The blog in which I try a pilates class.

Well, that didn't go so badly.  Never mind.  It was worse than terrible.  I was thinking that I have attended probably six to eight group exercise classes since starting the YMCA a year ago this month, and surely one was worse.  Then I thought some more on it, and guess what...  Nope.  The only way the pilates class could have been worse?
1.loss of limb
2.loss of sight
3.loss of oxygen
3.loss of a job
4.loss of memory
5.loss of my dog
I mean, really now!  First of all, you have to know, that while I was trying to believe I could do this, my  mind really had no idea what the word pilates means.  I looked it up.

Pilates, verb meaning the act of trying to attach your belly button to your back.

I might be paraphrasing, but let me set the tone for you.  There are no lights on in the room.  You take your shoes off.  (I felt like the class was trying to "take advantage of me."  wink wink)  Then, you grab a big ball.  (Geoff, get your mind out of the gutter.)  (And now stop giggling.)  Then, you grab a mat, and a flimsy mat to put over that, for comfort.  I don't think it would have mattered if I were on a fire pit of coal, nothing about this workout was "comfortable."

I suppose I could have gotten out of my pajamas for the class, but I really thought this would be a bunch of downward dog type work.  And had I known my shoes were coming off.... 

The instructor was late.  (Thank G-d!)  One of my friends came with me for moral support.  And by "moral support," I mean, make me laugh so that I was crying down my leg within the first ten minutes.  She was trying to get positioned up on her ball, and out of the corner of my eye, I see her ball go one way, and her land on the ground.  I was nervous, and that always makes me laugh more, but as soon as I laughed till' I peed, that was the end of the story.  I am pretty sure had the instructor asked me to do kegels, I would have been fine.  Clearly, that is a lonely girl exercise, therefore, I forgot to employ that muscle, and every other muscle she asked me to utilize was on a break for most of the class time.  Another friend, one of the two main aquatic directors, decided to jump in with me since I told her how nervous I was.  She is way more fit than I am, therefore, you could see it was a cake walk for her.  It was great having those two with me, but even Brenda, the aquatics/gymnastics instructor said that she was excited to get a good workout since Irene was teaching the class.  (I will move on to calling her  "the nicest Nazi you will ever meet.")  She is not really a Nazi.  That is harsh.  However, she is truly a sweet person that asks too much of me and my body when in a class.  She is like Jillian Michaels on Prozac.  She will get you inspired and motivated, but she can't do the workout for you.   However, she referred to focusing on my belly button and my back often, and each time, I thought of Scarlett's advice from earlier.

So, while it was a low light, instructor speaking in a low, calming voice, what she was asking of us to do with our bodies was akin to asking me to lick the back of my knees.  Speaking of which... I got this message from a friend right before I left.

Apparently, I am way more skilled with my tongue than any other muscle in my entire body.  That should not surprise those that know me well.  However, even my neighbor-friend recognized that this was not going to go well.  And she knows that I just might run after her car if there were, in fact, a baked good affixed to her bumper.  I love you Scarlett.  May I use this in the blog?  It doesn't matter, since I think I just did.  Sorry 'bout that.

While I frustrated myself for about thirty five minutes, I mean, tried to do what the instructor was telling us to do, I was only able to do about 1/3 of each exercise, and then, only modified versions of each exercise.  If you know me, you know I do things one hundred and ten percent, or not at all.  I walked out of the class early- shocker.  I went upstairs for twenty five minutes of cardio on my machine, and felt great after I worked up a sweat.  I ran into one of Charlie's most effective speech therapists of all time, and was so happy to see her.  That was my sign that I belong upstairs.  (Yes, this was the same speech therapist that I blogged about in the past that when she told me she was pregnant and leaving us when the baby was due, I had a hard time being happy for her.  I am so happy to see her happy and her family thriving- now.)

Home sweet home... 

So, to Jenn, Brenda, and yes, even the instructor, thank you for allowing me to check that off the list of things I know now to not ever do again.  IF only Irene would come upstairs and force me to try some of the machines out, and motivate me off of my elliptical....  I'd feel more accomplished with her if I could make it through one of her classes, and be physically able to do at least 75% of it.  Until then, I will suggest you try a class of hers, then wave to me upstairs.  And Scarlett, get to bakin' sista'!  I think I want to learn to run!

The blog in which I share what I do as a SAHM.

Today I was texting with a girlfriend about, well, what sounded more like a men's locker room convo., and mid convo, she goes ahead with what I assume she was waiting on me to ask.

Her-  "You can put this sh*t in the blog.

So, it often comes up....  (I generally ask permission of my friends and family to blog them for all eternity.)  However, chick knows good material when she sees it, and thought she would save me the question.  Thanks friend!

First of all, we are two stay at home moms.  My mom was a stay at home mom, and I don't know what I really thought she did with her time while we were at school, but I am pretty sure it didn't involve conversations like I have with my friends.  From religion to the bedroom, our topics are as varied as our interest in cleaning products.  I happen to be on the extreme side of everything- from saving money to family fun. And EVERYTHING in between ;o)  So, when the convo turned to pirate/locker room talk, the best we could do was laugh about it.  And honestly, while I navigate my role as a stay at home mom of two full time students, I realize that if I used just half of my time more productively, I would not be nearly as happy as I am either going full speed a few days a week, or my days like today, of lazing my day away until it is time to move my tail into gear for the later part of the afternoon.

While Geoff works, I count the minutes until his return.  Well, I have to know how long I can do nothing before he comes home and sees me acting like a fantastic mom and wife ;o)  My house is clean,   made home made peanut butter cookies for him, and laundry folded and put away for the day.  Dinner in the crock pot, and migits still not due home for another hour.  That gives me an hour to thank G-d for what I have.

PS I am really trying to avoid thinking about an anxiety filled plan for the YMCA and me today.  Some times one must go out of their comfort zone- I know.  However, I LIVE outside of mine!  I don't know where it is anymore!  MUST FIND A THERAPIST!  Yep, avoiding that as well.  Not ashamed to admit that I am anxious about having to address my anxiety disorder.   The whole thought makes my brain wrinkle.  Remember, it was just this past summer that Charlie's therapist dropped us like a bad habit.  I am not sure why he dropped us.  However, he was ineffective for Charlie at the time, so I guess it all worked for the best.  Charlie is actually thriving in school, and no longer afraid to go.  (That was his issue this summer.)

The blog in which it's buyer's remorse. (For my migits.)

I used to be a shopper.  My mom can attest to that.  Her closet is full of my shopping binges from my move to NY after high school.   I worked as a live in nanny, and made good money, considering I had no living expense.  I skied more than most professional skiers that amazing 1995 winter, but even with that, I had lots of money and time to clothes shop.  After I moved back to GA, I realized that I would have had SOOOO much more money if only I had not purchased enough clothes for all of a small village.  That was a fairly easy lesson to learn, early in life.  To this day, everyone of my friends can't believe how few clothes I actually own.  

I paid cash for all my cars (five in the past 20 years, including cars with Geoff) and loved the idea that I don't have car payments.  Have never been upset to have a used car.  We have been incredibly lucky.  We only buy what we have need and money for nowadays.  So...

It doesn't make any sense how we ended up with this spur of the moment home purchase, over ten years ago.  We were newly married, living in a really fun time of our lives, in a very transient, yet nice and new apartment complex.  At the time, we lived in Woodstock, just a stone's throw from my childhood, Marietta.  I began working at an OB-GYN office right near the hospital in Marietta.  The drive wasn't too bad, and Geoff was working about the same distance to his work at the time.  It seemed ideal.  But our lease was coming up in a few months, and we knew that our prices would go up if we stayed.  So, we threw out the house idea, but neither of us seemed incredibly into the idea. 

One Sunday, we decided to go to a biker bar that was holding a church service.  It was a fun little outing, however, I was pretty bored, and picked up a real estate magazine on my way in to the bar that morning.  I was looking through it, and found a developing neighborhood I wanted to go check out.  Turns out, we were heading up to spend the afternoon with a new couple we met through my work.  The girl was so much like me; no make up, no nails, not pretentious, just a cool chick.  Yeah, I like hangin' with me.  And she told me that her hubby and her loved to have couples to hang and play games with.  (Geoff and I ended up learning to drink and play darts with them.)  I had the directions to her house, and asked if she was any where near this new development.  Turns out, she said it was attached to her neighborhood, and if we bought there, she would get a referral bonus!  We bought our house within the week.  

We had great times.  We moved in the day after Christmas, and had our house warming with our friends on New Year's Eve.  All I can say is, Geoff met the neighbors (we had four other homes built in our subdivision that night), and I got drunk enough to vomit.  (No hang over yet in my life.  That's a real accomplishment.)  We did a lot of partying with that couple.  Until, she decided she was lesbian, moved on, then he left.  (Years later, she ended up on the same ALTA team as me down in East Cobb. It was weird.  Her ex-girlfriend was her partner, and the whole time I played with that team, it was surreal.)  Kinda' like buying this house.  

Why in the world would I buy a house so quickly?  I had no experience making a major purchase, and nothing about this house was a good fit for us.  Can't force a circle into a square, peeps!  So, this post is for my migits, in the years that they start making money, and have to make wise financial choices.  

1.  Determine what your needs are.  

2.  Take your time.  

3.  Research.

4.  Pray on it, and make sure it really "feels" right.  

5.  And if you make a mistake, learn to accept it, and then, work hard to mentally store that lesson for a later date.  

6.  WORK HARD FOR WHAT YOU WANT!  

As for me... I am working on number five.  We have gotten to that stage by learning from our mistakes.  I will always be there to lend advice, solicited or not.  I hope that you might open yourselves to advice and still make your own decisions. And if I offer more than my two cents worth--- know that it comes from a place of love.  And if you are preparing an "in-law" suite, I would like one in a basement.  (GRIN)  

The blog in which I lost that lovin' feelin'.

Shay came in crying in the middle of the night after waking and thinking about a ghost story a bus mate told her yesterday.  So, that woke Geoff and I and then Geoff's snoring had Shay and I up.  I left the king bed to head to a queen bed by myself, and even with a door closed, I was unable to fall asleep for hours.  Ironic, seeing as Geoff says he never got back to sleep.  Shay heard that and told me that his snoring kept her up.  HMMMM.  So, meanwhile, in crazy town....

I had a rough day.  One of my girlfriends loves to hear when my day is slightly screwy.  Her words, "It makes you more real."  Lisa- I am so freakin' real right now, you would love me!  I really hate when I miss a trip to the YMCA during the week.  It helps my anxiety disorder so much, and mentally, I feel clearer.  It has absolutely ZERO affect on my weight.  That is strictly maintained by not eating much.  I have had to change that recently.  I gained a few pounds back.  However, a friend of mine suggested that I build some muscle mass, and that my weight loss would change.  We shall see.  I think there is a class tomorrow.  I might find myself there.  

The worst part was an email I received today.  It was a realtor that has listed our home in the past, when the market was really hot, and we thought we might make it into our dream home- a ranch on a basement.  (When the news story came up about the Alabama bunker, I wondered how long it might take for us to make one.  True Story.)  So, when we were unable to sell without having to pay to move, we let our listing lapse, and decided that it wasn't meant to be.    Now, a year later, I get an email from that realtor that said she was contacted by an investment buyer interested in paying us our asking price from back then.  While that would be great, it is no longer such a buyers' market, and we could not afford a basement home now.  While my mom made some really great points to make my brain not so mad, I am frustrated.  "WHY YOU EMAIL AND GET MY PANTIES IN A WAD,  REALTOR LADY???????????" (Shaking an angry bunched up pair of panties in the air at her as we speak.)  

Besides the fact that we live on the most psychotic and dangerous street in all of Canton, I WANT A BASEMENT!  (Not a bigger home, as I am not much for cleaning, and have very little furniture.)   Okay, panties will relax in a few days of me accepting G-d's will for us.  I truly appreciate what I have.  

I have my health.  The love of a husband who treats me like gold, and two children that I wanted before they were even conceived.  I guess I need to stop wanting, and start appreciating more.  

While I am at it, is it too much to ask for prayers for my friend and cousin?  Friend's hubby lost his job, and they are in need of a job and for their hearts to not be so angry.  As for my cousin... he is fighting Cancer.  I fear, the Cancer is winning.  For us believers... we know He has perfect timing, and that through Christ, all things are possible.  Please band with me to pray that my cousin's heart is transformed.  Thank you.  

Leaving gymnastics today, Chaz grabbed his water bottle and his shoes.  It wasn't until after he drank out of it, and we were home, that I realized that he is not "LIZZY." 

Charlie's  eye appointment went well.  But every time the doc told Chaz to look at his ear,  all I could think was, "Van Gogh would have made a terrible eye doctor."  

I pre made a bunch of meals.  I have needed to stock the freezer.   Took three hours.  And a missed workout today ;o(  Tomorrow is another day.  Hopefully, a day where I get to sleep the night before.  

PS  I didn't get to blog yesterday.  Therefore, I am no longer in the running for the month long theme bit. So, I don't have to blog on love anymore.  Phew.   Talk about a stretch ;o)  

The blog in which I love where I live.

Last night was a rare date night for Geoff and I.  The YMCA allows it's members to sign up up for a free parent's night out each month where the kids go for the evening and the parents are free to leave. (While they offer child care six days a week, parents are to remain on the premises.)  This is an awesome luxury for our family, seeing as we have only paid for a babysitter for a date once in the past  seven years.

So, we were driving the kids to the YMCA, and on the corner near the "Y," we see a police car with lights on behind a stopped car in the middle of the road.  We then see a lady standing with an umbrella, and a police man standing near her, but without a hat or an umbrella.  It is not only rainy, but cold.  So cold, that there were reports of freezing rain and snowflakes in the air from throughout the area.  I notice the policeman first, and mention to Geoff how we should stop at the drug store next to us and get him an umbrella.  He says we have an extra one in the car and that we will stop and give it to him as we pass them after we drop the kids off.  When we go to leave, we see that both the lady and her car, as well as the police, are all gone.  I was relieved for both of them.

And here is the rest of the story. (Taken from the Canton P.D. Facebook page.)  

Canton Citizen’s Random Act of Kindness!

Canton PD responded to a disabled vehicle on Riverstone Pkwy yesterday. The driver reported that she had run out of gas and had forgotten her wallet. She was staying at a local hotel because her house had caught on fire earlier today. A citizen drove by, brought her some gas and paid $15.00 in the gas pump across the street for her to fill her vehicle. The unknown citizen left the scene, possibly without knowing what a difficult day this person had just been through. What a big difference such a small act of kindness can make!

*And the rest of the story included a snippit that the house fire was the house fire they had posted from earlier that same day.  

And here is what I want each of us to take away from that-  No matter what is going on, if you live in Cherokee County, when you drive through it, when you move from it, when you think about it, when you consider the options.... Cherokee County people take care of each other, those that visit, and those that leave it.  There are plenty of good people to out weigh the not so good ones.  No place is perfect.  But whatever perfect is, I think we are pretty darn close.  Kuddos to that citizen.  Kuddos to the police officer who stood near that lady in need.  (From the mom in me- Put your hat on!)  When I think of Cherokee County people, I think of my neighbor who jumped to help me this week and pick up my son from school this week.  It wasn't just her offer that made that happen.  It was the other neighbor who watched her children so that she could pick up my son with a car seat so that everyone was safe.  Those acts of kindness gave me a sense of closeness and security.  I was secure in knowing that the people I share community with are people who care for our family as they care for their very own.  

The blog in which I love the simple.

Date night compliments of the YMCA tonight.  It is the third date night we have accepted on behalf of the YMCA staff in so many months.  Last week was so amazing, and I thought there was no way we could top it.  Alas, Geoff whipped up the simplest, yet, romantically (yes, a new word- you're welcome) evening.  After dropping the migits off, we stopped off at Zaxby's to grab a salad to share at home, and enjoyed the fresh beer bread, and chit chatted before playing three games of Mexican Train, and I WON!  Then, he set the iPod to the ten year anniversary show of Les Mis.  Check mate!  We sat beside the fire in the round chair, and enjoyed the show.

Never underestimate the power of staying in pajamas all day with your spouse.  

Take one.  That was freakin' blinding!

I almost got my eyes open!  

We give up- on the picture with eyes open.  Not on each other- ever.  Nearing the ten year mark of marriage, we have talked a lot about our past.  I can't imagine what the next ten will bring.  I bet it will be a lot less adventurous.  I can take a break from our adventures ;o)  

Kids- we have more than most couples have.  We have love.  Simple love of just sitting together.  We can sit in silence, or we giggle trying to take pictures of ourselves and being blinded by the flash.  Whatever we do, we remember how hard we have worked to grow our marriage to love that goes beyond a fancy dinner, or spending money to try to enjoy each other.  We love each other, and we love you.

The blog in which I love my family & whatever "lame" activity we do.

Today, I am validated.  My writing idol, if I really have one, mentioned how awesome Neil Patrick Harris is.  That did it for me.  If she blogs it, it must be true.  So, staying on theme, I love you Jenny Lawson!  (Even though you use curse words in an art form akin to my Aunt Carol, I still love you.)

I don't know if I really idolize her, but I do appreciate her screwy-ness.  Yep.  Yet another "Erinism."  If you spell check this nonsense, you really need to get off the blog.  Just roll with it.  Which brings me to another thing I love- FRIDAY FAMILY FUN NIGHT!  With the craziness of the last few months, I have been pretty slack about coming up with some elaborate good times.  We have still had fun, but nothing like what I used to do.  So, this morning, I threw a suggestion out there- "How about we grab some of those wood building kits we have stock piled and do a few of those?" First, the fact that I had not been pre-planning our trifecta should clue you in on my level of functioning. Then, the mere mention of doing something with a hammer should cause concern/worry/anxiety, and your fingers should be on speed dial to a nearby marriage counselor or an AA sponsor.

I post on Facebook our plans.  The neighbor, who honestly does nothing more than build a new house for himself each day, thought that sounded cool.  Awe.  Sad.  He doesn't know that there are way less "lame" things to do on a Friday night!  Like, say, watch your daughter put a pair of underwear on her head and sing a song.  Or have your son sing Jason Mraz songs with you.  Or do a silly scavenger hunt attached to a migit running around in the house (BTW- our family scavenger hunts are like a freakin' torture exercise of will- I play hard core.)  Catching fireflies on a summer night... camp fires... game night (another hard core competitive night for me)... swimming at the YMCA indoor pool...movie night...hide and seek, in the dark....oh... I think I have my inspiration again.  Looking forward to making a less "lame" adventure for us next week.  In the mean time....

How is it that I have found myself not fully throwing myself into our family fun?  Super Saturday and Sunday Funday are fairly easy to improvise, but Fridays?  Meh.  I realized, that it really doesn't matter what we do, but that we do it together.  I love to hang with my migits and my man.  I love to laugh, sing, dance, and do all these things with my family.  I don't care if we are doing something "lame" or not.  I love my life.

Finished product.  Took about an hour.  Yes, they are essentially boxes with wheels.  Don't ask.  

That can't be right. 

That one screw made me want to drink.  

Charlie does not really like to hammer.  Or screw.  Or anything that requires use of his hands.  He enjoys dancing.  I don't know why I bothered with this tonight.  I need medication.  Yesterday.  

I would say that he hit this one nail, for about five minutes.  Didn't get very far.  After 15 minutes of mostly me hammering, we had four nails in.  NAILED IT!

Shay has got it going on.  She is better, but even this one they managed to screw up the ladder part on top.  So, she doesn't have one.  

This is a happy scene.  We hadn't started yet.  

They each picked two from the bag of maybe six?  Then, we managed to complete one.  Right, about that.  

He would still be hammering if I made him do it himself.  Geoff took over for me since I got an important call that I had to take.  Bless his heart.