Halloween Costume & Potluck

1.) Should I be a leperchaun or should I be a flapper (with tights and a long sleeve shirt under the dress)? Believe it or not I have everything in my closet to pull off both of these costumes. I could also go as Barbara Bush with a mask I have and suit.
2.) I am bringing a main dish to the potluck. One of the 8 attendees cannot eat bread or pasta. So I was thinking of taking an enchilada casserole or meatballs or funeral potatoes, what do you think?

Wintersong

There is a beautiful noise that accompanies snow.  Tonight we sit in peace and listen to the silence.  I have such a deep appreciation for quiet.  I havent always felt like it was the most amazing sound, but in the past few years I have found myself just wanting to drive with the radio off, to sit and read without the noise from a television, or work without the constant blaring of a fan.  The irony of all this is that as I was thinking of wanting to be enrobed in silence and it made me think of soft music. Sure, I am happy to see a new season approaching, but I think I am most content with the white noise it brings to my evening.

Dreaming of War

Last night I dreamt that I was a soldier who was shipped off to war.  Our uniforms were blue and the other side was red.  We weren't on American soil, we were over seas.  It was probably the 1950's. Our troop was set up in a grassy open field in the middle of a town.  It was kind of like a park.  We were going to do a surprise attack, but before we could a civilian who we thought was a passerby, opened fire.  We then opened fire.  I had one job.  My one and only job was to pull this heavy rope which would launch a heavy metal object that was like an over sized washer.  It was round, had a hole in the middle, and writing around the outside.  I knew I was suppose to wait to the pull the rope, but felt like it needed to be pulled in that moment, so just did it. I remember the general looking at me, surprised I pulled the rope already.  He wasn't mad, just surprised.  After that brief interaction he went back to rallying the troops.  This is when I deserted.  I snuck out the back of the white tent we had set up.  From there I just kind of jogged down a block and tucked in to a museum. I waited there for a while, hiding behind a display curtain.  I think I even stayed there a couple days.  I wondered if they knew I deserted or if they thought I was missing in action.  I contemplated whether I'd ever be able to go back.  I wasn't ashamed, I knew it wasn't for me and that I had good intentions.
So, I've been thinking about this dream on and off throughout the day.  I didn't have much time to really think in depth until a few minutes ago.  I looked up in the dream dictionary about being a soldier, about being in war, etc. All I can figure out is that the battle has to do with my work-life balance.  I haven't really gotten in to any fights or disagreements with anyone lately.  In fact, I'm pretty at peace with every part of my life except my work-life balance.  I really believe your dreams can tell you something, but sometimes it is just isn't clear.  I wish my dream gave me a clue as to what was next! I suppose I can be patient though.

Fall. Beautiful Fall.

This afternoon we treated ourselves to afternoon at a local pumpkin patch. The colors were gorgeous, the air was comfortable, and the time with family was fantastic. Here are a few of the shots of fall in Colorado.

Blue Jean Bliss and Lutefisk

Today I went to lunch with my supervisor and another co-worker.  After lunch we ran an errand in preparation for the training we are planning next week for around 500 volunteers. We've been working very hard and keeping long hours.  I was delighted when we decided to randomly stop in a store that none of us had ever been in before.  We walked in to the store and discovered a cute boutique.  I was kind of doing a complimentary once over of all the cute clothes, assuming nothing would fit.  A moment later my supervisor picked up a pair of jeans.  She knows I can never find pants that fit.  They are either huge through the thigh or saggy in the butt, or both.  She told me I should try the jeans on.  The jeans were cute. I loved the color and they had some bling.  They were the classy kind of jeans that never come in my size, are super expensive, and even if they did have my "size" they probably wouldn't fit.  I decided to be a sport and try the jeans on anyway.  I slipped in to the dressing room.  As I began to slide my legs into the jeans and go for the zipper, something amazing happened.  The associate outside my dressing room and co-workers asked how it was going.  I paused, unsure of what to say.  It was actually going well.  The jeans fit.  They didn't just like fit around my waist, but they were not too big through the seat or the thigh.  I was in shock.  For the first time in my life, I walked in to a boutique and found an amazing pair of jeans. I quickly texted the husband and told him about this strange occurrence.  Everyone who knows me, knows I have a very difficult time finding pants.  I was down to one pair of jeans, one pair of khaki capris, a pair of grey slacks, and a pair of black slacks.  Those are all of the pants in my wardrobe.  I'm happy to share that I, for the first time in my life, have an amazing pair of jeans.  I also think they are almost slenderizing or something.  I swear they are magic jeans! I had to share because it was like a moment straight from the book about the traveling jeans. Incredible. I can't wait to wear them out in public!
In addition to my blue jean bliss, my dear sister-in-law texted to see if I wanted to go the lutefisk dinner this weekend! She hasn't tried lutefisk before, but she knows I've wanted to go to one for years.  They don't frequently have dinners here like they did in Montana.  I am so excited to go tomorrow!  I'm also looking forward to sharing this little piece of my life with my husband, niece, and of course sister-in-law! I am so blessed.  Blessed beyond words.

Waiting for a winning lotto ticket to fall from the sky...

I am not sure, but it's probably frivolous that I spend so much time thinking about what I would do if I won the lotto.  It might be less frivolous if I bought lotto tickets, but I only buy a few a year.  Probably like five a year.  That means my odds are really small for winning big.  I don't enter many contest either, so that's out of the question.  I used to enter a lot on the radio, in the newspaper, etc.  I won a few too and got some pretty cool tickets to various events.  Anymore though, I'm kind of an old lady.  I don't like being at loud concerts with screaming fans, unless I REALLY like the artist.  I don't attend a lot of fundraisers except the ones for work.  I also am a little skeptical of most events and their ploy to sell us items or services we don't really need.  Anyway, all this to say I haven't entered to win much lately, including the lotto. 

I don't think I need to answer the question why I want a lotto ticket to fall from the sky, because who wouldn't? Seriously, would you not want a winning lotto ticket to just gracefully fall into your hot little hands?  I think everyone I know has three million different things they could spend the money on.  In my day dreaming, I imagine how I would share the money with our family to keep it fair for all.  I think about how we would live out our lives.  (In case you are curious, it depends on the amount a person wins...if you just win a million dollars, you probably only get half of that and 500,000 isn't enough for two people to retire on at our age. Although, that would allow us to pay off all of our debt and just have some nice paychecks every month to enjoy!) Lately, I find myself thinking of this more and more. 

I am thankful for my education, but it sure has come at a cost. Enough of a cost that I really need to figure out something soon.  I either need to take on another job, help my husband take on another job, start a side business together, or one or both of us needs to find new jobs with larger paychecks.  Naturally, you can see why I am day dreaming about the winning lotto tickets.  On top of needing to secure some additional funds, I would like to find a job that didn't require me to lift 50 pounds.  Back on Labor Day I hurt my back.  I didn't injure my back that day, that was just the day I set the injury off again into pain by sliding into a booth.  Anyway, since then I have woken up to daily pain.  It is getting better with physical therapy, but is a constant reminder that everything is not quite okay with my body.  Finally, I need a new job for better hours.  This had been the reason at the top of my list, but as I consider taking on another job, hours don't seem like they are as important as being able to provide food and shelter.  I suppose it is all relative.

For now I will just pray.  I decided that was how I would spend my ten minutes using the hand bike in physical therapy.  I prayed.  I have so many blessings like an amazing husband, supportive family, a roof over our heads, food on the table, paychecks coming in consistently, incredible friends, reliable transportation, etc. I know I will be provided for, I always have been.  Some how, some way, I just have to believe it will all be okay.

P.S. Speaking of the amazing blessing my husband is...he knew I was stressed tonight, so surprised me with a date! We got coffee to go and went to watch a local house that has choreographed their lights to Halloween music.  It was so much fun and so sweet.  He sure is a keeper.

Book review of How to Eat Like A Hot Chick and my meandering thoughts on beauty

I had a fabulous birthday and wonderful anniversary with my dear husband.  One of my birthday gifts was a gift card to purchase some new books for my Kindle.  One of the books I purchased was How to Eat Like a Hot Chick by Jodi Lipper and Cerina Vincent.  I originally heard about the book on Facebook.  One of my friends was a fan of their How to Live Like a Hot Chick page.  The page offers useful advice for women everywhere.  The advice is often the kind of advice that epitomizes who I want to be, who I think I am, etc.  After reading their posts I started looking in to their books.  I decided to give the How to Eat Like a Hot Chick book a chance.  What I liked about the book is that it is not a diet.  It's just lifestyle changes, maybe not even changes, more like tips.  They also take a perspective that I love...the concept is we are all beautiful.  It's sort of a book on how to live a confident life as the beautiful woman you are.  It's a quick read and I suggest you pick it up or check it out from the library.  Of course like any book there are things to take with a grain of salt.  Most of it though is just straight forward...like how to approach the salad bar, how to splurge, daily habits that make sense, and why eating spinach is great for your body.  I also appreciated that they suggest physical activity, about an hour a day. It's a simple approach and one that really doesn't deprive a person of anything, which I love!
Really, my favorite part of this book is that they don't put words like fat, skinny, and beautiful on the same level.  Words relating to size never relate to beauty! Beauty is something that comes from within, it's your confidence, your personality, who you are.  Even when I am frustrated with losing weight, I still know I am beautiful. I don't think I have a big head or an ego the size of Texas, I'm just confident.  Obviously, I want to lose weight for health reasons and know my quality of life would be improved.  Not because beauty has to do with the size of my pants, but everything to do with what really matters in life! So, I hope all of you know this too.  You are beautiful.

(Psst...this is where I would cue a great song like Mika...Big Girls You Are Beautiful or My Wish by Rascal Flatts)