It’s Up to YOU

Have you ever caught yourself responding to a question that sounded like this: “I can’t change.  I was born this way.  This is just the way I am.”? Often times we find ourselves stuck in a rut or unwilling to try something new because we are convinced we were born with limitations and are unable to change.  This is not true.  The power to take control of your thoughts and actions is Up TO one person… YOU!

I would consider myself to be a pretty OpTiMisTic person, but I admit I haven’t always been that way.  There was a time in my life when I struggled with depression and didn’t think very highly of myself.  Over time I came to believe if I wanted life to be better, ultimately the change was up to me.  What did I have to lose? Although results weren’t immediate, anything would be better than keeping with my current state of mind.

Even today, I have to remind myself I have the PoweR to ChangE.  Life always presents new challenges and it’s UP TO ME to determine how to respond to them.  I may start the day stubbing my toe, but I will be the one to determine if it will ruin the rest of my day.  Is there something in your life you want to change?  Do you feel like you are in a rut?  Just remember, the only thing holding you back is yourself!

~Lara

Meet Walter

LiFe LeSsOnS can come from many sources. 

Meet WaLtEr. 

This is our 11-year old ChOcOLatE lab.  When I got married he was part of the deal.  At first I wasn’t real thrilled with this bundle of energy.   He was not yet two-years old, a male (obviously), and came from a line of field champions.  Since that time I’ve come to love this dog.  In fact, I’ve never met another dog like Walter.  For one, he thinks he is human.  He acts like it too.  So much so, that when friends and family come over they just can’t help but laugh at him.  Whether it be helping himself to the crock-pot of chili on the counter and dumping it on the floor, opening a door, or escaping from several confinement scenarios, he always keeps us entertained.

You’ll hear more in the future from Walter, but for now he would like to leave you with his favorite quote.  It comes from WiNsToN ChUrChiLL:

“never, NeVeR, NEVER GiVe Up!”

Robynn~

The Grass Is Always Greener

Some of the best advice my parents gave me was this: If you ever want what someone else has, then be prepared to take all that comes with it!

It is easy to look at another person’s life and pick and choose what we would want for our own, but be sure to ReMinD yourself that no situation is PERFECT. Being a celebrity would mean wealth and fame but it also means being followed by paparazzi and never getting privacy. Being a successful business owner means having the freedom of being your own boss but it also means working around the clock. I’m not saying that these positions are bad, but it is easy to only want one part of that life without the other. Unfortunately picking and choosing isn’t ReaLitY.

When finding yourself discouraged that your life isn’t as good as the family down the street, be sure to look closely at everything that comes with it. Often times you’ll realize that switching lives with them may not be worth giving up all the bLeSSinGs you have after all!

~Lara

(Thanks Mom and Dad for helping me realize this VERY early in life. I wouldn’t change my life growing up as a farm kid for anything!)

“Confidence Boost” – The Challenge (Wk 8)

Many times when we start off towards a goal or dream, it is because we are unsatisfied with some area in our life.  It may be that we have failed miserably and are hoping to make a change.  Misery after all, can be a GrEaT mOtiVaTor.  If that is the case, then, how can we gain confidence if we don’t have many successes under our belt?

I have found the best way to RacK uP sUcCeSs is one small step at a time.  This is really important because success breeds success.  How do you do this?  By setting a goal that is just at the end of your fingertips.  Something small and attainable, but also something that is going to require you to do something that you haven’t already done.  Then, as you begin to experience success you can little by little set bigger goals.

Don’t overlook the PoWeR of achieving a small goal!  I originally would look down on setting small goals.  They didn’t seem challenging enough to me, so I never set any.  My goals were always BIG ones that had no guarantees and were much riskier.  They were also few and far between.  This was a huge mistake because I missed out on laying a foundation of successes.

If your goal is to get organized, don’t think that organization means spending an entire Saturday getting your messy space organized.  Your small step of success may be to spend 15 minutes a day on that project.  Each time you spend 15 minutes towards this goal, you have chalked up a success.  Do this for seven days and you have seven successes tallied up!  Maybe you are far from seeing that space organized, but you getting closer to your goal and are developing CoNfiDenCe because you are experiencing success.

This approach allows you to succeed every day.  What are the small steps you can take beginning today?

Enjoy Your Small Successes Today!

~Robynn

P.S.  Today’s post is an excerpt from a book I’m currently writing on my path to peace with food.  I’m writing this book in conjunction with our six-month challenge.  Thanks for the inspiration!

Hey Cow!!

S U M M E R  break officially (according to me) begins next weekend and many people are beginning to plan vacations and get-a ways.  If yours includes a road trip, here is a game you can play with your family to make the time go by faster!  My niece, a member of the BaKeR UniVerSitY softball team, told me about this game a couple of days ago and it made me laugh!  She and her teammates play it on their road trips.  The name of the game is “HeY CoW!!”  The object of this game is to yell out your window, “Hey Cow!!” every time you see a cow and see how many cows look at you.  Give yourself a point for each cow that looks your way.  Take turns and see who has tallied the most points by the end of the trip.  That person is the WiNnEr!

Have a favorite game you like to play when traveling?  Mind sharing? Comment below!!

Hello Summer!!

Robynn~

Only Skin Deep

This year has been an eye-opening one when it comes to taking BeTTeR CaRe of my skin.  Shortly after my 27th birthday I had 4 pre-cancerous moles, which involved having them surgically removed and  unfortunately leaving me with 2 scars on my stomach, one on my face and 1 on my arm.  I don’t spend much time in the sun but have had occasional sunburns in my life.  Skin cancer is serious stuff, but nothing to be afraid of as long as you keep a close eye on your skin changes.  I now wear makeup (or moisturizer) that has SPF 18 daily, get full body exams from my dermatologist every 6-12 months and MONITOR my skin REGULARLY.  This requires minimal effort, and as a result, keeps me healthy and worry free.

May is Melanoma Awareness Month.  Please watch and pass this video on to anyone you can.

~Lara

(*Although this scar on my arm is an obvious one, it serves as a great ReMinDeR to protect my skin on a daily basis.)

All-American Easy Apple Pie

ALL-AMERICAN EASY APPLE PIE!!

This recipe is as traditional as Baseball, Apple-Pie, and 4th Of July!

Ingredients:

12-13 Granny Smith Apples – Or The Apples Of Your Choice

1 Stick Of Butter

Cinnamon

6 Tbsp Flour (for thickening)

2 Pie Crusts

1 Cup Sugar and Sugar To Sprinkle On Crust

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees

Peel Apples

Enlist help!

This is the most time consuming aspect of making this pie!!

Slice apples.

This will seem like a ridulously insane amount of apples.

It is.Place pie crust in pie plate.

We will make this pie in three layers.

Layer One…

Add 1/3 of the apples.

This recipe is so simple your kids can help.

If you consider yourself a novice baker you now have no excuse!

As you’ll see, my 5-year old makes this entire pie!!

Layer One…

Add about 1/3 of the butter

Layer One…

Add cinnamon (as much or as little as you like).

Layer One…

Add 1/3 of the sugar.

Layer One…

Sprinkle 2 Tbsp of flour.

Repeat these steps for Layer Two…

And then do the same for Layer Three…

This is what the pie will look like after Layer Three has been added.

You definitely will get the “Biggest Bang For Your Buck” when it comes to apples in this pie!!

Cover pie with crust.

It probably won’t fit.

No worries. =)

You will have to stretch it a bit.

Use water to adhere pie crusts together.

This will hopefully keep the butter from oozing out during the baking process!

Adhere pie crusts.

Gently stretch the top pie crust so that it meets up with the bottom crust.

Using your fingers wet the pie crust edges and press together.

Water acts as a glue.

Brush the top of the pie with milk.

A pastry brush works great!

Sprinkle with sugar.

Or douse with sugar.

Whichever you prefer

 Vent with a knife.

Make pretty designs.

Sign your name if you wish.

Cover with tin foil.

Place on a cookie sheet also covered with tin foil.

Bake with tinfoil on pie for 30 minutes.

Take off tin foil.

Continue to bake pie for an additional 40 minutes.

Or until apples are bubbling.

Finished Product!

YUMMY-LICIOUS!!

Add Ice-Cream.

F.Y.I.  I love Vanilla Bean.

Enjoy!!

Thanks for the inspiration, Jill!

~Robynn

$35 Well Spent

My daughter LOVES StarFall! Starfall.com is a FREE website that teaches children how to read and write. When I first heard about Starfall my daughter was 2 ½ years old. After introducing Starfall to her she quickly learned her alphabet and letter sounds. This website is so FuN and EnGaginG that children don’t realize they are learning!

Starfall recently added an extended version to their website. Spend $35 and receive a 1-year membership that will include math songs, colors, nursery rhyme videos and much more! We purchased the membership and our whole family loves it. I try to sit down with Leanne when she wants to get on Starfall so we can share in the activities together. What a great way to INTERACT and help your child LEARN!

At the VERY least, try out the FREE version and share this wonderful website with others!

www.starfall.com

~Lara

“800 Pound Gorilla In The Room” – The Challenge (Wk 7)

We all seem to have that InFaMoUs GoRillA hanging around – that thing that is larger than life, distracting, paralyzing, and oh so annoying.

My 800 pound gorilla?  “All-Or-Nothing” thinking.  I’m not sure why I deal with this issue.  I’ve tried to trace it back to my childhood, my personality and a host of other psychological explanations, but to no avail.  Sometimes it really doesn’t matter “why”, you just need to get on with it and deal with the “what”.

This issue first surfaced for me as af freshman in college.  In high school I was a good student.  I did exactly what my teachers asked and as a result got A’s and B’s.  However, when I went to college and realized I could not read the 1,000 pages assigned in a particular class for one week I threw up my hands and simply gave up.  I never got any D’s, but I did get plenty of C’s – something that previously was foreign to me.  My “All-Or-Nothing mindset just wouldn’t let me AdApT aNd AdJuSt to the situation.  I made it through college alright, but did so disappointed, knowing that I did not reach my potential and definitely did not give it my best.

As time went on my “All-Or-Nothing” thinking continued to plague me in other areas of my life until I finally said, “EnOuGh!”

(I’ll share how I’ve learned to deal with this issue in future posts.  So, stay tuned…!)

I may not have mastered this entirely (YET) but the one thing I have to say is. . .

“GOOD RIDDANCE MR. GORILLA!!”

~Robynn

Adapted from my book on peace with food.