Polar Plunge

Hi all you Java followers!!

Wow!! What a rush!!! As most of you that know, I had the Polar Plunge this past weekend. It was something I've had on my bucket list & was ecstatic to do it. I would be lying if I didn't admit I was very nervous. I have heard that people have had heart attacks due to the shock their bodies endure jumping/running into such cold water temps. But, even with a warning from my mom, I decided to charge on, er plunge on. :)  I am sooooo glad I did! What a blast! I can't wait to dress up next year & do it all over again! They have costume contests, which I did not know about. A friend of mine, Robin, invited me to join her team & I was so worried, because I had 2 weeks to raise the min of $75 in donations. I hit it day 1! So I upped my goal to $150, hit it about a week later I guess it was, & by the night before the plunge I was $5 short of $300! And I am so happy to say, that as I opened my laptop to blog about my experience, another donation came in! I am at $320!!! Awesome!!! If you wanted to donate, & did not get a chance, you may still go here and make a donation until March 15th I believe. 
First off, you all are awesome! Those donations just flew in & I am in awe of the outpour of donations. What an awesome thing to see everyone come together to support the Special Olympics of Illinois. Just amazing! 

Second, so here it goes. I am registering in a nice warmed tent by the lake & then we line up. Now there was a lot of alcohol for sale for those that wanted to partake. And there were a lot of folks who had a few too many to drink (especially before noon???). I was already nervous. I could hear my mom in the back of my mind "you know, people have been known to have a heart attack doing this". Thanks mom. LOL. And then, there we are standing in line waiting for our flight to go out & 2 men drag a lady totally unconscious through the crowd. Luckily my friend pointed out that she wasn't even wet yet  & that the lady probably was really drunk. OK, good. I'm ok. In my mind, I'm thinking "oh man, I hope mom isn't right". It's our flights turn to go out of the warmth of the dry tent & line up on the boardwalk along the lake front. BRR! A large portion of our lake is still frozen over & from my understanding they were out breaking the ice off the beach Friday before the plunge! They announce that the water is a lovely 35degrees!!! BRRR. Only a couple degrees above freezing! Hello? What am I thinking?! I told Robin, I will do it this once but never again. I also announced that I doubt I make it to the rope. (who am I kidding, like my hubby said. I am stubborn, he knew I would go all the way.) After all, I was stubborn & refused to give in to pain meds with my 3rd child until it was too late to get them. I am tougher than I ever dreamt! They announce our team, we line up along the beach & I choose to go on the side where I can run straight out & the rope isn't as far as for everyone else, but I wasn't thinking about how I had the farthest to go to get across the beach to exit the water! oops. They fired the gun & I ran as fast & as hard as I could into that water & after about waist deep I fell forward because my bottom half sorta came to a halt in the water but my top half was going full speed. I was having a really good hair day so I was trying to keep my hair dry. haha. I also had somewhere to go right after & didn't want to go home & wash & dry it & straighten it all over again. I made it all the way to the rope & lifted it. Then turned & went back. judging by the pictures, I didn't realize how cold it was until I let go of the rope & turned around. I got out of the water as fast as could be. It was so much fun! Such a rush. And I do plan to do it again! Every year if possible!

Here are some pictures from the plunge. Some are from my husband, & the rest from my dad!
Thank you guys for taking pictures!

courtesy of Mikel

courtesy of Mikel

courtesy of Mikel

courtesy of Mikel

courtesy of Mikel

courtesy of Mikel

courtesy of Mikel

 

 

 

 courtesy of dad

 courtesy of dad

 courtesy of dad

 courtesy of dad

 courtesy of dad

 

 Me & my friend Robin, our team captain!

 

And with that I bid you a HUGE Thank You!!

 

Another sip of java! Make mine extra hot please!!

 

 

 

 

Busket List

Hi Java followers!!

 How are you this fine morning? I have been crazy busy lately. I have a couple things I am knocking off my "bucket" list year &  they are coming up fast! First off I have the Polar Plunge, which raises money for the Special Olympics of Illinois. I cannot wait! This is tomorrow!!!! 3/8/2014. Just over 24hours away!!! I have a goal set to raise $250, of which I have raised $135. I have made an offer that if I can raise $100 more, I will make the final donation of $20 to make that $250! I made the first donation to get it all started. If you are interested in helping me achieve this goal, but more importantly to help the Special Olympics, you may go here.

The next item up for business is to knock off the goal of running a 10K (6.2miles).  This will be done at Allerton Park on April 5th. This is why I have been so busy. Aside form taking care of my 3 children & keeping my house in order, I am running almost daily. My wonderful hubby bought me a treadmill so I can train no matter the weather! I have a 5K(3.1miles) on March 29th. I am so excited to be running again. With the running comes the risk of injuries so please pray I don't injure myself. I have a lot of races to sign up for this year as I want to earn the Grand Slam Medal from the running club I am a part of. I have to run in 4 of 5 races that are sponsored by this running club. The 10k I am signed up for is not one of them. I have been having some trouble with my ankle as I have a funny stride/gait. I am hoping to get into a shoe place where professionals can fit me with a proper running shoe. I love my Merrell Barefoot Racegloves ( they are a shoe to train you to run barefoot). They are so comfortable, lightweight, breathable & they bend well.

Coming back into running after having a baby was hard. I believe I posted before about the Run or Dye I did in October last year. It was fun, but would have been better with a running partner. Anyway, I hadn't run again after that until the last couple weeks. Starting over is so very hard. I read somewhere that if you don't like starting over, stop quitting. So, with that, I don't plan to quit anymore. Especially since I have a treadmill so the weather can no longer be an excuse!

My next goal for either this year or next is to complete a duathlon by myself. I have run as part of a team, but I want to do the entire duathlon as an individual. The one I have participated in before was the Mt. Zion Odd Fellows Duathlon. I have participated both years they have done it. It is a 2mile run followed by a 13mile bike ride ending with a 2 mile run. The only thing holding me back is I do not have a bike. I can borrow a bike from my hubby, if he doesn't intend to participate alone this year as well.

Next year for sure I intend to run a 15K (9.3miles).

Wish me the best as I achive some goals of mine!

Another sip of java! ( and a lot of water)

Polar Plunge

I am going to be participating in the Polar Plunge. One more thing to bump off my bucket list! Would you please donate to the cause?

Thanks so much. Please share as well.

https://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/AmyManningBosler/2014-polar-plunge-decatur

Contact Info

Hi. Thanks for stopping by to check out my photo blog. I hope you take time to browse all the posts. Along the right hand side you can select from the list of posts or just simply scroll down through them & at the bottom of the page select view older posts.
If you have any feedback, whether it be positive or negative, please don't hesitate to email me. I love good criticism.

Here is my contact info ~
email mafibosler4@gmail.com
phone 217-853-9143

DIY Pocket Toy (Like a Polly Pocket)

Hi Java Mama Followers!

How many of you remember these things called Polly Pockets?  I loved these things. Dolls that could travel. I always wanted them or even one. Nowadays they are big. Not as "cool" as they were in "my day". They don't travel well.

Another poplar item is the Squinkies. I hate them. They are tiny, squishy things that come in a plastic ball. You find them everywhere. My daughter loves them. (much like I loved the Polly Pocket of my day) She had a ton of them, but if I find them or step on them, I trash them. Her little brother, Isaiah decided to get her an entire set of more for Christmas.

 

 

Ok, they are cute and at least they are squishy, so if I step on them it's not like stepping on the hard Polly Pocket toy. She needed to experience a toy like from my day. Faith needed a place to keep these little creatures. She needed something east to take while we wait at the doctors office, easy to play with in the van. So, I created something!

 

I have this stack of magazines...... ( you never know when you may need them again)

 

And I needed an item to close shut, something small, something I could glue "scenes" into. AHA! An Altoids canister. I however, do not like altoids. Their "curiously stronger" mints are too strong for my likings. At any rate. I had to find someone who does like them. We have a man at out church who happens to love them. Mike willingly ate a can of them & donated the empty can to us. (This this still smells like cinnamon)

So, now the fun began. I thumbed through my magazines searching for pictures I could cut out & paste into the can to create a "home" for these Squinkies. So, here it is!

 

 

A HUGE thank you to Mike for always wanting fresh breath. His fresh breath helped a poor mothers cause! :)

 

 

On that note, I'm gonna have another sip of my S'mores Latte

 

S'mores!

Hi Java Followers!

 It is a super cold yucky morning here in Illinois. I am starting to get cabin fever. (ok, I HAVE had it for some time now.)  I was in need of creating something new & something that makes me feel all warm inside. What better "comfort food" than a S'mores?! Problem is, it is too cold to go outside & build a fire & toast marshmallows.  Not to mention my fire pit is buried in snow. You get the picture.

So, I decided to pull out my goodies I have on hand in my cabinet & grabbed a pencil & notepad & started creating....... wait for it...... S'mores creamer! Yay!! I accidentally learned a tasty S'mores hot chocolate as well in my trying to create this. Here is what you need:

S'mores Creamer

1 1/2C heavy cream (I only had milk, this is how I accidentally discovered the hot chocolate)
1/2C Chocolate Chips. ( I prefer milk choc.)
1/2C marshmallow cream
1/4C corn syrup (this sweetens the creamer and is optional)
4TBS Biscoff Spread

Over low heat, warm heavy cream (or milk)  in pot until bubbling. Not boiling.  Put all the remaining ingredients in a bowl. Pour warmed milk over, cover & let sit for 5min. Stir or whisk together until well combined.  Keep in air tight container in fridge. Enjoy!

I'm telling you this stuff is amazing. I had to play with it to get the measurements that I did. I started with half the amounts of the ingredients (other than the milk) and it just wasn't enough for a creamer. Also, I hadn't added the corn syrup at first so it wasn't sweet enough for a creamer to me. So, that's how I came up with the S'mores hot chocolate. Here is the recipe for that. it makes I would guess 2-3 mugs of hot chocolate.

S'mores Hot Chocolate

1 1/2C milk
1/4C Chocolate Chips
1//4C Marshmallow Cream
2TBS Biscoff Spread

Warm milk over low heat in a pot until bubbling. (not boiling) Put all remaining ingredients in a bowl, pour warm milk over, cover & let sit for 5min. Whisk together & pour up in mugs. YUMMY!


There you have it. You can thank me later. Until you get so addicted your scale hates you. I am sure it isn't healthy. But it tastes so good!

Here's to another cup of S'mores Latte! Yummy!

Contest/Running

Hi Java followers!

How are you on this fine chilly Monday? What did you have in your cup this morning? I fixed myself a yummy strawberry white mocha! Yum!

Over the weekend I did some brainstorming & thinking about how I could get things moving with my new photo business that I am trying to get off the ground & running. Oh running, I miss running!
Anyway, I have decided to TRY and pull off a contest but I need my followers help with prayers, sharing & maybe even booking a session of your own! :) Here are the details.

In other news, I have a friend that invited me to run a 10k with her this spring. I have only run once this year. It hurt so bad. But felt soooo good too. haha. So I have accepted the challenge & will be running a 10K the first part of April. Since my baby sister has moved closer to home, I invited her to join as well. So she is going to join me & my friend R! I cannot wait. I needed a goal set to get me motivated to get back out & run again. Now, if this weather would just cooperate because I do not have a treadmill & cannot afford to get a gym membership, nor the treadmill. So, if you know of anyone that decided they no longer want theirs. Let me know because I would love  a free hand me down. :)

Here is to a new year, & new goals!!


mmm. that java is so good!