Relaxing, Enjoying Life

This is where I ate breakfast this morning. I'm resting in a beautiful cabin for a much-needed vacation. Feeling renewed...

Time Change

How do you feel about the time change we must endure every six months?  I hate it.  Well, at least the "falling back" part.

Several good minutes of daylight are wasted while I'm still asleep.  It will be dark tonight by 6:00.  Hubby says he doesn't get to see his house in the daylight all winter long.  The darkness sends me into a minor depression of sorts.

Even though it's only an hour, it takes my body so long to adapt to the change.  Baby Girl woke up an hour early this morning and I didn't get my sweet, ten-minute break this morning between when the boys leave and when I must wake up Big Sis.

But because she was up, Baby Girl was the one assigned to waking up her sister.  It was really sweet to see her climb into her sister's bed, lovingly stroke her face, and push back her hair!  Then she gently uncovered her and told her to wake up.  It was precious!

I'd rather just stay on Daylight Savings Time all year round.  Anyone with me?

All I Have to do is Dream

I love studying about the differences between men and women.  They were created distinctly and have so many differences between them.  Yesterday at our dual chiropractor appointments, I tilted my head to the side to hear thirty thousand cracks in my neck.  Hubby mentioned to the doctor that he's jealous I can do that to myself with minimal effort.  The doctor explained that women can crack their necks easier because they have smaller ligaments. 

Men and women have so many other differences - physiological differences, psychological differences, and typically differences in their interests.  I know there are tom boys who like hunting, fishing, car racing, football, and every other thing generally geared toward men.  Although I do enjoy sports, I am not one of those women.

If the phrase Opposites Attract is in fact true, that must be why I ended up with my spouse.  We compliment each other in so many ways.  He's tall, I'm, well, average.  I'm more book smart and he's more street smart.  I get lost going to the west side of the town I was born in; he can find any location on earth with the built-in GPS in his brain.  It works.

One way that we show such extreme differences is in the way we dream.  Hubby is all about action.  My dreams tend to be much less exciting.  When we woke up Saturday,  he said, "Boy, was I having some weird dreams last night!"  I answered, "So did I!"  He began telling me about his dream, which are all basically the same.  There are either police chases involved or severe weather.  If he's not running from (or with) the cops, he's being chased by a tornado.  It's funny...every time.  This last dream involved police sirens (as always) that grew louder and louder.  He thought they were after him so he started running.  At one point, he realized they were for someone else (that he knew) so he flip-flopped sides.  He talked the guy into surrendering and even convinced him to put his hands behind his back.  The police arrested him and my husband was given credit for the arrest.  Crazy.

My dream (the same night) was about tomatoes in my garden.  How dull is that?  I dreamed that I discovered small, red tomatoes deep in the middle of the plants.  No sirens, no tornadoes, no wild animals.  Just tomatoes.  Last night, I dreamed I was ordering breakfast in a restaurant.  Big Sis wanted hot tea and I, for some reason, was eating baked chicken someone gave me.  I know, could I be any more boring?

I guess that only proves the point about the differences in our personalities.  While I'm normally pretty creative and can come up with interesting stories, when I'm unconscious I become as mundane as cold oatmeal.  I guess I use up all my action time in real life and use my sleep time for actual rest and relaxation.  Super Mom by day, tomato grower by night!

Sleeping, Waking Up, Being Lazy

I love it when I come to bed and Hubby is talking in his sleep.  Most of the time, he just mumbles or whispers and I can't understand him.  But occasionally, he'll be so into it that I can have a conversation with him.  Last night was such a night.

When he first begins speaking, sometimes I wonder if he's faking it and trying to get a rise out of me.  That's how clear it was last night.  He typically is quite mean, however.  As I got into bed, it sounded like he asked me to do something.  Immediately after that sentence, he sarcastically said,
"Well, I guess not then, stupid!" 
I snickered and asked, "What?  What do you want me to do?"
"Psh!" he sighed sarcastically.
He was mad about something.  "This is ridiculous!"
More quiet laughing from me.  "Why are you mad?"
"I've been here all day!"
"Really?"
He was quiet for a while while I asked a series of questions trying to get him to talk again.  Finally, he answered, "There's a line going from here to there, dummy!"
That one got me laughing out loud, which woke him up.
"What are you doing?"  he wondered.
"Carrying on conversations with you in your sleep!  Why are you so mean to me when you're sleep talking?"
He was not happy I was making fun of him and told me so.

I rubbed his back as he drifted happily to sleep again.  In what seemed like ten minutes later, my alarm went off and woke me from my peaceful slumber.  Another day begins.

The days are beginning earlier presently.  My kids have to make up a few of the snow days that exceeded the limit.  Instead of making them go extra days at the end of the school year, they added half hour increments to each day.  So now school begins at 7:30.  That is really early.  Trying to get kids in bed at 8:30 at night is so difficult, especially when their dad doesn't get home from work until after 6:30.  It seems like we eat, clean up, and go to bed. 

I'm anxious for lazy summer nights when we can enjoy spending time together as a family.  It seems like the entire streets stands in their yards, doing nothing but talking to one another until the mosquitoes come out.  Those are my favorite kind of nights.  The kids come in late with dirty hands and feet, smelling like outside.  No one is in a hurry, no one is yelling for children to get in bed.  It will be here soon!

Day of Rest

I'm so thankful for a day of rest!

Genesis 2:2 "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made."

Some people rest in different places:

At the beach,

At the playground,

In the backyard

With kids climbing all over,

And even while babysitting.

Wherever you may be today, enjoy your rest.