Busy, busy, busy...

I started my ballet class on Monday and it was fun! :)  Christine and I had a miscommunication regarding which class we were signed up for so she was there for the 5:45 Ballet Workout class instead of the 6:30 regular Adult Beginner Ballet.  Since she was already there she took that class too! She decided that she liked it and signed up for the full session.  Since it was "bring a friend for free" session, I signed up too!  Tomorrow should be interesting.  The Ballet Workout class is more aerobic and therefore more of a workout so I will have an hour and 45 minutes of exercise tomorrow after no working out all week! Yikes! Wish me luck! :)

It was quite a hectic week at work with two annual reviews that I had to complete, both of which were a little late, but I got them done!  Now on to the last week of January with billing due at the end of the week.  The paperwork at my job is like laundry (which I need to do as well!), Never ending!  Anyway, I also have the "Meet the Author" night on Friday, which should be lots of fun! And then a weekend of painting.  I am so thankful that I have lots of helpers coming to assist.  I really do have the best friends ever and am so grateful to each and every one for the role they play in my life.  I think I have my childcare lined up in case I get a baby for foster care.  Lila will do Monday and Tuesday, Sue I think is Wednesday, and then hopefully Virginia on Thursday and Friday.  I will have my friend Christine as a back-up and Sue's mom Christine as a back-up as well.  This is a bit of a change from the original "line-up" because Sue's day off changed and Lila and Virginia live very close by.  I am lucky to have several back-ups if needed.  Like I said, my friends are awesome!

I decided that starting tomorrow, I will not drink soda anymore!  I am filling up tonight and then tomorrow I will start drinking only water and of course my morning coffee.  I do enjoy my coffee. :)  I am going to give myself one more week and then will start my marathon training program.  I keep going back and forth as to whether I will run in the half-marathon with my friend Terri on March 23rd or just be a spectator.  Looking at the schedule, I should be ready.  I don't know why I am being such a wimp; I should just do it!  I will keep you all posted.

I also started conversing with someone from one of the online dating sites but it's really not my main focus right now.  I'm really trying to get things in order for foster care.  There are so many little things that need to be done, but all the little things add up.  Then I have days like today and yesterday where I have just been a bum! Sort of.  I have the ability to procrastinate so easily and then don't get the things done that I need to get done. Ugh! I know I will get there but I end up putting so much pressure on myself because I wait until the last minute!

One thing I did do this weekend was go over to my niece's house so that the girls (Gabby and Taylor) could pick out the Valentines they wanted to make for school and we set a date to make them.  The girls chose ones with bubbles and Hershey Kisses with a header that says "Blowing you Kisses on Valentines Day."  How cute is that?  After we make them I will post pictures.  I'm so excited to make them with the girls.  I also printed and cut out all of the headers so they're actually ready ahead of time. For Taylor's teachers she is going to make S'mores in a bag with a header that says "We Need S'More Teachers Like You."  Gabby is going to make brownies with a tag that says "Shooting for Brownie Points." Cute, right?  All of these ideas came from Pinterest.  That's my new addiction and another way for me to procrastinate. ;)

OK, that's all for now.  Even though I have skipped some blogging days, I'm getting better at writing more frequently.  I'm feeling good overall and positive about things in my life.  I just need to get things done! I will do it! :)

One more thing, I'm going to post my training schedule for the next two weeks.  I say two weeks because I plan to follow the "Week 1" phase of training for two weeks in a row instead of starting full force.

Here it is:

M - Rest
T- 3 Miles
W - 3 Miles
Th- 3 Miles
F- Rest
Sat - 6 Miles
Sun - Cross

I will actually be doing cross-training on Monday though and maybe Sunday as well but that is the schedule for Novice 1 according to Hal Higdon.  Now I just need to see if Terri is free at least one day so I can train with her. :)

Fabulous Weekend

As my post title suggests, I had an awesome weekend filled with friends, family, and fun! :)  I will begin with Friday evening (I'm noticing lots of "F" words. hee hee!) Anyway, I finally went to see my friend Jennifer from elementary school who lost her daughter Ila Jean to cancer in April.  I had been feeling a bit guilty because I had been carrying around a check from Maddie's Mark for over a month and I was finally able to deliver it along with a few toys for the Children's Center at Albany Medical Center.  Jennifer and her family are having a birthday celebration in Ila Jean's honor and are collecting toys to donate.  I had a few things that were originally meant for Ila Jean that I never got to her :( so I donated them in her honor instead.  I had a great conversation with Jen and her daughter Monica, who is such a sweet girl just like her mom.  It was just great to spend a little time with such wonderful people.  I am truly amazed by their ability to give back to others despite their tragedy.  What a wonderful legacy to their beautiful daughter to spread the love and kindness.

Next, on Saturday morning, I was able to spend time with another organization started by another family that I am inspired by, which is Maddie's Mark.  It was actually for Maddie's Elephants which is a part of Maddie's Mark. :)  They had a sewing party to make elephants to "grow the herd."  You can find out more about Maddie's elephants at www.maddieselephants.com.  If you would like to find out more about Maddie's Mark, their website is www.maddiesmark.org. Anyway, this organization was started by Erin and Matt Musto who lost their daughter in February of last year to a very rare and inoperable brain tumor.  Despite the tragedy, this family has found so many ways to keep Maddie's memory alive, while helping so many other families in the process and by building playgrounds in their community.  I could go on and on but I will instead just invite you to take a look at their website.  Truly inspiring!

Anyway, while at the sewing party (don't worry, I didn't sew), I was able to cut out the elephant pattern and the ears in order to make a super hero elephant for my niece Erin since they are doing a superhero theme for the baby due next month!  I was so happy when Wendi (the person who organizes Maddie's Elephants) was able to sew my elephant for me so I could take it to the shower.  :)  I also cut out a Winnie-the-Pooh elephant to have her make it for my friend Lauren whose shower is next month.  I had to leave before I could have that one made.  It was such a fun day and I know I was such a dork, but it was so fun seeing all of the material and the elephants being made with different fabric combinations.  It made me want to come home and make more (for them to sew of course).  I even went out and purchased some fabric to make an elephant for my great-niece Khloe (requested by Jamie, with her cheetah baby blanket as inspiration).  I can't wait to have it made. I hope it comes out nice and I hope she likes it. :)

P.S. I almost forgot to mention that Maddie's Mark was raffling of a bunch of items and I won a beautiful fleece blanket with elephants on it. :)

Following the sewing party, my mom and I went to Clinton's Ditch for Erin's baby shower.  It was lots of fun and I was able to help Erin to reach her gifts and started the assembly line of opened gifts to my sister-in-law Robin and to Carol who piled the open gifts on a table closer to the stairs going out. :)  My sister-in-law did a really nice job making the diaper cakes as center pieces on the table.  Her sister Jeanine made a larger diaper cake on another table that was next to the food table.  I should have taken a picture to insert here.  It was very cute.  All of Robin's sisters and her mom got Erin and Garrett a book shelf filled with books and two baskets that fit in the bottom.  My favorite book was the book with Garrett's face as "Super Dad."  Very cute.

After the shower was over, I came home brought my mom home and took a quick trip to Walmart (Where I got the material for Khloe's elephant) and then off to my friend Lila's house for a Tastefully Simple Party where my friend Christine was the consultant. :)  I won two items at the party including a beer bread and a crab dip or cheese ball. That made 3 things that I won in the same day! Everyone told me that I should have played the lottery. LOL! I didn't though. After the party, Christine came over and hung out for a while, which was awesome to just sit and chat.  Through our conversation, I discovered that her mom quilts, which is something very helpful to know because of a project that I would like to do.  I'll talk about this more later if it goes any further.  We also realized that we will be seeing each other lots in the upcoming months between our ballet class starting on Monday (for 9 weeks) and the Tastefully Simple parties that she is hosting at my friend's houses!  And I am going there for dinner on Tuesday for my belated birthday dinner.  These things all make me very happy!

Phew! That was quite a busy but fun Saturday!  Sunday morning and into the afternoon, I was pretty much a bum! I did make breakfast for my mom and I though.  I made the rest of the bacon that my brother gave me and chocolate chip pancakes (with the mix that my brother and S.I.L. gave me).  When I finally got myself moving, I went to the store to get the ingredients I needed for dinner because I had Jess and Shaun over.  :)

Dinner actually came out really well. I made a chicken dish with a pesto and marinara sauce with milk to make it creamy.  I also made broccoli and salad and then bought a variety cheesecake from the store and made some beer bread.  Everyone cleared their plates so it must have been good! ;)  It was really great to have them here and catch up on things.  As we were talking about foster care and stuff that I need to get ready, they offered me a twin bed!  I'm so excited about this.  It was one of the things that I needed to get and I thought I was going to have to buy one.  Now all I need to do is get someone to go pick it up for me. I need to put a call in to my brother.  I'm so thankful for the wonderful friends that I have that are so supportive and kind to me. :)  We had a wonderful evening and I had a wonderful weekend!

I have the day off tomorrow and have lots to do!  I have to take the lights off my tree (yes, my Christmas tree) and put it outside along with all the other garbage.  I have some paperwork for myself and some paperwork for my job to do, and then I have my ballet class with Christine! Yay!

Now it's late and I'm getting tired so I'm going to stop for now.  Thanks for reading! Hope you have a great day!

Thankful! :)

Today was a good day! I woke up this morning and for some reason turned on the news.  I never actually do this but I did and noticed a list of school closings.  I didn't even know we were supposed to get snow!  Well, it turns out that my work was closed so I got a snow day! Yay! It's one of the perks of working in a school setting. :)  When I finally got up, I decided to make bacon and eggs for my mom and I.  As I was preparing our breakfast I noticed the senior van outside.  They were here to pick up my mom because apparently she had called because she wanted to go.  That left me with the house to myself for a few hours.  I was able to get a few things done and eventually went outside to shovel the snow, which wasn't too bad.

Once I finally got moving and out the door, I went to meet my friend Terri and we did a 3-mile run by her house.  I took a shower and then we went out to Dinosaur BBQ for dinner (Good thing we ran first!).  It was yummy and we had a great conversation!  I am often thankful for what I have but our conversation made me realize again how thankful I am that I had a decent childhood.  It also got me more excited about becoming a foster parent.  I want to help give other children positive experiences like I had when I was growing up.  I always felt like I could do anything because that is what my mom made me believe.  So many children grow up with negative experiences and I have the ability to provide positive experiences for them.  It doesn't mean it's going to be easy but even if I can help in some small way, I'm happy to do it. :)

   Terri ("the martian") and me at the start of our snowy (which quickly turned dark) run!

I'm also thankful for all of the support that my friends provide me through kind words of encouragement and through so many other helpful things.  I am having a "painting party" the weekend of February 2-3 and so many people are willing to help and I am so appreciative.  I posted it on Facebook and I posted the fact that I am preparing to become certified to become a foster parent.  So many people have written such kind words of encouragement and it makes me smile. :)  One thing that I have learned is that people in your life (at least in mine) want to help you to succeed.  I enjoy helping others when I can and people enjoy helping me too.  I can't tell you how much that means to me.  It is sometimes a difficult thing to ask others for help but friends really want that opportunity.  When you have something exciting happening in your life, people want to be a part of it just as they want to be a part of helping in times of need.  This is what friends and community are all about.  With all of the negative things that happen around the world, its important to recognize that there is a lot of good too.  I am so thankful for all of my friends and supporters.  To all of you reading this blog, thank you for the role you play in my life.  I am truly grateful for you!  Stay tuned for more happiness in 2013!

Moving Right Along

Hello and Welcome to the Weekend! I had the day off work today for my first foster care home visit. Two of the social workers came just to check out the house and give me an overview of what I still need to do to prepare and to become a certified foster parent!

It's a bit overwhelming to think about but this is something that I have been wanting to do for a long time. :)  I know that I need to get the foster care room set up properly but at least the middle of the floor was cleaned up. (Sue M. you would be proud!)  I am just about ready to get the crib from my friend Tiana (in case I get a call to take an infant).  I turned in the background check from Sue and her mom.  I still need to turn mine in!  I gave a form to my brother to fill out (as a back-up caregiver).  It should be pretty easy for him to fill out since he has lived at the same address for the past 25 years.  Much easier than mine will be! LOL.  I also have my friend Stacia filling out her form as a back-up too.  I need to get the other forms out to some friends as well.  I called the people who were sent reference forms and 3 out of 4 people received theirs and are filling them out! Yay!  I also have a few items of paperwork that I need to fill out myself (I finished one of the lengthy questionnaires today).  I have my next visit on February 8th, where I will actually go to the office so that I can be interviewed in depth.  We thought this would be easier without my mom around because they may want to ask me some questions regarding the living situation with her.

As far as the things I need to get ready, the list is as follows (I will try to remember it all):

• Clean out the basement so that the paint cans and other materials are separated (Apparently the way I have them stored now is a fire hazard. Oops!)
• Purchase a fire extinguisher and post directions on how to use it (Everyone in the household is required to know how to use it).
• Purchase and install smoke detectors in each of the bedrooms
• Purchase and install a carbon monoxide detector
• Make sure all outlets have outlet covers (Took them off when painting)
• Prepare the foster care room.  I need to clean out the rest of my junk, get a bed etc.

I think there may be a few more, but I don't have my list in front of me at the moment.  

There are also other things that I would like completed that are not necessarily required but that I feel will make the living space more comfortable for all of us.  I am planning on having a painting/work party for any of my friends who are available to help on February 2nd and 3rd to help finish up some painting projects mostly.  I have to finish painting the kitchen.  Not too much left to do but a little.  I need to finish painting the hallway.  I would like to repaint the room that I will use for foster care and I would like to paint  my mom's room as well.  They are all in need of painting as they have not been painted in a while!  I will provide snacks as well as bagels for breakfast and pizza for dinner on both days.  I'm hoping that even if people can just show up for an hour or two on either Saturday or Sunday that I will get a bunch of stuff done!  Wish me luck! :)

In other news today, I had a great day with my niece Taylor.  I picked her up from school and we took a trip to the bookstore to use her gift certificate that I got her for Christmas.  Then we went to Panera where we had macaroni and cheese and clam chowder. When we were halfway through with our chosen "snack" we "switched." It was the best of both worlds.  At Panera, I was able to use the gift certificate generously given to me by Stacia's parents for my 40th birthday.  When I brought Taylor home, I spent the evening with the kids and Jamie and had a wonderful time.  The kids danced to music from a CD that Taylor played on her "Hello Kitty" CD/Tape player.  It was definitely entertaining to watch.  I also learned what a pro Cameron is at completing 24-piece puzzles.  It was amazing to see how quickly and easily he put them together. :)  I really love those kids.  They all have such great personalities and they make me smile! :)

Tomorrow morning I'll be headed to Turning Stone casino with my friend Kim on a bus trip through her work.  Hope I win some $$$.  That's all for now! Have a great day/night depending on when you read this! LOL

Slacker!

Ok - So here I am at week 2 of the New Year and I'm already slacking! Ugh! It's OK though; I will continue to work at it! I haven't run or gone to the gym since Sunday.  It's so hard to get motivated during the winter and I'm so tired when I get home from work.  I know that this is even more reason for me to get going.

On a more positive note, I have the day off work tomorrow. :)  I had a personal day to use and took tomorrow.  The main reason I took it off tomorrow is that I have my first home visit to begin the foster care process.  I am feeling pretty unprepared, however.  I did move my room into the room next to the bathroom and it was somewhat clean but now is a mess again. I have quite a mess in the soon to be foster care room but am working on it.  I came downstairs to take a break because it can get pretty overwhelming at times.  I have so much stuff and I continue to work on weeding stuff out but there is just so much! It is a very slow process for me but I'm getting there.  I need a day with Susan Matthews to come help me do some more organizing. :)  She is my motivator in that category. :)

I also had a great dinner last night with my brother Kevin and sister-in-law Robin.  :) This is on my resolution list so I'm doing good there. :)  I can't remember if I wrote about this, but I signed up for a ballet class for myself and my friend Christine. :)  The class starts on January 14th and I can't wait!  It also counts as my fun and different thing for January (even though its a 10-week class).  My February fun thing is my painting class at Saratoga Paint and Sip Studio with Stacia.  I'm also going to Turning Stone Casino for a day trip with my friend Kim on Saturday. I hope I win some $$$!  That would be a bonus!  It should be a fun day anyway.

I spent 2 evenings reading a book that I got (with my birthday gift card from Belynda). :)  The book was Miranda's Big Mistake by Jill Mansell.  It's one of those light reads that I really enjoy.  It's about a woman who meets this guy who she thinks is great and finds out that he left his wife because she was pregnant and that he's still married.  Anyway, it was fun to read and unlike my life, she actually ends up finding a great guy at the end.  This can only happen in books and movies, huh? LOL.  Oh well, lucky for me I have many other things going on and can still have fun and be happy without a man. :)  Don't know how I got on that tangent except to say that this book reading, although it was entertaining, kept me from doing all the other things that I was supposed to do! LOL! I guess I need that from time to time anyway.  Back on the wagon next week!  Since I will be taking Ballet class on Monday, I know I'll be off to a good start.  In case you are wondering, this ballet class is an adult beginner class and no experience is necessary so I should be fine! Ha ha! I do need to purchase some ballet slippers though.  I guess I'll be making a trip to the Costumer tomorrow!

That's it for now! I'll try not to be such a slacker!

Moving Forward

Good Afternoon! Today has been great so far! I began my day at the Scotia Diner with my friend Stacia. :) Today we got to celebrate her birthday and during our breakfast I got more and more motivated to continue with my goals for 2013! Thanks Stacia! :)

After breakfast I came home and researched some 5K's for the month of May/June, I registered Stacia and I for her birthday gift and my "Fun February" activity. We are going to Saratoga Paint and Sip Studio to create our Sunflower masterpieces. I can't wait! :)  I am waiting to hear from my friend Christine to find out if we are going to be able to take our Ballet class on Monday nights which will count as my "Fun January" activity. Then it will be 2 months down and 10 to go for my goal of 1 fun and different activity per month (Even though Ballet class is 10 weeks long. Hee hee).

I started my exercise goal on January 1st and as you know I ran that day, which was a Tuesday. I wimped out on Wednesday because of the cold, which motivated me to check out a local gym on Thursday.  I worked out on the gym equipment for 35 minutes and took Friday off. On Saturday I met my friend Terri for a run, which ended up being 2.8 miles long and no exercise so far on Sunday (Not sure it will happen. LOL! But I will plan on going to the gym on Monday).  So the final verdict is 3 out of 6 days of exercise for 2013 so far! :) I'll take 50% as a start!

I am having my brother and sister-in-law over for dinner on Wednesday evening, have my first visit from the foster care case worker, and am getting together with my friend Jess after work. :) I have invited Jess and her fiance over for dinner some night in January I think and Stacia and Andrew in February or March I hope. :)  I have many people on the list and hope to have many wonderful meals together!  I still need to send out my invite to have a game night on the 18th I'm thinking. If you're reading this and would like to come, let me know! Our book club will start back up again on February 1st and I'm looking forward to that! I guess that's it for now! Have a great day!!

NOTE: I changed my main photo to the picture of my night out with Wanda and Stacia for my 40th birthday, but I still want to document the wonderful photo from the 40th birthday celebration with Belynda in Hershey, so I'm including it here. I may change the pictures periodically to keep it fresh and to highlight things occurring in my life but I will always keep the pictures in my blog! Love you all! :)

Cross Training

Good Morning! This is going to be a quick post today just to stay in the habit.  I would have written last night but I fell asleep! LOL.  Anyway, I did go to the gym last night. This cold is just getting the best of me and I don't want it to keep me from exercising so I'm exploring the gym option again.  It's about $30 a month if I decide to go with the option of classes, which is what I want.  There are cheaper gyms in the area ($9.99 month) but every one of them requires an enrollment fee.  This gym also has a $9.99 option but it does not include classes and it's a $50 enrollment fee.  The place I used to go to has a $129 enrollment fee for the $9.99 a month and I feel like they are used car salesmen so while I enjoy the convenience of them, I'd rather not give them my business.  While I was at the gym, I ran into my friend Shelley who is also a member there and we talked about taking some classes together so that's a definite bonus!  She also told me that our friend Ashley is a member so that's another bonus! I have a 7-day pass to try it out so I will keep you posted!  Although I just did the elliptical last night, my main purpose for joining (besides getting out of the cold!) is so that I can cross-train and avoid another stress-fracture or injury of any type.  That's it for now! Will try to write later tonight! :)

BRRR!

Hello My Friends - Today was my first day back to work after a week and a half off and boy was it cold! I woke up a little later than I wanted to because I was so cold that I didn't want to get out of bed! That brings me to a little addition to my New Years Resolutions: Get to work earlier! I really really try but I really really hate mornings; especially in the winter.  Anyway, I did eat my lunch that I packed and I had my first cup of coffee at home, then forgot to fill my travel mug to take with me. :( I had a cranberry English muffin for breakfast. :)  Eating breakfast is important so that is also a goal I am going to work hard on each day.

I did "pack" my running gear and had every intention of running at 4:00 and doing about 2 miles, which would give me time to get to the running trail and be done before sunset. In theory the plan was great! In theory that is. ;)  I unfortunately wimped out because it was so cold outside. It was just one of those days. I know it was just as cold, if not colder yesterday but I just didn't have the motivation. Yikes! Gotta get back into that groove.  I will get there slowly but surely.  This is a short blog post today, but I am at least trying to write more often. Yes, it's only been 3 days but I am working on developing a habit. Wish me luck! LOL!

Oh, I almost forgot, I invited my brother and sister-in-law over for dinner next week and my brother is going to get back to me on which day works best. :) Check another item off my resolution list. :)

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year! Last night was lots of fun with my friend Sue. :) We went to see a comedy show, then to Friday's and then to her house to watch the ball drop.  It was calm but a great way to ring in the New Year!  The comedy show was pretty good but the 4th and last comedian was really raunchy and not very funny.  The funniest part was how many people he offended who left before his act was over.  I think that's when Sue and I laughed the hardest! It was like a mass exodus! LOL. Thanks to all who texted to wish me a Happy New Year!  :)

As far as the day goes today, I got a good start on some of my New Years Resolutions. :)  I woke up a little late and was slow moving to begin so I missed my intended Winter Series Run.  I probably could have made it but it would have been cutting it very close.  I decided that rather than try to run to the start and risk missing it altogether that I would just run on my own instead.  I ended up running 2.25 miles on the Niskayuna bike path. It was at a slow pace; about 12:30 mile, but it felt good to get out there. My goal is to just get out there consistently 3-5 days a week for the next few weeks and not worry about pace.  If I can do 2 miles a night for the next two weeks, I'd be happy. As the weeks progress, sunset times will also get later so it works well with my mileage increase.  :)

I also got rid of some boxes by bringing them to my friend Sandy's house.  She will go through and take what she can use and then donate the rest. :)  I took out the garbage too! Both of these things help with my organization goal. I've been making lunch and dinner for my mom and using up leftovers as I go along. This helps with finances and with taking better care of my mom.  :)  I was able to get my room together and moved my bed into my new "bedroom" and was therefore able to sleep in my bed for the first time in quite a while. That's a whole different story.  Let's just say it's progress! :)  I read a few pages in my Chi Running book.  I decided I would read a few pages a day to help with my running and hopefully gain strategies for avoiding future injury. I placed my "positive or happy" event of today in my 2013 jar. Finally, I made my lunch for tomorrow and got the coffee maker all set up! Should make the morning easier!!

Now it's late and I'm tired so I'm going to cut it off here! Oh, and I blogged today! Let's hope I do it again tomorrow! Night!

                                               Before the run in the bitter cold!!

                                               The path I just ran!!

                                           2.25 miles done! First run since my injury!