For those who aren't up on the lingo, NSV is the acronym for non-scale victory, or rather, all those little things that show your body is changing. It can be anything from running a few miles, to fitting into old clothes, to being able to tie your own shoes without a belly in the way. An SV is just that - a scale victory. I had one of those too, and these factors combined have made my MONTH when it comes to weight control!

Victory #1 - The scale. I got off of said scale this morning and weighed in at 209.8! I am not calling it official unless my weigh in on Monday shows the same thing, but it was very exciting for me. I cannot remember seeing that 'decade' on the scale (I went from 185-ish to 215/220 over two years, with no weigh in in between) and it is a big milestone, as it puts me within spitting distance of my 2010 New Year's goal of being below 200 pounds.

My hope for November was to be in the single digit 200's, so I think I can safely say I have made it, given the way my weight is trending for the month. I am so excited and proud of myself, it has been a monumental achievement to get to this point in my weight journey, and I am looking forward to the MANY scale victories I will see down the road.

Victory #2 - the more exciting NSV. I was digging for some books and my yarn swift in storage area under our laundry room table, when I saw the box with my wedding dress under there. I don't know what I weighed when I got married, but I believe it was in the 210-220 range and I wore a 16/18 (this would be May 2006). I figured it would fit on me, but didn't know if it would be tight, loose, what have you.

I went upstairs and pinned on the petticoat, which overlapped by at least four inches. I didn't want to call my husband upstairs until I had the gown on, so I had to put it on alone. I decided to leave it zipped and slip it over my head to see if it would fit that way.

It did. Fully zipped.

The first thing I noticed was the gaping shoulders and neckline. Then I centered in front of the mirror and pulled it inward at the waist. Mind you, I was wearing shapewear for the wedding, and a dumpy laundry day bra on today. And still, the gown was a good 3-4 inches too loose in the waist and maybe 2 inches in the bust, and GIGANTIC everywhere else.

It not only fit, but three years, two kids, and 50 pounds up and back on the scale and it was at least 1-2 SIZES too big! I had it custom made for me, so it is fascinating to see how my dimensions had changed.

My husband's first comment was that it looked *big*, very ill fitting. He also caveated with the fact that I was more beautiful to him today than I was on the day we got married, and how proud he was of me and loved me. Points to him for compliments :)

So excuse me while I freak out with joy - I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! I AM *SMALLER* THAN I WAS AS A 19 YEAR OLD BRIDE!!!! YAY!!!!!

One of my big goals, whenever I get down to a size I am really comfortable at (probably in the 130-140 range), is that I want to completely overhaul the gown and have a rededication ceremony with new wedding pictures. The biggest thing I regret about my wedding day is that all I can see when I look at my album is a bloated, self-conscious bride. I know I was beautiful, but I want a set of pictures I am PROUD of.

I am on top of the world!