Weekend Wanderings 4.14.13

It is a rainy Sunday here in southern AL. The windows are open with a cool breeze blowing & the sound of rain and gentle thunder.  I've enjoyed a relaxing day so far of catching up on blog things. My afternoon will be devoted to reading a little and scrap-booking.  What are you up to today? 

Beware of Pedicure Pitfalls:: What great ideas. I do not get pedicures very often, but for special occasions or at the beginning of flip flop season I splurge!  I need to order a pedicure kit so I can start taking my own tools. I've also heard that if you take Tea Tree Oil and add a few drops to the soak tub it can help with any nasty things that might be in there.  Do you take your own tools or polish with you to get a pedicure? If so, have you had any negative reactions in doing so? 

Your Apples Are A Year Old::  I should have known this, but I never really thought about how old apples might be by the time we can buy them at stores.  B grew up in WA state around apple orchards, so he does not eat apples very often that I buy.  He always complains they are not crisp enough, which is probably because they have been sitting in cold storage for a year before I have access to buy them!  Do you have apple trees where you live? Do you go pick your own fresh apples?  

Monsanto's Dirty Dozen:: If you are still not convinced that Monsanto is evil, check out this article about the things Monsanto has had there hands in throughout their history. If you missed last week's Weekend Wanderings, I had some great articles about Monsanto and GMO's...go check them out if you have not already.  

10 Things You Can Recycle Through The Mail::  Some of these things I will start doing. I always struggle throwing batteries and light bulbs away, but I have not found a local place to recycle these items.  How about you, what things do you throw away in the garbage that you should be recycling???

You're Not A Prop {Subtext Series}::  Angie's blog is one of the first blogs I started reading 5-6 years ago.  This article might offend some people out there, but I don't mind as I agree with her 100% and wanted to pass it on to my readers.  Please check it out and leave me a comment on if you agree or disagree. It is a great reminder on why we do things!  

The Battle We Didn't Choose::  A touching series of photos through a woman's battle with cancer documented by her husband. Hint: If you click on the top picture it will enlarge it and you can arrow through them in order.  He also has several videos and other things on his site related to his wife's journey.

Are Your Shoes Healthy::  I love my Merrill minimalist shoes. I have not run in them, as I have no current issues running in my normal Brooks running shoe. So why change what isn't broken? At some point I would love to try a short run in minimalist shoes, but I would probably go for one that would be a better transition then the Merrill shoe I currently own.  

How To Repair Denim Jeans At Home::  Love this, but I would have no idea how to do this at home. Wonder if there are other places that do this kind of mending job other then NYC? 

The Scared is scared:: A very cute video, a must see! I love listening to kids and hearing the stories they create! 

Anonymous Comments:: Love this article. I have had so many annoying anonymous comments recently on my post, most of them spam.  So frustrating! 

In case you missed it, here is what I had on my blog recently: 

One Door Closed In A Hallway Of Options {Pregnancy Loss Continued}

We Have A Winner & Other Business

You Are What You Eat {My Elimination Diet}

Spinach Ice Cubes For Smoothies

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! 

Fitness & Health Bucket List {Fitness Friday 1.4.13}

If you read many blogs you have probably noticed many posts about new years resolutions, goals, etc.  Of course, it is already January 4th and I have yet to publish my 2013 goals.  But I do not always like to follow the crowd or be forced into a "mold".....so I'm doing mine a little different this year.  I'm borrowing Musings of a Housewife's idea and doing a bucket list for 2013.  So today I am sharing my Fitness & Health Bucket List for 2013.  Next week I will share my general bucket list.  

1.  Learn to run ALONE.  I started running about 3 years ago (I think) and have always run with a buddy. If I do not have someone to run with I just don't run. Yeah, I suck!  I hate this and want to change it in 2013.  B is working with me on a running plan to improve my running time and distance. Next week will be my first week on the plan and I will be running it alone.  I hope I learn to like running by myself, so I do not always have to depend on having someone to run along side me! Although, I do love running with my buddies so I can chat and catch up. 

2.  Start AGAIN & Consistently Attend Spin Class, Yoga, and Strong Bodies. I did a great job this last summer attending these classes several times a week and LOVED going.  Then I flew to KS a couple times towards the end of the summer and never got back into the classes when I came back home.  I became busy with other commitments and working out took a back seat to everything else in my life.  I do not want this to happen again and I will strive to remain active in classes all year!  I have a fun incentive we are doing this year to keep us on track for our workouts that I will share with you next Friday. 

3.  Read Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and The Diet Dictocrats by Sally Fallon. I have owned this book for over a year and haven not read any of it yet. Shame on me!!!  It has 688 pages, so if I read a couple pages a day I will have it read by the end of the year.  I will read more then a couple of pages a day, so it wont take me all year to finish it-I hope!  

4. Stay away from Gluten, Dairy, and Coffee.  I am not perfect, so I know I cant avoid these foods everyday for the next year, but I am starting on the Arbonne Get Fit plan again which includes not eating these items and more. These are the foods I have found that do not like me and in order for me to get to my goal weight and be healthy I need to cut these out of my diet.  I will discuss more of my eating plan on Monday, so check back for further details.  

5. Run a 10K.  This was on my list last year and I never accomplished running a 10K in 2012.  So 2013 is my year to run a 10K.  I hope to be up to a 10K within 6 months, which should not be a problem if I stick to the plan B has set up. 

The thing about making a list of goals is to actually be consistent and work on that list throughout the year.  So I will be posting my Fitness & Health Bucket List around the house and will include little baby steps on how to achieve each item on the list! 

I am also starting a health & fitness journal that I will record my meals and workouts everyday.  I'll also record my starting weight & measurements and continue to record these every 30 days.  It will be a great record of what I achieve when I stay committed and intentional.  

Here is a video I have been wanting to share that is VERY motivational.  You might have seen it already, but it is worth another watch.  



Do you set goals or have a bucket list?  Do you keep a fitness or health journal?  How do you achieve your goals and keep them in front of you so you are consistently working on them? 

I would love to know what your fitness and health goals are for the year, so let me know in the comments!  

Linking up with Jill Conyers Fitness Friday

Til' next time,

5K Recap {Fitness Friday 12.21.12}

It is so nice to be starting my weekly posts again that I was doing up until a few months ago.  I have done several 5k runs in the last few months, so I figured I should catch everyone up with a 5k recap.  I wasn't worried about times on these, even though I should be, so I'm not sharing with you my finish times.  This is one of my fitness goals in 2013, but more on that next week.

My running the last few months has not been consistent and I did not get to run the 10k in November like I wanted.  I ended up having plans the weekend of the run, which is fine because there was no way I was prepared for a 10k.  I am excited to start January off with getting healthy and getting back to my workout schedule!

In September, I signed up for the Hispanic Heritage Gate to Gate run which is about 4 miles.  For those that are not familiar with military bases, we refer to the entrances of the post as gates. So the run was from one of the gates to another.  Within the first two miles there is a REALLY LONG and BIG hill.  This was the only thing I was NOT looking forward to.  I successfully made it almost the entire way up the hill.  I didn't make it to the top, but I sure made it further up the hill then I thought I would, so I was satisfied!  B rides his bike on that route and always struggles getting to the top also, which makes me feel a little better about not getting to the top.  

A group of us decided to have a team for the run. Our team name was Fit Mother Ruckers. One of the girls made us really fun shirts for the run.  We each picked something we wanted on the front of the shirt. I picked a coffee cup since coffee is my kryptonite. I have a love/hate relationship with that wonderful brown stuff!

 Bad picture, but it is the only one I got of the front of the shirt

  Back of the shirt

 Before the run

 Fit Mother Rucker Team

In October, a friend and I ran the Spooky 5k. I have run a couple of Halloween 5ks but have never dressed up in anything other then my running gear.  So this year I decided it was time for me to run in a costume.  It was decided we wanted to be super heroes.  I did not want to be a famous super hero, so I decided to make up my own.  After much thought, I finally figured out what my super hero name should be while chatting with B one night before bed.
I was........

Speedy Stevie!

Are you wondering why I decided to be Speedy Stevie?  Well it is kind of an inside joke from college.  My roommate in college started calling me Stevie and the name stuck.  I thought it would die out after college, but I'm still called Stevie by multiple people!  If you want to know the whole story, shoot me an email or leave a comment. If I get enough interest I might think about sharing it with my lovely readers!

I had fun designing & making my outfit, but I spent way to much time on it. So I know what I'm wearing for the Halloween run next year. Although I bet I wont be wearing shorts in KS for the Halloween run!  I am REALLY going to miss the AL winters.

Here are some shots of the outfit up close.

 Speedy Stevie arm band--made out of felt.  

Shout out to my mom....LOVE my watch. Thank you so much! 

 Speedy Stevie Cape--made with a fun shiny material and black duct tape. 

The letters are black felt. 

My t-shirt. Again, logo is made out of felt

 This is a really cheesy shot of me, but I had to show you the side view with my cape

I definitely (wink, wink) did not run up and down our hallway the night before the run testing out my cape flying abilities!

My running buddies for Spooky 5K

The next 5K I ran was the Chili 5K. It included a chili cook-off  After the run you could buy tickets and can go around and taste chili.  It smelled SOOOO good.  We didn't stay to taste chili though, B struggles eating things like that since he is allergic to onions.  

Running buddies at Chili 5K

A couple weeks ago I ran the Jingle Bell 5k.  I was not motivated or wanting to run this one, so did not feel like taking any pictures. I'm sure I'll regret that when it comes time to scrapbook. 

This is the only shot I have, thanks to someone else getting a group shot! 

And that catches you up on my running activities the past few months.  I plan to do several more 5k runs in January & February, as it motivates me to keep running.  Next week I will share with you my goals for 2013.  

I'm linking up with Jill for Fitness Friday.  

Til' next time,