Positive

I was talking to my co-worker today, who said that she felt like she didn't get anything done today. Then she said she had done this one thing (the first step in a few-step process). So I said, "Well, you're a third of the way there!" And she laughed and said, "You're so positive it makes me want to throw up."

:-D

Heyy

So I like to check my stats. I know my site doesn't get a lot of hits, and that's fine, because it's pretty much "under the radar" for the time being. But I checked today, and just wanted to give a shout out to my readers in Germany and Moldova! Thanks for stopping by :) Hope you have enjoyed reading about my crazy self so far!!

BHE

aka Best Husband Ever :-) My husband is amazing. He is so knowledgeable and skilled. He has done so much work around the house/yard that it's 2/3 new house. This weekend he hooked up our water softener (last weekend he installed it). He has also painted, installed (a lot of) trim, installed wood floor by himself, built an entire shed without blueprints or a real written plan, repiped our basement, built a dog pen, built multiple shelves (1 large one in our living room, in the front closet for shoes, above the stove for storage, above the washing machine/dryer, and our back storage room in the basement), replaced/installed 2 new toilets, and before I got here, had remodeled or mostly remodeled both bathrooms, not to mention all the things I didn't list here. I am so God-lucky to have him as a husband! :-)

Come on...

I don't shave my legs that often (see my Hippie post). However, when I do, I don't cut myself. It has literally been years since I cut myself shaving. I don't even remember the last time it happened... until LAST NIGHT! I was almost done and BAM right on my ankle bone I nicked a little piece of skin off that bled like crazy. I could not believe it! At least now I have an Ariel bandaid keeping it safe and clean :)

California!

AKA my last vacation/trip for a while!!

It feels like I have been gone more than home, recently. But now that I am home from California, I only have two vacation days left, so I will be saving those!! Too bad that means it's June and I can't go do anything for the rest of the year!! But I'm glad I went home, and that we went to Hawaii. Now I will be able to get into the groove at work, which will be a good thing.

Sean's graduation was great! He played a piano solo and gave a speech. I'm so proud of him! It's hard to believe my LITTLE brother (who is 16 and taller than me! has been for a while!) is now a high school graduate!! awwww!!!!! He's a great brother. I'm excited to see what God has planned for him.

Of course, I also got to see Rowan!!! Man, he is so different from when I saw him in March! He was so tiny, and now he is chubby and has dimples and is SO smiley! He is just a sweetie. He took a little nap on my lap, which warmed my heart, of course! I was more than happy to have Rowan time when I was out. We went out to dinner Thursday night (my mom and Ken, Ian and Kathryn, my grandma and cousin, and Taryn and Kyle) and it was really fun. We went to one of my favorite restaurants - Hibachi (like Benihana, a Japanese steak place where they cook right in front of you on a big griddle-surface). Oh that was delicious!!

Saturday, we went to the Huntington Library and walked around the gardens, which are very extensive and just beautiful! Saturday night I spent with Ian & Kathryn (and Rowan) and Sunday, after breakfast, I left for Wisconsin! All in all, it was a great trip. :)

Satisfaction

I just wanted to take this time to say that I like my job. I like many, many things about it. I don't know that I would say it's "perfect," but it's a really great fit for me. And I realized today that I like being an hourly employee. Yes, that means that most likely I make less than the salaried employees. But my time is more my own. I get to go home at 5 (or 5:15 on crazy days!) and I don't have to bring my work home with me. So even though I'd probably make more if I were salaried, I like things the way they are. I like what I do.

That's my little thought for the afternoon.

That, and I'm so excited to be going home to California tomorrow night! I'm going to come home exhausted but happy. It would be ideal if Adam (and the Jasp!) could come with me, but... I'm still excited that I get to go home to visit. And I get to watch Rowan on Thursday! What a lucky girl I am!! My favorite, snuggly, almost-three-months-old cutest nephew Rowan is going to get so many snuggles and kisses!! :-)

Happy Birthday!

Today is Jasper's 2nd birthday! He slept downstairs last night, but I brought him up early this morning to snuggle and I sang "Happy Birthday" to him :-) I am going to give him a new toy and a water bottle. He is the best dog ever! Your mom and dad love you, Jasp!!!! I can't believe you are TWO!!!

Realization and Tea

So I had a realization this morning - God made me the way I am for a reason. I may not know what that reason is, but there's a reason I am the way I am. And so even thogh I don't always know what He was thinking or what He has planned, it's reassuring to know that He did it on purpose. It's also nice to know that I'm not the first person to realize this... "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Psalm 139:14

Also, I got a new tea to try last night, and I wasn't sure how much I would like it, but I tried it this morning and I think I really like it! It is Stash Tea Lemon and Ginger, and when I sweeten it with honey, it tastes like Trix cereal! I think it would taste less like that without the honey, but since I like Trix and I like sweetened tea, it's kind of a win-win! :-D

Hawaii!

Hawaii was great. Adam and I both prefer Kauai, but Oahu was fun, especially the beach (of course) and Waikiki. I got an AWESOME swimsuit there, it fits perfectly and is so cute! We went to Pearl Harbor, the Dole pineapple plantation, a bunch of beaches (including Sandy Beach, which has the highest number of broken backs and necks in the nation... I pretty much stayed on the shore there!), and the world-famous shave ice place on the North Shore (in Haliewa). We had such a great time, and it was really relaxing. Really good to see Rob and Jenni, too :-)

I will try to get pictures on here soon...

Trust 2.0 etc

I think I am doing better on the whole trust thing. Ask me again later, but for now, I'm doing better :)

On Saturday (May 12th) we are leaving for Hawaii!! Adam, Joe (his brother), and I are going to spend a week in Oahu visiting Rob, their other brother, and Jenni, his wife. It is going to be awesome! I hope to spend a lot of time just laying on the beach, and I fully plan on returning to Wisconsin a lot browner than I left! (yes I use sunscreen, but still!) The main thing I want to do besides the beach is to visit Pearl Harbor. Veterans and the Armed Forces, and the appreciation and memorialization of them, always get me choked up, so I might get a little teary. We'll see! Apparently we are also going to go to a pineapple plantation, or something like that. Which is another thing I definitely want in Hawaii - fresh pineapple! Pineapple here on the mainland doesn't even hold a candle to fresh Hawaiian pineapple! I could eat it all day, except that I would get crazy canker sores, and even then I probably still would!

We leave Saturday May 19th in the evening and get back to Chicago around noon on Sunday. That is going to be one l-o-n-g day, but totally worth it :)

Probably won't write while I'm gone, so "see" you when I get back!