I can't sleep. I seem to find the hours between 11pm and 2, sometimes 3am, provide the most insightful thoughts. Thoughts that are drowned out during the constant hustle/bustle of normal day to day activities, which when reflected upon, make said day to day activities seem quite trite. I've been told to get a pen/paper next to my bed, write my thoughts down as they come, and this activity will aide in the overall sleep attempt, keeping me from mulling things over well into the night. Wonderful advice. Why is it I always seem to remember this nugget of advice around 1-2am???
As I'm sure is the case with most women, and likely some men... although I'm not going to even pretend to understand the male psyche... and they say women are complicated... one word 'ego'... ya'll aren't a walk in the park yourselves, however, I digress.
As I was saying... what keeps me up at night is generally figuring out what I can be doing better. It's why I think the thought can apply to both men and women, but with women there is a consensus that while we maintain the multiple personalities of Mom, Wife, and Self and all the associated activities, the pervading thought is 'what step can I take that would make all of this flow just a little bit easier'.... Or maybe I really am just a "supply chain" geek hell bent on organizing EVERY facet of my life!
Whatever the reason, it seems that during my day I used up every minute, and then when I reflect at night, I see every minute I wasted. So, my 'bedside' note to myself this evening, is to put a sticky note on my computer that asks myself "are you serving". Whether its my kids, Kevin, or me, if I feel good about the way I answer that question when I see it, I can be satisfied that I used all my minutes the right way. (WOW, talk about conviction... God didn't even make the top 3, on the first type through... we'll bump him to the top of the list... good thing I proof read! How's that for honesty;), wish I could blame it on the late hour!
We'll see how tomorrow goes... however at this rate, I'm concerned my first day of 'serving' is going to require a nap... Doesn't bode well for my efforts does it?!? I'll keep you posted after a few weeks of my experiment how it all goes!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Shopping Nirvana
I would not classify myself as a "shopper". I don't enjoy going to malls or major department stores, and when I am shopping I don't take my time looking over the merchandise waiting for something to catch my eye. I'm fairly certain my aversion to shopping is directly tied to the number of digits in my back account at any given moment, as I do often find myself thinking what an amazing fashionista I could be if I was independently wealthy... Alas... That is not the case.
I do however pride myself on being a bargain hunter, fiscally responsible, mature with my finances... Or as some may view it... cheap. My stores of choice are Ross & Marshall's for Clothes and Shoes, I'm a member of every deal of the day websites; Woot, Groupon, One Deal a day, etc.. and I am totally infatuated with Craig's list.... Despite Kevin's concern that, in his words, "One of these days a Craig's List psycho is going to eat you with a fork".... I'll keep an eye out for that one!
I tend to envision these two opposite ideals, the shopper at the malls/department stores vs. the bargain hunter sifting for sales, as a venn diagram (think way back to those old math days... the two intersecting circles...) and the portion in the middle is the shopping 'Holy Grail'. When you can find that pair of "Seven for All Mankind" jeans, which retailed for over $100, and you can walk out with them for $35, which went perfectly with your "Nine West" patent red leather heals, that only cost YOU $25 instead of retails $65...
You see, its not that I don't enjoy the finer things in life... Yes, of course I want the Bentley... I just want it at the Buick's price! When I know that if I'm patient and keep my eye open for the sale I can get exactly what I want at a fraction of the price, I don't see the point in paying full price.
I recently just topped my all time best... courtesy of my great friends on Craig's List... Scoring a "Chariot Cougar: Double", with all the attachments... Bike, Running, Infant position-er, etc... en-total would have retailed for ~$900, and I scooped up the amazing deal for a cool $100. In the month that we've owned it, I've been stopped on the street more than 10 times asking questions about it and wanting to look at it! I LOVE IT!!! To be honest, before I found it, I had no previous knowledge of the "Chariot" brand... but the people stopping me are apparently well aware of it, and understand the high cost, so its THAT much more fun when they ask if it was worth it, and without missing a step I can say, "Well I got this for $100 on Craig's List, so yes, its been worth every penny." Ahhhh... what a feeling!
The kicker in all this is, after we outgrow this bad boy, it will likely find itself back on Craig's List and will probably end up paying for itself! Now THAT'S what I call shopping nirvana, making your purchase make you money!
I do however pride myself on being a bargain hunter, fiscally responsible, mature with my finances... Or as some may view it... cheap. My stores of choice are Ross & Marshall's for Clothes and Shoes, I'm a member of every deal of the day websites; Woot, Groupon, One Deal a day, etc.. and I am totally infatuated with Craig's list.... Despite Kevin's concern that, in his words, "One of these days a Craig's List psycho is going to eat you with a fork".... I'll keep an eye out for that one!
I tend to envision these two opposite ideals, the shopper at the malls/department stores vs. the bargain hunter sifting for sales, as a venn diagram (think way back to those old math days... the two intersecting circles...) and the portion in the middle is the shopping 'Holy Grail'. When you can find that pair of "Seven for All Mankind" jeans, which retailed for over $100, and you can walk out with them for $35, which went perfectly with your "Nine West" patent red leather heals, that only cost YOU $25 instead of retails $65...
You see, its not that I don't enjoy the finer things in life... Yes, of course I want the Bentley... I just want it at the Buick's price! When I know that if I'm patient and keep my eye open for the sale I can get exactly what I want at a fraction of the price, I don't see the point in paying full price.
I recently just topped my all time best... courtesy of my great friends on Craig's List... Scoring a "Chariot Cougar: Double", with all the attachments... Bike, Running, Infant position-er, etc... en-total would have retailed for ~$900, and I scooped up the amazing deal for a cool $100. In the month that we've owned it, I've been stopped on the street more than 10 times asking questions about it and wanting to look at it! I LOVE IT!!! To be honest, before I found it, I had no previous knowledge of the "Chariot" brand... but the people stopping me are apparently well aware of it, and understand the high cost, so its THAT much more fun when they ask if it was worth it, and without missing a step I can say, "Well I got this for $100 on Craig's List, so yes, its been worth every penny." Ahhhh... what a feeling!
The kicker in all this is, after we outgrow this bad boy, it will likely find itself back on Craig's List and will probably end up paying for itself! Now THAT'S what I call shopping nirvana, making your purchase make you money!
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Mama Moments... The Good, Bad, & Ugly
I was "that mom" today. The one you look at and say "awwww, bless her heart", and then thank your lucky stars you only have to watch the scene from afar, and not be an active participant. It wasn't for very long, but I had a good hour this morning, where I just couldn't get it together, and I blame it on the fact that I actually LEFT my house at 7am... on a bike... towing my 'little' men (which after having towed them, I'm seriously thinking of replacing with enormously HEAVY men)... Seriously, as I was trying to get them up a SMALL hill.... a runner passed me... I WAS ON A BIKE! Note to self... let's up the endurance workouts.
Normally that first hour after I wake up, my brain is still dusting the cobwebs off, however this particular morning, 30 minutes into that first hour, I was attempting to lock up my bike and transition my stroller from bike mode to walk mode, while listening to Logan scream his little lungs out and Caleb say at least 50 times in 2 minutes... "Out... Out mama, Out". I tackled that, acknowledged Logan was NOT gonna stop crying unless I was holding him, so put him in the sling and set off to get Caleb the promised 'treat' of Hot Cocoa.
We are now in line at Starbucks... Logan, STILL screaming, despite my consistent 'mama bounce' going non-stop with intermittent "shush's"... and Caleb off of his "Out" repeat has switched to "Hot Choc, Hot Choc mama, HOT CHOC!!!". We order, they make, we go to pay.... Um yep, I forgot my debit card and am cashless... AWESOME! More screaming, Caleb still on repeat, and now I'm on the phone activating the secondary card I had in my wallet, and THANK GOD, it worked! (I did not actually hold the line up, had that been the case, I would have just walked out)!
SO... We finally get the Hot Cocoa, Logan is now at least 'thinking' about calming down, and we make it out the door. As I get Caleb positioned back in the stroller with his drink, the following quote summed up perfectly from a nice woman enjoying her 'peaceful' morning cup 'o joe at one of the sidewalk tables, "You have my respect and pity"... Um... Thanks, I think :)
The intent behind this little morning jaunt was to check out the Farmer's Market in Old Town, and let Kevin have a morning to sleep in/relax without distraction. As I walked past that first booth at the Farmer's Market, I had a Homer Simpson "Doh!" moment as I recalled... Farmer's Market = Cash... (Morning: 2, Julie: 0).... However, having a newly activated Debit card, I walk to an ATM... Not so fast.... newly activated ATM = Unknown PIN # and therefore still no cash (Morning: 3, Julie: 0). Some how un-deterred by ALL of the above, I set out to the CVS around the corner, where I intend to buy a water, over pay, and FINALLY get some cash. Luckily that was just the moment when my morning turned. We bumped into Tonya, the boys new nanny, on the street. She fronted me a $20, and helped push the stroller back toward the Farmer's Market, where we found some DELICIOUS fresh fruit, the flowers were breath taking, and Logan finally passed out in the sling! Tonya had to head on for her day, but Caleb and I took our treats, and headed down to the waterfront to watch the boats in the morning and feed the ducks... and Finally the tally in the Mama column started to go up :) After leisurely walking back up the street, with Logan now in the stroller and Caleb on my back for piggy back ride, we made it back to the bike and started to head for home (11am)... About 10 mins into my ride back home, I turned around and both boys are passed out in the buggie. I rode for the next hour, enjoying the beautiful bike trail, bridges over the streams, through the marsh, saw a bald eagle, and enjoyed the peace and quiet!
Despite my rocky start, the day turned out spectacularly... I would say it even qualified as one of my "Perfect Saturday's"... It's amazing how a flawless blue sky, with a bike trail sporting views of water, and a nice cool breeze can make you overlook even the most trying experiences!
Normally that first hour after I wake up, my brain is still dusting the cobwebs off, however this particular morning, 30 minutes into that first hour, I was attempting to lock up my bike and transition my stroller from bike mode to walk mode, while listening to Logan scream his little lungs out and Caleb say at least 50 times in 2 minutes... "Out... Out mama, Out". I tackled that, acknowledged Logan was NOT gonna stop crying unless I was holding him, so put him in the sling and set off to get Caleb the promised 'treat' of Hot Cocoa.
We are now in line at Starbucks... Logan, STILL screaming, despite my consistent 'mama bounce' going non-stop with intermittent "shush's"... and Caleb off of his "Out" repeat has switched to "Hot Choc, Hot Choc mama, HOT CHOC!!!". We order, they make, we go to pay.... Um yep, I forgot my debit card and am cashless... AWESOME! More screaming, Caleb still on repeat, and now I'm on the phone activating the secondary card I had in my wallet, and THANK GOD, it worked! (I did not actually hold the line up, had that been the case, I would have just walked out)!
SO... We finally get the Hot Cocoa, Logan is now at least 'thinking' about calming down, and we make it out the door. As I get Caleb positioned back in the stroller with his drink, the following quote summed up perfectly from a nice woman enjoying her 'peaceful' morning cup 'o joe at one of the sidewalk tables, "You have my respect and pity"... Um... Thanks, I think :)
The intent behind this little morning jaunt was to check out the Farmer's Market in Old Town, and let Kevin have a morning to sleep in/relax without distraction. As I walked past that first booth at the Farmer's Market, I had a Homer Simpson "Doh!" moment as I recalled... Farmer's Market = Cash... (Morning: 2, Julie: 0).... However, having a newly activated Debit card, I walk to an ATM... Not so fast.... newly activated ATM = Unknown PIN # and therefore still no cash (Morning: 3, Julie: 0). Some how un-deterred by ALL of the above, I set out to the CVS around the corner, where I intend to buy a water, over pay, and FINALLY get some cash. Luckily that was just the moment when my morning turned. We bumped into Tonya, the boys new nanny, on the street. She fronted me a $20, and helped push the stroller back toward the Farmer's Market, where we found some DELICIOUS fresh fruit, the flowers were breath taking, and Logan finally passed out in the sling! Tonya had to head on for her day, but Caleb and I took our treats, and headed down to the waterfront to watch the boats in the morning and feed the ducks... and Finally the tally in the Mama column started to go up :) After leisurely walking back up the street, with Logan now in the stroller and Caleb on my back for piggy back ride, we made it back to the bike and started to head for home (11am)... About 10 mins into my ride back home, I turned around and both boys are passed out in the buggie. I rode for the next hour, enjoying the beautiful bike trail, bridges over the streams, through the marsh, saw a bald eagle, and enjoyed the peace and quiet!
Despite my rocky start, the day turned out spectacularly... I would say it even qualified as one of my "Perfect Saturday's"... It's amazing how a flawless blue sky, with a bike trail sporting views of water, and a nice cool breeze can make you overlook even the most trying experiences!
Monday, September 6, 2010
Lyrics for Life
"Back to life, Back to Reality...." Those are the lyrics running through my head this evening, as Kevin iron's his shirt and slacks in preparation for his first day of work tomorrow. Looking back over the past four months, it feel's appropriate having song lyrics describing the way I feel tonight, considering it was a 'play list' courtesy of the man upstairs that kicked off this crazy ride!
4 Months ago, the beginning of May, I was 9 months pregnant, Kevin was taking his last finals, and everything was ahead of us.... One particularly overwhelming day, I get into the car a little anxious and I hear the following songs on the radio in perfect succession from departure to arrival: Faith Hill "Just Breathe", followed by Matt Maher's song with lyrics "this is the first day of the rest of your life", and finally I pulled into my destination listening to U2's, "It's a beautiful Day". I couldn't help but get out of my car with a smile on my face knowing everything that lay ahead would work out no matter what.
I think it was my last post, that likened this adventure to a death defying bicycle ride... well... We've made it, and have grown considerably in the process. It's funny how easy it is to take credit for things when they go your way... Kevin getting through school, getting a great job offer, having a healthy second baby boy, setting up for a cross country move, getting our house in Austin rented, finding a great place in Alexandria... everything fell into place so perfectly... I was flying pretty high, and an instant was all it took to put everything back into perspective. Watching Caleb lying in Kevin's arms, unresponsive, and being completely helpless to do anything except wait for an ambulance and pray... It wasn't us at all, it was all God, and I am SO thankful for all the amazing blessings his given us over these last 4 months, and the awesome opportunities we have ahead of us.
This last week has just been the icing on the cake! It's been BEAUTIFUL weather, the first few meetings with Tonya, our new nanny for the boys, were fantastic and I'm praying will be a long term solution for us, and then a labor day weekend for the books! Saturday we rode the metro into the capital and walked all around the city,then Logan and I had a nice dinner with Tonya and some of her gal pals on the deck of a nice restaurant overlooking the Potomac. Sunday we found a great new church that was very similar to Gateway back in Austin, except only 3 years old and a fraction of the size but growing with lots of promise. After church we took to the bike trails and rode to Maryland... This is the first time I can say I rode my bike across state lines! It was a beautiful ride and allowed us to walk along the banks of the Potomac River at National Harbor. Then Monday we were back on the Metro headed to the National Zoo, and seeing more of Washington D.C.. I had my first grocery shopping experience at Trader Joe's, and am in LOVE, what an amazing store! We seem to be 5/10 minutes away from everything, and the neighborhood is awesome! We would LOVE to be able to share our new town with anyone/everyone who wants to visit so PLEASE don't be shy, cause the only thing we've found missing from this place yet, is all the people we love and miss back in Michigan and Austin!!!
Thanks En Vogue, for bringing me "Back to life, Back to reality, back to the here and now... Yeah"!
4 Months ago, the beginning of May, I was 9 months pregnant, Kevin was taking his last finals, and everything was ahead of us.... One particularly overwhelming day, I get into the car a little anxious and I hear the following songs on the radio in perfect succession from departure to arrival: Faith Hill "Just Breathe", followed by Matt Maher's song with lyrics "this is the first day of the rest of your life", and finally I pulled into my destination listening to U2's, "It's a beautiful Day". I couldn't help but get out of my car with a smile on my face knowing everything that lay ahead would work out no matter what.
I think it was my last post, that likened this adventure to a death defying bicycle ride... well... We've made it, and have grown considerably in the process. It's funny how easy it is to take credit for things when they go your way... Kevin getting through school, getting a great job offer, having a healthy second baby boy, setting up for a cross country move, getting our house in Austin rented, finding a great place in Alexandria... everything fell into place so perfectly... I was flying pretty high, and an instant was all it took to put everything back into perspective. Watching Caleb lying in Kevin's arms, unresponsive, and being completely helpless to do anything except wait for an ambulance and pray... It wasn't us at all, it was all God, and I am SO thankful for all the amazing blessings his given us over these last 4 months, and the awesome opportunities we have ahead of us.
This last week has just been the icing on the cake! It's been BEAUTIFUL weather, the first few meetings with Tonya, our new nanny for the boys, were fantastic and I'm praying will be a long term solution for us, and then a labor day weekend for the books! Saturday we rode the metro into the capital and walked all around the city,then Logan and I had a nice dinner with Tonya and some of her gal pals on the deck of a nice restaurant overlooking the Potomac. Sunday we found a great new church that was very similar to Gateway back in Austin, except only 3 years old and a fraction of the size but growing with lots of promise. After church we took to the bike trails and rode to Maryland... This is the first time I can say I rode my bike across state lines! It was a beautiful ride and allowed us to walk along the banks of the Potomac River at National Harbor. Then Monday we were back on the Metro headed to the National Zoo, and seeing more of Washington D.C.. I had my first grocery shopping experience at Trader Joe's, and am in LOVE, what an amazing store! We seem to be 5/10 minutes away from everything, and the neighborhood is awesome! We would LOVE to be able to share our new town with anyone/everyone who wants to visit so PLEASE don't be shy, cause the only thing we've found missing from this place yet, is all the people we love and miss back in Michigan and Austin!!!
Thanks En Vogue, for bringing me "Back to life, Back to reality, back to the here and now... Yeah"!
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