FRIDAY FAVES!!

Well friends, we made it through an entire week without more snow!  Woo hoo!!  All our beautiful, fluffy stuff is melting into yucka, brown slush.  Blah.  I am super energized though about the sunshine!

Below are my faves from around the interweb this week.  Enjoy!

FAVE FASHION

Although not suitable for work, I am SUPER excited to don this outfit this weekend at the annual St. Patrick's Day Westport Run!  Don't you think I should win best costume??  I do!  I am very unhappy though that hubs won't match me.  Oh well... a girl can't have EVERYTHING she wants.

FAVE NEW FURNITURE

It's been MANY years since we've had a traditional coffee table.  I'm thinking of making my own.  Preferably from reclaimed barn wood.  Yes, I'm THAT kind of person.  I think this is perfect for me.

FAVE REMINDER

Everyone that knows me closely will totally get this.  I am VERY slow to forgive.  I'm a Scorpio, what can I say.  And I just so happen to use the term bat-shit crazy almost every single day of my life.  Perfect for me.  This totally helped me with all the drama my ex caused in our family.

 

FAVE DESTINATION

Sign me up.  Bora Bora.  I don't even know where that is but I simply don't care.  Take me there, NOW (please).

FAVE MONTH (right now)

I love March.  The beginning of Spring.  Moving the clocks forward.  Cold but sunny, a gentle reminder of things to come.

FAVE CRAFTY ITEM

I think I need to try this.  I love this neckline and supposedly this isn't hard to do out of old shirts.  I have lots of long sleeve ones that are really a more summer weight so I'm thinking this could do the trick!  Sorry I can't tag the "to do", the blog link isn't working at this time.

 

FAVE GOAL SETTER

Okay, I often struggle with staying on task.  I'm sure you are shocked right now.  Really though - I just tend to jump from thought to thought.  Apparently it takes 21 days to make something a habit, tricking your mind into doing something routine.  I love this easy reminding system of staying on goal - a daily post it to rip off and put in the trash once completed.

I

 

 

FAVE TECH GADGET

I need these for little guy, badly.  We are both music lovers and constantly competing for volume control in my house.  Typically I have either the tablet, the laptop or my iPhone on a docking system playing music (or the surround sound).  In addition, he is blaring something from his iTouch.  Too much!!  These he could take to any room, plug in and away he goes.  Gotta get them!

 

FAVE MUNCHIE

I've found my next gathering snack.  YUMMO!  Check out these bad boys!  Click here for the recipe----->  Mozzarella Cheese Buns

 

FAVE MOTIVATOR

All I usually need to do to get my fitness goals back on track is tape a picture much like the one below to my mirror at home.  If I stand naked in front of said mirror for 5 minutes staring at the picture, I want to make change.

Here is my newest motivation.  Yep, this will get me closer!  Thank God I'm running a 4 mile race this weekend to get me going!

Have a great Friday, friends!

Jen

Picasso will be Jealous

Pray for me.  The painting officially starts this weekend.

I'm so glad I didn't push myself to get our for sale sign in the yard ahead all this snow.  I would have killed myself trying to keep everything clean with all of us being homebound so much over the last few weeks.

I'm excited that our weekends are open for me to begin.  I'm anxious for the snow to melt and Spring to arrive.  I'm so ready to get on with our next journey.

No doubt though I'm afraid.  I'm afraid of the process entirely.  I worried every second we listed our last house (even though it sold in 12 days).  I'm nervous about keeping this house clean every second of every day... not that we live like slobs or anything.  It's just a lot of house to mess with.  I'm still worried about the market even though most people I know swear it's rebounded.  I'm worried about all the new builds in my 'hood that we will undoubtedly need to compete with a bit.

What I'm not worried about?  The next house.  What comes next.  Everyone I talk with seems to focus on that component most.  "Where will you go?" seems to be the most common concern.

No concern, friends.  We won't go far as we are determined to keep little guy in the high school district we are aligned.  But we will go smaller.  Maybe a little older, like us.  And definitely more modest, I'm sure.

As I strive to find the perfect 550 sq ft home for us, hubs takes deep breaths.  He is not ready for that downsize whatsoever.  I know I'm not either.  But man... I wish I could.  If it were up to me we'd be living in an Airstream already. 

It's funny when you set your mind to something it becomes all consuming.  I am so determined to live minimally yet I'm sure when I start to throw, donate or remove items from my house I'll freak out a little bit.  I've kept every piece of artwork that Bubba has ever drawn (two pieces actually hang in my house still).  I have every sports jersey little guy has ever worn (in ALL sports).  Little guy has a second bedroom (his hang out) with trophies scattered everywhere on shelves.  Heck, even hubs has an entire shelf in his closet dedicated to the boy's football helmets they have worn.

Lord help us.

My need to hang onto my kid's stuff is simple:  I have literally NOTHING from my childhood.  Not a damn thing.  No papers.  No yearbooks (until high school).  Very few pictures, even.  No fave toys or special baby clothes.  Nope, nothing.  So I hang onto everything for my boys.... just in case.

It's easy for me to downsize material objects like plates, cups, sheets, towels, etc.  Not so much with sentimental items, like the kid's artwork.  And then of course are my decor items.  I think if we are still in the house by this summer this may be the largest garage sale on the planet.  I am CERTAIN we won't need ALL of these items in our next house!

Several friends have asked about little guy and what he thinks.  Sure, he would probably prefer not to move.  But he also has a bit of his momma inside him and is ready for a change, a new adventure.  He is confident of change because he knows his support system will remain the same.

At least I will be balancing out my body pains.  Along with the painting, hubs and I are running our March race.  Another 4-miler!  Now my arms AND legs can hurt together!

Onward march to the final two days of the week!

Jen

WINNERS!

The season is complete.  2013 USSSA Kansas/Missouri Division 1 State Champs.  Wowzers.

Little guy has had quite a year of sports.  We were tournament champs in baseball as well, something we had never gotten but had always wanted as a team.  But even with that experience one is never quite prepared for the event to occur.

Our weekend was a flurry of emotion.  We played two games on Saturday, being defeated in both.  As we went to bed Saturday night, little guy was worried.  I tried to console him - they were prepared as best as possible for the upcoming final game.  The Coaches had given them everything they needed.  It now needed to come from within.

Yes, he is competitive.  Yes, he does care about winning and losing.  He recognizes only one can win and one will lose.  It empowers him to dig to his core and work from his heart.  It teaches him perseverance.  Never give up.  And no... I'm not a fond believer in participation medals.  There, I said it.

His true test came in the final game.  With 20 seconds to go, he went on the line to shoot two.  No pressure or anything.  We were down by 2.  Ugh.  I wanted to throw up, literally throw up.  I couldn't watch - but I had to watch.

Swish.
Swish.

Both dropped beautifully like he had practice a thousand times.  He was visably nervous but he worked through it somehow.  I'd like to think his love of the game deep in his soul was engaged at that very moment, keeping him as relaxed as possible.

Our ball, foul at 13 seconds of our best shooter.  Missed the first, hit the second.

Time expired.  We won by 1 point.  ONE POINT.  The perfect reason to never give up.

After playing four games in two days burning roughly 3,500 calories, little guy collapsed into bed that night.  He wondered if Coach was sleeping with our trophy.  He thought maybe his friend D was sleeping with his MVP trophy.  He should... he deserved it.

I always get a little bit nervous about transitions in sports.  It's hard to move forward after a season like we just had.  It's a weird let down feeling to know it's over.

What did the boys do last night?  Set up the basement with little guy's pitching mound.  Placed all of his baseball gear downstairs.  And started conditioning.

One day out from basketball.  Guess I didn't need to worry after all.

Have a great Tuesday, friends.  I hope you feel as successful as these little guys did on Sunday!

Jen

No Tattling Here!

Do you have a secret?  Or two, perhaps?  Does anyone know your secret or do you bury it deep down inside?  How long can it stay a secret... infinity?

I have a couple of secrets.  I keep them to myself as I have promised I would do.  It's impossible some days.  Not because I need to share, necessarily.  But because I CAN'T share.  Big difference.  I presume it's similar to having your hands cuffed behind your back (not that I would know anything about that) and not being able to move.  Restrained.  Ugh.  Pretty much the opposite of the way I live my life.

What I think is fascinating about secrets is that they can be VERY consuming.  Eat up a ton of one's attention, at times.  And Scorpio's, by nature, have a LOT of secrets.

Now before your brain heads to the gutter, secrets are not always bad.  Some of my secrets are quite good, actually.  Some of them are buried family secrets that are not to be shared.  And some of them are future plans for others that I am not ready to share just yet.

Reminds me of being a kid on the playground.... "I know something you don't know".  

Of course you can never, ever say that.  Because once you do, the pressure to tell can be IMMENSE.  Peeps will push you and push you to spill the beans, making it that much harder to hold down.

Having a secret or two can also be quite a powerful feeling.  It gives us a feeling of knowledge, superiority.

The downside?  It's lonely.  Secret holding is always lonely.  It defeats the very nature in us to share our experiences with others.

Cheers today to all my friends and your secrets.  May you have strength to maintain them, keep them close and not feel compelled to share.  I pray none of them consume you negatively.  If they do, attempt to resolve them and get them outta your mind so you can focus on the real.

Have a great Monday, secret holders!
Jen

Clear as Mud

No matter the temps, when the sun shines on my face and the wind holds still, my runs often turn profound.

Yesterday was no exception.

Some of my non-runner friends ask me why I run.  They, too, hear me complain sometimes about my ankles (which still hurt from Warrior Dash but I refuse to give in to them).  They think I'm crazy, most likely.  "Why run unless someone is chasing you?" they often ask.

The answer for me is simple.  Clarity.  I run for clarity.  

For me, it's the perfect outlet.  It's free.  I can do it whenever I want, even at night.  I can go as long as I want or as short as I'd like.  I can run super sonic fast (which for me is about a 10 minute mile) or I can trod along slow and steady.

I start every run the same.  The first .5 is arduous for me, no matter how well conditioned I am.  I fight my mind listing all of the things I really need to be doing at that very moment.  It is really a test for me - to continue on the path I've chosen or slip back into status quo.  Very challenging.

Once I crest that first half mile, I ease into familiarity.  I usually thank God about this time.  EVERY SINGLE RUN.  I thank him for giving me a body that still can move, regardless of how fast or pretty.  I thank Him for the ability to breathe freely.  I thank Him for the days events that I'm about to endure (or for what I have enjoyed).  And then... I start talking.  Figuratively, of course.  Or I'm sure my neighbs would turn me into Two Rivers for talking excessively while running through the 'hood.

I ponder my big stuff, work through my big goals and ask myself a lot of "what if" questions.  Never forgetting that God is still hanging out with me, I ask him to help me have clarity when I am confused.  Help me see what I'm missing.  Make my opportunities a bit more clear for me.

I've usually solved the worlds problems by mile 2 1/2.  Well, my own, anyway.

What I don't think about my runs?  The electric bill.  My broken dishwasher.  That I forgot to email my sister back.  Nope, none of the small stuff in my world that will be waiting when I reach my doorstep.

I don't let that stuff in.  EVER.  Because it clouds me.  It surrounds me all the time and keeps me from seeing my bigger picture.  Although important, it clouds my judgement on my future.  I check it all at the door as I am confident it will be there when I get back.

It always is.

So now that I've given the $64,000 answer to why I run, I have one for you.  Where do you find your space to ponder your future?  When do you have silence to experience free thinking without interruption, without the cloud of your daily tasks?  How often do you think of your future, the future of your family, the future of your children?

March is the beginning of our beautiful Spring in Kansas City.  Albeit not typically under 30 inches of snow, our skies turn blue, the sun begins to shine and things begin anew.  It's a fantastic season of change which always sparks something within me.  A running club I follow has expended a challenge - run every day in March.  Makes it a little challenging for me with the snow but yesterday was absolutely perfect.

I can't wait to get on the road today.  I've got a lot of journey left to think about.

Have a great Sunday, friends!

Jen

Post up, Little Guy!

It's hard to believe this is our final weekend of basketball.  It's also hard to quantify the immense growth our little guy has experienced in just a few short months.

A zillion, times infinity.

Youth athletics are a tricky minefield to maneuver.  I'm sure all of my similarly situated friends could attest.  They are political - way more than one would assume a youth program would be.  Not only can coaches and organizations be ruthless when it comes to scouting, requesting and placing kiddos, parents can be equally maniacal.  They scream at the coach when we are winning because we didn't have enough challenge.  They scream at them when we lose because we were unfairly matched.

And don't even get me started on the officiating.

For our little guy though, sports life continues to just be pretty easy for him.  He was invited to try out for a team and he made it.  It turned out to be a perfect fit, both in coaching and in organization.  We were challenged, sometimes significantly, but the cost was definitely worth the price.  I have literally NEVER seen this much growth in this short of time in the little guy in any sport his entire life.  It makes me so proud to have witnessed it.

This has been his 6th year of basketball.  He has always been the tallest kid on his team... every single year.  Mind you not necessarily the "biggest" kid, but definitely the tallest.  As such, he has been thrown to Center with minimal instruction.  I've stood next to his coaches as they shouted "Put your hands straight in the air, Cooper.  Catch the ball, pivot and throw it out."

A seemingly easy job for a kid that was always 2 to 3 inches taller than everyone else.  Oh, with a massive wingspan, I might add.

As a result, he never learned any true skill to the position.  He didn't learn to box out because his hands reached the ball before anyone else.  He didn't need to learn to post up because he could catch the ball over everyone's heads.  He didn't learn much footwork or really ball handling other than the basics. 

And now?  It's night and day.  I can't even believe he is the same kid.  Granted he isn't signing in the NBA anytime soon but the improvement is significant.  Both of our Coaches took a dedicated interest in catching Coop up to the rest of the team, pushing him to perfect the fundamentals of his position.  And then they did the best thing ever for him:  they played us up.  The majority of our games were against 6th graders.  Some of these tweens resembled 27 year olds.  It was the perfect challenge for little guy since he could no longer just put his hands in the air.

Although we have averaged 8 games or so each basketball season for the past 5 years, I now see what 50+ games will give a kid.  Sure, it sounds like a lot.  But it's amazing what our kid's can endure when they LOVE something.

And LOVE it he does.  I've even heard him murmur that he now loves basketball more than football.  Shhhhh... we didn't tell Hubs.

I'm sure it will change in about two months when we start baseball, the next love of his life.

Better than girls!

Have a great Saturday, friends!

Jen

FRIDAY FAVES!!

After another round of snow, I'm seriously about finished with all this.  A desert seems just fine for me.  I can totally relate to "a dry hot".

I'm not one to complain in the summer about how hot it reaches.  I love the sun, the warmth on my face, the smell of coconut sunscreen and chlorine.  I love the long days, the warm evenings in shorts and a tank top.

Bring it on!

I'm so ready for warmth!

Below are my faves for the week.  Some are oldies I saved awhile back but nonetheless stayed in my faves files.  Enjoy!

FAVE LOUNGER

Okay, I still love to lay out in the sun.  I will never get sick of it, quite frankly.  All things in moderation!  My skin loves the extra doses of Vitamin D.  I screamed when I came across this lounger.  What an amazing concept!  I hate rickety old chairs that my butt falls through, so this would totally fix that.

Gotta have it!

FAVE REMINDER

Love this.  Love, love.  My entire life is an adventure but I recognize those things that scare me and hold me back.  I need to remind myself of this!

FAVE YUMMO

During one of our umpteen snow days, I stumbled upon this recipe and decided to give it a try.  I totally disbelieved you could make cake in a mug.  I was WRONG!  This recipe is SO easy and SO yummy for a quick dessert for the kids!  I sprinkled little guy's cake with chocolate chips so that made it even better.  Give it a try!  Click here for the recipe ----->  Peanut Butter Mug Cake

FAVE SPOT TO EAT

In my quest of trying to think outside of the four walls of my house, I love little ideas such as this.  Perfect little spot that takes up virtually NO room in the structure but allows for a quick bite to eat on a pretty morning (or afternoon).  I love it!  Yet another reason Missouri just may not fit as my final destination....

FAVE COMFIES

Ah... I gotta have these. RIGHT NOW.  I'm on a hunt.  These look like the perfect addition to my comfy and functional workout wardrobe.  Yep, gotta have them!

FAVE NOTICE

Little guy stared at the computer awaiting the cancellation notices the past two weeks.  School has been out 4 days here, on top of a long 4 day Presidents weekend.  It seems as though he's been home more than he's went lately.  So I couldn't help myself when I came across this notice.

FAVE SWEET

I've been reading a bit lately about how bad artificial sweeteners are for our bodies.  Of course that hasn't stopped the fact I consume about 10 packets a day between my coffee consumption and oatmeal.  Yikes!  I do love honey though as a sweetener and when I came across this company I couldn't resist.  How cool is this packaging?  I have no idea of the quality yet but I'm going to order some to see!

FAVE DESTINATION

Hubs is not a giant fan of France but I'm pretty sure I could drag him there if this place was included on the itinerary.  Beautiful.  Just beautiful.

Bastia, Corsica, France

FAVE FUNNY

Okay, not so funny.  I freakin' hate passwords!  None of them are ever the same structure, forcing us to create crazy combinations that we will never be able to recall.

FAVE FUR KID

I love my fur grandkid.  He's so damn ugly that he's cute.  How fitting is this?!

FAVE FASHION

I love white and brown together, so this is perfect.  I still can't wear white in the winter though.  I guess mom's advice stuck finally!

Happy Friday, friends!  Enjoy your weekend!  We're off to our final basketball tourney of the season.  Go Victory Gunners!
Jen