So it comes the time of year that I need to sit back and reflect on this past year - 2010.  In so many ways, this year was amazing... I lost almost 38 pounds this year, I hit my Weight Watchers goal weight, and I made Lifetime!  All amazing... but yet in a way unrelated to my weight, this year has been hard.  We've had some unexpected things happen, and some personal things haven't gone the way I'd hoped.  And especially in late November and December I have been feeling a little depressed as the days got shorter and shorter.  All in all though, 2010 gets a grade of a B.  While looking back, I too, look forward to have 2011 be an A+ year

The first 3 months of the year flew by... I was on a Weight Watcher's plateau during a lot of this time, so losing weight was HARD!  In March I turned 33 years old, and I finally started losing weight again.

In April I started this blog as I - not only a non-runner, but a running hater - had just committed to running a 5k.  Some wondered if I was crazy, some if I would make it.  I'm almost ashamed to admit that I was among those some.

In May, I threw a pity party for myself after being rejected by Weight Watchers for their "Role Model of the Year Contest."  I continued to train for my race, and I fit into a size 10 and a medium.

108 lbs of food! And me 108 lbs lighter!

WHEW!  What a busy year, but how fun to have everything since April documented!  It only makes me wish even more that I could have started this blog earlier in my journey.

As we leave 2010 behind, I am leaving behind nearly 40 pounds, but also as much negativity about myself and my life as I can.  I am also leaving behind some anger.  And I'm looking to really focusing on both my physical, but also my emotional health in 2011.  I look forward to the new adventure that God has already planned out for me in the year ahead.

What are you leaving behind in 2010?

I trust that you all had a fabulous holiday weekend.


If the fun of my Christmas was in direct proportion to the amount food I ate than I had a great one! A great thing for having a fun. A horrible thing for the way my pants feel this morning!

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day I gave myself permission to eat whatever I wanted, as long as it was special – something I normally don’t eat/have. Well… I guess I apparently was feeling a little suppressed, because everything was special and I had some. Honestly, though, most things really were things I don’t normally have:

Tamales – check
Beef Taquitos – check
Lots of Guacamole - check
Godiva Chocolate from my stocking – check check triple check!
Lefse – homemade by me – with butter or cheese and apple Gouda sausage – check
Cranberry Walnut Bread – check
Marzipan Stolen - check
So many pieces of fudge and lemon curd shortbread cookies that I lost count – again made by me check x 100
Various glasses of champagne, bloody Marys and other alcoholic beverages – check!
Homemade Chex Mix – gotta have it!
Cheesy Twice Baked Potatoes - check
Cherry Pie – check!

So there… you can see that, I too, am fallen.

I stand before you confessing my holiday food sins. Except guess what? I don’t feel much shame… maybe a little – mostly for the little bit of spillover I had into Sunday.

Yeah, my pants feel tight this morning, and I’m having a sugar hangover. I’m up 8 pounds (not kidding), most of which HAS to be water retention right? – think ham + alcohol = double whammy! The old me would have thrown in the towel for the rest of the year, which sounds way worse than it is at this point in the calendar. But the new me… she got up, showered, put the tight pants on, did her hair and makeup, made a breakfast of oatmeal and yogurt, worked out, turned down an invite to eat lunch out and instead ate a small ham sandwich, a banana, an orange, and some cucumbers, and drank 6 glasses of water today so far. She is moving on with …away from those few days of eating with abandon.

Good try ghosts of fat Sarah past… I know this trick you play… but you lose this time!

I win! I win because I did Christmas the way I wanted, and am still under goal (barely) and here to tell about it. So I’m up a few pounds… I know exactly what to do about that. I’m not going to let it get me down.

As I’ve said many times before… this is life and I intend on living it! Besides… it’s Monday

How are you recovering from Christmas, or do you even need recovery?

Whew!  Mere hours to go until the big day is here... the presents are wrapped, the stockings are hung, the food is made, the house is decorated.  I am finally breathing a sigh of relief.  Good grief I LOVE the holidays, I really do, but sometimes it is all a bit much, and I just want everything to be as perfect as possible. 

Amid of all of that, a find a longing for a sense of peace this holiday season - to be able to step away from the chaos and the brokenness for just a moment and take it ALL in.  To find the beauty all around me... even in the imperfect and broken.  Isn't that what Christmas is about?  A long, ill-timed journey for a pregnant lady, a child born in basically a barn, and then laid in the trough where animals fed.  It was imperfect, and yet it all worked!  Boy, I don't know about you, but I can certainly identify with that.

It is with that thought, that I wish you the most joyous of Christmases, A wonderful holiday season, and a bright and healthy upcoming 2011!  Thank you for coming along on this journey with me this year.

I leave you with a song I have found a lot of comfort in the past few days.  MERRY CHRISTMAS!