Distractions

Not too long ago, I wrote a post about my decision to adjust my priorities and put my family first when stress and pressure from my business had become overwhelming. I'm happy to say I did that. Since that decision, I've adjusted my editing scheduled, reminded myself not to take on more than I can handle, and it's worked. Work stress has all but been completely eliminated. Being the human that I am, though, I instead began devoting my "spare" time to distractions, rather than where they should be. They really are everywhere, distractions. TV, computer, internet, telephone. And what do they really matter? They aren't distractions of important nature like laundry, dishes, and cleaning. Even though they're much less enjoyable than browsing through website and the TV Guide, they're at least necessary. Every time I have a chance to sit down and just enjoy some free time, I steer myself (many times unintentionally) back to my computer to check my routine list of websites, oftentimes for the third or fourth time that day. What could possibly be that important? Nothing. Definitely nothing more important than spending quality time with my children.

And what better to reinforce this realization than a swift quick from Mother Sinus. The day after our tea party, Maddie was struggling with some form of cold/allergies. The next day, Cadie and I were suffering much the same. Fast forward to a week later, and even though the girls seemed to be feeling much better, I was down for the count. I had woken up that morning with a debilitating headache; one so bad that my teeth hurt. I hurt everywhere. In my temples, my ears, behind my eyes, in my jaw, in my glands. Everywhere. Like any stubborn stay-at-home mom, I tried to fight through the pain and carry on with my daily duties, but by 1 o'clock it was painfully clear (literally), that I couldn't handle anymore. I called the doctor, praying for an opening that afternoon, but nothing was available until the next morning. Remembering a nearby Urgent Care center that my mom had told me about, I drove myself over and left Jeff home with the girls. After a short wait, the doctor took one look in my left ear (the better one at this point) and said, "Oh my, you have a SEVERE sinus infection!" Apparently, whatever junk I had been battling played dead, fooling me into thinking I was getting better, while secretly setting up camp in every sinus cavity in my body. My poor sinuses were so badly impacted, the pressure was growing and growing, causing my headache pain. As a white flag, I accepted the prescription for a decongestant and antibiotic, then trotted myself home for some much needed rest. I spent the next two days in bed doing nothing but sleep, while the girls spent some quality time with Grandma (Thank you, Grandma!) Talk about an eye-opener. I can't remember the last time I was so sick I couldn't do anything but sleep the day away. Usually, I read a book, watch a movie, or play Nintendo. Not this time. This monster of a sinus infection eliminated any and all distractions, making it very clear to me that even though I'd essentially eliminated the work stress from my life, I'd allowed something else to fill that space. Something that shouldn't. I've been blessed with two miracles; two warm-blooded, full blown miracles, and I've allowed myself to be distracted.

Some antibiotic and A LOT of nose-blowing later, I once again feel like my priorities are in check. I'm forcing myself to slow down. I don't have to be moving and productive all the time. There's always something I COULD be doing, but not necessarily something I SHOULD be doing. There's so much more I could be missing, and it would be a shame to miss out because of a silly distraction.

A Spot of Tea

The girls have been having tea parties pretty much since they were old enough to hold a tea cup. These tea parties usually take place at Grana and Poppy's, among other places. This year, we decided to celebrate Valentine's Day with a Mother/Daughter Princess Tea Party at Grana's house. We honored the royal theme with elaborate decorations and dress, including a fancy new tea set, heart princess scepters, and glittery tiaras. The food would have impressed even the snootiest of English elite, including PB & J, turkey & cheese, and chicken salad sandwiches; chips and dip; a veggie tray; and cheeseball. For dessert -- the most important part of any tea party -- we feasted on chocolate chip scones, chocolate cake, cheesecake squares with flower candies, and other scrumptious goodies. We sipped our tea and punch, chatting about our social calendars (Lolo has been attending the shopoholic committee; the same one Mollie recently fell off the wagon from) and enjoying the company of our impressive guest list, including Grandma, Nana, Grana, Auntie Lolo, Mollie, Beth, Julie, Cadie, Maddie, and Grace. Who knew so much fun could be had over a simple spot of tea?

Maddie, Lolo, and Cadie

Maddie, Cadie, and Grace

Cadie, Grandma, and Maddie

Maddie, Nana, and Cadie

Maddie, Mollie, and Cadie

Maddie, Grana, and Cadie

Maddie, Mommy, and Cadie

Always taking pictures...

Teaching proper tea etiquette...

Grace and her Grandma

Lolo's scary face!

Jules & Me

Me & Mollie

Jules, Grace, and Beth

Book Review: Beautiful Creatures

You'll soon figure out from future book reviews that I have a thing for fantasy. Not the stuff that involves aliens and other such nonsense. I love just about anything that includes magic or a touch of non-reality. Nothing too dark, though. I like my fantasy just fantastical enough to help me escape from reality.

My most recent foray into the world of the supernatural is Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. I'm not sure how I feel about two authors. I've experienced both ends of the spectrum, good (The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society) and bad (Witch and Wizard). In this case, it wasn't noticeable and wasn't a problem. Here's a review/synopsis from Amazon.com, where I get most of my books.

"Ethan Wate is struggling to hide his apathy for his high school "in" crowd in small town Gatlin, South Carolina, until he meets the determinedly "out" Lena Duchannes, the girl of his dreams (literally--she has been in his nightmares for months). What follows is a smart, modern fantasy--a tale of star-crossed lovers and a dark, dangerous secret. Beautiful Creatures is a delicious southern Gothic that charms you from the first page, drawing you into a dark world of magic and mystery until you emerge gasping and blinking, wondering what happened to the last few hours (and how many more you're willing to give up). To tell too much of the plot would spoil the thrill of discovery, and believe me, you will want to uncover the secrets of this richly imagined dark fantasy on your own." --Daphne Durham

In all fairness, I don't have a lot of time to sit down and lose myself in a novel, so this one took me a little longer to get into. I never lost interest, though, and about halfway through I was hooked. What is Lena's secret and why is she so different? Who is Lena's uncle and why is he known as the town's very own Boo Radley? How does Ethan fit into the strange happenings that are going on around him? The ending made it very obvious that there will be a follow-up book, and I'm happy to say I'll be reading it.

Book Club Rating: N/A

Cheri's Rating: ****1/2 (4.5 out of 5)

Mr. Mom, He is Not

For the past couple of months now, since right before Christmas, Jeff has been working on and off (more off), due to the crazy amounts of snow we've gotten. Even though it has only actively snowed a couple of those days, it has taken weeks for said snow to melt away. Normally, this time of year is very slow for the landscape/irrigation industry, but for the first time in, I don't know, EVER, Jeff actually has a ton of work waiting to be done. While that work waits, it has become painfully clear that Jeff is not made to stay at home. At. All.

His daily routine has started to become very predictable: Wake up to the alarm, but completely ignore the two munchkins jumping on the bed. They'll go away eventually. Eat breakfast. Mope around. Eat lunch. Mope around and grumble about nothing to do. Make an excuse to go outside for ANY reason. Eat dinner. After the girls have gone to bed, sit at laptop and either A.) watch ridiculous and senseless (not to mention extremely boring) videos of people using heavy machinery on You Tube; or B.) look up land that is in all likelihood way out of our price range and dream, dream, dream. Fall in to bed sometime between 9 and midnight and immediately fall asleep.

Now, I love my husband dearly. We've been together for 12 ½ years; I would bet everything I own that I know him better than anyone else in this world and I can tell you right now that being stuck at home is killing him. He is not made to do nothing. That being said, he's driving me nuts. Oh weather gods, please cut me some slack and lay off the snow and rain so our house can once again be mope free! I'm afraid Jeff's sanity (and mine) depend on it.