Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Being On and Off the Proverbial Ball preparing for Christmas!!

It's not that I have been "off" the ball - but I sure feel like I have been juggling a lot of them lately. The OCD part of me had everything nicely compartmentalized so the ADD part of me was is a state of relaxation and calm. House work, family, blogging, finances and maybe even some socializing.. each day had its 'To Do' lists and all was done and completed accordingly. I was able to stay focused and on track. All that has changed - thus my absence from blogging. The OCD part of me has been battling for supremacy of my ADD side,, and neither has really won out.

Since going back to work after Thanksgiving for a job that is quite fun but demanding, it has been difficult to relearn a new type of balance in my life. It has taken a while, but I think I am finally there-ish.  I am learning that I have to let go of some of my expectations, not all of them. I need to pick and choose what is important, what I can live without accomplishing and what I still need to do in order to keep my family and myself on track. Having a son with ADD and two university aged daughters at home makes that even more challenging. SO,, my lovely chore chart that I spent so much time making the first time, that "I'm going to equally balance my chores out through the week so my weekends were free" chart is now a loose goal. LOL

So I am wishing my readers a very Merry Christmas and A Wonderful New Year!! I am not going to make my New Years resolutions to unrealistic and long winded! My one "New Years" resolution focus is to get a monthly menu plan in place and corresponding grocery lists (OCD,, I know). I really want to be able to have a nice dinner on the table for my family in the evenings. I would really like for us to make eating dinner at the table again as a family a priority. We seem to have lost that in the last year.

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas
and
A Wonderful New Year!!

 

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Best part of ADD? Hyper focus & hyper organization and I do love projects!!

Since being diagnosed 2 months ago with ADD and borderline OCD, so much of why I do things the way I do them makes so much sense. Would I change who I am? Definitely not. I just understand myself that much better.
 
So, since starting my new job, I needed to get things organized. So I devised a master plan ... a schedule of all the tasks I wanted to complete during the week so I could relax on the weekends. In order for this plan to be effective.. there were a few projects that I needed to get out of the way first and, as usual, a chain reaction of hyper organization and creativity followed - or as my husband refers to them as - Make work projects. lol
 
So in my own special way, the cookies/pantry/freezer/apples/applesauce/recipe book projects began in earnest....
 
My kids and hubby love home baked goods and I used to enjoy baking a lot more than I do know. So I wanted to make it easier to bake more often. So I gathered together all the dry ingredients and prepared chocolate chip & spicy dads cookie mix bags - which was highly effective - for the first 2 weeks.
 
 

Monday, October 13, 2014

Thanksgiving Dinner Party! Planning, Preparation & Purchases!!

I shared a few blogs ago about my purchases of dishes, décor and party favor items. The end result, though it took a while to get there, was awesome! Everything turned out great!!! I did a few extra things this time around. The latest craze at dinner parties is candy bars... I changed things up a bit and made a dessert bar! Candied apples for the kids, pumpkin pie, apple pie and 30 banana cream tarts.  
 

Part of the fun of planning a dinner party for me is more than just putting the food on the table and calling it a day. I thoroughly enjoy the reactions of others when they sit down to a dinner table that has taken time to prepare. The 'dinner party' has been lost somehow over time. My theory is paper plates & paper napkins have no business being present at a dinner party ;-) Paper plates are for camping and some outdoor BBQs. I do have a confession to make though,,



I had 23 people for dinner and was short 4 fabric napkins - I had to dig out some paper napkins (blush).  It won't happen again,, LOL I will have to buy more fabric napkins.




Some of the fun prep and purchasing to add to my dish collection was more white dinner plates, more chargers - which were all spray painted silver to match. I cut the little handles off of the party favor boxes and tied them closed with twine. Inside were white peppermints and silver wrapped Hershey kisses. The stickers were in my scrapbooking supplies.  I also purchased some silk fall leaves and spread them around the table. The end result was a simply decorated table that looked elegant,, I think anyways.
Last but not least for sure was purchasing my fabulous new ice bucket for wine, beer coolers,, etc.
 
I used my moms silverware for the first time in a while since she passed away in 2013. It was so wonderful to bits and pieces of her things placed around my dining table. Her silverware, the silver candelabra in the center of my table and the genuine crystal chandelier hanging above my dining table. My mother also loved to set out a pretty table. She had a hutch full of fantastic treasures!

I have 5 sisters and 5 brothers and we all have bits and pieces of things from our parents in our homes. I know they are just things, but sometimes seeing them floods back so many wonderful memories of the times we spent together. I know my mama would have loved my dinner party and so would have my dad!! And sometimes I feel like I am setting the table for her. To make her proud and to remember her smile and to remember my father's deep rumble of a laugh! So this Thanksgiving holiday I am thankful for the wonderful memories I have of my parents. They are so precious.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Some projects I have been working on....

I was requested by a cousin to put more photos of projects on my blog... so here it goes!!!

I like to 'veg' in front of the TV at night. More times than not you will find me working on baby blankets. Below are 3 that have yet to find a great niece or great nephew to snuggle up with.. but I have future homes in mind for them. I'm a little behind with some babies,  that are now toddlers.. Lol This one way that I calm the chaos in my mind.
 

Monday, September 22, 2014

Preparations for My Thanksgiving Dinner Party Have Begun,,

Up till few years ago, I used to love giving dinner parties and having lots of people over. As it became more and more difficult to cope with my anxiety, this much loved activity dropped off to only the major family holidays and even those became more of a chore than a joy. For the first time in a long time, I am looking forward to a house full of people, the planning, the preparing  - all for the most part anxiety free! Since diagnosis and starting medication I feel like I am getting to know ME all over again. Accepting my ADD and running with it,, LOL



In my own true style, that I am really beginning to embrace,  planning a great dinner party for me came with extensive research on Pinterest. I know, big mistake. So many options, so little time in my day. Oh my, I just spend an hour on Pinterest!  So many creative ideas all in one place! So the  'Dinner Party Board" (feel free to browse) on my Pinterest was born.


Thursday, September 18, 2014

All I Went to the $ Store for was Flash Cards for my Daughter....

Daughter #3 is in her first year of university and needed some flash cards to help her with studying. As any good mom, I figured that I could run down to the $ Store for those. It's nice and close and will only take a few minutes.

To fully comprehend the rest of my tale,, you need to know a little about the previous run away thoughts in my head. LOL. I had spent several days on Pinterest looking at dinner party ideas. I had decided my dishes don't match and I am tired of my black chargers,, I needed a change.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

The Project Explosion - All Because I Bought a $10 Bullet Express!

About 3 weeks or so ago, a girlfriend called me up to meet for coffee. Afterwards, I suggested that we go Thrifting.... Now, I had a few ideas in the back of my head; I really wanted a juicer but did not want to spend a fortune.

Store to store we go, looking for the deals. And I found IT!! A juicer/blender and food processor! SOLD!!!  At another next thrift store I found THE beautiful glass vintage dishes that were just like my sister's! We both have slightly OCD love affair with dishes. I drove home with all my 'new to me' treasures, thinking about where am I going to put all my treasures. What a lucky day!!

Now, this is where the project explosion began. It was very innocent at first; just a few projects.

Sunday, September 14, 2014

my Story.... and Some Back Story...

My sister is a writer and she loves back story. Her instructors? Not so much. But I get back story, it is hard to tell a story from the middle. So I am going to give you a brief back story.

This all began 6 years ago when my son was diagnosed with ADD. I was one of "those" people, completely ignorant and judgemental when it came to ADD. I believed all the myths about ADD, diet will fix it, it's from lazy parenting - just discipline more, he is just a busy boy,,,

Fast forward to about 6 months ago.