With my kidney disorder, I’m supposed to limit salt. Anything I want/crave is salty; even a lot of so-called healthy stuff has too much sodium for me. I have to avoid a lot of processed stuff. To boot, I don’t like sweets. No, really. I don’t. So even the protein bars/etc that are supposedly good for you and may contain less salt that other things simply don’t appeal to me. I love fruit and veggies, but they all taste horrible right now. Minus oranges and grapefruit. So maybe I’ll just stick with those right now.

Snacks make me nervous and stressed out. So I just don’t snack. Which makes me eat too much at meals. Sigh.

Anyway, I wanted to tell you a few things as I purposefully missed last week’s Eat Live Be. (Apologies to other participants.) I needed a week off from talking about all things healthy. Why? I just needed to be doing all things healthy. I really stepped up my workouts last week and logged a total of 25 miles (see me at Daily Mile). I am now into week 3 of my second year of Couch 2 5K. I had to restart this year as I had an injury late last year that ruined all of my training. I’m doing well; my ankle hates the treadmill but I’m working on it.

And tonight I start a new session of classes at the YMCA. I’m not just doing one yoga class per week now. Tonight is Zumba (what? oh no!) followed by Power Yoga. That’s right, two hours in a row. Wednesday will be Hip Hop Cardio (no video, kthx) followed by Yoga. That’s right, two hours in a row. I think I might be slightly insane, but it’s okay. I’ll be keeping up my running and elliptical as well. Thursday will remain my definite day off from the gym with options to go on Sunday if I feel so inclined. Or not if I don’t.

I feel great as of late. Physically. I have more energy. I’m sleeping better. My pants fit! I’m not seeing a huge difference on the scale, but my face lost its post-holidays puff. I know you know what I mean. I am super proud of myself — not for the weight loss aspect but for a photo I shared last week. I pulled the wagon with both boys — both of whom have gained weight — and I was not winded. I was not sore the next day. In fact, I felt amazing afterward. I am getting back to the healthiest version of me.

And it feels great.

Now if only I could figure out my snack issues. Hmm. What do you snack on that is low-or-no sodium?

Don’t forget to visit the Eat Live Be Facebook page and check out the other participants. I’ll be scouring their posts for healthy, sodium-free or sodium-lite snack ideas today!

Sarah at Cucina Bella | Cate at Sweetnicks | Maris at In Good Taste | Chris at Mele Cotte | Faith at Bon Appetit | Kristen at Dine and Dish | Joanne at Eats Well With Others | Casey at The Starnes Family | Patsy at Friends, Family and Food | Claire at Cooking is Medicine | Allison at Sweet Flours| Jen at NJ Epicurean | Jennifer at Lick-a-Plate | Rivki at Healthy Eating for Ordinary People | Sarah at Sarah’s Sweet Creations | Denise and Lenny at Chez Us

But real ruts are a little more difficult than that, aren’t they? And yes, I was in one prior to the beginning of the year. What changed? Support, a friend willing to meet me at the gym for my gym days and a raging desire to do better by myself. Changing up my workout routine, rewarding myself with positive speak and the occasional treat and generally loving myself for who and where I am at any given time also help me get out of and stay out of ruts.

There’s no concrete advice in that except that whole loving yourself part. It works. It really does.

As I said last week, I’m not checking in this week. Not only am I bloated (yay womanhood!) but yesterday was the Super Bowl. So, pfft. I’m still counting myself -3 total, which is what I was before the weekend. I won’t apologize for my genetic femaleness nor my first real indulgence since the New Year. Yesterday was a holiday for the sports lovers among us. I celebrated. And I hit the gym before 9:00 this morning. Points for me. And I’m going back again this evening for yoga. Points again.

Don’t forget to visit the Eat Live Be Facebook page and check out the other participants. I know several have checked in with progress, so go celebrate with and encourage them.

Sarah at Cucina Bella | Cate at Sweetnicks | Maris at In Good Taste | Chris at Mele Cotte | Faith at Bon Appetit | Kristen at Dine and Dish | Joanne at Eats Well With Others | Casey at The Starnes Family | Patsy at Friends, Family and Food | Claire at Cooking is Medicine | Allison at Sweet Flours| Jen at NJ Epicurean | Jennifer at Lick-a-Plate | Rivki at Healthy Eating for Ordinary People | Sarah at Sarah’s Sweet Creations | Denise and Lenny at Chez Us

This week we are supposed to talk about Our Favorite Healthy Change. I laughed. I hate change. I’m no good at it. I dig my heels in. I might whine. (I do.) I like things to be the way they are… even when they aren’t working.

But in the spirit of Big Changes, I’ll think about it.

To be fair, I’ve been living kind of healthy, minus last year’s slip-slide into the holidays, for awhile now. But I have made a change that is working for me and that I kind of like. Actually scheduling in my workout time means that I workout. Who knew? Minus last week when the Viral Ick crept through our house, downing each and every one of us. I only worked out once, but I’m 100% okay with that. I ate well — when I could — and I will not feel guilty about resting to let my body heal. Hopefully this week as we all begin to get better, I will get my 3:00pm workout in along with a morning workout with a friend three days per week. Hopefully. We all need to get fully better first! (Note: Today is a bust. I STILL can’t breathe. And, again, that’s okay. The not exercising part, not the not breathing part.)

Another great change? Well, it’s half inspired by a post Melissa Ford made on BlogHer last year and half inspired by this challenge. And HGTV. You see, on weekend days, I watch HGTV while I lounge about. Sometimes it inspires me to clean, even when I’m sick. Yesterday I de-cluttered our kitchen, including the cabinet above our sink which holds all those one-purpose-only things. I decided we could do without something — our deep fryer. To be fair to us, we haven’t used it in nearly three years. But it’s there, it’s taking up space and it is a temptation. Until yesterday. In its place? My cookbooks! Or, some of them. The rest are all on our shelves in my office. But now they can go here! WOO!

So, two great changes. Whew. That’s enough talk about change. Back to normal.

Next week is official Weigh In Week, being the first Monday of the month. I will attempt to step on the scale, but it’s a bad week for me to think about weighing in do to cycle related bloat. The truth is that I am currently down three pounds (-3 total) right now (the most recent pound likely due to the aforementioned Viral Ick) and I won’t be next Monday. And that’s okay. I know my body. Life will return to normal shortly thereafter and I’ll be back where I am right now. However, if I’m grumpy next week, please point me to this paragraph. Thanks.

Don’t forget to visit the Eat Live Be Facebook page and check out the other participants.

Sarah at Cucina Bella | Cate at Sweetnicks | Maris at In Good Taste | Chris at Mele Cotte | Faith at Bon Appetit | Kristen at Dine and Dish | Joanne at Eats Well With Others | Casey at The Starnes Family | Patsy at Friends, Family and Food | Claire at Cooking is Medicine | Allison at Sweet Flours| Jen at NJ Epicurean | Jennifer at Lick-a-Plate | Rivki at Healthy Eating for Ordinary People | Sarah at Sarah’s Sweet Creations | Denise and Lenny at Chez Us

The obvious answer is: Myself.

I decided that after five days of two workouts per day, I would allow myself a day and a half off. Meaning I wasn’t going to do any workouts on Friday (though I did take the kids sled riding which must account for something, right) and then, on Saturday, I was going to do a very easy yoga workout. And on Sunday, I’d get back into my groove. Except Saturday came and I went out with friends instead of working out… and ate way too much. And then Sunday came and I really just felt like relaxing (and taking the boys to their first soccer practice of the year) rather than working out… and ate way too much.

So now it’s been three days. And I haven’t done anything. And let’s not even talk about the portion sizes from the past three days, okay?

So, yes, I’m my own biggest challenge. I’m working on it — on myself — as best I can.

I don’t quite know if this is weigh-in week or if it’s next week. The good news is that I stepped on the scale this morning and I’m down two pounds (-2 total) since we started four weeks ago. The bad news is that I find that number completely and utterly frustrating. Granted, if I hadn’t been a complete waste of space this weekend, it might have been different. But now I’m frustrated and want to quit. See? My own biggest challenge = me. Sigh.

Don’t forget to visit the Eat Live Be Facebook page and check out the other participants. Maybe they’re more inspirational this week. I sure hope so.

Sarah at Cucina Bella | Cate at Sweetnicks | Maris at In Good Taste | Chris at Mele Cotte | Faith at Bon Appetit | Kristen at Dine and Dish | Joanne at Eats Well With Others | Casey at The Starnes Family | Patsy at Friends, Family and Food | Claire at Cooking is Medicine | Allison at Sweet Flours | Jen at NJ Epicurean | Jennifer at Lick-a-Plate | Rivki at Healthy Eating for Ordinary People | Sarah at Sarah’s Sweet Creations | Denise and Lenny at Chez Us

While they’re racing to see who can lose 40 pounds first, I’m joining some other bloggers in a healthy new year. I do have a weight loss goal — 20 pounds — that would put me back in the healthy BMI range and back to where I got last year before I jumped off the wagon. As I said yesterday in my 2011 Projects post, I’m also working very hard on food consumption, regular exercise again, and water, water, water. So, very simply, those are my goals. More specifically:

1) Really focus on portion size. My problem is that I really, really like food. I like the way it tastes. I like to prepare it. I like it. A lot. And so I have this tendency to fill my plate. And eat it all. I’m mindful of portion sizes when I give the boys’ their plates; I want them to eat enough but I don’t want them to have too much (because they WHINE). And so I need to do it myself. Maybe I need to start making yucky food. Ha! And no pop. I mean, c’mon. I have a fire department specific issue with this as well, which I’ll talk about in a post soon. Other fire families will understand when I post it, too.

2) Exercise 5 days per week. I’m not talking marathon exercise lengths of time. Just something. For 20 minutes. Five days per week. I can do more, but 20 minutes is my minimum. I will start running again — when it warms up. Sorry, I don’t do cold weather running. Nor do I run on treadmills as my ankle cannot handle it. Yoga and Jillian Michaels will be my cold weather exercise resources.

3) Eight glasses of water per day. I used to be great with this, and, yes, I threw myself off the wagon. Time to get back on. I feel so much fuller and so much cleaner when I have my water intake up, up, up!

And so, we’re supposed to share out starting point. Yeah. Hmm. I weighed myself for the first time in, oh, five months… right in the midst of holiday consumption. Silly FireMom! Last week I ate well and exercised, so for my first check-in, I am xx2 pounds. I won’t tell you what that weight is as I don’t have to: I am more than a number. It’s not a horrible number, and it wasn’t overly surprising as I could tell the difference in how my clothes (and bras, people, BRAS) fit. When I check-in next week, I will report I am xxx, which is + or – x pounds from my start of xx2. That’s how I’m rolling with this one. Someday when FireDad is home, I’ll have him take a full body shot. Yay?

Next week’s topic is Where Is Your Support Community? If you’d like to join in, go ahead! You can also check out our Facebook page. The more the merrier.

For more motivation, check out the blogs of the other participants:

I started running. Again.

It’s been a long time since I ran any distance unless you count chasing the boys around the yard. Or down the hall. Or up the stairs. Or down the stairs. Or around and around and around. Perhaps the constant chasing has just helped in rebuilding my endurance. Whatever the case, I started working on the Couch to 5K program. Yes, I’m kind of insane.

I used to be really in shape. Remember those days? High school and early college were a time when I could run three to five miles without huffing and puffing and generally falling over. I had ankle issues due to a softball injury but I could still make my way around the track. And then late college (read: beer) happened. And then marriage and babies (read: lots of weight) happened.

For awhile, I felt too embarrassed to even try running again. In the weeks leading up to the decision to start the c25k program, I really dealt with the self-conscious issue of meeting other, or rather, real runners while I was out for a run. The morning that I finally made myself strap on my sneakers and head to the track, I said to FireDad, “But what if there are real runners there?” He pushed me out the door. He’s very supportive.

I had to restart my first attempt at the program a week later because the pollen level in Ohio is somewhat ridiculous. I was down for the count for about five days. As soon as I could breathe again, I restarted with week one, day one. I am proud to announce that I have completed my first week. I know this doesn’t mean much and that if I attempted to run a 5k right now that I’d probably throw up shortly before I passed out. I’m also sure that people who are also utilizing the track are thinking to themselves, “Why is that woman running and then walking, over and over?” Interval training looks funny unless you know that someone is interval training. Even then it does look funny, doesn’t it? (A big tip for anyone wanting to attempt this program: download the podcasts. Good running music with audio cues. There’s also an app for that.)

As for how I’m feeling? Flipping fantastic. My ankle is coming along with me so far though I may need to reinvest in a quality brace in the near future. My mood has improved greatly, especially right after a run. I am more tired at night when I’ve run earlier in the day but that’s also mostly acceptable as I fall asleep with more ease. And, as an added bonus, do you remember how in high school gym class your gym teacher tried to tell you that if you exercised, your cramps would feel better? She was right. I still don’t like her but she was right.

I’m never going to run a marathon. I wasn’t a super long-distance runner even in my most fit of days. I am, however, going to run a 5k this year. I’m going to keep running because it makes me feel good about myself. And for thirty minutes, I’m alone. I do hope that this added exercise helps me get into more shape. I’ve hit my ten pound goal and, BMI wise, could use to lose another ten, though I’d be overjoyed with just five. I’d like 29 to be my healthiest year ever.

And, yes, I still take pictures when I’m running. Bless the Hipstamatic app.

If you’d like to follow my progress, feel free to follow my #c25k tweets on twitter (@FireMom) or follow me on DailyMile. Also, if you have already completed the program or are actively working on it, let me know. I’d love to talk about your progress and learn things!

“The first of April is the we remember what we are the other 364 days of the year.” – Mark Twain

I planned no April Fools’ jokes. I fear, however, the gorgeous 80 degree weather with a lovely Spring breeze that we are experiencing today will be Mother Nature’s cruel joke against us. April is, of course, the cruelest month though, despite what T.S. Eliot wrote, January and February seem much more difficult for me. Today the sun is shining and I feel like a new person. A person soon to become one year older but a new person all the same. Ah, birthday month is upon us.

Despite my reservations about my upcoming birthday, I am delighted that it is April. The birds are chirping. The sky is blue. My apple tree is finally forming buds. My lilies sprouts continue to grow daily. The breeze is whipping the curtains. And later today, we’ll take another walk. We’ll eat dinner with the windows open, the screen door pulling the air through the house. We’ll breathe in the fresh air that evaded us all winter. Eventually, of course, it will rain again. But we have boots. And rain jackets.

My April desktop features our loves, old and new: taking walks with our new wagon.

(This month’s desktop came from Designer Digitals.)

I am also pleased to announce that I am on track with my Project 365. My March mosaic is finished.

But I am also worried. There were a few pictures in March that were done as we entered that haunting eleventh hour and I realized that I had taken no green pictures. My theme for the month was green and despite having taken good, quality, artistic pictures on certain days, I found myself at 11:35 with no green pictures to show for all of my work. I am uncertain if I will do a theme this month though, again, it kept me on my toes. I’m hoping to avoid default pictures (using the only picture I took on a day) or eleventh hour “what can I find in my dark house that is okay to photograph” shots. We will see.

Book wise? I have read 15 books thus far. If I continue at this rate, I’ll be well over my goal of 50 books this year. My worry, of course, is that with the lovely weather we’re having, I’ll be outside chasing small children more than I will be cuddled up on the corner of the couch reading. April, however, is known for rain and the like so I imagine I should be able to stay on track. I have some interesting books lined up. I’m pleased with my progress thus far. The boys have added 25 books to their physical  library (though their list only shows 22; some aren’t available on Goodreads). And I just ordered eight more from Scholastic. What can I say? I can’t say no to a book purchase.

Weight wise, I have hit my first goal (10 pounds)! I am hoping to continue with the weight loss as I have something big planned for later this month. The goal I have in mind for April 24th is healthy and do-able but not at the current rate in which I have been losing weight. It also took me three months to make it this far so I won’t be absolutely devastated if I don’t hit my twenty-four day goal but, still, I’ll be kicking the workouts up a notch!

April will be a busy month for us. I’m learning to re-balance my time. My #momspotting gig has come to an end but I’m now a Contributing Editor for Mom Central on the Tech Blog. (My first two posts are up! Go see!) I have some interesting photography prospects going on as there are many newborns in my life right now. Add in Easter (and these cupcakes), the start of t-ball season, four other family birthdays, my birthday, rehearsals, the big thing at the end of the month (oh-so-secretive, no?) and the daily ins and outs of life and April seems to be overwhelmingly busy.

Overwhelmingly wonderful as well. Happy April!

“It is the memory that enables a person to gather roses in January.” – Unknown

January is over. I can’t say that I’m sad to see it go. What started off as a wonderful month has become an increasingly difficult year. The death of my beloved Grandfather has thrown me for a loop, leaving me unable to find the words to properly blog over the past few weeks. With some other severe health concerns in my husband’s family, FireDad and I are somewhat dreading the continuation of this year. That sounds so negative and unlike me, unlike us as a whole.

And yet, while I’ve been immensely sad, the quote above applies. Something about the passing of someone so dear allows us to reach into the back caverns of our mind and remember things we simply hadn’t taken the time to pull to the front of our brains. I know that I was lucky. Or, rather, I am lucky to have been so loved by such a wonderful man. I am the luckiest of all of the grandchildren in the fact that my children not only got to meet their great-grandfather, their Big Papau, but they got to love and interact and play and laugh with him as well. I feel sad that my brother and his wife won’t know that same joy. I feel even more sad that the other grandchildren won’t get to introduce their future spouses to Grandpa. Maybe I am the luckiest. I do try to remember that.

Despite the grief of this month, it’s been a rather successful one. I’ve read eight books and, no, I don’t know where I found the time. I hit my deadlines though it was very difficult for me to do last week and contributed to a lack of blogging here (and there). I drove around Ohio. We just finished the floor in our kitchen and dining room (more about that project here). (By we I mean my amazing husband with a smidgen of help from his dad, his grandpa and a phone call to one of my uncles.) I started yoga in a class setting and really kicked up my own personal workout time, successfully losing two pounds this month (though I may have gained that back this weekend during a lovely day out with my friends). I started hosting two separate (awesome) giveaways. I had a post syndicated on BlogHer (go leave a comment on my parenting in public post if you would). And I took (at least) one picture, every single day.

In 2008 when my maternal (step)Grandfather died, I failed that very week at Project 365. I really thought that the passing of my paternal Grandfather would do the same. Instead, in the confusing hour after that phone call, I picked up my camera and expressed my grief visually. I may fancy myself a writer but the photographer in me comes out when I can’t find the words to say what I’m feeling in the deep recesses of my heart. January, of course, proves difficult in this region when it comes to creativity and lighting. I do hope that during the month of February I can work on being a bit more creative and not just flubbing through the project. Either way, I’ll keep at it.

January was difficult but it seems that I not only survived but managed to be rather successful despite the fog of grief. I will admit that even though they often bring tears, remembering and sharing stories and memories about my Papau has been a welcome distraction from the sadness. It’s been my way of gathering roses in this bleak midwinter month of January. Though, I’ll be honest, I’m ready for Spring as I have an idea to honor my Grandfather.

Plus, I’m cold. Brr.

New Year’s Eve was great. The kids played together, danced and raced their Mario Karts. The adults played card and board games. Everyone, including every last child, stayed up until midnight. I got to kiss FireDad as the ball finally dropped. And, minus packing up to leave, not one child cried. All evening. There wasn’t even much whining or arguing. It was a New Year’s Eve Miracle!

Which means it’s now 2010. Time to make some new goals for the year.

1. Reading Goal: 50 books. I set a goal of 60 last year and made it to 57. I find this acceptable. I’m dropping back down to 50 because I know it’s attainable with everything else that I do. I have my 2010 read list on Goodreads set up and will really be striving to keep it updated this year. More over, I have another goal to add 100 books to the boys’ library this year and I’ll be keeping track of their new books on Goodreads as well.

I thought about discussing my five favorite books that I read this year but, I’ll be honest, I can’t pick five. I will say, however, that The Time Traveler’s Wife was not only my favorite this year but likely ranks as my favorite ever. I need to re-read previous favorites and make that final decision.

2. Photography Goal(s): Participate in (and finish!) Project 365, get better at sports photography, purchase my new personal dSLR and push myself creatively. As you know, I’m working part-time for the local newspaper. Minus the getting better at sports photography, which will come in time, my goals are all personal. I failed at Project 365 last year but have faith that 2010 will be my year of completion. Similarly, my plan in 2009 was to purchase my new dSLR but then my laptop died mid-year and that took over the purchase money. Then I got the newspaper job and my plans for sticking with Canon flew out the window (we shoot with Nikon) so I’ve been busy researching Nikon purchases. As far as pushing myself creatively, it’s harder in the winter but I know that the reason I fail with Project 365 is because I get stuck in a rut. I hope to start following some more blogs, join some great challenge flickr groups and generally surround myself with other awesome photographers (likely virtually) to keep me on task. Also, I’m going to make a Vision Board (not just about photography but largely).

3. Fitness Goal: Tone up and/or lose 10 pounds. I don’t want to discuss the failure of last year considering, at one point, I exceeded my goal and then lost it. I do, however, want to get back on the fitness train this year. I’m fine with certain aspects of how my body has changed but I desperately need to tone up. I am not needing to lose a ton of weight so I’m not applying to be a #mamavation mom but I have considered the sistahood. I’m also back to tracking things on SparkPeople. I think I’m going ahead with the purchase of Wii Fit Plus. When warmer weather comes around, I might do something more outside. Not sure yet.

As per usual, I hope to stay organized, be a great mom and continue with some of my professional writing goals. (Which I’m apparently doing in ways that are bigger than I could have imagined at this time last year.) I’m hoping that at the end of 2010, whether or not these three(+) specific goals are fully “finished,” that I am a happy and healthy version of myself and that my husband and children are the same. Really, in the end, that’s the ultimate goal but, for me, that happiness is tied to some of these things as is my health.

Here’s hoping your 2010 is happy and healthy, too!

A lot happened blog-wise in 2008. We’ve hosted many a giveaway. We’ve reviewed a lot of things. We’ve passed on many safety tips. We’ve shared bits and pieces of our life; sometimes specific to fire life and sometimes just about living life as a family in general. We have met some amazing people over the past year: firefighters, paramedics, other fire families, other niche bloggers and other bloggers in general. It has been amazing. We have learned a lot from others this past year.

Personally, some of my 2008 resolutions panned out. I planned on reading 50 books. And I finished another one last night, coming in at 56 books for the year. I didn’t, however, keep my Goodreads list updated. So, I’ll add that into my reading goal this year. I did very well with Project365 until the day of my grandfather’s funeral. That day, I took no pictures. And I just never got back on the wagon from that point on. As for the weight loss? Well, I did lose the pre-pregnancy weight. But did not achieve the pre-pregnancy size. And so, after I hit that initial goal, I set a new 10 pound goal. I’ve lost two of that and, so, doing math, I apparently have eight pounds left to lose.

All that said, my 2009 goals?

1. Read 60 books and keep my 2009 Goodreads book list updated so that others can follow along with me. 60 books in one year means reading five books per month. I can totally do that, folks. I’m going to need book suggestions along the way. And, no, I’m not counting kids’ books because I’d be well over 60 by the end of the week. But, speaking of children’s books.

1a. Introduce 50 new books to the boys’ own library. (I say introduce because I first wrote “buy” but some of the books will be given to us for review but will still be added to the library. So, we’re going with “introduce” as the word.) As important as books are to me, I want my boys to continue to grow in their love of books. While we are huge library-goers, I also want to make sure they have their own books. (Not that they don’t. Remind me to photograph our books sometime soon.) This number should be no problem thanks to preschool and Scholastic book orders. I will keep track of what books are introduced via a Goodreads book shelf on my account. (Also, pass on suggestions, if you will!)

2. Participate in Project365 even if it turns in to Project312 or some other variation. I was pretty upset when I missed a photograph on the day of my grandfather’s funeral. And though I probably took a picture almost everyday since that September day, I just couldn’t somehow forgive myself for missing a day. A good friend has encouraged me this year to keep at it even if/when I miss a day. And, so, I’m going to. I feel very happy about it! (For those unfamiliar: Project365 is a challenge to take one picture, everyday, for a year. Or, you know, at least one picture per day.)

3. Lose those pesky eight pounds. They’ve been pretty stubborn. I don’t quite know how to go about it right now. I’ve gotten back to the YMCA since my foot injury and the general ick that BigBrother brought home from preschool twice over. I’ve joined another fitness class set to start in a week. I’ve decided that when I actually schedule my gym time at the beginning of the week, I am much better at sticking to it. But my guess is that I need to reevaluate what I am eating. I honestly have no clue how to go about that in a healthy manner. Time to do some research. I am, however, employing the site First 30 Days for some positive reinforcement in sticking with my goals. I encourage you to do the same!

I also have some goals for this blog as per a discussion over at Mom Bloggers Club. Basically? I want to bring you more fire related stuff this year. More safety tips. More fire videos. More fire related giveaways (books, toys, movies, safety gear). More inclusion from other fire wives/moms, husbands/dads, families and firefighters themselves. Just more general Stop, Drop & Bloggy type stuff in addition to the stuff that happens on the family side of fire life. I’m excited to see where that goes this year.

Goals aside, I hope that 2009 is a safe and happy year for you and yours. Sending our best from the Fire Family!