A woman's worth

"A woman is often measured by the things she cannot control. She is measured by the way her body curves or doesn’t curve, by where she is flat or straight or round. She is measure by 36-24-36 and inches and ages and numbers. By all the outside things that don’t ever add up to who she is on the inside so if a woman is to be measured, let her be measured by the things she can control. By whom she is and who she is trying to become, because as every woman knows measurements are only statistics, and statistics Lie."

These ad executives at Nike are brillant. I'm not talking about a little bit but amazingly insanely intelligent. What a wonderful way to celebrate a woman.  At first look you'd think it might have a negative impact, after all Nike is in the business of selling sporting and fitness goods to people. Why would they want to make an ad that would seem to contradict that.

In my opinion this does the opposite. It encourages women to look past that number. It encourages them to look at the goal. Look at what you want to accomplish. Push forward and say that I don't care what the number says I am going to accomplish this!

Most of you know that I am starting a 90 day challenge on Feb 6th. I am using the Chalene Extreme program. I know that this is going to be a huge challenge for me. I am going to have to dig down deep to find that strength to push forward on days that I don't want to do it. The hardest thing is that I know, in my heart that I can do it.

The numbers that are on the scale, or the tape measure(I'll post those later in the week) are just numbers. They don't mean that is what I am defining myself as. They are a sum of actions(mostly inaction) tallied up over a length of time. They are not who I am, they are not what I see when I look in the mirror(figuratively).

When you look in the mirror what do you see? Many people look and see the reflection of years of self loathe. The fact that they didn't love themselves enough to make better choices about the way they felt. Often this can inturn lead to more self loathe and a bigger pattern.

At some point you have to look at the person in the mirror. You have to stand up and say, I see you in there and I am going to start making choices to make sure that everyone else sees you too. You have to make the changes you want to see. Sometimes they are small, like getting up and getting active, sometimes they are big, like making the decision to go back to school.

The thing is that if you know what you are inside, don't ever let the numbers on the outside deny you from that. Move forward and remember statistics lie.

You are right where you should be NOW!

Okay so this is sort of a post due to my BBC Steve(Beach Body Coach).

He wrote a personal motivation on our team webpage the other day, about

the things that motivate us and encourage us to keep moving forward. He

wrote also about this statement he heard while listening to one of those 

team "motivational(I call them sales) calls". 

The person was talking about the statement of "you are right where you 

should be NOW!!"

When I read his post those words spoke to me. After all I am someone

that has spent much of my blog space writing about actions(and inaction) 

that have lead to the places that we end up.

I started thinking about how negative that this statement could be, after

all it basically says you are what you are because of what you did. Then

I realized that the key word in the phrase was "NOW"(Yes I admit I did

not pay much attention to capitalization).

The NOW means that we don't have to end up where we are at. We

have the power to change our ending spot. We have the power to 

be who we want to end up being.

For some people this may be harder. For instance I am a person that in

all honesty does not have more than 40 minutes a day to exercise. So I 

may not be able to fit the P90X program in but that does not mean that I

can't fit in another activity to make myself healthier.

Our spot in life is never meant to be a parking place. It is meant to be a
place that encourages us to look around, grow and move forward. To
keep striving to make ourselves that much better.

For me( those of your that are regulars know this)  my goals are to earn
my degree, have a safe home for my children, teach and educate my family
about how to be the best they can be. I also would like some things like
a new car, a new house, and a wonderful family vacation(dreams)

So I want to move forward, but unless I am willing to change something
I am not going to get there. After all I can't expect to get a new result from
the same old input. If you want something to come you have to recognize
what you need to put in to get that.

So what are you doing to be in a new place when you are are taking
a minute to look around.

The answer??---

So my daily devotional this morning was Proverb 16:3-

"Commit what you do to the LORD, and your plans
will succeed."

Before I get into it I have to say God is good. I prayed last night for the
answer to something that has been on my mind. It is something related to
the future and making plans.

For about a week I have been trying to decide if an opportunity that may
be granted would be the right thing for us. The chance for subsequent
failure greatly increases with this opportunity. I was worried about plans
and succeeding.

So last night I asked God for a sign, I asked him to answer this one little
thing. I asked for some indication that taking the chance would not lead
to another crippling fall for my family.

This morning I woke up. I googled the daily devotional for women and I
clicked on the very first link. I almost couldn't believe it. Really!!! Was
this the answer that I had prayed for sitting right in front of me?

God is good!!!! I know it is somewhat selfish to believe that this was
written just for me. But it surely was the intent that out of all the possible
verses that I could find this morning, that this would be the one that
is presented to me.

What a fresh feeling I have now. After all I know that maybe it will
not work out the way we totally would like that but if we committ
to the Lord this opportunity then we will be successful. So today I
eagerly await the outcome to the opportunity and I will continue to
look to the Lord for more guidance.

What a powerful way to start off a week.

THANKS BE TO GOD!

My dream come true

I have to share about my dream come true! For Christmas, thanks
to my mom and stepdad Roger, I finally got my Red Kitchenaid mixer
that I have been dreaming of!!!

You really don't have any idea. I have wanted one of these since I got
married(in 2003). I have been looking at them, adding it to my Christmas
list and dreaming of them for a long time.

So I got the mixer. I had read some reviews, this mixer is one of the ones
that is a little bit lower power, so that means you aren't going to be able
to easily mix a huge thing of bread dough, but let me tell you, I use this
thing all of the time.

After using this I realized that this might be the best "kitchen aid" that I
have ever gotten. It is nice not to have to hold the mixer while trying to
add in an ingrediant. It is also nice knowing that as my 2 year old is
pulling at my leg, that I can pick her up without having to stop making
something. No wonder most mom's I know that have these wouldn't
trade them for the world.


Since I have gotten this I have made:

(Jordan Family Red Velvet Cake)

(holiday sugar cookies, with frosting)

(banana mini muffins)

(whole wheat bread)

(waffles- whole wheat and regular)

(pasta dough)

(Peanut butter cup cupcakes)

So needless to say this thing can make a lot of yummy treats and some

healthy stuff too. The one thing I can say is that it isn't a low carb deal.

So here's to a delicious 2012 and more yummy things of all kinds to make

with my mixer!!!

Looking down on others

Okay. So I have to be honest. I am pretty sick of seeing the endless
posts that say stuff like:

"
Here...let me tick some people off...Did you get drug tested today? Thank you Florida, Kentucky, and Missouri, which are the first states that will require drug testing when applying for welfare. Some people are crying and calling this unconstitutional. How is this unconstitutional? It's OK to drug test people who work for their money but not those who don't?… Re-post this if you'd like to see this done in all 50 states. I just did!! I totally agree it should be mandatory!!!"


It really really bothers me to no end that people are so busy looking down
on other people because they feel that they are getting an unfair hand out, or as
some people like to say an "entitlement".

This bothers me on two ends. One is because when my husband lost his job we
usedfood stamps and I had more than one time when I almost had to get in a
 fight with someone because they assumed that I was someone that abused the
system. The second reason this really gets to me is because people claim to be
Christians yet they fail to follow the one thing that Jesus held more closely to
 him, The Golden rule!

If you make enough money to provide for your family a comfortable living then
 you can most certainly afford the "tax" that you lose to the government to help
 others. If you can eat without going hungry, then you should not be worried
 about what the person on food stamps does. After all aren't your basic needs
 meet, aren't you able to eat and drink and have shelter.

If you are blessed enough to have a job(over 8.6% of Americans do not) then
 be glad that you don't have to look for a job and deal with the issues that those
that do not have a job have.

Many people complain about paying high taxes to support people that don't
 do anything. Yes, it would be nice if we could keep every penny that we earn
but if that was the case then we would not have roads, or safe housing, or
schoolsor post offices, or police or librarys, or even safe food. All of these
 things exist because of tax revenue from taxpayers.

My point is that people complain and complain, look down and blame those
 under themfor the fact that they can't afford to do what they want in life, or
that they can't afford to take that vacation, or put in that bigger pool, or any of
 a million other things that are not absolute needs in this life.

I choose to look at it this way, Jesus put me on this earth to spread the love. He
 wanted me to share what I could with everyone. Not just those that looked,
 acted and did the things that I did. He wanted me to love the people that aren't
 easy to loveand to help the people that needed it, whether or not they deserve it
 in my eyes. If more people followed this point can you imagine how beautiful this
 life would be.

I CAN LOVE BECAUSE GOD LOVES ME
I CAN GIVE BECAUSE GOD GAVE!!!

What battles are you facing?

What battle are you facing today? Few of us are facing actual military battles
but that doesn't make our battle any less difficult. Some of us are facing the
battle of getting through that snow drift outside, others of us are facing the
battle of trying to care for our families. Some might be facing a battle of a tough
and difficult relationship. Still others might be battling internally with things like
self doubt and fear.

Turn on the TV or flip through a magazine and you will certainly see people that
are faced with battles of addiction to various things from medicines and drugs to
food and money. People can be seen on pretty much any station dealing with drug
abuse, anger problems and eating disorders. All of these are things that can be and
should be looked at as battles.

Everyday I face battles that seem inconsequential, like convincing a very tired and
cranky 2 year old that infact she does need a nap or that making a healthy and
nutrious dinner for my children is better than opening a box of Kraft Mac and Cheese
(I'm ignoring the fact that my children will not even touch this particular product) and
feeding them a less time consuming meal.

The point is that we all have things that we must face. Some of us do have bigger
battles but even those small battles can build up over time. Trying to face each and
everything that we do in the world alone will only lead to an overwhelming failure.

Sure many of our battles can be faced with only a little effort but when we come to
the ones that require more where do we turn. Do we turn to friends, family, or people
that are considered professionals? Do we seek the council of trusted and respected
members of our community? The simple answer is usually yes.

The bible says(I'm paraphrasing here) that we need not face any battle alone. That
when we stand with the Lord and put our faith in god that he will fight the battle for
us. Some people doubt this, after all how can the Lord fight it for us?

The answer is simple though, The Lord puts people in your life that can help you
with the battle, he gives you the strength and knowledge to do what you need to
do and most importantly he lets you know that you are not alone in any way.

So as you approach your battles today, remember that you do not have to do it all
alone and that if you put your faith in the Lord, you will be able to get through the
battle.

GOD BLESS!

I resolve....

This year I resolved to make just one resolution. That was that I
wouldn't make any more resolutions!!! Even with the giggles and
jokes aside I am serious about this.

One of the things I dislike about resolutions is that people wait
till this sparkling New day to make changes that they should have
made long ago. My new thing is why wait to make the change that
is needed...

With that being said I can tell you that like so many others I thought
about all the things that I wanted to accomplish this year. Sort of
a To Do list for the next year of my life(although for those that read
the last post you know that many think we only have 349 days).

My To Do list though doesn't have things that I will do today, and
it isn't something that I am going to resolve to accomplish. It is just
stuff that I would like to get done by the end of 2012... So for those
of you that care here is the list....


MY TO DO FOR 2012

1. Complete 2 more 15 week college terms, I'm shooting for three
though(more on that in another post).

2. Figure out which grad school options are best for me, I have two
in mind and am really in love with the executive MHA from UNC.

3. Put down the down payment and send out save the dates for
our vow renewal cruise.(this won't happen till around April)

4. Continue with my healthier me from last year. Ideally lose more
weight so I would look great in a vow renewal dress.

5. Reactivate my Facebook and start deleting people. Missing
those people on FB that are special to me and I'm looking forward
to sharing good news with all.

6. Keep my focus on what is important in my life. Let go of those
that don't need or make time for me and replace them with those
that do!

7. Plan and celebrate my husbands milestone birthday. I'm thinking
I would like to do this as a surprise party but we'll see what we
can develop in that time. At any rate I want him to have a really
special day.

**More to come as I see fit, the beauty of the no resolution resolution
is that I can add and remove as I want to and I haven't broken any
of the rules...LOL!

Here's to a productive 2012!!!!

The end is near?

Alright so you'd probably have to be hiding under a rock to
not know that a lot of people predict that the Earth will end
on Dec 21,2012.

For those of you that aren't too familar with it this is based
off the fact that the Mayan Calendar runs out on Dec 21,2012.
So lots of the doomsday people say that the Mayans somehow
knew this and set their calendar to end on this date.

Now let me be the first to say that I really don't believe that this
is the case. Considering that the Mayan calendar was created in
3372 B.C., I would imagine that they probably didn't see much
need to go past 5,300 years..I can tell you that I am almost certain
that our concept of time and our calendar will probably not be of
much use if the human population lasts until 5384 A.D.

But anyway I digress. If the world that we know does end in 354 days,
what would you do with your time on this Earth? Would you spend
the next 350 days doing things on your bucket list? Would you
learn how to love better? be a better friend? or would you just continue
to live the way that you do know, planning on waking up on Dec 22,2012?

Some of you will say stuff like "Oh I'm not really worried about that stuff!",
 laughing it off and continuing on your way.. Some of us will sit down and
make some changes, planning on living a better life and coming up with
a unique idea for the next year.

The funny thing about making a plan is that we are not promised a
tomorrow. None of us can 100% know that we will wake up tomorrow,
or that our loved ones will wake up next to us. We don't have a promise
that everything will not change making our old "Earth" unrecognizable in
the blink of an eye.

The people going to work on Dec 7,1941 never imagined that bombs
would be raining down on their heads. Most of us couldn't have believed
that on an beautiful Tuesday morning in September we would watch
two huge buildings crumble and our lives would be forever changed in
the matter of hours.

My life forever changed on April 19, 2003. As I prepared for Easter
the next day I went into labor with my first child and from that day on
I added "mommy" to my list of names.

So much of our lives are spent in preparation of events. Preparing for
the day we get married, or the birth of our children we do what we
know is said to be right be we have no promise that it will go according
to plan.

Even with that in mind we all continue to plan for the future and hope
that the work we put into it will be sufficient. We plan like our futures
are completely up to our effort but must be prepared for the event that
it isn't.

With 350 days left in the Mayan calendar though can we not deny that
we can do something really great with them. Can you do something
that will make the world a better place? I know that I like the challenge
of it and am really thinking of ways to do it.