Losing It!

Diet Update: I not only read the Flat Belly Diet book, I got myself going! I have no idea if this is my long term answer, but I needed to do something, and what I read didn't overwhelm me. Basically, you eat three 400 calorie meals a day and one 400 calorie snack. So that's 1600 calories-well above starving mode. A key to the success of this is that you have a MUFA with every meal or snack. Intrigued? A MUFA is a mono-unsaturated fatty acid like nuts & seeds, oils, avocadoes, olives and dark chocolate. The good fats that raise your HDL and lower your LDL. Obviously, you only use a little. To start, you do four days of 300 calorie meals and snacks. I finished my four days and they helped me pass my 10 pound goal-and move into a lower set of 10's on the scale. Love that!

Curves has gone really well also. I wasn't sure how much it would help because I'm kind of a weight-lifting snob (my friend Anita is responsible for that), but it is plenty challenging for my current fitness level.

Weekly Goal Update: Yay! I allowed myself to eat meals while watching television (I know that's seems weird, but it's no fun to eat alone), but no treats. If I wanted a Jello Mousse pudding (yum), I had to eat it in the kitchen.

Good Habit Goal Update: Found a great food journal-just right for me-and have been faithful.

So, here's my worry: Historically, I can hold it together and 'be good' for about 14 days, then I just get tired of all the effort. Shannon is calling her current diet a live-it, not a die-it. She's on to something.

I'm off to buy a new under $20 shirt. I promised myself one every time I lose 10 pounds. Can't wait!

Nearly Tears for Parker

Last night I went to a concert for my 8 year old friend, Parker. His teacher has ties to a deaf and blind school in Ghana and their class decided to raise money so the school could buy a computer. I almost didn't go, then pulled myself together at the last minute.

Good decision. It was fabulous to support Parker's cause. The third graders in his class did a great job. Parker sang and danced his heart out. And I learned a life lesson.

Here's the scoop: Miss Brynn, Parker's teacher, wrote a song for the class to sing. In the song, each third grader was spotlighted with a line stating the child's name and some quality the class admired. I'm not sure, but I'd guess the class was asked to help identify those qualities. So, the song went something like this, "Friends, friends, everywhere a friend. Ana is nice and sweet, Carlos has a story to tell, Shauna knows the words to songs, Christian is a basketball star. Friends, friends...." You get the picture. Each time a name was sung, the third grader waved or stepped forward to claim his quality. It was sweet to watch them be uncomfortable and proud as their families saw them in the spotlight. As the song went on, I noticed Parker's smile became a squint of confusion, then a frown of frustration as the song concluded. His mom whispered to me, "They skipped the line about him."

Oh my dear, sweet boy! To watch his face as they moved on to another song--he valiantly fought off a melt down. Red faced and teary eyed, he pretended to do the sign language for the next song. Eventually, he pulled it together and just moved on. By the end of the concert, he was all smiles and boy-ready for a cookie and a hug.

After about five minutes of visiting and refreshment-ing, Miss Brynn went to the front and said, "Third graders, I just found out we skipped a line in our song. All third graders need to come to the front so we can sing it again." Without hesitation, the class launched into the song again. This time I smiled then cried when they sang, "Parker is a computer whiz," and my buddy proudly acknowledged the compliment.

Parker knew his teacher loved him. He knew his class thought he was a whiz on the computer. He cried because he wanted us to see what they thought of him.

We all deserve to be recognized and spotlighted-no matter how old we are. Let's make that happen for the people around us. Deal?