I'm not perfect but I'm pretty good.

Way back in the day--the days I used to sing with my friend Lisa Northrup a lot--aka back when I had only two little kiddoes running around the house I sang this fun song for a Relief Society program.  Sometimes the cheesy lines from the song "Perfection" go through my head, especially when I find myself falling short of perfection (that is a line in the song).
    Such as:  I am no Fitsperation fanatic.  Heck I am lucky if I have the energy to ride my exercise bike for 30 minutes after I've been at work for 11 or 12 hours a day!  A six pack to me is Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper!  I work four tens so I have three day weekends, spent trying to catch up on laundry, cleaning, do some cooking for my poor neglected family, catch up on church assignments, spend some time with the kids, talk on the phone to my family....well, you see that my priority isn't getting ripped abs, its more like trying to make sure my expanding waistline doesn't rip the seams!  If you set inspiring fitness goals and have the time to make them happen, you're awesome.  I used to spend an hour a day exercising too, and I sure wish I still had that much time, but I would just rather be at home when I'm not at work.  And that is okay.  I will try not to feel guilty. When most of my friends are discussing on facebook about their 15 mile runs and crossfit and how totally amazing and awesome and strong and beautiful they are. (and you ARE!  You are amazing!  I hope you feel strong and not inadequate next to the media images you see!)
    OH and here's a hint.  Crop your photos so your pooch doesn't show so people don't know you're fat (Damon does play basketball 6-10 hours a week btw, he isn't like me)

voila! We aren't chubby!  hehe

Also, photos from above look wayyy better, I learned that on the Oprah show like 10 years ago.  So try to make people take pictures of you when they are standing over you:

Photography by  the brilliant Tara Mansius

OK.  Here is another confession.  I hate cooking dinner.  I like baking delicious sweets, which is part of the reason I have a pooch but now that I work full time I don't even have a chance to make cookies very often (I love cookies!!!!!).  Even when I was a stay home Mom, I hated making dinner.  Part of it is, the other people you cook for don't necessarily like what you cook.  I take that personally.  Yes another flaw revealed, dang it!  So I cook what they like which isn't the healthiest (Damon hates cooked vegetables, he claims to like them raw but "salads are girl food."  Can't you just hear him saying that?).  So anyway, Damon is totally awesome because he cooks dinner a lot of nights now (he works from home).  But yeah anyway I just don't like making dinner. Or cooking in general.  I'm such a bad Mormon mom.  Oh wait, that "I"m not perfect thing..."  apply that here!
    One more confession, I used to read the newspaper daily.  Now I don't because I'm at a desk and computer too many hours a day.  I miss it so much.  We are about to cancel subscription and I feel guilty and not at all informed as I used to be.  Now that I'm on the other side of things (from the person who used to work on campaigns) I understand that there are just so many hours in a day, and a working mother does not have the time to be very informed about issues, and its hard to communicate with them.  Unless its through a text, facebook, or email.  I love social media and that is a good thing or bad thing depending on who you ask, but its because I like people.  Like pretty much everyone is my friend, I think, unless you do something to mess it up.  I love almost everyone.  That's just how I roll.  I do care, even if I don't always reach out to you, you can always call me (or facebook me or text me....etc).
     Well I guess this is as much of a rant as I am going to write for today.  Hopefully someone can identify with me and my not very fit, non clean eating, never going to run a marathon or ride a century--or even a quarter century, sometimes forget to do things for my calling and feel super guilty, drink way too much Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper which according to something I read in the paper this week (I actually read it a few times yay me) is going to kill me with caramel coloring, didn't get my visiting teaching done last month but I really love all my sisters truly, imperfect but pretty good self.  Oh and shout out to my kids!  Even though I was learning as I did it, my two adult children are totally awesome human beings!  And my soon to be daughter in law is amazing.  My two kids at home still are fantastic people too.  Gosh I must have done something right...or, more likely, Damon did something right.  They managed to survive my mothering and thrive nonetheless (I mean, I didn't like making dinner!  And they SURVIVED!).  But my boys play/played way too many computer games.  We get a lot of criticism for that part of our parenting, and they are probably right but Damon vetoed me on it so I live with it.  Spencer is in the top 0.25% of League of Legends players.  How embarrassing but awesome.  Since he has straight A's in college and works part time and doesn't have a girlfriend but goes on dates with cute girls when he can arrange for a double date....I guess I will think of it as Chess for the 21st Century.

Sherry practicing her Sound of Music poses

"I'm not perfect, but I'm pretty good.  I'm not perfect but I"m trying. Still I can accept me, though I may fall short of perfection!"
Phillippians 4:13--"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."
It's not about where we are at, its doing our best and heading in the right direction!