This weekend was amazingly wonderful! It was the first weekend in months that we didn't have anything that we HAD to do. Layne did have to work 1/2 a day on Saturday and April spent the night with his parents on Friday. So Saturday I had an amazing 4 hours to myself!!!! What did I do during that time you ask? I took a long relaxing shower. Then I cleaned the floors, the sinks, dusted, and did about 5,000 loads of laundry. It was a great feeling to make such great progress, & it was all stuff that absolutely needed to be done. April even helped a little when she got home from the grandparents' house. After Layne got home from work we had a light lunch. In the afternoon I ran about 3 miles. Boy did that feel good!
Sunday we went to church. When we got home & were walking up to our house someone that was helping the next door neighbor move looked at me & said "I know you!" I couldn't believe it, it was a guy I went to high school with. Kind of strange, his aunt lived next door to me for probably 5-6 years & we had never ran into each other till now. What a small world.
Yesterday my first "story" was due for my creative writing class. For me the hardest part is coming up with an idea. Now I'm impatient waiting to see how I did. We were supposed to freewrite a very rough draft to submit. I imagine, because of the way our textbook is going, that we will rewrite it for a future assignment.
I stopped tonight to get my hair trimmed. While there, April decided to get her's done too. It started as a trim, but then turned into getting all of her hair cut just above the shoulder, so it's the same length as her bangs. She looks so grown-up & beautiful! Tomorrow is the 2nd time she has tumbling & she won't quit talking about it. She also said she is going to do the dance program at the after-school place she goes. This is all quite a step for someone who has been so shy. I guess she's finally coming out of her shell!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Time to get back to it!
The past couple weeks have been crazy busy. One of my brothers got married and this past weekend I had my neices while my other brother and his wife helped her grandmother move. Now I know why she is so damn skinny. She probably has no time to eat! The weekend was busy, busy, busy. My neices are 5 years and 9 months. The 5 year old, E, is funny and is always trying to con me out of junk food. The 9 month old, C, is such a good baby. She sleeps all night and very rarely cries. She smiles all the time and just loves to watch what is going on. BUT they kept me on my feet - that's for sure.
E decided that we should probably have soup for supper. Let me just say that it was probably 90 degrees on Saturday! Since I've been trying to lose weight I have virtually no canned or boxed foods in the house. So this meant making soup from whatever I could come up. She thought chicken noodle sounded good. :) Luckily I had 2 cans of chicken broth. First I boiled some whole grain spiral noodles. I drained them and put them in a large saucepan with the cans of broth. I had a carrot in the fridge that I diced up fine and added to the pot. I also added about a cup of diced, precooked chicken that I had in the freezer. Voila! Chicken noodle soup, just for my E!! I served it with some apple wedges. Layne built a fire in the pit out back and they had smores for dessert before bathtime. Everyone was happy. :)
Honestly I felt like a bad aunt all weekend. I was so busy all the time that I never really got to enjoy either of my neices. April and E would fight all morning because April didn't want to share and E just wanted to be with April and to play with her hair. :) Of course I discovered Sunday around 11 that once I found a project/craft for them to work on they got along fantastic. (Note to self and my brother and sister-in-law: Organize some crafty things for the girls to do when they start getting grouchy. It works like a charm and the fighting miraculously quits.)
Anyway, this weekend I ate a sandwich, a yogurt, half of E's apple, and a bowl of soup. Seriously, that's it. And I lost another 2 pounds. So I'm now at 124.4. Less than 5 pounds to go to get where the doc wants me. I'd say about 8-14 to get to where I'd REALLY LIKE TO BE!!!
E decided that we should probably have soup for supper. Let me just say that it was probably 90 degrees on Saturday! Since I've been trying to lose weight I have virtually no canned or boxed foods in the house. So this meant making soup from whatever I could come up. She thought chicken noodle sounded good. :) Luckily I had 2 cans of chicken broth. First I boiled some whole grain spiral noodles. I drained them and put them in a large saucepan with the cans of broth. I had a carrot in the fridge that I diced up fine and added to the pot. I also added about a cup of diced, precooked chicken that I had in the freezer. Voila! Chicken noodle soup, just for my E!! I served it with some apple wedges. Layne built a fire in the pit out back and they had smores for dessert before bathtime. Everyone was happy. :)
Honestly I felt like a bad aunt all weekend. I was so busy all the time that I never really got to enjoy either of my neices. April and E would fight all morning because April didn't want to share and E just wanted to be with April and to play with her hair. :) Of course I discovered Sunday around 11 that once I found a project/craft for them to work on they got along fantastic. (Note to self and my brother and sister-in-law: Organize some crafty things for the girls to do when they start getting grouchy. It works like a charm and the fighting miraculously quits.)
Anyway, this weekend I ate a sandwich, a yogurt, half of E's apple, and a bowl of soup. Seriously, that's it. And I lost another 2 pounds. So I'm now at 124.4. Less than 5 pounds to go to get where the doc wants me. I'd say about 8-14 to get to where I'd REALLY LIKE TO BE!!!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Random Beauty Tips
To have beautiful skin as you age use sunscreen religiously. Something I wish I would have done when I was younger – what was I thinking!
For the appearance of thicker eyelashes dust some powder on them, then apply mascara.
Use Preparation H to shrink the bags under your eyes or bug bites! It’s not just for hemorrhoids anymore!
To make your skin glow exfoliate several times a week. If you don’t want to buy a special product for this you can make your own by mixing sugar in with a liquid soap. Just add sugar until the “exfoliate” is a consistency that you like.
To get the moist out of moisturizers & moisturizing body lotions you need to use it within minutes of getting out of the bath/shower. The steam lets your pores open up. As your body/face cool off the pores close up again.
To get the best coverage on a zit apply moisturizer before your concealer so it doesn’t look flaky.
If your hair starts to look frizzy during the day run damp hands through your hair & it should reactivate the styling product you put in earlier. I do this, honestly it works okay – but I have naturally curly hair. So basically it’s almost always a little frizzy – unless I use so much product that my hair is crunchy. I bet it works great on straight hair though. (sigh) Oh to have straight – or at least controllable hair!
Think your nose looks too big? Run a line down the middle of your nose with a foundation or highlighting product that is one shade lighter than what you use on the rest of your face. It will give the illusion of a smaller nose. (Personally I’ve never tried this – but probably should!)
If you use navy mascara instead of black or brown the whites of your eyes will look even whiter! Bet this is a great tip for someone jaundice from hepatitis.
If you want your skin to look like it is nice & moisturized use a little baby oil on it. But know that a little goes a long way!! You don’t want to look like a greasy oil slick!
Always wanted bigger eyes?? Use a shade of liner on the top that is a little darker than the bottom. I don’t have a problem with big eyes. I frequently have the ‘deer in the headlights’ look – and it’s not intentional.
For the appearance of thicker eyelashes dust some powder on them, then apply mascara.
Use Preparation H to shrink the bags under your eyes or bug bites! It’s not just for hemorrhoids anymore!
To make your skin glow exfoliate several times a week. If you don’t want to buy a special product for this you can make your own by mixing sugar in with a liquid soap. Just add sugar until the “exfoliate” is a consistency that you like.
To get the moist out of moisturizers & moisturizing body lotions you need to use it within minutes of getting out of the bath/shower. The steam lets your pores open up. As your body/face cool off the pores close up again.
To get the best coverage on a zit apply moisturizer before your concealer so it doesn’t look flaky.
If your hair starts to look frizzy during the day run damp hands through your hair & it should reactivate the styling product you put in earlier. I do this, honestly it works okay – but I have naturally curly hair. So basically it’s almost always a little frizzy – unless I use so much product that my hair is crunchy. I bet it works great on straight hair though. (sigh) Oh to have straight – or at least controllable hair!
Think your nose looks too big? Run a line down the middle of your nose with a foundation or highlighting product that is one shade lighter than what you use on the rest of your face. It will give the illusion of a smaller nose. (Personally I’ve never tried this – but probably should!)
If you use navy mascara instead of black or brown the whites of your eyes will look even whiter! Bet this is a great tip for someone jaundice from hepatitis.
If you want your skin to look like it is nice & moisturized use a little baby oil on it. But know that a little goes a long way!! You don’t want to look like a greasy oil slick!
Always wanted bigger eyes?? Use a shade of liner on the top that is a little darker than the bottom. I don’t have a problem with big eyes. I frequently have the ‘deer in the headlights’ look – and it’s not intentional.
Yesterday I posted that April is making bookmarks & selling them for $0.25 each to earn some money. She wanted to go out again last night. I happened to have been in shower when she came busting into the bathroom stating that a certain neighbor was outside & she wanted to see if she could go to his house & sell him one. I said sure – he lives 2 houses up from us, his granddaughter on occasion plays with April, & we visit him when he’s outside frequently. When I got out of the shower I asked April if he bought one. She said, “no he said he didn’t want any”. I could tell she was a little let down. I tried to explain to her that some people don’t enjoy reading & maybe he is one of those people.
I guess this kind of digs at me & I’m trying real hard to let it go. Of course part of it was because she is my daughter & I knew this was a little outside of her comfort zone since she’s so shy & I didn’t want her to be disappointed or go back into her shell. I know he & his wife aren’t hard up for money or it would be more understandable (I know this because of different things he has mentioned to us & because they just spent $6,000 to put a deck on their house – not because it needed to be done, just because they wanted to). Anyway I guess the reason it really bothers me is because this guy is always asking Layne to help him move stuff or to take him to the local home improvement store so he can help him get lumber or something (Layne’s pickup is bigger). Of course Layne always helps & asks for nothing in return. I guess that’s why it’s bothering. Although just typing it out is actually helping me get over it. : )
I guess this kind of digs at me & I’m trying real hard to let it go. Of course part of it was because she is my daughter & I knew this was a little outside of her comfort zone since she’s so shy & I didn’t want her to be disappointed or go back into her shell. I know he & his wife aren’t hard up for money or it would be more understandable (I know this because of different things he has mentioned to us & because they just spent $6,000 to put a deck on their house – not because it needed to be done, just because they wanted to). Anyway I guess the reason it really bothers me is because this guy is always asking Layne to help him move stuff or to take him to the local home improvement store so he can help him get lumber or something (Layne’s pickup is bigger). Of course Layne always helps & asks for nothing in return. I guess that’s why it’s bothering. Although just typing it out is actually helping me get over it. : )
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
April is in business!
Yesterday April asked me to make a sign that she could use in the front yard announcing that she was selling crosses made out of grass – by that I mean 2 blades of grass tied together to form a cross. : ) I suggested that maybe she try to find something that will last a little longer than blades of grass.
After much discussion between her & I as to what she could make to sell she decided on bookmarks. I gave her some of my scrapbooking supplies that I don’t use/want & she made quite a few of them. She wanted to go door-to-door to sell them. I told her that I would go with her but she had to do the talking since this was her project. She said she would do it. April is very shy, so in my mind I’m thinking, “there is no way. You won’t even say ‘trick or treat’ to people you’ve next door to all your life”. But instead I said, “Okay, let’s go.”
She gathered up her bookmarks & put them into a school box. We went to the first neighbor’s house & she knocked on the door. She actually did it!! She asked them if they would like to buy a bookmark for $0.25 each. I couldn’t believe! I was so proud of her for just talking! She sold 4 of them to the mom there & 4 of them to the daughter that is in high school. She went back to our house & made a few more then went to a house across the street & sold 4 more. She was so excited to be earning her own money!
After much discussion between her & I as to what she could make to sell she decided on bookmarks. I gave her some of my scrapbooking supplies that I don’t use/want & she made quite a few of them. She wanted to go door-to-door to sell them. I told her that I would go with her but she had to do the talking since this was her project. She said she would do it. April is very shy, so in my mind I’m thinking, “there is no way. You won’t even say ‘trick or treat’ to people you’ve next door to all your life”. But instead I said, “Okay, let’s go.”
She gathered up her bookmarks & put them into a school box. We went to the first neighbor’s house & she knocked on the door. She actually did it!! She asked them if they would like to buy a bookmark for $0.25 each. I couldn’t believe! I was so proud of her for just talking! She sold 4 of them to the mom there & 4 of them to the daughter that is in high school. She went back to our house & made a few more then went to a house across the street & sold 4 more. She was so excited to be earning her own money!
So if anyone is in need of bookmarks just let us know! We can even mail them to you if you'd like. : )
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Menu Plan Monday
You'll notice that this week we have a lot of corn on the cob on the menu. My Aunt Connie and Uncle Norm gave us a bunch of corn that they raised on their farm! How lucky am I to have such considerate relatives!?!? We went out their Friday night to get the corn. Afterwards we sat and visited for a while. Time passes so quickly when we are with them because they are so much fun to spend time with!
Monday - lettuce salad, leftover corn (from Sunday)
Tuesday - grilled pork chops, corn on the cob, cucumber salad
Wednesday - multigrain pasta w/ tomatoes, peppers, onion, oil & spices
Thursday - not sure what we'll have this night because we are going to be on a float for our church in a local parade
Friday - salmon patties (didn't eat them last week), corn on the cob
Saturday - ratatouille (from the Taste of Home cookbook - it's AWESOME! And the leftovers are even better!! I'll have to post the recipe later this week for you. It's so good and the veggies are in a spaghetti style sauce - even my husband, who is not a veggie fan, will eat this. And because it looks similar to lasagne kids will eat it too!)
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