lunabee34

I HAVE FOUND IT!

I didn't think it existed.

I have been thwarted so many times.

I have returned so many promising internet purchases.

I have worn three compression bras at once. I have worn a regular underwire bra under one or two compression sports bras. These options were as awful as they sound.

I have never found a sports bra that fits comfortably, truly eliminates all the jiggling, and doesn't make my tits look like some distended mass that's grown out of my torso.

Until now.

May I present to you, dear friends, the Glamorise Women's Full Figure Adjustable Wirefree Sports Bra.

It is true to size! (The very first time I wore it, I was afraid it would be too tight, but after that initial wearing, it loosened up the smidge it needed to in order to be comfortable.

There is no jiggling! None.

I look like I have two distinct breasts that are located in the area on my chest where breasts are generally located instead of a bizarre uni-boob that sticks out like a cyclone waiting to take off.

I think this bra would work for any chest size, but particularly if you have a large chest, it's a game changer. I'm a 32 G, and this has made a world of difference for me.

1. We lost power for 7 hours on Monday; the temperature was great and we had awesome food lined up to eat. A tree fell down and didn't hurt any of us or the house. Other people in town just had power restored yesterday! Nothing like a little gratitude about the big stuff to get you through the car refusing to start and some necessary repairs. LOL Normally, I'd get all anxious and pissed off about that kind of thing. Not this week.

2. Tuesday, I picked up limbs for two hours solid and I have been paying for it ever since. Y'all know how physically active I am. I go to the gym every day. I'm biking like 13 miles at a time. I can run on the elliptical forever if the boredom doesn't kill me first. Picking up those limbs kicked my ass, and it surprised me. My hamstrings have been on fire ever since. I went to the gym on Wed and Thursday and they hurt so bad on Thursday night that I just didn't go on Friday. I might not go to today. It feels like such a little and stupid thing to be affecting me this way. I picked up limbs for an hour today, but I squatted to do it instead of bending at the waist like I did on Tuesday, and I think that's actually made my hamstrings feel somewhat better? IDK I'll let y'all know when I'm in agony again tonight and trying to sleep.

3. I got some new underwear! I had to go down another size, and the Bali underwear I've been buying doesn't come in a smaller size than 6/7 which is definitely WTF. But I got some Jockey ones and some Hanes ones at Target to try out.

4. ( Rising Strong by Brene Brown )

1. Fiona started Pre-K! She is thrilled. On the very first day only, the school allows parents to park and walk the children in to their classrooms. I asked Fiona if she wanted me to walk her in or drop her off at the car-riders' line like I'd be doing the rest of the days of the school year. She said, "I want to do it by myself." She was grinning when I let her out and grinning when I picked her up. She doesn't have an ounce of anxiety about anything in her. I didn't even have time to tear up at all; I bawled like a baby when we dropped Emma off for kindergarten. I think some of that is because it's a second child, but mostly it's because Fiona was too happy and chill about it all for me to get a tear in edgewise.

Emma started high school! At orientation earlier this week, we were both flummoxed at her schedule which had her taking Advanced Band (without ever having had any kind of band whatsoever). We asked to have her moved to a different class, but I didn't have much confidence they'd do so. The middle school forced her to take the same exact class with the same exact content two years in a row and forced her to take chorus when she has no interest in it, so I was worried we'd run into the same thing. Fortunately, they switched her to Intro to Health Care. Georgia has a handful of career paths they make HS students choose; naturally, none of them map on to what Emma wants to do. There's art, agriculture (which is the one she chose; there are a couple classes in it that seem like they might be at least tangentially helpful or related to the marine biology she wants to pursue), health care, and a couple more. The health care one is really cool because if you know you already want to go into that field, when you graduate HS you will have a certificate degree (like an LPN or something like that) that will allow you to immediately work. It's just weird to me that they don't have a separate college prep track and that they force the kids into these tracks they're not going to use. Oh, well. It's not advanced band. I hate to be That Parent, but I didn't want her stuck in some class that's guaranteed to lower her GPA. (She's probably not going to be Valedictorian, but she *could* be, dammit.)

2. One week with onions and no problems!!!! Now I'm getting antsy to try something else, but I will be good and remain committed to my two week trial period for each new food.

3. Josh's physical therapy is going well. I think he's feeling a lot better.

4. Screw you, pants! I am having such an issue with pants. ( cut for talk of weight and clothing sizes )

5. Finally, Downton Abbey is looking up! ( SPOILERS )

1. My friend brought over two dip pens and a wild assortment of ink last night, and we had an ink testing party. It was really fun testing different inks; Emma had a good time, too. Worst name for an ink ever: Baby Lips. LOL

2. I'm going shopping today! Project Wardrobe is afoot. I hope I come back with arms laden with packages. LOL I'm on particular look out for dresses, skirts, a bathing suit, and *gasp* shorts. I haven't worn shorts in like 15 years, but I'm considering it.

3. The book I'm reading right now, The Lies of Locke Lamora, is awesome. I would love to watch the HBO series of this book. It's a little over 700 pages, so it's taking me longer to read than the rest of the books I've read recently, but so worth it. And when I'm done, there's two more!

4. Dollhouse fic is almost entirely crossovers and fusions. Very little straight up fic about the show.

5. One more week of class and then finals. I cannot adequately express my joy. LOL The grading will be brutal, but then my time is my own. Whooooooooooo!

1. My dad is not doing well. He's been feeling physically bad for the past two weeks, including one ER visit. They uploaded the latest results of blood work to the portal yesterday, and his cancer markers are rising again. This is not good news. Mom is extremely depressed; she's trying to wait to completely give in to despair until she speaks to the doctor, but she's losing her optimism.

2. I feel guilty being upset about my own health when Mom and Dad are going through something much more traumatic, but I am really bummed out. I've been having some low level twinges this past week from my IC which pisses me off because if I am giving up eating everything I truly love then I better damn well not have any IC symptoms, you know? I also had to strike another thing I'd been eating frequently because it has soy in it; well, may have soy in it. The ingredient list says something like "vegetable oil (corn, soybean or safflower"), so no way to tell for sure. *sigh* At least I'm not having any side effects from the Elmiron; I did have night sweats a couple times since I started taking it, which is annoying but not on the level of losing my hair or feeling like I have to throw up all the time. So at least there's that.

3. On a more positive note, I have replaced some of my underwear with the correct size and bought several pairs of yoga pants and a pair of pajama pants in my size. I hope to buy a few more pairs of underwear and yoga pants this weekend and close out those categories of wardrobe building. My friends and I are going shopping on the first weekend of March, and I hope to get some nice dresses at that point. I'm going to see Mom and Dad that week, and I hope Mom and I can go shopping. ( cut for discussion of weight )

1. All my holiday cards have been sent, so you should start to receive them shortly, my friends.

2. The X-Rays of my knees showed no arthritis (which apparently sometimes it doesn't show up in X-Rays), so I can either get an MRI or my GP can refer me to an orthopedist. Whatever. I think I'll just go on as I have been. I don't have time to deal with trying to get in to see another doctor right now.

3. My appointment with the urologist is on Wednesday, so I'll know more then about whether or not I might have IC.

4. My dad is doing well. He is responding really well to this second kind of chemotherapy. His numbers are looking really good. They are flying out to Dallas this month for the initial consult for the stem cell transplant. I hope he'll be able to have the transplant early in the new year.

5. ( cut for talk of weight loss and clothes shopping )

6. We saw Fantastic Beasts over Thanksgiving and loved it. ( SPOILERS )

7. I just finished reading Guy Gavriel Kay's The Last Light of the Sun. ( SPOILERS )

1. I had bloodwork done today--thyroid and celiac panel. I wanted an actual appointment with the doc, but this will do. I should have results by Monday. PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD LET MY THYROID BE DEAD AND THUS BE AN EXPLANATION FOR THESE BODILY SHENANIGANS.

2. I found a dress for that freaking wedding. Naturally, it's Calvin Klein. I made myself deeply sad by going to Dillard's (excellent online plus size selection, maybe a fourth of that in store) and then David's Bridal. But Macy's was awesome. I found multiple dresses that fit me. I left the store feeling awesome.

3. After we go to the wedding, I'm doing a thirty day autoimmune diet. It's crazeballs restrictive and will require a metric fuckton of planning as I will not be able to eat out or eat most of what the family is eating. After the thirty days, I'll go back to eating most of what I was eating before with some exceptions. I'll post more about that closer to time.

4. I'm also going to focus more on strength training in the coming months. Lots of good info from you guys on that front.

I'm really enjoying the conversation we're having about clothes and personal aesthetics. (Just in case you missed it, Lyr and I are having a fascinating exchange about wearing clothes to conceal personality vs wearing clothes to reveal it; she sees clothes as costuming, and I have always wanted my clothes to reveal my inner self.)

I've been doing a lot of thinking this month about my health, my wardrobe, and the way I look.

( cut for talk of weight, exercise, dieting )

Commiseration and/or any other thoughts you have also welcome.

I think your pocket square and your tie ought to match, not consist of competing patterns, especially when your suit is Armani and your tie and pocket square together cost more than my rent.

That is all.

I HAVE PURCHASED A PAIR OF PANTS! This is monumental. I am going to wear them over the next week, and if I continue to be pleased with them, I am going to buy more! Yay!

Yuletide assignments went out. I am excited. This is the first year my recipient didn't write a letter, but I'm just taking that as license to write what I want. *decisive nod*

We have been eating like kings, my friends. Tonight Josh roasted two cornish hens; he basted one in sweet soy sauce, ginger, and garlic and the other in the same plus gochujang and they were so damn good. Cornish hens are always so tender and juicy, especially if you stuff lemons up their butt before roasting. They're not expensive either; Kroger sells them in two packs for about six bucks. I sauteed mushrooms in teriyaki and ginger and served them over wild rice. Delicious!

We're watching Cowboy Bebop with Emma, and wow, was Joss Whedon clearly inspired by this when he was writing Firefly. Emma's enjoying it although not as much as other anime we've watched; I think it's not as silly and overtly funny as some of the other stuff we've watched.

We got paid, so I got to go grocery shopping today. I know most people despise grocery shopping but I love it. Hard. Walking down every aisle, looking at everything, trying new things--so much love. And my RL BFF keeps me in coupons, which is awesome.