Things that go BUMP in the morning.

3-4 times a week my alarm goes off at 4:40am so that I can get my morning run in. I love running in the morning before the world (and the sun) is up. It gives me time to myself to think about whatever I want, or to not think at all and just jam out to my eclectic running mix. Most mornings are peaceful; I relax, and enjoy every part of my 30 minute run. Other mornings, like today, are stressful. No, stressful is not the word… scary. Scary is the right word. Only because I totally freak myself out.

A little back story.  In my younger days (we are talking college here, so not THAT long ago) I was addicted to Law and Order SVU. SVU stand for Special Victims Unit, so all of the rape, child molestation, abduction crimes. I could sing the introduction song, I was in love with Detective Stabler, and I could spend ALL day watching a SVU marathon!

That was until I became a mother. Now SVU scares the CRAP out of me, it makes me worry, even more than I normally do (which is a lot). I have now been SVU free for about 2 years, I still sleep with a hammer next to me when Dave is out of town, but I feel a little less like the Crazy Worry Lady.

Then this morning my Crazy Worry Lady got mixed a little bit with Zombieland when I was out for my “relaxing” morning run. Mind you, this is 4:50am, so the moon and the stars are still out – no sun.  As I was running past Horizon Elementary I see like 4 people walking back and forth across the playground. No, I did not imagine this, there were 4 people just walking around the darn playground in the DARK! Of course I wanted to know what the heck they were doing, but I high tailed my butt right by them as fast as I could while thinking about zombies tromping through a school playground eating all the kids. The funny thing is I HATE zombie movies…

Then a little bit later I got the weird feeling that someone was following me (which I sometimes even get when I am in our basement alone, so I’m sure no one was there). So naturally I planned my escape route (through that back yard, over the fence (I hope they don’t have a dog) and around the front of the house with all the lights on) and prepared to zig zag back and forth to distract my assailant. The individual following me must have decided I was not a good target, so I made it without using my escape route.

And finally when my run was almost over, I was feeling much more relaxed and ready for the day when the BIGGEST toad EVER jumped and touched my leg. He didn’t just nick my leg; he like jumped directly into my leg and then hopped away. Toads are gross.

Hopefully my run tomorrow will be a bit more relaxing then my run this morning.

Birthday Traditions

Birthday season in our family begins in July with Dave’s birthday on the 22^nd and ends on September 24^th with Jacob’s birthday. Kristi and Hope are the odd balls out with an October and December birthday. That’s O.K. though because Hope is the Birthday Queen and turns the whole month of October into her birthday month, and Mom is the odd ball in our family, so it only makes sense that her birthday doesn’t fit in.  In between Dave and Jacob is me (July 29^th), Bruce (August 13^th), Charlie (August 14^th), and Kaitlyn (August 29^th). We are now in the middle of Birthday Season, which got me thinking about some of the fun birthday traditions my family has. Then my thoughts drifted to family traditions in general…

Family traditions are something that is a very important part of my life. To me family traditions are a way to remember the past while making new memories with the people you love the most.  As parents, Bruce and Kristi did a wonderful job of building traditions that I will carry with me, and hopefully pass on to the next generation. For me, being a mother is about loving unconditionally and teaching my child (hopefully children in the future) the values that will carry him through life wherever it might take him. Family traditions and spending time together are one of those values that I hold near and dear to my heart. I also love making new family traditions with my own family, something new that Charlie will want to pass on to his children.

Here are just a few of our family traditions:

-          Going out for BBQ on Bruce’s Birthday (the last 3 years this has taken place the night before Charlie’s birthday party)

-          Birthday Long Johns (one of my favorites)- everyone wakes up to a long john with a candle in bed on their birthday morning

-          Birthday dinners – the birthday girl/boy makes a birthday dinner request and Bruce always delivers. This year mine was fish tacos – it was AMAZING! Kaitlyn usually has “Thanksgiving dinner” for her birthday dinner!

-          The mom of the house waking the kids up every morning by singing our “Good Morning” song. I am pretty sure my mom made this song up, and once it gets in your head it doesn’t go away. Dave even wakes Charlie up with the “Good Morning” song too!

-          Christmas Eve is my immediate family (Bruce, Kristi, Hope, Nick, Kaitlyn, Jacob, Dave, Charlie, and me) eating hors devours and opening presents

I am so blessed to have my family. It makes my heart happy that Charlie has so many people that love him and I look forward to making so many more memories and family traditions.

Really COLD beer, helicopters, fires, and American Flags

Shortly after I was born, my father was transferred to the USDA office in DeWitt, and my family (which consisted of my father, mother and me) moved to what is my hometown. Growing up in DeWitt was probably very similar to growing up in any small town in Iowa. This weekend Charlie and I visited my parent in DeWitt and it got me thinking about putting down roots. How does one end up in the cities they plant roots in? What makes someone decided to stay in that city?

Bruce, my father, is from New Jersey (and lived in a HUGE city growing up) and Kristi, my mother, is from Canby, Minnesota, which is even smaller than DeWitt.  They were obviously brought to DeWitt by my father’s employer… but what has kept them here for over 20 years? And what makes me NEVER want to go back? Is Johnston were Dave and I want to put our roots down? Yes, I love living in Iowa, yes I love Johnston, but is it the best place to raise a family? My initial thought is…. yes. But I also probably won’t try out different places, so I don’t 100% know for sure. That being said… I am happy where we are at now, and I am going to go with that. If things change years down the road, I will go with the flow.

Going back to my NEVER wanting to live in DeWitt again. First and fore most, the small town feel is nice for a day or two, then… it becomes a crazed level of knowing everyone’s business. My mom is the worst, some examples….

1. There was a fire in town this last weekend. Bruce, Charlie and I were on our way back to town when we received the text from my mom: “huge fire in town, the hotel across from Pizza Hut”. As we pulled off our exit we saw a fire truck from another town on their way in, so naturally we followed it (I am pretty sure that this is illegal, and I apologize to anyone who this act upsets), but we were curious. This in and of it self is a small town thing. I would NEVER even think to follow a fire truck in Des Moines, crap happens all the time.  So we followed the truck and found the fire, we couldn’t see much and didn’t want to get in the way but we did learn 2 things… it was NOT a huge fire as my mom stated and it was NOWHERE near the Pizza Hut. Prime example for how rumors are started in small towns.
2. Mom and I were going to get some beer. From my parents house there are 2 gas stations within 3 minutes and a grocery store within 3 ½ minutes. But we don’t go there… no, we have to go to the gas station that is “all the way on the other side of town” as my mom puts it, because it has the coldest beer. I obviously don’t care at all because “all the way on the other side of town” is 5 minutes away. I can’t get anywhere in 5 minutes in Des Moines. As we were pulling out of the gas station after we got our really cold beer, mom noticed the sign in the window. “Help Wanted.” And the first thing out of her mouth is…. “ohhhh, I wonder who lost their job.” Who wonders that? I bet she was going through the list of people who work there in her head saying, “Sally…no, Jim…no, Tony…well maybe, Steve… no, Jen… yes, oh yes it has to be her!”
3. On this very same trip we asked the gas station attendant (who obviously was not the poor soul who lost their job) informed us that flags were at half staff because an Iowa soldier was killed overseas. On the way home my mother looked at EVERY flag on the way to make sure they were all at half staff. As we passed by each one she would say, “Good, the bank’s is down. Good, the fire station’s is down” and so on and so on. Until we got to Mc Donald’s who must not have gotten the memo. The first thing she says is, “oh, well I will have to call them when we get home to make sure they put their flag down.” Of course she needs to call the Mc Donald’s because it is, as she put it, “her duty.” Yes my mother is a good American, but that would only happen in a small town.
4. The last example happened on this very same trip to get the really cold beer as we checked the town flags to ensure they were at half staff. The hospital in town has a helicopter pad, and there was a helicopter landed. And of course my mother says, “oh no, that’s not good when the helicopter is here… I wonder what’s going on.”

It was exhausting… I like living in Johnston, not worrying about everyone else’s jazz. I am exhausted now just talking about all those examples of small town living, I can’t continue on with my other reasons for not living in DeWitt.

That being said, I loved growing up in DeWitt, I love coming home to VISIT, and I have met a TON of great people from DeWitt and many who still live there. It’s a great small town, just a wee bit too small for me!

54 Years of STUFF

I spent the last couple of days in Omaha helping at Dave's Grandma Kate with her moving sale. Grandma Kate is a wonderful woman who has lived in her home for 54 years. She is 83 years old, she lost her husband Bill 12 years ago, and has continued to live in their home on her own since then. That house has shared a lot of memories with her and everyone in the family... and she has the stuff to prove it. Grandma Kate, who is also known as the "dish queen" has EVERYTHING.... and it's original box!  There were multiple things we came across that were wedding gifts, or gifts from 50 years ago that were stored in the original box, with the original tissue paper... the woman didn't throw away anything! She was able to tell a story about each and every thing in that house. It was so fun to learn about her life and to hear her stories. I had a mix of emotions this weekend, and it was an interesting experience...

1. Shock.... of all the stuff this woman kept! She has everything.

2. Amazement... to see the care that she took with each individual thing

3. Enjoyment... I love to organize and I love retail (must be the Meant to Be in me)

3. Sadness.... thinking of all the years Kate spent in her home, the memories she shared with loved ones, and now leaving it all.

4. Annoyance... of people who want to bargain down from $.25 - really people, its a quarter.

5. Curiosity... why did that 20 something buy a zip lock full of cocktail straws for $.25? Why are we selling a zip lock full of cocktail straws? Don't people buy straws new?

It was a great experience, I spent 2 days with wonderful women and got to visit with family. All the while, we were able to help Grandma Kate downsize and prepare for apartment life. At the same time, the experience has got me thinking so many different things, and I will leave you with my thoughts...

- Garage sales can make you some nice coin

- If you want to meet some interesting people, have a garage sale

- If you have a garage sale, make sure the outside has lots of stuff to draw people in

- Don't accumulate 54 years of stuff

- Don't let your parents accumulate 54 years of stuff

- If you minimize along the way, you will not be emotionally attached to a MILLION things when its time to detach

- Don't keep things thinking your kids will want them, by that time, they will be old enough to have enough of their own stuff that they won't want yours

- NEVER leave anything out of a garage sale... you have no idea the things that people will buy. For example, a set of 7 bar glasses with the works "the pussycat" printed on them, a zip lock full of cocktail straws, or a fake pink coral statue)

Last but not least... I love garage sales! 

Mini-Vacation

It is Sunday night and our mini-vacation to Lake Ozark has ended. While it was not exactly what we expected, it was a ton of family fun!

To start Dave and I took Thursday off so that we could leave early and get to town to go grocery shopping before the rest of the family got there. I spent a lot of time meal planning and created an all inclusive shopping list. I love to grocery shop, so I was really looking forward to it.


The drive from Des Moines to Osage Beach, MO. is about 6 hours.... unless you are married to Mario Andretti, like I am. When you marry someone, you soon realize that there are things that you just cannot do with your spouse. Seeing as you are planning to spend your whole life with that person, you try to avoid the things that just don't work, but sometimes it is unavoidable. Some of the things that Dave and I cannot do together:

1. Play on the same team in any team sport
2. Play on different teams in any team sport
3. Drive together in the same vehicle

I do realize that we HAVE to drive together, but if we can we avoid it we do. The first step we took was to stop car pooling to work, which usually ended with a slammed car door and someone having a bad day. Seeing as it seemed really unreasonable to drive separate cars to Missouri to avoid an argument, I was prepared for one. Add to that a potty-training toddler and you have a recipe for disaster :) No, it really wasn't too bad. Charlie was GREAT, and he didn't have any accidents. We stopped about a million times, and every time we did I would carry in his Lightning McQueen potty to use as a stool. I never realized how most public bathrooms are really not built well for young children. Every time Charlie and I head to a public restroom I turn into my mother, "don't touch anything" comes out of my mouth about 100 times!

So we got to our condo, which is owned by my some-day-to-be brother in law's family. When we arrived we punched in the code and surprise there were people there! It would have been a great surprise, had we known the people :) Turns out the property management company screwed up. So, while Nick and his wonderful father tried to figure out where we were going to stay, I started calling resorts. We ended up staying at Tan-Tar-A resort for the night. My mother approved because her and my father had been there before (probably sometime in the early nineties) and she remembers it being nice. Turns out it was EXACTLY what she remembered, nothing had changed :) LOL! But we enjoyed the night - Charlie and I swam at the indoor water park (which is not included in the $160/night price tag of the room- surprise!), we ordered pizza, and hung out as a family!

The next day (Friday) we checked out and having no where to go, spent the day at the pools on Tan-Tar-A. We had a blast, relaxing in the water, drinking, and visiting! Around 4:00 we headed to the property management company to get our keys (they found us a different condo free of charge due to the mix up).... and it wasn't ready yet, they were running behind :) surprise!

We made it to the condo all in one piece and once again took a step back in time, with flowered couches and all! The woman who owned the condo also had some sort of foot fetis and the entire condo was decorated with feet and shoes.... it was weird. Needless to say, I finally got to go on my grocery shopping trip. Like always we bought WAY too much food!

Saturday was fun on the boat, Nick is such a wonderful host and they have all sorts of fun stuff for the boat. Tubes, water ski's, floaties... everything you need to have fun on a lake. Charlie loved the boat, he even relaxed enough to nap...

The rest of the trip was pretty smooth sailing, we spent Saturday night in and had dinner to celebrate Dave's birthday! Which brings us to tonight... home, tired, and ready for the week to start! 

football and tofu?

Day 3 was tough... I am not going to lie. I almost quit like 7 times :) But i didn't.... but that doesn't mean that I am not going to quit tomorrow! It's hard. Not only because I am eating a strict diet, but it makes me think about food all the time... which makes me think I am hungry all the time. Which I am not.

Day 3 happen to fall on a Saturday, which is football day at our house. We always watch the Nebraska game and usually eat something not very healthy and drink! But today, I watched football and ate tofu... it didn't feel American.

I did however try a new recipe for apple chips... and Dave loved it! I never really know what he thinks of my cooking/baking because he always compares me to his mom... but this time he told me he liked what I made. The sucky part, is that I didn't like them :( oh poo.

Menu:
Breakfast - apple with peanut butter
Snack - spicy pumpkin soup
Lunch - tofu, acorn squash and a tomato with balsamic vinegar
Snack - mixed nuts
Dinner - "taco" salad with mushroom & black beans, lettuce and salsa
Snack - a few grapes, applesauce and a cup of tea

The good thing about this is that today I had at least 5 servings of veggies and 2 of grapes... pretty impressive. The hard part is that I miss crunchy, fake crunchy not veggie crunchy. I want goldfish & cheerios! :)

Tomorrow my family is coming to town... I am so excited to see them, but I think the "cleanse" will be difficult. I am going to try my damnedest, but I just might not make it.

Protein - Day 2

Day 2 was pretty o.k. I once again sat on my butt all day at a training. I realized just how hard it is for me to sit all day... not fun. And my gym was closed for Veteran's Day (which is cool - all service members deserve a day off) but it kind of stunk for me! The good thing about it was that I decided to take the time that I usually spend at the gym browsing Barnes and Nobel. I seriously could spend DAY'S there walking around, looking, drinking Starbucks (though I didn't have any this time). I also realized that I LOVE self help and health books :) loser... I know! I decided to buy "The 5 Love Languages." Someone in the training that I was at mentioned the book and how it changed all of her relationships... I'm excited to start reading.

Menu:
Breakfast: 2 slices Whole Wheat toast with Peanut Butter
Snack: apple and mixed nuts
Lunch: Broccoli, acorn squash & tofu
Snack: grapes and Multi Grain Cheerios
Dinner: Flax seed tortilla chips and slasa, Spicy Pumpkin Soup (pumpkin, corn, spices) - DELICIOUS

Not having a glass of wine on day 2 was a lot easier than not having a glass of wine on day 1. It is mostly just habit, and a little relaxing :) Tamra came over to watch Forks Over Knives.... finally I got to see it. It was really interesting... not as life changing as I thought it would be, but it really got me thinking. I feel really good about my decision to become a Pescitarian, however this documentary focused on a "whole food, plant based diet."

The studies done on the DAMAGE that animal protein does to our body, including diary, was CRAZY! Not only that it is not beneficial, but that it actually does damage. I am going to watch it again, and look more into a plant-based diet. I know this is not an over-night change that I can make, so I am going to do lots of research and make small changes. I will continue to avoid dairy, but I am not going to be too strict about it yet.

I do think that everyone should watch it though.... there is a lot of good information!