Lately

J started a dance class last week-- she's been asking for a while and although I was reluctant to add another thing to our schedule (as usual, we had each girl pick just one activity this year to keep insanity to a minimum) we have found a dance instructor we just love and her classes are so inexpensive (and high quality!) that I couldn't resist this little dancer any longer.

So here I am watching her on the grainy video monitor from the lobby...

She's the one in the middle with the black leotard and bright pink leggings!

... and finding myself with some time to blog!

I'll just throw a few quick pictures and updates your way.

On the subject of J's dance class, she was of course simply thrilled that I finally said yes to her request for a ballet class, and had her leotard on by 8:30 that morning (class didn't start until 5 PM).

To keep her busy, we went to Barnes & Noble that day, because it also happened to be C's actual birthday, so we were able to pick up her free gluten-free Rice Krispies Treat from the cafe, courtesy of Barnes & Noble Kid's Club.

The books were a great way to pass the time while we waited for this ballerina's first class.

I wasn't sure how she would do since the other girls in the class were 5, 6, and 7, but after class the instructor told me she did just fine and kept up with the big kids no problem.  Because she had been feeling shy at first I sat in the class with her the first day, so I was able to see firsthand just how much she hung on her instructor's every word.  She remembered everything perfectly and has been practicing all her steps nonstop this week.  Nothing like delayed gratification, right???

Speaking of C's birthday, we celebrated a few days early this year.  Unlike most years, I actually planned her party BEFORE Christmas... finally learned my lesson after 8 years.  Typically we don't think ahead to plan it until after the holiday rush and that causes us to have to celebrate well after her actual birthday.  This year, we celebrated on the 5th of January (3 days before her birthday!), at the rock gym!

Rock climbing is a new love that C has acquired recently... she tried it for the first time at a friend's birthday party and now she's hooked.  She's very adept and does not seem to have inherited her mother's fear of heights.  In typical C fashion she just invited three people plus her sisters (she has never liked a crowd) and it was so laid back and perfect.

Check out our cool cake!  I just couldn't throw a kid party without making some kind of crazy cake.  Y'all know me.

C did a lot of the decorating, so it was a joint effort.  Not at all stressful, and super fun.  Just the way I like my parties these days.

Here's me last weekend, strapped in and ready to drive up to New Hampshire, on my way to the third of four gigs that weekend:

So yeah... it was a SUPER busy weekend for me.  M and the girls held down the fort at home, doing laundry, picking up the groceries, bathing everyone, etc.  So glad that I can count on my helpers!  I did miss them a lot while I was out singing, so I'm pretty happy that this coming weekend is a four-day one (the girls have off on Friday for a teacher PD day).  I'm looking forward to soaking up plenty of quality time with my ladies and my man.

We have had a beautiful streak of weather for outdoor running in these past two weeks-- warm enough during the day to melt the ice and snow off the sidewalks, and no measurable precipitation to replace it!

I took the above pic from my Nike+ Run Club app last Friday-- typically I leave the house between 5:45 and 6 AM for my run, so this particular morning I got to see the full moon setting which lit up half the sky, and then after that this beautiful sunrise appeared!  What a treat to see both those things on the same morning!

I do think that my outdoor running streak may be ending as my next scheduled run day is Friday, and early morning temperatures are predicted to be below 5 degrees with wind chill... and then more snow is predicted for Saturday.  Well... the treadmill awaits, although the more I run outside the more I am totally bored by treadmill running.  I'll take what I can get!

I have been thinking a lot about ritual and routine lately, after hearing an interview with the CEO of Thrive Global (I have been searching the internet to find this interview and I can't find it! it was on Public Radio).  She advocates a daily routine at bedtime to encourage good sleep which, she argues, is THE most important component of wellness and success.  Just like children, she advocates that adults create some sort of relaxing bedtime routine (preferably away from screens)-- a cup of tea, a bath, reading a book for pleasure, etc.  Thanks to my New Year's resolution I haven't had a lot of trouble with the reading part of my nightly routine, but I have also added a cup of chamomile every night so far this week, and... it's only been three days of this, but sleep has been really great this week! (Not that I have much trouble sleeping, usually... I just have trouble giving up my late-night "me" time and putting myself to bed on time, sometimes.)

This idea has gotten me thinking about routine and ritual in other areas of my life as well.  Here's my ritual of lunch that I take to work:

A Shaklee green smoothie, a veggie, a fruit, and some sort of "snacky" snack that I usually save for the ride home when I'm done with work, as a sort of "treat".  I always pack the same thing on work days, because I know it works when I don't have much time to eat during the day, and it's all thought out ahead of time so I don't have to make any decisions in the early morning when I'm getting ready.  It's planned ahead, it's healthy, and it keeps me on track with my eating goals.  Win win win.

M and I recently did this same sort of thing with chores around the house... we typically do this every few years when we're in a new house, a new job, or have any other new life situation where chores and responsibilities have changed.  We start by listing out everything that needs to get done, then we set up a daily schedule and designate who will do what.  We've had the current "chore chart" going for a couple of months now and it's working great.  Here and there something will get overlooked, especially if we have something busy outside of the normal routine, but since it's all built in to a repeating schedule, it eliminates some stress because we know that everything will come up again next week and eventually get done.  It also helps keep us feel like we're working together, and no one person is stuck with all the work.  Again, win win.

I'm trying to think of a way that I can incorporate blogging into this routine, since it works so well for so many other things.  I'm thinking perhaps this Wednesday night dance class for J may be just the thing!  It falls on a night when I can take her by myself so using my lobby time while I watch her on the monitor may be the slot in my week when I can make it happen.  I hope so, because I think regular writing will be as healthy for me as a lunch-packing or before-sleep routine!  We shall see how it goes :)

I'll leave you with a picture of J's first "real" haircut!  We have only ever trimmed her bangs-- never cut the hair in the back.  Because she got some Silly Putty in it the other day, I decided it was time.  She went for a "N haircut"-- a cute little bob that has had us all gushing over her all week.  As M said "That haircut pretty much made my week."

...and with a cream cheese face, in the car:

...and in her new pjs, and sheriff's badge.

Pretty irresistible, I'd say.

Have a great weekend everyone!