I Could Have Had a Cruise. Instead, I'm Going to WDW! May 2010 PTR - ONE MORE DAY!!!

[cinderella crazy]

So you’ve seen some older and more resent pictures of me. What you haven’t seen is what I looked like in between. After Mike and I got married, I gained about 10 pounds. Not too bad. And then I quit smoking, which was great. But then I gained 30 pounds. Then, I got pregnant with Alex, and I gained 35 pounds. So at that time I had gained 75 pounds total.

After Alex was born, I lost the 35 pounds I had gained during pregnancy. But wait! I then got pregnant with Lauren. Add the 35 back on. I lost 17 pounds and got stuck (If you’re keeping track, I was still 58 pounds heavier than when Mike and I got married). I couldn’t lose any more. I finally had to break down and get help. So I went to LA Weight Loss and I lost 39 pounds. As nice as it was to lose it, it was not fun. I was on a very strict diet and I eventually hit a plateau for over 2 months. (I feel like this is one of those word puzzles you did in math classes!)

I quit that program and didn’t lose any more weight over a year. I did pretty good though. I only gained back 6 pounds. But I eventually decided to knock out the remaining 25 pounds. About a year ago I joined Weight Watchers. I don’t go to meetings though. I do it all online. And I was doing well until I went to Disney last year (darn that dinning plan!).

As of today, I have 20 pounds I’d like to lose. I know I’m not going to lose all of those 20 pounds before we go to Disney. Honestly, I know that I have to make a choice. It’s not just about losing the weight anymore. It’s about changing my lifestyle. That’s hard y’all! I mean I live in the south. We fry everything!!! And honestly, I love fried food. But I’ve honestly gotten to a point where if I eat unhealthy food, my body lets me know it’s not happy. So instead of deciding to lose weight this time, I’m going to decide to change my lifestyle and eat healthier. (But I can have fun in Disney though, right?)

So this is what I look like today (well, it’s about 2 months ago):

This was what I looked like at 218 pounds:

55 pounds down, 20 more to go. Woohoo!

Up Next: I Am Not Leaving Until I Get To Do…

 

[leamom2princesses]

Good luck Alicia on your lifstyle change! I have had the same exact issues that you've had. I put it on with Lindsey. Lost it. Put it on with Josie. lost it. Quit smoking and have been battling that 30lbs ever since. I really hope you get that 20lbs off because I know you really want to. Have to be honest though, I don't really see why you need to lose another 20lbs. I think you look great! I really do.

 

[cinderella crazy]

Good luck Alicia on your lifstyle change! I have had the same exact issues that you've had. I put it on with Lindsey. Lost it. Put it on with Josie. lost it. Quit smoking and have been battling that 30lbs ever since. I really hope you get that 20lbs off because I know you really want to. Have to be honest though, I don't really see why you need to lose another 20lbs. I think you look great! I really do.

That's sweet! Thank you so much!

According to whoever decided what weight you need to be at a certain height, I should be between 140-165 (I'm 5' 9"). I'm 180 right now (Most people tell me I don't look like it but I think I hide it well because of my height). So 20 more pounds puts me at 160. I got down to 163 before we went to Disney last year and went back up to 180. I was very happy at 163 so if I can get back to 165 that would be great. But I thought I'd shoot for an even 20 to get to 160. We'll see. At this point, I'm going to pay less attention to the scale and more attention to what I eat and exercising.

 

[SimmerBaggins]

It's a celebration for you even if you didn't lose another pound -- you DO look great. Keeping off those excess pounds every week is a victory!! It is such a slippery slope, and you are very brave to show us what you looked like...even if you did wear it well.

I am 5'2" and am almost how much you weigh now (well, minus about 10 pounds, but still) -- and it really shows badly, but I'm working it, too! Trying to remind myself that every M&M I eat out of someone's candy jar at work really DOES matter. Beginning to do the Body For Life workouts, and my muscles are SORE! Love that feeling.

Anyway, be happy -- because when you look around and realize you are in the minority of being close to your ideal weight (and don't get me started about that...the Wii person on Wii Fit drives me crazy when my little figure balloons out to near obese), that is indeed -- Fantastic!! So happy for you.

Vickie

 

[cinderella crazy]

It's a celebration for you even if you didn't lose another pound -- you DO look great. Keeping off those excess pounds every week is a victory!! It is such a slippery slope, and you are very brave to show us what you looked like...even if you did wear it well.

Thank you! It took me over 2 years to lose what I've lost. It was just a little bit here and a little bit there. I think in some ways it has helped me keep it off.

I am 5'2" and am almost how much you weigh now (well, minus about 10 pounds, but still) -- and it really shows badly, but I'm working it, too! Trying to remind myself that every M&M I eat out of someone's candy jar at work really DOES matter. Beginning to do the Body For Life workouts, and my muscles are SORE! Love that feeling.

I never used to like to exercise. Now I just like the way I feel after I do it. Unfortunately I start to get in a groove exercising and then I get sick (like right now). It's so hard to get back at it. I also will not keep cake in the house (well, it finds its way here every once in awhile). I am not kidding when I say I could eat a whole cake by myself. Yummy!!!

Anyway, be happy -- because when you look around and realize you are in the minority of being close to your ideal weight (and don't get me started about that...the Wii person on Wii Fit drives me crazy when my little figure balloons out to near obese), that is indeed -- Fantastic!! So happy for you.

Your right, I should be happy. It is so hard being a woman! There are so many pressures on us to look a certain way and when we don't, we feel like failures. So part of my lifestyle change will be to be happy with who I am today.

If that's what Wii Fit does, I'm not sure I want it. That's horrible! Do you like the workouts? I've been curious about it ever since we got the Wii a couple of months ago.

Vickie

 

[Brave teacher]

Hey Alicia! WOW! Congrats on the weight loss so far! That really is something to be proud of. I have been trying to lose some weight since we got back from WDW last summer. I am now down 15 pounds since then (I haven't been consistent), and I am hoping to lose more. I have been doing WW online as well. We'll see how we can do in the next 80 days!

 

[MHTeacher]

YAY Alicia on your weight loss! I began exercising more and being more careful with the calories I consume, last July. I lost 35 lbs. by November. Since the cold weather has been here, I've found it hard to get out and run, so 5-6 lbs. have crept back on.

It is such a never-ending battle for me; so I know exactly how you feel. Good luck with your last 20!

 

[SimmerBaggins]

Oh, I complain and joke about the Wii Fit "game", but it does do something for you. If you do the running in place or the Hoola-hoop, you will really feel it! But you have to have your little "personage" that represents you (you build her to your own specifications), but when it comes down to the weigh-in, they start her off REALLY skinny, then as the scale climbs up to where you are, she bubbles out...then turns to look at her butt...like, OMG!

It's kind of neat when you're making progress, though, to see the chart/graph of your BMI and poundage. Going down. For months.

When you know you aren't making that progress, you do what you naturally do with the scale -- avoid it. Then, when you finally do come back, it says, "Where the $#@@ have you been???" Just kidding, but it does "gently" chide you, in a joking manner.

It is an experience to have, and to share with your girlfriends!!!

 

[cinderella crazy]

Hey Alicia! WOW! Congrats on the weight loss so far! That really is something to be proud of. I have been trying to lose some weight since we got back from WDW last summer. I am now down 15 pounds since then (I haven't been consistent), and I am hoping to lose more. I have been doing WW online as well. We'll see how we can do in the next 80 days!

Thank you Megan! That's what happened to me too. Went to Disney with, ate food on the dinning plan, and gained some weight back. I'm going to try to make better food choices when we go this time. I've really enjoyed WW. I've lost weight slower on WW than LA but I get to actually eat on WW. It's nice to be able to have cake every once in a great while.

YAY Alicia on your weight loss! I began exercising more and being more careful with the calories I consume, last July. I lost 35 lbs. by November. Since the cold weather has been here, I've found it hard to get out and run, so 5-6 lbs. have crept back on.

It is such a never-ending battle for me; so I know exactly how you feel. Good luck with your last 20!

Thank you Michelle! I think most people gain a little weight in the winter. We're couped up in the house so much! The temps here are supposed to get warmer the next couple of days and I plan on getting out of here!

Oh, I complain and joke about the Wii Fit "game", but it does do something for you. If you do the running in place or the Hoola-hoop, you will really feel it! But you have to have your little "personage" that represents you (you build her to your own specifications), but when it comes down to the weigh-in, they start her off REALLY skinny, then as the scale climbs up to where you are, she bubbles out...then turns to look at her butt...like, OMG!

It's kind of neat when you're making progress, though, to see the chart/graph of your BMI and poundage. Going down. For months.

When you know you aren't making that progress, you do what you naturally do with the scale -- avoid it. Then, when you finally do come back, it says, "Where the $#@@ have you been???" Just kidding, but it does "gently" chide you, in a joking manner.

It is an experience to have, and to share with your girlfriends!!!

I'll probably get it eventually. I'm too interested in it not to. Everyone that I know that has one enjoys it. That's funny about it giving you a hard time if you haven't done it in awhile.

 

[cinderella crazy]

Some people, when they go to WDW plan out every single minute of their visit. Have you seen them? You know, they’re the people you see waiting in a ride line and they pull out a sheet of paper that has times and rides on it. It will say:

9:00 am – Arrive at park
9:02 am – Walk down Main Street
9:06 am – Get on Buzz
9:20 am – Get off Buzz
9:22 am – Get on TTA
Etc.

Have you seen them? Maybe you’re one of them. I’ve always wondered how they figure out how long they’ll be in line for a ride or even how long it takes to walk between rides. Being slightly OCD, I find it intriguing. But, I’m slightly lazy too so any interest I have in doing that, it is overtaken by my laziness.

For us (well and for my piece of mind), instead of planning every minute or even what order we’ll ride and see the attractions at Disney we make lists. We usually have a list of rides/attractions we must ride/see. There’s no question about it. We have to do it. If we don’t, we’ve failed for that trip (Luckily, we’ve never had a failure. Unless you count a ride that we wanted to ride but was being refurbished). We then have a list of rides/attractions we would like to do. Once we’ve ridden all the must do’s, we start working on this list. Most of the time we ride/see all of these. Most of the time. Last, we make a list of rides that we usually don’t ride but if the lines are short, we’ll go on them.

Having said that, most parks have rides that we have to decide to fastpass so we have to have some plan of attack. So here’s the breakdown of rides/attractions we are interested in for each park and rides we plan on fastpassing (and of course some photos of some of our favorites).

MK – Must do’s
Pirates
Haunted Mansion (a favorite of everyone in our family)

Splash Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain
Small World
Space Mountain (we will probably Fast Pass this)
TTA
Buzz
Winnie the Pooh
Peter Pan
Aladdin’s Carpets
Snow White
Barnstormer
Cinderella’s Carousel
Philharmagic (we may fastpass this depending on the crowds)
Swiss Family Treehouse

MK – Would like to do
Tea Cups
Speedway
Jungle Cruise
Tiki Room
Carousel of Progress

MK – If not a long line will do
Dumbo

Epcot: Our plan of attack for Epcot may be different this year since Lauren may be tall enough to ride some of the more popular rides. In past years, we would take turns riding them since one of us had to sit out with Lauren. Plus, that person could also run to the other end of the park and get fastpasses while the rest of us rode the ride. So we’ve actually put the Future World rides in order of how we’ll go on them.

Epcot – Must do’s
1 – Sourin (get fastpasses for Test Track)
2 – Mission Space (The green side y’all. I may be crazy but I’m not that crazy)
3 – Test Track
4 – Spaceship Earth

5 – Nemo
6 – Land
7 – Universe of Energy (I know. It’s long. But Alex wants to ride the Ellen ride)
American Adventure
O Canada
Mexico
Maelstrom
Make masks in the countries
Go to kidcot stations in Future World locations.

Epcot – Would like to do
China Show
Imagination
Innoventions

We don’t have any for the last list

DHS: This one has gotten tricky. Between Tower of Terror, Rockin’ Roller Coaster and Toy Story Mania it is hard to make a decision about what to fastpass and what not to fastpass. So here’s the plan:

DHS – Must do’s
1 – Tower of Terror (This is my favorite ride in all of WDW!!! LOVE IT!! Mike and I will ride this. While we ride, Mom and the kids will go to Toy Story and get fastpasses)

2 – Rockin’ Roller Coaster (Mom and Mike will ride this while I take the kids and entertain them)
3 – Toy Story Mania (if it’s time for the fastpasses)
Great Movie Ride
Indiana Jones

DHS – Would like to see
Lights, Motor, Action

No rides for the last list

AK: Another tricky park. We like to go on Everest, the kids like to go on Safari. So here’s what we’re thinking:

AK – Must do’s
1 – Safari (Mom, the kids, and I will walk toward Safari while Mike walks fast to Everest and gets fastpasses. Once Mike joins us, we’ll get in line at Safari)
2 – Everest (Still trying to convince Alex to try this one. We’ll see. Lauren is technically the only one who isn’t able to ride it)

3 – Dinosaur (Mike and Alex can ride this one)
4 – Triceratop Spin
5 – Boneyard
6 – Bugs Life

AK – Would like to see
Conservation Station

No rides for the last list

So even though I don’t have the rides listed next to actual times, I guess I really do plan out the order we’ll ride/see certain things at Disney. MK is the exception though. We pretty much go with the flow there. We end up going there so many times; we know we’ll eventually ride/see everything that we want.

Up Next: Getting Purty For WDW

 

[Spaceship Tigger]

According to whoever decided what weight you need to be at a certain height, I should be between 140-165 (I'm 5' 9"). I'm 180 right now (Most people tell me I don't look like it but I think I hide it well because of my height). So 20 more pounds puts me at 160. I got down to 163 before we went to Disney last year and went back up to 180. I was very happy at 163 so if I can get back to 165 that would be great. But I thought I'd shoot for an even 20 to get to 160. We'll see. At this point, I'm going to pay less attention to the scale and more attention to what I eat and exercising.

I think you look great, honey!

 

[cinderella crazy]

I think you look great, honey!

Awww! Thank you!

 

[MHTeacher]

Being slightly OCD, I find it intriguing. But, I’m slightly lazy too so any interest I have in doing that, it is overtaken by my laziness.

Love the way you put that! I'm slightly OCD as well, but have never had an interest in actually putting the rides/attractions/shows in order of how we will visit them. I was afraid that I was failing in my OCDness! Now I'm glad to know it is just laziness on my part!

 

[cinderella crazy]

Love the way you put that! I'm slightly OCD as well, but have never had an interest in actually putting the rides/attractions/shows in order of how we will visit them. I was afraid that I was failing in my OCDness! Now I'm glad to know it is just laziness on my part!

I'm just speaking the truth. I'm convinced I could get a ton of stuff done if I wasn't so lazy. Oh well, back to my lazy OCDness.

 

[cinderella crazy]

I'm so excited! Want to know why? I'm getting my hair chopped off today. For some reason, every March, I feel the urge to chop my hair off. It's one of those things that I do to get ready for Spring/Summer when I don't want to spend a ton of time on my hair. Last year, I had about 6 inches cut off. I knew I didn't want to deal with my hair being really long during our last trip to Disney. So I went into the salon and told my friend Christine to chop it off. It was wonderful! She told me, you are never going to go back to long hair after this. I thought "Yeah, whatever." I almost always get it chopped off and the grow it for a year or so. And then I repeat the process.

Well, this time she's right. The length it is now is the longest I want it to be (it's right at about shoulder length). So how much am I getting cut off? A little over 2 inches. Want to see a picture? Here you go:

So imagine my face, my dark hair, with that hair cut. I'll post pictures of the final result later today. Right now, I have to get busy finalizing our Little Mermaid Disney night!


Up Next: Haircut results - Post #118

 

[Brave teacher]

I love your plan! That is exactly what we do. We ask the boys what they want to do more than anything else in WDW. If we get more than that done, then that's gravy! Your must-do attraction list looks like our must-do list.

I love her hair. I think it will look nice on you as well. I can't wait to see it!

 

[leamom2princesses]

Love your lists Alicia. I'm the same way, I usually have a plan for where I'm headed first but after that it's whatever-I guess I'm lazy too. We have rides we want to do and after that it's just icing on the cake. No one could ever do everything at WDW so hitting everyone's must do's is the best way to ensure that no one leaves disappointed. Excited to see the new 'do!

 

[cinderella crazy]

Y'all, I feel like I lost 10 pounds! I can't believe how much hair my friend Christine cut off! I think it was a liitle over 3 inches in length but then she also thinned it out (I have pretty thick hair).

So here's what I looked like last Friday (It had been 4 months since I had my hair cut):

And here's what I look like a week later:

I'm ready for Disney now!


Up Next: "I SEE TOWER OF TERROR!" - Day 3

 

[kangaand2roos]

It looks AWESOME!!

 

[Brave teacher]

That is a great cut for you Alicia!