Just smile and move on...

Sometimes, the best revenge is to just smile and move on.

For those who do not know my ongoing saga, I "Express Mail"ed my Mom a big bouquet of lilacs from my garden Thursday night.

My Mom got her lilacs yesterday. She called me in the STEAMY afternoon of a Minneapolis one-day heat wave (it was 90 degrees here), and told me that she not only got them, but they were in a vase above her sink in the kitchen and she LOVED them. She told me, laughing, that my Dad had seen the price on the box (it was a LOT!!), and had been shocked, but I said, Mom, it was worth it, and we won't think about that again. I told her that I knew that would be Dad's reaction and I even asked the woman in the Post Office if she could black out the price. The employee, smiling, asked me why. I told her that I didn't want my Dad to lose it when he saw the price, so I already knew. All's well that ends well. Mom has her flowers and was very touched. That's all I wanted. I love my magnificent parents so much.

I got a weird request yesterday. Someone asked me to be their Spark coach. I have NO idea what that entails, but I am still being MY Spark coach, so I said no, but offered advice, and after I had read it, I thought that maybe it might be a good thing to share:

I thank you for thinking of me, but i am just no able to be your coach. I am still my coach.

Here is my best advice, however. READ the Beck book. Do the exercises. Have that list somewhere where you can look at it every day. Mine is still up by my computer. Know how important this is to you. Nobody can do this for you. You have to do it for yourself. I do believe that Beck gives you all the tools you need for success. (BTW: I am mentioning things that you will discover when you read Beck..if you don't understand this, please read this book!)

What worked for me, and still works for me, is meal planning. Also, cleaning out my entire kitchen of ANYTHING that isn't good for me. I have no sugar, white ANYTHING, or anything bad for me in the house. I don't eat salt, and I eat clean. Everything is real and not processed and I make everything i eat, so I know exactly what is in it. I just do not allow myself access to any kind of junk anymore.

I also track every single thing I eat, and will for a while. I am getting so good at it, that I can track and keep track of calories in my head, but I think that the act of putting ANYTHING and everything you eat in the Spark food diary is critical.

I also believe strongly in exercise. I didn't do any, and now do a lot of it. If you don't exercise, start by walking. I walk whenever my recent knee surgery lets me. I swim, do yoga every single day, and move. I dance at home, with music, if I have not moved enough in a day.

Make this YOUR adventure. Make it something that you are doing solely for your health and your future. Make this something extraordinary you do for you.

You can do this, and if there is anything I can do as far as help, just contact me. You don't need me. You need you.

Good luck, and Spark on.

Just smile and move on...and Spark on.