Hey, my name is Julia & I'm the mom who is trying to be healthy and happy...
I live in San Jose, California with my husband Gabriel (i.e. happy dad) and our 2 beautiful, energetic little boys; Daniel & Nathan.
I created Healthy Mom Happy Mom because I believe everyone deserves to be healthy and happy!!! I hope with this blog, I can inspire others as I strive for my own personal health. I know there will be bumps in the road, but I will do what it takes so I can enjoy all the happiness that comes along with it!!!
About My Family
I am married to a wonderful & amazing, happy dad, Gabriel. We were married on April 1st, 2006. (Nope, it's not an April Fools joke)
Together we have 2 little boys:
Daniel, 3 1/2
&
Nathan, 8 months
About My Weight Roller Coaster
Well, where do I start...
I grew up being the little, scrawny girl who if anything was always told by people to, "eat!" Unfortunately this didn't last long and by the time I was in junior high school I began getting chubby. In high school I continued gaining pound by pound and began to struggle with what I believe was pretty severe emotional eating. By the time I was 18 years old, I was already 200 pounds. I tried exercise routines and Weight Watchers multiples times, but never seemed to get past losing 5 pounds and then having no more commitment and gaining back 10 pounds.
In 2002, I met happy dad and you know how it goes when you get into a relationship & get comfortable...I put on 25 pounds fast! In 2006, I delivered our first little boy Daniel and instead of losing the baby weight I gained 65+ pounds. I quickly reached the highest weight I'd ever been at, 280.5 pounds.
It's embarrassing for me to post this picture, but I have to take responsibility for how bad I let myself get.
I made a decision in August of 2008 that I was done being the, "fat girl." I began Weight Watchers for probably the 40th time. This time I began on my own without actually joining a meeting. In three months I managed to lose 15 lbs. After this great accomplishment our car was broken into and guess what was stolen...yep, my Weight Watchers stuff. I was one week from tracking my food every day for three entire months. (this is embarrassing, but I also had my special pen I used) This did two things to me, 1) completely through me off (In fact, I stopped for a couple of months and gained a couple of pounds back and 2) taught me the most important lesson of my life. I learned the importance of Weight Watchers as a lifestyle change. You WILL not succeed unless you embrace the whole experience Weight Watchers has to offer you. This experience taught me to value the nutrients & fuel food supplies us with as well as separating myself from the "obsessive compulsive" habits I have such as attaching myself to a pen or letting myself quit because someone took my Weight Watchers things. No longer can anyone control my destiny, but me.
After a couple of months of slacking off, I got back on track. I got down to 260 pounds, gave up coffee and got pregnant with my little guy, Nathan. My pregnancy was a lot harder this time than it was with Daniel. It was really hard this time, I was heavier..so I felt more pain in my pelvic bone, my sciatic nerve...and then I got diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I could have been crushed, but honestly I ran with it. I changed my diet drastically and under my doctors supervision lost 15 pounds. Three weeks after delivering my little guy I went into a meeting and joined for real this time. I made a commitment to myself that I AM going to get to my goal weight, I am going to attend meetings, eat healthy and paying the $39.95 definitely helps keep you accountable.
As of today, (January 15ths, 2010) I'm down to 193 pounds...YES!!! I made it under 200 pounds!!! I still have 33 pounds to my goal and I feel like I need this blog more than ever. I need to write about how I feel along the way about my successes and stumbles, learn what helps others, share my tips and more than anything else, inspire others who are in the same situation I was in when I started.
I am finally feeling healthier and it's making me SO happy!! I've decided to end with a few interesting pieces of information about Healthy Mom Happy Mom.
Fun Facts About Me
- What 3 foods are hard for me to resist? Chocolate, Cheese & Peanut Butter
- What is my favorite movie? Pretty Woman & Dirty Dancing
- Who is my favorite "male" celebrity? Nick Lachey
- What is your most embarassing moment? Dancing to Spice Girls in my 7th Grade Talent Show
- Favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Julia's "Good Morning Sunshine" Smoothie (look around the blog and I guarantee you'll find this recipe)
- Hobbies? Reading, writing, listening to music, playing with my "boys", taking walks, cooking/baking, tea time = ), freezing fruit, discovering "new" things to add peanut butter to, playing Wii, enjoying the outdoors, cooking with fresh garden grown veggies and taking the time to smell the roses!!
