Monday, August 30, 2010

New Week...

So here we are. I've dropped the kids off for their second week of school. After one week, our daughter is loving it (and has already surprised the teacher on several occasions with her advanced knowledge). Our son is doing OK and seems to be connecting better with friends this year (I'm still specifically praying for a new best friend for him, as his moved to Vermont this summer; it was a bitter pill to swallow as he still very much misses his friends in PA)

Me? Well, I'm adapting to the new routine. With this new stage in life, I was wanting to streamline our house (yes, it's an ongoing process), get involved in a Bible study, get better connected with some women and get healthier. I had considered joining Weight Watchers again simply for some accountability (I used their program about 9 years ago, but within 2 years had slipped back into old habits. Had joined about 2 years ago but life was crazy and I just wasn't committed enough). Anyway, a few weeks ago I was talking with a friend of mine and she mentioned that she was going to be co-leading a First Place 4 Health group. Basically, this is a Christian program that is more about health than weight loss - but obviously healthy weight is a big component. It's being held at the church where I attended MOPS last year (no longer involved) - and it starts today. Definitely an answer to prayer, and I'm excited to see what God has in store for me.

So is this going to become a weight loss blog? Definitely not!! :) If you recall, I had started 2010 with the goal of implementing a new "good" habit each month. Great idea... but I didn't do so well. I *need* face-to-face accountability (at least at this stage) and I know this group will really help. While my health is still decent at this point, I know that I will have more energy, feel less achey, etc. at a healthier weight. And well, if I don't make changes, with my family history it's pretty much a sure thing that I will end up with diabetes. Plus, I'd rather help our kids establish healthy patterns now and save them issues down the road. This was our breakfast on Friday - I'd heard about the idea of "green smoothies" (more here and here) and finally decided to give it a try. Our son wasn't so sure about it when he saw me add the spinach, but he took 1 sip and quite happily announced that he couldn't taste the leaves at all ;) So yes, I'll be looking for ways to incorporate more healthful things into our diet - but that means more veggies and less refined foods (although we don't do a ton of that, there is still room for improvement) as opposed to using artificial sweetener in everything. And yes, portion control, too. I will probably will end up sharing parts of my journey, so you've been warned!

In other news, we're also getting plugged in at our new church. Hubby has taken over the sound ministry (oh well, I enjoyed sitting with him during service while it lasted ;) and I'm going to helping out with the children's programs. They're going to be starting up some ladies programs in a few weeks that I'm pretty excited about (a Bible study as well as a weekly craft group - yeehaw!). God is so good! I've even been taking another friend with me to the service for the past couple weeks, and I'm excited to see God at work in her, too.

We've lived here for just over 13 months now, and I must admit it's finally starting to feel like "home." Ahhhhhh.

Love the Lord God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence and energy. Mark 12:30, Msg
That's our memory verse for this week with First Place. I memorized the NIV version, with the more familiar "heart, soul, mind, strength" components, but I just love the different spin the Message provides!

Monday, August 23, 2010

First Day of School


And there is my 2nd grader and Kindergartener. Guess who's more excited? :)
(And yes, I know I need to wash my car!)

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Good Fear?

School starts on Monday - and for the first time ever, I will be sending both of my children off. My daughter is excited (and much more ready than her brother was) but I can also tell that she's a bit scared, apprehensive about all the unkowns.

Me? My emotions are all over the place. The selfish part of me is looking forward to having some "free" hours in my day, but another part of me wants to somehow freeze these precious moments. The Mama Bear wants to prevent the tears resulting from playground spats, frustration when a new school topic just isn't sinking in, and the loss of innocence from "learning" things from other kids... and while I know that we could cocoon them a bit longer, it's time to let go (just a bit ;)

This article over on girltalk really spoke to my heart. The world is a fearful place, but focusing on those concerns isn't going to get me anywhere (except possibly to the doctor for anti-anxiety meds!). God is always the right answer :)

The Fear-of-God builds up confidence, and makes a world safe for your children (Prov 14:26, Msg)

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Magazine Winner - and zoo trip

Well, obviously everyone is super excited about a subscription to Cooking Light. At least I don't have to worry about hurting anyone's feelings ;) So without further ado, I'm happy to announce that the winner is #1 (yes, randomly chosen from *all* the entries). Moving on...

We were crazy enough to ignore the heat warning yesterday and go to the zoo. I had planned the excursion with a friend, and I must admit that if there hadn't been another family involved I definitely would have stayed home and soaked up the A/C... but despite the sweating we had a ball. We laughed at monkeys, petted goats, chased chickens (and no, there is not one growing out of my son's head :), and just generally hung out. The zoo has just built a new kid's play area that also has three misting stations, which were definitely the highlight of the day. Afterwards, we went to the zoo-themed McD's and guzzled Powerade. Hooray for free refills! I left my camera home, but here are a couple pics courtesy of my friend:

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Vacation Videos

Come, have a seat on the couch while I set up the slide projector (cue evil laughter...)

Seriously, though, I still haven't gotten through all the pics, but did want to share these couple videos. Sorry about the wind noise on them - nothing I could do about that.

The first one was shot at the campground just outside Red Lodge, MT. Our daughter had gone to the bathroom, and was there a long time. I went to check on her, and thankfully had the camera in my pocket. Obviously she liked the acoustics of the facilities - and doesn't it make for great background music for the majestic scenery?!



This second one is when we were at Old Faithful. The kids were both excited to see the "big" one - and their reactions (fast forward to the end) are hysterical. And yes, that's our son yelling, "It's gonna blow!" at the beginning. Classic.



Later!

Monday, August 9, 2010

Spreading the Magazine Love :)

Clearly, this is why I NEED so many bloomin' magazines. How funny is that?! Can't imagine it's exactly safe (those glossy covers slide way too easily) but a fun thought nevertheless.

In the meantime, though, I *am* planning to renew my Cooking Light subscription - and today I received a "2 for 1" offer.... So, who out there would like to receive a monthly burst of food inspiration? Leave me a comment, and I'll draw a winner next Monday!

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Helloooooo!

I have good intentions, and even several partially written posts. But the days seem to be passing quickly - the kids start school soon, and we've been quite busy (doctor's appointments, church events, family water fights, arguments in the aisle at Target over colors of school supplies, etc.) I still have hundreds of pictures from our month-long jaunt to weed through, but realistically probably won't be getting around to posting anything until the kids are in school... I keep telling myself that I'll somehow have more *time* once that happens. Realistically, I already have a planned project list that could probably keep me occupied through 2013.

A few random blurbs:
  • We ran errands this morning, and were gone over 5 hours. Ridiculous!
  • On the way home, my car thermometer read 109. Also ridiculous!!!
  • I'm really trying hard to savor these next two weeks, but frankly I'm quite ready to hand my children off to the school for a few hours a day.
  • I know that many families are very passionate about homeschooling. We are not one of them.
  • I really missed good tortillas while we were away.
  • I think we finally have a church home. Not perfect (obviously) but it's so wonderful to be establishing connections within a church family once again.
  • I tend to over-think things. More action needed!
  • I'm glad that White Collar is back on.
  • I really need to mop my kitchen floor.

Now that I've gotten all that out of the way, it's time to spring into action and get a few more things accomplished. Later! ;)