Turn the computer off

It's been a few weeks since I have done much of anything on the computer. Actually, I am typing this as we speak on my iPhone, so excuse any crazy auto correct ;) But for once in my life it has felt good to take a break from most of the screens in my life. I've been using my iPhone to keep up with emails, pay some bills, map stuff for driving directions, and look up the occasional website or peruse FB for 5 minutes.

Since we just moved into a new house, at first I was offline because I was busy packing and cleaning. Then I was off because our internet was not hooked up at the new house yet. Then I was too busy UNpacking to get online. Now I just don't want to get sucked back into the mindless time wasting of social networking, online window shopping, etc. So I've been avoiding our desktop, and only using my iPhone a few times a day.

I hate how obsessed I can become with being on the computer, so this is how I stay away I guess. I just wanted to post a short update, so I figured via iPhone while the kiddos watch tv is a good way to go.

We moved into a house in Kent at the beginning of August, with Mike's cousin Tammy, her husband Steve and their 1.5 year old son Gabriel. Today is my last day watching Gage at his house. I'll be a stay at home mom for about 2.5 weeks before I start working for Lakeside Montessori in Issaquah again, and Sean will be starting there in his own classroom at the beginning of September. Mike is still working in the yard at BNSF, but he's getting ready to be a conductor again (temporarily) so his work schedule is about to get wacky for a few months, and sometimes he'll be gone for 1-2 days at a time.

Not sure what else to say, but if you're reading this and want to keep in touch with me, just know that I think I'll still be checking FB occasionally but my goal is not not be on there nearly as much as I used to be. Feel free to call or text me if you want :) Peace!!

PS- here are a few pics just to make this post a little more interesting ;)

I have been doing a little soul searching the last few days. Trying to figure out what is important. The first obvious answer is my family and friends. That is a no brainer, and is not going to change anytime soon!

But after family and friends, what are my priorities? These can vary from person to person, and can change throughout the course of a lifetime.

Lately I somehow came into politics. Don't ask me how- I am not quite sure. All I knew was that I heard about this Ron Paul guy running for president, and the more I read about him, the more I liked him. I rarely read anything "bad" about him, and the things that were "bad" were poorly backed up, and to be expected (all politicians have something that people can say poorly about them, whether it's true or not). His ideals made sense to me- promoting liberty and personal freedom. Less policing of our country, and getting our priorities back in order. So I found myself listening, and doing what I felt I needed to do- get involved. I went to our precinct caucus to cast my vote- when I was 1 of 3 people to show up in our precinct, I volunteered to be a delegate to our legislative district convention, even though I didn't really understand what I was signing up for. At the legislative district convention, I became a delegate that would represent us at our Washington State Convention as well. I would have gladly gone to the National Convention in Florida as well if I had the time, money, or enough votes to do so.

My point is that somehow I found something that was meaningful to me. Something I was (and still am) passionate about, and something I could focus my time and energy into. While I still plan to pursue this passion for making a difference within our government (Ron Paul is about "done" in WA state, but his Liberty Campaign is not), I still find myself trying to figure out what to do next.

I am thinking that a revamp of my general health is a good place to start. I have struggled with my weight since having my son in January 2010. I had managed to maintain a fairly healthy weight just before becoming pregnant, but having a baby changes a lot about your body, and I just can't seem to accept the differences and get used to them. I have a LOT less time to myself, and surprisingly a lot less energy. Either that, or I spend so much TIME channeling all of my ENERGY into my family and housework that I have none left for myself. Either way, it's been difficult for me, to say the least, to get to a point where I could call myself healthy.

The frustrating part is that I do eat pretty healthy- I stopped buying most of the processed crap a long time ago, I always have a house full of fresh fruits and veggies, and I rarely drink any sugary juices or sodas. I have cut back on my sweet tooth indulgences a lot, and I don't count calories but I am pretty aware of what is going into my body. So in order to lose weight, I have to do a lot more than just eat healthier and exercise more- I have to figure out what is causing me to hold on to this baby weight and stop doing it!!!

I am thinking about doing a detox diet next week. Nothing too crazy- I looked into the "master cleanse" and to be honest it scared the crap out of me (no pun intended. If you don't understand what I mean, google "master cleanse" and you will see what I mean about crap LOL). I just checked out a book from the library called The Inside-Out Diet. It was written by a naturopath who has a blog that deals with alternative medicine. Don't get me wrong- I can appreciate modern medicine for what it is worth. But I am a firm believer in trying to fix my minor ailments (fatigue, weight gain, etc.) with diet and exercise first. Hippocrates said, "Let food be thy medicine, and let medicine be thy food."

Working on my diet and starting an exercise routine are only going to go so far, as far as soul searching and such. But for right now I think it's something I am missing. I am hoping to get my body back in order, so I can have lots of energy and keep up with my crazy two year old. Overall I am hoping to feel like I have a little control over myself again. And maybe become a little bit healthier mentally as well. Body, mind, spirit. These things go hand in hand.

In 2012....

Oh goodness, I am always so embarrassed when I realize that it has been months since I last updated my blog. I truly enjoy blogging because it allows me to keep a record of events, as well as my thoughts and emotions associated with them. It's kind of fun to look back on things and remember them as they were. I also like being able to put it all in one place so that my friends and family (the ones I speak to and see often, as well as the ones that are close to my heart despite us not speaking often or spending time together) can see it all in one place. So I am going to do my best to pick up where I left off last time!

So I just checked, and it has been since NOVEMBER 2011 that I last wrote anything. Time sure does fly fast! Our lives have been busy as usual, so I will try to create a summary of our lives to date.

Mike
Still working at BNSF. His schedule has been far from predictable, up until the last 6-8 weeks. He finally has enough seniority that he is able to hold a "weekend," meaning a scheduled two days off. Currently it is on Wednesdays and Thursdays that he is off work, and then works various jobs throughout the other 5 days. A few weeks ago, he was holding his scheduled days off and was able to hold night shifts. This was not so much fun for us- he was having a difficult time getting enough sleep during the day, so when we did see him he was a little zombie-ish. Also, I missed having a warm body to snuggle at night time. Recently they made some changes that opened up a bunch of daytime slots, so for the last 1.5 weeks he has been able to hold day shifts- woo hoo!! This is so much better for all of us- he gets to see Sean and I every morning and night, and he gets some normal time to himself on his days off (rather than spending it trying to get back on a normal person's sleep schedule, only to have to quickly go back to a graveyard sleep schedule again).

He's also been enjoying the PNW spring weather as much as he can. It's been just warm enough and just dry enough that he has been able to ride his motorcycle to work a few times as  week, as well as out and about on occasion. Other than that, life's been pretty simple. We are still (after 9 months of living in WA) trying to get a feel for a real social life. We were used to a pretty lax way of hanging out with people in LA, so it's still not natural for us to have friends who live more than 10 minutes away, and with work schedules, and their own plans aside from spontaneous Sunday BBQ's ; ) We have a lot of friends and family here that we are so thankful for, and we have been as social as we can be- but on occasion we remember how easy it was to call up 5 people at the last minute, and they would all be at our door within the hour without any obligations to stop partying at a specific time.

Jenn
Still working at being a nanny for Gage, who is now 4 years old. I have also taken on watching his 2 year old cousin Michelle on occasion, I probably care for her 1-2 times a week. I have been so thankful for this job opportunity since I have been able to avoid putting Sean into daycare and instead spend time with him, and keep working on potty training and everything else developmental for him. He loves Gage and Michelle so it's been a great social opportunity for all 3 of them. It's also been a nice transitional job from being a SAHM for so long. In August I will officially be starting back at Lakeside Montessori- the same preschool I worked at from 2001-2006 before we packed up and moved across the country to Louisiana. I am really looking forward to being in the classroom again, and also I think Sean is going to thrive in a Montessori preschool environment. I am definitely going to miss seeing Gage and Michelle everyday, as well as Gage's mom Danielle who has become a good friend of mine. But they are still only 15 minutes away so hopefully after August we will still get together with them often : )

I have also somehow recently gotten myself into politics- what the heck was I thinking?!?! LOL Yep, I am officially a King County 11th district Republican delegate for Ron Paul at the Washington State GOP convention that will be held in Tacoma the first weekend in June. I have NEVER been a political person before, let alone involved in the Republican party, but I guess it was my time! I have a lot to say on the issue, but I am thinking I might try and write a second blog posting where I can focus on that, instead of turing this "summary" post into a 12 page essay ; )

Sean
Oh where do I start with this amazing kiddo of mine? Sean turned two in January, and let me tell you- two has turned out to be the most wonderful and also the most frustrating age that we have experienced yet. One minute he is absolutely mesmerizing- talking and thinking and just being incredible. I look at him and think, "Geez kid when do you get so big and so awesome?" And then the next minute he is an absolute terror and I think, "When did you turn into such a nightmare?!?" But overall being a mom has been such a blessing and I honestly can't wait until we have another one : D

Sean's favorite things right now: Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse, Lightning McQueen, Buzz Lightyear and Woody. He also still loves books, trains and Sesame Street, and over the last few weeks has taken an amazing interest in puzzles. It really surprises me actually, because he is now bored with peg puzzles- he wants to do 24-30 piece puzzles that are usually labeled for ages 3 and up. And after getting some help for the first few times, he can usually start to do them all by himself. I usually only have to remind him to turn all of the pieces right side up and spread them out, and then he takes over. We try to get outside everyday, even when it is raining, and he loves to run and climb and jump and everything else a normal 2 year old boy loves to do. He still only weighs about 28 lbs. (I think he weighed about 25 lbs. this time one year ago) but he has gotten to be pretty tall and lean.

Sean now sleeps in a toddler bed every night, he successfully stopped using a pacifier about 3 months ago, and he is what I consider to be daytime potty trained. We have been working on night time potty training, but it has proved itself to be a whole other realm of potty training. I am thinking he is not ready to even think about holding it all night- he is a pretty deep sleeper and has finally (thank the Lord) gone back to sleeping through the night, so it's not likely he will wake up on his own to go potty in the middle of the night either. He really doesn't get out of his toddler bed on his own at all anyways, but I am sure that time is just around the corner. I have been putting him into thick training pants at bedtime, and trying to go in around 10:30 or 11 to take him potty while he is half asleep- that way at least he is keeping his sheets and pajamas dry, and getting a feel for peeing in the middle of the night since I know he still needs to. As he gets a little older we will go back down to light training pants, and work on him either holding it all night or getting up independently, but for now I think this is the best we can get without compromising his sleep and his confidence with daytime potty training.

That's about all I have for now. Stay tuned for my post on getting involved in politics- I am hoping to get some of my thoughts down into my blog so I can organize my own brain a little better : ) Here are a few pics!!

playing in the snow with Dada

My big two year old on his birthday

big boy bed : )

Grammie came to visit from AZ

getting ready to play outside with Michelle and Gage

I love my Momma : )

Sean and his buddy/cousin Gabriel

Easter 2012