Baby it's hot outside...

Right Now:

Partly Cloudy

82° F

Feels Like: 82° F

Humidity: 49%

Wind: From SSE at 8mph

This was the weather Monday afternoon.  Today is supposed to be warmer.  So, so warm.  I love this weather.  To some, it may feel too humid.  For me?  OOOH I love it.  I could spend the day outside most of the day.  It's partly cloudy, in fact there's barely a cloud in the sky this week. 

These are my feet, and please excuse the lack of polish. 

I'm kind of on a no-polish-strike.

I work in a cubie all day and I wore my flip flops. 

My pants look longer than they really are.

I spent my day toddling around downtown and had lunch outside.  After ordering a flatbread sandwich I made my way to pick up my ice coffee and sat outside and people watched.  I wasn't particularly dressed for the outing, but nonetheless, I soaked up my vitamin D for the afternoon.

 

My ice coffee (I like it black) didn't stay iced very long.  The ice was already melted when I was only halfway finished.  I have been using Badger sunscreen. I'm kind of a fan. As much as I like the typical sunscreen smell, I don't really like smelling like coconuts when I'm not at the beach. This Badger sunscreen, yes SPF 15, when applied may leave a faint pale color. This does blend in once the cream has been absorbed. Bonus: safe for kids too!

Ohmm...

Update on my funk...

The incredible weather today (80 and sunny) has lifted my spirits.  Add that to a 30 minute walk made me realize I want to start running again.  Okay, who am I fooling... but I do enjoy jogging.  I should really attempt this as some sort of personal goal, right?  I'm no longer breast feeding, so technically, I have zero excuses.  I know I could have jogged during my breast feeding months, but really?  Nah, it just wouldn't do any good. 

Today's walk felt healing.  Empowering.  I wanted to keep walking for the rest of the day.  But my cave of an office was calling me back. 

Before going back to the grind, I made a point to stop for some hearty spinach and chicken soup, cheesy garlic bread, and locally made creamy orange soda.  And may I say: YUM!  I honestly wish I had my camera to take a picture because for $6.95, I had found my heaven this afternoon lunch.

I sat outside at a table with umbrella and hardly noticed how windy it was going to be.  Maybe it was because I was at the table alone, but I honestly thought I had to lay on the table to keep it grounded.  For some reason it felt very symbolic while sitting there clinging to an iron table in hopes my soup and glass bottled soda wouldn't come crashing down.  My day was just perking up and I would do anything to keep that from ending anytime soon. 

Windows down, sun roof open, warm air breezing through my hair.  I'm reminded there are 30 days to go until I'm on V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N.

Out to Lunch---March

I went out to lunch today, by myself and sat in a local cafe with a sandwich and cup of coffee.  The corner table by the window was available so I sat there: Me, Myself, and I.  The cafe wasn't too crowded, but there was enough foot traffic coming for a cup of joe and others walking on the sidewalk while peeking in through the windows.

I wasn't there long, but it was long enough for me to feel like I had a moi moment.  I wish I had a magazine to thumb through but it was equally pleasant to just sit there and look out the window.  There were kids in the next room who would toddle out into the main entry way and look around, look at me and stop to just stare.  With my mouth full of sandwich, I would smile at the young girl and her little brother.  But I think they wanted to hop up to my table because it was elevated from the floor they were on.  But they were pleasant and turned and paraded through the cafe while their Mum tossed their garbage from lunch and collected their belongings.  The whole time I was missing J and wish I didn't have to be at work today.  But it's Friday so I spent most of my time at the cafe wondering what fun plans we could accomplish this weekend.  The weather is supposed to be extremely spring-like so I hope to make it to a local playground.

My week in general has left me feeling exhausted.  I need to schedule more 'me' moments throughout the week.  There are a few things I enjoy doing that help me escape from my routine, even if it's for 15 minutes.  I think every Mum needs to schedule their time and make sure it's a task that can be completed. 

Lately I've been enjoying my book and read a chapter or two.  Sometimes at night I'll try and read an hour to have my fill.  I think back and wonder how I managed to read an hour and have it only feel like 15 minutes?  Lately, it's been easy to do.  Another thing that helps me relax and feel restored is coloring.  I have done this even before my son was born, so it sounds silly to realize how long I have done this, but for me it has helped me feel grounded. 

I wish I could climb these trees and read a book

Suzanne at the Mother Huddle also wrote about similar experiences that have helped reconnect her soul.  I think sometimes we forget how important it really is to remember who we are as a person.  My patience has run thin this week and I'm exhausted.  This week, I have forgotten who I am and what ingredients make me. 

Next time, I'll need to keep some bread crumbs with me so I can find my way back.

Out to Lunch

Today I chose to have lunch a small market/deli store.  There were a few tables inside (4-5) and of course there was one empty.  The market was very busy so I decided to keep it simple and order a soup and pasta salad.  I didn't have any crazy scenerios as I did last month.  So I sat there and people watched.

Car repair guys, nurses, business men, and women who looked like they were running errands were coming in and ordering their food and leaving.  The patrons that dined in the market were busy socializing and finishing off their lunches with Kettle Brand chips.

A half hour later I got in my car and drove around to relax and think about nothing.  I usually keep the radio on low and let me thoughts leave my brain and enjoy the hum of the car and the background noise of the music.  The roads here have many frost heaves and some of them were so brutal I actually thought I popped a tire.  The air was cool but dry and refreshing enough that I cracked my windows and let in the ocean air.  Driving around the bay has it's perks but I can't always drive along the waters edge.  So I spent some time down by the local marina.  I found out they have a new restaurant and will probably check it out once the weather gets warmer and I can sit outside for a picnic during my lunch break.  All the boats were out of the water and wrapped and stowed away for the winter months.  I wish I had my camera with me because seeing them all lined up looking very majestic seemed magical. 

Today's lunch really helped rebalance my soul.

Out To Lunch

I went out for lunch the other day, by myself. This is part of my personal goals for the new year. I refer to them as goals, instead of resolutions, to help rebalance my life.

The cafe that I dined at was incredibily busy and there were very few seat options. Being by myself I tried to select a table near the front of the restaurant by the windows. As I was waiting for my buzzer to ring, indicating my lunch was ready, I realized I didn't have any way of reserving my table. So when my buzzer buzzed I decided to leave my drink, napkins, and my receipt at the table, hoping this would identify to others that the table was occupied.

Who knew this theory would fall short and the execution pretty much failed. As I meandered through the busy restaurant, I found my plate of food, and quickly zig-zagged back to my little table by the windows. Little did I know, my table had been tagged by someone else. But as I sat down, I set my eyes on my plate and began to 'dig in'. The woman and her kiddos next to me turned around and gasped at the site of me sitting at her table. Note, that this was what I saw out of the corner of my eye, as making eye contact would have created an awkward conversation and I'd probably end up moving my scheduled luncheon with myself to another secluded area (that didn't exist because there were SO many people).

So there I sat eating my lunch and hoping this woman wouldn't talk to me. Yes, I felt horrible, guilty, and awkward while her and her friend, and the 2 kids, try to decide what to do about seats. But I felt confident that I clearly identified my table as occupied while I was getting my food, that I didn't feel the need to send her that message with a snide remark. She hadn't said 'boo' to me yet.

Luckily another table was clearing up to go and they were able to slide two tables together. I felt better but now I was sitting next to them and I started feeling like I was pretending to be deaf. This was supposed to be a fun lunch experience with myself. Instead, I found myself inhaling my food just so I could get away as soon as possible from my awkward situation. For some reason I ended up judging myself for all the reasons I thought were right (at first), and ended up leaving feeling selfish and guilty. My next Out To Lunch experience will have to include (if it's a busy lunch day) a "single's" section or bar area, and I will also need to bring a book or journal so I can be distracted by other possible disruptions.