Girly stuff

Things have definitely taken a different turn. I'm not where I thought I would be this summer. This spring, I looked ahead to summer and thought I'd be tackling more 10k's, improving my speed, half marathon training, running trails, and tackling more obstacle races. Not exactly... haha. There's still time to train for the fall races I wanted to do, but it all depends on how quickly I find a resolution to my injury.

Despite not being where I wanted to be on a fitness level, I'm in a place I never expected I would be a year ago. I am 40 lbs lighter. The realization still hasn't fully dawned on me I don't think. For quite awhile I still had a "fat" mentality, thinking I was still big when buying clothes and feeling shocked to find I no longer fit in what I used to. Then there are other days when I look at myself and wonder where the hell those 40 lbs came from. That's alot of weight... was I really that fat? I guess I was and just didn't realize it.

I'm about to go on vacation and see my family for the first time in a year. The last time they saw me I was 196 lbs. Now I'm 155 lbs. I'm very proud of myself, and happy with the person that I have become over the last 8 months. My energy, confidence, and self esteem are better than ever. I'm one of few people who can say that I am SMALLER than I was in high school (9 years ago). I have conquered challenges that I never knew I was physically capable of, and the feeling is absolutely awesome. It's amazing to think back on who I was, as I embrace who I have become

Anyway, aside from that moment of reflection, I did one more crazy thing last week.

I attended a ball.

Yes, my tomboy, non makeup wearing, jumping into mud pits, outdoor explorer self attended a ball. This was the Army birthday ball - we were invited to go and we figured it would be rude to turn down the invitation. To make it more interesting, we were seated at the VIP table with all the Command Sergeant(s) Major and the big wigs. I enlisted in the help of other more seasoned "girly girls" to make me not look like an idiot - dress, makeup, and hair. I kept it simple and natural looking since I did not want to look like a doll.

I think it worked out pretty well. This dress is a size 6 which was pretty awesome - it was tight across my chest like most things are, but it zipped up! Dress shopping is hard when you have an upside down triangle for a figure!

I love what my friend did with my hair, I thought it was really simple and cute - playful, yet kind of elegant at the same time.

Then of course we got our professional picture taken. My scanner was being stupid, so it's all shiny because I took a picture of the picture. Not sure why my strawberry blond hair turned out super red, I guess it was the lighting and background.

My husband was posting these pictures on Facebook, and my phone BLEW UP. People commenting on how good I looked, and how they could not believe I was actually DRESSED UP! Haha. It was nice though - I'll admit being a girl is *kind of* fun sometimes. And to take me further out of my comfort zone, we even danced a little bit. Stepped side to side really, I'm not coordinated enough for much more than that.

And lastly, since today I have been reflecting on my self transformation, I recalled the last time I dressed up and went to a dance. Senior prom!

This was me 9 years ago. Most embarrassing picture ever! Dyed black hair and a very unflattering last minute dress. Looking at these pictures really hit home for me. I have always had that "I'm large framed" mentality, and never ever thought it would be possible to be smaller than I was at 17.

Well, 17 year old me, I have beaten you. And I ain't lookin back!