No resolutions here.....

I do not make New Year's resolutions. I think when you do you are just setting yourself up for failure. If you don't lose that 25 pounds or quit that bad habit or whatever, you just shrug it off and give up. Setting goals is much better for me. And I have set several goals, most of which are personal but some I will share. I tried to choose goals for all areas of my life. Physical, mental, educational, and, of course, spiritual.

My physical goals - Walk at least 3 days a week and run the length of Maner Road. I didn't set a specific date to reach the "Maner Road Run" but I will get there. I set the walk 3 days a week goal a week before the new year and have exceeded it. I have even managed to run more than I ever have. Today I ran from the top of Maner Road to the entrance to Hall Crossing. Then I walked to the first mailbox and ran to the next and repeated this alllllllllll the way home. Yippee for me. Never done that before. I was so dang proud of myself. I called Liz (my role model) and shared. Another physical goal is my diet. I will not give up bread but will make better bread choices in type and quantity. Bread is my weakness. I wish I hated it. Too bad. I love it!!!!
I also need to keep a check on my protein intake. Not eating meat causes me to lack some in the protein area and I need to be careful about this because my body knows when I need it. I also need to slack up on the diet coke addiction I have.

My mental goal - Don't worry so much. Easy to say. The only way I can reach this goal is by putting things where they need to be. God's hands. Hopefully with my new spiritual goals, this will be achieved. I also want to spend more time just thinking. I want to learn to respond appropriately to challenging situations and I believe that thinking and evaluation my thoughts will help with this. I also want to have a better attitude toward my job. Yes, I sometimes have a bad attitude. The kids aren't bad and the people I work with are great, but still, I sometimes have a bad attitude. I am so lucky to have a job. I have great benefits, get off early, have lots of time off, so I need to have a more positive attitude. I'll never get rich teaching but I don't expect to be rich. I have everything I need and almost everything I want. Actually, I can't think of anything I want that I don't have. So there....I'm good.

My educational goals - Well, I do have some credits toward my master's but I really don't see me finishing that. Not in the mood. Too lazy or something. But I do need to read more. Oh, I read all the time for school but I want to read things I have never read and really don't need to read. The classics. I want to read "Gulliver's Travels" and "David Copperfield". May add more to the list as time goes on.

My spiritual goals - These goals are most important to me. I want to read the Bible all the way through. I started with a new program January 1st, last night. I have started many times before. I am almost 50 and really need to do this before I die. My dad reads it through about 3 times a year so surely I can do it once this year. I also want to spend more time praying for others. I am a big prayer person but I need to improve in my prayer life. I also want to serve others more. God has been so good to show me many areas in which to serve and I need to continue to be open to these opportunities. I also want to be more active in my Sunday school class. I have already started planning a Valentine's party for our group.

So there.....that's my goals or some of them. Not impossible goals but realistic attainable goals. And goals that I feel mean something for my growth in all areas of my life....

On the Road Again

OK...If anyone saw some crazy woman walking down Maner Road with her pajama pants hanging out from under her jogging pants(technically, not literally jogging anywhere) with her husband's black toboggan pulled down over her ears, that would have been me. The temperature at the time of my outing was 36 degrees but felt like minus 13 with the wind blowing. The one consolation was that only one side of my face was freezing on the way and the other side didn't freeze until the return trip.

This is my second day in a row. Yippee for me!!! I decided to start my New Years resolution a few days early. It kinda haunted me to get out there. I got inspired at Omega Sports buying new shoes for Liz for Christmas. All those shoes and socks and sweat pants just did it to me. Whatever it takes, I guess. Anyway, if my calculations are correct, and I am not a math teacher, I have 341 days to prepare for the Jingle Bell Run, if it is held on it's typical first Saturday in December of 2011. That's a long time, right? 341 days.....I CAN DO THIS.

The day of the run this year, I woke up feeling so sad and disappointed. I should have been there. I could have been there. Next year I would be there. I also want to run in the NoDaween 5K next October with Liz. In that run you dress in a costume. Liz and I are going as Dee and Dumb. Not saying who will be whom..... Surely if my daughter who had just giving birth a few weeks earlier can do this, so can I.

Aside from the cold yesterday and today, my outings were wonderful. I only went on my 1.5 mile trek. It was so nice to walk around and see the snow and feel the cold and hear the peace. It is always peaceful when it snows. Sunday morning I enjoyed sitting out on the back porch in the cold just watching the snow fall and listening to the quiet. In the words of a friend of mine, Kate, God had painted a beautiful scene in my own back yard.

I do need to purchase some of the little black long things(well, not really little) but those things you wear under your pants to keep you legs warm. My PJs didn't work too well; my legs are chapped.

I did run a short distance on the way back down Maner Road. A very sort distance, but I did run. I am so excited. I just hope I can stay inspired with this terribly cold weather.

Confessions and Disclosure

I just returned from the most amazing "vacation" ever. Better than the beach, the mountains, or anywhere you go that has a lot of sites to visit and places to eat and hundreds of things to do and see.

Hubby and I took the Hornet and parked it down at the KM State Park Campground for the past week. Now, I know this probably doesn't sound very exciting to most (remember you either love camping or you don't) but it was totally WONDERFUL....No phone, no boat, no motorcar (well, i did have my car) not a single luxury (I did have a microwave, 26" flat screen, indoor plumbing and my cellphone). This allowed hubby to go to work and we were close enough to get to church on Sunday. And with the anticipated birth of my second little angel, we didn't want to be too far away but we needed a break from the summer stress. Yes, summer stress. I think we teachers try so very hard to pack so much into our summer, that we become overworked. Now, this is not say that I don't love summer vacation from school. I DO!!!!!! It's just that we seem to work our hineys off and go, go , go.

I found a wonderful two mile path for walking. I made sure I tackled lots of hills. Since I am determined to participate in the run this year (I'll probably be walking) I try to do a lot of hills at home and didn't want to slack of this week. I did have a few concerns about my path. Are there bears in the state park? What about Big Foot? A serial killer on the loose? That wolf hubby swears he saw one night? Rattle snakes? Oh well.....

Over the past several years, I have been keeping a journal of our camping adventures. I just write down things about the particular trip, where we go, who goes with us, what we do, those types of things. In my journal this weeks, I did this but I also made a list of words that provoked various thoughts. Here are a few of those words followed by a few explanations: vicious squirrels, tomato pie, apples, sewage, rainbows, rocks, quiet, wolves, retired people and thunderstorms...

Squirrels hate people as much as people hate them and they will attack you. I found this out one morning while walking my discovered two mile path around the campground. I wasn't anywhere near Mr. Vicious when he ran out of the woods and directly into my right leg. I had heard him and seen him working away diligently at some task, but I didn't bother him. Scared me to death. It took me an hour to get my heart rate back to normal.

I cooked all our meals while away. Well, the evening meal, that is. I had come home one day to water my flowers and such and had gathered tomatoes and decided that I would make a tomato pie back at the retreat. Every year I make tomato pies. And every year I hate them. I love tomatoes, I love mayo, and I love cheese. So, why do I not like tomato pie? I try to like them. Must be the crust..I don't know.

One afternoon while walking, I noticed a shiny red apple abandoned on a picnic table. No, I didn't take it. I didn't even want to. But I kept thinking about that apple as I continued my walk. It was so perfect and so undisturbed. Just sitting there. I decided that apples must be the most beautiful and amazing fruit ever. Richard Gere said in a movie once(I'm not really a big Richard Gere fan, ok, maybe I am) "Food is the only art that truly nourishes". I must agree that food is artistic. Either naturally or they way it is presented. I love pretty food. Tomato pies aren't that pretty.....

Another word I wrote down was rainbow. I drove through a rainbow....Actually it seemed that the end of three different rainbows touched down together right in my path. It was awe inspiring. What did that mean? Hmmm. Still thinking about that one...

Miss Priss spent the night with us the first of the week. Now, that little angel loves everything and she makes everything seem perfect. For example, thunderstorms. We actually sat outside during a thunderstorm on Sunday afternoon. Rainwater poured off the end of the camper awning and I decided that that was too good to waste, so I ran inside grabbed two towels and the shampoo and conditioner and guess what Miss Priss and I did? We washed our hair in the rain. She loved it!!!! No, we didn't get struck by lightning.....

It really was an amazing week. Hubby left around 7:00 every morning. So I read a lot and walked a lot and watched movies and actually slept till 10:00 one day. Don't judge me....There was nothing to wake me up!! Absolutely nothing..I did here a helicopter one morning and ran outside to see it just above me. It seemed so out of place out there in my quiet world..

There are few places in the world where we can experience quiet..And this week I found one....."Be still and now I am God" Psalms 46:10.....

Anniversary

The Great Out-of-Doors....

You either love it or hate it. There is absolutely no in between when it comes to camping. Hubby and I have been camping for over twenty years. We bought our first little, tiny pop-up the summer before daughter no. 1 was born. For those of you who do not know, a pop-up is a camper you pull that folds down in to what looks like a flat shoe box. At your chosen site, you pop it up and slide out the two ends which are beds. We have been through several of these over the years. There was one brief era of insanity when we tent camped. After my experience with the lizard, that ended. About four years ago we upgraded to an 18 foot travel trailer with a bathroom, microwave, cable hookup, refrigerator and lots of storage. About a month ago, we upgraded to a 30 foot trailer with a 12 foot slide. This slide is on the side and goes out about 3 feet making a large sitting area and a large dining area. We love it. And this week-end is our second voyage in the Hornet.

We came to a campground in Swannanoa after hearing about it from a stranger in the Wal-Mart parking lot. He came up to hubby enquiring about his truck and asked him what he pulled with it. After their 45 minute conversation while my ice-cream melted and my frozen veggies thawed, he said this was one of the greatest campgrounds he and his wife had ever been to. (Apparently, they don't get out much.) I mean it's ok but I have definitely been to nicer campgrounds.

This morning I was up at 7:30. I slammed truck doors, camper door, called Tobi, loudly, asked hubby and couple questions from outside. Why did I do this? Simply to get back at the people camping beside us. Yes, they kept me awake till the wee hours. They were slamming truck doors, repeatedly, laughing, playing loud music and talking loud. To me 12:00 is the wee hours and every time I just about dosed off, they would slam their door or go in to some fit of laughter or turn up the music. I'm not really sure I bothered them. They did smile at me at one point this afternoon.

After my act of vindication, I headed out for a nice morning stroll. I headed around our area and then ventured across the two bridges that lead me to a beautiful lake area. Two swans were bathing themselves (or it could have been some type mating ritual, who knows) and ucks and geese that numbered about thirty, played in the shallow area apparently in anticipation of a morning meal. I headed on around the lake as people were beginning to stir and the smell of breakfast being prepared out doors wafted in the air around me only to be interrupted by the smell of stale campfires.

I continued around the lake until I came to a gate that was locked. There appeared to be a small community within it's confines so I rounded the cul-de-sac and came back around. To my right there was a rather large path and so, before I started thinking about lions and tigers and bears, I headed down the path. It reminded me of Frost's The Road Less Traveled. It wasn't until I was a 100 yards or so down the path when I heard a noise to my left down an incline. That's when I began to think of lions and tigers and bears, Oh My....I turned around and high tailed it out of there and headed back toward the two bridges. I'm not sure how far I walked but it was better than nothing. I'm guessing 1.5 miles.

I've done pretty good this week and I'm determined to keep it up and get back to where I was in the fall.

Until next time....

What to expect when your child is expecting and you weren't expecting it....

This morning, after sitting on the back porch realizing how beautiful the morning was, I decided to walk before getting ready for church. It was so peaceful and so perfect for walking. I really have to get back into my routine and get in shape for a 5K. I am determined to do one by October. Surely I can be ready by then...

Today's walk inspiration came, as usual, from God and His amazing gifts to me. Observing nature always inspires me. How can we look around us at all His creations, and not be awe struck at His power and grace. While I was walking, I began thinking of all God's gifts. Well, I shouldn't say all, because there are entirely too many to ever be able to count. But I was thinking about some of them. The rabbit that ran across my yard, the humming bird at my feeder, the beautiful veggies growing in my garden and the maggots in my paper box where baby birds once were. Yes, there were maggots in my paper box this morning. Apparently, there was a bird nest in there and for some reason maggots got in there after the birds left. Yes, hubby took care of the maggot infestation after church.

I then began thinking of babies. I, of course, have the greatest granddaughter in the history of such, but in the past week, I have heard of so many pregnancies that were not expected. Now, I am no psychologist, doctor, counselor, or pastor but I do have first-hand knowledge of the feelings of the parents of those who are about to bring life into the world and have decided to offer unsolicited advice as follows:

1) Go ahead an cry.

2) Go ahead and ask these questions,
a. What the heck were you thinking?
b. Do you know what birth control is?
c. What happened to the "Until I say I do" card you've carried around since 7th grade?
d. Are you going to marry him/her?
e. Does he/she plan on getting a job to support this child?
f. Where will you live?
g. What about the future I had planned for you?

3) Worry....(because, regardless, you're going to anyway.)

4) Pray (If we really were thinking straight, we would do this first.)

5) Accept that God does have a plan. He will handle everything in His way.

6) Start buying baby things....

7) Be prepared for the experience of a lifetime.

I was talking to two such expectant grandparents just this evening and we have decided that for some reason kids have the timing all wrong. I have noticed that most of these unexpected blessings do usually work out for all interested parties.

I wouldn't change my unexpected blessing for anything in the world and for those of you who this advice is intended for, neither will you. This, my friends, you can bank on......

Crime Doesn't Pay

We live in the best little neighborhood. There are 9 houses on our little street with a cul-de-sac. We are all pretty friendly and we get together on occasion for pot luck suppers and cookouts in the summer. We watch each other's house when we are away and feed each other's dogs. We take food when someone is sick and I even keep popsicles in my fridge in the garage for the neighborhood kids. They just come by when I'm outside and ask for one. We are all so very different, though. Some have kids at home, some don't have kids at all, and some, like us, have grown kids. There are a couple nurses, two engineers, a military recruiter of some kind, a business woman, a city employee, a home inspector, a househusband, and then there's the infamous plumber and his wonderful school teacher wife. (Better known as Bonnie ad Clyde)



Well, today I broke proper neighborhood etiquette. I stole a Papa John's cup from a neighborhood yard. I really tried to justify the crime by reminding hubby that the house was a vacant house and not technically in our neighborhood. I still feel bad, sort of. But he is an accessory to the crime. He drove the getaway car. I made him ride around the neighborhood on our way to eat with Miss Priss until I found one I could easily get. They were all over the place. Apparently they had only been delivered a short time ago. I found the perfect stop for my deed. Hubby stopped the get-away-car/truck and I jumped out and retrieved the object. Thief!!!!

Then came the worst part of the whole incident. Miss Priss asks me, "Gamma, what's in that bag?" My response? "Trash". LIAR!!! I had just lied to my precious granddaughter. What kind of role model have I become? I don't lie to other people, why would I lie to the most precious little girl in the world? Do I want her to grow up in a world where we steal stuff and then lie about it? Do I want to be the one responsible when she can't trust anyone because they lie? How horrible I have become. So after giving it some serious thought and realizing I did not want to introduce my precious baby to a world of crime, I then changed my response to, "Oh this? It's a cup," and immediately changed the subject.

Crime does not pay. After the big heist, things were down hill from then on. Our evening meal sucked. Miss Priss was a terror (probably because her gamma is a thief or because she is a two year old who hadn't had a nap and was hungry because no one had cared to feed her since breakfast). Dear God, I hope Liz doesn't read this. We'll never see her again. She will probably put her in the witness protection program and move her to Siberia or someplace. Anyway, after dinner, Clyde and I decided we had to stop at Walmart to pick up a gift for a birthday party I was taking Miss Priss to. Let me just say that Walmart will never be the same. Miss Priss was certain that a one year old boy needed a bicycle and bracelets for his birthday. I thought I'd never convince her to get the little truck. Clyde finally distracted her with a new toy of her own (that she desperately needed) while I picked out the present. Miss Priss was adamant that she ride in the back of the buggy with my eggs, bread, and other grocery items. Not a good idea. For the eggs anyway. The ride home was no picnic either.. Miss Priss would usually have fallen asleep by this time but with new toy in hand and broken egg gunk on her foot, she was not a happy camper.

So you see???? Crime does not pay. Karma. That's what is. I promise to never steal another Papa John's cup and I promise to eat there sometime in the near future and I promise never to lie to Miss Priss again. I Love You, Papa John's......