Christmas Day Activities

My family has a tradition of pooling our resources and making bags filled with t shirts, socks, hats, underwear, personal hygeine products and a few edible items for the homeless Christmas Eve and distributing them to the homeless Christmas morning in downtown Atlanta. Here is some of our prep. I did not go out this year to pass them out I opted to stay at home and watch my niece and make her a little skirt and breakfast for my weary family who braved the cold dedicated to the cause!

My niece helped a little passing the bags during our little assembly line making the bags. Then this box got her attention and she was off the assembly line.  It is the simplest things that keep kids entertained for hours!

Annual Holiday Party

My Holiday Party was a few weeks ago however I realized I did not share it on here.  I struggled with what activity we should do.  The options I had was making an gingerbread house that I found at Williams Sonoma or a wreath kit I found at Paper Source. I sent out a poll to the group of attendees and they choose the wreath kit. I had them select the one they wanted and here are a few pictures of what this beautiful group of ladies created. I would be remissed if I did not mention that the wreath making was a task so much so it went partily over my scheduled party time and the ladies ended up taking they half completed wreaths home to finish. They were not detoured a few stayed up late at their house to finish. I am dysfunctional after 9 and delirious after 10 which is about the time they all left. Oh because I mentioned from my last post about the Beltline challenge, I came in second place on weight loss and no prize for me but I was proud of myself!!!

Thanksgiving 5 k 2013

I have always wanted to run in a thanksgiving day race today I did the Atlanta track club 5k in 25 degree weather and it felt colder than that. Finished in 34 minutes, I want to get my 5k down to 30 minutes!!! 

December 10k

Completed my December 10k my final run for 2013. Woohooo I ran all four runs of the Beltline running series. We shall see if I won. I was In forth place before the run. The challenge looked at weight loss, speed and number of runs.  The winner will be announced this week.  Stay Tuned! I did learn that I have loss 12 pounds since the challenge started in April.  Woohooo! Finished today's run on one hour and nine minutes. My goal was one hour and ten!!!

October in Review

All the purple are my workout days. Great. Month

My first half marathon

Today I completed my first half marathon.  It was the culmination of

12 weeks of training with Adrianne with Black Girls Run. I appreciate
every Saturday morning route she created and the team of amazing women
that woke up early and created a positive running experience.  I
participated in the Allstate Half Marathon.  I have so many emotions
that have gone in and out of my mind since I completed it that I do
not know how to completely express however  I wanted to document the
experience in some way.  The first interesting thing was I never got
oh my god tired.  I did get oh no another hill, yeah I think I will
walk this one.  I had to use the restroom in the midst of the run
actually at the beginning but the line was to long I said I can hold
it and I did for about half the race.  But then I finally had to let
it go.    This is kind of TMI but I love the story.  So I went to pee
in one of the many porta potties and was watching my pee go into the
bowl but I felt like I was peeing on myself.  I then realized it was
the enormous amount of sweat that I was creating.  And then do you
know my pants were completely wet and getting up wet dry fit clothing
back over my thighs was like and oh oh moment.  But I survived
obviously to tell you about it.  There were great signs on the way my
favorite was the one that said don’t trust the feelings of a fart
after mile 5 it might be  poop! And my second favorite was  if it was
easy everybody would be doing it.  True True True.  My goal was to
finish in three hours, technically I finished in 2 hours and 46
minutes but per the Allstate Time I finished in 2 hours and 52
minutes.  The difference is because there were over four thousand
people that ran so there would not be a stampede we started in waves
and I left in the last wave however the time started at the first
wave.  The lower time is from the app on my phone that I started once
I crossed the starting line.  I have a picture of my time per the app
below which also stated I ran more than 13.1.  How awesome is that.  I
think if I wanted I could do a marathon however  for now I am feeling
I will do that for my 40th birthday.   You never know I only decided
to do this half marathon after I saw Black Girls Run had a training
program starting. I was like you can train me I can do it.  So here
are a few pictures of the day’s events!

September in Review

Biblical words of encouragement

From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

Psalms 61:2

Almost to 13.1- preparing for my first 1/2 marathon

August in review-

I have decided to document my exercise schedule/ workout routine to see what progress I will make by January 2014. My goal is to lose 30 pounds. I am at 175 give or take I will update the beginning of each month my progress stay tuned!

The 50th Anniversary of the I Have A Dream Speech by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr

Let us never forget.

My President Making Me Proud - Example of Humility, Grace, Dignity and Honor

Quoteable Quote

"Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God. You cannot burden Him; you cannot weary Him. He who numbers the hairs of your head is not indifferent to the wants of His children. ‘The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.’ James 5:11. His heart of love is touched by our sorrows and even by our utterances of them. Take to Him everything that perplexes the mind. Nothing is too great for Him to bear, for He holds up worlds, He rules over all the affairs of the universe. Nothing that in any way concerns our peace is too small for Him to notice. There is no chapter in our experience too dark for Him to read; there is no perplexity too difficult for Him to unravel. No calamity can befall the least of His children, no anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escape the lips, of which our heavenly Father is unobservant, or in which He takes no immediate interest. ‘He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.’ Psalm 147:3. The relations between God and each soul are as distinct and full as though there were not another soul upon the earth to share His watch care, not another soul for whom He gave His beloved Son.”-Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ, p. 100.

Public Health Messaging

Because I love messaging that causes you to think! Oh these ads are from the NY campaign on teen pregnancy! They are getting a lot of attention!

Year in Review!!! Happy New Year 2013

I do not know how to start this year in review as I have named it over the years. I actually started by first reviewing what I wrote last year.

Let’s go through the months. January – nothing according to my iphone calendar. February nothing still. In March we welcomed my niece, Megan Isabella into the world. That was a pretty big deal. April I celebrated my 36th birthday with a party at the house, which I recapped here. May – nothing to exciting.

June I stepped out on faith in God and resigned my position with the Food Bank, to focus on finding my career job in public health and to have a little R&R. I have been working since I was 16 years old and I have never had a real break. Unlike a lot of my friends who have had kids they have had at least three months off after they delivered and some of them have had it more than once since they have had multiple children. Thankfully I got to enjoy my R&R/ non -Maternity leave (what I jokingly called it) without a child, but the point is I needed a break and got a great one. July I took a family vacation on a cruise to the Bahamas. That was nice. It reminded me that once you have been to one beach you have been to them all. Hence I am not a beach vacation type of girl. Give me the rainforest in Costa Rica or an Alaskan cruise.

For part of July and August, I volunteered with my church. It held a purity camp for kids in the community. It was an amazing experience. These kids knew more about sex then what I knew when I first had sex in my mid twenties which in my opinion was still too young. I might even still be too young. LOL.

September and October started the process of really interviewing for various jobs. It brought to my attention that it takes a minute for people to hire you. I was offered a really cool job after a really great interview. When I am in a position to interview someone I would hope I will be as graceful as this person was with me. When I left the interview, I was like even if I do not get the job, it was such a great experience. I fell in love with the company right then. One person can really speak for a whole company. I get to make an amazing contribution to preventing HIV/AID everyday. I am humbled by the task and awed by what God can do if we should only ask and believe.

November and December, I found myself settling into my routine of working every day since my four month hiatus gave me the luxury of having a life of leisure. I would be remised if I did not mention my personal life. No major develops that I know of at the moment (I pray there is one on the horizon) however God sees all things as they really are so I will leave it to Him to reveal to me any life changes in 2013!!



Happy New Year!

Christmas Party 2012

Yes, I know this blog post is about 20 days after my actual party but I figure better late than never.  This year's party was not a cookie exchange but rather just a late apetizer party and I gave everyone a gift box with a mug (compliemnts of pottery barn) with their first initial on it.  We painted it using Sharpie markers.  They turned out great.  I have provided a photo gallery for your viewing pleasure.  Also I cooked chicken, a first but since I cooked turkey for Thanksgiving, chicken was pretty easy.