Weight Loss - A Lost Cause?

My initial intent for a blog was to let everyone follow my journey in weight loss in hopes you would keep me accountable and laugh when I stumble. Not that it's a very exciting thing to follow, but my thought process was that perhaps there is someone reading this that is struggling with their weight as well and me laying everything out there for people to read would somehow help them. However, thanks to the cute little girls who sell you cookies this time of year, that weight loss goal has quickly dissipated for the time being. Thanks a LOT Girl Scouts of America!

Not only were you able to entice me to buy one box of cookies, but you started to bat your eyes, smile showing off your cute, youthful, missing-tooth smile, and talk in your oh-so-innocent voice pleading to buy more so that I could help support your troupe (after all, cookie selling is their main source of revenue) and managed to get me to buy eight boxes of them. EIGHT! How in the world did that happen??! I mean, who can pass up the mouth-watering Samoas, the creamy perfection of peanut butter and chocolate in their Tagalongs, and the slightly tangy, but not over-the-top, refreshing Lemon Chalet Cremes? But eight boxes!?! Really?! You little brats!

.... at least that's how it went in my head. In reality, I just wrote my order on the form one of their moms brought to work with no arm twisting involved. I... am... a pig! Ha!


Welcome to my world.... don't get lost!

Welcome to Ashley Land

What I'm about to reveal may solidify many of your theories about me. Some of you may be tiptoeing around this idea but haven't been able to nail it on the head while others of you are fully aware, and scared of, this concept. I, however, am proud of it as it defines who I am and why I'm so strange. Here it goes... I have my own world. Yes, that's it. I ... have... my ... own.. world.

My family started referring to it as "Ashley Land" when I was younger because the things I would come up with were so far outside their realm of thinking there wasn't a better explanation for it. For example, on road trips our family would play the alphabet game where you have to find letters on billboards, license plates, etc. starting from A and working your way in order through Z. I was fully capable of reading at the time, so it wasn't a matter of me adapting the rules so that I could play along. Rather, I wanted to win and came up with a way that I could. I would start making up my own words and inevitably win each time. Such as "A" as in alligator, "B" as in bear, etc. but of course, we didn't pass a single signage with these words on it.

Still to this day things will pour out of my mouth that hardly seem translatable, or I'll make a statement that is completely irrelevant to the current conversation. Better yet, my husband Brad and I will be driving home and decide to pick up some fast food on the way. If I'm driving, EVERY time, I swear, about ten seconds later, I completely forget and don't turn where I need to or drive right by the restaraunt..... Ashley Land.

Well, welcome to my world and I hope you enjoy the ride.