Babies, babies everywhere! So many of my friends and relatives are pregnant it's not even funny! Is it just a seasonal thing, or am I just noticing it more because I'm jealous? Not sure. Ever since I can remember I've loved babies. I worked with babies as a volunteer and a teacher and a nanny for years. They like me, and I can't get enough of them. Still the Lord knows best, and His timing is far more important than my whiney wants. My time will come when it's right, and then I'll be one rockin' mommy! (No pun intended.) Still I have to admit that it's hard when people scrutinize my latest pooch of a belly and don't do a good job at discreetly wondering whether there's a baby in there somewhere. I just sigh to myself and think back at them, "No, it's just dinner..." Maybe after I've lost a little weight people will stop wondering. Then again, it is Utah, and by most local standards I should be at least 4 months along by now! Don't get me wrong, I think it's awesome when people feel the right time to have babies after getting married is right away. I am really very happy for all my pregnant friends and relatives, expecially the ones who have had a harder time getting there. It's just hard not to get impatient sometimes. I know, my time will come. When it is right, my time will come.
Once upon a time...
Today is Gavin's birthday. This morning we took it easy. Well, I should say Gavin took it easy! I ran to the store while he was in the shower to get bread for french toast. The store hadn't put it out yet, so I had to ask for it at the bakery. They hadn't cut it up yet, so I had to wait for that. As soon as it was cut, I ran home and made breakfast. After breakfast, I let Gavin open his present: an Iomega 1TB external hard drive. He was excited, in his own Gavinish way. He set it up right away and immediately began backing up our computer. This thing has enough room to back up our computer at least four times. :) We went to the cheap theater to see "How to Train Your Dragon". It was cute. We had lunch at a little hole in the wall bakery. Now, poor Gavin has to work. But tonight we will begin our family tradition of birthday pie!
Happy birthday, Gavin! I love you.
I love my husband. He is an amazing man, and I am so lucky to have him.
It seems that every day there is a new weight loss trend that comes out: a miracle that will make you drop the pounds with little-to-no effort. Or an exercise regimen that will make you lose more pounds per week than is healthy. Better yet, suck off the fat in a lipo clinic! There's just one little teeny problem with all this:
IT DOESN'T WORK.
God gave us our bodies with the intent that we master them, and there is just no cheating in that process. Just like the Gospel, there are no short cuts, no magical results that will come without applying the correct formula. I'm sorry to say it, but the right way to lose weight always has been and always will be the same. Eat right, exercise regularly, get the necessary sleep... voila. No, it's not easy, but it's definitely possible. The real key is in moderation and consistency. It seems that people are craving something different or strange because extravagence is appealing to those who want immediate results and short-cuts. Like I said, it doesn't work. Trend diets may help a person lose weight quickly, but they'll gain it back just as fast, and it will most-likely come back with a vengeance. Eating less than 1500 calories per day slows down your metabolism, causing you to actually gain weight, since your body goes into starvation mode and tries to hang onto everything it can get. Overexhertion without proper nutrition just plain bad for you. Liposuction is horrible, because you have a certain number of fat cells, and when you suck some of them out, the others compensate, and you not only go straight back to being chubby, but now you're lumpy too.
The biggest problem seems to be the distorted concept of what a "healthy" body really is. Women are meant to have shape, and I'm not talking about the shape of a holocaust victim. So the moral of the story is this: take care of yourself, be consistent, and learn to love your body for its good qualities, or you will never have good self-esteem... and quit the trend diet!
I began dancing when I was three years old. It was nothing serious, just some little basement studio for little girls to run around in. When I was almost six, my family moved to Orem, and when I was seven, a new studio opened up. I was one of the first students to sign up. After five years I began dancing en pointe. I loved it. I was never the best in the class, but I did well, and I learned discipline and passion. Ballet was the only way I could really express myself. When I was fifteen, I peaked in my ability. I remember it so well. I could do just about anything I wanted to. Any move, any trick. Not perfectly, but well enough for a stage. I remember that last performance. I danced my heart out and didn't make a mistake. I performed to the audience like I owned the stage and there was nothing anyone wanted to look at more than me. That fall I was diagnosed with endometriosis and had to quit ballet. It was too intense and I couldn't keep up with the physical demands, and my parents couldn't keep up with the insane tuition. I pacified myself for a few years by doing ballroom, but it was never the same. Over time, I lost my physique and my strength, but I never lost my love for ballet. Even still, I dance in my dreams. I dance in the kitchen, in the grocery store, anywhere with a slick floor. My heart never forgot how, and I don't suppose I'll ever stop missing it. I wish so deeply that I could do those things again, that I could express myself the way I used to be able to, with music running through my veins. Someday maybe I'll find a studio that will accept me, and I can work up to a reasonable level for my age, but I know I'll never again be what I was. I miss ballet so much.