Archive for December, 2008

still here

A lot has happened but not much I care to mention to the internet, sorry.
I can tell you I just got over the flu or some such 24-hour, flu-like thing. It was yucky and horrible. Ever notice how you associate certain things? Flus come with cold weather. I am in Florida, it has been 80 degrees every day the past week = NOT GETTING THE FLU.
I am dreading leaving this glorious place, as I always do, no matter what the near future holds. It’s so hard to leave paradise, even if there are poopy people in your paradisiacal place of residence and you’ve had the flu. I’m holding on to the hope that somehow we will be able to keep this place, the place that holds almost all of my Christmas memories for the past 10 years. I am hoping this isn’t goodbye. Even if we sell the house, I really hope we still come to Sanibel for the Christmases to come. Oh how I’d love to bring my kids here!
Okay must. get. sleep.

LOVE!

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Doing what I can

The week we left to come down here was CRAZY! For several reasons such as, oh, having to be ready for Christmas 2 weeks beforehand and packing enough for 3 weeks in a drastically different climate. Oh yeah, not to mention my all-consuming final, work and the hard-drive death. I don’t know if I mentioned this before, but we decided we needed to hook up a wireless network here in Sanibel because the only way to access internet is in the master bedroom which is a little awkward when someone is sleeping in there. “Hey can I come in and invade your privacy so I can get online?” Yeah. We debated getting another wireless router for Sanibel, especially around Black Friday but debating turned into delaying. Once we got home from Colorado Springs, Alex mentioned that we actually had 2 wireless routers in our home. So in the midst of the CRAZIEST week of my life, I decided to figure out how to set our network up so it could run on one router so we could take the superfluous router to Sanibel. I TOTALLY FIGURED IT OUT IN LIKE 5 MINUTES. Making me feel like a genius. We got to Sanibel and I set up the wireless router down here IN 5 MINUTES! (Thanks to a lot of Alex’s previous hard work!). AS SOON as Dad and Grandpa arrive thing went AWRY with the wifi. Nothing was working, Grandpa couldn’t connect to AOL to check his stocks, so on and so forth. I putzed around for a while but could not figure it out, probably because I was a little more focused on my sleep-over at my cousin Ashley’s. Today I attempted to rectify. AND I WAS TOTALLY SUCCESSFUL! Everyone is hooked up, AOL is up and running for Gramps, and I feel like a genius. I can’t help it.
And the other thing I did (more like finally finished) this week was THIS:

sweater for baby cousin Noah!

Let’s hope it fits him because he’s now 7 weeks old and the sweater is for a newborn-3 month old. Shoulda finished it sooner, oops!

I feel like I accomplished some things this week, ON VACATION, which means those accomplished things are totally worth twice as much.

LOVE!

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CFR

HAPPY 25TH BIRTHDAY TO MY BESTEST FRIEND EVER!

A year ago about this time of year, I was still living in D.C. and getting ready to come down to Sanibel for Christmas. Cecilia and I decided to exchange gifts early instead of haul them wrapped to and fro. We’ve been known to give in excess when it comes to each other, usually in the lots of little and handmade things way. Last year though Cecilia gave me some of the BEST Christmas gifts I have EVER received. Honestly, opening those gifts was like reading a billboard that said, “THIS IS WHY SHE IS YOUR BEST FRIEND.” There was the lavender scented cooling eye mask to wear whenever a migraine blind-sided me, because my eyes are sensitive to light when this happens and lavender is a common aroma used to combat migraines. There were two baseball caps, one for the Boston Red Sox, because I had commented how cute the actual socks were on the cap, and one for the Washington Nationals, because it’s only right that I support my home team of 20 months. I had mentioned in passing that I wanted these things, not realizing I had a sleuth at my side. And there was the Kate Spade passport holder, the most beautiful thing I’ve ever beheld. What struck me about this gift was that she gave it to me knowing she would not accompany me on my next passport-necessary adventure. She gave me this extravagant gift because she is selfless and loving. I think about that day and those gifts a lot.
Then, the hardest day of all came. The day I left D.C., moving back to Kansas City. It was indeed hard, as I have mentioned here before, REALLY, REALLY hard. But NEVER did she ever say anything disparaging about my move or the fact that I was breaking up the dynamic duo. She supported me, sent me off with junk food, trashy magazines and new DVDS and hugged me hard while we both sobbed. I think about the conversations we’ve had where we discuss how our belief that love is in the details. Surely I have the best friend of all, the one who loves me through the details!! If you are a best friend, try to live up to this, though I know it is hard!!

Cecilia, I honestly am every DAY thankful you are in my life. The world is better because you are here. I wish I could be with you today but I know the celebration will come soon enough. I love you more than you can know!!

LOVE!

ps I saw a shark off the beach today!

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vacation

Things I will do:
-Watch all of LOST seasons 1 and 2 (3 and maybe 4? when I get home as they are not with me) again
-Watch all of Friday Night Lights seasons 1 and 2 (via Netflix Watch Instantly) because Julia keeps saying how great it is!
-Read the Lord of The Rings series, I am about halfway through “The Hobbit” and am surprisingly amused! I’m not really into fantasy or sci-fi, thus the “surprisingly”
-Read the 10 magazines I brought from home that haven’t been touched since they arrived in the mail
-Finishing two knitting projects
-take lots of photographs and even learn more about my camera
-work on getting my computer to be more mine, as at the beginning of our trip it seemed brand new and so blank
-get a stinking tan (while wearing sunblock)
-bake cookies, make easy oreo truffles and baked brie
-nap, lots of that has already occured
-collect shells

And Captiva (next door island) has Starbucks now. I’m in BIG trouble.

LOVE!

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Faithing it Out

The Squitch Chronicles
Last week my computer started acting funny, oh how I wish it had been the LOL funny, but alas, twas not. My computer would turn on but not boot and it would give me all this “computer-speak” and kept saying “has no name!”. Who knew that computers spoke with such passion? So I made myself an appointment to see some lovely genius at the apple store. He says we must bypass my hard drive (which sounds bad to me), so bypass it he does. He said that the computer would let me archive and reinstall my operating system which is good, because if it doesn’t give you the “archive” option, everything is lost (see a couple posts back). Awesome. I come home, do everything he says and promptly start to put stuff onto cds as I have no external hard drive (I am poor). Documents took up like 1/100th of the space on a cd, music and photos, well, yeah didn’t quite get all of them onto cds. Honestly I am not sure there are enough cds in the world for all that stuff. However, all of my songs are on my iPod, as are a lot of my photos. All the photos I have taken with my new camera are also on Flickr, so I breathed a sigh a relief. I noticed that my itunes wouldn’t open, same for my mail and safari. Eek. I made another appointment to go to the genius bar yesterday. After AN HOUR talking to this poor genius he says he’s going to “check in” my computer (sounds like a doctor’s office!) because he can’t figure out what is going on. What perfect timing to NOT have my computer as my final is due tomorrow. Today I get a call from the Apple Store, drumroll please. My hard drive is dying. They are having a hard time saving my stuff. It will cost $224 to replace the hard drive. I have NO money (yes, Apple told me this too). I am driving home trying not to freak out about the amount of debt I have accumulated (plus a new hard drive) and the fact that come May I will need $30K to pay for nursing school. It all seems so insurmountable. I put on worship music and just drove because there is nothing else I could do. Somehow it will work out. In a way that only points to God.
Now that I am home I have determined there is MUCH I can do. I have started selling superfluous items on half.com and have decided that working part-time just WILL NOT DO next semester, even though I have class at noon on Tuesdays and Thursdays (class which cost a fortune!). So if you know someone who needs a nanny, is offering a nursing scholarship or likes to give away money, well, I will love you forever and name my firstborn after you if you hook me up.

LOVE!

ps I totally realize that I switch tenses like a bajillion times in this post but people! I am in DISTRESS and therefore cannot be held accountable for my poor grammar.

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AHA!

So all I have left to do for class is my final.  Again with those sneaky words like “all I have to do”, earlier I told my baby-producing friend (can I call you friend?) Kate, that I “only have the final left”.  Only?  All?  Yeah, this final will totally be a breeze.  or not.  This is what happens when it has been 2.5 years since you were in college.  AH, that hurt too.  OLD I AM SO OLD!  So on top of being depressed about this LIFE-ENDING final, I’m also old.  awesome.  Not at all dramatic either.  Nope.  So this Physiology class.  I have a 89.57%.  Part of me is all “eh, who am I kidding, a good solid “B+” is a billion times better than anything I got at JBU” but the OTHER part, the part who is reawakening as the overachiever, after 6 years of dormancy, that part WANTS THE “A”!  That part also leads me to write incredibly long run-on sentences.  I am sorry.  In order to get the “A” I have to get a 92ish %.  Why is it that you have to put quotations around letters when you refer to grades?  I wonder if I can get a 92ish%?  I guess we’ll see.  I will let you know on Thursday because you better believe that I am waiting til the ABSOLUTE latest to take the test.  The test closes Thursday at 11:55 PM, so subtract the time allowance I have to take it and that is probably when I will be beginning. 
But I have accomplished some things, like taking my last test for Pharmacology in order to finish that class.  woo!  And I turned in my Physiology assignments and practice quiz today on top of reading a LOT about kidneys.  I thought renal physiology would be interesting because my mom is a classic clase of renal yuckiness but NO, it’s REALLY boring.  Sorry to any nephrologists reading this (seriously? you’re a doctor, stop reading blogs!). 
Okay must keep reading/studying. 

LOVE!

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procrastinationismdedness

Seriously, when did I become the biggest procrastinator to ever roam God’s green earth?  I was such a good student in high school, which MAY have been aided by the fact that things were so much easier back then.  I also had a pretty rigid schedule; wake up, school, work til 6ish, dinner, homework, bed.  On the weekends I would babysit nights or hang out with my parents.  Yeah, not much has changed in 6 years (ow, that hurt to type, it’s been 6 years since I graduated from high school, AH!).  Tonight I am babysitting, last night mom and I lounged around while I put off the millions of things that need to be done.  So why can’t I get my butt in gear?  All day I LOATHE the homework/studying I must do and think longingly of everything I can’t do because I am too busy avoiding doing homework.  Like all those magazines I’ve received in the last 2 months, do you think they will just read themselves?  And my room, it desperately needs cleaning, tidying, and due to a recent bout of ringworm (I know, gross), could use a large dose of sanitizing.  Not to mention wrapping gifts, packing for Sanibel, wasting time on facebook and reading blogs, shopping, and ALL those tv shows I’ve been dying to watch, HOW WILL IT ALL GET DONE?  Thankfully I will very soon be finished with this annoying school business and can start procrastinating on all that cleaning, because really, all I want to do is read and watch tv, let’s be honest.  And I bet you ANYTHING that I will get to Sanibel, which is indeed glorious, but because I am DEEPLY faulted, will bore me within, well, 4 days of arriving.  I bet I will even think, “I wish I had homework, it would give me something to DO at least.”  And you know what?  It will all be my brother’s fault because HE ISN’T GOING TO SANIBEL THIS YEAR.  My #1 source of entertainment over the holidays will be M.I.A., so I suppose I should make a list and collect all those unread magazines and PRAY they will fill his shoes.  I’m totally doing a LOST marathon again this year too, that should do it, right? 
Don’t be surprised if I blog daily while down there.  D.O.A. is December 16th, be prepared people.
Guess this means I’ll get back to reading for Physiology.  SO CLOOOOOSE to done.
LOVE!

PS.  I am now accepting applications for a #1 holiday entertainer, must be available for the holiday season from now til I die. 

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edit:  Last night I came this (-) close to losing everything on my hard drive.  I realize I may be the last person in the world who doesn’t have everything backed-up but seriously BACK EVERYTHING UP (not in the “back that THANG up” way though, ew)!  I am currently burning back-up cds.  Go me.  Yay for my hard drive working again.

Adventures in nannying

Last night I watched my cousin Annie’s kids, Ella and Ethan. Hardest. Job. Ever. Thankfully these kids are dang cute. We’re talking top 10 cutest in the world.

This is a photo of Ella eating bread flour. Yes, that’s it, stuck in her teeth. In order to get her clean I had to carry both her and her brother (who is getting so big! and still does not like to be put down!) to the bathroom. I consequently had flour ALL over my black fleece.

Here is her little brother smirking at the world, scoffing at those of you who doubt his cuteness! (picture quality is not that great due to the convenience of my cell phone!)

Someday I will tell you what happened last night, but as of right now, I am still recovering. Let’s call this “nanny adventures part 1″. I’ve got lots more to tell believe you me.

LOVE!

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I know I said I would continue the list

But I’ve moved on. Maybe I should journal 100 things I am thankful for.
So I’ve been wondering lately about Christmas. I mean, not to sound cynical, but why do people get so worked up over it? I do love Christmas time, but I also know a lot of that love comes from having the blessing of being in Sanibel during the holidays. I do love family and being around them. Let me just say though, I don’t really get the pee-your-pants-I-am-so-over-the-moon-for-Christmas people, those who just LOVE Christmas, not necessarily in relation to being with family, or getting time off work, or because it’s when we celebrate the largest act of grace to ever occur. That I don’t get. I spent some time recently with people who don’t acknowledge Jesus, the nativity or religion AT ALL in their Christmas celebration. It was odd. I’m not saying it was wrong, because I am not judging, what I am saying is it was really different for me. So I’ve been perplexed these last few days.

Then last night I was driving home from Alex and Kaitlyn’s house and I saw these buildings that were lighted to look like presents. They were super neat, what a great idea for a regular ole office building. And I thought that maybe people get excited over Christmas because it’s something we all do together, especially in America. It’s the holiday that most people celebrate and maybe that makes us feel like we’re not alone after all. The Christmas lights, the music, the overall cheeriness, the Salvation Army bell ringers and traditions all lead to a sense of sameness, familiarity (I may have made that word up). And that’s what people so dearly love about Christmas, no matter their circumstance or faith. So I guess I get it now. And I’m excited too.

LOVE!

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