Friday, August 8

Weekend Thoughts









It's Friday!  I'm only working a half day today, too, which makes it the best kind of Friday (well, obviously, the whole day off would be even better...)!  And it's the best kind of weekend ahead- summer temperatures, finally, and NO PLANS!   These are my favorite.  I want to pick some berries, take some walks, watch Frozen with my girl (I caught her singing "let it go, let it go" at the top of her lungs yesterday in her playroom while I made dinner.  I didn't even know she knew that song, or that movie!  It brought tears, because of course, the pessimist in me immediately thinks - "what else is she learning when I'm not around?!"  Either way, I'd say it's time.  Redbox, here we come), and make one of these lentil/quinoa/barley/millet (or insert other grain that I'm not sure I've ever bought) salads, and hopefully pick some more vegetables from our (finally) ripening garden.  Did I mention I'm growing at an obnoxious pace?  Well, I am.  Tipping the scales, racing through the last of my non-maternity clothes, huge.  So it's time for some healthy food options ;)

I found this post today, and thought I should share.  Some ways to increase happiness, including celebrating your birthday!  I might write a letter to myself in 5 years... just think! 

Today, I'm going to use this method, and see how it goes.  Seriously, genius.  I wish I could share my typical "I want to lose weight" office visit with you.  It usually goes something like this:  ""can I get a pill or something to help me lose weight?  I've tried everything.' Me- ' Well, have you considered a program like Weight Watchers?  I've noticed that our patients who tend to lose weight and keep it off do really well with food counting programs.  And remember, you can't exercise off weight- it's about 70% what you're eating.' 'Oh, I don't have that kind of time.  Do you have a pill?'  Me- 'You know, I don't think it's a good idea, given your history of high blood pressure.  Why don't you try walking some more, and eating more real food: fruits and vegetables.'  'I've tried that, it doesn't work.'  Me- 'sigh, yeah, weight loss is tough.'"  AHHHH.  EVERY TIME.  It's so frustrating.   I'm trying this method today, and handwriting scripts for 30 minutes of walking 4x/week.  I'll keep you posted!


And if I had a waist, I'd probably spend some time at Jcrew today.  40% off all kinds of lovely things.  You're welcome!

Happy Weekend!

Wednesday, August 6

This Country Life


This is easily the most common scene around our house.  Those three cats lay as close to the door as possible -they're strictly outside cats, but they try to sneak in every open door.  The second our first foot is out, they're on it like ants to Molly's melting popsicle.  Jesse assured me "they're barn cats, they'll just stay in the barn and catch stuff".  Right.  No, they're the friendliest, most people loving cats I've known.  I'm sure that's to be expected, though, because we did bring them home as kittens- directly into the arms of a loving toddler.  Yesterday, I glanced outside to see her rocking Dora (the female cat) saying "my sweet girl, mummy loves you sooo much"- yes, my exact words to her.




It's been such a wet and odd summer, lots of fall-like days and not enough sunshine.  These are fall blooming zinnia's- in full bloom the first week of August.  It's kind of concerning for four season dwellers like us, because my biggest fear is a longer-than-normal winter.  Jesse, the optimist, repeatedly tells me to expect a longer-than-normal fall.  Normal winter.  That, I can handle.
What I can't handle?  The GREEN tomatoes, in August!  We check the garden daily, but nope.  They're still green.  The zucchini are just blossoming.  The garden is in slow motion.  I guess it's prepping for some really nice fall squash and pumpkins, considering our farmer's analysis ;)










Daddy's corn.  It's pretty much a daily topic around our house.  We take long drives home to stop and check it out.  We scout out the number of deer and imagine the amount of damage they can cause.  We talk about the new combine and read the owner's manual for hours each night.  We envision the harvest around the growth and arrival of the growing babe (I should mention, that we're not into "planning" babies- Molly was born at the beginning of the fall, ie "harvest season", and this baby will arrive promptly somewhere toward the end.  Whoops.)

I have to take my camera with me once in a while to check out the corn, because it can be so easy to overlook the beauty that surrounds us, each day, in this small country life.  I'm a big dreamer, so it's sometimes hard to appreciate the little things, the season we're in, and not want to do more, see more. But if I purposely look at the place we call home, I realize that this is where we need to be.  No big vacations or travel, no fancy stuff, no access to Starbucks or Target, years of full time work in medicine ahead of me. 

"Jesus replied, 'you don't understand now what I'm doing.  But someday, you will.'"
-John 13:6

Plus, the air quality, right?!

Let me in on any good baby names, too.  We're strongly getting nowhere in the search for a name for this little one!


 

Monday, August 4

Our Weekend

















This is how I spent the majority of this past weekend - and loved every minute.  Molly had a fever and vomiting through the night, which meant more laundry than usual, but also more couch time, naps, and snuggles.  We had plans each day, but had to cancel to nurse our girl back to health.  And that meant a lot of time at home.  Molly's feeling much better- I just checked on her around 5am and she's fever free.   I loved all the extra snuggles this weekend.

In true form, I started to feel extra huge and lazy late Saturday afternoon, so I broke out my classic go-to workout video and forced my way through the first 25 minutes (I used to finish it completely, all 45 minutes, but lately that first half has me feeling accomplished enough).  Molly found some energy and showed me how she can exercise, too.  "To keep myself in good shape for when my baby comes, too!"  In all honesty, the promise of labor is what keeps me moving.  I know I sound like a broken record, but man- I'm tired this pregnancy!

I guess we got a big gust of energy after our workout, and Daddy and Molly decided we should sneak outside during a brief moment of sunshine to find some blackberries.  Berry picking brings me back, and is really one of my favorite summer activities around here.  I can't remember a summer without gallons of huge, fresh berries and thorn cuts all over my arms and legs!   Well, as you can see, we were surprised by a summer rain shower- Daddy kept Molly dry while she ate the lone cup of berries we managed to find before the rain.  We found a patch on our way out, though- just enough for our Sunday morning pancakes ;)

Speaking of pancakes, I always have my trusty kitchen helper.  Even though she's banned from the stove side (she's still 2), she seems to keep herself busy- dressing plates of pancakes with berries and local maple syrup (caution: it's not cheap- but if you try it once, you'll never buy that corn syrup stuff again). 

The girl and her cats- they've got a real mommy/child relationship, and I think they're all quite pleased.  Despite the repeated accidental (some I question) kicks, tail grabs, neck pulls, those cats flock to her.   I'm thankful she has them, though, especially after our not-so-fortunate litter of kittens (we started with five, we buried the last one 3 days ago).  After the fourth one, I started praying for the safety of Rosie, the final kitten.  But Jesse was convinced "something wasn't right" from the beginning.  It was a lot harder than I imagined, but Molly has been right along the entire time- watching Daddy cover the little dirt hole and saying "Rosie's okay now, mummy, because she's in Heaven with her brothers and sisters".  I swear, I can learn from that girl.  Jesse and I look at each other often, and say "how did we get this lucky?!"

It's back to Monday, but I'm glad I brought my camera out this weekend.  These pictures are a sweet reminder of our weekend together, at home.

Have a great week,