It's about time...

I've been meaning to post for over a year but just couldn't bring myself to do it. Since there's now SO much to tell, I think I'll have to stick with the highlights.

• Dirk & I split up in Aug 2009 & were divorced in January of this year. We tried really hard, for almost 15 years, to keep it together. Unfortunately, it was time for us to move forward but in different directions. It has been such a sad & difficult time.
• I moved into a sweet little apartment "home" in Dec 2009. It's the cutest little place behind a wonderful couple's house. They are so good to me & watch over me & my pets. Love them!
• I lost 45 pounds! At first, it was just the stress of the divorce. Otherwise known as the divorce diet. Then I just kept working on it. How, you ask? Good old fashioned exercise & making better choices in my diet. I was hiking every weekend until the Arizona summer hit. I've had a hard time starting up again. Luckily, I've only gained back a couple of pounds since then, but my pants are feeling a little tight. It's time to get moving again!
• I started dating in August. First, I signed up on eHarmony then was talked into LDS Singles & LDS Planet. It was so scary but exciting at the same time. I haven't really been single since high school so it's a whole new world that I've entered into. It is fun, but I get worn out trying to keep up with it all. I've met some good guys. There's one in particular that I've become really good friends with, but we're not in a serious relationship. It's not time for anything like that, for either of us. I'm talking to & meeting new guys all the time. In the process, I'm really finding out what I want & don't want. It's been interesting, to say the least.
• Dirk & I finally sold our house last month...short sale. It took over a year, 3 offers, & a lot of stress. I felt like it would never come to an end.

Major stuff, but I'm doing well & finally feel like I'm coming into my own as I'm rediscovering myself. It is tough at times, as I face things I've put off for too long, but it has been the most amazing time of my life. It is awesome to find out who I am, what I want, what I don't want, & to find the confidence to be myself. I'm getting healthy inside & out. I have a ways to go, but I am definitely well on my way. The best of my life is yet to come! I truly believe that.

Here's the most recent picture of me. It's not the best picture, but it is the most recent. We had an Anderson family reunion in southern Utah last month at Zion's National Park.