Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt has been quoted as saying "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

What an amazing thought. To believe that we hold the future in our dreams. Our individual futures can only be as big as we can dream. The bigger we dream and the more we believe in our dreams, the more amazing our futures can be. We all need to grab ahold of our futures with full force and dream, dream, dream.

I leave you all the following thought provoking question. Do you allow yourself to believe in the beauty of your dreams?

A Saturday Morning with the Nyman Family.

This is the Nyman family. Recently I was asked to take some photos of their growing family and I jumped at the chance. Their 3 oldest may seem familiar from photos taken this last summer. I had such a great time taking their photos there is no way I would have turned down another opportunity to do so.

The boys had to steal a minute for some photos of just the two of them.

Here are a few more of my favorite photos from the morning.

Attacking the Gym!

Yes, that is right. About a month ago I decided to make the leap and join the local gym. I was a member when my girls were babies and loved it but the time and money involved just didn't seem worth it. So, for the last 3 years I have been attempting free exercise - walking and running on the roads. This seems like a great idea, unless you live in the Pacific Northwest. I have realized that unless I want to be soaking wet, muddy and cold most of the time I am exercising, I need to join a gym. I know, a revelation.

I have been trying to get to the gym at least four days a week for 1-2 hours each visit. There are definitely specific teachers that I like and others I could do without. I try to focus on the purpose of going to the gym and not on who is teaching each class. That can be tough. Do step teachers realize how important it is to cue properly? Do they really want to see me fall flat on my face when I try to change mid step because they didn't cue in enough time?

The days I do cardio box and step are by far my favorites. I get drippy sweaty which is totally disgusting, but the classes are a blast and the people are great. The other days I do weight classes or cardio which are great but more done because I have to than because I enjoy them. Gonna throw in some yoga this weekend - relaxing and stretching should help with my flexibility.

I will keep you all posted on how it goes. So far, I am feeling better and loving the indoor option.