New Year's Resolutions

Hi Friends!

Yes, I know it has been a while but the holidays got crazy... fast. Still no excuse soooo, my first (of many) New Year's resolutions is to blog at least ONCE A WEEK! Justin has promised to help keep me honest so here it is.... Monday, January 7th, 2013 with my first weekly post of the year (here's hoping my life is interesting enough to chat with you all once a week...)

How can you not share your meal with
this face??

Chauaka's New Year's resolution is to beg less at the table... challenging for all of us (well expect for Justin maybe... he has a heart of stone). Chauka loves food and I love his sweet, sweet face - this makes for a lethal combo. Justin gets mad... tells me I'm too soft, Chauka is miserable that he didn't get that extra piece of meat... meal time is never a joyus occasion. Therefore, we are now practising a "down" rule when he jumps up - natually, my dog is EXCEPTIONALLY brilliant and knows exactly what this word means. He reluctantly takes his sweet little paws off my leg (or sometimes, even the edge of the table - YES, I'm embarrased to admit he's that bad. He's just SOOOOO cute). This is a work in progress... stay tuned to see if he sticks with this hard resolution.

New ski apparel (kind of...)

Justin and I (heavy on the I) have made a resolution to be more active (cliche I know). Getting back into the gym is a given, I kind of slacked in December. My plan is this - 3 days a week of strength training, one day a week of gym cardio (I really dislike the outdoors), one day a week of yoga/stretching, and one day a week of misc. activity OUTDOORS. As I mentioned I'm really not a big fan of nature and strongly dislike the cold however, being a Canadian I should learn to enjoy the winter season - it's here long enough! With this plan I will be active 6 days a week but won't have to slave away at a (temporarily) crowded gym. As a result of this resolution (and an effort to spend more time with Justin) I've decided to get back into skiiing! My family was big into it when I was younger however, skiing stopped being cool in high school when all my friends started snowboarding. If I'm being honest with all of you - I am a complete liability on a snowboard - I tried, many times, and did damage including, but not limited to, broken bones and near concussion. Not good. Therefore, with age and self confidence, I no longer care if Justin thinks it is lame that I ski (and lets be real... I've already roped him and I don't need to worry about impressing him with my "coolness"). Justin and I went to a local Ski/Snowboard shop yesterday and I got outfitted! I'm picking up the rest of my stuff tomorrow and Justin and I are hoping to get out this weekend! Now if only Chauka could join....

Yummy, healthy snacks!

Healthy eating is also anothe super huge cliche but it is something that requires my attention in the new year. On the whole, I do have a pretty balanced, healthy diet. My poor digestive system needs a detox from the holidays so Justin and I (again, poor Justin - heavy on the I) are going to stick as strictly as possible to healthy eating and regular exercise until about mid-February. For me, this means more vegtables and protien and wayyyy less carbs ( :( ) - I am one of those people who definitely prefers carbs over sweets - give me a loaf of bread and some butter... heaven (unless its chocolate and peanut butter... that's a different story). I'm working on cooking more (and hopefully remembering to take pictures of what I cook) as well as observing Crossfit's eating philosophy of "block" meals; balancing protien with carbs and fat. About 2 years ago I was working closely with a personal trainer and very big into the Crossfit lifestyle - other priorities have taken over and I do not have the financial luxury of a personal trainer right now but that was when I looked my best - I am going to do what I can to replicate that time in my life and hoping that this way of eating will work best for me based on my current circumstances.

Chauka likes to be lean and limber

Try to get my stress better controlled - I truly do think I stress about things for the sake of stressing about things. However, knowing this is true does not mean I can turn it off. Frustratingly so, I need to find a way in 2013 to better manage my stress naturally. My Mom very lovingly gave me a 10 pass for a great local yoga studio as well as some gluten free loose leaf teas and lavendar linen mist. I've had success with yoga in the past. The teas are a nice alternative to coffee which can be bad for 2 reasons - 1. It gets me wound up even more and 2. My stomach sometimes has a hard time with the caffine. Teas are a nice, calming alternative. Finally, the lavendar linen mist... a) super excited for our sheets to smell like lavendar in the new house and b) who doesn't love the (proven) calming scent of lavendar??

Source

Practise (better) sleep hygiene in the new house. I put better in brackets as we don't really have any sleep hygiene currently. For those of you who aren't familiar with this term - simply put, it is an act of creating a positive, calming sleep enviornment in your bedroom as well as observing better sleep patters such as eliminating napping and regular bed and wake times. You keep bedroom activities limited to sleeping and such and have it be a tranquil place. Therefore, no cell phones or TV, no street clothes in the bed (this is not actually a key tenet of sleep hygiene but rather, basic hygiene in my opinion). Justin and I are both complaining of being tired alllll the time - we're hoping that making for a calming environment that encourages deep and restful sleep might be the trick to feeling more energized in the morning.

Who else made New Year's resolutions? As cheesy as they are, I do love a fresh start to a new year - most times they are empty promises and I am hoping the gym will be empty again in a few weeks however, I am hoping as a result of putting (proverbial) pen to paper, I will keep myself accountable.

Until next time...