A Quick Getaway

We just celebrated our 15-year anniversary by returning to our honeymoon destination in San Luis Obispo. One of our friends had the kids overnight and my MIL had them the next day so we didn't have to rush home. The drive up the coast was gorgeous! I did the driving. This is our new agreement, that I do the driving. He would drive and we both got stressed out. Now I drive and it's find. (As long as he doesn't try to "help" me!) We had a very memorable and enjoyable overnight trip.

In no particular order, these are some highlights of our 15-year anniversary getaway last week. 

His and hers coffee we got at Bello Mundo, a coffeehouse in SLO. There was a friendly atmosphere and the coffee was amazing! We sat next to the big window in front and watched people walking by for about an hour. A very pleasant experience!

I scored a stack of like-new knitting books for $1 each at a hospice thrift store. I wonder if they were donated from someone who supports hospice or were leftover from a knitter who passed away under the care of hospice. Either way, I was happy to have them and will definitely put them to good use!

Apple Farm is the B&B we stayed at for our honeymoon 15 years ago and returned to this year for our anniversary. If you are looking for a place to stay in the SLO area, this is the way to go! The rooms are cute and comfortable. We had a private hot tub on our patio outside and it was heaven! We looked at the stars and watched the moonrise while relaxing, bliss!

On the way home, we stopped at a lovely beach and explored some tide pools and rocks. I made  DH climb up a big rock with me and take some pictures. Definitely a good way to close out our trip!

Bzz Bzz Bzz

Hello there, dear reader! It's been a while.

I am so incredibly busy I almost can't believe it myself. Between homeschooling and my Etsy shop and all the million other things I do or have to do, it is difficult to get here! Here's a little recap.

Since the beginning of this year, we have dealt with some major health issues with our children. I am happy to report that everyone is now cast-free, suture-free, and on the road to a healthy spring. We hope. Don't say that too loud.

I am struggling with my thyroid. Again. My newest symptom is an extreme sensitivity to cold. I have always been a warm person, emotionally and physically. Ha ha! So when I am shivering and freezing while everyone else is asking to turn on the fan, I know something is wrong. I have always seen sensitivity to cold on hypothyroidism lists of telltale signs, but never experienced it. I don't like it. I'm always in a sweater or jacket lately when most people are running around in shorts.

Speaking of running, I am still getting out there, though not as often as I would like. I am eager for summer and freedom from homeschooling to get back to my morning and evening runs! Right now, I go whenever I can, which is about three times a week. I missed the 100-mile goal in February, but that's not surprising considering everything we were dealing with at the time. So, my weight loss plan is mostly just diet and a little exercise. I seem to have stalled out at 155 lbs and I suspect thyroid issues may also be to blame.

Homeschooling is motoring along toward the middle of April and standardized testing. Ugh! I want my kids to walk in prepared, so we are heavy on math right now. HEAVY! I think the kids are enjoying it somewhat. We are about to start geometry and I am dreading it! This is the only class I got a C in and I don't know why I never understood the ideas. Maybe I should blame the teacher. Hmm.

How are things in your part of the world? Not too busy to do something you love, I hope!

Party at the Park

This past weekend we celebrated my grandmother's 85th birthday. A simple potluck at the park with family and friends stopping by for some fried chicken and birthday cake is all she wanted. We were blessed with beautiful weather and had a wonderful time!

The kids had the run of the park since no one was there but us. There was a lot of scooter riding and playground fun. I really think park parties are the best for everyone! The kids were free and the adults were able to converse and enjoy all the good food. The best of parties: good food and better conversation. We had both!

The entertainment of the party was provided by a spunky squirrel who snatched an ice cream cup from the party next to us and ran up a tree with it. This squirrel was hilarious! It held the cup at every angle trying to get all the ice cream, even over it's head, swaying like a drunk! Finally, it was finished and dropped the ice cream cup on the ground. I have never seen that before! Good times!

Keeping It Simple

Wow, this month is just flying by! I am already counting down to my birthday. Yes, even though I'm an adult, I still make a huge deal out of my birthday. Eights days to go!

The perfect birthday cake for me!

Usually I get a lot of great stuff for my birthday because it falls right when we get our tax return. I know, great timing! But, this year we filed early and honestly I'm not really feeling it anyway. Maybe because the past few weeks have been so stressful with hospital visits and getting my Etsy shop going, I am keeping it simple.

I want to get my hair cut and go for a mani-pedi, maybe get some acrylic nails put on. I LOVE having nails! I am also going to color my hair, not sure what color. Remember the black cherry color? Hm, yeah, not sure I want anything so dramatic this time. With summer right around the corner, I may go reddish, nothing too bright. I'm thinking Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman reddish-auburn. Or a burgundy. See? I'm undecided. But I need a change.

I wish my curls were this loose and lovely!

Forty is coming! Not this year, not next year, but it's coming. I need to get my act together! I want to hit 40 at full speed and make it the best decade of my life. That's the plan. I still have a ways to go. I am almost at my goal weight for this month, yay! Only a couple more pounds to drop. And the goal of running 100 miles is still a reality, but barely. I've been slacking, majorly! But I'm close.

March is right around the corner. What are your plans? Summer is the light at the end of this long winter tunnel. Do you see it? Think about it. Think about bathing suits and beach trips, endless evenings outside and shimmering heat wave afternoons. Sigh. I can't wait. I love summer.

Surgery Day

 

My youngest son had his, ahem, personal surgery today. We got up at 4:30am and headed out. I am not a fan of waking up early, as you know. However, a surgery at dawn is preferable to waiting around all day. Right? Yes. I just made sure my clothes were ready as was my coffee. I slept in my bra, not a good choice, only because I was too lazy to take it off last night. I justified it by our early departure time, but honestly it wasn't worth it. Don't try this at home.

 

 

See this monkey? This is Mr. M's special friend who accompanied us to the hospital, right into the OR! See his great outfit? Yeah, the doctors did that in the OR! How cool is that?! These doctors chose correctly when going into pediatrics. We loved it! Mr. M loved it.

 

 

 

And here is Mr. M before surgery. Trust me, he looked very different after and I was NOT going to pester him for a picture. He did great, though. The surgery was successful and thank God it is over! He is happily recuperating at home, eating crackers, drinking 7Up, and sleeping. I am happily doing whatever he asks me to because I love this kid.

 

Good times. 

One of Those Days

January has been a standout month for my family, medically anyway. This is an account of our latest adventure.

While calmly working on my Etsy shop, stinkR, inside the house, nice and cozy, the air was suddenly split by a blood-curdling scream from outside. I knew the kids were running down to a neighbor's house to deliver a get well card, but I didn't know there was a large group of them and they were running in a herd as if being chased by a T-Rex. Mr. M was in the middle of the pack.

He is not fast, nor is he as old as the other kids around him, and someone accidentally (I keep repeating that word to myself) tripped him. He fell full force on his hands and later told me he felt his pinkie finger bend all the way back. Hence, the scream.

Like any good mother, I froze, waiting to see if the screaming would stop before I had to do anything. It did, but only because he went into that silent scream mode. You know, like that painting? My older son raced in and got me. I looked at M's hand and there were no outward injuries. But he kept crying, unusual for him. He is quick to cry and quick to stop, especially when there is playing to be done. He was not interested in doing anything. We kept icing it on and off and decided to give it until morning to see how it looked. He was subdued and slept through the night.

Well, when he woke yesterday morning, the first thing I noticed was he totally favored the hand, like kept it close to his body and wouldn't move it. I took a closer look and WOW. He had a huge cartoon hand that was turning blue in places! We immediately headed to urgent care.

A few x-rays later and we had the diagnosis. He has what is known as a Boxer's Fracture. We watch UFC and MMA fights so he's familiar with these guys and how this fracture can happen. I think he felt a little better. The problem is that the fracture is ugly, not clean. The bone is off to the side, not on top of itself. He may need surgery to have a pin inserted and get the finger growing straight. He has a soft cast until Monday when we see the hand specialist. Oh, man. Almost a week to wait.

This is my youngest son. He already has a surgery scheduled for next Wednesday to correct a, ahem, personal boy issue, and I was struggling to handle that. A child going in for surgery? Under anesthesia? With probing and cutting? Not a mother's best day. Add this whole finger-pin-insertion thing and I am feeling like I'm on the edge of insanity for real.

If you think of him, please pray. He's a trooper. He is utterly brokenhearted about missing the baseball season, which is just starting. He cried more about that than anything else.

Did I mention that my van wouldn't start when we were leaving the hospital? Yeah, it wouldn't. I sat for an hour repeatedly trying to start, waiting for my husband to come from work an hour away. I knew it wasn't the battery. We have a finicky starter. I just could not believe that I had to deal with that, too. But it finally started and I raced home.

I won't describe the rest of my day, but at one point, I knew it was over and I took a 2-hour nap. I had to check out for a while, you know? I woke up, spent some quality time on Etsy, DH made dinner, and then I went to bed and slept soundly. I have declared today Yarn Therapy day. I am going to knit and not look up. Except to take care of Mr. M, of course.

Back On, Baby!

Here I am, happily typing on my laptop. Yes, the gear I needed came on Thursday and I have been busy taking care of my business.

I don't have much to report. The weather has been rainy, literally. Usually here, we only get the clouds, but we have had lots of real precipitation and I have not been so motivated to run as to go out in it. We use Gamefly, a video game rental mail delivery system, and received Just Dance 4 today. Dancing is one of my loves so I will be getting my exercise shaking my booty with the kids tomorrow.

I have been knitting and working on my Etsy shop, stinkR, lots of good things happening there!

We signed the boys up for Little League. They are on two different teams so I am looking forward to lots of knitting time during practices, as well as runs to and from the field. I love watching my kids play sports. I love cheering for them and encouraging them to do their best. Princess O is about to start gymnastics, something she has been asking for since we moved. This girl is such a wiggle worm, always kicking her legs around and waving her arms, I think she will be outstanding.

We watched an interesting documentary today, Craigslist Joe. This man devoted a month of his life to living off the kindness of people he met on Craigslist or through activities posted on Craiglist. Sounds crazy, right? If you like documentaries, this is a good one. I enjoyed seeing my faith in humanity validated. I truly believe that humans look out for one another and when we see someone in need, we help. This is a great film. He receives everything he needs from food to clothes to a ride across country. A few of the people he comes across are weirdos, no doubt. At least by my standards! Joe definitely has a profound experience that is enthralling to watch. Although, I did wonder...what happened to that bike he borrowed?

Okay, I'm off to enjoy the rest of this Saturday night elsewhere online. What are you doing tonight?

Not Yet

Well, I was so excited to get the mail today, hoping my computer gear would come, but...do you know what I'm going to say? Right! There was no mail service today! For a good reason, no doubt, but I was disappointed. So here I am on my phone because I haven't used many words today and they are bursting out of me.

No homeschooling today, which meant lots of knitting! I posted two new listings on stinkR, another knitted necklace and an amazing cowl that I almost hate to sell. But I can make another one! I started a couple new projects and now I am knitted out. Seriously. I need a break. I know, it sounds funny. The Muse comes and stays, then flees. I'm not worried.

It is so hot here this week! I'm not complaining. I get to run in shorts and a tank top and work on my winter tan. A winter tan, you ask? Yes, such a thing exists! And I love it. My run was fabulous and I got good and sweaty. My goal is to run 100 miles by my birthday. I'm past 30 now so I think I will make it.

I finished season 3 of Mad Men tonight. Thumbs up! I think the season was closed off perfectly. I need a break from this show, so I'm deciding between Walking Dead and Sons of Anarchy. Both are in Netflix. I need an escape show while I knit. Breaking Bad is on the backburner right now, although I do miss Jesse. I almost can't watch it anymore since I'm near the end of what's in Netflix.

This week is wide open. I miss my homies. I think I need a night out.

Sunday Runday

Today I ran 5 miles to try to balance all the junk I've been eating. I defiled my body with McDonald's on Friday. There was really no other option, but I still felt gross. So a long run was needed and helped me get over it.

I bought some different protein shakes today, the Special K brand. I didn't check the ingredient list. I didn't think I had to! But right before I poured it into the blender, thank God I listened to that little voice and looked. Carrageenan! Ugh! This seaweed preservative is sneaking into everything! I have an intolerance for carrageenan. My abdomen gets painfully bloated and other bad things happen. It's not good. I avoid it. But it is everywhere!

So I made my own post-run chocolate shake with cocoa powder, lowfat milk, and frozen cherries. It was awe-some! I love having chocolate milk after a run. I think about before and during my run. It motivates me!

I haven't been posting regularly because my laptop died. Actually, the charger cord got ripped by some short people who live here. I finally ordered a new one from Amazon (for half the price they were selling it for at Best Buy, but that's another post). I'm excited to get it next week because I've missed writing. I hope you've missed me, too. :)

So This was My Day

I love the weekend. I have the freedom to go for a long run since dh is home with the kids. No worries, no fears. I hit the asphalt and don't look back. Today I went for a 5 mile run and it was the best.

I run through my neighborhood. There is a good sized hill that I use for warming up. Then I use the other side for running down. The temperature was hovering around 50 degrees, perfect for running.

I prefer to run with music. My playlist is something I'm always tweaking to get just right. I know I've told you about Run Hundred before. I'd be lost without it! Tonight I spent some time downloading new music and compiling a new list, rearranging the current one I use.

So now I have a hip hop themed list and an alternative style list. Typically I get more motivation from the hip hop, but lately I've fallen in love with some alternative music that gets me going, too.

Speaking of going, I am hitting my old track tomorrow morning. I'm in that area for the kids homeschooling classes. I haven't been on this track for over a year, and I hate track running, so we'll see how it goes. I'm really excited to run to my new playlist! That's he major benefit from tracks: headphones. I don't wear them on the street to run, too dangerous.

My new goal is to lose 8 lbs by the end of February, my birthday, on which I will be turning 38. Yikes! Let's call it 30-great. 8 by 30-great is the new goal! Definitely doable.

What are you working toward?