Year One

One year ago, Saturday July 11th at 3:30 in the afternoon, I married my best friend. My lover, my soul mate, my forever. Michael Dee Harley. I cannot believe how quickly this year has gone by. And how quickly two years has gone by since we decided to intertwine our lives and begin this journey. We knew from day one that we were headed toward marriage. Being apart was just too empty, too painful. Like magnets we have been drawn to each other from the beginning. A lot of couples say their first year of marriage is the hardest. But we agree that when we're together, things are easy. Sure we have minor disagreements, but not one heated argument. We discuss (respectfully) and agree to disagree. He is my rock and my comfort when times get tough. A good support and sounding board for when I struggle with parenting or other life issues. The boys love him dearly too, which is important to both of us. He is such a good step-dad and is truly invested in their lives. We have become a blended family that I am very proud of.  I have never been in a more respectful, loving, caring, nurturing and fulfilling relationship as I have with Mike. He makes me laugh, and brings such joy to my life. With him I have a TRUE partner in everything. I love you Mike. Always and forever. Thank you for being my life partner now and until death parts us. I look forward to our future together, and I am so enjoying the present. Thank you for making me your wife. I know you will disagree, but I really am the lucky one.

XOXO

Beauty truly starts from within

Here is what I've been up to lately. I started tweeting while in Florida at my dad and step-mom's house about healthier eating that I wanted to do and have been meaning to write in depth about it. To give you some background, my step-mom is a Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine and a health consultant. She and my dad run Heart & Soul Health Ministries in Gainesville, FL. She's been a vegetarian and "health nut" since she was 18 (now 52 and doesn't look a day over 40). In other words, she knows her stuff about nutrition. She's also a pretty damn good vegetarian cook.

During the first day of my stay at their house, I told her how my skin had been really itchy lately, more so than usual (eczema). My asthma is under control with medicine, but my skin has been really affected by my allergies. It is driving me crazy. She told me that the skin is a good indicator of what's going on inside you. She brought out this book she had called "Do You Have the Guts to be Beautiful?" I devoured it the week I was there. The book is by Dr. Mitra Ray and Dr. Jennifer Daniels and has a lot of good information in it about healthier eating for beautiful skin. A few things really piqued my interest and I wanted to put them to the test immediately. One of the things I started doing right away was making what they call "Green Drink" and having it every morning for breakfast. I started on Tuesday June 8th making this Green Drink, and except for 2 days since I have been making it every day. Seriously I was waking up on my VACATION every morning at 6am to go out to their garden and pick my Kale for my drink. I don't know what has gotten into me, but I'm loving the drink. Feeling great too. I actually feel really good for the first few hours of the morning which is saying a lot. I am NOT a morning person! I also feel great knowing that I'm drinking RAW leafy greens. Talk about super food!

Here is the recipe for Green Drink. It is just a starter recipe, you can modify it to include different greens, or add whatever healthy ingredients you'd like. In fact, now I finally have a use for broccoli stems! The fruit is basically to sweeten the drink and it does an awesome job of that. It tastes great! I recommend if you don't have one, to get a coffee grinder. They are inexpensive and it is cheaper to buy whole seeds to grind up than to try to find them already ground. Also it is better to grind them the day you need them, as once the seeds are ground up, the enzymes in them start breaking down. So older ground seeds really won't have as good of an effect as freshly ground.

• 3 cups of water
• 2 bananas, fresh or frozen
• 1 cut up apple or handful of other fleshy fruit (I like to use frozen mixed fruit for smoothies, frozen fruit also cools the drink down.)
• 3 large leaves of Kale or other leafy green, chopped
• 1/4 c. flax seeds, freshly ground
• 1 tsp. milk thistle seeds, freshly ground

Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

This should make a blender full of Green Drink. They recommend using a VitaMix blender *cough*..expensive..*cough* but for now I make do with my Hamilton Beach just fine. I used Deb's VitaMix at their house, and I must say it makes the drink extra smooth in a jiffy.  I drink the entire thing for breakfast. It is really tasty and OH so good for your skin. The flax seeds are an excellent source of Omega 3 oils, and great for cleaning out the colon, which according to Doctors Ray and Daniels in turn reverses wrinkles and sags in your face. (I'm totally serious!) The milk thistle seeds are great for your liver and also for your skin appearance as well. I've not been perfect on my eating, but I think taking this Green Drink every morning has helped my skin some. I know it feels softer for sure. I'm still itchy, but I know it's going to take some time to totally detox my body. I also need to get better on drinking water. Hydration is so important for good skin, as well as overall body functions.

The doctors also talk about doing enemas for clear skin. Now this I haven't tried, as I have yet to find the old fashioned type enema bag/kit required for the enema they recommend. Even if I had I wouldn't report in detail on that one anyway. *snort* but I do intend on trying this. Supposedly if you want to look good in the evening, do an enema in the morning, and vice versa. We shall see.

I also learned about a natural facial that is totally comprised of edible ingredients, because if you wouldn't dip a spoon in your facial cream jar and eat it, WHY would you put it on your face? Your skin absorbs materials just as if you had eaten them. Makes no sense to put inedible things on your face does it? Well it doesn't anymore to me.

Here are the ingredients and instructions for the facial (this is all from memory so excuse me if I don't sound textbook)

• Rice Bran about 1 TB
• lemon, cut into wedges, juice somewhat squeezed out
• Liquid Vitamin C (health food stores typically carry this, look for something without sugar)
• 2 TB Grapeseed Oil (under 40 years old) or Jojoba Oil (over 40 years old)

You will need a washcloth, something to hold your hair back, a towel to drape over & protect your clothes, a towel to dry your face, and some warm water.

1. Tie your hair back with a hairband, then get your washcloth wet with warm water, wring out and place on your face til it cools. Take deep breaths while it's on your face and relax.. this feels so nice.
2. Now we start the facial. Take a little bit of the vitamin C and put a thin layer over your face and neck, avoiding your eye area. leave on for 1 to 4 minutes. 
3. While that is sitting, mix about 2 TB warm water into the rice bran to get a nice consistency going, not too runny but not too thick that it won't spread. Massage the mixture onto your face for a few minutes. Do less scrubbing over forehead and cheek area where the skin is naturally thinner and more delicate. 
4. Take one of your lemon wedges, squeezing some juice out before you rub into the rice bran mixture. Press the pulp against your skin in a circular motion. This seals your pores up and you will feel a tightening, maybe even tingling sensation. leave on 3 to 5 minutes. Next, you may use the edges of the lemon wedge to scrape the rice bran off your face. When you're done with that, rinse your face completely clean. It may take a few times with a washcloth to get it all off. 
5. Use the washcloth again as you did in the beginning, wetting with warm water and wringing out, then placing on your face until it cools. Gently pat your face dry with a towel, and then finish by applying a small amount of either Jojoba oil or Grapeseed oil to your face. This will not clog up your pores as the lemon juice has already sealed them. Blot off excess oil with a clean dry towel. 

You can do this safely once a day for a week as long as you are comfortable doing this, then only 1 or 2x a week for maintenance after that. I'm still trying to get a routine going to do this. You can do it in the shower also, but have to be careful to totally rinse everything out so as not to grow any funky stuff in there. 

In the book there is a lot more information about what each ingredient is good for and why it is beneficial to the skin, along with other recommended practices and alternatives to the facial for specific skin issues. 

In other words, I HIGHLY recommend you buy it! (No, I am not paid for this) It is my beauty bible now. I can't wait to get my hands on my very own copy. In fact, in looking up the link for my blog to Amazon, I saw that there are 10 used copies for under $6 from independent sellers. I grabbed one! Even if you spent $29 on this book, it'd be worth every penny. It has changed my life. 

Let me tell you something, my step-mom has been preaching about healthy eating to me and my siblings since I've know her (twenty YEARS), and yes I am concerned with my health, but when that cheeseburger is in front of me, I just want to taste it. I am stubborn! However, now when thinking how it might affect my skin and cause wrinkles, age spots, etc? I don't want it nearly as bad. Amazing how everyone is motivated in a different way. I know she is totally thrilled that something has finally "clicked" with me about how I eat. So I am not motivated about health but when it comes to my looks, heck yeah. Aren't we all? It's not vanity, it's about feeling good.. If we women are truly honest with ourselves, we will all admit that we want to look our best.  When we look good, we feel good. Our whole outlook and attitude changes. When we are happy, it's contagious and people around us are happier too. It's a win/win!

Overall, the baby steps I'm making are ultimately toward a Whole Food Plant Based (beauty) Diet...aka WFPB. Which in turn is in general an excellent and healthy way of eating for anyone. Nowadays I think more about what I shove in my face, I lean toward the water instead of sodas. Trying to make healthier choices meal to meal because I don't want to counteract this experiment I'm doing for my under eye circles and the little wrinkles that want to show up on my forehead already (supposedly a sign of an unclean colon.) Yes, you heard me. I am trying to reverse the wrinkles. It is supposed to be possible. Think about it, when you cut your finger, a few days under a band-aid it heals up. Why can't we reverse wrinkles? Skin is the most amazing organ we have. If someone can reverse lung damage over time by putting down the cigarettes, why can't we reverse damage we've done to our outer shell? True wrinkle reduction starts from within, not by slathering creams all over. That's just a temporary, aesthetic fix and in fact the chemicals in those creams can make your skin worse!

I am also taking a chinese herb along with my whole food supplement that both have been reported to have reversed grey hair. This is astounding to me so I definitely want to try and see if it works. The whole food supplement is Juice Plus+ (my stepmom and dad sell it but I am also a non active distributor) The chinese herb is called Fo-Ti and I got it from the health food store. I know my local store carries it also, so I will be able to take it for a few months with no problem. I've been taking about 4 to 6 of those each day but it is safe to take up to 12 a day. Since I have a LOT of grays thanks to genes, I will report back on what happens.

For more information, visit Dr. Mitra Ray's Site.

So there you have it! Let me know what you think. Comments, Questions?

New Facebook Warning OMGWTFBBQ!!!

I didn't write the next paragraph, but find it hysterical.

WARNING! Facebook now automatically scans your brain through your monitor. To block, go to Kitchen Cabinets remove box of Aluminum Foil. Wrap foil around your head, stay calm & breathe
through your left nostril. This is a serious problem & has been confirmed by my cousin's girlfriend's neighbor's son's baby's mama and her pet chihuahua. Copy and paste as your status & SAVE YOUR FRIENDS.


This status of course is poking fun at all the "Warning! Facebook is the debbil!" messages going around Facebook. I see these chicken little-esque warnings all the time. I fell for one the other day in fact, because it looked pretty legit. Although my gut instinct first said "ugh, don't believe it" I tried what it said to do (look in your friends list, a new "door" for hackers to come into your acct is because we are all now on our friends lists! OMG! Go delete yourself and you'll be safe!) well lo and behold I looked and I was there. I deleted myself. I told all my friends, then was told it was a hoax, that I will be on there again if I look, and I was. I should have known better. *sigh* Apparently this is nothing to worry about, it's nothing NEW by any means. It's a normal thing to be able to search for yourself within your friends and show up as a connection. This is just a hoax and is not an open door for hackers to come in and destroy your Facebook world as you know it. The main clue I know better to look out for and YOU SHOULD TOO is the phrase "Copy and paste as your status and let all of your friends know!" Huge red flag. 


People: be smart. Trust your instincts. DON'T believe every warning there is on Facebook. Healthy caution is ok, but use common sense. Facebook isn't going to start charging money, they don't know the color of your underwear (unless you post it as your status to confuse all the menfolk..teehee) they aren't the root of all evil. It's not required to join every group, install every app you see on Facebook. A lot of these viruses are caused because of user participation and are created by a 3rd party anyway.  DON'T give in to the peer pressure of Farmville and the like. As if Facebook itself isn't taking up enough of our time. Now we have to pretend farm on there too? How about growing real vegetables and herbs and flowers? That's even more enjoyable and you won't get a computer virus or meet a slimy stalker by doing it.


DO pay attention to new privacy changes. Keep an eye on your privacy settings, they do periodically change.  The latest is in your account > privacy settings > application and websites. @Fsecure on Twitter posted just tonight: How To Opt-Out Of Facebook’s Instant Personalization http://su.pr/1o4A45


Explore some in there and make sure you're not allowing your friends to share your statuses, etc. I don't know why this is now an option but trust me, it's there. I just went in yesterday and unchecked all the boxes. I like to keep all my info on FB private, unless I know you. It's just a good rule to follow.


~Jen

We're alive!

I know, I know. It's been almost seven months since I blogged. I'm an online slacker. Better than being a "real life slacker" though.  I micro-blog on Twitter through the day, but to come up with a blog post that's worthy of posting, my mind goes blank. And I don't want to bore you with a daily play by play of activities.

To give you somewhat of an update, we've been busy these last 7 months. Life is great though. The boys have been playing soccer (T) and baseball (H & A) and that alone has kept us running. T is playing for the first year on a countywide travel team, so sometimes I'm off in another town with him while Mike takes the boys to baseball. I have to keep everything on Google Calendar (loooove my calendar) to keep everything straight between work appointments and personal. The boys' dad moved 10 hours away so we no longer have our weekends kid-free. Which is okay. Things have adjusted to a new normal. School is out on May 28th and the following Friday we are going to Florida! Hoping the boys can stay another week so they get their grandparent/aunt and uncle and of course, Cousin Ella time in w/out parents around. Hoping they can go see their dad in July for a week if not more.  Before we know it, football and fall soccer season will be here. We've already signed up, it seems like a neverending cycle here! But the kids love it, and as long as it's not getting in the way of schoolwork, etc. we love watching them play.

Mike got word in March that Cricket is outsourcing his entire department to local contractors. 75 people are losing their jobs in July. He will be one of them, unless he takes another position within the company, but it has yet to be posted. So we wait for that while looking elsewhere too. Transferring to another team within the company is what he is aiming for right now. Just keep us in your thoughts. Glad he still has a job at this moment, unemployment would be devastating. He has a great advantage because he's pretty much a rock star at what he does, and having 8 years with the company is a bonus. Some people were not so lucky and didn't get 4 months notice of what was happening. We consider ourselves very lucky.

My business is going great. So far 2010 is a more profitable year than the last 2 years have been. We shall see by the end of the year if it stays true. Since we started my website Pampered You Salon, listed it on Google Business listings, & did the SEO properly, I am getting calls. It's filling in the gaps I had in my book, and things are working just as we had hoped they would. Knowing it's something WE made happen, is the best feeling because it only costs about $10 per month to do this vs. advertising on Yellowpages.com or the YP book. WAY better use of funds! In fact I am in a battle alongside my coworker with the Berry Company who does the Yellow Pages. I am convinced they are scum now. Almost as bad as payday/title loan companies and credit card companies. Not quite, but I have a really bad taste in my mouth after working with them.

Well that's my update for now. I promise to do better at this whole blog thing in the future. And next time I'll try to be more interesting. Heh.

UGH!!

I am so pissed bc it won't quit RAINING! We have had so much rain the last few months. I'm sick of it. It's supposed to rain all week. It's really cutting into Tyler's soccer season. They've already had to cancel 4 games and the way the weather looks this week they will probably not have one on this Saturday either. It doesn't affect Football unless it's storming. Although I am kind of relieved that we don't have to run around like crazies trying to get 2 kids to 2 different locations at the same time for practices on Mon and Tues, and games on Sat.. I feel bad for T when his games and practices are canceled!
They're also supposed to resurface our parking lot here at the apartments, they were supposed to do it last week but couldn't bc it rained. Then we had a couple days of sun, so they rescheduled it.. to start today. Well this morning it was already raining and had been for awhile and look at the forecast and there is NO sun in sight. RAIN RAIN GO AWAY!

October 2, 2009

I should have written this yesterday, but I was so busy! It's OCTOBER! One of my favorite months and it's really starting to feel like fall out there. This week's weather has been absolutely incredible! Crisp nights, cool but sunny days, just a slight breeze. Perfect for any outdoor activity and in this house we just love opening the windows at night and snuggling under the covers. We've been keeping busy with football practice and soccer too. This weekend as long as the weather cooperates, T will have his first soccer game since 3 weeks ago. The last 2 have been canceled due to rain or soggy fields. T is such a good soccer player. The last game he played, he was in the whole time. There were 2 kids from the other team that got red carded that game though.. and that is the same team that we're playing this time, so I'm keeping my eyes open for any funny business. This team needs to chill out, it's only recreational soccer, not supposed to be competitive but some coaches don't see it that way and are out for blood.  Not being a real competitive person I don't understand why they have to be that way. It is kids' sports after all!  Football is out of town, but this will be the last out of town game. They go to Spring City, and then all the rest of them will be on our turf. I'm excited for our team! They got their play books last night. It's really cool to see H doing so well, after he wanted to quit the first day. He's on first string offense and plays tight end. He also plays on the kickoff and kickoff return special teams. The coach asked me last week, "what are y'all feeding, him, dynamite?" because as he said, "He's come alive". I think it's great that they are bragging on him so much. He just eats that up too.. that is what he needs!

Work was SO SLOW in September! It's been weeks since I've had a really busy week. It's rather depressing, but that's the business. It wasn't just me either. Other girls in the building were feeling it too, and the phones have been so quiet. Yesterday started off October with a bang though, and I'm happy we're done with Sept. Although I got to see my family over Labor Day (awesome as always) and my baby boy turned 8 in September so it wasn't all that bad. It's just the work that sucks in September, and February is the same way.

With the fall weather, it's almost that time to change the summer clothes out for winter clothes. The boys and I have already been digging into our winter clothes tubs because of the cool temps in the morning and at night.  I am so glad I switched from a huge tub with all of their clothes in one spot to 3 under the bed boxes for theirs. They each have their own, and they are tucked away but still accessible when the day brings about an unseasonal temperature. It is so handy! I don't know why I didn't do that years ago. Also saves me from having to weed through and decide what belongs to whom. These boys grow out of their clothes so fast. One of the nice things about having three boys is hand me downs. As long as the clothes aren't torn up or stained they can pass them down the line. We are always getting new things added thanks to birthdays and Christmas or if there is a good sale going that someone can't pass up. That means T gets almost no hand me downs. I guess that is a perk of being the oldest child.. he always gets the new stuff. The other 2 get new stuff as well, but they have a good bit of hand-me-downs. I need to take him to the thrift store and stock up on jeans. That kid grows out of jeans quicker than anyone I know. He's getting tall, fast. His birthday is coming up too.. the big 13! Scary to think about. Has it really been that long? *sigh*

So less than 3 months till Christmas is here. The year has really flown by! I'm looking forward to the holidays, though this year I won't be able to travel to see my family. Even though I don't see them enough and I miss them like crazy, I just can't miss any more work. So we'll plan on having a nice little gathering, just the 5 of us. For Thanksgiving and for Christmas. Maybe Mike's family also? Not sure how that will work out. I am thinking this year that instead of cooking a huge meal like I did last year for Thanksgiving, eating out might not be a bad idea. The kitchen in this apartment is not conducive to that kind of cooking. Instead it reminds me of a walk in closet they decided would be a good spot for a kitchen. I definitely look forward to being in a bigger space, but for now we can stick it out. It'll be worth it in the end. Like Dave Ramsey says... "live like no one else, so later you can live like no one else." A little financial sacrifice now will definitely be worth it in the not too distant future.

I've been working on getting myself into better shape before the holidays get here too. Over the last year I've become "soft" and just been happy and enjoying my life. But the scale has been crawling up there. I'm back to where I was 2 years ago when I realized I needed to change things up and not "let myself go"  I'm not heavy or thick by any definition of the word. I know there are a lot of people out there that would compare themselves to me and say what are you talking about?  But for my frame the weight I am is on the border of being too much, and if I don't do something different then I will really regret it later. I'm used to being 110 lbs soaking wet my whole life.. now in my 30s, my metabolism has been slowing and I just need to watch my portions and make an effort to exercise on a regular basis. It's not so much as the weight (but that is a good indicator for me) as it is fitting into my clothes well and overall just feeling better and having more energy.  I've been doing really well! The last 2 weeks I've been consistent with my exercise, at least 3 if not 4 or 5 times a week. Labor Day week was a washout, but the week leading up to it I worked out 4x. I'm not quite to the point where it's a habit yet.. that takes a full month at least, so I still have to fake it some days and just push myself. But I've been getting that done and eating more salads for lunch, or just a smaller portion of what I would normally have. And I'm drinking more water and less cokes. Baby steps.. that is what it takes!

September 14th, 2009

Mid-September already...this year is going WAY too fast. I know, we always say that! But it's true. Time just flies anymore. I know I haven't blogged in awhile. We've been busy. Since the last time, we went on a trip to Mattawan, MI where my stepdad and mom have not one but now two cottages on Pretty Lake. One is just a summer cottage (thankfully it is still warm in September!) and the other is their year round second home. They are very fortunate. Last year was our first annual Labor Day family week there and I went with the boys. This year it was just me and Mike, so we flew up on Thursday and everyone met up at Detroit airport. We all flew from there to Kalamazoo (aka Kazoo), a 30 minute flight. Then it was just a quick 20 minute drive onto Mattawan. Two cars had to be rented to fit us all. In attendance was myself, Mike, Mom & John, Eric, Jillian and 7 1/2 month old Ella, and my grandma was even there this year. What a treat to be able to spend so much time with my grandmother when there wasn't wedding or graduation planning going on. It was also a great time for my family to get to know Mike better. It was the first meeting for Grandma and Mike, and I think they hit it off :) Everyone loves him which makes me happy. I had no doubt that they would though!

Before we arrived at Pretty Lake, we made a pit stop at Crooked Lake to get some sub sandwiches. It took awhile to get 7 subs made (poor kid was stunned when we all walked in wanting a sub order) but they were well worth the wait. I was also lusting after the pizza they had in the hot display, it looked SO good topped with bubbly melty cheese on it. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water! After purchasing our sandwiches (and some beer, of course) we arrived at Pretty Lake. The summer cottage was open and ready for us. Mike and I unloaded our belongings there, and we all ate on the enclosed porch. The weather was fantastic.. but the bees were wanting our sandwiches too, so we ate inside.

After lunch and a quick tour of the place Mike and I would be sleeping in, we headed up to the main cottage. Grandma, Jillian, Mom and I planned out the meals for the week and soon went to the grocery store. Mike, Eric and John got all of the water toys ready. We had canoes, kayaks, sailboat, and of course fishing equipment. When John purchased the summer cottage, it also came with a pontoon boat, aka "the float boat" which was a lot of fun to use. Mike and I enjoyed the kayaks a lot too. If there was ever a time that I couldn't locate him, all I had to do was look to the water, and I would see him out there in the kayak. I'm really glad he found something out there to enjoy so much. He and I also had a couple ping-pong tournaments, where he totally kicked my butt, but it was a lot of fun. I am so NOT competitive in sports. I will play and I will enjoy it, but if I lose, it's no big deal. I just enjoy spending time with him doing something fun.

Each night around 6pm we had happy hour. Whether it was in the screened porch, or on the float boat, it was so relaxing. The whole trip was! A couple of nights, John's brother Steve and his wife Pat joined us. Grandma had brought her hot canned dilly beans and asparagus with her for happy hour.. MAN were they good! I still have some that I brought home with me in my fridge.. YUM.

The star of the week was of course, baby Ella. She is so sweet! I have been so lucky to have been able to see her every few months since April. Now of course I don't know when I will, but I try not to think about that. Eric and Jillian are excellent parents. They are also extremely blessed to have such an easy going baby. She is so happy almost all of the time!

It was an amazing 5 days. I look forward to many more years there making memories with my family. And we did get to enjoy some of that yummy pizza. Monday during the day was "clean out the fridge day" so we ate up all the leftovers we could, and then ordered pizza for that night. It was even better than I had imagined it would taste like!

Tuesday afternoon, Mike and I returned home before the boys got off the school bus, then it was back to life as we know it. Back to soccer and football practices, homework, dinners and bedtime.. getting up early the next day to do it all over again.

Life is going well, work for Mike is busy and at times stressful, but that is the job. Week to week for me is up and down. Can be crazy busy or very slow and sporadic. That is MY job. I am very happy where I'm at right now, the boys are settling into school very well now. No more calls from teachers during the day *knock on wood* and A will be starting after school tutoring to give him some extra help, 2x a week. He is looking forward to his first field trip tomorrow. H is also doing better, and as long as he gets his assignments turned in on time, he should be good. T is still "bored" with school but he does well. I really hope he gets turned onto something he wants to learn more about though.

Over the weekend T had a soccer game.. his team won 7 to 1. He always plays his heart out, and he did this weekend too, stayed in the entire game in fact. We can't attend both games, but his dad was able to go so kept me informed. Mike and I attended H's football game and they won 30-0. It was a great game, the boys played well. H has improved so much this year. The very first day he wanted to quit, and then he was one of "the six" they just rotated in the game because they have to give everyone some play time... and now he's on the first string kickoff and kickoff return teams, as well as being able to play on defense during a few plays. He got "most improved" title last week at practice. I hope he keeps it up! The coaches are super proud of him, and so are we. It's really enjoyable to see him doing so well and making great strides like he has.

Well it's another Monday morning here, the boys are up and off to school already, and I am going to get to the business of doing my exercise. I was able to do it 3x the week leading up to Labor Day, and even got in a Curves workout with Mom & Grandma one day of vacation, but last week after we got back I wasn't motivated at all. I just have to keep taking swings at it till I get in the habit. No more vacations planned for now, so now is a good a time as any to develop this one.

TTFN!