House of Estrogen

Simple Woman's Daybook, April 28, 2015

 

 

For Today...

 

Outside my window... we're having lovely spring days right now, not too hot, not too cold. I could do without quite so much rain, but I'm enjoying the temperature.
  

   I am thinking... about Baltimore. I'm so disgusted and horrified by all of it... Gray's death at the hands of police, the riots, the looting, the slow response by the mayor. Incidents like this highlight the worst side of humanity.  This Baltimore Sun article about other people who have ended up with serious spinal injuries after a "rough ride" handcuffed and unbuckled in Baltimore police vans makes me feel almost physically ill. From the article... "The most sensational case in Baltimore involved Johnson, a 43-year-old plumber who was arrested for public urination. He was handcuffed and placed in a transport van in good health. He emerged a quadriplegic." How can this kind of police behavior happen over and over again? While nothing justifies the riots, violence, fires, and looting, Gray's death certainly justifies a lot of anger toward police, questions that deserve answers, and serious consequences for the officers involved.

  

 I am thankful... for my family's health and well-being today. I've heard so much bad news today - the news out of Baltimore, a friend of a friend whose son died in a skateboarding accident this week, and a young father of four at work who died after being hit by a car while running with his wife. I feel so sad for all the families affected by these tragedies and at the same time, thankful that my little family is doing OK right now.

 

 From the kitchen... very little. Tonight was a Taekwondo, volleyball, jump rope night. Dinner was on the run.
   

 I am creating... a tidy, clean bonus room. We turned part of the bonus room into a closet. Now, all the crappola that was piled up in the bonus room making it look cluttered and messy can be tossed, taken to Goodwill, or stored in the new closet.  This room is getting quite a transformation. I'm kicking myself that I didn't take before pictures.

   

I am going... to relax and watch a little TV when I'm done with this post.

 

I am reading... nothing right now. I finished Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight this week. That was excellent... total page-turner.

 

 I am hoping... that Baltimore finds peace and answers.
   

I am hearing... the shower running.
 

Around the house... new paint in the hallway, stairwells, bonus room, and girls' bathroom! Yea!

 

One of my favorite things... the NY Times.

 

A few plans for the rest of the week... book club for me (I didn't read the book this month, but I'm going for the "get out of the house and visit with friends" thing anyway), Elise doing a jump rope performance and workshop with special needs middle school students, and Addie's bridging to Brownies event. She is thrilled to get rid of the Daisy tunic and graduate to a Brownie vest. Who knew vests were so much cooler than tunics?

 

Here is a picture thought I am sharing... the sweet fairy garden that Addison and my mom built over the weekend.  We are anticipating many visits from fairies!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 To read more Daybook posts or learn how to participate, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.

Go Team!

I love questions from seven year olds. I have no idea how their brains work or how their thought process gets them to the questions they ask, but I love it. This week, Addie said to me, "Mom, I was just wondering... are God and Jesus on the same team?  Or different teams?"  I paused for a moment and then responded, "They are on the same team."  She said, "OK. I was just wondering."

I can't help but wonder what sort of team God and Jesus are on together. Basketball? Hockey? Debate?  I didn't ask or pry. I just left it alone and smiled.

Simple Woman's Daybook, April 13, 2015

 

 

For Today...

 

Outside my window... the dogwoods are blooming.
  

   I am thinking... about poor sweet Addie lying at my feet wrapped up in a blanket shivering with chills from a fever.
  

 I am thankful... that my husband isn't sick yet. I have the flu. Addie has croup. Nina has a cold. Elise has laryngitis. He is holding the family together.

 

 From the kitchen... spicy chicken soup that my mom brought over that she said will clear my sinuses.
   

 I am creating... big piles of used tissues all over the house.

   

I am going... nowhere. I've been running a fever for five days now. I'd love to go somewhere. Anywhere. Sadly, I'm stuck here. I missed Nina's field trip to Old Salem and Elise's jump rope competition.

 

I am reading... Dark Chocolate Demise by Jenn McKinlay. A cozy mystery is about all my brain can handle right now.

 

 I am hoping... that we all start feeling better soon and that my aunt gets out of the hospital soon.
   

I am hearing... Addie whining and moaning, and JC cooking fish.
 

Around the house... germs.

 

One of my favorite things... Nyquil.

 

A few plans for the rest of the week... I'm hoping Addie and I will both be well enough to go to her belt ceremony Wednesday night. She earned her level three green belt this weekend.

 

Here is a picture thought I am sharing... Elise's single rope freestyle routine from competition this past weekend. JC and I both missed seeing her jump this since I was sick, and he was at Addie's belt testing. Fortunately, a friend sent me a video.

 

 

 

 To read more Daybook posts or learn how to participate, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.

Simple Woman's Daybook, April 7, 2015

 

 

For Today...

 

Outside my window... a fine coating of yellow pollen ev.er.y.where.
  

   I am thinking... apparently my poor mother-in-law is getting an earful from everybody in her little town that her slacker daughter-in-law has stopped updating this blog. I can't have that!  I need to get this little blog back on track. It is sort of like exercise... good for me, but if I get out of the habit, it is hard to get back into it. (I'm working on the exercise thing too, by the way.)
  

 I am thankful... for a great contractor who is doing wonderful things to my house!

 

 From the kitchen... too much Easter candy.
   

 I am creating... a patchwork quilt of 12 inch squares of sample paint across every wall in the house. We have major paint indecision issues.

   

I am going... to have a lovely new master bathroom at some point. Eventually. I hope. One day. In the future.

 

I am reading... nothing right now, but since my last SWD post (I know... it has been a while), I've read Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke, Ghost Boy: The Miraculous Escape of a Misdiagnosed Boy Trapped Inside His Own Body by Martin Pistorius, Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty, and The Midwife's Confession by Diane Chamberlain.

 

 I am hoping... that Elise starts feeling better soon. Her poor body is under the perfect storm of a migraine, an asthma flare, a reflux flare, and a fever right now. She's just so pitiful. She has a big jump rope competition coming up Saturday, and I know she desperately wants to be back on her feet before then.
   

I am hearing... The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reunion show... good stuff!  Trash TV at its finest.
 

Around the house... where do I even start? All the playroom contents are in the dining room. All the bonus room furniture and contents are in the bedrooms. Addie's top bunk is full of books and computer equipment. There is a weight bench in Elise's bedroom and a bathtub in mine. A temporary office is set up in the family room. The bonus room is half painted. Our master bathroom is half-renovated. Paint chips are taped up everywhere. Home sweet chaos.

 

One of my favorite things... Instagram.

 

A few plans for the rest of the week... a field trip to Old Salem with Nina's class, judging a jump rope competition all day Saturday, and Addison has belt testing Saturday.

 

Here is a picture thought I am sharing... Easter goodies.

 

 

 

 To read more Daybook posts or learn how to participate, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook.