Happy Birthday my baby!

You are now 1 years old!

My baby is no longer an infant anymore. She's now, on cue, walking. She is so adorable as she carefully takes her steps. Her birthday party was Saturday and we only had our closest friends that live by us come by. She had a great time. She is my light of my world. Her smiles and laughs erase all negativity at that moment in time. Happy Birthday Precious!

There's a lot of catching up I'm doing with the state of my home. I have been working on making this place a home and a refuge from the world outside our door about a couple years now. I wasn't progressing there for about 6 months because of depression while my husband was deployed. I didn't have the right medicine and I didn't have the energy to find a psychiatrist and psychologist at the time either and my family doctor isn't specialized. (I hesitate to state what I deal with for the stigma's that society has placed. I am Bipolar and ADD with, of course, some OCD.) She only prescribes what I've already been told to take when I originally had the military psychologist. So now I'm actually doing much better and can get it going during the day. I've learned some key triggers to help me get started in the mornings so I don't snap back into no energy or motivation.

1. The first thing I do is turn on all the lights as I walk through downstairs. It's still too dark outside to open any curtains.
2. The second thing I do is start my coffee or grab a Cherry Pepsi. This I need to take my medicine. (I take thyroid medicine also and that cannot be taken with food for an hour afterwards.)
3. At this point, my husband and his friend that stay with us is getting ready for work. I make sure they have everything they need. Lunch is grabbed and not left behind. Phones are charged and in hand to take with them. Truck is started and warming outside. Uniforms are good and in hand. Then I stand outside with them and chit chat as they wake up and smoke their morning cigarette. (I do NOT smoke. And never have my entire life!) Then I stand out and say by as they leave.
   
4. The next thing which is very important to me- turn on the TV to the music station. Not the regular cable mtv, or vh1, or cmt. The other ones in the 900's. During the week its country. Fridays and sometimes Thursday its rock. (My poor hubby does not like country, a.t. a.l.l., and he married this little Texan girl!) So I wait until he's gone before I subject him to that cruelty. (LOL)
5. At this point my day can go one of two ways. Really good or just okay. Really good is when I go straight to the kitchen and start cleaning. I start my morning list in the kitchen. Then start laundry. (Trying to get into the habit of a little laundry every day. We are sooo behind.)
6. By 6:30am my day can be going really well still if my baby is still asleep. If she wakes up early at this time, then my day has drastically been delayed and I really cannot seem to catch up and then I get discouraged and aggravated by the fact that I'm discouraged and defeated and my day is now pretty much over cleaning wise. I will try to do a couple more things when she naps. Or if she is content playing on the floor without me, then my day is restored. (Yes, I know I should not get discouraged and aggravated, but I haven't been able to tackle that part of me yet.)
   

I can normally finish my cleaning by 10 or 11am. It takes that long because I do morning wake ups for 3 kids, breakfast, bottles, diapers, and cartoon. I get the kids going with their morning routines they like. Now remember, my son's school still hasn't started back after Winter Break yet. Not until next week. So this is his last week of vacation and it's going to be a whopping 88 degrees today! It's going to be a pool day today. (In the middle of January! Gotta love southern California.)

Well, I'm off to get started. Have a good today!