Cake Pops are one of the most popular things to come from my kitchen. I really enjoy making them, and while they can take a little time, the results are absolutely worth it. They last longer than normal cakes, due to the candy coating, and you can individually wrap them, making them portable and less of an issue for groups to distribute (bake sales, birthdays, etc).

Here’s how:

1. Make a cake mix, but add in a packet of instant pudding powder to give it more density and moisture. Don’t worry if the cake sinks in the middle – you’ll be destroying it anyway.

When the cake is cooked and cooled, trim off any hard bits around the sides and then crumb the cake up in a large bowl. (Kids love to help with this stage.) Then add two tablespoons of prepared frosting (the type you get in tubs in the supermarket), and mix it through until you have a mixture the consistency of cookie dough. Don’t make it sticky, but also not dry. It shouldn’t crumble – think that if you wanted to make a log you actually could, and none would fall apart. It’s almost like play dough.

2. Roll balls of the cake mix in your hands to a good size. You can use a melon baller to help with consistency of size. Bigger than a chupa chup, smaller than a golf ball. Put the rolled balls on baking paper on plates and put in freezer for 15 mins (or fridge overnight).

3. While the balls are getting nice and cold, melt some candy melts in a bowl (nuke 20secs at a time. Chocolate melts do not work as well). Dip candy stick ends into the melted warm candy and stick them into each cake ball. This helps the stick stay in the ball. Do not worry about the lump of candy around the stick – it gives you a nice guide and finish for the final version. (Tip: keep the cake pops in the fridge/freezer and only bring out three or four at a time to work on. This will ensure they stay cold. Return them to the fridge/freezer after each batch is done for each stage. Basically, you want them to stay cold.)

4. Using my drag, tap and twirl method is best for covering the pops completely with the candy. Melt a good amount of the candy melts in the bowl, so there is a depth of melted candy. Take a cold cake pop at one side of the bowl, and drag it at a tilt across the bowl so that there is a wave of melted candy gathering near the earlier lump near the stick. Twirl the pop a little as you go to ensure you cover it all, without going down the stick. Keeping the cake pop tilted away from you, lift it out of the bowl and tap the stick on the side so the majority of the excess candy drips off (be patient – this takes a little while) when it stops dripping, twirl the pop a little while still tapping to ensure even coverage. After every 3 or 4 pops, you will need to nuke the melts for 15-20 seconds to ensure it doesn’t cool and get thick. (See the trend? Keep the pops cold, and the melts warm throughout for best results.)

5. Using a piece of styrofoam covered in glad wrap (so you can re-use it), stick the finished cake pop in so it can dry. I sometimes put this styrofoam in the fridge too, the help the process along. You can then finish the pops with different decorations, slip plastic/cello covers over the top and use a twist tie to ensure they are individually covered.

Once you’ve done the basic pop, you’ll get creative and try different shapes, different blends of cake with pudding flavours and so on.

Troubleshooting:

1. Be careful if you are decorating with sprinkles. Sprinkles are heavy and if added too soon after the cake pop is in the styrofoam they can drag your candy covering down.

2. If your finished pop’s covering tends to crack on cooling, this is likely a sign you’ve got it too thick. Ensure you’re warming through your melts regularly to make it flow more quickly and you can have a thinner finish that won’t crack.

3. If your pops tend to fall apart, it is likely you haven’t added enough frosting for it to have cookie dough consistency, you haven’t rolled it firmly enough into a ball, or it isn’t cold enough.

4. If they fall off the stick when drag, tapping or twirling, and you’re sure about all the items in 3. above, then ensure your melts are warm and fluid, and that you used a decent amount of melted candy to attach your stick.

Finally, you can add colours to the candy at any stage. Twirl a fork dipped in colour through the candy to get a marbling effect. Charlie says mine are better than the ones from Starbucks. From him, that’s high praise. Have fun!

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My youngest, Charlie, is 11 years old, (going on 42). He’s the youngest of four children, with attitude, experience and confidence that far exceed his years. After all, the child remembers life in not only two schools, but two countries. When he counts his money (as most kids do), he has to separate the currencies first, and it’s not only two. (We’ve had to renew our US visas in Canada, so he has Canadian currency. I hope he becomes some kind of currency trader. He likes to work out how much he has altogether, so that’s a start.)

Anyway…

Charlie (and our entire family) is blessed because he attends Bear Creek Elementary in Boulder, Colorado. He is finishing his last year, before moving on to Middle School. Bear Creek is one of the top public schools in the state of Colorado. And from my experience across 20 years of different types of education, as a parent and educator, Bear Creek is the best elementary/primary school I’ve ever seen. What makes the difference?

Charlie and his fantastic teacher, Lucy Ewing

All his teachers have been amazing, led by an amazing administration and headed by an incredible principal, Mr Kruger. The community of educators employed at Bear Creek are forward thinking, excited and switched on. They celebrate each other. They celebrate their own gifts. (Two things so sadly rarely seen in education.) They have a passion for what they do and are involved to an extent that they apply for grants and receive awards which they then use to further the work with the kids and the entire school community.

This year, Charlie’s teacher, Lucy Ewing, applied for a grant to teach her grade more about mathematics using textiles and design. Entitled: Project Runway Boulder: The Mathematics of Sewing, Lucy’s grant application outlined how students would use resourced fabrics to create their own lounge pants. Over a series of working sessions, students took measurements, understood drafting the pattern and working with the grain of fabric. They calculated required elastic, and even adapted the patterns to incorporate their own design decisions. Finally, the culmination of the work was a fashion show, with many parents and other students attending to see the fantastic results.

With a few parent helpers (no professional sewers), students were able to understand how clothing is made, and use power sewing machines to create clothing of their own. The thing that really, solidly stuck with me was the collaborative aspects of the learning, and the mutual excitement for each other’s work. What Lucy did was create an educational environment which not only got curriculum across in an innovative way, but which also celebrated and highlighted those most important aspects of building strong individuals for our future. Lucy’s work created a mutually warm, supportive and appreciative environment which reflected and supported the overall community of Bear Creek Elementary. Seeing the kids talk so respectfully about each other’s work, applaud each other’s individuality in their modeling of their final creations, and never once refer to gender (no, not even once) throughout the entire project made my heart smile.

In a couple of weeks’ time, some of the kids will be joining Lucy to show the Boulder Valley School District the results of this work. I really hope they see beyond the pajama pants. The work being done by these educators is not one which relies on embracing new technologies, or on extensive funding. It gets back to the root of excelling at education – innovation, passion and using curriculum as just one tool to nurture what is already within students. Through this kind of educator we will have, I think, a more involved and excited student.

I wish more of this collaborative, supporting, excited and nurturing style that celebrates individuals while also achieving solid educational outcomes was used in tertiary education. I wonder what kind of student would be produced then? Wouldn’t it be great to have educators like Lucy Ewing show university educators innovation in education? I’ll bet everyone – students and professors – could get excited by that.

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It’s been a full year since I decided to stop talking about getting healthier and actually began doing something realistic about it on a daily basis instead of wishing, being angry, saying I didn’t care, being upset, and nearly killing myself every weekend on a one-off hike.

I finally worked it out for real. I owed it to nobody other than myself to stop the cycle of self-bashing. Only then could I stop thinking negatively about my size, my fitness, and my belonging in a town where fitness is a theme. I admitted that I wasn’t happy, and I needed to fix it because nobody else was going to do it for me while I came up with excuses.

Nutrisystem said they’d like to take my journey with me. On my birthday last year I signed the contract with them that gave me the tools to succeed. My friends were really happy and supportive. I started an exercise routine (see what I said there? Routine, not schedule or program. Routine. Like a habit). It wasn’t strenuous, but it could be built upon and included the things I loved about the environment here.

I can avoid these, truly

I started hiking every day with my dog and eventually I picked up speed and lengthened it to 4.4 miles every day. I finished my time with Nutrisystem after eight months, at 34 pounds lighter than I was this time last year. I am very much fitter. I am not thin (I never wanted to be), but I feel like I finally belong. I look and feel healthy. Mainly.

It hasn’t been a wonderful year on all fronts. I ended up spending a substantial amount of time in Australia and my mum’s passing has injected an incredible amount of emotional pain for me to carry. A pain that I would always in the past (and have done a little of over these last couple of months) try to placate with food. I didn’t exercise while I was in Australia. And then my husband was very sick for a week this month. Depression and weight gain/unhealthy living are related and mutually contribute to a cycle of going nowhere but down.

This kind of cycle hits most people who are trying to lose weight and get healthy. So many pile the kilos back on after reaching a goal weight – because they return to bad, comfortable habits instead of sticking with the new ones. It’s tempting. I really think if my life changes hadn’t been so severe over the last few months, I’d be totally fine. But I’m not.

The good news is I’m coming slowly back. I’m not at my peak any more. I still hike every day but I can tell the difference. It’s a little more difficult physically than it used to be. Additionally, I am not finding the joy in doing it that I was. Honestly, everything feels very much like I’m just going through the motions. The irony is that it’s upsetting (depressing) to me that something I was loving to do, that gave me real joy and self respect/love seems quite vacant now. But I’m told it will come back. It will all come back. To just keep doing what I was doing and that joy – and great fitness, and the self love that comes with it – will slowly return.

It would be so easy to just return to a life full of the couch, M&Ms, and excuses.

But I know that’s depression talking, and not what I really want. I really loved being the fit and healthy person at my peak, getting stronger – and I like to believe it will happen again. I need it to. While I’ve gained a little weight (8 pounds altogether from when I finished with Nutrisystem), I’m still 26 pounds lighter, way fitter and healthier than I was a year ago. (That’s easy to forget). Plus, when I do that 4.4 miles (and don’t ‘cheat’ myself by only doing 2 miles), the dog and I both feel energised and exhausted at the same time. It’s just so easy to keep saying I need to work my way back up by only doing a short hike instead of taking that next step, sucking it up and going further.

It’s hard to push when I’m pushing on everything. Daily life in our house is very busy – getting back on top of that’s a push for me. The work I do is very ‘head-intensive’, and that’s a push. Those are the two things that I really, desperately want to be at the top of my game for quickly. My personal relationships and my own headspace are also needing some extra care right now. I truly want to get better at all of it.

I’m realising that those things will happen hand in hand with my fitness levels getting back to where they were too. It’s a complete set, not just one or the other. And it’s tough.

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I’m seeing lots of posts from people waving the privacy fear flag, warning mothers (and women generally) that they might get killed because of the geolocation tag on their phone. ”Murderers can find you!” “Your kids will be kidnapped!” “That stalker guy will shoot you dead!”

The story goes something like: ‘Did you know that every post you make to social media from your phone might be defaulted to include the location you took it? Don’t you realise what that might mean? People could kill you! Panic now!’ Then follows a handy step-by-step guide to turning off the geolocation so you can relax knowing that you will not be killed due to your irresponsible (you’re such a bad mother) geolocated pictures of you and the kids skiing at Breckenridge. Phew.

What images do you post online that can identify where you are?

Wait. That might not be the whole story.

Geolocation is not the only identifier of where you are and what you are doing. In fact, far more nuanced and detailed information is gathered through tracking social media content of your behaviors and habits. Tweeting about going to work. Every day. Same time. Facebook pictures of you, your friends. Who and where you’re tagged by friends. If you’re currently on holidays, that picture at Breckenridge you posted to Facebook (perhaps without the geolocation on it) not only carries your location within the content of the image itself, but also what you look like, who you’re with, and what you like to do – oh and the caption you put on it “Having a blast at Breckenridge” is also kind of a giveaway. Far more accessible for the standard neighborhood killer than going to the meta data of any post is going to provide.

Murderers and kidnappers are not really going to need to use geolocated social media posts in order to find you. But you know who might actually need to?

Emergency services personnel. Because just as likely as someone kidnapping you or your kids is the likelihood that they would need to be found. Located because the geolocation on a cellphone is turned on. In a disaster or emergency situation, that geolocation could provide valuable information for those trying to help you out. At a time when you’re most unlikely to be posting pictures and other visual information, and there is nothing much else to go by, having your geolocation turned on could actually save your life.

Think again before turning it off. And perhaps if you are truly concerned about privacy, you should post less text and images from locations that identify where you are at, who you are with, and what you are doing. Look at your range of privacy settings. There is a reason that Facebook has over 140 settings. Trawl through those. Ensure others can’t tag you in images or locations. That’s a far better way to start.

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As you know, my mum has been hard hit by cancer and its treatments over the last three years. My family and I currently grieve her loss, as she passed away on Friday 10 February, and we celebrated her life on Friday 17th with a beautiful Thanksgiving Service which mum herself designed. There will no doubt be numerous posts over coming months. But I know she would not mind me sharing her final passing with you, as a way to open our eyes to how death can be beautiful and not feared.

My mum was a woman of God. She had faith stronger than any I’ve seen. She knew her time was close, and had prepared everyone as well as she could. She thanked people, told them she loved them, gave some precious things to them, and reminded everyone she would always be in their hearts. She celebrated and was overjoyed that she would be with Jesus soon, and while she was sorry for the pain her family and friends were feeling at her leaving, she was not sorry to be going.

In the hospice mum was referred to as “the lovely Baptist lady on the second floor.” She had so many visitors we had to put a sign up limiting them, and even had to ask the church minister to ask people to try and space out their visits. Mum was involved in lots of things, not only church – and so people were coming all the time. She had around 20 visitors a day – it was exhausting. People wanted to come because mum just shone and was full of love – so encouraging to see someone in a hospice who was so at peace. It was humbling. It was shocking. It was AWESOME.

In her final week we stopped all visitors. My mum showed such strength and I could see in her eyes what a really hard job it was just to sit in a chair. Her body was wasting in front of my eyes. The cancer grew in realtime. It was horrible because while the physical pain was minimised, the emotional pain – mine and my family’s – was everpresent.

I returned to Australia to spend these last weeks with my mum and family. Mum had me for the things she needed me to do for her. It was a privilege to be able to be there. I am grateful for it, and I know it is a time of my life I will always be thankful for, even though it has its share of incredibly painful parts. It has blessings as well – how lucky and blessed am I to have a family and a relationship with my mum so strong. So many don’t have that. How blessed that my family, my husband and children and my colleagues and friends all supported me unquestioningly in my need to be with mum. So many don’t have that, either. There was still laughing. There was love. There were new friendships, and the support of many I had never met before who loved my mother and wanted to share their own special memories.

The Passing

On that last day, the Friday, my mother was in her second day of a coma. We were, as always, in the room with her. In the mid afternoon, my sister-in-law left to get my nephews from school. My brother got me some dinner from a thai restaurant, and dropped it in. Then he went home to prepare dinner for all of them. I was staying the night. I said I wanted to go for a walk for half an hour before dad left, so plugged in my ipod and told one of our favourite nurses that I was leaving mum and dad together alone for a while. I walked down Rocky Point Road for a while, then turned and walked back.

I got back into the hospice at 5.30pm and went upstairs to make some tea before heading back to the room. Partway through, that favourite nurse motioned from the end of the corridor to me. I thought she was going to let me know something about mum and dad being together a little longer. As I approached she let me know that mum had just passed away.

Mum had spent that final 30 minutes with my dad, the love of her life, by her side. The man she adored since she was 18 and had been faithfully married to for 46 of her scant 66 years. While I had been there consistently, almost every minute that week – God’s timing was indeed perfect, and the only person who should have been with her at that most personal and private time was dad. Beautifully, he was with her as she went home to Jesus.

Beautifully for me, I came into the room just a few minutes afterwards. Beautifully, one of our favourite nurses was right there with us – and had been walking along the hall at exactly the right time for dad to get hold of without a panic. Beautifully, the peaceful passing we all wanted for mum had been accomplished.

If you can leave behind the ‘fight against death’ idea and instead believe aspects of passing can be beautiful, then my mother’s passing was indeed about as beautiful as could be imagined. Pain free? No. The mental pain for all of us was horrible, and continues for us in grief – but the comfort we have from her dignity, strength of spirit and excitement to meet Jesus is beautiful enough to hopefully, in time, overshadow that pain.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me and my family through these tough days, and who have sent condolences to us. I have learned more, loved more, and felt more emotion than ever before. Her strength remains with us and somehow I feel good that she is now free of a physical body which was decimated by cancer. She is truly always going to be in our hearts, and will always be a part of who I am.

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We’ve just finished dealing with the school Science Fair assignment. The directions were handed out just prior to Winter break, coinciding beautifully with the end of semester for me, and my extended stay in Sydney for family reasons. I got back the day after school started to a child with the project begun only in my child’s head. No materials, no nothing.

This, my friends, is payback.

I remember my own last-minute, less than exemplary projects throughout my school career. I became queen of throwing something together the night before and handing it in. I went to school in the dark ages – a time when Google did not exist. You could go to the newsagent and buy a School Project folder on different topics for a few dollars, which you’d then copy parts out of and cut up the pictures to stick on the cardboard. You had to go to the library, not access it externally. People (not me, thank goodness) sometimes cut pictures out of library books thinking the teacher would be impressed instead of horrified.

I remember my dad sitting on the edge of my bed telling me a project was not good enough. He was right. I remember his frustration.

It’s what I felt as I painstakingly argued with my son, trying to get him to apply himself to his science fair project and get it done properly. Properly. Such a subjective term. It would have taken me about an hour to do it. But I didn’t, except for helping with pasting the sections on the cardboard.

But it’s truly agonising to know that the kid, young as he is, doesn’t appear to care as much as I do.

What did I do wrong?

Any mother of four children has done the late-night run to get poster board. Has goaded the kid into doing the work, writing it up and getting the darned thing finished. And if you’re like me, you have more interest in the overall piece of work than the kid does. Oftentimes it leads you to directing the work a little more than you should. A little more than is necessary. A little more than is fair.

We’ve all seen those projects where the parent has apparently taken the lead in no uncertain terms. The presence of the child in the work extends to writing their name at the bottom and little else.

None of us wants to be ‘that’ parent. But then again, they have to hand something decent in, don’t they? You don’t want to be the parent that allowed their kid to hand in an incomplete piece of utter crap. Suddenly you see the family name tarnished! (or some such garbage.)

As an ex-college teacher I would say that a parent doing a child’s work is akin to plagiarism. It’s not fair to anyone. Not the child, the parent, other children, other parents – or the teacher. But in college we fail people who plagiarise. I wonder if it’s time to start failing those children whose parents have done the assignment?

What do you think?

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Some people just have a knack at DIY. Some don’t. And some think they’ll give it a bash even though they’ve never actually successfully accomplished any DIY project before. That’s where our new Mediamum contributor, Ian Fixit, comes in. Ian is the Aussie King of DYI (do yourself in) – his special version of DIY.

Ian’s DIY experience is full of great how-to lessons for us all. How about how-to DIY the paint job on the front fence which Ian undertook and in his slap-dashery managed to get paint splatters on his car, parked in the garage 8m away.

Ian admits he has only two contributing factors to his outstanding abilities. He says:

a. Firstly I lack planning, patience, and discipline. (OK, that might be 3 things.)

b. Secondly I haven’t got “that” tradesman knack of doing things. I’m a ten-thumbs bloke.

Ian’ll be sharing tips and tricks for your own projects around the house, as well as sharing some of his own upcoming jobs he’s going to have a go at (unless his wife stops him), such as re-rendering part of the house, and staining the deck.

So Ian would love to help you with any problems or DIY projects around the place. Send an email to ianfixit@mediamum.net or use the blog contact form with your job, and a picture (of you, your job, your tools… anything relevant. Or chocolate. Chocolate’s always a winner. Maybe if you have chocolate tools, that could be even better.). Ian will choose one a week to provide his own special brand of DIY advice on, and it will be published right here on Mediamum. Oh, and while you might not end up with a successful ending, you will get a laugh and a lovely Australiana momento (such as a keyring) sent to you as a thank you.

Ian says:
Why pay horrendous amounts of hard earned dollars to have a carpenter, plumber, roof tiler, or other “tradie” visit your place when with my help, you’ll save a packet and be the envy of your neighbours, friends, and family?

Okay, my techniques might not be out of a textbook. And I don’t mind taking a few shortcuts even at the expense of putting the end product into disrepair. Sure, my wife shivers when she sees me using anything sharp or powered by electricity, but I’m keen to get in and have a good old amateur shot at it.

Some come on! Share your DYI jobs with me and see if I can give you my slant on how best to approach them. And be sure to take those all important before and after photos with me. A picture tells a thousand words.

Disclaimer:  Ian is not a professional tradesman and carries no qualifications in this field.  Ian’s tips are not to be taken as good advice and Ian holds no responsibility to the outcome of any work undertaken using his suggestions. If you do choose to take Ian’s advice, be prepared. You’ll be needing Ian’s further advice on how to fix the newly presented problem. It’s referred to as the Fixit Snowball Effect.

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The Daily Telegraph’s poll yesterday announced that over 70% of people will not attend any religious service this Christmas. I am surprised by this. In years gone by, even the most non-believing people would line the aisles in churches at Christmas – it was what you did, as much a part of the traditions of Christmas as roast turkey and family.

Today it seems, not so much.

In Colorado it is politically correct to wish others Happy Holidays rather than Merry Christmas. No reference to religion. Schools are devoid. It’s a shame. To me, Christmas is not the same unless there are kids with stuffed lambs being belted around a hall with wooden crooks while the chief angel trips over her dress on her way to the manger, featuring a rock solid plastic doll. It is fun for all, and for some it means something very special.

In Australia my brother, sis-in-law and their sons live in an area with a high muslim population. Yet their public school still has a nativity play every year, and it’s a great sign of the understanding and mutual respect that muslim kids carry some of the roles. To their families it’s a story, nothing more, and while Islam recognises Jesus, to them the man is just a human. Of course to Christians He is much more. Ultimately, the people are a community who respects each other’s beliefs and has no problem with being wished a Merry Christmas, just as my sis-in-law says they all observe the muslim faith’s larger celebrations.

The irony is that for true diversity within our society and the tolerance that it must include to be wholeheartedly realised, we shouldn’t be watering down our treatment of cultural and religious events, but rather be understanding and supporting their celebration – and recognising their importance to those who appreciate them the most.

Yesterday’s newspaper, alongside the poll stating most people would not be attending a religious service, was a full page written by Dr George Pell on the true meaning of Christmas for christianity. It was fantastic to see, and I’d love for the muslim population to have the same treatment for their holidays. Media’s role includes the promotion of education and understanding. Ignoring these religious events fearing offending people who do not share the belief makes no sense. Muslim people I know are not threatened by Christmas, just as I am not threatened by their religious celebrations.

In fact we can all find points of resonance and community through these events.

This Christmas I wish you all tidings of comfort and joy, as my family is experiencing this year. There is no greater love than that which can provide you with those two things. I remain grateful. Whatever your religious belief, spiritual journey, or lack thereof, I hope you are able to appreciate the essence of the season. And if you are someone who remembers Christmas as a time that included a visit to church, why not try it again this year? I reckon you’ll find a seat and they’ll be very glad to see you.

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The week or two leading up to Christmas in Australia is usually harried and hot. All the shopping, wrapping, preparing can leave us all feeling somewhat exhausted on Christmas Day. My mum decided to have a nice, informal afternoon tea this week, with just a few close family members, to take five and enjoy each other’s company, with no gifts, wrapping or other social impediments. It was a fantastic idea.

Mum made her special tartlet ‘mushrooms’, which were made from scratch with pastry, jam and cream. She also made scones and my Uncle made his special cherry jam as a wonderful accompaniment. I was pleased to be able to contribute too – I’d brought with me my tested Christmas cookie recipe and my piping bags so I could make cookies that were favourites of my two gorgeous nephews.

It was so nice to spend a little time enjoying the spirit of the season without any of the pressures. When everyone gathers around, pitches in and shares the same interest – just enjoying the company of each other – things become a lot less effort than you might expect.

You might not be a cook – in which case, it would be nice to just get a few nice biscuits from your local store, and relax with some special people during this season. 

For us this week, tea and coffee and my mum’s lovely variety of teacups and plates finished off the delightful setting for a couple of hours spent chatting, laughing and thoroughly enjoying each other’s company before the madness of Christmas.

Nothing compares to joking around with family

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Our lives have become mediated to an extent never before encountered. A concert? A kids’ play? A birthday party? Everyone’s got some sort of technology recording every moment. So much so, they’re only ever living the moment through a lens – from the moment it’s recorded to every revisiting of it, the same view and memory will be had.

We carry the tools of media with us everywhere, every day. Our cell phones are our constantly ‘on’ media connection to the public world. As soon as we encounter something remarkable, we immediately reach to record and share it.

I wonder if this is true: Sharing is becoming more important than experiencing. Social capital has overtaken personally-held value. If I can’t share it, it’s not worth doing.

Last Saturday was the perfect winter day for an extended hike. Elisabeth, Shari and I took the dogs on what we originally had thought was our regular (loved) Saturday morning hike in the foothills. We started out, and somewhat Forrest Gump-like, just kept going. From Shanahan Ridge (what I call Shari’s trail), down to Mesa Trail and Bluestem Trails (part of my usual trail), and then Shari said we could do Shadow Canyon trail, which she knew from a wrong turn she’d taken a few weeks back. Off we went.

The elevation was pretty serious. We worked pretty hard. The only people up this trail were the hard core runners and one pair of one-off sight-seers. And as is usual with trails that are that much effort to get to, it was honestly spectacular. I had somehow forgotten that a really good climb rewards you with a view when you finally slow down and look behind you. We were so focused on chatting and going up the never-ending slope covered in snow and ice, I didn’t even think of what could be behind us. The landscape of trees, icicles, boulders and snow all around us were breathtaking enough. But then for some reason we stopped for a second, and looked down. It felt like we were on top of all Colorado. I could nearly reach out and touch Devils Thumb, we were that high (slight exaggeration, but really, we were very high). I was looking at the tops of pine trees from the trail.

Magnificent.

And not one of us had a way of recording it. For some strange reason, we had left our tools of media at home. (Elisabeth had her phone, which was out of battery.)

We talked a little about maybe it was better this way, anyway. In a lot of ways, I think it is. I shared that experience, that hike, with two very special people in my life, and our dogs. Nobody else. And it will always be that way. Even when we go back, equipped with our cameras this time (as we have assured ourselves we will), it will be different to the first time.

That one time, this last Saturday, will always be special for me. We ate snow when we got thirsty. We talked about so many different things. We looked at the view, and appreciated nature’s spectacular beauty which never ever ceases to stun you. I felt in awe, connected, healthy, strong, challenged and loved. I didn’t mediate a second. I shared it only with two people. Two special friends who I am blessed to share experiences with (and who can talk for three hours straight, it seems ).

Perhaps we should all mediate those special occasions a little less sometimes, live in the moment and focus on the way you feel instead of purely the way it looked. Perhaps focusing on how you feel will give us better connection to our sense of self than hitting a share button.

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I have been thinking it must be time to share some pictures, so you who don’t get to see me offline really can see the results those who see me all the time can see. I am about to celebrate a weight loss of 30 pounds. I am already celebrating my daily walk/jog/hike with my dog in the trails of South Boulder. Every day I celebrate putting on clothes that fit. Every day I’m pretty much surprised that they do (it’s honestly like a dream).

I spent a very long time making excuses. It’s funny how you can say “I eat when I’m depressed” and think that’s a reason to stay the way you are instead of recognising it to be the challenge you’ve got the power to change.

Other reasons are also excuses. I have the wrong shoes to exercise in. I don’t have time. I am ‘scared’ of packaged food/contracts. I don’t want to cook two different meals. My husband doesn’t want me to. I’ve had children, so my body just looks this way naturally. I’m too old for that stuff.

While those excuses might placate others, your doctor, yourself for a little while, they still don’t make you sleep better at night. They don’t prolong your life. They don’t make you feel good about yourself. Those excuses make you out to be ready for a compromised life instead of someone who deserves to live well.

When I was about to start the journey to feeling healthy, I got really good at not being in pictures where I looked bad. Standing slightly side on, chin in the air, camera held slightly above your head. Yep, I know those tricks. So I didn’t have many pictures of what I really looked like before Nutrisystem. I wanted to write this post and share with you the proof that all I’ve been talking about has actually happened.

But sheesh, my friend Elisabeth said she had some pictures of me. So she sent them to me. Stacks of them. Oh my word.

Here’s one where my butt is eating the scenery behind us, taken in September 2009. I particularly like the way that when your bum gets to be a certain size, your pants wrap around it, and pull themselves up so your ankles show. (Yes, I’m cringing.)

Or this one, with me in party mode by the pool taken last year. Crikey is all I have to say about this. I even thought twice about posting it. That’s gotta tell you something:

But thank goodness Nutrisystem came along and said Jo, we can do this. Thank goodness I was ready. Very, very ready. 

I was ready to do something about my weight, my lifestyle, and my health.

On my birthday this year (March 24), I held hands with Nutrisystem. My first delivery from the company arrived the first week of April. And I have not looked back since. I have lost 28 pounds so far. But it’s about so much more than the numbers. I know people who are thinner than me, but who can’t keep up with me on the stairs, or hiking. I jog a bit. I love life so much more than ever before. I count so many of my blessings that I couldn’t see before.

This is me this week:

Today I am happy to say things have never been healthier for me. I am fit, my kids no longer make little jokes about my weight or shape, and I can hike with the best of them. I do more than four miles every single day. My friends are proud of me. But you know what is really important? I am proud of me.

And that says everything.

Disclosure: Nutrisystem is supplying my food and dietary support in return for my honest reflections on the program. Do you live in the US or Canada, and want to join me and get healthy with Nutrisystem? Join today by calling 1-888-853-4689 or by visiting http://www.nutrisystem.com/nsblog.

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Many women I know can’t wait to get home from work and take off their bra. The over-the-shoulder-boulder-holder can be one of the most restrictive pieces of clothing a woman has to endure. The larger your cup, the worse it seems to be. To feel good about yourself at a certain age, you need scaffolding not unlike that which supports the Sydney Harbour Bridge to keep the girls in your chest area and to prevent your cup runnething (totally a word) over. Sweet relief is only available when the scaffolding is removed – as long as you don’t need little skateboards to stop them dragging on the ground.

These things are not like underpants. All the sizes seem the same, but they’re not. Some are actually horrible torture devices. Rule of thumb: The prettier they are, the more uncomfortable they are to wear. The better they look from the outside of clothes, the worse they look without clothes over the top. Men should never try and buy a bra for a woman, unless they know the exact size, make and colour she prefers. And if he does, she probably already has it anyway.

Our favourite bras are the ones we can bear to wear all day. The ones that make the girls look decent, don’t contribute to heartburn after lunch, and we can bear to wash at the laundromat if need be. We might have weekend bras, or bras that look better under certain clothes. Bras we wear if we’re meeting particular people because of the way they make us feel rather than the way they look. Or a combination of all of these. This is science, people. And it’s not for the fainthearted (or tiny breasted).

It’s horrible when the favourite one is stretched to death, the hook gets caught in the washer, or it turns that ugly grey colour that your son’s armpit on his white shirt is. Then you have to buy a replacement. Standing in a changeroom, boobs hanging there. Mocking you. As you try one after the other, uglier and uglier, while a pert 17 year old on her saturday job stands outside offering something she’s just found that’s even uglier and Oh Good God, I’m not THAT old yet am I?

Sometimes I just wish I could comfortably go without a bra. I try it for a while on the weekends, when nobody’s around. I try to convince myself I’m comfy without one. But I’m really not. I like the structure. I like to clean a lot on the weekends, and if I’m not wearing a bra, then there’s nowhere to shove my iPod. This is a great irony. I want to be free of a bra, but I can’t do what I want to without it. The boobs may or may not even flap a little as I scrub the floor if they’re unhitched. That’s distracting even to me.

When they are unrestricted, they have a mind of their own. They’re like that toddler who totally needs reins. They run amok. I have knocked over cups of tea with them. My pal @ElaineOrrMorgan asked me tonight if I have ever changed the tv channel by mistake with them. I think this means she has. But I’m too polite to ask. (Stop snorting. I can be polite.)

And last week I had forgotten to take the recycling out while in the un-scaffolded state, computing on the couch (as you do). I heard the truck. Damn. I ran with the recycling down the road after the truck, boobs flying. Yeah, I’m guessing it wasn’t pretty, even though the recycling guy seemed pretty happy. I came back inside muttering to myself about what an idiot I was. Imagine what THAT looked like to the recycling guy and every neighbour in sight. I’m a crazy, bra-less muttering woman.

(Please note: But at least I recycle!)

It seems that it’s not safe to go without a bra even in your own home. I have three sons still at home. They bring mates over to hang out. It’s bad enough they have me for a mum. But me with no bra? I’d never see my kids again and goodness knows what their mates would say. I don’t even want to think about it.

Okay, so I will wear a bra. Promise. Unless I’m on a long-haul flight. I reckon I’m safe to take it off for that middle four hours, if I don’t move, right?

Image credit: Cyclone http://cyart.blogspot.com/2010_05_01_archive.html

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Tonight QANTAS decided it was time to turn things around. The world’s leading safety airline (we’ve never crashed, mum!) is moving onward to try and get Aussies back on board, trusting the airline to be as true blue as ever. The company decided to launch a little twitter comp, with the requirement being to tweet what would make your inflight experience the most luxurious ever, with #QANTASluxury in the tweet.

Floodgates. Open.

What fun was had with that prompt. While some tried to identify ulterior, sinister motives, others just had freaking fun with the competition invitation. After all, the prize was a pair of pyjamas and an inflight pack. Big freaking deal, even if it is from first class and only worth $30. Who cares? The prize was totally not the point. QANTAS got that. Kudos.

The fact is, the competition got a massive number of people tweeting humorous messages taking the piss out of Qantas – exactly what they wanted.

Yeah, I said it. The company wanted you to take the piss out of them. To release your steam. To really, freaking vent.

Instead of being irate at them, people were starting to laugh at the Qantas stupidity – thinking at first it was a total social media fail, and extending it to the Alan Joyce stuff. The grounding of the fleet. The fights with the union. Suddenly it becomes a laughing stock instead of the serious issue it actually is.

Nicely played, QANTAS.

People now are beginning to feel sorry for you. Seriously. I saw it with my own eyes. I contributed to it. Nicely freaking played, you corporate maniac. My marketing roots respect you. However, I still don’t.

PS: I still don’t trust you to get me to my family. You really stuffed up. Even if their seats, food and entertainment is not as good as yours, I still will now buy on best deal and just suck it up for the bloody 16 hour long haul flight both ways I make. I used to have arguments with people in order to fly you in the past, over your competition, if your price was just a little higher. I won’t slug it out any more. You’ve lost my loyalty. And no social media ‘good time’ crapola will change it. The fact is, QANTAS, I can’t trust you. You will screw me over in order to screw over your workers and you don’t care how much I paid for a ticket, or how important my trip is. I’m sorry you didn’t value our relationship as much as I did.

From a marketer’s perspective, while many will have their anger turned to pity over your ‘fail’ and will have their animosity towards your brand lessened to the point of actually listening to your next message – I still think you suck.

 Featured pic credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/joits/

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We don’t have Thanksgiving in Australia (of course, but it still surprises many Americans ). In order to explain to the Aussies, Thanksgiving is about eating and football. That’s all you need to know. The eating is massive. For someone like me, therefore, Thanksgiving is a dangerous time, where I’m very likely to embrace things like Pumpkin Pie (yum) and a very large dinner of roast turkey and stuffing. However, Jed will not be here for Thanksgiving so that just leaves the boys and I.

I like to cook a roast turkey, but the boys really would prefer pizza. They’re teen/tweenagers after all, so that’s not surprising. And with my Nutrisystem going so well, I don’t want to make food that nobody will really eat, and will sit calling me from the fridge for the three days until I throw it out. That’s not good on lots of levels, including the fact I’ve learned that if you don’t buy it, you won’t eat it and that includes not buying it ‘for the kids’ (That was shockingly difficult to learn, by the way.)

So I’m going to do something different, and perhaps start a tradition that will keep my new Nutrisystem healthy lifestyle on track. After all, if it’s a tradition it will happen every year, and it will do two things: A. Remind me about how important being healthy is, how great I feel right now, and how thankful I am that I did this; and B: Give our family something that is centric to America that can be about us being part of it.

Nutrisystem has sent me a list of tips to help me get through the holiday season without flying blindly off the rails (I really don’t think that would happen, but you never know). I’ve been thinking about the tips, and had an epiphany.

I’m going to get the kids to choose the menu, and cook the food. They are going to do everything from setting and decorating the table through to cooking the food. We’ll spend some time early in the week planning it out together, and it will be a great learning opportunity for them on fat and sugar content of the foods they like. (I have told Charlie so often that chocolate milk has more sugar in it than a can of coke that I’m sick of hearing it. But it’s true.)

Make no mistake, I don’t want to suck all the fun out of a relaxing, fun day. Instead I’d love for them to try something new, and build on the one dish each they can currently cook. I haven’t told them yet, but I’m pretty sure they’re going to be on board.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

Meanwhile, I want to share with you the tips that Nutrisystem sent me, that got me to this fantastic brainwave. I know that you’re not all on Nutrisystem, but there is a stack of great advice in these tips which are relevant to us all. And they apply just as well to the Christmas holiday season as well. I hope your Thanksgiving is also healthy, happy and peaceful – and that you are able to hold the ones you love close.

Tips for Taking the Fear out of Thanksgiving

1. Have a plan.  Think things through before you get to the actual holiday meals and parties. Maybe your strategy is to take tiny portions of different dishes; that’s okay. If you’re cooking, you might want to have your bottle of water with you in the kitchen, so you’re less tempted to snack. Do what you can to stay away from the appetizer table. Plan to avoid anything that’s not homemade. The point is that if you go in with a plan, you’ll be less likely to get caught off-guard.

2. Stay on track. Holidays are not the time to skip meals in an attempt to “bank” calories. That’s a strategy that can backfire miserably. Instead, eat everything on your meal plan leading up to the holiday event, and make sure you’re drinking all your water. You’ll be less likely to overindulge at the big event.

3. Set a goal. There’s something about holidays that makes people forget what they do the rest of the year. Do you already have weight loss goals set up for November, December and January? If not you can start today. Once you’ve set a short-term goal, decide on a way to reward yourself once the goal has been reached.

4. Drink smart. Face it, overindulging during holiday events—whether it’s an office party, a family gathering or a neighborhood open house—can add a lot of extra calories to your day. In addition, when you’ve had too much to drink, it tends to weaken your previous resolve and derail any strategies and plans you might have had. Besides, you don’t want to end up as that karaoke-singing family member or neighbour everyone will be talking about for the next month.

5. Trim the calories.  This tip is especially useful if you happen to be the primary cook for an event. In baked items, replace the fat with an equal amount of applesauce and the sugar with a sugar substitute; substitute a quarter cup of egg substitute for every egg called for in the recipe; replace butter with low fat margarine; replace whole milk with 1% milk and sour cream with yogurt; reduce the amount of nuts called for by half. And don’t forget both veggies and salad.

6. Enlist support. Trying to maintain your Nutrisystem program can be hard at the holidays, but there’s no reason you have to go it alone. Ask for your family’s understanding or even their help, so nobody’s trying to foist “seconds” on you. Nutrisystem counselors can help you strategize, based on your individual circumstances. Or you can go to the Nutrisystem Discussion Boards, where you’ll find people who definitely understand what you’re trying to do. Discuss your concerns; share tips of your own, or join one of the many weight loss challenges. Some of them are specifically geared to the holidays. Introduce yourself well before the event, so you have that support already in place.

7. Keep moving. Instead of just sitting around after dinner, suggest a family walk, or organize a touch-football game. Most people will be grateful for the chance to move around, and it can keep you on-track with your exercise plan.

8. Quality not Quantity. If you do plan to indulge in some of the traditional Thanksgiving favorites, use these portions as a guideline:

• Turkey—3 oz. white meat, no skin (about the size of a deck of cards)
• Mashed potatoes—1/3 cup (about the size of half of a baseball)
• Gravy—1 Tbsp. (just drizzle it)
• Relish made with sugar—1 Tbsp.
• Stuffing—2 Tbsp.
• Dinner Roll—if not homemade, skip it
• Pie—1/12 of a 9” pie

9. Eat Before You Go. Whether you are hosting or just attending a holiday function, be sure to eat your Nutrisystem entrée before the festivities begin — that way you won’t be tempted to overeat during the meal and will be able to stay on track.

10. Embrace the holiday spirit.  This last tip may just be the most important: You can get so caught up in all the planning and hoopla that you lose the whole meaning of the holiday season—coming together with friends and loved ones. It’s the time that’s really valuable, not the food and drink.

Disclosure: Nutrisystem is supplying my food and dietary support in return for my honest reflections on the program. Do you live in the US or Canada, and want to join me and get healthy with Nutrisystem? Join today by calling 1-888-853-4689 or by visiting http://www.nutrisystem.com/nsblog.

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The first time I got an email from Charlie’s school telling me that there had been a mountain lion sighting, and the kids were being made to go home in pairs or have a parent collect them, I thought it was a joke.

But I was assured it wasn’t, so I had a heart attack, and made sure I went to school to pick up the kids – all the while looking around wildly for the impending attacking animal.

Now, three years later, mountain lions are part of my everyday reality. I have a mutual understanding with the lions. Don’t come near me, and I won’t come near you. I’ll hike the South Boulder lower foothills (you all stay up North Boulder way) with my dog (my alarm system), staying away from the deer (you know them as ‘dinner’). And life goes on.

I swapped Aussie redback spiders and blue tongue lizards for mountain lions and bears. Fair? Yep.

The old-school way of keeping track of mountain lions. Social media would be far more effective. (Pic credit: Flickr Creative Commons pst)

And so recently I got a lovely long email from my mum, who was a little worried about my four mile hiking. She saw the pictures of my trail and she also saw the local Boulder Daily Camera’s story about a mountain lion being on campus which I’d shared on Facebook (I coulda thought that one through a little more). She was concerned about the mountain lions. She said she hoped she was just being silly and that as soon as I said as much, she’d feel better.

So today I got to email her back with the great news that yes, it’s silly. I didn’t run into any mountain lions this morning on my hike, and they’re really not a problem. I told her it’s kind of like redback spiders in Australia. They’re around, but we just deal with them.

But a couple of weeks ago I came across a carcass on the trail. Picked clean. I have since discovered that it was a deer. I know this because Jet has brought various identifying bones (including a rib cage and spine) down from her recent just-off-the-trail pursuits. EW! To me, this is even worse than her poo-eating habit.

At about the same time, guess what – it was up at Charlie’s school! Again! This time I knew it wasn’t a joke. I think it’s pretty awesome that a school principal gets to send an email out like this (yes, this is the exact email):

Dear Parents and Guardians,

At approximately 11 this morning a mountain lion or bobcat was reported in the area of (our school). The lion was sighted under the solar panels of the preschool across the fence from our school grounds. As a precaution, children were kept inside for lunch recess.  We will conduct a regular school dismissal today but want you to take consideration in your child’s to and from school travel.

Although bears, mountain lions and other wildlife are in our area, unseen, much of the time, this is a good opportunity to remind ourselves and our students of safety as it relates to mountain lions & other wildlife.  For information about how to avoid encounters with wildlife and how to respond if a wildlife encounter occurs, visit the Colorado Division of Wildlife’s website. A good place to start is the education portion of the website, accessible through this link:

http://wildlife.state.co.us/Education/Pages/Education.aspx   

Nice, right?

So then I got an email from Jed – “Can you please pick up Charlie today? Mountain lion appears to be waiting to pick off little kids.” I love Jed’s sensitive nature, and the fact that he still managed to offload the pick up the kid task to me.

That said I’ve come to terms with the fact that lions are watching us all through the Fall season. They don’t want to run into us, and I don’t want to run into them. I just wish they’d also check in on foursquare or something, so I can definitely tell mum that I won’t be meeting any of them any time soon, and she can stop worrying.

Pic credit for mountain lion because I won’t be taking a picture myself anytime soon: Flickr: s_mestdagh

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My Nutrisystem journey has been incredible. I have said to numerous people it has changed my life. That’s absolutely true.

I’ve dieted before, been on that roller coaster of going from small sizes into large sizes. Seeing my collarbones appear (and then disappear again a few months later). But I’ve never, ever been on a program that I don’t call ‘a diet’. I’ve never been on a program that I didn’t have a goal weight for the whole way through. I’ve never been on a program that I didn’t feel like I was making sacrifices and holding my breath underwater until the magic minute meant I could return to the real world to take a gasp of air and roll around in the old habits of white bread, hot chips, chocolate and big plates.

Nutrisystem, for me, has been very, very different.

I don’t go to the gym. I don’t ‘work out’. Instead I hike/jog (almost) every day, for over four miles a day. You know how I’ve been ramping that up from earlier posts. It gives me so much more than weight loss – it gives me mental peace, energy, and restful sleep too. I’ve also made friends on the trail – good friends. I got to it because of my Nutrisystem program! This is my lifestyle. This has become who I am.

Climbing Bear Mountain, to see what she could see.

I carry my water bottle with me everywhere. My colleagues at the University know it, and a few have said that I’ve inspired them to also drink more water. My skin glows. I did this because of my Nutrisystem program. This is my lifestyle. This has become who I am.

I love the life I’m leading. Make no mistake – I still have days which are far less than stellar – like last week when I fell face first into a pizza that the kids had ordered for friday night dinner AND discovered that it really is possible to eat too many M&Ms – all in one day. But because of what I’ve become accustomed to with Nutrisystem, I wake up the next morning, think UGH, and then remember Meredith from Nutrisystem saying to the #NSNation bloggers “every day is new.” And instead of giving up on being healthy, I remember how bad I actually felt after eating all that crap – and I truly felt physically BAD – and decide to pwn the day instead. (see what I did there? Such an in-touch mum I am )

But I have to tell you – I am at my last 3.2 pounds. Yep, I suddenly decided, after people began asking me how much more weight I was going to lose, that 30 pounds would be my magic weight loss number. Suddenly I will be perfect if I lose just 3.2 more pounds (writing that makes it seem very, very wrong but it’s exactly what’s going on in my head). And as soon as I decided that, I stopped losing weight. For three weeks I’ve been sitting there, around the 3.2 pounds-to-lose mocking-me number. It’s so far from cool, it feels like a Sydney summer.

Do you think it’s because I implemented a goal instead of just continuing to enjoy being healthy and fit? Do you think that people only fixate on the weight and not the fitness because all they see is the weight? The only people who’ve commented on my fitness level are the ones who’ve gone hiking with me. I don’t think I’ll be able to let go of that magic, mysterious number 30 in my head, though. So what should I do next? I’ll either cut off an arm (that will totally fix it), or get onto the Nutrisystem boards and chat. I’ll let you know what happens, but meanwhile throw your suggestions here. As long as it’s not to cut off my arm. (Oh, and just so you know, my hair is already super short so I can’t cut that either.)

Results

My Nutrisystem journey has seen me lose a total so far of 26.8 pounds since early April, with 10 of those pounds being since mid August, when I returned from Australia. I now fit into everything I own – plus while I hate shopping for clothes, I can actually confidently pick something off the rack, and it is likely to look okay. It is fantastic to own size 12 jeans that do not look like cling wrap, and to see a t-shirt actually skim my hips and fall instead of bunch up at the waist. The danger of friction fires between my thighs has also completely gone! Everyone is grateful for that.

Disclosure: Nutrisystem is supplying my food and dietary support in return for my honest reflections on the program. Do you live in the US or Canada, and want to join me and get healthy with Nutrisystem? Join today by calling 1-888-853-4689 or by visiting http://www.nutrisystem.com/nsblog.

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As you know, I’m embracing the outdoors and loving being about the fittest I’ve ever been in my whole entire lengthy life! I have been hiking over 30 miles a week, and I truly love it. There is absolutely no “should” in my mental processes as I wake up. I really look forward to getting on the trail and hike/jogging my way through the 4.5 miles each morning.

My skin is naturally sun kissed and glowing. I get in the shower each morning afterwards, sweaty and hot, and come out tingling. It’s a great feeling. Then around 5pm I start to naturally fade. Last night I hit the hay at 9.30pm, somewhat shocking the kids, but I honestly could hardly keep my eyes open. I slept like a rock until 6.15am, and woke up feeling fantastic (and with a paw on my face, courtesy of Jet).

This past week or so I have discovered that jogging parts of my trail ups the ante quite a bit. My lungs open wider, I move faster (amazing, I know), and I just know the calories are burned faster. When I began to wonder if one day I could actually run the whole way on the 4.5 mile trail, it was like a seed was planted – or a carrot to tease me. Either one.

And so now I’m jogging quite a bit. Which was fabulous, except for the boobs. I’ll speak frankly.

Nature has endowed me lusciously with a rack that, when it used to remain in my chest area without scaffolding wire support, was, as they say, ‘spectacular’. It’s a shame because I never really saw the benefits of them (other than their brilliant performance in the role they were intended for) until they descended mercilessly upon my waistline and now, finally when I’ve moved somewhere that bras in my size are somewhat attractive, I feel like the person who decides to take a cruise the day after the ship leaves – I can make them look good but simply couldn’t be bothered.

So hang there they do. Usually inoffensive and held up in the chest region by underwires or the more comfortable but uni-boob-creating Cross Your Heart 18-hour bra. (That’s the ONLY bra you should wear on a long haul plane flight by the way. If you wear an underwire you will take it off by hour five and when your child lies on your lap to sleep as he most definitely will, his resounding “mum, your boobs are all squishy” will echo around the otherwise silent plane where people who might appear asleep will grin. I will not tell you how I know this, but I do.)

And so now I’m jogging a bit. And for the last month Shari and Elisabeth have had to listen to me gripe about not having a bra that can cut it. Seriously people, if we can split the atom then we’ve managed to keep it still and halve it. Surely we can do the same with boobs? I have read reviews, researched the situation, tried on about forty bras and in frustration sent a stream of swear words via text message to Shari. (She laughed. A lot.)

I have adopted plan B – standard bra with a really tight strap down over-bra. I still don’t like glimpsing my shadow as I jog, but at least I don’t get black eyes any more. I am finally at the point where most of my body stops moving when I stop jogging. And that’s good enough. I jog around a mile on a good day, and hike the rest. Let’s see if I (and my boobs) can keep it up!

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I’m a Wii fan. Just putting that out there. While my years as a game magazine editor in Australia have long passed, Nintendo has always been a reliable, solid company with technology that truly is family friendly.

Having three boys in the house, aged 11 to 17, usually means the video games are focused around zombies, death, destruction – or loud slash guitar playing. All of these have their place, but good grief, while I’m often tempted to grab a guitar and join in on one of the music games, I’m sorry to say that none of the zombie/killing-fests take my fancy.

However, the Wii is always something that I can not only play, but that I have fun at, and which I can whip the kids at. Sometimes. I love the yoga on the Wii Fit Plus, and the kids love to play Mario Kart. We all like to bowl. It’s rare to have a piece of technology that meets the fun requirements of everyone.

In fact, when I stood on the Wii Fit Plus this week Jed was first in with a comment: “Oh wow, thanks to your Nutrisystem the Wii says you’re only just overweight instead of obese!” Yeah, he’s a real keeper.

I digress: When Nintendo asked me to have a Wii Play Motion party afternoon, play the game with some friends and supply us all with all the ice cream any group of manic game players could possibly want, I thought abso-freaking-lutely!

The Wii Play Motion game includes 12 mini games, and from 1 to 4 players can get into the action at a time, depending on the game. The boys tested it all out, pre-party. Some pretty big scores were achieved, but when the crowd arrived the yelling and laughing really hit the big time. I don’t think the neighbors were very impressed (thank goodness it was the middle of the afternoon and not an evening) – I was hoarse by the end of the day, and that takes some doing.

As expected every age group had a good time, and nobody reneged on actually giving the game a go. That’s pretty cool – that a 17 year old is just as willing to play it as an 11 year old, and some over-40s too. Nintendo’s sending of stacks of Cold Stone ice cream and various toppings had all the kids in heaven – sugar rushed, adrenaline pumped, loud heaven.

We even had a competition in the ice cream game to see who could get the highest stack of scoops. The final winner was Sage with 84 scoops. The screaming became louder and louder the higher the tower went. Sage was very happy with his prize – a copy of the Wii Play Motion game and controller to go with it.

My next thought is to get hold of one of the dancing games – it will fit really well with my new and improved fitness levels, and coming into winter it could be a good fun way to help keep fit instead of relying on my Wii Fit Plus. Total score. Great fun, shared with friends. I reckon it was extremely cool. That said, I’m still trying to beat the 84 scoop high score a week later.

Disclosure: Nintendo generously provided me with the Wii Play Motion game, controllers and food supplies for the party. We already own a Wii.

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My mum and I are very, very close. Spending nearly two months in Australia this year was perfection. We got to hang out, connect and be a family without thinking of all the things that need to be crammed in if you have the pressure of a limited number of holiday days.

My mum is also being treated for cancer. She is in the midst of a series of operations and treatments, all of which will hopefully end up with a healthy, cancer-free mum at the end of it. It has been a long journey so far, and we’re about halfway through it. This time next year, we hope we can say mum is out the other end of all of this.

Meanwhile, I am back here in Colorado and she and the rest of my family are all the way over there in Sydney, Australia. It’s super tough.

But we share the same sky. The same air. The same clouds, sun, moon. And the same earth.

And the best part of living here in Boulder is my connection with all that nature has. It’s like God spent a little longer here when s/he created the world.

Every morning, as the sun is just kissing the ground I hike/jog 4.5 miles with Jet. It starts out cold at the beginning of the trailhead, but then the sun hits my back and I step up the pace as we slowly begin the incline of the mountain. Before five minutes have passed, I’m warm. It’s a warmth that comes from within.

For three years, I have warmed myself in the Colorado cold from the outside. Layers of jackets, snow pants, gloves and hats. But now that I’m so much more physically active and have lost 25 pounds (so far), I invite the warmth to come from within. There is a connection between the warmth within, the warmth of the sun, the warmth of the environment and the way I feel emotionally as I hike the trail each day, at the same time. It has become a ritual. A ritual of connectedness, inner peace, warmth and health that solidifies my being.

On my trail I have built a tower. This is not uncommon here – yet mine is the only tower on this particular 4.5 mile loop. Every day I add a new thing to it. A stone (the clear ones represent the new cells my mum’s liver is growing), flowers (for the beauty of nature which we can forget in times of stress and crisis), pine cones (representing seeds of new life). There are lots of things I add. I always stop and reflect at the tower, and send the energy I have of the morning and positive thoughts to my mum – ones from me, and also ones I collect from friends who have expressed their thoughts to me offline and online. I know she gets them.

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So with Halloween upon us (well, it’s October), it became apparent that yet again the dry weather in Boulder had evaporated some of the wine in the fridge. Ahem.

But I’ve been concerned about replenishing my bottle of white. I always go to the same store, and the people in there recognise me. I was kind of flattered because the same guy kept carding me, and you know what that’s all about… that’s totally flirting. So I’d happily flash my ID until one day about a month ago when he said: “I’m not carding you – I remember you!” And I said “Oh, I thought you were just being nice. It feels good to be carded.” And he was totally “No, it’s just the rules. We have to do it.”

I really think that any store manager that makes their staff flirt with customers because it’s the rules really needs serious help.

And I was kind of let down.

So when I ran out of wine last week, I didn’t want to go to that same liquor store, and see that same guy again… because you know, he will now think I’m totally an alcoholic. And now I know he’s not flirting with me, it takes some of the fun out of it. I told Jed that I was going to drive down to the other liquor store, twice the distance away because I didn’t want the guy in the local one to think I was an alcoholic. And this is why I’m married to Jed. He just went, “Okay.” (Apparently I have this kind of rationalising going on regularly.)

So I drove down and on the way I thought I would also get Jed the bottle of red wine he likes occasionally because he was all understanding and nice and everything. But when I went in, they didn’t have his bottle. And my one was a whole $1.50 more. And dammit, I don’t want to spend a whole $1.50 more unless I’m able to get it all in one trip. So I was walking out but then I saw that they had Mommy’s Time Out pino grigio, which was all of $7, and fantastic. So I got that. But that didn’t fix everything – I still needed Jed’s wine which he wasn’t expecting, but which I’d already decided to get him.

So then I went to another liquor store that was a little bit further away. They had absolutely none of the two wines I was after… but they did have a flagon of some dodgy looking white that totally could have had a label that said “made for Jo” because it was all of $6.50 for something that resembled a keg of white wine. So I got that. But that didn’t fix everything.

I still needed Jed’s red wine. So I sucked it up. I drove to the local liquor store. The one I was avoiding. To get Jed’s wine that he hadn’t even asked for, but that would prove what a good wife I am. I figured that it would be totally busy, there was no way that one guy would be working and I wouldn’t see him because I only needed to go to the red wine section at the front instead of going all the way into the store down the back where my wine was. And it wasn’t my usual purchase, so you know… no worries on the alcoholic thing.

So I dashed in and got Jed’s bottle. And went to the registers. And of course that guy was working, and out of four registers, I got served by him. And that’s why you need to really work the liquor stores if you live in a small town.

Because they’re really not flirting, and they might actually think you’re an alcoholic.

Bugger.

Pic credit: www.seemsartless.com

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NCIS is a great show. I adore Leroy Gibbs. But as a leader, he is a little lacking. He has too many rules. I reckon you only need three.

All four of my children will tell you Mummy Rule Number One: Don’t stand on things with wheels. This rule came into being many years ago. Every time one of the kids has hurt themselves in any way resembling an encounter with a wheel-based object, I remind them of the rule. With a bit of a dance. And sometimes yelling.

When Max fell off a borrowed electric scooter flying downhill and broke his arm, which the doctor pushed back into position without anaesthetic before casting it up, I reminded him of the rule. I’m kind and loving as a mum that way.

Bunny truth - thanks to @wheelyweb and @pistachiowrites

Rule number two is less well known, but still equally important. “Don’t make the school call me” covers everything from teenage pregnancy to doing homework to getting into class on time. It’s nicely abstract yet strangely pointed. It’s also a nice, individual thing to call out to the child as they go into class. Sorta sets you apart as a parent.

Rule number three has only just come into being this evening. “Don’t chase bunnies.” This rule has come about because Jet (the dog) decided to chase a bunny a week ago into a briar patch. Dog ended up somewhat bloody around the nose area, and has a big bump. Bunny is safe. Dog needs a vet checkup. I think, though, that the don’t chase bunnies rule is also wonderfully applicable to my sons. The further I keep them away from the playboy mansion the better. So don’t chase bunnies is now rule number three.

Of course, I don’t want them to chase real live little bunnies either. Because that would just be weird. And I don’t do weird.

So there you go. Three rules to live by. You’re welcome.

Disclaimer: @BZB on Twitter last night, “A mother can never be too cocky as she never knows when the school will call to say her child has ridden a motorbike thru the gym.” Wise words. Which actually is not breaking rule number one. Unless said child was standing on the motorbike, in which case I hope you got it on tape.

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The youngest of my children has a stinging wit, a little (lot) beyond his years. He loves media content, and when combined with his photographic memory, can be confronting to those who don’t know him.

Examples:

Charlie only needed to hear the Beatles sing Maxwell’s Silver Hammer a couple of times before he knew it by heart. Of course, he loved the lyrics – especially about bringing down that silver hammer on the teacher’s head – and found a funny animation online that went with the song. It became his favourite song to sing when out hiking. Needless to say, the shock of the poor bloke who was running the elementary school lip syncing night was obvious when Charlie and his friend was adamant it was this song they wanted to sing. (That didn’t happen. Disappointed, I was. Amused, a little. Relieved… oh yes. Parenting is all about complex reactions.)

The Portal cake I made (well, iced) for Charlie's birthday this year. No lie.

Charlie’s first introduction to the school psychologist came earlier this year when the students were given a ‘non-graded test’ – something that could be anonymous (Charlie wrote his name on the top which was optional, but he likes to claim his answers as his own in testing situations). The test was filled with some very touchy-feely questions about how the kids saw themselves and their place in school and home. One question, I’m told, asked “How do you feel about your relationships with your friends…” Apparently by that point Charlie had had enough of the non-factual information this so-called ‘test’ was asking, so he wrote “What do you think I am, a girl?” Implying these questions were over the top on the whole emotional thing and he didn’t want to answer them. (Yes, sexist and attitude, and all that… I get it… but he was being a smart alec. In fact, he says this kind of crap to push my buttons).

Next stop, the school psychologist who sat Charlie down and asked him “Charlie tell me, do you really think you’re a girl?” We didn’t get a phone call on that because Charlie managed to set her straight and assure her he was all dude, he was just expressing his distaste for the question. I found out about it recently – from Charlie himself.

Think that’s funny? And then the doozy.

Charlie, like most kids, loves his video games. He plays Portal 2, a game rated E for Everyone. A game full of black humour.

I was away for a few days, and he decided to write a parody poem for me to welcome me home. He did it at school. It was a parody on the song sung by the GLaDOS character in the game, which basically say that she wishes Chell did not exist.

“Well here we are again. It’s always such a pleasure. Remember when you tried to kill me twice? Oh how we laughed and laughed. Except I wasn’t laughing. Under the circumstances I’ve been shockingly nice….” You get the idea. He and I have joked for ages about the cake being a lie (from Portal 1, and related to the birthday cake I made him this year.) The cake is a lie is actually a bit of an internet meme, referenced by many. Charlie has incredible memory for detail, and that enables him to create some pretty complex jokes around situations and characters that only those in the know would actually really get. However, he is still 11, and he sometimes misses the fact that these things might need to be explained. Or else something we’ll just refer to as “the wrong idea” could be had.

Cue the school psychologist, and myriad questions about the way Charlie is treated at home. Emails were sent. Concerned phone calls made. And at the end of the day, both school and we were satisfied that Charlie is a precocious kid who is able to manipulate black humour just as well as the next adult – and that children can be extremely creative.

Oh, and the psychologist also now understands that the cake isn’t a lie.

And that, my friends, is why I only go to a couple of conferences out of state a year instead of every opportunity that presents itself. This child is just one of four.

One. Of four.

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At one point this week I weighed in at exactly 10 pounds lighter than the weight I used to lie and say I was. Jed was shocked that I used to lie to the ski rental guy. “You could have been on the wrong ski calibration. You could have crashed.”

I would rather have crashed than told him what my real weight was.

I rationalise it this way: No way was I going to crash due to the skis, because my skiing isn’t that great anyway, so the likelihood that equipment failure would be to blame would have been tiny – plus I had made a note of what the cut off point was for weight to go to the next calibration, and I was within that anyway. Finally, I figure every woman probably lies when asked her weight, so it’s kind of expected. (I’m not listening to you tell me otherwise.)

And now I’m 10 pounds lighter than that. Without lying.

This week has been fantastic for hiking – the weather is sunny with a bit of Fall coolness in the breeze, making the trails so inviting. I’ve walked with friends and alone with the dog. For miles and miles. I now hike a favourite 4-mile trail most days, and really miss it when I don’t do it. I have my Nutrisystem breakfast before heading out, and then have my add-ins (yogurt and piece of fruit) when I get back.

It’s great to know I’m doing my body good – my mental health is benefitting as well as my fitness.

I’ve discovered that I’m not finding the walking uphill to be as tough as it used to be, and in fact have been picking up the pace. So much so that I’m even considering buying some more supportive underwear so that jogging might actually happen – at least dowhill. This is crazy, right? Whoever thought I’d be hiking at this kind of level, and even considering moving beyond a walking pace? Who thought I’d really miss it on the days I don’t get out there and do the 4 miles?

Who’d have thought that finally I have found a plan where it’s not a diet, but a lifestyle that I adore and have adopted happily. I’m not counting down to finishing, or on a final weight goal. I’m focused on being healthy, fit and happy. That’s what I wanted from the start back in March when Nutrisystem held my hand and said ‘let’s do this’, and I’m loving achieving that.

And another great part is that I feel beautifully, lusciously, fantastically tired at the end of the day. I used to feel mentally exhausted, but now my body has caught up and I am ready for deep sleep without needing to “wind down.” That means I think I’m finally moving a little beyond the habit of a glass of wine at the end of the day because I’m not missing it – and in fact don’t even feel like it at all most days. That’s really big.

Almost as big as the fact I might be telling the truth when I get my skis calibrated this year.

Results

I lost another 1.3 pounds this week. My Nutrisystem journey has seen me lose a total so far of 23.5 pounds, and once again I’m between clothing sizes, making it difficult to find clothes that fit. I’m going to take a tip from another #NSNation blogger and visit Savers for a few pieces to tide me over. The other issue is finding that my bra doesn’t fit well at all any more, so I’m going to venture into that great unknown and frustrating area of bra buying. I love knowing that every day when I get on the scales the number is going to be the same or a little less

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This week the boys and I headed down to Denver for our third year of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus. I admit that I truly look forward to the circus, and this year it’s back at the Denver Coliseum until October 9th which has the fantastic benefit of FREE parking. Add to that the fantastic kid ticket price of just $10 (see my link at the bottom of this post), and you’re getting a world-class show that won’t break the bank. In fact, it’s cheaper than taking the kids to a movie. And you’ll enjoy it too.

I expected to love this performance. Every other year has been fantastic, and when I was invited to ask any questions I liked, meet the performers and see the animals, I was won over yet again. The Fully Charged theme worked best during the clowns performance – how many clowns does it take to change a light bulb? A lot. Those clowns were absolutely the funniest I’ve seen them. We all laughed a lot – it was really a great way to get the show really underway.

There really was something for all ages, although the show is one that if you have very small kids you should try and get to a matinee performance instead of an evening – I saw a few sleepy heads in the audience in the second half. My kids, aged 11, 13 and 17 each liked different parts of the show. The high wire, tigers, elephants, acrobats and Fearless Fernando Brothers on the twin turbines of steel were absolute hits.

My favourite act, however, was what I think of as classic circus, and I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve seen it – the two strongmen, Dmitry Nadolinkskiy and Rusian Gilmulin weigh over 300 pounds each. They spun massive logs and telegraph poles around like batons in a marching band. And then they amazed everyone by lifting each other up and showing exactly what it takes to be a strong man in the true sense of the word. Wow. They made it all look pretty easy, but when they then pick each other up, it’s pretty awe-inspiring.

My final tip is just to make sure you get your crew a good feed before heading down to the show. While parking at the Coliseum is free, you’ll do a full week’s paycheck at the concession stands if you turn up with hungry tummies. Oh, and don’t bother taking food in with you – bags are checked at the door. (Bugger. I know this is standard everywhere, but sheesh!)

Want to get tickets for your mob? Head to Ticketmaster to get kids’ tickets for only $10 if you use the code FFAKID. (I think that’s the same price as the popcorn at the concession. ) But concession prices aside, this show is one you don’t want to miss. It truly is the Greatest Show on Earth. I already have next year’s one on my calendar. In ink.

Disclosure: My children and I attended the circus as guests of Feld Entertainment for the purposes of an honest review.

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Four years ago I lived in Sydney, and throughout the warmer months I would walk three kilometres around the golf course in the middle of our suburb. I thought that was picturesque – and for suburban Sydney, it was. I also joined the gym there for a while, and used the equipment while watching tv shows on screens above my head.

I did a little of that here as well, but fell off the wagon – it’s tough to use the university gymnasium that’s full of 18 to 22 year old gorgeous healthy people when you’re 40 something, and could fit two of them into one pair of your gym pants. Ahem. I have, however got to a point where I know that exercise will increase and consolidate my weight loss and fitness level, and tone everything up a bit (except the boobs – exercise doesn’t do boobs). And I actually feel more like getting out there and doing it!

It can be tough living in one of the fittest, healthiest towns in the USA. Most people are enjoying the outdoors, exercising all the time – and want to have you join them. It’s like living with Michael Phelps or Ian Thorpe and having them invite you to go swimming with them, when you’ve only learned to swim this month. It can be tough and as a result, I haven’t really gotten into the biking thing, or any of the other usual Boulder fit lifestyle stuff.

Now that I’m 22.2 pounds down, largely thanks to Nutrisystem, I’m enjoying being outdoors a lot. And I’m not even threatened by the uber fit locals any more. Instead I’ve discovered hiking. I have gone from taking Jet on our daily 50 minute on-leash walk around the lake to instead taking on one of our favourite trails here in the foothills of the Rockies. I went from walking less than a mile a day and a few more on saturdays to this week discovering I like to hike for four miles most days of the week, with Jet off leash and loving it every bit as much as I do.

The weight is coming off more slowly (it’s been more than a week for 2.2 pounds to come off), but the inches are still moving rapidly. I measured today, and have lost seven inches off my waist since I started. Seven! I’m wearing nice clothes, and need to buy some new underwear. (I won’t give too much detail on that… for a change.)

I went and picked up two 10lb bags of potatoes at the supermarket, gave them to Charlie to hold, and told him that I’ve lost all that weight. We were astounded. But I also understand that it’s not surprising that I was reluctant to exercise when I was carrying around that extra 20lb. It’s kind of like how you felt when you were 9 months pregnant – but without the pregnancy.

It’s really nice to have lost enough weight that people have been commenting frequently, and also the questions have begun asking how much more am I intending to lose? To be honest, I would love to lose another 20lb – but even another 10lb would be fantastic. As it is, I’m wearing clothes I haven’t worn for years – and absolutely loving my lifestyle.

I thought I’d share some pictures of my hike today with you – why on earth would I join a gym and watch tv while I exercise when I can just do this?

Disclosure: Nutrisystem is supplying my food and dietary support in return for my honest reflections on the program. Do you live in the US or Canada, and want to join me and get healthy with Nutrisystem? Join today by calling 1-888-853-4689 or by visiting http://www.nutrisystem.com/nsblog.

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This week, men are being sent to their deaths. Yep, there was more than one, but most people are talking about just one man. Troy Davis.

This man, convicted of killing an off-duty police officer, has had multiple stays of execution. But today he was supposed to go to his death – as the jury and courts decided he should.

Now, I’ve said it before, so I’ll simply reiterate – I’m pro-life. I don’t believe anyone should take the life of another person, and my view on abortion is the same as my view on killing any person, guilty or innocent – doubt or no doubt. So my response to this is obvious. Whether he’s guilty as hell or innocent, there is no time to take a life.

It’s been interesting to watch others’ reactions, though. And thanks to Twitter, I’m able to see a full range of conversation with lots of thinking (and non-thinking) people who want to be a part of the conversation. Some believe filling in a petition will work and if they just get another 1000 names, they can stop it. That’s like saying we’ll get a petition to get the court to stop DUI fines. It’s not going to work, but the sentiment is appreciated, no doubt and perhaps it will raise a flag to politicians as a platform for the next election – but I doubt Troy will be saved that way.

There are people who do not believe in the death penalty at all. So they have it easy for once (like me). But most of the reaction appears to be hinging on the fact that they believe there is doubt in the guilty verdict delivered on the man, and in fact they believe he is innocent – something that they’ve decided themselves, with the basis being that people who testified have recounted. (Of course, the fact the man is going to die might have something to do with it? It’s tough to clear a conscience of sending a man to death even if your testimony was factual, I’d suppose.)

One person even said that even if he was guilty, the fact he only killed one person is enough to not send him to death. It should only be for serial killers.

I’m dumbfounded. It would seem that for many people there are levels of guilt. There are times when someone should die, and times when they should not. And the states of the USA which implement the death penalty have judicial systems which recognise the call of the people. That’s called democracy.

Yet these people who are rallying for Troy Davis, who were not in the courtroom – have not (I would guess) read all the court documentation, let alone understood it – are ready and willing to stand up and second guess the very judiciary they themselves have implemented and the one that they said should deliver these verdicts? The judiciary that supports the basic rights, freedoms and decisions the democracy of their country stands for?

And what of the victim?

According to the courts, Troy Davis killed Mark MacPhail. (By the way, the fact that the Sydney Morning Herald describes Davis’s sister’s breast cancer battle and wheelchair is inappropriate). The police officer’s wife and children were left behind, and believe Troy Davis should serve his fate. His wife was in the courtroom during the trial. They know as well as anyone – and better than most – the real story. They’ve lived it for so very long.

If you believe there is a time to die for anyone, in any circumstances, you must also believe there is a system which can implement that time. Pulling the rug out from under it in individual cases shows that you don’t really believe in it.

And should you ever put anyone to death if you ever have doubt in any case?

I think not.

May all involved rest in peace.

Pic: Image by Amnesty International

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