Ski Daze

The weekend after Christmas, my incredibly brave husband led a troop of very green, very novice skiers to Monarch to try out our snow legs.

I have never skied a day in my life, but I am proud to say I made it down a green not once, but twice and managed NOT to kill myself.

Obviously.  

Actually, you never know.  I could be a ghost writer.  Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk.

(My writer friends will get that).

Anywho....the kids and I had never skied before.  Clint's niece had snowboarded once.  Clint has practically lived his life on them, but he was an incredibly good sport and took the day to teach us all the basics, which included, luckily for us, a very cool "lift" called the Caterpillar. 

We used blades instead of skis.  Clint said they were easier.  It was still as difficult as all get out but I had so much fun I can't wait to go back!  We didn't get a lot of pictures, but we did get some very cool videos:



Click on my youtube channel to see them all!

We had so much fun.  The conditions were perfect and it was the perfect way to spend our first Christmas together as a family.  So many wonderful memories were made!

I'm hanging onto him for dear life and I'm never letting go!

~J

Resolutions

2012 was a wonderful year for me.  I could have never resolved to change my life so dramatically.  I feel like luck has smiled on me and I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time and in the right place in my heart and in my mind to be open to change--the kind of change that turned my life upside down and show me what true happiness is.

So what's left to resolve?  Actually, plenty.  I have always felt that part of leading a full and happy life is to never become complacent--to always strive for personal growth.  So...after much procrastination I am finally getting to my list of resolutions.

1.  I resolve to lose (more) weight and get fit(ter).

     ~I've reached my first and second weight goals.  My third and final goal is to lose 15 more pounds.  One would think that if I've lost 55 pounds already, that 15 more would be a breeze, but 'tis not the case my friends.  These last few pounds are holding on for dear life and aren't going to give up without a fight, apparently.  But they haven't faced an opponent like me.

Oh wait...yeah, they have.  Hmmm....

Anyway, my goal is to shed these last few pounds and get a bit more toned, especially considering we have summer boating plans in the near future.  Not sure if I can get away with swimming in a turtleneck. *Gulp*

2.  I resolve to be more positive.

I've actually been working on this one for a long time as well, but there is always room for improvement.  I am making a concerted effort to change negative thoughts into positive ones.

For example, when I had to stay late at work today, I didn't think, "I have been here since 6am Oh. My. God. I WANT TO GO HOME."  Instead, I thought "Oh good, I'm glad to have the hours while I can get them and before school starts."  In this case the silver lining wasn't difficult to find, but I do know the more I practice at finding it, the better I will get at turning lemons into lemonade...or lemoncello, which is even better!

3.  I resolve to be the best wife and step-mom ever.

This one isn't hard to decide to do, and I would certainly be committed to being the best wife and step-mom anyway, resolutions or not, but it is so important to me to be the kind of person those I love most deserve, to never take them for granted, and to always be there for them.

4.  I resolve to make a couple bucks.

Not exactly what I meant.  

Actually, this is not about money at all.  It's about bucking the status quo, so to speak.  My life has changed so much because I was willing to swallow my fear and head into the unknown.  I want to continue to face my fears and take on new challenges as they present themselves.  

5.  I resolve to enjoy the little things.

Yeah, something like that.

Resolved to evolve,

~J

Merry Christmas!!

I don't mean to brag or anything, but we had a white Christmas!

Okay, so maybe I do mean to brag.  I think it is completely justifiable, though.

My first Christmas with the love of my life, in the most beautiful place on earth.  Life. Is. Good.

Happy Holidays to each and every one of you!

~J

A Great Move

While it wasn't easy at first, this move has turned out to be probably the best decision we possibly could have made, and it's not just because of the beautiful scenery, although, the scenery is beautiful:

These deer were foraging not even a mile from our house.  It's not often you see a buck like that without a Cabela's neon sign hanging behind him.

I feel very lucky to live in such a beautiful place, but I also feel very lucky for all the good fortune we've experienced since moving here a tad over two months ago.

Shortly after making the difficult decision to leave the farm, I found out that the nursing program at the nearby university has an accelerated degree program, which shortens my education goals by an entire three years.  It's not often that you find exactly what you need for less money and less time.

Then I found out that the application deadline to the program was the day before we were set to move, so I hurriedly got the paperwork in and then waited...

...and waited...and waited.

Finally, last week, the letter I waited for FOREVER came: I was accepted!  So, come May, I begin my 14-month journey toward my Bachelor of Science in Nursing.  Last month I resigned from two of my three jobs due to lack of hours in the day, but I will continue working the job I kept--GI Lab Technician--full time while finishing my prerequisites this spring.  As summer approaches I will be taking on less work hours and more school hours, so it works out perfectly.  I love my job and am learning so much there as well--it's an ideal situation!

Just when I think life can't get any better, that same week Clint got some well-deserved, long-awaited news of his own--he accepted a job offer from the city.  He had been working at a "pay the bills" sort of job that was way below his skill level.  I knew it wouldn't be long before someone recognized what he had to offer and nabbed him up--I'm just glad it was sooner than later!

I've lived long enough to know that when things go right, it's best to embrace and appreciate those times as much as possible, because life is not a climb up just one mountain; it has all the ups and downs of an entire mountain range.  However, I know Clint and I could not have gotten to this point without each other's love and support.  I may be experiencing a streak of luck right now, but I know, and will always know, the luckiest thing to ever happen in my life was meeting him.

Love and Luck to All,
~J

Tanner Trail

We live right up against the base of the Greenhorn Mountains.  Being native Kansans, this is very thrilling for both Clint and I.  I mean, we live in the freak'n mountains!!

Sorry about that....

Anyway, since living so close to the mountains is still quite novel for us, last Saturday Clint and I had the idea that since we are relatively fit, healthy, not-too-old people, we could tackle an "advanced" trail.  Luckily for us, Tanner trail, which goes straight up into the mountains of San Isabel National Forest, is only a few miles from the house.

We took Sophie, of course.

I mistakenly believed the trail was 7 miles roundtrip, but it actually was 7 miles UP, and then 7 miles DOWN.  We didn't leave early enough, so we ended up only going 4.3 miles up the mountains, then of course 4.3 miles back down.  Even only at a little over halfway, we still scaled up 2600 feet in elevation, offering spectacular views.

The land is nice-looking, too.

Clint took a picture of me as well, which fortunately does not show the exhaustion I felt physically after hiking over 6 hours.   I needed a horse!

For some reason Sophie wouldn't carry me.  Swine dog.

It was fun and quite an accomplishment for us, even though we didn't get all the way to the top.  It leaves us with a goal--one day we will get there! Until then, or at least until I get some sort of more cooperative means of trail transport, we'll keep working up to it.

~J

Weight For It

Fair warning: this is a brag post.  If I had the technology I'd create a blatant bragging badge so you could prepare yourself by gathering your air sickness bag,  map of Indonesia, and a pair of swim goggles.

I have no idea what the goggles are for, but one can never be too prepared.

Anyway, here it goes: in the last year and a half I have lost 55 pounds, 3" off my waist, and 5.25" off my hips. 

I've gone from a size 16....

...to a size 10.

I'm not quite done yet.  I'd like to lose another 10-15 pounds, but last weekend we went on an 8.6-mile hike in the mountains, climbing over 2600 feet in the span of six hours.  I couldn't have done that (and lived) 55 pounds ago, so I'm pretty happy I've been able to make this change in my life.

Not only that, but I recently accepted a position as a fitness instructor at the local hospital.  Right now it is only as-needed but I hope the position will expand so I can combine a career in healthcare with my new-found passion for health and fitness!

How did I do it?  Well, I had to tell myself often to be patient.  The best changes take time, and anytime I tried to starve myself for quick weight loss it never lasted long.  So, this time, I didn't get in a hurry.  I made one small change at a time.  Like a very wise woman once told me, all you have to do is be 10% better each day, and in 10 days, you'll be 100% better!  In other words, small changes add up.  Remember, there is no such thing as small change!

The closer I get to my goals, the more strict I have to be.  Since my wedding I've lost another ten pounds thanks to having a wonderful husband who is as dedicated to a healthy lifestyle as I am (or wished I was at times)!  We support and push each other.  Once in a while we will splurge together, but then we help each other get on track so we can achieve our goals.  It's always an easier journey with support.

I've also recently found an app for my iPhone I highly recommend called "My Fitness Pal."  It is free and allows you to track your caloric intake and output and lets you know where you are at all times based on your weight loss goal.  After breakfast and my morning hike I was actually at negative net calories for the day--talk about motivation!!

Ultimately, though, I had to make a decision.  Anytime I think, "I deserve this bean burrito with extra cheese because I worked hard today," I have to stop and realize how ridiculous that is.  I never deserve to sabotage my health!  I deserve to feed my body good things because I deserve to feel healthy and energized.  I deserve to like how I look and I deserve to feel great!  I deserve the best and I need to treat myself accordingly.

Not that I don't have slip-ups now and then.  Heck, if it was easy everyone would do it, and with the national obesity epidemic, obviously, maintaining a healthy weight is NOT easy.  But I'm trying, and I'm doing.  And there it is, folks, my shameless brag, and a little public reminder to myself to keep moving forward so the scale dial keeps going down.

And by the way, I need an entire new wardrobe now, so if anyone wants to nominate me to "What Not To Wear," my ensembles resemble a bag lady at this point--I'd be great show fodder, I'm sure (hint, hint).

Mind over platter,
~J