Today is the last day of my forced sobriety.  Not that I plan to not be sober anymore, I just don't have to be anymore.  Assuming I don't drink tonight (I'm not going to drink tonight), tomorrow I will be celebrating by purchasing my reward and likely drinking some wine while doing so.  

This challenge lasted 2 days short of 6 weeks and is likely the longest I have gone without drinking anything alcoholic since I was, cover your eyes Mom, 13.  What have I learned?  I'm not sure just yet.  Let's do a pro and con list.

Pros of not drinking alcohol:
1. I sleep better.
2. I smell better.
3. I've lost roughly 7 pounds which opened up a whole section of my wardrobe that I've not fit into since having Pace.
4. Dearly Beloved drinks less.

Cons of not drinking alcohol:
1. I have been drinking caffeine.
2. I have been far less productive.
3. I have been more stressed about the small things.
4. I have been sluggish.
5. I am more easily irritated.
6. I feel like going to bed around 5pm.
7. I've not been as patient as I normally am.
8. I've been less active.
9. I've been feeling less social.
10. I have a hard time feeling motivated to do anything.
11. I require a lot more alone time than normal.
12. I have a major sweet tooth that I don't normally have.
13. I've been called "boring" which is something I'm not accustomed to.
14. I feel boring.
15. I feel like people in general talk too much and wonder why they won't just leave me alone.

It would seem that there are far more cons of not drinking than there are pros.  Cheers!

1.  I am still fighting constant sicknesses.  It's very frustrating and tiring.

2.  You can now get an assortment of Raving Jane goods at Indie Made in downtown Boise.  There are hula hoops, clocks, coasters, wine charms, and a couple of wool cuffs.

3.  Yesterday was an important day in life for me.  It marked the very first day that both of my little chicks went to school.  It's been 22 loooong months since Pace was born and my world dramatically changed.  Wow, he's been a hard baby!  With both kids in school yesterday I was able to put in hours of uninterrupted work and finished the day feeling proud of how much I'd accomplished.  Yay for school!!

4.  Bike pumps these days suck!  It blows.

5.  Graham bought me tickets to see The Civil Wars for our upcoming 6 year anniversary.  I'm very excited to go.  
6.  It's raining and my family is still sleeping.  This, so far, is my kind of morning.

7.  I've not had a drop of alcohol in my system for over 2 weeks now and as a result I have lost 5 pounds.  If this keeps up through June, I will be wearing my reward over my shoulder and my pre-Pace-pregnancy skinny jeans.  Plus my stated weight on my drivers license will be correct.

8.  I recently watched Black Swan and that movie scared the crap out of me.  No one told me it was going to be a horror flick.

9.  We bought a kiln off of craigslist a few days ago.  Soon all of our friends and family will be the wonderful recipients of lots of junky beginner pottery projects.

10.  One of our apple trees finally gave up this year.  When we bought our house 6 years ago it was the prettiest fruitful thing I'd ever seen.  A year later, half of the tree broke off and collapsed into our yard.  We've had it trimmed regularly to promote a healthy recovery, but alas, it just couldn't hang on any longer.  Yesterday we had it chopped up and hauled away.  Our view has changed dramatically.  I'm sad to see it gone.

Every now and again I go through a phase of wanting to take better care of myself and actually do it.  It pretty much always consists of the same things; eat better, step up the exercise routine, shave my legs more regularly and drink less alcohol.  Well I don't know about everything else this time around, but I have decided to cut out the alcohol for a certain amount of time.

It's been a whole week since I've had anything alcoholic to drink.  I plan to go all the way through June and give myself a fatty reward when I make it.  Feast your eyes on this little ditty.  It doesn't look like much on screen but in person it's the most comfortable, beautiful, perfectly sized bag I have ever put on.  I'm not much of a purse person but I do use one of some sort everyday.  I typically use the diaper bag which polishes off my style in monumental proportions, ha.  If I don't have any need for diapers on my outing, I use my little purse which Graham picked out for me a few years ago and cost $1.  I love that little purse and will still use it when I feel like wearing something blue.  With that said, you can probably get an idea of how much money I have spent on purses in the past.  It's right up there with the amount that they charge you for a plastic sac at the grocery store…. Which I have also been known to use as a purse.

I have saved so much money over the years by not buying a handbag to match each pair of my shoes like some ladies do that I feel like if I make my goal I can honestly justify spending a whopping $(too much money for me to actually admit to myself).00 on a tote.  Plus, for me to actually make it 5 weeks without a drink the reward HAS to be worth it for me.  I do like my wine, which ironically is the color of the tote, and tend to drink it nearly everyday.  I'm not the biggest person in the world, but I sure can put down the wine.  I've decided that it's time for me to lower my tolerance and the only way to do that is by not drinking for awhile.

It's been fine overall so far.  I have noticed that I am a bit less productive and have less energy than I normally do.  Cooking has probably been the hardest part of staying sober for me.  Cooking, drinking and Jane make a perfect harmonious match that I enjoy being very much.  Today was the first day that I thought I might really like to have a drink actually.  It's just that I've been being driven crazy and drinking helps me stay sane and positive on such irritating days.  I should probably print a picture of my reward bag and stick it on the wine rack, which is empty other than an unopened box of wine.  I'll tape it right on the box.  Then I'll shave my legs.