TODAY IS THE FINAL DAY!!!!!!

I'm running out the door for my first haircut in SIX months, oh yes… SIXXXX MONTHS!!!! eeeks. Anyway, I just wanted to put a quick note up here before I left to say that I haven't forgotten about you and I'll write more when I get back.  Someone last night already sent in their "after" photo and I'm BLOWN away by it. I mean… BLOWN away.  I canNOT wait for you guys to see… 

Also, though this is the end of this segment of the healthy train, would you guys like for me to continue the healthy train blogging? I know I haven't been writing as much as I should in the last few months… and quit posting photos of my progress (I'll explain why when I get back)… so maybe it's not as exciting to see?  Maybe another contest like this one in six months???  Any other suggestions? Just let me know your thoughts.  I have my own ideas but would love your feedback.

Okay, off to turn this triangle that's on top of my head into some sleek beautiful tresses. Be back lata!

~bobbi

PS. though I haven't fully written this blog entry… for you healthy trainees, START WEIGHING IN!!!!! (No worries, don't need your "after photo" quite yet… we just have an over achiever that I already mentioned ) Would LOVE to know how you did.  Remember, I need percentage lost.  Here's a quick reminder on how to figure out your percentage lost… it's SUPER easy:

EXAMPLE:  Your starting weight was 200 lbs… and you've lost 20 (making you 180)

Take the amount of weight you've lost and divide it by your starting weight:  20 ÷ 200 = .1

Take that total and multiply it by 100: .1  x 100 = 10

Add a percentage sign and BADABOOM BADABING… you're DONE:  10%!!!! 

Got it?  GOOD!

~

 OKAY, I'm back…

 … and with with sleek beautiful tresses, I might add.

Sooo… I don't even know where to begin. HMMM…

Losing weight has given me more confidence than I ever imagined. However, getting there has been a much more difficult journey than originally anticipated… and I'm still far from my goal. So, now it's time for full disclosure blog entry, so I won't even be 1% mad if you don't read it… it's a whooooole lot… 

I started the ORIGINAL healthy train in January 2008… by June 2009… I had lost 37 lbs. Yes.. THIRTY SEVEN POUNDS! I'm 5'2… I looked like a completely different person! I walked differently, I talked differently, I dressed differently, I was a better wife, I was a more involved friend, I even think I became a better photographer.  I know some of this sounds ridiculous but, I'm telling you… confidence and self esteem are crazy things and affect more parts of our lives than we realize.

Thennnn the craziness of our business happened… I had full intentions of maintaining that summer and would start again with the weight loss when things died down in November.  Well… I maintained until July… THEN THE TRAVELING HIT! (We slept in our bed only 6 nights in July… yeah, THAT much traveling) As I've mentioned on this blog one zillion times, traveling and I are NOT friends when it comes to a healthy lifestyle. I struggle… and I struggle HUGELY.

So anyway… by October… OHHHH I can't believe I'm admitting this here… I gained back… AHHHHHH…. 17 lbs. SEVENTEEN POUNDS!!!!! How do you gain SEVENTEEN pounds in FOUR months???? (MAN OH MAN admitting this here is REALLY hard for me).  I got really depressed.  People, after seeing my healthy train blog would say when they saw me, "Bobbi, you look great!" When really… I was SURE that they only reason they were saying that was through the power of suggestion.  I would always respond with something like, "Oh, I've gained a few back… but thanks anyway!"

Holy katz… I knew something neeeeeded to happen…. that month, I started up the healthy train on this blog again hoping it would help keep me accountable and maybe motivate a few people along the way.  I asked all of you to send in before photos and to get off our asses to MAKE IT HAPPEN Oh the stories I read… wow. You guys are an incredible group of people… I was so inspired and full of hope.  

Somehow… I was eating the same way I was back when I'd lost all of the weight I did the first time… working out… feeling good about my push.  Then I weighed myself. -0.2 lost. Oh well.. maybe I'm retaining water this week. Weigh again in a week. 0 lost. EFFF! Maybe I need to poop… next week… -0.4. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! (ps. I can't believe I just talked about poop on my blog… but I'm just being honest here You guys KNOW you think about that when you weigh yourself in the morning!!!!) So… in 3 weeks I'd lost -0.6 lbs. EFFFFF!!!!!!

I kept on… however, yes yes yes… motivation was waning. I was still trying… just not trying hard enough. So, in all of my trying… I maintained. Which I guess is better than gaining, but… still not a success. I tried to remain upbeat and excited in my blog entries but deep down I was just majorly bummed out. Then, after a while, I'd just forget to blog about it at all.  AYKM?! How does one FORGET?! Who knows… but, I did. It just became harder and harder for me to admit, week after week, that I wasn't losing. Admitting failure publicly is a whole lot easier said then done… especially when I was barely trying.  Ugh… 

Then I realized… it's not about me.  I had so many of you out there looking to me for motivation and accountability.  You had set a goal, took a bit ol' bite of humble pie and emailed me a photo of yourself… a photo of you where you didn't feel beautiful… and with many photos… your stories. Many of you had hit that wall… the wall I hit when I VERRRRY first started this train… and you knew that tomorrow was going to be different, that that photo you were sending was the worse you'll ever look and that it's completely okay to send it to a near stranger because the next time you send that stranger a photo… you'd be a different, more confident person.

So, I missed a few healthy train blog entries… and with that… many of you quit "weighing in". We went from getting 50-80 of you weighing in to about 15-30. OHHH how I feel like I've let you down.  I feel a lot of guilt…. and I'm so incredibly sorry. I won't let it happen again.

A few of you, however, kept on pushing pushing PUSHING… and I COULD NOT BE MORE PROUD!  Last I checked, two men have lost over 20% of their body weight. YES… you heard me right… TWENTY PERCENT!  I just read a blog comment from a woman who's lost 15%.  I just don't know what to say to that… I'm genuinely speechless.

Where does the healthy train stand now? I'm not really sure. I still have weight to lose. I'd LOVE to do another contest as I know many of you have hit that aforementioned wall and are ready to jump aboard. CHOOO CHOOOO!!!! However, I'm the queen of having too many irons in the fire and thinking that I can take on any big project then only realizing that I'm only able to give that project 10% of myself, and that's not fair to you. 

HOWEVERRRR… a few of you have emailed and said that they wouldn't have started the healthy lifestyle without my extra push.  Do you have ANY idea how amazing of a feeling that is?!  That this little blog was the little bit of extra motivation needed for someone who was morbidly obese to finally do something about it for his family?

So yeah, I feel a responsibility to keep on keepin' on.  This healthy train is so much bigger than me. It's taken on a life of its own… and I couldn't be more proud of you all. SHEEEEESH… now I'm crying. PULL IT TOGETHER BOBBI…you still have more to write!

OOOOKAY…. back to my weight loss journey Some time in January… I hit that wall again.. I'd been maintaining since November and it was TIME to start loving myself again.  Since then, I've lost about 9 lbs.  That makes me only 7 lbs more than my low point… and makes my total weight loss 29 lbs. I feel good about that. For the first time since gaining back all that weight, when someone compliments my weight loss I say, "thank you" rather than my usual "ohhh… I've gained back weight, but thank you" So, yay.

On that note, I do have to say… I'm good at posing in photos… and feel silly when people see me in person after only knowing me online… So, don't be shocked when you see a short, chubbyish red head with a big ol' smile coming your way.

HOOOOLY SHIZZZZ… that's a whole lotta words up there.. and wow to you if you actually read it all. I owe you a hug.

If any of you have anything you'd like to say, please feel 10000000% comfortable saying it down there in the comment section. Remember, when you're with me, you're in the JUDGMENT FREE ZONE!!!! Also, I welcome any feedback or thoughts on the continuation of the train.

SKIP TO HERE IF THAT'S TOO MUCH TEXT!!!!!

ANNNNNNNNNND that leads me to this: HOW'D YOU GUYS DO??!?! Time to start taking that "after" photo! Even if you don't think you won… send it! I'd LOOOOOOVE to see it, I'm sure lots of people would love to see your progress.  You'd be AMAZED at what seeing someone elses "after" photo will do for their motivation!  FURTHERMORE… even if you've "only lost 10 lbs"… TAKE IT… because seeing the difference is a BIG damn deal (TRUST me!).  You'll be amazed, I promise.

Here's my original "before and after". Between the photo on the left (October, 2008) and the one on the right (May, 2009) there's a 26 lb difference. (I'm only about 3 lbs more now than I was then… YAYYY!)

Healthy train competitors: to qualify to win… I need a new "after photo" along with a percentage lost… (See wayyyy above for info on how to calculate that).  Like I said, even if you don't think you won… SEND IT IN!!!!! Then, and ONLY with your permission, I'll post that photo here so that our blog readers can give you a BIG OL' pat on the back!  I'll need those NO LATER THAN Wednesday! I'll announce the winner on FRIIIIIIDAYYYYY!!!!

I'll also write more about what's next for the healthy train then, after I will have read your feedback

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOUUUUUUUU to those who've stood beside me through all of these ups and downs, you guys REALLY are the best blog readers around… and if I could, I'd throw high fives to each and every single one of you… and yeah, a hug if you've read this whole thing!

LOVE LOVE LOOOOOVE!!!!

~bobbi

 Oh, and… here's a photo of me today taken on my iPhone… after my first haircut in six months See… sleek beautiful tresses!!!  

PS. just as an FYI, to win you'll have to allow me to show the "before" and "after" here…)

PPS. You're all hot tamales!

PPPS. I think that this entry is OFFICIALLY the entry with THE most words ever used in one single bbmk blog. WOWZAS!

 OHHHH YES… what you've been waiting for is here… our Jamaican amazingness.  First up, their engagement session.

 HELLLLLL YESSSSS!!!!! AYKM WITH THAT BEAUTY!??! I KNEW when I took this photo that it was going up right here on the bliggity blog!  Oh, and about all of the extra color in these images. I swear to you… I used the same process I always use (I even toned it down a bit) but that Jamaican sunlight is outtttta this world!!! We're all just naturally vibrant there.

 JEAN-GUY?! You are RIDICULOUSLY hot tamales.

As we were walking out onto these rocks… I think I almost fell 10x. As a matter of fact, Mike took the cameras from me because I'm a weeee bit awkward (understatement of the year).  They, however… could have ran on them, I'm not kidding! I kept saying, "you two move so nimbly!" (Yes, I know that's not a word… but they knew what I meant, so I say… IT'S A WORD!) I swear to you… they were like ballerinas compared to my clumzy ass!

 We literally took ONE photo here when Suzanne ran off and started jumping around like a crazy person… "ANTS ANTS!!!! ANTS DON'T BITE?!?!!!" I guess they don't bite in Nova Scotia… but they sure the heck do in Jamaica! Yes yes yes… fire ants… INTENSE! After she shook all of the ants off we walked for another minute when she said, "it itches so bad!" 

"Where?" I responded as I knelt down closely to her foot.

"There!" she pointed.

SMMMMMACK!!!!!!! Oh yes… WithOUT hesitation I took a BIG OL' swat at her ankle. You see, I've had more mosquito bites than anyone I know, and I'm ridiculously allergic (I'm convinced they love Irish blood). Anyway… I KNEW that the best way to make it stop itching is to smack it. Right after I did this, I immediately thought to myself, "OH NO! I shouldn't have done that… I totally went in to auto pilot!" as in.. that's exactly what I would have done if it had happened to a friend. 

I asked, "does it itch anymore?"

"Nope!" she said. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!!

WOW… I can't believe I told you that story… makes me look like a loony toony. Oh well… I am who I am! And…we were able to shoot for another hour… so, BOOOYA FIRE ANTS!!!

Here is that one single photo we were able to take in front of this palm tree…  

 Hello Atlantic Ocean.

 Does this photo make you bitter about having an abnormally cold winter here in the good ol' Midwest?! DOES FOR ME!  BTW, my favorite

 this photo = perfection. ANNNNND… Mikey's favorite

RUNAWAY BAY, Jamaica

Wedding: February 10, 2010 • Jamaica

Can't wait to show you their wedding!

~bobbi+mike +

PS. Funny that our last engagement session was IN THE SNOW… talk about contrast!

 I'm telling you, me + that kind of heat are NOT pretty together. I may complain about the cold… but I'm MUCH prettier in Indiana than I am in Jamaica. Me = HOT MESSSSSS!!!!!!! (just you wait until you see my sweaty mess at their wedding… BLEH!)

 I was only able to grab one photo of Mike as he was laying out during our session… Isn't his leather skin so sexy?!*

 *JUST in case anyone is taking me even 1% seriously… that's not Mike. Afterall, his Speedos are blue**

**Mike doesn't have Speedos either, but wouldn't he look HOT in them?!

Okay, I'm being weird again… THIS is why I shouldn't blog late, I get weirder by the second.

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Her engagement ring… my favorite. If I were to get mine reset… I'd make it just like hers.  BTW, can you guess what I shot this on?

 Christine, you're cute!

 meanwhile…

 I don't fullllly remember the story… but I do remember that Christine calls him Wolf… so, as her gift to him, wolf cufflinks.  I'm telling you… two thoughtful brides in a row giving the perfect cufflinks… I see a 2010 trend!

 You would think that with all of the shoe photos I show on this blog that I was a "shoe person"! hmmm… not the case I wear ugly, yet comfortable shoes. Our brides, however…. have AMAZING taste in shoes!!!! And I DO love photographing amazing shoes… so, maybe I AM in fact a shoe person… just not in the traditional sense

 Dan's funny

 Such a cool photo!

 CHEEEERS!

 CHRISTINE?! AYKM WITH YOUR BEAUTY?!??! SO gorgeous!!!!

 This wedding party = INCREDIBLE!!! 

 I was probably saying something incredibly inappropriate. It's a specialty of mine.

+ WOWWWWWW TO ST. LOUIS!!!!! One of our FAVORITE photos of ALLLLL time!!!!!! +

 bring it in TIGHT!

 Christine put lots of energy into her details… and it showed! I'm a fan

 Their "guestbook"

 Dad's speech

 OH how I love the first dance!

We had a little competition!

 AHHHHHH!

 $10 iTunes gift card to the first person who guesses the song they're singing to… (if you were there, you're ineligible… DUH!)

UPDATE: contest over… It seems that it was guessed pretty early! Sorry I'm getting to this a bit late as I worked out this morning and am JUST NOW sitting down at my computer.  Seriously… after only FOUR comments someone guessed?!?! I need to make these contests more difficult! The answer: Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" So… congrats to Jessica Webb! There were also at least two others who guessed right, also… so big high fives to you!

ST. LOUIS, Mo.

The people who made this day happen:

Day of Coordinator: Stephanie Burke & Brit Tucker
Hair and Makeup: Holly Speakes – Procolour Cosmetics
Church: Mary Mother of the Church
Florist: Lesher's Flowers
Reception Venue: The City Museum
DJ: Tom Rotter, Block Rockin' Beats
Cake: The Cakery
Etsy: 15 different Etsy vendors contributed to make our day amazing, from our invites to the bridesmaids' individual jewelry items to our rusted table numbers.  My favorite item, however, was my capelet shrug bolero by Madelin Zero

I emailed Christine a series of questions… told her she could pick out whichever ones she wanted to answer

Favorite moment of the day?

Christine: After the recessional, we went straight into the cry room and someone (maybe our coordinator?) shut the door so it was just us and Bobbi.
Dan: I actually thought we were going straight back out to the bus, so I didn't know what was going on
Christine: …it was just us, alone, for a few minutes for the first time in days.
Dan: And it was a perfect first moment together as husband and wife.

Any advice for future bride/grooms?   

Christine: Hire the following: a Day of Coordinator and bobbi+mike   
Dan: Something my groomsman Ben passed on to me – take a break and put yourself in the moment as much as you can – you've never experienced a day that fast in your life

Funniest memory from your wedding day?     

Christine: This clip being played right before he played the associated song.  Totally us, and totally a suprise (thanks, Tom!)    
Dan: Christine's five year old cousin, after dancing with the tambourine for seemingly hours, turning to Christine at the end of the night saying, "Excuse me, what would you like me to do with this?"  

Favorite bobbi+mike moment?   (for the record, this question wasn't included in my list… they just threw it in! )  

Dan: When Mike awarded me "Quote of the Year" for saying, "It only takes one pair of white socks to ruin a wedding".     
Christine: When we stopped for beer after the ceremony and Mike went in to the gas station to get Bobbi a soda and snack.  We're both lucky to have amazing, thoughtful husbands

What was your favorite thing about your wedding?

Nacho. Cheese. Fountain.  Enough said.

::EDITED TO ADD::

By popular demand… the famous nacho cheese fountain

Christine and Dan, thank you for having fun with us! From getting ready to the reception… the entire day was full of perfection.  Christine, you did an AMAZING job of planning an incredible day. And to your wedding party… you guys are the DEFINITION of what a wedding party should be!

MUCH LOVE!

~bobbi+mike +

 HEEEEERE WE ARE!

 And, yes yes yes… me with my two brides! Christine and Bridget

 SO hot.

 Workin' out the "photobooth"!

 Gosh, there's a WHOLE LOTTA me in this blog entry… but I COULD NOT resist taking a photo with THE BEST wedding planners in St. Louis.  

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 Usually I wouldn't start a blog entry with a photo of a detail… but let me tell you… THESE shoes were QUITE the show stopper!  VERY much Laura's favorite element of the day. 

 She waited until I photo'd the shoes to put in the "foot petals"  Though, upon further examination… their shape (sitting on her knee) is quite interesting…

 This is SOOOO Laura… and I adore her!   You see, they had to do some SERIOUS teasing to get her hair to have a good poof…  I've never seen hair teased up that high! (which would explain why her hair didn't BUDGE the entire day!)

 She had this hanger made by an Etsy artist… Pretty cool, huh?!

 Chuck is a journalist… Laura gave these vintage typewriter key cufflinks to him the morning of their wedding.  One of the many things I learned about Laura that day… she's an incredibly good and thoughtful gift giver!

 …. SEEEEEE… he likes them!

 On the way over to the church, we were all on the bus when Laura snuggled in to his neck to smell for Chuck's cologne… "Are you wearing the cologne I got you?!"

He responded… "I put it on!"

She sweetly moved in to smell his neck…

"WHERE?!"

Maybe you had to be there… it was super funny. I told Mike about it later and he said… "I watched him put it on!" I thought to myself… Mike never remembers little things like that… weird!  Then I saw this photo… and realized why he remembered! That's quite the memorable expression for the application of cologne! Chuck is so expressive/animated!  I'm a fan

 ABBBBBBSOLUTELY our FAVORITE part of the day… this was THEEEEE best first sight we've ever ever EVER witnessed.  Chuck turned around to see her and with THE most genuinely astonished look on his face he exclaimed, "WOW!!!! You look like a model out of bridal magazine! You're so beautiful!!!!" Meanwhile Laura is wiping tears.  MAN OH MAN I'm giving this ZERO justice as I'm not good at telling stories… but I assure you… it was one of the most perfect and genuine moments we've seen.  Mike's favorite photo

 BRING IT IN TIIIIIGHT!!!!!

 Cleveland in January = COOOOLD! these two were TROOOOOPERS! Laura said, "cold is temporary… these photos we'll have forever" Yeah… told you I adore her

 OH how I wish more guys would wear fun socks! (hint hint hint…)

MY favorite!!!!!

 Laura did ALLLLL of the calligraphy… and it was beautiful (and properly bobbi+mike branded!)

 AHHHH!!!!!! SO FUNNY!!!!!! Right as she was getting ready to feed him the cake… she faked him out and took the first bite

 I cannot get over the perfection that is this photo… Chuck, I love how you love her.

 Then we went out for a few minutes to get some nighttime downtown Cleveland amazingness.

 Dontchya wish you were invited to that party?! BOOOYA!!!! WE WERE!!!!!

 The most amazing ending to an awesome day.

Notice her bustle came loose? You see… right before the reception, her bustle broke.  Now, I don't mean to brag… but I'm kind of the queen of the bustle.   I'm also the queen of humbleness! Anyway… as soon as it broke, the wedding planner ran over with some safety pins… Laura has been reading this blog for quite a while and has known of my bustling triumphs… "BOBBI! YOU CAN FIX IT!!!!!" So, I went to work and guaranteed its quality… 

"It'll last all night, I promise!"

Well… 4+ hours later… as they were doing their FINAL dance… four safety pins fell onto the dance floor and out came her bustle. As soon as the song ended, she noticed, looked at me and exclaimed "PERFECT TIMING!"

….WHEW!  Close call… Luckily for me, I can still claim my throne as the queen of the bustle

CLEVELAND, Ohio.

The people who made this day happen:

Wedding Planner: Valarie Kirkbride Falvey of Kirkbrides
Hair: Deena Nicely of Sublime Salon, Orange Village, Ohio
Makeup: Ramona Dauksiene
Church: St. Raphael Catholic Church, Bay Village, Ohio
Florist: Grande Designs
Reception venue: Allen Theatre at Playhouse Square
Caterer: Sammys
Band: The Jerry Bruno Orchestra
Cake: Flour Girl
Reception Lighting: Vincent Lighting
Etsy vendor for hanger: LilaFrances (I asked because I knew many of you would want to know!)
Photographers: bobbi+mike, duh.

I emailed Laura a series of questions… told her she could pick out whichever ones she wanted to answer

Favorite moment of the day?

The last dance funky reprise of "Stand By Me" – I think it's impossible to get tired of that song, and the fact that they played it twice – for the first and last dance – makes me happy Chuck liked when we were announced as "Mr. and Mrs." at the reception and I kind of dove onto him and kissed him. ha!

…By the way… see the last photo above… THAT'S the moment she's referring to!

Advice for future brides/grooms?

Other than hire Bobbi+Mike?! Hire a wedding planner! Valarie was phenomenal – I didn't worry about a thing all day.

Would we change anything?

Nope. It was perfect. (other than the broken bustle – Bobbi to the rescue!)

…a quick tip from me… make sure your bustle consists of more than one tie!

Favorite purchase?

Other than my Kenneth Pool gown, my Shannon Britt shoes were a fave. Hopefully they don't look like Eskimo shoes in the pictures – they were just too much fun!

Laura and Chuck…. AHHHHH!!!!! You two are the BEST BEST BEST!  We loved every second of your day. We TRULY felt like old friends with fancy cameras From Chuck's excitement about his gift (a fancy new Canon camera!!!!) and sharing it with us during your first sight… to the trip with just me around the block in the limo bus right after your wedding… not ONCE did we feel like "just your photographers." Usually we try and blend into these private moments as they we're not even there… however, that's not how you two roll… and it was perfect Thank you for being you… 

MUCH LOVE!!!!!!

~bobbi+mike +

PS. blogreaders, could use your help here… is there anything else I could add to the followup questionnaire that you'd like to know?? This new blog format is still so new to me!

Nice photo bomb there Brent! PS. I assure you, I start out the day looking a WHOLE lot fresher… EEEKS!

 first sight…

 My famous dorky winter hat

 Testing the light before they came outside…

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