i hereby resolve...

here are just some ideas about what i want to accomplish in the next few months. not necessarily resolutions, per se.

1. FINISH MY MASTER DEGREE!
back when i got all knocked up and shit with khary, i was in the MPA (Master of Public Administration) program at UMKC. all the nausea, sleeping 12+ hours/day, etc, prompted me to opt for "incomplete" status in three of my courses. the only things i needed to do for each of the classes was finish one more paper. 3 papers total, for those keeping track. so sadly, i'm only 3 papers shy of a master degree. not that i'm going to go off and quit my current gig as a SAHM, but i want to mark that goal off my "to do" list, yk?

2. Become a Runner Again
in my journey to regain "runner" status this past year, i managed to have a fabulous first trail run in years. until i broke my ankle, anyway. so i got to spend most of the summer on my duff and hopped up on pain pills. (okay, i wasn't on the pain pills for *that* long, but July 18 to August are pretty hazy.) once this cough i have is gone, i'm hitting the elliptical in the basement in order to get my body and my ankle back into running form. i won't break any records (hopefully no more bones, either!), but just being able to get out on the trolley trail for a jaunt whenever i feel the need to burn off some energy/frustration will be so welcome.

3. Get on Top of My Food Allergies
i am 99% certain i am allergic to wheat/gluten, but there are other allergies going on that i haven't been able to pinpoint. in the next week or two, i'm getting my blood test for 200 foods/additives so i can make healthier choices. last year, when i was gluten free for several months, i happened to lose about 15lbs without "trying." i imagine something similar will happen whenever i figure out what foods i can eat without triggering some serious and chronic immune problems.

4. Calm the HELL down
i yell a lot. too much. i feel bad about it, but that doesn't fix the problem. we got a "nonviolent communication" guide and workbook that are already helping a little bit, and all i've done so far is read some of the guide. there are several other families who have the book with whom i hope to form a study and practice group.

and that's what i've got for now. i think that's more than enough.

holy crap, i just bought two cases of wine!!

well, i'm only keeping 5 bottles. the rest i'm holding hostage for friends till they give me ransom.

cellar rat wine merchants, at 17th and baltimore, has a monthly case for only $100. once a month, they hold a case tasting, at which you can actually **pick and choose** which wines you want. if you're keeping count, with tax, that comes to only $9/bottle!!!

happy birthday to me!

the flight:

holiday musings

since we are not christian (dh is muslim, i'm a pagan-leaning atheist), christmas is always a bit of an exercise in purposeful action and a LOT of thought. i rather enjoy solstice and all its meanings, and i recognize that the celebrations surrounding christmas are truly pagan celebrations anyway. khary has really gotten into celebrating all the various american holidays, and christmas is his new favorite. (no matter how many times i try, he still says "christmas" instead of "solstice" or "winter," though he will sometimes say "holiday." small victories.) anyway, we needed some family traditions now that he's cognizant of such things and itching to start some family traditions.

first, our wintry bough. it is not a christmas tree. it is a stark branch representing the barrenness of winter. we make ornaments for it and decorate it to make it beautiful and warm, just like we spend more time together to make the cold, barren winter feel warm and cozy. i know that evergreens were traditionally used for their color and fragrance (as both were representative of life amidst the lack thereof in the rest of the winter landscape). but i barely got dawud to agree to a branch at ALL, much less an evergreen branch.

the salt-dough ornaments, just out of the oven:


and the wintry bough:


we also got a candle to burn the night of solstice, and while it was burning we'd tell family stories, reminisce about the past year, & talk about hopes for the upcoming year. but the 2nd round of throwing up germs got in the way of that. we may get to do it on new year's day, though. that's the only night we're not booked for a while!

i think we'll fill the birdfeeder tomorrow, too, since it's getting cold again and we didn't get a chance to put birdfood out on solstice either.

we didn't send cards out yet, either. in due time, though.

sleep, mama, sleep

tuesday morning i woke up feeling like i'd been hit by a truck. khary, on the other hand, woke up with a tanker truck of energy to spare. not a good combo. my friend katje very graciously and generously offered to host khary so i could get some sleep, bless her. so off i shipped him, where he played with his best buddy lincoln (katje's son) in the snow. apparently katje gave very clear instructions about which snow was edible and which was not (the yellow kind). i got 3.5 hours of restful sleep that afternoon. ahhhh!

(rinse and repeat on wednesday.)

khary and linc: