Thursday, February 24, 2011

Couch Potato No More

I want to give you all a little preview of the absolute miracle that I will be running a 5K this weekend...
About mid November, I started training to run a 5K.  I used the well-known Couch-to-5K Podcast program, and it has worked quite well!  In case you didn't know, a 5K is 3.1 miles long.  Although that isn't a crazy distance, it's really a challenge if you previously had zero experience in distance running or motivation. (That would be me)  So, I was inspired to start, and now here I am, 3 months later, about to run this thing for the first time in public... I could barely run a whole minute without being winded when I first started and now I've signed up for the Thin Mint Sprint in Mobile, AL this weekend (see link)

http://www.active.com/running/mobile-al/thin-mint-sprint-5k-and-fun-run-2011

I'm pretty intimidated and hope that I make it through.  I have this terrible thing where I become anxious before even the slightest event coming up.  So, I fully expect to not sleep well the night before and have knots in my belly the morning of.. Either way, I'm going to finish this thing and feel great for having accomplished something so big. 


So, everyone, stay tuned for hopefully some pictures of me crossing the finish line with a big ol' smile on mi cara. I hope to blog mentally while I run, so maybe you'll get to read that as well ;) 

I hope you all stick in there with me as I continue this journey!!

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

If my KitchenAid was a book, I wouldn't be able to put it down..

A KitchenAid will  change your life.  Don't believe me?... Try one and you will see.  I hardly ever considered myself a cook or connosseur of anything culinary.. That is.. until I met my KA.  Looking back, it was a whirlwind love story that has since changed my life.  I know that might sound crazy, but one spin of the baking paddle and I was hooked.  Maybe it's because I'm incredibly prone to staining myself and I no longer have to hold the mixing bowl to my belly while my aching forearm whisks the batter free of clumps... Perhaps it's because I can literally do two things at once, boosting my productivity in the kitchen by at least 50%. Who knows?  Either way, I love it and I would would own three more if I could afford it.  

                         Maybe my dream kitchen full of KA products....
So the part where it changes my life..... right. I think one of the first things I baked was a birthday cake for my Dearest last summer only a short month after our wedding.  It was in the same month that I decided it would be awesome to open a bakery.  It almost came out of nowhere, but I was so hooked on the KA that I was quite obsessed with the idea.  I began to share the idea and one of my best good friends, ChelseaLou, began to see my vision too.  It wasn't until this past Christmas break that the Lord allowed our dreams to see some reality.  I won't spill the frijoles just yet, but it's going to be so much fun once we can get the ball rolling.  My KA has taught me several life lessons, one being that doing something you love will be more fulfilling than simply working to make a buck.

What's even cooler.... God made me to love baking and everything about it.  He made me to have a heart for women who hurt and to long to work with them and show them Love.  He gave me a great friend with a similar vision and a HUGE heart for children. Now put those two together....reach for it, it's quite a stretch...... bang... my KitchenAid... I mean awesomeness.  Could the Lord have made me to love something and then given me a vision to use it for His Glory???  Something that I can only be happy if I'm doing it to serve Him... something that is within my DNA so to speak, knowing that, one day, I would pursue and fulfill this wonderful gift of a calling???

Of course He did. That's one of the coolest ways God works.  I also MUST mention that I find no coincidence in the fact that my G-Norma (the most rockin' grandmother this world has ever seen)  happened to give me my KA for my wedding.  By "the most rockin' grandmother this world has ever seen" I mean spritual giantess who has taught me, through her life, what it means to truly serve the Lord and humble yourself to hold an entire extended family together.  I have no doubt that God threw that in for good measure.  How could I not expect that I would be so blessed as to have my calling revealed to me through my G-Norma in a way.
    Here we are in G-Norma's very kitchen. It's quite a magical place... 
So I'll conclude here.  I love my KA and my GNorma. They have both been pivital in me discovering love and life.  And yes, if my KitchenAid were a book, I couldn't put it down.. Im sure of it.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

From Bride to Wife

I've been considering starting a blog for quite some time now, and I'm just getting around to it.  I first starting really thinking about it around the time I got married.  I think that's a time in one's life when your mind just reels with contemplation and inspiration (was for me anyway..)  I've been married for a lovely 8 months now.  I know I'm quite the expert now!  Anyway, we'll start from the beginning... Sort of..

I adored being a bride.  It was such a fun time, and it was so easy to be the center of the whirlwind that is planning a wedding.  It easily became my defining quality very quickly.  I was introduced to new people as "Sierra, she's getting married!"  I got to talk about dresses, cakes, daisies, and decor for months.  It was feminine bliss.  Though I don't fully support the type of engagement I had (long); the redeeming quality was the time I had to just be The Bride.  Fifthteen months after my dashing beau popped the question, I finally walked down the aisle I had dreamed of since I was a little girl.  We said our vows, kissed, mothers cried, and the audience clapped in mutual joy of our union.  Then we had some cake (which was the kind of delicious that make you think that obecity might not be such a bad idea afterall), mingled a little and took endless photos. .... Then, all of the sudden I was getting in a vehicle to be swept away never to be The Bride again, but to become The Wife. 

Bride was easy; this wife business, I found, is quite different.  Don't get me wrong, I love being a wife. My point is that it takes much more effort and practice than to be a bride.  In fact, I found it somewhat disorienting and, on some days, depressing to make the transition.  I've come up with this theory which I have shared with some of my friends and will share with you all now. 
I believe that we all go through seasons in our lives, each one as beautiful as the next. (contrary to what our culture tells us... you won't find a Vera Wang Wife collection, or a Modern Wife magazine I garauntee you that) But, like I said, I have come to believe that each season is as beautiful as the next..  However I found myself grieving my bride self instead of fully 100% embracing my wife self.  Not in a depressing or "I can't do this" kind of way, but more of a quiet, "why do I feel this way?" way.  I missed the attention and the anticipation that comes with a wedding, and Bridal showers, and parties.  If June 5, 2010, my wedding day, was in fact the greatest day of my life like we are told, that would really stink for the rest of my life.  Could I have really reached my life's peak at age 22?  Though it was a magical day, I refuse to believe that it's all downhill from here :)

Then I realized I had a choice.  I could feel guilty for not being perfect for my husband, or I could learn from my emotion and turn that energy into good for my marriage.  I'm still completely in love with my Ben and he with me. We are not perfect people and we may not always look like the cover of Happiness magazine, but God has richly blessed us in Spirit and in our life together and we're only 8 months in!    I can't wait to fill you in on some of the ways I have reached some of my conclusions, so hold on for next time. 

Yes, I know I'm quite a lengthy story teller.  It's what I do.