Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Top O' The Mornin' To Ya!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous Saint Patrick’s Day! The sun is actually shining here and I am feeling great! Fabulous and healthy food, exercise, and temperament are all on tap (as is, perhaps, some Guinness for later on this evening) for the day!

I was thinking that it might be fun to do something different in celebration of the fine festivities that this holiday is known to inspire. I, myself, do have a partially Irish ancestry and that may account for the fact that I am forever finding four-leaf clovers. Truly, if I were to wager a guess, I might estimate that I have plucked up nearly a thousand of these tiny plants over the years, and have even found several five-leaf and a few six-leaf ones too.

At any rate, because it is Saint Patrick's Day, and due to the fact that I am fully aware of how fortunate I have been to lose nearly one hundred pounds in just seven months (hard work and determination being the main factor, of course), I would like to spread the luck of the Irish to one fabulous reader! So feel free to leave a remark on this post if you would like to be entered for a chance to win a four-leaf clover!

At 11:59pm on March 19th I will put the names of all the commenters into a hat and randomly draw one happy person to whom I will send this symbol of good luck. (Note that it I will be permanently affixing it to a piece of card stock to ensure the integrity of the item through the mail.) I hope you all enjoy this little bit of Saint Patrick's Day fun, and I leave you to your celebrations with the following:

“May love and laughter light your days
And warm your heart and home.
May good and faithful friends be yours
Wherever you may roam.
May peace and plenty bless your world
With joy that long endures.
May all life's passing seasons
Bring the best to you and yours!”
~ Irish Blessing ~

19 comments:

  1. I love that Irish blessing, it's so simple but heartfelt. I'm also have Irish heritage but I've never found a 4 leaf clover, or any of these mutant 5 and 6 leaf clovers you speak of! :P
    Have a great St. Patty's day!

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  2. that is quite the luck to pick up that many. You must have quality eye sight.

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  3. Oh let me definitely post (at least my postage would be cheap *winks*).

    You are such an inspiration - why am I not surprised that we share a common ancestry (one gramma is Irish for me)

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  4. how fun! I've never seen a 5 or 6 leafed clover, your one lucky gal!

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  5. The Luck 'o the Irish is definetly with ya, Lassie!

    Question for you - How have you had continuous weight loss for 7 months? It seems that everyone has a plateau every now and then, but you haven't! I've browsed your daily eating... do you count calories at all? or try to balance carbs, protein, fat? It seems like you eat more fruit than veggies... I see you get your water every day (is it WATER or tea, or something else?) And it seems you do some kind of exercise everyday - but honestly, it doesn't look like it's a very strenuous work out usually... The Dragon Rowing sound strenuous, of course! Do you take supplements, extra fiber, or are you eating those 4-leaf clovers that you find?! Ha, ha! You're doing so incredibly well!! I started at 255 and my goal is also 150... I'd be over the moon to be so close to my goal at 7 months! ~ Angie

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  6. Happy St. Patty's day to you! Wow! Lots of luck you've been getting... I haven't seen a darn clover in forever! Congrats on your success... I always feel so inspired after stopping by your blog. Have a wonderful day celebrating! :-)

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  7. I could definitely use the luck of the irish. Please send it my way!

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  8. May the road rise up to meet you

    :) Happy St. Patties!

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  9. Happy St. Patrick's Day!! I'm almost half Irish myself, and my son was due on March 17, but actually born on the 19th.
    I have never found a four leaf clover, so consider me beyond amazed at your ability to find them! And I never even knew there were 5 and 6 leaf clovers!

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  10. I love the Irish Blessing - I enjoy the various choral arrangements of them.

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  11. Oh I used to love finding 4-leaf clovers...so much fun as a child. I used to live right next door to my great grandparents the first 10 years of my life, and Grandpa Clanton was the Irish side of my family. Love those Irish blessings, too. Pam has a really cool one on her blog also. :)

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  12. Just saw your streak is still intact, congrats!

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  13. Thanks and good luck to everyone in the giveaway!!!

    Angie, if only I could answer that simply! Lol! It's been a lot of things I think, that have aided me on this road so far. I think a bit g part of it has been making sure that I am doing what feels right, natural, and sustainable to me. It really does have to be an individual journey (based on the basics of good nutrition and physical exercise, of course). My best advice is to really look at what you can incorporate into your lifestyle for the long term and go from there; I have had a lot develop along the way that I never thoguht I would because I never forced anything. Don't get me wrong - I have pushed myself with workouts and the like, but I haven't taken on something that I couldn't do for the long run. No, I don't count calories although I do know that I eat an average of around 1200 per day; keep in mind that apart from the specific exercises I record on here that I live a pretty sedentary life. I don;t take fat into the equation all that much, but I do try to make sure that I eat out of the four food groups every day. I use carbs and protein when I need more energy or to be filled up a bit more. I do think that I eat more fruit than vegetables, but that's more a lazy factor than anything else (it's easier to just grab a banana than it is to cut up a bunch of celery). I used to be HORRIBLE for eating any produce, so I am really glad that I was able to make that adaptation and I think that it has made a bg difference. Water is recorded as water and tea as tea. I record exactly what I consume in a day with the exception of the occassional piece of gum or pills (multi-vitamins I just started taking, or rarely advil, Tums, etc.). As for the exercise I do whatever I do at the highest degree of difficulty that I can muster for that day. Whether it's an exercise tape, walking, or lifting weights I do what I feel I can - somedays I am really proud of what I accomplished and other days I feel like I am barely slogging through. I do know that when I tell people about the exercise that I have added into my routine since beginning all of this that I am very forthcoming about the fact that approximately half of it has been walking. I think that mixing up the activities really helps me too! The only supplement that I am taking or that I have taken this whole time is a pre-natal multi-vitamin I started taking about two weeks ago in preperation of my husband and I wanting to start a family (no, we are not actively trying just yet). I may just have to try those four-leaf clovers though - I wonder if luck can be ingested? I hope that answers all of your questions, but feel free to ask more if not. Angie, I assure you that if I can do this, anyone can! Best of luck!!!

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  14. One more thing I just thought of, Angie... I have had a few high fiber bars, but I have recorded each of those on my blog when I have eaten them. I would guess that I've had less than half a dozen of those since the start of the year. Cheers!

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  15. I love that Irish poem!!! And boy, I could use some good luck right now!

    You have done amazing things! You should be proud!

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  16. You look great and am loving the update pics what a difference!!

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  17. Thanks to everyone who entered!!!

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