Live well

You are very correct, beth...Life is fragile and it goes by in a minute so you have to live well and live to the fullest. Today started out at 8 degrees and the snow had a thin layer of ice coating it, but the sun was shining so brightly and enticing me to go out for a fresh air walk! this is something I rarely do because of time, wild dogs, bob cats, and other dangers around my house. It was cold, but I did it! Beth and Gail, you have been telling me for years to workout with music and you are so right! I downloaded The Biggest Loser workout music into the iPod and it really kept me motivated and strong. Rick and i will be looking at registration for Disney on payday. I know I can do it!

Hope you all are warm and safe,

love mommy

Is it snow or Ice?

Key West looks really good right now!!!

We had an ice storm last night and on into this morning. School is closed and even Tinker AFB is closed. That is pretty rare, but the roads are horrific! The bright spot is that we still have our electric. last year during the ice storm in December, we were without electric for a week. We finally bought a monster generator, the day before the electric was turned on! At least we have it and plenty of gasoline to run the thing, but for now, we are warm and comfy. And of course, the kitties love having mommy home!

Thanks Beth for reminding me to warm up the mini-me! I didn't change her hair though...:)

Love you all,

mommy

Did you say...left at Hogshooter Creek???

We spent this very chilly, overcast day out on the road caching!

First, we checked on the ones that we had hidden. We have two in different cemeteries. Hey, even the dead like to see a new face every once in a while! You can learn some interesting things reading headstones, too.

We went into Chandler and points beyond to find a total of 9 caches. And 2 of them were First to Finds. The steps are the 148 steps that lead from the main street in Chandler to the high school. It's an historic place and has recently been renovated by the Boys Scouts of America. The cache was in that tree on the right of the pic.

The most interesting hide was the one in the buffalo's arse. Oh yes...you read correctly. This is in front of the "Welcome to Chandler" sign. Only in Oklahoma...:)

Uh...Maybe Next Year...

I know I haven't written in a week, but A.J. says that it is best to blog only once a week so it doesn't turn into "twittering". It's been a busy week but I accomplished a lot. I also have been maintaining my workout schedule, but have not lost any weight.

Rick and I went to the American Bicycle Association's BMX competition at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie. These are the pics. The kids flying over the jumps were impossible to capture clearly because they are going so fast! What really surprised me was all of the girls! YES EQUAL RIGHTS!!!! They were competing in all the age groups. And when I say ALL age groups...I mean just that. they have a 4 years and younger group all the way up to 55 years and over. There was one man who was 75 years old competing. It really looked like fun.

The weather here is very cold and I am glad for the treadmill. Hope everyone is doing well,

love,

mommy

I'm not Wile E. Coyote

We went out to the Draper Lake Bike Trails and this Road Runner was not going to be spooked from HIS home! He followed Rick down the trail and then ran along side me for a while. He wouldn't pose for a cute pic though, as he kept hiding behind the trees whenever I took out the camera. It was a pretty good run on a slightly chilly winter day. Felt good to get out though.

Tammy

I had forgotten to mention that Tammy, for those of you who do not know, used to be my teaching assistant many years ago. She got into running and we started going to races together. She is now a nurse working at a local hospital, but we still run together as much as we can. This is our pic taken at red Bud. She is the gorgeous red head on the left....

Let's Rock and Roll!

Haven't posted too much this week because I have been so busy at school. I met with my dissertation advisor on Thursday and found out that I need to defend the dissertation in about 6 weeks. That means I need to be quite diligent about analyzing data and writing it up.
-Workouts - uh....not so fantastic. I am getting them done, but I am not losing at all. I guess I need to be patient. I did a 4 mile long walk/run today in order to gear up for a 5 mile run that Tammy and I are doing on Valentine's Day. I am SO hoping I can do
a 10 minute mile, but I think that is pretty pie in the sky.
-I'm glad temps have risen in Chicago. Hope you are all well, warm, and happy.
love,
Mommy

It might snow here too!

But not as much as Katie is getting in Chicago! They are predicting the high temp tomorrow at -1 degree below 0. That's not even taking into account the wind chill. With that it will be any where from -20 to -35 degrees. That's below ZERO!!! I can't ever recall a winter that cold in New York. Good thing Kate is right on the lake so she can experience all of the wind up close and personal :)
We were complaining because the high tomorrow will be 20 degrees, but at least that's above 0.

Everything here is going well. Rick is ripping up things in the living room. He decided to move the fish tank to his new office, which led to removing the old gas burning units and putting in new sheet rock. He is also sanding off the paint and we are going to re-paint and change the decor. I am thinking of a horse theme for the living room. What do you think? Sort of a Mid-west type thing.

I have been working out, but haven't seen the scales drop any at all. Hopefully, the results are on the inside!
Hope you are all well,
mommy

Sunday IS a day of rest

This is probably one of the coolest caches I have ever seen! This guy took a lot of time and effort building an ammo can to look like an electrical shut off box!!!

Rick and I had such a busy weekend, but it all turned out well. I think the part I liked the best was the meeting of the Central Oklahoma Geo-Cachers. They were so friendly and Rick got a lot of good ideas. They even brought travel bugs for people to "find" while they were there.

The stuff at the Elks WASN'T fun, but since Rick is the President, it was necessary. I am very proud of my husband too. He got to see first hand and through sober eyes how ridiculous and even embarrassing some of his peers were after they had been drinking. He remained sober even though there was alcohol all around. It helped that we didn't spend the night there.

I was a total hog though, because I was bored and frustrated about being there, all I did was snack. I hope I didn't do too much damage to the weight progress. I did go to Target and bought a Yoga DVD and two relaxation CD's. More so than weight loss, I have been diligently trying to de-stress my life. I can tell even when I am driving that I have a lot more stress than I thought, so i am trying to be conscientious about that. I think Rick and I are going to take the bikes out to Draper today after the Giants kick the snot out of the Eagles.

Katie...are you staying warm? I saw all the pictures of Chicago...BBBBRRRRR!!!!

Love you all,

mommy

Elvis would be proud

Thursday afternoon was a gorgeous day! Not only was it Katie's birthday (and Elvis') but the temps were in the 70's. So Rick and I went out to the lake for a quick bike ride. He decided to go on the ACID KILLER LOOP FROM HELL and asked if I wanted to follow along. Uh...NO! I took the MY PRETTY PONY TRAIL. I had such a relaxing, wonderful ride and really got my heart rate up. Rick has bloody, scraped shins from falling and hitting the pedals! Sorry baby, I told you, I'll put neosporin on it!!!

Then the Elks district thing started last night. We decided that with all of the drinking and debauchery, it would be best if we did not get a hotel room there, but we did join the rest of the participating lodge members for dinner at Shorty Smalls. Okay, here is where I lost it. Deep fried, batter dipped mushrooms with a Chipolte Ranch sauce, a few bits of potato skins, Gulf Shrimp Quesadillas, and what else???? Oh yes, the 3,000 calorie Blackberry Cobbler...with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. SHOOT!!! I didn't even bother to weigh myself. (Sigh) I'll get back on the wagon today....

We are going to the Central Oklahoma Geo-Cachers meeting this afternoon. Have a great weekend everyone....

love,

mommy

Happy Birthday, Katie!!!

Kokomo

I first want to thank Beth and Gail for their words of encouragement about the workout. It really helps to know that there is a support system cheering you on! I did my workout this morning and the Nike+ is working fantastically, but I can't use it in the case. Gail, did you get yours yet? They are fantastic.
I also watched "The Biggest Loser" while I was working out. I know it's a cheesy show, but it really motivates me, and anything that helps, I'll try.
The temps this afternoon were in the mid-60's so I conned my poor husband into going for a quick 4 mile bicycle ride. He is coming down with something and feeling tired, but he went with me.
I found the Country dancing DVD that beth was talking about and may do that tonight. I will also try a little of the Tai Chi again. It does help with stress, even if I can't do it very well.
My classes at school have been pretty good. I have a huge Algebra class, but the kids are well behaved and seem pretty eager to learn. (Yes...eager and algebra in the same sentence!)
Rick has the district Elks meeting this weekend in OKC, BUT the most important event is a meeting from the central Oklahoma Geo-Cachers!!! We are going to go to that meeting. Then I can visit the Health Food Store. I know what you're thinking...Those guys have a WILD life!!!

Girl, put your records on

What a huge, busy day I had! It was the first day back with the kids and it was so busy and hectic, it actually went quick. First, my iPod worked great this morning. I had to reboot it yesterday and it was working fine today. It is such a blessing to workout with music. I don't know how I got along this long without it. I found out that Dixie Chicks are very motivating to walk to!
Last night I tried to do the Tai Chi again and it went much better. I think it's just going to take more practice to get it right, but it's so relaxing and enjoyable, I will work at it.
Did any of you catch Oprah? She is starting her "Live your Best life" series. Yesterday she talked about her weight gain. It really made me feel so much better about myself. I know I'm not alone.
Hope you all are well,
love,
mommy

Please Mister tally Man...

As you can see, I had close supervision for my shower this morning!

Well, back to the salt mines today. At least the students don't come back until tomorrow so it was a quiet, peaceful workday.

I had a little trouble with the iPod and the Nike+ again this morning. I hope I didn't mess with it, otherwise, it was a very good workout.

I am going to try the Tai Chi video again when Rick goes up to the Elks tonight and then I am going to start the analysis on my data so i can finish the dissertation by May.

I also received all of my papers for the class I am teaching. There is a meeting on Thursday of all the professors and then class starts on Thursday the 15th! I am so excited about it.

Hope you are all well,

love,

mommy

Tai Chi

Okay... so I tried the Tai Chi DVD and it seems as though I am as uncoordinated at that as I am at the dance video. I guess it takes practice. I am determined to keep at it though. I did have a good walk/run this morning.

Katie got to the airport at 8:00 A.M. the plane landed in Chicago at 1:00 P.M. She ran into two other girls from her dorm at the airport and was able to split a taxi back to Shoreland. I miss her so much, but we all had such an excellent Christmas and vacation, it makes for wonderful memories.

That's why I posted the pic of the gingerbread building! thank you all for an unforgettable Christmas.

A Must See!

It's 11:30 P.M. and Katie and I just returned from the movie. It is definitely a must see! First of all, Brad Pitt is gorgeous, Cate Blanchet is gorgeous and the story is luxurious! It has a strongly "Forest Gump" feel about it as the movie is segmented by major world events.

When we got to the theater, I was walking in and a woman yelled "Mrs. Sayman!" It was a parent of one of my students who graduated a few years ago. Then we were in the theater and it was packed. Two girls sat next to us and one looked over and yelled "Mercedes!" It was a girl from OSSM. She had even parked near us in the lot.

I had a wonderful night with Katie, and you should all catch Benjamin Buttons.

Finding Nemo

I didn't get a chance to exercise today, well, at least not formally. Our Koi pond was badly damaged in a hail storm a few months ago and we have had trouble keeping the water levels up and the fish alive. So today, Rick decided to drain it and scoop out the fish. We gave them to a man down the road who has a huge pond. I think they will be much happier in their new environment.
Since katie is leaving tomorrow morning, I will do a workout when we get back from the airport. She is happy that the temps in Chicago will be above the freezing point when she returns.

We are off to see The Curious Tale of Benjamin Button at the theater. I hope it's as good as everyone says.

Silly Squirrels

Now I see why all the suet for the birds is disappearing so quickly!

Get up on that Zydeco!

Wow! Beth and Gail you are so right...working out with music makes all the difference. I just did my first workout with the iPod and the Nike + and it was so good. I was really able to stay motivated and even able to run a little bit. I also signed up for the Nike + website. Hey...2 days going good...363 more to go! I feel strong and fit though...and very ready to run a half marathon.

Beth, I mailed away for a few of your anniversary presents, but i am hesitant to get you guys the Garmin. It seems as though Mike has worked out his iPhone pretty well for caching. We had also considered a new grill for you guys, but you tell me, what do you both need and want the most???

Resolve This!!!

The first day of the New Year has gotten off to a great start! Rick and i were too pooped after dinner to go to the dance, so we bought a couple of bottles of sparking grape juice and headed back home. We were out by 9:30 P.M. Oh, when old people party! Then we slept in this morning, which was needed. I think I am still recovering from the trip.

Rick has a few friends at work who are mountain bikers and they invited us on a run at Bluff Creek at lake Hefner. We went and it was incredible. The trail was composed of some intricate turns and twists and I took a big tumble off the bike. Luckily, I remembered to unclip my feet before the bike spilled me and I landed in a nice soft pile of leaves. We ended up going 6 miles. Pretty good for a resolution run!

The rest of the day will be recovering! Katie is home from her wild night in Bricktown.

Beth and Mike, I'm glad you had a good ride up to N.Y. and are having a good visit with your family.

love,
mommy