Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Live up to your potential!!


As I was working out today it hit me just how in control of our destiny we are. Every day we have a choice as to what we will eat and how much we will move. I began running faster as I thought more about it. I became so energized at the thought that it is up to me how hard I will push it today - will I allow the day to pass only to realize that I could have gone farther, I could have watched my portions more ? - NO! I want to lay down each night and say to myself - I really did live up to my potential - I motivated someone to do the same - and I am another day closer to reaching the stars!!!

One of my favorite quotes really sums up how I feel right now.

"Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain."

There will always be situations or people in our lives that could hinder our progress - but these are just small "pebbles" in the road of life - I say you just need to kick that "pebble" out of the way and keep going!! If we stopped to look and stare at every detour or object that was placed in our way we would go nowhere!

Where ever your day will take you - make each moment count!!

Keep looking forward!!

Monday, September 10, 2007

She made it to the finals!!!


Today,Susie ran to quality for the finals...and she made it! Now she will run on September 14th.

Susie, we will continue to pray for strength and endurance for you. Just know that each of us is there with you, supporting you all the way!!

Congratulations on advancing to the finals!! I am so proud of you!!

Monday, September 03, 2007

She is my inspiration....


On September the 10th, my aunt, Dr. Susan Willard, and her coach, Steve Jennings, will compete in the World Masters Athletic Championship in Riccione, Italy. Susie will be running the 1500 meters and Steve the 10,000 meters. Each of them will be competing against former Olympians and runners from around the world.

My aunt, competing at the age of 54, is nothing short of amazing. Strong, yet graceful, her compassion for others goes beyond the care for her patients. She will do anything in her power to assist others with their own personal goals--always supportive, yet never judging.

While her professional life has centered on helping people realize their full potential through physical fitness, she has also sought to share the message of the Lord with everyone she can. She relies on her Heavenly Father for strength, and when most would quit, it is this strength that takes her through the next mile.

Anyone who knows Susie can speak as to how their lives have been positively changed. I know my life would not be the same without her support and encouragement for all that I have done. When I feel tired, or unable to complete a goal, I think of the determination that she has shown for so many years.

I remember once, long ago, we where sitting in her car before a triathlon in Dallas. She may not even remember this, but playing in the car was the song “The River” by Garth Brooks. She pointed out to me the lyrics.....

"There's bound to be rough waters
And I know I'll take some falls
But with the good Lord as my captain
I can make it through them all. "

I never forgot that moment because it showed me the source of her faith. She has always led by example, and I think each of us can learn much from her insistence to never let life pass by her. She lives in the moment, making the most of each one she is blessed with.

Susie, this journey you are about to embark on will not be an easy one. But you are well trained and, most of all, you have the Lord by your side with every step you take. We are all praying for you and support you in this amazing accomplishment. I am so proud that you are my Aunt, but most of all, I am proud of what you stand for.


Susie I want to leave you with this...

"But I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, his greatest fulfillment of all he holds dear, is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious!" -Vince Lombardi

Sunday, September 02, 2007

Way to go Jill

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket


I wanted to post this in honor of a woman Jill who is apart of the My Food Diary, or MFD community along with myself. She has gone from 330 lbs to 195!! I have posted her site showing the amazing transformation.

Congratulations Jill...Way to go!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11482007@N02/sets/72157601492131856/

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Just a thought.....


Here in Siberia we live next to a school that has a small courtyard for soccer and so on. Every so often I see an old man out running in circles around the area. It is his very own personal track. He wears a brightly colored jumpsuit with white tennis shoes. Nothing fancy--no Nike or Adidas here--just the will to get out there and do something good for his body.

Today as I was watching him I thought to myself how many times I have said, "If I only had a trainer at a gym, I could change. If I had someone to workout with, then it would happen for sure." We all can make excuses in life for why things do not happen, but in the end it is what is inside of us that will ultimately decide the life we live, not our surroundings or our circumstances. Each one of us has the ability to wake up each morning and start over. There is not a gym in the world that will do it for you, not a pill or a trainer that will take the place of one's determination to meet a goal.

I have now lost a total of 38 pounds and still have a long journey ahead of me, but I always want to remember that I am the only person in control of what I eat and how much I move. I was thinking today, "What will I do today to change myself for the better?" I love that each morning is a renewal of what we were, what we are and what we hope to be.

I heard someone once say that we should replace the phrase "I can't" with "I am not willing to" and see how many things in life we can in fact accomplish if we just make the effort.

Just a thought.....

Thursday, August 09, 2007

Never stop reaching...

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” Winston Churchill



As I was posting a new blog for the day, I came across this and just LOVED it! Hope you enjoy it as well. Imagine if all of these people had listened to what others were saying as opposed to following their heart!

After Fred Astaire's first screen test, the memo from the testing director of MGM, dated 1933, said, "can't act! Slightly Bald! Can dance a little!" Astaire kept that memo over the fireplace in his Beverly Hills home.

An expert said of Vince Lombardi: "He possesses minimal football knowledge. Lacks Motivation."

Socrates was called, "An immoral corrupter of youth."

When Peter J. Daniel was in the fourth grade, his teacher, Mrs. Phillips, constantly said, "Peter J. Daniel, you're no good, you're a bad apple and you're never going to amount to anything." Peter was totally illiterate until he was 26. A friend stayed up with him all night and read him a copy of Think and Grow Rich. Now he owns the street corners he used to fight on and just published his latest book: Mrs. Phillips, You Were Wrong.

Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women, was encouraged to find work as a servant or seamstress by her family.

Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own compositions instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him hopeless as a composer.

The parents of the famous opera singer Enrico Caruso wanted him to be an engineer. His teachers said he had no voice at all and could not sing.

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor for lack of ideas. Walt Disney also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.

Thomas Edison's teachers said he was too stupid to learn anything.

Albert Einstein did not speak until he was four years old and didn't read until he was seven. His teacher described him as "mentally slow, unsociable and adrift forever in his foolish dreams." He was expelled and refused admittance to Zurich Polytechnic School.

Louis Pasteur was only a mediocre pupil in undergraduate studies and ranked 15 out of 22 in chemistry.

Isaac Newton did very poorly in grade school.

The sculptor Rodin's father said, "I have an idiot for a son." Described as the worst pupil in the school, Rodin failed three times to secure admittance to the school of art. His uncle called him uneducable.

Leo Tolstoy, author of War and Peace, flunked out of college. He was described as "both unable and unwilling to learn."

Playwright Tennessee Williams was enraged when his play, Me, Vasha was not chosen in a class competition at Washington University where he was enrolled in English XVI. The teacher recalled that Williams denounced the judges' choices and their intelligence.

F. W. Woolworth's employers at the dry goods store said he had not enough sense to wait upon customers.

Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he finally succeeded.

Babe Ruth, considered by sports historians to be the greatest athlete of all time and famous for setting the home run record, also holds the record for strikeouts.

Winston Churchill failed sixth grade. He did not become Prime Minister of England until he was 62, and then only after a lifetime of defeats and setbacks. His greatest contributions came when he was a "senior citizen."

Eighteen publishers turned down Richard Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull, before Macmillan finally published it in 1970. By 1975 it had sold more than seven million copies in the U.S. alone.

Richard Hooker worked for seven years on his humorous war novel, M*A*S*H, only to have it rejected by 21 publishers before Morrow decided to publish it. It became a runaway bestseller, spawning a blockbusting movie and highly successful television series.

By Jack Canfield and Mark V. Hansen
from A Cup of Chicken Soup for the Soul

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

A thought for Wednesday...


"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass.... it's about learning how to dance in the rain!"

Those who know me well know that I LOVE quotes. I find they lift the spirit and bring back to focus what is most important in life when sometimes our fast pace can cause us to loose sight. One of my favorite quotes is from Chuck Swindoll. I wanted to share it will all of you. Hope you will be blessed as I have.

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day.
We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.”

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Make each day count!!


This is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever; in its place is something that you have left behind...let it be something good. ~Author Unknown~
This is how I want to live! This is how I want to be remembered! I hope each of us will make the most of this glorious day that God has blessed us with. I pray we have many more tomorrows, but if not, let us never say we did not truly live!!! I love all of you, each of you are in my hearts and prayers!