Year: 2009 (Page 6 of 32)

you end up with all kinds of jumbled thoughts and ideas and memories and there’s really no logical way to organize them into elegant prose. so it might be time for one of laura’s favorite numbered posts. hey, it’s saturday.

1. does everyone wake up at 6am on a saturday? no. just me. this is after i nearly lost an eye at 5:30 getting back into bed… jj’s elbow had clearly encroached upon my pillow and now i’m going to have to tell people that “he only does it because he loves me.” j/k, there’s no mark.

2. my kid is seriously the cutest thing ever. EVER. he’s at a really fun play stage where he just loooooves to play. this morning he forgot it was breakfast and instead started putting his eggs in his bowl, then taking them out. who knew that food doubled as toys? guess everyone can take back the birthday present and visit the produce aisle instead. but i have to say watching him explore his toy-things and figure out how to put things where he wants them – it’s precious.

3. after some significant disappointment, we’re in town this weekend. we thought that we’d have wedding festivities to attend but alas we are parents and when the babysitter cancels we have to act like parents and stay home with child. it’s too bad, i’m sure it’ll be a humdinger of a wedding.

4. the hubby is taking his comps today, the big you-can-graduate test. next week is 2 of his 3 praxis (praxeese plural?). if we survive to next sunday there’s a good chance we’ll see jesus come back. he has worked soooooo hard and i am soooo proud. i can’t wait to see him in a cap and gown.

5. i would compare working full time to eating a rich peanut butter chocolate cake (thanks KW for sharing!). It’s good, but too much of it will make you throw up. I’ve really enjoyed the project i’m on at work. i like the type of work i’m doing – the fast pace, the independant nature (even though poor Kathy still has to hold my hand through some decisions). the hours? eh. i like the pay that comes with it. and the time really flies. i have to be careful not to go to the bathroom or i completely miss the 9:00 hour. i think i enjoy it more because i know it’s a short-term situation that will someday end, and then i’ll move on to something else. i can enjoy it for what it is. it’s a great sub-plot in a story that can offer some interesting talk points, but at the end of the day i can remember it’s a subplot.

6. i bought my first christmas present yesterday. for some reason, i’m really in the spirit- a bit soon (for me) but it’s enjoyable. i’ve got a decent list of things that i know i want to get others. on the one hand i really hate the consumeristic slant that christmas always takes. we always spend to much and get too much – more than we need, really. i hate feeling like i’m giving something becuase that’s what i’m expected to do. on the other hand, i LOVE finding *the* perfect gift. to know someone will really enjoy something and to watch them experience the delight of feeling like someone cared enough to remember… to me, that does capture the christmas spirit. it’s about giving of yourself (isn’t that what the incarnation is all about?).

7. everything holy is supposed to happen in sevens, so if i want a chance at getting into heaven i better come up with one more thing. ah, yes. book club. i love it. we generally gather and eat very well (followed by explanations of recipes). but i was a bit overwhelmed and under-rested with life, so i ordered pizza. and you know what? the girls didn’t even care. they loved the ranch dipping sauce from padrone’s so much (i think i caught KLM guzzling it) that they didn’t even notice that it didn’t come from my oven. such wonderful ladies.

we’re 3 days into approximately 60 of working full time hours. i’m exponentially more tired, but i have seen other improvements. the house is cleaner, as is the kid (his poor little tush is sore from a recent bout of the scoots, so the baths make him feel better). i have even cooked when i’ve been home before 7 (1 of the 3 days). 33% is pretty good on that one.

it’s quite amazing that as my availability of free time decreases, my management of it increases. i’m on facebook less and doing dishes more. wha? i know. but this is also the most insane time for hubby as he wraps up his access class and preps for his comps (to graduate) a week from saturday and then the praxis (to be licensed) the following week after that. i’d like to think he’ll coast from there, but really there’s just a flurry of final projects and a portfolio to put together. ah, and those pesky holidays. but he loves the time of year, so we will perservere. we sang a song at church once that spoke of a light at the end for those that hold on, so that’s what we’re doing – holding on. though, he did call me this evening and introduce himself as my husband. i reassured him i hadn’t married another in the past 48 hours that we haven’t seen one another.

i’m not sure how switch shift families do it. maybe for some they get along better because they see each other less, but that is not our case. on the up side, the kiddo gets special time with both his ma and pa, so he doesn’t see quite as much of the babysitter (though, he’s there plenty, too).

so far i’m enjoying the project at work, but that may just be because they haven’t really handed over any responsibility to me. i’m getting a feel for it and everyone on the account really wants to make sure it transitions well, rather than just assuming that i’ll know what to do. it’s a fantastic team, and that’s when i’ve enjoyed work the most. also, knowing the short term and projected schedule of it all makes it easier to swallow. if they said, “this is the rest of your life” i might get spooked, but as it is, it’s fun to try something new. **someone, please remind me of this on tuesday after i’ve had a few days behind the wheel.**

the first hurdle of our recent shift in lifestyle has been not to be too complain-y. we’re very fortunate to have the opportunity for me to make some extra (well, not extra – it has a place to go. but increased) money, especially before the holidays. not to mention this experience will help me be more useful in the future at work and maybe i’ll get to try other new projects. and though i never sit down before 7pm, the only things REALLY missing as of late is lounging and facebooking. i enjoy that, but not what you’d call a life essential.

the second hurdle, which is not new, is to not be so self-consumed. yes, this stage of our life is difficult (it has been for going on 2 years now since the hubs decided to further his education). but that’s not an excuse for me to be a bad friend, which i have been. it’s the small stuff. i need to be better at just “getting over” myself and the busyness and create space for my friends who i really appreciate and who deserve better attention from me. i know that they understand, they’ve been so patient as they’ve walked through this experience with us, but that doesn’t mean i can’t reciprocate and walk through their experiences with them, while being fully present with them (not just being half there and whining about my own life in the rest of the time).

so i suppose that’s a goal. we’ll set up an action plan. i’ll have to find me a take-away item to implement. (can you tell i’ve been around professional people lately? it cracks me up how they talk).