When Mom Gets Sick

The past couple of weeks have been interesting...and challenging.  I finished the fall semester two weeks ago today and threw myself into getting ready for Christmas. Despite my plans to rest, I was doing anything but resting. Finishing my shopping, taking Christmas card pictures, helping my husband get ready for Christmas events, going to church Christmas parties....

Then, while teaching my preschool Sunday School class last Sunday (the 17th), my throat started hurting. It went downhill from there. I think I just had a bad cold, but it hit me really hard. I'm sure my immune system was down from the stress and exhaustion of school. Whatever it was took me down in a hurry.

Suddenly, Mrs. "I-get-up-at-5:00-a.m.-every-day" was rolling out of bed at 9:00 a.m. Instead of running 90-miles-an-hour at work, I was rescheduling appointments and struggling to even show up at work. I think this was God's way of saying, "Look, you need to rest, and if you won't take time out for, I will make sure you get the rest you need." It worked.

Thankfully I felt much better by Christmas. I'm almost 100% now, although I'm still fighting a little bit of a cough. I'm gradually getting back to a normal routine...although I only managed a 7:45 a.m. wakeup time today. Gotta work on that... Its good to be back to even a kind-of normal life though. Back to blogging, back to planning, back to normal, and definitely back to enjoying every second of my Christmas break.

Just What I Needed

The past few days have been amazing.  Today the fun and relaxation ends, and its back to reality, but this short break has been just what I needed to give me the 'second wind' I need for finals week.

I had both school and work Monday and Tuesday, but from Wednesday on, I had neither.  Tuesday my youngest was at the doctor's office - they thought he was in the beginning stages of strep. So we took it easy this week, staying home almost the entire time.  He's feeling like his old self again now, thankfully.

Wednesday I stayed home and cleaned house while Robby visited church members in the hospital.  When he got back, the boys stayed with him while I bought groceries and picked up our smoked turkey.  I spent the rest of the day cleaning, cooking and prepping for Thanksgiving, and watching movies.  (Unknown was awesome!  The kids saw Rio and Spy Kids 4.)

Thursday we ate, slept, and watched movies.  (Soul Surfer this time.)  At 8:00 p.m. we left home for the madness of Black Friday. Robby and the boys got home at 1:00 a.m. and went to bed.  I slept for an hour and a half in the truck outside of JC Penney, waiting for them to open, and got home at 7:00 a.m.  It was wild!  A few highlights: from Penney's - a cashmere-blend pea coat (originally $200 - I paid $50) and boots (originally $100 - I paid $30); from Walmart - tons of toys, DVD's and video games, including 4 seasons of my all-time favorite TV show, 24, for $10 each, and Scentsy-style wax warmers for $9; and from Target, video game chairs for the boys for $32 each.

We got almost all of our shopping done for the boys, and got lots of stuff for our house too.  We spend a lot of money on Black Friday, but we plan for it every year because it saves us so much money.  Its really fun, too - I guess its the ultimate shopping trip for a bargain hunter like me.

Yesterday we slept (a lot) and watched another movie (RED).  I also finished a book I was reading (The Brotherhood by Jerry Jenkins).  Today its back to reality - buy groceries, clean, do laundry, work on school assignments, study.  I'm ready to wrap up this semester and get to Christmas break!

My latest addiction...

I guess it's about time...I've discovered Pinterest.  (Like I needed another way to spend hours online.)  I completely and totally love it!  I'm having so much fun looking for new recipes, reading inspiring quotes, or finding my inner fashionista.  (I sense a shopping trip to Ross and Marshal's in the near future - I've seen some adorable outfits I'm going to try to piece together.)

I'm still in the process of setting up boards and learning my way around.  I'd love for you to join me!  Check out my Pinterest page...

Don’t You Love It When You're on a Roll?

Friday I was totally out of motivation, but something happened overnight, because I found it yesterday.  I was on a roll!  I love days like that.

I worked until 1:00 yesterday.  It was a busy day with lots of workouts and two Zumba classes.  I was chatting with members, checking people in for classes, and selling merchandise like crazy.  We just received new breast cancer awareness t-shirts, and they are a HUGE hit! 

After work I headed home to my guys.  I had planned for us to eat leftovers, but my latest experimental slow cooker recipe didn't turn out too well, so we picked up lunch instead.  After lunch I headed to the church with Robby and boys.  While Robby worked and the boys rode bikes and watched movies, I worked on school assignments - a journal entry, a medical terminology quiz, an article we have to do a group project on, and a study guide for a big test on Tuesday.  I got so much done.

I headed home around 6:00.  I cut Robby's hair, then loaded the kids up for our weekly grocery shopping trip.  I was the master of multi-tasking, walking through the store shopping and selling Crest white strips via phone for school.  (Great deal on professional strength white strips - I can ship them, in case anyone is interested.) 

At home again, I unloaded groceries, cooked dinner, studied, make a Jello salad and started cheesy chicken in the slow cooker for today's church dinner, and finally collapsed into bed.  Whew!  What a day, but I got so much accomplished.  Today will be more relaxed.  I'm going to try to get to the gym, too - I desperately need to run off some stress!  I can't imagine why....

When Motivation Just Isn't There

I don’t want to do anything right now.  Nothing.  Not housework.  Not studying.  Not exercise.  Nothing.  Except maybe crashing on the couch and mindlessly watching TV.  I have zero motivation.  Even my eating habits have slipped this week, and the scale shows it.

This has been a very long and tiring week, and it still isn't over.  I think that's probably the reason behind my strong urge to do nothing.  I'm exhausted, stressed, and hormonal - not a good combination.  I'm also feeling pretty overwhelmed.  When I feel overloaded I sometimes want to procrastinate, not knowing where to start.

Thankfully my Good Morning Girls group begins Monday.  I'm looking forward to their support and encouragement, and our Bible study on 1 John.  My 5k is just weeks away, so I'm going to make myself get back on track with my training.  I'm going to keep tackling college one day, one class, one assignment at a time.  I'll get there, slow and steady.  I'll find my motivation day by day as I dig in and keep going.

Summer, Laundry, and the OMG Class

Wow.  No other words come to mind as I look back on the last five weeks...except maybe boot camp.  I can see why this class earned the nickname "the OMG class" - oh my goodness how did I make it through that class?

I made it by the grace of God and nothing else.  Thursday I finished the hardest class of my life with my first B ever and officially moved on in the dental hygiene program.  It was brutal.  I shed many tears the past five weeks.  I questioned my sanity and why I decided to do this in the first place.  I was barely keeping my head above water as I attempted to balance work, classes, studying, family and home.  "Home" got the short end of the stick, so on my few days off before fall, I'm going to give it some TLC and catch up on laundry and cleaning.

I'm also looking forward to lots of fun time with my boys.  Thursday night we snuggled up together to watch "Phineus and Ferb. "  Last night we made English muffin pizzas when I got home from work.  Today I'm hoping to squeeze in some geocaching.  They just a couple of more weeks before homeschooling starts anew, so we're going to have some last-minute summer fun while we still can.

Unfortunately my Hello Mornings time and my Hide His Word efforts also got the short end of the stick.  My times were very short.  I feel drained and exhausted mentally spiritually and look forward to spending lots of time in my Ephesians study and my Psalm 143 memorization during the next few days.  I also need to figure out how to make things work better, like my quiet time and my housework plans.  Fall is said to be much easier than summer but I know that none of it will be easy.

One Week Down...

One week of dental hygiene school is now behind me.  I thought I was ready.  To a certain extent, I was, but wow - this is even harder than I expected.  The class is intense - think of it as anatomy and physiology on steroids.  The pace is frantic.  The stress is massive.  I'm still reeling from this week, preparing for my first test (Monday) followed immediately by my second test (lab, on Tuesday), and trying to figure out how to balance full-time school with almost full-time work and still have a life somewhere in there.

Thank goodness for blogging!  I'm so glad I have an outlet.  I can talk about school, or I can avoid the topic altogether...which is probably what I'll do the most, since it consumes pretty much every waking moment.  Sometimes I just want a break from it.  I've been so scattered with my blogging lately, but I promise, I am working to get it all together.

Right now, my major focus is going to be on consistency with two things: Working with Delight on Mondays (all about being a Christian working mom) and Faith Lived Out on Fridays.  I've dabbled with having a second blog called Faith Lived Out, but juggling two blogs with everything else is too much, so I'm combining them by making it a weekly feature on this blog.  More so now than ever, I feel like I'm focusing in on exactly who I am and what I want to share when it comes to blogging, and I can't wait to bring it all into my blog.

On that note: During the craziness of my summer class, I'm looking for guest bloggers for Working with Delight.  If you're a Christian working mom and you'd like to guest post, please drop me an email at amandablogs79(at)yahoo(dot)com.  You can write on any topic you choose related to being a CWM - how you balance it all, time saving tips, the best advice you've received, a devotional, books or other resources that have helped you out, etc.  I need guest posts for August 1st and August 8th.  I have a great guest post lined up for next week - I can't wait!

A Dream Becomes Reality

It was a day late...but today is the day I dreamed of.  I received my acceptance letter for the dental hygiene program.  I'm so excited!  This is the beginning of a new life for me and my family - a new career (once I graduate), more stability, more flexibility.  I've worked so hard for this.

Now the stress begins...along with my acceptance letter is a three page list of deposits due, supplies to purchase, dates to meet for advisement, shots to get, and more.  The supplies with the costs listed equal $1,400 - that's before books, tuition, uniforms, blood pressure cuffs, and stethoscopes.  I have to buy all of my own supplies for the program, so it's definitely going to be a financial burden for us for a while.  Not to mention balancing my almost-full-time college schedule with an almost-full-time job as a manager.  But I know it will pay off.

I'm thinking seriously about framing that acceptance letter...

Today Is The Day That Could Change Everything

Today is the day I've worked for and waited for.  It's the day I've waited over a year for as I studied and took classes.  Today is the day my letter should arrive telling me whether or not I've been accepted into dental hygiene school.  I'm excited and I'm terrified.

This is the day that could change everything.  Getting into the program, and launching a new career when I graduate in just over two years, will change our lives.  It will mean a great, stable, flexible career and a salary three times what I earn now.  It means so much to me and my family.  So I wait on pins and needles, hoping nothing gets delayed and I learn my fate today...

I Thought the Chaos Was Over...

I thought things would calm down after Christmas.  After all, I'm out of college for a few months, all of our Christmas activities and parties are over, and everything should be settling down.  I told myself I'd have time to read lots of books, deep clean and organize my house, start running again, and relax more..so what happened?

January has been chaotic for us!  When you work at a gym, it has a tendency to be a busy month.  Pair that with a death in a co-workers family, switching over to a new software program, and adding even more new classes to our new Zumba workouts, and it's been totally insane.  It's a good kind of crazy - a "business is booming" kind of crazy - but crazy nonetheless.  I'm coming home from work every night exhausted.

Actually, I'm beginning to wonder how I did anything else when I was in college...I think that's because I'm scheduling all the appointments and errands I put off during college.  Long overdue appointments for the doctor and for new contacts and glasses, shopping for things we've needed for months, and generally playing catch-up on life.

I am trying to slow down and enjoy things a little more, though.  I'm playing Band Hero (a family Christmas gift) with my kids (and playing some mean lead guitar if I do say so myself!).  I have gotten a lot of reading done (when I should have been cleaning the house).  And of course, I'm catching up on all those appointments.  At least it keeps me occupied as I wait for those letters to go out from the dental hygiene program.  March seems so far away right now.

What I Really Want From Blogging...

I've been in kind of a transition mode lately when it comes to blogging.  Thanks to Theta Mom's post a few weeks ago on reaching your reader's expectations, and the one year anniversary of the launch of Confessions of a Wannabe Supermom, I've been rethinking my goals, my design, and the reasons why I blog.

I've thought a lot about how I came to blogging last year.  I had tried blogging before, and each time I crashed and burned within weeks, quitting altogether, only to try again later.  Finally, I decided to really research it and have a plan in place before I started blogging again.  I spent several months planning out what I wanted.  In November 2009, I started my blog on Wordpress, but being a newbie, I found myself struggling with the format, and early in 2010, I switched back to the Blogger account I'd maintained.  It took time, but slowly my blog started to build.  I started finding my blogging voice.

Now, after a year, it's time to reevaluate again.  As Theta Mom says, I want my readers to know what they can expect from my blog.  I also want readers to be engaged with me and my blog.  I want readers more than I want followers.  Don't get me wrong, followers are great.  I love mine and want to see my followers really grow.  But more than followers, I want to know that people are reading what I'm writing and that it means something to them.  I want people to identify with me and my blog on some level - whether it's a funny story about my family, something I've learned that helps them, or just the fact that we all know that as much as we'd like to, we can't be Superwoman.

I love the changes I've made so far.  I still have some tweaking I want to do, but I think I'm headed in the right direction.  I want to focus on writing about the things I'm learning, and the mistakes I'm making.  I want to share what I know about finding balance as I juggle the many roles I play in a day.  I want to somehow, in some way, help others by what I share.  Most of all, I want to have fun, and I hope to connect with some great people along the way so we can share each other's journey.

What I planned to say...

I had a great post planned for Monday...I planned to rework Manic Mommy Monday into my new idea, complete with a new button - Survival Tips for Working Moms.  I had an awesome post on balancing our many roles as a mom almost ready to go.

So what happened?  Life happened.  The post didn't get finished.  Instead, I lived the post.  We celebrated my husband's birthday this weekend.  We had our church's Fall Festival, which I always head up. I hung out with my family.  None of my blog plans worked out.

Priorities shifted this weekend.  That's often the case with moms, especially working moms.  It's all about balancing jobs and responsibilities, shifting priorities to take care of whichever role needs you the most at the moment, whether its family, home, mom, wife, or work. 

Last week, it was family and church activities - blogging got put on the back burner.  This week, college gets moved to the top as I get ready for a major test, and blogging gets moved up again.  It's an ever changing map of the things that matter most to me.  To others, it may not make sense.  But to me, in spite of the craziness, its a pretty amazing picture.

Two down...

We're doing a big weight loss challenge at work right now.  That's one of the big perks of working in a gym - helping other women reach their goals keeps me focused on mine.  So anyway, its a team challenge that started this week and I am so excited about it!

I have gained some weight this year...does the "freshman 15" still count if you're 30?  So I decided a few weeks ago to start losing it, and I dropped 5 pounds.  I started this challenge with the goal of losing 10 (although if I can drop 15, I'll be back in the size I wore as a college freshman...)  As of yesterday's weigh-in I've lost 2 pounds!  Woo hoo!

I've had people at work saying, "You look great, you don't need to lose any."  While I appreciate the compliments, I need to say two things...(1) Track suits are very forgiving and hide a multitude of sins. (2) I know when I am not at my best weight, and I feel the difference. 

So I'm determined, I'm keeping my food diary, I'm teamed up with a friend, and we're going to win!  That's what I keep telling my coworkers...on our announcement whiteboard...until my boss takes it away because of our "I'm gonna win" messages.  (Actually she loves it.)  Not that we're competitive or anything...

Working Mom Wednesday - It's the Little Things...

#1. Top Ten ______ (give a top ten list of anything you want!)

#2. Best afternoon pick-me-ups

Top 10 Little Things I Love...

1. Curling up with my Bible early in the morning when the whole house is quiet

2. My husband's smile

3. My boys giggles

4. Coffee

5. Going barefoot (I am a true Southern girl!)

6. Getting lost in a great book

7. Rainy days

8. My favorite jeans (I'm telling you - it doesn't take much to make me happy!)

9. A warm greeting from my dog when I get home

10. Being home



I found a great (new to me) meme over at There's A Book, and I'm so excited about linking up for the first time!  This week's question is...

Describe your dream home and where it would be located.

Okay, this is an easy one for me...I've been dreaming of this for years!  My dream house would be in central Tennessee, somewhere close to Nashville.  I want to see something like this...

I would love to have a restored antebellum home...

...with a beautiful, Southern style, tree lined driveway...

...and room for horses...

It makes me happy just dreaming about it...

Check out other dream homes at There's A Book...




Read more: http://www.theresabook.com/#ixzz11EeuAegV

To Do or Did Do?

I'm a chronic list maker...I've always got numerous to-do lists going in my day planner.  Lately, though, seeing those lists is getting a little depressing due to the fact that so few things on my lists are actually getting done.  I'm wondering if I should just start keeping a list of the things I actually get done!

This weekend, for instance, I need several of me...I need to study, especially microbiology - I have another big round of tests starting in about two weeks.  I need to finish getting my children's church lesson together for tomorrow.  I've been needing to update my blog (at least I'm accomplishing that!).  I need to finish getting ready for our baked potato fundraiser dinner that we're having after church tomorrow for children's ministry.  I want and need to spend some quality time with my kids.  And I need to clean my house, do laundry, and get my menu and shopping list together.

What I've done so far this weekend is help my husband at the church, help him repair our hardwood floor in our hallway (water leak...long story), and work.  Sigh.  Let's see, how many me's do I need?  Six should do it, I think...that should cover everything I need to do and everywhere I need to be this weekend.  Just 2 1/2 months left in this semester, then life will calm down...I think. ;)

Directionally Challenged...

This week's question over at Women of Faith is...

How are you at directions? Do you get lost easily or do you carry a map in your head?

Let's just say that I am...directionally challenged.  I can get lost in my hometown, population 10,000.  If you blink, you'll miss the town, yet I got lost there more than once.

When we moved to Texas 3 1/2 years ago, I was totally, hopelessly, completely lost.  I once took a "shortcut" home from work and arrived 30 minutes later than normal.  So that first Christmas in Texas, when my husband asked me what I wanted, I quickly replied, "A GPS."  That was one of the best gifts I ever received...finally, I could go shopping and not get lost!

Exhaustion...

This semester is eating my lunch.  I knew from the beginning of January that this fall would be my hardest semester, but I'm still surprised by just how hard it is for me to juggle everything.

The classes are hard and require lots of homework and hours of studying.  I'm still helping my husband at our church-  we were there until 11:00 last night-  and I'm still teaching children's church-  although I haven't even looked at my lesson this week.  I have to get to the church early today to get my lesson ready.  Lots of changes are taking place at work...they are great changes, much needed changes, and I'm very happy about them, but it brings stress nonetheless.  Even my normal relaxation and planning times have disappeared-  I have to get groceries on Sunday afternoons now instead of Monday mornings.

It's exhausting.  My husband has no idea how tired I really am...I don’t think many people understand.  It's bone numbing exhaustion.  Its walking around like a zombie exhaustion.  The only thing I can compare it to is the exhaustion I felt after my sons were born, those first three or four months before they started sleeping through the night.  If I sit still for five minutes, I'm falling asleep.

Once this semester is over, I'll have a seven month break before the dental hygiene program begins...I can't wait!  I will need every minute of it to recover from this first year back at school.

Weekend Recap

I love long weekends!  Ours has been a busy one, but a good one.  I spent a big part of it playing catch-up (I think I lost) but we had time for some fun too.

I had to go to work early Friday...very early.  I had to open the gym where I work at 5:30 am...meaning I had to leave home at 5 am...meaning I had to get up at 4 am.  So when I got home at 2:30, I grabbed a bite to eat, and my sweet hubby kept the kids entertained while I took a much needed two hour nap.

On Saturday we went out to eat at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants.  After church on Sunday I took another nap (I could get used to this) and made s'mores bars with my oldest.  Today we dodged the rain long enough to play some football in the backyard.

It's been a good weekend, and I got some much needed rest.  Tomorrow the chaos begins again with my 8 am microbiology class. Until then, I'm going to enjoy a little more weekend.

A happy kind of exhausted

I am completely exhausted tonight, but its a happy kind of exhausted.  I put in a very long, very full, and very productive day.

I'm getting into my new college routine, and my classes are going pretty well so far.  I had an extremely busy night at work, which was great because we were doing a lot of business.  Best of all, I came home to dinner with my family, and my two precious boys helped me clean up the kitchen.

I don't mind feeling tired on a day like this.  I may be worn out, but I got that way because I got a lot accomplished.  I can go to bed feeling good about the day, looking forward to what tomorrow holds.