Give Me Some Sugar!

I am a sugar addict. I can eat an entire white cake in a day. And then drink a Coke. And then some more Coke.

When I decided to lose weight about two years ago, I knew that my love affair with sugar would have to end some day. But, with Weight Watchers, we could casually keep our affair in order. I used to use Splenda all day in my tea and then at night, I would have a Coke with a treat like M & M's. It worked for me and I lost over 60 lbs. doing this.

But then I wondered what would happen if I gave up Splenda. I wanted to really taste real food and get rid of the super sweet hot tea that was getting me through my day. I made the switch to real sugar to get rid of the super sweet Splenda. Calories weren't my issue. A teaspoon of sugar only has 15 calories. A bargain! But I wanted to decrease it over time. Sounds crazy but I measured down to 1/4 tsp. I was hoping that healthy foods would taste better to me. A grape or a strawberry would taste like a thrill! The jury is still out on this one. I love my sweets.

So I hit a milestone in my journey this week. I am now drinking tea with just a splash of milk. This is huge for me. When I worked, I used to put in THREE TEASPOONS in each cup!!!! Yikes! And to have it without sugar is absolutely astonishing to me.

Little changes over time can add up to huge changes in your diet (or your budget). You hear it all the time. Try it. You know how you see the ladies with their marathon stickers on their vans? That's how proud I am. I would love to put a sticker on my car. I just can't believe it. And while this isn't the most thrilling post you have ever read, it is for me. Yahoo!

Now Linkedin

Elle is two. So, my days as a SAHM (Stay-at-Home Mom) are probably numbered. There are braces to pay for, college in less than ten years and prom dresses to buy.

To be honest, I have checked the Sunday job section of the Plain Dealer since I resigned in 2002 to have Ryan. It started by being nosy. I knew everyone in my field at most universities. So, I wanted to stay up to date with who was where. And then it became dreaming. Dreaming of the old days where I got to eat lunch with other people that didn't need me to cut their food. And now I check the help wanted ads to make sure I am not missing a great part-time job.

I never expected to be a SAHM. If you would have bet me a million dollars in college, I would have bet you I'd work. But the reality of a newborn hit me like a ton of bricks. I wasn't sleeping. I couldn't manage. I was not fuctionioning at all so working was just not possible for me. And my husband was at a law firm that required long, long hours. The decision was easy to make but hard to grasp when it actually happened.

So yesterday, I joined Linkedin. A friend asked me if I was diving in. It's more like I am dipping my toes in. Not ready to jump but just thinking about the future. I saw on a friend's refrigerator once a magnet that said "Days with children are long but the years are short." As we creep closer to the start of school, the days are really, REALLY long. It always causes me to start thinking about work and my future. I just hope I can hang on until August 17.

Houseflies: Unwanted Houseguests

I have killed about 30 flies in the last three days. At least. I am going crazy. I have no idea where they came from. But, I know where they are going.

I usually don't kill anything. I will escort a bee out the door or slip a spider in a cup and put her on the porch. And any insect outside of our house is safe. I don't let my kids kill anything. But houseflies are nasty and I can't stand to have them in my house.

So where are they coming from? I have no idea. The weather has been not so great and very hot. So, the kids have not been running in and out. There is no way that this many flies simply flew in. There has to be a source. And if you have seen maggots, you know that source is a nasty source.

I have looked around my window frames. Looked in my basement. Cleaned out my recycling bin and changed all of the garbage bags. There is only one thing to do. Keep my trusty flyswatter with me. And let the kids help.

So now that I have grossed you out, where can I look? Where are they coming from? They are unwelcome in my house and I will win this battle.

Light as a Feather

Life feels so much easier this week. Last week, I watched my sister's three kids so she could go on an anniversary cruise. They are great kids but it was a long week. I can barely keep up with my three so adding three was a lot of work. This week I feel so light and free. My house is a mess but I am less of a mess so I can deal with it.

As I wrote in my last post, we are trying to follow a budget and only spend a certain amount of money each month on groceries. There has been so much talk about coupons and how to get things for free. So, I spent the last week in between making many, many meals researching all of the coupons using sites. They are a gazillion out there. And so much passion.

I am not so passionate but I do love a bargain and the game. I am not ready to get all crazy but I am learning how to use a store coupon at Target and combine it with a coupon from the Sunday paper. I had no idea you could combine them and save big. I was floored! So, if you wanted to buy shampoo for three dollars and had a Target $1.00 coupon and a Dove $1.00 coupon, you could get it for a dollar. How cool is that? Or you could buy Suave like I always do for $1.00 and save yourself the hassle. That's what I am wresting with.

I would love to learn more about this coupon craze from a someone who really does it. Not someone that writes about it but someone that can talk to me about it. I don't want to create a closet of freebies like the ladies on the Extreme Couponing show. I just want to maximize my budget. Or maybe I will just go back to work, hire a cleaner and hopefully a great nanny who will do the grocery shopping for me.

Diets & Budgets

I was just reading another person's blog about her obsession of only wearing a very expensive brand named shoe. Hmmmm. I cannot relate at all unless you call a Target shoe a "brand."

About a month ago after our family vacation, my husband noticed that we were getting a little crazy with our finances. We were eating out weekly, picking up fast food, ordering pizzas, huge trips to Target and traveling quite a bit. We were definitely spending more than we were making. And bam! It hit us. We have to go back to budgeting. If you've done Weight Watchers, it is a lot like tracking. We have a monthly budget and we have to stay under the set amount for each type of spending. It sounds awful but if you've never done it, you'd be shocked to see where you money goes. Until you track it, you might think you know but you really don't. We spent $300 on gifts this month. I wouldn't believe it but we did. We had a wedding, a few birthdays and my baby Elle's collection of Cincerella that we had to buy.

I love to buy groceries. I can buy and buy. So in order to try to stay in our range for food, I am attempting a Thursday night of leftovers and one night we call "Budget Tuesday." The cool thing is that I don't have to cook these nights. Saves us money, hubby is happy that I am following our plan and we eat all of the weird food that gets stuck in the back of our frig.

This month, we've done great with our budget. It is a lot like a diet though. You can be super strict at the beginning. And when you diet, you really want something you can't have. I have to keep reminding myself to make good choices so that we do come in where we are supposed to. I said to my husband yesterday that if can do this, we'll have more money to spend in the end. More vacations, more name brand shoes and even more trips to my favorite grocery store.

RHSC

If only I was on the show Real Housewives of Summit County. I am apart of a group of friends that instead of throwing dinner parties, we just throw parties. We all bring something to share (and store bought is A-OK) and we have cocktails. We call it Party Club. It is more fun than parents should be allowed to have. We take turns hosting and I am up to host this Saturday.

As I climbed on a ladder trying to get a vine off of my house on my deck, I started to think how different real lives are compared to the silly Housewives shows on Bravo. While I love the trashy shows, it is such a lie.


"Reality" Show/Real Life

A stylist brought me clothes to try on today. I tried on three dresses at Target.

A stylist sent me clothes to wear on the show. I tried to shop at Marshalls first because I had a gift card.

A gardener has been working on my gardens all season. I had big plans to weed and make our gardens look nice. It is not going to happen. Hope it gets dark before anyone notices.

Our front lawn is beautiful. Our lawn has patches with no grass and looks rough.

A chef caters the meal. If I am lucky, Costco will cater this meal.

Children are taken care of by the live in nanny. Thank goodness my sisters will be watching my kids overnight. Thank you sistas!

The cleaning crew has been working tirelessly to make the house look amazing. We are trying to talk ourselves into cleaning every night once the kids go to bed. Somehow it all comes together. Once again, hope it gets dark before anyone looks around.

A band or DJ gets the women on their feet. We downloaded new songs for our iPod and will dance in our kitchens with kitchen utensils as microphones.

The Housewives fight and every party has a dramatic conclusion. We get along so great and every party has a funny, outrageous story.

The shows look glamorous but in reality, aren't the relationships and connections the most important thing? They buy the clothes, cars and houses to impress others. Is it to win friends? What kind of friends? They don't seem to get along. I love my group of friends. I feel blessed to call them my friends. We may not be on TV but we have some stories that would make for some great episodes of the Real Housewives shows.

No more teachers, no more books...

I was in Target today looking for a new sprinkler. It is still summer, right? In Ohio, it just started getting warm enough for the pool. Summer it is. On my way to the summer section, I was hit smack in the face with Back to School. Already.

When I cringed last week at the Toys R Us ad for Back to School, my husband said "Aren't you counting the days?" Well, yes. Sort of.

I hate to rush summer. The weather is so awful here most of the year that I hate to rush past all of this sunshine and vitamin D. I also know how busy the school year gets. I am also cringing because I have not been working with my kids to prevent the "Summer Slide" that all of the magazines, newspapers and TV programs have been talking about.

As I complained about it to my sister who is a teacher, she confirmed my worst fears. The children that excel, their parents work with them over the summer. The ones that struggle, their parents don't. I am a parent to each type of child. And one child has worked on his summer packets and one has not.

Mommy guilt has set in. I know better. I will do better. But when the doorbell rings and the little neighbor boy asks my sons to play, I encourage them to go and play. I want my kids outside, riding bikes and yes, playing the Wii with friends. I want them to have lazy, happy summers without me yelling at them to sit and do math facts. I am choosing another Popsicles over the pencil.

The Target trip today was a nudge. I will do it. Maybe we will start with five minutes before we get going in the morning. One math page a day is all I can probably manage with Kyle before I pull my hair out. And Ry will do five on his own after he sits and reads for an hour an a half.

Summer is in full swing and I love it. So, we will squeeze in a little of the "half to's" and get to the fun stuff. And we'll get those summer packets done. Somehow.