I Wore Shorts

Several months ago I was out shopping when I happened upon a clearance pair of jean shorts. I have a love/hate relationship with shorts - mostly hate - and so, from time to time, I do glance upon them in the store but rarely to I buy them and never do I wear them.

. . . I used to wear shorts, actually. Back in the day. You know, before I carried five babies and gained an excessive (seemingly permanent) 35 lbs. And also before shorts were quite so short. Or maybe I just didn't care as much when I was younger. And then there's the added bonus that my legs are as white as a ghost. I used to get teased for that in high school and while I have sustained a few pretty bad sunburns over the course of my years, now I'm pretty glad that I never bothered to try to keep them looking tan (not that it would have worked anyway) with all the skin cancer being linked to tanning research that I've read . . .

But anyway, this pair of shorts was pretty cute. They were made of a suitable amount of fabric. And they were on clearance. And they were in my size. There were simply too many convenient coincidences to just pass it up. So I bought the shorts. And then promptly forgot about them until I found them in my closet a few weeks ago. I transferred them to my dresser drawer and figured they would just be another pair of shorts that I'd never wear.

But then yesterday happened. It was gorgeous outside. Sunny. Breezy. Perfect. And as I ran errands all over town with my munchkins, I spent the day in....jeans. It sounds stupid, doesn't it? Jeans are hot. And I don't mean sexy. They are literally HOT to wear when it's warm outside. But I wear them anyway, mostly because I have issues with my legs. When we returned home in the late afternoon, I decided to run through a Pilates video from Netflix. (I do this occasionally and I'm trying to make it more of a habit.) After I turned into a sweatbomb, I figured it would be best to shower. And after my shower, something weird happened.

I put on those shorts.

And after I put them on, I thought a tank top would be appropriate. And once I put on my tank top, I thought my outfit needed some earrings. And by the time I had fully dressed myself....

I felt good in my shorts.

What?! Crazy things are happening! And then something even more phenomenal happened....

I went to the store. In my shorts!

I know. Sit back and catch your breath if you must. Not only did I go to one store, but I went to three stores. IN. MY. SHORTS!

If this has all just gotten too out-of-control crazy for you, let me explain something about this day-I-wore-shorts story and why it's so significant to me. Remember that (seemingly permanent) 35 lbs. that I mentioned up there? Well, I've lost 9 of those (seemingly permanent) 35 lbs. in the past month. And while 9 lbs. isn't all that significant to some, I am currently at a weight which I have not weighed in the past THREE YEARS, at least. Probably five, but I don't have a record of my weight back that far. I have hesitated to blog about my weight thus far because I don't want to fall into poor habits and gain it back after having made a big deal out of it. But I decided to go ahead and mention it anyway. Perhaps because I think it will keep me on track if I have announced it the world. Or perhaps just because I am so excited about wearing shorts. But either way, here it is.

I am trying to make healthier choices in my life and I am excited to tell you that the first major boost to my self-esteem has been made in the department of.....wearing shorts. I'm not one to push self-esteem, but I do think it's healthy to view myself as a child of God, beautifully created in His image. And because I am the only mother my children have and the only wife my husband has, I better take care of myself. So I'm starting here.