Week #5

So...I finished last week at my goal of 17 miles! I find myself looking forward to my workouts...which is exactly what I hoped for! Here's to week #5 and keeping the momentum going...

Keep on keepin' on...

So...10 miles this week so far. I took Monday off, walked 5 miles both Tuesday and Wednesday...should be able to get 4 miles in tonight watching Grey's Anatomy leaving 3 miles to finish either Friday/Saturday to hit my goal. I heart my treadmill...best purchase EVER!

Workouts...

I finished last week with 19 miles. Towards the end of the week, I started running. Not very fast and not very far, but run I did! I haven't ran anywhere since college, so I was pretty pumped. Let's see what happens this week! :)

Getting Fit in 2011

So...my Christmas present to myself this year was a Nordic Track treadmill. I love that it has speakers for my Ipod or Pandora and also that you can put in Jillian Michaels IFIT workouts. I have also set up a TV just like at the gym, only its my shows playing and not ESPN. My goal is to walk at least 17 miles per week until infinity. I just had my 31st birthday (I know...I don't look a day over 25...I get that a lot-lol!) and with each passing year, gravity grabs a little bit more!

So, in 2011, I am bound and determined to GET FIT! I am still working out at Curves three days a week and trying to limit work lunches/dinners to salads and broth soups only(its amazing how many calories you can pack in at a restaurant).

I walked 6 miles the first week and 10 miles the second week...and then old man winter stepped in and gave me the worst cold I've had since Sept...took a week off and this week I have already put in 11 miles. I am going to update this blog with my progress and hopefully by summer this year I am singing a completely fit and healthy tune!

New Baby...

I became an Auntie for the third time last week...let me introduce you to Baby Lily:

Lily Mae Christenson
December 15, 2010
4:10 AM
6 lbs, 10 ozs
20 in

She is a peanut and I can't wait to meet her in Feb for the baptism!
You can see pics of her here:
http://www.our365.com/NewbornPortraits/Default.aspx?SM=ByCartId&CI=63451316639431

Tagged...

I have been tagged by Davina....

RULE #1 : People who have been tagged must write their answers on their blogs and replace any question that they dislike with a new question formulated by themselves.

RULE #2 : Tag 4 people to do this quiz and they cannot refuse. These people must state who they were tagged by and cannot tag the person whom they were tagged by. Continue this game by sending it to other people.

1. If you have pets, do you see them as merely animals, or are they members of your family? I do not have pets nor want pets...that should answer this question...

2. If you can have a dream to come true, what would it be? To get married, have a couple of kids and live a much slower pace of life...

3. What is the one thing most hated by you? People who can't just "do the right thing"...and take responsibility for their actions...its not always "someone else's fault"

4. What would you do with a billion dollars? Pay off all of my family's debt and then buy a bunch of land where we can all live close to each other but have seperate homes etc. and then do a bunch of volunteer work...and travel...and make as many memories as possible!

5. What helps to pull you out of a bad mood? Um...watching TV or reading...

6. Which is more blessed, loving someone or being loved by someone? Both...I think you need to know how to truly love someone else before someone can truly love you...

7. What is your bedtime routine? Take out my contacts, put on my jammies, turn the TV sleeper on and slowly fall asleep...

8. If you are currently in a relationship, how did you meet your partner? Oh...no relationship to speak of right now...perhaps next year I will have a better answer...

9. If you could watch a creative person in the act of the creative process, who would it be?
Probably Bobby Flay on Iron Chef...not really into the arts...

10. What kinds of books do you buy? I do not buy books...I am a proud card carrying member of the library! I read authors such as Nelson DeMille, James Patterson, Catherine Coulter, Nora Roberts, Francine Rivers...love books!

11. How would you see yourself in ten years time? Shizer...when someone asked me this question five years ago, I definitely didn't say Hawaii...I have NO IDEA where this crazy life will take me...I will wait patiently for the Lord to open my next door...stay tuned!

12. What's your fear? Drowning...or getting bit or stung in the ocean...remind me again why I live on an island...in the middle of nowhere?

13. Would you give up all junk food for the rest of your life for the opportunity to visit outer space? Probably not...unless the other astronaunts were hot, single guys...then maybe...

14. Would you rather be single and rich or married, but poor? I'm single and rich right now...JUST KIDDING...only the single part is true...I've got nothing on this question... :)

15. What's the first thing you do when you wake up? Turn on the TV and think about getting in the shower...

16. If you could change one thing about your spouse/partner what would it be? See Question 8

17. If you could pick a new name for yourself, what would it be? Anne of Green Gables...just kidding...I can't think of a good one...

18. Would you forgive and forget no matter how horrible a thing that special someone has done?Yes...and then avoid similar situations going forward.

19. If you could only eat one thing for the next 6 months, what would it be?Popcorn...tons and tons of popcorn...

Maunawili Falls Hike

Went on my first hike in Hawaii last Saturday. Its a 1.5 mile hike in and ends at a stunning waterfall. Can't wait to hit some other spots in the next couple of months...

North Lake Tahoe 2010

What a great trip! It was absolutely gorgeous! I was able to see a lot of old friends and had an excellent weekend in the snow! Thank you to everyone in Cali that made this trip memorable! (and to think that I wasn't going to see snow this year!)

Turning 30...

Yep...you read right...I'm 30.

I have to admit, I was not pumped about this year's birthday. I have really enjoyed claiming I am 20 something and didn't want to give that up. Father Time doesn't really want to hear my excuses, rantings or ravings, so I decided to go with the flow and except my fate...

But I wasn't going to do that without a BANG...

So, my great friend Cheryl flew out to spend 4 days with me to kick off the celebrations. We literally painted the town of Waikiki RED! We had a BLAST! Nothing like partying old school style! We also went on a dolphin excursion and got to see two GIANT humpback whales swim right underneath our boat...so cool.

Next up...a trip to Tahoe! I booked a last minute flight for the weekend of 21st to join all my good friends from SF on a ski trip. Can't wait to see all of them and be in the SNOW! Sue has to bring me some snow clothes though...mine are in MN!

Last, but certainly not least, I am going to see Bon Jovi on Feb 12th! I swear everyone has seen him but me...not for long though! I can't wait to take some BAD MEDICINE while LIVIN ON A PRAYER, not knowin if I am WANTED, DEAD OR ALIVE. Don't worry though...you can LAY YOUR HANDS ON ME little RUNAWAY while I lay you down in a BED OF ROSES. At the end of it all, we'll KEEP THE FAITH and go down in a BLAZE OF GLORY...ALWAYS!

Happy Birthday to ME! Here's to my next 30 years! Cheers!

Air Force One

Obama is in Hawaii and I got to see Air Force One at the airport today in Hilo. Pretty sweet...

Christmas...already?!

Whoa! The last real post was so long ago I forgot what I wrote! Lots has happened over the summer and into the fall...and through Christmas and over New Years...

My trip to MN in July was long and well needed. We stayed at Island View Lodge for a week before the wedding, it was fun to finally be paying customers rather than hired help! Not much has changed there in the last 15 years, it was definitely like entering a time warp! Mandy, Kaleb and I all had jobs there at one time or another...and it brought back many memories and great laughs. Lots of friends came out to visit...got to see Krista, Missy Walls, Sara and Missy Tate. David and Mindy Nguyen (plus I got to meet Jackson!), Davina and JP, Dave and Jessalin Karsnia (who are also expecting this summer!), Jimmy Peterson stopped by for an adult beverage or two (I also got to hang out with him in Boston) and the list was endless when we hopped parties and took Mitchell's pontoon boat over to Sha Sha. There is nothing like summer on Rainy Lake...nothing!

The week ended with Brook and Brackin's wedding. All the family was there and it was great to see my cousins from San Antonio. Brackin was beautiful and we had fun dancing (thanks to many glasses of White Zin!). The night ended with a party at Sutch's house (of course Kyle planned that one!).

The next day was Mom's birthday...so we headed back to Grand Rapids for a little R & R before I took off to shake my tail feathers at Moon Dance Jam. I can tell you how nice it is to just wake up and have a cup of coffee with your family. I cherished every second...

Moving on to Moon Dance Jam...Sara picked me up in Grand Rapids Wednesday morning and we hit Duluth with a fury. Missy's boyfriend Vinny was playing at a local watering hole with his band and we decided to grace them with our presence. It was a hoot. Got to see Josh and Christine (can't wait for their wedding in May!).

We packed up on Thursday and made the LONG drive to Walker, MN to kick off Moon Dance Jam. It was ridiculously COLD this year and I was NOT prepared! I didn't bring one pair of socks...remember now that I live in Hawaii and socks are only worn by people who go to the gym...seriously...

This was also the place where I fell in love...yes, with Bud Light Lime. I.can't.stop.drinking.it.

Anyways, all of the pics are of us bundled up in jeans and sweatshirts...wishing we had mittens and scarfs and perhaps some long johns! I will not be making that mistake next year...and I think the cold weather has prompted us to upgrade from tents to a camper...or is it our old age?! Hmmm...either way, we will be better prepared!

The line up at MDJ was AWESOME! Journey, Sheryl Crow, Kansas, Lita Ford, Whitesnake, Judas Priest, Foghat and Spin Doctors...classic rock!!! Next year already has Lynyrd Skynyrd and Buckcherry signed up...yay!

Following that long weekend came the incredibly long trip back to Hawaii...did you know that I live closer to Japan than MN? Yeah...threw me for a loop too...insanity...

Went to the No Doubt concert in August...Gwen Stefani was RIPPED...no joke. You would never be able to tell she has ANY kids...crazy. Such a good band, brings me back to high school and Spiderwebs!

Ok...so fast forward another month and I am back on a plane headed to Boston. Kaleb and Angela finally got married (after 7 years of dating!). I flew out the weekend before so that I could go to Angela's bachelorette party in Cape Cod. I got to meet all of the other bridesmaids and a few other friends. The weather didn't really cooperate, but then I get a lot of sun here, so I wasn't sad we couldn't "lay out" before Fall weather hit.

After the Cape, my Mom, sister and the kiddos flew in. They had a LONG layover in Atlanta ( I know, I know, cheap tickets...we should have paid extra for the direct flight!) and Kaleb and I picked them up around 11pm...we headed down to the beach house we rented (I had to make last minute plans, as the house I had originally rented was suddenly "double booked" and the guy had already spent my deposit...needless to say I am still trying to get that money back!). The house we rented was absolutely amazing! It had four bedrooms and two bathrooms, a large wrap around deck, hot tub and private beach right on the ocean! There was a little seafood store a block away and we got FIVE 5lb lobsters...yep...FIVE! The guy who sold them to us laughed all the way to the bank...TOURISTS! HAHA...it will probably be one of my most favorite memories of all time! I will never forget Kyle putting that gigantic lobster on my plate...I think I screamed it was so big!

After the beach house we headed up the reception site. We rented another cabin there, only this one was a little more like boot camp than beach house! We all had to sleep on twin beds and share dorm room style bathrooms...oh well, that's what you get for traveling in a "pack"!

The groom's dinner went off without a hitch, the food was excellent. It was cold that night, so we decided to make a bon fire...but I should probably mention that we didn't exactly have permission to build this fire (please picture a bunch of MN boys out in the woods looking for firewood...Ginter's shack anyone?!) and about three hours into it, we had to "PUT IT OUT...ALL OF IT, OUT!!! YOU DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO BE LIGHTING A FIRE!" This was all done in some foreign accent which gave it a more comical twist than a beat down. Needless to say, we put the fire out and hoped we wouldn't get kicked out before the wedding even took place!

Alas, onto the day of the wedding. It was gorgeous out and a perfect day to get hitched. It was a small wedding about 15 minutes away. Angela was so beautiful and she teared up saying her vows. Precious! We headed back to the reception place for great food, yummy cocktails and to shake our tailfeathers well into the wee hours. Kaleb and some of his college buddies got out the infamous glow sticks and put on a show from their days at the Clubs...hahaha! Techno mania!

Soooo...I got back on the plane and headed home...where I have been ever since! (Note to self: DO NOT use all of your vacation days before Christmas...EVER AGAIN!). Halloween came and went...I rented a Marilyn Monroe costume, only to be sick that whole weekend and didn't get to wear it. Nice waste of $50...story of my life. However, I did dye my hair to look like Marilyn...and its been uber blond since. It started out with a little too much gold overtone though, so I went back to bleach it and it got lighter...but not really what I had in mind...still gold in it...tomorrow I get it done AGAIN and I think its going to be WHITE! Sweet...I figured since I have already gone this far, I might as well knock it out of the park and then go back to my old self...or not!

Thanksgiving came and went...nothing too crazy. I got all my Christmas cards out in the mail and presents ordered online. Went to my work Christmas party...walked away with a cool chip/dip platter from the gift exchange.

Christmas came and went...I was sick for this holiday too...had the WORST sore throat...it has now morphed into some kind of sneezy, stuffy nose thing that I still can't believe I have...how do you get a cold in Hawaii...I mean really, people...only me!

New Years also came and went...we watched fireworks from the beach and had a few cocktails. Nothing crazy...hit the pool for drinks the next day...went to bed early and chilled the rest of the weekend.

Three Weeks and One Day

That's how long until I get on a plane and fly back to MN. I CAN'T WAIT!!!! There is SO much going on and I get excited just thinking about it.

First, I fly into Mpls and will spend the first day shopping (living on a island sucks when it comes to buying clothes!). Then, I'm driving to the Falls with Mandy and the kiddos where we will meet up with my Mom, Kyle, Kaleb and Angela and spend the whole week at Island View. Kinda weird renting a cabin at a place you used to work at... :) I finally get to spend time with Davina and JP whom I haven't seen since Dave's wedding almost TWO YEARS AGO! Not to mention the five million other people who will be in town for the 4th of July...YAY!

The following weekend is Brackin and Brook Miggins wedding...can't wait to see all of my cousins from Texas! Talk about a family reunion. Jenica better be baby free by the time we show up! :) Can't wait to meet the newest baby girl!

Next, I will head down to Elbow Lake to see Jessie, Tim and the kids. Little bit of a road trip but haven't seen them in two years either.

Finally, its off to Moondance Jam with Missy, Sara, and Kari. The lineup this year makes me giddy...I love 80's music!!!! Not that excited about sleeping in a tent for five days...but once I get there I'm sure I'll get over it! :)

TICK TOCK TICK TOCK...Mama I'm comin' home!

Compassion International

I have adopted a child from Compassion International. Her name is Kathryn and she is from Ecuador. She turns 6 this month and I can't wait to get her a present and send her letters. She is the custest thing on the planet, and if any of you would like to send warm wishes to Kathryn, just let me know. If you are interested in a child of your own, its only $32/month and the website is http://www.compassion.com/

Isn't she precious!

Germaines Luau

The luau was FUN! Here are some pics and videos...believe it or not, it was SUPER chilly out, so Mom got me a new sweatshirt...I am going to miss her! My bed has been made every day, my laundry is done right after I wear it...she has definitely spoiled me! We had a great time and I am so GRATEFUL that she was able to come!

USS MISSOURI

Happy Easter everyone! My Mom is here in Hawaii with me and we went to visit the USS Missouri, USS Arizona Memorial and a tour of Pearl Harbor. The Arizona Memorial is UNREAL, it literally sits on top of the sunken ship from Dec 7th, 1941. The USS Missouri was awesome, here are some facts:

Nickname: Mighty Mo

Launched: January 24, 1944

Length: 3 Football Fields

Takes 2700 men to operate

Was the last battleship to be built by the U.S.

Site of surrender of the Empire of Japan which ended WWII

I have attached a video and some pics...enjoy!

Tsunami...

Just when you think you live in Paradise...

TSUNAMI MESSAGE NUMBER 1
NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI

831 AM HST THU MAR 19 2009
TO - CIVIL DEFENSE IN THE STATE OF HAWAII

SUBJECT - TSUNAMI ADVISORY

A TSUNAMI ADVISORY IS ISSUED FOR THE STATE OF HAWAII EFFECTIVE
AT 0831 AM HST.
AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS
ORIGIN TIME - 0818 AM HST 19 MAR 2009
COORDINATES - 23.0 SOUTH 174.8 WEST
LOCATION - TONGA ISLANDS REGION
MAGNITUDE - 7.7 MOMENT
EVALUATION
THE PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER HAS ISSUED A NON-EXPANDING
REGIONAL TSUNAMI WARNING FOR A PART OF THE PACIFIC NEAR THE
EARTHQUAKE. BASED ON ALL AVAILABLE DATA THERE IS NO DESTRUCTIVE
TSUNAMI THREAT TO HAWAII.
HOWEVER... SOME COASTAL AREAS IN HAWAII COULD EXPERIENCE SMALL
NON-DESTRUCTIVE SEA LEVEL CHANGES AND STRONG OR UNUSUAL CURRENTS
LASTING UP TO SEVERAL HOURS. THE ESTIMATED TIME SUCH EFFECTS
MIGHT BEGIN IS
0236 PM HST THU 19 MAR 2009
MESSAGES WILL BE ISSUED HOURLY OR SOONER AS CONDITIONS WARRANT.

Happy St. Patty's Day

Here are a pic from St. Patty's Day. We were downtown Honolulu, where a pretty good party was starting to happen...too bad it was on a weekday...and I had to work...otherwise, it would have been game on!

Sunset

We were up on the Northshore this weekend and saw a gorgeous sunset.

Shark Cage Pics

SHARKS!!!

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL!

THE CAGE

Shark Cage Diving

THE best $90 I have ever spent! Here are some videos that Eva took. AWESOME!