Tag Archives: exercise

Desks Are A Must

I am constantly rearranging my workspace in the Creative Cave. It seems I figure out what works and doesn’t work, or could it be I get bored with the layout.

🙂

I decided my old desk was not working for my creative inspiration.

 

 

I love the desk but it was blocking areas that could be used for more stuff. You know that crafting stuff that sits and never gets used.

🙂

I did not get rid of it, the youngest son is using it in the other room for his computer. Works good for him. Lots of room for his snacks which he ignores to take upstairs when we tell him to. Grumble.

I am very thankful that my hubby is handy with making things for me. I am constantly finding something for him to do for me. Sometimes he jumps right on it and other times he does that selective hearing you know.

🙂

Glad to say this time he got right to my request of building me a simple desk area.

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Loving it!

I wanted to add some flare to it, so this is what I came up with.

 

I used the same duck tape that I used on my art table. It also covered up the screws that were used to put it together.

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I have been using the desk for a few weeks now and I do believe I have accomplished more. It has lots more room to clutter up anyway.

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It also gave the room a wide open area in the middle so I don’t feel closed in. Perhaps, I will do some exercising there. Perhaps….

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Hubby gives me a hard time by saying I have the whole basement practically besides his man cave. Yep, pretty true. LOL

Eventually, stuff will be whittled down and then I won’t have so many areas. Technically, I have three creative caves.

You snooze you lose I tell him.

Do you have a woman cave or man cave?

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Step Step Step

SHealth_14_29_07_9348077b7212fe4f14fbde6ec9df0437371

I realized my phone app had step challenges, like duh. I am so observant at times. LOL

I began doing them in November. As you can see, I didn’t get quite halfway. I didn’t even get a star! Boo hoo. A few steps were lost due to not charging my watch or grabbing the phone when I didn’t have my watch on, but that was only a few steps. And I rather enjoy sitting on my butt. 🙂

I need to change how I do stuff.

  • More get up and move breaks (my cave is in the basement, water on main floor)
  • Perhaps read while walking on the treadmill
  • Could always clean more (who couldn’t)
  • Go window shopping (that could be dangerous on the pocketbook)
  • Walk down to the mailbox (end of the street, cluster mailboxes)
  • I have 3 flights of stairs I COULD walk up and down

I will have to get creative! 🙂

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Happy to say in December, I did go over halfway!

I didn’t make it because I had my grandson here so I had to play with him on the floor! LOL Good excuse huh? 🙂  By the next time I see him, he may be walking, then I will have steps galore! 🙂

Look, I did get one star bonus for achieving the steps in a certain amount of time. Yay me!

So far this month, I am doing great! I am going for all the steps! I have achieved a star, missed the second one by only a few steps. 🙂

I definitely feel better and the challenge gets me up and moving more so that is great!

Do you use a step watch or app or both? 🙂

I am amazed how many steps the top people get. Crazy but a good crazy! Goals are good to keep one motivated! Stay tuned!

 

 

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Back To School

1502912444754 My two teenagers this morning before school! Time is flying! I have to steal pictures anymore for school days. That is ok, makes for some interesting poses. 🙂 They are both in High School now. I hope their day went well.

IMG_20170816_084332 This was my day this morning! Celebrate with donuts and a Pepsi! I actually didn’t drink much of that Pepsi. I’m getting to where a Pepsi is not tasty in the mornings. Now, I do enjoy my afternoon one. 🙂

gym-equipment (credit to Bing.com images)

Happy to say I did go to the YMCA today and exercised! Now, my treadmill didn’t look like that but that would be kind of fun. 🙂 It felt good to get back. I failed during the summer going. I thought the kids would go with me a lot, nope. Strive for next summer. I am going to stay on track, yes. Yes. Yes. Keep telling myself that. 🙂

IMG_20170816_125815 When I left the YMCA I headed to the supermarket to get me a chef salad and Fiji water! It was yummy. I think that makes up for the donuts and pop this morning, right? 🙂

A pretty good start to my return of a school routine! 🙂

Have a great day! 🙂

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How’s Your Year?

valentine-4(created by Me! 🙂 Forget the year)

It hasn’t been terrible but hasn’t been good either. Mostly, little things that are stressful. Kids not minding, money issues, things breaking, etc. You get the drift. I guess if fate gets all these out-of-the-way these first few months and then smooth sailing the rest of the year than that will be great. 🙂 Time will tell.

We sure have not had much winter time. I hope that doesn’t mean it will be a late winter when spring is supposed to hit. We have had cool temperatures just not the white stuff. 🙂 Glad for hardly any below zero temps. I think we had one week of that and that was enough. 🙂

Thanks to my stress level I haven’t achieved much of what I set out to do this year. But it is early. I hate being unproductive, gets me in a mood of depression. Not severe just down.

One good thing, I started back at the YMCA. A few times the boys have went with me which is fun. 🙂 They like lifting weights.

Fitness_tnb(credit to Bing.com images)

I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day tomorrow. It is my favorite holiday. I love hearts and all things about it. No, you don’t have to have a certain someone to enjoy the holiday. 🙂 I still loved it when I was single. Hubby will be on the road so he gave me three roses this weekend and we grilled with the boys. 🙂 I think we have had more Valentine’s away than together during our whole time together. At least with technology one can still feel like they are there. I will send him a snapchat tomorrow. 🙂 I do miss a tiny bit making Valentine’s for my kids’ classrooms. We made ours most of the time, except when we procrastinated and had to buy them. LOL  🙂

valentines-2012(Here is one I made when the boys’ had to make them. I did it in Illustrator. 🙂 )

Have a great day tomorrow! And the rest of the week, year etc! 🙂

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That Journal Thing Again…June 14-20, 2015

summer fun 015 What my journal looks like. Spans five years. 2012-2016.

As I take a look in my journal, I see lots of empty spaces during the first six months. I would think that would be a better time to write than during the last when all the holidays happen.

Weird.

Maybe I have more to write about then. 🙂 I will add a goal to do better at writing in it and add a post once a month or twice. I don’t think I want to fill up my blog with every week, that is a lot of entries. 🙂

June 14th – question?         Did you exercise today?

2012    Actually did walk on treadmill for 20 minutes and sweated like crazy. I am trying to do regular exercise because it does make me feel better.

2013   Blank.

2014   Nope. I thought about it. Should have done it. Motivation was nowhere to be found.

2015   A little. Played in the front flower garden. Pulled weeds, removed the old mulch, and placed stone pavers down.

June 15th – question?      What’s your favorite gadget?

2012   The apps I have downloaded on my phone. Love them. It helps to keep track of things. Organize. Budget. Awesome. I use the apps more than call or text.

2013   Blank.

2014   My favorite would be my NOOK! I love it! I love it for all the apps. I love it for reading new authors that I would not have known about. 🙂

2015   My Galaxy Note 3 phone. I like the apps as always. It is nice being able to look stuff up on the internet on the spur of the moment. Love the camera! Lots of cool features.

June 16th– question?      What makes you cynical?

2012   Fake friends. Especially when they are only out for themselves. Makes me want to disappear and hide in my own little world.

2013   Blank. Thinking it was not a good year. 🙂

2014   “distrustful of human nature”, mocking. When someone you thought cared about you ends up not making an effort to be there when you need them most. Trust disappears.

2015   Fake people. People who lie a lot. People who ignore me.

June 17th– question?       The best hour today was_____. Why?

2012   7pm. Eating pizza with my boys. Nice to eat together. Plus Shay will be at college soon and not eating with us as much.

2013   Blank. Shock!

2014   5pm. Being at the movies with the boys and then eating afterwards at IHOP. Spending time with them. It was Shay’s treat which made it even better. 🙂 We had fun and got out of the house.

2015   6pm. Watching the boys play baseball. Love baseball.

June 18th– question?        What’s the last meal someone cooked for you?

2012   Have to be when hubby was home on R&R in May. It was his favorite mac & cheese with hamburger in it. Miss him. Deployment almost done.

2013   Blank.

2014   Monday Shay made the sloppy Joes while I caught up on dishes. It was yummy and simple. He is learning.

2015   A few weekends ago hubby cooked supper. I’m usually the one cooking.

June 19th– question?       What was the last personal letter you received?

2012   Gosh can not recall. Have had cards but not much wrote in them and those were from hubby. I think last letter was Farra when she went to school in Colby.

2013   Blank.

2014   It’s been since Christmas and that was a newsletter type letter. We get mostly junk mail. Blah.

2015   Last week from a LetterMo pen pal! Love pen pals. Now I need to return writing to her.

June 20th– question?       Write the first sentence of your autobiography.

2012   I am a creative but quiet woman who loves adventure.

2013   Blank.

2014   Who am I?

2015   Once upon a time I was a social butterfly, then I preferred the quiet life.

11 Comments

That Calorie Counter Thingamabob

mzl_zymmiwgc(credit to Bing.com images)

Well, for the last few weeks I have been keeping track of my food intake. I downloaded the myfitnesspal app to my phone.

It has been an eye opener.

It has me on calorie intake of 1550. I know from shows I have watched that I can actually do more than that but I have tried, note the word tried, to stick to the 1550.

I have lost about 4 pounds. 🙂

What I am amazed at on this neat little app is the adding up of the carbs, sugars, etc.  It has made me think twice about getting that extra pepsi during the day. Note I said twice and extra. 🙂

Actually, most days I have talked myself out of it or I have added more ice to the pop. I’m trying to trick my brain. I know I don’t need the sugar. My last doctor visit my blood work was showing an elevated sugar level, so I am trying to get that back down to normal.

If anything, this app has taught me to downsize what I eat, drink and to exercise, even if it is twenty minutes a day. I am not a big snack eater so that was never my problem. I was surprised to see how fast the calories, sugar, etc add up for a meal. Meals that I thought were fairly healthy and low calorie.

The sugars are astounding in some foods. I had always thought of sugars as desserts. This app has showed me my thinking is all wrong. I could never give up the foods I love, but I will definitely eat in moderation.

The weekends are my lazy times. My oldest son keeps bringing me a McDonalds meal. I call it sympathy food because he wants someone to eat with. (His girlfriend is grounded, she is in High School still, nice girl, good parents)

I add the meal to the app and watch the calories blow up, I begin to exercise. Anything to get more calories for the day. 🙂  Sneaky little app, bad son.

At this moment I am trying to decide whether to order pizza. My app says no, but my tummy says you can work it off later. 🙂

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The Clock is Ticking

thCAMC67X8 (Photo from Bing.com)

Those Funny Days of The Month!
Sept. 5th —- Be Late for Something Day

Why be late for something on purpose? I think that is nuts! I must say it would have been me almost everyday at my old job. I was usually a few minutes late almost every day. Slap my hand, bad habit!

I am a creature of habit!

I have come to the conclusion that it was because….

1) I was not liking my job of 17 years anymore.

2) They allowed me to.

3) I’m not a morning person. I repeat I am not a morning person.

4) It’s that mommy thing going on. You know the one where anything and everything can go wrong will go wrong.

5) We had one bathroom for the six of us which included at one time one teenage girl. Then it was five of us sharing which included a teenage boy. Yes, boys are just as bad.

6) I am not a coffee drinker so running on low energy.

7) My hair just never cooperated.

8) I just had nothing to wear or that fit. Oh, we wore store shirts, oops, I didn’t have the right color for my complexion! 🙂

9) I took for granted living in a small town where it only took a few minutes to drive to work. Yes, I waited until the last possible minute to leave, bad time management. Oh, I never took that class.

10) I didn’t get up early therefore the kids were not up early. Hubby would wake them up when he left for work, but I guess they have my good genes and would fall back asleep. Ooops. I am so proud. 🙂

11) All my clocks told a different time so I never really knew the correct time. 🙂 Yes, I tried the 20 minutes early thing, didn’t work, I knew. Who the heck invented the snooze button? GENIUS! My favorite invention ever.

12) Last of all, the one I do believe was the real reason I just didn’t get up no matter how many tricks I tried, I had poor health.

I didn’t eat breakfast,
didn’t exercise,
didn’t stop and smell the roses,
didn’t make myself go to bed at a good time,
and I wasn’t organized!

I really thought having a pepsi and a donut first thing at work was the thing to do. Or rather, it was convenient and fit my poor time management.

My exercise schedule was chasing kids around, cleaning, yard work, a once in awhile walk with a friend, and pushing the button on the remote control when hubby wasn’t hogging the TV. 🙂

Smell the roses…I guess falling asleep watching TV isn’t the same. It is just plain exhaustion. Stop and smell that rose, get that rose right up under your big nose, and breathe in and breathe out. It is a moment of relaxation, a moment where nothing else matters, a release of the day’s stress, and it puts a smile on your face. Smiling is wonderful for your health. So stop and smell the roses daily. 🙂 Learn to relax. Learn to let go of the day’s worries for at least a moment. Your shoulders are broad, but eventually they will hunch over if you don’t learn to smell the roses.

I really thought staying up until wee hours of the night and then trying to get up in five hours was for me. It obviously was not. I just kept telling myself it was. I had no winding down time before I crashed either. I was usually busy doing bills or more computer work. Experts actually say get away from any electronics before bed and you will sleep better. I definitely had no problem falling asleep but that was because I was completely stressed out and tired. My head hit the pillow and I wouldn’t even remember falling asleep.

Conclusion!

I now eat in the morning when I get up, of course not having to rush to work does help a bit but at least it is a habit now.( Remember I am a creature of habit) My grandmother always made me eat breakfast before school when I was growing up. I suppose when I ventured out on my own I lost that habit and not a good habit to get rid of. I make sure I don’t eat the same thing all the time so it isn’t boring. I no longer eat donuts first thing, note I said first thing. 🙂 I make myself drink water in the morning before I can ever have my Pepsi which most days I will not get until afternoon. I just can’t get rid of my Pepsi. We are pals and that is the way it is going to be. 🙂 I have greatly increased my intake of water! A wonderful thing!

My exercise is still cleaning and chasing kids which a mom never can escape from. I have now added going to the YMCA or doing some exercises at home on a daily basis. Ok, it is a dream but I am getting there. 🙂

Smelling those roses…..every single day! I make a point to laugh, to hug, and to sometimes just stop and breathe in, breathe out every day. I began reading books again. Why did I ever stop my love for reading? It has been so relaxing to read again.

Sleep…what an amazing thing. I will now go to sleep by 11pm and I have no problem getting up early. Once in awhile I will treat myself to a late night but it is far in between. I usually will get away from the computer before 10pm as well. I may still use my Nook or phone but very little. I feel that the last hour before sleep is a must to just chill. No more trying to get work done. Get rid of the stress. I even read some nights. Kids are asleep and it is the perfect time. I still watch some TV before bed, but it does get turned off when we go to sleep. We use to keep it on and I really think it has helped being off. I feel like I get a better night’s sleep now.

Organization…my new friend. It is amazing when you no longer have clutter and things are in their place. I know back home in our house it was a major issue because we were always remodeling and moving things around. I think that really added to my stress level. I have seen this last year being in our duplex at our home away from home and the fact that it is finished and things have a place has relieved all of us. We all seem happier. Of course, we won’t stop remodeling our home but at least for the moment we don’t have to live in it while it is being done. A big plus. Lot less stress. Now that I have time to organize I think I have organized everything that can possibly be organized. 🙂 I am a sucker for office supplies or cute containers. I have my own collection of recycled glass now. I know there will be a use for it. 🙂 Labels…love labeling things. I have to make sure my family can find it. I don’t want to hear “mom where is?” Who am I kidding, they will always say that. 🙂

The point to be made is, even though it is a celebrated day, DON’T do it if it is wrong. Being on time to everything is a good thing and a good habit to have. If you can’t, take a look at yourself and what might be causing it and fix it!

Do you have any funny stories that caused you to be late for something?

I left my infant son in his car seat in the living room one time, had to go back in and grab him when we realized he wasn’t in the car. My kids laughed big time on that one. 🙂 I chuckled too. 🙂 It made me more late than I already was. 🙂

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Exercise is a Funny Thing!

Fitness_tnb(clip art from Bing.com) (A short story by Julia Ray)

I finally got up my nerve to go to the YMCA. I think it has mostly been a battle with admitting I need it. Now, I wish I had done it a lot earlier, I feel so good. I am not so worried about the pounds coming off as I am about shaping up and feeling good about myself. Of course, if the pounds drop a whole bunch I won’t be sad about that.

The first day was a snowy and blistery cold day, which in itself made me want to stay home and snuggle in my blanket.  I walk in through the double set of glass doors that seemed to challenge me to turn around and go back home. I can do this, I know I can. I will see this through. It can only be good results. I scanned the front room for someone to tell me what to do.

“May I help you?” the young lady asked me.

“Yes, I paid for a membership and I am not sure where to begin.” I replied.

“Alright, first you need to sign the book and then follow me. “ The young lady answered.   After I signed the book, she led me to the back of the building where the lady’s locker room was.

“You may use these if you like. We only require that you take your padlock off by the time you leave. I would suggest no valuables just in case.” The young lady turned around to leave me to begin my new me program. I guess I had hoped she would lead me by the hand, tell me I need to go here, and how many of this to do. How silly of me, I am a grown woman, I can figure this out. I know where the rooms are. I have exercised before, back in the dinosaur years.

I placed my things in the locker and turned to walk out. It is a rather strange layout, you have to walk right past the two showers to get to the door. I don’t think I will be using those. I don’t want my fat butt coming out of those and the doors open up. Scare everyone for life.

I turned the corner and walked by the weight room. I saw a big, red X flashing across the window saying, no you are not ready for that. I don’t think I can even remember how to use those machines. I wouldn’t want to have my flab of a belly hanging out for all the world to see. I do believe that will be down the line after my confidence level goes to say ten and perhaps twenty years! I went around another corner and came to the gym. Oh good, no one in it. I walk across to the other side and go through the door for the exercise room.  Oh dear, there’s people. Oh dear, I need to turn around and run as fast as my chubby little legs will go.

I somehow keep walking and walk straight to this monstrous treadmill with all these gadgets. I make myself look like I know what I am doing. We do have one at home just not as fancy. I can do this. I step on, only my foot wasn’t quite on the side like it is meant to be. I found that out when I clicked the start button and did a quick arm flying dance. I recover like I meant to do that.  Oh, please nobody be looking and smirking at me. I could feel my face turn several shades of red. Phew, everyone is going about their own business like pros. They are probably laughing in their heads saying “newbie”.

As I am walking I look around the room and see several different machines. Oh, yes, a cycle, a hip thingy, a stair stepper, and I have no idea what that thing over there is. I will avoid that at all costs. It looks complicated and a red flag saying, you think you did a dance on the treadmill, you will be become an acrobat on that. Not only no, heck no.

I have the treadmill set for half an hour, yes, I am that out of shape. I keep switching from the calories burned to the time left. The bright reading says you have burned fifty calories.   What!

I tap on it, thinking that it will make a difference. No difference. Technology, what does it know. I keep walking.   Another ten minutes and I can feel my legs begin to burn. Oh, that is a good burn.  Again another ten minutes. Am I done yet? Sweat is beginning to drip. I begin to breathe heavy. I feel like time is dragging by. I want to be done. Sweat is really rolling down my face. I look at the time, two whole long minutes left.  Finally, I see it scroll, you are finished. Yay! And then pops up, cool down mode. What!

Did I return the next day? Yes and the day after and the day after. Did I try any other machine? I did try the hip machine. I looked pretty stupid having my knees on the pad part the wrong way and realized it wasn’t doing any good. I scan the instructions and find out turn them around. Oh, that is a good burn. Have I tried any other machines?

No, I think I will master these two first. Baby steps.  Needless to say, don’t step on the scale, wait a few weeks. It was depressing, until I told myself you are adding muscle. Now, I walk in like I own the place. I have even mastered the hip thingy. Awesome feeling.

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