How to choose a career

I've been thinking lately about how to choose the optimal career (yes, I'd like to go back into the workforce someday). I'd like to live in a specific area of the country and find fulfillment and success in whatever career I choose.

When I was choosing my college major, I only thought about my aptitude and desired income. However, I have come to realize that there is so much more to this. Here are some factors I've considered as I've pondered my options:

1. Location. Some jobs are only found in the city,  others in the country; some are more plentiful in specific parts of the country or world, and others have demand almost universally.

2. Social interaction. Do you enjoy talking to others, or would you be happier being left alone for the majority of the day with periodic interaction with co-workers that you see every day? How comfortable are you with interacting with strangers, and on how personal a level?

3. Future demand. How much demand will there be for your profession in 10 years or more?

4. Current demand. Is the job market saturated with people in the job you're considering, or is there a high demand for it with few suitable candidates?

5. What standard of living are you willing to accept?

6. Is the subject matter you have to learn to work in the profession appealing to you? Is this something you'd like to think about for a large portion of your life?

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Since I'm interested in a smaller city than the one I'm currently in and have considered the town I grew up in, I had to think about which jobs are available there. The town I grew up in is very small (less than 10,000 people). I realized that in order to work there in a profession that would be mentally stimulating and provide the income I wanted, my choices were limited. The professions I came up with were: Something related to the school system, the government, health care, the law, or business ownership. There are almost no mechanical engineering positions there, and almost certainly very few tech positions, which is a profession I think I would be well suited for. So I'll probably have to choose a location that is close to but not in the town I grew up in.

I have to learn more about the opportunities in tech to know which specific position would most appeal to me, but I would love to have something with a reliable amount of social interaction and something with a lot of demand so that I can have a lot of choices as to which company I would work for.

Do you live in a bubble?

What does it mean to you when you say someone lives "in a bubble?" Is it good to live in a bubble? Do children who grow up in a bubble have a better chance at retaining the values taught within the bubble? Or does it have negative connotations for you?

Many people say that Utah Mormons live in a bubble--many of the experiences that other people in the US have are not as prevalent there, and there isn't much racial diversity.

To me, being in a bubble means that you have restricted experiences, whether it's with friends, work, leisure, entertainment, or whatever.

However, I feel that children have a better chance at succeeding in society if they have many experiences while they are still living at home with loving parents. This way, if they run into a challenging experience, they can ask for their parents' help and advice.

"Many experiences" does not necessarily mean being exposed to drugs, illegal activity, or other unsavory things. To me, it means being exposed to many occupations, people from different cultures and nations, different skills, and different places.

In this sense, maybe most children grow up in a bubble, since they don't experience much outside of their own family's culture and are not able to participate in most occupations until graduation from high school and/or college.

However, I believe that children who are able to experience many parts of life before moving away from their parents will be better able to cope with new situations that come up and be better equipped to succeed in relationships, work, and self-care.

My Bucket List

Travel outside of the country to see something interesting (Machu Picchu? Mexican pyramids?)

Bike 20 miles at a time (or more!)

Go on a cruise

Become a temple worker

Get another college degree, possibly teach college

Find new information on Callie Nolan (ancestor)

See Providence Canyon; hike and take pictures!

Hike with kids in at least 5 different parks

See the Aurora Borealis

Vacation in Hawaii

Go to Yellowstone National Park and see Old Faithful

Visit Mesa Verde and tour the cliff dwellings

Cleaning house

Lately, I've been trying to learn how to make it more natural for me to keep my house clean. I've read a few books. Here are some of the skills that help:

1. De-clutter! This is the most important thing. If you have too much stuff in your home (especially if it's stuff you don't use), then it is incredibly difficult to keep your home/living space clean. Throw away or donate the things that you don't use.

2. Put things away when you're done using them. This seems to be such a given that in one of the books that I read, it wasn't even stated directly! I am struggling as to how do I teach my kids to do this, especially with things like their toys since they often play while I'm busy doing something else. If you have something that's worked for you, please share!

3. Have a place for everything. If you don't know where to put something, it will end up making your living place look bad, because it will end up every which-where: on the floor, the counter, the table, your desk. Find a place for it!

4. Have routines for cleaning the stuff that can't be helped. You know what I mean: dirty counters and floors, bathrooms, etc. I'm not exactly sure how to implement this yet, so I'm not putting the tip in boldface font.

Joy

Recently, a friend said something that made me realize that she thinks that I am skilled at being joyful. I had never really thought about it like that before; I had just thought I was a naturally happy person. On further thought, though, I did realize that I do change my actions and thoughts to make my life happier and more joyful.

One thing that comes to mind is from when Levi was a baby. He was a very sad baby--I think he had reflux or something--and cried at the least provocation. He constantly was demanding my attention, and I had little time to do anything that wasn't with him. There was one point where when he napped, it was hardly ever more than 30 minutes at a time.

I was constantly frustrated with not being able to get things done. I was not experiencing very much joy; mostly I was experiencing a screaming child and not being able to do the things I wanted to do.

Finally, I took an honest look at my life. I knew I was frustrated, and I knew why. I finally said to myself, "Self, things are not going to change anytime soon. Self, what do you need to change about your expectations, and what do you need to change about your life to get the things done that you need to?"

My first change was my expectation about what I could get done during a 30-minute nap (not much). When I started expecting things that could realistically happen, I stopped being as frustrated about not being able to do the not-as-doable things that I expected to do before.

Another change was in my style of doing things. Previously, I did everything in big chunks. I set aside some time and "got 'er done!" After honestly looking at the time I had all at once, I knew that wasn't practical. I started teaching myself to do things piece by piece and to multitask. It has been a long process, let me tell you!

I saw immediate results. I didn't get as much done as I had before having a baby (surprise! haha), but I was able to get the things that needed to be done, done. The new way wasn't as efficient as the old way, but I was happier. Constant frustration was gone from my life (periodic frustration remained, of course), and nothing about my circumstances had changed.

I ran a 5k!

So, waaaaaay back in October, Austin and I ran a 5k! When it was done, I kept bragging to myself that I'd done it. It's still kind of weird to think of myself as the kind of person who would run 5 kilometers without having a really urgent, possibly dangerous reason to do so.

Here I am with the fam before the race!

And this is right before the finish line:

It might not look like it, but it was really cold and even by the end of the race, I was eager to get back to a heated area.

I ran the 5k in 36 minutes, running the whole way, finishing 177th out of 392 :). Some people who had passed me at the beginning were walking closer to the end and I was able to pass them.

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It all started back in July or so, when Austin asked if I wanted to try a couch to 5k program with him. We had casually tried several other health programs, so I didn't think that it would go very far, but I agreed anyway. Amazingly, we took off!

It was very slow at the beginning, and I think that was the key to helping us stay with it; it wasn't too hard. The program we did had us alternate running with walking and slowly worked us up to running longer and longer, until we were running the whole 5k. It was actually incredibly easy at the beginning.

Other perks were getting to know the area around my house better and listening to General Conference and podcasts while running (with no interruptions from kids!!!). Also also! I didn't change my diet at all and lost 15 lbs, going from a size 10 to a size 6 (or smaller. Women's sizes are pretty inconsistent...) I had to get new clothes because my old ones were too big. I went from being borderline overweight to being comfortably in the normal range with some wiggle room. Yay! I weigh even less than I did when Austin and I got married!

Austin and I traded off with the kids--I usually went running soon after he got home from work while he stayed with the kids, and then he'd go running after I got back. It worked out really well until Daylight Savings Time ended... then it was too dark for me to feel comfortable running around outside, even though we live in a safe area.

Anyway, it was a really great experience and helped me to get into shape. I recommend couch to 5k to anyone who's wanting to get started with exercise but doesn't want to go overboard.

Popular?

Middle school me would have had a hard time believing that one day I'd be one of the popular kids. However, here I am, and I'm part of that elite group in my new ward. Crazy!

I didn't really do anything special to be in the popular group. I just fit the mold: I'm young, I'm educated, I enjoy and have time to read books. I'm even a little bit sporty (ok, ok, all it is is that I run, and that's a newer thing. I'm going to write an update on that soon). Oh yeah. I also have young kids, just like all the other "popular" moms.

I actually feel kind of ridiculous talking about how popular I am.

Anyway, I'm one of those people. They are all nice, kind, and accepting people, but they are the "popular" group and many people in the ward have a hard time feeling like they fit in. Now that I'm in this situation, what am I to do about it?

First things first, let's start with what I have done. I've tried sitting with people in my ward who are not part of the popular group. I really enjoy their company, and they have so many unique talents and experiences. I'm actively trying to get to know everyone in my ward, not just the "popular" ones.

However, this isn't enough. The other "popular" people aren't following my lead. It's kind of funny, because a lot of them are shy or not very outgoing. I think they don't even realize that they're popular! For the situation to change, however, the other "popular" people need to get involved.

One of the things that made it hard for me to fit in when I was younger was that I unwittingly excluded myself from other people and their activities. We didn't share interests, so I thought that they weren't interested in doing things with me. What I didn't understand was that in order to be friends with someone different from you, sometimes you have to put some of your favorite interests on the back burner in order to foster your new friendship.

It's difficult for me to think of activities or conversation starters that don't involve children, books, or a limited amount of exercise. However, the fact of the matter is that there are millions upon millions of people in this world who don't have any interest in even one of those things. If I want to have a well-rounded worldview and include people from many walks of life in my circle of friends--regardless of where I know them from--then I need to learn to branch out, get out of my comfort zone, and take interest in their favorite interests.

Let's not be like Glinda :)

Books I've read lately: August 2015

Recently I have read--among others--these books:

A Home Concealed Woman: the Diaries of Magnolia LeGuin
This book was incredibly interesting! Magnolia was born in northern Georgia in the late 1860's. The diaries were written from about 1900-1913, if I remember correctly. It was fascinating to read about her life! Much of what she wrote about was child bearing and rearing and the mundane duties around the house. I really related to a lot of what she wrote. It was also interesting from a family history point of view to read about a life that was similar in many ways to my predecessors.

Beneath these Waters
This book was based on historical studies done about the people who lived in a particular area on the northern part of the Savannah river, now covered by a lake (Russell Reservoir) made by the construction of a dam just north of Augusta. I got to read about prehistoric inhabitants (Paleo American Indians and more recent American Indians) as well as people that we have more recent records for. I got different perspectives than I've come across previously. I was glad to get a glimpse of what Reconstruction was like in the South, but it wasn't discussed in depth (understandably). I enjoyed the parts about the archaeological excavations and their finding more than the rest of it.

Welcome to Your Child's Brain
All about brain development, organized by subject, not age. It was a very interesting and informative read.

At Home with Pictures
This book has a lot of helpful ideas on how to decorate with pictures. I thought it was comprehensive and gave me a lot of ideas for decorating my own home.

Leaving My Comfort Zone: Kitchen Edition

So one of my friends told me that this recipe was her favorite and that I should try it. That and other motivating factors made me break out of my kitchen comfort zone to try it. It is SO GOOD. It was definitely worth learning a few new skills and spending a couple of hours in the kitchen (I'm sure it won't take as much time next time I make it, though).

Oh. Man. I ate two huge servings and I just can't stop thinking about it. Think of Ariel: "I want mooooore!"

So, I'm actually pretty proud of myself for developing new skills and experiences in the kitchen (and a little embarrassed that it's taken me so long to do some of these things). Here are my new things that I done did:

1. Buy, peel, and chop up ginger. I really enjoyed mincing it because it smelled so good the whole time!
2. Zest an orange. I was so ignorant about this that I actually looked for orange zest at the grocery store. However, I've got to say that the orange zest made a huge difference in the way the meal tasted, and I got to eat a delicious orange to boot!
3. Use corn starch in my cooking. I really appreciated how quickly the sauce thickened up!

I followed the recipe exactly. I have had too many mess-ups and flops because of putting substitutes in recipes when I didn't have the exact ingredients. I would, however, change one thing--the sauce was a little too sweet. Next time I make this, I'll try it with only 3/4 C brown sugar (instead of the 1 C it calls for)

I also made some marinades (with chicken) for some easy freezer meals down the road. I'm looking forward to how they turn out. I used this one (I used a 1/4 recipe), three from this site, and then a barbecue marinade that I made up on my own. I haven't really done marinades before, either, so I'm looking forward to how they turn out.

Creative Family History

I hear a lot of people talk about how they can't work on family history because everything's already been done.

I find that doubtful.

While I completely understand not knowing how to get started on family history, there is usually something you can do to better understand your family history.

Malachi's promise states that the Lord "will turn the heart of the children to their fathers." It also states that He will "turn the heart of the fathers to the children." I feel that this can mean a great number of things, not just making sure their temple work is done. If your heart has turned to your fathers, these are some things that you may do:

1. Learn their names. 
2. Learn about where they lived and what they did for work.
3. Find out what they looked like
4. Learn about their children, brothers and sisters
5. Help them receive essential saving temple ordinances
6. Make your own life story accessible to future generations. This applies even if you don't have children.

There are several ways you can accomplish these things.

1. Find records that document information about them and their lives
2. Ask family members for pictures
3. Print out pictures that you have and display them in your home, whether in frames or in a photo album (I think a photo book would be a really classy way to do this)
4. Talk to your living "fathers" about their lives and the lives of their family members. I will include questions that may be appropriate to ask them below.
5. Go through old pictures with family members and label them with the correct names.
6. Keep a journal or record your own story by recording it or writing it down - can be in segments or all together.
7. Take and save pictures of yourself at various points in your life.

So, unless you are familiar with your ancestor's names, have gathered all family photos, found all documents about your ancestors before 1850, have all of your parents' and grandparents' stories, labeled all family pictures, and recorded your own personal history, I have good news for you! there are still things you can do to contribute to family history work that are pretty easy to do.

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Prompts suitable for interviewing older generations (and be sure to encourage story telling and tangents as you get this information):

• Describe your mother (father, grandparents)
• What did you admire the most about your mother (father, grandfather, grandmother)?
• What did you dislike the most about your mother (father, grandfather, grandmother)?
•  What was the physical appearance of your mother (father, grandfather, grandmother)? Eye/hair color, tall/short, etc.
• Describe a typical Sunday.
• Describe a typical work day
• Describe a perfect summer day
• Describe a typical school day
• Who was your favorite aunt/uncle? Why?
• Did you hitchhike?
• Describe a trip you went on with family (visiting family, moving, etc)
• How did you meet your spouse?
• Describe your siblings.
• What did your father/mother do for work?
• What was your favorite thing to eat?
• What were your parents' views on faith and worship?
• Why do you belong to your current faith system? Why did you change from your parents' (if the person you're interviewing converted to another faith)?
• Did your family have a garden? What was your favorite thing about it?
• What kinds of things did you do together as a family? Did you play games, talk, cook?
• How did your family dress? What kind of clothes did people wear back then?
• What was your parents' opinion on college? 
• Did you ever meet someone famous or semi-famous?
• What did your family do for Christmas? Easter? 4th of July? Thanksgiving? Other holidays?
• How are you like your mother? your father?
• Was there any special thing that you did just with your father/mother?
• Did you do anything special together as a family?
• How were the children expected to help with the farm and other work?
• What was the chore you liked to do best?
• Were there hired hands on the farm? Sharecroppers?
• Describe the places that you lived and why you moved (if you moved)
• What was your favorite thing to do with each of your siblings?
• What did you do with your pets if you had any?
• Describe what it was like to go to the movies.
• What was your favorite thing to do?
• Did you or your family gather wild food (nuts, berries, grapes)?
• What was your first job?
• List the jobs you've had throughout your life
• Describe your relationships with your various neighbors
• What is your favorite invention from your lifetime?
• What event during your lifetime had the greatest impact on the world/your country? Why?
• Where did you go to school? (grade school, high school, college)
• Did you play sports?
• Who were your closest childhood friends? What did you do together?

Positive thoughts on a messy home

The other day as I finally started washing my dirty pots and pans, I thought about how nice it would be if I were better at staying on top of the dishes; it would be so nice if there were one or two--or fewer--dishes in the sink at a time.

Then I thought, "But wait--what am I doing with my time instead?"

Here are some things that I'm doing with my time instead of folding the laundry, washing the dishes, or cleaning the clutter off of the floor:

-take care of my children
-play with my children
-relax and recharge my emotional stamina for my day-to-day responsibilities
-spend time with my husband
-read for pleasure
-read for instruction
-socialize
-family history research
-make food for my family
-practice the piano for my church calling
-write about my experiences and thoughts on my blog

It's a pretty good list, and I'm sure there are more things on there that I didn't think of. I'm not certain how much less time I'd have to spend on those things if I kept my house company-ready at all times, but I know it would be significantly less, especially with the lovable chaotic force of a three-year-old in my home. Also, isn't it more efficient to get everything done at once?

Don't get me wrong--if the house is too bad, then it has an effect on me. Because of that, I'm kind of a minimalist when it comes to having "things." That way, there aren't as many things in my house to mess it up and there aren't as many things to clean up when that time comes.

Anyway, I think it's overall better to have a little bit of clutter, clothes in the dryer for days at a time, and partially unpacked boxes sitting around than to feel guilty about doing things that enrich your life.

So this weekend--don't clean your house! Go have an adventure instead. Give yourself one more hour of me- or family-time and take care of the cleaning later.

I did something Pinterest-worthy!

Usually cutesy crafts and Pinterest things aren't really my forte. However, I think this little project turned out really well!

My entryway closet had been a jumble of shoes, and it was bugging me a LOT. The mess was the main thing bothering me, but it was also annoying to have to hunt for shoes when we needed them. I wanted something in the closet to help organize the shoes, but didn't want to have to look for (or spend the money on) a shoe organizer.

Enter the myriad of diaper boxes we've accumulated over the last two years or so. We've used them in all of our moves, and since we're planning on moving again in the near future (in less than a year, to a house - no solid plans yet), we've saved all of the boxes that are in good condition. They're so ubiquitous that one of my sisters teases me about them on a fairly regular basis.

Anyway, I have a lot of diaper boxes.

Boxes can be used for a lot of things. They're very useful! So far, we've used them for organizing without really trying to make them look nice, but this time I wanted something that would look good in our closet, especially since the front closet is so public.

I decided that some small shelves made out of a couple of the diaper boxes would fill the bill for organizing the closet. Cover those with some tasteful contact paper, and it should look pretty good, right? The next time I went shopping, I purchased some contact paper with a cute pattern, and got to work the next day.

First I found two boxes that were the same size.:

Next, I lined them with contact paper:

Levi actually took this and the next picture. He did a good job!

Voila!

The finished product!

Beginner's crochet headband for infants

Guys. I had NO idea headbands were so easy to make! Even a beginner can whip this one up in an hour or less (I think for me it's about 30 minutes), and it hardly takes up any yarn at all. Awesome, right?? So since I came up with the pattern myself, I thought I'd write it down and share it with you all. Here goes!

Materials:
-2 different colors of yarn, worsted weight (that's the kind that you usually think of when you think of yarn. It'll say on the package, though, if you're worried.)
-Size K hook (You could probably do it all with size H, but I'll explain in a minute why I included two sizes)
-Size H hook
-Scissors

Band:
In color 1 using size K hook, chain 50, turn, skip one, single crochet to end. You're done!
*note: I estimate that this combination will make the band to fit most babies 4 months and younger. If you use a size H hook, I recommend making the band a bit longer, since your stitches will be smaller. If you want this to fit a larger head, just add more stitches.

Flower:
Change color to color 2 and use size H hook. Chain 15. Turn, skip one, single crochet (sc) to end, chain one, turn, stitch 2 sc in each stitch to the end. Switch colors to color 1; slip stitch in each stitch until the end; tie off, leaving a long end to use in sewing up flower (it's nice to have a long tail of both colors, so when you cut the other color, try to leave several inches for sewing).
Curl up into swirly flower; sew the flower in place so it stays where you want it.

Finishing touches:
Sew button on to one end of band. Crochet is nice and hole-y so you don't need to worry about button holes. This makes the headband nice and adjustable, which is great for babies! Sew the flower on to desired position on band, and voila! You're done. I added some fabric glue to the flower to help along my debatable sewing skills.

People change

I remember the first time I noticed a drastic change in someone. When I knew this person in high school, she was unforgiving and judgmental. She didn't like me for reasons beyond my control. She was manipulative.

When I started to interact with this person on a regular basis several years later, I was struck with the change in her. She was still her, but in a different way. She was more forgiving. She admitted her own faults, and she didn't dislike me. She wasn't as manipulative as she had once been. I could tell that she was happier, and that she liked herself more.

At first, I resisted treating her as a changed person. I still remembered what she had been like in the past, and knew some of what she was capable of. I had formed habits in the way I interacted with her, and I had to remember the changes to treat her as the new her.

I've noticed the same thing with myself. I'm a vastly different person from who I was in high school, even though I'm the same in many ways.

I was shy, awkward, opinionated, stubborn, vulnerable, naive, and many other things when I was in high school. I was a people-pleaser and a rule-follower; I stayed quiet because I was afraid of saying something wrong or making people dislike me.

Now I am outgoing, socially acceptable, more informed, less stubborn, more open to other people's thoughts, experiences, and opinions, and more sure of myself. I still like to make others comfortable, but I'm continuing to learn that you can't make everyone happy, no matter how hard you try. I'm different. I'm still me at my core, but I'm different.

Recently I talked to someone who best remembers high school me. She made a reference to my naivete which was no longer accurate. There are still other people that knew me from my high school years* that avoid me because high school me was boring and uninteresting, and don't even give me a chance now.

It's important to give people second chances, the benefit of the doubt, and  remember that they can change. Not everyone goes though such dramatic changes as my friend and I have, but we need to remember that people can and do change.


*There are many people who knew me while I was in high school that have maintained their friendships with me throughout my changes. Only some people have been unwilling to get to know me again. I imagine it's just as hard for them as it was for me to re-acquaint myself with the friend that I talked about at the beginning of this post.

Recent reads

I haven't made a list of books I've read recently in a while, so here's a new list! It's definitely NOT all-inclusive; I don't remember all of the books I've read since my last "Books I've read recently" post.

Fiction:
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede (loved it!)
Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede
The Far West by Patricia C. Wrede
Golden by Cameron Dokey (would recommend!)
The Storyteller by Cameron Dokey
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (too violent)
Alcatraz and the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson
The Actor and the Housewife by Shannon Hale (meh)
Princess Academy: Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale


Non-fiction:
Queen of Scots : the true life of Mary Stuart by J. A. (John Alexander) Guy
Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson
Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu by Laurence Bergreen
To the Rescue: the Biography of Thomas S. Monson by Heidi S. Swinton
Life's Lessons Learned by Dallin H. Oaks
Yearning for the Living God by F. Enzio Busche

I highly recommend all of the non-fiction books listed above. They were all very informative, and many were inspiring (I think you can guess which ones).

I also tried to read some biographies for John Taylor, but neither was what I was looking for. I am open to suggestions!

Want to read:
Andrew Jackson: His Life and Times by H. W. Brands
Glimpses into the life and heart of Marjorie Pay Hinckley
a biography of Pearl S. Buck
quality biographies on all Church presidents

BMI: reliable or outdated?

I realized just a few weeks ago that I was overweight according to my BMI (I was just barely overweight, at 140 lbs and 5'2"). I was surprised at that because of all the positive attention the media has been giving lately to people who say that models are overly skinny and "real women" are much bigger. The media (and my friends) had been giving so much support to this movement that I thought I was just fine as a "real woman."

So when I found out that I was overweight, I was taken off guard. I was so surprised that I figured that other people probably didn't know that they were overweight, either. I mentioned how surprised I was about being overweight in a recent conversation. The person I was talking to said that using your BMI to determine if you were overweight or not is outdated and inaccurate in many cases. At the time, all I could say was that it's really only inaccurate for people who have a lot of muscle mass. Since then, I've realized that BMI is what has been used in the studies about how weight and health are related. Therefore, even if it's an outdated and inaccurate means to determine your body's fitness, the average person's health risks can be determined by their BMI.

According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention - a government-funded organization), some health issues from being overweight or obese are these:

-Coronary heart disease
-Type 2 diabetes
-Cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
-Hypertension (high blood pressure)
-Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)
-Stroke
-Liver and Gallbladder disease
-Sleep apnea and breathing problems
-Osteoarthritis (a breakdown of cartilage and bone within a joint)
-Gynecological problems (abnormal periods, infertility)

This isn't about my vanity; it's about my health!

Also, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) states that "If you have abdominal obesity and most of your fat is around your waist rather than at your hips, you're at increased risk for coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The risk goes up with a waist size that's greater than 35 inches for women or greater than 40 inches for men."

On the flip side, I have a friend who is the same height as me, 5' 2". She stays at 125 lbs "no matter what" she eats, according to her. She says her ideal weight is 107. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't function very well at 107 lbs, and that for my very individual body, I would be underweight. (Just FYI - "normal" body weight for someone that's 5'2" is 101 - 136 lbs). I was surprised that the range for normal was 35 lbs apart from low to high. I think that alone factors in the differences between body types and shapes.

I think 120-125 is probably my ideal body weight, and not lower. You see, I have a very close relationship with food, and need my energy. I will also probably have a relatively slow journey to get to that ideal weight (I'm ~136 now, after 2 months of exercise and almost 1 month of eating better). However, one little-known fact is that most of the energy that you use throughout the day is energy stored in your muscles (from food you ate that day), not your fat. Prolonged exercise is what uses up your fat stores.

For your convenience, here are two BMI calculators, one from the CDC website, and the other from the NHLBI website .

Exercise, take 2

So, it's been about 3 weeks since I started exercising, and my heart is definitely in better shape. My body is a slightly better shape than it was when I started, but I'm still working on that. Not that it's a bad shape; it could just be better.

Anyway, shortly after my last post about exercise, I started to get tired of the video that I'd posted. I still wasn't up to speed on it, but I think my body was ready for a different kind of exercise. So for the past few days (except today), I exercised without a video, doing skip rope, sit ups, crunches, jumping jacks, and my favorite exercises from the Tae Bo video, with stretches before and after the whole thing. My goal was to keep my heart rate up for 20 minutes.

Since skip rope is a more demanding exercise than the one I was doing before, I would do sets of 60 skips (30 with either foot leading) with breaks of less-strenuous exercise in between to catch my breath. I'm no exercise expert, but I'm definitely in better shape than I was when I started this exercise late last week. Today I decided to work out to my Tae Bo video again, and I was able to keep up the whole time! I was hot and sweaty at the end, but I had done every exercise (except the ones when Levi needed my attention).

Wooo!

Exercise!

When I stopped breastfeeding Levi, I started gaining weight. I didn't notice at first, but then I couldn't ignore it when I didn't fit my jeans anymore. At first I tried limiting my calorie intake by eating less and of that, eating more fruits and vegetables. That helped some, but I needed something more. I knew exercise could help, but held back for one reason or another (I hate running, I didn't know any other exercises, I didn't want to buy/borrow an exercise video).

Finally, one of my friends mentioned she watched exercise videos on YouTube, and that doing Tae Bo helped her to lose all of her extra pregnancy weight.

I decided to try it, and it has worked out great so far! I've only done it for not even two weeks now, and I already have more stamina and am slightly slimmer than I was when I started. And I ate Thanksgiving dinner yesterday!

This is the video that I normally work out to. It's a cardio workout, and I still can't keep up with it, but it's good to keep my heart rate up for that long. There are other videos done by the same person (Billy Blanks, who developed Tae Bo) that target different areas of the body.

It surprised me how much coordination and balance I needed to exercise accurately with the video, but I know I'm becoming more graceful and coordinated as I do so.

Contributing to family finances

Before Levi was born, I worked full-time to help support the family. When Levi was born, I stopped working and have stayed at home with him. He is a great blessing to our family, and I love watching him. This is the best job I've ever had, even though the hours are irregular and the work can be taxing. Sometimes, however, I wish I could contribute financially to the family a little bit more.

I had considered working from home, but it isn't really a viable option. Austin always reassures me that we don't need the extra money and that it's much more important for me to work at home than for me to be able to work from home.

After some thought, I realized that I am saving, now and in the future, hundreds and thousands of dollars for my family.

"How?" you might ask. I'll tell you.

I love to read. Recently (since Levi was born), I've had a big interest in non-fiction. I've read a lot of biographies, some books about finances, some about science, and some about child-rearing. The two books about finance that I've read so far are about how to purchase a home and how to set up a good retirement fund.

These two issues may seem to be in the distant future for my family (at least 3 years), but since I am educating myself now instead of later when there are a myriad of other things to think about, I am streamlining the process. Also, starting a retirement fund now is actually in our best interest, due to an incentive from one of my family members. Starting this fund years earlier rather than later does amazing things for how it turns out in the long run. The buying a house thing is much further off, but since I know more about it now, I can keep my eyes open and learn more from others' experiences. I will also be keeping a closer eye on the housing situation in places that I may settle for long periods of time.

Another way I'm saving money for my family now is by living frugally and increasing my abilities as a home maker. I am learning new things to cook and hope to learn more about fixing things around the house. If anyone knows of a good book about car repair/maintenance, I'd love to hear about it! (Maintaining Your Car for Dummies, anyone?)

Friends, I admire you

I admire so many of my friends! I see your positive attributes, and benefit from trying to emulate them. Each of you have exerted a positive influence on me. I wish I could go into detail about all of you, but I only have time to name a few:

Hilary Thomas: When we were in Young Women's together, Hilary was very outgoing and fun. Not only that, but she also went out of her way to include shy Katie White in the fun. I learned from watching her example how to be outgoing and include others.

Ingrid Sorenson: What a mother! This amazing woman has 9 children, and looks like she's 30. She is fun and caring. She goes out of her way to spend individual time with each of her children. Somehow she has mastered the balance of being a fun mom while maintaining discipline in her large family. I aspire to be a mother like her someday.
Side note: 'Maintaining discipline' does not equate with perfectly behaved children. I don't think those are possible, especially if they're normal, well-adjusted kids.

Becky Gentry: All of my older sisters have influenced me to be a better person, and I look up to each of them even now, but Becky has had the biggest influence on me. We shared a room when I was younger, and she taught me by her example to study the scriptures daily and to pray to Heavenly Father each day. As a direct result of those habits, I know that Heavenly Father loves me and cares about me.

Jean Marie Place (soon to be Gatica!): If you're familiar with the character of Jane from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, then you have a good idea of what dear Jean Marie is like. Like Jane, Jean Marie has a hard time finding fault with anyone, and when she does find fault, those people did something really awful. Jean Marie is not a bit self-centered, and has an amazing ability to be interested in others--more so than I've seen in anyone else that I've met. I admire Jean Marie so much for her Christ-like love for others and her generosity. I aspire to be as kind and loving as she is.

... And there are so many more! I have seen so many amazing examples in the wards (and branch) of the Church that I've been in, in my family, in my friends from school, and in my friends from work.  I thank you  for being such good influences in my life.