Cycle For Survival
Hi everyone!! How has everyone been doing?! Can you believe it’s February already?? Crazy. I know I’ve said this time and time again but the days, months, and years really do fly by so fast…and I think it just keeps getting faster the older I get! 😛
There’s really not too much going on in my life right now…however I’ve noticed that as I get older and with time going by so fast, that life is too short to not make that time to spend with your friends…especially those that I’ve lost touch with since high school. Last weekend I had the great pleasure of seeing a best friend of mine in high school. We picked up like no time has passed (10+ years worth!) and it was such a joy to reconnect with her…talk about our jobs, marriage, husbands, babies, and life in general. If you’re reading – love you girl!
I admit that I sometimes put myself in this “bubble”, especially during my eating disorder days, and didn’t want to see anyone. I was so wrapped up in my struggles, hated the way I looked, and couldn’t even make plans with friends for fear what they’d think of me and see how unhappy and skinny I looked. Lately though I’ve realized that not only has recovering from my struggles made me a healthier person inside and out, but it has made me a more confident person and be who I want to be, take new risks and change in my life, and to open up to new and old friendships…and for that I will be forever grateful in recovering and being healthy again. I’m so happy to have reignited old friendships from my childhood, and it feels so good to let go of my “bubble”, reclaim these friendships, and know that they’ll always love me for who I am…and I’ve come to learn that those true friends, are the ones that accept you for who you are 🙂
And with that…I have to leave an oldie but goodie photo of my best friend and I from our high school days…I hope she doesn’t kill me for posting this 😛
Next get together we’ll have to get an updated version of us 😉
I’ve realized that with how quickly time goes by, it’s so important to make time for friends, family, and loved ones. Reconnecting with old friends really does feel so great and there’s no other bond better than that between women. I hadn’t realized it at the time, but one of my New Year’s goals is to reconnect with old friends (in person! FB doesn’t count 😉 ) and to just enjoy your days that you have here with those you love. I think trying for a baby and wanting to be a mom so badly has put a lot in perspective for me and has made me realize that your looks, your job, and your money is not the end all be all to your life – it’s about doing what makes you happy, living your life to the fullest, and to cherish every day you have with loved ones.
One other reason why I may be getting emotional is that this weekend I get to spend it with my other very bestest friend (my sissy!) to participate in a fundraising event called Cycle For Survival. Over 5 million has already been raised and it’s truly amazing what has become of this movement. Here’s a little synopsis of what it’s about:
Co-founded in 2007 by Jennifer Goodman Linn and her husband, Dave, Cycle for Survival is the national, indoor relay-style team cycling event that has raised more than $14 million in support of lifesaving research on rare cancers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, and in the past five years has funded twenty-five clinical trials and research studies.
Cycle creates an opportunity for each of us to truly make a difference — every dollar raised by Cycle goes directly to Memorial Sloan-Kettering for research on rare cancers, paving the way for new, more effective treatment options.
Cycle is one of the world’s fastest-growing athletic fundraising events. Cycle 2012 will be the biggest ride to date with over 10,000 cyclers from across the country teaming up with friends, family and coworkers in New York City, Chicago, Long Island, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, DC and at satellite events worldwide!
Join the movement that brings hope to lives touched by rare cancers. Register or join a team today or make a gift to Cycle. No one beats cancer until we all beat cancer. Together, we can make a difference! (source)
Sadly Jennifer Goodman Linn lost her battle to cancer last summer 2011. She is such an inspiration and I am so happy and proud to be a part of such a significant event and to carry on her legend. Here is a video of her journey…
I hope you all have a very happy weekend, and remember, life is too short – call a friend, hug your family members, kiss your loved ones, and remind them how very much you love them…xoxo
Questions:
Do you stay in touch with your childhood/high school friends? How do you keep those connections alive?
Have you ever participated in a fundraising event?
Any fun plans for Friday night or this weekend?!
Getting To Know Me…
Happy Friday everyone!! I am especially excited it’s finally Friday since I have an awesome weekend lined up for me. But first, I want to say how much I appreciate your kind, thoughtful, encouraging comments on my last post. You all are the absolute best and I couldn’t ask for better friends…you all filled my heart so very much and I’m giving you all a big virtual hug through the screen 🙂
So if any of you follow football and know that I’m a 49er fan then I’m sure you guessed that we had quite an exciting time celebrating last weekend…
The winning catch!!!
Coach Harbaugh & Vernon Davis celebrating his catch! Side note: can I just say how much I love Harbaugh…he has remarkably turned around this team into a winning one and you can just see how much love he has for his players – love it!
And on that note, I’m sure you guessed what we’re gearing up for this weekend…
We’re baaaaaack…. (said in Poltergeist voice 😉 )
And you may remember that Todd is from New York?! Well, thankfully he’s a ‘9er fan and we’ll all be rooting for them together at my parents place…but I’m sure we’ll be having Facebook wars with my In-Laws who are true Giants fan 😛
And I’m very excited for tomorrow to have a girly day with my bestest friend – my sissy!! We have plans for a hair appointment (I’m just getting a trim), a yummy lunch, maybe squeeze in a yogurt trip to U Love or Nubi, and then a much needed pedicure…a definite self-indulgent day that I think we’re both in definite need of and deserving of 😉 Other than that my week has been pretty uneventful (except for a very very special visit I had that you’ll see below) and still pretty busy at work but I have to say I’ve been lacking the motivation these past couple days…I blame it on the crummy weather, blech!
And with that, since I don’t have much to post about and my brain is lacking willpower to do a lot of thinking, I thought it’d be fun to participate in this survey that’s making it’s rounds in the blog world. I recently saw it on Tina and Ashley’s blog and knew I had to take part in it since I love getting to know a bit more about bloggers and thought you would too!
1) What is one of your favorite ways to spend a Saturday?
With my hubby and family – love for us to have a date night or spend it with my family at their place getting into shenanigans and having awesome quality time together ❤
2) List your top three favorite TV shows.
* Real Housewives Of….(every season although my fav is Beverly Hills and Orange County!)
* Top Chef
* The Bachelor/Bachelorette
3) Would you rather be in pictures or take them?
Both! I love having pictures of myself with my loved ones, family and friends and love taking pictures of them!
4) Why do you blog?
My initial reason (and still is) for starting this blog was to document our journey in trying to conceive, then our pregnancy journey, and then our new life as a family of 3. I especially wanted to journal this very important and exciting journey in our lives so that family and friends could follow along and keep up to date with what was going on in our lives. I also love blogging about my past struggles with disordered eating, overexercising, and Hypothalamic Amenorrhea because I feel a lot of women out there could benefit from hearing my story and experiences and could learn a lot based on what I’ve gone through. I hope to help just one woman out there…that would mean the world to me. I also am so thankful to be a part of this blogging community because I have met and made friends with so many amazing ladies and formed very special relationships with each one and am so grateful for that 🙂
5) Share five websites that you visit regularly…
* Facebook
* Fertile Thoughts Forum
* Gmail
* Google Reader
* Twitter
6) If you could have lunch with one person from your Twitter list who would it be?
Britney Spears – don’t laugh 😛
7) List a few of your favorite snacks.
* Fage Greek Yogurt with Peanut Butter Puffins
* Frozen Yogurt
* Apple with Skippy Chunky Natural Peanut Butter or TJ’s Cookie Butter (!!)
* Veggies and chips with hummus
* Clif Mojo Bars
8 ) Do you have a pet? If so, what kind?
Nope! Although we really (someday!) want to get a bulldog 🙂
9) Which three material possessions would you struggle to live without?
* iPod
* cell phone (soon to be iPhone!!)
* laptop (soon to be iPad!!)
10) What’s your favorite drink?
A mimosa
11) Do you enjoy cooking?
Sometimes – depends on what I’m cooking. If it’s eggs or paninis then I love cooking, anything else, not so much 😉
12) Do you have children?
Nope – but we’re working on it and hope to have a wee one very very soon!!
13) What are your favorite hobbies?
* Exercising
* Shopping
* Baking
* Wine tasting
* Reading blogs and blogging
* Spending quality time with my hubby, family and friends
14) Would you consider yourself to be shy or outgoing?
It depends on the situation – I’m much more talkative and outgoing one-on-one and am an open book to that person, but in a group setting (except for group fitness classes since I used to teach) I become super shy. I used to be very very shy in every situation when I was younger and finally broke out of my shell when I became a fitness instructor.
15) If you could change one thing about yourself, what would you change?
Not to piggy-back to question #14 but I would love to be more outgoing in a group setting like my dad or my hubby who can strike up a conversation with anyone at anytime – I really admire their natural wittiness and sense of humor and wish I had more of that in me. But lately as I’ve gotten older I’ve stopped caring what other people think of me and just say whatever comes out of my mouth even if it’s not that funny – oh well! 😉
16) Who is your favorite actor/actress?
Based on acting chops definitely Meryl Streep – she is just so amazing and such a phenomenal actress. But based on looks Angelina Jolie – I know some love her or hate her, I love her – her face is flawless.
17) What’s the coolest thing you’ve done this week?
By far it was spending the day with Miss Shanna and as always it was such a wonderful time. Although it was even more special because I got to meet her adorable, precious 2 1/2 week old son Sawyer. We caught up on some much needed girl talk along with the many details of motherhood which I loved learning about, all while holding her lil soybean (her nickname for him – love!) And I had the privelage of carrying him in the Bjorn while we walked her dog Naava…it was so wonderful and it skyrockted my baby fever 10-fold!
And he’s sportin’ the lil monkey beanie I got him – eek! ❤
18) Do you live near your family or far from them?
I thankfully live only 10 minutes away from my family. Although 3,000 miles away from my in-laws which is bummer, but its a great excuse to take a trip to New York!! 😉
19) List three of your talents.
* Am able to push my physical capabilities and strengths to the limits
* I’m a good judge of ones character
* I have a pretty good sense of direction
20) What is your greatest attribute?
This is a tough question because I’m continually working on myself in becoming a better person to my loved ones, family and friends – I am a horrible procrastinator and get defensive quite easily – just ask the hubby 😉 But if I had to answer I’d say I love big – with my full, entire heart ❤
Well that’s it!! I hope you enjoyed getting to a know me a bit more and I hope you all have a wonderful Friday and a fantastic weekend!
Goooo ‘9ers!!!!! 🙂
Questions:
What was the coolest part of your week?
Would you consider yourself a shy or outgoing person?
Any fun plans for this weekend?!
A New Year…and Some Changes
Well hello there everyone!!! So sorry to have completely dropped off the face of the earth – yikes! Ever since the start of the New Year, work has been very busy and that has led me to being one very busy bee! Many changes were put into action here at my work in trying to bring in more business and revenue which meant for a lot more responsibilities on my plate and has left me with little to zero time for blogging. And you may be thinking “well can’t you blog home?” Hmmm yes and no. First, my laptop is on it’s last leg and I can’t efficiently blog on it…sure I could write out my posts on paper and type them up on my lunch break at work, but to be honest my time at home (and on the weekends) is meant to be spent with my husband, family & friends, relax, decompress from work, and turn my brain off. Although there are those moments I do have when I could blog while watching The RH relaxing at home, but again, our laptop isn’t working so I’m thinking that once I get the iPad my blogging life will come back in full force. But for now, I’m going to have to take a break from it. I’m not sure how many times a week I’m going to be blogging, I’d like to keep it at one post per week, but I kinda don’t want to commit myself to anything and then stress if I didn’t get a blog post up for the week.
Not only has work been busy, but I’ve realized since the start of the New Year, my life is taking a bit of a turn. First I want to preface this by saying that my initial intent for starting this blog was to journal my experience in trying to get pregnant, and then once pregnant, documenting my pregnancy journey and then daily musings of what comes with being a new mom, life with a newborn, etc. But then with my diagnosis of HA, that put all my hopes and dreams of getting pregnant by the end of the year to a halt and left me with many moments of sadness, anger, and confusion. So these last couple months have left me blogging about my past struggles, healthy foods, and workouts, which I love doing, but right now I just can’t because my whole focus is not trying to fit in a smaller pair of jeans or get my heart rate up so many times a week…it’s about trying to get pregnant. I especially loved blogging about intense workouts I would do such as Vipr, TRX, spin classes, Group Power…but right now I can’t do any of those workouts therefore I can’t blog about them (if you’re wondering why I can’t exercise intensely or eat super clean – read the “Getting ready…” page). So I’m left thinking, “what the heck am I going to blog about?!” I do love (and I still will) blogging about my days & nights out with the hubby & family, musings about my life in general, and some of my past struggles with certain things about TTC’ing sprinkled in there – I hope that doesn’t scare some of you off from reading my blog! 😛
So I guess you could also say that is where I’m at in my resolutions for the year. I’m not your typical “Healthy Living” blogger who’s trying to lose weight, try out a new workout routine or class, or clean up my diet…no, my #1 resolution right now is to get pregnant, that’s it. And after we have the baby, I absolutely cannot wait to bring back into my life and write about clean eating, new workout routines, musings about training for races with the hubby, and to workout like the athlete I am which is a huge part of my identity. But for now, I’m just purely focused on getting pregnant, and of course, living “The Good Life” 🙂
And with that, since I still want to blog about our random fun and shenanigans, I wanted to leave you here with some awesome pictures of our New Year’s Eve. Sure it comes a little late, but like they say, anything (especially our shenanigans) is better late than never 😉
Look at that sky!!!
Todd cooked up some delicious lobster to have at the stoke of midnight…
We were obviously having a lil too much fun with them…I think that was the champagne talking too 😉
Weeeeee! Into the pool of death they go…. 😛
Cheers to 2012!!!!
Having some grub to cure a hangover and a creeper spotting in the background – don’t I look hot in my pj’s?! 😉
Heheh I think I got the creeper look down…
that.is.awesome
And to finish it off, an adorable photo of my mom and dad…xoxo
**Edited to Add: I wanted to say a huge thank you to all you bloggers and readers for following me and for this wonderful community and relationship we have all built. You made 2011 for me all the more special…I thank god for this blog in having given me the opportunity to meet you all and for being the greatest blog friends I could have ever asked for. I can’t wait to see what 2012 brings for me and you all and I look forward so much to following each others journey’s 🙂 xoxo
Questions:
Bloggers: Did you ever have a moment where you needed to reevaluate how many times you post a week, what your blog means to you, and/or what you want to blog about? And watch, now that I said all this next week you’ll get 5 blogs posts from me 😛
What were your resolutions for the New Year?!
P.S. In a couple days I’m visiting a very special friend who just had a very special baby and I absolutely cannot wait to meet him!!! You know you’ll get a blog post out of me next week about that 😉
P.S.S. And Saturday more shenanigans will ensue with my hubby, my sister, and her boyfriend to watch the 49er playoffs so you’re sure to get a blog post next week about that too – gooooo ‘9ers!!!
Santa Was Very Good To Me…
Happy Thursday everyone! Hope you’re all having a great week so far 🙂
I know some of you lucky ducks get this week off. And us? Not so much. I’ve been at work this whole week except for Monday. But to be honest with you, I actually like the calmness that this week brings – there’s less traffic on the roads, grocery stores, the gym – and that sense of “rushness” is gone. It’s a nice break from the busyness of other weeks and since the hubby is working also, I might as well be doing something productive as opposed to spending my days catching up with my dvr 😉
I’m pretty late in the game here in posting my Christmas weekend, but like they say, better late than never! I last left you off with the treats my sis and I planned to bake on Friday for our Christmas Eve party, and I have to say, they came out pretty damn good! And they were super easy to boot!
Here are our finished products…
Reindeer Cupcakes! They were a huge hit with the kiddies 🙂
Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies – Absolutely Delicious.
Peppermint Bark – a hit with the adults and everyone absolutely loved them – and I think they’re far more delicious than the Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark…ifIdosaysomyself 😉
Per usual, our Christmas Eve party was an absolute blast – full of family fun, love, and holiday cheer. Especially when Santa made his grand entrance…
Our annual “Girls With Santa” pic
And just for fun, here’s one from 2008…
So cute – love love my whole family so very much and I’m so blessed we get this time together every year ❤
The Lunsford/Blumbergs family 🙂
And one with my sis and her friend that I loved chatting and spending time with…especially with her adorable baby boy…
****
Christmas Day was filled with more joy, love, laughter, and good times. Especially in the form of a delicious breakfast of eggs, toast, and of course, mimosas…Christmas Day isn’t complete without those! 😉
Once we filled our bellies with a delicious breakfast and little buzz from the champy, we got to (one) of the best parts of Christmas…presents!!! No pictures were taken of the event but I did snap some of my loot once I got home…let’s just say Santa was very good to me this year and I was definitely spoiled…
Looks like I’ll be getting that iPad soon…schweeet!!
Speaking of the iPad – I’ve heard through the grapevine that a new one is coming out in March so I’ll be waiting until then to purchase it. Either I’ll be getting the new one at a higher cost, or the old one at a discounted price so we’ll since what I’ll go with once it’s released and can comparison shop 🙂
And I was in serious Penguin heaven this Christmas…
Side note – not sure if some of you new readers know, but the hubby and I have a serious obsession with Penguins. It’s just one of those animals we started loving together at the beginning of our relationship…it started with Todd winning a small stuffed penguin for me at the fair and since then the rest is history and our love of Penguins grew 10-fold from there 🙂
So here’s the adorable Penguin loot I acquired and will not stop at it from ever growing…
From my wonderful friend/coworker…are those not the cutest cups??!! Along with Propel packets (which the hubby is already stealing from me!) and some Hershey Kisses in the Mason Jar (with a chalkboard lid and had my name on it – love it! )
Such a very special gift and I love it so much!
Advent Calendar from Sis and Chad – salt ‘n pepper shakers from Mom & Dad
Plate and Pez from Sis and Chad
PENGUIN SOCKS!!!! ❤
From Mom & Dad – Nick & Nora Penguin Mukluks
From Sis and Chad – Penguin Socks from Bed, Bath & Beyond
And a couple extra special Biscoff goodies from Sissy!!!
And some glorious, delicious food from the in-laws…we’re set for the whole week – love it!!
****
It was an absolutely perfect weekend, filled to the brim with laughter, love, and many special moments that I will remember for a lifetime. I was certainly gifted more than enough this holiday season, but more importantly, I am truly blessed and so thankful to have such amazing friends and a very loving, wonderful family…I couldn’t be any more grateful to have the life that I have ❤
Questions:
What was your favorite part of your Christmas weekend?
Any fun plans for this New Year’s Eve??!! Todd and I are old fogies and staying in for the night – but we are going out Friday night and using that gift card to Kingfish!!! Whoo hoo! 🙂
P.S. Whatever your plans may be, I wish you a very safe and happy New Year and I’m so ready to get 2012 started with a bang and a fresh start…I’m sure you’ve guessed what my #1 resolution wish is for the New Year 😉 I’ll have a post up on that next week.
P.S.S. If you have a moment, please give a huge congrats to my lovely “faboosh” friend Shanna who just gave birth to her sweet baby boy Sawyer Clark. Born yesterday at a very healthy 8 lbs. 10 oz. – I bet her hubby is proud 😉 I’m so very happy for her and her hubby and can’t wait to meet the lil guy!!!
Our Christmas Eve Holiday Treats!
Happy Friday! Errr…Thursday everyone!! Well, this blogging thing today has got on my last nerve. This is my 3rd attempt at writing this blog post since the past two times I would try and save it and poof! It’s gone. Anyway, I’m gonna get through this post pretty quickly so that it doesn’t happen again! Grrrrrrr!
First I want to say how much I loved reading all your wonderful comments in yesterday’s post Being Present. It warmed my heart hearing all the ways you’re going to try and be present this holiday season. I also especially loved how a couple of you mentioned that we all can remember the simple act of being grateful. To be thankful for the wonderful lives we live and to appreciate that we get to spend this holiday season with family, friends and loved ones ❤
I also want to say how grateful I am to my friend/coworker for introducing me to the fabulousness that is Trillian. Yes I live in the dark ages and had never heard of this software. For those that aren’t aware of it, I’ll try my best to explain it as I’m not the most techy articulate person. Anyway, it’s basically a centralized area that keeps all your email accounts, social media apps, and instant messengers all in one spot. This has made it so easy for me to keep up with all my Twitter feeds, Facebook status updates, and emails without having 5 million tabs open. Genius I tell ya, genius 🙂
Alright folks, now let’s get on to the good stuff and let me explain why I have tomorrow off. My bestest friend in the whole wide world (my sis) and I will be having an Olympic Day of baking up holiday desserts for our Christmas Eve party. I’ll definitely be sure to snap some pics of the shenanigans that will be taking place in my sister’s kitchen…that is if I can pry my sticky sweet fingers from the cookie dough bowl and licks from the frosted covered spatulas and beaters 😉 Just thinking about that brings back so many fond memories of when my mom would give me a beater to lick as a prize for being her lil helper when she baked ❤
So without further ado, here they are…!!!
* Reindeer Cupcakes (courtesy of With Sprinkles On Top) – I have never seen a cupcake quite adorable as these in my entire life. How can you not look at them without saying “awww”. I spotted these on Pinterest and when I saw them, I knew that they would instantly be a hit at our party and with the kiddos…
* Peppermint Bark (courtesy of PB Fingers) – This dessert just screams festive and traditional to me so I knew I wanted to incorporate it into our dessert spread. And as I was researching the many different varieties, I knew Julie’s the was the perfect kind since it incorporated both white and dark chocolates – a definite winner in my book 😉
* Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies (courtesy of Sweet Tooth Sweet Life) – In researching for a show stopping cookie, I stumbled upon these beauties quite a few times and was intrigued by their crinkly-ness…yes that’s a word 😉 And though I’ve never tried them before, I knew they must be a winner since Courtney gave them her seal of approval and any recipe originated from Paula Deen proves to be a sure fire hit 🙂
And that’s it!! I can’t wait to see, and taste (!), how all these beauties will come out – wish us luck!
And with that, I want to wish you all a very happy, safe, and most of all…
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!! 🙂 XOXO
The Good Life 