Christmas Spirit and Getting it Together

Today is a new day!

I have been reflecting on the Christmas Spirit going around this year. I have heard time and time again that when we go to Ethiopia we will be in utter shock at the poverty that there are few places in the world that compare to Ethiopia's poverty. We will see numerous people sleeping on the sides of roads and orphaned children curled up together sleeping in ditches. The smell (compared to the smell of burnt rubber) will give us headaches and nausea. The amazing thing we are told will happen though, is we will experience some of the most joyful and happy people this world has! The people are happy in one of the most poverty stricken places in this world?

I feel like I've felt my own version of that here this year. We're going through a "National crisis" right now. Unemployment is through the roof, we're in multiple wars, we're all hurting financially and yet I feel more Christmas spirit in the air than I have ever felt before. People are overall taking a step back, and spending less. Family time seems to be higher on every one's list than purchasing the must have item of the year. People are once again grateful for the small things and amazingly people seem happy! People who are already financially strapped are finding ways to give to the needy this year. There are more people requesting help this holiday season and yet more people are giving to the needy! This is awesome to witness and I truly hope this continues on for years to come! I Hope I can teach my children the joy of giving while also experiencing the joy of receiving around Christmas time!

So getting it together. Yup, I'm out of excuses. You see I was doing great the first half of the year at getting it together and getting in shape. Then we decided to adopt and that threw me out of balance. I rightfully felt the paperwork and running around for the adoption was much more important than keeping my commitment to work out and eat right. After the adoption paperwork was approved, I was on overtime at work and starting a work out plan while on overtime hours is not a good idea. I've learned that lesson a few times in the past. So here I am again, ready and excited to get back on track. What better way to have accountability then to post this vulnerable stuff on the family blog right? :)

So I am giving myself plenty of time to reach my fitness goals - I want to be in prime shape by the time we leave for Ethiopia - that is 4-5 months and easily accomplishable (not a word) if I stay on track. I plan on designating Saturday's as my fitness accountability and progress blogging day. So feel free to ignore or delete the blog posts :)

I have reactivated my sparkpeople membership. I love all the information I get from spark people. I love the customized meal plans and the fact that it keeps track of EVERYTHING for me! My only complaint when I was doing it before was that I was starving all the time. In order for me to reach my goals I had set for myself I needed to eat only 1100-1300 calories per day. No wonder I was starving :) Well, Peter pointed out to me that my fitness area was not accurate. You see, I was just tracking the working out cardio and strength training I was doing 3 times a week and not all the cardio I do at work. Silly me, I typed in standing 10 hours a day and boom - I got an additional 8,000 calories burned a week just by standing at work. The goal they set for me was 600 calories per week burned so by exceeding it by that much they upped my calorie intake to a much more suitable level - 2200-2600 per day! Whew, I'm glad I have a smart husband.

I really wanted to get this started before January because seriously - resolutions never work - so this is officially not a resolution. It really has been something I've wanted to do for a long time! It seems like when I get this in balance and stop being lazy everything fits together better. I am more motivated to keep my house clean, I'm more motivated to keep our finances in order, and I spend more time on my spiritual relationship too! Women are spaghetti right? Every aspect of our lives co-mingle and run together :) For now I really want to focus on getting back into a workout routine and will focus more on the eating aspect after the holiday's go by. I am being realistic :)