Whew, time gets away from you sometimes.
Christmas was strange this year - it was weird having Brad there with me on Christmas morning but it was still nice. He thoroughly enjoyed the benefits of having "two" Christmases :). It was exhausting with all the traveling so I'm glad next year we'll have Christmas with my family a week or two early. Two days in a row + 7 hours traveling both ways = cranky, sleepy me!
His aunt and uncle got us a membership to use a local university's recreational facilities for 6 months which I am extremely excited about. We activated it on Tuesday and I went up there yesterday to do cardio and weightlifting. It's different from a gym in that there's not rows and rows of cardio equipment but at least it's not very crowded and I also have access to the pool, sauna, indoor track and indoor tennis courts. I think today I'm going up to do laps in the pool. I'm planning on going to Richmond in March to run a 10k with my bff, Kristi - she's been trying to get me to run it for years so now that I'm this close to her I'm going to take advantage of it :) I'm guessing it's similar to Cooper River which is always fun. It's one of those races you don't even really have to train for because you're not going for time - the race itself is so huge you're just taking in all the sights around you.
My first birthday as a married woman was fantastic. I heard from people I hadn't heard from in years, wishing me a happy birthday. That morning I got up and went skiing by myself - it was PERFECT conditions. Sunny, warm but not *too warm*, no snow blowing and very few people on the slopes. I literally would ski down the mountain and ski straight back onto the lift. I went inside and had a cup of hot chocolate and looked out, enjoying the day. Brad came back from the co-worker's house he's renovating in the early afternoon and we finished taking all the Christmas stuff down (yes, I know, we're terrible haha). I had assumed we would go to Carrabba's for my birthday - it's my favorite restaurant and his mom had given me a gift card for there for Christmas. But he said no, he wanted to take me somewhere special - that the gift card will be used later but it was a gift for me and shouldn't be used on my birthday. So I got dressed while he was in the shower - khaki's, a nice sweater and heels. He comes out of the shower, kind of looks at me, and goes, "ummm, you might want to get more dressed up than that." I almost fainted. This coming from the man who acts like it's torture to put on anything remotely "nice". I get dressed in 'appropriate' attire and we head out to Frederick. We pull up to a restaurant I've only ever heard of, The Dutch's Daughter. It. Was. Phenomenal. I ordered a glass of wine, Brad ordered a Gentleman Jack & Coke. He ordered an appetizer of scallops wrapped in bacon (delicious!). I ordered a main course of blackened salmon (soooo sweet and HUGE portion) and added a crab cake (they weren't kidding, it actually was all crab!) and it came with green beans (it was meant to be) and twice baked potatoes (yummmy!). He got the filet mignon which was like eating bread it was so tender. It was just a fantastic meal. We were seated by one of the fireplaces and the place itself was so elegant. Listening to the conversations around us was quite entertaining since they were all big businessmen from DC who had come in on a Tuesday night to eat there. But all in all, it was an absolutely wonderful birthday.
I don't really do resolutions - but last night Brad and I were watching a special about a man who had himself dropped into the Yukon rainforest to see if he could survive by himself for 3 months. I wouldn't say there was anything *miraculous* about his documentary...but it did flip a switch inside me somewhere. Watching this man try to survive on his own with no other human contact was heartbreaking. Even though he woke up each morning with the most beautiful scenery, you could see his inner turmoil from missing his loved ones. So this year I'm going to try to appreciate everything. I'm going to appreciate that I have a husband, even when he picks on me, because I know he loves me. I'm going to make more of an effort to maintain my close friendships because I truly enjoy them and don't want them to "fall away" because of distance. I'm going to try and find the beauty in each day and thank God that I have another day. "Hippie-ish" or not, I'm going to try.
This was a pretty random update but I'll try to do better from now on. I'm just enjoying this whole married lifestyle, that's all :)
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Puppy Rant.
I never would have imagined that it would be this difficult to give a puppy a good home.
When I lived in Charlotte, I fell in love with a dog that was being "fostered" so it wouldn't be in a shelter. The description said it wasn't a good dog to have with other animals or small children and that it would probably do best with one owner. It also said that it didn't need a lot of outdoor time and would make a great indoor pet. I emailed back and forth with the foster "mom" a few times until they asked for a vet reference. As soon as I said I had never had a dog before, I never heard another word. Not a "sorry" or anything.
Brad and I put in an application for one of 6 collie/spaniel puppies this morning. We worked on the application for two days. We researched the breeds, decided they were a great match for our lifestyle and this morning I emailed the application. Suddenly I get a response back saying "thanks, but you're not a good match for our rescue".
HOW are we not a good match??? I stay home ALL DAY LONG. Brad works 15 MINUTES away from the house. We have family willing to take the dog in if we have to be gone long term. We're extremely active and explained that the dog would go everywhere with us. We have no other animals in the house. How can you just respond with "you're not a good match" with absolutely no reason what so ever?
I really want to email this woman back and ask what a good match would be. What, do we need to have 15 dogs first? So because we've never HAD a dog we're not allowed to rescue one in need? I don't WANT to spend hundreds of dollars and get a dog from a breeder! I want to rescue a dog that wouldn't otherwise have a chance! Growing up, our first cat was from a breeder and the others all were strays. I loved them all, but the love I got from the strays - it was as if they knew we had rescued them and they were eternally grateful.
I'm so upset right now. I understand that they want what's best for these dogs...but I'm so annoyed with how they won't even give us a chance. I cannot even imagine how frustrating the process to adopt a child must be if I'm in tears over a dog that I haven't even seen in person.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Just some ramblings.
I've really meant to update more - time gets away from me, I guess! We finally got wireless internet on Friday so that will help. I don't have to fight Brad for computer time anymore :)
So I finally got over the swine flu (yes, apparently it was the real H1N1. I'm kind of glad I didn't know that when I was actually sick though). Then I came down with a nasty little cold. Maybe I'm allergic to marriage?
I played in church last Sunday for the first time and it went really well. This week I played again but was a little more nervous - I snuck down to Charlotte on Tuesday (I was homesick :P) and didn't come back until Friday so I hadn't got much practice time. I really love this church though. I grew up in a small town, in a small church. I'd say most Sundays we had between 80-100 people there. Then when I moved to Charlotte I started going to a larger church with 4 services. The church I'm playing for now has about 30-40 people there on a good day. I never thought I would be so happy at such a small church. I understand the benefits from a larger church - more people to befriend, more opportunities. But in all of my time visiting and attending churches, I have never felt more welcomed than I do at this little tiny country church. As soon as I walk in there, I feel like I'm part of their family. After the service, they line up to thank me for playing and to tell me what a wonderful job I did (even if I totally screw up haha). The pastor is nearly 80 years old and can be a little hard to follow sometimes but his points really hit home. Today he talked about a meeting he once had with a church committee. The committee kept talking about how they needed to "grow the church". He pondered it for a few minutes and then asked them if they were talking about numbers - because he felt like the church was growing spiritually every week. That spoke to me. It's not about the numbers. Yes, part of Christianity is to draw more people to your faith - but God doesn't care how many people go to your church. He doesn't even care how much offering is collected each week or what songs you sing. He cares that the church grows together spiritually. Whether that be 10 people or 10,000, it's still the basic point of the church. I admit, when I was originally told about this church, and how small it was...I had "snobby" thoughts towards it. Only thirty people???? But now I understand it's not about the numbers. It's about the common faith and wanting to worship together as a church family - and I truly feel like I am part of a family at this church. And to me, that's so much more important than saying "I attend X mega-church".
So I finally got over the swine flu (yes, apparently it was the real H1N1. I'm kind of glad I didn't know that when I was actually sick though). Then I came down with a nasty little cold. Maybe I'm allergic to marriage?
I played in church last Sunday for the first time and it went really well. This week I played again but was a little more nervous - I snuck down to Charlotte on Tuesday (I was homesick :P) and didn't come back until Friday so I hadn't got much practice time. I really love this church though. I grew up in a small town, in a small church. I'd say most Sundays we had between 80-100 people there. Then when I moved to Charlotte I started going to a larger church with 4 services. The church I'm playing for now has about 30-40 people there on a good day. I never thought I would be so happy at such a small church. I understand the benefits from a larger church - more people to befriend, more opportunities. But in all of my time visiting and attending churches, I have never felt more welcomed than I do at this little tiny country church. As soon as I walk in there, I feel like I'm part of their family. After the service, they line up to thank me for playing and to tell me what a wonderful job I did (even if I totally screw up haha). The pastor is nearly 80 years old and can be a little hard to follow sometimes but his points really hit home. Today he talked about a meeting he once had with a church committee. The committee kept talking about how they needed to "grow the church". He pondered it for a few minutes and then asked them if they were talking about numbers - because he felt like the church was growing spiritually every week. That spoke to me. It's not about the numbers. Yes, part of Christianity is to draw more people to your faith - but God doesn't care how many people go to your church. He doesn't even care how much offering is collected each week or what songs you sing. He cares that the church grows together spiritually. Whether that be 10 people or 10,000, it's still the basic point of the church. I admit, when I was originally told about this church, and how small it was...I had "snobby" thoughts towards it. Only thirty people???? But now I understand it's not about the numbers. It's about the common faith and wanting to worship together as a church family - and I truly feel like I am part of a family at this church. And to me, that's so much more important than saying "I attend X mega-church".
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Even when it rains, it sunshines.
I don't think it's any secret that I wasn't overly thrilled about leaving Charlotte and moving to Maryland. I trust in Brad, though, and understand that he wants to provide for his wife. I respect that and I understand that in the long run, this move will probably be a good thing for both of us. It didn't make it any easier to leave though - the last night before we left, we were hanging out with some friends and when my friend Beth had to leave, I just lost it. I started sobbing and couldn't hold it back anymore. I didn't want to leave. Brad comforted me the best he could and promised we'd come back to North Carolina as soon as we could. And then we left.
Since then, so many blessings have happened.
Saturday morning we went to Wal Mart to do our initial "big" shopping spree to get food for the house. We were coming up one aisle and about to turn down another when an elderly woman appeared at the end of the aisle, visibly upset. She couldn't find the noodles and was getting frustrated. So Brad starts talking to her and goes with her to help her find the noodles she wanted. Another woman beside us in the aisle looked at me and says, "what a nice young man". Any frustrations I had had with him while shopping disappeared when I remembered again how selfless and kindhearted my husband is. He has this tough exterior but when someone needs help, he's the first one to step in and do anything he can.
Saturday afternoon I was over at his aunt's house, showing off our wedding pictures. I mentioned how I was looking for churches to try out and they gave me some churches to try. His aunt told me I was welcome to visit her church anytime but she wasn't going that particular Sunday.
Sunday morning I tried a Methodist church in town. It was fairly comfortable since it reminded me of my hometown church. It seems trivial, but a church gets huge points when they sing the same Doxology and say the same Lord's Prayer that I grew up singing and saying. The sermon wasn't particularly impressive to me (I'm also really spoiled - my parents' pastor in Denver is phenomenal. I truly think all pastors should be kindergarden teachers before going to seminary haha) but I thought I would try it again considering the pastor was on a trip with the youth that Sunday. And I reported these things to his aunt, Jill.
Yesterday I got a call from Jill. Her mother had come to visit and had mentioned that their pianist couldn't handle college, a job and accompanying the services and had to leave the church. She asked Jill if she knew anyone who played the piano. Jill has a very old piano that I've played on before (simple stuff that I knew from heart, like the Entertainer) and said she'd call me. Within an hour, she had picked me up, I had played before a lady from the church and suddenly I'm playing in church this Sunday. It might not turn into an every week commitment, but it might. The extra income will be a huge blessing. I won't start my part time job until January - which I'm happy about, so I have the holidays to be flexible - but that's still over a month with only Brad's income to live on. It will be a tight holiday season for us but at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
All in all, I'm really enjoying playing the role of a "housewife". I love keeping the house up and cooking dinner for Brad when he gets home from work. I'm still adjusting to not really having any friends yet, but hopefully soon. I'm REALLY looking forward to the first big snow so I can finally try out my new skiis with our season passes!!!
Since then, so many blessings have happened.
Saturday morning we went to Wal Mart to do our initial "big" shopping spree to get food for the house. We were coming up one aisle and about to turn down another when an elderly woman appeared at the end of the aisle, visibly upset. She couldn't find the noodles and was getting frustrated. So Brad starts talking to her and goes with her to help her find the noodles she wanted. Another woman beside us in the aisle looked at me and says, "what a nice young man". Any frustrations I had had with him while shopping disappeared when I remembered again how selfless and kindhearted my husband is. He has this tough exterior but when someone needs help, he's the first one to step in and do anything he can.
Saturday afternoon I was over at his aunt's house, showing off our wedding pictures. I mentioned how I was looking for churches to try out and they gave me some churches to try. His aunt told me I was welcome to visit her church anytime but she wasn't going that particular Sunday.
Sunday morning I tried a Methodist church in town. It was fairly comfortable since it reminded me of my hometown church. It seems trivial, but a church gets huge points when they sing the same Doxology and say the same Lord's Prayer that I grew up singing and saying. The sermon wasn't particularly impressive to me (I'm also really spoiled - my parents' pastor in Denver is phenomenal. I truly think all pastors should be kindergarden teachers before going to seminary haha) but I thought I would try it again considering the pastor was on a trip with the youth that Sunday. And I reported these things to his aunt, Jill.
Yesterday I got a call from Jill. Her mother had come to visit and had mentioned that their pianist couldn't handle college, a job and accompanying the services and had to leave the church. She asked Jill if she knew anyone who played the piano. Jill has a very old piano that I've played on before (simple stuff that I knew from heart, like the Entertainer) and said she'd call me. Within an hour, she had picked me up, I had played before a lady from the church and suddenly I'm playing in church this Sunday. It might not turn into an every week commitment, but it might. The extra income will be a huge blessing. I won't start my part time job until January - which I'm happy about, so I have the holidays to be flexible - but that's still over a month with only Brad's income to live on. It will be a tight holiday season for us but at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
All in all, I'm really enjoying playing the role of a "housewife". I love keeping the house up and cooking dinner for Brad when he gets home from work. I'm still adjusting to not really having any friends yet, but hopefully soon. I'm REALLY looking forward to the first big snow so I can finally try out my new skiis with our season passes!!!
Monday, November 9, 2009
Serious Stuff here.
I'm going to try not to go into politics here, but this weekend I realized what it feels like to have to weigh financial worries against your personal health.
My last day at Family Dollar was supposed to be last Friday, the 6th. It got pushed back until this Wednesday, the 11th. Friday afternoon I started to feel a little sick. By the time I got home, I was a full-blown not happy camper. Coughing, congestion, fever as high as 102.4. I was terrified, especially since I very rarely have any sort of fever - having consistent fever over 100 was scary for someone whose temperature hardly ever gets over 98 degrees (my current temperature as I am typing this is 97.3 if that tells you anything).
Why didn't I go to a doctor?
Because - what if someone in HR didn't get the memo that my last day had changed? What if my insurance had already been cut off? What if we got stuck paying the entire medical bill on our own? What if the insurance balked because they would get the bill after my coverage had been terminated?
So we didn't go to a doctor. We managed it the best we could - Nyquil for the coughing and to make sure I got sleep; Motrin for the fever and cold cloths for the heat radiating from my head.
Call me a drama queen, but I was scared. We didn't know what was wrong - just that my chest was not feeling right and I had a fever like I had never had before. It didn't help my mental state that Brad's uncle had died of a rare form of pneumonia a few years ago that started out with "cold-like" symptoms.
I'm not saying that I think every Jack and Jill who are too sorry to work should be given great government insurance on a silver platter - but for the first time in my life, I was in their shoes. The helpless feeling...the knowing that you need medical care but too scared about the cost to go...it's basically putting a price on your health. How much am I willing to pay to be healthy again? Can we afford to get me healthy?
I went to work this morning, confirmed that I was still covered under insurance and jetted to Urgent Care with a sense of relief that I had never had before. At that point, I didn't care if it was pneumonia and I wound up in the hospital - at least I would know and I would have the medical care I needed.
It was the flu - I don't think anyone takes the flu too lightly these days. On the way home I was almost giddy because at least I knew.
I can honestly say that I am so thankful that I have medical insurance - and how my heart hurts for the people who legitimately can't afford health insurance. I know the fear they must have on a daily basis and I agree, that's not a feeling anyone should have to endure. Unfortunately, it's the people who want to take advantage of the system that will ultimately deprive them of that relief.
My last day at Family Dollar was supposed to be last Friday, the 6th. It got pushed back until this Wednesday, the 11th. Friday afternoon I started to feel a little sick. By the time I got home, I was a full-blown not happy camper. Coughing, congestion, fever as high as 102.4. I was terrified, especially since I very rarely have any sort of fever - having consistent fever over 100 was scary for someone whose temperature hardly ever gets over 98 degrees (my current temperature as I am typing this is 97.3 if that tells you anything).
Why didn't I go to a doctor?
Because - what if someone in HR didn't get the memo that my last day had changed? What if my insurance had already been cut off? What if we got stuck paying the entire medical bill on our own? What if the insurance balked because they would get the bill after my coverage had been terminated?
So we didn't go to a doctor. We managed it the best we could - Nyquil for the coughing and to make sure I got sleep; Motrin for the fever and cold cloths for the heat radiating from my head.
Call me a drama queen, but I was scared. We didn't know what was wrong - just that my chest was not feeling right and I had a fever like I had never had before. It didn't help my mental state that Brad's uncle had died of a rare form of pneumonia a few years ago that started out with "cold-like" symptoms.
I'm not saying that I think every Jack and Jill who are too sorry to work should be given great government insurance on a silver platter - but for the first time in my life, I was in their shoes. The helpless feeling...the knowing that you need medical care but too scared about the cost to go...it's basically putting a price on your health. How much am I willing to pay to be healthy again? Can we afford to get me healthy?
I went to work this morning, confirmed that I was still covered under insurance and jetted to Urgent Care with a sense of relief that I had never had before. At that point, I didn't care if it was pneumonia and I wound up in the hospital - at least I would know and I would have the medical care I needed.
It was the flu - I don't think anyone takes the flu too lightly these days. On the way home I was almost giddy because at least I knew.
I can honestly say that I am so thankful that I have medical insurance - and how my heart hurts for the people who legitimately can't afford health insurance. I know the fear they must have on a daily basis and I agree, that's not a feeling anyone should have to endure. Unfortunately, it's the people who want to take advantage of the system that will ultimately deprive them of that relief.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Minor suckage today.
Went to the social security office today to try and get my social security card changed. Actually I went last week and attempted this but apparently the marriage license they send you in the mail is completely worthless. I was so excited, too – there were maybe 2 people in line and I stood there for probably 5 minutes, max. Unfortunately because the marriage license I had wasn’t *certified*, they shot me down and told me I’d have to come back later.
Today I went, same time, different day and it was about 25 people deep. No big deal, I’m a patient person, I can wait. A lady in front of me in line makes a comment about how she brought absolutely everything with her so she would have anything they possibly asked for. What is she there for, you ask? Oh, she threw away her social security card (this is important). I made a comment about how, yeah, I was here last week but brought the wrong marriage license. She gives me this dirty look and goes, “Well, how many marriage licenses do you have???” and turns around. I realized she thought I had more than one license to more than one guy, possibly at different times. No, I just didn’t have the *certified* one last week.
So anyways, about 25 minutes later, her two buddies she had befriended had gone through the line and left so I assume she decided I was an acceptable chit-chat partner because she started making small talk. I quietly made a comment about how I thought it was interesting they only had 3 windows (only 2 were open) considering how busy they always are. She goes into this lecture of how she’s an economics and civics teacher and how she understands all sides of it and that if they opened more windows they’d have to hire more people and raise taxes and it just wouldn’t help a thing. I just kind of smile and nod, not knowing how to respond to that. Eventually I say how nice it would be if we could just do some of the more simple tasks online or through the mail (I know my mom had her name changed through the mail). She goes into this tirade about how she just would absolutely NOT send ANY of her information through the mail, ABSOLUTELY not. I wanted to ask her if she realized that her new social security card would be coming *gasp* through the mail.
Her number is called, she goes to a window. The next number is almost immediately called and it’s three Asian people who had been behind me in line, filling out 3 different applications. I assumed that they would take awhile, as it appeared they were filing for social security cards for citizenship – especially since teacher lady was there simply to get a new social security card since she so smartly threw away.
Shows what I know. The group of three people got finished, my number was called and I was done in about 2 minutes – and teacher lady was still at the window, even with all her perfectly organized information in a second grader’s folder.
Some people.
Today I went, same time, different day and it was about 25 people deep. No big deal, I’m a patient person, I can wait. A lady in front of me in line makes a comment about how she brought absolutely everything with her so she would have anything they possibly asked for. What is she there for, you ask? Oh, she threw away her social security card (this is important). I made a comment about how, yeah, I was here last week but brought the wrong marriage license. She gives me this dirty look and goes, “Well, how many marriage licenses do you have???” and turns around. I realized she thought I had more than one license to more than one guy, possibly at different times. No, I just didn’t have the *certified* one last week.
So anyways, about 25 minutes later, her two buddies she had befriended had gone through the line and left so I assume she decided I was an acceptable chit-chat partner because she started making small talk. I quietly made a comment about how I thought it was interesting they only had 3 windows (only 2 were open) considering how busy they always are. She goes into this lecture of how she’s an economics and civics teacher and how she understands all sides of it and that if they opened more windows they’d have to hire more people and raise taxes and it just wouldn’t help a thing. I just kind of smile and nod, not knowing how to respond to that. Eventually I say how nice it would be if we could just do some of the more simple tasks online or through the mail (I know my mom had her name changed through the mail). She goes into this tirade about how she just would absolutely NOT send ANY of her information through the mail, ABSOLUTELY not. I wanted to ask her if she realized that her new social security card would be coming *gasp* through the mail.
Her number is called, she goes to a window. The next number is almost immediately called and it’s three Asian people who had been behind me in line, filling out 3 different applications. I assumed that they would take awhile, as it appeared they were filing for social security cards for citizenship – especially since teacher lady was there simply to get a new social security card since she so smartly threw away.
Shows what I know. The group of three people got finished, my number was called and I was done in about 2 minutes – and teacher lady was still at the window, even with all her perfectly organized information in a second grader’s folder.
Some people.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Honeymoon Recap!
Warning, this is an incredibly long update. Seriously, I go through day-by-day. It's more of a record for me, but you're more than welcome to read about it all. Don't worry I don't go into *too* much detail ;-) but it is pretty lengthy.
Now that you have been sufficiently warned...
Now that you have been sufficiently warned...
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