Blissfully Unaware of the Chaos the Surrounds Me

Did You Know . . .

that I have an astounding assortment of weird fears and obscure habits?

Such as . . .

Being afraid that my children will somehow sleepwalk to one of our doors, unlock it in their sleep and wander away?  Most likely sleepwalking across the street, down the path and into the lake?  And in the depth of their sleep?  Will be unaware that they have fallen into the lake, never awaken and drown.  In my defense, Dylan is a sleepwalker.  Although he's never attempted to vacate the building.  He prefers to wander the house, licking the walls.  No joke.  Clearly he has a nutritional need for something contained within our paint or texture that he is not achieving during daylight hours.

A deep fear that I will crash on an airplane, with my family and that the moments of the plane falling from the sky will be unable to comfort my children, because I will know for certain that we are ALL.  GOING. TO. DIE.  Yes.  I have a strong faith that includes assurance of an afterlife.  But this one still gets to me.

A sometimes mind-consuming fear that I am in the wrong place for a meeting.  Even when I was the one to schedule and prepare the agenda for the meeting.  God-forbid everyone be running late.  I start sweating.

A ridiculous habit of waking up between 2 and 4 in the morning and KNOWING that if I look at the clock and if it's sometime between 2 and 4?  I cannot get back to sleep.  If it's 1:35, I can go right back to sleep.  4:05?  No worries. Maybe I should take the clock off my nightstand?

I have an obsessive need to know what time it is if I wake up in the middle of the night.  See above.  I actually have a battery-powered clock that I take camping. Maybe medication is a better solution that removal of the clocks.

I have a popular belief that I have left something on.  Usually the toaster oven or my curling iron.  Only ONE TIME in the 100s of times that I have returned home have I actually left my curling iron on.  And it has an automatic shut-off.

I lose my keys at least twice a week.  One time last year?  I lost them for almost six months.  But that was totally Halle's doing. Yet I just cannot seemingly put my keys in the same place (a red cup on our counter) every single time.  95% of the time?  yes.  100% of the time?  No.

I am often afraid that if I say something out-loud, I will jinx myself.  For example, you may have noticed how overwhelmingly verbose I have been this month?  I have, as of today, blogged every single day in November.  But, unlike last year, I did not proclaim my intent to participate in NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month).  If you'll recall, I failed to post as of Day 6.  Fail.  So this year, I didn't say a single word about it until today.  Yet, my fear of jinxing myself is strong enough that I wouldn't be surprised if something happened to this post before it successfully publishes.  Just saying. :)

One Year Ago . . .

my Grandpa Mike passed away.

He had been in a skilled nursing facility, with severe dementia for so long, that it really was a blessing and relief.

But now, after a year? 

I can't believe I'm going to say it, but I miss the stinky halls of that place.  I miss the all-too-infrequent moments of clarity where he had a glimmer of recognition for me.

I feel so bad for my Grandma today.  It's been hard for her.  And we haven't always been there for her.  While Grandpa was in that facility?  It's where we all visited.  Out of habit, we stopped going to her home.  And God love her, she has the yappiest and most annoying dogs on the planet.  So we still don't visit her often.  At all.

I need to remedy that.  I just cannot stand to take my kids over there.  The dogs rule the roost.  It drives me up the wall.  It stems back to a dog they had when we were kids.  The Almighty Tippy.  He could bark.  Growl.  Snip at us.  Bite us.  And it didn't matter.  It was always our fault.  Never his.  So now that there are two yippy, snippy dogs ruling the roost?  It's twice as annoying/unappealing.

But I need to get over it.  Take my kids to see her more often. 

My Grandpa would have wanted me to.

Hope the heavenly fishing is still knocking your socks off, Grandpa MIke.  Keep an eye on us, would ya?  We need it :)  Keep us in line.  It wouldn't surprise you in the least that our extended family can get a bit off-kilter.  Not that I'm naming names.  We miss you.  Yet we rejoice that you are no longer in pain.  That you have your memory back.  That your diabetes is no longer and issue.  That your days are spent in glory, not in a smelly nursing facility.  Keep on fishing the heavenly lakes, Grandpa Mike.  We love you still.

Insomnia . . .

is the devil's curse.

Or something like that.  And apparently?  My daughter is having her own little bout of insomnia tonight this morning.  Right on schedule (for me).  3:00 am.

I hate 3:00 am!

So after putting her back to bed countless times (and now realizing exactly what we have done by putting her in a big-girl-bed), I caved.

She is now happily ensconced on the couch, eating a snack and watching . . . you guessed it . . . MIckey Mouse Clubhouse.

I am cocooned in the down throw, rolled up like a cold Mama burrito because I made the silly choice to sleep in a tank top and boxers.  It seemed appropriate when my plans were to be warmly snuggled under the electric blanket and down comforter on our bed.  I wasn't planning for 3:00 am couch time.

I have now ushered the official warning, "five more minutes and you WILL BE tired and you WILL BE going to bed."

If that doesn't work?  It's time for Daddy to take a shift.  This cold Mama is getting cranky.

Relaxed and Lazy . . .

that's what our Thanksgiving Day was.  Well, at least for the kiddos and I.  For John it was chaotic, bloody, stressful and looooonnnnnngggg.  He was at work, obviously.

The kids and I?  Barely got out of pajamas.  We had Mac & Cheese (the extra creamy fancy kind) for lunch.  And cake for breakfast.  And a hodge-podge of snacks for any other necessary meal.

We watched movies and parades and a plethora of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (aka, crack for toddlers).  We also did the hot dog dance more times than I can recall.  Halle napped.  I edited photos.  I worked on our Shutterfly album.  Dylan played Age of Empires.  He read.  I read.

It was downright lovely.

The only reason we got out of pajamas and actually left the house?  Was to go to Walmart.  (Gasp!)  I know, I know.  I can't stand shopping at Walmart.  But I needed a bed rail for little Miss.  So we went to Walmart at 4:30 in the afternoon. Happy Thanksgiving!

Needless to say, we got right back into pajamas upon our return.

I poured through the Black Friday ideas, trying diligently to find a reason to get out of bed this morning and fight the crowds.  But I ultimately found nothing.  There was a cute jewelry box at Kohl's that I would have liked (for myself).  There was a $200 electric guitar on sale for $90 that I considered (for Dylan), but I did a little online research and found it to be a piece of crap.  So I am home.  (Still.)

John, however, is at Sear's.  Having a good old time, I'm sure.  He's after a new drill.  And I may have encouraged him to look at a new microwave.  I had a local company come out and give us a quote ($600 including trim, labor and all that jazz) to replace our ancient mounted microwave.  Really.  It's the original microwave.  In our 18 year-old home. So when I saw that same $400 microwave on sale for $150, I started to do the math.  How freaking hard can it be to install one of those? (Remind me of this statement when I begin to wail and rant about yet another home improvement project gone awry.  Really.  I give you full permission.)

Now, I am off to shower.  It's something I try and do every-so-often.  Coffee date with some friends from high school.  And then?  I don't know.  More movies.  More digi-scrapping.  More reading.  More pajamas.  Ahhh . . . the possibilities are endless!

Thankful . . .

My Big Girl . . .

is sleeping in her big girl bed!  It's crazy!  The other crazy part?  My Dad and I started and finished a project in one weekend, which truly is a record for both of us :)  I got it moved into her bedroom yesterday - squeezed it in there is more like it, since her crib is still in there as well.  (Her cribby as she calls it.  No idea why, but it's super-cute.)

Last night she was determined to sleep in it, so she did.  She called me a couple of times during the night, but I just went in and tucked her back in each time.  This morning she woke up at 6:00 and it was so nice to be able to snuggle into her bed with her and coax her back to sleep for an hour!  I am also avoiding the mistake(s) I made with Dylan and AM NOT laying down with her when she goes to bed.  I already paid that Piper :) 

Anyway, here is a quick little summary of the bed and how it went together.  As already mentioned, I stole the idea from Design Sponge:

 
I may go back and re-pull some areas and add a few more staples for tension, but it's not too bad.  Perfectly adorable and functional.  I am very, very happy with it.

Can't believe my baby is so big!

Happy Birthday . . .

to my Dad.  He's 61 today.  We are having a fun breakfast celebration with him this morning.  We'll see if Halle manages to sing the "Happy Birthday . . . you look like a monkey" version to him or not.  She's been working on it.

Then again, she could start off the morning by announcing that he's a boy, thus, "him has peanuts".  That was a funny little ditty that was repeated, oh, countless times at our house last night :).

Anyway.  Happy birthday, Dad.  I hope all of your wishes come true.

Monday Morning . . .

I'm packing up my briefcase, emailing a few files to myself and hitting the road!  Today is (hopefully) my last day of work for the week, as I am planning on taking a PTO tomorrow.  I'll have a few things to do along the way, but it should be fairly quiet.

So today I'll wrap up some work, clean up my office up there and enjoy the peace and quiet!  Usually I plan my travel days in advance and they quickly fill up with back-to-back meetings.  Apparently, no one needs me this week.  I'll take it.  It's amazing how much work I can get done when no one knows I'm in the office!

Our weekend was good.  After John and I got out on Friday night, we laid low for the majority of the weekend.  He worked Saturday.  I had a photoshoot and then Thanksgiving dinner at my Gram's, which was lovely.  Halle got goofy on her sleep - I think that a week of waking up early and taking shorter naps caught up with her.  She slept for almost 4 hours on Saturday afternoon and didn't want to wake up even then.  Then, of course, Saturday night was a party!  She laid with me for a while and then got Daddy to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse until 2:00 am.  She sprung right back up at 7:00 am yesterday!  She did much better last night, but woke up around 5:00 this morning.  I got her back to sleep, but not me.  Ugh.

In the project department, my Dad and I finished Halle's bed frame.  It turned out great, but ironically, Halle keeps telling us to take her mattress off!  She's been playing on her new mattress all weekend and doesn't like it on the frame.  She wants it on the ground so she can bounce on it.  Needless to say, we're going to minimize the bouncing and work towards the sleeping :)  I have pictures to post in the next day or so.  In the meanwhile, you can see what we modeled at Design Sponge.  They did two toddler beds and we made one twin bed.  I'm happy with how it turned out.  It was simple, inexpensive and will do the job.  And it's cute.  And pink. 

And how can you not love "cute and pink"?

Having Fun . . .

I'm trying to get our photobook done this week so I can get it ordered and (for once?) not have to expedite ship it to get it in time for Christmas.  Since it is our major gift for just about everyone in our families, I won't post it on here until after Christmas.  But I just did this quick set of pages for our Disneyland trip and I had fun.  So I'm sharing them :)

 
My plan is this: a set of pages for each month and a set of pages for each trip we took this year.  I'm done with January -October as far as photos and backgrounds (and some titles).  I'm done with a few months worth of very brief, fragmented journaling.  I'm done with all of our trips.  I'm done with the cover and the title page.

If I get completely done in the next couple of days, I'd think about adding a set of pages or just a page for each of us - a couple of photos, favorite things/memories/etc. from the year.  But that would be a bonus and may not happen.  I am slightly annoyed to once again be doing a January - November book, so in theory, I may start it from last December, but then again, I may not!

My other hang-up?

Every other year, I do a book through MyPublisher.  They are 8.5x11" or something like that.  This year I am doing a 12x12" Shutterfly book for us and an 8x8" for family members.  I'm a little whacked about it being different.  About not being able to line them up on the shelf with the last four year's worth of books.  I mean, I can line them up, but they'll be different.  And it's bugging me.

But I'll get over it.

Run, Do Not Walk . . .

to see The Blind Side.

I cannot remember the last time I saw a movie that was so outstanding.  It was uplifting, yet there were moments of huge tension.  I had seen bits and pieces of the previews, so I knew that it looked good, but I had no idea just howgood.  The casting was dead-on.  At the end of the movie, there was a montage of pictures from the real-life Mike Oher, and it bowled me over how well Sandra Bullock played the part.  It looks like they upgraded the physical appearance of the father, but come on, who can't appreciate a little Tim McGraw eye candy?  He was a phenomenal actor and really pulled it off with Sandra Bullock.  They were great together.  Let's put it this way, it kept me glued to my seat throughout the entire movie, even after THREE margaritas and a diet Coke!  I almost died, but wasn't willing to miss anything!

But seriously.  I cannot recommend this movie enough.  We will take Dylan back to see it as well.  They did a fabulous job of making it a very-compelling date-night movie, while still allowing it to speak to a tween/teen audience.  Kudos!

And now, onto a craft show, photo shoot, building a bed (more on that tomorrow), cleaning the house and our early Thanksgiving dinner at my Gram's.  It's going to be a full and great day!