Hope in a Box

Who among us does not remember the scene from "A Christmas Story" when Ralphie's father lovingly unwraps his major award, the now infamous leg lamp? The scene replayed in my mind this afternoon, as I returned home from work and found a large box in my garage. The only thing missing was the word FRAGILE (pronounced Fra-gee-lay) on the side of the box. Upon further examination I confirmed that the box contained the first 3 weeks of the rest of my life.

This rather plain looking cardboard box weighed 37 pounds, and it was all I could do to get it into the house without dropping it. Ironically the program supervisor informed me that I could expect to lose 35 pounds my first 12 weeks on the program. That is a lot of extra weight to carry around. Iopened the box with all the excitement of a kid at Christmas. It contained box after box of entrees with enticing names such as savory chicken, mushroom risotto, and 5 bean chili.(Lexi is a little concerned about that one) There were recipes, instant oatmeal, and enough shake mix to frighten the most seasoned dieter. When I opened up that package it was like opening up a healthy dose of hope. I am looking forward to starting this program on Monday, and already feel the support of all of my fb and blog followers. I know I can do this. I just hope I don't shoot my eye out!