A few things and a new challenge.

1) It is snowing in NYC. AGAIN. And don't get me wrong, I loooove me some snowy white city scapes (that's my morning commute picture to the left!), but this is getting a little ridiculous. 50 degrees on Sunday then 30 degrees with inches of snow on Monday? what the???

2) Did you have a favorite Super Bowl commercial? There were a few I really liked, but here's a recap with "grades" (so interesting to see which ads resonated most with people!) 

3) I'm making my triumphant return to "cooking" tonight after a 2-week hiatus. Thinking I'll whip up THIS favorite.

And now, as promised in today's post title, is "a new challenge". Are you ready!? Last year we shared 12 "Healthy Habits of the Month" and based on your feedback, the series was extremely popular! Apparently people love tips for getting healthy and having a community to share the experience with. So let's try some more group motivation... introducing....

Seek to be Merry's Pesky Pounds Challenge.
For better or worse, nearly every woman I speak to is holding on to some weight she wishes she could shed. In many instances it's only 5 to 15 lbs, the "pesky pounds" which your body would prefer to keep, but you would prefer it not. And these pounds between where you're at and a "goal weight" are often the hardest to lose, so I thought maybe we could try to do it together!!!

1) Over the next 12 weeks, I am going to share tips for weight loss, factoids to encourage healthier living and recipes focused on cutting out the naughty stuff. 

2) Once per week (along with those tasty recipes and interesting articles) I am going to share how much weight I've lost since the week prior and I would LOVE to turn this into a community event where readers up for the challenge do the same in the comments section below. I will NOT be sharing how much I weigh (and you don't have to either) but instead focusing on my progress bringing the number down. Having to share creates accountability and having a community means a safe place to enjoy successes and assess failures.

So what do you think? Will you join the Seek to be Merry Pesky Pounds Challenge? Weight loss can be such a personal struggle and I don't think there's anything that makes a struggle less scary than a trusting community to face it with, so I hope you'll join me!