Is it the lack of sleep talking?

I don't know I'm just too tired to think straight or if this is real, but I'm suddenly overwhelmed by the urge - nay, the NEED - to live a healthier lifestyle. I just want to get what I'm thinking down on paper (virtually), so here are my Five Principles of a Healthy Lifestyle, in no particular order:

1. Get some exercise every day (yup, I'm calling it exercise, not"movement" or some PC thing). My body needs to move so that I don't end up stiff and sore every night, and even worse first thing in the morning. I have enough pairs of walking shoes now (thank you 3-Day!) that I can keep a pair at work, a pair in the car, and a pair at home...no excuse not to strike while the iron's hot

2. Keep up with my vitamins and Chinese herbs. Things just feel easier on the days I take them and it takes less than 5 minutes every day

3. Get the five fruits and veggies thing going. I can't remember the last time I had a meal that included veggies unless they were covered in oil or some fat-laden sauce; no fruit in any form for months. I'm pretty sure it won't kill me and perhaps I won't feel as lethargic...worth a try

4. Get the garden going again. Will help with #3 plus help with the depression PLUS it's a good excuse to walk 10 minutes each day when I have to water it

5. First, go and see a primary care doctor for the first time since 2003 (yes, really) so that I can get a referral to a nutritionist/dietitian who can write up a bunch of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners that I can cook or grab and go, depending on my mood. I'm fed up with eating every meal either out of a take out bag, a box (microwaved, processed within an inch of its life, nothing fresh or healthy), or at a restaurant which eats up our bank account as well as my good health

6.Write here every day so that I can report on how I'm doing and how my ideas morph in the light of day

(Yes, I know I said I had 5 Principles...consider #6 a bonus, if you will.)

OK, the puppy's snoring (TCB probably is, too) and I see light coming through the blinds...let's see if I can get some clothes on and my walking shoes and go for a little stroll, huh?

Props to the parents

TCB and I are hosting our 12-year-old nephew for two weeks and I am quickly gaining a deeper respect for the parents I know. He's a great kid, really, he is, it's just that he's a kid: forgetful, messy, and high-maintenance. I honestly believe he'd forget his head if it wasn't attached permanently! And then there's the fact that TCB and I are self-indulgent and lazy...if we don't feel like eating until 8:00 pm on a weeknight, that's what we do. If we want to lie around on a weekend doing nothing but watching TV or surfing the internet, again, that's what we do. We cannot do this sort of thing with The Kid around, though.

New rules in place while The Kid is visiting:
1. No more than an hour of TV or video games or internet. That's an hour total, all three media combined. This is about to kill me, I think.

2. Bed must be made and all clothes put away properly before we leave in the morning. This is killing me more than TCB because he leaves earlier than I do and so does not have to contribute to this. (Things are going to change Saturday and Sunday mornings, though!)

3. Non-screen based activities (see Rule #1) must be planned for every evening and weekend day because a bored Kid is not a joy to be around. In the last week, I've played Monopoly, Life, and Sorry, and I think Clue is on deck for tonight. (TCB and The Kid played Yahtzee Tuesday night but I had a headache and didn't participate.) I'm trying to figure out what to do over the very long weekend...I'm even contemplating bowling, and I've never bowled.

4. Lunches must be packed each day. The Kid has to take a lunch plus two snacks plus adequate water for the entire day to Day Camp, and we are doing so as well.

5. The Kid must be dropped off at a local parking lot between 8:00 and 8:10 am each morning and picked up at the same location between 4:30 and 4:50 each evening, something that requires a discipline not often seen in the Denise/TCB household. The result? Text messages such as, "I can't get him tomorrow, can you?" and "Do you have him? Are you really sure, because I'm stuck in traffic and I hope you're there!"

We will survive this challenge, certainly, but any pipe dreams I might have had of our fostering or adopting a child are distant memories; at this point, just watching Burn Notice together after a stressful day at work sounds like Heaven. To those raising children or grandchildren, I salute you...you are doing God's work!

Just the facts, ma'am

I just discovered this post in draft format sitting in my dashboard, so I'm going to finish it and then hit "Post".

--------------

Wow, it's been a while since I wrote a real post here, huh? Hopefully you will understand my absence when I tell you that I've been living instead of writing about living? Hope so.

The 3-day training is going well after a few minor bumps in the road (like skipping about 2 weeks of training). I finished 7 and 6 mile walks this weekend, and I finished them strong. A little whining during and a little Advil afterward, but otherwise strong. There was a point during the 7 miler when I really felt horrible - tired and fed up - and then I looked to the side of the road and there was the brightest pink geranium plant I've ever seen, and I remembered why I signed up in the first place. That keeps happening to me...something comes along out of the blue and helps me adjust my perspective - thank you God.

Took my new bike out for its maiden voyage this weekend, too - fun. How can anything that involves a pink girly bike, complete with white basket and pink bell, NOT be fun? I'm still wobbling around a lot, but oh how fun it is to coast down a hill feeling the wind whipping my hair back. If you want to recapture a piece of your childhood, buy yourself a bike (not a serious bike, though...that's too much effort).

I will be picking up Alcott, the 18 year old joy of my life, later this afternoon and he will be spending the next four nights with us. Tomorrow morning, he will have to hitch a ride to SDSU with The Husband and that means his being ready to roll by like 5:45 at the latest. (Yes, I will produce video of the "getting ready" experience.)

My role at work has changed and I'm going to have my version of the "Dream Job" - words fail to express how happy I am. You know how people say that "when you love what you're doing you never work a day in your life"? Yeah, it's like that.

Life is good, people. Really, truly, and deeply good. And for those kind souls who sent supportive messages after my last (now deleted) post: thank you so much.