Reflections and intentions: August

Despite my best intentions, it's been a while since I set aside to determine my goals for the month and reflect on last month's goals.

Oh well - here are July/August reflections and intentions... a few days late!!

Last month:  

1) Finish the art project we started in JUNE.  

Yes, we finally did!!  It looks great.  

We found a neat photo of a bike online and modified it so that it would look like a tandem bike. 

2) Work at least 10-20 minutes of Spanish practice in 5 days a week 

I made a more conscious effort to practice my Spanish, but I fell short on this goal.  

3) Translate several documents at work into Spanish 

Yes, I accomplished this goal with the help of one of my co-workers!  We now have many really important documents that the Spanish speaking public will need (information about our low-cost vaccine clinic, how to surrender, information about heartworm testing and prevention, etc.).  

4) Get up to 10 miles like my running training guide says

I actually surpassed this goal and completed an 11 mile run.  I am very pleased to say that I will be completing a 14 mile run this weekend which is a big deal for me - the furthest I have ever run is 13.1 miles (the distance of a mini marathon).  

5) Clean out my car

We'll consider this one an utter failure.  I have been really busy with work, my volunteering, training schedule, and spending time with Aaron.  Unfortunately, I do not prioritize my domestic duties.  I try to push myself to live differently - more boldly and interestingly - so that usually means that I push household duties to the side in order to spend the most time doing things that are fulfilling to me.  Let's just say I maintain the household cleaning begrudgingly and sometimes let the laundry pile up  

Goals for August: 

1) Work out 5 days a week - I started this goal at the beginning of August and have been successful so far.  

2) Make travel plans for a conference for work that I am attending at the end of October. 

3) Plan a fun activity with my mom (it feels like I haven't spent quality time with her in a while!) 

4) Complete two sewing projects that have been on my list (see my comments above about putting off domestic chores!) 

5) Finish the book I'm reading for marathon inspiration: http://www.amazon.com/Second-Wind-Midlife-Marathons-Continents/dp/1580053076

6) Write a journal entry chronicling my thoughts about starting a new position at the Humane Society.  I will be the new office manager at the Indianapolis Animal Welfare Center.  I will also (hopefully) get to dedicate more time to one of our outreach programs too - http://spayindiana.org/

7) Plan our 2 year wedding anniversary celebration for September!
8) Keep up my Spanish practice but not worry too much about sticking to 5 days a week.  Starting a new position will be hard enough - I don't need to overwhelm myself too much!

I am not a runner: my insecurities and excitement about completing a full marathon

I am in disbelief - I just signed up for a full marathon.  I feel excited, scared, and a little crazy!

Aaron and I completed two mini marathons last year, and I LOVED them.  I am not at all the type of person who would say she loves to run, but the race atmosphere is so much fun, and it feels great to complete the race. 

It's also a lot of fun to see how you change and improve during your training.  A transformation also happens in your attitude: the beginning of training can be tough, but you start to look forward to your workouts and feel excited to beat your prior times.

I am the type of person who LOVES goals and to-do lists.  I constantly need something to work towards to push myself because I crave challenge and new experiences, so doing this marathon is right up my alley!

I have been training for several months already to get myself into shape prior to the REAL workouts, and I promised myself that I wouldn't sign  up for the race or buy myself a new pair of shoes until I really started to look forward to my workouts.

So, last week, I bought myself a new pair of shoes and retired my old, ugly, worn out pair.  I chose the Saucony Kinvarna 2 shoes.  Aren't they beautiful?  They feel great!

I also signed up for my race (tonight!), and while I am SUPER excited, I am a little scared.  Of course, I am afraid of moving beyond my comfort zone and doubling the race length that I've done in the past, but I am also worried about my time.

I am planning to run most of the course, but I am not so competitive yet that I am unwilling to do a little walking.  I am afraid I will feel embarrassed about my time because I am "not a real runner."

Certainly, just finishing is an accomplishment in itself, and I must remind myself of that.  I am going to join a running group like Blue Mile to improve my time (I am very competitive and anticipate that I will push myself harder in a group setting!). 

Reflections and Intentions

Let's review June!   

1) Stick to the workout goals I set for myself:
I did a terrible job - I skipped an entire week of running.  I got a little burned out on running from doing so much, so I started throwing in other sports into the mix to keep it interesting.  So far, so good!

2) Plan a creative date night for us:
For Christmas, I promised Aaron a monthly surprise in 2012.  Instead of a date, I bought him a book about cycling.... that I ended up reading too : )

It's a great read about a guy whose life was changed through cycling: http://www.amazon.com/Heft-Wheels-Field-Guide-Doing/dp/1400052416

3) Finish the art project (that we already started) for our spare bedroom:
I made progress, but it's not done.   Will post pictures when it's completed!

4) Survive living with 4 dogs in our house for a week:
We watched my parents' pair of chihuahuas while they were on vacation.  One of them is pretty unruly, but he turned out to be pretty fun.... except when he darted out of the house late one night, and I had to chase after him in my pajamas and flip flops.  Hello neighbors!

Here's a cute video of him playing with Angel (never mind my laughing!):


Aren't the sounds he makes hilarious?

5) Get mulch for the flower garden:
The weather decided to turn 100 degrees all of a sudden, so this may be a fall project....

6) Create a proposal for the Indianapolis Animal Welfare Alliance board to involve other groups' volunteers for the food pantry:
SUCCESS!  I presented to the board about getting all of the member groups involved with providing the food pantry with volunteers, and they were very supportive of the endeavor.  One group has already helped with providing volunteers.

More about the Alliance here: http://indyanimalalliance.org/

7) Make headway on a large and exciting project for the pet foo pantry:
I made progress on this goal, but I am not quiiiiite ready to share details!

Ok, now for July intentions (a little late now that we're halfway through the month!): 

1) Finally finish that stinking art project!!!!
2) Work at least 10 - 20 minutes of Spanish practice in 5 days a week
3) Translate several documents at work into Spanish (this can double count for #2!)
4) Get up to 10 miles like my running training guide says (this should be fairly easy as I've already completed several 9 mile runs in the past month).
5) Clean out my car

Let's BAKE!

I have been thinking about the topic of cooperation vs. competition.  So often, we are afraid that someone else's successes will result in lost opportunities for ourselves.  Perhaps the individualistic tendencies of the United States has contributed to this type of thinking, but I couldn't disagree more.

When I stumbled across this blog article recently, I knew I had to share it: http://www.becomingminimalist.com/2012/06/16/helping-others-succeed/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+becomingminimalistcom+%28becomingminimalist.com%29

It discusses that very issue and explores the wonderful outcomes that can accompany encouragement, sharing, and cooperation with others.  Can you imagine what could be accomplished if we (as coworkers, friends, family members, organizations, churches, businesses, etc.) resolved to support one another?

Some think the pie is finite, but if we work together, we can make the pie bigger.  So, let's BAKE!

Reflections and plans: June

Just as soon you think Summer has arrived in Indianapolis, the weather changes its mind!  I had to bring my coleus plant in from outside this evening (it cannot live when the temperature dips below 65 degrees).

Here are my goals for the month of June:
- Stick to my workout goals that I've set out to do on my schedule
- Plan a creative date night for us.
* For Christmas, I gave Aaron the gift of a monthly surprise or date night each month in 2012.  In May, I took him to our favorite comedy club.
- Finish the art project (that I already started!) for our spare bedroom
- Survive living in a house with 4 dogs for a week (we are watching my parents dogs as they leave for town on their vacation).
- Get mulch for our flower gardens
- Create a proposal for the Indianapolis Animal Welfare Alliance board about getting the other group's involvement in the pet food pantry.
- Make headway on a large and exciting project for the pet food pantry (more info on that later!).

Looks like June is going to be busy!

Finding breathing space

Saying goodbye and welcoming a new family member

Two years ago, Aaron and I were looking for a second cat to provide a companion for our cat, Long John. Around that time, Aaron was touring Johnson County Animal Care and Control and while he was there, a Siamese cat was being surrendered. Because he'd already been surrendered there before, he would have likely been euthanized.

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He brought him home and surprised me that night with a little bundle in his arms. Within a couple of months, we noticed that Oliver had some litter box issues and had some skin problems. We took him to the vet and had a urinalysis and had his skin checked out. We also noticed that he was pretty impatient with Long John.

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Over a two year period, we made many trips to the vet and checked for all kinds of skin issues (from ring worm to mange) and allergies. We tested different types of food, litter boxes, litter substrates, and litter depths. We isolated him in a room by himself, and then rotated every other day with the other cats (we eventually got a 3rd cat). We tried three different types of medications to alter his mood to stop the overgrooming and self-mutilation.

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He came to us declawed, so he would not have made an ideal barn cat (in addition to the potential for infection from his skin issues), and so I asked friends and colleagues who'd had animals with behavioral issues for their advice. I also consulted with a vet who is working to become a behaviorist. Visibly he wasn't suffering, but clearly he was miserable. We chose to let him go several weeks ago, and we miss him terribly. I would love to extend a very sincere thank you to my friend Lise Greil (www.lisegreil.com/) for taking some wonderful photos of him before we said goodbye.
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Whenever I think about him, I feel very sad and start to miss him so badly that it hurts physically. My heart is broken, and I just wish that things had been different. We will be using his "room" as a dedicated foster cat room in his honor. I am so happy to have known him and glad that we gave him the best chance possible. Without a doubt, we will always miss him and his adorable ways; from his chirpy meow to his sweetness and affection.
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A few months before saying goodbye to Oliver, we welcomed a new member to our family. He's been a part of our household since the beginning of January, and we officially adopted him in February. He's very different because he was born with only two legs - just the back ones. He walks upright but does many things normally.
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He plays with Angel, our pit bull mix, and he likes to play with toys. He runs and jumps, and of course, enjoys treats! I take him to the shelter with me almost every day for work; he draws a lot of attention during potty breaks. It is so strange - we often are filmed or photographed. We love him so much already and cannot imagine our lives without him!
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A lot of people dive right in and try to pet him, but they don't realize that he is very shy. I try to warn people to go slowly, but they often do not listen. If you ever get a chance to meet the handsome little guy who has stolen our hearts - please go slowly!
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