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Five weeks ago, I got certified to teach Zumba classes. On May 1st, I held my first demo Zumba class. On May 3, 2010 – I taught my first actual Zumba class. To date, I have taught a total of eleven classes and helped co-teach a few routines on another Zumba class.

If you asked me six months ago … what I would be doing today … I would probably reply … “Oh, I dunno … maybe … nothing!”

When I was younger – I have always been upbeat, outgoing, and confident. Put a challenge in front of me and chances are – I will jump at it with no hesitation.

I’ve always loved dancing and used it as a way to express myself. Dancing was my life. Dancing made me happy! In high school and college, I was very active in the dance groups in school. In college, I even worked as a fitness instructor incorporating dance in what I teach. As I grew older, sadly, my energy level slowly diminished. I got too busy with putting my family first that I “lost myself” in the process. I put my needs and my health in the back burner and got busy being mom.

I forgot to take care of me to the point where new people I meet have known me to be “always big”. Heck, even my own kids never believed that once upon a time, mom used to be this skinny chick. Since they believe that I have always been “big” they can not imagine me being anything different. Through the years as I watch myself get bigger, the vision of me dancing once again simply turned into a blur.

Don’t get me wrong … my life as a mom has been incredible and a blessing and I will never trade that for anything in the world. But sometimes, secretly … as I lay in bed trying to fall asleep, I think and I wonder … what if … I never stopped dancing. What would my life be like? I would dream of getting skinnier and being happier and just doze off … dreaming … just dreaming.

When I was younger I was comfortable dancing in front of crowds. I was comfortable teaching people. Twenty years later … the confidence slowly flew out the window until now …

A few weeks ago, I have stepped out of my comfort zone. I am ready to take on a new challenge – to put my needs in the fore front. This doesn’t mean that my family is no longer my first priority. They still are – but, my kids are bigger now – they are now self sufficient and not dependent on mom anymore for everything. I have changed MY FOCUS to taking care of me so I can live longer to watch my babies grow until they have their own babies.

As I teach my Zumba classes, I have found the “old me” once again …HAPPY! The confidence level has gone up. I no longer lay in bed wondering … “What if…” I go to bed excited to wake up the next day to see what will happen next …

I have “muted” the volume of my negative self-talk completely. If before I used to say to myself … “I am so fat and out of shape. I will never be happy.” I now hear this loud and clear … “I look good, I feel great and today is going to be another wonderful day!”

If there is one thing that I have learned in the last few weeks, it is – to not give up on your dreams and that it is not enough to just lay there and wonder … “what if” – Get off your butt and do something about it. Do not let other people’s opinion of you become your reality.

Here’s a video of me really stepping out of my comfort zone. This is a sampling of what I do in my Zumba class. If you are up to it … get off you butt and join me do the “Waka Waka”. It’s pretty easy and a lot of FUN.

If you are in the Redlands, CA area, come and visit me in one of my Zumba classes.

A few people have told me that they are surprised about how quickly I got the ball rolling in terms of getting my classes started. My response is just … I took action! I didn’t wait for an opportunity to present itself to me … I made it happen. It is possible … anything is possible. If you can totally visualize it – your mind will find ways for it to become a reality.

This past weekend was my high school reunion in Las Vegas. It was so much FUN! Actually … it was way more than FUN – I can’t quite think of the right or best word to describe it. All I can come up with is “LOST and FOUND”.

It has been over 20 years since I have seen some of these girls (sadly we are no longer little girls but grown ups). As expected … there were a lot of screaming – not because there was any drama or arguments … but because of JOY and excitement. We have lost connection from each other but after this event we have FOUND new friendships – hence the LOST and FOUND.

Here are a few pictures I wanted to share from the weekend.

My roomies … we stayed at the Monte Carlo – such a beautiful hotel.

Friday night dinner at Claim Jumpers – I think we were the loudest group in the restaurant.

Saturday – main reunion event at the Palazzo. It was so nice to be in the same room as people who have the same thinking as you.

It was a collective effort to make this event a success – these are the people who helped to make it all possible.

We had great food, awesome souvenirs – including the shirts we were wearing and everyone even got a special award!

Sunday Brunch at Le Village in Paris Hotel.

It was sad to have to say goodbye to everyone on Sunday after brunch – but, we all had to get back to our families and our reality. My belly hurt so much not from over indulging in the food but from laughing so hard from all the stories. Everyone had lots to share. My throat hurt from screaming and talking so much. I still can not wipe the smile off my face – especially when I look at the photos from the weekend.

I missed being young – for a moment, I felt like I was a teen once again – re-living my high school years. But, I was also reminded of how much we all have grown.

The weekend made me realize how friendships are truly important. It doesn’t matter if our friends are far away – what matters is that we make the connection and stay connected. Social networks like facebook has made “friendships” possible with people we have lost touch with. It’s also a great way to re-connect and start new and better friendships.

This past weekend has been one of my happiest!

If you have been following my blog … you are aware that I have been on a weight loss journey for the last 10 weeks. I was originally getting ready for my high-school reunion in Vegas this weekend. So far I have lost 12 pounds and over 16 inches all over. I still have quite a ways to go … BUT … so far I am pleased with my progress.

It has been a long time since I’ve seen some of my highschool friends – over 20+ years …. eeeek – I am OLD! Oh well … nothing I can do about that now. I just want to meet up with them – catch up – reminisce – and HAVE FUN! I have never been away from home for a weekend of FUN with my girlfriends. I am excited – not only because I’ll get to catch up with friends and reconnect … but also because I will be excused from housework for a couple of days. WOW … this mom’s gonna be “OFF DUTY”.

Here’s a sneak peek of my highschool picture … READY? Don’t laugh …

Can you guess which one I am?

YUP … this is “nerdy, anorexic” me …

I will be traveling with my sister. This is our first trip away – together … just the two of us on the road. I am looking forward to it. It’ll be 80′s music we will be listening to in the truck and I’m sure we’ll be singing all the way there … we love to sing and be weird (that’s just the way me and my sister are).

I’m not sure how my boys will handle me not being home … ah, I’m sure they’ll be fine. They are old enough to fend for themselves already anyway. I shouldn’t worry. I just want to make sure I have the house in order before I leave.

I’ll try to take lots of pictures and share only the better ones here in my blog. See you when I get back!