Things That Make You Go Hmmm...

To all my fellow peeps of the 90's...your welcome (http://youtu.be/XF2ayWcJfxo).

Tomorrow I am going to meet with a group of fab ladies to talk about Glitz & Glam, DSAMC, and give them a little glimpse of Jake's "story". I am not a public speaker...by any way, shape, or form. But I'm going to pretend. Wish me luck. I was trying to figure out how to jump right in & it hit me...I'm going to start by reading Welcome To Holland.

I jumped into my word docs, pulled it up, and printed it out. I started to read...I ALMOST made it thru without crying...almost. Keep in mind, I have read it a million times. I could probably recite it. I still cry. It's beyond perfect. I wipe away the "I'm not alone" tears & move on to what am I going to talk about after I'm done crying tomorrow night in front of 20 ladies.

I've got it all figured out (ya right), got my little cheat sheet printed out...I'm ready to go. I look up & can't help but smile. On my kitchen table sits a little vase with 6 little tulips. I fell in love with tulips 10 years ago while I was planning my wedding. They are simple, pretty, and perfect. Not expensive, or flashy. I just love them. I REALLY wanted a huge bouquet of white tulips for my wedding...but that didn't happen. They are a spring flower & I had an early fall wedding.

I'm sitting on the couch content that tomorrow is going to go great, & a whirlwind of connection hit me. Starting my new life with the love of my life & having an intense need for tulips in my hand/ Welcome To Holland / Jake/ Tulips on my kitchen table making me smile.

I am happy.

I have a beautiful family.

I love and am loved in return.

Life is good.

Stop & smell the tulips my friends!

 

Conversations with a 7 year old

I know every parents has these days...but for some reason to days conversations with Gracie has me giggling.  It started off with...

Me: Gracie, you need to go thru your dirty jeans pockets

Gracie: Why

Me: Because I think you left your manners in your pockets...go find them please.

I get a cross eyed look from her, but she stomps off to her room & comes back a few minutes later with her dirty cloths & puts them in the laundry room!!  BONUS, I got her to do a little laundry too...wasn't even looking for that outcome!

Gracie:Okay mom...I have my please & thank you's
Me: Oh good
 A little later on at lunch, she hops out of her chair & starts to walk away.
Me: Hey Ms Lu...what are you doing?
Gracie: I'm done, going to go play now.
Me: STOP...check your pockets...come back & sit down & try again
Eyes rolling, feet dragging...plop in her chair.
Gracie: Mom, may I please be done?
Me: No, 3 more bites (I don't even look...it's the go to answer every time)
Me: Thank you Lu, now put your dishes in the sink please.

A little later I hear her headed out the front door...
Me: Hey...what are you doing?
Gracie: Going next door
Me: How about a "hey mom, can I go next door" before you just jet out.
Gracie: Ok, sorry.

10 seconds later she comes busting thru the house right to the bathroom.  She means BUSINESS!!  After a few minutes she peeks her head out the door and says, "Mom, I went poop...can I flush the toilet"?
Me: Gracie, that is a question that you never ever ever ever ever have to ask...you just do it.  As a matter of fact...if it's real big...do a courtesy flush!
Gracie: what's that?
Me: We will call daddy in the morning & he can explain...he's the expert in the family!!

Setting the bar high for 2013

For lazy, that is.  I'm frequently asked, "Do you ever stop"?..."Where do you find the time"?...and "How do you come up with this stuff"?  Answers: Occasionally, bedtime, and Pinterest.  Today is the exception.  Why today?  I'm not sure.  Maybe because it's a holiday that doesn't involve any kind of "celebrating", maybe it's because I'm on day 4 of a 24 day diet, maybe it's because I'm the only adult in the house & I can be lazy to any extreme that I feel necessary.  Don't get me wrong...my lazy only goes so far (it's pretty far)...but I'm not looking to make any trips to the ER (that would disturb my lazy...& it's expensive).

So, today I have STOPPED.  I'm being lazy.  I'm blogging from my laptop, on the couch, in sweats, hair in a towel from the shower I took an hour ago.  Your welcome for the visual.  How did I manage to STOP with 2 small children in the house...child slavery.  Yep, I said it.  Quit rolling your eyes.  Anyone who has children does it, or had children did it.  You call it "chores" or "helping out".  I made a game of it.  It's called "Gracie is mommy today".  It's derived from the games "Lets see who can clean their room fastest", "Who can take a nap the longest", and the most common, "Who can be quiet the longest".

1st task...get Jake out of the bath, diapered, & dressed.  Ok, I helped with the bathing (remember the ER avoidance)...but the rest was on her.  She went for the PullUp (normally he sports a diaper, but PullUps are easier to put on) nice call.  Dressing was accomplished, as long as we don't leave the house (which would most definitely land us in the ER being that Gracie probably can't see over the steering wheel in my car).  He's rocking his Toy Story jammie bottoms & Buddy Walk t shirt.  A+ for effort.  He's been dressed in worse!

2nd task...breakfast.  She went with what she knows...peanut butter toast.  Yes, I allowed her to use the toaster.  As any good parent would, I supervised...from the couch.  She rocked it.  She was happy, He was happy, mission accomplished.  I did do med duty (no ER today rule).  Oh and because she is "mommy" today she even made me breakfast.  A tasty protein shake. 

Playtime.  Jake has a movie going & is destroying the playroom as I type.  Gracie & the neighbor girl are coloring.  Like any good mommy, she is having a little "me time".  She has noticed that Jake is in destruct-o mode, but calmly said, "I'll get that later".  That's my girl. 

I just informed her that she may need to start thinking about lunch because Jake will need a nap in about a hour.  "What do you think you are going to make" I asked, trying to determine if I actually have to get off the couch.  BTW, I have a "no CPS rule" too.  Which means the kids have to eat.  "Mom, I don't know how to cook...I can't roast anything".  True that.  Thank God my laziness seeps out at other times because I just happen to have Crustable PB&J sandwiches in the freezer.  Pop them out & they are good to go in about a half hour.  I'm also teaching her time management!  But she's insisting on Spaghetti O's.  Can opener...microwave...potential ER visit...darn.  Guess I better get on that. 

It's only noon, but I'm guessing the rest of the day will go something like this...
-Family nap time (remember our game of who can take the longest nap)
-RedBox return & new rental (yes, I'll drive...geesh)
-Pizza for dinner (that someone else will make & deliver)...& there is a good chance that we will have a "picnic" in the playroom so that we don't even have to get up from our movie marathon. 

Happy Jan1, 2013!!

 

Two years ago we were having a hard time helping Gracie (5 yrs old) understand giving/wanting/needing/selfishness/kindness...just to name a few.  There were a lot of things that contributed to the lack of understanding.  Age was a big part of it.  But another big part was the fact that little brother had been getting a lot of extra attention in the 2 years past & that had slowed down dramatically.  Life was calm & it was time to pull in the reins & work on the things in our life that we just couldn't stop to take the time to do in the past few years.

While surfing the net, I came across a blog (via Pinterest) about a women who took her entire family out on her birthday & did random acts of kindness (RAK).  She did 1 for each of her birthdays.  I LOVE this idea.  And with my birthday being right before Thanksgiving & Christmas...it's perfect timing!  Double bonus...it's something that Lulu & I can do together...just the 2 of us, milling around the Tri Cities, making someones day a little brighter.  There are so many character traits in doing this that I want Gracie to understand & love.  I plan on making this a yearly tradition, with hopes that she does it with her children down the road.  We started doing this 2 years ago & it gets better & better every year.  The first year, I'm not gonna lie...was kind of a nightmare.  She REALLY didn't understand why everyone was getting all these balloons, drinks, toys...and she couldn't have one.  Last year I tried to make it a little more kid friendly by doing things that would get her interested (we Ding Dong Dashed, handed out lolly pops & balloons, & helped some people hang Christmas lights on trees)...just to name some of the 34 things we did.  This year we are cooking up some REALLY fun things, and my girl is excited!!

So, Lulu & I will be out and about sometime in the next week doing our 35 (YES, 35) random acts of kindness...1 for each of my birthdays.  And I think that admitting that I will be 35 this year should count as 1...but the whole point of doing this is that "it's not about me"...lol...so I'll let it slide!

Pictures to come!!

Water water water...

My new best friend

The kid I have to glare at while he eats

Fudgesicles...and REALLY

enjoys them!





I'm on day 4, and so far so good!  On Tuesday I had good "before" for my before / after pics done.  Love em!  Yesterday I added a app on my iPhone called My Fitness Pal...love it!!  All is good in diet world!!  The next 3 days will be the test.  DSAMC is getting a award from the ARC tonight, so I have to eat REALLY good there, Friday is Gracie's b day...my big girl will be 7!!  Saturday is her party, and Sunday I have a baby shower that is sure to have some tasty treats!!  I'm thinking one of those days will have my "cheat" meal in it...just say'n!

Happy weekend everyone!!

Day 1...done!

Well that wasn't so hard. lol. I know, it was only the 1st day. My intentions were to eat "clean". That didn't so much happen, BUT I did eat really good. And I realized that I have a addiction to cheese. Anyway, I sat down this evening and googled a calorie calculator to see just how did I good calorie wise...I rocked it. Here is how it went down...

Breakfast:
Oatmeal 1/2 cup 150 cal
raisins 2 tbs 40 cal

am snack:
Babybel cheese 75 cal
strawberries 1/3 cup 25 cal

Lunch:
Chicken Cesar Salad (romaine lettuce 1 cup, tomato 1/2 Roma, croutons about 5...just enough for some crunch, chicken breast 1/2, dressing 2 tbs.) 230 cal

pm snack:
String cheese 80 cal

Dinner:
Scrambled eggs with sausage & mozzarella cheese (6 tbs egg whites, 1 egg, 1 small sausage patty, about 1/8 cup cheese) 270 cal

Total it up kids...870 calories!! That still leaves room for a apple & natural peanut butter before bed!!

So yes, I clearly need to eat less cheese...but other than that it was a pretty good day. And NO, I'm not going to do a daily post of what I eat...that's just flat boring. Oh, and I went to the gym & did 30 min of cardio & a few leg machines until they were jello. Not my best day at the gym, but it will do!!

1 day closer to a skinner me!

Chang'n it up

When I started this blog a few years ago, it was to inform family & friends of the ups & downs of our life with Down syndrome.  At the time Jake was having major medical issues, & mommy was having some pretty good stress issues.  This was my way of filling everyone in, and "venting" at the same time.  But those days are long gone.  They seem like yesterday, but it's been over 2 years since Jake has seen a hospital.  It's been almost 2 years since he's had anything more than a sniffle (knock on wood).  So our life with Down syndrome is...well pretty boring.  I'll take boring.  Boring reassures me that our family really isn't much different than yours.  School is out, therapy has been put on hold for most of the summer (our choice), and the sun is shining.  It's time to PLAY!

Where am I going with this...I'll get to the quick & dirty.  I'm going to use this blog as my way of chronicling the 20+ lbs I'm GOING to loose over the next 10 weeks.  There is nothing special about the 10 week time frame, but because I often diet (and most of the time fail), I know that good weight loss is around 1-2 lbs a week.  I know what works for me & my body to get the weight off, I just need the motivation.  I become a 2 year old when it comes to will power.  I HAVE NONE.  Some days are better than others, but I can justify "a day off" like  you wouldn't believe!!  So, here it goes.  I did something that I have never done before...took "before" (as in before & after) pic.  OMG, if that isn't motivation to get going...I don't know what is. 

So, for the next few months this blog will be about my diet, exercise, water consumption, headaches from lack of Starbucks, glaring at small children as the eat fudgsicles in front of me & the occasional "YEAH FOR ME", when the pounds do come off.  If it's not your thing, no worries...I'll be back to life with Down syndrome soon...until them our "special need" is for a slimmer, more energetic mommy!

Raise your glass (of ice water) to:
Seeing the magic numbers of 140 lbs
Buying a size 6 jeans
Running without feeling like I'm going to die
Having a happier, healthier mommy...because

WHEN MOMMY IS HAPPY...EVERYONE IS HAPPY!!