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Catching Up

Posted on August 2, 2016 by auburnchick

I haven’t done such a great job with my blogging this last week and a half.  I have good reasons.  For now, why don’t we just let bygones be bygones and play a bit of catch-up.

I’ve been doing a ton of sleeping…ignoring the alarm I’ve had set for the last week in my pitiful attempt to start getting back into a routine.  I’ve been sleeping late and then, later in the day, squeezing in a nap whenever possible.

The dogs have complied.  They’re rather chill these days.

Of course, their patience does have limits.  Gambit gets all up in my grill if he even thinks I’m awake.

I’ve been doing some knitting.

With beads.

Which I had to order more of because the gal at the yarn store I visited a few months ago underestimated the amount I needed.

I ordered from GoodyBeads, and boy, was I impressed!  My beads came in record time, and I even got a bag of free beads AND a $5 coupon!  I’ll be ordering from this company again!

Do you see a bit of Harry Potter on the TV in the background of the picture above?

Well, in case you didn’t know, Sunday was HP’s birthday! My running club, the Hogwarts Running Club, is currently hosting a virtual race, the Fantastic Beasts 5K, and the suggested run date was Sunday.

Now, let me tell you that I like doing these races.  I like that the money is given to amazing charities.  I use the Charity Miles app to track my mileage.  They partner up with sponsors who donate for distances covered by its participants.  It’s a win-win all the way around.

What’s been bad, though, is that I am behind several races.  A great thing about virtual races is that you can run them when you want to.  You still get the bling.  You’re competing against yourself and your conscience.

Well, I’m behind a few races.  Life seriously got in the way.  I’ve been working out to a grueling Hammer and Chisel program.  I’m five weeks into my second go-round.  My muscles are sore, and it’s too humid in this Florida heat to get out later in the day.

Some of the races are longer, and there’s no way I can do them in one day.  That’s hard too.

My medals have been sitting in their envelopes…race shirts unworn.

I really wanted to do this one since it was only three miles and a special day indeed.

So, I did my H&C workout (two for the day) and then went outside…at 1pm…and walked/ran that sucker.

I hadn’t run since June 13th.  I still managed to do intervals where I jogged .75 mile and walked .25.  More than once.  Go me.

I was sweaty and tired when I finished, but boy was I proud of myself!

Look at that cute Harry Potter picture (top right).  I have SnapChat and use it; however, I didn’t know about filters until I saw something on Facebook.  It took me a little while to figure it out, but once I did, oh man.  There was a HP filter just for Sunday!

Let’s just say that I’ve been having a little too much fun with filters…

Personally, I like the one above.  Makes me feel like I’m back in the 70’s.  And yes, I am a child of the 70’s/80’s.

This week has been all about 4am alarms clocks.  Ugh.  Working out at 4:45 (because it takes me that long to crawl out of bed) is tough.

Yesterday, I felt okay, though, and perked up even more when I saw my bicep in the mirror.  Call me vain.  I don’t care.  I worked hard for that muscle!

I’m really, really proud of my workouts.  I’m getting so much stronger and am going up in weights about every week and a half thanks to my new commitment to log everything on the worksheets I found online.

Yes, that is 25 pounds.

Did you just faint?

I used them last week for dead lifts, which I absolutely love.  They do so much to strengthen your hamstrings which, in turn, help you shape your rear end.  Go me.

I’m also working in the yard…edging after the Mr. mows the front yard on his RIDING lawn mower (ahem)…and using the PUSH mower to do the back yard (ahem ahem).  I wear my heart rate monitor to record the calories I burn.

Almost 400 calories, y’all.  You know where that’s coming from?  Sweeping the debris down the sidewalk.  Talk about an arm and core workout!

Something else I’ve been doing is participating in a Book Love Summer Session on Facebook.

Penny Kittle wrote the book, and I follow her on Twitter.

Her book…her philosophy, in fact…is all about helping students develop a love for reading.  I read her book last summer and felt like I’d found the validation I needed for what I’d been doing (thanks to my wonderful friend, Barb, who first mentored me) in my classroom for the past five years.

I found out, by reading Twitter, that there was going to be a study session, and I signed up.

It’s very low key.  We listen to certain podcasts, because YES, there’s a Book Love Podcast…who knew!  Then, a facilitator posts questions, and we respond.

Ok.  So, confession time.  I don’t really like to listen to podcasts.  I did way back when, but I’m just not good at processing auditory stuff.  I am definitely a tactile learner, but…this podcast.  It’s something else.

Y’all.  I feel like I’ve found my people.  There have been book talks, encouragement, and ideas for fitting too many things in to too little time.

I have cried almost every time I’ve listened to a podcast.  There are testimonials.  There are stories of students’ lives that have been changed.  I see these things happen in my classroom every year, but listening to it online…it’s just so powerful.

Speaking of school, I ordered and received a new set of Kagan mats.  I really like these because I can flip them over and use the other side for something different.  I go through about two sets each year.

I attended training yesterday and today (my reason for getting up at the crack of dawn).  My district uses Canvas, a learning management system that allows students to access class content online.  I used it last year, and my students LOVED it.  It really facilitated things in my classroom.  Students had access to all of my Smartboard files and documents we worked on in class.  Even though I consider myself a fairly advanced user, I learned so much.  The training was low-key, and we were turned loose to create our own pages.  This time allowed me to make much-needed changes.

I’m still debating about which picture to use on the home screen my kids will see when they log in.  What are your thoughts?

Or this…

So yeah.  That’s a big chunk of what I’ve been up to. Ha!

Filed under: fitness, Teaching | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment »

New Years 2016

Posted on January 1, 2016 by auburnchick

So, it’s been almost a week since I caught you up on what was happening around here on Christmas.

Chicky left around 6:30am on Sunday for her long drive home.  We followed suit about an hour and a half later.  When we got home, the dogs were very happy to see us.  I worked really all day and managed to get completely unpacked.  I put everything away and cleaned the house.  My Roomba had stopped running after it ran over its charging cord, so there was dog hair everywhere.  I also wanted to wash and dry the new set of sheets I’d gotten as a Christmas gift.

It was evening when I finally sat down to relax.

I recently started watching Agents of Shield on Netflix, and I wasn’t sure I was going to like it.  It took about three full episodes before I got enough of the characters’ backstories to understand the premise of the show.  Now, I’m hooked.

The next morning, the dogs were more than happy to stay in bed…until about 11, I think.

That’s how we do things around here when we don’t have to work.

I immediately got down to business and did my TurboFire workout.  Then, I decided I needed to get outside and walk.  Molly was the chosen one.  She absolutely loved it and was the perfect walking buddy.

I worked on my Oakwood Poncho after having to tink back 80 rows because I’d followed the wrong chart.  Yeah, I’m stupid like that, although to be fair to me, the charts are not in the same order as the written instructions.

I’m actually happy that I had to re-do the colorwork…for the third time…because my first two attempts weren’t very good.  I’ve finally figured out how to change colors though!

Right side complete!

On Tuesday, I did my workout and then walked Gambit.  You can see, from the look on his face, how much fun he had.

On Wednesday, which was technically my “rest” day from my TurboFire program, I decided to do the “Drench” Piyo video.  Oh my.  This one completely kicks my butt every time I do it.  It’s sooooo hard!

Afterward, I took Molly for a walk…

I don’t know if I’ve told you, but in September, I joined the Harry Potter Running Club on Facebook.  Here’s the IRL website.  This club hosts virtual races, and the entry fees are donated to charity.  There’s a big competition on Facebook among houses for the House Cup, and miles are tracked through the Charity Miles app.  What is so cool about the app is that you select a charity, and various companies donate money every time you log miles.  I always select the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation because the Mr. has had Crohn’s Disease for twenty-eight years (as long as I’ve known him).

In addition to the above activities, there’s been lots of college bowl game watching around here.  Every.  Day.

I am not complaining.  I love college football and am thankful that I have a job that gives me the holidays off so I can watch these games.

I did another DIY project.  We’d recently started finding puddles of water on my laundry room floor when drying clothes, and I decided to replace the flex connection between the dryer and vent.  This fixed the problem.  No more leaks!

On New Year’s Eve, I did the Low HIIT 20 minute workout.  What absolute fun!  This workout is my favorite so far.  It goes by so quickly that you hardly know you’re exercising!  I then went for another walk, on the treadmill at the gym this time because it raining outside.

I ran ALL of those miles on the treadmill, to my shock and delight.  I firmly believe that the workouts I’ve been doing, along with the careful monitoring of my diet, have increased my endurance and made me stronger.

After getting cleaned up, I changed into comfy night clothes, appropriately themed considering that I’d be cheering AGAINST that non-SEC team in Florida that I cannot stand (they lost, by the way, hallelujah!) and the other team in Alabama, which did not lose, so I can have another chance to root against them at the end of the bowl series.

I also spent the day baking two desserts from my Vegan Pie in the Sky cookbook…

One of the best things about vegan baking is that I can lick the spoons, whisks, and bowls…

That brownie crust mixture was heavenly!

Dessert #2

Both desserts had to chill in the fridge for a few hours, so we had to wait until today to try them.

This morning (New Year’s), I didn’t get up until after 10am after turning off my alarm when it went off at 7.  I almost decided to skip my workout.  I wasn’t enamored with the idea of sweating for 40+ minutes, but I pushed through the voices in my head and pulled on my exercise clothes.

It’s funny.  I think so much negativity leaves the body with every sweat droplet that is released.  I felt terrific afterward!  I especially loved seeing the number of calories I burned.  I’m all about those calories, desperate to maintain my smaller size after all of my hard work in recent months.

I wanted to go for a walk, but the rain and cold weather made it un-doable…until later in the day.  As soon as the sky cleared up, I grabbed Pele, who’d been dying for his turn, and did a shorter walk.  He’s older and heavier and just can’t go as far.  He petered out before two miles were up, but I coaxed him home the last quarter mile, earning more miles for Hufflepuff and more money for my charity.  Oh, and by the way, I’ve been turning on my Charity Miles app and putting my phone in my Flipbelt when I do my TurboFire workout…any way to get mileage is acceptable!

Later this evening, I whipped up dinner for the family, including Rooster’s girlfriend, and then we indulged in the dessert I’d prepared yesterday.

The Brownie Bottom Peanut Butter Cheesecake doesn’t really taste like cheesecake, but the consistency is similar, and it is delicious!!!

That’s it from these here parts.  I hope you brought in the new year with family and friends and are fixing your eyes on Christ as you ring in 2016!  Much love to all of you!

 

 

 

 

 

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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