Category Archives: Gratitude 365

March 14-17th: Savannah Georgia Adventure!

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Forsyth park

Forsyth park

You could say that I’ve done my fair share of traveling.  And, as a rule, I don’t do long road trips.  I’m more of a jet-setter type o’ girl if ya’ know what I mean.  No I don’t generally think that “getting there is half the fun”… I think BEING there is ALL the fun.  Being stuck in the cabin of my car for hours on end, smelling gas fumes and having to use public rest-area bathrooms are not this gal’s idea of a great time… But, when asked if I wanted to go on a road trip to Savannah, Georgia for a St. Patty’s Day weekend adventure, however, I jumped at the chance to make an exception to my rule.
Why, you ask?  Well, for several reasons: 1) I’ve never been to Savannah before 2) Its only 6 hours away from where I live 3) I never even knew that St. Patty’s day was such a huge ordeal there!  4) It was to celebrate the birthday of a pretty awesome person so…. Why not?!
Considering we were only there for only 1 full day and two ½ days, we fit a lot in.  We were even able to take a 3 mile bike ride from our hotel into the city, go for a 5 mile run including a loop around Forsyth Park in the center of town then ride our bikes to a lovely little café for brunch! (then ride our full bellies 3 miles back to the hotel) All in all, it was a great time with lots to be seen.
Here are some awesome picks from this weekend’s adventure:

March 13th: Head like an alien’s

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alien head

 

Today, I pulled a first grader (about 7 years old) out of class to do some testing.  As I walked with him from his classroom to my office he asked:

Boy: “Ms. Cristina, to do the test do I have to read?”

Me: “Yup.  But I know you’ll think its easy.  Don’t worry.”

Boy:  “Oh, I’m not worried.  I like reading because it helps you learn and learning makes your brain grow.”

Me:  (chuckling)  “Ah!  That’s true.”

Boy:  “Did you know that I’ve been smart since I was a baby?  When I was born I already had a big brain and thats why my head looked like an alien’s.”

Me:  (more than chuckling now) “Oh, thats just silly. You’re funny!”

Boy:  “Its funny but its true.  I did have an alien head.”  (All of a sudden, he got really serious.)

Heehee!…. I can’t make this s%$# up.  These kids are too funny and they have no idea how cute they are!

 

March 12th: Like riding a bicycle

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mom on bike

My mother has got to be just about the cutest thing ever…. And its heartwarming to know that she is inspired to get on her bike and do exercise because she sees me doing something almost every day after work.

When I shared that I had ridden my bike earlier, she decided she wanted in on the action.  She asked is she could come by my house and do my go-to butt workout video with me.:

http://walkruninspired.com/2014/01/22/new-favorite-exercises-for-butt-and-thighs/

When I saw her riding her bike down the street towards my house through the living room window, my heart just about melted.  She’s the best 🙂

 

 

March 11th: Things That Make You Smile

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mark twain

I absolutely love this quote from Mark Twain… The longer I live and the more I experience, the less I regret anything.  Life is all about taking the most from both the bad and the good… and many of the mistakes we make in life are due to impulsive decisions that, at the moment, make us smile.  How could ANYONE regret that?

On the note of kissing slowly (BTW, did anyone realize what a romantic Mark Twain was before reading this quote?!) … I will be very frank with you all and share that kissing is one of my all-time favorite things to do in the UNIVERSE.  When I saw this short video on Facebook today, I absolutely fell in love with it.  It is a video called First Kiss.  The artist had 20 complete strangers kiss as she recorded their awkward first interactions and how they changed after just one, very passionate, kiss.

I think its a very sweet and touching way of documenting one of the universal experiences of being human.. (sigh)  Did I mention how much I love kissing?….

March 10th: Just One Day

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one day

 

I absolutely love this lovely quote.  If anything could happen in just one day, doesn’t it make waking up in the morning exciting?  Fun sentiment to think about on a rough morning… First Monday of Day Light Savings… lol.  Enjoy

March 8th and 9th: Epic Declaration to the Universe

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casey 1

So, this weekend I got to see and help out at a mountain biking race!  The weather was awesome, the company was lovely and doing something out of my usual was great!  Bonus is… its inspired me to try something new.  I don’t know about getting filthy dirty and riding on trails just yet (not saying I won’t try it eventually) but, I’ve decided I’m going to get on a bike of another sort….. and try doing a triathlon this upcoming season!!

That’s right!  This prissy bookworm, crocheting domestic diva, wanna-be athlete is not just going to run a sub-two-hour half marathon next season… She’s declaring to the universe that she’s gonna do a triathlon too!

Because I don’t have a legitimate road bike just yet, I filled the tires of my mom’s old bike from the 90’s (It was laying in my garage) and went on my first short ride this weekend!  I’ll be filling you in on my adventures as they arise.

Here are some fun photos from the race 🙂

March 7th: Friday

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Friday

Would it be terribly unoriginal for me to say that I’m just glad my week is over?…  I’m ready for a nap.  But not until after salsa class!  That’s right, people, I’m getting my salsa on today.  Hopefully I’ll learn enough to not look like Elaine from Seinfeld anymore when I go out dancing 😉

In the words of Pitbull…. dale!

March 6th: My Health

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blood pressure

Today I am grateful for my health, despite it not being where I want it to be, because I realize that it could be a lot worse.

I am struggling with my blood pressure once again.

I thought that I had it under control since I discovered it to be EXCEEDINGLY high (170/102) in 2009.  Since then I’ve done the “Dash Diet”, quit drinking coffee, eliminated salt and increased my exercise.  I’ll admit that since then, I’ve gone back to drinking a cup of coffee every morning and, on occasion, get a little too excited with the sea salt grinder but, is that enough to undo all my healthy eating and crazy running schedule?!

I can tell myself its not fair, I can decide to deny that its high and go about my day to day until I suffer the consequences OR… I can face the music and deal with it.

My doctor offered me some natural remedies a couple of months ago but, it appears as though they’re not working as well as I’d hoped.  Time to go back and take the next step.

March 5th: Massages

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treat your self
Today I am grateful that I can afford to treat myself every once in a while.  Despite feeling remarkably good for having done two half marathons in a row last weekend, I realize that my muscles could use a little loosening up.  I have a dull ache in my right sciatic and hip and my calves are still a little stiff.  I called a local massage parlor chain and scheduled an appointment for this evening… and am SO glad I did.
I’m just going to cook myself up some soup, paint my nails and head to bed early once I get home, thank you very much

March 4th: Shooting Stars

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home like a shooting star
I’ve been working very hard in recent months to “come back home.”  What I mean by this is not entirely clear, sometimes.  Even to me.
I supposed “home” is not a place but, rather, a state of being in which you are most comfortable, most content and most yourself.  As children, once we are old enough to process and give meaning to the world around us, we begin to define ourselves in relation to this world and not in relation to what we innately are.
I’ve allowed the criticism, selfishness, carelessness and even the well-intentioned opinions of others to make me stray.  I have allowed these things (as it is only natural for all humans to do) to shape me, to make me uncomfortable in my own skin, to make me sad, frustrated and inauthentic to myself…
But I’m ready to create something that is great from within and for myself so that I may share it with the world.  Like a shooting star, I’m going home.  🙂