Sexy and I Know It

Today I went running to the music "Sexy and I Know It".  Last Friday I ran 9 miles for the FIRST TIME while I was wearing my "Sexy and I Know It" shirt...I figured I'm on to something. 

Very motivational.

 

 

(It looks wayyyy better on me :)

 

I'm sad to admit that I kind of took a break last week due to the October Break holiday for school.  I played a lot and only went running once.  However, I still did a lot of bike rides and I decided that even if it takes me all year to train, as long as I'm working forward, it's fine with me.  Some days I feel great like I can run forever, and others I am exhausted like I was today. 

 

Today I rode my bike 4 miles, ran the tracker for another 4 miles and then went jogging in the fields with Mr. Bradshaw in the afternoon.  I had no energy and had to let him jog circles around me. I've been ready for bed since 5pm. 

 

Today is mine and Mr. Bradshaw's 6th month wedding anniversary which we celebrated by him putting some Halloween lights up in our yard and me kissing him and throwing together his dinner as he ran out the door for work.  It wasn't much but it was a pretty good kiss and I did make him a chicken pot roast for dinner. 

 

Mr. Bradshaw has turned my mountain bike into a Cadillac of bikes.  I now use it to go all over town, usually with Harlee in tow.

 

 

It's been a great addition to my training and the weather in Sahuarita is perfect so it's been a lot of fun going on bike rides with Harlee.  (3)

 

Mr. Bradshaw even bought me an awesome pink camo Duck Dynasty long sleeve biking top and a matching hat, so not only am I getting great exercise but I'm doing it in STYLE.

 

 

Tonight the pot roast I made for the fam was made of chicken thighs and was covered in a little olive oil, garlic salt and pepper. I put it in a crock pot of veggies; carrots, potatoes, baby onions, mushrooms and later I added peas. I also put a 12 oz. jar of chicken gravy over the chicken when I first put it in. Heated on low for 8 hrs. and viola!  Love those quick and easy meals.  Everyone loved it and it was fairly healthy.  I don't always make meat for my kids...but it was better than something smothered in cheese or sour cream or fried on the stove top. 

 

For myself I made the following:

 

Fresh Tomato Pasta Sauce

 

4 large ripe tomatoes                                     1/2 t minced fresh garlic

1/2 C thinly sliced onion                                1/4 t salt

        separated into rings                                freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/4 C finely chopped fresh basil

 

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Serve at once over cooked pasta or let rest at room temperature, up to one hour, until ready to serve.

 

 

Another great find at the grocery store was this stuff

 

 



 

Very little sugar and fat and really delicious with vegetables.  I heat stir fry veggies on the stove top with water (bell peppers, onion, mushrooms) and mix this in with rice or couscous.  Really yummy!

 

Good luck during this month of October when chocolate is all around us...may we all be strong enough to eat just ONE!

 

I'm enjoying the journey in my daily accomplishments and hope to continue to overcome new obstacles that come my way.  Accomplishment in one area always leads to confidence that you can overcome a challenge in another. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself

My awesome battle wound from my first time ever wake surfing!  I wish I could say I rode the water like a boss but I didn't.   However, I did get up and ride it so I was happy with that.  On one of my crash landings the board smacked me in the head just as I came up for air.  At the time, I was really upset at the pain, now however, I'm rather liking the proof I have of my hard work...as my stepson would say, "Beast!"

The battle wounds of life, some displayed obviously on the exterior of our bodies like my eye, and others stored internally as an obstacle still waiting to be overcome, are reminders of what we are wanting to accomplish. At each check point we have a decision to make; to keep going or to quit. 

Personal goals are not just about accomplishing the one obstacle in front of us, they are about finding self discipline; a feeling of freedom in knowing that we have complete control over our thoughts, our actions, and the success we feel in our daily lives.  To have the power to accomplish whatever we so choose.



One of the hardest things I've ever done in my life was to change the person that I had become.
When I was about 21, I decided that my life was not going the way I had always thought it would.  I was living a fun, carefree lifestyle but I was not headed in the direction of my dreams.  All at once I made the decision to change paths.  I, as much as I loved them, stopped meeting up with my friends, changed my wardrobe, the things I did for fun, the kinds of music I listened to, the things I watched on TV...almost everything about the way I had been living came to a haulting STOP.
I instantly starting reading books that filled my mind with the kinds of things I wished to dwell on.  As hard as it was, I started spending my time alone or with people with whom I did not have much in common with but, that I wanted to share common goals with.  Slowly, everything about me started to change.  It was a difficult transition because not only did I feel very alone but I also didn't at first really want the changes I was making for myself.   I only made them because I knew I should.
Not anywhere close to a perfect person, I am grateful everyday for that period of my life that I call "change".  I learned that I can be anyone I want to be.  I also learned that with a strong determination and focus, our minds can change as well...we can begin to see ourselves the way we want other to see us.

Since that time I have had great success in my attempts to make a difference in my life or the lives of others. I have also failed at things I have tried to accomplish the first or second time but, I have never given up.  Some of those things are still a work in progress...

As we make goals; for our family, for our career, for our physical or mental health, etc., it's important to remember that we are influential and powerful.  We set an example, even if it's just for those in our home, and we can motivate others.  Settling for less than we are meant to be encourages others to do the same. 

I have always felt a solemn responsibility to find my purpose in life, to figure out what it is exactly that I was sent here to do. I think that maybe the answer to that question changes a little through different stages of life but, it is my own personal goal to always be working towards accomplishing that task that seems to be mine.  Sometimes it's harder to find the task that will best serve us then it is to accomplish it.  Looking outside our comfort zone will usually provide the answer...