Tag: family

Seven Father’s Days

This Sunday will be the seventh Father’s Day without my dad.

 

When you lose a parent, the first year is full of firsts and they are so hard. First birthday, first Christmas, first Father’s Day or Mother’s Day, and more. There is a hole in your world on each of those days and every other day of the year.
As time goes on and years pass, it feels different. A day like Father’s Day is to celebrate and honor your dad. I was lucky in that I had a wonderful relationship with my dad, many do not. There is a huge hole in our lives where my dad should be, even seven years later.
I miss my dad every single day. I never needed a single day in the year to celebrate the man that he was, I knew it every day and I was proud to call him daddy.

 

So on this seventh Father’s Day what am I feeling?

 

I think about the family he raised, the adults we’ve become, and how he would still (and I’m sure still is) be proud.
I think about my two brothers who are both wonderful fathers to their children. They both are caring, strong, and are raising their own with our dad’s memory in mind. I know this because I see it in how they love their children. They are both “family men” just like our dad was.

 

 

I think about all the memories I have of my dad. I have 38 years of memories to last a lifetime. I have endless stories to share and carry on. My dad’s legacy will never go away because I keep it alive every single day.

 

 

I think about the month he spent in the hospital before he passed and about his final day. Making decisions that a family should never have to make but we did out of love and a strength we didn’t realize we had at the time. I think about him passing with all of us around his bedside and how we made sure he didn’t go alone. He went knowing we were there and there was never any doubt of the amount of love in that room.

 

I think about the strength of my mom as she cared for my dad for 43 years. He lived the life he had because of her.

 

I think about how stubborn he was and how he would drive us crazy often. But that stubbornness made him who he was, it meant he never gave up, and he lived a full life from his wheelchair.

 

 

So on this seventh Father’s Day without my dad here, I think about how lucky I am to have had him in my life for 38 years. To have a hero. To call him Daddy and know that he loved us unconditionally. That he was able to “walk” me down the aisle at our wedding and he knew and loved Mike. That I am who I am because of him. My determination and stubbornness came from him and it’s both wonderful and hard to handle all at the same time.

 

 

Happy Father’s Day, Daddy. You are missed and loved every single day by your family. That will never change.

 

 

Currently – May 2017

We’re almost at the end of May and about to jump into summer. It’s been forever since I wrote a Currently post (as in last August!) and it seems like a good time to share some of my favorite things!


Eating:

I am constantly trying to find new healthy food choices so that I don’t get bored with eating the same thing every single day. My current favorite is sweet potatoes. I heat them up and mash them with a fork. A teeny bit of butter and it’s perfect. I’m also trying to get as much of my protein through food as possible.


Listening:

I am obsessed with the new Brett Young song “In Case You Didn’t Know”. I love his voice and this song just makes my heart happy. It also helps that he is easy on the eyes….



Loving:

Muscles. Specifically, mine. Day by day, little by little, my body continues to change and respond to what I’m doing at the gym. I feel strong and determined.



Reading:

It has been awhile since I’ve read regularly because I am so busy. But, my sister-in-law recently sent me two autographed books, one of which I have not read. I am reading a little each day. While I would love to sit on the couch or lounge in bed and read for hours on end, there just isn’t time. So a little reading each night is my goal.




Thinking:

About my brother’s visit next month. I can’t wait to see him and my sister-in-law and NIECE!!! We are coming up on a year since they moved and even though we visited them over Thanksgiving, that was too long ago all ready. It’s a little tricky connecting with the time difference and my schedule sometimes, but we have done very well keeping in touch pretty regularly since they moved. I look forward to spending a few days with them. They will get some big hugs from me for sure!



Wearing:

Working at a gym means I get to pretty much live my dream of wearing comfy workout pants every day. My favorite for awhile now are the Xersion Essential Performance Capris. Yhey have a side pocket for my phone and the waist band is wide. They are so comfortable and the price is right, especially when I find them on sale.



Needing:

I could really use some great make-ahead breakfast recipes. Getting up at 4am means I need to be able to pack something and go. I want it to be healthy and tasty. If you have some recipes you can share with me, please do so!
What are you currently up to? I’d love to know!  

This Is 45

Today is my 45th birthday and while it is so odd to think of myself that age, literally just five years away from turning 50 (!!!), I am embracing it.

Turning 45 feels much different than 44. This time last year, I hated the thought of turning another year older because I simply was not doing anything about the fact that I was unhappy in my skin. I had been gaining weight and would continue to do so until the end of 2016. I am SO thankful that I am turning 45 with a plan in place and on a mission to lose weight and get fit with my favorite guy beside me every step of the way.

 

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Turning 45 makes me want to be the  best person that I can be. To face my anxieties head on and deal with them, rather than tuck them away and pretend they don’t exist. It makes me want to do things I’ve not done before, to continue to step outside of my comfort zone whenever given the chance.

 

[Tweet “Turning 45 makes me want to be the best person that I can be.”]

 

My 45th year is going to about CHANGE. I have goals in place and I am doing my best every day to make them happen. Not just fitness and health related, but LIFE goals. It’s time to not be afraid of change and dare to dream about other things. Like Birdie from my most favorite movie “You’ve Got Mail” says to Kathleen Kelly… “You are daring to imagine that you could have a different life.”  Although as it pertains to me, I just want parts of it to be different.

I have much to be thankful for as I turn 45…. A wonderful husband who loves me, cheers me on, and supports me in my goals. A mom who I am very proud of and who I am thankful lives with us. My brother Joey and his two boys. My brother Nick, his wonderful wife Jenna, and my fabulous niece Autumn in Seattle, who although I miss terribly, we keep in touch often and I know they are just a phone call, FaceTime, or text away. My blog that turns 6 this month and my little Etsy store that continues to grow. I have the craziest dogs ever and they drive me batty, but I love them endlessly. I live in a place that I love that has the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets, and oh that water… I am lucky to be in excellent health as I work hard to be fit. And I have some of the best friends and tribe a girl could ever ask for.

So, this is 45. I think I’m perfectly fine with that. 

 

 

 

 

What are your intentions? {2017}

I recently saw a post on the FitBit blog about intentions for 2017. I *LOVE* that they used the word intentions instead of resolutions. I personally do not like the word resolutions, it is just something that will not happen (at least in my world).

But intentions are different.

in·ten·tion   [in-ten-shuh n]

an act or instance of determining mentally upon some action or result.

 

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I love that it is defined as an instance of “determining mentally”. So much of what we want to do for ourselves, the dreams we have, the goals we have, are all basically mental. We have to convince ourselves first that we can do it. Many times – and I know many of you will agree – we psych ourselves out before we even begin. 

Don’t go into 2017 setting resolutions. Instead, set intentions. What do you “intend” to do? 

 

[Tweet “Don’t go into 2017 setting resolutions. Instead, set intentions. #2017intentions”]

 

Over the weekend, I sat down with my fabulous new 2017 planner and made a list of words that I wanted to focus on in 2017. There are many words on this one page. All have meaning to me. Ironically, intention(s) is not on there, so I added it. And that brings me to choosing my One Word of the Year for 2017….. Intention. 

 

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I intend to get back in shape with hubby. For the first time in years, we are back at the gym together and I love it. Very early on, before we were married, we went to the gym together. It’s nice to be back there together again. 

 

I intend to have more quality time with hubby. This is always on my list of wants and needs, and now intentions as well. There are some weeks where we are both so busy and our time together in few and far between. Even if we are just curled up on the couch enjoying our favorite show or out running errands, I enjoy our time together. 2017 will be OUR year.

 

I intend to grow my Etsy store. This little store of mine on the interwebs is my current baby and I have enjoyed seeing it take on a life of it’s own this last month especially. It will be ever-changing as I add more items and fine tune the ones I have. I intend to make it a success. I know it will take time, but I will keep at it.

 

I intend to blog more.  My Etsy store took over blogging this last month or so, but I intend to get back to it. My 6th blogaversary is coming up in February and I have excitement planned around that. I want to blog my journey back to fitness as hubby and I work on it together. And I intend to grow the list of people and companies I work with.

 

I intend to eat better.  This goes along with the gym. Being busy means eating on the fly and that is never good. I intend on preparing more meals that both hubby and I enjoy as part of our journey back to being fit. 

 

I intend to be a stronger person.  We all have our weaknesses. Mine is my anxiety and 2016 has seen it’s share. I want to focus on being stronger so that I can be a better, stronger version of myself. This will allow me to be a  better wife, daughter, sister, friend, niece, and more. 

 

I intend to do the best I can in life. Life is hard, people. We all have struggles. Never ever think that you are the only one facing an uphill battle. If we can all go through this life remembering that while our struggle is difficult, we are not the only one struggling. We can all be more sympathetic in general. One way or another, we will get through our struggles.

 

What is one of your intentions for 2017? I would love to hear them!

 

Top Ten Tuesday – November Excitements!

Happy Tuesday and Happy November! I have to say, the month of October was pretty fun and full of scary excitement. But, spending the last weekend of it with a cold was not a great way to see it off, especially since I missed a Halloween party because of it. 

 

top ten tuesday

 

With a new month AND my favorite time of year, we are sharing our November excitements for our Top Ten this week. In no particular order, here’s what I’m looking forward to this month:

 

10. Christmas movies – They have already started Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel and I love them. The cheesier the better. Really they’re almost all about the same thing but I could watch them around the clock. Add in other favorites of mine like Elf, Christmas Vacation, A Christmas Story, Home Alone, all of The Santa Clause movies, and more, and I am a happy big kid. Thank you, Daddy, for your never ending love of all things Christmas.

 

9.  Autumn’s 9th birthday – This will be the first birthday of Autumn’s that I will not be with her, but I will still be celebrating the amazing little girl that she is. I’ll be sending her lots of birthday wishes 3200 miles away and we already sent her a super cool pair of rain boots at her request. By the way, how is that she is going to be 9 already? I swear she was just that little 5 lb. 4 oz. baby girl that I met in the hospital and instantly fell in love with. 

 

8. Cooler weather – I say this one with a chuckle, because it’s Florida and it won’t really cool off for awhile. But, the humidity is dropping and it’s actually getting below 70 at night so there’s that. The time changes this weekend, which I love, because it will get dark earlier. 

 

7.  The Raging Idiots – Both my bestie and I are fans of The Bobby Bones Show and she treated us to tickets to his upcoming show at The Straz on the 19th. I am super excited for a girls’ night out with bestie, both of us sporting our Pimpin’ Joy shirts, and hoping to meet him afterwards. 

 

6.  Running – Shocking, I know. But with some cooler-ish temps, it makes running even more enjoyable. And if I’m going to tackle the Ultra Challenge at Gasparilla in February, I need to get going on a training plan. 

 

5.  Milestones Running & Triathlon Grand Opening party – This is pretty exciting, too. My friends at Milestones are having a grand opening party on Friday the 11th at their first ever retail store. It’s going to be fun!

 

4.  Christmas decorations! – I love Christmas. I love Christmas decorations. I love putting up our tree and seeing the ornaments that we’ve collected over the years. I’m also excited to add two more Christmas stockings to the mix for my mom and Minnie now that they live with us. Santa will need be busy when he stops by our house this year.

 

3.  Rib Fest – I’m hoping we make it to this so I can see Chris Young in concert. Ribs and beer will be great, too, but throw in country music and it’s even better!

 

2.  The Election – I swear I’m not making this a political post, but let’s just say I cannot wait for the election to be done and over with. I amy be counting the days just to not have to hear the endless commercials or see the endless campaign mail in our mailbox.

 

1.  Thanksgiving – I am very much looking forward to seeing Nick, Jenna, and Autumn for Thanksgiving. My mom and I are flying to Seattle and taking the ferry over to their new home in Poulsbo. I cannot wait to see them – I miss them so much. BUT! And it’s a big but, it will also  be a weird Thanksgiving as it will be the first one that Mike and I will ever spend apart. 

 

What are you looking forward to this month? Don’t forget to visit Run.Chew.Sparkle to see what is on her list of November excitements!