Sister Spotlight! – The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans LLC

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Good morning, everyone! I am happy to announce the next recipient of the Sister Spotlight –Jen! She is an amazing woman and I am honored to call her a friend! From Jen:

Thanks Britt!! You are an awesome sister and it has been a pleasure getting to know you! I love the Sisterhood and the many friendships I have made along the way.  I am honored and a bit humbled to be chosen as the spotlight.

Thank you!

The Sisters insist I talk all about myself:

Name: Jen
Blog: Jen In Real Life
Twitter: @jeninRL
Age: 33 – since Thursday
Hometown: Northfield, NJ

Tell us about your family.
I have the best tripod ever. Me, the husband, and the kid. My daughter is 11 and in 6th grade and pretty much an awesome pain in the ass. Aren’t all kids?!? I have been married to my Big Man for 3 years (4 in May) and together for almost 8 years. Big Man really is my best friend.

What is your favorite workout? Running. Oh.Em.Gee. Did I just write that out loud?!?! It has been almost a year since I started running but I am just getting into a groove where I really, really enjoy the actual running. Running is the one workout where my mind turns off. Running is not easy for me, so I have to focus on my feet and that leaves little room for worries or stress or my to-do list. My brain turns off when I run. Kickboxing/boxing is a very close second because there is nothing like beating the bejebus out of a heavy bag.

What do you consider your biggest accomplishment? Graduating college. I earned two bachelor degrees in May of 2007 after 6 years in college. I went to college as a single mom with a 2-year old. I finished college with a fiancée and an almost-8 year old and two degrees and two teaching certifications. I am the first person in my family to finish college and I did it when no one thought I could or would.

Have you set any goals for this year? I just finally set myself a HUGE goal for this year. But my huge goal has steps. I am already registered to run a half marathon in August. My goal is to run the entire 13.1 miles. Yes, I finished a half in October but I did not push myself to run the entire thing. I allowed myself to use the walking breaks as a crutch. I know there is nothing wrong with walk breaks but I was using them as a way to mot fully push myself. This year, I want to see just what I can accomplish if I put my whole mind, body, and soul into it. Just the other day, my birthday actually, I was in the woods on my favorite (this week) path and I decided to test myself. My first goal was to run a whole mile without stopping. I say was because on my birthday, I ran a whole freaking mile without stopping.  I know I can push myself!! So, my goal is to run my half in August. I have fallen in love with running and running a half is a great goal my HUGE goal is to truly make the commitment to myself!

Who is your best support in your healthier-living journey? My tripod! The husband has been my biggest supporter since we got together. He taught me how to ask for help. The daughter is my reason for everything and she is such a cheerleader!! She always asks about my workouts and she loves that I am running. She wants to run with me.

Favorite songs on your iPod right now? Use Somebody, Kings of Leon; Fucking Perfect, or maybe the whole Pink album; any Lady Antebellum song; and Shoop, Salt-N-Peppa

Who or what inspires you? I think it’s pretty obvious that my family is my reason for everything. Every day they inspire me and motivate me  to be a better me. Big Man just started a daily walking habit and is fighting his food/exercise demons. I am both proud and inspired. My daughter is on the verge of being a teenager and I know those years are going to be tough on both of us. I want to teach herself to love herself and her body exactly as it is because she’s perfect. I work hard to lead by example.

Do you have any must-have health/beauty/clothing products? not specifically. I am pretty low maintenance and cheap so I don’t go for the latest craze or super expensive tech gear. But, I do believe in spending money on good, proper fitting sneakers. We all have different feet needs, go get your feet properly fitted for whatever activity you do.

Name 3 blogs you love to read! Only 3?!? I read a lot of blogs! I love reading about many different aspects of healthy living mainly. It is so hard to narrow it down but I came up with 4 random blogs of ladies in different stages of the journey who all inspire and entertain me!! Please to enjoy: My Thunder Thighs, My Bizzy Kitchen, Jewlia Goulia, and Life Changing Journey (LCJ) and of course I LOVE SJ!!! Ok, so I broke the rules a bit but 3 is a ridiculous number.

5 things we don’t already know about you!

  • In high school I played the flute in the marching band. I have no band camp stories. Sorry. 😉
  • I watch General Hospital every day, usually on hulu. I have been watching GH since I was a wee little thing. My great grandmother got me started!
  • At the age of 18, after only one semester of college, I withdrew before I flunked out. I waited until college (where I lived at home) to have a teenage rebellion. After I withdrew from school, I packed my car and moved to Florida with my boyfriend.  We traveled back and forth between
  • I grew up in a resort beach town on the NJ coast. My first real job (besides babysitting) was at a candy store on the boardwalk. I made cotton candy and fudge all summer. The next few summers after that I worked at an amusement pier; I ran the rides, I worked in the concession stands, I sold balloons, ran the shooting gallery, and even wore the giant bear costume. I loved that job!
  • I met my husband in a bar. We knew each other for about 6 months when I finally agreed to go on a date. We dated for less than 6 weeks before we were engaged. We were engaged for 4 years before we were married. We waited for me to finish college. We were married in New Orleans three days after I graduated.

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