Banned Books

Okay, I've been thinking a lot about banned books since tomorrow is the first day of Banned Books week. I had a patron ask my last night why we even carry books at the library that have been banned or even challenged. The point is that no one should have the right to tell another person what they can or can't read. I'll bet if you checked the ALA's Banned Book List you'd find at least one book that you've read and enjoyed. Now imagine what your life would be like if you had to live in a country where someone could say to you, "You can't read that because it's too racey or has foul language or is too religious." It would suck, royally. I'll admit that I haven't read enough of the books on this list, but the ones I have read are such good books that I'm thankful to live in America. I'm not usually outwardly patriotic, but the first amendment is definately one of the best things our constitution has to offer. Read a banned book today, or recommend one to someone. Remember, censorship causes blindness; celebrate the freedom to read!

Gotta make better choices!

Okay, as some of you know, I've been on a weight loss program since the first part of July. In the month of July I lost 14.5 pounds. That's great but this month I've only lost about 3. I'm finally able to exercise more now that I'm back on my 14 hour a week schedule at work, so I feel I should eat more than I did when I wasn't able to exercise on a regular basis. In July I was eating 1000 calories a day. I know from past nutrition classes that a woman who is exercising on a regular basis -- i.e. three 30 minute sessions a week -- should eat at least 1200 to 1400 calories a day. I've been trying to do that. I'd like to say that the tiny increase in calories is why I'm not losing weight, but the truth is, I've been lazy. It's too easy to splurge from time to time. Last night my hubby grilled burgers, brats and low-fat turkey hot dogs. I chose to eat a pineapple brat, tater tots AND a hot dog. I'm just asking for a plattue in my weight loss.
So anyway, I'm gonna try to do better. That means writing my calories down for the day. During July I was religious about it and I've skipped writing down most of August. I also need to remember that I am making progress. I'm back into my favorite pairs of jeans, I went from the 3rd hole on my belt to the 1st, I went from XL shirts to L, and on the Wii my weight went from obese to overweight. If I can find my tape measure I'll check and see if I've lost any inches. Maybe I'll post a chart showing my progress....thanks for all the support!

Working hard to be healthy...

Yes, it's true, I'm really working at being healthy. Everyone knows I LOVE LOVE LOVE food, and that sometimes I don't have an "off-switch" when it comes to eating. So I'm working hard at making healthy choices -- dried fruit instead of crackers or sweets -- and portion control -- NO SECONDS!!! I also decided to try that new Coke Zero, since I love Coke and need the caffeine once in awhile but not the calories. It isn't bad, I mean I know it isn't the real thing, but it isn't bad.

When I told my hubby about this new committment to taking care of myself he was on board. We went to the store and bought a new Wii fitness program. This one is Jillian Michaels, the super tough trainer from The Biggest Loser. It's tough, but I've done 30 minutes two days in a row. I know it doesn't sound like much, but it is. I even got up at 6am today, that's a big deal to me when I feel like I don't get enough sleep as it is. Of course my calves, thighs and butt are killing me!!! Maybe I should have him take a picture of me now so I'll have something to compare against when I get to my target weight....I could do a cool scrapbook layout...hmmm.

Thanks for all the support I've gotten so far and for all the support I know everyone will give me when things get tough to stick with. I'll try to post some free papers on Friday, so keep watching!

Time to take care of myself.

Okay, so I've been lazy about my physical health for about 9 months now. I've got to do something. I'm constantly exhausted and I ache and of course I've gained some weight. I don't want to admit it, but I need to excersize every day. So how to go about this??

Well I've had patrons at the library tell me that it works really well to listen to books on CD while they use the treadmill. I can do this while I use my elliptical. I'll have to committ to getting up at 6am each day, but if I'm listening to a good book I'd otherwise never have time to read, maybe it will work.

I should also be careful of how I eat. Mills has taught me that cutting down on my portions can be a big help. I'll do that, and I'll eat things like carrots for snacks. I also need to be careful with fatty fast foods. I can't afford to buy Alli anymore so I can't rely on it anymore.

*sigh* This is going to be tough, but I'm going to do my best. Wish me luck!

The people who mean the most to me.

Today I got home from taking the girls to a playdate to find 2 messages on my machine. They were my sister and brother calling to tell me something important. When I finally tracked everyone down, they were at the hospital with my dad. He'd had a second heart attack.

My dad is okay, but I worry that I don't get to spend enough time with him. That my kids don't know what a great Grandpa he is. I worry that someday I'm going to have to say goodbye to my parents. I know it's inevitable. I know we'll be together in Heaven...but that doesn't change how scary it is to get that phone call.

I've got a great dad. When we were kids, we used to play dominoes with him. He pretty much taught me to do math in my head with it. I remember sitting around a towel in the living room sharing a big bag of peanuts. The shells went into the middle of the towel and then he cleaned it all up for us. My dad got me started reading. When I was young, 9 or 10 I had the first manifestations of my depression problems. He helped me by giving me a way into another world where I didn't have to stress about other kids or school or anything.

I have also been lucky enough to find a second father in my father-in-law. Of course, the more I love my in-laws, the more I know I'll have to part with them someday too. It's the way the world works, who would want to be here forever?

It just occurred to me. One day my daughters might be facing the same fears about my husband and I. I hope they will have as fond memories of us as we have our parents.

Out with the old & wanting what you have.

Today was a cleaning day. We bought Goofball a new lamp for her room, so we rearranged her room which, of course, led to cleaning. Her room wasn't too hard, but Lola's room was terrible. How can kids make such huge messes? Then we decided to clean the basement, which is where the other half of the toys are. I put two huge boxes aside for the garage sale this spring. Yay!

As for wanting what you have, today I saw a quilt on clearance for $28. It was $110 when I first saw it. At the time we decided it was way, way too expensive, so we bought a different set. To see it now on clearance and know that it is exactly what I wanted breaks my heart. We can't afford it, not really. Everything costs so much, especially the stuff we can't live without like laundry detergent and cat food. *sigh* So I know I didn't need that quilt. I know that someday I'll be able to buy things like that when the kids are older and the money flows a little more freely. Besides, if I bought something really nice like that now, and it was really nice, the kids would mess it up and of course it would be covered in cat hair all the time....

Are you who you think you are?

I will keep this short, to prevent it from becoming a big vent session, but what if I am not the person I've thought myself to be for so long? In my first blog I tried to describe myself and I didn't use negative words....but after two seperate incidents this last week, I've had to re-examine who I am.

Am I really putting all I can into being a great mom? Do I expect too much from my friends. Am I a real friend at all?

I've spent a lot of time thinking about these things and I have come to the conclusion that I do the best I can in everything I do. I take every part of my life seriously, from family and friends to work and hobbies. But I also try to enjoy myself and live life to the fullest.

So, am I who I think I am?? I think I am. I also think there is room for improvement, and maybe being able to see that is more important than anything else.

Scrapping myself...

So I've been scrapping for my kids for years. And then last year I realized that someday my kids will grow up and take their books with them! So, since I've done hybrid scrapping for them all this time, I decided my own books would be traditional. Recently I discovered I can have 12x12 pages printed, and with the help of fabulous software, I really threw myself into creating some great scrapbook pages for my girls and my cats.

I have decided that someday I'd like to create freebies for other scrappers, kind of paying forward the favor of all the great free stuff I've gotten from other designers. I know to offer the freebies I need a blog. So here it is. But I decided I had to make a fabulous header and I discovered one thing in particular: It is hard to scrap myself. I've done pages of me with my kids and pages of me with my husband. But never a page just about me, expressing who I am, or at least who I see myself as.

Who do I see myself as? I guess the following words describe me: Wife, mother, friend, daughter, sister, book-nerd (I work at the library and LOVE LOVE LOVE it), artist, cat-lover, and eclectic --did I spell that right?!?