TWTW - already the last in March

Friday Working on a deadline but stole lunch to paint my nails (OPI Angles Flight to Starry Nights and Sally Midnight Drive, which is already looking shitty Monday morning). Leftovers and couch lounging at night. 

Saturday I slept waaaay in and didn't come downstairs until 10. We finished out the first season of Yellowjackets. I worked on a New England trip road trip itinerary and taxes. I was at the end of making a batch of power breakfast muffins and realized I was missing an ingredient so drug my unshowered, no bra, muscle relaxer taking self to the store to get freaking baking powder. I made an uncolorful but good dinner of marinated baked chicken from the freezer, rice, and sauteed cabbage. More taxes, relaxing, watched Four Good Days at night, Ben was reluctant to go to bed, and stayed up to finish Notes on an Execution.

Sunday The book I started the day reading is not the book I ended the day reading. I made a batch of spinach muffins to freeze, then roasted balsamic mushrooms and green beans and sauteed some smoked turkey sausage in duck sauce and hot mustard - I took half to the shore and left half in Philly with MFD. I was back at the shore by 3:30. Bruce and Ben were ecstatic to do some running. There were a few good shells but overall windy and very cold. The clouds were cool with rays coming through, which I love. Lots of arm icing at night, Oscars watching, and reading. 

Last dose of winter here over these next few days. I hope.

TWTW - the one before my birthday

Friday night I saged my house and every being in it in an effort to banish negativity from the hit piece on MFD that appeared in the paper and online Friday. A state rep race out of the gate is not news in our district...unless someone makes it news. Do you have to give up your soul and humanity to do that to other people? I think you might. I heard MFD's side of the conversation and that wasn't exactly how it went. A good reminder that many things in the paper are some version of the truth but not all of it LOL. Thankful more than ever for the mighty village of the people in our lives. This hangs in our basement and it is 100% truth. When you're honest with yourself and the people in your life, you take the hit and stand right back up because you know who you are and what you're about. What he's not about is a whitewashed, perfect Stepford past, present, or future. We have all fucked up and will continue to, and if you think and act like you haven't or won't, that's a problem that's going to come back on you.

Saturday I finished a book, put laundry away, purged some stuff (including some of MFD's stuff, which never, ever happens), texted voters on behalf of Conor Lamb for the special election coming up this week, ate a MFD-made dinner, and watched some Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me. I fell asleep contorted around three dogs on the couch and woke up feeling every single bit of nearly 41. My aching back for real.

Sunday was tough to get up and go with the aching back and the time change. I kill it every Sunday of fall back and walk through sludge of every Sunday of spring forward. I visited Pop for his 87th birthday and got to hang with my mom and Lori there and at Stephen & Aubrey's after, where we visited the best niece and nephew ever and had lunch from Jay's. The pugs were happy I saw Treat Lady because they enjoyed the bones she brought for them. I got this awesome mug for my birthday from Emily and put new pug canvases up on the gallery wall that I didn't add the other week. MFD changed the sheets and I did some picking up and ran the dishwasher and started a new book and suddenly it was 8 pm.

Weekly food prep: Birthday week and only three days at work so nah. I did make a pork loin and buternut squash Sunday night but after I wrote this up so no pics. Breakfast is breakfast burritos though, I always have those in the freezer. I'm going to have to get creative for lunch using whatever's in the fridge and pantry.

Show Us Your Books with me and Jana tomorrow! See you back here for that. 

TWTW - first one in 2015

I'm taking it back to NYE for this one. Frank, Amanda, Eva, and Debbie joined us for dinner and the ball drop. We had a good night culminating in the banging of the pots & pans. Ending a good year and beginning a new one with great friends was really wonderful.

Thursday Debbie and I braved the winds and headed to the Mummers Parade. It was fun as always, although I'm not a fan of the new route they used this year. We saw it all, parking in South Philly and walking up the entire parade route and then back with MFD's band. We met up with good friends along the way and saw the sights of Philly on New Year's Day: sequins, feathers, confetti, instruments, and tons of beer can trash.

Friday I woke up and thought man, I shouldn't be hungover, I didn't drink that much. Then I realized I had a fever and basically slept for 24 hours, which the dogs loved because all they do is sleep. When I wasn't sleeping, I was watching The Wire, drinking tea, and eating the cure all - wonton soup.

Saturday I was feeling about 75%, so I got the remaining Christmas put away and did some laundry. Sunday was magazines, lounging, more laundry, and prepping for the week.

I also switched out some decor in the kitchen. The before has been up for five years. The top photo is a collage made on Snapfish of all the places we've been this year. I can just switch out the collage going forward. Sorry for the crappy window reflections in the pics.

Sunday afternoon culminated in a crap ton of water on the bathroom floor and palpable rage from all dogs - dog bath day!

I don't get sick often, but it forces things I don't often do - laying around, sleeping a lot/late, and not adhering to a to do list. Sometimes that's really refreshing. So while I'm not a fan of the quick virus, I am a fan of the resultant slow down.

This week's food prep was not needed, which is a blessing when you're not up to it. Breakfast is breakfast burritos from the freezer. Lunches are steak over spinach/tomato/cucumber salad. Dinners are leftover pork & sauerkraut, baked chicken and steamed broccoli. Snacks are carrots, bananas, and power breakfast muffins. Cookies are not on the menu, which will be a shock to the system after existing on them for the month of December.

Happy birthday to my father-in-law today!

In case you missed it, I'm giving away a copy of book one and two of the After saga to one lucky winner. Go check it out.

Some housekeeping: Choose Your Own Adventure Challenge Link Up on December's Simplify Goals is this Thursday, January 8. The next Show Us Your Books Link Up is Tuesday, January 13.

I hope you guys had a wonderful new year. Here we are, back at a full work week...what's that? I think we're about to find out.

Linking up with Biana at B Loved Boston for Weekending

TWTW - the one after Christmas

If you're looking for a Christmas recap, click here.

This weekend was one of general sloth. I didn't wear real clothes or makeup. I didn't leave the house on Friday or Sunday and was only out from 9 - 11:30 on Saturday morning. It was truly glorious. I did things I don't usually do - fell asleep on the couch and didn't get up to get into bed, slept late, gave the dogs lots of lounging with me time, and watched a lot of movies. MFD and I both found this weekend really relaxing and much needed.

What we watched: The last half of the third season of The Wire and the beginning of the fourth. Re-watched Cruel Intentions, Throw Momma From the Train, and Full Metal Jacket. New watches: Divergent - I liked it more than I thought I would and definitely liked Tris more than I liked her in the book, Her - Very weird, and The To-Do List - not too good.

Saturday morning I hit HomeGoods, TJ Maxx, DSW, AC Moore, Michael's, and Marshalls. I strolled leisurely with my iced coffee and picked up new wall stuff to change out kitchen decor, a new fish eye type mirror, two new scarves (the purple and paisley were Christmas gifts, the other two were purchased Saturday), and a new mirrored tray I'm obsessed with.

I removed all Christmas except for the tree, front window display, and exterior. MFD would prefer it all be out forever and I want it all down immediately so we compromised like adults. He's happy because stuff is still out and I'm happy because the surfaces are no longer cluttered with a lot more stuff than is typically out.

I never get why people consider those who remove Christmas decor the day after to be less full of the holiday spirit. It's interesting. Is the spirit of the season in our hearts or is it in the decor we clothe our homes in? I care if someone is kind all year, not how, when, and for how long they decorate their home. If you want it out, keep it up. If you don't, don't. I'm a Sunday after Thanksgiving to day after Christmas person myself.

The rest of the weekend was spent doing glamorous hausfrauing like washing couches/sheets/towels, doing four other loads of laundry, picking up, food prep, minor purging, and being covered with dog hair.

I enjoy Christmas, but I'm always really jazzed as the new year approaches like a big fat unwritten 365 page book I can write as I wish.

I'm back at work today. If you're off this week, I wish you rejuvenation. Of course our holiday season doesn't truly end until after New Year's Day - I mean Mummer's Day. Tomorrow, my look back on 2014.

Linking up with Biana at B Loved Boston for Weekending

All Aboard the 4 Day Work Week Bandwagon

This weekend, I ran around like a loon and busted my ass Friday night and Saturday day in order to get MOST of my crap done and have some time to play on Saturday night and a few hours to sit on my ass doing absolutely nothing on Sunday. I so rarely have one hour to do absolutely nothing, so it was glorious.

This weekend's errands and hausfrauing included picking my car up from the bodyshop; getting half of my halloween costume at the Halloween store and Michael's; attempting to purchase shoes in DSW (unable to commit. Balls.);  food shopping at Redner's; putting groceries away; making breakfast for dinner on Friday; changing sheets in our room and the spare room; purging and organizing MFD's office; purging and organizing my travel items, purses and bags; organizing the shed out back; dusting top floor, living room, dining room, basement; vacuuming top floor; changing photos out in frames; cleaning the kitchen; cleaning the powder room and bathroom; doing six loads of laundry; walking the dogs twice; clipping coupons; making dinner and soup for lunches on Sunday.

If the average person has this many things to do every weekend, plus working if they work on weekends, and making it to their kids' activities if they have kids, or their own activities if they're involved in sports or a band or whatever, when the fuck do we get to relax?

And I didn't even list what MFD had to do, or get to do everything on my list, because I discovered the Investigation Discovery Channel, and it sucked hours from my life on Sunday. So this week I will freeze since I didn't get to switch my summer and winter clothes out. Thanks a lot ID.

When will America realize that working more hours does not equal working harder or more effectively or efficiently? If we don't feed the side of us that needs time with our families or time to be alone and center ourselves, we are simply depleting our resources. I don't think you can do all of your chores, errands, activities AND have time to just relax and enjoy in two days. That's not really a work/life balance. I vote for a vacation system that is standard in much of Europe. I vote for the four day work week.

I vote that I get off of my soapbox. And before anyone says "uh, duh," yes I know I am not the first person to ever advocate for the four day work week. I just want to add my voice to the crowd's. Other weekend highlights:

Finally getting MFD's office organized.

Seeing a man at Parx Casino with hair like Patrick Swayze's in Roadhouse.

Mushroom herb mac & cheese from Annie's Eats.  



And now back to the grind. But at least I have dinner at one of my favorite places, Las Margaritas, with some of my favorite people to look forward to tonight. And I bought my first three Christmas gifts today. And I ordered our Christmas cards today. And pin a rose on my nose.

Ole!,

SMD