CAC Writing Prompts

Kiandra inspired me to go ahead and tackle these prompts. I've been missing CAC due to busy-ness and I do want to get back on the saddle : )

1. If you could have any magical power for only one hour, what would it be and why? The ability to clean cluttered homes in a single bound. Well, one cluttered home anyhow.

2. You've won a pair of round-trip airline tickets to anywhere in the world. Where would you go, with whom, and why? Italy, with my husband and kids. It is my dream place to visit. I've been twice with my husband, and once before that. We are talking about when we'll be able to take the kids for the first time.

3. You are stranded in a library or bookstore for 24 hours. In what section do you spend the most time? Why? I have so many interests I can't really say that I gravitate to one section over another. I do need many hours to slowly walk through the whole store or library! Cookbooks, books on parenting, children's books, magazines, travel books, you name it and I want to read it :)

4. If you were to be on a reality TV show, which one would it be? Why would you be a good fit for that particular show? Hmm. I don't know if this is really what you're thinking of, but it would have to be one of those organizational shows. We really need that.

5. What did you most recently dream or daydream about? I've been dreaming of yarn! I'm trying to choose the yarn for my babette blanket and the possibilities are all so yummy! I'm also dreaming out lout with my husband about an actual family trip to Italy in two years. We'll see!

Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back

up and down up and down. My mooods have always been that way. I think I have a little less swing as I've gotten older and learned more about myself, but sometimes I just can't help it.

This week is one of those weeks. So many things to feel up about, but yesterday has pretty much negated the up feeling. I had a terrible time with my son yesterday afternoon. It is hard to even contemplate. I did apologize for my inappropriate actions; he did too, and I am hoping he understands a little better what we ask of him. I do think there is something deeper going on with him, which is a reminder that I need to be present for him in the afternoon, instead of getting caught up in my own things.

I also had a terrible fight with my husband. I regretted a lot of what I said. I apologized when I realized the damage I had done. I was also able to apologize this morning for the whole thing. I'm not much of a kidder. I tend not to like silly jokes, and I've been called "too serious" often. He'd made a comment that just set me off after a bad day. After a night's sleep I was able to acknowledge that it was a harmless comment and that I didn't need to let my emotions run away with themselves like that. That is a step in the right direction, as I'm usually unable to recognize that what I've done maybe wasn't necessary. And if I do recognize it, I have a damn hard time admitting it!

I haven't been doing my grateful journal every night for the past few nights. And for a lifelong pessimist I have definitely found keeping track of what I'm grateful for useful. I will make sure to do it tonight.

When I go home this afternoon (soon!), I will be present with the kids. I will not try to get other things done (well, I might crochet in their presence, but that's ok, right?). I want to be fun mommy, not raging, raving lunatic mommy.

Ok, so three steps forward, two steps back, and maybe another one forward.

Small Things to smile about on a Monday

• While getting my journal ready for the CAC swap, my son kept walking by and told me "Mom, it is getting more beautiful and more beautiful." Awww. I hope Pauline thinks so!
• I figured out how to crochet the squares for the Babette blanket! I have a hard time understanding crochet patterns with directions inside of parentheses and brackets. Yup, that is pretty much all crochet patterns. I did a traditional granny square last night, looked more closely at the photos in the Flickr group, and figured out what I needed to do. Now that I know I can do it I can plan what colors I'm going to use. I'm very excited.
• I have two more forms to fill out for my lactation conultant certification exam; I'll be able to have it postmarked by the April 30th deadline. I've signed up for an exam prep course online and also have an exam prep book. Yeah!
• I think I'm mentally caught up from five days away from home. I went to a conference in Georgia, and even co-presented a session without falling ill from nerves :) I got to meet the Fly Lady. I even hugged her because of a story she told. Mind you, I've never done Fly Lady, and have often wondered about her legions of fans. However, I think she's what I've been wishing for. I need someone to tell me what to do, what small steps to take to care for our home. And she will do that. Somehow meeting her and hearing her stories personally has really gotten through to me. I know that there is no magic pill; if I want to change our home, I need to do it one step at a time. Instead of crying about how overwhelmed I am, I need to put one baby step after another.
• I hate asking for help in stores. Hate it. But this morning I was shopping for milk and didn't see what I wanted. I did see a man behind the milk case working to restock. So...I asked for what I was looking for. My heart didn't pound. I didn't hem and haw, wondering if I should bother, I just did it. Yay!

I had a tough weekend, mostly of my own making I'm sad to say. But today is starting the week off on a good note. Even though I was cranky all weekend, I think I've learned more about myself. I can see through my exam prep and work on crocheting that I can take things one step at a time and make them happen.

Look out, here I come. And I'm turning out great.

Fruitful Weekend

I'm not sure how it happened, but I'm thankful for it--somehow I've got my get-up-and-go back!
After some great discussions with my husband on our spring break trip, I've decided for sure to take the IBLCE exam this summer. This is the credentialing exam for lactation consultants. The regular deadline for applying to take the exam is April 30th. As of last week I still had three background courses to take, and I finished them all! Now I'm taking one more breastfeeding education class (all online) and am busy getting all of my paperwork together to send in the application. Like I said, I'm not sure where this feeling came from, but I'm so grateful to be taking care of what needs to be done and just generally feeling 'in the zone.'

In addition to doing this preparatory stuff for the exam, I also did some crafting. I purchased a sweater a few months ago and felted it right away. I just wasn't sure what I was going to create with it. I thought of a small purse, but couldn't decide how to cut the sweater so as to use the cool flowers on it. Finally I remembered the cool Lambkin pattern and realized the flowers would be so cute going across the lamb's back. Et voila! My lambkins:

The eyes are the buttons from the sweater.

I also did some embroidery. I bought some patterns from Sublime Stitching a few months ago after seeing one that Krista was working on. I am relatively pleased with the results, but this is something I definitely want to get better at!

Speaking of get-up-and-go--I really need to scoot out the door and get to work!

Spring Is...

a new pair of sneakers!

Fun prompt DebR! CAC

Getting to Know You - Let's go to the movies

Tammy is the new CAC guest-host for Wednesdays during April. Tammy loves movies and wants to hear about the movies we love.

Name your all-time favorite movie! (Or if you're like me, narrow it down to your top five!)

I'm all over the place- Roman Holiday and Pulp Fiction are two of my faves. My newest fave is the newest Bond movie, Casino Royale : )

What genre of movie do you like best?

drama or romantic comedy, but I love watching movies and will watch nearly anything. The only type I'm not really fond of are those dopey guy-type movies like Smokey and the Bandit, or American Lampoon.

What movie made you cry the most?

Lots of movies make me cry, but I think that Finding Neverland made me cry most. Runner up is probably Mrs. Doubtfire- yes, a comedy! Although my parents divorced many years before I saw this movie, it touched that part of me deeply, like a pin in a fresh wound.

Have you ever applauded during a movie in the theatre? Which one? If not, what would make you do that?

I did for Chicago- it felt like watching a musical at the theater, and it was so much fun. Everyone clapped.

Do you own any soundtracks from movies? Which is your favorite and why did the music inspire you?

I don't think I own too many. I do have the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. I love the songs and how they fit into the movie, and I love the bits of dialogue at the start of the songs. Oh, duh, I also have Chicago!


Is there a particular actor or actress who inspires you? Why do you like him or her?

Hmmm. Not sure about inspiring. I'm sure there are plenty of actors I like, but I can't think of any! I love Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck. And Hugh Grant!

Is there a particular actor or actress who you just dislike and will not see their movies? Why?

I really dislike Tom Cruise. He has always struck me as a twerp, and his comments about depression did not raise my opinion of him. My one exception to this is that I love Jerry Maguire!

Have you ever dreamed of being an actor? Which role would be your dream role?

No way! I don't like being the center of attention or feeling like I'm being looked at.

If there was ever a movie made of your life, who should star as you? I can't think of any female actors at the moment except for Renee Zellwegger- I'm taller but I think she hit Bridget Jones so perfectly that she could capture my zany existence as well : )