Yoga Card

I am addicted to yoga and I love hot yoga. If you are wondering what hot yoga is, it is yoga, but in a hot room. I practice reverse Namaste while waiting in line at the movie theater. I balance on my head, in the middle of the park. I keep a yoga mat at work, one at home, and one in Carrizo.

For me, yoga started back in 2009 when I injured my knee. I was forced off my bike to allow for recovery time. I hated not being able to train. It was even more depressing as the cross country ride was approaching and I was not able to get training miles in. But, I still went to yoga. I hated it, but I still went. When I did not want to go to yoga, I would walk out of class before final relaxation.

Then, I met Connie Lozano, my yoga instructor. She showed me how to love yoga and introduced me to hot yoga.

 

This may look like a card with circles and numbers on it, but it is much more than that to me. This is my first yoga card from when I started hot yoga classes. It lists the dates I went to the studio and practiced in triple digit heat. It symbolizes my growth and progress though my yoga practice. It reminds me of my personal struggles and how I have fought to overcome my pain.

Every body’s yoga journey is different. Mine has physically relaxed my stiff cycling hips and spiritually helped my soul recover from the loss of my mother. Four years later, my poses are far from the full execution. There is much more to yoga that I do not know or fully understand. I do know it stretches my muscles and relaxes me. Overall, it makes me feel better.

I yoga. I breathe. Namaste.

Bridezilla

A few short months ago, I reassured the mister that I would never be a bridezilla and he should be very thankful that I am not... that... crazy. I even made him watch an episode of Bridezilla to prove that I would never be that out of control.

That was until the Carnival Triumph caught on fire; which meant our cruise/family trip/honeymoon, along with our destination wedding was cancelled. In less than a month from our wedding, we have had to book a new trip and a new beach wedding. And, you guessed it- one wedding for the price of two. Should I dare mention that it was cheaper to ship my bike to LA than it was to ship my wedding dress to Puerto Rico? It was also cheaper to ship my bike from Boston than it was to ship my dress.

Talk about freak out control, lots of alcohol, and lots of tears to make planning a 3.13.13 wedding happen.

We completed all our requirements for getting married in Mexico, and now we had to complete an all new set of requirements, for getting married in Puerto Rico. That being said, I am happy to report that I have a clean bill of health and can provide all the necessary required documents.  So can Mr. ICU.

The big day is creeping around the corner we are getting more excited. Beach wedding here we come! 

Cibilo Ranch

It has been said that if you can travel if someone you can remain friends. When Mr. ICU invited me to Cibilo Ranch, after a short courtship of two months, I accepted only to see if this adage was correct.

 

Cibilo Ranch is a working ranch with a deserted spa and airport landing strip. Which means that rich artsy type, who build custom homes in Malibu, flock to the nearby town of Marpha to view art; as well as the well-to-do CEO type that own their own airplanes, go here for a weekend get aways. 

 

Us being neither of those, went any way and signed the relase saying it was our fault if we were attached by animals roaming the property.  All the misters said was "massage" and I was sucked in; although not looking forward to the six hour drive we had.

What struck me most about the trip was the communal meals and being forced to socialize with people you do not know or would not socialize with in any other situation. It was during one if those meals, a fellow guest asked how long we had been married because we blended like we had been together for twenty years. We laughed and said two months.

We learned so much about each other during that trip. Stuff Like:

- Barbie does not like six hour long road trips.
- Barbie falls asleep in long car drives.
- When the mister says, "Let's take a wild life tour in a hummer", Barbie expects a hummer with doors and A/C, not an open door hunting vehicle.
-When Barbie says" Roxy is loose, help me find her" at two in the morning, Barbie is not kidding. Coyotes or owls could have eaten her.
-When there is a two and a half hour cocktail hour before dinner, we can easily drink fifteen glasses of wine through dinner.

-Barbie is willing to wear cheap underwear from the Dollar Store, as a bathsuite, just so she can sit in a hot tub for ten minutes.

Little did I know that those same artsy folk would take our first family picture and later e-mail it to me.  Looking back I remember thinking how easy it was to get away with Mr. ICU. I am hoping we can "star gaze" on top of the tool shed and flirt with each other in the hot tub- just like when we first meet.

 

BSF

My last night of BSF, Bible Study Fellowship, was harder than I thought it would be and I started to cry as I said good-bye to my wonderful friends.

Mom first introduced me to BSF, twelve years ago, and we attended the Wednesday daytime class while I was in college.  I have been lucky enough to attend the Monday evening class and Tuesday evening class.

While at the Tuesday evening class, I volunteerd to assist in the sound booth and start the music and give sound to the sanctuary during class.  It is an honor to be a part of an organization whose mission is to spread the word of God across thirty-eight nations all over the world.

This year’s study of Genesis was impactful on my life as I studied how Abraham was obedient to follow his faith.  It was a reminder that we all make mistakes- but God is a forgiving God and He always brings His people back.  Abraham lead a satisfying life, had a son Isaac when he was beyond his years, had a son with many descendants, and even found a faithful wife, Rebekah, for the son he almost sacrificed.

Bible Study is a large part of my week and it has grown over the years. I have met lifelong friends and have enjoyed countless hours of fellowship.  As life changes, I figured it was time to settle in to the house, life, and marriage.  Once the dust settles, I hope to be back.

Bikini Bod

In my head I am in my twenties and strutting my stuff. Is there an unspoken rule that one must stop wearing bikinis after the age of, let’s say, late thirties?

 

When the mister said something about wearing matching UT swim suites for spring break I started to seriously consider the thought of acting like a college girl (again) and wear a white and burnt orange ruffled bikini to chase da boyz around.  Come to think of it, things haven’t changed all that much expect that da boyz are an eight and a six year old.

It was fun remembering how to explain to my parents as to why I was wondering around the market in Mexico, without any shoes on and wearing just my bathing suite; only to blame my hangover on the ice from the margaritas.

These days I am much smarter about sitting on the beach. I can never get my youthful un-freckled skin back.  One thing is for certain: drinking piña colas from a coconut is a blast, no matter your age.

Another Race Weekend

This weekend was Tour de New Braunfels with races on both Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, we planned it such that I rode to the start of the race and the mister drove. Then I watched his race and then we drove back together followed by massages and pasta dinner. In short, the mister SAGed me. I SAGed the mister, and then we SAGed each other.

It is only that I ride that I can enjoy the excitement of racing. Basically, I sit around for an hour or two to watch the pack ride by for 1 second. If the race is long enough to where there is a feed zone, I do the above while holding water bottles.

I am super proud that Mr. ICU has entered the racing scene and is having fun with the experience. To show my support , I decided that Team Ricky needed a Garmin 5 Series and bestowed his Valentine's Day gift early- in time for race weekend. While at the bike shop getting the Garmin installed, he decided to order me a new bike verses getting a replacement cassette for my old worn one. Imagine my surprise when I discovered my new bike cost more than our wedding.

Once again, the mister has rocked my world and I am as happy as a cranberry merchant is on Thanksgiving Day.