The Case Of The Missing Poop

Jonathan had to be at work early this morning and was out the door at 7:30. Jaron had just finished eating his breakfast and I was rushing around trying to get ready before the little baby I watch arrived. I was in the midst of craziness (in my drama queen mind) at the exact moment that Jaron appeared at my bedroom door. With poop smeared all over his hands.

And poop down his legs.

And poop on his feet.

And poop between his toes.

And, oh yeah, poop all over the floor too.

Here's the thing... there wasn't much poop in his diaper. And the poop that was clinging to his leg wasn't enough to paint the rest of his body, and my carpets, in as many coats of brown as there appeared to be. That meant that somewhere in my house was a pile of poop.

Fabulous. Just fabulous.

After getting Jaron and his cute little tush cleaned off, I searched my house high and low, looking for the missing poop. Y'all, it was no where to be found. No. Where.

That leaves only one logical conclusion.

Yep, the dog ate the poop.

I must go throw up now. And brush my teeth obsessively. And light all the candles in the house to rid it of the nasty smell, and memory, of stinky little boy poop.

Have a poopy, um I mean, a happy Friday, y'all.

Just Call Me Cinderella

I am cleaning like a mad woman. We have our first showing today and another one tomorrow. There is something disconcerting to think about strangers going through ones home. So I have left no surface untouched. I have dishwater hands to prove it.

I feel like I need to bake cookies, or have dinner on the stove when they get here! :) Maybe if we entertain them they will fall in love with our place and buy it. I told Jonathan he could sweeten the deal by adding a Cookie Clause to the contract. I will bake the buyer of our lovely, cozy home cookies ever other week, for an entire year. Sounded good to me. For some reason Jonathan didn't think buyers were looking for that kind of perk.

Oh well. I tried. (wink)

Say prayers that our place will sell quickly!

Okay, off to scrub the tub!! Have a great weekend!

Random Tidbits Floating Through My Brain

In list format b/c I am a list-maker at heart...

• Though I am sick of the rain, the cloudy skies and booming thunder do create a nice cozy atmosphere for cuddling with my sweet toddler boy.


• Cleaning out the oven is a miserable job. Ick.


• Cleaning out under the kitchen sink isn't much better than cleaning out the oven.

• Jaron is looking like he could use a hair cut, but I just simply cannot stand the thought of cutting it. The shaggy look is in, right?! My own bangs are in need of some attention, but I cannot figure out what to do with them. Cut, or grow? Opinions anyone?
  

• My ab workout is seriously kicking my butt, or more correctly, my abs. OUCH!

• Is there no end to the laundry pile?!?

• Been doing a word study on Salt in the bible. Very interesting topic, believe it or not. There's a blog post ruminating in the depth's of my heart. I will post it when I can figure out how to make it make sense! :)

• My brother keeps telling me to stop planning for our family vacation so soon. He thinks that a month in advance is too soon. What's even funnier, he thinks telling me to stop will actually make me stop. Ha!!
  

• On the topic of the family vacation-- I am getting so very excited for it. My whole family will be renting a beach house down in South Carolina. My folks, both brothers and sisters-in-law, and the hubs, babe and I will all be under 1 roof for a whole week. Crazy, fun, chaos will ensue!! I cannot wait!

Okay, I think that's the jest of the randomness. If you're still reading, then you're very loyal and faithful. I think I would have clicked on by now!! :)

Happy Wednesday! :)

Sticky Situation

*** UPDATE- we are unstuck thanks to Bag Balm. Still have no clue what the sticky stuff was, but at least we are now squeaky clean!***

Help! Jaron was playing outside at my folks house and somehow managed to get himself covered in a sappy like substance. Of course, as I am trying to wrangle him in the house it smeared all over me too! Now I cannot get it off of either of us. It's yellow, extremely sticky and has a very strong odor.

Any clue what is might be?

Any clue how I can get it off?

The only solution I have found so far is rubbing WD-40 all over it and then rinsing... however, I don't think that is the best idea for removing sap from a toddlers hands/arms/legs/body!! Especially when those hands are likely to go straight into the mouth!

Also, I don't think it is sap as we were no-where near a tree and there was a lot of it around.

Any suggestions??

Getting Out Of A Funk

Last week was tough. Jaron was not napping well and I was really struggling with some emotions gone haywire. (I think my hormones, post pregnancy, are still settling in a year later.) I found myself tearful and depressed for no apparent reason. There was not really anxiety or fear, just an unexplained sadness.

Does anyone else ever have times like this, 'cos I often feel like I am the only one around who struggles with this?!

Anyway, my mom was a huge source of encouragement, as was my friend Sarah. I told them both that I can usually be uplifted through worship music or scripture, but was having a hard time finding such inspiration last week.

Then I heard this song... for the umpteenth billion time... but hearing it last Friday was like hearing it for the first time. It pulled me out of my funk... these lyrics especially spoke to me...

Praise Him under open skies
Everything breathing praising God
In the company of all who love the King
Let us dance, let us sing
It could be heavenly
Turn the music loud and sing....

Wherever you are
Wherever you've been
He's been there

Open Skies, by David Crowder Band

After hearing that song it was as though the wall crumbled and I was able to find freedom and release. I am sure that hard days will come again, but for now the fog has lifted.

Do you have days (or weeks) like this? What gets you out of your funk? Is there a go-to scripture or song that pulls you through the mucky stuff?

Exercise Shmexercise

I have been trying to be more disciplined in my workouts.

(Ugh! Just typing that sentence makes me cringe.)

I hate working out. Really. Hate. It. So, I am trying to get the most bang for my buck. I figured I can get the biggest impact for the least amount of time if I run. I ventured out this winter and started running. I also threw in some ab workouts for good measure, however I was never very consistent. Since the warmer months are here it is even harder to get moving so I have been trying different things to get me moving. Here are a few things I am doing-- and hopefully they will be the winning combination!

• Follow a loosely laid out program. (I like a little structure, but not too much.) I found this one while perusing magazines at my folks house. I have substituted their cardio slots for my running program (see below). I am mostly using this for the ab work and am anxious to see if I can see a difference in the 14 days as they promise.
  

• For the running part, I am starting to follow the Couch to 5k routine from CoolRunning.com. To make it easier while running I found these great podcasts that have the timing mapped out to music. I am starting on with week 3 since I have been running a bit already.
  

• I downloaded some snappy tunes to keep me motivated!! Working out is so much more fun when I have upbeat, peppy tunes to move to. Here is my current playlist.... or you can find it on iTunes in the form of my very own iMix! :)
  

(You can click the image to make it bigger.)

• And lastly, I am trying not to make too big a deal of it. Of course, posting about it on my blog is not really keeping it quiet... but whatever! :) One thing that has helped is simply taking the pressure off a bit. If I don't feel like running then I at least go for a walk.

So... that's what I'm doing to get moving. Any tips out there? What are you doing that is working for you?

(Jen C., where are you when I need a good running buddy?!)

Today Has Been A Good Day

I love days like this. Days like today when the house is clean, the bed has fresh sheets, the fridge is full and dinner is on the stove and will be ready when the hubs gets home.

I have even had some fabulous quality time with my little boyfriend. And tonight will be time with my big boyfriend. ;)

Now I ask you, what could be better?

Changes

I like change. I am one to rearrange furniture and splash new paints on the walls every so often "just because". (My husband loves me all the more for it, right honey?)

Lately, around our house there have been changes brewing, and while a change in decor will come into play soon these changes are more than that. These are the kind that affect several areas of life and home and often have a domino effect into other areas too. I like these new things, these new adventures, but oh-boy, do we have our work cut out for us!

The most exciting part, for me is that I am now going to have the privilege of being a full time stay at home mom! For the past 10 months I have been working part time, splitting the hours between the office and home. While this has been a great arrangement, my heart is always at home. The Lord used a series of events to make this possible and I am so thankful! And come fall time I will be watching a friend little one while she teaches. I know this will be hard work, but I am so excited about!

We are also in the process of putting our home on the market. And it's a tough market, to say the least. We have outgrown our sweet little condo and are bursting at the seams! I am ready to have some room to spread out and I am craving an outdoor space. But this is a challenge in almost every way. Sales prices are down (good for buying, ick for selling) and keeping this place clean to show is next to impossible!!!

I don't know what else the summer may hold, but I am loving this time of transition!

Anyone else out there like change as much as I do? What changes have you all got cookin' for this summer?

Today

Today has been one of those days. My heart is heavy. My eyes tired, my soul weary. I do not want to relive today. I would like for it to end quietly and fade into a distant memory. No tragedy has befallen me. No loss so great to bare.

But, it has been a hard day. A day that that has brought me to this night where sorrow overwhelms me. A day that has left me speechless in its own way. I sit here trying to formulate something coherent to share, to emote, to be honest in my words. I have come up with nothing new and nothing meaningful.

Rest assured, I am okay. I am more than okay, actually. I am simply being refined, purified.

Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42:11 (read more here)

I am so thankful that I have a Father in Heaven who hears, and cares about, the quiet things I whisper in the dark of night. And He's mercies are new every morning.

Impossible

Can somebody please tell me how I am supposed to clean my house with a toddler hanging around?!? Because I think it is pretty much impossible.

"Oh, did you want me to put away my toys, mom? I thought you said play with my toys. My bad!"

"If I smile real big, can I get away with it?"

The Lady At The Grocery Store Told Me I Had My Hands Full

... and she should know, she raised 4 boys. That makes her pretty much an expert.

She also told me that my son was a flirt and,"Once a flirt, always a flirt!" she said in a silly, sing-song voice. (Much too happily I might add.)

She told me I was in trouble, but the good kind of trouble. She said my heart would be forever in love with my precious boy.


Then she said, "Enjoy this time when you are the best, greatest, most beautiful. 'Cause the day will come when you are not so smart, second best, and just sort of cute."

I plan to follow her advice, something tells me she knows what she is talking about.

A Moose On The Loose

Update: I guess our moose had quite and adventure yesterday! Here is a picture of our friend, courtesy of MSNBC.com, who tells more Mr. Moose's story if you are interested.


We had a bit of excitement after dinner tonight. Jaron and I were looking out the windows, watching some neighborhood kids ride their bikes. All of the sudden something caught my attention over to the side... it was a moose! At first I thought it was a horse and then the image registered in my tired, little brain and I realized that it was indeed a moose.

What is crazy about this is that we live in a very suburban area. There is not much forest around for a moose to roam. This guy (oh yes, it was a male) was cruising around between apartment and condo buildings, heading for the grocery store! He attracted quite a crowd.

When I screamed and told Jonathan what I had seen, he didn't believe me at first. Well, he got so excited that he threw on his shoes and ran out the door. Jaron and I weren't far behind. As we ran outside tons of people from neighboring buildings were pouring out into the street. We all walked as a huge crowd trying to see this moose. (How silly can we be?) Mr. Moose eventually wander off down our little bike path. We have been keeping an eye out for him all night, but haven't seen him again.

Can you tell we are short on entertainment in Vermont? Who knew a moose could stir up so much excitement!?

I only wish I would have thought to grab my camera!!!!

Humble Pie Wasn't On My Grocery List

I thrive on simple routine. I like to have a bit of schedule to my day/week/month/life, but just as guidance, not as mandatory. I do not "do" mandatory.... I tend to rebel a bit when words like "must", "immediately" and "required" are thrown around. My week is good combo of structured and go-with-the-flow. Just the way I like it.

Sorry, tangent...anyway...

Monday's are my favorite days. Monday's are grocery shopping days.

The organizing junkie in me loves grocery shopping because it means lists and menus, which are all done on nifty little spreadsheets. The spontaneous side of me loves shopping for the best deals and never knowing what I might get.

For a while I was doing really well shopping at only one grocery store. I was staying way under our weekly budget (generally $70/week). I was menu planning like a mad woman and finding much success in it. I got a little proud of my so-called ability and decided I could do much better by shopping around. So a few Mondays ago I struck out, Jaron and coupons in tow, to try my hand at grocery store hopping.

Oh goodness, y'all.... It did not turn out so great. First try I was $20 over budget. Okay, no problem, probably just a fluke, I thought. I will rally the troops and try again. This time with more coupons and a more throughly planned list.

So last week I tried again. I thought I was doing so well and was really feeling proud of myself. I remember walking through the store thinking I was just hot snot b/c of my amazing saving skills. People, I was $40 over budget!! No joke. My husband about croaked.

I guess it serves me right for being so cocky about it. I read this article at MSNBC.com yesterday, and so I do feel a bit better about my part in the grocery debacle. I guess costs are rising everywhere.

I am however eating my humble pie and asking for help... from you.

How do you all do it? What are you grocery secrets?
Do you shop hop?
Do you use coupons?
If you use coupons, do you get them from the paper, online, etc?
Do you shop at Sam's Club/Costco? Are they worth it?

And lastly, I do hope this is not too personal, but I am curious... What do you spend weekly on your groceries?

I am trying to refine my ways and cut the cost even more. It is hard to do with prices for everything from gas to milk going through the roof. But somehow, I will win this shopping battle. And hopefully you'll take a minute to leave a comment and help a sister out!

Thanks Much!!!

Being Productive

By noon today I had...

• Picked up diapers and a new trash can at Wal-Mart
• Looked for our "special" lightbulbs at Home Depot (to no avail)
• Selected a new book from the Library (The Light in the Window- book 2 in the Mitford series)
• Grocery shopped for the coming week (And to make it better, I was $30 under our weekly budget.)
• Baked 3 dozen of the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever tasted, thanks to Barb.
• Fed the baby lunch and put him down for a nap.
  

Though I dedicated most of this afternoon to playing and reading to Jaron, I have also managed to do the dishes and 2 loads of laundry.

I love it when days just work out like that! It's rare that it happens, but it feels so good to get a ton of things checked of my To Do list.

Happy Friday, everyone!