I'm Back in the Saddle Again...

It's true. Cory and I had a really rough year. 

In May 2013, he was laid off from his job. What we thought would be a month or two turned into a year of living off my poverty-level income. In February 2014, we lost my mother-in-law to cancer. We knew it was coming, but the blow was harder than I ever anticipated. Every day we think of her. We try to keep her memory alive for my daughter and the other grandkids. 

Overall, we are fine now. The pain of losing Cherry lessens every day. Cory and I now have dream jobs that keep us more than above water. Every day we thank God for the blessings He has bestowed upon us. One of those blessings is the ability to fail. This isn't a bad thing, mind you. I see every failure as proof that I get to continue to learn and grow. However, repeating the same failure over and over again proves you've closed yourself off from those lessons. It's also the definition of insanity.

I have always used food as a coping mechanism. If stress eating were a competition I would have Olympic Gold at this point. What is crazy is I am well aware of how I feel after the binge sessions. And how amazing I feel when I eat right and exercise. But somehow, when things get rough, I regress back to the comforts of bad habits. 

A wife of a friend (now my friend) has been talking with me for nearly a year about her experience is Advocare. She is far from a blind follower. She is an extremely educated woman who can tell the difference between s*** and pudding. And she LOVES this stuff. Looking at before and after pictures, I can see why. She looks amazing, she feels amazing, and she is a powerhouse! The fact that she pushed for so long for me to try this shows me she cares about my health, not her profits. 

So July 8th I started the Advocare 24-day challenge (Details to come in a follow up blog). I deserve to feel better again, to fit in my clothes again, and to live a long life for my husband, daughter, friends and family. The scale won't register my weight, but I tracked my measurements. Excited to see what happens will come of this new adventure. 

Giddy-up!