I can walk across the parking lot

Today my mom came into town to go to Costco and run a few errands.  I met her at the mall and we hoped in her car to run errands together.  She usually parks far away from the entrance and she used to always say "sorry, it's going to be a bit of a walk".  Or sometimes she'd ask if I'd like to be dropped off at the entrance and she'd go park.

When I was bigger I had such a terrible back, and my knees and legs would hurt for "no reason".  Funny how I actually thought it was for no reason!  Anyways, even this summer my mom would still say to me "Sorry I'm parking waaaayy over here, it's a bit of a walk".  Finally I said to her, "It's okay mom, I'm fine walking now."  She laughed and said it was just a habit to say it.  I'm so happy that I am able to walk!

This is my moms dog Daisy.  This is how she was perched in the car when we got in!

When I was bigger I used to take the bus everywhere and in the winter time it was hell.  First of all because of the walk to and from the bus stop.  Secondly because of the ice and snow.  I was a big girl and it's so hard to watch your step when you're bigger.  Right now I feel like I could run on ice and catch myself, before I had trouble tip toeing on ice.  Even if I made it across fine, the distance was hard on my joints.  I remember slipping and falling once and I hurt so badly afterwards.  It was also really hard to get up.  Imagine a turtle, because that's how I felt!

It was great being out with mom today without worrying about walking and without worrying about the seat belt in her car.  I was very grateful.

I remember in the spring of 2009 when I first started losing weight.  Dan and I got into the car to do grocery shopping and I remember the seat belt fitting easier (One of the reasons we got this car was because the seat belt fit me, not exactly the best reason to buy a car!).  So I looked down at the seat and I could SEE the seat in between my legs!  It wasn't just thighs and stomach!  I saw about 1 inch of the edge of the seat between my thighs (yes, by my knees.  That's how big my stomach was!) and I cried.  I bawled all the way to the grocery store and then I started giggling.  It was the first thing I ever noticed, and the most vivid memory.

As I was saying above I have a large stomach, in fact most of my weight sits in my mid section.  Usually if I wear a long shirt it'll fit just fine around my ribs, but then it'll be tight around my stomach, and then it'll go back in towards my legs.  (Imagine a pregnant lady wearing a long shirt, very similar).  So I've never been able to wear long shirts.  Well after my post yesterday I realized that I was wearing a longer shirt and it wasn't doing the pregnant lady look!  Yeeesssss!

Seriously, weight loss is about the small victories.

I've noticed lately too that now I can throw most of my laundry in the dryer.  This might not seem like a big deal, but seriously this is HUGE.  Before I would was all of my clothes in cold water, then stretch them out as far as a could, then leave them hanging to dry.  Even jeans that could go in the dryer, everything!  If shirts shrank even a little then they where too short and my belly would poke out the bottom.  Talk about embarrassing!  Now all clothes that are dryer friendly I can actually put in there just fine!  I know this might seem almost random, but even little things are effected by weight.

My mom likes to go to a local Chinese restaurant in town.  I would actually decline offers to go because all of their chairs had arms on them and I didn't fit in them.  Now I have no issues fitting in booths, chairs, benches, heck, even tables with attached benches I can sit in now!  It's the little things that everyone take for granted that make weight loss worth it.

I know I've done a post before about being grateful for the little things.  I just find more and more things everyday that are new and amazing!  I love it!