Our Moment On TV

Robert, Cameron and I were on Daybreak this morning on ITV. If you are in the UK and missed it, you can view it here.

We arrived by train last night and we stayed at the Mint Hotel in Westminster. It had some beautiful views. We were treated to a meal in the restaurant and it was very enjoyable.

Our morning today started with an early wake up call. I'm glad we arranged for an early wake up call, because, although we were told we would be on at 8:30am and would be picked up from the hotel at 7:50am, we got a phone call at 6:45am telling us that our ride was already waiting. Apparently, there was a mix-up and we were supposed to be on at 7:15am instead.

We threw our clothes on and got Cameron dressed. And then we were on our way.

I realized when we got there that wearing a purple dress wasn't the best plan of mine, since the couches were also purple. We got our microphones put on and then I was informed that we were not supposed to mention Slimming World at all. And right after that, I was introduced and asked the question, "So how did you do it?" I tried to make it clear that I went to Slimming World without actually saying the word. I put emphasis on the word "Slimming" and spoke the word "club" very softly. And I mentioned that it was one that allowed me to join while pregnant (with doctor and midwife approval). I don't think there are any other weight loss clubs that allow pregnant women to join. I might be wrong though.

We were asked to stay on until the end, so we spent the rest of the time following Cameron as he ran up and down the halls and waved hello at people. At one point, he ran up behind the weather girl, Lucy Verasamy, who had just entered the hallway and he reached up with both hands and startled her by patting her bum a few times. (I apologized for him, the cheeky little monkey!)

While in the "green room" (where the guests wait to go on), Channing Tatum joined us for a little bit. I must admit, I wasn't sure who he was, but then Robert looked his name up on-line using his phone and we both realized that we had seen "Dear John" which he starred in.

We were brought back out to the couch at the end where everyone sat together.

Then we were taken back to the hotel, packed up our things and took the train home again.

When we got home, we watched the recording of the show. I immediately decided that I wore the wrong dress for it as it made my stomach look big and squishy (to my mind). And then I started critiquing other things about myself (my overbite, etc). Then I realized what I was doing and had to put a stop to it. Seriously, after all of the weight I have lost and all of the times I have worked on being confident and not letting that negative self-talk undermine me, I quickly had reverted back to it once I realized lots of others would see me on the tv. Old habits really do die hard, and it is something I will probably always be having to work through.

Still, it was a lovely day and a fun experience. I wish they'd asked Robert a few questions too though, as he has lost a lot of weight too.



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I'm Going On Daybreak!

If you are in the UK, you may have watched ITV's morning show, from 6:00am until 9:00am, called Daybreak. Robert and I, along with our two year old Cameron, will be on the couch on the Daybreak show this Thursday morning to talk with the show's hosts!

I have no way to record the show, which is disappointing, but I'm still excited about appearing on it!

We'll be talking about our weight loss. I'm a bit nervous about how Cameron will behave. At two years old, he could act like a complete angel or he could choose to behave as a complete little devil. We'll have to wait and see.

If you have the time on Thursday morning, tune in to Daybreak and you'll see us there!

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I'm In This Week's Take A Break Magazine

I am featured on page 28 of this week's Take A Break magazine (10th March 2011, Issue 10)!

They got some of the details wrong though. For instance, it says that I had Connor by cesarean, but I have never had a c-section, though I was threatened with having one. It also states that Robert and I met in a chat room, and that I had gone on-line out of loneliness, which is all incorrect, although Robert and I did meet on-line. The general gist if the story is correct though, and I believe they tried to get the details right.

The thing that annoys me about the article though is that they name the street we live on. The article talks about my kids and large family. It even names my kids. It shows a picture of my whole family, kids included. And then, as irresponsible as it is, it mentions MY STREET ADDRESS! And the thing is, my street address was not even germaine to the story!

I am not overly worried about it though as we are moving within the month, but if we weren't I would have been fuming.

Either way, it's fun being featured, so if you are in the UK, go have a look at this week's Take A Break.



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Interview With BBC Wiltshire & New Hairstyle

Today has been a busy one for me. It started with Robert and I getting up early to walk to Old Town where I was interviewed about my weight loss by Graham Rogers on BBC Wiltshire radio at 7:45am. It was a short interview, and afterward Robert took a couple of pictures of me with Graham in the studio.




One thing that caught my attention was that, when he was announcing that he would soon be speaking with me, he asked his audience if they would be getting in a little exercise today or relaxing with a full English fry-up of eggs, bacon and sausages. It caught my attention because it really isn't an either or question. People always seem to make the mistaken assumption that, in order to be healthy, they have to give up eating the things they love. Robert and I have a full English breakfast every weekend though. We grill our low-fat sausages and extra lean thick-cut bacon, and we "dry fry" our eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes. ("Dry fry" meaning that we use Fry Light instead of oil.) It's a delicious meal and we have never had to give it up in order to lose weight and be healthy.

Shortly after we had walked home from the interview, Paula came over. Paula is a Slimming World consultant. Her group meets in Abbey Meads (at the Abbey Meads school) on Tuesdays. She's also a hairstylist, so Sharon (my group's consultant) asked her if she would come and do my hair, preparing me for tomorrow's competition, and she kindly agreed.

I don't think I will be able to keep my hair looking as nice as she got it to look, so I made sure that my daughter Kayla took a picture of Paula and me once my hair was finished. She cut, styled and straightened it. I'm sure it will be completely frizzy by morning though. Paula is lovely and I am really thankful to her for coming over and cutting my hair. (I'll be sending the hair that was cut off to Little Princess Trust.)



Looking at my hair in the photo, I actually think I wouldn't have minded letting it get cut a little shorter, but I am happy with the results. I just wish I could take Paula with me to the competition to style my hair tomorrow morning! (I am so very NOT good at styling my own hair.)

Sharon will be coming by at 4:30pm to take me to the hotel near Slimming World headquarters in Derbyshire, so I can be ready for the finals in the morning.


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Getting Photographed For The Local Paper

Today a photographer for our local paper came over to photograph me. I wore the same dress that I wore for the Woman Of The Year District Finals.

It was so strange and awkward being on that side of the camera. Usually, I am the one taking the pictures. Back when I was really overweight, I hated having my picture taken. I hated seeing what I looked like in photos, and I hated the idea that a photo of me would be a constant reminder of how big I was.

I don't mind having my photo taken anymore, especially now that the bit of loose skin I had on my arms has started to disappear and firm up, but I still felt awkward standing there posing for a picture. And to make matters worse, as I stood there in my dress and high heels, the photographer asked me to JUMP! Yes, I stood in the park, with curious dog-walkers all around and had to take several leaps into the air with my feet kicked up behind me and my arms stretched up high.

To make matters worse, I am FAR from graceful. In fact, the first jump I did, I fell when I landed. Yep, real graceful. The photographer also had to pause and wait every now and then as people out walking their dogs were stopping in the background to have a curious look at what was going on. We had to wait until they moved on.

The photographer also took some photos of me with my baby boy Cameron. (The other kids were all at school.) Cameron is great at being in photos. He just smiles his biggest smile, because he is truly happy when he knows he is the center of attention.

He was a very nice photographer and we chatted about California for a while. For some reason, people always ask me where I am from as soon as they hear me speak. And the ones who don't ask me where I am from, ask me if I am from Canada.

After all of the embarrassing photo-taking, I forgot to ask when the article is supposed to actually run in the local paper. So now I will have to check the paper until it turns up.

Listen To My Interview With Skinny Scoopers!

The lovely ladies at Skinny Scoopers interviewed me in a podcast which you can listen to here. Ever wonder what I sound like? Well, now you can find out! They also have my story up in the Scooper Stars section here.

I was a bit self-conscious during the interview.

I've Been Interviewed For A Podcast

Skinny Scoopers interviewed me about my weight loss for a podcast. You can find it here, and the written story in their Scooper Stars section. It was fun to do! They have a great site and they are two really likeable ladies.