In this moment

In this moment I am 

•enjoying...seeing the sunshine...smelling the bacon Ray is cooking for breakfast...my cup of coffee...seeing Hannah reading on the couch...watching Emily help her dad with breakfast by cleaning off the counter.

•thinking...about how frustrated I am with myself right now. I am having trouble getting motivated to work out, keeping the house clean, staying on top of teaching, accomplishing the goals I set for myself, advancing my photography, getting a qualified tenant into our empty house

•eating...nothing at the moment but very soon I will have some eggs and turkey bacon.

•drinking...coffee

•wearing...what I slept in...black adidas sweat pants, pink Volley for the Cure hoodie, socks, and my old Sylvan t-shirt

•listening to...bacon sizzling in the pan, the heat coming through the vents

•wanting...so much...new clothes, a better body, a thriving photography business, inspiration, motivation, physical attention, organization, relaxation, and A FEW SNOW DAYS!!!! ALSO, A QUALIFIED TENANT IN OUT EMPTY HOUSE AND FOR RALPH TO WIN HIS SOCIAL SECURITY SUIT AND PAY US THE MONEY HE OWES US

•weather...is sunny! Pretty sure it's chilly out since there is frost on the deck and the heat is going.

•feeling...stuck. When things overwhelm me, I just shut down. Also excited because we are planning two vacations this summer! Cruise to the Bahamas with Hans and Ronda and Florida with members of my family

•wondering...WHEN THE SNOW IS GOING TO COME!!! WHEN WE ARE GOING TO GET GREAT TENANTS!! WHEN WILL RALPH PAY US!!! 

In this moment

In this moment I am 

•enjoying...sitting on the couch after a long day at work, volleyball practices, and cleaning up water that leaked from the laundry room into the family room downstairs (kids put washcloths in the utility sink after cleaning out the guinea pig cage and the water from the washer ran into the heating vent)

•thinking...about what I am going to teach next week which is the start of the 3rd quarter!! We are officially half way through the school year.

•eating...nothing at the moment but I have eaten very clean all week.

•drinking...more Lipton green tea and water

•wearing...what I wore to school today...jeans, my GE T-shirt, and my Bulldog hoodie.

•listening to...American Idol and Hannah helping Emily do her homework upstairs.

•wanting...to go to bed! AND I REALLY WANT A BIG SNOWSTORM THAT WILL BRING US LOTS OF SNOW SO WE CAN GET A COUPLE OF DAYS OFF OF SCHOOL!! (plus, I want the electricity to stay on)

•weather...is dark right now since it is night, but it was a chilly, overcast day.

•feeling...pretty tired and run down, feeling a heaviness in my chest...not feeling so positive the past couple of days..feeling a little lonely...like Ray is not very interested in me...

•wondering...WHEN THE SNOW IS GOING TO COME!!! 

Weekend Update

The weekend started out a little bittersweet: Friday was Friday the 13th and we received our first 2 hour delay of the year!! That's the sweet part. The bitter part was that I only lasted 2 hours at school and had to come home sick. I spent most of the day in bed.

Saturday was a bit improved, but I ran ALL over! First, Emily needed to go to Girl Scouts at 11:00 then picked up at 12:30. Hannah and I went to Hobby Lobby in between. Next, Hannah needed to be dropped off at the skating rink to spend the afternoon with Rachel Weiderhold. While she was skating, Emily and I ran errands and then stopped at Marshall's.

While at Marshall's, Ray called wanting to go to Home Depot to pick out a new faucet for the kitchen sink. So we ran to the skating rink, picked Hannah up, and went to the Depot. Then we were off to watch Hannah's volleyball game at St. Mary's in Hyde Park.  The night didn't stop there. At 10:00 we met Hans and Ronda at Wings and Rings to watch a football game.

Hannah served Mass on Sunday.

Then we watched Emily's game at 2:00 and Hannah's game at 4:00. Emily then went to Olivia Lynd's house and Hannah Johnson came to ours. Only, Hannah J. didn't last long; she wanted to go home at 9:00, so I took her home and then did some grocery shopping with Hannah in tow.

Monday, we were off for MLK day. I worked on projects #2 and #3 (pictures coming soon) and started on project #4. I also went to Meijer to buy some fruits and vegetables, where I saw this carrot with a "face" carved into it.

After coming home, I worked on putting food together for the week--salads, smoothies, fruit for breakfast--I also cooked a turkey along with tonight's dinner. I also signed up for another online workshop. This one about using my external flash! So excited!!

And, that sums up my very long, very busy weekend!

In this moment

In this moment I am 

•enjoying...a relaxing Sunday evening knowing I DO NOT HAVE TO GO TO WORK TOMORROW!! (MLK Day)...a sense of spiritual rejuvenation I felt this morning by going to Mass...having watched Hannah and Emily play volleyball today

•thinking...a lot about how to be fearless in my life...how to decorate this house and how to energize my photography business...thinking about painting the cabinets black, metallic stencil walls in bathroom upstairs...thinking about working some more in my studio and ordering some backdrops

•eating...lots of junk. :-(  I was sick on Friday so it broke my clean-eating streak. I've eaten Fritos and pizza and popcorn today

•drinking...left-over Ginger Ale from Friday.

•wearing...jeans, brown socks, pink Volley for the Cure hoodie, and my favorite Leinenkugel's T-shirt. Earlier today I had an orange sweater with a ruffled top and a brown belt and my brown boots on.

•listening to...a football game Ray is watching and Hannah playing with Hannah Johnson downstairs (Emily is at Olivia Lynd's house)

•wanting...to want to get in shape...currently lacking the desire to work out...qualified people to rent our open house...Ralph to win his social security so we can be reimbursed for all these months...a new lens so I can properly take pictures in my studio...money to develop my studio ideas...a new wardrobe...a snow storm...a warm cozy day in my bed reading...

•weather...is dark right now since it is night, but it was a sunny, chilly day, highs only in the lower 30's. 

•wondering...when we are going to get a reliable tenant in our open house...how to develop my photography business into an extremely lucrative venture...if Emily is having a good time...how to make myself want to work out

OOOhhhhppp!! They said it!

The "s" word that is...SNOW with some ice. Minor accumulation but the weather men have piqued my hopes for a delay or (dare I say it!) a snow day for Friday. I think the chances are minimal, but this is the first time this winter where we have even had a minute chance of winter weather. Crossing my fingers...  
;-)

EDITING TO ADD: It didn't do much, but I did get my first 2 hour delay on Friday!!!!

What we've been up to

This past weekend, Hannah had a volleyball tournament at St. Nicholas, the same school Denise and Michael attend. Denise's team was not involved in the tournament, but Grandma and Grandpa Durbin, Uncle Mike and Michael came to watch some of Hannah's games. She played a total of three games on Friday and then 2 more on Sunday finally losing in the semi-finals. She played quite well.

We also attended their first CYO games on Sunday...they both won those games.

We have also been enjoying these little pigs...

On Saturday, after the kids had playdates with friends (Hannah went to Hannah Johnson's and Emily went to a girl's house I am drawing a blank on right now) we went out to eat with Hans and Ronda. Always a good time!

Sunday morning I got up at 7:15 and headed to the grocery store. Since we were going to spend most of Sunday at volleyball games, I knew I would have to get an early start on my "chores" if I wanted to have my salad jars and what-not ready for the work week.  My early-at-em attitude was rewarded with this BEAUTIFUL sunrise (which I captured through the windshield of the car!)

I also did something that I should have done 4 years ago...

I painted this little spot on the wall in the upstairs hallway (I also refreshed the downstairs hallway as well as the risers on the steps going upstairs). This spot has been there since we moved in. I was painting that hall while the girls were napping. I got to this point when I ran out of paint in my tray and they woke up. So I stopped. And there it remained for over 4 years. Along with this unfinished wall leading into Ray's office. That dirt is dirt from the previous owners...but not anymore! I painted that too!!!

And, we've been enjoying this awesome, unusual weather for mid-January. It's been in the 50's for quite awhile. I can't remember the last time I looked out our window in January and saw sun and GREEN. The grass is still GREEN! I am missing the excitement snow days bring, but I am not missing that blistering cold weather we usually have.

I've also been working on projects #2 and #3 which prompted the painting in the hallways. I will share those soon.

It's been nice around here lately. I am trying to follow my new mantra. Usually when I wake up, I ask God to help me get through my day. Now I ask Him to help me to enjoy my day with all of its ups and downs and busyness.

In this moment

In this moment I am 

•enjoying...scrapbooking again and doing a better job at documenting my family's life (even if it's only been for a few days!)

•thinking...about going to bed. It's only 9:02 p.m. but I just want to relax and rest

•eating...nothing at this moment, but I have been eating a salad a day, and it has made a HUGE difference in my satiation throughout the day. I'm not hungry...at all! Tonight we had chicken taco soup in the crock-pot and this morning I had apple-cinnamon oatmeal I made in my new small crock-pot. I haven't eaten any junk since Saturday.

•drinking...more Lipton green tea

•wearing...what I wore to school today...black dress pants, a grey and striped long sleeve shirt, and a sweater. I also have on my pink slippers

•listening to...Hannah tell me about her New Year's resolution to be more responsible and Emily face-timing her friend Sophie on her ipod.

•wanting...to go to bed! Also wanting a way to take pictures during the winter months...And some snow!! To create a blog that LOTS of people would read and sponsor...

•weather...is dark right now since it is night, but it was a sunny, warmer day. Surprisingly warmer for January

•feeling...pretty good but ready for bed

•wondering...when we are going to get a reliable tenant in our open house...hopefully soon!!!

Feeding the pigs

I had to take these pictures tonight of Ray feeding the guinea pigs. It's not a secret that he is not a fan of having these little guys in our house and that it took a lot of convincing to get him to agree to allow Santa to bring them to us. Tonight, when I came in to get Snoopy's eye drops (the white one), Ray went to the refrigerator and asked where the lettuce was that they ate earlier. He got it out, sat on the floor, and stuck the lettuce in through the cage. He wanted to show me how they come to the lettuce and eat from his hand...like he already knew they did this...like he had tried it on his own before.

It was really cute to watch them and even cuter to watch Ray take an interest in our little boys!

"Snow" Day

I woke up this morning to a light flurry of snow outside. The girls were ecstatic even though it didn't amount to much. (The pictures are posted her in reverse order because they uploaded that way and I'm too lazy right now to change them!)

Now, if only real snow days would come soon!

Sleeping Beauty

Tonight Hannah fell asleep long before anyone else. I found her sleeping peacefully on the chaise lounge in the living room. I think she is coming down with a cold, but when I saw that sweet face snuggled up against her Snoopy Dog (which she carries EVERY WHERE we go), I just had to take this picture. These are the moments I was talking about...the ones I MUST capture so I NEVER forget, so I can ALWAYS reflect upon. I stopped time today even if it was only for one fraction of a second!

Project 1--Salad in a jar

I am going to attempt to do a new-to-me project once a week this year. These projects can range anywhere from new recipes to home decor to scrapbooking and anything in between. Since one of my goals this year is to get in shape, I need to eat healthy. A while ago, I saw an idea on Pinterest (I can't find the link) where you put all the salad fixings (minus the dressing) in a mason jar and the salad keeps for a week. Today, when I went to the grocery store, I bought a pack of jars and a bunch of vegetables and made 10 salad jars (enough for me and Ray to eat one per day). 

I set them up on the counter and filled them up assembly line-like. Then I stacked them into the refrigerator.

This was a bit time consuming--washing and cutting up the vegetables and filling the jars--but if this works (and I have no idea if it will), it will be well worth it. How awesome and expedient it will be to just grab a jar to take with me to work each day! And how healthy too! I really hope this works, but only time will tell!  Hee! Hee!