Friday, January 30, 2009

An Adventure...




We spent the entire day exploring the woods in Iola, WI. We snow-shoed for hours and at the end stumbled on this guy going off this HUGE ski jump! It was great. We stood right next to the jump and watched him! He said it takes 10 min to hike up the jump and 10 sec to get down. It was AMAZING! I learned to skate ski yesterday from my friend Jim (thanks to my friend Wendy for letting me use her gear!) It was a total blast. It was a full day of fresh air and great friends. I am so lucky to be surrounded by people who love adventure as much as I do!

Thursday, January 29, 2009

We Are Starving...

Well, don't feel too bad for us! We are only hungry because we cut off the food train! Doug and I started the Feb. Challenge a few days early so that we can be ready for our Health Assessment. It is on Feb 10th and you have to have a better score than last year or you have to pay more for your insurance...YIKES!

I am hungry but I really do feel good! I am trying to remember that food is just fuel. It is just what gets you through the day. All the cookies, crackers and cheese and fast food is just something that we want. I really don't need it!

These last four days have been UBER tough on Doug! He is hungry and I don't think he is use to that feeling! The hardest part for him has been not eating or DRINKING (other than water) three hours before bed. He likes to have a beer or three while watching TV.

Here is the good news. We have both lost three pounds, BUT better yet my favorite jeans fit pretty good right now!

Give the Feb. Challenge a shot...but be ready for it to be hard! Details are in the last post or on Facebook under February Challenge.

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Feb. Challenge...YOU CAN DO IT!

Every year my friend Wendy does a February Challenge. This is the 10th year in a row and I think you should try it too! She gives us a challenge that seems almost impossible but reminds us that February is ONLY 28 days! So you can really do anything for 28 days, RIGHT??? Two years ago I started the Feb. Challenge and continued on to lose 20 pounds! I kept it off for this long and now I would like to lose some more!

Here is the challenge:

Starting February 1st, you must agree to follow 4 of the 6 rules posted for the entire 4 weeks. You pick the 4 that make the most sense for your goals. You must follow them to the letter!! However, you are allowed one mulligan during the month (keep in mind that the Super Bowl is on Feb. 1st and of course, Valentines Day could be an issue for some).

The Rules:

1. No eating within 3 hours of bedtime.
2. Eat 8 servings of fruits and veggies per day.
3. Exercise minimum of 1 hour per day, 6 days a week.
4. 8 glasses of water per day (no, wine doesn't count as a substitute).
5. Get minimum of 7 hours sleep every night.
6. Calorie challenge for those who want to lose a few lbs.
Men: 3 meals a day of 500 calories each plus 3 snacks of 200 calories.
Women: 3 meals a day of 400 calories plus 3 snacks of 100 calories.

Remember, it's just for 4 short weeks!!!

Follow the February Challenge on Facebook!! Let us know how you are doing!!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

New Madonna...and New Louis Vuitton Purses



What about getting a few of these purses for Pick Your Purse?!? WOW! LOVE THEM!

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Barack and Michelle Dance the Night AWAY!



This was so magical! I loved her dress and they really seem to groove on each other!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

OBAMA Mania!


Would you wear these shoes?

Monday, January 19, 2009

OBAMA...FEVER!

MySpace Celebrity and Katalyst present The Presidential Pledge

35 Below Zero has NOTHING on me!

It was so cold here for three straight days! Two of the days I headed out to Calumet County Park to snow shoe! In the woods it was warmer but still our eye lashes froze! It was a blast! I like to see if I can take whatever mother nature can dish out! The best part was the initiation into a Wisconsin Facial...at the end of the day we took off our hats and stuck our heads into the snow. At first I thought my friend Jim was punking me...but he did it first so I figured why not! It was crazy but fun! Hope to get back out there today!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Snow Shoeing When it is -15 below!

I went snow shoeing yesterday with my friend Jim! We were deep in the woods and there was NO WIND! It was amazing! The sun was shining and we even saw some deer. We went 4.7 miles and worked up a MAJOR sweat! We went up huge hills, out on the lake, up some crazy rocks...it was like a movie! If you have never tried snow shoeing you should try it some time!! It was -15 below with the wind but we were toasty and we burned some serious calories!!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

AMERICAN IDOL!



Ok this cracked me up! Ryan high fives the blind guy!

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Trying to think WARM Thoughts....

It is so cold I just had to pull out my favorite photo from this past summer. This is a photo of our son Cole (he would DIE if he knew I posted this!) We are at Peninsula State Park on our boat! We had so much fun this day just swimming and playing catch! There were a million boats in the bay by the end of the day! I love this photo because Cole is so tan and looks so happy behind the steering wheel...HE LOVES to drive our boat!

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Anniversary Ski...

Doug and I just celebrated our anniversary! It was a blast! We went to Iola to night cross country ski! Skiing under the lights, up and down those huge hills was AMAZING! We even skied the back field where they have no lights. It was a full moon and there were actually moon shadows. We skied with some really great friends and went out to dinner after...and it just could NOT have been any better!

And yes, Doug had a beer after the ski...how could I say no to that?!?! After what I put him through....he may have needed a few more!

We will see how sore he is today...this is when he may need the six pack!

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Facebook

My entire family is now on Facebook! The three boys in the photo are my nephews. We call them the Love Brothers! They are my youngest brothers kids! They are as sweet as they look!

It is so fun to keep in touch with everyone! We all live in different states and it is hard to keep up!! Facebook changed that for sure...I love seeing all the photos! I feel like I talk to my family every single day now!

Teaching Kids to Ski


I love this photo of Doug and Emma! These two had a blast skiing together at Norway Mountain. She was having a tough time at first but he really had a LOT of patience (way more than I had) with her and they skied the rest of the day together!

If you listened to the show today, Doug is wearing the infamous bib's he swears he bought in the ninth grade!


Monday, January 5, 2009

Doug and Mary's Ski Vacation!




We skied so much this vacation it was CRAZY! Cole is the snowboarder...although Emma did take a lesson and loved it! Doug and I love seeing the kids ski! They have learned so much over the years.

I also cross country skied with some friends and that was hardcore! I didn't know my heart rate could go that high! I had fun and really learned a lot about that sport!

Glad to be home and not wearing ski boots today!

Mary