National Walk at Lunch day!!

Did you know that today is National Walk at lunch day?




Take charge of your health by joining Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies across the country and participating in the 2010 National Walk@Lunch Day.

National Walk@LunchDay helps you incorporate physical activity into your work day and encourages you to increase your daily physical activity by walking at lunch every day. So take the first step toward a healthier you and mark your calendar now for the 2010 National Walk@Lunch Day—Wednesday, April 28.

More information about National Walk@Lunch Day events in your area is available by visiting the Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies Plan finder and locating your local Blue Cross and Blue Shield company.

National Walk@Lunch Day is an extension of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association's WalkingWorks® program.


Benefits of Walking
Walking is fun and easy. And it’s good for your health.

Did you know that by fitting a brisk walk into your day on a regular basis, you can:

decrease your risk of a heart attack and type-2 diabetes?
control your weight?
improve your muscle tone?
reduce your stress1
Take your commitment to better health one step further and participate in WalkingWorks—a Blue Cross and Blue Shield company program that teaches you how to increase your level of daily physical activity by simply tracking how much you walk each day.

Using either a pedometer to count your steps or tracking the time you spend walking, you can measure your progress weekly and track your results online—for free—at www.walkingworks.com.

WalkingWorks lets you choose how to keep track of your accomplishments—by pedometer or time—but studies confirm that the use of a pedometer and a step goal can increase an individual’s amount of physical activity. The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that pedometer users increased their amount of physical activity by nearly 27 percent over baseline and decreased their body mass index by 0.38.2

Walking can work for you—and you can start by simply taking a walk at lunch with us on National Walk@Lunch Day, Wednesday, April 28, 2010.

(The above information taken from the following website: http://bcbshealthissues.com/innovations/walkingworks/national-walklunch-day.html

So, do you plan on fitting exercise in on your lunch break today?

Several times a week, I try and fit in a quick 30 or 40 minute work out on my lunch break. In fact, today I plan on a 3.5 mile run...just a very fast form of walking..hee heee...anyway, take advantage of the chance to work out your body..if you can't fit it in at lunch today, then after work, this evening.

Have a wonderful hump day everyone!

Happy Earth Day!!!!

What are you doing to celebrate the Planet today?

I myself recycle every day. It is a common practice in our home. I take our recycable clothing to Good Will. I recycle my magazines at the gym...by leaving them for someone else to read when I am through with them...so, today being a "specific" day to be Green concious..well, I try to be every day.

What about you?

I have an Announcement.....

The winner of my Greek Goddess Yoplait Giveaway.....

Dum...da da dum...dum...dum...

Sicilian!!!!!!

Please email me with a your information and Yoplait and Blogspark will be in touch with you to send you your gift pack.

Congratulations...sorry I took so long to post it. Max drew the numbers for me last night. Sorry, no pictures...my camera is acting all funky....plus I was tired last night. You will just have to trust me.

Love you all!
Dixie

Don't give up on me....

Ok..the give away is coming..I swear! I have had a difficult last few days, lost my camera...but found it last night! Yay! Work is killing me, busy weekend..yada, yada yada....Winner will be posted tonight, or first thing tomorrow.

Fun Survey...

Ok, I haven't done one of these in a long time...I totally stole this one from Southernland living...(I just love her blog)...I thought it would be fun...and maybe give my only 3 readers a look into my relationship with my wonderful, darling husband....Feel free to steal it from me and put it up on your blog.

Food Choices....

Every day...we all have choices to make, regarding how we eat, what we choose to eat...I try to always make good choices...choices that are beneficial to my health. In the process, I try to do the same for my children and I also encourage my husband as often as he will listen. It is hard...to choose the right foods, maintain the proper nutritional balance. I am not going to lie..I fight food cravings all the time...but, I also weigh the pro's and cons of those cravings. Sometimes, I give in...but most of the time...I choose the healthy route.

Today, for lunch, I went to KFC....yes, I eat fast food sometimes..but, I always check the nutritional content of their menu's...I love chicken, it is an excellent source of protein...and with all the running and lifting I do...I try to fuel off it frequently. When I do go to KFC...I order one thing and one thing only..twister wrap with grilled chicken, no cheese, no sauce....and a side order of Green Beans...see..healthy choices. I make these kind of choices every time I eat out...most of the time, I get salads...but, last night I worked out hard, and I felt I needed to replenish...

As I was looking at the menu today....waiting in line..I was shocked to see the newest addition to the KFC menu...

The KFC Doubledown...
It looked disgusting(to me anyway)....The nutrition facts, along with sodium content is shocking~Look it up if you don't believe me...What the heck is wrong with the people that work for these companies that come up with this kind of stuff?
Isn't our world obese enough? Every where I go, I see overweight (obese) people, eating poorly...Why do they do this to themselves?
Food is tempting...it can be an addiction..I get that...and with any addiction...it is difficult to overcome...but why must these choices be put out there for people?
I am ashamed of KFC for promoting this type of insane menu item! Why market your grilled chicken and 350 calorie meals if you are going to ruin it by promoting artery clogging/heart stopping menu items like the KFC Doubledown.

It really scares me to think where our Fast Food industry is headed. There are currently 1.6 billion overweight adults in the world, according to the World Health Organization. That number is projected to grow by 40% over the next 10 years (according to Forbes.com). Out of the world's most obese countries, America is 9th on the list. With food choices out there like the one above, it is no wonder we are not first on the list.

I can't stop other people from making bad choices..I can only set a good example for my family, hope they follow suit.

What do you think about the food choices that are out there? Do you try to make healthy choices when eating out?
Or, do you get sucked in by all the marketing ploys and fall into the temptations that are out there?

I for one, will never eat something like this. I work too hard to maintain and live a healthy lifestyle. I may not be vegan or a vegetarian....but, for the most part, I do eat and make healthy choices 95% of the time. Yes, I succumb to the occasional piece of chocolate or scoop of ice cream...but, I live by the motto of moderation and healthy choices, along with exercise.

I have also noticed, in observation..that our children today, in general...or more overweight now, then they were when I was kid...with the busy schedules of parents today, lack of time, children are fed fast food more and more often.
Every day, nearly one-third of U.S. children aged 4 to 19 eat fast food, which likely packs on about six extra pounds per child per year and increases the risk of obesity (according to CBS news). Kids are also less active today then they used to be 40 years ago. I remember playing outside from sun up to sun down as a child. Now, you have to plead with kids to get them out from in front of the t.v./video games.

I don't have a problem with my children. They are allowed some video time, but more often then not, they love to play outside. Yes, they do occasionally have a fast food meal, but when they do, I encourage healthy choices. At home, they are fed healthy home cooked meals and healthy snacks. I always keep fruit around. Most often, they prefer a banana, an apple or even a peanut butter sandwich over any type of junk food.

Like I said, living a healthy lifestyle is all about the choices you make. Living a life of longevity also depends on how you take care of your body. I plan to be around for a long, long time...but, if people out there eat things like the KFC doubledown...how many years is that taking off of their life's? What kind of example is it setting for our children?

According to buzzle.com:

More than just obese kids....
The fast food industry does need to realize that there are other effects of fast food than just obesity. While anyone, but especially overweight children, are eating burgers, fries, pizza and coke products they are not getting the nutritious food that they need. Instead, they are getting empty calories. Calories, which have no nutritional value, are setting themselves up for diabetes, heart problems and other fatal disorders.

Advertising and obese children
Advertising, including television ads, billboards, and other advertising, including toys in boxed meals, has had an effect upon children as never before. Children these days are growing up with low concern for their health and more concern for what tastes good.

Without enough parental supervision, these kids grow up with little nutritional discretion and usually these kids grow into adults with both weight and health problems as well as teaching another generation that it is ok to waste money on unhealthy foods. So it is not only the young people of our generation that are being affected by the fast food industry, it is going to have an effect for generations to come, if something isn’t done about the consumption of fast food.

It’s up to us!
As is expected the fast food industry is not going to think it possible to suddenly change its direction after years of offering poor food choices. It will have to come from the consumer demanding healthier food choices. Our vote comes with where we shop and what we buy. Our children and grandchildren will grow up with weight and other health problems if they continue eating the fast food.

We can read all the studies that show links between fast food and obesity and fast food and obesity in children. We can look on as medical science proves that fast food causes obesity, but if we, as consumers do nothing and continue to feed these foods to our children, the health problems that will be the end result will be our own fault.

I couldn't have said it better myself...As far as where I was going with this post..I really don't know...I guess to just encourage all of you that are out there, that may read this...do the best you can in making healthier choices with the food you eat, with the food you feed your families...Oh, and exercise...just 30 minutes a day. Take the video games and the t.v.'s away from your children...Summer is almost here. Lead by example, get out and exercise...encourage them to play outside, ride thier bikes, go to the park, etc...and maybe, just maybe..you and your loved ones, can live a longer, healthier life.

Give away..winner to be announced!

I am sorry for the blogging absence....dealing with craziness at work and a sick child. Missed work Monday, taking him to the doctor..there is a crazy skin rash thing going on...Doc thinks it is allergy related...blood work has not come back...told to give him Zyrtec....not helping, rash is spreading..I am stressing...Back to the doc with him again today, now an appointment with a dermatologist on the 28th...at least this time around, she prescribed him with a steroid cream..as this rash is spreading...poor kid has it in areas that are unmentionable now...sigh...

My workouts have been sporadic....haven't lifted in 2 weeks..staying on track with the running...averaging between 18 and 20 miles a week...hope to hit the gym again tonight..for the first time in over a week. I just have not had a lot of energy lately...every run has been a struggle....last night's 5 miler just about did me in...it was outside, muggy and hot...I had to take several walk breaks..and I hate that! I have to get my stamina back somehow...can't figure out why..

Anyway...I will be making my decision on my Greek Goddess YoPlait give away and will be posting that tomorrow...shouldn't be too hard, as only 3 people obviously read my blog anyway...

I will be doing the write the names on a piece a paper, draw them out of a bag/hat/basket kind of drawings...actually, I will have one of the kids do it....I will photograph the evidence...then I will announce the winner...and the lovely People at Blogspark and Yoplait will send you your goodies...simple as that.

Have a lovely Thursday everyone!

Yoplait...Nourish Your Inner Goddess.....

A couple weeks ago, before my vacation...I was contacted by the wonderful people over at Myblogspark.com....they sent me a wonderful packet of goodies in the mail..provided by Yoplait and My Blogspark
.
Now, I love to eat healthy...I am always on the look out for something new to try...and I love Greek Yogurt...when I seen that Yoplait had put out their own version...I couldn't wait to try it.
In fact, before MyBlogspark had contacted me..I had already tried the Strawberry favor..and I liked it very much...I found it to be very thick and creamy...not too sugary tasting like some yogurts I have tried.
Taken from the Yoplait website:

Yoplait Greek has double the protein than the leading yogurt and 0% fat in every serving. Plus it’s the only leading brand of Greek yogurt with vitamins A and D in every cup. Get your spoons ready and choose from four delicious flavors! Strawberry, Blueberry, Honey Vanilla and Plain.

Nutritional stats:
Total Fat - Grams 0

% DV Fat 0

Saturated Fat - grams 0

% DV Saturated Fat 0

Trans Fat - grams 0

Cholesterol - mg 10

% DV Cholesterol 3

Sodium - mg 95

% DV Sodium 4

Potassium - mg 270

% DV Potassium 8


Total Carbohydrate - grams 19

%DV Carbohydrate 6

Dietary Fiber - grams 0

% DV Dietary Fiber 0

Sugars - grams 18

Protein - grams 12

% DV Protein 23


% DV Vitamin A 15

% DV Vitamin C 0

% DV Calcium 30

% DV Iron 0

% DV Vitamin D 20

% DV Phosphorus 25


Diet Exchanges 1-1/2 skim milk

And...only 130 calories per serving.

I can't wait to try the other 3 servings!

Now..my blogspark and Yoplait have given me permission to offer a free gift pack of the above to one of my lovely readers...

The Packet is titled...Nourish Your Inner Goddess and comes with 2 free coupons for Yoplait Greek yogurt, a bath towel sarong/wrap, bath slippers, and some bath toiletry items....

All you have to do is comment or email me with how you like to nourish your Inner Goddess, tell me what flavor of YoPlait Greek yogurt you would like to try, link back to my post here...and in one week, I will randomly choose a winner.

Also, if you would like to get a coupon for money off of Yoplait Greek Yogurt...visit this link right here:
http://bricks.coupons.com/bstart.asp?o=62092&ci=1&c=GM&p=aI8UZzdb
This coupon offer for a free cup of Yoplait Greek yogurt is not valid in some states, including California, Idaho, Louisiana, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota, and Tennessee.

Thanks for reading...and remember...every day to Channel that Inner Goddess within you!

LAST NIGHT...

Lol..nope, no bear was chasing me...I just had a brief moment of runners insanity.

Last night, after work, I went to the gym as planned. But, I didn't do the work out I had in mind. I ended up running....10 miles to be exact. It took me 1 hr 43 minutes...once I started running..well, I just couldn't stop. My mentality, with every mile I ran...was well, I think I can go one more mile...now, I did take a few short walk breaks, after the 4 mile...

Here is the breakdown:

Mile 1: 9 min 24 seconds
Mile 2: 9 min 22 seconds
Mile 3: 9 min 14 seconds
Mile 4: 9 min 44 seconds
Mile 5: 10 min 20 seconds
Mile 6: 11 min 12 seconds
Mile 7: 10 min 28 seconds
Mile 8: 11 min 42 seconds
Mile 9: 12 min 14 seconds
Mile 10: 11 min 20 seconds

Yes, I slowed sown considerably..but, I was taking about a .25 mile walk break the last few miles. Plus adding in a cool down walk.

I was spent. I didn't plan on it, but once I got started, I just kept going. Next time, I will plan a little better..I ran out of water by mile 8...and I could have probably used a shot of Gu or something about half way through. But, overall...not too bad...Would have liked to have kept those last few minutes below 11 minutes...but, my hip was killing me and I had to take a few short/quick walk breaks.

Today, is a free day from working out....which is a good thing. I am so tired today. I don't know if it was the exercise endorphins, or what..but I was unable to sleep at all last night. Didn't sleep much the night before that...so, I am looking forward to an early bed time tonight.

I will be back this afternoon, with a post regarding that elusive give a way I have been talking about.

Dixiechick...out.

Quick Weekend Post....

Now, that I have gotten the vacay post over with...how was everyone's weekend? Mine was good, but very short, as usual.
Friday night, I left immediately after work, drove down to pick up 16 year old...we stopped and had dinner at Applebee's, rented some movies, bought a few groceries and I didn't get home until around 8 pm....
Didn't get to watch the movies though, because we got a new t.v. from the in-laws, and hubby thought he had the dvd player hooked up to the sattelite/tv correctly..well, it wasn't...and I couldn't figure it out either. After getting totally exasperated over it, I gave up and we tried to watch one of them on the computer screen..but it sucked...the movie was "Did you hear about the Morgans" and it was so boring...we stopped it half way through and we all went to bed.

Saturday, I got up early and tried to go for a run...the weather was predicting showers, but I thought I could beat them....after 2.75 miles, the wind was blowing, I was soaked to the bone, as of course it started raining half mile into my run...hubby met me to bring me water at the almost 3 mile mark, and made me quit. I was bummed, but...it was for the best, since I was just starting to feel better from the ear infection.

We had to be at his Mothers house at one p.m. anyway, to celebrate Easter...she was having it on Saturday, since it was the only day that worked out for the entire family..probably the other grandchildren's boyfriend/girlfriend..oh, well...whatever.
She had made nice little Easter baskets for the kids, we had a great dinner and Justin hid Easter eggs for the boys...
Here are the boys "hunting"....
(Excuse Justin's finger over the camera)








I didn't get to see a lot of the hunt, I was busy cleaning up the kitchen for the Mother In Law..she wasn't feeling too well, I thought it was wrong to have to let her do any of the clean up, when she shopped and cooked for 14 people. I cleared the table, put the food away and loaded the dishwasher...even cleaned her counter tops/stove...bless her heart. I love my Mother in Law to death....she was very grateful. We stayed for around 4 hours, then headed home...it's an hours drive..we were all pooped out..but, after dropping Keith and Max off at home...Justin, Aaron and I headed back to town...had to stop by the nail salon, get a nail fixed, to the mall to finish my Easter shopping for the boys...since Grandma had made them an Easter basket, they had already had an Easter Egg hunt, tons of candy..I asked them, since they don't believe in the Easter bunny any longer, if they wanted another basket, or did they want a special gift from me and their Dad...they opted for the gift...so, I bought a Nintendo DS game for Aaron and an XBOX game for Max....
we stopped by the store for sandwich fixings and headed home. I was wiped.
Sunday, I got up and made pancakes for everyone..then Justin and I went to the gym for a workout. I got in a 4.25 mile run and did a wieghts session for my back/arms/chest.

Hubby took Justin back and I spent a couple of hours watching Weeds on Netflix online....

Now..here we are..another work week ahead of us. Although, my Monday is almost over..thank goodness. I am headed to the gym after work for a six miler...some leg work..wish me luck. I am dead tired.

Vacation Recap...part Duex!...

Wow, the weekend flew by and I had not one second of free time to get on the computer..well, I did...but I spent it watching Weeds Season 4 on Netflix...that show is awesome.
So, when I left off with our vacation post...it was our first night at Myrtle Beach (of our 2 night stay) and after getting kicked out of the pool, for swimming after hours....we came back to our room and relaxed, drank some wine (just me and hubby)...lol..put the boys to bed. It was so relaxing to listen to the sounds of the ocean, sipping on some wine, just being with one another. I love my hubby!!!!

The next morning...we were up and at them rather early....the boys were excited and very anxious to get down to the beach. I started some coffee, hubby started the boy's breakfast...once the coffee was done, I took it out on the balcony and drank it while looking out at the ocean..when all of a sudden...I seen something jump..it was a dolphin..then..there were several more...all jumping, playing and frolicking in the ocean...I yelled for everyone to come outside, take a look...it was nature at it's best and the boys were thrilled to see the dolphins. It was sort of like this picture-that I snagged of the internet(because I was a dummy and didn't grab my camera)

We all got dressed and headed out to some of the beach shops...the boys wanted some buckets and shovels for the beach and I needed to get them some sandals/flip flops, as they only had their tennis shoes, I didn't want them wearing them down to the beach.



We went to several different beach shops, picking up little things here or there....sunglasses/flip flops, bucket/shovel, etc...

Here's a picture of Max, trying on a funky hat with his sunglasses....





After about an hour and a half of shopping, and me scoring some cute white shorts and a myrtle beach tank top, we were done with our shopping expedition and returned to our room to put on our swim suits. The boy's excitement was contagious and we were thrilled to be at the beach, just as they were. We made our way downstairs, down to the beach, where the air temp was around 73 degrees...a little breezy it was..but, overall, not bad...Hubby promptly laid down on his towel, and fell asleep. I slathered sunscreen on the boys (should have on hubby as well-I didn't...and he got sunburned-sleeping face up, in the sun for two hours-bad wife)..they immediatley ran into the ocean, then right back out again, as the water temp was only around 52 degrees..according to the guy sitting next to us...

Here are some pictures of their brief "swim" in the ocean...

The boys quickly made a friend, and proceeded to dig a ginormous hole in the sand..

I don't know who the other kids was...just a random kid Max struck up a friendship with...which didn't last too long..Max wouldn't stay right by his side, so the kid got mad, yelled at Max, "Fine, if you don't want to be my friend, I will go find another friend"...Max kind of laughed and said, fine....I was just getting water..but, there are lot's of other kids on the beach...good luck"...so, wise for a seven year old...lol. I thought it was hilarious that Max took this kid's temper tantrum in stride like that.

I tried several times myself, to just relax and get some sun, read my magazines that I had brought, but it was impossible..the kids kept asking me to help with this, do this, do that...etc, so I got up and played with them...Aaron wanted me "bury" him in the sand...so, for a while, that is what we did....Here are a couple photos...it was pretty darn funny.

After almost 4 hours of this...we were all tired and worn out, hungry and ready to return to our room. We rinsed the boys off in the outdoor shower and trudged upstairs...I made the boys get in the tub and hubby and I decided for dinner, that we were going to stay inside, instead of going out. Hubby wanted to cook us a seafood dinner...so, while I was showering, he went to the store and bought scallops, sea bass, crab cakes, rice and veggies to steam...and another yummy bottle of red wine.
He would not let me do anything...he made a most fabulous meal for us, of which Aaron would not eat...he is such a picky/finicky child. It really irritated me that Keith went to so much trouble to make this fabulous meal for us, and he refused to eat it...I was all for letting him go to bed hungry..I was raised with the ideal that you eat what is put before you and be grateful/thankful that you have it. Not so with my kids...Keith ended up feeling bad for him, and taking him later to get Burger King...silly boy!
After dinner/clean up...the boys wanted to go for one more swim, so, again..we suited up and went downstairs to the hotel pool....the boys played in the lazy river, while hubby and I sat in the hot tub, alternating with the heated pool. Now, when I swim, I am one of "those" women, who get into the pool, with hair and make up done, and I do not, repeat, do not like to get my head wet....but, there were some unsupervised heathens...um, I mean children, running around loose and they kept running and jumping into the pool, seeing who could make the biggest "cannonball" splash, and proceeded to drench me..so, after getting over my intense anger at these brats...I decided what the heck and proceeded to dive under and swim from the inside to the outside numerous times...after a couple hours, I had had enough, just wanted a warm shower, clean nighty and some alone time with my hubby and that bottle of wine...so, we roused up the boys, went back upstairs and got them ready for bed..since we were leaving early the next morning.

To wrap it up, we had a great time at Myrtle Beach, our hotel was fabulous...if you do go to Myrtle Beach, I highly recommend the Paradise Resort....

By 11 a.m. the next morning, we were packed up and headed back to my Mom's for one more day with her. We got back to my Moms around 5 p.m to find her very sick....as I have said, for 61 years old, her health is very bad..I know if I lived close to her, I would be able to help her more, but she has pretty much just given up....on herself, on life in general. My brother is having some serious problems, with his health/his marriage, and he is depressed..Mom says he has nothing to do with her, and he swears he does...but, I only seen him briefly, twice, the entire week I was down there. I am grateful my Mom has her sisters, especially my Aunt Wanda, to check in on her...I worry so much. Anyway, my brother stopped by on my last night, we went to go buy some KFC to feed the family, we stopped at the drugstore for something for Keith, and he proceeded to "allow" me to buy him some beer...which I did not mind at all...but he had already drank a six pack before we got there...I worry about his health so much. He doesn't look good and he is so unhappy. After a long night of hearing Mom cough and not be able to breathe, then me finding myself with an ear ache....there was not much sleep for me at all. Pretty much the entire trip I didn't sleep very much..so, I was teetering on the brink of exhaustion as well....but, we were planning on leaving to drive back to Indiana that night, and I wanted Mom to be checked out by her Doctor so I took her in that morning. Pretty much told her to keep taking her breathing treatments, gave her some antiobiotics and sent her own her way. With the advise that if she got any worse (I felt she was on the brink of pneumonia) to go straight to the hospital.
I really did not want to leave her..but, I had no choice. We had to head back to Indiana..so around 5 pm that evening, we loaded up and headed home...my ear ache that had started the night before, gradually begin to get worse...around midnight, I was in full blown "pain from the depths of hell"....it was worse, along the lines of the pain you have with childbirth..I was in tears...hubby debated with me for several hours to stop at an emergency room....I thought I was going to die from the pain. It was the most miserable road trip back I have ever taken in my life....700 plus miles, in non stop agony...the only relief I would get was to take 400 mg of Ibuprofen about every 3 or so hours, then it would only ease off for an hour at most, then start all over again. We got back to Indiana around 8 a.m. the next morning, dropped Max off at hubby's parents, and hubby and Aaron took me straight to urgent care....where I was told I had an inner infection, given antiobiotics, loratab for pain, ear drops and sent on my way. Hubby got my prescriptions filled, took me home, and I seriously, after taken my meds/pain killer, proceeded to sleep the rest of my vacation (rest of that Saturday and all of Sunday) away....

So, now that I have bored you with enough of the details of our glorious trip...I am going to end this post here....

Check back in with me tomorrow...as I will finally post my give away...Which includes a bath towel robe...spa slippers...bath toiletry items as well as a couple of coupons for free yogurt...given to me my the lovely people at MYBLOGSPARK.COM....

Busy Week....Vacation Recap and a give a way!

Hi, everyone...wow, you take a week off of work, then you come back, you have to work twice as hard to catch up, and fix the report errors that others made in your abscence. I have been one busy woman!!! Sorry it took so long for me to get this post up...

So, when I left off a couple weeks ago, we were leaving to go out of town...to SC to visit my family. We were taking the two younger boys, hubby and myself..driving...in our little Saturn Ion...I got off of work that Friday at around 4:30..I had not packed a thing...by the time I got home, packed and hubby loaded up the car...then me making him unload it so I could reorganize our baggage(he had stuff piled in the back seat between the two boys-I knew this wasn't going to work, as they would be too cramped), so I did some reconstructive packing and we were on our way, finally...at 6:30 p.m...



Aaron was ready..DS was charged, so he was a happy camper...and was pretty much the entire trip.
(Please ignore the ugly pink/white dirty looking cooler next to Aaron..that is hubby's work cooler, he works in a machine shop..so, um...it's kind of gross)








Max was thrilled to get going....it was his first big car trip that he could remember and he was very excited...he was prepared with his own personal dvd player and five new movies...a new coloring book and box of crayons. Oh, it may look like Max doesn't have his seat belt on but he does, he just has the strap tucked behind his back.

I on the other hand...well, let's just say I was faking the excitement for their sake. I was so dreading the drive...15 hours, in a car is a long long way.





I was already exhausted..and the thought of the drive was leaving me a little anxious..what with hubbys sleep apnea/narcolepsy...his driving me makes me very nervous. I can't relax/read or anything...as I have to always be on alert for his driving patterns and any sign that he may be falling asleep.

As I said, 6:30 p.m. was our departure time. We had only drove to the next town over, about 20 miles and the boys/hubby were already ready to stop for dinner. I hate that...but, it was dinner time..so, I figured get it out of the way, then maybe we could start putting the miles behind us.
After dinner, we were on our way around 7:15 p.m...One hour into our trip and the boys were already fighting..Lord Help Me, I kept on praying...

Eventually darkness settled in and the boys fell asleep. We were counting on that...as it finally made the trip a little more peaceful. Hubby was actually doing a great job driving and we would switch every hour to two hours...with frequent stops at gas stations for coffee. We had planned on stopping around midnight or 1 a.m. and getting a hotel room, but we discussed it, decided that as long as the kids were sleeping ok and we could keep the coffee pumping through our viens...we would just keep driving. We did fine, up until around 5 a.m...and we had to pull into a rest area just before getting to Atlanta and take an hour nap...that helped and we got to SC around 8 a.m...I was driving at that point and stupid me...I took the wrong exit to my Mom's...I exited off 16 exit's too soon...so we ended up on the back side of Anderson County...we had to back track, finally ended up at the school where I went to college, then got caught up in a 5 k race held by the University...we ended up arriving at my Mom's around 9:15 a.m. that Saturday morning...710 miles and an hour later then we should have been...oh, well. Mom was thrilled to see us and the boys were thrilled to finally arrive. Of course, they were not that tired at all, as they had slept all night in the car. After a shower and a pot of coffee...I didn't feel too bad. I actually ended up going for a 3 mile run later that evening. Then, we made a trip to the grocery store and I made dinner for the family.

Sunday, we went to the local flea market...The Anderson Jockey Lot... http://jockeylot.com/
We ended up walking around that place for several hours. It's kind of neat to see all the different vendors and what they have to offer. They have a lot of replica handbags/clothing and bootlegged dvds..which amazes me that they get away with selling that stuff and not getting busted for it. But, oh well...we didn't buy much...some boiled peanuts..yum, yum...I love me some good southern boiled salted peanuts...they were awesome and we bought Max a toy and some cotton candy.
After our little flea market excursion, we came home and got Mom and headed back to Anderson to Skin Thrasher hot dogshttp://www.skinshotdogs.com/...I am not a hot dog person, as they are not very healthy at all...and I never eat them, except when I go home to visit my Mom..the chili Skin uses on his hot dogs is phenomenal and I can't resist it....I had two..sigh..yes, they were delicious, but I did feel extremely guilty for eating them.
Afterwards we went to Kohl's to shop for hubby some new shirts and I ended up buying my Mom a pair of ear rings for her to wear to church. I never get to buy her anything, so I enjoy treating her when I come to visit.
The rest of that evening was spent relaxing and watching t.v.

The temps were not too bad while we were down there...the days were sunny and the temp was around 65 or so. Not too shabby. On Monday, we took Mom to Greenville to Haywood Mall and then we went to a fabulous restaurant...Copper River Grill...http://www.copperrivergrill.com/
The food was amazing...I had a grilled tuna salad that was beyond amazing...and our server was gorgeous and very funny and very good, which made the experience even more enjoyable. Mom was kind of out of place, she doesn't go out to restaurants very often, so I tried to encourage her to just relax and enjoy herself, order what ever she wanted. She is not in very good health, so our little shopping day out was a little too much for her, so after dinner we headed back home and she went to bed. I was a little disappointed that I had been home for 3 days and still had not seen my brother. He is having a hard time right now, very unhappy with his job and his marraige..has pretty much hit rock bottom and is very depressed and all he wants to do when he is not working is sleep...so, after realizing that I was going to miss another day of not seeing him, I got dressed and went to my Aunt's fitness center with the plans to run a 5 miles on her treadmill, but, she had other plans and made me join in her aerobics class....I have never done aerobics before, but I caught on pretty quick and by the time the hour was over..I was a sweaty beast and could tell I had gotten in a very good work out. Afterwards, I came home, Mom was up and we all sat down and watched the premier of Dancing With The Stars..that is another post entirely of and to it's own...seriously, Pam Anderson and Kate Gosselien???? What the heck?

Tuesday morning, I got up and went for a 5 mile run...it was glorious. A little cool and windy..but, it was comforting to run through my old town, up to my High school and around the community. http://www.sciway.net/city/williamston.html...I ran it in exactly 50 minutes (there were a lot of hills)....hubby and I went over to my Mom's best friends house to use her computer to balance out our checking account. We were good to go there, so hubby suggested we leave that afternoon and drive to the coast to Charleston and take the kids to the beach. He had gotten a recommendation from some guy at the Guess Store at the mall we went to on Monday, that Folley Beach was the place to go. Mom wasn't feeling well (she has diabetes, lung issues and is on oxygen and heart problems) so she did not want to go with us. We loaded up the kids and hit the road that afternoon around 1 pm....the drive to Charleston was not bad at all..took us about 5 hours and the kids were well behaved. We arrived at Folley Beach, parked in front of the only Hotel we could see on the beach, there were a lot of private condos and headed down to the beach.
Max was overwhelmed and so happy to finally see the ocean. He immediately chucked his shoes off and ran through the sand down to the water. Aaron was happy to be there as well and started collecting sea shells....
Here is a shot of me and the boys, by the pier, with our feet in the water. It was cold....

Here are more pictures of the boys frolicking around on the beach...


After our little jaunt on the beach, we went to the Holiday Inn right there on the beach to check on rooms and cost..we needed a suite, with seperate bed rooms, due to hubbys snoring...and they didn't have that, plus a regular room was $176 a night...way more then we wanted to spend. We got in the car and drove up and down the beach front, all we could find were condos. We were totally exasperated and we did not want to have to stay in land in Charleston. The boys were upset, as we had promised them a hotel on the beach...needless to say, we were very disappointed in Folley Beach. At this point, we regretted not going to Myrtle Beach....we pulled out the atlas, took a look and saw it was a 94 mile drive from Charleston, up the coast to Myrtle Beach..so we decided to go for it. The boys were not too happy with driving further, but we assured them it would be well worth it. A little over two hours later, we were at Myrtle Beach and found a 2 bedroom condo/hotel, right on the beach for $120 a night that was without a doubt, awesome!!!
We ended up staying at Paradise Resort http://www.paradiseresortmb.com/

It had ocean front view and was beautiful!
The place was nothing short of amazing. One bed room was ocean front, with a balcony..it had a queen size bed and it's own large bathroom...it also had a living room/dining room area, plus a kitchen and a washer dryer...there was a seperate bedroom down the hall for the boys, with two double beds....
After checking into our room....we ventured out to get some dinner. We ended up down the street from our hotel, at Damon's, Which was right on the beach as well....http://www.ribsribsribs.com/....Here are some shots of us waiting for our dinner.


They were both so happy, and Max kept telling us, Thank you Mommy and Daddy for bringing me here...this is the best place ever...I want to live here, I love you and on and on .....it was so flipping cute.
Max snagged the camera and was able to snap a rare photo of Keith and I together...


Our dinner though..was just o.k...our waitress was a little slow and the bar tender screwed up Keith's drink..I mean seriously...it is the beach..what bar tender doesn't know how to make a Hurricane or a Rum Runner?

After dinner, we went to the local Piggly Wiggly (the boys thought the name was hilarious) and stocked up on a few snacks/groceries for our room...plus a big ol' bottle of wine for Mama here.....fixings to make breakfast the next morning.

Once back at the hotel, the hubby and I took the boys downstairs to the pool/lazy river and although it was supposed to have closed at 11 pm, it was still open. We managed to hot tub it up/swim for a half hour before security came through and kicked us out..they were nice about it...we just played dumb, like we didn't know it was closed....
We ended our night, relaxing on the bed, with the door open to the balcony, listening to the sounds of the ocean, and sipping some wine.
Perfect end to our evening...

I know I have bored you long enough...so part 2 will be posted a little later today, or this weekend, with a giveaway post provided by the lovely people at Myblogspark.com.

Stay tuned.