Yummy new candy

So I love Jr. Mints and they have a new candy flavor. Junior Mints Peppermint Crunch. YUM!!!! Just picked up a box today. I feel some inspiration coming on as an ode to this incredible candy and their maker!

So as I sit here on a Friday feel tired and yearning for bed I had a fantastic moment with my cup of peppermint tea and my box of Peppermint Crunch Junior Mints. YUM!! What could be better? NOW GO CHECK THEM OUT!!!!

New Junior Mints

new Layout

So there was a challenge over at Skrapnchat (Skrapnchat.com) and I decided to give it a whirl. THe challenge was to use something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. Well for my "new" I decided to give my spritzer tool from Stampin' Up! a go. I must say I really like this tool. It works with the markers and all you have to do is secure your marker in the tool and spritz away! I used red to add a bit of color to my background. THanks for checking my LO out!

It's been awhile and as I sit here I realize so many things have happened in the last little bit and life is continuing it's hectic route. I am working on my research proposal this week for class so this has to be short but I just thought that I might share a LO that I worked on recently. Enjoy and I'll be back soon to do some writing!

I DID IT!!!!

So today is the first official day that I made 10km in one run! I was able to squeeze 10.3K in 1 hour and 10 mins. I cannot believe it!!! I started working out early Jan with the goal of just getting in shape and then my friend at work (Julia) said that we should challenge a 5k this summer. I thought that I could potentially get there. 5K seemed like a huge deal and then I started running and would report to her how far I was running. I got to a steady 4.5-4.8 and of course, Julia then said "well 5K is going to be too easy for you, we should do 10K". I, being the challenge loving person that I am agreed and so started pushing myself harder and harder and bumping up what I could do each time I went to the gym. This afternoon I went to the gym with the intent of running on my treadmill until someone came and kicked me off (it's quiet on Sundays so I wasn't sure how long that would be). Well it amount to an hour and 10mins and at that point I had run 10.3K. I actually got in my car and let out a huge WHOOP!!!! I don't think I ever could have done this! It's incredible to make your goal. :) Now all I have to do is get to 10K in 60 mins! lol! This year I am learning to keep reaching higher, pushing harder, and eventually I'll learn how to fly!

In the Moment

I just cannot believe that it is the end of February already.......time is sure flying. It's funny how that happens. I want to hang on to the present for fear that I will forget all the neat stuff that is happening around me but I am looking to the future with anticipation as well! A good friend of mine told me that I may live in the future and the big picture too much so I am trying to live in the moment. She said that I have to be "a little more Budist" and while I am not about to try budism, I am okay working on my ability to stay present and enjoy the moment for what it is.

This is what I have come up with so far. A piece of my life is not at it's peek right now and I have really been, at times, dwelling on it. This dwelling has the potential to ruin my day and dominate my outlook on life for a particular day, which leads to a lot of meaningless rumination and emotional suffering. So today as I was working through my day I tried to "stay in the moment" as much as I could. As I was sitting in class today and my thoughts would wander to my particular "wound" as I will call it, I forced myself to look at where I was and what I appreciated about where I was at that particular moment. I was able to think about the great stuff we were discussing and really appreciate the opportunity of graduate school and this particular class at this moment. I found that I instantly thought about how school, learning, and engaging with peers makes me happy and guess what? I actually smiled. I am glad that my 7 classmates already know that I am crazy. I also used this same practice at work today. Again, if I caught my mind wandering I would pull it back to the opportunities I have at work and my fabulous coworkers and again I would smile.

I am amazed at the power we have to control our thoughts and thus control our emotions to some extent. I am glad that my friend cared enough to speak into my life and that I had the foresight to listen. :) And if you ever catch me smiling and laughing to myself you will know that I am probably just caught up in enjoying the moment......and what a wonderful moment it will be! So here is to the beautiful present and the wonderful future to come with each moment appreciated for what it is!

A thousand lessons in a month

I am not even sure what to say beyond that I am learning so much. I am discovering things about myself that I never thought possible. Do you have those people in your life that you think you are reaching out to or helping but in the end they are the ones who reach out and touch you? This is my journey of discovery this month. My friend Miriam is absolutely incredible. Her and her wonderful family share my home with me and I have always thought of them living here as an opportunity for me to help them in some meaningful way. However, it is I who have been touched and helped by them a thousand fold. Her and her husband have been my voice of reason in the last month and a listening ear when I needed to vent. Even in the last few weeks they have completely reached out to me in real and practical ways such as inviting me to join them for supper, joining me for my workouts, helping me chip ice on the sidewalks, and hooking up my cable.

They are also teaching me the values of connectedness, community and family. They love each other deeply and out of that love flows the ability to connect with others and bless them. They make the impossible seem feasible and spending time with them has cultivated within me a deep desire for community. They make it easy to be myself without all the layers of pretense. We have been through a lot together and I really cherish their friendship, more than I think I realized. It is true what they say that during the times of hardship you truly learn who your friends are and these two are true friends.

Solace

I am sitting here being a bit of a grump. I had class today which meant staying late at work so today turned into another long day and on top of that I have an assignment due for class next week that I really need to get my butt in gear for but for whatever reason I just don't feel like working on tonight. I have some dishes in the sink, clothes in the washer, and bags of junk that need to go to Goodwill. I am not feeling like much of a champion today.

I don't know why, but somehow writing things down seems to make it all better. :) Especially when you push the publish post button. It is a weird phenomenon that our generation feels compelled to electronically publish their lives for others viewing pleasure. I find it strange too that I get so much satisfaction over seeing my life in print. Somehow by publishing what is bothering me I somehow remove it from myself and it becomes a collective problem. I don't think that I comprehend it as throwing away my problem but it almost seems that as soon as I can reflect on my problem it somehow morphs from the mountain it used to be to a manageable crumb. It provides a renewed perspective about the severity of the problem and my skills for tackling it. I guess something like therapy although I don't get to talk and I have no idea who is receiving the information on the other end. Like I said, it's weird. But it works. It's a deeply ingrained need for remote connection with those around me, now matter how little I know about them. I still try to connect with them through electronic means and hope that somehow they can relate to what I am going through.

I heard a really good quote today "we strive for progress, not perfection." I think it is something that I need to take to heart. And today I will try. I have had a long day so it is okay if there are dishes in the sink, laundry in the washer, and bags of stuff to go to Goodwill. Today I went to class, went to work, ate well, and loved myself. That is progress so I guess that will have to do. And yes, I do feel better. Now to push that publish button..........