Spreading the Love!!!

So excited to receive this blog award from my friend and Fitness Challenge buddy Jessica at See How She Runs. She gave me the Liebster Blog Award. Jessica is awesome ~ be sure to follow her blog!!!  "Liebster" means "favorite" or "love" in German and can be presented to bloggers you love that have under 200 followers.

I am super excited to pass this award on to....


Sarah @ Fat Little Legs - She is pregnant and getting ready to have her 2nd child. She has had an extremely difficult pregnancy, but has come through this experience amazingly! I think of her daily and when I'm struggling, I think of her and say, "If Sarah can do what she's doing, then I can do this!!!" Also prior to her pregnancy she lost over 100 pounds. This Sister gets things done!! She truly is an inspiration to me!! Good luck my Friend, I'm praying for you and your precious little one!!!


Lori at My Journey through the Deepest, Darkest Weight Loss - This Sister is a fighter!!! She's lost over 80 pounds and is almost to her goal!!! I love her because she is a faithful Friend and encouraging!! She is someone who will reach her goals! She's got what it takes!


Michele at Ruminations and Uncovering: Toward a New ME! ~ I love this Sister!!! She is inspiring. She does not let ANYTHING get her down. She faces her fears daily and pushes through all obstacles. I like that she's not afraid to try new things. She's inspiring!!


Margene at Believing it's Possible ~ This Sister gets things done!!! She has lost over 100 pounds and looks great. I know it because I've met her. She's my Oregon buddy!! I was privileged enough to be able to run two 5k's with her, her family and friends. We had a blast. I might add, that she totally kicked my butt both times, but that's OK, she deserves to win....because she is a WINNER!! She has since moved to Utah....I miss you my Friend!


Sharon at Gains and Losses: Life through Sharon's Eyes ~ Sharon is a Sister who is very creative. Her writing style and pictures are amazing. I think she should write for travel magazines ~ She's that good! I also love that when she writes, she gets to the bottom of things and really touches my heart. She is inspiring!!! Also, she's near her goal weight and is looking good!!!!


Sam at Believe In Yourself ~ I love this Sister! She is a sweet and kind...but also a fighter! She is very supportive to me and I value her friendship so much! This girl is going to reach her goals. She's got what it takes!!!


Kimberlynn at Minding My Weigh ~ My dear Sister has not posted in over a month and I'm worried for her. She is such an amazing woman! She's intelligent, funny, inspiring and just a really nice person! IF YOU WOULD SPREAD THE LOVE AND VISIT HER, I WOULD BE MOST GRATEFUL! She's just amazing and I would love to see her back! Love YOU my Friend!!!!


Other bloggers I love....but they have over 200 followers... 


Chris at A Deliberate Life ~ She is another Sister who sets me straight! If I get off track and flounder, she's the one I ask to kick me in the hiney to get me on the straight and narrow. She's lost over 100 pounds and is now learning how to maintain her weight. She's doing awesome and is very thoughtful and inspiring!! 



Kristin at Bringing Pretty Back ~ I love Kristin!! This Sister looks at things in a beautiful way. She's very talented, funny, and inspirational. She has helped me learn to see myself as pretty and inspires me to make my surroundings pretty. Plus she's beautiful herself ~ Inside and Out!! 


Mary G at A Small Loss ~ I love Mary because she is faithful - She's there for me! I also love that she's a risk taker....she just moved across the country for work! This girl has tenacity and is also a big loser. She's lost over 146 pounds and looks great! She is a Sister that will go far in life. She's got what it takes!!!!


Sue at  Mrs. Fatass - This Sister cracks me up!! I love her sense of humor. Plus she's going to be a Super Star...I just know it!! She's so real, I feel like I've known her for years!! 


I would love to give everyone this award!!! Take it and spread the love!!

Love you~

KEEP FOCUSED!!!!!

Day 54 & 55 - 7 Month Focus

Day 54.....Lets just say is was an epic FAILURE!!! No exercise, calories were over the top, did not get my water in, did not journal my food and did not blog. Guess what???? I'm up 2 pounds....Hum!!

Day 55....Success so far!!!                                                       

So I woke up kind of early....feeling really sluggish....Well it's no wonder why!!!! Anyway, I got on the scale and found that I was up 2 pounds. I promptly went right back to bed ~ defeated!!!!

I'm laying there and my Hubby comes in to give me a kiss goodbye - he works on Sundays. He can tell right off, that I'm in a "mood" and asked what it was about. Once I was done with my boo hooing he simply gives me a hug and says a prayer for me, right then and there!! He leaves for the day and I'm still laying there.

I had a big choice to make...I could lay there for the rest of the day and waste it or I could get up and make some stuff happen.

First thing I did was check out my email from my Blog Friends. I decided to read one that caught my eye and it was from Dawn at Bare it all. (Sorry I don't know how to link to her site) Anyway she was talking about an event she went to and referenced another blog from Kelly Olexa. On Kelly's blog for the day, I saw a statement that I think has changed my life!! Here it is:

"Success must be felt within before it can be seen on the outside."

Deep down I have know this to be true. For me I also know that if you don't feel it....you don't feel it. This is not something you can make up or pretend to have. You've really got to get it in there. Fortunately I've had the feeling before....then lost it. So I know what I'm looking for.

With a smidgen of hope and desire to be successful I decided to get on my treadmill. Do you know that there are only 7 days until my first time at running in a 5(k) and I do not even know if I can do it. I don't think I've ever ran that far ~ ever!!! Do you know how much stress and pressure that puts on a person? Especially when you are fearful that you will get kicked off the course because you can't do it. I just don't want that to happen. And yet.....I have neglected even trying to see if it's a possibility for me. I decided that I needed to really bust this fear out of the water.. So I set out to see how far I can really run.

I'm on my treadmill.....remember with just a thread of hope.....the speed settings were at 3.2......I'm nervous.....holding on to the handle (for crying out loud!!!)....and I'm waiting for something to happen. And all of a sudden, this success mantra started in my head. (I wanted to stop and write it down, but I did not want to break the spell so I pushed on) I kept repeating the mantra...something like...."You're a success...you can do it!" (Sorry can't really remember what the full thing was) I guess it does not matter because all of a sudden my hands left the handle I was holding, my fists curled in to balls and I took a runners pose and got busy! For a while, I kept my eye on the gauge and watched the numbers move toward my 3.1 mile goal. Each minute that went by the closer I got. At some point during all of this the mantra in my head got louder and I got more determined as I got past 30 minutes of running without stopping. Then I set my focus on something and I swear I just went somewhere else. I did not see the treadmill gauge, TV or anything else in the room. No it was just me and my mantra....speaking success into my run and a new determination struck me.....I knew then, that I was not going to stop until I reached my goal. I was going to make it. I was going to have success!! And I DID IT!!

Probably the slowest 5k ever...I clocked in at 52 minutes. But it does not matter. I did it. I ran it for 52 minutes without stopping!!!!

Once I was done, it felt like I was walking on a cloud. You know that's an amazing feeling!!

I was so happy to receive the blog award for Jessica. She's been an awesome support to me. If you don't know her now, go visit her, you will not be sorry. I have decided that I would give the award to Dawn at Bare it all. Because of what she wrote today helped change the way I think and I was able to achieve success!! Thank you Dawn!!!!

How about you? Are you looking for your success!

Keep focused!!

Day 47 - 7 Month Focus

Yesterday we had a fabulous time visiting my Sister in Law Tracy and her family. She has terminal cancer. I have to tell you she is a fighter! Looking at her you would never know that she is ill. She looks great! It was so fun seeing her smile and having fun with everyone. They are truly an amazing loving family. So awesome to see them pull together during a very difficult time. I am so Blessed to have been able to see them all!!

Had an OK day with my 7 Month Focus plan. Missed the mark in a couple of areas. Some of the things I just did not have control over. We ended up having a very healthy lunch and then they ordered Chinese food. I felt like I did OK, as I had a very small amount of the Chinese food, but when I entered the info into the Bodybugg system, the calories really piled up!

Yesterday's Stats....

Exercise: Walked 1 hour with Hubby (so much fun!!!)
Steps: 10282
Calories: 2121
Food Tracking: Done
Water: 80 oz ~ Were were in the car for 6 hours - felt I needed to keep this under control :-)
Blog: Done


I received an Award from Candy & Kankles . I am so thankful she thought of me. I am honored!!

So now I am to tell you 7 things about myself...

1.) Food I love the most ~ Chocolate.....Food I don't like ~ Brussels Sprouts....Nasty stuff!

2.) Things I really want to do.....Row in the Senior Olympic Games, Para sail again - this time with a smaller body - probably won't feel like I will fall out of the harness and plunge to my death!, ride a horse, write my novel, travel around the U.S. and see ALL the sights!, pay $10 for a glass of lemonade at a lemonade stand ~ wouldn't that be the funnest thing to do...give some kid ten bucks for a glass of juice...it would blow their mind!, snow ski again, get up on a water ski, oh there are so many things.....

3.) I blush and then pretend to be having a hot flash. REALLY - don't know which one is more embarrassing!! I'm a dork!

4.) Love love love to play in the dirt!!! Gardening is so much fun! Gives me so much joy. I really love seeing things grow. Biggest set back for me is.....watering. Geez it's the most important thing. I really have to work at this! My goal this year is to really focus and get my plants watered when they need it. I want my plants to really flourish!

5.) I think it would be so fun to live in the city and not have a car and only rely on the metro system to get around. Oh and I would also love to live in a small town, where everyone knows your business. Well that would be fun...because you would know theirs too! I also would love to live in the country on a farm and grow my own food and of course I would have animals, most importantly a horse. Oh and then I would love to live in the mountains next to a stream - don't you just love rushing waters? And finally, living at the ocean would be amazing!

6.) I think it would be really fun to own a coffee shop, bakery, flower shop, garden nursery or craft store.

7.) Really want to speak in front of thousands of people. I have no idea what I would say, but I really want to do it!

Now I delighted to give this award to 15 of my friends~

A Deliberate Life

Believing it's Possible is half the battle

Bringing Pretty Back

Fat Little Legs

Gains And Losses: Life Through Sharon's Eyes

I Will Lay Down My Idols

It's My Time...

Jane Is Weighing In

Learning to be Less

Minding My Weigh

My Journey Through Deepest, Darkest Weight Loss

PAM'S PATH

Patience, Progress, and Perseverance

Pounds Off Playoff

Ruminations and Uncovering: Toward a New ME!

See How She Runs

Shabby Chic Mom

Skinny Girl Set Free



Oops I went over...Oh well. Enjoy your award my Friends!!

How are you doing today? Are you on track and reaching for your goals?????

Keep focused!!!!!

10 Honest Things About Me!

So honored!! I received this award from Ellen on December 17th.

Ellen thank you so much for thinking of me. I truly appreciate your support!! You are doing a great job with everything - keep it up!!

So my job is to post 10 honest things about myself and give this award to 4 other bloggers who have shown tremendous honesty through their blogs.

Here you go!!

1.) I want to help others! I would love to be this inspirational person who imparts wisdom to other people that will help change, shape and mold their lives. I would love for people, who when they are old and gray and sitting on their porch, rocking in their rocking chairs and rethinking their lives... I would love for them to remember, and I don't even care if they remember my name, but I would love it if they would say, "that woman, way back when, she told me something that changed my life." To be honest...I have so many fears, road blocks and things in my life that make me feel like I could never be that woman. However, I am learning how to bust through those things to achieve this goal!!

2.) I would really love to love God's people more than I do. I watch Dog the Bounty Hunter on TV (well they said to be honest) and he loves the people he deals with. Some of these people are drug addicts, thieves, murders etc. But he loves them. Some how he sees beyond the mess that can be seen on the outside and sees right through to their hearts. That's what I want to do. He loves them and wants to help. To be honest....I have a long way to go on this one! The good thing is, every day I feel more and more love fill my heart!!

3.) I want to be a woman of my word. If I say I'm going to be there at 10:00am. I want to arrive at 9:45am. If I say I will do that for you. I want to do it with joy! If I say you can count on me...I want to be able to do it. To be honest. I need to work on this one....Especially the on-time thing. I'm getting better :-)

4.) I want to get this weight off and live a normal healthy lifestyle. To be honest. I'm getting there!! So much further along than ever before. I am hopeful for 2011! I want to see results - no matter the obstacles (Like my hurt back!)!!!

5.) I feel like the Lord has placed a big task before me. I so want to believe He really has that for me and that I'm capable and prepared enough to do it. To be honest. My belief in myself is low regarding this area. The task just seems too big and laborious for me. HOWEVER, I'M THINKING MORE AND MORE THAT THIS IS WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO...More on the later...much later!!

6.) I want to be this amazing wife...Kind of like the super mom, but I want to be a super wife!! I want to be able to show love and affection, even if I don't want to. I want my hubby to come home to a clean, warm and happy home (Even if I don't want to do the work to get there) and I want to be the woman he can be proud of!! To be honest....I'm working on this and find this a fun goal to work toward!!

7.) I want to be an amazing mother and grandma (Baboo as my Gbabies call me). To be honest. I absolutely love being both a mom and grandmom. Those babies (all of them - big and small) fill my heart with joy!

8.) I want to be a creative person. I want to be a good & healthy cook. I want to make amazing sugar cookies (for friends & neighbors), I want to paint, craft and write. To be honest. I used to just think about these things. Now I'm dragging my stuff out and just creating. Some of the stuff is good, some not, it's the experience that makes me sooooo happy!!

9.) I want to be a very fit and healthy person. I really want to row in the Senior Olympics when I'm fifty. One more year to go!! Woo Hoo!! (I'm mean what are you gonna do - you will get old and that is just the way it is) Anyway, I also want to ride my bike, water ski, snow ski, ride a horse, play racquetball, golf, lift weights, swim and dance. To be honest. I had a blast in 2010 - I did some of these things and look forward to trying many more in 2011!!!

10.) Finally I want to be an awesome women of God!! I want to follow him with all my heart. I want to serve and love his people. I want to go when he says go! I want to be the child of God that he intended me to be. To be Honest. I am ever growing in this area and look forward to achieving this goal more than any of the other goals I have in my life!!

Now for the awards...I am to pick only 4, but I have to say, you all have inspired me and helped me through this journey. I will be forever grateful for you all!!!

Ruminations & Uncovering: Toward a New me - Michele is awesome, she makes me smile!! Every time I visit her blog, I feel like I'm going to a friends house. She is really making a difference in her life and the lives of others ~ she definitely makes a difference in my life!!!

Minding My Weigh - Kimberlynn is another friend who is making things happen!! She and I have a lot in common and I appreciate her support!!! She has a lot of wisdom and she is a person who is very organized and get things done!!!

Bringing Pretty Back - Kirstin is my new friend and she is amazing!! When I first ran across her blog, I did not want anything to do with anything that was pretty. After seeing her blog around, I decided to stop by. I am so glad I did!!! She is funny, insightful and encouraging!!!

A Deliberate Life - My friend Chris is inspirational!! She has a ton of wisdom, insights and advise. I love her straight forward, no nonsense approach to our weight loss and fitness journey. She will tell you like it is and even kick you in the hiney if you need it!! She has lost over 100 pounds and is close to her goals.


Congratulations to all!!

Keep focused!