Life on the daisy

I know that it probably seems like the only posts I publish are paid book reviews any more.  I'm really trying to work more on that.  I plan on sharing some non-paid book reviews as well!

It's difficult to write about our daily lives now.  My daughters are 18 and 13 and the baby is 9!  They have their own stories, and I'm careful with what I share about them here.  And in all honesty, they are good kids.  The temper tantrums and battle of wills are few and far between nowadays, and of course, I've learned to let more go.

I always sort of dreaded the teenage years.  The eye rolling and knowing more than you.  Don't get me wrong, I own up that I totally deserved whatever came my way...I thrived on correcting my mom when I was younger. But surprisingly, I'm loving the teenage years.  I'm seeing the fruits of all those years of dealing with the temper tantrums and battles, and I'm enjoying them.  They are mostly sweet, with the occasional twang.  My girls are friends not just with each other, but with each other's friends.  They enjoy spending time together.  They include their brother when appropriate, even though he can be an annoying pest at times.  They both have a good group of friends, and those friends have parents I like.  They get good grades, they are home when they are supposed to be, and they are where they say they will be.  I am blessed and I know it.  I also make sure that they understand that they have more freedom and opportunities because they have earned my trust.

The Monster is a typical 9 year old boy.  He still loves me with all his might, and even when he's mad at me he can't resist a good hug.  It pains me at times to see how big he is getting...those teen years are coming fast at me with him.

My job is frustrating a lot of the time right now, with the occasional rewarding moment.  We've made some new friends, and spring is hopefully arriving.  Life is good on the Daisy right now.

BHBC: Diary of a Mad Fat Girl

What's a girl to do when her two best friends get themselves into trouble?  Rescue them, of course.

Graciela "Ace" Jones has loved the same boy since she was eleven, and still has the same best friends since then.  When one friend is fired over false accusations, and the other hits a personal crisis, Ace finds herself in several interesting situations trying to help her friends right the wrongs that have been done to them.

I very much enjoyed Diary of a Mad Fat Girl.  I could relate to the characters and laughed out loud at some of the situations Ace and friends found themselves in.  The only thing that bothered me was when Ace referred to herself as fat.  I understand that most of what she talked about was real, but while I could relate to the words she was saying, ultimately, I revert to the picture on the front of the book, and that looks like a healthy woman's legs to me.  Maybe that isn't what Stephanie McAfee had in mind when she imagined Ace, but that is what is in my mind as I read the book.  As someone who has struggled with weight issues, and the negative self-talk that follows, for most of her teenage and adult life, I hate when I read or hear other people disparaging someone who isn't really heavy.

I'm hoping there will be more stories from Stephanie McAfee, maybe even involving some of the characters from Diary of a Mad Fat Girl.

This is a paid review for BlogHer Book Club but the opinions expressed are my own.

Ponderings

Why do people hate on Nickleback so much?  I'm not a die hard fan, but I don't find their music offensive.

Why is February the shortest month but it seems to last so long?

Why do people plan big events on holidays and special days, even if they don't celebrate them?

Why is it always a sunny, warm, gorgeous day on Thursday and then cold and rainy on Friday and Saturday?

Pecked to death

I was having one of those days yesterdays...the ones that make you feel like the Universe, and all it's cosmic glory, is against you.  Nothing major or big happened, just a bunch of little things, over and over again.  I was complaining to a friend last night, and he sent me back this gem:

Sometimes it's easier to get eaten by a tiger than to get pecked to death by ducks.

That sums up my day yesterday.

But today, I kept waiting for that crouching tiger.  The ducks hadn't quite finished me off, and it smelled fresh meat.

Sunny Days

So I started a couch to 5K program a few weeks ago.  I HATE running.  Despise it.  Running makes my body scream and yell at me.  But just once, I want to run. I want to feel like my body is capable.  I'm not delusional, I won't be running any marathons, but a small 5K?  I should be able to do that.

I just completed week 2, and will be repeating that week starting on Saturday.  My lungs are screaming by the 1 minute mark.  Not acceptable.  I will beat them into submission if I have to.

I need to track, I need to feel accountable.  So I'm putting it out here.

One month down...one year down...one day down.

January is a tough month for most people.  It's dark, dreary and cold.  Your resolutions that sounded like such great ideas at the beginning of the month are either long gone and fueling your guilt or have totally turned into a chore.  Movie and music releases are slower, television shows are in reruns, it's all glum after party let down.

February, you start to pick up a bit.  You picture the good things ahead. You either look forward to Valentine's day, or you look forward to boycotting and complaining about it.

Today is the one year anniversary of my grandmother's death.  She was my last living grandparent. She watched me when I was a small child, helping me with my homework and scraped knees.  She wasn't the grandmotherly type, often issuing rules that made me mad.  But I always knew she loved me.

I remember my grandparents buying me a doll house for Christmas one year...a huge monstrosity wooden kit.  My grandparents quickly realized that this was way above their skill set, and returned it for a pre-fab pink plastic one.  But she took the extra money and bought a wooden furniture set.  The miniature pieces required assembly with glue and stickers and paint.  My grandmother sat at the dining table with me working on those tiny pieces, mumbling under her breath, after school for weeks.  I loved them.  I played with them for years, and my girls played with that dollhouse for a few years.

I am a reformed pack rat.  My life changed many times growing up, and holding on to things gave me a sense of peace.  As an adult, I've had to learn how to let go of those things, whether thanks to a flooded basement or a general lack of space.  The things I keep now must be very special or beautiful or functional.  I still have that furniture, in a shoe box in a plastic tote.

My  grandmother was very difficult in her later years.  My mother and her never had an "easy" relationship, although they would both argue that it was the best it could be.  The stories her friends told at her memorial helped me remember the fun things about her.  And time has allowed me to pull those memories up more readily.  And I've seen some of the things I get from her.

Today, I miss my grandma.  I'm not sad that passed, as she lived a long life.  But I do wish that I had taken the time to learn more about her from before she was my grandmother, before she was a wife and mother.  I wish I had thanked her more often for the memories she did give me.

I think I need to visit with my furniture tonight.

BHBC - Why Women Need Fat

When I first opened Why Women Need Fat, I sighed a little inside.  I see these type of books, and they intrigue me, but then I start reading and after struggling through a chapter or two, I lose interest.  I might pick it up here and there trying to get through it, but it's slow progress.  And the first chapter or two, I felt that slight intrigue, but was still worried.  Not to mention, another diet book...really?

But once I got started, I actually wanted to read this book.

The authors believe that we need to go back to a diet similar to that of our ancestors...hunters and gatherers.  The explosion of Vegetable fats in our food has created a surplus of Omega 6 in our bodies and an extreme deficit of Omega 3, which ultimately causes our body to crave more fat.

As I read the various points they make, I found myself nodding my head in agreement.  My husband and I have been working towards eating a more natural diet for the last several years, striving hard for moderation.  A peak inside our cabinets will show that we have a ways to go, but slowly we are making a dent.  We've discussed how different girls bodies are than when we were their age, including the large number of teen girls with belly rolls.

I do wish that the authors would have at least acknowledged that it wasn't just the diets of our ancestors, but the activity levels as well that helped them to be thinner.  I also would have liked to seen moderation discussed a little more...butter is fine, but we shouldn't eat sticks of it every day.

I'm not sure that reading this book will create a radical change in my diet or thinking, but I do believe that it will help me be even more informed when reading food labels, and allow me to make better choices for my family.

Disclosure Statement: This is a paid review for BlogHer Book Club but the opinions expressed are my own