How do you fit exercise into family life?

I am always trying, key word trying, to stay active! Before kids, I was only active for myself but now I feel exercise has a bigger purpose in my life! I hope to pass down healthy living to my son by osmosis! Now that being said, fitting a workout into family life is not always easy. I was asked to do an article on 'Great Tips To Help You Stay Motivated To Exercise' on the Life With Balance blog; what I learned was very helpful and inspiring! I always expected that one day I would all of a sudden love exercise and it would naturally fall into place in my life. I realized that most people that routinely exercise have the same struggles I do. The difference is that they accept the challenges and confront them with successful, motivational practices. Check out the motivational tips here, comment or email (littlemrsw@yahoo.ca) to let me know if you have some of your own motivational practices!

I opened the mail box and what did I find...?

.....February's Book, The Middle Place; the month isn't quite over, right?

I am currently on page 69 and I have been enjoying my time learning about Kelly Corrigan. I find her writing comfortable and humorous, like she is telling me a story over coffee. She had me laughing out loud with the following exerpt:

Page 43: And this is how the story has always been told: Booker bought a defective snake. A depressed snake. A snake not meant for suburban life. On his very first night in his new home, Shifty Corrigan drowned himself in a bottle cap of water. My Mom was on the phone with the pet store manager by 9 A.M., demanding a refund. No one was gonna mess with one of her kids, not on her watch.

Did you manage to snag a copy of The Middle Place? What do you think?

Happy Reading!

What do you want to be remembered for?

Most of you have heard of this book, seen the professor on Oprah or have already added it to your book case. What ever your status, I welcome your comments or emails regarding this great read. littlemrsw@yahoo.ca.

The Last Lecture, Randy Pausch, with Jeffrey Zaslow

As it appears on the front and back flap:

A lot of professors give talks titled "The Last Lecture." Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can't help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy?

When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn't have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave---"Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams"----wasn't about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because "time is all you have...and you may find one day that you have less than you think"). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living.

In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration, and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come.

Happy Reading!

Celebrating Friendship!

I received a gift from a friend this week and was reminded how much sweeter life is when I can share it with the people around me. During the valleys, my friends have held me up, listened to me and shown me love. On the mountain peaks I have danced, celebrated and laughed with my friends! Sometimes the speed of life has fooled me into believing that I was too busy to connect with my girlfriends! I am thankful for today when I am over flowing with feelings of gratitude and the knowledge of the importance of friendship in my life!

Thanks Kim!

With Childhood Obesity on the rise, what can families do to promote healthfulness?

Photo Credit: Safeway

The Childhood Obesity Foundation recommends following the

The 5-2-1-0 rule:
5 or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day
2 hours of screen time or less per day
1 hour or more of physical activity per day
0 sugar sweetened beverages per day

One of the best ways to decrease childhood obesity is for parents to live well, making good food choices and exercising regularly. The childhood Obesity Foundation says Studies show that older children are twice as likely to be active if their mothers are active and are almost six times more likely to be active if both parents are active.
Eating at home and together (especially breakfast), making sure to have appropriate portions and not having sugar snacks and beverages available in the house are some other ways to help prevent childhood obesity.
Lets pass down healthy living to the next generations!

Celebrate Your Strengths All Week!

Photo Credit: free clip art

I was a really GOOD MOM before I had kids!

We spend so much time thinking about what we could do better or where we are weak! I am dedicating this week to CELEBRATING OUR STRENGTHS!

What do you do well as a Mom! Think about it, appreciate your gifts and celebrate! Let me know what you do well and how you are going to take time to value your strengths! Comment or email me at littlemrsw@yahoo.ca.

When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child.
~Sophia Loren, Women and Beauty

Thanks for the great quote Zainab!

Waiting for delivery of The Middle Place!

For those of you in doubt, yes, I did finish Nineteen Minutes! I was very happy to come upon the last page and ready to move on to February's book, The Middle Place! To my dismay, I have not been able to get a copy into my hands and so, have ordered it through Chapters, to be here this week. My predicament is the explanation behind my lack of posts regarding The Middle Place! I know there are some of you out there that are reading this book (Zainab), please let us know what you think. Comment or email me at littlemrsw@yahoo.ca! With out giving away the book, what do you think?

Happy Reading!

Photo Credit: Amazon .com

Exercise your way to stronger bones!

photo credit: free clip art

Due to a series of broken bones (including the same foot twice) and having a history of osteoporosis in my family, I am always on the look out for prevention tips. To find out what strength training has to do with osteoporosis, check out Life With Balance and read the post I was honoured to do! One of the tips involves babies and toddlers!

Cannot Get Into A Groove With Nineteen Minutes!

We are into February and I am not yet finished Nineteen Minutes. In fact that is an understatement, I am forcing myself to finish it, even skipping paragraphs to get to the last page! Though I have heard countless praise for this author I can not join in. Yes she continues to draw me in, as if I am there with the characters but the book is ..dragging..!

Photo credit: Amazon

• The constant shifting of who is speaking makes it very difficult to just pick up the book and fall back into the story line.


• I think the book could have been shorter, by page 245 I get that their life sucks, now tell me what happened.


• One of my friends mentioned that she had a difficult time reading because she didn't feel any hope wrapped into the story. I have to agree, I felt just plain depressed.

Nineteen Minutes was given a grade of A by the Entertainment Weekly Readers, so don't let me stop you from reading the book (if you haven't). If you have read it, what are your thoughts? Maybe you liked her style? Please leave me a comment or email me at littlemrsw@yahoo.ca.

I will continue to forge a head and hope to find my groove in the next 200 pages!!

Happy Reading!