I forgot in all those months of pregnancy & nursing how much I love my coffee.
How could I forget so easily?

I know it's not the best habit to wander back into. But at this point I'll go with the lesser of two evils. What are the evils you ask? Caffeine/coffee addiction vs. messy house. Yeah, coffee is winning right now for me!!!

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What I've really found rewarding and productive is starting my day with a healthy smoothie for some nutritional punch and following it up with a few cups of coffee interspersed throughout my day. 

I think I'll try adding in some freshly juiced carrots/veggies & apples about lunchtime next.

Photo Credits: freestockphotos.biz

Realized I forgot to come back and post pics of Lil J's nursery. Boy, time sure flies by. So here's to some catching up on my part.
Here's a link back to my previous post:
http://ellasmindlessmusings.blogspot.com/2010/01/design-challenge-1-tiny-wic-tiny.html

pull out the vintage hardware details.

also picked up on clearance.

back & take a pic of that up.

1 DD home sick with a stomach bug
1 baby just over said stomach bug
1 momma praying the rest of the family (including herself) escape said wrath of bugs
1 physical therapy appt rescheduled due to Therapist out w. the flu
1 new violist on hold with lessons as both nearby locations are waitlisted
1 night to haul up mega trash bags from the basement purge we've started
1 nearly 9 yr old boy really excited about his upcoming birthday party & sleepover
1 kitchen in need of some re-organizing mojo
1 family game night to plan for the next week
1 bedrm nook to build (hopefully during spring break)

2 days to pack for a couple's getaway
2 attempts to get living room window properly treated for it's draftiness (we'll attempt to permanently treat this uninsulated bump out issue in the spring)
2 bickering, restless boys getting cabin fever with all the below freezing temps
2 wks left to get some major bedroom switcheroos accomplished
2 sinks full of dirty dishes to tackle
2 dental appts to reschedule [again :( ]
2 loft beds to disassemble

3 cleaning days until the weekend
3 floors NEEDING mopped
3 kids need revised chore charts and reward systems
3 mirrors to shine
3 bedrooms to swap
3 errands to run

4 loads of laundry calling my name (uggh)
4 calls to make
4 rooms to finish revamping
4 kid beds to move

5 stains to treat
5 windows to dress

... if only there were an unlimited supply of time!

The week started off with older kids enjoying the tail end of their 4 day weekend. 
For the youngest one, it meant a special trip to the Dr. for what turned out to be an ear infection. Of course, it was on the heels of a 2 wk lingering cold.
Here's her in a happier recent moment:

OK...
I've obviously forgotten what it's like to have a lil one in the house 24/7. It's simply been way too long and I've gotten quite a bit longer in the tooth. I'm kick starting the New Year with a new blog post. Kinda funny when one thinks about my last blog post.

New year, new blog look. Having scooped up some good deals at Victoria Secret's Semi-Annual Sale, I was inspired and moved to feel the pink. Love is in the air with upcoming Valentine's Day and our Anniversary. February 2011 will be extra special this year. More on that to come...

Sweet big, baby girl J is kicking my mommy butt! I love her to bits (does that go without saying?). We ALL love her to bits around here!!! She is so very funny and such an imp at times. Here are some recent outtakes from life with baby J: she said "dada" and with all our prompting for a "mama"... for wks her response was "dada", suddenly she said "mama" and added "baba" (bottle), then as suddenly as "mama" started she stopped the "dada"... this went on for wks, just last wk she found "dada" again; inside 2 wks time she went from army crawling, to scootching on her bum pulling herself with her arms, to inchworm crawling, to pulling herself up to standing (making me wonder if she'll walk before she full out crawls), to yes full on crawling after 4 days of almost no horizontal movement- all pulling up to stand; loves peek-a-boo... imitates the vocal inflections to "say" it with us and pulls blanket up in front of her face on her own; oh the fabulous open mouthed baby kisses (is there anything as sweet in the whole world?); baby kissing games- daddy asks for a kiss and she kisses N, N asks for a kiss and she kisses daddy; in the middle of family dinners at home she starts "the wave" (and yes we all join in, it's a such a hoot, so far she doesn't even attempt it in restaurants); about 3 wks ago she started letting go and standing on her own while distracted with a new toy or dad's cell phone, in the past week she has walked a step between furniture or one of us and a piece of furniture repeatedly; just yesterday she started this odd half smiling/ tilt her head back thingy- looks sweet, odd & inspired all at the same time; today's thing is pulling her arms straight out & behind her almost like she's channeling a proud penguin in another life; tonight she clapped... another 1st and she was super proud of herself (love, love, love those first moments of self pride... there's just nothing else like it in the world).

Big sis C has been so adoring of little sis J. She waited such a looooooooong time for a full time lil sis. Makes my heart melt to see them interact and C be so loving to her. I knew that side of her was still in there. Good to see more of it these days. Really hoping it's a turning point for her. C has picked up the viola and really seems to enjoy it. It's good to see something else she's interested in and it seems to come pretty naturally for her. Still the avid reader and writer. She's growing up too fast. Would spend all hours on the phone, if we'd let her.

Big brother N has such a special way with lil J. It's almost magical the way those two click. She simply adores him & lights up instantly when he pays her attention. N's newest sport he's tackling is basketball. He did pretty well for the first round of games, going back for another set soon. Still the avid video gamer, loves his PS3.

Big brother J wants so badly for lil J to light up for him the way she does the other two. At times she does, but she doesn't fully trust his sure footedness with her yet. He gets frustrated so easily and it's terribly hard to see him hurt especially since it's not for the lack of his trying. I know he'll win her over soon. She does love him as a playmate like no other! Htried his hand at basketball and did well, but his heart seems to be still with soccer, so he's going back for a round of indoor soccer this winter too. Jaymes loves building legos, drawing & coloring. He found a new affinity for cross country skiing this winter too. Both boys love to be outside.

You know the sayings: "Trying Two's" and "Terrible Three's". I think I'm adding "Tremendous Teen's". Some days it's good, some days they amaze you and they're absolutely awesome, some days you hardly know they exist (they can be so MIA), some days it's bad, some days so awful you wonder if you'll live (or if they will) to see the end of the teen years, and some days you just never know from one moment to the next which it is or what note the day will end on. Oh, I might add "Twixting Tween's" to the mix too. Yes, I think I can say N is officially on that horizon now too. What happened to my sweet baby boy? God grant me strength and more patience than I can fathom. While touching on God and asking for things: please grant me the wisdom to handle more Ex drama... just when you think it's all behind you and you'll get a bit of a breather... well let's just say wonders never cease.

RENEWAL
That's my word for the year. Renewing family bonds; renewing our home functionality; renewing friendships; renewing faith in ourselves, each other and the Lord; renewing our health; renewing our way of living; renewing our perspective.
Maybe my word for the year should have some assistants, meet: Reclaim, Prioritize, Declutter, Organize, Simplify, Laugh and the catch phrase: Live Large.

Our first household project that falls in line with renewing our home functionality is our laundry room/family closet. I'll touch on the progress more soon. It's inspired by the Duggars, but we definitely have our own spin on it (we don't have nearly that many kids and plan not to). All I can say is I am truly loving it!!!! It truly is the best functioning room in the house (at the moment anyway).

Home projects on the horizon: command central revamp, bedroom swaps, buffet/scrap desk, pc desk revamp, bedroom add-on, partial porch conversion to a mudroom, hallway, half bath reorientation, storage room clean up, wiring upgrades, shed organizing, paint, paint & more paint.

Self projects on the horizon: eating well, staying hydrated, intentional exercise, cleansing, toning, stretching, getting back to my former strong self, creating again and praying with more intention and more often.

Couples project is to get back to date nights. Aiming for one a month to start. We love spending the time together, there's just never enough of it.

Well I think that pretty well sums things up. Hope to be back by this time next week.