sethandjess.com blog

Welcome, 2012.

Seth — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 12:18:22 +0000

It’s a new day in a new year!

2012, we’ve enjoyed you very much, thus far; a nice leisurely Sunday morning complete with a quiet and brief church service, picking up treats from the bakery and stoping at the market for dinner ingredients. Now we sit with the sun streaming in, sipping coffee and reading our books. I am loving the feel of this day.

My running shoes are whispering my name and a few other projects wait patiently on my desk, but nothing is on the schedule until Tuesday morning. I pray that this is indicative of the tempo the month and year will follow.

I can’t wait to see what the new year will bring

2012 challenge – running

Seth — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 20:44:22 +0000

2011 was a great running year. I wished i’d been able to log a few more miles, but even with about a month of forced rest, I was still able to average over 1.5 miles a day, so I really can’t complain. One of the ways I stayed on track from February – August was to keep a calendar to mark the days I worked out. I printed a simple year-long calendar (similar to this one) and highlighted the days I ran. Eventually I got more organized and created a key to mark when I ran on the treadmill, when I ran outside, or if I did cross training. It was so fun to tally up each month’s totals and see how I’d done. I always was able to quickly see patterns, such as always running on the treadmill on certain days.

I enjoy my nike+ system and that it keeps everything on my account on the computer, but some days I need the physical, visual reminder about my activities. During busy seasons I found that skipping one day could quickly turn into 3 or 4 days. So I posted my calendar up on the wall by my computer where I couldn’t miss it! At other times I posted it on the mirror or found more helpful places to put it.

This year I got a little fancier. I used a bunch of photos from places I’ve run during 2011 to create a collage at the top of the calendar. I even included one from the treadmill, some from our vacation in Montana and a start-line shot from the race we ran in November. I’m hoping these picture will help me stay focused and remember how much I enjoy running.

Just for fun, here is a shot of my original. I got the idea from here. Here we go 2012. We’re off to the races!

Hello world!

Seth — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 06:14:50 +0000

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

2012 challenge – yoga

Seth — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 16:58:22 +0000

I have a distinct memory of attending a local yoga class about 10 years ago. I was instantly hooked. Prior to yoga, I had been a rough and tumble athlete: diving for the basketball, sliding into 2nd base, getting muddy on the soccer field. Yo seemed so different, so elegant and graceful. As much as I love the adventure of the basketball court and the adrenaline of team sports, I always wished that i’d had the patience and focus (not to mention time) to take a dance class. Yoga felt like that chance.

The summer after freshman year I checked out every yoga DVD from the library, tested them all out and made a list of my favorites. I still have the set I bought initially and though i’ve since added to my collection, I will pull that first one out every once in awhile. After college I joined a gym for a few years. The main motivation was their three weekly yoga classes. But eventually I moved and yoga has been a little lost in the shuffle of running, circuit training, cross fit and other activities.

Over the years I’ve done yoga with coworkers in empty classrooms, in a panoramic room of a cabin on a lake in Montana, early in the morning on the balcony of my apartment and on the hardwood floors of various gyms. At certain times, yoga has been my main sport so much that my living room was arranged to accommodate my yoga mat and accessories; More recently yoga has been my route to recovery from injuries, an opportunity for fellowship and relationship building, a welcome moment of calm in an otherwise full and busy schedule.

I look forward to joining the YogaJournal 21-day yoga challenge as I have for the last few years. It is a simple and intentional way to start the year, reflecting on where I’ve been and looking toward where I am headed.

one little word – wrap up

Seth — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 20:16:22 +0000

Now that it’s the close of 2011 it’s time to look back at my One Little Word:

balance

I didn’t following my word throughout the year as I had planned, but I think we made it happen. I can think of numerous occasion where people comment on my ability to balance my time and energy. I’ve worked hard to maintain a healthy amount of play time amidst the tugging of work related activities. And I can honestly say that in the past I might have responded differently to such a busy time surrounding Christmas.

Although I didn’t document it how I had hoped, I know that I am more aware. I see how easily obligations and commitments can throw off the delicate balance of health, how dedication can turn to obsession and that rest is good and necessary. I know now that whether or not I can “do it all” is not the question, instead I should ask “should I do it all?” I have listened and heard those around me and I see where I can deepen my roots, widen my stance and grow further into the balance of living.

I look forward to carrying these lessons forward into the new year and I am close to choosing my new word. 2011 was about observing and finding my word throughout my everyday life and I think 2012 will be more about inviting and inserting my word into each day.

holiday recap

Seth — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 16:21:22 +0000

I can’t believe that Christmas has come and gone! I feel like I was finally ready for the season on December 22nd. We packed all sorts of activities, events and visits into the 28 days of Advent and although it felt claustrophobic at times, I am grateful for each experience. The picture above reminds me of how I felt. Sure, we were pressed for time and space, but we were with the people we love, laughing and enjoying the journey to Christmas.

Here were a few of my holiday faves:
• singing Christmas Songs
• making Peppermint Marshmallows
• sipping Hot Cocoa
• roaring Fires
• simply decor
• baking and general kitchen mess-making
• stuffing Stockings
• stitching and knitting and thinking about the gift recipients
• presents via skype
• surprise gift that came early
• surprise gift that was hidden until yesterday
• a gift from a child who told me about the gift as i unwrapped it
• gifts that inspire healthy living
• a new Christmas Album to be enjoyed year after year

Here’s to another wonderful Christmas. Let the merry making push us on to 2012!

holiday cheer

Seth — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 15:55:22 +0000

It’s been way too long since i blogged, but I AM creating some great blog worthy things, so after this weekend, it’s gonna get real in here!

Happy almost weekend!

reduce, reuse & get crafty!

Seth — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 20:49:22 +0000

Monday I was inspired to test out some creative ideas floating around in my head. After inviting a fellow crafter over and setting up a brand new work station (complete with fresh, organized supplies) we got started!

The spark of inspiration: a (large) pile of used gift cards (as pictured below). Most are Starbucks cards from over the years. Not all of these cards belonged to me. Many came to me by way of people who love me and know that I collect things

After choosing our cards we punched some holes, cut some card stock, stitched here and dabbed glue there. We ended up with two rather different yet equally inspired little books! Check them out!

The pages in the :: thankful 2011:: book are 2×3 and the pages in the :: christmas countdown:: book are 2×6. One of my favorite parts of crafting is the conversation, just as the following, which occurred shortly after we had begun:

a: can i see the picture of the final project?
j: it’s not finished yet.
a: i thought you had a picture.
j: no, i’m just making this up as we go

thanks for trusting me a. I think you did a stellar job!

holiday garland

Seth — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 10:52:22 +0000

I was inspired last night to play with some paper! Not quite ready to skip over Thanksgiving, I made a garland that simply says “merry.” I figured we could all use a reminder to have a merry day and attitude during this season!

I can’t take credit for the idea. I was inspired by this video from www.shimelle.com.

Here are some close up shots of the individual cards. I’m hoping the hubby can help me get some better lighting so I can retake some of the photos. hallway = dark! Regardless, 75 shots and an hour of editing later, I got it down to 7 pretty good ones. Hope you enjoy!

Supplies
7 different cardstock pages for:
tags (5” x 2.5”)
1in. circles
spiral flowers (12 in. x 1in. folded)
star punch
1in. circle punch
light brow ink for tag edges and bird
bird stamp
treble clef paper clips from Office Max
antiqued brads
sticky backed ribbon in various shades of red and pink
notebook paper (ripped out of spiral)
sticky 3D letters and circle embellishment
glue stick and tape roller
yard or ribbon to hold tags

put your records on continued…

Seth — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 10:44:22 +0000

This month I have been working my way through my iTunes library sifting and sorting through songs that I forgot (or didn’t even know) I had. sometimes I would find myself exclaiming “I LOVE this album!” and other times I would sit, perplexed, wondering how I even acquired the song. The thing is, i’ve been spending the last 3 or so years downloading free songs almost weekly from Starbucks, iTunes and various other places, so there were bound to be a few duds. But I always figure that if I don’t like it, i’ll just delete it!

Here is a little playlist of some gems that I’ve discovered along the way. I paid for three of these songs and the other 8 were free downloads. It’s a nice playlist to put on while blog browsing or sifting through email. Nothing too wild or crazy!

If you want to try your hand at the free downloads, here is one of my favorite ways to stay in the loop. I hope you enjoy!

I created a free account at www.playlist.com to create this playlist.