Month: November 2014

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The one where I get a sports car

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Funny story that is, the one where I get a sports car, that hasn’t happened yet!  I, in fact, am celebrating the one year anniversary of our new Sienna Minivan. Yep last November our family became the proud owners of “BatVan”. (The name you ask, well I name my cars, I have had Joan Jetta and Santa Fe Rey!)

new minivan 11-22-13

It wasn’t the first car of our choice, but after an accident where we were rear ended and hit another car that totaled our SUV, this was the best choice for our family. Is this the car I pictured driving in my 50s? Well no,  I’d rather have a VW Beetle convertible which is the farthest thing from being practical for our family of 4 plus 2 dogs.  I will say (and this is not an ad) that the van drives really well having tested it on the curvy drive of Grizzly Peak this summer. Yes that was me taking the van through the turns like a sports car!  Don’t slow down for this Mom driving this mini van LOL!

I can now take friends and friends of friends around.  I can volunteer to drive for a school field trip.  When family visits they no longer have to crawl over a jump seat to get to the third row like in my former SUV.  This is the car we can grow up with now, this 8-passenger van.

After the accident, both girls were super excited about the prospect of getting a minivan.  They love the electronic doors that slide open at a touch, that they can walk within the van and they thought it would have a DVD player.  We got all that but not the DVD player as we have removable ones for long trips that hang on the headrests.

In picking out our new van I had to have black, had to have a sun roof and all the electronic doors including the rear gate and fog lights!  It was my concession to have a minivan to get the things that a) made me feel it was sportier looking and b) gave me ease when loading people and things in.

So here we are one year later and I’ve adjusted.  In fact, we totally fit into suburbia now seeing ALL the minivans at school either in the parking lot or those we line up with for drop off in the morning and pickup in the afternoon!

minivan2

This is day 22 of my posts for National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers participating, Enjoy!

My morning routine

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It’s so funny, after having nothing to post about yesterday, I found myself interested in a post my friend Phyllis of Napkin Hoarder wrote about her morning routine. She noted a recent article published by Forbes magazine on The Morning Routine of 12 Women Leaders.  I loved Phyllis’s point of view from an “average women’s morning”.  I realize I fit the bill of the average woman and so today I am chiming in with mine as it made me look at what our routine is or isn’t.

clock

5:00 AM   My husband’s alarm goes off and our 1-year-old dog hears it too. After at least one snooze bar both the dog and my husband are up. He to feed the puppy her first cup of food and to get ready for work. Somewhere in that time after awakening to the hustle I fall back asleep.

6:15 AM   The alarm on my iPhone rings.  I hit snooze at least twice AND my husband calls at 6:30 AM from his desk at work to make sure I’m up.

6:33 AM   Rise & shine its time to get up, push the button for my cup of coffee made on my Keurig and I have time for one sip before I shuffle down the hallway to wake my girls for school, singing, dancing and even blaring the stereo for an early morning dance party!  Whatever it takes to get them up and out of bed!

6:45 AM   Both of my girls are up and shuffling to the table for some breakfast.  They sit where the table is already set with the array of cereals they like and milk,  bowls and spoons at the ready.

7:05 AM   WHAT, WHAT? How did it get so late, okay girls finish up it’s time to dress! This is when I start to prep their lunch boxes for the day based on what they “ordered”.

7:06 AM   Don’t forget to brush your teeth and your hair, girls!

7:15 AM   Time for me to dress, teeth brushed, hair fluffed, GIRLS, GIRLS are you dressed? Did you brush your teeth? your hair?  You know it’s colder out, please dress in warmer clothes!  Did you?

7:25 AM   Girls 5 minutes, we have 5 minutes, do you have your backpacks? is your homework in them? shoes? do you have your shoes on?  Are your teeth brushed? Ok Pepper, Pepper time to go in your crate, no Pepper it’s not play time, Let’s go Pepper!

7:33 AM   We are in the car, my girls comment we are on time, and yes we are this morning, we will not be in the line of cars trying to drop off their students, we’ll be able to park and walk to their classrooms to drop off their backpacks before they line up on the playground in their classroom lines.

7:45 AM   The bell rings, kissing each of my girls in their line I watch them walk along with their classes to their rooms.

Now is when I come off the clock!  You will either find me chatting along with the other parents lingering in the morning or see me heading off to one of my daughter’s classroom for my day to help.  Other times I’m off as soon as I can to start my day.

Once home, it’s computer time, social media, check, feed the dogs, take a look at what I have for myself for the day and plan accordingly!

Also inspired by Phyllis, my blogging buddies Kimberley of Red Shutters and Danielle of Another Version of Mother have shared their view of a morning routine.

What’s your morning routine like?

This is my 21st post for National Blog Posting Month, click here #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers participating, Enjoy!

The nothing post

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I’m not used to posting every day.  In my life I’ve never kept up a journal or diary.  Usually my posts come to me by an event during my day or life.  So today I share that I just have nothing to share.

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It reminds me of the episodes of Seinfeld when they are writing a show about nothing.

Hope you are all enjoying your day, please click #NaBloPoMo to read the many bloggers who are participating, Enjoy!

open door

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Easifold-3-pane-garden-doors-open-view_imagelarge

Every time around this part of the year my dogs start to get antsy.  Why you ask?  Most of the year here in California it is warm enough in the day to leave our back door open for them to go in and out on their whim.  This is possible as I am home for large chunks of time in any given day.

Now we are in Fall, we are actually getting rain so the door remains closed until a dog asks to go out.  This is hard for my two dogs to comprehend at first. I am getting up more often as they stand at the back door asking to go out. They are stand waiting for me to get to them at the door.  But it is damp and cool so the door opens only to allow them out and I wait for Cody or Pepper to decide that they are heading out.  A good part of the time they are just looking out the door (we have a french door) hoping the door will stay open.

hanging with Cody in our yard

Every year we go through this.  Every year it’s a new learning experience for them that the door will not stay open.  Every year one of us are up and down attending to the dogs thinking they are needing to go outside.

Every year we tell them in or out as the door will not stay open.  I am hoping for an early Spring!

This is day 19 of National Blog Posting Month, click #NaBloPoMo to read the many other bloggers who are participating, Enjoy!