Yearly Archives

2014

Everything that went wrong in 2014

December 31, 2014

From severe acne, weight gain, war zones and betrayal – how everything that went wrong, really went right in 2014. Like most, I began this year with high hopes, a set timeline and a desire to hit resolutions. Despite ending the prior year at a low after being banned by Facebook for supposed hate speech, I was ready to take my newfound public platform and motivate others to stop making excuses. In January, I launched the No Excuse Mom Movement,…

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Life’s Exploitation.

December 23, 2014

The first time I felt exploited was in 2003, right after placing top five in two national fitness competitions. While waiting for two post-contest photoshoots, I watched as colleagues pose suggestively in thong bikinis at the hotel pool. I saw as our hard earned physiques was being used and exploited by photographers, magazines, companies and contest promoters to gain money. I canceled both shoots scheduled that day and left Los Angeles alone in my Honda CRV, driving home to Sacramento…

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New Beginnings…

December 4, 2014

I was betrayed today. I woke up and received a notification that my Instagram password and email was changed. I could see who the perpetrator was and in shock, called her immediately, but she didn’t answer. I haven’t spoken to her for some time and relieved her from being our NEM Instagram manager months prior. I discovered that she renamed the account and told thousands of No Excuse Mom followers that she rightfully felt what she built was hers. Suddenly…

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Healthy doesn’t always look “Fit”

November 25, 2014

When I was outwardly considered the most fit, I wasn’t healthy. I meticulously counted macros, spent hours at the gym, turned down invitations to social gatherings, lacked life balance and focused mainly on physical aesthetics and not bodily function.  I didn’t realize that most images seen on magazines and advertisements are of paid models/athletes that tanned, dieted and depleted their body of water so muscles become more visible. Many develop eating disorders, body dysmorphia, infertility, metabolic damage, depression and caffeine…

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What’s My Excuse?

October 28, 2014

I yelled at my kids today. I don’t usually yell. I’m usually the loving but strict mother, with a strong undertone in her voice, who’s glaring eyes can persuade their kids to clean their rooms, eat their vegetables and stop fighting in 1 …2…, well there is no 3. Because we never get to 3. But we got to 3 today. After an intense several weeks of non-stop working, a late wake-up call and a rush out the house to…

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Failure is perception.

October 15, 2014

I fear failure. Funny statement considering, most people view me as a successful person. What people don’t realize is how much I’ve failed in this process in uncovering my life’s path. In 2008 I experienced an unplanned pregnancy that left me depressed, anxious and worried about the future. I didn’t have a steady income, I lacked health insurance, I recently moved home with my parents, I was overweight from years of disordered eating and while we were engaged, we weren’t…

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Pilgrimage to the Holy Land

September 12, 2014

Are you ready to die? I often ask myself this question. As a child I wondered about the vastness of the world and my complete obscurity compared to the billions of people who exist. I asked why life felt so unfair, almost left to fate – whether or not we would be born with the advantages of clean water, surplus food, a protected environment and strong genetics. After all, we aren’t given a choice what country we are born in…

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The nature of love

July 27, 2014

I fell in love with my husband while standing over an ant hill. On a random fall afternoon, we decided to take a walk through a nature preserve in a small town in Mississippi. It was quiet, peaceful and serene – a far cry from the perennial loudness we experience with our little ones today. It must’ve been just a month into our relationship and I was still infatuated by this charming poet, a divorced father who still believed fervently…

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The Secret To Success

June 17, 2014

June 16, 2014 I wrote my first book in 3rd grade. I distinctly remember taking colorful paper from my father’s printer, cutting it in half, folding then stapling it together. I wrote and illustrated twelve pages and sold them for .75 to my classmates. While I sold a few I didn’t get officially published until I reached 6th grade for a poem I wrote about an injured dove and again in 8th grade for another poem about social change. I…

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25 Summertime Shape Up Tips!

May 22, 2014

Like most people, my job isn’t to be in shape and fitting in workouts means managing time between work, cooking, cleaning and caretaking my three little boys who I gave birth to in 2009, 2010 and 2011. While it’s difficult to prioritize YOU (especially when you are last on your list), it is possible to get into great shape.  Here are 25 great tips I use to get ready for the summer time (or any time). 1.      Write both long (3-12…

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