Most Boring Currently Ever

Drinking: Water. I don't understand people that don't drink loads of water. It's really delightful.

Watching: Nothing really. I can't even remember the last time I turned on the TV. I'm just too damn busy. I'm even weeks behind on my General Hospital. And I've only watched a handful of minutes of Le Tour de France since it started.

Reading: I started this new-to-me book, maybe you've heard of it. Something about Harry Potter. It's quite captivating.

Playing with: Cars & trucks. Koala Crate musical instruments.

Feeling: Disbelief that it's almost August. What? How?

Enjoying: Time outside. Saturday hikes. Ice cream. Reading with my little man.

Looking forward to: Ticking things off my to do list. Eating ice cream. Reading Twitter messages. Going outside.

What are you up to these days?

Summer Wishlist 2018: Berry Picking

On Friday I saw our favorite local farm post about u-pick BLACK RASPBERRIES. Berries are super yummy. I love all berries. BUT black raspberries are THE BEST. I have picked commercially farmed red raspberries many times, but I've never seen black raspberries on offer. Saturday morning plans were set clearly.

Little man did pretty well as you can see (his berries are on the left). The best part is I can eat as many of "my" berries as I want without feeling guilty that I'm depriving him because he has his own and they won't stay fresh forever. We didn't pick enough to freeze because he is three years old after all, but we picked plenty to satisfy both of us.

And this checks a second item off the Summer Wishlist.

2018 To Do List: June

1. Rearrange/clean the family room to make it a more usable space
2. Read at least 28 books - two books finished in June (17/28)
3. Hang snow shoes
4. Hang rabbit art (x2) in my son's room
5. Acquire a hammer ✅
6. Get rid of clothes my son has outgrown
7. Get rid of clothes I don't wear/like
8. Go swimming, preferably in a natural body of water
9. Go to the Adirondacks
10. Take my son camping in a tent in the woods for at least one night
11. Frame 2017 school pictures ✅
12. Spend less money on weekly groceries 
13. Try shopping at Aldi ✅
14. Eat more veggies
15. Eat more fruits
16. Journal more
17. Complete 365 Mile Challenge - 47.4 miles for June (206.8/365) 
18. Refinance my mortgage - process continued, closing date in July
19. Make my own kombucha
20. Get my son to use the potty - We've got the pee thing pretty well down. Poop though, that's a whole other story.
21. Get new glasses ✅ - Hopefully it will be the last time I have to use my ex's health insurance to get new glasses.
22. Decorate the house in some way for smaller holidays (Valentine's Day ✅, St. Patrick's Day ✅, Easter ✅)
23. Grow some sort of veggie this summer (zucchini? tomatoes?)
24. Have the driveway sealed
25. Take down the baby gate at the top of the stairs to the family room ✅

What I Ate Wednesday

Well, it was actually what I ate Tuesday so I could post it today, haha. Two years ago at this time I was at my lightest weight ever, a thoroughly unhealthy weight. I was constantly sick, including a week long stomach bug during which time I lost another 12 pounds. My clothes were literally falling off of me. Since then I've gained weight, sailing right past my normal resting weight and out the other side. I have only a few pairs of pants and shorts that I can still squeeze myself into. The main issue for me is how I eat at work. I am bored, restless, disenchanted, etc. So I eat. It distracts me for a few minutes. And before you suggest I try nibbling at something like baby carrots (gak), I assure you I've tried it. If the food is unsatisfying I will just acquire something else, which often means I've eaten more not less (first the lame food, followed by the bad food).

Anyway, here's a look at one random day's food consumption:

Black tea with sugar and milk

Whole wheat waffles with lots of butter

Plain black tea

I only buy one of these a week because they're so expensive.

All that was left or I would've eaten more.

Same as above. Last few pretzels in the bag.

Veggie chili with a slice of cheese mixed in.

I eat one of these every day at work.

Office cake. I managed to not eat ALL that frosting.

Penne with butter and parm

Mixed greens with croutons, craisins, shredded cheese, and blue cheese dressing

Summer Wishlist 2018: Waterfall

I checked the first item off our summer bucket list this past weekend: hike to a waterfall. There are a lot waterfalls in the region, but none of them are on my side of town. Because we are still restricted by my son's nap schedule typically we hike first thing in the morning, then head home for a late lunch and nap. Google told me we could get to the county park that features a 137 foot waterfall in 37 minutes. I've spent a lot of time over the years at this park, including running a nature day camp there during college, but I haven't been in many years. I was so happy to see it again!

Summer Fun

Walk or bike ride? Walk.

Favorite picnic food? I'm not really a picnic person. I like potato salad and mac salad, but I'd rather throw a pb&j in a backpack and climb a mountain.

Pool or lake? Lake.

Favorite flavor of ice cream? Cinnamon buns. Chocolate chip cookie dough. Or vanilla in a pinch. Bring on ALL the ice cream. Except chocolate 'cause that's nasty.

Ice cream cone or in a dish? Dish. No thanks on the soggy, drippy cone mess.

Flip flops or slides? Neither really. I prefer Teva style sandals that stay on your feet. That said, I do want something I can just slip on and off for the ease of running in and out of the house this summer when we're playing in the yard.

Jean shorts or jean capris? Again, neither really. I don't love jean material. So restrictive. I'm all about comfort.

Favorite summer fruit? Berries. Apricots.

Corn on the cob or cut off the cob? On the cob. Plain. No butter or salt.

Favorite summertime song? Summertime by The Sundays. Or DJ Jazzy Jeff. Or Janis Joplin.

Favorite summertime activity? Hiking.

Favorite berry? Black raspberries.

Bikinis, tankinis or one pieces? I haven't gone swimming in years. I have a two piece with a skirt bottom. Unless the elastic is shot I see no reason to buy another one.

Dresses or skirts? Dresses. I like not having anything squeezing my mid-section.

One word to describe summer? Hot. Haha.


Inspired by Beth.

2018 To Do List: May, etc.

1. Rearrange/clean the family room to make it a more usable space
2. Read at least 28 books - three books finished in May (14/28)
3. Hang snow shoes
4. Hang rabbit art (x2) in my son's room
5. Acquire a hammer ✅
6. Get rid of clothes my son has outgrown
7. Get rid of clothes I don't wear/like
8. Go swimming, preferably in a natural body of water
9. Go to the Adirondacks
10. Take my son camping in a tent in the woods for at least one night
11. Frame 2017 school pictures ✅
12. Spend less money on weekly groceries - efforts underway
13. Try shopping at Aldi ✅
14. Eat more veggies
15. Eat more fruits
16. Journal more
17. Complete 365 Mile Challenge - 58.4 miles for May (161.7/365) Best month so far!! 
18. Refinance my mortgage - process initiated
19. Make my own kombucha
20. Get my son to use the potty
21. Get new glasses
22. Decorate the house in some way for smaller holidays (Valentine's Day ✅, St. Patrick's Day ✅, Easter ✅)
23. Grow some sort of veggie this summer (zucchini? tomatoes?)
24. Have the driveway sealed
25. Take down the baby gate at the top of the stairs to the family room ✅

My May mileage really kicked into high gear with all the biking I've been able to do. All the bike miles are "commute" miles back and forth from the parking lot at work. After having put all these miles on my folding bike, I do wish I'd opted for a bike rack instead. The folding bike is great in a lot of ways. It's super easy just to toss in the car and drive off at the end of the day. However, it has no shocks and doesn't shift well (or at all?), so it's not the most comfortable on bumpy, hilly roads.

I started the refinance process at the end of May, and have a tentative closing date in mid-July. As anyone who's ever bought a house or refinanced a mortgage knows all too well, this process requires a lot of time and attention. So I'm anxious to put it all behind me.

We've managed to get peepee in the potty a few times, but we're not making much headway. The boy is a bit too attached to his diapers. Argh.

We planted a few zucchini seeds and a billion marigolds seeds, all of which were destroyed by rabid squirrels. OK, maybe not rabid, but they show little regard for our desire to grow things.

In other news, I took an undergraduate course on Child Development in May. I just finished the last piece of coursework last night, so phew. One less source of stress. It was A LOT of reading.

I also took the advice of a colleague who'd had success using it and downloaded a dating app to my phone. I can't (won't) date in the traditional sense (dinner and a movie), so this may lead to nowhere, but it's a few minutes of entertaining swiping every now and again. I can tell you one thing: dudes need to learn how to take more pictures besides the "here I am holding a big fish" pose and the "bare-chested in bed" pose. No thanks.