New Years Goals

Well, it is that time of year again when we all start thinking about the past year, and the future. I know the usual: lose weight. That's not in my list this year. I wanted to share my goals with ya'll. Feel free to remind me of them when I mess up.

10. Keep my office clean.


Sometimes, it sort of looks like the above.

9. Pay off last two credit cards. It's less than $2000, and I want it gone!

8. Be consistent in exercising. **disclaimer* This is not the same as losing weight. If I lose weight, then so be it. But this is about owning my body and enjoying my time with it.

7. Become a coupon expert!


As the mother of three kids, and apparently the only lady on the block who buys snacks, I spend a lot on groceries. A LOT. So much that when I walk into the Publix, the cashiers yell, "Hi Sarah!" Not a great sign. I'm resolving getting our grocery budget below $1000 a month (I know!) and hopefully closer to $600-700. That's about 30-40%. Be praying for me, mmmkay?

6. Be grateful for something every day.
This seems like a frou-frou touchy feeling psychobabbly kind of goal, but it's true. It's hard to be miserable when you're grateful. I've had days when the only thing I'm grateful for is clocking out and going to bed. But it's ok to be grateful for that, too.



5. Say something nice to each of my kids, every day.
I've noticed that sometimes, all I do is tell them what to do, where to go, and what time to get there. While that is not a bad thing, it's not always loving. I'm going to do my best to tell each of them how much I love them every day.

Example Number 1: "Why, Missy, you are gorgeous just like your Mama."

Example 2: "Why Tiger, what big feet you have."


Example 3: "Thank you, Bucket, for being so polite over and Nana and Papa's house."


4. Say something nice to each of their friends, whenever I see them. Which should be plenty, since I'm the lady who buys the snacks.

3. Do what I love, and love what I do!
Seems simple enough, right? I vow, here on out, to drink my coffee guilt free, to sleep in on weekends happily, and to listen to whatever music I want. That means Nickelback, Third Day, and Michael Buble all in the same day. Why? Because I love them!

2. Give someone else a break.
Both Bucket and I are very justice oriented. Meaning, when I see someone screw up, I want them to get in trouble and face the consequences. I don't like it when DUIers get out of jail, I don't like when people litter, and so on. I'm going to remember that I make mistakes, I sin, and yet I get grace every day. I need to extend that grace to others. Which brings me to Number 1...

SPEND TIME WITH GOD EVERY DAY.
Most days, this will mean Bible reading. Other days will mean I need to pray more than usual. I don't want God to be an afterthought, but in my every thought.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, ALL!!!

To My Porn Spammers

1) No, I don't think you're hot.
2) No, I don't want to see your "pics."
3) No, I will not publish your comments. Or your websites. And please learn to spell.

Love, Sarah

Merry Christmas!

How can you not laugh at this?
see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Debt Free, Baby

I'd like to tell ya'll a little story.

Once upon a time, there was a frazzled mom of three who wanted to buy her kids Christmas gifts. Due to the stupid economy, the mom's husband didn't make as much money as usual, and money was tight. Instead of trusting that her husband would make money in time, or wait on God, she chose to go to her employer and take out a $1200 loan, for 12 months at 12%, with the money owed being directly withdrawn from her paycheck. The mom knew that debt was not a great idea, but didn't want her kids to miss out on Christmas presents. So unbeknownst to her hubby, she signed the papers, got $1200, and shopped away. It was a lovely Christmas. The children, hubby and extended family all loved their gifts. Unfortunately, a year later, Mom cannot even remember what she bought, and is happy that the last payment is THIS FRIDAY, Christmas Day of course, which is sort of a wonky coincidence, no?

This year, Mom still wants to buy her little darlings gifts, and the economy still is in the pooper. But instead of frantically jumping on the loan bandwagon again (although it was tempting and would have been easy to pull off), this somewhat wiser woman chose to wait on the Lord. "Lord," she prayed, "You know our needs. You know our wants. You know we've been mostly faithful in tithing (I've missed a few, I admit.), and we've given charitably, and we do our very best not to live outside our means. Lord, please figure out a way for me to give my kids a wonderful Christmas, and do it all in Your Name. Amen."

Well, Christmas was one week away. The paycheck from her husband's extra job was a month late. The only money coming in was from her, and it was just enough to keep the power on, food on the table, and gas in the vehicles. It was tight, oh yes. The mom was wondering what was going to happen.

And then something did.

The phone rang. It was the old jerky boss of the husband, calling to tell him the paychecks had come in. The mom's husband met up with the jerky boss, obtained his check, and realized it was for about $500 more than expected. He had forgotten about a few extra shifts he had worked. He excitedly called his wife and said, "I will bring you the cash so you can pay bills and finish up the shopping while I drive into a blizzard in Virginia!" So once the frazzled mom did silly things like buy cat food for the VERY ANGRY KITTIES and COFFEE for the VERY FRAZZLED MOM, and pay the cell phone and the power and the car payment, she realized something astonishing. The amount that was left...to purchase Christmas gifts?...

It ended up being $1200. The very same exact amount she had borrowed the year before, with 12% interest.

Terrifying

Wednesday nights are special around here. The kids attend Wednesday night services, which is a lot of fun for them. They play games, do Bible study, and eat a lot of junk. Bucket was resistant to attend for quite a while, but it has become part of his routine and he has made friends there.

Blessedly, we live walking distance to our church, and I allow the kids to walk as long as they're in a group and they have a cell phone. Last night, Missy informed me that it was time to go. Her friends Stephanie and Jennifer were walking with her, plus Tiger and his friend Zack, and Bucket. That was when we noticed that Bucket was missing. Unfortunately, this is not the first time he has vanished on us. We don't call him "Stealth" for nothing. He is small, quiet and moves around very delicately. I've lost him in stores, libraries, schools, field trips and amusement parks. I've joked (rather seriously) that he needed to be born with GPS installed. Missy and I quickly came up with a plan. She was to continue to walk to church with her friends and see if she found him on the walk. I was to grab my cell and hop in the car, and drive up to church to see if he had made it up there already.

Sure enough, I got to him first. He was already in the parking lot. I sternly waved him over to me.

"Hey! You're not supposed to leave the house without telling someone!"
"Mom, I did. Missy was with Stephanie and Jennifer, Tiger was with Zack, and you were talking on the phone."
~guilt trip time~
"Bucket, I didn't hear you. Besides, you know you're supposed to walk in a group."
Head shaking. "But Mom, I'm trying to do big things by myself!"
"I know that too, but this isn't one of those things that you need to do by yourself. I need for you to walk in a group with your brother and sister."
"Mom, you treat me like a baby!"
"No, I'm not. I'm expecting you to do the same thing Missy and Tiger do. That is, walk in a group with your friends and not take off by yourself. If I was treating you like a baby, you wouldn't get to go out at all. If you want me to treat you like a young man, then you need to go young man things. "
Now he hung his head.
"I'm sorry I made you worry." Then the normal sparkle came back. "Can I still stay tonight? They're having a party!"
"Yes, you can stay. I want you to have fun, and stay in the parking lot with Missy until I pick you up."
"Ok, bye Mom!"

In the last five years, I never would have guessed that I'd have a conversation with him like that. I smile, and my heart is happy, to know that he can reason, that he can understand my emotions, that he can be part of a group. It almost makes up for the fact that I nearly had a heart attack when I couldn't find him.

Better Shoes

So, I'm about a week into my new schedule. Too bad I'm not following it! Hahahaha!
Well, when there is a new schedule, there always seem to be a few bumps in the road. This week was no exception. Bucket was sick, Tiger had minor foot surgery, and my workload seemed to double. Again. But I've pressed on. Unfortunately, I am having issues with my walks in the morning. It appears that Ol Big Foot Missy has been wearing my sneaks, and stretched them out. I wear, in New Balance, an 8W. (I affectionately call my feet 'Flinstone Feet' due to their blockish nature.) My daughter wears a 10. And somehow, she managed to jam her huge feet into my little shoes and stretch them all out. So as I have been walking, I've been falling out of my shoes. I also have a huge arch in my foot, whereas all three of kids have their father's super flat feet, so she managed to flatten out the arch that was already in my shoe, causing me tremendous pain, especially in my right calf. Clearly, I'm going to need to donate my New Balances (5 years old and still looking pretty good) and get new ones. So...does anyone have any recommendations? I really like New Balance, but I'm willing to try something new.

In Which I Get My Act Together

Thanks for the venting time, peeps. I know many read, and don't comment, and that's fine. But I felt better typing it out, and so I thank you for continuing to read.

Now that I'm done complaining, I decided to "do." There are a lot of things I can't control about my life. I can't control my husband's job, or the way my kids behave, or the volume at work. What I *can* control is how I react, and my own schedule. So I decided to make some changes, and if it effects other people, then so be it.

I had to drive into Orlando to pick up some fax cartridges the other day, and sat down in my boss's office. I told her how frustrated I'd been lately, and that I don't feel very well, physically. I asked her if it would be okay if I changed my work schedule in order to fit in Bible study time and exercise. I am so glad she was amenable to change. My boss is very young (24), and very, very nice. She said that as long as I working to catch the add ons at the end of the day, she didn't really care which hours I worked. So I changed my schedule from 7am - 3:45, to 8:30 - 5:15. (I get a 45 minute lunch every day.) By starting at 8:30, I have time to make a proper breakfast, start a load of dishes and laundry, spent 30 minutes in the Word, and about 30-45 minutes of exercise every morning before I even sit down at the computer. I'm not thrilled about working later in the day, but 5:15 is still a reasonable time of day. Not only that, but I'll be able to catch some later accounts that I've been missing.

Unfortunately, I'm having to change Tiger's saxophone lesson to accommodate my new schedule. At first I felt bad, then I thought, why should I feel bad? We moved the lesson, tentatively, from Tuesdays at 5pm to Thursdays at 6pm. Everything else remains the same, except I get to put some time into myself. Into my soul, into my faith, into my own body. I didn't exercise today...nerd that I am, I created a spreadsheet with my body measurements, height and weight. While this isn't about weight loss per se, my weight is tied into my health, and I would like to lose some. I'm not going to be frantically counting calories like I did before.

So my schedule for now is this:

6am: Wake up.
6:15 am: No, seriously. Wake up.
6:30 am: Start waking up boys.
6:30am - 7am: start any house chores, such as loading/unloading dishwasher, laundry. Make coffee!
7am-7:15: Make breakfast, drink coffee. Yell at boys.
7:15-7:45: Eat breakfast, drink even more coffee, have Bible study. Continue yelling at boys.
7:45-8:15: Exercise.
8:15-8:30: Quick shower, make another cup of coffee.
8:30-5:15: Work. Oh, and drink coffee. (yes, I'm consistent like that.)

Considering I'm going from not exercising at all, to 30 mins a day, 5 days a week, I hope to see some results.
But most importantly, I hope to see a change in my spiritual life. I've felt very, very dead lately inside. I love my kids, I love my husband, but lately, I have not loved me. I've had depression issues in the past, I've been in a slump for quite a while.

2 Samuel 22:7 (New International Version)

⁷ In my distress I called to the LORD;
I called out to my God.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came to his ears.

He has heard me. He knows I need Him more than ever. He has made it so that I have the flexibility to turn my life around. With His help, I can and I will. I hope all my bloggy friends will be praying for this change in my life to be successful.

In Which I Sound Like a Spoiled Brat

Guys, can I vent here? Please? Pretty please?

If you are not into whiny adults who kvetch about every day life, it's ok to switch to another page now. Really. It won't hurt my feelings. I think.

I am just so bummed over Mr. R's local job falling through so quickly. Although in the back of my mind, I figured it would. The boss was not a nice person, the hours were awful and we still didn't see each other. Mr. R is already back in his old truck, on his way to Alabama actually. Not great miles, but a start nonetheless. I'm already trying to get the kids back on a regular schedule. When Daddy is home, rules and chores seem to fly out the window. I'm slowly but surely getting them back where they need to be.

I am more concerned about how Mr. R and I interacted while he was home. We fought...nonstop. Over stupid stuff. Like housework, and Christmas trees, and garbage cans. I know when he's not working, he gets bored and likes to nitpick. However, I'm still working and don't have time to really worry about why our garbage cans needs to be rinsed. If they bother you that much, doll, there is the hose. Go for it. I'm on the phone with Blue Cross, mmmkay?

Then there is the matter of college. I am doing GREAT. I love my class, I have an A, and I really feel like I've hit my niche. I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing. But Mr. R is doing a total 180 and saying that as soon as I graduate from college (in spring 2011 is what I'm hoping for right now) that he intends to quit trucking for good, find a nice part time job, and send me to a normal full time job in Orlando. I am TERRIFIED of thinking that I could be the main breadwinner. It is scary to me! So I guess what I am really scared of, is the future. Aren't most people? I think that's why fortunetellers are so popular.

Anyway, I've been thinking about that common phrase, the "Bride of Christ." Has anyone else ever heard of this? It has always confused me. I was married when I was 19. When I think of my day as a bride, I was dressed up very pretty, had on make up, ate way too many chicken wings, and then "consumated" our special day. (Kind of silly, we were already living together, but yeah.) So maybe I have a warped idea of what a bride is. Every now and then, Mr. R will call me his bride, and I will smirk. It's usually when I'm scooping the cat box or folding laundry; a less than sexy time. But back in the day, a bride didn't already "know" her husband. This was a huge day of transferring responsibility from her father to her husband. She had to have an inordinate amount of trust. One she had to trust her father, and two, she had to trust her new husband. How scary! I've been married to Mr. R for fifteen years, and sometimes I still think he has a screw loose sometimes. Am I trusting him as well as I should?

Then I thought, well, I understand the "bride" part. But what about the Christ part? Ah, let's look at this. A bride would have to trust Christ. This isn't about sex, or pretty dresses, or chicken wings. This is about trusting for everything. For the good, for the bad, for the ugly. Knowing that He will always be there to pick me up, even when I fall. And I fall, more often than I should. I fall, I stand up, I dust off my knees. Then I keep going. I want to be a bride again. Full of trust, anticipation, and ready for the future.

Who's in a Bad Mood? That Would Be Me

Grrrrr. Work, chores. Work, chores. Work, chores.

Sarah needs a vacation. Somewhere without work or chores, please.

Job Update for the Hubby

In a nutshell, Mr. R gave his one week notice, and the jerk fired him the next day.

Blessedly, Mr. R is back at his old job. They never even took him out of the computer. Just gave him the keys back to the same truck, and told him they'd have a load ready for him on Monday. So Mr. R has the rest of this week off, which I LOVE. My honey-do list is longer than the length of my arm, and he's been game so far. In fact, he is taking the boys to a podiatrist appointment today, so I don't miss work. Frankly, anything having to do with stinky teenage boy feet, I will gladly take a pass. Bucket has plantar warts, and Tiger has one of the worst ingrown toenails I've ever seen. He had surgery on his other foot before, and now it looks like he's going to need it again. Sigh...

I've just been keeping busy with mountains of housework, homework, and work. That's a lot of work! Tonight is supposed to be a stormy night here in Florida, and so I'm hoping we can work on the Christmas decorations inside the house. I'll take pictures when I'm done!