Hello and Welcome!

I want to thank you for coming by and reading about my journey about being fabulous when I turn 45. Let me tell you a little about myself.


My name is Julie. I'm 43 years old and I have lived in northern Illinois all my life. I'm married; have been for 17 years to a man who's 2 years younger than me. Which is something he reminds me of every year when my birthday rolls around. I have 2 wonderful boys aged 16 and 8 and a 3 year old chocolate lab named Bella.


The first thing you need to know about me is that I don't like myself and typically eat my problems away. I'm 5'11" and weight 293. I gained the weight back when I was pregnant with our first child over 16 years ago. Between depression and low/no self-esteem, I kept the weight on and have yo-yo'ed back and forth between 300 and 250 pounds ever since.


The second thing you need to know about me is that there are going to be times when I don't post a blog for a few days or weeks. As a blogger friend of mind said ... these are the times when I am struggling. I know this...so I am letting you know this in advance so you don't worry.


My intention for this blog is to record my personal thoughts, feelings, struggles and victories with you. I'm doing this for a few reasons. One, I want to be able to look back and see how far I've come - and two, I am hoping that someone out there gets some inspiration from my journey. It's my way of paying it forward so more people can do the same.


My goal? To be fabulous by the time my 45th birthday rolls around.


I'll be giving myself a LIFE makeover: mind, body and beauty.


Goals for my body:
I want to lose 128 pounds and hit my goal of 165.
I want to find new ways to eat healthier and still love the food I'm eating.
I want to be able to fit into beautiful clothes and reward myself with a fabulous new wardrobe.
I want to find ways to drink more water to hydrate myself.
I want to take vitamins to help support my changing body.


Goals for my beauty:
I want to grow out my hair and find a color and style that suits my badass beautiful self.
I want to give myself a skin makeover and change it's tone and texture.
I want to find makeup that doesn't make me look like Bozo the clown, but make me look stunning.
I want my skin to have that healthy glow.
I want my nails to be polished and taken care of.


Goals for my mind:
I want to love myself and really mean it.
I want to look in the mirror and be proud of who I see standing there - regardless of how I look.
I want to stop being so angry all the time and find peace.
I want to change my thoughts from negative to positive.
I want to improve my relationships with my husband and kids.
I want to feel confident in myself and live a truly authentic life.


Lots of goals, right? Yeah...I know. Just writing them down feels so overwhelming. I can hear the inner voice inside my head telling me how I'll never achieve them...how I'll start this project - just like I've done hundreds of times in the past...and the results will be the same. I'll fail again.


But there is something else inside me that really wants this so badly that it hurts. I can feel it in the pit of my stomach - it's a burning excitement that bubbles up when I just consider reaching one of these goals. It only lasts a few moments, but it's there.


I can do this.


My intention with this blog is to record my journey and be 100% totally honest about it - whether it's something I'm proud of or something I'm not. It's in the journey that I know I'm going to grow and achieve my dream of being fabulous at 45!


My birthday is October 7th - and this year I'll be turning 44. So, I'm going to begin my journey right away - moving myself forward so that come my birthday, things should be flowing. I've got a long road ahead of me - thanks for joining me on the journey.


~Julie