A Work in Progress

Well, I know that this picture is not great but as it was pitch black outside, and there is no electricity in the room yet, it remains "as is"  for today's writing inspiration.  This is the second half of our, still unnamed, but what I think we will continue to call, back porch.  We had a deck with composite material included when we built our house.  Two summers, 50 cans of DEET, and 1,000,000,000 mosquito bites later, we screened in that area, and added a larger outdoor deck to it.  Well, looked nice, but was not functional.  We never sat outside, due to the continuing bug situation, and the heat.  We were always huddled into the screened porch.  We decided sometime in 2009, that we would screen in that area as well, and begin preparation for an inground pool as well.  I came up with the brillant idea of adding a fireplace to the newly screened area.  This has been installed today, and you can finally start to get the feel for what the finished product will be like.  We are pleased with the quality of work thus far, and although we are anxious to have this completed,  know that it will take time in order to be done properly and to all of our specifications. 
With the new year still fresh in our midst, I have again recommitted to putting myself first on my list of things to do.  I am forever inspiring and motivating people to do this for themselves, and as the saying goes, it is time for me to practice what I preach!  I have been down this road before, although luckily, the load I now bear is much less than in years past.   I am one of those people that will always have to remember that weight maintenance is an ongoing thing.  I fell into the "I am skinny now!"  trap a few years ago, and due to my ignorance, have put 30 lbs back on!    In 2004, I successfully lost 88 lbs through hard work, dedication, and most importantly putting myself first.  It may seem terrible for a wife and a mother to do this, but I will tell you one absolute truth - when I take this time for myself I am a better wife and a better mother.  I have more patience, I am stronger and it helps me focus on all of the other things that I need to get done in a day.
We all know that anything really worthwhile takes time and hard work.  We know that when things are done right, instead of the "quick fix" , the path to get there is long.  When you know what your desired outcome is, and once you make that decision to go on that path, you should not stop until you get there.  So today, even though I taught a cycle class this morning, I made the time to run 4 miles.  I felt great, and could have gone much further, but had to get back for the bus.  (see I AM a good mom!)  It also was 35 degrees, and since tomorrow I teach 2 classes back to back, I did not want to push it.  But let me tell you, that I have my focus back.  It feels wonderful.  2010 is MY year, so look out people!

And speaking of looking out, beware of the dvds on the floor in the kids' hallway....day 3!