Pack your bags -

i'm moving.

Good bye Blogger.

Hello Word Press...

I hope you'll follow me there.

http://multitaskerconfessions.wordpress.com/

Sign up to follow me -

I'm making it a point to blog EVERY day.

writing is a good thing for me. and i hope my writing is a good thing for you too...

Eat Pray Love

I'm reading Eat Pray Love.

I'm lovinig Eat Pray Love.

I'm being moved by Eat Pray Love.

Because I'm discovering me by reading it.

In an aha-moment last night, through a passage

early on in the book - I realized that I too needed

to send God a little petition. I've been praying - hard.

I've been dancing around what I wanted because I didn't think

it was right to be so upfront. God will give us what he thinks is right.

But, now... I wanted to offer up a petition to what we want. BAD.

I petitioned for my husband.

I petitioned for God to open up the opportunity my husband wants to bad

for his most recent interview.

I petitioned, and signed my name. And your name. And every name I could think of.

I signed, and tucked it in my night stand. I hope my petition works. I am making myself believe that my petition will work. Because it's alright to ask God for the specifics. Especially after 13 months. Because it's sitting on top of my bible in my nightstand. And because it came straight from my heart - my plea.

I reminded my self, in the first 100 pages of this book of what I love and what I seek.

Why don't I do yoga anymore?

I love it. I love the balance I feel when it's all said an done.

I love the stretch I feel and the inner whispers I hear when I'm deep inside my own head.

I love the hush of hearing my breath from the inside.

I love the calm. Even if it's just 4 minutes of calm.

I need to start over with yoga. begin my practice again. Balance my mind and soul and body.

Some people run. And run 26.2 miles...and well, in being honest with myself. I don't run - and I'm not comfortable running. But Yoga, I do. I can. And it's the kind of burn I love, a deep, dark stretch that wakes your body up. Yoga is my 26.2.

I need to reconnect with God. I need to learn more about what I believe. I need to expand what I believe and be one with what ever it is that makes me believe. Because I do believe. But sometimes I forget how important it is to remember believing. I need to reconnect with believing and being. Not in a going to church every Sunday kind of way - or a bible babbling kind of way. But to reconnect to my relationships with my God. As a Catholic, we don't have spiritual teachers - which I'm interested in. I'm interested in the spiritual level of religion. I want a spiritual teacher who will offer assistance in my rediscovery. I want to put my brain to work focusing on being a stronger, more rounded person.

I need to recenter my life. Reorganize what I do and how I do it. To regain a belief and focus all that new positive energy on what really matters in life. Because sometimes that grudge and gunk of life builds up and clogs important pipes...the sludge of the past year has weighed heavy on my heart and mind and body (no doubt, my husband's as well).

My petition to God isn't just about a new start in a new career for my husband. Its a new start for me. Once this weight is lifted and we being moving forward. My fresh start will begin, officially.

getting motivated

i must workout.

i must workout.

i must workout because i'm not comfortable in my skin.

i'm not fat - actually, i'm just healthy. still under the "national" average

in jean size for the US.

but, the me i see isn't me.

there is plenty of time for me to workout. to squeeze it in.

since i'm not much of a going to the gym girl - i can work out

in the basement, or with the wii, or just taking off outside.

but by the end of the day - when it's all said and done ... and the babies are tucked in

the last thing i want to do is bundle up to go run...alone. or pop in a dvd to do some 30-day shred.

i don't want to eat special k for breakfast lunch and dinner. or count every calorie and point.

i like to eat. i like good food (healthy food)...and putting numbers to it just ruins the experience of eating good food.

but in order to eat like you like...you have to not make the excuses. and i'm still making the excuses.

a year or so ago, i was taking a zumba class - lovin' a zumba class. then i was teaching a cardio class - lovin' teaching a cardio class... then it ended and i stopped b/c it wasn't conveinent or fun to work out alone. walking just doesn't do it for me. working out with a neighbor was low on the priority list and what had all the good intentions (3x a week for our end goal of running a 5K, like really running....not just fast walking)... but that stopped b/c her schedule and my schedule are different. and one day of not doing it turns into a week of it not happening turns into ...what? huh? 5K?

i just need to motivate.

i just need to loose 15 pounds. or so.

my ob/gyn (who is also a friend) gave me this great article about fitness...and about the modern "f" word (Fat). I remember reading it right after the birth of Ms. Sassafrass. It was from runnersworld.com and was written by Kristin Armstrong. I've kept this piece folded up in my planner...b/c it is inspiring.

a few weeks ago - i took on a contract job with a digital imaging company to help them catalog their photos from the detroit free press marathon. it was inspiring to see all the different people running...in a marathon. many of them were your typical runners - young, fit, lookin' like they run wherever they go... but there were many older adults, mothers, fathers, grandmas...and they were running. 26.2 miles running... and they were inspiring.

my friend C. just ran a marathon... and she's the mother of 4 (school age kiddos), and has job, and all the housewife duties I have... yet, she ran a marathon... she found time to run a marathon...and i look at her an am inspired.

because she did it... because they did it... because maybe someday... I can do it. (ok, no marathon dreams here for me... but maybe a good ol' 5K).

b/c someday, that motivation is going to come. and i'm going to tuck it under my arm and run with it.

In the meantime... what's your fitness plan? how do you squeeze in the time? What works for you? And how do you keep the plan in motion? What kind of will-power and self-control and self-determination do you have and how did you get it?!

art imitating life... true that!

i've waited for this day. the day when i could use my early childhood psychology knowledge and put it to work to find out what my children thought of our family life. i'm proud to report... that i'm raising one amazingly awesome son.

he drew this (among many) drawing(s) today. daddy, mommy, lil mama, and himself wearing a baseball hat. and i'm happy to see that daddy and i are about the same height (looks like we're fair-sharing the responsibilities in this joint), and we're holding hands (love, love, love) and master d is giving mommy and daddy a hug (even more amazingly inspiring love).

it's one of those moments in mommyhood, where i'm feeling a little pat on the back for a job well done.

this little boy is living a pretty happy life... and that, my friends - is what it's ALL about... being happy, and hugs.

xo


(take note that my son has noticed i have a thing for red dresses...)

the tale of a preschooler

ready to go!

Master D liked the first day of preschool.

here's what they did in Mrs. Queenie's class, according to Master D.

"we ate chocolate pudding. we played with blue play dough. I made a bead bracelet."

that's what you do in preschool.

eat chocolate pudding.

play with blue play dough.

make beautiful bead bracelets.

check out that awesome bracelet!

this is the preschool i wanted him in. this is the preschool i hounded weekly to make sure they got the paperwork - got the registration fee - got the message - got the hint... and they did. and i love'em for that! it's a beautiful faith based preschool in the 'bury.

that morning - we ate a healthy breakfast, took our vitamins, dressed in the new back to school outfit, he was excited, we entered the building, and i went to hang the backpack, showing him where it would be...and before I could turn around, he was in the classroom, playing with the trains, playing with the numbers. on his way. without me. and well, if he wasn't going to cry... I let out a sob as I hung his book bag on his peg. took one last peek into the classroom and left.the bookbag. hung with care.

and with that, my baby boy started his journey into the wonderful world of education yesterday.
as i wrote in his journal, i time traveled backwards, 3...2....1 years ago.

a year ago on sept 6 we were coming home from our first family vacation to HHI. my favorite time ever. it's my new happy place. it's the place i hope to go next year with the family and friends. dig my toes deep in to the sand and recall that "this time last year, Master D was spending his first day in preschool..."

two years ago, we went to the Akron Zoo. i snapped Daddy's favorite picture of all times. We caught him feeding the dog about 20 dog biscuits... he patted the dog on the head and said "good doggie". we laughed at the simplicity of the task. and the happiness we felt because of him.

three years ago, he was rolling around the house, hosting his first playdates and chowing down on rice cereal and sweet potatoes and pear juice. he was making the big move from pumpkin bucket to the big boy car seat.

four years ago, the hubs and i were a month out, officially in the t-minus stage, of finalizing plans for our wedding.

but yesterday. we hugged and kissed and he went to school. alone. and i got in the car. and drove away. alone.

it makes me so proud. to see him in school. to know that he loves it. to be the mom of a preschooler. to be his mom.

mom...did you hear about microsoft 7 campaigning during cw's vampire diaries and letting social media do the rest, interesting...interesting....

and today. his second day of preschool. it was red day. and he wore his red polo shirt and brand new red croc-o-diles (crocs). he wanted to read the newspaper on our way to school. it wasn't the newspaper. it was my latest advertising age. once at school, he hid under the table and put together a puzzle. it broke my heart to leave. but i knew he'd be okay and be out from under the table probably before i was out of the parking lot. I asked him what he did today. and he said,

i ate green grapes. bugs are mean.(?) i drew an crescent and an astronaut and colored the apple, the stop sign and the barn red. Ladybugs and strawberries are red. i'm expecting mensa's call any day now...

i'm sure there will be good days... and bad days. there will be days he doesn't want to go to school. there will be days i don't want to put on my pretty-momma clothes and go to school. but there will be days when everything clicks, and we are packed and ready to go. ready for a fun day. and sooner than later... his first day of preschool will turn into his first day of college. and i'll weep because, 15 years ago... 10 years ago... 5 years ago... he was my little preschooler...and i was his proud mom.

my mom is great...my mom is cool...but it's time for me to go to school (~Sid the Science Kid)

The Truth about Cats and Dogs

way back when we were newlyweds. before babies. before suburban life. we had pets. I'm not a pet person. i had a guinea pig growning up. (gretzky - yes, wayne gretzky....we are a hockey family)...and she was the best pet ever ... we had her forever...she died after like 10 years of having her (i don't even think they are suppose to live that long)... I don't do pets. or at least I thought I didn't do pets - i don't like the hair, the smell, the tedious chores that surround having pets like litterboxes and de-pooping yards... but, this is a true story about our pets. i figured i write a lot about life and kids and what's up... but why not take a trip down memory lane... maybe throw in a couple cute pictures here and there... and tell you the truth about cats and dogs...


vladi.
the most gentle, wonderful american bulldog. E V E R.
so sweet, so kind, so fun. he was all muscle.
he looked fierce - but that was about it.
looks are nothing. he was a 5 pound lap dog in a 100 pound dog's body (and mind).
we figured that living in the "ghet-to" and having Vlad was a win-win for us.
the neighbors were terrified (like jumping in trees at the bus stop terrified {true story})
and i would joke with the hubs that it would take nothing for someone to just break into our house, give our dog a few snackies and have their way with our goods.
he was a wonderful dog. the hubs would rough house, tossing him around antagonizing him to no end. and yet, Vlad wouldn't nip, he wouldn't bite. He was.... THE. BEST. DOG. EVER.... and that's saying a lot... I'm not a dog person.

misu.
i brought her home on a lunch break while working at "the worst advertising agency ever". she was the runt. (i have a thing for the runts) she wanted nothing to do with me, and this should have been my first warning of "the things to come". we had to leave for the weekend. so i left her with lots of food, lots of water, and lots of toys and lots of views of the outside world (which is good b/c we lived next to an empty lot that was chock full of birds - good cat tv, i guess). i think that's when she started truly hating me. i rescue her from some run down farm in the middle of nowhere, and she decides to hate me on day 4. our relationship went downhill from there... and really, she's the cat that made me give up on ever wanting another cat again (i have a tragic cat story from my childhood - that left me telling my mom i'd be a crazy cat lady when i grew up... misu changed that story... jodi was the best cat ever... sent away b/c my sister was allergic and the cat attacked her any chance possible, came home from school (2nd grade) - cat is gone - mom says she went to live on a farm... whatever that means....i'm still a bit bitter)
She was... NOWHERE NEAR THE BEST PET EVER. She was a horrible cat. H O R R I F I C. but cute. that was her saving grace. The sad thing is - I don't even remember who we gave her to. We had to give her away.
When we brought home our first baby, Master D, she proceeded to spray EVERYTHING in our formal dining room. Then she proceeded to spray every toy we had laying out for Master D. She hated us and it was obvious.
Bygones, cat... bygones.

The sad thing is that Vladi went to live with my MIL while I was pregnant with Lil Mama. He was too much for me to handle, on my own, with a toddler, on a snowy winter day in "the A-K-Rowdy" (Akron,OH). It was temporary... and that has more truth behind it than possible.

For Misu, she was just bad. Bad, Bad Cat. The relationship didn't work out. Be gone. Relationship over.

For Vladi. I feel constantly guilty about the outcome of his life. Right before we moved from the ghet-to to the 'bury. we had to put him to sleep. I have my own theories on what went wrong... but I keep those to myself b/c they're theories on a Good Dog, Gone Bad. and theories mean nothing. He was a sweet dog, who lovingly welcomed our firstborn into his house, and let that wiggly little new person pull his tail, cry out loud, and reek havoc in his peaceful pre-baby world. Master D still has a picture in his room of "his puppy" - it's one of my favorite pictures ever. And he lets me know that that is "his puppy" ... which i don't even know how he remembers him...but okay, i believe him. Maybe I'll post it if I can located it - or scan it... it's a tear jerker, a heartbreaker.
Vladi bit a family member (an adult) and induced stitches....on the neck. Not.Good.
I don't agree with putting completely healthy animals to sleep - but when they bite... and bite like that...and are a breed like Vladi...you have to. I couldn't live with myself if we gave him away and he bit a child - big dog, little kid...not a pretty outcome. Obviously, good dogs who are healthy don't just go for the jugular one day and resume their happy dog mystique the next. something snapped. some synapse missed a connection...i.just.don't.know.

it was a tough decision. one i still have a hard time with. one that makes me bawl like a baby when watching marley and me.

but vladi was the dog that changed it for me and misu was the cat that changed it for me.

and that's the truth about (this) cat and (that) dog....

simple sunday

1. laying around until noon in our jammies. toys stream from the toy room in to the tv room, strewn about the first floor. we cheered on tiger. we found a new favorite in Ryo Ishikawa. and you just don't tire of hearing "aw, man..... he missed it" after every tee-off or "he got it in...now he gets a trophy!" (wouldn't it be nice if we all got a trophy!?)

2. we teach master d the art of dipping fries in a frosty. his first frosty. he proclaims " i love frosty's. i love fries. i love frosty fries." dear son... me too.... me.too!

3. dinner is served. i pretend to be a waitress. they order the same thing. macaroni and cheese, fruit salad and green beans (which they want, but won't eat). for drinks...a cow juice with chocolate and 2009 apple juice (great year, ma'am). the hubs laughs at my antics. i know there's no tip from *this* table!

4. not only am i a great "chef-er"(according to master d's review of my mad food prep skills)... i'm a great golfer too... because i show master d my golf swing in the kitchen. we may not have a pantry...but we have the room for a perfect swing, with the complete follow through! i still got it...4 years since the links... but i still got it...

5. lil mama spends the afternoon running chaotic in a diaper. crazy curls pinned back with multiple clippies purchased from this week's farmers market. she's happy. we read the tiny tadpole and at the end she is excited because he's a frog. she says things this weekend like "wake up"..."bless you"... and "mike wyzowski"


sunday funday has a whole new meaning...

My son, the letter U...

our conversation this afternoon in our home office, while lil'mama slept (by sleep, I mean gibber gabber for 45 minutes, drink 2 bottles, ask for pretties, rock out to a little baby einstein, then nap)...

M: Master D...what do you want to be when you grow up...

D: The letter U (demonstrates the letter U with the vacuum cleaner hose from the mock-black&decker vacuum)

M: Well, sir... that's interesting... What does the letter U do in his job?

D: Hangs out in alphabet soup....



Ohhh... he's a smart one... and he's going to make one FABULOUS letter U, someday...

smoked out...

beautiful saturday morning... town's square...jam packed with beautiful home-growns and handmades...

some other MOMS and i were volunteering/manning our booth to raise money for this little guy. (whoot whoot! $140. raised this weekend!!! see you all next weekend!) we talked about the beautiful produce... mid-sentence....conversation haults...

as the second hand smoke wafts through the air...

constantly...for the rest of the morning...

now, i really don't care if people smoke or not - it's their business...

but when they are smokin' , right over the produce I may purchase... um, no thanks...
defeats the purpose...

I'm hoping that this is something we can fix. it just takes away from the draw of what a farmer's market stands for... I'm fully aware that it's an outdoor arena, where smoking bans don't exist...but I'm sure there's something about it that isn't allowed... something sanitary or whatnot... even if it isn't a law, shouldn't it be in the vendor notes that it's not advised...or that a smoking area should/could be set up for when they need their nic-fix?

doesn't it seem a little...um...ironic? hypocritical?both?...

selling the best quality of produce (local,organic) but then huffin' and puffin' away...

I go to the Farmer's Market to be healthy, buy healthy...

not to get smoked...

pre-schooler spelling bees and bobbler's weather reports...

sometimes life offers you the simpliest tidbits of joy... a good hug from a loved one, a special coupon for your favorite goodie, a call from a friend you haven't talked to in for-ev-er... or a sweet spelling bee from your 3 year old son.

we're huge fans of super why...and well, pbs in general. and why not - i spent my childhood loving reading rainbow, and sesame street and mr. rogers... and i love it still, because my kids love it - and learn from it, and for the most part, I can handle Caillou's voice over Dora's any day!

this morning, while watching super why - Master D turned to me and said, S-O-U-P... soup.

And it made me smile... a big smile.

Because he loves words and letters and learning... and he spells words like SOUP. And says words like scrumptious (in the right context and all)...

Lil' Momma impressed this morning too... with the windows all open, letting in the fresh, rain-filled air, she turned, looked out the window and said - "it's raining."

a regular Al Roker she is!

Baby Genius... seriously.

and it's tidbits of everyday life like that that reel me in - hook, line, sinker to this motherhood gig. It's not about grand gifts or the milestone moments... it's about what happens on grey and rainy days on your average,everyday mid-week that makes you realize the simpliest pleasures are by far the greatest.