a walk in my shoes

Topic:

A Day in The Life:  What is a typical day in your life?  How do weekdays differ from weekends?  How do you balance out life's "chores" from the better more enticing things such as spending time with friends, family, hobbies or recreation?  How do you fit it all in to make sure everything gets done (get up early, stay up late, recruit help from hubby/other family, hire it out, etc.)?  At the end of the day do you go to bed feeling like you accomplished the majority of what needed to be done or do you think of all the things you've had to let roll over to be done another day?

Hmmm…where do I begin? What is a typical day in my life? Weekday, we’ll start there.  I hear the alarm clock go off at 5:00 am every morning, but I usually don’t move and hope that Gabe will get up and turn it off (which he usually does). I lie in bed another five minutes thinking about everything I have to do that day and then finally make myself get up. I peek into the pack n play at my little angel, Kaylin (6 months old and the youngest of my 3 under 3) to see if she’s sleeping or smiling up at me. If she’s doing the latter, then I go to the kitchen and make her a bottle, come back and have some quality time talking to her and giving her some breakfast…then it’s off to eat breakfast myself (I give myself about two minutes for this task as I always eat a packet of instant oatmeal and a glass of orange juice), then it’s back to put Kaylin in her bouncy seat so she can visit with Daddy and I’m off to the shower, get dressed, make myself presentable. I think I usually feed the dog and let him out to do his business sometime in there too.  If Kaylin is still sleeping when I get up, this is the time that I feed her and have my time with her…then I get Zoe up and get her a sippy cup of milk…we talk back and forth for a little bit, but she really just wants to watch Nick Jr. Around this time, Gabe is getting Caleb up and dressed. He too will have some milk before I leave. I make one more round through the house and make sure I’ve got my laptop, purse, lunch (which I always make the night before…) and my iced latte (I buy it in the dairy section so I don’t spend so much at Starbucks). Oh yeah, just so you don’t think we’re awful parents, our kids eat breakfast at ‘school’…they do eat breakfast J  I give everybody kisses and tell them to have a great day or to be good at ‘school’, and then I’m off to work. I do the car dance and think about what I have to do for the next 35-40 minutes and am finally at work.  I get there every day between 6:30 and 6:50, so I can actually get a parking spot (they are doing construction there right now and it’s a pain).

Anyhow, I have a pretty interesting job and would love to go into details, but due to propriety reasons, I can’t really-let’s just say I do very early pharmaceutical discovery research J Every day is a little different from the day before and before I know it, it’s 3:45 pm and it’s time to roll out…which I do happily because that means I get to go get my kiddos. I pick them up around 4:25 or so and we head home…once home, it’s more running, running, running…we have to have dinner, get everything ready for the next day and have some time together too…oh yeah, did I mention we are in the process of selling our house? Well, we have sold it, although we were supposed to close today and we’re delayed-hopefully it will happen tomorrow. I didn’t waste today though-our house is packed up and ready.

Back on topic, so we get the kids in bed by 8:30 pm every night and then we usually go to bed by 9:30 pm. The time between kids going to bed and us going to bed is spent doing whatever we want to do.

Ok, how do weekends differ from week days? Well, for starters, I usually get to sleep until 6:00 am! WOW! We usually do something as a family on Saturdays, then do church in the morning on Sunday and hang out at home together for the rest of the day-lately though, we’ve been really busy…

How do you balance out life's "chores" from the better more enticing things such as spending time with friends, family, hobbies or recreation?  I try to do a good job at work every day, but not spend too much time working at home-that is, my house is not the cleanest house ever-it is clean enough and that’s all that matters. I want to spend time with my kids and do things that are fun for them because they are all so little-we are going to Connersville on Sunday for ‘a day out with Thomas’-Caleb’s favorite…he’s going to be sooo excited! I do make time for my buddies and we do ‘girl’s night’ maybe once every other month these days. I don’t read, run, or do anything ‘hobby’ related that I used to prior to having kids-my hobby time now is my kids and what they like to do.

How do you fit it all in to make sure everything gets done (get up early, stay up late, recruit help from hubby/other family, hire it out, etc.)? This is all about time management-you do what HAS to be done and nothing extra-make sure your kids get to spend some time with you and that you eat together as a family every night…chores can wait until they are sleeping.

At the end of the day do you go to bed feeling like you accomplished the majority of what needed to be done or do you think of all the things you've had to let roll over to be done another day?  Heck, nobody accomplishes the majority of what they set out to do every day, although I don’t do too shabby of a job  of it at work. I make lists…I cross things off the list as they are completed and then I feel like I’ve accomplished something. I do this at home sometimes too (especially when the house was on the market and we were trying to get everything done).

I guess the typical day for me isn’t really typical-I run around like a chicken with my head cut off until it’s time to be with my kids and husband and then I spend the time we have together every afternoon/evening and I start again. I love the weekends because that means I really get to spend time with them and I get to slow down.  I really like to slow down and try to enjoy the little things in life-two lessons I learned from my Dad: 1. Learn all you can-this is always true-no matter the situation, if you’re learning, you’re living. 2. There is no someday-don’t put things off-do them now.

Music and all its magic

Music and all its magic…

Topic:  How has music influenced your life?  What is your favorite song or artist?  Is there a certain song that inspires or motivates you, or just makes you feel happy, sad, etc.?

Music-that’s a pretty broad topic, but I’ll give it my best shot.

Music has always been a very important part of my life. I grew up listening to all kinds of music (ranging from country, to hits of the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s and of course, the music of the time-or whatever was on the radio (main stream). I remember taking a bath with my sister in my first house (so I must have been five or six years old) and singing Elvira by the Oak Ridge Boys with her-we loved the part that went ‘giddy up a oom, boppa, mowe, mowe’. I love to sing, I just don’t like to sing in front of people. I’m awful in the car-I must admit that I’m guilty of doing the car dance (you know-where your top half moves, but your butt and lower half just sits in the seat?)  People give me crazy looks on the interstate in the morning on the way to work-uh hum, back on topic…

How has music influenced my life? That’s another tough one-it’s basically shaped who I am, although if you run through my ipod, you’re going to be confused. I have music from all genres on there-classical (Mozart, Bach, etc.), bluegrass/bluegrass gospel, Old school country (peers or before Hank Williams I), country (80’s to the present), pop music, hip hop, some hard core rap, and lately Indy Rock-I even have some Spanish songs that I sing along to, although I know I’m butchering the words because I sing them by sound as I have no idea what is being said (my husband, Gabe and mi Suegro (father-in-law) introduced me to those). Pollito con Pappas-check this one out-my daughter loves this one and dances to it…then there’s Para no verte más which sounds happy but is apparently about a guy breaking up with his lady and burning her letters, etc.  Again, sorry for the tangent. Bottom line: I love all kinds of music. I listen to music every chance I get-I would much rather listen to music than watch TV. I don’t like silence, except on rare occasions (another topic in itself), which means I usually have music going (even at work). I always have a song in my head too-just the other day I was doing an experiment at work and handed our summer intern a vial to shake…I looked at him and said, ‘shake that’-then LMFAO ‘party anthem’ was in my head! Ok, continuing on…influences in my life-My husband loves music-and honestly as much as I love music; he loves it more. I don’t know how many bands he’s been in-he’s a drummer-he knows every artist and song title. I remember riding in the car with him for the first time to meet his parents and singing ‘tainted love by soft cell’. We also play this music game where we go through the alphabet and have to have an artist that starts with each letter of the alphabet (back and forth)-we can do that one for hours in the car. As for me and my own musical pursuits- I played clarinet in middle school and high school. I was first or second chair (guess I was good at it), but I would have much rather listened to someone else play than play myself. Whew-I like to ramble.

Ok, next question-all time favorite band? Duh-the Beatles! I honestly believe they are the best band that ever was or ever will be…my personal favorite song ‘hello, goodbye’.  Current bands I love are Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jack Johnson, Foster the People and Black Keys-check out the video to ‘Lonely boy’-hilarious!

Next question, please-significant songs. I’ve made a list and I apologize for the length of it, but they are important to me (and I’ve left many out of this post-there are too many to mention).

It is you (I have loved)-Dana Glover (this is the song Gabe and I danced to at our wedding-it’s actually off the Shrek soundtrack, but it sums up my feelings about Gabe and how I finally found my match in life).

-Heavy Metal Drummer-Wilco (this is the song we entered the reception to after our wedding-I did fall in the love with the drummer!)

-No help wanted-The Carlisles (This is one of my favorite classic country songs, I believe it was from the 50’s-my dad and I used to dance to this one in the living room down home-makes me dance to this day)

-Thank God I’m a country boy-John Denver (This sums up my Dad-he was a country boy in all aspects of the term)

-Pretty good at drinking beer-Billy Currington (again, this one is my Dad, although he was good at ‘making engines crank’-we played it at his memorial service and even toasted him with some beer)

-I loved her first-Heartland (My Dad and I danced to this song at my wedding-I cried then and I cry every time I hear it-I remember the feel of his arms around me as we danced together for what turned out to be the last time)

-I’ll fly away-Alison Krauss (This was my Dad’s exit song-he requested it be played at his memorial service)

-Family tradition-Hank Jr. (I and most of my extended family sang this song karaoke at my Nana’s 80^th birthday party-we were all smashed, but it was sooo fun!)

-Chug-a-lug- Roger Miller (one of my Dad’s all time favorites, every time I heard it on the radio, I would call him and let him listen to it over the phone…it was also his debut song on the karaoke scene).

-Feel Good inc-Gorrillaz and Rock the Casbah-The Clash (these songs can always make me happy and get me moving, no matter what the circumstances)

-Will you remember me-Sarah Mcglochlan (I remember hearing this one right around the time I lost my Aunt TT-and yes, I will remember you!)

-The Dance-Garth Brooks (This one also reminds me of my Aunt TT-they played it at her memorial service-she was such a beautiful and amazing person and her life was a wonderful dance)

-Go rest high on that mountain-Vince Gill (this one is for Pop (my grandpa)-they played this during the slide show of pictures of his life at his memorial service and we also used it at Dad’s memorial service too-a beautiful song).

-He stopped loving her today-George Jones (this one is Nana’s song. I remember every one dancing with her and giving her a rose on her 80^th birthday party).

-Remember when-Alan Jackson (this is my parent’s song…I have one very vivid memory of them dancing to it together outside at the farm at their 55th birthday party. This song was also played during Dad's memorial service. It’s actually over 10 years old, so you wouldn’t think you would hear it too often on the radio, but I hear it at least once a week in the morning on my way to work-that’s my Dad saying hello)

-Here comes the hot stepper- Ini Kamoze and Ice, Ice Baby-Vanilla Ice (these just remind me of being with my friends growing up-especially ‘hot stepper’ and Ziggy with her indoor swimming pool J)

-This is how we do it-Montell Jordan-(I was in driver’s ed and this song came on every time I got behind the wheel-weird, I still think of it now every time I buckle up to drive)

-I hope you dance-Lee Ann Womack (This one is my Mama’s song…it’s beautiful, just like she is).

-Amazing Grace (one day, this song will be played at my Mom’s memorial service-it truly is amazing).

-How Great Thou Art (for some reason, every time I hear this song, I think of my Grandma and how her life has been shaped and continues to be shaped by Faith. She is Great as is He.)

Ok, there it is…and since I’ve been working on this for over an hour now…in the words of the great Johnny Cash-Good night, Irene!

What makes you happy? Adventures of my 10-year old self

Ok, so in response to my buddies in ToT, I'm going to try to remember what I was doing when I was 10 and what made me happy. Here I come, memory lane!

First off, thanks to Danielle for researching what was happening at the time. I remember the NKOTB...I think I liked John too. I can still recite all the lyrics to "Ice, Ice, Baby" by Vanilla Ice, so obviously that was a hit with me. I seem to remember some kind of "Pop goes the Weesle song on the playground too..." I digress.

Hmmm, 1990. I was living sort of in the country at the time...we had about 3 acres of land and horses, goats, rabbits, dogs, cats, maybe even a pig at that time...can't recall exact details. What I do know is that I played Barbies like it was no body's business with Danielle ALL the time-I think Danielle's favorite Barbie was named 'Andi'...I watched the same movies over and over-Beauty and Beast, The Little Mermaid, Aladin. I seem to recall watching Dances with Wolves and rewinding the tape and playing one scene again and again "Put that in your book". Check it out and maybe it will remind you what was so hilarious to a 10-year old girl.

Michelle and I played Indians-we even built a house in the woods behind my house out of branches to play Indians in. We also built some fort in the hay loft out of hay bales, but decided it was too hot up there in the summer time...I recall playing in the horse corral when it was super muddy and trying on purpose to get stuck in the mud.  Little Fella (one of our horses) was a little crazy and would charge us while we were out there and our goal was to get stuck, but then get 'un-stuck' before he actually got to us. Sounds like a great game, right? If my kids were doing that, I would kill them...just goes to show that kids are crazy! I'm digressing again...

Ok, so I played Barbies, watched movies, played Indians, played in the mud-what else? Here's something very strange. I remember pickles, mountain Dew and thin mint girl scout cookies. Does anyone else recall any of these at my house or perhaps the combination of all three at once?

I showed horses in 4H when I was ten-it was my first year of real 4H. I also showed my Grams' dog, Jaime too-we took 4th play in obedience at the State Fair-this was a BIG deal. I used to throw rocks at boys on the playground. I even hit one kid in the head and was sent to the dean's office. She threatened to call my mom and I told her to go ahead. Somehow just that remark made her not do it...weird. I also used to throw rocks at cars, but that was when I was younger...Did I mention I had an attitude when I was ten and thought I was all that?

I remember bouncing a ball back and forth with my friends for EVER in the sidewalk leading to my back door-anyone else recall this? I remember going swimming at Danielle's aunt and uncle's house and getting REALLY sunburnt- to the point that I had blisters and had to wear a t-shirt over it the next few days.

I used to go to my family's farm pretty often too-we would play cards with Nana, Olivia and Mom and whoever else happened to stop by (many people were always stopping by-and still do to Nana's house) while Dad and Pop were outside sitting in the garage, having beers and watching the traffic or they were off 'fixing' something and generally getting way too hot...or I was playing with my cousins and doing something we probably weren't supposed to do. I played with those goats down there a bunch too.

I guess all in all, the things that made me happy follow the same lines as Danielle-it was getting out there and doing things...and then when I was in the house, it was spending time with friends or family and enjoying each other. I did a lot of spontaneous things...I would randomly call my friends and we'd get together or I would take off my bike and meet them...I didn't ever just sit around.

I need to do that more often too. Less sitting and more doing-anyone care to join me?

First attempt at blogging

Well, I've been reading other people's blogs on Facebook for years now and realized that I might be able to do this too (when I have time) :) You see, I have three kids under the age of 3-although in about another month, my son will be three. Life is hectic with 3 under 3, and working full time, but I wouldn't change it for a minute (granted I do whine a few times a week about the chaos that is my life-or if you ask my husband, perhaps every day...) I've been married to an amazing man almost six years and have been blessed with three beautiful children who amaze me every day. I actually make a difference for people with my job, although it sometimes takes a really long time for that to come to fruition. I have a wonderful family and after losing my father in December of 2010, have come to more fully appreciate that family. I have wonderful friends, in fact, my friends' blogs are what inspired me to do this. Tonight of all nights, I just read a post by my 'sister at heart' that was four days old and was so moved by it, I decided I just have to do this!

I'm not feeling particularly whitty this evening and may wrap up my very short and poor first attempt at blogging, but it's past 9:00 pm and my two older kids are alseep. It's time for me to try to coax my 6 month old to go to sleep so I can do the same. It's been a long week and the IHSAA State Track meet is tomorrow-oh yeah, I forgot to mention that my wonderful husband is a track and cross country coach #Stateisabigdeal.

OK, apologies for the lack of real content here, but maybe a more interesting post in a few days. Cheers!