Five Minute Friday: Awake?

Linking up with Gypsy Mama's Five minute Friday. This week's topic....awake?

Starting: 7:38

Awake as in I am not sleeping in my bed? Sure. Awake as I am aware, present, and ready? Not quiet. I don't feel like I have been awake all week. It has been a blur. I started my new full-time job, got my kids on their new schedules, had a huge meeting on my second day of working, and put our fifteen year old dog to sleep on Wednesday. It has been an unpleasant blur.

Don't get me wrong, I am loving my new job. It is exciting, new, and am I sooooo thankful to have full time employment. But being a full-time working mom of three definitely has its challenges.

My dog....oh my goodness. Hardest and saddest thing I have every gone through. I was numb, asleep if you will, until last night. My mom had put the sweetest picture of her on facebook and I WOKE up. I grieved, and cried, and cried. So lonley and sad without her there. I took a shower, cried some more, and promised myself I would grieve more this weekend. Today, I just need to be asleep, while awake. Going through the motions is what is getting me through.

I look forward to being awake again. To enjoy what is around me, my gifts and blessings. I think when life gets tough, it is very hard to be awake. Kind of a coping mechanisim, I think.

So here is to a weekend of AWAKENESS, of enjoyment of life.

Stop

Image of my sweet, beautiful girl. She is finally at peace, but so missed.

Back to work!

I am feeling amazingly peaceful and organized the night before returning to work full time. I worked full-time for many years....with three little kids, those years were a blur. A mostly bad blur:(. So, after quitting, staying home a few months with the two younger kids, I returned to school and got my Master's degree. Have been working part time since.

I guess I just feel like the timing is right now. The kids are older, in school all day...we need the money....and double bonus: I am super excited about my new job!

So, it is 7:15, dinner is done, the kids are bathed, lunches are packed. The week's grocery shopping is done. Bills are paid. Sheets are clean. Written notes for babysitter and kid's teachers. Just need to pick out an outfit and I am done. Ready. Probably won't sleep:)!!!

So,here's to full time moms!! Bless all of you, it is alot to juggle, but I have high hopes it is worth it (this time;P)!

Five Minute Friday : ROAR

I'm trying to keep this blogging this up as long as I can........so, here is my Five Minute Friday!!!

Ready, set, ROAR?!:

This week's topic is ROAR!! I am only feeling good things about this ROAR! Lately, I feel like roaring all the time! ROARING that I am happy! ROARING that I am excited!!! Excited to be working again, excited to have a schedule! Excited to be helping to provide for my Family!!!

ROARING for my ability to help boost the self-esteem of ladies, particularly ladies who are in the early childhood field. Each person that I help, in return helps nurture the young children they care !! That is something to ROAR about!

I guess I used to think of the word roar in a negative way. Roaring used to remind me of lions, of meanness, of harsh words and anger.

But this roar that I feel bubbling inside of me right now is a good roar. A great ROAR! I want to ROAR my happieness to everyone. Sometimes you have to roar to be heard! Really! I am so glad that I finally found my roar. That I can share my roar with others. That I can TEACH others to ROAR. \

We can use our roars in good ways. We can use our roars to praise. We can use our roars to spread the word. To spread many roars.

Feeling pretty feisty today. Ready to take on the world. WoooHooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

Stop.

Linking up to Gypsy Mama's Five Minute Fridays and loving it!!

Happy New Year: back to blogging!

Well, my last post was about starting back to work and how tired I was. Apparently, I never got past the tired and frantic state, because I did not post the whole Fall semester! Wow! And guess what?! I realized that this blog is a journal, keeping me aware of my feelings and more in tune to what is happening around me! Aha. Another advantage of blogging!

So, what happened while I was not blogging? I was totally consumed with the classes I was teaching and attempting to maintain sanity at home. The results: I feel like I have aged five years. Actually, I look like I aged five years. No joke. I exercised ONE time the whole semeseter. I consumed way too much wine and junk food (ahem, not good comfort replacements) and just feel YUCK!!!! When did this all hit me? When I was looking at pics of myself from Christmas! Holy smokes.....did NOT like what I saw!!!!

Anyway, enough looking backwards..........I have so much to be excited about and to look forward to!!! I got a new, full-time job that starts Jan. 9th! While going from an adjunct teaching position to a full-time positition seems like it might make my more hectice....I think it will make me more organized and fulfilled. As much as I enjoyed teaching college courses, not having an office, benefits, and colleagues made it isolating and frustrating. I now still get to work with adults, have an office ( meaning my house will be less cluttered), and be on a real schedule. I am super excited about this. Still a bit nervous (who isn't starting a new job?). I also am starting my term as co-president of our local early childhood organization. This will be alot of work, but again....I am SOOOOO EXCITED!!!!!

Something else to be super happy about....my three beautiful, happy, and healthy children; my supportive and funny husband, and a BRAND NEW NEPHEW (born December 11, 2011)!!

Anyway, hoping to attend to my blog more frequently in 2012! Happy New Year to all!!!!!! Here is a pic of the sweet new addition our family!! So excited for my sister and her husband!

Five Minute Friday: Rest

Linking up to Five Minute Friday at gypsy mama.

This week's prompt:

start 12:30
Do you ever feel like this week's prompt is so absolutely perfect that you want to scream the prompt out loud!!??Well, this is how I feel right now! I want to scream the word REST!!! But I don't have the energy to do so.

I started back teaching this week. this semester I am teaching three classes. I am excited because I love teaching these ladies(and one gentleman), but balancing work, kids and life is soooo tiring. My kids are all in school, but I spend the day preparing for classes, cleaning, paying bills etc., then the kids come home, organize their homework schedule.etc. And now three days a week go teach.

Every bone in my body is screaming rest. I know I am being over dramatic.I know there are people out there who need rest much more than I. But still...........I want to nap. And I actually think I may, two more hours till kids get out of school.

When I am this tired, I become a bad mom, a bad wife, a bad housekeeper,a bad teacher. Rest is good. Tired and achy is bad

HOwever, I appreciate what I have and am exteremely grateful that I have been called to be a teacher.

Stop

Five Minute Friday: Older

Whew!!!!!!!! What a week! Looking forward to my five minute pause with Gypsy Mama!!! Today's prompt: Older.

Go:

Older. Obviously, we are all getting older. Every second of every day. But do you know who is getting older the fastest?! My eleven year old daughter. Oh my. She started middle school this year. I have seen the child change soooo incredibly quickly! SHE is loving it! She loves the independence of a new school, where really, parents are not welcome. I don't say this meanly, it is just how middle school is. She now loves boys. She jumps out of bed at 6 AM to do her hair and change her clothes. She talks on the phone after school. She is meeting new friends from other schools. Being admired by boys.

Guess who is not loving it? Her mama!! I told her the other day, You are moving way too fast, you have GOT to slow down!!!!! And I meant it. I can not stop time, but she needs some guidance and a little bit of tough love (which was given to her by her father the other evening....many, many tears).

I didn't realize it would all happen so fast. Really. It is crazy. Where is my sweet child who ran up and hugged me when she would see me at school? Or the child who still played with her siblings and was helpful!!!

Praying hard for her and me. I know the next few years will be challenging. I just keep picturing her sweet and beautiful baby face.

Stop

My new work table=love!!

So I was looking for a big wooden table. You know, the farmhouse type, aged and beautiful.
Like this~

I tried to be patient, really!! I found some really cool ones but they were WAY to expensive. So, I walked into a furniture consignment shop and found a table. It seemed sturdy, it looked like it had potential. I called my husband, and he said...well buy it if its what you want! So, I did. And then I waited for him to come pick up at the store. He did not like it and said it was not worth what I paid for it(which is true). I told him I didn't care, I could turn it into something I liked.

This is not a picture of the actual table, but it is the style. That oak/veneer with the parquet top. But mine is alot bigger, like a small kitchen table.

Okay, it is not the most attractive style (at least for this decade), but the size was perfect and it is was in good shape. I first needed to strip off the veneer finish. I have never stripped furniture and was kind of nervous. I used Citris strip, steel wool pads, a putty knife, and mineral spirits to clean off all the junk. It was a mess. I would work on it for a couple of days and get frustrated and leave it for a couple of days.

I did love what I saw underneath, and knew that whatever I did I wanted to see the parquet pattern on top. I orginally thought I would stain the top a dark walnut and paint the sides and the legs a mossy green. I'm sorry I have no pictures of the next steps. I was changing by mind by second, I swear!!! Anyway, the stain looked great until I put on the paint, but then the stain didn't look dark enough and I really didn't like the green.

Sooooo, I then just started to find things in my garage and layering paint on the bases. I went ahead and used the green, followed by a turquoise and finished with a creamy white. I then sanded all areas, making some scratches and chips, and finally applied Valspar antiquing glaze. I LOVED it!! To me if looks like driftwood, with blues and greens peeking through.

I was still not satisfied with the top. Then I had a crazy idea, make the top look like metal!! I ran and bought some Martha Stewart metallic paint and just went ahead and painted over the stain. I know I was risking covering the parquet by not stripping the stain, but I was so OVER stripping and starting over! I put on two coats. And you can still see the parquet!!

I also painted the inside of the legs with the same color metallic silver. I really love how this turned out! Sorry all of the pictures are in the garage, we have not cleared space in the house yet. I can't wait to set it up. Just it time, too, I start teaching next week and do all my preparations at home.

Late edit:
A couple pics of the desk in its new home. Now I need a cool chair to fix up:)!

With excitement, I share my new table with the following sites: