Got Junk in YOUR Trunk?

Well, then give it to me! No, seriously, I need your junk.

I'm proud to announce that I will happily be hosting a monster, mammoth, no-holds-barred garage sale this summer in which ALL the proceeds will go toward the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. There's just one problem: I need stuff to sell!

I need you to hunt, gather, and pillage your homes if you have to! Get rid of all that crap that just sits around collecting dust. Run amock through your attic, your junk drawers, your spare closets, and even your spouse's things (trust me, they'll never know you did!).

I am more than willing to make house calls to pick up your stuff (insert disclaimer here for all of my wonderful friends and family scattered from Houston to Austin to Nashville).

If you can't tell, I'm pretty desperate...I have my fare share of crapola, don't get me wrong, but I sure don't have enough to make this the biggest, baddest-ass garage sale my street has ever seen.

So let me get that junk out of YOUR trunk for you! It'll feel great, I promise!!

My pack-rat guest room closet. Stuff goes in and never makes it out. Including the house guests.
Don't laugh. You know you have one, too. Now let's purge it people! Go! Go! Go!

And He's Off!!

Boy, Landon has been busy lately! He's started to get adventurous taking his first steps (which can be an amusing spectacle to witness....see video below). And as I speak, my little man is in Hawaii with his parents and Grams and Pops! I'm sure his super cute diaper-butt in board shorts will steal all the hearts of the ladies on the beach and I can't wait to see pictures of his first vacation!



I, on the other hand, am recovering from an insanely crazy week at work. I only got a couple of workouts in and the diet wasn't much better but on the bright side, I've gotten up to the 2-mile mark now that I've picked back up again! Today Scott and I went shopping and reached the dawn of a new era: new running shoes. It doesn't sound like a big deal, but I officially went from the old ratty tennis shoes I've had for over a year to the specialized Brooks running shoe (complete with orthotics...boy that makes me sound old)!
We got my feet analyzed by someone who actually knows what they're talking about and as it turns out, I have arches that are about to collapse, causing me pronation. Hooray. Not to mention that I am carrying around more weight than most runners, so a nice stability shoe was just what I needed. We'll see how many times I trip in them before adjusting--they feel a lot different than the old ones! Now THAT will be a video worth posting...

Fiddle-dee-dee, I'm a Leprechaun You See!

Okay, so several of you have inquired about this tire-flipping thing that I have referred to in past posts, and today I thought I'd give you a little video snippet so you can get the whole picture. Keep in mind, I usually do several sets of these tire-flipping things, and in the video I seem to make it look kind of easy, but rest assured, it's not. Especially since the Bergernator has me do sprints after I get done with the last flip (I do not sprint in this video...there's a little too much shaking and flopping going on when I sprint!).

Also, sorry about all the bum you are about to see...The angle really doesn't accentuate, well, anything, but you get a nice butt-shot, that's for sure (my apologies)!

And another thing...you may be curious about the title of today's post. When I first watched this video, I laughed so hard I nearly peed my pants. I kind of look like a leprechaun with a giant tire and the bending over is just really funny looking. Plus, if you have sound you'll notice birds singing against the green backdrop, just like in good ol' Ireland! So, feel free to have a good laugh at my expense...I sure did!

Oh Happy Day!

Wow, what a great day! I mean, who doesn't love Saturdays anyway, but this one was exceptional! I actually got to sleep in for once which happens less and less often these days so I cherish them when they do happen.

After a leisurely breakfast, I went for a jog around the trail in our neighborhood and made it the furthest yet..about 1.65 miles! It was really hot and muggy and I think I could have done more, but it felt great to do even that much since I have never gotten that far before!

Next it was time to shower and the grand event of the day: a one-hour massage to celebrate the first 10 lb. loss! I had been counting down the hours and let me tell you...it was heaven on earth! I've had a fair share of massages in my day and I was a little nervous about trying someone new, but I really think this was the best of the best to date. For one hour, only the sounds of soothing music filled my ears. I snuggled down into the most comfortable, heated massage table I have ever been on, with the softest sheets, ever. The room was dark with no windows and no natural light and I had to force myself not to fall asleep. My mind turned to mush and I stayed in a dream-like state while the awesome masseuse massaged my back, legs, arms, feet, hands, and my personal favorite: the head and neck/shoulder area. When she told me she was finished, I almost said out loud, "No." For future reference, they do offer an 85-minute massage...

I went home all loosey-goosey and when I got there, Scott wanted to go to a movie. Wow, I am on a roll today...sleep, workout, massage, AND a movie?! Sweet!

At first, I was less than thrilled that he wanted to go see the new movie Star Trek (no, neither of us are Trekkies nor do we even like sci-fi). But I gave in, because, hey, we are both so busy these days that I just wanted to be with my man at the movies..no matter what movie. And it turned out to actually be pretty darned good (not to mention that we snuck in Freebirds!).

And last but definitely not least, I even got around to editing the pictures from Landon's 1st birthday party. My sister and her husband did a great job planning the party and it was so much fun!

Landon all smiles waiting for his party to begin..

My sister made THE most adorable monkey cupcakes!

Monkeys everywhere!

I love his little feet!

Great Papa and Mama are here!

Show time! Amy not wanting Landon to go for the candle!

Landon hearing the happy birthday song for the first time and wondering what he should do with that thing in front of him...

Presents! Is that a monkey box I see??

Elmo knows how to make Landon laugh!

Birthday Boy with Grams and Pops...

Landon, Uncle Brad and cousin Chris

Love your shirt Landon! Happy birthday my love!

Do You Hear That???

Shhhh....do you hear that? Yes, that's correct. That, my friends, is the sound of angels singing!!!
"Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Laura reached the 10 pound mark! Hallelujah!"

Oh, but not just the 10 lb. mark, but actually 10.5 pounds to be exact! And you know what that means...massage time! --insert angels singing again here--

Needless to say, that definitely started my day off on the right track! I'm a little sore today since my training session yesterday was a little different. Usually I have a training session followed by a good cardio workout but yesterday I was on a weird schedule and did cardio first. I ran 1.5 miles straight on the treadmill at the gym and I thought Wade was going to take it easy on me since I had already been working my legs...but, it was still leg day, and he made me do it anyway...and I made it through! Which now leads me to wonder if I should start doing cardio first...it was a great workout (and almost a little easier than usual)!

And did anyone catch "The Biggest Loser" tonight? Wow, talk about emotional! I don't usually watch that show but they were making the 4 finalists run a marathon and they all did it! Two of them even walked the whole thing! It was very inspirational and watching them really made me see that I can do this...I am working hard and I can get there--it's just so easy to doubt myself. I still have a really long way to go but I've made great strides in the past 10 weeks so I'm looking forward to the next 8 months!

Eat Your Heart Out Betty Crocker...

Yesterday a dear friend of mine from college came in for a visit. Cassie is one of those friends who would do anything for you...she encourages, is genuinely interested in what you have to say, and she makes you laugh...A LOT!

Cas, like myself, is a busy girl, and on this particular visit we were only going to have a couple of hours to see each other for lunch. Now, normally on these short visits, we would dash over to one of our favorite restaurants, Cheddar's, order the chips and queso and go to town. Well, I would go to town on the queso and Cas would be lucky if she got a few morsels down before I devoured the whole thing (come to think of it, this happens with Meghan, too...sorry Meghan!).

Being the awesome friend that she is, she agreed to cook in at my house as a healthier alternative to the chicken tender salad with ranch dressing at Cheddar's. Cas came over with a recipe of whole wheat pasta, zucchini, onions, garlic, tomatoes and EVOO (that's extra virgin olive oil for all you non-Rachael Ray fans). She even brought me my very own apron from Anthropologie (which I have been wanting forever!).

We immediately went to work and before we knew, it...bam! A perfect lunch complete with yummy bruschetta!

A recipe for a great afternoon:

1. Fresh, organic ingredients

2. The right pots, pans, and utensils
3. A good brand of whole-wheat pasta

4. Simmered and sauteed vegetables

5. Desert! Orange slices and strawberries dipped in dark chocolate

6. A great friend, a ton of laughs, and time to act like a nut without a care in the world!