Well, another year down and a new one yet to come. You know, I'm kind of glad I started doing these because each year I go back and look at what had happened the year before. Some of it is kind of like, "Oh, yeah! I forgot about that!" Other aspects are like, "Aww, I remember that!" Then I look at my goals for the next year and I'm like, "Oh...yeesh! That didn't get done."
So here's the recap of last year:
1. Mike got a new job much closer to home. The hours are a little crumby, but it's better than his old job.
2. Jake turned two! He's growing up so much. He's using almost full sentences now. His favorite things are fire trucks, cars, trucks, tractors, "Curious George," "Fireman Sam," "Bob the Builder," "Sesame Street," and his Ruff (dog blanket toy). He knows how to count to thirteen and he knows all his letters (though don't ask him to sing the alphabet because it won't be in order!). We're working on potty training, though it's going slowly.
3. The WHOLE family got together down at the beach and had a BLAST!!!
4. I quit my job. It was kind of a hard decision, as I really did love where I worked and the people I worked with, but I really wanted to be home with Jake and in the end it actually helps save us some money.
5. Because I quit my job, I've extended my grooming business to during the week now and have gotten a bunch of great new clients.
6. We have two new additions to our family (as of a couple days ago!). We love you, Kristen and Jacob and congratulations Kristen and Jimmy!
7. There's some other good news, however I'm not allowed to say anything as of yet. I may make an amendment to this later.
For the coming year:
1. Hopefully Jake will be potty trained fully.
2. I think I say this every year, but I do want to lose weight. As of right now I am 262. I'm putting this on here so that I can look back next year and compare.
I can't really think of anything else right now. Yeah, I don't have a bunch of goals for next year, but we'll see what happens. Anybody have any goals or resolutions for themselves?
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
(Mary) Did You Know?
Year after year at Christmas, I see or hear people talk about "putting Christ back in Christmas." Yes, where that's a nice sentiment, and yes He is the reason for the season, but what people don't realize is our traditions actually weren't originally centered around Christ. Did you know that it took over 300 years to decide what day to celebrate Jesus' birth? (No, Jesus wasn't born on December 25th and we didn't miraculously remember it all these years.) In fact, according to Roman records, the census that Mary and Joseph had to participate in typically happened in the springtime. The real reason we celebrate on December 25th is because the Catholic Church wanted to offset the pagan celebration of the winter solstice.
As for traditions, did you realize that the celebration of Christmas was actually banned for quite some time, even when America was "discovered" (think about that before you say United States was founded on religion...it was founded on religious FREEDOM, the freedom to worship how you wanted, but not as a religion-based country). Think of the song "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Now think of the lines, "Bring us some figgy pudding" and "Won't go until we get some." Those aren't polite requests. Tradition of medieval times was to loot and raid and have one long, continuous party. Carolers weren't groups of people with sometimes questionable musical talents. They may have sung a tune or two, but that was only to get you to the door to demand refreshments and gifts. And don't even think about dodging them like Jehovah's Witnesses...if you didn't come to the door, they took it as a sign that no one was home and would break in and raid your home. Christmas of the olden days was full of madness and mayhem, and almost NOTHING to do with Christ. It wasn't until Queen Victoria embraced her husband's German customs of family and children for all to see that people calmed down and thought about things more important than getting drunk (though it seems many people still feel a "holiday" is an excuse to go all out).
A final thought...some Christians today get very upset over the term Xmas (I'm not bashing Christians, I'm just letting you know if you didn't know this as I did...or didn't...know, that is). They say that it's people being lazy and not wanting to write out the word Christmas or that it is non-believers wanting to go through the motions of celebrating the holiday but by leaving Jesus out of it. In some cases this may be true. But in truth the joke is on them. By using the term Xmas, they are actually leaving Christ in. I didn't know this. I had started to believe the laziness or non-believer aspect as well. But I did research (you know my penchant for wanting to know obscure things) and discovered that the Greeks actually used the letter "X" to represent Christ. Early Christians then adopted this around the time when they were being jailed and killed for their beliefs to prove they were Christians. So when Christmas became official, the "X" was just incorporated.
There's many other traditions that I thought were interesting but would take you quite a while to read, so I may save those for another day.
Merry Xmas!
As for traditions, did you realize that the celebration of Christmas was actually banned for quite some time, even when America was "discovered" (think about that before you say United States was founded on religion...it was founded on religious FREEDOM, the freedom to worship how you wanted, but not as a religion-based country). Think of the song "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Now think of the lines, "Bring us some figgy pudding" and "Won't go until we get some." Those aren't polite requests. Tradition of medieval times was to loot and raid and have one long, continuous party. Carolers weren't groups of people with sometimes questionable musical talents. They may have sung a tune or two, but that was only to get you to the door to demand refreshments and gifts. And don't even think about dodging them like Jehovah's Witnesses...if you didn't come to the door, they took it as a sign that no one was home and would break in and raid your home. Christmas of the olden days was full of madness and mayhem, and almost NOTHING to do with Christ. It wasn't until Queen Victoria embraced her husband's German customs of family and children for all to see that people calmed down and thought about things more important than getting drunk (though it seems many people still feel a "holiday" is an excuse to go all out).
A final thought...some Christians today get very upset over the term Xmas (I'm not bashing Christians, I'm just letting you know if you didn't know this as I did...or didn't...know, that is). They say that it's people being lazy and not wanting to write out the word Christmas or that it is non-believers wanting to go through the motions of celebrating the holiday but by leaving Jesus out of it. In some cases this may be true. But in truth the joke is on them. By using the term Xmas, they are actually leaving Christ in. I didn't know this. I had started to believe the laziness or non-believer aspect as well. But I did research (you know my penchant for wanting to know obscure things) and discovered that the Greeks actually used the letter "X" to represent Christ. Early Christians then adopted this around the time when they were being jailed and killed for their beliefs to prove they were Christians. So when Christmas became official, the "X" was just incorporated.
There's many other traditions that I thought were interesting but would take you quite a while to read, so I may save those for another day.
Merry Xmas!
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Turkey in the Straw
I was over at my parents' the other day doing some more cleaning in my old room. The day's assignment: clean out the drawers to my old vanity. There were the usual things one finds in a vanity: make-up from YEARS ago, brushes, combs, hair ribbons. There were not so usual things such as toys, three old 110mm film cameras (Chris's, Steve's, and mine), and old cards from different occasions that I had kept (Christmas, birthday, graduation). But in one drawer I had kept all my stories and essays through the years...all the way back from primary school! I went through and read them all, my favorites being the ones from primary school. I found one where there is a monster in my closet and I screamed, then mom scream, then my dad ran in with a 250 shotgun (yes, that's what I wrote) and shot and killed it. I discovered that a lot of my stories began with "Once upon a time..." or "Once there was..." and then every paragraph/page after that began with "And then..."
But, I'm here today to share with you a Thanksgiving tale from long ago. A story with love, suspense, and murder! Without further ado, I give you...
The Turkey Family
Written by: Samantha Lynn Miller
Copyright 1994 by "Cool Kids Publishing Company"
Dedicated to Mom and Dad
One day a turkey was walking with his wife and two children. As they were walking, Father Turkey smelled that danger was near. So he yelled to his family
"Run, run! I smell danger. Let's run in those woods and hide! Run!"
So the family ran over to the woods and hid.
After a while, Sister Turkey piped up and said "I think it is gone. I hope it is because I am tired of standing here."
"Me to." added Brother Turkey.
"Honey, is it gone? Because I am hungry. There are no berry bushes around here."
It is scary here. Quiet too." said Sister Turkey.
"Hush, everyone. I think it is gone."
After a while Father said "I am going to see. If I don't come back I am dead. Whatever happens, don't come out."
The father went out. There was a loud "Boom." The family never came out. But the father, in the afternoon, was being cooked for tomorows Thanksgiving dinner.
Isn't that a lovely story?
*A couple of side notes:
-In 1994 I was 8 years old and in second grade.
-"Cool Kids Publishing Company" was found in several of my stories from different years. Either I made it up, or it was something the teachers came up with and was used throughout the grades. Wherever it came from, I was apparently released from the contract when I left primary school, as nothing I did past third grade had it.
-I typed this exactly how I wrote it then, so any errors you may see are intentional.
But, I'm here today to share with you a Thanksgiving tale from long ago. A story with love, suspense, and murder! Without further ado, I give you...
The Turkey Family
Written by: Samantha Lynn Miller
Copyright 1994 by "Cool Kids Publishing Company"
Dedicated to Mom and Dad
One day a turkey was walking with his wife and two children. As they were walking, Father Turkey smelled that danger was near. So he yelled to his family
"Run, run! I smell danger. Let's run in those woods and hide! Run!"
So the family ran over to the woods and hid.
After a while, Sister Turkey piped up and said "I think it is gone. I hope it is because I am tired of standing here."
"Me to." added Brother Turkey.
"Honey, is it gone? Because I am hungry. There are no berry bushes around here."
It is scary here. Quiet too." said Sister Turkey.
"Hush, everyone. I think it is gone."
After a while Father said "I am going to see. If I don't come back I am dead. Whatever happens, don't come out."
The father went out. There was a loud "Boom." The family never came out. But the father, in the afternoon, was being cooked for tomorows Thanksgiving dinner.
Isn't that a lovely story?
*A couple of side notes:
-In 1994 I was 8 years old and in second grade.
-"Cool Kids Publishing Company" was found in several of my stories from different years. Either I made it up, or it was something the teachers came up with and was used throughout the grades. Wherever it came from, I was apparently released from the contract when I left primary school, as nothing I did past third grade had it.
-I typed this exactly how I wrote it then, so any errors you may see are intentional.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
...Up to Haunt in Their Masquerade...
With Halloween approaching, it makes me think of a little pet peeve of mine. I've heard people, especially Christians, make comments about not celebrating Halloween because they don't worship the devil or they don't recognize an "evil" holiday or they claim that Halloween is not a "holiday" because the word is derived from "holy day."
Halloween is not a day for worshipping evil or the devil or any such thing. In fact, some of the traditions are to ward OFF evil. Now, I've heard/read different origins, and yes, most of them are originally pagan, so if you want to go that route then no, it's not really Christian, I guess. But considering most traditions for any holiday begin from superstitions and paganism (yes, even Christmas traditions...but I'll touch on that probably closer to the season), why are you complaining?
The biggest tradition of Halloween I would think is dressing up. This is due to the belief that ghosts and goblins and demons and such came around to walk the Earth at this time of year. We dress up to either attempt to scare them off or blend in with them so they don't recognize us as being mortals, depending on which origin you read.
As far as it not being a holiday or "holy" day, another name for it is All Hallows' Eve or All Saints' Eve, the evening before a CHRISTIAN holiday. All Saints' Day or All Hallows' Day is a day to remember loved ones and important Christians whom have passed.
There's much more Christian influence behind this night than I could even think to write about without creating a book...plus I don't want to plagiarize, so I'll just add a link to "Halloween" via Wikipedia.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN, EVERYONE!
Halloween is not a day for worshipping evil or the devil or any such thing. In fact, some of the traditions are to ward OFF evil. Now, I've heard/read different origins, and yes, most of them are originally pagan, so if you want to go that route then no, it's not really Christian, I guess. But considering most traditions for any holiday begin from superstitions and paganism (yes, even Christmas traditions...but I'll touch on that probably closer to the season), why are you complaining?
The biggest tradition of Halloween I would think is dressing up. This is due to the belief that ghosts and goblins and demons and such came around to walk the Earth at this time of year. We dress up to either attempt to scare them off or blend in with them so they don't recognize us as being mortals, depending on which origin you read.
As far as it not being a holiday or "holy" day, another name for it is All Hallows' Eve or All Saints' Eve, the evening before a CHRISTIAN holiday. All Saints' Day or All Hallows' Day is a day to remember loved ones and important Christians whom have passed.
There's much more Christian influence behind this night than I could even think to write about without creating a book...plus I don't want to plagiarize, so I'll just add a link to "Halloween" via Wikipedia.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN, EVERYONE!
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Back to the Good Ol' Days
I recently got a chance to do some canning with my mom and soon-to-be sister-in-law. I've canned with mom before, and I love the idea of having your own fruits and veggies without all the added junk they put in things nowadays. This time we made and canned applesauce. We all sat around the dining room table and talked and peeled and chopped. It was fun and made me think of older days.
See, I've always felt I was born in the wrong era. I feel we as a people have gotten so lazy over time. What happened to the days of making your own clothes and other necessities, hunting, farming, and gathering? Yes, we still have those things, but they are few and far between. Now people want to complain about the growing obesity problem we face when they aren't doing anything to improve upon the conditions. For example: When Barack Obama first was elected into office, soon after his wife, Michelle, started her own campaign to get kids moving. Now, before I go on, I am not in any way bashing the Obamas. This is more of an observation, I guess. That being said, rumor had it that Mrs. Obama was trying to get higher taxes on cheaper and more accessible junk food so people would be more inclined to buy healthy. I don't know if that ever came to fruition or not, but I want to point out a small flaw in that plan. Yes, raising taxes on the junk food would cause it to be not as cheap and therefore a little less appetizing, so to speak. However, the healthier, fresher food is already priced sky high so people who actually would want to change eating habits wouldn't be able to do so, unless they had their own garden or small farm.
But I'm kinda getting away from the point of this entry. People are worried about the downfall of the nation. There are more poor and hungry here now than ever. But if people would start farming and learning to make their own things rather than rely on someone else, those rates may decrease. I don't know politics, I don't know economy, I don't know a lot when it comes to the country. What I do know is that technology and modernization have almost hindered us in a way. There's so many drugs out there now that, yes, they may take care of the problem, but in return give you a whole slew of new problems. Why don't we go back to natural remedies and herbs that God gave us? Those things worked quite efficiently for centuries...why did we turn away from them? All because we wanted it done faster and more conveniently.
This didn't entirely come out as I was planning, but it's been on my mind for a while. I don't know if anyone will see this or not, but this is my opinion on things. We need to go back to simpler times. There was less crime, less starvation, better education, and better morals.
Anyway...sorry, I hadn't intended for a rant, but as I said, it's been on my mind for a while.
See, I've always felt I was born in the wrong era. I feel we as a people have gotten so lazy over time. What happened to the days of making your own clothes and other necessities, hunting, farming, and gathering? Yes, we still have those things, but they are few and far between. Now people want to complain about the growing obesity problem we face when they aren't doing anything to improve upon the conditions. For example: When Barack Obama first was elected into office, soon after his wife, Michelle, started her own campaign to get kids moving. Now, before I go on, I am not in any way bashing the Obamas. This is more of an observation, I guess. That being said, rumor had it that Mrs. Obama was trying to get higher taxes on cheaper and more accessible junk food so people would be more inclined to buy healthy. I don't know if that ever came to fruition or not, but I want to point out a small flaw in that plan. Yes, raising taxes on the junk food would cause it to be not as cheap and therefore a little less appetizing, so to speak. However, the healthier, fresher food is already priced sky high so people who actually would want to change eating habits wouldn't be able to do so, unless they had their own garden or small farm.
But I'm kinda getting away from the point of this entry. People are worried about the downfall of the nation. There are more poor and hungry here now than ever. But if people would start farming and learning to make their own things rather than rely on someone else, those rates may decrease. I don't know politics, I don't know economy, I don't know a lot when it comes to the country. What I do know is that technology and modernization have almost hindered us in a way. There's so many drugs out there now that, yes, they may take care of the problem, but in return give you a whole slew of new problems. Why don't we go back to natural remedies and herbs that God gave us? Those things worked quite efficiently for centuries...why did we turn away from them? All because we wanted it done faster and more conveniently.
This didn't entirely come out as I was planning, but it's been on my mind for a while. I don't know if anyone will see this or not, but this is my opinion on things. We need to go back to simpler times. There was less crime, less starvation, better education, and better morals.
Anyway...sorry, I hadn't intended for a rant, but as I said, it's been on my mind for a while.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Just an Update...
So, I haven't kept up my part of the bargain with writing more often. Sorry about that! But looking at other blogs I follow of friends it seems I'm not the only one.
I started walking again today. I put Jake in the stroller, put my ear buds in, turned on my "workout" playlist, and walked the mile-long path around the park. My legs are still throbbing a bit, but it was nice. Jake got to see the scenery of animals and the leaves starting to change color, and I had a good time. A little out of breath keeping up with the music, but it was really good. I'm also trying SlimFast again. I tried it once before and did halfway decent on it. Of course, I wasn't exercising when I did it before, so this is an added bonus. Mike's dieting again, too, which will make it easier hopefully.
Staying at home is going nicely. We had a little bit of running around to do last month (well, technically this month...I forgot it's still September), but we're getting back into routine. Jake's doing well, for the most part. You know, well enough for a two-year-old! He's discovered coloring/scribbling and he likes to get his marker/crayon bin out and my old sketchbook and just scribble all the colors on the page. He told me the other day he was drawing a circle. And a very nice circle it was, too!
I love the cooler temperatures. We've had the AC off for a while now and just open up the windows all day. Today is absolutely gorgeous. It's been nice enough lately that Jake can play in the back yard. Mike and I attacked the lilac shrub/bush/tree that had been taking over the yard and dismantled the old garden, so now there's plenty of room back there. I can't wait for it to get a smidge cooler, though, and kill off the mosquitoes. They're everywhere! I one time had fifteen bites on me within a couple minutes standing back there. For the most part they go after me, however Jake's had a couple of his own bites on his arm or face.
Grooming's going wonderfully! I've had many new clients and appointments are coming a little more steadily now. No, I'm not being swamped with them, but they're more spread out, whereas before I'd get six or seven in one weekend and then nothing for a couple months. I love seeing the dogs and have always loved grooming. Now I get to do two things I love the most: groom AND stay home with Jake. I am truly blessed!
I started walking again today. I put Jake in the stroller, put my ear buds in, turned on my "workout" playlist, and walked the mile-long path around the park. My legs are still throbbing a bit, but it was nice. Jake got to see the scenery of animals and the leaves starting to change color, and I had a good time. A little out of breath keeping up with the music, but it was really good. I'm also trying SlimFast again. I tried it once before and did halfway decent on it. Of course, I wasn't exercising when I did it before, so this is an added bonus. Mike's dieting again, too, which will make it easier hopefully.
Staying at home is going nicely. We had a little bit of running around to do last month (well, technically this month...I forgot it's still September), but we're getting back into routine. Jake's doing well, for the most part. You know, well enough for a two-year-old! He's discovered coloring/scribbling and he likes to get his marker/crayon bin out and my old sketchbook and just scribble all the colors on the page. He told me the other day he was drawing a circle. And a very nice circle it was, too!
I love the cooler temperatures. We've had the AC off for a while now and just open up the windows all day. Today is absolutely gorgeous. It's been nice enough lately that Jake can play in the back yard. Mike and I attacked the lilac shrub/bush/tree that had been taking over the yard and dismantled the old garden, so now there's plenty of room back there. I can't wait for it to get a smidge cooler, though, and kill off the mosquitoes. They're everywhere! I one time had fifteen bites on me within a couple minutes standing back there. For the most part they go after me, however Jake's had a couple of his own bites on his arm or face.
Grooming's going wonderfully! I've had many new clients and appointments are coming a little more steadily now. No, I'm not being swamped with them, but they're more spread out, whereas before I'd get six or seven in one weekend and then nothing for a couple months. I love seeing the dogs and have always loved grooming. Now I get to do two things I love the most: groom AND stay home with Jake. I am truly blessed!
Thursday, August 15, 2013
It's Only Monday...Mr(s) Mom!
This is somewhat a follow-up to a previous post. Mike and I have decided it would be beneficial for me to stay home with Jake! Yay! This was my first official week of stay-at-home mommyhood and so far it's been going pretty well. We don't have a real strict routine as yet. The morning is usually about the same--we get up, he helps me feed the doggies, he eats breakfast while mommy cleans/straightens the house, then we go to the living room where he plays for a couple hours and watches his shows ("Martha Speaks" is one of his favorites, along with "Super Why"...the latter he actually will get in to, which is so amazing to watch him do!). Then he goes down for a nap/quiet time, and mommy has quiet time as well. It's actually pretty nice not having anything on. I'll get on the computer for a bit sometimes. But for the most part I'll do crosswords or read. The TV is off. Just the music is playing coming over his monitor. As for the afternoons, I haven't really done much. We went to the park the last couple days (which he LOVES!!). He played in the backyard. I'd like to start doing different things in the afternoons. I love Pinterest, as I believe I've stated before. Well, on Pinterest, I've discovered a couple sites that give summer schedules parents do with their kids. For example, Mondays are craft days. Tuesdays are library days. Stuff like that. I could tweak it a little bit for his age as well as the seasons.
To be honest with you, I never thought this would happen. I never pictured myself as a stay-at-home mom. I always wanted a family, having come from a family of five siblings. But I never really thought I'd stay at home with the kids. I didn't think I'd have the patience for it, that I'd always want to be working and moving. Don't get me wrong, I do miss work. You probably think I'm crazy for up and leaving a perfectly good job, and maybe I am. But in the long run, I think I'd be crazier for missing out on these precious years with my son. Once he's older (and if he doesn't have any siblings by then) I'll probably go back to the work force. Until then, I'll enjoy every minute I have with him. I've already discovered he knows a lot more words than I'd thought. And he's starting to put sentences together and talking understandably. It's like he's a little person now! ;-)
I am so thankful to God and the support of my family for helping us get to this. It's a wonderful thing and I wish all mothers had a chance to experience it and become closer with their children in this way. It might make for a better world.
To be honest with you, I never thought this would happen. I never pictured myself as a stay-at-home mom. I always wanted a family, having come from a family of five siblings. But I never really thought I'd stay at home with the kids. I didn't think I'd have the patience for it, that I'd always want to be working and moving. Don't get me wrong, I do miss work. You probably think I'm crazy for up and leaving a perfectly good job, and maybe I am. But in the long run, I think I'd be crazier for missing out on these precious years with my son. Once he's older (and if he doesn't have any siblings by then) I'll probably go back to the work force. Until then, I'll enjoy every minute I have with him. I've already discovered he knows a lot more words than I'd thought. And he's starting to put sentences together and talking understandably. It's like he's a little person now! ;-)
I am so thankful to God and the support of my family for helping us get to this. It's a wonderful thing and I wish all mothers had a chance to experience it and become closer with their children in this way. It might make for a better world.
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