Long time no see!

Well, I'm not sure if I've lost what readership I had, but I'm back from our month-long home leave in the US. It was pretty hectic, but lots of fun. I'm definitely happy to be back--and happy to say that for once I did not GAIN on a vacation. Big accomplishment for me :) I wish I could say the same for the rest of the fam...Dad gained, and my two youngest are still pretty pudgy. Well, one step at a time.

What did I do right this time? I'm writing it down so I can hopefully remember for the next time:

I was conscious of portions and tried to avoid sweets and fried foods.

I got a fair amount of exercise in, especially the last two weeks, while I was in training for work. I can't take much credit for this--I had to walk from the hotel to school, which involved about 80 stairs each morning. It was pretty ugly, but I did it.

What could I have improved on?

I didn't journal AT ALL. I was nervous the whole time that I would gain weight because I wasn't really tracking my intake.

I could have done more exercising at the hotels.

All in all, though, I'm pretty happy not to be ten pounds in the hole (the result of my last vaca in the US). Maybe my standards are too low?

Now what? I do realize that I need to be a leader for myself AND my family. I did plan a few dinners this week in spite of severe jet lag. We have some healthy dinners on the way, therefore. On restocking the house, I DID NOT purchase any junk. I'm realizing it's not doing me or the family any favors to have it in the house. I will keep making fruits, veggies, and whole grain products available for them.

I also decided that for the first couple of months the kids will be on school lunches. Better for them and me...I think their lunches are very good nutritionally, and even if they don't eat them, they'll have exposure to better choices. Eventually they'll get hungry and eat...right?

On the exercise side, I need to get back with the walk/jogging program. A good friend of mine has lost 20 pounds over the last few months exercising like a fiend. Her point, supported by watching the Biggest Loser a few thousand times, is that fat people CAN work out, and work out hard. We need to push ourselves to the next level, past our comfort zones. Sweat is our friend!

Anyway, some random, catchup thoughts here. I'm excited to be back and blogging again!