Friday, September 23, 2011

A Proud Moment

Last night was parents night for my daughter's soccer game. I was a little excited and nervous. I had made other plans for last night and was quite anxious that I was not going to be able to be there on time.
Luckily, my earlier appointment went well and I was done fairly quickly. I canceled my second appointment and headed to the soccer game.

They had the parents line up across from their girls down by the team benches. Then they called out the girls names and parents according to their jersey number. The parents and girl stepped toward each other and the girls presented their parents with a chocolate bar and bottle of A&W Rootbeer. It was very sweet.


Fridley Girls Soccer Team

The game started out with a great goal for Fridley from none other than my own daughter. She plays right mid-field. She caught a pass, then turned on her speed, cut through 2 defenders and up the sidelines, then she made an awesome cut toward the net and shot the ball hard and high. The ball was in the back of the net before the defending goalie even knew what was happening. Oh, so exciting! And what a happy mom on the benches.

The next goal for Fridley came shortly after the first by a striker. It was another beautiful move. She cut around 2 defenders and strode right in for a face on kick that sent the goal diving toward the ball and the ball sailing into the net. Awesome!

Not 10 minutes into the game and my daughter took the ball in for a third goal. It was another thing of beauty. I was so happy for her and that third goal really energized the rest of the team. They came back with a fourth goal just before half-time.

No one scored again until the last few minutes of the second half, but you could tell the girls were feeling the game.Their smiles lit up the field and they were having a great time. They played a very smart game; both defensively and offensively. It was really fun to watch. And they ended up winning 5-0. Victory is sweet!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

SparkPeople Quiz: Are You Obsessed with Exercise?

I recently took this quiz SparkPeople Quiz: Are You Obsessed with Exercise?

I was a little bit disappointed with the result because I ended up doing exactly how I thought I would. The end result told me that I have a 'healthy obsession' with exercise, which I already figured since I exercise almost everyday and sometimes more than once per day (always depending on what I classify as exercise).

Have you ever taken a quiz (in a magazine, online, in a book) only to find out that you already knew how you'd end up? It's a bit crazy, isn't it? In the quizes you've taken have you ever been frustrated by the leading answers they give as options to choose from?

I find it so annoying that in every quiz I've ever taken in this type of format leads you to the 'correct' answer. I sometimes find that I am not completely (at least don't feel as though I am) honest with the answers.

In any case, I have yet to amaze myself with some sort of revelation into my psyche or personality. However, the quiz is fun and only takes a couple of minutes. Give it a try. Maybe you'll surprise yourself. :-)

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Crock Pot Potato Soup

The other day I was reading my sisters' cooking blog and came across a crockpot potato soup. I thought I was in heaven.

I love potato soup and almost anything I can cook in a crockpot. So, combining them together was almost too much for me to resist. I decided right then that I'd make this soup sometime over the weekend. It sounded so delicious, I could hardly wait.

Sunday morning finally came (I usually have more time to do things on Sunday mornings, so that's the day I decided to make the soup.)

Humble Beginnings
I printed off the receipe, gathered all the ingredients and set out to put the soup together. I got everything together and set the soup on to cook.

Soup's On
All went exceptionally well. The house smelled great and the soup looked good too. However it would seem that my math conversion skills were not really working that morning. I ended up using too much Chicken Base since I didn't have chicken boullion cubes and I added a tad too much salt. The soup was inedible - waaay too salty. I was very disappointed.

Finshed soup in Crockpot
But, all was not lost (read: enter husband to the rescue.) He drained all the liquied off the soup, diced up and some more potatoes, added some liquid (water and chicken base) and put everything back in the crockpot. He then made the roux and added the milk. He added no salt, but did add in a couple of slices of Provolone cheese - to give it a bit more body. He then let the crockpot melt and meld everything together.





Lunch

The end result? Absoulte deliciousness! We didn't eat much on Sunday, but Monday night we had the tastiest potato soup to come out of our kitchen in quite a while (we don't make soup very often). I can't wait to try this soup again - maybe this time I'll follow the directions more closely.

Friday, September 16, 2011

My Birthday 9/9/2011

My birthday was a week ago today. I can't beleive how fast time files!

I thought I'd share a bit about my day. It started out beautiful. The sun was shining and the air was warm. I did my my workout and got ready for work. My children woke up without any problems and I was greeted warmly by my 16 year old with a hug and a Happy Birthday (after he realized that it was my birthday and not the day before).

I was given the opportunity to take some time off work that day, so I seized the opportunity. I was a bit giddy at the beginning of the day knowing that I'd only be at work for a short time and then I'd be free to enjoy the weekend. My boss surprised me by bringing me a beautiful bouquet of flowers - giant yellow daisies, I beleive. They are gorgeous and brighten up my office nicely.

It was finally time to leave and I was so excited to go home and be with my family. I got home and my husband greeted me with one dozen long-stemmed red roses and a box of Turtles (yumm-y). He then gathered me up and took me out for lunch and a surprise. We went to Noodle & Co for lunch - another favorite of mine - for something filling yet light since my oldest child was preparing dinner. I, of course, ordered the same thing I always get - not much for adventure with food when I find something that I absolutely love and it is consistently delicious!

After lunch, we went on a short driving tour (read as, husband got turned around and somewhat lost, found a couple of dead ends before realizing where he was and found his destination). We stopped at yet another of my favorite stores - Ulta. I didn't need any new make up or anything, but he likes to bring me there on occasion just in case I need something. We loitered and I looked and drooled over different items and new cosmetics. I was ready to go and said so, but my husband told me I needed to wait a little bit. I had no idea what was happening until a store associate come up to us and told us she was ready. I figured it was me who she was seeing, but I didn't know for what.

We followed her to the back of the store and there is when I realized I was about to have a salon service that was not a haircut. I was surprised and a little nervous and then delighted when I found out she was about to give me a facial. Awesome!

My husband accompanied me into the room, found himself a corner to sit in and I laid down on the table (much like a massage table). The technician covered me with a sheet and explained a little bit about what she was doing. She didn't talk much and I didn't ask any questions. It felt so good and relaxing. The product she put on my face felt so decadent and she used just the right amount of pressure throughout the entire facial. I was entranced by the continuous movement and the warmth of the room.

I was a bit sad when the time was up because it felt so incredible. My husband found the dazed look and glassy eyes to be a good sign and scheduled me for another facial at the end of the month! What an awesome afternoon.

My oldest son made a delicious breaded chicken (think chicken picata without the picata sauce) and pasta. Absolutely delicious.

The day ended a bit early since I hadn't slept well the entire week, the facial was entirely too relaxing and I had been up since before 5am. But what a completely satisfiying day. I loved every moment of it - and it still continues...

Split Sessions

This week I tried Kelly Coffey-Meyer's Split Sessions workout DVD again. I still love it. I did it four times this week. This workout is broken into two workouts (each about 30 minutes). You can see a preview here.

The first workout is upper body. It is really good. You move fairly quickly through the moves so it also raises your heart rate a bit. She has you work everything in a push/pull format - meaning you work the back then the front or the front then the back. You will use a step bench in an incline poisition. You will also use two to three sets of dumbbells - one heavy (I used 15 lbs) and one medium (I used 12 lbs) and one lighter (I  used 10 lbs (this was for shoulder work)). I find this workout efficient and fun.

The second workout is for the lower body. In this workout you only use one set of dumbbells and a resistance band tied in a loop. The resistance band work is hard. You can feel every muscle in your outter hips and thighs. You can even feel the glutes and inner thighs as you move through each set. The great thing about a resistance band that you tie yourself? You can adjust the resistance by how small the loop is. It's great. After the resistance band segement you move into weighted leg work. She has you do many squats and lunges and some are performed with weights. Again a very time efficient, effective workout. The moves are sequenced well and you will move quickly through the series, so your heart rate will raise a bit.

In both programs she has you do each set twice and she alters the repititon (rep) count on almost each exercise.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Running - Daily Mile

Today, I decided I would start tracking my runs. So, I joined Daily Mile. It will be a new experience for me since I tend to be on the shy side and don't really express myself in terms of sharing things with the 'world'. However, since I also decided to maintain a blog dedicated to me and what I do, I thought what the heck, I'll give this Daily Mile thing a go too.

I started running again, after a 10 year hiatis, back at the end of May 2011 in order to prepare for a 10K in July. I decided on a 10K for a couple of reasons: 1) It would help raise money for the North Memorial Cancer Center and 2) It was relatively cheap ($20 for 6 miles and 100% of the proceeds went to the Cancer Center) - a great deal in my book.

So, I set out trying to find a decent training application for my ipod touch. I finally stumbled upon Runner's World Smart Coach. It was very helpful. I enjoyed how easy the program was to use and the training schedule. I felt fairly confident the day of the race. However, I finished slower than I had wanted and walked waaay more than I had expected. All that said, it was a good time.

Here's to running.

Slow or just beginning?

Have you ever read something online just becaue the title sounded intriguing then 20 some odd minutes later realized you read every post associated with the initial question?

Happens to me all the time. No wonder I am always at a loss as to where the time went.

This morning was no different. I was checking my email when I came across and email from Active.com and the article titled "Anyone as slow as me?" Active.com is a website dedicated to runners - they sponsor different races and activities, they give advice on running and they have a forum for people to post questions and the like.

The article title intrigued me simply because I often feel that there isn't a runner out there as slow as I am. Everyone I know is faster (even my 70-something uncle.) So, with my curiosity piqued I began reading. It was entertaining. In the original post (found here) the person indicates that she must be the slowest penguin on earth and asks if anyone is as slow as she is and if she should be worried about her time since she really just began running. The following comments are encouraging and fun.

There were a couple of quotes that I really liked. Here they are:

"Excruciatingly Slow Finish beats Did Not Finish, which beats Did Not Start." posted by DawnHMK
"Dear God, Please let there be someone behind me to read this." also posted by DawnHMK
and "I love when the podcasts say "if you get tired don't stop running just slow down your pace".....ummm, if I slowed down anymore I would be walking."  - posted by 1974mom

I really liked these quotes because I can so relate. They made me smile and that is always a great way to start the day.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Oxygen Women's Fitness | Training | Tone Your Triceps

I am always looking for effective, yet concise, exercises to tone my upper body - especially those troublesome triceps. I don't have a gym membership so anything I can do at home is a plus.

I know that push-ups are one of the absolute best exercises to tone the entire body, but one can only do so many before she get bored/tired of the exercise (even with all the variations). And who wants to do endless tricep dips?

So, when I was perusing the new Oxygen Magazine website, I was excited to see the following article...

Oxygen Women's Fitness Training Tone Your Triceps

Everything looked completely do-able at home. I would make some minor variations to the exercises since I don't really have the same equipment. I do however have a step bench that I routinely use as a weight bench, so I would use that for the close grip push-up (maybe even do those flat on the floor).

I also do not have a cable machine, but I do have resistance bands and a convenient adpater (a loop) that I place at the top of a door jamb and close the door. This would simulate the same moves. I would probably have to choke up on the bands to get enough resistance, but it would get the job done.

The third exercise is a seated overhead dumbbell extension. This is a move I use frequently. I will sometimes double up the weights in my hand to give me more resistance (since I have only so many dumbbells and only so much room to store them). I have even been known to use a 'stretchy-band' to give resistance.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

I can't believe it

I can't believe how long it's been since I posted anything on this blog!

So much for my writing and reviewing of exercise videos (and I have done quite a few).

I was so excited when I began this venture and now I am having a hard time reconciling the difference between my excitement when I began and my utter disinterest over the last few months. So many things have happened, so many things I could have shared.

Oh, well. I guess it's time to get back on the ol' horse and give this a try again.

I have been doing some contemplating on whether or not this should be a separate blog, but as of right now, it still is. That may or may not change as I become more involved with my own life (blogging, that is).