7-11 Project: Better Late Than Never, Eh?

As I said earlier today,  my Monday has been ATROCIOUS.  I am currently sitting on my couch watching Dr. Phil (cheap therapy) and downing a package of chocolate chip cookies. Because I deserve them. ;)  It is midnight, and I am just NOW able to sit down and write my Monday blog post. My days have been FULL and productive lately, but I am wearing down and to be completely honest, am THRILLED that this 7-11 Project is coming to a close.  I'm not sure how many more projects I can fit into a 24-hour period without pulling my hair out. So lets dive right into the progress from last week so that I can get some sleep. . .not that I'm not enjoying our time together. . .

1. Do/visit/experience 11 new activities/places/things.

Last week, I enrolled my youngest monster in "God's Gift To Stay-At-Home-Moms" a.k.a. "Mother's Day Out" at a local church.  This bought me a few hours a few times a week to have "me time". During my very first session of me time, I decided to do something that I haven't been able to in a good long while.  I went and saw a movie.  This time, however, I went by myself, which is something that I've never done and never thought that I would do.  I'd always heard some of my single friends say how much they loved going to the movies alone and I each time, I'd responded, How sad! Why would you want to go alone? Wouldn't that be sort of. . .pathetic? Now I can say from experience. . . .NO.  It is far from pathetic, and quite wonderful actually.  I went to a Friday matinee to see the movie Courageous. It was nothing short of FANTASTIC.  Let me expand a moment.  It was a Christian movie (which will immediately make some of your eye's roll, but bear with me. . .) and most a lot of the time they cannot escape the cheese factor.  Although there were some "cheesy, cliche-ic" moments, the overall plot and message was amazing.  I am so glad that I saw it alone, because I'm pretty sure I cried at least 4 times and then all-out SOBBED through the last 20 minutes.  And there aren't many movies that the crowd stands up and applauds when it's finished, but that's what happened in the theatre.  Granted, it was mid-morning on a Friday, so it was only about 15 people, but it was a "moment".  Bet you didn't think you were going to get a free review of a movie in my post. . .I always like to go above and beyond for my readers. Just call me Siskel.  Or Eibert. Or Conan. Whoever.  Anyhow, the whole point is that I LOVED seeing a movie all by myself.  I got to sit where I wanted, eat my pickle and butter-saturated popcorn and coke in peace (and guilt-free).  This will definitely become a new hobby of mine.

Another first for me came on Saturday. I was able to run my very first 5K.  This was something that I had been training for for the last 7 weeks and had been anticipating for years.  It's always been a dream of mine to run a marathon, and I saw running a 5K as one of the baby steps to accomplishing that dream.  Let me just say, I had no idea how hard it will be.  Those runner friends of mine, please do not point and laugh.  This was a struggle.  Namely because I had spent most of my training for this 5K on the treadmill.  Boy, is running outside a WHOLE OTHER WORLD compared to running on a treadmill with built-in facial fans, your bottle of water on hand, and the ability to zone out and trust that you're not going to run into a tree. The City on a Hill 5K Run that took place this Saturday was definitely not a treadmill!  In fact, it was FULL of HILLS (go figure!) and on one of the windiest, coldest days that Oklahoma has seen yet this fall season. I wanted to give up about halfway in, but I persisted and finished the entire race. And wouldn't you know, I wasn't even dead last!? I couldn't run the entire 5K, but that is something I will continue to work towards.  All that said, I finished my first 5K in 37.2 minutes.  Not bad, if I do say so myself!

2. Do 11 new activities with the kids.

After the race on Saturday, I was FAMISHED, so we decided to try our hands at making homemade pizzas. The boys were really excited to help, as pizza is one of their favorite foods!

 We went to the store together and bought all the ingredients to make turkey-pepperoni pizzas for lunch. They loved deciding how much sauce, how much cheese, etc would go on their personal pan pizzas. Mr. Grouchy Pants wasn't thrilled at the fact that we had to wait a whole 15 minutes for it to bake in the oven and another whole 10 minutes for it to cool off.  I believe his words were, "Mooooom, this cooking pizza stuff takes way too long.  Next time, you should just call and tell the pizza man to bring it to us." I know, right?  I obviously don't bake enough. In the end, it didn't taste like Little Caesar's or Pizza Hut (meaning the boys voted it a bust), so I ended up eating all three personal pans myself (confession. . .) and warming them up a can of Beefaroni.  But I enjoyed the new endeavour. :)

3. Tackle 11 new house projects.

If any of you have known me well enough to be invited into my mess of a car, you would know what a constant state of disheavel that it stays in.  I'm talking. . .last week's lunch from Sonic in the back floorboard, growing mold of some sort, random fruit loops, tootsie rolls, mismatched tennis shoes and socks, about a million receipts and toys, and enough clothing to start another spare wardrobe.  It's quite frightening at it's best.  And it's been known to smell.  A little. So when I decided to take a trash sack to it on Sunday, I was shocked to realize that I did, indeed have a floorboard.  It took two trash bags, two loads of laundry, and $3.00 in quarters for the carwash vaccuum, but it is now CLEAN.  So I'm checking that project off the to-do list.

Another long-procrastinated project of mine was organizing the boys closet.  Since moving the boys in to the same room, I had never combined their clothes and toys.  Much of Stink's stuff was still taking up residence in my bedroom and closet.  I was so excited to go through all of their fall clothes and put everything together.  I also found, in the course of it all, that these boys have WAY more outfits for Fall than they have time to wear them.  I gave some clothes away to friend's who had a little boy a bit younger than mine, but as you can see below, this closet is OVERSTOCKED.  So grandparents, NO NEW CLOTHING for Christmas.  In fact, they are good in the toy dept. too.  Just send gift cards. Haha. No really. . . it was good to finally get this task taken care of.

4. Read 11 new books.

Well, I decided to switch things up and read Ellen's new book entitled "Seriously. . .I'm Kidding".  It was a riot! I'm talking laugh-out-loud-pee-my-pants funny.  I just love her random sense of humor, but this book was packed to the brim with inspiration too.  I'd highly recommend it.  It's also extremely easy to read, as I finished it in less than 24 hours.

Currently, I am finishing up "52 Things Kids Need From a Mom" by Angela Thomas.  And I really don't think just reading this book is going to cut it for me.  I may take this book on as a yearly project starting in January.  It gives one thing to focus on every single week of the year to allow mom's to provide everything physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually for her kids.  I am learning a lot and it has already changed so much of what I prioritize where my kids are concerned.  I'm making daily changes as I read.  It was definitely a good choice of a "self-help" book for my list.  Moms, a must-read.

Well, that's all folks!  I only have 4 days left to accomplish the remainder of the goals on my list.  Realistically, I won't be able to accomplish it all. But I still plan on trying my darndest to check off as many items as womanly possible. Tune in to the tab at the top labeled "7-11 Project" for a complete progress report.  I'll update it for the final tally on the 11th.

It's now well into the wee hours of the morning.  Yes, I type slow. So I am forced to publish and crawl into bed.  It will only be a matter of time before one of the little monsters is woken up by the flash-flood storms outside.  Or another earthquake. Or tornado sirens. Maybe a locust infestation is next.  Who knows. . .I'm only sure one thing. . .I need to spend a few extra minutes in prayer and thank God for every minute that I'm given lately.  No one knows when Oklahoma will be destroyed by some new natural disaster.

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." :)

7-11 Project: From Lazy Bum to SuperMom. . .It's A Process, People!

Can I just say that I am improving.  I'm not as much of a lazy bum as I was two weeks ago, but yet not nearly as much of a SuperMom as I see potential to be.  I am a work in progress.  I also had a boatload of fun this week.  I'm culturing myself, stepping out of my comfort zone with some of these projects, and learning the power of the snowball effect.  As soon as I finish one task, I am more motivated to take on another. (Except the running thing. I'm still not pleased as punch to put on my running shoes and break a sweat, but I digress.)  Thanks for all of your encouragement along the way!  I know some of my aspirations on this list seem a tad silly, but I am learning a lot about myself and my family through each one.  I appreciate the "kicks in the pants" too! LOL. What are friends good for if not for telling you to get off your booty and start living life to the fullest. . .even if that entails a house project or two. :)  Let's review my successes for the week, shall we?

1.  Do/visit/try 11 new things or places.

We made a trip to the midtown plaza district one afternoon and decided to try out Kaiser's. Mainly because of their world-renown homemade ice cream, but under the pretenses that it was, indeed lunchtime.  Their burgers, most of which are made with buffalo meat (What?!) were really good. But the Chocolate Nirvana Sundae that we split afterwards was pure heaven in a bowl.  I'd highly recommend you making the trip. Immediately.  No need to pass go or collect $200.  They are very affordable.

 Another new first for me was eating lunch from a street vendor. Big Truck Tacos was parked right in front of my mom's office building in downtown OKC one afternoon.  We decided to stroll over that way and ended up with a handful of tacos, chips, and guacamole.  It was FABULOUS.  Who would have thought a big, clumsy van with a bunch of young guys would be able to whip up such Mexican deliciousness on the go like that, but it's obviously possible.  They have a facebook page that sends out status updates about their whereabouts within the city daily.  Check them out!  I'm so glad I did!

2.  Run 11 miles every week.

Well. . .I can't say I've done that, but I should at least get credit for trying.  I did wake up one morning and take off for Lake Hefner.  I had not ran outside (as most of my work-outs have been at the local Y as of late) in a significantly long time.  It's amazing to me how much harder it is to run outside than it is to run on a treadmill.  I felt like such a wimp!  Normally I can sprint like a superstar for the entire length of Brittany Spear's "Womanizer" in my ipod, but I made it halfway through the first chorus and thought my lungs were going to explode!  And don't get me started on the way that I felt the following day.  There wasn't a singe ligament and tendon in my entire body that didn't feel like I hadn't run a marathon.  How long had I ran that morning, you ask?  A grueling 3 miles. I know. . .I'm a rockstar.

Overall, for the week though, I got in 9 miles.  But the rest of the six I did in the comfort and air-conditioning of the YMCA.  Don't judge. ;)

3.  Do 11 new activities with the kids.

Hooray for edible activities!  Who wouldn't rather engage in arts and crafts when food is involved?  My boys live from snack-to-snack so these "Edible Necklaces" were right up their alley.

There are not many supplies needed, just a bit of an appetite and creativity.  We personally sat down with some cheezits, Lucky Charms cereal, Fruit Loops, and marshmellows.  Any kind of string, floss, yarn will work for the necklace. This is such an easy activity to do with toddlers, because they can snack as they go and there is no wrong way to do it.  Just string up your favorite treats for munching on the go! Tie the ends and the kiddos are ready to take their favorite snacks "on the road".  We will be doing this a lot more frequently for road trips and afternoons at the zoo. :)

The second activity that we dabbled in this week was "Pumpkin Painting"!  In my attempts to properly welcome the Fall season and celebrate the beginning of my all-time favorite holiday, we decided to try our hands (or fingers rather) in a bit of art.  The supplies we used are super simple: washable finger paints, pumpkins, and brushes. (and if you're smart and think ahead. . .add one million baby wipes to the list.  Man, did we go through them in the clean-up process!)  Everything you need is below:

 The kids had a blast painting faces on the pumpkins and getting all of the different colors of finger paints EVERYWHERE.  I learned that it didn't matter what we painted, as long as they could get it all over the place, they were happy campers.  So we started out painting the pumpkins, and then moved on to painting Namaw's table, lounge chairs, their own faces, even a bit here and there on Sissy's dogs that had to be included in the festivities.  It was a wonderful thing that I invested in the "washable" finger paints.  With just a little dab of water, the paints washed off of all surfaces (and fur).  It was a wonderfully messy time.

4.  Read 11 new books.

After completing The Shack by WM Paul Young, I decided on more of a "self-help" (guilty pleasure) genre.  One of my favorite authors and speakers is Beth Moore.  She had published Looking Up, When Life is Looking Down.  It was fantastic and very refreshing.  I've been in a place lately where I have been encountering many stumbling blocks in my spiritual life.  This book was jam-packed FULL of biblical insight and wisdom on how to look to the future by digging out of the deep pits in life that we get ourselves into.  This book definitely spurred motivation and emotions in me that I had buried for awhile.  I would recommend it as an easy read for those that need that sweet bit of inspiration in their spiritual walk.

 

5. Knock out 11 house projects.

This task has to be the one that I am looking forward to the least.  All of the house projects that I've needed to tackle for some time I look at and realize that I would much rather watch paint dry than muster up the motivation to accomplish them.  There is a reason that I have been putting them off for so long.  The idea of cleaning out the garage or organizing the linen cabinet or going through my closet seems so overwhelming that I become slightly exhausted just thinking about them.  The only one that I could happily check off the list happens to be the one that I accomplished this week, due solely to the fact that it was more creative and of decorative nature that that of the other chores.  So without further ado, behold my new porch: 

I'm still lacking a bale of hay and a door mat that plays "haunting" music when stepped on.  But it looks a lot better than before. We're ready for October! Yay!

6. Memorize 11 new bible verses

So this week, I've been working on memorizing a few verses.  But one, I feel has special significance to the place I am at currently.  Colossians 3:23-24 states, "Whatever you do, work at it with all of your heart, as if working for the Lord and not for man, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  For ultimately, it is the Lord whom you are serving."  This verse has real relevance to me lately because I have been without a job (other than wife and mom) since the middle of the summer.  It's been a difficult transition emotionally and mentally.  Physically, it's been fabulous as I've come to ADORE my afternoon naps and staying in my PJ's all day! But as I have Stinker at home with me full-time now while Grouch is at preschool, the day-to-day can get pretty monotonous sometimes.  I have to remind myself that Colossians 3 is not just referring to the secular jobs, such as leasing agent, customer service rep, or cashier, but it is also talking about working at "being a mom" as if for the Lord.  Sometimes, being a wife and mother and maid and playmate and laundromat and cook can be more exhausting and unfulfilling than any other job outside the home.  And to be perfectly honest, it can be one of the most unrewarding on a daily basis.  There's no paycheck, no one there to tell me that I've done an amazing job, and the only person I have to vent to about the workload is under 2 feet tall. I'm having to remind myself daily that God calls everyone to certain vocations at certain times for certain reasons.  And currently, my calling is to be SuperMom. I'm blessed to have this job.  I need to remind myself of that everyday.  So this week, I can promise you, as I'm replaying my memory verses in my head, I will be serving my kids as though I'm serving the Lord Himself.  I will also be looking for a pink satin cape with the letter "S" on it next to a photo of a diaper.  If I'm going to be SuperMom, I guess it's time to get out of the PJ's and into the costume. :)  Wish me luck!