THE 💜 PURPLE 💜

Let me start off by saying if you haven't heard of the purple mattress yet, you've got to *STOP RIGHT NOW* and watch this before continuing to read this post:

THE PURPLE MATTRESS COMMERCIAL: https://youtu.be/4BvwpjaGZCQ

Hokay, so, as you've probably already guessed, I purchased the purple mattress. I purchased the queen size at $999.

I was so excited about it I decided to document the mattresses arrival, the egg test, and my thoughts on the mattress after owning it for 6+ weeks. 

Mattress arrival video: 

https://youtu.be/un2dTT-SVx8

10 day review and official "EGG TEST" 

https://youtu.be/htvfpGWzxSs

Final thoughts... 

https://youtu.be/zNfIBIN3ATo

To be honest, I've never wanted to love an item as much as I wanted to love the purple. The creativity. That marketing team. That commercial. all of it - BRILLIANT.

However, as a side sleeper, it just wasn't the mattress for me. It was too firm, and ended up giving me some intense shoulder and hip pain - and I couldn't handle it anymore (after 57 day trial) so I ended up calling a local nonprofit who came and picked up the mattress for me. Then I completed the one page donation/return form from Purple and emailed it over to them. By the end of the week, I had my complete refund. What a great return experience.

After that experience, I went ahead and went to a brick and mortar mattress stores, Mattress Firm and Mattress King, to find my perfect mattress.

I listened to the salesman's advice, brought in my own pillow, and laid on each bed for no less than 20 minutes at a time, spending at least 5 minutes on each of my sides, playing on my phone, acting like it was my real bed at home. I probably went to each of the two stores at least five different times to lay on different beds. Initially, I wanted to invest in the $3500 queen Tempurpedic cloud - but realized I could find something that I loved just as much for probably half of that cost.

I read online and learned a lot about mattresses. Like how one company can create one mattress and make it look different - then sell it to different stores and call it two different things, and price it two different ways. Frustrating. So I ended up falling in love with basically the same bed at two different stores. From that point, it was just a matter of negotiating price and seeing who could give me the best deal/extras/warranty.
Y'all know me. I'm ALL about saving the $$.

I decided on a Sealy Hybrid Kingsthorne Queen Mattress. It was $1500 less than the Tempurpedic (within my budget), and felt like a dream. I kept going back to it every time and ultimately decided it was my body's way of telling me that was the one I wanted.

Anyways, after talking to both stores about the price, I decided to go with Mattress Firm, as they were willing to give me a free pillow, $10 delivery, and could beat Mattress King's price by about $200. Plus, their warranty and return policies were pretty great.

Before making the purchase, I decided to stop into a different Mattress Firm store in my city than the one I had been shopping at, just to make sure I was getting the best deal.

The bed was originally priced at $2100. It was on sale for $1800.

When I went into the second store, I did what I always do - tell the salesman I just wanna chill out for a while, then I went to lay on the Kingsthorne bed for about 20 minutes. During that time, the salesman came up to me and said "what do I have to do to get this bed out the door to you today?" and I replied with "Give me your very best deal!"

He came back about 5 minutes later and said "okay, ma'am - we can get you this bed, today only, for $1300.00" an extra $500 off. Score.

I told the salesman that I would be back later and I wanted to think about it. After work, I went back to my original store and told them about what the other store was offering, and they matched it. They also knocked the delivery off, and even gave me a second free fancy pillow.

I signed everything, made the payment, and two days later my mattress was delivered to my home.

Now, $1300 seemed like a lot to me. The purple was $300 less, and my old mattress from college was only like $550 for the set! I was afraid at first, but I realized that I spend so much time in my life sleeping that it was fine for me to invest in a strong, long-lasting, well-designed mattress.
.... and I've never looked back.

My new mattress has far exceeded my expectations. I've been sleeping on it since October and it's been AMAZING.  I sleep so comfortably. I never stir up in the middle of the night because i'm in pain. I never wake up in the morning and don't feel rested. That mattress was worth every penny!

So, there you have it! Got the purple, hated it, returned it, shopped around, and purchased the Sealy Kingsthorne Elite Hybrid - and I've never been happier!

I'm BIG BONED!!!

Big Boned.

Thats what people (parents, friends, family, neighbors...everyone!) tell larger people when they complain about their weight or talk about getting skinny. It's all a way to make larger people feel better about themselves, their weight, and their body frame (in my experience, at least!) Thats what I was told my whole life.

I can't tell you how many times growing up that I heard "you're not fat.. if anything, you're chubby... you're a growing girl ...and you're big boned! You will never look good at a size 4 or size 6 or a size 8. You're just meant to be bigger. Maybe a 10 ... yes, you would be perfect at a size 10...." and then the conversation would trail off into something else... and I would be left wondering if I ever could be a size 4, 6, 8, or heck -- even if I would ever make it to a size 10!

I’ve been trying, off and on, for years to eat better and to take care of myself. Yo-Yo dieting has become quite the hobby over the past 8 or so years. I've always seen people that are so tall and super thin - thin being just the opposite of me. I was always jealous of their amazing metabolism and general lack of fat, not to mention the fact that they could basically eat whatever they wanted to and not have to worry about gaining weight. I, on the other hand, seemed to always gain 10 pounds after sniffing a cookie. Ha!

Was it my metabolism after all? Or what about my thyroid?! Of course! That had to be it! Issues with those two things could be the answer to why I was fat!

Turns out, my metabolism was probably quite normal, considering my activity level and weight. I even had my thyroid checked, making sure that it wasnt m body sabotoging itself and making me fat (funny, right?!) ....but guess what -- that came out normal too! In fact, I am pretty sure, at this point, I just felt like it was impossible for me to be thin, skinny, a size 10 or 8 or 6 or 4, or even healthy. 

.............................Well, there goes that excuse!

Just about every female in my family, extended too – is overweight, if not "obese". However, looking at old photos – they did not start out that way. In fact almost all of my relatives were slender and active in their younger days. All very skinng, active, and gosh, very beautiful -- so it’s not in my DNA either. Great.

.......................Excuse number two down the drain!

When I was a kid, after about 4th grade, I was never really ever skinny. I’m built like a mountain side, broad and curvy… (You like that one?) I’ve always had a very pronounced pear shape (smaller on top, larger on bottom), even when I was at my heaviest (210 - OUCH) and that led me to think that it was okay for me to be that big, because I just didn’t look THAT big. (haha, there I go again with the jokes!) People where floored when they would find out how much I weighed, I just happen to carry it better then someone else...right?

So then I told myself, well, I am just big boned.

Well, Ive been to the doctor a few times lately, and what I am beginning to realise is that NO, I am not big boned.  Not big --- just average. (For reference, I’m 5'7" tall with a wrist measurement of 6.5 inches.)

................................Adios excuse numero tres!!!

So if it’s not my thyroid or my DNA, nor I’m not big boned – what’s wrong with me? Why was I so big?

...........................Are you ready for the shocking answer?

I ate too much and I moved too little

Yep!!

..........Absolutely unbelievable, I know!

Who would have guessed that the secret to my success in weight loss would be logging my calories, moving my large behind, and taking phentermine to curb my appetite and habits of eating... a lot.... all the time??
Anyone with half a brain. No seriously.

So... this whole "big boned" business is all a lie? Well, it looks like it! I love this photo that really illustrate that your "big-ness" really isnt bones... its some muscle and a lot of fat (in my case) piled on top of those regular-size bones!

 

Lets get this straight, I am not "skinny" just yet -- and by no means do I have a "bangin' body"  either.... but HECK! THIS IS WHAT I CALL PROGRESS LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!

143.2 today and finally in a size 6!

Just bought two new pairs of jeans, one new pair of slacks, and a pair of slim-fit shorts from Gap =)

...........If I hit the 130s I believe I will cry!

So much for living up to everyones expectations of continuing to be "big boned" and never fitting into a size 10 (CHECK) or a size 8 (CHECK) or a size 6 (CHECK!!). I am so excited -- and I never thought this would happen. Well, it didnt just "happen," technically. I made it happen and I am so glad that I have!

I challenge you not to listen to other people. Do what you want and do what you can to make yourself happy.

Like the cheerios bee says "bee happy, bee healthy!" and dont listen to anyone who says that you are "big boned" and if you do listen, don't feel like you have to live up to that -- because, chances are, you have normal sized bones and you can be/look like whatever you want.... and let me stress that what you are/want to be/look like is ENTIRELY up to you.

 

Happy Monday!