iAm Counting Down

Outside my Window: Nice and sunny but still on the cool side.

What's on my Mind: Taming the teenage boy.  All the boys have gotten a bit attitudal lately, everyone's a wiseguy, a commedian, a master negotiator, it can be a bit overwhelming when you're outnumbered.  I swear if I hear "yep, just a minute" again while 20 minutes goes by and you haven't done the chore I've so kindly reminded you of, or the dishes/wrappers/glasses sit there on the table that I've told you to clear off ....  My solution, the xBox360 has been put away, until I get a little more respect around here!

Thankful for: The end of school being near.  Hoping the final report cards are Aces and looking forward to a summer respit.  It's been a long year.  Below is a picture Ben took on his class trip to Lansing, it is the original Spartan statue that is now inside the stadium.  He thought it was pretty awesome.

Creative Endeavors: Aaaahhhh.

Latest Project: Still gardens and lawns.  Much to do.

My 3 Sons: Ethan and I went out to Midland this weekend with the North Branch Recreational Baseball group for a Youth Clinic and Great Lakes Loons game against the Lansing Lugnuts.  It was a fun day although very windy and chilly for the first weekend in June! 

Fox and Ethan are signed up to do the North Branch Cross Country Camp next week.  They will meet three days after school then the last two days in the morning.  Ben is refusing to go, in fact he is giving me grief about running cross next year.  I gave him a pass on the camp but am sticking to my guns on running the season.  It will be the one and only year that all three boys can run for school teams.  Both he and Ethan will be middle school, the next year when Ben goes into high school he will play soccer in the fall and won't be able to run.  That's all I ask is one season, one year, with only one sport to deal with!
The first Born: Getting ready to host a murder mystery party on the property....this ought to be interesting.

Employment News: Same ol'.

Hoping to Improve: My running schedule.  Since the 5K race the last weekend in April my miles have greatly diminished although I have gotten on the trail for a quick mile run at least once a week.  The Freedom Run in town is coming up the first weekend in July, I'd like to run it with the boys if I can get back in the groove.

Food for Thought: Focusing on the breaking of old habits gives them far more attention than they deserve. The only way to get rid of an old habit is to carefully construct a new one and never give the old one another thought!  ~Ten Habits of Naturally Slim People

Last Words:

iSing for Joy

Outside my Window: The sun is shining, the snow is melting, everything is brown and dreary, but the anticipation of spring is in the air!

What's on my Mind: Getting my men (old and young) trained up to keep things rolling around the house and property since I am not always here to coordinate things while working full-time.

Thankful for:  A wonderful choral experience this weekend being part of the Flint Festival of Choirs hosted by the Carolyn Mawby Chorale with guest conductor Hugh Floyd from Furman University.  Ms. Mawby is an inspiration to so many people in so many ways.  She always has a smile on her face and encourages others even while going through some very challenging times in her life.  Being part of the Lapeer County Concert Choir has been such a blessing to me in a variety of ways, the music, the friends, the opportunity to grow administratively as Vice President, and the internal challenge of making time to have it in my life.  Very thankful.

Creative Endeavors: Nothing to much lately, other than putting together a quick display for the 4H Feeds Families Committee table for Spring Achievement.

Latest Project:  Committee and Board work mostly.  Getting marketing materials prepared for the choir's spring concert, moving forward with the new 4H committee, and getting ready to share some songs and games at the next Camp Counselor training meeting.

My 3 Sons:  Reports cards are in.  Everyone took a slight dip in their grades this trimester which seems to be typical.  Nothing terrible although I was I little bummed to see a C for Fox's AP Psychology class, other than that everyone pulled As and Bs.  Fox started track last week.  Got Ethan signed up for baseball and Ben for soccer.  Also, Benjamin applied for the third time to go to space camp and this time made it to the second step- an interview which will take place later this week.  All three boys also took a few projects to the 4H Spring Achievement event over the weekend.  Ben got an Honorable Mention for his wooden sword and Ethan took 2nd Place for his Science Project on electrical circuits.  Below is a snap of the boys walking up from the bus stop after school. 

The first Born:  Dealing with excruciating pain from her wisdom teeth coming in.  :(  Finally got an appointment with the dentist today, hopefully it will be remedied quickly.  She's also assisting me with the drama program and is going to take a part in '12 Angry Swine' for me.

Employment News:  I have been planting up a storm at the greenhouse and am dubbed the Geranium Goddess after potting up nearly 3000 of them.  Gotta love the trolley when you're hauling dirt and plants through the house.  Also had an interview for another position in a more "professional" setting which would extend past this seasonal work.  A decision needs to be made by April 1st but I checked in with them today and was told I'm still in the running.  Woot!

Hoping to Improve:  My training schedule.  Working such a physically taxing job has totally cut into my running routine.  I still fit in my yoga but have not been getting out for runs as often.  Did a 2-mile today and will meet up with the running group again Saturday morning but that's about all I'll be able to handle this week.  Hope I can still make a decent showing at the Spring Fitness 5K at the end of April.

Food for Thought:  You are not meant to live in fear of your own body. Know that your body, mind, and spirit are always working on your behalf. Even if you are deeply involved in emotional eating, it is not because your body is betraying you; it is because right now you know no other way to comfort yourself.  -from The Ten Habits of Naturally Slim People

Last Words:

iRan it All

The Hot Chocolate 5K event was an overall success.  It was my first race ever, the goal was to try and not walk at all.  I didn't and finished in 39:39.  This was also Benjamin's first 5K race since middle school cross-country is usually 1.5 - 2.1 miles, however he struggled with a cramp and had been fighting some upper respiratory discomfort all week.  He still came in ahead of me.  Ethan came in 4th in his age group for his second 5K attempt with a time of 27:18 and Fox took first in his age group but had a hard time accepting congratulations since his time was 22:19 and he has been trying to get under 20 minutes.  Since running in the cold is no easy task I'd say everyone did well.  Those putting the race together did a fine job and thankfully the blizzard held off until just after the race ended as we drove home in a near white-out!  Fun times. 

Outside my Window:  A covering of fresh snow has made the world crisply white again and the sun is making an occasional appearance.

What's on my Mind:  Making a tough choice about how to handle after school choir.  I am going to be starting a new job in a couple weeks and may need to cancel choir due to a less flexible schedule.  Very torn.

Thankful for: Grace, Inspiration, and Namaste Yoga.  I recently took the plunge and purchased Season One of Kate Potter's series which I love, unfortunately I lost access to it when we changed television providers.  Now I have it any time I want and practice 4 to 5 days a week depending on my schedule.  It has such an organic flow to it and is very well constructed and instructed.  I highly recommended it, great for all levels.

Creative Endeavors: Started working on a new box collage which is sort of a Zen activity for me and I haven't indulged for some time.  The top photo is one I made years ago and the lower is from a Fair project a short time back.  Perhaps I'll post the new one if it's ever finish....

Latest Project: Saturday Drama class!  Amount of students keep changing and hence so do our script selections.  Hoping to get things finalized this week and pray everything sticks!

My 3 Sons: Fox completed what he needed to for his next year's schedule AP English Prep 11, Pre-Calc, Physics, AP Chemistry, AP US Government, Economics, Drafting and 3D Design are his preferred classes.  Hopefully they won't use any of his alternates.  Track season will begin in a couple weeks.

Benjamin and Ethan are gearing up for their spring sports.  Just got the sign up information for baseball (travel this year) and soccer.  The plan was to return to North Branch Rec Soccer but Ben keeps whining to me he wants to go back to AYSO.  It just not going to be feasible with me working more.  I need to keep everything as local as possible.

The first Born:  Ecstatic over the amount she is getting back in taxes!  I was floored to see her even text the word 'Savings' when I sent her the news.  Use it wisely grasshopper.

Employment News:  Just so as not to jinx it, no official announcement yet but here's a hint.

Hoping to Improve:  General office organization and house declutter.  The declutter has been a work in progress for quite some time and has been greatly improving, so much so my son even made a comment about it recently to the effect, "it's definitely lookin' a lot better around here."  But for some reason I can never keep my office together and end up with piles.  I get caught up moving from one project to another and never close things down properly, mind you I know what is in every pile if I need to retrieve something.  Little by slowly I shall make amends.

Food for Thought: Love is the most powerful resource we have. We were all born with an unlimited supply of unconditional self-love within us. Yet many people spend their entire lives searching for that love somewhere else.  From Ten Habits of Naturally Slim People

Last Words:

iLove Change

Happy New Year Everyone!  Another 365 days to conquer. What will they hold?  I am a huge fan of change and the turn of the calendar can be a time of great hope and challenges.  Everything that came before is already done and you can't go back but now there is a new beginning.  This year I am going to change the format of my blog slightly and use a Daybook style instead of my normal journal style, hope it is still as entertaining and informative.

Outside my Window:  A crisp winter day, slight foggy, with a good covering of snow.

What's on my Mind:  A discouraging interaction with a family member.  Breaking bad family legacy is always a challenge and what I've realized is the only person I can change is myself even if others don't see it or acknowledge it.  I can not alter the functionality of generations past but I can do my best to make ammendments in my future generations.

Thankful for:  My health.  Many people I know were dealing with illness over the holiday and reading all the prayer requests on the weekly church program makes me realize how lucky I am.

Creative Endeavors:  Rewriting some parts for the Schoolhouse Rocks Live production since I did not have anyone come forward that could do the roll of Tom the new teacher so I'm working it out as if the kids are lamenting about going back to school and wishing teachers could make learning more interesting like in the Saturday shorts.  Also planning for sets and costumes.

Latest Project:  Just walked my first 5K in Flint and was so inspired by the age and variety of runners and walkers I'm considering moving up my 5K run goal to participate in the Hot Chocolate 5K Run in February, depends how training goes.  I am currently up to running 2 miles.  Ran into some North Branch ladies at the run and was invited to join them Saturday mornings to run/walk with them.  Sweet!

My 3 Sons:  Fox participated with me in the New Year's Resolution event doing his first 8K and coming in 3rd in his age class with a time of 36:44.  Ethan is in the Schoolhouse Rock production and will be featured as Bill.  Ben is planning to try for the Space Camp trip again this year. 

The first Born: Alex has decided to continue her college hiatus and has been working many hours at the BK lounge.  She is still trying to figure out what she truely wants to pursue and helps me out with various dramatic endeavors.  I'm enjoying this new stage of our relationship.

Employment News: Unfortunately I did not even get an interview for the non-profit job I applied for which was a bummer but I have been subbing quite a bit lately.  Put a few other applications in online however don't know if they made their way through cyberspace and into the right hands. The search continues.

Hoping to Improve: My reactions to negative situations and not letting other people's choices effect me adversely.

Food for Thought:  "The state of your mind is more important to reaching a state of health than diet or exercise. It is your subconscious and conscious mind working in unison that will either support you or sabotage you on your journey."  from Ten Habits of Naturally Slim People by Jill H. Podjasek, M.S., R.N.

Last Words:  Run happy - Live happy!

Love this photo from The Cancun Marine Park

designed to encourage coral growth to keep the oceans biological flourishing,

an amazing fusion of public art and environmental conservation. 

design-dautore.com