Leading By Example

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

I know I have been using a lot of shallow (for lack of a better word) reasons for motivation, mostly to do with how I want to look on the outside, but really it goes deeper than that.  I want to be a good example for my little itty bitty girl. I can't stand it when I see parents who basically say to their kids "Do as I say, not as I do".  I don't want to feed Maya healthy food and lecture her about being active when she is older, only for her to see that I am not taking care of myself. Besides, everyone knows that the most effective way to influence your children is through your actions. So today my motivation is to remember that I am now setting an example for Maya, and that it is not just about me anymore. I am convinced that most of the positive traits I possess today are a direct result of my Mother's good example growing up. 

I also feel that everyone develops some bad habits from their parents (it's only natural) which they bring into their adulthood and I want to break those habits so I don't pass them on to Maya.  My mantra today will be "do as I do", not "do as I say". 

RANT OR RAVE

I randomly came across this person's blog post the other day and it got me thinking a bit more about why I am doing all of this. She talked about how she feels that our society is too obsessed about dieting and losing weight. She feels that people should just accept themselves and start to love themselves on the inside. Though I agree on a basic level with what she says, I think it's more complicated than that.  Yes society has made women feel they have to look perfect and be stick thin for years. Yes obsession with dieting may inadvertently be causing our society to become more overweight. All of our distortions aside, the fact remains that we have an obesity problem in this country and people need to lose weight if they want to live longer.

I think "diet" really is a relative term. With all the processed foods, hormones, and increasing portion sizes, we have forgotten what eating normal looks like. We think that "dieting" is giving up junk food and eating more natural healthy food, when in fact, that is just eating normal.  We have grown up with so many bad eating habits that we don't even recognize that these habits are not supposed to be the norm. There are fad diets out there that promise you will lose ten pounds in two days, and they work, but that is not eating healthy - that is a short term solution to a much bigger problem.  I think we need to start defending food and aiming to get back to what really is a normal way of eating.  

The eating guidelines I am following allow me to get back to that, with some limited consumption in the meantime while I slowly lose weight (while enabling me to establish better habits for when I don't have to lose anymore).  I think that people who are successful in getting healthy are the people who change their lifestyle for the better, and challenge the distorted thoughts that often lead to bad choices.  In the end they do like themselves better and are not obsessed with being a size two.  So I agree we have to get away from "dieting" per se, but we do have to change our values and start taking care of ourselves! 

NOTE TO SELF

Lovely Bridesmaid

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

You may remember me talking about my beloved wedding dress and how I want to be able to fit back into it.  Well, there are a few other things that I would like to use as visual reminders to stay motivated. My bridesmaids dresses. You see, I have been mildly annoyed with the fact that it is going to take a while to get back to a healthy weight. I keep trying to tell myself that since it took years to put on the weight it will take time for it to come off. 

Enter the bridesmaids dresses. I have stood up in a few weddings over the years and each time I got measured for a dress I was bigger than the previous wedding. It kind of shows how I progressed over the years, especially because the first wedding I stood up in was around the time I was starting to become overweight. So I figure, perhaps a good way of keeping me motivated is to put each dress on, one at a time, when they start to fit so that I can slowly see the weight loss progress. It's kind of like rewinding and getting into a smaller dress each time rather than having to wear a bigger dress each time. So without further adieu, here are the dresses for your viewing pleasure. I will post pics when I start fitting into them.  

So how about we go with the biggest and work our way down:

July 2011...

April 2010...

July 2008...

October 2006...

March, 2004...

And I'll throw these in for good measure. Here are a pair of jeans I wore in 2002 that I want to fit into again as well. I don't know why I kept them, I guess I have been wanting to get back into it for quite a while and now is the time to put it into action!

After I fit into the jeans I hope to start wearing sizes that I've never been able to fit into before! So stay tuned for that as well!

RANT OR RAVE

I hate, hate, HATE, mommy guilt, it deflates me and gets in the way of my motivation because sometimes it ruins my whole day.  I am always worrying about whether what I am doing is the right thing for my child. When I finally convince myself that I am confident with a decision, someone makes one small little comment and I immediately start feeling guilty about my decision. I know it's not them, it's me. I know what I'm doing to myself when I do it, and yet I can't stop it. I don't know why I'm so sensitive to other's opinions since I have become a Mom.  I was never one of those people and now I am.  I'm lucky that I have a husband who tells me I'm doing a good job.  Ok end of rant. 

NOTE TO SELF

Out With The Old, In With The New Continued...

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

Since simplifying and finding balance continues to be my motivation again today, here is the update on the yard sale situation. 

This is all our junk as of 8am this morning (minus a table of kid stuff my triplet friend added to the pile):

This is what's left of our junk as of 2pm this afternoon with $200.00 in our pocket:

It doesn't even look like we put a dent in the pile, but really we did sell quite a few things. I was very overwhelmed with the sheer amount of stuff that we had accumulated. Seven tables full of stuff to be exact! I kept saying, I can't believe that two people could have so much stuff.  It really speaks to our western culture doesn't it? So, looks like we will be putting yard sale signs up again tomorrow for another round. This stuff is not coming back in this house!

This is me and Maya taking a break from all the haggling:

Boy it feels good to get rid of stuff!

RANT OR RAVE

I love, love, LOVE blueberries (amongst many other fruits). This time of year is great for having so much fresh produce. I'm gonna be sad when winter's here again. Anyhow, like I was saying, I love blueberries so much I thought I would do a shout out to them. I got a superb deal on the biggest, most juiciest ,blueberries ever the other day and I am eating them right now a we speak! Go blueberries!

NOTE TO SELF

Out With The Old, In With The New!

Out with old, in with the new I say! Since I am trying to establish new eating habits, I think this philosophy should also extend to other areas of my life! This will be my motivation today, to move on forward and quit holding onto things that are no longer working for me.

We have decided to finally have a yard sale to get rid of all of our junk that has accumulated in our house over the last few years. Let this yard sale be the launching of a new era in the life of me! I am metaphorically and literally cleansing myself of unnecessary things, and in turn, I will have more room for a new way of living a more simplistic life! In baby steps of course!

Here is a glimpse of just some of the stuff we are starting to gather for the yard sale! We just keep shoving it in one of the spare bedrooms and it is accumulating fast!

I have definitely been guilty of being an over consumer in the past - needing the newest fabric for the windows, buying yet another set dishes to match the new place mats, having to have the most perfectly decorated nursery, etc.  My husband and I have really had a chance to think about our lives since little Maya has come and it has helped us put things into perspective. Do we really need to have a brand new flat screen TV on the main floor AND in the basement? Do I really need a newly renovated laundry room with cute little cubbies for all of our stuff? We used to need THINGS, but now we realize that these things just cause more chaos in our lives. Yes, our family and friends have always been our priority, but we also used to spend a lot of our time buying and fixing and maintaining and cleaning and redecorating....and then buying some more.  We realized that we could never enjoy a day off because we were always running errands and taking care of our THINGS.  Now don't get me wrong, we still take pride in our home and want to create a nice place for Maya to live, but is not the "end all, be all".  Since my income has gone down with me being on parental leave, we have had to make some cut backs and by gosh, it has actually simplified our lives. I know we will always struggle with needs versus wants (we all do right?), but I strongly feel that in order to eat healthy you have to have a good balance in all areas of your life. I must aim for self improvement and re-evaluate my values and this shall be my motivation for today, my friends!

RANT OR RAVE

I tried on a pair of capri's that were pre-Maya and they fit again! I mean they fit after she was born but were uncomfortably tight. Now they just fit normal. Slow progress is happening....

NOTE TO SELF

Fat Girl In A Skinny Class

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

At my cardio kickboxing classes, there is a mirror that runs all along the main wall, which is natural for such a place.  A lot of the members sort of line up along the opposite wall, sitting on the benches, stretching, waiting for the prior class to end. We are usually all side by side, looking at ourselves in the mirror during the process. This is the time when I often get to see how I measure up to the others. Since a place like this is usually full of skinny fit people, I often feel like I stick out from the crowd. I find myself feeling even fatter than I am in comparison to everyone else. It's only natural right? When I do see a person or two who is the same as me, it's not as bad. On the other hand, although I view myself in this way, I always tell myself that it is better to be the fat girl at a workout class than it is to be the fat girl in a crowd somewhere else. At least here I am doing something about it. I know it won't always be like this. I can kick, punch, and jump like the rest of them, but some day soon I will be a skinny girl who can kick, punch, and jump! And I will kick, punch, and jump even higher and stronger than ever before.

RANT OR RAVE

Ok I know that zillions of parents have had the same woes since the dawn of time but I'm going to complain anyway. Sleep deprivation is like slow and painful torture. When you hear your little one crying for the fifth time during the night, after you finally have just reached that state where you have fallen asleep, it's absolutely MADDENING!  When it happens repeatedly you seriously begin to forget whether you are awake or dreaming. A lot of times you end up accidentally knocking the lamp onto the floor or tripping over the rug and you hear yourself cursing up a storm as you nurse or rock your sweet baby back to sleep. There is a book - a children's book for parents let's say, written about just this sort of thing. Any parent who has read it is surely nodding their heads and saying "Amen!" to the words in the book. My little itty bitty was sleeping through the night starting at Eight weeks old. The whole time she was just probably laughing on the inside because she knew that as soon as her Daddy and I started to get used to having solid chunks of sleeping hours she would switch it up and decide to get up at all hours of the night, you know, just to keep us on our toes. A few pivotal points in her plan were when she decided to get up at 3:30am the morning of her Aunt's wedding, a very important day to her Mommy, and not go back to sleep at all. Another was this past week where she felt compelled to scream bloody murder if she is not being held or rocked at a moment's notice in the night. On top of that, gas and an ear infection has left her especially clingy and whiney during the last few days, often resulting in a lack of quality naps.  Any day that Daddy would normally be able to help out, has been taken away from Mommy due to "overtime" and "paid duties". Yes, you may say, it's my fault, I rock her too much, I don't let her cry long enough, I shouldn't have given her rice cereal,  I do this, I don't do that. But oh my goodness I am trying my best and let me tell ya this lack of sleep is really affecting my work-outs and my overall sanity. The lack of sleep thing honestly never really bothered me much until these past three weeks. I usually took it in stride, knowing that it was all part of the job, however lately I just can't seem to shake the tortured feeling. But then each day comes, and the sun rises, and my cute adorable little girl smiles at me and all is forgiven, and we get on with our day. 

NOTE TO SELF

You're My Inspiration

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

Often times I gain motivation from the inspiration of others. When I see other people achieving things in their own lives it makes me motivated to do the same. I have been blessed with many amazing women in my life - so many in fact that it is almost overwhelming.  The fact that I have been exposed to so many strong women in my lifetime has no doubt had a huge impact on who I am today. So, every once in a while, in no particular order,  I will post something about one of these women.  It will be a tribute to the example they have set for others, which in turn keeps me motivated to stay on track with my own goals. 

First up - one of my best friends.

This woman is part of an amazing group of gals who I call my best friends. The four of us have all known each other since the days of our youth and have been together through many life experiences over the years. 

This particular lady is an inspiration to me because life has thrown her a few unexpected surprises, and she has taken them in stride, almost making it look easy. She's the mother of four boys under the age of seven, including triplets.   She is the hub of everything in her home, the glue that keeps it all together, the one who gets it done. Her boys are her everything and she is everything to her boys. Sure, she has had the occasional melt down (who wouldn't?), but she only lets herself have a moment of insanity and then it is back to the task at hand. I have been to her house, I have seen how much work it is for her. Yes, I know there are lots of people who have more than one child, but not all at once by surprise. Any mother of multiples will tell ya, it's a different life!  On top of this, she has recently decided to go back into the workforce and have her three year olds in day care....a difficult decision I'm sure she had to make! Now it will be balancing work and family life, and all the chaos in between. She is an inspiration to me because she gets up every day and she does the best she knows how, to give her boys a good life.  I know that there are times when she feels torn because she cannot give a hundred percent attention to all of them at the same time, but she is doing her best, and she is doing a good job. There's much more to this lady than just the "Mom" hat that she wears, but for the sake of time lets just say thinking about this person gives me strength and motivation to keep going when I am feeling overwhelmed with day to day life. Thanks girl, you are my inspiration and therefore my motivation for today!

RANT OR RAVE

So after talking about the pretty little sunrise I was able to look out onto yesterday morning, I had another surprise in my back yard that afternoon.  The geese are back!

All is well until Gunther decides to go in for the kill and they start to get the heck out of there. 

Having an open back yard has it's perks in that we often get to be spectators to nature's creatures who decide to stop by and say hello. I was very surprised when I looked out the window and saw the geese visiting at this time of year. Usually they only hang out in the spring and fall. They usually come in huge flocks. The previous owners of our house said there were two geese in particular that came back to visit every year. They gave them food and names.

I forget what they named them, but after we moved in these two only came back a few times and then never returned because of this guy:

I also saw a blue jay hanging around my snapdragons last week. Every day he showed up. I wanted to take a picture but I was always busy with Maya.  On Saturday I was sitting under a tree with some relatives when we counted ten monarch butterflies scurrying around.

So when I saw the geese come back, it got me to thinking of some of the other nature type pictures we have been able to take from our own back yard over the past few years. 

Here are a few:

Eeeek! A coyote kept lurking around last summer. 

We see deer every so often. These two kiddies were so cute! They kept wrestling around the yard.

There is so much beauty around us. 

I like finding beauty everywhere I go, even if I am just on a trip to the gas station! There are so many times when I say to myself, "Oh look at that, it is so beautiful, I wish I had a camera with me!".  Many times this happens on my 45 minute commute to work through rural highways.  You would be surprised what you see driving down the same road on a daily basis. 

Anyhow, to my point. This Rave is about how much I love my back yard, and all the pretty little things in nature that one see's in a lifetime. These are the things that often keep me centred.  They help me remember that there are things bigger than me out there, and that my outward appearance is just one part of me.  So maybe once in a while I will post a picture or two that I have taken over the years of things that are beautiful in my eyes. So stay tuned for that.

NOTE TO SELF

Back Fat Go Away!

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

Back fat. It is very real to me. I want it GONE!

Today I am motivated to get rid of it for good. 

RANT OR RAVE

My itty bitty has an ear infection. Boo! She didn't sleep well last night. It was also an early morning. The plus side of mornings like this is I get to watch the sun come up on the lake behind my back yard. Too bad most of it is blocked by houses :) Still nice to see. 

So this morning I am giving a thumbs up to the sun and the little pretty things in life. 

NOTE TO SELF

Beloved Wedding Dress

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

Today I was going through one of my closets that I don't go into very often and I came across my wedding dress that I wore five years ago. Of course it no longer fits me. Today's motivation is to be able to fit into that dress again. When I do, I will take a picture and post it. I will also wear my wedding ring. That will represent my half way point to my weight loss goals. So stay tuned for that!  

Here's what it looked like. 

My sister who recently got married said that a bunch of people she works with are going to have a party where they all wear their wedding dresses. I thought that was a fabulous idea because, hey, some people spend a fortune on their dress and feel all wonderful in it and then only get to wear it for one day!  Maybe I'll have a wedding dress party myself sometime in the future! 

RANT OR RAVE

Ode to Barbecue

Oh how I love you barbecue

When summer's here it's all up to you

Kabobs, chops, and veggies too

I cook up my meal while taking in the view

Food from your grill tastes the best

Another great meal I will ingest

As the sun goes down into the west

I sit on my porch and have a nice rest

I love you barbecue!

I think I may end up being the next great canadian poet! What do you think?

NOTE TO SELF

I Ran Into Myself

TODAY'S MOTIVATION

I went to a BBQ on the weekend and while I was there I ran into myself. What I mean is, there was someone there that I see from time to time, who reminds me a lot of myself. This person is the nicest person, but struggles to lose weight just like me. How do I know? Well, it isn't by her telling me so. It is in the way she dresses, the way she talks, the ways she acts, etc. You see, no one ever says it, but you can spot a person like this a mile away. Really, it's like wearing a heart on your sleeve. People's outsides usually always give them away in the end. Even when they act their normal wonderful social self. If what I am saying does not make sense, well, then I will get to my original point which is that I ran into myself. When this occurred it was like looking into a mirror and it forced me to further reflect on my current journey. 

When I did so, I realized that I used to be just like this person, but now I am different. It's like the process of me changing my habits has allowed me to step into a category outside of them. It made me really look at what I used to be like and now I am grateful that I am no longer like that. Ok let me explain it in a different way. It's like an ex-smoker looking at a group of smokers and being glad that they are "no longer one of them".  It motivates me to keep going, because I know I've changed. 

RANT OR RAVE

Our cardio kickboxing instructor has challenged us all to go a whole day without eating any processed foods. I chose to do it yesterday. What a great idea, except, in the end I caved! In theory it doesn't sound that bad, but, my goodness I just couldn't seem to give up the only two processed foods that I still eat these days: salad dressing and margarine! Well, ok, I guess I could make my own dressing if I just made the effort. But trying to reproduce the affects of margarine on your potatoes is difficult. And it just so happened that we had some roasted potatoes with dinner last night. I thought about having some fat free sour cream on them but that is also processed.  

So there you have it, I wasn't able to do it. Who thought something so small could corrupt your whole plan! And another thing: I cannot seem to quit starches all together! I still have to have the odd potato or rice every now and then to stay sane. It's a product of my childhood I tell ya!

NOTE TO SELF