January Fitness Recap 2013

January is always a good month for me with crosstraining.  I seem to find motivation to do more crosstraining than usual each January, and this month was no exception.

Running = 83 miles
Yoga = 15 times
Shred = 11 times (I finally worked myself up to Level 3!)
Abs =15 times
Rode my horse = 2x

I didn't do any races this month, and do not have any plans.  So I won't be adding anything to my collection for a while.  I still use my calendar method to track my workouts though.  I have my calendar and my old medals stashed in my closet.

It's a little junky I guess, but I like the reminders of what I have accomplished in the past there.  Plus, since it's inside my closet, no one sees it but me.  I see them every time I jot down a workout on my calendar, and it gives me extra motivation.

My IT band is hanging in so far.  I had to stop my ART treatments on it for the time being, as I couldn't afford the copay.  Hopefully my IT band will continue obeying while our budget is so tight!

Conversations after 16+ Years of Marriage

Do you think the quality of conversation deteriorates over the course of a marriage?  Especially after kids are added to the mix?  I don't know that it deteriorates, but we don't seem to spend much time these days discussing the philosophy of life.  The other night Paul and I were side by side in bed, me reading a novel called The Illuminator and him reading the day's newspaper. Baxter is settled on my stomach, happily purring. I turned to Paul,

"Hey, did you know that Baxter has an extra nipple?  Right in the middle of his chest?"

"WHY would I know this?" Paul replied.

"I don't know.  I guess you know now."

"Great," (insert sarcastic tone). 

Shhhhh, readers.  I'm not sure Baxter would be happy if he knew I let the cat out of the bag with his little secret.

I Love You Because...Valentines Day Craft for Kids

If you've been following my blog for a while, you know I love to make crafts for the boys out of old tissue boxes.  And duct tape.  Whatever would I do without duct tape?  We just use so many tissue boxes through the year, and I hate to throw them away.  They certainly come in handy at craft time!

I wanted to make something for the boys to show appreciation to other family members building up to Valentines Day.  So I came up with the idea of crafting a mailbox, and leaving some blank Valentines that the boys could fill out over the next couple of weeks.  The twins, of course, are not writing yet so they'll need a little extra help with theirs.  Paul and I will be participating too.  I can't wait to open them up on Valentines Day and read about the little reasons we love each other.  Already, this is a huge hit with Pierce, who has been sneakily writing little valentines and placing them in the box.  He is so excited to read them when it is time.  Maybe this will even become a yearly tradition!

This post is linked with Valentines Traditions over at JDaniel4sMom.  Readers, do you send any Valentines?

Snow Day

It finally happened.  We got the snow the boys had been longing for so badly a week ago.  We only got around 5 inches, but it was packed and hard, perfect snow for sledding.

 Pierce had a great time sledding.  Every time he sledded though, Cort screeched in horror.  He was scared Pierce would get hurt.  Then Cort wouldn't even let Reid get NEAR the sled.  Poor Reid.  He had to watch from a distance.

 But he didn't seem to upset about it.  Even though his hands got cold because he refused to wear his gloves.

 After Cort successfully shoved down Reid twice, averting him from the horrific sled, he stood at the top of the hill and screamed at the rest of us.  COME ON GUYS.  I DON'T LIKE SNOW.  I WANT TO GO INSIDE. 

Mean mom that I am, I made him walk down to check on the horses with me.  Sometimes they get balls of snow in their hooves, which is painful for them.  They didn't have any snowballs this time, so I just gave them some hay to munch on.  Looking at those tubby bellies, I probably didn't even need to do that, ha ha.

I was hoping that Cort would be in a good enough mood to try to get a picture of all 3 boys in the snow.  But he was still mad and yelling on and on about going inside.  I took a couple of pictures like this:

And then I decided to call it a day.  We all went inside to eat macaroni and cheese for lunch.  At least two of them had fun!

Valentines Boost-My-Blog Party with TEN Giveaways!

As a way to thank all of the participants that linked up to Rural Thursdays last year 

and just because we thought it would be fun -- 

I @ Two Bears' Farm and Nancy @ A Rural Journal, 

are hosting a  

Valentine's Day Boost-My-Blog Party on February 14, 2013.

There will be some great giveaways, so please plan on joining us on Valentine's Day to meet new bloggers, gain some new readers -- and maybe win one of our fabulous prizes in the process.

Such as...

 

Registration Starts Today!

If you plan on participating in the party, please email me with the following information: Your Blog's Name Your Blog URL Your Blog Category (Crafting, Photography, Homesteading, DIY, Gardening, Birding, Recipes, Farming, Journaling, Mommy, etc...) All participating blogs will appear on A Rural Journal and Two Bears Farm on February 14, listed by blog category. Giveaway winners will be announced at that time.

All bloggers are welcome and we anticipate a large crowd, so please sign up early. Registration starts today and will close at midnight on Sunday, February 10. What Do I Need to Do To Enter The Giveaways?

You will need to be a Boost-My-Blog Party participant to be eligible for the giveaways. Please follow the Rafflecopter instructions for each giveaway.
a Rafflecopter giveaway a Rafflecopter giveaway  : : : We Got Buttons!

If you would like to help us spread the word, please feel free to grab a button below and post it somewhere on your blog. We are pretty excited about hosting this event -- and hope that you will able to join us in the festivities. If you have any questions before the big day, you may email us here.
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He Said, She Said

Kind of looks like they're in a tiff...

This picture reminds me a lot of this poem I used to read for my Intro to Psychology class.  I know you're probably thinking....why was she reading poetry in psychology?  Well, I was reading this poem because it is an excellent illustration of using projection as a way of coping.  Projection is a defense mechanism where you project your feelings onto someone else.  If you'd like to read it, the poem is by Denise Duhamel, titled How It Will End.  My students always seemed to enjoy hearing it read. 

 

Thank you so much to those of you who have emailed me to see how the job search is going.  I have been so touched!  I heard back from the company I liked so well, and the only thing they are still waiting on now is the CPS background check.  So hopefully I will hear something in the very near future. 

Marinated Lentil Salad Recipe

A few weeks ago there was a recipe in the newspaper for a lentil salad that I thought sounded tasty.  I made a few modifications to suit our family's needs, and it turned out delicious!

Ingredients:
2 cups dried lentils
4-6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 small onions, chopped
2 celery ribs, diced
2 medium carrots, diced
5 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 tsp basil
2 tbsp chives, chopped
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
4 ounces feta cheese
1 cucumber, diced.

Bring lentils and 4 cups broth to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 25 minutes.  Keep an eye on them - if they simmer dry add extra broth.  Drain and set aside.

Saute onion, celery, and carrot in 1 tbsp oil over medium heat until almost tender.  Add bell pepper and saute until all veggies are slightly tender.

Stir in lentils.  Cool.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Serve immediately or chill to serve.

Goat cheese would also be excellent in this instead of the feta.  We ate it as a main dish, but you could also have it as a side dish if you wanted.  Readers, do you like lentils?  I know some people don't care for them much, but I've found them to be very good with the right seasonings.