My Sanctuary

So much beauty here tonight,

 propped up against the wall between sets, daydreaming.

 No one needs me to explain anything,

 I don't have to apologize for long waits,

 I don't have to think about cancer,

 and I don't have to rush.

 I have no credentials or titles here,

 not even, "Mommy" 

I can tune the world out in my ears

 with Jay Z on repeat for as long as I want

 and I don't have to answer to anyone.

 The faint clanking around me
 is hypnotizing white noise
 and everyone seems to be going in slow motion

 off in the distance.

 I am lost in my own world,

 my sanctuary,

 my gym.

Reach For Your Goals

I joined a new gym this week. 

I had out grown my old one. 

I needed a place where I could practice and learn olympic lifts

with lighter bars and bumper plates.

But...my old gym had a pull-up bar perfect for my height

where I loved to do toes-to-bar-burpees.

So here I am, 

in a new place, with strangers watching

and a bar much farther away from my reach.

It was a metaphore for any goal.

Was I afraid to fail?

yes.

Was the bar set too high?

yes.

Was I afraid of what those around me would think?

yes.

Did I take a leap and reach for it anyway??

Absolutely.

Regardless of who is looking, 

the obsticles in your way

or the thought of failure,

reach for your goals!

Click on the link below to play video:

http://instagram.com/p/g02_fNhlrY/

Thank you Kevin Soto

New Jersey Tattoo artist,

 Kevin Soto just left me this comment on Instagram.

 Not only did it make my night,

 but it's a beautiful reminder that by sharing my gift,

 I have taught, inspired and possibly changed lives.

 I am flattered and humbled, but more importantly,

 reminded of why I need to continue to create.

For the record

 Max Power Clean, 90lbs

 Highest jump

Max DL

Be the Change You Want to See!

I'm on a quest for the next three months 

to change, grow and alter my body even more than what I already have.

I want to inspire others to reach their goals,

whatever they may be. 

So I'm setting out to reach my own. 

They have been at my finger tips for quite some time now,

but I have yet to reach that peak. 

My time has arrived though 

and I'm going for it!! 

Therefore you can too!!!

The only thing stopping you from reaching your goals,

is you!! 

~Amanda Delight

2013 Race Day for Amanda Delight

Finshed with a time of:

1:56:40

The Host Movie Review by Amanda Delight

The Boss and I watched, The Host.

 I have never been a fan of sci fi, simply because I cant relate to it, its too unrealistic...or is it??
This movie was powerful and moving.

I cried, a lot.

 It poses the question in me, 

"How do I show my daughter that true love does exist in real life, beyond the movies when she has never seen me in love?"

 Made me want to write this blog.

 I haven't blogged all summer...

Ive been running the trails and escaping to the wind and the sun with no inspiration to express my emotions or feelings, mainly because I have been numb to them. 

But now I realise that I miss that part of me and I have some catching up to do. Will I? 

I want my muse back.

 Watching The Host and thinking about my life, made me feel like I'm a dying breed,

 the last of the few that believe in loving someone worth dying for...

and living for...

even though I have been unable to prove it.

 I lead by example,

 therefore I feel like a failure.

2013 Alaska Run For Women

6,789 women registered to run this year.

 Ever year, I run in honor of my Aunt Lucy and all of my patients.

 But this year I had a certain patient in mind

 and I would like to some day give HIM my bib number.

 I met him the day before the run and he was on my mind the whole way. 

After several years of online networking,

I finally had the pleasure of meeting 

fellow artist and runner Dana Pruner in person! 

Here is a link to her blog:

http://mountainpulse.blogspot.com/

 Im very please with my time in this run this year,

 by almost beating last years time by 5 min.

 In the running world, thats HUGE!!

 My time is still nothing to write home about,

 but lets face it....I havent ran outside or done much cardio

 at all since last running season.

 But thanks to the gym and these mountains,

 Im clearly stronger. 

2012 results below:

WANT.

Dead Lift Amanda Delight

Bird Ridge In The Spring!

I started the climb up Bird Ridge at noon on Sunday. Visibility was poor, it was snowing and the temp was below freezing...I couldn't have chosen a better day. I had micro spikes and gators on my feet. The ice below the snow made it very tough to climb and the snow its self was to my hips at times. The small group I started with had gained 30 min of trail on me by the time I had made it to 2,700 feet. I came to an area in the trail where I was literally hanging on to a rock frozen in movement thinking I was either going to fall to the earth below or wait till a helicopter lifted me off. But I stood up and kept going, falling and regrouping with every other step. I had sweated out my under layer and my legs were completely fatigued. But the farther I climbed, the more internal strength I gained. It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done. I was alone and at peace with myself and nature in survival mode. I had no one to rely on but myself. Every stress and worry in this world simply did not exist. When I made it to the bottom 4 hours later, I was physically spent but mentally recharged. Being close to death by one simple wrong step or move, made everything else in my life seem so unimportant. I didn't climb that mountain to prove I could to others, I did it to prove it to myself. 

And that makes me smile :)

Posing for the camera!

   Headed down!

Buried in the snow!

At the bottom of the trail, the sign is holding me up!

Warming up by the fire! 

‎A Delight in an Apple

‎~APPLE PIE BAKED IN APPLE~

5-6 Granny Smith apples (make sure they can stand on their own)
1 tbsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp. brown sugar
pie crust (homemade or pre-made)

1) Preheat oven to 375F.

2) Cut off the top of 4 apples off and discard. Remove the inside of each apple with a spoon or melon baller very carefully, as to not puncture the peel.

If you’re a skilled interior apple excavator, salvage as much as you can so you can use it for Step 2. I, on the other hand, am not skilled so I just had to throw my interior apples away and chop up additional apples for filling.

3) Remove skin from remaining apple(s) and slice very thinly. These apple pieces will give you the additional filling needed to fill the four apples you are baking.

Mix sliced apples with sugars and cinnamon in a bowl. If you prefer more or less cinnamon make adjustments as desired. Same goes for the sugar.

Scoop sliced apples into hollow apples.

4) Roll out pie crust and slice into 1/4 inch strips. You can also add a strip of pastry inside the top of the apple almost like a liner to add a little more texture/sweetness to the pie.

Cover the top of the apple in a lattice pattern with pie crust strips.

5) Place apples in an 8×8 pan. Add just enough water to the cover the bottom of the pan.

Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Remove foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and sliced apples are soft.

Makes 4 baked apple pies (in the apple).

Marissa Emily Lloyd

Remembering her on this day.

Lui Talo Family Portrait Valentines Commission

36"x48" Acrylic on Canvas

Leg Raises

Finally did my first one today.

 I actually did 4 sets of 8.

 It took me 6 months of training

 my abdominal muscles to get to this point. 

Growth

Don't ever let anyone tell you 

your worth or potential because

 that's a bar that you set for yourself. It's not fixed or stationary and can always go up.

 Be passionate about life

 and what you do!

 Never stop striving for more,

 being a better version of yourself personally and professionally. 

It's called growth.

 And I plan on growing

 well into old age.

Casey John

God blessed me years before

 I become a Mother,

 he blessed me with the best older brother

 a girl could need in this life!

 Thank you Casey J Brooks for being

 the best link to my past

 and one to stick with me in the future.

All the ppl in the world and I choose you.

Dear Ironanimal Mantra

Joseph Beuys