That funk

I seemed to have disappeared for awhile. Honestly, I've been in a funk lately. I haven't had anything that I really wanted to write about. I haven't been planning ahead and having a meal plan for lunches or dinners. I've been drowning in all the stuff I feel I need to get done, yet I seem to get slim-to-nothing done each day. I've been the lazy, inattentive mom who would rather let her kids sit in front of their electronic toys than engage in anything. Pitiful!

These emotions and actions just lead to a vicious cycle of apathy, laziness, annoyance, anger, apathy, laziness, annoyance, anger...and so on and so on.

I finally started to snap out of it last Tuesday. The kids had no screen time, and then I took the kids to running club that afternoon. What a little bit of personal attention and exercise will do to your spirit! I've been planning dinners and sticking to them! Tuesday we had a lentil chili. Wednesday we had a vegetable strata. Thursday we had Thai soup with basmati rice. Today it was leftovers since we had a few; I didn't want them to go to waste. Tomorrow some friends are having us over for lunch, so dinner will be the rest of our leftovers. Sunday we will try Indian cauliflower and kidney bean stew. Monday will be Spicy (or not so spicy) black bean chili. Tuesday will be chicken and corn chowder.

I can't wait for the weather to warm up. It can be so bitter cold that I just want to stay in bed and not move. Well, I actually just want to go and sit in the hot tubs at the hot springs down the road. Since I bought a snowboard off of craigslist yesterday, I just might have to go hit the slopes soon.

Israella did another modeling shoot yesterday. She is done. No more of that happening. She went from cute and adorable to sitting on the floor in her panties with her arms folded saying she didn't want to model and she wanted to go home. She had 5 more outfits to model, but threw enough of a fit that they said she could be done. We don't force her to do these. This was actually only her 3rd shoot. So, after this big meltdown, we decided that it's totally not worth it. She would say she wants to model and then change her mind. A yes is a yes to us, and a no is a no. So it will just be no. Well, turns out they didn't really mean she could be done because I got a text message that night (like 6 hrs later) that the company who contracted the modeling agency filed a complaint because the model (Israella) did not fulfill the require amount of outfits per the contract. Therefore, they were withholding money from the modeling agency, but the modeling agency had already paid Israella the full amount. They were kind enough to suck up the loss and not claim anything against us. I offered to bring her up back up to Seoul on Tuesday to finish the last 5 outfits or refund part of the money. Tuesday wasn't doable for them and they said they would bear the loss. After talking and praying about it, we are insisting on returning part of the money solely on principle: she did not finish what she said she would. I guess it just irks me a little that if it was not fine for her to be done and leave, than do not tell me it's ok for her to be done and she can go home. Oh well, live and learn. On another note, Yahaira was able to get her hair and make up done and model 2 outfits too (though i don't know if they are putting them on the website).

Yahaira and I went to the local elementary school this afternoon to see if she would be able to go to school there. She said that she wanted to try the school. We'll see if she really is able to go. They are sticklers on vaccinations. Yahaira had all hers up to age 1, so she's had most. However, they have tuberculosis, encephalitis and some epidemic hemorrhaging fever one that I have never heard of, on the list of required vaccines. I looked up tuberculosis vaccine and the US (who seems to endorse vaccines for pretty much everything!) doesn't even recommend it to medical professionals except on case by case situations. So I don't think we'll be sticking her with that stuff. Yahaira made it clear that she does not want to go there if she has to get shots. I don't blame her. So, I will go to our doctor and have her annotate her vaccines and then submit it to the school. If they say she needs to tuberculosis, she will miss out on this opportunity. We'll see. The school here goes from 9-1:30, so it's not that long, but I also have no hesitation to let her "skip" and partake in any homeschool group things that may come up. This is more like an extra curricular activity than really going to school.

Now time to cuddle Little Man. Night!