Barn Swallow Babies

This spring, we have had the exciting experience of watching a pair of barn swallows build a mud nest on our front patio.
I wondered when we could expect chicks, and just last week, I saw one peeping it's head out of the nest.

I've been careful to leave them alone, though I've been very curious how many little chicks we had. I feared getting attacked by mom and dad, so I mostly stayed clear. Just yesterday, we saw three little heads peeking out the top.

Unfortunately, today when B came home, he found one sitting in the flower bed. It was still there when I brought the boys home after work. Mom and dad seem to be even more protective of this little chick then they were of the nest and eggs. Its siblings still appear to be safely in the nest, so I don't know if this little guy tried to fly, but couldn't. Or did it get pushed out of the nest by it's mates.

I'm trying to leave it alone, though I really want to put it back in it's nest. It seems a little frightened, and it really upsets the folks when I go out the front door. I was able to snap some pictures though.

Any thoughts on what I should do with the little guy?

Spinach Salad with Strawberries

I bought a flat of strawberries at Costco -- which I really hate to do, because I never finish them all before they go bad. After making a small batch of chocolate covered strawberries (hey, it's still fruit!), I had plenty left over.

I made a delicious spinach and strawberry salad to go with dinner last night. I topped it with the following dressing:

1/2 cup Olive Oil
1/4 cup Red Raspberry Vinegar
1/3 cup Sugar
1 TBSP Poppy Seeds
Dash of paprika

Place all ingredients into a dressing shaker, and shake until blended. The dressing is pretty sweet, so modify the amount of sugar to taste. The salad was just tossed baby spinach and sliced strawberries -- everyone loved it.

I also read up on Tray Freezing at a new favorite blog, Make and Takes. I'm definetly going to do that with rest of the strawberries (if any outlast the dressing). It's so much easier than freezer jam, it takes practically no time, and I'll actually do it.

Operation Beautiful

I often find myself talking negatively about myself. It's not actually very much fun, and often throws oneself into a huge pity party. Last time I hosted a pity party, I served myself a whole pan of brownies. Further self-loathing shortly followed.

During a Relief Society lessons, I was told that it takes like 7 seconds for a thought to become a feeling. I'm pretty sure it's not gospel, but I'll take it for what it is. The idea is that when we have negative thoughts about ourselves, we have seven seconds to turn them around, before we start to feel badly about them. Practicing this will keep us from throwing frequent pity parties.

I used to write in dry erase markers things like, "You are beautiful.", "You are worth it." and "You deserve the best." on my mirrors. Then I got married, and thought that B would think that was silly. But it's amazing to me how powerful simple messages like that can be. It's hard to look at yourself and analyze the dimples and creases on your belly when you are staring at the words "You are beautiful."

I found the Operation Beautiful website recently, check it out.

And remember...

Sweet Pickin

B and I took the boys to Emmet for some cherry picking. We missed the festival last weekend, but heard the cherries were still on for another couple of weeks. J wasn't feeling well, as he had been running a bit of a fever last night, but E thought it was great fun. He was very proud to pull the bucket around the orchard, even though it was almost as big as he is.

I hope to find a cherry pitter, and freeze some of our little bounty. A co-worker mentioned that her family enjoys frozen cherries -- popped like candy, or in a smoothie. I hope to give that a try.

I think they would go great on a spinach salad, or something. I always love fruit on a green salad, but have a hard time knowing what kind of dressing to use when I make my own. Please share your suggestions or recipes for adding fruit to green salad.

Simplify

I've decided to simplify my life. This isn't a small change, it is actually a really big change. I'm taking it one step at a time though. I want to live more simply. I want my sons to live more simply. I want our family to be more focused on, well, family.

I've started with decluttering our home. I only want to surround myself with things that I love and will be loved by and bless my family. I don't want to be controlled by the clutter in my home.

I'm also decluttering my online life. All of my blogs have been neglected lately, and since I don't actually have any readers, I don't feel to badly about it. I will be retiring Du Willie Design, or at least putting it on an extended sabbatical. Many Small Changes will be my blog. I'll continue to post about my weight-loss journey. But I'll also post about my life, my family, my hobbies, and what ever else I find interesting.

Success

My original goal was to be able to run in the Susan G. Koman Race for the Cure, which happens on May 9th here in Boise. But I won't be able to. I just didn't get the training in that I wanted. Part of it was bad weather and bad knees. Alot of it was laziness ane excuses. So my plan was, I just won't do it. I'll forget the Race for the Cure this year, and maybe next year I'll run it. Then it hit me. How could I be so stupid. Just because I won't be able to run the whole 5k doesn't mean that I shouldn't at least try to run some of it, or even walk all of it for that matter. Giving up compleletly would mean failure, but participating will be success. So, yesterday, I went to the website and registered. I will be participating (probably walking) in the Race for the Cure this year. I'm actually excited about it.

I'm doing it on my own. Other 5K walks, I've had buddies or friends that I've walked with. This year, I want to set me own pace. Run some if I can, don't if I can't. I think it will be fun. I'm really excited.

Failure

I just gave up. I don't know why. One day, I just decided that I wasn't going to go for my walk. I think I was tired, or my knee hurt, or the boys were crying. I don't even remember. And it doesn't even matter. I gave up. I quit. Like I always do. Brett encouraged me, commanded me even, to keep it up. And I ignored him. Maybe I even resented him a bit.

I wish I knew why I continue to quit. It seems sometimes like it's the only thing I'm good at.

On my walks, I had been listening to Jillian Michael's pod casts, and she talks about set backs. Heck, everyone talks about set backs. Like everyone, Jillian says they are going to happen. And everyone says that when they happen, you need to accept it and move on. You aren't a failure if you have a set back, as long as you acknowledge it and you move on. You move forward again. They say you should move on the next day, or even the next meal or workout.

It always seems to take me a little longer, okay, a lot longer. But now, I'm moving on. I've accepted that I've made mistakes, that I'll never reach my goals if I don't continue to move forward. And I'm moving forward today. Starting now.