What I Learned This Week

Life is a journey and along the way you constantly discover new things about yourself and the world around you. Here is what I learned this week.

There is a big difference between "vetting" and "venting."  Vetting an idea is a productive exercise with your peers.  When it is over, you know that you have accomplished something important and feel good about it.  You choose to be a part of the process knowing that it will be a worthwhile way to spend 15 minutes of your day.  I suppose that venting can also be seen as a productive exercise with your peers or anyone who will listen.  But, it can often be exhausting and counterproductive.  The goal here is to get something off your chest without much chance or openness towards resolution.  You can participate in the venting process, but it ultimately will prove to be 15 minutes of your life that you will never get back.  To that note - I add the following prayer to my regular Shabbat prayers tonight.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.


On a much lighter note, I also learned that even 40 year olds can get addicted to video games. Case in point - I am addicted to my daughter's DSI game, Style Savvy. In this virtual reality, I am the owner of a trendy clothing store, I can buy the latest fashions and sell them to clients with specific wants and needs.  I don't know why but it is a lot of fun and I can't seem to put it down. I love to channel my inner fashionista without spending a dime of my hard earned money.

Have a great weekend!

Life Before 7 am

While the rest of my family was sleeping soundly, I woke up this morning with one thing on my mind - dinner.

Too often, I come home from work and I have no idea what we are having for dinner or when I am going to find the time to make something healthy.  Between helping with homework and driving to piano lessons, ball games and so on, those golden arches look friendlier and friendlier all the time. But, I am determined to stay away from their magical ability to provide dinner without getting out of the car or stepping foot into my kitchen. 

Anyway, back to my wake up call.  At 5:30 this morning, I got out of bed, rubbed my eyes and made my way down to the kitchen. Briefly blinded by the light, I pulled out my cookbook and turned to an easy chicken recipe that pleases everyone in the family (see below for the recipe).  I pre-heated the oven and got busy.  Within 25 minutes, the chicken was pounded, dipped in a yummy honey-dijon mustard mixture and breaded evenly.

Satisfied with myself, I suddenly remembered the load of laundry that I put in the wash last night.  I ran downstairs to put it in the dryer and then went to take a shower. By the time I got dressed, dinner was ready and that load of laundry was almost done. And when I put on my rose-colored glasses, I can't even see the enormous pile of dishes sitting in the sink!

I must say that being a morning person has its benefits.  There is so much I can accomplish with a little coffee and the notion that I'm not distracted by other responsibilities and errands.  It is great to start my day knowing that I don't have to worry making dinner tonight.  I will have extra time to spend with my kids, their homework, activities and maybe even watch the last few episodes of Oprah without guilt.

Hmmm, I could be on to something here.  This might become a new habit for me. And perhaps, a new blog theme as well.  After all, I even wrote this post before 8 am!

Recipe: Chicken Dijon
(From The Six O'Clock Scramble Cookbook)

4 chicken breast halves
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp paprika
3 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp water
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp peppr
1 Tbsp margarine

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil and spray with non stick spray.  Pound chicken breasts. Combine bread crumbs, flour and paprika. Combine mustard, honey, water, salt and pepper. Coat chicken with mustard mixture and then bread crumbs.  Put on bakng sheet. Melt margarine in microwave and drizzle over the chicken. Bake for 10-15 minutes.

Dinner is served!

A Mom's Sixth Sense

Just like all other human beings, moms have the five senses - hear, sight, smell, taste, & touch.  But, it is our sixth sense that makes us stand out from the rest of the pack.  I call this the "lost & found" sense.

I don't know about you but I am faced with the task of finding the missing sneaker, book, lunch box, baseball shirt, etc... on a daily basis.  Did I say daily? Let's say that at least 2-3 times a day, I am called upon to find what is lost and return it to its proper owner.  As a somewhat experienced mom, I feel that it is important to share how to handle (and not to handle) this situation:

The Boomerang Effect - You may be tempted to ask the person to go and look for the item themselves.  You will reason in your mind that this person put it away and therefore he or she should know where to find it.  It sounds rational but I guarantee you that within 5 minutes that person will come back to you and say, "I can't find it" or I've looked everywhere." Of course, you know that this means they went into their bedroom, looked around, shrugged their shoulders and basically gave up.

The Blame Game - You will waste valuable time playing the game of he said/she said. Endless rounds of "You had it last." or  "You cleaned up the house and must have put it away somewhere."  This is a fight that is not worth fighting. While all of this may be true - the fact remains that it is still lost.

The St. Anthony Method - As a nice Jewish girl, I do not know much about saints - except for the song I learned about how they come marching in.  However, I've learned that St. Anthony is the patron saint of finding lost things. If you feel that you need divine intervention, you can find out more about St. Anthony here and call upon him if the need arises.  I have some friends who swear by this method.

The Always Tried & Never Failed Method  - Send in a mom to save the day.  But here are the rules:

• If the item is in plain sight and the person chose to overlook it, ask that person to go back to their room and give it a better look. Assure them that it will magically appear if they give it another try. 
• If the item is not in clear sight, bring in your puzzled partner and start the search together.  Make it a competition or a game. No one likes to do these tasks alone.  Even though moms can perform a search and rescue on our own successfully - we need to teach others to develop their sixth sense. 

Of course, if no one can find it, the kids will have learn to live without it, borrow someone else's or use their money to buy a new one. And you know that it will turn up someday where you least expect it.  Don't get me started on the time I found a check that was used as a bookmark. Yikes!

 

Thank You, Ferris Bueller!

This week's prompt from one of my favorite blogger sites - The Red Dress Club - asked me to write about one of the 7 Deadly Sins - gluttony.  As a Jew, I was never taught the 7 Deadly Sins in Sunday School.  But, since I'm never one to walk away from a challenge, I know that the word gluttony brings to mind the common phrase - "glutton for punishment" - which is what I will write about here. :)

It is a simple fact of my life that I love to keep busy.  In order to prevent the onset of boredom, I became involved in many different things.  Honestly, I enjoy them all but my friends and family look at me and sometimes wonder if I am a glutton for punishment.

(Are you wondering where Ferris Bueller comes into all of this? Keep reading...)

It is one thing to be busy, but at what cost?  With a full time job, two children and a house to take care of, I am frequently asked how I find the time be president of my professional organization, exercise regularly, volunteer at school, pee, and write my blog posts.  I've laughed these comments off by saying - " I don't do all of these things at the same time!"  But, the part that I forget about is that even though this is true - I'm constantly thinking about all of these things that I need to do and wonder when I'm ever going to get it done.

Posts on Facebook tell me that I'm not alone.  Many of my friends write about how overwhelmed they are and wonder where the day went.  Articles about multi-tasking and time-saving tips are devoured by readers like me. We are all looking for that magic formula to get it all done and be happy doing it. 

(Don't worry, I'll get to Ferris in a minute...)

When I go out for a run, it is my intention to get in some exercise and I hope to clear my head and alleviate some stress.  But within the first mile, my mind is quickly overcome with what is on my current to-do list and what needs to be added to it.  I can't help myself and ultimately it defeats the purpose of running in the first place.  So, let it be written and let it be done that one of my personal goals is to enjoy myself in tasks that I choose to spend my time on and be present in the moment.

As Ferris Bueller once said, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
I don't want to miss a moment. I'd rather make each moment count. So, thank you, Ferris Bueller - you are a righteous dude!