Unpleasantly Plump Week 2

I'm not going to lie, I was a bit excited to get on the scale this morning. I was so tempted ALL WEEK LONG to take a peak and just see if any of my minor adjustments have yielded any results but I restrained myself. I am not surprised by the number, I am 202lbs as of this morning, a loss of 2.8lbs total.

So many of you, my friends and family and even a few strangers, have said 'don't let the scale dictate the way you feel''. I HEAR you but I still need to quantify the effort, its in my DNA, I need the numbers. With that said, I vow to use those figures to stay positive 💪🏽, not turn and run towards food and failure when the numbers go up or stay the same.

So now that I have shared my number and I am about to post Week 2 photos, I would like to invite every reader of this post to do the same, especially if you're on a health journey like me. On the comments below this post, you can attach a photo, and each week you can join me in the accountability portion of publicly sharing your experience.

Funny thing about this week, life really kicked my ass. My Aunt Flow came to visit (if you know what I mean) and with that comes the incessant need to stuff my face with junk food just to sit in agony with constipation and cramping. I could not give up my coffee with 2 sugars and cream; this whole week I averaged two coffees a day so for the next 7 days I am going to limit myself to one and see how that goes. As for my daily eating choices a few items changed when I did my gross-treats (inside joke... my dad has a very thick Portuguese accent and when he wants to say 'groceries' it comes out as 'gross treats' - coincidence? I think not). My go-to store is Costco and no, I am not paid to promote them although, maybe I should stop using their name until they DO pay me 🤔. Let's call them Shopco from now on! When I went to Shopco this week, they had quesadilla's in the ready-made section so those HAD to come home with me and I swear (scouts-honor) that I DID NOT go down the snack isle BUT on the outside of the isle was a new display with White Cheddar Sun Chips 🤤! I could not resist and as I type this, I realize that my priorities are all wrong but I also promised myself that I would keep eating the things I loved. All things in moderation☝🏻. I was hit with some elbow pain on Monday, Kevin said it was Tennis Elbow so I spent quite a bit of time massaging my forearm and the tendons. Tuesday, our regular UPS guy; who says Zeus is his favorite dog ever and brings him a treat even when he doesn't have a package to drop off, stops in for a coffee and some unwanted chit-chat. He refers to Kevin and says, 'I thought he was your son and the other guy was you husband'. The 'other guy' in his comment is my 50 year old brother🤬! Story of my life, Kevin does look young but not THAT young🙄. Not sure if it was related to that UPS visit but Tuesday and Wednesday I managed get on the treadmill for at least an hour each day 🙌🏻.

Wednesday was a normal day and Thursday was the same until I heard of the passing of a wonderful woman. We called her Granny like so many others did who weren't necessarily her kin. Her name was Elinor and she was a century old. Having her missing from the mortal world feels like the sun has dimmed a little bit. She was a rare human, part of a minority with unshakeable faith, immeasurable morality, and unwavering love for all of her God's creations. Every single time we had a moment of uncertainty, stress at any level or worry of any kind, Granny would openly pray for our strength and to find understanding in all scenarios. She did this for everyone (believers and nonbelievers alike). She lived while so many of her loved ones passed on and she never wasted breath or thought in the direction of self-pity. If I have learned anything from this beautiful soul it would be to shed less tears in my sense of loss and give her the same faith that she has shown all who knew and loved her 🙏🏻💞.

This photo was taken Christmas of 2019, the last time we were physically with Granny.

I hope she knows just how many lives she touched in her 101 years on earth.

Here's the 1st photo for week 2... Size 16 Jeans and a large sweater. I tried too hard here people.

I put the camera on portrait mode, put my hair down and I even tucked in the front of my sweater 🤦🏻‍♀️

This isn't the real me - you know how I know? - after the photo was taken, I immediately took off the sweater because I was sweating and I put on a t-shirt and put my hair in a ponytail.

For this reason, I took a 2nd photo, the REAL Melissa.

Same size 16 Jeans, large lose-fitting t-shirt, no filter and hair pushed back.

Like so many people struggling with weight, I try to avoid the sight of my waist and usually, I hide my arms.

This is the real me - this is how I look at this very moment in time and I am not mad about it.