Stage(Rage)Coach

20 Saturday Apr 2013

Tags

california, country music, festival, freebird, Happiness, love, music, music lovers, stagecoach

I just realized yesterday when I was creating my “wanderlust” category after blogging about our Kona trip (Kona-teering) that I never did get around to blogging about Stagecoach, the 3 day country festival we went to this past April.

Now this is a major problem for two reasons (1) half of the reason for this blog is to document our life, travel, trips and adventures for Colt & I to reference them again in the future when we are crossing things off our bucket list or just reading stories to our children on how rad our life was, and (2) it was hands down the best concert I have ever been to in my life. So here I am (back)-blogging, but hey better late than never.

For those of you that don’t know what Stagecoach is it’s basically California’s country music festival that takes place over a three day period at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. It is a million degrees and each day has a killer line up of country artists, vendors and fun. This was this years line up:

But before I go on about the actual weekend let me back track a bit. Colt LOVES country music and I mean (LOVES) it. He is a cowboy hat, boots wearing, chewing tobacco country music lover. As for me, well not so much (until now that is) but I am always down for a good time so when Ashley told us that we had to come with her this year we happily agreed. We had to buy our tickets way in advance (like last fall for this April) since the festival sells out within hours so by the time it actually came around we were more than ready, plus the line up was pretty stellar (even for me, I love Dierks Bentley & Lady Antebellum)

We arrived in LA on Thursday and drove from Newport to Indio early Friday morning to set up shop at our awesome two bedroom condo at the World Mark.

I am so ready to rock this 3 day country fest… cowboy boots, check, cowboy hat, check, watermelon, check..let’s do this!

The Stew Crew is ready to party

Pre-gaming before we head out for round 1

The walk from where the cab has to drop you off to the actual concert grounds is like a million miles in a million degree weather (not joking) we were seriously so over it by time number 1 and then had to do it 7 more times over the next 2 days, lol

Colt clearly thought it was hilarious

and so did Ashley

Ashley forgot our wrist bands (aka our concert tickets) in Newport so the boys were in the car ready to go back and drive 3 hours when we called will call and found out we could cancel the old bands and get new ones, whew..Ash you got so lucky!

The grounds were beautiful, well organized, clean and safe and once the sun went down it was the most perfect concert atmosphere

I loved everything about being there the music, the atmosphere, the people it was so country

Since it was so hot the next day we decided to just chill at the pool until the grounds cooled down, we all had certain artists we wanted to see and luckily most of them were later in the afternoon

After a great day at the pool we got country ready, yeeehotttt

here comes the hike, round 2

looks like I wasn’t the only one hating the walk this time, Colt got a huge blister from his new cowboy boots and had to go to medical

but no worries they got my cowboy back on his feet in no time..

The shitshow sisters back in action

(my favorite)

and as the sun went down things heated up

(fat girl status, I love pizza)

check out the girl behind me, I mean it really was that hot but still…lol

Day 3 started back at the pool with the Stew Crew

(Even, Steven, Cleveland just getting it)

sister, sister

and then it was back to the grounds for the grand finale

This was the day I was most excited about so many good artists and the head liner was Zac Brown Band, so fun!

one of my all time favorite moments of me just getting it on my husbands shoulders free-birding

Love this cowboy so so much

the stage(rage)coach crew, we did it!

We are all still standing after 3 long days!

(well barely…)

To say it was an amazing 3 day weekend would be a major understatement. From the festival, to the hotel, to the group of people it seriously couldn’t have gotten any better.

I can’t wait for tickets to go on sale in the next month or two so we can start planning Stage(rage)coach 2014 cause we are just as free, free as we’ll ever be, ever be…

Something More

22 Friday Mar 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

awakening, bliss, Dreams, faith, gratitude, Happiness, music

I had the CRAZIEST dream last night. It must have been induced from all the sugar and Pepsi I consumed from my spring break slumber party with Caylee and lack of sleep. I woke up at 4:45am to Colt’s alarm going off for the gym. I knew that since I had Caylee sleeping on the couch that I would not be working out until later in the day. I rolled over and gave Colt a squeeze knowing he would have to get himself up to go and quickly fell back to sleep.

During that last hour and a half of slumber I had the most vivid and lively dream of being in labor. The dream started with me in a large house set up as a birthing center. There were so many rooms and multiple areas. Some areas looked like a hospital and some looked like a normal house. I remember the pain of labor and walking through the house. As I walked through each room people (mostly from my past) would appear. They would tell me that they couldn’t miss the birth of my baby and that they would be waiting for me when he arrived. I remember thinking it was so strange that they would be there (some of the people I hadn’t seen or talked to in years) but as I walked the labor pains would get deeper and deeper causing me to have to stop, fall to knees and push. Every time this would happen a doctor (whom I don’t know) and Colt would be by my side. Colt would be rubbing my back with the doctor standing by. I would be talking out loud and rubbing my belly saying things like “come on come out” “why are you being so stubborn” “just come out of there” after pushing for what seemed like forever I would go back to walking (always walking into the same room with my sister sleeping on the couch).

I remember trying to wake my sister to tell her that the baby was coming and that she needed to wake up. She would then roll over and tell me that the baby was never coming out. I remember feeling so frustrated and scared thinking she may actually be right. I asked my friend Kristen (who would appear in and out as I walked into rooms) why he wouldn’t just come out. She would then fight with me that the baby was a girl not a boy (in the dream I knew it was a boy and was already using his name to talk to him) I would then continue walking until another labor pain would hit and I would again be on my knees pushing and having Colt rub my back and the doctor “standing by…”

I woke up again at 6:15am in the middle of a “push” as I heard Colt pulling in from the gym. I quickly sat up feeling extremely weird and foggy. I grabbed for my stomach and quickly realized it had only been a dream (a very real and life like dream). I just sat there feeling weirder than ever as Colt rushed in the bedroom excitingly asking me if I had ever heard the song “something more” by Sugarland. I quickly stopped him and told him that I just awoke from a dream where I was in labor with our son. He stopped as a smile quickly crossed his face and said a boy really! He then insisted that I listen to the song because he was certain that every single word had been written just for me. I smiled as I laid back down and let the words distract me from my slumber.

…The Lyrics…

Monday, hard to wake up

Fill my coffee cup, I’m out the door

Yeah, the freeway’s standing still today

It’s gonna make me late, and that’s for sure

I’m running out of gas and out of time

Never gonna make it there by nine

[Chorus:]

There’s gotta be something more

Gotta be more than this

I need a little less hard time

I need a little more bliss

I’m gonna take my chances

Taking a chance I might

Find what I’m looking for

There’s gotta be something more

Five years and there’s no doubt

That I’m burnt out, I’ve had enough

So now boss man, here’s my two weeks

I’ll make it short and sweet, so listen up

I could work my life away, but why?

I got things to do before I die

[Repeat Chorus]

Some believe in destiny, and some believe in fate

I believe that happiness is something we create

You best believe that I’m not gonna wait

‘Cause there’s gotta be something more

I get home 7:30, the house is dirty but it can wait

Yeah, ’cause right now I need some downtime

To drink some red wine and celebrate

Yeah, Armageddon could be knocking at my door

But I ain’t gonna answer that’s for sure

There’s gotta be something more

Gotta be more than this

I need a little less hard time

I need a little more bliss

I’m gonna take my chances

Taking a chance I might

Find what I’m looking for

There’s gotta be something more…

As the song comes to an end I am covered in goose bumps and feelings of gratitude. Seeing Colt so excited with his big smile just makes life that much more enjoyable. I roll over and text my Mom telling her about my dream and asking her to look up the meaning in her dream book. She texted me back shortly after telling me that labor in a dream means you are preparing for or laying down the ground work for a new beginning, a new creation, the start of something new or a new phase in your life. The actual “labor” is the growing pains in your life process. I smiled as I read the text prepared to start my day and thinking it couldn’t have been more on point.

Below is the you tube video of the song by Sugarland should you want to listen …and I hope you do.

Until next time stay focused, stay inspired, keep dreaming and remember that you too are the creator of your own happiness…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp5foT32tKM

Happy Days

16 Saturday Mar 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui

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Tags

family, Fun, Happiness, Life, Maui, Play, wife, Work

Lately I feel like I’m watching my life from outside my life. I know that probably doesn’t make much sense but its the only way I know how to explain it.

It has been 3 weeks since my last day at the Hard Rock and its been a whirlwind of beautiful chaos. I’ve been much busier than expected and I’m loving every second of it!

The Job:

I’m filling my mornings and early afternoons working for Lightning Electric LLC. Basically I keep my hubs and father in law in line about billing clients, receiving and recording payments, keep his taxes in order as well as organizing the mess of what use to be before I came on board. I work out of my father in laws cushy loft and I’m learning so much everyday! As we get busier I will also start to do the marketing and advertising. Mark has built a great foundation with a steady flow of clients and I’m excited to see the company grow. Its so fun to work alongside Colt, I’m so proud of him and look forward to watching him grow.

My new digs! This is actually Colts truck I get to ride my bike to work, I also get to wear a t-shirt, jean shorts and flip flops:)

The new Jennifer Stewart!

The “boys” working hard. It’s really awesome to see the whole process of a small business. So much goes into it from the field to the books.

Like me, Kailea also seems to be adjusting to her new life just fine hehehehe!

My work station at the office

Me and the boys!

Wife Life:

I typically wake up around 6:30 now a days and relax and snuggle for at least 15 minutes. Once I get up I start breakfast for Colt and I start to pack lunches. Once breakfast is ready and lunches are packed I bring Kai for a walk. When I get back Criminal Minds is usually on from 7-8am while I get ready (this is one of my favorite parts of my new morning schedule) I leave the house around 8:15 and head to work.

After work Monday – Friday I head to the gym to run my miles (we have had family in town the last two weeks so my workout schedule hasn’t been the best but I look forward to getting back in it) I also pick one project a day to do at home. We have such a cute ohana but I have never had the time or energy to really make it ours. I have so many DIY projects already on my list but the last few weeks I’ve spent deep cleaning everything from floor to ceiling. Its getting there but still has a long way to go.

Cooking:

This is a new adventure for me. I think I’ve cooked more meals in the last 3 weeks than I ever have in my entire life. I have also been shopping (Costco & Safeway are my new hot spots) a few times a week. Besides quickies like eggs, oatmeal, fruit, sandwiches and salads for breakfasts and lunches I’ve been experimenting with a lot of Mexican food! Some of the new dishes I’ve tried are chicken faijitas, taco casserole, Monterey jalapeño turkey burgers and white enchiladas. All of them actually turned out really good and I’m getting more confident as I go. I’m also blessed that Colt is so easy and eats about anything. He’s so sweet to me and always so encouraging.

Taco casserole made with turkey instead of beef

Chicken enchiladas! I was most excited about these, they came out so good and were so easy to make!

As if cooking hasn’t been enough of a new adventure I also have to be pretty creative right now because I gave up bread for lent. Its been a little over a month and man has it been so much harder than I thought it would be. I guess I really love bread because deciding what to eat on a daily basis has been so hard! Sandwich no bread, turkey burger no bun, tacos sub corn tortillas and the hardest one NO PIZZA (my ultimate weakness) I can say overall I feel a whole lot lighter but my energy during workouts is down. Without the carbs to burn during my runs I burn out way faster and I feel a lot weaker. This has peaked my interest and I have been researching substitute bread options for a cleaner healthier diet.

Every day life:

My days have been very free. Even though I’m still on a schedule its flexible and mostly consists of things that I love. After leaving my job I was so scared I would be stressed or depressed but its proven to be the exact opposite. Feelings of gratitude, abundance, appreciation, happiness and joy are things I feel freely now. It sometimes seems so surreal I will stop and make myself feel every ounce of it (as if at any moment its all going to be taking away) I feel like the more present I am in acknowledging these feelings the happier I become.

I’m also learning a lot about me and its making Colt and I’s relationship soar. My love language is acts of service so its no surprise that I’m much happier now that I can spend a lot of my time caring for Colt. If you haven’t read the book the 5 love languages I suggest you and your partner do. Colt and I read it before we got married (our friend Anu suggested it to us) and it continues to teach us how to communicate better as a couple as well as what makes the other one happy.

Since my love language is acts of service actions such as cooking a meal, setting a table, washing the dishes, sorting the bills or walking the dog all which require thought, planning, time, effort and energy are in my language the highest expressions of love which is why I’m currently so happy. I always joke with Colt that the easiest way to get me in the “mood” is to take the trash out. Even though that’s a bit of an exaggeration it makes us both laugh because its true!

Overall I’d say these last 3 weeks have been filled with learning, happiness and fun and although its not what I was expecting, it’s everything I’ve been waiting for….

“It is only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing themselves – in finding themselves.” –

04 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Adventure, Explore, fit life, happy, Hawaii, healthy, Hiking, Maui, Trails, Travel, Waihe'e Ridge

First and foremost I would like to say that I am loving my new found freedom of extraordinary. I’ve had the time to slow down and really stop and appreciate all that’s around me and embodies me. I’ve adjusted to my relaxing wife life and my new “normal” pretty easily and I am just soaking up every second of it!

beach bumming

This morning we woke up around 7a.m. made some oatmeal with fresh fruit and headed out to hit the trail. We’ve been wanting to explore Maui more and we heard the Wahihe’e Ridge Trail was pretty awesome with great views.

We got on the trail by 9:30a.m. and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. It was brisk with the perfect amount of chill in the air to cool you down as you sweat. The trail is 5 miles long round trip and has incredible views of the valley along with luscious green forest.

You gain about 1,500 feet over the 2 1/2 miles up the ridge so this sign is very important

Since you are climbing so high it is suggested that you get on this trail early (by 8a.m.) for maximum viewing exposure. However Colt & I got on the trail a little later than 9a.m. and although some clouds had already moved in the views were still breathtaking.

This is one of the first outlooks on your way up. You can see two beautiful flowing falls in the distance

This hike gets your heart pumping and gluteus working right away. By the time you hit 1/2 a mile you’ve already climbed 400 feet!

Someone was hitching a ride by 400 feet, my little “wanna be hiker”

The landscape was incredible and took my breath away. You are hiking through guava, kukui, swamp mahogany, cook island pines and millions of ferns all while moving towards this view!

Waihe’e Valley in all its raw beauty

As we kept climbing the air kept getting cooler and cooler it felt great to feel the elevation of the climb.

Going up!

We saw so many unique plants and trees along the way and we saw a ton of these, they are actually the stems that the ferns grow out of!

They reminded me of the caterpillar (the Hookah-Smoking caterpillar hehe) in Alice and Wonderland

Since it was a Sunday and later in the morning there were a lot of hikers also on the trail with us going up as well as coming down.

The most handsome hiker I saw all day:)

Colt loved all the different kinds of trees. The views reminded me of scenes from Twilight (they were that good)

My very own Edward Cullen

It took us a little over an hour to get to the top since we continued to stop for several photo ops!

Kai & I taking a little breather..

keep on climbing, climbing…

Natural beauty just lurking around ever twist and turn

Once we finally got to the top it was beautiful! Its the perfect place to have a light lunch if you should know to pack one. The air is cool and the visual silence is like nothing you can experience unless you are at 2,563 feet.

I love where the ocean meets the sky and the accent of green, there’s nothing better.

Flying high, freebirding

There’s nothing that I love more than experiencing this life and exploring this earth with this man

Going down..

Kai loves this part, she just cruises all the way down

Taking an extra moment to take it all in (once again)

I love the forest and getting lost in paradise

This hike is so beautiful and I highly recommend it to anyone traveling to Maui or to residents who have yet to experience it. If you love having your head in the clouds and paradise at your feet you will absolutely love it. I know we did!

“I used to dream about escaping my ordinary life until I realized my life was never ordinary. I had just failed to notice how extraordinary it really is..”

Sike …with Love

26 Tuesday Feb 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

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Tags

Laughter, love, Marriage, married life, Maui, newlyweds

So some of you may or may not remember that last month on January 25th I posted on my Instagram and Facebook a picture of Colt & I wishing him a happy six month anniversary from when we got married. I was so overly excited and just couldn’t believe we were already married six months until ….sike we really weren’t! Last month only made five months! I guess I really was a little too EXCITED because I clearly can’t count (and neither can Colt) since he too was like “happy six months babe” hehe! The even better part was that all of our family and friends also went along with it …..until I got a text.

It was Anu in a semi panic (she of course had something planned for us for our six month) so she had to clear up the obvious typo! As I re-read the text and re-counted the months I quickly realized she was right, oh my goodness what a dork I am! I quickly texted Colt in hysterical laughter. Only I would make such a silly mistake (and of course I felt like a total idiot) but the bright side? Two six month anniversary celebrations!

So today we celebrated our love (and our official six months)… again!

As I mentioned earlier Anu of course had something special up her sleeve! She made us these amazing snicker doodle (our absolute favorite) cupcakes in the shape of a six! She also got us these awesome sparklers! Thanks Anu & Joe you guys are always the best!

And of course it wouldn’t be a celebration if we didn’t have Thai!! Colt tried to talk me into all these fancy restaurants but I of course only had one thing on my mind, nom nom nothing beats Thai (well besides being in Thailand of course)

Sa-wat-dee Kah

Pretending like we might actually order something different when really we know the menu by heart and know exactly what we are going to order every time!

And the fest begins!

The same Thai waitress that always waits on us when we go in was so awesome and brought us out a coconut ice cream to share after our dinner. It was so thoughtful and sweet of her and reminded me so much of how we were treated while traveling in Thailand, kob kun kaa!

Once we got home we still had our snicker doodles and sparklers to light! We were stuffed to the brim but still made room for our favorite treat of course!

They were really awesome sparklers!

It couldn’t have been a better night just the two of us together celebrating our love.

Thank you Colt Olden for yesterday’s memories, today’s love, and tomorrow’s dreams…

A Day in Paradise

25 Monday Feb 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui

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Beach days, family, fun in the sun, Happiness, love, Maui, paradise, stand up paddle board, SUP

Ingredients for the perfect Maui beach day include blue skies, little to no wind, cool sand, medium sized waves, whales breaching off shore, good food and great company. Lucky for us we live in paradise so this equation happens often but today was even more awesome because Colt’s auntie Jamie is in town from Reno.

Colt & Auntie Jamie. Isn’t she the cutest? I just want to squeeze her!

Colt woke up early since we wanted to paddle board. He left the house around 7:30a.m. so him and Cam could go to the storage to pick up and load the boards. Paddle boarding is always best between 8a.m. and 10a.m. before the wind line starts to come in and the water gets choppy. Being on the water by 8a.m. ensures crystal clear conditions and optimal turtle and whale spotting opportunities.

Since Colt and Cam got to the beach early they set up camp for us with all the goods. A tent for shade, coolers, the BBQ, games, paddle boards, the boom box and boogie boards. I couldn’t wait to get on the water but not before Katie and I snuck to the resort pool bar for a little Sunday Funday treat!

yummma theres nothing better than a spicy morning bloody! Cheers sister!

After our little pick me up we headed to the beach and hit the boards. The rest of the day was filled with fun, laughter, food, sunshine and new memories.

Colt & Khloe hitting the waves. Khloe is such a little pro on the boards.

My favorite little beach bum. She loves playing and exploring at the beach.

Auntie Jamie also got out on the boards and actually stood up this year! Last year during her visit she only paddled from the kneeling position but this year she totally rocked it!

One of the highlights of the day was Caylee getting out on the paddle boards! She is usually such a sand baby (Khloe is a water baby) but today she got out in the water and on the boards with Khloe. After a little while of Khloe towing her around Caylee took over and started paddling! Its so fun to see her coming out of her shell and into her own. She did so awesome and we were all so proud of her.

Planning the “switch”

There she goes! Getting her sea legs!

Uncle is always trailing close behind, he loves his girls so much.

All smiles, so proud!

Way to go Caylee!

Next it was my turn! I love SUP. There’s nothing better than gliding on water while working on your fitness and your tan!

All that paddling sure does make you hungry (and thirsty) so Cam cooked up some Brats and turkey burgers for everyone, it was the perfect beach lunch!

My extra handsome hubs enjoying his lunch (I know you all wish you had such an awesome beer koozie)

Around 1p.m. the winds started to pick up so we decided to pack up and call it a day.

I had such a wonderful time playing, relaxing and getting sun kissed with the people I love.

~ Appreciate the Moment ~

21 Thursday Feb 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Dreams, faith, fears, Freedom, goals, Happiness, health, healthy-living, jobs, Life, love, perspective, wife

As my final day of work as a Sales & Marketing Manager approaches (tomorrow is my official last day) I can’t help but feel overwhelmed with feelings of excitement, happiness, anxiety, nervousness, and panic. Last night while laying in bed Colt rolled over happily and exclaimed “only two days left babe.” As the statement hit my ears one half of me wanted to leap up and do backflips on the bed as this was one of the craziest most exciting decisions I have made thus far in my adult life while the other half wanted to run in the bathroom and throw up. I looked at him mute (frozen in fear) and half smiled, what was I doing?

It’s not the actual quitting of my job that freaks me out, I quit my sales and marketing job a year and a half ago with another company and not even two months later was offered this position. I know if I really wanted to I could get another job, any job, doing the same thing for another company or this company in another market, the scary part is I don’t want to. The even scarier (but exhilarating) part is the journey of recreation. The recreation to be anything I want to be, so as that realization sinks in instead of sitting here and dwelling on all the things that scare me about it (not having as much money, fear of failure, not knowing if I am making the right decision, putting all of our eggs in one basket (so not my style)) I instead decided to focus on all the things that excite me so here they are in no particular order.

What I am most looking forward to:

Time

I will be getting at least 4 hours of my time back per day! That’s 20 hours per week, 80 hours per month and 1,460 hours a year that were lost because I was required to work 10 hours a day (but only got paid for 8) plus another 2 hour’s for my commute (1 hour there and 1 hour back).

Being Colt’s Wife

Call me crazy but I am so excited to deep clean every inch of our house and my car, do our laundry, decorate and cook! I can’t wait to do all these things without half assing them because I am too tired, annoyed or don’t have the time. I look forward to learning lots of new recipes (so if you have some favorites please send them my way) and experimenting with healthy options for breakfast, lunches and dinners. I look forward to having dinner ready for my husband and spending more quality time together.

Eating dinner by 5pm

This alone makes me want to run and do side splits in the air. Knowing I will be able to eat dinner by 5 or 6pm on the majority of the nights is amazing. Right now I don’t get home until after 7pm so we aren’t eating dinner until 7:30 or 8pm! It sucks to eat that late and it’s totally messing with my fitness results.

Kailea Loves

Having more time to exercise with her, go on walks, play at the park and beach, play fetch and add to the quality of her life. I look forward to not having to leave her home alone for 8 hours a day and only getting to play with her for 3.

Enjoying Maui

Being able to walk down to the beach and watch a sunset with Colt, family and friends a few times a week (instead of seeing it set as I am racing the clock to get home). Being able to stop and appreciate all the beauty this island has to offer from sunrise to sunset to every beach, hike and activity in between.

Getting the opportunity to grow with my father in law’s business

I have been helping my father in law with all of his Quickbooks, admin and sales stuff for the last few weeks. It is so exciting to see the incline in growth just over this last year and how much potential his company has to be very successful. I am excited be a part of it and get to help when and where I can, not to mention how inspiring it is to watch Colt’s knowledge and passion grow for the business as he continues to grow under his father.

Flexibility

To be and do whatever I want. To be able to visit and spend more time with family and friends. To become a personal trainer, a yoga instructor, start my own run, be a full time blogger, a professional beach bum or a Maui mama! The flexibility to try everything and anything I have ever wanted to do but never had the guts to or didn’t know how to make it happen. Speaking of which I finally (after blogging for over a year) took the plunge and became the master of my own domain which means I am now the official owner of:

http://jenniferleestewart.com

I am very excited and look forward to taking my blogging to the next level as it is truly a passion of mine.

Being an overall better me

A better wife, daughter, sister, auntie, cousin, friend, partner, motivator, runner and influence. Leading by example to strengthen all my relationships and accepting people for who they are and continuing to build a foundation of strength and understanding from there.

So as I sit here smiling & focusing on all the exciting things that lie ahead my fears (even though they are trying like hell to creep in and bring me down) slowly start to fade away. I am writing myself a new life filled with simplicity, abundance, time, love, support, health, faith, family and positive prospective and I encourage you to join me on this journey and I appreciate your unconditional love along the way.

…until next time be happy for this moment, for this moment is your life…

Great. Aloha. Run

20 Wednesday Feb 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Runners HI

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8 miles, community, Fitness, goals, Hawaii, mile foot race, runners, running, sports

This past weekend Colt & I ran our first race of 2013 with my sister & her friend Jen in Oahu. We had signed up for the Great Aloha Run back in January when we made our New Year’s resolutions to run 200 miles over the course of the year. At the time I thought that goal would be attainable without it being too easy or too hard. I liked the idea of attaching miles to my workouts and signing up for some races as well.

The Great Aloha Run or GAR is an 8.15-mile foot race in Oahu that begins at the Aloha Tower and finishes in the Aloha Stadium. The Great Aloha Run has been recognized nationally as one of the top “100 Great Road Races” to participate in by Runner’s World Magazine and this year they had over 18,000 runners. It is a relatively flat course with several aid stations and a ton of entertainment which makes it perfect for any runner.

Here I am with my sister at Aloha Stadium getting ready to catch the bus to Waikiki at 4am (fun fact: it was her birthday and she still got up to run 8.15 miles)

Riding the bus from Aloha Stadium to Aloha Towers to the starting line. I look way to excited considering it is 4am and we are about to run 8 miles.

At one point of the course you run under the highway so there is a lot of shade and the temperature is cool. This was our favorite part of the run and lasted for a good two mile stretch. They also had multiple aid stations with water, bands and tons of people cheering you on!

one of the many bands playing music and cheering on all the runners

A kids band playing awesome music and cheering on all the runners.

You run into the stadium to cross the finish line and it is pretty awesome. Colt said he as he ran in he could just imagine the whole crowd erupting and screaming "COLT" as he crossed the finish line (not going to lie the energy and feel really was that cool)

You run into the stadium to cross the finish line and it is pretty awesome. Colt said as he ran in he could just imagine the whole crowd erupting and screaming “COLT” as he crossed the finish line. I am going to have to agree, the energy was AWESOME!

So happy to be done and run right into Colt’s arms! (I will have more pictures of all of us crossing the finish line once the photographers upload all of them onto the GAR website)

Going to see my Mom, Kai, Addie and Brandon after the race. It’s so fun to have people waiting and cheering you on.

Colt, Jess and I with our proud Mama. She was so proud of us for doing it.

Colt, Jess and I with our Mama. She was so proud of us.

Colt's officail time, 1:15:19 I couldn't have been more proud of him. He totally rocked it at 9:15 minute miles!

Colt’s official time was 1:15:19. I could not have been more proud of him. He did so amazing and ran 9:13 minute miles. He truly inspires me.

My sister & her friend Jen did so awesome also they finished in 1:25:15! This was amazing considering my sister predicted upon signing up that she would finish in 2 1/2 to 3 hours haha she is so funny!

My sister & her friend Jen rocked it and finished in 1:25:15! This was amazing considering my sister predicted upon signing up that she would finish in 2 1/2 to 3 hours haha she is so funny!

I beat my personal goal by 2 minutes and finished in 1:18:21 about 3 minutes behind Colt. He really set the mile pace for me and pushed me to run faster and harder. I couldn’t believe I finished 145 in my age category out of 1258 other runners! I’ll take it for my first 8 mile run.

Go Team!

Now for the fun part! Rewarding ourseleves with fresh Acai bowls from the North Shore truck and pieces of pies for Colt and Jess.

Now for the fun part! Rewarding ourself with fresh Acai bowls from the North Shore truck and pieces of pies for Colt and Jess.

Great Aloha Run Finishers. I am so blessed to have this man by my side. Thanks GAR for a great run! We will see you again next year.

Great Aloha Run Finishers. I am so blessed to have this man by my side. Team work makes the dream work. Thanks GAR for a great run! We will see you again next year.

As of today I have already ran 73.16 miles (in January I ran 42.88 and so far in February I ran 30.2) only 126.84 more miles to go until I hit my goal for the year!

(I think I might have to consider a new goal….)

“She took the leap and built her wings on the way down…”

12 Tuesday Feb 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Thoughts from Jenn

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

compromise, courage, Dreams, Freedom, goals, Life, Marriage, risks, unconventional

It seems to me that life will mercilessly dish out moments when you feel trapped in an airless room, with a sign persistently and aggravatingly blinking EXIT over a door that’s actually a brick wall. It’s a horrible feeling and the taunting of the “non-exit” EXIT sign only makes it worse. You stop and stare as you think “there has to be another way..”

…there has to be….

Awhile back someone had asked me if I was happy with my current job situation and although I felt like I should be happy (I have a great job) I knew the answer was no but at the time I was still too paralyzed with fear to say so. Fear of regret, fear of the unknown, fear of not knowing what I wanted to do… just fear. It consumed me so I just kept on doing what I knew I no longer wanted to do.

Today is the day that all changed, it was the day I took my life back. No more doing things that I don’t want to do everyday for countless hours of my life. No more sitting in an office staring at boxes for 10 hours a day wondering what the hell I was waiting for. No more wondering what would happen if I did get the courage to quit.

I just did it, I finally quit! My last day will be in 2 weeks from today. I can’t believe I actually did it. I have a “good” job most would say a great job but for me it wasn’t about that. Over the last few months I couldn’t help but feel like I have been wasting time. What was I doing? Where was I going? What was my future with this company? The answer came up just about as clear as the blinking sign over the brick wall which is why I knew it was time for a change.

Am I scared? …shitless, but I am free and there is nothing more amazing than that. Free to be anyone I want to be. Free to recreate me. Free to be a wife, a runner, a caretaker and hopefully one day soon a mama. Free to purse goals and dreams and new opportunities that I have only ever hoped would come true. Free to enjoy simplicity and time and best of all my husband in Maui.

Today I took my life back and I feel empowered. I set the universe in motion to pursue my positive and all the things I want out of a simpler but more fulfilling lifestyle. I closed one door and can’t wait to see the new ones open. I know everyone is going to have their own opinion on me quitting my job and quite frankly you are entitled to that, however I don’t really care. My husband supports me 100% and I honestly couldn’t ask for more than that. My parents, my sister, my current boss, my current partner in sales as well as my closest friends also support my decision and are beyond happy for me and I love each of them for that — and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

It’s time…freebirding…

~ Live, Dream, Explore ~

05 Tuesday Feb 2013

Posted by Making Magic in Life on Maui

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Tags

Discover, Dream, Explore, Fitness, Hiking, Maui

Colt and I went on a killer hike this past Saturday. It is about 15 minutes from our house and is called the Lahaina Pali Trail or the West Maui mountains.

I drive by the West Maui mountains every day on my way to work and it has never once occurred to me that you can actually hike up there. At the top of the mountain there are these huge windmills (which is how a lot of our electricity on Maui is generated) and they are really cool. Once I found out it wasn’t private property and there was actually a hiking trail the idea consumed me! I had to get up there.

This is where the trail begins, we parked by the highway which added a 10 minute walk onto where we were suppose to start, we also missed the trail and went the wrong way for awhile so we just called that our 25 minute “warm up…”

Once we finally found the right way it was close to 11a.m. and the sun was blistering hot but we decided to do the hike anyways we were already there and sweaty.

This was one of our first outlooks about half way up the windmills. At this point I was over it. It was hot, the whole trail was up hill (moderately steep) and we only had one bottle of water. I wasn’t sure I was going to make it the rest of the way but luckily we aren’t quitters so I contiuned to push along.

(disclaimer: if you do decide to do this hike while on Maui make sure you put on a lot of sunscreen and bring a good amount of fluids. We were so sun burnt and dying of thirst by the end….)

This was the only tree on the entire trail. It was so beautiful and reminded me so much of the tree of life from the lion king. The hunk standing in front of it just adds to the extreme beauty.

This was our first glimpse of the enormous windmills (and thinking we finally made it) Don’t let the picture fool you even from here we were still almost a mile away from actually reaching them!

As we continued to climb we were blessed with this amazing-ness. It took my breath away. It’s so easy to take Maui’s beauty for granted since we see it every day. This was a great reminder to stop, take it all in and appreciate how blessed we truly are.

We finally made it up the steep hill and closer to the windmills. Exploring with Colt is one of my favorite things in the world to do.

The windmills were ginormous and made this really cool whistling sound as they spun. It was so peaceful up there, it felt like we were hanging out on top of the world.

If you know anything about me (or my best friend Kristen) we still often think that we are 12 years old and the worldest greatest gymnast heading to the junior Olympics. This basically means that at 28 years old we still try to flip and stretch the way we use to when we were 12. The result, never ever missing a great opportunity for a gymnastic photo shoot!

(Here I am attempting a scorpion on top of a rock)

The thing I love the most about Colt is how he will always play with me and how much he makes me laugh. It reminds me of what it would be like if when you were 8 years old you didn’t think boys had cooties. I remember one time when we were still dating we went to visit my family in Oahu. We were having a beach day and I started tumbling. He came up and started doing handstands with me. I knew right then and there (I already knew for a long time) that he was the one. I love that he will always do what I do no matter how much bigger he is and how much harder it is for him to maneuver. He is so much fun and makes me laugh harder than anyone I have ever known.

So here he is my husband in his attempt to do a scorpion on top of a rock. His level of concentration and form are enough to make me die from happiness & laughter. I have been having fits of giggles over this photo since Saturday. Kailea’s face is also priceless since she looks like she is saying: “Dad I am not sure you should be doing that..”

(disclaimer: he will probably kill me for posting this picture but I couldn’t help myself)

Cheering him on for doing such a great job in his pose! Babe you freaking rock!

Taking it all in one more time before we start to head down. We were so proud of Kailea who actually came on the hike with us. This was the biggest adventure of her pampered life.

photo 4 (2)

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

– it’s time to make some big changes, freebird!

Chasing the Maui Son ✨

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“She took the leap and built her wings on the way down…”

~ Live, Dream, Explore ~