Shaking the funk

The Thanksgiving Holiday was an exhausting one for me. Cooking, family, wisdom tooth pain (don’t ask), too much food, lack of sleep, sore throat and no voice…I could go on. I definitely woke up Monday and realized that I needed to shake the funk I was in.

I changed my schedule and decided to work from home in the morning. That meant I could drop my boys off at school and then hit the gym. That cardio felt GOOD after being so indulgent over the Holiday. I love Thanksgiving and I ate and enjoyed every last thing but I simply can’t do that every day. I felt run down, groggy and lethargic.

After the gym, I came home and did some work while throwing in all of the sheets and towels from the guests into the washing machine. I also decided to whip up some turkey corn chowder for dinner so I could get rid of the leftovers.

I headed out on sales calls in the afternoon and returned to soup, salad and playing in a guest free house with my boys. I finally logged on late in the day and scored my only black Friday purchase, a pair of flat, black suede over the knee boots and I saved about $58 bucks on the price thanks to the sale and coupons. Go me!

Nothing like exercise, a clean house, quiet space, a healthy dinner and yes, new shoes to turn my frown upside down. I think I am on the road to recovery. Next up? Christmas.

Black Friday Indeed

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with great food and surrounded by family and friends. We had a few guests but what made it special was having Mama 1969 as my guest of honor. While she did make the mac and cheese (delicious), it was a great treat for me to cook everything else for her.

My earliest memories of my mother take place in the kitchen. We were always cooking something together. I know my love of food is a direct gift from her and to be able to let her relax while I did all the work yesterday was great.

Now my other love of shopping came from her too. There are shoppers and there is Mama 1969. Ya’ll just don’t know. So since we have never shopped on Black Friday, we decided that this would be our year. Our plan was to take a nap and then hit the ground running at the midnight sale at Old Navy to get some winter basics for the boys.

We had a ball at Old Navy and the Tali boys are now STRAIGHT. New fleece lined vests, sherpa lined hoodies, fleece sweatpants, long sleeved knit shirts, socks, and hats, gloves and scarfs. Great sales, great crowd. We also scored two $50 video games for an XBOX 360. However, we don’t own one. If you would like a Kinect Dance Central game, leave me a note in the comments and I will send it to you. First response wins.

Where the evening got fuzzy? The time between leaving Old Navy and heading to Target for their 4am sale. We knew (okay, I knew) that going back home would mean sleeping and coming back out. That was not gonna happen once my head hit the pillow. So we decided to grab some hot tea and head over to Target.

Okay ya’ll, it was raining and cold. We got there around 1am and there were already 30 people in line in lawn chairs with no umbrellas. *crickets* We chilled in the car with music, hot tea and yes…HEAT. We watched all of the crazies (well technically, we were crazy too) pull up looking HYPED and get in the line. Mom and I finally took a power nap and when we woke up…..there were cops, Target security riding segueways and about 200 people. Some had their babies out there in the rain. WHY????

I am telling you, if we could have lined up to vote the way those folks did for a free giftcard? We’d be onto something. Maybe the Democrats need to give STarbucks giftcards out instead of “I voted” stickers?

We went in when the store opened (after all the crazy folks) and we went straight over to get what we came for. We were out in 20 minutes and back in bed in 5.

Having survived my first and probably last Black Friday, I can only say ONE thing. Clearly, I LOVE MY MAMA.

Being Thankful

I left the house at 7am to go to my service project today. I met up with my sorors at the Supermarket and took our shopping lists and our money and shopped. Each one of us was shopping for a family in need. We planned on feeding 30 families in the Philadelphia area. On my list was a 13 pound turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy, vegetables, sweet potatoes and an apple pie.

After purchasing the requested items, we met at our designated location to box up the items for the delivery. A different team of sorors was responsible for delivering the food door to door.

Later in the day, we all met up at a local food bank and helped to package meals for the Holidays for visitors that would inevitably come through their doors in the next few days.

I was so mindful of what Thanksgiving is all about. Sharing abundance, being with your family and preparing a meal with love. That’s it. One simple meal.

While I make spreadsheets full of the very best ingredients, someone else wanted $50 worth of groceries to cook a simple meal for their family.

I am humbled by the experience and thankful that I was able to help.

My life is good and for that, I am grateful. Happy Thanksgiving Week.

O.M.G

I don’t think I have anticipated a Friday the way I have this week in a long time. It’s crunch time at work and I have been extremely busy. This week has been tough with deadlines looming everywhere I turned.

I am really looking forward to my first “soccer free” weekend since September. Sorority Service Project tomorrow morning (making Thanksgiving baskets for families in Philly and working at a food bank that afternoon) then Date night tomorrow with Mr. 1969 and Harry Potter on Sunday.  And next week? FOOD. Yes, life is good.

I was looking at my blog this morning and realized that it was too Springy. Voila! Presto Chango. You know I like a clean aesthetic and heck, it’s pink.

You like? Let me know okay?

Have a great pre-Holiday weekend.

The Randomness

I can pinpoint the exact time that my love affair with coffee began. It was when I was at home on maternity leave with Tali 2. I swear that coffee kept me alive most days when I was running on fumes. I stick to one cup a day now though. If it’s a bad day, I might have one around 3pm to deal with prepare for my evening job.

I am about 80% completed with my Thanksgiving shopping. I wait until the week of to buy my fresh turkey (never frozen) and the ham that everyone eats but me. *sigh*

My gym is open on Thanksgiving until noon. I plan on putting that turkey in the oven and working out for an hour. I need to get the metabolism going for the thousands of calories I plan on consuming.

Has anyone taken Zumba? I’m fascinated.

The Event is a poor substitution for LOST and/or 24.

That woman from Alaska’s show looks like it’s a part of her campaign. All happy and shot from good angles. Wearing full makeup to snowboard and dogsled while showing a picture perfect family. 

I’m trying my best but I forget that I have a Twitter account most days. (sorry Jameil)

I read alot of fashion blogs. Most of them show one person and what they wear on a daily basis. Most of them look like they wear the same stuff. Skinny jeans, slouchy t-shirt with ___________ insert choice of one (scarf, furry vest, cardigan, boyfriend jacket) and five inch stilettos. *YAWN*

Am I the only person watching Next Iron Chef? How about Top Chef Just Desserts….I hate Morgan.

I have been going to church more regularly and feel like less of a heathen. (I grew up with Catholic School guilt).

Speaking of Catholic School, my uniform was burgundy and gray plaid. For years, I would never wear burgundy or any other wine color. Hell, I wore it for 8 years straight. I started wearing it a few years ago and I love the color now. Go figure.

I wish my mom and brother lived closer. 

My Mom’s birthday is in March and I want to plan something really special for her. I need ideas.

Oh yeah, I decided I am going to trade Tali 2 in for a pet rock.

Eye of the Tiger

I signed myself up to do a Triathalon. Yes, the woman who couldn’t even run two blocks when I started this blog is pushing to do three sports in one. Who woulda thunk it?

There are different levels of triathalons and I am signing up for the easiest one. It’s called a Sprint. 1/2 mile swim, 15 mile bike ride and 3 mile run. To say I am overwhelmed at the thought of this undertaking is an understatement. I am pretty terrified. However, I do know that it is mind over matter and all about the preparation. I am determined to do this and the race is not until June 26th so I have lots of time to prepare.

What has been interesting to me is the reaction from people I love. Mr. 1969 was so supportive. I asked him if he thought I could do it back when I was first approached about the idea by my girlfriend. He looked me dead in the eye and said “Absolutely”.  My brother was the same way…”You can do it. I believe in you.”

Of course, I also heard from some of my other friends, my mama, my cousins, my co-workers. “Why would you want to do that?” “You’re gonna get big like a dude.” “You’re crazy. You’ll never finish.” “You are gonna come out of the Schuylkill River with three extra eyes.” Okay, that last one is probably true. LOL

I have always been the type to allow negativity to motivate me. So I laughed off all of their comments and kept it moving. I know my friends don’t really mean me any harm and I know they love me and want the best for me.

I can’t lie though. Hearing negative comments did put a small chink in my tough girl armor. As I thought about the comments, I wondered why we always feel the need to bring somebody down when they are attempting to do something positive? I know I am probably guilty of doing this myself. I admit, I have the hater gene in my DNA and it does surface more than I’d care to admit. I am sure I have made snide comments to many folks in the past not meaning them any ill will. Just being my highly opinionated self. Why though?

As I get older, I continue to come face to face with the ugly error of my ways. The lessons I need to learn become so much more apparent when they happen to me. I think that’s part of growing up.

For the record, when someone signs up for something like this race,  it’s a major endeavor. The physical preparation is tough but the mental test is even more formidable. They are already thinking all of those negative thoughts in their head…they don’t need you to voice it to them. If you can’t support the endeavor just say “WOW. Good for you.” and change the subject. For real, it’s like seeing someone with a not so attractive child. Why would you steal the mama’s joy by mentioning her child’s looks? You wouldn’t. You have home training.

So why would you make fun of someone else’s goal or dream?

For those of you who have had other people laugh or try to talk you down from a goal…do what I do. Laugh with them and go home and work harder.  Use those comments as motivation. I typed them all out and stuck them on my office and my refrigerator. Come June 26th, I will have accomplished a huge personal goal and those folks will have helped me to get there. I’m with Nike….. Just Do It.

Giving Your Best

I went to church this weekend (yup, I dodged the lightning) and the message for the sermon was regarding “Giving God Your Best.” I am not one to put a religious figure up on a pedastal but my Pastor put his foot in this message and it resonated with me….. So much that I am still thinking about the concept days later.

He not only talked about being the best Christian you can be but also about life. He asked the following questions “Are you giving your children your best? How about your relationship with your significant other? Your job?”

Basically, we each have been given gifts and talents, are we living up to our full potential? Are we giving our best selves to the people we love and to ourselves?

I can honestly say that right now, I am not giving anything my absolute best. That’s the truth. I may be at 75% in some areas and 90% in others. I am a firm believer that we get messages exactly when we need to hear them. Sometimes we ignore them. Sometimes we hear but we table our responses for a later time hoping the message will go away. Then there are times when we hear it but totally think it can’t be OUR message. Heck, you know I’m perfect right? LOL

Well, as I sat in church, I realized that it was a direct message for me. A reminder that doing too much and not doing any of it well is not a good thing. I needed to stop and refocus my efforts. Take stock of my long term and personal goals.

Just wanted to share that message with you today. Are you in a place where you are spinning your wheels? Are you giving the people you love the best you that you can? Are you taking care of yourself? Are you focused at your job? What can you do to better utilize all of your gifts and talents?

Me? I just signed up for my first Sprint triathalon. (We’ll talk more later. I’m still in shock.) I had a meeting with my boss and told her about a few issues I was having and we moved towards a resolution. I plan on spending more time with my boys and I resolve to be more supportive and less evil with Mr. 1969. I also started inquiring about completing culinary classes. I plan on listening to my message and not ignoring it this time.

How about you?

Soccer Shenanigans

My boys play soccer on the “uppity”" side of town. Not just uppity…..FILTHY, STINKING, RICH. I try to make sure they have a balance between suburbs, hood and wealthy in all of their activities. They have to learn to be comfortable around people from all walks of life.

With playing soccer in this type of environment, we have come to be constantly entertained by the wealthy folks that we hobnob with every Saturday and how they interact with their children. Tali 2 plays in the 4-5 year old division. There are about 40 kids and they basically have no assisgned teams. Every week, they break them up into about 8 groups of five and they play each other. Some weeks, he is on a strong team, sometimes he gets the weaker team.

On Saturday, he was paired up with the most non-athletic group of kids ever. They were all adorable but they had zero aptitude for soccer. One kid would run up to the ball to kick it and miss and then fall down. (Can you say Charlie Brown?) Another kid kept running in the wrong direction. Another one was rocking bright blue sports goggles and I still don’t think he could see. Add in, uber-competitive, “I’ve been coached by my big brother the soccer all-star for five years running” and you already know it was a recipe for disaster.

The game raged on and of course, the other team was dominating. I could see the frustration growing on Tali 2′s face as the game wore on. I knew he was on the verge of a breakdown after he yelled for one of his teammates to pass and they kicked the ball in the other teams goal.

After the fourth goal was scored to their teams 1 goal (which my boy scored), the cute little boy with the blue sports goggles ran over to his team and said “Don’t worry guys, we’re tied now.”

“TIED? WE’RE NOT TIED. CAN’T YOU COUNT? WE ARE LOSING 4 TO 1!!!!! WE’RE GETTING KILLED! WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU DUDE?”

I slipped my shades on and pretended to take a phone call as I could feel ALL of the snooty parents turn to look at the “brown” mommy whose son clearly had “issues”.

I called Mr. 1969 on the phone as he was on another field with Tali 1 to tell him that his son cussed out his team for being mediocre. His response “That’s my boy.”

*sigh*

Weigh In….

So right after I write a post about spoiling Tali1….here goes….

This is the first year that they are making him carry pretty much all of his textbooks home at night. Tali 1 has a backpack and I noticed that when he carries that heavy bookbag, he’s all hunched over. What do I do? I find him a rolling backpack so he can roll instead of putting the weight on his back.

Today, Mr 1969 and I are at war because he said “That boy needs to carry his books on his back and suck it up. He’ll be all right. Boys don’t roll their books down the street.” He seriously does not approve of the rolling backpack.

Am I spoiling him or am I right to be concerned about his back? What say you?

Times Have Changed

I’m working from home today so I woke up and made breakfast for the boys before school. Since I planned on heading to the gym after I dropped Tali 1 to school, I got dressed and came downstairs. Mr. 1969 planned on taking Tali 2 to school (they go to the same school but are in different buildings) since he had an errand to run in that direction.

In the kitchen, the boys asked me what we had for breakfast. I ran down some options….eggs, bagels, cereal, oatmeal and they finally settled in on what they wanted. After breakfast, I broke out their heavier jackets since it was so cold this morning. I grabbed Tali 1 and we got in the car. He sat in the backseat and asked me if he could turn on the seat warmer. I told him yes and drove off to school. When we got there, the kids were lined up in the schoolyard. It was so cold that I told him to stay in the car until his class started walking in. Once we saw them moving, he jumped out and ran in the building.

As I got to the gym and started running on the treadmill, I had a revalation……………..DAMN, THESE KIDS ARE SPOILED.

I remember waking up and making my own breakfast. It was usually one option and I ate it even if I hated it. If I didn’t eat it, my mom would wrap that mess up and make me take it with me. I caught the NYC public bus to school. Two of them…when I was in third grade. I rode the B46 from Utica to Church Ave and then transferred and took the B35 to Flatbush (shouts out to my elementary school Holy Cross!)

I would be in my Catholic School skirt freezing on cold days rocking tights and leg warmers standing at the bus stop. If it rained, I still stood outside. I just wore more clothes.

I know, we are blessed to be able to do better for our children but damn…that boy was straight lounging. I swear tomorrow, he will be chopping wood outside in a tanktop and shorts. I can’t have these shenanigans in my own house.  LOL