Bench Presses

I'm bench pressing 30kgs now! This might not sound like much compared to what males can do but it's over half my own weight so I'm pretty proud of myself.

Of course, by 30kg I mean I'm benching 10kg plus the bar which the gym staff tell me weighs about 20kg, so I should really say I'm doing 10kg but that just doesn't sound anywhere near as impressive!

I wonder how much I could bench press if I keep training. I want to find out!

Blue Fire Restaurant

Tuesday is date night. Last night we went a restaurant at Melbourne Central called Blue Fire.

Blue Fire's feature dinner is the Churrascaria ~ 7 different kinds of meat are grilled on massive skewers. Waiters than bring these skewers to your table and carved you a serving of meat. And it's all-you-can-eat. However, I don't think too many people would be able to get through more than one round of each kind of meat. But if you should choose to rise to that challenged and succeed please let me know!

Blue Fire offers a great deal on Tuesdays ~ if you order the Churrascaria plus either an entree or a dessert item, you food bill is halved. So James and I ate lots of meat, dessert and also enjoyed a drink each for only $70 (note: the Churrascaria usually costs $49 per person). We were also provided bread with dips, vegetables and potatoes, so there was plenty of food.

The service was fantastic ~ all the waiters were very friendly an attentive. I highly recommend a visit!

Thanks Tatenda for telling us about this, and I still definitely want to go with you sometime!



Enjoying our pre-dinner breads with dips.

If I go back again I'll probably skip this portion because after all that meat plus the required dessert, I was so full my stomach hurt.

However the capsicum and cream cheese dip was really good!







Olives... yum!













My dessert ~ lemon meringue tart accompanied by homemade ice cream and a berry compote.
Unfortunately I didn't remember to take a photo of this wonderful dish until I'd already eaten half of it!






I wore this skirt that night.

Okay so the photo is quite irrelevant, it was just a great excuse to show it off because I'd recently bought it and I love it a lot.

The photo doesn't do it justice.

The Outcome....

If you're wondering about the outcome of my discussion with my gym manager, it's coming I promise. I haven't forgotten about posting it, promise. I've just been quite busy at work. Stay tuned...

How to make a run fun

Today at the gym I went for a run... on the treadmill. Okay, I haven't worked myself up to going on substantial runs in the real world just yet (although I do run for 15-20 minutes around the neighbourhood with James sometimes), but I am able to clock 30 minutes at a decent-paced jog on the treadmill. So I'm getting there. Yay!

Prior to my run today, I decided I would do a full 30 minutes. On a typical day, when I hit the 23-25 minute mark I have to push past a psychological barrier. I know it's purely psychological because if I can run for 23 minutes without stopping then why not go to 30, right?

Today I almost stopped at that barrier. And you know what got me through that last five minutes? A fast, energetic, pumping song came up on my mp3 player. It was inspiring. Two minutes left and the song ended so I backtracked to play the same song again.

I'm telling you, music can make all the difference.

The Biggest Loser

This is one of my favourite TV shows! I just finished watching it tonight. I find it inspiring to see so many people make the decision to change their lives. I love following them on their journey through pain, tears, and plain, hard work! It would be so awesome to be a Biggest Loser Trainer one day!

Toasted Muesli

In July at a student retreat, my friend Daniela taught me how to toast muesli. If you toast it yourself, you can put whatever ingredients you want into your muesli! To do this you need raw oats, honey and any other ingredients you want such as dried coconut and sultanas. Dan gave me some leftover muesli to try toasting it on my own at home:
Dan's toasted muesli is on the left, mine (on the right, in case you weren't sure) is a little... overdone.

However in my defense, the leftover untoasted muesli Dan gave me from the camp already had the sultanas and coconut mixed in to the oats. You're supposed to toast the oats with the honey first and then add the coconut and sultanas later.

I gallantly picked out every sultana from the mixture, but have you EVER tried to pick desiccated coconut out of a coconut-and-oats mixture?

Trail Mix and Apricot Yoghurt Balls

My two new favourite snacks!

Trail mix is a mixture of various nuts and dried fruit including almonds, cashews, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, Brazil nuts, dried apple, sultanas and really just about anything you want to put in there. The nuts are typically raw and unsalted (as opposed to roasted and salted). I love it because it's so healthy, so when I get hungry between meals and snack on handfuls of this stuff I don't actually feel guilty the way I would snacking on chocolate or lollies.

I discovered Apricot Yoghurt Balls because, funnily enough, my friend Olivia feeds them to her 2 and 3 year old children as snacks. No it's not baby food but it is yummy! Basically it's dried sweetened apricot covered by yoghurt and it's ball-shaped.

Enough said. If you're after healthy snacks these delicious foods can be found in the health food section of any good supermarket.

Dream in the Making

It would probably help to know what my dream even is, huh?

I want to become a fitness instructor. Maybe even a personal trainer. Hey, one day I may even open my own gym, or a whole franchise of them! I'm a bit of an ideas woman, so trust me when I say that I have plenty of ideas swimming around in my head.

Why fitness?

I see a huge need for fitness professionals, especially in a country like Australia where obesity and related diseases such as heart problems and type II diabetes are increasing at alarming rates. I want to play a part in serving people in this area of need. People who know me today would say I'm fit and healthy. They know I enjoy my exercise and go to the gym regularly. They know that I'm an advocate of eating a healthy, balanced diet. But I remember myself as a teenager, being the "chubby girl". Secretly consuming sweet snacks because of the momentary good feeling I got as I ate them. Being told repeatedly by my parents that I need to exercise more, but not really knowing how to do this and not even knowing that I could actually do it. I want to show people that they can be fit and healthy ~ exercise is hard work but it's possible to enjoy hard work! Food does not have to control us, we can control it!

I remember when I first started going to aerobics classes. I was 18 years old and in my first year at university. I really enjoyed them and thought to myself, "wouldn't it be cool to be an aerobics instructor?" Of course like most thoughts we have, I dismissed this and continued pursuing my studies in an area that I thought I should be studying - Biomedical Science. I went on to complete this degree with honours, only to discover during my honours year that I passionately disliked the day-to-day job of scientific research.

Upon learning about what I want to do with my life, the initial reaction of many of my friends and family is typically, "that's SO different from what you do now!". Which just goes to show how much we define ourselves and one another by our jobs or careers. Many of my more recent friends and acquaintances do not even know that I was never formally trained in accounting and that I actually studied medical science, of all things!

But anyway, enough of the background stuff. I have some exciting news: tomorrow afternoon I meet with the manager of the gym that I am a member of. I spoke to him two weeks ago to ask about his professional opinion on the many training schools in Melbourne. He told me he's about to book some of his staff in for training and would be happy to book me in with them if this is something I am interested in.

Tomorrow we are going to talk more about this, but also about the prospect of employment for me with the gym. So I am truly excited.

The Perfect Breakfast

I know what you're thinking - Where's the cereal? Where's the toast? Is Fiona becoming some sort of diet freak?

Let me put this breakfast into context: every morning I eat my breakfast whilst doing my quality time with God (okay, actually I eat the orange first then drink my tea whilst doing my QT because I don't want orange juice drippings on my bible!). After that I head to the gym for a workout.

I have tried all sorts of before-workout breakfasts from no breakfast at all to a small bowl of cereal. The former leaves me too hungry to work out properly and the latter never fails to give me a stitch ~ my stomach's way of complaining that it is trying to digest food and how dare I try to divert some of it's much-needed blood flow to my other muscles!

But oranges and a cup of tea does the trick - providing me with enough energy to get a good workout each morning, but not enough of a full belly to give me a stitch. Hence The Perfect Breakfast!

Someone should really make a movie out of that title, LOL.

Of course there was another reason I wanted to showcase my breakfast. The way the sun rays were shining across it in those morning hours made me decide that this photo had to be posted in my blog!

A better named Theme

That's right I've settled on a more appropriate theme name, which you've already figured out by now is "Food, Fabulous Food!"

I like my food: I love to eat it, I love to share it, and yes I do at time like to admire it, particularly if I've played a part in preparing it. I've got some cool (and some very random) topics to share, so stay posted!

P.S. how funny... I'm actually blogging about my blog. Well, at least out of the last few posts I've come to some sort of conclusion so it wasn't all for naught.

Defining "Creative Cookery"

Beloved reader, I just wanted to make sure we are on the same page.

In order for me to truly be a Creative Cooker, I need to cook more often, something that is not currently happening in this season of my life. So by "creative cookery" I guess I really mean "creative pictures or moments to do with cooking or simply just food". Really, any photos to do with food and food-related products. Apologies for any confusion! I chose the title because it sort of describes these them, and also because of the illiteration effect.

So if you have a suggestion for a better theme title, please do let me know!

And finally, in keeping with said theme, check out a recent comment from my friend Olivia on my MySpace. If you can't figure out which comment it is, here's a hint: it's a food-related one and it's yellow. (That hint should make you curious enough to check it out, haha!)

I will resist the urge to divulge what the comment is about, but I know definitely one reader of this blog will know. =)

Creative Cookery

This blog is rather aimless. So in order to solve this dilemma, I'm going to have a theme for it. This theme may change every once in a while, dependant on how soon I run out of ideas to keep it going at an interesting level.

But in keeping with my blog name, I have a rule: in order for the theme to legitimately be on this blog, it must be fun!

The first theme of this blog is, of course, "Creative Cookery". And you are in for a treat! I've already got a growing library of photos to share with you from my cooking adventures!

Allow me to share the inspiration behind "Creative Cookery":

Wonderful, scrumptious, fantabulous lemon tarts that just melt in your mouth. Made by none other than my friend Daniela, they featured at my recent birthday party. Best yet, I got to take the leftovers home and eat them every day for the next week!

SnareShots

I have been playing around at slide.com and here is one of the products of my work. If you like it, you can check out my other slideshows that I've made.

Let me know what you think!



P.S. If you want to know more about any of the photos, click your mouse cursor over the slideshow. Then when you place your mouse curser over any photo, a caption will appear like magic!

Never too small...

"If you think you are too small to be effective, you have never been in bed with a mosquito." -Betty Reese

I read this quote this morning and wanted to shared it with you. I hope you find encouragement in it, especially in times when you are down and your dream just seems too far away and unreachable to attain.

My "Land of Familiar"

I work for my church full-time as an administrator. My main responsibilities include managing the church finances and payroll, bookkeeping, and administrating human resources for the missionary-sending branch of our church.

The job pays well and the work conditions are fantastic ~ great colleagues, friendly and loving work environment, flexible hours and freedom to be myself in a place that cares for me not just as an employee, but as a person.

Moreover, I am naturally gifted in the area of administration which is demonstrated by some of my personality traits: I like everything to have its place, I prefer to be invited to events in advance rather than a day (or less!) before, I am constantly looking for ways to do things more efficiently... and math was one of my favourite subjects in school so the bookkeeping and finance stuff comes easily.

But (!) I have learnt that just because I am employed in a job that I'm good at with ideal pay and work conditions, doesn't mean that I am living my dream. I might be living someone else's dream, but it's not necessarily the fulfillment of my own.

I originally took this job because the opportunity presented itself at an ideal time ~ I had just completed my University degree and needed a full-time job. I was about to get engaged and wanted to save up as much money as possible to financially prepare myself as best I could going into marriage. It was convenient. It was easy. It was helping me fulfill my goals at that time. I was good at it!

In the past few months, even though I know I have one of the best jobs around, I have found it difficult to get up in the morning to go to work. Some days I just want to stay in bed. I knew that something was wrong. At times the thought would cross my mind that maybe I should pass my job on top someone else and free myself to seek what my heart is really passionate for. But then "reality" would come crashing in to interrupt these thoughts: "But your job is so great!" "But you earn a good income and your family needs that income, you can't give it up!" "But this job is so stable and secure, why would purposely choose to do something that's not?

Friends, it is easy to allow these and many other thoughts to hold us captive in our own Lands of Familiar. Yes, Familiar is comfortable, it's easy, many times it's even really good. But it's not the best. If we choose to stay with the good at the cost of getting the best, then we could instead end up with a life full of regret for never "giving it a go".

If we want to seek our dreams, then we must be willing to step over our fears, out of our comfort zones and pack our bags, prepared to leave our Land of Familiar to go in search of our Promised Land.

Are your bags packed?

Testing, testing, one, two, three...

I am writing this post using the just-released-only-today version of Blogger - none other than Beta Blogger! Or is it Blogger Beta?

So at the risk of the title of this post sounding like what I say into a newly set up microphone every Sunday morning, I couldn't think of a more appropriate name for my first post.

As a newbie to the wonderful world of Blogs, I must admit that my current status in relation to blogging is best described as "addicted". Last night, as my husband peacefully slept the hours away, I was up until 1am teaching myself HTML so I could learn to edit my blog templates. Yes, that's plural, not singular! One new blog was not enough for me, I had to be the proud owner of several (specifically, 4 and counting...)

And 1am can't be considered that bad because in those wee morning hours, 2 of my friends logged on to MSN! Were they blogging last night like me? Were they just getting started at a time when I was about to retire to dreamland?

I may never know the answer...I was on invisible mode so no one could see me online. *wink*

If you're like me, you've probably spent much time creating your own little cyberworld for your friends and family to see - fixing up your MySpace site, editing your Friendstar profiles, giving someone a Hi5, uploading photos into your Multiply album and learning to use RockOn to make slideshows to insert into all of the above.

To what end? We assume that everyone else out there is interested in what we have to say or show. But are we all too busy working on our own stuff to bother to look at the product of someone else's labour? Is anybody out there even reading our stuff?

I guess if I ever get a comment to this post, I will know the answer.

Easily sidetracked

How time flies ~ it's been almost 2 months since my last post!

A common enemy of living out our dreams is "responsibility". It can cause years, even decades to go by before suddenly one day we wake up and wonder what we've been doing all our lives. Now I am not saying to stop being responsible. But I am saying that responsibilities should not be our excuse for living an unfulfilled life.

It is too easy for most of us to settle for the mediocre: a secure job, a steady income, a life where we can predict what tomorrow will bring. It is easier to settle for what we know and are familiar with rather than taking that step into unknown territory. It is easier to fill our lives with busy-ness and productivity so that we don't have to think about whether we really do enjoy what we are doing, or whether we will regret not "having a go" when we look back at the end of our lives.

Wilkinson addresses this very thing in his book ~ I can totally identify with the main character, Ordinary, living in my very own Land of Familiar. What is my Land of Familiar? Stay tuned for the next post!

No more excuses

Bruce Wilkinson teaches that everyone has a dream. I believe him. His book is leading me to search inside myself and rediscover what my dream - or dreams - are.

For a long time, I thought I was one of those people who doesn't have a dream. But a realisation hit me last night. I have been unknowingly following a pattern set out for me by my parents. As I look at their lives right now, I believe neither of them are living their dreams. Probably their biggest excuse for this is that they are committed to putting family before themselves, whether that be raising and providing for their children or caring for their elderly parents. But just the other day my Dad shared with me that he isn't enjoying life right now - he is overworked and stressed, and I think he feels that there is nothing he can do to change his situation.

On the other side of the coin, I have a husband who is a huge dreamer! One of his biggest dreams is to be a major influence in Australian politics. Late last year he made the decision to go back to university, and this year he commenced part-time studies in a law degree on top of his full-time job.

I was so happy for James and yet at the same time so jealous. Happy because he was taking a pretty big step towards making his dream into a reality. Jealous because for years I had felt I had no dream, and when James started his law degree, I felt that it was my responsibility was to give up my own life and dreams (I thought I had none anyway!) and support him. After all, a law degree was a pretty big financial commitment so I have better keep working in my job to help support my husband.

Last night I realised that I was using James as my excuse, just like my parents, and probably my grandparents, have unknowingly used family as their excuse. I even secretly blamed James for my not having a dream, let alone pursuing one.

So no more excuses for me! I am ready to step out, to give it a go, to fail and to pick myself up again. To break through obstacles and opposition. If you want to dream and feel that you're the only one in your family, you are not alone! Partner with me and we'll encourage and spur one another on!

I am ready to live. Are you?

Introducing the Dreamer

My name is Fiona and I'm the dreamer.

I personally feel it's nice to be able to attach a face to a name and a blog, so here I am. :)

And so begins the journey...

I picked up this book yesterday at the local Christian book store. It's called The Dream Giver, written by Bruce Wilkinson.

I read the first half of the book in one sitting, I couldn't put it down. This book is the inspiration for starting my own dream diary. I decided to write this diary online - right here - so that others can share in my journey and be inspired to also get out of their comfort zones, exit their "Land of Familiar" and begin their own journey towards the "Promised Land".

I can't promise my story will be the most exciting journey for you, my friend, because, like you, I have no idea what lies ahead. But I certainly hope that my story will inspire you to construct your own.

Let's dare to dream together.