My Attempt at Being a Domestic Goddess

I am NOT the best housewife.  If I was, I would scrub the floors every week, vacuum every room (even if not used) every other day, dust daily, cook every meal--even breakfast, and do it with a smile and makeup on.  This does not describe me in the least.  I honestly hate cleaning on my best day, but realize it needs to get done.  I do the minimum necessary to survive.  Since I've had Ginny, my attempts have become virtually non-existent.  My focus is on her.

In an attempt to be a better housewife, which I deemed necessary once my lovely husband started voluntarily cleaning around the house (he hates cleaning more than me), I put myself on a schedule of sorts last week.  Before I did the schedule, I would find myself overwhelmed with the things that needed to get done around the house and would usually barely get anything done.  So, I created a schedule for myself with the hopes that it will give me a simple goal and be less overwhelming.  Here it is:

Monday:  Clean bathrooms
Tuesday:  Grocery shopping (NOTE:  No cleaning today unless I "want" to. LOL)
Wednesday:  Dusting
Thursday:  Floors
Friday: Scrub the kitchen
Saturday:  Make up day for any of the above and/or cleaning another needed area

It really seems to be working thus far, granted it is only week 2, but already I have a better attitude and feel as though I'm making some real accomplishments.

My zucchini bread and corn bread for tonight!

Since I have been feeling all proud of myself, I suddenly found myself with the urge to bake.  I've never been huge into baking.  I like it mainly when I am craving something sweet.  Otherwise, I'm okay with not baking.  However, in the last 2 weeks, I have baked (all from scratch) zucchini bread (twice--I'm doing it again today), a carrot cake with homemade cream cheese frosting, and corn bread.

Will wonders ever cease?  I may be on the road to being a domestic goddess after all.  Or maybe not. ;)

The chili I made for dinner tonight.  Notice my cheat?  Crock pot! :)

Shopping for Ginny

Yesterday, I decided to do some shopping for my little one!  Granted, I likely need more clothing than her since the vast majority (95%) of my tops do not fit now that I have Dolly Parton size boobs from nursing; however, I enjoy shopping for Ginny much more than myself.

The town I live in is a small one of about 4100 inhabitants.  We have 3 traffic lights but that is only because a major road (Business I-55) runs through town).  We don't have any major retail outlets here, unless you count our brand new Walgreens (love it) or Casey's General Store.  What we do have are 2 resale/consignment shops--one for women and the other for children.  So, for the first time in the last 2 years I have lived here, I ventured over to Just For Kids to do some shopping for Ginny.  While I do love buying clothing from her, I don't see the point in spending tons of money on a baby who will only wear the clothes for 2-3 months.

I did have a specific purpose and goal from my shopping. Ginny received a lot of clothes from relatives as gifts, with most fitting her through 9 months.  However, while a lot of her 6-9 month sized clothing is adorable, it is also a bit summery. My plan to extend their usefulness was to get some long-sleeve neutral (white/black/gray, etc) onesies/t-shirts for Ginny and a few pairs of pants.  I also hoped to find a good Halloween costume for our girl.

Well, I looked at costumes first and was disappointed in the selection.  Granted the selection was probably small because all of the costumes were on sale for $0.50.  (YES!!)  I did see 2 possibilities but quickly ruled them out.  They had a bee costume and a ladybug costume.  Very cute, but not what I had in mind.  Hopefully I'll find something on sale at JcPenney or another store soon.  I may even shop online.

Then I went to the section of the store where they have all their 6-9 month clothing and they only had 10 items there.  Only 10!!!  They had a TON of clothes for every other size but 6-9 months.  Do people not dress their babies during that time or do their kids all jump from 3-6 month to 12 month outfits overnight?  I wonder.  I did find 3 things I liked and my total cost was $8.63.  Not bad.  Her new outfits are pictured below.

Once Ginny is ready for the next size up, I will go shopping there again.  I enjoyed my first venture into consignment baby clothes shopping.  Until then, I guess I'll be looking for what I need at other stores. I'll just hope for a good sale. ;)

Bouncing Baby

Today Ginny and I started a new adventure--attending a Musikgarten music class called "Bouncing Babies."  The class is 30 minutes once a week for the next 14+ weeks.  I say plus because there are no classes the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's.  However, the class will meet 14 times.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect, although I had a slight inkling after attending new parent orientation on Sunday. We had a lot of fun.  Ginny is not as much a participant as I am at this point, but she did seem to enjoy the movement and singing.  Ginny loves music in general--particularly when I sing to her.  Now she is in her own mini-heaven because I'm singing to her for about 30 minutes at a shot.

What fascinated Ginny the most were all the other babies in class.  I honestly think I gave birth to an extrovert. She loved all those other faces and that they were about her size.  At 5 months old, Ginny was the youngest in class.  Most of the other babies were around 8-9 months.  By the time the class is done she will almost be 9 months.

Next week, Daddy will get to join us.  I'm looking forward to it.

In Love & Baseball

Friday night, my husband, Ginny, and I were watching the St. Louis Cardinals game on TV.  We do this often despite Chris NOT being a Cardinals fan.  In fact, we are part of a "mixed" marriage...I'm the Cardinals fan (the best team ever, if you didn't know) and he misguidedly is a fan of the Milwaukee Brewers.

As you might imagine, during baseball season, things can get tense in our house.  The tension amped up a bit once we had Ginny.  How would we raise her?  As a Cardinals fan or a Brewers fan?  Not unlike our *"marriage contract", we decided to compromise.  We decided to raise her as both until she can make up her own mind. (Of course, she will be a Cards fan like her mommy. LOL)

Well, back to Friday...Chris decided to use the laptop while we were watching the game.  I was curious and finally, after waiting for a bit, I asked what he was up to.  He decided that since the temps were supposed to be nice and cool on Labor Day, that he would look into the cost of tickets for the Cardinals/Brewers game at Busch Stadium.  Luckily, he found great seats (lower deck, 3rd base side) for a great price ($19 each).  The decision was made to go to the game.

The view from our seats!

We had a blast! Despite the Cardinals losing (boo Brewers...lol), it was a wonderful day!  It was sunny and 72.  Ginny was in a great mood and seemed to be having fun!

Ginny enjoying herself!

Ginny & I

Ginny enjoyed the game so much that she even fell asleep!  We hope that she learns to appreciate baseball as much as we do--no matter what team she supports (of course, she will be a Cardinals fan).

Chris holding a sleeping Ginny at the game!

**"Marriage Contract:  Let me briefly explain our marriage contract.  I am a Cardinals fan while Chris is a Brewers fan (poor soul) and there was no changing for either of us.  However, he had no commitment to college teams and I am not a football fan.  So, we agreed on the following: Chris will support the KU Jayhawks in college sports while I will support the Green Bay Packers in the NFL.  It works for us! :)

Dis-Connected

I hate cell phones!!

Now, no fainting or falling over in shock.  Most people may do a double take on that 1st sentence.  They will be thinking, "How can someone hate cell phones? They are the BEST invention ever.

To me, cell phones are one of the worst inventions ever.  Let me try and explain my thinking.

1.  I love being disconnected.  One thing I love to do is go for a drive and be unreachable for a couple of hours.  Unlike the rest of the world, I don't feel the need to be in constant contact with people.  In fact, I enjoy being truly alone with no interruptions.

Oh, and this is why I like having a land line at home. I give my land line # to doctors, businesses, etc.  I never give my cell phone to those people.  The last thing I want to deal with when I'm out and about is someone scheduling a lawn treatment.  Some things can wait.

2.  I am NOT a phone person.  In fact, I really do not enjoy talking on the phone.  The only time I came close to being a phone person was when I was in an LDR with my now-husband.  Otherwise, no phone for me.  My good friends and family know this about me.  Luckily, they get it and still love me.  I prefer talking with people in person so that I can see all the nonverbals.

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The only reason I got a cell phone in the first place was due to pressure from my family (they were concerned about me driving from Murfreesboro, TN to see them in Jax, FL) and due to work.  At the time, I worked in residence life for MTSU and had a beeper.  Having a cell phone made it more convenient for me to return pages.

Now it is 11 years later, and I still can't stand cell phones or the idea of them.  Why do people feel the need to be constantly reachable?  Heck, it is so bad that people are not able to drive for 15 minutes without talking on a cell or go to dinner or a movie.  Do they really believe that everything needs to be dealt with now?  I don't get it.  It makes you wonder how we survived in the 70s, 80s, and most of the 90s without them.

I do like one feature of my phone...texting!  But, beyond that, I would be happy if I never carried one again; however, my husband wouldn't like it if I did that. Sigh.