Proverbs 31: 17b

Her arms are strong for her tasks. 

Peter and I are both feeling that our arms are not strong enough for our tasks. Also, my muffin tops have now turned into a muffin loaf. I gave myself 6 months post twin delivery to “not care” about exercise and watching calories.

My 6 month marker has passed.

Enter, p90X. Yes, like the infomercial.

I bought a new workout outfit, athletics shoes, a pull-up bar, a heart rate watch and an exercise mat. So, far this workout regimen has consisted of shopping. I’m calling it an investment in my future. Like, if I don’t invest – I won’t have a future.

I passed my fit test over the weekend. It felt good find my ab muscles again, even if they’re off in Neverland.

Today is day 1.

Good grief, no, I’m not going to show you my before photo! Well, not yet anyway. In 90 days, I may post the before photo, if I have a super strong looking after photo, that is.

Here’s to a challenging 90 days!

Love,

Jess

The Store

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s…It’s a mom burning rubber in her minivan to get her child to a bathroom!

Park the van. Whip up the double stroller. Buckle in both babies. Grab two hands. Check to see if I have my van keys. Okay, Operation Commode underway.

Riiing! Just as we reach the door, of the nearest department store, my cell phone blares from the underbellies of my purse. I could have let the phone ring. But, no, I answered it, like a loyal dog.

Thankfully it was my dh, Neat Pete. Even now, as I type, I can’t even remember why he was calling. I muttered something about having a potty emergency. Molly pushed as many automatic door buttons as she could find during my 15 second conversation.

Through the open doors we flew. Passed fundraiser stuffed animals, summer sun dresses and brightly colored patio collections, we flew.

Until, I saw, an end cap with jewelry sets. Oh look, something shiny, I brought us all to a stop.

“Mo-om! Don’t doddle!” urged Ryan. (Where have I heard this before? At least I know something I say makes it into his memory banks!)

Leisure shopping is not in my vocabulary.  Plus, the bathroom beckoned us from the back of the store. The jewelry sets left my attention, as quickly as they had gathered it, and off we went, in search of the bathroom.

I accepted help, to open the bathroom door, from a customer service clerk. So, humbling, I promise you.

The girls and I waited for Ryan, who is now happily situated in a stall. Each and every woman, that passes in and out of the door,  strikes up a conversation or tosses out fleeting inquiries about my family.

“Are those all yours?” they cry. “You must be so busy!” they claim. “I could never do that!” they admit. “Are they identical?” they prod. “I knew twins in my graduating class!” they add.

“It’s a lot of fun!” I respond. I feel like telling them I also have a 5 year old boy, but he’s is pooping in the stall next to you, but I don’t. Cause, I’m sane.

“How old is big sister?” they beg of Molly. They of course are met with a blank stare, filled with wonder. I can see her wheels cranking, Why do all these strange women want to know my age?

To which, I say, “she’ll be 3 in June”.

That’s all it took. Molly began whining and scrambling for the door. I knew my patience was getting thin. I sent a how are you doing pal? over the stall door. He was almost done.

Almost done, isn’t done, when your a 2 2/3 years old middle sister, waiting in a bathroom for too long!

She melted into a whimpering puddle next to my leg. At the same moment, I remembered, I had store credit that would expire unless I used it by, of course, that very day.

Back to the jewelry department!

Part 4 – coming soon

Love,
Jess

Onto the task before me…try to learn about the wisdom found in Proverbs 31, hands on.

Proverbs 31:14

¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.

photo credit: anthropologie

Like merchant ships she brings food from a far – basically grocery shopping.

Grocery shopping with 4 kids 5 and under!? Not. going. to. happen. Can you even image the scene? Cart wheels squeaking, breast milk leaking, children fighting, babies crying. Even on a good day, where would I put the food?

Enter online shopping

I am fortunate to have a local service in my community that provides pick-up or delivery service. The small fee I pay for having someone else shop the aisles for me and bring the food to my house, is worth every penny.

Shopping online provides the opportunity to watch my finances. I can easily “put back” items that have put my budget over. I can also stick to my list a lot better when I don’t have the chance to roam to the “other side” of Target. You know what I am talking about…holiday decor, clothes, clearance end caps and toys.

Add extra help

Even the thought of taking all the little ones (in this freezing weather) on a small trip to restock fresh foods or small items can really wear me down. I try to ask for help whenever I need some assistance. I love my friends and family!

The wisdom

Being wise is knowing when to push yourself and knowing when to set your limits. I set my sails to gather food, I just require a crew to help me navigate the way home.

Love,

Jess

I’ll be back with more grocery and meal planning adventures.

I “gathered” wool from Mill End Factory Outlet.  I looked for felt fabric that I loved, but I guess modern felt is made of 100% Acrylic. So, I purchased a yard of Ralph Lauren wool from the remnant pile. Beats finding a sheep to sheer, no?

I picked up a box of flax seeds from the grocery store. Thanks to my Mom I figured out that flax is all over the place in the health foods niche. Nice. I guess I’ve spend too much time buying Jell-O and non-dairy coffee creamer to notice.

Anyway, let my eager hands work!

I’m thinking muffins with flax and some sort of accessory with the wool.

I had to literally buy thread and needles to even entertain the idea of making something with fabric. Plus, do flax muffins taste like cardboard?

We’ll see how it goes!

Love,

Jess

• Molly loves to play with her “guys” and “babies” (fisher price little people) in the doll house.
• Sample day at the local membership mega-mart. Molly struggles to stay awake to eat her chip crumb snack from the sample lady that thought salsa would be too spicy for her to eat. Ryan chilled in the freezer department using the ledge as a bench to scarf down blueberries in a cup.
• Neat Pete blew out candles to his double-decker chocolate chip cookie and frosting 29th Birthday cake. The treat was created by my personal baker Sam. (We went to visit “him” at the membership mega-mart.)