Random

We have had such a busy week. I had to go to Twin on Tuesday and since it is so far away I like to get my errands run while I am there. I guess that Michael had plans of his own. The girls were really good and did what I asked them to, but Michael wanted things done his way. Needless to say I didn't get everything done that I wanted to and we went home early. At home things have been a little better. We got to go to the park on Wednesday and play with some friends. That was nice. I did manage to get a few things planted in the garden between Rachel's naps. I put out some of my peppers, my broccoli and my cauliflower. I also got beans, spinach, beets, carrots and radishes planted. Our peas are coming up, too. I wanted to get a few more plants, though, that I didn't get started myself, so I called in reinforcements and asked my parents to go to Twin with me. They agreed. So today, off we went. It was lunch time when we got to Twin so we stopped to get something to eat. Well, just our luck, as soon as we sit down, Michael throws up. My dad took him to get cleaned off and we went and got him a new outfit. I needed to return some library books, so the next stop was to do that. Michael seemed like he was feeling a little better so I decided to take a chance and hurry through my errands. I did get my plants and a few groceries. Then, home we went. He seems to be fine now, so I wonder if something he ate just didn't agree with him or something.

On another note, Robert got my garden fenced in. One of our dogs loves to lay down in my raised boxes that I have. She also dug up the pansy I had just planted. I think I saved the pansy but I was not happy with the dog. I hope the fence keeps her out. Robert also got the ground ready on the other side of our door and the side of our house so we can plant grass there. I am so excited! I can't wait to have more lawn. I feel kinda bad for Robert, he has so many "honey-do's" and the weekends just aren't long enough. And his list isn't just things I want done, there are things he really wants to do that we just don't seem to have the time for. I help with what I can, but there is only so much I can do while the baby is sleeping.

Changing the subject again, did I ever mention that I have a new position in church? I am now the Primary Chorister. I love this position! I am so excited to be teaching the songs to the children. Last Sunday was my first full time doing the music and I think it went pretty well. I have so many ideas of things I want to do, I just hope they all work out. Actually, the biggest problem that I am having right now is that I wish I had more time. Still, I guess I better leave some time for a lesson.

Hives

So, I now know what hives feel like. I don't recommend anyone have them. Now, I can think of mainly 2 reasons to get hives, an allergy or stress. Besides the changing of the seasons, I can't think of an allergy, well maybe the chickens, but I don't think that is why I have hives. I think it's because of stress. You see, I was managing my stress just fine with chocolate for a while. I went through a lot of chocolate chips, then I realized that Rachel didn't like chocolate. They made her tummy upset and caused her to spit up more. Bye-bye chocolate. Then, I got hives. You see, I didn't handle it well having the chickens in my laundry room. I am still very sensitive to smells and those chickens stunk! And because they were in the laundry room, I didn't want to go in there, because I wasn't going in there, laundry wasn't getting done, my kids were running out of clothes and so was I. Since the laundry wasn't getting washed and put away it was cluttering up the floor. I am having a hard time with clutter, too. So, smells + clutter = hives. Now, the chickens are out in their coop and the smell is airing out. I am once again comfortable going into the laundry room so our clothes are getting cleaned again, that is very good. So, why do I still have hives? Maybe it is allergies.

Monday's Miracles

1- Family. I am so blessed to live close to both of my children's grandparents and spend time with them.

2- Written Remembrances. Since it's Memorial Day it's fun to share stories of the people we are remembering with the children.

3- Springtime. I love how everything is greening up and flowering.

4- Gardening Centers. I love having plants and flowers all ready for me to instantly pretty up my home.

5- BBQ Grills. As Taylor says "Everything tastes better on the grill". Okay, maybe not everything, but a good number of things.

Self-worth

Okay, I had an interesting conversation with someone the other day. See, I put on a lot of weight when I was pregnant with Rachel. Not a big surprise, I've put on a lot of weight with all of my kids, but I usually lose most of it, eventually. Well, this woman kept saying how my self-esteem would go up when I lost the weight, how I would feel better about myself when I got skinnier, how moving down a pant size would boost my self-esteem. It almost made me feel like I should feel bad about myself. I finally told her that I am comfortable with the way I look, I'm not comfortable with the way I feel. It took me 9 months to put on the weight and I don't expect to lose it overnight. I am losing weight and fitting into some of my trimmer clothes, but more importantly I want to feel healthy. I want to have energy to play with my kids. I want my back, legs and arms strong so that I can run with them and carry them when they are tired. I want my lungs and heart to be healthy and strong. That is more important to me than a number on a scale or a size on a tag. What is it about our society that says we must be a certain size to feel good? I know that the woman I was talking to overcame a lot to lose weight at one time in her life and works hard never to go back to that place. I understand that it is a sensitive subject for her. How can we help empower people to live healthy rather than live skinny? I know some people are skinny when they live healthy, but some of us have a body shape that will never be a size 2. I have embraced my body and will continue to be healthy and not let society or numbers tell me what I am worth. I know that my worth is so much more than what I look like.

Going Vegetarian

This week I've been all ready to become a vegetarian. We lost 2 baby chicks this week. When we lost the first one, Robert was around to take care of it, this time he wasn't. I had a really hard time watching the chicks die, and then I had to take care of them. After that, I was cooking eggs and thinking that I was eating those chicks' cousins. Now I realize the eggs probably weren't fertilized and never would have hatched anyway, but still. I guess my hormones are still a little wacky, but I had a hard time this week. I'm hoping that my kids don't get too attached to these chickens since we are raising them for meat. We may get some laying chickens for eggs later, but for now we aren't set up to feed and house them through the winter. Of course, kids can surprise you. Mine will probably have no problems and I'll be the one having the melt down.