Good morning fellow healthy living folks! It's week nine now... how is everyone feeling? Last week, the focus was on more veggies. I don't know how well I did. Between being in Florida, traveling back to a sparse fridge, and then having to find fresh veggies it was a bit challenging to get it all in. I didn't find a vegetable that I haven't tried yet. Unfortunate side effect of having this week in the middle of winter, I guess. But I did try to have more salads ready to go for dinner and studied up on home canning and freezing for when summer's bounty is here.
This week's challenge is about spending some alone time with yourself. The author goes on to explain that we need our own personal downtime to decompress, recharge, and renew.
Hmmmm.... Right now, I'm a full-time grad student running a home with two active children and my husband is TDY this week. Oh, it's Girl Scout cookie time, Finals for me, and Science Fair for Holly. Already sounds like a recipe for disaster doesn't it? No Excuses!!! Here is what my plan is:
1. Call a sitter. I have a lot of homework to do and a small window in which to do it. Having a sitter just once this week will help me focus on the homework, but maybe also squeeze a me activity in while I'm out of the house.
2. Read! Did you know that Project Gutenberg has made over 38,000 books for free for your e-reader. I'm going to go browse and pick a few that I want to read or reread.
3. Bath Time. It's sad how many times I just get a quick 5 minute shower. I really miss the days of taking a long, hot, steamy shower or bath --- so long that the water turns cold. I'm going to do that at least once this week.
4. Massage. Ronnie got me a 1-hour massage gift certificate for our anniversary back in December. Have it used it yet? N-O-P-E! I am going to make that appointment this week. I don't think I'll be able to fit it in with how jam packed the schedule is but it will be for sometime in the near future.
Okay, so that's my plan.... what's yours?
Other resources:
Ideas for alone time: http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/solitude/
Why it's important: http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/199802/the-call-solitude
The
book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1
Jenn's
blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes
Monday, February 27, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
Photo Friday
** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our
life.... enjoy! **
Balcony in New Orleans, Louisiana, April 2009
Ronnie and I escaped to New Orleans for an adults-only trip while my mom watched the girls for us. We planned our trip during the French Quarter Festival and enjoyed 3 days of eating, walking, and listening to jazz. It was also fun to snap pictures that just reminded us of NOLA, like this one of the balcony. We were listening to zydeco, sipping on bloody marys, and munching on some fresh crawfish when I looked up and snapped this picture.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Florida Trippin'
We have been in Florida for a few weeks. As I posted a few photo Fridays ago, Ronnie's brother finally succumbed to the cancer that has been ravaging his body for the last three years. We traveled home for the funeral and to spend time with family. Mostly, we just played outdoors and visited with friends and family (and I wrote a term paper). But we had a few days of "organized" fun in there.
The girls took Grammy to MOSH, or the Museum of Science and History. We had a picnic lunch by the fountain and then went and enjoyed all the museum had to offer, including a show in the planetarium.
We did a little shoe shopping - the girls really had fun with that one....
We also took the girls to one of our favorite places to eat, Clark's Fish Camp. Gotta love taxidermy and fresh seafood!
Holly and the puppy, Bailey
The girls took Grammy to MOSH, or the Museum of Science and History. We had a picnic lunch by the fountain and then went and enjoyed all the museum had to offer, including a show in the planetarium.
(Left) Grammy and her girls, (right) petting an aligator, and (below) exploring the science exhibit
We did a little shoe shopping - the girls really had fun with that one....
We also took the girls to one of our favorite places to eat, Clark's Fish Camp. Gotta love taxidermy and fresh seafood!
52-Week Challenge: Week Eight
Can you believe we're in week eight already? I certainly can't.
So how did getting your shoes off in the house go? Again, we're already really good at it. We were in Florida for the challenge and out of our normal routine, yet I noticed we all took our shoes off at the door. Amazing what a habit it has become.
We're heading back to WA tomorrow, so on my clean list this week is to get in the mud room and organize it a bit. I need to go through the girls' shoes and get the worn out/grown out ones out to the donation/trash bin. I also need to have the carpets cleaned in the next few weeks. I normally do it April and October to keep things looking fresh in the house.
On to week eight: Eat your veggies!
The challenge it to ensure you are eating 4-6 servings of veg per day. And not just any vegetables will do, fibrous vegetables are what we're looking for here. Although starchy vegetables are still vegetables, most of them lack the powerhouse punch that the fibrous vegetables have. Starchy veggies tend to be higher in calories and are digested more quickly than their fibrous cousins.
We already eat a lot of fruits and vegetables in our house, but looking back over my food journal (remember that challenge), I'm really not focusing on eating the vegetables I need to be eating. That will start to change when we get back to our home. Here's my game plan for the week:
1. Experiment: Try a new vegetable every week. This one will be a bit hard for me because I've pretty much tried everything available I can think of. Sounds like the perfect excuse for a farmer's market trip to me.
2. Snacks: Have pre-cut veggies on hand. I'm really good about stocking the fruit bowl with apples, oranges, and bananas, but haven't done so good keeping the fridge stocked with grab and go veggies. Good veggies for snacks are those that hold their crispness and include cherry tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, carrots, and celery.
3. Find Alternatives When Necessary: fresh is best, but frozen is good when it's not in season. Man I'm in trouble on this one. I am queen of the canned veggies because they are just sooooo easy to fix. Over the next few weeks, we'll be eating down our pantry and I will be replacing the canned with self-prepared frozen veggies. I've already started on this when I found green beans, spinach, and yellow squash on sale and in season. I'll continue this as good veggies become available through our co-op, farmer's market, and even our own garden.
Okay, so that's it... 4 - 6 1/2 cup servings of veggies per day (up that to a full cup if it's a leafy vegetable). Try a CSA, visit a farmer's market, or just take stock of what you have at your local grocery store. You'll be glad you did!
Other resources:
Adding more vegetables: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/downloads/TenTips/DGTipsheet2AddMoreVegetables.pdf
More Matters!: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/
The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1
Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes
So how did getting your shoes off in the house go? Again, we're already really good at it. We were in Florida for the challenge and out of our normal routine, yet I noticed we all took our shoes off at the door. Amazing what a habit it has become.
We're heading back to WA tomorrow, so on my clean list this week is to get in the mud room and organize it a bit. I need to go through the girls' shoes and get the worn out/grown out ones out to the donation/trash bin. I also need to have the carpets cleaned in the next few weeks. I normally do it April and October to keep things looking fresh in the house.
On to week eight: Eat your veggies!
The challenge it to ensure you are eating 4-6 servings of veg per day. And not just any vegetables will do, fibrous vegetables are what we're looking for here. Although starchy vegetables are still vegetables, most of them lack the powerhouse punch that the fibrous vegetables have. Starchy veggies tend to be higher in calories and are digested more quickly than their fibrous cousins.
We already eat a lot of fruits and vegetables in our house, but looking back over my food journal (remember that challenge), I'm really not focusing on eating the vegetables I need to be eating. That will start to change when we get back to our home. Here's my game plan for the week:
1. Experiment: Try a new vegetable every week. This one will be a bit hard for me because I've pretty much tried everything available I can think of. Sounds like the perfect excuse for a farmer's market trip to me.
2. Snacks: Have pre-cut veggies on hand. I'm really good about stocking the fruit bowl with apples, oranges, and bananas, but haven't done so good keeping the fridge stocked with grab and go veggies. Good veggies for snacks are those that hold their crispness and include cherry tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, carrots, and celery.
3. Find Alternatives When Necessary: fresh is best, but frozen is good when it's not in season. Man I'm in trouble on this one. I am queen of the canned veggies because they are just sooooo easy to fix. Over the next few weeks, we'll be eating down our pantry and I will be replacing the canned with self-prepared frozen veggies. I've already started on this when I found green beans, spinach, and yellow squash on sale and in season. I'll continue this as good veggies become available through our co-op, farmer's market, and even our own garden.
Okay, so that's it... 4 - 6 1/2 cup servings of veggies per day (up that to a full cup if it's a leafy vegetable). Try a CSA, visit a farmer's market, or just take stock of what you have at your local grocery store. You'll be glad you did!
Other resources:
Adding more vegetables: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/downloads/TenTips/DGTipsheet2AddMoreVegetables.pdf
More Matters!: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/
The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1
Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes
Friday, February 17, 2012
Photo Friday
** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **
Holly playing peek-a-boo with Grandpa Jerry, Hickory, North Carolina, October 2004
Ronnie and I took advantage of being in North Carolina to purchase some good furniture. Grandpa was more than happy to keep Holly entertained while we finished up our order with the store. I just love this moment between the two of them -- it's hard to tell who is more smitten.
Monday, February 13, 2012
52-Week Challenge: Week Seven
Week seven is here.... how did everyone do on the multivitamin challenge last week. I went 5 for 7, so I'm feeling pretty good about it. Then again, I eat a pretty well rounded diet, so I am not so worried about *having* to take a multi-vitamin in the first place. And Flintstone Vitamins... still yummy as ever. I did resolve to ask my doctor about vitamins on my next check up, so that's a positive thing right?
Okay, so on to week seven, which is keep the outside out. This week it's all about reducing the amount of dust and allergens in your home by the simple act of taking your shoes off at the door. The quick and dirty is have a place for your shoes near your main entryway, or even create a mudroom. There is a great benefit to this practice besides not tracking unwanted pollen in the house... it keeps your house so much cleaner. Less dust and dirt to sweep, less black-bottomed socks, less having to clean the carpets because of ground-in dirt.
Again, easy peasy for us... we are already in the habit of taking our shoes off at the door from living in Asia for two years. We have a mud room area in the house, complete with cabinets for the girls to store their shoes. We even have shelving out in our garage to keep our wet/muddy/snow laden shoes out of the house. So all in all, we are set for this week's challenge.
I highly encourage you to do your own shoe closet near a door. Or it can be something very simple, like this:
So cute, right?!? It's amazing the results you will notice in your home - the floors will stay cleaner and there will be less dust in the house.
Okay, so on to week seven, which is keep the outside out. This week it's all about reducing the amount of dust and allergens in your home by the simple act of taking your shoes off at the door. The quick and dirty is have a place for your shoes near your main entryway, or even create a mudroom. There is a great benefit to this practice besides not tracking unwanted pollen in the house... it keeps your house so much cleaner. Less dust and dirt to sweep, less black-bottomed socks, less having to clean the carpets because of ground-in dirt.
Again, easy peasy for us... we are already in the habit of taking our shoes off at the door from living in Asia for two years. We have a mud room area in the house, complete with cabinets for the girls to store their shoes. We even have shelving out in our garage to keep our wet/muddy/snow laden shoes out of the house. So all in all, we are set for this week's challenge.
I highly encourage you to do your own shoe closet near a door. Or it can be something very simple, like this:
So cute, right?!? It's amazing the results you will notice in your home - the floors will stay cleaner and there will be less dust in the house.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Taking Candy from Sarah (a PSA)
My sweet, sweet Sarah.... Isn't she just an angel baby?
The other day Sarah was putting her jacket on to go outside when she came into my office and said, "Look mommy, a Skittle." I said, "Oh, Sarah. I like Skittles." She then said, "You can have it mommy" and she gave me the Skittle. Without thinking, I thanked her and popped it in my mouth.
As soon as it hit my tongue, I could tell there was something on the Skittle. Something furry, fuzzy on the Skittle. Then, in the far nether regions of my brain there was a PRIMAL SCREAM... and the tiniest voice whispered "You didn't give Sarah any Skittles today." I immediately spit it out and called to Sarah.
"Sarah, where did you get the Skittle?"
"Was it yummy mommy?"
"Uh-huh, yeah. So umm, where did you get it?"
"I found it in my pocket mommy!"
She went skipping out the door as I immediately grabbed for anything I could to rinse my mouth out.
So this is a warning to all of you... not only should you not take candy from strangers, you should also not take candy from cute little girls named Sarah.
The other day Sarah was putting her jacket on to go outside when she came into my office and said, "Look mommy, a Skittle." I said, "Oh, Sarah. I like Skittles." She then said, "You can have it mommy" and she gave me the Skittle. Without thinking, I thanked her and popped it in my mouth.
As soon as it hit my tongue, I could tell there was something on the Skittle. Something furry, fuzzy on the Skittle. Then, in the far nether regions of my brain there was a PRIMAL SCREAM... and the tiniest voice whispered "You didn't give Sarah any Skittles today." I immediately spit it out and called to Sarah.
"Sarah, where did you get the Skittle?"
"Was it yummy mommy?"
"Uh-huh, yeah. So umm, where did you get it?"
"I found it in my pocket mommy!"
She went skipping out the door as I immediately grabbed for anything I could to rinse my mouth out.
So this is a warning to all of you... not only should you not take candy from strangers, you should also not take candy from cute little girls named Sarah.
Monday, February 6, 2012
52-Week Challenge: Week Six
Welcome to week six... before we move forward, how did everyone do last week? I'll tell you, it was really hard to keep my needle in the positive last week. I posted another quick post "The Weaver" to help keep some perspective on it all and it seemed to work.
That is until Tuesday evening rolled around and I got even more news of illness. My grandma suffered a mini-stroke and my brother-in-law was back in the hospital. That night, I went to bed angry and sad and confused and every other word the thesaurus can pop out. Right before I fell asleep, I just asked myself "Why? Why them?" The next morning, this verse kept creeping into my mind: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).
The rest of my week, I dedicated to being grateful. Grateful that my children colored pictures for their Uncle Robbie, who they know and love. Grateful that we are now in the States and making the decision for Ronnie to fly home is much easier. Grateful that not only are we in the States, we are in Washington and 2 hours away from my grandma, who both my girls love to go visit. Grateful for having friends whose hugs linger and make you tear up thinking about them. There are so many more things to be grateful for in this world than are to be mad and pissy about. And I got the lesson I needed last week.
Okay, so week six is almost a gimme week: Take a multivitamin. Taking a multivitamin is like having a little more car insurance than what is required by law.
Like tracking, I need to do better about doing it every day. I make the girls take a vitamin every night, so I will be joining them for it. And I have the little OCD girl who can't go to bed without one, so I'll tell her to remind me that I need one too. When looking for a multivitamin, be sure to get one that doesn't have more than 100% of your daily intake. Really, it's just wasted. I've found that taking a prenatal or the good ol' Flintstone vitamins are perfect. And who doesn't love taking Flintstone Vitamins???
If you already take a multivitamin, your extra credit is to get more probiotics in your diet... either yogurt or pill form will do.
Other resources:
Choosing a multivitamin: http://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/nutrition-101/choosing-a-multivitamin-00400000001551/
More vitamin information: http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/f-w03/multi.html
The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1
Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes
That is until Tuesday evening rolled around and I got even more news of illness. My grandma suffered a mini-stroke and my brother-in-law was back in the hospital. That night, I went to bed angry and sad and confused and every other word the thesaurus can pop out. Right before I fell asleep, I just asked myself "Why? Why them?" The next morning, this verse kept creeping into my mind: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).
The rest of my week, I dedicated to being grateful. Grateful that my children colored pictures for their Uncle Robbie, who they know and love. Grateful that we are now in the States and making the decision for Ronnie to fly home is much easier. Grateful that not only are we in the States, we are in Washington and 2 hours away from my grandma, who both my girls love to go visit. Grateful for having friends whose hugs linger and make you tear up thinking about them. There are so many more things to be grateful for in this world than are to be mad and pissy about. And I got the lesson I needed last week.
Okay, so week six is almost a gimme week: Take a multivitamin. Taking a multivitamin is like having a little more car insurance than what is required by law.
Like tracking, I need to do better about doing it every day. I make the girls take a vitamin every night, so I will be joining them for it. And I have the little OCD girl who can't go to bed without one, so I'll tell her to remind me that I need one too. When looking for a multivitamin, be sure to get one that doesn't have more than 100% of your daily intake. Really, it's just wasted. I've found that taking a prenatal or the good ol' Flintstone vitamins are perfect. And who doesn't love taking Flintstone Vitamins???
If you already take a multivitamin, your extra credit is to get more probiotics in your diet... either yogurt or pill form will do.
Other resources:
Choosing a multivitamin: http://www.cookinglight.com/eating-smart/nutrition-101/choosing-a-multivitamin-00400000001551/
More vitamin information: http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/f-w03/multi.html
The book we're following: http://www.amazon.com/52-Small-Changes-Healthier-ebook/dp/B0056J4ER0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1325722556&sr=1-1
Jenn's blog: http://thewoogies.blogspot.com/search/label/52%20Small%20Changes
Sunday, February 5, 2012
The Light! The Light!
This really wierd thing happened on Friday. There was this big yellow thing in the sky all day. It was bright and warm and it filled me up with happiness from head to toe. Being completely oblivious to what this large yellow thing was, I took it to the library and found it was the sun. Who knew - the sun shines here?!? WOW!
All kidding aside, we had an amazing few days of weather. It's the kind of weather that you don't need a jacket and you want to run and play outside. And this time of year in the PNW, it is very rare to have this sort of weather in early February...
So the girls and I soaked it up! First, we headed to one of the many local parks after school on Friday. It was so much fun. The girls rode bikes while I got a quick run in. We played on the playground and went down to the duck pond. The girls even let me take a few pics while we were exploring the stream and park.
Saturday we woke up to a bright blue sky - again, something we couldn't pass up. We packed a picnic lunch and headed to the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma. When we got to Point Defiance Park, it was too pretty to not eat on the sound so we pulled into one of the beach parks and played for a bit. It was such a clear day that we could see the Olympics and the Cascades along with all of the large mountains in the area. We spent the rest of our day exploring the zoo and just plain enjoying the gorgeous day.
All kidding aside, we had an amazing few days of weather. It's the kind of weather that you don't need a jacket and you want to run and play outside. And this time of year in the PNW, it is very rare to have this sort of weather in early February...
So the girls and I soaked it up! First, we headed to one of the many local parks after school on Friday. It was so much fun. The girls rode bikes while I got a quick run in. We played on the playground and went down to the duck pond. The girls even let me take a few pics while we were exploring the stream and park.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Photo Friday
** Every Friday, I will post a picture from our life.... enjoy! **
Christmas Dinner with the Stockmans, Korea, Christmas 2009
Ain't no party like a Princess party - woot woot!!! We had dinner with our good friends, the Stockmans. While we were cleaning the dishes up, the dress-up parade started. So much fun!!!!
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