december daily: 12.15-12.19

12.15
parker brought home his gingerbread house from school. so cute! it is now the centerpiece on the island. love it. (photo coming)

12.16
love friday's. love the 3 of us. springer came over for supper tonight. he made chicken lasagna. it was to-die-for good.  so much fun to just "hang out" at home. i love that we have more space now to have friends over and entertain. the boys played a little xbox and we gathered in the living room to hang for the night.

12.17
finished up my shopping. ordered christmas cards.

12.18
a walk through christmas production at the waters church.  amazing.

12.19
family movie night featuring christmas vacation.  seriously - laughed out loud the ENTIRE movie. hilarious!

december daily: 12.14

12.14
right now I am...

watching: my computer monitor
eating: just finished an isagenix chocolate crisp protein bar. yum.
drinking: water. lots of it.
wearing: grey dress pants, black tank and pink champagne cardi with ruffles. and my vera wang pumps.  boy, my toes sure were chilly walking outside today.
listening: to aly & aj (holiday) radio station on pandora. love.
avoiding: lines at the stores and crazy drivers. this town is ca-razy!
feeling: full of joy.
missing: holiday treats.
thankful: for my health.
weather: windy and a tad bit chilly. but still no snow.
praying: for jackson.
needing: extra snuggle time - baby it's cold outside!
thinking: about the list i need to plow through this weekend to complete my christmas shopping. reminds me of a line from the llama llama holiday drama book.
loving: my 2 boys.

and you?

december daily: 12.12 - 12.13

12.12

report card time.  so proud of my little dude.  he's learning so much and quite the little reader. he loves writing and making lists and crossing them off (wonder who he gets that from?) :)

12.13

laundry. lots of it. folded, sorted, and put away.

december daily: 12.09-12.11

12.09

Family fun night!  We went out to eat at Texas Roadhouse.  Parker absolutely loved the little country dance routine the wait staff performed their jig.  After our tummies were full, we headed to the theatre to take in the movie Arthur Christmas.  Do you know how much sour skittles, a large pop and a bottled water runs these days?  $13.78 in case you were wondering.  It was a delightful evening out with my boys :)

12.10

Home day.  Followed by a trip to Sam's Club to stock up on fruit, meat, and new socks for the boys.  Jason and I had the privelidge of dining with some of his friends to surprise his brother, Josh, at Ciatti's for his 30th birthday!  We had good conversation, good food, and lots of laughs!  Love date nights.

12.11

Sugar cookie cut-out goodness.  Yum.  Thank you Pillsbury for making this available in box format so one need not make form scratch.  Parker got a kick out of rolling the dough, prepping the surface with flour and cutting out the shapes.  I'll have to put more cookie cutters on my list to stock up on throughout the year.  We made do with a tree and a flower aka: snowflake.  I love doing these holiday events with him.  It sure does test my patience though :)  I'll upload a photo of our process this week (pics are on J's phone).

december daily: 12.07 - 12.08

12.07.11
Wednesday.  Nothing extra-ordinary about today.  There are 18 days until Christmas.  Parker is enjoying the Countdown to Christmas activity on the fridge.  He peels back the days to reveal a cute little ornament on the tree.  He has also sorted all of the presents under the tree into "piles" of who they belong to.  He has a pile.  With 4 presents.  Jason has a pile.  With 3 presents.  Mommy has a pile.  With 1 present.

12.08.11
One of our morning conversations went a little something like this:
P: "mommy, can you get me a shirt with a wolf on it?"
A: "a wolf? like a real one or a fake one?"
P: "a white one. you know, with red and black on it."
A: "like the huskies?"
P: "YES! the st. cloud state huskies, you're so smart, mommy."
A: :)

december daily: 12.06

12.06.11

Received this email from Parker's teacher today.  What a great day!

And we were running late this morning - the car was parked outside (too much STUFF in the garage yet from moving, and it hasn't been too cold to need to be in there yet).  After a good 10 minutes of letting the car warm up and scraping the windows, I dropped Parker off at school. 

Went to a new class at the gym and it was awesome!  Love the challenge of circuits and cardio.

At the dinner table tonight, I asked Parker about his day.  He said "nothing".  Then got up from the table, went into his bedroom, and came out with something behind his hands.  And proceeded to say "mommy - this is for you, thanks alot".  It was a tardy slip.  Gulp.  I.felt.terrible.  Absolutely terrible.  I apologized and asked him what happened.   He said "I couldn't go to my classroom right away, I had to stop in the office.  I told them we were late because we were letting the car warm up since it was so cold outside".  I love him for being honest.  I love him for just going with it.  The unexcused tardy absence was a lesson for ME, not him. 

So yeah - thanks alot, mommy. 

december daily: 12.01 - 12.05

December is here - yay! Love this time of year. And I'm documenting it. Here's the latest and greatest for these first few fabulous days:

12.01.11Caribou. The best way to start of any day. And the first day of the month seemed fitting to treat myself to a skim latte :)

12.02.11

I sent Parker into the living room/kitchen to make his breakfast choice. A moment later I hear him rustling in the cupboard, hear the microwave open and he asks "mommy - how many minutes do I need for my french toast sticks?" WHAT? Pause. Long pause. My little boy is making his own breakfast?! How sweet and cute. And incredibly smart this little dude is. We got out syrup (lots of it -- stuff tastes good that way) and he dunked those sticks so proudly. Love that he is figuring things out on his own. Ready or not, he's growing up fast.

12.03.11

Jason and I spent a good portion of the day (7 hours to be exact) at various stores doing our Christmas shopping.
Found this case at Best Buy and it made me giggle. Santa was scoping out the Kindle Fire's :)

12.04.11

Refuge Ball at The Waters Church! I hosted a table and sat with some fabulous ladies from our church and community. How lovely. It was delightful to engage in some girly conversation and get dressed up for the evening.

12.05.11

Giggles. Lots of giggles. We at dinner at the kitchen table. All 3 of us. I asked Parker to tell me one good thing about his day. He said "mini corn dogs for lunch". And then turned to J and asked him to tell me one good thing about his day. He said "I got to hang out with Springer (his best friend)". Followed by our yummy BBQ chicken and bacon with asparagus and texas toast supper (sidebar: do you know the first ingredient in BBQ sauce is high fructose corn syrup? I don't eat that stuff...its bad for you...just sayin) Parker got right to his sticker marker book reading and we snuggled up on the big chair in the living room. While the 2 of us were doing so, J disappeared. After P was done with his reading, he looked at me and said "Where did Jason go? Let's get him". So in true Parker fashion, we tip-toed down the hall and crawled through the closet to "sneak up" on Jason. And then proceeded to have a tickle war! And then we all sat around the island and ate ice cream.  Yum.  Parker: strawberries + blueberries.  Jason: peanut butter + banana + chocolate.  Me: Arctic Zero Cookes & Cream.  I loved our night together. It was quality time well spent. Conversations at the dinner table. Reading. Tickling. Loving. It makes my heart smile :)

this guy...

is my boyfriend now :) xoxoxo

it's game time...

T-minus 2 days till my race. 1/2 marathon here I come!!!

4 months since my last post?!

Yes...I know. I'm a bad blogger. It's one of those things that I like to "think" I have time for and keep updated. But let's face it people...I don't. So, for now. Enjoy the latest and greatest!

Here's what's new:
1. Parker had open house last night -- he starts 1st grade. FIRST GRADE PEOPLE! He has Mrs. Anderson, whom I think will teach him (and be very tactful and loving with his quirks and stubborness). We're looking forward to a great year!
2. My half marathon is in 9 days. SINGLE DIGITS!
3. Today is my Friday for the week. LOVE LONG WEEKENDS!
4. Dating is over-rated. ENOUGH SAID.
5. It's September 1st today. HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?

before + after (so far)

It's been one AMAZING journey since December. The hard work, discipline, commitment, an determination is definately paying off :)

Since a picture is worth a thousand words...I thought I'd let you see for yourself :)

wordless wednesday

12 days of kindergarten left :)

2023

Believe it or not, I learned a very important fact today. 2023. That's the year that Parker will graduate from High School. Not gonna lie, I had to stop what I was doing and process this. Only 12 more years to go mister man!!! He's got his first year almost complete and under his belt. Way to go buddy! You are going to ROCK 1st grade :)

lately i've been...

really inspired by this quote:

"Any transition serious enough to alter your definition of self will require not just small adjustments in your way of living and thinking but a full on metamorphasis." ~Martha Beck (O Magazine)

And incorporating this into my everyday. Change isn't easy. Things do not change, we change. Only I can change my life, no one can do it for me. We do not change as we get older, we just become more clearly ourselves.

:) tackle change with a smile on your face...

As I refect on the changes I've made and am making in my life, this really hits home. 4 months into this journey and I've learned alot of things. Not only about myself, but my life, my goals, my family, my future, and things that I can control. And the things that I cannot control...well, I pray about them. Because I don't have the answers. Or the timing. Or the energy to plan how things "might" or "could" or "should" work out.

So thats how I'm feeling. The things that I'm doing right now are so positive. I've finally got good work/life/balance. And for the first time in so many years. Its funny how you think things are OK when you know they really suck and you want to change them. But that was my old mindset. Back when I thought I could and should control things. Now, I just live.

And I live healthy. I live hopeful. I love Parker. I love life. I love that I am changing me. And for the first time in forever making time for ME. Has it been easy? Hell-to-the-NO. But by surrounding myself in a positive environment, with positive mentors and role models thats how I'm living. To do better. To want more. To push myself. To perservere.

Update on my 1/2 training:
I officially started my training schedule this week. I ran 5.11 miles today. Pretty sure I should have given my legs a bit more of a pep talk. Specifically my calves. They are burning. On fi-ah. And you know the best part? I went into my run knowing I could do it. And I did. By setting a goal. A realistic goal. And no matter whether I met it or not, I tried for that goal. And I met that goal. I finished in under 60 minutes. And next week, I will run 6 miles. And I will do it.

There are some days that I feel like walls are crashing down. Both in good ways and not so good ways. But its my choice on how I deal with the crashing :)

wordless wednesday

having birthday lunch at school with mister man.

the birthday boy :)

watching my trainer win 3rd place at her competition at the MOA!!!

a little treat after swim time at the gym on a sunday afternoon :)

where did april go?

April was a busy month! We celebrated Parker's 6th Birthday! Had a great weekend in the cities with GK and Grammy +Papa. Oh the laughs and memories :)

And it was Easter. Parker got home on Sunday afternoon and found his basket. E.Bunny wasn't very good at hiding it this year. He asked me a TON of questions: "how did the bunny make it all the way up to our house?" "how did he know i wanted one of those UnderArmor zip up thingeys?" "you mean he came here even when i wasn't home?".

I've been running. And running. And running. And you know what? IT.FEELS.GREAT. I've decided on the race I'll run in -- Graniteman Half in Sauk Rapids. The big day is September 10th. There's no looking back now. There's a kids race on Friday the 9th, that I'm thinking about signing Parker up for.

Training has been awesome lately. I started taking a new shake and 2 weeks in has made me life a whole lot easier. And eating and cooking is actually something I enjoy now. I'm getting good practice and trying some new recipes. So far its been going great. I no longer dread going into the kitchen and making myself cook meals, I look forward to trying new things.

I've contemplated posting my "before" picture. For now, I think I'm going to keep it tucked away in a safe place. Maybe when I hit my goal weight I'll reveal. So far to date I'm down 30# and going strong. I'm down inches and a whole bunch of other things too...which I need to get from the gym THIS week. Shopping for new clothes is a love/hate relationship. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE shopping. But for the first time in, well, ever, I have cut back and am in survival mode with my wardrobe. I've filled 4 Rubbermaid totes of things that don't fit me. Its so weird, a good weird.

Progress, people. Progress. I'm making it :)

1/2 marathon training

Yep, you read it. I'm training for my first 1/2 marathon! Call me crazy :) I put this on my 2011 list of goals. With 4 months into the year, I've not only committed this to myself, but I've announced this to several family/friends/coworkers and my trainer so that I stay accountable. Yesterday I ran 4 miles. This was a personal first for me...ev-ah! And let me tell you, it was quite the accomplishment. My legs felt like jello when I was finished. I could have rung my shirt out with the amount of sweat on it. And if prompted with a question or asked to carry on a conversation, it would not have happened during my run. But you know what, it felt GREAT! After spraining my ankle at the end of February, I questioned my ability to get into a training pattern. With help from my trainer and runnersworld I was able to establish a schedule that I am comfortable and confident in. I will pre-train for the month of April. Then starting in May, I will begin my new routine. If you have any words of encouragement, I'd love it :) if you have any songs that keep you going, send them to me...I'd love to add them to my playlist! I know that I will have highs and lows, and I'm ready for it. There are a couple of races that I'm looking into, and haven't nailed down the one that I will run in just yet. So, for the next couple of weeks...I'll be running. And for the next few months...I'll be running :) ps: thanks to my friend Berta who reminded me that I need to be a better blogger ;-)

t-minus 2days for a fun weekend :)

We are headed to the Water Park of America to celebrate Parker's 6th birthday this weekend! Can't wait for all the laughs + family time together! My sister and I have already giggled over how we think the weekend will pan out...with mom trying to mini-golf and dad going down the water slides :) I love our time together. I love my little Parker boy. I love that spring is here (well...sort of, aside from the SNOW we're supposed to get this weekend). I love that I am running again. I love that I am seeing results with my new healthy lifestyle. I love life right now. I'll post pictures next week :)

happy love day!

photo credit:eighteen25.blogspot.com

Parker loved going through his Valentine Bag from all of his classmates -- little stinker knew which piece of candy went with each one.

I had planned on making him heart-shaped pancakes for supper, but it was Fruity Pebbles instead :)

Hope your day was filled with love. Take an extra little minute to hug the ones that are special to you.

xoxoxo

updates :)

Can you believe it's February already? It's a short month...which means the end of winter is in sight and spring is on its way, yay!!!

Parker was sick w/ Influenza B the last week in January = NO FUN. After missing 4 days of school and spending time resting and recooping, I can happily report he's back in full swing and his normal self again.

The timing on his sickness was, well, no the greatest. I wrapped up my last week of work at Merrill and juggled/balanced training and saying "goodbye" to some great co-workers and lots of professional learning experiences. And on 01.28.2011 I jumped feet first into my new career at Creative Memories! I've got a week under my belt, and things are going FANTABULOUS! I've joined the Traditional Scrapbooking team as a Decorative Product Marketing Specialist. Life at my new job is: refreshing, positive, energetic, and FUN.

Valentine's Day is just around the corner :) It's my favorite holiday...and I need to get crack-a-lackin on my valentines! What's there not to enjoy about a day that is devoted to LOVE ...oh yeah, and gives me another excuse to buy excessive amounts of things that are PINK -- wink!

:)

brrrrrr!

With the negative temps outside here in MN, it just calls for a snuggle party! And mister man and I are doing just that :) He woke up this mornin w/a fever of 101.8...poor little bugger.

We're watching movies, listening to Katy Perry (Parker's jamming to Peacock), building Bionicles, playing mexican train dominoes, and still haven't made it out of our jammies. Love love LOVE these kinds of days!

I'm feeling like a craft project today...will have to see what kind of supplies I have in my stash to try this project or this one.

Stay warm!

wordless wednesday

dreaming of warm weather, sandy beaches, and all things coconut!

the hue for 2011

Pantone announced the color for 2011: Honeysuckle! What a fun, vibrant, electrifying color!!! It just gives me an excuse to buy more pink ;) (*wink!) Love it!