It's the end of another productive day. I only wish my husband could actually SEE what I do all day long instead of just taking my word that I actually did something! *LOL* SO much of what a homemaker does goes unseen and there's certainly no exception in our house.
As summer moves in to fall, there's always much to be done - not just around the house, but around the farm as well. Outdoor toys need to be put away, I need to get my stock of flowers cut and transferred to mason jars so they can root over the winter, dig up my geraniums so they can hibernate in the cellar over the winter, winterize the barn so the horses and sheep stay warm - there's never a shortage of work to be done. Today, though, I tackled the daunting task of sorting through Madeline's clothes and switching out spring/summer ones for fall/winter outfits. I tell ya, if you ever see my daughter running around the house naked, it's certainly not due to a lack of clothes! I'm SO grateful for hand-me-downs and consignment shop deals!
I ended up going up to Des Moines with Madeline and Brian tonight. Normally Wednesdays are "Mommy's Night," but the bolt that Brian needs to fix my Jetta was in at the dealership, so I tagged along to run errands while they were at church. I must say it was nice perusing through Hobby Lobby and Kohls all by myself, but an hour and a half just flies by way too fast! I did, however, successfully get what I needed/wanted at both places and scored some extra good deals in the process. A pair of capris and 5 shirts at Kohl's for $23 made for a very profitable trip for sure!
As part of Brian's "Men's Fraternity" Bible study, he and I both had to complete a questionnaire to determine our personality types. I've taken lots of these in the past, and the results of this one were consistent from the others before. I am a Choleric with secondary Melancholy. Brian is pretty much a straight Phlegmatic. Brian and I always get a kick out of sitting and reading the descriptions of each personality type - we just laugh and giggle as we read the list of traits and find the ones that fit us each to a T.
"You are a born leader, dynamic and active and have a compulsive need for change. You often feel that you must correct wrongs. You are very goal oriented, see the whole picture and organize well. You seek practical solutions to problems and move quickly to action. You excel during emergencies."
Yup - that's me.
But then there's also, "You can be bossy and impatient. Their strong personalities can lend to weaknesses, such as being opinionated, stubborn or insensitive to other's feelings."
Yikes - yup - that can definitely be me too!
As for my dear husband, "The phlegmatic personality is low-key, easygoing and relaxed. They
are patient, well-balanced and calm. They are sympathetic and kindhearted. They have a calming disposition in times of trouble. The phlegmatic will take time for others and is not hurried. They
are very patient with children and make wonderful parents. They can
take the good with the bad and do not easily become upset. They are
competent, steady, peaceful and agreeable."
That's definitely my guy!!
However, on the flip-side, "They can
be unenthusiastic and do not get revved up very easily. They can possess
a quiet will of iron that is as immovable as a rock. They can be very
stubborn and never admit it. They can be...a little
selfish at times. They can be...sarcastic, and
teasing."
Hmmmm...sounds pretty familiar!!
Isn't it amazing, though, that despite our triumphs and many flaws, we are "fearfully and wonderfully made," (Psalms 134:19)! Praise the Lord!!!
Curious about your personality type?? Check out: http://personality-testing.info/tests/4T.php
Until next time...
Tracy
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Ahead of the Game
I'm actually feel like I'm somewhat ahead of the game today and am sitting down to blog at a semi-normal time of the day - at least for most people. It's about 1:45p.m. The dog found something especially fragrant to roll in this morning, so she's already
had a bath, the tub and shower have been scrubbed, lunch has been
made/served, and now I'm in the middle of doing laundry while Madeline has a little bit of quiet time with PBS's The Dinosaur Train.
I recently discovered a new group of musicians called The Piano Guys (thepianoguys.com) and have been totally enthralled with their music. It's amazing! A mix of classical and pop created by piano, cello, and electric cellos. I've been keeping YouTube and Itunes busy watching/downloading their music and self-made videos.
I've always loved music. I started playing the organ when I was just a kid and moved on to school band playing the clarinet and the bassoon. I'm no musician by any stretch, but I excelled most at creating and playing music by ear. I can honestly say my band instructors in school were far less than impressive and I quickly got bored with mediocre teaching. I wanted to learn more. Unfortunately, our family's finances didn't allow me to take piano or violin lessons, something I really wanted to learn. Even now, as a thirty-something wife and Mama, I still love to watch/hear talented musicians perform their craft and I love the anxious awe and butterflies that swell in my stomach as I watch the seemingly effortless movements of fingers across piano keys or strings. It entrances me! (http://thepianoguys.com/portfolio/all-of-me-jon-schmidt/)
So, I'll continue to dabble on my antique upright piano that's out of tune and has seen it's better days, and live vicariously through those who have taken the words "talent" and "musician" to a completely different level of perfection!
I recently discovered a new group of musicians called The Piano Guys (thepianoguys.com) and have been totally enthralled with their music. It's amazing! A mix of classical and pop created by piano, cello, and electric cellos. I've been keeping YouTube and Itunes busy watching/downloading their music and self-made videos.
I've always loved music. I started playing the organ when I was just a kid and moved on to school band playing the clarinet and the bassoon. I'm no musician by any stretch, but I excelled most at creating and playing music by ear. I can honestly say my band instructors in school were far less than impressive and I quickly got bored with mediocre teaching. I wanted to learn more. Unfortunately, our family's finances didn't allow me to take piano or violin lessons, something I really wanted to learn. Even now, as a thirty-something wife and Mama, I still love to watch/hear talented musicians perform their craft and I love the anxious awe and butterflies that swell in my stomach as I watch the seemingly effortless movements of fingers across piano keys or strings. It entrances me! (http://thepianoguys.com/portfolio/all-of-me-jon-schmidt/)
So, I'll continue to dabble on my antique upright piano that's out of tune and has seen it's better days, and live vicariously through those who have taken the words "talent" and "musician" to a completely different level of perfection!
Sunday, September 16, 2012
A New Strategy
I've struggled with my weight my whole life. I've NEVER been petite in any way - even at my lowest weight, I was still a size 10. You just can't deflate bone mass or structure - and my body is definitely a solid one. In my never-ending quest to lose weight, I'm always looking for new ways to cut corners and cut pounds without setting the bar too high - if the path to my goal is too daunting or I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, then it generally isn't a path I'll stick too cause discouragement sets in and I resort to my method of self-comforting which, ironically enough, is eating. It's such a paradox, isn't it!?
Anyway, one of the toughest parts of loosing weight for me is exercise. I don't just dislike working out - I hate it - I LOATHE it - the thought of it makes me want to hide. I hate sweating, I hate watching the distance or timers on workout machines, I hate putting in all the effort thinking that I've burned like 1000 calories just to find out it's more like 10. I despise it! So, I ended up finding an at least partial solution that seems to be helping - something that I've also been able to stick to which, for me, is really important!
What is my solution you ask? Well - it's exercising in the shower. Yep - you heard right. I don't like to sweat, so exercising in the shower keeps me feeling cool and the water is definitely relaxing. I obviously can't do any kind of major cardio routine, but I can definitely do muscle work and stretching.
Here's my routine (oh and a little disclaimer - I am NO fitness expert - frankly, I really have no idea what I'm talking about when it comes to fitness - so my descriptions may not be exactly accurate, but I'll do my best):
I try to do about 50 jumping jacks before I get in the shower. It gets my heart rate up, and I get the sweating part over and done with before I jump in the tub.
Next comes my leg work - 20 squats, 20 scissor leg lifts on each leg, 20 backward leg lifts on each leg.
Then I do a bit of standing ab work - from a standing position, I hold my arms at my sides and, alternating sides, I lean and reach with my right hand to the side of my right knee - come back upright - pause - then do the same to the left. I do this 50 times. Then holding my left hand behind my neck I bring my elbow down to touch my left knee as I bring it up. I do this 20 times on each leg.
Lastly, I punch it out - I hold my fists in front of my chest and twist my waist to the right and punch my left hand to the right. I come back to center then do the same to the left. I do this motion 50 times alternating right, left, right, left, etc.
I try to do this routine 5-6 nights a week - it usually only takes me about 10 minutes, but by the time I'm done the muscles in my tush and thighs are screaming. It may not be perfect, or even correct, but I've been feeling a whole lot better and am hoping that I continue to feel and see results!!
Down 22lbs. and counting!!
Tracy
Anyway, one of the toughest parts of loosing weight for me is exercise. I don't just dislike working out - I hate it - I LOATHE it - the thought of it makes me want to hide. I hate sweating, I hate watching the distance or timers on workout machines, I hate putting in all the effort thinking that I've burned like 1000 calories just to find out it's more like 10. I despise it! So, I ended up finding an at least partial solution that seems to be helping - something that I've also been able to stick to which, for me, is really important!
What is my solution you ask? Well - it's exercising in the shower. Yep - you heard right. I don't like to sweat, so exercising in the shower keeps me feeling cool and the water is definitely relaxing. I obviously can't do any kind of major cardio routine, but I can definitely do muscle work and stretching.
Here's my routine (oh and a little disclaimer - I am NO fitness expert - frankly, I really have no idea what I'm talking about when it comes to fitness - so my descriptions may not be exactly accurate, but I'll do my best):
I try to do about 50 jumping jacks before I get in the shower. It gets my heart rate up, and I get the sweating part over and done with before I jump in the tub.
Next comes my leg work - 20 squats, 20 scissor leg lifts on each leg, 20 backward leg lifts on each leg.
Then I do a bit of standing ab work - from a standing position, I hold my arms at my sides and, alternating sides, I lean and reach with my right hand to the side of my right knee - come back upright - pause - then do the same to the left. I do this 50 times. Then holding my left hand behind my neck I bring my elbow down to touch my left knee as I bring it up. I do this 20 times on each leg.
Lastly, I punch it out - I hold my fists in front of my chest and twist my waist to the right and punch my left hand to the right. I come back to center then do the same to the left. I do this motion 50 times alternating right, left, right, left, etc.
I try to do this routine 5-6 nights a week - it usually only takes me about 10 minutes, but by the time I'm done the muscles in my tush and thighs are screaming. It may not be perfect, or even correct, but I've been feeling a whole lot better and am hoping that I continue to feel and see results!!
Down 22lbs. and counting!!
Tracy
Saturday, September 15, 2012
The End of a Productive Day
It's 11:00p.m. and I'm finally sitting down to just chill for a bit. The day has been pack full of business and fun. I successfully delivered 4 totes of kid-o clothes and toys to one of our consignment shops in town - 3 more bunches of stuff going to 3 different locales, and I can call my purging project officially done! My storage room isn't even that big - only about 15 x 8 - but I can't believe the amount of stuff that was in here!! Crazy! I'm SO grateful for hand-me-downs - I really haven't had to buy a whole lot for Madeline - but it was definitely time to clear out. I now have her stored clothes (from birth until she's about 6) in 10 totes - down from the almost 20 that it was. In addition to all the other stuff I got rid of, a little more than half of my storage room is not my crafting area, so I'm pretty excited about that! It'll be nice to be able to spread out my projects without little hands getting into everything!
The neighbor that rents our grain bins is also working on repairing/partially replacing one of the 3 bins we have. At some point, before we bought our farm, someone put grain that was too wet in the bin and caused the steel rings to buckle resulting in a grain bin with a dreadful lean. So, in order to fix the problem, the whole bin had to be disassembled - I currently have 3 sections of bin sitting in my front yard - the buckled sections removed/replaced, and then the whole works has to go back together again. To add to the "fun," whoever originally laid the concrete slab that the bin sits on didn't put re-rod in the concrete so the pad itself ended up breaking apart so it too needs to be replaced. Brian was out there today with the tractor helping to remove the old concrete so the new pad can be laid next week. It's been fun seeing this project come together! Yet another one of those times when I'm so glad to be surrounded by an awesome team of "do-it-yourself-ers."
My little Jetta is also on the mend. We ended up having to order a bolt that, I believe, goes from the block to the timing belt housing - it had to come directly from the VW dealer, so we'll be waiting for it to come in on Wednesday. Then, we should be ready to go back together! Would sure be nice if we could be back up and running by next weekend. This $70+ per week to fill up my Jeep is a killer!!!
I got extra spoiled today with Subway for lunch and Breadeaux for supper. We invited our renter in to join us for dinner too, which was great! It's always nice to be able to share a meal with a neighbor! After dinner was bath time for the Princess, some "Dinousaur Train" wind down, prayer time, and bed. Brian and I enjoyed some time out in the shop together - him working on the car, and me kicking back in my lawn chair snuggling with my cat, JJ. It was nice to have some Mommy and Daddy time!
The alarm clock is set for church in the morning, and I'm off to download some new Itunes music from The Piano Guys. A perfect way to end the day!
PS - on a side note, I'm more than 5 months soda free!!!
The neighbor that rents our grain bins is also working on repairing/partially replacing one of the 3 bins we have. At some point, before we bought our farm, someone put grain that was too wet in the bin and caused the steel rings to buckle resulting in a grain bin with a dreadful lean. So, in order to fix the problem, the whole bin had to be disassembled - I currently have 3 sections of bin sitting in my front yard - the buckled sections removed/replaced, and then the whole works has to go back together again. To add to the "fun," whoever originally laid the concrete slab that the bin sits on didn't put re-rod in the concrete so the pad itself ended up breaking apart so it too needs to be replaced. Brian was out there today with the tractor helping to remove the old concrete so the new pad can be laid next week. It's been fun seeing this project come together! Yet another one of those times when I'm so glad to be surrounded by an awesome team of "do-it-yourself-ers."
My little Jetta is also on the mend. We ended up having to order a bolt that, I believe, goes from the block to the timing belt housing - it had to come directly from the VW dealer, so we'll be waiting for it to come in on Wednesday. Then, we should be ready to go back together! Would sure be nice if we could be back up and running by next weekend. This $70+ per week to fill up my Jeep is a killer!!!
I got extra spoiled today with Subway for lunch and Breadeaux for supper. We invited our renter in to join us for dinner too, which was great! It's always nice to be able to share a meal with a neighbor! After dinner was bath time for the Princess, some "Dinousaur Train" wind down, prayer time, and bed. Brian and I enjoyed some time out in the shop together - him working on the car, and me kicking back in my lawn chair snuggling with my cat, JJ. It was nice to have some Mommy and Daddy time!
The alarm clock is set for church in the morning, and I'm off to download some new Itunes music from The Piano Guys. A perfect way to end the day!
PS - on a side note, I'm more than 5 months soda free!!!
An Inexpensive Dresser Re-Do
Madeline has a nice big white dresser in her room. I've always thought it is rather plain and wanted to spruce it up a little bit...
I bought 2 bunches of flowers at Dollar Tree.
I took the flower itself off of the stem and removed the flower center leaving me with 2 petal sections.
Next, I removed the drawer pull from the screw...
...put the petals on the screw...
...and put the drawer pull back on.
AND...VOILA!! Easy Peasy!
Friday, September 14, 2012
A Six Week Summary
My goodness, where has the time gone!? My last blog entry was back in July!? Seriously?? Seems as though I have some catching up to do.
As I'm sitting here writing, the air compressor in the garage is cycling. I have a feeling it's going to drive me nuts, but I'll do my best to ignore it. With that, here's the skinny:
My Jetta TDI is down yet again - SO blessed to have a husband who's a mechanic!! Hopefully will have her up and running soon!
Grain bin furthest west is in the process of getting repaired/replaced. Will be nice to not have the leaning tower of Teachout out there!
Storage room has been successfully purged of all unwanted crap and I've been able to move my crafting stuff in to half of it - very stoked about this!!! Step 2 of the purge is next - delivering and re-homing all of the junk I'm getting rid of. I'm seriously befuddled as to where all of this stuff came from - but I'm glad it's on it's way out!! ;-)
I'm SO glad the sweltering heat has subsided! Today was a lovely 74 degrees - sure beats the 100+ plus we had for several weeks this summer! I must say, Fall IS my favorite season - I just love the cool crisp mornings and chilly evenings around the fire pit. Bring on the jeans and sweatshirts, baby!!
Started home schooling Madeline this week and finding it to be quite a challenge. She is SUCH a busy kid!!! Getting her to sit down and focus has been challenging to say the least. But, I'm hopeful. She really likes to learn and picks stuff up very quickly - I just hope I can keep up with her!!
Since my car has been down, Madeline and I have been spending a lot more time here at home. My Jeep, although I LOVE it, is just too much of a gas hog to drive any more than necessary! So, I've been working on getting a whole bunch of started projects done around the house. Thus far I've successfully finished painting our home school room, reupholstered the footstool that goes with my rocking chair, refinished a vintage lamp shade, repaired/stitched numerous lost buttons on shirts and loose seams, started switching out Madeline's summer clothes for fall ones, and deep cleaned the whole house. There's plenty more to do, but I think I've had a good start!
A couple of months ago, Brian introduced me to Deadliest Catch on Netflix. It's a reality show that originally aired on the Discovery Channel about one of the deadliest jobs in the world - crab fishing on the Bering Sea. Needless to say, I got hooked and watched every episode of all 7 available seasons in record time! There's so much I love about the show, especially the dynamics of all of the captains, deck bosses, and deckhands on each boat, and now I find myself aspiring to venture on one someday myself!! My love of the ocean is definitely calling!! I would love to experience a crab season on the Northwestern (the boat who's dynamics I like the best), or the Time Bandit (those guys are just nuts!) cooking and taking care of the crew. I think that would be a really awesome opportunity. I'm not so sure my husband would be nearly as excited about that as I would be, but we're all entitled to our dreams, right!?
Until next time - over and out!
As I'm sitting here writing, the air compressor in the garage is cycling. I have a feeling it's going to drive me nuts, but I'll do my best to ignore it. With that, here's the skinny:
My Jetta TDI is down yet again - SO blessed to have a husband who's a mechanic!! Hopefully will have her up and running soon!
Grain bin furthest west is in the process of getting repaired/replaced. Will be nice to not have the leaning tower of Teachout out there!
Storage room has been successfully purged of all unwanted crap and I've been able to move my crafting stuff in to half of it - very stoked about this!!! Step 2 of the purge is next - delivering and re-homing all of the junk I'm getting rid of. I'm seriously befuddled as to where all of this stuff came from - but I'm glad it's on it's way out!! ;-)
I'm SO glad the sweltering heat has subsided! Today was a lovely 74 degrees - sure beats the 100+ plus we had for several weeks this summer! I must say, Fall IS my favorite season - I just love the cool crisp mornings and chilly evenings around the fire pit. Bring on the jeans and sweatshirts, baby!!
Started home schooling Madeline this week and finding it to be quite a challenge. She is SUCH a busy kid!!! Getting her to sit down and focus has been challenging to say the least. But, I'm hopeful. She really likes to learn and picks stuff up very quickly - I just hope I can keep up with her!!
Since my car has been down, Madeline and I have been spending a lot more time here at home. My Jeep, although I LOVE it, is just too much of a gas hog to drive any more than necessary! So, I've been working on getting a whole bunch of started projects done around the house. Thus far I've successfully finished painting our home school room, reupholstered the footstool that goes with my rocking chair, refinished a vintage lamp shade, repaired/stitched numerous lost buttons on shirts and loose seams, started switching out Madeline's summer clothes for fall ones, and deep cleaned the whole house. There's plenty more to do, but I think I've had a good start!
A couple of months ago, Brian introduced me to Deadliest Catch on Netflix. It's a reality show that originally aired on the Discovery Channel about one of the deadliest jobs in the world - crab fishing on the Bering Sea. Needless to say, I got hooked and watched every episode of all 7 available seasons in record time! There's so much I love about the show, especially the dynamics of all of the captains, deck bosses, and deckhands on each boat, and now I find myself aspiring to venture on one someday myself!! My love of the ocean is definitely calling!! I would love to experience a crab season on the Northwestern (the boat who's dynamics I like the best), or the Time Bandit (those guys are just nuts!) cooking and taking care of the crew. I think that would be a really awesome opportunity. I'm not so sure my husband would be nearly as excited about that as I would be, but we're all entitled to our dreams, right!?
Until next time - over and out!
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