Stewardship Sunday on a Tuesday. It's a first.

This week was a mix of enjoying and prepping. We tried to enjoy the glorious weather as much as possible. We took care of little details that have been niggling - shoes that needed repairing, and clothes that needed altering to be wearable again. I discovered that I'm no fun. But that's a post for another day.

I still find myself ruminating a fair amount on the balance of have-to's vs. want-to's. With all of the toddler drama that a two year old can bring, I still second guess a lot of my decisions. Am I providing enough structure and consistency? Too much? Being consistent? Too rigid? Even if I'm doing things right, can there still be this much conflict?

I've been experimenting with changing our schedule around to suit our natural rhythms in our days. I've been trying to be more flexible with our plans and try to take advantage of any great weather, surprise visits, or opportunities that might come along. And I'm looking for opportunities to just make them run. Cesar Milan swears by this approach when dealing with canine behavior. It seems to work pretty well with toddlers, too. The days have been pretty good. Just not very productive. Throw in working a Saturday, and napping away a rainy Sunday, and my floors are disgusting.

Sigh.

So I'm quite behind in my blogging in general. I'm just tired, and I'm spending less time at home in front of a computer. So this blog post is 2 days late, and I'll just try to report on last week before it becomes halfway through this week.

Food Waste:  the pork fat got thrown out. Shockingly enough, I didn't get around to making sausage this past week. Go figure. We also tossed some sketchy greens. But other than that, we've been good this week.

Patience:  I got a lot of exercise this week, and tried to take advantage of the gym's evening babysitting hours to combat those dangerous "arsenic hours" before BestestHusband gets home and we eat dinner. Both of these help the patience a lot. 

Money:  I gulped hard when I looked at how much it would cost to alter 4 garments. But 3 of them I wasn't wearing at all, and 1 just made me look preggo every time I wear it (I'm NOT pregnant, by the way). But the cost of repairing 3 pairs of shoes was so low that I'm letting myself combine the two amounts. The grand total is not bad to get 3 new pairs of shoes I couldn't wear and 3 new skirts I wasn't wearing. And one shirt that will look much better when I wear it now. I do own a sewing machine. And I do know how to use it. But I've been wanting to alter those skirts since HeyMama was born, and it just hasn't happened. 

Time:  I'm really taking a hard look at how I spend my time, especially how to best use it for fun and happy days. I can't help but think that there's got to be a better way...

Hope your week is off to a good start!

Stomach Bug

If I remain horizontal and don't try to do anything, I don't feel the need to puke.
This is seeming to work for HM, too.
I'm extremely thankful for a comfy couch and PBS!

Seasonal Pregnancy Disorder

I’m pretty sure that it won’t be in the DSM-V, and I know there’s no ICD-9 code for it. But I realized today that I have Seasonal Pregnancy Disorder. I was walking down the sidewalk with the girls, and got “The Look”. You know, that look reserved for expectant mothers when you see the baby bump, you get a little dewey-eyed, and you smile at them in shared joy of a soon-to-be-baby. Since the weather’s gotten colder, I’ve been given that look more often. And someone at the playground actually asked me when I was due with #3.

Here’s the problem. I’M NOT PREGNANT. I have nothing against it, but I do enjoy working a few days a week, and my income can’t put 3 kids in daycare. We’re finally just doing better than breaking even with the 2 tuitions we’re currently paying. So until childcare comes in the form of taxpayer-sponsored kindergarten for at least one of our kids, we’re a 2 kid family.

So why does everyone think I’m pregnant? I finally looked down at my coat today - my lovely puffy down coat with the hidden zipper pockets that hold tons of stuff. Well, they’re currently holding tons of stuff. And those pockets are at prime belly level for a baby bump. I emptied them to find my keys, 2 pairs of gloves, a tube of chapstick, headphones for the gym, 3 old tissues, an old shopping list, a clothespin, a penny, a quarter, a paperclip, one of those square plastic clippy things that seals bread bags, and 2 plastic bags used for poop-scooping on dog walks.

I removed them all, and my “pregnancy” appeared to be terminated.  Magic. But here’s the problem:  I really use my coat pockets as a valuable storage spot. My keys go there when I go to the gym. My gloves go in and out of there dozens of times a day. My pockets help me avoid carrying extra bags. I don’t want to empty them. Ok, maybe I can do without the 3 old tissues, the old shopping list, the clothespin, the penny, the quarter, the paperclip, and the square plastic clippy thing that seals bread bags. But the 2 plastic bags used for pooper-scooping on dog walks are necessities. (I recommend that all parents with small children carry plastic bags with them, even if they don’t have dogs.) And I know that more shopping lists and random detritus will gravitate to my pockets.

So I will maintain my Seasonal Pregnancy throughout the winter. My need for handy objects outweighs any vanity I might have. And hey, if someone wants to hold open doors for me because they think I’m walking for 2, I won’t complain.