What's On Your Fitness Bucket List?

Yesterday morning as I was signing out of my email an headline popped up that made me think. It was titled, "Fitness Bucket List for Women". Because I am interested in all things exercise, I immediately clicked on it.

As I read the subtitle, "Four fitness goals every woman should try to reach". Hmmm... I thought,  not a bad idea to have a fitness bucket list. So what does this article have to say? I kept reading and found well, four things every woman should be able to cross off her list. Then followed by the reason for why each item is so important and how to do each one.

What are those four things?

1) Hold a plank pose for 60 seconds
2) Run a half-marathon
3) Pull off 10 push-ups
4) Hold the tree pose for 60 seconds 

Not a bad start for a fitness bucket list.

What do you think, should each person have a fitness bucket list? Why or why not?

If you had a list, what would be on it?

Color Outside the Lines

This morning as I was taking my small group of ladies through a workout, I decided to do something totally abnormal for me. I decided to be spontaneous. Sometimes I think we get caught up in life and just go through the motions of getting things done. A little Robot like, don’t ya think? Personally I think that makes life, well, a little bit boring. We need to kick back and do something out of the ordinary. In my case, all it took to brighten up the day was putting on a little music and dancing to the “Cotton Eye Joe” and the group loved it! I just want to encourage you today to do something completely out of the blue and have your own “Cotton Eye Joe” moment, embrace spontaneity!

Bowron Lakes Provincial Park, British Columbia

This was no relaxing vacation, a lot of hard work and a lot of paddling was involved. My husband and his family, along with a few friends (10 of us in all) and I travelled up to beautiful British Columbia for our 8-day canoeing and camping trip at Bowron Lakes Provincial

Park. The drive there was nothing short of a hike itself, with a total of about 15 hours to get there. Once we arrived at the park, we had our orientation, got our gear weighed and set out to get our canoe out on the water.

The first day on the water was amazing! The scenery all around the lakes is just breathtaking and pictures do not do it justice. Perfect weather topped off the perfect day, sunny and warm we (or at least I) thought to myself, "I can do this, this isn't so bad". Ha ha. Little did I know. We wouldn’t have another beautiful sunny day for awhile and the canoeing just got harder. One morning we actually canoed in a complete downpour and also experienced a little bit of lightening which literally made my hair stand on end. No pictures of that, though they were attempted.

We saw lots of wildlife including moose, eagles, and Drew and I even saw a black bear!

Mr. Moose
We were only about 25 feet away

One of a few eagles we saw,
it was so majestic



Loons were one animal we
heard often



The Black Bear we spotted in the trees,
we were about 30 feet off shore

Momma duck with her
ducklings

When we returned to civilization, I was never so excited to sit on a real toilet, you know one that actually flushed and didn’t have thousands of flies buzzing around your rear while you were on it. I know I am weird, but I bet you would have been excited to sit on a real toilet after a week in the wilderness. A hot shower felt perfectly heavenly too, though it took me almost a whole week's worth to get the campfire smell out of my hair. Overall, the trip was amazing, exhausting and exhilarating.



We've Moved In!

Finally!

We’ve moved into our new house and are getting settled in. Sunday was our Open House and it was so much fun to have family and friends get to come and see our new place! There has been a month worth of weeks we have been working on getting stuff done and many months to come with projects on the house. I haven’t been taking as many before and after pictures as I have wanted to, but I am planning on taking more in the future. I will post some updated pics soon!

Everyone Has Six Pack Abs

I promised some time ago that I would be blogging on more fitness related topics, here is my first attempt.

 

Everyone has six pack abs. Yes, you read that right. Here is where I am going to go all anatomy on you and explain why. See the picture below? It is a picture of the muscles of your torso. Find the label that says "rectus abdominus" and note there are 3 different segments on the right that look about the same size. That is half of your six pack muscle. The left has 3 more segments which completes the "6 Pack". 

Now the question is, why can't you see some people's "6 Pack"? Well, the answer is very simple, there is a layer of fat that covers it. So there you have it, when you see someone at the beach this summer who has clearly defined abs you know why, they don't have fat there!

I'm Back!

Okay, so here is a not-so-quick summary of what has been going on with me the last month and a half.

House.

First off, Drew and I finally bought a house! After searching for several months we found a home in the Spokane Valley that seemed to fit our needs well. Go check it out! We got a great deal on it, so we'll be doing some updating. The kitchen is stuck in the 70's with ugly dark wood cabinets, brown countertops and brown tiled backsplash. We'll also be scraping off the popcorn ceilings and then painting them, which is going to be a huge job in itself. In the Spring we'll be painting the ouside of the house. Not to mention we'll be doing something with the extremely dated stone fireplace, but I'm not sure what yet. Ideas? Even with all the work to be done we're still excited and happy to finally be getting out of our apartment. I've already started a new board on  Pinterest  to help me create some fresh looks for our new house. I guess you could say I'm getting a little giddy over the thought of making this house our home.

Work.

It has been picking up with our annual Partners for Youth Campaign which raises funds for scholarships. These scholarships are given out to people of all ages to enjoy programs at the YMCA that they could not otherwise afford. Each employee is asked to help raise funds so we can continue to give to the less fortunate ones. Here is a link to my online giving page if you would like to know how to donate:  YMCA Scholarships. 

Running.

I'm back into it, training for my races in May. I've found a good running partner (one of my coworkers) who is going to really motivate me to stay on target. Went for a 3 mile run yesterday on a pretty Riverfront Park loop. Thanks Jenn!

Mission Get Organized!

As the New Year rolled around, I thought a lot on making New Year's Resolutions. I typically don't make very many, if any. If I do, I usually start them before the beginning of the year so I have a better chance of following through. This year, I decided I would try to come up with some practical ways of organizing without having to go out and buy much, if anything. Here is one of my first projects, decluttering my makeup.

Here was a brilliant idea I found on Pinterest (where else?)

Using some old icecream sundae bowls and a dollar store wine glass (things I already had),

I was able to "re-create" the idea.

Here is my version:

Now, all I have to do is keep it that way. :)

All Things Pink & Red

Valentines Day is just a month away and I can hardly wait! I love all the girly lace and pretty colors associated with the day and thanks to Pinterest I am getting inspired to do a little decorating. Here are some of my ideas I'm thinking of trying:

Heart Garland

Lighted Doily Garland



Vintage Paper Chandelier



Rose Wreath



Now all that's left is to actually make these fun decorations.

We'll see how that goes...

A New Addition On the Way

Okay okay, so I don't have a little one on the way but I had to get you here somehow.

After careful consideration, I've decided to add yet another topic to my blog.

Fitness.

Fitness is something I am passionate about and that's what this blog is all about. Writing about what I love. It's what I do.

So, bear with me as I attempt this new baby. Feel free to suggest things as I go along. Or not, it's up to you :)

12 Days of Christmas

I've been slacking some on writing, so here is a quickie update. We are still in the market for a house but are holding off looking any more until after Christmas. There were some hidden things we found out about a house we were going to put an offer on, so we decided not to go for that particular house. All is well with the family, just counting down the days to Christmas...

Speaking of Christmas, here is a workout I created for my Strength Training Class. It only takes about 30 minutes, so its great for those a little short on time. Or do the workout twice through to really burn some calories!

12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS WORKOUT

1) Plyometric Squat (Jump squat)

2) Side Lunges (each leg)

         

3) Traveling Pushups

4) V-Ups

5) Mountain Climbers

6) Walking Lunges (per leg)

7) Bicep Curls to Shoulder Press (alternating arms, 7 reps for each arm)

8) Plank Bend to Leg Raise (while holding plank, bend one knee into chest then extend leg out and up, alternate between legs count each leg 8 times)

9) Jumping Jacks

10) Tricep Dips

11) Single Arm Rows (11 rows for each arm)

12) 1 Minute Plank

                                       

Do the workout just like you would sing the song, except substitute exercises. 

Here's an example:

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree (do one jump squat).

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree (do 2 side lunges and 1 jump squat).

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me, three French hens, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree (do 3 traveling pushups, 2 side lunges and 1 jump squat)

Continue this through all 12 rounds of the workout.

Enjoy!

House Hunting

Drew and I have been living in an apartment for about a year and a half and we've decided, it's time to move out!  We started browsing through real estate superficially about two months ago and now we are getting pretty serious about finding a home. Yesterday we spent almost the entire day looking at houses with our realtor and found one that may just be "the one". We are planning another trip out tomorrow to visit the ones we didn't have time for (we spent about 6 hours looking yesterday) and then we'll sit on the few we really like. I'm getting super excited to have a house, but am also nervous about making the right choice. We'll see how it all works out, but hopefully we'll have a new place to call home soon!

Family Pictures 2011

Last weekend the family went over to the Finch Arboretum and got our annual family pics taken. Here are some of them:



Sisters

Sisters and Adopted Sisters :)

Little Bear Baby Hat

My latest project was a bear hat for a friend's baby. I'm quickly becoming addicted to making baby items. So fun!

Pumpkins, Mittens & Hats

These last few weeks of my life have been a blur. With so much going on, I hardly know where to start.

Halloween came on a Monday and although I don't really celebrate Halloween, I decided to do a pumpkin inspired workout for my small group at the Y. To get them excited for the workout, I told them I would dress up, if they would too. :) Here is what I looked like.

80's Workout Queen

I've also been seeing a lot of the fingerless gloves around lately, and one of my best pals told me she wanted me to make her a pair. So with her birthday being right around the corner, I gave it a shot. Here is how they turned out:

You can't really see from the picture, but these have cute little flowers on the front.

And last but not least, an old music teacher and friend of mine recently had a baby boy! I love baby stuff so I attempted to make her little Hunter a cute little duck hat I saw on Ravelry.com. Here is a pic of the finished project.

Ducky Hat
Don't ask me why it's sideways, I don't know

Hunter Modeling Hat

That's all for now!

Happy Birthday Mom!

October 27th was my fabulous mother's birthday. If there is one thing my mother loves, it's a great game of Scrabble. You offer to play a game with her and it just about makes her day. I found the idea for the cake on Pinterest and my husband helped me plan and strategize about how big to make the cake and how to fit each family member's name on there. He was such a big help, I couldn't have done it without him. Love you Mom!

Scrabble Birthday Cake for Mom

Missoula Here We Come!

This last weekend was a blast! Went over with my cousin to visit a good friend of both of ours and we both decided next time we should stay longer. Swing dancing on Friday night, shopping and to a movie on Saturday and then we spent Sunday at church and relaxing at an adorable diner for brunch. We packed in a lot in three days, but boy did we have a good time!

Off to Montana!

Going to Montana this weekend to visit one of my very good friends, I'm super excited! Tell you all about it when I get back. :) In the meantime, have a good weekend!

Lazy Fall Weekend

I'm starting to feel a little crafty now that I've been seeing so many fun DIY things on Pinterest.  Recently, I starting getting out my Fall decorations, but as I was doing so I quickly remembered I didn't have a Autumn wreath. So, I decided to make one. I made a quick run to the Dollar Store and got a bunch of materials. Here is my wreath made from Dollar Store items:





Close Up Pic

Then on Saturday, Drew and I had a lazy morning and headed out to Greenbluff. We were both looking forward to pumpkin donuts with cinnamon and sugar on top. After waiting in line for a little while we finally got our hot-off-the-press donuts and enjoyed them with fresh apple cider. Yummy!

Crocheted Cowl Scarf, I Made One!

I have been eyeing those cute cowl sweaters and then I got brave and decided to make one. Here is how it turned out!



Falling into His Blessings

It's that time of year again to dig out those jackets. The air is turning crisp and the colors of Fall are starting to show.  When the weather gets cooler, my meals tend to change to more stews, soups and comfort foods. I love this time of year for its color, scents and clean, brisk air. I find myself daydreaming about pumpkins, cinnamon, molasses cookies and apple cider. Today, I am going to dig out my warmer clothes and be thankful for the many blessings God has bestowed me with. A husband who loves me and works hard to support our family, a job that I love, a warm and safe place to stay at night, food on my table, friends and family who love me and most importantly, a Savior who died on the cross for my sins. As I study God's Word I am reminded of how much He loves me and what He does for me daily without me even realizing it. In my Bible study recently I read something that really made me think. It's a passage in Psalms that I've read so many times and yet, it hadn't really hit me like it did yesterday.

Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all of His benefits—Who forgives all of your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption, Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy; Who satisfies your mouth with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle's! The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.
~Psalm 103:1-6

We can't find anyone or anything on earth that can do that! Only God can truly satisfy. After reading this passage, the Holy Spirit convicted  me of how much I take things for granted in my Christian walk. Do I praise the Lord for everything He does for me? Am I grateful to Him even in the good times? I need to bless the Lord with my mouth, praise Him for all the things He does for me. He forgives, heals, redeems, beautifies, dignifies, crowns, satisfies, executes righteousness and justice. What an amazing God!