Doing it for me!

So recently I have been thinking about how my life has changed since I became a Mother. Care free selfish Sharon loved going out with friends, having random adventures and I absolutely loved pampering myself. After I had Sophia I was seriously motivated to get in shape, so much so that I ended up working in a gym helping other people do the same thing! Then I lost motivation after loosing nearly 6st and piled it all back on, stopped exercising, stopped caring and totally let myself go! As Sophia got older I found it much harder to find the energy to take care of myself. I was lucky that Sophia as a baby loved to sleep and was a very happy baby. Now that she is a toddler, she needs entertained and is a demanding diva. I'm actually more tired now than I was when I had a baby! The black circles under my eyes make that very clear.

Now here I am today, the fattest I've ever been in my life, with the lowest energy levels EVER, the crappiest skin, not caring how I dress and generally just feeling very "meh"! This could be completely unrealistic but I worked on a list of things I want to do for myself, I'm sure some of these will have a positive impact on family life too, so here we go!

1. Improve my eating habits. This is a tough one, I am ridiculously fussy... It won't happen over night but I have hope!
2. Cut out fizzy drinks. Goodbye Pepsi, Irn-Bru you beautiful orange glass of heaven we must part ways! Before I actually has this cool water bottle that totaled the amount of water I needed to achieve my ideal level of hydration... I need to become friends with that bottle again. 
3. Ditch the chocolate. Especially chocolate covered raisins & Terry's chocolate oranges, oh my how their sales will drop!
4. Fit into a size 10 clothes. I was quite possibly a size 10... when I was 10, I got down to a size 14 before which lets be fair, with today's clothing sizes being completely different in each store doesn't mean a whole lot! I tend to shop in Newlook... so lets say a Newlook size 10 for the sake of it. 
5. Get more sleep. I'm positive I'm not the only parent with this issue, even when Sophia is asleep I find myself awake until 3am! Why? Because it's my time, quiet time, I can watch my trashy TV and not be disturbed. Then Sophia comes through for me at 7am and I feel so disgusting and regret staying awake... only to do it again the following night. 
6.  Have more time for myself & Bruce. Date night, even just for a couple of hours at least once a month. Of course I won't turn down Grandparents offering over night babysitting. I miss wakening up of my own accord and just wondering around carelessly in the mornings. 
7. Get a hobby! Don't ask me what! I honestly don't know. Child free Sharon loved to party... now I have no idea what I love. So if you have any suggestions let me know! I need your help! 
8. Make more effort with my appearance. I am not saying I will be strolling around looking flawless all day, every day. I'm also comfortable enough to go makeup free, younger Sharon wouldn't even nip to the shop without a full face of makeup. Now & again it does cheer me up getting to play with my makeup.
9. Do more things as a family. Does anyone else imagine doing all of these amazing activities but when it comes to the weekend you just want to chill? This is perfectly normal... I used to feel so guilty about this. I would see accounts on Instagram where families just look like they are out all of the time, doing all of these cool activities. Truth is, Sophia loves a nap... she gets this from me. Wish me luck with this one, I'm not sure Sophia will be convinced enough to give up her love of counting sheep! 
10. Learn a new skill. Right now I'm leaning towards making bath bombs, I'm addicted to lush but in my head it would be sooooo cool to make my own. They could also help with my  goal of relaxation... self care crazy ideal I have in my head right now. I'm actually crazy for thinking I can relax with a toddler around aren't I!?

So in short I want to be a slim, water drinking, vegetable eating, well rested and well presented Mum who has an awesome new hobby and has enough energy to go on crazy family adventures and from time to time be awake enough to hold a conversation with Bruce. Who the hell do I think I am? Super Woman!? Who knows, I may actually achieve this once Sophia has flown the nest... Either way you are lucky enough to join me through this journey, expect highs, lows, failures and hopefully some success stories! If anyone is in the same boat, perhaps wanting to shift some lbs, figure out exactly when their wardrobe stopped being cool and rediscover the whole fashion thing again or maybe you want to try and learn something new then make sure you get in touch! I would love to hear from you!