7-11 Project: Trick-or-Treat

 Today marks the end of October and the day we've been anticipating all month at my house.  Before we get on to important business, I want to wish everyone a HAPPY HALLOWEEN!  I hope it's Spook-tacular! (Yes, insert comment about how corny I am here.)  We are gearing up for the annual haunting of our neighborhood tonight.  Mr. Grouchy pants is counting the minutes until the sun goes down so that he can get his "trick-or-treat" on.  He got to sport his costume at school today for the Halloween party, and walked into his class with his chest puffed out and hands on his hips.  He is going to enjoy every minute of people referring to him as "Superman" or "Clark" instead of his "boring name", as he informed me this morning.  Little does he know of how hard BC fought to try to talk me into naming him "Kent", so that on all legal documents, he would officially see Clark, Kent.  I veto'd that real quick, but that hasn't seemed to stop Grouch from putting on the outfit EVERY day this week and truly believing in his little heart of hearts that he is indeed, Superman.  He will just learn to fly when he is "Growed up". Sure honey, whatever you think.  Here is a pic below of him in his class this morning in all his superhero glory:

 And now for the update.  The 7-11 Project deadline is quickly approaching and I am scrambling to check off each item one by one.  This week has been full of activity for the holidays as well as a sense of accomplishment in the progress department.  How much success, you ask?  Let me count thy ways. . .

1.  Read 11 new books.

After I finished "The Help", I decided that it would only be fitting with the Halloween season to start Michael Leehan's Ascent From Darkness; the true story of how Satan's soldier became God's warrior. 

 I am about halfway through it so far.  It is an exceptionally EASY read as the writer is not a professional author and more so writes as if he is sitting across from you at a coffee shop and telling you his life story over a mocha latte.  His inspiring journey out of satanism and depression into a life of serving God with his whole heart is amazing and I can't wait to finish it.  I highly recommend it for any of those who have always wondered about the role spiritual warfare plays in our everyday lives. 

2. Run 11 miles every week.

Regretfully, I confess that this goal has been one that I continuously struggle with.  I believe I have not successfully ran 11 miles in one week but once during this 7-11 Project.  Busyness and laziness have ensnared me time and time again.  However, this week, I ran 9 miles in three days and felt fantastic!  That is, until the fatigue set in two days afterward. I am 5 days away from running my first 5K and am really striving to be able to RUN the entire thing.  We will see.  I may end up running most of it and hobbling to the finish line with exploding muscles. :)

3. Do 11 new activities with the kiddos.

 This Sunday afternoon, we attempted a first. We sat down and proceeded to play our very first board game as a family.  BC reluctantly joined us, but I believe he and I had more fun than Grouch or Stinker.  Candyland was always something I played growing up and I thought that it was a safe choice and age appropriate for our boys.  It was easy enough to explain and everyone was geared up to have a good time. . . .until Grouch started to lose.  Then proceeded the pouting. Oh, brother.  BC and I caught him cheating at what cards he drew and eveverything fell apart once Mommy started winning.  How dare I!?  Let's just say the game will go back on the shelf until such a time when Mr. Grouchy Pants can achieve defeat without throwing his pawn across the room in poor sportsmanship. Or until Mommy relents to letting him win every little game we ever play.  Knowing the competitiveness in myself, I'd say we won't be playing board games for quite some time. :)

4.  Try/visit/experience 11 new places, things, or activities.

I picked up a class calendar at my local YMCA where I like to go run and decided to attempt my first Zumba class.  A number of my friends have said how fun it is, so I decided that would try it out.  Upon arrival, I realized that I was one of the only ones in the class that didn't take it SERIOUSLY.  Everyone was decked out in their skintight spandex and sports bras, complete with headbands and special Zumba sneakers.  I was in a t-shirt and basketball shorts. My bad. I didn't realize I needed to come to look like I was going to be included in the next Susan Sommers Sexy Buns workout video.  I sighed as the class began and immediately fell behind.  Way behind.  As "I'm Sexy and I Know It" by LMFAO blared over the stereo, the booty-shaking commenced.  Hips were swinging back and forth and the pelvic thrusting totally through me off.  Did these women take a DVD home and learn all these moves before the class? I joined in with only about every third move.  I was hopeless.  I had no mojo and I certainly wasn't bringing anything sexy back.  It was entertaining to watch all the 50-year-old "cougar-types", get their groove on.  I believe most of them were probably strippers in a former life.  And all of the 20-somethings droppin it like it's hot could probably leave this class and go directly into a MTV Spring Break casting without a problem.  However, I needed to take my clumsy rump home and study up a bit more on how the Latinas learn how to move their booties.  I enjoyed myself.  And Lord knows the other classmates enjoyed watching me make a fool of myself.  But the next time I go into Zumba class, I'm coming prepared. . .With neon armbands and leotards made for the Macarena.

And now, for the moment all 7 of you have been waiting for. . . .The first ever blog GIVEAWAY Winner!  In my attempt to gain a greater following by launching a book giveaway, I actually managed to gain 5 more blog followers this week than last week.  Not the hundreds that I completely expected to pour in (HA!), but I'll take it!  Thanks to everyone who posted a link to my blog on your facebook pages, who left me comments, and who referred me to your friends.  It means a lot to me that you find my silly little life amusing enough to tune in and see what I'm up to.  :)  I definitely plan to host another giveaway next month.  Maybe with a turkey theme.  We shall see. . . .

Without further ADO. . . .can I get a BIG round of applause for the Winner of the Miss Banana Pants Book Giveaway. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Miss DIXI BEASLEY!!!  Congrats on winning a copy of The Help, The Shack, and Ascent From Darkness.  You will LOVE all three, I promise!

I hope everyone has a safe and FANG-tastic  Halloween (yes, I brought the Corny again.  I apologize.)!  Visit my facebook page "Miss Banana Pants" and post me some pics of your little ghouls and goblins!  I'd love to see all the awesome outfits!

7-11 Project: Weddings and Halloween and Giveaways, OH My!!

Let's get right to the good stuff first. . .who wouldn't rather eat dessert before dinner!?  As promised. . .Miss Banana Pants' FIRST GIVEAWAY is here!  I have decided to spotlight a few of the books that I have been/will be reading as my first gift to my blog readers!  I have recently read and written about The Shack by William P. Young; am currently reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett; and will next be reading Ascent From Darkness by Michael Leehan (who also happens to be from Edmond, OK).  These three books will go to the winner of my first Giveaway for you to enjoy as much as I have!  Here's the details to enter:

Leave me a comment on this blog post AND post a link to my little blog on your facebook page. This will get you TWO entries in the giveaway.  At the bottom of this post, there is a FB button in which to do that quite easily.  I would love to enter you more than twice as well!  If you have friends that would be interested in this giveaway and do the above to get entered, email or comment me and let me know their names and I will enter you another time for every person you send this way.  The more the merrier!  I'd love to get more loyal blog followers and more feedback from all of my friends!

Now. . . .onto the dinner menu. . .

In honor of my dawdling nature, let me begin by telling you about a joyous day that I got to witness this week.  One of my best friends, Miss Emily got married to her Prince Charming!  It was such a sweet ceremony that I just had to blog about it.  I haven't seen a more "personal" exchange of vows since my own.  The bride and the groom both wrote their "love story" for the pastor to talk about.  As well, each proclaimed the "little things" that they love about the other.  I'm not going to lie. . .I totally boo-hoo'd through the entire thing.  It was soooo special!  And Miss Emily and her gorgeous daughter A.J. deserve all the happiness and blessings in life.  I'm so happy to be a part of their new beginning.  Here is a pic of the happy couple. :)  Don't you just want to pinch their cheeks!?  

Okay, Nooooooow we can move along to the 7-11 Project progress report.  This week has been full and busy!  I'm hoping this next week, I have double the success in accomplishing as much as I did this week.

1. Tackle 11 new house projects.

This darn linen closet has been my collection place for all the things that didn't otherwise have a "place". Everyone has a junk drawer at their house.  Well, this was my "junk closet".  (One of them. . .)  I'd been meaning to organize it for some time.  Mainly because every time I walked down the hall, I would smell FEET.  This had also become the place where the boys tossed their shoes when they took them off and then they laid inside without any oxygen to help them "air out".  They were in some desperate need of Febreeze, baby powder, and reorganization.  It actually took a whole lot less time than expected to clean it out and organize and I'm happy to report that when you walk down the hallway now, you no longer smell FEET.  Now, you smell febreeze and some fresh linen plug-ins. Here is the before and after photo:

2. Do 11 New Activities/Crafts With the Kids.

We have struggled with letting go of the sippie cups at our house.  I guess you could say that none of us do change well.  So I came up with a craft that would make the transition more fun.  Here are the supplies needed for our "Big Boy Cup" craft.  (paint brushes, paper plate, acrylic paints, plastic cups) :

I squirted a bit of colored paint on a paper plate in order to contain the mess, and laid newspaper out for us to paint on.  Then Mr. Grouchy Pants went to town!

It was such a simple little craft and didn't take long at all.  I let him draw just about anything on his "big boy cup" that he wanted.  He ended up drawing a portrait of himself and writing his name on it. Since we've finished, he loves to use this cup instead of his sippie cups.  It's personalized and he's proud of it. :)  Double win!

3.  Go to/visit/try/experience 11 New Places or Things.

This activity could also fall under the previous paragraph.  We decided to visit a local farm for the Fall season and let the boys experience something new.  I had personally never been to the Orr Family Farm, so this was something exciting for me as well.  It was extremely fun!  There was so much to do as you can see below:

There were go-carts to ride, hay bales to climb, homemade slides, a petting zoo, and a ginormous moonbounce.  Grouch "bounced" almost the whole morning.  He would still be bouncing had we not drug him away.  Lil Stinky Pants loved the animals the best.  This was no surprise to me as he would rather play with the bugs at the playground, than actually swing or slide.  These poor people that are just out at the parks for a stroll with their pets don't stand a chance for peace and solitude.  Stinker can't see a "puppy" without wanting to run and "give it kisses". The farm animals were no different.  He got to pet a horse, kiss a big pig, and feed the goats and sheep.  It was a blast for everyone!

Another new experience (and privilege!) for me this week was being asked to be a "Guest Blogger" on a friend's blog website.  My friend Deanna, has such an inspirational blog called "Raising Inspiration: Seeking God through the Spit-Up".  You can find all things encouraging and spiritually motivating on her blog weekly.  My guest blog, posted last week was called "All Moms Are Liars".  Check it out here: All Moms Are Liars 

Lastly, to top off this festive Halloween week, I couldn't refrain from showing off another pic of my little SuperMEN.  They both decided to be superman for trick-or-treat.  Dressing up like superheroes is definitely nothing new at our house, but they got their new costumes last night and literally have not taken them off since.  They would sleep in their capes if we would let them!  Love that they have this extreme daily desire to "fight evil" and "save the day!".  They definitely make my day with their constant growls and threats to make-believe bad guys.  Soooo, from my house to yours, HAPPY HALLOWEEN from my little heroes!

And don't forget to enter to win this week's GIVEAWAY!!  I will be picking a winner on Saturday!!  Post links, leave me comments, and tell your amigos and amigas about my little blog!  Please and Thank you!!

7-11 Project: 5 Weeks & Counting. . .

My life is crazy. It's cluttered and chaotic and loud and on most occasions it is completely and utterly bananas!  That is why I really LOVE the above statement.  It really fits how I view things.  Life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful.  I keep having to remind myself of this.  Especially when I realize how quickly time is flying by!!  I realized last night that there are only 5 weeks left in which to fulfill my 7-11 Project.  That could be seen as a lot of time, however, I'm no where near accomplishing HALF of the goals that I've set for myself.  I still have a ton to do.  I will say that having to update my blog every Monday with my success (or lack thereof!) has given me some extra incentive to cross even more things off of the list.  The month of October has really kicked my tail so far though.  There are so many functions and events and obligations that seem to pile up!  Halloween is one of my favorite holidays! (I know a lot of my christian friends and family may think that that statement and idea is "sacrilegious" of sorts, but it's not the historical foundation of Halloween that gets me excited. On the contrary, at our house, we love to take something that may have been "meant for evil, and turn it to good".)  We love to dress up and find every possible excuse year-round to do so!  We are sooooo enjoying the fall weather, beginning of the changing leaves and colors, and have so much fun with all crafts "pumpkin"!  Not only is Halloween quickly approaching, Thanksgiving is right around the corner, Christmas shopping has already begun, and I am currently in the process of organizing two baby showers and one wedding shower all coming up in the next 5 weeks.  I've taken on a lot lately, but I'm so enjoying the busyness of the Fall season!  All this chaos, and then I fit in my personal goals with the 7-11 Project.  So please overlook the fact that I may not be crossing-off as many things as I would like as quickly as I would like to. . .I'm still convince, God-willing, that it will all work out in the end.  I work best in the "eleventh hour", after all! Back to the progress. . .

1. Do 11 new activities with the kids.

This weekend, we did something that I've been meaning to do for sometime, and that was take the boys to a festival.  The Myriad Botanical Gardens downtown was hosting The Festival on the Green and provided a whole list of fun activities and events for children and adults to promote their newly renovated facilities.  They put in a HUGE splash park with light shows and fog and sprinklers.  The kids got SOAKED to the bone, but it was the most fun that Mr. Grouchy Pants has had in a long time.  He has developed quite a fondness for water this summer, and didn't mind a bit that autumn is now upon us!  He jumped right in and started running amuck amidst the sprinklers with the rest of the mass amounts of toddlers!

  Along with the new splash zone that was put in, there was also a new area for the kiddos to play.  They had a maze made out of corn and bushes, man-made mini mountains for the kids to climb, a ball pit to play in, and had lots of new pavilions and stages set up with entertainment.  Live music and children's theatre were going on all Saturday.  The boys also enjoyed the miniature pumpkin patch!

We will definitely be spending some more time downtown at all the new areas to enjoy the outdoors.  I'm hoping the excellent Fall weather stays with us for some time before the blistering winter cold hits.

2. Tackle 11 projects around the house.

This week we worked really hard on organization.  It's become obnoxiously obvious to me that these little monsters have exceeded the recommended toy limit.  In order to teach them a bit of thankfulness and appreciation for their stuff, I decided to host The Great Toy Sort.  I went to Wal-Mart and invested in 4 large storage bins, labeled them, and then brought them to the boys room to begin a thorough downsizing. 

At first, they weren't sure what this was all about.  They tried claiming bins to act as race cars or hiding spots.  LOL.

We officially have taken the toy toll down to half it's original size.  We are placing two bins into the garage for storing and keeping two inside for playing.  Once they get tired of what they have inside, we will switch them out and Viola!. . .new toys!  I love their lack of memories at this age.  Misplaced toys become brand new again after about 3 months! But that was a organization project I've been meaning to tackle for some time.  Mission accomplished!

3. Write 11 new blog posts.

This is one of my goals that is finally DONE.  I have successfully written 13 blog posts that I've either posted or are up and coming in the months of November and December.  It's good to have them finished and scheduled for posting with the NaNoWriMo Challege coming up next month (This is the novel-writing contest that will be held the whole month of November.)  I fully intend to take advantage of this awesome challenge and write my first novel next month!  Can't wait to share the progress on here!  You all will be the first to get the sneak peeks! :)

4. Read 11 new books.

I just started my new book choice.  So far, I can tell that I'm going to LOVE it! I have heard amazing reviews of the book as well as the movie and wanted to be sure that I read it before I rented the movie.  The books are most often better, in my opinion.  I'll let you know for certain when I'm finished! Just a few chapters in, but I'm certain this will be one of those that I stay up all night to finish!

Well, that's about it for the updates this week.  I do understand that there are some goals that I don't mention every week, and other goals that I have yet to mention at all in my post updates.  For example: Sincerely apologize to 11 people that I've wronged/hurt; Do 11 random acts of kindness, etc.  Some of these goals are very personal to me.  Others, I don't post about for fear that I may come across as boasting, and that is definitely not my intention.  What I will be doing (in the next day or so) is opening a separate page with all of the goals and where I stand in accomplishing each. (For those crazy few of you who have wondered and are keeping track).  Stay tuned for that in the tabs at the top of the page next to "Because I Said So. . ."

Also, in reading a ton of other people's blogs and websites, I have noticed a trend: GIVEAWAYS.  I'm not sure why bloggers are so big on giveaways, but I have noticed the underlying benefit of hosting said giveaways: BRIBERY and FREE ADVERTISING.   Soooo, I figure since I'm fairly new to the blogging world and most definitely naive to the many avenues of getting my blog out there to the masses, I will try to partake in this style of marketing.  Coming up next week, I'll have the details on MissBananaPants's VERY FIRST GIVEAWAY!  In the meantime, join my facebook page if you haven't already and feel free to share my link to any of your friends! I'm planning a BIG incentive for those who can help me build up my follower-base! (And yes, it will be something more grand than just my friendship! Ha!  As if that's not already enough! LOL.

Have a fantastic week, and remember, "Your Life Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Wonderful." :)