#blogjune Post 19 - Words

This post I'm going to do something different and as there are no rules for #blogjune, I'm guessing it's ok.

Today I'm sharing local author, Jenn J McLeod's post: A sad and angry sea - and we grieve

I hope you all take time to read Jenn's post and also read her books!

As a runner, it is common, being out on the streets/parks early, that you might be the first to discover something - even a dead body.  It is one of my fears that this may happen to me one day.  And as Jenn and her partner experienced with walking the beach - there have been times walking our local beach during a time when someone has gone missing at sea that you worry it might be you that discovers the body.

Sorry to be a bit depressive this morning - it's raining, it's Sunday and it's work tomorrow - the mood suits!  Actually, I have a Body Shop party to go to in a few hours so the mood is set to pick up.  And not to be too humorous but I did not the link with bodies and Body Shop!

I promise a much lighter post tomorrow!

Strive to be more you than you've ever been #blogjune #15

Today's mantra: Strive to be more you than you've ever been.

Today we conquered a walk. A walk that we've been wanting to do as a family for a while but just have never got round to it.  So at 10am we drove to Wenonah beach.  Got out of the car and headed South to Valla Beach along the beach.

I estimated that it would be around 4.5k - well it was 5k down the beach and another 5k back so 10k in total and we did it.  My husband's feet were a bit sore and mine were a bit too - bare foot on hard sand will do that to you.

Miss A only had one melt down due to not being allowed to go swimming - it was still cold.

As a family we spent 2 hours together doing exercise!!

Strive to be more you than you've ever been - I'm not sure the world is ready for more of me!!!

On the second day of Christmas....

I completed a 16.72km run (longest yet), solved a Furby Boom crisis when Miss A's Furby decided to take on a male voice with a distinctive English accent, watched most of the Location, Location, Location Australia marathon (it continues tonight), took Miss A to the park, went for a walk which turned into a run due to a incoming storm, and completed numerous laps of the hallway (plus push ups, squats and star jumps) to keep Miss A moving instead of becoming a square eyed computer nerd.

Back to the Furby Boom.  Miss A got a Furby Boom from Santa.  These creatures are quite amazing, especially coupled with the app that Miss A has installed on her/my tablet.

They apparently develop a personality based on how they are treated.  I was a little confused as to why Miss A's decided to take a on English accented male this morning.  It did a little crazy thing and yelled out "I'm changing" and boom there it is!!  So Miss A was in tears begging me to get her Furby back to the cute baby voice - apparently Princess/Cute - original personality.

Thank goodness I'm a librarian and have research skills - actually all I did was a google search on Furby's changing voice and boom there it is!!  Play some calming music and stroke your Furby to get it back to "nice."  Problem solved!

Really I have to wonder, what did we do for entertainment as kids?!?  Now they have these interactive toys that take on personalities!

Moving along... Miss A has been doing a lot of sit down activities since the holidays started - e.g. watching YouTube videos about Minecraft, playing Minecraft on both PC and tablet, and now playing with Furby.  So as I have embarked on a fitness phase (ok I'm not going to think of it as a phase - it is permanent lifestyle change), I needed to set some rules.  After finishing each activity, Miss A has to run up and down the hallway 5 times (up and back count as 1).

As I was watching so much TV, I thought I would join in and up the challenge each time by adding some extra exercises.  We are now doing 5 laps of the hallway, 5 push ups, 5 squats and 5 star jumps).  She is really enjoying it.

So what did you do on the second day of Christmas?

PS.  I have a blog correction to make from my last post: Librarian in the Mirror is now posting as Rach Wray, and Polyxena and Shewgirl are also joining in the fun.

On the first day of Christmas...

I watched Miss A unwrap her presents this morning, went for a walk along the beach, and relaxed watching trashy TV.

So here we are another year gone and back to #blog12daysxmas.  For those that haven't been here before, the rules are you have to do a blog post for 12 days from Christmas.  There are a few fellow #blog12daysxmas participants including Bun-toting Librarian and Librarian in the Mirror.  I'm sure there will be more and I'll post them on my posts as I come across them.

You can write a post about anything really.  Mine usually sway between librarianship and semi-personal things.  But this time it will most likely focus a fair bit on running and fitness - just because I'm in the phase at the moment.

Reflecting on the past year (and I'll probably do more of this in a New Year's Day post), the big things that stand out for me are:

• starting bootcamp
• losing over 10kg
• running two 10km fun runs

You can now understand how this blog may sway towards the fitness side of things during #blog12daysxmas

So what have been your big achievements for this year? 

It would be good if a few new faces joined in #blog12daysxmas.  Don't be shy - join in the fun!  There may even be blog challenges along the way!!  Bun-toting librarian often does a musical challenge.  And then there are the blog meme's that help on those days where you are suffering writers block.

Blog12daysxmas Post 9 - Perseverance

Today's Destiny Card is Perseverance.

On the 9th day of Christmas... I reflected on how far I have come as a swimmer.  A swimmer you ask??  Yes a swimmer.

Back in 2010, fellow council employees who I had been doing lunch time walks with convinced me I should join them swimming laps at the council pool at lunch time during summer.

Don't get me wrong, I can swim but I don't swim correctly.  I swim with my head above water and I wouldn't say my strokes are 100% correct either.  But it gets me from A to B and it proved to be quite the exercise I needed - a change is as good as anything.

So every swimming season (Oct-Apr) since 2010 I have been doing laps with my fellow exercise nuts at lunch time.

Last season I had worked up to 50 laps of a 25m pool but this year I've been pushing to do 40 so I'm thinking my counting was really wrong last season or I really am slower this season.  But the reason I am slower this season.... is because this season I was pressured into purchasing some goggles and putting my head under water!!

I should start by explaining why I hadn't stuck my head under water previously - it all comes down to breathing and psychology.  I suffer from allergies (unsure what to) and so my nose is often blocked or running so I find it important to be able to breathe at any point in time without having to think about lifting my head out of water.  I also suffer from claustrophobia so find goggles restrict my sight resulting in a sense of being closed in.  And I hold my breath when going under water instead of blowing bubbles.

So I had three things to overcome.

I started by doing my laps as normal but sticking my head under and blowing bubbles when using my kick board.

I then started sticking my head under and blowing bubbles when doing breast stroke.

Freestyle took a bit longer to manage.  Possibly because it puffs me out the most so I feel I need to breathe the most when doing it.

But finally, after four weeks I have mastered it - I have persevered and I am now doing all strokes - well free style and breast stroke with my head underwater.

It is funny though, because when I blow bubbles I humm.  And I count while I'm humming when I do free style so I know when to turn my head to breath.

It is a work in progress because it is not perfect and I have moments of panic.  But perseverance has prevailed and now I wonder what else I can achieve!!

Today Miss A (thanks @lv2photoWorld) and I are going to the pool for a splash - Miss A has regular swimming lessons during school term but she has never been in a "big" pool.  I won't be swimming laps but at least when I do a few strokes I'll be doing them correctly in front of my child.

Blog June Post 24 - Hey Hey it was Saturday

Ok so it's really cold this morning.  When we woke up at 8am it was 4.4'C.  But I promise I won't talk about the cold other than to say I hate it!!

While today is Sunday, I am going to talk about our usual Saturday routine.

Saturday is chore day for me.  I like that I don't have to go to work but I hate that I have to do silly things like washing, shopping, cleaning when I'd rather do nothing.

So the day starts around 7-7.30am when I get up - and everyone else remains in bed.  I put the first load of washing on and then sit down to eat breakfast and do the usualy computer routine - check emails, facebook, twitter, google reader and then since it's June, write my blog post.

Then I hang first load of wash and get second load on.  If it's a good day I only have two loads to do.  Yesterday I had to do three because hubby got up late and I had to wash our sheets.

By 10am we are out the door to do shopping - usually small one and me - hubby doesn't like shopping.  Yesterday he and our neighbour had to go to Bunnings so they dropped us off at the shopping centre and did Bunnings while I did groceries.

Small one was supposed to have a friend sleep over but her mum called and said she had the flu so small one was upset.  Bribery occured with me promising to get a small toy to compensate for no one to play with that night.  We found a Pet Shop toy and all was good.

I hate grocery shopping.  It seems everyone is there and small one often runs around like a lunatic and gets in everyone's way.  I must say that I sometimes encourage the running but last time we did that, running from Kmart to Woolworths, small one had a stack and hurt herself - so no more running in the shopping centre.

Anyway, by the time I find everything on the list - I swear they just move things around to trick us all, everyone was at the checkout.  This always happens.  Without fail it seems the whole shop gets to the checkout at the same time.

We finally got out and bought small one a cheese and bacon roll and waited for hubby to come back.

Back home, time to unpack the shopping - sigh!!  Then have a quick bite of lunch.  Then off to small one's swimming lessons.  We go to a private pool that is heated and mostly covered by a shed.  The lessons go all year round.

Back home again and one of small one's friends from school shows up at the front door with overnight gear ready.  Her nana is there and asks if she can stay over - ummm, no.  You don't just turn up at someones house expecting them to take your granddaughter overnight without some pre arrangement.  However, this is very typical of this family.  They just show up unannounced and expect us to let their granddaughter stay and play.

I said that small one had been sick so she can play for a while and then maybe come back tomorrow morning - after 10am - and I'll take them down the park.

I hate being made to feel bad about something that is not my fault.  I can't believe that people will just do that.

So small one played with friend, I went for my afternoon walk.  On my walk I go for just over an hour.  It involves running up and down 30 steps 15 times, walking around the golf course, along the foreshores, out and back along the boardwalk, past the soccer fields and back home.  I then had a shower and settled down to finish Burning Lies by Helene Young.  Relax time!!

After watching some tv, we all went to bed.  Unfortunately, small one has been sick so she was complaining about a sore ear all night.  Not much sleep and then up earlyish for Sunday - sigh!!

So now I've had breakfast and am doing my computer routine.  I'll take the girls down to the park later and read the paper while they play - more on my thoughts on newspapers going electronic tomorrow.

Hope you had a great Saturday and may your Sunday be relaxing as well.