28 things i love: day 7 & 8

sorry i didn't get to post yesterday.  we hosted an impromptu superbowl party and then crashed after everyone left.  so today i will make up for it.

day 7: having family over

like i said we had people over to watch the superbowl.  and by people i mean, tom, sue, my parents, sister and her boyfriend.  we had a taco bar with chicken, tortillas, guacamole, rice and salsa.  chocolate chip cookies, sweet bread and berry crisp for dessert.  not bad for a last minute get together.  and the game was so fun.  i had no preference  but there was a huge support for the saints so were happy they won.  i love being surrounded by my family and sharing time together.

day 8: alone time

on the flip side, my pt canceled my appointment today so i had some unexpected free time.  we had our conference with sofia's preschool teacher and then i went for a walk with my mom and sister.  then i came home and had some lunch and cruised the internet.  now it is time to pick her up from school.  it really wasn't that much time alone.  but it's rare for me to find myself without something to do and even more rare to be in the house alone.  it's quiet and calm.  all i hear right now is the refrigerator running.  ahh . . . .

but now i have to go.  hope your week is starting out lovely.

28 things i love: day 6

scooter's jungle

it is the place to have your kid's birthday party.  what's great about it is that there is something for everyone, including the parents.  air hockey, go carts, ping pong, bouncy houses, and a gigantic slide that will scar you for life if you don't put your arms up.  (that's sofia going down the slide with a friend) we've been to at least 6 parties here in the last year.  we love it so much more than chuck e. chesse's.  today we went for two of sofia's friends,  twin boys who are turning 5.  i think one of them has a little crush on sofia, it's so cute.  there were so many kids running around, going down slides and using the zip line.  so much fun!


in other news: jordan took his test for the johns hopkins talent search today.  it was a computerized math and verbal test that took him about 40 minutes to complete.  we should get the results in 3 weeks and we'll see if he's eligible to take some classes over the summer.

hope everyone had a good saturday.

28 things i love: day 5

being aware

i had my first physical therapy today at the new place.  actually her name is martha and to be perfectly honest i was a little worried.  when we talked yesterday to make my appointment i thought, this lady is too happy and peppy, she might drive me crazy.  but i haven't been to therapy in a week and although the cortisone shot really helped i feel like my shoulders and back are tightening back up.  so it was time to go again.  unfortunately this place is in burbank, not down the street from my house like the other place.  but as soon as she started working on me and asking questions i felt great.  she loosened me up right away and at one point i could feel the circulation in my arm come back, pure energy all the way down to my fingertips.  the best part of this treatment was lying on this foam tube.  i could feel my back and shoulders open up.  it was AWESOME.  no heat or stim this time, kind of missed that.  but she was very caring.  so my homework this week is to be aware of my body.  i have a tendency to slump my shoulders and tighten my upper body.  as soon as i feel that i need to push my shoulder blades together and engage my core.  also to be aware of the feeling in my fingers, what makes them numb or feel tender or painful.  and then to be aware of my environment that makes me feel stress.  that one will probably be the hardest to control.  taking that moment when i can feel myself tensing up, and remember to relax and breathe.  easy right?  i'm doing it right now.

going into a busy weekend.  but will still try to post.

28 things i love: day 4

jordan and basketball
here is a picture of jordan and the entire school basketball team.  one of the dads plays for the denver nuggets.  any guesses who it might be?  he's the tall guy in the back.  he is sponsored by nike so all of the players got nike basketball shoes for FREE!  well, technically jord didn't get his but he will have them next week, long story.  jordan loves basketball.  i have even admitted to myself that he loves it more than swimming, and i'm ok with that.  he always has fun when he plays, win or lose.  he smiles on the court and runs back and forth.  he is even trying to get a little more aggressive.  it's great watching him play and enjoy himself.  (although sometimes i think the reason he loves to play is because he gets to drink a whole bottle of gatorade.)  i just wish the season was a little longer.  but today was another cool memory in his academic career.

28 things i love: day 3

being snack mom
actually today was a tough one because there was a lot to love.  but being snack mom topped the list.  sofia is very active in planning the menu for her classmates.  this morning it was bagels and cream cheese, turkey sausage, cantelope and melon and orange juice.  i always want to plan something interesting but find that the kids really like simple; cheese and crackers.  it turns out that this group of kids are good eaters.  so next time i may be more adventurous and bring in something fun.  as snack girl sofia helps with the calendar for the day, she sets the table and gets to sit down first.  she loves that.  after snack the kids and teachers thank the snack person and their parent for bringing snack.  i laugh because when they ask sofia (or andrew and jordan when they were in preschool) what my name is she always says betty.  the school knows me as gioconda.  so i have to explain the reason behind the two names.  it always gets a laugh.  i love watching sofia interact with her friends.  she has a lot of friends who are boys.  two in particular whose mom told me that they love her because she doesn't just play girl stuff.  that's right, she can hang with the boys and dress up with the girls.  i love that!

a few other things to love: jordan's teacher emailing us because she thought there was an error in his grade point average.  he received second honors and she was surprised.  she went over his report card and found that he missed first honors by .07.  that's it.  so close.  so she wanted us to know that he had done an amazing job the first semester and that she would work with him to make little improvements that will give him what we know he is capable of.  what a special place to go to school.

andrew will be playing for the trojans this year.  he has moved up to farm baseball and his coach sounds really motivated and ready to go.  i am so thankful and hopeful that this will be a better year.  i can't wait to see him in his uniform.  sorry uncle bill.

going out to the movies tonight with some moms from school.  we will see extraordinary measures.  really looking forward to it.

happy wednesday

what's not to love?

28 things i love: day 2

hearts

i love hearts.  big, small, glittery, plain,  pink, red, blush, rose.  they all mean the same to me.  i especially love the hearts that the kids draw and the occasional one i get from b, wink, wink.  i know it's everywhere this month; on cookies, cakes, balloons,  but it makes me happy.  and what is wrong with being happy about love?  if that doesn't get you wait until you see the valentine cards that sofia is making with hand drawn hearts and pink glitter!

in other news:  sofia had her assessment today to see if she is ready for kindergarten in the fall.  the cut off at CHA is September first but they do take each child individually and see what is best for them.  we are now seriously considering waiting one more year and putting her in the pre-k program.  i'm evaluating all of the information.  we have a few months to think about it and there will be a reassessment in june.  the director did tell me that her auditory recall was phenomenal.  she can remember numbers and names better than any of us.  great skill to have.  either way she will be a great student.

jord had a basketball game today.  they are really struggling against some teams that have better players.  the score today was 30-11.  but it was our highest scoring game.  but he is having a great time.  he also got a medal today for academic honors in the first semester of school.  he is doing amazing.

i went to pick up andrew in his class to head out to jordan's game and i got to hear him read his i love poem to the class.  among his favorites were: i love my family, i love kit kats, i love blue and i love corn dogs.  he does.

that's it for today.

hello february

wow that one snuck up on me.  february is my second favorite month of the year, the first being october.  i don't know if it's valentine's day and seeing all the red and pink around but there is something about this month that makes me go ahhhhh.

or maybe it's because it is the short month before my birthday.  as of today there are 37 days until the big 4-0.  yikes!  not stressing at all.  thinking of ways to celebrate, but alas none of the options involves going to new york for a week to eat, shop and see plays.  maybe next year.

i wanted to do something different this month and focus on the things i love.  life has been a little challenging lately so this will help put me in the right spirit.  i will post everyday for this month with something i love.  don't think i'll make it?  you'll have to check in and see, got that mike?!  and yes i will be making some kind of scrapbook to document.  hoping to work on that tomorrow.  but for today, here is what i love:

28 things i love: day 1

 

Lovey Gummy Tummies from Trader Joes

i am definitely a gummy lover.  any fruity, gummy, chewy candy wins me over, not so much chocolate ,.  so when i found these at my beloved tj i knew i had to try them.   they have a little burst of cherry flavor in the middle that is a sweet surprise.  and of course i love the lovey hand holding the gummy.  she's pretty sweet too!

in other news:  went to the doc today and he gave me a shot in my wrist to help relieve the pain and numbness.  wow, that was not fun.  painful, uncomfortable and it made my fingers go completely numb.  but now they feel better.  thankfully he only did one wrist, he said it can have overall affect.  i hope so because i don't want to have to do that again.  now i'm not sure what else will happen.  i will have physical therapy again, with a new pt because my insurance no longer covers the first pt place.  and i think i see a deep tissue massage in my future.

check in tomorrow for day 2 of 28 things i love.