Using my "in between" time

Since I work full-time, I've got the kids in before and afterschool care. It's a great resource for me with a wonderful staff.

I get off work around 4 and I normally just zoom on over to the school to get them.


But the thing is?

The kids can stay there until 6pm.

Taking driving time out of the equation that's almost 1.5 hours of in-between time that I could be using.

I couple times I've gone to the grocery store. Now THAT was lovely. Being able to meander through the aisles. Being able to get everything put away neatly.

Last week I went looking for some flat shoes for work (sprained my ankle) during this time frame.

Today?

I forgot to pull out some meat to defrost before we left this morning.

So I was busy putting together dinner just now.

It's nice when I make dinner first and then go pick them up.

When I pick them up directly, it's total chaos with them unpacking and telling me about their day. All of us changing into comfy clothes. And then I'd make dinner while they'd do homework.

ARGH!!!!!

But today?

I've just finished the rice. I made some beef stir-fry with tons of veggies. I've got some fruit all cut for something sweet.

Now?

I'm off to get the kids.

When we get home we'll just be able to relax.

I'll be able to have more time to sit with them and talk over their homework and about their day.

I think my in-between time today was well used.

You think so too?

Life in bullet points

I can't seem to get anything enlightening composed about my life right now. I'm seeing things as tasks and accomplishments. So here's my life as of late in bullets.

• The kids had Veteran's Day off on Thursday and spent the day at my Mom's house.
• Living in a military town, I saw many a flag flying at people's homes. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED seeing that display of support for our veterans.
• The kids also had the day after Veteran's Day off. The school district decided to give the kids a 4-day weekend.
• Do these people realize that the kids will have TWO 4-day weekends this month?
• What's crazier is that the kids have half days all this week because of parent-teacher conferences scheduled for every afternoon.
• Thankfully, I was able to schedule my kids' conferences for the same day so I only need to leave work early once. My son's is at 3pm, while my daughter's is at 3:20pm. 
• Living in a military town, I saw many a flag flying at people's homes on Veteran's Day. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED seeing that display of support for our veterans.  
• I talked to the kids about how their Papa (my Dad), their Tata (my FIL), their grand-Uncles (my FIL's brothers), their uncle (my BIL), their psuedo-uncle (my BIL's BIL) and their father all served in the military.
• I think it's important to remind the kids of how their own family has supported our country.
• I actually got all the laundry done yesterday. Usually I've got lingering bits that I end up doing on Sunday. But I guess that's what I can get accomplished by spending an entire day basically at home.
• Work has been a bit crazy. The genius decision makers chose NOT to replace the lead in our group. Her job has been divided in between the 3 of us that reported to her. 
• When the lead was here, I just had enough time to get MY work done. Now I've got 1/3 of her workload to carry. I've definitely got to talk to management to let them know that I've got to log in some overtime EVERY week to get things done.
• The kids and I visited a new grocery store this week. The chain store that's near my Mom's house is nice. The same chain store across the freeway from where we now live isn't quite up to the same standard. It was a bit dirty. The lighting was dull. The produce wasn't up to par. Even the eggs weren't stocked. I don't think I'll be going there again.
• I did find one great buy though. A value pack of stew meat. It was only $13 and it had enough beef to make 4 meals for us. 
• I rinsed off and portioned out the meat when I got home. I left two bags of meat as is and threw them into the freezer. I cut up the rest of the cubes into smaller strips and put some Teriyaki marinade into the other 2 bags.
• I bought 2 big cans of pumpkin pure and 4 cans of evaporated milk. That's enough for four pumpkin pies! I can also make some pumpkins pancakes or pumpkin bread/muffins. YUM!
• I found some powdered Pumpkin Spice non-dairy creamer that I'll use at work to bring a bit of the holidays into my environment to hopefully keep me sane.
• I can't bring any refrigerated flavored creamer into work because we've got awful people who USE things that don't belong to them. Yes. We've got THOSE kind at work.
• Two guys I know are running a half marathon this morning. Both inspire me. They're both fathers with busy jobs and still have time to train!
• My sister is already planning on what half marathons she's running next year. She wants to do SIX of them with the first one in January. 
• While we were having lunch my sister was trying to figure out how she was going to fit in her training. With Daylight Savings it's WAY TOO DARK after work to go for a run. 
• I looked at her and told her that she should plan on bringing her stuff in and run at lunch every Mon/Wed/Fri and take her long/hill runs on the weekends. She decided to start with Tues/Thurs runs at lunch. I'm glad I'm supporting her in her endeavor. 
• I made the kids cinnamon rolls for breakfast. They're now playing Wii for a little while before we all get ready for church.
• We're going to spend the afternoon with my younger sister and her family at the park.

So how has YOUR week been? Has it been a bull-point week for you as well?

Thank you for your service

Today is a special day.

Today is one where honor our military.

Some people might think today is an inconvenience because they have to figure out what to do with their kids (whoa re out of school).

But me?

I find today to be one where I will continually be thinking about our military.

The men and women who keep our nation safe.

Those who help maintain the freedoms we so enjoy.

The ability to browse forever at the neighborhood book store.

The ability to run to the nearest Starbucks and get a drink however you want.

The ability to go to the mall and pick up a needed item or frivolous want.

Those men and women who are in the military sacrifice their lives so that we can lead our way of life.

So that we have a CHOICE to live our lives the way we want.

Today?

I take a public moment to praise all those who have served in military.

To praise those who are currently in the military.

To praise the families of those who serve or have served in the military.

And deep heartfelt appreciation to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice to our country.

I wave a flag on my balcony to honor you all.

My heart goes out to each and every one of you for what you do.

Getting rid of that sweet smell

Tomorrow I am going to be hefting a huge bag of candy with me into work.

Yes.

I'm going to "off load" my Halloween stash onto my co-workers.

We had a vendor that came by on Friday and dropped off a little black cauldron of candy.

The cauldron is sitting on the file cabinet just outside my cube.

It was full on Friday.

Today?

It's barely got anything in it.

I caught the VP digging through the dredges looking for something "good" and he walked away with a [sigh]. He couldn't find anything he wanted to indulge in.

So?

I'm going to re-fill it in the morning.

With the stash of sweet smelling candy that's still sitting in my kitchen.

Jolly Ranchers.

Twizzlers.

Hershey bars.

Twix.

Now if I left all this candy in my house?

One path would be that I'd just end up eating a bunch of it.

Another path would be that the bowl would just sit there and go bad.**

So rather than waste the money and let it sit?

I'm going to share it with the office staff.

And make sure all that sugary goodness doesn't end up on my hips and thighs.

And possibly wreck havoc on my skin.

What are YOU doing with all the extra candy from Halloween?