Smiley Faces

You know how in elementary school it was really exciting to get a sticker on your paper? And how it was equally as devastating to not get a sticker, or to get red marks all over the place?

Well...If you get perfect attendance for the week at our gym, you get a smiley face sticker at the end of your workout log.

I am really ridiculously motivated to get a smiley face sticker. I didn't get one last week because I had strep, and it bothers me that there is just a blank space there. I look at other peoples' workout logs in the attendance basket and get pissed when I see they have 3 weeks perfect attendance and I only have two.

Sure, I'm motivated by a lot of other things to be there - but I'm a 25 year old adult. Why does a sparkly smile face motivate me to workout? Is it really that simple? This is silly.

Giggles

I don't like it when I hear hype about a movie. I build these expectations up in my head, and then when I see it, I find myself disappointed. How can I not LOOOVE a movie sooo much like I heard 15 other people say they loved it? What's wrong with me?

I also don't like it when someone takes one of my favorite books and turns it into a movie. What will they forget to include? How differently will the main character look on the screen than they did in my head.

So it had me worried. Where the Wild Things Are. It had a lot of hype, and it's just a darn good childrens' book as far as I'm concerned.

As I walked into the theater tonight, I saw a mix of viewers. Couples on dates, high school students, nostalgic groups of late twenty-somethings, and families with kids. Ahhh kids.

I sat in front of a little girl with one of the most contagious giggles. You know the kind I'm talking about. The giggle you hear that makes you smile from ear to ear. She would react to the movie in the most perfect and childlike way.

Have you seen the movie Finding Neverland? (**spoiler alert**) You know how at the end of the movie they fill the empty spots in the theater with the little orphan children who make the whole show more enjoyable for the adults? This movie experience was kind of like that for me. (On a much smaller scale of course)

If you go...and if you can...find a giggler and sit near them. Not a seat-kicker or a loud snack eater or the one that has to pee three times.

This movie is so full of innocence and imagination that you truly must view it through the eyes of a child.

Trust me on this one.

Birthday Boy!

A limerick for my husband on his birthday:

There once was a boy named Jay,
His birthday is actually today.
He turns twenty-eight
And I think he's great.
But this poem is just okay.

Sweet Potato Fries

Day 3 and I feel we've made a really great decision.

I feel great. I've noticed a higher level of energy throughout my day. No more yawns after lunch for me. No more 4:00 wall.

I'm looking forward to my workouts. I leave them completely exhausted - I feel like I could put no more effort into those 45 minutes than I already am. My muscles hurt and are reminding me that they actually exist again. But I love it.

We get home from working out every night about 5:30. Then Jay and I make a healthy meal together, sit down to eat and talk about our days. My meals satisfy me, but I don't feel stuffed. I never quite feel starving either. I'm eating foods that came from the ground - not a can, not processed and in a package. And I'm loving it.

My most favorite recent discovery and thing that I love, love, love!: sweet potato fries.



-Peel (or don't peel) sweet potato
-slice into fry-like shapes
-toss in a tsp. extra virgin olive oil
-spread on cookie sheet - lightly salt
-bake on 450 for 20-30 minutes
- Enjoy! No ketchup needed with this yummy treat!


DELICIOUS! These things are so good I was worried they were bad for me. But the sweet potato ranked #1 in nutrition for vegetables on some food reference website. YAY! It's simple things like this that will keep me going!

Do you have any healthy recipes you really enjoy?

The mile

Do you remember the feeling you had the night before you had to run the mile in P.E.? For some, it was excitement - the opportunity to beat last year's record. It was a thrill, it was a race. For others, dread, nervousness, fear. Will this be the year that I am the slowest kid in my class? Will I have to stop and...(gasp)...walk?

I was always a kid in the second category. I never ended up the slowest kid in my class - not even close. But it was always my fear that I would be. I never had to stop and walk, I think I was too afraid to. I felt like if I walked, I was giving up.

So why is this relevant? Why am I writing about this now?

Tomorrow I have to run the mile. Tomorrow someone will ask me to do as many push-ups and sit-ups as I can. They'll ask me to sit and reach. They'll measure every inch of me. They'll weigh me. They'll tell me what percentage of my body is fat. They'll take my picture in a 2 piece swimsuit. Tomorrow I have to own up to the consequences of some bad habits. Because pictures, measurements, scales - they don't lie.

And after all of this is done, the real fun begins. It's something I need to do, and Jay has decided we'd make a good team. So we're going to try this together. We've committed to 10 weeks. 45 minutes a day. 6 days a week. Oh, and to change our eating habits, too.

My hope is that we learn some lessons, and we form some healthy habits. I hope that I get my butt kicked by some workouts and remember that the wonderful feeling of exhausted muscles and a buzz of endorphins far outweighs a great meal and a sitcom on the couch.

But tonight, I'm a little anxious. I'm a little excited. Just like the mile - I dread the hard work it will take. I'm nervous to try something new. And I fear that I will fail.

But my bigger fear is not trying at all. So for tomorrow, I'll run the mile. It's a start. : )

Would you like a cup of tea?

I have this horrible cold that started about a week ago. It's been one of those colds you can't ignore - constantly blowing my nose, losing my voice, and coughing. I'm sure this is the first of many that will come during the cold and flu season at school. It comes with the job.

During lunch today, someone suggested I try a NetiPot. She said she swears by it.

"It's a little teapot like thing, and you mix a solution and it clears up your sinuses".

Seemed simple enough. After school, I ran to HyVee and I found the little blue teapot, picked it up, and checked out. No further glances taken.

I didn't closely examine the package until I got home.

I thought: teapot - tea like solution - drink - feel better?

In reality: teapot - saltlike solution - stick the spout up your nose - blow. GROSS!!!

The person on the cover enjoying a nice drink of tea...wasn't drinking tea at all. He was pouring through his nose! ICK!!!

Since youtube has videos of EVERYTHING out there - I found a demonstration of my experience.

Some radio guys try a Neti Pot

I swear I'll try anything to get rid of this cold, and so, yes, I did try the NetiPot. Although the NetiPot did clear my sinuses temporarily, they have clogged again.

The temporary relief may have been worth it though. I might have to try it again later.