Can't you see that its just raining.....there ain't no need to go outside...

The wind and rain in Juneau have been horrific! Its raining cats and dogs! Its especially hard when you have to wake up to the sound of an annoying alarm clock and you have a nice cozy bed with a warm body beside you.

Anyways…..I have been meaning to blog, but my busy life seems to never permit me.

So….I have been thinking of a new plan for myself when I get back from vacation. I read in this magazine to “Invest in your body”. We often buy things that we think will make us look good or what not, but we don’t do the basics. Therefore….I am going to try and work on it while I am on vacation, but definitely when I get back…..Those things include:
-Exercise at least 5 days a week (if not more…try to attend classes including strength training and yoga)
-Follow the Weight Watcher Point System
-Take a multi-vitamin each day
-Pray/Meditate-I want my relationship with God to be stronger. I think this affects many, many, MANY aspects of life.
I often write this down to remind myself, but I figure if I make it public, I will actually work on it. I guess these ideas stemmed from going to the gym and seeing my reflection and thinking, “Who is that??” My goal is to be healthy and it stems from what I do to my own body.

On a different note, Marcus’s mom flew in on Wednesday. It was a pretty windy day, but luckily she got in. The first night we had dinner at John’s house with the kids and his new love interest. I can tell he is happy and the kids seem to all get along. The second was with our parents at the Thai place. I always knew my dad was intelligent, but last night, I realized just how much he really knows about everything. He can be a handful at times just like most parents, but he always impresses me with the amount of knowledge he has. My mom is also wonderful! She is always so friendly and welcoming. She got Sue a gift of dragon fly items (a night light and a charm) that she just adored! I love them =)

The dobbies were soo happy to see Grandma Sue! We set her up on an air mattress in the living room and I even provided new Egyptian cotton pillow cases. Sue asked if the dogs could sleep out in the living room with her (we usually put them in the bathroom to sleep) and we agreed and guess what?? Ox sleeps on his bed but does the cutest thing and rests his head on Grandma’s pillows! Haha I wish I hadn’t packed my camera or I would have taken a picture of it! I guess he appreciated the new pillow cases too! hahaha Those two dogs, I tell ya! I love them to pieces!! I am gonna miss them when I go on vacay! I am also sad that we aren’t going to be able to dress them up for Halloween!

Anyways, this is all for now. The next time I enter, I should have some cute pictures from my vacation! Until next time…….

All Things Justine

I think the best title for today's blog is "All Things Justine." I have been doing a lot of thinking this week. One thing that I have really thought of is the idea of being in control of your thoughts and feelings. I know it is hard to not feel excited and happy (or on the opposite end, sad and disappointed) about things in life. But it is up to us whether we dwell on things or not. For example, last weekend, I was feeling kind of crappy (physically) but I knew that it was something small. Then, there were certain things that bothered me, and it was in my head and I was thinking about it and thinking about it, not really knowing how it was affecting me. As a result, I was sick and missed 2 out of the 4 days I had to work. I even went to the doctor and she said she couldn't find anything when she examined me (no swollen lymph nodes, liquid in my lungs, no fever, etc.) She asked if I was depressed or had any stress. I laughed and was thinking, "wtf??" but after a while, I thought about it and thought..maybe its stress. Stress with life, stress with work, etc. It has such a negative affect on us. I realize that there are things that we have to really just "let go" and not hang on to. I know I was upset over small things and I really just let it get to me. I just have to not let it get to me. I know its much easier said then done. Negative stress not only affects your health, but also your relationships. I realize that when I am bummed, it affects how I interact with those that really matter to me the most--the people I live with--my love and the dobies, and my family. There are many things that I always find out about myself that I want to work on or improve. I feel like once I acknowledge it, I work towards setting goals to improve it. Another part of stress I have is that sometimes I compare my life with others and I know that I can't do that. My life is my life and although we don't have total control of everything, we do have say in it. My latest goals are to be nicer, less stressed, and show my appreciation towards the ones I love the most: Marcus, my babies, my family, and my closest friends. Thanks for reading!

15 more days........

This picture is of my sister, brother-in-law, and my love having dinner aboard the Carnival Spirit in Juneau....Ironically, this is the same ship we will be on in Mexico!!

So I have 15 more days until we set sail for the Mexican Riviera!! I can't wait! It's getting quite chilly up here in Juneau and sitting on the beach sounds amazing =) I feel kind of poopy today so I didn't go to work........I'm just kind of tired and just crappy so I am hoping this is a short term thing that comes and goes and I am good to go by the time vacation comes.

New to this place.....

New to this place... I remember when my friend Tina was pregnant. I was at Walmart down in Lincoln, NE and I saw this cute baby onsie with a picture of the World and it said, "New To This Place". How cute!! huh?

Well, I finally caved in and got myself a blogspot. I am not sure where to go from here, but I guess I will slowly figure things out as I go. It can't be that hard, can it? I think sometimes I am just too lazy to try and figure things out. hahaha!

Anyways, I love reading my friends' blogs and I have also missed blogging myself. Hopefully this will be a fun new place to be!