I kick my own ass

I am not a competitive person. I take little satisfaction in being better than people. Apparently, I have been this way my entire life. Mom says that when she asked me if I wanted to play sports as a kid I responded "What about the kids that lose?" I don't care if you can run faster than me, have a better test score than me, have a cooler car than me. Quite honestly the only thing I ever envy in others is good hair (ha!). This little factoid drives Travis crazy. Competitiveness is a Chapin trait, it's in their blood. Travis is that guy that will push himself at any type if sport until he vomits. I have also heard that his brother does the same thing. Me? Not so much.

What drives Travis even more crazy is the fact that I'm naturally athletic with a short attention span. I can pick up most sports after a few tries and excel if I choose to keep with it. I played three sports in high school (water polo, soccer and diving) but by my third year I was bored and opted to not participate. In fact, I was so over high school that I took two classes on campus and spent the rest of my time taking courses at the community college. I get bored very easily if I don't feel I can challenge myself enough.

What's the point in all this? That picture at the top has been my morning view lately. I like to exercise, it's in my genes. My dad is in his 60's still jogging, cycling and swimming. With my short attention span I rotate between three things to stay in shape (yoga, weight lifting/treadmill and swimming). I choose three activities that are virtually solitary because I don't like to compete with others. I don't need someone breathing down my neck to keep me moving, I can push myself.

I haven't swam since my last few months of pregnancy. It was hot, I was large and jumping off the treadmill every few mintues to pee was getting old. The pool felt good in the 90+ degree weather but I just puttered around back and forth with the kickboard. Now that I'm back to swimming I remember why I like it so much. I'm getting a great workout without that overheated/sweaty feeling. In the water it's just me and my thoughts, the rest of the world is silent. I glide through the water graceful, watching the black tiles of the lane marker as I go back and forth. Slow. Steady. Quitet. Such a lovely way to stay healthy.

Lunch at the park

Travis and I had one of those rare days off together so we decided to have a picnic since the weather was wonderful. We all had a great time laying around on a blanket under a big tree.

Jack didn't particularly like the feeling of grass on his knees so he opted to stay on the blanket or walk with Dad's help.
He has my eyebrows, poor guy.

Jack also sat in a swing for the first time and by the looks of it he had a great time.

It's gonna be a good day

A sleeping baby, knitting and watching "Singin' in the Rain." Sounds like the start of a good day to me.

It has been found!

I found my camera on the mantle behind my favorite vase. I do things like that thinking "I'm going to remember that I put that there because it's such an unusual place..." Then I always forget. Is this dementia or just being a busy momma?Nice cookie stuck to your head little man.

I am in the middle of a big project right now. I have not ignored my little projects, but I'm on that creative high when you think you just came up with the coolest thing ever. Don't you love that feeling? Focused. Determined. Creative. Energetic. Gah, I love it. What pushed me into this creative rush? Why SouleMama's book of course. Doesn't that inspire every one of us crunchy/hippie mommas out there?

This have been a little chaotic the last two days as I scheme, ponder, move thing 101 times and declutter (my spell check says this is not a word, WTH?).
Not everything I'm doing is cleaning. My big project does include some sewing, knitting and possibly some painting. Oh, and I've got Travi hanging cool guy lights. I'll be at my real job tomorrow and Monday so I can't work on my project for two days. While at work I'll fill any downtime with reading SouleMama's book, making a list and keeping the excitiment up by dreaming of what it's all going to look like in the end.

Gotta go, sleeping pill has kicked in.

Frustrating

I have no clue where my small point and shoot camera is. I can't blog without it!

FYI, Jack has a new tooth.

No really, I'm cheap

First, let's get the important stuff out of the way.
Welcome to the world baby Sef! Your gift is still on the needles but I promise it'll still fit by the time I finish. I hope.

A few weeks ago I was driving to the gym and passed an old lady having a yard sale (or yarrrr sale as some of us say). At the end of her driveway was a rocking chair. I've been wanting a wood rocking chair but didn't feel like shelling out $100+ for one so when I saw this I knew I needed to at least check it out. It was beat up and one arm rest was kinda loose but not a bad deal for $25. I cleaned it, added some pillows and now it's my favorite spot to sit.The pillows are two throws from the couch that I recovered with old pillowcases found at Goodwill. I cut the pillowcases to fit and sewed the end shut. They open in the back by a long slit where the fabric overlaps itself. The table next to the chair was made by Travis. The thing next to the table is a vanity case that I found as a set at Rescued Treasures. It's yellow with a yellow liner and the mirror is still there, it's in perfect condition. I love it. I'll take a picture of the whole set that I bought some time.

Don't assume my house is always clean based on that picture. It's not. I like to referr to it as "controled chaos." A lot of the time it looks more like this.
That mess is from a marathon dough making session the other day. Yeah, that really is three different kinds of flour on the counter (Travis is a bread snob).

Travis and I are researching different methods of food storage for three reasons. First, to make the most of this year's garden. Last time we couldn't eat everything fast enough, there's only so many tomatoes you can eat in a week. Second, I want to minimize the amount of time that I spend grocery shopping and actually preparing food. Third, I'm cheap. I've read a lot about stockpiling food which is different from hording. Stockpiling is "store what you eat and eat what you store." It's stocking up on sales, buying in bulk, rotating your pantry and saving money/time. This is why we are planning to can as much of our garden as possible and why we are buying a chest freezer next week.

I read that you can make bread dough and freeze it to bake later. I tested it out and it really worked. That day I made four batches (two white, two wheat) using the bread machine to knead the dough. Why the bread machine? I'm lazy and I don't have to keep a timer going to remind myself to knead after it's rises, the machine does it all for me. I can also do other things while the machine is going. Like, make sure Jack isn't killing himself as he tries to walk.


On to Jack, here he is dying to play outside. He's fixated on the ferns out on the patio.
Nice legs dude.

Last, but not least, my cat driking out of the sprinklers.