Christmas Giveaway Extended!

Hey everyone - just a super quick post to let you know about an awesome Christmas giveaway happening right now. (insert me juming up and down and clapping) Go check 5minutesformom to see the list of all the awesome prizes you can enter to win. And please let me know if you do so that I can be excited for you!! YAY!
Also, check the button on the sidebar about Under the Tree - what a great cause!

Thankful Thursday - on a Friday!

I'm feeling extremely thankful today and let me tell you what a wonderful feeling it is!
So let's get right to it, shall we?
This week I am thankful for:

1. My boss rescheduling our field work to the week after Thanksgiving! This way I get to spend some overdue quality time with my husband.
2. The sun which is shining brightly today - it has been absent this week so welcome back sun!
3. Starbuck's deal this week/weekend where you bogo holiday drinks - hello non-fat peppermint white chocolate mocha, no whip!
4. My aloe vera plant which is growing quite rapidly and probably will need re-potted soon!
5. Stash merrymint tea. Having a nice cuppa right now.
   
6. This blog I've been reading daily: A Girl and a Glue Gun This gal is crazy crafty and has SO many cool ideas. Really. You should check her out. Someday I hope I am half as crafty and productive!
7. Hungry Girl's egg mug recipes. I forgot how great these things were! I had the egg mug lorraine this morning. There are tons more on her site too if you just search for "egg mug"
8. Sweater weather. I big red puffy heart sweater weather!
9. Knitting books. I'm teaching myself to knit :) So far I've got the garter and stockinette stitches down. Going to learn ribs this weekend and then make something fun (I'll share if it is not too disastrous)
10. Candles - specifically the BBW Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin. I've been burning mine so often that I will need a new one soon! (Here that BBW, time to have a SALE on candles for me!)

What are you thankful for this week? Are you looking forward to Thanksgiving? Any special plans? I saw this facebook post about a tradition where everyone in the family writes what they are thankful for on the tablecloth in a fabric pen. What a great idea to start! Think of how neat it will be to read and add to it every year! I just might have to borrow that idea.

What keeps you motivated?

I've gotten a small reprieve from my traveling! I don't have to leave again until the week after Thanksgiving! That makes me feel a bit calmer since everyone is coming here to eat this year. I will not be cooking though, only supplying the room. But if you saw the state of my house right now, you would see why I need the extra time home to prepare. Plus my husband has decided that I am to go duck hunting with this this weekend. I will not be shooting anything or even carrying a gun. I'm just going for the experience and for the time he and I can share while doing something that he seems to really enjoy. And isn't that what marriage is all about? :)

So today I wanted to ask you all, what keeps you motivated? I was in the doctors office yesterday and it seemed like every magazine I picked up had some article on losing weight or getting healthy. All the food plans were different, but one thing that was the same was this: finding and keeping your motivation. One thing I notice about myself is that when I remember WHY I am choosing to eat better and exercise I am more likely to stick with it. After my wedding I lost about 40 pounds using Weight Watchers (both online and then in meetings). My starting motivation then was seeing myself as a marshmallow bride and wanting to look and feel better in my clothes. What a great feeling it is to succeed! Fast forward to now - I've gained about 25 pounds back. And I feel. like. crap. My clothes are clingy, my jeans are tight and giving me the feared muffin top. I'm losing my desire to go out in public for fear I might see someone I know and they will see how FAT I have gotten. There are no excuses for this. I've more than fallen off the wagon - I think the following wagon ran me over! That must be why I'm so swollen!
Anyway, the point I'm trying to make here is that there must be a "why" for anyone to commit to doing anything. And it doesn't always have to be one big reason, it can be a bunch of things, as long as it motivates you and keeps you going on your journey. My current motivators: my jeans are too small and I refuse to buy more, my muffin top has got to go, I feel horrible, and the extra weight I'm carrying might play a huge role in having (or being able to have) children.
So what keeps you motivated? Please share! It doesn't even have to pertain to weight - it could be what motivates you to get up in the morning!

Back to Myself

So how did I get out of my funk from last week you ask? Well, it was a combination of several things.
First and foremost, I prayed.
Second, I listened to my favorite music.
Third, I exercised last night.
And Last, but not least, I realized that even when I am unhappy with my situation, it will pass. It only makes it worse to sit and complain and sulk about it. So I have accepted my "fate" so to speak and will be traveling for work, pretty much this entire month. I will not let this throw a wrench in my happiness.

Staying Positive

Last week was rough. I was sick and then I had to do field work in 50 degree weather and pouring rain. I was exhausted and soaked to the bone. I worked really hard! I feel like I should be super happy with myself for all that effort and planning I did to make the job a successful one. Instead I am dwelling on the negatives - not just the weather but the attitudes and energies possessed by some of the people I had to be around. They REALLY affected me to my core. It has taken the entire weekend to really recover and I am still emotionally exhausted. Mostly because now I need to gear up for MORE work this week and a big trip next week. I'm not looking forward to it at all. And it really gets me down since this is the kind of work I've always thought I would enjoy. I LOVE being outdoors! I love tromping through creeks and mud. So why can't I shake these negative feelings? And how do I overcome them?

Feeling Icky

Posts will be kinda slow this week as I am feeling pretty yucky. I have an infection and the meds I'm taking interfere with another medicine I always take and it is making me and my tummy quite miserable. Plus I have a business trip this week. If I have time while I'm there I will post, but I just wanted to let you all know why I didn't in case I don't.