Changes

I realize it's been another long while since the last time I blogged.  We've been very busy!  We spent one amazing month in the States with both the Bolstad and Timm families.  If I get bored, I'll perhaps dedicate some posts to that :)

Nic has left and so far we've been doing a good job of holding down the fort.. I mean, it's only been 5 days, but I'll still take it as a good sign.  I've set a bedtime for myself of 10pm - with Nic gone it's hard to go to bed.  Anyone who's experience time apart from their spouse can probably relate.  But I've been sticking to that bedtime and it seems to help.  It still takes a while for me to fall asleep at night but at least I'm not staying up until 1 AM and then being crabby the next day with the kids!

I've been very conscious about being patient with the kids.  When you're the sole caregiver there are inevitable times where the kids just drive you crazy and when they start fighting, you just want to yell - and my goal is to not yell at the kids out of anger or frustration - I have a system of closing my eyes and counting to 10 and taking deep breaths.  And let me tell you, it really helps!  There really are times when you need to give yourself a time out!

I also have a goal of leaving the apartment every day - rain or shine.  If it's raining, we'll put on our rain coats and go play in the rain if we have to.  It's easy to just want to stay inside all day when you're missing your husband - there's nothing to look forward to at 5/6pm and I tend to just want bedtime to get here quicker so I can put the kids to bed.  But then the kids get cabin fever and go crazy and then I go crazy - and that's a cycle I don't want to start!  So leaving the house is a MUST.

I've gotten rid of Facebook.  And I already feel so much better.  Now if I want a "social experience" I'll pick up the magic jack and call my Mom or Solveig or someone.  Or skype.  Or schedule a playdate.  And that's so much more fulfilling.  I'm tempted to spend my day on Facebook, but without it I instead play the Wii with the boys or read books to Elora or pretend to be a bear so Maximus and Colton can "hunt" me.

I bought a craft table the other day and set it up in our bedroom.  I have lots of planned projects to do and now that I have a space for it, I'm excited to have something to do once the kids are in bed.  There aren't many shows that I like to watch - especially with Nic gone (yeah I get scared).  So having projects to do while I have a movie on has already come in handy.

For example, some time ago I bought the boys matching zebra print comforters.  Shortly thereafter I kicked myself for it because they are polyester and cheaply made.  Which means after the first time I washed them, the batting got all bunched up and the seams started ripping exposing the insides.  So I've decided to take it all apart and try to quilt it together.  I know it's going to be hard - especially since it's polyester (it's slick, so it slides all over the place) and so large, but I'm confident I can make it look better than it did before.  Maybe once I'm done I'll remember to post some before and after pics.

While Nic is gone, I really want to start buying healthier.  Which means the foods I'm going to buy are going to be more costly.  (Fresh produce on average is at least 3X the cost as it is in the States).  I want to buy more organic and foods with less sodium, less sugar, more fiber, etc.  For example, I can't buy Kraft Macaroni and cheese anymore and instead I'm buying this natural Mac'n'Cheese with much better nutrition facts - but it's almost twice as much.  Which is why I think it's better that I'm doing this while Nic is gone, because I won't need to buy as much!

And of course keeping up with the laundry and keeping the kitchen clean are also top priorities.  After dinner its so easy to not clean up because the kids need immediate attention and I usually can't get around to cleaning up until after they're in bed .. and cleaning is usually the last thing I want to do!! So hopefully I can keep it up and maybe the kids will cooperate and play nicely right after dinner so I can get some cleaning in!

All in all, things aren't looking too dreary yet.  Hopefully I can keep us busy enough that we don't miss Daddy too much.