Friday
9.16.16
It's hard to believe, but this time last year was my first day of maternity leave. I remember having such a difficult time walking from my parked car into the school building. By the time I'd get to the Media Center I'd have contractions. I had to teach while sitting, and even then I couldn't project my voice loudly without causing contractions. Staying at home when I did ended up being the right decision because I was able to carry them another month and made it past the 37 week mark so they were considered full term. And now look at them! They are so awesome. I wouldn't change a thing.
People: This morning I met up with a fellow stay at home mom and we walked the local trail near my house. It was lovely. A cool day on a shady trail, a slight breeze, and two mamas engaged in conversation and exercise while pushing our well behaved children for 3 miles. And then it all fell apart as soon as I got home and the babies realized that they were hungry. Sigh. It was awesome while it lasted! Between my morning workout, the lawn, and the walk, I had clocked in 22,000 steps by noon. What an awesome feeling!
D and the kids surprised me with flowers today. They are super sweet and thoughtful. It was a long and busy week and it was such a nice thought. It's so nice when your spouse occasionally lets you know that you are appreciated. Spouses - take note! It doesn't have to be anything fancy. A simple "thank you" goes a long way, too.
Places/Activities: This evening we went to Peace-A-Pizza and Cosmic Comix. Two more small businesses that are extremely kid friendly. Peace is a great place to stop for dinner. It's loaded with families. We try and go at the "retirement folk hour" which is between 5:30pm and 6pm to avoid the busy dinner rush. We were excited that one of our good friends also joined us for dinner. The babies go to bed at around 6:45pm, so dinner by 6 is a requirement.
Good Deeds: We decided to make today "support small business day" apparently. On my walk with a friend this morning we stopped at our local bakery, The Breadery to purchase a few items (we just love their bread). Then for dinner D and I took the kids to Peace a Pizza and met up with a friend for dinner. Today was also $1 cookie day at Babas which was pretty awesome. Even with the tips it only cost us $25 for all 5 of us to have pizza and dessert out. Which is a pretty fantastic deal. We highly recommend! We also stopped by Cosmic Comix because it's another awesome gem in Catonsville. Very kid friendly and they frequently have fun events. We mostly go so Squeak can get her My Little Pony comic fix.
Chores: Today I dusted and vacuumed the upstairs and mowed the lawn (I wanted it to look decent outside for our block party tomorrow).
Reading: Today I started the book Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates. I've been told it's a must read for all women by one of my friends.
Random Thoughts: No, stay at home moms don't have to work in the sense that we don't get paid to do a job. I've been working harder than ever as a stay at home mom. But I don't think it's because I don't have to go to work. I think it has more to do with the fact that I have mixed things up a bit. I've taken a "break" from the norm. It's always exciting when we start something new, take up a new hobby, visit a new place, start a new job, purchase a new car, buy a new home… but then things start to change. We aren't as excited anymore. It becomes the "norm." We take things for granted. I think I am so motivated because I know that this is just for one year. What if we set goals for ourselves or mixed things up a bit just for one year? For example - maybe you've been wanting to read more. What if you set a goal that had to be accomplished in a year? Like, this year I'm going to read 100 books. And then every time you went to sit in front of the tv, or picked up your phone, you'd pick up a book instead. Here are my long term goals for my "year" (obviously taking care of the kids and spending quality family time together comes first).
1. Workout/take a walk at least 5 days a week.
2. As I try making new recipes for the family, I will compile a recipe box so that by the end of the year, I'll have enough ideas for making dinners for the family when I go back to work.
3. Have a book published. I'm not gonna lie - the years it took to write a book were extremely stressful and full of nights and weekends of writing and editing and writing and editing. Writing a professional resource book (or 4) is not something I would ever want to do again. However, I have several ideas for picture books and I'd love to get something published this next year. If I can continue to be productive and manage time wisely, I think I can make it happen.
4. Start a successful business (More about this soon, I promise).
5. Read 100 books (for me - Magic Tree House and picture books will not be counted here - however Young Adult DOES count). I've already read 4 (soon to be 5) in two weeks. I think this is do-able as well. Part of my reason for this goal is that when I return to work I want to more familiar with books that my students are going to want to read so that I can be more prepared to help them with reader's advisory.
6. Lastly, I'd like to take a few road trips with the family :)
9.16.16
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| Back when I was 35 weeks along. |
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| 11 Months today! |
D and the kids surprised me with flowers today. They are super sweet and thoughtful. It was a long and busy week and it was such a nice thought. It's so nice when your spouse occasionally lets you know that you are appreciated. Spouses - take note! It doesn't have to be anything fancy. A simple "thank you" goes a long way, too.
Places/Activities: This evening we went to Peace-A-Pizza and Cosmic Comix. Two more small businesses that are extremely kid friendly. Peace is a great place to stop for dinner. It's loaded with families. We try and go at the "retirement folk hour" which is between 5:30pm and 6pm to avoid the busy dinner rush. We were excited that one of our good friends also joined us for dinner. The babies go to bed at around 6:45pm, so dinner by 6 is a requirement.
 |
| "longing" |
 |
| Squeak points out some Batman comics at Cosmic Comix (and we purchased a My Little Pony comic) |
Good Deeds: We decided to make today "support small business day" apparently. On my walk with a friend this morning we stopped at our local bakery, The Breadery to purchase a few items (we just love their bread). Then for dinner D and I took the kids to Peace a Pizza and met up with a friend for dinner. Today was also $1 cookie day at Babas which was pretty awesome. Even with the tips it only cost us $25 for all 5 of us to have pizza and dessert out. Which is a pretty fantastic deal. We highly recommend! We also stopped by Cosmic Comix because it's another awesome gem in Catonsville. Very kid friendly and they frequently have fun events. We mostly go so Squeak can get her My Little Pony comic fix.
Chores: Today I dusted and vacuumed the upstairs and mowed the lawn (I wanted it to look decent outside for our block party tomorrow).
Reading: Today I started the book Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates. I've been told it's a must read for all women by one of my friends.
 |
| Supporting small businesses today. Dinner at Peace a Pizza. |
1. Workout/take a walk at least 5 days a week.
2. As I try making new recipes for the family, I will compile a recipe box so that by the end of the year, I'll have enough ideas for making dinners for the family when I go back to work.
 |
| My personal best day for steps. That's almost 13 miles! |
4. Start a successful business (More about this soon, I promise).
5. Read 100 books (for me - Magic Tree House and picture books will not be counted here - however Young Adult DOES count). I've already read 4 (soon to be 5) in two weeks. I think this is do-able as well. Part of my reason for this goal is that when I return to work I want to more familiar with books that my students are going to want to read so that I can be more prepared to help them with reader's advisory.
6. Lastly, I'd like to take a few road trips with the family :)
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