My New Year’s was eventful… but I can’t say in a good way. My husband’s godmother was in the hospital and my children were already at my in-laws. When he left, I felt lonely and depressed having no children. Also, I hadn’t eaten much for the day so ended up feeling very sick by the end of the night. At the last minute, I decided to go to church, so I was around my children at the beginning of the new year. It was worth it, even though I was exhausted and ready o go to sleep as soon as I walked in the door.

Despite the lack of positive events when the clock chimed midnight, I reflected on how very grateful for everyone that’s in my life. I’ve been blessed with a wonderful set of friends, most of which I wish I were closer. Anywho… let’s talk about our wonderful AAF!

What is #AskAwayFriday? Well…
#AskAwayFriday was created by the amazing Penny from Real Housewife of Caroline County as a way to connect with other bloggers with a great Q & A session of 10 questions and 10 answers! By offering a wonderful opportunity to get to know others while allowing others to get to know you and of course there is also the added bonus of making great friends along the way which is one of the best parts of this online world! Now to welcome our wonderful #AskAwayFriday hosts… NEWAskAwayFridayHost550

Tamara from Tamara Like Camera, Tiffany from Mrs. Tee Love Life Laughter, Christy from Uplifting Families, Stacey from This Momma’s Ramblings and Amber from Bold Fit Mom
So…grab the brand, new button, follow our amazing hosts and co-host, hop through the great link ups and make some amazing new friends!

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This week, I exchanged questions with Cascia who not only runs her own blog, Talbert Zoo, her blog, but also runs an online magazine, Healthy Moms Magazine. With her five children, she chronicles her journey through photos, videos and some humor.
AAF with Cascia
1. The first thing I noticed when I visited your blog was that you are a health and fitness enthusiast just like I am. What prompted you to get interested in health? In short, I’m fat and I don’t want to be. I started the blog to keep me accountable. The longer answer is that once upon a time, I was fit. I was a high school athlete, but I never really learned how to eat. I ate whatever I wanted because I would burn pretty much anything off. When I became depressed in college from losing my best friend (she didn’t die, I screwed up the relationship), I started picking up weight. Then in law school, I gained even more because of my depression. I finally hit the pinnacle of my weight at 260 pounds after losing our son. I needed a way to find myself back to me. So, 100lbcountdown.com was born.

2. How many children do you have? How old are they? I am the proud momma of four children ~ 10 year old boy Bunny, 3 year old girl Bee and 1 year old girl Butterfly and deceased son Alexander who would be 7.

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3. Where do you live? Have you always lived in that town/city? I currently live in West Palm Beach, Florida now… We moved here last summer but previously, I’ve lived in many places in southern California, most surrounding the 10/210 freeways (if you know the area).

4. If you could have a cup of coffee (or tea if you don’t like coffee) with a celebrity who would it be and why? I think it would be Mark Cuban or Oprah. I would want to find out more about their daily activities and how I could mimic them to be more successful.

5. What songs are on your workout playlist? LOL! I don’t listen to music during workouts. I listen to books on tape and podcasts. I get to enter someone else’s world and think about how I’m not working out. I love to work out with others, but have not found a steady workout partner. I like listening to Adam Carolla, Dr. Drew and Alison Rosen most often.

6. Do you remember the first car that you ever owned? What was it? Of course I do! It was a Chevy Sprint. It cost me $300 and smelled like cigarette smoke. When I bought it, it was the only car in our household!

Soon after I got it, my dad used it to take my sister to a playdate. In our tiny neighborhood, he managed to get into a car accident and smash in the driver side door. I no longer could close the door completely or roll down the window. This meant the summers were brutal!

7. What is on your bucket list? Travel to every continent. Witness my children get married. Have my own business successful business. Be an awesome grandmother!

8. If you could change careers what would it be? Well, I’m a SAHM, so I would love to have a career itself, but that said I want to be a real estate developer. I want to find out more about the industry and have developments all over the nation.

9. Today is January 2, looking back on the past year what is one news story that really moved you? I know there are many news stories that really should have moved me such as Eric Garner and Michael Brown, the one that touched me the most was the suicide of Robin Williams. The man brought us so much joy, yet suffered most inside. The true face of depression is not always someone looking somber or depressed, but are often fighting internal demons.

Having been through several bouts of depression, I often get, “Well, you looked like nothing bothered you” or “You didn’t look depressed”. Sadly, too many people don’t. You just can’t walk around looking sad all day without questions from everyone about “What’s wrong?” When you can’t always articulate the answer, you don’t want to try to answer it, especially to someone you barely know.

10. Looking back on the past year again, what was your greatest accomplishment from 2014? Being consistent. I blogged more, I lost weight and I took on and completed projects. It’s been years since I felt like I had completed something! Next year, I just want to break out of my comfort zone and make sure that I feel accomplished in 2015. {