Time is on my side

Yes it is.

For some reason, I often feel like I don't have time to do things. I could have a 3 hour window and a 1 hour task and I will think I don't have enough time to do it. I don't know why that is. The fact is, I don't have kids, and I rarely work late. I have all the time in the world.

Why don't I feel like I do?

How much leisure time do I really require? What would happen if I didn't have as much? Probably nothing and I'd appreciate the leisure time much more.

Camping Review

We went camping for New Year's. It was very very cold. We learned a few things.

1. We (I) are spatially challenged. There was *no* *way* the air mattress was going to fit into that tent. So very sad. A thermapad is not the same as an air mattress.
   
   
2. The ground. It is hard. So very hard. And cold. And uneven.
   
   
3. I'm full-blown claustrophobic! I always knew I was a little claustrophobic. I'm so claustrophobic that I cannot sleep in a mummy bag. That's the type of sleeping bag that gets narrower below your hips and zips up to your chin. I kept having panicky moments of frantically unzipping my bag. I ended up sleeping with my bag unzipped. Unzipped = cold.
   
   
4. If your sleeping bag is rated to 40 degrees Fahrenheit, it means 40 degrees and not a degree below.
   25 degrees is way out.
   
   
5. It's hard to cook breakfast when your fingers are burning from the cold.
   
   
6. I'm a weenie.

Luckily we also learned these things.

1. We love camping! and Fire! and parents who will bring you blankets!
   They were coming anyway. They're good parents, but I'm not sure they're *that* good.
   
   
2. We love our friends! especially the one who was an Eagle Scout!
   He was pretty much solely responsible for the cooking and fire. Andrew, you are my only hope!
   

I think the major contributing factor to the success of our camping trip was the fact that not a one of us is a whiner. We all froze our asses off, but we never whined about it. We just threw another log on the fire. Everyone always had a positive, up-beat attitude. Did I mention that I love my friends? I do.

We also got a picture of one of these. Which was the whole point behind the trip. Yeah!

It's a bald eagle. It was very far away. But so awesome!

Home again, home again

Jiggety-jog.

If anyone knows what that's from, please fill me in. I think it's a nursery rhyme. Or gangster rap. One of the two.

Christmas was fun. I took the dogs for a walk in Texas snow (freezing precip for the rest of yous). At first it was unbelievably cold, but I warmed up and the dogs were having a blast. They really wanted to chase some cattle, but I didn't let them. Kaya was half-way under a fence when I said no. It takes a pretty good dog to back out from under a barbed wire fence just because her human told her no. I have to brag on my dogs. I have to read about what your kids do, you have to read about my dogs. That's the way it goes.

We played boardgames, talked about people, ate an incredible amount of food, went to church, made plans to do things, opened presents, played with presents, played with dogs, broke up dog fights (bitches, man), napped, and had a general, all-around good time.

Now I'm back home and am getting geared up to get stuff done. However I first need to decide on the stuff. Here is a preliminary list (hold on to your seats):

• Clean shower (it's supporting life at this point)
• Laundry
  
• Make pumpkin cookies with sprouted flour
• Make cooked winter squash
• Laundry
  
• Make dog food for the week
• Laundry
• Clean guest linens
• Dust guest room
• Set up budget for next year
• Send out Christmas cards (they aren't late, Christmas starts on the 25th and ends on Epiphany. Get it straight, people!)
• Laundry

We shall see how that list progresses. Husband just made brunch plans for tomorrow. Husband has no respect for the list.

I hope all of y'all had a wonderful Christmas!
I've got stuff I need to do.

Another day in the life of me

Sigh. I should be getting ready to go to late service right now. But I'm not. And Husband is still in bed. This concludes the spiritual guilt portion of today's post. (<- total lie)

Sigh. The kitchen is a mess. I've been very busy the past week. I have a certification I need to pass on Monday and didn't really buckle down and start studying until last Monday, which is just sooo me. Anyway, Husband doesn't feel this incessant need to get the kitchen Bella-clean. I think I only have about 30 minutes of work in there, so I'll probably clean it today. I mean, if I'm not going to have a clean soul, I might as well have a clean kitchen. (I'm very grateful my religion is based solely on grace and forgiveness.)

My big boss lady (<- irony because she is 4'10" in shoes, I can fit her in my pocket) is coming over this afternoon to study with me. She also needs to get certified before the end of the year. I've been making flashcards for us. I love my big boss lady, but I'm pretty sure that, if I don't keep her happy, she will rip out my heart and eat it. With a little Sriracha sauce. Fortunately, it's not hard to keep her happy and I'm one of those eager-to-please, teacher-pet types. I'm not proud of this aspect to my personality, but at least I know myself.

So, Monday marks the last day I work before Christmas break and, hopefully, the last day I have to study for this certification. Monday evening = FREEDOM! (should be read in the style of Mel Gibson in Braveheart).

Tuesday will be baking and packing and wrapping and shopping and at least one meltdown during which Husband will yell at me that I need to Stop! Stressing!. Ironically, the yelling doesn't help at all. go figure.

Then we will get on the road and Christmas prep will end and Christmas enjoyment will begin.

Merry Christmas, readership!

And now it's time for a fertility post

After the rather traumatizing experience at the fertility clinic with Dr. Physician, I'm a little gun shy about interventions. Especially since my ovulation has been stable since I started the lunaception, and Husband's sperm has improved. However, I believe Husband wants us to go see the Endocrinologist that he was referred to by his GP. This is a Dr. Female Physician, which I am far more comfortable with, but it's still intervention.

This all came about in September. And I acknowledge that she may be able to help us. That there still could be some hurdles preventing us from concieving that science could address.

I decided that I didn't want another holiday season spent at a clinic, so we are postponing the visit until after the new year. I'm also going to let Dr. Female Physician know that I'm not open to using Clomid. Ever. Not under any circumstances.

Of course I secretly hope that I'll get pregnant before then. I still have to have Husband hide the prego tests from me so that I don't pee on three a day. I still obsess during the two week wait from hell. So really, not that much has actually changed, except that we are healthier.

Where has the time gone?

Seriously! Time is flying past me. Unlike traffic, which crawls.

Here are the highlights of the last month.

The new(ish) job is still going great.

We have our next camping trip planned.

We are still not pregnant but have noticed increased sex drive when husband takes cod liver oil. Yum! It's a sex drug!

I also take the cod liver oil.

We've hired a maid. I don't know why I didn't take this step much sooner. (Actually, I do know why. pride.) For her protection let's call her Gen. Long story about why I would call a maid Gen, which I will tell you know.

When my sister and I were kids we had two real Barbie dolls and one generic barbie doll. We cut the generic barbie doll's hair so short it resembled a dot matrix of orange plastic tufts on a page of bald.

And she was the maid for the two real Barbies.

Now, after telling you that story, I don't want to refer to my maid as Gen. She is so much more than Gen could've ever been. I mean, Gen couldn't even bend her arms and legs even a little (and, trust me, we tried to make them bend). They were just hollow cheap plastic. Let's call my maid Bella, because that means beauty and that's what Bella has brought into my house.

I love her.

Other than that, not much a doing. Everyone I work with has gotten the flu or upper respiratory infections or H1N1 or a cold or whatever. I've gotten nothing. Not that I really want those things. What I want is some pink eye. Something that's not really uncomfortable and wouldn't impair my ability to enjoy being awake; but is too contagious for me to go to work.

I made some muffins. Ever since Bella came over and shined my kitchen for me, I've been a cooking fool. AND! I've kept the kitchen clean. That last sentence should be read slowly and with meaning. I've got a batch of kombucha bottled and ready to be put in the fridge tomorrow. I've got a batch of punch fermenting away. I made some soaked muffins and a crockpot of black beans. All of which was made by using ingredients that I already had on hand.

My cup of joy overflows.

I hope yours does, too.

Getting campy

We love camping. And we just found out.

We met some friends in Meridian, TX for camping and the National BBQ Cookoff. We had great time. Did some hiking, took some bird pictures, ate our body weights in BBQ, slept like the dead, marveled at the natural beauty of the world that was created for us. It was a fun weekend. I also made a mental list of what all we need to be more successful campers. Husband already wants us to do multiday hikes. I suggested we try camping without electric hookup first.

Here's the first guy we meet at the park on Saturday morning. He likes an early breakfast.

He flew away and met up with a Great White Egret who appeared to be his buddy. We found them and took more pictures of them.

I really liked the fog coming off the lake in the morning. It was just beautiful.

It would've been even more beautiful if I hadn't frozen my rear off the night before. We are *not* equipped for cool weather camping. Sleeping bags are on my list.





We also went hiking this morning and found our friend in a tree, greeting the eastern sky with a thoughtful stare.