Selena Gomez & The Scene - Love You Like A Love Song

Beeskers and I are obsessed with this song! :)

Stickers=Cooperation

Maybe it's just us....

For the longest time, we've had to get after Beeskers to brush her teeth better.  I was conflicted about my responsibility to make sure her teeth are clean and not wanting to criticize her. 

We had too many arguments about it.

I think we've turned a corner.  Why?  Because of stickers.  Let me explain.

So in an effort to satisfy my need to make sure her teeth are getting clean and her need for independence.  (She said that she feels like a 5 year old if I try to watch and make sure she's doing it right.), we came up with a system. 

She goes in and brushes (she has a 2 minute timer from the dentist), flosses, and uses mouth rinse....all by herself.  Then I get to inspect it.  If she does a good job, then she gets to pick out a sticker.  I have a small stash.  So far, it's working like a charm.  Her teeth are clean and she doesn't feel like a 5 year old because she gets to do it herself.

So people...if you are out there...learn from my mistakes.  I should have tried something like this years ago.  Sometimes you just have to stop and realize that your way isn't working and try something new.

I'm making Progress!!

As many people know, I have been working on geneology for the past couple of years.  I created a family history scrapbook.  It's beautiful!  I love it and have flipped through it so many times. 

But I'm not even close to finished.  I am now working on my husbands side of the family.  I've recently been in touch with my father in law's cousin who tells me that she's got photo's that she was supposed to share with the rest of the family.  I haven't seen them yet but I am looking forward to getting them.

I've also found a distant relation on my side of the family.  She has sent me a diary of my great-great-great grandmother's.  She's also sent me some photo's of the cemetery where this same 3rd great grandmother and her husand and his parents are buried. 

Isn't it beautiful?  It's called the Tall Cedars Cemetery in Tinsleybottom, TN.  It's very small and old but that just adds to the charm doesn't it? Tinsleybottom, TN was an area in Tennessee that my ancestors settled.  Their name was Tinsley of course.

I'll say it again....I love Geneology!

What/Who is your Inspiration?

I've been thinking about inspiration today.  In regards to this eating plan and trying to stay on track, my inspiration varies from day to day.  Today I have three inspirations:

1.  My husband!  He's such a great example of being fit and healthy.  He doesn't whine about it, he just does it.  I wish I could have his attitude.  I <3 heart <3 him! 

2.  My daughter!  I have a great desire to be a good example for her.  So far, I haven't been the best example but I am a firm believer in "it's never too late".  I want her to feel like being healthy is normal and not like a diet. 

3.  My health!  I don't care about being skinny.  Yes, it would definitely be a bonus to lose weight.  It would probably boost my self esteem.  But I'm okay.  I don't feel horrible about myself or anything.  But physically I want to feel good.  I want to be energetic and not worry if I'll end up with stomach pain. 

So those are my sources of inspiration today. 

Update!

Okay....so it's only day two of my New Year's resolutions, but oh well! 

1. Getting organized:  Not going so well....I did make a schedule to stick with so that I can be more prepared and get things done a little better but so far I haven't really stuck to it....  :(

2.  Going to Bed earlier:  This one is going pretty well.  I have been trying to go to bed in the 10 o'clock range.  Speaking of....I've got to go to bed soon!

3.  Cutting back on Soda:  This one is also going pretty well.  I have NOT had a soda for the past 2 days.  It's not much to brag about yet but hey, I'll get there.  I've been getting some pretty rough headaches (from quitting caffeine cold turkey).  But I've been taking Exedrin Migraine.  It has caffeine in it but at least this way I can regulate the dose and maybe take a little less for the next couple of days if I get any more. 

Well...that's how it's going.  On a another note, I've been trying out this eating plan that Jason is on.  Yesterday was fantastic!  I did well and felt great when I went to bed.  Today, I've flip-flopped.  At some moments, I was feeling proud of myself and my resolve was strong.  At others, I was thinking, "do I really care what I weigh?  Give me some ice cream!"  This is so very typical of me.  :)  Don't worry...I'm not ready to throw in the towel yet.  (But don't think I haven't thought of it.)  Oh well, Jason has been a tremendous support with it.  He's helped so much from helping me know what foods to eat to knowing when to eat them.  (Eating every 3 hours is a lot harder than it sounds!)  This wasn't really one of my resolutions but it is for him so I'm doing it along with him.  I'm already feeling much better and we're only in 2 days!

That's about all I've got to say on Resolutions....I'll be back later in the week when Beeskers has her 2nd official gymnastics competition!

More Resolutions

I was sitting here trying to get organized and I thought of a couple more resolutions that I want to make for 2012.  You see, I'm a nightowl.

So one of my resolutions is to start going to bed in the ten o'clock range on most nights.  The second one is even scarier!  You see I have an addiction.....

I would like to drastically cut down on my soda intake.  Diet Sunkist is my favorite but I also love Mt. Dew on occassion.  So that's it, those are my resolutions.

To Recap:

1. Become more organized.

2. Start going to bed earlier.

3. Cut down on my soda intake.

2012-Bring it on!

2012

With each New Year, people every where make resolutions that almost always fall by the way-side after a few months.  I'm definitely guilty of this.  I can't even tell you how many times I've promised myself that I'd lose weight or exercise every day.  And I can't tell you how many times those resolutions have been forgotten after like a week.  (Yes, I am weak.)  This year, I decided that I know all year long that I need to get healthy so that is NOT going to be my resolution this year. 

Instead, I'm making a resolution to get more organized in 2012.  I've been thinking about how there are so many times that I've wanted to do something but it doesn't happen because of poor planning on my part.  About once a week, I have to go to work first thing in the morning and that means getting Beeskers to the bus on time.  I know this would go so much smoother if I planned a little better.  It annoys me when we're running crazy trying to remember what we need to do to get to the bus on time. 

So I'm implementing some tools I've found on http://www.iheartorganizing.blogspot.com/ .  This website has some fantastic ideas and free printable schedules.

So here's to 2012!  I think it's going to be an awesome year!

Eventful Weekend!

This weekend turned into an eventful weekend. 

Beeskers had her first official gymnastics competition!  She did amazing!  She didn't fall off the beam like she feared and she was able to stick her front handspring.  (she was afraid that she would fall out of it.)  She got some great scores too.  I don't really care what her scores are honestly but I just think it's fun to watch her and she said that she had a lot of fun competing and that it wasn't nearly as scary as she thought it would be.  We're excited for the next one!

On our way to the competition on Saturday, we had to leave the house by 6 am.  It was still dark and caused us to hit a deer that was dead in the middle of the road. You could tell that it had been hit a dozen times already. (Yuck!)  Our car is small so it thumped pretty good going over it.  We made it to the competition okay but then when my hubby went to gas it up, coolant began spilling everywhere!  We had to have it towed.  It's still up north.  So we have a minivan until our car is repaired.  We were so ticked off because we've had so many car problems this year.  Luckily, we were able to find the humor in the situation. 

Although we were kind of sick about having to pay for another car repair, it was a great day watching Beeskers and bonding as a family.



How do you parent?

I've been pondering parenting style today.  When your child is hurt or angry or upset, do you charge in and defend them?  Or do you try to help them accept and tough it out?  I tend to think you should take the opportunity to help them understand that things don't always go as planned.  Although my first instinct would be to charge in to fix things or whatever, I think it's good when things go wrong.  Kids need to learn how to cope when things don't go the way they want.

What do you think?

Decisions Big and Small

This is my daughter.  We like to call her Beeskers.  As you can probably tell, she is a gymnast.  At the present time, she has two practices a week and each practice is three hours long.  It's a lot of practicing, but she loves it and has improved immensely.  Well, the other day, her coach let us know that she is creating another optional class for Monday's.  Beeskers wants to do the class.  It has taken us all weekend to make the decision whether to let her do the class or not.  I don't want her to be under too much pressure.  I don't want her to miss family time.  On the other hand, she loves it and cried when I told her she may not get to do it.  I want to do what's best for her not just for today but in the long run.  And I also want to consider her feelings too.  I called my husband and he suggested that I call the coach and find out what kind of a commitment it would be.  So I called and found out that she can try the class but if it doesn't work out she can quit.  She had the biggest smile on her face when I told her she could try it.  I hope she appreciates that whether the decision is big or small, I always try to consider what's best for her.