I have had a lot on my mind lately and for that reason I have taken a break from blogging here. No worries though, because when I have something to say I'll say it loud and clear.
Keep tuned.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
All Of A Sudden
School has started and my Summer of Bumdom has come to a sudden halt.
All of a sudden, I have to do things again…Make lunches, iron clothes, do laundry in a timely manner, make sure the children are clean, check homework, sign planners, write lesson plans…my days have gone back to unending.
All of a sudden, there aren’t enough hours in the day and every little thing seems to manifest into a much larger problem than one would image. Minor insignificant things like food consumption become monumentous*.
All of a sudden, getting out of bed and eating breakfast, once a leisurely activity involving giggles and morning tickles, has morphed into a bleary-eyed stumble down stairs and into walls kind of affair. Making lunches demands forethought and planning at an hour far too early for either. Let us not even discuss the chaos that is dinner!
All of a sudden time becomes important and I am once again telling time by PBS morning cartoons. Between the Lions becomes “Please do not take 30 minutes to eat half a cup of cereal” time. Maya & Miguel becomes “go get dressed right now or else” time. Arthur becomes “Do you have everything together cause we’ve got to go right now” time.
All of a sudden, everything is a big rush.
All of a sudden, I realize once again how precious every little moment is…reading Cyra a story at bedtime, tucking Ashleigh in after she’s already asleep because she is “too grown-up” for tucking in, playing a card game after dinner…
It is these moments, of course, that all of a sudden, I remember mean more than what they are.
*Yeah, I made up a word, but that’s okay because I have a degree.
All of a sudden, I have to do things again…Make lunches, iron clothes, do laundry in a timely manner, make sure the children are clean, check homework, sign planners, write lesson plans…my days have gone back to unending.
All of a sudden, there aren’t enough hours in the day and every little thing seems to manifest into a much larger problem than one would image. Minor insignificant things like food consumption become monumentous*.
All of a sudden, getting out of bed and eating breakfast, once a leisurely activity involving giggles and morning tickles, has morphed into a bleary-eyed stumble down stairs and into walls kind of affair. Making lunches demands forethought and planning at an hour far too early for either. Let us not even discuss the chaos that is dinner!
All of a sudden time becomes important and I am once again telling time by PBS morning cartoons. Between the Lions becomes “Please do not take 30 minutes to eat half a cup of cereal” time. Maya & Miguel becomes “go get dressed right now or else” time. Arthur becomes “Do you have everything together cause we’ve got to go right now” time.
All of a sudden, everything is a big rush.
All of a sudden, I realize once again how precious every little moment is…reading Cyra a story at bedtime, tucking Ashleigh in after she’s already asleep because she is “too grown-up” for tucking in, playing a card game after dinner…
It is these moments, of course, that all of a sudden, I remember mean more than what they are.
*Yeah, I made up a word, but that’s okay because I have a degree.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Birthday Thoughts
I was working on a post about the Birthday Fiesta O’ Fun, but everything I wrote seemed insignificant or overly sappy, neither of which were very helpful at expressing what I was feeling.
So in a succinct explanation: Sara’s birthday is ten days away, mine eleven. This will be the first year in seven years that Sara and I will not be celebrating our birthdays together.
It feels…wrong.
I knew that Sara wouldn’t be able to come back to Florida this summer, so I knew that a BFOF was unlikely, but I didn’t really consider the consequences. And so now my birthday is nearly here and I’m just not digging it.
So in a succinct explanation: Sara’s birthday is ten days away, mine eleven. This will be the first year in seven years that Sara and I will not be celebrating our birthdays together.
It feels…wrong.
I knew that Sara wouldn’t be able to come back to Florida this summer, so I knew that a BFOF was unlikely, but I didn’t really consider the consequences. And so now my birthday is nearly here and I’m just not digging it.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Forays into Sushi-ville
I'm not a big fan of trying new things. I like the tried and true. I am a creature of habit. For example, regardless of how many new flavors are offered at Mochi, I always get the same thing: Strawberry and Coconilla with coconut, strawberries and strawberry mochi - even when I taste the other flavors and like them.
So on Wednesday, I decided that since I was going to a party and didn't feel all that great I'd stop somewhere to get dinner for the girls. I didn't want fast food, nor did I want to make multiple stops and I had already promised the girls that we could go to Mochi's, I decided to try out Bento Cafe which is right next door to Mochi's - pretty convenient.
The girls stuck with familiar shrimp tempura, but I was feeling adventurous and opted to try a sushi roll. After looking over the menu, and knowing that I needed to go with something "safe," I went with the Bali Hai Mango roll - tempura shrimp, cream cheese, eel, and mango. I cannot express how delightful this was!
After the chaos of Thursday, I felt the need on Friday for some good company and good food, so I met a friend and some of her family members at Bento. They had never been and when I was asked for a suggestion, I had to sheepishly admit I'd only been there once before. I once again got the Bali Hai Mango. I wanted to try something different, but as I was ordering I asked what masago was and low and behold, changed my order when I learned that it was fish eggs. I didn't think I was brave enough for that yet.
Well as of today at 1:30pm, I am brave!! I not only tried the Red Dragon with the masago, but it also had tuna (raw) and something called tabiko which I don't know what it is, but it was spicy! It was also packed with tempura shrimp, cream cheese, avocado and krab. It was quite good, though a bit too spicy for my taste and the masago I was so worried about wasn't all that bad. It was more of a texture than a taste and I didn't even blink at the tuna.
I also ordered the Bali Hai Mango for the girls to try. Both girls tried the Bali Hai, neither liked it, but only Ashleigh was brave enough to try the Red Dragon. And she willingly asked to try it. Of course, I didn't tell Ashleigh there was tuna on it, but she did know what the masago was. Cyra was not thrilled with the sushi but Ashleigh seemed open to try it again. I am hopeful that she will be willing to explore and develop her taste buds.
How does this mesh with my attempt to go vegetarian? I'm not sure. But I have cut red meat out of my diet and that's a start. And from what little knowledge I have of Japan and their diet, it is probably one of the healthiest on the planet.
So on Wednesday, I decided that since I was going to a party and didn't feel all that great I'd stop somewhere to get dinner for the girls. I didn't want fast food, nor did I want to make multiple stops and I had already promised the girls that we could go to Mochi's, I decided to try out Bento Cafe which is right next door to Mochi's - pretty convenient.
The girls stuck with familiar shrimp tempura, but I was feeling adventurous and opted to try a sushi roll. After looking over the menu, and knowing that I needed to go with something "safe," I went with the Bali Hai Mango roll - tempura shrimp, cream cheese, eel, and mango. I cannot express how delightful this was!
After the chaos of Thursday, I felt the need on Friday for some good company and good food, so I met a friend and some of her family members at Bento. They had never been and when I was asked for a suggestion, I had to sheepishly admit I'd only been there once before. I once again got the Bali Hai Mango. I wanted to try something different, but as I was ordering I asked what masago was and low and behold, changed my order when I learned that it was fish eggs. I didn't think I was brave enough for that yet.
Well as of today at 1:30pm, I am brave!! I not only tried the Red Dragon with the masago, but it also had tuna (raw) and something called tabiko which I don't know what it is, but it was spicy! It was also packed with tempura shrimp, cream cheese, avocado and krab. It was quite good, though a bit too spicy for my taste and the masago I was so worried about wasn't all that bad. It was more of a texture than a taste and I didn't even blink at the tuna.
I also ordered the Bali Hai Mango for the girls to try. Both girls tried the Bali Hai, neither liked it, but only Ashleigh was brave enough to try the Red Dragon. And she willingly asked to try it. Of course, I didn't tell Ashleigh there was tuna on it, but she did know what the masago was. Cyra was not thrilled with the sushi but Ashleigh seemed open to try it again. I am hopeful that she will be willing to explore and develop her taste buds.
How does this mesh with my attempt to go vegetarian? I'm not sure. But I have cut red meat out of my diet and that's a start. And from what little knowledge I have of Japan and their diet, it is probably one of the healthiest on the planet.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Seven Hours and Four Days Later
Seven years ago, I was diagnosed with Pulmonary Embolisms (PE). Turned out that what I thought was a back ache was my lung slowly dying. Turned out that the excruciating pain I was having when breathing was my body screaming for oxygen, not walking pneumonia.
I spent a lovely week in ICU. I survived and went on a regiment of blood thinners and a diet sans most green things (although occasionally, I just cannot resist a good Caesar salad or tender asparagus). In the back of my mind, I am constantly scanning my body for any odd quirks or twinges that might signal something serious.
On Monday, after a weekend of intense deep cleaning of the house (we had a buggy issue) I woke up with a slight twinge in my back. While annoying, I attributed it to the weekend work and a possible muscle strain. I went on with my day. I brought the girls to zoo camp. I spent a quiet child-free day puttering around the house.
On Tuesday, I woke up feeling yucky. My back hurt a little more, I was still tired and groggy. And that was after I had actually gone to bed at a decent hour. I brought the girls to zoo camp and spent the day running errands. That night, still feeling gross and now mildly concerned about my back I vowed that I would get back into good habits and back into a healthier lifestyle. That night I blogged about my goals and promised myself to make changes in my life.
On Wednesday morning, around 3:30 am I woke up, still in pain and unable to get comfortable in bed. A warning sign flashed behind my eyes as I lay in the bed trying to go back to sleep. “Danger! Danger!” it flashed. You remember this kind of pain, my brain told me. I wanted to ignore my brain. I really did. But dutifully, I filed a Post-It note right in my cerebral cortex with big bold words in red: IF Deep breath=Pain THEN Go to Doctor ASAP!! Proud of my mental filing system, I got out of bed (there wasn’t anyway I was going back to sleep) and walked the dog.
After that, I felt ok. Not great, but not…panicked. Until…
My friend from work was hosting a Tastefully Simple party and as it sounded fun and as it involved food and being child-free, and as it was good company, I went. About halfway through, my early morning wake-up call caught up with me and I yawned. Big. Deep breathe in = Sharp stabbing pain.
My mind ripped through my mental Post-Its and landed on the one I wrote that morning. Refusing to panic, I acknowledged the symptoms that were so reminiscent of what I went through seven years ago. I went home. Told Scott and made arrangements to go the ER the following day.
On Thursday morning, I brought the girls to zoo camp and made the decision that I would wait until after I picked Cyra up to go to the ER. I was afraid of how long the testing would take and that Cyra and Ashleigh would be stranded. Obviously, I had people I could call, but I did not want anyone to panic. (I’m considerate.)
So Cyra and I headed to the ER. Scott met us there. And after seven hours of testing I left with a clean CT scan, a clean chest x-ray, a bruise from the I.V. line, and a diagnosis of “undetermined back/chest pain.” The doctor felt that it is most likely muscle strain, but that it was good that I came in because my Coumadin levels were too high. And as he said, “Pulmonary Embolisms aren’t something to play around with. And while there isn’t anything wrong with you, it is good to know that you are listening to what your body is telling you.”
Today I woke up after very few hours sleep, comforted in the knowledge that I woke up at all, pleased in my desired lifestyle changes and motivated to get started!
I spent a lovely week in ICU. I survived and went on a regiment of blood thinners and a diet sans most green things (although occasionally, I just cannot resist a good Caesar salad or tender asparagus). In the back of my mind, I am constantly scanning my body for any odd quirks or twinges that might signal something serious.
On Monday, after a weekend of intense deep cleaning of the house (we had a buggy issue) I woke up with a slight twinge in my back. While annoying, I attributed it to the weekend work and a possible muscle strain. I went on with my day. I brought the girls to zoo camp. I spent a quiet child-free day puttering around the house.
On Tuesday, I woke up feeling yucky. My back hurt a little more, I was still tired and groggy. And that was after I had actually gone to bed at a decent hour. I brought the girls to zoo camp and spent the day running errands. That night, still feeling gross and now mildly concerned about my back I vowed that I would get back into good habits and back into a healthier lifestyle. That night I blogged about my goals and promised myself to make changes in my life.
On Wednesday morning, around 3:30 am I woke up, still in pain and unable to get comfortable in bed. A warning sign flashed behind my eyes as I lay in the bed trying to go back to sleep. “Danger! Danger!” it flashed. You remember this kind of pain, my brain told me. I wanted to ignore my brain. I really did. But dutifully, I filed a Post-It note right in my cerebral cortex with big bold words in red: IF Deep breath=Pain THEN Go to Doctor ASAP!! Proud of my mental filing system, I got out of bed (there wasn’t anyway I was going back to sleep) and walked the dog.
After that, I felt ok. Not great, but not…panicked. Until…
My friend from work was hosting a Tastefully Simple party and as it sounded fun and as it involved food and being child-free, and as it was good company, I went. About halfway through, my early morning wake-up call caught up with me and I yawned. Big. Deep breathe in = Sharp stabbing pain.
My mind ripped through my mental Post-Its and landed on the one I wrote that morning. Refusing to panic, I acknowledged the symptoms that were so reminiscent of what I went through seven years ago. I went home. Told Scott and made arrangements to go the ER the following day.
On Thursday morning, I brought the girls to zoo camp and made the decision that I would wait until after I picked Cyra up to go to the ER. I was afraid of how long the testing would take and that Cyra and Ashleigh would be stranded. Obviously, I had people I could call, but I did not want anyone to panic. (I’m considerate.)
So Cyra and I headed to the ER. Scott met us there. And after seven hours of testing I left with a clean CT scan, a clean chest x-ray, a bruise from the I.V. line, and a diagnosis of “undetermined back/chest pain.” The doctor felt that it is most likely muscle strain, but that it was good that I came in because my Coumadin levels were too high. And as he said, “Pulmonary Embolisms aren’t something to play around with. And while there isn’t anything wrong with you, it is good to know that you are listening to what your body is telling you.”
Today I woke up after very few hours sleep, comforted in the knowledge that I woke up at all, pleased in my desired lifestyle changes and motivated to get started!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Back into the Routine
A couple of years ago I lost a good amount a weight. This past year, I have regained every single pound I lost. I feel disgusting and tired all the time. A recent blood test revealed a possible problem with my thyroid that I didn't have two years ago!
It is time for me to get serious again about getting healthy. So to that end, I announce publicly to the world, I will get into better shape! I have set a goal to lose 100 pounds. I realize that a goal of such caliber is daunting, but I know that it will take time. Obviously, the healthiest way to go about this is to be responsible and safe. A goal therefore of 2 pounds a week, according to research, is manageable and will be my aim. I know that at some point I will plateau as I did before. Hopefully, I will be able at that point to push through it and continue on to meet my end goal.
Dieting doesn't work for me. I've tried it. Blech! And truly, my problem is not with food (although I do overindulge in sweets about once a month). However, I will start counting calories again. And most importantly watch my portions. Counting calories and following protion guidelines worked really well last time. As before, I will not deny myself the craving, but I will make sure I take only a small portion as I have found that when I deny myself what I crave I end up binging on it later.
Also, as I did before, I will step on the scale every morning. I know that it isn't recommended, but it worked for me. It was motivational and made me confront my weight every day.
The biggest problem, though, is exercise. I don't. All of the activities I enjoy, reading, crafting, writing, involve sitting. I've never really be they outdoorsy, exercise girl. So making myself get up and get out is where the real challenge will be. It is really about motivation. I almost feel like I should make a reward chart for myself...if I do one hour of exercise, then I get...something. Not sure what, but something.
Anyway, I figure putting this out there keeps me more accountable then I was before. So on to tomorrow and a healthier life!
Cheers,
Heather
It is time for me to get serious again about getting healthy. So to that end, I announce publicly to the world, I will get into better shape! I have set a goal to lose 100 pounds. I realize that a goal of such caliber is daunting, but I know that it will take time. Obviously, the healthiest way to go about this is to be responsible and safe. A goal therefore of 2 pounds a week, according to research, is manageable and will be my aim. I know that at some point I will plateau as I did before. Hopefully, I will be able at that point to push through it and continue on to meet my end goal.
Dieting doesn't work for me. I've tried it. Blech! And truly, my problem is not with food (although I do overindulge in sweets about once a month). However, I will start counting calories again. And most importantly watch my portions. Counting calories and following protion guidelines worked really well last time. As before, I will not deny myself the craving, but I will make sure I take only a small portion as I have found that when I deny myself what I crave I end up binging on it later.
Also, as I did before, I will step on the scale every morning. I know that it isn't recommended, but it worked for me. It was motivational and made me confront my weight every day.
The biggest problem, though, is exercise. I don't. All of the activities I enjoy, reading, crafting, writing, involve sitting. I've never really be they outdoorsy, exercise girl. So making myself get up and get out is where the real challenge will be. It is really about motivation. I almost feel like I should make a reward chart for myself...if I do one hour of exercise, then I get...something. Not sure what, but something.
Anyway, I figure putting this out there keeps me more accountable then I was before. So on to tomorrow and a healthier life!
Cheers,
Heather
Monday, June 28, 2010
Penis in the Sky
I was driving to the zoo today to pick up the girls from their first day of zoo camp when I saw the most fantastic cloud formation ever: a circumcised penis. I only wish I had my camera so I could have snapped a shot and submitted it Accidentaldong.blogspot.com.
This lofty formation made me laugh and I grabbed my cell phone wanting to call someone and tell them about it. Then suddenly, in a moment of odd, quiet reflection, as I stared at my phone, I realized that I didn’t have anyone I could call with that tidbit of hilarity.
Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of friends. Friends that would get a kick out of a cloud shaped penis, but friends who would shake their heads and roll their eyes at my immaturity.
And then I remembered a thought I had as I was driving home from dropping the kids off this morning: I don’t have anyone to go play with. A whole day sans kids and I didn’t have anyone to share it with. So I went home and did laundry and other respectable grown-up things.
Putting the two thoughts together drove me to a third and final thought: being an adult sucks which is why, I think, that I shall never act my age.
Cheers,
Heather
This lofty formation made me laugh and I grabbed my cell phone wanting to call someone and tell them about it. Then suddenly, in a moment of odd, quiet reflection, as I stared at my phone, I realized that I didn’t have anyone I could call with that tidbit of hilarity.
Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of friends. Friends that would get a kick out of a cloud shaped penis, but friends who would shake their heads and roll their eyes at my immaturity.
And then I remembered a thought I had as I was driving home from dropping the kids off this morning: I don’t have anyone to go play with. A whole day sans kids and I didn’t have anyone to share it with. So I went home and did laundry and other respectable grown-up things.
Putting the two thoughts together drove me to a third and final thought: being an adult sucks which is why, I think, that I shall never act my age.
Cheers,
Heather
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