Well, I survived my first week back at work. I think within 30 minutes of arriving to the office, I was back in full swing. It sure doesn’t take long, does it? The semester begins on Tuesday which means that this past week was spent prepping for that. Lots of little things and some big things that needed to be taken care of. I will say though, it made the week fly by.

Today, The Girl is heading to a sleepover and my one “to do” is to take The Teen for tap shoes. He needs them for the next show he is in. I fear that we will have a hard time finding his size. He’s like a puppy with large paws.

What am I reading?

At the moment, I am reading two books. The first one is The Secret of Raven Point by Jennifer Vanderbes. The second book is Mr. Lynch’s Holiday by Catherine O’Flynn. Both are very good in different ways. I find that I read the first one during the day, and the second one at night, before I go to bed. I hope to finish them soon. Since work started, I haven’t been able to really dive back into them. Maybe I can later today.

What am I cooking?

This morning we had cinnamon rolls and bacon. Well, they did. I just had bacon and lots of it. Oh, and coffee of course.

We had planned to grill steaks for dinner but that is The Girl’s favorite dinner and since she is heading to a sleepover, we will grill burgers instead and save the steaks for tomorrow. I am off tomorrow so I can grill them a little earlier so they can still make rehearsal on time. Yep, nothing like singing and dancing with a stomach full of steak. It’s so nice to have the extra day off, even though the kids still have rehearsal.

What am I watching?

Oh, I am still weeding through my DVR. We watched a Steve Martin/Goldie Hawn movie last night that I had totally forgotten about, The Out of Towners. It was cute, typical funny fare. We also watched Fast Times at Ridgemont High and a movie that I thought I would never watch, Zombieland (ended up being a total hoot).

I think someone in my house will be watching football but today, I am hoping to steer clear of the TV and read a little. I had a fever last night and feel a little off, so I just want to rest. Production week for Oliver begins soon and I really don’t want to get anyone sick.

What are you doing today?

My return to reality begins tomorrow. I’ve had a glorious time. I’ve read many books, napped, cooked a little, watched tons of movies, organized the house and had plenty of time to decompress, which I needed so badly. After a very stressful end of the year, I feel as if my family and I are in a better place, and I am hoping that this year continues down that path.

Everyone seems to be doing that one word thing where they choose a word to set the tone for the year. When I first thought of a word for myself, I chose PEACE but I’ve been thinking about it and I think SIMPLICITY ought to be my focus this year. My life shouldn’t be all that complicated but with all of the events and stuff that we participate in, so much time is spent prepping or running around trying to get people where they need to be. I don’t want to do that this year.

I want to prepare simple meals.
I want to spread appointments out so that we don’t have twenty things going on in one week.
I want to continue to purge my house of “stuff” because we just don’t need it.
I want each kid to work some down time into their schedule. They need it.

I’d like to go back to the time where people came home and talked to one another. It can be done, right? I’d like to think so.

What am I reading?

I just finished The Troop by Nick Cutter. Now THAT was an interesting read. It reminded me a lot of Bait by J. Kent Messum. It was so intense that I blew through it but I have to organize my thoughts before I review it. It’s wild, crazy ride of a book. Definitely NOT for the squeamish.

What am I cooking?

Not a thing. Cooking would require me to go to the store and that just isn’t going to happen.

What am I watching?

At the moment, nothing. But, I have all sorts of stuff recorded (Lincoln, Argo, Beaches). Plus, I’ve been on a Leave it to Beaver kick lately. I never tire of that show.

This week, rehearsals start-up again for Oliver. School starts again, too. Wish us luck! It’s bound to be a little crazy but I am going to try to ignore it and just go with the flow.