cleverly disguised as a responsible adult

Hogswatch was largely good. I had lots of holiday anxiety, but got a lot of sleep and even got some things done around the house! I did lots of sewing, a little reading, some video game playing, and many, many snuggles. We watched a TON of Mythbusters - the Science channel had a mega-marathon of every episode ever and it's Emi's favorite show.

Highlights!

Hogswatch eve and day were at home and quiet. The kids were excited by their gifts from us and from Santa (coloring books, colors, books, small toy, candy). Emi LOVED the princess dress wardrobe that I made for her. Alex LOVED the wooden train pieces that I got him. Downwood loved the Star Wars PJ pants I made. We smoked chicken and salmon for dinner, but didn't really treat the day as a super-special thing.

By boxing day, I needed to get out of the house a bit, but not really be in public. So I went for a walk in the cold drizzle when the full-on rain stopped. I took the kids with me. Emi wanted to run and race. Alex jumped and stomped and splashed in every puddle he could find. It was fun, wet, and exactly what I needed.

We got our second big snowstorm of the year on the 28th. That happened to be the day I needed to drive up in to Madison for therapy and med check visits. I'd been planning on going to get a coffee in between the appointments, but I didn't want to go back out into the ick. So I sat in the lobby, drew a tangle, and read a book for the hour between the visits. I then went to the grocery store since I was already out. When I got home, I couldn't get my car up the driveway. Not an awesome end to the day, but not the worst thing ever.

Tuesday was Paint Nite with Au and RH and Au's little dude. The venue was cramped and kind of awful. I won't go back. But the chocolate martini was lovely, the painting was fun, and I love my friends. Also, RH liked the plaque I made for her and remembered the joke it's meant to commemorate. Life is good.

Emi got to have her first-ever real optometrist appointment. The appointment was early in the morning on NYE. She was super-awesome and impressed both the tech and the doc. She also has perfect vision. It was a good start to the day. Afterwards, we hit the drug store and the grocery store. Downwood and I spent our usual quiet NYE at home. We had terrible snacks (this year it was my fault), played some games, and I decided that the ball dropping in New York was a good enough midnight for me.

New Year's day and weekend we spent in Iowa with my family. It was mostly good. I ate FAR too much junk food, but didn't get too much in the way of awful from my mom. She was on good behavior, so I was, too. I got to hang with my sister and give good gifts. My daughter kidnapped my cousin and convinced her to play ponies for HOURS. I got to see Alex playing with my BiL specifically to annoy my nephew. He knew what he was doing, too, the stinker.

And now I'm back at work. I've made my resolutions and have started taking the steps to achieve them. The kids don't like getting up for school (big surprise), but Alex has discovered that Momma will read a book before she leaves for work. I'm tired and very glad that the holidays are over. We need to take down our tree and lights. I want to get back to sewing on my Star Wars pea coat. I also want to consider seriously working on my Victorian underthings. I won't get this done before the costume convention, but I'd like to get started.

Life does not suck. My brain doesn't always agree with me, but I'm in a better place than I was 6 months ago, which is a relief.

Burda: Here's our new pattern collection for this week! Yoga Retreat!

Me: I get the sense that Burda's thrown in the towel on 2015. The palazzo pants are basic and comfortable but the rest just...why?

T: "Hold still while I throw jersey fabric on you!"

A: What is with the no-pants options (the dress while carrying yoga mat, for example)!?  Are people doing yoga without pants of any kind!?  Yikes.

Me: Breathe into your core. Bend into downward dog. Don't worry about your dress falling over your head. Breathe into the movement. Let your lady garden breathe with you.
A: NOOOOOOoooo!!!!


I love my friends.

Friday - I had lots of anxiety at work. I left a little early and made it to Aldi for werk and skool snacks. Protein bars and such for me, applesauce and such for kids. Aldi has some AMAZING gluten free stuff. They have GF pretzels that are safe for BOTH kids' allergies! And they taste like pretzels! Score! Basically came home, ate dinner, put kids to bed, and collapsed.

Saturday - Picked up the kitchen and living room. One of my college biochem besties asked if they could spend the first couple days of their summer vacation up by us (before heading to his mom's and...crazy times). I adore him and his wife and their adorable sons. The older boy is 3 and the younger is just about to turn 1. Super cute.

We cleaned a little - mostly just clearing out clutter so we'd have places to walk and sit. Alex and I went to the grocery store for provisions. Bexdragon came down, too, and we had a giant late lunch. Ribs (on sale for $1/lb! whoa!), smoked salmon, corn on the cob, cole slaw, baked beans, and fruits. All of it was safe for Emi and Alex could have everything but the ribs and beans. We all ate too much, then sat around and talked. The kids played in the yard and with all the toys all over the house.

It was busy and chaotic. And good.

Sunday - I spent a bunch of the morning ironing. I have quite a few 50's style dresses, but the ones that are most appropriate for Lucy are the ones that are cotton and thus need ironing. So I ironed. Ugh. And did laundry. And snuggled kiddos.

In the late morning, everyone came down to our house again. We had a lunch of the leftovers and some pulled pork from earlier in the week. The kids played and the grownups sat and chatted.

In the afternoon, we took a field trip down to the Toy Train Barn. It's a barn FILLED with model trains. There are some giant layouts and train memorabilia EVERYWHERE. Our train-crazed kids and husbands loved it. They also had the big outdoor train up and running, so the kids got to take a ride on it. Super fun.

When we got home, Downwood took V downstairs to look at the trains. I started getting food into some very hungry kids. The kids got popcorn shrimp, chicken nuggets, fries, and veggies. The grownups ordered in pizza.

By bathtime, it was apparent that the kids were all exhausted. Lots and lots of hugs and promises to visit soon and they went back to their hotel.

Alex and I have almost finished "Hamster Princess". I don't know what we're going to read next, but it'll be fun. Emi was kind of a pill about going to sleep, but that's nothing new. I sat at the computer, mainlined some "I Love Lucy", and packed my makeup and stuff for today. Then I went to bed early. I only have to get up about 15-20 minutes earlier than normal, but that's starting to get to the point of just being stupid early.

I miss my friends. They're good people and I wish they lived closer than Pittsburgh. It would be cool if our kids could be closer and I dearly love them.

Today - Got up super early. Turned on coffee. Stared at the internet for a bit. Got dressed and out the door early.

At work, I dropped off my snacks and purse in my office and headed to the backstage dressing room. I put in my contacts, put on my wig and petticoat, and applied both makeup and false eyelashes (THANKS! dance performance experience!). I even put on heels.

I looked spectacular. Many customers wanted pictures with Lucy. It. was. awesome.

After spending a couple hours on my feet in uncomfortable heels, I kind of regretted this decision. I went back to our dressing room and de-glammed. My hair is a bit of a disaster (bangs are just pinned back - there was no helping them) and I still have on way too much makeup, but the eyelashes and wig are put away until tomorrow. I'm wearing shoes that do NOT go with my dress, but are ridiculously comfortable.

Calendar

• Today - One more shift, but de-glam. I could technically make it to dance, but I'd be a WRECK tomorrow. No me gusta.
• Tomorrow - Glam most of the day. I may de-glam from 1:30-3:30, but I need to be Lucy off and on from daybreak to 1:30 and then from 4-8. I...won't be wearing heels the whole time. Nope. Nope. Nopefish.
• Wednesday - No more glam. :( Just a couple of things that I have to be "on" for. Host a session, attend a session, then give away ice cream. Woo!
• Thursday - One thing to be "on" for. And many things to hide in my office for.
• Friday - No more customers. No glam. I may try to get a couple hours off. We'll see.
• Saturday/Sunday - Pick a day to go to Faire. Finally.

We had 17 people at our house for dinner yesterday. 5 of them were unknown to me before the event - 3 as guests of my cousin (they were in town anyway) and 2 from work who needed a place to come have dinner. It's quite possibly the biggest turnout we've had for one of these shindigs. And it was AWESOME.

There was a TON of food and good booze. I brought out some wine and cinnamon whiskey, filled the percolator with cider and cinnamon sticks, made two pies (from frozen because I ran out of cope), ham, turkey, roasted root veggies, sweet corn, and homemade cranberry sauce because the canned stuff is of the devil. Folks brought pies, brownies, cheeses, fruits, two kinds of stuffing, a hashbrown potato casserole, green bean casserole (fresh green beans with cream of mushroom soup FROM SCRATCH), rolls, cinnamon-cranberry-orange rolls, and more booze.

It was pretty amazing. We gathered plates and dispersed around the house. I think we all ate too much, but that's fine. 

We sent some leftovers home with people and traded other leftovers - you take the pumpkin pie, but leave me the apple - and I fell into bed.

Today, I woke up early and went out to do some shopping. First the spa, to get my annual shellac manicure at 20% off. Then Starbucks because coffee. Then the FLGS for D&D books and My First Carcassonne. Then JoAnn's for on sale yarn and fleece. Then Target for DVDs, little toys, and some clothes. Then home.

Since being at home, we've done a lot of dishes. I made incredibly tasty ham and cheese sandwiches for lunch - this butter topping makes it all better (http://allrecipes.com/recipe/baked-ham-and-cheese-party-sandwiches/). I made an Emi-safe pumpkin pie with her and it's cooling on the counter. I made a turkey pot pie out of leftovers and it's cooling on the stove. It's also Emi-safe, due to using a modified biscuit recipe for the top. We'll see if she eats it.

Later tonight, we need to strain and aliquot a couple gallons of turkey stock. The bones and the leftover cooking veggies slowly simmered all night, leaving us with stock of FLAVOR.

Dinner soon. Thank god. I'm crabby now because I'm hungry and the pot pie smells good.

Tomorrow, Emi and I will wander around downtown and she'll pick out some presents. We love Small Business Saturday, since our town is FULL of small businesses. Afterward, I may try to make some fleece headbands and scarves. Maybe even finish a couple of other projects on the table.

Then I can get ready for Cyber Monday deals. I'm waiting for ThinkGeek to send an email detailing what all's on sale. I have one or two presents from there to buy and then I should be done. I need to start wrapping soon. Yus.

Friday - Much relief at Downwood's improved condition. His dad and um-friend came up and played with the kids all day. They took off for home right after I got back from the grocery store. Apparently, the kids wore them out. Go figure.

Saturday - Slept in a little bit and woke up to clouds and drizzle. Emi was heartbroken, since I'd promised that they could play outside again. After a while, the drizzle stopped and the sun came out, though everything was still squishy.

Au and her boy came over in the late morning. The kids ran around the back yard and we relaxed on deck chairs with mimosas. It was lovely. The kids are big enough to be more or less self-entertaining, especially when there are soccer balls, a slide, and dirt to dig in. We let them run around both inside and out.

After a while, I made some fried chicken for lunch and henna-ed Au's arm with a viney/leafy pattern. It was super fun and a great way to spend the middle part of the day. Au and her boy left when it became apparent that Ox was played out. He was stretched out on the floor playing with a toy car, head on the ground, totally out of energy to move or sit up, but still really wanting to keep playing. They gathered up stuff and said goodbyes.

I think their car got out of the driveway before he passed out cold. Maybe.

Downwood took a nap, Emi got a timeout (so tired and whiny), and I chilled. Then I put together some dinner for Emi and me and got dressed up.

The spring show happened. I miss seeing S from Chicago, local professional tribal troupe, F from IA City, ATS professional troupe, or any of the other excellent out-of-town performers that we used to get at this show. Darn. They had a cash bar, which was lovely, and parking was a breeze. There's also a hotel bar connected to the venue, so we went to get drinks and dissect the performances. I laughed a lot and had a lovely, lovely time.

I didn't get home until close to 12:30. This blew up my HabitRPG, which resets at midnight and which I usually double-check for completion before bed. Oops.

Sunday - Blessedly got to sleep in later than usual. Still, since I went to bed so late, it didn't seem that decadent. I woke up to rolls and coffee and kids being kids. And rain. Lots and lots of rain.

After I woke up (all hail caffeine!), I started my usual Sunday laundry routine. This means a minimum of 5 loads of clothes to wash, plus any clothes already washed that just need folding and put away. Since people have been sick, I've also been washing sheets more often and trying to get in a load of fuzzy blankets and/or pillows, just to help out our immune systems.

We played some GW2 with friends while I was doing laundry. Luckily, we play with other grownups who understand that there are chores to be done, toddlers to console, and children who need love and attention. Also, my tendonitis flares up if I play for too long. Stupid thumbs.

I thought about going to bed early, but didn't quite make it. RH got me hooked on a FB clicky game and I was enjoying the fact that both kids were in bed and there were no emergencies.

Today - Morning came too early. I had a really hard time dragging myself out of bed today. I'm still dragging. Ugh.

I started off the morning right by breaking a bottle of nail polish. The top sheared off and ended up on the kitchen floor. The bottle fell into one of Downwood's newish tennis shoes. I maintain that he got it cleaned up. He says there are still green glitter streaks, so he doesn't want to wear them.

Ox found the bottle in the trash can and now has green hands.

I'm having a bad anxiety day. Like, to the point that I was just now having a panic moment (not an attack. Not so bad. Just kind of bad) about using my Audible credit effectively. Because if I choose the wrong book, that obviously means that the world is going to end. Or something.

But things aren't all bad. I have coping mechanisms. I have lists to check off. I have Goodreads, which will tell me all my favorite books and it's okay to pick one of those for my Audible credit. Kids wash, Advil works, and I have dance tonight.

It's going to be okay. It was a good weekend and it's going to be a good week.

I can't say enough good things about the web vendor eShakti. They have really high quality clothes and for a trivial fee, they'll make the clothes to your exact measurements! I've bought a couple dresses from them and they all fit perfectly, flatter my body, and are made with really nice fabric. And pockets! And since they ask for your height, the "below knee" length is actually below my knees!

So, yes, today I look like a grownup in my pretty purple dress and gleaming mary janes. My hair is crazy and I ran out of energy to put on makeup, but I look like a grownup and I feel pretty.

Ox came out super early and snuggled with me. Emi also got up early and "helped" me get ready.

I have more meetings today than are healthy. I have a couple NYTimes crossword puzzles to get through.

I did some really lovely henna last night on some really lovely ladies. There are quite a few people on YouTube who should have thought about their costuming choices a bit more. I didn't get enough sleep, but that's usual for Monday nights.

I have two shamrocks in my purse. Each of my kids made me one yesterday. They're awesome kids and I'm going to proudly display these on my wall at work.

Coffee is fantastic. So is having a couple extra minutes to grab breakfast at work.

I can do this. Eye of the Tiger.

Saturday was SUPER FUN! We had friends over for card games, wine, flirting, and fun. It was so, so fun. I'm still waiting on my new anti-anxiety med to kick in and help out, but I managed to have a good time anyway, so that's really what's important.

Sunday was not as much fun, due to chores and needing to act like a grownup. I restarted my Zombies! Run Couch to 5K program. Ox "helped" me stretch after. I love that little dude so much. He's totally awesome. Emi pulled me downstairs to make her a purple super cape and I enlisted her in making some crash pads for Sasha. I like stash busting!

Monday included a screw-up at work and some awesomeness at work, so I hope they balance out. I need to pay my mortgage and keep health insurance and all that. I know my brain tends to overreact and always seek out the worst case scenarios, but it makes me nervous. I was able to get my nails painted for the first time since breaking my arm, though. And dance class was totally fun. M is evil, my classmates are fantastic, and the laser cane choreography makes me happy.

Today was snuggles with Emi, a Zombie Run on the trails near work, and breakfast at my desk. I moved my mouse back to my left hand and have high hopes that this will make my neck and shoulder pain less. My arm's finally strong enough/not hurting so much so that I can use it. I made progress on some work and am getting frustrated trying to figure out another one. Now I get to be on a phone call with the people who make me crazy (again!) and drink some coffee from my Minibru. Note to self: I need to get better coffee - the stuff here at work is too finely ground to make decent press coffee.

This week should be fun. I have some Aloe Purell to set on fire and I'm going to see if my arm's strong enough to spin light. I don't know if that will hurt like a bitch or be okay. I also have a promise of fun times on Saturday and a dance workshop to kick my butt and brain on Sunday. All I have to do is keep moving and everything will be fine.

So all those Current Project List posts had a deadline of Saturday. The end results are what you see below. It's almost easier to list what I didn't make.

From left to right:
Me - I added feathers to an existing hat, made the vest, skirt, and bracelet, but purchased the blouse and gloves.
Downwood - I added feathers to an existing had, made the vest and coat new, the shirt was one I made him a couple years ago, but the pants were purchased.
Dan - I made the shirt, vest, and coat. The EL wire on the coat, pants, and hat were purchased/not done by me.
Bex - I made the skirt, bodice, and coat. The EL wire and decorations on the coat and her jewelry were not done by me.


The wedding happened and was wonderful. I ran out of energy to make a blouse from scratch - all the pieces are cut out, but I haven't put them together yet. I think I need to take a break from sewing. Oy.

Also, this might be one of my all-time favorite pictures of me and my mini-me. So much fun!

Thanks to some good planning by Downwood and the intrepid spirit of friends, all of our remaining furniture was moved from the rental to the house while I was at work on Friday. There's still some clothes and random things to grab, but pretty much everything else is in a box or bin and is somewhere in the new place.

Also, thanks to some sneaky planning by my friends at work, I was totally blindsided by the baby shower that coworkers threw for me. It was a total surprise and a nice way to end a Friday afternoon.

The dog is getting adjusted to the new place. Since we're here, her bed and food are here, and her routines are similar to the rental, she's feeling a little more sure of herself. She also has gotten quite a few treats, so that's helping to make her think of this as "her" place.

Yesterday morning, my sister and I decided to go on a walking tour of the town. We took Rain with us and visited a couple of garage sales, scoring some excellent small child toys for cheap. Downwood, who had been tasked with picking up milk while we were out, saw us carrying bags and pulled over to offer to take them home for us. We sent the dog with him, too, and continued our walk. We found breakfast at a bakery, distraction in a gift shop, lunch at the butcher's, and Anne discovered that the winery will give you very generous samples of many types of wine.

We found out when we got home that the dog, not content with her lot in the back of the Jeep, decided to climb into the front seat on the way back with Downwood. Not only did she climb into the front, but she managed to put the car into neutral by stepping on the gear shift in the transition. Dingbat dog.

Saturday night was spent grilling brats, eating sweet corn, and chitchatting. It was a very "us" sort of night.

Today, after a big breakfast, Downwood mowed the lawn while sister and I cleaned in the kitchen and front room. I made some pulled pork for lunch, which made more leftovers than I'd expected, so we'll be eating that all week.

The afternoon was spent at a baby shower thrown for me by my very cool friends. No games, just good food, better conversation, lots of laughs, and women from three distinct areas of my life - gaming, work, dance - all getting along and having a good time. Bex invented a new type of sushi for me. She took the bacon-wrapped, cream cheese-filled, jalapenos that I make for any social occasion and put them into rice. It was delicious! Katy deep-fried wontons filled with Nutella or ginger and dates. So, so good.

While we were gabbing, Downwood made another trip to the rental and claims to have brought back all the remaining dishes and glassware. This means that I can finally figure out where to put away the paper plates and go back to eating off of dishes that I don't have to worry about disintegrating under stress.

I'm kind of dreading getting up and going back to work tomorrow. I don't particularly want to force myself to get up with the alarm clock. Also, this is our week off of dance class, so I don't even have anything to look forward to in the evening other than unpacking and organizing. But, I might hear about the bloodwork that I had done last week, so we'll see what that does to my med dosage. I also might have something exciting to work on or some problem to solve that is actually solvable.

But for now, I will sit here and watch the sun set over the trees. My computer desk is by the windows in the back that get a lovely breeze and have a wonderful view of the trees and hills. I can see the massive deck and our yard with its shiny new fence. My sister is reading in the recliner and my husband is playing Bejeweled on his computer. The dog is sacked out on her bed. I have five weeks left until Peanut's official birthday. I can probably handle this.

Happy birthday, revrb! :-)