Deployment thoughts

A bit of a hiatus

Movin' it with Michelle

Hey gang, sorry I’ve been absent.  I know I’ve not been posting, or participating much in the blogger world and for that I apologize.  The holiday season is hitting me particularly hard, and I just don’t have much to say…

I will say, that here’s a shout out to all of my fellow military wives and girlfriends. During the holidays the troops get an outpouring of packages, calls, gifts to show appreciation and support.  Yet the loved ones back home are often forgotten…sure, we have all the luxuries of being home. Our trees are beautifully decorated, and we’ve got home cooked food baking in the oven. The smells and sounds of the holidays surround us. But I can tell you first hand the emptiness we feel from the absence of our spouse (boyfriend, Dad, friend etc.) is palpable and no amount of Turkey, candy canes or Christmas music can replace them. My heart physically hurts.

That being said, I will more than likely not be posting much during the holidays. We are busy dealing with the fender bender my 17 year old got in (she’s ok thanks goodness, but my pocket book not so much), all while trying to keep our heads above water during the holidays.

I want to wish you all a very happy holiday season. I will poke my head in from time to time, but only I feel like I have something meaningful to share. I will ask, that if you know of a family that has a deployed family member to please check on the family left behind, too…

vtrld

Cheers,

Michelle

real life adventures, Uncategorized

It takes an Army

Movin' it with Michelle

So I am sharing this from my Facebook, because I just couldn’t remain silent any more

On the eve of Veteran’s Day, I ask you to step back and think. Think of those who have fought for your freedoms, and remember that freedom isn’t free. Ultimately, IT TAKES AN ARMY (and the rest of the armed forces, naturally) to keep a country running smoothly. Not one person, not one race, not one religion, not one political party. IT TAKES AN ARMY.
So while everyone is out there bashing people’s choices and spreading hate, remember: You have chosen to feed in to the hate.… You have chosen to move ahead angry and let the decisions of others dictate your actions. YOU.
One man or woman doesn’t get to decide how this country runs. So pray for the dedicated group of men and women that collectively keep our country running and see what you can do to make this country an even better place to live.
I chose to serve. For 20 years. My husband continues to serve and is deployed overseas. I simply cannot stand for all the disrespect on BOTH SIDES and am appalled and the riots and protests.
But I’ve still decided to keep positive. Pray for our leaders, both past and present that they will do what’s right for the people of this country I so proudly serve.
I’ve said my peace. #ittakesanarmy #youchoose
MSGT Michelle R. Dragoo, USAF (retired)

msgt

Happy Veteran’s Day to all the vets out there.  Your service is appreciate and honored.

Uncategorized, weekly wrap up

Weekly Wrap 10/31-11/6

Movin' it with Michelle

Hey everyone!!  Last week was a bit of a blur and all for me, you know with the CUBS WINNING THE WORLD SERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Ok, sorry…I was just so excited to see our Cubbies bring it home.  Sammy enjoyed the series as well. 🙂

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Overall my week was pretty good. I did my best to stick with my winter goals and felt pretty successful in my first week.

Highlights were my five mile run on Sunday after a very long weekend at work and the Cubbies winning!  Even better, my hubby texted me during the game. He and his guys woke up at 2:30 am to watch!!

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Lowlights were my mini fell and hit got a pretty good sized goose egg.  Thankfully the swelling has gone down and she’s feeling much better.

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Also, I’m still planking daily.  I haven’t missed a day since May 1st.  This week’s longest was 7 minutes, for the 7th game of the series, naturally…LOL

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I’m linking up with Holly and Tricia for the Weekly wrap!  Please head over and check out these awesome ladies!

weeklywrap

What was your highlight/lowlight last week? Did you watch the World Series?

Have a great week!

Michelle

 

 

Celebrate the good, goals

November 1st! Winter goals!

Movin' it with Michelle

Winter months have always been tough on me, and with the days getting even shorter this weekend I am soaking up every ray of sunshine I can get. Today it’s 75 degrees out and It’s November 1st, so I will be outside planting some lilies a coworker gave me, and hope to get a couple miles in with my mini before dark.

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Pic from Pinterest

Because winter months have been hard for me, I thought I’d make a list of some “winter goals,” so here they are in no particular order:

  1. Take one day at a time. The holidays are going to be hard without my husband, but we WILL get through it.
  2. Drink all things peppermint. Because isn’t that one of the best things about winter?
  3. Wear all the boots. I love boots, leggings/tights with cute tops or dresses.
  4. Continue to run at least 2 days per week on the treadmill and TRY to get outside weather permitting for 1 day.
  5. Yoga, at least once per week…I suck at sticking to this goal so I’ll keep putting it out there to keep me accountable.
  6. Continue to strength train, and ramp up the weight workouts. I love muscles LOL.
  7. Watch my diet and caloric intake. We are having a “Biggest loser” challenge at work for the next six weeks and I’d LOVE to lose a few more lbs before my hubby gets home next year.
  8. Track my food on MyFitnesspal. EVERY day…not just when it’s convenient. Follow my progress if you use MFP, I am chelled73.
  9. Cook more food…I’ve been taking the easy way out for a while, so last week I made this yummy beef stew in my crock pot. 2 cups of red wine, 4 cups of water, 2 lbs. of cubed sirloin steak, 2 sweet potatoes cubed, one onion sliced, 2 carrots cut into ¼ inch disks, 3 cloves of garlic minced, dash of Worcestershire sauce, 1 packet of onion soup mix, salt, pepper and a bay leave—throw it in your crock pot on high for 4 hours. I DID season the steak with salt and pepper generously and set aside while I was chopping the vegetables.beefstew
  10. Call/text my parents more. At least twice a week…I miss them very much and we only see each other 2-3 times per year so I need to be better about communicating with them.
  11. Celebrate the good things, every, darn day…be it a good conversation with my teen, or a load of laundry I actually PUT AWAY right away after folding…#celebratethegood
  12. Continue to work towards my goals of moving back south (we moved to the Chicagoland area after I retired from the Air Force in 2011, we previously lived in Texas), and with that, LOOKIE LOOKIE what came in the mail last night?license
  13. And ultimately, keep movin’ forward…because isn’t that what life is all about?!

 

How do you keep busy during winter months? What’s your favorite thing about winter minus the holidays themselves? Tell me something good!

 

Cheers!

Michelle

race recaps, Uncategorized

Sycamore pumpkin 10k recap and weekly wrap up! 10/24-10/30

Movin' it with Michelle

I am happy to report that last week I ran THREE times, did yoga once (hey, that’s a lot for this non-yogi) and did weights twice. Here’s a couple of my workouts:

 

We watched the Cubs take the pennant and have watched all the games since…and yes, I am very tired from staying up even later than I normally do, LOL!

 

My mini was sick with a low grade fever so we hunkered down and rested this weekend so she’d be better for Trick or Treating tonight. #priorities We did manage to carve pumpkins, which is SOOOOO not my thing (I am not a fan of Halloween in general, I know, bah humbug) but I put on my happy face for my youngest.  My oldest had no desire to carve pumpkins with us this year…her friends are more fun, ya know? The best part is that my hubby Facetimed us while we were carving pumpkins and having not been able to talk to him since the end of September, this MADE OUR NIGHT!!!!

 

I also ran my very first 10k (yes, I know I’ve ran 3 full marathons and I’ve lost count of half marathons) on Sunday and it felt great to be racing again (even though my pace wasn’t really fast, it was fast for me not running for several months and just starting back a couple weeks ago). The race was the Sycamore 10k pumpkin run and many people were dressed up in costume.  They had same day packet pick up, and a nice area for us to hang out inside while we waiting for the race to start.  The race went pretty well, despite some CRAZY winds the last 4 miles.  The first 2 miles were glorious as we ran through wooded neighborhoods.  The Fall colors were brilliant!  I was afraid if I stopped to take a picture I wouldn’t be able to stop again though, so I have only my memories to share with you, LOL.  But as we hit mile three and turned left to make the first turn of the loop, the wind literally smacked me in the face and I got a little nervous.  Would I be able to finish this race with this wind?  Ack…I kept positive though, thinking as soon as we turned the wind would ease up…I was wrong, it just blew you sideways, LOL…So I stopped to walk the 4 mile water stop, and walked for a good minute to catch my breath. I really wanted to finish the race strong.  So I slowed my pace, and just settled in. I saw my friend Mark at the 5ish mile marker, and he ran me in the last mile or so giving me encouragement and cheering me on.  It was just what I needed!  I finished in just over an hour (1:03) and for not having trained really (2 weeks of running) I was quite pleased.

 

Overall it was a pretty good week which will hopefully carry over in to my 6 day work week this week.

How was your week? Any races to report?  Do you like carving pumpkins/Halloween festivities?

Linking up with Holly at https://hohoruns.blogspot.com and Tricia at http://www.misssippipiddlin.com for the weekly wrap!

weeklywrap

 

Cheers!

Michelle

real life adventures

Guide books and forgotten socks

Movin' it with Michelle

There are hand books, guides, text books and lesson plans for just about everything in life.  Heck, now a days you can just hop on YouTube and find instructional videos for just about any issues you may be experiencing.  Just the other day in fact, my vacuum was not sucking anything up.  This being my 3rd vacuum in 5 years, left me feeling very frustrated.  “Not again,” I thought as my youngest stated, “Well, we just have to buy another one!”  Absolutely not.  So with determination I started to look in various spots for what could be blocking the hose.  After a while I resolved to YouTube, and low and behold I found the exact spot to look for a blockage and what did I find?  One of my teenager’s no-show socks.  LOL! Will she ever pick up her stinking socks? No pun intended…lol

 

And that very sock got me thinking.  In a year and a half give or take, she will venture off to college.  We aren’t sure where yet, but she’s bound and determined to get out of dodge and has already pulled away more than I care to admit.  I say this because I know this is the stage in her life where she starts to pull away.  She wants to be with her friends, study after school at the library, go to clubs after school, and ultimately be anywhere but the confines of home.  I get that…I remember being in her shoes, signing up for the Air Force the summer BEFORE my senior year of high school because I was THAT ready to leave.  And I see myself in my baby’s eyes…she’s got a fire inside her and she’s ready for adventure.  With that I ask, where’s the hand book for letting go?

 

How on earth will I let this little girl go?  This little girl that saved my life in more ways than one.  This little girl that taught me more about myself, that made me grow up in to the woman I am today, that made me realize I DO deserve it all and that I would teach her the very same thing.  This little girl, now almost woman, that made me a Mom…I hope one day she sees how much I love her.  She doesn’t yet…but one day…

 

How will I be able to not see her every day, and how on earth do my own parents get through not seeing my sister and I every day?  I now understand the moments when I first joined the Air Force and seeing my Mother’s eyes fill with tears when it was time to say goodbye after a visit home.  I remember once scolding my Mom for staring at me when she came to visit when I was stationed in D.C. and I noticed her just staring at me smiling.  I remember how hurt she was when I did this, too, and wish I could take it back.  I wish I understood then what I do now, and that the relationship between a mother and her kids is priceless and precious and to not take it for granted.

 

But see, there are no hand books or YouTube videos when it comes to parenting, are there? Oh sure, those wonderful guides to pregnancy and raising children, but I think most of us can attest to the fact these books only are relevant in the perfect world, and sad to say that world doesn’t exist.  So now, while my teen brings home brochures and pamphlets for colleges with her eyes beaming, “Mom, let’s take a look at this one,” she exclaims, and I find myself having to plaster on the fake smile so she doesn’t see that I’m just not ready to let her go even though I am super excited for her future all that the same time.  “Sure honey, let’s take a look,” I say, just happy she’s including me with her choices. Because most days she hates the fact that I’m “holding her back” and not letting her go.

 

Today at work, it hit me like a freight train coming down the highway with no brakes.  In a year and a half, there won’t be any socks to pick up.  And that very thought makes pretty much every part of me ache inside.  But at the end of the day, we raise them up the best we can and then it’s time to send them off in the world to have their own adventures. No one said it would be easy, did they?  Where’s the hand book for letting go? Oh that’s right…there isn’t one.

 

So here’s to all the socks on the floor, and vacuums’ that get clogged.  May each one give you a memory that lasts a life time.  Because remember, the memories are the pages of the guidebook we never received.  And that, my friends, is what life is all about.

Races, running, Uncategorized

Bite the bullet

Movin' it with Michelle

Last night I went to dinner with my running friends to celebrate my friend Christine’s birthday. I hadn’t seen most of these friends since before my husband left back on my birthday. In January. Sigh. 


When you’re not running, training and/or racing it’s hard to keep in touch. Of course I’m thankful for social media and texting etc. but it’s not the same as physical interaction. So to sit with these awesome people for two hours made my day. It also made the fire for running burn again in my belly. They are all doing a 10k next weekend and encouraged me to sign up. 

And you know what? I couldn’t sign up fast enough. I’ve not run a single race this year. And that sucks. Of course my priorities are elsewhere right now. But I need to make time for me too before I internally combust.

So first thing this morning I signed up. 


Yay!!  This fueled me to run tonight. I ran FOUR miles after work today with my mini. She scootered along with me!!


We finished the day with a yummy salad. And what makes this even better is that it was my mini’s idea. Kale, romaine hearts, red onions and grilled steak topped with blue cheese crumbles and a little oil and vinegar. 


How was your day? Ever bite the bullet and sign up for a last minute race?

Cheers!!

Michelle

weekly wrap up

Weekly Wrap 10/10-10/16

Movin' it with Michelle

Last week was a busy week but a good week overall. Today I am linking with Holly from hohoruns.blogspot.com and Tricia from misssippipiddlin.com  for the weekly wrap up.  I love this linkup, and the wonderful women behind it.  Even if I don’t have much to report, I love visiting their linkup.  Please check it out if you can.

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I am proud to say I am still planking every day since my husband arrived in country. Tomorrow marks the 32nd week since he’s been gone, and I’ve planked daily since May 1st which is when he arrived in country.  I also made myself run last week, TWICE.  YAY.  While I still struggle with just a couple miles, I am happy to at least be doing more exercise.  My mental health has really been tested these last 7-8 months, and I just need to find time for me.

Here are the highlights from my week:

I finished staining my deck on Monday. It doesn’t look perfect, but with the harsh winter we’re due to have it’s at least protected.

Tuesday I celebrated my 2 year anniversary of trying out for MasterChef.  One of my proudest memories.

Wednesday we had some crazy storms but I caught this beautiful double rainbow from our administrative office window.

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Thursday we were feeling pretty stressed.  This pic of my daughter says it all:

Yup...hiding under the desk. I joined her for a bit. LOL
Yup…hiding under the desk. I joined her for a bit. LOL

 

 

Friday night I babysat my neighbor’s 3 month old baby boy. Let me just tell you what an honor it was to give back to a family that has done so much for us while my husband has been deployed.  They’ve plowed my driveway last winter and mowed my 1.5 acre lot the entire time he’s been gone and at NO charge.  Like, who does that?!?!  These people…so when she asked if I could babysit I jumped at the chance.  This family not only said they’d be there for us over this last year, but they’ve shown it and it made my heart happy to snuggle with this little cutie for a few hours to show my appreciation so they could get out and have some adult time.

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Saturday I was invited to a corn maze (Richardson’s corn maze) up in northern IL by my neighbor’s friends. What a blast.  We all brought food and cooked over a campfire, and then headed in to the maze.  It was dark…and I had a couple glasses of wine, but man was it fun!!  The kids had a blast too.

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Sunday was my lazy day where I catch up on laundry, do some cooking for the week but mainly just relax. I had missed my goal of running 3 times last week (to be fair I made that goal mid-week, LOL) so last night I threw dinner in the oven and hopped on the treadmill for a couple miles.  #winning

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What were the highlights of your week? Do you have any good casserole  or cook ahead for the week type recipes you’d like to share?  How many times per week do you try to exercise?

 

Have a great week, y’all!

Cheers,

Michelle

Uncategorized

Hey I ran!

Movin' it with Michelle

Well. Only two miles on the treadmill. But yesterday I ran. And it was glorious to blow off a little steam. I think seeing all the Chicago and TC marathoners last weekend tugged at my heart and I realized I need to somehow carve out 30 minutes 3-4 times a week for a little running/working out. 


Because someday I’d like to do another marathon. I’ve got some redemption to obtain. So this winter I plan on sticking with the ‘mill and my free weights to work on speed and getting leaner. I’ve got a few lbs left to lose which I am sure is the extra wine I’ve had to calm my nerves these last almost 8 months. Wow. Did I just say 8 months?  Hard to believe that much time has passed already!!!  We’re still planking every day to honor my hubby and his troops. Feel free to join in! I post every night on my FB/IG pages. 

Ok time to get back to stalking my daughter’s ballet class. Lol!!  This makes being on the go since 6 am a little easier to tolerate. 


Did you watch the marathons last weekend or know of anyone who ran? 

How do you keep your motivation when life crazies get in the way? 

Cheers!

Michelle

moving forward, weekly wrap up

Safety nets

Movin' it with Michelle

I’ve talked several times about the fact that I have been in the same career since I first joined the Air Force at the young age of 18.  Just three weeks after graduating high school I boarded a Grey hound bus and headed off to basic training.  My job was chosen for me, as I joined “Open General” in hopes of getting a flight line job, but alas.

Here I sit in a hospital laboratory, just doin’ my thing 25 years later.  And while this isn’t my career of choice, it’s a good job, that pays decently and provides for my family. So while I keep talking of taking chances and making changes, I know I need to be smart too.  I’ve got one kid going off to college in less than two years and I don’t want her to have to carry the burden of huge student loans like I have to (still a LONG ways to go to pay for my MBA) in my life.  I’ve got a little saved and will continue to save for her, but we all know they make college nearly impossible to afford in this day and age.

What’s my point? I’m never too old to learn!


Well, those that know me well know of my love of the beach.  I loved the coast of Texas, and love the coast of Florida.  Heck, any beach will do, really! I’ve made it abundantly clear to my husband that if he is going to continue his pursuits in furthering his Army career, my butt would be hunkered down on a beach somewhere while I continue to raise our youngest solo (once my oldest heads to college of course). So six months ago I applied for my Florida licensure, and finally have finished studying and taking my exam!!! Who got an 92%?!?!?  This girl!! All I have to do is send in the paperwork and the check for my license.  WOOT!!

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South Beach, Miami-One of my favorite pics from our trip last year
So while this job may not be my dream job, it DOES provide a nice life for my family.  Does that mean I am giving up on my dreams of being in the food industry?  Heck no…that just means I am doing what’s best for my family first.  It’s good to have dreams and goals, but those safety nets sure come in handy!

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photocred: memegenerator.net
Are you a believer in having a “Plan B?” as a back up?

If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

Who’s with me on starting over and getting back to working out this week, regularly?!?

Linking up with Holly @Hohoruns.blogpost.com and Tricia  @misssippipiddlin.com for the weekly wrap!!!! Please check out their blogs and the other awesome inspiring bloggers!

WeeklyWrap

Cheers!

Michelle