A Prairie View

Going Back In Time

Even though it was a day we looked forward to for a very long time, I have to say that I am glad this weekend is over. He has graduated. I have gotten through the “entertainment” part of it with the reception afterwards. As I shopped for plates and napkins and decorations and such, it reminded me of a time that I was in a ministry at church where we would host baby showers and such for the new moms to be in the church. I loved putting together events like that, picking out just the right baby shower favors, mayking the whole theme fit together, whether by my design, or following along with a theme of who we were throwing the shower for. I loved those days, and I got a lot of satisfaction and rewarding feelings for my efforts. I would like to work my way back to a place in my life that I could do that. I don’t like where I am right now, physically, emotionally, spiritually. This weekend was a good reminder of that.

Life

We received not one, but two baby announcements last week. A couple in our church just had their first baby, a little girl. And then David’s sister’s son, had his own son last week as well. A time of celebration, I would say. We have alot of new young couples in our church now, so I would venture to say we will be seeing alot of these new announcements. It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago we were making our own announcement at church and to family about our new little one. And now he is graduating high school in just a few short weeks. It doesn’t seem possible, and yet, we all know life goes one. And with that, we have had a few deaths in our church family as well. Expected, and yet, it still hurts, and they will be missed. That is life though. New Life. Life ending. What we do inbetween those two events is up to us.

Doing It Right The First Time

David got after me the other day. He had a card reader built right into his computer, so whenever I want to dump my pictures onto my external hard drive, I let him do it instead of using my USB card reader. What should happen after he does that is that I should delete all the pictures on the card. But I don’t. So, when he goes to dump pictures the next time off the micro sd card that we have, its the same group of pictures again… with new pictures added at the end. I don’t blame him for getting after me. I will try to do better. This last time around, I did delete the pictures off the card, and I even made new folders and got the organized like I wanted to, so when I’m looking for a specific picture, the folder is pretty self explanatory, instead of having to look through each folder. Someday I will figure out that if you do it right the first time, it will save you time and effort in the long run.

Making It Work

Ethan’s car died last week, and he’s been driving David’s little pickup. Which, doesn’t put a hardship on anyone because David has a company truck that he drives everyday. So now we are looking for a different vehicle for Ethan. David keeps going back and forth between selling him his little pickup (which would be a $1500 purchase), or looking for another vehicle similiar to what just died (but ran a year and a half for Ethan), which was a $350 purchase. The one thing that will happen either way is that Ethan needs to get his own auto insurance. He’s been on our policy all through high school (well, since he started driving, whatever year that was). But now that he is graduating and will be moving out — having his own insurance is one of the many things on the list of things will change now that he is an “adult” and on his own. I hope that he can make it all work. There are qualities in him that makes me believe that he will be just fine, and he can make it work. But there are other qualities that … scare me. But, we have been through this before with our 4 other kids. He may fall on his face a time or two, but I think he can figure it out and will be just fine.

Heaven On Earth

With my size and weight, you will never see me utilizing pool floats lounges. But I have to tell you. They look like heaven on earth. I can only imagine there is nothing more relaxing than floating in a quiet pool, with your drink right next to you, sipping away, eyes closed, warm sun. No cares. No worries. I know this this isn’t an everyday thing (although, I’m sure there are people out there that it might be), but to occasionally grab moments in time of serene pool time … yes… my idea of heaven on earth.

Following The Plan

I keep talking to David about different weight loss plans we could try, reading what all we could eat and not eat, and what else would be involved. I’ve even suggested that we could take the medication route. But, I have to agree with him. Even with the best diet pills or right kinds of food, you still have to get up off the couch and do. something. Exercise is a vital part of weight loss. Positive mental attitude is another. There are several different things that have to come together and you make it work, or it doesnt’ matter what you do. Yes, anything you do is going to help. But, to get the full benefit of what you are doing, you need to give each area your best.

I had to laugh at David awhile back. He has gotten into an exercise routine again. When he first started a month or so ago, he would walk evenings — and go to the Rec Center in the mornings. This was great. Except. When he walked at night, he would walk to the grocery store. Its a mile up there, a mile back. Great! you say. So did I. Except, when he walked back, he had 2 plastic bags of groceries. And it wasn’t fruits and vegetables. It was pop and chips. But, he has finally broke himself of that, and now he is just walking in the mornings. I’m proud of him. I know he wants me to join him, but for now … no.

Changing Lives

We have friends who have experienced Argentina travel. Their daughter, who as a sophmore at the time, went on a summer mission trip there. So, they, as a family went with her, and spent 10 days, doing mission work before coming home, without her. The daughter returned home in August right before school started. Traveling there, though, changed their hearts, if not their lives. They fell in love with the children they were interacting with at the orphange they were doing mission work at. Because of that trip, our friends came home and started adoption papers. They wanted to adopt one, if not two children. It wasn’t to be, they weren’t approved within the first year, and they didn’t renew the papers to be processed again. It broke their hearts, but they have faith that God has a plan for them, and this wasn’t in his plans. I love this family. They are always so giving and have always been a blessing in my life. I just wish they lived closer! 2 hours away now is not good, even with the accessibilty of the internet and such. I miss our Sonic runs and going to the park, just to talk. We need to get together for a scrapbook day again. That is usually a yearly event for us.

Feeling Obligated

Every week, just like clock work, give or take a day, David’s mom calls to see if we want to go eat supper with them. There are days, even though we had a light lunch, it feels like I have taken appetite suppressants and I jsut really don’t feel like going. No matter what we order, its always too much, and I always go away feeling overstuffed, and miserable. I don’t go every time, but usually, when I don’t go, I truly am sick. Between strep throat, and the UTI a couple weeks ago — a cold a month or so ago …, I’ve missed a meal or two with them. But, when they ask, we always feel obligated to go. And, it does get me out of fixing supper. I just need to figure out a different course of action though. More salads. I’m tired of feeling over stuffed and bloated all the time!

Moving To A Big Bed

We need to go to Emporia or Topeka sometime this week. Between a birthday party on Saturday, and Easter on Sunday, buying stuff for the grandkids in on our to-do list. Our youngest is 2 almost three, so getting something like baby bedding is totally out of the question. I always loved to at the different quilt tops you could make and wished that I could sew. When Ethan was born, and even for his 1st birthday, he got several really unique baby blankets — some to wrap him up in, and later on, for his 1st birthday, he got one that went on his bed that had animals on it. He loved that blanket, and continued to carry it around long after he was moved to a big bed. But, I’m thinking our grandkids would prefer toys and Easter candy when we go shopping later this week.

Taking It To Heart

When Ethan talks about moving out (he graduates in a 6 weeks), he has all these grand ideas of what his apartment will look like. Something he talks about frequently is a flat panel mount TV. He wants a large screen, and he wants it mounted on the wall. And all the other things that goes with it. Unless he gets a really good, well paying job, he’ll be lucky if he had crates to sit on to watch TV. We do have an extra TV that we will probably send with him when he moves, but it is, by no stretch of the imagination, what he would like to have. He will quickly learn that things like that cost money, and once the bills are paid and money is set aside for a rainy day, then maybe, just maybe, he can think of having something like that. He can dream, and I hope the things he wants and wishes for, he can make happen. But in the meantime, I am hoping the things I have taught him about money and what he can and can’t do has sunk in, and he will take it to heart.

Big Bite Of Reality

Ethan has worked at our local grocery store for almost 2 year — it will be 2 years in May. He has worked part time since he is a student. But all that will change this May. He is wanting to put his two week notice in the first of May — which I understand … with finals and such those last couple of weeks, it would probably be better if he didn’t have to work those weeks. However, unless he has another job lined up after the actual graduation day, we are advising him to just request those 2 weeks off. I also told him he needs to inquire if there is a possibility of him moving to a full time position there once he graduates. If not, then yes, he needs to start looking for for that full time position. We don’t want him sleeping through the summer. He needs to be working. The last 2 summers, he has worked, but in part time capacity. I know he wouldn’t mind going through some sales training at some place like Best Buy. He loves electronic gizmos and gadgets, and would be good at it. However, that would require him moving out of town. I still have a hard time wrapping my mind around that concept. Ethan. Living on his own. Not in this town. I know I felt the same way with hisi older brothers, and they got along just fine. But Ethan is my baby. I am going to have to take a big bite of reality soon, and let him go. I know that. But, its still hard for me to comprehend.

Looking At Graduation Gifts

Graduation is just right around the corner, and we still have decided what we will be getting Ethan for graduation. There is a whole list of things I know he would like. Anywhere from money to a new laptop computer to a different car to even a Jaeger Reverso. I would venture to say though, he will mostly get money. Seems like that is what his older brothers got when they graduated. We won’t go way overboard on whatever we get him for graduation, but we will make sure its special and probably some practical that will help him start his new life. Out of High School Where did the time go? Does not seem possible.

Having It Handy

David got a new-to-him service truck, and he has been saying for several weeks now that he needs to get his tools (tire changing, motor fixing, spring plungers type things) moved over to the new truck. He’s gotten a few things moved, but he needs to get the old truck totally cleaned out so his boss can take it to the consignment auction that he’s in partnership with and see if they can sell it. But, it just seems like we have had cold day after cold day, and he hasn’t wanted to mess with it when its only 21 degrees out. And the one warm day we did have, they had to go rescue one of their trucks, and it was close to midnight before they got home. I don’t understand all the things he has in his truck, but I suppose its better to be prepared than not to have the tools readily handy.

Rewarding Myself With Quiet Time

There are days. And then there are days. And today is one of those days — that I would just like to run off and seclude myself. Not have any committments, to family, to church, to work. Of course that isn’t going to happen, and I won’t be searching for Outer Banks rentals or a secluded cabin in the wilds of Tennessee any time soon. I might pack up our camper and head to our nearest rececreation park and just hide out there. That is about as close as I will get to finding that nice quiet seclusion I long for. There is a lot going on right now, and I just don’t want to deal with it. But life doesn’t work that way, and its best I just hit it head on, deal with it, and then maybe reward myself with a bit of quiet time later.

Organizing The Office

One of the things I want to do this spring is to get into my office and really do some deep cleaning. Decluttering, going through boxes and drawers, and getting rid of anything that we don’t use anymore. One thing I won’t be getting rid of, though, is my rubber stamps. I will always hang on to them, as well as my scrapbooking supplies. I just need to get everything reorganized and a better work area, and then maybe I would have the interest and passion to get back to doing it. Even Ethan had gotten into scrapbooking and rubber stamping, and would love to go to the scarpbook store with me. So, yes, this is definately something we need to get done this spring.

Down For The Count

I wasn’t needing any weight loss pills this weekend. I had very little desire to eat anything. It started with a scratchy throat on Thursday, and a full fledge chest cold complete with a fever by Friday night. I haven’t eaten much more than a few popcicles, which soothed the throat, and drank lots of water. Its been a long time since I’ve been sick, so I guess I was due. And, I didn’t really stand a chance not picking up the bug. Ethan had it a couple of weeks ago, and David and our boss had it last week. It was only a matter of time before I was going to get it. And sure enough, just like clockwork, the symptoms set in and I was down for the count. At least most of it was over the weekend, and hopefully, I’ll feel up to going to work tomorrow. Ethan was out for a week of school, and David, who has never missed a day of work, regardless of how he has felt, didn’t go to work one day. He does have to keep 15 trucks rolling down the road, so he didn’t stay in bed — he did what he had to do from his computer here at home. But, he was also able to sleep and just feel as miserable as he wanted to between phone calls and finding loads. Its a nasty bug, but does seem to run its course fairly quickly.

Work Comes First

I knew it was bound to happen. Its been a long time since I have been sick. Ethan gets sick quite often. David catches the cold bug at least once a year, if not a couple times. But I have stayed relatively healthy and not caught whatever illnesses ailed them. I think my luck has run out. Ethan missed a week of school last week. David actually missed a day of work, which is totally unheard of. He doesn’t miss work for anything. But. He felt that bad. Misery loves company. I have a scratchy throat. Chest hurt. Pressure behind my eyes. I am hoping I can just cruise through what needs to be done at work, and come back home. We didn’t do Ethan’s birthday supper Wednesday because David was feeling so lousy. I have to stay in the game and not whimp out by staying home. We need to go do this supper. Its already after the fact, and he doesn’t have to work tonight, so we are going. No matter how bad I feel. I just have to get through a day of work first.

Running Out Of Time

Ethan has his choice of colleges narrowed down to 3 — Coffeyville, Allen County, and ESU. He’s also thought about Manhattan Christian College, which would be awesome if he went there. Our church supports that college, and several of our youth have attended. If he did attend MCC, I know several people he could contact to help him with his search for employment. Manhattan jobs, from what I hear, are there, you just have to get out there and put your applications in early, with it being a college town and all. I have an aunt and uncle that live there as well, so it wouldn’t be like he would be totally on his own while he attended college there. He’s running out of time though. He needs to decide where he is going and what he wants to do.

Rolling Down The Road

For the first time in a long time, David didn’t work all weekend. He worked on our carport yesterday, and on his truck today. He did leave around 3:00 this afternoon and did some trucking company stuff — but a normal weekend, he goes out and pays the drivers Saturday morning (which he did this weekend as well), and then works on trucks the rest of the morning, afternoon, and evening. And then does it all over again Sunday afternoon. And it was starting to get to him, and he was getting frustrated (read: mad) about it. I told him he just needs to take a step back and just say “guys — I’m not working this weekend”. His boss doesn’t make him workends, but its one of those deals where David is the dispatcher, plus he does some mechanic work on them. When the trucks are only home on the weekends, he didn’t see any other choice but to work the weekends.

But, he found that he could NOT work and the world didn’t get to an end. And as far as I know, all his drivers will be driving tomorrow. I know we were at the point where extended stay hotels might have been an option to get him away for awhile. He truly was at exploding point. I really hope this weekend made a difference, and that he learned that he can take some time for him, and he company continues to roll.

Checking Our Policy

As David and I move into our 50’s, and Ethan turns 18, we need to check into term life insurance rates online and see where we stand with life insurance. We took out a life insurancy policy whe Ethan was just a baby. And it basically would give David, or myself, depending on which one of us dies, a decent amount of money that show tide us over our remaining years. We also left a small sum (I’m thinking $10,000) to each of the kids, except for Ethan. The amount he would receive was substantially more, to go into a trust fund, and go to the person would raise him, if both of us died at the same time. But, that was based on when he was a young child. He’ll be 18 next week. So, we really need to look at the policy and make the necessary changes that puts him at the same level the rest of his siblings are at. I know that sounds cold and callous, but now that he is (or will be) legally an adult, he is no longer the “baby” of the family, and in this instance, he will be treated just like his brothers and sisters.

Finding A Comfortable Writing Pen

I think I have David talked into ordering more promotional pens for the trucking company. We ordered some last year, and have gone through most of them. We also ordered some at the church, only they were bigger, and I really like those alot better. I’m having problems with my thumb these days, and holding a thinner pen and writing with it is almost painful. The bigger pens are much better. I need to check the prices and see how they compare just ordering cold. I know what all the literature says when we get the samples and the special offer. If we need to wait until we get a sample, we might have to do that, but I’m going to look anyway, and get my facts before approaching David with the idea again. When I asked him last week, he gave me the go ahead, but at the sample price, which I understand. We might check out a few other companies as see what their prices are as well. But one way or the other, I’m ordering new pens!

Getting On Track

I threw some suggestions out to David to what we could do in our quest to lose weight and get healthy. I know that exercise and building muscle is all part of it as well, but I don’t think we will be buying any NO2 Black any time soon. We just need to concentrate on watching the meal portions, and watching the pounds drop off. From there add the normal exercise. Once we hit that point, then we can look into working on the muscle strength and building. I know it can be done; but that is just part of the big picture. Right now, we just need to focus on the small snapshot, and what we can do to change our lifestyle and just be a healthier person. As a family. This needs to be done as a team, not as an indvidual. David agrees. Its just a matter of getting it all figured out and following through — something we can all live with.

Closer To Home

Ethan plays this “well, ya know, you COULD get me …… for my birthday (or Christmas or graduation). Just fill in the bank. I haven’t ever heard him ask for New York Yankees tickets, although if he were given tickets, he would go in a heart beat. And then while in New York, he would take in a couple of Broadway shows. Thats his really attraction to New York. The shows. He has been in numerous plays with the High School drama club, and would love to attend a Broadway show. We have kicked around that idea for graduation, and haven’t totally put the idea to rest yet. We sitll have a few months to iron the details if that is what were going to do. But, I imagine, when its all said and done, we will do something that involves staying a little closer to home for him for graduation.

Package On The Way

Ethan will be bugging me to death until the mailman brings me the memory card for his Game Cube his brother gave him for Christmas. We ordered it this weekend, so it will probably be a week before it gets here. Yes, we probably should have ordered it the day after Christmas, but I wanted to wait until Ethan actually had the game system in his hands, and we knew it worked. Our kids don’t do a gift exchange between them, but for some reason, my middle son decided to get (or try and get) Ethan a Game Cube. He got it off eBay, and didn’t pay a fortune for it, but nonetheless, it was a nice gesture. It came in this weekend, so Ethan has been playing pretty much non-stop, when he has been home. He went to church this morning, and worked this afternoon. Quartet practice after that. And, he did help me a bit with supper. He wanted fried chicken, but said he wanted done a special way. So, I made him do it, and then I did the rest. He’ll be gone Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, so hopefully, it will come in there, and I won’t have to listen to him “did it come, Mom, did it come?” He can be such a little kid sometimes [grin].

Driver Of The Year

We were sooo lucky a few days after Christmas. We had gone to Topeka to celebrate Christmas with David’s daughter. After opening presents, we went out to lunch, and then we all went our seperate ways to shop. It had started snowing when we were eating, and got progressively worse. While we were shopping, we even considered getting a room in Topeka and not trying to navigate our way home in a snowstorm. However, we had more shopping to do, so we forged on.

It was then, when what could have been a very bad situation happened. A car pulled out from a side street. We were going slow. They were going slow. However. When you have no traction, and all is snowy and icy, it doesn’t matter how slow you are going. And it was all in slow motion, as David tried very hard to keep us from hitting them, or vice versa. As well as not rolling our vehicle, as he was forced into the side of a ditch to keep from hitting her. I am happy to say that my husband deserves the “driver of the year” award and we won’t have to be hiring a Lexington personal injury lawyer or any other kind of lawyer or repair shop. I don’t know how he did it, but he kept from hitting her, and kept us from rolling as he did what he had to do to drive us out of it. That was such a scary moment, and seemed to just keep going and going and going. Would not have been a good way to end the year. We have had this vehicle less than a month. We just got rid of a vehicle that had scrap marks and a dent down the side. Someone was most definately looking over us!