Top 15 of 2015

2015 has been a memorable year, so I thought I'd take a cue from Blacksburg Belle and make a list of my favourite 15 things from 2015.

1. Travel. I was fortunate enough to visit Columbus, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Central Florida this year. I'm crossing my fingers that 2016 will include further travels.

2. Launching our first project at The Selectively Silent Child.

3. #hospitalglam. "Taking the shame out of being in treatment one selfie at a time". Check out a couple of my selfies here and here.

4. This bathing suit bottom. I foresee the fatkini movement living on well past 2015. (Psst. It's still available on Torrid's website).

5. Amazing food. Gingerbread from Richmond's Kosher Bakery (Toronto), hotdogs and chili cheese fries from Tony Packo's (Toledo), homemade matzoh brei, for example.

Churros in Epcot's Mexico Pavillion are amazing! #dessert #foodie #foodstagram #orlando

A photo posted by Rebecca Esther (@rebeccaesther) on Sep 5, 2015 at 10:40am PDT

6. Crop tops. More specifically, seeing a huge variety of women rocking the style that used to be for white girls with perfect abs. This is my favourite.

7. This quote.

8. My cane. I definitely couldn't have travelled, worked or enjoyed 2015 nearly as much as I did without my cane. No one wants to need a mobility device, especially in their early 20s, but if you need one, I say this: Use it. And make it pretty. It's so worth it.

A photo posted by Rebecca Esther (@rebeccaesther) on Oct 13, 2015 at 4:59pm PDT

9. Starting Project Zero.

10. Revival by Selena Gomez. It's a great album. And I like the conversation it started.

11. Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion. Oh my god. The change in my skin really is "dramatically different". Another skincare life saver (especially when I'm in Florida) is Evian Mineral Water Spray. It makes your skin feel cool and refreshed without messing up your makeup. Amazing.

12. Maple syrup scented candles.

13. Comparing my "double life" as a spoonie to Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus. It still makes me giggle.

14. Kacey. Musgraves. I love her music and everything she stands for.

15. Avocados.

Let's spend the new year together! Follow me on Instagram.

16 Before 2016

I'm really into setting goals (and celebrating when I achieve them!), so I love the idea of 16 before 2016, a goal setting challenge created by Lisa Jacobs. So here's my list:

1. Launch our holiday project at The Selectively Silent Child. I'm so excited about it!

2. Wear more hats.

3. Eat more avocados. Part because they're delicious, but mainly because I just learned that avocados help relieve arthritis pain.

4. Rewatch Les Miserables (1935). Today I rewatched the 2012 musical version, so now I have such an urge to watch my other favourite film version.

5. Make plans to visit my step dad in January or February. 

6. Get referred to a hematologist, psychiatrist, gynecologist, and a new endocrinologist, and make appointments with my other specialists. The life of a spoonie is so much fun! Not.

7. Rearrange my home office.

8. Make falafel.

9. Write about PCOS.

10. Write about the relationship between medication, weight gain and body positivity.

11. Find more fat acceptance, fatshion and body positivity blogs to follow.

12. Take outfit photos at least once. It's been ages!

13. Pitch an article.

14. Moisturize daily! So important, especially during Canadian winters.

15. Look into CBT and/or DBT for 2016.

16. Write about 2015. Between Fibro fog and simply living a busy (and mostly productive) life, 2015 feels like a whirlwind. I want to take some time to focus on my accomplishments and cherished memories, and consider how to make next year even better than this one.

*Italics = in progress & struck out = completed

What do you have planned for the rest of 2015? Share in the comments below!

Valentine's Day 2015

I absolutely love Valentine's Day! It's all about love; romantic, platonic, familial, and self love. Not to mention shades of red and pink and heart-shaped chocolates everywhere!

No matter who you're celebrating with, it's not too late to make plans. Check out this list of Valentine's Day ideas, V-day ideas from celebrities & ways to romance yourself whether you're single or not.

Lots of X's and O's from me to you,

Image Source: MailboxHappiness on Etsy

Momentum: My Word For 2015

Whether it's reaching Fat Is Not a Bad Word's audience, or reaching my goals, or even reaching the end of the block (thanks to my chronic fatigue and arthritic ankle), it sometimes seems like I'm moving so slowly, that I'm not getting anywhere at all.

That's why momentum is my word of the year.

Getting to where you want to be takes a lot of time and effort, especially if you're fat; fewer people take you seriously, it's harder to get a job, you have to spend longer in front of the mirror to make yourself look 'acceptable'-- and even more so if you're also disabled. I'm frustrated with how society's reactions toward my size and my disabilities limit me, but I won't let them stop me. Even when I feel like giving up. 

The more I try, the more I push myself, the more baby steps I take, the more consistent I am, the more momentum I build. Good things rarely come easy, but they will come if I keep going.

What's your word for 2015?

The art pictured above is borrowed from Brave Mable. You can see more & purchase art here.