The Truth about Carbs

Its the last day of 2012 and most people I know are still totally befuddled about carbs.  Not knowing about carbs and either eating too few only to binge, or eating too much or the wrong ones can leave you confused and frustrated end of your fitness rope! That's ok, don't give up.  Continue to try and you will get it.

 There is no magic formula so you have to learn by trial and error!  Read on to get the ground rules for your trials and you WILL find your way.  Read on...

Here you go, my parting gift of the year....THE TRUTH ABOUT CARBS.

The Truth About Carbs
The Million Dollar Question(s): Should I eat carbs?
If so, which ones and how much? Do they make you fat?

•   Carbohydrates are the body's ideal fuel for most functions. They supply the body with the energy needed for the muscles, brain and central nervous system. In fact, the human brain depends exclusively on carbohydrates for its energy.
  
•   Carbohydrates are found in fruits, vegetables, beans, dairy products, foods made from grain products, and sweeteners such as sugar, honey, molasses, and corn syrup.
  RULE 1: Include the following in your diet:
  

•   Fruits: 2-4 servings daily
  
•   Vegetables: 3-5 servings daily
  
•   Legumes, beans and peas: 1-2 servings daily
  
•   Low-fat and non-fat dairy products: 3 servings daily
  
•   Whole grains.
  
  •   Oatmeal, sweet potatoes, quinoa, brown rice and whole grain pastas are your best nutrition choices.
    
  •   Whole wheat breads, cereals and crackers are healthy options in emergencies. RULE 2: Limit the following to less than 2 servings daily:
    

•   Fruit Juice
  
•   Refined and processed white flour products (bread, muffins, bagels, rolls, pasta, noodles,
  crackers, cereal)
  
•   White rice
  
•   French fries
  
•   Fried vegetables
  RULE 3: Eliminate the following from your diet or eat only on occasion:
  

•   Sugary desserts, cookies, cakes, pies, candies
  
•   Doughnuts and pastries
  
•   Chips, cola and carbonated beverages
  
•   Sugar, honey, syrup, jam, jelly, molasses
  There you have it. THIS STUFF IS NOT COMPLICATED. Most people are out drinking alcohol on the weekends, or eating crackers, or low fat ‘snacks’, or a couple of bites of sweets after dinner and then worry about how much ‘sugar’ is in a cup of grapes. The thing is...nobody ever got fat eating too many grapes.

It’s selective memory that makes it confusing. It’s making good choices all the time that gets results, and that simplicity is scary because it boils down to discipline and hard work! Sometimes focusing on the issues that don’t matter distracts us from looking honestly at our actions the rest of the day.
What you see above is the truth. Combine that with your lean proteins and Revolution Personal Training Program and you will have what you need to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. The long term result is a stronger healthier you for LIFE!
--
2009 Anna Smith, LLC Revolution Personal Training Center Lawrenceville, Georgia
www.revtraining.com
ARE YOU READY? 

Your Better Body Blueprint for 2013

Weightloss Blueprint for a Better Body

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHY you have not yet achieved your fitness goals?  Many times its because you cant decide where to begin, aren't sure how to put the components together, or you can't stay motivated or focused.  You are capable of doing what it takes but the question is:  will you?  

Accountability is the answer.  Accountability is about ACTION.  There are gyms and books and websites out there, but results are the result of acting on, not just having the information.  Too many people spend too much time "getting in position to get into position."  

So where do you start?

You start with a decision to do something.  NOT the perfect thing, just something.  You stop thinking and decide to do something like join the gym, take a challenge, get a trainer, join a camp, or enter a contest.  Nike says it best:  "Just Do It."  

What will that decision do for you?  It will provide a starting point for ACTION.  It provides focus and accountability for, you guessed it, ACTION.  It will melt away the paralysis of analysis and jump start the progress towards the goals that appeared so elusive before.  

You will find that progressing towards your goals is easier when you are provided with structure and expectations.  We have found that some people need the motivation to start a fitness regimen while currently active folks need a way to keep their momentum at a high level.

The tools we have in place are offered to provide you a practical method for any one, with any goal, in any location, on any budget.  We have your weight loss blueprint for a better body.  

What can you expect to gain by making one of these commitments?  Your body and mind will feel different after the very first day.  After 30 days, your progress will be in full swing and you will be on your way from surviving to thriving!  The simple act of making a commitment to hold yourself truly accountable will erase past excuses, bring forth the strength of commitment you've had all along, and best of all-conquer fear.

We pull and extract the latest weight loss and body transformation from many professional sources for you to use at your disposal by joining forces with us.    We take complicated fitness concepts and practices and crystallize them into easy to understand practical steps that enable you to absorb it quickly and...wait for it...ACT.

You dont have to be a fitness expert to have an amazing body you love and you don't have to be rich.  But you do need accountability and a commitment to make and carry through a change process like weight loss or body transformation.  I believe so strongly in our systems that if you try us and feel we did not do our end or keep our promise or commitment in the area of accountability, information or service, I will give you your money back.

Email your goals to info@revfitnessgroup.com and we will set you up for a compimentary session and free t-shirt!  Decide and ACT. IT will be worth it!

Committed to your health and fitness,

Anna

Investing, learning and failing

Today I was helping a personal trainer build her business and she had followed all the right steps to market and convert her lead and in the end, the lead just wasn't that into the it.  Whether its timing or preconceived notions, if you can't have a discussion, you can't overcome the notions and have the chance to add value to someone.  That is just the reality of doing business.  Especially in fitness.  Its not a fuzzy sell.  Its not all warm and instant gratification-y.

Looking back I've used thousands of hours I will never get back on projects, ideas and people that had yielded nothing.  THOUSANDS.

I used to mourn those times. Now I seem to forget them as soon as they pass.  I heard a while back that one the of big keys to success in building a business is emotional control.  This is NOT a natural talent of mine!  In fact we are doing Strengthfinders books on our business teams and I am SURE this will not pop up for me as a strength unless emotional control is really code for this method of handling obstacles..

Yes, that really is me in a time of trial and tribulation.  But I digress.

Turns out time is a great teacher.  I learned that you invest yourself and your talents and you learn from those times when your actions don't yield the expected results.  And you keep your emotions even in the process.  So when she said she felt bad because our work together didn't get us anything today I remember thinking, this is an investment, not an expense.  We invested the time to try and then learn from what we did.  There is no other way to learn.  Our time and effort will yield exactly what it should if we learn from it and we don't quit.

So that is it, that is my thought today.  If you own a business, are you our there investing and learning and FAILING?  There is no other way.

Its all in your head!

Anna

Toothbrushes vs iPhones

Hello Rev Fitness family,

One question I often get asked is....

Anna, How many days a week should I workout?

I wish I had a dollar for every time someone asked me that question.

Let me first answer your question with a question.

(Something I learned from my clever daughter who wins every argument)

How many days a week do you take a shower?

Let me ask you another question.....

How many days a week do you brush your teeth?

I'm really hoping you answered everyday.

Now that you admit to brushing your teeth and taking a shower everyday, let me ask you another question.

Just a couple of hundred years ago, did our ancestors brushed their teeth and took a shower everyday?

Highly unlikely?

As a matter of fact.... NOPE

We didn't have running water til 1930's.

And as far as tooth brush is concerned....

Toothbrush was developed in the 15th century.

So over the years we've have trained ourselves to AUTOMATICALLY take care of our hygiene.

It's a NON NEGOTIABLE.

As a matter of fact an annual survey of Americans' perceptions about inventing and innovating,found that technologically advanced items significantly lag in importance behind the toothbrush,
which was developed in the 15th century.

Yup, tooth brush is definitely more important than the iphone.

Imagine for a second going to work without taking a shower or brushing your teeth.

We wouldn't dare think of doing that.

But yet...

For some reason we tend to "negotiate" ourselves right out of a workout, don't we?

Working out is "hygiene" for your mind and body.

So here is my challenge to you.

Next time you "negotiate" yourself out of a workout...

You might as well "negotiate" yourself out of a shower and a tooth brush for the day.

I bet then you'll think twice about missing your workout, wouldn't you?

Something to think about?
Anna

PS - If you're ready to lose more body fat in the next 6 weeks than ever thought possible reply to the email that sent you here (yup go back to the newsletter) or call us at 678-407-1021 to get started.  You can always email us directly at info@revfitness.com

GOD'S HAIR ... (Back to regularly scheduled programming....Almost)

Wella wella well.   I've rediscovered that I miss writing so I pledge to make this (blogging) a more regular event starting today. Tomorrow is her birthday and WHAT IS REALLY WEIRD is this was the last post on the blog because it was the month we opened Revolution Fitness.  So fitting!   I'll be leaning more towards business and fitness but today, let's just go with this.

Ellen: "Mommy I love you so much that if u die ill build you a statue up to the sky. All the way to God's hair." 

How do you even respond to that???  We were passing a big cemetery on the way home from the pumpkin patch yesterday.  In my head I'm thinking of the "good Mom" response and outwardly I'm a babbling idiot.

Lately, I think Ellen hears me talk about her as a little one and hears the love in my voice when she asks me questions and sometimes wants to be little. And I've started telling her...I love you more now.  It's so true.  Everyday my heart explodes and grows to love her even more. She is kind and she is oh so forgiving. She has a mother who is hot headed and quick tempered and who sometimes has expectation that are too high an sometimes is just too fried to be patient and loving.  Yet she loves me with all her little heart.  She wants nothing more than to see me smile or make me happy. Makes a person feel undeserving.  Ill-equipped to say the least.  She tells me everyday that I'm beautiful that she loves me.  The other day she said I love how you smell mommy... Nobody else smells like you.  And she's right.  I miss my Mom's smell and hug all the time- it's the one thing that the thought of can still bring tears to my eyes.  And as I think about the time I've sacrificed with her I honestly doubt if its worth it because nothing is worth taking even a millisecond with such a precious and perfect child.  But to know that this week, Mike and I are eating lunch with her, baking a cake tonight and that we've made a family project out of planning her party - I think that that I won't question anything as long as I have a kid that wants to build me a monument all the way up to God's hair.  
~Anna


PS: HERE ARE THE LAST POSTS TO ELLEN'S BLOG:)  ENJOY!

Scary Post

This is a scary post for many reasons. 1. I should be cleaning the middle bedroom out for dad and chandler to sleep in tonight and I am procrastinating, 2. I've embarked on a quite a new perspective this week, and 3, I've had 2 cups of starbucks full caff coffee. Oh, and 4. I have no goal for this post. SCARY.

So I am where I am.

Business is good, I have very good feelings about it and some cool plans for my team next week. Our first month was great. I measure our success based on our 3 objectives as a team--Number one, we are changing lives through fitness. That has always been my goal. Number 2, we did make some money...well, let me reword that: We cleared all operating expenses our first month. And three, we are having fun. It is getting more fun each week, but this one we could work on. The last 2 weeks we've has some awesome energy in there. Two clients came to me and used those exact words, and said it was a very positive place to be. That is a dream come true for me. I also have 2 trainers who are dying to join our team and they are qualified, we just need to discuss them at our meeting next week. It is shaping up to be exactly how I dreamed it would be. Long way to go but I see it unfolding.

Life is good, we are totally extended financially with my income and our savings having been invested in the gym and I have lots of debt now (I was debt free before) but I just look at it like assets. The fact that it is not conusmption debt, rather investment in actual things makes it an asset in my mind so I fret less. The balance in the check book makes me nuts tho, I like lots of cushion and its a concrete floor at the moment.

Ellen is perfect, communicative, growing, thriving, adorable, etc.

Mike is the same. He is a great help mate, husband, and all the things I ever wanted. I adore him more every day...

And then that leaves fitness. So I lost my mojo and I was fine with it. It is nice when you quit working against yourself and just admit...hey, I am doing what I am willing to do, so it makes sense to just accept the result. You get what you give. The problem is that has resulted in some lost fitness and a weight gain and I miss my old body. So I am so bored with the whole rally the troops! yawn. make a plan! did somebody say something? commit and set daily goals to reach the ultimate goal! snore. I do it all day long, I've dont it a million times for myself. So I kept thinking what direction could I go? What would make me really takes these steps I am so bored with so I could actually not be on a weight loss journey for a minute??!! So I got frustrated with Mike, he did it for 3 days for aboubt 2 weeks and it was great, the accountability meant something to me, I've asked a friend and considered asking one of the guys at work, and then it dawned on me. Hey, nobody can do this for you but you. So back to you, hey, you get what you give and you do exactly what you are willing to do. We all do. So then I finally put in the Joyce Meyer CD that LeAnn loaned me about confident women. And it was all about how if you are doing something and it sees like you just 'can't' then maybe you are not ready yet. You will be enabled to do what it is you seek when you are ready. The struggle you are currently in serves you or someone else somehow, so work on your strengths and do your best and rest assured that when you are ready, the other things will come.Now THAT is some food for thought. Then right after that, there is a big old part about how if you are trying to accomplish somethng to impress others then you are doomed. And that hit home. I just did a big exercise with one of my clients about how every one of her reasons for doing this was rooted in what others thought and how others percieved her. She has to do it for her or it ain't getting done. I locked her in my office after her workout and made her write an essay instead of do her cardio. So that is a common theme and I am heeding the message. That reminded me to do this for me, stop fretting and just realize I can do it and I will. It's serving it's purpose. I relate and help my clients on a different level (so they tell me) and its all rooted in my ability to relate to them from having this ongoing struggle. It is so simple, when I REEEAAALLLLLY want it for me, I will do it. No struggling, no whining. I'll just do it. It just boils down to wanting it for yourself badly enough.

I kind of started finding my mojo again, Mike and I did a "duathlon" yesterday where we biked 5 miles including this quarter mile hill from hell and then ran 2 and half in a ravine that is either going up or coming down... Needless to say i slept good last night and it felt so good to have a good hard workout under my belt.

OK, middle bedroom is calling. I better hustle.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2007

Knock on Wood

Here are some updated pics of Revolution and one of Ellen.




BACK TO THE BLOG---->

More Looking Back

Monday December 11

I won't write all my cool Christmas ideas for my family down because half the fun is the surprise and although I am nearly 100% sure it makes me a dork to have blog, I am not sure if it makes you readers one by association. So I am sure even if someone reads this they won't admit it. I am erring on the the side of caution.

Ellen Rose took her first big 5 steps last week. The shirt says it all:


holding on...


letting go...


FREE!
Christmas shopping has been non-existant so far, but alot of it is homemade so I've started that process. It is only slightly overwhelming. In a good way. Instead of going at it with a "get it done" attitude, I look at it like a kid would. If you asked a 4 year old to help you make a certain thing in the kitchen or on the computer-how FUN! And it is. I remind myself of that, and all the sudden, I am less whelmed.

Not sure what I sat down to write about. I find myself just sitting around thinking cheesy thoughts that would annoy me on bad day or a cynic on a good one. BUt it just amazes me how I have so much, more than enough. And the more I realize this, the more we seem to get. Not money, but time, fullfillment, just the things you wish you had when you do not have them.

We watched Cinderella Man this weekend and looking at how that family lived with their kids, and then walking in my kitchen where the food is overflowing out of the pantry. How can I be in a bad mood. How can I hve once OUNCE of self pity??? I think all the time how I am so blessed and I almost wonder if there is something I should be doing with all these blessings I am not doing. I find it very peaceful to always be thinking that I am living the life I am supposed to live and now I just hve to sit back and enjoy it...warts and all. It's too easy. Where is all the angst, confusion, worry I used to carry with me constantly? I am figuring it is a lot just that I am growing up. My cousin Ana once told me that your 30's were the bomb because you are getting things figured out, and have enough money and sense to enjoy it. And you don't give a rat's fanny what others think. That and I get to sleep through the night. I'll NEVER take that for granted again.

Cinderella Man also spoke to my fitness journey as well. When Braddock made his comeback as an old man, a reporter asked him what had changed, and he said “I know what I am fighting for” , there was pause and the reporter said “What are you fighting for?” and Braddock responded quite simply “Milk”. He needed the prize money because he and his family were about to starve to death. Now THAT is why one person finds their way and another one spins their wheels in frustration. For 6 years I’ve been climbing this hill. And I know I m going to get there this time because a)6 years wins me the right to say I am persistent and b) through being a newlywed, gyms closing, 15 hour work days, traveling, my Mom’s passing, a miscarriage, pregnancy, birth and newborn Motherhood all throwing me on and off track, I actually know why I m fighting now. And it is not why I thought I was fighting for years, and it’s not Ellen. I just figured it in the last 2 months and I was shocked because I thought I was self-aware. I was wrong. But now I am sure I know why and it’s been a whole new ball game.

Pictures are SLEEPY

We made an appt to have Ellen's 1 yr photos made several months back, but when we finally met, we had to do it immediately if we wanted any fall color in the pictures. I was so excited b/c given the time of year and this photog's cool attitude-she suggested an old house in Dacula and wanted to do outside stuff, include the dogs and everything so I was excited to get a family portrait as well. We were all concerned about the cold and Allison even called to see if we wanted to move things up a bit so it would warm up a little. In addition, we've spent 2 days power-shopping (I HATE POWER SHOPPING) getting everyone outfitted in a time cold meds for her cold and some cough syrup, Ellen has not napped and I have a HUGE case of guilt for A) gving her meds-it bothers me and B) letting her fight her nap for a whole hour. So I am fit to be tied now that she has sleepy medicine in her AND has missed a nap. We get to the pictures, and she is all the sudden instantly sticking her tounge out. Constantly. We can grab it, and she barely acknowledges it. So all that and every picture (maybe with the exception of a few) is of us, dogs, everyone decked out and Ellen's tounge stuck out like she just burned it on a cup of hot java. So of course we are barely out of the driveway to go home and this is what I see in the backseat. She had a handful of goldfish and just could not quite get them to thier destination before she fell asleep. I was instantly alot less irritated. :)

First Merry GO Round RIDE!!!

"Hey...."


"MOM! Can I go??!!"
"OK, Dad, maybe I dont WANNA get on the horse. here I'll hold you and you hold me."

She never let go of his shirt.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2006

My Very First Homework Assignment

For PMO, Ellen was given this turkey feather and we had a few weeks to decorate it so it could be added to teh turkey in her hallway at school. So of course, the morning of the due date, I finally got around to it and she was game for about 3.5 minutes then it was over. But we got it done and it was her very first homework assignment!
















We finally got Ellen out to the park and went a few laps with her in her new trailer. Since she kind of flops around, I stuffed Pooh on one side and I stuffed a big blanket on the other. She fell asleep but she wole up when we stopped and I snapped this with my phone.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 09, 2006

The punkin in the patch

I did not realize these had not been downloaded yet! What a fun day! We took her to
the pumpkin patch right around Halloween and it was super cold that day but it was so beautiful and she loved it.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 08, 2006

New stuff

She is changing so fast I have stopped writing it all down in favor of just keeping up with her! She is waving bye-by and Hello and HI at everything. Her friend Emma gave her one of those little baby blanket with the stuffed animal at the top yesterday and we have not taken it out of the car, she is totally occupied with it. She holds it up with one hand and waves "Hey" at it constantly. And chews on its ears. :)Which brings me to the next milestone.

Her first word(s) is "Hey!!!" or "Hi!" She grabbed my cell and put it up to her ear and started babling away last week. Then she did it with the remote control. Imitation! How fun!! She waves and says this to everything and she tries to add Bella's name when she is waving at her. She now points at pictures and trees b/c we are always pointing at these things. And I was so excited this morning b/c she pointed at Mike in a picture and said "DADA" and I was about to call him and she pointed the bird on a bird watching book on the same shelf and said "DADA." She is also walking with assistance and just starting to decide that maybe going from one thing to the next without assistance would be fun. We do drills where we pass her back and forth at night. She thinks it is hilarious.She is also expanding her diet. Broccoli, homemade peanut butter, basmati rice, eggs, cottage cheese, baked potatoes, yogurt, and cheez-its are the current leaders. She ate half my salmon at Long Horn the other night and we gave her out leftover grouper from last night for lunch today. She mowed through it. I'm trying to get her to eat cooked apples but she wants to hold the whole raw one and gnaw on it. She also likes pears and bananas. We tried some ravioli last night but it was not a hit. In other news I am finding my feet as a trainer. It is getting easier but no less overwhelming. Keeping up with many different aspects of many different people’s lives in disjointed 10-12 hours a week is hectic. I need to establish a system so I don’t feel so all over the place. But I am trying to be patient about that. I have to just grown and learn as things come. And it’s coming.

We are all geared up thinking about the holidays around here. Ellen got an early Christmas present so we could enjoy it before it gets too cold. She seemed to think it was worth her time for sure...


And last but not least I am feeling thoughtful. I listen to his guy Ed Young on the elliptical sometimes and today in one of his talks he said we are born asking a 3 word question…3 words resonate over and over in a child’s mind. We are born asking “Do I MATTER? Do I Matter? Do I matter?” He said that the first mirrors that we look into are the mirrors of our parent’s eyes. If reflected back are words of affirmation, dignity, value…then chances are we have a healthy mental state. If reflected back is that you are too fat too skinny you can’t make it you aren’t what I wanted you to be, then chances are you believe those things and live them. It dawned on me that my responsibility to Ellen is so much bigger than keeping her clean, dry, fed and rested…although it’s kind of too easy to get caught up in that. I want to think I’d reflect affirmation dignity and value but I guess we all would. But thinking of it in those terms, she is constantly figuring out “do I matter?” I am going to spend a little time letting that knock around my noggin this afternoon.

Looking Back

On a personal note, my baby girl is turning 7.  Hmpf.  Not so baby anymore.  Im looking back at the blogs of her life in her first year....

FIRST BIRTHDAY---LAWD THIS TAKES ME BACK.

Happy First Birthday Ellen Rose!

We took the day and all went to the Aquarium on her first birthday and it was so special. We made a cake that night, and she hated it. Which was hilarious. It was not weird for her to be one until she went to bed. But, I can totally believe she is 1. Nope, it did not really fly by. Why does it for everyone else!!?? Imean, yes, I takes a lot of adjusting to keep up with how fast they (and your life) change, but the One Year mark really is when it all gets to be gravy. And you earn it. So, I feel alot like I just ran a big racea nd crossed the finish line, proud, tired, elated, somewhat nostalgic, blessed, relieved, older.

And there is so much going on and so much to write about and little time to write. I find I write less when I am doing other things that satisfy or give me a creative outlet. But that is no excuse!! I wish I could think of all the new things she is doing. She is officailly in the 2nd percentile for weight and height. Dr. Pugel said "Does that run in your family"? to me. ME. Um, yep!!! We aren't giants. And Mike was SO SMALL when he was little, so I think she is OK. Clearly thriving. And her new favorite food is brocolli. And with her hair, I want her to be a brocolli floret for Halloween, and just make it green, dress her in green. Voila, Ellen the floret!!

She can throw a ball at you and giggle like crazy when you catch it. She waves at everyone. She seeps all night long 95% of the time, and she is trying to get from one thing to the next without crawling.

I am (plop) sitting here listening to the sound of 2 cm square (plop, plop) pieces of carrot, chicken, potato and green bean hit the floor. Plop. She should be eating her lunch but has discovered it makes a sound (plop) when it hits the floor (plop). It is really funny. I'm trying not to laugh, so I have turned my back to her to (plop) type but I can still hear what is going on.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2006

Ellen Rose

I just had to post this....

Ever see one of those Moms who thinks EVERY picture of their baby is just SO AWESOME?  yeah, I am one of those :)

Peaks

Today is soooooooooooooooooogood. Many many reasons.

I am learning to live a lot more consciously instead of dashing around 'accomplishing' and wondering if I am really appreciating what I have. Then I realized, the secret is to STOP filling your time and start feeling it. I think this may be the real benefit of praying (beyond religion). I don’t pray. Usually. But I’ve started and since I am so unsure of my faith, its not a "dear god" its a "today I am thankful for, and Today I am worried about, today I am wonder how to handle a certain situation, etc..." I am finding that these things could easily be translated into a "could I please have an answer to my worries, and problems" but without the expectation of an answer, just the act of consistent praying makes you constantly aware of what is on your mind and what is in your life. Voila, you are conscious. And you are not zooming through your life feeling all muddled because you are touching base with what is on your mind and what is right in your life. Right now, its not about the answers, its a lot about listening to myself.

I am really changing these days, inside and out. Odd event for me-I ran 3 miles in under 30 today like it was CAKE. I kept looking down at the treadmill and thinking, who is running on this thing?! My fitness quest has changed 100%. I am done with the self sabotage, done with doing anything less for myself than I deserve. I’ve said this before and I’ve read all about self-sabotage in my fitness reading, but never for a second thinking it related to me. But it did and it does and realizing that has changed everything. It’s done. And its not about a bunch of hullabaloo, no new notebooks, extensive plans, etc. Its just keeping my head down, staying focused, humble, quiet and strong. It was all about realizing that I had to fix the internal problems to solve the fitness problem, not get fit to solve the internal problems. I have felt better the last 2 weeks than in a long time. I was not unhappy, but the grief of losing someone, then the stresses of choosing to quit a job, have a newborn and all that adjusting, it has just been hard. Good, OK, low at times, but all together hard. Then VOILA. Beautiful fall is here and I am beginning to win the battle against lifelong weight demons and to top it off, I have gotten some affirmation and validation that my inkling about being able to help women who also have struggled with their weight might be right. Held my first bootcamp class on Tuesday, got some great feedback. It's amazing that they didnt just laugh me off the field. I am FINALLY walking the walk.

In other news, my house is home, my family is close, my life is richer as I make new friends through this training adventure, my marriage is back to normal and feels better than ever, my baby is nothing but a gift. I feel lately like I won the lottery, like every morning I wake up to a brand new shiny car – every day. I had to kind of stop and recognize it b/c I was not expecting it. I made some awfully hard decisions I regretted for some months after Ellen was born. I wished I'd put her in daycare so I could get a break, I wished I 'd kept my job so I could have some control over SOMETHING, I wished I had bottle fed her so she might sleep more, or at least someone else could feed her or at least get up with her and walk her; I wished I had sleep trained her earlier, I wished I had the money I no longer was making and the title and respect and creative outlet that came with my old job. I felt had not signed up for what I had gotten, yet all the decisions were made. And the most perplexing was that the reasons I made my decisions were so calculated. I would look at my priorities and then look at how I had laid out my life. They did not match at all. Money and accumulating things were way down on the lists. Time for and with immediate and extended family and friends were way up on the list, as was time to take good care of my body, and my family's health. Also having a job I was passionate about and truly enjoyed was a priority as well. As Andy Andrews said, you have make it a no turn back situation if you are ever going to leave a comfortable situation and embark on an uncomfortable one. In other words, do like Cortez and "burn the boats." He burned the boats he came to America on and told his crew "if we're going home, we're going home on THEIR boats" and he sent them off to fight and conquer. Working 13-15 hours away from home a day did not make nearly any of my so-called priorities possible. And after the last few years of my life, I felt rather broken when things did not appear to be working out as planned. These things were not immediately visible and I felt I had just had a big old HUGE fat case of grass-is-greener-on-the-other-side- ITIS. And I felt so stupid for falling into that trap. But, now!!! I feel all put back together and better than ever. I think I am ending up with all the things I thought I might get by doing the things I did...just MUCH later than I anticipated. It is nice when the valleys of life turn into peaks.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2006

Grand Dad's Monthly Visit

What a wonderful weekend! It was great seeing Dad and Chandler as usual, but then to top it off we had a little family soiree on Saturday since my Uncle Bill was in town and it was a real treat seeing him. It was great seeing everyone really. Angie and Kevin have registered and picked out bedding for junior, and she is 6 months pregnant!!!!! Oh how I remember those days and loved them so. Now its a whole new world and I am already sad that this time in Ellen's little life will be gone before I know it. It has had its moments, but it's all worth it now. They've been talking alot about what the CIA is allowed to do and not allowed to do to detainees and what is fair, not fair, etc. Well, in these talks it has been said that sleep deprivation is a form of torture is probably not OK. As a mother of a NON-SLEEPER, I'd have to agree!!!!! Ellen Rose has slept all night long for 3 nights in a row counting last night. This is the first time she has slept all night long twice in a row since she was born. And now she has done it 3 TIMES!!!! I feel like a new woman. The effect just 3 nights of regular sleep has had is VAST. But I digress, it was a beautiful, fally type weekend and Ellen Rose got in some good family time. Since Dad could not make the Reunion in Calhoun this year, we bowed out as well. I don't think Grand Dad is disowning us, so that is the good news.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2006

Yellow River Game Ranch

What a an awesome was to sepnd a Friday afternoon! We had squrrels jumping up on the stroller trying to get food (well, the type A ones anyway) and we had deer walking with us as we wandered around and tons of birds, peacocks, and geese wondering around too. We fed a donkey, ponies, goats, and saw the bears, and other caged animals. Not my favorite part, but feeding the loose ones was a treat for both of us. We'll be going back there soon. Our camera is acting up, thanks to Lauren for sending this to us.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2006

Turning 11 months old on Saturday!!!

This is a big week! She turns 11 months on Saturday. 

She discoverd how to open a game box on Tuesday.














Visited with Nane and Paw and 














Discovered how soap suds work on Wednesday...















Melted my heart on Wednesday night (what is new)...













Thursday we ran to 'camp' so she was bundled up- that is the pen she holds on to when she rides in the stroller. She holds both her hands up like she is being robbed when we are running. The wind or something makes her do it. I'm sure to passers by on the road she looks like a bank teller in a stick up! Some people have running shoes, running shirts...Ellen has a running pen.








Then I snapped this just after I waved "see you later" - she gets busy right when we get there-lots of toys to play with!!!















And here she is in what they call the "bye bye buggy"...She seems to LOVE it!!

























Tomorrow we go to Yellow River Game Ranch with Lauren and Davis. 
I am sure I'll be my usual papparazzi.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 08, 2006

Milestones

The front door is open and so is the back. That just feels GOOD when you can do that in Georgia. It's not 400% humidity and the temperature is reasonable. And (gasp) there is a breeze this morning. I *LOVE* fall and it's a'comin'. And not just fall, but FOOTBALL is here too. Somehow I got all into it last year after umpteen years of just really liking the tailgating and Jim Beam and artichoke dip, I'm now all about the GAME and the behind the scenes soap operas too. Even the NFL-I'm ALL about it. We've watched pre-season NFL and as much college ball as Ellen will allow. She slept straight through the Ga game last weekend, bless her heart. So in addition to recovering from sleepless nights and the adjustment to sahmom-dom, fall is coming, football has started, Ellen is growing and things are really coming together. I just feel good right now all the sudden. It’s either another freaking mood swing or I am finally getting back to my old self. I’ve thought I was getting back to it before but I think I have figured out, there is no “back”—everything is different now. So I think I am getting back to my new self. At any rate...its safe to say I've got Fall Fever big time this year.



Cousin Angie came to visit this week - she is looking beautiful with her little 5 and half month pregnant belly. It's so exciting when I think Ellen is going to have a little cousin around her age to play with. Ellen is waving hello and/or good bye (or as her Dad said, it's "See you later", never good bye). She is also walking with us and balancing while she is standing for long pauses and likes to use her hands to play when she pulls up so she is perfecting her 'lean' while playing.




She is all the sudden (FINALLY) eating crackers and gold fish and sleeping like a champ. Eating and sleeping was touch and go after her virus, so I am ultra relieved that she seems to be back to normal. I wasn't sure I could take a regression in the eating sleeping arena. And the funniest thing is her hair. It's HUGE!!! When she wakes up, its all whicha way, commonly in the Grandpa Munster style where the sides are coming sraight forward and everything else is going straight up. She is a little baby with big hair. Hilarious. She is


recognizing Lucy when I ask her where Lucy is. Mom and Dad are chopped liver, so is Bella...but Lucy continues to be her favorite family member. Here she is in a common daily situation...talking to Bella at the back door. Bella usually doesn't let her get this close, so Ellen is overjoyed. And last but not least...she started her first day of "camp" yesterday. She did very well, no crying and had a great time they said. I, on the other hand, was a perfect mess. Mike was there and he helped remind me that this is FUN for her. And it was. Her favorite part was the finger painting!!! I was astonished they had them finger painting. This was waiting on me when I arrived to pick her up. I dont think I've ever been so proud of anything in my life.



















Mike wants to frame it.

If I can muster the courage, we might have to get some finger paints this afternoon and give taht a whirl. The video camera arrived yesterday so I am thinking we may have to catch that fiasco on tape.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 02, 2006

4 MORE

It is most definately time for a video camera!!