Just a short one today. Not so sure how well I’m doing with the wellness thing this week.
It makes perfect sense to fill this with Easter candy when trying not to eat so many sweets, right?
And it makes perfect sense to be making a cake using Peeps Pepsi when trying to accomplish the same goals does it not?
What? It does not.
Well, at least we’re having a chicken and spinach skillet for dinner. Perhaps the spinach will cancel out some of the candies and sweets? I can only hope.
This morning’s breakfast was a flip yogurt due to time constraints of getting to work. Need to plan out making the shakes the night before on work mornings. Can’t quite bring myself to wake the family with a blender at 7 AM. And today’s scale number was not in the right direction, see above, reason: candy consumption.
A few positives to end my post:
work was nice, a kid who seldom connects with me gave me a picture (“an invitation to my birthday and my house”)
I bought new tennis shoes, old ones had a hole in them
Finally picked up bird seed and a little pot of my favorite spring flowers (pics soon)
Took J for a driving lesson
Had a nap (We’re not going to call it a sugar crash)
Sometimes it’s better to focus on the sweet things in life that aren’t tempting things like jelly beans, Hershey’s cookies and creme eggs (I don’t even like white chocolate but these are so good and addictive), and Reese’s peanut butter filled easter eggs.
It’s been a somewhat interesting Tuesday. Couldn’t sleep last night and then, woke up to a 6:30 a.m. call into work. Could only go in for about an hour as J had his appointment but I went ahead and helped out for that short time. And doing it again tomorrow, however, this time I know in advance and won’t have to be there quite as early.
Took J to his appointment. He didn’t want to go out for lunch afterward. Who is this kid? So, we made a quick grocery store run and ended up having homemade pizza for lunch. Spent some time messing around in the backyard. We also tested the a/c in the house. Works.
Heard the crows fussing at the owls late last night. Seems the crows chased them off successfully. We’ll see if I hear the owls (or the crows fussing) again tonight.
Pretty slow basic day over all. Tacos for dinner. We (well, my husband helped with mine) set up our new phones. The kids ran to Target and I spent time watching the crow’s nest. Talked to one of my brother’s about Easter, they already have plans. Not a huge deal as invite was very last minute.
Somewhere in all that I started a new book, Two Days in Lisbon. Very good so far, probably going to go back to reading it after I finish this brief post. Not sure why this post almost feels like a rather unexciting diary entry. Just missing the fuzzy cover and little padlock with the key. Did you ever have one of those? I think I even had a little pink one with no security like the padlocks at one point. Back before they were called fancy things like journals.
Well enough of a diary/journal entry/blog post for now.
Ah, it’s finally April. Getting closer to that spring and summer weather with blooming flowers everywhere. My favorite.
Today, my mind is full of all the projects and things I’d like to get done. However, my body isn’t quite keeping up after a not so restful night’s sleep and a bit of achiness (the weather, I think).
It’s cloudy with a slight chance of rain today. It’s currently 57 but feels a bit cooler to me. Still was warm enough overnight that I left my outdoor house plants outside for an extended vacation. Soon enough they’ll be moving out there full time. Tomorrow the high is supposed to be in the 80’s (!!!) with another slight chance of thunderstorms. Then, back down to highs in the 50’s for the rest of the week. Lows in the 30’s, plants back inside for a bit. Weekend, however, looks perfect with sunshine and highs in the 70’s.
As I Look Outside My Window
I see birds that are a bit upset that the feeders are close to empty. However, let me tell you what I heard outside my window in the super early morning hours. The calling of a couple of barred owls. Very close, likely in the Maple tree. That never gets old.
Right Now
Working on this post, doing a bit of laundry, and thinking about lunch.
Thinking And Pondering
Easter plans, if we’ll have any outside of church, all the projects around the house I’d like to get done.
On My Bedside Table
The usual. Here’s a couple views of my dresser though as it tends to get stuff on it more often than the bedside table which I limit to only the lamp, phone charger, and phone. (Of course, underneath it, I currently have all the Easter basket goodies hidden)
On My TV Tonight
Probably just The Voice. And I’ll watch my latest Doctor Who episode while folding laundry. Should probably do another books/movie/tv post soon as I’ve watched some great things and read a few fun books.
Listening To
The dryer. Probably going to hear the cat complaining as she wanted outside, she’ll soon change her mind.
On The Lunch Plate
I’m leaning toward chicken tortilla soup (from a can)
On The Dinner Plate
Pork chops, potatoes, and salad
On My Menu This Week
Kind of worked this one out while grocery shopping…
MONDAY: pork chops, potatoes, salad *J has a lesson at 6:30*
TUESDAY: burritos (using a simplified version, we’ll leave out the beans of this recipe) *J has an appt at 11:00*
Just started reading The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell, seems like a promising thriller so far.
On My To Do List
Um, all the things!
Laundry
Grocery store *DONE*
Clean the house
Send a couple Easter cards (get Easter cards, also)
Call family regarding Easter plans
Need new work clothes as well as a new pair of tennis shoes
Change Instagram password (we’re getting new phones, can’t remember my old password and don’t want to get locked out of my account-again)
Outdoor chores: get birdseed, start more flower seeds, clean up yard
Finish Easter baskets for the boys (yes, I’m making my adult children baskets)
Move/Rearrange a few things around the house
Bonus item: mark off some vacation weeks this summer (No longer worried about my work not calling me ever again. I work the end of May, bit of June, and so far all of July. Could change though)
Plans This Week
Finish the Easter baskets (I went with an overwhelming/overkill on it Peeps theme plus I’m giving them some new shirts/shorts), Work on cleaning the porch/yard-take things to the city wide trash/brush drop off on Saturday, and get J started driving again (plus look into local driving schools)
What I’m Creating
Starting to plan out the garden areas and front porch/deck areas. So excited that it’s almost time to add the flowers.
Simple Pleasure
Walking around the yard seeking out small signs of spring
Looking Around The House
Started to clean on Saturday before becoming distracted by the weather so it’s not awful. Still see lots of heavy winter blankets and such to put away. Always needs tidying as well.
From The Camera
On My Prayer List
Unknown neighbor who posted on the neighborhood site, seemed to be having a very tough time of things, friends who are not feeling well (we had to postpone our monthly game night due to illnesses), a few sick teachers (strep is going around our area apparently), family. Kindness, peace, and healing to spread throughout the world.
Quote For The Week
Seems fitting to my mood today:
Spring is the time of plans and projects. (Leo Tolstoy)
Just taking a little “paws” from my usual postings this weekend. Much too beautiful a day to be inside at the computer. Needed a bit of a break. I’ll be outside alongside the cat dreaming of the flowers soon to be blooming on the front porch.
I’ve got nothing tonight. Big time writing block. Just posting to stay on track with the Blog 365. Not even an April Fool’s Joke. Here are a couple photos from April 2017 that were probably on my old blog (still sad that so many of those photos are likely lost when I transferred things to the free site.)
It makes sense that not every day is going to be a full and exciting post if we do this for a full year. Today is one of those days.
Not too much to share. Slow start to my Friday. And didn’t accomplish too much today. Just one task really. I took J to the DMV to renew his expired learner’s permit. And we almost bought a lottery ticket afterward.
We were, not kidding, in and out of there in under 10 minutes! Only 2 numbers behind when we got our ticket. Called up quickly, handed over our documentation and money, and out with a renewed learner’s permit. Not sure where the department of motor vehicles functions in your area but around here, fast is not usually in the vocabulary if going there is in the conversation. And on the last day of the month no less!
Not much else happening around here today. Debating pizza for dinner. Washing the bedding. Slowly changing out the March decorations for Easter.
Ending this one by sharing a couple random photos I took on my phone the past 2 days. One is the end of what was probably a more beautiful sunrise than I captured (missed the best colors). And the other a cardinal that surprised me by poking its head out of the boxwoods yesterday.
Last week, Daniella over at Dana Handmade posted her answers to this Proust questionnaire. I really enjoyed reading them and thought it would be so fun to play along!
The questions seemed a bit more serious than the ones you typically see in the about me questions (I love reading all types of those, no matter the questions!). Here are my attempts to answer these. The hard thing, I think, is I have more than one answer to many of these.
The Questions
1. My main trait – hopefully, kindness though I’m sure I don’t always succeed
2. The quality I want to meet in a man –already met one, ha. answer is honesty.
3. The quality I prefer in a woman – authenticity
4. What I value most in my friends –Do I have to say just one for these? honesty, authenticity, sense of humor, goes for the above 2 answers as well.
5. My main flaw –too many to narrow to one, struggle with criticism, not good at following rules, don’t like being told what to do, procrastination, I could go on…
6. My occupation favorite –I love my job, conversations, smiles, and hugs from 3-6 year olds are worth more than the highest salary of any corporate CEO
7. The happiness I dream of – Find it best to be happy with what I have where I am though I don’t always succeed
8. What would be my greatest misfortune –my family not knowing I love them
9. The place where I would like to live – I’m happy with where I live though I might not say no to a different part of the city or a slightly larger home.
10. My favorite color – GREEN especially that of growing things.
Dividing The Answers Here So I Get A Green Editing Smiley Face
11. The flower I like – I love all flowers, my favorites are lily-of-the-valley not planted in my garden because they’re poisonous to little cats.
12. The bird my favorite – I love most all the little outdoor birds but am partial to the chickadees and my hummingbirds.
13. My favorite prose writers –so many, depends on the genre really. This could be a separate post, stay tuned. Also, how about a confession? I’ve never read anything by Proust. Any suggestions?
14. My favorite poets –Maya Angelou, Robert Frost, not a huge poetry person
15. My favorite literary heroes –The Pevensies, Meg from A Wrinkle In Time, mind is a bit blank here
16. My favorite literary heroines –see above
17. My favorite composers – Mozart, Debussy, and Leroy Anderson among others. I am also partial to Blake Neely (he composes a lot of scores for television shows such as You, The Flash, Riverdale, etc.) And of course, I grew up listening to Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev. Also, just for fun I am sharing a new (to me) piece I heard on the classical station just yesterday: Arthropod Suite by Jonathan Peters.
18. My favorite painters – I had a couple framed Picasso prints on my walls, Bouquet of Flowers and Dove of Peace when I lived alone, so still love those. Van Gogh, of course. And Monet. Not very good at this category…
Need Another Divider To Make Editing Software Happy
I think this is a fox sparrow
19. My favorite heroes in real life –as Mr. Rogers would say “the helpers”
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”― Fred Rogers
20. What I hate the most –not a lot of hate but a long list of little annoyances, try not to dwell on them too much. Put your shopping cart away, be nice, personal space, don’t tailgate me, judge not lest you be judged!, and so on..
Had To Add Another Subheading, Must Have The Green Smiley Face
21. The quality I wish I had from birth – more courage, just call me the Cowardly Lion
22. How I would like to die – while LIVING
23. The mistakes that inspire me the greatest indulgence – those from my youth perhaps? Honestly, I’m not entirely sure I understand this question properly.
24. My motto – first one is flat out stolen from my workplace, the 2 rules: be peaceful and show respect. Second one, heard somewhere and really liked it: be curious, not judgemental.
******************
A copy of blank questions if you’d like to play along and I hope you will. I’d love to see your answers!
1. My main trait –
2. The quality I want to meet in a man –
3. The quality I prefer in a woman –
4. What I value most in my friends –
5. My main flaw –
6. My occupation favorite –
7. The happiness I dream of –
8. What would be my greatest misfortune –
9. The place where I would like to live –
10. My favorite color –
11. The flower I like –
12. The bird my favorite –
13. My favorite prose writers –
14. My favorite poets –
15. My favorite literary heroes –
16. My favorite literary heroines –
17. My favorite composers –
18. My favorite painters –
19. My favorite heroes in real life –
20. What I hate the most –
21. The quality I wish I had from birth –
22. How I would like to die –
23. The mistakes that inspire me the greatest indulgence –
Welcome to my 2nd Wellness Wednesday post! I’m still pretty close to 10 over the weight limit (down .5) around here. However, feeling a little more positive.
Today started a bit chaotic as I realized that my husband forgot trash day. They’ve been coming earlier than normal so I threw a sweatshirt over my pajamas and took all our recycling and trash out to the curb. And I’m glad I did as they once again came around quite early. No complaints though.
I’ve decided to start each wellness Wednesday post with my breakfast, no idea why.
Breakfast
Today’s shake flavor: caramel sundae flavor mixed with a cup of coffee, a tablespoon of cocoa, and a banana. It’s been my favorite flavor combo so far. I do feel like the shakes give me a fair amount of energy but that could also be the fact I’m mixing them with coffee. (Note: I’m not drinking more coffee than usual, just mixing my usual 2nd cup up in the shake.)
Next, just a couple random thoughts.
Broken Window Syndrome
We have so many unfinished projects around this house. Sometimes it gets me a bit down as well as the fact the house seems to be in a constant state of mess. And then, I started thinking about the old broken window theory from back in the 80’s. Totally random thought.
So what does this have to do with wellness/weight loss? Our kitchen is one of the worst offenders. As you may or may not know, I’m in a constant battle to keep our kitchen table clean. Some of it is life, of course. However, there are also unfinished projects in the kitchen constantly annoying me. Plus, I know how happy I still feel when looking at the clean and organized pantry. So, I became curious.
Does a clean kitchen help with weight loss? I asked this question of Mr. Google and found a few interesting answers.
And one more, just for fun, about kitchen colors. Not entirely sure about this as my light green kitchen doesn’t seem to impact our food choices. Still a fun read.
Now, I’m going to jump off here and go clean my kitchen. (Actually, I’m going to go soak up some sunshine and plant some flowers because that’s also great for health and wellness.)
What do you think about the kitchen ideas listed above?
I’ve been in a list making mood lately. Or list thinking mood? Today’s post is the overdue check in on my list of 23 things I want to do this year.
Coming on Thursday, a bit of a fun but slightly more serious list. I’m answering these questions from this post from Daniella over at Dana handmade if you want to join. Taking my time to consider a few of the questions.
Finally, not a post but today I’ve decided I need to just make a list of all that’s on my mind. Things to do, things I’ve been putting off, things worrying me a bit (might borrow the 20 minute worry rule from Aritha at Miracle of the Ordinary for that), and see if it settles my mind a bit.
Let’s just get to the March list update. Not much progress I’m afraid.
PROGRESS UPDATE
Clean our basement a tub at a time (I’ve already told my husband of the plan) *We’ve stalled out on this. However, we’re now working on a much needed backyard cleanup*
Participate in every Happy Homemaker Monday for 2023 *Going well so far*
Read 92 books *7 books ahead of schedule according to Goodreads*
Create a cozy, inviting home filled only with things I love (though I’ll probably have to allow my husband/kids to keep their things as well) *In progress, I do have a couple boxes to take to the donation bin*
Get my ears pierced (again, I had them done a long while ago but haven’t had them in years) *I almost did this yesterday but chickened out. Time was a factor as well.*
Get tubs to store the Christmas books *Still need to do this*
Unsubscribe from at least 3 junk newsletters every time I clean my email *I really need to do better here.*
Throw away any broken or worn out items! *In progress, why is this hard?*
Re-watch the David Tennant episodes of Doctor Who, old school style…just one episode a week *I’ve been doing this and really enjoying it, not sure why I can be so disciplined about a tv show and lack it in so many other areas in my life*
Rediscover the lighter, fun-loving open to (almost) anything adventurous side of my personality *Trying*
Celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary in August with either a trip or a party *We have a trip destination*
Join in for the Blog365 challenge and post every single day in 2022 (in progress already!) *In progress!*
Buy 2 Christmas presents for the boys each month (and one stocking stuffer for myself) *Not doing great on this one though I did buy 2 presents for the boys in February, nothing yet this month*
Be better about reaching out to friends/family members. Make an effort to call/text someone once a week.*Really need to up my efforts here, doing more and thinking about it less*
Put space between the holidays to make each one feel more special (example: don’t eat Valentine’s Day candy/treats until it’s actually Valentine’s Day) *Need to do better with next set of holidays than we did with Easter*
Make individual binders for our bank statements *Have binders made!*
Frame the photos from when J was in the all-district bands *Not yet*
Leave a review for things I purchase (I’m so bad about doing this and yet, I always read them before I buy things) *Need to be better*
Figure out a way to either subscribe or keep all the blogs I enjoy reading in one place (Bloglovin’ isn’t really working for me anymore) *Still need to take the time to actually do this*
Take at least 2 people photos at each holiday/special occasion *In progress*
Get storage containers for our DVD collection, sort, and store them *Not yet though I know the storage containers I want*
Accept that a some family situations aren’t likely to change and realize I’ve done enough.*This is hard, I don’t like to giving up*
Invite people to our home (family, friends, etc…been too long since I’ve done this) *Still working on this*
Thoughts On My Progress
I always think if I made my list in March, would it be any different? A little different perhaps. Lots of room for improvement but I’m happy to see I did manage a few things so far this year even if it is mainly related to reading and watching tv.
Did you make a list of things for 2023? How is your list going?
I was a bit shocked yesterday realizing this is the last week of March. However, I’m excited to see what good things April brings. Hoping it is going to bring the warm spring weather on a more consistent basis.
Today’s a busy Monday around here. I’ve already been to the grocery store, started a roast in the crock pot for dinner, and am now working on this post. In just a bit, I’ll take J for the second part of his testing. Once he’s done with that, he should be ready to graduate. Just a few small things to check on for that. Later tonight, I’ll also be taking him to his baritone lesson.
So far the rest of my week seems fairly open. Let’s join in with Sandra over at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom to plan the week.
The Weather
Trampoline? Bounce House? Warm, then cold. Rainy, then sunny. Today we get cold and sunny though it’s supposed to warm up later. Currently 34 degrees, we woke up in the 20’s though. No complaints as I know some of you have snow covering your ground. Supposed to be in the 50’s and gradually warm up the rest of the week. Chances of rain tomorrow and bigger chance on Friday.
As I Look Outside My Window
Birds at the bird feeder out the back.
Thinking And Pondering
Still thinking about yesterday’s church service a bit, the sermon was on compassion. Also, thinking about our Easter plans though we have 2 weeks. We’ll have church as J plays in the 11 am service but not sure what we’ll do after. The flower and vegetable gardens….my mind is all over the place today.
On My Bedside Table
The usual, just the lamp and phone charger though in the early morning hours a certain cat likes to sit on it and “talk” to me until I get my lazy self out of bed.
On My TV Tonight
Probably just The Voice.
Listening To
I can hear a few birds outside this morning.
On The Lunch Plate
No idea, J’s testing is right around lunch time
On The Dinner Plate
Roast is in the crock pot for dinner tonight
On My Menu This Week
Penne Rosa turned out well last week, we used rigatoni
Every time I think it’s time for lighter spring suppers, the weather turns cold again…
MONDAY: Roast in the crockpot
TUESDAY: Grilled chicken, asparagus, maybe with fettuccine
WEDNESDAY: Korean BBQ meatballs with chive pancakes (we have chives coming up wild in the yard and I thought it might be fun to use them)
Just started reading Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King. It’s more mystery than scary at this point and I’m okay with that. Last week I read a series of books by Rosemary Whittaker, a bunch of escape/feel good romance books. The last one was my favorite, The Feijoa Tree. While the books are presented as a series, they are all slightly different with different characters so could be read in any order, I think.
On My To Do List
Enjoy the sunny days!
Pay a few bills
Take back library book (way overdue, hangs head in shame)
Put away winter sweaters (almost done)
Put out some Easter decor
Clean out fridge
Laundry
Cancel a few subscriptions we no longer use/need
Take J to renew his driver’s permit
Spring cleaning chores (walls, living room curtains hopefully, windows)
And of course, posts for the Blog 365
Plans This Week
Spring cleaning, yard work, it’s our Saturday dinner out/game night with friends
What I’m Creating
I bought a new diamond art of a Tuscany Village scene but I’ve yet to start. Garden areas outside.
Simple Pleasure
Spring Flowers. Dreaming of Summer flower and vegetable gardens.
Looking Around The House
As much as I love my plants, I am ready for the outside ones to go back out there, just a few more weeks. And of course, I need to clean.
From The Camera
I bought hot pepper suet to discourage the squirrels. Not sure but I think he’s looking for his margarita to go with the new spicy food. SIGH. Our squirrels don’t mind the hot pepper suet.
On My Prayer List
Friends, family, strangers, the homeless, J to successfully graduate, more peace and kindness in the world.
Quote For The Week
Found this one on Pinterest.
A kind word is like a spring day. (Russian proverb)
