Sunshine Award 2011

It's another beautiful spring day here in North Daktoa. Oh wait, it's not; a good portion of the state is in  a Blizzard Warning. Mother Nature is currently blessing us with more snow and winds blowing at 30-40mph.

I thought today would be a good day to proudly display the Sunshine Award that Jaclyn at Positive Ponderings awarded me this week. Thank you, Jaclyn! It's nice to know when it's cloudy outside, we can find sunshine inside at our computers on one another's blogs.

I hope you're all having a sunny Saturday, whether it's outdoors or indoors.

Friday Finds

My sister recently brought my attention to the blog New Dress A Day.

In November 2009, Marisa Lynch challenged herself to the following:

"The only shopping that I’ll be able to do is that of pieces that have been used and worn already. So long to mall trips and hello to sifting through piles of vintage pieces at flea markets and at neighborhood garage sales. Each day for the entire year, I’m going to introduce a new piece into my existing wardrobe that I’ve found from these places. On top of this, I’m giving myself a budget of $1 a day.



One person’s trash is becoming my treasure this year.


365 days. 365 items of clothing. 365 dollars."

Marisa is a very talented gal; go check out her awesome work!

Thursday's Two Words

sunbathing season

Book Quote: The Ersatz Elevator

I just finished reading The Ersatz Elevator, the sixth book in "A Series of Unfortunate Events" by Lemony Snicket.  (It's a great little series if you're interested in children's books.)  I ran across this quote last night and it made me smile:

"A good library will never be too neat, or too dusty, because somebody will always be in it, taking books off the shelves and staying up late reading them."

"Pinky" the ________?

Crickett received a new toy from the Easter Bunny. There is a difference of opinion between Mitch and myself regarding the type of animal this new toy represents. We would greatly appreciate your thoughts and opinions on this topic, so please leave a comment letting us know what kind of animal you think "Pinky" is.

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Sunday Smile

Happy Easter!

Welcome, Wayne

We welcomed Wayne into our family around 4:30 this morning. Here's what I know about the little guy's personality so far: he makes a lot of noise (scaring Crickett in the process) and he loves to play in the water. He seems to be having a good time here - he had several hours of fun in the water when Mitch brought him home this morning and a couple more hours of play this afternoon.

Friday Finds

A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine mentioned the Yahoo game "Typer Shark." I made fun of her for being an English nerd but after playing the game myself, I did have to admit it was quite fun. You can click here or look under word games in Yahoo Games to play.

Happy Friday!

Ten Things Tag

Ten Things That I Love Tag

Rules:

1. State who gave you this award in your post.

2. State 10 things that you love.

3. Give this award to 10 other bloggers, listing them at the end of the post, and notify them with a lovely comment.

Award-Giver:
Jaclyn at Positive Ponderings tagged me! Thanks for thinking of me, Jaclyn! As for the rest of you, go check out Positive Ponderings - it's a wonderful blog!

My loves:
1. Family (that includes my beautiful fur-baby!)
2. Friends (including those from blogland!)
3. Reading
4. Photography
5. Scrapbooking
6. Playing piano
7. Running
8. Numbers
9. Chocolate
10. Christmas

What do YOU love?
1. Andrisen 3
2. Broken Yet Whole
3. Caity
4. Dare to Tri
5. Diamonds on my Soles
6. Life on the Hilltop
7. My Random Life Story
8. The Amanda Jo
9. Viva Voce
10. You've Reached Matt & Jessica (Dexter, too!)

Spring Fever Challenge: Week 3

1.  What have you done this past week to help you achieve your goals?
Goal #1 - I have not started my walk-to-run program yet but I'm hoping tomorrow is the magic morning that I can drag myself out of bed.  Please keep your fingers crossed for me - I need all the help I can get.

Goal #2 - I succeeded at eating only two desserts for the week.  I definitely thought this would be harder for me than it has been.  Perhaps I should keep my mouth shut and not jinx myself.

Goal #3 - I drastically cut back on my Facebook and blog time and it felt good to not be attached to the computer so much.  There were a couple of days that I logged into Facebook more than once, but I didn't stick around too long.  I'm definitely glad I made this goal.

Goal #4 - I did not use my DSLR this week or last week because I keep forgetting that it's even on my list of goals!  I think I need to put my camera bag where I can see it on a regular basis.

Goal #5 - I haven't yet tackled anything from my 101 in 1001 list but I've got time.  Perhaps I should go refresh my memory as to what is even on that list (since I can't even remember what's on this list of seven goals!)

Goal #6 - I haven't done any spring organizing or purging yet but hopefully soon!

Goal #7 - This past week wasn't a very spring-like week in North Dakota so Crickett and I didn't get out for any walks.  The week ahead isn't looking much nicer.  Could someone please send spring our way?

2.  What did you do this past week to make you feel good about yourself?
I bought myself a new pair of running shorts!

3.  Are your SFC goals your ultimate goals or steps to your ultimate goals? Do you find it easier to set big goals or do you like making mini-goals?
Some of my goals in this challenge are stepping stones to my long-term goals.  I like having a combination of small and large goals on my plate (finishing them is another story sometimes).

4.  What are some of your ultimate goals, things on your bucket list?
Ride in a hot air balloon, go hang gliding, run a marathon, visit all 50 states, and travel abroad.

5.  Fun Question: If you could achieve only one more thing in your life, what would it be?
This question is way too difficult to be considered a "fun" question!  There are a million things I want to accomplish yet in my life, but to have peace of mind would make me the happiest.  If I could learn to let go of the idea of perfection and forgive myself for the mistakes I make, I'd be more than content.  To learn to live my life in shades of gray rather than just black or white would be so freeing.

Positive Picture:
My sister with her roller-derby inspired birthday presents and mom's scary Easter bunny.

A Humorous but Depressing Email

I got the following email from my mother-in-law today. It's comical yet tear-inducing; April is halfway over and North Dakota has seen only a couple of days of spring-like weather. Frustration and crabbiness are running rampant.

INSTALLING SPRING...■■■■■■■■□□□□□□□□□□□□□□ 44% DONE.

Install delayed...please wait.

Installation failed. Please try again.

404 error. Season not found.

Season “Spring” cannot be located. The season you are looking for might have been removed, had its named changed, or is temporarily unavailable.

Please try again...

Sunday Smile

It's laundry day today at our house.

Thursday 13: Brought to You by the Letter "Q"

1. Quadriceps – The area of my body that gets most sore from running.

2. Quadrilateral – My favorite is the trapezoid (MATH NERD!).

3. Queen – The size of our bed.

4. Quesadillas – I get to have my favorite Fresh Avocado Quesadillas from Ruby Tuesday tomorrow! Yummy!

5. Questions – As I’ve gotten older, I’m much less hesitant to ask questions when I don’t understand something.

6. QuickBooks – I’m currently taking a class that is teaching me how to use this program and I’m having a lot of fun.

7. Quiet – I love the silence.

8. Quilt – My grandmother makes the most amazing quilts.

9. Quindlen, Anna – The only author on my bookshelf having a last name starting with the letter “Q.” (The novel is Object Lessons in case you were wondering.)

10. Quit – I hate quitting, even if it’s in my best interest.

11. Quotes – I love them. My favorite site for quotes is Quote Garden.

12. Quidditch – I think this game would be a lot of fun to play.

13. Qdoba – Chicken Queso Burrito with black beans – YUM, YUM, YUM!

More Thursday 13!

She'll Never Grow Up . . .

and that's what I love about her!

Happy Birthday, little sister! I hope 27 is a great year for you!

Spring Fever Challenge: Week 2

1. What have you done this past week to help you achieve your goals?
In all honesty, I didn't have a great week goal-wise and have next to nothing to report. I did limit desserts (not as much as I would have liked) and took Crickett for a couple of walks (not the three or more I wanted to get in), but that is about it. Needless to say, I'm not too impressed with myself. I'm going to shake off this disappointment, though, and have a great Week 2!

2. What did you do this past week to make you feel good about yourself?
I bought a pair of tights (aqua, leapord print!) to wear when I join my sister in roller-derby!

3. Is your mindset future-oriented or living in the now? How does this impact you when you are working towards a goal?
I think a lot about the future and where I want to be at a certain point in time.  It's easy for me to think about the little things that need to be done in order to accomplish the big thing, but following through with those little goals is difficult for me.  I run out of patience and just want to be at the finish line.

4.  Is there someone in your {real} life that inspires you to strive for the best?
My sister.  Not only does she inspire me by the things she does, she is never anything less than encouraging about the things I want to accomplish in my life. 

5. Fun Question of the Week: Do you read blogs on the individual websites or via Google Reader?
I enjoy going to the individual websites so I've never really had any interest in Google Reader.

Positive Picture:
It's so nice to see the sun shining today!  (Sidenote: I promise all my positive pictures won't be of Crickett!)

Sunday Smile

It's good to hear the birds singing again.

Walk-to-Run Program

I had a request for more information about the walk-to-run program I mentioned in my last post so I thought I would share it here in case there are others who are interested.

The plan I use is a simple 30-minute program done three or four times a week.  The goal is to decrease the amount of time you walk during the half-hour session while at the same time increasing the amount of time you run until you can run the full 30 minutes without stopping.  Here is the breakdown of the weekly training:

Weeks 1 & 2: Walk 5 minutes, run 1 minute.  Repeat five times.
Weeks 3& 4:  Walk 4 minutes, run 2 minutes.  Repeat five times.
Weeks 5 & 6:  Walk 3 minutes, run 3 minutes.  Repeat five times.
Weeks 7 & 8:  Walk 2 minutes, run 4 minutes.  Repeat five times.
Weeks 9 & 10: Walk 1 minute, run 5 minutes.  Repeat five times.
Week 11:  Run 30 minutes!  YAY!

It is suggested that you spend two weeks on each time set but if a certain week is too easy it's okay to skip ahead or if a certain week continues to be difficult it's okay to stay on that for more than two weeks.  You'll know what's right for you.

Happy running!

Spring Fever Challenge: Week 1

Amber at Viva Voce participated in the Winter Wonderland Warrior Challenge hosted by Amy at Life's Journey With a Smile and I thought it sounded like a lot of fun so I decided to participate in the Spring Fever Challenge.

The purpose of this challenge is to come up with five (or more) goals to complete between April 4th and June 20th. In addition, partcipants must do one nice thing for themselves each week. Sounds like a great challenge doesn't it?




1. What are your goals for the Spring Fever Challenge?
Start and complete walk-to-run program
Limit desserts to two a week
Limit Facebook logins and blog reading to once a day
Use my DSLR camera at least once a week
Complete five things from my 101 in 1001 list
Spring organizing and purging
Take Crickett for a walk at least three times a week

2. Why did you choose them?
I haven't run since this past fall and I miss how good I feel physically and mentally when I'm doing it on a consistent basis. I'm starting my running endevours with the walk-to-run program that I've had success with in the past. I also miss how good I feel when I eat well. My first step at improving this situation (I have many things that need changing here, but one step at a time!) is by limiting the number of desserts I eat. I know I wouldn't be successful if I tried to cut them out completely, so I'm allowing myself two small treats a week.

I spend way too much time on Facebook and reading blogs; it's time to start using that time for other things. During the extra time I have from staying offline, I plan on dusting off my DSLR camera and finally learning how to use it, tackling some more of the goals on my 101 in 1001 list, and doing some major organizing and purging of my belongings. Plus, now that it's getting nice out (do I dare say we may be seeing the light at the end of the winter tunnel), Crickett deserves to get out for some fresh air and exercise and I'll have more time to devote to her health and happiness.

3. What is your plan of action to make them happen?
When I make a list of things I want to accomplish and share it with others, I hold myself much more accountable than if I had simply made the list. My plan of action is to let go of the idea of perfection and do my best every day.

4. What does this challenge mean to you?
This challenge means I'm taking steps to improve myself, day by day. This is the kick in the butt that I need after slacking all winter. I'm excited that there will be so many of us working on this challenge; I love hearing about other people's successes, it's very motivating for me!

5. Fun Question of the Week: Let's get to know each other! What is something most people don't know about you?

I'm terrified of deep water and the things that lurk below the surface. (Not sure how I can have this fear and still LOVE snorkeling.)

Positive Picture:
My view as I typed this post.

Sunday Smile

To celebrate the 119th Anniversary of the first documented ice cream sundae, Google's logo looks like this today It made me smile. What made you smile today?