Snow Drifts and Pican Punches

I'm sitting here in our hotel room, feet up, listening to Ryan Bingham and watching Adrian hang up her show clothes. We're in Elko for the 29th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering and I keep offering encouraging pieces of advice like, "Well, yeah, that scarf is cute but it looks kind of like Easter." I'm helpful like that!!!

I'm exhausted and Adrian hasn't even started working yet! But a good kind of tired...like heart is happy, feet are sore, cheeks hurt from smiling genuine, happy smiles kind of tired! We somehow managed to get here several hours ahead of our self-imposed schedule last night and since we were starving (who are we kidding, we're always starving!), we stomped off to Bil Tolki's for some chow! And ended up staying in the early hours of the morning drinking, laughing and visiting with old friends. Remember when we went to Italy last spring and had so much fun with Drew and Nat?? Well they're here and we had a fantastic reunion. All the Italian I've been practicing since then flew right out of my head the moment I wanted to actually use it, but what can you do? Such is life. Jennifer Dennison was there as well (she's the lovely lady from Western Horseman), and I'm pretty sure that we laughed ourselves silly last night. The pican punch probably helped some too :)

I've been spending money like I'm a wealthy playboy from....um, I don't know....somewhere rich playboys come from...and I'm enjoying every second of it!! I finally broke down and bought a quilt from Timmy Lynn and I'm not going to lie to you, it felt good.

We went to another trade show and got to visiting with some other friends, felt the familiar twinge of hunger and realized that 3 hours had literally passed and I don't think we ever stopped talking once. WOW.

There's an artist breakfast first thing in the morning that I've never gone to with Adrian before that promises to be loud and funny because...well Adrian and Mindy and I will be there talking at the same time! But don't worry, if you don't think we're funny it's OK, cuz we're definitely amused by ourselves!!! :D

I have a math exam as soon as we get home so if you see a blonde girl sitting in Cowboy Joe's tomorrow afternoon, crying and screaming incoherently at her calculator...don't worry. It's just me. Please come say hi and save me from myself. And my math. :) I promise I won't bite.

xo xo Liz

Quote of the Week

People who say that life is not worthwhile are really saying that they themselves have no personal goals which are worthwhile. Get yourself a goal worth working for. Better still, get yourself a project. Always have something ahead of you to look forward to...to work for and hope for.


-- Dr. Maxwell Maltz 

xo xo Liz

I Am Thankful

I am thankful for days that are hard, difficult and painful, because what comes from them is appreciation, healing and love.

I am thankful for time spent with old friends and making new ones.

I am thankful for the people that challenge, inspire and maybe frighten me just a little bit because they push me ever onwards towards my goals.

I am thankful for Sunday naps spent on leather couches, sisters and dogs piled up in drooling, snoring heaps.

I am thankful for pens of horses and days of rain.

I am thankful for hopes and dreams and wanting to prove that the impossible is actually possible.

I am thankful for every day, no matter how hard, bitter, joyful or just plain freaking weird they are, because every day is a new chance to begin again. To try harder, to learn to love again, to forgive and to attack the challenges that life has thrown at me with renewed courage and strength.

I am thankful. Tomorrow is a new day.

xo xo Liz

Introducing Lacey Arbaugh and the Buckaroo Barbie Body Challenge

OK Dolls, I am super excited to share this post with you. Remember the other day, I was teasing you all with exciting updates? Well, here's one of them! We've had some requests to do a Buckaroo Barbie Body Challenge and we're going to do it! Lacey Arbaugh is a mutual friend of a friend, a certified personal trainer and basically a BADASS!!! She is incredibly inspiring (I love her positive updates on Facebook), and is really nice, too! I find her story so encouraging because she faces setbacks and opposition to reach her dreams, and she doesn't allow them to stop her. They're just road bumps on her journey to where she is going, her dreams. How inspiring is that?? She's a total Buckaroo Barbie!

So here's how it's going to work. We're going to have a six week challenge with Lacey heading it up and encouraging us. She's involved in a 12 week challenge herself right now, and she is going to share her meal plans with us once a week and some work out ideas for us! HOW COOL IS THAT?!?! I'm really stoked! Here's a little question and answer with Lacey so we can all feel like we know each other before we get started on our challenge!

Q: So Lacey, tell us a little about who you are and what you do!
A: I am a Certified Personal Trainer trying to inspire the importance of health and fitness to the people around me. My plan as a trainer is to find your goal or dream and make it a reality one pound at a time.

Energy & Persistence Conquer All Things -Benjamin Franklin

I have been training in Idaho for over two years and have met and trained with the most inspiring people along the journey. I currently have three fitness certifications and am in the process of attaining my Bachelor Degree in Kinesiology and Nutrition.

Q: How did you get started in fitness? 

A:  My passion for fitness started in a dance studio at a young age, but when it really started to impact my life was when I decided to push my body further and compete in a natural body building bikini contest. I am not naturally an athletic person, so for me to gain muscle and lose fat, it takes a lot of time and dedication.

Q: What kind of set backs or struggles have you faced as a person/trainer/competitor? 

A:I was recently diagnosed with cystic ovarian syndrome, which limits how hard I train due to constant pain and discomfort. Working around this disease has shown me what the meaning of true strength is, in and out of the gym. It has been a hard struggle mentally, emotionally, and physically trying to find a balance between my down time dealing with the pain and getting back into the gym.

During my down time, I research new training methods and different foods that positively affect my condition so that the moment I can jump back into the gym, I am at my all-time best.

Q: How has that affected you and what have you learned from your struggles? 

A:I have also learned to listen to my body, and I now work around how I feel from day-to-day, adjusting my training program as needed. When I am able to train in the gym, I push myself as hard as I possibly can to keep reaching new goals. I decided that I would not let this obstacle stop my dream in becoming an NPC Pro Bikini Competitor. 

Q: What is your focus when working with a client? 

A:As a trainer, my focus is to promote a healthy lifestyle that will work around my client’s schedule and goals. I like to start by finding out what his/her obstacles and goals are and then build a program specifically for each person. I educate my clients about the many different components that fall hand-in-hand with each other to ensure that they strive to become healthier individuals.

Isn't she stunning? And I'm sorry but her bod is so inspiring!! I want to look like that in a bikini! And I know with hard work, clean eating and some guidance from Lacey, I'm going to get a lot closer to my goals during our Buckaroo Barbie Body Challenge! I hope you Dolls and Gents are excited and use this Body Challenge to encourage you and inspire you towards better health, or kicks you into gear about being serious about your health! 

Go "like" Lacey's page on Facebook please and show her some love! She's an inspiration! 

xo xo Liz 

Peachy

Dreaming of summer...

REVLON gel eyeliner

NYX box of eye shadows

No One Likes A Tease

Hello peeps!

I thought I was going to be back home by early afternoon, but it turned out I pulled an all-day-in-town, town day. A 12-hour town day, to be exact. I love those. Insert sarcasm here. I was planning on returning early enough to skin a steer, ride my horse and write you a terrific blog introducing you to an incredible woman who is going to challenge and inspire us for the next six weeks. And I was going to tell you all about a giveaway that’s coming up. But instead I’m too damn tired and I’m going to fall into bed and listen to the horses in the wrangle pen as I fall asleep and give thanks that I don’t have to live in the noisy, crowded, stale city that I came from today. Woof. And snuggle my rat dog. Because if you have a rat dog, never pass up an opportunity to snuggle it. 

I hope your curiosity is sufficiently aroused. 

Sweet dreams, Dolls and Gents!

xo xo Liz 

Quote of the Week

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

~Martin Luther King, Jr.

xo xo Liz 

Quote Time!

Mane Care...Hair Care

I got a request the other day to write a “how to” on hot oil treatments for your hair, and I thought while I was at it I might as well do a total hair care post!

Even if you already have healthy, long, thick hair it’s important to take proper care of what you already have so you don’t lose it! And if you’re trying to grow your hair out, this will help speed up the process. It’s especially important to give your mane a little extra TLC if you work outside a lot.

Once a week you should do a deep conditioning treatment. I use olive oil but you can also use shea butter, which is incredibly moisturizing. I generally stick with olive oil because I always have some in the kitchen!! The books will tell you to heat your olive oil, drizzle it through the ends of your hair then wrap your hair in a hot towel and let it set for a good 20 minutes. I don’t have the patience for that so I just keep a little plastic bottle of extra virgin olive oil in the shower and before I get my hair wet I pour it through my ends and let the heat and steam from the shower work its magic! Just make sure you shampoo your hair twice after one of these treatments or your head will feel very greasy for the rest of the day!

You should also do a rinse once a week to eliminate toxins and buildup you get in your hair from shampoo, conditioner, products and the environment. Once you’ve shampooed your hair rinse with apple cider vinegar. It leaves your hair feeling unbelievably shiny and soft feeling, almost like you’re in a Victoria’s Secret commercial. It does stink like a son-of –a-gun though, so make sure you keep your eyes and mouth shut until it’s all rinsed out! If you have a hot date lined up I would suggest NOT doing a rinse treatment unless you want to smell faintly of salad. Most men prefer bacon, just saying.

It’s healthier for your tresses if you use a natural bristle brush than something synthetic. You won’t have as much breakage and it helps promote stimulation in your scalp, which encourages hair growth!!

Adrian takes prenatal vitamins and she swears it makes her nails and hair grow faster and longer. Just make sure that if you live with your parents (or with a significant other), and you bring home a bottle of prenatal vitamins that you explain you’re taking them for hair growth, not baby growth. 

If you’re like me and your hair is almost always in a braid or a bun, make sure you use elastics that don’t have the little metal clamps in them. Do they even make those any more? I’m not sure, but only use hair ties that are completely elastic.

You should get your hair trimmed every 6 weeks. I know some girls that don’t get their hair trimmed at all when they’re trying to grow their manes out long, but it only causes your split ends to get higher and higher, resulting in shorter hair! A couple years ago I wanted to speed up the process of growing my hair so I started getting my hair trimmed every 4 weeks. It actually worked, I’m not even kidding. Just make sure you have a hair-dresser who isn’t scissor happy. ONLY the split ends. ONLY.

And at the end of the day, all of this won’t count for squat if you’re not eating healthy, drinking a lot of water and exercising. You need meat and veggies and good for you fats to have healthy, shiny hair. All the hot oil treatments in the world won’t counteract a bad diet and no exercise.

If you have any special hair remedies, please share them with us below!

xo xo Liz

Photos Credit: Tumblr