Category Archives: Reece’s Rainbow

7 Quick Takes: All Star Game, Whining, and A New Addiction

Posted on by

7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

I finally did the post-mortem on my 101-in-1001 list… two months after my deadline. Recapping for those who don’t usually read my blog, I completed 19/101 goals and that means a $82 donation to charity. (As an incentive to complete as many goals as possible, I donate $1 for every goal I fail to complete.) My charity choice this time: Brett’s adoption account at Reece’s Rainbow. I’m glad that I accomplished almost 20% of my goals this time — they’re all about bettering myself so it’s all good in the end.

— 2 —

I got just a *little* bit mouthy while watching the All Star Game on Tuesday. All those who follow me on Twitter are probably saying, “A little, Jen?” Can I help it if the evil teams are all in the American League? I mean, you’ve got the Texas Rangers, the New York Yankees (evil personified), and the LA Angels. (OK… technically, they’re the Anaheim Angels. They’re still evil.) I do enjoy a good skunking and this was a glorious one. I’m also amazed they let the minor league team from Oakland send players. [/trash-talk]

— 3 —

I hate heat. It has been in the triple digits here. Did I mention that I hate heat? I think that relocating to Alaska for summers would be a capital idea. Did I mention that this heat is oppressive and that I’d prefer it to be -20F?

— 4 —

Seriously, why is me flipping on my turn signal to change lanes a sign that people should speed up and keep me from passing? Someone did this to me last weekend in Elk Grove and nearly caused an accident. As I swerved back into my lane, the driver flipped me off. Um yeah… YOU almost caused the accident and you’re flipping *me* off? Great one. They’re freaking lucky that I didn’t call the police and report them for reckless driving.

— 5 —

We have an abundance of mulberry pollen. Did I mention that I’m allergic to mulberry pollen? This has led to lots of sneezing on my part as the A/C has to be on (and seems to be the entry point of it into the house) and Daniel is laughing uproariously every time I sneeze.

— 6 —

Oh great… I have a new addiction. I managed to kill 90 minutes of Daniel’s naptime today by surfing PassiveAggressiveNotes.Com. This is not a good thing for me to discover, especially as I think I could outdo some of them. (I learned passive-aggressiveness from the BEST.)

— 7 —

Argh. I did not find a short URL where you can donate to Brett’s adoption account. My bad. Meanwhile, you have 19 days to go if you want to participate in the Bottle Challenge and 15 days until Brett’s Blogathon 2012.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

101-in-1001: Recap

Posted on by

My deadline was May 12, 2012 and obviously this post is 2 months late. Go me.

Here’s the list:

Faith
001. Keep a prayer journal for 3 months.
002. Read through the entire Bible in a year.
003. Participate in Taize prayer at least yearly.
004. Lead worship at least once.
005. Taebo six days a week for six weeks.
006. No soda for a month.
007. Yearly exams every year until deadline. (2009, 2010, 2011)
008. Get crown done on root-canal tooth in lower jaw.
009. Eat properly vegetarian for one Lent.
010. Keep Lenten discipline faithfully once during this time.
011. Do couch-to-5K.
012. Run in 5K race.
013. Participate in a triathlon.
014. Prepare all meals from scratch for a week.
015. Camp at least 5 times. (0/5)
016. Cook a 3-course meal over a campfire.
017. Lead a camp-style singalong.
018. Perform a serious classical work for voice.
019. Accompany a worship service on piano.
020. Play some Lorie Line as a prelude.
021. Write a Sunday school curriculum.
022. Write a VBS curriculum.
023. Write a Confirmation curriculum.
024. Grow an herb garden.
025. Plant a garden and harvest it one year.
026. Grow my own pumpkins for Halloween.
027. Make Daniel a Halloween costume.
028. Teach Daniel sign language.
029. Pottytrain Daniel.
030. Teach Daniel to read.
031. Have another child (if it is feasible health-wise).
032. Get my living will in order.
033. Participate in NaNoWriMo.
034. Raise at least $500 for Blogathon blogging on my own.
035. Do an independent blogathon for a worthy cause.
036. Give a speech or presentation of some nature.
037. Create a Powerpoint presentation for something.
038. Send out Christmas cards every year. (2009, 2010, 2011)
039. Learn how to tell what kind of wine goes with what kind of meal.
040. Bake a cake from scratch.
041. Visit Calgary.
042. Visit Seattle.
043. Visit the Woodland Park Zoo.
044. Visit Santa Cruz.
045. Visit the redwoods.
046. Visit Toronto.
047. Create a podcast and do 20 weekly episodes.
048. Stay caught up on dental care for two years.
049. Improve my BMI.
050. Meet three online friends. (1/3)
051. Attend an Orthodox Pascha.
052. Re-read all the Laura Ingalls Wilder books.
053. Re-read all the Baby-sitter’s Club books.
054. Read the works of Beatrix Potter to Daniel.
055. Write an “I Believe” statement.
056. Write an article and have it published in a reputable non-web publication.
057. Write a “letter to the editor” and have it published.
058. Sort and cull book collection.
059. Twitter daily for three months.
060. Learn how to make decent iced vanilla lattés at home.
061. Learn to sew by machine.
062. Learn to knit.
063. Crochet at least three garments and wear them regularly. (0/3)
064. Crochet 4 items for Daniel. (0/4)
065. Acquire 3 UCSC garments. (0/3)
066. Read at least one semi-serious book per month for a year. (0/12)
067. Create a WordPress design for ::Meditatio:: from scratch.
068. Learn how to change my own oil.
069. Change a tire by myself at least once.
070. Eat venison.
071. Eat rattlesnake.
072. Eat elk.
073. Eat moose.
074. Create a crocheting pattern.
075. Make at least 5 wedding/baby shower presents from scratch. (0/5)
076. Write 10 Amazon.Com book reviews. (6/10)
077. Read at least 5 books recommended by Oprah. (1/5)
078. Host a game night.
079. Have a dinner party 5 times. (0/5)
080. Wear earrings on every work day for a week. (0/5)
081. Get a second piercing in my ears.
082. Make 3 pairs of my own earrings. (0/3)
083. Acquire 3 pieces of furniture from IKEA and put them together solo. (0/3)
084. Do ELW/LBW/BCP Morning Prayer six days a week for a month.
085. Give money to public radio during a pledge drive.
086. Give money to public television during a pledge drive.
087. Call in on Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me.
088. Eight glasses of water a day for a week.
089. See Great Big Sea in concert.
090. Attend a symphony concert.
091. Sing Handel’s Messiah.
092. Learn Arabic.
093. Learn Spanish.
094. Teach a Bible study utilizing a Koine Greek text.
095. Do a walk/run for charity.
096. Heal my knee.
097. Live without any regrets during this time.
098. Compile a recipe book.
099. Attend a professional sporting event.
100. Blog daily for a month.
101. Participate in a snowball fight.

I completed 19/101 which means that $82 will be going to charity. In this case, it will be Brett’s adoption account on Reece’s Rainbow.

Am I mad that I didn’t get more accomplished? Nope. It’s about setting goals to better myself and the fact that I got almost 1/5 of them accomplished is pretty good, given that I wrote this at a time when I was at a crossroads and had no idea where we’d be living in a matter of months or of what challenges we would face with Daniel.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: July 2, 2012

Posted on by

Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY July 2, 2012

Outside my window… sunny and hot — probably near 90F.

I am thinking… that I hate heat.

I am thankful… for Morning Prayer with Anne.

In the kitchen… English muffin pizzas.

I am wearing… cammo green shirt and capri sweats.

I am creating… crocheting and a topic list for Brett’s Blogathon 2012.

I am going… to probably have to take Daniel for a drive to pacify him because he woke up grumpy from his nap.

I am wondering… if I’m going to make it until 9:00 (Daniel’s bedtime) — I’m sleepy.

I am reading… Sugarplum Dead by Carolyn Hart and the latest Leslie Meier book.

I am hoping… Daniel calms down and I don’t need to take him for a drive.

I am looking forward to… Ladies’ Night Out on the 11th.

Around the house… a Cheerios tornado on the living room floor among other things.

I am pondering… many things internally.

A favorite quote for today… “You don??t have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.” — C. S. Lewis

One of my favorite things… sitting in the quiet and listening to the birds sing in the morning.

A few plans for the rest of the week: Bible study on Thursday and various errands throughout the week.

A peek into my day… My bottle for the Bottle Challenge for Brett.

My bottle for the Bottle Challenge for Brett

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

7 Quick Takes: A Week of Being A Single Mother

Posted on by

7 Quick Takes

Jon gets in tomorrow afternoon after having been in St. Louis for our denomination’s National Convention. It’s been a better week for Daniel and I than it was last October.

— 1 —

I’m actually making an effort to see people. I did Morning Prayer with someone two mornings this week, I went to Breakfast Bunch (usually the senior citizens of the church getting together), and I led Bible study on Thursday. I also had someone coming over to help with Mt. Dish Pile on Wednesday even if I spent the rest of that time by myself with Daniel. Even this little introvert needs to see people.

— 2 —

Daniel is in summer school. It actually freed me up to get things done that I wasn’t having to entertain a three year old for 14 hours straight minus any therapy times. School is 4 hours and it makes him tired enough that he needs a nap. That gives me about 2-3 more hours to get things done at home. We also have a set routine down so I don’t have to worry about him going to sleep. Jon calls and I put him on speakerphone so he can pray with Daniel which is the cue for the bear child to hibernate.

— 3 —

I know certain things about Daniel that I didn’t know then. I didn’t know how much Pediasure 1.5 would make him throw up so I ended up cleaning up kid barf multiple times. Now I know that I need to space out any cans of it that he drinks. I know how to keep him entertained now (especially as I don’t have to do it for 14 hours straight) and we’ve got more at our fingertips than just our worn-out Winnie the Pooh DVD. (God bless Netflix!)

— 4 —

I’m getting better at self-care. OK… I’ll admit that I didn’t get a shower until Wednesday night again but it was because I forgot rather than I couldn’t leave Daniel to do it. I have also been keeping up my habit of retreating to the living room after he goes to bed to work on web things and just have some “mama time”. The only downside is that I keep falling asleep in the recliner after I pray and waking up with a stiff neck.

— 5 —

I’m less concerned with making everything perfect. I’ve lost my perfectionist streak when it comes to life with Daniel, mostly because I just end up making myself overly fatigued and there are so many things that just don’t matter. Daniel ripped off his diaper and shorts? He can run around bottomless for a few minutes. I fall asleep in the recliner? The living room and hallway are Daniel-proofed and he’ll hand me his wet diaper if he needs it changed. (He’ll also hand me his sippy cup, snack cup, and whatever else he wants fixed.)

— 6 —

I have some projects to engage my mind. I’ve been crocheting and working on a Bottle Challenge as part of Brett’s Blogathon 2012. I also led Bible study this morning and working on that gave my mind something with which to engage itself. (It was Acts 17, one of my favorite passages.)

— 7 —

I have some house help. We’ve been helping out a young family in our parish by paying them to help with yard work, housework, and stuff like that. It doesn’t amount to a lot of money in the long run and it helps me out tremendously on days when moving is painful. The mother called yesterday and asked if she could come work for me and I told her that it was fine as long as she stayed and hung out a bit afterwards. She did all my dishes (we had a ton of them to do as we entertained over the weekend and don’t have a dishwasher) and did cat care stuff. It was worth every penny I paid her not to have to deal with those things while my joints were achy yesterday.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

7 Quick Takes: Travel Memories, Prayer Requests, and a Trivia Question

Posted on by

7 Quick Takes

— 1 —

Daniel starts back to school tomorrow. It’s not the regular school year — it’s summer school (an hour shorter each day) and goes for a month but it will be a good thing. Daniel needs structure and consistency and it’s a bit hard to get that when he’s home with me. I do my best to replicate his schedule at school (and to keep his naps consistent) but it’s better to have him with teachers who know what they’re doing. During the summer, they have water days on Fridays so we’re supposed to send a swimsuit and swim diapers to school with him. Daniel should enjoy that.

— 2 —

My trip down to southern California last week was awesome. The flights were mostly good — Daniel learned how to take off his seat belt on the way back so I had to hold it on and howled about that — but he slept most of the flight home. My father-in-law was ecstatic to have us down there and he spent as much time as he could with Daniel. We’ll back down in two months and I’m going to try and have us go down on long weekends if at all possible during the school year even if it’s just Daniel and I.

— 3 —

Brett’s Blogathon will be on July 27th starting at 7 a.m. I’m trying to come up with ideas like having a spare change challenge and all this will be announced on the Blogging for Brett site.

— 4 —

The [insert expletive] heat has started. It was 105 on Saturday when I flew in from Ontario and 102 the next day. On Wednesday (the first day of summer), it was 97. I’m thankful that it’s cooling down for the moment. I *need* to do some walking and it’s hard to do when it’s eleventy billion degrees outside.

— 5 —

After my grumpy post on Tuesday, I should probably enumerate some *good* things that happened on Tuesday. Les Schwab fixed my tire for free because it was my first time there. (We had been at the park while the tire was changed.) The woman at Michael’s gave me a really cool bag left over from their giveaway for me to use for the yarn I bought. (The recipient of the yarn product reads this blog so this is all I can currently say…)

— 6 —

I have a prayer request for y’all. My college friend Brian just had back surgery and is in a world of pain. This is the guy who carried me like a sack of potatoes over his shoulder to the health center whenever I’d sprain my ankle, forced food down my throat when I was too depressed to eat, and who is my incredibly wonderful surrogate big brother. Please pray for healing for him.

— 7 —

I have a trivia question for you. Where are the pictures used in my profiles taken? Here are the three I use:

A statue of Our Lady
Sunflowers
The ruins of the original church.

First person to answer correctly and tell me why this place is famous gets bragging rights. You may not guess if you are married to me or are related by blood or marriage. Combing my Facebook albums is also prohibited.

OK… Hevel got it right. It’s Mission San Juan Capistrano and it is the only mission in Orange County. There is one more trivia fact about why it is famous. Who can tell me? In an email, he got the return of the swallows. Thanks for playing everybody!

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: June 18, 2012

Posted on by

Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY June 18, 2012

Outside my window… sunny and hot but we’ve got a “Delta breeze” unlike the last two days when it was 105 and 100 respectively with no wind.

I am thinking… that I’m glad Daniel heads back to preschool on Friday even though we’ve had some fun while he has been on break.

I am thankful… for my secret trip to southern California to see my in-laws last week. My father-in-law was definitely surprised and it was the first time he had seen Daniel in 10 months.

In the kitchen… leftover pizza from yesterday’s Father’s Day dinner.

I am wearing… charcoal shirt and running shorts.

I am creating… stuff for Brett’s Blogathon 2012 and this entry.

I am going… to Target and probably Michael’s at some point this week.

I am reading… Sugarplum Dead by Carolyn Hart.

I am hoping… my neck/back pain goes away.

I am looking forward to… maybe doing errands tomorrow.

Around the house… unpacking to do.

I am pondering… things related to my faith.

One of my favorite things… quiet.

A few plans for the rest of the week: WIC appointment Thursday morning, Daniel starting school again on Friday, and hopefully a lot of unscheduled time.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: June 11, 2012

Posted on by

Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY June 11, 2012

Outside my window… hot hot hot. 95F today according to Weather.Com.

I am thinking… that I need to cut off my hair again. It’s been almost 3 months.

I am thankful… for the mini nap I got today while Daniel was taking his nap.

In the kitchen… oatmeal.

I am wearing… old black Arabic shirt and black running shorts.

I am creating… things for Brett’s Blogathon 2012.

I am going… to probably be spending a fair amount of time inside this week because of the heat.

I am wondering… if I should do a theme for Quick Takes this week.

I am reading… Sugarplum Dead by Carolyn Hart.

I am hoping… to get Daniel potty-trained this summer.

I am looking forward to… this weekend. That’s all I can say right now.

Around the house… I have house help at the moment which is seriously blessing me.

A favorite quote for today… “There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘All right, then, have it your way.'” — C.S. Lewis

One of my favorite things… Daniel waking up happy from his nap.

A few plans for the rest of the week: errands and hopefully some water play with Daniel.

A peek into my day… Snow drifts in Montana — I needed a reminder of cold stuff because it’s so bloody hot here.

Snow drifts in Montana

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook