Currently {January 2013}

reading  :::  "What am I not reading?" is probably the better question. For Christmas, Steve and the girls gave me a Kindle Fire HD. I put it to good use by finally reading Finding Emma by Steena Holmes. I read the first chapter a few months ago, and was convinced it would be lame. Yeah, I was wrong. It was really good. I also decided that I needed to try reading Anna Karenina one more time. I want to say that the last time I tried reading it I had a very squirmy Abigail in my belly and a nearly-terrible-twos Hayley running around. I guess it should come as no surprise that I gave up after the first couple chapters back then. So far, I'm loving it and hope to actually finish it this time around. I did take a little break to read Room by Emma Donoghue. I finished it in less than 48 hours, but it was definitely a difficult book for me to get my head around due to the fact that it's written from a child's perspective. Now I'm reading a book about mother-daughter relationships on the recommendation of the psychologist I've been seeing for the past few months. It's a doorstop of a book, that's for sure {752 pages}. Even though I'm not in 100% agreement with every claim, there is enough good in there that I think it's worth reading as the mother of two girls. I've also spent a lot of time skimming books about nutrition...2013 is going to be different from other years now that I'm no longer able to eat gluten or peanuts {see the "eating" part of this post}.

watching  :::  Once again, I haven't really been watching a ton of television. With the kids home on break, they tend to run the tv. We recently discovered the animated series Oscar's Oasis on Netflix. I think it's safe to say that all four of us think it's wonderful. In the adult realm, Steve and I really liked Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead. I'm a sucker for a good documentary. I really am. Just because I say a documentary is good doesn't mean it is because I love them all. But this one? It was good {again, see the "eating" part of this post}.

planning  :::  Random acts of kindness for my family. I've seen so much online about people who have committed to perform 26 random acts of kindness in honor of the lives lost in Newtown, CT in December. The thing is...it's easy for me to do something nice for a stranger. What isn't easy is doing something nice for the people I'm with every day. I get so caught up in our day-to-day life that I don't always stop to show deliberate kindness to Steve, the girls, my parents, our brothers, etc. I'm compiling a list of ways to bless my family members throughout 2013. If you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them.

laughing about  ::: Abby. The other day she thought that the lyrics to Far East Movement's Like a G6 were "like cheese sticks"! Yeah, we listen to quality music while we drive in the car with our children. Another one... I took the girls out for cheese fries & milkshakes last night. she announced to all of Steak 'n Shake that it was "the best restaurant I've ever been to!"

December 2007 ~ I'm pretty sure this was Abigail's 1st trip to Steak 'n Shake

listening to  :::  I'm still listening to classical music in the car. I can't believe it. There's just something so peaceful and calming about driving around without lyrics blasting through the speakers.

eating  :::  Well, I'm still gluten free. I ate some gluten on Christmas without realizing it, but for the most party my initial weeks without gluten went well. I did do a "challenge" at one point and had an itchy rash and stomach pain fairly quickly. Honestly, I think I'm still detoxing from the 12 hours I spent letting myself eat gluten {no, I didn't go crazy...strangely, I didn't have any desire to do that}. While I was going without gluten I made a crazy discovery... For years I'd dealt with stomach/intestinal issues that indicated some sort of food allergy/sensitivity. Even the allergist agreed that something wasn't right, but we couldn't find a culprit. Well, I figured it out. Peanuts. I am now peanut, peanut butter and peanut oil free. I definitely feel better without gluten and peanuts in my diet. Yay. Since I'm not really eating many processed foods anymore, we decided to take things a step further and begin juicing. Every day for breakfast we drink the green juice featured in Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead. Even Hayley has been drinking some {Abby thinks it's disgusting but will drink orange-carrot juice}. I thought I'd struggle to keep my blood sugar under control, but I just need to bolus for 1 apple and I'm golden. I can already see a difference in my skin. I'm hoping that going gluten & peanut free will be the catalyst that sparks many changes in our family's eating habit...cross your fingers for us!

working on  ::: Putting away Christmas decorations and organizing the house. Big surprise, right?

 

wishing  ::: I'm really wishing that going back to school won't ruin the good energy we have going in the house right now. The girls went back to school today, and I'm a bit nervous. Our break was wonderful {despite the drama that's normal in the home of 3 females}. I truly have no complaints about the way we spent our time. I can only wish {and hope and pray} that this is the start of a period of peace in our lives. I know it's unlikely that this calm will stick around, but a momma can hope!

looking forward to  :::  Going back to work. The classes at the church were on break over the holidays, but they start up again this week. I really miss my little kiddos. I can't wait to see them and give them big hugs! And, yeah, I can't wait to spend some time doing puzzles and pretending to eat plastic cookies. I love that doing that stuff with them.

thinking about  :::  Accepting my limitations and funneling the energy I do have into the things that matter the most. Most likely this will mean some big changes. I think my 20's really were about becoming who I am and now my 30's will be about accepting and growing who I am. Looking at my wedding photos, there are so many things I want to tell that girl. So many things. I want to take what I've learned about myself and others over the past few years and really make that self education mean something.