the "once a week cry it out" plan

i tend to get over-worked about most everything. any teensy weensy little baby problem turns into the end of the world when stacked on top of my already mildly stressful life.
due to this rather annoying tendency, i have another tendency - which is to have an emotional break down. on a fairly regular occurrence.
to help ease my darling husband's compassionate mind and for the sake of our darling marriage, i decided to go ahead with the "once a week cry it out" plan.
instead of getting so worked up over little things, i'm going to plan on letting out my frustrations once a week. preferably mondays. i will allow myself to cry out all the problems & mini-traumas which happened and will continue to happen, and then move on with my week.

the most wonderful thing is:

from the very second since i made this little plan, i haven't had the need or desire or even tendency to break down. not even a little bit.

it seems like by just allowing myself to feel the stress, to know it is there, to be ok with letting it out, all of a sudden, i don't need to cry any more.

like the acknowledgment of the pressure was all i needed to release it.

revolutionary, really.

so, for now, i'm going to stick with my "once a week cry it out" plan.
and maybe, just maybe, i can keep the peace.

i love peace.

multitasking

those of you anxiously awaiting to read if i have successfully completed a pull-up... i am sorry to disappoint. negative. failure. definitely not.
it was close... but this isn't horseshoes.

in other spheres of my life,
i am currently eating yogurt, blogging, skimming a chapter i should have read for class today & registering for classes. amazing.

making chana masala & naan for supper tonight & getting so excited for california i can barely stand it.

yesterday i cried listening to ray lamontagne's "you are the best thing" for probably the millionth time. but, it had been a while and it felt really good.

i shifted the couch & the dining room table so they are now sitting at angles in our little rental house. i think it looks lovely.

and my new running shoes should be arriving any day... can't wait to have supportive, cute, non-hole-y kicks!

love the sun. love my pb& j. love love.

california, here we come.

monday - class/teach/work
tuesday - class/teach/work
wednesday - class/teach/work
thursday - class/teach/work
friday - hop on a plane & head for cali.

we're off & running to friday... when jason & i will be going on our honeymoon! hooray! we're staying at a condo just a block from the beach (for free!) & planning on:
a. sleeping.
b. eating loads of delicious vegetarian friendly food.
c. walking around checking out the sights.
d. *cough*cough* well, you know, it is our honeymoon!
e. and repeat.

we are both in desperate need for a vacation & i can't wait to be in a warmer climate with plenty of sunshine & not even a teensy-weensy bit of this muddy, disgusting snow.

let's just hope i can get these 3 papers done & finish out the class/teach/work week strong!

also - big news - yesterday, i went for a run. a real run. outside. it was glorious! and today, i will be attempting a pull-up. i've been working on it for a while & i think today is the day.

wish me luck.

and i wish you loads of luck too - have a wonderful, wonderful week!

p.s. happy spring!

hurdling toward the weekend.

wednesday is whipping by already.

i would love for it to be friday. love.

but, it's not. so, we're going to make the best of the middle-of-the-week-ness. right?
right.

the other night some major changes took place at our humble little abode.

i switched the night stand to the other side of the bed & shifted the bed over about a foot. what commenced when the husband came home was near chaos.
it was pretty comical (in retrospect) how one small, teensy, weensy little thing could erupt into a major reconsideration of our entire lives.
maybe not quite so grand, but close.

so, we couldn't decide what to do. jason needed a place to put his things (i.e. watch, keys, wallet, etc.) but did not want to walk all the way around the bed to put them on the night stand.
i didn't want to move the night stand back because it made the room look so much more inviting in this new spot.
so, we stewed. and mulled. and fairly nearly completely ignored each other until - aha - let's just switch sides. who says the way we've been sleeping since we got married is the only way? so we flip flopped & now problem solved.

aside from the fact i now place my phone, book & glasses on the floor.

moral of the story? i don't really have any idea.

other than - this is the story of our lives. little changes. major considerations. and reconsiderations. molding. mashing. squeezing. fitting. until finding just the right rhythm. for now. until we decide to change it again.

does this make sense to anyone else? living in community, in close relationships, one doesn't automatically fit so perfectly into the mold they hope to. there must be compromise, i think. until one finds what works. for a time. until things change again.

this is perhaps the most difficult, most beautiful dance i know.

on a scale of 1 to 10

how inappropriate is it to take a nap in the commuter lounge on campus? they have pillows... can i take this as an invitation?

monday is back - i swear we were just here! & i'm a bit exhausted...

but we had a stellar weekend:
grandma's house where chef dean cooked up a veggie lasagna & succotash (holy yum)
art gallery open house with free cheese & wine
church + relaxing sunday at home + extreme productivity in the reception planning section of our lives.

so, overall, stellar. i'd say.

today is a busy one, par usual, but i'm looking forward to this week of busy-ness & a fun little par-tay on friday with the faves.
in spite of the fog & fuzzy monday feeling blech, i'm hoping for a great one.

p.s. i can not stop listening to the kings of leon cd. i tried to listen to the new pearl jam on my way to school this morning, but nope, had to switch right back to the good stuff. try it. you'll like it.

here it is

wednesday already. can you believe it?

this week we've had some absolutely stellar menu items:
tofu stir fry with organic noodles & a peanut sauce. mmmm.
beans & rice and the best guacamole we have ever had in our lives.

tonight, jason is on for a double & won't be home, but i've got big plans to bake some whole wheat bread (& try out a cinnamon loaf too).

i love food. can i say this enough?

in other news...
my days are going well, and i have been finding myself enjoying each separate task i do. whether it is a lecture, class discussion, working with non-English speaking kindergarteners, or researching for my professor. i think it's important to be fully in the moment. taking each thing as it comes. i'm just not very good at it.
(sigh) practice.

i know it's going to be a good day when i've woken up early to have coffee with jason before he leaves for work. i have time to get everything i need to get done - accomplished. i get to go to yoga class. then come home & bake. & take a bubble bath. & read finish the 3rd mitford book.

oh, i love my life.

sunny monday

following a sunny sunday - hoping desperately for a wonderful week

yesterday was divine:
early morning wake up & cleaned the kitchen
church
homework - finished!
swimming
and a delicious supper

i have a confession... i think about food non-stop. i mean, all day. when i wake up in the middle of the night. in my dreams. during class. while i drive. it's ridiculous.

most of the time it turns out ok - i create some stellar meals & my husband & i get to eat them. but sometimes it is a serious distraction - like from homework, for example.

but last night we made black bean avocado quesadillas & roasted sweet potatoes seasoned with paprika. topped with salsa. i don't think we spoke during the entire meal except for an occasional "mmmmm!" it was that good.

generally, i don't blog about food. because i saw this book once that said, "no one cares what you had for lunch and other blog advice". but i think about food all the time. and i let my creativity flow and flow in the kitchen. and my blog is sort of about my thoughts. and creativity.

so, i think it's time for a merge. let's do this thing.