upper and upper……
Things just keep looking better and better. Every time I think things might just get better…they do.
Joe and I went to see my family in Utah for the weekend. It was so nice to see my brothers and sisters again. It’s been a few months/years since I’ve seen some of them. I wish the kids could have been with me, but next year maybe they will be.
Joe was a great sport. My family all loved him which is pretty cool considering the sheer volume of them…….there were 4 siblings and their spouses there and about 13 or so assorted nieces and nephews. In fact, one of my nieces asked me to excuse myself from the Uno game so she could play with him one-on-one……that’s the kind of effect Joe has on people.
I don’t think I’ve ever driven long distances with another human being and had such a non-stressful and enjoyable time. Joe did quite a few impersonations of people and sang songs for me almost the entire time. I was awake, entertained and happy. He even fixed me ‘lunch’ type items to snack on while I drove. I really had a great time.
Here’s looking forward to a great New Year.
quick recap for the kids:
don’t give up…things can get better, utah was great, your cousins missed you, driving is fun with the right people, joe has so many talents you have yet to discover…..
so much love,
mom
I have so much to be thankful for this year.
I have so much to be thankful for this year. My life couldn’t be any more different than it was last year. I look around me at my beautiful children, this great place I live, awesome roommates, satisfying employment, sane piece of mind and a relationship with a man that I love more than I would have thought possible and I can’t believe my luck. Or blessings would be a more accurate term.
This coming year holds just as many exciting possibilities for me. I can feel it. Things are just going to keep feeling and getting better. Even if/when hard things come up, I have a much more stable foundation to work from. I’m sure with God’s help I’ll be able to keep tackling new challenges.
Christmas was wonderful. It was so nice to be able to take the kids to help out people this season instead of concentrating on the ‘I wants’. They’ve each surprised me in how quickly they caught on to the whole idea of giving and helping and took pleasure in the whole experience. I hope it’s a tradition we can keep doing every holiday I have with them.
It was very nice to have Joe around this year. The kids are getting used to him and notice that he is nice to me. They’ve each told me how much they are glad that he’s a ‘nice guy that makes you so happy’. It must be hard to be the guy getting to know the kids of the girl you like. I’m thankful that they all seem to get along alright.
Judging. It’s a hard thing not to do, especially when the lines of acceptable judging are blurred. FOr example, as a parent I feel I have every right to judge what I think is good or bad for my young kids. Isn’t that my job as a mother? Isn’t that what I’m supposed to do? But where is the line drawn in between watching out for your kids and stamping your personal thoughts all over where they should be finding things out for themselves? And if you spend all your time deciding what is right for them, when and how do they learn to do it for themselves? And if I’m constantly judging things in that frame of mind, how do I let that go and just accept people for who and what they are instead of categorizing everything into the acceptable and unacceptable boxes? It’s a quandary.
quick recap for the kids:
it’s been so great to have you in my daily life this christmas, i look forward to seeing you a little more this coming year, still like tons of things about joe, the lines between things are hard to make out but i’m going to keep figuring things out..
much love,
mom
…..curiouser and curiouser……..
Life is strange. Period. The end.
But I like it. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
It’s nice to know that things keep evolving into (hopefully) something better. It’s very nice to have things move up a few notches and further away from when they were so uncomfortable.
I’m going to get paid. Finally. Of course it won’t be till after Christmas but just the fact that I’m going to be able to pay my rent by my own volition is very appealing to me. (and my room mate Craig as well, I’m sure, since he likes to have me pay rent…and my family since they’ve been paying it for me….etc. etc.) We’re all happy about my rent-paying abilities.
I’m starting to feel some Christmas spirit. It crept in while I wasn’t looking and I’m glad it’s here. I compare last year’s end to this one and I feel so blessed I’m almost overwhelmed. It doesn’t seem possible that my life could have changed so drastically in just one year. I don’t think I could even name all the good things in my life. Monetarily challenged or not, it’s going to be a great season.
quick recap for the kids
life is unpredictable, sometimes scary, wonderful and constantly changing, i’m going to get my first paycheck in a few weeks, Christmas is almost here, my life is awesome and full of good things. (especially you…)
love,
mom
Special Sauce….
Why is it so hard to like yourself? Is there some reason why people have such a hard time accepting compliments? Why do we try to find the best in other people but turn around and refuse to believe anything good about ourselves? And of course, when I’m saying ‘we’ I mean ‘me’…..
This is my new knowledge quest….I want to appreciate me.
The Christmas Insanity is in full swing. Parties and events etc out the ying-yang. It gets more than a little crazy. On the other hand, it’s a great excuse to get together with good friends you haven’t seen for awhile and eat too much.
We had a house warming party the other day. My roommate, Craig, brought out his personal fog machine and disco light. You might think it’s strange that he owns his own fog machine, but he also owns a Flowbee and actually uses it. Craig is a man of many mysteries……
Five days till I get to pick up the kids…….
Things I learned today:
I prefer top sirloin over prime rib.
I don’t like Jack-in-the-Box’s special sauce.
Sometimes the word ‘shut-up’ means ‘I don’t know how to accept compliments’.
Gum bought at Stater Brothers includes the tax in the price shown on the shelf.
quick recap for the kids:
liking yourself is important and hard to do but we’re never to old to learn, you now have met the one person in the world that bought and uses a vacuum haircutting device on his head on purpose, special sauce isn’t always so special.
time flies when…..
Wow….Thanksgiving is already over and Christmas is right around the corner and I think I see 2003 over my shoulder.
I had a great time during Thanksgiving. I went to see Rhoda is Seattle area. She picked me up from the airport about 10 am Thanksgiving morning. When we got to her house, I went straight to bed since I hadn’t slept in 24 hours or so and I totally missed the big dinner but I hear it was great. She saved me some leftovers, which are the best part anyway, and they tasted great since I was completely over the airsickness by that point. My ankle was only swollen a little because it had been hours since I tripped over the guy seated next to me on the plane as I tried to pole-vault over him to reach the blue-watered, stainless steel potty, and the redness and swelling had really gone down. Of course, choosing to wear high-heels on a flight was a decision I might think twice about next time, but hindsight:20-20. And the great news is that only the two back rows next to the bathroom had to listen to me wretch because the sound of the engine drowned out the sounds for the rest of the passengers. I didn’t have enough time to shut the door behind me if I wanted to make it mostly hit in the toilet so I opted to gross out the people and make the babies cry instead of stinking up the whole cabin with the smell of vomit. After all, I didn’t see any pop-up air fresheners to stick on the wall if I missed….
Enough about vomit…let’s talk about my hair. When I reached my seat, exhausted and shaking, (this time, the guy got up and moved to let me in…) I immediately fell to sleep with my head banging against the window. I don’t know what else happened during the flight since I was out, but for two hours, my hair was stuck in a most peculiar position. How do I know? I know because when I reached the terminal bathroom and looked in the mirror, I didn’t recognize the person looking back at me. My hair was sticking straight up in a few places, not altogether unattractive if you’re a punker with a Mohawk, but I just wasn’t used to it and almost scared myself. I then realized that the people trying not to laugh at me and only smiling and pointing while I walked off the plane and rode the train and walked the mile through the terminal had been kind. They could have ridiculed me at any point but chose not to and let me walk proudly by.
The return trip was so uneventful compared.
Can’t wait for my kids to come and see me. I get a whole WEEK with them!
My job is going well. I really love working out loan problems.
Joe came back from his trek back east. I’m glad. I missed him a lot. There are so many things I like about that guy…..
quick recap for the kids:
when people say that flying is the safest way to travel, they mean statistically, you probably won’t die but there is no rule about puke or hair styles and you should know that right up front, i can’t WAIT to see you all…still like work, the list of things-to-like-about-joe grows longer.
MUCH LOVE
mom
