Journey, part three: 145

Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious.

1 Peter 3:3-4

Happy Saturday to my lovely readers!  I hope that you all had a splendid week.  Today, I was privileged enough to spend some quality girl time with this darling diva!

Don't we look so purdy?  Sorry about the grainy-like picture.  Blame my phone.  There are very few people in this world that I can tell anything to and confide in.  She is one of them.

For those of you who read my posts, first of all, thank you.  You have no idea how much it means to me that you take the time to read my rants and (hopefully) take something from the lessons I have learned.  There are times where I wonder what in the heck was I thinking when I wrote that... or What in the world was I thinking when I did that...  Still, it's comforting to have this safe haven of a blog to scream and shout my crazy antics.

Ever since I found out that I was lactose intolerant, I decided to start eating healthier altogether ... which for me, is much easier said than done.  I have a weakness for Sonic sodas, chocolate chip cookies, frozen yogurt and white queso.  Aside from all of those foods, it was time to face the music.  Most of us may have a new year's resolution to lose weight - and here I am, on the bandwagon yet again for the umpteenth time.  I always said I was going to lose enough weight to get back to the pre-college days - ha!  Tough luck, sister.

Anyways, so I finally got my bum on the scale and about had heart attack with the number that I saw.  One-hundred and forty-five.  Holy crapballs, Batman!  Keep in mind, I am a mere 5'2 1/2", so obviously that BMI calculator was unforgiving.  It was scary enough that I was capable of gaining that much weight that fast over the holidays.  But things happen and you gotta pay the piper.

So I decided that I needed to make a change.  I cut out all dairy products and the products that contain dairy.  To compensate for the calcium loss, I started drinking almond milk (delicious, by the way).  I also cut out cookies, cakes, and any other junk food that is simply but empty calories.  I stopped eating snacks all day, and focused on portion control.  I started drinking more water, and making sure that I stayed hydrated.  I gave up seasoning foods with salt and pepper.  If something calls for margarine, I replace it with the gluten/lactose free canola spread.  If something calls for oil, I try to use apple sauce when possible.   

I'm still in the process of weaning off soda (my true weakness), so I am definitely not perfect.  It's not a race, but a journey.  At least that's what I keep telling myself.

And thus far, I am seventeen pounds down.