Saturday Chatter

November 24, 2012 by · 2 Comments

Laughing to myself already.

😀

‘Cause I’m pretty sure the word chatter can be defined in more than one way today.

For instance, I woke up in Minnesota this morning, and it was eight degrees outside.

Yes, you read that right.

Goodness, it was C.O.L.D. And my teeth were definitely chattering.

We kinda half-looked at the weather forecast before we left on Wednesday, but it said nothing about snow or eight degrees. I guess we should have known, especially since we lived there for several years, that weather in that great state is far from predictable. Hence, we froze.

But I could use the word chatter and go on and on about the past few days, too. They were good.

Family, memories, laughs, lotsa food…it was a memorable Thanksgiving. Potentially the most memorable for me was Black Friday shopping. I’ve gone before, but I’ve never made a special effort to go right when a store opens for a certain deal. My sis-in-law was all about that, and so I tagged along.

AND got to watch.

Hee hee hee. 😀

While hundreds of customers at Walmart dove into piles of stuff, I stood back and watched a real-life commercial. Stuff really did fly everywhere. It was quite entertaining. After the chaos died down a little, I trotted over to the pajama section and scored myself a super-comfy pair of slippers for $6, found a couple of fun things for Mae, checked out in five minutes, and left as happy as a clam. (Are clams happy? Why do people use that expression?!?!)

Anyway, a few more stops with the definite non-highlight being standing in line at Target for 45 minutes. Thankfully the people in front of us were friendly and like to talk as much as I do. 😉

We got home at 2 a.m., and my incredibly cool hubby got up and ate pie with me at 2:30. Isn’t he great?! :)  Then, being the awesome wife I am, I went with him to Menards the next morning. (Read: later…no way was I getting up at five!) We actually enjoyed ourselves. 😉

So, that was my Black Friday, and it was…well, it was.

It was a good few days, but it’s always nice to be home.

We headed back today, making stops in St. Paul and Janesville to see friends and pulled into the driveway at 7 p.m…tired. I mean, Mae protested going to bed…for the whole sixty seconds it took her to fall asleep. 😉 I made myself do laundry and unpack tonight, but bedtime? Is coming soon. :)

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving…blessings, friends!

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, family, friends, just life, random, travel, where I am

Five-Minute Friday: Thank You

November 23, 2012 by · 4 Comments

Today I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo at The Gypsy Mamafor Five-Minute Friday.

Join me!

The rules: Write for five minutes. No editing, revising, overthinking, or backtracking. Just write.

Today’s Topic: Thank You

Some days the thanks come so easily.

And on those days it’s often the most simple things that bring the most gratitude.

My family. Being surrounded by my hubby and my daughter and my two doggie boys. Knowing that there is love exploding in our house. ‘Tis perfect…for me. :)

My friends. Those who don’t always get me but love me despite that and are Jesus to me anyway, even if I’m having a not-so-lovable day.

Today…the blessing of a snowy outside but a blanket and slippers and legwarmers (lovin’ them!) and time to sit down to write words while my girlie watches Snow White.

Such simple blessings, but the Giver of them knows my needs…and does just that. Gives them.

Some days the thanks don’t come as easily. Disappointments, hurts, and emotions cloud what I want to be reflected in my heart, and I forget to look beyond them to say a simple thanks.

Because there are so many reason to say thank you to Him for all He has done. It certainly can’t be in five minutes, but I’m thankful that despite what may not come out in words for others to know, He knows the thanks in my heart, and I pray that those sometimes-whispers will speak more loudly than anything I could write or speak.

I am loved, I am forgiven, I am secure, I am His. I am surrounded by Love, washed in His grace, forever His daughter.

And those things are enough to make my heart scream, Thank You, for the rest of my days.

Five Minute Friday

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, family, Five Minute Friday, friends, just life, where I am

Little Blessings (Pt. 54)

November 20, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

:) Two consecutive days of naps. (For the girl. I took one yesterday. :))

:) Beautiful weather for late November…I really love sweater weather.

:) Two awesome mornings for running.

:) Visits from friends.

:) Baking pies.

:) Storytime with Mae. I read her my favorite Max Lucado book tonight. She loved it. :)

:) Anticipating reunions with people I love.

:) Awesome news that made my heart SO happy!

:) My little family. I just love them so much!

:) Giving thanks…I am so extremely blessed.

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, family, friends, just life, Maelie, where I am

Scattered Musings

November 13, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Ever have an extremely contemplative, yet scattered, day?

That’s me tonight.

I’m currently munching on a really bad protein bar. I told myself I had to eat all the ones in the house before I bought more. This current one I, unfortunately, purchased a large box of without considering the possibility that they might be bad.

Shudder.

It’s kind of funny how certain things start to clutter the pantry after awhile…for me, it’s protein bars and random boxes of crackers. I have no less than five different brands and probably ten flavors scattered throughout the kitchen. Oh, weird me.

So I put Mae to bed tonight and was all excited to run on the treadmill. Having one in our basement is a perk on evenings when Tobin is gone and I want to get a few miles in. So I resurrected the thing from it’s 8ish-month storage, hopped on, started running at the highest level it will go…and golly, this thing is shakin’! Feels like an earthquake!

After a couple attempts to stop/start it again, I realized an important little piece that holds the base together had popped out and was g.o.n.e.

No running for me.

I did some strength/cardio stuff instead. Not nearly as fun or as sweaty as running. (Did I really just say that?!)

At any rate, I’m sending hubby to the basement to hopefully fix the thing for me. Some days it’s just easier to run on the treadmill than run in the cold.

Though I have unofficially promised no one…ok, ok, myself…that I’ll do one day a week outside.

Ask me how I’m doing with that in the middle of January. :)

Tomorrow is a pretty crazy day for us. Gymnastics, a meeting, family pictures. Plus, my Bible study is SO lucky…I’m baking them my favorite cake. :) That, too, needs to be done tomorrow.

Yikes.

It occurred to me a few days ago that last year, I spent the entire month of November writing about the things I was (am) thankful for…and I (obviously) haven’t been doing that this year. It was almost a convicting realization.

It’s not that I’m NOT thankful…I guess I’ve just chosen to express that thanks in different ways this year…though I’m sure I will officially post something at some point.

I was talking to God about that, trying to explain that I really AM so thankful for all He’s given and blessed us with. In the middle of that explanation, it hit me…

Duh, Mel…He knows.

Perhaps because true gratitude is a reflection of the heart. Though that can be shown on the outside, and should be, the fact that I haven’t been talking doesn’t make me ungrateful.

It gave me something to think about for sure. :)

I can’t believe Thanksgiving is nine days away. We’re heading to Minnesota to see Tobin’s family and a few friends, too. It should be an eventful trip with an ever-wiggly, active toddler and two rambunctious golden retrievers. Yay for family bonding at it’s finest? 😉

Thankfully, I thought ahead this time. I got a steal of a deal on this, and while it has the potential to ensure that Tobin and I are singing Veggie Tales songs for the entire weekend, it will keep a certain little girl entertained during the 12-14 hours we will spend in the van. :)

Between that and her A-B-C Turtle, which is a favorite toy on long trips, and coloring, I’m hoping it’s an enjoyable trip.

And, hey, if it’s not, at least we’ll have grandma and grandpa to provide us with the sanity we lost on the way there. :)

P.S. If you have any tips for long road trips with two year-olds, I’m all ears. Please. Talk.

:)

Well, I’m about out of words (yeah, right, like that ever happens!) and morning is coming way too soon. Off to bed I go so I can (hopefully) run on my non-earthquak-ing treadmill bright and early.

Happy almost-Wednesday, friends!

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, family, just life, Maelie, random, running, travel, where I am

So I Will Dance With Cinderella…

November 1, 2012 by · 6 Comments

Oh, she was beautiful.

Absolutely.

She sat perfectly still while I did her Cinderella hair. Just for the record, that never happens, but she barely moved a muscle as I twisted her hair into a bun, doing what I could with her limited amount of hair. (Cinderella must have had a lot of hair…of course, it seems to work that way in fairy tales. No fair. At least she didn’t want to be Rapunzel!)

And she loved it anyway. :)

Tobin and I looked at each other, almost in disbelief at how fast she is growing up. Dressing like Cinderella. Old enough to know what it means to dance.

And perhaps the most heart-melting moment of the day was when she took her daddy’s hands and they twirled in a circle.

Danced.

I seriously couldn’t resist it…I had to sing. So I sang through part of the chorus before a lump formed in my throat and I couldn’t continue.

You see, there’s this place of honesty in my heart that I haven’t let find its place on my blog just yet.

That place where I truly ask myself, as the days slip by, if this is the only time we’ll experience this. If this time of dancing is only going to be with her.

Don’t get me wrong…she’s enough. More than that.

God poured his blessings into our lives on that Monday morning in June 2010. And He continues to do so.

I have never forgotten how wonderful it was to hear her cry, see her face, hold her for the first time. I remember thinking how tiny she was and how I felt certain that those moments would last forever.

Though they didn’t, it was a nice dream.

And as each day happens and as we soak up the wonderful and the terrible and the happy and the sad and the joyous and the frustrating and the completely blessed…well, we just do our best to make memories out of what we’re given.

Like those memories made yesterday as my sweet little Cinderella twirled with her daddy.

I don’t want to spend my days wondering; I’d rather just live them.

Live them fully as I let my little girl be Cinderella for as long as she wants to be. I’ll watch her twirl and sing and dance and be the wonderful Mae that God has created her to be.

And soak up the blessings of now.

So I will dance with Cinderella, while she is here in my arms;
‘Cause I know something the prince never knew.
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella, I don’t wanna miss even one song;
‘Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight…and she’ll be gone.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, family, just life, Maelie, music, where I am

Coffee Thoughts

October 21, 2012 by · 2 Comments

Tonight…yeah.

A bunch of scattered thoughts.

Coffee, definitely.

And sleep, early. Hopefully. :)

Yes, I am completely aware of what an insane oxymoron those last two lines were. 😉

I was realizing that over the last two weeks, most of my posts have been somewhat shallow. I hope that those of you who read here often know that’s really not me. It’s not, I promise…and I’ll always tell you that one of the things I really can’t stand is superficial.

It’s just that sometimes it’s so hard to be deep when life feels so upside-down.

I can’t go into it tonight. Maybe I’ll share part of it later…I’m just processing a lot and waiting on God for answers. Not easy, especially when the emotional, dramatic tendencies tend to so easily take over my thoughts and days, making things often seem bigger than they are.

I beat myself up for feeling things I do and for not having answers.

That’s basically the drawn-out description of the word, Wait. (You know, that thing I do so well.) 😉

It seems like more often than not, my plans tend to not turn out just as I’ve pictured them. Really, I think we could all say that. I’m human…something I especially rock at. 😉

It’s so hard for me to give things completely to God. I want to, but in my prideful, less-than-thinking-of-others moments, I get it in my head that I can somehow do a better job.

All of those really scattered pieces to say…I’m thankful. For a God who takes me…in all of my wandering and flailing and fighting…and loves me unconditionally. What an encouragement to my heart to know that He can take something of the mess I am and make it beautiful.

And, honestly, after the last year or so, I’m expecting something pretty amazing. I love that He can do that.

More importantly, that He will.

So now that I’ve been a little less shallow… :)

Life is…life.

With a two year-old, it seems that it’s always an adventure. We are in the thick of No way! and Go away! and I find myself wondering what happened to my parenting and my daughter. Our days are filled with so many wonderful moments and memories I’ll hold forever, yet one solitary incident leading to a temper tantrum which then leads to a time-out can ruin a good part of a day.

I know she’s two. (It’s what everyone tells me.) 😉

I know she won’t always fight me when I force her to take off her princess jammies. (You know, the ones she’s worn for a consecutive twelve days.) 😉

I know we’ll both grow through these mother/daughter battles and emerge with a stronger bond.

Because I know she’s two. And I’ll blink and she’ll be sixteen.

I’ve tried to focus on the joys that make up a day. I can honestly say that each night when I sing to her and pray with her, I fall in love just a little more. The frustrations of things melt away, and my heart feels so full I think it’s going to burst.

She truly is such a big part of my JOY. :)

She also starts gymnastics this week, which we are BOTH excited about. I think she’ll love it. And hopefully she’ll quit doing somersaults off the end of the couch. 😉

I’ve been good with running this past week, and though it’s sometimes-tough to drag myself out of bed so early, I’m always glad I did it. My goal this week is 20 miles. (Gosh no, not all at once!) I’m slowly upping my distance, though, and it feels good.

Now I just need to quit making dessert.

I made this today. It’s one of my favorites, and it was so amazing. (I sent some to our dear friends across the street because I knew I’d eat it all if we kept it.)

My other downfall is this. (Which I cannot seem to find on the internet. But go look in the freezer section of your grocery store…I promise it’s there.) Thank you SO much, Cool Whip, for taking two of my very favorite things and throwing them together into one container of gooey, yummy-ness. (Hope you could sense the dripping sarcasm there…)

Cool Whip frosting…no cake required. (I can so see myself doing a commercial for them, can’t you? ;))

Well, I should head toward bed. Early morning tomorrow, and I definitely need to be up to run off all of that frosting…

Hope you all had a great weekend. 😉

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, coffee, encouragement, family, just life, Maelie, running, what I'm learning, where I am

Random on a Sick Day

October 10, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

We are home sick.

As in, Mae is sick, I am home. Poor, sleepless, both of us. But mostly her. She’s just miserable. :(

But rather than go on and on about that, here is the random of life from the past week or two.

Oh, come on…you know you love the way my brain jumps from subject to subject with almost no warning. 😉

This is Mae’s current favorite.

I have to admit that it is, by far, my favorite Veggie Tale so far. There are a few that rank up there, but I love the message. And who cares if it’s Christmas-themed? She can watch it all year for all I care…and I’ll be right by her side, glued to it every time. :) If you stream Netflix, it’s available. Just fyi…it’s so good.

As my husband put it, I turned into a crocheting machine. Six hats so far. I’m planning to put a few on my Etsy store to see if they sell. And I reasoned that I needed to “practice” making a few before I sell them. They’re cute…like, super. And a few of you will probably be getting a free hat with a flower because I don’t need six. 😉 (If you have any color preferences, you should get in your request now while I’m still in practice mode. ;))

This was my first try. I’m keeping it for two reasons. There are a few mistakes. 😉 And, I like it.

This one is for sale. (I think.) Any takers? 😉

Mae asked for a hat. She even picked out the colors…I think it turned out really cute. :)

And, even though she’s not feeling very well, she looks adorable in it!

My mom recently took up pottery. She’s dabbled in a few artistic arenas in her life, so it wasn’t a total shock. (But, dude, she has a potter’s wheel in the basement. And is getting a kiln…) So when I was in Iowa last week, I got to see a few of her pieces. Out of all of them, I fell in love with this one…which I stole borrowed forever to use as a coffee mug, but it could probably be a few different things. Even though she insisted it didn’t look very good, I like the uniqueness of it. (And by the way, yes, I am wearing fingerless gloves in this photo. In the house. I am COLD. And WHO thought that fingerless gloves had any purpose at all? Someone made a lot of money off of the fact that people’s fingers are going to freeze. But they are cute, aren’t they? ;))

I got to see these two amazing girls last week. Ok, so I know we’re women, but when you grow up with two people, it’s just hard to call each other women. Even though we are. :) I think there is a photo of the three of us together somewhere, but I don’t have it…so you get these two pics instead. I’m so blessed and thankful to have them in my life…we’re the kind of friends who pick up exactly where we left off before. The kind that can dress alike and go out in public, even though we’re in our 30’s. The kind that, for our night out, go to Walmart and walk around and come back to the house to eat candy corn and peanuts and gab about life until 2 a.m..and it’s the best night ever. Love them.

My girl is funny. Here she is, trying to throw leaves into my coffee. And, true to form, me being overly dramatic to stop them from landing in the mug. I smile, though. :)

Supposing that’s probably about enough random for the day…though there might be more tomorrow. Hoping Mae is on the mend. Would appreciate prayer. :)

Love you all. Thanks for stopping by…even if it’s just for the random. G’nite! :)

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, coffee, family, friends, just life, Maelie, random, where I am

Little Blessings (Pt. 50)

October 4, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

:) I’m back on Illinois soil. (Well, that’s a blessing to me…you can decide if you feel the same way.) 😉

:) Safe travels and memorable moments with a toddler who pours the on the sunshine wherever she goes.

:) Precious, best-friend time…complete with dressing alike in public, laughter, and remembering. I love those two.

:) Maelie/Grandma time. Mae chatted all the way back to Illinois about going to Grandma’s house. :)

:) GPS that works.

:) Just-because-I-want-to-say-hi phone calls.

:) Upside-down plans that turn out right.

:) Random Dutch bakeries…and fattening pastries. Plural. (Guess who’s goin’ running tomorrow morning???) 😉

:) Having a God who heals and provides and Loves completely.

:) My hubby…I don’t always add him to the list. But he’s a blessing. Love him. :)

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, family, friends, just life, Maelie, travel, where I am

Good Morning!

September 25, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Yes, I’m fully aware that it’s late at night.

😉

A friend mentioned this song by Mandisa last night at workout, and it’s been in my head all day long today. Therefore, completely worthy of sharing. Plus, it’s a good one. :)

Ironically, it’s not really an accurate description of our morning. Up past midnight, I woke late to one of the dogs barking his head off at I-don’t-know-what, my hubby already gone, and Maelie still (thankfully) crashed. (We were ALL up too late.)

On those kind of mornings, it’s just so hard to get up and going. I showered, made coffee, got Mae up around 8:30…and I can’t exactly tell you where our morning went or what we did. It just kind of passed and we chilled.

We really needed to get out, though, and since we had no plans, we took a jaunt to Dairy Queen. (This time I walked. ;)) It was a perfect, gorgeous, early-fall day, and though I walked almost three miles, I still wore flip flops.

Yes, I AM a die-hard flip-flop wearer, if you haven’t noticed. :)

It was good to get out, but it was just one of those tired days. Bedtime came early-ish for Mae, and I crossed a couple things off my to-do list. Always nice. :)

As I pushed Mae in the stroller during our walk, we just chatted with each other, and it was SO FUN. My daughter is TWO! We have conversations! We laugh together, even on the days that are more challenging.

I just love her…and am so thankful for her, even if I forget the blessing that she is sometimes.

Here are a few random pics from today. :)

Love memories. Love her even more.

Mae woke up a few minutes before I went into get her this morning. This is what she had done with her stuffed animals…what a funny girl! (I especially love the fact that she has Grover hanging by his neck…haha.) 😉 

SO love the cheesy smile!

Yay for mommy/daughter ice cream dates! And more cheese, too… 😉

My sweetie!

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, family, just life, Maelie, music, where I am

Monday Rambling

September 24, 2012 by · 2 Comments

Monday night.

Workout night.

I am pretty sure I won’t be able to sit down tomorrow…let alone even get out of bed without help. It was our first night back in the gym after a summer of outdoor workouts, which are good, but I like the gym better. Maybe not the pain that comes with it, though. We always run stairs. And then do a fantastically grueling (haha…I’m wordy tonight) combination of squats and suicides and squats and lunges and ab work and squats and weights. Oh, and squats.

Sorry…we just did A LOT of squats tonight. 😉 

I’ve kinda been on a workout kick today. I actually ran this morning, too. It was comical…kind of. Well, for me, anything is funny at 7 a.m. :) At the last minute…literally as I started running, I decided to abandon my usual (read: so-familiar-I-can-run-it-blindfolded) morning route in exchange for the bike path by our house. Really, I was mostly just curious to see how fast I could make it to Dairy Queen, which is somewhere between 1.3-1.5 miles from our house. (I forgot to charge my GPS so I had to go on what I remembered, and my pace proved it, I think.) Anyway…the important thing is that now I know I can get to the land of blizzards and freezes (which are my favorite) in 11-12ish minutes. (Maybe even faster if DQ is actually open and there is ice cream waiting.) :)

Oh, and if people stop for runners at crosswalks like they’re SUPPOSED to…I’ll tell that story another day. Maybe. :)

Am I teetering toward dorkiness tonight? I’m thinkin’ so. Sorry.

Tobin had today off, and we had a family adventure to IKEA. For all of the world we’ve seen, I’m sure many of you will find it funny that we have never been to an IKEA, despite living within 30 minutes of one for over half of our married lives. We thought it was a bit ironic, but such is life.

The Pros: Golly, the shopping cart was sweet…the one with the Cozy Coupe-like thing attached to the front. Maelie loved it. Most importantly, she stayed IN it and didn’t run around too much, thus enabling US to actually enjoy the expanse of all things home decor. :) Free breakfast on Mondays, which we didn’t even know about until last night. Uber adorable little girls’ bedroom furniture. I shamelessly took a picture. Happy sigh…someday. :) A cute little pink rug for our girl’s room. Wine glasses…which we needed because after my little mishap (klutzy Mel+granite countertop) we were down to three. Oh, and Chick Fil-A was ever-so-conveniently located on our way home…love how that happens. So, all good stuff. :)

The Cons: Honestly? We thought it was slightly hyped up…and were a little disappointed. I mean, it was an enjoyable outing and was fun to look, but I’m not sure what I was expecting. (I am totally talking myself in a circle here.) And I was sad that the mongo chocolate bar for 99 cents was really not so good. It wasn’t bad…I just wanted super-yummy chocolate. Sadly, it’s not worth my calories. I’m sure I’ll find a culinary use for it anyway. :)

But at the end of the day, it was family and it was fun, and we had a good time.

:)

Well, the adrenaline is starting to slow down, and my eyelids might actually be starting to droop…it IS 11:30…way past my bedtime.

Hope you all had a great Monday. And the good news? You’ve got six more days before there will be another one!

G’nite.

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, family, friends, just life, Maelie, running, where I am
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