Even MORE optimistic

That tomorrow's weigh-in might really show this plateau busted! Come onnnnnnnnn Saturday weigh-in!!

Tonite was a lot of fun. We tried out this mexican food restaurant in East Plano, Aparicios, and it was YUM! We sat out on the patio, it was nice and cool, the kids were behaving VERY well, and it was an enjoyable dinner! After that, we hit up a fall festival (check the mom2lild blog for pics of that).

In good news...I got an appointment with a neuropsychologist for D to have a battery of tests done. I spoke with him today and feel pretty confidant in seeing him and putting D through this. He said it will probably take about 4 hours, BUT we got a Saturday appt! So no missing work for it. Whew. I'll be sure to update how things go.

So Beth and I were talkin...

and while this is a daily (hourly?) occurrence, we were talking about the weight we've lost (gasp!!! would you believe that?) and we both realized...that we now weigh the LOWEST we have weighed in ten years at least! That's high school, baby!!! SO we are all excited, and pressing on to victory!

I hesitate to post on here yet, but I'm cautiously optimistic that I might be breaking out of this plateau. This morning, the scale did get below 264 (263.8, barely...lol), which it has not in at least 3 weeks, so we'll see if this continues til at LEAST my weigh-in on Saturday...lol

I'm debating on if I want to get a cheap bike to ride around, and then save up for when I get down to 180 and get a NICE bike. I used to love riding as a kid and teen, so I really want to give it another shot. I do need to figure out logistics with D though. I'm not towing his 45 lb butt around behind me! And he's not ready to ride a bike yet, he might never be with his brain wiring issues. He has midline issues, which keep the two sides of his body from completely working together sometimes. So we'll see. I might just have to drop him off at school really early some mornings and go ride, or have a teen sitter come over some evenings? I have no idea.

Well on a good note...

At LEAST, if my weight plateau is still sticking around...I can take some comfort in the fact that the pants I put on this morning, were quite snug 2 weeks ago, and are now nice and loose around the middle. Not falling off loose, but comfy loose. I'm choosing to take consolation in the fact that things are moving around in my body...lol weird huh?

Congrats!!!

I just wanted to send a congratulatory shout-out to my cousin and his wife. They welcomed their new baby girl into the world this morning!!! She weighs 9 lbs 3 oz and I bet she is beautiful!! Baby girl joins her big sister who just turned 2 this month, two October babies!

So YAY!!! Congrats you guys!!

Dang plateaus

Yeah, I think I've hit one. And I hate em. I know its all part of this fun weight loss journey but it doesn't mean I have to like it or accept it!

So yesterday I stayed a bit under on calories, and I might do the same today. I'm contemplating staying between 1200-1300 all week, since lately my cals have been consistently higher. I took a very brisk walk yesterday, and even though I didn't note it on our Losin blog, I did some dancing last night with my ipod on, so got some more cal burn there too. I need to up the exercise, been way slacking on it. Anyone wanna go walk at the Galleria at lunch?

First step though, I had a good protein filled breakfast. Eggbeaters with salsa, sliced turkey, and a slice of cheese. It was YUMMY. I've already got my lunch/snacks plotted out on fitday for today. So I think I've gotta great start to the day. All I know is, this plateau can NOT last. I weigh in again this next saturday and it so better be GONE. November 12th is our 6 month mark, which leaves me 2 weeks and 2 days to get down 9 lbs (halfway mark to 180 lbs)...eekkkk. I don't think I'm gonna hit it but I'm hoping if I can bust this plateau it will go fast for a bit. We'll see. I had so hoped to hit it by November 8th (our Chera pics) but no way is that gonna happen.

Dang plateaus.

Sleepy D...

So D started his new meds on Wednesday. I was curious to see how today went. Well...he was up at 6:30am this morning. Took his med about 8am, when I dragged myself out of bed...lol I fed him some breakfast abit before 10, which he ate every bit of (mommy actually cooked...lol Eggbeaters with Yolks, with cheese on top, plus 2 nutrigrain lowfat waffles and light syrup, YUM!!!) I got in the shower about 10:10, and he wanted to lay on the futon while I did. He's been asleep ever since, and its now 11:40am. Homeboy needs to wake up soon since we have a bday party to go to at 12:30 but I think we might just have to be a bit late, it would break my heart to wake him up since he doesn't get naps all week and was up late last night too. But at least it means we had a semi-quiet morning, and we'll prolly be able to stay longer at the bday party with him coming off a good nap! And we have to go shopping afterward. lol

I wanted to be...

And I came very close to being...preachy...on here today. I was working on a blog post and ohmuhgoodness, it got long and drawnout. Thats not counting the other post I have written in my email drafts and have never posted. I really struggle on here sometimes with utilizing it as a tool to just share, or a tool to throw out mad opinions on everything. So I think I'll keep it toned down, and just simply say, "Jesus loves you". Thats the full gist of the whole thing I had written anyway, might as well keep it short and sweet.

Today is day 3 of D's med. He came home last night and passed out asleep right after dinner, but they also went to the park at school today, so he was tuckered OUT. He's now taking the capsule in the morning like a champ! I'm so proud of him for picking that up quickly.

Beth posted this on our Losin blog, but I wanted to mention here too. I'm having a terrible time with sweets lately. I don't know WHAT it is. But so far today I haven't had any (not that I didn't WANT some...lol), and tonite I'll allow a little bit but thats it. I need to put a stop to this.

My sweet boy

I have to share all this. My sweet boy just makes me go awwwwwww ALL.THE.TIME. Sure he drives me nuts half the time, but he's 4, he's supposed to.

First, this morning, I was getting him dressed, and he said "I dont wanna be cold". I said "I know, baby, thats why I'm putting you in an undershirt and this jacket..." He gets all sweet and goes "thank you mommy!!!" with a big grin and gives me a HUGE hug...

Then, I was giving him his medicine, and he swallowed the pill on the FIRST try this morning, and he got all excited and gave me lots of big hugs, he was so proud of himself!!!

I so hope he knows just how much he is loved! Even before I met him, I knew he was the child for me. His foster parents went on one last family vacation with him before I got to meet him, and I swear, I MISSED him. It was hard to think that he was in another state, when I just wanted to bring my little boy home. And yes, the last two years, we've had our ups and downs, but my love for him grows deeper every single day.

But I have to tell you how crazy this kid is...last night, with it being so cold, after he was asleep, I went in to put an extra blanket on him. Its a blanket that usually is in my room for when he comes in there in the mornings to lay down. But I had just washed it, gotten it out of the dryer, it was all snuggly and warm. And it was COLD last night. So why...at 2:30am, did he wake up and bring the blanket BACK to my room, and went back to bed. This child and his routines...lol He's such a hot mess. But he's MY hot mess.

Someone totally made my day

And I have NO CLUE who it was!!! Some lovely person left me flowers on my doorstep this evening, along with it was a sweet note, but no name signed. So whomever you are, if you read this blog, THANK YOU!!!! They are my faves and they are just beautiful!

Just some things

Well, D started Strattera today. It was in a capsule form, not a liquid, so it made it interesting, but he caught on the 2nd try how to swallow it...yay!!! Now we wait for the side effects to kick in. We'll see how the day goes.

My body has been weird this past week. I've been having some headaches in the evenings, but last night was the worst. While fixing dinner, I was so overcome with nausea/dizziness that I had to move the skillet off the burner and go sit down for a minute...what WAS that? I had not eaten anything since coming home and thought my lunch was fairly normal. So I have no idea, but I sure didn't like it! Fortunately after I ate some dinner, it got better and I was able to bust out a good workout. But wow.

I realized the other day while shopping how funky my body image is, and probably will be. Seeing myself from the inside is a lot different than seeing it from the outside. There are lots of days where I don't feel like I've lost anything at all, and sadly its more often than not. Oh sure I do notice things like moving easier, etc, but just sitting in here doesn't feel different much. So when I was shopping yesterday, I looked at a pair of 22 jeans thinking I am twice the size of those, but lo and behold, they fit. So I have proof this weight IS coming off, but man, I sure need to realize it in how I view myself. Thats been a challenge since starting this whole process, but I have hopes that it will happen. Maybe once I hit my huge goal...lol Eh, we'll see.

Can't let Beth have all the fun!!!

Well since voting failed today, I went shopping at the Avenue. At the start of the diet, I was at 30/32. The last time I went shopping I was still in 26s with a few 24s thrown in. I'm happy to say, I am now officially at a 22/24 pant size!!! YAY!!! So I got two pairs of work pants and 2 work shirts (in the 18/20 top size that I was in last time I shopped). I'm excited!

Andddd as of Saturday, I am officially halfway to being under 200 lbs (65.8 lbs down total)!! So I have 65.2 lbs to go til I hit the 199 lbs mark. Seems like a longggggg ways away to me, but really, I did this in a little over 5 months, so I'm guessing it will take 6 or so months to get the rest out of the way which is NOT THAT BAD comparatively! My ultimate goal is 180 (will refine it later), so I'm not quite halfway to that yet, but getting closerrrrrr. And when I hit 250 lbs, I'm treating myself to a big night out. 14.8 lbs left to go til that!

I'ma go vote today

*Update* I TRIED to vote...lol but since I have to do it on a limited ballot (I moved counties and my registration never got changed to the new one), noone told me I had to go to the MAIN polling place for my county :( But I will try again on Thursday *Update*

Yup, I do believe I'm going to go at lunch and do it. I'm very excited about it, I feel like I've made the best decision I can make for what I feel is most important. I was a McCain supporter before he ever put Palin in as a running mate, and I feel even more strongly now in their favor.

However, and not to get this too deep and preachy, I'm praying that no matter WHO wins, that they will lead this country with solid Godly values, that they will make decisions based on getting this country where it needs to be as a Godly nation. I believe this country was begun on a Christian foundation, and it has strayed so far from that. So I will keep praying, and whoever wins, I will be praying for them specifically as well.

And above all else, IMHO, if you don't vote, you can't complain. So please get out there and vote (*cough* For McCain*cough*), or else, if the person you didn't want in office wins, I do NOT want to hear about it!

I didn't do it...

Thats right, I didn't step on the scale yesterday morning nor this morning. Go me!! I really need to focus on only weighing once a week so Saturdays it is.

This week, I want to really focus on cracking down on my calories and exercise. The last few weeks I've been semi-high on cals but have had decreased exercise and even though I've still lost some weight, its been varying so much, its hard to tell. I need to really get motivated to get back on track working out, doing the videos, the On Demand ones, etc. I've been slacking and doing bare minimum 30 minutes for quite awhile now. I don't want to take the chance that I will backslide! Yesterday, I bought new workout pants and a sports bra from...wait for it...Old Navy!!! Both were XXL and both fit! I was so excited, and I wore em both around the house a bit last night but was too tired from our longgggg day to do anything. Tonite, however, its on! I don't know if I'll be up for doing a Jillian Michaels workout...lol but you never know...anything is possible, right? Check out our Losin blog tomorrow to see what I did tonite in exercise.

Well, no meds yet...

*sigh* D didn't start Strattera today. I took the rx by CVS yesterday after work, not knowing that it needed to be precertified, and of course they couldn't get in touch with his neuro that late in the day. :( So the earliest he could start it is Tuesday morning. I'm debating if I want to start it on Tueday or wait til next Saturday so I can monitor him. Ehhh, we'll see what happens.

On a good note, I had a GREAT afternoon! I got 4 kid-free hours to go to a movie! Some other DAM mom's and I saw The Secret Life of Bees at the Studio Movie Grill. It was such a good movie, I laughed, cried, all of the above. I can't believe Dakota Fanning is getting grown!! She's all lanky and she kissed a boy...she's not OLD enough to do that! But all in all, it was great.

Gutcheck time!

I've always loved that part of the show Friends...lol I say this, because D starts Strattera tomorrow. So it could be an interesting weekend. I'm definitely excited though. Our church is having a special needs kids day out, so I will have 4 kid-free hours tomorrow! I'm going to go see The Secret Life of Bees, which just opened today. And Sunday, we're going to hit up a pumpkin patch, which should be a lot of fun. We went last year and the kids all had a blast. So hopefully it will be a fun weekend, even if D is fairly whiny from being doped up. Wish us luck and I'll update here how he does. Then after this weekend, check D's Adventures blog for pumpkin patch pics!

The scale

I'm going to start weaning myself off the scale. Up until now, I've weighed about 3 times a day. It worked for me, because I needed that constant reminder of how much I've lost. But I'm getting sorely frustrated with all the fluctuations. I don't "count" the weight every time I weigh, I count it about twice a week, so I think I'm going to attempt to just weigh twice a week as well. If I really am not motivated, then I'll weigh, but am going to try this and see how it goes. To start with, I'm going to weigh on Wednesdays and Saturdays, with Saturdays counting for changing my weight on the blogs. Wish me luck in this new method.

D's neurology appt today

Well, we spent 2.5 hours at Children's Neurology Clinic this morning. All in all, things were good. They noticed some issues with his reflexes, such as his left leg would not jerk out when the knee was tapped with a hammer, and his right leg took its sweet time with that. He had some coordination issues with touching his fingers together. The neuro said we do not need another EEG soon, which I am quite relieved about! And his Trileptal can stay the same.

However...his neuro does want me to start D on Strattera, which is an ADD medicine. I have to admit, I used to be hugely against medicating children, but I'm really considering this. His neuro made a good point when he said that with D's neurological issues, this isn't something he can help, that sometimes it has to be controlled medically, and isn't a learned behavior. Ok, I'll buy that. I'm just concerned that he'll turn into a zombie, and I don't want to lose my little boy with all his personality out the wazoo. But I'm thinking we're going to take this leap of faith and try it out. I've talked to teachers at both of his schools. The guidance counselor and his teacher at PPCD are very supportive. I also talked to the main teacher he is with at his daycare, and she asked me to program my phone number into her cellphone, so she can call me immediately if she has concerns. So I was very relieved by that!! I know that with us all working together for his benefit, great things are bound to happen for the D-man.

Happy hour with friends

Well, noone actually drank anything alcoholic but it was still fun...lol

Our October Splurge Night

Well, its that time again! And it was SO a much needed one. We hit up Saltgrass Steakhouse and chowed DOWN. If you really have to know what we ate (aside from my picture below) then check out our Losin blog, otherwise, enjoy the pics!

Beth's about to be very happy

Melissa and her daughters joined us!

Rena came too!

There's the birthday girl, Teresa, her little man, J, and her best friend.

Me and my baby

Ok I haven't had CFS in 5 months, but even THIS seems excessive to me! But omg it was YUM.

Beth made a YUMMY birthday cake for Teresa...lets sing!

Uhhh, nice hat?

D's gettin jiggy wit it...

The group pic

My child needs some prayer

Before he gets excommunicated...OY, this child is driving me nuts! Two days ago, I started switching my discipline methods to more Love and Logic techniques. And let me just say, that D is fighting it with every fiber of his being. He is testing me on so many levels its not even funny, every little part of our typical routine is turning into a test. I'm just exhausted from it, and its only day 2. On a good note, he IS responding to the choices I've been giving him.

I spent a lot of last night crying over this. A) Its just trying and emotional to have your child testing their limits constantly, even little routine things, which we always do. I know this is shortlived, (please God tell me this is short-lived!!) But also B) I'm feeling like the worst parent ever. Mainly because I think that I should have started this from the very beginning, and even though he does have neurological issues that cause a lot of the problems he has, and makes all this worse, because he's very very clever, and it seems to me that he DOES test more than other kids do, I feel that a lot of what I've been attributing as a neuro issue, is a failing on my part. I really feel like a failure with him for even HAVING to make this transition. Better late than never, right? I keep consoling myself with the fact that I've always been fairly firm and consistent with him (with a touch of what my friend's call "black momma"), but this is a whole new ballgame. And right now, I'm just praying for daylight.

In the trash

Yup, thats right. My bag of hidden candy is so going in the trash tonite. If you read our Losin blog, you'll see I've had a tough time lately with candy. And last night was REALLY a problem. I had a little Almond Joy and a blowpop, but I had the hardest time stopping there. I should have just done this last night but I didn't feel strong enough to do it. But tonite...its going. I will post here to let you know I actually did it, and keep myself accountable. I think I'll feel much better once its gone!

Poor D

He was so traumatized today. We went to get his stitches taken out, and he fought it so bad, they had to wrap him up in a sheet like a burrito. He SCREAMED bloody murder for a whole 5 minutes. Poor guy! Poor mommy, my ear drums are still ringing...lol In return for his trauma, he gota big frosted cookie this afternoon though, AND a yummy lunch at Mi Cocina. You think that made up for it??? *grin*

In other news, I'm still doing the 90 day challenge. Not sure what day I'm on though...lol Tomorrow we're going to the fair, does that walking count at all or do I still need to do 30 minutes?? What do you think?

When kids make you cry...

Getting off the weightloss subject for a bit...

Yesterday after I picked up D from school, we were talking in the car about his day. Out of the blue he goes "why did you leave me?" Now, for those of you who don't know D, he's delayed, so there are a lot of things he doesn't understand and a lot of things that he just has no concept of right now. So I don't think he meant it the way it sounds. But it sure made Mommy sad! I told him I will never leave him, that he will always be my sweet boy. And he said "you left at school?". And I said "yes I did leave you at school this morning, but did I come back for you?" And he said "YEAH!". I told him "Thats right, D, mommy always comes back for you. It might not be when you want me to, and there might be days where someone else picks you up from school, but I always will come back for you. I CHOSE you as my little boy, and that makes you very very special to me." Ohhhhhh mommy was about to bawl, good thing he was in the backseat and couldn't see my face!!!

He just smiled and said "I hungry!"

Yeah...that's my boy...

An awesome shopping experience!!

I got some money (and coupons) to buy new clothes, so Beth and I hit up the Avenue this evening.

Let me start by saying, that when this diet started, I was in 30/32 clothes (which sometimes were too tight as well), and 10 or 11 WW shoes. Thats right, DOUBLE wide shoes. A lot of times only men's shoes fit, which could really suck!

Tonite, I am happy to report...that while I'm still in a 24 in pants (which is still a great reduction!), the size of all the tops I bought...was an 18/20!!! And they all fit! The only tops in 18/20 that were tight were their button down ones, and those ran tighter on me anyway. I am so stinkin excited!!!

And in shoes...I tried on several pairs of 10Ws and they all fit! The ones I ended up buying were an astonishing 9.5W!!! I never would have guessed that my FEET would shrink!

I'm so full of good news on this front, I can barely stand myself! I know Beth had to be cracking up at my perma-grin going on...lol

Liver update

Got my bloodwork back. So far, its all good news. My bilirubin was just slightly elevated, which means I have a disorder called Gilbert's Syndrome. Its a harmless genetic disorder, which basically means elevated bilirubin. It elevates even more if you fast. So no problems there, and she said my liver was just slightly enlarged so as long as I keep up the diet and exercise, that will not be an issue. YAY! I'm glad its not anything more complex or severe. WHEW