There are a few things I would like to do this year. I don't have them all hammered out into resolutions just yet, but mostly, this year, I just want to do things.
Travel: There will be a Disney trip in 2012. There will be a weekend in the city for Honey and I. There will be a beach trip. There is also a threatened visit from my brother and his daughter. Fun will be had. I am excited.
House: I always have massive plans and wants for the house. But this year, I want to get baseboards in the addition. (Sadly, they are still absent. *Hangs head in shame*) and...completely finish redecorating my bedroom. Yes, that right there. A serious goal mostly because it involves a new bed and furniture and paint.
Create: I want to learn to paint/refinish furniture. We have a lot of wood pieces that I don't like. Instead of getting rid of them completely, I would like to see if I can't give them a makeover. Not sure how this one will turn out.
Move: I want to find a form of exercise I love. I might join a gym with a pool and a variety of classes. But I probably won't do it until February to avoid the January resolution crowd. I am also back on the wagon as far as WWs goes and really glad about it. When left to my own devices my food choices leave me sluggish and frankly, queasy. Plus, I would like to be able to wear all my clothes again, not just the roomier ones.
I might print this out again like last year to try to help me remember the things I want to DO. But right now I am going to go swing in the backyard with Jelly instead of sitting and reading a book. Do.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Time's Up
In less than 12 hours it will be 2012. This year I ended up Sadder (work got tougher, lost a co-worker) in some ways and Happier (Honey is gainfully employed with virtually no commute, The children have all grown and progressed in various ways.) Thinner, even though I abandoned my diet in October and gained 10 lbs, and Richer, obviously, due to employment.
I don't feel like I did all that well with my resolutions, but let's take a look, shall we? Let's give them a rating system of between one and three ampersands to grade how I did.
Resolution #1: I want to grow a garden of edibles this year. This didn't happen. Three kids kind of whooped my butt and taking the pressure off of myself to garden was a big help. I bought a bunch of seeds, but they didn't start properly. I double dug some of our yard up, but once it rained, it just settled back into clay. Plus, the summer here is unbearably hot. We purchased a CSA farm share and that was a lot of fun. I feel like paying someone else to garden was kind of my gardening. Maybe? Maybe not.
&
Resolution #2: I want to choose more whole foods to put into my grocery cart and body and family. I think we accomplished this one through my being on a diet and the CSA shares. We ate and preserved a lot of vegetables this past year. I also made it a point to keep the fruit bowl filled with relatively seasonal fruit. I did so well with this one, the children now complain if it starts to get empty.
&&&
Resolution #3: I am going to buy a pair of Saucony Original Jazz shoes. I did do this one! I did it because I wanted to start running, but just a week into it, my knees were hurting so bad I could barely walk. I just don't think running is for me. Now I need to figure out a new way to exercise, because I think I am going to abandon my dance classes.
&&
Resolution #: I am going to abide by the golden rule more when it comes to my children. I did better with this this year. I am kind of embarrassed to say why though. Some of it was Jelly growing up and just being a better listener, but what really changed our family life to make it less agitated and more calm and loving was this: Brother started taking medication for ADD.
No more fights about homework. No more breathing down his neck about his grades. Now he has mostly A's with a smattering of B's and does his homework unprompted right when he comes home. We tried everything we could think of for years until we really felt like we were at the end of our rope. Now, I wished we hadn't waited so long. I still am not in love with the idea of the drugs, but all of our lives and relationships have improved because of them.
&&&
Well, I think I did alright! How about you? How was your 2011? What are you goals for 2012?
I don't feel like I did all that well with my resolutions, but let's take a look, shall we? Let's give them a rating system of between one and three ampersands to grade how I did.
Resolution #1: I want to grow a garden of edibles this year. This didn't happen. Three kids kind of whooped my butt and taking the pressure off of myself to garden was a big help. I bought a bunch of seeds, but they didn't start properly. I double dug some of our yard up, but once it rained, it just settled back into clay. Plus, the summer here is unbearably hot. We purchased a CSA farm share and that was a lot of fun. I feel like paying someone else to garden was kind of my gardening. Maybe? Maybe not.
&
Resolution #2: I want to choose more whole foods to put into my grocery cart and body and family. I think we accomplished this one through my being on a diet and the CSA shares. We ate and preserved a lot of vegetables this past year. I also made it a point to keep the fruit bowl filled with relatively seasonal fruit. I did so well with this one, the children now complain if it starts to get empty.
&&&
Resolution #3: I am going to buy a pair of Saucony Original Jazz shoes. I did do this one! I did it because I wanted to start running, but just a week into it, my knees were hurting so bad I could barely walk. I just don't think running is for me. Now I need to figure out a new way to exercise, because I think I am going to abandon my dance classes.
&&
Resolution #: I am going to abide by the golden rule more when it comes to my children. I did better with this this year. I am kind of embarrassed to say why though. Some of it was Jelly growing up and just being a better listener, but what really changed our family life to make it less agitated and more calm and loving was this: Brother started taking medication for ADD.
No more fights about homework. No more breathing down his neck about his grades. Now he has mostly A's with a smattering of B's and does his homework unprompted right when he comes home. We tried everything we could think of for years until we really felt like we were at the end of our rope. Now, I wished we hadn't waited so long. I still am not in love with the idea of the drugs, but all of our lives and relationships have improved because of them.
&&&
Well, I think I did alright! How about you? How was your 2011? What are you goals for 2012?
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Whew!
Is this thing on?
Where did I go? No where far, I assure you. I am just trying to adjust to the new normal of being far more busy at work than I have been in the past. And I have never been good at getting anything done at home.
We work a skeleton crew during the holidays at my office so I worked my two days last week. This week I am completely off to be home with the boys. Honey took off last week and we had a vacation of sorts, going to the zoo, going to the Christmas festival, etc. It was nice. It is still hard to work around a baby who naps twice daily still, though. We had a nice Christmas. Honey made a ham. My folks came over. There were far too many presents and the garbage men came a day late, so our outside trash was overflowing. My bedroom is still covered in boxes from Amazon. I am torn between just wanting to throw them out and breaking them down to use in the gardens I am planning.
It is a bit chilly here today, but it is supposed to warm back up to the 70s by the weekend. Needless to say, it didn't feel very holiday-ish. We've watched the Phineas & Ferb movie too many times to count. The baby has started to dance recently, but he does the strangest thing. He twirls. I've never seen that before. He has also hit a naughty stage. I was thinking he would be chill like Brother, but it seems he is going to take more after Jelly and be a gleefully naughty bear. Oo boy. He is prone to grabbing things he isn't supposed to have and running. Drives me bonkers. And climbing. He climbs just like Jelly did. There are some differences between the two, of course. Scooter is a better sleeper and is more interested in nursing still than Jelly was at this stage. Brother had already weaned himself by this age. I occasionally worry Scooter won't self wean by age 2, which is my arbitrary limit. I figure after growing a kid for 9 months and nursing for two years, I get to get my body back. (Some prize, right? Saggy, shriveled everything.)
We did go to Whole Foods to get some dairy-free dairy products for Scooter. I never realized how much yogurt and cheese I feed my kids until I couldn't give any to Scooter. He really loves the yogurt and I am going to try my hand at making soy yogurt at home, since we don't have a Whole Foods around here and none of our local stores sell it and it is horrifically expensive. I have made dairy yogurt before, so I figure the process can't be that different. I will use the soy yogurt I have now as a starter. Although I do have to locate my yogurt maker...
Where did I go? No where far, I assure you. I am just trying to adjust to the new normal of being far more busy at work than I have been in the past. And I have never been good at getting anything done at home.
We work a skeleton crew during the holidays at my office so I worked my two days last week. This week I am completely off to be home with the boys. Honey took off last week and we had a vacation of sorts, going to the zoo, going to the Christmas festival, etc. It was nice. It is still hard to work around a baby who naps twice daily still, though. We had a nice Christmas. Honey made a ham. My folks came over. There were far too many presents and the garbage men came a day late, so our outside trash was overflowing. My bedroom is still covered in boxes from Amazon. I am torn between just wanting to throw them out and breaking them down to use in the gardens I am planning.
It is a bit chilly here today, but it is supposed to warm back up to the 70s by the weekend. Needless to say, it didn't feel very holiday-ish. We've watched the Phineas & Ferb movie too many times to count. The baby has started to dance recently, but he does the strangest thing. He twirls. I've never seen that before. He has also hit a naughty stage. I was thinking he would be chill like Brother, but it seems he is going to take more after Jelly and be a gleefully naughty bear. Oo boy. He is prone to grabbing things he isn't supposed to have and running. Drives me bonkers. And climbing. He climbs just like Jelly did. There are some differences between the two, of course. Scooter is a better sleeper and is more interested in nursing still than Jelly was at this stage. Brother had already weaned himself by this age. I occasionally worry Scooter won't self wean by age 2, which is my arbitrary limit. I figure after growing a kid for 9 months and nursing for two years, I get to get my body back. (Some prize, right? Saggy, shriveled everything.)
We did go to Whole Foods to get some dairy-free dairy products for Scooter. I never realized how much yogurt and cheese I feed my kids until I couldn't give any to Scooter. He really loves the yogurt and I am going to try my hand at making soy yogurt at home, since we don't have a Whole Foods around here and none of our local stores sell it and it is horrifically expensive. I have made dairy yogurt before, so I figure the process can't be that different. I will use the soy yogurt I have now as a starter. Although I do have to locate my yogurt maker...
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