Delayed weekend wrap-up...

This is about two weeks past due of being posted, but I wanted to share my fun family weekend with you!

Tommy & Lindsey arrived Friday evening for the weekend. This trip originally planned in December turned into an engagement celebration weekend!!! After fetching the newly engaged couple from the airport and we headed to Erin & Chris' for a homemade meal. It always a party with our little family group - we ate and traded information about the upcoming wedding!

I had a full house all day Saturday & Sunday as Erin & Chris stayed here while Tommy & Lindsey were in town. I just love it when my house is busting at the seams with suitcases and people going every which-a-way. I swear I tell myself each time that I need to take a picture of all the open suitcases and the shoes at my front entry, and somehow I usually forget! Trust me when I say that it is the most heartwarming view a Mom can have...

Saturday the boys went to 'the secret spot' for some male bonding time (aka shooting pistols and air guns) while we girls went grocery shopping and perused wedding magazines! I am so blessed to be included in Lindsey's planning of her wedding. I understand that I had my "day in the sun" helping my daughter plan her wedding and to have my future daughter-in-law included me is just icing on the cake :-) Thanks Lindz...!!

For dinner we had our traditional fish fry; complete with striped bass, chicken strips, french fries, onion rings & asparagus and an amazing orzo dish prepared by my son-in-law!

Here is Erin testing out my famous onion goggles...

YUM-OHHHHHHH!!!

Our oh, so yummy meal!!!

The guests of honor at the engagement party...

I blew up a photo from Hawaii & Erin 'blinged' the kids' initials for them...

Made for a darling centerpiece

Happy Momma, surrounded by her two kidlets!!! LOVE THEM... Loved our family filled weekend but sadly it came to an end too soon! Sent both couples back to their respective homes which made our home SO incredibly quiet... I am truly thankful that we get to spend the time together that we do!!! Next up, BOSTON!!!

Back to work, no really... For now!

Sorry for the onslought of posts, but I am behind and need to catch up!!!

Serioulsy, it was not this bad, but I had to laugh at what I thought it would be like...

The doc released me to full duty (no restrictions) and I returned to work on February 24th.

The jury is still out on whether my surgery was a success, as he offered me a 'cocktail' shot (lydocain, dextromethoraphan & something else) so I basically am not being bothered by the pre-surgery sysmptoms. Before the shot, I was still having the same symptoms I had before the surgery!! I suppose we are testing out how long the shot lasts and then to see if the pre-surgery symptoms are still evident!

Fortunately, I had a job to return to... Unfortuntely, the district that I work for will be handing out 'pink slips' to 1/6 of the employees!! Most of those notices are in the certificated (teachers) sector but alas, I was informed by my supervisor that there is someone that is looking taa position elemination that can bump me per union bumping rights..

I have not shared this with my family (other than The Fireguy) as this has come up too many times!!! I feel like the boy who cried wolf!! I really don't like to worry my family so I will wait to see how this all pans out... Prayers would not hurt, I suppose!!

~~ * Aloha Friday *~~

Welcome to this week’s edition of Aloha Friday.
In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that they take it easy
and look forward to the weekend.
So I thought that this Friday I would take it easy on posting, too.
Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer.
Nothing that requires a lengthy response.

"Goodbye or See You Later"
We recently attended a funeral service for a fellow Firefighter...

It was during the service that one of the speakers told the story

of how the firefighter and his wife would say
"See You Later" instead of "Bye" when leaving each other
in the morning and when ending telephone conversations.
It was such an endearing story,

how they wanted to leave each other
with the thought that they were not saying "goodbye",
but that they would see each other later...

The Fireguy and I really liked the idea and we discussed it

at great length.
A couple of days later, we began using the story in

our personal lives.
It was very easy to do when we each went our ways each day,
however it has been such a struggle to NOT say 'goodbye or bye'
when we end telephone conversations.
We would occasionally slip and say goodbye and then need to
go back and say, okay see you later and hang up.
For us, it didn't come natural for us to not say goodbye.

We quickly came to the realization that that was their story

and not ours.
It indeed was an endearing story and we loved to hear about it.
We went back to our story, our comfort level of communication ~

So, my question to you is...

What do you say, "See You Later" or "Good Bye"???

Favorite Things - January & February

I'm a bit behind, so please be patient with my longer list. As I gathered all of my items, I realized there was a general theme... Any guesses???

I have been feeling pretty great about my training and treated myself to a splurge!!

I found the Brooks Nightlife jackets and vest on eBay for a decent price. These jackets/vest should allow me to be seen better than in my current plain black jacket.

The Marathon Stick is a muscle massage tool that is designed to simultaneously compress and stretch muscles.

The primary benefit of the marathon stick to runners is the elimination of "trigger points". Trigger points are contracted bundles of muscle, which feel like bumpy tender knots.

Muscles containing trigger points feel tight, fatigue quickly and often hurt.

The marathon stick extinguishes these trigger points.

I have developed some discomfort from plantar fasciitis.

The Strassburg Sock was designed to keep tension on the tissue (plantar fascia) so it heals in a stretched position at night.

I am already noticing less morning discomfort and with continued use hope to have it completely healed!!

The Road ID identification system...
Is for outdoor enthusiasts (runners, cyclists, triathletes, skiers, snow boarders, kayakers, walkers, and anyone that doesn’t spend all of their time on the couch).
Road ID enables First Responders to immediately contact family members and friends in case of an emergency.
It’s not just a piece of gear, it’s peace of mind.




Finally, I have to tell everyone about the MapMyRun iPhone app... It logs my mileage, pace and time; best of all it has a GPS that maps my routes! On the website you can track your training and also share your workouts with friends via Facebook, Twitter, etc.

How to Stay Young...

A little something to take us into the week-end...

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay 'them'!!!

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.' And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love , whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

And if you don't send this to at least 8 people - who cares? But do share this with someone.

We all need to live life to its fullest each day!!

Worry about nothing, pray about everything!!!

10k Training update #2

At the beginning of this year I began training for a 10k (see here).

I have now been training for 6 weeks and here are my statistics -

Timeframe = Jan. 18 - Feb. 17, 2010

Running ~ 47.86 miles

Cycle ~ 77.81 miles

Other Fitness (Walking, elliptical machine, rollerblade) ~ 28.6 miles

Update #2 training miles = 154.27 with a combined total of 221.98 mi for 6 weeks of training !!!!

I have been an occasional runner for about 6 years and can now say with pride that I have run my farthest distance ever; 6 miles! I will make another jump this weekend to 7 miles, which I am looking forward to for the challenge. It is supposed to rain this weekend, and I will have house guests, but since it is family and they all support me & most run also we may just have a group run! SO FUN!!

I have been plagued by what appears to be plantar faciatis and have been working on calf stretching to relieve that issue. For the last week or so I have been having discomfort in my hips... May be age, but since it started when I increased my mileage I'm thinking that it is more training issues. So far, none of my issues have kept me from training so I will continue to stick to my schedule.

Wedding Bells and Cooking trials... Plus a new title!

Our little boy is taking a bride!!!

♥ Bubba proposed to his Lindsey ♥
Our future daughter-in-law is such a sweetheart -

She has the cutest laugh and a kind spirit.

Best of all, she makes our boy happy :-)

We consider ourselves lucky to have her in our family.

Since the kids had already planned a trip home this weekend, dear daughter (Sissy) and I are throwing together a small engagement party for them!!

Our Bubba loves him some dark beer, and Sissy found a recipe for CarBomb cupcakes!!

I went right to work to make a batch of prototypes...

The recipe is laden with an Irish flair which is right up our alley too!!

The cupcakes came out great! I did not take a picture of one cut open, but they each have a little genache filling inside! The flavor is fantastic, they're moist and will definitely be a hit!!

The frosting is sweet, so I would not put too much more than this on each!

In other cooking news I have been keeping busy trying out recipes..

~ Chicken Parmesan ~

~ Pasta Carbonara ~

~ Coq Au Van ~
This turned out extremely well, but I did not take an after picture!!! I'll let you imagine by seeing all of the ingredients...

My dear daughter recently received her board certification from the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties as a Neurologic Clinical Specialist!!

This weekend she has been invited to San Diego, CA where she will formally recognized for her newly achieved specialty!!

- We are so proud of you Sissy -

She & her prince charming will be off on a mini vacation...

which means I get to dog-sit my favorite Grand-Dog!!!

I think that about brings y'all up to speed on what has been happening around here!!

Love is... PLEASE VOTE FOR ME!!!

**VOTING LINK** Scroll down to the bottom to vote!!!
Each month, An Island Life hosts a photo contest with a specific theme.

For February the theme is: Love Is . . .

Here’s how it works:
I have posted a picture taken by me below and how this photo relates to what LOVE IS and what it means to me; which enters me in the contest! Voting will begin on Feb 9th and will run till Feb 13th. I am asking you to VOTE FOR ME!!! Scroll down to the bottom to cast a vote...
The photo with the most votes will be announced on Feb 14th.

Thank you for taking the time to vote ~


I hope you take a few moments also to check out Kailani's blog - She is a busy Momma to 3 daughters, works part-time as a flight attendant and is living in Hawaii (MY DREAM!!!)

This photo for me says Love is... The LOVE of a family sharing a vacation; the LOVE that is felt each and every sunset in Hawaii; the LOVE bestowed upon you by the shear beauty of this magical place.