Fall

Today is the first day of my favorite season...Fall. I love how the leaves change color, the crisp cool days with the sun shining down on my face. Homemade hot apple cider brewing on the stove, caramel apples, Halloween. What season could be better!?

Ok so I also love the Winter, but not as much as Fall. Every year on the first day of this glorious season, we pack up a blanket and some food, and go out for a picnic. This year, however, we will not be doing this due to all the cow work that has to be done.

Also, we did not grow any pumpkins this year, so I am desperatley searching for a pumpkin patch nearby to pick them.

I hope that even though we did not have our annual Fall picnic on the first day, perhaps we can next month when things calm down a bit.

Happy Fall everyone!!

Losing the Baby Weight

Before I became pregnant, I was a fitness fanatic. Okay, maybe not fanatic. But I ate healthy and worked out regularly. Even during my pregnancy I stayed active and ate correctly, not gaining more than the recommended 28 pounds.

I knew that pregnancy causes your body to change, however, what was failed to be mentioned or read was how difficult it was going to be to get back to my pre-pregnancy size. Half my old shirts won't button over my waist any my old jeans do not go up past my thighs.

Just finding the time to exercise is a challenge; and don't even get me started on the meals (or lack of) that I now find myself consuming.

Example 1: at my 6 week postpartum appointment, my doctor mentioned how thin I was getting, especially in my face. I told her I was on the "new mom diet," I don't eat, I just look at my food.

Example 2: Getting tired of the way I look, I made a goal for yesterday. Drink two bottles of water and take a walk. The result, one bottle of water.

I have decided that what I really need to do is sign up for a marathon 6+ months from now. This will force me to get back on track with my old healthy lifestyle.

Now the question is, what to do with Logan while trying to accomplish all this. I have a jogging stroller and have tried on several occasions to go for a walk here with him. However after passing the first cattle guard (about 10 feet from my front door) he is already fussing and crying.

I love hiking and have always dreamed of a back country backpacking trip through Europe, Alaska, Tibet, wherever. Of course, none of this can be done until Logan is potty trained (packing dirty diapers around is not my idea of a pleasant trip.) However, day to two day hikes can be manageable. In fact we are in the middle of planning a family hiking trip for our wedding anniversary this year.

At least the hiking will get me out on the trail and moving more. Chasing Logan around and walking to the office and back just isn't cutting it.

I know that with a lot of hard work and making the time for better habits, I will eventually fit back into my favorite pair of old jeans. Until then, I will make goals and work at achieving them more and more each day. I will remind myself that this new body, though I hate it, is the result of someone pretty special.

No Rest For the Wicked

I was thinking about this phrase a few days ago. The phrase originated from the book of Isaiah verses 48:22 and 57:20-21.

48:22 "'There is no peace,' says the Lord, 'for the wicked.'"

57:20 "'But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.'"

57:21 "'There is no peace,' saith my God, to the wicked.'"

Basically, this phrase says that the wicked will be tormented. However, we use this phrase for many things these days. In college, my boss used this phrase when I pulled a 9 hour shift with no lunch or breaks.

Others have used it towards me when I was working two jobs, going to college, and planning my wedding. Come to think of it, I have heard this phrase quite a bit.

However, I was thinking of this phrase more in the sense of a Mom or Dad. I certainly feel stretched thin most of the time. For some unknown reason society and/or other family members think that just because you are a Mom (or for some Dads) it is your responsibility to maintain the household, and everything that goes on in it.

It is the Mom's responsibility to take care of everyone in the family, be it cooking, cleaning, taking care of the children, or in my case along with all the mentioned above, also help bring in money to pay bills and try to live a comfortable life. My question is, with Mom taking care of everyone and everything else around, who is taking care of her? I think most people look beyond Mom and her well being and more towards how she is running the world around her.

I joke with my husband that with everything I am expected to take responsibility for, maintain, and do, I will eventually have to be put away into a padded room. Though I say this in a teasing manner, sometimes that padded room looks tempting just to have a break from it all.

This is the life I have been given and I am grateful and appreciative of it. But, would it kill anybody to give Mom just a little break once in a while?

Getting Back on Schedule

I have been so busy these past two weeks that I haven't had much time to write. I decided that I wanted to get everything done in the office. So I made a list of what needed to be done and when I wanted it done by. I only have three things left, assuming of course, that no emergency projects get e-mailed my way.

Cattle are being worked everyday until October; Friday we were given the afternoon off so that we could go to the fair. Basically, it was the only day for the rest of the month that we would have the ability to leave the ranch for a while.

The fair was a nice change of pace. We mainly go to look at the animals and eat fair food. Logan, being as little as he is, was not able to go into Old McDonald's farm, but that is something to look forward to next year.

I had always wished that I was involved in FFA. The thought of raising a pig, goat, lamb, or any other animal and showing it at the fair always intrigued me. A ribbon, I never cared what color, placed upon my animal and/or exhibit...

Though I never did this, Logan has a chance if he wants, and that is something that I can be involved in with him. However, I do not want to be one of those parents who pushes their unsuccessful dreams upon their child. So if this is something he does not want to do, then I will accept it and support whatever it is that he chooses.

Kids - An Inspiration

Ever notice how determined kids are? They just won't give up. It does not matter if they are learning to crawl, walk, or wanting that piece of candy in the grocery store check out line.

They truly are an inspiration. As we get older the words "I can't" seem to come out of our mouths a bit more. Why is that?

One of my favorite quotes comes from the movie"Batman Begins":

"Why do we fall? So we can learn to pick ourselves up."

I watched Logan as he was learning to crawl. He would move his feet, but not his hands and of course fall over. Over and over I would watch him keep trying. Of course now that he has mastered the crawling bit, he is all over the place. He now grabs things and pulls himself up into a standing postion. Next, he'll be trying to walk and while getting a grasp on the whole balance thing, he'll keep falling again and again. Only to one day, be running around the house and outside.

To some, this is just a step in life. If we didn't keep trying while we were kids, we would never have gotten anywhere. But as I watched, I thought of all the times I gave up and said those two terrible words, "I can't." And I made up my mind to keep a conscious effort to stop saying "I can't" and start doing. Stop talking about things and, instead start making them happen.

Where do we, as teenagers and adults, lose our confidence? When do we stop trying and start giving up more?

Logan is one of my inspirations. I hope everyone out there can find an inspiration of their own.

A Day at the Zoo

Logan had his first trip to the zoo yesterday. With all the other kids and people running around and the animals in the midst of it all, he was pretty excited.

Some exhibits he didn't know to look past the fence. But once he saw the animals move, he would kick and squirm. Some animals, I don't think he knew what to think of them...

He took a break and ate pickles...

and rode a camel...

Logan took his throne as the King of Africa...

By the end of the day, we were all pretty exhausted...