When we were young

It's funny because the first few years of my life, from what my mom tells me we were living in a tiny cockroach-infested apartment in the scariest corner of Nice.. and yet this is all I can remember: My dad taking me to the Nice carnaval, bringing home silly string and helping me with my costume.

Eating candies off my birthday cake before the party... I know, you're thinking Lydia is full of crap there's no way she remembers this, but I can picture it quite clearly. This photo is from when my parents caught me red-handed. I'm actually not sure if this was in France or the U.S. though, but judging by how young I look it must've been France.

The great snowfall of 19... something. This was definitely Virginia. I always needed to be the boss of everyone and leading the operations, in this case, saving us from the blizzard or something. 

Hmm, still hasn't changed.

Definitely must have done something bad just before this was taken.

Family music. Ok, not always good memories, but it was pretty fun. Of course at this point none of us really know what we're doing... In fact, I don't think I'm doing much of anything here.

I always did have an impeccable sense of style.... 

Ahem. Moving on.

Any place is good for a nap when you're a kid. Or a college student...

Home-school...

Didn't you learn all about the anatomy of the kangaroo? Psh

Cooking with style.

Amelia and I :)

Movie time

Anybody want to go see Midway to Heaven with me?

Beauty

So, it's no secret that I've gained weight since getting married...
I know it's to be expected and all, but it's getting old real fast. I know I need to work out, but go find time and on top of that walking in the snow to the gym isn't the most exciting thing in the world. So I'm working on it, but it's really hard to find motivation.

What are your secrets?

I can deal with feminine curves, but a flat stomach would be nice for once. I can't believe there was a time in my life when I thought I was too skinny and hated myself for it! I thought I looked like a little girl when I was a teenager (and I really did, I can confirm that now) but now I would love to have that back. Also, it would be nice to be able to distinguish my jawline from my neck.

So how do you get motivated and stay motivated?

Although, all things considered, chubby cheeks must be in my genes...


P.S. Apparently I need to put out a disclaimer. This is not a pity post, I don't need anyone to say "I think you look great". I don't see why people need to get so upset when I talk about losing weight. I'm not crazy about the way my body looks right now--that does not mean I am going to become bulimic or anorexic (trust me, I haven't got the willpower), it also doesn't mean I'm crazy or stupid.

You can do it

I'd really like to ask everyone who sees this to take the time to go to this site.

A friend of mine from my FLSR days has a sister whose kid was born with an anorectal deformation. You can imagine how awesome that must be. Go to the site to read more about his story but the bottom line is this friend of mine, Sead Osmani, is raising funds to fly him and his parents to the US where the boy will be able to get life-changing treatment. Again, the whole story is on the site so I don't need to go on for long but they're only 800 dollars or so short now, and that's really not very much if we put ourselves to it. All it takes is a couple of dollars and they'll be able to reach their goal in no time.

Please check it out and make a donation, this is a case where you can make a big impact with very little time. Just a few bucks! I know you can do it!

Thanks!

Sneaky me

I have this awesome secret that I can't wait to show you all but I've been sworn to secrecy.

How's that for ambiguous? :) I will tell you soon though, I promise!


And just to make sure nobody gets any ideas, I am NOT pregnant, although I probably look like it right now...