No pain, no pain!

No pain-no pain. That's what my dad always says jokingly about exercise. You probably know the way that saying usually goes is "No pain, no gain!" Mr. Fantastic Husband-Man's mantra is "Pain is weakness leaving the body." Yes, he stole it from the marines, hoorah! My mom works out because, "One day I'll be sexy..." She was kidding with me. She doesn't want the underarm-jiggle-wave. And, more importantly, she wants to be healthy. My mom is a breast cancer survivor! 7 years, baby!!

What is your mantra when you workout and are left with that stupendous ache? Yes, I want to be healthy. I want to wear my old clothes. However, I think I need a new mantra... Neither one of these are doing it for me anymore. The Wii Fit tells me to "Visualize my ideal body." Shut up! According to you I should weigh 129! Can anyone else say unrealistic and twiggish? Ick! Mr. Fantastic might leave me, just kidding. I try to tell myself it's a good burn/ache. I'm burning fat, I'm building muscle. That's wearing thin too.

Help a gal out! I'm sore and feeling whiney, lol. Sooooooooo, how do you stay motivated?

Blessings on your journey!

R

P.S. I'm super excited for my massage tomorrow!!! It's been over a month! I have the greatest chiropractor. :) It's really the little things that make me happy!

A REAL LOVE STORY!!!

I just found this on another blogger's site. She actually has it posted. I couldn't figure out to put it on my blog. How do I do that?

CHECK THIS OUT! SOOOOOO GOOD! And I really do love Anita Renfroe. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLjWDKu0jfM&feature=player_embedded

The Spin Cycle

Hi friends!

No, today I'm not telling you about my laundry (most of which got caught up at the beginning of the week, thank you very much!). I'm talking about cycling, or biking. I decided to be adventurous and try my first cycling class. I have been thinking of trying it for a while, but I wanted to do it with someone. My first workout buddy--my mommy--recently sprained her ankle badly enough that she was on crutches for a bit. Still recovering-strike one. My other workout buddy--my neighbor--was recently put on bed rest for two weeks (she's pregnant with her second child!)-strike two. So, with hopes of seeing someone I knew from zumba, I headed out to try my hand (erm, legs?) at cycling. I arrived to the class about five minutes early after dropping off the munchkins. Good thing I did! I got one of the last four bikes. Unbeknownst to me, this has become a rather popular class. Sadly, I did not recognize anyone in the class-strike thre... BUT WAIT! I decided I wasn't out and I was still going to give it a try.

The instructor chatted with me about what to expect and helped me adjust the seat (oh, I've learned it's called a 'saddle'--I thought those were for horses... moving on). One of the questions she asked me was if I was new to cycling or new to fitness in general. Um, ouch, lady! Just cycling... Alright, so I wasn't offended at the time, but I'm a little offended now as I think back about it. To be fair, I'm not in stellar body shape and that makes it a fair-er question. Who knows, maybe she just asks everyone regardless of size the same question. I'm going to tell myself that to make myself feel better and to give her the benefit of the doubt.

She basically told me not to try to keep up with everyone and take lots of breaks and basically ignore her when she told the class to turn the resistance up and down. Ok, then! Can do! *big thumbs up* I really didn't touch the dial the first 35 minutes of class. The last 25 minutes I did do a little with it. I'm glad I listened to her advice. I'm feeling it today! Love (hear sarcasm here) working muscles in a different way so I can really feel 'em the next day. Although, I have to tell you when I workout now I get that great high. I'm a sick, sick person, I know. lol However, I feel good and rather accomplished for the day and it seems like I accomplish more throughout the day as well. Love that!

I think I shall try cycling again. It's something I'd like to become proficient at. It seems like a lot of people cycle down here. And that makes sense since you can do it year-round in the desert. I've always enjoyed biking, but this takes it to a new level. I think I will settle for being proficient though--I'm not looking to compete in triathlons... yet.

Happy Friday Follow!!!
Blessings,
R

P.S. Do you have any tips for a new cyclista?

Sponsored By:

Getting dirty!

Hello all!

So, in honor of eARTh Day I wanted to blog about my hike on Sunday with the family! We had a good time going to Superstition Springs Mountain Range and hiking the Hieroglyphic Trail. We only made it about half a mile in and then had to turn around. My little princess was walking for part of it and going REALLY, really, really slow. Then Mr. Fantastic Daddy carried her for a while, but my back was starting to hurt from lugging Mr. Chaos Little Britches around. For as great as our Kelty carriers are they aren't perfect. I need them to be a little bit shorter in the torso and they just don't adjust down quite that short. What can I do? I'm short, or travel-size, or fun-size, whatever.

Side note: This is why I am dreaming of my Osprey Ariel backpack for my anniversary trip into the BWCA next summer!!! Soooooooooo, comfy! Anyone out there wanting to send me one for free? I'm looking at the 65. Just in case! :) I'm wishing they made a kid carrier. Or maybe I need the newer model from Kelty. Either way, not in the budget just yet.

Back to the story! So, it was getting hot as we gotten a later start than planned (right about noon) and it was dusty and we had to stop at all the flowers and rocks. I do know that Princess is a bit young to be hiking on her own (she's only three and a half!), and we know this will involve short hikes whenever we go with the intent that she walks. What I did not count on was her being soooooooo slow this time. We probably could have finished the three mile hike with myself and Mr. Fantastic Daddy-Man carrying the kids, but I can only handle Little Chaos Man on my back for so long I've discovered. Maybe next time!

I loved seeing all the flowers in bloom here in the desert in the spring. We are surrounded by a lot of brown, but the desert really comes to life in the spring and when it rains. Mr. Fantastic and I are on the same page about the kids being out in nature and learning about this amazing world God has given us. So, we got sweaty and hot and dusty and had a great time! :) It was our early eARTh day celebration. I'm considering taking My Little Princess to Disney Oceans. Any thoughts?
What did you do on eARTh day or in recognition of it?

Blessings all,
R

P.S. Check back tomorrow to see my thoughts on cycling! I took my first class today. :)

Ever used a Magna Doodle as a pillow?

Hello one and all!

Greetings and salutations! I hope you all have had fun-filled happy days!

I made it a goal today to do no chores or house work or the like. Today, I was devoting my day to play. It worked out pretty well! I've been cleaning and keeping things clean because of all the family/vacations/holidays recently that I felt a bit disconnected from my children. Tell me I'm not the only one this happens to, please! I got everything ready for my spa event that I was helping out with last night and planned on playing with my children all day! Now, it would have helped if I'd been able to fall asleep before one in the morning, but I digress. 

We had a great day! We watched some wonderful children's programming after waking up (love, love, love SuperWHY!), ate breakfast, played, took naps, played more, ate more food, and played more! I even got a load of laundry done. I wouldn't have done it, but I've been putting it off and my kids were running out of clean clothes... Eep! lol I even attempted coloring with my one year old son and three year old daughter. My son only was successful in eating part of one crayon. Success, baby!! Then we played tea party on our rug. Things got interesting. My Princess is still learning to share and do cooperative play with her brother, Mr. Chaos (who, as a one year old little man, doesn't have a clue as to what we are trying to accomplish--teachable moments, love 'em). Well, there were some tears, but I think overall progress was made! Happy day.

Then tiredness hit mommy. For whatever reason I was feeling very, very homesick for Minnesota last night and couldn't sleep. Last time I look at the clock it was after one am. One of Princess's favorite games is tucking us in for naps and singing and giving kisses and telling us it's time to be quiet (can you tell what I do with her?! lol). I laid down on the floor for just a second to stretch (our tea parties get long... amazing I don't have to use the restroom every fifteen minutes after so much tea!) and she jumped up to get a blanket to cover mommy for nap! My head landed on the Magna Doodle (or Doodler, as I like to call it) and it was surprisingly comfortable. I could feel the urge to drift wash over me. WHOMP! Mr. Chaos body slammed me (he's about thirty pounds now, people, which is freakin' huge for an almost 14 month old), giggled, and pulled the blanket down to peek-a-boo me. Nap time was over! Tickles and laughter ensued for all. I do love these days.

I sure do have a lot of dishes to do--tomorrow! I encourage you to take a day of play and get on the floor and get outdoors and play with your children. The dishes, laundry, shower scrubbing can all wait until tomorrow.

Share your stories with me! I love reading your comments!

Blessings,

R

Purse giveaway that you shouldn't enter...

Anyone who knows me knows I absolutely love purses (my husband practically drags me by that section in stores). What's better than a new purse? A FREE, new purse! Don't enter, ok? Because I totally want to win this one. Ok? Do not click, do not follow the instructions, do not enter. Got it? Thanks for helping me up my chances!!! :) And Mo is actually a pretty neat girl, so you should check out her blog. 

Josiah's Nest: Oh, look. It's Thursday. Time for an Etsy Contest: Win a pouch of your choice from CharmDesign! http://ow.ly/1yGam (Sweet, right?!)

Blessings all!

R

Josiah's Nest: Etsy Contest - CharmDesign
ow.ly

For this week's Etsy Contest on Josiah's Nest, I am featuring CharmDesign, an awesome handmade purse boutique! Ranja, owner and designer of CharmDesign, has decided to give away a round zipper pouch to one of my blog readers! ...

Back on planet earth...

Hello faithful followers!

I'm sorry it's been so very, very long since my last post. Much has happened in the last two weeks. I went off the reservation with my new eating plan, but I'm back and re-learning. :) Well, I've got these first two weeks mastered, but I'll be charting new territory again by adding back in veggies and low-carb, non-fat ice cream! :) I was also told I may have four strawberries a week. Yum, yum!  I can also have eight ounces of steak as long as I get up and walk within the first thirty minutes after eating and drink some green tea. Good times, right, friends?!

Have you been anticipating my weigh in? I've been anticipating it a lot. I think I mentioned in a previous post that losing 20 pounds during the MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) year was one of my goals I set. I started out at 200 (yikes!) and I weighed in today just under 180!!!!! Yahoo!!! *does a happy dance* You can do a happy dance too because you are so excited by my success and how it's going to inspire your own success. I want to hear your stories too!

I have failed to do pictures. Eep! Sorry. I will get around to it. I have to say that I'm not super excited about doing this, but I will. It will also be nice to be able to look back and say I've come really far.

Anyone else catch Glee last night? Ok, was this last one like super, super drama filled, or was that just my perception? And I wasn't a fan of "Vogue" either. "Let your body move to the music..." I don't think so! She was so stiff. You are on a musical show now, lassy. Learn to loosen up! Ok, rant over.


Blessings all!
R

Giveaway winner and update!

Hello friends and followers!!

Jackie from My Perfect Little World has won the hand towels!! If you are sad that you missed out this time, don't worry, I will do this again! I have so much fun making my hand towels and I will give more away in the future. Stay tuned! :) Or, if you can't wait for a chance to win them then you can buy them at My Etsy Store!

Ok, so an update on how everything has been going for me. As some of you will remember my dad came for a visit recently (and yes, we did get that Princess bike and my little lady loves it!) and we all ended up taking a mini-vacation up to Las Vegas! We had a fantastic time swimming in the wave pool, laying by the pool tanning, walking up and down the strip to see the sites and the lights. I did rather poorly gambling, but I had fun! Which is the point for me anyway. :)

My challenge came in making the best of the food choices with what was available to me. I did pretty well for the first two days (even my dad was impressed by my willpower and complimented me on it!), but the last two ended up just being too much for me. I felt like I was compromising so much that it wasn't worth it to keep going and that I really needed to start over. I could literally taste the sugars and fats in the foods. My body and taste buds and mind really revolted and I had no desire for these things but they were unavoidable. Gradually my resistance wore down as I kept eating more and more. Again, I felt like I had compromised way more than I wanted to and needed to detox my system of the sugars and carbs and so on.

So, this is me. Starting over for the third time... but it will have to wait until after Easter! I need a break from the mundane of chicken, ham, and more chicken. :) I have enjoyed dessert, ice cream, and plan to enjoy pasta in over the weekend. Don't worry, I won't go overboard and will continue my working out. I shall resume come Monday. Plus, yes, pictures will be taken over the weekend and I'll weigh in.

Want to see my downfall in Vegas? It was dessert at the Mandalay Bay in their Bayside Buffet. I ate two. I figured if I was going to toss the last three weeks of hard work out then I'll go all the way! lol It was very, very yummy.

How are you all doing on your journeys? What do you do when temptation strikes? How do you stay strong?

Blessings,
R