lots of random thoughts tonight

• loved hanging out with my sisters. we don't do it enough and i love it when i do. they get me. no pretenses. just me. plus, we are so funny when we are together!
• my eyes have been getting "gooky" at night. not sure why. need to look into that.
• did we water the christmas tree tonight? or the night before? need to look into that, too.
• i really need to go to bed. do you think ysmaille meant it when he said he would let me sleep in and take the baby tomorrow morning? i really hope so.

Thanksgiving...

I love lists. I am thankful. Let's combine the two...

I am thankful for:
1. My relationship with Jesus Christ. I know it sounds cliche, but it's true. I don't always spend enough time with him, but I sense his presence with me and know that He is sustaining me.
2. My husband, Ysmaille. I often take him for granted, but his love and grace for me is beautiful and I feel blessed to be his wife. No one gets me like he does.
3. My daughter. Each morning as I pick her up out of her crib each morning my heart is overwhelmed for this little person who came from me.
4. My parents. What a wonderful heritage I come from. They have always been supportive of my dreams, while still keeping me grounded.
5. My sisters. I feel sad for any girl who doesn't have sisters. Not only do I have two people that I can call on to borrow a necklace, bracelet, or scarf, but I have two people who understand the very core of who I am. We came from the same place. We shared the same childhood.
6. My diverse group of friends. My friends include teachers and performers. My friends include working moms and stay at home moms. My friends include singles and woman who have been married for decades.
7. My job. I sometimes don't look at my job as a blessing, but it truly is. I am making a difference in the lives of children. I can be creative. It allows me to help pay the bills and gives me good health insurance.
8. My house. I don't mind that it's only two bedrooms and there isn't a ton of room when friends come over. It's mine. It is filled with the treasures that fill my soul-- the bright colors, the Haitian pottery, the paintings, the furniture. I love it all!
9. My health. I have recently started an exercise program. I am amazed that in two weeks time I have already made progress.
10. My church. I am encouraged and challenged each week there. I have friendships there. It's a beautiful place to be.

I am truly a blessed woman!

Time to Start Again...

It's that time again. Time to start. Again. Over the years I have started various exercise and diet routines. I have had a few flops, but many successes as well. About four years ago I lost 20 lbs. and have managed to keep the pounds off. I gained only 24 lbs. during my pregnancy. I am proud of those healthy lifestyle feats. It's time again. I have noticed since having Amirah that I am becoming increasingly flabby. I think I look okay with clothes on, but with clothes off I am shaky, jiggly, puckery. You get the point.

Yesterday I started the "Couch potato to 5K" program. Basically you start out by running 60 seconds, walking 90 seconds,60, 90, 60, 90, etc. for 20 minutes. I was actually scared to start. I know that I am really out of shape. Ysmaille was there behind me (with Amirah in the stroller) encouraging me. There was lots of huffing and puffing. I know. I know. Only 60 seconds at a time, but did I mention I am out of shape?

I am raising my glass and toasting to my future as a more in shape woman!

Reasons I love November...

Oh, sweet November you have arrived again. You are a teacher's dream! Parent teacher conferences, while in and of themselves, are not exciting, the fact that it means that I get a break from teaching and have extra time to plan and organize between conferences means I get caught up on life. Then there is Veteran's Day. I am so grateful for those who have fought for my freedom. I'm also so grateful for a day off school. Next is Thanksgiving. What's not to love-- six days off school, lots of good food, time spent with my beautiful family....

Random Statmens and Questions

Statements:
1. This is the second cold I've had since school started. NOT a good start. Typically I get one a year, at the most two. I need to research immune boostings foods. I'll put that on my to do list along with making baby food, climbing Mt. Everest (just wanted to see if you were paying attention), and cutting out this week's coupons.
2. I am love, love, loving Amirah at this stage. Ysmaille and I spent all evening trying to get her to walk from one of us to the other. She is getting much better. It's a cycle of stand up, take a step, fall, crawl, crawl, crawl, stand up, fall, stand up, take a step, fall....
3. I made homemade calzones last night and they were a big hit! I love it when I make something Ysmaille loves. Too often our mealtimes consist of me trying to get him to eat broccoli.
4. I haven't had my hair cut since last November. Not even a trim. I think that might be a crime in some states. If not, it probably should be.

Questions:
1. How bad is it for my skin that I wash my face with bar soap and take showers so hot my skin turns red by the time I get out?
2. How do I respond when my student says someone called him the "ch" word? He meant the "sh" word, but he has a little trouble spelling. Should I laugh or cry?

My blog inspiration

I never know what to write until I read Sabrina's blog. She's my blogger inspiration. She is amazing. Did you know she actually takes a picture on the day of her children's birthday each month. I think what that means is that if her child was born on December 8, she takes a picture on January 8, February 8, etc. I, on the other hand, haven't even had Amirah's six month pictures taken and she is 8 months old. This is my first child. Shouldn't I have done this by now? I blame it on working outside the home, but really it's just my procrastination in overdrive.

Here's what's happening in our world:
1. Ysmaille is an official U.S. citizen as of October 8. Have you noticed how many times the numberal 8 appears in this blog so far? Count them. Six.
2. Amirah is almost walking. Our little peanut is moving along furniture and standing by herself (but only for a second or two at a time).
3. I made lots of applesauce, which means I feel totally domestic. I also have a 1/2 bushel of apples left over. I see lots of apple crisp and apple pie in my future.

Once a Month Freezing

So.....
I've been toying around with the idea of the once a month cooking plan. I want to modify to suit my own needs and tastes, because I really don't want a whole month of eating burritos and lasagna. My plan is to start small. Here's what I'd like to do tomorrow (if I can find a good deal on meat. I haven't researched that one yet.):

1. Brown five pounds of ground turkey and freeze it.
2. Marinate and freeze three pounds of chicken.
3. Cut up a bag of onions and freeze in individual baggies.
4. Cut up four peppers and freeze in indivdual bagges.

Baby steps. Eventually I would like to have multiple meals in the freezer that I can serve on those nights where I just don't have the energy to cook. Right now my freezer has really random things like Eggos (I got a great deal on them, but don't use them), corn, tilapia, strawberry jelly, banana chocolate chip muffins, etc. Nothing from which I can make much of a meal.

Well, Ysmaille is out watching a movie with the rest of my family members, but I knew I would just end up falling asleep so I opted to take Amirah home and put her in bed. She's been sleeping for over an hour. In that time I've managed to rearrange the living room furniture, check my e-mail, check facebook, check my friend's blogs, look for a good price on library card pockets for my classroom library, and dream about my potential freezer day tomorrow. Time for bed!