BACK !!

Cuba was absolutely amazing. I just can't get over it! We had a blast and I'll never forget this experience. Lucky for me, the food was terrible. Now I say this because I was able to stay on track. Sure the food I did eat wasn't so great, but that didn't keep me away from eating "naughty" things. I only liked the food at the snack bar: burgers, pizza, fries, etc.. I ate these things, but these were the actual meals of my day. We'd spend hours on end in the water swimming, snorkeling, pedal boating, riding the waves and so on. I had enough activity points accumulated for all of us! Because I was so active during the day, I didn't feel bad for eating my "naughty" foods. The heat left us with absolutely no appetites. We drank a lot of water and juices during the day to stay hydrated, but really lacked appetites.

We did two excursions: A catamaran boat trip, and a day tour of Havana. Am I ever happy that we did both! The catamaran was absolutely amazing. We were able to jump off the boat in the middle of the ocean to swim over the coral reef and see the most beautiful fish ever. We then ate lunch on a deserted island which was just fantastic. We feasted on Lobster, Shrimp and Fish. All LP foods! We swam around the coast of the island, and back on the boat to go SWIM WITH DOLPHINS!!!!!! What a beautiful day!

Two days later, we went to Havana which is an incredible city that is just crying for help. The town has so much potential- probably the most beautiful architecture I've ever seen in my life but just falling apart. It's such a shame to see such beauty go to waste. We spent the entire day touring old and new Havana. I wonder sometimes why I live in such a frigid climate, but realize that we can't have it all. Yes Montreal is iced over more than half the year, but at least I'm not on food rations living in a home that should be condemned. Hopefully Fidel's brother will turn Cuba around.

On a higher note, we danced the night away every single night! We met some fantastic people on the resort who partied with us the whole week. Yes I definitely indulged and was on an unlimited Pina Colada diet, but I came back 2.4 lbs lighter! I am now 2.2 lbs away from ONDERLAND. These last ten lbs feel like they've been taking forever to shed. TOM is back, so this week will obviously not be the week I hit the below 200 mark. When I start to think negatively like this I have to keep reminding myself just how well I've done and how far I've come since February. I'm almost 45 lbs lighter and counting!

On yet another high note I'll share a little story. About 6-7 years ago, I made my first online purchase. At the time, plus sized clothing hadn't yet made the change it had. The options available in Canada were not as vast as in the U.S. Plus sized clothing here forced us into a style well beyond our years. Sequins & Floral patterns on a teen? I had ordered a pair of white jeans from a clothing store that specialized in 14+ clothes for a younger crowd. I always had it in my head that american clothes were made large, so ordered a size lower than I was at the time.

My parcel finally arrived, and I eagerly jumped out of my clothes to try on my new pants. The tears started to fall: I couldn't get the jeans up past my knees. I had been planning outfits around these pants. I'll never forget this moment. Was I really that big? Maybe they sent the wrong size?

I started getting rid of some of my "fat clothes" this week end. As I near the back of my closet, the white pants make their appearance. They've been with me through 3 moves and I've always told myself that one day I'll get in them which is why I've held on to them for so long. I was about to toss them into the donation bag without even trying them on. I just thought about all the other times I had tried them on only to be disapointed. I thought to myself, what the hell, just try 'em on. To my surprise and utter amazement, the jeans are WAY TOO BIG now!! The tears started to fall again, only this time out of sheer joy!

On this note, I'll bid adieu and will report back once I've hit ONDERLAND.