Week 3

I have good news! So this week I decided to try on a pair of jeans that have been sitting in my drawers since Christmas Day. These were the jeans I got from my Mom that literally made me cry when they didn't fit. But hallelujah, if they didn't fit on Saturday! I have now gone from a size 16 jeans to a size 14! I have been telling everyone all week and I couldn't wait to put it on my blog! And not to mention, my Mom and my aunt came to visit me on Saturday and it was a total surprise, so not only did I go down a pants size, I got to spend all day with them. It was the highlight of my week for sure! This past weekend was probably the best weekend I have had in a long time.

Now, this week has been much better as far as gym and eating healthy goes with a few exceptions. This week I made it to the gym for 3 days, but on the third day I hurt my leg. It's not too bad, but it still hurts when I walk. It doesn't keep me from going to class but it definitely slowed me down a little bit. When I was at the gym, I did thirty minutes on the elliptical (where I pushed myself really hard) and decided to see how far I could run after my workout. So I ran around the track with my friend and ran 5 laps, which is 5/8ths of a mile, which could have been farther had I not just finished my workout. I stopped to stretch and hugged my knees and felt my hip pop. I know it didn't come out of socket, because that would have been MUCH more excrutiating, but that's the only way I know how to describe it. Needless to say it really hurt that night, but I was able to dance at Orientation practice (that doesn't mean it didn't hurt though). It's still kind of bothering me sitting and typing this. So it looks like until it starts to feel better I'm going to have to be a little kinder to it at the gym this week. Hopefully it won't put a damper in my training for my 5K but we will have to see.

Again, as the semester progresses I am finding it increasingly hard to find time for the gym. As far as Monday's and Tuesday's go, I don't make myself walk to the gym because I am too busy. And I have been getting behind in my classwork because my sleep schedule is all out of whack. I'm working on fixing it, but I slept through my alarm 2 days in a row last week and missed two days worth of classes, which for anyone who knows me well, I hate (unless it is algebra). The last thing I want to do is skip class, and the only thing I hate more than missing class, is showing up late to class. The worst is when you walk in late and your professor gives you this look that feels like they can see the innermost parts of your soul. It makes me shiver just thinking about it.

My stress level right now is through the roof. I have so much to study for that I get exhausted just thinking about it. The class I am most stressed about at the current moment is chemistry. I feel like I should be doing better than I am in that class, but I think I'm not used to doing all of the online bookwork and things like that. I'd rather have problems assigned to me out of the book. But the class that I am usually most stressed out about, which is Politics, I am ahead in, so it relieves some of the stress.

On thursday I had my first soda in a long time, and let me tell you, if it wasn't the most delicious thing I ever tasted. I didn't eat that much that day, and wasn't particularly hungry, so I let myself have it and a bowl of cereal and an orange for dinner. I have been craving Diet Coke ever since! For those of you who know me well, know that I had a deep relationship with Diet Coke, breaking up with it was one of the hardest and most emotionally challenging things I have had to do since I started this whole journey. But now I know not to let myself splurge on it again because it is a habit I do not need to start again.

These past few weeks as far as my faith goes have been rocky. To say that college hasn't made me think about where I am spiritually would be a lie. Being in college has exposed me to a wide range of different beliefs and views on spirituality that you don't really get in high school, where a good bit of the people there you have grown up with, at least from middle school. But I am still working on getting back on the right track, and I am still finding myself being grounded in what I believe, it's the faith and relationship part that I am struggling with right now. It's hard to find time to work on my relationship with God when I have so many other things to work on. I'm going to try and make a better effort this week. It's hard for me to be honest about this part, because my faith is something that I hold very dearly, but it's not something that I can keep to myself, because regardless of what I tell other people, I believe God really knows the condition of my heart.

So here's the part where I talk about how much I love my school and the people here. I love being here at UWF and getting to know the people I have. I have made so many friends and have been learning about others and myself. I especially love my fellow Orientation Leaders, and love being a part of what Orientation is all about. Yadda, yadda, yadda, I love it here!

I have been getting so many emails and facebook messages from you guys who are reading my blog, and it is the most encouraging thing. I have gotten messages from people who have learned something from my blog, who are going through the same thing I am, and from people who are encouraging me along the way. I love getting feedback from all of you, and I am glad to know that there are people out there who are benefitting from reading my blog. Thank you so much for your encouragement and for cheering me on, and for some of you, taking this journey with me as I try to gain back control of myself.

And now I'd like to give a special shoutout to my fellow ginger and student coordinator for Orientation, Shawn Mallory, for giving me a 6 cent tip for getting him a chocolate milk at dance practice, and who reads my weekly blogs. Thanks Shawn!

So that's all for this week, see ya next Tuesday!