ONE WORD!

TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

'Nuff Said.

GO PACK GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What You Taught Me..

Many of you know that my Grandmother has been battling cancer for the past few months. Last night she decided to let go. She was at home with my mother, Grandfather and two of my aunts by her side. If you ask me, I think she knows Green Bay is going to the Superbowl and she wanted to be able to be there. She's always been one with a plan.
Remarkable doesn't begin to describe her and full isn't close to the adjective
necessary to relay the life that she had. I spent a few weeks with her every summer for years and she is a major reason that I am the person that I am. My mother and I would call her our own personal Julie Andrews (with the voice and all. She even sang at the Grand Ole Opry). If you have ever seen the Disney Movie, Princess Diaries where Mia is going through "Princess Lessons", you know what some of my summer's were like. I'll never forget going on a walk with her and her looking at me and saying, "Scottie, you walk like a farmer. A lady should walk as if she has eggs shells under her feet..."
The lessons that she taught me will stay with me forever. I don't know if she could even ever comprehend how instrumental she was to me in my life. I wanted to dedicate this blog to her, and write a very little excerpt of them;
To My Grandmother Jackie: The Lessons You Taught Me
~ You taught me that you can fight with the men in a "man's world" and win, but still be a lady.
~ You also taught me that a "lady never says the word shit".
~ But you added the lesson "there is a time and place you need to be a lady and a time and place you don't".
~ You taught me the importance of how you present yourself and the effect of the first impression.
~ You taught me that Christianity is about love, that worship is from your heart and not from words, that a prayer does not have to be long, and the inside story of what saying "bless your heart" to a more frustrating individual is.
~ And you showed me, inside story or not, you always meant it.
~ You were the first to tell me never to bring up politics or religion in a social environment.
~ You forgave me because I always failed.
~ You were the first one to teach me and push the importance of taking care of my body as much as my mind and soul. From beauty products for your skin, vitamins for your health, buying my first yoga tape, and taking me on extra long bike rides and walks. (And yes Grandma Jackie, I still remember that you could out-ride me on most occasions..)

Grandmother Jackie, Grandpa Bob, Myself and My Mom

~ You taught me how to set a table, sit like a lady, eat soup, eat salad, use my napkin, drink tea, and all the many other nuances of etiquette that are so important and lacking in society today. I wish you knew how much more confident I have been in so many settings because I knew these like the back of my hand. Thank you.
~ You taught me that I should expect to be treated like a lady and a woman, but never rely on a man.
~ You taught me the appropriate arm pump maneuver and "woot woot" for a Greenbay Packers game.
~ When Uncle Greg was in the house, you taught me that Cowboy Fans need love too (Aj appreciates that).
~ You taught me what it means to be able to sing, actually sing, from the heart, with your amazing voice. "The Old Rugged Cross" will never be the same.

Grandmother Jackie Graefe. I love you. You helped me become the woman I am today. I owe you so much. I miss you now and will always miss you. The last time we talked you told me that you are proud of me. I want you to keep watch on me Grandma, I want to continue to make you proud. I promise that if I ever get the chance to debate Ann Coulter, I'll set her straight, and I'll do it for you.

I will not be there this Saturday, but I know you aren't upset. You are always with me and we said our goodbyes. Tell Mimi I said hello and remember in Heaven, no politics or religion, I know you forget sometimes too.

~~Your Granddaughter, Scottie

 PS: You can read her obituary here.

Completely Useless.

That's what I am right now. Totally and completely useless. We are 11 days and a wake up away from Aj coming home. Did you catch that? Can you believe that? Less than two weeks. Ladies and gentleman, in less than two weeks my husband will be home and in my arms for the first time in almost eight months. It's pretty much all I think about and I truly can't help it. At work, I do my best to be constructive, but mainly I am just thinking of my to-do list that is quickly dwindling. At home the past week, dishes have remained in the sink longer, laundry has spilled over the rim of the basket, and the bed has gone unmade while I am busy making my shopping list and day dreaming of when he gets home. This also includes a complete inability to sleep, despite the promises of Tylenol PM.
I keep thinking that I need to update my blog with some good updates on life or maybe ask your opinions on fake tans (I can't tan for real.. Silly melonoma on my back.. Ruined all the skin destroying fun for me..), teeth whitening, and proper accessories for when Aj gets off the plane. Although since I've mentioned it, you can throw out any opinions you have... But honestly, the only update I have is a daily one... It's the countdown.. Today is one day closer... That is my update every day. It's like my own personal lame duck session in the middle of life.
So, I pretty much am not making any promises for this blog the next few weeks. I can promise a giant update, complete with pictures, after he goes back (yes.. that's right... he will have to go back for a few more months..) Right now my mind is elsewhere.. It's 11 days and a wake up from now.... And until time and life catches up with my mind.. No expectations of me please.. Right now all I can think about is having my husband back, if only for a short while.

I can't wait. I truly can't wait to see him again.

A Horrible Political Debate

I'm sure that most of you have heard of the horrific shooting that cost several individuals their lives and put another political figure in the ICU. My anger regarding the media and the political world at their reactions towards what happened was, I thought, indescribable. But my friend recently put an update on her blog that lays it out perfectly. Very well written and I am in total agreement with. So, instead of writing it out the same, please read what she has to say regarding the attempted murder of Representative Gabrielle Giffords coupled with the successful murders of multiple others and the horrible response from those in office and out:  The Rush to Assume

New Years Movie Night!!

I'm finally getting these pictures up. I've mentioned before that I left our camera in Texas- which was fine, it was horrible anyway. I need to get a new one soon. So I took pictures of Blitz and my New Years Movie Night on my cell phone camera (which I discovered has a timer on it! Nifty!! ). The pictures are terrible for two reasons: 1) It's a cell phone camera! and 2) for some reason Blitz has always HATED pictures. I have no idea how he understands what they are or why it is he can't stand them but he does. And he fights getting pictures taken every time. So, the ones I finally got of the two of us, I am laughing my head off and my eyes look giant and buggy.
To give you a synopsis of my New Years, Aj of course is not home and so it was just Blitz and I. I decided to do a movie night, just the two of us and what better movie to watch together than Marmaduke? We hopped in the car together, went to the little Red Box down the road, popped some popcorn (which Blitz LOVES!), I treated myself to a diet coke and Blitz got a nice new bone. I thought the movie was really cute, although I laughed more at parts that I knew Aj would have loved because I was thinking about what his reaction would have been more than the movie itself. Blitz finally laid down and watched the movie after I had finished dispensing the popcorn between the two of us. I would call our night a success, although I was in bed asleep by 10:30. :) Happy New Years!! Aj comes home in less than three weeks!!! WOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 I popped this big bowl of popcorn and wanted a picture of Blitz with it. I told Blitz to sit and stay and put the popcorn down. He was really annoyed that I put it that close to him and told him to leave it. Then he got even more annoyed when he saw me taking a picture. He's such a good boy though, didn't make a move just wouldn't look at the camera.

  This is our little spot on the floor that we created to watch the movie together. Blitz isn't allowed on the furniture, so I got down and joined him on the floor.

I discovered my cell phone has a timer! I thought it would be cute to get a pic of Blitz and I on our spot with each of our "treats". Blitz somehow realized that we were taking another picture and therefore is looking away. I tried so hard to get him to look before the 10 second timer was over but he refused.

I really wanted to get a cute up close pic of the two of us. By this time, Blitz was so sick of pictures that he would stay but would NOT look anywhere near the camera. I fought with him to keep his head still and he fought back. It was cracking me up! This was my first picture attempt.

 

Although he isn't really looking at the camera, after a few minutes of wrestling over the picture, he finally humored me enough to get this one. My eyes look like they are bugging out cause I am still giggling.

 Marmaduke! It really was a cute movie. But like I said, would have been so much more fun to watch with Aj home. Although I pretty much think everything is better when Aj is home. He'll be home so soon. It's all I think about. We love you baby and miss you soo much! 19 days and a wake up!

The Dangers of the Current "Health Calculators"

     Ok, so if you haven't heard, I'm all about fitness. I'm not about being skinny or fitting into a size two jeans, I'm about being a healthy, strong, and fit individual and have based my career around it. I have been known to rail against "BMI" calculators in the past. This calculator takes your height and weight (sometimes they throw age in there), plug it into a formula, and viola! They tell you what your percentage of body fat is based solely on those indicators. (This is the most prominent and easiest version to calculate BMI, others include water based testing, electric current testing, and the "pinch test" all of which can be more accurate, but I still disagree with.) Then this "tool" is used to decide if you are healthy or not. It's something that has always irked me.
     For the way I look and for my fitness level, most people would never guess that I weigh as much as I  do. When a person reaches a certain fitness level, using weight as a health measurement is inaccurate and dangerous. Don't get me wrong, I understand that weight can be an important indicator of health and fitness, but I also believe that throwing "calculators" out online that will tell you if you are healthy or not leads to more health crisis'  in America: anorexia, anemia, bulimia, and apathy.

Me and Daris from Biggest Loser Season 9

     This morning, I woke up at 4:30 and hit the gym. I started out with a paced three mile run followed by an hour of free weights. I log a food journal and aim to get between 1400 and 1700 calories a day and ensure I consume no less than 50 grams of protein. I am fit, healthy and feel great. (For reference, I wear a size 5 jean).
     I have ranted before regarding my frustration at going to the USDA nutrition website, plugging in my information to check my health level and being told by the United States Government that I am overweight and should consult my physician about a nutrition and exercise regime. (To double check, I just revisited the site and was told the same thing.)
     Recently, I read how physicians are turning away from BMI and are moving to a new method to determine health: the waist to hip ratio. The idea is two fold; first, science has shown that where you store fat is as much an indicator of health as how much fat you have. Storing fat in your stomach is more detrimental than say your hips or thighs (This is a whole other discussion. If you want to ask about this, I'll do a whole other blog on it). Second, it uses the measurements to determine your mass in comparison to what a "healthy" individual would have. Combine these two and physicians are saying it is a new and more accurate indicator. It's ridiculous and more skewed than BMI. In my humble opinion.

Me this last December 19th.

     I googled: hip to waist ratio calculator. Found a prominent link, followed it to www.healthstatus.com and plugged in my measurements. I was totally baffled by my results. My waist is 29 inches, my hips are 35. The results were the following: "Your shape puts you at increased risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes and stroke. Frequently referred to as apple shape, you tend to keep fat at your midsection and less on your hips. Your body converts this upper body fat to energy whenever your body runs short. This raises cholesterol and blood pressure."
     Ummmm, excuse me? Hello? I have a 29 inch waist and 35 inch hips and I am being told that I have an apple shape? I thought that something was off and so I re-typed my information. Same result. I have never had an apple shape. Ever. I carry my weight in my legs and hips. Always have, always will. Also, the "warning" the measurements gave me sound really scary! It's telling me that I am at risk for heart disease, diabetes, and a stroke without any additional information on me. That's a really terrifying result to be given. Not to mention completely inaccurate. 
    These type of generic calculators and health tests are adding to the unhealthy epidemic that plagues the United States and it is really starting to piss me off. Not make me mad, not annoy me, but I am to the point where I am genuinely pissed off.
    First of all, there are many young teenagers (and adults as well) that go online everyday and use these tools to see if they are normal and decide if they are "fat" or not. Most teenagers aren't concerned with health, they are concerned with labels and image. Are they fat? These kids have the very real possibility of being told that they are overweight and unhealthy (in any teenagers mind: fat) by the United States Government and a plethera of other corresponding websites. This leads to depression, body dysmorphic disorder, anorexia, etc. and it is NOT ok.

Aj & I in May of last year.

    I was a big girl when I was a pre-teen. I was mocked mercilessly. Fat? Called that. Chub? That's my nick name. To this day, I hate being called cute. "The fat girl with the pretty face is always 'the cute girl.'" I never went to Prom and in fact, only was asked to one dance. Ever. Teenagers have enough to deal with in highschool without the health world, the Government, and all of society telling these perfectly normal and healthy kids that they are overweight and fat.
   Then the reverse also happens: total apathy. When an individual who has worked so hard to become fit and healthy, when they are so proud of themselves for dropping those pant sizes and then go online only to receive those very scary and inaccurate warnings, people give up. Nothing they do is good enough. They can't win, so why try? The exercise stops. The healthy living stops. And the weight piles back on. It happens all the time. And it is so wrong. My heart goes out to those people. I want to just look them in their eyes and tell them, "You are wonderful. You are healthy. They are wrong, not you." Seriously, it tears me up.
    Obesity is a disease and it is very real epidemic in the United States. I get that. TRUST ME, I get it. I want to help people understand that they can be healthy. They can fight it and win. Anyone and everyone can be healthy. It is a huge passion of mine to help as many as I can. At the same time, putting out inaccurate information and calculators of health is just as bad and not only perpetuate the problem, but creates new and just as unhealthy ones.
   There isn't a way to wrap up this blog in a nice little bow, I just wanted to rant a little bit. Please, if you have ever used these standards and thought, "Oh my! Seriously?" Know that they can be used as a guideline and tools to track progress and get a baseline but do not let them define who you are or your current health level. Please.