Hello my adoring public! I'm so sorry that I haven't written in a week, but there's a whole lot going on! Let's get to it:

1. I am back on track with my exercising. Yea me! It feels good.
2. The retreat I led this past weekend went pretty well if I do say so myself. :)
3. I peeled an orange by myself for the first time ever. Seriously. It only took me 28 years, but I did it.
4. My grandfather had his second surgery this past Friday, and they've scheduled the next one for this coming Wednesday. So I'm headed to Oklahoma. Please keep my family in your prayers.

Okay. Gotta go rescue my washing machine; it sounds like it's about to take flight. Talk to you guys later!
love, eg

Update: Week 2

Okay. Honesty time. This past week wasn't the best for my resolutions. I didn't exercise due to illness and laziness. Very sad. But it is in the past, and it can be changed.
So weight update: I gained 2.4 pounds, but overall have lost .6 pounds. Sigh, sigh.
I will do better this week! I found that I missed the extra energy that I got when I exercised regularly. If that's not incentive, I don't know what is.

But on a completely unrelated note, I've learned to crochet and last night I started my first baby cap. It's cute! Although right now it just looks like a circle, I have faith that it will come to resemble something cap-ish.

But today I'm working on the Presbyterian Women retreat that I'm co-leading this weekend. No rest for the weary...hope everyone is doing well!

Living Viruses

The Big Yuck. That's what this first half of the week has been. Have I exercised? No. Do I feel guilty about it? A bit, but I'm trying to squash it because it's really not my fault (how many 5 year olds do I sound like right now?). Monday is one of my "rest days" and I didn't think that Tuesday would bother me. But it did. Here's how:
I didn't walk yesterday morning because I was supposed to go to yoga last night. What I didn't think about was the shots I was going to get yesterday afternoon. I went to Hattiesburg yesterday for an appointment, and afterwards I stopped by the Forrest County Health Department. You see, I'm going to Uganda in March on a mission trip, and there are a few immunizations one must get before visiting Uganda. So I went to the Health Department and told them what I needed: Yellow Fever, Typhoid, Hepatitis A, Tetanus, and Polio. (I have to take malaria pills while I'm there) As it turns out, they don't keep Yellow Fever in stock so I will have to make a trip elsewhere in the state for that one. But I got the other four. Yup. Live viruses coursing through my body. Needless to say, I didn't make it to yoga last night. By the time I had gone to Target (on my death bed I woulnd't pass up a trip to Target) and driven back to McComb, I couldn't lift my arms over my shoulders. Those shots sting!! And this morning did I walk? Nope. Running a low-grade fever. It's gone now, but the big yuck sums it up nicely. Tomorrow is a new day, hopefully without temperatures and aches.

Update: Week 1

Okay. Week 1 is now completed. I've changed a few songs in my iPod playlist to keep the temp upbeat. I've stuck to my diet (for the most part), and I've pushed myself in terms of exercise, so here we go:
Weight--down 3 pounds (you didn't think I'd tell you my actual weight, did you?)
Exercised--5 times
To Work On--figuring out the scheduling.
Really Proud About--the fact that I pushed myself to jog 4 times yesterday for longer spurts than my previous ones.

And there you have it.
Tommy & Melissa--thanks for becoming followers!
And Heidi--I think I may be a "wogger" now.

Good Habits

So I'm finding that one good habit tends to encourage others. For instance, my newfound dedication to exercise leads to better eating and drinking more water. Also, it gets me up earlier in the morning forcing me to go to bed at a more decent hour each evening. But there are other good habits. Like making it to work earlier than I would normally. And last night I started to crochet. After talking about it for quite a while (several years in fact), I did it last night. A friend lent me some yarn and a hook and an illustrated instruction book. It was actually pretty fun although I do need a teacher to help me now. I'll get with her later this week.
But now, I have 45 minutes to go before prayer service at church and I'm going to enjoy some Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire! Ciao.

I am a Rock Star

Okay. It needed to be said, so here it is: I'm a freaking rock star. I just went to the walking track (the one outside because the Baptists won't let you run/jog inside), and I jogged. That's right. It was only three short spurts, but that's better than nothing. And I have a confession: I smiled. I actually laughed outside out loud while I jogged. I am so proud of myself. This is awesome!

Grandpa update

So Grandpa's surgery went really well yesterday. The surgeons got all of the cancer from his head, and it wasn't in the bone. But they did shave 1/16 of an inch off his skull. He's going to stay in the hospital for the next couple of days, but everything's great. Praise the Lord!

The Embarassment Factor

There may be something I forgot to think about when I decided to run a half-marathon. I thought about the lifestyle changes--getting up earlier to work out, making sure I drink tons of water, watching what I eat with more diligence. I thought about the possibility (and certainty) of pain that would come from pushing my body past its comfort zone. I thought about the runner's high that I would hopefully get one day to help me push through. I thought about a lot of things. The one that I left out happens to be a big one: the embarassment factor. Now, I know that my "running form" as it is as the moment is awful, but I expect that form to improve with time. And I know that the short, teeny, tiny distance I can run right now is a bit embarassing, but once again--will improve with time. What might not improve is my ability to fall down at any given time.



For the full effect, I think we need to go back about 15 years. Here's a brief history of my more momentous falls:

1995--8th grade--fell down a flight of stairs at school in front of all the cool kids

I've blocked out high school as a whole, so nothing from then...

I seem to have stayed on my feet pretty well in college (unless you count the time I fell off a horse and hurt my rear end so badly I couldn't sleep on my back for a week), so that leaves seminary to now:

2004--the Haunted House incident. I went to a haunted house in Atlanta with seminary friends, and one second I was walking. The next second I was flat on the ground. It was not enjoyable. I fell in front of a TON of people waiting to get into the house, and when I rolled over onto my back a person dressed like a ghostly something was standing over me waving his arms and tattered sleeves in my face. I almost hit him. My friends were doubled over with laughter. I think it still makes them laugh to think about it.

2008--the Ski Trip--taking the youth group skiing was harder than I thought it would be. Turns out, you need to learn how to stop in ski school. I didn't actually grasp that. And when I got the top of bunny slope, I fell off the lift. I stood up and tried to go around the curve to get to the top of the hill, and I fell down about 58 times in the span of 20 feet. It was so bad that the most patient person I have ever met (Sara!) left me. I ended up taking off my skis and walking down the mountain (I use that term loosely here). But even then I wasn't safe--a snowboarder ran into me and I landed on my rear end once again.

2008--the Rock Climbing disaster--ended with my right leg fractured below my knee. Enough said.



Present Day--So with all of this, why did I think now would be different? Yet I remain hopeful. So I get up this morning, and I'm going to the Baptist Church to walk around their exercise room (it totally rocks that they have a free track/exercise room for the community!). I get out of my car. It's cold outside. Not just cold for Mississippi, but stinking cold. It's in the teens in the morning here--very cold for south MS. So I'm cold, and I start to do my little hippity hoppity jog inside to wait on my walking buddy. What I failed to notice was the ice on the sidewalk. So my feet do the Fred Flintstone for a while, and I knew it was coming. I just couldn't stop it. I landed on my right hip and right hand. And I must say that the first thought that crossed my mind was: "What will Laris say?" Laris is my new yoga instructor, and having been to my first class last night in I don't know how long, I'm wondering how my fall will harm the good spinal work I did last night. Or maybe that work actually helped me this morning. Yeah, I'll go with that one for now. Well, tomorrow's another day. Hopefully one where I'll stay on my feet.



And my grandfather should be in surgery right now. Please pray!

Talk to y'all later.

Thanks for reading & following & writing me messages. It means so much to me.

The Beginning

Okay. So it's a New Year, and I've made a decision: by this time next year, I will--I WILL--run a half-marathon. I can do it. I've made my mind up to do it. Yet the thought of running scares me to death. I'm not much of a runner; the last time I ran I think was in a kickball game in 4th grade. I'm not an "outdoor" girl either; I'm much more of a "sit inside and read a book" type of girl. But I'm going to do this. It's not just that I want to, but that I know I can. So here's where I'm going to talk about how it's going. So, let's get started...

I started this past Saturday when I cleaned my house for 4 hours straight (including rearranging the furniture 5 times). And if you think that isn't exercise, you'd be wrong. Because it is and my muscles hurt something fierce the next day or two. On Sunday afternoon I took a walk (I'm not quite to running yet). Monday was a "rest day." I've read a book entitled The Non-Running Marathon Guide for Women and the author encourages two rest days a week. Well, I'm much more comfortable with activity than inactivity so this will be a challenge for me. Ask any of my friends: Sabbath rest is hard work! Anyway, this morning I got up at 5:30--that's right--and walked for 30 minutes. My legs are a bit sore, but I think it was worth it.

So that's where I am. I guess I have just a few more details to share with you all including why I'm doing this project and why I'm writing this blog. I don't have any full-length mirrors in my own home, but when I was at my grandparents home over Christmas vacation I saw myself in a mirror. I saw all of myself in a mirror. Yuck. I was not pleased with what I saw. As a Christian (and as a minister) one of the things I need to work harder on is embodying my faith. And I'm going to take embodying seriously--my body needs to show my faith. So I'm going to make some changes. As to why I'm writing this blog--I think that telling people about my project will help keep me accountable. Because I know I will want to quit at times, but I really think this will be good for me. So if I haven't written anything in a while, ask me how it's going. Kick my rear end until I get it back in gear. This might be the only time I ever give someone else permission to tell me what to do, but if I fall off the wagon, tell me what to do to get back on it.

Just thinking about running makes me tired, but eventually I'll be tired from all the exercise. I can't wait!