Summertime, and the livin is easy...

or so the song, made famous by my dad (in my world at least), says. So far, though, the summer has been anything but easy living. It's been busy busy busy! I don't remember what made me think tutoring all these children all summer would be relaxing (oh wait,...that college thing). So far, it's really a whole lot like work, with no air conditioning.

The rest of us, though, have been enjoying the summer...

standing

(sorry for the blurry picture. the autofocus doesn't work anymore and I seem to often forget to focus it myself. Reason number 2, number one being my proclivity to include my finger in the corner of many pictures, I am not a photographer)

waving bye bye any time anyone picks her up, usually with both hands
and transitioning to table food. Even with only three teeth, she can eat just about anything.

Josh and Daryl have been up with the sun every morning to go do electrical work, and then home before it gets too hot so they can....

work at Chick Fil A

or work in "Joshie's room"

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that. is a wall. And behind that a tub and plumbing. It appears that we are finally making some progress!

Probably the most significant change we have made this summer was putting away the scale.

Yep, put it away. Up on a shelf, under my sweaters.

The girls and I have decided that this will be our summer of getting healthy. Sarah wants to get in shape for cheer season, Maddy wants to get in shape for the beach, and I need to get in shape to lower my blood pressure (and really, the baby weight? Not too attractive) So we started eating better and walking every day, but still the numbers on the scale continued to dictate how we felt, our motivation, our mood. And that is NOT something I wanted to pass on to my daughters. When I am in diet mode, I get on the scale every single morning and night. If it was down, I was happy and motivated. If it was up, I was depressed and ate everything in sight. It's no secret I've had issues with my weight and with my relationship with food. I've been overweight, obese, normal, underweight. I've been a compulsive eater and bulimic. I've never been comfortable in my own body, always wished it were thinner, leaner, more toned. When I had Hannah, my attitude changed from one of loathing to one of gratitude for all my body has done. It's carried, nourished, and fed five children. That is amazing when you think of it. But still, body image and food issues creep back in when I least expect it. It's been the one constant in my life, and an unpleasant one at that. And I want more for my daughters. I want them to find their worth in their hearts, their abilities, their talents, their Lord. I want them to be proud and confident, no matter what they look like, no matter what the scale says. I want them to have a healthy relationship with their body and with food.

So we put away the scale. For now, we are concentrating on eating foods that are good for our bodies. Lots of fruits, veggies, grilled chicken and lean protein, and whole wheats. Lots of water and no soda. We are exercising every day. Right now it is just walking together for 30 minutes a day. It's hot, oh so hot, and sweaty, and there are mosquitoes. But it's also good bonding and talking time when we go together, and good prayer time for me when I'm alone.

For right now, it's just for the summer. Depending on how it goes, it may be permanently. But I am hoping that these habits that we are developing now, during this summer of "easy livin" will last a lifetime!