Red, White and Blue, Y'ALL!

Hello Everyone! I’d like to start by giving a birthday shout out to my Dad! His birthday is on Wednesday.  We are going to see Bob Dylan and a few other bands so I hope it’s a good birthday for him!

Also, I would like to say an early happy birthday to America!  I am ever so grateful for all the men and women who have served our country.  I hope you all have a safe and fun time celebrating this week!

As you may remember, I didn’t post last week because I was in Orlando for a work conference.  We stayed at the Gaylord which was nice.  They had a place where you could look at turtles and alligators.  We mostly worked but we did get one night to go to Downtown Disney which was nice.  We ate at the House of Blues and walked around.  Before I left for Orlando, my weight hadn’t fluctuated much.  I knew that I wouldn’t eat great there so I didn’t weigh this weekend.  I’m going to do my best to be a good girl this week and see where I’m at on Saturday.  I will definitely have a recipe to share next week.

So, the first picture that says “Everything will come out alright,” was spotted by me in the bathroom of a sports bar in town.  I am smart enough to know that this is a play on words that can apply to what you do in the bathroom but it also struck me as quite poignant.  It could be that I was playing Bingo and drinking beer but this graffiti made me stop and think.   I was going through my phone the other day and found a picture of myself that I had sent to Jordan a few months back.  In the picture, my eyes were swollen.  If I ever cry before I go to bed, my eyes swell enormously almost to the point where I can’t open them.  I was being a bit dramatic by sending Jordan that picture which if you know me is no surprise.  The point is, the picture was taken only a few short months ago and I could not tell you exactly what made me so upset.   It’s interesting how there are moments where you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.  When you are pushing through something, you don’t always know that there’s another side.  I can certainly apply this to my weight loss journey, especially right now because it’s so hard to keep the weight off, but the struggle to know that everything will actually come out alright is a difficult one.  When a toddler falls and gets hurt or is punished in some way, they think that in that moment, their lives are horrible and they will never get over it.  We all know that within a few seconds, that toddler is laughing or playing again and that moment of terror is over.  Adults are the same way but sometimes it takes longer than a few seconds to move on.  We throw tantrums and place our problems on a pedestal thinking that there is no greater problem on the earth than the one we are dealing with.  I think this selfish behavior is perfectly normal.  I am trying to remember the “other side” right now.  I’ve been kind of mopey lately and I know why but I also know that “everything will come out alright.”  I don’t know if this mentality comes from getting older or if it’s the fact that I have people in my life that are always there for me like my family and friends (like my mom, Dad and brother and other family, Jordan, Cassandra in the picture, Nish, David) so no matter what, I can look to them and they can go through it with me.  I also try and have perspective.  I see so much pain and suffering in the world and it’s important to remember we are all so tiny in the grand scheme of things.

I didn’t mean to get all sappy but it’s amazing what kind of wisdom one can gain from the bathroom wall in a bar.  Again, I hope you all have a great holiday.  I am determined to jumpstart the weight loss again so it’s time to work hard.  Bye everyone!

“Been some bad times I’ve been through,

Damage I cannot undo,

Some things,

I wish I could do all all over again,

But it don’t really matter,

Life gets that much harder,

It makes you that much stronger,

Oh, some pages turned,

Some bridges burned,

But there were,

Lessons learned.

And every tear that had to fall from my eyes,

Everyday I wondered how I’d get through the night,

Every change, life has thrown me,

I’m thankful, for every break in my heart,

I’m grateful, for every scar,

Some pages turned,

Some bridges burned,

But there were lessons learned.” Lessons Learned- Carrie Underwood