A few weeks ago I read this post from Stephanie of For Better or For Worse about how she thoroughly cleans her house on Mondays, a tradition she kept from her mother. In my comment to her I said that when I was a kid, our family always did our big cleaning on Saturday. In fact, there was a children’s song we would often sing in church that goes:

Saturday is a special day.
It’s the day we get ready for Sunday:
We clean the house, and we shop at the store,
So we won’t have to work until Monday.
We brush our clothes, and we shine our shoes,
And we call it our get-the-work-done day.
Then we trim our nails, and we shampoo our hair,
So we can be ready for Sunday.

I realize the basic message the song delivers is to keep the Sabbath day holy, but  what I heard was that all the cleaning, shopping, and laundry had to be done on Saturday.  In the nine-and-a-half years since dh and I were married, I could often be found at the grocery store at 11:00 on Saturday night. I didn’t have time to shop during the day, because I was getting the house and the kids all shiny while dh played. When he was a kid, the weekend was for skiing, biking, golfing, hiking, playing soccer, anything but work. Can you imagine how our world exploded on Saturdays? Eventually, we compromised and I began doing my housework throughout the week so we could do more fun things after dh did a little bit of yard work on Saturday.

I admit, I have struggled trying to find a routine that works for me. I tried Flylady and did a little something every day. I rebelled. Then I made my own "do it when it needs it" method. I quickly realized that my opinion of when something needed to be cleaned was different than dh’s, and that caused even more contention. After that, I set up a system of daily jobs for my children to do and thought I would help and teach them. My kids still do their daily jobs, but it just felt like the house was never cleaned properly. It just didn’t shine or smell like my childhood home did at noon on Saturday.

So this week I tried something new. Like Stephanie, I thoroughly cleaned my home Monday morning. A great level of satisfaction came to me when the smells of furniture polish, vinegar, ammonia, and bleach simultaneously permeated our home; when I saw the sparkle of the bathroom fixtures; and when I walked on the fluffy, freshly-vacuumed carpet (no I wasn’t high). It felt like Saturday, on Monday. Aaaahhh.

I am keeping this routine for sure! 

I am a biker babe! I just need a leather jacket with some fringe hanging from the arms, and some chaps to match, oh, and maybe a Harley too.

Terry and I took the scooter on our date Saturday. It was the first time I’ve gone more than a mile on that thing, and I was a little nervous as I imagined all the ways we could wreck. After the second mile or so, I began to relax and enjoy our time without the kids.

We went downtown in the nearby bigger city to eat at PF Chang’s, a Chinese restaurant. We didn’t have reservations (we don’t plan that far in advance) so we had to wait for about an hour to get a table for two.

The weather was very pleasant, so we sat outside the restaurant and watched people while we waited. All types of people were out. For instance, there was a young man and his friends wearing brightly-colored homemade capes as they rode their bikes around. He had an annoying bell on his handlebars that he rang constantly, demanding attention from the restaurant patrons. His bike was cool, though. It’s one of those new/retro style of bikes that seem very comfortable with their larger springy seats and handlebars you can grasp with good posture.

Our wait also allowed us time to have some good conversation. Dh said that it was his dream to live in a condo downtown because he’s hating all the yard work, and would love to live near all the cultural & sports centers. I always thought that he eventually wanted to live outside of the city with a yard big enough for a soccer field so he and the boys could practice often–those addicts. I like the condo plan (less to clean) but we will have to save a long time until we can afford that dream.

When dh and I were finally seated in the restaurant, we ordered chicken lettuce wraps, sweet-n-sour pork, and mu shu chicken with thin pancakes. The lettuce wraps were awesome! They gave us leaves of iceberg lettuce and a plate of  filling consisting of bits of chicken, water chestnuts, rice noodles, and various veggies. The mu shu was o.k.. But the sweet-n-sour pork was so gristly, I couldn’t bear to swallow it and tried to be discreet as I spit it into the paper napkin meant for my water glass (the lap napkins were cloth). Uhg! After trying a few bites, I didn’t care to eat anymore. Dh told our waiter how gristly the pork was, and it was taken off our bill. That’s a nice gesture, but I think we’ll be going back to our favorite casual chinese restaurant by the movie theaters for now on.

We told our babysitter that we would be gone just a few hours, and those hours sped along too fast. It was time to go rescue her from our children, so we got back on the scooter and I wrapped my arms around my man as we rode into the purple sunset.

What did you do this weekend? 

Dh is going to Seattle this week for some job training. When he told me, I saw the unique opportunity to be kid-free for a a day, a night, and a day to relax, read a few books, and visit a few blogging friends; so I begged him to get a plane ticket for me too. Suprisingly, he obliged, and I started my hunt for a trustworthy babysitter.

Although my sister, Heidi, lives with me, she does have a full-time job. She would normally be available at night, but she has another commitment this week.

I thought of my older sister who lives on the other side of town. My children would love to stay there, but I don’t think they would actually sleep there, especially Cutie (since she hasn’t been able to sleep anywhere but right next to me in my bed since she was frightened by a bird).

Then I began calling the few responsible young women at church who have not started school yet. One could do it the first day, but not overnight, and had a doctor’s appointment in the middle of the second day.  Great! so I just needed to find someone to stay overnight, and maybe my neighbor could take the kids for a few hours during the girl’s appointment.

I left messages with a few single girls who had full-time jobs during the day, but were available to tend kids at night. No one returned my calls.

Last night at Applebee’s, I saw a family who are friends with my older sister.  There are a few young women in their family, and I knew my sister has hired them to babysit for her before. So, as they were perusing their menus, I interrupted to ask if one of their daughter’s could babysit overnight. She was willing, but had an end-of-summer sleepover planned for that night.

My next thought was to ask some local message-board ladies for babysitter referrals, but stopped myself and realized I was acting out of desperation—but I had already made lunch and dinner plans to meet my blogging friends, bought some new clothes to feel comfortable, and chose which books to pack to read. 

This morning, as I made it a matter of prayer, I realized that staying home would be the best thing for me to do for my kids. So I now have credit with the airline to get away another time. Common sense would tell me that I could use it at the end of September when I go to the Church Primary open house and training in Salt Lake City, but I could drive there.

I think Seattle is calling me. If I can’t go this week, I will go soon. Who else wants to go? Let’s make plans.

Bud and I have learned a few things together this week.

• Bud is right handed. Since he broke both of his arms before he turned five, he was a little delayed in choosing his favorite hand. I didn’t want to push him to practice much so I wouldn’t discourage him. Now I think I could have pushed a little bit. Oh, well. He’s doing well.
• Bud wants to be a Jedi when he grows up–that’s what he drew on his scrapbook page today–at least he’ll be one of the good guys. 
• Before school began, I should have told the teacher that his long name, Budalicious, could be shortened to Bud, so he wouldn’t feel so overwhelmed during writing practice on the first day. Maybe he can master Budalicious in second grade.
• It takes longer than 2 minutes to get to the bus stop. I had to pick Bud up and run half a block to catch the bus before it left. 
• Ant is a good protector. I was told by another mom that he helped Bud off the bus and escorted him to his class. 
• Kindergarten is lovely. I don’t know what I was so worried about.

I have been in Emily’s dreams. I hope she doesn’t mind that I share this with you. She told me about a week ago that in her dream I was one of the finalists on that show Last Comic Standing. Did I win, Emily? I think I did. Go, me!

I like reality shows. I’ve been glued to the TV for The Apprentice (Martha and Donald), American Idol, Big Brother (first season), Survivor (first & second seasons), and Celebrity Mole. My most favorite reality show has got to be Rockstar. Last season, it was Rockstar: INXS, where several singers were competing to be the new lead singer of the band. They were all professional singers to begin with, so the performances were (mostly) top quality. My favorite contestant, Marty, was the runner up. I haven’t followed the progress of INXS since the show, but sources say that they released an album in January, and they are currently on tour in Jakarta, Indonesia.

This season, the show is Rockstar: Supernova, where Tommy Lee and other rockers are looking for a lead singer for their new band. I could care less about Tommy Lee, but I’m enjoying the quality performances of the contestants again. I don’t have a favorite yet.

If I were to be on a reality show, it would have to be something like So You Think You Want to Be a Back-up Singer.  Maybe if Prince were to do a tour of the classics like Little Red Corvette, Purple Rain, Kiss, The Look, and Raspberry Beret, I might have a chance, but he’ll have to accept me with my clothes on.

Tomorrow is the first day of school—hooray! I’m excited, but also nervous for Bud who will start kindergarten. His clothes for the week are put in nice daily piles in his drawer, he has his backpack, the alarms are set, he can say his ABCs and count to 13. He’s all ready, but I’m not sure I’m ready to let him go yet. I feel like I’ve forgotten to tell him something important.

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The Dish Netw@rk customer service man made me cry — good tears.

Since dh quit his steady-paycheck, nice-benefits, normal-hours job to start a new commission-based, self-employing, no-benefits career last year, things have gotten a little tight. I’m not whining he left that job, it’s the best thing he’s ever done for himself, and he’s so happy. I understood that income, if any, would be low for the first year or so, and we prepared accordingly. Of course, cutting back our monthly bills was part of our preparations, and our subscription to Dish Netw@rk was one of the first things to go. But then the World Cup games started around Father’s day, and I renewed our subscription for a few months as a gift for my dh, the mega soccer fan.

Saturday was the last day of our billing cycle, thus, time to cancel Dish Netw@rk again. I had fallen in love with a few shows on TLC and HGTV and Ant was so excited to be able to watch Pokemon on Cart00n Netw@rk (Ash is just about ready to get his umpteenth medal thingy). So sadly, I picked up the phone and go through the numbers to talk to a customer service person. The first guy I talked to tried to get me to downgrade to the cheapest package, the $20 family deal. It just wasn’t worth it, though. We already had the second cheapest package without local channels for only $5 more per month. Since he couldn’t change my mind, he transferred me to a specialist. This second guy was smooth. He flattered me, saying he noticed how we have been awesome customers for the past 5 years. He empathized with me, saying he understands how we need to cut back when things get tight. But then he suprised me, saying: "Would it help if I gave you two free months?" I asked what’s the catch–do we have to sign some contract to pledge our loyalty for another year? Will you just bill me later? What?

He says there’s no catch, they just want to keep our business, and we can cancel if things don’t get better in a few months.

I . was . floored. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced customer service like this. Tears came to my eyes as I graciously accepted his offer. Thank you Dish Netw@rk customer service man!

Tears for free TV–I didn’t know it was that important to me.

I found out today that a grudge has been held against me for some insensitive, sarcastic comment I made while I was trying to joke and tease with someone last December (IRL). I feel so bad, first, for making the comment, and second, that they hated me and felt they couldn’t talk to me about it for 8 months, until now

I realize that I do say too many sarcastic things in my efforts to be funny. I hope that if I have offended any one of you, that you will please forgive me. I’m sorry.

The few pictures of me that have been posted in blogdom have been, in my opinion, less-than flattering. No offense to the photographers or their cameras, I know it’s my problem. Anyway, I thought I would post a few pictures that are more tolerable for me.

That is all. 

It’s starting to get a little busy. School starts on Monday and I get to help the Kindergarten teacher by making some handwriting worksheets. Also, I’ve been faithful at exercising. Mondays I walk, Wednesdays I do yoga at home, and Fridays I go to an aerobics class. I need to find a new yoga video, though. The instructor on my current one talks too much and it goes way too slow. Any suggestions?

And now it’s time for Works for Me Wednesday. Go to Shannon’s blog to see other ingenious ideas.

Do you have short people in your home? When the short people in my home wash their hands after doing their bathroom business, they have a hard time reaching the hand towel hanging from the ring on the wall to dry their hands. In the past, they would manage to pull the towel from the ring, but could not hang it back up. So, down it would go on the floor by the toilet or in the sink, to soak up all types of germs. This past week, I came up with a great idea:

I just made the towel hang by a few inches in the back and held it in place with one of my daughter’s hair bands. If I were really creative, I would tie a ribbon or some rafia over the elastic to make it look pretty. The towel now hangs low enough in the front so that the shortest of my short people can reach it to dry her hands without having to take it off the ring. Less mess for me! Ingenious, if I do say so myself.

Most (o.k., ALL) of the comments I received from my last post were pro-exercise, so I’m pretty much convinced that it’s a good thing to do. I knew it anyway, but just because dh was saying I should exercise, I turned up my nose to the idea.

I acted the same way in high school when my chemical-engineer father recommended I take a chemistry course. I wouldn’t do it. I took botany and forestry instead and almost failed it. Only after I aced biology in college did I realize I might actually be interested in learning chemistry. I still haven’t studied it, though.

I did it again when my dad suggested that I try voice lessons instead of continuing dance lessons. I chose dance, but when I finally joined the high school choir as a senior, I learned how to sing alto and loved it. Singing was good for my soul. I was sorry that I didn’t take those voice lessons earlier for personal training.

I think I’m beginning to learn my lesson. My father and my dh love me and know me well. They make suggestions that they think would help me understand and enjoy life more. I didn’t know I had such a rebellious nature, seriously, I thought I was a people-pleaser. I guess when it comes down to my personal issues like MY health, MY intelligence, MY hobbies, MY house, etc, no one can tell me what to do unless I ask their opinion.

Well, I did ask the people of blogland about exercise, and received several good opinions. I’m going to be setting some fitness goals and finding different means of exercising to help me achieve those goals. I know one day I’ll be walking in the neighborhood, on another day I’ll be attending an aerobics class, and then I thought I’d look into taking a beginners’ tap or clogging class.  We may be getting a hand-me-down weight bench which will provide another option. I’ll ask dh to be my personal trainer with the weights, and since I’ll ask, I may actually listen.

I’m asking for your help to convince me to exercise, or not.

Dh and I have had a forever-long disagreement about the benefits of working out. He says it is the cure-all–I’ll be able to go off my depression medication, I won’t want to sleep until 8:30 a.m. (when we go to bed at 11:30), I’ll have the energy to clean the house, I’ll have a better body image, etc, etc, etc,…. 

I say that I hate exercising, and nothing will make me happy if I have to do it. Plus, it’s too hot and/or cold outside and the gym costs too much. I already get enough exercise when I go grocery shopping with three kids. I may be able to get out of bed before 8:30 if our kids will stop waking me up in the middle of the night (or if they will stop getting in bed with us). And if I exercise, any bit of cleavage I have will disappear, and how will that improve my body image? Any extra energy I get from exercise will not be wasted on cleaning the house. No, instead I may want to start doing arts and craps with the kids, or take up scrapbooking (that was for you Alicia). Besides, I’m 5′2", almost 34 years old, and 120 pounds. According to the body mass index calculators, I’m in the middle of NORMAL. I know I could tone up a bit so I feel more comfortable in my jeans and so my upper arms wouldn’t jiggle so much. I just don’t think that exercising will make that much of a difference, so why kill myself for nothing?

So I’m asking you. Please share with me stories of how you have witnessed the benefits of exercise, or, how it just wasn’t worth the effort.