CSA Mystery Vegetable Answer.

Did you see my post on our CSA experience yesterday?

What is this?



Well, I won’t keep you in suspense any longer.

How Alarm Clocks are Ruining my Sleep

Something ridiculous that happened at our house last week. At least twice.

Our two-year old, aka "The Middle Bear", has an alarm clock in his room. My husband Greg and I like it there since we often want to know the time.

The Middle Bear likes to play with it. In fact, he often (inadvertently) sets the alarm.

Well, as you probably know, alarm clocks default to midnight (12:00 am) as the alarm setting. And of course, this one was set to the default setting.

The *Six* Love Languages

Have you heard of the five love languages? If not, Google it.

Maybe you have even read the book about the love languages?  My husband and I talked about them before we got married. It seems like a standard pre-marriage counseling topic.

You’re supposed to identify one or two of them that speak of your personality…as in how your spouse can love you best.

But you know what? I love all of them. I love to be loved through each and every single one: quality time, words of affirmation, gifts, acts of service, and physical touch. I can’t identify which makes me feel the most loved!

Skinny Jeans: They're Not for Everyone.

I think I’m one of the only women my age not wearing skinny jeans. When they were first popular (five years ago?) only the junior high girls in the youth group at our church wore them. And I was a pharma rep then. Skinny jeans wouldn’t have been appropriate work attire.

Then I was pregnant. Skinny jeans wouldn’t have fit. And they [probably] didn’t sell any maternity skinny jeans in my price range.

Reasons Why My Husband is the Greatest

Even though I haven't been crafting much (I've been busy with a few custom crocheted hat orders), I still want to share at least some of my life via this blog.

About two weeks ago, my husband called to say he was going to be late coming home from work (I appreciate when he calls with that information, that way I don’t spend the next half hour debating with our two-year old if that was Daddy coming in the garage or a big truck going past…)

….but he also told me he would now be required to work mandatory overtime (50 hours per week plus every other Saturday at the office from 9-3.) And he works 30-35 minutes from our home, so that means he has travel time on Saturdays, too.

(And bear with me, I realize this isn't that much and that lots of people work on Saturdays. And also please understand he already works from home most Saturdays.)

My reaction? As I sat holding my baby during normal evening fussy time, amid a living room strewn with various toys, I cried. 

Keep in mind, post-partum hormones may have contributed to this less-than-stellar reaction…along with lack of sleep.

Swim. Bike. Run.

I did a triathlon a few weeks ago.  I am posting this brief account in case any of you are considering signing up for one—I encourage you to do so as it was really a lot of fun. This was just a ‘sprint distance’ tri, but I did not sprint!

Monkeys in Action: Part III

This was a messy day. It was the littlest guy's first time in the sandbox. I'd seen a tip for cleaning up sandy skin...dust them with baby powder. 

Stuffy Nose Remedy for Babies and Children

This is more of a "Mommy Post" than a "Crafty Post". So if you don't have kids, you may want to skip it. I'm going to talk about runny noses. 

You can tell when your kiddos are sick. It is something about the ways their eyes look.

This is a picture of my oldest when he had his first cold.  

(I am sparing you the picture of snot running down his face. You're welcome.)

Running. Time. Life.

I ran a 5k this weekend. It wasn’t just any old 5k. This 5k was inside a limestone mine! It isn’t a working mine, but it is use for storage. (It was very structurally sound. No worries there.) I actually got a PR (personal record, meaning I ran my fastest time ever.) 24 minutes, 44 seconds. But that’s not why I’m writing about it.

The course began in a huge cement room echoing with lots of noise from 530+ people. A garage door opened and we started running into a narrower, more dimly-lit hallway with limestone-looking walls and ceilings. The course started changing elevation and we started descending down into the mine. The lighting changed to sporadic bulbs and the floor quickly turned to gravel. It got chilly. (I soon regretted my last-minute choice to shed my outer layer and run in a tank top and shorts and would’ve gladly accepted a pair of gloves!)

Anyway, as we snaked through the mine’s cavern and past various boats and RVs stored there, the walls were open, save a few sizable limestone pillars holding up the mine’s ceiling. As I ran, through the open walls, I could see fellow runners ahead or behind. Seeing these other runners ahead or behind served as a great analogy for me.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you could go back to a different point in your life? Conversely, have you ever wanted to fast forward your life so you could reach a different life stage right now? Obviously, I would never trade my current life (my husband & boys) but sometimes I wonder if I could go back in time, knowing what I know now, could I have a more meaningful presence in my high school? Could I have been kinder, harder working, not have quit band, learned more?

If I could go back to my college years, could I have chosen a different school? A different major? Different activities? Been a better tennis player? Would any of these things make me a better person? Give me a better life?

Now, I never struggle with having a toddler. (Heavy sarcasm.) Actually, I’ve been struggling for a few weeks with my two year old…I think he’s going through a difficult stage since his little brother garners much of the attention. In fact, I am COMPLETELY tired of my two-year old demanding things from me all day long (despite being hard at work all day long on developing manners).

I have heard some moms say they can’t wait until their baby can talk. Or walk. Or crawl. Or their kid goes to pre-school. Or kindergarten. Yet, there are tons of other moms with grown kids who come up to me in the grocery store or the library and tell me they wish they could go back to when their kids were young!

So what is the point to all of this? Running through the mine, I thought about how I can’t skip ahead in the race to meet up with the people ahead of me. I can’t fast-forward my life to skip potty training my kiddos. I can’t rewind my life to pick a new major in college, a different prom date, or enjoy and benefit my mom cooking and cleaning up the kitchen every night (that I vastly under appreciated at the time. Thanks, mom. It’s a lot of work.)

All I can do is run hard. Now. As well as I can. Because life goes fast. It’s ok to look at the other people running ahead or behind. But if I wish I were at a different point in the race, I’ll lose focus on where I am now. And if I lose focus, I might become distracted, or worse, dismayed, at how I performed during a past part of my race. I’m not saying it’s never ok to reflect. But the only thing I can control is how I spend my time today.

So, how are you spending your time? In a month, a year, a decade, if you reflect on this part of your life, will you be satisfied that you ran well?