Those are silver, these are gold.
I graduated from high school a long time ago and I had three girls in my class whom I was and am still very close to in terms of friendship. We haven't been able to do very much together or see each other as often as we like, but today, they came over to my house to eat lunch. And, before we knew it, it was after five and everyone had to leave to go home to tend to husbands and babies.
But, it was good to see that when you are truly friends, you can pick up right where you left off and still be as close as you once were. I'm thankful for the gold. Always open to the silver, but I will do anything and everything for you once you're golden in my book.
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
You Never Know What The Day Will Bring...
Today brought TWO teething, cranky babies. As in full blown crying meltdowns completely with runny noses, hiccups interspersed with sobbing, and requesting the impossible which led to more meltdowns. I just kept telling myself that this too shall pass. ANY DAY NOW that top tooth will break through for Elliott and Jack's two year molars will just appear. In the meantime, I am going to have to cast my coping / good idea nets a little further to come up with some new distractions and entertainments for Jack which should allow me to have more cuddle time with Elliott. I do love how affectionate they both are right now. It feels good to be needed.
Today also brought one of those "I have only ever seen this on COPS" moments. I noticed that Luke, the world's nosiest beagle, was standing at attention at the end of the backyard. Upon closer inspection through the kitchen french doors, I saw a man dressed in a pair of jeans, a blue t-shirt, and a navy blue vest. I watched him for a few minutes and couldn't place him as a neighbor and couldn't figure out why he would be standing at my fence. I grabbed my cell phone and opened the back door. He never noticed me, but I was able to get close enough to see the word, "POLICE," emblazoned on the back of the vest in huge yellow letters and then he turned away from me towards my neighbor's yard and I saw that he had a semi automatic rifle of some sort in his hands. The barrel was pointed at the ground, but his hand was in the trigger vicinity so needless to say, I hightailed it back inside and called the police dispatcher to make sure he was the real deal. Turns out, yes indeed he was AND they were raiding my neighbor's house. No shocker there. We live in a nice area for the most part, but like in most neighborhoods, there is always that ONE house that drags everyone else down in terms of its appearance and the activity that takes place around and within.
Today also brought some interesting news on the consulting front. About a year ago, I started my own consulting firm. Obviously, with two babies, it's been a very slow go on actually generating anything steady in terms of projects....but, hopefully all of that is going to change this fall. If everything goes to plan, I will be assisting in developing a new sales and marketing approach for a new business. I should be able to do everything from home and it will be nice to interact with others on a problem solving level. I DO like challenges.
Speaking of challenges, I am asking the Lord to help strengthen me to get through the rest of this teething situation! Off to bed now in the event that tomorrow is like today has been.
Today also brought one of those "I have only ever seen this on COPS" moments. I noticed that Luke, the world's nosiest beagle, was standing at attention at the end of the backyard. Upon closer inspection through the kitchen french doors, I saw a man dressed in a pair of jeans, a blue t-shirt, and a navy blue vest. I watched him for a few minutes and couldn't place him as a neighbor and couldn't figure out why he would be standing at my fence. I grabbed my cell phone and opened the back door. He never noticed me, but I was able to get close enough to see the word, "POLICE," emblazoned on the back of the vest in huge yellow letters and then he turned away from me towards my neighbor's yard and I saw that he had a semi automatic rifle of some sort in his hands. The barrel was pointed at the ground, but his hand was in the trigger vicinity so needless to say, I hightailed it back inside and called the police dispatcher to make sure he was the real deal. Turns out, yes indeed he was AND they were raiding my neighbor's house. No shocker there. We live in a nice area for the most part, but like in most neighborhoods, there is always that ONE house that drags everyone else down in terms of its appearance and the activity that takes place around and within.
Today also brought some interesting news on the consulting front. About a year ago, I started my own consulting firm. Obviously, with two babies, it's been a very slow go on actually generating anything steady in terms of projects....but, hopefully all of that is going to change this fall. If everything goes to plan, I will be assisting in developing a new sales and marketing approach for a new business. I should be able to do everything from home and it will be nice to interact with others on a problem solving level. I DO like challenges.
Speaking of challenges, I am asking the Lord to help strengthen me to get through the rest of this teething situation! Off to bed now in the event that tomorrow is like today has been.
Monday, July 16, 2012
I am noticing...
I was either unaware or unwilling to admit how much of my life has been spent putting things off until tomorrow.
"Oh, I will start eating better....tomorrow. Or maybe Monday. It's always best to start something new on a Monday."
"I really should get to the gym. No point going today though. I need to work it into my schedule first."
"The backyard really needs some help. Of course, it would be silly to do anything about it right now because I don't have any extra funding to get it all done at one time."
"I need to get rid of my online profile. It's just a timewaster and a drama starter. As soon as I finish all of my Words with Friends games AND find someone to moderate my two communities, I'll delete it."
But, here is the truth, plain and simple...in the words of Prof. Harold Hill from the Music Man - "You pile up enough tomorrows, and you'll find you are left with nothing but a lot of empty yesterdays. I don't know about you, but I'd like to make today worth remembering.”
Yesterday, I deleted my Facebook account. I didn't spend any time dragging out my goodbyes. I didn't tell anyone I was going to do it. I briefly lamented how my Duncan, OK group is going to go downhill fast because no one else will be as OCD as I am about spam ads before realizing that the worst thing that could happen is people quit supporting the group. I swallowed my pride relating to defending my honor on Words With Friends. And, then. I pulled the plug.
It felt so good. Freeing - just like when I deleted my LiveJournal a few years ago.
I started running last week. I can't run very far or very long and by the time I round the last corner of my city block, I'm puffing away like a steam engine. But, it feels so good. And it gets the day started in a good place. I have time to get myself in order. To put my day in order. To pray about the things weighing on my mind. And it's just me. I'm not distracted by anyone else doing anything else. I'm just moving.
Today, I held my cranky, teething baby for most of the day. He needed me. I visited with my 22 month old about his toys and books and his little brother and how much I love him. And when Pete got home from work and from the grocery store, Jack and I went outside and power washed the jogging stroller so he can come with me sometimes. And, I started digging up the 16" red brick pavers to move around to the front of the house so I can get rid of the hideous white rock walkway that has been there since before we moved in. Nothing earth shattering.
But, it feels really, really good.
"Oh, I will start eating better....tomorrow. Or maybe Monday. It's always best to start something new on a Monday."
"I really should get to the gym. No point going today though. I need to work it into my schedule first."
"The backyard really needs some help. Of course, it would be silly to do anything about it right now because I don't have any extra funding to get it all done at one time."
"I need to get rid of my online profile. It's just a timewaster and a drama starter. As soon as I finish all of my Words with Friends games AND find someone to moderate my two communities, I'll delete it."
But, here is the truth, plain and simple...in the words of Prof. Harold Hill from the Music Man - "You pile up enough tomorrows, and you'll find you are left with nothing but a lot of empty yesterdays. I don't know about you, but I'd like to make today worth remembering.”
Yesterday, I deleted my Facebook account. I didn't spend any time dragging out my goodbyes. I didn't tell anyone I was going to do it. I briefly lamented how my Duncan, OK group is going to go downhill fast because no one else will be as OCD as I am about spam ads before realizing that the worst thing that could happen is people quit supporting the group. I swallowed my pride relating to defending my honor on Words With Friends. And, then. I pulled the plug.
It felt so good. Freeing - just like when I deleted my LiveJournal a few years ago.
I started running last week. I can't run very far or very long and by the time I round the last corner of my city block, I'm puffing away like a steam engine. But, it feels so good. And it gets the day started in a good place. I have time to get myself in order. To put my day in order. To pray about the things weighing on my mind. And it's just me. I'm not distracted by anyone else doing anything else. I'm just moving.
Today, I held my cranky, teething baby for most of the day. He needed me. I visited with my 22 month old about his toys and books and his little brother and how much I love him. And when Pete got home from work and from the grocery store, Jack and I went outside and power washed the jogging stroller so he can come with me sometimes. And, I started digging up the 16" red brick pavers to move around to the front of the house so I can get rid of the hideous white rock walkway that has been there since before we moved in. Nothing earth shattering.
But, it feels really, really good.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
su·per·fi·cial
[soo-per-fish-uhl]
adjective
1. being at, on, or near the surface: a superficial wound.
2. of or pertaining to the surface: superficial measurement.
3. external or outward: a superficial resemblance.
4. concerned with or comprehending only what is on the surface or obvious: a superficial observer.
5. shallow; not profound or thorough: a superficial writer.
I am sick of it. Offically over it. This phony level of "knowing" someone or having them believe that they "know" me because we happen to be acquaintances through a social media platform. Having the stress of "Do I friend, do I unfriend, if I unfriend what social problems will I cause, would I have dinner with this person in real life, why do I care so much about the feelings of someone who has no idea who I really am?" coupled with the awkward in person exchanges that stem from someone knowing what is going on in your life without you having ever spoken to them in person is leading me down a path of wanting some downtime.
The problem is this....I am not willing or ready to completely cut myself off from said platforms. They do serve a very useful purpose for some specific needs that my family has at this time. However, there is no way to go halfway in these situations. You either have to remain open or you have to completely stop because parking it in the middle (even if for a short time) results in your inbox flooding with concerned inquiries or phone calls from people you barely speak to asking in that nosy way "Is everything okay?"
So, here I sit...fully acknowledging the superficiality of the entire thing....and still unable to cut the cord.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
21 Days To Make A Habit
And, I'm 3 days in.
I realized over the last several months that I am the worst procrastinator when it comes to making myself do things that I am a) not good at or b) that require long term commitment. Unfortunately for me, losing the 60+ pounds I have packed on since hitting puberty (yes, it really has been that long) requires me coming to terms with BOTH of these issues.
I saw this picture on Pinterest and it made me laugh but smacked me in the face at the same time because I realized that I have exactly the same mentality. Gym Avoidance
So, rather than plan out a perfect week with allotted times to do certain things, I realized that the only way I can change is one day at a time. It involves getting out of bed early and doing as much as I can before the babies are awake because it's the only time of day that Pete and I are both home at the moment. It means walking / jogging / running even though I can feel my butt cheeks jiggling around like a plate full of Jello and be painfully aware how out of shape I really am at this point. It means holding myself accountable for what I am eating. It means accepting the fact that my body requires different food at this stage in life. It means going to be earlier than usual. And, it means doing that every single day from this point forward. Otherwise, the change is never going to occur.
So, 3 days in is huge for me because it means for the past three days, I have rolled out of bed before 7am. I have jogged around my huge city block 3 days in a row. I have eaten better. I have had more water to drink. I have remembered to take my thyroid medication. I have gone to bed before 11pm.
It feels good.
I realized over the last several months that I am the worst procrastinator when it comes to making myself do things that I am a) not good at or b) that require long term commitment. Unfortunately for me, losing the 60+ pounds I have packed on since hitting puberty (yes, it really has been that long) requires me coming to terms with BOTH of these issues.
I saw this picture on Pinterest and it made me laugh but smacked me in the face at the same time because I realized that I have exactly the same mentality. Gym Avoidance
So, rather than plan out a perfect week with allotted times to do certain things, I realized that the only way I can change is one day at a time. It involves getting out of bed early and doing as much as I can before the babies are awake because it's the only time of day that Pete and I are both home at the moment. It means walking / jogging / running even though I can feel my butt cheeks jiggling around like a plate full of Jello and be painfully aware how out of shape I really am at this point. It means holding myself accountable for what I am eating. It means accepting the fact that my body requires different food at this stage in life. It means going to be earlier than usual. And, it means doing that every single day from this point forward. Otherwise, the change is never going to occur.
So, 3 days in is huge for me because it means for the past three days, I have rolled out of bed before 7am. I have jogged around my huge city block 3 days in a row. I have eaten better. I have had more water to drink. I have remembered to take my thyroid medication. I have gone to bed before 11pm.
It feels good.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Projects and Cranky Babies
What a week! And we're only halfway through!
My sweet, sweet husband volunteered himself to tear down and reconstruct a fence at my aunt's house along with patching some sheetrock, fixing a leak in the roof, patching the ceiling, and finding out what is causing the wall behind her washer to mold. She lives about 1.5 hours north of us so needless to say, he has been VERY busy and gone quite a bit this week.
In the meantime, Elliott has decided that 4 months is the perfect age to start the teething process. Poor baby. It is taking SO much longer for the first tooth to break through that it did for Jackson. Elliott is such a happy baby in most circumstances, but he just looks miserable at the moment. He has zero interest in chewing on anything cold and the baby Orajel does not seem to help at all either. He prefers his chubby little fingers and sitting in my lap over anything else. The only silver lining for him is that he's so tired from lack of napping during the day that he is sleeping REALLY well at night.
Jackson has been a trooper. He is used to me being able to read "The Very Cranky Bear" (or Kinky Bear, as he likes to call him) whenever the mood strikes him, but Elliott has had other plans. Jack just takes it in stride and finds something to entertain himself until Elliott nods off for a 10 min power nap. Then, he runs over with as many books as he can carry and we read them on rotation until Elliott needs me again. Other favorites at the moment include "Corduroy Goes To The Doctor," "Corduroy's Day," "Ten Little Puppies," and "How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Room?" I have all of those memorized, but he's not fooled at all. Even if he is holding the book and I'm saying the words, it's not going to work. He MUST be seated in my lap and able to turn the pages at the appropriate time. I am thinking / hoping we have about worn "Ten Little Puppies" out at this point. We get to "7 little puppies skiing in the snow..." and he will close the book and say, "THE END! NIGHT PUPPIES, NIGHT NIGHT!" which works for me! It has to be his idea, however. I tried skipping from 8 to 3 and he totally caught on to what I was doing.
I have concluded that the only way I can keep my energy going is to stay as active as possible from the time I wake up until it's time for bed. Today this consisted of making breakfast, cleaning the kitchen, reorganizing the pantry, doing 3 loads of laundry, cleaning the living room, cleaning Jackson's room, cleaning our bedroom, sprucing up the guest bathroom, sewing 3 throw pillows for Jackson's room, attaching the ribbons to 10 panels of fabric, attaching ribbons to a scarf, sewing 16 triangles for a pinterest project, making a meatloaf for dinner, and cutting up 4 pairs of Pete's jeans into 6x6 squares for my next project. Oh, and taking care of the boys, OF COURSE. I also tried something I had saved to one of my pinterest boards which was cleaning all of the fruit in my fridge with a vinager and water soak. The berries did great, but the apples were left with this powdery looking white substance that WILL NOT come off. I must have missed a step somewhere.
I have no idea what we're doing tomorrow. I think I feel like taking a nap at some point.
My sweet, sweet husband volunteered himself to tear down and reconstruct a fence at my aunt's house along with patching some sheetrock, fixing a leak in the roof, patching the ceiling, and finding out what is causing the wall behind her washer to mold. She lives about 1.5 hours north of us so needless to say, he has been VERY busy and gone quite a bit this week.
In the meantime, Elliott has decided that 4 months is the perfect age to start the teething process. Poor baby. It is taking SO much longer for the first tooth to break through that it did for Jackson. Elliott is such a happy baby in most circumstances, but he just looks miserable at the moment. He has zero interest in chewing on anything cold and the baby Orajel does not seem to help at all either. He prefers his chubby little fingers and sitting in my lap over anything else. The only silver lining for him is that he's so tired from lack of napping during the day that he is sleeping REALLY well at night.
Jackson has been a trooper. He is used to me being able to read "The Very Cranky Bear" (or Kinky Bear, as he likes to call him) whenever the mood strikes him, but Elliott has had other plans. Jack just takes it in stride and finds something to entertain himself until Elliott nods off for a 10 min power nap. Then, he runs over with as many books as he can carry and we read them on rotation until Elliott needs me again. Other favorites at the moment include "Corduroy Goes To The Doctor," "Corduroy's Day," "Ten Little Puppies," and "How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Room?" I have all of those memorized, but he's not fooled at all. Even if he is holding the book and I'm saying the words, it's not going to work. He MUST be seated in my lap and able to turn the pages at the appropriate time. I am thinking / hoping we have about worn "Ten Little Puppies" out at this point. We get to "7 little puppies skiing in the snow..." and he will close the book and say, "THE END! NIGHT PUPPIES, NIGHT NIGHT!" which works for me! It has to be his idea, however. I tried skipping from 8 to 3 and he totally caught on to what I was doing.
I have concluded that the only way I can keep my energy going is to stay as active as possible from the time I wake up until it's time for bed. Today this consisted of making breakfast, cleaning the kitchen, reorganizing the pantry, doing 3 loads of laundry, cleaning the living room, cleaning Jackson's room, cleaning our bedroom, sprucing up the guest bathroom, sewing 3 throw pillows for Jackson's room, attaching the ribbons to 10 panels of fabric, attaching ribbons to a scarf, sewing 16 triangles for a pinterest project, making a meatloaf for dinner, and cutting up 4 pairs of Pete's jeans into 6x6 squares for my next project. Oh, and taking care of the boys, OF COURSE. I also tried something I had saved to one of my pinterest boards which was cleaning all of the fruit in my fridge with a vinager and water soak. The berries did great, but the apples were left with this powdery looking white substance that WILL NOT come off. I must have missed a step somewhere.
I have no idea what we're doing tomorrow. I think I feel like taking a nap at some point.
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