In With the Old- No, Wait a Minute... That's Backwards. You Knew What I Meant.

Well, for starters- I've been monkeying around with my blog again, obviously. Sorry. Hope you don't mind because it's probably going to continue. I'm not one to leave things the same way for long. I'm getting extremely frustrated (no- make that *angry*) trying to make it do what I want it to do, and it's just not happening. I'm a little bit tech-stupid and anything I do to this dumb thing is through a lot of trial and error. All I want now is to add this picture into the header behind the title. Is that so hard? That's all I want (well, that and this thermos. I bet most of you have no idea what that means). I've only tried to add the photo now about 253 times. Does everyone else but me know what they're doing? Am I the only one who's clueless... Again? This is just like high school Biology all over again.

Anyway... New topic. Another year is coming to an end. What a year this has been for us! We've definitely seen our share of ups and downs, which is no different than the rest of you, I'm sure. But, in spite of our down times, this year is leaving me feeling humbled and bowled over by God's goodness to my family. Instead of dwelling on what went wrong this year, I'm choosing to end it by focusing on what went right, and looking forward to the good things on the horizon for next year. I hope you're able to do the same.

A few of the people I love and treasure have experienced serious downs this year- deaths, divorces, break-ups. I know that putting a positive spin on the past year would be difficult for you, and who could blame you? My heart aches for you and I'm praying that this coming year will bring nothing but good things; healing, peace, and blessings. You remain in my thoughts and prayers. Good riddance, 2007. Right? Now, it's on to better things.

As I've mentioned in previous posts, one of the goals of this pudgy little house frau is to become considerably less pudgy. And as we close out this year, I wanted you all to be a part of the dramatic weight-loss unveiling. Drum roll, please...

TA-DA!

Isn't it astounding? I went from looking like sad, chubby House Frau Chelle on the left... To happy, skinny, Gorgeous Chelle on the right. And it was a snap! Admittedly, losing the weight in real life has proved to be a tad difficult- I've actually gained weight since the last time I brought it up- but changing my little Cartoon Chelle was easy. I don't know why I didn't do it sooner.

Really, I AM going to get this weight off and 2008 is the year it's going to happen. I've been a Chub since 1989 and that's waaaayy to long. My children have never even met Skinny Chelle. She was swallowed up by Chub before they were born. So, this is it! You heard it straight from the horse's mouth. I may never look like skinny Cartoon Chelle, but I'm going to look and feel better starting now. But not right this second. I hope you didn't think I meant right this second when I said "now." Stop pressuring me. I have to finish this bag of M&Ms, then I'm starting now. So "now" is, like, in a couple of minutes.

I have a great motivation to get the weight off because my son is getting married in June and... Well, I'm vain. So, here's my Big New Year's Pronouncement: I'm going to post real before and after pictures of myself at the end of May 08 and tell you how many pounds I lost. I think I may even tell the truth. I might even post my final weight (But that's probably stretching it a little bit. Don't count on that one).

Back to the ups and downs of 07... I guess one of the bigger ups for us this year was just in making the decision to pursue this adoption in the first place. I know some of you had even bigger ups than that because you received your referrals, or were able to bring your little lambs home this year. Congratulations! For those of you like us, who are still waiting for your child- 2008 is going to be our year! Amen?

One of my little ups came along as a result of our decision to adopt, when I started this blog. What began as a simple way to inform my family and friends of our adoption news has turned into a fun and creative outlet for me and a way to connect with other adoptive families. As of this, my 93rd post, I've had 3,252 people visit my blog from:

Africa, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, England, France, Germany, Greece, Guam, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, A few other countries that I'm forgetting right now, And... Almost all 50 States.

And yes, I realize that's small potatoes to those bloggers who are talented writers with something of value to say, and have a regular following of "devoted fans" (including me). Some of you could boast of much higher numbers from more locations. But, that's not the point. The point is: We're talking about me right now. Let's make a big deal about me, OK? lol! Hey, when you start out with a fan base of 2- husband and mom, you have to celebrate every little achievement. Seriously, no matter how long I keep this blog, I will never get used to the idea that someone on the other side of the world is reading something I said. Absolutely mind-boggling to me! You would think the weight of this awareness would cause me to be a little more concerned about saying something worthwhile, something more substantial than idiotic ramblings on my skinny cartoon alter ego, but... No.

I would like to thank all of you for taking your time to visit me this year. I've learned a lot from visiting your blogs, and enjoyed "meeting" so many wonderfully supportive people. I'm really thankful for the new blog buddies I've made. You have blessed me these past few months and I sincerely thank you. I'm hoping for blessings back to you in the coming year.

To all of you:

“Whatever your past has been, you have a spotless future.”
Melanie Gustafson

Have a Great 2008! God bless!