checking things off the list.

Back in January, on my 37th birthday,
I made a list of 37 things I wanted to do this year.

I would say that so far I'm doing...okay.
Go to the Alameda Flea Market?  Easy!   Check.
Paint Colin's room?  Done.  Check.
Take a yoga class?  I'm rocking that one.
Go to bed by 11?  Um, no.
Mop twice a week?  Ha!
I'm failing miserably at that.
How did I even think that was a possibility?

Number 13 on that list was run a 5k.
When I wrote it I half-way thought it wouldn't happen.
I know for probably a lot of you running a 5k is no biggie.
But for me, it was a major biggie.
Running is a challenge for me.
I have weird ankle issues, stupid shin problems, and dumb heart stuff.



But a couple of Sundays ago these two cuties and I ran our first 5k.
I did it in 35 minutes.
That's not anything to write home about, for sure,
but I was super happy with it.
The hills didn't get the best of me, and my body didn't fail me.
Checking that number 13 off my list felt gooooooood.

Somewhat related: I sure would like number 21 on that list to happen soon.
Mommy needs a massage.

Also: number 16 - listen to live music - is happening May 30th.
{mumford with my favorite guy in berkeley.  can.not.wait.}

{37 things}

I know it's the in thing to do to choose a word for the year.
I like that idea, even though I've never really been able to nail down one single word.

But this year I think I chose two words:
peace and purpose.

I have a nasty little tendency to be fearful.
Some fears are little and silly.
Like riding a ferris wheel.
The thought of being on one almost puts me into full panic-attack mode.
The big one at Disneyland?
I'd rather go bungee jumping while holding a tarantula.
But some fears are bigger and uglier and more joy-swallowing.
This year I want those joy-swallowing fears to be replaced with just peace and joy.
{i like what psalm 34:4 says.  radiant joy sounds so much better than fear.}

And then purpose.
I don't want my head to hit the pillow even one night and think that I wasted a day.

Yesterday I celebrated being another year older with a cake made by my favorite bakers.



Thankfully it only had 10 candles for me to blow out instead of 37.



I made a list of how I'd like to fill my days in this 37th year.
I hope this list is going to help me make every day purposeful.
Even on those days where it's only about mopping the floor.

1. go to the alameda flea market.
2. deliver cookies to a friend.
3. write twelve letters.
4. wash my windows.
5. do 100 jump ropes without messing up or stopping.
6. read through the entire bible.
7. have people over more often.
8. read ten books.
9. plant flowers in my backyard.
10. explore a new city.
11. print out my 2012 photos.
12. go away for the weekend with my husband.
13. run a 5k.  even if it's by myself.
14. have coffee with friends once a month.
15.  take a nap on the beach.  or at least close my eyes for 10 minutes.
16.  watch live music.
17.  read pride and prejudice.
18.  organize my closet.
19.  finally learn to do a kipping pull-up.
20. take a yoga class.
21.  get a massage.
22.  read a magazine in the bathtub.
23.  paint my bedroom.
24.  paint colin's room.
25.  hang curtains in the kitchen.
26.  mop the floor twice a week.
27.  take my vitamins every day.
28.  call my grandpa more often.
29.  finish my crochet blanket.
30.  make pillows.
31.  recover my bench.
32.  go to a giants game.
33.  sit outside by the fire pit in the summer at least once a week.
34.  work on avery's baby book.  {poor 3rd child.}
35.  start a quilt.
36.  go to bed by 11.
37.  put something in the blessing jar.  every day.

Today:
3, 28, 36, 37.

a crabby monday.

It's Monday...and what a bummer that I spent most of it in a pretty crabby mood.

It started out nicely enough:
Lucy and I went on a five mile jog / walk.
{more walk than jog.}
We walked through quiet neighborhoods in town.
The leaves are all changing colors and the air has that crisp feel.
I was rocking out to Mumford & Sons and feeling good.
And then...I walked through our old neighborhood and got all nostalgic and kind of sad.
I thought about all of the times the kids and I walked to our old park...
I walked by our old house and remembered a thousand things...
and it hit me how big my kids are getting
and how quickly they have moved from babies and toddlers to big kids.
And I know I should have felt thankful for having three healthy kids,
and thankful for how they are growing and how wonderful they are,
but instead I was kind of instantly in a crappy mood.

And I think that set the tone for the remainder of the day.
Lucy and I came home and then the migraine came.
I had errands to run and I was still in a crappy mood.
I went to Joann's and everyone annoyed me.
Waiting 20 minutes at the cutting table annoyed me.
The ginormous line at the check out annoyed me.
It ALL annoyed me.
I hate feeling annoyed...it makes me feel guilty.
I don't want to feel annoyed.

After Joann's I went to Trader Joe's and saw these sunflowers
first thing when I walked into the store.
I needed their sunniness in my kitchen.
So worth the $4.99.



They made me feel a little better.
And then at 2pm I put beef stew in the crockpot.
And when dinner is done at 2pm that feels good.
Things were looking up.



But honestly...I was still feeling badly up until my husband came home.
Monday's piano and soccer schedule is very go-go-go and stretches my enthusiasm for those things.
Now I'm feeling like a really big whiner.
And I will own my whininess today.
Sorry if you were in a really great mood
and then you came over to my blog and here I am being Debbie Downer.
Shoot...I'm sorry.
But the redeeming part of the story is that once my husband came home,
I was better.
I usually am, once he gets home.
And I'm fine now... a little chocolate and wine and RHONJ helps, too.

Tomorrow will be less crabby.
I plan on sewing something and painting something.
Tuesday will not be crabby.
:)
See?  There's a happy face.

sunday night brain dump.

Monday morning...here we go.
Ready for another week of packing lunches.
Packing lunches gets a little old.
Anyone else think so?
As soon as the kids are off to school,
I'm going to go run.
I am.
Or at least run/walk.
Seriously...the hills by my house kill me.
In the spring I could run up the hills, but now I'm walking.
Is it too much to wish I lived in a flat city?
At least it's going to be cooler here this week
with highs in the mid 70's.
Fall is just about here and I'm happy.
But I need to buy a black jacket.
And I want to make an apple crisp.
I'm here on the couch looking at my kitchen counter.
It's a mess and I'm not in the mood to do anything about it.
But tomorrow I'm going to have a cleaning spree in there.
I'm sure I'll be in the mood tomorrow.
{uh huh}
So much running through this little pea brain of mine.
What does the next several years have in store for me?
Do I go back to teaching?  I don't really want to.
Do I pursue other things?
Ugh.  Thinking thinking thinking.
Also thinking about Riley going to middle school next year,
and praying about where the right place is for him.
I'm not sure if it's the public middle school
or another option.
It's HARD,
this being a parent thing.
Isn't it?
Which reminds me...I need to call about flu shots.
I'm flying out this weekend to surprise my grandpa.
I haven't seen him in probably four years.
Gary will be on his own with the kids from Friday through Monday.
I need to make some food so they're not eating pizza all weekend.
{he's a lot of things, but a cook is not one of them.}



And recently his guitar stuff has taken over the guest room again.
And his side kick is right there in the middle of it all.

you might like this.

Raise your hand if you love going into a department store

and having a really young, perky salesgirl

{who has never breastfed a baby e-ver}

measure you for a new bra?

Anyone?  Anyone??

Yeah.  Um, no.

That's no fun for anyone.

Me...or her.

I'm sure she's not looking forward to seeing what life + 3 kids has in store for her bubbies, either.

{'bubbies' term taken from RHONJ, thankyouverymuch.}

Anyway, I heard of a site called trueandco.com.

They ask you a few questions about your 'girls'

{i really hate that term}

and then they match you with bras that may work for you.

Well now this is awkward.
I guess you know what shape I am, huh.
Obviously I wish I had taken that screen shot before I took their quiz.
Good thing we're all friends here.

Once you answer all of the questions
and they choose the bras that may fit your needs,
you can choose up to five bras to be sent to you...free.
You pay a deposit of $45, but send back what you don't want
and only pay for what you keep.
Buh bye, perky salesgirl middleman.
{oh, and no offense if you're still perky.  i'm happy for you.  really.}

Oh, and True & Co. isn't paying me to say this.

I just need a new bra, that's all.

some random stuff on a wednesday.

Hey there.
I'm feeling kind of random
on this Wednesday.
Be forewarned.

We had dinner at the pool tonight with friends.
Check that one off the summer list.
The kids swam until the pool closed.
Ain't no sleep like an exhausted post-swim sleep.
Holla for that.

I love a good pasta salad in the summer.



This one was just pasta with homemade pesto, asparagus, and cherry tomatoes.
The kids even liked it.
Except for the tomatoes.
There are no circumstances known to man in which they would like tomatoes.

We have four nests full of baby birds in our yard right now.
It's crazy.
Our backyard is like the bird romance capital of our neighborhood.
But one baby fell out of his nest this week.
He didn't have eyes...so sad.
The kids felt so bad for him and tried to give him water and food.



It didn't work.
Let's just say...he's in a better place now.
Poor baby.  Sometimes nature seems cruel.

Our neighbors dropped off some apricot jam the other day.
Oh my GOSH it's good.
I've been having some on toast in the morning,
but I could really eat it out of the jar by the spoonful.
So yum.



I got a haircut yesterday.
It may be the shortest I've ever had it.
I think I like it?...
just not sure yet.



Avery hates it.
She said it doesn't look like me.
This morning when we woke up she said, "did it get longer yet?"
Aw.
:(

And even though I still have another year before Riley's in middle school,
I bought this book yesterday.

It's about helping your kids make the right choices

during those tough middle school years.

The title is so scary, isn't it?
Actually the whole thought of middle school and that age is pretty frightening.
I'll let you know how it is.



I also bought a book about changing bodies for
boys ages 10-14 and how to talk to your kids about sex.
{this one, i think.}
Ughhhh.
I don't remember reading about any of this in
What to Expect When You're Expecting.

While we were at the pool tonight we figured out there were only
six weeks until school starts.
Noooo!  It's too soon!
We still have a lot of summer to do.

always, no matter what.

Hey there.

I sure am happy that it's today and not yesterday.
Yesterday was not my favorite day.
And not for the typical "i hate mondays" reason.

Yesterday I had my cardiac ablation.
To make a long story short,
I have an arrhythmia,
which the doctor felt he could correct by
running catheters through the veins in my groin to my heart
and burning away the spots causing the arrhythmia.
That was the plan.

But things didn't quite go as planned.

I woke up during the procedure...three times...
{turns out i was "highly resistant" to the anesthesia...who knew...}
I remember things I wasn't supposed to remember...
it took longer than was planned...
there was pain...
they had to go through an artery in addition to four veins...see above...
and...it was all unsuccessful.

My heart's still got that super bass.

I can't really describe how I feel,
other than extremely disappointed.
Really bummed.
I don't know if it was the meds yesterday
or the hours and hours spent lying on my back in the hospital,
but yesterday I was feeling pretty sorry for myself.
I felt like I went through everything I did for nothing
and I should have left the hospital with the "Sucks to Be You" award.
I cried.
A lot.

But then today I've been on the couch thinking.
I thought about my husband who didn't leave my side once yesterday
and who had to help me to the bathroom and feed me and is
taking care of everything here at home while I'm recovering.
And making me laugh even though I tell him to stop because
it hurts my dang groin to laugh.
I thought of my kids who are happy and healthy and told me they had prayed for me while I was gone.
I thought of my parents who took care of my kids all day until late in the evening.
I thought of the many phone calls and texts from family and friends and blog friends
{who...for the record...are real friends too}
and for the friends who brought dinner last night and lunch today.
And I thought about how the prayer I prayed the most was answered:
I prayed that God would allow me to come back to my family,
and He did.

So technically my procedure was unsuccessful.

But I'm still blessed
and God is still good.

{source}

And a million thanks to those of you who told me you were praying or thinking of me.
I felt them all.

i got that super bass.

Wow - a bit of a blog absence over here.
I blame a nasty cold that knocked me on my bee-hind all week.
It was one of my mother's day presents from Gary.
Yay.

But I'm on the mend.
And we've been laying low this week.

I made granola one morning before all my energy ran out.



With milk...over yogurt...eaten by the handful...yum.

We had our first watermelon this week.
Watermelons make it feel like summer.
{which is coming up super fast.  whee!!!!}



Did you see these bowls at Costco?
They're melamine, and come in a pack of four different colors and sizes.
And they have lids!
Awesome.

I'm going to keep it very real
and show you what my kitchen looks like a lot of the time.



Groceries I bought hours earlier that hadn't been put away...
school paperwork...
that morning's coffee cup...
and a roll of toilet paper I carried everywhere since I had run out of kleenex.
Good stuff.

Our hummingbird babies are about to leave the nest.



Aren't they cute!  And...I almost killed them last week.
I went out to peek at them and one of them jumped out of the nest.
I didn't know what to do!
I waited an hour to see if he could fly.
He couldn't.
I put on my gardening gloves and picked him up.
I know: I got to HOLD a BABY hummingbird.  Sweetest thing ever.
I went to put him back in the nest and the other one jumped out!
Drama.  The kids and I were freaking out.
And Riley managed to record it all on the iphone.
{i'll spare you the histrionics.}
But it obviously has a happy ending.  I got them back in the nest.
:)
But...now I think they hate me.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>


And...I have a big favor to ask.
I mentioned it before,
but I have a heart arrhythmia.
{does my title make sense now?  nicki minaj?  boom badoom?  anyway....}
Monday I'm having a cardiac ablation.
They're going in and zapping my arrhythmia away.
I'm not going to lie...I'm nervous...but I'm trusting.
I'm trusting that God has a plan for me and my family that is perfect.
And I'm repeating Psalm 94:19 (good news translation):
Whenever I am anxious and worried,
you comfort me and make me glad.
I know I can have a peace about this
impossible without Him.
And I know He's got it all covered.

So...if you think of me Monday morning around 7am cali time...
would you say a prayer?
I would surely appreciate it.

And...I'll see you Tuesday.
Minus the boom badoom.

xo.

insta news and other stuff.

Did you hear?
Android users...welcome to Instagram!
Instagram now has an app for the Android.
Come join the party!
{i'm 'foreverfoldinglaundry' if you want to find me.}
Definitely my favorite app.

Anyway...
crazy, crazy busy times around these parts.
March and April are now officially the craziest of months.


{i love alyssum.  the boys made these in sunday school.}

I love this time of year, though, despite the amount of crazy going on.
It's a season of hope and renewal and life.
This season, especially, God has been so faithful to me.
I asked for prayers a few weeks ago - and thanks to those of you who prayed.
He's answering them.

I love Psalm 34:4-5 (The Message):
"God met me more than halfway,
He freed me from my anxious fears.
Look at Him; give Him your warmest smile.
Never hide your feelings from Him."

Uh, yeah.  I have not been hiding my feelings from Him lately.
He may be getting a bit sick of me.
:)

I have a little heart issue
that may require surgery.
It has made me very anxious and scared.
Beyond anxious, actually.
{the words 'catheter' + 'vein' + 'groin' can do that to you.}
BUT - I made the choice to stop being anxious
and to give it all over to God in prayer.
What a freedom.
I'm not sure yet what will become of it all,
but I do know that He has a plan for me,
and that plan is good.

Amen to that.

So tomorrow...the craziness continues.
Preschool parties and classroom volunteering and major class auction project-making.
But...my favorite guy will be around for lunch,
so we have a date.
Can't wait.

Love to you, friends.
Hope you have a great Wednesday planned.

nine questions, nine answers.

I was just thinking that I have nothing to blog about today.
I'm pretty sure no one wants to hear about the two bathrooms I cleaned today
or the fact that I went shoe shopping and found nothing.
{all of the heels are SO. HIGH. right now.  what's up with that?}

Then I remembered that Tahnee from Milk Please Mum
tagged me in a little something last week.
So since I have nothing else to say today,
I guess it's a good time to answer those random questions.

Describe yourself in seven words:
loyal, worrier, kind, christian, wife, mom, type-a (and all that goes along with that)

What keeps you up at night?
I usually stay up late with Gary.  It's our time to catch up.
And...I'm not going to lie...Words With Friends keeps me up, too.  It's addicting!

Who would you like to be?
I would like to be the best version of myself that God created me to be.
I know...it sounds corny.
I'd like to be able to remove the 'worrier' list of adjectives from above.
I'd like to put others ahead of myself more.
I'd like to be my own boss.
{hmmm.  what do I want to boss myself to do??}

What are you wearing right now?
My favorite pair of jeans, a white tank top,
a Gap hoodie, and my Toms.
Very shortly the jeans will change to yoga pants,
and the Toms to Uggs.
I know.  It's very exciting.

What scares you?
Almost all of my fears revolve around the kids.
I can't even think about them, or I'll obsess.
{see 'worrier', above.}
Oh...and snakes.  Deathly afraid.

What are the best and worst things about blogging?
Best: friendships.  inspiration.  a memory log of our daily life.
Worst: this weird, self-imposed pressure to blog everyday.  It's my own issue.

What's the last website you visited?
Besides Tahnee's blog, it was Sunday Crossbow.
I'll bet she's wearing something much more fabulous than jeans and a hoodie right now.

What's something you'd like to change about yourself?
That whole 'worrier' thing again.
And from a total vanity standpoint, I'd sure love a flatter stomach.

Something about the person who tagged me?
Her photos are always lovely.
Even on instagram.
And she always seems to be cooking something delicious.
If I lived in Melbourne too I'd be trying to figure out a way to get a dinner invite.

That's it.
Actually, there was one more question about slankets, but I have no idea what a slanket is.
A blanket?  A Snuggie?  Not sure.

So...that's really it.
If you read all of that, I'm impressed.
:)

{and...just wondering...what keeps you up at night?}

the behind the scenes vs. the highlight reel

I saw this quote on instagram earlier this week:

{from pastor steven furtick}

Wow.

True, right?

It's easy for me to look at all of the gorgeous kitchens on other blogs,

or on Pinterest, and we wish our cabinets were a different color
or that we had those gorgeous wood floors.

In those photos we don't ever see the dirty dishes in the sink

or the homework strewn all over the counter.
An do they have a huge pile of paperwork on the table that they can never seem to get to?
Or is that just me.

I don't know about you,

but sometimes it's easy for me to forget
that the perfectly decorated living rooms get dirty just like mine.

Surely at least one of them has a yellow lab 

that sheds pounds of hair like ours does?

No one's home is perfect all the time.

No one's kids are always well-behaved,

everyone gets annoyed with their spouse

{at least that's my guess}

and we all have those blah days.

My behind the scenes is often not pretty:
...my house is usually pretty messy.
{my bedroom is a disaster right now.  and i won't even mention my craft room.}
...my kids run out of socks because I haven't washed whites
and plenty of times have to wear a mismatched pair.
...I'm not patient enough.  I have to apologize to my kids for being short with them.
Sometimes I want a break and for no one to talk to me or ask me to make them a snack.
...I don't exercise enough and, at my last physical, my cholesterol was too high.  Crap.

What's my point?
I'm not sure.
Maybe just that it's good to remember that no one has it all together.
Life isn't perfect, no matter what we hope to portray in our "highlight reel".

The "behind the scenes" stuff is real life.
And there's nothing wrong with dog hair
and crabby days
and dirty dishes in the sink.
We've all got our "behind the scenes".

xo.

mission: clean house.

On Wednesday I mentioned that I think I need a chore schedule.
Leave it to Martha to have already done the work for me.

I like her weekly chore suggestions.
She has a cleaning schedule here on her site.
I'm going to divide them up on my calendar
and list what I want to do for each day of the week.

Today was laundry day.

I think this planner is going to help me be more organized.
Yeah, I caved.
It's ordered.
:)

i guess i can run.

Hi.
My name is Keri,
and I'm a reluctant runner.

I didn't run track in high school,
I hated running the mile in P.E.,
and it's not my exercise of choice.
I usually do walk/run with Lucy most mornings when Avery is in school,
but I hate the running part.

But...I know it works.
{darn it}

So this morning some runner friends of mine
invited me to run with them.
These girls are awesome athletes.
I was intimidated - big time.
But I went.
And I hung in there until almost the bitter end.
{my stupid shins were killing me at the end.}

And when it was all said and done,
I was red-faced, sore-legged, and oh-so-sweaty.
But it felt good.
And I'm going to keep at it.
Maybe I won't be such a reluctant runner soon.
{someone tell me: is it possible to actually enjoy running?  i'm not sure.}

See - I wasn't lying about the sweaty part.

protein shakes. yay.

So.
Let's talk.

I'm going to be honest.
I would like to lose about ten pounds.
And, sadly, I've been saying that for awhile.
Really, if I'm still being honest,
it's my own fault that I haven't already lost those ten.

So I'm trying to be better.
Snacking less...eating less.

And making more protein shakes.
Because protein = feeling full = not eating = blah, blah, blah.

Here are my two favorite shakes.
 The first: vanilla lemon strawberry.

It's good.
Vanilla whey protein powder, almond milk, Fage yogurt,
fresh (or frozen) strawberries, flax meal
and lemon-flavored omega 3 supplement (from Costco).

I use a cup of almond milk, about a tablespoon of yogurt and flax,
a cup of strawberries, 2 teaspoons of the omega and
one measuring cup scoop that comes with the protein powder.
Blend with ice.
It makes two shakes.

Plus it's a good way to get some extra omega 3 into your diet.

But my very very very favorite
is the chocolate peanut butter protein shake.
Deeeee-licious.

A cup of almond milk, one tablespoon of peanut butter,
a scoop of chocolate protein powder, one tablespoon fage yogurt,
a teaspoon or so of flax meal, and a package of
instant oatmeal prepared with water and cooled.
Blend it all with ice
(it also makes two shakes)
and I can pretty much guarantee you will love it. 

I can drink one for breakfast
and save the other one for those horrible hours between
lunch and dinner when I want to eat everything in the pantry.

If you try them,
let me know what you think.
And if you have any other great shake recipes,
let me know.

And can we all please just agree
that life would be a lot easier if salt & vinegar chips were a health food?
Thank you.

today, tuesday

Today was one of those days where I just couldn't wait
to get Avery to preschool so I could have
two and a half hours of quiet.

I went on a walk downtown.
It was sunny and warm and quiet.
So nice.
I wasn't powerwalking,
because with this stupid cold
if I walk quickly
or run
or laugh
or breathe,
I cough.
I probably burned more calories
coughing than walking,
but whatever.

So:
thank you for all of your input the other day
about 'casual chic'.
The dresses came yesterday.
I was hoping the first one was The One,
but it was too short.
Bummer.
I wasn't too optimistic about the white one.
But....
I. Love. It.
{i ordered it in purple,
which is a color I never wear,
but it actually works}
So I think I'm good.
Thanks, friends.
You're like my own personal
Stacy and Clinton.
:)

Oh...and the winner of the giveaway
was Toni.
Congrats!
Email me your info.
{foreverfoldinglaundry at hotmail dot com}

And on an unrelated note,
my chalkboard at the top of the stairs
is keeping count of how many 
days of school are left.

Seven more days.
It doesn't seem possible.


Today the kids were extra
hyper / bickery / crazy / whiny after school
and that small number on the chalkboard
made me nervous.

Let us all pray for
a large dose of
summertime patience. 


{or maybe it's just me that needs that....}


 

casual chic? {and a giveaway}

Lately I have felt a little...off?  disconnected?  blah?

It could be because my girlfriends and I
haven't had our usual Friday morning coffee
in several weeks.
{liz? joy? do we have a date for tomorrow?}

I've had a stupid chest cold since Mother's Day.
I even broke down the other day and took the OTC medicine
with the worst medicine name in history.
{to the makers of mucinex: seriously??  it's gross.}
Bright side: I'm getting a killer core workout from coughing.

I'm in party planning freak-out mode.
I know I'll get everything done before Avery's party on Sunday,
but I'm still feeling princess tea party-crazed.

I'm a week late for my usual hair appointment.
Not good.
I r-e-a-l-l-y need to get my blonde on.

And I haven't been doing much blog reading lately.
That's always a bummer.
How are you all?
Have I missed anything good?

But despite the weirdness
there's good stuff, too.
Gary and I were invited to attend the Cars 2 premiere
in Hollywood in June.

Fun, right?!
Yeah, BUT:
the attire is "casual chic".
Hmmm.
That threw me for a little loop.
I understand black tie,
but casual chic is a little tougher for me.

So I ordered this:

{link here}

and this:

{link here}

I have a super cute taupe pair of heels
from Anthro that I'd wear with whichever one works.
Yes?
No?
Are they casual chic?
Too casual?
Not enough chic?

Halp.

Anyway...
when I was window shopping online
for the elusive casual chic dress,
I bought you something.

I'm a big fan of summer journaling.
I made the kids journal two summers ago,
and I'm going to do it again this year.

And I'm going to do it with them.
But I always love a good writing prompt.
I saw this while browsing on anthropologie and knew I needed it:

It's a 5-year journal filled with prompts:
*how happy are you?
*what can you smell right now?
*today was unusual because _____

I like it.
I'm going to do it because
I want to remember those little things.

If you want your own Q&A journal,
just leave a comment telling me
what you'd like to remember about today.

Here's mine:
I'd like to remember how proud Colin was that
I wore the necklace he made me for Mother's Day to his fieldtrip.
He was beaming.
I need to remember that.

I'll choose a winner Monday.

**************
{and help a girl out: am i on the right track with casual chic?}

ouch

You know you're getting old when
you are awoken at 2:30 in the morning
with horrible pain and
a pulled muscle in your neck.

Yeah...a pulled muscle...while sleeping.
That was me Tuesday morning.
I pulled the muscle that is responsible
for holding up my head.

So for the last two days I've been on the couch trying not to move my head.
{which is not as easy as it may sound.}

I've also been laughing at the fact that I managed to
injure myself while sleeping.
But today I only felt like a 70 year old woman,
instead of a 90 year old woman like yesterday.

So...progress!

My family has been so nice to me.
Colin is constantly fetching me an ice pack
{whether i want one or not}
and I do believe there has been less bickering.
And Gary has done bedtime by himself.
Bless him.

Off to ice again.
'Night, all.

running.

I ran again today.
It was a gorgeous morning...
about 72 degrees at 10am.
Avery and I went along one of our favorite paths.
Sometimes we see deer
and Gary saw a coyote there once.
Today we just heard pheasants. 

There's a lot more running
and lungeing
{that word looks weird}
and sit-up-ing
and push-up-ing in my future.
I have incentive:
we just made vacation reservations.
When the kids get out of school
we're going somewhere with white beaches
and fruity drinks
and warm ocean water.
And...daily bathing suits.
{{yikes}}

I ordered this suit today.

I just realized that I bought Avery this swimsuit last week from Target.

I guess we have a polka dot theme going.

Thinking.

It dawned on me the other day that I'm half-way through my 30's.
I'm actually closer to 40 than to 30.
I remember when I turned 29 and was a little depressed.
I thought, "really?  my 20's are over already?  now what?"

I'm not sure what I expected out of this decade,
but I do feel like it's delivering.
I'm liking my 30's.

I know myself better than ever before,
but I'm also learning more about myself than I ever have.
I've discovered passions for things
that I never would have dreamed in my 20's.
My style is now my style,
and not what I think will please others.
{admittedly...that's a work in progress}

I'm a different person than I was 10 years ago.
But I'm the same.
{i know...confusing...it probably only makes sense to me}

I realized
that I can't be best friends with everyone I meet,
and that's ok.
{strangely, that was a hard realization}

I've learned that it's ok if people don't like me
or my style
or my sense of humor
or who I am.
It doesn't mean that there's anything wrong with me.
Or them.
{i'm sure a lot of you learned this before your 30's.  it took me a little longer.}

At the end of the day I know that
I'm working toward being the person God has created me to be.
And I have a husband that loves me
and children that need me and think I am the best mom ever.
And while I am trying to be the best mom,
I am learning to have realistic expectations
and know that I will fail.
I do fail.

But I'm ok,
and my kids are ok,
and my husband still loves me.

And I like me.
Mostly. :)
The 30's are good.

2.5 hours

I have two and a half hours, two days a week, alone in the house.
It goes by *so* quickly.


This morning when I came home from taking Avery to preschool
I ate breakfast
cleaned the kitchen
unloaded the dishwasher
loaded the washing machine
and put some laundry away.


When that was finished I had an hour left.
I probably should have vacuumed or dusted or mopped.


But instead I made my second cup of coffee
(half-caff this time)
and put on Christmas music.

Gary is going to think I'm insane when he reads that. :)
He doesn't understand my love of Christmas music.
{My favorites: Vince Guaraldi, Barenaked Ladies, and Dolly Parton.}


And I turned on my sewing machine.
I finished a shirt for Avery and made progress on her quilt.

It felt good.