10%

I've made it! I'm now officially 10% off!!! Frankly, that means I've lost 21.9 lbs (21 would be 10%--the extra .9 is just frosting on the cake (or low fat dressing in a small amount on the garden salad, as it were)).
We are living in a new house now, and I am struck with the feeling of new beginnings. I want to start making a healthy lifestyle for my family and me. (Greta, the puppy, is already an inspiration, going up the stairs and down the stairs a million times a day because she's so excited to explore).
Whenever I reach a significant weight-loss milestone, I get a reward (I choose them myself). This time around it is a kitchen scale. It seemed like a good idea back when I planned it all out, but it's taken so long to get to this point, I want to get something super awesome and just fun instead. Do I really need to stick to my reward plan in addition to my weight loss plan.

Whenever I reach a significant weight-loss milestone, I get anti-rewarded on Weight Watchers--meaning they lower my points allowance for the day. If you consider that each point can be up to 100 calories, that's a pretty big cut. If you consider that I often fritter away at least a couple points a day on junk food, it doesn't seem so bad.

I was a little bit "bad" this week. I followed the plan up til Friday, when moving prevented me from getting on the internet. I ate a lot of food, but I also moved around a ton in the moving process. Yesterday was a bit of a low point, though. I literally did not eat a single fruit or vegetable. I ate pizza for 3 meals and cookies for a snack. My body (not to mention my soul) was not happy with this diet. It made its grievance known at about 2am this morning when I became violently ill. After an exceedingly unpleasant 45 minutes, I returned to bed and my body apparently forgave me--it hasn't given me any more trouble (and I ate lots of fruits and veggies and healthy foods today).

When this happens, I feel like I've been given a second chance at my caloric intake. I realize how bulimic that sounds, but I would never do it on purpose. It also makes me realize that the fuel I put into my body can have a drastic effect on its ability to function properly and happily. As good as a little pizza is, the way I feel after I choose lean meats and lowfat cheeses and fresh-picked peas and peaches and plums is well worth foregoing the delicious fatty taste.

Anyway, pictures of the house are to follow in the next couple of days--my camera is MIA after the move, so be patient with me. For right now, I will offer these details: 3 bedrooms, BIG living room/entry way, dining room leading out into sunroom leading out into the back yard, kitchen with new appliances leading into a breakfast nook, basement half-finished/half basementy, but it is a very clean level of unfinished-ness. 1 beautifully redone bathroom (with shower and bathtub) and 1 half bath (just toilet). A balcony over the sunroom looking out over the back yard. a small garden planted by the previous owners for our benefit that has peas and tomatoes. The peas are just starting to come ripe so every day we go outside and pick a couple of pods. Also, a detached garage with a barbeque left inside. If we don't blow ourselves up, it could be awesome. I really like our new house. It makes me feel tired when I think about how much unpacking we have to do, but if worst comes to worse, we can just throw all the stuff up into the unfinished attic and pretend it doesn't exist anymore.