Post Holiday

I have to say that my 30 days to a relaxing holiday turned out pretty well. Sure, part of it was letting go of things that just weren’t going to be done (bathroom painting), but taking it all in stride and planning ahead did work! I even handled the previous weekend of barf like water off a ducks back.

We ended up with 17 people for dinner! I’m still a little shocked that I managed to get everyone in the house. True, there was no thematic center piece and the plates were paper, but do you really need all that fancy stuff for a family dinner? Not for my family! Besides, we had actual molded jello thingys. And since no one in my family can actually make these (we were all pretty impressed with bro.’s new gf), they were indeed fancy. I did go a tiny-tiny bit Mar+ha S+ewar+ on the turkey, making a honey-mustard-butter rub/greaser/flavor whatchmacallit for it. It was also in the gravy and got really good reviews for everyone. The beans were roasted and the potatoes were instant (hey! they are really good!) and we had a variety of sides from other family members. (Broccoli salad!)

Friday was not spent at the shops fighting the crowd (although I really tried to get someone to go with me… apparently the same crowd who doesn’t care about fancy table settings, also does not care about shopping bargains). Instead, I trimmed my willow tree and put up the holiday lights. For once, I had the time and it wasn’t raining (rarely do these things coincide)… plus I bought this little beauty. Hanging the lights went from a multi-hour exercise in fear, to 10 minutes with kids running around.

It’s not the greatest photo, but the kids were very excited to see everything come on. I think they enjoy the lights more than anything else… although Santa is making a pretty good showing in the Christmas chatter around the breakfast table.

Bring on Christmas!

Unprepared

This weekend, I had big plans...

 

Instead I got two sick kids, A LOT of Clorox wipes and work anxiety.

 

Sick kids I can handle for the most part. It was gross and prevented us from leaving our home for two days... but mostly it was OK.

 

The anxiety, however, was another story. I thought I forgot to do something at work. Something that was really important and I was sure it was the end of the world. When I go there, I really go there. I can go from paper cut to death in less that 30 seconds. My anxiety is something that I wish I could say that I don't talk about, but talking about it is really the only I can cope. So, not only was I stressed out, but I also kept posting stressed out messages on my facebook page... because I was stuck in my house with two sick kids and no adults to talk to.

 

Then I got to work and found out it was all for nothing. I could, literally (and I mean that word in it's true meaning, not just an intensifier) and physically feel the relief flowing threw me. I was giddy for about five minutes.

 

Now I'm just annoyed at myself for this lost weekend! I could have been doing so many other things instead of desperately attempting to rid myself of anxiety! Like buying a turkey! Which I haven't bought yet and have had research on how to thaw in the sink.

 

For a 16 to 20 pound turkey, I will need about 10 to 12 hours of bathing the frozen turkey in cold water. I'm not sure how I'm going to changing the water every 30 minutes over night, but then again, what will I complain about when I'm 80?

7 Days Left

I haven't bought a turkey yet?! I haven't purchased anything! Ack!

 

And I have like 10 people coming! I know! I'm shocked too! Not sure where everyone is going to eat, but they're family, so I'm guessing they can sit on the floor if they need to.

 

Methinks I have been doing a little too much relaxing into the holidays... I've got nothing prepared and my house is verging on disaster-ish. Haven't written a paper I need for tomorrow and I still have a huge pile of papers to grade.

 

Stressed out? Yah, me too. So I spent the afternoon relearning the Santa Lucia song so I can teach it to Lala in time for Santa Lucia day and learning how to create a Santa Lucia crown and stjärngossar hats for the kids. Might as well as enjoy myself in the craziness.

 

It's supposed to snow in the next few days, but it cold today! Must purchase new mittens for kids and myself... and maybe some furry boots? Brrr!

Procrastination

This year, I’m attempting to obtain a national board certification in teaching. It’s a lot of writing, planning and thinking. I have a meeting to go over my progress this Thursday… and I’m currently procrastinating by watching the rain and thinking about all the things I “need” to do to the bathroom before Thanksgiving. And to add a little more pressure to myself, I won’t be able to attend the meeting for December as it coincides with Lala’s holiday school concert. (At a real theater!!! Not a school gym, like the old days… oh no.)  Did I mention that I’m performing tonight? Part of the foodball action – I’m singing the Elmo song. It’s becoming my tradition to sing some off the wall Adam Sandler song. I just wish he had a bigger repertoire of school appropriate ones.

In the meantime, I noticed that a few people were showing up via a comment on another website. In honor of that, I direct to some of the books I read before becoming a foster parent…

Really, this became a go to book for information, when things seemed confusing. And believe me, there is a lot of confuse you. It's not insurmountable, but you will have some days that just cause you scratch your head in wonder.

This is more of an inspiring story type book. Really, you need to have those inspiring stories to refresh your soul.

Not going to lie, some of things in this book scared the crap out of me. Personally, I think that's a good thing. Parenting is not for the faint of heart and adoption even less so... forewarned is forearmed. Seriously, if only buy one, this is it.

Veteran’s Day

Despite my long to-do list, I couldn’t let today go by without saying “Thank You!” to all those who have served and are currently serving our country. It’s not an easy path to trod, and I’m sure at times it doesn’t seem worth it, but I appreciate it more than I can express.

Another Drop in the Bucket

 

Despite having fewer donations to auction off than in past years and everyone tightening their belts, our Dessert Auction manage to make over $1600.00! That translates into 1600 pounds of food donated to our local food banks!

As with any event, things went wrong, but for the most part it was fun, organized and no one’s item got lost or “won” something they hadn’t bid on (it happens… never scratch your forehead during a charity auction!).

Adoption Day

Today is our Adoption Anniversary Day! Okay… I completely forgot about it because the dessert auction was scheduled this evening and there are so many things to remember to do, that I literally cannot find the words I need to speak and be understood. I said to someone at the auction, “you know that thing…. where people throw balls… in the big area with the wood floor”? After about 15 seconds, the person replied… “you mean the dodge ball game?” Yah.. can’t talk.

Needless to say, when the florist delivered flowers with a big smile and “Congratulations!”, it took a few minutes for me to remember what they would be for!

 

Look at that smile! Despite the rain, mud and rotting pumpkins (it’s really, really wet!), we had an awesome afternoon finding pumpkins! And without adoption, it wouldn’t have been possible.

In honor of our anniversary, I’d like to put a plug in for foster care/adoption. I know we all look at the numbers flashed on news programs about the number of children available for adoption and think “how sad”, but the reality behind the 30 second news story is that those are real children. And another 250,000 will enter foster care in the coming year. There are many reasons why people won’t adopt from foster care, I’ve said them all too! It’s not an easy path to walk… then again, neither is parenthood. Whether you adopt or have biological children, those durned kids don’t always do what you want them to, they don’t always follow the path you hoped and the perfect family photo is a one second snap in the years of time. Ask anyone with adult children for the real story.

In my experience, there is much more support and help for foster parents and foster care adoption, than with private or international adoption. Yes, there are caseworkers who are slow de or dishonest, etc. but that hasn’t been my, albeit limited, total experience. If you’ve ever even had an inkling of an idea to become a foster parent or to adopt from foster care, please go out and attend one informational meeting. I swear they won’t act like used car salesmen and try to talk you into something you aren’t prepared for. Just one step.

Christmas Giveaway

You may have noticed the new banner – or if you’re reading via a reader, you may want to click over… because 5 Minutes for Mom is hosting their annual Christmas Giveaways! 30 days of gifts to try for!

Last year, I won a spanking new dumptruck for the Cuddler and one of those Razor scooter things, which was passed on to another family. Two less gifts to buy, one less trip to the toy store, more time to make cookies! How can you beat that?

The rules have slightly changed this year, giving everyone only one entry for each prize – rather than multiple entries for things like following them on Twitter. Will that improve your chances? Well, you definitely won’t win if you don’t enter, so head over now!

What I’m Thankful For

If there is one thing that teaching has taught me, it’s that there is a lot more to people that we never ever see. In today’s world, I am thankful that despite any annoyances (orange juice on the mattress) caused by my children, I have them in life. I’m thankful that I have a job that keeps us fed, warm and allows us to see the doctor whenever we want. I can buy the things we need and many of the things we want. I didn’t feel panic when the Cuddler grew three sizes over night, I just went out and bought new clothes. For many people, it’s not that easy.

Over the next ten days, I will be immersed in a school-wide effort to fill the shelves of the local food pantries. When I say school-wide, I really mean community-wide. This annual event is HUGE! Last year’s total was over 500,000 lbs of food donated to the regional food pantry distributor. And that was just our half… this is a competition between two neighboring towns to see who can raise the most – the other town also raised over 500,000lbs! Why Oprah never covered this, I cannot imagine.

For me, this means endless fundraisers to supervisor, bags of food to donate and trying to figure out how much I can really spend and how much wiggle room I have (because I always over spend the budget!). It also means a lot fun! Every night, we’ll head out to a local restaurant for dinner served by our students as they “take over” for the night (all profits are donated), so no cooking! Woot! Next Tuesday, I’ll be immersed in desserts as the the club I advise hosts it’s annual Dessert Auction. Fudge has been promised! And I’ve already received some great things to auction off, plus I know I’ll be heading out tomorrow afternoon to gather more supplies to be able to have more… because I’m OCD like that. When you depend on teenagers, God love ‘em, not everything goes according to plan.

Next Saturday I’ll also be on stage. Singing. Not that I have a great singing voice, but I do pretty good with Adam Sandler songs… I’m debating a re-rendition of “Red-Hooded Sweatshirt” or the Elmo song. Or the Turkey song with adjusted lyrics… depends on what I find on my shopping spree. Ooooo! I just had a inspiration. I may have to get someone to video this one.

In end, all the stress, disruption and activity is a food a good cause. Because there is always more to people than what you see… and I know that many who are out gathering donations today will be getting them back in their weekly food bank trip.

19 days left

If you are a blog follower or any kind, you know I am not the only person counting down 'til the holidays. In my reader, the posts regarding planning and the holidays are coming up faster than I can read! I really recommend heading over to The Lettered Cottage for some inspiration. Decoration ideas are already bouncing around in my skull as I write.

 

So far, I've mostly been inspired to create new lists! Lists of things I need to do, things I want to do and, of course, the big list of gifts. When I started typing the list out (because I'm all about spreadsheets these days), I found myself in the age old quandary… how much to buy? And what to buy? Educational toys? Clothing? A big family gift?  Budgetary issues aside, the how much is too little? or too much? has always been a question for me. The media would have you believing that a tree buried under presents is the norm, but it doesn't seem like that much fun for my kids. They get tired of unwrapping after about three presents and really just want to play with the new toys or try on the new clothes. (ok, that would be Lala who wants to try on new clothes… the cuddler could care less.)

 

One of my co-workers had an idea that I thought was pretty good. Her brother-in-law does this every Christmas and everyone is happy. Each kid gets five presents along the following lines:

    something to wear

    something to create with

    something to watch

    something to play with

    something to read

 

Good idea, no? Not too many presents, but with the addition of all the usual holiday events, foods and family members to play with, there will still be tons to do! I started purchasing stuff for the kids back in August when school supplies were on sale, so now my list of shopping is pretty small. My budget loves that!

 

20 Days til Thanksgiving

This is the time of year that things start to go a little haywire. There is so much to do and so much organization that must go in to keeping all the balls in the air.

 

I've invited family over for Thanksgiving dinner and so it's time to start planning out the menu. Last year, I went pretty tradition with the meal. To be honest, it was a bit too heavy.  This year I'm thinking of going a little lighter - perhaps more vegetable dishes without a sauce. I bought the latest issue of the Food Channel magazine, so maybe I'll find some more ideas there.

 

What are you planning on making for Thanksgiving dinner?

Family Day

November is National Adoption Month! Find daily activities to help celebrate!

 

 

 

A week from today we will be celebrating the anniversary of our family - or rather, the legalization of our family. I like to think of it as "haircut day", because I could finally get my children's hair cut without having to call a social worker to get permission. I'm not sure what Lala and the Cuddler think of it... right now, they're still a bit young to fully understand.

 

As we go into the holiday season (fresh off of our holiday family photo shoot), it is definitely one of the things I'm thankful for. Perhaps we should make some Thanksgiving decorations and talk about our family day? Turkey day is only 23 more days away!

 

 

24 days left

Sunday we made a quick run to the mall to return some pants and $150/three hours later we emerged with this -

I read a blog post from somewhere last year about a mom who bought new ornaments for their children every year showing something they were really into that year and thought it was really, really cute idea. Each one picked out their own ornament - since there was one of a child throwing a fit or sitting on a potty (our two big things this year!)

I also bought one family one for this year with the date - my stepmom does this and I like that tradition as well... it's kinda cool to go through the tree and find the one from 1976 and see how holiday fashion has changed over the years. Rounding out our little oranment spree was one I picked out to celebrate our adoption finalization last year:

I never found an ornament I liked last year and never made it to Hallmark, so a year late, but done, none the less.

I also picked up a couple of articles for clothing for both children and scored a new pair of pants for me. They really were bargains, despite the outflow of cash. And now, I won't have to go to the mall for the rest of the holiday season!

Linen Closet

As promised… my organized and clutter-free linen closet. Minus about 20 pillow cases. I swear they were multiplying in the dark!

 

26 Days Left

Do you buy the school pictures? This is the first year for us… or rather the first for me to pay for them. Working in a school, I get a small package for free – because every adult not in the entertainment business needs 10 2x3 headshots – and I usually just toss them upon receipt.


Lala’s school is offering them and although I’m not thrilled with how they turned out, many others have said they are VERY cute and I must order something to preserve the moment. World’s biggest scam, I swear. Even if every parent only orders the cheapest option, at $15 per student (200 x 15), that’s $3000 for two hours of work. Multiply by that all the schools in the area… major cash. The photos are produced by machine, so it’s not even really creating actual jobs for people! By the way, that $15 is for ONE 8x10. The photo packages (complete six billion wallet size – really? Who needs more than two?) start at $50. And if you have more than one kid in school? Major expense! I am soooo in the wrong business…

As I write this $30 poorer (I had to buy some for Lala’s bio family and they were pretty cute in a crappy school picture sort of way), I am mentally preparing for our first professional family photo shoot. It’s outside… and currently it’s raining outside. The weather report for tomorrow says ‘mostly sunny’. I am excited about getting professional photos of me and the kids. First, because I’m taking the photos all the time, I’m never in them. Second, the cuddler is an expert at the quick head turn. (I have a million photos of his profile.) We’re going to wear matchy outfits, because that is the way I roll. Rest assured, NY friends, we won’t be wearing any shits with holiday décor and no sweaters with reindeer will be allowed. Red shirts/sweaters (OMG! Is the cuddler cute in this outfit!) and some sort of appropriate pants.

Not only a first for our family, but also xmas card material done in time to get the cards by Thanksgiving weekend. Yippee!

Day 27 - Holiday Relaxation

Think she'll look this happy after a flu shot?

To tell the truth, I was never really big on the whole flu shot thing. It seemed like every time I got one, I was sick more often than the years I didn't get one. This thinking went out the window with the addition of kids. Single parenting is all about being honest with your limitations.

When I'm really sick, all I want to do is sleep it off. And I'm not very polite about that request, either. Now add two small children with no adult supervision while I'm sleeping. Disaster in the waiting? Why wait! It'll happen almost instantaneously. I can't afford to be sick! Or rather, my furniture can't afford for me to be sick. Nor can I afford to have children who are sick for weeks... really I can't even imagine the horror. (I know it's coming soon at some point, just not this year, please?)

To ensure a healthy holiday full of people in a good mood (and not grossed out), we're all getting flu shots today. Link to Flu Shot information

Day 28

We started the chore charts yesterday… they were a big hit until I wouldn’t:

1. let them check off boxes indiscriminately 
2. let them use the dry-erase marker any more after both had wiped out checks received for making their beds four times.

 Obviously, it’s a work in progress. Perhaps after if becomes a habit to mark things off, we can move on to getting rewarded for filling up the paper. Right now, neither child is able to comprehend “working” and “waiting” for a prize. I have my hands full trying to keep them convinced that just because it’s dark outside, that doesn’t mean we need to go trick-or-treating right now.

Today, I’m cleaning out the linen closet. There was a lot of storage space when I first moved into my house. Now, two children later, I have none! And saving those sheets for a mattress size I no longer own seems a bit silly. Also, the placemats I’m never going to use (styled from 1982)… they need to go as well.

I’ll try to post a photo later. The darned ipad just won’t let me work my blogging magic!

Countdown to a Relaxed Holiday: Day 29 Mess Makers

Do your kids do chores? When did they start? And how did you start them off?

This is an area where I’m lacking in parenting skill. I’ve gotten the point where I’m starting to not buy my children any toys that have parts because I’m so sick of picking them up all the time! And I don’t want to be a parent who just tosses everything into the garbage – which apparently my own parents did… my father recently admitted this to me, when I remarked that my own toys always seem to have parts that disappeared, while my children’s small toys ended up buried in the couch.

For the life of me, I cannot motivate my children to pick up their toys. Make a bed? Sure! Put away silverware! They fight over that little chore. Put a toy back into it’s bin or shelf? Not for a million dollars. Or chocolate candy. I’d post a photo of my daughter’s room, but it’s so embarrassing that I just can’t bring myself to admit that it looks like the disaster that it is. I know that I need to tackle it, but the thought that I will have nearly the same level of mess in less than 4 hours makes me want to cry.

And, I am becoming obsessed with the thought of all the holiday toys coming into the house. How many parts will all those toys have? How do I keep them together? How do I get my children to pick them up without me nagging, screaming, crying? Should I just give up and only allow stuffed animals and naked dolls into the house?

Today, the kids are getting their own routine chore charts. We’ve got to start somewhere!

I found printable charts with current cartoon characters here.

30 Days to a Relaxed Holiday

Everyone seems to be on one of those 30 day kicks... 30 days to some sort of perfection. And it works. 30+ days is what researchers say is needed to create a new habit. Who am I to disagree with woefully underpaid researchers desperate to become PhD's? (because who else would take the time research this?) So I'm creating one for myself. Feel free to join or not.

I am one those holiday people. The kind that gleefully looks forward to holiday newsletters, actually eats fruit cake and has an extensive collection of holiday music. Most of my shopping is already done.  It is, however, because of this that the holiday tends to sneak up on me. I think I have everything planned… and then WHAM! it’s the holiday season and I have no time to complete any of my grand plans.

Starting today, I’m working towards having a relaxing and festive Thanksgiving dinner. It’s exactly 30 days away - a strange coincidence? Divine inspiration? Opportunity knocking?

First and foremost is getting some type household management routine. It is laughable the number of times I have forgotten an important appointment or some item the kids need (like diapers!) because I’m rushing to squeeze everything in. It’s also laughable the amount of time I waste doing things that are relaxing, but basically non-productive. Last I week I made a list of things I need to do on a daily basis to keep us moving forward in an orderly fashion. It’s quite a list, let me tell you. At the same time, it’s really not… if you listed out all the things you do during a day, it would be extensive – this list is more of “don’t forget” type of thing. Because it’s always that thing you forget to do that starts the cascade into chaos.

Saturday Breakfast

This morning we had the best fall breakfast! Pancakes and homemade apple sauce.

Homemade apple sauce is probably the easiest fall treat there is... Peel apples, slice and put in pot with a bit of water. Heat and cook until soft. Drain water (because measuring the water amount is for Mom's with a helper at home) and mash with whatever is handy. A fork will work, but I find that the barely used pastry blender works fabulous! Add cinnamon.

No preservatives, no added sugar (for apples?!? Does anyone need that much sugar?) and it makes the house smell fabulous!



- Posted using my iPad