Tonight my family came to take us to dinner at cracker barrel which is a treat for all of us! We always have a great time and normally it's because we walk away with a funny story.
At first it seemed things were going smoothly because my Husband got us a table quickly then we made our order while our child played in the gift shop so we were not waiting too long in one spot. Again at first it seemed like it was going well.
THEN - Somehow we waited for an usually long time for our food and finally our waitress informed us our order was lost. Then after a pause she stated it was found. Not so bad so we continued to wait. They started bringing out our food but my Fathers order wasn't complete so after the waitress asked if we needed anything else my Father pointed out he didn't get his order of biscuits and gravy. She then looked at him and said you didn't get it did you. SO funny because it clearly wasn't there but she walked away after saying that leaving us hanging. When she returned several minutes later she stated that the reason that order was not complete was because they had no bread and finally asked if since they wouldn't be able to complete the order would he want her to remove it from the bill or not. What do you say to that?!?! No please charge me for something I didn't receive. So funny we started laughing after she left.
Customer service around the country has really went down hill because like I said before this is not a new thing for us. Especially for my Father it always seems to be his order that always gets messed up. It is also funny because my Dad has consulted with several companies about customer service therefore he has done a lot of research on the subject.
No hard feelings because we will still go to cracker barrel in the future and you never know what type of day that poor waitress had. Just had to post a light hearted post about the running family jokes on customer service. :-)
I am not an extreme coupon person or a super saver shopper but I'd really like to be. Not so secretly I am frugal (sorry cheap) so when I think up a way to save or hear someone discuss a new way to save I get excited!! I know it doesn't take much to make me happy!! :-)
Anyway I was talking with a friend today on Facebook about cell phone bills and how I have an iPhone with no monthly payment. I explained that I do not have an iPhone just an iPod touch and I bought a cheap but good cell phone with minimal minutes so I wouldn't have the big bill every month. Granted this situation only works for certain people like me who use both independently. I only talk on my cell 400 minutes per month most of which are to other Verizon customers therefore the majority of minutes are free. My monthly bill after calling to see what current savings options they had is 450 mins, free Verizon to Verizon calls, and unlimited text messaging all for $30 per month. Then I bought my iPod (rather Casey did) which is a one time payment and you have the same benefit of an iPhone just no call feature. In fact I am typing this blog on my iPod 90% of the time!
Total iPhone cost: $100/month approx x 24 month contract = $2,400.00 over 2 years
Total iPod touch and basic cell phone cost: $30/month approx x 24 month contract = $720 + $400 (64GB) ipod touch one time payment no contract = $1,120.00 plus after that first year you are down to just a $360 annual payment for just the cell phone.
Total two-year approximate total savings =
$1,280.00 that's a good amount for a nice family vacation :-)
Annual approximate saving after the first year assuming no contract on cell phone = $1,200.00 - $360.00 = $840.00 per year which is a nice mini vacation or money in the bank :-)
LOVE IT!!!!
Next thing I just heard about from another friend is to call your Internet, cable, and local phone service and just by asking if they had any new deals running I got $30 discount per month which is a good lunch or cheap dinner date out or again money in the bank :-) totaling $360 for the year!!!!
More to come later!!!! Enjoy that $$$$$ or don't and SAVE!!!!!
One thing you will not see me discuss too much on here is fashion. I have never been a fashionista or even close, but I have some friends and family that have helped me throughout the years not look like a total bum :-) but if it were up to me I'd never go shopping for clothing.
Anyone that really knows me would say I'm fashion challenged and spa driven. In other words I'm a spa girl all the way. Christmas, birthday, anniversary, and just because gifts I'd take a minute at the spa over pretty much any material gift!
Thinking tonight that I might want to call or email some friends/family to help me toss all of my clothes and get a new wardrobe because I hate to admit it but I've turned into a jeans, tennis shoes, and hoodie kind of woman. I also would wear my workout clothes or even the fashion no-no (NO DON'T say it) pajamas all day!
Maybe in the middle of the night when my little snugglet is sleeping a fashion fairy will stop by to sprinkle some of its dust on me to give me some energy to do better!?!? Highly doubt it, but here's to trying... I'm going to try to go to bed now!
It never actually left since this winter has been very mild even by weather channel standards! However I think the sun is so important to see and be out in. Safe sun exposure is key though so don't forget a little SPF!
From the stats I have read the majority of Americans have a deficiency in vitamin D (which the sun provides us), and I have read a few articles where seasonal disorders are occurring more especially during cold snowy winters.
I have a lack of calcium thus to get my body to absorb more calcium I must take a vitamin that has calcium and vitamin D. As I was taking my vitamins today and sitting out in the sun I started to think about how good my nails and hair also have grown since I started taking prenatal vitamins plus omega 3's. Granted I do not think vitamins are a magic healing pill but I do think they assist in making sure your body gets the missing nutrients it needs therefore I try hard to not miss a dose!
This post is sponsored by my insomnia brain with sun and vitamins!! See the photo below for the type of melaleuca vitamins I take!
Oh yes I said it Skinny Cow!!!! I am enjoying skinny cow products and for all of you out there... do not be fooled because even though it says skinny in its name it is still NOT going to make you skinny if you love it!!! It is still not a "healthy" option but it is better than eating real high test ice cream or candy products by far in some cases. I guess if you switched over to these and started eating differently you actually could lose some weight. Even still this stuff is yummy and you feel less guilty eating it because it has fiber plus it says skinny on the box :-)!!! Enjoy!!!
This weekend I hosted an amazing show and had a little ME (lol) time!! It is extremely rare that I get to go to the spa or hair salon so when I do I seriously enjoy every second!!!
I went to a nail salon and the woman that worked there told me 1. My hands/nails were in terrible shape 2. My spray tan was dark on my hands and we laughed at my fingers as they look dirty but obviously had tanning spray on them! Then she recommended this fairly new concept of applying gel nail polish by OPI that normally will last 2-3 weeks no matter how ruff you are with your hands.
I'm loving this gel polish so much!!! BUT I must admit it is kind of a racket because every 2-3 weeks you must return to the nail salon to have the polish removed and redone OR if you want to take it off you must go to the salon to get it off. BUT overall I think it is SO amazing!!! It isn't that costly for a mani $25, it isn't as damaging to your nails as acrylic nails, it is long lasting, and it's OPI (love their colors)!!!
I will update you to see how long they last but for someone (like me) who washes their hands a LOT so far so good because regular polish only lasts on me maybe three days!!
Just to make it clear I have never thought I was/am beautiful. What is natural beauty??? From where I am sitting right this very moment freshly tanned by a Versa Spa spray tanning system I think the definition of natural beauty might be an oxymoron due to the fact (in my case) there is NOTHING natural about trying to be beautiful. In fact it is VERY much so NOT beautiful to be "Naturally" beautiful.
The list:
- Tan people are generally thought of as beautiful and if you do it right you can even look slimmer by getting a good tan... I even might know a trick or two (or more really!) that with using spray tanning, darker foundation, or even a good bronzer you can have "natural" muscles. :) Tonight as I sit here not allowed to shower for at least 12 hours to let this spray tan sink in I think it is not so beautiful but great at the same time! This is the one I just did tonight and I love it for a "natural tan":
- White teeth I read an article somewhere that people actually think you are healthy and beautiful if you have white teeth. Again let's go the "natural" route and use some whitening products... my favorite is Crest White Strips Supreme I get at the dentist office :) they are easy to apply, but do leave a little residue on your teeth that I always wipe off after I'm finished with a tissue.
-Slim Less is more right??? RIGHT??? Well I know a good trick... wear some spanx I do and I LOVE them -- Spanx Best Sellers -- they are an instant 2 or 3 inches off the waistline. The other thing to get slim is to workout really SWEAT yummmy beautiful with aroma!
-Symmetrical Face eye brows the proper length, height, and color... WAX (OUCH) Pluck (OUCH)!! ICE PLEASE!!! Maybe some false eye lashes? GLUE YES removal (OUCH) looks good... YES! Nose trick even Monroe herself used was to contour her nose -- you can do this too with light concealer or highlighter down the bridge of your nose then with a darker liquid foundation you can line the sides of your nose with just a touch to make your nose seem smaller and straighter!! :) All of this screams natural!!! I LOVE Kandee Johnson check her out on Youtube, but here is one of my fav videos about brows just wish I could get my curling brows to act like hers:
-Hair Beautiful hair oooo la la? Well after you are at the salon for 2 hours getting all over color, foiled in highlights, glossy glaze treatment (because you dye your hair), cut, and over $100 later OH yeah you have great hair until you try to fix it yourself :)
-Nails Crackle, Shatter, gel, acrylic, french... no I am not inventing a new snap crackle and pop commercial I am naming off the treatments you can get. At anytime I am worried going to a nail salon someone might say "NO SOUP FOR YOU" because I didn't order my nail preference properly :)
-Skin - Glowing skin oh how I love thee BUT to get there one time in a thousand days lets talk microderm abrasion. Did I just use the word skin and abrasion I must be CRAZY or talking about natural beauty!! Not to mention other treatments like full body seaweed, cucmber, and wahtever else I have in my fridge to throw in there wrap. Also great skin for me at least is attributed to great makeup some costly and takes time to put it on the right way here is one way to do foundation another Kandee Johnson video:
Ok so there is a LOT more but REAL true natural beauty to me isn't all this junk that we do to try to be beautiful on the outside. Let's face it I feel like all my family and friends are SOOOOOOOO beautiful more beautiful than any super model I have seen because honest to goodness I see no flaws when a beautiful... natural beauty of a family member or a friend comes around! When you get to know someone so well often times even when they think or feel they are not beautiful you think they are the most beautiful because they are the person you know will always be friendly and sweet to you forever!
Happy Valentines Day!!! Wild start for the title I gave this post, I know, but as I was reflecting on family, my marriage, and motherhood I could not help myself I had to think about angry birds.
What is angry birds?!? Well you might know it is a highly addictive waste of time game and yet you know secretly you love to play it! Google it or warning do not if you value your time!!
Anyway what does this game have to do with my life or marriage OR yours for that matter? I think it is the underlying strategy of the game that makes me think about life.
In life I have found not everything is as it seems - don't go for the most obvious shot to win the game sometimes the less attractive harder shot is the one that takes down the entire structure giving you the three gold stars! Many times I could see myself taking the easy path in life but I never have I've stayed on the rocky road because I have faith that the road will lead me to a place worth all the hard work it took to get there and it has! Marriage and motherhood are defiantly two very amazing yet rocky roads which is something I could never live without therefore daily I try to work hard at being both a wife and a mother. I'm not sure I'll win the three gold stars but I'm working hard to get there with a lot of help from God because I pray often that I can be everything needed for everyone I love.
I must admit at times I've let the pigs or monkeys get me down in life but I've been flown over it all untouched through my belief of handing over the things I cannot change. Sometimes I've put on the angry bird face... mostly with the people in my life that I really care about because if I didn't care so much I wouldn't bother to be so upset or disappointed. Also I've been an angry bird when I think someone is trying to hurt those I love.
If I had to pick which bird I would be I would choose the bomb bird since sometimes I feel like I'm going to explode with ideas, anger, love, and in general I'm ticking all day plus night!!
The point is - love is worth working for and one day is NOT enough so try to show the ones you love that you love them more! That is a real New Years resolution that I am trying to accomplish this year and on!!!!
The little things are BIG!! Just got a loving gift today that my Husband made for me :-) so beautiful because all he bought was the fruit which he then cut, tooth picks, and a foam half moon shape! Tasty fruit treat yummy
In today's world if you are not connected you are out of luck. Face to face is almost obsolete and I am especially ashamed of myself for not trying harder to bring that back into style. Once upon a time I read an article that clinically proved that human touch could level out your heart rate plus people that had friends close to them normally proved to live longer.
Why is it SO hard to connect in real life with family and friends? My problem is that I am 100% centered around being a mother, being with immediate family, and trying to survive the chaos of keeping our house in some type of order.
My downtime is also limited because I get 1 hour or less each day alone while my child naps then at night I normally have from 10pm till 3am or whenever I can sleep to be alone, talk to my husband, get things done that I cannot do with a littleone around, and do things I just didn't get accomplished during the day. Of course I do absorb myself into doing a lot around the house and maybe I've become a homebody?!?!
Shocking if you know my personality but maybe I am a homebody? Maybe I'm so centered on my small little section of the world it is hard for me to do anything except make excuses about not catching up with friends and non immediate family members. I use to LOVE to throw parties and have people around 24/7. Even though, then I didn't follow through when I thought about someone enough to buy them or their children gifts to actually mail them out (yes I had a box of gifts for special people that I never sent - SHAME)!
This year, call it a resolution or whatever, but I'm going to make a better effort to do better!!! Here is to bringing real life interaction back even if my most seen "friend" is my iPod!!!
I love tea it can turn a frown upside down! Right now I'm big into green tea and a friend of mine introduced me to Acai berry tea and it changed my world. It is so nice to put my sweet baby to bed, take a nice long shower, and have a warm cup of tea to relax!!
write in. Yes I said it and I went political on you today, I've seen plus heard too many people discuss how they are - 1. Not going to vote because they don't like anyone running 2. Vote for someone because it is just picking the bad from the worst 3. Vote for the party they like no matter if they agree with the persons view or not. ALL of these disturb me because the decisions of our government will greatly change our lives.
If we as Americans really want to make a statement write in someone's name you think will be great. Maybe if the write in percentage rises the message that the general public needs more than change but rather a new motto of complete overhaul. If they ditched the high horse, lip service, suits, and really take an inside look at an average Americans life MAYBE just maybe we can all get along. I must admit I don't believe a president can turn it all around over night and I'm not bashing any party or president but I dislike knowing people are ditching the idea that we can make the American dream possible again.
In fact I'm disappointed in all parties and I think when we start placing laws on basic personal rights or even discussing it we are going too far. I think what we really need to be discussing is the National, State, and local budgets to see how we can learn from our mistakes and start doing better with finance. From personal experience working in government finance I have seen the good and the bad. I must admit lately it seems like no one is looking at how they are connected to each other thus we keep pulling budget strings that jerk around those at the most individual level. No knock against our President or a party but rather several years of fighting against each other in a bipartisan way of course. I know when you get a group of people together that are different it is difficult to go in the same direction but difficult is NOT impossible . In concept to balance a budget is simple, but in practice with laws and personal agendas putting pressure on the situation can be a complete disaster.
I dislike being negative about is disaster because being an awfulizer will not solve the problem instead I'm going to use the only authority I have to send a message I will rock my vote in the direction of who I feel will overhaul and if no one is on the ballet I will write in a name of a family member who I think would make a great President!!!
No I'm not drinking champagne! I'm talking about a nice relaxing bath!! I'm a spa type of gal but since I'm too cheap to pay for the spa now - plus who has time? I do spa treatments at home! One great way to do this is to take a bath or shower. When I get around a LUSH shop or order from ivi scents I love getting bath bombs and special bath soap. I must admit because I feel more clean and I know a bath uses a LOT more hot water I am more of a shower person, but on stressful days I soak my body and tired mind in a nice warm bath!
For me it is ALWAYS to clean! I LOVE to clean and/or organize it is a form of relaxation for me. I must admit my house is very lived in lately and if you are invited to come to my house you are at that point family because you are getting me good/bad and all. Something I always loved was in college when one of my BEST friends and roommate called me Miss Clean!! Now I look around and notice it is not as clean as it normally was BUT I am not going crazy about it because I know it as clean as it possibly can be.
Here is my cleaning list:
Task
How Often
Use
Bathroom - Sinks
Weekly
Clorox
Wipes
Bathroom - Mirrors
Weekly
Windex
Bathroom - Toilet
Weekly
Toilet
Bowl Cleaner Any will work
Bathroom - Clean shower
Weekly
Mela
Tub and Tile
Bathroom - Clean Jacuzzi Tub
Weekly
Mela
Tub and Tile
Bathroom - Mop Title Floors
Every
Other Week
Once
Done Cleaner with Water
Bathroom - Towels
Weekly
Mela
Detergent
Bathroom - Rugs
Monthly
Mela
Detergent
Bathroom - Replace Stock of Supplies
Monthly
Toilet
Paper, Paper Towels, Hand Soap
Bedrooms - New Bedding
Every
three days
Mela
Detergent
General - Straightening Up The House
Daily
Recycle
What can be Recycled
General - Garbage
Weekly
Wednesday's
General - Dusting
Every
Other day
Pledge
and Swiffer Wipe
General - Dusting Out of Reach Areas
Every
other week
Swiffer
Wipe, Swiffer Wand
General - Spot Cleaning Walls
Every
Other Week
Cloth
Wipe with safe wall cleaner
General - Washing Walls
Yearly
Cloth
Wipe with safe wall cleaner
General - Vacuuming
Every
Other Week
Vacuum
General - Shampooing Carpets
Yearly
Stanley
Steamers
General - Laundry
Daily
Mela
Detergent
General - Baseboards
Yearly
Wood
Cleaner
General - Washing Binds
Yearly
Dishwashing
Liquid and Water
General - Water Plants
Weekly
Water
- Sunday's
General - Change out Air Filters
Every
6 Months
HEPA
Filter same that is there
General - Mail
Daily
Recycle
What can be Recycled
General - Windows
Every
6 Months
Windex
Kitchen - Sink
Daily
Wipe
out with Clorox Wipes
Kitchen - Dishes
Daily
Dishwashing
Detergent
Kitchen - Draining Rack
Every
Other Week
Wipe
out with Clorox Wipes
Kitchen - Mop Title Floors
Every
Other Week
Once
Done Cleaner with Water
Kitchen - Clean Oven
Yearly
Self
Cleaning - Wipe out with Paper Towel
Kitchen - Clean Microwave
Every
Other Week
Wipe
out with Clorox Wipes & Dishwasher the Glass Plate
Kitchen - Clean Under All Appliances
Yearly
Vacuum
and Mop with Once Done
Kitchen - Cabinets
Yearly
Wood
Cleaner
Kitchen - Refrigerator
Monthly
Wipe
out with Clorox Wipes
Kitchen - Clean All Appliances Exterior
Monthly
Stainless
Steel Cleaner with Paper Towels
Living Room - Couches
Monthly
Mela
Detergent and vaccum
Living Room - Couches & Pillows
Every
Other Week
Spray
with Fabreez Fabric Disinfectant
Office/Workout - Desk
Every
Other Week
Pledge,
Swiffer Wipes, and Organize
Office/Workout - Workout Equipment
Each
Use
Wipe
out with Clorox Wipes
I know I probably forgot something or I might do something more often or less depending on how things go, PLUS I am trying to switch EVERY product over to Melaleuca because I do want to use safe cleaning products for my family.
Here are a few tips:
1. DON'T allow yourself to get overwhelmed it can happen and ruin everything just take it one room at a time and one section of the room at a time.
2. Clean from High to Low because you will be moving dust and dirt around so make sure you clean your floors last
3. Organize a little while you are cleaning, but stash things then go back to organize or you will get off task
4. If you are in a pinch pick three things you really want to do in each room and do it don't look back :)
5. White vinegar is your friend and is safe to use on most anything google it if you have questions I use it a LOT!
6. If you are overwhelmed DON'T be afraid to call in help paid or volunteer I know I have especially when I was pregnant it is not failure to ask for help
7. If you are up at night and cannot sleep make a list of things you would like to clean up so when you accomplish cleaning it check it off because we all know if you are like me you have a list for EVERYTHING
8. Put some blood pumping music on I jam out while I clean... snow white whistles and I do a little exercise with it TWO for ONE in my opinion
9. I get serious so I wear some gloves :)
I think that is all, but I hope you find this helpful and if you have any questions please do join my site and post a comment!! :)
Or don't! Have you ever had anyone tell you NOT to overreact but...? I think it starts something like this - don't overreact but I am about to do/say something that will hurt you or maybe I already have so don't overreact! Defined on dictionary.com overreact means to react too emotionally...humm. Often in life passion or just plain human nature causes us to "overreact"!?!?
Don't overreact but we are going to cut your pay or get rid of your job or you have cancer or you will have difficulty having children or number of life changing situations. How can you NOT be emotional about that kind of news? I think really what people mean when they say don't overreact is don't react at all in fact be happy I'm putting you in a difficult situation.
Granted I DO believe the statement can be used properly especially when applying it to "reality" TV shows such as any of the real housewives shows when someone really flips out when shoes they bought are not the right color END OF THE WORLD!!!!!! :-). But in general I think it is not using the golden rule of treating each other as we would like to be treated if we say don't overreact as it has been used on many as a form of "calming" someone down.
I guess it goes back to how I was raised:
-Believe in God and try hard to live good
-Help others even if they are not going to reciprocate and don't expect them too even if you need their help
-be nice to others even if they don't have something you want (aka don't be a rump kisser lol)
-If you mess up apologize and admit you are wrong
This list could go on and on but in simple form you get the idea I'm not going to tell you not to overreact! In fact I think it is healthy in a difficult situation to react so you are not bottling up negativity inside of you!!! Granted I do think before you speak your feelings in a time when you are so hurt you should take in a big breath and really think before you speak because what you say cannot be taken back. In addition I'm a big believer that prayers can be answered so I pray to forget and forgive when someone has hurt me by saying don't overreact as bad news or hurtful things are said.
What is easy? Just wondering because life seems so hard now. Not just mine but it seems like a lot of people's lives are having a staccato beat.
I know we can turn this bad "luck" around! Who needs things to be easy? I think my life has some amazing memories from times that things were the most difficult. Some of the things I remember being funny or memorable are the ones where there was no reason to be happy other than the fact our strong faith, family, and friends pulled us through.
During medical situations with cancer, transplants, c-sections, well you name it AND even during activities where we "tried" to have a good vacation... stage 4 terminal to sleeping in a Hardee's since we had no place to go we made the best of it!!!!
Some statements I'll never forget:
-Cancer is ugly but survival is beautiful
-A Hurricane not again
-Well while you have me under do you think I could get a little work done to correct a few things too
-Hardee's hotel
-I can feel my left side sure can I see my baby now
-Good thing we have big noses so maybe you might not notice how much you have to take out
-We can put your makeup on and comb your hair over those stitches no one will notice
-duct tape and a hammer can fix anything
-less than 36 hours we are going to remove those staples (holding arthritis hand) I think I'm hurting your hand more than it hurts to pull these out
-You don't need to worry it's a small fire and the firefighters already put it out
-Trip insurance YES you have met my wife
Ok I could go on and on but I'll stop there :-)
Honestly, who wants easy? Easy is given not earned and in a second easy can trick you into thinking it is better BUT at the end of the day you forget about easy times and are lifted up by the times that push you to your knees because you had to make good from bad to keep doing good!
I'll take my faith, friends, and family with me to keep going the hard way every second of the day!! Who's with me?!?!?
Have a virtual made from scratch cookie (by my mother-in-law) 0 Calories that way it is EASY just do not bite your computer :-)
At our house a smoothie can accompany breakfast or be a nice treat after any meal!
Here are some of the recipes I use:
Blueberry Blast
Frozen blueberries 1 cup
Ice 2 cups
Plain Greek yogurt 1 cup
Water 1 cup
Strawberry blue banana Hannah
Strawberry banana frozen no sugar added yogurt 2 scoops
Coconut juice 1/2 can
Ice 1 cup
Water 1/4 cup
Banana chips 1 package
Blueberries frozen maybe 10
Tropic topic
Cup diced pineapple
Coconut juice 1/2 can
Plain frozen yogurt 1 cup
Ice 1/2 cup
1/4 cup water
All of these depend on the type of blender you have and how much you want to make plus I eyeball mine adding a little more water or juice if it is too thick or adding more ice and yogurt if it is too thin.
Let me know what you do I love getting more recipes!
We are a snacking society! I know I LOVE to munch but I also try (keyword) to be healthy. Where I live I must admit we do not have a great selection of fresh food unless it is spring or summer. We do not have a fresh market, farm fresh, or anything even close SO I either get items shipped to us from online orders or I travel around an hour to get to a better grocery store.
Here are a few of my favs WHICH are not great as far as healthy but for snack foods they beat the alternatives especially when some of these are prepackaged:
Not a misspelled word but rather a wonderful volunteering opportunity that our church has done every year that I can remember. Children in our church decorate a local grocery store brown bags and they are passed out several weeks before the Super Bowl to each of the members of the church to fill up with canned goods to bring back to church Super Bowl Sunday to donate to our local food pantry. Each team is represented in two different shopping carts and you can place your bag in the cart of the team that you will be rooting for. It is a great way to celebrate one of America's most well known sports, but also help the community!! I will post photos of this after Sunday's service, but it is really great and if your local church, organization, or workplace wanted to do this too I would highly recommend it just contact your local food pantry!!
BTW I do not watch the NFL often nor do I really have a preference for one team or another so I will be going with my amazing Father on this weekends game... GO GIANTS!! :) http://www.indianapolissuperbowl.com/
If you check out this website http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superwoman you will see superwoman in 1964 was actually an evil character against another woman, Wonder Woman, none the less. Wonder woman was always depicted as good, but call an amazing super powered woman whatever you will I know she isn't evil AND she is real.
She is not one woman however and she has many more superpowers than listed in any comic or storybook because they have it all wrong! I admire a LOT of woman especially of course my Mother who is so selfless that she has over the years put herself in lots of crazy situations just to make us children happy/healthy. I also see a lot of my friends who I admire because they go superwoman/wonder woman on the world trying to figure out how to balance being a woman in this crazy world with children or without children I think these women can do anything if they set their mind on doing it. We are so driven sometimes to obtain our goals that sometimes it is misconstrued as being emotional, unreliable, and other undesirable words I have heard as I listen to my friends/family tell me about their life. The truth is that these women are remarkable - YOU are remarkable for all that you do to make positive change in this world... so SUPER it up ladies!! :)
Just a little more info on this subject just for a longer read:
The following movie called I don't know how she does it is really cute and shows some real life issues with being a working Mom:
Now I am a stay at home mom (I HATE that term btw) which I have been doing for a year now, but I was a working mother for a year too (which I still work trust me). I don't think I'm all that different from a lot of other women out there as far as schedule is concerned so I thought I would post my daily rounds for all to see:
Before Baby (M-F):
6am Wake up get ready for work
7am Leave house to get to work
8-noon work
noon-1pm lunch
1-5pm (or later depending on meetings) work
5pm drive home
6pm dinner with husband
7-10pm workout, clean house, spend time with husband, laundry, volunteer with several organizations, work on my Masters, read, journal, and whatever else I needed/wanted to do
10pm Bed
When I was a working mom this was my routine:
5:30am - wake up get myself ready and usually dinner ready in the crock pot unless we were having leftovers
6:30am - wake my baby up get him ready
7:00am drive baby to daycare
7:15-7:30am drive to work (crying)
8am-noon work (break at 9 to pump because I was nursing my baby)
Noon - eat Lunch in car on the way to go back to daycare to nurse baby
1pm-5pm or later Back to work (break at 3 to pump)
5:30pm pick baby up from daycare
6pm home to get dinner ready
6:30pm dinner
7-8pm play with baby/talk to husband
8-9pm (or whenever it happened IF it did happen) put baby to bed
9-midnight or later pack bags for next day, clean house, pay bills, laundry, and whatever needed to be done!
1am nurse baby and get him back to sleep
2-5:30am sleep
REPEAT
Now my routine (M-F no breaks and no sick days - oh after 21 months not nursing anymore):
7am wake up with baby
7:30am pickup house
8am prepare breakfast
8:30am eat breakfast
9am clean up from breakfast
9:30-10:30am get me and baby ready together - very interesting
10:30am "school" time and free play in our playroom
11am-noon errands
Noon Prepare lunch
12:30pm eat lunch
1pm start the nap time process - sounds simple right? :)
2pm or whenever baby is sleeping get anything done around the house in the undetermined amount of time I can laundry/pay bills/clean bathrooms/ect
2:30 or 3 or 3:30pm baby up ready to run with more energy go outside/go to pool/play in playroom
4pm snack time
4:30pm start thinking about what I am going to cook for dinner while picking up a few messes missed during the day especially if we are inside
5pm cook dinner
6pm get dinner on table so family can eat
6:45pm clean up dinner, clean floors, try to finish anything that I didn't do during nap time (laundry/cleaning/bills/etc)
8pm start the bedtime process
8:30pm bath time
9:30pm put baby to bed - very misleading might be an oxymoron even
10:30pm hopefully baby is asleep and I can have a few moments to take a shower/read CNN/watch a movie/paint my nails or do anything to relax UNLESS 1. the baby is still awake and 2. If I did not finish all my errands/chores during the day if not I might run to the store or be doing chores
Midnight - Insomnia so I might balance the checkbook, blog, clean out cars, dust baseboards, stand on my head... you get the point go crazy
3am on occasions baby will wake up so bedtime process starts again :)
3-3:30am get some sleep finally
REPEAT
It is now 4am WAY past my normal bedtime going to go get into my routine!!
Weird topic I know, but let's talk about nothing! Last month I wrote a post about nothing on my Facebook site because around January 22nd it was heavy on my mind due to the fact that date is the anniversary of my baptism. Don't worry I'm not going to push my beliefs down your throat but I strongly believe in God and that day really moved me because the sermon was all about nothing and how God can create anything from nothing. At various points in my life I have allowed people or some circumstance make me feel like nothing, but after years have past I have grown to realize I am NOTHING. I am better than something because nothing is a blank canvas that has not reached maximum potential in life. I know Nothing is MUCH more powerful than something. I've always been confident in myself but I enjoy being a people pleaser because I like to see those around me happy. It seriously breaks my heart when I feel like I have hurt someone especially if after the fact I realize I handled a situation incorrectly I apologize and pray for forgiveness. In several situations I feel like I have been walked all over and felt defeated which I would never wish on anyone. I am sure you have been there too! I have been sitting in meetings where I felt others were getting ready to be walked on and because I was NOTHING compared to others in the room - I'm just a totally replaceable young blonde girl (oops woman)... I feel bad looking back on that because I should have stood up for those people that also are NOTHING! BUT when I think about NOTHING I do not feel bad for those people that are NOTHING but rather for the those that are so concerned about being something. Don't get me wrong I do not hold a grudge for things that have happened in the past because during all of the discussions about nothing I realized a grudge does not fix anything it only hurts the one that dwells on the negative. Negative attitudes cannot amount to NOTHING! Instead when I think back I realize anything that has pushed me down really has accomplished just the opposite and I am thankful for that! SO in closing I'm going through life so happy to be NOTHING and hope you feel like NOTHING everyday!!!!!
Currently I am working on a short e-book that I will post on here. I am taking a book I was writing down in my journal and converting it into an e-book so hopefully in a few months I can post it on here or at least part of it to see if you like it. Also, I am going to start posting videos on YouTube that will have tutorials, silly subjects just for fun, and a few on items that I am putting up for sale so you can see the actual products I am selling up close with more detailed descriptions! I think this is how you get to my YouTube account, but like I said I really just started to scratch the surface of getting this going http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSpiralBound/
Last night after blogging about my favorite things at 2am I realized that something must be wrong with the time stamp on my computer or blogger site because I think it stated my post was published at 9:45 PM which couldn't be possible due to the fact I was in the thick of reading bedtime books with my baby at that time. Anyway, I started to look around on iTunes store at 2AM looking for a movie to rent on my iPod and found a fitting movie called In Time which has Justin Timberlake so I rented it (with a gift card thank you hubby)!! The movie itself is like a lot of other movies but I like the way they used time as money because as the story goes time is money. Here is the trailer:
If you get the real meaning that when time (money) is gone you die you see this movie depicts the current day real life issues of people not having enough of either but those that share plus stick up for family/friends/beliefs can make life better. I think this movie was created because the majority of people are in the middle, lower middle, or the lower class in America thus feeling the pains that these characters in the movie felt. I think every time I open CNN or I read posts on Facebook I see jobs cut, I need a job, I hate my job, why do I work so hard for so little, and things along that line. Obviously people are struggling and more and more is dumped on the individual. As long as I can remember I have set goals for myself and took steps to accomplish the goals that I have which normally required taking the hard way to get to the end result, but that end result was always worth it. Now it seems reach those goals it takes so much longer with a lot more research/resistance/assistance than ever before because you have to know every little detail to make things happen. For example one of my lifelong goals has been to save money which is a general goal that seems to be so easy however now to save money and make sure it is growing (working for you) today I had to learn a LOT. WHAT ?!? Why would I have to learn how to save money just stick it under the mattress and keep the money you want to save there... bad plan, but is it really a bad plan in today's failing economy? Now a regular bank savings account is earning you less and less interest (rates around .7-.9%) instead of more - Money Markets, CD's, and IRA's are not what they use to be either. More rules more regulations equals more headaches for even someone (like me) that loves researching and reading about this kind of stuff. Saving money early for a child's education even if you go with something like a 529 you have to stay on top of it like it is seriously your baby egg that could hatch any moment. People are expected to educate themselves on very complex issues because laying trust in an establishment these days gets you in trouble in my opinion because they have tons of customers you are a number and you cannot walk up to a teller window and she pull up your account just because she has known you all of your life. Plus an establishment with all the things that are placed on the employees they sometimes are not the most knowledgeable even if you talk with them because change happens so fast "no one here has been trained to answer that let me call the 800 number for you" then when you get the representative (PLEASE no auto machine PLEASE a REAL person) they do not have time to look closely at your account or other financial intuitions to tell you... lady you know if you went across the street you would get more!! I know I have started to make myself better educated on medical expenditures so we can even make our HSA work for us not against us. I guess all in all this post is just one big night of thinking about time, money, and making sure I can meet goals set for myself by staying educated on everything sharing that with my family/friends if they need to know AND NOT being negative about it, but rather being positive that in this moment right now if I only had one cent and one minute I have all that I need because I have family and friends beside me to share the load with as we all educate ourselves on how to use both wisely!
