Remembering

Today is the 14th anniversary of Angel's death. Today I am remembering that God loves us. Today I am remembering that there is a plan. Today I am remembering that as hard as things seem, there is always relief. Today I am remembering to love by choice. 26 days changed our family forever.

John 14:18 -- I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

My Turn!

My first ever tutorial is live. Go here to learn how to make it!

Weight Loss Wednesday

Last week I was down 3.2 pounds. This week I wasn't able to weigh in. Ginger is still sick. We were back at the doctor today. She has an ear infection and then got to have a chest x-ray to rule out pneumonia. Do you know how fun chest x-rays are for a 14 month old? So fun. They put her in this contraption that kept her arms above her head. She was scared and it made me sad. Luckily she is pneumonia free and will hopefully be feeling better with the antibiotics. So, no weigh in for me this week. But, I'm not down at all. I couldn't work out with me being sick and then Ginger getting sick, too. This week is a new week and I can exercise and hopefully hit 45 pounds total by next week!

Sneaky Peak

Friday is my big debut over at Amanda's blog. Here's what I'll be showing:

And then this bonus tutorial will be available the following week:
The mess will still be here then, too!

Do Over

I would like a Do Over weekend, please. It started on Thursday night, where I wrapped myself in two quilts, asked Mini-me and Patch to put themselves to bed, and laid on the couch with achy knees and a runny nose. I took my temperature at about 8, and then sent my mom the pitiful text: I have a fever! Curly stepped up to the plate on Friday. He woke up with the kids, got the dressed and ready for the day, dropped Mini-me off at school, and then came home to get Patch and Ginger ready for the YMCA. The only hiccup in the whole day was when he realized he had forgotten to pack Mini-me a lunch or send her with money. Living two blocks from the school has its perks, especially when you have to run $2 over for lunch.

Friday night, Ginger woke up at around midnight having a temper tantrum. She would not be consoled, so I left her to writhe in her crib. In the morning, she had a fever. So Ginger and I spent the day snuggling. I arranged for the other 3 kids to go to a birthday party without me. Flower, Mini-me; and Patch again were pretty much left to their own devices. I don't give them much credit, but they did a great job! The only really awful thing on Saturday was when Ginger decided to puke on me. Twice.

Sunday I started to feel better, Ginger lingered, and Mini-me and Patch started to get a little annoyed with the whole situation. Today we are fever free and ready to go do something. Thank goodness for a 3-day weekend. I have a day to do it over!

Friday Tutorial

Today's tutorial comes to us from Sally. Go here to check it out!

Weight Loss Wednesday

I didn't go to my weigh in yesterday. I wasn't feeling too great, Mini-me was home recovering from Strep, Part Deux, and I ate too many cake balls the day before. My plan is to go tomorrow morning. Mini-me is back at school today and I am feeling a little better. I didn't eat any cake balls yesterday, and my home scale told me I'm back on track.

My goal last week was to get 30 activity points. I am happy to report that I did just that. It was hard work, but it felt oh so good. I'm shooting for 30 again this week, but with this cough I'm getting, it might not happen. While at the Y this week, I had some thoughts about the gym that I thought I would share with you while we both drink a Diet Coke.

1. No one at the gym is looking at you. So don't worry about looking ridiculous while doing Zumba, or having perfect form on the elliptical.
2. Size matters. We're talking clothing here. Wear something too small, or even too big, and you've got a wardrobe malfunction waiting to happen. If you are losing weight, buy some new pants. If you are a little heavier than you used to be, please don't squeeze yourself into your old clothes. Inevitably something will fall out.
3. Old ladies walk around naked in the locker room. It is disturbing and is a sight that will never leave you. Consider yourself warned.
4. If you are concerned about germs, wipe down the machine before you use it. Chances are the super sweaty guy was on the treadmill before you and didn't do a thorough job.
5. Ask for help. You only look dumb if you fall off a machine, not if you admit you don't know how to use it.

Now I am going to go refill my diet coke and pay attention to my kids. Then I'm going to take a nap. Have a great Wednesday!

The Show

Today we went to see Flower in 101 Dalmatians at Way off Broadway. I wore my cute new purple sweater from Target and my sassy attitude. My parents came up for the occasion, as did Curly's parents and Spinster Sister #2 (who are not in this photo). Flower is very good at "puppy paws," which is why her hands look a little awkward. She is also good at acting, singing, dancing, and staying in character. She totally gets this from my side of the family.

BTW -- that last bit is a joke. I am the Wicked Stepmother to Flower. However, it does raise a compelling argument for nature vs. nurture. Think about it.

Friday Tutorial

This week it's my friend Julie's turn! Go here to learn how to make this darling bracelet.

The creativity of my fellow Design Team members is staggering. And, starting Monday, Amanda will be offering kits for all the tutorials. Go forth and create!

Dog Shed

I washed Gracie's dog bed the other day. I put it in the dining room, walked away for a minute, and then came back to see this:

I think Ginger was poised to take a nap here! Thank goodness there was no dog shed on it. Dog shed is the worst.

Weight Loss Wednesday

Gratuitous picture of Patch in a snowball fight with Curly. I love how instead of helping his son to see, Curly took a picture.

Patch was weighed yesterday. With his jacket on and an armful of monster trucks, he weighs 39 pounds. I then got on the scale to learn that my total weight loss is 39.6 pounds. I have lost the equivalent of a 4 year old. Can I tell you how good that feels? It feels so good. Then, as I was getting ready for the gym yesterday afternoon, I saw my butt. Hello, butt! It is starting to have a shape again. I had forgotten how cute my rear used to be.

My friend Lauren made a comment during our Weight Watchers meeting about loving the feeling as she goes into the gym. I realized that I love it, too. It feels in control to work out. I love to feel in control. And then when I'm done, I feel expended and a little wrung out. It's good to squeeze stuff out, isn't it? Anyone with me? My goal for this week is to earn 30 activity points (which are extra points you can earn from exercising which then translates into more food if you need it). I earned 7 yesterday, so I have 23 to go. It's a doable goal.

The Darndest Things

My kids are very funny. Here are a few recent gems:

Patch: Ronald McDonald is straight.

I have no idea what he means by this, but I think he means he's tall. As a course of habit, we generally don't discuss sexual orientation with our kids, especially not that of a clown. That would be ridiculous.

Mini-me: It's sexy. You know, like sex (gives her shoulders a little shake).

Yeah, this one worries me, too. Also, her tone while saying it gave me pause. As my mom would say, she should have just added "stupid" to it, because the implication was that I didn't understand what sexy was. But now I do. It's basically shaking your shoulders.

Luckily Ginger doesn't say much, and Flower wasn't home due to the new schedule. Otherwise, who knows what I might have heard?

The Start

Today is the start of The Quilted Fish Design Team tutorials! Go here to check out KarrieLyne's great pillow and leave a comment telling her how awesome it is. I'm pretty sure I'm going to need to make one for Mini-me. The pillow features a pocket. Mini-me is on the top bunk, so it would be the perfect accessory for her book and book light.

Weight Loss Wednesday

Due to the epic ice storm that never showed up, our Weight Watchers meeting was cancelled. According to my home scale, I'm down about 2 pounds. My home scale is a little off from the WW scale, so we'll just have to see. I'm hoping to get to a meeting tomorrow morning so that I can get my official totals.

Today I have been folding laundry. It sounds more exciting than it is. I do pretty well with the actual cleaning of the clothes. I even do okay folding it. It's the putting it away where I struggle. That's the goal for the rest of the day: get the clothes put away so that I don't have to refold. Right now my sewing table has been taken over by the piles of clothes and towels, so I kind of have to put it away if I ever want to sew again.

Have I mentioned how much I love Diet Coke? I think I have. I just wanted to say it again.