A venti-sized vent

I feel like I need to vent this morning. Lucky you. Feel free to stop reading now. I won't be offended. I just need to give voice to the thoughts in my head. Saying them out loud (or on the blog) somehow validates them for me. So here goes.

I injured my leg. In fact, my entire leg/hip region is injured. I can't walk without pain and I've limped around for so long that my weird gait is causing other issues in my back and knee. 

John and I are leaving for our big anniversary trip this week--the one we've been planning and looking forward to for a long time. It's going to take all I've got just to walk around each day. And hiking is out of the question. It is incredibly irritating and I feel so foolish for allowing this injury. 

I was logging many miles each week when my injury happened (hiking, walking, jogging) but I wasn't overdoing it. I know from being a runner that the worst injuries result from doing too much too soon. I know that. And I was holding myself back in order to avoid injury. I once had a stress fracture and injury is no picnic. 

Here's the back story: 

I packed on several pounds during my dad's illness last year and when the temps finally began to warm up a little here in late January (warm is relative) I purposed to get rid of them. My first setback was when our treadmill motor quit. I was very frustrated because we still had lots of snowy days ahead and I didn't know how in the world I was going to keep my momentum going with outdoor exercise. I perservered and the weather cooperated (for the most part) but then another setback, shin splints, forced me to take a couple weeks off. Ouch. I think I'm the only person I know who gets shin splints just from walking fast. 

Eventually my shins returned to normal and I resumed activity. I was losing weight, feeling great, and had the energy I remember from my twenties. And then I started feeling pain in my upper leg/hip area after a long walk. I took a few days off to rest, and honestly, I really only rested because we had a freak April snowstorm and I couldn't get outside. After two days of being house bound, I went for a run. I felt great the entire time I was running but when I stopped, I could barely walk. And I had to walk 3 miles back home. If I'd had my cell with me, I would have called someone for a ride. I don't think I've ever hurt so bad in my entire life. Except for labor. Oh, and a kidney stone. Looking back, I wish I had never gone on that Sunday run. 

It's been almost five weeks since that day. Despite the pain, I put off going to the doctor because I didn't want to spend a ton of money for them to "try" to figure out what was going on. I finally caved and went because I wanted to feel better for our anniversary trip. But I don't feel better. And I'm soooooooooo frustrated. 

My doctor referred me to a physical therapist, but I put off making an appointment because I knew we were leaving town and I didn't want to start therapy, then have to take a week off. Excuses, excuses. I ran into her (the PT) last week at school and mentioned my referral to her. She probed a little and I agreed to see her yesterday afternoon with high hopes that she could manipulate something and I'd walk away a new person. She confirmed the tendonitis diagnosis my doctor gave me and told me that this is going to take significant time to heal. I will probably have to rest my leg/hip all summer which means NO hiking and NO other exercise (biking, walking, jogging) until it heals. 

I'm devastated. 

I live in Colorado and our summers are glorious. For me, summer is about being outside and being active. Last summer was a rough one, and I had such high hopes for this one. All my contributions to our "summer list" involved outdoor activity.

I'm slowly adjusting to this news. I'm sad. I'm mad. I'm incredibly disappointed. And in the midst of all that emotion, I'm still in some pretty intense physical pain. It feels like I also have some pretty intense opposition in regard to my heart. 

Yesterday I got an ionotophoresis treatment at the therapist's office, and I'm going for another possible treatment today. Iontophoresis uses an ionic charge to deliver anti-inflammatory meds (corticosteroids) transdermally. It targets the specific area the steroid is needed and it's not as destructive to your collagen as a cortisone shot. It's actually pretty cool and I can tell some difference since my treatment yesterday afternoon.

I'm crossing my fingers and PRAYING that another treatment will alleviate the pain I feel when walking. Because airports and tourist attractions are in my very near future. 

So..., thanks for letting me vent a little here.

I'm frustrated but I'm hanging in there. I may be hanging by a thread, maybe, but I'm hanging tough.  

PS--I would love your prayers!

C-E-L-E-B-R-A-T-E!

Guess what? Today is the first day of summer at the Lifeat7000Feet casa. We're all pretty excited about that because we L-O-V-E summer.

Yesterday was a little rough for a couple of us though. We said goodbye to our beloved neighborhood elementary school. Budget cuts in our district have forced our school to close. The students and staff are being relocated to another building next year, but honestly? It's not going to be the same. I went to the closing assembly yesterday and it was very sweet. I made it back to the van before the tears began to fall. It feels silly to be attached to a building, but I've spent a lot of time in that place over the last six years and it holds a tremendous amount of sentiment for me.

The last day of school is usually always emotional for me anyway. It marks (yet) another milestone for my kiddos. They've each grown a year older and more physically and emotionally mature, and they've each grown a little more independent of me. It's a lot for my mama-heart to take in and usually that emotion ends up spilling from my eyes. It's also hard to say good-bye to teachers we've grown to love over the course of the school year.

Our sweet little Abbey has had the same teacher for two years. Abbey has grown to LOVE her (as have we) and I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when she walked out the school doors yesterday with tears in her eyes. It was hard to say good-bye. Abbey's tears triggered mine and we both walked out to the van a little weepy.

John and I sorta expected the day to be sad. We usually plan something fun to do with the kids on the last day of school to celebrate their year, their grades (they all had SUPER report cards!), and the beginning of summer.

So....

after much debate about where to go for dinner we finally agreed on FiveGuys.

And afterwards we went to see Shrek Forever After. In 3D. And can I just say that I think 3D movies are a rip off? Plus, those glasses hurt my head. 

We're big Shrek fans, so of course we all loved the movie. I thought it was very funny, and ending a day laughing with the people you love most is ALWAYS a good thing. Happy summer, everyone!

Free Day

My calendar is completely clear today for the first time in weeks. I've been busy lately but it's been a good busy. All of my volunteer responsibilities seemed to fall during May and have kept my calendar prety cluttered. I don't mind though. I love volunteering; it gives me endorphins similar to exercise.

Anyway, there is not one single thing on my calendar for today.

Yay!

Tomorrow I'll put my volunteer hat back on. Tomorrow is our kids' last day of school and tomorrow is full of parties, assemblies, and celebrations. But today? Today is carte blanche. My last day of freedom.

You should know that I really don't look at the time my kids are in school as freedom. I miss them when they're not with me. I've prayed about homeschooling them every summer since we've lived here because I'm happiest when we're all together. I LOVE summer because I love spending my days with them. So when I say that today is my last day of freedom, it's completely tongue in cheek.

So, what to do with my day?

Well, I'm going to do some shopping! I need a few things for my trip next week--flip flops, capris, tees, and maybe a dress to wear to dinner. I have a list (of course I have a list) and I need to make a list of where I need to go to get the things on that list. I'm thinking Target is a must, but that the mall MUST be avoided. A shower is a must as well so I've got to go. Ciao, peeps.

Anything exciting on YOUR list today?

Past | Present | Future

It's been a few days since I last blogged so let me see if I can bring you up to speed on what's going on around here.

Past | Stuff that happened last week:
Endured one of the gloomiest weeks I can remember in Colorado. It was cloudy, cold, snowy, rainy, and just generally blah. I'm so happy the sun has begun to shine again.

Went to the doctor about my leg. She thinks I have tendonitis. I'm supposed to rest and take ibuprofen. I haven't exercised in three solid weeks (it's killing me) but now that I'm taking the correct dose of ibuprofen it definitely feels a little better. I'm just hoping that Advil is doing more than simply masking the pain. She also recommended physical therapy.

Kept my cool (that's how I remember it anyway) when my eleven-year-old told me 24 hours before she needed a medieval costume for school. We pulled it off with a visit to the local thrift store but I forgot to take a picture of my cute little medieval peasant.

Sarah ran for Student Council and she was elected to serve her class as one of three representatives next year. Atta girl!

Helped with the Younglife garage sale. Will and Sarah helped too. I haven't heard how much money the sale pulled in but I've never seen so much junk, er, stuff at a sale before.

Helped chaperone a dance at Abbey's elementary school. I sure don't remember having dances in elementary school. It was a sock hop and it was really pretty fun!

Normal, boring stuff like laundry, cleaning, homework, cooking, and grocery shopping. My sweet husband cleaned out the garage and the basement for me on Saturday. I offered to help him, but he let me off the hook and told me he preferred to do it alone! 

Survived the busiest weekend we've had in a long, LONG time.

Present | Stuff happening today:

Hmmmmm, let's see. 

I have an awards assembly to go to today, and I'm taking my teenager to the doctor because he has a very, very sore throat and ran a temp of 102 almost all day yesterday. It's the last week of school AND he has a few final exams to take, and if he has strep he needs to start taking meds today. 

UPDATE: Will's strep test came back positive. He has one dose of antibiotic in him and the doc said he could go to school tomorrow if he feels well enough.

Future | Stuff happening this week:

Have I mentioned that this is the LAST week of school! It's hard not to be excited about that.

Field Day is this week. It's my favorite day of the whole school year!

Report cards. We're so proud of our kids. They've worked hard and have done excellent work all year long.

A fun family outing to celebrate the end of another terrific school year. 

Some friends we haven't seen in awhile are coming for a quick visit.

Hairapy! Hallelujah. As I inch closer to forty I seem to find more gray hair every day. You have no idea how desperate I am for a cut and some color.

A little shopping for my trip to C-A-L-I-F-O-R-N-I-A. 

A quick hello

I'm giving myself 10 minutes to blog before I get going this morning. It's going to be another busy day, but I'm seeing the light at the end of this crazy tunnel!

--I have an appointment to see the doctor today about my leg. According to my amateur internet research I have a torn ligament or possibly a groin pull. I'm really hoping it's something a lot more simple than that. I have an aversion to doctors and traditional medicine (which is another post for another day) but I'm going this morning because I'm in a great deal of pain and desperately want to be able to walk and hike when John and I are in California. I'll let you know what I find out.

--Our weather is wacko. It was snowing when I went to bed last night. It also rained, hailed, and thundered most of last evening. Our kids were out jumping on the trampoline (in coats, hats, socks, gloves) when it started hailing and they thought that was THE most fun thing ever. It was pea-sized hail, and they weren't in real danger (I guess) but they were hooting with laughter while I was freaking out. Good times.

The big snowstorm--the one that had forecasters using the words "feet" and "snow" in same sentence--missed us. A bunch of us were complaining about it yesterday at TANG (my mom's group at church) and my pastor reminded us that we had a lot of sunny days in January and February. How quickly I'd forgotten. He also made fun of me for wearing my parka AND a sweater. I don't even care. It was cold yesterday. And colder today with more snow possible. It's May, right? Not December?

--I'm not loving the back nine episodes of Glee so much. Are y'all?

My ten minutes has passed. That was fast! Must go. Peace out, peeps.

10 on the 10th!

One night last week, our family sat around the table after dinner and made our "summer list". Basically, it's a list of things we want to do during the summer months. Our list includes big things, small things, realistic things, challenging things, and things that we dream of doing.

Thought I'd share ten of the things on our summer list for today's 10 on the 10th.

1. Family bike rides. All of us need a bicycle tune-up, but we have a great biking trail by our home that is calling our name.

2. Indoor Sky Diving. Okay, this was Will's contribution to the list. He actually wanted to do it for his birthday back in February, but he opted to have a party instead. I'll think we'll let this be a boys only excursion. I have lots of friends who have done this and they say it's an incredible experience, but I'll pass.

3. Go to the beach. This is Abbey's dream. She's never seen the ocean. If some pieces fall into place, there is a chance it might happen this summer! More on that later...

4. Go to the movies! We're particularly excited about seeing Shrek: Forever After, Toy Story 3, and The Karate Kid.

5. Hiking!!! This of course is MY contribution to the summer list. I hiked Spruce Mountain a few weeks ago and got bit (again) by the hiking bug. I wanted to go on a hike yesterday (it's sorta our Mother's Day tradition) but my leg is still jacked up. Boo. My friend and I want to take our kids to hike The Crags (it's my favorite hike in Colorado) and I also want to hike Pulpit Rock in Colorado Springs. I saw some interesting trails yesterday at Garden of the Gods too. I am itching to get outside with the kids and HIKE!

6. Camp/Camping. Will and Sarah are going to their first ever week-long camp this summer. To say they're jazzed would be an understatement. Their little sister is pretty excited too, but mostly she's excited about being an only child for the week! We'd love to take a family camping trip this summer as well.

7. Go to a Rockies game. John and I both want to do this. He wants us to spend the night in Denver and eat breakfast the next morning at Snooze. I think he's been dreaming of that breakfast since he ate there with his editorial team back in December.

8. White water rafting. This is Will's other contribution. Do you sense the adventure theme? Do you sense my fear?

9. Run a 5K together. Will has discovered that like his dad, he loves to run. One of our good friends organizes this 5K and I sorta told him back in March that I'd run it this summer. I can and do run, I just don't love it like my husband and son do. John and Will still aren't completely on board with this idea, but they said they'd think about doing it with me. The girls prefer to be our cheerleaders at the finish line.

10. Visit two national parks: The Great Sand Dunes and Rocky Mountain National Park. Sarah really, really wants to see the sand dunes (so do I) and you know how much we love RMNP!

There is still more on our summer list but I'll stop with ten. Know what else? TEN MORE SCHOOL DAYS UNTIL OUR SUMMER VACATION BEGINS!!! Soooooo excited to see what this summer will hold for us!

If you want to share your 10 on the 10th list, link up below! Peace out, peeps.

stuff.

I've got lots of stuff on my mind this morning. Lucky YOU!

First things first. I'm sending my Sidewalk Prophets cd to O Mom. She's the name I randomly drew because not one of you got the answers right. In fact, most of you got them very wrong, but I'm going to briefly (as briefly as I can) give you the right ones.

Snow in April? 31 inches. Try not to be jealous.
California with John? Less than 22 days now. I'm super excited.
Cups of coffee? I've weaned myself down to one! 
My April mileage? 65 miles in three weeks. My goal was 85 for the month. Darn injury!
How long since I've dusted? Too many days to count! I hate to dust.
Coupon savings on last shopping trip? A measly $4. I didn't even make the effort.

Next on my mind? My extended family.
My grandfather died on Thursday. It hit me last night as I was climbing into bed that my mom's father was my last remaining grandparent. I wasn't really close to my grandfather at all, and I have some regrets about that; not guilt, but regrets. His services are today in Louisiana but I decided not to go. The weird thing (and it's probably really not weird at all) is that my grandfather's death has stirred up emotions about my dad's death last summer. I haven't talked much about that here, but some days are just hard ones. Lots of processing still going on. Lots of little things that still catch me by surprise. Loss is not a slight thing.

Moving on.

I made this pasta dish for dinner the other night and it was too delicious not to share. It's not for the faint of heart though. Bacon, butter, and cream...oh my! I cooked the chicken in the crock-pot all day so it was easy to throw together. The chicken was so flavorful that I told John I'm going to cook double next time to add to salads, tacos, etc.

Anybody else think May rivals December in terms of being a busy month? And spendy? May always seems like such a spendy month for us too.

The kids in Abbey's class made this cute plate for their teacher this week. Isn't it adorable? We got it at the paint-your-own pottery store and the kids each put their thumbprint around the edge. I gave the store owner a class picture to use as a guide to paint the kids' faces and she did a pretty amazing job making each student's thumbprint look like them! Their teacher really, really liked it!

Ten more days of school for Will and Sarah, and nine more for Abbey, but who's counting? Me, me, ME!!!! We're in the final push to the end and I keep reminding myself of that Garrison Keillor quote that John had made into a card for me at Christmas: Nothing you do for children is ever wasted. 

I'm pretty sure I had a bajillion other things on my mind that I wanted to blog about when I sat down this morning, but my mind feels empty now and I'm going to consider that a good thing. Besides, my husband just told me that my fried egg is ready! He spoils me on Saturdays by making breakfast for everyone...including me!

Peace out, peeps. Enjoy your Saturday!

Thursday

Just a quick list of things I woke up feeling thankful for...

- A husband who loves me. And a husband who challenges me too. In a good way. Lately he's shared with me several BIG things he's praying about. BIG things. And quite frankly, these BIG things scare me. But I agreed to pray about them too, because they're important to him and because they seem a little less scary if he's by my side.

- A kid named Reid. Reid is an answer to prayer for our son, Will.

- For the opportunity to go on a field trip today with Abbey's class. We're trekking up to Denver and it should be a fun day. I'm thankful that John works hard so that I can be available to my kids for things like this.

- For ibuprofen. Because my stupid leg is still messed up. I'm going to the doc next week, but really hoping the pain ends before then.

- For good friends.

- For my kids' amazing teachers.

- For 12 more days of school.

- For coffee. Which I need NOW. G'bye.

I'm making you work for it this time!

I mentioned in my last post that I found a Sidewalk Prophets cd the other night. John's boss is always passing awesome music our way (thank you Mr P!!!) so I thought I would pass my gently-used cd on to one of you. It's a giveaway. Yay!!!

To enter this giveaway, I'm going to ask you to do something a little different.

I want you to guess the answers the following number questions in the comments.
-----------------------------------

1. According to one local meteorologist, how many inches of snow did my town receive in April?

A. 25
B. 29
C. 31
D. 37

2. How many days until John and I leave for California?

A. 22
B. 32
C. 42
D. 52

3. How many cups of coffee do I drink each morning?

A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4

4. How much mileage did I log in April? Before I hurt my leg?

A. 58 miles
B. 65 miles
C. 72 miles
D. 80 miles

5. How long has it been since I last dusted?

A. 5 days
B. 10 days
C. 14 days
D. Too many to count

6. How much money did I save with coupons last time I shopped?

A. $4
B. $13
C. $21
D. $30
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first person to get all six answers correct will win my gently used Sidewalk Prophets cd. I should mention that the jewel case is badly cracked, but the cd itself is in excellent shape and has only been loaded onto my computer and played on my cd player once.

If no one gets all six answers correct, then I'll just draw a winner from the comments. Probably on Thursday or Friday.

Have fun guessing! Just one comment per person, please.

more than you ever wanted to know about the past four days

Friday:

I made my every-two-weeks grocery shopping trip. Went to four grocery stores (like always) because I buy my meat at one, my produce at another, certain things from the health food store, and the rest at Walmart. Came home and unloaded all of it IN THE SNOW.

Ran up to Abbey's school to take something she forgot, and to take some pictures for the yearbook. So glad I'm not in charge of yearbook this year!!! (Should really add more than three exclamation points to that sentence too.)

Picked everyone up at normal times! The last few weeks have been crazy and I've spent the better part of my afternoons in the car! I'm not complaining though. I love being a mom, and crazy carpool schedules come with the territory.

John came home from work early and we grilled brats for dinner. Yum!

Took an after-dinner nap, but still fell asleep while watching a movie with the kids. Woke up on the couch at 10:51pm and went to bed!

------------------------------------------------------

Saturday:

Slept in. Hallelujah!

Washed, dried, folded, and put seven loads of laundry away.

Cleaned house. It was in bad shape!

John went to Will's track meet (last one! and he did great!) so the girls and I didn't have to sit out in the cold. We weren't sure what time he was going to run, so I was thankful John was willing to go.

Spent way too much time trying to find the tissue paper I bought at Walmart the day before. I remember putting it on the kitchen table while I unloaded groceries, but I've searched high and low (including the garbage) and still can't find it. The girls and I made do with what we could scrounge up and wrapped a few goodies for their teachers because this week is Teacher Appreciation Week at school.

Realized that our internet was down. 


Watched How to Make An American Quilt on my computer while the girls played with their Polly Pockets AND water. The movie was my attempt at distracting myself from the mess they were making. In my clean house.


Realized our internet was still down. 


Took a nap.


Made dinner.


Realized our internet was STILL down. John called our ISP and they told him it was a billing issue that couldn't be resolved until 8AM MST Monday (today).


Had a mild panic attack.


Made dinner. Reuben sandwiches. Which reminds me--I haven't posted my new menu plan on my recipe blog. Oops.


Organized our dvds and cds in an effort to take my mind off of our now internet-free weekend. Bonus: found an unopened Sidewalk Prophets cd I didn't know we had and it is AWESOME! Normally I wouldn't have minded the lack of internet too much, but I had some work to do and some stuff to take care of that involved the use of the computer and wi-fi! 


Loaded a bunch of cds onto my computer while waiting for Will to come home from his first boy-girl party. I was hoping for a chatty 13-year-old but he wasn't in a talky mood when he got home. ;)


Watched the 10pm news (lack of internet was killing me by this point) and watched the beginning of SNL. Betty White is hosting next week! Hope I can stay awake for that one.


-----------------------------------------------------


Sunday:
Slept until 8:15. Hallelujah! 


Went to the late worship at church. I don't think we've ever gone to late worship before. We usually go early because we like to have the rest of the day to do whatever. Gotta admit that it was nice to have a leisurely Sunday morning at home.


Came home and scarfed down some lunch.


Took Will and Sarah to a youth group party.


John, Abbey and I went to Starbucks. For the free wi-fi. John and I have committed to stay offline on Sundays, but I totally broke my "fast" because I had some important stuff in my inbox that I didn't get to open on Saturday. 


While we were in Starbucks it started SNOWING (again) and it was snowing hard. By the time we left it was starting to accumulate. We even heard thunder when we were getting in the car. WEIRD. As much as I was tempted to complain about the snow, I didn't. I couldn't. Because of all the flooding/tornados/rain in the south. Wow.


Picked up Will and Sarah and made a family trip to the library. Because we're the Sunday people.

Ran into a friend at the library that I kinda flaked on earlier in the school year. Apologized for my flakiness and cleared the air. The air really wasn't unclear between us, but you know how you sometimes just feel like it is?  Yeah. Got that cleared up.


Came home. Made dinner. Oh my gosh. If you like fish tacos, you must try these!!! SO good, and super easy! 


Cleaned up the kitchen. Have I ever told you that I'm a freak and canNOT go to bed with my kitchen a mess? I can't. I can count on one hand (okay, maybe two hands) how many times in the last 20 years that I've gone to bed with my kitchen not clean. Freak.


Made rice krispie treats. And only ate 1/3 of the pan. 


Worked on an editing project. 


Watched the news and went to bed.


------------------------------------------------------------


Monday: 
Kissed my older kids and my husband goodbye and made sure John knew to call our ISP's billing office at 8AM MST.


Texted him to make sure he knew Colorado was MST. I figured if I texted him I couldn't see or "hear" him rolling his eyes at me.


Got child #3 to school.


Resumed editing project.


Got a call from husband confirming what we suspected all along: NOTHING was wrong with our billing. Grrrrrrrr. Grrrrrrr. Grrrrrrr. Re-set our modem and router. Nothing.


Found the cable that plugs into our wall outlet and unplugged it. Plugged it back into the same jack. Nothing. Plugged it into the SECOND jack in the wall outlet (it's one of those double jacks) and IT WORKED. We went all weekend without internet because the cable was plugged into the wrong jack. OH MY GOSH.


Just said "Thanks" because I needed internet today and didn't want to hang out at Starbucks again. My very social self is too easily distracted at Starbucks.


Yada yada yada. Would love to fill you in on the rest of my day, but if you've made it this far, I'm sure you'd like me to quit while I'm ahead. Which was half an hour ago.

I quizzed the kids at dinner tonight about the cable/jack and got lots of shrugs and eye rolling. One of them even blamed it on the dog. I think that's because they heard me use the word "jack". Oh well. I'm connected again so I'll overlook it.

Peace out, peeps.

Meat is done. You are finished.

Remember when I shared my list of things that bug me? Well, I forgot to mention a BIG one: bad grammar.

I followed an intriguing link from one blog to another this week, and was pleasantly surprised to  discover that the link I followed was to the blog of an author that I like and respect. However, he lost me when I noticed two HUGE grammatical errors in the second sentence of the first paragraph. I'm certain the author had a valid point he wanted to communicate, but I was too busy trying to fix his errors in my head that I couldn't even finish his post.

I also take a little too much snarky pleasure in reading the flyers/info letters that come home in my kids' backpacks each week. I secretly want to circle every typo and grammatical faux pas with a fat, red pen and send it back to the school office. Anonymously, of course. Last week, I read a couple of things out loud to John (Mr. Editor) and we were both dumbfounded at the misuse. It scares me a little (frankly, a lot) because some of the people who write those letters are the ones teaching my children!!! I'm sure if I offered to write all the correspondence that goes home from school, someone would take me up on it, but then what would we do for evening entertainment? Arrogant, much?

I think some of my grammar geekiness came from my mother. Here are some things that were drilled into my head growing up. 

Me: Can I walk down to Robin's house?

Mom: I don't know. Can you?

Me: (rolling eyes) May I walk down to Robin's house?

Mom: Yes, you may walk down to Robin's house. 

Me: Me and Robin want to make some cookies.

Mom: Who?

Me: Me and Robin.

Mom: Who?

Me: ME AND ROBIN!!!!!!!

Mom: Who?

Me: (rolling my eyes) Robin and I.

Mom: Robin and I what?

Me: Robin and I would like to make some cookies.

Mom: Sure, just make enough to share. 

Me: I'm done with my homework.

Mom: No, you're not done. Meat is "done". You are finished.

Mom, you'll be happy to know that Sarah has two teachers who are sticklers about not being "done" but "finished", and about "may" instead of "can", and that I also correct my children when they say these things. 

Don't even get me started on typos! Check out the typo I found on the Pei Wei take-out menu. Seriously, Pei Wei??? Don't you think spell check would have caught that???

Disclaimer: I use incorrect grammar sometimes and I rarely use spell check before publishing posts on my blog. 

Bad, Glad, Mad, Rad, and Sad

Alternate title: Rhyming Catch Up

The Bad:
I pulled a muscle in my leg and it hurts! I've been hobbling around since last week. Probably shouldn't have hit the trail on Sunday because I was already hurting, but I was desperate to get outside after two snowy days.

I am BUSY. I finished four big projects last weekend that were hanging over my head, but I have that many more that I'm juggling now. I've deliberately been non-busy this entire year, but the end of the school year is just NUTS!

I heard the "s" word is in the forecast for the end of the week. Snow is a very, very bad word at the end of April.


The Glad:
My husband is home this week! He's had to travel a lot lately, but it looks like we're back to normal schedules again. I am so happy.

Dinner is in the crockpot! If you like Chipotle, you really should try this recipe. SOOOO good, and SOOOO easy.

We have 18 more days of school!!!

My grass is green! The snow is good moisture.

Glee is on tonight!


The Mad:
Rude children (especially those that don't belong to me) make me mad. Had an encounter with an unbelievably rude child this week.

I get a little mad when my kids ask me a question that puts me on the spot. That also happened this week. I may or may not have thrown a little fit and lectured all of my children about the future consequences of that.


The Rad:
This simple strawberry dessert is AMAZING! (I found this blog a couple of weeks ago via a link on another blog and she has some fabulous recipes!)

Went to Bingo for Books at Abbey's school last night and had SO much fun! Abbey even won a very fun prize.

My sister is pregnant and she finds out tomorrow if she's having a boy or girl. (Mom, she said she'd text Sarah to let her know!)

Have you heard the song "Crushed and Created" by Caitlyn Smith? I discovered it last weekend and it is amazing! Go listen on iTunes.

This is cool: Last week John was in Orlando. The only person I know who lives in Orlando is my cousin, Dave. John was meeting an author for dinner and as he was walking in the restaurant he heard someone calling his name. It was my cousin. (Hey Dave!) I think they were both shocked to run into each other. UNBELIEVABLE!!! What are the odds? He also ran into a college friend, and he texted me when he boarded his flight home that the pilot of his plane was a friend of ours who lives down the road. Who has those kind of coincidences???


The Sad:
I broke my favorite sunglasses. My sister gave them to me last summer (she found them on the beach) and they were just perfect for me. I tried fixing them with nail polish out of desperation and a lack of super glue, and my quick fix lasted all of 20 minutes. BOO HOO!

Our beloved elementary school is closing. The students/teachers are being relocated to another school building in our district but as the end of the year draws near, I'm getting sad. I'm on one of our school's transition committees and I got a little teary at our meeting yesterday just thinking about all the changes. I'm sure going to miss that place, but at least I get to see some familiar faces next fall.

Alright. My computer time is up! Peace out, peeps.

Spring?

Will had a track meet yesterday afternoon. I wore my down parka and still froze. Felt so sorry for the runners in shorts and tank tops.

My friend's husband met up with us at the meet and said nonchalantly, "So did you hear we could get 4-12 inches of snow?"

I laughed. I hadn't heard that and frankly, I didn't buy it. It's been warm and sunny lately. (I told you yesterday that I have a farmers tan from wearing short sleeves.) 

Evidently, the joke is on me because when I woke up we had about 5 inches of snow on the ground.

And our make-up snow day ended up being cancelled because of SNOW. Irony.

It's still coming down hard, and my meteorologist-neighbor said we could get 6 more inches tonight. 

I'll take an unexpected day at home with my peeps. On the agenda: Movies. Hot cocoa/coffee. Reading. Baking cookies. Pajamas. Laziness.

The gift of a lazy family day in late April is priceless.  Peace out, peeps.

(If we get out later, I'll take/post some pics.)

Other Things

My time has been consumed by other things lately...

Things like being sick. I did in fact succumb to a nasty cold last week and it sidelined me for most of the week/weekend. I woke up Monday extraordinarily grateful for the ability to breathe through my nose and taste coffee again! I'm still not 100% but I'm feeling better every day!


Things like solo parenting. John was out of town part of last week, and has been gone most of this week as well. Thankfully, he'll be arriving home from the airport later this morning and I am very, VERY glad. The kids and I just feel "off" when he's not here. We've survived, but not without a lot of whining. For the record, it was me doing the whining; my kids are champs. If you are a solo-parent, then you have my utmost respect.


Things like watching movies. After surviving the crazy busy-ness of last week (and I'm deliberately choosing NOT to whine here on the blog about the insanity of it all), I declared Saturday a stay-at-home-in-pajamas-and-watch-movies-all-day-long day. Of course it helped that it was about 40 degrees and foggy outside, and that my head felt like it was the size of a basketball and might explode at any moment.  Anyway, have you seen the previews for the remake of The Karate Kid? I rented the original version and our kids loved it. I'd forgotten how good it was! We also watched Jurassic Park. They loved that one too, but I was scared all over again. I've watched several other movies that I've enjoyed (I like to watch chick flicks when John is traveling!), but for some reason I cannot call a single one of them to mind. I'm almost forty. My memory isn't what it used to be!


Things like being outside in the sunshine! I've been getting a lot of outdoor exercise lately, thanks to a broken treadmill and some beautiful spring weather. I have a lovely farmer's tan on my arms and neck and some serious mileage in my log to prove that we've had an abundance of sunny days!


Things like laundry. It just never ends, does it?


You guys are sweet to miss me when I don't blog for a week. Thanks for your messages and thanks for making a girl feel loved!


What have y'all been up to lately?

Wedded Wednesday: Gifts

My sweet friend, HisGirlAmber, asked: What is the best gift you have ever received from each other?


This is John:
You may think this is sappy, but I don't care.


Three different times in the course of our almost twenty years together, I have watched her carry within her own body the weight of life, from conception to delivery.  Our three children are the greatest gifts she's given me. Sure, I know God gives those gifts and in some sense they do not come from us but through us, but when you're standing in the delivery room, as I was on all three occasions, it sure as shooting looks like she's the one they came from.  I watched her run the gauntlet of the marriage vows during those nine-months-times-three: better, worse, rich, poor, sick, healthy...and she carried a little boy and two little girls safely here and then I cut them loose, all three times, into this dangerous world.  I look at them, these three precious children that I would die for, and I think "they would not have life had it not been for her."


I do not hold to the "the woman does all the work and the man gets off easy" stance; that is an insult to both woman and man.  But I do believe she did, and does, that which I cannot do...she is a carrier of that which truly matters, a life bearer, a gift bearer.  I so love the handmade coffee mugs she gave me several years ago, but compared to Will, Sarah, and Abbey...well, they do not compare.




This is Meredith.
Well, wow. Pass the tissues, please.
I don't really consider myself a "stuff" person, so I'm going to go with gifts that aren't necessarily tangible. I'm sure you're not surprised that I can't limit myself to one thing either. Bear with me!

The gift of laughter. John makes me laugh every single day. He's helped me learn not to take myself too seriously and to find the humor in almost any situation. I love that about him. Some of my favorite moments are when we are laughing together...even if what we are laughing about is incredibly stupid. I hope that our children will remember growing up in a house with laughter.

The gift of time. John has always been very generous in gifting me with time, whether it be time alone or time with him. Sometimes I have to voice my request for it, but other times he will recognize my need and offer me a break. He has never ever denied my request for time away, and he has never complained about watching our children or about having to sacrifice his needs for mine. 

Attentiveness. Generosity. Calmness. Gentleness. Encouragement. Strength. Hard Work.

I believe that each of John's character traits is a gift, not only to me and our children, but to others as well. 

I am blessed indeed.

I'll just hit the highlights...

Wow. Wednesday already, huh?

It's been a busy week. And it's not over yet. Thankfully, next week I get to revert back to my usual non-busy pace. Or at least it will be less busy. I just think that April and May are busy times of the year.

Anyway, enough about my schedule.

Here's some of what we've been up to...

Spring track season started for Will. He's working hard and enjoying himself, and he's been sleeping really well at night. He's pretty tired (and hungry!!!) when he gets home each afternoon!

Sarah tried out today for her school's version of American Idol. She and two friends sang "Fireflies" by Owl City, and they did GREAT! The judges voted to send them on to the next round, and their performance was videotaped for the whole school to see. The students get to see all the performances and vote for their faves. Even if she doesn't win, I'm super duper proud of her. I think it takes a lot of guts (and confidence) to sing in front of people!

Glee!!! It's back!!! There are nine remaining episodes left in the season and the first of those nine premiered last night. My neighbor invited a bunch of us over for a Glee premiere party. We went after we all got our kiddos tucked in, so we wore our pajamas. That's my favorite kind of party! It was SO GOOD and it was very fun to watch it with friends! (Thank you, Heather!!!) (Gosh, this paragraph has lots of exclamation points!)

John's workload has him swamped right now so I let him off the hook for Wedded Wednesday. For those of you that care, we'll be back next week.

I'm trying to stay well. I woke up with a super sore throat and I think my allergies are starting to flare up. Before we moved to Colorado I used to declare that I was allergic to spring because my allergies were SO bad. They're not nearly as bad here, but the wind has been hideous lately, and I think it just blows pollen and other allergens straight into my sinuses. Ugh. I don't have time to be sick this week.

Okay, I've rambled long enough. I got My Big Fat Greek Wedding from Blockbuster.com today and I want to watch a little bit of it before bed. It's one of my favorite movies ever!

Peace out, peeps.

My Favorite Color is Green

When asked what my favorite color is, my response is always green. Red runs a close second, but green always wins.

This post isn't really about hue though. It's more about action.

Do you know that next Thursday (April 22) is Earth Day?

Well, it is.

I know some of you don't care. Some of you think Earth Day is a new age-y kind of thing. Some of you don't give a flip about being green or recycling or reducing your carbon footprint. And some of you think global warming is a bunch of hooey.

That's okay. We can agree to disagree.

Personally, it's all an issue of stewardship in my mind.

I want to take care of what I've been entrusted with whether it's my family, my income, or my planet.

So yeah, I'm green. And proud of it.

Here are a couple of cool things I've come across lately that I want to share along those lines.

I got new trail shoes last week. I used our REI dividend + 20% member's coupon to score a pair for a super sweet price. My new pair has biodegradable midsoles (awesome!) which made me wonder what happens to old athletic shoes when they end up in landfills. That question caused me to google all sorts of things, which led me to the Nike ReUSE A SHOE program. Nike takes almost all athletic shoes, breaks them down, and recycles them into surfaces for tracks and tennis courts and more!  Isn't that COOL? I'm taking my old shoes to the drop-off next time I head that direction, and I'm thinking of doing a shoe drive among friends! I'm so jazzed about this! (The Nike link above has all the info about what, where, and how.)

My local (free) recycling drop off center really let me down a few months ago when they stopped taking recyclables without warning! We've resorted to hauling our recycling down to the place we used to take it, but it's a 25 minute drive (one way) and we don't always have a reason to trek down that way. I've decided that I'm going to bite the bullet and actually PAY for curbside recycling. The monthly cost is not too much more than what I'm already paying, and the extra is probably the same difference as the gas it takes me to drive to the recycling center. My friend, Lisa, clinched the deal for me when she told me about a local company that is part of this national program that gives kickbacks for recycling. You get vouchers you can spend at different retailers based on the amount of recycling they collect from you. You can click the link and see if there is a partner in your area. If you're in Co Springs, the local company is WasteConnections. I haven't signed up yet, but it's on my list to do this month!

Lastly, have you seen the new SunChips bags? They're 100% biodegradable. Click this link and watch the short video under the compostable packaging tab. It is uber cool!!! (Thanks, Dana, for telling me about this!)

This stuff excites me. Peace out, peeps.

10 on the 10th!

With the exception of our SNOW day on Wednesday, it was nice enough for me to hit the trail for some outdoor exercise every day this week. I prefer to exercise with friends but that doesn't always work out so on the days I'm alone my iPod keeps me company.

I have very eclectic taste in music. This week I was all about the 80s. While putting together an 80s playlist, I decided that my 10 on the 10th post would be ten of my favorite 80s songs. These are in no particular order, and just so you know, this isn't an all time favorite list. I have dozens if not hundreds of favorite 80s songs!

Ten of My Favorite 80s Songs

1. Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler
I love this song, but I love this explanatory flow chart more. Click the graphic to enlarge it.

2. Hard Habit to Break by Chicago
I actually wore my Chicago 17 cassette tape out and had to buy a new one in college. It's long gone now though so I bought it on iTunes last fall. It still gets lots of play when I'm feeling nostalgic.

3. Billie Jean by Michael Jackson
The only MJ album I have is the one that has this song on it.

4. Addicted to Love by Robert Palmer
How many of you see the music video in your head when you hear this song? Racy.

5. Sledgehammer by Peter Gabriel
I've been told this is not a nice song, but that doesn't make me love it any less.

6. Livin' On a Prayer by Bon Jovi
Remember back in November when Sarah bought a Bon Jovi t-shirt at the St. Louis Hard Rock Cafe?  Well, a few weeks ago in church I looked over and noticed that Sarah had taken off her hoodie and was sporting the Bon Jovi t-shirt. I was horrified. Our church is very casual, but Bon Jovi? In church? Really? What kind of mother lets her daughter wear a Bon Jovi shirt to church? One that is obviously livin' on a prayer. 

7. Footloose (from the movie soundtrack)
This is another song/cassette that I completely wore out. I don't have the album any longer, but I get really excited when I hear one of the songs come on the radio and I turn it up (loud) and sing (louder). My kids are horrified when I do this. They've perfected the rolling of the eyes.

8. Sweet Dreams by The Eurythmics
Who are *you* to dis-a-gree?

9. Manic Monday by The Bangles
I find myself singing this on a lot of Monday mornings. Old habits die hard.

10. Wake Me Up Before You Go Go by Wham!
It's a totally stupid song, but nothing brings back my memories of MacArthur Jr High school faster than this song.
------------------------------------------
Seriously, I could keep listing 80s song after 80s song. I heard When Doves Cry by Prince the other day and found myself singing every word, while thinking it would be much more appropriate to be singing it while wearing a raspberry beret and driving a little red corvette in the purple rain. (Thanks for indulging me with that).

Ironically, while typing this post my husband has his 70s music cranked up. (Le Freak by Chic is playing right now!)  But he's cleaning up the breakfast dishes so I'll let the 70s stuff fly. (I MUCH prefer the tunes of the 80s to the 70s).

One more thing: My parents were super strict about the music I listened to growing up. I had to sneak my non-Christian music into the house/car. Madonna tapes were usually labeled "Russ Taff" or "DeGarmo and Key". But they sometimes disappeared so I think my mom might have been on to me. [Sorry, mom. Love you!]


Link up if you'd like! Peace out, peeps!

Wedded Wednesday: The Birds and the Bees

Tiffani wants to know: At what age do you discuss sex with your kids? I think our oldest (he'll be 10) knows there's more to this Mommy and Daddy thing, and as he's growing other things crop up. What about the girls? We're not prudes by any means and I know there is an appropriate amount of information, etc. Just curious how y'all handled it.

(This is John, the husband)
This is a great question, Tiffani.  I really believe that when it comes to this topic you have to pay close attention to your child, how they're growing/maturing, who their friends are, questions they're asking, etc. It's a tenuous thing because you want them to be prepared but at the same time you don't want to give them more than they can handle.  What you're doing is essentially teaching your children how to handle dynamite.  There is no such thing as "safe sex" - our sexuality is a powerful, dangerously beautiful, intensely human facet of who we are, so talking about it with your kids is much more than just "this is what happens" and "this is the equipment."  As Eugene Peterson said so truthfully in The Message - "there's more to sex than mere skin on skin."

I first talked seriously with Will when he was nine.  Something had happened at school which precipitated our talk.  I wrote about it here.  That was four years ago and I stand by what I wrote, especially the "talking about it while doing something else" part.  Please hear me on this - I do not believe we as parents can get this right.  We do what we feel is best at the time/in the moment and we see what happens...in a sense, rolling the dice.  It's learning when to hold 'em and knowing when to fold, walk away, run, all that gambler stuff.  You may not like that imagery as it hints at chance or luck, but I believe that's the way it is with a living, breathing creation; our children are not robots.  You put batteries in a flashlight and, all things considered, it should turn on and illuminate the darkness.  You talk to your son about sex and he may start crying, laughing, tell you he already knows all that stuff, he might fall asleep, or he might even teach you a thing or two.  You just never can tell...so you do your best and constantly whisper those two important words - have mercy.

This is Meredith (the wife)

By the way, it cracks me up every time I type "the wife")

I've had "the talk" with Sarah, but not with Abbey. Sarah had just finished third grade and was almost nine years old when the subject came up. I really felt that she was too young to handle the information, but she was getting all sorts of faulty information from some friends. I'm thankful she came to me with her questions, but honestly, I put her off a little (I'll tell you more when you're older, I'll tell you more when I think you're ready, etc.) probably because I wasn't ready. But, like I said, she was hearing things that weren't accurate, and I wanted to have control over the information she was given.

I remember that we were outside pulling weeds one summer afternoon and she kept persisting. I attempted to put her off (again) and she sighed and said, "Mom, it's just the two of us right now, and I'm old enough to know." So I took a deep breath, whispered a prayer for wisdom, and just started talking. It was all very factual and matter of fact. She asked lots of questions, and I answered all of them.

Since then, she has continued to come to me with questions, and  I love that. Sometimes I have to put her off (like in the car with younger ears listening, or things that aren't appropriate for mixed company) but I always come back and answer her.

More than anything, I desire this to be an ongoing conversation with our kids. My huge hope is that our kids will ALWAYS feel comfortable talking to us about sex/sexuality...without shame. As I've talked with my peers about delving into this with our kids, the biggest takeaway from our collective childhood is the shame associated with talking about "the birds and the bees" with our parents, and that shame caused huge communication breakdowns. My guess is that most of you can relate to that.

A couple of things:
One older, wiser friend shared this tidbit of parenting wisdom with us over dinner one evening. I loved it so much I wrote it down, and I think it fits well with this topic of conversation: "In all things spiritual, be as natural as possible. In all things natural, be as spiritual as possible."


One great resource for girls is  The Care and Keeping of You by American Girl. We gave Sarah this book for her 9th birthday. I've read through it with her, and have told her it's not to be shared with her little sister (for the time being); right now, it's "just for us". It talks about body changes, body image, hygeine, and many other puberty-related things in a wholesome way. It has prompted more good questions and discussion for us. I highly recommend it!

Last thing: if you didn't click on that link in John's section (when he and Will had "the talk") go read it now. It's full of wisdom AND characteristic JohnB humor. It's really good stuff, I promise!

Sawdust & Planks

In the last several weeks, I've desperately wanted to "help" some of my friends.


I've wanted to pull them out of the obvious denial they're living in. I've wanted to give them every example of why they indeed are ___________ when they work so hard to convince themselves and everyone else that they're not.


I've wanted to show a couple of them what control freaks lovers they are, and how enslaving that life can be.

I've wanted to point out how much they're striving when Jesus has asked us to lay that down.


I've wanted to call them out on their need for validation.


In short, I've wanted to point a finger at them. 


But I can't. 


Because I realize that the saying is true: When you point a finger there are three more pointing back at you.


And those three fingers point to a striving control freak who craves validation and is in some pretty deep denial. 


[Sawdust and planks.] 


I'm in need of grace and forgiveness. 


In order for me to offer that to others, I have to recognize my own need for it and receive it for myself first. You can't give something you don't have.


And so I find myself thankful (again) this morning for Easter. For what Jesus did for you and me. For what He offers us.


I'll take a double serving, please. [smile]

Bookworm

Sarah is our bookworm. All of our kids love to read, but she's our kid who reads non-stop.

Sarah is the one who will check out 10-12 books and then remind us that it's time to go to the library because she's read every single one of them (in a matter of days). She's our kid we have to ask to put her book down at the breakfast, lunch, and dinner table. She's our kid who will disappear into her room for hours and emerge beaming because she's finished (yet) another book. She has insatiable thirst for books. She makes her parents proud!

Last night after we got back from the movie, I glanced out my bedroom window and saw this:

Multi-tasking at it's best blurriest. Smile.

There is NO SNOW in these pictures!

Good Monday morning, friends. Like I said last week, I really don't mind Mondays. I sorta like them in fact. My heart is full this morning from a wonderful Easter weekend.

Our Easter felt a little different this year. 

For one, we didn't see one single snowflake--in the air or on the ground. I think that might be a first in the seven Easters we have celebrated here. I was NOT complaining! In fact, I was rejoicing!

This was also the first year that we didn't dye eggs. I had intended to try making these speckled ones, but we just didn't get around to it, and honestly the kids didn't seem too disappointed.

We didn't go to the Good Friday service at church either. John had been in New Jersey all week and was wiped out. Truthfully, we all had a busy week and were exhausted. We felt like staying home, so we did.

The Easter bunny has visited our house on Good Friday for about 10-12 years now. It works well for us so that Sunday can remain focused on Jesus. BUT, our Easter Bunny didn't have his act together on Friday, so he visited on Saturday night instead. (Note to self: the world didn't end, Meredith.)

Oh, and I didn't transform our crown of thorns to the crown of a victorious King either. My intentions were good, but I just didn't make the time to do it. (I threw it in the trash last night). 

So yeah, this year felt different, but it was still very good.

After church (which was very good!) we came home and had Easter lunch--ham, potato casserole, asparagus, and of course, Sister Schubert's rolls. John and I took a nap and then we all went to see How To Train Your Dragon. Our Easter Bunny left matinee tickets in the kids' baskets. The movie was really good! We all loved it.

Before we left, John asked if anyone minded if he wore his slippers to the show. Would YOU mind if your husband went out in public like this?

You probably know by now that he marches to the beat of a different drummer. A different drummer, indeed. But I love him. A lot.


Our day wasn't without a little drama. The kids were playing downstairs and they called John and I to come see something (they were really excited about this too). It was a mouse trapped in our basement window well. GROSS. GROSS. GROSS. They even shot some video (which I'll spare you from seeing). It was crawling up the screen in this pic. GAG.

I need to move on to a much more pleasant subject. 


TODAY! Today is good. The kids have school, but John has the day off from work. Know what that means? It's DATE DAY!!! 


We're planning to do some stuff around the house, work out, go to lunch, and then perhaps make a trip to REI to spend our dividend money. Rumor has it I might get some new shoes for the trail! I am so excited to have an entire day with John. Especially since he was traveling last week.


Hope you all had a wonderful Easter. Peace out, peeps.