Jumbled Harmony

Snail Mail

2012-01-03T15:25:00.002-06:00

I look in my mailbox everyday, hoping for a letter. Amazon.com is my friend because I love to receive mail. But I also love to send mail. And that I shall. Each week is dedicated to a person, near or far away. I will be sending a hand-written letter to each of these beautiful people in hopes to re-kindle friendships or just say hello and put a smile on their face.

I already sent my first one out.

52 letters. One a week. Will you be getting a letter from me?

Holiday De-Briefing (the attempt to making Christmas a little more organized for 2012)

2011-12-27T11:05:00.001-06:00

Organized Christmas

1. What worked this Holiday season? I think having the three Christmases (one on Christmas Eve, one at Mom’s house and then one at our house for the Martins) worked well. Although next year, Christmas Eve will be on Monday night and we might not be able to make church... it worked well this year because it fell on a Saturday.

2. What was the worst aspect of preparing for the holiday? Can you avoid it this year? I think I had too many places to write down the presents that we purchased. I had an app on my phone and I made a cool notebook (that I didn't end up using much). I need to stick to one place to write things down (probably my phone would work better than a notebook, because I always have my phone with me.)

3. Were you satisfied with your family’s level of giving? How can next year more closely reflect your family values? I need to stick to a budget. Spell it out in plain and simple words! And then stick to it! I did it the year before, but because I spent most of the year buying presents, I didn’t use cash the whole time. I also spent a lot of money online this year (which was EXCELLENT!) Maybe I can get out a third of the total money to be spent out in January, a third in May and the rest in November... that might work. Maybe make more homemade gifts??

4. How well did your household function this year? Were you calm and cozy or stressed out? What improvements can be made for next year? I think I was pretty calm and cozy!

5. Honesty time: Did you enjoy your holiday? Yes! Having McCoy excited about Christmas was worth all of the hype! I love it that he is excited and loves the holidays! Opening presents was fun and made it much more merrier!

Co-Sleeping Can Be Tricky

2011-12-21T11:32:00.001-06:00

About a month ago, we took the crib out of McCoy's bedroom and switched it with the twin bed. We decided not to completely take the crib apart and put it in storage, just in case (and no! I'm not pregnant!!). We did this over Thanksgiving break. He got a new comforter set (Cars) and new pillows and everything. He really did enjoy it.

But we still can fall asleep in our own bed. He has to be with me in order to fall asleep. Breastfeeding has led him to feel the need to feel his "boo-dies" every night. It has become his security blanket. So, McCoy falls asleep in our bed, then we move him over to his bed. About 4 am, he always comes crawling back! Unless, of course, I don't actually move him to his own bed to begin with. :)

Most nights, our co-sleeping is fine. It's often snug, (since we have a queen bed), but it's not unbearable. I've learned to sleep well with my little sliver of bed, while McCoy enjoys the middle portion of the bed. Last night, though, was not as grand. He woke up several times out of a dead sleep yelling things that he must have been dreaming about. Here are a few conversations from last night:

McCoy: "I want more trounds."
Me: "Trounds? Do you mean more crayons?"
McCoy: "Yes, mommy. More trounds."
Me: "What are you going to do with your crayons?"
McCoy..... no answer. He fell back asleep.

**Several hours later**

McCoy: "More juice, please."
Me: "Here you go, McCoy."
McCoy: "Neigh-nu, Mommy"
Me: "You're welcome."

**An hour or so later**

McCoy: "I want boo-dies!"
Me... shifting...
McCoy.... asleep again in seconds.

**An hour or so later**

McCoy: (out of a DEAD sleep!) "I WANT IPAD! MY IPAD! IPAD!!!"
Me: "Shhhh, go back to sleep. We can play with it tomorrow."
McCoy: (SCREAMING NOW): "NOOOOOOO! MY IPAD!"
(Me getting up to pee)
McCoy still Screaming!!!

Finally, he goes back to sleep only because he is laying on my chest and I am rubbing my hands through his hair. It was not a good night.

But, nevertheless, I love my little McCoy!

McCoy's 2nd Birthday Party

2011-10-16T17:26:00.000-05:00

Choo! Choo! Choo! McCoy is TWO!!

We had a choo-rific party for McCoy last month! I think he had a great day and we had some great visitors here!

I can't believe that my baby is two years old! He is doing some fantastic things, both developmentally, behaviorally, socially and physically. But I'm going to devote another post all by itself.

:)

Crock Pot Freezer Meal.....

2011-10-13T06:10:00.000-05:00

Here is a successful story about my crock pot freezer meal. I made this one on the same night I made all the others. It's called Slow Cooker Veggie-Beef Soup with Okra.

INGREDIENTS

- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/4 cup onion, chopped
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 (16 ounce) package frozen mixed vegetables
- 1 cup sliced fresh or frozen okra
- 2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- salt and pepper to taste

Drag groups or instructions to sort

INSTRUCTIONS

In a skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef and onion until beef is evenly brown and onion is tender. Drain grease.
In a slow cooker, mix the beef and onion, diced tomatoes, Italian diced tomatoes, vegetables, okra, potatoes, ketchup, salt, and pepper. Pour in enough water to cover.
Cover slow cooker, and cook 4 hours on Low.

I didn't have the Italian diced tomatoes (overlooked that one on the list!) so I added in Meatloaf sauce. The end product was good, but a little too ketchupy for my taste. McCoy and Whit ate it with no complaints though. It tasted especially good with potato chips and sour cream. :)

I added all the ingredients to a gallon sized freezer bag (AFTER I browned the hamburger) and put it in the freezer. Then I threw the whole thing in the crock pot in the morning. I had Whit turn it on Low about 7 am and then he got home before me and turned it to warm about 4 pm.

All in all, I give it 3 stars. It was disgusting like my chicken last week, but it was pretty tasty.

Name Change

2011-10-12T12:01:00.001-05:00

I was in need of a name change. My blog has been called "Tenessa" ever since I started it and it sucks. It's so boring.

So I thought about my life. I strive for Harmony. I strive to create peace within my family and friends. I'm a peacemaker by nature-- always the first to say I'm sorry and always initiating re-kindling friendships. I live in harmony most of the time.

But enter McCoy. And music. And work. And family. And mama chores. And messy houses. And laundry. And Rezound. And my go-to attitude. My always-wanting-to-be-in-the-middle, never-wanting-to-miss-out attitude and you get Jumbled. My life was once organized, but is now jumbled. I strive for perfection, but I only get jumbled, dissonant chords. It's okay, though, because I've accepted the fact that I don't live a perfect life. No one does. And no one will ever be able to.

I know that I live in chaos and I will do what I can do make it harmonious.

It's Jumbled Harmony.

Epic Fail

2011-10-05T22:18:00.000-05:00

Okay, tonight... fail.

I made a freezer meal: Honey Garlic Chicken. And I cooked it for 12 hours on low in the crock pot. It was burnt and yucky when I got home. It looks like this:

I think I may have to invest in a timer. I'm just gone too long during the day.

Any of you ever had Epic Fails from the crock pot before? Please tell me I'm not the only one.

I have more of this recipe. I think I made like three batches. I will try it again, but not cook it as long!

First Success!

2011-10-05T07:40:00.000-05:00

I mentioned that I was experimenting with freezer cooked meals for the crock pot. Well, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen (ha! only 2 and a half hours!) making many 14 meals. I still have more to make, but I got tired! :)

My first trip to the freezer: Four bags of Mexican Soup, Four bags of Honey I Fed the Kid, and three bags of Garlic Honey Chicken. Yes, I rock!!

My first success: Mexican Soup
Here is the recipe:

1 can of chicken broth
1 can of green beans
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 can corn
1 can beans (any kind)
3 chicken breasts (you can toss them in frozen)
1 packet taco seasoning

Throw into a gallon sized freezer ziploc and throw it in the freezer. I placed mine in the freezer very carefully, though. :)

When you want to cook it, throw it in, cook it on low until you can shred the chicken (6-7 hours). I cooked it on low for a very long time. I put it in about 6:15 am and Whit and McCoy ate around 6:30. When Whit got home around 4:45, he turned it on low. I ate around 7:30 pm. It was not burnt at all. It had excellent flavor and not too much taco seasoning. We put sour cream on it and it tasted wonderful!

Now, I cooked four batches of this soup! The one recipe called for 3 chicken breasts, but I only put in two and I would probably just do one chicken breast the next time. It seemed like a lot of chicken to me, once the veggies and tomatoes cooked up a bit. But it tasted wonderful! Left-overs included on small bowl for lunch today, and a big bowl for left-over dinner. The best part, it did NOT stink up the whole house!!!

Okay, that's not my first try at the freezer thing. I also did a recipe called Honey, I Fed the Kids Chicken dinner. This is called a "Dump Recipe" from the Lazy Day Gourmet. Here is the link. I grilled it and we had roasted potatoes and okra, and also green beans (with thyme and parmesan cheese mixed in-- great way to spice up a plain ol' can of green beans!). I give it 4 stars. It was received well by my family. Whit said the chicken had great flavor. I just like grilled chicken! We ate this on Saturday night.

The Little Things

2011-10-04T11:35:00.002-05:00

this is me being...

2011-09-29T12:15:00.000-05:00

-stunned because so many of my friends are pregnant!
-happy because so many of my friends are pregnant!
-wishing I was pregnant? Probably not. Not yet anyways. I have a lot of things to get under my belt, like daycare issues, parenting issues, financial issues, weight issues... It will be some time. At least another year, if not two.
-excited about my grocery shopping today. I think I may have found the answer to my stressful, busy, no-time problems. We'll see how it goes before I unleash any secrets.
-frustrated because of a very noisy class I have on B Days. We have three extra classes this year, which means I'm teaching from the moment I walk into the door, until I leave at the end of the day.
-stressed to get the HWGA sale stuff tagged and delivered by Sunday.
-procrastinating doing my homework, writing emails, sending invitations, assigning lines for three music programs, and cleaning my desk at school.
-happy that McCoy is going to daycare without crying anymore!
-thankful my LASIK surgery went well and I can finally see! Speaking of LASIK, how many of you actually watched it on YouTube?? :)
-serious about a "to-do" list. In fact, this is the last bullet I'm making so I can go do the things I need to do.

I'm A Little Behind

2011-09-27T11:54:00.000-05:00

Most of the time, I look around and think to myself, "Wow, you really need to step it up! You have lost the skill of _____ (fill in the blank)." Things I've lost:
- taking pictures
- making food
- caring for my house
- organizing in bills/money and at school
- health watch
- posting pictures and/or blog posts
- staying in touch
- making a list and sticking to it

Now, I know what you are thinking, "Give yourself some credit." Well, I'm about to cut the bull crap and get back on track.

Today for breakfast, I drank a protein shake. Super easy to make, and if I ever get a half gallon of milk at school, there will be no reason I can't make one every day. I'm trying to skip lunch (but I had about four Reese's Peanut Butter Cups....). No lunch. And no more candy for the rest of the day!

I made a list. I'm trying to get to it... after I blog! :)

I haven't posted pictures on Facebook in a while, except for those random Mobile Pictures I sent every-other-day. I'm posting them now.

I am going to budget and make a menu plan for next week. And I'm going to try my hand at Freezer Crock Pot Meals. I'm going to. I have to if I want to make dinner, (which I haven't in about, oh, five weeks).

Here.

And that was just from about three weeks' worth of pictures. I want to take time to take more. And I will.

Lasik

2011-09-26T16:58:00.001-05:00

Well, I did it, folks! I got Lasik eye surgery on Saturday! Mega-thanks to everyone for your well-wishes and help. Whit, Mom and Colette came with me and they were very supportive. And also I got lots of extra cash to go toward my surgery! Yay!

So, some of you have been asking how it was.... it was weird! I went in that day and they gave me some valium (hee hee). I am very glad I took that! Otherwise, you know me, I would be bouncing off the walls! They gave me some drops to numb my eyes and then from there, I just followed the doctor's directions. "Look at the blinking red light"... "Raise your chin up just a bit".... "Okay, Tenessa, your vision is going to disappear right about now, it's probably black".... "okay, we are almost done with your right eye".... "Look at the blinking red light. It should start to come into focus".... "Tenessa, now I'm going to cover your right eye and start on your left eye".... "Look at the blinking red light"..... and my favorite.... "Okay, Tenessa, you are all done! How are you doing? Can you see!?" YESS!!! I can! Weird.

Whit filmed the whole thing. It took about 9 minutes total, for both eyes. IF and only IF you want to watch it, here it is. But I didn't make you watch it!!!!!

:) Happy Birthday to me!

Before my surgery! Peace-out glasses!

Glasses free forever!

McCoy wearing my cool goggles that I have to wear at night.

Dad made my birthday cake!

New eyes for my birthday!

Giving my old glasses to someone in need. See-ya glasses!!

Philosophy of Music

2011-09-12T09:30:00.000-05:00

Philosophy of Music

I was forced to write my Philosophy of Music this week. Why do I teach? Why is music important? Why should we have music in the schools? Honestly, I don't know. Now that I have to actually think of that, I was left really unsure of myself. Here is my rough draft Philosophy of Music:
__________________________________________________________

Music isthe aural art form which satisfies the human need to respond to lifeexperiences. Music education is a partof a well-balanced curriculum that students have the right to learn andenjoy. Music is a part of our humanhistory and will continue for generations to come. As a part of our past, music history teachesabout methods used long ago. As a partof our present, music is a part of our society, culture and communicationsystem. As a part of our future,students will continue to excel in musical literacy; musical performances;enactive listening; and creative, expressive movements.

Studentswill learn the basic curriculum of music education in the areas of melody,harmony, rhythm, and form. They willidentify different modes, key signatures, theory skills and composing. Students will be exposed to playing instrumentssuch as recorder, various Orff instruments, non-pitched auxiliary percussionand tubano and other indigenous percussion instruments available. They will experience listening activitieswhile gaining extensive music literacy skills. Students will be able to identify various composers by listening totheir works and learn various types of rhythms, both simple and complexmeters. Students will manipulate themusical elements; make musical decisions; develop hand-eye coordination; learnto multi-task; develop their spatial-temporal reasoning skills; and posseslife-long skills such as team work, problem solving, creativity,critical-thinking, collaboration, communication, leadership, self-confidence,self-esteem, goal setting, respect for people and property, and memory skills.

__________________________________________________________

What do you think? Yes??

My New Year's Resolutions

2011-08-01T11:27:00.001-05:00

January is the beginning of the new calendar year, but August seems to be more up my alley. I like to start fresh in August. It's a new school year, fresh notebooks, newly sharpened pencils, new kiddos, and new staff. I like to think of this as my official start of the year. In January, after Christmas break is over, I go back to the same ol' desk, the same ol' routine, mostly the same kiddos and staff and I just can't help fall back into my "same ol' self". But August is a time where I can make the differences I want to make in myself.

I shall not try and make each month a "new me". It just didn't work the last two years I've tried (but perhaps that is because I started in January and not August). I want to change several big things about myself, a short list that I will be reminded of daily.

I want to make wiser decisions in my life. I want to actually look at a decision from all angles and decide what is right for me and my family. I want to seek advice, but use it only as advice. I will make my own conclusions and make my decisions based on that. This will from the food I eat, to the way I dress and present myself, to decisions about my financial future as well as career.

I want to be a nicer person. I want to quit judging and criticizing people. I want to be optimistic and loving. I want to be genuine and happy.

I want to be more organized in my life. This will come to shock to some of you, but I sort of fell short of this when McCoy was born. I want to get back to that and this is the year to do it. I will be more organized at school, with work, at home, with church bells, and especially with piano lessons. With my new, shiny iPad, I think I will be able to make that a reality rather quickly.

I want to put my best foot forward. I want to do things using 100% effort and good attitude. Especially since I'm going back to school soon. I need to do it with a good heart and mind.

I want to make more time for my friends.

I want to make more time for myself.

I want to make more time for my family.

Have a great year, folks!

A Few Random Thoughts

2011-07-31T22:17:00.000-05:00

Intersting new format with blogger. Apparently I haven't blogged in a while.

Here are a few random thoughts coming from the brain of Tenessa.

*First and foremost, thank you so much for all your prayers and comments about the daycare situation. I know that I haven't told most of you what the result was--- I was waiting to write it in a blog post. And that post just never happened. Actually I wrote it on my new iPad, but when I went to publish, it disappeared. Hmm. The other two teachers and I got together and wrote up a document to give to the Garrison Commander at our meeting on July 5. It went well. We were all pretty much scared to death, but it worked because a week later we were told that McCoy and his little daycare friends could stay until the services were no longer needed! So, that was a huge relief for us. As of right now, any future children will not be allowed to attend, but... well, I got my way before so who knows!! :)

*My brother Nick and his wife Codi are expecting their first child!! I mean, CHILDREN!! That's right, they are pregnant with Twins! :) I'm so excited for them!

*McCoy can crawl out of his crib.

*McCoy is still having a hard time getting to sleep. It's hard to deal with all the advice that I've asked for... some of them are differing. But school starts tomorrow so we will be back into a better routine soon enough.

*Tomatoes! I have harvested at least 50-some tomatoes this summer. So far I've made homemade pizza sauce and homemade tomato sauce. I plan on freezing most of the pizza sauce (we don't eat pizza that often). And I'm going to take a stab at homemade spaghetti-o's! Although I'm making them with Alphabet noodles!

*I got a shiny new iPad! It is great except that McCoy loves that "home" button. In fact, it's hard for him to do anything because he always hits that stupid button!

*School starts tomorrow. I'm happy and sad at the same time. Tomorrow I will be blogging about my new "New Year's Resolutions". Let's face it, August is a better "new year" for me than January. So I'm starting over.

*September 24 I'm getting LASIK done! I'm sooooo happy, but I'm always scared to death! Oh, and I can't find my current glasses. So if you see them, please let me know! Otherwise, stay off the road the week prior to September 24. Thank you.

*Debt? Oh yea. I'm still working on that. I kind of fell behind because of summer. It's so easy to go shopping in the summertime!

*We went to Branson, I took my camera, but left my card at home. No pictures. But we will be back Labor Day Weekend.

*My baby has good days and bad. And they usually follow each other closely. But he is so stinkin' cute. I mean, just look at this:

Check back tomorrow for New Year's resolutions.

(still got those chunky thighs!)

Sleeping Update

2011-06-25T16:51:00.000-05:00

Everyone has been so kind and supportive on Facebook about my sleeping issues with my little toddler. Thank you so much to everyone for your encouragement, advice and prayers. I've been getting a lot of questions and people asking for updates about how he is doing, so I thought I'd follow up on the issues.

It hasn't been very long since my last post-- not even a week. But we have seen great improvements! I can't really pin-point what exactly made the switch, but I can tell you the things that we are doing differently. First of all, I haven't been completely honest. I've made this problem sound like it was all McCoy's fault. But in hindsight, it was completely mine. Not McCoy's, and not Whit's. It was all my fault. I created this sleep problem and I was trying to convince myself that I was trying to fix it, but I wasn't. I was so sleep deprived (and still suffering from it) that I would do anything to get a little shut-eye. This meant that I was allowed McCoy to use me like a door-mat. But all that changed this week, with a little help from you and a lot of help from Whit and McCoy's doctor.

We started getting McCoy ready for bed at 7:00 pm. This is NOT ideal for me. It's too early. Half the time, Whit isn't even home from work and we haven't eaten dinner as a family (eating dinner as a family is very important to us as well). So, 7:00 pm is too early for me. But after dinner, we take a bath, get on our pjs, take our medicine, read a book. Then I lay him down, run my fingers through his (short) hair and let him know that I will be there if he needs me, but it's time to go to sleep. He screams and cries for 20 minutes. I go in again, lay him back down, and do the procedure again. Then he screams and cries fr 20 minutes (sometimes 15, because it's just that sad). Then I go in again, lay him down, and magically he falls right asleep!

Since our change in routine, he has been sleeping through the night with only one or two wake-ups. One night (our second night), he slept through the night without waking up once. Then about 6:00 am, I told him that Mommy was still tired and if he wanted he could come lay down with us in our bed. And he slept until 8:15. So, it was a great night for all.

I've also seen a HUGE change in his behavior. He hasn't had a temper tantrum in a few days and if he wants something, he usually is patient until I am able to fix the problem. That was probably the one thing that was driving me crazy the most. Because after a night full of numerous wake-ups, the last thing I wanted to deal with was a child who was screaming and whiny all day long! But so far, so good.

KNOCK ON WOOD!!!

20 minute intervals

2011-06-21T20:42:00.000-05:00

This post will probably be written in several 20-minute intervals. I'm guessing about 6.

Interval #1--- 7:20-7:40
McCoy. Sigh. I love the kid. But he has cursed me with no sleep. Everyone always told me, "Get as much sleep as you can, because your life is about to change," or "You have a baby... say goodbye to sleep." Well, you know what? Why does it have to be this way? Not every kid refuses to sleep. I was so lucky... I got a kid that only sleeps on average 5 to 6 hours a night. That can not be good. And lately (the last three or so nights) it's gotten worse. I've made my several pleas on Facebook; reaching out to all my mother and father friends. HELP ME! What do you do with your children? How do I get some shut eye? And how do I get it to become a habit? A ritual? A routine? A schedule? A technique? A procedure? How do I get to sleep for more than one night every five or so weeks? What's wrong with my child? Why won't he sleep?

I have noticed some terrible changes in his behavior. Temper tantrums, almost. For instance, yesterday we went to Target. I started to put him in the cart seat and strap him in-- he threw a fit and demanded to sit in the basket part of the cart. At first, I let him. But made him sit still. Then he started to stand up. So, in the seat part he went. McCoy-- 1 point. Mom-- 1 point. Tied.

Today, we ran some errands. He refused to take a nap today, so we left without a nap. He slept on the way there. Fine by me. Mom-- 2 points. McCoy-- 1 point. Ha! But when I went to put him back in his seat after our first errand, he refused to get buckled in. And arched his back-- I know you moms know what I'm talking about! I kicked my body force into a higher gear, and about 5 minutes later, he was finally buckled in. Mom-- 2 points. McCoy-- 2 points. But then, he continued to scream and throw fits the whole 30 minute car ride to our next destination.... McCoy gets 2 points for that one. McCoy-- 4 points. Mom-- 2 points.

Interval #2--- 7:45-8:05
McCoy is not acting like himself. I know that he is 4 months away from the big TWO, but this just isn't like him. Flailing around and dropping into dead weight... it's just not right. Something is wrong. Medically. Behaviorally? Chemically? Something just isn't right.

I decided to call the doctor and see what was going on.

So I took him in for possible ear infection (because he was tugging and itching the back of his ears a lot) or swimmer's ear. The first couple of questions the doctor asks: "Does he have a fever?" Nope. "How is he sleeping?" HORRIBLE!!! TERRIBLE!! Thanks for asking.

Come to find out, he has eczema really bad on his back (we've known about), but just recently came up behind his ears. According to the doctor, he thinks that McCoy is itching and uncomfortable and can't get a good nights sleep. So here are the things he suggested to try: Zyretc, medicated prescription ointment for his eczema, turning on more lights, making bedtime earlier (7-7:30) and two naps a day.

Overtired? Yup. So am I.

He said to put McCoy in his bed-- let him cry for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, go in and HOLD HIM to soothe him (thank you, finally some soothing), then put him down for another interval. We are about to start interval #3.

Here was our schedule so far tonight.

Dinner-- 6:30 pm
Bath-- 6:45 pm
PJs and book-- 7:10 pm
Into bed-- 7:20 pm

And then the intervals started. He told me to call him in a week if it didn't get any better.

The next step is to completely change his diet, sleep journals (which I've already started a few days ago), and the sleep clinic at Children's Mercy.

Doctor said he could tell I was sleep deprived. I bet I could count the number of nights that McCoy has successfully slept through the night on two hands. And doing the calculations, I'll bet it's been three years since I've had a good sleeping schedule for myself. How can I be a good mother if I don't take care of myself? I need WAY more sleep than what I'm getting.

Interval #3.... just went in after interval #3. Picked him and rocked him and hugged him. He went right to sleep. Stay tuned for tomorrow's journey.

working out

2011-06-17T13:19:00.000-05:00

Good Afternoon. I just wanted to touch base with you and see how you are doing. It's summertime. It's too late to be "loosing weight for summer" because summer has already arrived. However, I'm working my butt off lately on working out. Well, I've been at it for one week. But in this one week, I've burned over 1800 calories (according to my android phone app) and worked out 5 days (only skipped one day). I started going to a Body Pump class at the gym on post, and have been running/walking 3 of those days. I've been doing weight lifting for an hour, and running for about 35 minutes. And guess what?

I have gained four pounds.

freeing ourselves from debt

2011-06-01T11:46:00.019-05:00

April 2011 (shortly after learning about Debt Snowball and Budgeting our brains out...)

Credit 1-- $2,802.97

Credit 2-- $3,153.96

Credit 3-- 0

Credit 4-- 0

Student Loan-- $9,749.73

Credit 5-- 0

Department Credit-- 0

Toyota Car-- 0

Van Loan-- $5,100.00

TOTAL DEBT: $20,806.66

June 2011

Credit 1-- 0

Credit 2-- $3,084.61

Credit 3-- 0

Credit 4-- 0

Student Loan-- $9,509.61

Credit 5-- 0

Department Credit-- 0

Toyota Car-- 0

Van Loan-- $4,900.00

TOTAL DEBT: $17,494.22

Wow.

Some big expenses are coming our way, though. I will need to save about $3,000 for some career coursework next year, and of course, I want Lasik surgery oh so badly. That will be approximately $4,000, probably even more.

But, as far as our budget and debt snowball is right now, we are looking good! It's something I've been struggling with but it feels so good to get it right.

The End of the Year is Hard

2011-05-26T12:44:00.000-05:00

Especially when you are having your second day of dieting.

The kids bring you chocolate and food and presents. And it's all so good! One kid brought me a KING SIZE Hershey bar. I'm a sucker for Hershey's bars! Nothing beats that creamy, pure, sweet chocolate taste. It is so lovely. But weaning myself, I only took three squares from it. That's a pretty good step since I could polish off that whole bar in a day. And I would have. It would have been chocolate for breakfast, chocolate for a mid-morning snack, and of course, chocolate for lunch and the rest of it after the kiddos left in the afternoon. I'm serious. That's way too much chocolate to even consume on a weekly basis!!!

Last night I cooked up some butternut squash ravioli. It was pre-packaged frozen ravioli, but I added the sauce. I melted butter and put fresh sage in the skillet to cook that. (Bonus: The sage was organic and it was on a "manager's special". $.49 for the whole package!). I decided that the butter sauce was not very healthy and added in peas and match-stick carrots. Satuteed those puppies up and added a cup of water. Then I added the cooked pasta and served it up. It was really good, although I think I will add less sage next time. It was really potent! Unfortunately McCoy didn't care for it too much, but we think he wasn't feeling well last night.

Even though I'm making some changes to my life (for weight and appearance purposes), I haven't weighed myself yet. I plan to though and I will keep a running tally of how much I loose, if anything. I'm going camping tomorrow for a week and a half and am not sure how much I'm going to be able to control when I'm there. My dad is there now, and he said he and I can go walking, with the Mac Attack in tow. So, I'll have to bring my tennies!!

Oh and by the way, I haven't had a Dr. Pepper since Tuesday! One small step, but it's a step. Every time I want a drink, I just take a drink of *yucky* water instead. How tasteless water is!

second thoughts

2011-05-25T10:54:00.000-05:00

Well, it seems as though I might have done the wrong thing here. I posted about my unhappiness with my weight and appearance and I got "in trouble" for it. I thought blogs were supposed to be a journal. Yes, I know. It's a journal that everyone can read, but still it's supposed to be my thoughts and feelings. I very rarely type out how something has actually made me feel. It is something I wanted to improve on with my writing. When I post to my blog, I write about what happened during my day, how I'm going to better myself, what I plan to do next, lists, lists, lists... it seems as though my online journal has little to do with me. The person who is doing all the writing.

I want to have someone hold me accountable for losing weight, but I know that the changes need to start with me. My list making skills will always be present-- so I thought I would start where I'm comfortable. A list.

Changes I need to make ASAP:
-don't drink any more Dr. Pepper
-drink only water
-make at least one healthy meal a day (usually dinner)
-walk, walk, walk
-pray

Things to start in the near future:
-exercise (GROAN)
-read motivational books, quotes, blogs
-healthy meal planning (cut out meats??)
-eat more fresh produce and vegetables
-thinking about joining weight watchers
-create a blog just about my "journey" to freedom

What else shall I add to that list?

Here is what I've done so far:
-enrolled in Sparkpeople.com (so many people suggested that-- I was actually doing that when I was pregnant but it was their sister site: babyfit.com).
-haven't had Dr. Pepper since 3:00 pm yesterday (!!!!)
-didn't have crap for breakfast

Let's be honest, how many people in this world is truly happy about their weight? I can count like five people I know. And even then, they are at a healthy weight, but they don't think they are (as in they keep counting calories or skipping dessert-- which is probably why they are so skinny... I mean, healthy). I'm not exactly sure what I was hoping for as far as reactions are concerned. I don't know if I was looking for people to say to me, "You are beautiful", "don't be so hard on yourself"... which is exactly what I got. I don't think I wanted people to say to me, "Well, it's about time you admitting you're on the heavy side. Let's see you try to loose weight, although I'm sure you will fail." I know my friends and family would not say that to me. They are the most supportive family and friends out there. But still, a blog is about your feelings and if I recall correctly, I wrote that post after I went to the bathroom.... I tried on three shirts that morning... I just couldn't get comfortable.

I don't want anyone to think I'm self-loathing, but I also don't want people to think that I'm not going to do anything about it. Reading all the comments from Facebook, my email account and text messages, I know that I need to do something and fairly quickly. I'm thinking about starting another blog just to document this journey to freedom.

Hopefully I am ready to take the plunge. Making sure I have good portion control, taking in less sugar and fat, getting rid of Dr. Pepper (gasp) and not eating out as much. Here are my promises:

I promise to eat at least one healthy meal a day.
I promise to try and walk often.
I promise to not be hard on myself (within reason).
I promise to try not to drink Dr. Pepper and chocolate.
I promise to drink more water.
I promise to work on my will power.
I promise to be nice to those people around me.
I promise to ask for help.
I promise to listen to others' stories and not judge them.

Maybe that will help. All those promises.

I just want to reiterate that I am a happy person. I love my life, my family and friends, my beautiful baby boy and my wonderful husband. I wouldn't trade my life for anything-- I also don't regret any of the life-changing decisions I've made so far. But I do want to change my lifestyle, because in the long-run, it will be better for my family. And of course, me.

To all my readers, I hope I did not cause you to worry. I just needed to write as an outlet.

fat girl in the mirror

2011-05-24T08:55:00.000-05:00

A lonely fat girl.

I'm looking in the mirror and I'm disgusted by what I see. I see an pudgy faced girl, with no make up. I see a girl who has dark circles under her eyes, a mustache growing on her upper lip and bushy eye brows that make a person double-take. Then I look down from her face. I see fat arms with bumps all over and swollen fingers. Further still and I see a donut/muffin top/inter-tube encircling her mid-section. I see pants that don't fit right, and shirts that are either too big or too tight. How did I let this happen? How did a once skinny girl become so unattractive? I'll tell you how. It's her inability to say no.

Dr. Pepper has always been a part of my life, ever since about the 3rd grade. I became friends with a girl who was allowed to drink one Dr. Pepper a day, only if she asked for permission. Even though it was never a rule in my house, it became one for me. I would ask my mother for permission to drink a Dr. Pepper and then I would limit it to that one. I never asked her for another one just because I didn't think I could. Until one day. I can't remember exactly when that was-- I was probably in high school or something. But I asked if I could have another one, and mom said "Oh, I don't care, honey". And thus began my journey. My journey to fat-ness.

Since being pregnant and married, I found myself to not care what I look like. It's always been a hatred of mine to wear make-up and get all dolled up for things like going out with friends, going out to eat, or even going to work. I just don't consider myself a girly-girl and therefore I don't take the time to put make up on. After I had McCoy, I noticed that I lost a lot of weight and I began to get back to "normal" (whatever that is). And I continued to drink my Dr. Pepper and eat my cookies. And then as I breast-fed less, I packed on more pounds. My mother was right, breastfeeding helps keep the weight off. But as he needed less, I felt like I needed more. Perhaps I've filled that void in my life (McCoy "needing" me less) with eating.

Everyday, I walk into work and I say to myself, "This will be the day that I quit eating chocolate and/or Dr. Pepper." As I say this, I tell myself, "tomorrow, tomorrow.... I will start tomorrow." I have no will power. I look at my friends from college and high school and even my own family members and I can't help comparing myself to them. It's human nature to compare oneself to others.

What am I going to do? I have no idea. I wish I could say I would/could work out and work on eating more healthy-- cutting out the unneccessary fat from my life. But I can't do it alone. I need someone (not someone skinny and already less than their healthy weight), to help me keep on track. I need a plan. For once in my life, I have no plan. I have nothing to guide me into the right direction.

Please help me. What do I need to do in order to get back to myself? To be happy with my image? To be comfortable in my own clothes and body? What can I do (besides going to the gym)? Let's face it, I won't do it-- it is going to have to be something that I can do without really knowing I'm working out.

Maybe a game will work with me. Maybe I should log EVERYTHING I eat on my blog in order to be accountable for it. But I need someone to actually hold me accountable. Like a pen-pal or something. Maybe I get so many "points" for not having chocolate or Dr. Pepper each day. Maybe I need a new hobby, something to do with McCoy that will take my mind off eating and drinking that sinful drink. Let's see if I can come up with a game for myself that will make me want to strive for excellence. I know I can't do it alone. Maybe I can recruit my mother in playing with me (or holding me accountable). Yes, let's start there.

But I start this game... tomorrow.

A Post About Sleep

2011-05-16T07:57:00.000-05:00

See? My baby does sleep. And he has since he was a wee little baby. But seriously, even though he is asleep in every single one of these photos, he doesn't sleep as well as the average baby. Don't worry, I don't love him less because of it, but man, I used to think, "If only he would sleep better..."

A couple of pros from my sleepy baby-- When he was born, he automatically knew when night was night and when day was day. I have to hand it to him for that. A friend of mine had a baby 5 weeks after McCoy was born and she was up with him for a couple of hours during the 3-4 am shift. I was lucky because that was not happening at the Martin household. McCoy would fall asleep every time I fed him. That was another pro. He was a "milk coma" baby. He loved his Mommy Milk. :)

But here's where it started to get tricky. He would not, could not, refused to sleep through the night. I would here mothers, giggling and smiling from excitement that their children began sleeping through the night at 5 weeks old. I waited at 5 weeks... at 6 weeks... at 8 weeks... at 4 months... at 6 months... at 9 months... at 12 months... at 18 months.... still McCoy did not sleep through the night. I tried everything (that I could think of). I tried letting him cry (didn't see a consistent response to that), I tried giving him food before we went to bed, I tried a bedtime routine, I tried letting him run and run and run and run, I tried bedtime books, I tried... I tried... I tired, very tired.

And then, as he turned 18 months old, he got "kicked out" of the infant room (okay, not kicked out, but moved up) to the ButterBears room. And that night, a glorious halo of darkness shone over his crib and angels lulled him to a deep, deep sleep. Because that night, 4:00 am rolled around and I didn't hear him wake up. Hallelujah! Okay, but this was probably just a fluke, he's done this before-- he has slept through the night before. So, I waited until the next night.... He didn't wake up! Again! And the whole week was the same. Until, of course, Saturday night. And Sunday night. And looking at a calendar, it proves that McCoy only sleeps through the night when he is thoroughly worn out from ButterBears. I need to be more structured and offer more activities for my dear little one on the weekends.

update on life

2011-05-11T21:23:00.000-05:00

Let's see. It's been some time since I updated. Not too terribly long, but long enough to list several things that have happen since. I can't tell you how many blogs I've started, only to push the little X at the top of the computer screen.... "no, I don't want to save" and "yes, I want to leave this page." It's all mumbo, jumbo. Nothing really special, nothing well-written. But if I keep that up, I'll never post again! So, here is it, an un-well-written blog post about life. An update on life.

Let's look ahead before going back. This summer! It's almost here. Although lately it feels like it's been summer for months. The weather jumped from 50's to 90's almost 100's!! This is the first summer in a while that I don't have a big thing planned. I'm super excited about this new-found freedom! Even though I have a few things on the calendar, it's not a 2-week course, like last year or going on bell tour like last year. This is what is set in stone on my calendar so far (get ready for a short list!). Let's see-- I'm going to Branson for Memorial Day (leaving May 27 and returning on June 4), Rezound concert on June 5, going to St. Louis for a conference (leaving on June 8 and returning on June 11). And then I volunteered to be a "techy" at my school, so in order to do that, I have to attend an "Academy" July 11-15 from 8:00-12:00. Done. (Plus I get paid for it! I'm so there!).

Okay, so that's the stuff I have to do. Here is a partial list of the things that I want to do with McCoy and his little friends. Not all of them have a specific date, but here are a few. Powell Gardens (meeting the "real dinosaurs"), Chaulk and Walk at Crown Center, Water Gardens of Kansas City, Prairie Park, Kaleidescope, Wonderscope, Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop, Kansas City Zoo, Deana Rose Farmstead, Farmer's Markets, Red Barn Farm, and Rainforest Adventure Exhibit just to name some of the things I have planned. I also plan on going on nature walks, strollers strolls, swimming, swimming, swimming! And of course, I plan on cleaning my house good-- getting ready for sales (I'm doing consignment sales this year). Can't wait for summer to begin! (Oh yea, I'm also planning on really cleaning out my classroom. I need to oragnize my closets and book shelves. It's been long enough, and I can't find anything!)

Now that we've looked to the future, let's look upon the past.

We went to Branson a couple of weekends ago. And although it rained for a day and a half, we had a great time! Our cabin at Tresure Lake RV Resort was really nice. It had a covered porch and a deck on it, which we ate outside some. We went to Silver Dollar City (used our season passes!) and had a lovely time, just the three of us. I think we both agreed, it's a lot of fun with more people but it was nice to spend it with just our family. We rented a movie from Redbox, cooked in our cabin, went to the Hollywood Wax Museum (it was just okay), and shopped a bit. We went to Osceola Cheese Factory and spent $45.00 on CHEESE! (I know, right?) It was nice to be away from school for a day and I had a great time.

School has been pretty interesting lately. It is really remarkable to see the way that people act when they know they are leaving for the next year. I've found many teachers that have "checked out" early-- it's not May 27th yet, folks. I heard someone say, "Let's not count the days, let's make the days count." Oh that is just what everyone wants to hear, but it's so true. We aren't done yet. Even though I made all my programs done at the end of February, I'm still so busy! Calendar in one week shows Rezound practice on Monday, two piano lessons on Tuesday, Piano Recital on Wednesday, Dave Ramesy class followed by Choir and Band Concert on Thursday and Kindergarten Program during school on Friday. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can. I will. I have to! :)

Rezound has been another hard area of my life right now. I've been asked if I will continue, and although I have lots of pros and cons about joining again, I'm left to really examine my life and schedule. It was a tough fall semester, because we had so many concerts right in a row, followed by the symphony. I wouldn't trade it for the world, but it was tough. This spring has been hard, not because of concerts, but because Whit has been out of town on most Monday rehearsal nights and won't be here for concerts (to watch McCoy). So, with the added stress that I will not be able to go on tour this year (I'll be in St. Louis for my school conference at the same time), I've got this feeling that my practicing and hard work isn't really worth it. I'm practicing for what? Two concerts? Big deal. I've got to remember not to think that way-- remember "Let's not count days, let's make days count". Yea, yea, yea. Who knows how I'll feel come August. I'm sure I'll be wanting more.

My mother has been the back bone of my family. I couldn't do anything without her. She looks after me and McCoy without a complaint and she does it out of love. Everyday, she is willing to be there for me and Macadoo. I have spent several nights with her (while Whit is gone) and she has watched McCoy countless hours while I have rehearsals, concerts, and lessons. Sometimes I wish that I didn't rely on her so much, and I tell myself that I'm not going to call on her to do something, but then it always ends up the same. I call her out of despair and she comes galloping to my rescue. Thanks, Mom! And then in my head I say to myself, "I've got to figure this out for myself." But I forgot my lunch.... Moooooommmmm? Can you get me something to eat? Mooooooooooommmmmmmmmm? Can I have some cookies? Moooooooooooommmmmmmmm? Can you watch McCoy? Mooooooommmmmmmmmm? I need something to drink..... I love you, Moooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

Okay, so that's my little big update on life so far. Among other things, I got a new laptop at work (a MacBook Pro) and I'm supposed to get a new iPad 2 before summer (I won't hold my breath). I am requesting a Flip Camera for my classroom for next year (although it absoultly sucks concerning the battery on the sucker). I decided to do a Talent Show... o. m. g. That's another blog post in itself. I'm working on my budgets and debt snowball and moved my money to an ING account. Thinking about starting another blog about my money issues... I love money and numbers and budgets and stuff now. Thank you, Dave Ramesy. I love him-- not as much as McCoy and Whit, but almost as much a chocolate and Dr. Pepper.

I can't have a post without a picture. So...

Mops and Money

2011-05-03T09:42:00.000-05:00

I'm hoping to win from a sweepstakes from the Frugal Girl. I hope I win!

Mops and Money

Guess What I'm Doing?!

2011-04-13T21:12:00.000-05:00

I'm making my Christmas list of presents that I want to give, give, give!!!

I plan on having EVERYTHING wrapped and ready to go by November.

I plan on having EVERYTHING bought/made/planned by July!

Why, might you ask? Because I'm tired of having my life be this unorganized mess. I used to be so organized and faithful with all my "stuff". Today, I'm more like a zombie, running around thinking I have better excuses than the Mom next door. Well, I don't. I have to buck up, shut up, and change my ways.

My new phone has amazing capabilities! I love it so much! And I hope it makes my life much easier. One thing I downloaded was an application for Christmas list shopping. This will keep a list of everything I've already bought (a bunch of stuff from the after-Christmas sales). I also put in there a couple of things I plan on making for the kids (Whit's side of the family). A good friend of mine was pregnant at the same time I was and since her due date was so close to Christmas, she decided to have everything done by July in order to concentrate on the new baby. I thought that it was such a great idea! I don't have to have the excuse of having a kid in order to have Christmas done by July. So, I thought, why not!?

I'm pretty sure that I will see something in a store and go, "Ooh, ooh, ooh! Whit would love that!" or "McCoy needs new shoes!" but for the most part, I'm hoping to be done this summer. I will have all summer to plan, plan, plan and of course, shop, shop, shop!

So if I usually buy a gift for you, would you please send me your Christmas lists? ;)

Camping

2011-04-12T11:59:00.000-05:00

We are getting ready to go camping in a couple of weeks. I'm super excited. We are going to Branson for a little weekend getaway-- nothing spectacular but it will be loads of fun.

We plan on going to Silver Dollar City. At this time of the year, they are having the "World Fest" which I haven't been to in almost ten years. The last time I went to World Fest I was in high school, it might even be longer than that. I love World Fest because the music is phenomenal. I love watching the dancers and instrumentalists from different countries play and share their culture.

I'm also excited because we are staying in one of the new cabins at Treasure Lake Resort, in which we are members. The cabin is a bit costly, but considering what you get, it's down-right cheap! We opted for the bigger one-bedroom cabin since it has a much bigger kitchen. It has a refrigerator, microwave, stove and all the dishes. This means, we can save a bit of money by eating our meals in the cabin, rather than out. This is a new experience for me, since we usually camp beside my parents. They plan all the food and we eat it all! So, this time, I have to plan our own meals. No problem, since I'm getting very good at planning meals (when Whit is home). This cabin also has a nice deck on it with a grill and everything!

Our menu is as follows:
Friday night-- eating on the way, sandwich fixings
Saturday breakfast-- french toast, fruit
Saturday lunch-- sloppy joes, pea & carrots
Saturday dinner-- Hobo dinners (hee hee)
Sunday breakfast-- waffles (homemade recipe from my mother....)
Sunday lunch-- AT SDC
Sunday dinner-- Chicken & Dumplings from the slow cooker, fruit
Monday breakfast-- left over waffles
Monday lunch-- sandwiches
Monday dinner-- HOME :)

Whit has been working a lot lately. That's is sooooo great when it comes to our budget and bills, but not so great when it comes to our family. This vacation is short but it will be nice to spend these days with Whit and McCoy. I'm excited for McCoy to get to play outside and for us to roast marshmallows and stay up late, talking on the porch. I'm so ready for a break with my family.

Speaking of break... 32 more school days!

Dirty Laundry anyone??

2011-04-05T12:22:00.000-05:00

Budgets, budgets, budgets!

I've been taking Dave Ramsey's Finical Peace University class offered through my school district for some time now. We started in January of this year and it seems perfect timing, if you ask me. Our credit seems like it was at its highest in January. I can't say that it was because of the holidays-- this year, I budgeted and used ONLY cash. This was a first for me and I loved it! I was able to bargin shop much more than I thought and I always remembered that "once the cash is gone-- it's gone!" Interstingly enough, we had $70 left over... I took $50 and gave Whit $20. :) (That seemed only right, since I did all the shopping, wrapping and idea processing ALONE!)

So, dirty laundry? I dare share...

Here are snapshots of our debt (as best to my record keeping...)

January 2010
Credit 1-- $871.23
Credit 2-- $1430.12
Credit 3-- $1828.31
Credit 4-- $729.96
Student Loan-- $11,659.29
Credit 5-- 0
Department Credit-- $2600.00
Toyota Car-- $4086.19
(Van Loan)-- non-existent
TOTAL DEBT: $23,205.10

July 2010

Credit 1-- $2790.96

Credit 2-- $1309.61

Credit 3-- $1623.40

Credit 4-- 0

Student Loan-- $10, 854.23

Credit 5-- 0

Department Credit-- $1842.00

Toyota Car-- $2,687.54

(Van Loan)-- non-existent

TOTAL DEBT: $21,107.74

January 2011 (start of Dave Ramsey's program)

Credit 1-- $2980.49

Credit 2-- $2187.28

Credit 3-- $1757.75

Credit 4-- 0

Student Loan-- $10,111.36

Credit 5-- $144.09

Department Credit-- $1218.00

Toyota Car-- $960.86

(Van Loan)-- $5300.00

TOTAL DEBT: $24,659.83

April 2011 (shortly after learning about Debt Snowball and Budgeting our brains out...)

Credit 1-- $2802.97

Credit 2-- $3153.96

Credit 3-- 0

Credit 4-- 0

Student Loan-- $9,749.73

Credit 5-- 0

Department Credit-- 0

Toyota Car-- 0

(Van Loan)-- $5100.00

TOTAL DEBT: $20,806.66

Oh my goodness! Would you take a look at that!? In just four months (really just three), we were able to dwindle away $4,000 in debt?! How in the world? I'll tell you how....

First of all, I sat down with Whit (unwillingly), and we made ourselves a budget. There was some discussions made and blood boiling... the smartest choice I ever made that night was to make sure McCoy was asleep before we began! Not only did I have Whit's attention, but we both couldn't raise our voices too loudly... Great move, Tenessa!

We made a budget-- I had NO idea where the money was going. I was paying a fair amount more on my minimum balances. $100 here and $100 here. I wrote down everything (something I've had in place for a while now), but I was merely watching my money after it left the house. I never understood or followed through with an actual budget. So, we guessed, a lot on the things that we needed to spend money on. The hardest areas for me were clothing (I just shop when I feel like it, not when I need clothes...) and food was another hard one for me. I had no idea what I was spending on food each week. I didn't go shopping every week, more like every 6 weeks or worse, everyday.... yeah, it was hard to budget. So I looked online, to my fellow bloggers, and guessed $100 per week. WAY TOO MUCH-- which we found out after a couple of weeks. So, we went to $100 every two weeks. That's more like it.

The other thing I did was the TRUE debt snowball. I went to minimum payments for all the credit cards and focused on the lowest amount. Then applied the rules of "Snowballing" to the other credit cards.

I know that my debt snowball will lose momentum next month. We were very lucky this last couple of months for several reasons. Whit got an unexpected bonus check from work, which we applied immediately to pay off the car loan. We also ran into some settlement money from our insurance company, which we applied to our lowest credit card statement. Then we decided to refinance our house (in such, saving $373 a month!!). In doing that, we were able to save our April's mortgage payment and apply all that money to one of the credit cards. So in the last month, we were able to pay off about $4,000 in debt! And it felt great. It's just too bad that it won't be continuing to snowball like that for awhile.

Nonetheless, this helps out soooo much. Not only were we able to get our debt down, it gave us some insight on how we can budget and actually see the program work for itself.

I also put my "extra" spending money in an ING Direct account (for Christmas, Lasik eye surgery, and HOA dues that are due in July). This was we have budgeted for it and it won't surprise us when the bill is due. And Lasik... well that's my wishful thinking!!

And just so you know, I care about our budget and finances for these reasons:

1. I feel like I've lost control of my money-- I want to regain my control and power over money.

2. I hate the feeling that I'm spending unnecessary money and then freak out when I don't know where it went.

3. I want all the money we earn to pay for the bare esstentials... food, clothing, transportation, shelter. And then I want to spend the rest of it on fun stuff!

4. I love the idea of saving up for stuff. I did that with my new cell phone and I swear I already treat it better!

5. I'm merely entertained with keeping a budget and plugging in numbers.

Weaning is in our future

2011-03-29T12:46:00.000-05:00

When I found out I was pregnant with McCoy, I never really gave it much thought about breastfeeding. I didn't really think about pumping or formula mixing or anything like that. I think maybe I was too consumed in how my body was changing and getting ready for the baby to arrive. In looking back now, I probably had more fun getting his room all ready and buying clothes and stuff than I was actually thinking about parenting, nursing, and other important life decisions. Then when we went to the hospital and McCoy was born, I didn't even know how to breastfeed-- although it came VERY natural to me. I was lucky in that way. It wasn't hard for me at all. After about a month or so, pumping also became pretty easy for me. But I never thought about the length of time I would be spending breastfeeding. After about six months, I decided that I was going to nurse for at least a year. I wanted to get to 18 months if possible.

Well, here it is. In two short weeks, McCoy will be 18 months. Can you believe the time went by so fast? There are some days where I just sit and look at him and think, "Oh my gosh, he is such a big boy!" And other days, I'm begging for him to be a teenager (or at least 8) so he will SLEEP IN on the weekends!!! (Of course, those latter feelings are very few and between). :)

Just as unplanned as I was about breastfeeding, I am the same about weaning. Personally, I cannot do it any longer. I will probably end up nursing him until he is 18 months (hopefully before-- I am ready!). I know, you are probably thinking I'm such a cruel parent for wanting to wean my son without him being ready. Well, you know what? I think this will be the best for both of us. And here is why:

Our nightly routine consists of McCoy wanting to nurse in my bed until he falls asleep. I usually have no problem with this. In fact, the last few weeks, we've both been falling asleep. I love co-sleeping. When Whit is gone. I hate co-sleeping when Whit is there. Now, my growing boy has much longer, and stronger legs, not to mention his razor-like toenails that like to dig into my belly fat. Yes, it is a very uncomfortable situation... for me, at least. Between 1:45-3:00 in the morning, McCoy will wake up with blood-curling screams and demand (yes, DEMAND) that he come back into bed with us. And then he latches on and stays there for about an hour and half... again with the legs and the toenails... And then I end up not getting any sleep. Then in the morning, I'm tired, irritated and frustrated (especially if Whit is there, because he still gets to sleep peacefully).

I've made up my mind. I've done some research. I'm going to give it a whirl. My guess is that it will take at least a week or maybe two before I get him completely weaned. I'm going to try a few tricks that I read about (but I refuse to put lemon juice or vinegar on my nipples!! That's just mean!)

I loved breastfeeding McCoy. And as you can tell, he loves it too! I love the bond that we've created and our relationship is better because of it. Even though I work all day and usually have activities at night, I know that we've still created time together because I nursed him. But the time has come to an end and I truly believe that McCoy will be better off as well.

I'll report back when, and only when my baby McCoy (age 18 months) is completely weaned.

6 Bags In...

2011-03-14T14:27:00.000-05:00

Okay, update on my 40 bags in 40 days. I'm not stopping long enough to post pictures, but I am stopping long enough to eat lunch. So, while I eat (and right at this moment, it's incredibly hot!), I will update.

I kind of hate the system I've done so far. I've been like a room whore. I'm jumping from room to room. It's not neccessarily a bad thing, I just don't have that sense of accomplishment in one particular area of the house. Good news is it still looks nice from the outside! Because we cleaned a lot last weekend, it still looks good. I'm just going through the stuff now.

Last night I embarked on a pretty big project (that didn't get done until midnight!). But I don't want to share, because I haven't even told Whit yet! :) He'll see this weekend. I will say it's pretty awesome and I love it!!! I also re-organized the piano books on my shelf last night. This morning, I reorganized and cleaned out the pots and pans and found a solutions for the pan lids. I used a basket for those (which I already had, thank you very much!). I cleaned out all the kitchen drawers and got rid of some stuff I rarely use. I also cleaned under the master bathroom sinks and our cologne shelf. I got rid of cologne that we never wear (or scrunching hair gel that I got when I was a senior in high school... yeah.)

After lunch, my schedule leads me to the craft room, which has been on my groan list for many, many months. It's almost too overwhelming. But we'll start with the closet. That way, if I run out of time (or get bored, frustrated or tired) I can move away from it without disrupting the beauty of a some-what cleaned room.

Here is a few pictures of my before...

Baby Sign Language

2011-03-13T16:25:00.000-05:00

McCoy knows and uses these signs:
Eat
More
Please
Thank You
Water
Finish

I would like to teach the following signs in the next few weeks:
Milk (still working on it)
Bath
Book
Potty (Change my diaper!)
Cheese
Fruit
Sleep
Share
Sorry
Want
Stop
Open

I'll let you know how it goes! :)

40 Bags in 40 Days-- Day 1

2011-03-10T10:02:00.001-06:00

One of my Facebook friends shared a Lent challenge called "40 Bags in 40 Days". The idea behind is very basic. You fill up 40 bags of trash or charitable items in 40 days. It is supposed to be from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday. You can choose the sizes of your bags-- I'm not really sure that's really the purpose. The main idea is to rid your house of clutter and trash and things you don't love or use.

Yesterday, the appraiser came so I took half the day off. Let me remind you the house has been cleaned before she came-- but now is the perfect time to de-clutter! Because the house is so clean, it's easy to make the progress. I simply clean out what I'm supposed to and it's magically still nice looking! So, now the bathroom looks great inside the cabinets and out! I think I'm going to paint in there this Spring Break as well.

Here is a little bit about the bathroom. I guess I'm sharing my personal stuff too, but oh well! We're all girls!

My drawer that I keep my hair stuff in, toothbrush/toothpaste and miscellaneous stuff...

<---- Before

I put in two baskets. The first (yellow) is for my hair stuff (pony-tail holders, brushes, combs)

The second (blue) is make up, tootbrush/toothpaste and contact cases.

<---- After

Under the sink in the hallway bathroom.

<---- Before

<---- After

The bottom drawer. Lots of panty liners that McCoy likes to

take out and scatter throughout the house.

<---- Before

<---- After

In addition to the hallway bathroom, I also cleaned under the kitchen sink, cleared off the hallway linen closet's floor, got rid of some pool floaties, and cleaned out the piano bench.

I have before pictures to add, but didn't get around to taking the after, so I'll post those for another time.

101....

2011-03-09T07:29:00.000-06:00

I can't wait until I finish this list. I want to create another one. But if you notice, I still have a little over a year and I'm well on my way to crossing off this whole list.

Join Me in Spring Cleaning

2011-03-07T10:27:00.001-06:00

In conjunction with February's focus: Budget and Bills, we looked into re-financing our house. It's only been 3 years, so starting over wasn't a big deal. We are more interested in saving money each month so we can pay off our loans and credit card debt. If everything works out perfectly (fingers crossed) we will save nearly $250 a month! Think of all we can do with that!

But we need to get the house appraised. I asked several people on my Facebook status, how clean should it be and got several responses. Some saying that it doesn't need to be that clean to repainting the baseboards! So, Mom and Dad graciously took McCoy after church so Whit and I could "clean sweep" our house. We got a lot done in a very short amount of time although I have to give props to Whit because his motivation and mad cleaning skills prevailed as I was whining and wanting to lay down around hour two. Good job, Whit!

We did a lot to the house, but most of it was stuff that I just "put away" or found a spot for. There are several areas of the house that really need some spring cleaning.

So I am extending an invitation to you! Join me in a spring cleaning party! I'll give you a plan for each week and then follow up on what I've accomplished (or failed to complete!). Join me and we will get rid of clutter, clean dust and cobwebs, and enjoy living a more simple life.

I vow to get rid of stuff that I don't love or need. I vow to clean out the "groanable" areas of my house and I will publish what they are so that I can be held accountable. And yes, my car is a part of my house! I don't have a deadline for this because I'm guessing it will go well into the summer months.

So here is my list (yes, a list!!!)
De-clutter:

Basement-- Computer room. This room needs to be purged, really. Too many books, computer stuff that I don't even know if it works, and little stuff that I've gathered throughout high school and college and the first few years of marriage. I'm going to make that closet shine! (As best I can).

Craft Room-- This one is tough one. I'm thinking of getting rid of MOST of the stuff in this room and here is why. This room is so cluttered that it will take years of throwing stuff away or donating it to get it cleared. I want to eventually get rid of everything in here because it will most likely be our next child's bedroom. And I want to do it before we starting trying so that when if I do get pregnant again, I won't be moving and scrambling around to get things done while I'm doing so many other things. I want to move the table and craft stuff downstairs to the office. That will take some figuring out though because as previously stated that room is cluttered too. I have some stuff that I hate to give away simply because I either paid a lot of money for, or I made it. Needless to say, the closet is stuffed full-- but at this point in time, you can walk through it, although it's tight!

My closet-- of course, getting rid of clothes I don't wear

Whit's closet-- of course, pulling teeth to get Whit to get rid of clothes he doesn't wear

Closet in hallway-- of course, getting rid of coats and *gasp* games we don't ever play!

Bathrooms-- this just needs to be purged as well-- mostly my stuff

Garage-- I feel like I just need to put this on here just because...

Van-- cleaning and getting rid of junk.

Speaking of cleaning cars (that is this month's focus), I have like four rubbermaids full of stuff that has been taken out of various cars. Like from last summer. I really need to de-clutter my car!

Okay, that's enough!

The Pit in Pictures

2011-03-04T09:45:00.000-06:00

MARCH-- Clean out the car!
So in order for me to be held accountable, I am posting pictures of the Pit. Embarrassing, you bet? Motivating? Even more!

Check back soon to see pictures of a fresh, newly cleaned, non-pitted out van!

Pretzels, Sliders, and Manners

2011-03-03T12:20:00.001-06:00

This is one of those multi-topic posts today. Several things I want to talk about. So, here we go.

Pretzels
If you've noticed lately I've been really trying to be more frugal. I've made menu plans, budgets, and shopped secondhand. I have been doing all this in light of several things. First and foremost, our household budget was failing. It was absent, really. I claimed to make a budget, but what I was really doing was writing down all the money we spent on credit card bills, the mortgage, doctor's bills, stuff like that. I wasn't telling my money where to go. I wrote it down, and then watched it disappear. Secondly, Dave Ramsey has been teaching me how to be in control of our money instead of letting it control us. That has been one of the best things that has happened to us in a long time. We are finally taking ownership. Lastly, I'm so tired of relying on pre-made products. I hate how easy it is to buy a bag of frozen food and throw it in a frying pan and dinner is ready in 10 minutes. How can this be healthy for my family? This is when I made my vow to cook with more whole foods instead of frozen, pre-made foods. But that's another topic in itself. (So, how is this about pretzels?!) Anyways, I am really focusing on how to be more frugal. I'm following blogs of frugal people and reading up on how to cheerfully live on less. So, I got a bread machine as a wedding present from my in-laws. I used it a few times, burnt the bread, and then put it in storage, proclaiming I couldn't cook and I didn't even know how to use a bread machine. Well, I'm dusting it off. Codi told me just to use it as a "kneader" and then bake the bread in my oven so I can control the temperature and time. This weekend I'm going to give it a whirl. I'm going to make Soft Pretzels and I'll let you know how they turn out. I love to eat these things, but they are just so darn expensive! Even the frozen ones at the commissary are like $8 a box. And we can eat them all in about a day. If I can make them, and they turn out great, maybe I'll make like a quadruple batch and freeze them for a "handy after-school snack." According to Cozi, I have all the ingredients!!

Sliders
The sliders I made the other night were OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD delicous! They will be going on the menu again and again! They were so pretty and very tasteful. They were simple to make and I enjoyed watching McCoy become excited to eat them. Okay, that was short, but I thought I would let you know that the sliders are defiantly worth a try. (Click for the recipe).

Manners

Awwww, this story melts my heart. This one is about my precious baby boy, who is growing up to be a fine, well-mannered young boy. Recently, we taught McCoy how to sign "please". Within a few days of signing it on a regular basis, he began to speak the word. "Peeeeeees!" He can sign and say that when we ask him to say it.

Mac: "uuh uuh" (and other whiny sounds)
Mom: "McCoy, can you say 'Please?'" (while signing)
Mac: "Peeeeeeeeess!!" (while signing)
Mom: "Good job, Buddy! Here you go!"

Now, McCoy can say several other words clearly-- Momma, Dada, and Bubba (the dog), but his first, real, word, is "Please." How wonderful is that?

This morning, McCoy woke up around 5:00 am (I know, right?!) and so I brought him in bed with us and nursed him for about half an hour hoping he would fall back asleep. Alas, he did not. He shimmed out of our bed and walked into the kitchen to the refrigerator asking for his milk cup. So, I said what I always say, "McCoy, can you say 'Please?'" McCoy says "Pleeeeeeesss??"

We were getting dressed and McCoy saw this stacking toy (that Whit hates!) on the top shelf of his closet. He began to make his whiny sounds and opening and closing his hands like "gemme, gemme!" And this time, all I said was "McCoy, what do you say?"

Then music rang out.
"Pleeeeeeesss??"

YES!!! I didn't have to say "McCoy, say 'Please'". No, he knew. I love him and love watching him grow smarter everyday. I'm so blessed that he is one smart cookie!!

The Pit

2011-03-01T12:13:00.001-06:00

Yes, I'm referring to my car.

It's always been so dirty! Not just the outside-- actually thankful for the rain we had on Sunday, the car is no longer dirty-dirty. It's only partly dirty. :)

No, the inside. It's horrid. I claim I live out of my car. And when I upgraded to a van this past summer, I vowed to keep this car clean! My vow lasted all of five days. And my excuse? "Life happens." "That's what you get when you have kid(s)." "I am so busy." "I don't want to use up my family time cleaning my car." BLAH, BLAH, BLAH!!!

FlyLady.net says you should clean out your car every Friday. Friday is desginated to refreshed up the car, check the car seats, throw away empty soda cans and fast-food cups, and to clean out your purse. Luckily for me, I haven't been carrying a purse for a while. My purse is my diaper bag (or vice versa).

Here are some tricks I have done (very inconsistantly):

Between the front two seats, using the hand rests, I have placed a Wal-mart/target bag to collect trash (Target bags are the best, they are thick!)
Throw away loose trash every time I fill up with gas
When going into a store or a building, throw some trash away

But right now I have in my car:

Some of McCoy's dirty clothes
at least two pairs of shoes (Mac)
TOYS! Too many toys! My kid doesn't even need a toy while riding in the car.
two cups from the KU Football game Whit and I went to in like November....
Valentine's day candy
receipts, receipts, receipts
a wintery coat
bed sheets
baby wipes... lots
notebooks
binders
paperwork
programs from various piano stuff
water bottles

It's just plain pitted out. I need to invest an afternoon and get it cleaned! So, this month is dedicated to cleaning out my car and KEEPING IT THAT WAY! And no, I'm not going to wait until March 31 to clean it out. I'm going to do it soon. Check back as I hope to have before and after pictures of The Pit.

The Menu

2011-02-08T12:45:00.000-06:00

Several people have been posting on my Facebook status's or links about my menu planning. So I thought I would blog about it.

In attempt to focus on Budgets and Bills this month (February), I have made myself a very strict rule. I will make a menu plan. I will stick with it. I will shop for ONLY those items that I need for my menu plan. There will be NO impulse shopping. I will NOT throw things into the cart because they look delicious or I can't live with it.

I have been making a menu plan for about 2 months now. At first, I took very small steps-- what are we going to eat for the rest of this week? I wrote it down on our calendar on the fridge. Then I went out and bought the stuff I needed. It worked! We kept with it. I think one of the reasons the first couple of weeks worked for us, I scheduled in a day to eat out. We were in the habit of eating out two or three times a week-- when I didn't feel like cooking or was at a loss for what to cook. So, without quitting that "cold turkey", I wrote it down-- we would have a "date night" once a week, usually on Fridays. There were a couple of times that we change our date night to Tuesday or Thursday instead but that wasn't a big deal.

This past week, I decided to take another step. Instead of menu planning for the week, I was going to plan for the two weeks and have only one shopping trip. When I made my menu plan, I put in there the days that I knew we weren't going to be having dinner (Sunday dinners at my parents' house, etc). and then went shopping. Since I have only been doing this menu planning/shopping plan for a couple of months, I have no idea what I spend a week on groceries. So, I just started somewhere. Okay, $50.00 a week-- let's try that. So, for two weeks, that would be $100.00. So, I went to the store this weekend, and came home with $117.00 worth of groceries. Not bad! I bought a few things that weren't on my list. Some ready-to-eat meals (like Chicken Viola) and some extra hamburger and chicken (both on sale!). So, the money wasn't spent on candy or ice cream or something else that didn't hold some nutritional value or wasn't on the menu plan.

I had 3 snow days last week. During those snow days that I was supposedly "snowed in", I made an inventory list of all of my groceries. Pretty much everything that is edible in our house. I made lists on the computer (using Cozi) and separated it into different pantry lists. I have the "Pantry Inventory", "Baking Inventory", "Fridge Inventory" and the "Freezer Inventory". I used the Cozi website and re-titled the Shopping Lists to fit my needs. So, from there I used subtitles (if anyone is interested, you need to type your subtitle, for example-- CANNED GOODS, all in caps, and it will create a subtitle).

There are some awesome pros to this website and system I've created. For starters, I know exactly what I have in my cupboards! I even went to the extreme with the product information. For example, one of my entries looks like this:

tomato paste-- 4 (6 oz.) cans

The reason I wrote that information is to help me in my menu planning. Which brings me to my next fabulous pro about this system. I can access this information from ANYWHERE! And when I say, ANYWHERE, I mean A-N-Y-W-H-E-R-E!! I can access it from my home computer (which is where I do all my cooking, duh!), I can access it from my school computer (which is where I do a lot of my menu browsing and planning), I can access it from my parents' house (which is where I do a lot of "stealing" of ingredients!) or best of all, my cell phone (which is where I look when I shop!). Now I don't have to call Whit and ask him how many cans of Cream of Mushroom soup I have in the pantry. Now I don't have to wait to get home to make my shopping list.

Okay, so I know there is that one horrible thing though-- keeping it updated. I know, it will be hard to remember to take off a can of fruit cocktail after we eat, or to say that the ranch dressing is almost gone. But if I keep up with the menu planning, I will be able to know what I have on hand and what I don't. Even if I don't keep it 100% updated, at least I will have a starting point.

I also want to try and post what my menu will be for the two-weeks (as you see I have another page for it on my blog.). This way, I can also access the blog from anywhere (phone, school, home) and now exactly what I'm planning on cooking.

You know me, I love organization. And this just seems to fit me. Stayed tuned for my Home Organizational Notebook. I've been working on that for a couple of weeks.

Italian Vegetable Soup with White Beans

2011-01-19T18:36:00.000-06:00

2 (19-oz) cans cannellini beans, drained
1 (1-lb) pkg frozen mixed vegetables
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano, undrained
1 (12 oz) bottle vegetable juice cocktail
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1 1/2 oz (1/2 cup) uncooked penne or mostaccioli (tube-shaped pasta)
1/4 cup purchased pesto

1. In 3 to 4-quart slow cooker, combine all ingredients except penne and pesto; mix well.

2. Cover; cook on Low setting for 8 to 9 hours.

3. About 20 minutes before serving, stir penne into soup. Increase heat setting to High; cover and cook for an additional 15-20 minutes or until penne is tender.

4. To serve, top individual servings with 2 teaspoons pesto.

Playing alone

2011-01-02T08:23:00.000-06:00

I never thought I would be happy about this, but my kid can play all by himself and can entertain himself for a good amount of time.

This morning, McCoy slid off our bed (a big bed, by the way) and walked into the living room. We have been shutting the gate before we go to bed for this reason. He played with his toys-- first walking over to his drum and playing it for a little while. Then he brought one of his trains into our room and shared it with us. He then moseyed on out and played with some other things. We were both awake and listening carefully for unrelated toy sounds. He came back in our room and grabbed a box of tissues (which I didn't know about at the time). He went back to the living room, and things got quiet. Very quiet. So, I got out of bed and checked what he was doing. He was starting to pull all the tissues out of the box. I just chuckled a little bit and sat on the ground, using one of the tissues to blow my nose. Politely, McCoy took another tissue out of the box and came over to me and wiped my nose. What a sweet, polite little boy!

HotSpots

2011-01-01T07:42:00.000-06:00

I have FlyLady to thank again for this term. HotSpots are places that collect crap. No matter how much you clean, it's always dirty. Unfortunately for me, I have like twenty. I'm going to try and list them here.

Kitchen counters
Snack bar
Kitchen table
Couches
Stairs
Rocking chair in my bedroom
Dresser
Piano bench and top of the piano

That's a lot of HotSpots. I will need to get rid of all the clutter first so that I can concentrate on keeping them clean and clear for the month of January (and hopefully the whole year-- if the plan works.) And because I don't work well under pressure, I'm going to chose two HotSpots a day to clean them up. It's really important that once they are clean, they stay clean. Perhaps, I should start with the one that is less likely to continue being dirty-- like the stairs. My worse area is the kitchen counters, snack bar and kitchen table. Those things just can't stay clean. Well, I'm sure with intention, they could stay clean.

Again, another list-- call me the List-Making-Queen!! (And apparently I'm also the queen of the ----- dash.)

Jan. 1-- Kitchen table and couches

Jan. 2-- Kitchen counters and rocking chair

Jan. 3-- Dresser and stairs

Jan, 4-- Piano area and snack bar

I'll tell you what, I'll cross them off when I complete it. And just for some accountability, I'll also put the REAL date next to it. Haha!

And as I type this post, McCoy is taking ALL the paper out of the recycling bin. Yup.

New Year, New Me

2010-12-31T16:19:00.001-06:00

It’s seems every year I like to start fresh. But maybe I should reconsider starting my new year in August when the school year begins. It would be different but it would make more sense for my lifestyle.

But as always, the new year chimes in, and I vow to myself and to my family that I’m going to keep my new year’s resolutions this year. I tried something new last year, and it worked for about 6 months. I listed 12 things that I wanted to change. Every month, I was going to “add” on to my list, and become a better person. So, the first month was be a better wife—the next, be a better finaical keeper, and so on. As each month continued, I would be a better “whatever” while continue being a better “whatever”. And let’s not forget about my 101 things to do in 1001 days!

The problem with my list from last year (2010) was that some of the things I was wanted to become better at, I already was better at. (Not bragging or anything). But how do you become a better mother when you’ve only been a mother for 8 months? I am constantly becoming a better teacher, because I’m always seeking out new practices and changing my teaching styles.

So this year, I’m doing the same thing, but I’m going to try and branch out a little more. I’m thinking more of lifestyle changes and not “be a better builder” (what the heck was I thinking?!) So here is my new list:

January—Keeping “Hotspots” cleaned and clear

February—Better record keeping of our budget and bills

March—Keeping the car cleaned and clear

April—Cooking with whole foods and making more healthy choices, learn new techniques for the kitchen

May—taking better care of myself, get in better health

June—Plan for the holidays! (shop, make gifts, wrap gifts?)

July—organize and clean

August—organize at school

September—become a better Christian

October—read for pleasure more

November—plan family fun days for December

December—enjoy my life with family and friends

Yea, yea, yea. I know. Another list.

In addition to this crazy “become a better Tenessa” list that I’ve created, I also have a to-do list that’s a bit more specific. Would you like to see it? Of course you would! Plus, even if you don’t, I’m typing it here so I remember where it is!! :)

Spend 1 hour a week cleaning a DE-CLUTTERING my house (areas specific—later)
Clean and organize the basement—this would include getting rid of crap and getting rid of boxes!
Fixing the floor in the attic so we can store more CRAP up there. Actually most of what I want to store is baby clothes and baby items. I’m scared that by the time we actually get to the attic floor, I’ll be ready to have another baby! :)
Start and KEEP up with Photo 365 for a FULL YEAR! (read my other blog site for more information!!)
eat less meat (thanks, Suzie)
Read the Bible in a year

Okay, what’s your new year’s resolutions!?

101 Things in 1001 Days (Update IV)

2010-12-29T12:15:00.000-06:00

Update:

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in 1001 days
Start Date: August 2, 2009
End Date: April 29, 2012

House:
~~1. Organize the master room closet~~

~~2. Organize the baby’s closet~~

3~~. Move stuff back into the basement~~

~~4. Install doors and trim in basement~~
~~5. Organize the Tubberware cabinet~~

~~6. Buy new pots and pans (Paula Dean)~~

7. Wallpaper master bathroom
8. Paint hallway bathroom and hang up mural
9. Keep the kitchen clean
~~10. Replace all burnt out light bulbs~~
11. Organize under the sink in the master bathroom
~~12. Clean out refrigerator once a month~~
~~13. Clean out the pantry~~
~~14. Donate old coats/jackets to Project Warmth~~
~~15. Organize drawers in kitchen~~
~~16. Re-organize red shelf in dining room~~
~~17. Clean out storage under stairs~~
18. Reorganize seasonal decorations (I did this, but still not happy... I want to make this tote rack for the garage)
~~19. Get new tires (Elantra)~~
20. Keep car clean for at least a month (clean it first!)
~~21. Plant trees~~

Hobbies:
22. Finish wedding scrapbook
23. Make homemade birthday cards
24. Scrapbook for the baby
25. Sew baby’s Halloween costume
26. Finish Whit’s stocking
~~27. Decorate the fireplace mantel~~
~~28. Make homemade Christmas gifts~~
29. Learn to pickle cucumbers
30. Learn to sew a zipper
31. Take a photography class
32. Take a cake decorating class
33. Start and finish McCoy's Christmas stocking

Personal Enrichment:
~~34. Get a new hairstyle~~
~~35. Start photography 365~~
~~36. Keep a blog~~
~~37. Use the library more~~
38. Send birthday cards to every family member
~~39. Start/continue to use reusable shopping bags every time~~
~~40. Send Christmas treats to families~~
~~41. Make a compost pile~~
42. Make a rain barrel
~~43. Join a church~~
44. Frame Whit and Tenessa’s baby pictures and hang them in the hallway
45. Start Master’s Degree
~~46. Take Level II Orff Training~~
47. Read Chronicals of Narina

Entertainment:

48. Attend a local festival
~~49. Go to a pumpkin patch~~
50. Organize a Progressive Dinner
51. Have a fondue party
52. Go to a wine tasting party
~~53. Go to the symphony~~
~~54. Go on a picnic~~
~~55. Take a nature walk with Whit and baby~~

Baby:
56. Join a “story time” with baby

~~57. Buy an Air Purifier~~

~~58. Make baby food and freeze~~
~~59. Cloth diaper at least part time~~
~~60. Teach baby sign language~~
~~61. Read the Bradley Book~~
~~62. Give birth naturally (sort of!)~~

Music:

63. Learn to play a difficult piece on the piano
64. Practice piano at least once a week
~~65. Keep better records for piano lessons~~
~~66. Start hand bells/chimes at school or church~~
67. Log all piano books and put them in order
68. Paint piano drawers

Wellness:

69. Don’t go out to eat for a week
70. Don’t go out to eat for two weeks
71. Don’t go out to eat for a month
72. Drink only one soda a week for at least a month
73. Walk at least three times per week
74. Lose 25 pounds
~~75. Take trips to the park (when baby is born and weather is nice)~~
~~76. Use up all shower gels and lotions before buying new~~
77. Participate in a Benefits walk

Cooking/Baking:

~~78. Make a dinner plan for the month~~
~~79. Bake a pie from scratch~~
~~80. Decorate baby’s 1st Birthday cake~~
~~81. Cook less from a box or frozen bag~~
~~82. Bake a cake from scratch~~
~~83. Use the cookbooks more~~

~~84. Use the vegetables from the garden to cook~~

Financial:

85. Pay off at least two credit cards
86. Pay off at least half of student loan (as of September 2009)
87. Keep a log of gas spending for four months

88. Get all bills automatically taken from bank

~~89. Start using coupons~~
~~90. Sell books on Amazon.com~~
~~91. Read Dave Ramsey’s book/information (actually starting in January 2011)~~
92. Make a savings plan and stick to it
~~93. Borrow items from friends and family instead of insisting on buying new~~
~~94. Buy a camera~~
95. Pay off the Yaris
~~96. Have a yard sale~~
97. Start an IRA or CD type of savings

Travel:

98. Plan a summer vacation (is that just plan or actually go on!?)
99. Stay at a Bed and Breakfast
~~100. Go camping with baby~~
101. Plan a trip on the Train

Okay, here is a list of the things that I have to complete (without all the crossed off stuff)-- Wow! Only 47 things left to do!!! Half way there!!!

1. Wallpaper master bathroom
2. Paint hallway bathroom and hang up mural
3. Keep the kitchen clean

4. Organize under the sink in the master bathroom

5. Reorganize seasonal decorations (I did this, but still not happy... I want to make this tote rack for the garage)

6. Keep car clean for at least a month (clean it first!)

7. Finish wedding scrapbook
8. Make homemade birthday cards
9. Scrapbook for the baby
10. Sew baby’s Halloween costume
11. Finish Whit’s stocking

12. Learn to pickle cucumbers
13. Learn to sew a zipper
14. Take a photography class
15. Take a cake decorating class
16. Start and finish McCoy's Christmas stocking

17. Send birthday cards to every family member

18. Make a rain barrel

19. Frame Whit and Tenessa’s baby pictures and hang them in the hallway
20. Start Master’s Degree

21. Read Chronicals of Narina

22. Attend a local festival

23. Organize a Progressive Dinner
24. Have a fondue party
25. Go to a wine tasting party

26. Join a “story time” with baby

27. Learn to play a difficult piece on the piano
28. Practice piano at least once a week

29. Log all piano books and put them in order
30. Paint piano drawers

31. Don’t go out to eat for a week
32. Don’t go out to eat for two weeks
33. Don’t go out to eat for a month
34. Drink only one soda a week for at least a month
35. Walk at least three times per week
36. Lose 25 pounds

37. Participate in a Benefits walk

38. Pay off at least two credit cards
39. Pay off at least half of student loan (as of September 2009)
40. Keep a log of gas spending for four months

41. Get all bills automatically taken from bank

42. Make a savings plan and stick to it

43. Pay off the Yaris

44. Start an IRA or CD type of savings
45. Plan a summer vacation (is that just plan or actually go on!?)

46. Stay at a Bed and Breakfast

47. Plan a trip on the Train

Bye-Bye Ba-Ba!!

2010-12-24T14:14:00.001-06:00

This just in… it’s official! McCoy is done with the bottle!

This is wonderful news! No more pumping. No more pouring. No more mixing. No more labeling. No more washing and cleaning. No more finding random parts to bottles around the house. No more space being taken up by ba-bas! Yes, folks! It’s true. My big boy has moved on!

Everything bottle related will be removed from the kitchen-area in the next few days. Most is already gone. We began to phase him off the bottle around 11 months, but there was always some reason why he needed a bottle. He was tired—he was sick—he was whiny—he was. But slowly the bottles began to disappear from the cabinet. First, I took all the 4 ounce bottles away (a long time ago, but it started the process). He stopped taking bottles at daycare, so we needed less at home. He was only getting one bottle a day (at night). So we only needed about six bottles in the cabinet at one time. And then he started going to bed without one. And now, there will be NO bottles in the cabinet! Last week I took the bottle warmer (although I never really used that much… Whit did though). I even took the bottle dryer rack off the counter.

So we reach a milestone—Bye-Bye Ba-Ba! We will not miss you! (at least I won’t miss washing you all the time!!!)

I would say that it was complete by 13 months. (although I’m writing this at 14 months.)

**I am still nursing though. At least once a day (at night), but sometime two or three.

The Art of Music Making

2010-12-16T23:05:00.004-06:00

Tonight I am reminded about the true reason I am a musician. It is not because I love to sing kid songs and teach children the art of how music can sound if you practice hard enough. It's about the commitment that that you make to the art of music making. Tonight I sat in the Lyric Theater awaiting my turn to go on stage and I heard the sweet, rich sounds of true music. Music that has been practiced on instruments that have been perfected by committed musicians who make this their way of life. I forget that music can evolve and change each time you listen with enthusiastic ears. This is the music that can bring tears to your eyes simply because the cymbal player played a tremolo that led to a crash while the strings play a chromatic scale with a splendid crescendo and the trumpets are double tonguing in the upper register so majestically. This is what I forget about. This is what singing "Kookaburra," and "Jingle Bells," and "I've Been Working on the Railroad," oftentimes replaces. This heartfelt music that I heard tonight is why I became a musician. Music is more than singing those silly songs and teach children to sing on pitch "So, Mi, So-So, Mi"!

This is out there, folks. Music beyond the music room that I live in. It makes me want to experience this again the way it is meant to be appreciated. If you sit in a theater with your loved ones, and close your eyes, you will be taken to a place where there nothing can go wrong. It is a place that everyone wants to be, and you can be there-- you just have to find it.

Happy Music Making to all my friends today. I hope you find your inner song and sing like today is the last day to make beautiful music.

Food Waste Wednesday

2010-12-08T08:23:00.000-06:00

This was another bad week. I am ashamed to say that we just don’t eat leftovers. I know I should, but I don’t want them again for lunch—most of the time. Sometimes when Dad or Mom cooks a great meal, I love eating it over and over again. But normally, when I cook, eh, it’s just okay. So here is what was wasted this week:

heavy whipping cream
5 cup salad (sorry, Mom!)
Homemade chicken noodle soup
Graduate meals (two)
Chicken and Noodles
Leftovers from Luigi’s
Half a Dr. Pepper (sigh, Whit)
milk
pie
half a can of dog food

Yup, I suck.

Tenessa's Christmas Wish List 2010

2010-12-06T20:59:00.000-06:00

Tenessa's Christmas List 2010:

Light Scoop
Lightroom photo program
Money towards getting my External Hard Drive fixed (I think the total will be more than $200!)
Cake Decorating Classes

At Joann's
The Culinary Center of Kansas City
Actually, the more I browse the site of The Culinary Center of Kansas City, the more I want a gift certificate there! It looks like so much fun! I would love to take some classes there, maybe not just cake decorating but also cooking too. (Sorry, Codi, I stole your idea! But maybe we can go together!!!)

Burt's Bees REGULAR chap stick, in a tube (not tinted, or honey)
Gift Cards

Children's Orchard
Wal-Mart
Khol's
JC Penny's
Target

Gift Cards for Restaurants

On the Border
Culver's
Red Robin

Kansas City Improv Theater tickets or Sanford and Sons Tickets
Family Fun Magazine subscription (one year or two years is even better!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T23:03:00.001-06:00

This Thanksgiving, I used Facebook to update what I was thankful for each day. Here is my list:

McCoy
Whit
My awesome parents
My job
My hilarious brother and his beautiful wife
My sense-- the ability to hear magical music, see beautiful flowers and color changing trees, taste mircoulous food, touch and feel the closeness of my son and husband... and smell dirty diapers!
McCoy's daycare teachers and the privilege to use the CDC. Especially Ms. Beth and Ms. Byanka!
Sunday Family Dinners!
Our house!
Short weeks of school
All the wonderful men and women who selfessly served in the military to keep our freedom. I'm also thankful to all those soliders who are active duty. Thank you for serving our country!!
Technology-- including my laptop (that is currently out of commission) and my cell phone.
Family fun days
My dad's awesome cooking!
Sick days. :/
My prinicpal and co-workers
Co-sleeping with my baby in the mornings and nursing him still. He is so warm and cuddly! I love my little family!
Friends at midnight showings of Harry Potter and second dinners at Ihop!
Wake up calls from my mother!!
Babysitters
FREE tickets to KU football games (even though they lost).
Rezound
Maintenance guys who honor your requests! (I now have a buttetin board outside of my classroom! I love my job!!)
Hand-me-down clothes for McCoy from Tammie Adam! What a blessing!
A great kitchen to bake in!
My organizational skills. Even though they have been missing in action for months now!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!!

Food Waste Wednesday

2010-11-24T10:52:00.000-06:00

I'm proud to say, nothing was wasted this week. At least I didn't throw anything away. I'm sure there are many leftovers that are past their prime, but this week-- nothing. :)

This Week's Focus Nov. 22-27

2010-11-22T11:45:00.000-06:00

In attempt to become more organized, here is this week's focus:

November 22-27
- write a meaningful blog post. :)
- pack up Halloween decorations
- decorate and clean my kitchen table
- sweep and mop the kitchen and dining room
- DISINFECT the trash cans (especially the diaper pail! YUCK!!!) I read here about putting coffee grounds in the bottom of the pail that absorb the odor and makes it smell like Starbucks! Yes, please! I went to the store last week and got a can of the DARKEST roast I could find. :) :::::::crossing fingers:::::::::
- prepare a Christmas wish list for McCoy and me
- bake my pies
- family fun day on Wednesday
- game night/movie night at MeMa's on Wednesday night
- Christmas cards and pictures
- Christmas tree up???
- put baby clothes in the attic?

Big 'to-do' list this week, but we'll see how much actually gets done. I think I'll go back and cross off the things I actually did last time I wrote a blog about this.

And because no blog is complete without a photo, here is a cute one:

Thankfulness

2010-11-21T22:07:00.001-06:00

This November, I’ve been posting all the things that I’m thankful for. One of my friends on Facebook said that I should write down this list and keep for the future. So, that’s what I’m going to do-- I actually did this last year by making three different posts (post 1, post 2, post 3).

I will be writing down these 30 items (even though last year’s list reached 100 things I am thankful for!!). Stay tuned!

Food Waste Wednesday

2010-11-17T10:23:00.001-06:00

Okay, this week wasn't much better. Maybe it is because I'm cleaning out my pantry (last week, it was the fridge-- next week, the freezer). I have had some canned food in there that expired in 2008!! Yea, that means I moved it from the old house to the new one... and it might have even been expired then. Hopefully after this next week, it should be normal-- as in, no food waste at all.

**If you are a starving child in Africa, I sincerely apologize for my lack of concern for others in this food waste. I'm really trying to be better.

Food Waste Wednesday-- Week 2

This week we wasted:

-several cans of soup, vegetables, tomatoes, pizza sauce

-corn chowder dry mix (had no date on it, but I KNOW I've had it since the old house)

-about three pieces of broken lasagna noodles

-half a box of pancake mix

Okay, bad, I know. But it will get better??

Reflections on my 3rd Grade Program

2010-11-16T22:15:00.000-06:00

Yippee! Another program done! This time, it was 3rd grade. No problems with the teachers. Nearly all of the kids showed up-- and on time!

The program itself was fine. All the kids knew their speaking lines. We had a little problems with staying with the music, but I think it's because they couldn't hear the music. (When are those sound guys going to come in and fix my auditorium!?!?!?!) The canned food drive went over well.

It was great! I didn't feel too hot, but it looks like it didn't matter much, because they pulled it off without my super cheesy smiles and big-mouth mouthing the words extraordinarily huge. Good job, kids... good job.

Food Waste Wednesday (aka Food Waste Friday)

2010-11-12T17:35:00.000-06:00

In attempt to waste less food, I will be taking a picture of my spoiled and expired food. This is the food we either forgot about, didn't want anymore, or let rot on accident. In most cases, I make a menu-- only problem is, I don't follow through or make sure that I stick with it. So, I'm better off with making food that isn't perishable. And who likes all food that isn't perishable? Not me!

I have been following a blog who does "Food Waste Fridays". My trash comes on Wednesday, so I retitled mine, "Food Waste Wednesday." So every Tuesday night, I will clean out my fridge and counters, and pile up the "nasty" food that has gone bad, and take a picture. I will be held accountable for the food I waste. And hopefully, it will get better as the weeks turn into months and the months into years.

This week-- my first week, was bad! We had left overs we have had in the fridge for a good couple of weeks. Yuck is right! Here's what we wasted:

-Several tomatoes and various peppers from the garden
-a whole bag of potatoes (we got free, but still!)

Food Waste Wednesday-- Week 1

-3 loose potatoes
-about 3 pieces of celery
-a couple of spoonfuls of couscous
-butternut squash soup (a little too spicy for me)
-3 pieces of chicken
-2 pieces of pork tenderloin
-noodles
-2 bottles of formula (with about 4 oz each)
-1 sippy cup of milk
-little bit of Louisiana stew
-homemade salsa (from the summer!)
-mashed potatoes and fiesta corn
-a small bag of salad.

Whew! I'm embarrassed. But that's the point. So I don't waste anymore food.

101 Things to do in 1001 days (UPDATE)

2010-11-09T08:28:00.000-06:00

I keep this in the back of my head all the time. When I think back to the fact that I'm not really doing much with my life, I sit down and take a look at my lists! I'm not doing bad!

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in 1001 days (this font looks so official)
Start Date: August 2, 2009
End Date: April 29, 2012

House:
~~1. Organize the master room closet~~

~~2. Organize the baby’s closet~~

3. Move stuff back into the basement

~~4. Install doors and trim in basement~~
~~5. Organize the Tubberware cabinet~~
~~6. Buy new pots and pans (Paula Dean)~~
7. Wallpaper master bathroom
8. Paint hallway bathroom and hang up mural
9. Keep the kitchen clean
~~10. Replace all burnt out light bulbs~~
11. Organize under the sink in the master bathroom
~~12. Clean out refrigerator once a month~~
~~13. Clean out the pantry~~
14. Donate old coats/jackets to Project Warmth
~~15. Organize drawers in kitchen~~
~~16. Re-organize red shelf in dining room~~
~~17. Clean out storage under stairs~~
18. Reorganize seasonal decorations (I did this, but still not happy... I want to make this tote rack for the garage)
~~19. Get new tires (Elantra)~~
20. Keep car clean for at least a month (clean it first!)
~~21. Plant trees~~

Hobbies:
22. Finish wedding scrapbook
23. Make homemade birthday cards
24. Scrapbook for the baby
25. Sew (by myself) baby’s Halloween costume
26. Finish Whit’s stocking
~~27. Decorate the fireplace mantel~~
~~28. Make homemade Christmas gifts~~
29. Learn to pickle cucumbers
30. Learn to sew a zipper
31. Take a photography class
32. Take a cake decorating class
33. Start and finish baby’s Christmas stocking

Personal Enrichment:
~~34. Get a new hairstyle~~
~~35. Start photography 365~~
~~36. Keep a blog~~
37. Use the library more
38. Send birthday cards to every family member
~~39. Start/continue to use reusable shopping bags every time~~
~~40. Send Christmas treats to families~~
~~41. Make a compost pile~~
42. Make a rain barrel
~~43. Join a church~~
44. Frame Whit and Tenessa’s baby pictures and hang them in the hallway
45. Start Master’s Degree
~~46. Take Level II Orff Training~~
47. Read Chronicals of Narina

Entertainment:

48. Attend a local festival
~~49. Go to a pumpkin patch~~
50. Organize a Progressive Dinner
51. Have a fondue party
52. Go to a wine tasting party
53. Go to the symphony
54. Go on a picnic
~~55. Take a nature walk with Whit and baby~~

Baby:
56. Join a “story time” with baby
~~57. Buy an Air Purifier~~
~~58. Make baby food and freeze~~
~~59. Cloth diaper at least part time~~
60. Teach baby sign language
~~61. Read the Bradley Book~~
~~62. Give birth naturally (sort of!)~~

Music:

63. Learn to play a difficult piece on the piano
64. Practice piano at least once a week
~~65. Keep better records for piano lessons~~
66. Start hand bells/chimes at school
67. Log all piano books and put them in order
68. Paint piano drawers

Wellness:

~~78. Make a dinner plan for the month~~
79. Bake a pie from scratch
~~80. Decorate baby’s 1st Birthday cake~~
~~81. Cook less from a box or frozen bag~~
~~82. Bake a cake from scratch~~
~~83. Use the cookbooks more~~
~~84. Use the vegetables from the garden to cook~~

Financial:

85. Pay off at least two credit cards
86. Pay off at least half of student loan (as of September 2009)
87. Keep a log of gas spending for four months
~~88. Get all bills automatically taken from bank~~
~~89. Start using coupons~~
~~90. Sell books on Amazon.com~~
~~91. Read Dave Ramsey’s book/information~~
92. Make a savings plan and stick to it
~~93. Borrow items from friends and family instead of insisting on buying new~~
~~94. Buy a camera~~
95. Pay off the Yaris
~~96. Have a yard sale~~
97. Start an IRA or CD type of savings

Travel:

98. Plan a summer vacation
99. Stay at a Bed and Breakfast
~~100. Go camping with baby~~
101. Plan a trick on the Train

This Week's Focus

2010-11-08T12:16:00.000-06:00

I'm going to start something new. Every Monday I will be typing a list of things that I want to focus on during the week. This can be like a "to-do" list for the entire week. I also want to start doing Food Waste Friday. So check back on Friday for a *nasty* picture of my food waste-- and read more about

November 8-14

In the area of cleanliness:

Clean the kitchen
Clean and decorate the kitchen table
Clean my night stand area
Finish up laundry
Put away laundry

In the area of work:

Make a backdrop for the 3rd grade program
Go to the store for miscellaneous items
Make soup for Friday's PLC

In the area taking care of the family (ie wifely duties):

Pay the bills
Go to the bank (to deposit the daycare check)
Drop off my car at the Honda place
Go Christmas Shopping
Make a cake for Whit's birthday (on Tuesday)
Wrap his presents

So there you have it. Check back to see if any (hopefully all) is accomplished!

Happy Birthday, McCoy!

2010-10-20T12:08:00.000-05:00

Dear McCoy,
You came into this world one year ago but you entered my life much earlier than that. The moment I found out you were growing as a part of me, I fell in love with you. The moment I first saw your little body, which was the size of a piece of rice, my heart jumped for joy. The first time I heard your speedy, little heartbeat, my heartbeat raced with excitement. The first time I saw your profile, I was overcome with happiness. When I found out you were a boy, my heart started to create that mother-son relationship. The moment I first felt you kick, I felt your soul come to life. And the first time I saw your beautiful face, my life started over. I had a new purpose for living. I had a new purpose for loving.

As I reflect on the last year, I want to take a snapshot of your personality and quirks. I want to remember all the little details photography and video can't catch. I want to hold on to my baby boy.

McCoy, you have bright red hair that seems to brighten every day. It doesn't get lighter, it seems to get more red. And to match your fire red hair is a feisty temper! When you don't get your way, can't reach a toy, or we take something away from you, you throw your head back and scream with discontent. "Give it back, NOW!!" you seem to scream.

One thing that makes you Mr. McCoy is your facial expressions. Ever since Day 1, you have a very focused look about you-- taking it all in, questioning life's mysteries with your eyes. Along with your squinting eyes, your eyebrows squish together in an inquisitive look. I know you will constantly ask "Why?', "What if?", "How come?" and retain all of the answers. Even a serious person laughs occasionally, but you have to really buy into what we are doing, or saying. A simple tickle, peak-a-boo, or silly song won't make you giggle. Smile, yes but you don't dare laugh. You are much to sophisticated for that nonsense! You mother and father try very hard, though. And when you do let down your guard, you have such a great time!

After dinners, we have a bath. No matter where you are in the house, we turn on the bath water and you come running to the tub! You even try and hoist your legs over the sides to climb in! Sometimes with all your clothes on still! We get you undressed and you start to pat your naked belly like you are thanking us for the great meal.

You can blow kisses and give high fives. You can speak Spanish (ha!) with this awesome gargle and rolling your tongue. You can bear crawl with an amazing speed. But you can walk as well. You LOVE to be outside! Your teachers at daycare say you get upset when other kids are outside playing and you are stuck inside. Along with outside, comes dirt and rocks-- your other two favorite things. You like to line up all the rocks on a ledge and drop them from up above. You pick up leaves and twirl them between your thumb and pointer finger, making sure you are careful not to crunch them. Boxes are a favorite toy as well as the pots and pans and your favorite cupboard-- Tubberware!! Recently you have started to take out all the cookie sheets, muffin pans and cake pans and really enjoy making noise! You also love to play the piano! This makes your momma and papa very happy! We love for you to come over and play piano for us while we are sitting in the living or working in the kitchen (except for when you insist on playing during Momma's piano lessons!).

You are an excellent eater! You also nurse like a champ! I can put any food in front of you and trust that you will at least try it. Not very many times have you refused to eat something. That is so wonderful, McCoy! We don't like picky eaters, and you are FAR from that!

You absolutely hate getting your diaper changed, unless we change it other than the changing table. You like to squirm around and twist your body so we put the diaper on crocked. It makes for some screamy diaper changes!

McCoy, you have changed my life so much- more than I could have every dreamed. I think about you every single minute of the day, especially when we are away from each other. I have never spent a night away from you because I know I will miss you too much. I love you with all of my heart. I also love you with every part of my body, even my toes and fingers and eyelashes. McCoy, Happy Birthday! You are one!

breastfeeding for almost a year

2010-09-24T12:17:00.000-05:00

I think I'm at that point where McCoy isn't getting what he needs from me. It's been almost a year of breastfeeding. I'm very proud of myself for doing it this long even though I've been getting some discouragement from a co-worker and embarrassment from my brother. I want to share with you (really, so I can remember) some stories of breastfeeding and some feelings I have toward the beautiful gift I'm giving to my son.

I remember having a hard time getting McCoy to latch on at the hospital. My mom was helping me trying to get him to latch on and after about five minutes, she asked "Is he on there?" And I told her yes, he was sucking away. But when I took him off, I noticed a hickey on my breast!! He wasn't latched on at all, only to have been sucking on my skin! After we got home, I only remember one night where McCoy was crying and crying and I couldn't figure out why he wasn't eating. I even woke up Whit and had him come in there to talk me out of giving him a bottle with formula. He was only about two or three weeks old. Whit came in and helped me and he nursed just fine. Other than that one night and the incident in the hospital, I think my McCoy is a wonderful nurser. We really haven't had any problems with latching on. He bit for a while-- maybe only a week or so. But he stopped that pretty fast. When he bites, he is not hungry and he's only playing. :) Maybe just bored I guess. I played on Facebook when I'm bored; McCoy bites his mother... Weird child.

My favorite time of the day to nurse is in the morning. After McCoy has been asleep for the night, he usually wakes up about 4:30. I gladly greet him and scoop him up in my arms and we walk together to my bed. He lays between Whit and I and I nurse him back to sleep. I love this comfort. I feel his body close to mine and I feel Whit's body close to his. I know that we are all three safe. I think that this time is more of a routine that we have set. I know that he doesn't need this "food" from me now. It's more of a together bonding time. He is usually back to sleep in about 15 minutes. I just love sleeping next to him. Although I have to admit, I get much better sleep when he is not in our bed-- those mornings, though, they are just perfect for cuddling and nursing my sweet baby boy. Especially if it is raining and dark outside-- that's the best!

I love his face when I'm getting ready to breastfeed him. He usually scrunches up his nose and starts whimpering like a little puppy... hurry up, hurry up! I love how his little fingers run up and down my arm and occasionally my belly. He finds my belly button and sticks his fingers in there as he is concentrating on his task at hand.

My breastfeeding journey is about to end, I believe. I don't want it to, and just as we were moving McCoy out of our room-- I just kept delaying the process. I have a feeling I'll do the same thing with nursing. So it might be when McCoy turns one, maybe later!

tired.

2010-09-12T20:29:00.000-05:00

Mom time.

Please don't get me wrong. I love being a mother. I love being a mother to McCoy. He is so sweet and so charming. His little personality is starting to shine through and everyday he seems to learn more and is able to express himself better. I love watching him explore the world around him and develop into such a little boy.

But I'm tired. I'm tired because not only am I being a mother to McCoy, I'm also being a wife to Whit, a piano teacher to my students, a bell ringer with Rezound, and a music teacher to some 500 children. When I get home, I'm exhausted. I want to rest and relaxed. But as nature calls, I can't. I need to be at rehearsal. I need to cook dinner. I need to nurse my baby. I need to teach piano. I need to clean up the house.

I love my life. I don't want to change anything. But I want to escape for only a day (or two!). I know I could never do that for several reasons. The first reason would be that it is unpractical. McCoy is only 11 months old. I can't leave my family. The other reason is I have to continue with my obligations. And the final reason is because even if I DID escape for a day or two, I wouldn't be able to relax. I wouldn't be able to do what I wanted to do because I would worry all day and all night about my little baby boy.

The thing is, even if I did come home and relax, the stuff would be waiting for me the next day and the next day and the next. Then I would feel overwhelmed and behind and rushed.

Thank you, dear reader for listening to me complain. Again.

Time to get happy, Tenessa.

high expectations are not always what they seem

2010-09-06T22:06:00.001-05:00

I've learned a few things in the last couple of months. The high expectations that I have for others are not always what I think they should be. For example: hanging out with someone. I think in my mind that this experience is going to be great. That it is going to be wonderful. That my friendship and relationship with this person is going to strengthen and become more fulfilling. And when the time comes; that person fails to deliver the way I think it ought to be. This means that my perception on many relationships are oftentimes wrong or don't happen the way I think it will.

So what does this mean for me? How should I stop this crazy let down in my life? I guess I should start by not having any preconceived notions about another person. I should let that person develop the way they are going to develop, instead of predicting how it will turn out. I guess I should also judge less.

It's just hard when you count on or believe really strongly for someone and then they let you down. Oh well. I guess that relationship was not as strong as I was hoping.

Finally... some respect!

2010-08-26T10:04:00.000-05:00

In the past, I have ALWAYS been blocked from writing my blog at school. At the end of last year, I found a way to still update using the email way.

Finally, a new technology director was hired in the middle of the year last year and made some great changes for our district. He really believes in doing blogs with students (I am most defiantly not there yet). He told us that we are professionals and he trusts us on the internet. And of course, they can always monitor the websites we visit-- alas, no Facebook still. So, I clicked on some of my favorite websites that were blocked last year (tasteofhome.com, hotmail, youtube and blogger) and low and behold, they are open! So, to the title of my post today, finally.. .some respect!

In other school news, scheduling is a beast sometimes. I have had some trouble with the band director from Patton not being able to come to test the kids, AM/PM Kindergarten (mEsS!!) and just the general plan-being-taken-up-by-stupid-people routine. It sucks, but it should be back to normal next week or so.

Programs... getting a great head start on them. But I'm still stumped on backdrops. Paint? Fabric? Just can't figure it out.

Composting

2010-08-22T16:41:00.000-05:00

I love to search new sites. It seems like I spend countless hours on the internet seeking ways to become more frugal or eat more healthy or ways to use my endless supply of fresh veggies from the garden. I came across this website yesterday The Frugal Girl and began to search her website. It took me a while to search out all the different "stuff" on her website. It looks like she is doing photography 365 too! (Oh yeah, I've pretty much stopped because I don't have lightroom anymore... boo). Anyways, I saw that she made a compost pile out of a Rubbermaid tote. Well, I can do that! So, in about 15 minutes, I made one!!

Here's what you need:
A drill
A drill bit (I had Whit put on the largest one he had)
A rubbermaid tote
A lid to the rubbermaid tote

Next you will need to drill holes in the top, sides and bottom.

Last, just place it where you want it. I put ours in our garden where we didn't have any vegetables planted. This way if it leaked, it would go right into the soil.

Complaining but Not Too Much

2010-07-18T08:09:00.000-05:00

McCoy never takes naps! Well, he usually takes 2-20 minute naps a day. The only way he will take a nap longer than 30 minutes is if someone is sleeping next to him or holding and rocking him. Yesterday, we had the Amons over for dinner, so I asked Whit to watch McCoy while I got the food and the house ready. Well, Whit ended up getting McCoy to take 2 ONE HOUR naps! Of course, I got stuff done, but then last night-- guess who did not sleep at all? McCoy. And guess who was up with him? Me. So, it looks like Whit wins again and gets to sleep in. Sheesh.

Curried Chicken Shepherd's Pie

2010-07-11T22:11:00.000-05:00

I have made this twice! A record for my cooking... usually try new recipes every time, and then I wonder why I never know what to cook. I made Sunday dinner tonight for Mom, Dad, Nick, Codi, and Aunt Donna (and of course, Whit and McCoy). It was declious! Very flavorful!

Curried Chicken Shepherd's Pie
Prep: 25 min, Bake: 25 min.
Yield: 4 servings

1 large onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
3 Tbsp. butter, divided
1 cup frozen peas and carrots
3 Tbsp. all purpose flour
1 tsp. curry powder
1-1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup 2% milk
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
2 Tbsp. dried parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 cups mashed potatoes (with added milk and butter)
1/4 tsp. paprika

In a large skillet, saute onion and celery in 1 Tbsp. butter until tender. Add frozen vegetables and remaining butter; cook 2 minutes longer.

Stir in flour and curry powder until blended; gradually add broth and milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened. Add the chicken, parsley, salt and pepper.

Transfer to a greased 2-quart baking dish. Top with potatoes; sprinkle with paprika. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until heated through.

YUMMY!

July's Better ME

2010-07-09T22:04:00.002-05:00

What was I thinking?!? I can't do this! Become a Better Builder? I don't even know what I wanted to build. Maybe that tote rack that I was wanting to build and mentioned in the previous post... but let's face it, I don't have time this month!

So, can I skip this one? Why am I asking your permission? I don't even know who you are! So, being that I'm in charge... I'm skipping this one. Sorry, fellas. Next one is August-- Become a better musician. That I can do.