Hello again! Hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th. Even though fireworks are illegal in our town, it sounded like WWIII last night. I think my old dog must be going deaf, because she is usually a basket case, but didn't seem to notice last night.
Just a few things to update today. First of all, Nate and his girlfriend broke up. She has decided to move in with her dad on the east coast. The worst part about it is that Nate knew a few days beforehand that it was a possibility, and he prayed that she would come back here. He feels like God is always telling him "NO", and so it is hard for him to even pray. "What's the point", he says. What I can't tell him is that I struggle with this same thing and haven't figured it out for myself. I don't mind God telling me "NO". I trust Him to lead me in the right path, but when I look for that guidance lately He has been silent , and I am confused. What I also can't tell him is that I had my reservations about this family and had just found out some information that day that led me to pray to God to drive a wedge between them that would break them apart. That was a quick answer. I know I sound awful for praying that prayer, but you would have to know my son Nate. He has such low self esteem right now, that he doesn't feel worthy of being with good kind people. He only feels like he can be with people that are on the "fringe", and that is not good for him. Now I'm not saying anything bad about his girlfriend, as you know I barely knew her, but the things I had been putting together about her family life and background did cause some concern which led to that prayer. It must be God's will, but I feel guilty and I feel bad that by God answering my prayer and not his (again) that his fragile faith is shaken even more.
In a few weeks, things will be hopping around here. Nate's best friend is coming for a couple of weeks from FL. Now Nate is wishing he had got a job (since he is flat broke) and his driver's license (so they could go places). You know what that means for me-a difficult few weeks! At the same time, my sister and her children are coming for a visit and I am so excited. I have been planning things we can do together-go to the zoo, the water park, the playground......I realized that it has been a long time since I have done these things, because my kids grew up and now think they doing anything with me is LAME. It will be wonderful to be around little ones that enjoy spending time with you and can laugh and have fun.
I have lost 49 lbs to date. One more little pound and I can say 50. I can't wait! My exercise has been cut back because of my back. It started acting up right before the trip and still is not good. I keep walking though. I noticed on my trip how hard it was for Jim to get in and out of the seat on the plane, and how much easier it is for me now. I would have struggled like that before. I also notice that when I look in the mirror, I am finally starting to see myself looking back. I haven't recognized my image for years now.
Well I'd better sign off and get my day started. It is always good to hear from you!
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Back from Vacation
Well we flew home last night and everything is still standing in relatively good shape. Our fist time leaving the boys home alone went ok. Jim and I had a really nice time in North Carolina. The first evening there was a fancy reception with wine and hors dourves at the hotel. The hotel was very fancy-down comforters, dual shower heads, terry robes. Jim was at the conference all day, so I slept in and then started exploring. When Jim finished up, we would go out to dinner. Charlotte is a really nice town, but expensive. Most of the restaurants had sidewalk cafe seating and the weather was nice, so we enjoyed that. The only thing that saved my diet, was all the walking you do when you are downtown. I was going to go to the Billy Graham Library one day, but getting around was tougher than I thought and the weather couldn't have been more perfect that day. After walking a couple of blocks and getting some breakfast, I decided to sit in the park and read instead. I didn't regret it one bit-it was the first day that felt like summer to me! I also thought about getting a massage at the hotel, but after spending $10 for a GLASS of wine one evening, I changed my mind. The prices weren't listed for the spa services-and that is never a good thing!
After the conference was done, we drove to Asheville. We took the scenic route, driving up into the mountains. It was lovely, until we discovered that a retaining wall had washed out and the road was closed. We had to turn around and drive clear back down the mountain and around to finally get there. Our bed and breakfast was a beautiful 100 year old southern home. We would get up and have a wonderful breakfast and then head out for the day, returning at 5 pm for appetizers and wine on the veranda (we northerners call it the front porch), and then into town for dinner. We had some fabulous food in Asheville! We visited Biltmore Estate one day. That is something I always wanted to see. It was huge and very beautiful. Spent the entire day there and didn't see many of the things we had hoped (the stables, the farm, the surrounding village, ran through the winery just to get to the tasting (hmmm... sensing a theme here). Our last morning we explored a few craft shops. Jim bought me a beautiful silver handmade bracelet. It has a pansy on it. Very pretty. I wish we had more time-Asheville is a really neat town and we didn't even scratch the surface of all there was to see. Mark Twain said, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness" and I understand. I feel like my horizons were broadened by this trip and look forward to taking many more.
Our flights were good-thankful for that. There were a couple of big storms while we were gone-no damage here, again very thankful. Last night a horrible storm blew through and two teens were killed as a huge tree fell on their car. Lots of damage around town. Thinking about going camping for the 4th of July, but we have had such bad weather that I'm not sure that would be a good idea.
Otherwise, not much is new. I rode the library float in the local parade again. It was not as fun as last year because they didn't get our registration and so they put us at the end of the parade. I had to lock Nate out of the computer today, so he will get off and look for a job. It is not going over real well. Have to start figuring out Noah's stuff for college in the fall. He still doesn't have a place to live!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Just checking
Hey-is there anyone out there that is reading this? I never hear from anyone so I'm just wondering if keeping up on this blog is worthwhile.
We had another close brush with tornados this week. The tornado sirens went off for about an hour and a half. We were out watching the storm clouds. Several times they began swirling over our house and we started to take cover indoors, and then it broke up. Unfortunately, the Boy Scout camp about 40 miles away was not so lucky. They took a direct hit from the tornado and four scouts were killed. It has been a hard week hearing stories of what happened. Three of the boys were from the metro.
Yesterday I volunteered with TBH for the first time. It was really great. I was paired up with a young girl. Her dad had died. She made a comfort pillow out of her dad's favorite sweatshirt, a memory box with her dad's picture on top, a garden stone, a bracelet with her dad's name on it, a sock puppet, a father's day card, and she had her face painted. As we got to know each other, she talked with me about her dad, her feelings, and we even laughed as she shared some good memories of her dad. I think she had a good time and I hope it helped her too. I really look forward to volunteering again!
Today, I am upset. My boys are shutting us right out of their lives. They NEVER bring friends over. When I ask why-they say because there's nothing to do. I ask what they do at their friend's houses. Other than watch cable tv (which we don't have), they could do the same things here as they do there. Nate wouldn't even introduce us to his new girlfriend. I finally went up to her door and introduced myself when I picked Nate up! I ask if we embarrass them or our house embarrasses them. They say no. Noah has a friend from college staying with us for a few days. He was here for less than a half hour when they left to go to a friend's house to watch the game. They were watching the game on our tv before they left! It is father's day and both our boys took off! That is another sore spot. One son has no money, so I suggested two things he could do for his father that wouldn't cost him anything. He could clean his car out or he could pick cherries from our tree. He decided to do nothing-and then whine to his father that he doesn't have any money (same excuse I heard the past two mother's days)..... His brother hadn't said a thing other than groan about his awful sunburn. At three thirty, I called him at home and asked if he even knew what today was. He said he knew. At four he called me from the grocery store where he works and asked if his dad likes Merlot or Chardonnay. I said neither. He went on to say he was just going to get the fancy Merlot glasses because his friend's parents (where he is hanging out tonight) had them and they were classy. Now this rubbed me wrong for a couple of reasons. First of all, he ran to the store and just bought something to give to his father without much thought or reason. Second, he thinks so highly of his friend's parents and so little of us. We have red wine glasses. We don't need them-but because his friend's parents have them they are classy. We aren't classy enough I guess. If it were just this, I'd let it pass, but it is so obvious that he adores and prefers them. He wants to be a doctor like his friend's father, not so he can help people or go on missions trips (like his mother had taught him), but so he can have a sweet black Mercedes just like this doctor. He makes me feel so little because I can't compete with this family. I tell him to wear sunscreen and he rolls his eyes at me and tells me to stop mothering him. He gets a blistering sunburn and his other friend's father (also a doctor) talks with him about the increased chances of developing melanoma after getting a bad sunburn (something his mother has told him and tried to help him prevent) and he listens and respects what he has to say. I'm just really disappointed with our boys and they way they treat us. They have really rich friends and they like to pretend they are rich too and I guess when they look at their parents and their home, it is a reality check. So instead of accepting us and appreciating us for who we are and what we do have to offer-they run away and so they can keep pretending. It really hurts to be treated so poorly. I sure do miss my mom at times like these. You could bounce these kind of things off her and she would tell you if this is a normal stage and it will pass. She would remind me that I did these things too. Without her I feel so lost.
Belle had an accident this week. We'll have to keep an eye on her. If it keeps happening, I know it is time to put her down.
Well, I need to sign off and get to bed. One more week of work and then vacation!
We had another close brush with tornados this week. The tornado sirens went off for about an hour and a half. We were out watching the storm clouds. Several times they began swirling over our house and we started to take cover indoors, and then it broke up. Unfortunately, the Boy Scout camp about 40 miles away was not so lucky. They took a direct hit from the tornado and four scouts were killed. It has been a hard week hearing stories of what happened. Three of the boys were from the metro.
Yesterday I volunteered with TBH for the first time. It was really great. I was paired up with a young girl. Her dad had died. She made a comfort pillow out of her dad's favorite sweatshirt, a memory box with her dad's picture on top, a garden stone, a bracelet with her dad's name on it, a sock puppet, a father's day card, and she had her face painted. As we got to know each other, she talked with me about her dad, her feelings, and we even laughed as she shared some good memories of her dad. I think she had a good time and I hope it helped her too. I really look forward to volunteering again!
Today, I am upset. My boys are shutting us right out of their lives. They NEVER bring friends over. When I ask why-they say because there's nothing to do. I ask what they do at their friend's houses. Other than watch cable tv (which we don't have), they could do the same things here as they do there. Nate wouldn't even introduce us to his new girlfriend. I finally went up to her door and introduced myself when I picked Nate up! I ask if we embarrass them or our house embarrasses them. They say no. Noah has a friend from college staying with us for a few days. He was here for less than a half hour when they left to go to a friend's house to watch the game. They were watching the game on our tv before they left! It is father's day and both our boys took off! That is another sore spot. One son has no money, so I suggested two things he could do for his father that wouldn't cost him anything. He could clean his car out or he could pick cherries from our tree. He decided to do nothing-and then whine to his father that he doesn't have any money (same excuse I heard the past two mother's days)..... His brother hadn't said a thing other than groan about his awful sunburn. At three thirty, I called him at home and asked if he even knew what today was. He said he knew. At four he called me from the grocery store where he works and asked if his dad likes Merlot or Chardonnay. I said neither. He went on to say he was just going to get the fancy Merlot glasses because his friend's parents (where he is hanging out tonight) had them and they were classy. Now this rubbed me wrong for a couple of reasons. First of all, he ran to the store and just bought something to give to his father without much thought or reason. Second, he thinks so highly of his friend's parents and so little of us. We have red wine glasses. We don't need them-but because his friend's parents have them they are classy. We aren't classy enough I guess. If it were just this, I'd let it pass, but it is so obvious that he adores and prefers them. He wants to be a doctor like his friend's father, not so he can help people or go on missions trips (like his mother had taught him), but so he can have a sweet black Mercedes just like this doctor. He makes me feel so little because I can't compete with this family. I tell him to wear sunscreen and he rolls his eyes at me and tells me to stop mothering him. He gets a blistering sunburn and his other friend's father (also a doctor) talks with him about the increased chances of developing melanoma after getting a bad sunburn (something his mother has told him and tried to help him prevent) and he listens and respects what he has to say. I'm just really disappointed with our boys and they way they treat us. They have really rich friends and they like to pretend they are rich too and I guess when they look at their parents and their home, it is a reality check. So instead of accepting us and appreciating us for who we are and what we do have to offer-they run away and so they can keep pretending. It really hurts to be treated so poorly. I sure do miss my mom at times like these. You could bounce these kind of things off her and she would tell you if this is a normal stage and it will pass. She would remind me that I did these things too. Without her I feel so lost.
Belle had an accident this week. We'll have to keep an eye on her. If it keeps happening, I know it is time to put her down.
Well, I need to sign off and get to bed. One more week of work and then vacation!
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Stormy Start
Well June is off to a stormy start. Rain is in the forecast for every day this entire week! We are already waterlogged. Last night at 2:30 am, sirens went off and a tornado touched down nearby. Unfortunately, we slept through the whole thing! That is rather scary! Thankfully, the Lord protected us and the others that were affected by the storm. There were no serious injuries and even though there is damage, it is not too bad. They were calling for clean up volunteers at church today, so Noah decided to help out. He found where they were supposed to meet, but couldn't find anyone from church. The city had the place closed off and wouldn't let him in, so he wound up coming home. He wanted to take Jim's chainsaw and was shocked and disgusted that I told him "NO". He said he was an adult and I was treating him like a child. When I asked him how much experience he had with a chainsaw he said, "Plenty, I ran the chainsaw when Dad cut down all those trees in our yard". He was between 6-10 years old when we cut those trees down-please....... He said Dad would let him take the chainsaw; so I called Jim and asked him what he thought about that idea. He thought it was a bad idea too. Guess I'm not so stupid after all.
The furniture came on Friday and we are working on putting the rooms back together. It sure looks nice; just wish I'd got the rooms painted first. I'll have to work on that in the fall. I did dig out my old rotting whiskey barrel and replace it. Planted flowers (looks like one plant is rotting out with all the rain) and am pleased with my efforts. I haven't had flowers in a few years. Got some more to plant flower boxes for the front deck. We had a garage sale over the weekend. While others in the area did well, I didn't have many people even stop, much less buy anything. I only had some big ticket items for sale-the bunk beds & matching dresser, the pool, the tent, a victorian christmas village, Noah's paintball gun. Going to have the boys help me post them on Craig's list and hopefully unload some of this stuff.
Work is going ok. It is busy, but not obnoxiously crazy like it usually is during the summer. I've managed to keep up with my other duties this week, so I'm thankful. Please pray for my co-worker, Pam. Her brother is very ill, and she is very stressed out. I have been exercising everyday for two weeks now. The weight loss is slowing, but I am continuing on. Yesterday, I finally dropped below a weight I haven't seen since I moved here. It was a big goal and it felt good to see that number. So far I have lost 44lbs. We bought a memory foam mattress topper for our bed last week. I am having alot of problems with pressure points. I laid on a memory foam mattress and it was oh so nice-but not affordable. My Beautyrest mattress is only 4 years old. It has a pillowtop, but it obviously isn't enough for me. I feel like the princess from the Princess and the Pea story! Anyhow, the memory foam topper is nice and seems to be helping. I toss and turn less often and feel more comfortable.
Noah messed up his checking account for the first time and bounced 5 items. The overdraft fees used up his entire first paycheck. Hard way to learn that lesson! Nate has been doing some odd jobs and earning a little money. He now has a girlfriend. Her name is Vickie and I met her once (because I went up and forced my son to introduce me). He goes over her house in the evenings, when her mom is home, to spend some time with her. Supposedly she is leaving for a couple of months soon, so he is putting off getting his hair cut or getting a job until she leaves. We'll see.....
Well, that's all for now. I have to get going on my laundry and install a new faucet on the tub. Noah has a friend from college coming this week for the College World Series next week and I have alot to get done before he arrives!
The furniture came on Friday and we are working on putting the rooms back together. It sure looks nice; just wish I'd got the rooms painted first. I'll have to work on that in the fall. I did dig out my old rotting whiskey barrel and replace it. Planted flowers (looks like one plant is rotting out with all the rain) and am pleased with my efforts. I haven't had flowers in a few years. Got some more to plant flower boxes for the front deck. We had a garage sale over the weekend. While others in the area did well, I didn't have many people even stop, much less buy anything. I only had some big ticket items for sale-the bunk beds & matching dresser, the pool, the tent, a victorian christmas village, Noah's paintball gun. Going to have the boys help me post them on Craig's list and hopefully unload some of this stuff.
Work is going ok. It is busy, but not obnoxiously crazy like it usually is during the summer. I've managed to keep up with my other duties this week, so I'm thankful. Please pray for my co-worker, Pam. Her brother is very ill, and she is very stressed out. I have been exercising everyday for two weeks now. The weight loss is slowing, but I am continuing on. Yesterday, I finally dropped below a weight I haven't seen since I moved here. It was a big goal and it felt good to see that number. So far I have lost 44lbs. We bought a memory foam mattress topper for our bed last week. I am having alot of problems with pressure points. I laid on a memory foam mattress and it was oh so nice-but not affordable. My Beautyrest mattress is only 4 years old. It has a pillowtop, but it obviously isn't enough for me. I feel like the princess from the Princess and the Pea story! Anyhow, the memory foam topper is nice and seems to be helping. I toss and turn less often and feel more comfortable.
Noah messed up his checking account for the first time and bounced 5 items. The overdraft fees used up his entire first paycheck. Hard way to learn that lesson! Nate has been doing some odd jobs and earning a little money. He now has a girlfriend. Her name is Vickie and I met her once (because I went up and forced my son to introduce me). He goes over her house in the evenings, when her mom is home, to spend some time with her. Supposedly she is leaving for a couple of months soon, so he is putting off getting his hair cut or getting a job until she leaves. We'll see.....
Well, that's all for now. I have to get going on my laundry and install a new faucet on the tub. Noah has a friend from college coming this week for the College World Series next week and I have alot to get done before he arrives!
Sunday, May 25, 2008
More May Days
Well things have changed in just a couple of weeks! Noah found out the apartment his roomie picked out is far from campus, and that is not what he is looking for. Their third roomate bailed on them, so now they are down to two (which will make a difference when it comes time to split the bills). He also had to take several finals, because the professors wouldn't allow him to drop the final exam from his grade. The good news is that he wound up with all A's and one B in chemistry. He was so relieved to get that B-thought it was going to be a C. He has been working close to full time at the supermarket-in produce this summer. Nate squeaked by and passed all his classes. His grades in Math and English dropped the last two weeks and he barely passed with just one point to spare between the two! Nate is dragging his feet on getting a haircut, working on his driver's license, and getting a job. I'm afraid things may have to get ugly to get him going.
Wicked was wicked AWESOME!! We had fantastic seats right on the floor! This was the most expensive musical I have ever attended and I wondered why. The sets were awesome and it lasted over 3 hours. It was done very well and was quite funny. We were able to walk from our hotel, which was in downtown Kansas City, to the theater. The hotel was a luxury boutique hotel-valet parking, terry cloth robes, down comforters and pillows on the beds. We were on the 10th floor and it was so quiet and relaxing. I was surprised. We ran into a problem leaving town. We hit a piece of metal and sliced our tire while driving on the expressway. Jim did a great job getting it changed at 4:30 am-not what I wanted to get up that early to do! We were just miles from home, so we turned around and went back to the place we purchased the tires last fall to get it replaced. By the time it was all said and done, it was 8:30 am and we were going to be pushing it to get to Pitt State and then back up to KC for the show. So Noah threw away some stuff and repacked and was able to get it all in his car. He met us in KC for lunch and then we took him to see the Bodies Revealed exhibit. Normally, I would not have gone to see this exhibit. It was very interesting from a scientific point of view, but ethically I was opposed to it. These are real preserved human bodies (obviously from China-some think they were political prisoners). Noah was so excited though, and there isn't much we can do together anymore, so we decided to do it. They had some very knowledgeable volunteers telling you about the things you were looking at. One came up and had a good conversation with Noah about a knee joint. Afterwards, Noah asked me if I saw that knee joint. "Yeah", was my response. "Wasn't that so COOL", was his reply. "Uhhhhhh....." He was so into it, and that was great to see.
I want to paint the boys rooms, but needed to get a bed frame first. There is this big ugly greasy streak on the wall at the head of the bed right now and I don't want that after I paint. Yesterday, Jim and I found a set that will work for both rooms. We bought two queen bed frames, a dresser with mirror, a chest, and two nightstands. That way they each have a dresser, bed and nightstand. If we ever want to sell it, we can put it all together and sell it as a complete master bedroom set + sell the extra queen bed frame separately. Got a pretty good deal-should be here in a few weeks. Sad that it has taken us 20 years to furnish a home properly!
Belle is hanging in there. She is doing quite well right now. Sometimes I forget she has cancer. Jim & Noah attempted to go fishing, but Jim's car kept overheating. It is probably time to replace that car. It has close to 200,000 miles on it. Work has been very busy and stressful. It is only going to get worse when the summer reading program starts in a week. We are going to be shorthanded this year due to budget. At least I can look forward to taking a week off to go to Charlotte, NC and another week for my sisters' visit. I still need to take another week and a half to get my hours back to budget! Maybe in the fall. I filled in some holes left from old trees and planted grass. This morning it finally sprouted. I'm excited to see how it looks when it fills in. I continue to work on losing weight. It is slowing a bit, but I finally hit the 40lb mark! I'm starting to exercise, so hopefully that will help. Jim is still working the outage. It should be wrapping up in a few weeks. Still, it will take him months to stop "dial toning". He was such a dud in KC-I know he was tired, but it was disappointing.
Well that's all for now.
Wicked was wicked AWESOME!! We had fantastic seats right on the floor! This was the most expensive musical I have ever attended and I wondered why. The sets were awesome and it lasted over 3 hours. It was done very well and was quite funny. We were able to walk from our hotel, which was in downtown Kansas City, to the theater. The hotel was a luxury boutique hotel-valet parking, terry cloth robes, down comforters and pillows on the beds. We were on the 10th floor and it was so quiet and relaxing. I was surprised. We ran into a problem leaving town. We hit a piece of metal and sliced our tire while driving on the expressway. Jim did a great job getting it changed at 4:30 am-not what I wanted to get up that early to do! We were just miles from home, so we turned around and went back to the place we purchased the tires last fall to get it replaced. By the time it was all said and done, it was 8:30 am and we were going to be pushing it to get to Pitt State and then back up to KC for the show. So Noah threw away some stuff and repacked and was able to get it all in his car. He met us in KC for lunch and then we took him to see the Bodies Revealed exhibit. Normally, I would not have gone to see this exhibit. It was very interesting from a scientific point of view, but ethically I was opposed to it. These are real preserved human bodies (obviously from China-some think they were political prisoners). Noah was so excited though, and there isn't much we can do together anymore, so we decided to do it. They had some very knowledgeable volunteers telling you about the things you were looking at. One came up and had a good conversation with Noah about a knee joint. Afterwards, Noah asked me if I saw that knee joint. "Yeah", was my response. "Wasn't that so COOL", was his reply. "Uhhhhhh....." He was so into it, and that was great to see.
I want to paint the boys rooms, but needed to get a bed frame first. There is this big ugly greasy streak on the wall at the head of the bed right now and I don't want that after I paint. Yesterday, Jim and I found a set that will work for both rooms. We bought two queen bed frames, a dresser with mirror, a chest, and two nightstands. That way they each have a dresser, bed and nightstand. If we ever want to sell it, we can put it all together and sell it as a complete master bedroom set + sell the extra queen bed frame separately. Got a pretty good deal-should be here in a few weeks. Sad that it has taken us 20 years to furnish a home properly!
Belle is hanging in there. She is doing quite well right now. Sometimes I forget she has cancer. Jim & Noah attempted to go fishing, but Jim's car kept overheating. It is probably time to replace that car. It has close to 200,000 miles on it. Work has been very busy and stressful. It is only going to get worse when the summer reading program starts in a week. We are going to be shorthanded this year due to budget. At least I can look forward to taking a week off to go to Charlotte, NC and another week for my sisters' visit. I still need to take another week and a half to get my hours back to budget! Maybe in the fall. I filled in some holes left from old trees and planted grass. This morning it finally sprouted. I'm excited to see how it looks when it fills in. I continue to work on losing weight. It is slowing a bit, but I finally hit the 40lb mark! I'm starting to exercise, so hopefully that will help. Jim is still working the outage. It should be wrapping up in a few weeks. Still, it will take him months to stop "dial toning". He was such a dud in KC-I know he was tired, but it was disappointing.
Well that's all for now.
Friday, May 9, 2008
May Days
Hello again. It is getting harder and harder for me to get on my own computer anymore. Nathan plays games with his friends for hours and by the time I boot him off at night, I'm too tired to compose anything. We are all doing fine, even our dog, Belle.
Jim has been working 12 hour nights 6 times a week. That pretty much messes up everything around here, but the overtime is nice. I am feeling overwhelmed with tasks at work, so that also adds stress. We had a staff training day, training for the summer reading software, training for library software, and coming up...training for serials. All of this takes time away from tasks needing to be done as well. We are really looking forward to seeing the musical Wicked next week and our overnight stay in Kansas City. I found a beautiful pearl bracelet today to complete my theater ensemble. It is handmade by a really dear woman I know, and it was 50% off! I'm pretty sure I'm going to have another crappy mother's day this year, so I decided to just treat myself. I finally got Jim to the Goodwill today and we found a sport coat. It is navy blue, looks brand new, and fits him well. I'll get it dry cleaned and then we'll work on the rest of the outfit. We also have plans to go to North Carolina next month. Jim has a business trip, and afterwards we are going to Asheville for a couple of days. I want to see the mountains and Biltmore estate. I just hope I have enough clothes for the trip! I have lost 36 lbs to date, and now have very few clothes to work with. I have been lucky recently and found many new things on clearance. While some of them are appropriate for work, they won't work for a summer trip down south. I don't have a bathing suit or any shorts at this point. Looks like I'll have to do some more shopping!
The boys have been doing well. Noah only has one final to take-chemistry-and he will be done with his first year in college. He did so well in his other classes, that he didn't have to even take the final and he would still get an A. He is excited to come home, but he'll be home less than a week and will be fighting with me again. He just needs to be on his own. He did find an apartment, but many things about next year are up in the air and I wonder how it is all going to work out for him. The college has yet to confirm in writing the scholarship they offered him at registration. It seems to me that they are giving him the run around and trying to put him off when he asks about it. He was advised not to get an apartment near the expressway (lots of break-ins), but that is where they are going to live. He doesn't seem to have a real good grasp of how much money he needs to come up with, or that he will not get it from me next year when he comes up short. He did get his old job for the summer, but he says it is just until something better comes along. I bet he doesn't look real hard for something better and while he is busy socializing with his friends at night, the summer will slip away. I really struggle with the fine line of giving too much/too little. This year he did not meet his financial obligations, but we covered for him. Obviously we gave him too much, since he didn't feel much of a need to work. Next year we have told him that we won't cover for him. He will need to be more responsible and work. We flat out told him that next year if he comes up short (because he hasn't been working) and asks us to cover for him, the answer will be "No". What I hate the most is being put in that position. We've let him know what is expected, and unless he starts growing up and changing, he's going to come asking-and I hate that he would do that to us. We had a little breakthrough with Nate last month when we figured out that his medicine was running out at the end of the day. The only two classes he failed, were those that were at the end of the day. So he takes another short acting dose at school before those two classes, and the results are really something! He has gone from failing math to getting a 3, and has NO MISSING ASSIGNMENTS! English has risen about 6 points, and he's passing, but not too many assignments to raise it further. He did do well on his last two vocab tests though, and he has failed nearly all of them this year. He still hasn't begun to look for a job, so we are going to have to boot him off the computer until he does. That is not going to be a pleasant start to the summer.
The weather has finally warmed, and there is so much outside work. Unfortunately, my back has been really bothering me and I have not been able to do much. It is a different pain, very sharp. The chiropractor thinks I may have a bulging disc. I did manage to fill a hole in the yard with dirt from my falling apart whiskey barrel. I finished digging up the rest of the barrel and am going to let the lily of the valley just fill in where it stood. I talked to Jim today, and am going to get some prices to have both of my decks cleaned and finished. When Noah gets home, maybe he will help me get some mulch down. I've opened a few windows, but Nate's allergies are bothering him this spring and that makes things worse, so I limit it. Jim's car broke AGAIN. This time it was the radiator. It had been replaced recently, so it was still under warranty. This seems to have finally taken care of the problem.
So that's about all that is new for now. I always like to hear from you too!
Jim has been working 12 hour nights 6 times a week. That pretty much messes up everything around here, but the overtime is nice. I am feeling overwhelmed with tasks at work, so that also adds stress. We had a staff training day, training for the summer reading software, training for library software, and coming up...training for serials. All of this takes time away from tasks needing to be done as well. We are really looking forward to seeing the musical Wicked next week and our overnight stay in Kansas City. I found a beautiful pearl bracelet today to complete my theater ensemble. It is handmade by a really dear woman I know, and it was 50% off! I'm pretty sure I'm going to have another crappy mother's day this year, so I decided to just treat myself. I finally got Jim to the Goodwill today and we found a sport coat. It is navy blue, looks brand new, and fits him well. I'll get it dry cleaned and then we'll work on the rest of the outfit. We also have plans to go to North Carolina next month. Jim has a business trip, and afterwards we are going to Asheville for a couple of days. I want to see the mountains and Biltmore estate. I just hope I have enough clothes for the trip! I have lost 36 lbs to date, and now have very few clothes to work with. I have been lucky recently and found many new things on clearance. While some of them are appropriate for work, they won't work for a summer trip down south. I don't have a bathing suit or any shorts at this point. Looks like I'll have to do some more shopping!
The boys have been doing well. Noah only has one final to take-chemistry-and he will be done with his first year in college. He did so well in his other classes, that he didn't have to even take the final and he would still get an A. He is excited to come home, but he'll be home less than a week and will be fighting with me again. He just needs to be on his own. He did find an apartment, but many things about next year are up in the air and I wonder how it is all going to work out for him. The college has yet to confirm in writing the scholarship they offered him at registration. It seems to me that they are giving him the run around and trying to put him off when he asks about it. He was advised not to get an apartment near the expressway (lots of break-ins), but that is where they are going to live. He doesn't seem to have a real good grasp of how much money he needs to come up with, or that he will not get it from me next year when he comes up short. He did get his old job for the summer, but he says it is just until something better comes along. I bet he doesn't look real hard for something better and while he is busy socializing with his friends at night, the summer will slip away. I really struggle with the fine line of giving too much/too little. This year he did not meet his financial obligations, but we covered for him. Obviously we gave him too much, since he didn't feel much of a need to work. Next year we have told him that we won't cover for him. He will need to be more responsible and work. We flat out told him that next year if he comes up short (because he hasn't been working) and asks us to cover for him, the answer will be "No". What I hate the most is being put in that position. We've let him know what is expected, and unless he starts growing up and changing, he's going to come asking-and I hate that he would do that to us. We had a little breakthrough with Nate last month when we figured out that his medicine was running out at the end of the day. The only two classes he failed, were those that were at the end of the day. So he takes another short acting dose at school before those two classes, and the results are really something! He has gone from failing math to getting a 3, and has NO MISSING ASSIGNMENTS! English has risen about 6 points, and he's passing, but not too many assignments to raise it further. He did do well on his last two vocab tests though, and he has failed nearly all of them this year. He still hasn't begun to look for a job, so we are going to have to boot him off the computer until he does. That is not going to be a pleasant start to the summer.
The weather has finally warmed, and there is so much outside work. Unfortunately, my back has been really bothering me and I have not been able to do much. It is a different pain, very sharp. The chiropractor thinks I may have a bulging disc. I did manage to fill a hole in the yard with dirt from my falling apart whiskey barrel. I finished digging up the rest of the barrel and am going to let the lily of the valley just fill in where it stood. I talked to Jim today, and am going to get some prices to have both of my decks cleaned and finished. When Noah gets home, maybe he will help me get some mulch down. I've opened a few windows, but Nate's allergies are bothering him this spring and that makes things worse, so I limit it. Jim's car broke AGAIN. This time it was the radiator. It had been replaced recently, so it was still under warranty. This seems to have finally taken care of the problem.
So that's about all that is new for now. I always like to hear from you too!
Saturday, April 5, 2008
April Update
Today was our best day so far-the forecast called for a high of 70 degrees! We got out a bit today, but spent most of the day getting caught up on chores. We bought and installed a new screen door for the patio slider. Our other one broke this winter and thus has been perpetually open. That wasn't going to work with the warmer weather. We also replaced all of our kitchen light ballasts. They went out last fall, and Jim had promised to fix them.........it was an easy repair, that didn't take very long, and I appreciate what he did do, but I just wish he had taken the initiative to do it himself. I have to be the driving force for all that is done around here, and it is exhausting. We also bought a new faucet for the bathtub, another easy fix for something that has been broke almost as long as the lights. We are saving that project for tomorrow. So tomorrow I should be able to get a SHOWER, cook a meal with enough LIGHT to see what I am doing, and enjoy the wonderful BREEZE coming through the back door! Maybe you all take these things for granted, but I sure am grateful.
Noah was home for spring break. He was supposed to look for an apartment in Lincoln, but his roommate kept backing out and it just didn't happen. He came home the following weekend to register for classes, and stayed in Lincoln to look for apartments. Again, the roommate was too busy to look and they didn't accomplish much. He doesn't seem worried about it though, so I'm not going to fret either. It is his problem after all. He asked us to come to his class registration. We were very frustrated before we even made it into the welcome session! He asked us not be be grumpy all day, because he was really excited. I guess we weren't hiding it very well. They kept the students away from us all day, and just presented generic stuff to the parents to keep us busy. It was such a waste of time for us to even go. Jim and I walked away pretty unimpressed. He changed his major to biochemistry and his adviser arranged a $1,000 scholarship for him if he pursued the degree through the College of Agriculture instead of the College of Arts & Sciences. So that was one good thing that happened that day!
Nate failed two classes last quarter-by one and two points! He had been riding that line all quarter, so it was disappointing that he fell just below at the end. The rest of his classes were all 2's and a 3 in biology-very good for Nathan. He still is taking no interest or initiative in driving, so I haven't signed him up for driver's ed. I told him he had to get a job this summer, but he doesn't want to and he isn't doing anything to make that happen.
Work is going fine for me. I did get another raise, which is wonderful. I have been very busy with one of my tasks, the online events calendar. I am in charge of entering the events and keeping the statistics. The library director has added two extra events this month, the young adult librarian added two new events, and the children's librarian has me entering the summer reading events (and there are a lot of them). It isn't hard to do, but it is something that I need to concentrate on and not be interrupted, and that is the hard part! I hope to have everything done this week. My diet continues on. So far I have lost a little over 26 lbs. It has slowed down, which is frustrating, but I will persevere because I am feeling better. It just makes clothes such an issue. My clothes are all so loose, but I only want to buy summer clothes right now because I don't know what size I'll be next fall. Problem is, that it is too cool to wear summer clothes right now, so I am stuck wearing baggy loose clothes. Jim & I are going to see the musical, Wicked, next month. I am so excited. Since my clothes are all too loose, I went looking for something new to wear to the theater. I found the cutest little black dress at Old Navy-on clearance for $2.99. I saw it after Christmas on clearance for $19.99 and loved it then, but didn't want to spend the money when I was just beginning my weight loss journey. Since I got the dress so cheap, I decided to splurge on a pashmina and silk shawl in a beautiful raspberry shade. I ordered it on overstock.com and it should be coming this week. I went shopping at a more upscale department store and found a beautiful sparkley necklace and earrings on super clearance. It had already been marked down 50% and you got to take another 40% off the markdown price! I got both for a little over $20!! I already have the shoes so I just need a pretty evening clutch and I'm all set. I am going to look so good!! Jim says he is just going to throw on a pair of jeans and his work shirt!
There was a problem at Jim's work and he got to put in some overtime. That was a nice unexpected bonus. And then his car broke down again! New water pump this time. The outage starts soon and Jim is working the first month on night shift-which means he is useless to me that month.
Our dog is hanging in there. Seems to do ok with medicine every other day and I come home everyday at lunch and let her out. The day we went to Lincoln she made it all day with no accidents. I finally broke down and bought her more dog treats. She was making me crazy taking so long when I let her out. If I bribe her with a goodie, she hustles right back.
We had an ok Easter. Nate was sick and Noah didn't wake up, so I went to Easter service alone. Jim had to work, so we did all the Easter stuff without him. I got these cool eggs that you could hide in tough places. Some glowed in the dark, some had suction cups attached, some had sticky tabs, and some hung by string. I think it jazzed up the egg hunt, even though the boys think they are too old for such things.
So that is about all that is new for now. I'll write again soon.
Noah was home for spring break. He was supposed to look for an apartment in Lincoln, but his roommate kept backing out and it just didn't happen. He came home the following weekend to register for classes, and stayed in Lincoln to look for apartments. Again, the roommate was too busy to look and they didn't accomplish much. He doesn't seem worried about it though, so I'm not going to fret either. It is his problem after all. He asked us to come to his class registration. We were very frustrated before we even made it into the welcome session! He asked us not be be grumpy all day, because he was really excited. I guess we weren't hiding it very well. They kept the students away from us all day, and just presented generic stuff to the parents to keep us busy. It was such a waste of time for us to even go. Jim and I walked away pretty unimpressed. He changed his major to biochemistry and his adviser arranged a $1,000 scholarship for him if he pursued the degree through the College of Agriculture instead of the College of Arts & Sciences. So that was one good thing that happened that day!
Nate failed two classes last quarter-by one and two points! He had been riding that line all quarter, so it was disappointing that he fell just below at the end. The rest of his classes were all 2's and a 3 in biology-very good for Nathan. He still is taking no interest or initiative in driving, so I haven't signed him up for driver's ed. I told him he had to get a job this summer, but he doesn't want to and he isn't doing anything to make that happen.
Work is going fine for me. I did get another raise, which is wonderful. I have been very busy with one of my tasks, the online events calendar. I am in charge of entering the events and keeping the statistics. The library director has added two extra events this month, the young adult librarian added two new events, and the children's librarian has me entering the summer reading events (and there are a lot of them). It isn't hard to do, but it is something that I need to concentrate on and not be interrupted, and that is the hard part! I hope to have everything done this week. My diet continues on. So far I have lost a little over 26 lbs. It has slowed down, which is frustrating, but I will persevere because I am feeling better. It just makes clothes such an issue. My clothes are all so loose, but I only want to buy summer clothes right now because I don't know what size I'll be next fall. Problem is, that it is too cool to wear summer clothes right now, so I am stuck wearing baggy loose clothes. Jim & I are going to see the musical, Wicked, next month. I am so excited. Since my clothes are all too loose, I went looking for something new to wear to the theater. I found the cutest little black dress at Old Navy-on clearance for $2.99. I saw it after Christmas on clearance for $19.99 and loved it then, but didn't want to spend the money when I was just beginning my weight loss journey. Since I got the dress so cheap, I decided to splurge on a pashmina and silk shawl in a beautiful raspberry shade. I ordered it on overstock.com and it should be coming this week. I went shopping at a more upscale department store and found a beautiful sparkley necklace and earrings on super clearance. It had already been marked down 50% and you got to take another 40% off the markdown price! I got both for a little over $20!! I already have the shoes so I just need a pretty evening clutch and I'm all set. I am going to look so good!! Jim says he is just going to throw on a pair of jeans and his work shirt!
There was a problem at Jim's work and he got to put in some overtime. That was a nice unexpected bonus. And then his car broke down again! New water pump this time. The outage starts soon and Jim is working the first month on night shift-which means he is useless to me that month.
Our dog is hanging in there. Seems to do ok with medicine every other day and I come home everyday at lunch and let her out. The day we went to Lincoln she made it all day with no accidents. I finally broke down and bought her more dog treats. She was making me crazy taking so long when I let her out. If I bribe her with a goodie, she hustles right back.
We had an ok Easter. Nate was sick and Noah didn't wake up, so I went to Easter service alone. Jim had to work, so we did all the Easter stuff without him. I got these cool eggs that you could hide in tough places. Some glowed in the dark, some had suction cups attached, some had sticky tabs, and some hung by string. I think it jazzed up the egg hunt, even though the boys think they are too old for such things.
So that is about all that is new for now. I'll write again soon.
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