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Camping and a Chili Recipe

February 25, 2013 By Leave a Comment

This past weekend we went camping on the coast. There were a total of 11 trailers loaded with friends and family. There was way too much food, lots of cocktails, a lack of sleep, happy and dirty kiddos, beautiful sunsets, campfires, crabbing and of course sledding down sand-dunes.

beach collage

I have a few things to say about camping. I feel kinda misunderstood so let me explain. My husband and I started dating over 14 years ago. We never discussed camping. There were no pros or cons, never did we camp alone or with friends. We just never discussed it. Then one day about 5.5 year ago my hubby tells me he wants to go in with another firefighter family on buying a trailer. He wasn’t kidding, within days we were co-owners of a used camping trailer. All of a sudden I was supposed to have this die hard love of camping and all that it entailed. Well guess what? I didn’t! And 5.5 years later I still don’t. Yes, we have the luxury of having a trailer but let me tell you, it is not just like home. The bathroom barely fits a small child let alone an average sized adult. You have to be hyper aware of how much water you are using because the fresh water tank empties just as quickly as the grey water tank fills up {the fact that I even know what grey water is is actually pretty amazing!} So things like doing dishes, an occasional shower and going potty are all things that have to be calculated. Of course we are surrounded by walls and we have an actual bed to sleep in. Plus having access to power and heat are wonderful – especially when you camp at the beach in February. Now on to the sleeping or lack of. Anytime someone tosses or turns OR gets up for the middle of the night bathroom run {um hello hubby who drinks more cocktails then normal while camping} the whole trailer rocks and rolls. Then I wake up. I have mastered the art of earplugs to kill the sounds of late night campfire games and laughter {which I enjoy until I just can’t hang anymore}. The trailer moving wakes me every time. So I pretty much come home feeling like I was just up with a newborn for days on end. Three nights = sheer exhaustion. Plus it’s pricey. By the time you buy ‘camping  food’ {which is always more then regular food}, pay for the site, gas to travel and any other odds and ends. It ends up costing a pretty penny.

So before I sound like the most unappreciative person ever, let me tell you the things I do enjoy about camping: visiting with family and friends that I don’t get to see often, the laughing – so many stories and awesome humor, my children being filthy and happy plus the nonstop of being outside breathing the fresh air and just loving nature, watching my 10 year old cast nets into the ocean in hopes of catching crabs, my 7 year old sliding down the dunes over and over on a snow disc shrieking with laughter, walking on the beach or in the mountains depending on where we are, eating and drinking foods I don’t normally buy, playing games and just being with my family.

Are you a camper? Personally I’d rather have a house at the ocean and one in the mountains and make regular trips to both — I really like the amenities of home. The packing up to go camping as well as the massive clean up upon coming home is just a lot. Too much for this girl! But until I become a millionaire, it’s a trailer life for us! :)

Speaking of, I had better get back to sweeping up sand and laundry!! But before I do, let me leave you with a chilly day chili recipe that I made for our camping crew. Bon appetite!!

3 bean chili 1

3 Bean Chili with Bloody Mary Mix

Recipe adapted from Just a Pinch Recipes

Ingredients

FROM THE PANTRY
1 (15) oz can cannellini beans (drained)
1 (15) oz can dark kidney beans (do not drain)
1 (15) oz can pink beans (drained)
1 (14) oz can dice tomatoes (no salt added)
1 c marinara sauce
1/2 c spicy bloody mary mix
FRESH FROM THE GARDEN PANTRY
1/2 md red bell pepper (diced)
1/2 md yellow bell pepper (diced)
1/2 md orange bell pepper (diced
1/2 lg white onion (diced)
5 clove garlic (diced)
3 sm green chili peppers (sliced thin)
1/2 c fresh parsley (chopped)
SPICES FROM THE PANTRY
1/4 c chili seasoning
2 Tbsp cumin
2 Tbsp southwest seasoning mix (see note)
2 Tbsp corn masa flour (for thickening)
salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1 South-west seasoning note:

You can make your own south-west with any spices you may have in your pantry.
Example of some blends: (dried) Mexico chilies, Ancho chilies, paprika, coriander, garlic, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, black pepper and oregano. Put in a spice grinder and blend. Note: I just added all of the above but didn’t grind them together.

2 In a large pan or Dutch oven over medium – high heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and brown ground turkey, then add onions, garlic and blend well. Then add diced tomatoes, marinara sauce and bloody mary mix, bring to a simmer (about 2 – 3 minutes).
3 Now add Cannellini , kidney and pink beans. Stir to combine, then add all your spices including the masa flour (used for thickening). Salt and pepper to taste, then add bell peppers and chili peppers. Stir and simmer for about 5 – 8 minutes . Then add chopped parsley cover and keep warm until ready to serve.
4 To serve, spoon chili into bowls and top with sharp cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream and garnish with fresh parsley. You can also serve with corn bread or your favorite tortilla chips.

Filed Under: Bee Inspired, In the Kitchen, The Hive

2013 – Healthier Me?

January 4, 2013 By 6 Comments

So it has begun – a New Year. A fresh start. Well it seems that so many of us have New Year resolutions. I’d like to not burden myself with such a heavy load as a “Resolution” cause then I just feel like crap if I let myself down. Right? Who’s with me? Fist bump. Come on, you know you wanna!

ability

This is how I am feeling. Like there is a constant noise in my head pulling me in several directions.  I feel like I need to slow it down. Not try and do so much but one of my biggest obstacles is taking care of me. What I mean is diet and exercise. I have many friends that are so disciplined about these aspects of life and then there are so many like me. Always struggling. Food is SO DAMN GOOD. If I try and become obsessive about my diet, it will backfire in a hot second leaving me feeling even yuckier. So the best way for me to go about heating healthier? Not think of it as a diet but a series of healthy life changes. Will I quit my iced coffees with milk and vanilla? Nope, no way. That would just make me so sad. Can I lay off the pastries and bread? Yes, doable! Can I stop the holiday baking frenzy and thus stop eating my way through the holidays? YES! Reason #1 why I am happy December is behind me. Honestly, I don’t have a weakness for much but those White Chocolate Peanut Butter Krispies? So help me if I find one of those laying around.

I have been feeling ‘pudgy’ lately. I know I have packed on some pounds over the years. Back in 2006, after a year of nursing I was sitting at a fabulous weight and feeling great. Yep – nursing, chasing a toddler and hauling around a baby were the best diet and fitness routine ever. But I stopped nursing and the weight slowly came back. And then some. I don’t feel obese but I don’t feel healthy. I watched a video of my baby’s 1st  birthday last week and I was reminded of just how much my body has changed. I was not the mom who held on to the baby weight. It fell off. Seriously. When I saw the video, I very much wanted to be back at my after baby weight. Talk about motivation.

I had to laugh as this has been on my mind and then yesterday I got the latest issue of Us Weekly and the cover was talking about Kourtney Kardashian’s amazing 40 pound weight loss. Oh yes, tell me all about celebrities who drop the weight. When they have nutritionists, chefs, personal trainers and various cash incentives at their disposal. I have myself. My own want to be healthy has to surpass my lack of will power. OK — so here I am, sharing my innermost thoughts with all of you. No fads, no unrealistic goals. Just the need to be healthier. I’ll be 40 in 2014. Wouldn’t it be nice to be super healthy as I cross into a new decade of my life?

A friend is trying to get a group of us to do a 1/2 Marathon in October. My husband laughed. That kinda irritated me but he’s right. I hate running {and I try to NOT say the word hate}. I’m more motivated by my girlfriends then I am by training for a marathon. BUT I can try right? I’m thinking of my friend James that is active and ran a 1/2 Marathon and said he’d never need to do that again. That might be me. I’m the girl who flunked PE as a freshman in high-school cause I wouldn’t dress down for the mile. Yep, that was me. So embarrassing to admit. OK, so goal #1 – find a 5K, sign up and train.

Now onto the other part of getting fit. I really enjoy what I get from yoga both mentally and physically however, the studios I love are HOT and the heat and the flow together often times makes me super nauseous. I have tried different methods to alleviate this {going 1st thing in the morning, on an empty stomach, a light stomach, etc} nothing really squashes the nausea. So I think because I do love the feeling I get from yoga, that I should try different styles of yoga. So goal #2 is to try various workout program. Yoga, Pilates and whatever other things come my way.

So here we go 2013 — let’s do great things together!!!

Filed Under: Bee Inspired, The Hive Tagged With: ,

2012 Ramblings and New Year Wishes

December 31, 2012 By 2 Comments

I have not been blogging as much. I started a new job back in mid November and it’s also been the holiday season so double whammy. The job came at a perfect time. I had been looking but not really getting any replies to resumes, etc. It’s a tough market and I just had a feeling that something would come via networking. And it did. A friend referred me to another mutual friend who needed a part time admin. {Perfect!} That is what I was looking for. It is a good fit for my family and helps with our monthly budget a bit. I realized how much less stressed I felt when I got my first ‘real’ paycheck. So this mama is acclimating to working out of the home after being an at home mama for 10 years. It’s good though. I feel pretty lucky to have landed this job. My boss and coworkers are all so nice. You can’t beat that. Oh, did I mention it’s an accounting office? Ask me how I feel again after tax season. Ha ha!! Just kidding ;)

December has been full of sadness for so many. It’s really been heavy on my mind as of late. Obviously the tragedy in Connecticut hit close to home for so many. It left lots of questions on how we can make this world safer for our children. It made us question gun control {OK, I have questioned this a lot. I know my views and opinions don’t align with many so don’t yell out me if you disagree!}. It made us question mental illness and how we can better cope with people who suffer from mental illness. I think mostly it just made us feel helpless. It also made us enjoy our own babies more this holiday season.

Another story I have been following in our little community is the one called, Shane’s Village. It’s about a local 8 year old boy battling Leukemia. The updates both make me want to cheer him on and cry for him. Mostly I’d love to give him a big giant hug. And his mama, I want to hug her too. My heart hurts for him and his family as they battle this disease. He’s this amazing little soul who continues to smile through the ‘yuck’ of a serious disease. What an inspiration.

There have also been several deaths from cancer and other serious illnesses this past month. Several people I know have felt loss first hand and they are trudging through the holiday season with a heavy heart. My heart hurts for their losses.

Last night I found out that one of my dearest friend’s has a sick little girl. She is in the PICU with fluid around her heart. They are not sure what has caused this. Medicine has not alleviated the problem so they are exploring other options. My girlfriend has also suffered from various autoimmune issues for years so the stress this puts on her is also not good. I’m sending many get well wishes their way tonight!! Maybe you can join me in doing so?

Then today came along — I was cruising along, running some errands alone as my sister took the boys to spend their Christmas money {awesome Auntie!}. Anyway, my phone rings and it’s her. She says in a tearful voice, “Don’t panic, everyone is OK”. Yikes. Not a call I wanted to get. They had been in a minor car accident. Everyone was OK but shaken up. Of course the 20 minute drive from Folsom to Roseville felt like a million miles. My babies are OK. My sister is OK. It was scary but could have been so much worse. So I am feeling extremely blessed to have healthy and safe kids but I am also hyper aware of how quickly that can change.

So going into 2013 can I ask for world peace and healthy children? Seems like a an easy enough task? Sigh. If only.

With that I am leaving you with a few of my favorite quotes – may you apply them in life. Along the way. When needed.

be kindsource

itsnicetobeniced2wordsimportanttobenicemessagequote-4863aa579ed3b2571799543d2fc5012d_hsource

let goSource

great thingsSource

live every day

 

Source

 

let goSource

small thingsSource

trySource

And last but certainly not least, I leave you with this:

just loveSource

I am so thankful for all of you that read my little blog. It makes my heart smile to see the comments and the shares. I love when you tell me that you tried and loved a recipe that I shared on my blog. Those of you who know me and read my posts know that I feel things whole heartedly and with this comes my emotions. The good, bad and ugly but no matter what my mood, I am always so thankful for all of the little things that really are the BIG things in life :) I wear my heart on my sleeve and I may go from laughing to crying in a split second. I feel deeply. Then I share with all of you. Thank you for being there for my life!

What are your intentions for the new year? Whatever you do — do it with kindness and love. I wish you a new year with a happy heart and great blessings and love.

 

Filed Under: Bee Inspired, The Hive Tagged With: , , ,

Gratitude

November 12, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Hi friends! I have been in a completely non blogging mode as of late. Not without good reason though! Last year I hosted a Holiday Open House with myself and 3 other fabulous Etsy vendors. I was unsure if I would do it again this year but people kept asking so I decided to go for it. Note to self: Plan ahead. Although it’s tomorrow and I am sure it will be fabulous, I am EXHAUSTED! I have done nothing but craft for the past three weeks. I have glitter and burlap all over my house. Then there are the felt scraps. The awful hot glue burn {yes, I do plan to get a low heat one based on some smart recommendations!}. If someone could have video’d me when the burn occurred it would have been a sight. I was literally jumping up and down waiting for it to cool enough to get it off. When that happened it took a good layer of skin off of my finger. Ouch. I’m almost healed but seriously, glue gun burns HURT!  Aside from that there is the twigs that have fallen from the grapevine wreaths which I love but they also creep me out. Those things grab on to things. Like each other. It’s kinda weird. Aren’t they supposed to be ‘dead’ branches? They seem alive to me! Oh, Mod Podge? It’s fabulous but leaves some messy residue so I just finished using a razor blade to get the gunk off of my counters. Then there was paint. Chalkboard, spray and just regular old white paint. I have been a busy girl and I hope I don’t crash come Tuesday cause that is when I start my new job. Yep, I will be a part time out of the home working girl {cause I am a full time at home working girl already}. Anyway, I am excited and nervous just for the adjustment. I think it’s gonna be a great fit for the fam and me which is the most important thing.

That is what brings me to this post. I am tired and I have been working my butt off. My motive for this event is to make some money for Christmas. Why not? I know I make stuff that sells and it’s the perfect time of year to mingle and sell. But I had this thought tonight. In my self consumption with ‘crafting’ even though it is really not for selfish motives, I have been crabby with the peeps in my house. Tonight after I got the kids to bed I started feeling guilty cause I was rushing them to get to bed. Why? For myself. Because I am trying to take every moment to prepare for 3 hours tomorrow night. I’ve got this. I am ready to go aside from house cleaning and set up but that part isn’t the all consuming part. So basically I had a little talk with myself tonight and it went something like this, “Self, you need to slow down and smell the roses. Rushing won’t get you anywhere any faster. Your kids are growing up super fast and these 5 minutes here and there with them are so small in the scheme of life but they are huge to them and then ultimately they are huge to you. Be nice. It’s not all about you.” Yes, I really did have this conversation with myself. Then I hopped on Facebook for a minute and saw this fabulous quote. It fit my feelings perfectly.

It is now midnight which seems to be my new bedtime as of late. I am tired. What I really want to do is crawl into bed and snuggle with my boys. I won’t wake them but I will be giving them extra big hugs in the morning with a little extra words of love. The hubby? Yep – he has felt my frantic and stressed behavior as well but thankfully for him, he gets to head to work for two days at a time so he kinda misses it ;) I have to say I am glad he can escape me and my crazy for a few days!! So I dedicate this post to my boys {the littles and the big}. I love them deeply and wholeheartedly. I just have to remember to show them that everyday.

So tomorrow I will start my day off with a Venti iced coffee, a smile and  a grateful heart. Enjoy your week friends. I will be back soon with some of the fun creations that I have been working on.

Filed Under: Bee Inspired, Bee Thankful, The Hive Tagged With: , ,

Day 27: 31 Days of Being Present – Movie Night

October 28, 2012 By 2 Comments

Ah yes — kids movies. Sometimes you need motivation like popcorn and candy to get through it. More often then not, the fact that you child is so excited for movie night with his mommy and daddy is all the motivation one could want. Tonight was one of those nights. My oldest went to a haunted house with his Auntie while the little dude stayed home. We went to Raley’s earlier for some milk and other basics. Of course Redbox called and we were going home with a movie.

This is such a small thing but Mason spent the rest of the afternoon planning for it. We would have popcorn with M&M’s and also the Nutter Butters that we bought ‘special’ for the night. He had his blanket and favorite stuffed animal and snuggled up to daddy {I wasn’t his person tonight}. It was really sweet and really it was just about hanging out, just us 3 doing what he wanted to do. It was a no brainer.

Sometimes being present just means doing what others want us to do. Spending the time watching this movie was special to him and that in itself made it special to me.

Photo taken summer 2012 — one of my favorites

Filed Under: Bee Inspired, The Hive Tagged With: ,

Day 26: 31 Days of Being Present

October 26, 2012 By 1 Comment

This day of being present is brought to you by my super handsome and fabulously creative son, Mason. He got this Lego Hospital at Downtown Disney and he built it in under two hours. He is super focused when it comes to Legos and he is also super fast! This is the end result:

 

 

 

 

Pretty awesome uh? He was so proud that he had me take a photo send to his daddy at work. Daddy also thought it was pretty awesome.

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Fun finds, The Hive Tagged With: ,

Day 25: 31 Days of Being Present – Disneyland

October 25, 2012 By 2 Comments

Well sometimes the best of intentions go array!! I had to skip several days of my 31 days series. I had the best of intentions to pre write my posts and set them to actually post while I was on vacation and then the unspeakable happened {gasp!}. My wifi went out at home!! Yes, this happened right before we left for a 4 day family vacation. We returned late Monday afternoon but after a busy few days, I just got on the phone with our provider yesterday afternoon and a new modem is on it’s way. So I have had very spotty computer access and well, attempting a blog post from my cell phone is far too complicated for me!! Today I am typing this from my local Nugget Market. I’m here all the time buying groceries so hey, why not blog from here? ;)

What can I say about the past several days? Was I present? I think so. We did a family trip to Disneyland. We loaded the van up with our family of 4 plus my dad and sister. We spend three days at the parks. How can you not be present at Disneyland? On day #1 we were luck enough to be joined by my brother, Michael and super adorable nephew, Maverick. My poor sister in law got hit hard by the stomach flu the night before. Bummer!! It was a 24 hour bug so she was able to come and spend the day with us on Sunday {my brother works for Disney Studios so they get in for free — so they can pop over whenever they please. Nice eh?} My other sister, Carly also joined us for a few hours on our first day. Seeing my So Ca family is a wonderful thing!!

That’s my family. There are 4 of us but I am the oldest {and most awesome — just kidding!!}. Well I am the oldest ;) Carly lives in So Ca and so does my brother and his family. My youngest sister, Holly and my dad are local. My dad does not like to look at the camera and my nephew was shocked by the flash. Sorry dude. I didn’t mean to scare you! My kids are so lucky to have amazing aunts and uncles on both sides of the family.

So day #1 was running between parks, spending time with family, riding rides that were awesome {Haunted Mansion at Halloween? Amazing!!}, eating yummy {but bad for you} foods and of course I was in charge of rocking my nephew to sleep. Poor me uh? Who am I kidding — I love rocking babies to sleep!! He made me work for it though. I don’t think I have ever sang Rock a Bye Baby so many times in a row! It worked though. Conked out little fella! Happy and asleep in his Auntie’s arms.

Day #2 was more of the same except we really didn’t spend too much time at Disneyland. It was so incredibly crowded that we felt like cattle being pushed through. It was tight quarters every where we turned. So after a few rides and lunch at Downtown Disney, we headed back to California Adventure. I have to say, I actually love that park more. It has had a total overhaul since we were there two years ago and it is amazing!! I mean seriously. Cars Land is up and running. That was my favorite place to be. It really felt like you were in the movie. I don’t think they could have made it any better. Every detail was covered from characters driving through, cozy cone snack shacks and the buttes. Wow. It was seriously breathtaking. Plus I loved the energy. The music was so fun and everyone was just happy.

Day #3 was all about getting on the Cars Racers so we basically got to the park when it opened. Thankfully my sister Holly is a bit of a pro since she just went to Disney about a month ago. She navigated for us to get this ride done. There are so many rides throughout the parks but the most popular by far was the Radiator Springs Racers. This was a must do. Worth the wait but there is an average two hour wait time. Even the past Fast Pass line was an hour wait right when the park opened. This is when we hustled over to the actual ride which was 1 hour right when it opened. Any other time of day it was 2 hours. We only did it once but it was super cool. We still waited awhile but it was so worth it. Let me just say, I am not a roller coaster kind of girl. This ride has a minute of  ’racing’ {cause McQueen is all about the speed you know}. I was white knuckled during the race cause I’m a big baby but it was still so worth it. After that we managed to squeeze in other rides and then we headed out of the park for lunch and to meet my brother, sister in law and nephew. We also spend a little time at the Lego Store {I have an obsessed 7 year old who thought this trip was about him and the Lego Store and not so much the family and Disneyland!}. Afterwards we headed back to the park for some Animation Academy as well as Turtle Talk with Crush. We wrapped up our time with my brother and his fam with some delicious ice cream from Ghirardelli. They have the best sundaes and they are totally ginourmous share worthy. We continued on to some more rides and wrapped up the night watching World of Color. This was an amazing show but I will tell you, grab a fast pass for some better seating {I was told these are all gone by 1pm} and prepare to plant yourself about an hour before the show. It’s a great time to take a load off. Maybe grab some snacks and just chill. We did not do either of these things and we stood. It was such an amazing and beautiful show but after three days of nonstop walking, our feet were killing us so standing for that long {20 minutes} felt like an eternity and kinda took away from the experience.

A few of my favorite things:

  • Turtle Talk with Crush is a super cute interactive show with Crush from Finding Nemo.
  • California Soaring is a family favorite.
  • Starbucks {listen, it’s an addiction I tell ya!}
  • Pirates of the Carribean
  • Haunted Mansion
  • Toy Story Mania {another must}
  • Cars Land — all of it!
  • Churros {yes, really!}

Steve’s favorites:

  • Screamin’ {which I am terrified of!}
  • Grizzly River Run
  • Beer {we all have our vices}
  • Soaring
  • Big Thunder Mountain
  • Tower of Terror 

Ben’s favorite things:

  • Grizzy River Run
  • Goofy’s Flight School
  • Churros {takes after his mom}
  • Pirates of the Carribean
  • Pin Trading  {this was a new thing for us but Ben had a blast trading his pins with the cast members}
  • Disney Animation Academy
Mason’s favorite things:
  • Goofy’s Flight School
  • Grizzly River Run
  • Snacking {this kid carb loaded whenever he had the chance}
  • “italian icee” which was really just a Minute Maid frozen lemonade ;)
  • Mators Junkyard Jamboree 
  • The Lego store at Downtown Disney.
Where we stayed:
I am not one that likes to pay a lot for lodging when we won’t be at the hotel much {we are also on a pretty tight budget so we have to plan for that as well} We stayed at the Annabella during prior trips and this time we stayed at Best Western Stovall Inn. It was a great price and a short walk to the parks. Of course we cut through the California Grande which I think would be so fun — someday
Are you a Disney Fan? Do you have any tips to share? I’d love to hear them!!

 

Filed Under: Bee Thankful, Fun finds, The Hive Tagged With: , , ,

Day 17: 31 Days of Being Present

October 18, 2012 By 5 Comments

Today has been a pretty busy day. We are leaving for Disneyland in two days so I am getting ready. Shopping, packing, cleaning, washing dogs. You know, all the stuff that goes with leaving your house. Why am I washing the dogs? Cause I have a dog/house sitter and these pups are stinky. I feel I owe her that much at least! So aside from gearing up for a trip, crafting, blogging and the kids school stuff — I ended up with visitors this afternoon. It was actually pretty funny. I was down to one child {the other one went fishing with his buddy}. My friend Jeff was coming over to put a luggage rack thingy {don’t I sound technical? Ha ha} on my van. Anyway, his wife, Jenelle, {who is this amazing kind of friend that any girl would be lucky to have} had driven separate and was heading home but I knew she wanted to come over. I know her so well! So anyway, I said, “Come on over”. She didn’t hesitate. So that happened which was awesome cause I planted my butt on the couch and just hung out. A rare but beautiful thing! Then I got a call from my friend Lisa who needed someone to watch her son so I said, “Of course’. So by this point there are now 4 happy children in my house and Legos everywhere. Well that wound down and Jenelle and her family left as Lisa and her hubby showed up. It felt like a revolving door and as much as I thought I was going to be prepping for my trip — I didn’t and I loved every second of being with people who mean so much to me. So the point of this day of being present? Friendship. Sometimes you put other things aside to spend quality time with people that make a difference in your world. I’m feeling pretty thankful for that :)

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Day 16: 31 Days of Being Present

October 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Today is a simple post. It is really not even about me – it’s about what my husband did that made me feel all better. I have been a stress ball lately. Trying to find a job, juggling home, wishing for more money, being a mom and keeping up on this blog. I was starting to feel like I might just crack. He came up and hugged me. Tight. And said, “Everything is going to be OK”. Well even though I have moments where I go dark and feel helpless {I am pretty optimistic but sometimes I have moments of despair — I think we all have our moments!}, I really do feel blessed and like I have so much more then so many. It’s not a ‘poor me’ type of feeling. It’s more of a “I can’t control everything and I don’t like this” type of feeling. Anxiety. Anyway, we are all human, we all have struggles but today this simple gesture really kinda snapped me back to reality. Cause he’s right, we will be OK. So today my husband made me be present because he was — I only needed that moment to make me feel sane again.

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Day 14: 31 Days of Being Present

October 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I love feeling like my week is going to start off right {fingers crossed that is}. Sundays are often pretty peaceful days without a lot to do which is nice but I also like to take advantage and get stuff done on  so that my Mondays start fresh and without a million things to do. So today, the hubby picked up some OT which left me with two kiddos who hate running errands ;) Thankfully my dad took one of them out for the day and the other stayed with me. This was by choice. Dad took Ben to the Nimbus Fish Hatchery {when my kids were little they called it the Fish Factory} and invited Mason along but Mason preferred to shop with me. I was kinda lost as to why he would choose me so I asked {when it’s Mason, you never know what the answer might be}. Well it was an interesting one as always! He said he did not like “the smell of the fish food”. Um, OK. I had never heard this in the many, many times we have gone. So fish hatchery 0, mommy 1. Actually he is pretty easy going so it was A-OK having him as my buddy. We tackled the To Do List. Michaels, Costco, Safeway and then the money pit gas station. Boom! In two hours I had my errands run, gas tank filled, cupboards and fridge stocked. Yippee! Oh, then upon getting home Mason took off to play with friends so I cleaned the house too. So there ya have it, by putting in a few hours today {being present and focusing} – my week is going to be so much less stressful. I also didn’t feel like I took away from family time since hubs is at work and the kiddos were happier being with Grandpa and their friends.

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