Dear So and So...It's Finally Friday!

Dear Strawberry Candy Cane,

WTF! Seriously. You disguise yourself as a peppermint NORMAL flavored candy cane, yet you are nauseatingly sweet and quite disgusting. I do not like being fooled when it comes to candy.

Wishing I had my toothbrush,
Steph

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Dear Wal-Mart "Customer Service" Department,

Yes that was my toddler throwing the temper tantrum while six of you stood around doing nothing and one employee worked. I'm sure the 20 people in line behind me enjoyed the musical stylings Tysen had to offer. I on the other hand would have preferred to get my $2.00 refund in a more timely manner.

Lying to myself when I say I won't shop there again,
Steph

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Dear BFF,

Happy Birthday! You drive me insane a lot of the time, but I know you do it with love. I hope today is special and you remember mine is the best present.

Hugs,
Steph

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Dear Summer,

I miss you, please come back. I'm sure it's nice in all those southern hemisphere countries, but I'm cold. I don't look good in a hat and gloves.

Freezing without you,
Steph

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The Hunt For The Perfect Christmas Tree

 

Last weekend we set out to find ourselves a perfectly healthy tree to chop down and set up in our living room.  I’m a real tree kind of person, I love the pine smell that you just can’t get with a tree out of a box.  We drove out to one of our favorite tree farms (living in the Pacific Northwest, there are many to choose from) and set out with our cart and hand saw.

Tysen liked both of these, but they weren’t quite right for us. One was too small, the other too blue. 

A bit further down the rode we found quite a few more trees that Tysen liked. Most of them were taller than he was, but too small for our living room.

We finally found our tree and Justin used his manly skills to chop it down. Sadly I was using Justin’s phone to take pictures because I had left the camera in the car.  I asked him to email me ALL the pictures (including the pictures with him cutting down the tree which are mysteriously absent) which is why there are none of his manly powers.

It was a great afternoon, even if it was only 20 degrees outside.  

Wordless Wednesday-Merry Christmas To ME!!

Couch 2 5K- One Last Week

I mentioned in two of my previous posts ( Couch 2 5K and Half Way There) my quest to train for a 5K in 9 weeks. I'm sure to some, running a mere five kilometers might seem like no big deal and does not actually require training. These would be the people who are naturally athletic, have never been out of shape and who I despise envy. However, the thought of running farther than down the hall was once enough to make me panic. Sure if I was running after a piece of cake or pie, that would have inspired me.

After completeling 8 of the 9 weeks in the program I know that not only will I be ready to run my 5K on December 19, but I am looking forward to it. When I first decided to begin the C25K program, I knew that I would need an end goal to help keep me motivated. I set out to find a race that would be close to when I was scheduled to finish and found one that is just one week after my completion date. No chances to do a week over, or take a week off. That was ok though, because I needed something to count down to and a way to hold myself accountable. So, here we are, just over 2 weeks away from my first 5K in over a decade.

Today at the halfway point of my run I was looking back on how much progress I have made, how different I felt today versus my very first day. On day one, the thought of running 5 consecutive minutes freaked me out. A lot. These days, it takes me about 20 minutes to get warmed up, to let go of the stress that has followed me even though I vow to let it go before I put on my running shoes. I love it when I reach this part of my run, it is very calm; I don't have to think about my breathing or my stride because it all just happens on its own. Once I've gotten to this point, I feel like I'm running on someone else's legs and that I could go for hours. It is a great feeling, and usually it lasts until the end of my run. This is why I started the C25K program in October.

Running has brought me peace. Even if it's for less than an hour a day, it is time when I can relax and just breath.

Wordless Wednesday-Milk Coma

Being Random Has Exhausted My Brain

I try not to judge other parents, I don't want them judging me afterall. There is one exception to that rule: parents who don't educate themselves about rear vs forward facing their children over one. In Washington, and most other states I think, the law grants parents the right to turn their child's carseat forward facing at one year of age and 20 lbs. It drives me insane when my friends turn their kids around without giving it a moments thought. That's all I'm going to say, I know it's a topic that excites a lot of people, so I'll leave it at that.

We bribe Tysen to go poo-poo on the toilet. We give him a tractor or a car or some small vehicle every time. At the JBF sale I purchased about 100 small Hotwheels, Tonka trucks and various other brands. A lot of time the previously earned tractor makes it back into the box...I don't know how that happens, it must be magic. But Tysen doesn't notice and it keeps me from having to buy more and clean up poopy pull-ups.

I haven't gone through my Google Reader in two days, now there are more than 350 posts to read. I have been putting it off because I know it will take me forever to get caught up on all that. Procrastination rarely helps with these sorts of things, but I'm willing to try it anyway.

I love football, most people don't know that about me. Many years ago, when Justin and I were first married, he introduced me to a friend of his (who is now a very close friend of mine) and went on and on about the fact that I get football and all its intricacies. Apparently my knowledge of what Cover 2 is was mentioned quite a bit. Every time I see this friend, he asks me what Cover 2 is, or I will often receive random texts mentioning it. It's annoying after five years.