blog block

I'm having a bit of blog block so this shall be short. Um... I have a bad cold. I'm feeling OK during the day but in the morning and at night not so much. I currently feel like I have an open wound in my throat. Not good. I thought I was done with colds for the season but apparently not.

On the upside Marlie has been a total and complete angel this week. I have not been clawed at in several days. She has been chipper and fun and snuggly and its great. Oh I love her. Also Shane is on spring break this week so we get to have him around at night. Very nice.

Some sweet friends are in town this week from Texas and we got to hang out with them today. One cold Zoo visit and a nice dinner at our house. I love seeing old friends.

Things I am thinking about...

How its kind of nice when business is slow because I can relax more and play more and I'm sick anyway..but its also scary because what does that mean about my business and it means less moolah.

How if I could just soak my throat in chai tea latte I would feel much better.

How my goal for the week was to get moving so I can keep losing weight and then I got sick and walking around the zoo is as close to exercise as I have gotten this week. Boo.

How I love having Shane home at night and can't wait until school is over and this is the new normal.

How I am slowly making a ton of changes with my business (name change, new website, etc.) and I want it to be done now but it won't be for quite a long time.

How I have to get my tax junk all sorted out so we can file it and I hate that.

How I love my bed and the way it feels to crawl in here.

It is 9:55 and if I hurry I can go to bed before 10:00 and that is a rare occurrence. Nighty night bloggy people.

bowling

A few weekends ago I got to take some photos for my church at a family bowling event. Such a great idea. The place was packed and everyone was having such a fun time. There is just something about bowling.

The shoes..


The colorful balls..

And it doesn't really matter how good you are...



Its still a good time.

Look at that form...

weigh in day

Its weight in day again. This week I am up 1.6 lbs from last week. My first gaining week. I'm not upset or discouraged. Lets face it, last week's weigh in was a little atypical with the stomach flu affecting my weight. It was nice while it lasted. Not the flu, the subsequent weight loss :). This week my goal is to get exercising. I feel a plateau coming on and I need to get movin! Its going to be beautiful here this weekend. Woo Hoo! Hope you have a great one!

to the zoo

The weather was nice again today and we took advantage of it. Monkey Pants and I met our friends Betsy and Cia at the zoo this afternoon.

These two are so cute together..



They like to spontaneously hug each other. Its adorable.


And so was this guy...

questions

Today was much better. Monkey still woke up at 4:45. But 4:45 is the new 7:00 haven’t you heard? There were less tantrums and more fun today and it was warm here! Sometimes I think she is just as sick of being stuck inside as I am. It got up to just over 60 degrees and we got to go to the park. Ah spring, please stick around will you?

Kristal sent me some questions to answer for a blog post. Thanks Kristal! I feel low on blog material these days. So here we go…

1. What is your all-time favorite picture that you’ve taken – you can only choose one!

This was so hard! Oh my gosh, so hard. I had to take Monkey Pants out of the equation because well, she would have won of course. I choose this one...



Maybe its because I know them and the story behind their little family? There is just something about it. I love it.

2. If you could eliminate one thing from your daily routine and never do it again, what would it be?

I hate blow drying my hair, but if I let it air dry it looks like poo. If I could instantly have dried and styled hair that would be awesome.

3. What is one thing you splurge on…budget smudget!

Hmm. I haven’t done this lately but something I have splurged on in the past is designer jeans. Its so worth it. I’ve saved up and done that twice. I don’t care if my shirt is 10 years old and out of style, if I have my designer jeans on I feel like I can save the world. And my butt will look good doing it.

4. Would you rather always take a cold shower or always sleep an hour less than you need to be rested?

Gimme the cold showers. Sleep, give me sleep. I love to sleep. Can someone tell Marlie that?

5.You have to sum up your life on a bumper sticker…what would it say?

It would say “Thank you Lord. I’ll do my best.”

I'm so thankful for everything in my life and I give God all the glory. I've had some interesting things happen to me in the last few years. Some dark times. People ask me "Are you angry at God?" but the truth is I haven't felt that way. Its hard to explain without sharing too much, but instead I feel so very grateful. Grateful for the amazing things I have. I feel humbled and just want to do my best with what I have been given.

That's it! If you need some blog material and want to be tagged with this post then leave me your email and I'll make up some questions for you.

She's just being 2

Today was a tad rough. It was one of those days as a mom where I found myself thinking “I have no idea what I am doing”.

The last four days Marlie has been waking up super early. Like today it was 4:45 when she started banging on her wall. When she wakes up she cries and is in a really bad mood. We have tried letting her cry and seeing if she falls back asleep. No dice. She is up for the day. She has been really clingy and sensitive. She is like a little roller coaster, giving kisses one minute and then throwing things in anger the next. Her naps are really short and she wakes up screaming. Her eating habits are all crazy. She won’t eat the things she normally likes. She never wants dinner. Do you know what she wanted for breakfast this morning? Meatballs. What the ..?

I started to think maybe something was wrong. Ear infection, UTI, not quite over the stomach flu? So today off to the doctor we went. And you know what he said? “Nothings wrong, she’s just being 2.” And I’m thinking … “Seriously? Because this is so hard.”

I gave myself a pep talk on the way home about changing my own attitude and outlook and it will help the whole situation. I decided we should do something fun and light hearted to turn things around. I took her to McDonald’s for lunch. What kid doesn’t love a little Mickey D’s date with their mom right? Well, she took one look at her hamburger and fries and tried to push it off the table. Just a dirty look and not one bite. Nice.

The worst part is she is going through a scratching phase. She has never scratched anyone but Shane and I and only when she gets mad about something. Let me tell you, it stinking hurts. Her tiny nails are really sharp. It is a bit like having a kitten. A sweet little fluffy kitten that you want to snuggle with and then...in an instant...it is clawing at your face. We both have some battle wounds that are still healing. Seriously Monkey Pants, you’ve got to quit.

The day is done. It ended on a good note with jammies and hugs and books. I know that it was just one of those days. One of those hard mommy days where you can feel the weight of responsibility to care for your little person…and it feels extra heavy.

This mom stuff is hard. I’ve got the scratches to prove it.

hello Monday

Well, the stomach funk successfully took the whole Duggin household down by claiming Shane as its last victim on Friday night. Ug. That was one week we had.

So, normally I hate Mondays but not today. It’s a new day, and a new week. A week full of who knows what, but hopefully not puke. And it’s a new month! March; now that sounds like spring to me and I like the sound of that.

This morning I am hanging out with these two chipmunks.



This afternoon I have some bookkeeping things to catch up on and name collages to get going during nap time. It’s a new week so let’s go!