Last week at a family gathering, the discussion turned to spiders, and everyone was talking about how they hate spiders and are super, pied-ninny-style afraid of them.
I was sitting there thinking, "I'm so tough. Spiders don't scare me! Look at my big muscles!"
But I didn't say anything aloud. Because I'm humble like that.
Well, fast-forward to today (approximately 138 hours later). I was in my basement starting a load of laundry when I saw a big, old, nasty spider in the laundry pile.
Normally I just shrug and go on with my life (because I'm oh-so-brave and I have big muscles) (except, no I don't), but that thing was BULBOUS. Like, all caps BULBOUS. And it was moving in slow motion.
Do you know how scary a spider is when it's moving in slow motion? I mean, you would think a jittering race car spider would be scarier, but no. The slow motion ones are far worse because you can see all the details, and you just don't know what they're up to.
So I needed it to die, but it was on a soft surface (i.e. laundry), so I knew the odds of smashing it the first time were slim. I decided to flick it to the ground and then go at it like a tornado with teeth. BUT... I lost it (of course!!! Darn, slow-moving spider!)
I started throwing laundry around but couldn't find the BULBOUS beast, so I had a moment of panic and started dancing around like Father Abraham with a right and a left (and all the rest...)
But no spider.
I calmed myself down (obviously I'm not as brave as I thought), started the load of laundry, and went upstairs to recover.
Later that day I went back downstairs to change the laundry, and guess who I found!
The BULBOUS beast was curled up nice and dead...
...in the bottom of my washer!
Yep.
I washed the crap out of that spider.
So I did what any good wife would do. I scraped up his now-little body with a dryer sheet (why, oh why must they get so small when they die? I want credit for facing the whole dang spider!) and took him upstairs so I could take a picture and text it to Scotty.
Notice how I didn't include it in this post? YOU'RE WELCOME.
Saturday, February 22, 2014
Friday, February 14, 2014
Fifteen on the Fourteenth
Today marks a momentous occasion in my life.
Yes, it is Valentine's Day - and a happy one to you. May you find joy in the people and things that you love, be it a spouse, your children, your best friends, or simply donuts.
(I happen to love all of those things very much).
(Mmmm.... donuts...)
But the momentous occasion is only slightly Valentine-esque.
Today, Scotty and I have been together for half my life. It just happens that our relationship began on Valentine's Day, but it could have just as easily been an ordinary Friday (or Sunday - because 15 years ago February 14 was on a Sunday).
From this point forward, we have been an item for most of my life.
How cool is that?
(Scotty won't reach that point for another two years - ah, the perks of being younger).
We have had a very happy life together, Scotty and me. Isay type that with complete honesty - not with any embellishment to make us look good online. Marriage has been relatively easy for us (it's the parenting thing that has knocked us off our feet time and again). I give full credit to Scotty. He is an amazing husband, and he puts up with a lot from me.
We balance each other well and have just enough similarities to make things work. To celebrate our fifteenth anniversary,* here are 15 ways Scotty and I are different, and 15 ways we are the same:**
1. Scotty is street smart, I am book smart.
2. Scotty loves playing in water, I get in a pool and I'm like, "What now?"
3. I love to read, Scotty prefers to be read to.
4. Scotty can fall asleep anytime, anywhere; I have to decide to fall asleep.
5. Scotty wants the car window rolled down, I want it up.
6. Scotty can do (a lot) more push-ups, but I can plank (a lot) longer.
7. I wanted four kids, Scotty wanted two.
8. Scotty loves Swedish Fish and Circus Peanuts, I am tempted by neither.
9. I like ketchup on my hashbrowns, Scotty finds this repulsive.
10. Scotty loves to study maps and topography and commits it all to memory, I look at a map and think about butterflies.
11. I am the uptight and anxious one while Scotty is laid back.
12. Scotty is the peacemaker, I'm the one who wants to fight.
13. I like Maroon 5 and Lady Antebellum, he likes Gwen Stefani and Karmin.
14. My thirst is quenched by water, Scotty drinks water then complains that he's still thirsty.
15. If you give me a candy bar, I'll eat it right away. If you give Scotty a candy bar, he'll save it for later (so I eat that one, too).
1. We both love chocolate and peanut butter.
2. We are both prone to people watching - sometimes we spend our date nights staring at other people.
3. We love taking our kids to Disneyland (and we have a dream that someday we will be able to sponsor a Disneyland trip for another family).
4. We enjoy road trips and get along well for hours in the car.
5. We love strategy board games.
6. We don't care much for pasta, especially alfredo.
7. We love Brad Paisley - don't mock us!
8. We are both committed to living debt-free.
9. We're both punctual.
10. We both have problems with portion control.
11. We both come from blended families.
12. We grew up in the same neighborhood and went to the same schools.
13. We both enjoy driving stick-shifts.
14. We both have blue-eyes and used-to-be-blond hair.
15. We're both happy we found each other.
*Just to clarify, this is an anniversary of our relationship, not our marriage. I don't need anyone thinking that I got married when I was 15, but if you're curious, we will celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary in a couple of months. So yeah, I was 19. A whopping 4 years older than 15!
**I totally ripped this post idea off of Cyndi.
Yes, it is Valentine's Day - and a happy one to you. May you find joy in the people and things that you love, be it a spouse, your children, your best friends, or simply donuts.
(I happen to love all of those things very much).
(Mmmm.... donuts...)
But the momentous occasion is only slightly Valentine-esque.
Today, Scotty and I have been together for half my life. It just happens that our relationship began on Valentine's Day, but it could have just as easily been an ordinary Friday (or Sunday - because 15 years ago February 14 was on a Sunday).
{August 2000}
From this point forward, we have been an item for most of my life.
How cool is that?
(Scotty won't reach that point for another two years - ah, the perks of being younger).
We have had a very happy life together, Scotty and me. I
{March 2003}
The Differences
2. Scotty loves playing in water, I get in a pool and I'm like, "What now?"
3. I love to read, Scotty prefers to be read to.
4. Scotty can fall asleep anytime, anywhere; I have to decide to fall asleep.
5. Scotty wants the car window rolled down, I want it up.
6. Scotty can do (a lot) more push-ups, but I can plank (a lot) longer.
7. I wanted four kids, Scotty wanted two.
8. Scotty loves Swedish Fish and Circus Peanuts, I am tempted by neither.
9. I like ketchup on my hashbrowns, Scotty finds this repulsive.
10. Scotty loves to study maps and topography and commits it all to memory, I look at a map and think about butterflies.
11. I am the uptight and anxious one while Scotty is laid back.
12. Scotty is the peacemaker, I'm the one who wants to fight.
13. I like Maroon 5 and Lady Antebellum, he likes Gwen Stefani and Karmin.
14. My thirst is quenched by water, Scotty drinks water then complains that he's still thirsty.
15. If you give me a candy bar, I'll eat it right away. If you give Scotty a candy bar, he'll save it for later (so I eat that one, too).
The Similarities
2. We are both prone to people watching - sometimes we spend our date nights staring at other people.
3. We love taking our kids to Disneyland (and we have a dream that someday we will be able to sponsor a Disneyland trip for another family).
4. We enjoy road trips and get along well for hours in the car.
5. We love strategy board games.
6. We don't care much for pasta, especially alfredo.
7. We love Brad Paisley - don't mock us!
8. We are both committed to living debt-free.
9. We're both punctual.
10. We both have problems with portion control.
11. We both come from blended families.
12. We grew up in the same neighborhood and went to the same schools.
13. We both enjoy driving stick-shifts.
14. We both have blue-eyes and used-to-be-blond hair.
15. We're both happy we found each other.
{November 2012}
**I totally ripped this post idea off of Cyndi.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
I wear slippers as shoes almost every day {and seven other random facts}
Fact #1: I made a pork roast for dinner tonight, and I kid you not, that thing looked like an alien gave birth in my crock pot.
Fact #2: I have black toenails again from running.
Fact #3: This makes me laugh. So hard.
It might not be so funny if I hadn't found it on the day that facebook suggested I like Zion National Park which had just posted information about an upcoming mountain lion lecture.
Fact #4: Sign me up for that!
Fact #5: Behold, the aftermath of Daisy's preschool Valentine's Day party:
Update: After I posted this, I received an e-mail asking about the pillows on my couch in the photo of Daisy's Valentine rampage. How observant you are, reader! You can read more about those pillows on my old blog (HERE). The 'E' is currently missing, so instead of celebrating LOVE, we are celebrating LOV.
Fact #2: I have black toenails again from running.
Fact #3: This makes me laugh. So hard.
It might not be so funny if I hadn't found it on the day that facebook suggested I like Zion National Park which had just posted information about an upcoming mountain lion lecture.
Fact #4: Sign me up for that!
Fact #5: Behold, the aftermath of Daisy's preschool Valentine's Day party:
Fact #6: Behold, Nicky's Valentine's Day box:
It's a booger monster.
(Cut me some slack! There was an alien in my crock pot tonight!)
Fact #7: "Ya know, Britt, a lot of the things you are posting right now aren't really formatted as 'facts.'"
"Hush, child."
Update: After I posted this, I received an e-mail asking about the pillows on my couch in the photo of Daisy's Valentine rampage. How observant you are, reader! You can read more about those pillows on my old blog (HERE). The 'E' is currently missing, so instead of celebrating LOVE, we are celebrating LOV.
Friday, February 7, 2014
Three Things
Today I made some no-bake cookies, and while I was eating ten two of them, I thought about Scotty and how no-bake cookies will always remind me of him. Scotty loves no-bake cookies and has been designated as our No-Bake Cookie Maker when he is home. Sometimes I have to suck it up and no-bake my own cookies, but on the unofficial list of His and Her Roles in our marriage, no-bake cookies are His.
This got me thinking about other things that remind me of Scotty. Like bikes:
Scotty loves mountain biking (any biking really). He has been known to do some pretty dangerous things on a bike (note to self: do follow-up post with pictures). For our first anniversary, he gave me a mountain bike.
Something else that makes me think of Scotty is... well... junk. Any random junk sitting around.
This is such a typical scene in our home. Power Bait, carabiners, golf balls, used matches, you name it. Scotty has so much random junk laying around. Frankly, it's annoying, but it's something I can't change about him because then he wouldn't be Scotty. So as irritated as I am about the box of antique tobacco pipes, the fifteen outdated college textbooks, and the two gigantic reels of industrial strength velcro that have been sitting on top of the computer desk for the past six months, I also recognize the endearing part in their presence.
(But seriously, Scotty - will you please clean off the top of the computer desk?)
These little reminders got me thinking about some of the things that make me think of my children.
For Nicky, it's Legos.
She is the most feisty writer. She fills notebook pages with random letters, mostly consisting of M, O, and I. "MOIMOIMOIMOI" over and over for pages and pages. And don't you dare try telling her that an "m" is an "M" because, to her, lower case does not exist, and she express that to you in the loudest, cruelest way imaginable.
Don't mess with the Queen of the Alphabet!
Power Rangers are also a Daisy thing.
It's too-big shoes on tiny feet - anything she can stuff her toes into and clomp around in for a while. Her brother's snow boots, her sister's dress-up shoes, her dad's slippers.
(This photo shows one of the times the doll strolled failed and we had a Zoe tantrum).
There are many, many more things that will always make me think of Scotty, Nicky, Daisy, and Zoe even though Nicky will eventually outgrow his blankies, Daisy will need bigger cowgirl boots, and Zoe will start walking on her own without the aid of a doll stroller.
(Scotty will probably always like no-bake cookies, bikes, and leaving his odds and ends all over the house).
I don't know what my family will say reminds them of me. Maybe they will say books:
Or colored pens.
Or old windows.
This got me thinking about other things that remind me of Scotty. Like bikes:
Scotty loves mountain biking (any biking really). He has been known to do some pretty dangerous things on a bike (note to self: do follow-up post with pictures). For our first anniversary, he gave me a mountain bike.
Something else that makes me think of Scotty is... well... junk. Any random junk sitting around.
This is such a typical scene in our home. Power Bait, carabiners, golf balls, used matches, you name it. Scotty has so much random junk laying around. Frankly, it's annoying, but it's something I can't change about him because then he wouldn't be Scotty. So as irritated as I am about the box of antique tobacco pipes, the fifteen outdated college textbooks, and the two gigantic reels of industrial strength velcro that have been sitting on top of the computer desk for the past six months, I also recognize the endearing part in their presence.
(But seriously, Scotty - will you please clean off the top of the computer desk?)
These little reminders got me thinking about some of the things that make me think of my children.
For Nicky, it's Legos.
That picture was taken by Nicky, himself. He sometimes takes my camera and does photo shoots of wacky, random things. There were about 30 photos of Lego creations on my camera last week. Nicky loves Legos and has lots of them. They're in every nook and cranny of the house, and I've been known to vacuum them up intentionally just to get them out of the way.
(Don't tell Scotty).
Pete the Cat will also always remind me of Nicky - of how he fell in love with I Love my White Shoes when his grandma read it to him on Christmas Eve and how he memorized the book and had the confidence to "read" it to his preschool class. For his sixth birthday, we made a "Pin the Buttons on Pete the Cat" game, and Nicky asked me to hang the poster I painted on his wall.
Most of all, blankies will always make me think of Nicky.
For a few years, he was attached to his "Thomas," which is really just a scrap of fabric with unfinished edges. We had to replace it twice, and he always noticed the difference in the fabric. Luckily he always preferred the new one because it was notably softer. As he has gotten older, he has grown attached to different blankets. Nicky will find every blanket in the house and drag them all into his room to sleep with. If there is ever a blanket missing, you can bet it's in Nicky's room somewhere. One of Nicky's favorite places to be is wrapped up burrito-style on the couch.
With Daisy, it's her trademark cowgirl boots.
She wears them everywhere and with everything. She'll march into dance class sporting them with her leotard. She'll wear them with her swimming suit or her Christmas dress. Daisy is a girl who knows no rules - fashion or otherwise.
Construction paper and alphabet letters will also always make me think of Daisy.
She is the most feisty writer. She fills notebook pages with random letters, mostly consisting of M, O, and I. "MOIMOIMOIMOI" over and over for pages and pages. And don't you dare try telling her that an "m" is an "M" because, to her, lower case does not exist, and she express that to you in the loudest, cruelest way imaginable.
Don't mess with the Queen of the Alphabet!
Power Rangers are also a Daisy thing.
(Note the cowgirl boots)
I don't even know where Daisy came to know the Power Rangers, but last fall it became an obsession overnight. Now it's "Go, go Power Rangers!" all day long! And, "Mommy, I'm the pink one, and you're the yellow one!"
I can't say I'm sad about it - I was a closet Power Rangers fan in my younger years and spent many hours in the garage with my friend Cheyenne beating up a punching bag.
For Zoe it's beaded necklaces and just about anything that she can drape over her arm or string around her neck, much to a mother's worry.
And it's the doll stroller. The one toy that I can occupy her with for longer than thirty seconds (but not that much longer).
(This photo shows one of the times the doll strolled failed and we had a Zoe tantrum).
There are many, many more things that will always make me think of Scotty, Nicky, Daisy, and Zoe even though Nicky will eventually outgrow his blankies, Daisy will need bigger cowgirl boots, and Zoe will start walking on her own without the aid of a doll stroller.
(Scotty will probably always like no-bake cookies, bikes, and leaving his odds and ends all over the house).
I don't know what my family will say reminds them of me. Maybe they will say books:
Or colored pens.
Or old windows.
Or, more likely, time-out, piles of dirty dishes, or crazy mom face.
Maybe I should start taking credit for the no-bake cookies that turn up every now and then.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
It Happened During the Witching Hour
**Some Confessions**
- I have a friend whose husband gets off work around 3:00 every day. I pass her house on the way to pick up my son from school, often catching a glimpse of her husband arriving home for the day causing fiery darts of jealousy to shoot from my eyes. I can't help but think about how much easier my life would be if my husband came home that early (which is not to say that I think my friend has it easier than I do - I would just really love for my husband to come home at 3:00).
- Every day at around 4:00 in the afternoon, all hell breaks loose in my home. The baby is tired but won't nap so she screams and clings to my legs. Everyone is hungry. Nicky needs to do his homework and practice the piano. The house is always a disaster - to the point of being unsanitary. And I am literally walking on egg shells. Because there are often egg shells smashed on the floor (this is a Daisy thing - don't even get me started...) It truly is... THE WITCHING HOUR.
**A Tale**
The tale I am about to tell is nothing unusual. Things like this happen at my house on a daily, nay, hourly basis. Usually I do not blog such tales because I'm too busy cleaning up the mess to sit down and type out the story. This time, though, I just need to let it all out.
Yesterday at the start of THE WITCHING HOUR {insert wailing sound effect here} I was met by an unfortunate toilet circumstance.
{Yep, this is a poop story. Look away now, ye weak of stomach}
{via}
Nicky went downstairs to use the bathroom and started yelling, "Something is wrong!!!"
I went down there and was immediately met with a horrible odor and the sight of a very large amount of unflushable poo in the toilet bowl.
Did you catch that?
Poo that WOULD.NOT.FLUSH.
Ugh!!!
There it sat, refusing to release from the bowl - like my kid had digested a heavy-duty adhesive or something.
(I should interject that this was not Nicky's doing. He was just the poor soul who found it).
I flushed the toilet a few times hoping that the problem would solve itself, but it didn't. In fact, it got worse because the toilet became clogged, leading me to believe that the culprit must have flushed massive amounts of toilet paper down the toilet.
Thus, a plunger was needed.
So I plunged.
In a toilet full of poo.
Adding to the unsanitary nature of my home at 4:00 in the afternoon.
I must be a very powerful plunger because I managed to break the handle off.
Uh... oops?
Then, after the toilet became unclogged, I still had to deal with the poo.
You don't wanna know.
You.
Don't.
Wanna know...
I had to do a lot of cleaning - the toilet, of course, but there was also the floor, the walls, and the bathtub. And then there was the whole "dealing with the dripping, poopy plunger" thing.
All of this while the baby cried and kept trying to come into the bathroom, and Daisy emptied the pantry looking for food (oh, that child and her constant out-of-control snacking!!), and I was supposed to be cooking dinner for a friend.
Which leads me to the announcement of a new house rule:
{via}
Rule #42: No one is allowed to poop after 12 p.m.
There can't be poop during the WITCHING HOUR. There just can't! There's too much other crap to deal with!
There are so many details I had to leave out, but thank you for letting me get that off my chest. I will now return to not blogging about poo until further notice.
There are so many details I had to leave out, but thank you for letting me get that off my chest. I will now return to not blogging about poo until further notice.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Degreed
Scotty will graduate from school this year. I have two thoughts on this:
Thought #1: Hooray!
Thought #2: Oh, no!
The "Oh, no!" part comes from the fear that when school is done, something else will take it's place (like a second job or a time-consuming church calling) and nothing will really be different.
The "Hooray!" part, well... that's obvious, right?
It is my hope and dream to be able to have my husband come home at the end of the work day. I want him to eat dinner with us and be a part of our evening routine. I want him to see his children while they are awake and hold the baby while I sweep the kitchen floor. I want him to go to bed with me instead of staying up for an extra three hours to do homework.
It has been a long, hard journey getting this degree.
Back when Scotty graduated high school, he planned to become an electrician. He spent a year working for an electric company before serving a two-year mission for the LDS Church. The plan was to come home from his mission and work for that company again while doing an apprenticeship program to become a journeyman.
While Scotty was on his mission, two major events happened. First, the terrorist attacks of September 11. Then the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Both of these events resulted in a decrease in work, and the company had to start laying people off, so when the time came for Scotty to return to work, there wasn't a place for him in the company.
This was a huge devastation for us; we were completely lost. It had been "The Plan" - it was what Scotty wanted, and it was what I wanted, and our lives were supposed to fall perfectly in order after his mission.
Scotty spent about two weeks talking to all of his connections, trying to get his foot in the door at the electric company. One day, he ran into an old friend who worked at a warehouse. The friend suggested that Scotty come work with him. Scotty took the job thinking it was something to do for a few weeks before a job came through with the electric company.
Well, a job never came through, so Scotty's dreams for his education and career were crushed, and there was no Plan B.
So Scotty worked at the warehouse and quickly moved into management. He made decent money for a 21-year-old, and I was working, too, so we bought a house. Scotty's boss was very anti-school, so anytime Scotty made any mention of going to school, his boss would say things like, "You don't need to go to school. I'll make sure you're making X dollars in X amount of time. You'll be able to retire at age 35."
We were so young and impressionable. We fell under the guy's spell and believed every promise he made. Now, obviously, we know a lot more about life. And guess who got laid off and had to go to school?
Yep. That guy.
After a few years or working at the warehouse, Scotty came home one day and said, "I need to go to school."
It scared me, but I knew it was the right thing to do. I was pregnant with Nicky, our first baby, when Scotty started school.
Since Scotty had a good job and we had a house and a baby on the way, he started small by taking a few night classes at the community college. That became the routine, semester after semester, and when you work full-time and have a family, a few night classes can be overwhelming. Scotty ended up getting laid off from that "good job," and fortunately, quickly lined up another "good job," and the routine continued.
He graduated from the community college and transferred to a university. Then more night classes. Then a few day classes when things started getting less flexible (thanks to his employer for letting him attend class during lunch breaks and allowing him to leave work for class and work late to make up the time).
Now there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel. Two more semesters. TWO!!!
It will have taken nearly eight years. Scotty has been in school for the entirely of our children's lives. Save for two semesters Scotty had to take off for financial reasons, our children have never known their dad as a non-student. They have gone days at a time without seeing him because they go to sleep before he gets home from school at night and wake up after he leaves for work in the morning.
It has been very, very hard.
So this is a very exciting milestone for us.
It's not the path that I would have hand-picked for us. If I could start over, I might do it differently. But then again, as hard as it has been, we will come out of this in a good place. We've had our home for ten years, and we got it for a very good price. Scotty has a decent job - it has its inconveniences, but they have been so kind to work with him and his schooling. We will also have zero school-related debt. The first four years, we paid for everything ourselves. Then, for the last four years, we've been able to get some grants and reimbursements. We still have to cover some of the expense ourselves, but only about 25% of it. It was hard to do since our income is "just enough" for what we need (we've relied heavily on Christmas money and tax returns).
Maybe, just maybe, it has been the better way to take the journey.
(For us).
(I don't think I would ever recommend it to anyone else).
Thought #1: Hooray!
Thought #2: Oh, no!
The "Oh, no!" part comes from the fear that when school is done, something else will take it's place (like a second job or a time-consuming church calling) and nothing will really be different.
The "Hooray!" part, well... that's obvious, right?
It is my hope and dream to be able to have my husband come home at the end of the work day. I want him to eat dinner with us and be a part of our evening routine. I want him to see his children while they are awake and hold the baby while I sweep the kitchen floor. I want him to go to bed with me instead of staying up for an extra three hours to do homework.
It has been a long, hard journey getting this degree.
Back when Scotty graduated high school, he planned to become an electrician. He spent a year working for an electric company before serving a two-year mission for the LDS Church. The plan was to come home from his mission and work for that company again while doing an apprenticeship program to become a journeyman.
While Scotty was on his mission, two major events happened. First, the terrorist attacks of September 11. Then the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. Both of these events resulted in a decrease in work, and the company had to start laying people off, so when the time came for Scotty to return to work, there wasn't a place for him in the company.
This was a huge devastation for us; we were completely lost. It had been "The Plan" - it was what Scotty wanted, and it was what I wanted, and our lives were supposed to fall perfectly in order after his mission.
Scotty spent about two weeks talking to all of his connections, trying to get his foot in the door at the electric company. One day, he ran into an old friend who worked at a warehouse. The friend suggested that Scotty come work with him. Scotty took the job thinking it was something to do for a few weeks before a job came through with the electric company.
Well, a job never came through, so Scotty's dreams for his education and career were crushed, and there was no Plan B.
So Scotty worked at the warehouse and quickly moved into management. He made decent money for a 21-year-old, and I was working, too, so we bought a house. Scotty's boss was very anti-school, so anytime Scotty made any mention of going to school, his boss would say things like, "You don't need to go to school. I'll make sure you're making X dollars in X amount of time. You'll be able to retire at age 35."
We were so young and impressionable. We fell under the guy's spell and believed every promise he made. Now, obviously, we know a lot more about life. And guess who got laid off and had to go to school?
Yep. That guy.
After a few years or working at the warehouse, Scotty came home one day and said, "I need to go to school."
It scared me, but I knew it was the right thing to do. I was pregnant with Nicky, our first baby, when Scotty started school.
Since Scotty had a good job and we had a house and a baby on the way, he started small by taking a few night classes at the community college. That became the routine, semester after semester, and when you work full-time and have a family, a few night classes can be overwhelming. Scotty ended up getting laid off from that "good job," and fortunately, quickly lined up another "good job," and the routine continued.
He graduated from the community college and transferred to a university. Then more night classes. Then a few day classes when things started getting less flexible (thanks to his employer for letting him attend class during lunch breaks and allowing him to leave work for class and work late to make up the time).
Now there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel. Two more semesters. TWO!!!
It will have taken nearly eight years. Scotty has been in school for the entirely of our children's lives. Save for two semesters Scotty had to take off for financial reasons, our children have never known their dad as a non-student. They have gone days at a time without seeing him because they go to sleep before he gets home from school at night and wake up after he leaves for work in the morning.
It has been very, very hard.
So this is a very exciting milestone for us.
It's not the path that I would have hand-picked for us. If I could start over, I might do it differently. But then again, as hard as it has been, we will come out of this in a good place. We've had our home for ten years, and we got it for a very good price. Scotty has a decent job - it has its inconveniences, but they have been so kind to work with him and his schooling. We will also have zero school-related debt. The first four years, we paid for everything ourselves. Then, for the last four years, we've been able to get some grants and reimbursements. We still have to cover some of the expense ourselves, but only about 25% of it. It was hard to do since our income is "just enough" for what we need (we've relied heavily on Christmas money and tax returns).
Maybe, just maybe, it has been the better way to take the journey.
(For us).
(I don't think I would ever recommend it to anyone else).
Friday, January 10, 2014
2014: Sing a New Song
So far 2014 has been decent to me. I have been really excited to make some resolutions for this year (I started brainstorming back in September), but it has taken me until now to really ponder about them and decide what I want to accomplish this year.
On New Year's Eve, I stumbled across a blog post that mentioned U2's song, "Forty." I'd heard the song before but never really thought anything of it. I ended up watching a music video on Youtube, and I was really drawn to the words as I contemplated the changing year.
I took a moment and read through Psalm 40, and so much of the passage stood out to me that I decided to make my theme for the year:
(No trendy meme or banner necessary. I'm too lazy).
I don't usually assign my years a theme (though I tried it once and didn't really carry it with me past February), but the theme fits so perfectly with what I want from 2014 that I had to go with it. This year I want to change my perspective on many things, improve my spirituality, and truly become better. In other words, I want to sing a new song - a different one than I have been singing for the past year.
With that, here are some of my resolutions for 2014:
Run a half marathon before June. An actual, organized event is ideal, but I reserve the right to run a "private" half marathon should my finances prevent me from paying a registration fee (which is very likely). I signed up for an 8-mile race in June, and the race was just changed to 12 miles, so I might as well train for a half marathon.
Win something. I can win by skill (sometimes) but not by luck. I want to win something this year - a drawing, a giveaway... heck, I'll even settle for BINGO at a family party (even though I hate BINGO, but my hate is a direct result of the game not being winnable by skill).
Reach the weight recommended by my doctor. I'm 15 pounds away. It should be possible, but I'm not one to work overly hard to lose weight. I like my goodies too much.
Read the Book of Mormon as a family. We're already working on it. We figure if we read two pages with our kids every day, we can finish by the end of the year (and we can afford to miss a few days... which we will... because we aren't perfect).
Read The Power of Everyday Missionaries and the Old Testament. It should be easy, but the book? I just can't bring myself to do it. I've had it sitting on my shelf since July of 2011 when my stake leaders gave it to me and asked me to read it. And the Old Testament? I have no problem starting it, but I usually give up somewhere during Abraham's life (sorry, Abe).
I also have a lot of resolutions that are either personal, embarrassing, or not "measurable" (in other words, it's kind of hard to check them off the list) that I won't go into in depth here, but they are the ones that will really help me to "sing a new song:"
On New Year's Eve, I stumbled across a blog post that mentioned U2's song, "Forty." I'd heard the song before but never really thought anything of it. I ended up watching a music video on Youtube, and I was really drawn to the words as I contemplated the changing year.
"I waited patiently for the Lord
He inclined and heard my cry
He lift me up out of the pit
Out of the miry clay..."
I took a moment and read through Psalm 40, and so much of the passage stood out to me that I decided to make my theme for the year:
Sing a New Song
I don't usually assign my years a theme (though I tried it once and didn't really carry it with me past February), but the theme fits so perfectly with what I want from 2014 that I had to go with it. This year I want to change my perspective on many things, improve my spirituality, and truly become better. In other words, I want to sing a new song - a different one than I have been singing for the past year.
With that, here are some of my resolutions for 2014:
Run a half marathon before June. An actual, organized event is ideal, but I reserve the right to run a "private" half marathon should my finances prevent me from paying a registration fee (which is very likely). I signed up for an 8-mile race in June, and the race was just changed to 12 miles, so I might as well train for a half marathon.
Win something. I can win by skill (sometimes) but not by luck. I want to win something this year - a drawing, a giveaway... heck, I'll even settle for BINGO at a family party (even though I hate BINGO, but my hate is a direct result of the game not being winnable by skill).
Reach the weight recommended by my doctor. I'm 15 pounds away. It should be possible, but I'm not one to work overly hard to lose weight. I like my goodies too much.
Read the Book of Mormon as a family. We're already working on it. We figure if we read two pages with our kids every day, we can finish by the end of the year (and we can afford to miss a few days... which we will... because we aren't perfect).
Read The Power of Everyday Missionaries and the Old Testament. It should be easy, but the book? I just can't bring myself to do it. I've had it sitting on my shelf since July of 2011 when my stake leaders gave it to me and asked me to read it. And the Old Testament? I have no problem starting it, but I usually give up somewhere during Abraham's life (sorry, Abe).
I also have a lot of resolutions that are either personal, embarrassing, or not "measurable" (in other words, it's kind of hard to check them off the list) that I won't go into in depth here, but they are the ones that will really help me to "sing a new song:"
- There are three friendships or relationships I have specific goals for
- I am trying to do 5,000 things to improve my home/family life
- I have a bad habit I'm trying to overcome
- I'm trying to get in a better place spiritually and emotionally
In addition to my resolutions, this is an exciting year for two reasons:
- In February, Scotty and I will have a 15th Anniversary (of being "together," not of marriage), so from that point on, I will have been with Scotty for more than half my life!
- After EIGHT YEARS of night classes, Scotty is graduating from school!
So here's to the new year!
It's going to be a good one!
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