10...the not so perfect number.

So today is the 10th day of my "fast".  It is amazing how I allow "my thoughts" to overrule "the plan".  After the first week of the fast, I knew I was going to have to make a few "adjustments" to the set menu.  I was going to only eat one meal a day (still no "meat") and continue with no food past 7pm.  Cool.

It's been working out great this week.  Until today.  Today my mind was telling me that my earth would crumble if I didn't have more than one meal.  I was feeling week and sleepy and I just knew that if I had something in my system I would be back to normal.  Well, 2 slices of pizza later, I figured out hunger wasn't my issue.  IT'S PMS!

I swear, as soon as I finished that pizza, the PMS kicked into high gear.  Without giving you TMI, my "time" can consist of horrible mood swings (a new feature added to my system post having babies...Yippee).  SO EVERYTHING AND EVERYBODY IS WORKING MY NERVES RIGHT NOW.....wooooo saaaaaaa!

Needless to say, I will be obedient tomorrow and I will stick to my one meal. And if I feel a little lethargic, I will not combat that with food, how about I  just take a nap. HOW ABOUT THAT!

FAST and furious

Day 3 of my 21 day fast was a beast of a day.  WATER AND JUICES ONLY!  It was tough.  Started my day off totally wrong.  Not thinking before I acted, I woke up, drank some tea and took my vitamins.  WHY DID I TAKE VITAMINS ON AN EMPTY STOMACH! 2 seconds later.....it was not a pretty picture.  But I can promise you that I will NEVER do that again.

The rest of the day just felt soooooooo long.  No food can make for a grouchy household.  Between the many bathroom breaks and watching my kids eat the juicy hamburgers I have seen in my life, this day was truly a test of will power and strength.  Well, I passed the test, but not with an A:-(.  I'm sorry but I needed something.  So a baked potato with broccolli caused me to have a less than perfect grade.

But I'm still standing.  And I'm able to make it through the day.  This is teaching me that I don't NEED half of the stuff that I eat during the day.  And I think the same can go for things in my life.  I don't think I need half of the things that I have in my life.  Do I really need over 20 scarves,  do I really need 30 hats.    So I am not only purging my body....I'm purging my life.

21 Days of Silent Sunshine

Today I started a 21 day fast.  It is a time of prayer, reflection and cleansing.  The fast was prepared by a local church and they have a set meal plan for the next 21 days.  Well, day one was quite interesting.  I could only eat salad and fruit.  My body was craving a snack in the worst way.  Oh Lord, who knew you could miss a chocolate chip cookie like this.  But I stayed strong (except for a small piece of corn bread that I ate when feeding the kids...moment of weakness....oh and the bagel that I didn't want to go to waste....I'm a mess).  But I had fruit for breakfast and a salad for lunch and dinner.  Even with the mis-steps, I am very proud of myself.

I also learned a valuable lesson today.  SILENCE IS TRULY GOLDEN.  When you don't tell other peoples business, you don't have to worry about what you said coming back to bite you.  And for me, a person with HORRIBLE memory, I can't remember half the conversations I have, so if you said I said it, I can't remember if I did.  So in this moment of cleansing clarity, I will learn to shut my mouth to other peoples business.  I will not jeopardise any of my relationships by having conversations and revealing more than what their eye can see.  I AM A GREAT FRIEND but I am also human and I make mistakes...I am learning from them :-)

It's the holiday season

I love this time of year....

I love sitting by the fireplace....

I love leaving cookies for Santa....and a cocktail...

I love getting to decorate the smallest of rooms...

I love celebrating with my community (Kwanzaa)...

I love spending time with the ones I love...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS...

AND MAY A LITTLE SMILE, CREATE A LOT OF SUNSHINE 

IN THE NEW YEAR!!!

Princess and the Frog....Mission Complete

I know, I know.  Why is it December 1st and I am writing about a party that took place on October 22nd.  Well, it's because frick and frack upstairs limit mommys nighttime "freetime" with "having to go to the potty", "I'm thirsty" "I need a hug".....go the heck to sleep!

Yet I digress....the birthday party was awesome(In my opinion)!  My daughter had fun and so did I, so that is all that mattered.

In the beginning....

If I saw anything green, purple or froglike, I picked it up.  I held on tight to my receipts because I knew I wasn't going to use half the stuff I bought.  But when Michele (the other birthday party planner) and I went shopping downtown, we knew that most sales were final, so we better like what we buy. Downtown is where we got the pinata and party favors.

The set up...

Why in the heavens (if I cussed, that word would go right here) does time seem to speed up when it's almost party time?!  Half my decorations didn't go up, the table wasn't set the way I wanted it to be and I was funky and unshowered with an aunt jemima scarf on my head when the first set of guests arrived. BUT it was hard to smell my funk over all the great food Michele served.  Princess and the Frog is set in New Orleans so we did a cajun style menu.  She did an amazing job preparing the food.  The the decor might have been lacking on the food table, but the food was doggone good that people didn't even notice.

Party on...

The Kids Table

The Dessert Table

The Gift Table

The Jumper

The Painting Station

The Painting Station...Final Product (Each guest painted 3 strokes to celebrate the 3rd birthday)

Eudora's Dress Shop...Dresses for rent

The Grand Finale

Well, I got the Tiana Dress from Costume Craze and it was as cute as can be.  My neighbor couldn't do it so it was mama to the rescue. Since mama is not a size 12, I was swimming like a fish!  That once size fits all jibberish was a lie.  My poor strapless bra kept falling down, I had 2 big safety pins under my arms and I swear it was the hottest day of the year cause I was sweating like a pig.  BUT The kids loved her...Tiana that is!! 

All in all....The Princess and The Frog was a success!!

The Week of the Frog..Planning begins for The Princess and The Frog Party

So tomorrow my countdown begins for the big Princess and the Frog Birthday Party for my baby girl. This weekend the supplies arrived from Oriental Trading. I have to give them a call first thing tomorrow morning because they didn't pack the froggie finger puppets that I ordered. HOW WILL I SURVIVE WITHOUT FINGER PUPPETS. LOL. I will be just fine. My daughter is turning 3 so all she really needs is a simple play date; I don't think the finger puppets will be missed. And that will be $8 that can be placed back in the budget (According to my co-party planner Michele, I have created an imaginary budget that I am doing a great job sticking to :-)

Another way I'll be saving some money is that instead of hiring a character to show up to the party and making me $200 dollars poorer, we bought a Princess Tiana costume from Costume Craze for about $35 bucks. Please pray that when I remove it from the bag tomorrow it doesn't look crazy. I'm trying to see if a neighbor is available to wear it to take pictures with the party guests but if that doesn't work out, Mommy Princess will have to do :-)

Tomorrow I'll post pictures and I'll let you know how my prepping is going. EXCITED!

Countdown to my rebirth: Day 22

Wow wee!! I am so behind with this blog. But those of you reading that have kids know that finding time to do anything "not kid related" is very difficult. But here I sit at 12:30am writing my blog because I promised myself that I would see this to the end.

So let me catch you up a bit on my birthday celebrations. My last entry was Day 30 where I spent a relaxing evening with "The Man". Well, I think that peaceful evening near the fire sparked something in "The Man" because this is no longer my personal countdown, it has become his countdown. Since my last blog, I have woken up to cards, flowers and wonderful surprises.

Day 24 he gave me a word puzzle that was my clue to the days event. Soooo cute. We went downtown to the fashion district which is a spend thrifty womans paradise.

Day 23 I went to I Fly which is an indoor sky diving place. I am soooo glad I tried the indoor skydiving before I did the real thing. I was not feeling it. I'm a cheesy, smily, laughy type of person and none of that could be done in the air chamber without losing all the breath in my dag gone body. I felt like my cheeks were gonna fly off because the air pressure was so intense. But woo hoo for trying something new before I turn 40.

And here we are at Day22....an amazing day. I went to hang out with some girlfriends and when I returned home, there was jazz music playing and candles lit throughout the house. In the dining room there was an arrangement of cheese, crackers and an awesome array of exotic teas. Does this man know me or what?! I am a tea drinking fool. So we sipped tea, relaxed and then he enjoyed the sound of my snoring once I fell asleep half way thru our mini date. Ah, the simple things in life make me so happy.