Monday Mumbles...

...not that too many people read this anyway, but I'm feeling it, so here goes the jumble in my head.....besides... Facebook's down right now. *winks*

....I'm back in the saddle of trying to exercise more... It's funny how cyclical this is for me. When I wasn't feeling well, I didn't work out very much, and I totally started to feel it after a bit. Not only was I not feeling energetic physically, but I started feeling it emotionally, too. There really is something to be said for working out on a regular basis. Whether it's doing something you love or just sweating it out, working out is so very good on so many different levels. Because I popped a button off my favorite work pants the other day, I decided to get back in the P90X saddle. But I've figured out a way to totally modify it to where I won't be chained to the television all the time. You see, I'm already trying to run on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays... couple that with karate and living life, and there ISN'T TIME to do put another 6-9 hours a week into it! So, I'm modifying the workouts to fit ME. We'll see how it goes, and hopefully I'll be able to at least keep myself from popping more buttons as the holidays come 'round.

...I've decided that there must be some sort of paradigm shift as far as I'm concerned, as I'm finding it nearly impossible to be totally lazy. This weekend, I managed to almost find the table cloth on my craft table (which had previously been piled about a foot high with crap, some of which wasn't even mine...), AND clean out my dresser/closet. I cooked my great-grandma's sausage casserole (which, if you've ever made it, is a bit time consuming with cutting up all the veggies)... and just generally cleaned. What the heck is wrong with my lazy self? I know Aaron's not complaining.

...OK, off to bathe the babies (who are going to be seven in three short months.....sheesh!!) and continue on with my homemade Christmas presents....

Life in The Fast Lane....

So it's been a busy week. It didn't turn out exactly as planned, but I think it definitely turned out the way it should. A bullet list by day, because I do love order and clean lines:

• Sunday: I took the kids to Sunday School while Aaron slept in. I did a few errands and then picked the kids up. I put together a crock-pot meal for them to eat while I went downtown. I went downtown to the Amazing Race. We ran ourselves all over downtown, had a blast, but still came in last. Had we been able to get the first clue, we would have been third, but since we had to go back and get the first clue, we were last. They were able to raise about 400 dollars for Aaron's cousin's family, so that makes me happy! Afterward, Elizabeth and I had a quick snack at the Chocolate Cafe (BEST MOCHA EVER!!) and then we hoofed it to Lucas Oil Stadium to watch the craziest Colts game.... leave it to the Colts to put you on the edge of your seat, especially when playing the Patriots! We had way too much fun, and I'm thinking that it might be the beginning of the end of corporate outings at my company...... the casualty list did NOT include me, thankyouverymuch!


• Monday: Because I went to the game, I had to give up the sixth row center tickets to see Rob Zombie... *sobs* It was a great time, too... the friend that I went with nearly got up on stage AND caught the drum head that the drummer threw out into the crowd. DAAAAMN!!


• Tuesday: I got up to run, but it was sprinkling, so I went home. Too funny, though, as my friend ran anyway. Oh, well! In the evening, we got together with Aaron's parents and sister and niece to have a Mexican fiesta. Collin is now thirteen. WTF?! But he's an awesome young man, even when he's not answering the phone when I call or when he half-eats a whole bowl of leftovers (and throws the rest away... grrrrr...).


• Wednesday: I finally went to karate and then went for what might be my last Wednesday night at my "cheers" bar.... so sad that it might close and am at a total loss for where to hang out when it does... so don't want to go back to the loud-karoke place... *sigh*


• Thursday: I went on my first run in a long time! I didn't do fabulous, but it was definitely good to get back at it. I also took a half-day off work to take Griffin to the eye doctor. He's doing VERY well with his glasses and the patch therapy has gained a bit of sight back for him, so the doctor is very pleased. I then took lunch to the twins at school. It was too funny to spend time with them like that. As a working mom, I don't get much of a chance to do things at school. The rest of the day was a bit downhill from there, because we didn't go to karate and I totally forgot Griffin's pack meeting. Some days I feel like a big loser mom.


• Friday: Sparring night! I didn't too badly for someone who's not been a regular karate trainer....I miss doing karate with regularity. It makes me sad to not feel well enough to work out. Aaron went out with his friends to BW's to play some trivia, and Collin went camping with the Boy Scouts, so the twins and I snuggled in and watched the second Transformers movie. It was a good time!


• Saturday: I got up and ran... it felt good, even though I'm still down on endurance. I came home and made the twins banana pancakes. Then, because I'm feeling out of shape and I'm a glutton for punishment, I did the Chest & Back P90X workout. After that, I went to a local craft fair, which was a bit of a disappointment. Instead of staying home and relaxing, Aaron and I took the twins to the McD's drive-thru and then ate lunch at Yats, a yummy Cajun restaurant. Then we went to try out mattresses....Did you know that the life of the average mattress is 8-10 years? And that we've had our mattress for over 10 now? We're totally due. And we're hoping to get things in the works for a new one soon. We'll see. And finally, before Aaron got totally worn out (he's recovering from being sick... and still feels ill most times), we went to Michael's.... I was going to get a frame for whomever was to receive the below picture I made. But I loved it so much when I put it together, it's now hanging in my kitchen.... So I'm not quite finished with my homemade Christmas! *winks*

Almost Two Weeks?

...has it really been that long? I shall give you a bullet list of things that went down while I was ignoring the blog.....

• I've attempted, unsuccessfully, thank goodness, to hack up a lung. I'm still occasionally working on this feat, and will let you know if I prove successful at any given moment. There really does seem to be no end in sight.
• Griffin spent a few days off school with a fever and some congestion. His pediatrician, whom I love dearly, provided both of us with antibiotics that will hopefully make us better....should the culprit actually be of bacterial nature instead of viral.... the jury's still out on that!
• Being sick tends to have some advantages... Mine are rock hard abs (from all the coughing) and being able to get two-thirds of my homemade Christmas presents completed. I'm actually quite excited about my offerings this year, and hope that the girls will be pleased.
• A blue crayon in my dryer precluded me from getting much-needed lounge time last Sunday. But I managed to save most of the clothing that was affected. Only a few items of clothing and a fraction of the skin on my left forefinger were lost in the process.
• Nexcare sport band-aids really do stick well to busy forefingers that get washed on a frequent basis!
• Griffin is very busy with the Cub Scouts. Last Saturday he worked on a family scrapbook and this Saturday he went door-to-door in a nearby neighborhood collecting non-perishable foods for a local food pantry.
• We're working on our third straight weekend of birthday parties. Two weeks ago our buddy Gavin invited the twins, last weekend our buddy Caroline had them, and this weekend our friends Gage, Claire, and Drew will have the twins. The lunacy of this is not lost on me, and sometimes I wish that we weren't so popular.

And now for a bullet list of what my rock and roll lifestyle will hold in the near future (less the aforementioned birthday celebrations):

• Tomorrow, provided the impending rains stop prior to 1:30, I will be downtown with three friends to participate in the Amazing Race, which is a benefit for my husband's cousin's family. Their son, who is eight months to the day older than Collin, is undergoing treatment for Ewing's Sarcoma, which is a rare bone cancer. The proceeds from this venture will benefit both the family and Riley Hospital in Indianapolis, where he is receiving his care. I really hope that the weather holds out so that the three teams that were directly and indirectly accumulated through me can participate and help the family raise about $150! I'm sure that any bit helps this family!
• Tomorrow night I will be remaining downtown to go with my office to the Colts game. My boss, ever the last-minute guy, announced yesterday that he'd scored tickets for our office to go to the game. As the Colts and Patriots are a huge NFL rivalry, I'm excited to go.
• And, because it doesn't really matter if I rest or not, Monday will find me back downtown to go to the Rob Zombie concert. A friend of mine scored sixth-row tickets and asked if we wanted to go.
• Tuesday, my baby will officially be a teenager.... I can't believe that I've been a mom for 13 years now. He's definitely turning into a young man right before my eyes, with all the goods and bads that come along with finding his wings.

After that, I do believe that I might be grounding myself to the house for a bit. My kids are going to start to wonder who that strange lady is, and Aaron's finally contracted that which has been plaguing me for the last few weeks. So I'm going to need to stay home for a while to reconnect with my family (and let my body relax a little!).

Fun Weekend For Which I'm Paying Dearly....

We had a great time over Halloween weekend. The twins went trick-or-treating with their friends, and it was really funny how it all turned out. Griffin would be the shorter of the Clone Troopers. The tall one is his friend Jon, with whom he was stoked beyond belief to go around the neighborhood with. The other girls are Claire and Kate, with whom the twins are good friends, and with whose parents I love hanging.... good times!




....after trick-or-treating, we went out with Jill, despite the fact I was starting the downhill slide on health. Jill let me borrow one of her costumes, and we went out, eating, drinking, and dancing. It was a good time! Aaron went with us and we wound up meeting up with Nay. Good times, good times....














....Sunday found me downtown with Aaron at the Colts game. My work got a pair of free tickets, and I finally got to go to Lucas Oil Stadium and watch a game. The Colts squeaked out a victory, so it was definitely a good time. Of course, now, I am still hacking up a lung, and just wish I could spend the day in bed. Yes, today is Wednesday, and I'm still feeling like crap. I will give this another few days before I go see my doc. *sigh* Gotta love this time of year for this kind of stuff....