Wordless: Glacier Peak....or not

I looked and looked online to figure out the name of this mountain and I really thought it was Glacier Peak. But my father has informed me that it is actually Three Fingers Mountain.

Sigh. I'm sorry I was wrong.

Nevertheless, I'm sure its beauty can be appreciated.

Hubs took this photo with our new Nikon the same day I took
the one in last week's post with my phone.

Linked with a few Wordless/Wordful photo peeps:
Parenting by Dummies, Create with Joy, Live and Love Out Loud and Better in Bulk.

Why I Think Social Media is Cathartic, and Even Gives Me Hope for Humanity

I have come to the conclusion that my interactions on social media are very helpful to my mental and emotional states.

Yes yes, I know that online interactions can also be quite frustrating or annoying. I hear a lot of complaints about things said on Facebook. I have had my own complaints about that particular platform.

Those of us who use Twitter regularly seem to prefer it for its feel of realness; we feel like we can be our true selves when we tweet. I think this is due to the fact that Twitter is used predominantly by those my age and younger, therefor our parents and in-laws aren't hovering over our 140 characters. Also, we tend to follow and be followed by people we know we have something in common with, not family or long lost high school classmates we may not actually like very much, as is the case on Facebook.

So why do I think social media is good for my mental state, in spite of any annoyances therein?

In one word: Validation.

In more words: Twitter and Facebook are places I can go to share, play or vent, and most of the time when I do, I get some kind of interaction back. Even if I'm completely ignored, I still got to get something off my mind, heart or gut, which can help me let go of it.

Think about it. If you're a Twitter user, don't you just love it when you send out some tweet and get responses back? Perhaps it sparks an entire convo and you now have a new connection with someone. Sometimes you get virtual (((HUGS))), and that feels nice. Then someone says, "Me too!" and you don't feel alone.

Social media give me hope for humanity because I see people making other people feel better about their asshole boss, jerk spouse and their kid's temper tantrum left and right. I think that's pretty cool.

I posted a very angry status on Facebook recently:

The most ludicrous thing I could ever hear.....even more ridiculous than any stupid political statement or ignorance....would be to say that my husband, my Mark, is having a pitty party. Anyone who ever says or thinks that can go fuck themselves.

I felt like I needed to say that. What I got back in comments was that people understood why I was angry. People were ticked off with me. From that I felt justified in my gut reaction, that I had a right to be angry.

I've said it before, the one thing we all have in common is a need to be heard and validated. That's not an original thought.

I am not trying to exalt something that can be pithy, trite, petty and even ridiculous at times. I know there are a whole slew of people who just don't get it. It can suck up way too much of our time -- it's highly distracting -- and can indeed cause problems where there weren't any, before your knee jerked and you posted something without thinking. Believe me, I know this.

But I'm here to say that social media has its benefits, and they are why I use it. I love it for its ability to keep me in touch with people I wouldn't otherwise stay in contact with. I love that I get to "meet" lots of other people all over the world that I NEVER would have known without it, and learn so much from them. I love that I can say shit I often have no context to say to anyone in the room with me. And, last but not least, I love social media, including blogging, because it is the epitome of free speech, giving each and every last one of us a voice if we want one.

Do I love everything I see out there on the Interwebs? No. Do I love that it's there? Yes.

I shall leave you with some "Social Media Rights" I came up with awhile ago, because I'm still patting myself on the back for them!

How do you feel about social media?

One Word for 2013

So everyone not living under a rock knows about this idea of choosing a word that you want your year to be based on, right?

I've seen BALANCE, CHANGE, ACCEPTANCE, COURAGE or SIMPLIFY tossed around.

These are all lovely words, for sure, but none were inspiring me. The theme word of my life is balance. I'm becoming a pro at acceptance and change. Courage? Pfft! And well, besides the complications of having a husband with health problems, my life is as simple as it can be without being utterly boring.

I didn't think I could choose a word, so I basically dismissed the whole thing. But the idea kept needling at the back of my mind....

Word cloud based on my blog tags

Until one day, about a week into 2013, it hit me.

My word for this year should be HOPE.

Because I felt myself starting to lose it in 2012. It does not appear up there in that word cloud.

Many things/reasons/influences were all telling me there's no hope. Why bother? Get your head out of the clouds.

And I listened. I have been letting my sense of hope (can I call it a sense?) dissipate.

Last March......was just about the worst month on record. It was a big trauma and it has scarred us. (I still have more to write about it.)

Fear, anxiety and worry took over.

I began to think about my husband dying EVERY DAY of my life. He was afraid to go to sleep at night for fear he might not wake in the morning.

We are damaged.

Not only do our personal struggles lend to hopelessness, but so does the outside world.

Terrifying natural disasters, mass shootings, ignorance, intolerance, asshole politicians, gossip, loss of a friendship, your kid getting an F....

It really wouldn't be hard to lose all hope.

When my husband, my rock, the most positive person I've ever known, tells me he is losing hope? Well, I may have become an emotional wreck.

Here is where I put my foot down and say NO MORE. I will not let the whole world steal my hope, dammit!

I am determined to remain HOPEFUL. To not become bitter or resentful.

That's not to say I won't still practice a little snark and sarcasm.

But I will know, at the heart of whatever I'm feeling in the moment, that HOPE is in there too. For it simply must continue to dwell within me. Even if only a little.

And perhaps declaring HOPE to be my word for 2013 will cause it to swell and fill me up. And then maybe, just maybe, I won't doubt its presence again.


Linked with Just Be Enough, and submitted to Yeah Write #94.

Weekend Why

Why this?

My husband will let his dirty clothes pile up

IN FRONT OF

his hamper for

DAYS

before he'll put them

IN

his hamper.

I kid you not.

I did a little experiment, waiting to see how long it would take.

His hamper stayed closed for at least 3 days,

with clothes piling up in front of it.

Finally one day I flipped open the lid.

I wanted to see if that would change anything.

It did.

He put all the dirty clothes in his hamper.

I ask you,

WHY?

WHY is it too much work to open the hamper

and toss the clothes in?

What Men Really Want

I have it on good authority (not naming my sources) that what a man would really love to have access to is.....

A Big Book of Vaginas.

I kid you not, like an actual large, leather-bound catalog of sorts.

They just want to see All The Vaginas.

(And All The Boobies.)

It's true!

Doesn't matter that they all look basically the same.

Sure, you can trim them up in various fashions....

You can even decorate them with piercings or vajazzling.

(No pictures, please.)

Ouch! No thank you.

But really, if you've seen one vagina.....

I would like to point out that I think it's fairly safe to say that there aren't any women pining for a Big Book of Penises.

Just sayin'.

Wordless: Winter, so far

Two Instagram, two not. All taken with my phone. Which, I'm not saying is fabulous or anything.


Linked with a few Wordless/Wordful photo peeps: Parenting by Dummies, Create with Joy, Live and Love Out Loud and iPPP.

Seven

Today is my son AJ's 7th birthday!

He was born at 4:01 PM after I was induced early that morning. It was just 2 days after his due date, but my doctor chose to induce me for several reasons, including Gestational Diabetes and being Group B Strep positive. I had back labor that felt like my low back was being ripped apart. I was stuck at 4 cm until I finally decided to get an epidural. Relief from the pain relaxed my cervix, it opened right up, and less than an hour later our baby boy entered the world.

He gave us quite a fright at first, being slow to catch his breath. When he did, his little cries were so soft and sweet. It felt like forever before I got to hold him. But the moment he was placed into my arms I knew our family was complete.

Today AJ is pretty much the life of our home. He is happy and energetic and so funny! He makes me laugh daily. He can also be a bit self-absorbed and have anger issues. But for the most part, he is bright and curious and quick-witted and I am very proud of him. Oh, and just so cute!

Goofy smile because he was self-conscious
about lost teeth.

Seven Reasons Having a 7 Year Old is Awesome

1. First grade - it's all day, they learn SO MUCH and AJ seems to really be enjoying it.

2. I don't have to go out to the bus stop anymore.

3. Learning to get some of his own food - although he really doesn't want to.

4. He has developed a great sense of humor.

5. No longer have to have several kinds of snacks handy.

6. He can play games grown-ups like.

7. Has made lots of neighborhood friends whom he plays with A LOT.

Linked with Monday Listicles.

Weekend Why

source

Sylvester Stallone is in a new movie called

Bullet to the Head

coming out next month.

What I wanna know is....

Why does anyone still want him to make movies?

He's not a good actor.

He's a meathead.

The Rocky movies were his best,

and only because they had heart.

He still didn't ACT well in them.

So WHY, what is the appeal??

Cousins

My mother-in-law and niece visited us last week. It was a very nice visit that did not involve the hospital!

Our niece Lindsay is almost 19 and just a fantastic young woman. It was great how she would bounce between hanging with our kids and holding adult conversation with us.

I met this girl when she was just 6 months old!

I only wish her older sister and my sister-in-law could have come too!

Mark got this great shot the last night they were here:

Do they all have the same chin?

Kid Gloves

I feel lately like when I say something about the trauma I've been through people feel they need to console me in some way.

I don't know if they mean to make me think they think I'm weak, but that's often what I feel.

Like I have FRAGILE: Handle With Care stamped across my forehead.

I suppose I am kind of fragile.

But dangit, It makes me feel like I shouldn't say anything at all. It makes me feel like everyone is waiting for me to crack.

To become the puddle I've so long been fearing I'd turn into.

The puddle that I'm actually learning to not be afraid of.

But now it feels like everyone else is afraid of it.

Oh my god, Jen's just gotta lose it eventually!

We should walk on eggshells around her; handle her with kid gloves because she might crack.

I feel like my friends have stopped sharing their lives with me, even holding me at arm's length. Like because I go through some hard things that I couldn't possibly still care about their lives.

I don't know if that's the truth. I just know that's how it feels to me.

It feels lonely.

Sometimes when I'm talking to someone they'll complain about some aspect of their life and then stop themselves and say something like, "Oh but that's not anything like what you deal with....".

So? My troubles are mine and your troubles are yours and it's all subjective anyway.

I don't corner the market on pain. And I would never presume to.

Shouldn't we all just be there for each other?

Is it because I've finally sought out counseling? But that is what will help me be stronger.

And everyone says I should, that I need it and it's good for me.

Yet.....

So I'm confused. I am confused about what people are trying to do where I'm concerned.

Is it support? But it feels more like......not being given any credit.

I don't know. Like I said, it's confusing.

It's all making me feel sort of dumb.

And I don't know what to do with that.


Linked with Pour Your Heart Out.

How to finally kick your own ass into shape!

How are you doing with your resolution to start exercising?

I am in no way a health and fitness nut so I am not here to pretend that I am or lecture anyone on such things.

I do, however, want to share what has been my process in arriving at a place where I finally WANT to exercise and take better care of my health.

Maybe "arriving" is the wrong word. Considering all the temptations out there, and that I know I will give into them sometimes, it will continue to be a process.

One thing I know for sure is that making healthier choices has to be something YOU decide to do. No amount of anything besides your own motivation will make you do it. Further, I believe there is a moment when it simply clicks and you will finally see it through.

Psychologically

You have to be FED UP. You have to be sick and tired of how you feel or look or both. Just done with not being wherever it is you want to be physically.

I have this idea of what size clothing I should and shouldn't wear. In my mind I should never be any larger than a size 14, and I would prefer to be a 12 or 10. I honestly don't see myself being any smaller than that because I just am a curvy girl with large breasts and hips. Beyond that, I know that I am on the other side of looking and feeling good if I get up to a size 14.

You have to really want to make a change. Like, this is for real, different from other times. You feel it in your gut. It's not gonna happen if your heart isn't in it

For me, it is literally my HEART that's in it. You put my husband's health problems (including many with his heart) and that my dad has had a heart attack, not to mention that my uncle died from sudden cardiac arrest, all into a bowl, and I have the recipe to create fear for the health of my own heart. The cherry on top? Finding out my cholesterol is "marginally high".

It sucks, but it really helps if there's some key factors motivating you, such as a recent health screening, wanting to be healthier for your family, maybe even a recent health crisis.

Physically

You have to be honest with yourself about what form of exercise will work best for you.

Walking is my thing. I think it has naturally evolved as such due to my inability to drive. When we lived in the Bay Area I walked and used public transportation nearly every day. I stayed in pretty good shape doing so. That was California where it's sunny, or at least not raining, most of the time. I experience the exact opposite here in Washington. I got out of the habit of walking pretty quickly after moving to the Evergreen State, and my body has suffered for it.

But I still really enjoy walking so it is what I have gotten back into over the past several months. I'm not gonna lie, I am having to push myself to walk as fast as I once did, as well as figure out the right things to eat before exercising so I don't go all low blood sugar out in the middle of the street. Walking may not seem like a high impact exercise, but when you've gotten as out of shape as I have, it'll work.

I also like yoga, and from the small amount of it I've done, I am a firm believer in its benefits to the whole you, mind and body.

I've met people here online who love to run. Others who enjoy an elliptical, bicycle or Zumba. We each have to find what we will enjoy doing. If you hate the form of exercise, you're not going to do it regularly, therefor you're not going to lose any weight or feel healthier.

It is a pretty well known fact that it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. You have to push through the early days in order to make exercise a true ROUTINE.

Don't you think I've tried before now to get back into walking? Of course I have! But the difference I discovered last summer is that I hadn't pushed on through for a month before I slacked off again.

When the Holidays (and winter) came I got real worried that all my effort at my walking routine would be ruined. It did slow down, but I got on my treadmill every day that I could, and then I found myself itching to get back to it more often once the new year hit.

I am now in a place where I truly want to exercise and know that I feel better when I do. I am pretty blown away by this.

Once you push through the hurdle of it being extra-ordinary, it becomes ordinary and just a part of your life.

Accountability

I have hated that word over the years. I've never wanted to feel like I had to justify myself to anyone. But the thing is, it really does help. Not in an "answer to" way, but more of a "report to" way.

Not telling anyone of your intention to do something is another way to let yourself not do it. If you didn't tell anyone, they'll never know, hence no disappointment (or judgment). Except in yourself. Letting yourself down is really no better than letting someone else down.

I got involved with Chosen Choas' Run Blog Give last summer, and her Adopt-A-Pantry this fall. All those involved reported their mileage or days exercised to Jamie and she kept track of it on a spreadsheet. I'm not a runner, just a walker, so I didn't log as many miles as most of the other participants. But no one let me feel disappointed in myself for that. On the contrary, Jamie was a friendly cheerleader.

In my experience, accountability can actually translate to encouragement and support. For me, having someone to report to in the beginning is what helped me push past the 21 days I needed to form my new exercise habit. I'm not holding myself accountable to anyone right now, yet I'm still exercising.

Patience

I am a 38 year old woman who has grown, birthed and nursed two babies. I wasn't exercising at all for YEARS. Women's fat cells like to stay put. All that, and I still gotta eat. Therefor, weight loss is not proving easy for me.

Still, I know I am doing good things for my body and that keeps me trying. I'm not on a fad diet, I'm making lifestyle changes for the long-term. I feel good about that.

You need to have patience both with yourself and the process. There is no point in beating yourself up if you decide to eat a cookie, nor to throw in the towel on your exercise routine because you don't think you're seeing results fast enough. Just keep swimming. Hey, swimming is great exercise!

Bottom line (Ha ha - bottom):

• Feel it
• Choose it
• Do it
• Tell someone
• Be patient

Do you have any tips or tricks to motivate yourself or others into healthy habits?

Guest Post: Elated Exhaustion

Here for you I have the last of this series of guest posts.

I quoted this blogger just week before last. I took the quote from a really great post she wrote about how blogging has changed her life. I can so relate.

Something kinda big is weighing on Julia's heart and she could really use some advice and support.

__________

Burnt Out

When Jennifer called for submissions to guest post on her blog, I was immediately in. She has been a longtime supporter of my blog, Elated Exhaustion, and I’m so honored to be here today. Today, I want to share something with you that I’m not sure I have ever been able to articulate correctly, and I would truly love to hear your opinions.

I’m afraid that I am burnt out.

Growing up, I always wanted to be a Mommy. That was my entire goal in life, was to one day be a stay at home Mommy to four little ones.

It was so much my goal, in fact, that I prepared vigorously for it.

I started babysitting when I was 12, and continued all the way through my adulthood. In high school, I was known to skip dates to babysit. I know, I was super cool, right?

I skipped some of the parts of my teenage childhood in order to take care of little ones and I truly loved doing it.

I nannied through college and even choose to major in Early Childhood Education with an emphasis in Pre-K through second grade, so a lot of my classes were geared toward childhood development. Majoring in Early Childhood Education is not just about taking classes, but it involves a lot of student teaching, so you are constantly learning about children, interacting with them and actually teaching intently before graduating.

I graduated in December, so I was not able to land a teaching job right away since it was the middle of the school year. I took on a job as a full time nanny of 3 children, ages 5, 3, and a few months.

The following school year, I secured my first teaching job as the lead teacher in a pre-K class, getting my own class of 20 four year olds.

Luckily I had a great teaching assistant and wonderful students and parents. Though I enjoyed teaching, that job did not fit and so the next year I started a job as a Kindergarten teacher at a local Title One public elementary school.

I loved this job. Though at first I was intimated, teaching at a Title One school turned out to be a wonderful experience and I really felt at home there.

But oh my goodness did I love coming home to a quiet house and vegging out in front of the TV at the end of the day. Taking care of 20 five year olds all day can be quite exhausting!

Half way through the school year, I unexpectedly got pregnant. I fully intended to return to teaching after the birth of my son.

I finished the school year, but as it turns out my pregnancy became quite complicated. I was on bed rest for the last three months of my pregnancy and then went through a difficult delivery and recovery that included a bought of postpartum depression. I chose not to go back to work and am now a stay at home Mommy, a decision I have never once regretted.

But here’s the thing: I’m afraid I’m burnt out. I love staying at home with my son, but there are days when I think about how nice it would be to just be able to sit in front of the TV and veg out. Or, you know, do something novel like go to the bathroom alone.

I wanted to be a stay at home mommy so badly that I spent many years prepping for it, but now I wonder if I would ever be able to have another child? Because sometimes I feel like I got burnt out on all the years of babysitting and nannying and teaching and now I only have enough energy to be a Mommy to one.

My trepidation to have another child stems from a variety of reasons, some obviously related to my difficult pregnancy and recovery with my son. But in the back of my mind, I wonder if maybe I’m just done with the whole taking care of little children thing?

What do you think? Is it possible to burn out on motherhood before you really get started?

__________

Ummm.... Well Julia, the thing is.....

OK, my advice is this: Don't have another baby just because you think you're supposed to. You should WANT to add to your family. Also, both you and hubs gotta agree. Maybe you should just space your kids out by 5 years like I did. Have a new baby when the first is starting kindergarten!

That was helpful, right? It's just such a personal question, whether or not to have children. I wish you all luck with coming up with great things to say to Julia!

Weekend Why

I am one to ask, "Why?"

I always want to know Why this, that or the other thing.

So I think from now on when I have a Why question I am going to pose it here. Maybe someone will actually have an answer!

My first question is this:

Why is it that I can so easily fall asleep on my couch,

I mean like even when I really don't want to,

but when I go to bed, it can take a long time to fall asleep?

Why??

Guest Post: Raising Humans

Last Friday I tweeted....

Son: Every day is a good day if it's Pizza Day!
— just JENNIFER (@JenAnnHall) January 4, 2013

....because AJ's school serves pizza for lunch every Friday and he always looks forward to it.

Apparently mine isn't the only kid who loves pizza (go figure), and it inspired Tricia of Raising Humans to write a post for me about her daughter's love of the cheesy, round food.

_________

Traditions on a Whim

She rolls over.  Her hair sticks up in a dozen different directions. Her eyes squint in the early morning light struggling to pour through her blinds.

"Is it Friday?"

I smile as I smooth her hair.

"No, love. It's Monday."

This scene plays out nearly every morning.

And after I've broken the news, she moves right along. Happily getting ready for school. Going about her weekday morning routine.

It's not that she feels the grind just yet. It's not that she dislikes school (she loves it) or counts the minutes until the weekend (she doesn't).

It's that Fridays are something special. Friday leads to Friday night. And Friday night is pizza night.

We didn't do this one intentionally. It started one week on a whim. Back in the early days of family dinners. In the early days of thinking, for the first time, about what would go on the table. Planning meals and making food each night because now she was eating with us. Suddenly, picking up sandwiches from Subway on the way home wasn't going to cut it. My girl needed warm food and a table with place mats.

But by Friday… well we were out of ideas. We couldn't think of one more meal. So I ordered a pizza and we snuggled on the couch for extra stories.

That very night, Friday night-pizza night was born.

And two years later, it's still going strong.

Now that she is in school, Fridays are only getting better. Friday is school spirit day. It's music class and dance class day. There is a certain energy at preschool on a Friday that you don't find on any other day.

But when you ask her what happens on Friday, the answer is always the same. Pizza.

__________

Well, now I'm hungry! My favorite kind of pizza is Hawaiian. Has been since I was a kid. But I love all sorts really. Even "weird" ones like BBQ chicken or taco.

What are your favorite pizza toppings?

(I will have one more guest post for you on Monday!)

Guest Post: Time Out for Mom

My mother-in-law and niece arrive today. When I asked for guest posts to help fill up the six days they'll be here, I didn't mean that I was asking for someone to tell the world what they love about me.

But my friend Leslie, aka RoryBore, at Time Out for Mom is exactly the kind of sweetheart who would. I shouldn't be surprised, but I am. I'm surprised, flattered and touched.

Even more, I am so happy to know that what I have in my heart, and what I pour out here in so many of my posts, is SEEN and FELT. Thank you, Les!

__________

I am so happy to be a guest at Just Jennifer today!

First of all, she is funny, sweet, kind, and bare-bones truth.Totally dig that about her.

Also, best Tweeter I think!

She sent me a pretty darn nice Christmas card.  My husband didn’t even get me a Christmas card this year.

But mostly, it’s because she is kind of a hero of mine, and everyone should have the chance to be up close and personal with their hero: just once in life. Don’tCha think?

If you are wondering why someone who refers to themselves as “Just Jennifer”  could possibly be a hero, well –  I am glad you dropped by. Sit awhile; I’ll tell you a tale....

Once upon a time, a self-professed simple girl wrote a blog post.

Within that blog post was the following:

Because that is pure bullshit. No one should go through life not grabbing onto the things they want, their heart's desires, for fear of the maybes and what-ifs.
That is not a life well lived.

Elsewhere in Bloggydom, another simple girl living a fairly simple life was so emotionally raw after reading this post, that she didn’t even leave a comment. Although, she may have stood up and cheered, “She gets me. She really gets me!”

You see Jen and this other girl -- okay fine, it’s me -- have something in common. It’s an odd kind of thing to have in common, and yet, there it is.

We both fear for our husbands’ lives. Daily.

In her case, it’s a health issue that might steal away the love of her life and the father of her children.

Whereas, my love goes off to work each day and dives right into danger. And one day the violence he tries to keep from suffocating this world, may win……and he won’t come home.

It’s not that I don’t think about the danger my husband might face each time he walks out our door and steps into his cruiser. I worked in a prison – I am very much aware of the evil that is out there.   That it’s his job to stop. I just can’t let that realization overwhelm me.  Otherwise, this home would become a prison of its own kind. And all I strive towards would be rent asunder: a house of fear instead of a home built of love.

Despite these differences, we two will still be the ones left behind on that fateful day. To tell our children. To face all of our tomorrows alone. To find the means for life to carry on.

How does one achieve a “life well lived” under such a constant threat?

Because in our hearts:  he will linger.

As will all the moments that came before. The trick, and this is truly the hardest part, is that we can choose how those moments will play out. We can live with the shadow of fear hovering over us. Or, we can grab onto all the joy and beauty of this world and hold on tight. Let it surround and fill us.

And maybe, just maybe…if we can do that, it will spill over onto everything and everyone around us. That is where Jen excels. That is why she’s kind of my hero. It’s not because she doesn’t have bad days or struggle with the realities of her life. It’s because she does all that with honesty, and grace and somehow always seeing the positive. Her expressions of gratitude overwhelm me. And all that good energy spills out from this, her “simple” blog home, and unto us. That is the light she shines into this world.

Life will always be a roller coaster. Rain will always fall.  Some will give up. And who could blame them?

But that’s the easy way. The strongest, like my friend Jen, will choose to hold on tighter in those moments. To not run away, or hide, but face the storm with all the strength that is within them.

And sometimes; we may simply choose to dance in the rain….just because we can.

__________

I shall leave you with the following quote (which I have no idea if Les knows is one of my favorites):

Some things change, some things stay the same.

Shortly after midnight, just as 2013 dawned, I posted on my blog's Facebook page a few of my resolutions:

Alright, my resolutions include keeping up regular exercise, getting new glasses (for my eyes), checking the mail more than once a week and dusting every once in awhile.

But what about the stuff I'm happy and content with and have no desire to change?

10 Things I Have No Intention of Changing in 2013

1. Drinking wine.

2. Staying up until at least 11:00.

3. Keeping my hair short.

4. Not having a laundry DAY.

5. Wearing comfortable clothing.

6. Blogging

7.

8.

9.

10.

Aw heck! I have too many things I'd like to tweak. I can't think of 10 things that I don't want to change in some way.

Here's the thing: I believe we're supposed to constantly be growing and changing, whether we make New Year's resolutions or not. Also, I have learned that shit happens and we really have no idea how we'll feel until it does....

Linked with Monday Listicles.

Things They Can't Say

On the 1st I put out a call for guests posts. Well today I'm guest posting for Shell's "Things They Can't Say" series!

Now you know I say quite a bit here on my own blog, so what on earth could I have written that I'm not completely comfortable talking about here?

You'll just have to go see!

It's not as easy as you might think, you know, to write about your own personal feelings and experiences and share it with the world. It is empowering, yet, as Julia of Elated Exhaustion recently wrote, "Each time I hit the publish button, it is with a delicate balance of vulnerability and bravery."

So yeah, go read, comment, share and all that. I'll love ya forever!

Playing Games

Mark and I have been playing card games with our kids lately.

Grandparents taught Camryn and AJ some games while they had them in August. We've played many games of Go Fish since then.

While shopping for stocking stuffers last month I grabbed a pack of UNO for AJ's stocking because he seems to be the most enthusiastic about card games.

 The four of us played a rousing round of UNO last night. It was so fun!

We try to be so nice to each other, never wanting to use the draw four cards.

AJ got Camryn a travel Scrabble set which we've also played.

 There was a time when I thought we'd never be a game-playing family.

I've mentioned before how I'm not the mom who actually PLAYS with her kids. No Barbis or Legos for me. I'm of the mind that toys are for them to entertain themselves.

Mark will play video games with them all day long. I'm very hands-on in the cuddling department.

But now? They seem to be at such great ages. Camryn is just about 12 1/2 and AJ will be 7 this month. Gone are the boring Candy Land and Chutes and Ladders days. Now we can play better other games.

And I like it!

So for all you parents out there stuck in the little kid trenches, forcing yourself not to roll your eyes when your sweet cherub asks you to play baby dolls or trucks for the umpteenth time, I'm here to tell you things WILL change. And it will be awesome!

Guest Posts Needed

I need a favor.

My mother-in-law and niece are coming for a six day visit and I would like to take this opportunity to invite a couple guest posts.

It's kind of short notice. They will be here from the 9th to the 14th. I am thinking about two or three guest posts.

Hey, I'll have guests in my home AND on my blog!

That is, if any of you lovely people will step up and help a girl out.

I'm really easy.

Um....

You can write about whatever you want - I do! You don't even have to have a blog in a similar genre to mine. Maybe you have something in mind you could write about, but aren't sure it fits on your own blog. Lemme publish it! Don't even have a blog? Heck, I'm open to that too.

All I ask is that you'll help share the love on social media and interact with those who comment on your post.

I can even give you this handy-dandy image to include in a post on your blog:

If interested, please email me at jenannhallblog (at) gmail (dot) com. Or you can tweet me with questions.

Oh, and Happy New Year!