Category Archives: wine

let the joyous news spread throughout the land

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Birthday week will now begin!

But that isn’t why I found the special plate before me this morning for breakfast.

No, my darling husband had decided that I needed to fuel up before my audition adventure up in Sacramento. Oh, and it IS the start of birthday week palooza.

I won’t lie, it has been a rough weekend for me. It’s mostly my own doing that brought it all on but the overwhelming stress and worry became just too much on Friday. Thank goodness for friends and a darling husband and hugs and 3 mile runs and long soaks in the hot tub and good food and wine…

and silly hipster babies…

and nutella-stained, freckle face smiles…

and the opportunity to share my words auditioning for Listen To Your Mother Sacramento. What a nurturing, encouraging experience that was! Thank you Margaret and Nichole for the opportunity!

 

 

I do enjoy a glass of wine

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So my darling husband has asked me what I might be wishing for Christmas. Obviously the dude hasn’t been checking out my Pinterest board because my family complains they NEVER know what to get me for Christmas!

Obviously!

I mean, if he did he would know what I am wishing for Christmas. I can’t make this any easier.

Honestly.

But he maintains it is much easier for him to just ask me.

Whatever.

Well, here is something that isn’t pinned to any of my Pinterest boards…yet…that I would love to be gifted with.

The XL Wine Glass…and it is under FIFTEEN DOLLARS! It is perfect because I have been known to enjoy a glass of wine every night.

 

a weekend off

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How does that old song go?

Everybody’s workin’ for the weekend…

Egads, that song IS old, like back when MTV played music videos like all day old!

Yes, most folks are doing the Monday through Friday thing just so they can rest and play through their weekend.

Lucky!

Me, I work pretty much every weekend. A weekend off is a rare thing and is usually in order to take Jodie to a dance competition. Juggling the needs of this circus I have no choice. I love that I can be there for Hollie to watch the babies. Jodie and Daniel live too far from their schools to walk and there is no school-provided transportation available. Well, I did give up the short bus hoping Daniel could stay at his school rather than be moved to yet another school in the district. And then there is homework…fourth grade homework is hard, especially hard for a kid like Daniel. The kids need me. They seem to need me more the older they get. Sorry to the moms of little ones who just can’t wait for the freedom of older kids. It doesn’t always work out that way. The fact that my workplace only offers 12 hour shifts makes it all the harder. This is why I gave up my full time position more than four years ago and accepted a per diem position. I love my job. I love what I do. But my family right now needs me more and needs me to have more flexibility in when I work and when I am home for them.

In the workplace, I gave up a lot. Some think I don’t take my career as seriously I should. Some assume I’m lucky to stay home and choose not to work full time and work “whenever I feel like working”.  Not true. But it is what I choose to sacrifice the career a little for the family. And so I work pretty much every single weekend, when my family is home resting and playing.

But this weekend I had off…Friday through Sunday, which is the weekend in the night shift nurse-land.

How glorious!

How desperately needed.

So I put my calls directly to voice mail…because I knew that I would be called to come in due to staffing needs and new admissions. I was. I felt a little bit guilty because I know how hard it is to find extra staff when short-staffed, especially with surprise admissions…and especially on weekends. Yes, I felt a little bit guilty. But I reminded myself how desperately I needed my own weekend off for my own physical, mental and emotional health. It was time for me to take a weekend off and to enjoy…

a date night with the husband…

spending a few hours in my daughter’s stylist chair…

some cuddle time with a 10 month old who doesn’t believe in napping on a lazy Sunday afternoon. OMG, Fallon is TEN MONTHS OLD!!!…

enjoy some silly play when chores should be done…

and take some time to just play a little with my boy…who won’t be little that much longer…

to try out yet another recipe that I pinned on Pinterest and then sit down and enjoy some Sunday afternoon football. The enchiladas, by the way, were delicious!

And now Monday is here…back to the juggling of the kids, school, after school obligations and activities, the grandkids and everything else…oh, and work this weekend. I am so glad that I took this last weekend off.

whine o’clock

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So this has been happening this afternoon here under the Big Top.

Whining of EPIC PROPORTIONS has been happening! It is then that I look at my clock and realize…OMG, it’s whine o’clock!

If only it was wine o’clock. Oh if only!

Then this happened.

A cure for whine o’clock? Can it be possible??
Then just when it seemed to be that yes, there is a cure for whining she starts up again.

:::SIGH!!!:::

right now all week, this week

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This week’s Focus 52 prompt was right now:

Keep your camera close this week and take a moment (or two or three!) to capture what you’re doing ‘right now’, right at that exact moment. And umm … keep it clean, will ya? heh. I think this could be an exercise where the technique of ‘just a glimpse’ would work quite well…Absolutely anything and/or everything you catch yourself doing this week could become your photo for week twenty two.
You could take this one step further too, if you’re so inclined. Pick a time of day, and take a photo of what you’re doing every single day this week at that same exact time.

Ever the over-achiever, little brown-noser I chose to go the one step further. My camera is always handy because I am the mamarazzi here under the Big Top. I decided to pick the five o’clock hour…okay, the five to somewhere around the six o’clock hour because there is always something going on in the early evening around here. Yes, the kids were absolutely thrilled that I was working on this project with camera in hand. Some were so thrilled they told me to NOT take their picture. Tempted…I was so tempted. But I respected their wishes…this time.

So here you are, right now under the Big Top this week.

Monday: National Burger Day this year just happened to fall on Memorial Day. You know, that day where everyone barbecues and celebrates Summer’s return after honoring those who gave all. Well, I had to work Monday night and my darling husband and daughter were laying wood floors all day so no barbecue for us. An In n Out double-double cheeseburger will do just fine thank you very much. It is also the perfect after 5 mile run meal…because I logged five miles before work that night.

Tuesday: It’s that time of year again! The end of year dance recital is almost upon us and Jodie and Hazel are so ready for this. It’s a good thing Hollie and I got our tickets when we did because they sold out in ONE DAY! Yes, dance mom crazy did rise up. So if Abby can’t get the afternoon off from work I wonder just how much that ticket would be worth?

Wednesday: The Avengers 3D, popcorn, licorice and Coca-Cola slushees with one of my favorite boys. Life is good. And The Mighty Thor is hot and remains my favorite Avenger! Daniel tells me that The Black Widow looks like me. It’s the 3D glasses I’m sure.

Thursday: My Zoë and Josh are moving even farther away from the Big Top. I’m beyond sad even if it is a great and exciting adventure for them. But standing behind our promise to support these clowns in all that they do I’m sending the boys to Monterey with a big ol’ U-Haul so that they might pack up all their worldly goods and move them all down to LA. Daniel is ready to lend a hand.

Friday: It has been a long, hot day. Finally, the cooling Delta breezes are kicking in. The boys are in LA, the girls are at the mall and swim parties and I am here on the back patio with just this delicious glass of Sangria. Right here, right now, this week, life is good!