thanks mai!

i super duper love this portrait!
it's amazing how much malou has improved on her craft, isn't it?
i love her use of available light, the soft focus, everything!
she made me look fabulous

i wish i could print this and have it framed

=)

like mother like daughter

i am so proud of my mom. she went on the south beach diet a few months ago, after i had told her how astonishing the results were. she's diabetic, so she has a greater motivation to lose weight than i do.

so far, she has lost 15 lbs, her blood sugar is stabilizing, and her insulin dependence has gone down. she used to inject herself twice a day with a high dose of insulin. now she only injects herself once, at half the dose of her usual. and she's looking really good! to think she's not even following the diet as religiously as i have.

i know i have a high risk for diabetes -- i have the genes on both sides of the family. i'm hoping that with this change in lifestyle, i'll get to avoid developing the disease for a few more decades yet. my mom's improvement gives me hope that maybe i can.

victorious

photo taken by malu. grabbed from her site

i'm feeling quite victorious after coming back from the trip. =) i stuck to my diet (although i did cheat a few times) and i didn't gain a single pound.

it was quite a hectic holiday, my days were filled with errands, and i scheduled the fun parts (meeting friends) for lunch and dinner. what a challenge it was not to let loose my appetite! but invitation after invitation, i mentioned that i wanted to go wherever they served salads. everyone was supportive and i only cheated a few times (i had a crepe at rica's, ate a slice of vito's birthday cake, and had a few teacakes at lily's farm) but i paid dearly for each slip. i guess my stomach cannot handle sugar and starch anymore. hooray for my tummy! =)

oh, and speaking of tummies, i had the best news ever when my favorite seamstress took my measurements last week --- my waistline is now only 29 inches. it's the first time in 4 and a half years that it has gone below 30 and i'm super duper happy! i actually couldn't believe it! (apparently some of my friends couldn't either because when i announced it to one of my groups, someone actually said, are you sure that's only 29 inches? hahahaha. i don't care if you don't believe me, i have proof from a neutral observer and it's documented. HA!)