Today has hit me hard with the almost spring blues. It's gray out - almost sunny, but not quite. It's cool - almost warm, but not quite. Almost spring, but not quite. The excessive research I have been doing on financial stability/planning/budgeting for the job has NOT helped with lifting the gray cloud. Blah.
And as a direct reflection of the blah's - that's all I got for this post. Back with some inspiration tomorrow.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
It's a Dog's Life
Man - how nice would it be to live the life of a pup? Huh? Look at this! Not bad at all my friends. Sleep, play, eat and sleep some more.
Our lives are crazy right now. With the house, jobs, school, family, friends, pup and volunteer work it seems like there's not always enough time in the day to get everything done, let alone done well.
How can you be the best wife at the same time as being the best employee, best friend, best daughter, best furry pup mother, best student and best volunteer? It is overwhelming and scary. I had a minor freak out on Monday when I felt all of the above crashing down around me. What a way to spend a day off huh?
After some wine and some deep breaths - I realized that I am lucky to be blessed with all of the above opportunities that are causing this little "problem", and that maybe I need to shift some priorities, get a little less sleep, suck it up and get it done.
There doesn't seem to be a sweet loving way around it - it's all about bucking it up, being a bad ass, and making every minute of the day count. Today is my day 1 of being a bad ass. We'll see how it goes.
Good look everyone in being the best everything that you are, all the time. Let me know how it goes :)
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Valentine's Day
Now, I know there are a lot of differing opinions out there on Valentine's Day. A lot of people LOVE the holiday. They love finding the perfect card and gift for the one they love, having a candlelit romantic dinner, and sending flowers.
Then, there are those on the complete opposite end of the spectrum. They hate the holiday and its forced romanticism, the overpriced gifts and the focus on the all too superficial aspects of love.
There's also the Singles Awareness Day folks - who hate the one day every year when they are most aware that they are alone (at least in a romantic sense).
I am shockingly one of the Valentine's day lovers. I know, I know. Very unexpected. However, I never had a chance to really show that (due to all the nonexistent and/or terrible relationships I was in) until 5 years ago, when I met the boy who would eventually become my husband.
On our 5th Valentine's (well technically fourth, it's a long story - you all know it) Day together I just wanted to make sure that he knew how thankful I am to finally have my Valentine in the most wonderful, caring and loving person I have ever met.
It brings tears to my eyes every time I think about how lucky I am to have him in my life. I have never felt so loved and supported and cherished, and I thank God everyday for blessing my life with that kind of love. I cannot believe I am so lucky.
Happy Valentine's Day, Dave. Thank you for loving me.
Then, there are those on the complete opposite end of the spectrum. They hate the holiday and its forced romanticism, the overpriced gifts and the focus on the all too superficial aspects of love.
There's also the Singles Awareness Day folks - who hate the one day every year when they are most aware that they are alone (at least in a romantic sense).
I am shockingly one of the Valentine's day lovers. I know, I know. Very unexpected. However, I never had a chance to really show that (due to all the nonexistent and/or terrible relationships I was in) until 5 years ago, when I met the boy who would eventually become my husband.
On our 5th Valentine's (well technically fourth, it's a long story - you all know it) Day together I just wanted to make sure that he knew how thankful I am to finally have my Valentine in the most wonderful, caring and loving person I have ever met.
It brings tears to my eyes every time I think about how lucky I am to have him in my life. I have never felt so loved and supported and cherished, and I thank God everyday for blessing my life with that kind of love. I cannot believe I am so lucky.
Happy Valentine's Day, Dave. Thank you for loving me.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Friday, Friday, Friday
The older I get, the more my Fridays seem to change. If I look back over the Fridays of my life - they are maybe the single clearest indicator of how I have lived and changed and grown over the past 26 years. But no matter what age or stage in life, Fridays have always been exciting; a beacon leading to the upcoming break from the daily grind.
As a kid - my Fridays were spent begging my parents if I could spend the night at Andrea's, or Jessie's or Katie's or Amanda's. We loved to have late night Michael Meyers movie watching fests with way too much candy and ice cream, and stay up late talking about our futures.
In high school, Fridays meant football or basketball games - a chance to see and be seen at Roncalli events. Fridays meant glittery makeup and ribbons in your hair and late night Steak n' Shake runs. Or on the lucky weekends we got to play - it meant basketball games and team dinners and bus rides.
In college for the first two years, Fridays in the off-season meant taking advantage of every party and late night that you could. During season, Fridays meant getting out of class early for shoot arounds and meals and game night if we were home. If we were on the road it meant tests on the bus, and late nights watching film, followed by a game and then travel to wherever our next match-up was.
The second two years, Fridays meant relief when class was done, afternoon cocktails with my roomates, dinners together and late nights hanging out and visiting the Greencastle bars. And, sometimes even a trip to, or a visitor from Terre Haute.
After college, my Fridays were remarkably similar to the Fridays in college, for a year or so. However, the strain of real life budgeting and paying the bills started to put a damper on that.
The next stage of Fridays involved lots of vacation and wedding planning and house searching and nights with our moms. And nice dinners out and post-dinner drinks with friends.
Now, my Fridays are Fridays my 21 year old self would be ashamed of :)
They are spent with Dave and Dexter - usually at home, and usually with a bedtime of 11 or so. Lots of Netflix and DVR'd show watching and homemade, money-saving dinners. But they are wonderful in their own grown up sort of way.
So wherever you are in life, and however you celebrate your Fridays - I hope today is a great one!
As a kid - my Fridays were spent begging my parents if I could spend the night at Andrea's, or Jessie's or Katie's or Amanda's. We loved to have late night Michael Meyers movie watching fests with way too much candy and ice cream, and stay up late talking about our futures.
In high school, Fridays meant football or basketball games - a chance to see and be seen at Roncalli events. Fridays meant glittery makeup and ribbons in your hair and late night Steak n' Shake runs. Or on the lucky weekends we got to play - it meant basketball games and team dinners and bus rides.
In college for the first two years, Fridays in the off-season meant taking advantage of every party and late night that you could. During season, Fridays meant getting out of class early for shoot arounds and meals and game night if we were home. If we were on the road it meant tests on the bus, and late nights watching film, followed by a game and then travel to wherever our next match-up was.
The second two years, Fridays meant relief when class was done, afternoon cocktails with my roomates, dinners together and late nights hanging out and visiting the Greencastle bars. And, sometimes even a trip to, or a visitor from Terre Haute.
After college, my Fridays were remarkably similar to the Fridays in college, for a year or so. However, the strain of real life budgeting and paying the bills started to put a damper on that.
The next stage of Fridays involved lots of vacation and wedding planning and house searching and nights with our moms. And nice dinners out and post-dinner drinks with friends.
Now, my Fridays are Fridays my 21 year old self would be ashamed of :)
They are spent with Dave and Dexter - usually at home, and usually with a bedtime of 11 or so. Lots of Netflix and DVR'd show watching and homemade, money-saving dinners. But they are wonderful in their own grown up sort of way.
So wherever you are in life, and however you celebrate your Fridays - I hope today is a great one!
Monday, January 24, 2011
Scary
School is scary. After being out for four years - I fear that I have forgotten how to go to school. And study. And retain that type of educational information.
I had to take my first online quiz last week, and was terrified (I did well, don't worry). It's the weirdest feeling. For such a huge part of your life you are conditioned to just learn and learn and learn. You know how to do it, and it becomes easy. And, it's all your expected to do.
Being thrown back into that environment is crazy, and a bit overwhelming. What and how you learn in the real world is different. It's on the go, fast-paced and trial and error. That's not how school is. You have to know it. And you have to know it now (or by the assigned test date).
My nights this week are going to be spent reading, reading, more reading, and making flash cards. Goodness. Been a while since I have had to do any of that.
I'm almost looking forward to the first tests in these classes so that I can reassure myself that I still know how to learn. And the additional pressure is on, since I basically have to get A's in all of my pre-req classes if I have any chance of getting into nursing school. Geeze.
What did I get myself into?? Nothing that I can't handle. I know that. Just takes a shift back to the good old days when structured learning was all I knew how to do!
I had to take my first online quiz last week, and was terrified (I did well, don't worry). It's the weirdest feeling. For such a huge part of your life you are conditioned to just learn and learn and learn. You know how to do it, and it becomes easy. And, it's all your expected to do.
Being thrown back into that environment is crazy, and a bit overwhelming. What and how you learn in the real world is different. It's on the go, fast-paced and trial and error. That's not how school is. You have to know it. And you have to know it now (or by the assigned test date).
My nights this week are going to be spent reading, reading, more reading, and making flash cards. Goodness. Been a while since I have had to do any of that.
I'm almost looking forward to the first tests in these classes so that I can reassure myself that I still know how to learn. And the additional pressure is on, since I basically have to get A's in all of my pre-req classes if I have any chance of getting into nursing school. Geeze.
What did I get myself into?? Nothing that I can't handle. I know that. Just takes a shift back to the good old days when structured learning was all I knew how to do!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Limbo and Dreams
Limbo. That frustrating, all-encompassing place that is in-between starting and finishing, and not close enough to either to make quitting whatever you are doing ok.
Dreams. What are you able to have once you are out of that state of limbo.
I have been through a mini personal journey over the past week from the current and comfortable, through a state of limbo, and out on the other end, to a place of dreams. Is limbo fun? No. Is working hard and jumping through ridiculous and tedious hoops fun? Not always. Is finally figuring something out and getting where you wanted to be fun? YES.
On my last day of holiday vacation from work (yes, of course I waited until the last day) I began really looking into nursing school. Have I talked about it forever? Yes. Had I filled out the initial application at IUPUI to start the process? Yes. Had I really looked into the details and/or made a commitment to do it? No.
So on this last day of break that I spent googling class pre-requisites and application requirements, and calling IUPUI, Ivy Tech, and IU School of Nursing - I took the plunge. From safety and security into limbo land. Which I may add, is not a place I have been for a long time.
As I began to research which classes I needed to take and where, I began to realize that if I do want to go back to nursing school - this is the time to do it! It was almost as everything was arranged perfectly to get my pre-reqs done quickly, while still working - and in the order they needed to be taken. As far as I can tell - if I had not jumped into the process now - it would take me several more years to get everything completed - just to apply to school. Who says there is no such thing as divine intervention?
However, my perfectly arranged schedule was not quite as easy to get to. Because it was so late in the game to sign up for classes - it took me days, two campus visits, dozens of phone calls, filling out multiple forms, learning how to use two university webistes, and sending several not pleasant emails to get anywhere.
But look at me! A week later, I am enrolled in 2 of the 3 classes I need to apply for nursing school, have my books ordered and am back in school for the first time in 4 years. And it feels really good.
I never really knew if I had it in me to make a big life change. Are there still lots of obstacles and problems I am going to have to solve over the next few years? Yes.
But this little exercise in making a tough choice, and working hard to get from point a to point b been fabulous for me. And proof that I really can do anything if I put my mind too it and trust in God to get me there.
So I did it. I officially started the next chapter in my life. And from a place where I let all my doubts and challenges discourage me and keep me where I was, to a place where I can dream about what my future might be like and have hope for something better, I can tell you - it's much better over here.
Dreams. What are you able to have once you are out of that state of limbo.
I have been through a mini personal journey over the past week from the current and comfortable, through a state of limbo, and out on the other end, to a place of dreams. Is limbo fun? No. Is working hard and jumping through ridiculous and tedious hoops fun? Not always. Is finally figuring something out and getting where you wanted to be fun? YES.
On my last day of holiday vacation from work (yes, of course I waited until the last day) I began really looking into nursing school. Have I talked about it forever? Yes. Had I filled out the initial application at IUPUI to start the process? Yes. Had I really looked into the details and/or made a commitment to do it? No.
So on this last day of break that I spent googling class pre-requisites and application requirements, and calling IUPUI, Ivy Tech, and IU School of Nursing - I took the plunge. From safety and security into limbo land. Which I may add, is not a place I have been for a long time.
As I began to research which classes I needed to take and where, I began to realize that if I do want to go back to nursing school - this is the time to do it! It was almost as everything was arranged perfectly to get my pre-reqs done quickly, while still working - and in the order they needed to be taken. As far as I can tell - if I had not jumped into the process now - it would take me several more years to get everything completed - just to apply to school. Who says there is no such thing as divine intervention?
However, my perfectly arranged schedule was not quite as easy to get to. Because it was so late in the game to sign up for classes - it took me days, two campus visits, dozens of phone calls, filling out multiple forms, learning how to use two university webistes, and sending several not pleasant emails to get anywhere.
But look at me! A week later, I am enrolled in 2 of the 3 classes I need to apply for nursing school, have my books ordered and am back in school for the first time in 4 years. And it feels really good.
I never really knew if I had it in me to make a big life change. Are there still lots of obstacles and problems I am going to have to solve over the next few years? Yes.
But this little exercise in making a tough choice, and working hard to get from point a to point b been fabulous for me. And proof that I really can do anything if I put my mind too it and trust in God to get me there.
So I did it. I officially started the next chapter in my life. And from a place where I let all my doubts and challenges discourage me and keep me where I was, to a place where I can dream about what my future might be like and have hope for something better, I can tell you - it's much better over here.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
2011
I haven't taken much time to stop and reflect on the turning of the new year. What with the holidays, social engagements and family in from out of town, time kind of slipped by me this year.
I have complained a bit to people close to me this year that I wasn't as into the Christmas season as I usually am - and I think that's because there were a few things missing from my life this holiday season. Most importantly - God. Dave and I always talk about how religion is very important to the both of us and how it is something that will always be a priority - but right now, we are not acting that way both as individuals and as a family. So that is the first, and pretty obvious.
The second is running. I love to run, it is how I focus, think through things, and pray. But, I have not made it a priority to continue to challenge myself to run daily and keep the body God has given me in good shape.
So, 2011 is the beginning of my 27th year of life. The 25 and 26th years sure were eventful - trips to Europe, engagements, home purchases, weddings (LOTS of them), a new puppy and a new last name.
So in looking forward to the new year - I resolve to make it a year less about the physical and superficial, and more about continuing to grow in my life spiritually, physically and in all those other ways that I have struggled with recently.
I have spent a lot of time the past couple of years worrying about other people, events and things - and this year, I vow to challenge myself in new ways to ensure that I become who God is calling me to be in this life.
Cheers to 2011!
I have complained a bit to people close to me this year that I wasn't as into the Christmas season as I usually am - and I think that's because there were a few things missing from my life this holiday season. Most importantly - God. Dave and I always talk about how religion is very important to the both of us and how it is something that will always be a priority - but right now, we are not acting that way both as individuals and as a family. So that is the first, and pretty obvious.
The second is running. I love to run, it is how I focus, think through things, and pray. But, I have not made it a priority to continue to challenge myself to run daily and keep the body God has given me in good shape.
So, 2011 is the beginning of my 27th year of life. The 25 and 26th years sure were eventful - trips to Europe, engagements, home purchases, weddings (LOTS of them), a new puppy and a new last name.
So in looking forward to the new year - I resolve to make it a year less about the physical and superficial, and more about continuing to grow in my life spiritually, physically and in all those other ways that I have struggled with recently.
I have spent a lot of time the past couple of years worrying about other people, events and things - and this year, I vow to challenge myself in new ways to ensure that I become who God is calling me to be in this life.
Cheers to 2011!
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