Blog

march goals update

Here’s how I did with my March goals.

No screens while with people. I think I did really well with this! It was hard at first, but I got used to it pretty quickly and pulled out my phone less and less. I am a little sad that I haven’t been very active on Twitter or Instagram lately, and I do miss that interaction, but my life is very full right now.

Do The Love Dare. This is a relationship challenge that lasts 40 days and each day includes a few pages of reading, a challenge, and a space for journaling. I have been very consistent in reading each day and I have tried to follow through on the challenge if it applies to our situation. I have done journaling only sporadically but I’ve still appreciated the daily reminder to not neglect my marriage and I feel like in general our relationship has improved because of it.

Cut all blue triangles for quilt. I completed this in a couple of hours one weekend and it was very satisfying to finally DO something with that fabric. I can’t wait to see it come together.

Honor the speed limit. I did this. I wasn’t always perfect, but overall I was aware of what the speed limit was and stayed within 5 mph of it. I enjoyed the freedom of not having to worry about getting pulled over, and I felt safer. This, like the “no screens” goal, is a change that feels right and won’t be too hard for me to keep doing.

One craft or project just for fun. The spirit of this goal was not fulfilled, since I wanted it to be for something completely different and random. I did things for fun, like the quilt cutting, Project Life, working on a cross stitch, and making a birthday card for a friend, but those all served different purposes. Next month I’ll have more time so I think this will be a carry-over.

Get caught up on bills. After a rough start financially in 2013, we are finally in a much better place. We are caught up on bills and unplanned expenses and should be able to start saving more from here on out.

More family walks. We did go on more, say 1-2 a week, but before this month we hardly took any walks at all. I would like to do this a few times a week ideally.

March felt really busy for some reason and was kind of a drag at times. But I am loving the monthly goals format and I’m so glad I chose to do it this year. April goals coming tomorrow!

April 1, 2013
sleep conversations, vol. 2

My husband talks in his sleep sometimes when I’m waking him up, and it’s awesome. Here’s a sample of some things he’s said lately.

***

On a Saturday when he was going in to work

Me: What time do you want me to get you up?

Him: Get me up for the gay pride parade. That’s when I need the most help.

***

Me: Time to get up, love.

Him: You SAID I had 48 hours.

***

Him: Did you see that profile?

Me: Profile for what?

Him: The magazine.

Me: You’re doing a profile for a magazine?

Him: I thought you were writing one on me.

Me: What magazine?

Him: Hustler.

***

Me: Time to get up, love.

Him: I thought you were going to do the ratings.

Me: what ratings?

Him: The quarterback ratings.

Me: I’m in charge of the quarterback ratings?

Him: Well not in charge of them but you promote…(unintelligible mumblings)

Me: I promote what?

Him: I thought about Meredith being a star athlete.

Me: A quarterback?

Him: On a men’s team, if she can get a sex change operation.

***

Him: That’s a pretty cool name for your girl group, I like it.

Me: Oh yeah? What’s our name?

Him: Untraceable.

Me: So are we a super secret spy group?

Him: No you have math stuff like compasses…

Me : (disappointed) So we’re a girl math club?

Him: But you rock. You’re a rock band that sings about math.

***

Find the first in this series here.

March 28, 2013
project life 2013 : week 9

This spread only encompasses a single week instead of my normal two. After I printed out two weeks’ worth of photos and I looked at my list of things I wanted to include I realized that I would have to cut a whole lot out to combine them so I made the decision to split them up even though it will put me even further behind.

This is the week of February 25 to March 3. The photos are not placed chronologically at all; I usually try to keep them somewhat in order but this time they fit better all mixed up. So this side has photos of the fabric I bought for my quilt, my daily morning coffee and Bible study, and a couple of Instax outtakes that I didn’t end up using for the Book of Lists. I journaled about a casual date that David and I had, along with some random tidbits.

Originally I didn’t intend to include this yellow color (I’m not drawn to the boldness of it) but I like the journaling prompts and so I included a few pops of it.

The left half of the right page is random stuff from the week. The cross stitch project I hung, a picture of Meredith and her cousin Cameron eating at the big table at their grandparents’ house, and the receipt from the piano transport company that delivered my grandmother’s piano back to us. My brother has had it for the past year but it doesn’t fit in their new house so we got it back. I clipped on a photo of Meredith playing on it.

Oh, and the above is no longer a valid address so no worries there. :)

The right half of the right page is dedicated to Meredith’s baptism. There are two family photos, a journaling card, and a QR code that links to the video.

So I’m several spreads behind now, but my vacation is coming up and I intend to get all caught up!

March 27, 2013
around here // blah

I am recovering from the major blahs. Last week started off with pinkeye followed up with a sore throat, neither of which got me out of work. I have also been plagued by recurrent, almost constant sores on my tongue and inside of my mouth for the past six months and last week they were really bothering me and were enough to make me cry. No idea why I am so susceptible to them but I hate it. Plus I’ve been having these random dizzy spells, possibly related to that time of the month although they are a recent development.

So for most of last week I had little to no energy above and beyond what I needed to get through the basics of the day (sometimes barely even that) and I was also pretty emotional. I didn’t blog or do anything creative because I was feeling supremely uninspired and not excited at all about anything. Then Meredith got sick with a cold and mild ear infection starting on Friday so we tried our best to take it easy all weekend although she was so uncomfortable she coughed and cried all night so we didn’t get much rest. I am tired.

Extra coffee helped, as did a helpful husband to take over the regular chores and parents who love to babysit. One exciting thing that happened was the birth of my new niece Karley. We got to visit her on Friday evening before Meredith’s sickness really hit but because of that we haven’t been able to go back. Meredith loved seeing the real life “baby” (one word she knows really well) although she was NOT a fan of mommy holding anyone other than her.

Despite all this I did manage to get some other stuff in. I finished a Project Life spread and realized that I need to clear off my desk because most of the stuff there I rarely use anymore. I made some slow progress on my current cross stitch project. I got a lot of cutting done for the quilt, and I made it to book club.

Most of the weekend was just spent coddling Meredith though. There were lap naps and some kitchen play and blocks and book reading and lots and lots of holding. I can’t complain too much about that, it was pretty great. And outside it was gloomy and a bit windy/cold so I didn’t feel like we were missing much by staying in. Although I am tired today, I am also optimistic because this is a short week (we get Friday off) and then soon after that is my week off! So nice to have that to look forward to.

Hope you are all having a happy Monday. :)

March 25, 2013
what i wore this weekend // sunglasses edition

I’ve been meaning to do another outfit post for awhile. The problem is taking the photos, because I don’t have a tripod and my husband is, shall we say, less invested in getting a good picture than I am. However he IS a good sport, so I hope to keep these coming every now and then.

shirt: Old Navy // pants: Banana Republic (old) // shoes: Teva // belt: old, who knows? // sunglasses: c/o Firmoo // necklace: heirloom from my grandmother

I wore this to church and all day Sunday. It was gorgeous and warm outside and I wanted to be comfortable but not overly casual. These t-shirts from Old Navy are one of my favorite things ever. I have them in several colors and wear them all the time. I plan on buying many more because they are so comfortable, fit well, and so far have held up to lots of washing. You can wear them on their own or use for layering. These pants are also one of my favorites because they are such a flattering fit and I feel light and happy when I wear them. The sandals are my go-to’s, are super comfortable and supportive, and I’m a fan of mixing casual with dressy so I decided they worked.

Now let’s talk about these sunglasses. I wore them a LOT over the weekend because I came down with some kind of eye infection. I am not sure if it is a type of pinkeye or not, but I had a ton of crust gluing my eyes shut in the morning, redness, itchiness, and pain. I decided to forgo mascara and just wore these indoors for half the time when I was in public.

Lately I have had a really hard time finding sunglasses that fit my head. My old ones were falling off (I think they got bent so they were too big) and my new ones hurt my head after awhile. Firmoo, an online optical store, let me choose a pair to try out and I picked these, which are actually tinted regular glasses with no prescription. They fit great and I’m a fan. A few things about the company if you’re interested in trying it out: they have a cool “virtual try-on” feature where you upload a photo, they’re super affordable because the glasses aren’t branded, and you can get your first pair free.

Anyway! I’m back at work now even though my eyes look a little scary. I’m planning to visit ye olde employee health clinic at some point today to get some drops or ointment without having to miss work for something so small. Have a great week, you.

March 18, 2013