Evening! I hope you all have enjoyed a fabulous day. Mine included the easiest pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, so you can imagine mine went well. I also enjoyed reading your thoughts on the most common fitness mistakes SELF magazine shared. A lot of you pointed out some things worth mentioning. Here’s a few:

• Nicole brought up the great point that strength training comes in other methods some may enjoy more than hanging out in the weight room. A great thing to consider and remind us that we can all find some way to strengthen our muscles – yoga, classes, crossfit, at home DVDs, body weight functional training, etc.
• Theresa shared that another common mistake we may make is not listening to our bodies and resting enough. Good one!
• Brittany brought up being too rigid with a plan as another possible fitness issue. It’s okay to adapt workouts and training plans.

Tonight, I felt like sharing something fun. The other day Leah published a guest post I wrote for her and I felt like posting it here too. I believe many of us are familiar with Jeff Foxworthy’s You might be a redneck if… jokes. Sometimes I catch myself saying You might be a blogger if… with a country accent in my head when I catch myself doing strange things. Like the following example from today.

You might be a blogger if…you take insanely random photos of things people likely do not want to see. Like ulcers in your mouth.

My mouth hurts from these two painful ulcers underneath my lower front teeth. I caught myself capturing those buggers to share with you all and laughed at myself. It’s almost as good as the picture of me putting on deodorant I did awhile ago. 😉

Now here are some of the ones I shared with Leah and a few more to reflect my day.

You might be a blogger if…you feel like a kid on Christmas morning every time you receive a new comment.

You might be a blogger if…you can read and type faster now than when you were cranking out college essays.

You might be a blogger if…you haven’t met in person most of the people you consider very close friends and supporters. And anticipate the chance to do so. After all, blogger meetups are the best. Can’t wait until the ATL one on Oct 29!!

You might be a blogger if…you put spinach in your smoothies and eat kale as chips.

You might be a blogger if…your craving for pumpkin never ceases thanks to unending posts sharing delicious recipes that you must try. Like these…

A box of spice cake mix, a can of pumpkin, 1/2 a bag choc chips, a thank you to Power class for giving you strong arms to mix the THICK batter, baked for 10-15 mins at 350. That. Is. It. Likely my new favorite cookie.

You might be a blogger if…you cannot imagine your life without such a powerful outlet and form of expression that you can come to whenever you please and however you like.

Blogging does have some negative sides to it – comparison traps, getting caught up in statistics/popularity, feeling overwhelmed with the many things to do/see/try, and the time commitment (to name a few). However, as a whole blogging (whether as the author or reader) brings us all such an opportunity for growth. I love it!

I believe it develops us into more loving people, cheering one another on. It teaches us new things and may bring us out of our comfort zones in fitness, cooking, or self-reflection. Blogging can foster new passions and skills, like photography or writing. Do your best to not succumb to some of the pressures blogging can bring. Say “Screw it! This is for me and I will have fun!” Because you know…being involved in this community is a pretty remarkable thing. And way cooler than being a redneck. 😉

• Give me your best “You might be a blogger if…”

Something to Do: This month, I have been featuring “Random Bloggers of the Day” (which I’m thinking to continue). For the month of November, I thought it would be fun for you to have the chance to ask me anything. It’s not a Reader Request for posts, although I’m welcome to those as well, but more a way to ask general questions. I know Julie has entire posts like this if you want ideas. It can be anything from things I like, to plans for after the baby, to personal (within reason) questions. I would love to feature one question a day. Email, post a question on the blog, or do the anonymous thing on Formspring by CLICKING HERE.

I made it to the afternoon! Oh, thank goodness. I had numerous times today where I simply wanted to crawl into bed, nap, and ignore responsibility. Duty calls though. Nonstop in the life of a mom. Makenzie kept my hands full today…from 6 am on. Her little fake-mommy-out cry she shared in her “guest post” wasn’t a fake today. I lost my hour or so of productive time this morning.

Somehow, three hours disappeared in the blink of an eye and I was scrambling to get out the door and make it to Power class. I heart workouts on stressful mornings. They totally relieve stress and tension for me. At least for that hour, since after making it to my street I realized I had to turn around and drive back to the gym to pick up my Camelbak water bottle I forgot. I’m not about to lose that thing! It’s attached at my always thirsty side.

Then, I had to act all productive and do responsible things like finish the dagnabitwilliteverend laundry, handle a tired cranky toddler who wouldn’t nap, finally respond to a pile of emails, and type up a final lesson for the first meeting of our church small group I co-lead tonight.  Okay, okay. As much as I bemoan all of this, I know it isn’t much and in truth didn’t let it get to me. Much. If I had in fact felt totally overwhelmed, you would not have found me in the kitchen whipping up Estela’s Nutella Blondies. Ohhh….yes.

I have a feeling I will be whipping up treats for our small group on a regular basis. After all, there are too many fabulous recipes out there to try! We all know I fear cooking, but baking? Baking I can do. I hope the members of our small group like them! I clearly wouldn’t know. 😉

I do want to discuss something I feel strongly about in this post as well. Well, besides cranky toddlers and sugary treats, both of which hold my affection. I want to share the importance in finding a small group of people to connect with. I have my friends from school. I have family friends. I have an amazing group of friends here in the blog world. And for awhile, Peter & I would be perfectly content to hand just the two of us. Then, we joined a small group. My strongest connections ever began there.

Having a small sized group to meet regularly with helped us connect on a much deeper level and now many of these people are my closest and dearest friends. If I had something I felt the need to share, I would turn to them…and truthfully you all as well, but you understand the difference.I can send them a phone call or email and know I will receive a completely open ear and heart from any one of them. I love these people. They help me be a better person and continue my growth in loving myself and others. Basically, its a pretty awesome thing to have.

I found my group through my church and the bonds I made there. I have friends I have also greatly connected with through the small group of the playgroup I am involved in as well (hi Kelly!). There are so many opportunities out there to plug yourself into a community of support – runner’s groups, book clubs, group fitness classes, church, and so much more. If you aren’t already involved in a place you know you can turn to for encouragement and friendship, I hope you find one. I truly believe it can help us each experience more pleasure in life to have these relationships.  Get connected!

• Are you forgetful? I forget things everywhere!!!
• Are you involved in a small group of sorts? How? Any tips on helping people get connected who aren’t already? I think www.meetup.com is a great resource!