And I don’t mean my in-laws or husband.  The 2 people I’m divorcing are the pounds of extra weight I carry on my body.  Join me on this journey to make these people stay off of me forever so that I can begin to live again and enjoy life with my loving and wonderful family.

The goals: 1.  Giving up all carbonated beverages.

2.  Giving up all beverages with more than 5 calories.

I’m starting with the 2 goals that are the biggest challenges for me other than chocolate, which I cannot even bare to think about right now!  I was going to allow myself this trip before I started my journey but these are 2 goals that I need to, and can start without any disruption to our trip.

You’re probably thinking those aren’t goals that are really hard to reach, and thinking this may all be a joke.  However, I’m a serious Diet Mtn. Dew junkie!  As a matter of fact there aren’t many carbonated drinks I don’t like.  I could easily live off of them I do believe, and I cannot stand the taste of plain water.   However, it’s tiime I grow up and act like I’m 30 and not 13.  Part of the requirements of the lifestyle one leads after Lap Band Surgery is living without carbonated beverages, and since it’s hard for me to give them up I’m going to do that first.

OK.  So that’s my “foodie” goal for the first part of my challenge.  I am told by psychologists that if you can give something up for 2 weeks, you won’t miss it.  The problem?

True, honest to God addiction.  Caffeine and quite possibly the best drink in the world: Mountain Dew.  Diet, Regular, I don’t care.  If I take a sip the 2 weeks won’t matter   I’ll shatter like glass and drown myself in them.  I really am addicted to caffeine. Among other food, caffeine will be one of my failures along this journey.  I’m preparing for them.  I may not last a day but I will. kick. the. habit.

My plan onf attack? Well, I know a few juice drinks I can drink with 5 calories or less.  I believe Crystal Light fits into that bill but it’s expensive!  I’ll be searching for alternatives that don’t make me crave other things.  I won’t have as much trouble giving up caloric drinks because I have learned to drink diet int he last few years.  Pepsi Max is my latest downfall.  It’s sad. The easiest way to avoid the things that tempt me the most?  Stay out of the stores!  You’re thinking well, yeah you dummy, right?  Well, more on that is coming.

These are true, serious goals for me and I’m not taking this lightly no matter how tongue-in-cheek I am.  A friend of mine had Lap Band surgery recently and learned the hard way that the doctor really meant to stay away fromcarbonated beverages.  I don’t want that to happen to me.

My biggest fear about all of this, and the reason I am starting all of this now, is that I do n’t want this to be something that I try and then I decide won’t work.  The Lap Band can be undone, which can be a bad thing if one wants to undo her progress and go back to her (my) prior bad acts.  That is not the way I want to live.  If I go through the pian and inconvenience of surgery, it’s permanent.  This is the reason I’m preparing myself now to live an entirely new “foodie’ lifestyle.

**These posts are totally non-deal/bargain related, and much more of a personal nature.  I can and will create a new section for these posts if this is something you are more comfortable with.  Just e-mail me at kristin at makingcentsoutoflife dot com (remove spaces, add symbols) and if enough request it I’ll post on another page.

I expect this part of the change to last about 3 weeks, maybe a month depending on my “bumps” along the road.  After that, the food challenge.  That is another hard one but I think I can do it.

I will report my progress to you once a week, unless I need more motivation.  Once I get the forums finished, we’ll all have a place to hang out and you can tell me about your trials and trbulations with dieta nd exercise, and any food demons you have.  Or anything else!  I can’t wait to “meet” some of you I’ve received e-mails from with encouraging words and with such kind hearts.  You dont’ often comment, which I wish you’d do (hint, hint) but you e-mail me with so many sweet things to say and I appreciate them all.

So, do you have any suggestions?  What should I do when a craving strikes and my nemesis stares me right. in. the. face?  Turn around and lave, yes, but can I?  We’ll see.  Every  Monday there will be a post titled “Taking My Life Back”, which is what I’m trying to do one tiny inch at a time.  If you ever want to see if you miss a post (lol I know you care) they will be labeled “Living 2010″.

Thanks for humoring me and giving me a medium to express myself.  I promise the rest of the week, what I have of it to be here, will be about YOU and saving YOU money!! Have a wonderful Monday.

For those of you who start back to work after a long Christmas vacation, be safe, be blessed, and be thankful.  A lot of Americans don’t have a job to go to and their families are suffering.