Insomnia, and random thoughts (I wish & I hope: Series I)

Tonight, right now, this is what's on my mind

I wish.......

• that my iBook had a longer power chord
• ...and that it had a longer battery life dag nabbit!
• that I didn't love sugar so much. It would sure make it easier to shed this baby weight.
• that I didn't have to cram all of mine and my baby's belongings in this room at my parents' house (but.....I love spending this time with my family, esp. since the hubs is deployed. I couldn't ask for a better situation really)...........Well - unless they had a guest house. Now that would have been perfect. lol
• the Army would let him stay in the barracks, instead of making him live off base in Lakewood/Tacoma for an apartment that will cost us $800 a month. (And can I just say how outrageous I think it is, that the cost of living is that much in an area that is really shady, and crime-ridden in some areas - esp. around the bases)
• I could learn to love cardio. 
• that west Phoenix would get a Whole Foods Market.
• that Calvin's eczema would go away
• that my grandmother was more active, and interested in things/hobbies she could share with us. 
• that my grandfather was still alive.
• that Tom's mom didn't live in BFE Texas.
• certain family members didn't have to be such jerks around the holidays, and ruin the spirit of Christmas. ...in fact,
• that said family members might move a little further away.
• that Phoenix, had good, safe, clean light rail or train systems running throughout the Valley.
• that the mall set to open near us would be a teeny bit more upscale. Just a teeeeeeeeny bit.

I hope......

• that my sis and I get totally ripped by the time we finish P90X!! 
• that my husband would have an easy time time landing a job when he gets out of the Army next fall, with a job that will value his experience and skills.
• that I could land a job.........by say, February, when he comes back from his deployment.
• my mom makes drastic changes in her lifestyle so that she can meet old age with health, and enough stamina to enjoy her family and her grandkids.
• my sis and I can make our birthday trip to Vegas a reality, for a weekend of crazy shopping/gambling/eating/more shopping/spa treatments. 
• to get  a master's degree by the time I'm 35.

Christmas update

Hello everyone, hope you all enjoyed a great holiday! Our Christmas was mixed bag of circumstances this year. On the midnight of the 23rd, my mom had a very mild stroke and I had to bring her to the ER. She wasn't released until the evening of the 24th, and we were very relieved and thankful that she was OK. She was too exhausted to join  in any Christmas festitivites that night of course, but she told us to go to our relatives house, and allow everyone to have some quality time with the baby, since they hadn't seen him for months.

Calvin and my mom

But the next day, everyone managed to get together for a Christmas lunch at my sister's house, and my mom was well enough to make some dishes (which we tried to tell her not to, but the woman doesn't know when to stop! We will need to work on this for the coming year. She always wants to do way too much, and she doesn't understand that she has limits. I am going to work on her to go with me to yoga, to build up her strength, stamina, and release some stress.)

I had Cal open up the gifts that the hubby sent us thru Amazon, lots of books, and DVDs for the little guy - good educational stuff to start building his collection. But honestly, the lil guy had more fun messing with all the wrapping paper and empty boxes. lol

My lil chunky monkey, and his Paul Frank Tee

 
Having a blast!

Well, now for the deets. The hubs basically bought everything on the Amazon wishlist I sent him (I told him next time, to just pick a few things, that way an element of surprise is still there.) sheesh

Building the DVD collection with some childhood faves of mine. We just watched 1 dvd of the Sesame Street Old School set, and it's so genuis! Seriously! I love how it's imaginitive, but not dumbed down. And they have adults talking like adults, kids of all colors/ethnicities in the skits, and funny dialogue between puppets and actors. It's still entertaining! You guys have to get these if you're building your movie/cartoon collection for your little ones.

Getting ready to school my son on his heritage, y'all! My mom was excited to see the one with the first Tagalog words. She's really looking forward to teaching Cal some of the native tongue. lol

Here are some of the pages, and how they teach the tagalog words.

And some other oldies, but goodies, that  were an absolute must to get his library started.

Now on to Mommy's gifts, I hadn't meant for him to buy all of these, but again - he went overboard.

Reebok Smoothfit Trainer! Yay! They're the lightest cross trainers, they feel like they're made of styrofoam! lol

Polar F6 Heart Rate Monitor in pink coral!

Prada gift set, with full size lotion, perfume, and purse-size dabber.

I was thankful for all the gifts that hubs got me and Cal, and for the toys that he got from all my relatives.    I was a little on the down side this Christmas, mainly because hubs isn't here to share Calvin's first holiday, plus I don't have a place of my own to decorate.  Then my mom being in hospital was very frightening for all of us of course.  Apparently, ERs experience a higher amount of cardiac patients around this time of year, due to overeating of rich foods, stress and heightened activity around the holidays, a drop in temperature....all leads to the heart having to work over-time.

Anyhow..... I've learned a meaningful lesson this Christmas, to be especially thankful for the time we have with our families. Do not take it for granted, people.

I already knew my mom was the cornerstone of our family, but I didn't realize how much she brought everyone together. She is the commensurate planner and hostess, offering to cook up a storm at a moment's notice, and inviting everyone to her house for any holiday, birthday, fight night, you name it.  And when she was in the hospital this Christmas Eve, there was an emptiness in our family gathering, and I will never forget it.

I want to try and take that burden of having to plan and organize everything, and when we are finally in a house next year, I want to start hosting more and more family events. It is, after all, really stressful to get them together. It'd be nice to say, "Mom, you don't have to bring anything - just bring yourself."  Christmas 2010 is gonna be off the hook - I can't wait!!!

And here's a little Calvin close-up for ya, to send my lovely readers off with a smile! :D

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday, and their loved ones!

xoxo

Health and Fitness Blog Roll

image from HERE

I know a lot you are interested in fitness, healthy eating, but also love good food porn pics, recipes, and workout tips....
I've stumbled upon some awesome blogs lately, that I think everyone of you should look into. They're truly inspiration to eat well, eat healthy, and get active.  (And these bloggers update on the daily....so it's great for frequent tips on your workout and eating habits).

FoodFitnessFreshAir

*written by a yoga instructor/runner/college student/pescaterian (no meat, but fish yes).  Great commentary on healthy food alternatives.

LiveLaughEat

*written by Allie, a college student at Duke, sorority girl, absolute health and workout fanatic, and she looooooves Whole Foods!  She has awesome photos of her daily meals (but she's also on a budget, and she hates to waste food.)  She does a lot with yogurt, tofu, oatmeal, almond butter, and anything pumpkin.  She also showcases really creative salads, and how to eat more fruits/veggies. A must read/visit!

Meals and Moves

This is another inspirational story about a young 24 year old, after a bad breakup and snowboarding accident, she found herself at her heaviest weight ever, and she vowed to do something about it, and go balls to the wall. Both she and her mom decided to do Body For Life, via the book.  She has a ton of before and after pics, and she shows you how-to on exercise moves.  Her body is killer, and she didn't do it overnight. She tells you outright that she did the Body For Life challenge twice, and it took her nearly 2 years to get that fit.  Makes it realistic for all of us......you can't get sustainable results overnight, it takes time, dedication, and a lot of hard work to get rock hard abs like hers.

Be Fit. Be Full.

This is a really cute blog by a gal named Meg. She has recipes, exercises, and health tips on here (she go her bachelor's in exercise science and nutrition, so she knows what she's talking about.) But she's not fanatic about eating super clean all the time, which is what I like....in fact, her philosophy is "The key to happiness is a healthy body and a happy belly!" Those are words I can live by!
She also takes pics of her meals, and of all the cools things she does with her hubby and their dog. Awwww! 

EatLiveRun

*this blog is written by a certified fitness and nutrition expert, who also happened to get a culinary degree in baking/pastry (I know, what?!)  So she not only talks about eating well balanced meals, she talks about the benefits of whole foods, the art of moderation and not to deprive yourself of anything. She also gets invited to lots of legit foodie events, and takes great pics.  

I've been wanting to post this blog roll for a while - I'm sure there are more like them out there, but these are the ones I've been stalking lately. We could all use a little help with motivation and different ideas to keep fit, lean, and healthy. Do check them out when you have the time, loves!

Xmas Giveaway, update #2 (dated 12/3)

This little haul from the Asian market is going to be added to the Yummy Mummy Xmas Giveaway....

• a set of Shisem lashes
• a double set of Darkness lashes
• a bar of my all-time fave Japanese chocolate (I don't know what it is about Japanese chocolate. It isn't too sweet, it isn't too bitter......it's just the perfect mellowness and I had to stop myself from breaking into this one actually. lol)

and....

 Hello Kitty heart keyring

and HK lip palette. :D

Thanks, for all of you who've shared your meaningful, and heart-felt comments about motherhood.  It feels good knowing I share this bond with other mothers.  It's all true ..... motherhood teaches you greater patience, empathy; it amplifies your ability to love and cherish others.  It is often times challenging, frustrating, and a seemingly thankless job, but it is also the best & most important job I know I will ever have, and the rewards are endless and many.

**I need to take a break from my 'hauling' because the rest of this week is pretty hectic. I want to pick up 1 or 2 more things, to round out the assortment. But I will update u, of course, on what gets piled on here. :D

Spread the word on your blogs, pretty Mama's!

My Yummy Mummy Xmas Giveaway (update #1, w/ pics)

Ok, everybody. This is my first Giveaway contest. But since I'm in the spirit of holiday cheer, I thought it'd be nice to get a little packet together, to celebrate all of your wonderful, beautiful mommies, who give so much to your children and your families, and often do little to celebrate yourselves.

I will be choosing  1 winner....all that I ask is:

• that you must be a current follower
• and that you must be a Mommy (obviously) 
• you must leave a comment to this post with the phrase "Add me to the Yummy Mummy Christmas Giveaway", and a little tidbit story about what Motherhood has taught you. 
• I will randomly be picking the winner from the pool of gals who've left comments (and not just from my Followers list), so please make you sure comment w/ the above somewhere in your comment!  I don't have a ton of followers, and I'm sure there are even fewer of them that are mommies ..... so your chances at winning are pretty good I'd say.
• I WILL SHIP INTERNATIONALLY, FOR ANY OF YOU OVERSEAS WHO MIGHT ENTER. 
• I will be choosing the winner, at random, on December 19th, which is a Friday.  I will ship the prize Priority Mail, doing my best to get it to the lucky winner by Christmas. :D

*I will be out and about, purchasing things for the prize (*hint: it will have some Foodie things, some Beauty/Makeup related things (of course), baby/child related things, ......basically a mish mosh of things that I happen to love, and would like to share with you.) 

 I will be posting pics of the items I'm gathering so you can salivate, and marinate in what you might be winning. Hee hee 

*****Update #1 as of Dec. 2nd*****

As promised, I told u guys I would provide pics as soon as I got around to buying the stuff. You guys wanna know what you're gonna win, right? Of course you do!!

Hauls from 12/2....just a little sampling

For those of u who follow my tweets, you might have heard me go on about chamomile tea.  I give it

my little guy in a bottle, sometimes, to settle him down.  It's not completely fool proof, I have to say,

but I like to give it to him, in lieu of water...when he just wants to have a bottle. And of course....mommies, it's good for us, for a little bit of quiet and relax time (cuz we know how often we get those, right?)

Oh! And a little sumthing for your sweet toofs! (See's Candies lollipops! They're tasty....AND they're only 80 calories each!)

And for the beauty fix....some neutral colored items from Lancome. (I will take swatches in the daytime....) Everything is  fairly neutral, and will compliment nearly everyone's skintone. The eyeshadow palette , Defincils mascara,Creme Radiance clarifying cream-to-foam cleanser and Tonique Radiance toner are smaller, travel-like sizes....but the lippies are full-size.  

I will continue to add to the loot, when I'm out and about, and I will continually update this post and add pictures.  I was thinking about baby/kid oriented items...and I may have to wait until I pick the winner, and throw in the specific item in there as a surprise before I ship it (u know, due to age, sex, of your child, etc.)

Thanks for reading, ladies!

Happy Holidays! And Good Luck!