Come Play In May - Write A Letter To Your Past Self

May 20, 1995

Dear Kyra,

I'm writing this letter to you on this very special day. I know you're rushing around, trying to get ready, so I'll be quick.

Have fun today. You look beautiful and happy. Don't be nervous. You two have many, many years together ahead of you. It won't always be easy, and yes, you'll do some stupid things, but you'll get through everything together. Always remember to kiss each other goodbye in the morning. Hug often, and say "I love you" frequently. You know it, but it's always nice to hear it said. Laugh together often. You are about to embark on a grand adventure with your best friend.

Love,

Kyra

P.S. He was right, chocolate cake was an excellent choice for the wedding cake. 

 

Fortune Cookie Friday

One of my food "addictions" is take-out Chinese food. Before The Aussie and I moved down from the NYC area, I told friends that I was going to miss our local Chinese food place. "Oh, but there's such good barbeque in Texas." Yeah, like that's a good comparison. (I rarely eat barbeque) For the first few years, the only Chinese restaurants we found were buffet style, with not many menu options. Occasionally we would stumble upon a halfway decent Chinese restaurant, but nothing very close. Fast forward to about a year and a half ago, and viola! A take-out Chinese restaurant opens up about a mile away from us. Yay for me! As much as I like cooking, some nights I really don't want to or have the time to. And to let you in on a little secret of mine, I collect fortune cookie fortunes.

This is a vase that's almost half full of fortunes. I tell you, I've been saving them for a looonnng time. I was throwing crap out cleaning up in my office the other day and I came across some fortunes that I brought with me from my last office in NYC. Wow. They've been hanging out, collecting dust, not socializing with the other fortunes. So I popped them in the the vase with the others. Then I realized, why don't I make the fortunes earn their keep? So, I decided that Fridays will now be "Fortune Cookie Friday." I will pull a fortune out at random and write a blog post about it.

Here goes....

Ooh. This is a good one for the inaugural FCF.

True friends. These may be friends that you've known for years and years. They may be people you haven't met in person yet.  They may be friends that you've gotten to know online through the Fitbloggin FB group. True friends will have lend you a shoulder to lean on when you're going through difficult times. True friends will have your back when you are struggling to get back on track, but won't hesitate to give you a kick in the ass when you need it. True friends will yell your name across a crowded room before they rush over to give you a hug. True friends are people who "get you." They're your Tribe. True friends can be you, too. So give yourself a hug and go be awesome. 'Cause there's no off switch on Awesome.

On missing #Fitbloggin and how real life takes over...

There's a lot of buzz going on this week on the interwebs about Fitbloggin. I remember hearing about it a couple of years ago from fellow fitness/health/weight loss friends. Timing wasn't good for me the first couple of conferences because of family events. Last year, though, timing was good. I saved my money, bought my earlybird ticket, and then put it out of my mind until the conference drew near. Then I started freaking out. I'm not an extrovert by any stretch of the imagination. If I'm comfortable with you and it's a small group, I'm ok. If I don't know many people and it's a large group, I'm going to latch on to familiar faces and stick to them like a barnacle. Whether they like it or not. Just ask Steve, Meegan and Tara, and Jack. Oh, no. It's you again.... sigh.

Much as I will miss seeing old friends I met at Fitbloggin 12, meeting new friends, hugging lots of friends, and posing for pictures while wearing a purple wig and pink feather boa, I will not be going to Fitbloggin 13. This year, my life has been turned upside down and taken turns in directions I never thought I'd be heading. (See my new blog page to see the first glimpse of what I've gotten myself in to.) I've also not been blogging very much these last several months, so I could scarcely justify needing to go, or the expense. Heck, after I got back last year I went and got myself a wordpress site. Have I blogged there? Once. Did I buy Wordpress for Dummies recently in the hopes of getting off my ass? Yup. Some day, when I'm not hauling brush, digging up stuff and pruning overgrown shrubs, I'll get back to it. In the meantime, I hope everyone has an amazing time at Fitbloggin 13. Tell Roni I say hi. Oh, and be sure to tell her "thank you." She works her ass off putting this together.

My Fitbloggin Memories

So, how do you process something like Fitbloggin? I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was looking forward to meeting a lot of twitter and facebook friends that I’ve made over the last few years.  I was also scared to the point of panic attacks, wondering if I should bother going. I am so not an extrovert. But, as the saying goes, nothing can happen if you don’t show up.

I shouldn't have worried. Hug #1: @FoodieMcBody As soon as I saw her, I squealed and ran to meet her. That first hug was so wonderful. Her warmth is contagious.

While I was standing in the hotel lobby, waiting for my turn to check in, I saw a familiar face walk in to the lobby, lugging her bags. Leave it to me to make a brilliant observation out loud and solidify my dork status, but I walked over to her and said “It’s Dubyawife!” Luckily she laughed. Hug #2 complete.

Up in the room, I decided to check twitter and see what was going on. OMG,  @Tidbits_Of_Tara posted a picture of herself in front of the Fitbloggin banner. Tara and Meegan were here!!!  I rushed down to the check in area and stalked tracked them down. It was so amazing to finally meet these two wonderful people in person. I squealed like a little girl when I hugged them. Hugging Tara and Meegan: Pure awesomesauce. Bit by bit, and hug by hug, I began to relax and feel less freaked out  more comfortable.  Sure, I was still having a lot of dorky, wallflower moments, but I was dealing with it.  Hugs from @FatgirlVsWorld: just as amazing as I'd heard they were. And, man, she should charge for her shoulder rubs.

I absolutely enjoyed meeting so many of my very early twitter friends, many of whom have transitioned in to Facebook friends. The best way to describe meeting the friends I’ve made online came up in a conversation with @KCLAnderson. She said it’s like “Oh, of course, it’s you.” She was so right. After a little while, you don't even think that you haven't actually met some of your friends in person before.When @Mizfitonline showed up: huge hugs and "Texas is in the house." So much laughter. More awesomesauce: meeting @SteveGrayFTW in person! Just as warm, fun, with as warped a senses of humor in person as he has online. (Cat, I'm a kitty cat...) And even though we didn't get a chance to have a wigs and wine party, I dearly loved meeting @MrsFatass and being able to Zumba (it's pronounced "zoomba") with her, @simplifyingsam (these girls got moves!) and 100 or so of our closest friends on her birthday.  Meeting my roomies @ItsMeVsMe and @ChristieO who I've stalked known through the Sisterhood, and @sweatismysanity was great. Very cool ladies that I am so thankful invited me to be a roommate.  I've learned that you can't cry and do jumping jacks at the same time, thanks to Thea. And she's right, she does kinda kick ass! Hanging out with @TJsTestKitchen, @JackSht, @SushiJammies, @IrishEyes1982, @bitchcakesny and so, so many others was beyond amazing.

I think Friday was the best day at Fitbloggin. You see, that's the day my girl @mendingjen arrived. I was hanging out, waiting for the lean beef session to start, when I hear “Kirsten!!!!” (my real name) I see Jen making her way through the tables and we gave each other the most amazing hugs. My heart was so full. She is one of my early twitter friends, and all of my stress leading up to Fitbloggin was worth it, just because I got to meet her and hug her in person. (I'm sorry I stood her up on Saturday night when it was time for her to leave. I think I did it subconsciously, because I didn't want her to leave, and I knew I'd be really ugly-crying.) Friday afternoon, Jen, Heather, and I decided to go for a walk. The weather was gorgeous, and we really needed to get outside. I don't have a lot of girlfriends in real life, so being able to just hang out, walk, have heartfelt talks with these two wonderful women, was so special. And, I can now say I've had a water ice. Pronounced "wah duh."

The memories I take away from Fitbloggin are more than just meeting wonderful people, taking part in some fantastic workouts, or just hanging  out. I take away the realization that no matter where you are on your journey or what your back story is, we are all the same. As @Mizfitonline recently blogged, at our very core, we are all the same.

You see, we are a cobbled together family. We have each others' backs. We're here for each other. So think about this when you see comments posted by unhappy people looking for attention (I won't link to the blog because I don't want to drive traffic to it). Do what you can to lift someone up, don't put them down. A heartfelt kind word can mean the difference when someone is having a bad day. 

I can finally share!

This weekend, The Aussie and I travelled to Tennessee for the wedding of Mary and Kepa, one of the most fun and inspiring couples in blogdom. We had a lovely time, the ceremony was sweet and fun, and we are so happy for them.

Now, some of you may know that I dabble in quilting. I haven't been doing it for years and years, but I find it enjoyable. Earlier this year I asked Mary what their favorite colors are, and she replied "purple and blue." I had decided that I wanted to make a quilt for them, and it would be in their favorite colors. Bit by bit, over the long, hot summer and fall, The Quilt came together. I was so excited as it grew, but I couldn't share on FB or twitter because Mary and Kepa might see the post! I took a class to learn how to use a longarm quilting machine at my local store, because I wanted to make the entire quilt, start to finish. This was quite an adventure, and both The Aussie and I fell in love with this quilt along the way. It made me smile just to look at it, and The Aussie said that it glowed, which was such an amazing compliment for him to make about The Quilt. The dogs, two of whom met Mary and Kepa last summer when they stayed with us on their cross country trip, were my faithful companions through the the entire process, from cutting to piecing to binding. (I must admit that, yes, there is dog hair and love sewn into the quilt, which should make Senor Kitty Snugglepuss feel right at home when the quilt arrives in New Zealand at the end of this week!) I hope they love this quilt as much as I loved making it, with happy thoughts sewn into it the entire time.

Today's Fortune Cookie

A true friend is someone who is there for you when they'd rather be anywhere else.

An addition to the family

Guess what I did on my lunch hour on Tuesday? I went to the local shelter to meet my new boy. My friend Dogblogger at Dog and God posted a video on FB Tuesday morning, asking for help for a dog that needed a home. I watched the video and started bawling. Yes, I am a mush, but that's beside the point. The point is, that he is a sweet, mellow boy who'd been picked up as a stray in town. Sweet Boy's time had run out, and he needed to be adopted that day. Was I looking for another dog, no. But I couldn't let him die, either. The video really got to me. I emailed The Aussie, asking what he thought about a third dog, one who desperately needed our help. His reply: "Oh boy...will call you soon." When I told him what the situation was, he said "Go, get him. Send me a picture." So I called the shelter, emailed my boss to say I needed to take an early lunch hour, and at noon I headed to the shelter. When I got there the receptionist said that someone was already meeting him. *stops in tracks* Now what? I sat and waited, prayed for the best for Sweet Boy and to not be selfish because of what I wanted. About 10 minutes go by and a young woman walks out of the meet and greet room and tells me that I can go in. I poke my head in and smile at him, said hello sweet boy, and plunked down on the floor. He sniffed, let me pet him, had some treats while Shelter Man Joe told me about Sweet Boy. If it wasn't for the fact that he already had a "sticks like glue" dog at home, he would have loved to adopt Sweet Boy for himself. I hung out with Sweet Boy for a while, and by the time I had to leave, he was lying on the floor next to me, leaning in to me while I rubbed his head and his ears. He was still a little cautious, but seemed content. I looked at Shelter Man Joe, smiled and said I wanted to adopt Sweet Boy. So one day, and a rather "important" vet visit later, Sweet Boy came home. :) And they all lived happily ever after.

The moral of this story? Please save a life. Adopt a shelter dog or cat.

Happy New Year and a 100th Post

100th post. How'd that happen? Well, since it's New Year's Day, I want to wish you all a wonderful New Year. Hopefully you're well hydrated and don't have too much of a hangover this morning.

I received a wonderful calendar from the lovely Healthy Loser Gal (Thank you!!) for Christmas. This morning I jotted down my goals and my training plan in this calendar for the Rock N Roll Half I'm running the end of March. It will hang out on my desk, gently nudging me each day and inspiring me to get moving in a way that a Google calendar reminder won't. It's kind of shocking, seeing my training plan written out, but I have to remind myself that I can do this, I have done this, and I will continue to do this.

I got outside for 3 miles this morning, some of it was a walk with the dogs, so the pace was rather eratic with all the stop, sniff, sniff some more, piddle, sniff... Overall, the 3 miles was done in 48 minutes. I've only run three times since White Rock, with 3.5 miles on Christmas Day in Virginia being the longest distance, so to say I'm rusty would be an understatement. Lol! Speaking of running on Christmas Day, when I got back from the run, The Aussie whispered to me that seeing me go running, especially since it was super cold and windy that day, kind of freaked my family out. I got a kick out of that, I have to admit. Almost as much as I got from the look on The Aussie's face when he opened up a present from me. It was a key ring weather station from National Geographic. He looked at it, looked at me, and with a shocked look on his face, because he hadn't figured out what it was yet, said "Is this for running??" Major LOL on that one! Sweetie, I love you, but I know you aren't ready to get off the couch yet. I'll be waiting for you when you are, though. :)

Well, I'm off to go do some New Year's pantry organizing. Yes, I know you wish you were me. Have an awesome weekend and do something to inspire you and get you moving! ...Now, where's my Rick Astley CD? He's great to clean to...

Saying goodbye to 2010

Around the world, people tonight are celebrating the end of 2010 and the beginning of 2011. I've often gotten rather melancholy on New Year's Eve. It's been a really good year, and I'm sad to see it go.

In January, The Aussie and I went on a cruise and I met my some fantastic twitter friends, @FabShanneyPants, @FitInMyHeart and @JeepJenn. I had a great time on the cruise and am so glad that I had the opportunity to meet these amazing women.

February came in with some unexpected weather for Texas. 8 degrees in DFW. Really? The end of that month though, we broke ground on the community garden. Seeing this project move from a sermon at church, planning meetings (lots and lots of planning meetings), to having an actual garden has been amazing. To date, we've donated over 400 pounds of produce to a local food bank. I also got to meet to cool twitter friends, @Pinksugacupcake and @MsAnneK, when they stopped in Dallas on their cross country road trip.

March. Hmm. Other than running up to the garden to cover the tomato plants every time we had a freeze warning, I don't know what happened in March.

April. Ha! April 1st was the day I started C25K. My ambition was to run a 5K before my birthday. I never did make it through the program, but I'm still running.

May. Boy, the weather go hot quickly in May. Any traning was done when the sun wasn't up. On May 22nd I ran in the Run For The Retrievers 5K and met @Nicci_NiftyEats too. We celebrated The Aussie's birthday and our anniversary in May too. :)

June. Had a birthday. Headed to NYC for a couple of days to hang out with my sister and mom and to meet up with everyone at the office. I rode the carousel in Central Park. This is a birthday tradition that dates back to my early years working in NYC. My sister and I also had fun time at dinner with my twitter friend @PassionMD and his girlfriend @ctreacy. So glad I was able to meet up with them.

July. This was a busy month! We had a visit from the cutest couple on twitter, @amerrylife and @gatekepa. We went on vacation to Florida! By the seat of my pants, I finally finished @FitInMyHeart's birthday present. Yeah, you're right. Her birthday was in April... We went to Sea World for the day and had a fantastic time with her and @QTHouseofBeauty and the kids. There was plenty of splashing by dolphins and rays! Oh. And I signed up for a half marathon.

August. Running.

September. Running.

October. Running. Did the Firefly Run 5K.

November. Running.

December. Woo Hoo! Completed my first half marathon in under 3 hours. Oh yeah. And I signed up for another. Road trip. Saw family, celebrated Christmas, ate lots, ran little, road trip home.

This has been a very cool year. Here's hoping for an amazing year to come.

I wish all of you a prosperous, healthy and joyous 2011.

Blessings,

Kyra

Stick a fork in me...

... I'm done. Not really, but this morning at 8:30 am it felt like it. Or, as people from the South would say to me "Bless your heart." Which is translated as "why on Earth is that crazy woman doing that, has she lost her mind?" What I did was complete week 5 of C25K this morning. 5 minute brisk walk and 20 minutes of running. It was slow running, but it was running, and I DID IT ALL!! 28 minutes and 15 seconds, 2.21 miles with an average pace of 12:42. I'm not ready to sign up for a half, but I'm going to start training like I am.

I'd also like to thank Shannon at SuperwomanSpirit for the Beautiful Blogger Award!

For this award I'm supposed to tell you 7 things about myself that you don't know about me. Here goes.

1. I am shy to the point of social anxiety and panic attacks when I have to go to parties or outings.

2. I spend way too much money on books, quilting supplies and beading stuff. (Shush up Karyn, you do too.)

3. The Aussie and I were engaged 4 months after we met. (We've been married 15 years)

4. When I was little I ran away. No idea why, but I did. I made it as far as the mailbox (about 25 feet). I was prepared though: I brought with me a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, a butter knife and a roll of toilet paper.

5. I like dogs more than I like many people.

6. I loathe eggplant.

7. Occasionally when I was little I'd get up early on Saturday mornings, swipe the open container of sour cream or the open can of tomato paste out of the refrigerator, grab a small spoon and sit behind the living room sofa and eat the sour cream or tomato paste. I'd then hide the empty container and spoon under the sofa.

I'd like to pass along this lovely award to some wonderful and inspiring bloggers. Tag, you're it:

Julia at JuliaGoulia

Jan at HealthyLoserGal

Jess at HalfOfJess

Go give someone a hug

This week we had a collective scare. One of our own, Shannon, had a crisis in her family that caused us all to stop, pray and send healing thoughts to her and her family. When I read that the test results were good and her darling son Reagan didn't have leukemia tears came to my eyes. I'm tearing up as I write this. I stopped my husband as he was headed to work yesterday morning to tell him the good news and he teared up too.

You never know when something bad can befall you, a loved one, a friend... Be good to one another. Tell your family that you love them. Give a friend in need a hug. You might not be able to be a blessing to the world, but you can start by being a blessing to a single person.

I Did It!!

Actually, we did it. It takes more than just me to get my butt to a 5K race at 7 in the morning. The Aussie, who is not a morning person by anyone's stretch of the imagination, was a sport. He said he'd go and offer support, and he certainly did! The weather was warm, humid and breezy. The sun kept peeking out, but, thankfully, it was in for most of the race. I couldn't imagin running a 5K in typical Dallas summer heat. It's still hot at 5am...

The race, Run For The Retrievers, was a benefit for DFWLabRescue. There were dogs everywhere. Talk about fantastic! Anyone who knows me, knows I love my dogs, and any dog rescue group should be commended Here's me and Nicci (@Nicci_NiftyEats). We met up and the registration pavillion shortly after 7am.

And we're off. That's me in the middle, behind the red shirts. The race announcer said that there were over 350 people registered for the event. I don't know if that was 5K as well as 1 mile fun run participants, but either way, for an innaugural race, it was a great turn out.

Lol! I'm smiling now... Remember, I've been sick since last Friday and haven't run a step all week.

Me crossing the finish line

My chip time was 41:02:70 and I came in 205th, placing 18th in my age group. Not too shabby for my first official 5K, and I did it before my 45th birthday! And it was great meeting Nicci in person. I love tweetups!

Me and Nicci after the race

And I would like to give a special shout out to "Alison." I didn't see her after the race, but she became my angel coach just before mile marker 1. I wouldn't have done as well without her support and pushing me to "keep going to the bridge" or "keep going to we get around the bend."

The Tale of Two Fishes

I found the coolest thing at Kroger this week: whole trout. There was a package of whole trout that was marked down (it had to be sold by the next day) hanging out in the fish section. I think I've only ever eaten trout once, and that was dog's years ago, somewhere between Perth and Cape Leeuwin. The Aussie and I and some of his old friends decided to drive down to Cape Leeuwin and the Margaret River area for the day. We stopped for lunch after the "climb of my life." I had read about the Gloucester Tree , the world's tallest fire-lookout tree, and knew I had to climb it. It was worth it, but I was sore for DAYS afterwards. Needless to say, I earned my lovely trout lunch that day.

So, where was I? Oh, look. A fish.

Luckily, they were dressed, so I just had to figure out what to do with them. I asked around, got a few ideas, and came up with a parsley, arugula, garlic, lemon stuffing. First things first. Off with their heads. And tails. Then I stuffed them with the herbs, garlic and lemon. I drizzled a little olive oil on them, sprinkled a bit of salt on them and let them hang out in the fish basket and other grill basket while the grill got hot. (NOTE: OIL YOUR GRILL BASKET TOO. I'm a newbie griller, so I didn't think it would stick that much. My bad.)

Bring the grill up to 350, clean the grill, then pop them on and put the lid back down. Set the timer for 7 minutes. Spend the 7 minutes amusing yourself by taking pictures of a dog who doesn't want her picture taken.

"Mom. Stop it. I don't WANT my picture taken."

After 7 minutes, flip them over and set the timer for another 7 minutes.

Spend the next 7 minutes finishing up your lemon butter sauce. Go back outside. Take picture of the sous-chef who's stuck inside.

"Hey. Is it ready yet?"

Take it off the grill, turn everything off, and head inside to serve out. Yum.

Be careful. It's hot! (Yes. I did slightly burn myself...)

See what I mean about it sticking? I don't eat fish skin anyway, but it would have looked prettier if the skin stayed on. I served with rice and roast asparagus, and drizzled the lemon butter sauce on top. Very delicious.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Say Goodbye To The Couch, Baby!

It's April 1st, and, no joke, I'm starting the C25K program today. My friends Julia @JewliaGoulia and Stephanie @mommas_crew were talking the other day on Twitter about wanting to do the C25K but were a bit nervous about starting it. I piped in that I'd be interested in doing it with them. We picked April 1 as the day to get going, and at last count, there are 17 of us starting today. If you want to join us, head over to Julia's blog and sign up. The more the merrier!

When, not if, I finish this, I'll be signing up to run a 5K somewhere nearby, and I'd love it if some Dallas area buddies want to sign up with me! Wish us luck and keep your fingers crossed that I don't sprain my ankle again.

Oh, and I'm looking to expand my playlist, so if you have good ideas for songs that are 60 and 90 seconds, please let me know. Most of what I have in that time range is from Les Miserables. It's great music, but not really good running music, if you know what I mean.

Inspiration

"Any woman who sews or knits or weaves, blends colors in a tapestry or creates a patchwork quilt, knows by the feel that a single thread is weak. But the weaving, the blending, the intertwining with many others makes it strong. Any woman alone without friends to sustain her, to nurture and support, to hold with loving arms, like a single thread is weak. But the weaving, the loving, the nurturing of others, the networks of friendships make her strong."
-- Barbara 1994 The Kinship Of Women

I have never read this book, but I find this quote to be incredibly inspiring, especially after meeting some amazing women on the Fit and Fabulous cruise put together by Shannon.

Thank you all for making me a stronger person.