Memory Jar

I saw this idea and I thought it was a fun New Year's tradition.  All you need is a jar and paper.  I found a mason jar and labeled it "2013 Memory Jar" and one or twice a month I will ask everyone in the family what their favorite memories were and we will write them down and put them in our jar.  On New Year's Eve or Day we will read all the memories.  I think that New Year's is a celebration not only of the year to come but a reflection on all the great things that happened the prior year. 

Fit in Six Health Challenge

A friend invited me to participate in a Fit in Six Challenge Group she is running. It started on Monday and it has been a great way to help me discipline myself. I thought I'd give you a basic overview, if any of you are looking for some kind of plan to help you loose some weight.

Basic overview:

• Eat good food each day (see good food list below) and stay away from bad foods (also see list below)
• Drink 8 cups (64 oz) of water each day
• Take a vitamin each day
  
• Exercise (both cardio and resistance) - with the challenge you get points for exercising M-Sat but Sunday you rest
• Don't eat after 8 p.m.
• Choose an addiction to overcome that keeps you from living a healthy lifestyle (for me it is my daily chocolate feedings)
  
• Read something inspirational for 10 minutes each day
• Personal prayer daily

I like that the program is simple and I also get "points" for doing things I also have as goals to make sure I read the scriptures daily and pray. Taking time to meditate on higher things definitely is good for our health.

Below are the lists of good, bad, and safe foods.

Good Foods
3 Fiber (goal is 25 grams a day)
*Oatmeal (i.e. old fashioned or Quaker Weight Control)
*Whole grain hot cereals (unsweetened)
*Low sugar, High Fiber cereals (i.e. All Bran, Fiber One, ~10g/
serving)
*Whole grain bread, pita bread & tortillas
*Brown Rice
*Legumes (black beans, kidney beans, etc)
*Etc.

2 Protein
*Fish (tuna, salmon, halibut, etc)
*Shrimp
*Chicken (w/o skin)
*Turkey
*Eggs, Egg Whites, Egg Beaters
*Protein Shake (less than 250 cal per shake)
*Cottage cheese (nonfat or 1%)
*Legumes (black beans, kidney beans, etc)

2 Dairy
*Skim or 1% milk
*Lowfat cheeses (string cheese, mozzarella, laughing cow, etc)
*Lowfat or nonfat yogurt (Dannon Light ‘n Fit, 1 cup ~ 80 to 100 cal)
--If you are lactose intolerant or you have issues with dairy, you can
achieve similar results with soy products, a calcium supplement, etc--

All Fruit

All Vegetables

Supplements
*Multivitamin (Centrum gets good reviews)
*Calcium and Vitamin D (Oscal Ultra or Caltrate 600 Plus - good
reviews)
*Fish oil capsules on days when you did not eat fish (1 gram)

Bad Foods
-Sugary cereal, full fat granola, etc
-White flour pancakes, waffles, biscuits (Only one serving of white pasta, potato, etc a day)
-Fried foods, saucy foods, cheesy foods, full-fat cream sauce
-Bakery items such as muffins, cake, bagels, doughnuts, brownies, cookies, pie, sweet roll, danish, etc
-Soda or other drinks with sugar
-Mayo, sour cream, butter, margarine, creamy sauces, full calorie/full fat salad dressings, dips
-Ice cream, whole or 2% milk, cream, full fat cheeses, cream cheese
-Potato chips, Cheetos, Fritos, Doritos, Cheezits, crackers, etc.
-Fast food, Restaurant food, pizza (There are some good choices – your discretion)
-Chocolate, candy, candy bars, pop tarts
-Full sugar syrups, jams, jellies
-High sugar or high calorie protein bars over 150 calories.
-Regular beer or wine

Safe foods (these snacks have been great in helping me get a little "sweet" for the day
-Unsweetened cereals/Low in Fiber: Cheerios, Wheeties, Crispix, etc
-Nuts
-Low Sugar Jam
-Diet Soda or Crystal Light (both not necessarily good for you)
-Protein bar less than 150 cal
-100 cal popcorn snack or air popped popcorn
-Sugar free jello, Fat free sugar free jello pudding
-Fat free or Sugar free cool whip
-Skinny Cow ice cream ~120 cal a serving (similar ice sandwich or Low cal frozen desserts cream treats)
-Mustard, Salsa, Relish, Pickles
-Spray butter, Pam
-Olive oil, Canola oil
-Low-Cal, low-fat healthy alternatives

This challenge has helped me this week. I've worked out each day, eaten healthy, and I haven't had chocolate or dessert all week (except for my approved snacks on the safe food list). I feel great and I have lost a couple pounds. I hope to be fit at the end of the six week challenge and keep up these healthy habits! Do you have any healthy ideas to share?

Preserving 2009 memories

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. I am always sad when the holidays are over but it is exciting to have a nice, fresh year full of new opportunities. The past two years I have made it a goal to compile my pictures and video footage from the previous year by the end of January through creating a blog book, scrapbook, home video, and archiving the files. Once I have preserved those memories, I feel I can move onto my goals and projects for the new year.

Here are some previous posts I have done that give details on ways you can preserve your memories.

Blog books - "slurp" all your entries using Blurb.com in minutes and create a beautiful book full of your year's memories

Scrapbook - whether you do the traditional or digital books, it is a great time to catch up

Home Video - use your video footage and pictures from the past year to create a movie (my son watches the video I made last year at least once a week - kid's love seeing themselves on tv!)

Archive photos - backup all those precious photos

Using your time wisely

The more business a man has to do, the more he is able to accomplish; for he learns to economize his time.
~ Sir Matthew Hale

I am a big believer in using time efficiently. Time management is such an important skill to have and I believe it comes easier to some than others. However, everyone can learn the skills with some planning and effort. Here are some tips I use to most effectively use my time.

1. Make a weekly schedule - Create a schedule that you follow each week, see example below. As you can see, I know the things I must do every day and I know that every Monday will be my cleaning and laundry day and every Tuesday I will grocery shop. I can then fill in my other days and open times with other things that need to be done or that I would like to do.

Daily - Tidy kitchen, exercise, reading/personal study time, make dinner

Monday - Clean kitchen and bathrooms, wash sheets, laundry, make weekly menu and shopping list, make a weekly to-do list, family night

Tuesday - Grocery shopping

Etc....

2. Make a to-do list - Every week I also make a to-do list. This may include things such as getting the oil in my car changed, returning library books, mailing a package, preparing a Sunday school lesson, phone calls, activities with friends, etc. I then plan which days I will do these items so I know they will get accomplished.

3. Make time for hobbies/projects each week - We all have hobbies we enjoy. I think it is important to find things you enjoy doing in your life. As you are planning out your weekly schedule make sure to find a few hours each week to work on a project or hobby you enjoy. I selected six projects in my New Year's Resolutions this year that I want to accomplish. These are what I focus on in my "me" time. I find it is easier to just work on one project at a time or focus on one hobby each week. If I work on too many I usually don't end up finishing any of them as quickly because the starting and stopping makes you forget where you left off. So I try and pick a hobby and focus on it each week.

Last week was a reading week for me, so in my "me" time I read. When I have a free minute I know I will read, so I don't waste any time deciding what to do. Next week I may focus on sewing my quilt. Since I am focused on sewing all week, I won't have to put all my supplies away each day. That will save time and the project will be fresh in my mind so I won't have to remember where I left off.

I like to give myself a time line for accomplishing my projects so I make sure I make them a priority and don't too much of my time doing unnecessary things, such as being at the computer way too long! Accomplishing something you enjoy makes you feel good and happy. Life isn't all about work we need to make sure we find time to do the things we enjoy.

I have always liked the motto of Brigham Young, "Eight hours work, eight hours sleep, and eight hours recreation."

Although these days, it seems like the average work day is at least 9-10 hours. However, there still should be some time for recreation and doing things you enjoy if you manage your time well.

How about you...do you have any time management tips you'd like to share?

Organize your workout plan

I find my most effective workouts happen when I plan exactly what I am going to do beforehand. I know I am committing myself to the workout and I can mentally prepare. About four months ago I started writing down my planned workouts in a notebook and I take the notebook with me to the gym and follow the plan. I write notes that remind me if I liked the particular exercise, what I would change, if I need to work harder, lift more weight, etc. I follow a similar format to this sheet you can print from the Body for Life Website. Since recording my workout plans I have seen a noticeable difference in the effectiveness of my workouts. I can lift more weight, I can run faster, I feel better, and I've been losing that stubborn baby fat. It is a simple way to plan, track, and obtain your exercise goals.

How are those resolutions coming?

How are your New Year's resolutions coming along? If you are like me, maybe you haven't even finished writing them yet! I wrote down a few ideas quickly, but have yet to type them up and actually "commit" to them. It is overwhelming deciding where to start. There are so many things I could work on and would like to, but I know I won't actually work on the goals unless they are manageable.
Growing up my parents always encouraged us to pick a goal from each "category" of our lives and I have found that to be a good way to pick a variety of balanced goals. So this year I am once again picking one or two items from each of the following categories: Physical, Mental, Social, Spiritual, and Projects (my own add-on category).

My husband has already told me he wants one of "our" resolutions to be eliminating the word "like" from our vocabulary. How did "like" become the knew word for "said?" So, that is going under one of my goals under the "Mental" category. My projects list is growing quite long, which will be good because I will have lots of fun project ideas to share with you this year.

What are your goals this year? I'd love to hear! Happy goal writing.

Mission: Organization

It's a new year and with that comes endless possibilities and challenges of how to spend our time! I am sure most of you wrote down or at least thought of a couple resolutions for this year. This week's postings are focused on organizing your life - starting with making a plan of action for your year. Other fun organizational posts this week will focus on things such as planning your grocery list, and decluttering the house!