Friday's Blog: Chili Wars

If you ever step foot in Texas at some point you will learn about the great Chili wars. To bean or not to bean, that is the question. I am not actually sure why Texans think they own this food. Yes, it is a trail food but so are um, beans. Anyway, if you have ever met a Texan they pretty much think God created Texas and the rest of the states were an afterthought. I don't bother arguing with them. I just know they are wrong.

So let me get this out of the way early, I bean. Actually, I double bean my chili. I have never entered a cooking contest and really I had no intention of entering a chili cook off but my adjuster came to me with a plea and the logic that being from a state where we suffered through long, cold winters I must know how to make good chili. I had to give it to him for creativity in coming up with a good attempt there!

So last night I made chili and because I am short on blog ideas, you all get to suffer through it a little!





Started off with 3lbs ground beef, 2 onions and a little EVOO.
Browned and crumbled.
Added 1 large can ranch or 2 small cans pinto beans and 2 cans kidney beans (I prefer dark red but grabbed the wrong ones)
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 large can puréed tomatoes



My spices which I am sorry to say, I cook to taste.
Chili powder
Cayenne Pepper
Salt
Garlic powder (not much)
Cinnamon
Sugar

The key is lots of cayenne and sugar. I add it in batches and taste (new spoon each time) until it is the perfect spicy/sweet combo.

My chili is not hot it is spicy and sweet....a little like me, when I want to be.

It is perfect with a little cheddar and a football game. Crackers and tortilla chips are awesome in it. If you like corn bread (I don't) I heard several people describing it as the perfect chili to go with corn bread. I also heard it described as "soul chili" which made this white girl smile with delight! I have never been accused of doing anything with soul. (insert 'Because Gingers have no soul' joke here since I am a redhead!)





















These are some of the pictures of the cook off right before people really started to show up and the final product, of course! (Mine is E. shhhh, don't tell!)

If the weather would just turn a little bit cold I could make a big pot of this stuff and share with my friends. The ones that are not anti-bean of course! Oh, one final note: of all the chili entered, only one was hot dog sauce. (That's what I think of when I see chili without beans.) take that my Bean-stew friends!
 
Happy Friday and remember gang, chili has beans unless you put it on a hot dog!

Simply,
Laura
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad all rights reserved

Blog Update: It's Ok Thursday!

Linking up with Amber and Neely for It's Ok Thursday!

It's Ok:

*That I get very little sleep when the Rangers play West Coast Baseball.  Sleep is over-rated.  Maybe not.

*That I am terrible about responding to blog comments without my phone.  I apologize and ask that you all cut me a break until my new phone comes.  This old iPhone is so slow.

*That I nominated myself for sister of the year for giving my brother the pre-sale code for ALCS tickets.

*That I bought a light for my bike and completely forgot it at home last night. Red heads have blond moments too.

*That I smiled when driving home from Horseshoe trail. I was coming up Dove Loop and the hill from you-know-where that always made me curse on Saturday morning Team in Traning runs brought back good memories. 

*That it is funny how sometimes the things that make you struggle like running hills are some of your most fond memories!

*That I have been a little lacking on being stricked on my diet the last two weeks.  I am going to buy Chicken and veggies this weekend.  Time to get serious before the holidays.

*That I made a promise to myself that I would actually do some form of excecise that isn't biking twice a week.  I need to get some weight training in.  I am a little one dimensional right now.

*That I am going to be sending my mother to a bike store with a list for Christmas.  This will be fun!  Hey, my brother has been sending her to Bass Pro Shop for years.

*That yet again, my blog has a lot of bike talk in it. I guess I could talk politics or religion but nobody really wants to hear my opinions there and everyone probably knows my sports opinions.  (Texas Rangers, Longhorns, Notre Dame, Peyton Manning, Dirk Nowitzki.)

*That I am making Chili tonight for an office Chili Cookoff tomorrow and I refuse to listen to the Texas No-Bean bullies! (You know who you are!!)

*That I have made peace with the fact that I will be taking Defensive Driving for that stupid "I swiped my Cell Phone in a School Zone" ticket.  I now make myself put my phone away. "Hello, my name is Laura and I am a recovering Texter and Driver".

*That I am suffering seriously from "I want to be outside having fun not in the office working accidents." 

So, what is Ok with you this amazing fall day?

Happy Thursday All!  It is almost the weekend!

Simply,

Laura

What I'm Loving Wednesday! Warning there may be a little bike love going on here!

Linking up with Jamie



I love my bike!
Let me say this again, I am in total love with a piece of metal.  I love my bike.  I don't know how this happened.  I realize this makes no sense.  I love my bike.  It has been a very quick and hot romance.  Also, my bike...is a female.  I am not going to analyze this.

I love all the new trails I am riding!!!
I rode a new trail last night, it is a short trail in Plano, Texas called Arbor Hills and it is all up and down hill. It was surprisingly challenging because it is all up and down hill. There were a lot of people out there.  I would like to ride it 3 or 4 times to beat myself to a pulp but it was really busy. 

Tonight, I am going to ride another new trail, Horseshoe Trail.  It is kind of the the kinder, gentler kid brother to Northshore.  It is across the lake and is about a dozen or so miles shorter.  It is near where I used to train with Team in Training for the half marathon so I am excited to go out to my old stomping grounds and I am excited because honestly, it is really close to my house and not so busy.  Both make me happy.

Saturday will be new trail number three.  Rowlett Nature Preserve.  I am incredibly excited about this park as well although I know I am afraid.  I believe there are some challenging parts to this trail that I am looking forward to seeing.  

Going hand in hand with my love for my bike is my love for the Women of DORBA.  DORBA is the Dallas Off Road Biking Association and the Wheel Woman are the ones doing the trail tour.  They have been very helpful in answering my questions and honestly, I feel much more at ease asking them questions on the Facebook page then going to the main DORBA page or going to the DORBA forum on the main site.  They all seem really nice but they get into some really interesting um, discussions on the other pages.  The women, just keep it more focused on biking. 

I love my new light I bought yesterday for my bike.  I am a little worried about actually getting stuck out on a trail and needing it but I am glad to have it if I do.  I really don't want to need it but let's be honest, I do not have the best luck at times and I have come to the realization very quickly with me, it is better to be prepared. 

So, I have to be honest here for a minute, you know those funny bike pants...the ones with all the padding?  I bought a pair.  Mine are the long pants because it is going to be getting colder.  I got them because they were on sale and because in the training class we took they said we just had to have these padded pants.  So not loving these....maybe it is something you get used to but they feel funny.  It has been a long time since I wore a diaper but I have to think this is bringing back long buried memories of pampers.

Alright, that ends my bike love.  I know I promised I would try not to blog too much about it.  I lied.  Sorry. 

I also love my coffee.  Can anyone relate to that?

Oh, and I am totally loving soup.  I made a big pot of Beef Veggie Soup Monday night. Oh. My. Gosh!!!! I am so happy it is getting cold out and it is soup weather again!

Boots!  I am gearing up for it to be just a tad bit colder and it to be boot weather.

I am loving that my iPhone will eventually be delivered to my house.  It can't show up soon enough. Hurry Apple.  Please, hurry.  I promise never to leave you again.  All of my friends have convinced my you are the way, the truth, the light.  They have brainwashed me. 

One last thing before I let you go...I am totally and completely loving this.  I got an email yesterday from the Texas Rangers.  The long and short of it, my playoff tickets will be delivered by tomorrow.  My Texas Ranger playoff tickets.  My World Series Tickets, God Willing.  That rainbow over the Ballpark Sunday with the promise of the World Series Trophy at the other end of the Rainbow.  I don't need a pot of gold.  I just need one more strike. 

Happy Hump Day my lovlies!

Simply,
Laura

Blog update: Mobile Monday

You aren't really getting what's on my phone mostly because I broke my phone yet again (it isn't me, I swear it is that stupid volume button on the HTC phone). I decided to go back to an iPhone but until I get a new one I am stuck with my old iPhone 3. Oh lord is 3G slow!
So I carry my iPad with me. Um, yay.

Saturday I was suppose to hit River Legacy again but my all day migraine decided against a bike ride so I spent a great deal of time sleeping. I hate days like that. Sunday I woke up with the same headache but the storm came in and somehow this actually helped. I don't understand it, I just go with it. So it was Rangers time.




I look a little scary but you try looking cute after sitting at the park for two hours in the rain waiting for the game to start only to have a steady drizzle for 8 out of 9 innings. I stayed. I was alone. I was cold. We won. It was a big win. I sit here with a runny nose and I would do it all over. Just know I am prepared. I have a Z-pack on standby.









There was a post game concert. I have no clue who the group was (Casey Donahew Band) but I took some pictures for my friend Chance because he loves them and he forgot to get tickets to the game. (David did. Whatever)

























Sorry they aren't better, Chance.


These are cool. There was a rainbow over the Ballpark and I managed to get some kind of awesome shots. I'm taking this as a good sign for the Rangers!
























(Yes, the last one is a different shot from the other)


Happy Monday!


Simply,
Laura
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad all rights reserved

Tuesday's Blog: Just Life

Life is about moments.  There are some terrible ones.  We all remember those. Some of those are individual losses and some of those we share as a nation such as the one we remember today. 


There are some amazing ones.  Most of those are very personal moments. Some we mark with special occassions called birthdays and anniversaries and holidays. 

There are private triumphs that nobody really knows about.  Moments of accomplishments that are personal when we do something small that means nothing to most people.  Moments where we finish something we started long ago.  Moments when we remember that life is worth living.  Moments when someone says something so small that means nothing to them but means the world to us.  I have had three of those moment in the last 12 hours. 


The first is silly.  I played my first softball game.  This is something I started and walked away from when I was 8. I was a rather sensative child.  This has changed so much.  Okay, not really considering as I sit here writing this, I have tears in my eyes.  I am the ultimate softy.  It sucks.  I wish I was tough.  I would love to be a hard woman with no feelings.  That just isn't who I am.  I went out and played softball when I was a kid and the coach yelled at me so I quit.  I didn't like being yelled at.  I still don't.  When a teammate yelled at me lastnight I had to fight back the urge to tell him off in the middle of the field, that or cry.  (Probably tell him off.)  The important part is, I played two games last night and I finished.  I didn't play well. I did get on base (on a throwing error but who cares?). I got an RBI.  I scored a run.  I rock!


This is me in the dugout!

After the game I sent my brother a text just to tell him that I played and I didn't cry and although I suck I finished.  He surprised me by saying, "Well, at least you are out there playing!".  My brother and I don't always agree on things.  He hunts, I hate guns.  He is conservative.  I am more liberal. He is stubborn.  I am stubborn.  He is right. I am always right.  You can see where this would cause problems.  There was more to our conversation, brother-sister banter but that simple pat on the back by my brother who was the popular kid and athlete meant a lot.

When I woke up this morning I found the sweetest text message on my phone from a friend.  I don't know why and I don't know what brought it on but whatever made my friend say those sweet things, I appreciate the love.  I don't deserve all that praise however that moment made me feel very special.

What I have learned in my life is that sometimes good people hurt you when they don't even try and don't really mean to.  You can hate them and live in the hate or you can forgive them and let go of it. I believe forgiving sets you free. 

What I have also learned is that in order to truly live you must force yourself to do things that make you uncomfortable.  For me that is going out and playing softball.  Truthfully, I hate being bad at things.  I don't like sucking at anything.  I have never felt so much like a girl as I do when I catch and throw.  My arms hurt this morning and I literally am afraid of the softball.  I see it coming at me and use my shin to block it instead of my glove to catch it.  I have the bruises to prove it.  It makes me uncomfortable.  I learn things about myself being uncomfortable.  We all do.

Finally, what I have learned is that somewhere inside there is a fear.  I have it whenever I have to go down a hill on my bike.  I just have to talk myself into it.  The fear of falling.  We all fall down. If you let the fear get the best of you, if you let the fear win, you close yourself up in a box and you stop living.  I did that.  I did that for years.  I quit trying.  I stopped living. I won't do that again. I lost 10 years of my life because I was afraid of getting hurt again.  I don't like being hurt.  I don't like being in pain.  I guard my heart like a bank guards it's money.  Nobody has the combo and I don't know if anyone ever will but I don't want to stop trying to let someone in just because good people fail me sometimes. Good people come with their own fear, pain, and baggage. 

I woke up thinking about this scripture and it seems perfect to stop here:

Simply,
Laura

Motivation Monday: More like Mountain Bike Monday with some Playoff baseball too.

This really should be called Mountain Bike Monday because that is what it is.

Does it seem to anyone else like mountain biking is taking over my life if not my bank account? Wait, it is taking over my bank account. New Trek bike that I already have replaced in my mind with a full suspension 29er, $8.00 on tubes x 4 two of which I have already gone through thanks to emergencies this weekend at LBH for another rider and one for me later,  $20 on multi purpose tool, $?? on mini pump, $25 on saddle pack. An endless list of stuff I need/want including shoes, shorts, LED headlights, a bike GPS, a better fitting helmet, a good riding partner who looks like Bradley Cooper would be nice too but one can't have everything, I suppose.   Every time I ride LBH it costs me a tube so an endless supply of those would work. Thank God I have Slime tubes. At least they leak slow enough I can get the bike home before they go flat. Actually, I think the tube resealed itself once I found the thorn and removed it. Little bugger. I just already had it off my bike by that time. (Just a note, learn to change a tube if you are going to ride.  Last weekend I got an lesson on the trail the hardway on this from another rider.  Ted was nice enough to give me his spare tube and teach me how to check my tire for offending objects and replace my tube. He also got me out of RLP when I wasn't sure which direction to go.)

Basic Training:
Saturday morning I went out to River Legacy Park (RLP) in Arlington which is quickly becoming one of my favorite places. Honesty, between the Rangers and this park I think it is clear I need to live closer. I should find a way to make this happen! I was out there for a beginers training class with DORBA (Dallas Off Road Bicycle Association). I have to say, I met the nicest people. Really! There was another lady named Laura. Reminded me a lot of myself. Hates bridges, rode the EKG out at River Legacy her second time through (I rode it my first) inspite of the warning expert rider signs. (Which we learned were a little misleading because it is a public park. Not really expert level stuff there. I could have guessed that since I only really struggled with one hill and that was a climb. I suck at climbing.) Our instructors were the nicest guys. Glen, part of the North Texas Mountain Bike Patrol (They help people with minor breakdowns & injuries) and a River Legacy River Rat (a group of riders that ride that trail all the time and work at keeping the trail clean) took us on our tour. I went with the intermediate group. I hung tough thank you very much. We did the full tour just knocking off a couple minor extensions at the end. I think Glen said we cut off maybe a mile. Guys are funny. Glen was very encouraging. Told me several times trust myself or my bike. At one point he turned to me and said very genuinely "you are doing really well".  That was nice. I think it was just because I wasn't being too female about stuff. What wasn't cool was the 20 something boys who clearly did not need to be in the class. They wanted to play, jump, and not learn and this was a large class not conducive to racing and having people right on your tail in the event of emergencies or if the rider infront of you, say a shy teenage girl, for example, was struggling with a climb and the idiot behind you was riding your tail. (Is this really motivating anyone to mountain bike yet?) At any rate. Glen was nice enough to stay after and assure me that my biggest current worry, my tires, were good. My bike came with a racing tire. They were ment to go fast which means I lose a little in the way of traction on climbs but he said I just need to keep practicing. I was concerned because in my turns I lose traction sometimes in the back tire.  He said that I need the front tire in turns not the back and to stop worrying so much. (Glen clearly doesn't know me! I am a worrier by nature!)  He said people have favorite tires and they get used to them but the tire I have is just fine to learn on and build my skill. That's what I need to concentrate on now. I like that. He talked straight to me. The guys were great. They were incredibly encouraging, especially to the women in the group.  Spent a good amount of time specifically encouraging women to stay involved.  I don't remember the other instructors names but they were all helpful. I love the fact they watched us take the climbs and gave us pointers. Mostly that I was going up in the wrong gear. I am sure that is something that just comes with time and skill. Watching some of the guys out there takes your breath away. There are a couple of those hills I just don't see me ever trying. I have no desire to be airborne on a bike. I also have no desire to face plant off of mine but I have already done that once so you know, stuff happens. The best thing I learned in the class was the 10 yard rule. Keep your gaze 10 yards ahead when riding. This is extremely important when going through tree gates. It is scary how close some of those trees are. If you look at the tree, you will hit it. River Legacy and LB Houston both have some tight tree gates so this was some really useful advice.

Wheel Women:


In the afternoon Khrystal and I went over to LB Houston in Irving to meet up with the Wheel Women. (I am in that picture somewhere). The DORBA ladies who are doing an 8 week park tour starting this weekend. That's right, we rode two parks in one day because we are crazy. Actually, it wasn't bad. It was just a little under the distance of riding Northshore and I learned a lot. First, my pack does not hold anywhere near enough water. I ran out both times. Now, to be fair, neither ride was straight. These were group rides. One was a very long and delayed training ride. One had a tire emergency.  Both had several stops.  That being said, you never know why you have to stop on a trail. I keep learning this lesson. More water is going to be needed for Northshore which I will be riding next month.
LB Houston (LBH) and RLP are similar trails in some ways. They have lots of flat, winding areas and both trails are very pretty. The skills area at RLP is better. They were planning a reno on LBH's Skills area but there are some circumstances there that are challenging that right now. It is a nice park. Lot's of flats, switchbacks, and some dips. The women of DORBA, the Wheel Women, what can I say? First, Jennifer our group leader who got 'stuck' leading the beginners, you rock! I am just so grateful I finally know where the trail picks back up across the street so I no longer have to ride back on the road! Second, to my roadie friend, (I wish I had gotten your name) who gave me the advice of shopping for the full suspension 29er after the holidays when all the bike stores get sell backs from the Plano folks. I love you! That is genius! The ladies were so much fun and the bravest bunch of beginners ever. Nobody chickened out of anything except me. My legs were jello by the time we got to the climbs at the end of the trail and I only did one of the two. Hey, I was in hour 5 on a bike and hour 7 of being out in a park. That is a little beyond my norm. Give a girl a break. I also didn't plan well. I need to take some Goo (YUCK) or Gummies (Slightly better), Powerade, & more water!
The best part of this is I learned a lot, had a great time, and was utterly exhausted to my bones. I think I fell asleep by 9:30 on a Saturday night. I'm not that old but I was tired. It was a good tired.

Lately, life has been a struggle. Some emotional. (Not all, some junk too but I am dealing). The biggest struggles are always in my head. No problem is ever as bad as it seems at the moment. The best part about the trail is the climb, the dip, the switchback, whatever the obstacle it is just exactly the size it seems. It is as hard as it is and no harder. It can be overcome with skill, determination, and time. Northshore kicked my butt the first time because I was completely unprepared. I didn't leave myself enough time. I didn't bring enough water. I rode on an empty stomach. I rode alone. I had never ridden a dirt trail and I started with one that is basically 18 miles. Start small and work your way up.Never be afraid to walk. Be prepared for a flat. Always, Always have water. Looking back, nothing I encountered at Northshore was anything I couldn't handle today. By the time I ride next month I intend to conquer that trail and put it behind me.

Northshore doesn't worry me anymore...now Boulder which we ride sometime in October....Boulder scares the crap out of me!

You don't have to mountain bike (although honestly how can you not want to?) But find something you love and do it. I started this adventure 3 years ago when I was training for the half marathon. One of my trainers told me about DORBA back at that time. He told me about Northshore too. I got hurt running and it slipped my mind until I got lost on Northshore and a friend of mine who rides mentioned to me (while he was telling me I was dumb for going out on Northshore, I think) that DORBA has free classes.

Check out Meet-Up groups too if you are looking for free activities. I see a lot of free exercise classes on there.

Okay, that's it. I will try not to go Mountain Bike crazy in too many blogs. The Rangers playoffs will take blog space soon. To prepare you I will end with some photos from Thursday night at Dr. Pepper Park in Frisco where the Frisco Rough Riders were playing the Corpus Christi Hooks in AA playoffs.




This is the Home Plate entrance to Dr. Pepper Park




Duece the mascot. He is a prairie dog but Rachel thinks he is a Chupacabra.





I like this picture. It is our required Ballpark pose. Rachel and Me of course.





Riders won in walkoff fashion!

It is finally cooling off in Texas.  Hope it lasts.  Happy Monday!!

Simply,
Laura

It's OK Thursday!

Linking up with Neely and Amber for It's OK Thursday!
I'm not going to lie, I have had a really tough week for a variety of reason. Capped off with I got pulled over yesterday in a school zone with my cell phone in my hand. That is a $300 ticket. I wasn't texting. I had swiped my screen to see the time but that is enough. The cop was right there. So dumb. That's not ok. However, this is. New rule, I don't touch my cell phone in the car. Actually, I have made another new rule about my phone....are you ready? This is going to come as a shock to my friends. I am stepping away from the phone. $300 is a hard lesson to learn. It is a lot of money and honestly, it is money I don't have. It is my playoff money.  My tickets are paid for (Thanks Mom...but I will be paying her back for awhile) I am putting away the phone and I am spending time with people. No more Tweeting at the Ballpark. No more Tweeting when I am out with friends. Actually, I am just taking a break from Twitter. That's OK!! I need a break from Twitter for many reasons. Mostly, I am just burned out.

So, here is what is OK with me this week:

*Sometimes you have to let yourself fail and that's OK. This is really hard for me.

* It's OK to ask for help. I can't always do it all. I have to accept that I am actually NOT Wonder Woman.

* It's OK that I was right down the street from the DORBA training Saturday and still couldn't find it. I     should have just gone to wake my friend Rachel up since she lives over there and had her show me.

* It's OK that two out of the last three times I have taken my bike out, I have ended up with a flat. The first time I met Ted and he showed me how to change a tire tube. The second time....I changed my own tube and I am so proud of that!

* It's OK (and Funny) that bikers would say I am doing it right.  They say that when you get a flat and they say that when you fall off your bike.  They are really the coolest/nicest people on the planet earth. I honestly think they are the hippies from the 1960's just channeled into a new medium.

* It's OK that I didn't watch one single minute of Cowboys football last night and got on Twitter for about 2 minutes saw people arguing about Rangers, Cowboys, & politics and got off. I watched the Rangers the old fashion way, just me, the dogs, and the TV. Ok, so my friend Khyrstal and I may have texted one another a little but it was about what a crappy day I had and how crazy I am. :)- (That's OK, by the way).

*It's OK that I finally got some sleep last night and I am thrilled. It had been 3 days. I am not fun to be around when I am overly tired. I tend to cry about everything. You should have seen what a hot mess I was after getting that ticket. I cried all the way to work! Sleep helps...I'm fine today.

*it's OK to think you want one thing and decide you would rather have something else after all. It is a woman's perogative to change her mind, after all.

*it's OK to be addicted to Smart Water and be personally responsible for getting other people addicted to it too. I watch the sales and buy it on sale. I LOVE this stuff. Best water ever.

*it's Ok that I'm going to see the Frisco Rough Riders playoff game tonight with my friend Rachel even though all the best players are in Kansas City now. My company gave us tickets and we always have fun out there.

Finally,

*it's OK I can't ride my bike before tomorrow because Saturday I will be on it with my friend Khrystal for about 6 hours. We have a training class Saturday morning and trail tour Saturday afternoon. I am expecting tired legs Sunday and that's OK!

So, what's OK with you?

Happy Thursday!!! We almost made it!

Simply,
Laura

Blog Update See What I'm Loving Wednesday....if anything

Linking up with Jamie



Here is what I an loving this week with the help of Pinterest too so I don't know what this blog is.




Trails:
I spent 5 of the last 6 days riding trails. I rode 2 new trails and I have such tired legs but good tired. I have never had so much fun or amazed myself so much in my life. I pushed myself running but I didn't have this much fun.






Jurickson Profar was called up and hit a homerun in his first game. He is the youngest player to do this since Adrian Beltre did it with the Dodgers. Good company. (Beltre is Profar's Ranger teammate).





I love this. I have been been feeling a lot defective lately. Hoping to get to the point where I can see there isn't anything actually wrong with me soon.





Yep....just yep.




I am loving this idea and I am going to do this with some of my Rangers & Mavs t-shirts. Oh, wait. Here:




I have way too many t-shirts. Really. This is a great idea. Actually, someone told me months ago I needed to do this with the shirts and I had forgotten. When I was cleaning my closets this weekend I became overwhelmed with the number of shirts I came across. Many are sizes way too big for me to wear. This solves the problem & gives me cool artwork!





Nobody tell my nephew you saw this. He still sleeps with his Teds. He chewed one ear off each when he was 2. That was 2003. I honestly don't know how he is going to get those things off to college with him or on his honeymoon but at this point....I'm convinced it will happen. I love it. So funny. To be honest. His father was the same way, he eventually grew out of it. I know because somewhere in a basket at my house I have his teddy. Don't tell.





I can't recall if I posted this already. It's worth reposting if I did. I love, love, love it!

Finally, I'm loving that it is fall. My summer bedding is gone and I have never been so glad to see my winter bedding. I like my summer comforter but needed to go. I get tired of things and boy was I tired of my bedroom. New sheets, new comforter, new room, new closet. It's like a fresh start for fall.

Maybe it is time for a all new Laura.

Have a Happy Hump Day.

Simply,
Laura

Monday's Blog: Motivation Monday

There are different kinds of motivation. It's labor day so (Happy Labor Day!). I spent Sunday cleaning and reorganizing my closet. Well, one of them. I got rid of somewhere in the neighborhood of 125 pair of shoes. I thought I would share some photos of the fruits of my labor. (See what I did there?)














I installed the hangers for some of my handbags. So happy to find the floor in my closet again.

In the process I found some things I.forgot I had.








Both these pair of shoes are favorites. I don't wear them often. I lost them in the chaos of my closet. They have been recovered.

This pair is being donated.




I have only worn them two times and both times were in 1988. It is time they find someone else to live with. Clearly I need to move on.

While I was cleaning I found a pile of old cloths. My fat-fat cloths. I thought I had gotten rid of these long ago. Here in lies the other type of motivation. The type that will make me get back on the bike today. The type that will make sure as soon as this holiday weekend is over my diet gets super clean again. Why, because of this:




In this photo with my bad 'I have been cleaning closets all day hair and no makeup' I am wearing 2 pair of pants. One pair you can't see and one pair, unbelievablely you can see way too much of. I used to sleep in those and they used to fit. I sent this picture to a friend last night saying I didn't know if I should laugh or cry. Being a really good friend he sent me a message back saying he was so proud of me and I should have no negitive feelings just be proud of myself. He is right. It is hard sometimes because it makes me sad thinking of how unhappy I used to be. That person is gone and life, like Laura is only getting better.

Okay, I'm going to find a trail and kick up some dust and I have some really good stories to tell you later this week about my crazy Saturday ride. If you have never met mountain bikers, they are the nicest people.


Happy Labor Day! Eat some burgers and have some mad fun!


Simply,
Laura