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Sunday, December 16, 2012

Living

“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” – (John 10:10 KJV)


This scripture really hit me. Am I truly living my life and enjoying it? Are you? Life may not be perfect but are we taking the time to truly count our blessings?

I think it is safe to say that this latest shooting in Connecticut has rocked our Nation. It has taken our already broken hearts and beaten them down even more. I don't know about you, but on December 14 I felt like I shouldn't go on with my happy day. It felt so wrong to have fun, joke around and enjoy the day because precious, innocent people were dead. My heart was heavy that day.

Jared and I went ice skating that afternoon. We had so much fun. We are already talking about when we want to go again. Then we shared a delicious dinner. Although I was having fun, the people of Newtown were on my heart.

On the way back to his place, Jared and I got to talking. I told him how strange it felt to go on with our good day when something so horrible had happened. Then it hit me... the parents/friends/family of those that are dead would want us to live. They would want us to go about our day, spread love to others and not take one single moment for granted. This is an assumption, of course, but I am pretty sure at least some of them would agree with me.

Yesterday we had our annual cookie exchange. The house was FULL of our family and friends. The moment I got there I hugged my youngest niece(4) and nephew(2) so tight. The older ones came later ( 14, 13, 12) and I gave them hearty hugs as well. To me the teenagers are still babies too. I'm not a parent so I cannot begin to understand what you might go through when you lose a child. I am, however, an aunt. An Auntie that loves her nieces and nephews as if they were my own. I want to protect them just as their parents do.

I so enjoyed the day full of laughter, friends and family. I think it was good for all of our hearts. We took the day and we lived. We enjoyed the food, the company, the music and a whole lot of cookies. We were living and it was beautiful. I never want to take that for granted.

 

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Ragnar Relay Series and 2013 Race Plans

I have an addiction... to running. I planned my 2013 vacation calendar around races. Yeah, that happened. In 2012 I conquered a half marathon. I never thought I would do that! So I needed a new goal for 2013.

Lucky for me I have friends like Abby, Kari, Missi, Michelle and Katie that push me to bigger goals. The newest racing adventure coming up in 2013 in the Ragnar Relay So Cal.

Q: What is a Ragnar Relay?
A: "Ragnar is the overnight running relay race that makes testing your limits a team sport. A team is made up of 6-12 individuals; each individual runs 3 legs. The legs of the race vary in difficulty and distance, from 3-8 miles, allowing elite and novice runners to run together. Over 2 days and 1 night, teams run across 200 miles of the country’s most scenic terrain. Pair that with crazy costumes, inside jokes, a great finish line party and unforgettable stories. Some call it a slumber party without sleep, pillows or deodorant. We call it Ragnar." -from www.ragnarrelay.com We will start in Huntington Beach, Ca and end in Downtown San Diego.

There you have it folks! I am doing an overnight relay race. We are doing a 12 person team. This will be the first race Abby, Katie, Missi and I will do together. We went to high school together and each of us have had our own journeys in weight loss and running. I rarely use this word but I find it appropriate to say; this race will be EPIC! I am nervous but excited.

Other races on the Menu for 2013:

Jan 20: Tinkerbell Half Marathon
Jan 25 : Runs For Cookies Virtual 5K
March 2: Chelsea's Run
March 24: Hot Chocolate 15K
April 19-20 : Ragnar Relay
May 11: Girls on the Go 10K (maybe)
June 2: Rock N Roll San Diego Half Marathon
November 28: Lake Murray 10K Turkey Trot
December 26: Bumble Bee 5K

Wow. I didn't know I had so many lined up for 2013. There's a possibility I will do the Las Vegas Half Marathon with Kari and Abby in December but I will have to see how much it will cost and if I can work some overtime to cover the cost.


Tuesday, December 4, 2012

The 50/50 Plan: Update

I have to say, I am kind of on a roll. I knew this weight loss journey wouldn't be easy but I have so much support, it almost seems easy. I have to do the work myself but it is great having others around me that are on a similar path.

This month I started a 6 week health challenge called "Elf For Health". Every 2 weeks we are paired with an "elf". During those two weeks we encourage each other, send recipes and work outs etc. My current elf is Amanda. She's just the sweetest! I love getting emails from her and hearing about her two littles! ( 6 weeks and 2 1/2 yrs). It always amazes me how moms have time to eat healthy and/or work out. I can barely find the time and I have no kids. hehe.

We also have daily challenges. So far we've had these challenges:

Day 1: Go meatleass monday
Day 2: Send a handwritten card or note to someone
Day 3: Try a new workout
Day 4: Get up 15 minutes earlier to meditate/reflect/pray
Day 5: How many different colors can you eat today
Day6/7: Clean out your closet1 Fill a bag and donate it
Day 8: Track your fiber intake. Shoot for 30g
Day 9: Have a salad today and make your own dressing

Today was the day we made our own salad dressing. I was pretty impressed with myself for making one. It was incredibly easy. Here's the recipe for you! I only made a small amount but it can be doubled or tripled even.

Apple Balsamic Dressing:
1 Tbsp Apple Butter
2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
3 1/2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
fresh ground/cracked pepper to taste

Add all of the ingredients to a bowl or cup with a lid. Shake it up and serve!

I paired this with a salad that had: Mixed greens, pomegranate arils, shredded carrots, apple, walnuts and bleu cheese crumbles. It. Was. Delicious.

I don't know why I don't eat more salads like this. They are so incredibly tasty, good for your and very easy to make.

I don't know if I am 100 % on track to meet my 50lb goal in 50 weeks but I am getting SO close! I don't care if it takes me 55 weeks, I just want to get there. Running has been great lately. I ran my first 10K race on Thanksgiving day and did better than I had hoped. The Tinkerbell Half Marathon is in about 6 weeks. I feel mostly ready. I just need to get a few more long runs under my belt.

So here's where I am at right now:
Current weight: 158.8 lbs
Total loss: 37.2 lbs
Current size: 10

I cannot even explain how good I feel these days!

Getting Caught Up

Since I have been out of the blogosphere for about a month, I thought I should do a short recap of life's happenings.

The biggest things that have gone on are the annual family trip to Bates Nut Farm and celebrating Halloween with my guy.

I love that my family piles in vehicles and visits Bates Nut Farm. It is a family tradition that I never get tired of. I look back on previous years and I am in awe of how young my nieces and nephews were. I mean , Peyton wasn't even born when we started going there. Now she's almost 5! I love that my 14 year old niece is mostly "too cool" for a lot of the happenings at Bates but she's all about the horse drawn wagon ride. There's still a bit of little kid in there. And I think she is secretly a little bummed that she is too old/too tall for the pony ride these days.

The boys have just as much fun. Justen is still quite excited to find his perfect pumpkin and tackle the large inflatable slides. Tyler is still in awe of everything and just likes climbing over the pumpkins rather than picking one out. It was a good time all around.

On Halloween Jared and I hung out at my place and handed out candy to all of the littles that came by. I was feeling particularly festive so I made Halloween themed treats/dinner. Bat wing "soup" with bat wing and bunny tail dippers (chili cheese dip in a bread bowl with blue corn tortilla chips and sour dough dippers), Mummy dogs (hot dogs wrapped in crescent rolls) and frankenstein krispy treats. Our super hero themed pumpkins were a huge hit with the neighbor kids. Green Lantern and Batman were deemed "awesome" by all of them.

For the third year in a row I made, decorated and sold "Cookies For A Cure" to raise money for the breast cancer walk. I made 80 dozen cookies. $2100 raised in the fight against breast cancer. It was so fun to do. And tiring and stressful. But I am incredibly thankful to all that ordered!

Thanksgiving was pretty mellow. Thanksgiving morning I ran my first 10K race. It was at Lake Muraay. My goal time was 1 hr 12 min. I finishedin 1hr 6 min. I was very excited about that! Thanksgiving day was spent with Jared's family in Carlsbad. A lot of food and football! A really great time with wonderful people. I love them dearly.
My family celebrated Thanksgiving on December 1st. That was the first day we could all get together. We ate too much and played some games. The Battle of the Sexes :Scene It game gets pretty competitive. Somehow the guys always win. The girls are pretty sure they know why, too... they cheat! Somehow the boys cheat. They have to! haha! Oh the fun we have!

Time is flying by but life is so good. I am feeling more and more blessed with every passing day.