Seasons of Change

A compilation of thoughts from today, in no particular order:

I love the warm weather. I hate bugs. Today I had to kill one in our kitchen. Have no fear, I didn't touch it. I wrapped my shoe in multiple napkins so my shoe and my fingers would stay clean.

I was so angry at a child today that my eye twitched, for nearly 2 hours

The change in seasons brings out everyone else's new clothes. My once content-with-what-I-have mentality suddenly dissipates. I want to be content with what I have, but those clothes are so stinkin cute.

I will probably be overwhelmed tomorrow, but I can't force myself to deal with tomorrow's agenda. My brain currently has the capacity to deal with today and today only.

I love having the windows open to let the fresh air in. Right now I hear ridiculously loud sirens and my neighbors are outside smoking. grrr.

Snow Days and a Lesson

We had two snow days two weeks ago (for snow that never arrived), and now I have two snow days again (for real snow this time, 4 inches). Here's what I've learned about myself over 4 days in 3 weeks that I've been trapped at home.

• On a normal basis, I structure and use my time very well
• By the second snow day, I waste unbelievable amounts of time
• I love to bake
• I'm addicted to salty snacks and really cannot put them away
• I am incredibly impatient
• "Sleeping in" is a thing of the past that no longer exists
• I only clean when I'm on a time frame. Snow day = no time frame = no cleaning
• By the second snow day I am going crazy which makes my husband go crazy which leads to unnecessary irritability

In the end, maybe snow days aren't the best for me. Let's hope this melts soon.

On a positive note, I did complete the next two weeks worth of assignments for my class and print about four weeks of reading lessons for my after-school job.

Frustrating

It's been so long since I've posted, I almost forgot how to do this...

Anyway, I took Eric to the airport tonight. He'll be in Utah all week SKIING! While I am a bit jealous, I'm super excited for him :) I normally have plenty to do, but my after-school job doesn't start back until next Monday, and my master's class doesn't start back up until next Saturday. So this week is just the day-time job.

The past few weeks have been pretty emotional for me, but I've had to just keep going, going, going. With Eric gone, and work hours at a minimum, I knew this week might be rough. So tonight on the way home from the airport I stopped to rent a movie at a RedBox. Here's the story:

I had a movie of Eric's to return: District 9. I tried to return it, but it said the RedBox was full and could not accept returns. So I rented one for myself, Julie and Julia. After the box had given me my video I figured it has one open space, so I tried to return Eric's movie again. Success!

Came home, played on facebook, talked to a girlfriend for a while and finally decided to put it my movie. What? I still have District 9? Which leaves only one conclusion, I rented AND RETURNED Julie and Julia.

A Little Bit of Embarrassment

I used to be active, in shape, an athlete. I enjoyed running, the fitness room, biking and playing sports. While I would still say that I enjoy these things, I don't do them nearly enough.

Last week I got motivated for about 5 minutes so I checked out a fitness video from the library; a good ole VHS aerobic workout! Problem #1: It was a step routine and I don't own a "step." Problem #2: As previously mentioned, the motivation lasted about 5 minutes.

I did make it through the video once and I'm utterly embarrassed to say I awoke a little sore the next day. My entire reason for writing this post is to see if I can motivate myself for another 5 minutes and work up the energy to do the video one more time before I return it to the library! We'll see how that goes.

4th of July

As I sit in my living room watching the Macy's fireworks on TV and hearing fireworks outside my windows, I am reminded of one year ago. Last year on the 4th of July, Eric and I drove to Nashville from Bourbonnais, IL. What was suppose to be an 8 hour trip turned into a 13 hour trip with my dad and his wife following us carrying all of our possessions. We each watched the fireworks over the Ohio River as we crossed into Kentucky in our respective vehicles.

We got into Nashville late, just behind the rain, and I was a bit anxious about all of my possessions being in a truck and trailer, in the rain. We stayed at a shady hotel because we were set to move in to our apartment the following day. I vividly recall laying in a hotel bed, around 1:00am, thinking I was hearing gunshots, knowing that my possessions could be stolen at any moment from the parking lot. Needless to say, I didn't sleep much that night!

The next fine morning I realized I had been hearing fireworks :) A year later I can confidently say I was having a blond moment!

So we've lived in Nashville for one year today... and we like it! We are in our same apartment, have made some great friends, and are enjoying school work and our jobs. We feel blessed to be here.

Maybe We're Not the Brightest...

Eric and I had a fun weekend, but perhaps we're not the brightest crayons in the box :)

Saturday Eric spent from 7:30-4:00 in the sun, on what was being called "the hottest day of the year." The high was forecast in the upper 90s, but with the humidity we're sure the heat index was much higher. Needless to say, that's a long day in the sun.

When he got home (and I got home from an all day class) we quickly showered and got ready for a wedding. It was an evening wedding, so we naively assumed we would have dinner... and pretty quickly following the wedding.

We rushed out of the house to get there on time and were not-so-pleasantly surprised to discover we were attending an outdoor wedding. Let me interject that the wedding was BEAUTIFUL in all aspects. However, we arrived not really dressed for an outdoor wedding AND reception on the hottest day of the year. Eric was miserable, and didn't get food until around 8:30.

I think we've learned our lesson to eat before we arrive, and maybe even to pack a change of clothes for the unexpected.

Baby Roman

My trip to Michigan has been wonderful! I have spent some great time with Jeff and Andrea, and I got to meet my new nephew, Roman Joseph :) My family is so great and I love them dearly. I am so thankful for the past few days and the time I have had with everyone, especially Andrea. She is truly the sister I've never had!! I head back to TN in the morning and it's bitter sweet. Roman should come home from the hospital in the next few days and I wish I could be here. On the positive side, I'm going home to my husband, who I miss. I am greatly looking forward to being with him again! Here are some pictures from the trip: