Busy Day!

After a very fitful and sleepless night last night, I woke up fairly early (9am, but I didn't fall asleep until around 5:30). I had breakfast and lounged around my bedroom, reveling in my self-proclaimed day off. I have been focusing on my school work so intently lately that I don't remember the last time I actually cleaned my house... You know, laundry and dishes done as needed (nothing else to wear or nothing else to eat off of) and basically ignoring everything else. Yes, I know, I tend to live like a slob...

So, I took a few baby steps today and starting cleaning my bedroom. When Aaron is home, this room is our bedroom/family room/dining room/etc. We tend to watch movies or catch up on shows on Hulu using our computer up there... Which also means that this room is usually very messy... I'm talking McDonalds bags stacked on top of the dog kennel (Aaron uses this in place of a night stand), dog hair and flying magazines all over the floor, etc... So, while watching one of my guilty pleasures, I started cleaning...

Then I did something for myself. Recently, my wardrobe has declined to maybe 4 shirts that I can wear and 1 pair of jeans (that fit right), as I am currently in-between sizes right now. I know I could just wear the pants that I have that are too big, but when you are a little thick in the middle, you don't want to wear tapered-leg pants... So a friend of mine went shopping with me at the local consignment store. We actually came away with some really cute things. I picked out 4 skirts for work, a nice sweater, a nice top, a jacket I can use to go walking with Noni, and 3 pairs of shoes... Quite a haul on a small budget.

When I got back from shopping, I had a snack and took Noni for a walk (you know, to try out the new jacket... oh yeah, and because I have a goal to go walking with Noni for at least 30 minutes per day for the next 2 weeks). It was a gorgeous day here! I decided that we were going to walk the Dike Trail (a walking trail that goes around the airport). So we started heading that direction and found out they are doing construction on the access road to the trail and that the trail was closed... Bummer... So we took the long way home to get my 30 minutes in. I'm hoping that tomorrow is going to be nice again. The trail is open on Sundays, so I think we'll try it again! Get an hour walk in!

Then, for dinner, I made some chicken-rice soup. I've been on a kick to just throw what ever I have on hand in the pot... I stopped short of adding my frozen brussels sprouts to the pot (don't judge) but I think when I reheat the leftovers, I'll add some frozen broccoli. I didn't want to add the broccoli to the whole batch, because it gets nasty the longer it is in the cooking liquid. I want it to be warmed through and bright green, not gross green looking. I think a variation on this soup will be a staple for me, especially when Aaron is gone. It'll be the "clean the freezer and pantry" soup. I just add whatever I have on hand. Today was canned chicken, carrots, celery, onions, garlic, a couple handfuls of brown rice, a bunch of chicken broth, and seasonings. I thought I had some frozen corn in the fridge... I was going to add it, but I didn't have any...