I Look Forward To…

Posted on January 29, 2013 by simpleijustdo

Big, kinda scary changes coming up right quick for us. But, all I can think about are all of the beautiful things I am looking forward to, like:

Forgetting what the negative sign and the little snowflake look like on my car dash display
Hanging out with my mom on a regular basis, which I haven’t been able to do since high school
Our newish mattress already down there. If you can be in love with a thing, I should be engaged to it. Especially since I bought my current one (here) in 1997. Although, that’s not as old as the one in our guest bedroom at the new house. That one is as old as this NBC logo:
My super stove in my new-to-me, ready-to-be-organized, hugest-kitchen-I’ve-ever-had:
A… slower… pace…
This:
A real, live, breathing partner who has promised to do all the dishes. Maybe that should be in our vows…
Not hearing sirens every freakin’ night and — Were those gunshots? I think those were gunshots…
Sweet tea everywhere
Sunshine:

Liebster Award

Posted on January 28, 2013 by simpleijustdo

Well, Thank You! to Joy at I Can Say Mama for nominating me for the Liebster award!

I am so honored!! Awards are fun, but they can be a blessing in disguise because they tend to be a lot of work… Here are the rules:

1. You must thank the person who gave you this award (Thanks, Joy!)
2. You must display the Liebster heart on your blog
3. You should nominate 3-5 or 11 (there are different rules out there) up-and-coming blogs with less than 200 subscribers
4. Each person must post 11 things about themselves
5. Answer the questions given to you by the blogger who nominated you
6. Create 11 questions for those you nominate to answer
7. Notify your nominees and provide a link back to your post
8. Don’t give the award back to the blog that gave it to you

#1 and #2 are above, and #3 will be below, so #4…

1. I owned a Dukes of Hazzard lunchbox in elementary school.

2. My dad sang, my mom was in the band, my grandma was in the band, my grandpa played guitar, my great-uncle played banjo, and my other grandpa was a huge opera fan. Guess that’s why I’m into music.

3. I hate the word “moist”. And lately “pastries” is bugging me, too.

4. I love it when something I read makes me laugh out loud. David Sedaris is one of the only authors who can do this.

5. I don’t watch TV. Not because I think it’s bad for you (although it does tend to control people’s lives). It’s because my TV is in the basement and I hate being cold.

6. I have really sensitive skin that makes it look like I have a hickey when I scratch my neck, or have an earring post that is too long. This is fun when you teach at a middle school.

7. I loved being pregnant. Except for the having to puke for the first three months. Other than that it really was amazing.

8. I love to read. Especially murder mysteries. Especially Scandinavian murder mysteries.

9. I know I mentioned it already, but I really, really hate being cold.

10. My guilty pleasure food-wise is cookies. I rarely eat just one.

11. I’ve had really long hair, and really short hair, and have settled on short hair because long hair is too much work.

…

And now, as if you wanted to know even more about me, Joy’s questions for me:

1. What household task do you hate the most? My least favorite chore is cleaning the toilet. Especially with boys in the house. My second least favorite is doing dishes.
2. Which positive event or situation from your childhood do you remember the most? I remember going to McDonald’s for lunch on my birthday with my teacher – she and another teacher drove a few of us (!) and we got to ride in the way-back of a station wagon. It was awesome. (This is not a “most anything” memory – just a good one.)
3. If you had a time machine to go back in time, would you change anything in your life? What would it be? I don’t think so. Everything that has passed has brought me to where I am today, and I am quite happy.
4. Do you do any sports? I played a little volleyball over the years in school, and coached it, as well.
5. Which famous person would you choose to have dinner with? Maybe Barack Obama. Maybe the Dalai Lama. (Hey! That rhymes!)
6. Name three things (not persons!) you cannot live without. My world would be a sadder place right now without my fireplace, sweet tea, and my Kitchenaid mixer.
7. Something you would love to be able to do but never learned or are not talented enough for? I still want to learn to speak Italian. Just haven’t had the time.
8. What is your most favourite song of all time? Being a musician, this is tough. One of my favorites right now (makes me cry every freakin’ time) is “A Little Bit of Everything” by Dawes.
9. What would you do if you won 1 million Dollars in the lottery? Save and invest enough for us to be comfortable for the rest of our lives and donate the rest to charity. And buy myself a really nice camera.
10. Your favourite meal? Steak. Always has been, always will be.
11. What do you see when you look out of the window right now? Snow (ugh.)

…

Questions for my nominees:

1. What do you wish you could do better?

2. Who are you most like in your family?

3. What’s the first thing on your to-do list right now?

4. What’s for dinner tonight?

5. What major goal have you accomplished in your life?

6. Is there something that you quit doing that you wish you hadn’t? What was it?

7. Who was your favorite teacher in elementary school?

8. What did you want to be when you grew up?

9. What is your favorite tool in your house (could be anything you use to accomplish a task)?

10. What would you do with a free hour in your day?

11. Favorite spot on Earth?

…

I nominate these great people for The Liebster Award (and I apologize if you have over 200 followers – I still think you are awesome!):

Momma Sunshine from Sunshine on My Shoulder

Debi from Spirit of Autism

Forgotten from Fairy Tale Forgotten

Missy from Aggravation Station

Miss Riki from Refreshingly Riki

I’m Failing at Exercise

Posted on January 26, 2013 by simpleijustdo

I’m failing. I am not exercising. I hopped on the bike for 20 minutes last weekend, and was fine until Tuesday, when my right thigh was so sore, it felt like I couldn’t use it properly. Which meant I had to rest it, and not do any exercise (right?). Plus Monday and Tuesday were both extremely long days, with nary an hour in which to work out until 9:30pm. So it wasn’t really my fault. And then it was the end of the marking period, and I had stuff to do. See all the excuses I can come up with?

And I have, and Ack! I’m failing, and I hate it. Failing and I just don’t jive. Plus this added weight on my hips and thighs is making things not fit, and if we end up getting married this summer I will never find a dress that is two sizes bigger on the bottom than on the top, and my knees hurt more and I need to lose this extra weight!!!

Ugh.

I have figured out that I cannot commit to working out everyday. It is unrealistic and it just won’t happen. So while I love slimkicker (remember slimkicker?) I just can’t do a challenge which includes doing something daily. Lesson learned. Check!

I have also figured out that I have come to depend on Time Out (remember Time Out?) because I turned it off awhile ago, and have spent way too many hours (upon hours) at the computer in the last few weeks. Turn it back on. Check!

Finally, I need to get back into my get work done, reward with fun stuff routine (remember the Pomodoro technique?). It has been all fun stuff, leading to my big fat… Well, you get the picture. Get it done. Check!

These are my goals. To get back on track with these things. Anybody else hitting a wall? I’m ready to get over it.

Resolutions

Posted on January 8, 2013 by simpleijustdo

Never really make ’em. Mostly because by their very definition they are doomed to fail, right? I mean it has been pretty rare for me to make a change mid-school year and have it stick.

However, it is a good time to remind oneself of the things one had hoped to do the previous year. The things one hoped to do and didn’t quite. Not failures, per se, but the oh-yeah-i-ran-out-of-time-to-do-that kind of things. The challenge is to re-evaluate, decide on priority, and either make the time, or let them go.

Yes. Some of them need to be let go. Ladies, Fellow Teachers, Perfectionists, some goals need to fall by the wayside. We are constantly changing people – I know I am not the same person I was last January. Priorities change, needs change, and even wants change. Our goals need to change with them.

Among those things on which I will continue to work? Spending less time being sedentary, more time being active. Engaging with my son more. Eating homemade food more. Keeping better track of my nutrition.

New goals? Try not to spend too much time getting sucked into wedding ideas and propaganda. (Think small, and then divide that by 10 – that’ll be us. Very little to plan means very little to get worked up about, which also means very little stress. That’s my ideal!) Try not to procrastinate about important move details, and get ducks in a row as early as possible. Try not to be too sad while The Man and I are apart – the end of the LD in our LDR is near!

What are you thinking about for 2013?

What’d I Miss?…

Posted on January 7, 2013 by simpleijustdo

Here’s a recap of the top posts for December, plus one oldie but goodie:

No Offense, But… about how this phrase really needs to be put to rest, because despite its “intent”, whatever comes next will ultimately offend you.
Happy Day about The Man’s surprise Christmas morning proposal *sigh* 😀
I Don’t Want My Kid To Be Normal about how special needs parents need to set their sites on different goals for their children
Parties about how normal, everyday birthday parties can cause much angst among we special needs parents
The Angry Ex about how to deal with an ex who is less than civil

Hope you are having a fantastic start to your workweek! Only 10 more Mondays until Spring!

Frosty Morning

Posted on January 4, 2013 by simpleijustdo

It’s a frosty morning in the South, and my last day of vacation before I make the long trek North into the snow. The Man and I are headed to one of our favorite towns to enjoy the sunshine and relatively warmer weather (we hope!) today. What are you all up to?

Goodbye, 2012

Posted on December 31, 2012 by simpleijustdo

I suppose everyone has their own year-end list, but mine might be a bit different.

This year, I am thankful for

The Boy adapting so well to 5th grade, and making such big strides in terms of independence
My deepening relationship with The Man, now taking that next step
Finding balance between work and home, most days
The love and support of my friends and family, who remain incredibly supportive of our upcoming major life changes
You people! Yes, you all, who are so supportive of my blog. I LOVE doing this, and while I would still do it if no one was reading, it makes it that much more fun and satisfying that people are enjoying it.

I hope you, too, have much to be thankful for about 2012, and even more to be thankful for in the coming year.

Happy New Year!!

The Previously Preempted Christmas Post

Posted on December 28, 2012 by simpleijustdo

The Man’s proposal certainly surprised me, and preempted my Christmas post. Not that I mind… So here’s the post that was originally supposed to air.

The Man isn’t big on Christmas, which has caused some friction in the almost-three years we’ve been dating. I love Christmas! Not in a must-decorate-the-house-witihin-an-inch-of-its-life kind of way, but an I-really-dig-finding-just-the-right-thing-for-everyone-on-my-list kind of way. You probably already know this about me, but I digress.

The Man, however, has a lot of anxiety about gift-giving, as well as other issues with Christmas in general, and can sometimes get downright depressed about it. I have treated him gently, been very cognizant about his needs, and I’m pretty sure I have rubbed off on him a bit, meaning he’s not as big of a Scrooge as he used to be.

Last year, it came up in conversation that his beloved grandmother, who helped raise him, had one of those all-silver trees that she would decorate with either red or blue bulbs, depending on the year, complete with the rotating light shining on it. He expressed fond memories of this tree. “Wait, fond memories of something having to do with Christmas?” I thought to myself, “We gotta get on that!”

A few months later, we were in Marietta, Ohio for Thanksgiving, and walked into a chocolate shop where a silver tree just like his grandmother’s was in the window. He started a lengthy conversation with the shop owner, fondly reminiscing about his grandmother’s tree, yet again.

After that, I looked them up online to see how much they were, but unfortunately found them to be rather expensive, being truly antiques and all.

And then…

And then, I posted about it on facebook, and a few hours later, Fantastic Babysitter responded to my post that her parents were interested in getting rid of just such a tree that they had in their attic! Not wanting to get my hopes up too high, I asked her about it, and asked how much they wanted for it. She said they wouldn’t want any money for it.

Ask and ye shall receive!

She brought the tree over, and I got out some rags and brasso, and spent an afternoon in my living room, listening to the Peanuts and Muppets Christmas albums, and shining up every single branch on that tree.

When I gave it to the Man last Christmas, he was speechless, almost moved to tears, and said it was quite possibly the best Christmas gift he had ever gotten.

And this year, it is up in our new house, bulbs, light and all. He is very proud of it, and you know what? No Scrooge to be found this year!

Hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season! Sending much love and good will to all of you!

Stressed, But in a Good Way

Posted on December 20, 2012 by simpleijustdo

There has been a whirlwind of activity over the past couple of weeks, with school concerts and holiday preparations. The day before yesterday, I worked on about six craft projects in one evening, not including the nightly box for the advent calendar.

Yesterday, it was a cleaning frenzy, not to say that there was a lot to do, but The Man was flying in last night. Not only do I work harder for those I love, I wanted to make sure we had a clean house to come home to after our various holiday travels.

The Man remarked about how much stress surrounds the holidays, but this is self-induced and I enjoy it. I enjoy being busy if it has to do with Christmas and preparing food, gifts, or my house for loved ones. How about you?

I Got (Some) Skills

Posted on December 19, 2012 by simpleijustdo

Every once in a while, I will flip through the Groupon offerings and find one that seems like a great deal, and I will jump on it. I have rarely been disappointed. One of the ones I have been enjoying recently is an online photography class.

After I got divorced, one of the things I treated myself to was a decent camera. It’s not quite a DSLR, but it takes a really nice photo. And since I have had that camera, I have taken a few really great shots. I know I’ll never be a professional, but I have picked up a little hobby, and I enjoy taking pictures a lot.

When this groupon came around, it was advertised as a way to get to know the ins and outs of your camera a little more, to shoot more than just on the automatic settings. And it sounded like a small time commitment to learn some more skills. Lifelong learner that I am, I knew it would be fun.

And it is. It’s only a four week class. The past two Mondays, I have come home and taken the weekly “class” which consists of videos and worksheets and a little quiz. Then at some point during the week, I take what I have learned and take some shots, one of which I will choose to upload for my “homework assignment” for the week. The instructor gets back to us with feedback by the following Wednesday through the comment sections on the photo, and we can see others’ photos, as well, learning about which settings they are using to take their fantastic shots.

It’s a little scary to go off automatic, and see what comes out, but it’s so much more rewarding, because the composition of the shot is all you, all of your skills on display. There’s a metaphor for life if I’ve ever heard one…

Here are my two homework assignments, so far: