lined up for our wedding, but it seems nice if we could have a close friend or someone who really knows us perform the ceremony. I have also just had ideas of postponing until next summer. We'd have more time to plan and save money, and an outdoor wedding sounds really nice. I am concerned about how heavy my dress is, but my mom said she knows of a great venue with lots of shade. 

It also gives us more time to get our house in order. I wish I could move into a new home for a truly fresh start, but with the housing market as it is, I'm still a few years away from being able to sell (at the soonest). So, we'll get this place all set up and ready for our new life together, all three of us. I need to get let go of a lot of stuff anyway, get my life in order. That is one thing that is part of this whole process. So we got the invitations, but have been seriously considering pushing the wedding back to late June or early July. We only have a few days to make this decision to get back half of our deposit from First Christian. The good news is that it was a small deposit, so we really would only be out $100 dollars or so. 

It was an interesting day. It was really great doing planning stuff with my mom. We were really getting into it more. It'd be nice to be able to enjoy it a little longer. Then again, I am really excited about becoming Carson's wife. I've loved him for so long, and I love him so much. As eager as I am, I want it to be right. I don't want to look back afterward, and think at all "It was a great wedding, but I kind of wish we'd waited until the summer" for whatever reason. I also want lots of room for my son to run around and play during the reception. It's not just about me and Carson. It's all of us coming together as a family. That is my focus now.

Day 14

Today was a momentous day actually. At first glance, it starts like any other. I got up, went to work, ate my usual oatmeal for breakfast, I drink my coffee, I track my calories, my life and existence as i know it now. The days count down to my wedding, 4 months and two days, so much to do. But life goes on in the midst of it all. I go to work, I sleep, I take care of and play with my lovely son.

I wonder everyday, every workout, when will I finally have melted enough layers to see myself. Today, I look in the mirror and notice something, my face is thinner, it's small, and perhaps only I notice it, but the way my hair lays, the way underneath my chin looks, there's less there. It feels like it's been so long that I've been doing this and it has and it hasn't. This bout is only a couple weeks, but then I realize that it shouldn't be looked at as "only" two weeks. It should be something to be celebrated.

So Today is August 1st!

1. it has been 2 weeks, 14 entire days of watching my food intake/calories!

2.. I have been exercising regularly for 2 weeks!

3. I completed the 1st week of  the ChaLean Extreme TurboFire Hybrid Schedule. 1 week down, 19 to go!

Every day it gets easier. It wasn't all that long ago that I was wondering how in the world I ever maintained a lower weight, how I didn't weigh 200 to 300lbs in high school. How did I eat less food? It would seem nearly impossible to stay under 1700 or 1500 cals. But it's getting easier and easier, especially the days I exercise, naturally.

Today may have started like every other, and it's ended similar to the days in the last two weeks, but it's not like every other. It's been a day to actually notice where I am going. I still can't even imagine the results, what it would look like or feel like, but I know that it will be unbelievable when I try on my dress and it fits.

Today is also day one for starting to give up meat, for at least the next four months. I slightly failed today in that I had forgotten a lunch and had a weight watchers smart ones meal in the freezer at work. It had a little bit of turkey sausage in it, so I was a little bit unsuccessful in having a meatless day, but it was the only slip up.

DAY 14!!!

Invitations...paper, paper, paper!

We went to look at paper today for invitations. We have about 6 weeks to get them selected, printed, addressed and mailed. I can't believe how quickly the wedding is coming up, and there is so much to do. I still need to finish paying off the church and then there's the food. My mom wants to do actual catering like tapas or something, I would have been happy with popcorn and candies and it could be really cute, the bottom line being inexpensive. I know it's that she just wants it to be nice, and I do appreciate that.

For my mom's wedding, she printed her own invitations, and I would like to do the same thing. Over lunch at cafe Yumm today my mom told me that it would definitely be doable and that I needed to figure out what I was going to do for the invitations themselves. She also suggested going to Paper Plus. We found some that seemed really lovely.

These are very elegant

These are very simple, and Carson loves the embossed hearts

The silver one on the right is a nice seal

This is my favorite I think

This one I think is Carson's favorite

...I guess this one is pretty cool too!