Random June Photos

SAVE ME!

 (on a side note, someone needs their nails clipped!)

Girls' Night Out
(There is the most random story behind this flag but it is too long to tell) ;)

My cardio dance partners Danelle and Elena!

New headlamps!

Everyone is into the headlamps at our house now!

Our first beach day of the summer!

And BOY was it windy!  That is Lollipop's WINDY face ;)

These kids don't care about the wind.

This dog does care about the wind. 

Movie date with the kiddos.  We saw "Epic".  I give it one thumb up. I may or may not have dozed off a bit in this one ;)

Workout Selfie in my Never Give Up tank.  Get yours here: thegsf.org/shop   

And you can follow me now on Instagram.  I broke down and finally joined ;) 

Our first harvest from the summer garden!

Getting the hang of chopsticks.  Not getting the hang of small bites.

Summer garden playdate with the girls 

Leila and Thatch on a date.

Miso soup lover. 

Monsters University, TWO THUMBS UP on this one!

I don't think Thatcher has ever had a full sized candy bar before. 

The fun-sized Snickers are less mess ;)

We are still producing record-breaking lemons over here.  Want some?

We have gotten more than our monies worth out of last year's Halloween costumes

Hi Lolly!

Planking.

Sam is back in swim lessons.  We are getting there. I realize now we needed to stick with the lessons that we started when she was younger.  I would correct that mistake by getting Thatcher in the water with lessons now but he has absolutely no interest.

Samantha had her first shampoo at a salon.  

All trimmed up and healthy again ;)

Made it to the top of Romero Canyon this time.  

Thatcher can now ride Samantha's big girl bike.  His feet barely touch the ground it is so tall for him. 

We attended the Natural History Museum wine festival

Celebrating Drea's Birthday

SMILE!

Farmers' Market

Bike ride to the park.

Looks like Sam has a tail.

Thatcher has a large helmet.

On to July ;)

The NEW Me

At first I was embarrassed to have the world see my before/after photos and then I got over it and said what the heck, I worked hard and gosh darn it, it’s another level of accountability to add to my belt as I am not going back to a belt that size ever again! 

 With the help of Drea McLarty, I have FINALLY changed the way I think about food and exercise.  Drea has freed me of what feels like a lifetime of counting calories, counting carbs, yo-yo dieting, gaining weight, losing weight, gaining more weight and on and on. I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired about my weight. I’m talking to you fellow low-carb dieter who would fall off the wagon and devour an entire pizza or have actual conversations with a breadbasket that was staring at you. I’ve tried eating no fat, became a vegetarian, eating paleo, cabbage soup diets, gluten-free, dairy-free, starvation diets, shake diets, DONE! I’ve yo-yoed up and down for as long as I can remember. Before kids, after kids, in between kids, before wedding, after wedding, you name it, up and down, sometimes 15 pounds in a month. I had two sets of wardrobes in my closest, “fat” and “skinnier”.   FAT are now at the Goodwill along with a box of fad diet books.  Not going back, EVER!

So here are the pictures!!! Yes, posted on Drea’s blog and YES, posted on Facebook. Shudder, right?! I surely could have gotten a tan on those AFTER photos, put on a little makeup or had my roots touched up don’t ya think?!

On 1/4/13 I had my first meeting with Drea.  Steadily I lost a pound a week until here I am now maintaining a 20 pound weight loss (down 10 more than I thought I could ever be), feeling confident, strong, fit and thankful.  I have never lost weight at a gradual pace and at first I was a little concerned thinking my lifestyle changes weren't working but soon realized that this was the right way to do it.   

From the start, Drea has told me that we all underestimate how much you have to move each day and we all need to make better choices.  These choices will become habits and eventually a lifestyle.  No dieting, just better choices.  Saying “No” here and there so that on the days I say “Yes” they are worth it.  It is not about a cheat day (which by the way, cheat day = setting yourself up for failure because I don’t know one person who isn’t counting down until that cheat day.  Six days of eating clean and then blowing it on a weeks worth of calories doesn’t work.  At least it didn’t for me....).  And yes, I do a pretty killer workout with Drea several times a week on top of working out on my own. It's hard work but I have learned how to fit it into my schedule and make it part of my lifestyle.  Drea is the ultimate motivator and I can't thank her enough for guiding me through this process.  

I now enjoy working out.  I enjoy eating healthy.  I love being fit.  I love that I can run, I’m still slow, but I am running trails, running sometimes over ten miles, working out in the morning and going back at night. I am also excited to announce that I just signed up for my first half marathon this November as part of TEAM GSF!  Fitness and health is a priority to me now.  I love food, real food!  Fresh fruits and vegetables and lean proteins.  My husband is amazed that I am eating fruit because for years I have turned my nose up at it for fear of having any sugar!  My husband is also amazed that he is not sent to pick up take-out on way more nights than he used to.  Do I miss it?  No!  Because I can still have it, just not every damn day!  Novel concept right?! 

So there you have it world, my ass is on display but it is not as mortifying as you would think knowing that your new ass can fit into the same size jeans than you wore in high school.  And this transformation is more than about how I look on the outside, it is the change on the inside that I am most proud about.