Please don't feed her that!

I watched her that morning. I've always liked watching her dance and twirl, the smile on her face stretching from one ear to the other. So I stood and watched as she paraded around the room, first in circles and then back and forth across the floor space.

That morning was different though. That morning, the smile wasn't as big, the parade not as flamboyant, the eyes not as sparkly.

I wanted so badly to march in, scoop her up and ask what might be wrong. But I stood and watched some more.

I watched as she walked from the bed to the dresser and stood in front of the mirror. I watched as she sucked her stomach in, pushed it out, sucked it in again.

Then I heard, in the faintest whisper: "I don't think I'm fat".

And my heart broke into a million pieces.

You see, she is my daughter and she's only 9. Since the day she was born, she's only ever known her mother to be overweight, but she has always been a healthy weight. A tall, slim 9 year old built of solid muscle, there isn't anything remotely fat about her but somehow, some way, it has crept into her consciousness that she might be.

And that breaks my heart.

When I hear that some little boy at school has told her she has a fat bum, I want to wash his mouth out with soap. When I see her and her friends flicking through magazines and looking at the celebs with their personal trainer bodies and perfectly tailored clothes, I want to rip them out of their hands and scream "they aren't REAL!!".

You see, I've always tried to foster a healthy body image in my daughter. I haven't been the best role model as far as eating and exercising but I'm trying to remedy that. I have always attempted to make sure she knows that being healthy and strong is important, not the size of your body. We've talked about beauty vs brains (she happens to have both), healthy eating, everything in moderation, blah blah blah.

So WHY was she standing in her room, in front her mirror and talking about being fat?

Because already society's ideals have started to permeate that little brain of hers. She watches tv and hears the girls on shows going on about being skinny. She sees the pictures in magazines. She hears the older girls at school obsess about their appearances and their bodies.

It needs to STOP!

I can't shelter her from everything, nor would I want to. All I can do is offer a different perspective on it all and hope it sinks in.

I don't want my daughter to be like me. I want her to make smarter, better choices. I want her to grow up to be smart and beautiful (inside and out). But mostly I want her to be healthy; I want her to be strong. I want her to be what she has always been......

.....AMAZING!

We need to stop feeding our girls the same old bullshit! The magazines and the celebrities and the fashion industry need to stop promoting the "you must skinny" ideal and start promoting the "you must be healthy" ideal.

Whether that means you're a size 2 or a size 16, I really don't give a crap.

Be healthy. Be amazing. Be fit. Be strong. Be true to yourself and your body.

But whatever you do, stop feeding that bullshit to my daughter because this little girl? She's awesome and she doesn't need to worry about being fat....she needs to worry about having fun and when her next sleepover is gonna be!

WINNING! But not like Charlie Sheen!

One of the bad things about getting older is that sometimes the memory starts to have, well, let's call them lapses shall we? Now, I'm only in my early 30s, but already I have trouble remembering things. My boss calls this "Some-zheimers". My mother has "All-the-damn-time-zheimers" but we try not to tease her too much about it. You know what I'm talking about right? Get up from the couch, walk the 15 feet to the kitchen and proceed to stand there with a dumbass look on your face while you consider the options for WHY you are there?

Happens to me multiple times a day.

*sigh*

So, needless to say, I forgot that I was meant to be doing the draw for that book, "The End of Overeating". Yesterday. More than 24 hours ago. Can I use being blonde as an excuse? It works for Paris Hilton!

I finally remember 20 minutes ago. At 9 p.m. New Zealand time. I can't even honestly remember why I remembered. HA! See? "Some-zheimers"!

I took all the entries (10 of them, including my more-forgetful-than-me mother) and wrote them down on ugly yellow pieces of paper. Yeah, I like to kick it old school once in awhile. And then? Then I remembered that I had no impartial person here to pull out a name for me because my husband left to go back to work today. 

So I did what any good mother would do. I went and woke up my daughter.

WHAT?!? After all those months of screaming, pooing, screaming some more and keeping me up half the night, I figured it was about time I was given the chance to wake HER up for once. So I did.

She wasn't nearly as UNimpressed as I'd thought she would be. It was kind of a let down actually. Maybe next time.

I think it might be a reflection of how used to my kind of crazy she is, when she doesn't even question WHY her mother has woken her up and handed her a bowl of paper. She just blindly goes along with it.

"Ok, now pick out a piece of paper for me and hold it up for the camera once you've unfolded it."

She started to giggle right about then, as I'm sure the ridiculousness of it all was hitting her. Or maybe she was just tired. Either way, I'm not sure whose hands were shaking more as I zoomed in to take a picture of the piece of paper so y'all could see who actually won.

Congratulations to Lorne from Ladybug Beauty! If you email me, I'll get that book out to you ASAP.

As for the rest of you, bring your friends along to this here party, and the fun over at my Facebook Page and pretty soon I'll be having another giveaway. FUN right?!

Fit Date 004.12/150.6

Hello my lovelies! This has been a sensational week! What a way to start off 2012; just fantastic!

As I said in my previous post, I have signed up for the "Go The Distance 2012" challenge. A year long challenge where we all set a goal and do our damnedest to achieve it. And, as also previously mentioned, I set myself a goal of completing 2400 km on foot. This will be done by walking, running or on the elliptical. I'm off to a good start so far, logging just over 25 kms in the last 4 days.

Which is why, when the wonderful Tex (my WW leader & friend) reminded us this evening of the S.M.A.R.T way to set goals, I was able to sit comfortably in the knowledge that although the challenge is a year long thing, it is broken down into smaller, more achievable targets.

Do you know what the S.M.A.R.T way to set goals is? I had pretty much forgotten until Tex reminded us this evening.

S pecific     

M easurable 

A chievable 

R ealistic     

T  ime        

In the past, I have been guilty (multiple times)  of setting goals so lofty that while they may be specific & measurable, they are certainly not achievable or realistic. Or I try and squeeze a goal that would be realistic in six months into two.

I know I'm not the only one. I've seen others do it. "I'm going to lose 10 kilos in the next month". Yeah ok, you might...if you're on The Biggest Loser or if you spend 5 hours a day working out every day for the next month. Or if you're lucky. But for most people, it just isn't a realistic goal. And all too often we find ourselves overextending. 

It's good to have dreams. It's good to have goals. But as Tex so nicely reminded us tonight, it is important to stay grounded and make sure that when you set those goals, you have a shot of meeting them. Shoot for the stars, but make sure those stars are a little closer to Earth than Pluto.

* * * * * * * * * *

I had weigh in tonight. After my week of walking, swimming, drinking water and tracking what I eat, I am happy to say that I am now 1.7 kgs lighter than I was last week. 

Start Weight (Dec 28, 2011): 152.3 kg (335.06 lb)

Current Weight (Jan 4, 2012): 150.6 kg (331.32 lb)

Loss this week: 1.7 kg (3.74 lb)

TOTAL Loss: 1.7 kg (3.74 lb)

* * * * * * * * * *

Have you seen this picture making the rounds on Facebook and Pinterest? I forget who first posted it, but it spoke volumes to me and everyone else who has seen it so far. 

Certainly thought provoking isn't it?

Here's to another great week folks!!