Full of Change 7 Things

1. Something Simple: Like the way a song can make you feel.  Heard Bonjovi's "Let's Make a Memory" the other day.  Stuck in my head for days.  But I found it somewhat pushing me towards making each moment part of history.  From the slightest inconvenience, moment of embarrassment, to the most obvious; letting each of them have their moment in my memory; to become a part of my history and those around me.

2. Something Silly: I purchased a new iPad this past weekend and decided to have a little fun with the Photo Booth App.  We have an adorable Boxer named "Sadie" who became one of my first victims.  She's featured here in "Squeeze" mode.  She's still so adorable.  Hope this makes you laugh.  Laughter is good medicine.

3. Something I missed: It always sucks when a dear friend moves away.  You have things that you never got to do with them, things you wanted to say while they were here, memories that get delayed.  But when a friend moves back unexpectedly it's like a beautiful gift!  A reclaimed chance, an extended opportunity of grace.  Welcome back Tyler.  Hope you know how much you were missed in our lives.  Circumstances come and go, but the love between friends remains.  (Misso's G)

4. Something to Ponder: "Grace is a lifestyle that allows us to experience effortless change.  In contrast to a constant striving for obedience. " Mark Palmer

5. Something New: Deer Hunting Season.  A favorite pastime of many a men in my childhood life.  Both my grandfather and my dad were avid hunters.  So I'm pleased as Deer Hunting now reclaims it's rightful place in my family now through my son.   My 17 year old son is making history by participating in it this year.  The hunters safety classes have been taken, supplies stocked up and the excitement is building.  Although his grandfather (my dad) isn't here on earth to guide him, I know he'll be looking down and smiling.  It makes me proud to know my son will be carrying this tradition on.  I'm sure I'll be sharing more on this as the season progresses. 

6. Something Old: Losing and gaining the same 5 pounds over and over again.  This is so frustrating to me beyond belief.  My plan is simply this: to get back to the basics.  Schedule my workouts, track what I'm eating, plan my menus.  This is what works for me.  I have assembled several groups of friends that help me stay motivated and keep me accountable.  Plus my Bodymedia fit device lets me know exactly how many calories I'm burning (or not).  There are several excuses that I can come up with like a busy life, changing of seasons, school starting, but they should never get in the way of my goals.  I'm determined!

7. A Like & Dislike: I recently saw the movie "Courageous" with some friends at the movie theater.  I really enjoyed the movie.  It centered around Father & Son relationships.  A good wholesome movie.  The "dislike" part of it was the concept thrown in about God being perceived as judge.  I mean come on.  The whole concept of the movie was about fathers and their love for their children.  How these fathers step up and resolved to be the best fathers to their children and provide for them, teach them, guide them and love them.  But yet the movie seems to miss the GREATEST relationship of all; that of the FATHER'S love for us!  They skipped right over it and threw in bits of God as judge and getting right with Him.  This whole concept of a tyrant God is getting old.  God is not an American Idol judge kinda God, nor is he some kind of Dancing with the Stars kinda God.  He's not sitting there just waiting for you to mess up so he can buzz you.  We need to put these ideas away.  God is the LOVER OF OUR SOULS.   If we as humans love our children as we do, HOW MUCH MORE does the Father love us? 

First Day of Autumn

1. A Favorite-- We celebrated the first day of Autumn a couple of days ago.  I love this time of year here in Michigan.  The colors on our Michigan Maples & Oaks have already begun to show sprinklings of yellows, oranges, and reds.  It won't be long before the shores of all our lakes will be deck out in an array of fall colors.

2. A Proud--  With fall also brings High School football.  I've already attending several games but the last couple I had the pleasure of attending with a couple of friends of mine.  Their girls are both in the marching band and the proud looks on my friends faces as their girls marched spectacularly into the stadium was worth every chilly moment.  We all have children that we are proud of and when we share those moments it makes them even more special.  Go Mollie!  Go Malorie!  Both Amazing Clarinetists!

3. Something to Ponder-- "You have to be brave with your life so others can be brave with theirs."

4. A Dislike--  The banging of the construction works on top of my office building.  I guess mainly it's because the banging sounds like someone living upstairs bouncing a basketball.  It's rather aggravating.

5.  Something Difficult--  Learning to let my 16yr old son learn from his mistakes.  This is a tough one for me.  I'm a nurturer by design.  Seeing your child stumble & struggle with something is not easy but often necessary to help them become thriving adults. So I've decided though that what seems like a struggle now can often lead to successes.  (Thomas Edison said something to this affect.)  How can I expect my child to dream big if there aren't some pitfalls along the way.  So I will celebrate the struggles as well as celebrate the successes and I will do it as a proud mom!

6. A Thank-You-- It's something so very small but I want to say thank you to my husband for making me coffee.  Anytime I want coffee, he unselfishly makes it for me.  I haven't made coffee in my own home for what may be years.  Besides being good at it, he just does it.  Not out of opportunity or out of obligation, but purely because he knows it blesses me.  I love this small act of love.

7.  An Un-noticed-- On my arm I wear a BodyMedia Fit device (bodybugg).  It goes virtually unnoticed hour upon hour during my day.  But at the end of the day it provides me with all the information I need to succeed in achieving my weight loss goals.  It lets me know how much sleep I'm getting (and quality), calories burned (during every minutes of my day), along with many other pieces of information.  They knowledge is power and I feel very powerful when I wear it.  Thanks BodyMedia!

7 Things

1. An Unnoticed-- These beautiful red leaves in middle of a green bush outside my office.  Quietly tucked inside while passers-by take no notice to them.

2. Something to Ponder-- "Courage doesn't always roar.  Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day, saying, "I will try again tomorrow."

3. A Favorite--  A beautiful Sunset in Lansing, MI this morning as I drove towards work.  Filled with reds, pinks, and oranges.  A spectacular view.  A gentle reminder of God's creativeness.  It was even more pleasurable knowing He knew I would notice.

4. An Accomplishment--  I celebrate this week with a dear friend in my life.  She worked hard to graduate Nursing school and recently was employed as an RN!  Way to go!

5. To Do-- Celebrate more!  Celebrate the big things in life but remember to celebrate the small ones too.  Like today; the very last day of summer.  I'm definitely mourning the season I cherish the most, but I want to take time to celebrate the beginning of Autumn.  It's a short lived time here in Michigan; lasting but a few weeks in seems.  The colors will be amazing guaranteed!

6. A Dislike-- Construction.  There's construction on a frequently traveled highway along my route home each day.  It's new and only to last a few days but I simply can't seem to remember at the end of my long work day to take a different route.  UGH!

7. A New--  My recent discovery of Pinterest.  At first I was thinking "another social media site" but this one is more like an idea board.  You make a bunch of boards and pin things on them.  Sounds simple but if you're like me it's right up your alley.  My recent boards include: Places to visit, things to do, DIY, etc...  No more books filled with clippings from magazines and newspapers. 

Have a great day!  Share a few of your "things" with me. 

Champions

"Champions aren't made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them . A desire, a dream, a vision." - Muhammed Ali

     Today I start my journey using my bodybugg by  BodyMedia Fit.  Their mission is "Knowledge is Power. Unlock/decipher the body's secrets.  Put information into the hands of people, empowering them to improve their lives!"
     I've currently to date lost 60 pounds.  I have about 58 pounds to go.  More importantly I am doing this right.  Exercising and eating healthy have become by two main goals with the numbers on the scale an extra bonus.
    With this BodyMedia Fit product it should take all the guess work out of knowing exactly how many calories I am burning with each activity. It's got to be inspiring.

    The quote above is something that I have deep inside me.  I have a deeply embedded drive inside me that calls out to me that "I am a CHAMPION."
      A DESIRE  to become the best I can be.  A DREAM to inspire others along the way. A VISION that keeps me motivated to see my goals come to fruition.

   

The Beauty of Now

The beauty of now is that it's the end of your past & the beginning of whatever future you choose.

 I attend a place of worship called "New Beginnings" every week.  One of the things I love about this place is the name.  Every time I see the name "New Beginnings" it makes me smile.  

It's a constant reminder for me to live each second in a "now" moment.  Realizing that whatever mistakes I have made are behind me and what stands before me is a new beginning.

Repeat this after me: "What stands before me is a new beginning!"  There is so much power in that statement.  What you choose to do from that moment on is life altering. 

Most diets always start "tomorrow", why because we screwed up with it today.  Well why not start "now"?  Why not just chalk that "blown meal" up and start with the next meal on track.  Why wait?  Use that very moment to start a new beginning.

I'm currently training for a 5k.  I always used the excuse that I couldn't do one because of my knees, because I'm not at goal, or because, or because.... but then there was this moment.  A tiny little moment that I allowed to have the freedom it deserved, allowed it the power is so rightly contained.  So I used that moment, gave an end to the past excuses, and gave heed to the new beginning.

I just began.  Began with determination. Began with grit.  I will complete my first 5K walk/run on July 30th, 2011.  (The very first day of my vacation!)

That's the beauty of "now moments".  There's no waiting.  You just decide to forget the past, no matter how fresh it is, and enjoy the moment at hand and allow yourself the freedom and power to make a new beginning.

So in this moment, forgetting everything in the past (years, months, days, hours, even seconds of your life), what will you use this "now" moment for?  What new beginning will you embrace?

Clorassia

Beautiful Moment

So I decided to start training for a 5k.  I've always wanted to run/walk a 5K.  Doing a 5K is actually on my Life List, so checking it off the list is bonus!

I decided enough of the excuses (knee problems, weigh too much, etc..). I was at work and said to myself, "When you get home, you are doing a 5K on the elliptical." and that's what I did.

Here's my journal from that day.

So I'm absolutely a wreck as I type this.  The tears have been coming ever since around the 2.6 mile point.
This morning I woke up and just said to myself, "You know. Enough of all the excuses.  Bad knees or not, you are going to find a way to run a 5k." 
So as soon as I got home from work, I changed into my workout clothes, grab my water, iPod and stepped onto my elliptical.  I decided if I can technically run it, I'll imagine I'm running. 

I averaged 60rpm and just got on and ran.  I imagined myself the best jogger ever.  I focused, changed my music accordingly.  I listened to a song called Brave.  Loved the words.

I hit the 2.6 mile and just started bawling, realizing that this huge goal was about to be accomplished.
I finished in 51 min 50 sec!  My first 5K.

But from mile 2.6 to 3.1 Francesca Battistelli's song "Beautiful Beautiful" came on.  It's what started all my tears mainly.

Youtube the song if you don't have it on your iPod, I encourage you to get it!
Here's the words as they ministered to me:


Don't know how it is You looked at me
And saw the person that I could be
Awakening my heart, breaking through the dark
Suddenly Your grace

Like sunlight burning at midnight
Making my life something so beautiful, beautiful
Mercy reaching to save me, all that I need
You are so beautiful, beautiful

Now there's a joy inside I can't contain
But even perfect days can end in rain
And though it's pouring down, I see You through the clouds
Shining on my face

Like sunlight burning at midnight
Making my life something so beautiful, beautiful
Mercy reaching to save me, all that I need
You are so beautiful, beautiful

I have come undone
But I have just begun
Changing by Your grace

Like sunlight burning at midnight
Making my life something so beautiful, beautiful
Mercy reaching to save me, all that I need
You are so beautiful

Like sunlight burning at midnight
Making my life something so beautiful, beautiful
Mercy reaching to save me, all that I need
You are so beautiful, beautiful

Beautiful, beautiful

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbCfyZHSQbE