Job Dilemma

So, since school let out for the summer, and I've been home in California, I've realized I really don't miss working full time. Ya, there have been moments of boredom, but I think I'd rather take those than the pure exhaustion I had after working all day and having to deal with everything else (house, dogs, etc). I got really burnt out, and started a countdown til summer about 3 weeks before school let out. I feel guilty leaving my dogs for 8+ hours a day (they have been wonderful since I've been home).

I like my job enough, but I definitely got into a rut. I love the kids, but there were definitely the annoying aspects of the job (constantly being late for lunch, running around all day, doing other random things completely unrelated to my job, etc). And I was planning on quitting when Nick comes home anyway - because if I was tired and stressed out from working full time now, I'm really not going to be happy when Nick is home. Plus, he has a month off that we're definitely going to take, and it would be nice to have a flexible schedule if he has the day off. And I can't say I ever planned on being an aide, or want to do it for the rest of my life. Plus, we're probably moving in the next year or so anyway.

So, I'm pretty confident that I should just put in my notice now and not be completely exhausted for 3-4 months if I'm going to be quitting anyway. After that though, is when I start feeling lost. Obviously, it would be nice to do something related to my degree (Animation), or I'd be fine with doing something with kids. But past that, the plan kind of peters off, and I lose my direction. I flash back to all of the hours I've spent searching for a job. And then I remember that the economy completely sucks right now. And then I get overwhelmed and stressed out.

Like I said, I'm confident that my current job is too much. But I could really use some guidance from God past that point. Like, where to look, what I should be doing...

I also know that I go crazy if I'm not doing anything. If there is anything I learned from the 6 months we spent at Fort Knox, that is definitely not an option. So I know God has a plan, and this is what he wants me to do, I just really could use some more direction. At the very least, I know I could volunteer, or sub as a last resort (although I'd just want to do it for aides, not teachers). But if I'm going to all this trouble, I can't imagine it will be so I can sub. Although I really need to keep in mind that this is probably only going to be for less than a year. I think I could survive subbing.

So, please pray that I would get more direction and confidence with the rest of this plan. I'm going to be drafting an E-mail to my principal in the next week or two, and I will be going from there. I would consider doing my job part-time, but I don't know if that is realistic.

Some Pictures

Here are some pictures from the drive out to California and my niece and nephew being cute:

The dogs hanging out at our campsite in New Mexico

My brother setting up the tent

The vast expanses of New Mexico


Visiting Baby Luke (who is coming home in the immediate future!!!)


Ready for Vacation Bible School


Katie "going night-night"


Danny wearing a tissue box on his foot

My boys hanging out with their new friend Brinkley

Photo op with Katie

I Made It

So I made it to California at about 9:30pm last night after about 12 hours of driving. Yesterday was exhausting, but it was so nice to finally get here. The dogs were total rock stars. We actually forgot they were in the car sometimes because they were so quiet.

The drive was fairly uneventful. The first night we stayed with my old youth pastor and his family. It was really nice to see them, and I absolutely love the kids. The dogs adored them as well and were relatively good. Unfortunately, they were a little hyped up that night and disrupted my sleep a bit with their "defense mode".

On Friday morning, we took off for New Mexico and drove about 8 hours before we reached our campsite. We hung out at the site for awhile and just relaxed. My brother is the camping champion and set up the tent in like 2 seconds flat. Oh, and by the way, if you ever go camping, an air mattress is the way to go. I don't think I've slept that well in awhile, but I think the rain helped some too (it rained all night). The dogs were really good and only barked a few times from their kennels in the car.

Saturday's drive was pretty boring. There wasn't much in most of New Mexico or Arizona (at least where we drove through), although there were a few random things that made us laugh- like the Petrified Forest National Park with its teepees, random statues and petrified wood. It was a really long day though and we were very happy to get to the lovely state of California. Oh, and that first bite of In-n-Out Burger was quite delicious!

Thankfully my dogs are getting along very well with my parent's dog- Brinkley. I was slightly worried about attempting to mix 3 male dogs together, but so far its been really successful, despite a little barking & attempts at asserting dominance. But now they're all buddies.

Today was busy, but fun. We celebrated Father's Day with my dad this morning by having one of my family's signature breakfasts (Ranch breakfast, mmm), opening presents and playing a board game. Then, I got to visit my grandparents at the nursing home. It was a little hard to see them in that kind of place, but they're both doing pretty well. My grampa was really chatty and my gramma is doing awesome for having hip surgery a week ago.

Then, I drove up to L.A. and got to meet my nephew Luke at the hospital. He is the most precious thing I have ever seen. He is a little champ and is steadily growing stronger. I got a sweet little smile from him and he even grabbed my finger a little. :) Don't worry, I'll post pictures soon. My sister and brother-in-law would appreciate any and all prayers that he continues to progress in this way and that he would get to come out of the hospital asap (rumor is, he could be home in 2 weeks at the latest!). So far, he has beaten all the odds, and we can only give credit to God for that.

So far an awesome visit and I've only been here about 24 hours! I start Vacation Bible School tomorrow with my 3 year old nephew Danny, can't wait!

Burning Up

Yes, that's right, my A/C is STILL not fixed! I was pretty much counting on the fact that it would be fixed today. That is practically what got me through the weekend. But, I called the repair place today and they said they were waiting on the home warranty & should be getting approval today. So, I waited around...and waited around, and finally called the home warranty people when it looked like it wasn't happening today. Well, AFTER the repair place closed for the day, they called me and let me know that we are going to have to pay $200 for a part that they don't cover. Awesome.

Frankly, I don't really have any other choice and am dying in this heat, so I'll suck it up and get it fixed. But this is ridiculous. I noticed my A/C acting funky (but still somewhat working) on Memorial Day. I called the home warranty people last Saturday (June 6th) and it is ridiculous that it is still not fixed. It was at least working somewhat until the repair people came out on Friday, and ever since then, I have had to endure 90+ heat. I'm so sick of this. I feel like it is taking its toll on my sanity. I feel like I'm emotionally unstable and the littlest things just set me off. And, of course, I waited around at home all day holding onto the hope that the repair people would come. Now I'll only get to enjoy the A/C (that is, if it actually gets fixed before I leave...not counting on it) for a few days before I go home to California. And I've had to endure 4 days without any A/C, and almost a month of a very warm house. I'm so sick of this, you have no idea.

If this isn't a strike from Murphy's Law, I don't know what is. I just wish Murphy would cut it out already. I think I've had my fill of home repairs, and chaos, thank you very much.

Month 6 in Review

We have officially made it halfway through this deployment, woohoo!!! It kind of feels like it has gone by quickly, but at the same time, December seems like it was a million years ago. Not too bad of a month, although there has been a bit of stress lately. A lot went on this month though, including:

- I finally made it to the end of the school year! The last week was a little tough because I was really unmotivated and ready for summer. But I made it! There were some fun events in the last couple weeks like Field Day and a Parade. As much as I'll miss my kids, I'm very excited for a break!

- Had another "coffee"- this one was a BBQ. I had lots of fun just hanging out and chatting with the ladies from my unit and was bummed I had to leave early. I also ended up going to Relay for Life that night, which is a walk for cancer research. I was there for about an hour, and it was a really powerful experience.

- I found a stray dog wandering around my neighborhood and managed to keep it in a crate in my garage for about 2 days before Animal Control picked it up. She was really cute and I hope she found her owners!

- The same weekend, Rufus ended up hurting his paw, which turned into a trip to the vet where he was sedated and got all bandaged up. Also that day, Scout decided to eat a frog and ended up regretting that decision immensely. I think I will be ready for kids when we have them after having to baby my dogs so much, ha ha! In other dog drama, Rufus decided to kill a snake and bring it inside the house...TWICE. Gross!!!

- I also started a Bible study with my friends Rachel and Alice, that I'm totally loving so far! We've gone through 3 chapters of the book Bad Girls of the Bible and What We Can Learn From Them. We have a really good group dynamic and I'm loving the fellowship and different perspectives we all bring.

- Nick and I celebrated our 2 year Wedding Anniversary on June 2nd. I can't believe it was 2 years ago! It wasn't exactly how I wanted to spend an anniversary, but it turned out alright.

- Got Nick's truck fixed, FINALLY! Unfortunately, it is still sitting in front of my house. I swear, I have tried every means of selling it, but no one wants to buy it. I actually had a test drive yesterday, but it turned out to be pretty much a waste of time.

- I've been enjoying my summer break and have already gone to the pool twice! Not a bad life...
Unfortunately I have been forced to endure the hot weather more than normal, as my A/C has been broken for over a week. It gives me an excuse to pretty much live in my bathing suit though! I've also been napping and relaxing as much as possible.

- Had a great visit from my father-in-law. He is awesome and fixed a million little things around the house. Don't know what I would've done without him!

- I'm anxious to get home to California because there has been a lot of drama going on! My grampa got moved to a nursing home, my gramma broke her hip (and is recovering really well thankfully), and my sister was in the hospital for 40 days before delivering my new nephew, Luke, on her birthday, June 13th. Phew!

Countdowns: 50% done with the deployment (woooo!)
67% of the way to R&R!!!
- Although both might be a little sooner than expected!

Deployment Goals

Get in shape- Still doing well with working out and walking the dogs. It was a little difficult without A/C though. I also heard the new EA Sports Active game, which sounds really interesting.

Cook 2 new meals per month: This month, I cooked a Hawaiian style brisket and Guava Chicken. Both were reallllllly good! I got them from a Hawaiian cookbook Nick & I picked up on our honeymoon if anyone is interested. Nick was born on Guam, and lived there for a few years, so he's been very influenced by that and I thought he'd like these meals when he comes home. I joke that he likes to think he's Pacific islander, even though he's really Scottish and Irish (a.k.a. unable to tan). I'm not complaining though. This food is yummy!

Church- We had our last Heroes at Home group last Sunday. It was kind of sad, but I feel like I got a lot out of it. And it is kind of nice to only go to one service, except once a month when I work in the nursery.

Read a new book every month- Still reading the Harry Potters again. I'm almost done with the 4th one now.

Work on the House- I think my father-in-law's visit definitely falls under this category. I also cleaned up my closet and put a bunch of clothes in a box to donate.

Budget- Managed to stick to the budget fairly well, except for the unexpected truck and vet expenses. Thankfully we've already saved a bunch of money, so we weren't hit too hard.

Dog Training- I've actually been watching a lot of the Dog Whisperer lately, and we're making some progress.

Prayer Requests

- My family still needs a lot of prayers between my grampa, gramma & new nephew Luke

- That everything goes smoothly leading up to and during my roadtrip home

- Joy in all circumstances (even when my A/C is broken and it is 94 degrees in my house!)

- As always, Nick's safety and the safety of his platoon

- That we would grow stronger during this deployment, both individually and in our marriage

- That time would go a little bit faster now that we are on the downward slope of this deployment

Upcoming Events

- My trip home to California for 6 weeks!

Welcome to the World Luke!

My nephew, Luke Palmer was born last night at 4:12am. He couldn't have picked a better day, as today is my sister(his mom)'s birthday!!! It also would've been cool if he was born yesterday, of course, as his siblings were both born on the 12th (of October & December), but I think this is just as fitting. Despite being a month early, he weighed in at 6 pounds, 7 ounces. Although he is in the NICU, he is pretty stable. I would definitely check out his blog for more info (and a picture!). I am so excited to be an aunt again and can't wait to meet the little guy! There are a few prayer requests on his blog, but I also ask that you pray for my sister & brother-in-law, as this has been a really trying time for them. But we are all so excited that he has entered this world, and are confident that God has a plan and is in control. Welcome to the world Luke!

Overheating

So I mentioned yesterday that my A/C was on the fritz. The A/C repair people came again today and found out that I have a freon leak. After looking for like 30 mins, they couldn't find it. For some reason, because I called them through a home warranty service, they had to talk to the warranty people again and it looks like my A/C probably won't be fixed until Monday (again, because they're not open over the weekend). The weather forecast for this weekend is high 90s. Its 95 outside right now and I'm dying because the house is 91. I don't know how I'm going to make it 2 more days like this. I'm totally miserable and cranky, and all the little things are making me lose it. I hope it cools down enough tonight so that I can actually sleep. I'm so frustrated.

Not that Nick could really do anything if he were here, but its times like these where I really hate this deployment. When everything is out of control and I'm the one who has to deal with it. On top of all this, we finally have someone interested in Nick's truck and I'm attempting to do a test drive tomorrow. One of Nick's friend's said he'd help, but has yet to tell me a time that works for him. Awesome. I'm crossing my fingers that the potential buyer actually has a decent offer and we can get this truck sold. But it's just another huge burden I really don't want to deal with. I feel like its way too much responsibility for me to handle on my own and I'm just over it.

All of this isn't helped by the fact that I start my trip to California next Thursday. I'm pretty on top of everything else (only have a few things on my to do list), but I'm really not in the mood to take on something else.

My gramma was supposed to have her hip surgery today. I haven't heard anything yet, but I would appreciate prayers her way, and for my grampa. And a nice, cool breeze headed my way sure wouldn't hurt anything.

Chaos

Things have been a little crazy around here lately. First of all, my A/C has been on the fritz. Not so fun when we're averaging 90 degrees around here. My house has gotten up to 87 degrees...yuck. I actually called my home warranty service and they sent out some A/C people (like 2 days after I called since apparently they weren't open over the weekend?). It worked for about 24 hours, and then died again. Awesome.

Anyway, that's not all that's been going on. My poor parents are being run down to the bone. Thankfully, I'm heading out to California next Thursday, woo! But anyway, my 92 year old grampa was having a hard time and falling a bunch, so he was checked into a nursing home. Thankfully, my grandparents already live in a retirement home, so it was really easy for my grandmother to get him moved to the adjoining nursing home. But, the drama doesn't stop there, unfortunately. My grandma managed to slip and fall yesterday and break her hip. Ya, needless to say, we're all a little antsy for me to get home.

Otherwise, things have been fine. In true summer fashion, I went to the pool today and worked on my tan. It was pretty awesome.

Summer!!!

So I haven't updated in a few days because frankly, things have been pretty boring around here since school let out. Don't get me wrong, I am VERY happy its summer. I just haven't been doing a whole lot, which is fine by me!

My 4 hour workday on Saturday was fine. I had to really seek out stuff to do and ended up taking a nap afterwards. It ended up taking me like 2 days to recover after that. Waking up at 6am on a Saturday should be illegal!

Anyway, the rest of the weekend was good. My father-in-law came to visit and fixed stuff around the house for me, and set the house up for when I'm gone (light timers, etc). He was awesome! He even hung up pictures for me. The two major things he did:

Fixing the patio cover, yay!

I think it looks pretty sweet now, and when it rains, the metal roof will sound cool


Put Nick's beloved Bronco on jacks

This will help the wear & tear on the tires since it's just sitting while Nick's gone (because I'm too short to drive it & it won't start at the moment)

Yay yay yay! The dogs absolutely adored him too. They were soooo good & quiet (well, mostly) and just loved having somebody around all the time (they've been much better with me being home all the time too).

But ya, otherwise I've just been lounging around, taking naps, getting random stuff done and ready for my roadtrip next week (I can't believe its so soon!!!). I'm trying to relax as much as possible now because I know it will be a whirlwind of babies, toddlers and family when I'm home! I can't wait though. And I'm trying to be as social as possible too, now that I actually have free time! So far this week includes bible study, a movie night, a sushi dinner, and a pool day! Did I mention I love summer?!

Last Week of School

Today was the official last day of school for the kids! Unfortunately, I have to go in tomorrow for 4 hours. On a Saturday, ew. Can't say I'm very excited about that. And it looks like most of the teachers have things under control (I had to pretty much look for stuff to do today), so I'm not totally sure how I'm going to fill up the 4 hours tomorrow! So close!!! Needless to say, I'm eager to get on with summer already! But I'm almost there!!!!

Anyway, this last week was great! On Tuesday, I got an award from one of my favorite classes- Best Aide! On Wednesday, we had an all-school parade around the neighborhood, which was really fun! On Thursday, I got to watch a really cute puppet show by one of the third grade classes. Then, today was just fun chaos. Pretty much all the classes played games and just had fun and signed each other's shirts and yearbooks. I felt like a celebrity with all the stuff I signed!

It was sad saying goodbye to all of my babies- thankfully not too many were moving, which is surprising for an Army town! I'm definitely going to miss them this summer!

I also got two really sweet cards and a gift from a couple of classes! I really feel appreciated and loved at that school. Although I'm definitely ready for a break, it'll be great to get back to them this fall.

In other exciting news, Rufus decided to bring a (thankfully tiny & dead) snake inside the house! I managed to grab the broom and sweep it outside & then HE BROUGHT IT BACK IN!!! Ahhhhhhhh! At that point, I had a total girlie moment and ran outside with the heebie jeebies. Thankfully, he listened to me (he's a smartie) and brought it back outside, where I think he ate it. Ew. Definitely no kisses for awhile. I'm just glad he brought it back outside, otherwise I don't think I'd be able to sleep tonight! My father-in-law is visiting this weekend though, so if it happens again, he can take care of it, ha ha! I don't think I'll be able to go in the backyard barefoot or at night for awhile though....definitely another ew moment!

2 Years Ago Today....

2 years ago today, Nick and I got married!!! I can't believe it was that long ago! Here are a few pictures from that lovely day:








Oh, it was a gorgeous day! I don't know that I could have asked for anything more. I just watched our wedding video, and all of those little details I had forgotten about just came back to me. I cried through half of it, but the other half was filled with laughter and smiles. I can't believe that was 2 years ago!!! Watching that video, everything else just melted away.

Obviously, I wish I was spending my anniversary differently (the dogs are good company, but I can think of better company), but I got to talk to my husband, know people were thinking of me (thanks for the cards and messages!!!), got some love from the kids at school and I got these beautiful flowers:




Sigh. Not too shabby. And although we are a world apart, I know we love each other and the future holds many more anniversaries which we will get to spend together. And I can't help but smile when I think about that day...