Pampered Pretty Sundays

I've noticed this girly thing doesn't take long to unravel. My nail polish chips, my skin gets dry, my attitude goes downhill. Instead of trying to remedy this on a daily basis while chasing four kids and keeping up with housework that never ends, I decided that I would take one night a week that the kids are in bed early, my husband isn't home, and my mom is working and pamper myself a little. That's why Sunday nights have become Pampered pretty Sundays.

If all goes according to plan, I will have big kids in bed by 8:30 and the baby shortly thereafter, and then I can grab a book, relax in the tub, use the sugar scrub, shave the legs, use my new stress relieving bath salts. That will have me all set to grate and sandpaper my feet, apply lotion, repaint nails, etc. I think once a week will be much more manageable to me than trying to fit something into every day when it comes up. Besides, what says day of rest better than a good book, a hot bath, and some time alone?

A Challenge

I swore to myself that I wouldn't focus on my actual weight/weight loss this year because I am so afraid of failure in this area. However, my good friend, Tye, approached me with a challenge, a Biggest Loser of sorts, that he and some of his friends are running over the next six months. I know I need to get the weight off, so I agreed to play along with them. I don't like losing, so I suppose I should get serious, tomorrow. Anywhooo, I added a ticker at the bottom of this blog to keep track of my weight loss. I will try to update it each Wednesday when I weigh in for the challenge, and I hope to see my little flower inching forward soon. Also, I think this is a good opportunity to start training for the Komen Tri for the Cure this summer in Denver. I was supposed to participate last summer, but never managed to talk myself into training... Yeah. So feel free to check in here, catch me on twitter (@cassie_d_ape), or friend me on facebook. Let the games begin!

A Revision of Resolutions?

I know we are only three days into the new year, but I have put a lot of thought into the New Year's Resolution I made. You know, the get girly one. Since I made it and went public with it, I've started to wonder if it is just silly. Should I be working on more important things instead? Is this a selfish act and not a resolution at all? I can think of so many other things I need to work on. Maybe I should have chosen being a better housewife. My domestic skills leave a lot to be desired, and that would bless my whole family. Maybe I should be watching less TV, or spending an hour a day in the gym. Volunteering at the animal shelter? Or in my kids' classrooms? Did I make the right choice? Should I stick with this, or choose something more life-altering? I wanna know what you think.

Super Soft Pigs and Fingernails: Take 2

As you know, I'm working on softening myself up, being a little more feminine, feeling more like a woman. My first step was growing out and painting my nails. While the growing part went fine, the fingernail painting was a disaster that made me want to quit the whole woman thing and eat a burrito. I have decided that I will keep going, knowing that this is an area I need to really work on, and will run with just a clear nail strengthener right now in the hopes of keeping my nails and my sanity. I will be keeping the Iced Merlot on my toenails though, as they turned out nicely.

Today's task was to make my feet softer and more girly, and I have to ask a question here. Do people really go through all of this? I bought this lovely little tool, the Dr. Scholl's For Her Smooth My Sole micro file. (Fun fact: You can use your medical flexible spending/cafeteria account to buy this product.) Who knew that it was going to be a small cheese grater and a piece of sandpaper cutesied up in pink???


First you are supposed to grate the dry skin off your feet, and then sandpaper them to a shiny gloss. This seemed wrong to me, but it's a new year, so I tried it anyway. What do you know? The thing works! After grating, sanding, and glossing I added a layer of ultra smoothing lotion and a pair of fuzzy socks. Now, I hate lotion being on me, but again, new year, girly me, gonna try it.

In retrospect, I probably should have done the soft feet step first, and then the nail polishing, but I didn't and the polish survived. It's a case of living and learning, and the next time I will know how a real lady would do it.

Day 1: Painting the Nails

I counted Friday's task as a success for about twenty minutes. I got all of my finger and toenails polished, and they looked great. Then I went in to shower, and on the way out, I noticed that both of my thumbnails had chipped already. And this is why I don't usually put in the effort. It seems to me that if I am going to take the time to shape, strengthen, and polish two coats, it should be able to withstand the force of the shower! However, this is the year of girly, so I am going to patch it up, stop my whining, and move on.

Saturday's task: Softer feet. (Have I mentioned my serious dislike of lotions?)

Ch-ch-ch-changes

I hate to admit tonight that I am sore from playing on the Wii Fit today. My arms, shoulders, neck, back, hips, abs, gluts, thighs, calves, ankles, the tops of my feet, and pretty much every other muscle in between. They are all sore. From playing games. I'm out of shape. I know I have covered this before, but with tomorrow being the last day of 2009, and me barely being able to lift my coffee mug, I decided it's time to rethink the way I live my life. I mean it for real this time. I have to do something because when I stepped onto the Wii Fit balance board today, it cried.

I can't even count the number of years that I resolved to get in shape and lose weight and do better and blah blah crap that never happened. This year my resolution is a little different. I'm not putting a number on it, because that defeats me from the start. I'm not going at it cold turkey. I am going to tell you the underlying cause to my decision though. Here it is. My end of 2009 confession: I am a tomboy. I wear jeans and my husband's old t-shirts. I carry everything I need in my back pocket. I don't wear make-up or spend an hour on my hair. I didn't even own a hair dryer until a few months ago, and it is mostly used to defog the bathroom mirror. All this brings me to my goal for 2010: To be more feminine.

What does being more feminine entail for me? The opposite of most of the things I just listed about myself. I will put more effort into my clothes, my hair, my skin, my nails. I will carry a purse, and wear a nice coat. I will do my best to take better care of myself by getting more sleep, eating smaller portions, and doing some exercise I enjoy.

Why this, you ask? I have jeans I don't fit into, a sexy dress I'd like to wear, health issues I want to avoid. I want people to ask my husband how he ever managed to land a hottie like me. I want folks to be in shock when they find out I have four kids because I am so fit instead of because I look so young. I want to be able to buy myself fun clothes that fit my personality instead of having to dress like a frumpy old school teacher. I want to actually be able to compete in the Komen Tri for the Cure in Denver this summer. I am still hanging on to that little red nightie from before I had kids...That's why!

I'm not giving up anything completely, but I have cut way back on soda. I long ago switched to Splenda. I bought two pairs of high heels. (EEK!!!) I own a great jogging stroller that I've never used. If you see me in my scrubby clothes, cut me some slack. If you hear me talking about pumpkin muffins, ask if you can have one too. Don't expect miracles from me. Just watch me transform. It will happen, and I'm glad to have you around to see it.

A Love Note to My Husband

You know, everyone said it would never work out. We were too young, hadn't known each other long enough, I came from a family full of divorces. The cards were stacked against us. I will admit that there have been times when I wondered if "they" were right. There have been days that I wasn't sure we had what it took to make it. Who knew being in love was such hard work? When I look back over the last eleven years, so many things stand out. We've been through so much, but we've come so far. Every time I look at you, I am amazed that you chose me. How did I ever get so lucky? What did I ever do to make me worthy of having the love of someone so warm and selfless, loving and goofy, fun and hardworking? I couldn't ask for more than what we have, and I would gladly live with less just to know you are happy. Just knowing that you are coming home to me is enough to keep me moving through the day. Curling up with you at night makes being apart more bearable. And to watch you being a daddy to our babies is such a blessing to my heart. Knowing that they have what I didn't makes me so proud to be your wife. Now, here I sit, an hour from our anniversary, twitterpated and overjoyed. Just know that there is nothing in this life that I want with me more than you.