The Queen's Rambles

I’m glad to ring in 2012! It feels like a fresh start. The second half of 2011 was pretty good, so I’m hoping we’ll continue in an upward trend and life will keep improving. I remember 2009 as one of the worst years ever (except for getting pregnant) and 2010 wasn’t much better. Mainly it was health issues–first mine, then Elsa’s–so hopefully all that is behind us. Amazing how a bout of pneumonia can knock you on your ass for ages.

I think I had some goals for 2011, but I’m not sure what they were. I know I was not supposed to buy anything new in January (success) and I was supposed to work on our yearly photo book at the end of each month (major, major fail).

I’m doing the buy nothing new thing again this January, but I already failed yesterday by buying a book for my Kindle. I totally wasn’t thinking. We’ll have a re-boot today. Nothing new! But food and consumables, of course. I’m not going to wash out ziplock bags and run my foil through the dishwasher.

I also had an idea that I think will significantly improve my happiness levels: committing to a monthly date with my husband. We always say we are going to go on a date, but it never happens. We didn’t have a sitter and finding one was a daunting prospect. It’s not like when I was a babysitter. Who on earth would just leave their precious child with some random teenager they don’t even know? The mind boggles.

I found a responsible adult sitter, so we have no excuse. For $15/hour we’ll be planning pretty low-cost dates, that’s for sure! But even a walk around a lake finished with an ice cream cone will be well worth the alone time.

I’d also like to make a goal to get rid of the bags under my eyes.

Two problems:
Elsa is not a great sleeper. She’s not a terrible sleeper. She’ll wake up, nurse and go back to sleep. We don’t have to get up and play in middle of the night. But she wakes up. I want to get her weaned and in her own bed sooner rather than later, but that’s hard to do when I refuse to let her cry it out. I’m my own worst enemy, but I seriously can not stand the sound of my children crying. I guess it’s primal? I don’t know, but crying it out just doesn’t work for me.

I am allergic to everything, thus I can’t find any sort of wrinkle/eye cream that doesn’t leave me looking and feeling even worse.

I want to go to a cosmetic dermatologist, but I don’t even know what to ask for. And I’m sure our budget doesn’t really pander to my vanity.

I hate knowing that I’m just going to get uglier and uglier every year, until I finally die.

Aren’t I damn cheerful?

Happy 2012! Ha!