"Dear Self" or "Dear Me" Letter Challenge

I've got a challenge for you if you are brave enough to try it.

Write yourself a "Dear Self" or "Dear Me" letter. Guidelines are 1. confess to yourself how you have treated yourself 2. confess how this made you feel 3. tell yourself what steps you will take to be a friend to yourself this year & 4. Put your letter somewhere you will read it frequently.

If you are really brave post to your blog or facebook notes so everyone has a chance to keep you accountable to those promises you made yourself.

Here is My DEAR ME LETTER.

Dear Me,

I know I judge you harshly due to my perfectionist nature.

I know it makes you feel like you are incapable of accomplishing anything at times.

I promise to ease up and allow you some breathing room to not do everything perfectly or worse yet not start at all. I promise to encourage you to let loose, try new things, and even to fail as long as you have tried.

2011 is going to be a great year for us.

Love,
Me

Still Job Searching

It's been almost 12 months since I lost my job and I am still job searching. It's getting to be a little old at this point. Right now I would just love to have a part time job even if it is located here and I have to look for a new job come summer when we move.

I am planning on going back to school. This summer if I can get the financial aid worked out by then. Doing this will allow me to finish my degree about the same time that he finishes school. There have been quite a few jobs I have lost out on due to not having my degree completed despite my having more experience than the other applicants. What better time than during a down economy to go back and finish giving me the edge in seeking the jobs I really want.

Things Are Looking Up Somewhat

Tomorrow morning I tour and get an idea of what a job, starting in July, entails. It is in a personal care home on nights which means I'm there if needed and prep meals and such for those working days. It's only 16 hours a week but it is something. I also will get first aid and cpr certified for this job will may be benificial in the future.

Starting next Sunday, the 23rd, I start sitting two girls. 1 weekend day during the school year but full-time during the summer. So I will have a chance to find another part time job by the start of the school year.

So this summer I will be working about 50 hours or more a week but not doing anything too difficult. I will have a chance to get ahead a little bit (or more accurately more caught up, and closer to being out of my non student loan debt). I will still get to do all the things I want with our kids just with 2 extra in tow.

Life is great; now only to tackle the soccer association and the acid reflux.

Mobile but Still Stuck at Home

I am officially mobile again (thank you Ingham's and Sons) with my van running once again. Cost was less than $400 so not as costly as I feared. I'd love to say having my van back meant I was out and about again but I am not. As of right now I'm not sure when I'm getting my child support for the younger 2 again. So with less than $30 for 2 weeks I'm pinching pennies in a major way and the only places I will be going are the soap pantry (thank you in a major way for a pantry that gives out the nonfood essentials which I can't get with our food stamps); a couple food pantries and the grocery store. If I'm careful we will be able to make it to the oldest child's chorus spring program.

The soccer coach is not returning calls (not once) so I'm calling the league for a refund of the $30 sign up fee. I'm not at all happy about the situation but at least at the moment I don't need to borrow $40 for soccer supplies.

Spending Time

So, I'm not working right now and my car needs fixed for me to go anywhere.  How to spend all this time that I usually spend running around? Well I have found a few ways to stay occupied.

1-Play everyone's farmville for them. My mom's won't let her in, my daughter is at school all week, and occasionally other people are too busy to harvest their crops on time.

2-Clean out my house like I've already found a better place to live. This one has the bonus of saving me more time later when it actually becomes time to move. Not to mention, having an emptier living room has left me feeling more relaxed when I lay on the couch to relax and watch tv, play online, or whatever.

3-Learn how to fix my laptop. (I need a new keyboard as my space bar is broken and I have to type really slow now, which my hyper personality seriously dislikes.) Now I just need to figure out where to come up with an additional 20-30 for the keyboard and shipping. I know how to do many repairs on desktops and I am elated to branch out into laptops.

4-Inventory my food. I keep intending to eat out what we have in the house so that moving will be lighter once I find a place but can't remember what all we have on hand. Maybe I won't have to go shopping in May for anything other than milk, bread and snacks. Wouldn't that be really nice?

5-Scrubbing walls, floors, counters, etc. My bathroom really shines right now.

6-Boxing up things we use less often. (Holiday specific kitchen wares, items for entertaining, etc)

7-Going through kids clothes to donate.

8-Working on counted cross stitch projects I haven't had time for.

9-Using StumbleUpon to find interesting sites.

10-Pushing through as much of my daughter's schoolwork as possible so that we can have light fun days when the weather is great.

11-Clearing off our bookshelves to donate to the library and sell online.

12-Organizing my computer files and bookmarks.

13-Teaching my son the sounds of the letters (since he already knows all his letters at 3), pencil control skills, and plain old fun activities like lacing, art etc.

14-Organizing my room.

15-Making it possible to change my couch out for one my parents are getting me from a friend of theirs.

I'd say that I've found a few ways to make good come out of the misfortune of the van needing repaired but there are a few downsides I just can't get around.

1-Having my schedule at the whim of others since I can't just take myself.

2-Not being able to schedule anything without consulting others to see if they can drive me.

3-Having to walk across town to get milk with little ones in tow on legs that are having trouble holding me up around the house let alone after walking across town.

All in all it's definitely been good to spend more time at home.

Simply Disturbing to Me as a Mother

So let me get this straight. You want our children to lie to us, hiding a potentially fatal medical procedure yet let me guess if something does go wrong and our child becomes a statistic (because let's face it if she dies you don't care she is just a statistic to you though she is not to me) you will still support our being prosecuted for failing to seek medical care for them WHEN WE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THEY HAD AN ABORTION!!! Things are getting really shady out there.

China Product Boycott

Gotta Love Some Email Forwards

FOR EXAMPLE THE "OUR FAMILY" BRAND OF THE MANDARIN ORANGES SAYS RIGHT ON THE CAN FROM CHINA. SO FOR A FEW MORE CENTS I BOUGHT THE LIBERTY GOLD BRAND OR THE DOLE IS FROM CAL. ALSO WATCH FOR PICKLES. A LOT OF THE NO-NAME PICKLES COME FROM INDIA. BICK'S ARE FROM CANADA. WORTH THE SMALL DIFFERENCE IN PRICE.

Another example was in canned mushrooms. No-Name brand came from Indonesia. Next to them were President Choice brand. Produce of Canada!! The P. C. went into my grocery bag.

TAKES FOREVER JUST TO BUY FOOD AND DO LABEL READING ! !

Are we Americans and Canadians as dumb as we appear --- or --- is it that we just do not think?

While the Chinese, export inferior and even toxic products and dangerous toys and goods to be sold in North American markets, the media wrings its hands and criticizes the Obama Administration (and the Harper Government!) for perceived errors.

Yet 70% of North Americans believe that the trading privileges afforded to the Chinese should be suspended.

Well, duh..why do you need the government to suspend trading privileges?

SIMPLY DO IT YOURSELF, AMERICA/CANADA !!

Simply look on the bottom of every product you buy, and if it says 'Made in China' or 'PRC' (and that now includes Hong Kong), simply choose another product, or none at all.

You will be amazed at how dependent you are on Chinese products, and you will be equally amazed at what you can do without.

Who needs plastic eggs to celebrate Easter? If you must have eggs, use real ones and benefit some North American farmer. Easter is just an example, the point is do not wait for the government to act. Just go ahead and assume control on your own.

THINK ABOUT THIS, If 200 million North Americans refuse to buy just $20 each of Chinese goods, that's a billion dollar trade imbalance resolved in our favor...fast!!

The downside? Some Canadian/American businesses will feel a temporary pinch from having foreign stockpiles of inventory.

The solution? Let's give them fair warning and send our own message. Most of the people who have been reading about this matter are planning on implementing this on June 4, and continue it until July 4. That is only one month of trading losses, but it will hit the Chinese for 1/12th of the total, or 8%, of their North American exports. Then they will at least have to ask themselves if the benefits of their arrogance and lawlessness were worth it.

EVEN BETTER. . . START NOW !

Send this to everybody you know. Let's show them that we are intelligent Americans and Canadians, and NOBODY can take us for granted.

If we can't live without cheap Chinese goods for one month out of our lives, WE DESERVE WHAT WE GET!