A New Adventure

Yesterday at work I got the opportunity to tour our Youth In Government program as they had their annual conference. I can honestly say I had no idea such a program existed. It's amazing how big the program is and how amazing these high schoolers are!

For those of you who aren't aware of the program, YIG is a chance for 8th-12th graders to participate in a mock government. Students can work their way through the court system, House of Representatives, and one ambitious student even gets elected as the Youth Governor! These kids vote on bills, learn about lobbyists, argue in court, and so much more. I've never been that into politics before since I tend to believe that as a whole politicians are more concerned about getting things their way than actually helping people- not the point of my post though haha.

I met this year's Youth Governor and let me tell you, she is amazing. She's this beautiful young lady that's a senior in high school that is so polite and charismatic that I was blown away when introduced. Guys, this girl is is this tiny little thing and yet she commands more respect and authority than most adults I know. She was brilliant and confident while being humble at the same time.  Basically after listening to her talk to our group for ten minutes it made me:

- rethink my high school choices

- rethink my college choices

- feel completely inadequate as far as my life choices 

- feel utterly humbled beyond any level I've been to before

  

Bonus: I've never been to the capital building so of course I had to take pictures. I can not believe how beautiful the building is!

Cheers!

Ash

It's the small things...

So today is going to be a long day. Between two jobs I'm looking at not getting home until 9 pm. I was grumbling about it this morning until I realized that moaning about a long day isn't going to help the situation. Instead of complaining I'm better off trying to focus on the good things that today will bring.

Here's a list of some things that tend to brighten my day:

1. Coffee drinks- delicious and energizing!
2. Chocolate- the darker the better
3. A warm car- it gets really cold around here!
4. Naps- nothing better than crawling under the covers for an hour or two to recharge
5. Hot water in the shower- talk about a relaxer
6. Scarves- seriously guys, I think I have over 20 and I try to wear a different one daily
7. Books- I could read for hours upon hours and never tire
8. Finding new blogs to read- I love "meeting" all these real women on these blogs and getting a window into their lives, it's amazing and a bit humbling :)
9. Good morning texts- Every morning I get a good morning text from the love of my life and it never fails to make me smile
10. Waking up next to my puppy- He gives me the cutest little sleepy face every morning and we cuddle for at least fifteen minutes before I'll get out of bed. I could write an entire book about how wonderful my little pup is.

Like I said, simple things. Life doesn't have to be this great cosmic mystery. We are here to build ourselves a life and do with it what we will. The hope is that we'll do some good with the time given to us.

I'm off to a tour hosted by one of our youth departments, but everyone have a fantastic day!

Cheers!

Ash

Change

Change can be both frightening and exciting. As we grow we constantly change the little details of our lives.

 Four years ago my biggest change was when I went from a dark blonde to bright redhead.

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Two years ago my biggest change was graduating college.

Last year I got a puppy.

This year one of my changes I want to make is how I live a healthy life. So I'm posing a challenge to myself. I can actually thank my co-worker for bullying my to commit to a three month challenge to live a healthier life. I'm not doing anything crazy or outrageous. I'm not going to start a crazy diet. I am not going to become addicted to working out for hours on end. Basically I'm challenging myself to add a healthy routine that just about anyone can fit into their week.

First Objective: Limit the fast food.

This is going to probably be the hardest one for me since I get a craving almost daily for fries or other greasy foods. I'm going to try to cut down to only eating fast food 4x a month, less if I can. This is going to require me to make more lunches when I can't get home for lunch. This also means I'm going to have to limit myself to grabbing a quick meal with friends. This does not include eating out at actual restaurants. Lately if I'm going out to eat somewhere nice it's more than likely going to be sushi or something that is not a normal part of my meal plans. This also only tends to happen if it's date night with Frank. We'll see how this goes!

Second Objective: Stretch 4x/ week for 10 minutes.

Ok so I've been a dancer most of my life and four years ago I use to be very flexible. Now that I'm not as active and I don't stretch regularly my flexibility is suffering- at least from my point of view. Of course my friends point out that I am still far more flexible than they'll ever be, but I miss the old me. I'm going to try and bring her back. Stretching is also amazingly good for you. I don't care what any health study says about stretching before participating in sports, I'm talking about that hour before you go to bed when you're laying around and watching tv. Stretching is relaxing and a great way to quietly focus on any little thoughts you might feel. I use stretching as a form of meditation and I'll never give it up. Stretching also prevents some injuries. The more flexible you are the less likely you'll pull that muscle when you bend down to touch your toes ;) Honestly I'm no medical expert, I just am a firm believer in keeping myself flexible!

Third Objective: 2 hours of actual exercise a week.

I don't know about you guys, but I hate running, I hate lifting, I hate most traditional workouts. They're boring and leave me shaky, gasping for breath. Granted they're good for me, I understand, but my desire is next to nothing when it comes to going to the gym. This part of the challenge will be hard because I'll either have to suck it up and do a traditional workout or I'll have to get creative and look into fitness classes etc. I wish I could find an adult dance class or two that I could afford- that would fit me perfectly. We'll see what I come up with for this part. Right now I'm considering home pilates and some sort of quick cardio. Maybe a muscle sculpting 5 minute workout blast or two. I'm not trying anything crazy remember? I'm trying to stick to a lazy-ish version of living a healthy life that might inspire my fellow lazy people (United we stand!)

Now that I've ranted away for an un-godly amount of time I'll leave you all. I hope everyone has a fantastic rest of the week and if any one wants to share and health related goals with me I'd love to hear! Maybe we can motivate each other?

Ash

New Year, New Me

Hello and welcome,

I have started a blog several times before and some how they've all faded away one by one. This time around I'm determined to push through and make this into something that lasts!

My name is Ashley and I live in Minnesota. I graduated college in 2012. I'm terrible at remembering to pay my bills, but I've managed to stay on top of them. I love most furry animals, especially dogs and horses. My puppy is the love of my life, my other is my boyfriend. He lives in Chicago so we have been working through a long distance thing- not the point of this post though. I'll save that story for another day perhaps :)
I love to read making Belle my favorite Disney princess, Ariel is a close second- gotta love redheads. I don't like my job, mostly because I don't feel like I'm any good at it and it fails to motivate me. I love to dance and I've danced the majority of my life. Some day I want to open a dance studio. Maybe it'll happen, maybe not.

Now that you've read a random blurb about me I'd like to do a stereotypical New Years Resolution post.

It's 2014, that means everything and everyone should be ready for a fresh start. I never set resolutions. I never follow them. It's a week late, but strangely I'm motivated to try this year. The short and sweet of it; here's my list of things I hope to accomplish this year

1. Write on this blog as often as I can
2. Work out and get my body back into the shape it use to be in
3. Write 100 pages of a book
4. Get a new job (full time)
5. Build a lasting relationship with my man
6. Pay off one of my student loans
7. Become a neat freak
8. Learn three new and useful things
9. Learn one more since I don't like uneven numbers
10. Go somewhere I've never been

It's not the craziest list I've ever made, but it's also not a walk in the park. My message to you all- If you have a dream or goal I wish you the best of luck and may you all succeed!

Ash