"My new years resolution is...to not."

I don't really think there is a point for most new years resolutions. Especially the ones where people say, "I am going to lose weight for sure this year!" Riiiiiight. Gyms were packed a couple of weeks ago and are already starting to die down. It's great for their positive attitude, but truth is, you will work out for 1-2 months, start using the excuse "oh, I got too busy" or "oh I will go back sometime..." and gain it all back. If you work out all of a sudden and then stop all of a sudden, you end up actually gaining weight and losing muscle, rather than losing weight and gaining muscle.

I personally work better when I have a goal like an event I want to look good for or normally I just go every now and then to feel healthy and to have energy. If you simply go off a new years resolution, I don't think that is enough motivation to want to go to the gym in my opinion.

This year I actually have 3 things that are in the back of my mind when getting motivated to work out.

1. In May our Powell family vacation in San Diego

2. In July our Groff family vacation in Hawaii

3. Also, I want to be fit enough BEFORE I get pregnant, whenever that day comes so I will be physically ready as well as make it easier to bounce back after having a baby and lose the baby fat better.

As some of you may know I like to plan farrrr ahead for things. This doesn't mean I am planning on having a baby anytime soon. It just means the thought of child birth freaks me out and this is me preparing to feel better about getting prego and still maintaining a healthy looking body afterwards.

Dustin started going with me and even has joined me in some classes I go to. We have a good friend Jimmy Carnation who really knows his stuff and just started working out at 24 Hour Fitness. So Dustin has been going with him and they have a workout plan they follow. Jimmy definitely pushes him and is a good teacher. It is always good to have someone there to push you. I take a lot of different workout classes as a way for someone to push me. I take Pilates, Power Sculpt, Core Cross Training and recently got into Zumba. On the days when classes don't work with my schedule I do cardio machines like the elliptical, stairmaster and just a regular treadmill.

Anyway, that's enough exercise talk for today.

My little Powell family photo shoot :)

I have been wanting a pretty family photo of just my little family for a long time and I finally took charge over christmas and made it happen the way I wanted. I didn't want it in the backyard, or when some people are not dressed for the occasion or with random colors that you can't even edit in photoshop... I wanted something we could print really big and put on my wall. I got my cliche photo and I am very happy about the pictures we got. I want to say thank you to my family for being patient with me and being willing to be cold a little bit at the beach so we could take photos. Love ya!

At first we had to keep moving around to find a good spot for Dustin to balance the photo since he is so tall compared to us shorties haha. On top of that we were taking the picture so Dustin and I kept running back and forth to see if the picture was good and what lighting, positioning, hands, hair, and faces were not working. We took maybe 20 pictures of this same spot/group ha.

This next picture was a tricky one. The tide was slowly coming in... so water was creeping closer and closer. At one point a big wave crashed over this rock. We Powell's may be short, but we can move fast! Haha Dustin was getting the camera ready and all of a sudden we all started screaming and we were bookin' it across the sand!

Towards the end, after we took the pretty pictures I wanted, we got a little goofy...

My hot date with Dustin in Duncans Cove

On our last day visiting California last month, Dustin and I went to the beach for the 3rd time that visit. It was nice to get away and go somewhere beautiful just us and be together without having a go, go, go feel to our vacation. It was very relaxing and the weather was perfect that day. We both enjoyed ourselves and just let our minds go...

We got homemade clam chowder and brought it to one of my favorite beaches.

Dustin had fun feeding little pieces of bread to the seagulls...

Mendocino play day

While we were in California over Christmas I wanted to take Dustin to Mendocino, up the coast an hour, because that area is gorgeous and has a fun little town we like to go into. We invited my mom and my good friend Caroline from Kenya along with us for fun. We hung out at the rocky beach and then walked around the shops and then back to a sandy beach.

Caroline and I had some nice chats while Dustin was taking pretty pictures :)

Caroline loves doing crazy poses for pictures haha.

We found a cool arch that we had fun posing on.

Downtown Mendocino...

Thanksgiving 2010 at the Gardners

We are so lucky to have Dustin's sister living so close. It is very nice to have family nearby where we can gather and enjoy each others company. Dustin's dad, Roger flew out again this year for Thanksgiving and my sister and friend Sierra joined us as well. It was a feast as it always is and we all were able to bring home yummy leftovers. I wish we could have thanksgiving more often. But then it wouldn't be as special and we would all get fat! Haha.

Making the kids giggle with songs and games :)

Children are always the entertainment at family gatherings.

Yoshi pics haha