Girls night in..... A good time had by all........

Last night I hosted a "girls night in" get together. I invited three friends, and ask them to each invite one friend. The other directions were to bring your favorite comfort food, and something to share that you find positive/helpful. The last two were optional, as the whole point of the evening was to be free of stress and presure. For aditional "entertainment" I had my Yoga instuctor come in and give us a demo class, my massage therapist gave everyone a thirty minute massage, and I borrowed a chocolate fountain to round things out. What more could a girl ask for?

Former me would have totally stressed out getting ready for things, ending up exhausted at party time. Current me, cleaned the bathroom (okay current me's husband cleaned the bathroom bless him!), and cleared out my exercise area so we had the space to do Yoga in. Let me add here that I did my lifting as I was clearing. I would use a weight, and them put it away. The last thing to go was the bench (I do bench push-ups and always do these last because they are not my favorite). I thought it showed big improvement that I didn't use the usual excuses to not work out, and didn't worry about stupid things like cobwebs and throw pillow placement. Good job self!

Enough about working out, let's get to the good part...... The food!
Did you guess that I picked pasta as my comfort food? Friday night, I drove all the way across town to go to an actual produce market, rather than my grocery store. My teen and I spent about an hour mother-daughter bonding as I gave her another lesson in picking out the freshest fruits and veggies (do we know how to have a good time or what???). The point I want to make here, is that this was a postive experience with food. The more I interact with food in this manner, the less junk I want to put in my mouth. The less junk I put in my mouth, the healthier I will become.

Party night..... One of my friends brought the stuff and taught us (for her sharing)how to make spinach pies (Oh! How I love these). Another friend brought avocado dip (the good fat), and the third one brought a yummy fruit and pudding salad. Yes! We had calories, but these foods were high quality high tastebud stimulating food. So much so that I was content with a much smaller quantity. BTW.... Mouth even listened to stomach, and I didn't finish all the pasta I had dished up.

I know what was really happening, is that I am getting much more filled up with the changes I am making in life. The community with my friends last night left me far more satified then any of the food did. My relationships have become the mainstay of my diet, and my diet has become dessert. Do you know how HUGE this is for me? It is WAY HUGE!!!!!

If you ask me how I reached this point, I am not sure that I could come up with the words. The closest I can come is to say that I made the commitment to try one little change at a time, and made a consious effort NOT to beat myself up when I was less than perfect. Refering back to Yoga....... When doing a pose, it is the tiniest of shifts in position that make it possible to gain comfort, and improve ability. My instucter is always saying "Less is more." I have incorporated those words into my daily life as well, and it has had a big impact on all parts of my world. So let that be your mantra this week....... LESS IS MORE!

Get excited.... In tomorrows blog I will share the details of my run earlier today.
Some really amazing things took place, that (I think/hope) will really motivate you.