It's Tornado Season!

So I have been formulating an exciting post full of crafting and sale items, and what better time than while waiting for potential tornado threats to do it?

Prayers of course go out to the families affected by the flooding, wind, and hail damage. Least of which are my Mom, Brother, and one of my besties.

Mother's day is this Sunday and I have developed the habit of making myself new clothes for holidays. Frequent stops to crafting stores like Hobby Lobby and Jo-Ann's helps. So for this holiday I purchased myself a new shirt that fit nicely, then took that shirt to Jo-Ann's to match some fabric for a new skirt. Unsurprisingly I found myself two fabrics that matched exceptionally well! So yesterday I made myself a new skirt...

Just ignore the extra padding for now.

Speaking of extra padding, I have been doing Zumba and Yoga every morning! I'm getting to the point where I really hurt and would kind of like a break, But that's what they make tylenol for! I'm determined to have more energy, and unfortunately the only way to get more of that is to exhaust myself. 

In other news, In efforts to cut some of the grocery costs I'm starting to make more of my pantry food at home. There is this fantastic book that I love found here: http://www.amazon.com/The-Homemade-Pantry-Buying-Making/dp/030788726X 

That's all for now!

Silly Men.

You may have been wondering how things turned out from last week! It was sheer madness. For those of you who are just joining us you can read what happened here: http://lifeandotherridiculousthings.blogspot.com/2015/04/perspective-during-hardship.html

So G and his group (a veritable "band of brothers" if you will) worked straight through Wednesday to Friday. Although they took occasional naps, since G works to support the family he only got a 5 hour nap during that entire span. Saying that it was madness, crazy, awful, exhausting, or harrowing simply couldn't contain the range of emotions spent both by him and us as they worked this up. That entire time moving toward the Senior show on Friday afternoon where businessmen, professors, students, and family could view the work.

I had hardly seen his handsome face when my grandparents, our two boys, and I walked in that hall and I was completely blown away by the rush of emotions I felt. This single show, this week, this challenge was the culmination of literally years of hard work. The cost of this effort was hundreds of hours spent with our family separated, dozens of missed church activities, dozens of family events, dozens of little milestones, and who knows what else. I was so proud of him and his friends. I was so happy for them! My heart still bursts full with gratitude to God and happiness and pride. This was the hardest semester G would have and we did it! I'm sure other wives with husbands in school know how I feel.

So imagine my surprise when this happened today. We were sitting at the table eating lunch together on this beautiful Sunday afternoon and talking about school ending and where his friends were accepting jobs. He mentioned that Tadd, someone he met a few years ago in class and who ended up becoming a very good friend, was proposing to his girlfriend this summer after he graduated. We were happy for him and I was asking different things about it: "Is he excited," "Is he going to do something really romantic?" and things of that nature and G mentioned that he was saving up for the ring. I commented

 "that's what you do when you really love someone... you sacrifice."

He paused and looked a little sad for a moment.

A little background, G and I got married at 18 and 19. I wondered occasionally if it was what God wanted but I know now that God is the only reason my wonderful life happened this way. He proposed at random after using the bathroom (ha ha) which although we used to laugh about, he is still bothered that he didn't do something better.

I asked his what was wrong, why he looked upset for a second and he said "that comment just got to me a little bit" to which I asked why and he said "because I never really sacrificed for you."

Now I don't know if you noticed anything in my posts.. any of them.. but they are generally filled with my love for this man for his dedicated and hard working spirit. So when I heard what he said I had to laugh for a while. I sat his back down and looked him in the face and made it very clear that although maybe we can have a nicer wedding someday, just about everything he has done in the past 3 years has been a sacrifice in some way or another. Whether by losing sleep, working at a place that he doesn't always enjoy, or something else. And that is why I titled this post "Silly Men."

All-Nighters and Caffeine Fixes

Hello again!

Were you curious how things turned out from yesterday? If you don't remember or are just joining us, my handsome honey got the very credible threat that he might not pass the one class he needs to, which would add a whole other YEAR to his schooling! Ugh, the thought still gives me a bad taste.

As a Help-Meet I did what I could do. I gathered the family together for an emergency prayer session, brought the man dinner at school, and took the rest of us to church. Afterward I brought their group a few pizzas and proceeded to supply everyone minus the kids the necessary caffeine to pull an all-nighter. Let me tell you from experience that they are the WORST. This time, because I wasn't actively doing anything, I only made it to about 1am. Then I bowed out and took the kids home. I wasn't surprised to find G missing from the bed in the morning!

If you are the praying type (if you're not I invite you to try it) then please pray for his energy and strength. I am so happy to report that my man went from despair to hope last night, praise God! I have no idea if they are out of the woods yet, but valuable work got done and things are looking up.

On my end... I have been enjoying the fruits of labor in the form of a clean house! I don't know if you're the type but I love printables! I have a Home Management Book that houses all of my important information. Everything from the current favorite recipes, to a basic cleaning schedule, to the account and password list, to my kids' chore chart for me to review. I get most of my stuff from Pinterest and I invite you to check it out. There is a great free selection. The beauty of having a clean and organized home is that I can spend extra time on crafting! My real love.

Before I go I will share with you a picture of my HMB (Home Management Book) and the current craft. I am creating some avenger themed decoration for my boys' room!

Turning an old unused picture frame into a chalkboard with paint, Modge Podge, and chalkboard paint!

Perspective During Hardship

I love my husband so much! He is my dearest and longest friend; my God given anchor; and the man I'm looking forward to annoying and make laugh for many years to come. So when hard times come, it is especially difficult for me to watch him suffer. 

If you have been keeping up with my blog you know that G is completing another year of school for a degree in EET (Electric Engineering Tech) and only has one more semester to go! Now, I may be biased but let me just say that he works SO hard. As the kind of person that will take her sweet time sometimes, or get caught up in a whole bunch of new projects at once, I am amazed at how one man can dedicate himself wholly to one thing to accomplish it. Not only accomplish it, but typically finish it several days or a week ahead of time! So imagine my shock when he tells me that due to one group project he may not pass a class. The very idea of him having to repeat a class is shocking, but equally shocking is the lack of dedication from his other group members that must have led to this. I'm sure that G had his fair share to do with it, but as his wife and primary supporter I immediately fought the desire to be angry. I am a planner, and he and I could see the end of the long struggle and strain that him attending University is on our family.

I used to believe that if you did the "Christian" thing right that you never suffered or struggled. Now I see that perspective to be skewed because if that were right then you would have to believe in works-based salvation! Although I don't understand much, I do understand that despite my imperfection I am saved by the blood no matter what I do. So when I hear of injustice like this I know that it isn't important how I feel about it. The important thing now is our reaction. This is how marvelous marriages and faithful living happens.

At first I was shocked and angry on the phone, but thankfully recognized the need for a calm perspective. Although I have no clue what he means by half of the jargon he uses, I tried to help him see a solution so that when he broke the news to his team he could help lead. As soon as I got off the phone I called my Mother who helped put things in the right way. While I wanted to go on about how unfair this was and how angry I was, she reminded me that our reaction was the most important, and that we needed to have faith that God's plan is better than our plan. It isn't worth even thinking about the potential awful outcome of this because we should be seeking the Lord. 

G spends a lot of time away from our family. For the longest time I was bothered by this because it seemed like he was completely separated from us, but after a while I discovered that the best way to reconnect and feel close to him was to pray for him. So immediately I gathered the kids into our living room for an emergency prayer time and nearly just as immediately I was reassured. I texted G that same reassurance- letting him know we prayed and that we were available for him at any time.

Like I said before, I don't pretend to have the answer to happiness. There is no way for me to control what happens in G's life or to control his emotions. But I can say that prayer works, and no matter what the outcome is... we can handle it. 

I'm BACK!

So as most of you know, life happens! People get sick, kids get older, school gets started, Mommies lose their marbles (sometimes many times), and things generally get in the way of even your best intentions. There is nothing wrong with that, of course. The problem is when something is repeatedly started but never fulfilled.

So here I am, ladies (and possibly gentlemen), recommitting this blog a bit. Rather than dedicating it to the one thing I seem to fail the best at, I am simply here to share my life a little. Originally I thought this would be a fun way to jump into weight loss, and although I would still like to get there eventually I think my purpose has changed a bit. See, I don't think I have some magical answer to happiness but here I stand after a life of relative hardship ready to take on the future. I can honestly say that despite it all I am quite content with my life. It is truly by the grace of God that I can sit here and not be afraid of things to come (not including my secret phobias of static electricity and balloons thank you very much) and rather than keep quietly to myself I think I can offer both insight and perhaps some hope.

Fear not, this will not be a place where I will lament my past or carry on about the things I have been through. But if there are any families (women in particular) that have been where we have, maybe we can connect a bit!

Let's start with the basics.

My family is one of the best gifts God ever gave me! My husband, G, is one of the hardest working men I know. Right now he is finishing up his senior classes and will be graduating with a degree in Electric Engineering Technology (EET) in December. Let me just say how excited we are to finally get to have time with him again!
                                                   

Next we have our oldest son, J. Up to this point we have homeschooled him, but this fall he will be entering public school for the first time! He loves inventing things and being imaginative. I love how he seems to be the perfect mix of G and I, both mathematical and artistic.

N is the baby of the family, although he is far from a baby anymore. He will turn 4 this June and it breaks my heart! He is my little lovey, almost always thinking of others before himself. He loves sports, dirt, cars, and anything else you associate with boys. I will be homeschooling him for the first time this fall.

And me? Well, my vanity hopes that by now you would know me fairly well. I am the woman who doesn't mind waiting those extra few minutes in the check-out line so you can re-organize your wallet. I am the woman who buys a little too much at craft stores. I am the woman who plans to work out at the break of dawn, but then hits the snooze button instead. I am me!