Garden Update

I started out today thinking that I would spend about 20 - 30 minutes pulling some weeds in the garden area and cleaning off the patio in the backyard. WRONG! I ended up spending the entire afternoon/evening working on the yard again. I'm really enjoying it! I love seeing my little sprouts growing!

Today, Jason and I had a very productive day!!! Here's what we accomplished:

We thinned out all the dead branches from the "Mushroom" tree.

Moved the monster rocks to the other side of the yard, by the pool.

Cleaned up all the old fall leaves.

Cleaned up the patio furniture.

Moved the furniture to a new location in the yard.

Jason cleaned out the shed and worked on the pool sweep.

Then.... here's how I finished up the afternoon:

Pulled weeds in the garden

Planted some corn, red onions, white onions, watermelon, cantaloupe, pumpkin and sage.

Made a trip to Home Depot to pick up new sprinkler head.

Made out labels for the 23 different vegetables/fruits/herbs I now have planted.

Started some seeds growing in the kitchen to fill in the areas of the garden where some of my seeds didn't sprout.

A little over a month ago, I thought I'd have a nice and small little garden... and it'd be a fun little hobby to do with Keira. Now, I'm finding that I'm really enjoying the project... and find it pretty relaxing/fulfilling/fun/addicting!

Now, here it is.... closing in on bedtime and I need to take a shower before climbing into bed. I've realized that I forgot to eat dinner. The house is so peaceful and quiet.... Jason's playing hockey and Keira and Bailey are fast asleep! I should get in the shower and go to sleep.... but I'm loving the silence so much, I don't want to move!

OK, scratch that.... Jason just got home from hockey, Bailey is awake... and the TV is going on. It's no longer quiet in here.... guess I'll go take a shower!

Hair nightmare...

Why do hairstyles have to be so difficult to pick? And once you’ve found one… why is it so difficult to explain to your stylist?

I recently went to my stylist of 6 years with an idea of what I wanted to do with my hair. I tend to get bored a lot lately with my hair, so I find myself changing it up almost every 8 – 10 weeks, unless I absolutely love the cut. Well…. I wanted something a little shorter, a little more layered on top to give it more volume… and I brought in a picture...... I know that we have different types of hair, but I think this is a really cute cut and wanted something like this:

I can't decide if I like it or not. When I left, of course it looked cute... because she styled it. The next day... when I tried to style it myself it looked like a cross between a an old fashioned swim cap and a mullet.

Sunday, I tried straightening it and it just looked frumpy. This morning I blew it dry upside down and I thought it might look cute…. But still kind of swim cap-ish. I am not exactly sure what to do… because if I go back to have it re-cut… it’s going to have to be a lot shorter and I’m not sure if I’m ready to go that short. I’m also wondering if I play with it for a few more days if I can figure out how to style it myself so that it looks cute.

I just don't know what I should do.

Spring at last..... Spring at last!

Oh I forgot how much I love spring! I love walking out into my yard every morning and seeing the new growth on the trees, the flowers blooming.... and the sprouts getting bigger and bigger every day!

This weekend, Keira and I decided to take advantage of the warm weather and we pulled out the bike trailer and my bike and took a ride to Grandma Dub's house. It was a short but sweet little ride; just enough to make me realize I need to be riding my bike more. We ended up spending the day getting ready for Andrea's surprise party... which despite a few hurdles (Andrea not wanting to stop studying to leave the house) the party went off without a hitch!

Today, Jason dropped Keira and I off at Grandma Dub's house after a quick trip to Home Depot. We hung out a little bit to say our "see you laters" to Chandra and grabbed my bike and Keira and I rode home. We spend the next few hours working in the yard some more. Today, I laid out the drip line and planted a few more things.

I've been nervous about the bell peppers not sprouting yet, since I have now seen sprouts from a few of the other seeds that we've put in. Keira and I went to the nursery to check out some of the herbs. They had some beautiful red and green bell pepper plants... so I picked up 2 green and 1 red. We also picked up a jalapeño, basil, oregano, and celery.

The Jalapeño

The Celery

The Bell Peppers

The Tomato, Oregano, Basil and Sugar Snap Peas

The Strawberries and Cherry Tomatoes

I realized after spending a few hours doing yard work and going for a couple short rides this weekend how much my body needs by way of getting activity in. I've been really bad for the last few months about getting to the gym. I hope to take advantage of the nice weather and be sure to at least get in some walks this week during my lunch break.

Cleaning out the Kitchen

Last night Keira and I watched Julie & Julia. Well, truthfully I watched it while she slept on my lap, but she kept me company just the same. I thought it was such a cute movie. I loved the premise of it… didn’t realize until the end that it was a true story. Now, I’d like to read Julie’s Blog. It got me thinking…. I’m not looking to “Master the Art of French Cooking”… but I am looking for a change in the way my family eats. I want to go back to basics…. But still keep food interesting and full of flavor. I want something beyond meat and potatoes, but without all the processed/pre-packaged garbage.

I’ve recently been trying to make a major change to what I’m eating. I am trying to extend this to my whole family, but that’s going to be a work in progress as dear hubby loves his potato chips and gummy bears! I’m sticking to a diet of Fresh Fruits, Fresh Vegetables, Whole Grains/Legumes, and Real meat. If it has ingredients that I can’t pronounce I’m not buying it. If it didn’t have a mother… or come from the earth, I’m not going to eat it. I’m clearing my cupboards of items containing High Fructose Corn Syrup and replacing them with healthier options for all of us. Gone are the days of waffles and pancakes made from “Just add water” boxes…. I’ve discovered how easy it is to make them from scratch! And guess what, I’ll let you in on a little secret….. THEY TASTE BETTER! Plus, and this is my favorite part, I have “Little Chef” to teach and help me and she absolutely LOVES cooking with mommy!!

Garden Update

We had our first sprouts show up! We have Broccoli sprouts! YEAH!!!

I knew when I woke up this morning that today was going to be a busy day.... but I got a lot more than I bargained for!

After a short trip to the hardware store, to pick up some tomato cages and some new gardening gloves, Keira and I got started on finishing up our garden. After a short while, I realized that the vine we had growing along side of our yard down the entire fence needed to come out. It grows some "Audrey II" looking pods which open up and drop very fine white fur into our pool, which is clogging the pool sweep. We called Jason in for his support and set him right to work tearing out "Audrey II!" Little did we know this would open another can of worms!

After taking out the Audrey, there was a ton of clean up and anther plant that needed to be relocated. I transplanted one of our 6 year old plants to another side of our yard near the pool filter. (The thinking behind this was 2 fold..... 1: I love the plant and didn't want to just tear it out and throw it away. and 2: We thought that with it next to the pool filter it would help absorb some of the noise when the filter is running.)

Once we got all the plants moved and removed filled 2 yard waste containers and made huge piles in front of our house, it was time to clean up and get the rest of the seeds planted! Here's what we planted today:

Cherry Tomatoes, Standard Tomatoes, Sugar snap peas, Strawberries, Carrots, Green Onions and Spinach. This is in addition to the Broccoli and the Bell Peppers that we've already planted.

My poor baby!

Keira has had a cough for a few days now.... it started out as nothing but for the last 4 days she has sounded horrible! Sometimes it sounds like she can't breathe when she is coughing! We finally decide to call the advice nurse to see if we should bring her in. Jason took her this morning. Well.... Keira has pneumonia and an ear infection! Now I'm questioning whether we should have taken her in 3 or 4 days ago!

Ten Things I Love

Cuddling with my love bug An unsolicited “I Love You” Road Trips with Mom Reindeer Games with family and friends Trying new recipes Soaking up the sun on the boat Walking through Crunching Autumn Leaves Campfires with good friends A really nice bottle of wine The way Keira smells fresh from the bath

Thought I would take this idea from Lindsay's Blog since it was so cute!

Wake Up Call

I've struggled with my weight my entire adult life. Shoot, you might even say my whole life. Looking back I always felt like I was the bigger kid. In high school, I know I had some kind of eating disorder. I wouldn't eat breakfast, would have a diet coke for lunch and would eat whatever the family had for dinner. I managed to stay thin, even underweight for my height, but I wasn't healthy.

My whole life I've had some man in my life telling me I wasn't good enough... pretty enough... thin enough...

"Don't eat that, you'll end up fat like your mother!"

"Do you want to be UGLY for the rest of your life?!"

"Just look at you, how do you think I could be attracted to you?"

"When did you get so fat?"

To my best friend from my boyfriend:
"You need to take her to the gym with you, she's getting a little thick."

All of these comments were either said when I was a child or when I was 115 - 145 pounds! At 5'6 that's a BMI range of 18.6 - 23.4. (Normal weight = 18.5-24.9)

Never once was I able to enjoy my body. The last two comments were the most catastrophic to my self esteem. I immediately started gaining weight. Once I started gaining weight, it was hard to get it under control again. I lose and gain and lose and gain the same 20 pounds over and over again.

Once my daughter was born, I forgot how to focus on my needs and health. Here we are 3 years later and I'm a mess. I weigh the same as I did when I was pregnant with her. I'm unhealthy, unhappy and feeling like I've been beaten. I know everything I need to do to get my weight under control. It's really simple.... burn more calories than I eat. I know I know I know. Just do it already!

Well, last night I got a bit of a wake up call. I had some blood work done yesterday and discovered that I'm on my way to Type 2 diabetes. If I don't start eating better and working out... I am sentencing myself to a shortened unhealthy miserable life! My body doesn't process glucose like a normal healthy body does. Now I need to figure out how I'm going to tackle this... because I refuse to live like this anymore! I got the call..... and I'M AWAKE!

She is her father's daughter!

So this past weekend, we went to Disney on Ice World of Fantasy. Keira has figured out that all she has to do is ask for something and Grandma and Grandpa get what ever Keira wants.

She wants a new tiara... DONE.

She wants a t-shirt..... DONE.

She wants a Tinkerbell Hat.... DONE.

Snow-cone... DONE.

She's starting to take after her daddy more and more!