Monday, December 7, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Heartfelt inspiration
It's not a holiday story. Well, it is a Holladay story.
It's a real life story - one that starts in tragedy and ends in hope. And it was written by my Better U co-challenger Ruth Holladay. Check it out here (article titled "Straight from the Heart).
If you are here from Ruth's blog and want to read my thoughts on the Better U opportunity, check out these entries:
It's a real life story - one that starts in tragedy and ends in hope. And it was written by my Better U co-challenger Ruth Holladay. Check it out here (article titled "Straight from the Heart).
If you are here from Ruth's blog and want to read my thoughts on the Better U opportunity, check out these entries:
Authentic Bethlehem
When I picked Annie up from a retreat at a church last night, I saw this sign hanging in several places. Note that "You'll taste, see and smell what daily life was like when Jesus was born." An authentic Bethlehem experience. Then read the information in parenthesis.
Shepherds, wisemen and Santa? Guess I missed the appearance of the jolly fat guy in the Christmas story all these years!
Friday, December 4, 2009
It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas
It's definitely feeling like Christmas now. Besides the decorations at home, here are some of the things that are telltale signs of Christmas around here:
it's hard to compete with this:
and this:
- I play the all-Christmas, all-the-time radio station whenever I'm in the car and Annie complains about it, all-whining, all-the-time. Guess she's forgotten that the big man is watching (and I don't mean her dad!).
- We've gotten a few Christmas cards in the mail. Please don't ask about ours. They might get sent out by Easter.
- We picked a tag off the giving tree at church and Charlie wanted to know what he has to do to get his name on there.
- The DVR is working overtime taping all the Christmas specials.
- There were snow flurries in the air as I went to a Christmas concert with a friend tonight.
- I've taken back three gifts, with a 4th one waiting to go to the post office.
- Every day this week, there have been boxes waiting for me on the front porch and kids standing over the boxes asking "is that one for me?!" (Duh! Santa doesn't deliver gifts in Amazon.com boxes.)
- Robbie asks every day how many days until bowling with Santa.
- My Christmas gift-giving spreadsheet is color-coded. Yellow for purchased and in-hand. Gray for purchased, but not yet delivered. White for not yet purchased.
- My kids have light envy. They keep asking when we can put up our Christmas lights. I keep telling them the lights are up. But when your house looks like this:
it's hard to compete with this:
and this:
(The pics aren't great quality, but it was the best I could do with an iPhone in 20 degree weather at 1:30am!) What's the holiday view from your house right now?
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Going Red
The kick-off breakfast for the American Heart Association's "Go Red for Women Better U Challenge" was yesterday. I have to admit that I was a little nervous, wondering what the heck I've gotten myself into. I tried to distract my nerves by obsessing over choosing the right red outfit to wear.
I opted against buying something new and went with a red knit top and skirt with a scarf. It worked just fine, even if I did look a bit like a juicy tomato. When I arrived at the breakfast, I was greeted warmly and got a chance to meet the other four challengers. Ruth, Kimila, Dee and Jessica.
Ruth declared herself the "senior member" of the group. She is a former columnist for the Indianapolis Star and has a blog you can read here. Kimila is tall and skinny as a bean pole, claiming genetics as the reason for her svelte figure. But she is hoping to adopt healthy habits (she said "sometimes I forget to eat;" I didn't mention that sometimes I forget to stop), including quitting smoking.
The first thing I noticed about Dee is how beautiful she is. I don't know what they'll do with her at the skin center, because her skin is flawless already. At 26 years old, she's hoping to lower her BMI and get her husband to share this new lifestyle with her. Jessica, I can tell, is a hoot. She is also passionate about changing her life. She'll be 50 this year, which shocked me. I had her pegged for about 35. I hope over the next few months, we'll all get to spend some time together and get to know each other better.
It turns out that the chair of February's Go Red for Women luncheon is Sue Ann Gilroy, a good friend of Mike's aunt, mom and grandmother. I've met her before, so it was nice to see her familiar face in the room full of strangers. When she found out that I'm one of the challengers, she decided then and there that Mike's grandmother MUST buy a table at the luncheon. Ha! I'm sure Buck will love that!
Then we figured out that Sue Ann is on the board of the university where I work, so before I left, I heard her telling on the of the Heart Association people to send a letter to the president of the University, asking her to buy a table too. It was all quite serendipitous.
Shortly after I arrived, we were invited to get some breakfast and take our seats. I headed to the table where the continental breakfast was laid out -- bagels, fruit, fat free yogurt, and DONUTS! One of the challengers, Jessica, and I had a good laugh about that. Like this was our first challenge -- to pass up the donuts. Of course there was no way in a room full of cardiologists, dietitians, exercise gurus, etc. that I was going to go for a donut. Instead, Jessica snapped a picture with her cell phone (but hasn't been able to get it to email to me). I think we'll call that picture "The Donuts That Lived."
Each of us were invited to introduce ourselves and tell why we wanted to participate in this challenge. I refrained from blurting out "because this is the closest I'll ever get to being on the Biggest Loser" and instead said that I wanted to enter my 40s healthier -- and on fewer medications -- than I am now.
Then the "team" introduced themselves to us. Pretty much everyone was there -- gals from the Heart Association, the cardiologist and members of her staff, the "coaches" who are going to be our cheerleaders. Everyone except the personal trainers. Darn! Guess we'll have to wait a little longer for that.
Several people in the room talked about how brave we all are for taking on this challenge. How we're going to be so inspiring to the 600-900 people who will attend the Go Red for Women luncheon in February. Again, I began to sweat a little and wonder what in the heck I have gotten myself into.
The challenge officially starts January 1. But all the pre-work is going on now. Appointments with the cardiologist, blood tests, etc. And when one of the Heart Association women said we could enjoy turkey and pie over the holidays, the cardiologist was quick to jump in and say, "as far as I'm concerned, we're starting now." Ooops. No pie (or donuts, I guess).
Today, I had my heart scan. The test itself was easy. I laid on the table, arms over head, fully clothed. The table moved into the scan machine, about up to my chin, whirred for a few seconds, I held my breath and it was over.
I was more than a little afraid they would escort me straight from the scan into the OR to open some dangerously clogged artery of mine. But the tech brought me the results in about 10 minutes. My score was ZERO -- as in zero plaque in my arteries! Woohoo! If I'd known that, I would have eaten the donuts. (Instead, I treated myself to some hot chocolate and a peanut butter cookie to celebrate. These people have their work cut out with me, don't they?)
In the coming weeks, I'll be meeting with the cardiologist, having another facial peel and going for my video shoot (heaven help me!). I'd love for any of you to join the Better U challenge with me. Maybe we can motivate each other. Click the Better U link to the right for more info. And stay away from the donuts.
I opted against buying something new and went with a red knit top and skirt with a scarf. It worked just fine, even if I did look a bit like a juicy tomato. When I arrived at the breakfast, I was greeted warmly and got a chance to meet the other four challengers. Ruth, Kimila, Dee and Jessica.
Ruth declared herself the "senior member" of the group. She is a former columnist for the Indianapolis Star and has a blog you can read here. Kimila is tall and skinny as a bean pole, claiming genetics as the reason for her svelte figure. But she is hoping to adopt healthy habits (she said "sometimes I forget to eat;" I didn't mention that sometimes I forget to stop), including quitting smoking.
The first thing I noticed about Dee is how beautiful she is. I don't know what they'll do with her at the skin center, because her skin is flawless already. At 26 years old, she's hoping to lower her BMI and get her husband to share this new lifestyle with her. Jessica, I can tell, is a hoot. She is also passionate about changing her life. She'll be 50 this year, which shocked me. I had her pegged for about 35. I hope over the next few months, we'll all get to spend some time together and get to know each other better.
It turns out that the chair of February's Go Red for Women luncheon is Sue Ann Gilroy, a good friend of Mike's aunt, mom and grandmother. I've met her before, so it was nice to see her familiar face in the room full of strangers. When she found out that I'm one of the challengers, she decided then and there that Mike's grandmother MUST buy a table at the luncheon. Ha! I'm sure Buck will love that!
Then we figured out that Sue Ann is on the board of the university where I work, so before I left, I heard her telling on the of the Heart Association people to send a letter to the president of the University, asking her to buy a table too. It was all quite serendipitous.
Shortly after I arrived, we were invited to get some breakfast and take our seats. I headed to the table where the continental breakfast was laid out -- bagels, fruit, fat free yogurt, and DONUTS! One of the challengers, Jessica, and I had a good laugh about that. Like this was our first challenge -- to pass up the donuts. Of course there was no way in a room full of cardiologists, dietitians, exercise gurus, etc. that I was going to go for a donut. Instead, Jessica snapped a picture with her cell phone (but hasn't been able to get it to email to me). I think we'll call that picture "The Donuts That Lived."
Each of us were invited to introduce ourselves and tell why we wanted to participate in this challenge. I refrained from blurting out "because this is the closest I'll ever get to being on the Biggest Loser" and instead said that I wanted to enter my 40s healthier -- and on fewer medications -- than I am now.
Then the "team" introduced themselves to us. Pretty much everyone was there -- gals from the Heart Association, the cardiologist and members of her staff, the "coaches" who are going to be our cheerleaders. Everyone except the personal trainers. Darn! Guess we'll have to wait a little longer for that.
Several people in the room talked about how brave we all are for taking on this challenge. How we're going to be so inspiring to the 600-900 people who will attend the Go Red for Women luncheon in February. Again, I began to sweat a little and wonder what in the heck I have gotten myself into.
The challenge officially starts January 1. But all the pre-work is going on now. Appointments with the cardiologist, blood tests, etc. And when one of the Heart Association women said we could enjoy turkey and pie over the holidays, the cardiologist was quick to jump in and say, "as far as I'm concerned, we're starting now." Ooops. No pie (or donuts, I guess).
Today, I had my heart scan. The test itself was easy. I laid on the table, arms over head, fully clothed. The table moved into the scan machine, about up to my chin, whirred for a few seconds, I held my breath and it was over.
I was more than a little afraid they would escort me straight from the scan into the OR to open some dangerously clogged artery of mine. But the tech brought me the results in about 10 minutes. My score was ZERO -- as in zero plaque in my arteries! Woohoo! If I'd known that, I would have eaten the donuts. (Instead, I treated myself to some hot chocolate and a peanut butter cookie to celebrate. These people have their work cut out with me, don't they?)
In the coming weeks, I'll be meeting with the cardiologist, having another facial peel and going for my video shoot (heaven help me!). I'd love for any of you to join the Better U challenge with me. Maybe we can motivate each other. Click the Better U link to the right for more info. And stay away from the donuts.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Biggest Loser: Who gets your vote?
At the start of tonight's show, the final 4 -- Danny, Liz, Rudy and Amanda -- head to their individual homes for 60 days. There are celebrations welcoming them home, a video from Bob and Jillian telling them they would be running a marathon, and a look at how they are adjusting to being home.
I could relate most to Rudy. How do you find/make time for yourself in the face of work and family demands? Liz's discussion about her marital difficulties felt like TMI and made me feel sorry for her husband.
Honestly, the 1 hour spent on the first half of the show could have been done in about 30 minutes. I thought the show really picked up and became interesting when they arrived back in California to run the marathon.
They all looked good, but Danny looked freaking amazing! Rudy pulled out to an early lead in the marathon, followed closely by Amanda. Danny and Liz went at a much slower pace, staying together and encouraging each other through significant hip and knee pain.
Along the route, various people were placed to offer moral support. One of them was Tara. She ran with Danny and Liz for a while, then caught up to Amanda, who was running with her best friend Brian. By mile 17 Amanda was crying that she couldn't do it. No surprise there, although I won't pick on her because most I've ever done is 13.1 miles.
Dina, Rudy's blue team partner, ran about 1/2 of the marathon with him. For the last mile, Bob ran with them both -- the same path they all ran in their first 1 mile challenge the first day on the ranch. It struck me how cruel it was that the last steps were in the sand. Running on the sand is hard. Running 26.2 miles is miserable. But running the final mile of 26.2 miles on the sand is plain ridiculous.
Rudy finished first, followed by Amanda. I really had my doubts about whether Danny would finish. I expected Liz to go ahead without him. But they stuck together and they finished in under 7 hours!
I kept waiting for the product placement during the marathon - where was the Biggest Loser carb gel or whatever?
In the personal vignettes, several of the 4 talked about fear. The fear that they will go back to being those morbidly obese people, fear that they wouldn't finish the marathon, fear that they couldn't assimilate back into their families. Tomorrow is the kick-off breakfast for the American Heart Association's Heart Healthy Makeover and I'm finding myself pushing back a little, afraid of what I've gotten myself into, afraid that I won't be able to follow through. Ok, enough about me. Back to the Biggest Loser...
After the marathon, it was time for the weigh in. I've listed the contestants in order of their weigh in, starting weight, last weight at the ranch, current weight:
Liz - 267 - 198 - 182 (-16 pounds at home; total of 85 lost since start)
Amanda - 250 - 186 - 170 (-16 pounds at home; total of 80 lost since start)
Danny - 430 - 288 - 229 (-59 pounds at home; total of 201 lost since start)
Rudy - 442 - 296 - 253 (-43 pounds at home; total of 191 lost since start)
I know that men lose faster than women, but it's unbelievable to me that Liz and Amanda only lost 16 pounds in 2 months, compared to the major losses recorded by Danny and Rudy.
So the vote comes down to between Liz and Amanda. I almost couldn't stomach Amanda's "pick me again" plea. Though her "let me start what I've finished" logic made some sense to me.
Liz chose the "I'm the oldest female in the final 4. I could be the oldest contestant in the final 3" argument. I think that was the wrong tack to take. I think she should have talked about how she could compete, how she has the ability to put up the numbers it will take to be competitive.
But really, who to vote for? Think it over and cast your vote at www.nbc.com.
Bedecked
Given that it's December 1st, I thought it was time to deck the walls here at the 4th Frog. And I'm quite tickled that I was able to do it all by myself. It was mostly a cut and paste job, but I did have to go in and edit the HTML. So a little woot! woot! to moi!
But what's way more amazing than the fact that my blog is looking all holiday-ish is the fact that my house is. And I can't take any credit for that.
I left home at 10am on Saturday morning to take Charlie to basketball practice, ran a few errands, picked him up at practice at noon, ran a few more errands and came home to Christmas central. A not-so-short elf named Annie had been busy for several hours decking the halls -- and the bookshelves and the staircase.
I can't tell you how good it felt to walk in and have all that work done. Just about the only thing she didn't do was put up the Christmas tree. So, when Robbie looked at me and said, for about the 12th time since I carried the $49 bargain Christmas-tree-in-a-box into the house, "NOW can we PLEASE put up the Christmas tree?!," I happily said yes.
There was definitely some apprehension as I took the tree out of the box, hoping it wouldn't look like a $49 tree. It went together easily enough. But it as the branches unfurled, the tree was looking a little Charlie Brown-ish.
Annie was moritifed. "Mom! You bought a Christmas stick! I can see right through to the middle."
As I assured it her it would look fine once we fluffed all the branches and hung all the ornaments, inside I was afraid she was right. But I was determined to make it work. So we all kept fluffing and hanging, waiting for the transformation from Charlie Brown to Martha Stewart.
Hearing the kids recall where certain ornaments came from, seeing them light up upon finding foam-laden, puffy paint-coated ornaments made by their formerly preschool hands gave me that warm, tingly "thank you God for putting me here" feeling.
When it was all said and done, I'm not sure what we got was Martha Stewart, though truthfully I'm not the Martha Stewart type. What we ended up with was the warm, hodge-podgy look I love in a Christmas tree.
Now that the decking is done, I'm hoping we can spend the next weeks of Advent creating more of those "thanks for putting me here" moments, really enjoying the season. Driving around looking at lights, doing a little holiday baking, going to Christmas concert and live nativities, etc.
How about you? Have you decked your halls yet? What do you hope to do before Christmas arrives?
But what's way more amazing than the fact that my blog is looking all holiday-ish is the fact that my house is. And I can't take any credit for that.
I left home at 10am on Saturday morning to take Charlie to basketball practice, ran a few errands, picked him up at practice at noon, ran a few more errands and came home to Christmas central. A not-so-short elf named Annie had been busy for several hours decking the halls -- and the bookshelves and the staircase.
I can't tell you how good it felt to walk in and have all that work done. Just about the only thing she didn't do was put up the Christmas tree. So, when Robbie looked at me and said, for about the 12th time since I carried the $49 bargain Christmas-tree-in-a-box into the house, "NOW can we PLEASE put up the Christmas tree?!," I happily said yes.
There was definitely some apprehension as I took the tree out of the box, hoping it wouldn't look like a $49 tree. It went together easily enough. But it as the branches unfurled, the tree was looking a little Charlie Brown-ish.
Annie was moritifed. "Mom! You bought a Christmas stick! I can see right through to the middle."
As I assured it her it would look fine once we fluffed all the branches and hung all the ornaments, inside I was afraid she was right. But I was determined to make it work. So we all kept fluffing and hanging, waiting for the transformation from Charlie Brown to Martha Stewart.
Hearing the kids recall where certain ornaments came from, seeing them light up upon finding foam-laden, puffy paint-coated ornaments made by their formerly preschool hands gave me that warm, tingly "thank you God for putting me here" feeling.
When it was all said and done, I'm not sure what we got was Martha Stewart, though truthfully I'm not the Martha Stewart type. What we ended up with was the warm, hodge-podgy look I love in a Christmas tree.
Now that the decking is done, I'm hoping we can spend the next weeks of Advent creating more of those "thanks for putting me here" moments, really enjoying the season. Driving around looking at lights, doing a little holiday baking, going to Christmas concert and live nativities, etc.
How about you? Have you decked your halls yet? What do you hope to do before Christmas arrives?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
