My one and only

http://time.com/2370/in-defense-of-having-an-only-child-yes-i-am-that-selfish/

This pretty much sums up how I feel, in a much better way than I have been able to articulate myself.

Over it

Guys, I'm over it.  I haven't posted on this blog in weeks.  I don't have anything super interesting or insightful to say.  Basically, I just go to work and hang out with my family.  And I am totally ok with that.  I actually like the routine, even if it seems boring to others.  My family and our time at home is our happy place.  And I'm busy living my life, and forget to take pictures and document things.

So, I think I'm done.  I'm going to leave it up because I still have friends that say some of the things I documented when H was first born really helped them.  The hospital packing list, baby food making supplies, etc.

If you want to keep up with me, I post semi-regularly to Instagram - @littlekim03.  It's private, so send a request and I will accept.

Take care.

Mom Confession Friday

-I am really terrible at brushing H's teeth in the morning.  She gets up so early and doesn't love mornings, so I consider it a win if we are out the door and dressed with hair fixed with no tears.  I don't know if I have the energy to add teeth brushing into the mix.  They need to make some type of chewy stick you can give your kid to brush their teeth like they make for dogs.  She could just chew on that on the way to school.




-We have been giving her way too many treats lately, and she has come to expect dessert after dinner.  I want her to know it is an occasional thing, not an every night thing.  Damn Girl Scouts and their Thin Mints.




-I have also been buying her too many clothes lately.  I consider myself pretty good compared to some other girl moms I know.  I mostly shop consignment, Target and Old Navy for her.  And with our mild seasons here, she gets almost a whole year out of things.  But I bought 3 dresses from the Matilda Jane GLT plus 4 more from Wal-Mart the other day for Summer, and its still February.  Must. Stop. Buying. All. The. Cute.




-H is an interesting mix of talkative and quiet.  I hate to label her shy, but she doesn't love new people or new situations.  She will sometimes talk to strangers, like the check out girl, but sometimes won't even look at them.  We are working on getting her to go to children's church all by herself, but more often than not I am the ONLY parent in there that has to stay with their kid.  And all the little girls then want to sit by me, stroke my dress and hold my hand.  Like I am the pied piper of preschoolers.  I am really hoping she will start going on her own soon, because I would really like to join the adults during service.


-There was some debate on a few blogs I read this week regarding healthy kid snacks and lunches.  People were bashing the popular GoGo Squeeze applesauce pouch that I regularly keep on hand for H when we are out running around.  While I do try to keep it healthy, I am also realistic and not carrying around sliced veggies in my purse for snack time.  We don't eat chips, Cheetos, cookies (well we don't eat cookies that often) or other processed snacks at home, so I feel like squeeze pouches (ones without added sugar or corn syrup) and crackers with cheese or hummus are good snacks.  And yes, I feed my kid Ritz crackers.  They aren't whole wheat, but they are sure are damn good!

What am I passionate about?

I went to a lunch presentation the other day about leaving law and becoming an entrepreneur.  As a hard worker, being my own boss and starting something has it's appeal.  I think I could be successful if I really put my mind to it.  When I started my nursery art business over 5 years ago, it took off before I knew what was happening.  That being said, my Husband is a business owner, and I see how much work it is.  I am not naive enough to think you just get to work when you want and success will come.  So for this point in my life, a job with semi-regular hours and healthy insurance is a good fit.


All that aside, the speaker was very interesting and I am always interested to hear people's stories of how they got started, why the left their $$ career, etc.  One thing she did mention that struck a cord with me was how fulfilled she feels now in her new venture, even if she is super busy with her start up company.  She talked about her previous career in Big Law and how she felt like she was not being a good Mom, good wife or good lawyer.  Although she had everything she had dreamed of, she just didn't feel fulfilled.  She wasn't passionate about what she was doing.


So on the way home yesterday I started thinking about what I could do that I was really passionate about.  And I cam to the conclusion that I am not really passionate about anything.  I came up with a whole list of things that I like to do, but nothing I am really passionate about that gets me fired up.


-I like to read parenting books and articles and try the latest child-rearing techniques out, in an attempt to have my only child not turn out like the stereotypical only child
-I like to bargain shop and thrift (when I have time)
-I like to mix high and low, as in an entire thrifted outfit mixed with my LV Neverfull
-I like to share my psychotic levels of research on non-important topics such as lunchboxes for my pre-schooler, which I can do via this blog
-I like to think about decorating, working out and trying new makeup, but I rarely execute these things
-I like to craft and paint, when I have time, which is never
-I like to write random blog posts about how I am feeling, which probably matter to no one and I should just start a journal instead of spewing randomness on the internet


Basically, I feel like I am not passionate about very much.  Which kind of made me sad, I mean, aren't people supposed to have something they love doing, besides hanging out with their family, going to work, and making cocktails?


And then I started to think that was ridiculous.  I think this "let's feel passionate about something and you should only do what you love" bullshit is a new-age generational thing.  I mean, think about your grandparents and parents.  They probably didn't or don't LOVE their jobs, but it was what they did.  They worked hard to provide for their family, send their kids to college, take an occasional vacation and maybe leave them some $ when they died.  I think it is kind of unrealistic to think that we are all going to be out there working in careers that we totally love, are passionate about, and fulfill us.


My job fills out all the check boxes that you would want.  Nice people, interesting work, decent working schedule, decent income, and benefits.  Which my self-employed Husband does not have.  Would I like to find something I am passionate about?  Yes.  Do I think I need a hobby and some more friends?  Yes.  But who has time for that?  Maybe a passion is something I can develop after Hadley goes to college?

Recent Lunches and Dinners

We are all back on the healthy eating train over at our house, so I have been trying to put more effort into getting H a variety of foods.

mixed fruit + cheese + hummus + turkey + crackers

greek yogurt + left over cinnamon roll treat + ravioli

chicken enchiladas + fritos and snap peas + applesauce

And for dinner:

homemade pizza + applesauce + peas

homemade chicken noodle soup + grilled cheese + apples

breakfast for dinner: turkey sausage and eggs + toast + fruit

salmon + pizza toast + salad

tomato soup + grilled cheese + berries

Random on Friday

-I finally figured out how to download Podcasts and happily listened to the first episode of Serial on the way home and to work.  I feel like a technology genius.  Which is funny, because I work with computers and software everyday at work, but in my personal life I am pretty low tech and can't seem to be bothered with simple things like updating phone software or a DVR.




-Having a threenager is just the best!  Insert sarcasm here.  Really though, H has days where I think she is a terrible child and I want to binge order parenting books from Amazon.  And then she has three straight days of perfect mornings, no crying ever, and excellent listening skills.  Which makes the not-good-listener-days even more frustrating because I know she is capable.




-Speaking of her listening, I posted on a BabyCenter message board I belong to about my morning routine struggle with getting her out the door sometimes.  People had all kinds of suggestions, the most popular was getting your kid dressed in their school clothes the night before and having them sleep in them.  Do people really do this?  I guess my problems with fixing her hair are small in comparison to what other's struggle with, so I am not as bad off as I thought.




-Have you ever tried to take an outfit selfie?  The kind all the outfit bloggers I follow post on Instagram?  Do these people have monkey arms?  Or maybe a selfie stick?  I tried it so I could send a pic of a possible outfit to a friend and it looked ridiculous.




-Speaking of selfies, I heard a new term the other day in regards to posting on social media - the wealfie.  Basically it's a selfie or a picture designed to show of your wealth.  I thought it was hilarious, and I have several people in my feed that are totally guilty of this.


-The Husband had a minor surgery yesterday that turned into something a little more complicated while they were in there.  He is fine but will recover a little more slowly than anticipated.  H also chose last night to have her first bad dream.  So this Mama is a little tired today!  And not exactly looking forward to taking care of 2 kids this weekend :)

And if you need a laugh and haven't already seen this floating around Facebook, you must check out the hilarious captions on It's Like The Know Us

Linking up with A Blonde Ambition Confession Friday

Meals

my healthy lunches the other week: lemon pepper turkey, sweet potato and green beans

dinner: chili (with ragu added to take down the spice) grapes and fritos

dinner: refried beans, trader joe's chicken taco, strawberries and quac

lunch of chicken quesadillas, rice cakes, apples and grapes

dinner of black beans, grapes, quac, shrimp and cheese quesadilla