New Running Shoes

I took Ashleigh out tonight to buy herself a new pair of running shoes, meant for running!  She has been running with the cross country running team for a few days and wants to keep going.  Of course she needs great footwear so we went to Sportchek.  I have always liked buying athlethic shoes at that store.

Here are the ones she first wanted but they did not have her size:

And these are the ones between two choices in her size she picked:

She liked this pair a lot as well and they look very good on her!
(Saucony, same make as mommy's running shoes)

Ashleigh ran around the store a few times and said they make her feel faster.

I am very proud of Ashleigh for wanting to continue every day even when she finds it tough. For you runners out there, you know that running is NOT easy!  I have lacked in my running lately and she has inspired me to get off my butt again and back to running. (I had a fantastic run earlier today.)

Anyway, I wish her success in her running and am proud that she is going back every day and giving it all! 

Quick Update

I have been so busy lately that I haven't really had a chance to sit down and write about things happening so I will just do a quick update.

I am just starting the third week of my eating clean lifestyle and have lost 8.5 lbs so far. It has been fairly easy cutting out bread, sugar and the pasta which I have always loved so much. I have also almost completely stopped drinking diet coke which I didn't think was possible. I do not feel as if I am missing out on any food and haven't had any cravings other than a roast recently which I bought and cooked.

Ashleigh ran yesterday after school with the school cross country running team. It was tough but she enjoyed it and is going back after school today to continue. When I asked her about it yesterday, her response was " It was hard, but worth it"!  Yay for my little girl!  I hope she continues to keep it going.

I am still working on my fundraising course and ahead of the game.

All in all, everything is going well!  Will write soon when I have the opportunity to take the time!

Cheers!

Balancing Motherhood, Raising A Family, And Making Time For Yourself

I have been at home for many years as a "stay at home mom" raising four children.  With four children and daycare prices being so expensive, it makes sense for me to be at home. My husband makes a good income so I am able to have this great opportunity.  It has been a very rewarding job watching my children grow up. They have many many more years of growing to do; my youngest two are almost 5 years old now and will be going to school full time in grade one next year in 2013.  ( They will be my babies forever !)

I have been away from work so long that I am not sure if anyone would hire me!  Of course, I hope this isn't the case.  However, I have just began a new journey in my life and am taking a Fundraising Management Certicate Program to tune up my skills, have some current education behind me and hoping that when the time next September comes, I have more skills and experience to find a position that I love.

I am only into my second week of my program so I have six courses to go but I am determined to get it finished as soon as I can.  I have been working on my course during the day when the  kids are at school and in the evening after the children go to bed. So far, I am ahead of the pack so feel very good about that.

I have also been trying to get back into writing (I have always enjoyed this) and am trying to create my own writing opportunities for experience and some fun also.

I will also be a part of the school council for the 2012-2013 year at my children's school, hopefully as a Fundraising Coordinator.  (Another fabulous opportunity to better my skills)

I have a supportive husband who is happy to give me the time to work on my school (wow, school) course and encourages me to strive for my future goals. 

My house may not be the cleanest for the next while (lol) but I will do the best I can, to take care of myself and my family. By putting the time into my future, it can only make theirs better too!

If I Can Do It, You Can Too! First Week Journey

I began a new eating lifestyle change ,exactly 7 days ago, called keto.  This is a low carb lifestyle made up of primarily meat, vegetables and some fats. Carbs are limited to no more than 20 carbs per day, no sugar, and no alcoholic beverages.

I stopped eating pasta, bread, starchy vegetables and all sugary foods.  I have done no snacking whatsoever other than a few almonds here and there.  I eat breakfast, lunch and dinner and find that I have no need to eat snacks in between.  I thought the hardest part would be bread and spaghetti but even though I have cooked meals for the other family members, I have had no interest.

What? I never thought that would happen.

  The even more most shocking thing is that I have not had one alcoholic drink in a whole week. For people who know me, I  love the occassional drink. (or more)  My husband the other day had a drink in front of me and I had no inkling of wanting any. 

I have on average drink about 16 cups of water (again, much easier than I had thought it would be), but still have had one diet coke a day.  Even diet coke is starting to lose interest for me.

Instead of coffee with sweetener and double milk, I now take sweetener with cream.   I can eat bacon and eggs and have no concerns. I am eating a lot of chicken, beef, a lot of vegetables and salad and can even have salad dressing.  I am finding that by eliminiating the carbs in my diet, I am open to eat a variety of more food. I find I even get filled up faster and am not overeating.

In 7 days, I have lost 6 pounds and feel very happy about my progress.

For anyone wanting to change their eating habits, it isn't as hard as it seems.  You just need to sit down and plan it out.  If I can do this, YOU can too!

Excited About Learning

As soon as I woke up this morning and had my coffee in hand, I sat down at my laptop and logged myself into the Algonquin Student Blackboard where I will study my first course " Introduction to Fundraising"which is a part of the Fundraising Management Certificate I am working towards.

Today was the start date so I wanted to ensure that the course was accessible and sure enough, it was sitting there waiting for me!

While drinking my coffee, I looked over the different categories of information that I need to be aware of, ie lessons, quizzes, booking exams et cetera.

I read ahead and found that my first task was to write up no more than 200 word discussion about one of the types of giving to a non profit organization, 3 reasons why I feel that this type of giving would be an important funding source for an organization and one reason that another fundraiser may disagree with my thoughts.

I sat down and have written up a draft.  This is not due until September 27th so there is no rush. I am going to take some more time to make it perfect before I send this to a discussion thread for the whole class to see. 

I am very happy to be studying this finally and I am well on my way!

Feeling Happy With A New Diet

I started a low carb diet recently and have eliminated a lot of the carbohydrates in my diet.  I have stopped eating pasta, bread and all the starchy and carbohydrate filled foods.  I have also stopped eating sugary foods.

 I am drinking tonnes and tonnes of water, making healthy choices and so far, feel fabulous!

I plan to keep it up!

Back 2 School Day Has Arrived

Today is the first day back of school for the 2012-2013 school year! Wow!

My twin girls Samantha and Melissa are in Senior Kindergarten (SK) this year and are now the leaders of the class.  Ashleigh started grade 3 today and has a fantastic teacher whom I think will be a perfect match for her.  My son Justin is grade 6 and next year will be an intermediate.  Time flies, especially with four kids.

All my kids are growing up, and embarking on new journeys in their lives and I am looking forward to another fabulous school year.

I wish my children a successful year as I do yours!