Monday, November 29, 2010

Holiday Hang Over

Is there such a thing?  After all of the turkey and ham have been  transformed into other meal options, the stuffing has been reheated more times than I can count, and the pies are gone....I feel like I've got a hang-over!  Without the alcohol!

Since we had a few extra days off, I took the opportunity to do some household chores that I had been ignoring.  I was so busy on my days 'off' from work - it was crazy!  I'm still exhausted and trying to get up at the usual time and back to work today has been a challenge.  Needless to say, today was another day of waking the dead to go to school.  Briley was protesting so adamantly about not going back to school, I was beginning to wonder if I was going to have to drag her out of the car?  I've seen parents in the drop off line do that, and laughed to myself at their pitiful parenting skills, but I gotta say - Briley's behavior this morning was starting to have me worried!


I wonder if this throbbing headache and all over fatigue I feel is from too much pie?  No!  Surely not!  I wonder if it's from the pending gloom and doom I am going to feel when I have to go Christmas shopping and be parted from my money?  That's probably more of the reason for my headache and yucky feeling than anything else! LOL

I guess I wasn't mentally prepared for it to be MONDAY yet - Oh well - the day is almost over and I've been fairly productive today, even though I think my head is going to explode at any minute?  I hope there are some good Hallmark holiday movies on tonight, I just don't expect to have the energy to do much more than veg out!

What about you?  Any Holiday Hang Overs out there in Blog Land?

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with your family and friends!

I'm off from work early this afternoon to head home and prepare my dressing.  It was either prepare it myself or suffer through the Stove Top Stuffing my dear Mother-in-law serves!  I think we all know my answer to that! :)

My contributions to the family gathering this year will be the ham, which is of course from our very own home grown piggy, the dressing, broccoli and cheese casserole, deviled eggs and some sort of veggie/dip tray. 

Eat your turkey, take your naps, enjoy too much pie and watch all of the football or Hallmark movies you desire!

Gobble Gobble!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Aging, Diet, and Exercise AFTER 40...

Let's not mix words about this... IT SUCKS!   It takes work, serious work both physically and mentally to stay ahead of the aging game.

Earlier this week I had to make my usual three month trip the Dr.'s office to have my blood pressure meds refilled.  I don't know why my Dr. insists on seeing me every three months (well I do know why, she wants to bill the Insurance Company)- I promise nothing is changing not even my wardrobe!  My weight stays the same, my disposition stays the same... and basically my life is a daily rewind and repeat of the day before.  So what is the point?  Just give me my refills and we can call it good?  Ya' know?

As I was sitting in the waiting room with my little baggie of pills, I noticed that everyone else had their own little baggies of pills?  What's the deal?  Are we all here to see the pill pusher?  I began to rationalize with myself and the fact that I'm only *41*, NOT 81 - why in the world did I need a baggie of pills?  This entire process is crazy and basically self inflicted.   I know better than to be carrying so much extra weight around my mid-section. I know better than to eat noodles, butter, bread, and drink coke!  I'm sabotaging myself! (The brain fog was lifted at this point!)

Why do I let myself get caught up in the mindset that I'm too tired to get up and get moving after 7:00 p.m.?  Just because it's dark, doesn't mean I have to put on my PJ's and crawl into bed or on the couch to watch the holiday movies on Hallmark.  Honestly  I've seen them all,  several times over...AGAIN....I'm doing it to myself!!  I'm sure I would probably feel better if I just got up and used my mind and body?  

I've been so busy the past 20 years raising kids, cooking dinner, doing laundry, helping with homework projects and dropping off and picking up at gymnastics and Girl Scouts that I've completely forgotten about ME.  I've turned into a scrub women - or at least it feels that way.

There was a time when even on the worst of days, I could pull out a pair of jeans, fix my hair and maybe put on a certain blouse and be assured that heads would turn.  You know exactly what I'm talking about.  Well.... heads don't turn anymore and I'm someone's raggedy old mom!  (insert eye rolling moment and maybe a little tear or two) 

This getting old stuff is not for the weak, that's for sure! Each morning when I crawl out of bed I have pain in all sorts of different spots.  And if I'm really lucky the pain will move from one location to another, but never fear I have my handy Arthritis Strength Tylenol to get me through the day! UGH!!

So what does all of the pathetic ranting mean?  Not sure, exactly?  Maybe I've had that light bulb moment?  I do know that things have got to change and I'm ready to fight this aging business with serious force.  Besides, I'm really sick of spending so much money each month at the pharmacy, when if I would just take control of my health, I wouldn't need any of my prescriptions!  DUH?  LOL

Let's not get carried away, you aren't going to see me running marathons or participating in body building events, but I do hope to increase my daily exercise by making ME a priority. I am improving my dietary habits with vitamin supplements and better food choices.  I didn't say I was giving up Sonic Coke, just yet...but hopefully I can cross that hurdle sooner than later.

What good am I going to be if my grand kids are pushing me around in a wheelchair, when I could have used my 'good years' to get into better shape and enjoy getting up each day?

I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel, just catch up to the wagon!

Stick with me on this and if you would like to be a lifestyle buddy with me, let me know!  It's always great to have someone else in this fight with you!

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

The Baby Pigs Have Arrived

As usual for this time of year, we are the proud owners of two new baby piggies, to be fattened up and taken to the County Fair in the Spring.
This year Briley is going to show a pig for the Jr. FFA in our District.  This is her first year to actually get in the ring and show by herself.  To say she is excited, is quite an understatement.  Briley has already named her pig Hershey; yes, the black one is hers! :) 

Another change we've made this year is that we are keeping the pigs at the school's barn, so we will be closer to them and it will make the care and feeding of them easier than driving down to our friend's barn in the next town over.  So far, the girls and I have to get up about 30 minutes earlier each morning and we stop by the school barn to check on these little oinkers.  Bailey is shoveling poop each morning before school and Briley and I are taking care of the feeding and watering them.  I don't know how long I'm going to be up for the morning pig duty?  Obviously I didn't read the fine print somewhere? UGH! 

Every other evening, the girls will be going to the pig barn with their dad to start working with the pigs to get them use to taking directions/orders when told to move or whatever it is they teach them.  All of this effort is in hopes that when the pig gets into the show ring, they don't act like a completely wild animal -which of course they are?  Go figure?

So far this has been the extent of Briley's participation...let's just say she's gotta step off of her bale of hay pretty soon and get dirty! LOL

This morning when we went to the barn, Bailey quickly announced that her pig had the 'runs'!  Oh lovely!  This year of pigs is off to a good start - NOT!  Pig Runs - Pig Diarrhea - JUST LOVELY! 

Stay tuned for more pig adventures...

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Tuesday Product Review - Glade Holiday Collection

~ I am not paid by anyone to express my biased opinion on these products. ~

The day after Halloween, I saw my first Christmas commercial on TV, it was for Glade Holiday Collection of Scented Oil Candles.  Once I got over my initial shock that the holiday marketing surge had begun, I decided that I might like to try these out.  After all, I'm always interested in finding something to conquer the kid, dirt, cat, and other nasty smells that creep up when I least expect them. 

In my usual Sunday afternoon coupon clipping extravaganza, I found Glade Candle coupons.  Lucky me!  :)  Well you know what this means?  Right?  I've got to have these wonderful candles NOW - I have a coupon!!  That's just a no-brainer! 

So in keeping with my normal boring routine of weekend grocery shopping with coupons and sales ads, I struck out to my neighborhood Wally World with the intention of finding and purchasing my very own Glad Holiday Collection.  I would just like to say that Wally World was so considerate - they had built an entire display in the middle of the aisle, of what else?  Glade Holiday Candle Collection...After sniffing and sneezing my way around the display smelling each of the holiday scents, I finally settled on the Apple Cinnamon scent. 

With sheer excitement that I had found the perfect item to bring the smells of the holidays into my home, just as the commercial boasted about...I put two candles, two oil refills and one oil candle holder thing in my buggy.  You realize that in order for me to use my coupons, I had to buy 2 of each? Just making sure we are all on the same page here! LOL

As soon as I got home from the dreaded grocery store trip, I found my bag of goodies and knew that I had to try them out, immediately.  Hmmm??? I pretty sure they had a scent at the store?  However when I got home they didn't smell as lovely as they had in the store?  Was there some kind of scent trick?  I continue to light them around the house and wait for the wonderful smells of the holidays to wash over me.

That never happened.  I didn't smell anything!  Hmmm?? After 2 hours the Scented Oil Candle had completely burned out and no one in my household even noticed the slightest smell of yumminess?  Never fear, I had bought the oil refills, so maybe our house was just extra stinky and I needed to burn another one - so I did. UH.. YEAH... NOTHING! 

I wasn't trying to smell up the High School Gymnasium, just my normal sized living area?  Was that so hard?? Still determined to smell something, I lit the candle in my bathroom in hopes that maybe it would smell up a smaller room?  I can honestly report that the actual Glade candles did put off a longer lasting scent than the Oil Candles, but then again they were placed in a much smaller space.

What does all of this unbiased review mean?  Well I'll tell ya'... Save your money - don't buy the oil candle thingy, regardless of how cute you think the holder might be!  Big waste of money, even if you do have the coupon.  If you must give Glade some of your money, I would recommend only buying their actual candles.

I would also like to report that one small little Yankee Candle Melt did more to deodorize and wash my rooms in holiday goodness than all three of the Glade things combined.  I'm sticking to Yankee Candles, I should know better than to try anything else!  I've learned my lesson!  For what I spent on all of the Glade Holiday Collection junk, I could have bought one whopping big Yankee Candle that I can be assured would wash my home in the smells of holiday yumminess. 


Thursday, November 4, 2010

It was a pumpkin carving fiasco....

(I love the picture because Briley looks like she has horns coming out of her head... The rolling pin lined up just perfectly with her head.)
The girls spent one evening designing and carving their own pumpkins.  It really was quite entertaining to watch their different levels of interest and commitment.  Needless to say, there is always one the bunch that really couldn't care less if the pumpkin got carved or thrown out the back door.  That one in my bunch is Bailey! :)
She did put forth the effort, but in the end she was fine with just chucking it in the trash!
 Even Briley dug the pumpkin guts out all by herself!


After a couple hours of trial and error, we did end up with four pretty scary (in a good way) looking pumpkins and the evening was capped off with a yummy bowl of roasted pumpkin seeds, seasoned with ranch dressing.
Of course I forgot to take any pictures of the finished pumpkins!  That figures!


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