Running on the edge

6:15 and we're in our new abode...the Family waiting area

Why is it that I’m in a mode these days where I’m regularly running almost late.  I’m doing it to myself.  I don’t want to get dressed or brush my hair or find my shoes until I need to be out of the house in two minutes.  Like I actively dislike being ready to go before it’s time.

Maybe it’s a reaction to having to get the kids ready so much before we have to go.   If we want to leave the house at 3pm, I should have them both dressed by 2:30.  That gives us 20 minutes to play and 10 minutes to get on coats and shoes and get into the car.

I’ve found many times in the last several months where I purposefully, unconsciously, our accidentally work on the computer (in my pajamas) until the moment I am supposed to be in the car.

Yet I’m almost always on time.  A minute late maybe.  Sometimes a minute early.  There’s just some crazed running around before I leave the house.  Maybe I need to return to some old FlyLady habits of getting dressed first thing in the morning including hair and makeup (if any).

My mom normally ran 5-20 minutes late, and it sometimes drove me a bit crazy.  So this aversion to getting ready that I’m experiencing is a little funny.  Hmmm.

I think I’m in the “observing” phase of behavior change.  Like “gee, that doesn’t seem like a great way to be” kind of observation.  Then I’ll start talking about how to change and then I’ll start committing to change and maybe eventually I’ll change.  Or maybe not.  I do like being in my pajamas on a gray fall day!

How about you?  Are you early?  How much before you’re going to leave the house do you get ready?  Does standing around the house all ready to go make you crazy or does it feel good?  These are the deep questions I pose to you today.

Now (since I’m clothed and have my contacts in) I’m off to the post office and the grocery store!

I love to work!

I just dropped Andrew off at preschool for the morning.  And this is Sylvia’s day at Donna’s daycare.  So for the next 3.75 hours, I have time for myself.

I’m going to work on a budget explanation document for the preschool.  And I’m so excited.  And I think it’s a little silly to be giddy about such things.  So I’m sharing with you.

Last night I stayed up until midnight working on the preschool’s personnel policies.  I was loving it.

I’m also looking forward to working on making some promotional materials for Althea Dotzour Photography.  And I have a money management blog post floating around in my head that needs to be written.

It’s all these “work” things…quiet, computer-focused time that makes me feel so good.  I’m so glad that I am home with the kids and get to play with them as much as I want.  I’m also really thankful that I have the time and ability to have a few outside-of-home work hats that keep my brain active, my creativity charged, and my soul content.

So now, it’s time to work!

Video of Sylvia spinning

Sylvie was having a great time at the wedding reception.  Spin, spin, spinning.  Here’s a video of her (complete with Poodle and her paci).

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Thanks to Granny for taking the video.  I swear that Sylvia had not been drinking at the time of this video:)

Oh, and LuAnn made this beautiful jumper.  Isn’t she amazing!!

Married!

Michael and Lisa are now Mr. and Mrs.  I’ve got a new sister, and Michael has an expanded family.  It was a wonderful wedding.  A beautiful day.  I cried, I laughed, I danced.  And right now, at 11:20pm, I have a big smile on my face, thinking back on conversations and moments shared with good friends and family.

This morning, as snowflakes filled the air and the thermometer proclaimed low numbers, we decided to pull the ceremony indoors.  It turned out that with the big windows looking out on the prairie, the big pots of mums, and the orangy pumpkins, it was lovely indoors as well.

I sobbed a bit when Lisa came down the aisle on her dad’s arm.  I cried a bit harder when Michael took her hand.  Such emotion!

Andrew was the ring bearer, and he had the rings tied on a ribbon around the neck of his stuffed elephant.  What a cutie!  He stood up front next to Joe, and he was so cheerful and calm and proud that it just made me glow with love for that little darling.  When Joe stepped over to the podium to do his reading, Andrew hopped sideways to stay next to him.  And when Lisa requested, he handed her the elephant so she could retrieve the rings.

Lisa’s sister, Julie and Maretta also gave readings, and Jack gave a heart-felt address.

Michael and Lisa wrote beautiful vows for each other, and I got to close the ceremony with the Apache Wedding Blessing.  It was a really lovely ceremony.

The reception was held upstairs, and after a yummy dinner, we were all treated to an amazing pumpkin cake.

Thank heavens that Bryan’s mom is here to help with the kids!  They ran about and had lots of fun while I tended to wedding details and had fun watching the celebration unfold.

Now it’s midnight, and I’ve got dozens of photos uploading.  So in my world, it feels like the event has some closure.  Photo-obsession…

Tomorrow morning, we head over to Michael and Lisa’s for present-opening and to visit with her family one more time before they head back to Florida.  The party continues!

Stay tuned (or check out Flickr) for photosCheck out the pictures in the gallery!

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Wedding rehearsal pics

It’s the day of Michael and Lisa’s wedding!  This morning, Michael, Joe, Maretta, Heather, and I met out at the Lussier Nature Center to decorate the reception room and to set up the (now indoor!) ceremony site.  It’s been partly sunny with temperatures in the high forties.  Snow fell earlier today.

Michael is wearing a kilt, and Lisa has a strapless dress, so we thought that no one would be pleased with the idea of an outdoor ceremony!

Last night, a group of us gathered outdoors at the Center to rehearse the wedding.  Lisa’s sister Julie will be standing up with her, and Joe is standing up with Michael.  Julie, Joe, Maretta, and myself are doing the readings.  And our dear family friend Jack is officiating.  It should be lovely!

Lisa’s family is up from Florida, and I think we’ve given them quite a shock with this chilly weather.  Hard to believe that the mercury has dropped so much in the last few weeks!

After the rehearsal, we headed over to Pedro’s west for a lovely dinner.  My aunt Julie, Kevin, and their little guy joined us; Heather and Michael were there, Topsy has flown out from Oregon, and a couple of Michael and Lisa’s friends had also driven in from out-of-town.

Andrew’s going to be the ring barer, and he’s planning on keeping the rings tied to the neck of his large stuffed elephant.  I’m looking forward to seeing how he handles his official duties!

It’s been a life-saver to have Granny here.  My mind is all over the place as I work on all the last-minute wedding coordination details.  Good to know that Sylvia and Andrew are being well-cared for while I plan and execute wedding plans and Bryan has been paint-balling, bachelor-partying, and mini-golfing with the groom.

Pictures from the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner are in the gallery.  A few select pictures are also shown below.  Check that…just one.  I need to get dressed for the wedding!!!

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Wedding rehearsal day!

It’s Michael & Lisa’s wedding T-1.

I did a photo session this morning with Heather, Evelyn, and Heather’s mom and grandma.

The rehearsal is in a couple hours.

!Weee!

Granny is here!

It’s wedding time!  Last night, Bryan’s mom arrived, and I’m delighted that she’s going to be staying with us until Tuesday.  Joe; Maretta & Kyle; Heather, Michael, & baby Evelyn; and Aunt Julie, Kevin, and their baby also are coming into town today.  Yay!!

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Yesterday, Terry and I visited a pumpkin patch and a flower shop, and we purchased a van-full of pumpkins and glorious fall mums for wedding decorations.

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Today’s weather is a bit cold, rainy, and dreary.  Makes me glad that the Lussier Center has a good indoor option for the wedding ceremony!

Just wait until you see the adorable Godzilla costume Granny made for Andrew, and the great jumper and dress-up skirt she made for Sylvie!

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Podcasts that make my day

I’ve had an iPod for about a year now, and I just love it!  I love having all our music so easily accessible.  I like being able to make mixes so easily and how fun it can be to use smart playlists or Genius to create the musical backdrop for our playtime.

However my favoritest part about using an iPod is being able to download podcasts and listen to them when I have some alone time in the car or the kitchen.  Prior to becoming an iPod convert, I didn’t get what a podcast was.  And quite frankly, I thought that people who used that and other cooky words were just purposefully being a bit geeky.

But now I’ve joined the fold.  For those of you not in the podcast-listening world, podcasts are radio shows (or in some case video shows) that you can download and listen to or watch at your leisure.

I have several radio shows that I really enjoy, but it’s rare that I happen to (be allowed to) listen to the radio when they’re on.  So I started my podcast listening by subscribing to those shows.  Then I did some exploring and found other NPR shows that I also really love.

In the spirit of sharing…and with the hope that this post will inspire you to share as well…here’s my favorite podcasts.  These shows made my recent trip to and from Minnesota so very enjoyable.  So without further ado, here’s my favs:

This American Life. There was a point in my life when I was turned off by Ira Glass.  But now, this is hands down my favorite show.  I love it.  An hour of insightful, cooky, disturbing, important, mind-bending, or humorous radio that makes me feel like a more complete person.  I just donated $20 to the show to support them and to help them keep their podcasts free!

Continue reading “Podcasts that make my day”

Shopping trip hell

Sylvia needs some warm white or cream tights for Michael and Lisa’s wedding this weekend.  She wouldn’t nap this afternoon, so I thought, “Hey, this is an opportunity to get tights.”  Riiiiight.

As we pulled up to the mall, I realized that this mall shopping trip was the first I could remember doing with both kids.  Andrew cried for about 10 minutes because he didn’t want to go into the mall because “it’s unfamiliar!”

Eventually, we walked in.  I was carrying Andrew (clutched to my chest) while Sylvia pranced ahead, greeting all the other shoppers while spinning and twirling.  We went into Gymboree and the Children’s Place.  No thick white tights luck.  Sylvia spotted an area where they have about eight rides…you know, the kind you put a few quarters in and the cars move around and play a song.  I told her we would stop there after the next store.  She screamed the whole walk to JC Penny’s, as I did a quick scan for tights, and our whole walk back from JC Penny’s.  Then I let her and Andrew play on the cars for maybe a half hour.

I tried to give her warnings that we were going to leave.  I said it was time but decided to give her a few extra minutes.  When I finally pulled her off the cars, she was livid.  Her rage (I ended up carrying her horizontally under my arm and she kicked and flailed) lasted at least a half-hour.

I decided that if she was going to scream and carry-on, I might as well try to accomplish something.  So we drove to Babies ‘R Us.  No tights, but she screamed and raged the entire time.  Then we went to Old Navy.  I left Andrew in the car to give him a few moments peace.  I walked to the back of the store where the socks were, set Sylvia down, and when I looked up, she was most of the way to the front door.  FYI, Old Navy also does not carry thick white tights.  But they do have black ones…

On the drive home, I managed to talk Sylvie down.  Or maybe she came out of the “red zone” all on her own.  There was much discussion about how fun the cars were and how she especially liked the caterpillar and the red dog and the space ship.  We lamented that Poodle and her paci were at home, and we contemplated about how much fun it would be to see them when we got home.

I thanked Andrew for his patience with his sister, and I apologized for dragging them around to five stores and even then not finding the intent of our trip.

Now Sylvia is home and she has Poodle and paci and is playing just fine.  I don’t think I’ll be taking the kids back to the mall any time soon.  Maybe they can go back when they are teenagers.

This child appears to be enjoying his ride
This child appears to be enjoying his ride