Hope Run for Hospice

Back on June 14th I participated in the Hope Run for Hospice 5k and Elsie ran the little kids run.  It was a last minute race-I signed up just a few days before and planned to run it with Brandi, Emma, and Olivia.  The race was really neat.  Many of the local elementary schools in the area provided free registration for students who logged so many miles during school.  They called it the Mileage Club and they had to run 30 miles over the course of eight weeks during recess time. I really like how it promoted running in youth and there were a ton of kids there.  It was fun to see.  

We started out running as a group and then Brandi and Olivia slowed to a walk and Emma kept with me for probably the first .75 miles.  The girls did a wonderful job!  For me, it definitely didn't feel good.  You know those runs that just are hard...that is how this one felt.  It was a beautiful morning and a great day for a run but it just didn't feel great.  I could definitely tell I hadn't been running consistently.  My time was 31:49 from the gun start which is a little over 10 minute pace, although my running app put me in at a 9:46 pace.  

After the 5k the held the kids races.  Elsie ran a 50m race and she thought it was pretty neat.  At home we told her she was going to run in a race today like her mama and was pretty upset when we all set off on the run without her so she was excited when it was her turn.  

And she loved getting her blue ribbon :) 

Beautiful Weekend

Another relatively quiet weekend here in our home-at least compared to our crazy busy weekends that took place during the summer.  I am really enjoying the slower pace that fall brings to our home.  No packing and unpacking every week to prepare for our next weekend outing.  Don't get me wrong...I just love the busyness of the summer but I also welcome time at home and doing things in our neck of the woods as well.

Of course, having our home on the market and having showings just about every Satruday, our Friday nights tend to be filled with house cleaning and this Friday night was no different.  Which is okay because then our home is clean and enjoyable throughout the weekend.

Saturday morning was just a beautiful morning.  All week I had been looking forward to heading out to the Berry Patch.  I have been there a couple of time.  Once back in 2011 when I was pregnant and once back in June when we picked strawberries.  It isn't a fancy place but they have the best fruit!  I really wanted some honeycrisp apples and at $2.25 a pound I just couldn't pass them up.  So Elsie and headed out to go and pick some.  We went early to avoid the crowds.  Plus we had a house showing so we had to get out of the house anyways.

Elsie loved to pick the apples.  I think if I let her she would have picked all day.  Another great thing about the Honeycrisp apples is that the trees were low to the group-perfect height for Elsie.  Ohh these apples were so good and smells so delicious

Elsie had her own little bag that she filled up and wouldn't let go of until we got home.  She also thought it was a good idea to eat an apple on the way home.  We were driving and all of a sudden I hear a "crunch" and sure enough she is biting into one of her apples.  We ended up walking away with 10.5 pounds of apples. I am looking forward to making some yummy muffins. 

After we got home we had lunch and Elsie just "had" to wear my sunglasses. 

After lunch it was time for nap.  Which meant I had a bit of time to get some stuff done-mainly finish cleaning our screens.  There was bit of discussion with our neighbor Kari over the best way to clean screens so I tried two different ways-one with Dawn dish soap and the other way was hot water and vinegar.  I have to say both did a pretty good job of getting our filthy screens cleaned.  Since I had the hot water and vinegar out I decided to clean a small area on our siding that was starting to get a bit mildewy since it is on the north side.  Well, one thing let to another and the whole addition of our house got clean.  It took us awhile (John ended up helping when he got home from work)

And of course had to sit up at the counter for snack-she loves sitting here-it makes me nervous though.  After her nap she helped me make some apple crisp for dessert after dinner.  She is really into helping me :) "I Do It" is one of her new favorite phrases these days.  So she had to help me stir and "measure"

Also this weekend we had an open house which was scheduled for Sunday so we tidied up/clean again on Saturday night and I hit the hay early because I had a run the next morning.

On Sunday morning I ran in the Flapjack 5k/10k in Des Moines.  I originally signed up for the 10k but with such a hot end of summer and John being so busy I definitely didn't run enough to feel confident in my abilities to comfortably run a 10k so I switched to a 5k which was perfect.  It definitely wasn't my fastest of the year but I am ok with that.  Compared to all my other 5ks (Rosy Cheeks, SCAVMA Scamper, Dam to Dam) I "trained" the least for this one, including my one in February.  And when I say trained I just mean logged some miles.  

It was another beautiful morning!  I wasn't sure how to dress and right before the run started I decided to take off my long sleeve and I was so glad I did.  Hillary and I ran together the entire time and I am just glad I never had to stop and walk.  Going in my goal was to do it under a 10 min/mile pace which I did.  

The race was to benefit Children's Cancer Connection.  This is just an amazing group!  I worked with them quite a bit when I worked out at the camp.  They were my biggest group coming out for two full weeks in the summertime and a couple of retreats throughout the year.  Also, Peyton (JoLene's daughter) was/is involved with this group and has offered support for her through her journey. In fact, they just named a room after her for teens called "Peyton's Place".  

Elsie spend the morning with Bev and they met up with Brandi and the girls at the local Arts Festival.  Sounds like she had a good time and I am glad she got out to hang with her cousins again.  

Sunday afternoon was our open house.  Marc wanted it to be clear to everyone on the street that we were having an open house:) We had two couples come through that afternoon for a total of 13 showings since it went on the market.  But that is where it ends.  No second showings and no offers. John and I have already begun to talk about our projects for our current house in the event that we stay in it for a few more years.  I will try to do a home update soon.   

All in all, it was a great weekend.  The weather was beautiful we spent time with family and friends and we have lots to be thankful for.  

Week in Review-6.7.13

Well we are all back to feeling 100% and are ready for some summer fun!  I got to spend three whole days this week with Elsie because JoJo was off Wed-Fri!  I love every minute with her (I guess I could do without the little tantrums),

1.  Wonderful, Wonderful weekend!  Great dinner with friends on Friday night and then the Dam to Dam  event on Saturday morning.  I had so much fun with Elsie and her first little "race" complete with t-shirt and bib.  After the race we checked out a new camper...not what we wanted and then headed home to shower and change and head our for our monthly "date night".  This time it was during the day...more on this to come in a later post.  Wonderful day and a wonderful night out to dinner with friends.

2.  Sunday we headed out to Lowes to pick up some supplies for a few projects-the biggest being as sandbox John is making for Elsie.  It took up most of the day and is not quite done but it is turning out so nice!  I can't wait to show off his finished project :)

3.  I have been obsessed with a new salad these past few weeks and I thought I would share.  I follow the blog Iowa Girl Eats.  I enjoy reading her blog because it isn't all about food but she always includes a recipe.  And the ones I have tried are so yummy.  The salad is Triple Berry Summer Salad.  I have altered it a little by removing the avocado and basil and use a raspberry vinaigarette for the dressing.  YUM!  I eat it at least 3 times each week for the past two weeks.  Perfect for lunch.  I have also added roasted chicken to it also.  The other recipe I love is the Springtime Pasta Primavera.  I made it for dinner one night this week and Elsie ate every last thing.  I could have done without the tomatoes and I didn't add any asparagus because I didn't have any but added extra brocolli.  I even used our own basil we have growing out on our patio.  It was delicious! I definitely recommend both these recipes.  Easy and delcious!

4.  I have been eyeing this toy for the past few months and when I saw it on amazon.com for a five dollars off ($14.97) I had to finally buy it for Elsie and she LOVES it!  The good old Fisher Price Bubble Mower.  Everytime we walk outside she says "mow" and points to the garage where her mower is.

5.  We are so so so lucky that we have other girls in our family that are willing to pass their clothes down to Elsie.  On Wednesday I picked up pizza for dinner and headed over to Brandi and Todds to sort through some bins of clothes.  I ended up going home with 5 tubs of clothes and am only sending back 1.5 tubs-mainly because the girls are twins and there were quite a few duplicates.  Thank You Thank You Thank You!

6.  In addition to clothes, Elsie gets some toys from the girls too.  This time she got this really cute little camper and car.  She spent so much time on Thursday driving the little car around the house-the whole time going "vroom vroom".

7.  So the other morning Elsie and I were eating our cheerios and when she finished I looked over and she was drinking her milk our of her bowl...Silly girl!

I say this every week but it was another wonderful week! 

SCAVMA Scamper 5k

Yesterday I participated in my second 5k of the season.  It was a chilly (like 45 degrees) overcast, windy morning.  The winds were around 20mph.  This race is put on by the vet med students at ISU.  You are encouraged to bring your dogs to run but of course Cinder wouldn't have made it a 1/2 miles so I ran by myself.  I asked John if he wanted to come and watch and bring Elsie.  She is absolutely in love with doggies these days and I thought she would enjoy seeing them.  I think she was a bit overwhelmed by how many there were.  Even in the pic below we couldn't get her to look at the camera because she kept looking all over at the dogs.  There were dogs of every size there!  It was fun!

The run went really well.  I had set a goal to run it under 10 min/miles and my mission was accomplished.  My reported results were 30 min 30 seconds so 9 min 50 sec/mile.  I am pleased with that.  My last 5k that I ran in February I ran it in 33:46.  So that is over a 3 minute improvement.   I am not sure if that is really as accurate as I think :).  I used my phone/Map My Run App.  I wanted to  know how far I ran/how far I had left to go because I was unfamiliar with my route.  I thought I started it when I cross the start line but didn't.  I looked at it a couple minutes in and realized I never hit the start button :(.  According to my phone for the 2.84 miles it recorded my pace was 9:36 min/miles.  My first mile was my fastest which I could tell because I was running down hill with the wind at my back 9:19 min/mile and my last mile was my worst at 9:41.  Normally when I run my second mile is my slowest because I totally kick in into gear the last .5 mile as I near the finish but yesterday the last .5 mile I was running directly into the wind at an incline.  Ugh I struggled.  So I figure if my worst mile was 9:41 my overall pace would have to be faster than 9:50.  So anyways....I think my pace was faster than the official time but that is okay.  We will go with 9:50 min/mile.

My next one that I am registered for is in June.  I think my goal will be to run it under 30 minutes.  Maybe that isn't ambitious enough.  Maybe I should go with under 29 minutes.  I am hoping to run outside more...I enjoy it way more than the treadmill.  This week is looking up so we shall see.  

Week in Review 4.5.13

1.  We have been hit hard with spring fever at our house.  It is finally getting nice outside and we have been spending a lot of time on walks and at the park.  We have been making a list of outdoor projects we want to do and we have also taken time this week to get the camper ready for the season.  John took out all the dishes, towels, sheets, and blankets out of the camper so I could wash them all, we cleaned the inside top to bottom, fixed things that needed to be fixed and replaced things that needed to be replaced.  We are ready to roll.

Everything clean and ready to go back in! 

Elsie having fun with Daddy on the bunk beds.  

2.The Easter Bunny brought Elsie some Play-Doh in her basket so I thought we would give it a whirl and see what she thought of it.  She really didn't know what to do with it and pretty much imitated everything I did with it.  I think I maybe need to get her some little Play-Doh tools.

3.  Monday we have a very special lunch date with my parents.  They were on vacation to Florida and they chose to fly in and out of Des Moines instead of Minneapolis because they were down here watching Elsie while we were in Puerto Rico.  So I picked Elsie up from daycare and we met them for lunch.  She was super excited to see them.  

4.  We had a wonderful Easter.  I had to add it in our Week of Review but I have already posted about them.  You can read about dying eggs and Easter Sunday.

5.  The kids had their first "picnic" of the season at daycare!!

6.  April 4th was my dear friend Randi's 30th Birthday!  I am lucky enough to been her friend long enough to celebrate more years together than not!  I can't wait to celebrate the big 3-0 with her!  Love you Randi!

I just had to post a pic of us when we were young and 24 haha

7. On Thursday I went for a run outside for the first time in two years (except when I did the Rosey Cheeks Run in Feb).  Oh my goodness!!! It is so much better to run outside than to run on the treadmill.  I aim when I run to go for about 30 minutes. which ends up being about 2.3-2.5 miles.  I am trying a program again and on the treadmill to avoid boredom I change speeds a lot and end up averaging about 13 minute miles.  Well yesterday I jutst went out and ran.  I started up the program but didn't follow it.  I ended up going for 2.5 miles but averaged 9.38 minute miles.  I couldn't believe it and the only time I walked was down my street at the beginning to warm up.  It felt so good.  And I loved listening to music.  On the treadmill I normally watch TV.  I need to make a workout playlist because I had to skip songs to find upbeat ones.  If you have any good tunes you reccomend let me know!

8.  John and I had a date night this week.  Our original plan was to go to a movie but when I looked to see what was showing there was nothing we were really wanting to see so we just went to dinner instead.  We went to my favorite place, The Cafe.  I do know John really enjoys it too.  We had a drink at the bar while we waiting for a table and then enjoyed yummy deviled eggs for an appetizer and of course thier bread.  John had Pasta Bolognese and I had the steak with roasted brussel sprouts.  I would have ordered whatever entree came with roasted brussel sprouts they are so yummy!  I love the cafe in that thier menu changes frequently.  It was also Tapas Night but the ones we wanted were sold out already! It was a very nice night.  

I hope everyone had a great week and enjoy your weekend!  I know we will!

30 Years 30 Goals-March Update

Didn't Even Think About It: #5, #6, #8, #9, #11, #12, #13, #14, #19, #20, #21, #23, #29
Completed:  #4, #3

1. Run 5-5ks
No 5ks this month but I did register for two new ones...one in April and one in June.  I have also began running again after taking a short break to do the 30-day Shred. 

2.  Complete Outlander Series by Diana Galbadon.
No progress here...in fact I never even opened "Fiery Cross" this month.

3.  Get into a consistent routine of exercising at least three times a week.
Definitely did this during the month of March I am actually counting this as completed since I feel this has been pretty consistent over the past few months.  

7.  Lose at least 15 pounds
10 lbs down, 5 more to go!  Then I will set a new goal :)

10.  Plan and Carry Out a date night with John once a month
We had a "date vacation" this month.  Our five days away make up for missing it the past 3 months :) Check back soon for some photos from the trip.  

15.  Be up to date on photo books
Shutterfly sent me coupon code for a free book so it motivated me to do one on our trip to Omaha.

16.  Read 4 non-fiction books
I finally finished Healthy Tipping Point this month. I also started two new ones:  How to Talk so Your Kids Will Listen and Listen so Your Kids Will Talk  and The Happiness Project.

17.  Have an Elsie outing once a month
We went to a couple of library story times and the day before we left for our trip I had a day all about her.  We went to a storyteller put on by the library and spent some time at the park.  You can read about it here.

18.  Take the camper out 5 times this summer

Haven't taken it out yet but getting very anxious to do so.  I would like to take some time in the next week or so to get it ready for the summer.  

22.  Host a game night at our house.
Completed this goal this month and it was so much fun.  I hope to do it again!!  Maybe a summer game night or something like that.  You can read about the night here. 

25.  Find a cause I want to support and start a volunteer relationship.
I actually found a place I wanted to volunteer.  This is with the local county conservation department.  I saw in the paper they were looking for volunteers for their trails committee and I contacted them but havent' heard anything back yet.  

27.  Do Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred.
I completed the "Shred" this month.  I will have to say I didn't do it quite like the video or myself intended but life gets busy ya know.  My goal was to do it until we left for Puerto Rico which was last Wednesday, March 20th.  I did okay for level one and two but only did one level three the Saturday before we left.  You can check out my daily entries.  

28.  Make 5:30 my standard wake up time and 10:00 my standard bedtime.
I did not do so well with this goal this month.  I would say about half the nights I go to bed by 10:00 and half the mornings I am up by 5:30.

30.  Twice a month call a family member or friend to chat.
Yep

30 Days of Shreddin-Days 11-20

Moving to Level 2 this time.  I know I wouldn't be able to do all 10 days on Level 1.  I was getting so bored.  I also know that I wouldn't be able to do this for 30 days straight.  I need a bit of variety.  This week I am hoping to mix in some running because my next 5K is in a little over a month.

Day 11: No workout today.  Although I had all day to do it since it was Sunday I didn't.  And that is okay with me :)  Tomorrow I am going to start Level 2.

Day 12:  Started Level 2 today and had no idea what to expect.  I went back down to using 3 lb weights to start.  This round my quad is feeling a bit better.  But all the plank moves really upset my heartburn.  I had no problems with the moves standing up but in plank it sucked.  Maybe I need to take tums before my workout---stupid heartburn.  It was challenging again.  I liked that.

Day 13: Still using 3 lb weights again but I felt better doing the exercises.  Heartburn still bothers me but i need to figure out how to avoid it...maybe do it at a different time that in the evening after I have eaten dinner.

Day 14: I actually remeasured myself today and although there isn't major changes there are some inches lost--not all in one place but a half in here, half inch there.  This is what I need to keep me motivated.  That what I am doing is actually making a difference.  I took today off from "The Shred" and opted to do some treadmill work instead.

Day 15: I did this workout in the evening again.  This seems to be my go to time for this.  Right around 9:00. I still had major heartburn.  Also I don't feel any pain my quad anymore so thats a good thing.

Day 16:  Today, the workout went better.  I did fewer modifications that I had the first time I did it.  Next time I might increase the weights on a few of the exercises.  The killer one for me is the last strength move of squats of V's with the arms.  Maybe it is the most difficult because it is the last one ;).

Day 17: Ugh, super dissapointed.  I planned to do my workout in the afternoon but the day got a bit out of control and ended up missing it.

Day 18:  Another unsuccessful day...boo.  John finally moved a DVD played downstairs so I can do it down there which will be much better for all the jumping around I do :)

Day 19:  I really wanted to do my workout this morning but it was a late night and I knew I would be on my own to get Elsie and I ready because John was out pushing snow. So I ended up doing it right after I laid Elsie down at 7:00.  I waited to eat dinner until after and was starving!!

Day 20:  I did the workout again early in the evening.  John and Elsie at dinner while I did the video and then I ate dinner and played with elsie.  I liked getting it done and Elsie seems like she takes forever to eat dinner...she was still eating when I finsihed.  For some reason today I was not feeling it...it felt so hard compared to other days...and I know you can have those days where things just seem hard and today was definitely the day.  Also the past two days my right knee has been bothering me.  I am sure all the jumping around is getting to me.

Days Complete: 6/10

Inches lost: 8 total

30 Years 30 Goals-February Update

This month was pretty good.  Beside all our sickness during the first two weeks of the month I feel like I got quite a bit accomplished.  Not as much as I hoped but some progress was made.  

1. Run 5-5ks

I completed the Rosy Cheeks Run on 2/2/13 with a time of 33:46. See post about the race here. 

2.  Complete Outlander Series by Diana Galbadon.

Still working on reading Voyager...actually I am not sure if I picked up this book to read it at all this month.  Better get moving on this...

3.  Get into a consistent routine of exercising at least three times a week.

The beginning of this month was terrible.  The first two weeks we were hit with lots of sicknesses and only got in a few workouts.  The second two weeks though I picked it up and got in at least 3 workouts. 

4.  Take Elsie to a Children's Museum

Cross this one off the list...We took Elsie to the Omaha Children's Museum this month.  Check out our adventure here.

7.  Lose at least 15 pounds

Down a total of 8 lbs-over half way there.

8.  Send out 10 "Just Because Notes to Family and Friends

I have a couple started but didn't get any sent out.  

10.  Plan and Carry Out a date night with John once a month

Another big failure on this--can it really be that hard to get out with John just the two of us once a month?? We did go to Gary Allen together :)  

12.  Become familiar with photoshop so that I want to use it to edit my photos.

I didn't do anything with photoshop but I did take a basic photography class this month.

16.  Read 4 non-fiction books

No books finished this month-I was too busy watching Downton Abbey ;)

17.  Have an Elsie outing once a month

I would say that our trip to Omaha was a pretty good "Elsie Outing" since the whole weekend was for her.  We had fun too but we really enjoyed seeing her have such a good time.  

18.  Take the camper out 5 times this summer

It obviously isn't warm enough to take the camper out but I did get two reservations made for summer camping-one trip to St. Croix State Park and one to a park near St. Louis.   I am really looking forward to them both.  

27.  Do Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred.
I did start this. You can see how my first 10 days went here: Days 1-10

28.  Make 5:30 my standard wake up time and 10:00 my standard bedtime.
Still doing pretty good with this only for the fact that Elsie wakes us up normally by 5:30.  I definitely sleep in when I can though ;).  

30.  Twice a month call a family member or friend to chat.
Yep :)

These goals I did nothing with this month:
5, 6, 9, 13, 14, 15, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29

30 Days of Shreddin'-Days 1-10

On February 20th I started the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred program.  Thank you Tami for the DVD for Christmas.  I would have started it earlier but was waiting for the scale that I ordered to arrive.  I wanted to have a scale that I could use consistently use to gauge the change in weight (or at least the change in weight I hoped would come).  The 30 Day Shred is a program where for 30 days you do  a work out video.  It is about 20 minutes long and is a sort of circuit training.  There are three levels.  You do Level 1 for the first 10 days, Level 2 for the next 10 day and Level 3 for the last 10 days.  I know I won't get to day 30 because we will be gone on our vacation already.  I will only be able to 28 days.  My goal is to do at least 2/3 of the days so about 19 days.  Here is how I felt each day...

Day One:  
I decided to do the work out over Elsie's morning nap.  I had everything all set up, TV on and in the right spot on the DVD and I changed into my workout clothes before I laid her down so I would be ready to go as soon as possible since morning naps have been hit or miss lately.  I got about half way through before I had to go up and rock her one more time before she finally fell asleep.  I was tired during the workout but as soon as I was done I knew I was going to be sore.  My legs were tired!   I did Level 1 with three pound hand weights.

Day Two: 
I was actually ready to skip this one this morning.  I woke up tired and not really motivated to do anything but get in the shower and get ready for work.  However, I know I have some goals set and not doing the workout would get in the way of reaching those goals so I threw on my clothes and started it up.  My legs were really what was still tired.  And boy my legs are SORE!!! It hurts to get up from my desk chair and to go down the stairs.  But it will all be work it right?

Day Three: 
Didn't get it done.  We ended up leaving for Omaha when we weren't planning to leave until the following day so I was busy trying to pack/clean to get out of the house around lunch time.

Day Four: 
We were in Omaha

Day Five: 
We were in Omaha

Day Six:  
Totally slacked.  I couldn't get my butt out of bed in the morning and then I had book club in the evening so I ran out of time.

Day Seven
Finally completed my third workout.  Totally slacked and was unmotivated over the weekend.  Not really sore anymore but I definitely did something to my left quad.  I was in pain and not the good pain.  It was really hard for me to do the forward lunges.  Like I couldn't because it was so painful.  So this evening I am going to walk and stretch and hope it starts to feel better.

Day Eight:
I did my workout today at night before I went to bed.  It is starting to get a little boring...I am ready to try something new.  My quad is still bothering me but I can do most of the exercises except I can go down as far in the lunge exercise.

Day Nine: 
I did my workout again before bed...I kind of like doing this.  Then I take a nice 45 minute bath afterwards.  I upped my hand weights from 3 lbs to 5lbs to keep me from being bored.  Quad still hurts but I am not sore at all anywhere else.

Day Ten:
I skipped Friday night so my day Ten is going to be my workout on SAturday.  I decided this was going to be my last workout on Level One...there is no way I could do this 4 more times...I am too bored even with upping the weights.  Monday I will start Level 2.


DAYS COMPLETED:    6/10

30 Years 30 Goals-January Update

In regards to my 30 goals, January went okay...My goals are definitely on my mind and I am continuing to think about how I am going to go about accomplishing them which is what the purpose of this is...to keep my goals in the front of my mine and not get forgotten about.

Check out my original post to see the goals.  

Here is my progress for the month:

Goals 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29
I hardly even thought about these goals or they are unapplicable (ie for summertime or something like that).  

Goal 1:  Run 5-5k's

I started consciously training for my first 5k this month.  For someone who hasn't run much since Elsie was born this was big for me.  I made time to get on the treadmill and jog.  I used an app on my phone which helped a lot.  My first 5k is Saturday and I will let you know how it goes.  I don't know if I will be able to run the whole thing since the most I ran straight was 2 miles.  My friends Heidi and Kedra told me if I can run 2 miles on the treadmill 3 miles outside will be nothing...I am not so sure about that.

Goal 2:  Complete the Outlander Series

Well I started Voyager a few nights ago.  A few years ago I read part of this book but don't really remember it.  There are bits and pieces that I recognize as I read it now though. 

Goal 3:  Get on a consistent routine of 3x a week exercise

Check for the month of January...hopefully I will maintain this or increase this in the next month. 

Goal 4:  TAke Elsie to a Children's Museum

Haven't actually done it yet but made plans to do it the last weekend in February :)  I can't wait!

Goal 7:  Lose at Least 15 pounds
I am SLOWLY getting there ha.  Down 5 pounds

Goal 10:  Plan and carry out a date night with John once a month
This was a major dissapointment-John and I did some fun things together this month just not alone...we were going to have a date night on the 30th but of course we had a snowy week which meant John was up early like 2-3:00 AM which means he was exhausted come evening.  I am pretty sure that night he was in bed by 7:30.  So no date night for January.

Goal 16:  Read 4 Non Fiction Books
Still reading Healthy Tipping Point

Goal 17:  Have an Elsie Outing Once a Month
So I may be a little overprotective but after being out of work for a week in early January I decided we were going to avoid a lot of public places where kids go.  This month I am going to make it up to her :).

Goal 19:  Finally get rid of stuff in boxes that I want to donate
I took a load over to the consignment store to see if they would sell my stuff.  They are and in fact a few things have already sold!  Yay!  I am getting rid of stuff and getting money for it.

Goal 20:  Attend Church at Least Once a month or 12 times in the year
No church this month

Goal 22:  Host a game night for friends at our house
Another sad thing for me.  I had a game night planned for the second weekend in January.  I had all the food and beverages purchased and then WHAM!  Our household got hit with the stomach bug so I ended up cancelling with hopes of rescheduling over the next couple months.

Goal 28:  Make 5:30 AM my wake up time and 10:00 my bedtime
This is going actually really well.  Most nights I am in bed by 9:30 and then I do a bit of reading.  IF I am not in bed I am typically taking a nice warm bath instead.  AS far as wake up time there was a week I was up at 5:30 exercising but this has not happened lately. Instead I have been up at 5:30 because that is what time Elsie tells me it is time to get up.

Goal 30:  Twice a month call up a friend just because
Another big fail on this one.  I will definitely make up for it this month!

Odds and Ends

I feel like I have been trying to catch up with all my Christmas/December posts that I am lacking on our January day to day stuff that I want to remember and be able to look back on so here is what has been happening with us lately

1.  Elsie had her appointment with the eye doctor to check her eyes due to the difference in pupil size yesterday.  All went well.  He didn't see any problems and said that 15-20% of people have different size pupils.  That it is much like how some people have two different sized hands or feet.  It just happens and that it is unlikely that she will ever grow out of it.  I am happy with that :)  I am sure if I would have googled the condition it would have brought in some scary diseases.  Glad I refrained from doing that this time around.

2.  Elsie is such a good eater.  She is all into feeding herself, even with the spoon.  This was from yesterday at breakfast.  She was having a great time playing with her oatmeal.

 3.  Elsie is really into doing what we are doing and likes to help out.  She has been helping put clothes in the washer and take them out of the dryer, she likes to help pick this up and put them where they belong but what she really likes to do is feed Cinder at night.  She will go with Daddy to fill up the bowl and then carry the bowl all the way through the dining room, kitchen, and into the living room where Cinder is laying and set the bowl down right in front of her.  She is so proud of herself when she does it too.

4.  So at home we typically give Elsie her food and drinks when she is in her high chair.  I want her to associate eating with sitting down and now running all over the place.  Well, when she was sick I had water in a sippy cup and let her drink it when she wasn't in her chair so that she could have it anytime and stay hydrated.  Well, when she would go to get a drink she would go and sit on one of the rugs-either the one in front of the front door or the one in front of the sink.  And then it clicked that is what she does at JoJo's.  She has to sit with her friends on the rug while they are waiting to get milk/water and then can have their drink sitting down on the rug (I think she does this to keep them all contained in one area and keep order.  I was just amazed that she continued this at our house even though I never told her to.  This pic was from yesterday.  Now I have to remind her to sit on the rug :).  Yesterday she thought it was a game though.  Every time I would turn my back away from her she would stand up and try to sneak off the rug and when I would turn back around she would quick go back and sit down.  She is too smart for her own good haha

5.  Oh I forgot to mention that her and I were sick last week with some sort of stomach bug.  She was sick Tues-Friday and I was sick on Thursday.  Thankfully John stayed healthy and did a great job of taking care of us both.  We stayed in most of the weekend to avoid spreading our icky sick germs to anyone else which meant I have to cancel game night that I was hosting at our house and a afternoon of freezer meal cooking with some friends.  Lets just say by Monday I think we were all ready to get out of the house :)

6.  I love morning workouts.  I never used to but by the end of the day I am exhausted and really do not feel like going on the treadmill.  I put it off and make tons of excuses.  Morning workouts I don't have time to make an excuse I just get up and go.  This morning I didn't get out of bed until 6:00 and still made it out the door by 7:15 for work.  Now I don't have to think about when I am going to exercise the rest of the day!

7.  I am semi-enjoying my first smoothie made at home.  I have never been a big smoothie maker.  I felt like our blender was crap and didn't want to take the time in the morning to throw all the ingredients together.  Well I made one this morning after my workout.  I found the recipe on pinterest and I think I would really like it except it has oatmeal in it and I am struggling to get past the taste of that.  I have a new recipe I am going to try tomorrow with spinach from my friend Amy.

8.  I am really looking forward to Saturday.  I am driving up to MN for the day to celebrate the upcoming arrival of my friend Erin's little baby!  She is due at the end of February and I can't wait to see her and her baby bump!  I haven't seen her since November and I am sure she has changed!  I am so excited for her and her hubby and to meet this little baby!  I am also excited to see the other girls and catch up a little bit!  It seems like it has been forever!

Well that just about all that is going on in our lives these days...I am getting a bit of cabin fever and am ready for spring-which stinks because that is a ways away still.  I have already begun to think about where I want to take the camper this year.  Luckily we have some fun things coming up over the next few months to keep us busy :)

30 Years 30 Goals

So in November I turned 30.  To me it really isn't a big deal, I don't feel older but I feel blessed for where I am in my life.  I am happy, healthy, and have wonderful family and friends.

One of the things I want to do this year is to make some goals to accomplish throughout the time that I am 30...30 Years...30 Goals.  I thought I would have no problem coming up with 30 goals but let me tell you this was tough.  This is what I came up with.

1. Run 5-5ks.  Maybe one will be a bit longer.  I know this doesn't seem like a huge goal since a 5k is only 3.1 miles but it will be my motivation to stick to running on a regular basis.  My first one is the Rosey Cheeks run the first weekend in February.

2.  Complete the Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon I started this series oh about 6 years ago and have finished the first 4 books.  I might need to freshen up on those books before starting the new ones.

3.  Get into a consistent routine of exercise at least 3 times a week.

4.  Take Elsie to a Children's Museum

5.  Spend a weekend in the Amana Colonies with John

6.  Visit three new wineries in Iowa

7.  Lose at least 15 pounds

8.  Send out 10 "Just because" notes to friends and family.

9.  Attend a Minnesota Twins game this summer-I didn't get there last year.

10.  Plan and carry out a date night with John once a month

11. Enroll in a fitness class

12.  Become familiar enough with Photoshop that I want to use it to edit my photos

13. Set a budget and stick to it.  

14.  Update window treatments in Dining Room, Kitchen, and Living Room

15.  Be up to date on all photos books (Elsie's One Year as well as be up to date on her Year two and  2010, 2011, and 2012 family photo books

16.  Read 4 Non Fiction Books

17.  Have an Elsie outing once a month

18.  Take out the camper 5 times this summer

19.  Finally get rid of all the stuff in boxes that I have been wanting to donate.

20.  Attend church at least once a month (I know this doesn't sounds very high but it is a start) or a total of 12 times this year.

21.  Plan and carry out a staycation.

22.  Host game night at my house for friends

23.  Work Related:  visit a farm site to get an understanding of the equipment we sell

24.  Make the switch to natural cleaning products

25.  Find a cause I want to support and start a volunteer relationship

26.  Find and purchase a little black dress that I LOVE!

27. Do Jillian Michaels 30 day Shred

28.  Make 5:30AM be my standard wake up time and 10:00 be my standard bed time.

29. Update birthday information for all family and friends (this will be a challenge).

30.  Twice a month call up a friend or family member just to chat.  I do not do this enough with blogs, email, facebook, etc. and none of that can replace a good conversation.

Wow that was a lot hard than I thought it would be :)  I am going to create a tab at the top of the blog to monitor my progress.  Wish me luck!!!

Lack of Motivation

So the past few weeks I have had no motivation to work out at least to work out hard.  It has been bad!  So now I am getting down to business.  This morning I regsitered for the 5:30 AM Cardio Kicks class here in town.  It is two days a week for 10 weeks so hopefully that will get me up in the morning.  Quite a few people I know are in the class and I hear she works you pretty hard.  So I hope this will do me some good and whip me into shape.  I figure by the time the class starts at the end of March I will be back in Nevada and have no excuses :)

Week Five-LHI

So, I think I am going to take a new approach to my goal setting.  This past week I failed in all three of my goals. 

Goal 1:  Waking up early-did not happend.  Well I have been getting up earlier but I did not exercise. 

Goal 2:  Eat More Veggies-I ate more veggies but not 3 servings a day.  Mostly just at dinner and a couple of days I ate salad for lunch. 

Goal 3:  Run 3 times for 20 minutes in additioan to my walking-  I did this twice and it felt good but I only did it on the treadmill.  Because the weather was so nice I did a lot of outside walking so I didn't run when I walked outside.

I decided maybe I need to approach this in a different way.  This week I am going to focus on days of exercise vs. what I am going to do, or how fast, or how long.  I realized I like to decide that day how I feel and what I want to do.  Yoga vs. weights, walk vs. run.  I do know when I am on the treadmill I need to run to mix it up, otherwise I get bored. 

Goal #1:  Get in at least 45 minutes of intentional exercise 6 out of 7 days this next week. 

That's it, just one goal to focus on to help me get into a routine. 

Have a happy healthy week!

Week Four-LHI

Well week three did not go as well as planned.  In the middle of the week (Tuesday night) I came down with the flu.  So that threw off most of my goals for the week.  I made it until Wednesday morning without drinking pop but broke down when I was craving a sprite when I was sick. 

As I was on the treadmill last night I starting thinking about goals and whether I should set my treadmill goals based on time or distance.  Is it better to go a certain distance in as best of time as you can or should you set a specific time and go as far a distance as you can in that set time?
For example:  should I aim to go for 4 miles a day and it doesn't matter how long it takes me.  It could take 60 minutes if I walked the whole time or maybe it takes me 45 minutes if I run/walk or maybe 35 minutes if I run the whole time.  So do you set goals based on distance or time exercised? 

Also, does anyone have a good reccomendation of something to drink beisdes water or pop?  This past week I have been drinking a lot of green teas which then late in the week I realized that green tea has caffeine-which I didn't want to drink in the afternoon. I know with green tea it is not as much caffeine as coffee but. . . 

Week Four Goals:
I have been struggling a bit with getting home to get my exercise in before dinner so...
Goal 1:  Wake up at 6:00 twice this week to get in a workout before work.  This one will really be a challenge

Goal 2:  Eat more vegetables!  At least 3 servings a day

Goal 3: Bump up my running-after my whole back pain thing I cut back on my run time.  I would like to work back up to at least 20 minutes of running in addition to my walking 3 times this week. 

Hope everyone has a happy healthy week ahead!

LHI 100 Day Challenge Week 3

Well Week two was kind of a bust.  With spending Fri-Monday in Vegas and then Tues-Wed in Nevada at John's parents I didn't get too many workouts in betfor Friday.  I logged some time for the extra walking we did in Vegas and then a workout for Wed night and Thursday night but that was pretty much it!  I have however gone two whole weeks without a pop.  Before this I would challenge myself to limit myself to a pop every other day and would struggle with that goal but so how I did this and how easy it was I don't know. 
Friday on our drive up to MN I was so craving a pop but I was able to pass on it (Hi-C orange isn't pop right ;). 

WEEK THREE GOALS
1.  Get back into the routine of working out.  If I can get in a workout 5 out of 7 days this week I will be happy. 

.2.  Bring my own healthy meal to work each day this week.

3.  No caffeine after noon. 

I hope everyone has a happy, healthy week!

LHI-100 Day Challenge Week 2

WEEK ONE REVIEW:
To review how week one went, to sum it up it did not go as planned.  For my workouts, I started out  strong last Thrusday with one of my running workouts and Friday with a 45 minute walk and 25 minute weights workout.  I got in one yoga session over the weekend and it went all down hill from there.  I ended up in so much pain in my back and ended up going to the Dr and the Chiropractor.  The chiropractor told me to hold back with the running and to walk slowly instead until my back starts feeling better.  So that put a little crimp in my plans.

As for the drinking water i did okay.  I know not every day did I drink my goal amount of water but I drank considerably more.

And breakfast, there were a few days that I ran out the door without eating.  I would grab something to eat when i got to work but then got caught   up in work.  But I would say more days than not I ate breakfast. 

WEEK TWO
I am posting about my week two goals late because we were in vegas.  So this week I have been trying to continue to drink more water and am really thinking about what I am eating.  One of the things that has happened without even realizing it is that since I have been drinking more water, I haven't been drinking pop.  Today will be day 9 without a pop.  I am proud of that because I was drinking at least one pop a day.  So I guess I am going to make that my goal-to not drink pop for two weeks-only 5 more days to go :).