Remember...

Remember how BlogHer August 2014 blogging theme was supposed to be about memorization and tools to help make improvements in this department.  Uhhh... I think I failed this subject. I never wrote things down, my planner sits at the foot of reading/writing/eating/vlog & t.v. viewing chair untouched; those books I planned to read... nada. And, the brilliant ideas I thought I would write about... well, they all fell by the wayside. See, pretty sure I've mentioned this before, I don't do change very well. Remember? *sigh*

That planner I was talking about.

Hey, at least I got up in a good mood this morning, regardless that I went to bed somewhat irked about not being able to add last night's post on NaBloPoMo blogroll and completely forgot what it was supposed to be about when I woke up. Thanks, glitchy internet cable company (which shall remain nameless) connection.. NOT. *sigh*

Anyway, the reason I was in such a good mood was because I dreamt that The Mr. told me I looked cute while I slept.  So, I woke up, went to the bathroom, and as I glanced at my reflection in the mirror while washing up, I actually looked cute!  Oh dreams, how you toy with me.  I looked the same as I always do, and I would never think "cute."  Past week it was a consistent "egads!" response to my reflection.  Yeah, it was that bad.  Pretty sure my husband thought the exact same when he saw me each morning, which is funny considering the fact that I had a couple extra hours sleep - trying to create habit of turning in by midnight now that school has started and doing loads more driving.  So, yeah, doing that has been no help whatsoever. The expression, "beauty sleep," is a bunch of malarkey.  That said, the eyebrow tweezers will come out of hiding tonight... just in case my husband watches me while I sleep. Uhhh... creepy. Trust me, he won't.

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Oh, crap!  I just remembered... I didn't pick up my mom's pill sorter to refill for the coming week.  Note to self:  Set phone alarm for 7:00am.

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September 2014 will be better in all respects, as routines will be re-established, our car should be repaired, and I'll have the time to re-implement a fitness and meal plan for myself... if I was able do that successfully for mom last year, should be no sweat doing same for me.  The other thing I hope to focus on is my This Is Fifty vlog on YouTube; I've got Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday stuff in the works - one thing that is missing is music, but I'm going to try to figure that out this weekend.  Check it out sometime; leave comments. Positive and polite input will be gladly accepted.  See you there!  And thanks for stopping by in advance.

Until tomorrow ~ Lil

  

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This post is written for Day 30 ~ Creating Memories with August 2014 NaBloPoMo

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Alone Again, Naturally...

Well, that's not quite true, but it feels like I'm all alone here at The Place - it is very quiet and still. Quite Quiet is good.

So then, everyone who needed to be anywhere this morning was dropped off.  School drop off was exactly as expected... sigh.  But, I won't start griping about it on here until I absolutely need to vent; it may even be in the form of an open letter to area school districts. So be ready school districts.

Enough about that.

Hey, not only is it Back-to-School today, seems it may also be National Sour Milk Day. that's how it works, right?  It is no coincidence, after all, Summer break is officially over.  We are not big milk drinkers; most of us prefer our cereal dry. Is that weird? Yes? Well then, I guess we here are weird. And the time finally came when mac & cheese seems to have disappeared from the menu. So milk isn't in high demand with us Carilos; a half gallon lasts about a 1 1/2 to two weeks. Anyway, today was to be the beginning of my "get back to eating healthier" day.

This is how it went.  I was out of my favorite oatmeal, so I stopped at the only grocery store that seems to carry it... which was perfectly okay as it was on my way home, anyway.  So, I buy my oatmeal and head home.  The dogs had yet to eat, so I fed them and let them out, all the while anticipating my delicious breakfast.  Dogs done; my turn.  I washed my special oatmeal bowl and juice glass and brought out all the fixings: walnuts, raisins, butter, milk. I zapped my oatmeal with water in the microwave; when cooked, I then proceeded to add all the extras, and lastly added milk before giving it another 30 second long zapping, which I would have done, but instinct told me, "sniff the milk."  I did. Hmmm.  "Taste the milk."  At this point I knew enough to not take a taste from the bowl of oatmeal.  I just poured a tiny amount into the bottle cap... SOUR!  I sniffed inside the bottle... SOUR!   Yay, me... not.  It had not gone full on cottage cheesy, but it was well on it's way.  I had to dump my lovely breakfast in the trash and the sour milk down the drain.  Sigh.

Now, not only am I alone, I'm hungry too.

Happy National Sour Milk Day.

Ugh.

Until tomorrow ~ Lil

  

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This post is written for Day 28 ~ Creating Memories with August 2014 NaBloPoMo

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Priority One

I interrupt this BlogHer August 2014 NaBloPoMo Creating Memories blog challenge to focus on Priority One... Kid #3's start of senior year in high school.

It's Back-to-School eve and lunch fixings have been stocked - darn it, I forgot lunch bags.  School bell schedules and contact information have been posted on refrigerator.  Driving itinerary has been sorted - I hope there's gas in the tank.  Everyone is in bed - except those who are currently still suffering cold and flu; lots of nose blowing heard coming from every direction. And, I'm on schedule to be in bed by midnight.

Most importantly, checked on my girl, made sure she has minimum essentials for the day - school supplies will be acquired as requested by teachers.  Made clear what is expected in the way of appropriate clothing choices - watch that neckline, strap width, and shorts inseam length - really nothing to worry about in that department, though. Also, made sure she has a few dollars - just in case. Oh, and now that she has a cell phone, discuss importance of keeping shut off upon arrival at school, and only turned back on after school, or in extreme emergencies - having lived in Denver Metro area of Colorado, this is completely understood.  Also, helps that she only has immediate family in her contacts.

Proud mom, out.

Until tomorrow ~ Lil

  

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This post is written for Day 27 ~ Creating Memories with August 2014 NaBloPoMo

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Salud. Gesundheit. Salute! Prosit. Sat'yam. Santé, Bless You.

*UPDATED 12:11am 8/27/14

There's a lot of sneezing going on here at The Place today, and cough & cold relief remedies abound. So, may health and wellness soon be with us all. Also, may you all be spared the misery.

Okay, enough of that because I'm losing steam here and am seriously thinking about taking a lie down. Pretty sure this was coming on last night due to the fact that I have no idea what last night's blog post was about. I was in a stupor by the time the Emmy's were over, and remember feeling super tired and wanting to go to bed around 10:30 pm... everything is fuzzy after that.

Was there mention of routine? Hmmm.  I don't know.  Anyway, since it has come up, this is my new, soon-to-be implemented "Me, myself & I" routine.

In the old days - over decades - my go to morning news show was the Today show. Then the switch over to CNN happened in 2000. Lately I pretty much avoid televised morning news all together and rely on Twitter to keep me posted on world events via +apnews brk +Reuters  +CNN +PBS +PBS NewsHour  +NPR/Vermont, +9NEWS +mydesert.com  +Circa +The Verge  +Slate +Grist +Mashable +BuzzFeed, +The Texas Tribune, +The Weather Channel and of course, +Comedy Central's +The Daily Show and +The Colbert Report  heck, even +Mental Floss & +SourceFed serve as a great current events sources; on occasion +Mediaite.  Yes, this is how I get my news of the day, every day.

Another weekday standard for years and years was a long, and still running, popular morning talk show, but that began to stale as soon as their politics and lack of grasp of the real world - you know, for us non-millionaires - became apparent. The show lost me when one of the hosts could not understand why college graduates couldn't make it out in the "real" world; on their own, and commented that returning to live with parents seemed nonsensical. She would not allow that in her home. Same thing happened with certain afternoon talk shows... you know the kind, all they want to hear about are puppy dogs, cupcakes, and rainbows. Ugh.

Anyway, these days my entertainment comes via YouTube videos by creators that my kids have turned me on to, and I am thoroughly enjoying the refreshing content and absurd antics of these kooky kids.  I'll even admit that I, in turn, turned my kids on to some channels... that's you, +Grace Helbig and +markmalkoff. One channel which has taken the place of R&K, as far as random topics and subject matter go, is Good Mythical Morning, followed-up with Good Mythical More, by Rhett & Link.  Here's a sampling:

o

Coincidentally, today's Good Mythical More is one of my favorite episodes.

*Wait... update:

THIS is my favorite Good Mythical More episode EVER!

Every night after I've posted my blog post, I head on over to +YouTube for my "must watch" channels: +vlogbrothers and all their other brilliant contributions - +SciShow +CrashCourse +hankschannel, and by extension, +PBS Digital Studios +theartassignment and Healthcare Triage. Followed by - for absolute sheer entertainment - +Grace Helbig & friends, +markmalkoff from +My Damn Channel   +SoulPancake, Kid President, +TheFineBros +WheezyWaiter  +Flula +SORTED Food Guys and the ever brilliant +OlanRogers.  Although their content is aimed at a much younger set, I find it worth the time to tune in as often as I can. So, check 'em out if you ever have time to spare.

Now, if I also included favorite and worthwhile blog recommendations, this page might get way too long. I'll save that list for later this week. So, I'll just end here... Aaa-haaaa-CHOO!

Until tomorrow ~ Lil

  

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This post is written for Day 26 ~ Creating Memories with August 2014 NaBloPoMo

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Same ol', same ol'

Same ol' day in and day out of Summer break 2014 routine is nearly done, and it's gonna take some adjusting to the changes.  College Girl has settled in at school and The Talent will be starting back in a couple of days. My husband is back to working regular hours, but  Bookstore Boy's schedule has remained unchanged.  My days are taking on a whole new dynamic.  I'll be driving twice as much as I did over the summer, and I'm so not looking forward to the nightmare that is the poorly managed high school student drop off and pick up "procedure."

Here at The Place, there are new habits I'm trying to establish, like making sure I say good night to The Talent (I'm still not sure I like this moniker for Kid #3) before she turns in each night regardless of how distracted I am by less than important things - for instance, t.v. Past few years were so traumatic for all of us, but we've faced the challenges. It was worrisome that it seemed like our youngest was going out of her way to avoid family time; I didn't blame her. Things were pretty grim and I'm just glad that her main focus was keeping her priorities straight and placing her full attention on academics.  Now she is making an effort to welcome little changes. It made me so happy that she could join her brother and I for a movie this afternoon.  So, we are both making an effort to be more present in each others lives, and that's a good thing.

As for Bookstore Boy, there isn't too much change in his routine.  He has a full plate and tries his best to keep his cool when things seem to be getting out of control.  Right now, he's managing our finances, and health, tuition, and car repair costs are causing some stress, but his father and I appreciate all his assistance and contributions for the good of the family.

We are all missing College Girl even though her sister now has a room all to her own. I've lost my dishwasher and meal preparation helper, and her brother no longer has his video game and movie buddy.  At the same time that we are thrilled that she's returned to school, although it's gonna take getting used to not having her around to make our days a little brighter. I can tell her dad is taking it the hardest, with Shadow dog a close second.  I do love that she took the time to call us every night during sophomore and freshman year, and she's been checking in again every day since returning for Fall semester.

As for me... mom duties will be my focus - housekeeping, preparing meals, driving everyone here and there, and staying on top of my mom's health management.  It's very easy for me to slack off and let the day waste away; usually this is a result of a fibromyalgia flare up, and my fingers are crossed those are few and far between.

So, all that said, my short term goals are;

• Resuming a home workout routine.
• Improving my eating habits
• Going to bed at a reasonable hour
• Spending one-on-one time with Kid #3

Finally, and most importantly...

• Acquiring a small dining table so that we can enjoy family meal times together again... It has been too long.

So, here's to a great academic year for all those beginning Fall classes, whether as students, teachers, administrators, and school support staff. Hoping all your plans and routines fall effortlessly into place. And for those of you who could use this, keeping parents in my thoughts for a smooth  start and sending my best wishes to all for a successful 2014-2015 school year.

Until tomorrow ~ Lil

  

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This post is written for Day 25 ~ Creating Memories with August 2014 NaBloPoMo

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Lil's Week In Review ~ August 24, 2014

Hey, hope you had a very nice, safe & sound weekend.

This week in review...

MISSIONS ACCOMPLISHED

1. Registered Kid #3 (henceforth referred to as The Talent) for senior year in high school.
2. Saw College Girl (Kid #2) off to school; she's settled in and ready to begin junior year.
3. Completed* Bookstore Boy's (Kid #1) movie challenge (*Okay, we only made it mid way through Yellow Submarine; pretty sure you have to be high on something to enjoy it, and we're not in to that sort of thing.  Also, agreed to pass on Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon... subtitles, I don't do that either. All the pausing so I could read them would drive my kids batty) So, without further ado...

MOVIES... drum roll, please.

~ Carilo Family Movies*: Summer 2014 flicks that we watched this week, as selected from @EW's "...essential movies kids must see before they turn 13." were...

#51  The Avengers
#52  Titanic
#53  Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Subtitles, man.
#54  To Kill A Mockingbird
#55  Jurassic Park... Rest in peace, Sir Richard Attenborough:
        Aug. 29, 1923 ~ Aug. 24, 2014

FAVORITE

~ Dinner Winner Award goes to...

zpizza ~ Palm Desert

@zpizza

We ordered the Casablanca and the American and an assortment of their delicious salads. If there is one near you, I recommend it for a casual night out. After a nearly two years back in the desert, seems we've finally found a favorite pizza place* where everyone left happy.  *with the exception that they don't offer Coke products. 

BLOG UPDATE:

BlogHer NaBloPoMo August 2014 Creating Memories theme is fun. I've discovered a few new blogs that I enjoy reading.  However, this week has been slow going and I've really gone out of my way to make an effort to stay on track regardless of distractions and lack of motivation.

AUGUST 2014 BLOG ACTIVITY:

~ Most viewed post:  The Last Time Ever
~ Least viewed post:  Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ~ My Story Post entry still blank as I was not yet ready to write about it in detail.

WELCOME READERS!

~ This month's A How-To Guide visits from around the globe:

United States

Canada

Italy

United Kingdom
Germany
Poland
France
Ireland
Russia
Denmark

India

Malaysia

Ukraine

Japan

China

Australia

Hungary

Yay, world!

HAPPINESS...

is, being around those who love you and whom you love most. Also, birthday cakes!

Until tomorrow ~ Lil

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This post is written for Day 24 ~ ~ Creating Memories with August 2014 NaBloPoMo

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