Friday, September 18, 2009

How many times????

There is no telling how many times I have had to repeat myself since having children. I'm pretty sure I'm speaking in English, and the children's ears work just fine. At least they passed the last hearing test at their pediatricians office. It must be a selective thing.

Yesterday was no different. It seems that whenever it comes time to straighten up and put the toys away my speech is incoherent. I asked my littlest cherub, "How many times do I have to ask you to do this?". I was a little annoyed at this point.

Littlest cherub looked at me very seriously and said, "five".

Well alright. I guess that settles it.

I turned and laughed on the inside and went about my business.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Jesus Is The Boss of Me

My oldest child has a very easy job to help the family out. We ask her to take out the recycling every day. I'm no green junkie, but I recycle what is recyclable.

I hollared at my oldest, not in a mean way, but just asked her to take it out. For the second time today. My youngest chimed in, "You're not the boss". I asked my sweet youngest cherub, "Who is the boss?". She said "Jesus is the boss of me".

How can I compete with that? I laughed a little on the inside and asked for a third time for the recycling to be taken out.

God is good. He does have a sense of humor!

Saturday, August 8, 2009

My Favorite Furniture Store

There is a furniture store I just LOVE.

It looks rich and old and very distinguished, yet the sales people are the nicest I've ever met. What's even better is that the prices don't bust the budget. They have a great little "Christian Book Nook" inside each store. It's fun to take the kids into the "Country Store" and pick out a soda that's still in a glass bottle and maybe an ounce or two of their favorite candy at the moment.

I had some alone time yesterday. I went into my favorite furniture store just to browse. I'm looking for the perfect leather coffee table. I found it. It's the most beautiful leather upholstery. It has at least 9 tufted buttons and the feet are very nice. There is nothing plain about this coffee table. But, it's not too terribly fancy either. It's just perfect. I decided to take the afternoon and think on it. I wanted to drag my husband in to take a look at it.

As we were driving to the furniture store I started wondering if the coffee table was so pretty that it would "over class" my dumb looking couch and love seat from a lower class furniture store. This couch and love seat have seen better days. We're tired enough of them, but it's not a priority to get a new one at this time. I'm just tired enough of the empty spot where there should be a coffee table to fill up.

Sure enough my husband thought the same thing. He liked the coffee table so much that he was enticed into the leather couch and love seat that went with the coffee table. The couch and love seat are not in the budget at this time.

So we head upstairs to the clearance section of the store. I had been there earlier in the day, so I knew there was another leather coffee table up there. It was less expensive, but not as nice. It was just a functional table to get us through til we can just refurnish the entire room. We pick it up on Monday.


Monday, June 22, 2009

Fathers Day

Can I just say, that I'm glad Fathers Day is over.

I don't mean any disrespect toward my husband. He's the best father I could have imagined for my daughters. He's caring, loving and very sensitive to their fragile beings. He is truly their "daddy" through and through. They love him with their entire being.

My daughters have the opposite of what I had.

I'm not sure that I would call my dad, "daddy" or "father". He's more than a sperm donor. I'm not sure how to address him when I speak of him with my mom. Am I insulting her in any way when I refer to him as my "dad" or "father"? Or should I just call him by his first name?

My dad broke my heart. He was a slave to alcohol. He had a bond with the bottle that my mom and I couldn't come between.

After having children of my own, I know the love that a parent has for a child and I can't come to terms with why I wasn't worth kicking the habit for. It's my "cross to bare" I guess.

For some reason this Fathers Day just seemed to bother me. Hopefully the feeling will go as soon as it comes next time.....

facebook & "friends"

In the recent past I had posted a status on my facebook page. I said that I was "torn between two churches".

There's one church, very close to home. It's pretty much the only "traditional" Baptist church in Plano. it sort of "won" by default on the traditional front. It has a great group of "blue hairs" that my husband and I love. We've been close with them for years. It seems harder though to connect with people our own age. It seems close to impossible to get "leadership" to agree on anything within the department and when asked for volunteers there is nothing but the sound of crickets....

Then, the second church is a little further away. The worship is amazing. It takes traditional to a whole new level. There's even a group of "blue hairs" there as well. We have somewhat of a connection with people there our age. I just have to come to grips with the drive.

A week after I made my post my husband had breakfast with another leader of our Sunday school group. The other person isn't even on facebook. So, I can assume that one of my facebook "friends" probably gossiped to the other guy, instead of just asking me about it. Don't you just love it? How high school! He said something to my husband with the implication that says, "You need to control your wife and what she says on facebook". Hhmm..

Let me make something crystal clear. My husband IS the head of our house. I have no quandry with that. But, we discuss everything, we have to come to the same consensus on most everything. We are a partnership, not a dictatorship.

What was wrong with what I said? That instance makes me a little less torn between two churches. But, I don't want to leave this church out of anger. I want to hear the voice of God telling me where he wants my family and I to worship.

Facebook is a lot like high school.

Church is a lot like high school.

They both can have this feeling of a false sense of intimacy that eventually you just have to laugh out loud about.

My family and I are visiting the church that's a little farther away for a while. I'm not sure how this will end up.

I've got 'friends' on facebook that I go to church with. The funny thing is that some of those 'friends' don't even say "boo" to me on Sundays. What gives with that? Why even bother?

Saturday, April 18, 2009

ABC's "Wife Swap"

You know, I'll admit it. I watch "Wife Swap". It helps convince me of my "normalcy". It used to be all in fun. People just switching places for a couple of weeks and taking some learned lessons from that time from other people.

I'm not sure I can stand it much longer. It's gotten nasty. The people are getting nasty in their words and actions. They belittle the other to beat them down, to make themselves seem "better". It's ugly now.

Then, of course you have people leaving to stay in motels because of something that was said or done. They aren't willing to trade places or participate in the rule change. Have they not watched this show before??? This isn't a new aspect of the show. It's the way it has always been. So, this should be of no surprise!!!

I'm done! I have better things to do with my time! There is no lesson to be learned from this show. I guess there's one lesson for me, I'm convinced I'm normal.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

My 40th Birthday

I recently had the best birthday party ever!! We had food, we had cake, we had a CHOCOLATE FOUNTAIN!! We had family, friends, and neighbors.

One family happens to be neighbors. They are a fun couple with 2 great kids! Their oldest child is in school with our oldest kid. Their youngest has eyes to die for! The husband of the couple is a great handyman. He's one of those neighbors you wish your nerd husband could be more like. The wife of the couple is hysterical! She's as fun as can be.

Another couple that was there, we go to church with. They're in the next stage of life, but we're as close as family. They are great role models for my husband and I. They've been in our life for almost 8 years or so. We have lunch with them often after church. They're great listeners and advice givers.

Another couple, the husband works with my husband. They've worked together for 10 years. He's a great unofficial book club adviser. He's the one that recommended, "The Shack" and "The Circle Trilogy" to my husband.

We also had a couple who grew up with my husband. They've been lifelong friends. The husband of the couple is the reason my husband and I met to begin with. The wife of the couple is a very strong and faithful young lady! She's very wise and book smart.

My very good friend was also there helping with all of the festivities. She's the best friend a girl could ask for! She's the sister I wish I had! She's kind, patient, a spiritual and political giant. Her husband is a laugh riot. With their 3 boys, they are never bored!!

Another couple are friends from when we went to HGBC. They had been away for a while on the mission field. I was sad to see them go. Now, I'm glad they are back. They have the best sense of humor. I am glad they are back in our lives!

Then of course, we have family. There were aunts, cousins, in laws and mom. It was a thrill to see my mom and her 2 sisters in the same room again. They are so funny! Three old ladies who at times have trouble hearing. There was a cousin who just couldn't stop with those "big brotherly" type of jabs. Quite annoying at times. Oh well. How his wife puts up with him is beyond me. JK. Another cousin couldn't make it, but his wife did come. She's fun to have around, but she seemed a little quiet most of the time. My in laws were pretty quiet also and mostly kept to themselves. I'm not sure if it's shyness or maybe they just didn't feel socializing. My mom is the short one running around with the weird bun in the back of her head.

Then we have my husband. The tallest one of the bunch. The one who loves me without condition. Who put up with the painful organizing of it all. The one who opened his wallet so that his wife could celebrate the big 4-0. I get to look forward to coordinating his celebration of the big 4-0. He still has 3 years to go, though. It's great to be us! We make a great team. I cherish what I have in him.

God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Undecided

I am undecided about whether to quit my part time work at home job. I work for Hilton Hotels as a reservation agent. The commute is great! Just a 1 minute walk to our home office. The money comes in handy as we are trying to make this the year we get out of debt. I try to get all of my hours in Monday through Friday. It gives me a good outlet and I feel like I'm being a productive part of society.

Here's what I can't stand:

They micromanage. I'm not sure that I've ever been so micromanaged.

Policies are constantly changing. At first, they told W@H that we didn't have to work holidays. They had plenty of people that work on site that would cover holidays. I was also told that HRCC would cover the cost of my second phone line after six months. That's been a mystery as well. Now, I have to offer an American Express credit card at the end of the call. I'm in the hotel business, not the credit card peddling business. Since going through Financial Peace University two and a half years ago we cut up our credit cards.

Communication is a joke. I hardly ever get responses to questions through email.

It seems as though the company doesn't care about wanting to keep the employees it already has. They would just rather spend the money on hiring and training new people.

I'm over it, pretty much. I'm not sure that I care what happens with my job. My husbands job pays our bills and provides the roof over our heads. He's on a great track at his job and could be working a lot more in the very near future. If he needs to work late, someone will need to be there for our kids.

AUGH!! I just don't know. I want to be out of debt. I want to spend more time with my family. I want the extra play money. I want to be a productive part of society. I want my nights back. I want to be my own boss. At least if I'm my own boss, I've met her. I haven't even met my boss that I report to.

Tata for now!

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Is There Really Any Such Thing As Sweet Revenge?

In my younger years, there's no telling how many boys I was dumped by. It doesn't really matter these days. I won the husband lottery and that's all that matters!

Recently I found out that a boy that I thought I would marry, divorced the girl he dumped me for. I found out that she actually cheated on him and that he had had enough, so he filed for divorce. At first, I chuckled. I thought for a brief moment, "How sweet". But, then I thought, "No, that's pretty mean. I couldn't imagine doing that to my husband". The pain that it would cause my husband, and my kids. I don't want to ever have to feel that kind of pain, or cause that kind of pain. Nobody deserves to be cheated on. It surprised me that she would do something so mean. I thought maybe there was really something true between them. I guess I was wrong. I'm sorry they had to go through that to find out. I wish I could ask her, "What were you thinking?".

I have no regrets. The boys I was dumped by, the mistakes that I made, led me to my husband. We have something real. We have something unconditional. We have something for a lifetime. It wouldn't and shouldn't have worked out with the other boy anyway for a multitude of reasons.

People are sometimes cruel to one another, for no good reason. I wish it weren't that way.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

This family has been cooped up in the house since last Saturday...it's now Tuesday and they've called for an ice storm tonight. JOY!!! There is only so much you can do when at any given time someone is running a fever, or coughing and hacking or just being a blob. This has not been fun!

BUT, I have made my motto for this year, "2009, a year of thankfulness". We are together, we WILL get over this. We have heat to keep us warm. We have food to tide us over. We have plenty of Tylenol and other meds. We have plenty of episodes of "The Twilight Zone" on the dvr from New Years to pass the time. This will not last forever.

We get to look forward to the ice melting. We get to look forward to a fun Valentine's Day with the kids. We get to look forward to Jaimee's 4th birthday and my 40th birthday!!! I am excited. We get to look forward the Spring season.

Just look forward!!!

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Here's to more blogging in 2009

Well, it seems I felt it necessary to take off for the whole year of 2008!

Maybe 2009 will prove to be more fruitful! The year I turn 40. The start of our 12th year of marriage. The year I have deemed, "My year of thankfulness". I am thankful for living this life God has given me. I'm thankful for my husband, who loves me unconditionally. I'm thankful for the health and happiness of my wonderful kids. I am thankful that I know when I die, I will serve God for eternity. I am trying to see the blessings in every situation.