Acceptance

I have started this blog over and over in the past  few weeks.  Just  trying to really get my thoughts clear, get my head  clear.  Have you ever  felt like that, like you have turned a corner and you are so excited you want to  share it but just can't make it clear?!?!  That is where  I have been living the past  few weeks, and its great, and frustrating all  at once.

I had an epiphany a few weeks before Thanksgiving.  It was the strangest thing.  I was getting dressed for work, something that happens everyday  and usually triggers some sort of negative thought. Something like, that used to be more  tone or that was firmer once upon a time.  So I'm getting dressed and I look in the mirror and I think, pretty good for 37.  Yep,  37...and normally too this would have bothered me but it didn't, it doesn't.  It instead started this while whirlwind of thoughts and feelings.

The day I got  married I was in the best shape of my life, I will never be like that again.  ow here  is where the change happened...I  will never be like that again NOT because I'm lazy or anything like that....I will never be like that again because I am not that person anymore.   I'm not that young, I don't have the amount of free time I had then,  my body isn't the same...I  have been pregnant, I have rounded another decade, so many things...and you know what?  I'm good  with it.  I accept it.  Not only that, I embrace it.

It's true, I will never have the body I had at 21 again, I  will never have the body I had on my wedding day again...and I am so grateful for that fact!   I will never have it again because  I can be better...I can be healthier and stronger.  When I was younger I could workout for hours, I could run everyday unhindered...but now I have to make time for it.  But  you know what, it has made  me healthier overall.  I may have 10-15 pounds more on my frame right now then I would like, but its okay...because (most) of the food choices that got me there are  FAR better then the ones I made when I was hard(er)-bodied twenty-something.  My metabolism isn't what it used to be...but I can work with that, I can push myself harder...and until I get there, if I get there I'm good with how I am right now.

Parenthood

Hi, my name is Shannon and I have an addiction to the TV show Parenthood on NBC.  I have recently found this  amazing piece on Netflix, and cannot seem to stop  watching it.  I am eagerly awaiting the season premier this year even more then my birthday.  Well, truth be told it's ON my birthday, so it's like NBC's little gift to me.  There.  I  said it.  I openly admit my addiction.

I have found myself emotionally attached  to  these characters, and drawing on their experiences and how things parallel life.  It's such a good show.  It's true to life.  It's made me stop  and really appreciate little things with my family that I may have otherwise not even noticed.  I have actually felt a wave of  calm    wash over me  after watching an episode.  It's like, see, even TV families have a lot of crap to deal with, its not all Norman Rockwell.

One of the things I  find after watching it though is how aware I am of time passing.  My oldest turned 13 yesterday.  She is officially a teenager.  I can't believe  it.  My youngest,  my baby,  my mini me...she started kindergarten last week.  Where has the time gone?  Where is it going? Why do my babies have to  keep getting older and more independent?   I know that is what is best for them,  I really do...but they are my babies.

There was a storyline that I just finished in the show (I won't tell you...no need  for a spoiler alert for  those who intend   to watch)...but it made me really start to think about the things that I want my girls to know  and remember and think and feel and believe.  So here it goes.

My sweet Bayba..

You are  now a teenager.  I can't believe it.  When did this happen?  You were just me sweet little girl yesterday  pressing her  face against the window at daycare crying, begging me not to  leave you there (which made me constantly  late for work-because I couldn't just leave you there).  You were the first person to make me realize just how full of love my heart could really be.  You were my sleep  hating baby at night that would gently lay on my chest and hold my finger as you napped during the day.  You were the first amazing child  in my life to utter  the word  Momma, and make me realize just how special that word really is.  You made me look at my relationship with Mimi (my mom)  in a whole new light.  You make me laugh, you make me cry, you fill me with fear and also hope.  You have grown into a beautiful young woman.  Quiet and reserved,  smart, witty,  funny with your Dad's crazy sense of humor.  You know what is important to you and you protect it fiercely.  You try to be SO independent, but still come and just  hug me or rest  your head on my shoulder so I know you still need  me,   and guess what...I need  you too.   You will always be my first baby.  The first one to fill my heart and make me realize how precious life is and can be,  I have so  many hopes and dreams for you.  You doubt yourself, we  all do,  but you are stronger  than you know and can do anything.  I know all parents tell their children that, but you my sweet girl really can and will.  I am so  proud of the person you are becoming, it's an honor to be your mom.

Oh my sweet, sweet mini me,

I don't even know where  to begin with you.  You are  my soul, my heart.  You and I connect in a way no one else  ever will or will ever truly understand.  You made  me realize that love is bigger and stronger  than anything in this  world.  You spoke  to me even when you were still rolling around and kicking in my belly.  You are me.  I  look into  your big beautiful eyes and see such love reflecting back at me.  You may look like  your  Dadoo, but you my dear, are  all Momma.  You are my perfect angel.  The dream that I wasn't sure would ever come true.  You have taught me so much about myself, and have made me better for it.  You are my sassy, smart, creative, outgoing,  vivacious girl that can't be stopped.  You are as determined  and stubborn as me, you are adamant (Daddy's favorite word to describe Mommy), you know what you want and go after it.  Don't ever lose that!  In a world that  is  so  scary and out of control, you are  my center.  You remind me of what it is all  really about.  Kindergarten.  WOW!   I am still in disbelief that  it is already that time.  You have handled it  all with grace and style, as  I knew  you would.  You are  just starting on this adventure as a "big girl" and I could not be more proud of you.  You will move mountains.  Follow your heart and your dreams always.  I can not wait to see what life has in store for you, whatever it is I just know you will take it all in and make things better, brighter.  You are  a shining star in a dark sky. 

You are sisters.  You are always going to be sisters and connected to  each other.  Support one another, love one another,  celebrate each other, fight, laugh, love, scream, live for each  other.  You are so similar and yet so  different.  Thank  you for  allowing me to  be your mom.  I am honored and blessed by your greatness, and love you more then the moon, and the sun, and alllllllllllll  the stars  in the sky infinity amen.

Whirlwind

    

What a crazy few weeks it has been in the wide world of W&M.  We have been gearing up for Halloween for what feels like weeks in our house.  My sweet mini me LOVES to decorate the house so we have been busy...pumpkins, witches, bats, coloring pages, paint projects, you name it...we have been making it.  We even made our own little wreath for the front door.  What happened to fall close to the holiday this year that she was NOT looking forward to was her 4 year check up.  She is an amazing kid...healthy, strong, full of life, but also full of the biggest, saddest tears a mom could have ever seen as they gave her not 1 but 2 booster shots.  one in each of her sweet little leggies.  I tried to make her feel better with the talk of "Now you are ready for kindergarten...and no more shots until you are 11" but those words were falling on sad, tear stained deaf ears.    I just sat in the exam room holding my sweet, sweet girl wile she cried.

That same day my best friend of nearly 3 decades called to tell me her grandfather got his angel wings.  He had been sick for a while, and in my heart I knew this was bittersweet news...now he isn't in pain any more, but still...what a devastating blow.   I called my parents who were on vacation, gave them the news.  We got flowers ordered and I made arrangements to not be at work on Monday so I could be there for my BFF as we celebrated the life of an amazing man. 

Now, not everything was a "Debbie downer" though.  What also happened on Friday morning is the great opportunity I alluded too yesterday.  I have mentioned (many times I know) my little home based business I do with the girls and the hubs.  Well, Friday morning before we started a day of doc visits (mini me had her 1st eye exam that day as well)...I meet with the owner of a local kids resale store and guess what...she wants to carry some of my creations in her store!!!  Ardeline Arts & Crafts is starting a whole new page...a whole new adventure!  This is exciting and scary all at once! 

I am also eagerly waiting to find out if I made the cut for Fit Fluential to be an ambassador.  The application process closes today so if you are interested...get it in there folks!!  I am thinking of joining the Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge (HBBC) which I discovered thanks to Kim over at Fabulous Fit Foodie.  I feel like its just the right motivation to keep me on track over the holidays.  I mean, I am =very proud to admit that I still have a completely unopened bag of some of my fav treats that I bought to give out to trick or treaters last week!  In my house, that is a miracle.  We are usually buying more the day before!!

What are your plans to stay focused during the holidays??

Making Waves

Mini me and me at the beach


What an AMAZING weekend!  While we are all a bit sad this week while my oldest is off with her Aunt in South Carolina, it is giving the hubs and I a great opportunity to spend lots of 1 on 1 time with the wee one.  After we packed up Maddy and sent her on her way, Arden decided she wanted to go to the beach.  Once Momma's little bull headed baby gets an idea in her head its nearly impossible to sway her.  We had a laundry list of errands that needed to be taken care of but Dadoo announced, "ok lets get our swimsuits on and go."  It is moments like these that make me stop and really appreciate how lucky I am to be teamed up with him.  He reminds me that there is always time for Home Depot and mulch buying...he makes me a better parent.  So we slathered ourselves in sunscreen, got in our suits and hit the beach.

It was a PERFECT morning.  We got there before the crowds rolled in, before the oppressively hot temps took over (which they did later that afternoon) and just played and laughed and had a blast.  It was especially nice to mark another milestone off of her list...baby's first trip to the beach.  Living in NE Ohio, nice beaches are few and far between...but this weekend we seemed to find our own little slice of Heaven in the sand.



sandcastle by dadoo and daughter designs :)

 

On Sunday we took the dog to the park to swim in the river and walk the trails some.  Now back in the day these trails were well worn by my hubby and me.  We would take the dog over and run 2-3 miles, then "dunk the dog in the river" and head home.  I LOVED these runs!  Even in crazy hot weather, running along the bridle trails under the tress with my hubby was always one of my favorite times of day.  Soooooo as we were walking along yesterday on the trails I decided that I wanted a bit of a run, but how to make this fun?  I tried tag and it worked BEAUTIFULLY!  We got mini me engaged in about a mile or so of interval running trying to chase and tag me, me trying to chase and tag her, chasing Dadoo and the pup, being chased by Dadoo and pup.  It felt amazing to run, and even more so to run with my little miss and hear her giggling along the way.  Bu doing it as tag and in intervals no one was overworked, we let her set the pace...and afterwards she asked it we could do it again.  How amazing would it be to instill my love for running into my wee one?!?!  I am hoping this could be the start of a healthy and fun new activity for us to do as a family. :)

 

The benefits of getting us all up and moving is obvious, but we can also bond as a family through exercise....I LOVE IT!!



Spring Clean

Well, as I mentioned in my last post, I was starting to feel rather strongly about getting some spring cleaning started in our house, what with all the illness and such, and that is exactly what we did this weekend.  It felt GREAT to bust out my dusting cloth and vacuum and go to town.  WHAT?!??!  I know, I'm weird like that.  Back in the early days when we had but 1 small, sweet child...the hubs and I kept a pretty neat and tidy house.  I used to work Monday-Wednesday, Friday and Saturday and each and every Thursday was dedicated to cleaning our apartment.  Now, that may sound smaller in comparison to our lovely little house now, but we actually had an amazingly large and impressive apartment.  I loved that apartment, but I love our little yard and play area for the girls more. 

Every Thursday with a whole day to myself I would get up, have my coffee and cigarette (I know, it was a LIFETIME ago and happily a nasty habit ago), and set to work.  Dusting, vacuuming, Murphy's oil soaping all the hardwoods, laundry, dishes, wash the kitchen floors, scrub the bathrooms, change the bedding, I was a busy, busy bee.  Even after we bought our house, I was able to keep things together pretty well.  Enter bambino #2, and things start to get a little more hectic.  When she was tiny it was ok, but as she gets bigger and more active, and both she and her sister have busy social schedules, things have fallen to the wayside.  I do blame myself partially for all the illness in our house lately.  If I was being a little more diligent about disinfecting and cleaning perhaps we would have kicked the germs a little sooner. 

I think the ick just added to my general need to purge things and so this weekend was HIGHLY productive.  We put away all of our winter decorations (we had left all my fat little snowmen), we put away the new Valentine's Day décor we made, and we started to get out the Easter fun stuff and started making more Easter fun!  The little one has been stuck on Valentine's Day a bit, but the way I see it, you can never have too many of these wonderful little hearts, (the ones below adorn the board in my office at work):

note the sweet little hand written "Mom" on the top row shots

I do make it a habit of doing a cleaning when changing out décor.  Nothing worse then having dust trails from previous decorations :)  So in honor of redecorating, we did a massive cleaning!  My house looks so much better, even the kiddos helped out!  We filled garbage bags, stored unused toys, cleaned out drawers and closets for donations, vacuumed, and I started a list of things that will be cleaned.  I figure a little bit at a time.  I want to do a major clean though....wash draperies, clean baseboards, the whole house!  I even found this nice little checklist compliments of Martha Stewart to look through, as well as all my fun cleaning tidbits on pinterest (check out my board Clean Slate), I think I could have the cleanest house in America, at least for a few minutes. 

On top of ALL of this, with the launch of my facebook page for my little family business, we are starting to get some inquires.  I am SO excited.  This is something I have wanted to be able to do for a LONG time.  Check us out at Ardeline Arts & Crafts on facebook, and make sure to like the page...you could earn a free prize!  If you see something you like or want to design something with us, let me know.  Prices can be worked out with postage and handling!! 

With all this talk of spring too, I need to make sure I add my thoughts on a spring inspired Friend Making Monday (better late then never).  Thanks Kenlie for a FMM that keeps us looking forward to the warm weather to come!!

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: http://www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

 Almost Spring

1. What do you love most about Spring?  This year what I love most is how exciting it is to my 3 year old.  She looks out the window each morning and whenever there is less snow she yells that spring is here!  We even heard birds outside the front door the other day and that was just WAY to much excitement for one little lady to handle. 

2. If you're lucky enough to have a Spring Break, what will you do to enjoy it?  I will spend it at work while my husband spends it with a finely detailed honey-do list J

3. What is your favorite flower?  I love my Gerbera daisies.  We had them in our wedding and I just love the bright colors they come in and something about them in general just makes me happy.  I also adore the smell of hyacinth, and that always makes me happy in the spring and around Easter time.

4. Do you have a garden?  If so, what do you grow?  We haven’t’ had a garden in the past, we do have lots of flower beds, but this year we are adding a vegetable garden for the girls.  I’m pretty excited to get dirty with them and grow some of our own yummy veggies!

5. Share one thing that you hope to accomplish during Spring.  I am REALLY hoping to get my little family business up and running.  Check us out on facebook at Ardeline Arts & Crafts!

6. Do you do Spring cleaning?  We are taking it to the extreme this year, see my above post!

7. What is your weather *really* like right now? {Just b/c it's almost Spring, doesn't mean that it feels like it for some of you.}  When I left for work this morning the temperature gauge in my car said 25, it should get up to about 40 by the afternoon though.

8. Share one photo that you've taken during the month of March.  This is one of the custom pieces we have made for our facebook site, it’s a custom designed corn hole board.

 

9. What's your favorite thing to do on a sunny afternoon?  I love to be outside with my girls…hiking, playground, and soccer, whatever!

10. If you could spend the day doing anything in your city, what would you do?  Good question, maybe walk the town triangle and really use what it has to offer.  Yoga studio (never been), restaurants, ice cream parlor, library, shops.

Now it's your turn to answer this week's questions!  Don't forget to come back and link up in the comments!

Feel Good Friday, so many good things

 It has been quite a while since I did a Feel Good Friday post, and this week I feel like there are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO many things to feel good about!  I don't even know where to start. 

Okay, so first I guess I'll start with the actual FGF icon I use.  I had accidentally deleted the cute little Feel Good Friday logo that I found on Google so this morning I was like, "duh, you need to try and find it again."  I enter it into Google and the first pic that comes up is the one above, and when I clicked on it..it linked back to MY BLOG!!!  How cool is that?!?!?!  I have been trying to read up on how to better promote this sweet little blog-o-mine, and was just so excited when I saw it connected to my blog. 

This amazing discovery was after a killer workout!  Today is a half day at work, so I did in fact get to sleep in and snuggle with my baby bear (which was the very best possible way to start my day), then I got to head over to the gym and get in a nice workout on my own.  Do you ever have those days where you just want to clear your head and workout alone?  Not to negate how fun the classes I have been talking with my boss are, but I needed a day to just be me.  I did 30 minutes on the elliptical

and sliced through 412 calories!  Then to cool down and stretch some, I did an additional 10 on the treadmill and burned another 55 or so.  I'm hoping to get a little Just Dance 4 in tonight with the girls...so despite thinking yesterday that I may get an hour to an hour and a half in the gym today...it was MUCH better snuggling a little longer and then playing later with the kiddos.  I was so happy with my workout that I even did the unprecedented and took a post work out pic.

All sweaty and gross and high on endorphins getting ready to hit the shower.  note I'm sporting my sweet workout top I got from Kelly G over at No Thanks to Cake.  I definitely did sweat like a pig today too.  Felt ah-may-zing!!!

The coolest part of the past 24 hours was when I checked my mail last night.  I have a friend who is just one of the most awesome people you could ever have the privilege to meet and she works for the DNC in Washington DC.  She added my husband and myself to a very elite list, and look what we got in the mail

That's right, and invite to the INAUGURATION!!!  What?!?!?!  Now granted, its only a commemorative invite and not an actual ticket to the event, but how cool to have that arrive in my mail yesterday.  I was feeling pretty important.

So you see how a Feel Good Friday post wasn't just a passing thought today, it was a must.  I feel good about dear friends, mind clearing workouts, building my "ePresence" and snuggling.

What are you Feeling Good about this Friday?

Take a sec and tell us your Feel Good Friday story on your blog and link it back up here in the comments section! Invite your readers to share as well.

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

I can't believe it!  It's already 2013!  What a whirlwind 2012 was for me.  I started this little blog-o-mine, began really working towards a healthier lifestyle, and grew overall as a person (in my personal character not my size luckily).

Tomorrow marks one year of blogging...I have to admit.  I was worried that with so many things that I start...that I would start this blog with a fire and it would fizzle within a few weeks...maybe months if I was lucky.  But I can say with great pride that it's something else I focused on and kept with. 

I started scrolling through some of my posts from the past year and wanted to highlight some of my favs...some I had forgotten about.  For those of you that are new to my blog, this will give you a better idea of what kind of craziness I enjoy :)

Here are my top 12 of 2012:

January:  While, it should be my very first post, I think it would have to be the Down with UADD post.  The idea behind UADD has been a long running joke in my family, and honestly...the clip art is too much.

February:  This one was hard, I highlighted some of my fav Crunch videos in February, and told you all about how much I enjoyed Ellen Barrett as a fitness genius, I think my fav was actually compliments of Kenlie over at All the Weigh with a Friend Making Monday post she did on travel.  Not only was it a fun way to share memories of great family va-cays, but it also got me thinking more globally (literally) in places I would like to see and experience. 

March: Sunshine on my Shoulders Makes me Happy was a fav for sure!  Sunshine, baby bear, great workout...what's not to love!!!  I wonder what the weather will hold for us this March...

April: ok, so I still have this deep seeded wish...this hope that one day, this will happen.  Fav post, hands down Like a Flash.  I mean, really...take a look and tell me you have never at least thought about how awesome it would be to have a flash mob at your disposal. :)

May: May was a hard month.  I had foot surgery in May and didn't really get to do as much as I had hoped because it was a much harder recovery than I had anticipated.  It's a toss up which post was my fav in May....either Get Active! because of it's integration of fitness with the little one, or  Moving Forward because to me, on a personal level, it signifies how far I had come already in my journey that I was planning for any and all possibilities with my foot.  Can we say proactive?!?!  :)

June: On the Road Again was my fav post in June.  Being back out in the sun, working out, showing my kiddos how important it is to have a healthy routine...discussing it with the little bear.  It's always good to go back to the very basics I try to understand why we do things...that's the only way to change and better ourselves!

July: Slow month on the blog front...only 4.  What a bum I was!  Speaking of bums...fav post of July...The Royal Flush!  The pride I shared with my little bear when she mastered the potty.  This was a major accomplishment and made the top 5 of great things that happened in our house for 2012! 

August:  I had a lot to be proud of in August.  Home organization, lots of cooking and meal planning started, but I think the post Don't Quit was my fav.  It wasn't even something I wrote, just a reminder.  Sometimes we need those little reminders to keep us focused. 

September: September is always a busy month in our house.  Three birthdays, school starting back, soccer starting back up...AHHHHH!  This year the birthday was a biggie, 35.  Instead of letting it get me down though, I think I did a fairly good job embracing it.  and on the cusp of the big event I focused in on things that help keep me motivated and going in I APPsolutely Love These. 

October: I love to talk about my kids.  It's a give in.  I am THAT parent, which is why Sweet Tooth is the top pick for October for me. I also liked that I tried something new with my post by adding  some additional info that I thought was informative.  What did you think?  Is it worth trying out again?

November: Well, well, wellness.  Taking responsibility for my health!

December: That love of talking about my kids...it extends to the whole fam and that is why I am loving A Family Affair.  Take time for what is important!

What have been some of your favorite posts?  What would you like to see more of?  Less of? 

Where's My Cape?

So, how many of you want to conquer everything but just dont' have the hours in the day or the stamina to do it all?  I am constantly jealous of my BFF who is a stay at home mom.  Her house is always clean, her scrapbooks are all caught up, she works out when she wants to...I WANT THAT!  But, my situation is not the same as hers...I work full time and my children are in more activities then hers and life is just different for the two of us.  I dont' begrudge her anything, I just wish I had a cape some days and the superhero ability to do it all.

This comes on the heels of a weekend in which , yes I indulged a bit, but not in excess as far as I thought...yet the scale seemed to think otherwise.  I was SHOCKED this morning when I got on the scale...shocked I say.  My hubs always tells me that I have to move the scale around and check a few times and take the "average" because our calibration is sometimes sub-par...but this was not just a calibration issue.  This was a full on assault of the numbers.  I mean, wow.  WTH! 

I have been feeling "doughy" lately, as that is the only word that seems suitable.  But I had a great week at the gym...well, two weeks ago.  I know I need to be better, and should have been building oin that momentum and moving onward and upward last week, but schedules and need for sleep got the better of me.  I even was at a point where I was craving comfort style food and embraced that in my cooking last week (although, I am SUPER proud of my version of beef stroganoff that I made).

So, this morning when I saw those numbers staring back at me I knew it was time to take charge and jump start this body of mine.  First plan of attack, I made myself a sensible breakfast.  I made 2 eggs to start my day off with a burst of protein and had a small glass of OJ.  I even went through the cabinet and got my vitamins out to hopefully help kick my sleepiness.  I made sure to log everything with myfitnesspal.com (something I have also been slacking in) and packed a sensible lunch with controlled portions.  It's a start.  I am hoping that the hubs gets out of work early enough to relieve me at soccer practice and maybe I can even get a workout in tonight.  I may need to think about getting up earlier and trying to workout before work.  It just means I will be going to bed earlier...which means getting the little one to bed earlier...so that is actually a good thing, right?!?!  I still need to find time though where I can have some QT with the hubs.  Where is that cape again????

So my request to you is to help keep me going, keep me challenged.  I am going to make sure I have time each day to "come clean" to you...or sing my own praises...hopefully more of the latter.  I need to get back on track so I can start feeling good about myself again.  When I feel good, I can see my positive energy radiate out through my kiddos and husband and it makes the world a brighter place, well, my world anyways. 

With that being said...what is your challenge to me this week?  I am going to ask you to help me.  Be more than just my inspiration and source of accountability...be my virtual trainers and chefs.  I implore you!!

Now for a little Friend Making Monday, even I need something a little lighter after all that :)

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

Uniquely You

1) Do you prefer to talk or text? Lately I would say I prefer to text, as I can do it anywhere and feel like I’ve been running all the time from activity to activity.

2) How often do you make your bed? I make it every day, but generally after work.  When I leave in the morning for work everyone in my house is asleep…so one of the things I do after work is make beds….absolutely makes the room look better.  If my youngest is in my bed when I leave, I will go make her bed so as to feel like at least 1 room is pulled together.  I have that fear of someone wanting to stop by for a surprise visit and get a whole house tour…not sure whey!

3) What sounds do you hear right now? The water cooler in my office and the keyboard as I type.

4) List three things that you always carry with you. Pictures of my kids, my iPhone and my lipstick.

5) What are your favorite TV shows? While my TV time is limited to what I tape and watch when I can…I do have a few guilty pleasure shows…Drop Dead Diva, Grey’s Anatomy, The Office, Bones and Pretty Little Liars.

6) Is there a hobby that you’d like to devote more time to? If so, what is it?  I wish I had more time (and funds) to scrapbook the way I’d like to.  I also want to learn to knit (properly), crochet and sew.

7) What is your favorite drink? Cherry Coke Zero.

8) Share a couple of cool facts about your family. My girls look exactly alike at age markers (meaning my 3 year old looks just like my 11 year old did at 3), my husband is just as much of a neat freak as me, I try to talk to my mom and dad a few times a week and although he may not know it, if something were to ever happen to my husband and me my little brother is the person I would want to take over care of my children.

9) List one thing that you will do for yourself today. Get back on track!

10) Share something that you’re thankful for today. My family, as I am every day.  I am a very lucky girl!

Now it's your turn to answer this week's questions! Don't forget to come back and link up in the comments. And try to say something to someone new this week. There are some pretty cool people connected here. Happy Monday, friends!

Feel Good Friday...the birthday edition

Happy Friday dear ones!  We have made it to the end of another week, and what a week it's been.  I am feeling good because the birthday festivities are almost over.  Is that terrible?  I feel like I have have been caked, doughnutted and cookied into a sugar coma.  Granted I have indulged in all in moderation, but you still reach a point where enough is enough.  My wonderful family made cookies early in the week (oatmeal raisin...so they were healthy really right ?!?!), then we did cake and ice cream on the big day, then at work yesterday we celebrated as a team and had doughnuts (major weakness of mine, I think all that is left is the festivities with my mom, dad and bro...plus hubs and kiddos of course...maybe I can talk them into a nice fruit plate? 

My "feel good" for this Friday is being happy with and accepting my new "number."  Not the one on the scale of course (especially after all the treats) but the one that bumps me up to a whole new age bracket in the survey world.  I am actually really happy with where I am in life right now, and the choices I am making everyday.  I think that being able to accept ourselves is one f the hardest things to do.  Am I done?  NEVER!  As I have been saying all year, I am a work in progress...that's how this all began!

Did I mention that I rocked my own version of Beef Stroganoff last night for the fam?  Not the healthiest...but it's my birthday week and I had never made it...and I have been craving comfort type foods all week....stupid cold rainy days. 

What are you Feeling Good about this Friday?

Take a sec and tell us your Feel Good Friday story on your blog and link it back up here in the comments section! Invite your readers to share as well. 

Feel Good Friday: a great week

Friday, Friday, Friday!  TGIF my friends!  I have had such a great week. I think that instituting Feel Good Fridays has given me a subconscious reason to find the positive in things throughout the week.  It gives me something to look forward to at the end of the week (other than the weekend of course) where I can celebrate my accomplishments!  HOORAY!

So this week my Feel Good Friday has actually been inspired by another blogger,  Jenna Zemering, over at Stay Fit. Stay Classy. Stay True.  Earlier this week, Jenna did a post entitled What Are You Grateful For?, and it seemed a fitting topic for my overall week.  So my Feel Good Friday warm fuzzy is how grateful I am for where I am in my life.

Sure, I have those days where I feel overwhelmed...the kids, the mortgage, the salary free taxi service I seem to provide for all things activity related...but in the big picture those are all things I wouldn't trade for anything else in the world.  I am SO grateful for my amazing husband who stands by me no matter what, and my two beautiful and healthy daughters (did I mention that the little one had a GREAT 3 year check up this week...she is off the charts!)

I am grateful for a boss who values health and fitness as much as I do and who plans our workouts during free fancy gym week.  I am grateful that I am healthy enough to take advantage of free fancy gym week. 

I am grateful that my number got picked off the waiting list at work to finally (for a little extra cost) got me a garage spot rather than the open lot I have been parking in the past year and a half...and right before winter HALLELUJAH!

It has been a great week...but so far it has also been a great life and I am very blessed.  We sometimes get so caught up in everything else that we forget how each little thing is a gift.  I am "great" ful for my life and look forward to what the universe has in store for me, and we know that she has been talking my ear off lately.

So, what are you Feeling Good about this Friday???

Never Forget

Today is a day that I always stop and take stock.  It's a day that I will make sure my children always remember.  It's a day that was very real for my generation.  Before I moved into the world of academia, I worked in professional theatre.  I refer to it as my "former life."  It was something I loved doing, but was not conducive to having a family...at least not in the capacity that I worked, as a Stage Manager.  Imagine my excitement at 23 to be told by my boss "We are doing a new show, one that has only ever been showcased...and for financial reasons we are sending you to NYC to rehearse it for 5 weeks."  OMG!!  I was SO excited.  Hello Big Apple! 

I arrived in NYC on Monday, made my way to my kick a$$ apartment the company was putting my assistant and me up in and started to settle in.  Tuesday we got up early, walked through Times Square to work and started setting up the rehearsal space.  AT the time, I was still a smoker and we were outside on a smoke break when a traffic cop told us terrorists had taken over the towers.  What?!?!  This can't be?  Then we heard it.  We staggered across the street and saw the playback on the jumbo-tron of the first plane...then we looked towards the south end of the island.  I will never forget.

I wanted to go home.  I wanted my (then boyfriend) husband to hold me.  I wanted my mom and dad.  I wanted it to be a bad dream.  We were immediately sent "home" and watched the news coverage all day.  What else could we do.  Strange city, no phone service for a few hours, we just sat and watched dumbfounded.  Later that evening, after talking to family and loved ones, we left the apartment to find dinner.  The feeling that was in NYC at that time, in that moment, is the feeling I wish would take hold of this country.  Never have I seen a city...a mass group of strangers pull together the way they did.  It wasn't natives and tourists and visitors...it was Americans.  It was people going out of their way to make others feel safe, feel okay, just feel.  I remember being numb until that point. 

Over the next few weeks we attended vigils, saw the devastation, and tried to heal with a city that was left with a permanent scar.  I was left with a permanent scar.  I look back and even as I write this I can feel the tears stinging my eyes.  I can taste the smoke and ash in the air, I can feel the loss...but I have hope that we can move forward.  To draw strength from this horror.  To give respect and honor to all those that were lost, all those that stepped up as true heroes, and continue the fight today.  To never forget.

Mmmmm delish!

     Last night, my husband said something that I never thought I'd hear.  We sat down to eat dinner (another one of my fab finds from online) and I asked him if he was missing cooking.  To my surprise, his response was "Not if you are going to keep cooking like this."  What?  Did I hear that correctly?  To top it off, my oldest then says, this is delish mom!  I...was...speechless!
     I don't have a single picture of my creation.  I mean I was proud of it, but it was easy with the help of my little assistant and the world wide web.  I need to be better about taking my phone into the kitchen so I can snap a few shots of what I'm doing. 
     I owe all last nights success to the omen Living Well Ministries page I came across with the help of Google.  That is where I found this delicious recipe.  I googled Italian sausage, pasta and vegetables and came across their recipe for Bow Tie Pasta With Italian Sausage and Vegetables.  It was awesome!  I had purchased sweet Italian turkey sausage earlier in the week to make french bread pizzas, but the bread went WAY too fast.  My girls wanted butter noodles, so I knew I was making pasta...so viola, and new and exciting dinner! 
     My husband not only complimented my cooking, but had a second helping and ate the leftover veggies (his fav part) from the pan.  It was SUPER easy to make, and will go on my "to make again" list. 
     Which brings me to a new challenge...keep the recipes coming, but I wonder how many of you (or your friends) plan out your menus for the week?  I have been thinking that if I am really going to take over the bulk of the cooking that this may be the right way to do it.  Why?

1. I will already have a plan in place for each day, so can shop accordingly (saving some time and $$).
2. Will be able to thoroughly scan for and clip coupons that can be used (saving some $$).
3. Will allow for better "leftover lunch" planning-the healthier the better.
4. Will allow for my family to voice their opinions.  If they see something they aren't interested in or don't like, they can mention it before I make it.
5. May open up new challenges for the family like a Kid's Choice night, where they pick what we eat; or a Little Chef night where they actually do the bulk of the cooking.  Then we can all enjoy.
6. Gives me an excuse to make another board for my kitchen message center :)

So let me hear it world...do you menu?

Hoping to not be "tutu" much

     As a child, dance was a HUGE part of my life.  Tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical...you name it, I danced it.  I started out at 4 and kept going right through college.  There is something about dancing that is very natural for me.  In college, as a theatre major, I took lots of dance classes and performed, but never felt quite as comfortable on the stage as an actor as I did as a dancer.  At the same time, I knew I wasn't ever going to be a professional dancer.  I didn't have the discipline.  It was in the two year hiatus that I took from dancing between my senior year of high school and my sophomore year of college that I reached my highest weight.  Pictures from that "era" are the ones I used to motivate myself to lose the original weight I gained (far more than the "Freshman 15" people joke about). 

     Fast forward to my oldest daughter.  The pride and joy I felt when she asked at 5 to take dance lessons.  I was more excited than she was.  We got her tights and leotard and little ballet slippers and signed her up.  She did a year of ballet, then 2 years of tap and ballet, then a year of tap and hip hop and she knew (we all knew) that dancing was not for her.  It killed me that she didn't want to stick with it, but I refused to be that parent that forces an activity on their child just because it was one that I had done.



     Fast forward again to my wee one.  We had her signed up for "gymnastics" from the time she was 18 months until this past May.  One day we went to a make-up class and she saw the tiny dancers in the other room.  That was it.  She wanted NOTHING to with gymnastics, she wanted to dance.  This was different then when her sister wanted to dance.  This was serious.  This was "putting my foot down despite only being 2.5 I will NOT do gymnastics anymore I want to dance" serious.  I immediately asked at the place where we were taking gym classes if she could use some of her make-up lessons to try out their dance class.  Sadly, I was rebuffed as they wanted to wait until children were at least 3.5 to start dancing there. 

     So, my hubs and I resolved to pull her out of the very expensive gym classes she refused to go to let alone participate in any more, take the summer off and try dance in the fall.  So, last week she and I went to the studio open house.  So many smiles and such joy, yes from both of us.  I hadn't realized how much I missed the studio until we walked in and saw all of my oldest's previous teachers.  My little one met her teacher, tried on shoes, got to dance around.  We are both happy at this point.  When it is time to sign up they ask "Are you doing the pre-school combo or Mom and Child?"  Her little ears perk up and she says "Mom?"  I explain the 2 classes and she states she wants to dance with me.  We decide to go home and talk to Daddy.  Four days in a  row, "Which class do you want to take honey, just you and your fiends?"  "No thanks, me and Mommy."  So last night we signed up for Mom and Child.

     I now this pre-story is a bit lengthy but the whole point of it (other then the sheer joy of seeing another one of my babies want to dance) is  NOW I HAVE TO BE ON A STAGE AGAIN!!!!  WHAT!  Wait, how did this happen?!?!  I have been saying of late how bad I have been about my workouts, how inconsistent.  With friends and former friends being involved in the same studio, being present at recitals and such...can you think of a better motivator to get off my butt and moving?  I can't.  Especially when I think of the former friends.  I have that deep, dark "I know we aren't friends anymore so it's really important when I see you again that I look better and more pulled together than you" feeling that is present in so many movies about people going back to their high school reunions. 

     I mean, this studio does a Christmas Show.  CHRISTMAS!  That is only 4 short months away.  I know that for the most part, no one will be paying any attention to me on that stage...not when surrounding by adorable 2-3 year olds...but for those few...I need to be at my best.  Look out world, this girl has got a fire under her butt. I just hope we (the parents) don't end up like this:

Thank you Lifetime, television for women...for highlighting just how caddy and bitchy we can be. HAHA  Now, off to plan my gym schedule.  My little princess and I are going to ROCK our dance wear!!

The Royal Flush

how cute is this...wish I could take credit...may have to do my own for scrapbooking purposes!

    I generally try and keep my blog about me and my journey to a healthier life.  It's my "me" time when I sit and type.  I can ponder things, express myself, celebrate my triumphs and try to figure out how to overcome my obstacles.  But today I had to share this great news with you all!  Today marks one week, yes one week...seven days that my princess has been consistently using the potty and wearing her big girl undies!   It has been a long road, but we have made it!
     Now, I know that non-parentals generally don't want to hear about every milestone that is accomplished for other peoples kiddos, and if you are that type...feel free to stop here.  I won't be offended.  I was a non-parental at one time too and was not all that impressed by the bodily functions of someone else's child...but for those of you who stick around...what an amazing feeling!  My little bug decided last Friday morning that she wanted to wear her big girl panties all day.  We were going on a play date and her friend is already potty trained (she is about five months older), and we had been slowly building to this.  I had been coming home from work at 3 and putting her in them until bed time and we were doing pretty well, but her asking for the whole day was monumental. 
     I was a bit wary, we had a a forty minute car ride (each way), but she was so excited and asked to wear them, I couldn't say no.  We packed up our gear and took off.  She was a champ!  There was one small accident outside when she was trying to get in the house to go and couldnt get the door open fast enough, but other than that no accidents!  I was SO proud!  And that was just the beginning.  She has been going on the potty ever since!  There have been a few hiccups (mostly due to timing and trying to get there on time), but for the most part she is doing it!  I have been putting her in her pull ups at night to be safe, but even at night...she is waking up dry in the morning.  Last night was the biggest milestone for me with the whole potty-training...she woke up at midnight because she had to go!  Her little body woke her up with the warning signs and we got up and sat on the potty and tinkled!
     To celebrate her achievment she got a new Snow White barbie and another pack of fun undies.  Now she has fairies to go along with her princesses!  My princess has mastered the royal flush!