In My Dreams

Watching the Amazing Race always makes me yearn to visit far-away places.  It gives me glimpses of the vast and varied beauty of the world that I will probably never see with my own eyes.

If I had the chance to visit just a few of these places...
If I had to narrow it down to a five...
Where would I go?

(not in any particular order)

The white buildings and blue waters of the Greek Islands have always seemed appealing to me.  Watching "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" clinched it.  I want to go there someday!

Isn't this photo amazing?  Japan has serenity and gracefulness that I would love to capture with my camera.  Not the cities.  Just the smaller villages and countryside.

Africa is so different and breathtaking.  Serengeti National Park, the animals, the landscapes, the people.  Another photographer's dream!

The French countryside would be so romantic and picturesque!  The Loire valley, castles, flowers...

I have always wanted to visit Ireland too.  Maybe it's my Irish heritage.  Maybe it's the novels I've read which make Ireland and the people come alive.  And of course it's the beauty!

These are just dreams.
Maybe I'll get to a few of them.
Maybe not.

However, I am so fortunate that I have already been to the most breathtaking place on earth.
This place has been a part of me all of my life. 
This is where I am most at peace.
No matter where I live, it will always be home.

 
Vermont!

Where a Little Bit Means a Lot

Until about 5 years ago, I was always able to eat
just about anything I wanted without gaining weight.

Not true anymore.

I generally try to lose weight before I go on vacation
in the summer and have to wear a bathing suit.

In my closet, I have various sizes of jeans that are
available to fit whatever size I am at the time: 4, 6, or 8.

I may not look heavy to other people.
I am good at wearing looser tops and sweaters to hide
my muffin top.

In fact, I feel bad even mentioning to others that I'm
trying to lose a few pounds.  They look at me like I'm
crazy.  But I know I'm not.

A few months ago, I hit an all-time high weight of 133.
On a 5'2" frame,  this is not healthy.
For a female my age, my ideal weight is about 122 lbs,
within a range of 109-137.

I know I feel great at 122.

But it's amazing how just a few pounds can make such a difference in how I look and feel!

Not so surprising when you look at what 5 lbs of fat looks like.
Put this on my belly where it always accumulates and it's easy to see
why my jeans don't fit!

So, a few months ago, I made a change.
I cut out almost all bread, baked goods, chips, and soda.
And I exercise moderately almost every day.

I eat mainly lean meat, eggs, fresh fruits and veggies, and water.

Once a week, I enjoy a trip to TCBY or Friendly's for a
chocolate soft serve, but other than that,
I snack on fruit or nuts.

 

 

It was hard at first because I LOVE bread, and I'm at home all day

so it's easy to snack.  But the less I eat all of the junk food, 

the less I WANT to eat it.  The cravings have subsided.

I feel like I am in control now.

I have lost 7 lbs so far.  A pound a week.

I have 4 or 5 more pounds to go.

Pants that I couldn't even begin to zip a few weeks ago

are fitting great now.

A few pounds can make a huge difference in how you look and feel!

A little bit means a lot!

Inspiration

We are currently in the middle of track season at our high school.  As with practically everything I do, I love to take pictures of the athletes and post them on Facebook for the kids to see.

As I look at the photos, I can't help but be amazed by their determination and grit. 

As I struggle with getting my own aging body into decent shape,
I see the effort these kids are putting into this sport, and it makes
me want to do better myself.

They INSPIRE me.

This athlete had never pole vaulted until this year.

 This is my daughter, Annie.
Your are witnessing the first time she made the sand pit in the triple jump.

Just look at the determination on the faces of these runners!

I think sometimes as we get older, we just don't try as hard.
We use our age as an excuse. 

A few seconds after I took this picture, #13 banged her shin into the top
of the next hurdle and was on the ground in a tremendous amount of pain. 

I also like to take pictures of the athletes when they are NOT competing.

Especially Annie!

She always seems to be surrounded by other kids,
either telling a story or reacting to one.

It's my secret challenge to catch her with a different expression
at every meet.

She makes me smile!

My Baby is Twenty-One

April 22, 1991.  This was a huge milestone in my life.
                           It was the day I became a mom.
                           I had ALWAYS wanted to be a mother.
                           I had waited a long time for this day.
                           I was determined not to screw up.

April 22, 2012   My baby boy turns 21 years old today.
                           It seems like yesterday that he was born.
                           I've been a mom for 21 years.
                           I have tried to be a good mom.
                           I've screwed up MANY times.
                           I learned from my mistakes.

After 21 years, I feel like I am finally qualified to be a mother.
How easy it would be now!

I would be more relaxed.

I wouldn't second guess myself so often.

I wouldn't lay awake at night going over the events of each day,
wondering if I had done the right thing, if I had handled each situation
as a good mother should.

I have Adam to thank for this.  He was my teacher.
As I said, I learned from my mistakes.
And most of my mistakes were on him.
The firstborn.

My intentions were always good.
But it's like learning to ride a bike without training wheels.
In the beginning, you envision yourself getting on the seat
   and riding perfectly down the street.
In reality, it's scary.
Others may try to tell you what to do, but you must find your own way.
In reality, you take a few spills and maybe even shed some tears.
It takes a while to find your balance.
When you finally do, your bike may have some dents and scratches,
but you love your bike more than anything.

On this 21st anniversary of becoming a mom,
I love my little boy more than anything.
He has grown into a good man, in spite of me.
And hopefully, because of me too.

Happy Birthday, Adam!

                           
                           
                          

Digging Around

Rule of Holes: If you're in one, stop digging.


For some reason, I have a hard time following this rule.

I have been preparing a new flower bed over the past few days.

Digging, more digging, loosening the soil.

If you've ever worked in the garden tilling the soil,
I bet you've hit barriers as you push your shovel into the ground.

Sometimes you hit tree roots.

Most of the time, though, you hear that unmistakeable sound of
the metal shovel coming in contact with a rock.

When this happens (and it happens a lot in my yard)
I get a feeling of excitement and curiosity.

I move the shovel over a few inches and try again.

If I still hit rock, I repeat the process in an attempt to
figure out just how big the rock is.

It gets really exciting when I know it's just the tip of the iceberg!
I can't wait to uncover it and see exactly what it looks like!

When I finally find an edge to slip the shovel underneath it,
it's then that I start to feel the weight of the rock and guess how far it
might extend downward into the earth.

I ALWAYS need to get it out of the ground.
Even if it's pretty deep and probably wouldn't affect
the plants at all, I'm up for the challenge.

Most of the time, they are nothing but large pebbles.

But sometimes I've worked for hours to unearth a huge
boulder that almost breaks the shovel (and my back) as
I work to lift it out of the ground.

It's not just rocks in the garden that make me like this.

I can dig around on the internet for hours, unearthing
information on just about anything.

The internet is so much like my garden.

There are so many rocks to find!

 “The love of knowledge is a kind of madness.”
― C.S. Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet

It Just Happened

I usually like to write 2 times a week, but for the past few days I've been grasping for inspiration.  It occurs once in a while, and usually something happens to get me jump-started once again.

It just happened.

As you know, we are in the middle of having 2 bathrooms renovated.  Most of our toiletries are in boxes keeping only the things we use on a daily basis within easy reach.

This morning, I ran out of Eye Make-up Remover.
I keep a small bottle handy to dip a Q-Tip inside whenever I need to remove smudges under my eyes.

I refill it from a larger bottle when needed.


So I went to the box of items in storage to find the larger bottle of eye make-up remover.
I refilled the small bottle, dipped the Q-Tip, and swiped it under both of my eyes.

Immediately, I knew something was wrong!

This was not my "gentle eye makeup remover".

The fumes were burning my eyes almost instantaneously!
I closed my eyes tight to try to stop the fumes,
but I think this made it worse.
Some of the liquid must have been forced into my eyes
when I squeezed them shut!

The bathroom is just across the hall.
I stumbled blindly into the bathroom and turned on the water.
Even in my distress, I realized what I had done.
As I put my eyes under the running water, I could envision myself
refilling my little bottle of eye makeup remover.

I recognized the familiar odor.

After flushing my eyes for a few minutes, they felt much better.
I went to the box to get the bottle I had used.

I SHOULD HAVE USED THIS ONE:

BUT INSTEAD I USED THIS ONE:

I am so thankful it was a more natural, acetone free version!

I am also very thankful I only used it UNDER my eyes!

If I had used it on the top lid, my lash extensions might have come unglued!
THAT would have been a disaster!

Just Catching Some Flies!

With a house full of pets, you gotta have rules.
No dogs on the new couch.
Don't let the cats sharpen their claws on the furniture.
No cats allowed on the kitchen counters.

But there are times when the rules can be bent.
The other day was one of those times.

She was working.
Doing a job that I don't care to do myself!

 A job that she takes very seriously.

She's focused.

On this fly.

 A bomb could go off and she wouldn't even notice!

 Sometimes the fly leads her on a merry chase around the house.

 But today it had mercy on her and stayed on the window.

 But Maddie is lightning fast.
And has no mercy on the fly!