Couch Potato to 5k...

Before girls camp in July I had worked up to "week 3" of my c25k (couch to 5k) training... then after camp, I never got back to it.

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After a month went by, I just knew I was back to week one starting all over again, sucking air again!

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But much to my surprise, I could do week 1 pretty easily. I continued it just to make myself keep doing something, and to try and build back up slowly as to eliminate any possible injuries. (let's just face it... all this weight, running... seems like an injury just waiting to happen).

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But deep inside, I knew I could challenge myself more.

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So this morning, I tied up my running shoes and turned on c25k WEEK 2!! In all honesty, until I hit the halfway mark, I didn't believe in myself that I could do it, and finish it. But at half way I KNEW I could!!!!!

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It was such a great feeling, to KNOW I could push myself this way (and survive)! A victory for me in my journey!

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I am so grateful for Courage (with a BIG C), and that my body and muscles will respond to what I am asking it to do, even when I push it, and for answered prayers!

God is Good!!!

Pioneer Handcart Trek...

I heard officially last night, that our Stake is planning our next Pioneer Handcart Trek for 2011.

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The only details I know is that we will go to Martins Cove the 1st week of August 2011.

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So if I am still serving in the Stake young women then, I hope Jim and I will get to go!

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The teenager will be on his mission! Wow, that is a crazy feeling to think about right now!! But I can't think of a better way to pass the time while he is gone, than to be going on a trek to Martins Cove. He will be crushed he doesn't get to go though, he has wanted to go back every since we got home in 2006.

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If you don't know anything about a pioneer handcart trek, ask me! We got to experience this as a family the summer of 2006. And it was a life changing event for each of us!! We loved it!!!

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I am SOOOOOO excited!!!!!!

Ski bunny...

(this was me a hundred years ago... I used to be quite the ski bunny back then)

I had a very exciting conversation with Jim yesterday...

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I was on my way to get new plates for one of our vehicles; we had gotten a letter they wanted the boy scout plates back, they weren't making them anymore :(

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And Idaho offers lots of different logos on their plates now, so I asked Jim if he had something in mind he wanted me to replace it with.

He said just get the cheapest, and you can pick it out. So I asked if he was okay with getting the "skier dude"... because it is one of my goals to be healthy and strong enough to hit the slopes this winter, and what a motivation that would be for me to see it on my license plate everyday!

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He said sure, with some ?? in his voice... and I so I asked him if I was healthy enough to be a ski bunny this winter, would he take me to Bogus Basin?

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And this was his reply... (I am having him sign a document stating this promise).

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"Honey, if you can hit the slopes this winter, I will take time off work and take you on a ski trip to Sun Valley skiing; just the two of us".

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I almost started crying, I was soooo excited!

How is that for motivation!

I am working my buns off to get there now!

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**Note to self - don't lose focus, you can do it, winter will be here in less than 3 months!! Any pain you feel now, will be reaped in rewards a thousand times over in the snow with your husband!! YEA!!!

The Biggest Loser...

I am so excited the Biggest Loser is back on again.

It is so inspiring to me... not just the crazy amount of weight the contestants are able lose in a week, but how their minds and lifestyles change (or don't).

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You can hear them the first week, "stuck" in their habits and still listening to all those negative thoughts that are going through their heads (by the way God would never say those terrible things to us, ever, so where are they coming from?... yep, oohhh he is so evil) saying

"Oh I can't do it, it's too hard".

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Jim got trapped watching it with me, and he was making fun that when they first arrived from home, they were all gungho and talking about how they are going to take advantage of this second chance in life... and only 45 min. into the show they are giving up and quitting (and puking). The trainers were amusing to him too! When Bob explains how you have to burn more than you take in and the deficit is the amount of weight you lose... he was LOL mocking and saying what a great concept, I have been telling you that for years honey. (okay, maybe I don't want him to watch it with me... he was kind of wrecking it for me... Mr. know it all still wearing the same size jeans since high school).

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But season after season after season... they come to a place in their journey (some earlier that others), and they will discover they CAN do it... that their bodies respond to what they ask it to do, time after time. Even at very heavy weights. And when they push themselves, they can do more than they think they can. And by the end of the season, the theme at the finale is always, "when I got my head out of the way, my body could do it".

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I have been working on my own personal "big lose"... It is a huge journey for me, but I have a big goal to get to by Jacob's graduation in the spring. So that is pretty motivating for me! I have been overweight since he was born, and he has only ever known me this way. And it is definitely NOT who I am!! So I am working to show myself and to show him, who I really am and what I am capable of!

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I have a friend who is "living her journey outloud" and sharing it on her blog. I have a private blog going to journal my progress and victories. But it takes some kind of courage that I just don't have yet to "live life outloud". I might share glimpses here, but I am still working on the courage to get over being judged, and feeling the strength within to share my journey "outloud". But I totally LOVE the concept and I am so proud of you Melody!!

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Look out world, when I find my courage!

Home sweet home...

Yea! My strong silent mysterious man is home!!!

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I am so happy he doesn't go on business trips very often. We didn't have a routine of when he would call, and he couldn't remember that he was an hour ahead of us... so some nights he would call late, and other nights I would wait up late and he was thinking the 3pm checkin call he had made earlier was good enough.... it was just unsettling all week.

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The dogs are really happy to have him home too! They couldn't get enough of him last night.

And he brought them sursee's from one of the trade shows he went to.

Morgan loves her new funky chicken.

(a sursee is our word for surprise.... I think my sister started it when she was little and couldn't say surprise, so it came out sursee)

Happily together again!

It is funny because he was telling us about his trip and all the meals he had to eat out, and while our bank account was frozen up because of our fraud activity (which looks like it might all be cleared up by the end of the day today, yipee) we couldn't eat out all week even if we wanted to... so we are druling over the food he is telling us about. And he just wants a home cooked meal, and is sick of eating out.

It's all about perspective huh!

Oh, and this would be our bed this morning....

Yes, note the paradyme shift of all the pillows to the left...which would indicate if the bodies followed.... he is definitely over "the line", hence the reason I am clinging to the edge every morning. haha

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And then there is the "knarly cover swirl thing"... oh I won't even go there.

It's just good to have him home and have covers to have to find and fix every morning, and have a warm bed to have to cling to the side of.

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God is Good!