Striving to be better at life

Tomorrow kicks off Lent, and most people have been very curious as to what I will give up this year.  In years past I've given up chocolate (too many times to count), Dr. Pepper (ditto), and even cursing (sadly, more than once).  I've been thinking about what to give up since the first of the year.  And here is what I decided: sloth and gluttony.

As defined by Wikipedia:

Sloth is the neglect to take care of something that one should do. The modern view goes further, regarding laziness and indifference as the sin at the heart of the matter.

Gluttony is the over-indulgence and over-consumption of anything to the point of waste. In the Christian religions, it is considered a sin because of the excessive desire for food or its withholding from the needy.

Allow me to explain.  I find myself almost constantly wondering why I can't get the same things done that other people do.  Why is my house always a mess?  How does that person have time to do C & D when I can't even get A & B done?  These questions coincide with my extreme dislike of hearing people say, "I don't have time."  My first step on my road of self-enlightenment is that I choose to say, "I don't make the time/prioritize my time correctly."  Here are the things I know: I make time for TV, fiction reading, etc.  So my focus during Lent is to watch less TV, read no fiction, do more housework, spend more quality time with my family - pretty much not to overindulge in anything not productive.  I have established additional goals like (1) must do dishes every night and (2) must accomplish one additional task each night.

My goal is that these behaviors will become habits after Lent, and my focus in life will be sharpened.

What do I think God meant when he gave me infertility?

I find it hard to believe that after all these years I'd never seen this poem. Bang on.

What do I think God meant when he gave me infertility?

I think he meant for my husband and I to grow closer, become stronger, love deeper. I think God meant for us to find the fortitude within ourselves to get up every time infertility knocks us down. I think God meant for our medical community to discover medicines, invent medical equipment, create procedures and protocols. I think God meant for us to find a cure for infertility.

No, God never meant for me not to have children. That's not my destiny; that's just a fork in the road I'm on. I've been placed on the road less traveled, and, like it or not, I'm a better person for it. Clearly, God meant for me to develop more compassion, deeper courage, and greater inner strength on this journey to resolution, and I haven't let Him down.

Frankly, if the truth be known, I think God has singled me out for a special treatment. I think God meant for me to build a thirst for a child so strong and so deep that when that baby is finally placed in my arms, it will be the longest, coolest, most refreshing drink I've ever known.

While I would never choose infertility, I cannot deny that a fertile woman could never know the joy that awaits me. Yes, one way or another, I will have a baby of my own. And the next time someone wants to offer me unsolicited advice I'll say, "Don't tell me what God meant when he handed me infertility. I already know."

--Author unknown

Kansas Thanksgiving: Day 4 - Black Friday and Day 5 - Homeward Bound

Elliott waited until Thursday night to have a meltdown about sleeping with the DVD player upstairs and insisted on sleeping on the loveseat downstairs.  That wouldn't be important if my mom hadn't been planning to sneak off to Target at midnight to buy my Kindle.  We didn't get much sleep, and the wee hours of Black Friday came even rougher because of it.  All 5 of us trudged to Manhattan (only 20 minutes away) to secure our deals.

We even managed our yearly visit with Santa while we were there!

Even with altering our sleep patterns, it made for some tired drivers starting home on Saturday. And I will never let my mother forget what a whiner she was. Granted, we drove the first 8 hours (non-stop, no joke) in the rain, but that doesn't call for being the worst rider in a car...beating out the 6 year old.

Kansas Thanksgiving: Day 3 - Turkey Day!

At the very end of our shopping trip at the Commissary, I finally found cornmeal.  I had two options, a huge sack or a container.  I opted for the container for convenience...

So, this was my first Thanksgiving to ever be in charge of the cooking.  On the menu:

• Turkey
• Dressing*
• Gravy
• Squash casserole
• Sweet potato casserole
• Black-eyed peas*
• Cranberry sauce
• Crescent rolls
• Pumpkin pie

I did the prep work on Wednesday night, making the work on Thursday not that stressful.  I say that, but then again I burned the peas.  Obviously peas were the easiest thing on the menu, but my multitasking got a little out of hand.  Also, I knew it was odd that my cornbread was very dense.  And dense cornbread leads to dense dressing.  It took days and discussion with my mother-in-law before I realized I had bought STRAIGHT cornmeal with no self-rising capability.  AHA!  All in all, though, my meal was a success.

The spread; Emi busted out the fancy plates!

We had a nice, quiet lunch followed by playground time and a walk with the dogs.

 

 

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Truth be told, next year I will probably long for a repeat of such a fantastic Turkey Day.

Kansas Thanksgiving: Day 2 - Post Tour

So, was it worth it to take an entire day to drive to Kansas?  Yep...

After enjoying a leisurely morning while Jeb was at work, which included inducting Emi into the Christmas Vacation club, we set off to Fort Riley.  We had lunch, visited the PX, then got a driving tour of post once Jeb got off work.  The oddest part was when he took us to the simulator and we witnessed lower-ranking soldiers "sir'ing" him.  Jeb, Emi and Elliott all participated in the simulator.  Mom and I were unable to even watch due to our equilibrium issues.  We took the opportunity to get in some exercise walking around parking lots.

Next up, we went to the Blackhawk hangar:

 Uncle Jeb gave Elliott the full rundown.

We finished up our day with our Thanksgiving grocery shopping at the Commissary.  Elliott had reached his limit by this point.

My hunt for cornmeal will be important for Day 3...

Kansas Thanksgiving: Day 1 - Drive Time

Better late than never...
 
On Tuesday, Nov. 22, we set out for Ogen, Kansas, to have Thanksgiving with Jeb and Emi.  We left at 5 am on my sweet boy's 6th birthday.  He was a great rider, keeping himself entertained with his Leapster, new TAG, coloring books, and of course, his trusty DVD player*.

Burger King birthday lunch

Me: Elliott, we are going to stop at a cheese store.

Elliott: Do they sell cheesecake?

Me and Mom: hahahahahaha

The only difficult part of the trip was driving through Kansas City.  This heavy traffic coincided with it getting dark and the DVD player dying, the combination of which led to an Elliott meltdown.  Thank goodness for the books on tape, wisely suggested by Aunt Kathy.

We finally arrived 14 hours later!

Uncle Jeb and Aunt Emi had a birthday surprise (and spaghetti) waiting on us!

I'm Alive...and Well

Dear Friends,

No, I have not fallen off the face of the earth.  The last 8 weeks at work have been so insane that I've just been a bit off kilter.  I have lots of tidbits to share with you, but today I'll stick to the most exciting ones.

Our last papers made it to the agency Tuesday!  
Our dossier was shipped TODAY to China!!!

As if that is not exciting enough, today is the 6th anniversary of Elliott's referral.  Wow, talk about a great day for the packet to go!

I am very anxious for us to get our Log In Date (LID) in China because then we will be eligible for a referral.  I'm tired of waiting! (said in my best cry baby voice)

If you don't really "get" me, then you won't realize how hard it was for me to go ahead and hang baby girl's stocking:

But I did...