My First Day...

Every year we take pictures of our children as they head off to their first day of school. So on my first day going back to school, I thought it would be fun to be included in the tradition. Outfitted in my ASU tee and suited up with backpack and all, I had Aiden take a picture of me in front of the house. I had originally thought it would be a nice way to document my big day as I headed off on my new and frightening journey, but....then I saw the picture! YIKES! When did that 20+ I put on over the last year become so noticeable??? Did I swell up over night? And then my own Oprah moment of "oh crap, how did I let myself get here again?" Of course the answer was clear it was the fist fulls of candy and cookies, and bowls of comforting ice-cream, not to mention the inappropriate sized lunches and all day snacking that powered me through my new long working days...but gosh darn it it isn't fun to see it all piled on me like that. So as I thought about deleting the picture, I decided that instead I would keep the picture to remind me that I was oh so close to that really awful place one comes to when it is just too hard to do anything about it.

Since I have tried every diet known to mankind, some successful but most not, I decided to try something new (and radical even for me). Several people at my school have had great results with HCG. Yes, this is the one you have probably heard of and immediately associate with YOU ONLY GET TO EAT 500 CALORIES A DAY! But after listening to my coworkers I became less skeptical and more willing to try it myself. Now as I write this on day 15 of my 40 day HCG journey, I am even more hopeful and 10lbs thinner! I know what your thinking...eating only 500 calories sounds foolish and risky! But its only made possible with the magical liquid HCG. Something in this concoction actually allows you to live on 500 calories and function normally, and in my case better than normal. I really feel great. I am clearheaded and I have tons of energy and I am not even hungry. Now is this a miracle drug? Is this diet a piece of cake (no pun intended)? No! I miss food like I would miss one of the kids if I didn't see them for 15 days. I dream of days with m&ms and ice-cream (or at this point a piece of bread) but it is doable and the results make every lonely day worth it! I know, I know, everyone always says: "well anyone could lose weight if they ate 500 calories a day". But my rebuttal is yes, that's true but without HCG they would have no energy and they would also probably die! Plus if you did this without HCG you would never keep it off once you started eating normally again, and on this diet you do! (Or at least all of the guinea pigs at my school who did this before me have!). Anyway, at this point I am an advocate and I am trucking on through. Some days are better than others but overall, I am thrilled with how quickly this extra baggage is coming off. I will gladly keep everyone posted over the next 40 days!

Now back to my first day of school...well that isn't as lovely of a story as my 10 lb weight loss! School is hard. I mean really really hard. Its a lot of work and saying I am overwhelmed is an understatement. But I am learning a lot and really just trying to get through day by day! During our school orientation my supervisor showed a slide that listed our priorities for the next 3 years...#1 was our job (since we are getting all of our clinical hours on the job) and #2 was school. #3 was everything else and only after we finished school! Now that I am a month in, I see she wasn't kidding. Between my job and school there really isn't time for much else. So how am I being a mother and wife and fulfilling my calling in church as a counselor in primary, I DON'T KNOW! Some days I think I am not doing it very well, but other days I think I must be very blessed. There seem to be just enough hours in the day for me to give to all of these areas and sleep. It really is amazing what we can accomplish! I will say after getting a massage on Saturday (a gift from my mom!) I learned why I haven't felt like a complete stress case, and that's because all of that stress is being stored in my shoulders! But with the help of my loving husband and family, and with a lot of prayer I have to say I really am doing my very best!