Nobody ever told me.......

Nobody ever told me how hard it would be to be a mother.

Nobody ever told me that I wouldn't have time to put on makeup in the morning.

Or that I would have my hair in a messy top knot for several years.

Nobody ever told me there would come a time that I would lose my patience with my precious baby and feel so guilty for raising my voice at him.

Nobody ever warned me that I would feel guilty every day for dropping him off at daycare so that my husband and I could provide for him.

Or that I would probably have to stop at Target on the way to work for a new shirt because I didn't notice the snot all over mine.

Or that I would need insane amounts of caffeine to keep from falling asleep at my desk after being up all night with the baby.

Or that the only time you really have to get anything done is after your child is asleep, which is also the time that every last ounce of energy has been drained from your body.

Or that you shouldn't even bother cleaning anything until they are in bed.

Nobody ever told me that toddlers are pretty much the same as inebriated adults but, thankfully, way cuter.

Nobody ever told me that after a while, you probably won't recognize yourself in the mirror because it's been so long since you have spent time on you.

Nobody ever told me that taking a trip alone to the grocery store would feel like a vacation.

Or that on this same trip to the store, you would miss your little person.

Nobody ever told me that everything I said about being a mom would go out the window as soon as my baby arrived.

Or that I would have a better body while I was pregnant than after I gave birth.

Nobody ever told me what a crazy, hard, beautiful adventure being a parent is....and I wouldn't have it any other way.

So here is to sleepless nights, toddler kisses, an extra cup of coffee, top knots and hoping that my little dude always feels loved.

If I had started then, where would I be now?

Looking back through my sporadic posts, I realize how many times (documented and undocumented) I have planned to live a healthy lifestyle only to fall off the wagon after a week or so. I have to say that it's a real bummer to think about how healthy I could be now had I followed through and kept all of my promises to myself. I am so excited (and very lucky) because I have been given an opportunity that I know only comes once in a lifetime.  I am participating in a research study and part of the study is to complete the State of Slim program. The program is a 16 week course and I attend a one hour class each week and weigh in. There are three phases and the first is the toughest and then the next two get progressively easier. I am required to work out 6 days a week at intervals that increase weekly. I want this to be the last time I write one of these "starting over" posts. I don't want to be doing this again in three years. To be quite frank, I don't know that my body will let me live this way for much longer. So, here we go!!

I will keep y'all posted as things progress. Here's to moving onward and upward! Remember to "choose your hard!"