Valentine's Memories & C's Questions

I've spent today planning for C's Birthday & Valentine's Day. It has brought back memories of Valentine's Day while I was growing up. My mom would put little heart shaped chocolate crispies in our lunches, and my dad would bring home flowers. He would give a single blossom, usually a carnation to D & I, and he would give several flowers to my mom. Depending on how much money we had at the time, she might get roses or just 6 carnations. She would always put them in a vase in the kitchen window. I just thought it was so cool that he brought D & I flowers, and that he gave more to our mom. It felt like everything was in its place. I don't remember if he kept doing this after B & S were born. Y'all will have to chime in with what you remember.

C's Question of the Day:
Why do you pick up a spider with a tissue? (I haven't seen a spider in weeks so I have no idea where this came from.)

That one is always thinking.

G was at home today because it was Election Day, and they use the schools in MD for the polls. We were working on her homework, and C comes running down the stairs. He tells me that he has something to show me so I go up the stairs. For Christmas, I bought him a hot wheels car organizer that hangs over his door. It is covered with car-sized plastic pockets. Well, he had collected enough cars to fill the bottom row. He was so proud of himself that he was just beaming. So of course, I gave him a huge hug. His birthday will be Cars themed, but he is also very much into space. My parents and siblings gave him his birthday presents this past weekend. So for the last 2 days, he has been playing with Planet Heroes and asking space questions. Although, my brother did give him Cars (from the movie), and this is what he was lining up on his door. I will be giving him Cars bed linens as well as a rug for his bedroom floor that has roads on it so he can drive his cars all over town. He picked everything out on a trip to Wal-Mart. He also has requested Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Broccoli for his birthday dinner with Cars cupcakes for dessert. He has become quite opinionated since Christmas when I couldn't get him to say anything about what he might want for Christmas. It is amazing what a couple of months does.

Mad about Jane Austen

PBS has had the Complete Works of Jane Austen on Masterpiece. Each Sunday it is a new piece. So far I've watched Persuasion, Northanger Abbey, and Mansfield Park. Last Sunday, they did Miss Austen Regrets which was a movie about the last few years of her life. It is so interesting to see how timeless these stories can be. I'm just fascinated by how some things have changed for women, but other things have stayed the same.

I also just finished a historical novel about Emily Dickinson. Emily was basically a recluse who was fortunate to have family wealth. She devoted her life to her poetry, and at times she was just a little crazy. Her family basically allowed her to be a recluse so that she wouldn't embarrass them in public. Emily lived through the Civil War, but it didn't touch her life very much. She made a conscious decision to only have relationships with men via correspondence so that she could devote her time to her poetry.

I am a strong believer in the value of women, but I don't buy this feminist notion that we can have it all. Whatever road you take, there will be benefits, risks, and a price. I am glad that we live in an age where women can make more choices about what to do with their lives, but those choices are often a painful selection process. There just isn't enough time in the day to be all things to all people and still carve out a niche for yourself.

Health Update: I've lost the 5 pounds I gained over the holidays plus a couple more. I quit going to Body Pump, but I'm doing more yoga, and I'm working on increasing my cardio from 20-30 minutes to 30 minutes - 1 hour. As usual, consistency is the most difficult. There just isn't a good time of day, but I'm making some progress.

I really like Mansfield Park because the heroine of the book/movie is poor, plain and not very clever, but it is her gentle and quiet spirit that makes her so endearing. I like to find those hidden qualities.

New Year, New Me, Old Me, It's just me.

On Jan 1st, I went to a yoga class, and then on Jan 2nd I went to Body Pump. Today I am stiff and sore and a bit out of sorts. I am determined to have some impact on my health, and stick it out this time until a difference is made in my body. I knew it was going to get tough, and today was tough. I accidentally set off the security alarm and had to call our previous owners to get the code to shut it off. I hit my head hard on the bathroom sink while helping C put his pants back on, and C has been testing the limits all day. I know that all of these are very minor obstacles and it will pass, but I think I'll go knit for a while.

BTW, I finished my scarf.

Yakkity Yak Yak

I was without a voice for several days, and now that I have some of it back, I just want to talk, talk, talk. I guess that is only natural, but I've gotten a few strange looks from acquaintances who aren't used to me talking so much. Not having a voice is very isolating. Ah well ... Eventually things are getting back to normal. Maybe there is even hope that my house will get clean.

We have finally gotten a camera, and I have several pictures I want to take and post, but the weather isn't cooperating. It has been so overcast that there is just a couple of hours a day that have decent light or the slim possibility of taking a decent picture.

What is going on with everyone? Is everyone ready for the holidays? I need to make sure that I have equal gifts for the kids. I hope to wrap some things this weekend. Also, I have some cookies to bake, and menus to plan. Of course, all I want to do is knit my next sweater. (Did I tell you that I finished my cabled cardigan, and I think it turned out great. Hopefully, N can help me take a great picture of it.)

101 Things

I would like to encourage all of you to take the time for the 101 Things in a 1001 Days. It has really helped me to change the way I spend my time so that it matches my priorities. Of course, my house isn't as clean, but I'm feeling a lot less frustrated. I'm making time for playing games and reading books to the kids as well as exercise and creative endeavors. It's like these things finally made it on my to do list. In fact, I think the 101 Things is like taking your goals and putting them in a to do list form. It has been great motivation for me.