No Time For Telvision

This summer I was a slug. I had to lay down a lot, so I ended up watching a lot of television. I think I've seen every episode of "House Hunters" on HGTV. I could feel my mind turning to mush. Now that I am feeling better and the proud mama of three kids, I hardly have time to turn on the TV. Our TV is the 19" basic model we got 9 years ago when we were married, so it's not too tempting anyway, but I'm surprised at how television has exited my life, and how I don't mind it so much. There are a few shows I will continue watching, but I think I'm over my love affair with HGTV. I know Kyle will be happy to hear that! And with Jillian having to get on the bus at 8:30 am, the kids are watching less TV too. Nothing makes me feel more guilty than knowing my kids have watched too much TV. Silly, I know, since Kyle spent a good chunk of his childhood watching TV and playing video games, and he turned out alright. So if you ask me if I'm watching "Heroes", or "House", or the latest installment of "Survivor", chances are I will say no, and I'll feel good about it.

Amy

Three thoughts

1. Some things never change, but my kids are growing up too fast. Jillian is in 1st grade now, and I feel like I am reliving my childhood. She's come home to tell me how the boys chase the girls at recess and try to kiss them (my favorite 1st grade recess game), sings the same silly rhymes I sang (eenie meenie and the like), and had someone tell her boys have cooties, but had to ask me what cooties are. She's also so independent: gone at school most of the day, then outside with friends after school, walking to piano by herself, and having the nerve to tell me she's going to wear what she wants and I'd better not ask her to change. (I did remind her who's in charge.) I feel like I'll blink and she'll be a 5'10" 16 year-old trying to wheedle money and the car keys from me. She'll be tall, thin, beautiful (always beautiful to me!) and I'll wish my six year-old back. The one who's a little clumsy, has the big-front-tooth syndrome of kids her age, the one who calls me mama.

2. I was out running tonight, trying to do some sprint intervals, when I rounded the corner and saw a gorgeous sunset framed by trees showing off their fall foliage. I gasped (well, I was already gasping due to the sprint) and thought "I love my life." I love staying home with my kids, emailing Kyle during the middle of the day (we haven't caught on to texting, although we IM), making good healthy food for my family, chatting with my friends on the phone, trying new things, snuggling Kara, and having occasional moments that take my breath away.

3. Kids are amazing. Their ability to learn is phenomenal. Spend just a little time teaching kids and they will run with their new knowledge and confidence. I've been working with Hayden on reading this week, and he's taking off with it. He read a little book today that went something like this: Mat. Sam. Mat sat. Sam sat. Mat sat on Sam. Sam sat on Mat. Mat sat. Sam sat. The end. He sounded out all the words ( I helped with some vowel sounds), and was so proud to have read a book by himself. Watching that "aha" moment in his head when he realized he could read reminded me what I love, and miss, about being a teacher. I'm glad I can teach my kids at home.

Well, there you have it. Three thoughts. Hope they're worth something.

Amy

I know what's up with that!

On Friday night we went out to eat at a restaurant I usually enjoy. It is called Culver's. It is a more upscale fast food restaurant, with great burgers, fries, frozen custard (a creamier version of soft serve ice cream), and also great service. It is a treat to go there and I was looking forward to it. Well, I started losing my appetite when I noticed that every woman in the restaurant was overweight. In the 45 minutes we were there I counted just two women, besides me and the teenage girls who worked there, would would be considered of normal weight. It was a busy night and there were lots of people in and out. Seeing the size of the customers had such an impact on me that I didn't get any ice cream for dessert. The impact wore off a few hours later and I had some at home, though. Anyway, just a little wake up call that I probably shouldn't indulge in Culver's burgers or other food like it very often. Maybe we should go to a vegetarian restaurant next time. Wonder what the women there would look like.

Amy

Another Haydenism

This one is quick. We were in the car for a drive on Friday night. We were all listening to the radio, singing along to the songs we knew, and generally enjoying one another's company. An 80's song by Rick Astley came on, "Never Gonna Give You Up." Here are the lyrics:

We're no strangers to love
You know the rules and so do I
A full commitment's what I'm thinking of
You wouldn't get this from any other guy

I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling
Gotta make you understand

Never gonna give you up
Never gonna let you down
Never gonna run around and desert you
Never gonna make you cry
Never gonna say goodbye
Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

And on it goes. Well, when we got to the store and turned off the car, Hayden said, "Mom, that guy isn't going to do anything. He's not going to cry, or tell a lie, or anything." And then he went on is way. I thought it was so funny he was paying attention to the lyrics. I'd better watch what I listen to!

Amy

My Year's Supply

For a long time my church has advocated having a year's supply of food and an ample supply of water in case of natural disaster, extended time without a job, or the apocalypse. Now even the US government has issued better preparedness guidelines. Well, I've been working on my year's supply of jam, and I'm finally finished. I started in June with strawberry, and ended yesterday with mixed berry (strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, and blackberry) and raspberry. I can feel calm and assured that should a tornado strike Michigan and leave me with no way to go to Kroger, I will have approximately 30 pints of jam in my freezer and on my shelf. I'm sure it goes well with wheat kernels and dried beans, right? I also have some blueberry syrup to eat over our cornmeal and water patties we'll cook on our camp stove in the basement if there's an ice storm. See, I'm prepared. My 72-hour kit still has diapers in it from when Jillian was a baby, but never fear! Kara can use them now. And until the end of the world comes, I'll just enjoy the jam with this yummy homemade bread. If you come visit I'll share!

Amy

PS -- I got stung by a bee while picking raspberries. I didn't think anything of it at first. Now, two days later, my arm is still swollen and red in an area the size of my palm. Yikes!

Not-so-easy off, but the oven's clean!

Opening the door, the greasy abyss looms before me. I cringe to see the charred remains of pizza, cookies, bread, and countless other unrecognizable food bits sticking to the ceiling, walls, and sides of the oven. With gloves on and courage in my heart, I attack the grime. This, my friends, is a dirty job . . .

It occurred to me not long ago that we've lived in our current abode for three years and I've never cleaned the oven. I remember thinking about it sometime last year, but was dismayed to find it was not a self-cleaning oven. Six months later I finally remembered to buy oven cleaner, which I promptly placed under the sink to forget about. Well, I finally did it! I cleaned the oven. It took over an hour, partly due to the layers of grease I had to wipe away, and partly due to Kara, who cried every 5 minutes. I think it still needs more work, but it's going to be some time before I'm in the mood to tackle that job again.

Speaking of dirty jobs, there's an interesting show by that name on the Discovery Channel. The host, Mike Rowe, is pretty funny, and it will make your current job seem positively dreamy. It will also take away your appetite, so don't watch it while eating. You've been warned! Hopefully you've also been inspired to clean your own oven, or whatever dirty appliance your house holds. I did the fridge and the microwave last week. Next week, the windowsills.

Amy

PS -- You may wonder why I'm writing about something as mundane as cleaning the oven. Well, this blog is about my life, and for better or worse, my life includes things like cleaning the oven. Also, I was trying to make cleaning the oven seem somewhat interesting. You can let me know if I succeeded. Happy reading!

From the Mouth of Hayden

Hayden is known for saying and doing funny and cute things. Sometimes Kyle's sister Jill calls up and says "tell me something funny that Hayden has said." I like to think of them as Haydenisms. Tonight he went outside after dinner and was trying to run faster than his friend who was on a bike. Suddenly the door flung open and Hayden burst in, cheeks flushed. "Mom!", he said, "My heart is beating. In my chest!" He was enthralled with the fact that he could feel his heart beating in his chest. He went back outside and then came in again to tell us his heart was again beating. He told me, Kyle, and Jillian, and even offered to let us feel his heart beating in his chest. I didn't have the heart (no pun intended) to tell him his heart is always beating in his chest. He is so cute!

As a bonus, Kara is one month today. She is growing so big. And I got all three kids to bed by 8:30pm tonight. And I ran almost 4 miles. It's been a good day.

Amy

What's Up With That?

Here's the first of what may become a regular feature on my blog. Let me start by saying I am typing on Kyle's teensy tiny Sony Vaio laptop. This thing is about 10 inches long. Okay, maybe 12. It makes me feel like I have sausage fingers typing on it. So I'm sorry for any typos I don't catch. It would be kind of funny to post this as I typed it, because it's not turning out too well.

Okay, back to the point. "What's Up With That" will be my little way to complain or vent about something in society that is bugging me. My first entry is about dialing wrong numbers. Twice now I have mistakenly called someone I don't know from my cell phone with bad results. Once it was because I had my sister's old number in my phone. This sister of mine changes her phone number about every four months, so you can see why I might not have the latest one. Well, the not-so-kind young man who now has that number gave me a thorough tongue-lashing, complete with expletives, and told me never to call him again. Duh! Like I meant to call him in the first place. Another time I mis-dialed (or had the wrong number) and got someone's voice mail. When I realized I didn't know who I was calling, I hung up. This person (another young male) called me back and wanted to know who I was and why I was calling him. Sheesh! And so I say, what's up with that? Are you not allowed to make a mistake? I bring this up to ask all of you readers out there (the 4 or 5 of you) to please be kind if anyone mistakenly calls you. It can happen to the best of us.

Amy

A Philosophical Question

Is it inherently wrong to watch NBC's "The Biggest Loser" while eating a bowl of double fudge brownie ice cream? And is it a little bit less of a bad thing if the ice cream is half the fat? Just curious!

I like to watch the first episode of "The Biggest Loser" and then not watch for a few weeks. It's fun to see how much weight people lose. One guy lost 31 pounds in one week. That is amazing. I need a reality TV show for people who need to lose 10 pounds. Let me know if you hear of one.

Amy

Back to School - - and Kara is 3 weeks old!

Jillian started first grade this week. She told me the names of the kids in her class. The roster reads like a UN assembly. I can't even begin to spell the names she told me. One is Abeebsa, phonetically. Jillian gets a big kick out of that one for some reason. She is not in the same class with most of her neighborhood friends, but seems to be doing well. Her teacher is quite experienced teaching first grade, so I'm sure she will learn a lot. It's kind of sad to have her gone all day. Hayden has been really bored. Luckily he starts preschool four afternoons a week this week. He is so excited to ride the bus. His teacher Marifran, who taught Jillian two years ago, came to our house to visit Hayden this week. She is great! If you're paying attention, all of this school going means that I am home alone with Kara four afternoons a week while both kids are at their respective schools. Yeah for me!

Kara is three weeks old this weekend and smiles only for her father. We've decided she looks most like Jill, Kyle's sister, and Emma, Kyle's niece. Here are a few pictures of her for you to see. She's already changing and growing. Her hair seems to be lightening, and her skin is definitely fair. We are growing to love her name (I think it takes awhile to get used to calling a baby by a name), and like to say "Kara Jane."

Anyway, nothing profound in this post, just a few pictures.

Amy

Back In the Saddle Again

I had a plan, and my plan was foiled . . . or so I thought! But I'm getting ahead of myself here. Let's go back to May 2007 . . .

I was running. I was also pregnant. My plan was to keep active my whole pregnancy, although I realized I wouldn't be able to keep running the whole time. I was also doing weight training and sit ups. Then I was put on modified bedrest. I spent most of June, July, and August sitting or laying down, trying hard not to consume too many wasted calories. (Have I mentioned my favorite food is ice cream??)

Then Kara was born. (So cute! So big! Such a good eater!) The pounds (at least the first 20) melted off in two weeks, and I was feeling pretty good. And now, I'm running again. (Cue music from Chariots of Fire.) Now, mind you, I'm running slowly enough to watch the grass grow, but I am shuffling my feet in a running motion. I've been out three times now, and yesterday I ran a mile and a half (half of a 5k!) without stopping. I ran a total of 2.7 miles. Not too shabby for having a baby three weeks ago, but pitiful next to all my marathon-training friends.

Oh well, there's a time and a season for everything, and this is my season to huff and puff and try to get back in running shape! I may run a 5.7 mile race at the end of October if I can convince Darling Husband to go on a road trip to Mackinac Island. I've also done some sit-ups and weights, to the chagrin of my atrophied muscles. But just you weight, er, wait. I'll post a new picture soon and I hope you will be amazed. And I cut 4 inches off my hair. Do you think that weighed half a pound? Just kidding!

Amy

Blessedness

I just finished a book by Alexander McCall Smith. The library coded this book as a mystery; there is even a little "mystery" label on the spine of the book. For a good three-fourths of the book the most mysterious thing was the lack of mystery in the story. However, there was a wonderful passage I am going to quote and then comment on. I've been thinking about it all week. On a funny tangent, I read The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by the same author a few years ago. I didn't love the book. I read the author's name as "Alexandra" for some reason (perhaps because the book was about a woman). Needless to say I was shocked to find a picture of said author on the back of this book, The Careful Use of Compliments. Mr. Smith is a very jaunty Scottish man, bespectacled and wearing a kilt! Anyway, you can't judge an author by his name, especially if you misread the name. On to the passage:

I am blessed, and being blessed is something more than just having something; it is a state of mind in which the good of the world is illuminated, is understood. It is as if one is vouchsafed a vision of some sort, she [Isabel, the main character] thought, a vision of love, of agape, of the essential value of each and every living thing.

For a moment, Isabel stood stock-still. There were vegetables on the board before here, ready for the knife, but she did not move; her hand was arrested in its movement, motionless. She was aware of a physical sensation, a sort of rushing within her and around her, a current, which seemed to fill her with warmth. She closed her eyes and, oddly, there was no darkness, just light; it was as if she were bathed in light both within and without.

She opened her eyes again. The ordinary material world was there, the vegetables, the sink, the unopened bottle of wine, the recipe book lying open a the page to which she had turned . . . everything. She breathed. The warmth, the feeling of suffusion had gone, and she felt that she was back in the same place . . . But she felt different; she felt that the world had suddenly become infinitely more precious to her. It was that simple, perhaps; there was just more love within her.

Where to begin! I love the masterful use of semicolons. I love the light imagery. Reading this passage made me think about the times, both recently and past, that I have felt this very way. Having Kara join our family made me feel this heightened sense of life and blessedness. Being done with the trial of pregnancy made me feel like life was more precious. I have felt, simply, more love within me at certain times. Another way to describe it would be an awareness and deep appreciation and satisfaction with the universe and my role in it. I know it sounds rather metaphysical or mystical, and maybe it is.

Last summer when we were camping in Petoskey, Michigan (home of the famous Petoskey stone), we (me, Kyle, Jillian, and Hayden) went down to the beach to watch the sunset. We perched our little family on a small sand dune. The wind was light and blew the grasses around. The kids ran up and down the dunes, laughing and playing, enjoying the new environment and the un-ending sand box. Kyle and I sat together and watched the water lap up against the shoreline of that particular part of Lake Michigan. I looked behind us and saw against the sky the moon, not full, but rising splendidly in the sky. Ahead of us was the lake, with the sun sinking down to the horizon. It wasn't a spectacular sunset, but the moment was truly awesome. I leaned my head back and saw the curvature of the earth, the moon, the sun, the water. I was with the people I love most in the world. It felt as though time stopped, sighed contentedly, and then began again. I felt blessed. I was glad to be reminded of times I have felt the state of blessedness as I read this book.

Amy