exercising, quotes, and celebrating the light side.

well.  i did it.
this week i broke out the mini trampoline.
three days i worked out.
and i learned things about myself.

my attitude towards working out has changed.
i have a weak bladder.
and matt maher is everything i need in a work out buddy!

and before i go any farther,
i'd like to say that there is reading discretion advised for this post.
if you are of the opposite sex,
i strongly advise you to discontinue reading. 
here.  (good by, and please come again another day.)

ok.  now that it's just us girls...
on tuesday i went digging for my one and only sports bra.
let's face it.  a mini trampoline... it was a must.
i finally found it.
next i located my tank top, shorts, my one pair of real sneakers,
and my ipod.
and of course, the trampoline itself.

when i was finally dressed in all my gear,
had hallie situated with school work,
had cheney playing with toys,
and was ready to exercise,
i felt as though i'd already had a mini workout.
or maybe not so mini.
anyway,

i turned the ipod on and got right to business.
first order of business...
marching.
i had the arm swing going and the knees going high.
i was feeling goooood.
soon the music was so motivating,
i found myself doing a nice little jog.
even had  nice form.
feeling gooooood!
and the next thing i knew,
i was so energized by my experience,
i just went to a full out jump.
my spirit was soaring with the worship music,
and i felt so groovy in all my work out gear,
(there is something about wearing workout clothes that makes one feel as if one is limitless.)
and i was so happy with the fact that i was actually exercising.
but as i jumped i had a nagging suspicion that i was peeing my pants.
i was a bit distracted by it, but i really wanted to plow through.
who wants to pause in their work out to change outfits because they had an accident?
not me. 
all of the sudden i wasn't feel nearly so groovy and cool.
i kept jumping and marching and what not,
and then pretty soon my suspicions were confirmed.
i was peeing my pants.

and by now, you are all have different responses -
if you are a male, and you did not heed the advice to stop reading,
you now have no idea whatsoever to do with the information you just read. 
don't blame me.  i warned you.
if you are a young girl,
you probably think it's funny, but sorta gross and weird.  (you just wait honey!!)
if you are a woman who has put your put your poor bladder through multiple pregnancies,
and if you've birthed multiple babies,
then you are laughing, maybe really really laughing,
because you know you would have done the same thing!! 
it's just that most people do not come right out and say
hey, guess what!? i peed in my pants when i exercised.
it really is not very glamorous.  i agree.
BUT...it is real.  isn't it?  and i am ok with you laughing.  because it is funny.

i managed to work out two more times this week without repeating my first experience.
i decided it is worth the inconvenience to stop for a short bathroom break. (smile.)

matt maher makes a fabulous workout companion!
it's so much more enjoyable to have him singing to me,
than to have that annoyingly perky workout girl telling me to do 5 more.

i realized that i have changed.  i like to exercise.  i used to hate it!
but, i used to run from pain.  all sorts of pain.
heart pain and physical pain.
last year i decided no more running. 
i embraced pain for the positive outcome.
my life has blossomed because of that decision.
could it possibly have carried over even in the physical sense?  interesting.
when "exercise people" would say things like "feel the burn!!" like it was positive,
i used to think, "you nut ball!  who wants to feel the burn?!"
but this week while i was pushing my body physically, i was feeling the burn and
was energized by it.
pain is progress!  it means i'm getting somewhere! 

i probably won't exercise every week forever.   it's a season.
i felt the need for self discipline.  for mental stimulation through physical exertion.
for toning my body for myself.  for alone time.  for a challenge. 

why do i feel the need to tone?
read quote below:
"it's rough to go through life with your contents looking
as if they settled during shipping! " ~milton berle

and now because i adore quotes,
i'm going to include a few about diet and exercise.

"you can't lose weight without exercise.
but i've got a philosophy about exercise.
i don't think you should punish your legs
for something your mouth did.
drag your lips around the block once or twice." ~gwen owen

"when i buy cookies i just eat four and throw the rest away.  but first i spray them with raid so i won't dig them  out of the garbage later.  be careful, though, because that raid really doesn't taste that bad." ~janette barber

this used to sooo be me:
"when i feel like exercising i just lie down until the feeling goes away."
~ erma bombeck

"i've been doing leg lifts faithfully for about fifteen years,
and the only thing that has gotten thinner is the carpet where
i have been doing the leg lifts."  ~rita rudner

always something fun to enjoy. 
a little laughter.
something light.  to get us through the heaviness.

i hope you have a wonderful weekend.
i'm going to enjoy a movie with my husband at a very cool little theater.
it has a coffee shop adjoining it.  so you can get your coffee and pastries and
take them with you into the movie.
how great!
and even greater,
is this:
i have a husband who happily watches, with me, movies set back in time.
we are going to see the king's speech.
the main character is played by collin firth.  (mr. darcy!)
i am excited!
for coffee.  for a movie.  for time away with clint.  for mr. carcy.  and all good things.

so.  ta ta for now.
don't forget to look for miracles.

"there are only two ways to live your life.
one is as though nothing is a miracle.
the other is as though everything is a miracle."
~albert einstein

celebrate the miracles.
they are there.
they are there indeed!

~a

a little something: no defeat today. none!

a little something: no defeat today. none!: "'May you delight yourself in God,your Father,in His love, and in His words.May you think of Him by day,and fall to sleep with Him stillon yo..."

no defeat today. none!

"May you delight yourself in God,

your Father,

in His love, and in His words.

May you think of Him by day,

and fall to sleep with Him still

on your mind and in your heart.

May you be like a strong and beautiful tree,

rooted deeply in the rich

and nutrient filled earth,

placed strategically by streams

of clear, calm,

life-giving waters.

In your season, may your produce and reap

an abundant harvest, beyond anything you

could dream or imagine!

May your leaves be broad,

and a most luscious green,

fluttering in the breezes of God's love.

May He prosper and multiply whatever

you do in His name!"

~a prayer of blessing from Pslam 1

today is a day of blessing!

no defeat today!

today we celebrate our placement!

our strength!

today we rejoice that we are not in a parched

and barren dessert...even if it may feel as if we are.

we have been planted strategically by the

life-giving waters.

we WILL NOT be thirsty!!!

even now, my roots, and your roots,

are deep. and they are drinking and pulling

life from the nutrients provided by the hand of GOD alone.

no striving today, children of God.

NONE!

feel the strength.

let it come over you.  allow it to penetrate

deep into your spirit.

you are an over comer!

we. are. overcomers.

our leaves are such a deep green.

they are broad and beautiful.

not dry and curled up at the edges as the enemy

would have us to believe.

indeed not!

they offer shade.  they are a sign of life

and health!  strength!

our trunks are not skinny and bent.

indeed not!

they are wide and strait.  so very strong!

they grow as though they know their purpose.

and so they do.

because it is the strength of the Lord Jesus Christ

within us, making these trees what they are.

strong!

and the fruit.  OH the fruit!!

it is everywhere! 

a crop unstoppable!

unimaginable.

unfathomable.

it comes forth and comes forth!

and still it continues to come forth!

our fruit surrounds us.

today is a day to claim the harvest!

to claim the joy of producing fruit unstoppable!

the enemy is powerless over this fruit!

the hand of God protects it.

protects US.

our tree is being sheltered.

its strength being preserved.

the promise remains...

we. will. prosper.

in the name of Jesus Christ!

claim His name!

hold tight to it.

it is your strength and your victory!

no defeat today,

children of the King!

none. at. all.

God, your Love is over.

it's underneath.

it's inside.

it's in between.

we are undone.

and we receive.

take our breath away,

Father.

in YOU alone we live.

we thrive.

we will drink of you deeply.

give us eyes to see our strength.

to understand that weakness is a lie of the enemy.

he hates that you make us untouchable.

he wants us to feel defeat.

But defeat is a lie!

weakness, for the believer, is a lie.

we claim truth!

YOU. ARE. TRUTH.

victory is the truth on which we stand today!

hold on to us tightly.

hem us in.

no defeat today!

NONE.

now GO!

and be strong!

walk in the strength you

possess.

waiting, watching, expecting, and golden brown banana muffins

it's a new week.
full of possibilities.
the possibility of me getting on my little trampoline.
the possibility of  productivity.
the possibility of something exciting happening.
God things.
that's what i want.
God things.

i want to SEE Him show up in my week.
all over the place.
and i want to praise Him.
FEEL Him.
Love Him even more than i do in this moment.

but i'm not going to go frantically searching for Him.
i'll just watch and wait, and be ready to receive.
ready to embrace.

and so, today, while i'm waiting and watching for Him,
i'll bake some banana muffins.
because i have some bananas that are just
over the hill,
but also because it's a "fairly" healthy way for my kids to think they are
being treated to dessert!!
on top of which, my three year old is totally in LOVE with
"nana muffins."

Blue's Banana Muffins
3 lg. bananas (mashed)
1 1/2 cups flour
1 c brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c butter
2 eggs
1/4 c sour cream
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
bake at 350 for about 15-20 min.
when they are done baking, they will be a lovely golden brown,
and spring back to the touch.  enjoy!  :)

have an amazing week.
expect great things.
great things, indeed!

~ann

a little something: homemade granola, fresh berries, aunts, and sadie ...

a little something: homemade granola, fresh berries, aunts, and sadie ...: "on monday i heard some funny, funny stuff. here's why. i was with my aunts. i have funny aunts. one of them is extra funny all by herse..."

homemade granola, fresh berries, aunts, and sadie weaver

on monday i heard some funny, funny stuff.
here's why.
i was with my aunts.
i have funny aunts.
one of them is extra funny all by herself.
the others are mostly funny when you put them together.
on monday they were all quilting at my mom's house.
she is making a quilt for a grandbaby,
and she called upon her three sisters to come and stitch.

if you've seen sarah plain and tall,
you know who "the treasures" are.
we call our aunts the treasures too.

they love to tell stories.  stories about when they were young,
but not only old stories.  ANY stories that are funny.
they specialize in funny stories.

so on monday, my aunt darlene told us this story about sadie weaver.
i thought it was so, so funny.
i mean for me, just that it is about sadie weaver makes it funny.
the story goes like this:

at my aunts church, during sharing time, the person who has something
to share stands up, takes the microphone, and introduces themselves as such:
hello, this is "so and so" ...and then says their thing.

well, one morning, this old lady named sadie weaver stood up, and blurted into the microphone,
"hello, this is sadie weaver calling."
and she never even batted an eye, but just kept right on sharing,
having no idea she just addressed the entire church like she had just called  her next door neighbor from her kitchen with some pressing news.
it would seem that the microphone gave sadie weaver a case of the nerves.
that's the way it is for some people. you put a microphone in front of them, and suddenly everything that sounded brilliant and smooth in their head,
comes out not nearly so smooth or brilliant.  (heehee.)

and aunt darlene said she has no idea what sadie weaver had to share because she couldn't stop laughing.
and it was in that moment, as i hooted along with aunt darlene,
that i knew, as sure as i was sitting there,
how i had turned out to be who i had turned out to be!! 
and i do not mind a bit to say that i am my aunt darlene.
she has learned to look for any opportunity to laugh.  and we love to be around her because of that. 
so, cheers to aunt darlene!
cheers to laughter!
and three cheers for sadie weaver!!

this week i made my homemade granola.
i make it for a while, and at first it tastes sooo good.
but after a month of granola, i don't know,
it sorta starts tasting like horse oats.
(not that i eat horse oats...i'm just guessing they are hard to chew and are kinda bland when eaten every day.
all i'm saying is, now and again, you can't beat a nice big bowl of lucky charms.)

but after not having homemade granola for months and months,
it tastes so good and healthy.  especially with berries.
i bought strawberries and blueberries to eat in it.
delish.

the next big thing is...
wait for it...
i'm thinking of working out again.
on my mini trampoline.
which, for some reason, my friend angel thinks is so so funny.
i never quite get that.
she's this big fitness expert, and a runner, and everything.
but mention my mini trampoline and she is in stitches. 
who knows.
maybe it's just the thought of me...who is so not a fitness expert,
trying to work out, that sends her into hysterics.
i actually looked for my dvd today.
you know?  the one with the annoying lady who works out in complete ease, and condescendingly talks to the person watching....ME...and says things like,
"you can do it!"  "you're doing great!"  "only 5 more!!"
she obviously knows nothing.
no one, watching me work out, would tell me i am doing great.
i look like i'm having convulsions.  
the only way 5 more sounds good to me at that point, is if i could kick her in her toned little behind 5 times.  (aaahhaaa.)  :)
however, i am feeling motivated to get some exercise in, so while the urge is here, at least in part, i think i should go for it.
i am trying to drag my cousin into this with me.
partly because misery loves company.
and partly because i think it would be great to laugh at someone else while i am jumping around like a moron.
any other takers?
give me a buzz.  i'll laugh at you too!!  (smile)

i'm going to start working at the timeless cafe in about two weeks.
i had an interview yesterday that went splendidly.
honestly, i am happy.
not super excited...
but content.  peaceful.
the last job opportunity that i had was a wonderful growing time for me.
i learned sooo much.  about life.  about myself.  about people.  about faith.  about humility.  about God.  and of course, about lattes. 
but that chapter ended in pain.
would i do it again?  of course. 
and do i feel it was of God.  most definitely.
but somehow, because i knew God had opened the door...
i went sailing in, blissfully unaware of the reality of pain.
my experience taught me that just because it is of God, does not mean
it will be pain free.  and i knew that...but now i know that. (does that make sense?)
and so, in some ways,
i feel like "here i go again."  following God.  and that is good.  but do i have the courage to really put my heart out there again?
and i will.
because it's who i am.
but this time there is a groundedness.  a sense of reality.
there will be opportunities.  there will be blessings.  there will be fun.
but i will not expect that just because God opened these doors to me,
no pain will lie behind them.  so i will look at this experience differently.
i will expect great things.  but i will not have preconceived ideas of what that greatness will look like.
because in our human perspective,
we miss so much.
what looks like failure to us, can look like complete victory to Him.
so i will walk on in.  trust.  hope. and be me.  in Him.
and the confidence that i have to do that is a priceless gift.

so, friend,
here's to walking through open doors!
here's to putting your heart out there!
here's to granola with berries!
here's to wonderful aunts who love you!

and if your phone rings,
and it's sadie weaver calling,
tell her i said "hi." (smile.)

happy weekend!
happy weekend, indeed!
~ann