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Hump Day

It’s hump day. I woke up thinking it was Thursday only to be disappointed by the fact it was hump day. Isn’t that the worst? Just like January, this week is dragging its heels. This girl needs the weekend to rest and refresh badly! Emphasis on the rest part of that equation. I am tired.

I could use a weekend of spa treatments. We have a busy weekend on deck with brunch and the Cats game on Saturday. The Mayor has one of his last regular season games Sunday afternoon. It should be a good game. It’s the only team in the league that our boys haven’t beaten. Last time they played they tied. Having fully enjoyed my day as a hockey mom, including wine and espresso martinis, I may not recall that game at all. Whoops…

The Mayor had his first practice on the pump last night. It looked like his sugar was okay during practice, but there were plenty of low alerts afterward. I’m not sure if those were false lows, which the Dexcom does throw, as I fell asleep before they got home. I’ll chat with the hubby tonight and see. We’d like for the Mayor to be able to drive himself to practice again, but we need to be sure it’s safe.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 29 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: on it!
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

What would you do if you won the lottery?

There’d be signs. I’d buy a hodgepodge of my favorite things. The first thing I’d do is adopt some puppies and get a bigger space for them to play. Then I’d quit my job to travel the world with my boys and dogs.

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Sunday Best

Yesterday it was all about our Sunday best. We combined two of my favorite things for a fantastic day. Since my older brother and his wife were in town, we sandwiched brunch with the Mayor’s last youth hockey home games. If you’re feeling Deja VU, that’s normal. We thought he gave youth hockey for juniors two years ago, but he realized the shit show that is Junior hockey isn’t worth the time or money. This time he is aging out. Consequently, my twenty-one-year career as a youth hockey mom is coming to a close.

The Mayor played his first games yesterday wearing the Omnipod. I’m thrilled to report that his blood sugar was much better controlled during the game with the pump. For the first time since his diagnosis, I wasn’t stressed about his blood sugar during the games. He also played great and I think the pump helped. We’re blessed that the technology exists to manage type 1 diabetes effectively. It’s an absolute game changer for type 1 patients and their families.

Back to hockey, his team won both games but insisted on making the second game more interesting. The Mayor played defense for the first game and forward for the second. He scored a gorgeous goal in the third period of the second game. After the dominant six-goal third period it almost seemed silly to quibble over the first two periods. We are all, however, hockey parents and therefore always the critic. In the end, the first two periods were not great, but the third period showed off the team’s resilience, perseverance, and skill. Turns out the team brought their Sunday best.

Brunch between games was the perfect way to spend the day. We met my brothers at the Patio Bar & Grill at the Wyndham on the Beach in Deerfield Beach. The view from the restaurant was second to none. I love looking out over Deerfield Beach and the fishing pier. The waves were beautiful, but it was a bit cold with the breeze coming off the ocean. Our food, as well as the company, was tremendous and I’ll go back again. I love it!

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 27 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: on it!
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

What books do you want to read?

Right now I’m finishing Armadale and then I’m going to start on a biography of Henry Bolingbroke and his cousin Richard I. I’m looking forward to reading the analysis of their relationship.

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About Last Weekend

About last weekend, I had a blast in Nashville. Technically, we were there for hockey. Unfortunately, the hockey was not nearly as good as our nights out in Nashville. The first game was beyond abysmal. Apparently, the boy had forgotten how to play hockey. Honestly, it didn’t get much better from there on out.

Typically, the hockey is front and center on these trips, but it wasn’t this time. And thank god for that. The hockey was ancillary to all the fun I had with my Mayor and my fellow hockey parents. The hockey will end and the biggest takeaway will be the incredible memories we’ve created. I have more to say on hockey and am on the verge of saying it, but that can wait until my boy is fully done playing. Hockey folks can be sensitive, so for his survival and mine my lips are sealed.

The cherry on top of the shit hockey was the Mayor getting injured in the early Monday game. For some unknown reason, the tournament felt the U-18 teams and their parents should revisit the early morning game hell that usually ends in squirts. To make matters worse, the 5:40 am wake-up call was greeted by temperatures that were barely above zero. You can imagine my feelings when the Mayor was injured early in the game.

List five things you do for fun.

Here’s my list of fun activities:

  • Read
  • Run
  • Watch hockey
  • Yoga
  • Bake
  • And of course play with my dogs
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Winter

Winter has made an appearance here in Florida and the rest of the country. While we haven’t had any snow here, it has been in the 50s and rainy all day. I haven’t even seen the sun today. That rarely happens here in the homeland, aka South Florida. Meanwhile, Jake and Melly got some of the white stuff up in Tallahassee. It looks like they got an inch or two. At Jake’s base, it looks like they got several inches. The pictures from the Panhandle are incredible!

I haven’t spoken with the kids since this morning, but I’m sure the snow has already melted off. Thankfully, The weather has warmed up. They got a lot of sleet and freezing rain to go along with the snow. Undoubtedly, there’s nothing that scares me more than having to drive in freezing rain or sleet. Tonight the melted snow will probably refreeze, so hopefully the kids won’t have to travel anywhere tonight.

Obviously, I’m thrilled we got home Monday night before the weather wreaked havoc on travel. Atlanta had a ground stop, specific to Delta for most of the day. We would have had an extremely long travel day to get home from Nashville. Fortunately, our trip home on Monday was very smooth. The only blips are we lost our upgrades when I moved up our flights and the Mayor’s rumbustius pleadings for fast food.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 22 days in, I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: on it!
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

If you could make your pet understand one thing, what would it be?

I could make my dogs understand one thing: how much they are loved and valued as members of our family.

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Nashville

Nashville was amazing. The Mayor had a tournament there this weekend, so we flew up early Friday morning. Thankfully, we got home late last night. Obviously, we are so glad to be back in the warm air. My only complaint about Nashville, aside from lackluster hockey, was the weather. Clearly, it was entirely too cold and too dry for us Floridians.

Friday night we started by hanging out on the Vanderbilt campus, which is stunning. Obviously, we had to take pictures at the wings and visit Kittenish (Jesse James Decker’s store). Both the wings and the store provided the perfect backdrop for photos. After the photo shoot, I had the best chicken sandwich at the Pub down the block. It was so perfect pre-game food.

Afterwards, the kids headed back to the hotel and the parents headed for the party bus. The Honky Tonk Party Express drove us around Broadway blasting music and serving drinks. We had an absolute blast! Midway through the journey, we stopped at a brewery for a bathroom and shot break. For our shot, we chose the sour watermelon moonshine. Honestly, it was pretty darn good. Since I had a very early start to the date, it felt late when we got back to the hotel at 10:30.

Saturday night after the kids’ game, we headed downtown to Jason Aldean’s bar. Since most of the kids they served food at his bar, the kids could enjoy some live music and a meal with their parents. After dinner, we sent the kids back to the hotel with a couple of the parents who were ready to call it a night. The rest of us, however, headed to Jelly Roll’s new bar, which was fabulous. We even saw him twice. My only complaint about the bar scene in Nashville is that there is a profane amount of stairs in each of the bars.

Saturday night, or Sunday morning, we rolled into the hotel at 2:00 am with 20 chicken tacos. Our Uber driver was simply the best. I slept better Saturday night than I’ve slept in months. For the first time, I woke up Sunday morning feeling refreshed. Who knew it would take two nights out and many stairs to fix my sleeping conundrum. The months since the Mayor’s diagnosis have been tough. Friday night and Saturday night out in Nashville with good friends was exactly what the doctor ordered. I’ll update y’all on the hockey tomorrow.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 21 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: on it!
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

Write about your first name: its meaning, significance, etymology, etc.

My name comes from my Grandpa T’s paternal grandfather, Andreas. He was born at the farm we visited in Romskog before immigrating to the USA.

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Busy

It’s been a busy week. My schedule has been altered a bit due to appointments. Consequently, I took a few days off from the blog and my workouts. Fortunately, the appointments went well, but they were lengthy. One of the safety measures our endocrinologist office has instituted is rigorous education for new diabetes patients. Given that the Mayor is only 18, the Hubby and I have an active role in it.

Tuesday we met with the dietician and lead diabetes educator at the Mayor’s Endocrinologist office. It was a long appointment, but we learned a lot. We covered many topics revolving around nutrition, but also navigating life with the insulin pump and Dexcom. There was a lot of information, but it was super helpful. We have a good idea of what to expect next week when he gets the pump and a list of what to bring to said appointment. The new patient education culminates with a day-long symposium.

Due to the appointments, yesterday I had a Telehealth over lunch, I took my rest days this week on Tuesday and Wednesday. Today I would normally spin over lunch, but instead, I did a full body workout in the Sweat App. This also means I’ll have some workouts to log while I’m in Nashville this weekend. The Mayor and I will be packing tonight. He must bring synthetic insulins (long-acting and short-term) on this trip. By the time we go on our next trip, he’ll just be using one.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 16 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: on it!
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

Where can you reduce clutter in your life?

The better question would be where can’t I reduce clutter in my life. That is to say, I think I can reduce clutter in every space of my life.

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Back To It

I’m back to it after a quick Sunday off. Man, oh man, are those one-day weekends short? This morning was pretty productive, but the afternoon, so far, has been forgettable. In fact, the afternoon has been the opposite of productive. Apparently, there is no payment method on Monday. I keep reminding myself that it’s a numbers game. So regardless of how great the afternoon has been this far, I will persist.

I worked Saturday afternoon. It was slow, but not too bad. The weather was a bit dreary Saturday, so working all day wasn’t terrible. Fortunately, Sunday’s weather was pristine. It was a little cool in the morning, but there was nary a cloud in the sky. Sunday’s weather was perfect. In contrast, up in Tally, Jake and Melly found their grass and roofs covered with a light dusting of snow.

We spent Sunday watching football and baking bread. Well, I started the sourdough bread. They’re currently finishing their second rise. Hopefully, they’ll be ready to pop in the oven as soon as I’m off work. They bake for forty minutes and will make a nice addition to our dinner tonight. I’ll be sharing the recipe on the blog tomorrow. It’s so simple and tasty. And now I’m back to it!

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 13 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: on it
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

Think back on your most memorable road trip.

I’ve been on some memorable road trips. Two that stand out are: our road trip through Norway and the road trip through the Mighty Five. Both road trips came with some of the most spectacular scenery I have ever seen. The company was pretty awesome on both trips as well. It was special to share the Norway trip with my parents, brothers’ families, my grandma, and my aunt’s family. The trip through Utah’s spectacular parks was something Jake and I will always share. I hope my kids look back on these adventures with Mom fondly.

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Still Tired

Well, I’m still tired although we got more sleep last night. The Dexcom alarms didn’t start until 3:00 am this morning. Today’s alarms were of the hypoglycemic variety, which I find quite scary. The Hubby went upstairs to ensure the Mayor ate and drank something to raise his blood sugar. As always, the Mayor was a peach. Fortunately, his blood sugar rebounded nicely and didn’t bottom out or spike the rest of the night.

Next week he has his nutritionist appointment at the endo’s office. I’m sure he’s super excited for that one. Our endo removed his carb restriction, which thrilled him. The following week, he has an appointment to receive training on his insulin pump. I think this is the appointment we’re all excited about. Once he gets the pump, the high blood sugar alarms should, the operative word being should, become a thing of the past.

While I’m still tired, I appreciated meeting my new manager this morning. I’ve worked for Doc before, so I’m excited about this new change. I wish I could say the leads and my production have been as exciting, but I’d be lying. For the past two days I have been riding the struggle bus. Such is life in sales. Anyway, I’m still tired.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 7 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: it’s been two days, but so far so good
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?

My great-grandmother lived to be almost 105 years old. She died just months shy of her 105th birthday. She experienced both world wars, the Spanish Flu and COVID, and the move to a world dominated by computers and cars. More than that, she was able to experience several generations of the family she created.

My great-grandmother had a very special relationship with my oldest son Jake. She was his great-great-grandmother. I remember his face as she recounted how Lindy (Charles Lindbergh) used to dip his wings to say hi to her when she was working in the fields. She connected us to our past, while Jake connected her to the present. It was a beautiful connection to witness. Longevity made this connection possible, and it was an absolute gift.

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Tired

I’m tired. I know, know, I’m always tired. Today’s been rough. The Mayor’s Dexcom was going off with high blood sugar alerts all night. His CGM showed his sugar level as over 400, while Accu-Chek showed nearly 300. We gave him a correction dose around 1:30 am based on the accu-chek numbers, but it took a while for the Dexcom to stop squawking. Anyway, my alarm came way too fast.

The Mayor stayed home from school today as the night of high school blood sugar left him feeling nauseous and exhausted. He complained to me that his dad and I woke him up too many times. Meanwhile, the hubby and I could get no sleep as his Dexcom went off every five minutes. His sugar is much better today and has been stable since we woke up. Hopefully, his blood sugar will stay stable throughout the night so we can all get some sleep.

Here’s a nice TBT pic

As for me, I’m fighting the good fight at work. Our department meeting went well. They reassigned my boss to a different department, so as of January 1, my boss changed. I’ve worked for my new manager before and found it to be a pleasant experience. The last several months have been difficult for several reasons, so I’m happy for a fresh start.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 7 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: it’s been two days, but so far so good
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I’m currently reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins– so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

What could you do differently?

There are a lot of things I could do differently. One thing that I’ve been contemplating starting, aside from Goat yoga, is the European grocery shopping trend. This involves several small shops at different stores throughout the week. The goal is better ingredients and less waste. Too often the produce I bought on the weekend, isn’t fresh when I use it later in the week. Theoretically, this should save us money if it results in less food waste.

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Rest day

Today was a rest day for me. I had planned to go with the Mayor and Hubby to Daytona for hockey today, but my stomach was quite disagreeable. The last place you want to be when your stomach is questionable is in a car for four hours. Consequently, the puppies and I are at home chilling and enjoying our rest day.

I started sourdough loaves this morning. It’s a bit cool outside, so the dough is taking longer to rise today. Hopefully, the dough is ready for the fridge by the time I’m ready to go to bed. The loaves have a second rise that takes place overnight and in the fridge. Then tomorrow morning, the loaves will be ready for the oven. I fed the starter this evening, so I can start more loaves tomorrow if needed.

My active rest day has been productive. I got a lot of work done around the house. My to-do list was shelved over the holidays as I wasn’t feeling great. Today, while my stomach isn’t great, I feel pretty good otherwise. I checked a lot of items off my to-do list this afternoon, which felt great. The capstone to my night was a trip to Target for a few items. When I left the store the sun was setting the sky was magnificent. It looked like the sky had been painted.

2025 Goal Tracker:

  • Run a 5K: in training
  • Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
  • No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): 4 days in and I haven’t buckled!
  • Top performer at work: it’s been two days, but so far so good
  • Travel: working on it
  • Eat to lower inflammation: in progress
  • Read daily: in progress. I started reading Armadale by Wilkie Collins – so good.
  • Get out of debt: in progress
  • Financial independence: in progress

What is the greatest gift someone could give you?

The greatest gift someone could ever give me was their love and their time.

Today’s music video: