2011 At A Glance

Click here for the post I wrote a year ago about 2010

Let's see if we have accomplished what we wanted to:

Exciting events lined up for 2011:
1. I am working on getting my Nutrition and Wellness Certification from AFPA (I am super excited!) DONE! And I have the website up and going, now all I have to do is get clients, hmmm.....
2. Chris gaining even more press and awards for the great work he is doing as MauiTime Art Director. Well he definitely did. Click here to see all the awards he won.
3. Chris and I partnering together for lucky11studios.com to bring my PR background to Lucky 11. DONE! Click here for more info, too!
4. Great health for family (mom and dad!), friends and us. So far our parents are in great health! My dad's cancer PSA's are low or not even there; mom is super health with no cancer in sight; I ran my first 5k since high school and it felt great!; I'm working on getting Chris to run with me, but he gets his exercise walking about 3 miles every day to and from work after the bus. So I'd say this was DONE too!
5. Starting the next phase of our life. We packed up our lives and moved from Maui to Seattle for a great job opt for Chris. So I'd say we definitely started the next phase!
6. Traveling to new places. Vancouver: Check; Oregon: check; Seattle: Check! 7. Paying off Chris' car. DONE! One of the best feelings EVER 8. Chris' brother, Cody, graduating from high school! YAY! And he is now driving and taking his first college classes. 9. Learn how to surf. Do a few lessons count? 10. For me to get a full time job. Well, I did some PR freelance for a new Seattle restaurant that opened up here. But I am currently still job searching.....

9 out of 10 isn't bad!

Here's to 2012 being an even better year and for us staying healthy, happy, safe, prosperous and finding me a J-O-B!!!!

36Smile!

In case you didn't notice, the "S" in the title is supposed to look/act like a "5" because this is something I'm starting for the new year:

Project 365Smile

In the new year I am determined to be happier no matter what life has to throw at me. I can handle anything. So as part of that determination I will be writing about something that makes me smile, laugh, etc. Be it a memory, a person, a phone call, an image, a song. We smile a lot more than we actually know so why not write about it and hopefully give others an opportunity to smile too.

It's also proven that it takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile—why use more muscle to make you feel worse? Know that feeling you get after a great workout or run; a phone call to catch up with an old friend; the fact that you saved enough to buy that purse you've been eying? Well, we should feel like that more often.

Since today is the third day of the new year, I am starting this out with three things that have made me smile in the past three days. Granted, I have smiled A LOT more than three times, but for the sake of this blog—and your time—I will only tell you about three:

January 1
My sister and her fiance were here to spend the New Year with my husband and I. Smiles all around! It brought me back to my college days with her fiance—who I consider a big brother—and getting ready to go out with them. It also brought me back to the days of living with my sister and putting on make up and trying on way too many outfits before we decided on the right one. And finally, it reminded me of the first time my husband I got ready to go out together while we lived in our very first place together. Memories with the ones you love with make your heart smile long after the event takes place.

January 2
As I was walking my dog, I saw an old Red, Toyota Corolla. The VERY FIRST car my parents gave me and my sister and brother was a Red, Toyota Corolla. Not the best car, but it was OUR car. I even remember the smell, the old leather seats and the homemade banner my mom made and placed it in the back: Congrats on your new car! Brings a smile to my face as I'm writing it.

January 3
Looking at our lit and decorated Christmas tree. Our "First Christmas" ornament; all the cards from our family and friends; the angel topper my parents sent us. Because I know this will probably be the last day—or week— we'll have it up. It was our very first tree Chris and I bought and decorated together as a married couple. We are making our own Christmas traditions together and that makes me happy.

I hope this inspires you to smile more and I would love to hear about what makes you show those pearly whites! Anything at all—leave your comments below!

Hope y'all had a happy, healthy and blessed Christmas and New Year.

P.S. If you haven't watched Uncle Kracker's video posted here, watch it. It will definitely make you smile on this first day back to work from a long holiday break :)

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012! Already?!

December came and went. Christmas came and went. This new year came and went.

Wow, that was fast.

I can't believe it's going to be January 2012 already.

We are SO ready for a new year.

We have moved from the paradise of Maui to the Emerald City of Seattle. Left gorgeous beaches and sun everyday to gorgeous green (and rain) everyday. Some might think we're crazy—we've actually have got that more than a few times.

But sometimes we do things for our careers and the ones we loved. Moving to Seattle was such a great opportunity for Chris and his career that we would've been stupid not to come here. Lucky for me I wasn't doing anything for my career on Maui. Besides getting my Nutrition and Wellness Certification and looking into starting my health and nutrition career there (there's absolutely nothing there in PR except for the resorts and they themselves are small), I wasn't doing anything to further my PR/event planning career. I have now started my health website, Healthy Food, Healthy You and hopefully will get that up and going here. Please visit it and check it out! I am your new personal nutrition and wellness consultant here to answer all your needs!

Currently, I am on the job search—along with the rest of America— and haven't been very lucky so far. I have a great lead on a job right now which I am hoping will turn into something. All you can do is to hope and pray! Please send me good vibes :) We all can't get bogged down by thinking "we'll there are just so many other people out there with a lot more qualifications or who may deserve the job more than me...." but why? You applied for the job because obviously you thought you fit the qualifications. We have to go with that feeling. Be confident. We all have the skills and talents that have got us to where we are today, for a reason. We have to know that and continue to strive to be the best we can be.

That's what I hope every day. With everything I do I hope to be the best I can be. If you don't ever try, you don't ever know.

As the new year wines down, we always reflect on what we have done (or maybe not have done); the people we have met; the people we have lost; the events we have gone to; the accomplishments we have achieved; the anniversary and birthday's we have celebrated; but are we ever really happy? I hope so. We get one life and we have to live each life to the fullest.

Things we have to look forward to in 2012:
My twin sisters wedding to her boyfriend of six years
My husbands best friends wedding
Going home!
Visiting family and friends
Celebrating our second wedding anniversary
Celebrating Chris' 30th birthday!
Celebrating my 28th birthday—yes, I'm excited about turning 28!
Getting to know our city more
Getting a new job
Meeting new people
Getting a puppy play mate (shhhhhh... don't tell my husband!)
Becoming more involved with the Chi Omega alumnae group here

I hope 2012 will bring more happiness in our lives and everyone else around us. I am determined to keep more in touch with the new friends I have met, re-establish old ones, keep the strong family dynamic we have and make it the best year for my husband and I.

I would love to hear what you are determined to do in the new year!

Don't Get (Holiday) Sidetracked Now

It's the beginning of the wonderful month of December! That means traveling, family time, stressing about gifts and staying on that holiday diet regime. You're thinking, easy enough right?

Wrong.

"There seems to be an assumption that when you travel, you can't eat healthfully, so you don't even make an attempt," says exercise physiologist Monika Woolsey, R.D.

Why is it that we get into this mind trap during the holidays that we are going to overlook all the hard work you did during the last year or even three months. Then say, "Well the new year is just a month a way, I'll do better next year." No. Stop that mentality right now.

It is never too late to start and even continue to make healthy lifestyle choices. I'm here to show you how. With a little help from Women's Health magazine, here are some super easy tips to stay on track with your hectic holiday traveling time line.

Breakfast in the Car(or plane)
Look for lean protein and low sodium eats. "A study published in the journal Obesity found that a protein-rich breakfast can help increase feelings of fullness and reduce cravings later in the day." yes, please!
My fav picks:
If MickeyD's is your place o' choice, go for the egg mcmuffin, without cheese (if you can), no hash browns! Ham is the lean protein and egg will keep you full as well. Egg whites only? Not always. The yolk actually contains most of the egg's nutrients, including cancer-battling choline and antioxidants that keep your eyes sharp.
Subway's new breakfast menu is awesome too! Always choose the whole wheat muffin, or 9 grain wheat, with eggs and load up on any and all veggies. Don't have a lot of time, choose a protein-rich low-fat yogurt instead of ice cream smoothie. Make sure to avoid these sugary, high-cal ingredients: apple juice, fruit syrups and sorbets.

Lunchtime
I always seem to get hungry on the plane. Whether I just ate or not. Women's Health mag picks out some entrees that can get you out of the airplane flying funk and enjoy the ride.
Black Bean Soup (yum!) "Fiber and protein pack this belly-filling meal. Not to mention black beans are a top source of immunity-enhancing antioxidants" especially importante when flying.
Veggie Wrap (with no cheese!) This easy-to-eat and super filling entree tends to be "high in water content, fiber, and other nutrients that help keep you hydrated and full but not the feeling of overstuffed."

Snacktime
I'm a big proponent of snacking. It keeps your metabolism burning throughout the day. Think of your metabolism as a fire—to keep it going, you need to continue to feed it with wood. Your metabolism works in the same way.
Master your metabolism:
"The process of metabolism establishes the rate at which we burn our calories and, ultimately, how quickly we gain weight or how easily we lose it," says Robert Yanagisawa, MD, director of the Medically Supervised Weight Management Program at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York.

Of course, not everyone burns calories at the same rate.

Your metabolism is influenced by your age (metabolism naturally slows about 5% per decade after age 40); your sex (men generally burn more calories at rest than women); and proportion of lean body mass (the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate tends to be).

Smart Snacking
Low-fat yogurt: portion-controlled cup (if you get it without the fruit), "contains probiotics which can settle your stomach on a long car ride with those in-laws or by yourself."

Bananas: rich in magnesium, "a deficiency in this mineral can result in headaches and fatigues. Who isn't prone to these around the stress-filled holidays? Always have these laying around.

Nuts (my favorite!): "high in calories, yes. But their combo of healthy fat and protein can help keep you fuller for longer and reduce your total calorie intake for the day." Always choose the unsalted ones, please.

There is no reason to loose track of that diet now—or get started now. A combination of these easy steps, confidence, knowledge and support and you'll be on your way to looking good for the new year. Don't want to be side tracked? Make sure you tell your fam and friends that you do have a goal and would like to continue making healthy choices this holiday season. Once they know this, it will be easier for them to help you along the way.

Safe travels, fun family time, smart food choices and healthy eating!