I'm floored!

I am horrible at being a regular blogger, because I often wondered do people even care? So I would blog every once in a while and every once in a while someone would comment.

And then...Along came Polly and left me the biggest surprise and the kindest words ever:
I've never received a blogging "award" before...and better yet this one is for friendship, in my opinion the best award to get!

Thank you dear Polly for your friendship, comments and for your fantastic blog. I love checking my blog list and seeing a new post. You've inspired me to commit a little more to blogging and really open myself up...cuz when I open up even the tiniest bit, the friendships begin. I would definitely give the award to ya if you hadn't just given it to me!

The rules of the award are as follows:

Here are the rules:

These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbon of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.

Okay, so I don't have a lot of blogs that I follow but I do have a few and instead of giving them all awards just to get to the number 8, I'm cutting mine a bit - I'll give 3...hey, my blog, I get to do what I want, right?!?

Dana at Blackberry Belle of the Ball - she's my dear real friend and she blogs so honestly and openly, I love it. Lovely, I'm not sure I need to let you know how much your friendship means to me, but in case you need to hear it...not a whole lot of good came out of BLG...but your friendship is definitely the greatest gift I received from that experience xo

Alli at Right Up My "Alli" - also a dear real friend and someone I met online, had the pleasure of living 5 minutes from her for 2 years and now that she's back in CO, I get to enjoy her company online again. It makes me sad that she's not 5min away anymore, but I'm so grateful that I was even graced by her for 2 years...it's quality not quantity and I'm just glad I got to share in her life for a bit!

Yum at Diary of a Yummy Mummy - I love this gal's blog and if we lived in Boston, I would just love to share parkdates with her and her little man. Her blog is always so refreshing, so positive and so darn honest - I love it. Plus the girl has the greatest fashion sense, really!

Congrats to the "recipients" :)

xoCaliAlly

Doozy of a week & a little Spaahhh!

It's been a doozy of a week...but the good thing is it's Friday...I'm getting ready to teach my last Baby Boot Camp class of the week and it's a long weekend! Oh and did I mention I'm off to the Spaaaahhhh this weekend?! WEEEHOOO sooo what this Mummy needs!

If you are following me on Facebook, then you know that the Little Miss "hates" her father right now...and so I essentially feel like a Single Mum with a Husband...and no support. By the way, that's a Single SAHM with a Franchise on the side with a Husband. So this weekend comes at the perfect time. We've realized with the Little Miss that if I leave her she's okay, but she will not leave me to go out with her dad without screaming and crying - and it's not a tantrum cry/whine...no it's a desperate plea for help, that normally ends up with both hubby and I in tears as well. It's been horrible. But hopefully a good long weekend, re-charging the batteries and a positive attitude will be the cure for us.

Oh and did I mention the SPA?!! heh heh I have very overdue gift cards to INSPA that I must put to use...I'm thinking a 60min massage and a 60min facial. I've only ever had one facial in my life two months before my wedding (and thank goodness I gave that much time in between) - it was horrible, I was physically scarred on my face for a few weeks and there was nothing pleasant about it. In fact, I walked out and immediately went in search for Advil to relieve the pain! However, I hear from the lovely YummyMummys in my life that this is not necessary. Facials can be a wonderful thing...so I will try again...but please no picking unless I say I'm ready for picking and if we do some picking, can we try and leave the skin on my face?!

Well here's to a great long weekend, lots of BBQ, time in the sun (with sunscreen of course) and a happy little daughter...it's going to be a great one!

xoCaliAlly

And so it begins...

Half Marathon training that is...I went for my first run this morning in a long time and it was amazing...I love this sport! Why did I stop?!? Don't get me wrong, it was hot and it was tough but I guess since I wasn't alone it helped...I feel amazing (very much in need of a shower) but amazing. I can't wait to create a new playlist and start logging those miles.

Speaking of miles, can I tell you how much I love running "miles" versus "kilometers"?? It makes the training plan a lot less daunting!

So if you are in the Bay Area on July 26th, I'd love the support...come up to San Fran and find yourself a fantastic street corner to cheer us on! Oh and by "us" I mean a friend/colleague of mine and perhaps the Hubby..no strollers allowed at this event unfortunately :(

Oh right Challenge...here is what I did yesterday (Friday):

Challenge #2-Wake up and smile. Regardless of who or what woke you up from sweet slumber, before you get out of bed, put a huge smile on your face and then face the day. Feel free to rinse & repeat each day. I had a rough week, so yesterday I did a little attitude adjustment and just made it a great day...all day!

And for today: Challenge #24-Set aside at least one whole hour where nothing is planned & see where the day takes you. As I may have mentioned, I'm flying solo right now as Hubby is up in Yosemite and so as much as we had a busy morning, Miss Boo and I...she's down for a nap and I have no idea what we'll do when she wakes up...really no clue! But in the meantime, I think I'll take a nap myself.

Phew, it's hot out there!
xoCaliAlly

It's not so bad, is it??

Hubby is out with some friends/colleagues from work and so it's me flying solo this evening...oh and I'm flying solo this weekend too (I know I shouldn't complain, I think of my friend Dana who's doing it with two alone for months - ugh!!). Anyhow, I didn't feel like cooking for 1 1/4 people so I walked the pup and Boo to Subway and got myself a 5pt turkey sub - unfortunately it probably wasn't worth the 5pts since the bread was tough and the veggies not the crispest (note to self: do not return to THAT Subway).

Normally our routine is that at 6:45-7ish (after dinner) Hubby grabs Boo and Deezy and heads for a walk and I get 30minutes to tidy up, catch up on The Hills/Facebook/Twitter/etc. It's lovely...well since I had taken "the kids" for their long walk at 6 to get dins, at 7pm I had no idea what to do with Boo...it's not a bath night, so well, I put her to bed!!!! I'm just done...I'm tired, I don't feel like singing or dancing or reading anymore books or playing with any toys. And I'm not a huge fan of Sadie watching TV before bed...so we read an extra book than we normally do and she's in bed and I literally have my feet up, enjoying my night with Deezy (and no dishes to clean)!!

On a completely separate note, I did fall off the Challenge bandwagon, but here, I'll jump back on with Challenge #6-Take 10 minutes to sit in silence. And since I'm flying solo, I can actually do that. Once I finish this blog, I will go and sit out on our patio and listen to the birds...and try not to look at the clock every 2minutes :)

Oh and one other bit of news...I want to run the San Francisco Half Marathon - anyone else?!!?

xo CaliAlly

Challenge Day 6

Okay so today I'm moody, tired and just all around grumpy! So it seemed like it was the perfect day to pick 11-Print out your Profits & Loss sheet. Really look at it. If there are items you don't understand, ask your bookkeeper/accountant/fellow mamapreneur. Make today the day you get a grip on your business finances - as my Challenge for day 6!!

It definitely didn't help my mood, but if I saved this one for another day and was in a really good mood, it seriously might depress me!!!

My business is doing well...I think I just set the bar to high by hoping to be "in the black" by September...especially with an instructor going on "mat leave" in September so I won't really be able to add many classes in the Fall. I think I'll push the goal to "in the black" by end of 2009.

But I'm having fun and I'm hoping I inspire Mamas to get in shape and be the strongest and bestest Mummy they can be. And really, at the end of the day (and I'm not losing money), that's more than enough for me :)

xoCaliAlly

Challenge Day 5 & BBC Success!

Okay before the challenge...I'm so excited to announce that I am adding yet another Baby Boot Camp class to my schedule! That means I will have classes 5 mornings a week and beginning in June, I will have evening classes twice a week in addition! So exciting. As a result I have hired a new instructor that begins tomorrow! So for the rest of May, I will have Wednesdays off - yey! It will be nice to have a day off in the middle of the week! hmm...what to do, what to do - to be honest, I'll probably go to Baby Boot Camp and get MY workout in!!! heh heh No seriously, I will try to stay out of the business for that morning - that's for Sadie and I! YEY

Now onto the Challenge...today I choose: 4-Schedule four weeks of vacation over the next year. Yes: FOUR. You don't need to figure out what you're doing during those weeks and you can move the dates around later, but cross out FOUR weeks of planned vacation. Do it NOW. You are the boss, after all. And here's what I've decided...

3 weeks in August to go home to Ottawa
2 weeks in December to enjoy the holidays with my family

Okay so that's 5 weeks, but the truth is my biz will keep running through the 3 weeks of August - relying on my existing instructor (who by the way will be 8months preggers - what a trooper) and a new instructor that I'm hoping to bring on board in June!

Woohoo, vacation is booked...I've marked it in my Planner and I'm all set! Now to book the plane tickets to Ottawa!

xoCaliAlly

Challenge Day 4

It's Monday...no working for me :) Yippee!

Here's what I've chosen for today: 13-Start the day telling each person in your family that you love them along with one reason why they make you smile.

I will tell my Hubby that I love him and that one of the reasons he makes me smile is his drive and passion. He is such a passionate and driven person - when he puts his mind to something - WOW, step out the way...and that inspires much confidence and passion in me...I like that, I really like that.

I will tell the Little Miss that I love her and that one of the reasons she makes me smile is her genuine goodness and sweetness. The spontaneous hugs and kisses, the need to sit on my lap if I'm on the floor, the way she loves her little friends. I'm so pleased that I've succeeded raising a good girl...well at least for the last 20 months - cannot guarantee what she'll be like at 16 years old ;)

I will tell my Deezy that I love him and that one of the reasons he makes me smile is his sweet disposition, especially around the Little Miss. He will let her hug him, kiss him, smother him, tickle his toes, and he'll just sit there looking at me with this pathetic look on his face "Get her off of me"...but he takes it!

That's all folks! At some point, something interesting will happen and I will blog...but for now, I focus on the challenge :)

xoCaliAlly

Challenge Day 3

Okay just a quickie post - I'm tired (but have drunk too much coffee and can't sleep) and don't have a whole lot to say...

Today I choose 7-Write a thank you note -not an email, but a real handwritten card or postcard- to someone who has made a difference in your life. Mail it today.

I have to write the Thank You notes for birthday gifties, so I will do those this afternoon and put them in the mail this evening :) Thank you Mamapreneur for keeping me on the ball!

xoCaliAlly

Challenge: Day 2! & Skincare Update!!

Today is Day 2 of the Challenge...yep I'm still committed (a pretty good thing for me)...I did tell Hubby and the Little Miss about how much I love them and why they make me laugh...I think they really liked that - well at least Hubby did. Except now he thinks he can tease me and act like a goof all the time because really it makes me laugh - uh oh!

Today I choose to do #3 Do 15 sit-ups, 15 push-ups, 15 jumping jacks.

I'm working today at a Baby Expo/Fair with two other Franchise Owners promoting Baby Boot Camp and I know I'm not going to get much physical activity in especially since we go from about 8:30-4:30...when I get home I'll be done :)

Oh yes and Skincare update - thx to everyone for their messages and comments, I had a huge array of products to choose from! I decided to go with L'Occitane - and let me tell you, after 5 days (I know, not that long) I'm not regretting it at all!! I chose the Olive line and am loving how my face feels and looks - they promise radiance and so far I'm definitely seeing that!

And on a side note...are you wearing SPF? Sometimes you need more than just what is in your moisturizer. I found the neatest SPF - apparently it's been around for a while but maybe I just noticed it this year since this is the year of Ally...and with teaching classes outside almost every day, I really need some coverage on this "radiant face" I'm creating! So I bought Bare Escentuals' Mineral SPF - SO COOL! I struggle with heavy oily SPF on my face and I hate the feeling of most of them, not to mention the greasy application - so rarely do I re-apply. I used to just use my Moisturizer's SPF and be done for the day - not good...I KNOW I need to re-apply. Anyhow, this stuff is great! You don't feel like it's on, and it's a small container that can pop in my diaper bag/beach bag no problem and super easy to reapply without a mirror and no streaky-ness...now how well does it work? Okay I haven't been able to test that yet (thank you Bay Area rain) as the one day I taught with the sun, I also had my visor on...but I will let you know!

Okay now back to those pushups, sit-ups and jacks! 1...2...3...
xo CaliAlly

A New Challenge

So in case you haven't figured out...I love Challenges - any and all kinds!

A colleague of mine up in Portland belongs to this Entrepreneurs group - Mamapreneurs Inc (which I SOOOOOOO wish had a Bay Area location - what a great support group) and they have a May Challenge which I've decided to take part in! It's 31 tasks to take part in throughout the month of May - best thing is that some of them require quite a bit of work and others barely any - and you don't have to do the tasks in order! Okay sign me up!!

So today, I choose - 14-End your day by telling each person in your family that you love them along with one reason why they make you laugh.

I will tell Hubby that I love him and that although his "goofyness/playing around" drives me crazy and I may ask him over and over to "Cut it out"...secretly I'm laughing and smiling inside because I love that he is so carefree around me. I looked for 27 1/2 years to find a person I can feel 100% comfortable with and vice versa - it's also one of the reasons I know my hubby is my soulmate.

I will tell Little Miss that I love her and that although I call the evening "Witching Hour" because she's exhausted, very unpredictable and a little crazy, it's my favorite time with her...she's clingy and wants hugs (LOVE IT), she's swings from happy to angry (and I can't help but laugh on the inside at her clenched fists and other expressions of frustration) and lastly she is seriously crazy (and makes me laugh so hard) when she does these little voices or her fake laugh or anything she possibly can at dinner to make us laugh...this is also one of the reasons that I'm a stickler about Family Dinners...it's 30minutes of good food, great company and TONS of laughter!

What will you tell your loved ones tonight??

xoCaliAlly