Bah!

It's supposed to be spring!!!! That's all I have to say about this.

Filling Big Shoes

Sierra's discovered my shoes (her Dad's are simply too big) and enjoys trying to walk around in them!

Crank

I was the epitome of crankiness earlier this week. Whooweee was it bad! Monday was the worst and I suffered horribly with controlling my unusually sarcastic tongue. It managed to keep itself in check while I was at work but poor Trevor...he got needlessly barked at post-work. I went to bed praying Tuesday would be better.
Not so much.
My patience was so thin by supper time that I asked my mom to watch Sierra while we went to our weekly Bible study Tuesday evening.
Good ole' PMS rearing it's large ugly head!
Thank goodness that's over with!
I don't get like this very often but when I do....I'm a doozy to be around!

(Car)ping

We had to spend $630 on our car this past week.
Did we even have $630 to spend on the car?
No.
Especially after spending $480 on new tires a couple of weeks before
and another $130 a few weeks before that.
Grand total:
$1240
That number makes me so happy.(pfffft!!)

Let me tell you a little bit about our car.
We bought it shiny, black, and new in the fall of 1999. It's an Oldsmobile Alero and that was the first year it was made (advice: don't ever buy a vehicle it's first year of production). We'd been driving an '89 Mazda 323 before that. The Mazda didn't have power steering but had a sunroof and was an automatic. It was a great car but not very suitable for road trips, which we needed.
Trevor had just got a new job so we bought the Alero.
We loved and still love our Alero in itself. It is a 2-door sports car, V6 engine, with power everything; it's fun to drive. Everything ran smoothly for the warranty period.
Of course.
It seemed like within days of the warranty expiration things started to go wrong.
We have replaced:
- ball bearings
- steering rack and pinion
- heater/ac fan
- power window assembly
- cv boots and joints
- some internal gasket thingy (the most recent)
- the steering fluid hose twice
- then of course standards like tires, rotors, breaks etc.

Things we have not replaced but don't work:
- rear defrost
- driver's side power window assembly (yes it broke again)
- ABS system

I should not even have to know what half of that stuff is! I'm also sure I've missed some things. Did I mention that there's this mysterious "clunk" that occurs at slow speeds often when turning? That was the reason for many of the repairs and yet the "clunk" has never been fixed. No one knows what it is. Maybe it's a ghost with a hammer just having fun with us.
Fortunately my dad helped us fix the majority of the problems so the cost was kept way down compared to shop rates. Since purchasing the car we have learned that the Alero is somewhat of a lemon in it's design. The stuff we've had to fix? Many people who own Aleros have had to fix as well. We have contemplated and threatened to sell it many times, then we spend money on it and just can't seem to part with it.
When this last stint of repairs began with a faulty hose we almost sold it again and bought a different one. But things just kept going wrong! Now, once again, with all the money we've just put into the Alero we might as well keep it.
We keep it and drive it until it dies completely. That's what the mechanic who did the most recent work advised. We'd probably only get $1 for it anyway.
At least we still like the car and still feel cool driving it. (does this mean we're old if we need a car to feel cool?)

Disclaimer: This picture is off the internet because Trevor has ours currently, but it looks exactly like this!

Cleaning Cars

I grew up with a dad who couldn't stand an even remotely dirty vehicle. They all got detailed on a regular basis whether they needed it or not. He taught me all about keeping a car in pristine condition. He figures that if you spend all that money on something you should take care of it.

As for my husband...
Vehicles? Dirty? What do you mean?
He figures that if a person can still sit unobstructed in the seat then the interior clutter isn't that bad, and if the wheels are still turning there can't be that much mud covering the exterior. So what if you can no longer tell what colour the vehicle should be.
Well, I couldn't take the filthiness of our vehicles any more, especially the interiors.
I cleaned the inside of both of them on Saturday afternoon.
The SUV had enough Cheerios, Teddy Grahams, and Arrowroots in the back seat to feed a large crowd. As for the car - I was quite worried that when I emptied the back a family of small, furry creatures would come scurrying out.
After two hours of cleaning I am no longer scared for the condition of my clothes when I sit in either vehicle, or that I might be intruding in on some critter's residence. The SUV exterior was kindly washed last weekend compliments of my father and Trevor washed our car on Saturday. I remember now, it is black.
I am no longer embarrassed by either vehicle.

Friday "Goods"

1. My sweet Sierra in her Easter dress that her Granny bought for her. I had to bribe her with Smarties so I could do her hair.

2. McDonald's greasiness was lunch, followed by some chocolate mini-eggs for dessert. The epitome of health, I know.

3. A blissful 25 minute nap occupied part of the afternoon.
4. Post grease and nap I went for a 25 minute run on the treadmill while watching 'Young the Restless'. Church, junk food, nap, run, smut - it all evens out in the end, doesn't it?
5. We spent the latter part of the gorgeous afternoon at a family friends' farm. Sierra had a great time hunting for plastic eggs filled with treats with the help of two other little girls.



6. We ate a wonderful ham dinner with 16 of us around the table.
7. My mom and I went for a brisk 45 minute walk this evening. It helped justify supper.
8. I am thrilled to say it is still light at 9 o'clock in the evening! Yay, I love our long spring/summer days.
9. There are still two more days left in this weekend.

Happy Easter Everyone!

Evicting the Sloth

In a very gradual, cunning, nearly undetectable manner a sloth managed to inhabit my body.
I felt lethargic and totally unmotivated. I was tired but not sleeping well. I was hungry but eating empty calories. I was bored but not doing anything. Mentally I was unhappy and found fault with everyone and everything. I wondered fleetingly if I was lingering on the edge of depression.

Then I decided that I had to get out of this slump. Enough was enough. The sloth hadn't been around that long but he still needed to go.
I suspected that the main reason this sloth was able to take up residence was that my iron levels were low. I've had that problem before so I began taking iron supplements.

It's only been a little over a week and I'm starting to feel a million times better. The sloth has been kicked out and I feel like myself again. I have energy, I've been running, I actually want to eat healthier, I'm better able to objectively study some challenges in my life and deal with them, I've been sleeping well, and overall I feel happier.

No sloths allowed!

Mad...But Not.

I tried to be mad at God last week. I wanted to be mad. I wanted to rant and rave and wallow in despair. I wanted to not want to have anything to do with Him. Somehow I just couldn't. Somehow something deep down was keeping me buoyant. Somehow that hope and determination to keep on was clinging on very tightly. As I was fighting this, perspective also had the nerve to sneak in. It won.
It sucks when someone puts you back in your place; it actually sucks worse when you do it yourself!

Of course this has to do with the whole job vs Trevor issue. We went on a date Saturday night and had some really quality time together to chat and reconnect. It was much needed and much enjoyed.
Lately, the job issue has just been 'there', suspended in mid air. We ignored it, eye-balled it, alluded to it, made sarcastic comments about it, poked fun at it, did a dance around it once in awhile, even ranted about it, but never really confronted it. We are confronting it this week. We both agreed to do some deep soul searching and praying. Honestly, I'm not sure what to expect exactly; I would love some clarity on where to go from here.
Stay the same? Pursue other options? Change tactics with the current course of action? Me work full time while Trevor is "mom"?? Sell everything and go live off of the land in the bush somewhere? A job to suddenly fall in his lap with a big, floppy bow tied to it?

We both ultimately need to feel a deep sense of peace over the situation, whichever way it goes.

On Sunday we sang this song in church and it hit home, particularly the second paragraph. It describes a little of why I can't be miserable:

Praise is rising, eyes are turning to You
We turn to You
Hope is stirring, hearts are yearning for You
We long for You

When we see You,
we find strength to fact the day
In Your presence
all our fears are washed away, washed away.

Chorus:
Hosanna, Hosanna,
You are the God who saves us,
Worthy of all our praises

Hosanna, Hosanna,
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here, Jesus.

Hear the sound of hearts returning to You,
We turn to You
In Your kingdom, broken lives are made new,
You make all things new.

Chorus

Songwriter(s): Brenton Gifford Brown, Paul Joseph Baloche

Food For Thought

Food has become a big frustration with Sierra. If all I gave her were Smarties (bascially M&M's for you Americans) she'd be happy as a clam 24/7 ! Nevermind that her teeth would be rotting and falling out, she'd be the largest kid her age know to mankind, and on a constant sugar high which would not be a good scene.
What happened to my baby who nursed easily, took formula no problem, ate most of her baby food with enthusiasm?
She developed a personality and opinions.
Sierra has an enormous sweet tooth, thus the potential for a serious Smarties addiction. Nutella is the only thing she'll eat on toast. Vanilla ice cream is the world's best desert. She loves "dap -ee-dap". Translation: dips like syrup, ketchup, and ranch dressing. Carrots, potato cubes and french toast are merely vessels for getting the dip into her mouth. The other night at my mom's she was eating syrup with a spoon! (grandparents I tell ya) Carbs are also where it's at with her: Cheerios, noodles, bread, rice. The odd occasion there are chips in our house Sierra would eat the entire bag I'm sure! Meat and vegetables are pretty much from the devil as far as Sierra's concerned. Although she does like fruit and yogurt.

I hate meal times. Most of the time she is hungry well before a typical supper time and a small snack never suffices. I put effort into making her something and she pushes it away. She gets so dang grumpy and unreasonable when she's hungry that I keep giving her options until she eats something. I don't feel that I have much choice because of her surely mood and once she's eaten there's a complete switch in attitude. Seriously, she goes from whiny, ornery beast-child to sweet happy-go-lucky toddler. I feel like I run a toddler restaurant some days with all the choices!
I will give myself some credit and say that the majority of what I do offer her is fairly healthy: eggs with grated zucchini and cheese, grilled cheese, homemade vegetable soups, etc. Lately I've released my devious side and been sneaking in a variety of vegetable purees any way I can. (i.e. cauliflouer in banana bread, my hubby loved it never mind Sierra)
I hope this is all a phase. She's a bit too young yet to reason with, especially when she has a hungry tummy! I'm having a hard time deciding if she's pushing the boundaries as she approaches "2" or if this is simply a stage. All I feel that I can do for now try to make things as healthy as possible and not give in to Sierra's love of sweets just to placate her. I'm mostly winning but it is a bit of a battle.

My mother just lifts her eyebrows and goes,
"Hmmm, I had a daughter like that once."