For those of you who might be worried about my becoming a couch potato due to the week long closer of my fitness center, I thought I'd put your minds at ease. The fitness center reopened the following Monday morning as promised and I was there! Yippee!
After a year of committing myself to this daily exercise thing I actually miss it when it's gone. I do appreciate my Sunday, day of rest, and the occasional Saturday is skipped for family sporting events, but Monday thru Friday I'm there.
I think I would have appreciated the old days when exercise was a built in part of life instead of something you have to make a conscious effort to include. Walking to the local market for fresh produce each day, riding a horse for further distances, kneading some bread, you get the picture. Of course I can say this because I don't actually have to live it, but there was something good about the way things were.
Until I retire to the Montana wilderness to enjoy the simple (but physically hard) life, I'll enjoy my daily trips to the fitness center. Happy Exercising!
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
School Picture Day
Picture day is an annual agonizing obligation. There is the search for the perfect outfit that will be engraved in the history books for everyone to look back on and with more than one child hanging on the picture wall, those outfits must coordinate (of course). The need for a hip, yet classic hair do so your children that follow decades later don't torment you too badly, though completely avoiding that is impossible! And of course the fact that payment for these famous pictures is received before the results are seen only adds to the suspense of it all.
So with the knowledge that my children are in complete control of their own appearance once they go out my door I tried to take some nice pictures before they left. This year I saw the angels and teddy bears they can be in the split second it took my camera lens to capture them. They sure are cuties!
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Washington D.C. 2008
This summer our family wanted to see how far we could go with dads hard earned "free" airplane tickets. When it came time to pick our destination for the 2008 family summer trip we chose Washington DC with three things in mind. First, with Southwest tickets they are redeemed equally for a short flight to Las Vegas or across the country to the east coast, so let the miles fly! Secondly, Washington DC shows up in enough movies and children's programs that the kids actually know something about it. Finally, once you get there and pay for a place to stay and food to fill the tummies, everything else is free! It is amazing the wonders our tax dollars pay for that we, in the west, have little access to!
We spent five days in the city with two additional days for travel. Our choice of accommodations made all the difference in the world. We stayed at an Embassy Suites close to everything. We had a two room suite with two televisions, a mini fridge and microwave, and a corner view. The kids had their room and the parents had another, although dad spent quite a bit of time with the kids in the main room watching the Olympics while mom read peacefully in hers (ah, the good life!).
Our first stop was none other than 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Just three blocks from our hotel, we started there and just kept walking. We covered miles on this vacation and dined on Subway sandwiches most of the time, they could have made a healthy living commercial out of us!
We saw the front and back of the White house, took a tour through the gardens there, rode the elevator to the top of the Washington Monument, said hello to Lincoln, waited in endless lines to see three rooms of the capitol building, came face to face with priceless works of art (until an unnamed child tried to touch one), learned much at various Smithsonian museums, traveled on the underground Metro to Arlington National Cemetery, and enjoyed hour after hour of beautiful sunshine while walking the streets of our Nation's Capitol.
All in all, one week of continuous family time learning and exploring together was priceless!
We spent five days in the city with two additional days for travel. Our choice of accommodations made all the difference in the world. We stayed at an Embassy Suites close to everything. We had a two room suite with two televisions, a mini fridge and microwave, and a corner view. The kids had their room and the parents had another, although dad spent quite a bit of time with the kids in the main room watching the Olympics while mom read peacefully in hers (ah, the good life!).
Our first stop was none other than 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Just three blocks from our hotel, we started there and just kept walking. We covered miles on this vacation and dined on Subway sandwiches most of the time, they could have made a healthy living commercial out of us!
We saw the front and back of the White house, took a tour through the gardens there, rode the elevator to the top of the Washington Monument, said hello to Lincoln, waited in endless lines to see three rooms of the capitol building, came face to face with priceless works of art (until an unnamed child tried to touch one), learned much at various Smithsonian museums, traveled on the underground Metro to Arlington National Cemetery, and enjoyed hour after hour of beautiful sunshine while walking the streets of our Nation's Capitol.
All in all, one week of continuous family time learning and exploring together was priceless!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Still here!
Last September I started exercising and "eating right", and I'll be, but I lost some extra pounds. I've been pretty good about keeping up with it, with a few hiccups like a cruise with endless yummy things to eat and fun family vacations where you are forced to eat out. It has become habit to preform this exercise five to six days a week now but getting up at 6:00am is still quite an issue (since I'm not very good about going to bed early).
Well this Monday, with renewed commitment I woke up bright (ya right, it's still dark) and early, drove off with my friend to discover a very empty parking lot and closed fitness center. They are closed for a whole week for cleaning and maintenance! I'm sure they have no idea what this has done to my hard earned routine, but I'm going crazy!
In an attempt to exercise on my own, I went for a run with my dog, but she was so out of shape I had to return her to the house 15 minutes later. Today is regularly a weight training day but I can't bring myself to lift soup cans. I guess I'll look at this as forced vacation days without pay and return to the regularly scheduled program Monday when they open the freshly cleaned doors to my fitness center. Until then, wish me luck that I don't take to the couch potato lifestyle once more.
Well this Monday, with renewed commitment I woke up bright (ya right, it's still dark) and early, drove off with my friend to discover a very empty parking lot and closed fitness center. They are closed for a whole week for cleaning and maintenance! I'm sure they have no idea what this has done to my hard earned routine, but I'm going crazy!
In an attempt to exercise on my own, I went for a run with my dog, but she was so out of shape I had to return her to the house 15 minutes later. Today is regularly a weight training day but I can't bring myself to lift soup cans. I guess I'll look at this as forced vacation days without pay and return to the regularly scheduled program Monday when they open the freshly cleaned doors to my fitness center. Until then, wish me luck that I don't take to the couch potato lifestyle once more.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Ward Trek Memories
In June our church group took off on a three day adventure reliving some of the early pioneer's experiences of crossing the plains to settle the Salt Lake valley. We were granted a rare opportunity of pulling replica hand carts through the dry DLL in Wyoming. We were assigned "handcart families" that we pulled with and those were organized into "companies", just like the actual pioneers. Months of preparation went into organizing this event but luckily my involvement was relatively easy. Aside from the 48 sleepless hours I put into sewing our historical fashions, the organization of the remainder or our things went well. We were allowed one 5 gallon bucket per person, plus a treat bucket (a luxury the original pioneers were not granted). They held one change of clothes, extra shoes, eating utensils, scriptures, and toiletries, and became our seats when ever needed.
I have two outstanding memories from being out there, besides the simple pleasure of being so far from civilization. The first was the ability the children had to occupy themselves, fighting off city boredom. There were no electronics, no formal sporting events, and no limits to their imaginations. Groups of children from different families, some new friendships, some old, wondered off together looking at the desert landscape, or in search of harmless reptiles and bugs, or created games out of nothing. I've never had more peace and less worry.
The second memory was from an activity called the Children's Pull. These Trek experiences are something the youth of our church (ages 12 to 18) often participate in, this family experience being very rare as I said before. During these youth Trek activities they usually have a Young Women's Pull where the young women of the group are asked to pull the full wagons to the top of a difficult hill while the young men are taken aside to represent the Mormon Battalion soldiers of the past when they were asked to leave their migrating families to fight. It is a very moving event for each group as the women find the strength within and the men recognize the amazing abilities of the women that sometimes go unnoticed.
In our experience the parent (adults) were taken to the top of a very challenging hill where we discussed our role as parents and the tools we need to give our children to succeed in life. The children and youth remained at the bottom of the hill discussing their needs to follow parental council and making good choices. After our 45 min discussions the parents were asked to line the path at the top of the hill and watch quietly as our children struggled to pull our heavily loaded carts to the top. The only encouragement we were suggested to give was that of prayer to represent the quiet strength our Father in Heaven offers us as we struggle through the challenges of life. I cried with a full heart as I watched the wagons come up that hill, one by one, with the stronger youth racing back down to help the next until all the wagons and children were safely at their goal. Even as I write this now my heart is bursting with the pride and love I felt for my children and those they are so blessed to associate with. I hope to remember the lessons of that afternoon throughout my life.
We had an amazing time filled with fun, dirt, sweat, and a spirit of peace that could only have come from that experience. Of course one of the kids highlights came at the end when we crossed the paths of free roaming cattle and witnessed a bull fight not more than 50 yards in front of us! We don't get that kind of excitement in our everyday lives!
Pictures previously posted.
I have two outstanding memories from being out there, besides the simple pleasure of being so far from civilization. The first was the ability the children had to occupy themselves, fighting off city boredom. There were no electronics, no formal sporting events, and no limits to their imaginations. Groups of children from different families, some new friendships, some old, wondered off together looking at the desert landscape, or in search of harmless reptiles and bugs, or created games out of nothing. I've never had more peace and less worry.
The second memory was from an activity called the Children's Pull. These Trek experiences are something the youth of our church (ages 12 to 18) often participate in, this family experience being very rare as I said before. During these youth Trek activities they usually have a Young Women's Pull where the young women of the group are asked to pull the full wagons to the top of a difficult hill while the young men are taken aside to represent the Mormon Battalion soldiers of the past when they were asked to leave their migrating families to fight. It is a very moving event for each group as the women find the strength within and the men recognize the amazing abilities of the women that sometimes go unnoticed.
In our experience the parent (adults) were taken to the top of a very challenging hill where we discussed our role as parents and the tools we need to give our children to succeed in life. The children and youth remained at the bottom of the hill discussing their needs to follow parental council and making good choices. After our 45 min discussions the parents were asked to line the path at the top of the hill and watch quietly as our children struggled to pull our heavily loaded carts to the top. The only encouragement we were suggested to give was that of prayer to represent the quiet strength our Father in Heaven offers us as we struggle through the challenges of life. I cried with a full heart as I watched the wagons come up that hill, one by one, with the stronger youth racing back down to help the next until all the wagons and children were safely at their goal. Even as I write this now my heart is bursting with the pride and love I felt for my children and those they are so blessed to associate with. I hope to remember the lessons of that afternoon throughout my life.
We had an amazing time filled with fun, dirt, sweat, and a spirit of peace that could only have come from that experience. Of course one of the kids highlights came at the end when we crossed the paths of free roaming cattle and witnessed a bull fight not more than 50 yards in front of us! We don't get that kind of excitement in our everyday lives!
Pictures previously posted.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
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