And the winner is….

NATHAN!!!  He lost a whoppin’ 12.5 lbs.  Which is just over 6% of his body weight.  And me well, I may be the loser of this competition, but I still count myself a winner because I lost 7 lbs which is right at 5% of my body weight.  AND – the best part, I am in much better shape and I don’t think that our vacation is going to kill me.  Just yesterday, I got on the stair climbing machine at the YMCA and made it up 72 flights of stairs (that’s 720 steps) in 20 minutes and I didn’t pass out.  That’s pretty much a miracle right there.  My clothes even fit a little bit better.  They are still pretty snug because I still need to loose about 10 more lbs, but at least it doesn’t feel like the button on my pants are going to pop off and hit somebody in the eye.

I am so excited right now, I can hardly stand it.  I doubt I’ll even sleep tonight.  I can’t wait to drop my kids off at Nana’s house.  Wow that didn’t sound very nice did it?  But it was honest.  I’m going to miss these three crazies

but I’m also going to enjoy having a break from them.  Oh sure, most of the time, I love being around them and I know I’m going to be sad not to get their hugs and kisses everyday for a week or so – but I can tell you one thing – I am NOT going to miss the tantrums, the whining, and the fighting.  I’m going to love not having to tell someone to “stop it” or “don’t do that” or “that’s not nice” or “no, you can’t have that” for a while.  It will be such a relief.  Nana – all I have to say is you are pretty much a saint.  Bless your little heart for taking on our brood and their CRAZY schedule of school, baseball, ballet, and cub scouts. 

I am so looking forward to seeing the sunset over the mountains, to walk for hours through the woods, to go horseback riding down a winding trail, to explore the depths of the caves, and to thrill at a wild ride down a river.  No more counting down the days.  Now I’m counting down the hours.