Good grief!

Okay. I'm HORRIBLE about keeping this blog up. I've just been ssssssssssssssssooooooooooooooooooo busy for the past several months. And the birthdays started on Feb. 20, so I've been going insane with that. We've had a birthday every week! As a matter of fact, we're taking Rey to a birthday party for one of her classmates on Saturday. *sigh* I don't see an end in sight, though I KNOW there's one. *lol*

I joined curves either in Nov. or Dec. Not very good at going, either. Too busy. But I try to make it when I can. Right now, I'm trying to lose at least 3 lbs. by Mother's Day. I'm being realistic. Rey and I have a big dance recital in May. Yes, BOTH of us! She's taking ballet - or pre-dance - and I'm taking adult beginning tap. I LOVE IT!!!!! It's hard on the legs and feet, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Unfortunately, we do some bouncing/hopping, so my stomach...Well, I'll spare you the gory details. Anyway, it's because of my stomach and the recital that I want to lose at least 3 lbs. It's not a lot to you, but to me, it's the world! I think I'll keep my goals to 3 lbs. at a time. That way I won't get discouraged if I don't lose more than that.

Back to Curves...I like it. I don't feel self-conscious when I go. And it's fun! It really is. The exercise doesn't feel like a chore, and you don't feel like everyone's looking at you. I'm glad I joined. I just feel bad that we're spending all that money every month for me to be a member, but I don't go often. I'm trying harder now, though.

Rey and I are having...issues. She's stubborn, just like me. Okay, I'll be honest: she's EXACTLY like me! IT'S SO DARN ANNOYING!!!!! We're constantly butting heads, and one or both of us comes out crying. I'm trying to change how things are done. I have yet to come up with new rules and punishments, but I'm thinking of some. She's also going to have more chores to do. I know she's only 3 yrs. old, but she needs to keep busy. She's refusing her naps while she's at home, and fighting bed time. She keeps the house a mess, and I don't get after her about it. I don't clean up after her, either. Well, let me re-phrase that: I clean up after her to a point. She's also saying a lot of hurtful things to us, and acting out a lot. I don't know where all this is coming from. But it's got to stop. Like I said, I'm working on rules, punishments, and chores. But I'm also working on getting up early, even if it means going to bed super early, so that I can wake her up if she's still asleep at 8 AM. No more morning showers for me. That way, I can get up and go. I'm going to try to get her to school by 8:30 AM, even if I have to wake up when Andy leaves for work at 5:30 AM!!!!! I'm going to keep her busy, and limit TV time. We're going to go outside more, too. No more staying inside all day. If I keep us busy, maybe I'll stop shopping so much. AND I'll be paying more attention to her. I'm hoping that by doing all this, she'll stop acting out so much and we'll stop butting heads so much.

Andy had to work a lot of overtime recently. Well, he didn't HAVE to. But it was strongly encouraged. *lol* It was a bit stressful, but I managed. The world didn't fall apart. *whew* But during that, we learned I'm allergic to bee stings!!!!! THAT was scary. Good thing I kept my head through it all, and didn't panic. I now have to carry an EpiPen with me at all times, and I wear a medical alert bracelet. I even have to take the Pen with me when I go out back. I can't even walk to the mailboxes with out the Pen! It's a drag, but I know that if I ever get stung again my reaction will be much worse. So I TRY not to leave the darn thing behind.

Still sewing a lot. And now crocheting, too. I've made 2 crocheted scarves. I'm working on a 3rd, and a blanket for Rey. I've been making a lot of t-shirt dresses for Rey, and I made curtains for her room. Plus tons of pillows. I even made a quilted tote bag from 4x4 ballerina print fabric squares, and a quilted Thanksgiving themed table runner from fabric squares. Rey helped with the table runner, so there's no pattern to it. There was. *lol* I've got a bunch of fabric, and I keep adding to it. Yarn, too. It's driving Andy insane! *lol* But he loves that I'm able to make stuff for us, instead of having to buy it and worrying about the quality.

I've been bidding on stuff on eBay like crazy these past few days. I need to stop! I've got this urge to buy dance wear for my tap class. I can't find much plus sized stuff for dancing, so when I do, I bid on it or buy it. It's insane! Then I made the horrible mistake of looking ON THE WEB for plus sized dance wear. OMG!!!!! I found quite a few sites, so if I keep up taking tap, I'll know where to go for my stuff. Then, once I've lost enough weight, I can FINALLY buy my stuff from the shops.

I've been thinking a lot about selling stuff, like Pampered Chef or Body Shop. Those are the 2 main ones I'm looking at right now. I could use the money I make from commissions to buy stuff for myself and/or Rey, and we'd put the money that we're saving from Andy's paycheck into savings - because I wouldn't be spending it anymore. He was against me selling stuff at first, because he thought I'd be going up to people and try to sell them stuff - kind of like door to door. But I quickly corrected him on that, and he's okay with it. He says he'd prefer I got a real job if I wanted the extra money, but I told him that if that happened then we'd have to put Rey in school full time. I wasn't going to do that. This way - my way - I'd still be staying home with Rey, and she could still go to school twice a week. AND I could keep up with tap! I have to admit, it's a bit expensive with 2 of us taking dance classes - what with recital fees, costumes, leotards (for her), tights (for her), shoes (for her, since she's little), skirts, monthly tuition fees...*whew* PLUS she's taking gymnastics through her school, so we have THAT tuition fee, AND the monthly tuition for her school. Not to mention GAS!!!!! It all adds up...

I guess I'll end here. My update has turned into quite a novel. Keep moving!

*hugs*