Sixteen Pounds!

WOW! I lost sixteen pounds and I am not trying to find them! I feel great! I have more energy now than I've had in years. I am starting to wear clothing that I put away and haven't been able to wear in more than 5 years. I feel better about myself and I am starting to like what I look like in pictures. I stopped taking pictures about two years ago, in fact for a long time, people would always ask me, "Does Madison have a Mommy?", because I would never take a picture with her or if I did, I just thought I looked fat and I would keep the picture to myself. I would always take pictures of Madison with her daddy because, well, he is just handsome and photographs better...and he doesn't look FAT! When I did take pictures, I'd crop them and doctor them up and still, I was NEVER satisfied. My face was always too fat and there wasn't enough cropping to cover up my triple chins! Even when I started this blog about my struggle with weight loss, I was too embarrassed to post a picture of myself. Well, today I am posting a picture because I am proud of how far I've come in My Journey. I am not where I want to be, however I am not where I used to be and to me, that's progress! I am sixteen pounds closer to where I plan to be! Eventually, I'll post my "before picture", when I've lost enough weight and I don't feel that embarrassed about it!

I took this picture today using my Blackberry camera phone, so it may not be as clear, but what is clear is that my face isn't as swollen and my chins are slowly disappearing! Another fun fact is that I am loving the direction my hair is going too! My curls are growing and they are so much more defined. I cut my hair last August and it seems like it's taken an eternity to grow back, however I see such a big difference in length especially since my trip to San Diego in January! Initially I cut all of my hair off because I wanted to grow my natural hair free from all chemicals (straighteners and such). At first, I regretted ever cutting it, but now, I am loving it! It goes right along with my weight loss journey and I am confident that by the time I lose the weight, my hair will be right where I want it to be as well!

I am so proud of myself for losing 16 pounds so far! It's taken longer than I expected, but it's MY PROGRESS and it's MY JOURNEY!!! As long as I am sticking to it, I am ok with it! Stay tuned and please keep the feedback and encouragement coming...I thrive off of it and it keeps me on track!