I ordered this shirt from Forever21 in early October in the hopes that the slight cap sleeve would be long enough to not have to wear a shirt under it. It wasn't. I was kind of bummed because I also thought it kind of ruined the style of the shirt to put the "classic" Mormon T-shirt under it. I rarely like how that looks on myself. So I decided to add some ruffle sleeves. Easy enough right? Well, it was harder then it should have been but not as bad as it could have been. I had to add 2 ruffles in the end but I think it ended up pretty cute.
I am the worlds worst at remembering to take before pictures, so this will have to do. You can see the original sleeve on the right and one ruffle attached on the left. Also sorry it's so wrinkly.
Here it is finished. I think it looks pretty good. Plus I don't have to roast in a Texas October
I have been meaning to post some of the pictures from our summer trip but have been putting it off because it makes me SERIOUSLY home sick. I tried it today. I cried, but I might as well see it through so I don't have to cry again later. Here goes.
Emmeline's first time holding a baby. She isn't really crazy about babies but my super cute friend Mindy Jo brought over her newest Jett and Emmeline LOVED him!
So proud of herself.
In TN we got to spend lots of time with Aunt Abby and Uncle Tadd. Emmeline really loved being with them.
A little hike to Clingmans Dome
Abby had these adorable lip gloss holders that were shaped like tiny owls. Emmeline loved and kept chucking them from the stroller just to see us chase them. Lucky for her Abby and Tadd like her so much.
My awesome cousin Justin and his wife Angie!
Aunt Terra and Isa posing with the Appalachian Trail sign
Rock climbing with Uncle Tadd
Way up high.
When I saw the thumbnail for this photo I thought they were protectively holding her to keep her safe. Then I made it bigger and realized they were trying to throw her off. :)
Aunt Abby and the Dumple
When we hiked to Grotto Falls Emmeline fell asleep within about .25 miles. I ended up carrying her very heavy bum up there and then she napped on me the whole time we were up there.
Isa under the waterfall.
Aunt Terra is trying to convince her to sit under the waterfall for a picture. "Right there".
"I'll even go first, in my clothes"
"yeah, I don't think so Terra"
That is as close as she got.
She really enjoyed climbing up and down the boulders.
My mountain girl.
A little feat of strength.
There, I did it. I might find more later but those were the hard ones for me. It's just so beautiful there!
I played this game with some friends at ASU probably 6 years ago. It was very fun and informative. Basically you come up with a list of 3 items about yourself. 2 are true and 1 is a lie. The other players have to guess which are which. So here is a set from me.
1) Participated in a pedophile sting operation
2) Totally owned a church pie eating contest
3) Saw a group of potential UFOs
Isa was very excited when I told her we were going to the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens with some homeschool friends. She was even more excited when she realized that was the perfect excuse to wear her new school outfit she picked out. It was a lot of walking for some of the kids but it was a much needed day outside.
This is Isa with her friend M. She cracks me up.
The girls really love playing on the "log". Other then the walking paths there isn't really any "play" equipment there. I tried to get Emmeline to reproduce this picture we took of Isa 2 years ago.
This is what I got.
I should have known. When she saw all the other girls up there she would want to be up there too. I have to say I was impressed.
Very pleased with herself.
Isa thought this picture was funny because it looks like those are her legs. :)
I was trying to get a cute shot of Emmeline walking with her friend S. What I got was this great picture of Isa running to get my phone to take a picture.
Of this.
Then she caught this.
More of S and Emmeline. She really loved holding her hand. They are in the same Primary class. I'm pretty sure Emmeline was even calling her by name. Very sweet.
Isa managed to find this huge grasshopper and get close enough to pet it. I've never seen a live healthy grasshopper sit still so long.
You know the one. They run right up to you while you are playing with your child and demand your attention. You look around for their parent only to see them playing on their smart phone under a tree on the other side of the park.
Well, this kid (David) picked a bad day to try and get me to parent him. I was at this specific park because Emmeline was getting PT, from her school therapist. I do not like this women and she doesn't like me so I was already no thrilled about being there. Then David walks up with his "I'll push" "look at what I can do" "watch this, watch this, WATCH THIS!!!" "She's a baby" "let's play this game but I have to win". After telling him several times that I couldn't watch him because I was helping Emmeline he still wouldn't leave. I finally told him he needed to leave us alone and go play with his mother. The thing was, when he needed help he would yell for us and not his own mother which led me to believe that he knew darn well that he was not going to be getting any attention from her, good or bad. Seriously woman!! Your kid is the worst and so are you!! My next favorite was when he would watch and try to figure out what toy Emmeline was going to use next and get there a split second before her and jump on. That drives me CRAZY! Luckily the PT didn't like it either and she told him to move. When he didn't she pulled him off. Maybe I don't hate her as much now.
After that we tried to steer clear of David. I did however witness him steal a kid's bike and then when the bike owners parent intervened and took it back David stood their screaming and crying"YOU HAVE TO SHARE!!!". Next I saw him freaking out screaming by the water fountain. The genius had decided the best way to get the water was to put his mouth over the whole sprayer thing Andy Dwyer style.
The thing is, Andy has an adult sized mouth so it was a little easier for him to get his mouth off of the fountain. David, not so much. The kid stood their screaming his head off. I assumed this would be enough to get his Mom off her butt to help him, but no. She just sat there until he finally managed to detach himself. He then screamed as loud as he could for about 15 minutes just to make sure we all knew he wasn't happy. We knew.
Then he ran right up to a group of boys who were probably a couple years older then him and stole their toy and ran away. Yeah... don't pick a fight with a gang of older boys. They were not having it. They got their toy back and left David yelling...you guessed it "YOU HAVE TO SHARE!".
I'll share with you David. I'll share my hand spanking your butt and leading you to an eternal time out.
When I started this blog it was to post about stupid people that annoy me. I posted a lot. OVer the years my posting has gotten less and less frequent. I wonder why?
Do people annoy me less? No really. Do I deal with it in a healthier way? Probably not. Do I just not have the energy? Maybe.
I think the real clincher is that my life it completely routine. I do the same things with the same people every week. And they annoy me the same ways every week. This does not make for very exciting blog entries. But trust me, I have idiots a plenty.
Lets be honest here. Listening to me complain about my lack of ability to deal with my child's disabilities, my weight, late therapists, stingy school systems, poor health and stupid drivers can wear on one's nerves. Blah, blah, blah.
That only leaves me one choice right? I know we're all thinking it...a mommy fashion blog! Just kidding. I know that would turn out the same way as this, but instead of the same complaint it would be the same outfit. T-shirt and PJ pants. Maybe some jeans if you're lucky.
What to do, what to do...
Summer 2011 I was skinnier then I had ever been as an adult. Then the sickness came. I got migraines and was painfully naseous if I wasn't eating. Since that time I have slowly been gaining weight. Now I am the fattest I have been as an adult, without being pregnant, and there seems to be no end in sight. No matter how careful I am about eating or how much I run, the weight just keeps coming. I look more and more like a sausage about to burst out of it's casing every day. not only am I getting fatter but I am also losing muscle. I am getting fatter and weaker by the day and it is really bumming me out.
I feel mushy, fluffy, and gross. I think Dr. Spaceman says it best. I couldn't find the exact clip I wanted on it's own but this whole thing is funny. The one I want is at 2:11 seconds.
I cracked. I usually don't like sci-fi remakes. The originals are nostalgic for me and when they remake them with all the new special effects that we have now days it kind of ruins my childhood. I have had to branch out however now that Netflix isn't streaming my beloved Stargate anymore. :(:(:( I tried Primeval, which wasn't bad but the turnover of characters in that show is head spinning. I can barely get used to the interaction before someone gets eaten or killed, by there VERY poorly cast, crazy wife. I am a sucker for Andrew Lee Potts however, so I made it through quite a bit of the show.
Next I tried the Dr Who remake. At first I didn't really care for the Doctor but then I warmed up to him and he actually ended up being the only character I liked. He is consistent. Granted he's consistently quirky but at least he doesn't flip flop back and forth between emotions and give me whiplash.
In the second episode when I heard this character the "where do I know you from?" nagging started.
This happens to me fairly frequently so I try to put it out of my mind and then usually within a week it will just come to me out of the blue where I know them from. When it did I must admit I chuckled.
I always thought she was some kind of human/cat hybrid in the HP films. Here she is in real life.
I know. Heartless of me. My gift strikes again.
I must confess that I did not realize as a child that the Doctor reincarnated. I only remember one Doctor.
This guy.
I am in love with the awesomeness of this outfit!
So, when the first season ended and the actor changed I was a little thrown. Then when I realized who it was I knew I wouldn't really be able to trust this guy.
You can smile all you want! We all know you're a Death Eater!!!
Interesting bit of trivia. His wife is the daughter of the fifth Doctor. Either way I will probably need to skip until he gets reincarnated again before I watch anymore. Or maybe I should just go back to me rule. That would probably be safer.
Fertility is a touchy subject for me. It is very dear to my heart since I, as well as several amazing women I know, have suffered from multiple pregnancy "issues". Josh and I tried and prayed/begged for a second child for years. During that time we met several other couples who either couldn't conceive or conceived and then lost, which is much harder in my opinion. When I read this article I was floored. Well, initially I felt sorry for her. I had a certain gender I was hoping for when we got pregnant. I really, really, really thought Emmeline would be a boy. I had prayed for a boy. When they said girl I was a little bummed. Did I go home and "sob" for weeks? No, and do you know why? BECAUSE I'M A GROWN UP!!!!!!! Plus within a few weeks I had bigger things to deal with. I became immensely grateful for what I did have. A baby. Not everyone gets to have that.
And now my rant.
I'm sorry Mrs "Simpson", that you were devastated that you had 3 perfectly healthy boys?!?! Cry me a freaking ocean!!!! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!?!?!?! I am totally floored not only that you were willing to pay all that money to finally have your "perfect" little daughter but that you even considered aborting your 3rd son for being a boy is, in 1 word, DISGUSTING!!! I'm not sure I could be in your presence without shaking you to death! I'm sure the daughter you tried so hard to have really liked being in daycare while you payed for her. good job.
In college I wrote a paper about how living in the suburbs made you fat. In the study it stated that people in the suburbs weren't fat because they didn't exercise. In fact they exercised the same amount at those located elsewhere. The problem was that it was the only exercise they were getting. People living in the city were able to access their day to day errands by foot. They didn't have to get in the car to go a mile down the road to the shopping center.
People in suburbs usually don't choose to drive to be lazy however. They have to because most of these "neighborhoods" are only able to access stores via a major road that isn't very pedestrian friendly. This caused an increase in motor vehicle/bike/walker accidents involving those who tried to access said shopping centers without cars.
Here in lies my problem. There are occasional areas where they have put in side walks and crosswalks. Even if I felt like the drivers were able to drive and look out for pedestrians, which I don't, it is to dang hot to walk anywhere, especially with children. So, I am forced to actually exercise.
I don't like it. I prefer to work to get exercise. I would rather be outside hauling dirt then inside doing p90x. Put me in front of an exercise video and I will tell you every government secret I know. I hate, hate, hate counting reps, learning different "moves", or having to go do something so specific that it serves no other purpose in my day. I'm a multi tasker. Exercising just to exercise? gross.
I have one exception of course. Running. Some days I hate it. I hate that I have to get up early and the guilt I feel if I don't run as far or as fast as last time. So I guess I am multi tasking. I am running and having a therapy session.
If I had a house it wouldn't be as bad. There would be plenty of yard/house work to do. I would love every minute of it. I genuinely love to work. Exercising not so much.
So...running is the most I will do.
When I was little we used to listen to an album called The Safety Kids. The basically taught kids safety tips through songs sung by club of kids teaching each other said rules. We listened to it all the time!
It taught kids how to trust their gut, how to get help and knowing your personal information like address and phone number.
Sadly creeps have gotten creepier. Some stuff should probably be added. My family still sings my favorite track which is Sometimes You Just Gotta Yell And Scream!! It's a classic. end of part 4.
We spend so much time telling kids to be polite and respectful. We often forget to tell them it's better to be safe then polite and they can walk away from ANYONE if they feel uncomfortable.
Also, strangers aren't always creepy. Most of the people who do things inappropriate to your child is someone they know and aren't initially suspicious of. You have a cousin who only wants to play with the kids and not really hang out with adults? keep and eye on them. A teacher who thinks your child is very gifted and offers special attention or help? Ask what they would recommended and do it yourself. An adult giving your child random gifts? Not cool.
Kids need to know that ANYONE could hurt them. Not to say EVERYONE will hurt them but they need to know were the lines are and that if someone comes near enough that they feel "weird" inside they should leave and tell a trusted adult IMMEDIATELY. It doesn't matter if the person is a friend or not. Creeps play on children's compassion. They ask them to please not tell because they could get in trouble and they thought they were friends. Make sure your child knows that a friend that asks them to keep a secret from their parents is NOT a real friend.
Also a tip I found that had never occurred to me before was to teach your kids the correct name for their genitals. This is because creeps aren't going to talk to you kid about their vagina or penis. It ups the suspicious factor and they don't want to do that. That way if your kid starts calling her vagina a cupcake then you know some thing's up.
One Saturday morning when when Isa was little (4 or 5ish) Josh was being amazing and had gotten up this her so I could sleep in I woke up to a conversation that I hoped was a dream. We were living in a small studio apartment so the living room was about 5 feet from my bed. Here is what I heard.
Isa: Daddy do you know why this doll is dirty?
Josh: No, why?
Isa: Because blank put her in my underwear.
The silence felt like it lasted forever. I lay frozen in my bed unable to move. Josh, played it cool like a pro. One of the most important things to do if you child comes to you with something is to NOT FREAK OUT. Hard I know, but you need to make sure your child knows they did the right thing by telling you and if you freak out they will know they upset you and are less likely to tell you if it happens again.
Josh: Really? That sounds weird. Why did they do that? Was anyone else there?
By playing it cool he was able to put Isa at ease so she felt comfortable answering all our questions. Let's be honest, we would all have a million questions to ask our kid if they said that.
After further investigation and consulting her pediatrician we determined that nothing traumatic had happened. Thank goodness. I hated thinking not only that someone we knew might have been capable of doing something like that but that I had let it happen. I felt helpless. I realized that I couldn't totally protect her and that sucked. Now I make sure to help her be prepared to handle and hopefully avoid future situations. Kids need to know not only how to get out of bad situations but how to avoid them. I would rather have a cautious kid then a dead one. Educate yourselves so you can educate them.
I am trying to run again. I started about 2 weeks before we left for NC and was able to run 5 days a week while we were there. It was beyond therapeutic for me. Just beautiful. My go to running album is The Avett Brothers Live Vol 3 which is just darn depressing to run to on pavement surrounded by buildings. I wasn't able to get the emotional release I was used to running in TX. It just plan stunk.
The first time I ran in NC I almost cried. It was almost a giddy cry. It just felt so good. It didn't feel like there were weights on my feet or like I was running in quick sand. My body just knew what to do.
My first run in NC
My parents live on a mountain. This meant that if I ran down I had to run back up to get home. I didn't mind. I even drove down into town to run on my old route once and is was HORRIBLE. I missed the hills.
This is the bottom 1/3 of the big hill back up to the house. When I took this picture I was surprised at how un-steep it seemed compared to how it felt. I'll just say, it's bigger in person.
This was my all time FAVORITE run while I was home. It was like a monsoon. I could barely see and I kept inhaling water, but it was magical. There is just something about running in a total downpour that unburdens my soul. I wish I could do it every day.
There is a beautiful trail run around an old manor on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It's actually the retirement home Tom Hanks is in at the beginning and the end of The Green Mile. Almost endless carriage trails to keep you busy. Some of those trails are darn challenging. If you run from the pond to the manor house you are going uphill the whole way. And then again of you go to the fire tower. So you can get pretty tired and worn out.
Another thing that I think made a huge difference in my TX vs my NC runs were the people. I try not to run alone where I am not going to be near other people for safety/paranoia reasons. In TX pretty much everyone seems to hate being outside. Well, maybe it just seems that way because if you run past someone in TX they don't usually look at you. If they do, it's a glare.
In NC runners are having fun. When they see another runner coming they light up. They look at you with a big smile and greet you. Like they are saying "it's great to see you again!". Seriously I get less enthusiastic greetings from people I consider friends.
I tried to pay attention to whether or not the super happy people were runners or if it was just a southern thing. Overall the people outside were generally happier in NC then TX but the runners were WAY happier. Walkers would look up and half smile and nod but the runners look up, smile, wave and say Hi! like we were long lost friends. Maybe we are. Maybe there was a special runners preexistence. Where we all got to run in the cool mountain air to our hearts content.
After getting back to TX and starting up my runs again I just want to cry. But not a happy giddy cry. More like a pitiful whimper. Like my body is saying "No! Please not this again!" I don't blame it. I miss the lift of my running buddies too.
Texas is killing me. I'm not saying I'm totally better. I do have bad days here and there but overall I am WAY healthier in NC. My headaches have gone down, as well as the pretty much constant nausea. I have been on more medicine in Texas in the last two years then in my whole life combined! I am just to tired of having all that crap going through my body! Sadly on Emmeline's new sleep schedule, or lack there of, my fatigue has gone way up. I just can't keep up and I am super excited to be able to just put her in her crib and leave the room.
We have been doing a TON on vacation and will most likely have some big posts when i get home but for now i just have the ipad as my computer so i can't really do a good picture post or anything.
So...I'm not dead or anything.
I don't have a traditional bucket list. Most people have an actual list of things they want to do. They work toward those goals and plan them out. I can talk myself out of almost anything. So, if I make a list and read it I would probably take most of it off. Also, I would become obsessed with completing the list and get WAY to focused on it. So, I basically have a quite little list in the back of my head and when I stumble on one of those things I do it. Not the most organized way but that way I don't feel like a failure. If I really break it down then my bucket list is really just things for me that I usually procrastinate because I feel busy with other people/things.
This year I have completed 2. 1) I took my very first ballet class. It was SUPER fun and I learned that I have more of a Latin dance physique then a ballet one...if you get my drift.
2) I participated in and completed a food eating challenge. I'm not sure why I wanted to do this one so bad but I always have. I noticed early on that I ate much more then any man around quite comfortably. There was also an incident when a very sweet skinny girl looked at my plate at a wedding buffet and exclaimed "I will pay you $10 if you can eat all that food!" It was slightly embarrassing because that was my first plate of food.
When we were in Gatlinburg my brother-in-law Tad/Tadley saw a roof top restaurant that looked yummy so we went there for dinner and I was all too thrilled to see they had a food challenge!! It was called "The Whole Chihuahua", I think because it was the weight of a small dog. It was a 5lb beef burrito with everything you could imagine in it. Including my nemesis, guacamole. I had an hour to eat it but I knew the time wouldn't be my problem. After some pep talks from my family I decided to give it a try. I was SUPER nervous and was getting queasier and queasier the longer it took to come out. I totally beat it though. I will say it tasted really good. My one bit of advice if you ever attempt a food challenge? Prepare for the texture wall. It will come.
For most of this I had no idea Josh was taping me so I am sorry I am not my usual dainty self ;)
