Summer Slimdown

Over the past nine months my level of physical activity plummeted to a very low level.  One of the unfortunate side effects of studenthood.  I spent the majority of my time sitting, sitting in my car, sitting in class, sitting in the library, sitting to eat, and sitting to watch a movie or read in my free time.  All that inactivity combined with holiday eating, regular eating, snacks...what can I say!  I am a foodie!... led to too much of me.  So, I have embarked on a summer slimdown challenge which I have been faithfully sticking to for the past twenty days.  They say it takes twenty-one days to break an old habit or instill a new one.  My scale has not shown a drastic decrease yet, but I have seen a big improvement from regularly exercising.  I am looking slimmer and feeling great!  Just in time for swimsuit season too!!!           

Dear Blog . . .

Dear Blog,
It's me.
Sorry I have been gone so long.
I have sold my soul to something called higher education.
I will be released soon; I hope. . .
Be back soon.
Elizabeth

Beautiful Day

          Sitting and relaxing, I have missed this.  My life has gotten so busy the last couple of months, I failed to take any time to stop and smell the roses.  More accurately, failed to notice there were any roses at all as I whooshed passed them.  Between tests, papers, reading (tons of reading!), working, and house-sitting, I have let one of my very favorite months nearly slip away.  The trees are all changing into their amazing array of reds and golds, the days are cooler, the nights are cold, and much needed rain has started to make an appearance.  *Sigh* so beautiful.  I have reached the halfway point in the semester, and I know there will be many moments of stress and craziness over the next eight weeks, but I do not want to let life slip by in a stressed frenzy.  Life is too short not to have fun.   

And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.  Genesis 2:2

My Week

          I didn't pull any all-nighters this week, just up-early-and-go-go-gos!  Thank goodness for weekends with no morning alarm clocks in them.  Happy first day of summer!!! :D
 

  

Best Mail Ever!!!!!

          I got the coolest mail today!!!  Two books from Kylie over at Eclectica!  Kylie did a whole post (Click here!) about this traveling book website, and I am super excited about being the first stop for A Girl Made of Dust and The Harp in the South.  Thanks Kylie!!!        

Study Overload

          I am soooooooo tired of studying.  The combination of mornings in class and afternoons kitty sitting means I have been spending hours each day delving into the wonders of earth science.  The brain has reached max, no more today, shutting doooown.... 

     

Never Say Never

          Whenever the subject of school comes up, my answer has usually been, “I’m done with school.”  But, I have also kept the motto, “never say never” in my mind because whenever I dig in my heels God taps me on the shoulder and points me down some path I had either disregarded or already turned away from.  So, I have once again embarked down the educational route, but this time with a much more definite plan.  If all falls into place, I will complete my Associates degree at Sierra College next spring in Business Administration.  I then intend to transfer and finish out my Bachelors online.  I am still unsure where I will be transferring to, but I am leaning toward National University because of their unique and accelerated program.  At twenty-four, I find time is a higher priority than it once was, and finishing out my education in a timely manner makes the most sense.  I will be taking one class over the summer, four in the fall, and three (or more, if needed) in the spring.  I am really excited about this new direction in my life.  Now I just need to work hard, pray hard, and dream big!          

Another Empty Nest

          The baby robins have grown and gone!  Last Monday the robin parents spent the majority of the day flying around the front garden trying to coax their four fledglings from the nest.  Their adolescent offspring spent their day ignoring the parents.  I finally gave up checking to see if they left, but Rachel was vigilant and at dusk she saw them take flight.  The front feels so quiet now.  I hope they decide to return next year, I can’t imagine a spring without baby robins in it!      

Getting crowded.

Mama robin watching from the nearby pink dogwood.

Daddy robin being the bread -- I mean-- worm winner!

Ignoring their parents.

Getting a little more adventurous.

Almost dusk!

Good luck robins!!!  :D

Baby Birds, Big Eggs, & Blood Moons

          Did anyone watch the moon last night?  It was so cool!  We kept checking on the moon throughout the night until it was almost fully covered, then we sat around on the deck and watched the final transformation.  The last little sliver of the glowing moon slipped behind the earth’s shadow and transformed into a ruddy-red orb suspended in the sky.  The eeriest thing was the lack of light.  Even when the moon is at its smallest there is always that comforting glimmer of light in the sky, but not last night.  I didn’t take any pictures; taking moon shots are always difficult and I opted to just enjoy the experience. 

          I did get a picture of the new baby robins though!  I never got a chance to see how many eggs were inside the nest, but it looks like there are at least three baby robins -- it is hard to tell when they are just a jumble of little pink things.  Daddy robin is quite spastic when we walk in the front garden, making tons of noise and trying to lure us away from the nest.  Mama robin, on the other hand, is as cool as a cucumber.

         News among the domestic birds: huge eggs!!!  One of the Anconas has always laid large eggs, but today we found one almost as big as a goose’s egg!  We candled it and could see it has two yokes in inside.  My first thought was “that had to hurt!”  It just goes to show, the size of the bird does not determine the size of their eggs. 

          I won’t be blogging over the next couple of days, since I am going down to Santa Barbara with friends!  I did compete forty days of blogging, but I just learned that Lent this year spans forty-six days.  I don’t ever want to become legalistic about blogging, but I have really enjoyed the challenge of posting every single day.  So, TTFN for now!  Happy Easter everyone!!!     

Baby Robins

Ancona Eggs

Lottie

Dottie

        

            

X-tremely Nice Saturday

          What a fun day!  It was a great Saturday (minus the wasp Lydia stepped on in the garage, which stung her toe).  We played games, ate good food, talked, consumed yummy chocolate, drank many cups of tea, and watched the final film in the X-men trilogy.  Speaking of X, I have recently begun watching The X-Files series online via Amazon Prime.  Our inconsistent internet connection makes watching things online difficult.  So when I received a one-day-only offer from Amazon to buy the complete series on DVD (movies included) for $88.99, I jumped on it!  I look forward to watching this new addition to our Sci-Fi collection free of the Wi-Fi!   

       

Food, Frog, & Floats

 

Sunday Silliness

           Sunday, a new week looms ahead.  We had quite a busy day with guests and music club, but we did manage to squeeze in some silly time taking online Disney quizzes.  I kept having technical difficulties, which Lydia found very amusing.  For some reason, the website did not believe the color red was my favorite!  Sometimes a little silliness is just what you need at the end of a busy week.   

TGIF!!!! Hurray For Sleeping-In Saturday!

Today

Today I . . .

1.  Put on cute clothes AND makeup (big deal for the past week).

2.  Attended bookclub.  (There were 7 of us today!!!  A record!)

3.  Finished all the gluing needed for a 35-mount order.

4.  Went grocery shopping with mom.

5.  Picked up some sushi at the store for dinner -- super yummy!

Tonight I will . . .

1.  Put on cute and comfy P.Js.

2.  Make popcorn.

3.  Watch the new Tinker Bell movie, The Pirate Fairy, with the family!

Not a bad day; not a bad day at all.  :)

   

Grey Day

          Today has been a quiet and grey sort of day.  So far, only a smattering of rain has come down allowing for a brisk healthy walk in the cold air.  

           Rachel let the chickens out a little early today.  They were quite disappointed my camera was not something for them to eat, but they quickly moved on.

          Bingo and I also checked out the bird's nest from last year.  Yesterday, a pair of robins, likely the same ones from last year, was seen repeatedly flying around the hydrangea bush.  Today, I noticed their repair work on the nest.  The first nest picture I took yesterday, the next two are from today.  They have totally relined the inside and repaired the outside.  I look forward to hearing baby birds again!   

 

          Even grey days can be beautiful, and the yard is certainly arraying herself in some amazing colors.  I just heard thunder!  And now rain.  It looks like we will be settling in for quite a springtime storm.  I see a cozy fire in my future, and maybe a cup of cocoa.         

Matthew's Choice

          While most of us were excited to watch Frozen again, it was Matthew’s first time seeing it.  He has been listening to the music for months now, and he sat with us the entire time watching the film.  Tonight I walked into the Tiki Room and discovered him watching it solo, grinning and laughing.  :)

Spring and the Unexpected

          Today took an unexpected turn when I noticed Bingo rubbing at his mouth and hanging it open after eating from his food dish.  Dad and I took him to the vet after discovering blood in his mouth -- which he appeared unable to close.  It turned out to be a tooth ready to fall out.  The loose tooth had shifted preventing him from fully closing his mouth.  Thankfully, it was a very simple procedure and we were able to pick him up two hours later, minus one tooth.  All his other teeth are perfectly fine, and he is very healthy.  Bingo was very happy to be home again, and we are all so glad he is back safe with us.  I did manage to capture some pictures today before our trip to the vet.  Spring is officially here!   

Monday Musings

          Today I went out to the farm!  Due to being sick, rain, visitors, and other appointments it has been seven weeks since I had been out there.  It felt so good to visit and work in the garden.  All the recent rain has refilled their pond.  It was at an all-time low before I left for Disneyworld.  A pair of Canadian geese slipped along its surface while half-a-dozen turtles sunned themselves on a floating board.  All around, signs of spring keep popping up, and I realized with astonishment that the calendar is about to concur!  Is winter really over?  I know the rest of the nation is more than ready for spring to arrive, but this year has been one of the mildest winters I can recall.  Amidst all the chaos of the world, the injustice and frustrations, it is comforting to know that spring will come regardless of who rules the world.  Leaders and governments rise and fall, but God rules over all.     

Blackberry Battle

          Today, Rachel and I tackled the blackberries.  Our arch enemy:  the Orcs of the weed world, the Daleks of the garden, and the destroyer of clear space.  The battle was tough and we have many more days of fighting ahead of us, but it felt so good to get outside in the sun and breathe the fresh air.  Spring is here!

Happy Hens and Bob

Bingo

Hacking Away

The Days' Spoils

Battle Scars

TGIF (Time Sure Goes By Fast!)

          Another Friday is here!  This week has felt sooooo looooong.  I hope by comparison the weekend goes really sloooooooowly.  Still, looking over the week, I am happy with all I have accomplished.  I even got my exercises in four days this week.  It has been challenging fitting it into my schedule, but my goal is to make time every single day this forthcoming week.  I have also been trying to eat really well and consume smaller portions at meals.  I was doing really well until tonight.  I prepared dinner:  mini pizzas, veggies, and Virgil’s root beer (the best!) -- a healthy meal overall with a treat, but I went back for seconds!!!  It sure tasted good, but now I feel extremely stuffed.  No popcorn for me tonight.  I hope by the time Easter comes I will have lost nine pounds.  So far, the scale hasn’t shown any difference, but I hope to see that number slipping down this week.  It feels so nice cleaning out and giving things away, I figured I should try and get rid of my excess self, as well.  The results are taking a little longer to see than in my closet, but I figure I need to just keep on plugging away, and avoid temptation!!!  Happy Friday! :)