A full year of beginning

It's still amazing to me to realize that it's 2014.
What I'm still trying to wrap my brain around is that I made it through 2013.
I survived the trials and the tribulations.
Granted there were times when I felt like throwing in the towel.
Times where the burden seemed to be smothering me.
But I persevered through it.
Why?
My kids were (and ARE) the lights of my life.
It's because of them I got out of bed.
It's because of them I did everything that I did in the last year.
It's been ONE YEAR since I finalized in my mind that my marriage was over.
Where I am today is so much different than last year.
Amazing how everything was turned upside down.
The kids and I are happier and more settled.
Christmas was GREAT!
Hopefully it'll set the foundation for all our Christmases to come.
This is going to be our first official full year as a threesome.
And it's going to be AWESOME!!!!

Relishing in our time together

The kids and I have been spending some quality time away. We had our two weeks of uninterrupted time and we (in my own view) had a blast. We went to my hometown visiting with my family. We visited the beach. We spent a day at a fair that is set up for 3 weeks each summer. We ate at a bunch of different places. We ran around. We slept. We talked and laughed and had a grand ole time.

My latest small pleasure

For the people who know me in real life, they know that I'm a simple person. I take pleasure in some of the most tiniest things. The smell of newly dried white towels that I've used bleach on. The feel of fresh linens on my bed. The satisfaction of a "full" refrigerator and pantry.

Soon it'll be every month on the dot

Tomorrow starts another journey for our little family. Actually, it'll be an adventure for my daughter that I'm just going to have to be a part of.

In the morning my daughter will get some teeth removed. Why you ask? She is scheduled to get some metal put in next Wednesday.

Oh yeah! Another pre-teen getting orthodontic work done. She'll be part of the "crew" that has metal in her mouth.

I have to tell you that I'm glad that she's getting it done. Her teeth have been crooked - crooked - crooked for ages! Her top two teeth actually make an inward v instead of lying flat in the front there. And there are so many teeth on the bottom that it looks flat and then goes back - in a rectangular manner. It'll be good to get those two major items fixed. Of course, there are other minor aesthetic issues that'll be corrected. But MAN, it'll be good to get it started.

She was a bit nervous when I announced to her after lunch that she was scheduled to go to the dentist to get some teeth pulled. We'd just gone there on Friday for their cleaning. No cavities! Woohoo! Who knows how it'll go once the metal is in her mouth though.

Any Moms out there have any advice on how to help a teen keep their teeth clean while wearing braces? Electronic brush? Water pik? Any advice would be appreciated!

Officially official

Little did I know on when I last posted that I was actually already divorced!

My attorney emailed me late Sunday to let me know that he got the signed papers in the mail. That the papers had been finalized on Tuesday, May 28th. Right after Memorial Day weekend.

It felt strange to read the email. It was so surreal. To realize that it really was over. Granted, there are some minor "housekeeping" items to get done, but in reality it's done. Finito.

All for the greater good

I took a well deserved break from my site.

Trying to get used to living in Arizona.

Work has been crazy.

My kids have been taking a larger chunk of my time with all their homework. Their bickering truly gets on my last nerve too.

Changes

Here's a quote that I saw last night that really spoke to me:

Life is too short to wake up with regrets.
So love the people who treat you right.
Forget about the ones who don't.
Believe everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance, take it.
If it changes your life, let it.
Nobody said that life would be easy.
They just promised it would be worth it.

Making Mommy Laugh

Last night at dinner with the kids, I talked about some educational stuff I want the kids to learn over the summer. I brought up the continents and that I hope to have them learn the countries that make up most of the continents. We started talking about South America. One of my children shouted out...

I know two of them! Bolivia and Egypt!

Egypt? Really?

No cooking tonight

I didn't feel like cooking tonight. So I asked the household what they wanted for dinner. Both the kids said "whatever. I don't have a preference." My husband chimed in with "Pei Wei" so that is where we need up. My son got lemon chicken. My daughter got some spicy dish. My husband got the spicy chicken combo with an egg roll. I got chicken lo main with hot and sour soup.

A little discomfort for tremendous gains

I can't believe how much better I feel today. Those 4 hours of pain yesterday were something else. I did my steady breathing. Concentrating on dissipating the pain. Pretending to quench the flames with water.

And with how good I feel right now? Back to normal already? It's crazy! I spotted yesterday. Today I've had a couple little spots. Nothing big. But I know I'll be in "recovery" for a couple weeks, so I'll probably have more spotting/discharge during the next 14 days.

I know some other gals who've had other ablation procedures. The one gal had the method that used water and she had pain off and on for a couple weeks. When I woke up this morning, after a very satisfying sleep, I was truly surprised how normal I felt. It was as if I hadn't been "beat up" yesterday.

So for now I'm giving the Novasure procedure a HUGE thumbs up!

Groggy blogging

The procedure is done. It was one of those in-office things where they still had to knock me out. So my husband HAD to drive me to and from my OB's office.

I have to tell you that I was starving when it got closer to my appt time of 12:20pm. Thankfully, I had woken up at 3am and made myself eat a PBJ sandwich along some soy milk. I also downed about 32 ounces of water.  I can't imagine how much more hungry and thirsty I would have been if I hadn't done that. Even my OB applauded my actions. I guess there were some ladies who last ate at dinner and were super cranky before their procedure.

Taking care a physical issue

We all know that our bodies change through the years.
Our bodies grow like crazy those first few years of life.
Then we hit puberty and we all shoot up.
Women's bodies change when we have kids.
Then there's what happens as we get even older.

Low blood sugar

I know my kids pretty well. They can be as sweet aspire. But that an be nasty little brats as well.

One thing that makes them into a pile of messy emotions is when they didn't eat every couple hours. My kids grew up eating breakfast, a morning sack, lunch, an afternoon snack, and dinner. During the school week, they stay true to their eating s heddle. On weekends...not so much. Them being 10 and 12, I would think they'd know they still those two little snacks. But alas...they forget.

Creeping up

No. I'm not talking about my underwear!
I'm talking about my weight.
It's gradually working it's way up.
I haven't been running much in the couple of months, so it was inevitable that I'd gain some.
Now I can actually see the weight...not just feel it.
I can tell my waist is thicker.
My legs are less toned.
Not feeling the best about me.
So I have to make some time to run.
I have to.
I have to.
For me.

Making Mommy Laugh

When we were out to dinner this weekend, my daughter leaned over and told me a secret.

"Mommy, I'm not wearing a bra and I feel naked!"

Bwa-ha-ha-ha! I couldn't help but crack up on that one....

Rearranging

My daughter is a few months from being an official teenager. It's hard for me to believe that time is already almost upon me. As a means of accepting her growing up, she has more freedoms in her life. She has earned an increased amount of time per day on her iTouch. She has more minutes per month on her phone. The caveat to her privileges are that she keeps her grades up.

Getting down and dirty

It's getting warmer and warmer as the weeks go on.

I'm taking advantage of the good weather and getting the backyard cleaned up. I suggested pulling the weeds and cutting back the two out-of-control, crazy looking rose bushes, and cutting off the dried out palm tree branches/fronds (sp?). But alas, my suggestions fell on deaf ears. And as I am one who takes work straight on, I went and did this stuff by myself.

Another song kicking around in my head

Sometimes I don't listen to the words in a song.

If the beat is good, then I'll tend to just move with the music.

If I don't know the lyrics, I'll just hum along.

But as I started to watch a show on Netflix to pass the time, the words of this song grabbed me.

It's been a long road
Getting from there to here
It's been a long time
But my time is finally near

And I can feel the change in the wind right now
Nothing's in my way
And they're not gonna hold me down no more
No they're not gonna hold me back

'Cause I've got faith of the heart
I'm going where my heart will take me
I've got faith to believe
I can do anything
I've got strength of the soul
And no one's gonna bend or break me
I can reach any star

I've got to have faith in me and that I will survive with grace and honor.

Inspiration from an unexpected source

As I was in the car the other day I heard a song that touched me.

The words spoke to me.

What I read on January 1, 2013

I don't do resolutions.
I typically make changes as I see fit.
No matter what part of the year we're in.