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THE (NEW) CHARMED LIFE OF THE PINGELS

Unveiling #1 - Little Suze's Bright Ideas

Alright, folks... I did it.

I made the switch, and divided my blog in two. I've wanted to do a "craft blog" for a long time, and I took the leap. Plus, what kind of blog address is "darcy fabulous" for our family blog? It was time for a change.

The family blog is not quite ready yet, but I will be posting there, soon...

But let's take a look at that new craft blog of mine, shall we? I have so many fun ideas for projects to post, and I hope Jack will allow me an hour or two every now and then to get crafty. So... are you ready?

Here she is... Click on the picture and it will take you there!

Changing things up!

In light of my recent "blog identity crisis", I have decided to make a few changes to diversify my blogging interests. In about a week or so, this blog will no longer be used... *sniff* Sad, I know. She has served me well. Instead, you will find two new blogs:

1. The NEW "Charmed Life of the Pingels" -- (with a fitting blog address) AND
2. My NEW Craft/Creative Blog... where I'll feature all my crafty/creative/girly/cooking/etc.

I'm really excited about my new blogging adventures, and I hope you'll come along for the ride. Keep checking back for the links and the unveiling of the new blogs!

Mrs. Pingel

Blog-dentity Crisis

I'm having an identity crisis.

Well, my blog is having an identity crisis.

Don't get me wrong... Good ol' "Charmed Life" has done me well, and I loved her even when she was "Darcy Fabulous" (in my pre-marital existence), but I really don't know what she is anymore.

Do I want her to be a mommy blog? Do I want this to be a craft blog? How about my writing/poetry/song lyrics... do those things belong here? Should I make separate blogs for each? Should Jack have his own blog to show pictures, etc?

I just don't know.

I've been thinking about a change of scenery... As in, ditching (maybe?) the "darcyfabulous" address and bringing "Charmed Life" to a blogspot address that suits her better. A brand new life for the blog. I used to have a blog just for my writing/poetry... which I deleted. Today. I hadn't used it in months (years?), and it felt really "emo" to me. Ew.

So... yeah. I'm still not sure. I have kind of done a couponing blog, but I think I may delete that one, as well. I just don't have the time/fortitude/resources it takes to run a couponing blog. The coupon blogs I follow update on an daily, even hourly basis. It's nuts, and I really really appreciate the steals and deals I cash in on by following them. But... I know my limits. Maybe I'll just post about great deals every now and then on my mommy blog.

Or maybe "darcyfabulous" will be where all my crafty/creative things go, and "Charmed Life" will have its own brand new life. Hmm.

I think that may be the answer.

Stay tuned.

missing melodies

I used to write songs.

Remember that?

Looking a new year in the face is a reminder of all the things I want. I want to be back in my wedding-time shape. I want to get out of debt. I want to be a good mom... a good wife... a good person. I want to thank my God every night for the blessings that I have never deserved, but got anyway. This year, I also want something else. I want the music back. I want to write again.

Maybe I wasn't that good before. I'm aware of the fact that this might be true. But I didn't really care, either way. Writing music was living. When I was a Senior in college, it was the only way I could cope with the life-changing mayhem that surrounded me. Heartbreak was the pillow I laid my head on at night; I breathed confusion and longing. I had so much going on externally to cope with--classes, graduation, roommates, dating, unrequited love... oh, such bittersweet memories. And internally, well, you can only imagine. I look back at those days wanting to re-live them with what I know now--just a little--but I know that if things went the way I wanted them to, I wouldn't be sitting here in the quiet, a sleeping baby at my feet.

I would never. I have everything.

Everything.

But the music... oh, the music. It was so good. It filled me. A broken heart was fuel to the fire that splayed song lyrics across loose-leaf paper... in journal entries... in notebooks and Word documents. I was living the love for which I longed, but only in my musical daydream, and oh, how good it was. At the time, I had never loved like that, and my songs told the stories.

I want to write songs again.

I want to write songs that speak to me like those ones did. Unfortunately, my songs now can't be fueled by my juvenile longing to be in love. I'm there, in love, right smack dab in the middle of it, and it's a good place to be. I just have to learn how to write songs from here. I don't know how to write songs about a love that embraced me with both arms. I don't know to write about a man who knew he loved me so well, and still does, and never made me ask, or beg, or wonder. I don't know how to write about happy. I have only really written about that old-familiar bitterness. It was so easy.

I hope I can do it.

Move it!

Update: I got my elliptical trainer the other day. It was from Craigslist, in Chubbuck, and I only paid $125 for it. It's a pretty good little machine -- just needs some grease to help with the squeaks!


Thanks to ICANREAD for the picture.

The Workout Mix

Hello, friends! Some of you may be linking up from Facebook to my blog for the first time. If so... Welcome! The other day I posted a Facebook status asking for everyone's favorite workout songs. I looked 'em all up, and loved most all of them -- you guys have good taste! Below are my favorites (from you), plus a few additions of my own! Enjoy.

THE WORKOUT MIX

Warm-up Songs:

1. Lose Yourself (EDITED) - Eminem

2. I Gotta Feeling - Black Eyed Peas
3. Boom Boom Pow - Black Eyed Peas

Cardio Songs:

1. Don't Cha (Ralph's Hot Freak Radio Mix) - Pussycat Dolls

2. Pump It - Black Eyed Peas

3. Just Dance - Lady Gaga

4. Womanizer - Britney Spears

5. Keeps Gettin' Better (EDITED) - Christina Aguilera

6. Fergalicious - Fergie
7. My Life Would Suck Without You - Kelly Clarkson
8. One More Time - Daft Punk
9. So What - P!nk
10. 3 - Britney Spears
11. Maneater - Nelly Furtado
12. Evacuate the Dancefloor - Cascada

Running Songs:

1. Last Resort (EDITED) - Papa Roach
2. When Worlds Collide - Powerman 5000
3. The Pretender - Foo Fighters
4. Starlight - Muse
5. Here It Goes Again - Ok Go
6. Viva La Vida - Coldplay
7. Bring Me To Life - Evanescence

Weight-lifting Songs:
1. Fighter - Christina Aguilera
2. Remember The Name (EDITED) - Fort Minor
3. Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger - Daft Punk
4. Sexyback - Justin Timberlake
5. So What - P!nk
6. Start the Commotion - The Wiseguys
7. Crazy - Gnarls Barkley
8. Lovestoned - Justin Timberlake
9. Ramalama (Bang Bang) - Roisin Murphy

Cool-down Songs:
1. Uprising - Muse
2. Body Language - Jesse McCartney
3. My Love - Justin Timberlake
4. Doo Wop (That Thing) - Lauryn Hill
5. The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson 

Do you have any additions? Leave a comment and I'll add my favorites!

Happy workin' it! 

Dizzle 

2 months!

I can't believe my baby is two months old... and will be 3 months on February 2nd.

I just barely got him to sleep (our 3rd or 4th attempt at bedtime tonight) and thought I'd do a quick blog update since it has been a couple of weeks.

Jack is a fantastic kid and makes us disgustingly happy. We love his new-found smiles and the occasional giggle. He's got strong, little legs and we can see him walking earlier than many... oh dear! This last Tuesday, Jack had his 2 month shots, which was a traumatic experience for the both of us. I thought I had heard the full gamut of his cries, but the yelps he let out after the nurses poked him were simply heartbreaking. I felt terrible for the little guy, but was glad to be the one that got to "save" him. Needless to say, he's been a little clingy this week -- always needs Mom to be holding him. It's fun... until I need to do the dishes/laundry/vacuuming/etc. Such is the life, eh?


Adam is ever-busy with school, work, and rehearsal. We love the hour or two a day we get to spend with him, and LOVE Saturdays and Sundays for that very reason, as well. He has a full credit load, a new job as a carpenter in the theatre shop at BYUI, and is playing the role of Macduff in Shakespeare's Macbeth. I am so excited to see this show, and you are all invited, as well -- they are doing a ton of broadsword fighting, and Adam comes home with all manner of bruises, cuts and soreness. I feel bad for the guy, but he's loving every minute, and gets to be the hero of the show. Adam is looking forward to auditioning for Coeur d'Alene Summer Theatre this year, which will be a whole new jump from our usual Playmill summers. He will also be performing in Forever Plaid this upcoming May at BYU-Idaho, and is excited to bring back his role as Smudge.

And as for me... I'm just trying to keep my head above water. The adjustment to mommyhood is a fun one, but it really forces me to get my act together. I've become slightly obsessed with anything and everything that helps me to be more organized, and am trying to figure out the best way to fit workouts into my crazy daily routine. I am either going to buy an elliptical machine off of Craigslist, or invest in some Jillian Michaels DVDs... or both. Stay tuned. Adam and I are having a pound-for-pound competition each month this year... he is trying to gain and I'm trying to lose the excess baby weight... and then some, if possible. Whoever has gained/lost the most each month wins, and the competition resets for the next month. We haven't figured out a prize yet... any ideas?

Other than that, I have reunited myself with the art of jewelry-making, and plan to post a ton of stuff on my Etsy shop as soon as I can. Like I said... crazy schedule... needy baby... you get the picture. (Speaking of pictures... the picture of me is from the night before I went into labor with Jack... which explains why I'm looking extra glowy and extra puffy.)

And so, as I (finally) get myself to bed, I'll leave you with a couple of recent pictures of the darling Jack. Enjoy!

Jack Loves...

Grandpa John... and naps...

Eating out of his "big boy bottle"... and eating, in general...



When Daddy burps him on his shoulder... and holding his head up...

And Daddy. Just Daddy.

Christmas Cousins

This is Jack. Jack is happy.

Jack spent the holiday weekend with his four adoring girl cousins...

Hailee, Camryn, Riley and Izzy.

They all wanted to take Jack home with them.

I don't blame them.

Here is Izzy... She is the sweet, lovey one.

This is Izzy, Hailee and Riley, getting ready to watch a movie

while Grandma Barb made them a "picnic" lunch.

(I didn't get any pictures of Camryn! Dang it!)

Hailee and Riley

So much fun.

December Update

JACK
- Is finally filling out his "elephant skin" on his legs. (Read: Leg rolls!)
- Slept through the night to the tune of 7.5+ hours the last two nights
- Is always - ALWAYS - hungry.
- Smiles... and it's like Christmas every time he does.

ADAM
- Is almost done with finals.
- Just got cast as Macduff in Shakespeare's Macbeth
- Finally had to put his motorcycle in storage this month.
- Did a fabulous job in Forever Plaid, and is sad it's over.

DARCY
- Is only about 10 lbs away from pre-pregnancy weight - hooray!
- Is adjusting to life as a new mommy.
- Is working on a cute project for Hannah and Jake's wedding present.

And now, some Jack photos...

 

 

 

 

Just sayin'...

thanks to i can read for the photo.

Shari's Recipes and Patterns

Merry Christmas, everybody!

I have a fun Christmas gift idea for you. Adam's parents, Scott and Shari Pingel, make these amazing Christmas Puzzles, and are selling them through their new blog, Recipes and Patterns.

Check it out:

They're even more fun than they look, and they sell for $27 on Recipes and Patterns. Check out the site for lots of fun recipes and a few fun things for sale!

Dreams DO come true!

My good friend Eliza finally had her biggest dream come true tonight...

The future Mr. and Mrs. David Archuleta... *wink*

(We'll keep our fingers crossed, Lulu!)

A Letter.

Dear Jack,

You are cute... did you know?

Love, Mom

That. Seriously. Happened.

I was walking around Walgreens a few weeks back and found THIS little gem:

"Super Macho - High Potency Formula With Bovine Glandular Concentrate"

...Really?

Jack is 1 Month Old!

I honestly can't believe that it has been a whole month since our little man came into the world. It has been a month of physical trials (mostly having to do with my body, not Jack's) and a few sleepless nights, but we've never been better.

Happy 1 Month, Jack. We love you.

Thanksgiving Break in Northern ID

I am terrible about taking pictures.

In fact, I have been on several trips to fun cities (Las Vegas, New York City) that I have virtually NO photo documentation of. It's like I never went. *sigh*

This is the case with our Thanksgiving break. Unfortunately, you will not be enjoying a smattering of Jack Jack photos and other depictions of us stuffing our faces. It's just not going to happen, okay?

In my defense, our camera was not in its case in its usual nestling spot inside my purse. Rather, it was snuggled up next to our video camera in the video camera's case all week (because we couldn't find picture-taking-camera's case as we left the house), which put a damper on things whenever I thought, "Oh, I'll grab my camera and take some photos of this cute/memorable/fun/etc thing." Sure, I could have remedied the situation quickly by taking said camera out of video camera's case... but... it just didn't happen.

That being said, I will give you a quick rundown of what happened over the past week. If you can forgive me for slacking in the photo department, I'll try to make up for it by displaying my dazzling writing skills.

DAY ONE - SATURDAY
We left Rexburg after Adam's swordfighting workshop at BYU-I (prep for the upcoming Macbeth auditions) with an inordinate (or so we thought) amount of Jack Jack paraphernalia in the back of the car. Jack was a trouper, and only woke up twice during the seven hour trip -- and just when we needed him to, for diaper changes and feeding. What a stud. We were also blessed with clear roads (with the exception of Lookout Pass) and what seemed to be a very quick trip. Hallelujah. That night, Adam started feeling sick, and spent the better part of his sleeping hours coughing and hacking. Poor Adam.

DAY TWO - SUNDAY
Mr. Pingel woke up in bad shape, thanks to the not-so-restful night before. Jack and I left him in bed, and went to church with Grandma Barb (my mom). It was Primary Program Sunday, which means the little kids present a themed program during our regularly-scheduled Sacrament Meeting. My mom said that we needed to go because it's usually pretty funny... and she was right. Kids are funny. I also had fun showing off Jack to old church friends at what happened to be Jack's first church visit. We spent the afternoon at Granny and Papa's house (my Dad's parents) eating homemade chicken noodle soup and taking naps... which is just what you do at Granny's: Eat, nap, repeat. Adam was still feeling crummy, and started what ended up being days of drowning his sickness in TheraFlu, Mucinex, Sudafed, and plenty of rest.


DAY THREE - MONDAY
Today, we left Jack with a "sitter" (Adam's parents) for the first time. In all actuality, it was only for about an hour, he slept the entire time, and we were only a few blocks away at Walmart... but hey, it was a step, if only a baby step. We didn't do much all day, thanks to Adam's sickness, but we were home in Northern Idaho, just where we wanted to be.

DAY FOUR - TUESDAY
Today, Mom and I went on a fun little shopping excursion to the Spokane Valley while Jack and Adam spent the day at Grandma and Grandpa Pingel's house (Adam's parents). I did a little post-pregnancy clothes shopping at Aunt Val's store, Plato's Closet, and fell in love with Forever 21 all over again at the Spokane Valley Mall. It was a fun day of shopping with Mom, but the boys were happy when we finally returned. Adam also had a rehearsal that night for his upcoming Saturday performance in Handel's Messiah. He didn't have much of a voice (or rather, a tenor range) but was able to squeak out a note or two.


DAY FIVE - WEDNESDAY
Wednesday, Jack and I went to lunch with my mom, Aunt Val, Uncle Dan and Grandpa Simon at Applebee's. Afterward, Mom and did a bit of Christmas shopping at Ross and TJ Maxx. Adam stayed home in hopes of gaining rest and regaining his health.



DAY SIX - THURSDAY
Ohh Thanksgiving, how I love thee. Thanksgiving Day was nice and relaxing. We spent the day with Adam's family, and were not disappointed by the food and fun at the Pingel house. Shari (Adam's Mom) made 11 - yes, ELEVEN -- pies, and I was able to eat Thanksgiving Dinner without feeling overstuffed or sick afterward. (I implemented a little thing I'd like to call "normal portion sizes"... novel idea, eh?) The day also included a nice nap, games, and pie eating.



DAY SEVEN - FRIDAY
On Friday, our Anderson cousins from my Dad's side of the family came to visit. We always love spending time with Uncle Percy and Aunt Jozette's family. Percy and Jozette helped Dad put tile in the upstairs hall bathroom, and Mom and I took Bri and Ashley to Spokane for a little shopping trip. We had a fun day, and Jack even tagged along with minimal fussing, spitting up, and ZERO clothing changes.


DAY EIGHT - SATURDAY
Saturday seemed like a blur... I feel like I didn't stop from the moment I woke up to the moment I (finally) got Jack to sleep that night. Adam had a dress rehearsal for The Messiah and Jack and I made a quick trip over to the Garbrechts to visit my close high school friend, Heidi. That night was Adam's performance -- he sings the Tenor solo every year, and did a fantastic job. We were so grateful that his voice returned just in time for the performance, and it was the perfect ending to a nice week at home. Later that night we finally got to see Ben and Michelle's darling house (Adam's brother and his wife) and we collapsed into bed that night, not wanting to wake up in the morning to go back to Rexburg. We love being home in Coeur d'Alene!


DAY NINE - SUNDAY
Our trip home was (thankfully) uneventful. Jack and I took naps in the back seat, and we arrived home to our chilly Rexburg apartment around 9pm.

We are returning home to Coeur d'Alene in three weeks and can't wait... Is it Christmas yet??

Jack Attack!

Get Ready... Coming at you is more Jack than you can handle!

Are you ready for this??

Ready, Set... GO!

(Translation: I've been BEGGED for more pictures of Jack, but have been pretty busy feeding/diapering/rocking/cuddling/etc. the little guy, and the blog has suffered a serious drought of Jack-ness. So this is for you, Mom... Jenna... Izzy... Everyone else... Enjoy!) 

 This is laying-in-Mom's-hospital-bed Jack. Sweet Baby.

Ready to head home from the hospital.

Thanks to Grandma Barb for the cute whale outfit.

 

Sleeping sweetly. In monkey jammies.

Thanks to Bri, Nick and Jaxon for his bouncer! He loves it!

 

Behold: Jack's dislike for leaving the bath.

...But still cute, eh?

 

Me, waking Jack for a feeding.

He's a sleepy one.

...Like here... And he's smiling :)

 

Jack, actually enjoying (?) a bath.

Well, at least he's not crying...

Can you believe these eyes?

 

Daddy, enjoying our favorite Jack activity - the snuggle/nap.

Yes, you're allowed to say, "Awwww..."

 

Wide-awake Jack, in his seat.

 

Almost a smile!

 

One of my favorite Jack faces... The "Oh!" face...

(Also known as the "I'm hungry" face.)

 

Happy Mom... and Jack, chewing on his hand. Per usual.

Mostly-naked Jack... showing his froggy belly, his baby boobs...

...And his standard "I'm-not-sure-about-this" face.

Yes, I am aware that he looks a little like Gollum from Lord of the Rings...

...But only when he's naked.

And in a later bath... Jack is learning to enjoy a good swim.

Hope you enjoyed this installment of JACK ATTACK!

One simple call...

I woke up this morning feeling ok.

But while I was feeding Jack, I noticed that my left breast (sorry if this is graphic -- it's just anatomy, people) was red in one area, hot, and sore. Very sore. I was also running a fever. Again. This is when the dots began to connect.

I'd had it. I was going to fix this little problem once and for all. I made one simple call to my Ob-Gyn and spoke with a nurse. I described my symptoms, and a diagnosis was quickly (and efficiently, I might add) made. She even called in a prescription to Walgreens for me. Hallelujah.

I have mastitis.

The nurse said I should start feeling better within 24 hours, with the antibiotics. Funny thing is, I ate dinner when I got home from Walgreens, thinking I'd need some food in my system to take the meds... then read the label.

"Take on an empty stomach."

Whoops.

What I've learned: Don't go to the ER, unless you're pretty sure you're going to die. The ER doctors I met with clearly weren't thinking about "female" problems... like, perhaps, that I gave birth a week ago, am a new breastfeeding mom... maybe THAT has something to do with it?

Anyway, life goes on, and our Little Buddy is... perfect.

Good night.