Get It Together: Thinking of You February and a Little Hockey

I neglected to post my Thinking of You idea for February! Now it's March. I am looking for a March idea right now...


For February, I worked with Heidi, my almost 10 year old (Sunday!) on some cards for the girls on her hockey team.


There had been some building locker room drama that needed to be nipped in the bud so their coach assigned them a bit of homework.


Each girl was to write a note to each of the other girls on the team. The note was to include one positive comment about the other girls hockey skills and one positive comment about her personality.


The coach thought the exercise would take about 15 minutes. We have 13 girls on the team, take away yourself, and that is about one minute per girl. Makes sense.


However, that doesn't work for Heidi. If she is going to do something, she is going to do it right. And since these were personal notes she had to think hard about each girl.


We spent the better part of 90 minutes on this project.


I was so proud of her. She broke out stationary because simple notebook paper was just not good enough for this task. She put a lot of thought into the cards.


But what really got me was seeing how much she really cares for her team. How much she really respects each girl on her team. There were a few girls she was upset with when we start the project, by the end she was over it because she spent time thinking about their good traits so the little argument just melted away.


The locker room drama seems to have died down a bit. We have moved from pre-game bickering to pre-game dance parties centering around Up Town Funk and the girls bonding over making fun of the locker room mom's dance moves. Works for me!


As I type this we are getting ready to play game 4 of the district playoffs. If they win tonight they go on to play for 3rd place on Sunday (yep, Heidi's birthday). I will be in the stands trying not to have a stroke as I cheer for these amazing girls. Then I will continue the cheer for them weather they win or lose because it has been a wonderful year for these ladies and I have been there to watch them grow.

Get It Together: Thinking Of You

At the beginning of each year I think of a few small things I want to add to my life to help me make the most of it. This year, one thing I want to work on is taking the time to reach out to my friends in a non-electronic way.

I came up with an idea to keep on top of this without it becoming an overwhelming task or just one more thing I have to do.

Each month I am going to pick five friends and send them a hand written note. I will pick a theme for that month and each card will go with that theme.

I read that January is Tea Month so my first five friends are receiving a tea bag along with their note.

Each month I will share with you all what my theme is and maybe it will serve as inspiration to you.

Now, how am I going to do this without it becoming just one more thing? Simple.

It all starts with knowing where everything is. I have my stamps and address labels in a bin on my desk. When I run low on stamps I jump right out to usps.com and order more so I never am left empty handed.

I have a stack of note cards that I have accumulated over the years that I am pulling from. I will now no longer feel guilty when I see cute cards at a craft fair because I will have a use for them! (Bonus!)

I add it to my To Do List for a Saturday mid-month and I keep a list in my personal note book of who I sent cards to this month. Throughout the month, if I think of someone to add I can quickly jot that down. This month my list was made up of a few friends with birthdays and a few friends I don't see often at all and one friend who just has so much on her plate I knew a little note would make her day.

And that's it! Let me know if you were inspired and if so, what theme did you pick?

Get It Together: The Skimm

With all the thing going on in my life right now... Oh, who am I kidding? With all of the things going on in my life always... Better yet. With all of the things going on in all of our lives always...

I feel like I get behind on what is happening in the world. 

Yes, I have the Today Show on in the background when I am getting ready for my day but I am often multitasking and miss a lot of what is being said.

Unless the puppy is on. Then I am 100% engaged. 

When I came across this news service the other day called The Skimm I knew it was for me. 

They send you an email with the highlights of the days happenings in national news. Each highlight is about a paragraph and it contains a link to a deeper story or a related story if the reader would like more info. 

I have added 5 minutes to my morning computer routine (responding to personal emails, checking in on the checking account and paying some bills...) and now I feel like I know what is going on in the world. 

I encourage you to sign up for the subscription and get the Skimm. 

I was not paid or compensated in any way for this recommendation. 

What's for Dinner: A Stack of Waffles

I made a stack of waffles this morning. Most went in the freezer for quick breakfast now that we are back to school.

 This recipe is a good base. Add lemon and blueberries to change it up.

Yield 5 waffles...
2 large eggs
2 cups all purpose flour (or 1 cup ap flour and 1 cup whole wheat or some combo but keep in mind that the whole wheat flour is on the dryer side and may change the consistency of your waffles.)
1 1/2 cup milk
4 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients together until smooth. Pour about 1/2 cups batter in heated waffle iron.

Top with syrup or berries. Enjoy!

To store, place waffles in a freezer bag and place in your freezer. To reheat, place one waffle at a time in microwave for about 60 seconds. 

What's For Dinner: Greek Salad

Back to work and school after 16 days off and we jumped in with both feet. Late night at the office for me, double hockey practice for Heidi, errands for Shawn means we needed a quick dinner.

I threw together a Greek Salad with the leftover Prime Rib. Kalamata olives. Banana peppers. Feta cheese. Home made Greek dressing.

Here is the dressing recipe:...
3/4 tsp basil
2 cloves garlic diced
1/2 tsp onion powder
3/4 tsp oregano
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
Put everything in a jar, shake well, let stand 10 minutes and enjoy!

 

What We Are Reading: Fangirl

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Rainbow Rowell, you have touched my soul again.

For me, this book is about many things.

This book is about a family of four who is four until it's three. The remaining three are left to put the family back together and figure out how to move on.

This book is about two sisters who are trying to find their place in the adult world. The world of college. Both reaching, learning, spiraling, in their own way. The girls may look alike but inside they are very different people who have to learn to navigate on their own.

This book is about new relationships. Throwing yourself into those relationships desperately only to have it break down (Wren). Proceeding cautiously, oh so cautiously, and having the other party understand and support you (Cath). The pairings in this book are perfect. The relationships are genuine, real, deep.

This book has touched my heart and left a fingerprint. This book has tapped on my soul and left a mark. I will always have a piece of this book imprinted on me. Thank you, Rainbow.


View all my reviews

A Birthday, A Burger, and A Bout

Saturday was a very special girls in my life's 7th birthday so we met up with her family and a few of her friends for a night of good food and RollerGirls.

We started a rainy, chilly Minnesota evening with dinner at Burger Moe's in Downtown St. Paul. Shawn and I like to order two different burgers, cut them in half, and trade. We had the Blue Sky Burger which is a beef patty smothered in blue cheese, mushrooms, and onions. It is one of my favorite blue cheese burgers in the area. We also had the Saute Fe Burger which is a beef patty with Monterey Jack cheese, a thick and spicy salsa, and fresh sliced avocado. It was amazing and now one of my new favorites. The service is decent, the food is good, the portions are huge, they have a full bar, and the prices are competitive. If you are looking for a good burger in the cities, I recommend Burger Moe's. I think they might even have a small parking lot next door.

For the main event of the evening we attended the Minnesota RollerGirls 9th Season Home Team Championship Bout and, as always, it was a blast. The season ended with the Garda Belts (Heidi's team of choice) ousting the Dagger Dolls for third place and the Atomic Bombshell's knocking the Rockits out of the Championship and landing the first place title, taking home the coveted Golden Skate.

If you have never been to a RollerGirls Bout I highly recommend it for a fun Saturday evening out. At the start of every evening the run through the rules with demo skaters so everyone knows what is going on. It's very easy to pick up as you start watching.

And, who doesn't want to see a bunch of girls on skates beat up on each other? I mean, really?

The first thing we do when we get to the Bout (not game, not match, but Bout!) is find the "Black Eye" booth. For $1 they will paint up your face to make it look like you were in a bar fight. Just tell people "you should have seen the other guy" if you catch them looking.

Heidi and Sophia are all ready to watch some RollerGirls!

 Next, stop for a picture with your favorite RollerGirl such as Roller Cat, a co-worker of the Birthday Girls Nanna. How cool is that?!

L to R: Piper (Birthday Girl!), Emma, RollerGirl whose name I am not sure of, RollerCat, Maddie, Sophia, and Heidi in front

 After all that you get to find your seats and watch a the first half of the derby.

Rockits are in Red and Atomic Bombshells are Orange

 And just when you think you can't be having any more fun it's half time so head down to the main floor and dance like no one is watching. But everyone is watching and you are on the big screen a million times.

I honestly took 10 pictures of them dancing and this was the best I got. These girls know how to have a good time!

Don't forget the air guitar!

And one last picture with RollerCat before she has to head back out and try to make up some point for her team.

Head back to your seats to watch the second half which is always packed with a lot of action as this is for all the marbles!

And finally celebrate when the Bout ends because you know you could never skate like these girls, while wearing the little outfits they wear (and somehow don't fall out of), and you really could never take a skate to the jaw with such grace. So no matter who won, you are still excited and want to cheer for the ladies who just spent the last 2.5 hours entertaining you and making your night one to remember.

Atomic Bombshells win the Championship and the Golden Skate!

Well, at least that's how the night goes down for Heidi and me!

Hugs and one last HAPPY BIRTHDAY wish sent out to Piper. I hope all your dreams come true and that 7 us your best year!!

Kara