.deep thoughts on aging.

Well, the husband went and did it. He turned 30.

If you ask me, he doesn't look a day over 24.

I asked him what he wanted out of life now that he is 30, and he basically said just because you turn 30, doesn't mean you have any kind of crazy epiphany. He wants the same things he's always wanted. A family. To keep moving up in the company he works for. A church home.

You know how people say time flies once you reach your 20's? It's true.

It's crazy that at one point in my life, the age of 30 seemed so unfathomable. Now that it's just around the corner for me, I can't help but think of back to the Bible age when people lived upwards of 700 years on earth. Can you imagine if we still had that lifespan? Turning 30 was the least of their worries. I wonder how fast wrinkles and old age came about? Were people "elderly" from age 70-700? Surely not... Was 350 years old equal to what today's age 35 is? When did they have their mid-life crises? What did they do with all that time? Did time fly once they hit their 200's?

Is your mind blown? Because mine is.

.my new look.

I did it. I got bangs!

I suddenly feel more interesting in a quirky kinda way.

It's good.

.round here.

So, since we've last talked, things have been happening up round here.

First of all, I'm still living the healthy, er...healthIER, lifestyle. I still workout a few times a week and do my best at staying under my calorie goal each day, although most days my addiction to sweets gets the best of me. I've still made major improvements in the fitness category of life. In the past month-and-a-half, I've lost about 4 lbs and some inches here and there. I've also gone from only being able to run maybe 30 seconds without dying all the way to 5 minutes on the treadmill without stopping. Even if I didn't lose another pound, if my running stamina keeps improving, I'll feel like a winner.

.healthy groceries. ish.

.breaking in my new running shoes.

I somehow manage to squeeze in time for thrifting as often as I can. I also spend plenty of time on Pinterest and even created some DIY artwork for the house.

This Winter has been the mildest one of my life yet. We might have a day or two of cold, but it's always quickly followed by unseasonable warmth. A few weeks ago, the hubs and I went hiking with the pug. It was super windy that day but perfect temps for being outside. Last week, we got a little snow. Maybe an inch or so. It will most likely be the only snow we get this year.

I've also been loving my duties as Levi's aunt. His daddy and mommy went on a Valentine's date and I had the pleasure of taking care of little guy and putting him to bed that night. He was a doll, such a good baby! He brings me so much joy. And in ways of my job, even though we still have a few months, it just feels like we're on the downhill slide. I'm enjoying my kids very much and, no different from any other year, I am not looking forward to letting these kids go. I always get attached. Still absolutely loving what I do and feeling extravagantly blessed.

.how to make an omelet: tutorial.

It's a snowy day here in my neck of the woods.

A perfect day for me to create a tutorial for a culinary task that has stumped even the most capable of chefs for centuries on end. The omelet.

I, myself, only mastered this task a year ago, thanks to my observances of a chef at the Embassy Suites in Kansas City along with a few tips from my husband. (Yes, my husband grasped the concept of creating an omelet long before I ever did. A humbling fact of life.)

So without further ado, How To Make An Omelet. IMHO.

First, gather your ingredients. I use 2 eggs per omelet as well as shredded mozzarella cheese and real bacon bits from a jar. (I don't get too extravagant with my ingredients but you can even add mushrooms, peppers, onions, ham, sausage, etc.)

You'll need a small frying pan to keep the circumference of your omelet at a pleasing size. My smallest pan is probably 6-8 inches. I didn't measure it.

You'll also need a spatula, something to crack the eggs into and whisk together (I use a fork to stir the eggs and my measuring cup to break the eggs into because it has a pour spout.)

You'll also need non-stick spray for your pan and any seasonings you would like to add. The spices I use are pictured later.

First, spray your pan with nonstick spray and get it warming up over medium heat.

While the pan is heating up, break 2 eggs into a measuring cup and mix with a fork until all the yolk is broken up and blended.

Pour the eggs into the pan.

Get your spices out. I only use salt, pepper and a little bit of garlic powder. You'll want to go easy on the garlic powder if you decide to use it.

Allow the eggs to cook until the top is almost firm so that you can flip the eggs over without the top draining. Add your seasonings to the top then flip the eggs over like you would a pancake.

As soon as you've flipped it, lightly season this side then add your bacon bits and shredded cheese (or any other toppings) to one half of the circumference.

The underside should be done cooking by the time you've seasoned and added the toppings, so using your spatula, fold the side without toppings on it over the garnished side. Lift it up out of the pan and onto a plate.

Now eat it. Either gracefully or ravenously; that is your choice.

And that is how to make an omelet, in my humble opinion.

.to bang or not to bang.

Obviously, I'm talking about the subject of bangs. ;-)

I'm right smack dab in the middle of growing out my hair, and even though it's getting longer, it still has at least a year of growth before it's where I dream of it being.

In the meantime, I've been wearing my hair pulled back a lot since I'm a little bored with its current length. Not wanting to cut my hair but wanting to add some interest, I'm thinking of getting bangs again.

These pictures (found via pinterest) are my bangs inspiration, especially for the pulled-back hairstyles I commonly wear these days.

What's holding me back is that I highlight my hair and am wondering how hard it would be to maintain roots with bangs (since the only other times I had bangs, I don't remember having highlights). Also, I don't think the hubs cares for bangs on me much.

I kinda like me with bangs though.


Decisions, decisions. ;-)

.bookworm.

This is the year my passion for reading has returned. I never lost my love of books, but have simply allowed other distractions to get in the way over the past couple of years. I have a pretty substantial library of books just waiting to be read, so I thought I'd update every so often on my progress.

I recently finished reading Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks. If you are a NS fan, you'll no doubt love this. True to his style, it is the perfect blend of romance and drama that keeps you on the edge of your seat. You just might even cry, although I didn't. I did get a lump in my throat though.

+++

A couple of days ago, I started reading Marriage on the Rock by Jimmy Evans. I'm almost halfway through it and am already so inspired to work harder at my marriage and at being the spouse I was designed to be. Thanks to this book, I'm reminding myself daily that my desire for acceptance and love can only be filled by God and it's not fair to put those expectations on my husband or anyone else. No one can love me the way God can, and once I'm secure in my place with Him, I will be equipped with all I need to be the best wife I can possibly be. I will be encouraging my husband to read it when I'm done.

+++

Next month, I'm starting up a Bible study with a group of girlfriends. So I'll be reading the books we bought for those as well as another Nicholas Sparks book next month.

Here's to being a bookworm!

.my new lifestyle: a week in.

I have been practicing healthier living for exactly a week now.

A week ago, I went to the grocery store and bought a ton of healthy foods, like whole grain wheat bread products, fresh fruits and veggies and zero candy/sweets.

It was the most fun I've ever had shopping because it was a new way for me to shop, a challenge and I truly felt like I was taking ownership of this life, this body God gave me.

Another thing I have taken ownership of is my time and how I spend it. I feel like I have been utilizing my free time much more productively. Instead of vegging out for 3 hours after work, I now exercise first thing after getting home, take a shower, do any necessary cleaning, and THEN allow myself to watch a DVR'd show. And you know what? I enjoy my down-time so much more now. I don't have to feel guilty about vegging b/c I know I've already taken care of the important stuff.

I have worked out 5 of the past 7 days, and if you know me at all, you know this is huge! My confidence is already growing, even if it's not evident to others yet. I have this secret that strangers that pass me in public don't know: I am taking care of myself. I am on a mission to be the best version of myself that I've ever been. I'm going to have abs -- killer abs that drive my husband crazy. I'm going to have muscle tone that makes me feel skinny even if I don't have a tan (b/c we all know we feel thinner when we have a tan).

Nope, not all of my goals pertain to simply being healthier. Some of them are purely selfish and vain. I want to be THAT girl that people pin pictures of with tag lines like "my goal." I want to look and feel like a rock star.

While I'm only a week in, it's only the beginning.

To aid me in this process of counting calories and keeping track of my progress, I am utilizing a few different tools:

+ My Fitness Pal. It's an IPhone app that gets you set up with your personal calorie count limit, based on your current weight, goal weight, and the rate at which you would like to see the lbs come off. You log in everything you eat (and it even has a bar code scanner for super quick entry of calories), and log in your work-outs. You can follow friends and leave each other encouraging comments too. (martylou83 <---That's me!)

+ A Fitness Journal. I have one of the old-school black and white composition notebooks that I use to write out my beginning measurements, work-outs and keep a log of how certain work-outs made me feel, how many reps I did, etc so that I can look back and see how my strength/endurance has progressed. I plan on measuring myself once a month to keep track of inches as I lose them.

+ My sister. My sister and I each compiled a document of "skinny" pictures of ourselves and emailed them to each other. We randomly text each other one of these pictures, with a reminder (and visual motivation) to work out.

The goal is to stay enthusiastic and motivated. And to drink more water. And to not beat myself up if I don't do as good one day as I did the day before.

And on the day that I reach my goal, to be able to look back, be proud, and know that I accomplished something important that I set my mind to do.