this isn't a throw away post, i promise

ok, it's kind of a throw away, in that it's just a quick recap because i've been 'busy' again.  or still.  or whatever.

broke my toe.  horrible and gross pictures on facebook/twitter/google+.  we'll just cut to the chase and say that i hate baby gates.  there evil.  they won't be happy till i'm dead.  or zombified.  i'm not sure that they care which.  THAT'S how evil they are.  i'm so very very happy that we are coming to the end of the baby gate stage.  i'll take them all out in the back yard and put them in the bonfire.  i wanna watch them burn.

NaBloWriMo  starts in just a few days.  i really really hope that this year i don't have another 'hay look a bunny' post.  but lets face it.  i probably will.

Omaha Witch Walk is going really well.  we have a date and time, and even a place to start and finish.  just a few more phone calls and i'll be ready for big announcements.

had a fairly religious/spiritual experience at the gym the other day.  i'm not going to go into details, but it was awesome and wonderful, and just totally confirmed that i'm on the right path right now.  it's very exciting and squee worthy.  it almost makes up for the broken toe/i want to burn all the baby gates thing.  ok, it totally makes up for it.  it. was. awesome.

ok, think you're all caught up for the moment.  

Time flies when youre dizzy-ing-ly busy

Its been a couple of weeks since my last blog post.  And while I'd love to say its because I'm saving up all my good stuff for NaBloWriMo next month, I've just been busy.  Too busy to blog.  I know, its hard to believe, but trust me, it happens.  And no, I wasn't just on pintrest or cleaning my kitchen over and over again. (Though it could use a good scrubbng again.....)


I've joined a gym. Which is kinda awesome, and a lot painful. I've already lost a couple of pounds, and I'm starting to see some definition in my arms.  Arms are by far my favorite part.  I love working them, and love looking at them.  That little divit where the bicep and the tricep meet....mmmmmmm.  So I've been going a couple of times a week. Still have to get into a regular routine.  But like I said, I'm already seeing the benifits, and I love it.  Plus, to be honest, its a little time for myself that isnt just about getting dinner, or cleaning, or taking care of Hubby and Bubby.  I've always hated the term 'me time' but now I understand it.  A little time each day to remind myself I'm not just the sum of my parts.


The main thing that's been keeping my attention though... the Omaha Witches Walk.  Its a fundraiser for the Osteogenisis Imperfecta foundation that I've been organizing.  Its super short notice, and to be honest, I'm considering it a win if we raise even $200, but its been keeping me pretty busy.  I've never organized something like this from the ground up before, I'll admit, its daunting.  From picking dates (which we haven't yet) to figuring out logos and flyers.... like I said, daunting.  I've got a great mentor in this however.  Mrs. B from Confessons of a Pagan Soccer Mom is on her second annual walk in New Jersey, and she's been an awesome help. (If you're in the Jersey area, please check it out!)  I'd like this to turn into an annual walk, and maybe create a non profit to run it, but that's way in the future. 


I need to balance out my time a little more, especially with NaBloWriMo next month, a blog a day can be dauntng too!

stick it to da barista!

i don't know about you, but i love fall.  the changing of the leaves, the comfy sweaters and boots, and the coffee.  yes, i am a coffee addict.  i'd go to a meeting, but there all held at $tarbuck$.  and i don't have the kind of scratch that my coffee addiction requires.  $4-5 a coffee (several coffees a day) is just a weeeeeeeeeee bit out of my price range.  so with a little patience and a lot of research i've come up with a list of what i consider to be the best resources for making your own fru-fru coffee at a fraction of the price.

cause if you can't afford it, fake it.


http://www.squawkfox.com/2011/06/16/frappuccino-recipe/
this site gives you excellent step by step instructions on how to fake a frappuccino. it's just the beginning of September, so we may have a few more hot days where this will be just what the doctor ordered.


http://www.closetcooking.com/2009/11/pumpkin-pie-white-hot-chocolate.html
pumpkin pie white hot chocolate.  the name says it all.  i want a cup now.  like NOW! lets get on that ok!

http://www.food52.com/recipes/11227_coffee_syrup
if you've never made coffee syrup before, this site is a great resource. you make a huge batch ahead of time, with very little effort. all you have to do is heat up your portion when you're ready, and boom, awesome coffee faster than fast.  and it's good too!  seriously, you can't tell the difference from the expensive stuff.

http://cravingcomfort.blogspot.com/2011/07/last-iced-coffee-recipe-youll-ever-need.html
here's another great iced coffee resource. and pretty super simple too.

http://angelaharris.hubpages.com/hub/Starbucks-Coffee-Drinks-Recipe-Clones
this is a list on my list.  but it's an awesome list.  it gives you fakes of every $tarbuck$ recipe you can think of.  and not just the drinks, the food too.  a.maz.ing.


http://www.cooklikeachampionblog.com/2010/09/pumpkin-spice-syrup-for-pumpkin-spice.html

this is the creme de la creme.  pumpkin spice syrup.  this is what makes the pumpkin spice late so damn wonderful.  i don't think i'll be stopping with coffee.  i'm thinking ice cream.


so that's the list.  it's by no means comprehensive, and i'm sure there are some other wonderful fakes out there.  and if so, please share.  also, i tired to get permission from each of the websites to link to their posts, but no one answered me, so if one of these sites is yours and you don't want it on my blog, please let me know, i'll take it down.

enjoy your coffee everybody

it's not you, it's me

i joined a gym yesterday.  and as i posted on twitter, once i'm under 200 for a week, i'm getting my wrist tattooed.  most likely by Jesse at Nuclear Ink. i went to college with him, and love his artwork.  these two things, along with a facebook comment about me not being ok with myself (ha!) has led me to feel i need to clarify something:

i'm not doing this for you.

i'm not loosing weight because i want you to think i'm hot.  i don't feel the need to fit myself into some ideal that i had no hand in creating.  i don't want to look like a particular person to make you like me more.  i'm already hot, i'm already ideal, and to be frank, i don't need you to like me if my outward appearance is the only thing you base friendship on.

i'm doing this for myself.  i'm selfish about my children.  see, i love them.  and i want to be there for as much of their life as possible.  and i also want them to be in my life for as long as they can.  and the ONE thing i can control in that is weight, both mine and theirs.  so by feeding them good healthy food and giving them a positive role model in exercise, i'm making sure that we stick together.

at over 200 and climbing (as my GYN felt the need to point out last week), i'm not going to be around for as long as i want.  so i'm fixing that.  i'm making better choices.  because it's my choices that got me here.  lets be honest, i make crap food choices.  even when i'm choosing not processed food, i'm eating pretty big quantities of the food i'm eating.  and it's not genetics that's doing this to me.  look at my kids. there both skinny, strong, and neither one of them have an ounce of fat on them if left to their own devices.  so it's not my genes, it's my choices.  so starting now, i'm going to make better choices in both quality/quantity of food and exercise.

and the tattoo is something i've wanted for a while.  it's a prize.  something to commemorate a pretty damn big deal.

not for you.  for me.  

Letter to Littles

I love this idea from TouchstoneZ about writing a letter to my children each month.  it's a beautiful idea, because they change daily.  i'd like to try to do this on the first of every month, but i'm not going to make it a hard and fast rule.  so here goes:

Princess,
   you are just two months shy of your birthday, and almost a teenager.  you're growing up so fast, and the world is throwing so much at you at once that i sometimes get scared for you.  i know you can handle anything that the universe throws at you, but i want to shield you from as much of the bad stuff as possible.  you're starting to flex your independent muscle and take control of your life.  i love that.  you make good decisions, and it thrills me to no end when you back those decisions up with reasoning.  you are awesome.  but you don't give yourself enough credit sometimes, and you're a hell of a lot smarter and more awesome than you think you are.  but that's part of being a teenager, the self doubt.  so don't let it get to you.  just remember that you rock.  and rock hard.
     oh, and i'm proud of you for finally playing left 4 dead with out having to have all the lights on in the house.  awesome.

Bubby,
   you're slightly over one and a half.  to be honest, i stopped counting the months at 12.  anything after that should be in year (or 'and a half') increments.  you explore your world more and more every day.  and unfortunately for me, have no fear.  what you do have is a nice collection of bruises and scrapes, and at the moment a pretty large goose egg from trying to bounce yourself off nana and papa's headboard.  but you are the happiest and smiley-ist baby that i know, and you don't let anything get you down for long.  you smile at everyone you meet.  everyone.  and they all smile back.  there is something about your loving and open smile that just makes people happy.  you love to cuddle, but can be stingy with the kisses, those are for special occasions only i guess.  your vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds, and so has your understanding of those words.  i can see sentences coming in the near future.  i can't wait for that.

i love you both.
momma