New Year,...

With a little encouragement,...Mark has gotten all "hip" recently. He has the long sideburns and cool beard/goatee. Pretty cute. He plays bass at church every Sunday now, and still has his band in Vancouver, and guitar lessons once a week. Makes for a busy week, but we are getting in a routine.

My joint pain from the autoimmune problem has gotten pretty bad, so at my Dr's suggestion I have joined a Gym. That has always seemed so vain and "Barbie-ish" to me, but he reminded me that as an ICU nurse I definitely knew how to prioritize. So why can I not make my health the priority, it is at the point that it will be a life/death matter. Point made. So,..I have been going 5 days a week after work, doing strength training weight machines for my joints for 25 minutes, and then 30 minutes of swimming. I can't believe what a difference it's made in how I feel. Less joint pain, sleep better, more energy, better mood, etc,.. I actually do not dread working out, which is a huge change for me. Swimming is great! There is a great diet monitoring program too. So far so good. I have really tried to cut out alot of "should do" activities and only the "need to" things. Mark and Kassi have been great about helping out at home and fixing their own dinners. I think I assumed they needed my assistance much more than they really do. So,.Happy New Year and a good start so far. 2009 may be the year I actually get and stay in shape. It won't be from lack of effort!