Coming back.....Stronger, ready for battle and have fun

I know it has been a long while since I sat down to write.  There have been lots of changes going on and it is time to sit down and talk about it....and talk about my direction.



Since the last blog I have experienced some loss.  I lost a dear friend to breast cancer after a 13 year battle, I lost another 20+ year friend to complications of hip replacement surgery, but the hardest of all was losing my fur baby of 8 months to lymphoma.  Lily was 8 years old, I rescued her from a puppy mill and she was such a doll!  She was my best buddy as I rescued her after I lost my other dog to congestive heart failure.  This was a complete surprise.......up until the end she was a happy puppy, eating and playing........until she one day she was not.  Once I got her to the vet and did some tests, found the cause of her illness, she crossed over the rainbow bridge on June 7th without her mama there to  tell her it was ok.  The vet called to tell me she was in respiratory distress and while I was making decisions SHE made the decision for me and passed.  It has been hard for me to let go of the fact that I was not there to tell her how much I loved her.  She knew.......it was more of the fact I NEEDED to kiss her one more time, to pet her and love on her so she knew that the last 8 months were the best of her life and she made mine so rich.


Moving on from there, I have for most of the last 20 years been involved with Jazzercise.  Due to an injury I have not been very active in it.  With other business decisions, the owner decided that the time slot I assisted no longer needed a staff person.  When I got the email I was mad, sad, angry.....I ran the gamut of emotions.  I was dealing with Lily's illness and this came across my desk.  Dammit I had been a part of this for a long time!  In all fairness, the instructor has assured me I have a place to dance when I am ready.  What has this given me?  Once I digested it all, took care of the dog, I decided to find me again.  When I talked to my former trainer I told her that over the last few years I had spent so much time taking care of sick dogs and my injury (mainly the dogs!) that I lost ME somewhere along the way.


It took a lot for me to call Helga (her nickname) and ask for her help.  Once I did that, there was a huge weight taken from my shoulders.  I did not feel bad about the jazzercise anymore, I felt relief.  I was not afraid to walk in the gym again and wonder what they thought........no one cares!  We are all there to get in and out to work on our fitness and health AND get the heck out in a reasonable amount of time.  I committed to creating some consistency before committing to a new trainer.  I have not hated walking in the door one time yet!  I have not tried to create distractions or excuses for not going.  My plan was to go in the morning but I have actually gone after work when I missed a morning without a second thought.  This is all new for me.


I also got a senior yoga series to try.  I need to increase my flexibility.  I got this version as I found the yogi very easy to follow and I could make modifications and not feel stupid.  Yes, the voices in my head get in my way at times but I am working on all of this.  I am a blob of clay waiting to be molded in a whole new way.......maintaining who the core of me is.  Maybe it is a spit shine of what is really under all the years of dust and neglect.


Going forward I hope to have guest writers........I might ask friends to pick a topic to share and write a bit and paste it in here.  I have some wonderful friends with varied interests.  It is all wonderful stuff to hear and if I love listening to them I hope you would love to read them too.


I would like to leave you with one recipe I have absolutely grown addicted to!!  It is a great side that can be eaten hot or cold.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

*  sweet potatoes, sliced about an inch or so thick.  A nice sturdy round

*  grapeseed oil

*  salt and pepper to taste

*  HOT GRILL!

Take the potatoes and wash them well.  Slice them in thick rounds and rub with the grapeseed oil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  You can put them on skewers length wise or just place them on a hot grill.  About 7 minutes or so per side.  You should see nice grill marks on the potatoes when you flip them.

Once they are off the grill, let them cool a moment before serving.  On the other hand, I have taken them out of the fridge and eaten them that way straight as a snack!  They are yummy with NO butter, brown sugar or other seasonings to make them tasty!

Until next time........xxoo