Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

Its the first Sunday of football season. I love this time of year. Its the beginning of fall, there is a crispness in the air, and I love sweater weather.
I also love football, with a passion. Some folks think its strange that me, a female, would love the sport more than some men. But it is true. It started in junior high, and its continued on through today. I love the NY Jets, but that is more out of familial loyalty than anything else. Right now they really are a good team, but there have been times in my life that they have royally stank and it was a real struggle to be a fan.
What goes along with football in my eyes also is the football snack. I get into those as much as the game sometimes. I love taco dip, little appetizer bites, chips, even a veggie tray does me well. Back in the day, when the Big Man & I first started dating, I set the precedent of the game day spread and its tradition has carried on since.

Taco Dip
1 pkg cream cheese (only use full fat!)
1 jar corn and black bean salsa
2 c shredded taco cheese
can top with olives, diced tomatoes and cilantro if desired

Preheat oven to 350
spread cream cheese on the bottom of a baking dish. Top with salsa and cheese. Bake till bubbly and cheese is melted (about 20 minutes) serve with tortilla chips.

Tortilla chips
tortillas
canola oil cooking spray
chili powder
cumin
spray tortillas with cooking spray top with chili powder & cumin. cut into pieces (I use a pizza cutter) bake till crisp (at the same time as the dip)

I am not quite sure what else I am going to make this afternoon to go with the taco dip. Heck, I don't even know what games we get today. I am hoping for at least one that is tolerable to watch.

I am also thinking about what is going on this week, and what all needs to be done in my life. I have a meeting at church tomorrow night, and then I blissfully have nothing else going on. I can focus on the Little Man's birthday and enjoy that.

Tonight I think we are going to have chicken and vegetables for dinner. Something nice simple and plain. Tomorrow-grilled cheese, tomato soup and salad. Tuesday-sweet chili chicken stir fry and orange jell-o. Wednesday we are either going out to dinner for the Little Man's birthday or we'll have pasta for dinner. Thursday I am feeling tuna noodle casserole, and Friday Mexican lasagna. My plan is also to have enough left over so that I can take it for lunch the next day. I am so tired of frozen dinners and take out.

I also need to spend some time this afternoon doing a little spa time for me. I need to do a mani & pedi. Right now I have the fall colors on my toes-its called mango, but it looks more like pumpkin. I like it and it makes me feel like autumn.

At some point over the next few days, I need to bring out the fall decorations and get that going. Finalize the Little Man's birthday party plans. Bake cupcakes for Wednesday for him for school.

Honestly, last week I was just not feeling it at all. I really struggled with life. I ate a lot of junk, drank a lot of soda and really didn't exercise. Add to it, the fact that I wasn't doing the level of daily cleaning that I normally do, and it was a combustible combination. I know if I don't do the daily thing, it just falls apart. I felt all out of sorts all last week, and it seemed that nothing overcame it. I don't know what caused it, but there was a definite pall over my life.

So, this week I vow to overcome it. Basically it all starts at the beginning. I mean, when I wake up in the morning there are certain things that I need to do to set the tone for my day-yoga, treadmill, workout. Do my daily cleaning. Do at least one load of laundry a day. Take care of myself-and therefore, my family.

My week ended with a trip to urgent care with my husband. I got a phone call from him at 3 pm that he was running a fever of 103, and that he had a purple lump on the side of his neck that was the size of a plum. Obviously, not a good thing. Especially since we were going to go out to dinner for the princess' birthday. So, I talked to our family doctor, who thought it needed to be checked out NOW. Fast forward a little bit, get home from work wait for the princess and our mother to come over to watch the little man while we get the big man squared away. It was an infected sebaceous cyst, which required minor surgery and a shot of rocephin. He's on antibiotics, and hopefully it will clear it all up. It was not what I had in mind for a Friday night out.

I think in between church, grocery shopping and prepping meals for the week, I want to take the puppy dog for a walk. A real nice, long one like we used to do back in the day. I miss doing that, but I don't have the time anymore. Actually, its more like lacking the energy.
So, I am going to try an experiment tomorrow. I get home from work tomorrow and I will take the puppy dog for a stroll rather than take a nap. I need to do SOMETHING. Basically, when I let homeostasis take over, I have a problem.

Then there is the issue of me trying to rally the troops against the barbarians at the gate. Basically, I am expending a lot of energy on stuff that really doesn't matter. I am not going to change all the Debbie Downers in the world, although I would love to. There is so much negativity out there, and a lot of anger. What makes it worse, is the fact that I try to have a conversation with someone, and its all complaining and negative and blah blah blah. I finally told one person who was complaining about someone else is what this person doing really bothering you and impacting your life? (this is the same person who does nothing but complain about our school, neighborhood, her job, her kid, everything) It really shut her up but I probably angered her too. Oh well, can't please everyone.
But it does bring into focus the bigger picture. I am, for the most part, a pretty positive person. Some folks call me Pollyana and tell me that I am living in a fantasy world, but they just don't get me. I think its just better to go around being happy rather than being miserable all the time. What do you get out of being unhappy? It takes more energy to frown than smile. I am really frustrated and downright angry that there are people out there that are trying to burst my happiness bubble. It frustrates me because I want my son to grow up feeling happy, and if he's got parents that aren't, well he's not going to be feeling it either.
I know what that's like because I grew up surrounded by doom and gloom. My grandmother I don't think, ever saw anything as positive. There was always something bad about it-she was the master of the back handed compliment as well. Don't get me wrong, there were a lot of great things about her, but her outlook on life was not one of them. I don't want my little man to go through his childhood thinking that life is miserable. Sure you may have issues and adversity, but its how you handle it that defines you.
And I choose to look on the bright side of life.