I don’t have a lot to report, this week — no loss, but I’m close.

Mostly, I’ve just been living day to day, which seems to work as far as watching my intake and activity level. Don’t get me wrong: I have longterm goals, but what matters most are the choices that are immediately in front of me. As long as I can keep control of just today, the aggregate of all those just todays becomes something I am happy with and proud of. The following things might appear disconnected, but in the long run, they’re about accumulating those good days.

This past week, someone noticed my weight loss for the first time this journey. I was surprised and pleased; let’s face it, I’ve been working on losing weight since last September, and while I like having people notice, it had truly slipped my mind. I’ve been so vocal about this particular journey that I figured everyone knew, so when friends have said something in passing, I’ve discounted it as them just being nice. This time was different, and it felt good to hear that.

It probably helped that I was also wearing clothes that fit. I know I’m likely not alone in this; often, when I’m losing weight, I don’t wear clothes that fit because I’m between sizes and just feel comfortable in the ones that are slowly becoming too big. Although it goes against reason, wearing any clothes that are a smidgen tight make me feel like I did before I started losing weight, so I tend to pick up loose clothing that reminds me my size is changing. While that’s all well and good, wearing baggy clothes is a lot like wearing a mask. (Unless baggy clothes are your personal preference.)

I wrote, last week, about playing the horn. This week, I also took on a sewing project I’d been meaning to do for a few weeks. I haven’t done anything other than just mending clothes on a machine for years; I don’t honestly remember the last time I sat down and sewed something from beginning to end. Despite this, I volunteered to make new covers for patio chair cushions owned by friends.

I’ve been working on them the past few days and expect to finish today. While they’re nothing earth shattering, I’m happy with the outcome.

I’m happier, though, being creative. These last couple weeks are a reminder to me how much I’ve been suppressing a creative nature, and I am truly happier when I create.

And frankly, being happy helps a lot with weight loss. I’ve written before that certain elements need to be in place before I can successfully lose; for the most part, those are measurable items, like food intake, movement, sleep, water intake. But being satisfied is also part of that, and that’s not so measurable.

Being satisfied builds confidence. One of the things I’ve been reflecting on, this week, is the nearness of our vacation; it’s roughly seven weeks away. I know I’m going to face difficulties in travel, and I have a plan in place. But what’s bothered me most is that the last time we took a big vacation, I’d worked hard to lose 70 pounds before going; and I was so disappointed in how truly unprepared I was, that I let myself slip off my plan.

I gained every pound back, and 30 more to keep them company. I built up expectations and when those expectations differed from reality, I let it destroy the good work I’d done.

I am making a promise to myself that I will not allow that to happen this time. I’m looking forward to having a great week, and then settling back down to the business of making myself healthier.

It’s all about living day to day, with the choices immediately in front of me.