Photographer in the making

We had our little Christmas get together at my dad's house last night and I got the most awesome present ever - a digital SLR camera, lenses and a bag for it all! So now I can work on becoming a photographer for a travel magazine, like I always dream of being. :) Though, all this new equipment looks a little intimidating. I've got a lot of reading/learning to do! If anyone out there uses this type of camera and has any tips for a beginner, I'm ready and willing to listen!

A kid funny for today

My son goes to preschool at the school that is part of our church. So when I picked him up today, I noticed a lot more cars than usual in the parking lot, then noticed the hearse up by the church doors. A funeral was going on. I didn't think much of it. We've all seen a hearse and been to a funeral.

My son comes running out the doors all excited because they got to make gingerbread houses today (yay!), when he notices the hearse. Then he gets even more excited and says "Look mommy a limo, a limo!!". Here I am trying to shush him and get him in the van so I can explain to him what it really is. All the while, he continues to yell "limo! limo!" as I'm closing the door and running around to my side. There were lots of other parents around so I was a little embarrassed, but heck, my kid can't be the only kid that has said something a little embarrassing, right? Right?!

Just my little chuckle for the day. Gotta love these kids!

Busy, busy!

Well, I guess I decided to take a week off from writing. I honestly didn't even think about it. Right now I'm just like everyone else - trying to finish Christmas shopping, racking my brain so I don't forget to buy someone a gift, sending off packages, etc. Hoping to finish up ALL shopping on Friday after lunch (though I always forget something)!

It's looking like the holidays will be pretty low key for once. We'll have dinner at my dad and step mom's a few days before and open presents, then we're on our own Christmas Eve, and my mom and step dad will stop over on Christmas Day on their way through town. So, we don't have to travel, which is so nice. Just stay home, play with toys and relax!

In the meantime, we have our oldest son's preschool Christmas concert on Friday morning to go to. He's so excited for us to hear all the songs they've been practicing. Though, when I ask him which songs they're singing, he says he doesn't know.....hmmmm, SO, we'll see if he actually sings! I'm sure it will be cute, none the less. Better charge up my camera batteries!

Things I Ponder....hmmm....

I ponder a lot of things when it comes to my kids. Am I doing this right? Did I make the right decision? Should they really have watched that TV show? How do I explain _____ to my kids? Was I being too harsh? There's all sorts of things I wonder about and hope that I made the right decision.

One thing I go back and forth on in my head is, where is the best place to raise my kids? I grew up (well, age 11 on up) in a small, small town - and hated it. For many different reasons, but I won't go into those. :) Prior to living in the small town, my family lived in a large city, so I've seen both extremes.

We don't live in a small town now, but I would say it's still fairly small compared to most of the country and it's a very rural area. I can see the positive side of living in a smaller community - less crime (usually), good schools (here, at least), nice neighborhoods with other kids to play with, you get to know people, etc. Then the other part of me starts thinking, where is the diversity here? There's not much. There's not much in terms of interesting or unique places to go. I sometimes feel like they are missing out on things. I guess I want them to know that the world is so much bigger and there's so much more out there than what they see here. Not that things are bad here; we have a great neighborhood and great neighbors that all watch out for each other, nice schools with good test scores, not a lot of crime (though, that does seem to be increasing lately...), and we have family nearby.

I guess I just think about my years growing up in the city and remember all the things that I got to do and see that they don't get to do - maybe just on a vacation, if we ever get around to taking one of those. So, all in all, I don't think it's detrimental to them living where we do - I just wonder if I could be offering them more?

Oh, sometimes I just think and worry too much. I'm going to go take a tylenol now. :)

Shopping makes me happy!

Even if in very small amounts, shopping can just make my day. It doesn't need to be a huge shopping spree, but maybe just finding that one accessory I've been dying to get = instant smile and feeling on top of the world!

So, since today was a pretty crappy day, weather-wise, I decided that I needed a new hat. I've had my eye on something a little more stylish than my current winter hat and today seemed like the perfect day to get it. Especially since we got to leave work early due to the weather, I had some extra time before getting the kids at daycare. And wouldn't you know, Kohl's is right on my way - how convenient! It's like it was meant to be.

Today I said goodbye to my trusty old striped stocking cap I've had since college. It has been well-worn and definitely served its purpose, but now I'm going to have to move it to the "back-up" box of hats, mittens, gloves and scarves. Maybe I'll go back to it someday, but for now I'm going to be sporting my new hat:

Now tomorrow morning I'll be in a pretty good mood because I'll get to wear my new hat. But, how many days of winter are left? Oh.....that many? Shoot. Sounds like I could be buying myself lots of little gifts to get through the winter. Isn't there a saying "If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy"? I think my shopping sounds justified!

Winter Wonderland

The snow is falling today - oh joy! It's very cold and very windy. Now, I'm what some people like to call a "Debbie Downer" when it comes to winter. Winter weather puts me in a seriously bad mood and I just can't find any good in the winter months (besides birthdays and Christmas, of course).

The bitter wind blowing in my face hurts and angers me. Slipping on the ice makes me swear. I curse the snowpants, boots, hats, and mittens I need to dress the kids in each morning. Scraping ice off the car is frustrating. I could go on and on (because I'm a Debbie Downer, you know), but I think you get the picture.

There are many people where I live that love winter and actually look forward to it. They claim they find it calming, peaceful and beautiful. I try to understand where they're coming from, but I just don't fully understand. Sure, watching snow fall quietly outside from my living room window is nice - as long as I don't have to leave the house for the next few days!

I sometimes wonder if I might have a touch of that SAD - Seasonal Affective Disorder. Or maybe I'm just not a "winter person". Or maybe, I'm just a Debbie Downer. :)

BUT, the one good reason for living where I do is family. My family is all nearby, which makes it worth it....for now at least!

Kid songs? No thanks!

My mom laughs at me and my kids because my kids all know the popular songs currently playing on the radio. You will rarely hear them singing Old Mac Donald or Row, Row, Row Your Boat, but Boom, Boom, Pow by the Black Eyed Peas? Heck yeah!

When my oldest was about a year and a half, I got my hands on a children's music CD - because that's what good mom's do, right? We played it a few times in the car, but I could hardly stand listening to that stuff. The chorus of all those cheery little voices singing boring songs was too much for me. Maybe it was a selfish move, but I decided that was enough of the childrens music. BUT, I have to note that my son didn't really seem to care about the music either. There was really no reaction, no excitement from him when we listened to it.

The fast beats of the music on the radio is what he really seemed to like. Fast forward to now, and all three kids love listening to the radio in the kitchen when we get home at the end of the day. We sing, dance and laugh to all our favorite pop songs!

Our favorites so far are:

1. Boom, Boom, Pow by The Black Eyed Peas
2. Goodnight by The Black Eyed Peas
3. 10 Million Fireflies by Owl City
4. Down by Jay Sean
5. Rockstar by Pink
6. Distrubia by Rihanna

I'm sure I'm missing some, but these always get us singing and dancing in our house! I realize some will think these songs are inappropriate for kids, but I tell you what - we have so much fun and I know these will be memories they'll have for a lifetime!

Household Chores

Household chores are a pain and something I probably dislike doing the most. As I mentioned before, I think I've got this dishes problem down. That's still going good. But the rest.....LAUNDRY (the worst!), vaccuuming, cleaning kitchen floor, cleaning bathrooms, keeping bedrooms picked up, dusting, and just in general keeping things organized so the house doesn't look cluttered, I can't stand doing this stuff! If I had the money, I would seriously hire a maid to come in twice a week. A girl can dream, right?



I decided that the only way all this stuff was going to even get close to getting done, I would have to have some help. This just isn't going to happen all on my own! So, my best option for help at this point is the kids. With them being ages 5, 3, and 1, this is a bit challenging, but with a little creativity, doable.



Here are some things I've had them help with:



1. Dishes - They all love helping with this in some way, shape, or form. My one year old loves to hand the clean dishes to me out of the dishwasher. My three year old likes to do the same as well as put away the silverware and other utinsels. My five year old likes to do the silverware too and he also likes to put the dishes I handwash in the sink into the drying rack and organize that. They all like to help load the dirty dishes after I rinse them. Doing dishes is really a team effort and I love that they all like to help!



2. The Dreaded Laundry - My problem with laundry isn't actually putting the stuff into the washer and moving it to the dryer, it's folding and putting away - ugh!! So, the other day I was sitting on the floor with two big baskets of clean, unfolded laundry. I asked my oldest if he wanted to help and he said sure. Trying to quickly decide the best job for him (since he's not the best folder, unless it's washclothes or kitchen towels), I went to their closets and grabbed a bunch of hangers. He took the kids' clothes, put them on hangers, separated them into piles on the couch, then took his little stool and hung them in the closets - LOVED IT! My three year old folded some washclothes and put those away in the drawer in the kitchen and my one year old "handed" me stuff out of the baskets to fold (it was really more like throwing them at me, but hey...). When the baskets were empty, I'd throw the clothes I hadn't folded yet back in and she kept going! This job for the youngest was key to keep her out of the piles of carefully folded laundry!



3. Dusting - I've discovered my oldest has a love for dusting! Just give him some of those disinfecting wipes, point him towards the bookcase in the living room and let him go to town. He even takes the stuff off the shelves, wipes those items off, wipes the shelves and puts the stuff back. How cool is that? The only downfall is that the pictures and other items from the shelves always gets rearranged to his liking. A small price to pay, I figure.



4. Vaccuuming - Also recently realized that my oldest likes to vaccuum. Who knew? He really, really wanted to do it on his own a few weeks ago and did a fairly decent job. Must keep nurturing this love of vaccuuming.



5. Bathroom - How come nobody wants to help clean in here?? Gross, gross, gross.



I feel like I've made a little progess with the household chores, but there's always room for improvement. Now I maybe need to explore some cleaning products to help make my life easier...like those things you put in the shower and it sprays cleaner around your shower so you don't have to clean. Sounds almost too good to be true. Would love to hear if anybody has ever tried one!!

Things I Need To Do

List #1 - For myself:

In no particular order...

1. Go to the Oprah Show with my mom and shake Oprah's hand. (Before her show ends in 2011!)

2. Travel the world - first on the list Greece and Italy.

3. Live in an awesome condo with a view of the Puget Sound in downtown Seattle - once the kids are all grown and on their own.

4. Take photography classes and be awesome at it!

5. Go whale watching.

List #2 - For the kiddos:

Again, in no particular order...

1. Start scrapbooks for each of them to keep all their drawings, school papers and projects organized. They're still young, so if I start now I might have a chance at keeping up!

2. Show them as much of the world as I can! Let them know that the world is so much bigger than the place we live.

3. Start reading stories to my oldest at night (like a chapter book, something he'll look forward to hearing each night).

4. Get more financially stable so I can someday help all my kids out with college. I would have loved not starting my adult life so in debt.

Wish me luck on all of this!

My Weakness

I have worked really hard to be a healthy eater - and have been fairly successfull. My willpower is pretty strong once I've made up my mind to do something. BUT, I have a weakness. Sweets. Particularly chocolate or baked goods. I am especially in love with Special K bars at the moment! While I was browsing some of my favorite sites this evening, I came across these amazingly beautiful cupcakes from Crumbs Bakery in NYC. Have you ever seen anything like this?

You can see the full review of these treats at What I Wore. (Though this is not a typical entry for this blogger, usually about fashion, hence the name What I Wore.)

I'm guessing my favorite would be the Cappuccino or Raspberry Swirl...but they really all sounded so good. Okay, back to the high fiber, low fat diet. Blah.

Sweater Envy

Today was probably the first really, really cold day since last winter. A little bit of snow even fell last night (which I'm not too happy about). I was absolutely freezing at work today and kept cranking up the thermostat degree by degree, but alas, I was still cold! That got me thinking about my woredrobe. My woredrobe consists of many more short sleeved/spring time types of shirts than it does sweaters and warm weather gear. I've just never liked winter nor the clothes that must go along with it. Sweaters always seem bulky and boxy and just make me look big. Not flattering. Not excited about wearing them. So, I went on a search to find a sweater that I might just like and found this:


This sweater hugs the body a bit, showing that you DO have a waist and are not a box. I love the draping around the neckline - makes it much more interesting! Paired with some dark jeans, brown flat boots, hobo bag and gold jewelry, I think I'd feel pretty awesome! I must get these!

Get on those walking shoes already!

Over the last year and a half I have really stepped up my eating habits, forcing myself to be very conscious of what I eat, why I'm eating, and how my body feels after eating. The results have been great - lost 25lbs and I just feel better; not so slugglish, lumpy and gross anymore. Now I feel more energetic and positive overall. I really wanted to do this A) for myself, because of a family history of heart disease and high cholesterol and B) to set a good example for my kids and be around as long as possible for them.

But, this little voice inside my head has been nagging me to START EXERCISING!! Changing my diet was the easy part for me. Exercising is the difficult part.

Get up off the couch and put my tennis shoes on? What?! I'm watching Grey's Anatomy!

I'm a lounger and once I get comfy it's almost impossible to get me up (unless there is a child crying somewhere, I'm not neglectful)! About 3 weeks ago I finally decided this is it. I will conquer you Exercise and I will win!! I was doing great. Walked every night on the treadmill for 30 min (while watching TV so it's really not that bad...), taking 1 night off a week to rest. But, now it's been 2 nights off in a row. Yes, yes, not a big deal most will say, but do you realize how quickly 2 days off turns into 1 week, which turns into never? Well, it goes fast. SO, this is just a little reminder to myself to get my walking shoes on tonight and get going! Remember how great you feel after excercising? Ok, now don't forget! No more excuses!

Now speaking of walking shoes, do these Reebok Easy Tone shoes really tone your legs and butt faster?

I'm kind of curious to find out, but I don't know anybody that has them...

Dream Job

Sitting at work day dreaming of what my dream job would be - something I seem to do quite often.... Here's what I've been thinking of lately:

- Professional makeup artist in LA or NYC (if I didn't have my lovely little children to come home to every night!)

- Photographer for a travel magazine. HELLO sweet vacations!!

- Stylist to the rich and famous.

- Jewelry designer. How fun would that be using your creativity to design beautiful things everyday?

- Real Estate agent, just not here where I live. Somewhere with a little more pizzaz than where I'm at.

Reviewing my list here, I would conclude that I'm looking for a little more excitement than I find here at my office/desk job!

Turning the big 3-0....

So, it finally crept up on me. Turning 30. Five years ago it seemed so far away, but such a fool was I! It came fast - incredibly fast. Now that I'm here, the good news is I don't feel "old" like I thought I would. In the whole scheme of things it's still pretty young, but it just sounds a little old. When I was 22, someone who was 30 seemed to be light years beyond me in age! Now that I look back, was I really that bad in math to not realize that I was only 8 years away from it myself?! Oh, the wisdom I've gained in such a short time!

This past summer it really hit me that my 20's were coming to an end....oh, and I started noticing some lines on my forehead, yikes! Apparently I raise my eyebrows a lot, who knew? Well, all those years of eyebrow-raising at people had taken a toll on my nearly 30 year old skin so I felt the need to take action. I don't want to be that old looking mom with the young kids - not that there is anything wrong with that, it's just that I'm not old yet (whatever the true definition of old is!). I turned to Mary Kay. A fellow preschool mom sells the stuff and I loaded up. Face wash, Anti-aging lotion, day solution lotion, night solution, night time eye cream and a replenishing serum, which was said to be "botox in a bottle". Here's some of what I got:

Only time will tell if this stuff actually works. But, in the meantime, I can take solice in the fact that I didn't just sit around and not do anything about it. I'm not trying to sound vain and hate on people with wrinkles, I just find it important to take care of myself and this was an area I was neglecting, perhaps in a little bit of denial about. But, I do have to say that all this face pampering feels really, really nice. And if for only that reason, I think it's totally worth it. I love finding small ways to pamper myself!

Now, aside from the physical changes of getting older, my mom pointed out some things to look forward to. Her philosophy is that a person spends their 20's trying to find themselves and by the time you hit 30, you are pretty comfortable with the person you've become. After thinking about that, I do believe that is true. I feel like I've spent so much of my life feeling uncomfortable and unsure of myself and wanting to fit in and not stand out like a sore thumb. For example, in the past year I've started taking some fashion risks and found that I LOVE trying new/different/stylish things - and the best part is, I don't care what other people think. And the even better part of it is that I've received so many compliments on my outifts or accessories than I ever did when I was just trying to be like everyone else! So, now I'm kind of looking forward to more positive changes in my 30's. What are some positive changes you've noticed about getting older? I'm getting excited about all the wonderful things to come!

Is there ever enough time?

I may be a little too hard on myself, but I feel like I should be Wonder Woman or Super Mom - able to handle any situation at anytime, no matter what. All done patiently, gracefully and while looking not the least bit disheveled - ha! Don't get me wrong, I think I'm a pretty good mom, but I'm always wishing I could do more and do it better. Don't we want to do it ALL for our kids? **sigh**

All the thoughts that run through my head during the day is exhausting! - Need to buy thank you cards so my son can write thank you's for his birthday gifts, sit down and help him write said thank you's, buy bananas, french toast sticks and milk so breakfast goes smoothly in the morning, making mental lists of Christmas gift ideas, paying bills, returning library books, remember to clip the kids fingernails because they are getting a bit too long.... Oh, it goes on and on in my head. I know I'm not the only one with a busy family life, but once you get caught up in your daily hum drum of breakfast, school drop-off, work, pick-up kids, dinner, baths, bed it's easy to start feeling a little...blah. I'm so descriptive, huh? Love my kids to the moon and back, would do anything in the world for them, but a little mom/grown-up time is always welcomed!

What do you do when you get some time to yourself??

I recently went out and had a couple drinks with a fellow "mom friend", which I can't even remember when the last time I went out for drinks was! It was for only about an hour and we talked about kids most of the time, but the company was so nice. Very much needed. Feeling refreshed. Now I'm wondering what and when my next grown-up outing should be...perhaps to go see the movie New Moon? Team Edward!!