Usually, I suffer with self-doubts about how I am doing as a mom. I think that this is fairly common. Am I feeding them correctly? Are we spending enough quality time together? Should we throw the Wii system in the trash can? Is it okay to give kids a curfew?
We have been sick for several weeks. One nasty cold and one vicious stomach virus making the rounds on alternating people. Add in some secondary infections (two with bronchitis & one with a sinus infection for sure) and it's been a crazy couple of weeks. On Monday I went to pick up prescriptions at Costco & thought ahead enough to pick up penne chicken pasta from the deli case & the brown paper-wrapped French bread from the bakery. After taking a nap, we added frozen vegetables & felt like I had given my kids an adequate meal. (As a bonus, Chris was able to easily prepare the entire thing!!)
Yesterday, a dear friend offered to bring a pot of soup & I cheerfully accepted. She showed up at the door less than five minutes after one of the sickies requested something warm to eat. YUMMY!
Last night I took codeine-laced cough syrup to help me sleep. At about 2:30 a.m. one of the boys came in complaining of a severe headache, fever, body aches, etc. I sat on the floor beside him, brushed his hair, fed him alternating sips of Coke & Gatorade, decided on some migraine medicine, looked up symptoms on WebMd & decided he was probably dehydrated from an overly-hard workout on Monday & kept pushing fluids, and I WAS PATIENT THE ENTIRE TIME!!! Now, the super relaxing cough medicine probably helped but I was an okay mom.
Today I am tired & feeling the effects of missing a lot of sleep. But I am happy that I am not always riddled with bad-mom-thoughts. Taking care of my son was a blessing. Curfews are a good things (as my high school journals reminded me!!). Too much screen time is not good for anyone. Feeding families is a fine balancing act. Being a mother is the hardest and most rewarding job of all. I am grateful for my children and the opportunity I have to be with them.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Saturday, February 02, 2013
Project Life 2013 - I am learning as I go!
I have long wanted to learn how to use Photoshop for digital scrapbooking. I miss cutting & sticking but I am more productive when every one of my 56,334 digital photos is at my fingertips.
I have Cathy Zielske's blog on my Google reader & each week she posts her Project Life layout & I think "I really should do this!" I am already keeping a journal for my personal history class & I definitely take a lot of pictures. I have lots of free digital scrapbooking supplies on my computer (now on my external hard drive & organized). The only thing missing was the ability to efficiently use Photoshop. What's a girl to do?
I watched many free tutorials on cathyzielske.typepad.com and took notes. (Geek!)
Here's a tutorial on using layered templates: paisleepress.com/2009/01/layered-templates-101/
My plan is to print the pages in color on photo paper each week. Then, at the end of the year or maybe every six months, I will have them printed & bound in a photobook (Blurb or similar). Here are a few of the pages that I have made so far:
I have Cathy Zielske's blog on my Google reader & each week she posts her Project Life layout & I think "I really should do this!" I am already keeping a journal for my personal history class & I definitely take a lot of pictures. I have lots of free digital scrapbooking supplies on my computer (now on my external hard drive & organized). The only thing missing was the ability to efficiently use Photoshop. What's a girl to do?
I watched many free tutorials on cathyzielske.typepad.com and took notes. (Geek!)
Here's a tutorial on using layered templates: paisleepress.com/2009/01/layered-templates-101/
My plan is to print the pages in color on photo paper each week. Then, at the end of the year or maybe every six months, I will have them printed & bound in a photobook (Blurb or similar). Here are a few of the pages that I have made so far:
Bucket List
Do you have a bucket list? A long time ago (before the movie that I still haven't seen) I made a list of 100 things I wanted to do in my life. A few items from the list: Graduate from college. Go to Washington DC & Boston. Visit a pawn shop.
Scott gave me a beautiful camera a few years ago. The quality of the pictures is so much better than my little portable cameras can take, especially on the fast running stuff. One day last spring while I was walking up the front stairs, I tripped & fell with my camera in my hand. Since then, the photos have been a little overexposed. Then, when we were on Junkanoo Beach in the Bahamas, my camera rolled off of my bag & into the powdery fine sand. At first, the lens would not work but it eventually worked out the kinks. I have been casually looking for a lens on Amazon & Craigslist. One lens was listed on Craigslist at a pawn shop about 20" away from our house. When I finally went & tried the lens (& heard about the 30-day money-back guarantee!), I decided to buy it. The cashier gave me a bonus 10% off because I mentioned Craigslist & I felt like I got the deal of the century. (80% off the new price?!) It's just the "kit lens" for the next nicer model of my camera, but the image quality is great!
Scott gave me a beautiful camera a few years ago. The quality of the pictures is so much better than my little portable cameras can take, especially on the fast running stuff. One day last spring while I was walking up the front stairs, I tripped & fell with my camera in my hand. Since then, the photos have been a little overexposed. Then, when we were on Junkanoo Beach in the Bahamas, my camera rolled off of my bag & into the powdery fine sand. At first, the lens would not work but it eventually worked out the kinks. I have been casually looking for a lens on Amazon & Craigslist. One lens was listed on Craigslist at a pawn shop about 20" away from our house. When I finally went & tried the lens (& heard about the 30-day money-back guarantee!), I decided to buy it. The cashier gave me a bonus 10% off because I mentioned Craigslist & I felt like I got the deal of the century. (80% off the new price?!) It's just the "kit lens" for the next nicer model of my camera, but the image quality is great!
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| Jared had two baby teeth pulled. Braces? Very, very soon! |
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| The Guess How Much I Love You Bunnies |
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| Dad frequently gives the kids rides to bed |
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| Haircuts at last - the wise guy without wisdom teeth! |
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| Ryan likes to practice basketball. |
The View from the Back Door
My friend Kristi at thankfulme.net posted a picture about the view out her back door. I was so surprised - she lives in the desert with wind generators on top of treeless mountaintops and an unusual tree nearby. (Unusual only because I had never seen one before.) I grabbed my camera to document what I saw out my door & to try out my new lens.
I took a picture of the tree & was surprised to see a cardinal and another unknown-to-me bird. Our neighbor has several bird feeders & they are attracting a lot of wildlife. The tree in the front has always been sort of gangly & awkward but it provides a lot of privacy from the houses behind us. Our lot ends right in the middle of the tree. I think that the little blobs near the top of the tree are mistletoe.
I took a picture of the tree & was surprised to see a cardinal and another unknown-to-me bird. Our neighbor has several bird feeders & they are attracting a lot of wildlife. The tree in the front has always been sort of gangly & awkward but it provides a lot of privacy from the houses behind us. Our lot ends right in the middle of the tree. I think that the little blobs near the top of the tree are mistletoe.
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