Whaddup Saturday night? Since when did I get so old that fun became staying in, not spending money, taking a late afternoon nap, and eating leftovers? Speaking of late afternoon naps, Derick and I were laying in bed simultaneously reading Catching Fire on our Kindles, when the next thing I know, he was snoring. I'd already taken my nap at around four. It was six o'clock when he fell asleep, if not earlier, and he has yet to wake up. I asked him if he wanted supper but he mumbled something about "not hungry," so I just let him rest. That was two and a half hours ago. I'm pretty sure he's down for the count.
So I'm just hangin out on Pinterest while Paris sleeps on the couch. She was whining a second ago, and I at first thought that she wanted my empty yogurt cup. However, her blanket was partially hanging off the couch, so I fixed it for her, and now she is in deep slumber just like her Daddy-O.
I hate to complain, but ya know what really irks me? What really gets under my skin? The stupid heater! It is set on 60 degrees in this house and the heater pretty much runs constantly. It kicks off during the day, but at night it will just pull a Tim Tebow and go ninety-to-nothing. How'd you like that reference? Anyway, it's not freezing outside, and I don't think 60 is too much to ask for inside. I just don't understand why it feels the need to be running constantly. I shudder to think about our utility bill this month. I shudder all the more to think what it could have been if we weren't content to wrap up in blankets and insisted on having our heat turned up to 70 or so.
Complaining gets on my nerves and I'm indefinitely trying to kick the habit. So maybe I will share a few things that make me happy or excite me at this moment in time. In no partic. order:
1. This weekend is a 96, which means D gets to stay home with me tomorrow and Tuesday.
2. Wednesday, I have a dentist appointment. Ok, so maybe I'm not "excited" about this per say, but chances are high that they will give me that awesome fruit-flavored fluoride foam. Lovin' fluoride since '95!
3. Tomorrow night I'm seeing Jeff Dunham in concert (is that the correct term? does he perform "concerts?"). I only know that he is a ventriloquist, and a lot of people think he's funny. I'm just excited because it's free on base! And I like free.
4. Next Tuesday is a very big day for me. Kelsey will accompany me to Wilmington, where I will hopefully get my hands on my very first pair of (affordable) designer jeans. No such thing you say? Apparently Plato's Closet is a grotto for cheap fancy pants. After that, we are going to see INGRAM HILL in concert in Raleigh! One of my favorite bands since junior high, Ingram Hill always gives a really good show. And live music in general makes me pretty peaceful. Unless it's crap music, but we won't touch that subject again....
5. Only three more tutoring sessions! Bittersweet because I really do love the kids, and I will miss working with them, but exciting because I will undoubtedly have a new job somewhere, someday.
6. Pickles in da fridge.
7. American Idol.
8. My parents will probably come visit while Derick is at training, whenever that takes place. I love when they visit! Hoping to take them to Harker's Island, and maybe Mom and I can drag Dad to the Nights at Rodanthe house in OBX.
9. New vamp show on Netflix.
10. Beyonce and Jay-Z's baby.
11. Teaching Kelsey dance routines.
12. Becoming members of First Baptist Jax next week.
13. New Ben Kweller album on its way to our possession.
14. My extremely loud sneeze may have just roused Derick from his sleep....Which means maybe he will go in the kitchen and grab me a snack.
15. I gots it pretty good, yo.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Bring on the Avalanche!!
What a dreary day in Coastal Carolina. I'm listening to Ben Folds and watching the rain hit the window screen, filling in each tiny square with a teeny drop of water. It seems so sad outside and my house has an aura of cold melancholy with the rain and this slow music blaring. It's such a sad setting, but the day is hopeful.
I've realized I talk a big talk of hope and promise and sticking it out in the tough times. I probably make a lot of people sick, and that's why my Facebook page for this blog has yet to reach 100 fans. I still plan to give a prize to someone once I reach that number. And who doesn't want a free prize?!!
Anyway, I do talk a lot about doing better and being better and not giving up. Most of that talk is preachin to the choir because I need to hear it. Being an optimist comes naturally to a lot of people, but it is not natural to me. I can look at a situation, sift through all of its goodness, and only find the dirt. It's easy for me to be rubbed wrong by someone once, and I don't stick around to give them the benefit of a doubt. They are forever branded as horrible to me. I'm constantly learning to give others a chance; give situations a chance. Not everyone is awful. Not every action is going to result in a terrible outcome. That's been a hard lesson to learn, and I'm daily relearning it.
Ok, so here is my hope speech for today. It's so easy, especially on dreary days and in winter months or during the rough times in our lives, to be sad and down and become negative. But our lives are filled with promise. We aren't here to be wet blankets or swim in self pity or bring others down with a negative attitude. We are here, I believe, to build each other up and to overcome trials. We weren't made to constantly suffer. And has anyone else realized that a huge aspect of suffering and pain actually stems from us--how we choose to react or accept things? Weird.
Enough about that. In other news, tutoring is almost over, so I'm semi-looking for another job. I want to do something I like, and I sure don't want to settle. I've had fun tutoring for the most part. My kids are funny, and I will miss them.
Derick is doing well and still enjoying his job. I'm so proud of him and the leader he is. Those young Marines are blessed to have him leading them. I'm a little biased, though;)
I bought new pajamas today, and I am just so excited to put them on tonight. I want to be in them right now. Little pleasures!
Derick and I have started a reading club. We got Kindles for Christmas from his parents, and we're both reading The Hunger Games. I wanted to read the books when I worked at the library, but they were ALWAYS checked out with several holds. I shouldn't have waited this long to finally read them. Since Kelsey will be going to Oregon during the movie release, I am going to force Derick to join me at the midnight release. He will love me for that.
Kelsey and I have been doing Insanity in the mornings, and it's bittersweet. I don't like getting out of bed, period. I don't like exercising in general. But it feels so good to be productive and sweat. It feels good to start my day with a good workout.
That's about it around here. We're just pushing forward, going day by day, and I'm anticipating spring/summer so that I can go to the beach in a bikini. Hopefully Insanity will ensure that I will be appropriate in a bikini. If not, they make some really killer one-pieces these days....I'm still pulling for the bikini. ;)
Well, I have clothes to put away, and when I say clothes, I mean about the same amount of clothes that fills a department store on any given day. Here's a good song that I heard earlier while I was yammering on about hope and positivity. Don't skip it. I promise you will like it...even you, Mom.
I've realized I talk a big talk of hope and promise and sticking it out in the tough times. I probably make a lot of people sick, and that's why my Facebook page for this blog has yet to reach 100 fans. I still plan to give a prize to someone once I reach that number. And who doesn't want a free prize?!!
Anyway, I do talk a lot about doing better and being better and not giving up. Most of that talk is preachin to the choir because I need to hear it. Being an optimist comes naturally to a lot of people, but it is not natural to me. I can look at a situation, sift through all of its goodness, and only find the dirt. It's easy for me to be rubbed wrong by someone once, and I don't stick around to give them the benefit of a doubt. They are forever branded as horrible to me. I'm constantly learning to give others a chance; give situations a chance. Not everyone is awful. Not every action is going to result in a terrible outcome. That's been a hard lesson to learn, and I'm daily relearning it.
Ok, so here is my hope speech for today. It's so easy, especially on dreary days and in winter months or during the rough times in our lives, to be sad and down and become negative. But our lives are filled with promise. We aren't here to be wet blankets or swim in self pity or bring others down with a negative attitude. We are here, I believe, to build each other up and to overcome trials. We weren't made to constantly suffer. And has anyone else realized that a huge aspect of suffering and pain actually stems from us--how we choose to react or accept things? Weird.
Enough about that. In other news, tutoring is almost over, so I'm semi-looking for another job. I want to do something I like, and I sure don't want to settle. I've had fun tutoring for the most part. My kids are funny, and I will miss them.
Derick is doing well and still enjoying his job. I'm so proud of him and the leader he is. Those young Marines are blessed to have him leading them. I'm a little biased, though;)
I bought new pajamas today, and I am just so excited to put them on tonight. I want to be in them right now. Little pleasures!
Derick and I have started a reading club. We got Kindles for Christmas from his parents, and we're both reading The Hunger Games. I wanted to read the books when I worked at the library, but they were ALWAYS checked out with several holds. I shouldn't have waited this long to finally read them. Since Kelsey will be going to Oregon during the movie release, I am going to force Derick to join me at the midnight release. He will love me for that.
Kelsey and I have been doing Insanity in the mornings, and it's bittersweet. I don't like getting out of bed, period. I don't like exercising in general. But it feels so good to be productive and sweat. It feels good to start my day with a good workout.
That's about it around here. We're just pushing forward, going day by day, and I'm anticipating spring/summer so that I can go to the beach in a bikini. Hopefully Insanity will ensure that I will be appropriate in a bikini. If not, they make some really killer one-pieces these days....I'm still pulling for the bikini. ;)
Well, I have clothes to put away, and when I say clothes, I mean about the same amount of clothes that fills a department store on any given day. Here's a good song that I heard earlier while I was yammering on about hope and positivity. Don't skip it. I promise you will like it...even you, Mom.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Yesterday was a fiasco
Hola everyone. Derick is on the way home and I need to cleeaaann quickly before he arrives, but I wanted to post an update of things that are going on so that you, my avid reader, can be filled in on all the exciting stuff in my life.
We had a very nice trip to Arkansas for the holidays. It was such a blessing to see our family and friends. My parents' "new" house is just fabulous, although we had a hard time finding our way around it at first! My nieces and nephew have grown and changed so much just over the past few months--especially Nathan, who has grown about 5 feet and whose voice is deeper than the bass singer of The Inspirations. Paris had a really great time, too, and I'm having somewhat of an issue trying to get her back into her meal schedule since Mom spoiled her with gravy, milk, hamburger meat, chicken, bacon, and anything else she cooked for human supper. When I make her meal, which isn't too shabby for a dog, (crunchy dog food mixed with the soft Ceasar's) she just stares at me as if to ask, "Are you going to add the gravy now or what?"
I spent a lot of time bragging in Arkansas about how warm and nice it is in NC, only to come back to FREEZING temps. It was 20 degrees when I got up this morning. I didn't ask Derick if there was any ice on the windows, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were.
I had sort of an incident with our rental company yesterday, and I'm not going to really point them out and bash them on my blog, nor will I go into details because it has been resolved (and we all know how enthusiastic my blog becomes when I have someone to complain about. See: the post about Marriot). We have just decided to try to move on base once our lease here is up. We aren't hard to please, and we aren't mean people, but we are also educated and grown adults, thus it irks me when someone speaks to me like I'm a foolish child. Also, maybe it's just that I'm old fashioned, but if I were running a business and could potentially lose or gain clients solely based on my customer service, I'm pretty sure I would be friendly and helpful rather than nonchalant and rude. That's just me. I've told Derick so many times that I feel like I should just run all businesses myself. I may not know firsthand about finance or business relations, but I do know that being kind is a basic essential in running all professional companies. Being kind is an important trait to have in all aspects of life. So, that being said, I love our house and our rental company does, in fact, have very helpful employees, so I'm not trying to be a pot stirrer. I was just pretty bombarded with weird and unfortunate events yesterday, and this is me moving forward.
Speaking of moving forward, happy 2012! Where did 2011 go? So many wonderful things happened in 2011 and I am extremely grateful for and humbled by our experiences and opportunities. I'm excited about what is to come, and I'm really just trying to take things one day at a time. So often I overlook God's blessings by yearning for the future, and I think it's good to just try to take things as they come.
Since I indirectly complained about someone, I feel the need to praise someone. Today this company revived my faith in local business, and I'm really proud to be a customer. I get my oil changed at Doug's Car Care in Jacksonville, and they are always super nice. They also give so many coupons and discounts that those alone would make my frequent visits worth it. Today, I took the Ford in for an oil change, and on my way home (later in the day), my car started beeping at me saying that the oil life was at 4%. After dealing with yesterday's fiasco, my imagination immediately started wandering. I almost convinced myself that perhaps the mechanics actually didn't change my oil. I assumed I just sat in their office for an hour and a half while they did practically nothing to my car. I started getting a little ticked and was convinced that they just wanted to break my car so that I would have to return to give them more money to fix a bigger problem. I suddenly found myself questioning every business in Jacksonville, certain that they are all out to get Marine families. I pulled into my driveway and immediately called Doug's Car Care. The mechanic, Matt, told me that they just forgot to reset that specific feature on my car. He apologized and asked me to come back in at my convenience so that he could reset it. When I hung up, I felt the urge to call him back and apologize to him for creating a cruel story in my head. (I of course didn't tell him my crazy assumptions and accusations!) I felt so stupid for thinking so irrationally and turning myself into the victim when I'd received nothing but excellent service. I should have remembered that I no NOTHING about vehicles. I'm going to try to stop jumping to conclusions and being pessimistic about companies. Some actually are as good as they claim to be. So, if you live in JVille, take your car to Doug's Care Car. They do a really good job and they are always super friendly and professional.
I have five more tutoring sessions left, so I'm loosely looking for a job. I may tutor again, but if I could find something a little more degree-related or certificate-related or discount-related (jk on that last one), then I may end up working elsewhere. It's a little difficult to find a job around here apparently, but I haven't been actively searching, so maybe something good will come along!
Well, I hope everyone's week is going well! I hope you are all enjoying the new year and staying true to your resolutions. Mine are:
* be more conscious about what I put in my body. Not only are our bodies a temple, I believe life is very precious and how I care for myself actually says a lot about my character. I'm not a horrible eater. I love fruit and veggies and I don't drink sodas (except for the occasional Sprite, which, after seeing the amount of calories in one of those suckers, I've decided to cut, too). I just snack a lot and I love dessert, which wasn't an issue when I was younger because, like my nephew, I would have rather had a salad than chocolate any day. Now that I'm older, I find myself drawn to cake and ice cream and brownies. I exercise regularly so I convince myself that those treats are ok, and they are, but I definitely need to cut back.
* be more conscious about my grammar. I think I talk properly, but I've noticed I say some things that need to be corrected, and since I studied English, I just feel like I should try my best to speak it well. My friend Kelsey laughed when I told her that because she says she uses bad grammar all the time. I haven't noticed because she is so proper in all other areas. I know she is reading this now and rolling on the floor. There's your compliment for the month, Kelsey. Enjoy.
* gripe less.
* make fewer excuses.
* be more encouraging, especially to Derick.
* be more comfortable in my own skin.
Well Derick just pulled up, so I need to look busy!! Y'all have a blessed evening! Oh yeah, and boo for Rick Santorum for not winning the Iowa Caucus. Politics is in the air!!!
We had a very nice trip to Arkansas for the holidays. It was such a blessing to see our family and friends. My parents' "new" house is just fabulous, although we had a hard time finding our way around it at first! My nieces and nephew have grown and changed so much just over the past few months--especially Nathan, who has grown about 5 feet and whose voice is deeper than the bass singer of The Inspirations. Paris had a really great time, too, and I'm having somewhat of an issue trying to get her back into her meal schedule since Mom spoiled her with gravy, milk, hamburger meat, chicken, bacon, and anything else she cooked for human supper. When I make her meal, which isn't too shabby for a dog, (crunchy dog food mixed with the soft Ceasar's) she just stares at me as if to ask, "Are you going to add the gravy now or what?"
I spent a lot of time bragging in Arkansas about how warm and nice it is in NC, only to come back to FREEZING temps. It was 20 degrees when I got up this morning. I didn't ask Derick if there was any ice on the windows, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were.
I had sort of an incident with our rental company yesterday, and I'm not going to really point them out and bash them on my blog, nor will I go into details because it has been resolved (and we all know how enthusiastic my blog becomes when I have someone to complain about. See: the post about Marriot). We have just decided to try to move on base once our lease here is up. We aren't hard to please, and we aren't mean people, but we are also educated and grown adults, thus it irks me when someone speaks to me like I'm a foolish child. Also, maybe it's just that I'm old fashioned, but if I were running a business and could potentially lose or gain clients solely based on my customer service, I'm pretty sure I would be friendly and helpful rather than nonchalant and rude. That's just me. I've told Derick so many times that I feel like I should just run all businesses myself. I may not know firsthand about finance or business relations, but I do know that being kind is a basic essential in running all professional companies. Being kind is an important trait to have in all aspects of life. So, that being said, I love our house and our rental company does, in fact, have very helpful employees, so I'm not trying to be a pot stirrer. I was just pretty bombarded with weird and unfortunate events yesterday, and this is me moving forward.
Speaking of moving forward, happy 2012! Where did 2011 go? So many wonderful things happened in 2011 and I am extremely grateful for and humbled by our experiences and opportunities. I'm excited about what is to come, and I'm really just trying to take things one day at a time. So often I overlook God's blessings by yearning for the future, and I think it's good to just try to take things as they come.
Since I indirectly complained about someone, I feel the need to praise someone. Today this company revived my faith in local business, and I'm really proud to be a customer. I get my oil changed at Doug's Car Care in Jacksonville, and they are always super nice. They also give so many coupons and discounts that those alone would make my frequent visits worth it. Today, I took the Ford in for an oil change, and on my way home (later in the day), my car started beeping at me saying that the oil life was at 4%. After dealing with yesterday's fiasco, my imagination immediately started wandering. I almost convinced myself that perhaps the mechanics actually didn't change my oil. I assumed I just sat in their office for an hour and a half while they did practically nothing to my car. I started getting a little ticked and was convinced that they just wanted to break my car so that I would have to return to give them more money to fix a bigger problem. I suddenly found myself questioning every business in Jacksonville, certain that they are all out to get Marine families. I pulled into my driveway and immediately called Doug's Car Care. The mechanic, Matt, told me that they just forgot to reset that specific feature on my car. He apologized and asked me to come back in at my convenience so that he could reset it. When I hung up, I felt the urge to call him back and apologize to him for creating a cruel story in my head. (I of course didn't tell him my crazy assumptions and accusations!) I felt so stupid for thinking so irrationally and turning myself into the victim when I'd received nothing but excellent service. I should have remembered that I no NOTHING about vehicles. I'm going to try to stop jumping to conclusions and being pessimistic about companies. Some actually are as good as they claim to be. So, if you live in JVille, take your car to Doug's Care Car. They do a really good job and they are always super friendly and professional.
I have five more tutoring sessions left, so I'm loosely looking for a job. I may tutor again, but if I could find something a little more degree-related or certificate-related or discount-related (jk on that last one), then I may end up working elsewhere. It's a little difficult to find a job around here apparently, but I haven't been actively searching, so maybe something good will come along!
Well, I hope everyone's week is going well! I hope you are all enjoying the new year and staying true to your resolutions. Mine are:
* be more conscious about what I put in my body. Not only are our bodies a temple, I believe life is very precious and how I care for myself actually says a lot about my character. I'm not a horrible eater. I love fruit and veggies and I don't drink sodas (except for the occasional Sprite, which, after seeing the amount of calories in one of those suckers, I've decided to cut, too). I just snack a lot and I love dessert, which wasn't an issue when I was younger because, like my nephew, I would have rather had a salad than chocolate any day. Now that I'm older, I find myself drawn to cake and ice cream and brownies. I exercise regularly so I convince myself that those treats are ok, and they are, but I definitely need to cut back.
* be more conscious about my grammar. I think I talk properly, but I've noticed I say some things that need to be corrected, and since I studied English, I just feel like I should try my best to speak it well. My friend Kelsey laughed when I told her that because she says she uses bad grammar all the time. I haven't noticed because she is so proper in all other areas. I know she is reading this now and rolling on the floor. There's your compliment for the month, Kelsey. Enjoy.
* gripe less.
* make fewer excuses.
* be more encouraging, especially to Derick.
* be more comfortable in my own skin.
Well Derick just pulled up, so I need to look busy!! Y'all have a blessed evening! Oh yeah, and boo for Rick Santorum for not winning the Iowa Caucus. Politics is in the air!!!
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