A book I'm reading

I have been reading "The Family Manager" by Kathy Peel. I am really enjoying it. As self help books go, this one is by far my favorite. It speaks to me, not just because she admits to having once lived a life very similar to mine, but also because it's formatted in an appealing way. There are lists, quotes, little pointing fingers, checklists, worksheets, jokes etc... And it's all do-able... you know what I mean? There is no-"go out and spend hundreds of dollars on a new organizations system that may or may not work for you!" or making it seem over simplified "Just clean your house everyday..." right... if I could do that, would I be reading your book?

No, Kathy Peel is a real person, with a real family. And she says that Moms are really like CEOs of small businesses... when you start looking at it from a management perspective, she's right. Who controls all the incoming and outgoing money? Mom (or dad- the co-pilot) Who schedules the family's time? She incorporates sound business practices with family life, and I've found it to be most helpful... Delegating, team building, simplifying etc...

I enjoy it, and I would highly recommend it!

Am I Brave Enough?

I mean- Can I really do it?

I am almost afraid by writing these words, I am setting myself up for failure. I know- it must be done...

We need to stop eating out...

I know you've heard me complain about the food here in Havre, so why do we eat out so often?

1. It's fast. With Jason in night classes, and me getting off work at 5 pm- we're usually pretty hungry when I come home. We don't have a lot of time so we go out.

2. We are indecisive. Between the three of us, we usually cannot decide what to eat until we're so hungry that our tempers are flaring.

3. No dishes. Is there anything nicer than tossing your plates in the garbage when you're done instead of washing them, the pans, the silverware after eating? Or just leaving them on the table for someone else to take care of? I think not.

4. I am a terrible cook. I am not kidding. I try to make thrifty meals or homemade stuff, and Jason hates it. Oh, he'll eat it, because like I said we're too hungry at that point, but of course it won't taste as good if I make it.

5. It's something to do. In a tiny town (where all the businesses close before 7 except walmart and fast food joints.. oh and bars, but that's not a problem for us.) eating out provides some entertainment.

6. I am lazy- yes there it is. I admit it... I just don't want to do it. Any of it. I don't like planning the menu, cooking the food, serving the food, doing the dishes yada yada yada... Go ahead and judge me, I don't care! I sometimes wish I could be a stepford wife complete with remote!

So there it is- Sometimes there are battles in our lives that must be fought and won: demons to conquer and foes to slay! This is my battle (and at the risk of sounding a little to melodramatic) I WILL NOT BACK DOWN! I WILL NOT BE DEFEATED! I CAN DO THIS!!! (cue theme music--)

Paranoid

OK, so I will admit it. I have inherited some serious paranoia... and you know what? Suddenly my mother is no longer over protective- and I feel so much love retroactively. I worry, but it's not because I don't trust, or I want to annoy. It's because my child is the most precious thing in the world to me and I know I would go absolutely crazy if I were to ever lose him...

I am reminded of Finding Nemo-

Marlin: "I promised I'd never let anything happen to him."
Dory: Hmmm, that's a funny thing to promise.
Marlin: What?
Dory: Well, you can't never let anything happen to him. Then nothing would ever happen to him.

Where does all this anxiety stem from this morning? Hudson's preschool class is going swimming this morning. He doesn't know how to swim, and he's convinced that he does, and having once nearly drowned, I find myself a little worried... Other worries this morning include: The school bus driving in the snow, I forgot to put Hudson's toque on this morning and I don' want his head to get cold after swimming... I am worried about slipping on the slippery streets and about catching the swine flu...

Jason is right, I am a little bit of a basket case... so?

Apathy- A pathetic excuse...

You know what really bugs me? Apathy- and high school students seem to have it in truckloads. I don't really mind if school pisses you off, at least you're exhibiting some kind of emotion!
Rage against the machine!
Protest!
Write angry letters!
I don't care!!! But please, please, please.... please don't just sit there are look at me like this...



I am sick of people NOT CARING about stuff...

OK, I'll stop ranting.... but honestly people- wake up and start doing SOMETHING!

Snow... really?

It's supposed to snow tomorrow. We all know how I feel about that...The high this Friday is going to be in the 20s...

Snow is the reason I realized I was a grown-up.

Suddenly one snowy morning instead of feeling delighted by the beautiful and delicate flakes that twirled down to earth, I felt a solid cold dread in my stomach. And that's when I knew I was a "grown-up"

To a child snow means:
Snowmen
Sledding
snow angels
Christmas is on its way
School cancellations
snowball fights

To a "grown up" snow means:
higher heating bills
bad driving conditions
frozen pipes
shoveling the drive way
scraping car windows
worry about slipping/frostbite/hypothermia
that general feeling of being trapped....

see what I mean? Last year it was too frickin' cold to even enjoy the nice things about snow. Never before in my life have I seen so many lawns without snowmen, so few foot prints and sled tracks... no, I'm afraid when it's -35 degrees out, not even kids like snow around here....

so it begins....

Here's hoping that this winter will be Shorter, warmer, and drier than last!