Chickens, Cars, and Cats - Oh my! Lots of new things happening in the last few weeks. A couple of weekends ago, I had the privilege of meeting my brother's chickens. I hadn't been out to his house in a bit, and it was time. I really wanted a chance to see their raised beds as well. They have done an AMAZING job of creating a very functional homestead in their own suburban backyard. And, frankly both my mother and I are headed in that direction too, as are many others across the nation.
Homesteading in the new millennia is kinda "my jam" right now. Most of us getting into it have realized "living off grid" is a bit unrealistic and requires more money, time, and resources than most of us actually have. But, the next alternative has been amazingly fruitful. My brother now has up to 4 years worth of canned goods from his own backyard garden that he and his wife can live off of soley if they ever needed, too.
"Are you ready to meet the chickens?" my brother asked me.
"I don't know" I replied,
"I want to meet them because I love animals and adore avians, but somehow I envision them running away while I run after them screaming love me, love me, I just want to pet you!"
But, as it turns out at least 2 of the 5 were errr...well a little indisposed or passively competing over a spot in the coup for egg laying purposes. And, I was able to walk right in and pet them. They were very receptive given the circumstances, LOL (view the first pic).
The second big change is our new set of wheels. Mom unfortunately rear ended a car while trying to merge onto an exit. It was a challenging situation. She saw the person in front of her move forward so she lightly accelerated, turned her head for 2 seconds and when she looked back the person in front had completely stopped and she had to slam on the breaks, but wasn't quick enough. The air bags didn't even deploy and the guy whose car she bumped had to slam on his breaks because he almost hit the car in front of him.
She was very thankfully okay, and the guy she bumped was incredibly nice. A truly good Samaritan and Angel. The state trooper was very kind as well and didn't even want to give her a ticket because we all feel the Department of transportation did not think things through to thoroughly when trying to accommodate for the new growth and development that has happened in the past 3 years on the Eastern side of this state.
In short, they have bottle-necked all the highways and freeways here in order to make room for heavier traffic and it's not working. But, the bottom line is our 2006 Toyota RAV4, the beloved car we named "Big Blue" and thought mom would die with, and only had 67,000 miles on her - was totalled. State Farm cut the check for $10,000 and basically said "happy car hunting."
But, God is good...and, not only is God good but dang the Divine has REALLY NICE TASTE! Because, we never drummed up a vision of what we were about to receive, in God's grace - Amen!
The new car is as luck would have it a used 2018 RAV 4 in mint condition, very little mileage, and with all the perks and accessories that didn't even exist when mom purchased the RAV4 back in 2006. And, with $10,000 down - all Mom had to pay was $15,000 which she on hand because she invested well as a boomer.
And, so we now have this amazing set of wheels with all these perks that are frankly a bit overwhelming but feel very luxurious to us at the same time! I confess, we're like two little girls in the front seat, fidgeting, and looking perplexed while we whisper out loud, "You mean I don't actually have to put a key into the ignition to start the car?!?! WoooW!
But, all of us in the fam can see God's grace in every part of this. My brother said it the best,
"At your age Mom and give some of the mobility issues you're dealing with, this car can do things for you that will actually keep you safe on the road and make it less challenging to drive."
And, I couldn't agree more. I'm half expecting it to drive itself!
Anyways, the cars new name is "Queenie" because that is how she holds herself and right now I respect Queenie's authority. She knows her assets that's for sure! lol
And, lastly I included a nice progress how of the lower body that I'm really proud of because I worked very hard for it. Okay, well there 's a pic of Billy Flynn in there on cat nip just to make you smile. I've decided no other species can manspread as good as a male cat, especially one on cat nip!
But, yes the progress shot (last photo in the collage)! The first pic is of glutes and quads right after 70.3 training. And, the second is from yesterday. It would seem at first glance that I put on weight. Well, actually I did but it's not fat.
I'm actually less in BF% in the second pic than the first. I also weigh less in the second pic. It's like by 1-2% so it's not much, but I really wanted to work on increasing muscle mass in quads and glutes and as some of you know I set aside a whole strength training session/week just to target these areas after the 70.3. Aesthetics aside, the reason for targeting these areas is for balance.
It's not just core and glutes that create good balance. It's core, glutes, hammies, and quads. It's the whole package! I see my mother struggle with balance issues as she ages and I already deal with them as a person who manages multiple sclerosis - I want these areas to be as on point as they can. Basically, it's an investment in future mobility. That being stated, the changes are subtle but one can see there is some growth in all the stated areas - especially glutes and quads. And, for a girl that comes from a "flat-a$$ed" genetic family tree - I am very pleased. I know it's not much, and I will never be a "bootylicious" gal, but it's a baby step torward helping me stay as mobile as I can and avoiding falls that might injure or put me out of commission while I can still stand on 2 feet.
Of course, just one lesion in the right place can do that but we're just going to focus on where I'm at and what I can do right now. I also had an amazing meeting with my MS specialist a week ago. I want to write more about that, but it needs to be a topic for another post.
In the meantime, I hope you're all doing well and receiving God's grace daily. Take care and have a very blessed day!
