Hard work CAN pay off

Almost a year ago, I bought a dress on eBay to wear to a wedding for friends of ours. 
Shown here
<---

It arrived and it didn't fit because I'd gotten fat, which was a bit devastating to say the least. I distinctly remember struggling to do the dress up and M standing behind me wrestling with the upper clasp (the part across the middle of the back does up like a bra) and I said to him "Will it do up?" and he replied "I don't know if you want it to do up" (Ma, these straps, ya look like a HAM)

 

So we abandoned the kerfuffle. I ended up wearing this black dress, which while not horrid or anything, and while beautifully made, was not how I wanted to look.

I've had some great success with Ebay dresses, and I refused to admit defeat with this one. So I kept it, in the hope I would eventually be able to wear it, as I was also refusing to admit that I was never going to be able to fit into it.

So I have mentally had it as a bit of a benchmark, and was emboldened to try it on.

I got the urge last Thursday night, home from the gym, showered at 10.30, I put it on, AND IT FIT!!!

Yay! 
(I went to show M in the lounge room, and he looked up from the computer saying "where are you going?" LOL)
Now I just need an occassion hahahaha

I've noticed actually a shift in the clothes I've worn this winter. Last winter I weighed a good 6-8kgs more than I do this year, and I realise in hindsight I was wearing a different set of clothes, lots of empire line/tummy hiding type tops, which I just haven't worn this year.
Pretty happy all round :)

I'm kind of thinking I'll lose/maintain my weight while we're in Europe as well (due to all the walking and stuff) but possibly kidding myself?

(And I'm thinking of doing the Lemon/water thing again)

Winners are grinners!

No obviously I don't mean State of Origin. I am well and truly crying over that.

No,

EBay drops PayPal bid

As a result, direct deposits, personal cheques and money orders will continue to exist as allowing all existing payment methods on eBay.com.au.

Woot Woot!!

Its called Hedging your bets...

	As you may be aware, a number of changes were scheduled to come into effect on eBay.com.au on 17 June 2008. Most of these changes have been delayed by almost one month and are now scheduled to commence on 15 July 2008. PayPal Buyer Protection will still increase to $20,000 on 17 June 2008.
	Current policies regarding accepted payment methods still apply. This means PayPal is required on all listings on eBay.com.au. Other payment methods (i.e. bank deposit, cheque/money order) may also be offered until 15 July 2008. As previously communicated any listings that do not comply with eBay's Accepted Payments Policy will be removed. We strongly recommend that in order to ensure your listings comply with the Accepted Payments Policy you remove any details of payment methods other than PayPal or pay on pick up within the item description. Listings that have other payment methods offered within the payment options field will be allowed to expire as these options will not be displayed to buyers from 15 July 2008. There are a small number of categories where PayPal is not mandatory. There are also some categories that do not qualify for PayPal Buyer and Seller Protection. Learn more about these excluded categories.
	As mentioned PayPal Buyer Protection will still increase to $20,000 on 17 June 2008. To ensure you benefit from PayPal's Buyer Protection Policy, eBay strongly recommends you use PayPal when paying for your purchases on eBay.com.au. From 15 July 2008 the available payment methods will be limited to PayPal, Visa/MasterCard, or pay on pick up.
	The decision to delay these changes was made by eBay following the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) draft notice issued on Thursday 12 June 2008. eBay released a media statement on Friday 13 June regarding the ACCC's draft notice. Read eBay's statement and community announcement. Please note that some of our onsite communications will still refer to changes taking place on 17 June 2008. These communications are being updated and should reflect the new date of 15 July 2008 within the coming days. Regards The eBay Team

:read: we're not allowed to introduce it right away, but we'll get this pesky legal trouble out of the way first, and then we'll screw you over.

*Apologies if you also got this email from Ebay, and this is old news.

Interestingly, I think this is the first email I've had direct regarding this, otherwise I had to get my info from the news websites and the homepage.

Btw Ebay, thanks for sending this to me on the 18TH OF JUNE

When did I get fat? oh wait....then....

*Sigh*

We're going to a wedding this weekend and I decided to try my old friend Ebay for a dress to wear, as I don't want to wear something I already own.
I found a dress I really liked, then discounted it as too expensive.

So I found another one that I thought would be quite good. This one :So it arrived yesterday, and its beautiful, I really like it, its a lovely purple colour and its silky and looks well made.

But it doesn't fit :(

Which is a problem.

Its too small, because I've gotten fat.

In fact we got married last November and in about February we realised we'd both put on weight, so we got stuck in, dieted, I managed to lose about 6-7kgs and was pretty happy. Then I sort of slacked off, stopped going to the gym when Daylight Savings finished and it got darker, and colder, and I holed up in our unit getting fatter and fatter again. Then I looked in the mirror at the beginning of August and thought, hold on! Its going to be Spring soon, and bikini season starts, and I'm all squishy looking.

So I resolved to go back to the gym.

Then I weighed myself, expecting to see the numbers at the same level as in February (pre-diet and weight loss) and was pleasantly surprised to see that I actually was still only a few kilos over my "good" weight from when I sort of trickled off on the exercise (about 11-15 weeks). So what happened? My brain quietly told me I could afford to wait, and not get right back into the diet.

Six weeks later I actually made it back to the gym.

So here I am, M has joined my gym too and we've only managed to go once together (I've been a few times solo).
The problem is that its the end of October and when I weighed myself again on the weekend I am now back to Post-, Wedding/Pre-Diet weight. In eight or nine weeks I seem to have abandoned my good-but-not-great eating habits and I gained the other 4 kg's I had lost.

I infact, feel fatter than ever before, I'm muffin-topping out of all my clothes. I have embraced the Baby-doll top, and the empire line dress because I don't need to try to suck my stomach in, which I am finding increasingly difficult and tiring to do all day.

In the last few weeks I have been unable to fit into the following items of clothing:

• Ebay dress. Size 12.
• Blue and white sundress, which made my boobs do something REALLY weird, dress may also be in cahoots with Nude colour strapless bra, which is showing signs of fatigue, and has been "on its way out" for six months or so. Think this is age related, not fat related however. I KNOW this dress fit me a year ago, its only that old.
  
• Just about all my jeans. I think they are all staging a revolt against me. Slowly slowly I have stopped wearing them, except for this one pair, which are really stretchy (loving them). I am punishing myself today by wearing a non-stretch pair that are cutting my in half as I sit.
  
• A multitude of slim fit tops which have all stopped slim-fitting. Including a heap of singlet tops that are stretch (Lycra if you will) that seem to display my fat rolls for all to see (back and front)
  
• Boardshorts. Are. My. Enemy.
• My pale pink shorts that I love *sniff*
• My pink sundress which is currently making me look like a beached whale.
• My white skirt that sits roughly just under my breasts now in order to zip it up. (not good look. What's worse, is considered wearing it out the other day regardless.
• Green and black dress, usually a solid friend, am afraid it won't zip up now.
  
• Am getting tuck shop arms!!!! (I know this isn't an item of clothing, more a reflection upon anything that I wear that displays them-particularly bad in strapless things)
  

So I'm back on the diet.
Thinking of doing the cabbage soup diet for a kick start, I've actually always liked that soup. Problem is its quite warm for soup.

...............*sigh*