Random musings & rants of a girl who is attempting to do and have it all while raising her little person.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Lately...

I've sat down many times and thought about writing this post but never really know how to start, what to say or even whether this is too private for the outside world.

After a very short battle with ovarian cancer, my mother-in-law passed away in the early hours of March 19th. Sad. After only a few weeks of symptoms, the tumour was found in early January and she was scheduled for a hysterectomy near the end the of February. After ending up in the hospital due to blood clots in her leg & lung on January 30th, the next few weeks were filled with complications, setbacks and various illnesses. Some short 6 weeks later, she was simply too sick to fight and her poor body had been through enough.

My MIL was a fantastic woman. Yes, I complained about her at times but aren't we as daughters-in-law entitled to the odd 'back off' moment? She loved her family and they were the reason she lived. Her son & grandson were hands down the most important people in her life. Her husband was a close fourth preceded by the family dog! It breaks my heart to know that she will never see or experience M's firsts but more so that he will never truly know his grandma. Again, sad. Sad & unfair.

Ovarian cancer is the most serious of all gynecological cancers and it can strike with few or no symptoms. For those reasons alone and with no current screening measures, it is easily missed. Most women have or will experience some of the common symptoms at some point and there is really no reason to ever suspect cancer. Honestly, why would you?

So, if anything comes of this, KNOW your body. Know what is right, what may be odd and certainly, what is wrong for you and your body. Spend just one month paying attention to your body and it will teach you so much. Track your cycle for one month and you'll know even more. The body is an amazing thing and what it will tell you will blow your mind.


JATB... You will be missed by all.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Oink! Oink!

I am an emotional eater. I'm like a freaking scavenger! I honestly cannot stop eating.

Here's a rundown of my day in terms of food:

Venti Awake Tea
Pear
Granola w/ Blueberries & Yogurt
Cadbury Cream Egg
2 Pieces of Nib Licorice
Turkey Sandwich
White Chili
*Mad dilemma about going to Sugar Mountain to buy sour candy was going on around this time.
Leftover Lindt Bunny
Shepherd's Pie w/ Carrots & Broccoli

I consumed ALL of that in less than 12 hours. Maybe even less than 10 hours?

And now? D is grabbing me a sub at Subway.

WTF? Definitely going for starring role in some TLC freak show.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Spring!

Today was the perfect day to kick off the spring running season! It was warmer than usual, damp but not dreary and there were runners everywhere! What a great day!

Um, yeah. I didn't partake but I really thought about it.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Great Sunday Success!

I managed to only spend $110 at the grocery store this morning, which was my first success of the day.

M has been napping for 3 plus hours now, which brings me to my 2nd success. I was busy in the kitchen and made the following:

White Chili (Well, still in the slow cooker but it's as good as done!)
Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce (Two portions!)
Cumin & Sesame Scented Chickpea Soup
Mac & Cheese
Zucchini Muffins

Yay me! That said, the house is still a disgusting mess.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Meal Plan for Week of March 6th

I haven't grocery shopped in 2 weeks and by doing so, my fridge was finally empty enough to motivate me to do a good cleaning. It's gleaming & waiting to be filled!

This week's meal plan is as follows:

Stuffed Pork Roast w/ Potatoes, Carrots & Peas
Pasta w/ Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce
Turkey Chili
Cumin & Sesame Scented Chickpea Soup
Roast Chicken w/ Roasted Beet & Arugula Salad

I'm trying to do more meatless versus meat meals but sort of fail that this week. I have a craving for beets and don't think the salad would be substantial enough without some sort of chicken on the side. Also, not really craving chili but it's easy & healthy.

Lately, I hate meal planning so this is the best I can come up with tonight.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

(dis)Organized

Every year, I say the same damn thing (or variations of):

I'm going to start a file in January and toss anything tax related into it ALL year long!
We need an office! A shared computer! A spreadsheet!
I know I made more donations but where are the receipts?
Did we get our RRSP statements yet?

And so on and so on...

Peppered between these rants are numerous calls to my dad asking what such & such is and if I/we need to take one to the accountant. I should not need to ask my dad if I have received income from a farm in a foreign land!

Clearly, I spent this evening trying to pull together our tax stuff so I can send it to the accountant. I must've been motivated by the rousing episode of Wheel of Fortune that was on as I tidied up.

C'mon biiiiiiig money!