Savouring Summer

Summer is slipping away.  And I'm behind on blogging.  So, some highlights.

Mom came up for a few days several weeks ago.  Loved just hanging around with her.  She wakes up talkative and I wake up quiet so that was an adjustment but I liked it:).  She got a new ipad so we played on our electronics together.  And went out to eat a couple of times.  We went to Target and didn't get ANYTHING!  Highly unusual.  We made up for it at the mall.  When I took her home, she cried when I got ready to leave.  :(.  She said she isn't lonely but she is.

We got the new deck done for the most part...not decorated yet.  I've enjoyed spending time lounging out there in the mornings, doing my prayer journaling and Bible study and in the evenings reading or just visiting.

Right now I am in Newton visiting Leah.  It was a short stay but we enjoyed it--ate out at La Fiesta last night....walked there in the heat and tried to share a marguerita but it was too strong for this chick!  We walked by the river, then drove to Dillons and rented and watched The Vow which was really good.  I slept fine.  It was fun to turn over and see sweet Leah sound asleep nearby.  And Professor, of course.  This morning we woke up earlyish and made french toast then ate it in the back yard.  Leah also made me her famous coffee cube yummy treat--twice.  We hit the flea market and shops--I got away with spending only $10!  I bought another, larger, pink purse to replace the other one I bought in Newton that is now worn out, and I bought a lazy susan to put in the fridge (good idea from Pinterest).  Leah had to come to work at noon so I am sitting here blogging and hanging out for awhile.

Water jog is still going great and I am enjoying it immensely!  We started a new session and its fun to see how much the new people enjoy it.  It is a challenge to keep it interesting and change things up and try new things.  On Friday we did a conga line which was also an indian run with the last person having to sprint to the front.  I really like motivating people and making them work hard and burn calories and get healthy.  On Friday, I filled in for Dena's class which I did not enjoy last time--they moved slow and seemed annoyed when I gave instructions.  But the second session has more people who are there to work.  At one point, when they came around, I asked them to set a goal of how many laps they could sprint around and then I encouraged them.  One younger, overweight fellow said he thought he could do two laps.  When he came around for the second lap, he looked truly exhausted, so I let him go about 20 feet then came up behind him and said, "Don't let your teacher pass you!"  He turned on the heat and I tried hard but I couldn't get around him!  It was awesome!  At the end of class when people have worked really hard, I like to praise them and give high fives.

I've had some pretty good phone conversations with Joel lately, complete with laughter.  He's gotten to work as a production assistant on a couple of projects which though they don't pay, they feed him and build his resume.  He reads the want ads and we talk about potential jobs.  We decided he'd better not try out to be an extra in a zombie movie that advertised on Craig's list because it might end up being porn!  Too funny.  We miss the boy.  Scott plays civilization on the internet with him every few days which is good.  I have made a few batches of granola bars and cookies to mail Joel this summer--he truly appreciates and gifts from home but particularly edible ones.

Adelle and I have been hanging out regularly.  We have gone to the pool and made burgers and cookies together and done the usual facebooking and you tubing.  The other day Bre was over too and we giggled as Adelle was trying to booty pop to Niki Minaj.  I was impressed with Adelle's conversation skills with Bre.  This week Adelle posted on facebook that we were going to the Katy Perry movie so we did!  I actually enjoyed it!  It was the first time we went to the movie together and it went well so we can add that to our repertoire.  The funnest thing we do is blast the music in the car and sing and throw our rock punches in the car.  She brings her stack of CD's just for that purpose.  Fun!

Looking forward:  this week Hannah comes in on Thursday morning and Leah will also come home.  Then Sunday I take her back to the airport and leave for Chicago with Dad and Jean on Monday!

I promise to upload pictures and put them on here in the future (need to figure out an app or something that does it easily) and also put a link to Leah's blog when she puts our girl sleepover on there.

link:  http://little-girlonthe-prairie.blogspot.com/2012/07/girls-weekend.html

Old Couple

I had dinner the other night at Dad's retirement community with a couple who'd been married 65 years!  He has held together better than she has--she is a sweetie who looks like a cupie doll that's lost half its hair and she has some slight dimentia.  She told her husband three times during dinner that he hadn't eaten enough vegetables.  While she was at the dessert table helping herself to her second dessert he said to us, "She's going to come back over and tell me I didn't eat enough vegetables."  She did and he just said to her, "You take good care of me."  So when I asked him about being married for 65 years, he said, "I never thought I'd be in love with an old lady."  She looked at him funny and then realized he just said he was still in love with her and she smiled the sweetest smile.  So I asked what the trick was and he said, "Just say 'yes dear', frequently.  Also, say,' it was my fault' ".  They were an adorable couple.

Random Thoughts on Aging

     There is a poster in the physical therapy office of an old, attractive, buff guy with his shirt off that says, "Gettting old is not for sissies".  It really resonates with me as Scott and I give each other back rubs each night just to be able to get to sleep--because he is trying to build a rock wall at 51 and I am trying to rehab my shoulder and keep up with 20 year olds at the gym at age 50. I see my parents in physical pain of aging--it isn't for sissies! I turned 50 a few weeks ago and mostly its really ok.  I like it.  I look around at other women my age and think, "Hey, I'm doing ok!"  For the first time in my life, I can really appreciate the parts of myself that I like, physically, like my legs and my hair and my face and ignore the parts I don't like (stomach, flappy arms, cellulose...).  I know there are people who worry about my working out and yes, part of it is for vanity ("I'm sexy and I know it, I work out, ha ha), it is also for stress relief, for health (successfully keeping my cholesterol down without meds), for social reasons, for fun, and it gives me confidence.  I also just like to feel toned and tan and fit.  Being 50 is great because I no longer truly care what anyone thinks.  I can wear ridiculous shoes and not care.  I can wear gym clothes 99% of the time and not care.  I can get up and go teach my water jog class without doing my hair or putting on makeup and not care.  I feel respected in my profession and enjoy people coming to me for advice.  I even like this stage of life--living in a nice house that we worked hard for and not having to cook for clean for a family.  I love having the kids visit and talking to them on the phone, but I can use my time the way I want to.  I like being married.  So yes, getting old has some true drawbacks but it is also wonderful!

Mid Summer

The last couple of days have been good but it is HOT outside!  I have made a couple of pinterest recipes with mixed results.  I made some healthy granola bars to mail to Joel and put them in individual bags because they didn't hold together well.  They will be more like indiv bags of granola.  Then I made the blueberry cobbler thing where you put frozen fruit in the bottom of a cake pan, pour the powder white cake mix over the top then cover that with diet sprite then bake it.  It looked terrible but tasted yummy.  Still working on eating it.  I do love blueberries.  I made a pinterest craft--wrapped flip flops in ribbon then put flowers on it.  Now, these came out super cute.  I need a way to post pics directly to my blog--there is probably an app for that, but currently, it is a big pain in the hiney to get pics on here.  But I will work on that for you.  Yesterday we had a visit from old friend, Myriah.  My exercises classes and PT are going well, I guess.  I do love teaching water jog and work those girls hard!  I am sore today from circuit class last night so unless I loosen out quickly, they may be off the hook a bit today:).  We did push ups, burpees, lunges, sprints, sprint JUMPS AND LUNGE JUMPS all in one class (with a bunch of cardio and more stuff in between).  How she gets away with that and manages to fill the room every week, I do not know.  Yes, I do, because I had to really talk myself into going out in the heat to go to class and I loved it:).  I was so incredibly sweaty when I left class.  A truly good feeling!  Even the stiffness and soreness today is worth it:).
I also got Adelle yesterday and enjoyed that.  She insisted on baking something so we made chocolate chips for Joel.  Actually, she made them this time start to finish (all but cleanup--typical teenager).  When she swept some flour into the sink and it created a small cloud, she said, "The sink is sneezing."  She also put on her you tube songs onto the big tv and danced to Niki Minaj, not caring that Myriah and Scott were watching from the other room.  :)
Today I am doing a few things (including paperwork for additional reno loan) then teaching class then lunch and a shower then going to pick up my sweet mama to bring her here for a few days!  I miss her so it will be fun, fun, fun!

I do like summer

highlights of the week....
two really good rain showers in the night
several awesome naps on the new deck
several good conversations with friends on the new deck
out for coffee with mary
lots of good exercise including teaching back to back water jog classes
progress in PT although pretty sore this week
tried some new pinterest recipes
learning how to do adoption studies with Jesi
cleaned the floors today and they look amazing
enjoying hanging out with scotty
Homestead is open and ready to receive girls
booked a trip to Chicago with dad and jean
made arrangements to have mom visit here next week
chatted with joel AND leah today (briefly)
love sleeping whenever and however much I want

rexie loves me
pool with adelle
getting a nice tan
sticking to the calorie plan and clothes fit better

More Summer

I got away from my daily blog listings but that is just as well, it was probably boring you.  I am loving summer and am in full sing with it.  I work out every day and am loving teaching water jog three times a week.  I go to my favorite classes at the gym, too.  I am "dieting" or watching what I consume using sparkpeople online and it helps me manage my overeating and overall calorie intake.  I don't necessarily want to lose weight, ok, maybe a little, but it does help me feel healthier and a little thinner.  My middle is getting chubby so I need to do battle with my overall weight to keep that under control.  I have to have the dreaded physical again soon and need my cholersterol numbers to look good!  My shoulder is rehabbing nicely but it takes forever for a shoulder to heal!  I know it is getting stronger but it still gets sore and there is still so much in classes that I can't do with it!  I tried doing rows with a 3 lb weight and it hurt after two!  I need to find out what my co pay for PT is before they decide to add more sessions  eek!

JC and Liam

Sunday, Father's Day, we had the whole Griffith fam and Leah and David up for a meal and visit.  It was quite enjoyable.  Our house works out well for get togethers like that and everyone liked it.  I was honored that Dad and Jean drove here and that the kids with little ones also came.
Yesterday, Hannah's friend, Maggie came to stay overnight with us.  She is traveling to then through the south on a grant to take pics and write a story for a magazine!  She is a very cool young lady.  We took her for a quick konza hike and then to radina's for a smoothie after dinner last night.  She leaves today for St. Louis then on from there.
Still doing things for the house every day--yesterday we picked out the ceiling fan for the deck.  Today we need to clean the screen things up so Scott can put the screens on and exchange the ottoman for another chair in the outdoor set.  They come to finish the deck up today and tomorrow.  It is getting super hot for them out there.  Scott is doe with the lower wall out front and needs to stack the rest of the rock up, dig out for the upper wall, put the screens on, then we still need to pick out house paint and get started on that, and then stain the deck (oh, I guess we are supposed to let it sit for awhile first).  We should be cleaning out the basement!
I have some stuff to do for work, ceu's and emails and get with Kim for her supervision (I meet with Jesi o  Thursdays).
So that is that!

Thursday and Friday

Thursday seemed a bit more productive.  Went to PT with Amber and got some stuff done around here including removing old screens getting them ready to paint and put new screens in for all the windows while grilling a steak for dinner.  This was after a hard spin class.  Also went to the library and am reading a sizzler (4 day check out) Nora Roberts book.  It is pretty good.
Today, Friday, got up early, picked up Jesi and went to Topeka for the KSSWA workshop.  The morning was excruciatingly boring--she took about 45 minutes of nfo about getting citizenship for people into 4 hours.  I ate a lot--I always do at conferences.  Jesi had her therapy dog, Sky, with her which was fun but that's all.  I did get to see Stephanie get the Kansas School Social Work of the Year award which was cool.  The afternoon was better, about gangs, and I did learn some.  The drive home alone was a blur and I napped when I got home.  Then we walked to Chipotle.  I did my PT exercises and am reading.
Night!