Category Archives: Positive

New Website!

Crown

Good evening!

I am so happy to report that my new website is now up and running!!!

YEAH!!!

I can honestly tell that I have had to learn this whole website building thing as fast as inhumanly possibly, and that little adventure was not without it periods (multiple) of crying, cussing, and throwing my hands up and seriously considering quitting the whole darn venture!!

BUT NO!!!!

I have beat the stupid thing called technology!!

WHAH-HOO!!! and a HELL-YEAH!!! 🙂

Anyway, I have been actively making some behind the scenes changes to make things more user friendly around here, as well as setting Beautiful Creatives up for future growth.

My dream is that Beautiful Creatives becomes a place where you can come for advice and resources for all things pertaining to getting unstuck and living the juiciest life possible. I also want to make sure I have an undercurrent of all things creative: art journaling, mixed media, creating every day. I want to do this because I believe that when you tap into your creative brain, you clear the way to hear your soul and the Universe speak to you, and I am a firm believer that THAT is when MAGICAL TRANSFORMATIONS can happen! 🙂

If this sounds intriguing to you, and like something that you would like to be a part of, or at least you’d like to hear more of, please take a moment to join our mailing list. There is a sign up form on the right hand side of your screen! I promise you will not be sorry!! 🙂

More GOODNESS to come!

Have a FABULOUS evening!! 🙂

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If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!

 

 

 

Cuppa Chat #2: 10 Things for a Level 10 Day!

Good morning, my beautiful friends!!

I am so happy to announce that my latest video in my Cuppa Chat series has been posted out on YouTube!

I know you cannot always control what the world throws at you on a day to day basis, but you can do things to help make your day a PHENOMENAL day, AKA a Level 10 Day! In this Cuppa Chat, I share with you my 10 favorite things to incorporate into my days so that, no matter what, I can have a level 10 day whenever I choose to!! 🙂

If you like what you see, please subscribe, so you don’t miss a thing!! 🙂

Here is to a Beautiful Creative life! 🙂

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If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!

What a Difference Some Help Makes!

Crown HeaderGood morning!

Do you know how hard it is for someone like me to ask for help????

I am not sure where I got the crazy notion that if I don’t do something completely, like as in 100% on my own, I somehow can not take any pride or credit for a job well done! Where the heck do crazy ideas like that come from anyway!!???

I went to Brave Girls Symposium this year, and I learned SOOOOOOO MUCH!! but one of the things that I learned that I am really striving to take action on is that you do not have to go through this journey, called life, on your own. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have an INCREDIBLE husband who stands by my side through thick and thin, and I have family members who I would take a bullet for – no questions asked, but to ask for help in any other area in my life??? Forget about it!

  • If I am having trouble with my fitness goals – “figure it out!”
  • If am having trouble staying on task with my nutritional goals – “suck it up, buttercup!”
  • If I am struggling carrying all of our personal finances by myself – “you had better work harder!”
  • If my house looks like it could be on the next episode of hoarders – “sorry, you made this mess”
  • If I want to take my business to the world but have no idea where to start –  “Others have magically done it on their own, why can’t you?”
  • If I feel that my mental health is suffering – “If you say anything they will just confirm you are crazy!”

LIES!!! ALL OF IT!!! LIES!!!

You, my friend, myself included, are not an island!!

We are a tribe!!!

You need me, I need you!

No one was ever meant to walk through this journey, we call life, alone. That is why the Universe created others all around us! So we can support each other, cheer each other on, and lift each other up, whenever, wherever, and however often we need it! This is what makes the human race so INSANELY AWESOME!!! 

Audrey Hepburn once said,

“As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.”

I have always been a big fan of Audrey Hepburn, but it is only now, at 40 years old, that I realize how important, and RIGHT ON this message is!!

In the past month, I have reached out to an AMAZING woman to seek out her help as a life coach, I have started seeing an extremely KIND and GENTLE man to help me with my anxiety, and I have recently reconnected with someone from my past, someone who has always been a second mama to me a real, in-the-flesh, WALKING ANGEL!!! I can honestly tell you, in just one month’s time, because I was willing to reach out for help, as well as put myself out there to help others I have an overwhelming sense of joy, hope for the future, and really just a sense of quiet peace!! Anyone who intimately knows me, knows that that is INCREDIBLE!!! 😉

I challenge you to ask for help. What do you need today? If you can’t find someone to help you, reach out and help someone else! I guarantee that goodness will come back to you!

Here is to living a BEAUTIFUL CREATIVE life! 🙂

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If you want to have a different life, live differently! 

Moving at the Speed of Light!

IMG_2468Good evening, my lovely chickadees! 🙂

Life seems to be moving at the speed of light!! SERIOUSLY!!!

This year has been a year of doing numerous self experiments! How can I make a better life for my husband and myself? How can I live a more authentic life? How can I move into he life that we are constantly dreaming about? How can I be as fit, healthy, and happy as much as possible?

Some of the experiments that have resulted in some micro changes in my life have been:

  1. Morning Pages: Waking early every morning to write morning pages a la Julie Cameron, The Artist Way author’s recommended practice (one of them)! – this has been helping me deal with some out of control anxiety and feelings of overwhelm that I have been struggling with. This practice basically dumps all of my ever-running thoughts out of my brain every morning, essentially giving me a reboot every morning!
  2. Meditation: 15 minutes meditation most mornings of the week. I have been doing this after my morning pages, and because my brain is wiped clean after my morning pages, meditation gives me the conscious opportunity to fill my brain with the thoughts that I want to carry around, I mean on purpose! I focus on thoughts of thankfulness to my creator for all of the blessings that have come my way, and the ones that are on their way to me!
  3. Personal Altar: For my meditation time, I have created a small altar in my home. More specifically there is a small, comfortable cushion on the floor of my walk-in closet, and a small white shelf that I have cleared off (it is one of my shoe shelves), that I have placed various items that have special meaning for me. These are all things that I want to remind myself to think about while meditating. Some of the things are a glass heart to remind me that I am loved, a bracelet to remind me that I can be brave and do brave things, a candle to call my truth teller to my meditation space, and a small yellow toy farm truck to remind me of my future dream life! I have a bunch of other things too, something to remind me of my sisters, something to remind me to have fun, something to remind me of my amazing marriage, etc. etc. etc. This has become a sacred place in my life.
  4. Exercise: My sweetie and I have signed up for a fun 5k that happens October 1st of this year, so we have started a Couch to 5k training program! It has been hard work not only the exercise itself, but also not giving up!! Right now, we only walk/jog about 3 days a week, but starting this week, I want us to go for a least a strong walk every morning, so that the non walk/jog mornings, we are getting out and spending quality time getting fit together!
  5. Uncluttering: There has been a major uncluttering project that is currently happening in my house! Things are leaving though the front door at a whirlwind pace!! I realized that if I wanted the life that I have envisioned in my head to come true, then I would have to make room for it – both literally and figuratively! God bless my husband, he has been the epitome of patience, and support!
  6. Gathering a Team: I have learned, this year, that you don’t have to do everything on my own. So I am actively seeking a team of awesome people, who know more than I do, to help me in various areas of my life. Mental health, physical health, general life goals, etc. I have found a life coach, and have also been seeking out quality time with friends and family, and going out of my way to nurture those relationships. I can achieve every single thing that my heart desires, but if I do not have friends and family to share that with, then I think my joy will be lessened, and that is not ok with me. Joy that is shared is always multiplied for both the share-er and the share-ee. How is that for good grammar??? 🙂

Now with all of this said, and all of this done, and still going on, I am by no means perfect at these things. I still have to say “oops, my bad” and try it again tomorrow, but I feel like my life is heading in the right direction, or at least the humungous ship, that is my life, is starting to pivot in the right direction!! and that is such a very exciting prospect that it makes me think that my future is so bright that I have to wear shades!! I can’t wait to see what comes next, but baby, I think I will be ready!!

Here is to living a BEAUTIFUL CREATIVE life! 🙂

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If you want to have a different life you have to live differently!!

 

Goodbye to 38 by 38 Hello to 39 by 39!

CrownGood afternoon!

Yep! You have heard correctly, yesterday was my birthday so I am officially 38!! WHOO! HOO!! 😉

As some of you may already know, I every year I put together a X by X list. A # of objects by number of years I will have been alive by the time I finish this goal list! Two years ago was my 37 by 37 list, this past year was my 38 by 38 list, and starting today, I will be actively working on my 39 by 39 list. This is the list where I take 39 things from my master Life List and schedule the 39 things that I want to do before my birthday this next year!

Before I show you my 39 by 39 list, I thought I would start out by showing you how my 38 by 38 turned out!! 🙂

Here is my 38 by 38 list:

  1. Put $1,000 into a mini emergency fund – DONE!
  2. Pay off all of my non-mortgage debt – Almost there, almost about $4000 to go!! WHEW!!!
  3. Regularly tithe 10% of our household income – I did better on this one that I expected, but I wasn’t as consistent as I wanted to be.
  4. Downsize our belongings so that everything we own fit into our 2-bedroom, 1 car garage condo – DONE!
  5. Jog a mile – DONE!
  6. Take the train
  7. Go camping – DONE!
  8. Blow bubbles out of the car window while on a road trip – DONE!
  9. Clean out the garage – DONE!
  10. Hike the longest trail at Silver Creek Falls – DONE!
  11. Go on a walking tour of downtown Salem – I get a great deal on this from Groupon! I just have to schedule this before it expires and it will be done!!
  12. Take a cooking class
  13. Host a slumber party – DONE!
  14. Create a new line of inspiring art pieces of at least 12 designs
  15. Start my own company – DONE!
  16. Redesign my blog to make it a reflection of my personal style – DONE!
  17. Invest in blog/career business cards – DONE!
  18. Launch an interview series on my blog
  19. Send fifty handwritten handwritten notes (1 of 50)
  20. Lose an accumulative 100 pounds (105 of 100) – DONE!
  21. Volunteer in a cause that is near and dear to my heart
  22. Ride my bike for an hour straight
  23. Have a weekend vacation at the coast – DONE!
  24. Sell my entire collection of Pink Paisley Boutique jewelry (LET IT GO!)
  25. Host a movie-themed party
  26. Inspire someone to write a list of their own – DONE!
  27. Be featured in a creative publication
  28. Try at least 12 new recipes (12 of 12) – DONE!
  29. Prepare a meal using fresh ingredients from the Farmer’s Market
  30. Use re-usable shopping bags for all grocery shopping for an entire month
  31. Read every Jane Austen novel (1 of 5) – I read Pride and Prejudice
  32. Get a facial
  33. Revitalize 5 old pieces of furniture
  34. Teach an online class
  35. Read my Flying Lessons class book
  36. Wear bright red lipstick out in public for a day – DONE!
  37. Have at least 48 artist dates (35 of 48) – I did WAAAAAY better on this than I thought I would! So, I am going to consider this a win!!! 😉
  38. Have fresh flowers in the house every week for at least 10 weeks (6 of 10) – This was harder and more expensive than I thought, but I may try this one again!! 😉

As usual, I got a lot more accomplished than I thought I was going to, but there were actually a few things I was able to mark off of my master Life List that I wasn’t planning on. Here are those things:

  1. Fly first class – I did this on the spur of the moment on my last business trip!! First class was soooo worth the extra moola spent!!! 😉
  2. Learn to hula hoop – My friend, Jamie, inspired me to give this a try. I went out and bought a hula hoop, much to the chagrin of my sweetie, and I did, right there in my living room – almost breaking a lamp, but having a BLAST just the same!!! 😉
  3. Run a mile – I thought I would NEVER be able to do this!!
  4. Run a 5k – I thought either I was going to die doing this, or I was going to kill my sweetie for making me! But, in the end I was soooo happy I did this!!!
  5. Cross my legs – Who knew???? One day, I looked down, and realized, ‘Hey! I’m crossing my legs!!!’ It might as well have been free tickets to Paris! Yes, I was truly THAT excited!!! 😉
  6. Touch my toes with knees unbent – this was another one that I thought I would never be able to, but my sweetie insisted that I tried it. When I realized I could actually touch my toes, I wanted to sit in that position FOREVER!!
  7. Be able to do a complete Sun Salutation – Another shocker!! I am sure I don’t do it as gracefully as the ladies online do, but who cares???? I CAN DO THIS!!! Good morning, Sun!!! 😉
  8. Buy Jason a truck – Yep! I was VERY happy to be able to do this for my sweetie!!
  9. Create & post a video on YouTube – I am not sure why I thought this was such a scary thing!?? Easy peasy!!
  10. Do an entire cross stitch pattern – Another easy peasy goal!!
  11. Draw a piece of art that I am happy with – After I finished this particular piece I was surprised that it actually came out of me!!
  12. Go to a counselor – this was a requirement of the bariatric surgery, but it was still on my list so I am counting it!!
  13. Hire a nutritionist – same as 12!
  14. Hike the longest trail at Silver Creek Falls (10.4 miles) – This might have been the hardest 4 hours of my life!! UGH!!!
  15. Learn how to manage money – Thank you, Mr. Dave Ramsey!!!
  16. Learn how to purl – I did this, hated it, crossed it off of my list anyways!!
  17. Learn how to walk in heels – YEAH!! I’m a girl! I’m a girl!!
  18. Live without eating out for one month – bariatric surgery made this one easy!
  19. Live without junk food for one week – Same for this one!!
  20. Love my entire wardrobe – This is easy to do when you are down to two pairs of pants, a blazer, denim jacket, 3 dresses, and a few miscellaneous tops!
  21. Weigh less than 300 pounds – I will NEVER GO BACK!!
  22. Weigh less than 275 pounds – This was a little less than what I weighed when my mom died!
  23. Weigh less than 250 pounds – My goal is getting so close, I can almost feel it!!
  24. Weigh less than 225 pounds – This is so much harder than I expected!!! Keep going!!! 😉
  25. Eat at doughnut at Voodoo Donuts in Portland, OR – Such a LOOOOONG wait in a LOOOOOOON line, for an ok donut, but so much fun spending some silly time with my sweetie!!

WHEW!! I have been busy!! 😉

NOW, what do I want to see on my 39 by 39 list????

  1. Go to Brave Girls’ Camp
  2. Weigh less than 220 pounds
  3. Weigh less than 215 pounds
  4. Weigh less than 210 pounds
  5. Weigh less than 205 pounds
  6. Weigh less than 200 pounds
  7. Publish my own e-book
  8. Start my creative business’ website
  9. Start my creative business’ blog
  10. Watch a baby being born (my nephew – Liam)
  11. Become a life coach
  12. Be a mentor to someone else
  13. Be a spokesperson for something positive
  14. Beat Jason at a game of chess
  15. Read all of Jane Austen’s novels (1 of 5)
  16. Become a motivational speaker
  17. Become a plus-sized model for a day
  18. Build a loom
  19. Learn how to use a loom
  20. Grow a vegetable garden
  21. Carve a piece of art
  22. Build a piñata from scratch
  23. Climb a rock wall
  24. Cook an entire meal for Jason’s family
  25. Contact a distant family member & start communicating
  26. Share my art-making-process via a YouTube channel
  27. Purchase a professional camera
  28. Learn how to use it
  29. Create a time capsule
  30. Take a road trip down the Pacific Coast Highway
  31. Do a backbend
  32. Do a cartwheel
  33. Do a flip off a diving board
  34. Do a handstand
  35. Gather a group of people to blow bubbles in a public space
  36. Get a life coach
  37. Get a passport
  38. Get a pen-pal from a different country
  39. Get paid to do what you love
  40. Go kayaking
  41. Grocery shop using only reusable bags for an entire month
  42. Hang laundry in the sun to dry
  43. Pay off all non-mortgage debt
  44. Have 3 – 6 months expenses in an emergency savings account
  45. Have a prayer alter in my home with stair-stepped candles
  46. Knit a scarf
  47. Learn French
  48. Learn HTML
  49. Learn the basic ballet steps
  50. Learn the proper way to open a coconut
  51. Learn to can food
  52. Learn to create a frame to stretch canvas over
  53. Learn to make a book from scratch
  54. Learn to make ambrosia
  55. Learn to make doughnuts
  56. Leave $100 for a haggard waitress
  57. Make & send my own Christmas cards
  58. Make a loan to an entrepreneur in a developing country through http://www.kiva.com
  59. Milk a cow
  60. Organize a large family picture
  61. Own a pair of fabulous fitting walking knee-high boots
  62. Own an income producing blog
  63. Perform 100 sit-ups in one sitting
  64. Sell all of my jewelry from my old jewelry business
  65. Start a book club
  66. Take a cooking class
  67. Take a nature walk & press the wild flowers you collect
  68. Take a painting class
  69. Take a photography class
  70. Take a weekend vacation by myself
  71. Teach an online art class
  72. Type up great-great grandma’s recipe book for the family
  73. Volunteer in a homeless shelter
  74. Wear a size 14 pant

 

Ok, so I can TOTALLY see that there are WAAAAAAY more than 39 things on this list!! I think, at least for right this moment, I am going to keep the list extra long like this, and shoot to complete at least 39 items off of this list!! It is my perogative to change my mind at any moment in time to completely rehash this list or to completely start it over. As it stands right now, this list really makes me happy, and the idea of removing anything from it, honestly, really makes me sad! SO, to heck with it!! THIS WILL BE MY NEW 39 by 39 List!!

Here is to a FABULOUSLY productive, artsy, and memorable year!!! 😉

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If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

Sharing Your True Colors!

Good evening!

As promised during this previous post. I have finally completed my journal project that was inspired by Dyan Reaveley’s YouTube video ‘Creating a Patchwork Quilt with Diane Reavely.’

Click on Image to Enlarge

Click on Image to Enlarge

As I was painstakingly blacking out all of the work that had taken me literally hours to complete, I just kept asking myself over and over, what am I going to write on this? What does this mean to me? Is there anything more to what I am seeing that what I am seeing? I actually had gotten the black completed, and stared at it for another day before my answer finally came to me.

Click on Image to Enlarge

Click on Image to Enlarge

Click on Image to Enlarge

Click on Image to Enlarge

 

This piece, for me, became about my tendency to hide my true colors, my true self, my authenticity, the things about me that make me uniquely me. I have a tendency to hide parts of myself for all sorts of reasons, fear of being unloved, fear of being unaccepted, fear of being left alone. This is something that I am actively working on. Even as I type this evening!

Click on Image to Enlarge

Click on Image to Enlarge

So the message that I decided to write on these pages became this:

“You were not uniquely and wonderfully made so that you can hide your uniquenesses.
You were not made to blend in.
Your uniquenesses are what make you special.
They give you immense value.
Be brave.
Stand up for who you are.
I promise, your truth will set you free.”

Click on Image to Enlarge

Click on Image to Enlarge

I may not know who you are, or what your story is, but I know that there is someone reading this right now that needs to hear these words, so I pass this message on to you. Your were not meant to blend in. You were a uniquely made one-of-a-kind special-to-the-core person on purpose. Cherish your uniquenesses, whatever they are, because they are your truth, YOURS ALONE, and your truth shall set you free!

Here is to a FABULOUSLY artsy evening! 😉

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If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

 

1-Year Post Bariatric Surgery Update!

This is me as a happy girl today!! ;-)

This is me as a happy girl today!! 😉

Good evening!

Yep! That’s right! As of today, it has been exactly one year since I had my gastric bypass surgery, and I thought it might be the perfect time to give you my weight loss update!

As of today, I have officially lost 99 point something pounds since April 2012, and 59 of those pounds have been since my gastric bypass surgery on September 4th, 2012. I say 99 point something, because I actually can’t remember the exact number that my surgeon said! All I remember hearing was 99 pounds. YEAH! ME!!! 😉

I have been reminded by my nutritionist that I am still eating waaaaay to many carbs, and I am almost 40 grams of protein short every day. OUCH!!

I also know that getting in 64 ounces of liquid a day has been the bane of my existence, and I am not sure I have EVER been able to get that much water in since my surgery. When your stomach is the size of 2 or 3 ounces, and you can’t drink within 30 minutes of eating, it really limits how effectively you can get your fluids in!

I also really need to step up my exercise routine!! I just need to push myself harder, and spend less time sitting on my keister!! 😉

SOOOOOO…

long story short, I have got A LOT of room for improvement!!

They also showed me a chart that proves that I am losing on the slooooooow track. and for some reason my physician thinks I am having a love affair with pizza – I really am not, but the last two times I had seen her, I had just happened to have pizza the previous evenings!! Which just also happens to be the only two times I have had pizza in the past three months! Sheesh!!

To say I left my appointment today feeling a bit defeated is an understatement, but I was reminded by my girl friends, and my sweetie that I have still come a LOOOOOONG way baby!! and I know it is true, but to put it out to the universe in writing, I decided to share a list that I had created months before surgery.

This is a list of all of the physical goals I had written to myself in May of 2012. Basically, this is the if-I-could-do-anything-after-weight-loss-surgery-this-would-be-my-dream-list:

  1. Jog a mile non-stop – DONE!
  2. Cross my legs – DONE!
  3. Touch my toes with knees unbent – DONE!
  4. Ride my bike for a half an hour straight
  5. Run up two flights of stairs without getting winded – DONE!
  6. Wear high heels without pain – DONE!
  7. Run a 5k – DONE!
  8. Fit into a bathtub – DONE!
  9. Sit Indian-style in a movie theatre seat – DONE!
  10. Be able to sit with my knees up against my chest – DONE!
  11. Be able to use the chair-tables in the auditorium – DONE!
  12. Be able to fit into a restaurant booth – DONE!
  13. Hike the longest trail at Silver Creek Falls – DONE!
  14. Weigh less than when I first met Jason, when I was 18 – DONE!
  15. Slip into a size-14 again – DONE!
  16. Not be the first one tired on an all-day shopping excursion – DONE!
  17. Get rid of the dreaded C-pap machine – DONE!
  18. Be able to ride cowgirl-style in my favorite evening activity! 😉 – DONE!

 

I actually hadn’t remember that I had written that list, but I have to tell you once I found it and realized that I have done EVERY SINGLE thing on this list except one (only because I haven’t tried it yet), and that was #4 Ride my bike for a half an hour straight, and I am sure at this point, I could TOTALLY do it!! 🙂

So, I am going to consider this a success thus far!!

Starting tomorrow, I am back on the straight and narrow, and my goal is to lose 30 more pounds within the next 6 months! WOULDN’T THAT BE AWESOME???? But the reality is, that if I never lost another single ounce from today, my life and my future is ALREADY better than it would have been 100 pounds ago!!! 😉 I have to keep in mind how good life is right this minute!! 😉

Here is to a FABULOUS evening!! 😉

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If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

Baby Steps! Baby Steps!

Good evening!

Ok, so I know it has been forever since I have posted, but instead of making all sorts of excuses or berating myself for my lack of commitment, I have decided that I am just going to start again. Baby steps! Baby steps!

I have had a bit of a rough Summer, but I am working through everything that I’ve been struggling with – an emergency surgery, 2 hospital stays, some unknown medical issues, blah! blah! blah!! But you know what, even with all of that, I am pretty stinkin’ blessed! I have a husband who loves me unconditionally, I have a great circle of family and friends who have always got my back! I have two puppies, who even though are little old grannies at this point, are absolutely adorable, and love me no matter what!!! I have a great job with great benefits, and some of the best peeps I could ever wish for – girls you know who you are!! 😉

Ok, so I realize I am gushing, but really I am blessed. When things get tough, I don’t always take the time to remember that, so it will be nice to have it written as a reminder! 😉

Here is to an evening of feeling very blessed! ;-)

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If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

Our First Official 5K!

Good evening!

I would normally wait until tomorrow to post this since it is already so late this evening, but I am just too excited to wait to share our fun news!

Tonight my sweetie and I ran the Willamette Valley Road Runners Salem Summer Solstice 5K at Minto Brown Park here in Salem! 🙂

Instead of sharing all of the juicy details in just words, I thought I would share the pics that my sweetie and I accumulated this evening! 🙂

5k 1This is my sweetie, who was soooooo excited to get to complete his first official 5K that it was hard to get him to not speed the whole way to the park!! I was impressed that I got him to hold still for this picture – he was practically jumping out of his skin with excitement!! 🙂

5k 2I would like to tell you that I was as excited as Jason, but in all honesty, I was here under protest! I was tired, I had already done almost three miles this morning, and it was less than an hour a way from my normal bedtime – not to mention, I was worried that I would either not be able to completed the course, or I would fall and make a complete fool of myself!! But, not to be left in Jason’s dust, I was determined to run the 5K too! 🙂

5k 3THIS is what he came for!! He wanted a NUMBER SOOOOOO BADLY!!! Can you see on his face how happy he is??? It is good to see him this happy!! 😉

5k 4Yep! I got one too!! 😉

5k 5I was more excited about the electronic tracking devices that they gave us to wear on our shoes! They measure your times as you cross the start and finishing lines! They were pretty nifty!! 😉

5k 6There were sooooo many people! That fact just jazzed Jason more, and made me more terrified, but I was excited to see if I could spot some new peeps in this crowd!! 🙂

5k 7They had all of the participants broken out into two crowds. The first was the 10K runners (next year, love, we will definitely be in that group!!), and here you can see those guys just taking off!!! Us 5K-ers took off about 5 minutes later!! 🙂

5k 8Jason caught me coming across the finishing line!! I was so tired. There were times that I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to push through, but there were little kids passing me up, and I knew I just had to keep going!!! I was excited, however, because I had ran my fasted mile this evening, and that was a 10 minute mile – I couldn’t even do that when I was in high school, and my fastest in the last couple of months was a 13 minute mile!! I am calling that PROGRESS BABY!!!  😉

???????????????????????????????I practically collapsed into Jason’s sweaty arms as soon as I spotted him!! I have never been so happy to see him again!! 😉

5k 10Jason is such a stud!!! He beat my time by about 10 minute – HE RAN THE WHOLE THING!!! I am just sooooo proud of him!! He TRULY is my HERO!!! 😉

5k 11After the run, the organizer had a ice cream sundae bar for all of the participants, and although I couldn’t eat very much, Jason was very VERY happy to enjoy almost his whole sundae!!! He knew he had earned EVERY SINGLE SPRINKLE!!! 😉

5k 12Tonight was such an AMAZING night!! One that I am sure neither one of us are sure to forget!! I really am proud of us!! I can’t wait to see what hurdle we tackle next!! 😉

Here is to a VERY FABULOUS EVENING!! 😉

Signature Line

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!

 

A Girl With Too Much Time On Her Hands!!

2013-05-09 2Good evening!!

My sweetie has been work every night for the past three weeks, so needless to say someone has WAAAAAAY too much time on her hands!! This evening, I ran to our local super center, whose name shall remain unnamed!! Picked up a whole plethora of toiletries, house supplies, and jammies – some women turn to chocolate when they are lonely, I turn to shopping for jammies!!

ESPECIALLY SCRUMPTIOUSLY SOFT JAMMIES!!!

Is that just me? Or is there anyone out there who also needs a therapist!??? 😉

Anyway, since my sweetie is working in town, my habit this week has been to stop by his worksite and take him a healthy snack and visit with him for a few minutes while he enjoys his snack! THAT has probably been my FAVORITE times of the week!! I dream of someday having a child, and being able to take little him or her out to daddy’s job site and share some goodies and memories with him in that way!! So, I feel like I got a bit of a taste of that future this week!!! Tonight’s snack was some skim milk – his FAVORITE!! Some clementines AKA Cuties – so yummy!! and a bit of beef jerky, which is really great and easy way to get some protein in for us post bariatric patients.

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After I met the gentleman he is doing work for, a very nice man, I zipped on home and made a big pot of a lean-ground-sirloin-chock-full-of-vegetables-and-beans kind of mixture to use to stuff baked bell peppers! They are currently baking in the oven, and they are making the house smell so delicious!!! I will top with some skim milk mozzarella and they will be ready to serve!! I know my sweetie will LOVE those!! Those are one of his FAVORITE of my meals!!! 😉

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My official plan for this evening after I finish blogging tonight will be to spend some quality time with the new Country Living magazine that came in the mail today – one of my NEW magazine subscriptions!! I figure that if I were to get my magazines via subscription then it would save me money, so I immediately subscribed to FOUR magazines!! EEK!! I hope I have time to sit and really read them all!! Oh, at least I will sure have a hell of a lot of fun trying!!! 😉

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Before I go, one quick word on all of the pics in this post. These would explain why I called tonight’s post, “A Girl With Too Much Time On Her Hand!!” because while I was waiting for the bell pepper stuffing to cook, I decided I would spend some eh-hum…”quality” time playing with my camera!! 😉 HEE! HEE!! 😉

Man, I could really use some more girlfriends…any volunteers???? 🙂

Anyway, I can hear the oven beeping at me, telling me dinner is ready!!!

With that…

Here is to a FABULOUSLY ARTSY evening!! 😉

Signature Line

If you want to have a different life, you have to live differently!!