Back in the Saddle...

And no...I don't mean the kind you put on a horse.

THIS is the saddle that I was on today....

 

Source

Yep, I joined the gym.  And today was my first real day working out in YEARS!

"Why?" do you ask, did I do a spin class when I haven't had a regular exercise routine since bearing my first child over 5 years ago?!  And the answer is...I'm stupid....and clearly overly ambitious...and had no idea what I was getting my out of shape self into!  No idea..

Absolutely NO IDEA!!!

I've never done spinning before.  I've heard it's great for you, and I've seen it on TV or in a movie, but I had never tried it til today.  I was curious.  It was HARD!

But I did it.  I did the whole excruciating hour...dripping pools of sweat onto the floor below with my legs screaming horrible things at me for letting them "take a break" from the gym for 5 years.  My pride was not gonna let my fat ass hop off that saddle and truck out of the room past the amazing arms, and legs, and abs of the rest of the class.  No sirree.  So I stared at the skinny ripped up girl tearing it up on the bike in front of me and kept telling myself it'd be possible for me to one day look like her with enough spinning classes too.  Probably not....but it helped me through.

I'm endeavoring to get my tookis in shape this fall.  I've been out of an exercise routine for ages, and while I'm not sedentary (since I regularly walk and ride bikes with my kids,)  I haven't pushed myself in forever...and I'm starting to feel it.  And I don't like that feeling.  So I joined the gym this week...climbed back in the saddle.

Time to shed those saddlebags and feel good again!  Nothing like taking the bull by the horns.

Here's to hoping that I can walk tomorrow though!

Blogging from the Bush: Letters from a Sailor

I have a confession.  I haven't posted the letter from my Navy Sailor brother yet because I've been hemming and hawing over if the total blunt truth straight from the mouth of a semi-salty sailor would put you all over the edge with me.

I've sent the letter to a couple of friends to gauge their reactions and we all agree it's completely and harshly stereotypical of sailors, females on board, and human behaviors in general.  The letter contains a lot of truths, some hilarious exaggerations, some offensive generalizations, and a dose of real life on an aircraft carrier for months on end.  That being said....here it is.  If you hate it, don't hate me.  If you love it, send my brother a carepackage.  If you think his letter is offensive but still appreciate the fact that he's out there on a boat for months away from friends and family, send him a letter?  A nice one?! :-)

A few things you should know:  My brother calls me Gogie, I call him Buds.  He is a great and decent guy with a fantastic sense of humor.  I love him to death and if you say anything mean about him, well...do it elsewhere.  This is my blog and I'll not tolerate anyone hating on my family.  Remember my post the other day?! He wrote this letter June 14th...I've been sitting on it that long.  That being said...here you go. 

Hey Gogie,

Sorry it’s been a while, but with all the port visits recently it’s been difficult to sit down for more than a minute or two and write.

So we left Italy and are finally headed out to our area of responsibility, so no more port calls for a while I don’t think.  The entirety of deployment is looming pretty large right now.  We’ve not done very much and have so much left until we can return.  Some people count down the days, but that doesn’t help me a bit.  I like to just kind of zone out so that when I do think about it there’s more chance for a pleasant surprise of a week having gone by without noticing it…Or something along those lines. 

Having been a month out, a lot of guys are starting to get what we refer to as “boat goggles”.  Kind of like beer goggles, but longer lasting and infinitely more dangerous.  The females on board that aren’t worth a second glance are starting to look PRET-TY good.  

      “Whateva bro, I think that snaggletooth is kinda distinguishin’ like.”  

Yeah, that stuff is starting to pop up in conversations, and although it’s not very severe right now, well…5 months from now its gonna be really, really, REALLY bad.  

“Wow!  That chick is pretty hairy but she’s got a killer body!”  “Yeah, once you get past that and her hunchback she’s not bad.  And those festering sores around her mouth.  And her brutish Neanderthal brow. But yeah you should totally go for it!”

I’m not looking forward to that.  But once we do get back to the states the real women are all smoking hot.  It’s an unexpected silver lining.

A pretty interesting phenomenon I see in port is that even though we’re in some pretty awesome and exotic ports, I still see people going out and eating at McDonald’s or Pizza Hut or something along those lines.  I’m kinda embarrassed, actually.  There’s a lack of creativity I guess.

Fortunately tonight my shop doesn’t have much work to do.  We are waiting for another shop to test run a jet before we re-install the motor we removed so they could replace their equipment.  And then once we re-install the engine we have to run it up again to Op check that.  And there are a lot of little tasks to do, too, like corrosion prevention measures, documenting training, cleaning out toolboxes, and finding a working toilet, etc.  

Alright sis, I’ll write some more later,

Love you,

Buds

So, there you have it.  I'll have him get a few others to send in some letters as well and keep up the original "Blogging from the Bush" plan of highlighting a different sailor every few weeks.  So for the next couple of weeks I'll post my brother's address on the bottom of each post so that you can send letters, carepackages, etc to him.  I sent him a package today with 2 loaves of vacuum sealed banana bread, a pkg of new boxers, a funny tshirt, some candy, some beef jerky, and a few other odds and ends.  Thanks for supporting our military...this coming holiday weekend wouldn't be celebrated if it wasn't for our military!  So show some love and send a sailor a package!

 Send a Sailor some love:

AD3 Lane, Landon

VFA-15
Unit 60143
                                                      FPO AE 09504-6201

Standard shipping rates apply (meaning, it costs the same to ship to them as any normal letter)

Glamping....I Think I've Been All Wrong...

Just last night I learned a new word...

Glamping. 

And not only did I learn the word, but now I want to do the thing.

When I was a kid my parents took us 3 different times "Out West" in an RV to tour around states we'd never been to and camp in national parks along the way.  We went to places like Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, South Dakota, and Montana.  And when we toured around, we rolled Winnebago style.

Image Source

This one above might seriously have been the exact one we had a couple of times.  

The Minnie Winnie.  

My sister and I used to sleep in that part over the driver's cab, and it was fun to ride up there even though we weren't allowed to do it very often.  I have good memories in the Minnie Winnies...good times...good times.

My mom always said tent camping wasn't really her thing...and more than that I'm not sure it was my dad's thing either.

I like it though, and so does my Hubs.  Tid Bit has done it a couple of times and we're gonna camp in Montana in a couple of weeks with some friends with both of our kids and their 3 kids as well.  Tent camping...5 kids under age 7...good times....I think....maybe...hopefully.  I am confident though that we will not be glamping.

I've realized today with this new addition to my vocabulary that apparently I've been doing it wrong all along, because there's nothing about "Glamping" that I don't think I'd like.  No...scratch that...that I don't think I'd LOVE!

Glamping = Glam + Camping

Allow me to show you what I've run across....glamping goodness to be sure.

Image Source

Image Source

Image Source

Image Source

Image Source

Vintage Cottage Camper

Image Source

Image Source

Image Source

Image Source

Yes...I think I'd like glamping.  It looks so wonderful that I bet bugs don't even come in your tent when you Glamp.  I bet coffee serves itself to you in bed when you Glamp.  I bet you sleep well and don't have a sore neck when you Glamp.  And I'm sure that I'm now just coming up with new reasons to say the word....Glamp.  Do you think if you've already done it before then you've "glumped" or just "glamped?"  Either way...I've not done it at all.  But I will...even if it's in my back yard...

I will go glamping.

So now I have to ask you all...do you camp or glamp?  And if you do it with kids then show me some comment love and give me some tips on how to make it as fun and painless as possible with a 5 year old and a 16 month old?!  I think though that "kids" and "glamping" may not be allowed in the same sentence....for sure one likely interferes with the other.

By the way, my new favorite thing might just be Pinterest.  You really must check out Pinterest.  And you can check me out on Pinterest HERE. Pinterest is a place where basically you can create boards of loads of your favorite things with links to where they came from.  So for say recipes, you "pin" the picture and it links to the recipe, crafts...pin a picture and it links to the tutorial.  It's fabulous, but you have to be invited to do it.  So if you want to be invited, send me an email with your name and email  address to LifeforDessert dot gmail dot com and I'll send you an invite.  You will love it.  It's where I found and compiled all of the above glamping.

Shopping with Kids...Adventures into Insanity.

Oh my words friends, I'm about to pull out my hair today!  (And after a horrible bangs cutting job the other day, I'm not sure I can afford to do my head anymore disservice.)

We're taking a family trip to Montana in a few weeks and I am super excited about it!  I love the Southeast that we call home, but there's something about sharp looking snowcapped mountains jutting out of the ground that just gets me every time.  My aunt has a house about 20 minutes outside of the west entrance of Glacier National Park and I'm getting absolutely giddy about this trip.  Nevermind the lap child on the plane from here to there, nevermind all the gear we'll be toting along with us...I'm just excited for the adventure! (And with 2 small kids, undoubtedly it's adventure we'll get!)

Here's a picture taken about 15 minutes from my aunt's house at Lake McDonald back in January.

Oh my words...seriously, unbelievable!

So today, I spent over an hour calling around town to try to find a decent pair of hiking shoes for Tid Bit and something more warm than sandals for Little Bit as well.  I don't want tennis shoes that I have to lace up, but I have to take something in addition to the Keen Newport H2 sandals that you already know I love.  I called about 4 different outdoor stores around here and finally found one pair of shoes in Tid Bit's size 13 toddler (and they were on sale...SCORE!)  And wouldn't you know, they're Keen brand too.  Don't know why I'm surprised.

Keen Kids Targhee

They are awesome, and he about drove me nuts running around the outdoor store like a wild gypsy child to show me how amazing they were.  Keen should seriously be offering a giveaway for me on this site as many kudos as I give them...maybe I'll look into it!  Seriously, now that I just thought of that, I'm gonna call Keen Footwear right this second to ask.  I'll let you know...cross your fingers!  They are awesome!

So then I was off to another store that told me over the phone they could order Little Bit a pair of Keen trail shoes in a tiny toddler size 5.  Oh my words, I'm not the person that buys hiking boots for a little bitty person to wear just for the looks of it (and generally I think they look hideous,) but these are AMAZINGLY cute and perfectly rugged enough for toddling along the Montana trails.  I can't wait to see how stinking cute these look on him.

Keen Kids Alamosa

But the part that made me want to pull out my hair was when I had to find a good pair of hiking shoes.  I have an old pair of Vasque boots that just aren't as comfy as they were 10 years ago, and I have a sturdy pair of Montrail shoes we got a few years back, but they've hurt my feet since we got them.  I wasn't about to go to Montana for 10 days and not have comfy footwear.  So I tried on about 8 different brands and a dozen or more shoes, and shock of all shocks, I ended up with the grown up version of Tid Bit's shoes.  So comfy and they'll keep my feet dry too!

Let me tell you though, I seriously broke a sweat trying on shoes and chasing 2 kids around an outdoor store.  I was pulling them out of clothing racks, and stuffing crackers and lollipops in their faces just so I could find what I needed.  It was a reminder of why I buy 6 colors of the same Old Navy tshirt and 3 pairs of the same Joe's jeans.  Shopping with kids is a pain in the tootsie!!  Fortunately I did find what I needed, but at the checkout I told the salesman that while it wasn't a painless process (for him or me,) I was pleased with the end result!  So thank you to Half Moon Outfitters and Appalachian Outfitters in Greenville, SC for tolerating the chaos I brought with me today...and still managing to sell me something awesome!

Happy Friday! 

Ps. I'm planning something really fun to celebrate Memorial Day and to honor our soldiers, so stay tuned for that coming up too!

Living on the Edge...

Tonight I did something that made me think to myself...

"Logan, you are living really dangerously on this one."

I took a shower during a thunderstorm.  

source: NY Times

I know, living on the edge right?  It had to be done though.  It's been sticky and muggy here in the Southeast and I hadn't washed my hair in 2 days (which is a long time now that it's back to it's normal brunette color...as a blonde I could go almost a week without washing.  Probably because my hair then was holding on for dear life to any oils that I'd stripped right out of it with the blonde-making process.  Anyhow, I digress.)

So I showered ridiculously fast tonight.  I stood under the water only to get wet and to rinse my hair, and with each thunder crack, I realized that I jumped to the end of the tub to get out of the way of the water...because after all, it's through the water that the lightening is rumored to come, and then my poor eyeballs (and my whole self really) would be fried to a crisp if I didn't move.

You don't have to tell me...I know how ridiculous I am. I know.

But then I realized that I'm even more ridiculous than I'd thought.  About the third time I leapt from the stream into the safety of the cold, waterless air, I realized that if I wasn't dead then, I'd probably made it through that particular lightening strike wherever it was.  After all, the thunder is the sound of lightening...and it comes AFTER the lightening strike, so my moving with each audible sound was utterly pointless.

And then I rinsed off and got out.  Still my total shower couldn't have lasted longer than perhaps 4 minutes (which is super fast for this gal who enjoys the quiet alone time in there.)  And I got to chuckling to myself as I toweled off....

Living dangerously sure does look different now than it did over a decade or more in the past.  Once upon a time in the not so long ago, it was stupid things...things that now I shake my head at myself for having done.  Riding a motorcycle without a helmet, getting a stupid tattoo in a stupid location (just for your enjoyment at my expense, I should tell you that what looked like a ladybug at 16 now looks more like a cockroach...Oh, and piercing your belly button...that too doesn't always turn out well years later...my hole never went away, so it looks like I now have a second smaller belly button above the regular one.  Let me tell you how awesome that is...UGH!  I digress again.)

"Life on the edge" was dumb stuff like walking on a railroad tressel over a ravine with no clue of the train schedule, or climbing a 200 ft water tower just to paint my name on the top.  Things that I did that sometimes I look back on and wonder what I was thinking, some things I stupidly did that caused baggage that I carried around for years, and some things that were just plain silly.  Some things I regret, and there are some things I don't.  And some things make me a wiser person and a parent, but that doesn't mean that I'd do all of them again.  (For the record...I would climb that water tower all over again though, even though I find now that I'm a little bit afraid of heights!)

But these days, it's funny what feels dangerous to me!  Maybe I've gone all vanilla or something, I don't know.  Or maybe, it's that I realize that the things that are important to me just aren't worth jeopardizing for something silly...or momentarily thrilling.  So now, I find myself living dangerously when I do things like shower during a thunderstorm, or ski outside of the wake, or cut my own bangs for the 5th time (which didn't go well either for me last week!)  And I think that's probably fine with me for now.  I'll still ride a motorcycle (WITH a helmet, and a jacket, and heavy boots), and I'd still walk down railroad tracks (AFTER checking a schedule), and I'd get another tattoo (WITH thought put into the item and location.)

Source: Brusters.com

So who knows...I'm definitely not rocky road, but maybe I'm not totally vanilla either... probably more of a fudge ripple... mostly vanilla with a little streak of surprise swirling through when you don't expect it.

Back That Thing Up!

Something ridiculous is going on with the Blogger platform right now, and as a result it appears that I may have lost the last couple of posts that I've done...and so now I'm just gonna say it....CRAP!

I wanted to link that pretty Beatrice dresser that I just showed you yesterday to Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday today, and now who knows where it is in cyberspace today.  Thanks Blogger...thanks a lot!  #MassiveFail

I'm a little fearful to write anything else today, but in the instance that you get the feed of my blog, can you copy and paste the last 2 posts for me into an email and send it to LifeforDessert at gmail dot com please?

I just learned an important blogging lesson today, and that is "Back that thing up!" Really though, I didn't know you had to back-up web content.  I'm an electronic dufus, it's a wonder I'm even getting these posts done at all!  I could probably use a little dose of this...

The Ideal Brain Tonic...for just 5 cents!

What a steal!  I promise, I'll get back to our regularly scheduled programming as soon as I can! :-)

The picture above was just something to throw in so you didn't feel completely cheated today!  Of course, that stellar family shot was taken by Kim Deloach Photography...I'm loyal to the core to that woman I tell you!

Can You Say "Taco" in Spanish? Cinco de Mayo....

Felicidades!  Hoy celebramos Cinco de Mayo!  A celebrar esta noche cocinare este....

My degree is in Spanish, so for a decoding of that tricky bit above it says " Congratulations!  Today we celebrate the Fifth of May! To celebrate tonight I will cook this...."

Ok, so the secret is out now.  I don't do much to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.  Did you know though that the Mexicans don't actually either?!  I found the following snippit on Wikipedia this morning because I wanted to remember the more specific history behind the celebration.
Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for "fifth of May") is a holiday held on May 5. It is celebrated nationwide in the United States and regionally in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla. The date is observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride, and to commemorate the cause of freedom and democracy during the first years of the American Civil War. In the state of Puebla, the date is observed to commemorate the Mexican army's unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín.

Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexico's Independence Day, the most important national patriotic holiday in Mexico, which occurs on September 16th. Cinco de Mayo is a holiday that is virtually ignored in Mexico.

I have to tell you too that last statement cracked me up.  And particularly in light of all the debate about immigration, illegal immigrants, benefits, etc.  I find it sort of funny that our nation as a whole totally embraces another reason to have a massive party yet is pretty psyched up to send the people we're supposedly celebrating with back to the country that supposedly celebrates this holiday.  Turns out, the country as a whole doesn't even celebrate the holiday!

I might not even make tacos now.  Ok, so I probably won't make tacos since I have leftover flank steak from last night.  I am going to give you that recipe tomorrow.  Today though, I'm also going to post some really cool tips for how to test the doneness of a steak.   I can't give you a great grilled steak recipe and then leave you to your knife at the grill to cut it open 5 times to see if it's done!  I'm thinking though that you ladies will need to pass this recipe along to your husbands and suggest they perhaps take it on to prepare you a Mother's Day Feast!

Happy 5th of May!  And I'll go ahead and wish you a happy 6th of May for tomorrow too.  The 6th of May happens to be my mother's birthday, and that is a holiday that my family at least celebrates here in the United States!