October Goals!

Read about my September goals!

My September Goal was to NOT set any goals. I took a step back, took some time to refresh and renew my energy and it was just what the Doctor ordered  Curly Pink Runner needed.  

I spent the month of September thinking "is it October yet?" because I was so excited to set new goals. I really do love setting mini goals to help keep me be accountable to my big goals in life.

OCTOBER GOALS;

1. Double Unders.
 I consider touching a jump rope as an element of torture to begin with, let alone for double under practice. Nevertheless, I'm not about to be whipped by anything in life..............unless it's a wicked little jump rope. Ouchie. I'll be practicing my double unders every day for the month of October. No, I can't even do one, so I can only go up from here.

(if T-Rex can do 'em, I can do 'em.)

2. Grocery shop, not snack shop. 
Although I eat very clean and watch my macros, I'm the queen of snack shopping. I need to prep better, but I also could save a LOT on unnecessarily spent dinero by planning ahead and avoiding those last-minute stops at the store. My goal for the month of October is to prep ALL my meals and snacks in advance so that I don't do any last-minute runs through the grocery aisles for fast snacks- even the clean ones. 

3. Start my day with truth. 
Attitude is intentional. You don't just happen upon a good attitude- you choose it. I find my ability & inspiration to choose joy from truth. I find truth in God's Word. I want the first thing I do everyday to be seeking His truth. Maybe it's a few quick verses on my Bible App on my phone before I get out of bed- it doesn't have to be long or elaborate but I want to start my day off with His truth.

Who else is setting goals for October?? 
Share your goals with me! 

Mr. Marathon, my one and only.

Lots of people run marathons-- it's uncommon, but it's not as rare as you might think. Marathoners slip through the cracks of sanity into one of two different buckets; Team A. "marathons are amazing! que chronic marathon training and annual marathons." Team B. "I temporarily lost my mind and nothing could ever compel me to live through such torment ever again."

When I crossed the finish line of my first marathon, the pieces of my body were dumped equally into aforementioned buckets leaving me with the middle-of-the-road approach to marathons (please note the pun).

Running the marathon was one of the most amazing experiences in my entire life. It was a truly amazing accomplishment for me. My training plan fell apart, I struggled with crazy health issues and nearly gave up, but I crossed that finish line happy and healthy and insane!!

Post marathon I had a stress-fracture scare that kept my shoes unlaced for 3 straight weeks, allowing me plenty of time to think about where I wanted to take my running. I'm a planner, and every step I take is premeditated.
What am I going to do with running? 

Another marathon?

Crazy run a mile everyday streak?

Do I want to run a Boston Qualifier??

My 3 week recovery finished beautifully and I was back in motion. I ran free for a month (and dropped my pace by a full minute), ran in the middle of the night, and ran a 339 mile relay and kept running my little heart out all summer long. In the back of my mind I was planning to run another marathon this fall.........but I kept procrastinating on any sort of training plan. Some weeks I ran every day, other weeks I'd spend less than 20 minutes with my running shoes.

Subconsciously, I started feeling like I was failing at this whole running thing. Shouldn't I be training for another marathon? Speed work, tempo runs and buying stock with GU or Shotbloks? Running = racing, right? I'm a runner, but I don't own a garmin, a heart monitor and I don't have wireless ear buds.
There was this little mountain of pressure starting to grow within me.
 I'd run a quick 2 miler before work but as I untied my shoes, a little voice would chirp "that should have been 5."
I'd crawl into bed on a Saturday morning after a long night shift and my instagram flooded with post-long-run photos from my runner friends would make me horribly jealous and contemplate skipping sleep to go run.
A combination of poor nutrition and a significantly less regular running schedule made my mile pace slip from the low 8's back to the mid 9's.
I tried to plan for another marathon this fall, but my heart wasn't in it.
Running started to become a guilt-ridden and leave a bitter taste in my mouth.

Ahem, time to re access.


I really love running.
It's precious me time that I value for the wonders it works in my heart and mind. The mental and emotional value to me is far greater than the physical benefit.
When I run, I can forget the snarky comments from a coworker, the horror about how much my new tires will cost, the frustration with my blog HTML, the pressure that I put on myself when I look in the mirror. Running frees my soul in a way that few other things.
I don't run to compete, to push myself or get crazy fit.
I run to enjoy, to savor and to restore my mental clarity.

I don't want to take my running anywhere. 

I don't want to box it up, schedule it out and make it another check mark on my to-do list. I spend too much of my life bouncing from item to item on my to-do list --- the last thing I want to do is make running a requirement instead of a release.

I want running to take ME places. 
(just not the the fridge.)

I want to run another marathon.
Marathon training takes time, a heck of a lot of energy and a decided disinterest in your toenails.
I have a shortage of both time and energy and I'm already down two toenails (hello gym-fail).
There's another marathon on my horizon, but it won't be in 2013.
Somewhere, sometime down the road, I'll be running more and set my sights on another marathon.
Until then you'll find me enjoying the course, loving the miles and letting the pressure go.

When is your next race?

Do you run for pleasure or for purpose?

How many toenails do you have right now?

Five Things Friday

1. I'm pretty sure my nightshift coworker thinks I'm busting through a nasty break-up after the string of country tunes I had on repeat at work this week. Negative ghost rider, I'm just channeling my inner country girl......

2. I didn't celebrate runatworkday last week and I have felt guilty about it ever since. Oops. 

3. I purchased some peppermint extract to add to my chocolate protein shake for a little make-believe peppermint mocha action. I was so excited, I added just a teensy bit too much extract. It was like 5 years of Christmas in my mouth, and yes, that's a LOT of Christmas. Or 5 teeth consecutive cleanings. Or slamming an entire pack of peppermint gum. 

4. I don't always vacuum, but when I do; I vacuum ever inch of my house, my car and the neighbor's house. Don't get me started because I don't know how to stop!

5. The Color Run has been crazy nuts popular in the USA this past year and evvvveryone and their grandma runs them. It's supposed to be the funnest run on the planet, but I think the thought of getting pelted with anything during a run is just unpleasant. I'm probaably too much of a neat-freak to survive that kind of race. #getyourrainbowoffmyface

Vacuuming or sweeping? 

Color run thumbs up or thumbs down?

National Pancake Day.

aka; the best day ever.

Yes, I love pancakes, and way more than any 4 year old you have ever met.

No, that's not normal, and I'm totally okay with it.

Pancake eaters are happier people. 

(That's just a guess, but I'd willingly volunteer to aid in such a study, where do you sign up?!?!)

If you love pancakes, we are soulmates this is the post for you.

If you don't love pancakes; we can't be freinds skip this post you heartless, taste-bud-less creature.

If I were president, you can bet your butter knife I would make September 26th a National Holiday. The day would begin with pancakes, bacon and coffee and end with a nice long run to burn off aforementioned little discs of fluffy-sweet-carb-heaven. 

(Don't worry- there would be vegan pancakes (no bacon), gluten-free pancakes and carb-less pancakes for those so inclined!)

Because honestly, I've never met a pancake I didn't like- pumpkin pancakes, paleo pancakes, burnt pancakes, chocolate pancakes, mancakes, blueberry pancakes, left-over pancakes, gluten-free pancakes, flat pancakes, lumpy pancakes, skinny pancakes, potato pancakes (and I don't even like potatoes!) and my personal favorite- the protein pancake.

In fact, I may have to attribute my love of running to this article!! 

Will run for pancakes.

Favorite pancake topping?

(blueberries & bananas)

How often do you have pancakes?

(once a day)

Best pancake you ever ate? 

(I don't discriminate when it comes to pancakes. they are ALL my favorite)

The adult version of monsters under your bed.

In case you hadn't noticed- it's Monday ya'll. 

When you were a kid, you worried about monsters under your bed. 

As an adult, you worry that tomorrow is Monday. 

No, I'm not from Texas but I thought that opener needed a little more ooompha to it, and 'ya'll' seemed to do the trick. No, I actually was just perusing the food blog of a southern cook and the grits, pork chops, creamed spinach and sweet tea recipes reached off the screen wrapped around my vocal chords and then 'ya'll' just popped right out. No, I probably won't start every sentence in this post with the word 'no'.

 No promises, however.

No promises; but a confession. 

I freaking love Mondays. 

Mondays are my faaaavorite. Like,  for realzies. I'd list the reasons for my enduring love for Mondays, but I realize you all do have lives to live and Monday to go hate; so I'll summarize. 

Roll your eyes, roll 'em. 

It's my story and I'm sticking to it. 

Maybe it's genetic, and can't help that I have all this Monday-love; but I have a sincere soft spot in my heart for the Monday haters. Ya'll are missing out. 

Thanks to my night-shifts-- my Monday is lived and loved before yours even begins. While you are searching for your keys, setting a world record for pancake consumption or commuting to work; I'll be tucking my curly mop into bed. But before I am lost to the world; Monday left a message for me to pass on to you.

Tips to make your Monday a little less Monday.

For the fitness addict: Try a new workout class. Smash your current PR in the weight room, at the track or on the yoga mat. 

For the Paleo diet eater: It's cheat day!! Don't save your cheat meal for the weekend, save it for Monday. Talk about turning Monday into your favorite day of the week!!

For the unhappy at work: Remember when you were a kid and your imagination turned anything and everything into whatever you wanted it to be? Get back in touch with that skill, pronto.

For the music junkie: Download a new song or album or try a new station on the radio. Chances are the office is tired of you whistling the same song everyday in the elevator, so spice it up a little, yeah?

For the person with no taste buds: Go ahead, get your pumpkin spice latte. I'll look the other way and we can still be friends.

For the animal lover: It's called puppies typed into google. You're welcome. 

For the child at heart: No, you can't wear stripes and polka dots to work (oh wait, that's actually coming back in, so disregard), but nothing is stopping you from a lollipop, catching some cartoons on your phone or throwing a knock-knock joke out to your coworkers. 

For the fashion lover: Give yourself a 20 minute allowance of window shopping on blogs, pinterest or wherever your fashionista genius is sparked. (You can look, but you cannot buy.) 

For the clutz: your weekend mishaps make the best tall-tales at work. Unless of course, they involve your tail...........I'd keep that one under wraps (har, har, har.)

For the foodie: Loose your elbows in a bowl of bread dough. Or banana cream pie. Or, spinach. Create, taste, enjoy and share with me!!! 

For the Stay-at-Home Mom: No real life experience to offer you on this one, but I've heard that studies show chocolate in moderate doses (yes, this translates into as many pieces as the number of kids you have) are pretty much a win-win. Correct me if I'm wrong.

For the blogger: pretend html and self-hosting don't exist. They are big scary monsters, so avoid them on Mondays, they'll be there the other 6 days of the week.

For the Person with a Heartbeat: Smile. Your attitude is everything; it's hard to start your car if you don't put the key in the ignition. 

Happy Monday!! 

xoxo 

The Curly Pink Runner

Chocolate Zucchini Protein Muffins.

Hi my name is Elizabeth and I'm addicted to muffins.

That soft, gooey little dude that pairs perfectly with dark coffee.

Moist, just a bit crumbly and so sweet and delicious you plan your day around eating it.

Just me?

Ummm................I digress.
Oh. Growing up in a large family, all of us girls learned to cook and helped quite a bit in the kitchen. My sisters are stellar cooks. I managed to get the short end of a lot of genes in my family, including in the kitchen, but the one thing I was famous for was my muffinry. (I realize I just made up that word, but roll with it people.) Anytime I had muffins in the oven, I had a line of siblings waiting in the kitchen for the timer to ring and the first tray to come out. My teenage brothers can put away 6 muffins in one sitting, so I had a lot of muffin-making practice and almost as much muffin-tasting practice.

Unfortunately...........most muffins are oh-so-yummy-to-your-tummy and oh-so-crappy-for-your-lappy. I mean......eat them and watch your lap disappear while your waistline grows. Or maybe I'm too dedicated to rhyming and I should have let that one slide.........

My goal was to recreate the oh-so-tasty muffin with a better protein to carb ratio. 

I'm happy to say that after two trials runs, I've developed the ideal little muffin- high in protein, low in carbs and perfectly decadent without processed junk to clog up your system. 

Bake 'em, taste 'em and if you eat them all in one sitting, it won't be the end of the world.

First there was a messy kitchen...........

Then there was attempt #1, which I named 'fake cake'. It turned out okay, but I knew I could do better.

And then there was the second attempt, and the little muffin that made everyone break out in smiles!!

Moist, full of flavor, with the melty dark chocolate inside. Um. YUM!!!

Zucchini Chocolate Espresso Protein Muffins.

6 egg whites

2 cups shredded zucchini

1/3 cup coconut oil

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

4 scoops chocolate protein powder

4 TBS cocoa powder

2 TBS instant espresso granules

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup maxi dark chocolate chips

In separate bowls, combine wet and dry ingredients, omitting chocolate chips. Combine both wet & dry ingredients until just mixed. (It will be pretty runny/soupy-- no worries!!) Generously spray muffin tin. Pour 1/4 cup mixture into each muffin tin. Garnish with 3 chips. 

Bake at 350 for 18 minutes. 

*DO NOT overcook!! Protein powder turns to RUBBER if you overcook it! Watch it carefully and adjust cooking time if needed!! 

Macros: Each muffin is 160 calories, 8.4 grams fat, 13.3 grams protein and 14 grams of carbs. 12 servings.

Happy muffin making!! If you like the recipe, be sure to tell me what you think!

Five Things Friday.

1. If killing spiders makes me a bad person, I want to be the WORST person you have ever met. Yes I know it's fall, and fall means spiders, but spiders mean I'm on a rampage.......you can have two legs or four legs but you 8 and 15 and 176 legged overachievers are getting stomped, cut into pieces, burned and fed to the goats. 

2. Sweatshirt weather is over taking the state of Kansas, and I could not be happier! If you need me, I'll be hiding in my hoodie until April 1st eating pumpkin chocolate bread and hoping for snow.

3. Sara Bareilles is an ultra-talented singer who doesn't get enough attention. Her station on my spotify is insanely good. Go take a listen, and thank me later!! 

4. I have 99 problems, and maxing out my monthly data allowance is one of them. Can it be the 22nd already?? There are 2 smart phones on our plan, and we usually use just under 3G's of our 4G allowance. Somehow this month we managed to reach of 4G limit 6 days early. 

5. Speaking of phones- who has an Iphone?? Ios 7.0 get a thumbs up or a thumbs down? I live under a heavily bearing pear tree, so I wasn't aware that we were even up for an update until my fb newsfeed started to get hammered with 7.0 hate. So far most of my friends are NOT in favor, and I'm starting to dread making the switch. Any perks? Please tell me I'll love it?!?!

What kind of phone do you have? 

Spiders or snakes-- which are worse?

Five Posts I Always Read.

If you've been blog hopping this month, you've probably run across 5 or 10 (or 125) blog posts entitled 'Five Posts I Never Read'. 

The concept intrigued me and I found it fascinating until 6 blogs posts later I realized I pretty much only write posts that people never read. Good thing my sister loves me and will read every post no matter what. :) On that slightly depressing note, I decided to put my own Curly Pink Runner spin on that blog post theme. 

I'd much rather talk about what I LOVE than what I don't love (spiders, weak coffee and being late) so here are some super duper posts that I geek out whenever I find in my reader.

(Disclaimer; I am by no means accusing anyone of 'bashing' other bloggers by sharing their opinions on what posts they don't like to read. It's not hateful, and I get it, I promise.) 

Five Posts I Always Read. 

Race Recaps. 

And if it's your first race of that distance, I'll probably read it twice. Simply put, I enjoy it when an athlete takes the time to consolidate their thoughts on their recent achievement. I believe in celebrating our achievements, analyzing them for future improvement and sighing with satisfaction with a job well done. (Some races SUCK, and writing about it can help get it out of your system.) Race recaps are awesome, keep them coming! (I just tricked you into running more simply for the sake of securing me as a permanent blog reader. I'm so sneaky like that. You can thank me when you place in your next race!) Tell me about how you ate your sports beans at mile 5, felt like dying in mile 6 and then finished in a pool of sweat that swept your future love interest off their feet. I'm all ears.

Your world-traveling posts.

Travel pops up among my top 5 favorite ways to enjoy life and I have an undying loving for exploring this amazing country. Time and dinero won't allow me to always travel as much as I'd like so I love exploring via your posts. And for those of you who live in absolutely beautiful and fantastic states (ahem, any state with over-grown hills typically referred to as 'mountains'), I'm okay if you travel out your back door, take some pictures and post them. A trip to the mailbox, when it includes the rockies is totally blog-worthy. 

Any post and every post with the word 'Pancake' in the title.

And if you have the words 'chocolate', 'pumpkin', 'banana' or 'peanut butter' in your title preceding the word pancake, I will print copies of your blog post and hang them above my bed. I'm not even going to pretend to have a normal relationship with pancakes. If you ever need to bribe me, you now know what works.

Any post including minions.

I may or may not be a full grown adult, but please take a moment to appreciate the adorableness of minions. Moment taken. You may proceed with your life with an even bigger smile on your face than you had before and not a doubt in your mind that I'm 100% crazy.

Your Blonde Moments.

It's nice to know that I'm not the only one who turns on the blender without the lid, forgets to put my car in park (Seth, I forgot to tell you about that!!), wears white shorts on a run in the rain and tells the cashier to 'have a nice weekend' on a Tuesday. A sense of humor is one of the most attractive things in life and on your blog. I laugh with you, you laugh with me and the world becomes a brighter place. 

The internet told me to..........

.........eat brownies.
 It all started with a pan of uber fudgey brownies that someone brought my parent's as a house-warming gift (moving into that neighborhood stat!), and dang, they were amazing. Someone knows what they're doing with a brownie pan.

With brownies occupying my every waking thought already on my mind, I got online to find two posts in my reader from two of my favorite bloggers with recipes for brownie creations. Brownie-Batter-Protein-Mug-Cake and Brownie Protein Pancakes?? The internet has spoken, and I don't have to be told twice.


I may or may not be easily influenced when chocolate is involved.
Mission accomplished.

Brownies- cakey or fudgey?

Thankfully someone else (basically every other blog I read) posted about running; so I took the hint and took off for some quality time with my running shoes. 

I'm hoping to find a post or two this week entitled 'how to find a million dollars' because those would be instructions I be oh-so-very-happy to take.

When was the last time you caved to 'internet peer-pressure'?

Five Things Friday.

1. Five things Friday is my excuse to be 100% random without feeling like I have ADHD. I take a small portion of all the random things rolling through my brain and dump them into one mostly insignificant post. I think I spend half my life rerouting my mental capacity to what I want it to think about, not just what pops into my brain. I like new shoes and pass the peanuts please. 

2. I was feeling confidant of my ability to avoid social media addiction after multiple mediums including facebook, twitter, pinterest had entered my world with no life-altering consquences........ #helloinstagram

This article was rather revealing..........um......guilty. Guilty. Guilty. Guilty. Especially #8.......#theyknowmysecrets. 

3. This song. On repeat. Someone tell me WHY it' is so freaking catchy?? 

4. It's September, but I wrote July on 3 separate papers I dated at work today. Hello, I'm Elizabeth; I own 7 calendars and I can't remember what month it is. 

5. Have you ever tried car shopping with a person who has OCD and zero car-knowledge?? Don't go car shopping with me. I know exactly what vehicle I was, but don't ask me if it has 4 cylinders or 15. 

What is the most random thought you had today?

When was the last time you bought a vehicle?

9/11 Perspective.

The lingering odor of burnt eggs and toast for breakfast. A sweater pulled hastily over my pajamas. Dragging feet as I accomplished my chores before another day of school began.

It was the beginning of another Tuesday, a day that felt like any other day. 

A phone call from my sister- "Mom--- turn on the TV." We all piled onto the couch, my sister came home early from work and schoolwork was abandoned. My Mom, born and raised on Long-Island was completely shaken. Frantic phone calls to her three siblings to make sure they were safe. Her three siblings, their spouses and our 7 cousins were all safe. Heartsick, terrified and safe. 

We watched the footage air for 3 consecutive days, and it left an impression on my young mind. Questions, anger and sometimes fear. It felt very far away- but yet so completely overwhelming. As a child watching the terror in the faces of the witnesses followed by the immense bravery of the rescuers, it was awe-inspiring. People who went above and beyond the call of duty. People who stopped in their tracks to stop give aid in a time of crisis. People who had to wake up the next morning without their loved ones. And the next day, and the next, and the next.

Even today as I reflect, I am truly amazed at the selfless bravery of hundreds of men and women. Hundreds of men and women who gave their best that day and continue to give their best today.

Over the years, thanks to time and maturity, I've come to grasp the severity of the events of 9/11 more than I ever did as a loud-mouthed, over-opinionated mini-adult in 2001.

Our country came together on 9/11. Nothing stood in the way- language, gender, occupation, race, fiscal status-- nothing mattered. People saw needs, people met needs. 

A strong country is built from strong communities. Strong communities are built by strong families. Strong families are built by strong friendships. Strong friendships are built by strong individuals. 

The strength of this nation comes from strong, loving, capable people joining hands and creating a force far greater than they could ever produce on their own. 

There's no scaling down the events of 9/11. It was a national crisis. It revealed the strength and integrity of hundreds of people who today we call heroes. 

I distinctly remember watching in admiration as countless people made a difference in a time of trauma. I wanted to be ready for trauma- I wanted to be a part of healing- I wanted to be a hero.  

Crisis does not make heroes; crisis reveals heroes.

Being a hero doesn't always look like pulling a woman out of the rubble of a fallen building. Heroes are built in the commonplace of day to day, the minutiae of our everyday lives.

  

Being a hero is helping an elderly woman carry her groceries.

Being a hero is admitting you were wrong. 

 Being a hero is holding that small child during a thunderstorm when you have a to-do list a mile long, because they only feel safe when you are right there. 

Being a hero is accepting yourself, 100% everyday, no reservations. 

Being a hero is giving someone a second chance, even when you're scared.  

Being a hero is being a man or woman who is true to their word.

Disaster happens. No life is left untouched. Storms rage. Death calls too soon. Relationships break. 

The integrity we cultivate on a day-to-day basis is our only preparation. Crisis can swallow us whole. Or we can stand on the foundation of integrity and face each raging storm. Fall 7 times- get back up 8. 

Be a hero. 

Five Things Friday.

1. Do not watch Katy Perry's new music video for her amazing hit "Roar". I'm going to spoil it and tell you exactly why; there is a scene where she allows a monster spider to crawl on her and if you are anything like me, you will pee yourself with fear. That's not a fun thing to have happen at work. 

2. My brother texted me this picture, along with an applause for my apparent parking skills. I'd like to blame the fact that I parked 3 feet from the curb on the fact that I was driving his truck with a manual transmission, but unfortunately, I do this all the time. I never use my entire parking spot. What can I say, I guess the curb needs a little bit of space?? 

3. I read online yesterday about girls selling their positive pregnancy tests online. I thought that was the most bizarre thing I had ever heard of, until I kept reading and discovered that people actually buy them!! Ew. Just ew. The #1 one reason why girls bought them were to use as revenge on ex-boyfriends. People are so creative these days. If I wanted revenge, I'd just keep on being my awesome self, but that's just me. 

4. How many times is too many to listen to the same song on repeat? I listened to the same song 12 times in a row at work last night. Please tell me I'm not the only one who just can't get enough of Jason & Kelly?? 

5. My sister and I took her kids to the pool on Saturday and we had a splendiferous time. (Yes, Tabs; I even got wet up to my knees.)  It was the first and last that I used my swimsuit this summer. I have some water-loving nephews- my 6 year old nephew goes in deeper water than I do. 

What was the last song you listened to on repeat? 

Parking Pro or Parking Pathetic?

August Goals RECAP and September Goals.

August Goals;

1. 21 Day Detox Challenge

Done, with the exception of the fact that I brought back coffee on Day 15. I could live without it, I just didn't want to. Fail?? Hmmm..........you decide.

2. Get 6 hours of sleep a night. 

I was fairly successful in this goal. My work schedule did dictate some pretty tight turn arounds, where 6 hours wasn't an option, so I focused on the one thing within my control that typically prevents me from getting enough sleep- wasting time on the internet. I struggled quite a bit with insomnia this month, so my attempts to sleep more were somewhat thwarted. 

3. Read a book.

Negative. I started 3 books; 1 fiction, 1 motivational/lifestyle wellness and 1 educational and I finished a grand total of none of them. However, since that's more books than I've even touched, let alone opened this year, I'm accepting it as a baby step and looking forward to finishing all three of them!

4. Get a new 1 mile PR.

I ran fewer miles in July than the previous 12 months, so I thought I'd challenge myself to run more by shooting for a new 1 mile PR, and ended up running even fewer miles than before. 

September Goals;

1. No goals.
Breather maybe??
Confession; I'm a little bit goal obsessed. I'm an extremely organized, structured person and I literally crave goal-setting. But lately- I'm been more interested with the goal-setting than the goal-following through and we all know where that leads us. (nowhere.) I've set & met some great goals so far this year. As invigorating and refreshing as goal setting can be, it can also turn into a monster that controls my time and energy, and I don't want to waste my life on my to-do list.
It's hard for me to find that slice of balance-- motivated yet not compulsive. 

Sometimes I let goals change from a road map to a road block -- I put important things, or people in my life 'on hold' in order to focus on my goals. A little extreme, perhaps.

When it all boils down to it, I have one goal; love God, love others and love life.
 I set smaller goals in order to make sure I'm making progress towards my ultimate goal, but really, my small goals are just stepping stones towards my ultimate goal, not the end all.
Sometimes I get stuck with my zoom lens on and get hung up on my little goals instead of staying alert to the big picture, and how my little goals make or break the big picture.

This is a big month for me and my family; my parents & younger siblings are moving from the house where they've lived for 23 years. Just a tiny bit of work involved. I left quite a bit of stuff stored there when I moved out, so I have a huge sort/save/throw project ahead of me this month. I want to have extra time to help them move & transition into the new house.
I'm transitioning into different hours at work, juggling a new job and adjusting to a new schedule.
So for September, I'm zooming back out from the little things to get a tiny bit of perspective and free my time and energy to be plugged into my family.

Goal; be awesome.