Here's the photo I did for WIZARDS INC. hair salon. It was in the Hamilton Spectator today. Thanks to my good friend, Kenny Smith(owner and stylist) and Photographer and makeup artist, Korby Banner...you both are amazing!!! 

IN THE MEDIA

HI EVERYONE!!!

I hope you have all had a great week and will be able to enjoy the weekend.
This past week has been pretty hectic. Dennis and I have been putting many hours into building plans for TEAMOBRIEN. This year alone, we will have over 30 athletes competing in Ontario: in fitness, figure and bodybuilding. We are very excited for next years competition season!!
I would like to congratulate Stacey Mlinerivic, Kim Tilden and Marnie Holley for making it into Oxygen Magazine for their great success at the 2005 CBBF Natural World Qualifier. You can see their pictures in the BLAB section on page 45 in the January Issue.Way to go!!!

My picture is also in the same issue in Oxygen Magazine. The pictures and write up this show were very well done. Looking at my pictures from this show, I feel that I may have gone too far with my diet and didn't fill up enough the night before. I mentally and physically felt the best at this show, but my physique came in too stringy. It's always great to look back at photos to see where improvements can be made. Congratulations to all athletes who competed at this event.

It has been very cold this week and we have finally had our first big snow fall. It is so pretty here, but it is way too cold for me.....I think I'm going to have to consider moving somewhere a lot warmer year round!!!

My picture was in the Hamilton Spectator!! This was a great photoshoot that I did for my good friend Kenny Smith who owns WIZARDS INC. He is an amazing hairstylist and he is very creative with all of his work. Korby Banner did an incredible job with my makeup and photgraphy. I had a great time working with both of you. Thanks guys!!!

Well, I guess that's all the new and exciting news here!!! I have to run...we're putting up our Christmas tree tonight!!

Love you all,

Mindi O
xo

Here's a picture of me in the January Issue of Oxygen Magazine from the 2005 Europa Super Show! Photo taken by Terry Goodlad. 

WEEKLY UPDATE!!

Hi Everyone,
I hope you are all enjoying the weekend. Today is a very gloomy day. It is very dark, cold and windy. By the looks of things it looks like it's going to rain this afternoon. It will be one of those days where my butt will be sitting behind my computer catching up on a ton of work.
Oh well!!

Last Wednesday, we had a Tornado here in Hamilton. Alex and I were running errands at around 4pm....It started getting extremely dark, and raining like crazy........I could barely see while we were driving. It must have rained for almost 15-20 minutes and than it seemed to calm down very quickly....It was an eerie feeling. When we got home later that evening, my mom had called to see if we were all ok. I had no idea what she was talking about and that's when she told me that she saw the Tornado we had on the news. I want to thank everyone for their concerned emails and phone calls to see if we were all ok....It was very thoughtful.

Yesterday we to Toronto to visit Dennis's relatives. It was his cousin Nicole's Birthday. She had no idea that we were coming, so when she came home from work she was extremely surprised to see us. For once, Nicole was speechless!!! lol!
We sat by the fire, reminisced and ate the amazing food that Aunt Louise made. I had a great time. Dennis's mother passed away 6 years ago yesterday. Unfortunately I never had the honor of meeting her, so yesterday the family made a toast to her after dinner. Aunt Louise presented me with a beautiful necklace that Dennis's mom used to wear. (Dennis says that his mom wore this necklace for as long as he could remember) I felt so honored and so overwhelmed that his aunt and the rest of his family wanted me to have it....She said it was time. It was such an overwhelming feeling...I can't put into words how I felt.
We left their house at around 10ish and got home close to midnight. As soon as we got home, I climbed into bed and called it a night.

I am taking today off from the gym, catch up on chores and computer work. If I have time I will do some cardio later this evening, but if I don't fit it in, I'm not going to be too upset. My workouts this week were pretty good and I'm training heavy again. I was pressing 65lb db's this week for shoulders, curling 55's lbs db's for biceps, inclined 65 lb db's for chest and went pretty heavy on back. (those were just some of my lifts) It feels great to train heavy again!!!


Well, that's all the news here!!!!!!!!!!

Have a great week and I will post another update at the end of the week.

Take care,

Love Mindi O
xoxox

Here's Alex on Halloween. He started out to be a devil and came home without his mask and just a cape. He told people he was Bruce Wayne, but forgot to take off his cape!!! What an imagination!!! 

UPDATE!!!!!

Hi Everyone!!!

I know, I know.....I need to start updating more often. I promise I will!! I have been playing catch up with everything else for the last few weeks and have been busy putting more business plans together, going to many interviews etc....I can't tell you what they are just yet, but we are pretty excited about some of our future plans!! If I share my news now...I know I will only jinx myself!!!

Anyways, last week was Halloween, so Happy Be-lated Halloween. I hope you all had a safe and fun evening. My son Alex (who is 13yrs. old) begged me for a week to be able to go out trick or treating with a group of friends without me. I am really having a hard time dealing with the fact that he is growing up and wanting to be more independent. (I even offered to dress up in a costume and go trick or treating with him and his friends....he didn't even give that one a second thought...the answer was a big NO!!!) I allowed him to go out but he had to take my cell phone and check in to let me know he was ok. He left the house at 5:30pm and had to be home no later than 7:30pm Alex called home 3 times while he was out, so my mind was put at ease. I will post pictures of him later...I still need to download them from the camera. He brought home a huge pillowcase full of junk! I love chocolate, so thank goodness it's not competition season!
Alex is turning into a wonderful "young man" and as difficult as it may be to accept the fact that he is growing up, I am pleased to see that he is a caring, still polite respectful and giving individual. He is my pride and joy and I love him dearly.

Today was my last cheat meal for a while. This weekend Dennis and I sat down and put a new off season plan into action and will kick it into gear tomorrow. I feel soooooo sick right now and I am so disgusted with what I ate. We went to the Mandarin Restaurant for lunch. For the amount of food that I ate, I might as well have pulled a chair up to the buffet and just shoveled the food right into my big mouth...thank God I wore some elastisized pants!!!!
I can't wait to go to the gym tomorrow and get my butt in gear!!!

I have updated my biography and contest history page. It should be posted in a few days, so be sure to check back.

Well, I guess that's it.

I have to go lie down and let my big gut digest all that food!!!

Have a great week.

Love Mindi O
xo

Here's Donna Lee in the middle. After putting on 12-15lbs of lean mass, Donna was still the leanest and most shredded on stage.