Tomorrow marks one of my favorite days of the year. Jon is a very low key, low maintenance person (which balances my excess of each), which is why there is not a whole lot of fanfare on his birthday. Sure, he has come up with ideas to have a Renaissance themed banquet where everyone is served turkey legs and drinks out of pewter goblets, and when he was planning Ella's birthday party he found some ideas for a pirate themed one he wanted to try out for himself. But none of these, like so many of his grand schemes, have ever come to fruition. This is partly because I have to bring him back down to reality and remind him that getting the guy who plays the bells to perform at your birthday, might be a little pricey and difficult to fit in our back yard.
For him, I believe it's the one day a year where he can be a little materialistic and point out the things he wants and the things he'd like to try. It's the one day a year he can ask to sleep in, have breakfast made for him for a change, and go on a dinner or movie date and not feel guilty. I hope that in the near future our situation will be able to accomodate all the things I want to give him and do for him, and in the meantime I'm keeping a list. And, in the meantime, his humility and selflessness are precious to me. It's easy to give someone the world when you have it at your fingertips, but when you're stretched thin and still make sacrifices for someone else, those acts are infinitely more valuable. He's given me enough of those to last a lifetime, and yet somehow, he continues to find new ways to amaze me.
Jon:
I wanted to write something for you, because I think that's how we communicate best, but for some reason, it's all coming out trite, so that will have to wait until the pressure is off. I feel like we're entering a phase of blissful simplicity, so instead I thought I'd tide you over with something I know you (and probably only you, although I do know of one Kerouac fan who might read this) will enjoy. I think Haikus are generally untitled and I believe some portion of mystery is largely the appeal, but in case these are too vague, each is a memory from the two brief weekends away that we've had since the girls have been born. I hope they take you back.
Pink cherry blossoms
Soft petals fall, intertwined
Hands, weathered and worn
A rush of water
Deafening, thunderous, drenched
A stolen moment
Here's to celebrating the day my best friend came into existance! Happy birthday Snuffy, I love you! :P
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Thursday, August 4, 2011
My Great Grandma Ruth
My great grandma Ruth passed away a few months ago. I mentioned it briefly when every thing was happening, but I hadn't really had the time to wrap my mind around it. It didn't come as a shock; my grandmother had been getting progressively worse in her ailments, including some bad falls. She had put her house up for sale, although I found out about this way after the fact. She didn't wait very long before packing everything up and moving down south with my great aunt. It struck a chord with me then, just as it does thinking about it now. It seemed to me that she knew intuitively that her time here was drawing to a close. I think that's the best comfort I have. She knew and I'm hoping that she spent a lot of quiet time with God before he came to take her Home. After a good, long life, I think that's the best gift any of us can be given, especially those of us who haven't given our lives completely over to Christ. I hope to see her again, sooner or later.
Unfortunately for me, my parents have never been very interested in preserving and passing on family history. My grandmother had an extensive collection of photo albums that spanned several decades with pictures of all of her descendents. I couldn't tell you who half of them are. It makes me feel orphaned, to an extent, because I don't know my own history and ancestry. I don't know my own (extended) family. It is partially my fault because I didn't ask enough. But I always felt uncomfortable asking who someone was when I was expected to know and remember them, especially if there was other family close by, listening in. And somehow, there always was.
While my grandmother's hearing wasn't perfect, her mind and memory were as sharp as ever. I definitely regret not getting to ask her every question I had. But most of my questions didn't come until adulthood and I didn't feel I had been close enough to her for long enough to be able to ask the kind of questions I really wanted answers to. For most of them, this was probably true, and to my credit, I had been trying to build up trust, confidence and friendship over the last few years by visiting and writing her letters. I was touched to see that she had kept them all. And while I did get to delve into her fascinating past on a couple occasions, there were always distractions (my daughters always came with me) and time was always cut too short. Over the last year my letters and visits became almost nonexistant due to school, work, and the chaos of daily life. I hope she knew then how much I loved her even though I didn't show it as much as I wanted to.
The question I find myself wishing I'd asked was one of faith. I wish I knew with confidence where she was headed. I don't know why I always felt an obligation to be politically correct; I cannot pinpoint a specific lesson in my childhood to be sensible of accidentally offending someone. However, that sensitivity has lead to walls where there should be openness, and a consciousness of things that, in a perfect world, would garner no notice, no question at all. I'm working, slowly, at learning to tear down my own walls, in the hope of being able to tear down others as well. Not only was I left with the tortured feeling of not having the slightest inclination of where my grandmother was, but it also brought to light how little she could have known me, for all the things I was afraid to say to her. I wish I had been raised the way my daughters are- Ella recently initiated Grace over lunch at her 5th birthday party. Of the 7 kids seated around our table, the only other one to hear her and join in was my 3 year old daughter Lorelai. I guess the moral of the story is that God's grace will right the wrongs from generation to generation if we trust in him, and though it may be a struggle to break the bonds that try to tie us, we have a savior who is strong enough to carry those loads for us.
I can't finish the things I left unsaid and undone, but I can make every effort to not make the same mistakes again. And for every misstep, I can trust.
Unfortunately for me, my parents have never been very interested in preserving and passing on family history. My grandmother had an extensive collection of photo albums that spanned several decades with pictures of all of her descendents. I couldn't tell you who half of them are. It makes me feel orphaned, to an extent, because I don't know my own history and ancestry. I don't know my own (extended) family. It is partially my fault because I didn't ask enough. But I always felt uncomfortable asking who someone was when I was expected to know and remember them, especially if there was other family close by, listening in. And somehow, there always was.
While my grandmother's hearing wasn't perfect, her mind and memory were as sharp as ever. I definitely regret not getting to ask her every question I had. But most of my questions didn't come until adulthood and I didn't feel I had been close enough to her for long enough to be able to ask the kind of questions I really wanted answers to. For most of them, this was probably true, and to my credit, I had been trying to build up trust, confidence and friendship over the last few years by visiting and writing her letters. I was touched to see that she had kept them all. And while I did get to delve into her fascinating past on a couple occasions, there were always distractions (my daughters always came with me) and time was always cut too short. Over the last year my letters and visits became almost nonexistant due to school, work, and the chaos of daily life. I hope she knew then how much I loved her even though I didn't show it as much as I wanted to.
The question I find myself wishing I'd asked was one of faith. I wish I knew with confidence where she was headed. I don't know why I always felt an obligation to be politically correct; I cannot pinpoint a specific lesson in my childhood to be sensible of accidentally offending someone. However, that sensitivity has lead to walls where there should be openness, and a consciousness of things that, in a perfect world, would garner no notice, no question at all. I'm working, slowly, at learning to tear down my own walls, in the hope of being able to tear down others as well. Not only was I left with the tortured feeling of not having the slightest inclination of where my grandmother was, but it also brought to light how little she could have known me, for all the things I was afraid to say to her. I wish I had been raised the way my daughters are- Ella recently initiated Grace over lunch at her 5th birthday party. Of the 7 kids seated around our table, the only other one to hear her and join in was my 3 year old daughter Lorelai. I guess the moral of the story is that God's grace will right the wrongs from generation to generation if we trust in him, and though it may be a struggle to break the bonds that try to tie us, we have a savior who is strong enough to carry those loads for us.
I can't finish the things I left unsaid and undone, but I can make every effort to not make the same mistakes again. And for every misstep, I can trust.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Mount Vernon
If you're not really interested in history, you'll probably want to skip over this post.
This is somewhat of a continuation of the last post; while we were in DC, we made a day trip to see Mount Vernon, also known as Washington's home. I love pieces of history that have been restored or recreated so that they are as close as possible to what they were in their time. So as you can imagine, Mount Vernon was my favorite place that we visited. If only I had been allowed to spend hours there by myself, going in the roped off sections and touching the paintings and fabrics and china for myself. Ah well.
I've seen a lot of the forts and battle sites thanks to living in Pennsylvania, but seeing peoples' homes from various time periods is infinitely more fascinating to me. I love being able to see the fullest picture of how people lived back then. Washington's house was built in the mid 1600's but is currently restored to the last year of Washington's life: 1799. I took tons of pictures, but I'll limit the following to a handful.
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This is somewhat of a continuation of the last post; while we were in DC, we made a day trip to see Mount Vernon, also known as Washington's home. I love pieces of history that have been restored or recreated so that they are as close as possible to what they were in their time. So as you can imagine, Mount Vernon was my favorite place that we visited. If only I had been allowed to spend hours there by myself, going in the roped off sections and touching the paintings and fabrics and china for myself. Ah well.
I've seen a lot of the forts and battle sites thanks to living in Pennsylvania, but seeing peoples' homes from various time periods is infinitely more fascinating to me. I love being able to see the fullest picture of how people lived back then. Washington's house was built in the mid 1600's but is currently restored to the last year of Washington's life: 1799. I took tons of pictures, but I'll limit the following to a handful.
This home is set in by the Potomac River and surrounded by luscious, rolling land. It's pretty easy to see why Washington wanted to retire here so badly. After a few minutes of walking in the orchards, you're in love.
These were the buildings around the main house- the stables, smokehouse, salthouse, washhouse/laundry yard, etc.
Washington's port on the edge of the Potomac.
Bird's eye view of the estate
Some of the stained glass at the admissions building depicting the signing of the declaration of independence
Smokehouse. The lack of modern plumbing and electricity definitely would have been annoying, but man it would have been cool to live during this time. Or at least to go back in time and visit for a bit.
I love the way these quarters are stocked with period-appropriate materials, and plaques that explain their uses.
These are all of the outter buildings. Photography was prohibited in Washington's actual home, unfortunately.
Mount Vernon Squirrel. He was super cute and friendly.
This is a picture of Jon and me with our grandparents. We got to visit them briefly on our way to and from DC.
If you get the chance to go, Mount Vernon is worth the trip. The website is informative and interesting too, if you'd like to learn more:
Sunday, June 19, 2011
DC
In April, Jon and I took our vacation. We went to Washington D.C. for the cherry blossom festival, which was actually an idea Jon took from my best friend. We went the weekend before our 6th anniversary. We decided together when we would be going, but I let Jon plan everything else, including the location. I'd never been to DC before so I was really excited. We had so much fun taking the metro, walking around together, taking pictures, and site-seeing.
Jon picked some awesome places to eat. My favorite was a spanish restaurant where we had the most delicious lunch. I'd never had them before, but tappas and sangria are a new favorite of mine. The atmosphere was really cool, too- very laid back, with tons of decorative pillows to lounge on, and live local music. I wish we had something like that here. If I could cook, I'd do it myself!
This weekend was when I converted Jon into a coffee drinker, which is definitely a milestone for me!
I got to see all the major monuments but three (I had to settle for seeing them from a distance because my feet hurt too much by the end of the day), and now I feel like I can truly call myself an American, haha. It was a beautiful time of the year to capture them on film.
Looking at the war memorials really made my interest in looking up my geneology flare up again. Hopefully I can hold on to that feeling and get into it this summer while I'm not in classes. I think the hard part of undertaking such a huge project is getting it started. My parents have never been much interested in family history, so unfortunately I don't even know the names of most of my second cousins and great aunts and uncles. I'm hoping to remedy this with my girls and I hope that they share my interest in our roots and traditions.
Anyway, it was a really fun trip for such a history-lover like me. And even though we missed the girls like crazy, it was so good to get away, just the two of us. While we were there we realized we hadn't gone away together in two years. We are going to have to work harder to find the time to make sure we make it an annual thing, like we wanted.
About half of my pictures are missing, including those of La Tasca, which are really cool. But these should tide you over!
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Jon picked some awesome places to eat. My favorite was a spanish restaurant where we had the most delicious lunch. I'd never had them before, but tappas and sangria are a new favorite of mine. The atmosphere was really cool, too- very laid back, with tons of decorative pillows to lounge on, and live local music. I wish we had something like that here. If I could cook, I'd do it myself!
This weekend was when I converted Jon into a coffee drinker, which is definitely a milestone for me!
I got to see all the major monuments but three (I had to settle for seeing them from a distance because my feet hurt too much by the end of the day), and now I feel like I can truly call myself an American, haha. It was a beautiful time of the year to capture them on film.
Looking at the war memorials really made my interest in looking up my geneology flare up again. Hopefully I can hold on to that feeling and get into it this summer while I'm not in classes. I think the hard part of undertaking such a huge project is getting it started. My parents have never been much interested in family history, so unfortunately I don't even know the names of most of my second cousins and great aunts and uncles. I'm hoping to remedy this with my girls and I hope that they share my interest in our roots and traditions.
Anyway, it was a really fun trip for such a history-lover like me. And even though we missed the girls like crazy, it was so good to get away, just the two of us. While we were there we realized we hadn't gone away together in two years. We are going to have to work harder to find the time to make sure we make it an annual thing, like we wanted.
About half of my pictures are missing, including those of La Tasca, which are really cool. But these should tide you over!
This is a chaotic shot, but they had the best subs I've ever tasted and I wanted to chronicle it.
US institute of Peace. Pretty neat architecture.
Lincoln's memorial is definitely the best, in my opinion.
Better picture of the detail at the top.
Initially I thought Washington got ripped off, but I came around by the end of our trip when I had been able to see it all over the city, from just about any distance or height.
I think it's such a wonderful testimony to the memory of these loved ones that there are always tons of people visiting the Vietnam veterans memorial.
Passed a wedding by the water. What a great idea- I'm sure their photographs are going to be gorgeous.
The WWII memorial was so vast that it required many photos to give an accurate portrait. Here is a taste.
Small glimpse of the WWII memorial
Everyone was flying kites. Most of the cherry blossoms were white, so the colors from the kites really popped.
White house.
Me and some random cute little kid, ha
Flowers may be cliche, but they're jsut too pretty to pass up. God is such an artist.
My man.
Love this one.
Jefferson monument.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Day at the zoo!
Here are some photos from about a month ago. Jon took the girls to the zoo and got some really cute shots with his fancy camera.
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Sitting on a termite mound.
Cat nap.
Baby elephant footprint
That's lunch.
So cute!
Baby sea lion!
Monday, June 6, 2011
Kindness
Yesterday at church our pastor gave an excellent sermon. It was part of a series called Thrive and this week's focus was on kindness. Now I don't think I've suffered from the delusion that I'm a kind person in general. Sure, if I saw a person on the side of the road (good samaritan) I'd stop to help them if my kids weren't in the car. Probably. I'd at least call for help. But I wouldn't pay their way. Don't get me wrong, I am ridiculously empathetic (it's kind of a problem) and loving to the extreme, and I'm kind to those I love. But being kind to maybe 40 people out of 6 billion doesn't a kind person make. You would have to listen to the sermon here to really understand the rest of my reflections.
Kurt described 3 types of people: takers, keepers, and traders. I am definitely the first two. As far as being a trader, I don't think so. For those loved ones, I am unfailingly kind. And I don't keep score or expect a fair trade. I just expect love in return. Now this is the shade of gray. On one of those rare occurances when I do need that person to be there for me in some way, if they aren't, I cut them off. It's a defense mechanism learned after years of being taken advantage of. Part of me thinks I should try to change this. But the larger part admits that it has weeded out a lot of people who didn't really care for me as I'd thought they did.
It's not something I have really ever focused on or acknowledged, but I do want to be more kind. I've already added "Learning to Forgive" to my running list of New Years Resolutions for 2012. Why not now? A) I've got too many things on my plate and this is going to require a lot from me. B) I'm the kind of person that needs a blank page to start fresh if you know what I mean. It may only be psychological. I'm aware of that. That's just how I am.
I think that God has acknowledged this desire in me because I've seen some recent subtle changes that I wasn't even aware of until this sermon. On a side note, I have to say that I'm so thankful that He's always watching and paying attention and sometimes, shouldering the responsibility of difficult changes that I want to see in myself. But back to the sermon and it's effect on me. Kurt spoke about how you can tell if you're a kind person by how you use your resources: your time and your money. This is an excellent yard stick because that's what we value most. and you have to give both. Not just one. Many people have an excess of money, and they give it without a second thought, but they can't be bothered to give their time to those who need it. However, this is also why I've felt guilty- I don't have much of either of those things. But God spoke to my heart during the sermon and pointed out that "resources" are not limited to those two alone. When I have excess of either, of course I should give. But for now, I have other resources I can give.
For example, our new place is rather different from our last. Because it is so much smaller, there's a lot of stuff leftover. I've held on to baby clothes, maternity clothes, clothes I've outgrown, etc for years and years with the intention of eventually selling them or reusing them. This is just silly for a number of reasons: I'm not having any more kids, if I've listed them on ebay once and they haven't sold, it's really not worth housing them from years while I waste time and energy trying to relist them, many of these things were given to me to begin with! So I'm making my peace with it. So far, it's going really well. I feel a lot lighter.
Kurt described 3 types of people: takers, keepers, and traders. I am definitely the first two. As far as being a trader, I don't think so. For those loved ones, I am unfailingly kind. And I don't keep score or expect a fair trade. I just expect love in return. Now this is the shade of gray. On one of those rare occurances when I do need that person to be there for me in some way, if they aren't, I cut them off. It's a defense mechanism learned after years of being taken advantage of. Part of me thinks I should try to change this. But the larger part admits that it has weeded out a lot of people who didn't really care for me as I'd thought they did.
It's not something I have really ever focused on or acknowledged, but I do want to be more kind. I've already added "Learning to Forgive" to my running list of New Years Resolutions for 2012. Why not now? A) I've got too many things on my plate and this is going to require a lot from me. B) I'm the kind of person that needs a blank page to start fresh if you know what I mean. It may only be psychological. I'm aware of that. That's just how I am.
I think that God has acknowledged this desire in me because I've seen some recent subtle changes that I wasn't even aware of until this sermon. On a side note, I have to say that I'm so thankful that He's always watching and paying attention and sometimes, shouldering the responsibility of difficult changes that I want to see in myself. But back to the sermon and it's effect on me. Kurt spoke about how you can tell if you're a kind person by how you use your resources: your time and your money. This is an excellent yard stick because that's what we value most. and you have to give both. Not just one. Many people have an excess of money, and they give it without a second thought, but they can't be bothered to give their time to those who need it. However, this is also why I've felt guilty- I don't have much of either of those things. But God spoke to my heart during the sermon and pointed out that "resources" are not limited to those two alone. When I have excess of either, of course I should give. But for now, I have other resources I can give.
For example, our new place is rather different from our last. Because it is so much smaller, there's a lot of stuff leftover. I've held on to baby clothes, maternity clothes, clothes I've outgrown, etc for years and years with the intention of eventually selling them or reusing them. This is just silly for a number of reasons: I'm not having any more kids, if I've listed them on ebay once and they haven't sold, it's really not worth housing them from years while I waste time and energy trying to relist them, many of these things were given to me to begin with! So I'm making my peace with it. So far, it's going really well. I feel a lot lighter.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Fresh start
So! After the last post, we went to look at apartments. Let me say, and this is a compliment, the first was a hole. The woman who showed it, showed up about 15 minutes late and we had to look at it with another couple, because she had left them waiting for over a half hour before us. If you are ever in a position to rent a place out, just know that the prospective tenants pay attention to your tardiness. Aside from being unprofessional, it shows them the kind of attention and care they will receive while living there. I know this seems hyprocritical because I am the queen of running late, but I would never be late for an interview and I am almost never late for work. Doctor's appointments? Yeah, my kids are unpredictable and they can sense my weaknesses. If I'm wearing my last clean pair of jeans, they just know, and find a way to destroy them as we're walking out the door. Lunch with my friends? You bet. I hate waiting by myself. Anywhere I go with my husband? Yes, because he's actually worse than I am at being punctual. But for a meeting to possibly enter into a rental agreement with an individual? Definitely not. And she didn't bother to vaccuum. It didn't go well. That place was rather disgusting and kind of falling apart. But I actually considered it. It was expensive too, but I was willing to make anything work and it just didn't look like we had any other options.
We only had one other apartment set up to look at. I scheduled it on a hunch; it had almost no information listed, and only had one photo of the outside posted with it. But it looked very similar to an aquaintance's apartment and I thought the inside of their place was beautiful so we decided to check it out.
I kind of feel like these two places were a perfect parallel for my life: One is what I try to force to work, but it's a crushing black hole. It never lives up to my standards. I enter holding my breath and leave gasping for air. The other is what God graces me with. I don't deserve it. It's always better than I'd expected, better than I could have hoped for. It's always perfect. And it's always temporary. I think the biggest mistake I've made in accepting God's blessings is that I somehow feel like they're mine to keep. But they're not something I can acquire. This used to be so frustrating and, sometimes, devastating to me. But I have learned a lot of hard lessons these last 6 months, all of them reluctantly. The most important one is that all of the temporary gifts and hardships are a purposeful contrast to Him who is never temporary. I may not get to keep the things I love the most or the things that I feel like I've worked hard to earn, but I get to keep the one thing I could never deserve. Learning to rely on Him has been an incredibly humbling and beautiful experience. It's one I will probably have to work at for the entirety of my life, but that's okay. It's a lesson worth the effort of learning.
For those of you who don't know, we checked out the small but clean and maintained apartment and signed the lease almost on the spot. It's about half the size of our last place, has required a lot of money (rent, deposits upfront, ac unit, closets, more utilities than we're used to paying, carpeting, etc) invested in it, and has not been entirely smooth sailing, but it's home. For now. :]
I feel so blessed.
We only had one other apartment set up to look at. I scheduled it on a hunch; it had almost no information listed, and only had one photo of the outside posted with it. But it looked very similar to an aquaintance's apartment and I thought the inside of their place was beautiful so we decided to check it out.
I kind of feel like these two places were a perfect parallel for my life: One is what I try to force to work, but it's a crushing black hole. It never lives up to my standards. I enter holding my breath and leave gasping for air. The other is what God graces me with. I don't deserve it. It's always better than I'd expected, better than I could have hoped for. It's always perfect. And it's always temporary. I think the biggest mistake I've made in accepting God's blessings is that I somehow feel like they're mine to keep. But they're not something I can acquire. This used to be so frustrating and, sometimes, devastating to me. But I have learned a lot of hard lessons these last 6 months, all of them reluctantly. The most important one is that all of the temporary gifts and hardships are a purposeful contrast to Him who is never temporary. I may not get to keep the things I love the most or the things that I feel like I've worked hard to earn, but I get to keep the one thing I could never deserve. Learning to rely on Him has been an incredibly humbling and beautiful experience. It's one I will probably have to work at for the entirety of my life, but that's okay. It's a lesson worth the effort of learning.
For those of you who don't know, we checked out the small but clean and maintained apartment and signed the lease almost on the spot. It's about half the size of our last place, has required a lot of money (rent, deposits upfront, ac unit, closets, more utilities than we're used to paying, carpeting, etc) invested in it, and has not been entirely smooth sailing, but it's home. For now. :]
I feel so blessed.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
The Home Front
So we have been looking at apartments, condos, and houses for months and months now- about a year actually. After the last fiasco didn't work out, Jon and I decided to rearrange some of our plans and priorities. We're going to hold off on trying to own a home right now. We have gone back and forth over whether or not we were willing to relocate and whether or not Jon's masters would take priority over him trying to find a good full time job. If there is one thing I can be greatful for this semester it is that it really helped us prioritize our goals and figure out what we're willing to sacrifice and what we're willing to wait for.
I can't tell you how many times I've reduced what I wanted and expected in terms of what our home would be and the lesson I learned is that as long as we're safe and together, we can make our home comfortable, happy and stressfree (or as little as possible)!
As far as location, initially we intended to move from Cranberry back to Wexford, due largely to the fact that almost everything in our lives is here (my school, my work, the girls preschool, our church, and most of our family), as well as the belief that those 20 minutes would bring our family over more often. Now we know that it wasn't the distance, but everyone's lifestyles that kept them at bay. So we're not letting that weigh too heavily on the location decision.
I spent the better part of today researching apartment complexes. I am now of the opinion that good quality, fairly priced, clean, updated, safe apartments are not a reality. And no one will take a family with 3 cats. Currently, we have some appointments set up for next week to look at places to rent in Bellevue. Jon and I both have some friends in the area who love it there, its only 20 minutes away from wexford, and it's closer to the better Target (that is important). Here's to hoping it goes well and we find one we love!
I can't tell you how many times I've reduced what I wanted and expected in terms of what our home would be and the lesson I learned is that as long as we're safe and together, we can make our home comfortable, happy and stressfree (or as little as possible)!
As far as location, initially we intended to move from Cranberry back to Wexford, due largely to the fact that almost everything in our lives is here (my school, my work, the girls preschool, our church, and most of our family), as well as the belief that those 20 minutes would bring our family over more often. Now we know that it wasn't the distance, but everyone's lifestyles that kept them at bay. So we're not letting that weigh too heavily on the location decision.
I spent the better part of today researching apartment complexes. I am now of the opinion that good quality, fairly priced, clean, updated, safe apartments are not a reality. And no one will take a family with 3 cats. Currently, we have some appointments set up for next week to look at places to rent in Bellevue. Jon and I both have some friends in the area who love it there, its only 20 minutes away from wexford, and it's closer to the better Target (that is important). Here's to hoping it goes well and we find one we love!
Saturday, May 7, 2011
in a nut shell
Sorry seems to be the recurring theme to this blog this semester. I am sorry. I have actually been done with classwork since about April 25th, thanks to having to work six straight days to cover Erica's vacation at work, with the exception of one class. It was great to get ahead for once, but that one class was hanging over my head until today May 6th when the final was supposed to become available. I'm actually killing time right now, waiting until after midnight before I give up hope. This will definitely throw a wrench in my plans.
Things, of course, have been crazy chaotic. Not in a good way. It seems like I never leave work, which is pretty acurate. In April, Jon and I went on vacation to Washington DC (I'd never been) for long weekend. That was wonderful. The best part was being able to sleep in a bed, without two kids kicking me all night, uninterrupted by anyone crying, talking in their sleep, alarms, dogs barking or anyone falling out of the bed. All of these things occur every single night. I don't want to talk about it.
Almost immediately after we got back, I found out my Great Grandmother had just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, on top of congestive heart failure. It only takes one family crisis to highlight just how much the communication sucks. Anyway, we went down to South Carolina to see her, the next weekend. This was the most disasterous trip. Our trip was delayed and we wound up driving through Virginia and North Carolina as 87 tornado touchdowns hit. We drove through two personally, which caused us to hydroplane off the road and almost into a tree. It was confusing, scary and memorable for sure. More on that another day. I had intended to see Grandma for 3 days. It was cut down to one short afternoon.
On the way back, I fell asleep and Jon got pulled over for speeding. The absurdity of this is that I could not get him to drive faster than 65 mph on the roughly 19 hour drive down (yes it took us that long) to SC. Did you know that driving 20 mph over the speedlimit or over 80 mph ANYWHERE in VA is considered reckless driving and is therefore a Criminal Offense? We didn't either. It's new. So we are now trying to hire a lawyer to fight his case at his court hearing to avoid having a permanent criminal record. Court date is May 19. I'd appreciate all the prayers you can spare. I am officially blacklisting Virginia from my map of places (states first!) to see in my lifetime. Forty-nine may not flow off the tongue as nicely as 50, but then neither does a criminal record. You're dead to me, Virginia.
Once we got back, I worked the next six days straight over Easter weekend. I got caught up in my classes, got ahead even. Then, a couple of days later, I found out on Facebook no less, that my Great Grandmother had passed away the morning before. It came as a shock to probably no one but myself; I saw firsthand how badly she was doing. but it was still surreal.
The funeral was a few days ago- Thursday.
I will try to write again soon, better, more in-depth entries about each of these experiences, but it might be awhile. Jon still has classes until May 18, so he is desperately trying to find time to get caught up. We are trying to figure out where we will be moving to come June 1st. I work 5 days straight, starting Thursday, so that I can have the following weekend (May 20) off for Lorelai's second eye surgery. I really don't have any details on that yet. Hopefully, she will be mostly recovered by the Monday or Tuesday. More soon.
I'm holding on rather tightly to hope and optimism, though to be frank, this year has sucked so far. A recent bright spot is that Osama bin Laden was finally taken down, so there is a little less horror and evil in this world. I have never been more appreciative that God demands justice. Amen!
Things, of course, have been crazy chaotic. Not in a good way. It seems like I never leave work, which is pretty acurate. In April, Jon and I went on vacation to Washington DC (I'd never been) for long weekend. That was wonderful. The best part was being able to sleep in a bed, without two kids kicking me all night, uninterrupted by anyone crying, talking in their sleep, alarms, dogs barking or anyone falling out of the bed. All of these things occur every single night. I don't want to talk about it.
Almost immediately after we got back, I found out my Great Grandmother had just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, on top of congestive heart failure. It only takes one family crisis to highlight just how much the communication sucks. Anyway, we went down to South Carolina to see her, the next weekend. This was the most disasterous trip. Our trip was delayed and we wound up driving through Virginia and North Carolina as 87 tornado touchdowns hit. We drove through two personally, which caused us to hydroplane off the road and almost into a tree. It was confusing, scary and memorable for sure. More on that another day. I had intended to see Grandma for 3 days. It was cut down to one short afternoon.
On the way back, I fell asleep and Jon got pulled over for speeding. The absurdity of this is that I could not get him to drive faster than 65 mph on the roughly 19 hour drive down (yes it took us that long) to SC. Did you know that driving 20 mph over the speedlimit or over 80 mph ANYWHERE in VA is considered reckless driving and is therefore a Criminal Offense? We didn't either. It's new. So we are now trying to hire a lawyer to fight his case at his court hearing to avoid having a permanent criminal record. Court date is May 19. I'd appreciate all the prayers you can spare. I am officially blacklisting Virginia from my map of places (states first!) to see in my lifetime. Forty-nine may not flow off the tongue as nicely as 50, but then neither does a criminal record. You're dead to me, Virginia.
Once we got back, I worked the next six days straight over Easter weekend. I got caught up in my classes, got ahead even. Then, a couple of days later, I found out on Facebook no less, that my Great Grandmother had passed away the morning before. It came as a shock to probably no one but myself; I saw firsthand how badly she was doing. but it was still surreal.
The funeral was a few days ago- Thursday.
I will try to write again soon, better, more in-depth entries about each of these experiences, but it might be awhile. Jon still has classes until May 18, so he is desperately trying to find time to get caught up. We are trying to figure out where we will be moving to come June 1st. I work 5 days straight, starting Thursday, so that I can have the following weekend (May 20) off for Lorelai's second eye surgery. I really don't have any details on that yet. Hopefully, she will be mostly recovered by the Monday or Tuesday. More soon.
I'm holding on rather tightly to hope and optimism, though to be frank, this year has sucked so far. A recent bright spot is that Osama bin Laden was finally taken down, so there is a little less horror and evil in this world. I have never been more appreciative that God demands justice. Amen!
Monday, March 28, 2011
a quick update
A lot has happened in the last couple months since I last wrote! I'm sorry I haven't been keeping up with this- I've rarely had a free moment and when I stole one or two, this was the farthest thing from my mind. In 5 more weeks Jon and I will both be done with this semester and that should no longer be a problem. In the meantime, I'm going to work on trying to post updates, even if they more closely resemble twitter updates.
Since the end of January:
* We moved out of our townhome officially. It was really unemotional; Jon finished cleaning/packing the last two nights, so I didn't even say goodbye and the girls didn't care- they were too excited about living with grandma. We have driven over to the leasing office one time a couple of weeks ago and the girls didn't even recognize the place (they used to know Freedom and Haine School Road when we made our turns)!
* We had a fun debate with the leasing office as they tried to nickel and dime us over every thing possible and imagined. We are still in negotiations and we're currently on a payment plan. Fun. It left such a bitter taste that it has completely turned me off of renting, oh, for forever.
* Jon and I both have been spending a TON of time in class, studying, at church, doing bible study/CLC and at work.
* My bible study ends in two weeks, which is pretty bittersweet for me- I really need the extra time, but it was the one thing that I did for me and really helped focus my priorities when I felt overwhelmed.
*Jon and I managed to have a few dates! We've gone bowling and out to dinner twice! This may not seem like anything special, but we hadn't had a date in over 6 months, and considering our time restraints, this was major!
* We came very close to buying an auction property. It was a cute little house that would have required some work and upkeep, but we were getting it at a steal. The auction fell through at the last minute because it was so restricted that we essentially had to buy the home with cash. So we backed out. I was pretty upset about it for awhile, but I'm over it now. God provides, and it seems like he has some really exciting things in line for us (sorry for being cryptic, but I don't want to get attached to anything until things are cemented).
*I've had a ton of work drama for the last couple of months, which has really been consuming me. It's not been good. It's led me to the decision that I need a new hobby. Something else I can devote my time to that is positive and so I won't feel like my job and its issues own me. I'm looking for something silly or light starting as soon as this semester ends, and I'm taking suggestions!
That's about it for now, plus I'm way out of time.
Lots of Love!
Since the end of January:
* We moved out of our townhome officially. It was really unemotional; Jon finished cleaning/packing the last two nights, so I didn't even say goodbye and the girls didn't care- they were too excited about living with grandma. We have driven over to the leasing office one time a couple of weeks ago and the girls didn't even recognize the place (they used to know Freedom and Haine School Road when we made our turns)!
* We had a fun debate with the leasing office as they tried to nickel and dime us over every thing possible and imagined. We are still in negotiations and we're currently on a payment plan. Fun. It left such a bitter taste that it has completely turned me off of renting, oh, for forever.
* Jon and I both have been spending a TON of time in class, studying, at church, doing bible study/CLC and at work.
* My bible study ends in two weeks, which is pretty bittersweet for me- I really need the extra time, but it was the one thing that I did for me and really helped focus my priorities when I felt overwhelmed.
*Jon and I managed to have a few dates! We've gone bowling and out to dinner twice! This may not seem like anything special, but we hadn't had a date in over 6 months, and considering our time restraints, this was major!
* We came very close to buying an auction property. It was a cute little house that would have required some work and upkeep, but we were getting it at a steal. The auction fell through at the last minute because it was so restricted that we essentially had to buy the home with cash. So we backed out. I was pretty upset about it for awhile, but I'm over it now. God provides, and it seems like he has some really exciting things in line for us (sorry for being cryptic, but I don't want to get attached to anything until things are cemented).
*I've had a ton of work drama for the last couple of months, which has really been consuming me. It's not been good. It's led me to the decision that I need a new hobby. Something else I can devote my time to that is positive and so I won't feel like my job and its issues own me. I'm looking for something silly or light starting as soon as this semester ends, and I'm taking suggestions!
That's about it for now, plus I'm way out of time.
Lots of Love!
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