Back On Track

I was feeling a bit off-track last week; not sure what was going on, but in all fairness to myself, there was a lot going on - I had a busy week without a lot of downtime, and part of the busyness was the wedding of one of my close guy friends. I've grown up with this guy and his family as my "brothers" and God has used them all to model biblical manhood in my life, since - living with four sisters and a brother who didn't arrive until second-t0-last - male models were lacking somewhat in my life. :) I have been so blessed and humbled in the last few years to watch him start a beautiful relationship and prepare for marriage, and Saturday was the big day. Talk about emotional! I cried and cried. :) He and his fiancee actually asked me to sing during the ceremony, which was such a compliment, and I held it all together until I sat down after singing. Then seeing his beautiful bride and the love that was so apparent in their eyes for each other, plus their vows - which they wrote themselves and that touched on every aspect of their future marriage, from child-rearing to their roles as man and wife - oh, the floodgates opened. They were happy tears. :) I pretty much came home and crashed for the rest of the day.

For those of you who have been - ahem, concerned - (and by concerned, I mean they assume I gave up on it) at the lack of Weight Watchers content on my blog lately... don't be. It's true, I "broke" with the program for a little while because I was dealing with other issues and just felt like I couldn't handle it all at once, but - and apparently this is a big but - I didn't regain an ounce of the lost weight and started back up again a while ago. :)

I think part of the reason I got so stressed and felt like I couldn't handle it all was because I never did get a good grip on the new program, PointsPlus. Which, I'm gonna go ahead and say right up front: do NOT like it as much as the old program. I have been slow in publicly saying this because I felt like until I could use the program successfully - and by successfully I mean being able to stick to it and lose weight while on it - I didn't have the right to bash it.

Well, it's been awhile now doing both successfully, and I still don't like the old program. There are definitely parts I like - I love that fruit is point free, and I love that you get the "encouragement" to eat high-protein foods, which I naturally gravitate towards - but the parts that I hate - the fact that it's nearly impossible to guesstimate in a pinch, the, ahem, "strong discouragement" over carbs (ANY carbs, white, wheat, whole grain, etc) - far outweigh the parts I love. However, learn it I did and stick to it I am. There is a LOT of fruit getting eaten in my life right now, lol, mostly to make room for carbs, which have been severely limited. Tonight's post-yoga-workout dinner, for instance, was reduced-fat PB & sugar-free J on whole wheat bread, with a big glass of nonfat milk. :)

Speaking of yoga - UGH! Spring break (read: two weeks with no practice)+first session back (and a challenging one to boot)=NOT GOOD. :) I was struggling all over the place today, but I laughed at myself and kept going, and I definitely feel good now, several hours later. My "yoga high" in on. :)

had some time today while Abby was in school, so I ducked in to Ross to check out their latest shipment. You know how sometimes you go shopping and absolutely nothing you try on looks good, fits right, etc? Well, the flip also sometimes occurs (albeit much more rarely): sometimes you have days where you lug a ton of clothes into the dressing room and EVERYTHING FITS! and looks great! Is this a real phenomenon or is it just purely a state of mind? I have no idea...

Anyway, I refrained from buying every piece of clothing that fit - believe me, I wanted to! - but I did score a Michael Kors top for $14.99. It doesn't really get any better than this.

I also found these two leather-bound journals - what writer doesn't love a new journal?! The crisp pages, the straight lines waiting to be filled up... and these two are particularly beautiful (and $6 a piece!)

You know how once in awhile when you've been out in the elements, and your lips get chapped, and you take some lip balm and smooth it over them, and it soothes your lips? Well... I have this theory that everybody has some form of "soul balm" and for me it's words by C.S. Lewis. Lately I've been enjoying this collection of essays by him and let me tell you - soul balm. I can't even count how many times I have burst out laughing, or suddenly teared up reading something that completely touched me. Love it. I can't wait to get to heaven and meet him. :)

Since I was in the mood for "lighter" reading material, I picked up the latest copy of ReadyMade mag... I lovelovelove this magazine, and it's impossible to describe. It has a little bit of everything - crafts, architecture, DIY, travel, cooking... Life, I guess. One of these days I'm going to get my own subscription.

Of course, I got home to discover my issue of Ladies Home Journal had finally arrived - and who was their covergirl this month but Mariska Hargitay, my new hero?!?

I get so pumped up by women like her. :) For those of you who don't know, Mariska plays the female lead of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a detective who investigates (mainly) sexual assault, rape, etc. However, Mariska has also founded her own organization, Joyful Heart, to help survivors of sexual violence. The article was terrific and really inspiring. Go, girl! :)

Well, the sun seems to have rolled back behind the clouds for now and I needed a pick-me-up, so I gave myself a DIY pedicure and chose a cheerful color. Two, actually - a fun lavender and a clear glitter. :)

I hope everyone is ready for a good weekend - I know I'm excited about the downtime to craft, sew, read, and be generally creative. :)