¡Hasta el año próximo! (Until next year!)
 

Hi Chicas,

I'm leaving at the end of the week to see my friend in El Salvador and I won't be back until 2008. She works in the Peace Corp and I'm going to be spending my Christmas with her and her new city.

I'm really excited, a little scared and trying not to forget about the finals I need to take this week (it's very easy to blow them off and think about this instead!). The Cute Boyfriend is staying home (new job) while I'm out trying to speak Spanish so that's a new adventure in itself!

I promise to take pictures and tell you all about my trip when I get back!

Since I'm having a non-traditional end to my year and I won't see you until next year, I'm leaving you with some resolutions of the non-traditional kind. Feel free to add your own non-traditional resolutions.

Resolve to embrace the uncomfortable!
Realize that sometimes you need to be uncomfortable in order to grow. It may be stepping out of your comfort zone in order to learn something new or make a new friend.

Resolve to live outside the lines!
Don't live by the limits we place on ourselves or worse, by the limits others place on you. You deserve happiness and adventure as much as the next person and don't let anyone (including yourself) tell you what you are "supposed" to do.

Resolve to be a better friend to yourself!
When you are beating yourself up about something, think about if you would say this to your best friend. Instead of yelling at yourself, do you need a heart-to-heart? Or do you need some tough love? Don't forget the LOVE part of that. Remember, when you get to goal, you're still going to have to be friends with the person in your skin.

I can't wait to see you when I get back. Oh the stories I will tell!

Con todo mi amor hasta el año próximo,

Jessica

Have a great holiday season! Ogle some cute latinos and eat some yummy yummy Salvadoran food for me;) I look forward to the pics and the stories:D

Safe travel to you and have a wonderful time!

I forgot to add my nontraditional resolutions!

I resolve to not put off doing or buying something merely because I am large.

I resolve to act sexier.

I resolve to be more social.

Whew! I'm glad I have a month to work into those:P

Jessica,

Have fun!! I' promise I'll get you some progress pics by the time you come back!

Jessica, first of all have a safe and fun filled vaca! I'm sure you will have the time of your life!

Your resolutions are wonderful, it's almost as though you've read my thoughts! The only additional resolution I have for the coming year is to finally buy things occassionally for ME. Not big splurges, but in the past I wouldn't purchase something I really wanted or even needed, but would easily spend the $$$ on whatever my DH or kiddos wanted. I think it stems from being so overweight and not feeling worthy? Anyway, no one is going to suffer if I purchase myself a new sweater instead of a DVD for them, etc. I'm trying to learn to do things for ME!

Have an awesome time - I look forward to seeing the pictures when you get back!!

Wow, that sounds great! It's sort of the opposite for me since I'm so happy to be returning to the US for New Years!

BTW, it's próximo año, it's switched in Spanish.

I resolve to:

Finish losing the weight: Fine, a traditional one. But still. There's no more wedding, no more poop on the sidewalks, no more ogling drunks following me when I run, no more snotty middle-aged women trying to wrap me up in plastic, no more MIL serving me 4 servings of rice, no more limited food choices. In fact, in the US the excuses have run out. Now I know I can maintain, I'll just be working on maintaining at a lower weight.

Squat my starting weight: You'd think it wouldn't be so hard, but the bars over here are older than my grandma and it just hurts. Will be working on this.

Run a real 5k race: Okay, before I do this I have to be able to run a 5k in under 40 minutes. I'm slow, but I'll get there.

Do another hike in Peru: C'mon, it's the highest and largest mountain range outside of the Himalayas and it has some great treks on it. Hubby and I are deciding where, but for budget reasons we'll stick to Peru instead of my first choice, Argentina.

Cook more, Kashi meals less:I did too much of this early this year. Even though the Kashi meals are delicious and filled me up at 220 pounds and have a lot of protein and few calories. Ack! I will work hardest on this.