Friday Five: 8.22.13

1. We have entered a time where no paper is safe in this house. AJ has become our little "tagger." His initials show up on everything from grocery receipts to a birthday card I started writing out to a friend and left unattended to change a diaper. It is my favorite kind of graffiti. 
2. It is normal for kids to have an item they are attached to. For lots of kids it's a blanket or a stuffed animal. Sammy? Currently obsessed with a towel. A hooded monkey towel. He drags it around the house and cries if he notices me throw it in the laundry pile. 
3. I made muffins this morning. AJ and Sammy friendly blueberry muffins. At 4 in the freaking morning because I was awake (thank you Samuel Frederick) The only people who ate said muffins? The adults in the house. Picky eaters seem to be a universal part of parenting. Feeding picky eaters with two opposing food allergies? For the love...
4. Speaking of eating, here's a look into my weight watchers brain. I was craving a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. What I ate? A peanut butter and banana sandwich. Why? Because bananas are zero points. So clearly if I'm going to eat something like peanut butter that has a zillion points, I should definitely not spend an extra point or two on jelly. Crazy. I know. 
5. I am the keeper of the calendar in this family. I write everything down. (because lord knows my sleep deprived memory can't be counted on!) So imagine my surprise when Karl forwarded me his flights for his upcoming trip to KY. And those flights? A week later than the week I have him out of town on the calendar. Oh, they changed the dates of the national meeting. Guess who didn't tell me? Lucky for me (and the aforementioned traveling husband), Nana Joan is coming to visit for 3 weeks in September, and so we will have childcare coverage for both the week Karl is going to be gone AND the week he was supposed to be gone. I swear, if I win the lotto, I'll keep my job and hire a live in nanny. I love working, but I do not love figuring out who will take care of my kids when I'm doing so. 

Happy Friday, friends. 

That one time...

• that one time when I went to drop AJ off at daycare in my fuzzy slippers and didn't notice until I saw my reflection in the door. Had to change my whole plan for the morning because running errands in said slippers is frowned upon. So Starbucks drive thru it was. Never has an Iced Caramel Machiatto tasted so good.
• that one time when my second solo shift was full of all of the calamities I worried would happen during my first solo shift, and in the end when I was wracking my brain and on the verge of tears I realized I was having a panic attack because I didn't see a minus. Added the minus and all was well. If only all my problems were so easily solved. 

These are the things I will laugh about some day. Who am I kidding? These are the things I am laughing about right now. If you can't laugh at yourself what can you laugh at? 

Hello, Monday

Hello, early. After a stretch of somewhat reasonable wake up calls from Sammy, it appears we are back to the oh dark 30 start. Silver lining: extra quiet time to sit in the dark with my laptop and my coffee. And the coffee is hot. (Thank you Keurig auto timer!)

Hello, heat. Weirdest summer ever. Last week I woke up shivering because we had left the windows open on a night when the low dipped into the 40s. This week? Our forecasted high on Wednesday is hotter than the high in Central Florida. Not a fan. My only hope is that this heat wave FINALLY ripens the tomatoes I have on the vine.

Hello, project life. I gave myself the day yesterday to play a little bit of PL catch up. Just me, my stuff, and the work room at Archiver's. (And a dollar beverage from McDonald's if I'm being completely honest.) When they locked the doors and kicked me out at 5 last night, I was working on the first week of AUGUST. As in, I'm only a couple of weeks behind. (We'll just overlook the mess of mostly empty page protectors that is February-May.) I really love this project. And this weekend I finally fell in love with my cameo.There are two spreads I completed yesterday that don't have a SINGLE THICKER. Gasp!

Hello, weight watchers. I am, once again, back on the wagon. Summer *should* be an easy time to focus on clean healthy eating. Lots of grilling and salads and time outside. This summer? We grilled and ate salads and I drank too much gin and iced beverages from Starbucks. And Dairy Queen. Last weekend I stepped on the scale and started fresh. I approached this last week with a menu plan, and a fridge full of good choices. Result: down 3.6lbs.

Hello, planning for fall. Registration opens at 6am this morning for the fall session at the Y. My program book is highlighted and I've made my little grid. I am ready! The boys will enjoy swimming and music and gymnastics, and mama will enjoy a couple of water classes of her own. 

Here's to a great week, friends.

On My Mind: 08.12.13

• Our new hardwoods were totally worth a sleepless overnight at the hotel. 
• I should buy two pairs of slippers this winter to last me through the year. It's not easy to find cute slippers in August!
• I can only control my own behavior. This is a hard lesson that I have to learn over and over again. 
• Sometimes you need a good cry, but sometimes hysterical laughter can serve the same purpose.
• I'm so thankful for my job. I love it. I love the people I work with. And I love that it's just enough time away to make me happy to come home to my dudes. 
• I am ready to hire a sky writer to proclaim "I ONLY HAVE ONE CHILD IN DIAPERS!" 
• Conversely, I think AJ is ready to give up his nap and I just might need to rock in the corner when that happens. 
• My Project Life album is so reflective of my life in part because it's incomplete. Why would the album be perfectly put together and organized when my life is...well, not. 
• It is not easy being a girl who loves to cook and eat who is also trying to return to a healthy weight. Why can't I love running or yoga as much as I enjoy spaghetti and tiramisu?