I am on day three of green smoothies. I keep making the same recipe over and over because I am afraid to try something new and have it taste nasty. I put in a few handfuls of spinach, one handful frozen strawberries, one squirt agave nectar and two spoonfuls of plain yogurt. It tastes like an okay strawberry shake. I have one for breakfast, and one for snack late in the day. I eat real food too. Don't worry Mom.

I really want to feel healthier and more energetic. SO far, I feel the same. I'll post pictures tomorrow. Samantha does not like them. Logan says they taste good, but I think he is just being nice.

My sister Laura and I are doing this ridiculous weight loss challenge (sorry Laura, but it is ridiculous!) where we have to reach specific weights by April 11. I think it is ridiculous because we both set unobtainable weights for ourselves. Not really unobtainable, but we will be skeletons if we reach our goals. According to Green Smoothie Girl, these weights are totally doable. We will see. Anyway, if you haven't tried a smoothie, I totally recommend it! It's a good way to get more fruits & veggies in your diet.

Super Long Night

I thought we were over being sick, that is until I felt a tickle in my throat and knew it was about to start all over again. I guess hand sanitizer doesn't work so well when you have a baby in the house that puts EVERYTHING in their mouth and doesn't know how to cover her mouth when she sneezes or coughs!!

Last night I was up all night with Samantha. It was a very scary night. She woke up gasping for breath. I ran in her room and grabbed her out of bed. I lifted up her shirt and checked her breathing which was very labored and you could count every rib as she breathed in and out. It was very reminiscent of when Logan had RSV as a baby. Luckily we have a nebulizer so I grabbed it and hooked everything up. I think she must have croup because she kept coughing and it sure sounded like we had a dog in the room.

I gave her two treatments, but she was still having a really hard time breathing and she was freaking out. We bundled up in our coats and blankets and went outside and sat on the porch. After about 20 minutes things were really sounding better so we came back inside and watched The Little Rascals until we fell asleep on the couch together.

Where was Trevor this whole time you ask? ASLEEP! I tried to wake him up, but he sleeps so soundly it is a wasted effort to even try.

I am off facebook. Just so you know. I have noticed that the trend is going away from blogging and moving towards facebook. I don't have the time for both, so I needed to make a decision. This is it.

For 2011, I am going to try to move the focus of my blog more towards bettering myself and my family. I want to be more positive and inventive. Yeah, that means there are going to be more creative things on here like there used to be. I'm not really sure myself what that completely means, but I guess we'll all see in the coming weeks.

My goal is also to do stuff on here that I've never done and also to put myself out there on a whole new creative level. Oh, do I have you yet? You'll be able to make fun of me like never before! (Remember when I made shoes for Samantha? OH OH or the botched blessing dress!!) haha! Ah those are good memories.

I can't wait to see what is in store for us all!

I was talking to someone tonight who was a total breath of fresh air. She is someone who everyone wants to be around because she makes everyone feel like they are important. She is very positive and yet full of quirks and doesn't care who sees that she is not perfect. I love people like this. I aspire to be like this.

It is hard for me to feel safe around certain people so I become quiet and observe in social situations where I don't feel like I belong. Upon further examination, the people that I feel uncomfortable around are people who seem perfect to me. They are not real. Especially not warm. I guess it could be misconstrued for me being arrogant and a snob when I become quiet, but really I am just uncomfortable with fake-ness.

Why do some people feel the need to present a perfect demeanor. We all know that no one is perfect. Also, I feel uncomfortable with fake caring. You know, the kind of caring that is just there to look good. They ask a question, but don't really listen to the answer.

Sister So-And-So: "Alyson, you've been pretty quiet lately. Is everything okay?"

Alyson: "Well, actually I have been having a hard time..."

Sister Fun Stuff walks in.

Sister So-And-So: {interrupting Alyson} "Hi Sister Fun Stuff! I missed seeing you at charades last night!"

Anyway, this lady tonight reminded me that we don't have to be perfect to be liked. We don't have to have perfectly coiffed hair and designer jeans from The Buckle to be considered for a friend. All we have to do is be true to who we are and not be afraid to be ourselves.

I find myself daydreaming a lot lately about our tax return. I have a running list of all the things I could buy with it. I won't bore you with the details, but it is some pretty cool stuff!

We got the W-2 from Trevor's current job a few weeks ago, and ever since then I find myself peeking out the window every day about 1:30 waiting for the mailman. You see, I'm still waiting for the W-2 from his other job. Remember when he was a paralegal of sorts? Yeah. It is driving me crazy. I fight feelings of anger towards the mailman when the W-2 isn't in the box.

Today I couldn't stand it anymore. I got all the tax stuff out and filled everything out except for the missing W-2 part. Now it is sitting here even more of a reminder to me to watch out the window like a crazy lady until it gets here.

The sad part is, I probably won't get to buy any of those exciting purchases. There are more important things to do with the money like pay off student loans. Blech!