Score!

Making Dinner Every Night This Week - Day 2

The husband plays basketball 3 times a week and two of those are evenings. 

On those evenings he doesn't eat dinner with us because his games are usually dinner time or later.  So he puts something in his belly after his games. 

However, for us it's free choice.  The older one is at his mom's for the evening and the little one wants leftover ravioli and spAghetti. 

So you know what that means for me...

Score!

GAME ON!

Making Dinner Every Night This Week - Day 1

My conversation with the husband last night -

Me:  So... what's it going to take to get you to clean that shelf up there?
[A shelf in the bedroom that only he can see because it's at his eye level, which makes much more sense for him to clean]

Him:  If you make dinner every night this week I'll clean the shelf.

Me:    ......

Him:  You don't have to on Sunday because it's the Super Bowl.
[He likes to eat pizza when watching big sporting events]

Me:    So that means Saturday too?

Him:  Yes.

GAME ON! 

For dinner tonight -

ravioli, spaghetti, and garlic bread.

Kosher

Today Jake and I had a play-date at the park.  

We met another mother there and her son who is in the same kindergarten class.  It was our first play-date with this little boy and his mom and this mom wanted to sit and chat.  These can be fun because it's like a new book.  A new story.

She told me how she went to Israel while in college and met her now husband.  She told me how she traveled Europe and her trip to Australia.  We talked about the school.  We talked about the teachers.  We talked about religion.  She turned out to be a very warm and inviting soul.  It was a great visit. 

During our discussion about religion we talked about her family being kosher.  She explained how dairy and meat cannot be mixed and so forth.  I knew a bit of this, but do not understand it in full detail and luckily she was more than willing to explain it all and I was more than willing to listen.  

I had brought some cookies for the boys and asked if they could have them.  She said yes because they were kosher and when I asked her how she knew she pointed to this little itty-bitty sign on the package - 

It's about the size of the trademark symbol.  She said if you see this little sign it means it's kosher.  When I came home I scoured my pantry, because I'm a dork like that, to find all the items with this symbol.  I love learning something new.  

Interesting huh?

Note:  I was hesitant to post about this because I was concerned I should already know this.  I went through the self-doubt of should I or shouldn't I?  However, when I asked my Jewish husband, who went to Hebrew school and celebrated his Bar mitzvah, like every other Jewish boy, and he didn't know about it I figured I was in the clear.  

  

Rules

I have this rule.

I never tape shows.  If I can't catch the show at the time it airs then I don't watch it.  I used to tape shows, but then I always found myself with hours and hours of shows to watch only to fast forward through it all.

What's the point of that?

So I stopped doing it.

Today I was supposed to do a second round of blood work, but Kyle Richards, from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills was on The View today and...

you know the rules.

Bummer.

I'll go tomorrow.

Wicked

This is the face of anxiety and depression.  Amazing isn't it?  This is Heather Locklear.  Heather Locklear!  Beautiful.  Wealthy.  Loved.  Yet, she is riddled with anxiety, depression, and alcoholism.

Anxiety and depression is wickedly powerful.  It's silent and sneaky.  I find it fascinating.  Especially when I see the power it has on someone like Heather Locklear, who in my eyes and many others, has it all.  Thankfully, I have learned to arm myself with the knowledge of just how it works.  I have learned that talking about it with others helps.  I have learned to recognize the signs of it's arrival.  I've learned how to talk myself out of an episode.  As I have said before sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  Sadly, if my devices don't work I've been known to blurt out how I'm feeling to just anyone if caught at the very right moment.  Kinda like I did to another mom last Tuesday morning when she began to vent about her blended family woes and I said, "That stuff is minimal.  Imagine if you were worried you were going to die!"  Luckily, she didn't walk run away and once I got my head together a few days later I apologized profusely.  Then I listened in earnest all about her blended family issues.  

I wonder if it's harder for the beautiful, rich, and/or famous.  They're used to getting everything they want when they want it.  They have control over a lot, but anxiety and depression are things they cannot control.  Maybe that's what makes them spin out of control.  Whatever the case with the rich and famous, my heart goes out to Ms. Locklear.  I wish I could help her.  Although, maybe it's a good thing that our kids aren't the same age or go to the same school because something tells me if she and I were dropping off our kids at the same time, or God forbid they were in the same class, there would be some sort of a restraining order in my future.

Photography

I want to learn how to take really awesome pictures.  I want to be able to capture all of these memories we are making beautifully.

My mom has, what I consider, a big fancy schmancy camera.  She got it to take pictures of my little guy, her one and only grandson.  I'm kinda thinking that if she spent all this money, on a camera, to take pictures of my child, then I should probably teach myself how to use it.  Also, I'm thinking if I learn how to use it really well then she might feel like I should just have it.    

Okay, not necessarily give it to me, but let me keep it here, at my house, so I can use it any time I need, for safekeeping.  It makes perfect sense for the camera to live with someone who knows how to use it to it's full capacity.  Right?

Today I have been trying to teach myself Aperture (the circular opening through which the light travels) and Shutter speed (length of time the shutter remains open) and how they are supposed to work together.  I'm consumed with an overload of information and hoping soon it will all click together.  I have some fun ideas and if I could figure this all out it will make for some awesome photography.

My Secret

I didn't actually send this in, but it has my name written all over it.

PostSecret

Another Sign

Yesterday, I went to the lab for blood work.

Waiting for results is not good for my psyche.

On the way home, in my truck alone, I asked my dad, out loud, for some sort of sign that all would be okay - I don't want to keep you in suspense, I didn't get one.

A while ago I wrote about a sign from my dad.  I felt then, that yes, this was a sign from him, but now I just don't know for sure.  I'm thinking I need/want something a little more clear-cut.  I want there to be no doubt about it, that yes, it was a sign.  I hear stories about how passed loved ones visit in dreams.  Then the people dreaming are left with a comforting feeling and they get to live their lives out in this sort of peace.  I want that.  I want to see his face.  I want to hear his voice.  I want to hear his laugh.  I want him to be the dad he was before he got sick.

I really don't think it's too much to ask.  I just want one clear-cut, for sure, no doubt about it, now I can live the rest of my life in peace sign.  Just one.  How difficult is that?

Now - I am going to watch the rest of Grey's Anatomy because I am sure watching a show about tumors, liver failure, and death will do wonders for my psyche.

Six

My little boy turned six years old today.  To me this signifies that he is technically, absolutely, no longer a toddler or does he have any more toddler-like qualities.

[Insert sad face]

It was a very quiet birthday. Although, just like any other mother I would love to throw him a fabulous party every single year or take him to Toys R Us and buy him anything his little heart desires, but I just don't think that's what is best for him. As his mother, I am supposed to teach him to say "please" and "thank you."  I'm supposed to teach him right from wrong.  But I also want to teach him practicality, humility, reserve, to name a few. These days everything is in excess and we are losing sight of what truly makes our hearts happy.  Don't get me wrong, I like a cruise with a veranda just like the next gal, but I understand that I don't NEED that. I want him to understand that too.

I knew it was time for this lesson when in December, before Christmas, he began telling me exactly what, where, and how he wanted his birthday party and all the people he wanted to invite. I think I remember my eyes glazing over with $$$$.  I was a bit taken aback by this assumption. I explained to him that he turned 5 last year and turning 5 is a big year so that's why we had a big party, but you don't have a big party like that every year. Thankfully, he was very accepting of this concept, like it was just another fact of life. Kinda like, the sky is blue the grass is green and that's that.

One huge plus, if we had had a big chaotic party then I wouldn't have been able to get these really great intimate moments of my two favorite people -

These make my heart happy.

Seven Years

Today is our seven year anniversary.

We didn't do anything special.  In fact, we spent most of the day apart even though he had the day off from work.  Why? In a nutshell, our 5-year-old will be 6 tomorrow and it's all about him.  So today I spent the day at his favorite indoor playground on a special play-date with his friend from preschool.  My husband, because I love him so much, was excused from said play-date and seriously could not have been happier.

We kind of set the tone of how we celebrate our anniversaries when - on our very first one we spent a romantic evening in a Carl's Jr. on the way to the hospital to be pumped full of pitocin to get the one-week-past-due baby out of my body.  Not necessarily your traditional idea of a romantic evening, but I kind of love it because I can't think of a better way to celebrate our love than to prepare for the arrival of what came out of it.

Happy Anniversary!

Angst

I've been having a bit of anxiety lately.

I've been working hard to stick to my New Year's resolution of losing weight.  Unfortunately, exercising and trying to work my body like I did 20 years ago isn't the smartest of ideas.  My body just doesn't operate or feel like it used to and that's not good for someone like me.  I get weird pangs and tinges and it kicks off crazy thinking causing me to create scenarios in my head that are most probably unlikely.  I can't help it.  It is just how I am built.  My mom used to give me a hard time about it until I called her out on the fact that she does it too.  However, that took me about 35 years to realize it.  I remember one time I had a tooth infection, I was about 30 years old at the time, and I was telling her about it while we were on the phone and she said, "You need to call the doctor because that tooth infection could lead to your heart and you can die."  It was a Saturday, so I had to call the doctor's exchange to have the doctor paged to prescribe me some antibiotics because I couldn't wait until Monday.

Sometimes I can work myself up into a full-fledged panic attack because I've convinced myself that I have some terrible illness and my husband has to talk me "down off the ledge."  He's pretty great about it.  Thankfully, over the years I have learned how to talk myself out of the craziness using reason and logic.  Sometimes  it works and sometimes it doesn't.  I think I'm still in need of a little help from my guy because this was our conversation yesterday -

Husband:  "Hunny? Why are you so quiet?"

Me:  "My back is sore and I am trying to use logic in that it's probably because I scrubbed down the porch and not because of kidney failure."

Then later that night -

Me:  "Don't you think the first kidney to stop working would be the kidney that is on he same side as your injury?"

Husband:  "Are you listening to yourself?"

Like I said, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

On a good note the anxiety DOES help curb my appetite.

That's something good right?

See... reason and logic.

I can do this.

Funny Stuff

I received this video labeled Women Drivers.  It should be labeled Drunk Women Drivers.  Seriously ladies?!? It's unfortunate women drivers have this reputation.  Not me though.  I am an awesome driver.  I don't drive too fast - maybe a little fast - and I definitely don't drive too slow.  I drive just right.  Really.  I drive a GMC, Yukon and could impress you with how I can throw it in reverse and park that huge tank.  A little bit of trivia about me.  In case you were wondering.  Just sayin... 

I gotta say though, as dumb as these ladies are it made for some pretty funny stuff.   

Resolutions

This year I made two New Year's resolutions.

The first one is a good old-fashioned "lose weight" New Year's resolution.  So far, so good. 

The second resolution is to be more active in the blogging world.  I would like to reach out more, connect, and not be afraid of whatever it is that holds me back from connecting with other bloggers.  There are some blogs I follow and I have NEVER left a comment.  NEVER.  What is that?  One of these blogs is my absolute favorite ....love Maegan.  She is a fashion blogger and even when blogging about fashion she has this amazing ability to keep it real and I like that.  I like real.  I visit this blog every stinkin day and I have never once left a comment.  Not sure why.  Especially considering that sometimes she posts about personal struggles, very near and dear to her, and my heart screams for the right comment to post.  Unfortunately, that perfect comment never comes and then I move on.  I think the reason for not reaching out is that it makes me feel like just another follower.  Someone else who gets lost in the crowd.  Unforgettable.  It's kinda like how I feel with famous people.  I will not approach someone famous, like some people I know, just because they're famous - although I might feel differently if I were to ever come across Hugh Jackman. 

The other day I saw a TJ Maxx commercial with a fashion blogger.  I immediately thought "Huh?! Maegan would have been so much better for that."  I was saying it like I know her and I found my loyalty to her kinda interesting.  I decided it was time to reach out and now is a perfect time.

I hope you are finding success in any resolutions you might have made for 2012!

Harmless

Harmless, right?

Until I heard:

"REECE! DO NOT USE THE SOAP ON YOUR BUTT!"

I'm guessing exfoliating soap crystals don't feel so great in the crack of your butt.  Ooopsie!

Happy New Year!

We spent a quiet evening for New Years Eve.  It was just the 3 of us.  Jake decided he would stay up until midnight and countdown with us.  He almost didn't make it because most nights come 9pm and he is out for the night.  However, he surprised us and actually was able to do it.  Here he is cheering with sparkling apple cider at midnight.

and just because, here is a picture of my four-legged-son because it's so cute.    

His eyes are closed because of the flash on our camera. It ALWAYS does this and we desperately need to get a new one.

I hope each and every one of you enjoys a very happy and healthy 2012!  Wishing for good fortune to you and your family.  I'm going with some good ole' fashion New Year Resolutions this year.  Let's see if they stick!