Do you love lists?

Don't you get a huge sense of accomplishment when you cross something off?



Isn't it so relaxing to have everything organized and written in its place?



Don't you love colored pens and color coded weeks?

No?

Oh it must just be me then.

Holy tomatoes!

A tomato explosion has occurred in our house! I've picked over 15 of them in the last week! We've shared some with my parents and eaten some at almost every meal! Not too shabby from a single plant.

What a blessing!

You know what makes a great day?

Putting together a puzzle on the kitchen floor.



Tomatoes on the window sill.



Playing with magnets on the refrigerator.



A visit from Avery's cousin and grandma.

Foot meet mouth

Remember when I was talking about the oh so beautiful planners? Oh, yesterday was it? I think I mistakenly gave some bad advertisement. :( Did it seem that way? Ooops! I'm soooo sorry. This is part of the comment I recieved last night:

"...these are handmade and very time-consuming. We complete these calendars in-house, from start to finish... from printing to binding. A lot of care and effort is put into each order. You can pay less at Staples, but you will not be supporting a home-based, mommy-run business or getting the extra little details, care, and personal attention that we include...."

When venturing over to her site: {confessionsofapaperfreak.com} I found a blog post dedicated to my goof. :( (PS. You really need to follow her blog, trust me, you just do.) I left the following comment:

"I'm so sad right now! This is totally NOT how I meant it to come across. The calendar is ABSOLUTELY worth the price. I meant, and maybe didn't come across as saying so well, that I refuse to spend money on a planner BECAUSE I have a perfectly good one I just filled out with all my information. Granted, it is in fact a generic one that I have ripped out pages and tabbed pages. It's still kind of messy and not perfect which is why the OCD in me screamed when I stumbled upon your site AHHH GOODNESS GRACIOUS I MUST HAVE!! But then frugal, single mamma on a budget in me went "hold on there crazy YOU HAVE A PLANNER". I'm going to post a follow up on my blog explaining my foot in mouth (keyboard in mouth?) so to speak and you will be getting an order from me soon. I'm so sorry!"

Ya'll I HAVE to order one now! Not only have I been drooling over them for DAYS, but I also made it seem that her product wasn't worth the price!! But what's even better??? I can re-color code my planner! (I know, I know I have an illness.)

I'm so sad.

:(

The post about where I died and went to heaven

There is this lady, she started a business. A successful business. She MAKES CUSTOM PERSONALIZED CALENDERS. Like planners. Like just how you need then. And they're cute. And OH EM GEE I think I might die. Of course the OCD Type A in me was whipping out my debit card and ready to lay down the dineros for a personalized planner. How FREAKING PERFECT would this be?!?! But, hold the phone Betty....48 bucks! And then I got a little sad. I refuse to pay $48 just on principle since I have a perfectly good planner right now that is pretty similar inside, just not decorated all pretty. And it's color coded. Yes, COLOR coded. Work days are in red pen, Colts games are in blue pen, birthdays are in black, payday is green, etc.

And then I started thinking of how I could decorate my already perfect on the inside calender....

The house...

remember when I said it's on the market? It's been up for nearly 2 months now. The housing market in the area is still sloooooow. After a lot of consideration I decided to sell the house. I have a number of reasons for doing so, I'll tell you a few:

1. The house is almost 60 years old. Things are bound to go wrong, I'm NOT a carpenter, plumber, electrician, etc. I have NO CLUE how to fix a single thing. This leaves me relying on my dad to deal with something that is over my head.

2. I have a decent amount of equity in this house. I bought it in unlivable condition and fixed it up. There is a brand new kitchen with all brand new appliances, a new bathroom, and recently unearthed hardwood floors. The equity in this house would allow me to be sitting in a much more comfortable position financially. This would allow me to get a day shift job or at least a job that I can have normal people hours with.

3. I've been toying with the idea of moving out of state. There are a few options I'm considering. All have their advantages and disadvantages. I haven't ruled out just staying where I am now. Either way, a house is a bit too permanent for me at this point in my life. I would like to find somewhere and be settled, eventually. This will happen before Avery is in school. Which leads me to...

4. I do not want Avery to go to school in this school system. There are a number of private schools in the area, but again, I'm on a single mom budget at this point in my life.

So this is kind of where I'm at right now. Keeping the house in a semi state of order, cleaning for a showing instead of sleeping, continuing with small fix up jobs around the house. I'm trying not to rush anything and see what happens. Who knows how long the house will be on the market.

Happy Birthday to me!

Well, not yet. But I do know that the mailman is bringing me some goodies!!



A 1T hard drive! More than enough room to store all my pictures and then some! I should take me years to fill this baby up. I'm already breathing a sigh of relief that my computer will be backed up. Maybe I should save that until it gets here! Thanks mom! (and Aves.)



Ooooo. A 50mm. ::dead:: I cannot WAIT to see what this baby can do!!! She shipped from Chicago Friday night and is IN TOWN. It will for sure be in my hands by Monday!!!

hiatus

It wasn't an intentional hiatus. More like I have a million things to say but none of which I wish to share with you, interwebz. So, forgive me.

Avery and I have been busy soaking up the summer. This is our (my) favorite time of year and we're outside enjoying it as much as possible. It's absurdly hot right now with a heat index around 104 so we're going outside in small increments. Avery only wanted to swim outside for about 25 minutes this morning and she was done with it. Yesterday it took me all day to get my yard work done because I kept stopping and going to get cooled off in the hose. My yard is finally back in order, it will all be done after my dad comes over today with his weed whacker.

I swear Avery is growing faster than a weed these days. I bought her some gym shorts on clearance the other day and wasn't sure if they would even fit her right now, they seemed a little big. They fit her perfectly. AND she looks like such a big girl in them too.



This is the typical Yo Gabba Gabba reaction at our house and usually the only way I can get pictures these days indoors because she's holding still.



Gosh, she's cute.



This one just makes me smile, it's not mine, I found it online. For the life of me I can't remember where to give credit, but I just found it in my July 2010 folder when I was going through pictures.

Avery has had a few play dates with her friend Mya these last two weeks and I've been planning a return trip to Hawaii in March. Lots of other things going on. Oh, my house is for sale, but we'll talk about that later.

I've been in a funk.

Heavy-hearted.

Down-spirited.

It's not been constant, but it sneaks up on me. And makes me sad. I don't like being sad. So instead I dwell on the happy times. The peaceful times.

In the pool with the cutest kid I know:



Dancing in the car:



Snuggling on the couch with a tired baby:



Quiet evenings on the porch watching fireflies. A good book and a glass of wine. An ice cold beer on a hot summer night.

Those are the times that make me smile.

Happy Wednesday to you!

7.7.10

Today, 7.7.10, was supposed to be my 3rd wedding anniversary.

Supposed to be, but isn't.

A long relationship followed by a short marriage. I could look back on the time with anger. Lies, betrayal, tears, more tears, feelings of incompetence, etc, etc. I did look at it that way for a long time. I cried on my 1st wedding anniversary. I didn't get out of bed the entire day, called in sick to work.

But now I see things a little different. I think of it as one of the best days of my life. (THE best day was a rainy day in December of 2008...) Now I realize that I had to go through that to get here. I had to marry the person I thought was my best friend only to have it crumble 4 short months later. I had to experience that heart ache and pain. That dark time after my divorce, I had to go through all that too.

But look what was on the other side! A beautiful, funny, smart daughter. Strength I never knew I had. A new found independence. I've become....myself. I've learned to love deeper, care more, and appreciate the small things. At the same time I've learned to be cautious with who I trust, rely on myself more than another person, and to hold tight to my beliefs.

I'm not angry anymore. It's not a sensitive subject. I sincerely wish him the best. I truly hope he has learned from the experience and grown. It took me over two and a half years to get here, but it takes time.

July 7 isn't a day for me to dread anymore. When I look back I now, I know that day really was the first day of the rest of my life. And what a life it is!

Inspiration

Things that make me smile right now.



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Happy Independence Day

Remember those who have fought and are still fighting so that we can be free.

Happy Birthday America!