And so it begins!

Before getting to what is beginning.   Have to mention what a wonderful Thanksgiving vacation we had in Madeira Beach, FL.  We stayed at a great condo on the beach, walked more than 30 miles during the week, kayaked, swam with the Manatees in Crystal River, went to the Clearwater aquarium, home of Winter the dolphin and most importantly got to see Joe's dad and Aunts.  Those Johnson girls are hysterical.  I can only hope to be as fabulous at 60+.

One of the reasons I no longer have a real job is the need and desire to be there for my family.  It is beginning... My mom called a lunch yesterday to talk to Johnny (my brother) and me privately.  Her best friend (college roommate) and roommate now is in the throws of dementia it has been very sad to see her decline.  Shirley has always been in our lives, I was 16 before I realized she isn't actually my Aunt.  Anyway, my mom still works full-time (at 73). Will do a post on living within your means at another time.  Shirley doesn't need to be alone 10-12 hours a day, as she gets confused easily.  She has also started becoming delusional at times.  Once insisting to my mom that her brother had passed away.  Even with my mom's insistence, she couldn't be convinced until her brother called and spoke with her.  Mom is physically disabled (bad knee, leading to crooked spine...one kidney with poor functioning) and feels she just can't provide her the attention she needs.  Shirley is going to have to go live with her sister at the beginning of the year.   We all have a lot of guilt over this as Shirley took care of  my grandmother for 18 months before she died, helped take care of my dad when he was ill and passed, and has taken care of my mom through multiple surgeries.  Because of Shirley, my brother and I have been relatively unaffected by aging parents...certainly less than other children who have put their lives on hold, or moved parents in etc.  This portion only really affects me because of sadness for Shirley and my mom. Due to my imediate family situation I am not able to take her care on.

On a positive note, my mother, a recovering hoarder, is finally ready to get rid of it all, sell the house and move into an apartment closer to me or my brother.  Currently, she is 40 minutes away.  This is where I come in.   Her house needs lots of work, my brother can do a lot. Then we will have to get rid of trash, run Craig's Listings non-stop, garage sales and get the charity trucks etc.  I am pretty sure the cleaning, purging and selling of items will take at least 2-3 months. Hopefully, the house will sell
quickly and we can get her settled before the summer heat.   I know to most this just seems like part of life, and it it, but it is the first time Mom has said "I need y'all to do this for me".

Wow! What a Month

Have not taken the time to post my thoughts or clean out that drawer!  

My friend Sonja has started her pancreatic cancer treatment, she is doing a chemo sandwich with radiation in the middle.   She goes in today for her second round.   She has lots of support and love, so she will overcome.  Not to mention her great spirit...she, I am sure, is keeping the nurses in stitches.

October ending up being a big month socially.  We had something each weekend.  I was able to keep on track Primally, but drank too much wine.  I really need to kick the wine habit...not because it is bad for me, but because I drink too much.   I am a mom, so I have to drink a little but need to watch my intake.  It seems to affect my workouts, plus I tend to eat poorly when drinking.  Red wine is my pot!

This week I am working upstairs in the hell that is my children's space.  I want to get it cleaned up enough for them to put a Christmas tree up there.   We are driving to Florida on Friday for Thanksgiving week, so I obviously have lots of prep work for that as well.   Oh, then I am still needing to do that damn drawer!  

End of year goal...maintain my current weightloss, continue my Primal ways and have a great holiday season with friends and family.  

I Have Got to Clean out that Drawer!

I have a drawer, full of shit, that has got to be cleaned out. I have been thinking about it for 6 months. Honestly, I havent even opened the drawer for anything in a year. I should just dump it in the trash can. I wont though for fear of throwing out a picture or momento...so the drawer sits.  Today was going to be the day, I am still hopeful...

Good Weekend and it continues...

Had a great Friday night with neighbors, went to a fun party last night.  There were 4 kids there, and they all had so much fun! My 12 year old who seems to hate everything, commented several times how much fun he had and how glad he was to have gotten to go. Of course, the party wasn't really about the kids.  It was for Christi's 32nd birthday.  Her boyfriend did a wonderful job of trying to surprise her, and put out a beautiful spread of fajitas and the fixin's. Lazy day today except grocery shopping and menu planning.  The kids are out of school tomorrow for parent conferences.  Wish me luck!  One never knows what they might hear....

crock pot rotisserie-style chicken

crock pot rotisserie-style chicken

Will be trying the above for dinner on Wednesday night.

The things we get roped into..

I spent the better part of the week volunteering at the school book fair. I can not believe the amount of work that goes into it. I only spent about 12 hours there, but the lady running it was there from 8-3 each day and had a laundry list of items to do over the weekend.  This years theme is olympic related, so she even wore her tennis outfit.   It has been a lot of fun to help out, and I will be helping out over the next two weeks during the sales too.  However, it is down right inspirational how much time and love Jill has put into making the book fair a successful fundraiser for Sparks.

My friend Sonja is on the mend. She has been walking around, sitting up, her kids came to visit today. They put in a feeding tuber yesterday, she gets to go to mushy food early next week.  The plan is for her to go home on Tuesday or Wednesday.

We had our neighbors over last night.  We heated the pool for the kids to swim, I didn't realize the cold front was coming through in the afternoon.  The 5 of them froze, but had a great time. The adults played a game of cards called "beer run" a loose version of hand and foot. Much less intense than the one my father in law plays.

Off to a birthday party for my friend Christi. I used to babysit her when she came to town for the summer.

Not a bad day..

Had a good lunch with the advisor who wants me to help him with his new platform.  He has been ill for several months with sinus issues, he even had surgery at the end of August.  However, he still has a fever and has been told by doctors he may spend the rest of his life on steroids and antibiotics. I thought about mentioning a diet change, to Paleo, but he still cannot taste food, so I will wait for another time.

I am so excited for my 7th grader, he got all A's and B's on his report card. I hope he stays motivated. I do not want to have to spend the year yelling at him.  The 5th grader has to learn the states and capitals...Ugh!!

Got to talk to my friend Sonja today (the one who had the Whipple). She seems in good spirits and says they are doing a good job of managing her pain.  We will know more about the state of things soon.  Still sending her good thoughts and prayers.

I accidentally made someone mad on Facebook today.  A "friend" posted she had grounded her 10 year old for 2 weeks, and how she was going to be lonely while he sits in his room. I suggested she rethink to through the weekend.  Apparently, she took offense.  Well, I apologized, but unfriended her.  Don't need stress on Facebook.  LOL!

Busy Day Today!

Already, been to the gym. Love my workouts at Full Throttle Athletics! Today was all body weight exercises except for the TRX. I am getting better at pushups, but I still have lots of room for improvement.  Got the kids their lunches and breakfast and off to school.  Ate some of last nights crappy leftovers, at least it warmed up decently..added some coconut oil and had a nice primal breakfast.  Taking a little break to watch Flipping Out, love Jenny & Jeff.  Angel and I are off  to the dogpark soon, then to lunch with a man I have told I would do some contract work for, he is a financial advisor who has tried to work without an assistant.. Silly man! If time allows, I'll go to the   school and help with the book fair. My contribution is stapling all the brochures :)

Still so worried about my friend, Sonja.  I will call her today to check on her.  I hope her spirits are good, she is going to need to stay positive.

Blah!

We've know for a month one of my closest friends would be going in today for exploratory surgery. She has had an issue with her liver and pancreas. The Doctors had hoped it was just an infection, but it is cancerous. Because of the location , they are not sure if it is pancreatic cancer or liver cancer. They took out the small tumor and some lymph nodes, while also doing a Whipple Procedure.  Google it, not a simple procedure and very risky.  They will know in a few days if the cancer has spread. My friend is 40 years old with a 3 & 6 year old. I can't express how sad, concerned and scared I am for her.  We lost one of our girlfriends in '99.  Seems overwhelming to be going through cancer again.  Good thoughts and prayers, if you go there, for my friend.

Then to top it off, I tried a new crockpot recipe today. It took a lot of chopping and prep, and it sucked. My family was nice enough to eat several bites, before "being full".

Monday!

I love Mondays. I know that sounds crazy, but I like my regular routine. The weekends can be a bit challenging and lonely, especially when the kids are at their dads. My husband Joe, doesn't feel conversation is at all necessary. While I can talk to a wall, it would be nice to have occasional banter.  At least I have Monday...

Had a great workout at the gym. The kids are off at school. I'm watching Mike & Mike, love this show.  Poor Chuck Pagano, always sad to hear someone has leukemia. At least it is a treatable form.  Have I mentioned, I love sports? It even gets on my husbands nerves.  Growing up, we watched sports to spend time with dad. I love football, tennis, golf, basketball (playoffs), I love going to hockey games. My radio is always on ESPN. Of course, I am a Cowboy fan. My daddy used to drive 2 hours to Tyler during the bad times and the Cowboys were blackout. Then in college they returned to greatness. I didn't have many friends during the Superbowl games. I went to school in Colorado. We had a group of "wealthy" New York boys we hung out with, poor Jim Kelly, he just couldn't bring it home for the Bills.

On the agenda today... Dog park, decorate for Halloween, make meatballs for kids lunches (wish me luck), go to Reese's school to help decorate for the Book Fair.  At 4:45, the Taxi is one duty, until 7:15.

I'm new here..

I don't mean I am new to blogging, which I am. I mean, I'm new to this life.

In a former life, I had a career as a Registered Sales Assistant, in financial services.  At one time, I was well thought of in the field. I loved being needed by all those men, who could not live without me keeping their clients happy.  I loved the clients, many would call me and refuse to even speak to their actual advisor.  I knew my clients by voice, I knew why they were calling. Some just called to chat. Looking back, I think being a sales assistant may have actually saved my life at times, other times just my sanity.  It helped me through the death of my best college friend in '99, it gave me life back when I had my first baby in 2000 (good lord, he was needy), it gave me something to return to when my father died in 2003, then kept me sane and financially viable through my divorce in 2004/05.  Fast forward to 2012, several sales assistant jobs and a year long stint as a lunch lady later...here I am wondering, what do I do next?

As a mom, I have plenty to do. Homework (7th grade is freaking hard!), the dog park (we have a lab/pit bull rescue), the gym, trying to be a decent cook and cleaning lady. Also, I'm a taxi cab driver. Each week it is like a delicate dance to get both kids to school, to activities, and homework done.  How is it I ever worked (for pay) in the first place? So, what do I do now?

I love reading about nutrition. I do not eat, gluten, grains or processed food.  It can be a PIA, but I feel so much better now than when I started, April 7th of this year. Along with being a better cook, I want to help my family along with healthier eating.

My other love is exercise. I workout at Full Throttle Athletics. It is a Kettlebell certified facility. I am there 5 days a week at 5:45 for my 6:00 am class.  My favorite part is the people, the other is realizing how strong I am.  However, I am still a work in progress. Along with about 50 other members, I am starting week 4 of an 8 week transformation contest.  For me the challenge has been not drinking.  I love red wine! However, I am managing to only have a couple glasses on the weekend..instead of every night.  It is amazing how much better the workouts go, when you aren't feeling off from one too many glasses of wine.

My final continuing challenge is the house. Oh to love cleaning and decluttering. I am working toward having only what we need and use in the house.  This will be my biggest challenge.

My goal with this blog is to vent, share ideas and learn how to do something new..