Just got back from 3 nights away at a rental house with a bunch of family for Thanksgiving. It was nice getting away for a mini-vacation and spending time with loved ones. We played some board games, watched movies, got in some free step for exercise, ate some tasty meals and enjoyed conversation with one another. I had a good time, but I must say...
it's nice to be home again! No matter how great the vacation, there's something comforting about being back in your own space. And that was most apparent in Ben. He did well on the trip, but by today, he was ready to be home again. He didn't want to do pictures at the end before we all cleared out. He was all about a teary "Bye bye! Bye bye!" He was happy on the trip home, I think because he realized that's where we were headed. He seemed to recognize things as we got within a few miles of our house, and when he was put into his crib, he just stood up and kept squealing and jumping and looking at different things in his room, then squealing some more. He is definitely a boy who is all about the familiar and comforting.
We got some things put away but not all. I love it when we're able to get everything put back in its place and the laundry to the laundry room and clean clothes put away on the same day that we get back from a trip. We didn't get to that point today, but I intend to tomorrow. Plus, James got our Christmas tree out of storage and assembled it for me so that I didn't have to do it tonight and be up later. I promised Rachel I'd get it done after she went to bed so it will be ready for us to start decorating tomorrow. I know she's excited for that, and I've been waiting for this, too! I love having the trip up and decorated, and I want to be able to enjoy it for as much of the Christmas season as possible.
So tomorrow is about church, lunch, possibly a little shopping (we need a new bathmat for the kids' bathroom since we left ours at the rental house, and Family Christian Store is having an excellent sale and I've been finding some gift ideas I want to pick up there), putting away our stuff from the vacation, and decorating. And exercising. Sounds busy, but hopefully I'll be able to get those things done without feeling rushed and while enjoying myself.
It doesn't seem like we should already be getting back to normal school and work routines the day after tomorrow. I wonder if that's because we had so much snow on Sunday and Monday that I ended up picking up James from work after a few hours and Rachel from school almost 3 hours early on Monday, then they cancelled school on Tuesday and Wednesday due to continued iciness. So it was nearly a weeklong vacation for all of us. Still, only 3 more weeks of school and Rachel has 2 weeks off. It will be nice to be able to have some relaxed mornings, but I'll be working on ways to keep her and Ben entertained. The nice thing is that James has a few days off each of those weeks, so I'll really only have 3-4 days per week to fill.
Clearly my mind is full and I need to let it wind down. Maybe I'm getting used to blogging daily and have a hard time when I don't write long posts and get my thoughts out each day. Or maybe I'm just in crank-it-back-into-gear mode from returning.
At any rate, I shall enjoy sleeping in my own bed tonight, and especially with my own pillow.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Friday, November 26, 2010
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
Blogging from my phone again. We've been out of town for three days at a rental home with family, and it's been really nice spending time together. And now that we've celebrated Thanksgiving, I'm pumped to be in the Christmas season! I wish we'd been able to get the Christmas tree set up before we left town so that we could start decorating tomorrow after getting back home. But hopefully we'll still be able to at least get it set up and maybe lit tomorrow, even if we don't decorate until another day.
Regardless, I'm excited for this season and ready for it to be here!
Regardless, I'm excited for this season and ready for it to be here!
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Tardiness
I hate tardiness. I hate being the tardy one and I do my best to be on time for things. Barring that, if someone is expecting me and I know that I'm going to be late, I try to reach them so that I can let them know that I'm on my way but am not going to be there on time.
To me, tardiness - whether in the workplace when someone is late for a meeting, or home when you're waiting for a babysitter to arrive, or when you're meeting up with others for a road trip - tardiness says to me that your time is more important than mine and that you do not respect me. If it comes with an apology, that helps, but it really should be prefaced by communication, especially if you're able to let me know before the expected time comes and goes. And if it comes with neither a forewarning nor an apology, you've pretty much sealed my opinion of you as rude.
I think that's why I go crazy when Rachel's dawdling results in another late school arrival. I don't like being that person and hate when the departure time hinges on a willful 6-year-old choosing to get ready to go. Although Rachel was not the reason for today's tardiness, thank goodness.
To me, tardiness - whether in the workplace when someone is late for a meeting, or home when you're waiting for a babysitter to arrive, or when you're meeting up with others for a road trip - tardiness says to me that your time is more important than mine and that you do not respect me. If it comes with an apology, that helps, but it really should be prefaced by communication, especially if you're able to let me know before the expected time comes and goes. And if it comes with neither a forewarning nor an apology, you've pretty much sealed my opinion of you as rude.
I think that's why I go crazy when Rachel's dawdling results in another late school arrival. I don't like being that person and hate when the departure time hinges on a willful 6-year-old choosing to get ready to go. Although Rachel was not the reason for today's tardiness, thank goodness.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Updates
I'm happy to report that we've had pretty good days with Rachel since my post last week about the truly rotten one we'd had. We've had minor behavior issues and some frustration, but we've been able to get a handle on her and get her redirected without too much drama and consequences. I'm keeping a close eye on how much sugar she takes in from junk food, since there seems to be a pretty direct correlation between her sugar intake and obnoxious, hyperactive behavior that leads to all sorts of wrong decisions on her part and a seeming inability to make the right ones. I know that countless studies have proven that sugar does not directly have an effect on behavior, but there are theories that certain things in sugary foods and the consumption of them in environments like birthday parties *can* cause hyperactivity. All I know is that when Rachel has had candy, cupcakes, etc., we see a response to it. And until she can learn to better handle how she responds after eating sugar, we'll be doling it out sparingly.
There are other factors at work besides the sugar, but those are things that will take more time to change and to train. But it's been nice to have a good stretch, and the more of those we have and the longer we go between big outbreaks, the more encouraging it is.
My car is now back from repair and feels downright zippy. It took $870, including an oil change, but that still saved us $268 by going to the dealer vs. taking the quote that Midas gave us. And we got Hyundai factory parts by going to them, too. The only downside of going there is the drive to get there and having to pick it up during certain hours, but I think it's worth the hassle. Hopefully this will be the end of the problems we've been having and it'll be fine until we do the next round of recommended maintenance.
We still have a drip happening between the master bathroom and the laundry room. I'm guessing the plumber will have to pull off more of the sheetrock to figure out if the tub drain is leaking. Beyond that, I have no expertise and really couldn't begin to guess what's causing the problem.
The snow stopped late yesterday. The streets are largely cleared, except for the ones within a few blocks of our house. But, they did come through and scrape and put down some dirt, so it's been okay. Driving to pick up my car was mostly uneventful and just a little scary coming down the hill to our house and pulling into the garage. But, no slipping! Hopefully it'll warm up now and melt the iciness away from the roads. And allow our house's heater to work more effectively - it's been going nonstop for probably the past day and a half, and it's still only 58 degrees inside. But considering that it was 10 degrees with the windchill factor this afternoon, I suppose 58 degrees isn't all that bad!
There are other factors at work besides the sugar, but those are things that will take more time to change and to train. But it's been nice to have a good stretch, and the more of those we have and the longer we go between big outbreaks, the more encouraging it is.
My car is now back from repair and feels downright zippy. It took $870, including an oil change, but that still saved us $268 by going to the dealer vs. taking the quote that Midas gave us. And we got Hyundai factory parts by going to them, too. The only downside of going there is the drive to get there and having to pick it up during certain hours, but I think it's worth the hassle. Hopefully this will be the end of the problems we've been having and it'll be fine until we do the next round of recommended maintenance.
We still have a drip happening between the master bathroom and the laundry room. I'm guessing the plumber will have to pull off more of the sheetrock to figure out if the tub drain is leaking. Beyond that, I have no expertise and really couldn't begin to guess what's causing the problem.
The snow stopped late yesterday. The streets are largely cleared, except for the ones within a few blocks of our house. But, they did come through and scrape and put down some dirt, so it's been okay. Driving to pick up my car was mostly uneventful and just a little scary coming down the hill to our house and pulling into the garage. But, no slipping! Hopefully it'll warm up now and melt the iciness away from the roads. And allow our house's heater to work more effectively - it's been going nonstop for probably the past day and a half, and it's still only 58 degrees inside. But considering that it was 10 degrees with the windchill factor this afternoon, I suppose 58 degrees isn't all that bad!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Snowy Jesus
This sculpture is outside of World Vision's office in Federal Way. It seemed so odd to see him blanketed in snow this morning!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Indulgent Breakfast Recipe
Paula Deen has some great recipes, but as you may know, they are often high in calories and fat. Still, sometimes you want to indulge yourself, and holiday breakfasts and brunches are a perfect time for this recipe! I served it for Christmas brunch last year, and everyone raved over it. It's a Baked French Toast Casserole with Praline Topping and Raspberry Syrup:
Is your mouth watering now? Yeah, I thought so.
I served it with a Spinach and Strawberry Salad, an egg/sausage/cheese casserole and fresh fruit. (What?! It was Christmas morning. It's not like I eat that every day.)
If you're not interested in indulging quite that much, Paula Deen's son Bobby has lightened up the original recipe. You can find his version here. His version brings the count down to 226 calories and 8 g fat per serving. I don't even want to think about how many calories and fat grams are in Paula's dish. I just choose to treat myself to it blindly on the rare occasion.
Is your mouth watering now? Yeah, I thought so.
I served it with a Spinach and Strawberry Salad, an egg/sausage/cheese casserole and fresh fruit. (What?! It was Christmas morning. It's not like I eat that every day.)
If you're not interested in indulging quite that much, Paula Deen's son Bobby has lightened up the original recipe. You can find his version here. His version brings the count down to 226 calories and 8 g fat per serving. I don't even want to think about how many calories and fat grams are in Paula's dish. I just choose to treat myself to it blindly on the rare occasion.
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