I finally have a minute to catch up:) My weekend was lots of fun! The surprise party for my brother-in-law was a hit..he was super surprised! Lucas finished law school last week, Way to go!!! So my sister and my parents threw him a party with 80 people invited. Hawaiian attire was required:) and everybody looked great. I even had the kids looking like they stepped off the beach of Maui. After the party I put the kids to bed and had a great night out dancing with my brother and his girlfriend. We stayed out until 4:30 a.m. I haven't done that in a LONG time...it was tuns of fun! I was tired on Sunday but the baby slept until 7:30 a.m. so it wasn't too bad...HA-HA!
I am super happy with my training progress!! My body composition is getting back to my off-season range and I am looking tighter. I am doing cardio 5 days a week and lifting 3 days a week for now and that is working well for me. By mid June I will go back to lifting 4 days a week and cardio 4 days a week. Three weeks until Jr. Nationals where I will be doing a few photo shoots, so there will be some new photos in my off-season photo section:)
There has been much excitement in our house since my husband got onto the fire dept. He is a full-time union carpenter and just recently became an on-call part-time firemen as well. The pager is a trip. The thing goes off and he's out the door before I have a chance to look the other direction. A great opportunity for sure! It is incredibly fulfilling to see him go after one of his lifelong dreams...I am so proud of him!! I cannot think of a man more suited for this calling. He holds the two most respected and honorable jobs there are, (in my eyes), carpenter and firemen.
Our little girl will be dancing on stage for the first time in a few weeks and she finishes pre-school for the year tomorrow. Next year it's full day kindergarten...what a big girl she is! Wow...the time has gone by fast but I find every age brings new insight and meaning to my life.
Well, time to go....Have a great holiday weekend!!!
Jen:)

Something great I heard today..."When you drink the water remember the men who dug the well". I really like that!!
That's for all of you out there near and far who go unnoticed and unrecognized, for whom without, our world would not exist as we know it! Thank you!
Have a great day everybody!!!
Jen

Hi everybody, I have posted a few pictures from the Rockford show in my yahoo group (photo section). You can access them by clicking this link... http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jenniferabrams/
or by clicking on "Jennifer's Fan Group" on my Links page. There are a few of my son and I, and Karen and her sisters. I hope you all had a great weekend!
My mom is awesome!!! She's still tap dancing on stage at 50 something! I went to her dance recital this weekend. She was great! Still looks like a little kid in her 5 foot 2 inch frame and great big smile:)
I have had the last two days off from the gym and I'm ready to get back tomorrow. Training is going well. I am sore as ever...had a great kickboxing class on Friday morning too. Keep your sights on your goals and never stop believing in yourself! It's never too late to do something good for your health.
Have a great week!
Jen

Hey there everybody! I have a new testimonial on my "Ask The Trainer" page. Check it out!! Sue and Justin are the choreography and posing clients that just recently competed. There are two photos as well. I would like to send a big thank you out to Gerard from Germany! You are an incredibly devoted fan of Female Bodybuilding! Thank you for all your support and donation. Your autographed photos will be on there way to you soon:)
Well I just got back from taking Alyssa to dance and have to get the kids ready to go to the gym. I am stopping by my in-laws after the gym so they can spend some time with the kids.
I had a nice Mother's Day. My mom and I took the kids to Busse Woods and went roller blading, while my husband went to see his mom. Then we all had a barbecue at my parents' house.
I am having some great workouts since I started on this pyramiding super set.. "stepping stone" program, as I call it. I feel strong and it is helping me work at a very high intensity my entire workout (needed for post pregnancy:).
Ta-Ta for now...The sky's the limit, unless of course you have wings!!!! Right on:)
Jen

Thank you for all the Mother's Day wishes everyone! You are all sooo thoughtful! Tonight my husband and I started building our deck!! Well, let me rephrase that:) He was building, I was the entertaining apprentice:) For all you out there who know about carpentry... we were plumbing the frame for the deck tonight and then we will put all the hangers and joices in tomorrow ( I know I spelled that wrong...a little secret about me..I can't spell:) My husband can have a deck done in one day. He's so fun to watch and work with! He's the best damn carpenter I have ever seen. He can take a 2 by 10 a hammer, a Sawzaw and some nails and make just about anything, with a smile:) And people wonder why we have such happy kids:)
Today at Alyssa's pre-school they had a Mother's Day program for all of us moms. I had gone to the gym before the program so we made it there just in time for things to begin. I spent a good portion of the program wiping away tears...it was precious to hear what she had to say about her mommy..me! Sometimes it's really crazy to think I am a mother, my husband still thinks I'm a little kid at heart:). Each child also painted a plate with a special note attached. I remembered the plate I had given to my mother when I was a little girl, and how oddly familiar today's experience was:) A moment from the other side of things.. that made the time that much better! I can't tell you how beautiful her little face was, lit up and smiling as she sang her little heart out to make her mommy proud..God, children are little angles on earth..God Bless them all!!
I am sore and feeling great with my new "stepping stone" training I explained a few days ago. I needed something fresh and challenging and I think this is doing the trick..for now..ha-ha! Always have to keep it fresh, that's how you become the best you can be...never let yourself get into a mindless routine.
Have a fantastic weekend everybody!
Jennifer Lynn

Happy Cinco De Mayo! I have lots to share...so pull up a chair:) First of all I want to send a huge congratulations out to my friends Candace and Doug who just became parents Monday night! Aubrey Lynn Tabor was 8 lbs. 14 oz. and was 21 inches long. I just got back from the hospital, where I was able to hold her for a little while. She felt like air compared to my big, strong, 20 lb, 7 month old baby boy:) She's beautiful!! Mom and dad are tired but sooo happy to be parents for the first time, they waited a LONG time to have children!
Now, for the Rockford show update...Karen took 3rd in the open heavy weight, Sue (my posing routine client), won her 40-49 Masters class and won the Masters overall. She also placed 3rd in the open light weight class. Justin didn't place in the top 5 for the Novice mens light weight class, but keep in mind he is just at the tip of the ice berg at 18 years old. He definitely has potential, he just needs more mature muscle, a more refined overall physique and some size on his shoulders and back. I want to see him in 5 years:))
Karen's posing was great and she was a class act on stage but needed to be leaner to be considered in the top placing. She made some great muscular gains in her upper body these past two years but still needs to focus her attention on upper body development. Her heart and will to succeed never dies...she is a true athlete!
I ended up passing out a few business cards to a few competitors who were looking for posing routines in the future. So that may end up to be fun! My friend Kelly and my brother, Jack, came to the show as well and were both a big help with my little guy. Kelly, thanks again for being my "husband" for the day and helping me lug around all my stuff for the baby and Karen:)
You're the BEST!!! Big hugs!!
Sunday, Sue and Justin performed their posing routines at Bench America (www.benchamerica.com). They had their picture in the Daily Herald on Monday and the event is scheduled to air on Fox Sports. It sounds like they had a great time! Ron Keable, a personal trainer I used to work with at Ballys was heading up the bodybuilding portion of the Expo. He did a great job from what I was told. I will definitely be checking it out next year.
I had a great workout yesterday. My strained back is much, much better and I should be 100% in a day or two:) I am finding that with my kid's schedules that my workouts are much more productive when I combine more body parts together. I am working to failure with 1 exercise, 3 sets for 4 body parts 3 days a week. Yesterday I did leg extensions, hamstring curls, Hammer bench and Bicep curls. I am also trying a "stepping stone" training program I have heard other competitors try for specific body parts on my entire body. Elena Seiple has used this one for bicep training and I thought it may help me out across the board with my limited gym time for now until my daughter goes to full-day kindergarten next year. Then I will have a regular routine instead of such a crazy one right now. I will have the time to come in exactly how I want for my 2005 return to the stage:)
This "stepping stone" idea goes like this...start with a lighter weight than you normally would and do independent reps on your right and left side of the body, work your way up in weight and then down again. Example: Leg Extensions...do 8 reps on the right leg and 8 reps on the left leg, then bump the weight up and do 8 on the right and 8 on the left, bump it one more time and do 8 each leg then start yourself back down to where you started, no rest between. Do this 3 different times (sets) and then move to your next body part. I am sore and I got a lot done in a short time. This is going to be my training program for the next few months. I will keep you all posted on how I'm doing. I will soon be able to post pics in my journal so I will share my progress as well.
I have to go get my daughter from school...Have a great week everybody!!
Jennifer:)