Category Archives: Health

Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man!

Good morning!

I am reading a book that is QUICKLY BECOMING ONE OF MY TOP 10 FAVORITES!!! If you can’t tell by the title of this post, the book is called Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man. This book is written by Fannie Flagg, who also happens to be the author of one of my other ALL-TIME-FAVORITE books, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.

Do you remember a few days ago I was complaining because I was having a hard time locating a book that contained a story that I could just fall into? Well this books is the book I was apparently looking for, because it is ABSOLUTELY CHARMING! The book is set in Mississippi, in the 1950’s, and is written as if you were reading Daisy Fay’s journal, which happens to start out when she is aged 11. and HONEY she is a curious, busybody like NOBODY’S BUSINESS!! OMG!!! She is funny, precocious, a tom boy who happens to also be a member of the Jr Debutante’s Club. So far there has been, burlesque dancing, murder, maggots, adultery, arson, plastic fish-eyeballs, mischief and mayhem of every kind, thievery, gangsters, and I am only about halfway through the book! I am finding that I am laughing out loud almost CONSTANTLY!!! A sure sign of a good book, if I ever heard of one!! Well, I am not sure what else I can say about that – BUT GO PICK UP A COPY OF THIS BOOK!!!! SOOOOOO MUCH FUN!!!

Anyway, I have just realized that it is Wednesday, which is the day I try to give you an update on where I am with my 60 Day Life Makeover Plan!! As if you even need a reminder at this point on what my original 5 goals are, but just in case, here they are:

  1. Lose 20 Pounds – I am too chicken to hop up onto the scale to find out how I am doing, but Jason and I have started swimming laps, which is both fun, and leaving me really sore – so it HAD BETTER BEING DOING SOMETHING GOOD FOR ME!!! 😉 UPDATE: I un-chickened out and weighed myself – and I have lost 4 POUNDS – YEAH! I am FINALLY heading in the right direction!!!
  2. Find a church home – this is going slower than I expected, but possibly because we haven’t gone to church in 3 weeks – I am not sure how important this is to me at this point. I am learning that a church family isn’t a building.
  3. Clean, organize, and purge the entire house from top to bottom – ok, so when I originally set out to do this, I realize that I may have bitten off more than I can chew, but if I can apply this to just my two office work desks at home, I would be SUCH A HAPPY GIRL!!! 😉
  4. Purchase, refinish, and sell one piece of furniture – I may have found a dresser for $10 on Craigslist today that would fit this goal PERFECTLY!!! Let’s just pray that it is still for sale today!!
  5. Put $1000 away into savings, not from my work earnings – this goal is still hovering at around $165, and until I take SOME kind of ACTION – it is going to remain that way!!!

Ok, I am off to have another relaxing day off with my Sweetie, and then it’s back to work for me tomorrow!!!

Have a FABULOUS day!! 😉

Monday Night Update!

Good evening!!

I am VERY happy to announce that I am quietly taking the next two days off from work!!! My official plan is to spend some time hanging out in my best pjs, in a perfectly made bed, reading at least 1 YUMMY work of fiction, bundling up and going for a long walk through my neighborhood enjoying some fresh air, and taking care of myself as much as humanly possible within the next 2 days, before I jump right back in to a crazy work schedule!! LOL!

Anyway, I have finished decorating my journal, so I am going to post it this evening! I admit, it is a rather simple design, but I think this design fits me to a tee!!! 😉

Now that that is finished, I am going to have to try to find another craft to make! Hmmm…memory box, crochet blanket, quilt??? Maybe a quilt – I think I have enough fabric around here!! Yeah – I will see what I can do about making that happen – matter of fact, I think this might be one of my things on my Life List!! I will have to check on that!!!

OH, Jason and I swung by GoodWill tonight, and I was able to pick up 3 new books, and a cute little basket for hauling around my goodies around the house!!! The books I picked up were:

Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man by Fannie Flagg
What the Deaf-Mute Heard by G. D. Gearino
and Home A Memior of My Early Years by Julie Andrews

you know me, still a sucker for a good book! Always will be!!! 😉

Have a FABULOUS evening! 😉

Auntie Night!!

Yesterday was the day that my niece came over to hang out with Jason and I!! I would LOVE to say that we had fun all day, UNFORTUNATELY since I had to work a large portion of the day, we haven’t had as much fun as we usually do when we get together!!! HOWEVER I did make sure to take some time to get away – we went to the park to play on all of the equipment, had some yummy pizza for dinner, and then went swimming, where we ALWAYS have fun playing!! I AM SOOOOO BEAT RIGHT NOW!!! So, in lieu of more words, I am going to share some of our time at the park with pictures.

Enjoy!!

I think that about sums it up!! 😉

Well, we are off to go eat Uncle Jay-Jay’s FAMOUS pankcakes!!! and then off to more fun!!!

Have a FABULOUS day!! 😉

Whistle While I Work!

Good morning!

This weekend is kind of an odd weekend for us, you see I have to work! Mind you, I can telecommute, but still!! I have to clock in at least my self-appointed 8 hours for today!!! (and then I get to do it again tomorrow!!) I think since I have to focus so much time on that today, that is all I will say about it here – for fear of depressing myself!! LOL! 😉

Since this is not a “normal” Saturday, I have created a short “Honey-Do” list for my sweetie to accomplish today. 😀

  • Duct tape box upstairs so I can fill it for GoodWill
  • Clean kitchen
  • Gather dirty laundry – including bedding
  • Put 3 large flower pots into corner in back yard
  • Prep worm/compost bin out back
  • Tend to mini front yard (and when I say mini, I mean like 5 foot by 5 foot)

The one thing I really miss about having a house vs a condo, is that I miss having fresh veggies ever year, so I am wanting to have a small container garden out back this year. In one section I want an herb garden, and in the other section I want some simple veggie plants, like cherry tomatoes, potatoes, and maybe some spinach and dark leafy lettuce. I wanted these things last year too, but we didn’t make them a priority, so we will see what we can make of these dreams this year!!! 😉

Does anyone have any good ideas on vegetable plants that may grow really well in a large container??

Also, my little sister, Jennifer is going to teach me about recycling – I know – WHERE THE HECK HAVE I BEEN??? I am REALLY BEHIND in this area of my life. You know GOING GREEN!?!?! Ever since watching the documentary No Impact Man, it has really been a persistent thought in my head, that I have to do more to protect my environment!! So, this is where my new found motivation is now coming from, with a renewed vigor!! 😉

I will keep you posted of our progress!!

Oh, and did I mention – WE ARE PICKING MEGAN TODAY!!! WHOO-HOO!!!

Have a FABULOUS day!!! 😉

60 Day Life Makeover, Day 33!

Good morning!

Today is Wednesday, the day that I give you an update on where I am with my 60 day life makeover progress.

My 60-day goals are:

  1. Lose 20 pounds.
  2. Find a church home.
  3. Clean, organize, purge my house from top to bottom, so everything in it has a home.
  4. Purchase, refinish, and sell one piece of furniture to slowly but surely get my business off the ground.
  5. Put $1000 extra away to help build my wealth.

Well, where do I begin?? Looking at this list, as if it were the first time I have ever seen it, and I realize that not only have I NOT made any more progress on these goals, some of them I have either stopped trying or have gone backwards in my progress!! BUMMER!!! I think I want these things, but I can’t seem to get my behaviors and choices to back me up on these things!!!

If I had to choose only ONE THING off of this list to accomplish, it would be #1. Lose20 pounds. You know how most people’s weight might fluctuate up or down by maybe 5  pounds?? Well, my normal to fluctuate by is 20 POUNDS!!! UGH!!! I literally take off and put on the same 20 pounds over, and over, and over, AND OVER again!!! So, here I am, back at the starting line, at my top weight – AGAIN! So, this is my reality. I am going to carry a 3×5 card with me today, so that whenever I do ANYTHING that supports my goal of moving towards health and fitness, I am going to write it down as a BEHAVIOR OF SUCCESS!!! I figure if I accumulate enough mini Behaviors of Success, then wouldn’t that also bring about the goal that I have been dreaming of??? I sure hope so!!

As for all of the other goals on this list, I realize that I may have to re-prioritize and decide what is really important to me, and what I am willing to work for to get. Everything has a price, am I willing to pay the price to accomplish everything on my list?? I don’t yet know, but I will! One way or the other HAPPINESS is the ULTIMATE goal, but I am learning that happiness is a choice, and not necessarily something you get – YOU CREATE IT YOURSELF!!! 😉

I am off to another long day of work, but remembering to practice my exercise of EXTREME SELF-CARE! I am optimistic that it will be a GREAT day!!

As for all of you…

Have a FABULOUS day!!! 😉

A Sleepy Tuesday!

Good evening!!

I am SOOOO TIRED this evening!!! The past few days of staying up too late, and getting up crazy early has finally caught up with me!! SOOO, tomorrow, I am planning on practicing some EXTREME SELF-CARE!!! What I mean by extreme self care, is that I am going to treat myself like my own best friend tomorrow!! Taking some much need time and effort to take care of myself and treat myself with the same kind of care that I want my best friends and loved ones to be treated with.

Some of those Extreme Self-Care things are:

  • Get up early and have a leisurely morning getting ready for work
  • Pack some calming tea and take a break mid-morning to get away from the office and have a nice cuppa
  • Take some time to go for a walk, maybe take some pictures of some beautiful things while I am out
  • Take a much-loved fiction book to work, and spend my lunch  reading something fun that takes my mind off of work
  • Keep telling myself over and over that it is alright, I am doing a great job, and this will be soooo worth it
  • When I get home, have a simple, but candlelit dinner with my husband, while we listen to some calming music
  • Spend the evening, reading, or walking outside, or playing with my sweetie and the girls – STEP AWAY FROM THE TELEVISION!
  • Slip into a well made bed, early, maybe read a little, snuggle with my honey, and fall asleep peacefully!!!
  • HEAVEN! HEAVEN! HEAVEN!!!

Basically anything, ANYTHING that makes my health, and happiness a priority!!! I really need that, because I have been treating myself a little rough lately!!! Maybe some of you might need that too – what kinds of things would be on your extreme self-care list? Tell me in the comments above!! 😉

I did pick up something tonight, that really MADE MY DAY!! I picked up the latest copy of the magazine ‘Where Women Work’. I am not sure how many of you have seen that, but it is SOOOO INSPIRING!!! It has made me start thinking about getting back on the ball and keep working on getting my office/craftroom beautiful!!! I have made the decision that wherever my career ends up, I know it is going to have something to with computers, creativity, improving people’s lives and beaing surrounded by beauty!!! I KNOW, sounds DIVINE, doesn’t it????

Anyway, I do have a big day ahead of me tomorrow, including a super-early am meeting, which means I have to get up a little early tomorrow morning to get my booty out the door!!! So, that means I have to dash and get a few more items checked off of the to-do list before I hit the hay!!

Have a FABULOUS evening! 😉

A Kickin’ Booty Monday!!

Good evening!!

I had such a GREAT Monday today!!! I had another 10 hour day at work today, which usually wipes me out, but I TOTALLY KICKED BOOTY today, and FLEW through my work to-do list!!! YEAH! HOO!! What that means is that over my next 3 weeks, while our office is in HEAVY OVERDRIVE, my efforts today has given me some breathing room!!!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!

Did you hear that HUGE sigh of relief!?!? It is sometimes the small things that pushes you right into bliss!!! 😉

Anyway, as for this evening! I have had a lovely dinner with my sweetie, and we are both hanging out up in the office, getting some work and play done – him working, me playing! I was so motivated the other day by crafting my sister’s journal, that I am working on making one for myself!! As soon as I get it finished, I will take pictures and post them for you!!! 🙂

I am soooooo inspired, to tap into my inner artist, and see what I can create. I have always wanted to be one of those people, you know who I am referring too – we all have someone in our lives who is just naturally creative! I want to be one of them!! You know, art studio with a lot of natural light! an easel, paints EVERYWHERE, happy music playing, a couple of puppies running around, HUGE barn doors open letting in fresh breeze!!

OH THAT WOULD BE HEAVEN!!! 😉

Another thing that I am actively on the hunt for are some places to get centered and re-energized, especially with all of the stress that I have been juggling in my daily life right now. Do you know the kind of places I am referring to?? Places and activities that feed and re-energize your soul. Some ideas like that for me are, laying on a blanket in the middle of a beautiful park under a large tree, or sitting on a quiet bench overlooking the ocean on a windy day, or walking on a forest trail while listening to all of the sounds in nature, or even something as simple as looking at classic architectural buildings. That is pure  joy.

Anyway, I am going to close shop early this evening, and spend some quality time with my sweetie tonight! He really deserves some undivided time; he has been SO SUPPORTIVE and making my life SO MUCH EASIER during this time of crazy busy-ness!!! THANK YOU, BABY!! I LOVE YOU!!!

Have a FABULOUS evening!!! 😉

A Saturday of Randomness!

Good morning!

I am up dressed and ready to head out the door this morning! I have a date with one of my BFF’s to go have coffee and catch up, which is always so much fun!!

I went to bed extra early last night, with the intention of just taking a short “nap” while Jason was out with the nephews at a basketball game. Well, my nap turned into just going to bed for the evening, so I woke up this morning FEELING GREAT!!! I am totally refreshed and rested and ready to take on the world!!! 😉

One of the things I have been thinking about is my efforts to lose weight/get fit!! I think I need to get myself some more motivation for why I want to do that so I stop punking out and making it LITERALLY THE LAST PRIORITY ON MY LIST!!! No wonder I am exactly where I am – it is because I keep doing THE EXACT SAME THINGS!!!

I want to:

  • Fit into an airplane seat with lots of wiggle room
  • Walk all over Paris without getting winded or super-sore
  • Ride a bike for hours at a time
  • To run
  • To be able to be flexible and have stamina and energy to play with the kiddos for hours
  • To be able to hike at Silver Creek Falls without feeling like I am going to die there because I can’t make it up the steep hills to get back to my car! 😉
  • To shop in a normal-sized store, or at least be in a size where I have TONS of CUTE options for fashion!!
  • To be able to wear sexy heels again!
  • To feel super-confident
  • To dance!!! Ok, so I do do this anyways, but it would be nice to do it without the stares – oh wait, that just my dancing not what I look like! HAHAHA! Nevermind!!! LOL! 😉

Anyway, I don’t want to be late, so I am heading out the door!!!

Have a FABULOUS day!!! 🙂

My Vision Board

Good evening!

Tonight I had the opportunity to spend some more time with my sister, Alex! We spent the evening finishing up our design boards. Last Thursday, I promised you that as soon as I was done with it, I would take a picture of my design board and share it with you.

So, here it is…

Ok, so I am not sure how well you can see this, but I can explain the gist of what I am dreaming of for 2011.

If I had to narrow this vision board down to one word, it would be PEOPLE. More specifically friends and family. I want a small tight-knit-group of girlfriends  that I can let down my guard with and just be myself while going out making memories, and having a blast doing things that girlfriends do!!! I would love to have a baby, or at least get the ball rolling in that direction. I would love to travel with my sweetie to Europe. I want to have my own business dealing in beautiful home furnishings, to take a ton of photographs to share, and I want to go hiking, camping, and get out and be all around more athletic. I know, I live in the Pacific Northwest, and I have never had an outdoorsy bone in body, UNTIL NOW that is!!! Oh, yeah – how could I almost forget – I want my little farm, with it’s gardens and walking trails, and memories – you know, I WANT TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD!!! 😉 Ok, no – too much responsibility, but I am sure you get the idea!! LOL!! 😉

I want to do everything and anything that feeds my soul.
I want to be the me that I was put on this earth to be,
in the time that I have been gifted.
Now is the perfect time!! 😉

Do any of you have vision boards that you would be willing to share?? I would love to see some!! Let me know in the comments above! 🙂

Have a FABULOUS evening!!! 😉

A Walk in The Park!

I had soooo much fun taking my walk today! The weather was ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!! So I convinced my co-worker to get out of the office with me so we could go for a walk through the park across the street from our office. I made sure to take my camera out with me to get you those pictures that I promised!

Aren’t I such a lucky girl to work so close to such a beautiful park???? I really need to get my booty over there and walk more often!!! I will have sweet dreams tonight!!!

Have a FABULOUS evening! 😉