Archive for ‘Personal’

January 25th, 2012

Taking Guitar Lessons

A while back I talked about how depressing it can get being stuck here all the time with very little adult conversation and no way to take a few minutes each week for myself.  I decided the only way I’m ever going to get out of this slump I’ve been in is to find a way to make time for myself.  Even if it’s just an hour every other Saturday.

One thing I’ve always wanted to do is take guitar lessons.  I play the violin, so I’ve always thought it would be fairly easy for me to learn to play guitar.  My mother-in-law has been taking lessons for a couple years now, so I’ve decided that’s exactly what I’m going to do.  I can schedule lessons once a week in the evening when Ben is home with Ellie giving me time to myself while learn something new.

I talked to Ben about it, and he agrees it’s a good idea.  I need to find a guitar I can afford before I schedule any lessons.  I’ll start with whatever cheap used guitar I can find, but I would eventually like to find a used martin d-16. We’ll just have to see what our budget allows. The lessons are only $25 a week, so I can definitely swing that, and I definitely think it’s worth it.  I honestly can’t wait to get started.  I’m always excited about learning something new, and maybe one day I’ll be good enough to sit around and jam with my father-in-law playing the drums.  Maybe even Ellie will want to take lessons, too, when she gets bigger.

January 9th, 2012

I Need A Lunch Date

I don’t know why, but I’m in a bit of a bummed out mood tonight.  Maybe it’s because things aren’t exactly going the way I wanted them to be right now.  Maybe it’s because I haven’t gotten to go out and enjoy myself in awhile, and I haven’t really seen what few friends I have in a few months.  What’s more likely is that it’s a combo of all of the above.

As a mom I tend to forget that I need time to get away, too.  I feel very blessed to have family that want to spend time with Ellie during the week, but when she’s away for a few hours I spend most of that time catching up on housework and online work.  Because we only have 1 car right now it’s not like I can use that time to get out for some shopping (or window shopping would be more likely) or to meet up with a girlfriend for lunch.  I feel like that’s going to have to change.  I think every mom needs to get away for a few hours every now and then whether it’s alone or with a friend.  We need that time to clear our heads and do something for ourselves instead of catering to everyone else all the time.  The way I’ve been feeling lately I’m desperately needing a couple hours away.

Maybe I can get up with my BFF soon and schedule a lunch date or something that’s baby and hubby free.  It’s just been really hard to do that since Ben’s working 6 days a week, and she’s usually working on his day off.  He needs the car to get to work, and dropping him off so I can have the car is absolutely out of the question.  I’m not willing to drag Ellie out of bed at 6am to get him to work, and he’s already got a 30 minute commute one day.  I’d be spending 2 hours a day just driving to drop him off and pick him up.  I definitely don’t need to do anything that’s going to make my life more stressful right now.

*Sigh*  It’s already after midnight, but I think I’m going to make myself a cup of hot chocolate and curl up with a book.  I’ve already knocked 3 off my 2012 reading list, and starting a new one might help me relax and feel a little better.

October 25th, 2011

Time To Slow Down And Relax

Wow, what a busy weekend/week we’ve had!  I’m so thankful we finally got some time to relax today.  Between Ellie’s birthday party Saturday and my Fleischmann’s party on Sunday I’ve been going non-stop preparing and executing.  Then I spent yesterday making up for the cleaning I’ve neglected to do all week while I was busy with all this other stuff, so I decided today was my be lazy day.

I was lazy for the most of the day with the exception of reorganizing some of Ellie’s toys and cleaning out more to donate.  She’s already got a bedroom and playroom full of toys, and today I noticed there isn’t a room in the house that doesn’t have a pile of toys in the corner.

Because we knew she’d be getting even more toys for her birthday we decided to get her a desk instead.  We got an American Plastics toddler desk that converts into a small easel, and that was good enough for now.  I wanted to get her a larger easel with the chalkboard, but it just wasn’t possible right now.  Ben got laid off again last week, so we needed to keep it cheap.  The toddler desk/easel was under $20, and it’s the perfect size for her even if it is something cheap that will probably fall apart in a year or two.  Then again, it could last forever.  She has a ton of other American Plastics toys that we thought were sure to break within a few months, but she’s had them all for over a year with no problems.  The top of the desk isn’t as great as I’d like, but what can you expect for $20?  It’ll do the job, and she absolutely loves it, especially now that I let her decorate it with stickers this morning!

Cheap is good for me right now, so I’m very happy she’s still young enough to be happy with a cheap toy!  I know one day she’ll be asking for the expensive stuff.  As much as she wants to play with my Eee PC I’m sure one day she’ll be begging for an Eee Tablet, so I’m going to enjoy the years when cheap toys are very acceptable birthday gifts!

My biggest problem right now is figuring out where to put all the big stuff she’s got.  We are definitely running out of room, and cleaning out the toy box doesn’t really help with that.  As far as the big stuff Ellie now has a desk, laundry center, nursery, shopping cart, kitchen, slide, baby stroller, and vanity…all American Plastics toys, and everything but the desk was a present from a grandparent. I’m starting to feel like that company could stay in business thanks to our family alone!


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