The stitches of life

It's going to be crazy here this week, so I'm not sure how much of this will be followed, but let's try anyway lol ;)

Menus:

Monday--leftovers
Tuesday--Chicken Cacciatore with pasta, salad, rolls
Wednesday--leftovers
Thursday--Dijon-Tarragon Salmon, salad, rice
Friday/weekend--off with Dave for our anniversary :)

Stitching:

Monday--Blackwork RR
Tuesday--Golden Pavillion
Wednesday--SAL slot (Secret Flower Bed)
Thursday--Brendan's Mini RR
Friday/weekend--out for our anniversary ;)

Currently working on: Blackwork RR, Brendan's mini RR, Golden Pavillion, Home

Why is it that I feel compelled to try to make everyone feel better? This holds true in every area of my life, whether something as small as a disagreement between my DH and son (going on right now, nothing big though), my friends' problems, disagreements between people at work, school, friends, whatever. As one of those personality quizzes (from a previous blog entry) said, I am a peacemaker--sometimes it's a good thing but other times it's not.

Why can't I let these things go? I'm sitting here in the den listening to my husband get irritated, which upsets my son, which gets Dave more upset, and on and on and on. My first instinct is to go in there and make things right, but is that the best thing to do? This is just one of those little things that parenthood is made up of--it's not a big issue at all. Isn't it better to let them figure it out?

But that's what I do. I can't stand to see the people I love upset, in pain or angry with each other. If possible I will try to negotiate between the parties, if not then I will listen and talk to whichever party I'm with (sometimes until I'm blue in the face) to try to make them feel better. But they probably just wish I'd shut up most of the time ;). There are times when I mostly listen and just voice a few thoughts, but I know there have been lots of times when I've said way more than I should have. I can be (and try very hard to be) diplomatic, but sometimes I speak before I think and that isn't always the most helpful tack.

No matter whether I talk or listen or what have you, I worry about the situation until it gets resolved. Sometimes it doesn't get resolved which causes me to worry more. One of my friends has told me not to worry--the only person responsible for him is himself. But what kind of friend would I be if I didn't worry? Isn't that what you do when you love someone?

This entry asks a lot of rhetorical questions with few if any answers. I've been struggling with this for a while now and I guess I just needed to put it down in writing. Maybe someday I'll find the answers to help myself and my friends/family, in the meantime I'll just have to hope that they know whatever I do is out of love.

Currently working on: Blackwork RR, Brendan's Superhero Mini RR, Home, Golden Pavillion, Secret Flower Bed

“It’s been said that allegedly if you’ve seen over 85 movies you have no life. Mark the ones you’ve seen. There are 239 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own blog, paste it in and put x’s by the ones that you have seen. Add them up, change the header adding your number, and post it.”

I found this in my friend's blog and it looked like fun, so I'm going to try it :). I'm more of a musical/classic movie fan, so I'll be interested to see what my final total is. I need to send this to Dave as he's a movie-a-holic and has probably seen almost everything here lol ;)

( ) Rocky Horror Picture Show
( ) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
( ) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest
( ) Boondock Saints
( ) Fight Club
( ) Starsky and Hutch
( ) Neverending Story
( ) Blazing Saddles
( ) Airplane
(X) The Princess Bride
( ) AnchorMan
( ) Napoleon Dynamite
( ) Labyrinth
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) White Noise
( ) White Oleander
( ) Anger Management
( ) 50 First Dates
( ) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement

Total so far: 2 out of 22. That's either very sad or very good lol ;)

( ) Scream
( ) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
( ) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
( ) American Pie
( ) American Pie 2
( ) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
( ) Harry Potter 1
( ) Harry Potter 2
( ) Harry Potter 3
( ) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
( ) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
( ) The Village
( ) Lilo & Stitch

Total so far: still 2 out of 43.

(X) Finding Nemo
(X) Finding Neverland
( ) Signs
( ) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
( ) Butterfly Effect
(X) 13 Going on 30
( ) I, Robot
( ) Robots
( )Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
( ) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
( ) Along Came Polly
( ) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
( ) Never Been Kissed
(X) Meet The Parents
( ) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
( ) King Kong

Total so far: 6 out of 66.

( ) A Cinderella Story
( ) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
( ) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumber & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
( ) Halloween
( ) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
( ) Surviving Christmas
( ) Flubber*
( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
( ) Practical Magic
( ) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
( ) Hellboy
( ) Secret Window
( ) I Am Sam
( ) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards

Total so far: still 6 out of 90.

( ) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Child’s Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
( ) Bride of Chucky
( ) Ten Things I Hate About You
( ) Just Married
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street
( ) Sixteen Candles
( ) Remember the Titans
( ) Coach Carter
( ) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
(X) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
( ) Bad Boys
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
( ) Lucky Number Sleven
(X) Ocean’s Eleven
( ) Ocean’s Twelve
( ) Bourne Identity
( ) Bourne Supremecy
( ) Lone Star
( ) Bedazzled
( ) Predator I
( ) Predator II
( ) The Fog
(X) Ice Age
(X) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
( ) Curious George

Total so far: Up to 10 out of 121. Who knows, maybe I really do have a life lol ;)

( ) Independence Day
( ) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
( ) Christine
( ) E.T.
( ) Children of the Corn
( ) My Bosses Daughter
( ) Maid in Manhattan
( ) War of the Worlds
( ) Rush Hour
( ) Rush Hour 2
( ) Best Bet
(X) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
( ) She’s All That
( ) Calendar Girls
( ) Sideways
( ) Mars Attacks
( ) Event Horizon
( ) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
( ) Forrest Gump
( ) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2
( ) The Terminator 3

Total so far: 14 out of 147

( ) X-Men
( ) X-2
( ) X3
(X) Spider-Man
(X) Spider-Man 2
( ) Sky High
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
( ) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
( ) Freaky Friday*
( ) Reign of Fire
( ) The Skulls
( ) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2

Total so far: 19 out of 165.

( ) Swimfan
(X) Miracle on 34th street*
( ) Old School
( ) The Notebook
( ) K-Pax
( ) Krippendorf’s Tribe
( ) A Walk to Remember
( ) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
( ) The 40-year-old Virgin
(X) Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
( ) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
( ) Lord of the Rings: Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Total so far: 24 out of 181. At least I broke 20 ;)

( ) Base-ketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects
( ) Elf
( ) Highlander
( ) Mothman Prophecies
( ) American History X
( ) Three
( ) The Jacket
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
( ) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
( ) Shaun Of the Dead
( ) Willard

Total so far: 27 out of 200.

( ) High Tension
( ) Club Dread
( ) Hulk
( ) Dawn Of the Dead
(X) Hook
( ) Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
( ) 28 days later
( ) Orgazmo
( ) Phantasm
( ) Waterworld
( ) Kill Bill Vol. 1
( ) Kill Bill Vol. 2
( ) Mortal Kombat
( ) Wolf Creek
( ) Kingdom of Heaven
( ) The Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator
( ) Army of Darkness

Total so far: 28 out of 220.

(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(X) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
( ) Ewoks: Caravan Of Courage
( ) Ewoks: The Battle For Endor
( ) The Matrix
( ) The Matrix: Reloaded
( ) The Matrix: Revolutions
( ) Animatrix
( ) Evil Dead
( ) Evil Dead 2
( ) Team America: World Police
( ) Red Dragon
(X) Silence of the Lambs
( ) Hannibal

Grand total: 35 out of 239. I guess I do have a life after all! I've seen bits and pieces of lots of these movies because of Dave, but I didn't count them unless I'd seen the whole thing ;). I'm not a horror/suspense/slasher kind of gal which left out a lot of these lol. Now if you had a list of musicals/classic pictures that'd be a whole different story!

I meant to do this yesterday but got caught up in other things, so here it is a day late and a dollar short lol ;)

First my blackwork RR--I finally finished frogging the top portion, unfortunately you can still see the holes...



Brendan's mini RR--I finished Superman, now I just need to finish Flash and it will be done :)



Last week I started SB's Home on 10 ct. Tula and I LOVE it!



And finally my first Sanman SAL--not much there but he's lots of fun and he'll be really cute when he's finished :)

Menus:

Monday--Tacos, corn
Tuesday--Seafood Rice, Salad, Rolls
Wednesday--Hamburgers, veggies
Thursday--Steak Diane (leftovers), mashed potatoes, salad
Friday--Leftovers
Saturday--out
Sunday--Beef Stuffed Peppers, Salad, Rolls


Stitching:
I started SB's Home last week so I didn't follow my rotation at all ;). I want to get back to it this week, but a lot depends on how much I get done on my Blackwork RR since it has to be mailed out next Monday.

Monday--Blackwork RR
Tuesday--Golden Pavillion
Wednesday--SAL slot (Secret Flower Bed)
Thursday--RoS
Friday--Brendan's RR
Weekend--Home or Blackwork RR

Currently working on: Blackwork RR, Brendan's Superhero Mini RR, Home

Although you wouldn't know it's spring by the weather yesterday and today--cold and cloudy. At least the few spring bulbs that have come up are a little bright spot in all this ;). My mood today matches the weather, which makes me wonder if I should post anything at all lol. I don't want to be gloomy...

Actually it's been a decent spring break--much better than I had anticipated. I haven't felt that great, so it's been a quiet one activity-wise, but all in all it's been good. The boys have been playing video games, amazingly enough without too much fighting or nastiness which was one of my biggest concerns. Since Dave brought the PS2 home during Christmas break they've been obsessed, and it's brought out a level of nastiness in both that I hadn't seen much before. I'm not sure why it's been better this week but I'm eternally grateful :). We haven't done everything I'd planned, but we have done a few little things. The weather was much nicer earlier this week so we went to the park, they played outside a lot, did a scavenger hunt, walked the dog, etc. We met Dave for lunch one day, rented a couple of video games/dvd's, went to La Madeline for lemonade and croissants and to the bookstore (a little ritual for us) and today they have a playdate with their best friends. We still have to dye Easter Eggs and bake Easter cookies, but that will be pretty easy--I'm cheating with the cookies lol (ready-to-bake from the store ;).

I haven't done much with the house, other than a thorough cleaning of the kitchen, but at least that's something right? I spent all yesterday looking for places for Dave and I to go for his birthday weekend, and I spent half of one day stitching, so I think that's pretty good ;). Tonight he and I are going out, and Sunday we're going to the IL's for Easter, so that rounds out the week nicely :).

So all in all not bad, in fact quite nice so far :). A little quiet for some of you I'm sure, but I like it quiet ;). Happy Easter/Spring!

Currently working on: Blackwork RR, Brendan's Superhero Mini RR, Home, Secret Flower Bed, Golden Pavillion

First the menus. We've had 2 of the Dinner Done meals so far and loved them, so those will be the leftovers :)

Monday--leftovers (Cheesy Chicken, mashed potatoes, asparagus)
Tuesday--Marinated Chicken Thighs (crockpot), rice, broccoli
Wednesday--leftovers (potroast)
Thursday--Flounder, rice (from Tuesday), asparagus
Friday--Pork Tacos w/ Cilantro-lime Mojo (DD), corn
Saturday--leftovers
Sunday--inlaws for Easter dinner

Now stitching:

Monday--Blackwork RR
Tuesday--Golden Pavillion
Wednesday--SAL slot (Secret Flower Bed)
Thursday--RoS and/or Spring Topiary
Friday--Brendan's Superhero Mini RR
Weekend--A Love Song

Currently working on: Brendan's Superhero Mini RR, Blackwork RR, Golden Pavillion, Secret Flower Bed