High Glamour

No one who is a SAHM can deny that some days, you just want to feel a little more glamorous than cartoon printed pajama pants and a wrinkled T-shirt! I dream of days that begin early with an invigorating run, followed by a hot, relaxing shower with time to shave. The kids would then come running in when they heard my hair dryer that I wasn't too exhausted from my run to use. I would love to make big fancy breakfasts and have time to play with my kids and not just tell them I have to clean, or run, or do something else. I would love to have time for all of the projects that I want to accomplish; for the books that I have yet to read. Most days, that doesn't happen. Today is one of those days. My whole week seems to have been one of those days! Today, I tried to run on my treadmill and it won't work, so I had to use the bike instead which threw me off a bit. I needed to get the laundry done and put away, more than I could rationalize taking the time to get in the shower and do my hair. Besides I rationalized, tomorrow you are just going to have to do your hair again after your run, so take a quick bath and get the laundry done. On a side note, I LOVE baths! I take one every night; sometimes multiple times during my day. They are quite possibly God's gift to SAHMs. It doesn't matter how bad it seems, as long as I get to relax while the water is filling up the tub with bubbles, I can be ready to hop out and go another round. Back to my lament, so my point is that again today, my hair is in a ponytail, not done, my legs are not shaved, I have on my jeans, slacker flats, and a t-shirt, which although better than my pajamas, is still not the uniform I would prefer to be in. There is no other option for me. I don't have the time, or should say, I won't take the time to focus an hour or more of the day on how I look. There are some that do, and I don't begrudge you your time! My brain will not shut off, and it ruins any satisfaction I get from getting ready. I think of all the things that are not getting done, because I am taking to long. Motherly guilt...almost as bad as my former Catholic guilt! Even if I wanted to look polished and sophisticated, it is not in my repertoire. I own jeans and t-shirts. I don't shop for me, I shop for my kids. As long as they are cute and put together, I don't care. I am on the floor sweeping up noodles and cereal. I am elbow high in toilets and laundry. I HAVE to have a clean house! I cannot function amidst filth. That leaves no time for Gucci anything. I would settle for Target at this point. Which brings me to my point, I have no time for glamour. People who say that all we stay at home mom's do is sit at home and watch soap operas deserve to be shot in the knee cap. What I do may not seem glamorous and probably isn't...BUT!!!! What I do is more important than anything else I could ever do. I am raising some of the next generation of people who will be responsible for what happens in this country. It may not seem glamorous to do what I do, but I wouldn't trade it for the world or for any dreams I might have perfected in my head. Nothing is as perfect as teaching my children school, having a clean house, with clean laundry (most of the time) and seeing that at the end of the day, they are happy and taken care of. So NO, I am not glamorous by yours or my standards, but THEY think I am! It's my jewelry they want to wear, and my makeup they want to put on, and my shoes that turn into princess slippers; and that makes it all worth it!

Ode to my Vitamix

I love my Vitamix! We recieved 2 blenders for our wedding, and before we could return the second one, we had blown out the first. Soon after we blew out the second one as well. Mr. T's Mom bought us one of these delicious Vitamixes. Since we were teenagers, Mr. T's family has made shake in the morning, and it was one of those traditions that stayed with us when we got married. Most mornings, we pop frozen fruit and some supplements into the Vitamix and turn it on; minutes later we have a healthy, super yummy fruit smoothie that we call a shake. We always stick a banana into every mixture, because that is what allows us to get creamy shakes without using dairy. Just fruit and nutrients. My beautiful sister in law starts her base with spinach, carrot and organic yougurt that she makes from scratch and then layers differnt fruit mixtures from Costco on top to finish it off. It is a sneaky way to get veggies into your child without them noticing, because it totally tastes like a fruit smoothie. Before I got my KitchenAid, I used the dry container to grind my wheat and make doughs in. I still grind my wheat in it. You can also grind any dry ingrediant to make every flour imaginable. It is incredible and I love it. During the summer, we have fresh salsa all the time. You can make nut milks in it as well. It is a true jack of all trades. Now, I am going to go finish drinking my shake!

Another day, another dialogue

I cannot believe that January is more than half over! I have had such a great Jan. It has been so busy, but I think it has been productive. I started reading "The NieNie Dialogues" this week and couldn't stop! If you have never read them, I urge you to! I began at the beginning(weird huh?), and went through to the most recent. Talk about depressing and heartwrenching, while also being so spiritually uplifting and full of hope. The dicotomy of human emotion was staggering. I was laughing and sobbing (mostly sobbing) and trying to explain my chocolate intake to my dear husband; it was an intense couple of days! I have come away with a greater testimony of having faith and hope through our trials though. It could not have come at a better time! I have to give a talk on Sunday about worshipping through music. I love music! People are tired of hearing me wax on about how much I love music, but bear with me for one more week! I ran 9 miles on Friday and finished! Saturday morning, I was so stiff that I couldn't move my neck and my whole body hurt. I am finally starting to have full range of motion again thankfully! Only, now I have to do 10 this Saturday. I get to run to the church building and back, so at least I know when I am getting close! Still waiting on my passport, should be here no later than Feb. 17th, which also happens to be my sweet honey's birthday! He will join me in the big '29'. I have to run to the UPS store now and brave the lines, my children touching everything in sight and playing chicken for a parking spot, but after that I get to go listen to Catherine have her piano lesson. She is so sweet and I can't believe how big she is getting. Both of my beautiful babies are about to "turn one year older and wiser too". It breaks my heart that they are not little anymore. They are both so bright and eager to be big and do big things. I have started teaching Sarah piano so that she can start after the recital this April. Her little fingers try so hard to do what I am asking! Sarah gets so excited when she does it too; she is a burst of life all the time; all day! While this sounds fabulous, and is, it does get exhausting trying to keep up. Cat is a more somber, subdued child and it has it's benefits and it's drawbacks. I cannot get her to talk loud enough to be heard! She also is shy to the point of looking slightly handicapped at times; I get really frusterated. But for now, they are my babies, jumping downstairs in the "bouncy, bouncy" as they call it (an inflatable jumpy thingy); smiling, giggling and being the best of friends...as sisters should.

Time is Running Out

Well, only 2.5 weeks until my half-marathon and I am getting a little freaked out already. I have a 9 mile this Saturday and a 10 mile next Saturday and then it is the BIG Saturday! For the last 3.5 months I have done more running than ever in my whole life! I was never the athletic one and truly believed I couldn't be. Thanks to my sister in law, Karson, I now know that I can do anything I set my mind out to do. I couldn't run far enough to start the beginner training. I had to train for my training, which felt like I had already been defeated before I even started. That first day in October, I walked 1 mile and felt like I wanted to die! Then I walked two; then walked 1 ran 1 and so on until I could run for 3 miles without stopping. I had never run 3 miles without stopping since I was a kid running around the neighborhood. There have been times that I have wanted to give up, there have been days that I have, but through it all, my goal has been to finish the half marathon without stopping! From running 1 mile to running 8 miles, each mile has given me a sense of accomplishment. I hate running! I get no joy out of the running, but I do get joy in finishing something I didn't think I could do! Each time I can say, "I did it", it shows me how much more I am capable of. It also shows my beautiful girls, that if Mommy can do something hard, so can they. Wish me luck on this adventure and if you don't hear from me, come looking for me on the track!

After it Ends

Before



After



It is always sad to me to put away Christmas. People around the world just begin to be kind and remember the reason for the season and then so quickly it is all gone and the hustle and bustle begins. Who can I beat out for the best sale? Who can I push to get into line first? Christmas always goes too fast for me. We spend all of this time preparing and getting ready and then it's over and done and forgotten. As I drone on about my melancholy days, remember to think about how Christmas makes you feel and how wonderful it can be to have that feeling all year. Be kind to one another and love one another.