proactive mental reprogramming

During my last 40 minute run (5mph)/walk(3mph) of the day I realized what I am doing and why I am doing it. Instead of thinking about "needing to workout" and "needing to lose weight" and then not doing anything, I am challenging & committing myself to getting on the treadmill everytime I think about losing weight. I am re-programming my mind to be proactive instead of apathetic and nostalgic, reminiscing on a time when I did get back in shape after pregnancy, "back when I lost 80 pounds and fit into whatever size jeans". This is just a small plateau that I have to plow through and it is exciting to think what is at the end of this tunnel.

fresh green ideas

picture borrowed from:

www.zooble.etsy.com picture borrowed from:

Preserve:gimme 5


Anything that comes into contact with the skin should be organic. After we finish using all of our shampoos, conditioners, body washes & soaps; that I previously stocked for the house; only organic body products will be purchased.

Plastic
The next thing that I would like to eliminate from our use is any food/drink items that are contained in low grade plastic that leaches into the food and water, which is toxic to the body and stored in the body for an unknown amount of time. I will also buy preserve toothbrushes and recycle them along with my other #5 plastics. Preserve continues to pay you to send back your used Preserve brand toothbrush and then they will recycle it for you!



Check out Green Living for more information on plastics.
www.greenlivingonline.com/article/get-rid-plastic-water-bottles
I have already switched to glass food storage containers for leftovers. I recycle all plastic food containers that I can.

Recycle your #5 containers!
Think of how cool it would be to start a local co-op for #5 recycling!! Someone could host a day at their house during a certain window of time, and people could bring their clean containers and pack up a few big boxes to ship out, and then each person could pitch in a certain amount of money to pay to ship it out! For all of you skeptics out there, preserve conducted a Life Cycle Assessment study to make sure that the environmental impact of shipping recycling back to them did not outweigh the benefits of keeping the #5's out of the landfill. They assure you that the benefits far outweigh the negatives.



Things you can recycle through preserve: gimme5:
Britta filters
yogurt cups
Tom's of Maine Deodorant containers


Check out their website for more info:
www.preserveproducts.com/recycling/gimme5.html


Preserve Gimme 5
823 NYS Rte. 13
Cortland, NY 13045


Lastly, I am going to start supporting more "green" organizations/companies and implement green practices into my own business.

This summer we will be frequenting farmers markets, pick-your-owns and small farm stands to support local farms and decrease our footprint. I will also continue to buy handmade gifts from http://www.etsy.com/ to support small business and artists worldwide and keep my money out of the hands of greedy corporations and their owners.


Check out my Etsy shop!
http://www.themermaidsbraid.etsy.com/


Other etsy shops I love:
http://www.zooble.etsy.com/
www.oceanmiststudio.etsy.com
www.sweetheartsinner.etsy.com
www.loveyduds.etsy.com

workout progress

The perfect time to catch up on reading a 3 year collection of decorating, mommy, & farming magazines is during my morning treadmill walk. I'm getting life & decorating inspiration and a workout at the same time, which keeps my mind busy and distracted from the actual displeasure I get from walking on a machine. I would much rather be out in the wilderness walking a nature trail, but that is just not possible at this time of year so I'm doing the best with what I have! This morning I was distracted with my magazine for 52 minutes by my "Cookie" magazine. The morning chores are all caught up with, now its time to get into the more detailed housework: going through old clutter piles and paring down on the excess stuff that has been acquired over the past 6 years, which is about how long we have been living here.

It's exciting to be at a point in my life where I can let go of the "stuff" and truely focus on what matters: family, food, exercise & health.

31 minutes this afternoon with cross-training run/walk intervals. I even worked up a sweat.

Today's workout record:

30 min. on treadmill in AM
21 min. on treadmill in afternoon

If I can do as many yoga classes as possible per week, plus do little bouts of treadmill walks throughout each day (instead of looking at facebook and email) I will reach any goals of health I have, and will be using my time more wisely.

raw food diet challenge: post #2

So, I would say I ate about 90% raw food last week. I wanted perfection, but got human. It's alright...I learned that raw food dieting is not really my cup of tea. I need coffee to get my head on straight in the morning, just one cup is all it takes. Soy protein is a great source of protein to use as an ingredient in my morning smoothie, and if I eat non-raw items occasionally I shouldn't beat myself up over it. I will adopt raw food into 75% of my diet on average, which is a healthy goal.

organic living

I'm working on the last load of laundry for the weekend and thinking about new ways I can keep our home environment clean, safe and green.

Ways in which we have already gone green:

homemade cleaners
use cloth napkins and cloth handtowels for cleaning up messes and spills
homemade laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent
homemade bath bombs for fun bathtime

Fresh ideas for being more green:

goats milk soap instead of harsh storebought soaps
-buy from etsy shops instead of from grocery store to support small businesses

soy candles
-just ran out of our last stinky, chemical laden candle, and I will now buy soy candles only from etsy shops

make our own shampoo

pare down any residual bottles of cleaning products and bodycare products that are full of chemicals

glamour girl

fueling up after playing in the rain

Glamour Girl

Ready for a morning on Broadway

workout challenge log

treadmill and sneakers are ready for takeoff.

I lost 2 pounds after taking one hot yoga class yesterday.

It totally whooped my butt. 5 more weeks of the triathlete hot yoga series.

We'll see if I make it!

Saturday

20 min. treadmill in AM

2 hours of hot yoga in the afternoon

30 min. treadmill in PM

Sunday

20 min. treadmill in AM

1.25 hrs. basic anusara yoga in AM

treadmill in PM

laundry: part 2

Believe it or not, this amount of laundry is managed two times per week. With 5 people in the family it is not an easy task and is another one of those areas in my life in which I have to be extremely disciplined or it will take over. Literally. I have gone through so many emotional states in regards to laundry.

Two years ago; when I was about 60 pounds heavier, after having my son, Caden; if I didn't stay on top of doing laundry it would get washed and then the clean clothes would go on my bed and pile up into a mountain. I would get so overwhelmed, discouraged, and depressed by it. It felt insurmountable. It was insurmountable. I was dealing with (and still am) fibromyalgia, a slipped disc in my spine, spinal stenosis (degenerative disc disease-which is incurable), obesity, sleep deprivation, and top that off with four children to care for. During bouts of fibromyalgia you will suffer for days of unbearable joint/muscle pain that leaves you feeling completely debilitated. I would try to push through the pain to keep the house neat and clean and manageable. The messes would make me want to cry because I wanted to take care of it, but felt like I couldn't. On days when I am not suffering it is not a problem, so you go through the emotions of feeling on top of the world, to then feeling disabled. It is not pleasant. People on the outside don't understand, because they look at you and think you look just fine, but inside you are suffering in so many ways.

Organization was necessary. I let go of attachments to cute little things the kids wore and pared down to 5 shirts, 5 pants, and about 7 pairs of socks & underwear (for the boys). I asked myself (and them) what their favorite things to wear were, and then got rid of the rest. My daughter, still has so many items of clothing....but that's because she is a tweenager and we know how that story goes! This paring down diminished the mounds of laundry that I was having to lug up and down stairs, fold and put away. Sometimes new things come into the house, and then I have to go through the minimizing process again, but its much easier now, because I'll just get rid of the most logical items: stained shirts, threadbare pants, etc. It is also important to deal with the hampers the second they become full, and after the clothing is washed and dried, fold it and put it away, right away...or it will again feel overwhelming.

cleaning challenge #2

A clean alcove.

I am considering moving this magazine basket near my treadmill,

to minimalize the space even more.

books are off the floor and on my reading stand

box sorted and everything inside was given a home

boxes moved from the space around closet.

Now I will setup a special spinning place in the house

just for spinning yarn during quiet times with the family.

everything here has been sorted and gone through

and now needs a home. The top shelf of books

I have organized by color.
Disorder and disorganization is a putting off of tasks

to be done at a later time. The problem is people usually

don't 'make' the time to take care of the task

and end up with clutter messes.

I am working on dealing with life as it comes.

This is a daily discipline and does not happen by just thinking of

having a neat and organized home.

i'm so quoteable

if life throws sand at you
just build a sandbox around the pile at your feet
and have fun playing


life happens one choice at a time

drop the badditude
and embrace gratitude

what if?

the cars flow up the highway
like a flock of geese
or a flock of sheep
rectangles and lights all moving at the same speed
headed in the same direction
with one intention:
to get somewhere
what if someone went the wrong way?
what if people are headed the wrong way
down the highway instead of up
moving in opposing directions against
the flow of the flock

the level of stress you feel
is commensurate
to your
soul's struggle to return to itself

-martha beck

morning walk

I walked 22 minutes on the treadmill this morning. My children also enjoy taking turns on the treadmill and do their little 1-2 minute walks. So cute! Here's the boys posing for a treadmill picture.

Lone Wolf

Check out this rockin Native American coat which belonged to Lone Wolf. This photo was taken
at the National Museum of the American Indian in NYC.

daily news from the piano bench

I learned so much about myself and life today.

I'm not even quite sure where to start.

Take an attitude of gratitude and drop your "baditude."

I hit a bump in the road with my raw food diet again tonight.

Stopping at Burger Sling and eating a whopper jr., small french fries and a side salad
is not the end of the road, but I find it interesting how I go straight to old dietary habits
when I am truely hungry. I guess the fix for this nighttime hunger issue is to
bring healthy food in the car with me, so that I am not stopping for fast solutions
which end up being contrary to the healthy lifestyle I desire. It is interesting how some people;
myself included; after working out, will justify eating whatever they want. I have decided to
take this in another direction....I may end up eating something that is not healthy for me after a long day of work/exercise and no calories, but instead of shaming myself and feeling guilty, I am going to spend some extra time on the treadmill. Tonight I counteracted the
poor food choices I made by spending an extra 15 minutes on an incline at 2.5 miles per hour, while I finished knitting Jacob's pumpkin colored fingerless gloves that he wanted me to make.





Yoga class went really well tonight. My prayers go out to the instructor and her family that just lost their dog to old age and they are grieving that loss. My childhood dog and best friend, Gretchen, our German Shepherd (who shepherded my heart through those tough teenage years) died 10 years ago and I will never forget her and she will always hold such a special place in my heart.



I started reading "The Vagina Monologues" today and got through a very lengthy foreward and introduction by the author. This book is supposed to encourage women to be proud of their bodies and not hide in shame just because they are women. It is also, from what I gather, a book that speaks out against violence against women. This world needs more activitsts to speak out and act out against violence towards any group.



Tonight I made some cucumber, watermelon & lemon raw/vegan shampoo for tomorrow's shower. I am anxious to see how it affects my hair. The body is overwhelmed on a daily basis by toxins in the products we put on our skin, the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat. This may not be a daily ritual, but it seems to be something good that you can occasionally commit to, just for the momentary relief of the bodies systems. The more relief you give the body in the way of taking a break from different toxins that can be internally/externally affecting you, the better the body can use energy & nutrients to heal and repair other areas of itself. Not only does the body need physical rest through sleep and meditation, but also in the area of what we are putting into our mouths. Each day, I am going to make an effort do something loving and kind to my own body to give it rest. Tomorrow morning, I will wake up early and get on my treadmill, do yoga, wash my hair with raw, organic shampoo and eat raw fruits and vegetables. I will also inspire my children to do the same.

good morning

I woke up at 4:30 this morning to a black sky and a perfect yellow crescent moon hanging in visibility, centered amidst the branches of my willow tree. I jumped up to get my camera, but then remembered the battery died yesterday. I briefly beat myself up for not charging the battery the second I noticed it, but the distractions are rampant and you can't dwell on the past. That's my excuse.

So, I had this internal argument about whether or not I should go back to sleep at 4:30am and decided to stick with this path of discipline I have chosen for myself and get my butt on the treadmill. The 20 minute walk and time of reading was wonderful. I found great inspiration from Artful Blogging Magazine. There are some wonderful artists contained in this publication and it is definitely worth the $15 to pick up a copy. Check out www.stampington.com for more details.
I'm thinking of checking out "where women create" and "green craft" magazine as well.

This year will be a time of enhanced growth and advancement in body, mind & spirit. This decision was made before the new year and was not really a resolution but a conscious, active decision that I have been purposing myself to stick to each day. Life is all about individual, recurrent, frequent decision making that impacts all of life and makes up the past. Through these purposeful decisions we can affect our future in a positive or negative way, and I want to have a positive, health-filled future.

After I got off the treadmill I had a big glass of water and a bowl of fresh raspberries. Can you even wait for berry picking season?!