Christmas Break

Hello all,

It's been awhile. I suck. I have been super busy with school. I know I haven't said much about school on here because it was supposed to be about Me and Robert... but I just want to share. We started a program this year that forced the kids to practice fundamentals. They have to "pass off" to us all of the different things we have them do each grading period. So... needless to say we are at school a lot listening to kids play. But that's cool because I know how each of my kids play and it's like mini private lessons with each of them. It has made them better, well the ones who are trying to do it. We also made it to where the kids had to get 30 stickers from August to December (a sticker means they got a 100 on something) in order to be invited to attend the Spring Trip next semester. We had quite a few reach that honor. And quite a few who didn't because they're lazy. But the ones who made it - we passed out Olympic Medals (the program is called Band Olympics) based on how many stickers they earned. 30-34 was a bronze medal. 35-39 was a silver medal. 40+ was a gold medal. Passing out those medals to the kids made all of the busy-ness that was this semester worth it. :-)

Next semester I have joined a team for the school wide Teacher and Staff competition "Hambrick's Biggest Loser". Really it is so I can wear jeans every Monday. But losing weight would be nice. If I gain weight I have to pay $1 for every pound gained. So there's my motivation to at least maintain! I'm going to try the crock pot route to see if it will help with the whole eating out issue that Robert and I are plagued with. If for nothing else to save money!

Robert will be moving to Minnesota (hopefully) at the end of this upcoming summer to learn how to be an instrument repair technician. It is a 2 semester program, so he'll be back at the end of the next school year. I'm not quite sure what the living situation is going to look like yet. I think going up to Minnesota with him would be difficult because I'm not guaranteed a job. At least I have a job now. If/When I stay I'll either end up living with my Dad - or finding a roommate and a really cheap situation just so we can afford to live in two different states. At least with him only staying those 9 months, he won't have to register to live in that state. That costs a lot of money... And plus, vacations really would be that! I would fly to Minnesota every chance I got. That will be cool. I'll already have clothes there or I can buy what ever I need there (warm clothes wise) and never even have to bring a bag or anything. Just a purse full of things I would need!

Alright, once I get a house I think this blog will be more of what I want it to be. I want to try different organizational ideas and make life more efficient. I know I can do that all now... I just don't have the funds or the room for it really. My life is as de-cluttered as it can be. I just need to keep the space cleaner so you can tell haha. :-) When I have a house that just means that Robert and I are both finished with school and are working and making money! Until then... they will remain ideas! Have a really good holiday break and enjoy your family and friends!!

Life's too short to have too much stuff,

Sandy

Well it's been awhile...

Things are kind of stagnant for me right now... The house gets dirty throughout the week, I've stopped buying the healthy meals I planned for. Mostly because the vegetables I bought never got eaten but rather rotted in my fridge. I'm still staying away from boxed meals and trying to make more frozen veggies and homemade pasta/rice dishes. I've attempted to make a macaroni and cheese dish, but they've all sucked. A lot. Plan B suck. But it will get better... right?

I've thrown around the idea of getting a second job to afford maid services. But that's just silly. I would just like more time throughout the day to get things done. I spend 2 hours driving to and from work (which stresses me out a lot - some people are cut out for commuting - and some are not) and then I spend a good 9-11 hours at work Monday through Friday. I'm not trying to whine - but wah! I would like to live closer to work or find a job closer to where I live. Both things aren't really feasible right now, unfortunately. I would also like to, in the future, find a job that has less time commitment so I can have more time for a family. Not that I don't like my job now - good things are happening and it's very exciting.

I've got to make a new plan. So far my plan includes buying simpler meals to make during the week, which I started doing last week and is actually working better. My ultimate desired result of making this plan work, is to just stop eating out. Eating out is just a monetary leak... And my plan for the keeping the house clean... ha, well I guess that would be to not get it dirty in the first place! haha I guess we will see how that one works out. But really I guess it's just to suck it up more and do a little more each night, so it won't be a lot on the weekend.

it finally started!

Hello world,

I wanted to share that my workout buddy and I started doing stuff today! Woo hoo! We went on a brisk walk in the neighborhood across the street for about 30-40 minutes. It felt so good outside we couldn't resist staying out. We were supposed to go to the "gym" my apartment complex has, but they have nothing on the cool air we are experiencing right now.

Speaking of the cool air, I just wanted to throw this out there. It feels like to me that summer abruptly ended and bam there was fall. I'm not complaining by any means. I am very happy actually. I don't like the hot weather. I'm ready for winter again!

This past weekend had many ups and downs - but the overall consensus was good. South Padre was fun and I'm glad we went. Robert got to do things that he hasn't done before so that's cool, too. I haven't drank a soda since that post about the pants not fitting in July. This weekend I tried a soda and it didn't taste good to me! So yay!! I'm happy for that! My Dad's girlfriend cooked delicious food this weekend so we didn't eat a lot of unhealthy food, so also good. Keeping up with the healthy eating isn't as hard as I thought it would be! :-)

Life is good. (Minus the crappy apartment we live in - however its still clean!)

Life's too short to have too much stuff,

Sandy

Not looking good...

Hello world,

How do you find energy when you're giving 110% at work for close to 12 hours 5 days a week?? At least my house for the most part is staying clean. The work out isn't working... I'm tired by the time I get home and waking up early to work out... Well... I can just go ahead and tell you No, that's not going to happen. My alarm already goes off at 5:45 so I can start my un-girly morning routine and leave for school in 45 minutes. And I'm a morning person. Not an early morning person. I wake up naturally in the 8 o'clock range. 5's and 6's aren't my friend. ;-) But back to that work out thing... I really feel I'm just going to have to bite and push through the tiredness... the question then becomes when will that happen. Writing this stuff down like this, honestly, makes me feel like a pansy! I'm going to figure this out... I'll keep you updated.

Life's too short to have too much stuff,

Sandy

week 1 - setting goals

Hello world,

Life is getting settled and it feels good. School started and we have finished our first week. It has been one long week, but a really good one! This has been the best first week yet! I'm really excited about the year and everything that we have planned. It's been great. In band we are talking about Goals and how there are long term and short term goals. There was this cool article I read on mindtools.com and am using their SMART Goals. I even made a bulletin board out of it! The SMART goals are Specific Measurable Attainable Rewarding Trackable. There were other words you could use, we just used those because they went along with the activity we are doing this year.

I'm going to apply my own teaching to my life. I'm making a SMART goal for myself. I haven't worked out yet, but my workout buddy and I have made plans to start next week. My SMART goal for the week is to workout at least 2 days during the week and for 30 minutes each day. I'm going to start off small and attainable.

Eating healthier is going to help with this. I'm not really a breakfast person. Just can't really eat in the morning. But I know that if I'm going to help speed up my metabolism then I need to start eating breakfast. I am happy to report that I have eaten breakfast every day this week and I've had more energy at school this week than any other. So that's cool! Also, I have been eating (with the help of my husband) healthier lunches and we've been cooking dinner more often.

The house has stayed pretty clean and that's great. Especially with help from Robert, it's been great living here. (Minus the fact that the apartment is falling down around us.) The idea of living in a clutter free one bedroom apartment is nice. :-) I just need to figure out how to get the laundry fairy to do the laundry instead of eating the socks.... Hah! Good luck with your own SMART goals if you so choose to make one! ;-)

Life's too short to have too much stuff,

Sandy

it's the small victories

Hello world,

It's the time of instant gratification. I struggle with this as a teacher, motivating my students to keep pushing! Anything worth achieving takes time and dedication! Without realizing it, I got sucked up into the frame of thought that it has to happen RIGHT NOW! Sticking to eating better and exercising is hard because there isn't instant gratification. Last month, I went to a friend's new place to check out the new digs and I wanted to look cute. So I put on my school pants for the first time since school let out. And they wouldn't even close. I was devastated! And that was even after I had been trying to lose weight and consciously watching what I eat and drink. And they didn't fit!! I had a good time that night anyways. Being around great friends is always a fix to any bad day. :)

There's good news though. I have pretty much eliminated sodas and other sugary drinks from my everyday life. I also have been trying to cook more and better food. We used to eat out a lot. I mean a lot. A ridiculous amount really. But anyways, staying on track and eating healthier food and drinking pretty much nothing but water and lime juice, I am happy to tell you that today I wore those pants to school today and they weren't even tight, they weren't loose, but they weren't tight. :-) Now if I can only get the exercise on board...

Motivation. How to find it?? I'm still working on that one. My friend is moving down the street from me and is excited to be my work out buddy. I'm hoping power in numbers will help me. It helped before and I stuck to it and lost weight. It's not like I haven't done this before or not know what to do... I just need to start. If I can make it through 2 weeks and continue that next day, I think I will be good to go. I'm excited and I think this will be a good thing.

Bottom line, I'm feeling better; inside and out. Life is good and I can't complain. School is starting out great. My house is clean and organized and not crowded. My husband is awesome. My dog is cute. And my belly is full. I feel like I'm finally living a life that I can thrive with. :-) Let's just keep this up!

Life's too short to have too much stuff,

Sandy

homey feeling

Hello world,

Life is going good. My home is feeling better and better everyday! I wanted to show you some pictures.

Here is our new bedroom furniture. Sorry for the weird glare - that's from the globes in the fan. We still need some art for the walls, but that will just have to wait.

For extra storage in our little apartment I like utilize hooks! I have tons of nails and hooks on/in my closet. It's off the floor and there is a place for everything!

 Here is the new couch and the family. Without the new picture. 

Here is the new couch with the new picture! We got this awesome picture from my Dad's warehouse. He has all kinds of stuff for home decoration. I also want to get some sort of small skinny candle features to hang on either side of the picture. 

Here is the bookshelf. It doubles as the office area as well. There is some decoration at the top. 

I'm trying to highlight the reds in the room more. I think throw pillows for the couch and perhaps different curtains will help me with that. The curtains blend into the wall... I don't like that...

Do you like Prissy Dog's big ole' bed?? So does she! ;-)

This was the DVD rack we got from my Dad's warehouse. They also have a lot of furniture!

All of the DVD's were on the bookshelf, and it was way too over crowded. I didn't want to get rid of anything. This DVD rack was perfect. It fits behind the door and even gives us a place to put our shoes! Above more hooks! To hold leashes, hats, and keys.  The cube on the floor is where we keep all of Prissy's treats and medicines.

Here is our pantry. Another bookshelf I got from my Dad's warehouse. I really like it the bookshelf. It is an A frame bookshelf that just fits perfectly. We didn't get a pantry with this apartment so we made our own. The food was just all over the counter tops in the kitchen. Now we have more room in the kitchen! :) 

The only thing left to fix up is the table. Right now it's kind of a catch all for all of our old office stuff. I'm working on a project for school that is using the computer. But I'm almost done with it and then we can get rid of most of the stuff on the table. 

 In the bathroom I have my toiletries organized in this gardening bag I got from the dollar store. It's just tacked on to the wall. It keeps everything off the counter tops and it's easy to find. The jewelry boxes are in there only because I don't have room for them in my bedroom. That's where they used to live. I have my jewelry hanging on hooks behind the door. 

To make more room WalMart (I'm sure other places too) have things you can stick on the mirror. That's what we are using to hold our toothbrushes and toothpaste.

A few more things that I want to do is get baskets for the entertainment center to hide as much stuff as I can. Then hang the TV on the wall so I can move the cable box and the PS3 to the top giving me more room to spread out my office stuff. 

I also want to find an end table that doubles as a two drawer filing cabinet that locks and that looks decorative for the living room. Right now our filing cabinet is in the closet and we have a hard time getting to it. And mail is piling up on the table... That has got to stop!

The apartment is staying clean, but I've only gone to school for two days. So we will see how long it lasts. It definitely is easier to keep a 1 bedroom apartment clean than the two bedroom. :-) Good luck with  your organizing and decluttering!

Life's too short to have too much stuff,

Sandy