ok so

Well it has only been a year and a half since the last time that I have posted so that's not too bad right? A lot has changed since that last time that I posted...and some things have stayed the same.
First the changes...the most important change was the welcoming of my beautiful baby girl into the world. She is amazing and totally worth the 9 months of sickness and the 23 hours of labor! She's only been around for four months but I can't imagine my life without her. She is such a happy easy going baby and we are so blessed to have her in our lives.
My husband and I also bought a house this year which was an experience in itself (especially being pregnant the whole time)! We really did find what I think is our perfect house and we're really lucky to be able to see past the ugly floral wallpaper and the cat smell to be able to see the house that is now our home. It is so warm and cozy and every morning when I wake up here I know that the 35 frogs we kissed (some really ugly giant toads in there) were all leading up to the first time walking into this house. We went to the hospital here, brought the little one home here, hosted our first holiday as a family here (Christmas) and watched the Giant's win the Superbowl here and I can't wait to keep making memories here...sappy!
Most recently I found a new job. I really did enjoy working with children but I always knew that it was not the career for me. I was lucky enough to start as a mortgage loan processor this past Friday and so far I'm enjoying all of the new things that I'm learning and I'm enjoying seeing places to grow in front of me. Hopefully things will keep going well there and I will be on a career path that is right for me.
Now on to the thing that is the same...a big thing. I'm working on my weight again. I didn't have too much trouble with weight gain while I was pregnant (see above-nine months of being sick) and ended up losing half of what I gained a week after coming home from the hospital. Then came the six weeks of being home, alone, with nothing to do but sit around and feed a baby-and myself. During that time and for many weeks after the whole new parent thing really took a toll on my husband and I and we were just too tired/busy to make dinner. Now its time again to undo that damage. Ive been working on the dieting thing for a month and have been really on top of it for the last two weeks. My next challenge though is going to be finding time to work out. Its not even that I am too busy. the problem is that I don't want to lose any time during the week with my husband and the little one and on the weekends I feel like I'm playing catch up on the housework and the relaxing. I guess its just something that I will learn to do over time, I'll keep this updated, hopefully on that.
I,m pretty sure that this is not going to be the most exciting blog...but it will have updates on the little one's accomplishments...so far they are: being wonderful, rolling over from her belly to her back, laughing out loud, and starting food (avocado-she's still getting the hang of it). It will also have updates on how this whole best me I can be thing. So stop by again, hopefully I will post again before June of 2014!

New Dress

So I've hit a new place in my weight loss that I'm really excited about...today I went into Some Girls Boutique in Troy and was able to find not one, not two, but three things that fit me. This is a big step for me because shopping in boutiques before always made me feel awkward. I felt like i didn't belong and that everyone there knew it. Today made me feel like I did belong, and although I'm not ready to wear a lot of the things there, buying my beautiful new dress really made my day.
In addition, I've officially made it through HVCC. I got straight A's again so all my credits are transferable! Exciting!

(Almost) A UVM Grad

Its quasi-offical..I've completed my undergrad! I finished my last exam a few minutes ago. It feels really good...it will feel better when I get my grades to make sure that I didn't get a D in anything...but hopefully I will have a diploma by August. Finishing something that I started almost eight years ago takes this huge weight off of my shoulders that I have been carrying around for quite a while now. Now all I have to worry about is reaching my goal weight by the party so I can wear my fabulous party dress from Some Girls!
I haven't really touched on this yet but I wanted to let everyone know what a lucky person I am. I have a lot to be thankful for but this journey would not have been the same if I didn't have my husband by my side. He is such an inspiration and a rock, especially with the healthier lifestyle aspect. He gets up every morning at 4:30 to go to the gym, always makes his lunch for the day, and keeps me on track when I need it. Going to the gym with him on the weekends extends my usual routine by at least a half an hour, sometimes more. If we weren't doing this together I think i would have fallen off course by now. He is also super supportive with everything else, helping me study, making sure I did my homework, reassuring me that people in HR departments don't have a personal vendetta against me, and keeping me grounded in general.
No luck yet on the job front but I have been offered an opportunity to take on a temporary team leader position at work for six weeks. If anything at least I'm moving in a positive direction and it will look good on a resume. I went to a job fair (which made me soooo nervous) and had a really great discussion with one of the recruiters, so maybe that will turn into something, if not at least it was a good experience.
I guess that's it for now...since my schedule has been freed up a bit for the summer, hopefully I'll be able to post a little more often. Thank you all again for the support!

Two more weeks

So I got everything accomplished that I wanted to this week...and I lost a grand total of a half a pound. A bit depressing. I don't know if its a reaction to my body being shocked that I'm running?..maybe. The running is getting a little easier (I did 2 minutes straight at the end of my workout today!) Just a little though...baby steps.
Also, no call backs as of yet but I did get out four new applications this week so maybe one of them is the lucky one? This whole job search thing is getting a little depressing. I know that I can't take it personally, but its hard not to when you put yourself out there and no one even wants to call you back to talk about the remote possibility of hiring you. I mean, its not like I'm applying for a position as a molecular biologist or a supreme court judge...I just want to help someone file their papers. Oh well...maybe this week.
Only four more classes until I (hopefully) get my Bachelors in Science...it only took 8 years...but I'm pretty excited. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel to finishing one thing that I started and that feels pretty good, and even though I'm being mopey at the moment about the job search I know that it will lead to good things.

Couch to 5k...and the rest of the week

First off...my goals for this week...

• go to the gym 5 out of 7 days
• finish week one of couch to 5k
• send out 2 resumes/applications
• finish all of my back homework for accounting

So as I told a few people today, this blog is so that I can organize my thoughts and goals, and so that I can be accountable to the people who may be reading. I've made it this far, as of right now I am down 35 pounds, have 7 resumes out, and am 4 classes and 2 exams away from my degree, but I know that at some point that it will stop being easy. I know that ultimately the only person that I have to answer to about all of this is myself, but who doesn't need a little help from friends and family, right? There is a lot left to do and a long way to go, so thank you all for being a part of this with me.

Something new that I have been doing is the "Couch to 5k" program. In theory it makes non runners (me) into runners in nine weeks with 3 workouts a week that increase in difficulty as you go. We'll see. I am two workouts down, and its not easy. I mean I haven't really seen my couch very much in the past four months but the truth is...I was not built to run, I'm going to keep pushing though and see where it leads.

P.S. Thanks for the love notes, they made me smile.

First Post

This is going to be a blog about my first steps...already taken...and all the steps to come to make the important move to a life that I've always wanted but have been too lazy/scared/whatever to pursue. For the past few years, in every aspect except my marriage, I have been pretty stagnant. Easy, mostly fun, dead end, job, weight that kept creeping up, a 99.5% finished college education, and a house hunt that never got past the Realty USA website(shameless plug for my dad). Its time to start, time to jump, time to really become an adult.