D Day plus 2

I think what I miss about morning coffee is the ritual of it. Filling the basket, getting the water. It certainly isn't having to use the bathroom 20 times before 10, or know that I way loaded up on calories on stuff that doesn't give me a nice full feeling. I also miss the way the house smells like morning when coffee is on. A whistling tea kettle is nice, but that doesn't signal the beginning of a day to me. I don't think I'm cranky or at all unhappy biochemically. I don't think I need the caffeine of coffee the way others need nicotine, for example. I just miss the representation of it, the idea that about half a billion other people in the world start their mornings the same way, and that I was a part of that little community.

Oddly enough, ice cream has not been a challenge.

On the home decor front, we are rethinking the bathroom color to a warm cocoa, because we have blue edge tile and I think brown and blue is an incredibly sleek, modern combo. I am also thinking of ways to get more space in the girls' room. It may involve-gasp--a bunk bed. Stay tuned.

D-Day

The first day of no coffee hasn't been terrible. Ellie skipped nap and didn't want snack (amazingly) so by 5:15 she was super squirrely. The twins were okay, except Helen reiterated her new line, "I don't want to listen to you!" at a moment when I didn't find it particularly endearing. I ran out of steam at 8 and laid in my bed for a half an hour, sort of asleep, sort of not. I don't know if that was an effect no caffeine or if my brain just needed a quiet place.

I also stayed true to my no-ice cream rule, which is hard, because Ellie likes a few bites before quiet time.

I have heard that if you do something for 21 days it's a habit. I have 20 years of coffee to unlearn in 40...will I go back to it like an old sheepish lover? Will I be resigned to only being a social drinker? Or will this experiment lead to a total foregoing of one of the longest relationships I have ever had?

40 days and counting, or, Coffee, I hardly knew ye

I haven't done anything for Lent in a couple of years. Two years I was pregnant and did not feel it was in my best interest to restrict my diet. I am just sort of in limbo with Church requirements because I'm not sure anymore whose interests they are serving. But this year, I decided to give up both coffee and ice cream for the entire 40 days.

Here's the thing with ice cream--it just tastes good. I like it.

But coffee.

I love. Love. Love coffee. I have had at least one cup every day (except when I was pregnant) for the last 20 years. I cannot tell you how much I anticipate that pot filling up every morning with hot, glorious brew. And it's not just coffee. It's the cream, the opaque beauty of it dropping into the cup plip plop, and the sugar. Well, Splenda. Which is just Splendid (damn marketroids).

It's a zillion calories a day I don't need. Let's not talk about the caffeine. Because I need to be MORE jazzed up, right?

My blood pressure is too high and I would like to be 20 pounds less by the first family wedding of the year, which is July 19.

And I have my 20th HS reunion this year. Don't even get me started on what that will cost me in dermatology and dental bills.

So I am giving up two things I love as a sacrifice for Lent, but ultimately the sacrifice benefits me. Does it count? I don't know if I can have the theological argument about it and win. But at least I might be off Sular by June.

Frustrated, or, I thought I was smarter than this

I do not understand iTunes. I don't understand why it just doesn't just work like I think it should, i.e. buy song, pop in a CD, burn said song to CD, have music--->will travel. There are all kinds of "support" pages for my trouble (people, I just want to listen to Kelly Clarkson in the privacy of my own van). So now Bill has to get involved in my learning curve, which can cause all kinds of problems for me if HE gets frustrated that I don't understand (anyone else have a husband who, when you say "my computer is doing X" just pulls at your chair and says, "MOVE"?)

I want things to work the way I want them. I want stuff to work at my intuitive level. Why is that so hard?

Goodbye, friend.

Miss Wendy was Ellie's dance teacher last year and the twins take her class with one of her colleagues, Miss Nancy. As you can see, Wendy was a young, vibrant, beautiful mother, teacher and inspiration. I can't even believe that I have to write that we lost her this week. I took this photo of her in April.

Wendy is her own shining star now.

One done.

The finished result....functional and FREE, since I haven't painted them yet (when the weather breaks and I can keep the side door open I'll freshen the up). One job off my list. We start the bathroom tomorrow!

The shelves were pretty grody, I have to say. Too long ignored.

An unworkable mess. All these stuff will either live in the garage, on shelving in the basement, or got pitched.