Day 10

So, September 10, 2009.
Day 10.
Job 24-28.
The Message.

I just realized that I obligated myself to post EVERY SINGLE DAY for a YEAR when I really don't have something to say everyday.

In light of this realization, I'll do my best to read everyday and post about it once a week. In the meantime, if I have a good thing to post about, I'll do it!!!

 

Day 9

So, September 9, 2009.
Day 9.
Job 20-24.
The Message.

A lot like yesterday. Wish I could say more...

 

Day 8

So, September 8, 2009.
Day 8.
Job 17-20.
The Message.

A lot like yesterday.

I'm so exaughsted I forgot the password to my computer. The one I type every single day. Multiple times a day.

 

Days 5-7

1. I can't believe I didn't factor how much I HATE when the Aggies come back into my decision to move....
2. Little man in the jacked up white Chevy, my Ford is obviously superior at stopping. Your ploy to get me to rear end you was foiled. Because there was no real reason for you to slam on your brakes at the bypass on ramp. Therefore, I am lead to believe you were trying to get me to rear end you.
3. However, because of the amazing stopping power and great seatbeltage, while keeping me safe and from greater harm, my car inflicted an injury on me. 
4. And I wish it would bruise because my husband doesn't believe it really hurts.
5. Milk was $2 a gallon and I bought 4 gallons. You people have no idea how fast Robert drinks milk and, you know, milk is expensive. Plus, you can freeze milk and it keeps longer.
6. I was hoping to post, with pictorial evidence, my brilliant idea of a less than $10 curtain rod my husband and I spend the weekend crafting. But I have yet to put the final curtain on and there's stuff piled on the floor near there and it just wouldn't have the same effect. 
7. Plus, getting a picture onto my computer is complicated. We don't have a camera. So,either I use the web cam on my computer, which is difficult to get a good shot with, or I use one of our phones. And I'm just not gonna do that right now.
8. I'm not so good with making sure I read when it's the weekend... Here's today and the last 2, also.

So, September 5, 2009.
Day 5.
Job 6-9.
The Message.

Oh, wait, I did read that when I was supposed to. Just never posted.

So, September 6, 2009.
Day 6.
Job 10-13.
The Message.

Job is really whiny. I mean, the man's got a reason to be, but it's getting old quick. Maybe God would've answered him if he'd just shut up for a minute. Wait. Ouch...now my toes hurt...

Also, his friends are highly insensitive. I really like when he tells them "Do you think the elderly have a corner on wisdom, that you have to grow old before you understand life?" Next time someone is spouting nonsense and claiming they should know because they've lived longer than me, I'm sending them to Job 12:12. Except only in the Message. Because the other translations say the opposite... Maybe I should stick to my Timothy reference...

And I like this just because it's funny "Your wise saying are knickknack wisdom, good for nothing but gathering dust."

So, September 7, 2009.
Day 7.
Job 14-16.
The Message.

 More whining and insensitivity. Lord, when my friends are going through troubles, please let me be careful what I say! Amen.

Day 4

 So, September 4, 2009.
Day 4.
Job 1-5.
The Message.

Food for thought...

"His wife said, 'Still holding on to your precious integrity, are you? Curse God and be done with it!'
He told her, 'You're talking like an empty-headed fool. We take the good days from God--why not also the bad days?'"

Wow... Just wow...

Day 3

So, September 3, 2009.
Day 3.
Gen. 8-11.
The Message.

I really have nothing to say. But apparently I started this and feel compelled to keep posting it.

The little girl, E, remembered the turtle says "dude." My life is now complete.

Had a girl's night. It was fun.

Goodnight, all!

Day 2

I'm teaching a little girl in my class who's obsessed with Nemo this: Me: "What does a turtle say?" E: "Duuuude."

It's hilarious. I know.

My momma and I have already corrupted her enough that she says a puppy says "Woof" and then pants. She knows a kitty cat says "Meow" and hisses. A lizard sticks it's tongue out. A horse makes that sound they/we make with blowing air through our lips.

Also, for really no reason at all, today was the longest day in the world and I'm ridiculously tired.

And Even Now, by the amazing Karen Kingsbury,  is such a wonderful book. But then, everything she does is awesome.

So, September 2, 2009.
Day 2.
Gen. 4-7.
The Message.

Genealogies that didn't make me want to already give up my commitment to read all the way through the Bible.

Noah's story. With ark measurements in units I ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND and can kinda picture in my head except it's huger than my mind really thinks about.

Day 1

So BigMama decided on her blog that she was gonna read the Bible, chronologically, in a year with the Message translation. It's a new, fresh approach because reading the same old verses you can quote by heart doesn't always get you to think about what you are reading. She had gone out to buy a Message Bible and linked us to a website that she was following to know what to read each day. I was intrigued by the idea because I once read the Bible in a year but Leviticus boggs you down and the geneologies get tedious and so many of the verses you just know by heart you don't really stop to think about, so reading chornologically was something I've always wanted to do and using the Message just sounded like a good idea.
I knew Robert had a Message/NIV parallel so I didn't go buy anything. I just went in to get it and saw we also have a just plain Message so I decided to read that one. In fact, I decided to count and, if you include just New Testaments and a Children'ts Bible, we have 19 Bibles. I think. I mighta missed one or two. Ridiculous, isn't it? I guess that's what happens when your husband is a Christian Ministry major...

So, September 1, 2009.
Day 1.
Gen. 1-3.
The Message
Yeah, I totally laughed out loud and then felt a little blasphemy when it said “God spoke: Earth! Green up!”
Made me think of like Cowboy Up or something. I'm not exactly sure why, but it hit my funny bone.

On a completely unrelated note, I totally have a flip-flop tan from the playground. It makes me laugh big time.

Mas de George Lopez

And really, this is a better version of the Jack in the Box, but it doesn't have the "cars in front and behind" line. Plus it's way longer.

Link

Just Call Me the Village Idiot...

****EDITED TO SAY: WOW! I totally am an idiot. I forgot the "call" and misspelled "village."
Or Cilena. Or Billie.

So, once, my grandmother backed into a house. She wasn't even in the car. And, also there's this story about her somehow parallel parking a tractor in a gate gap. It wasn't on purpose.

My mother is known for her backing ineptness. There's even a song "She goes backing and smashing and crashing cars." And trucks, and garage doors, and poles...

And these ladies have lovely qualities that I am happy to share with them. The backing issue is not one of them. And I didn't think I shared it till today. I can parallel park (on purpose). I can back into parking spaces with one try. I've never hit anything backing (except once I forgot I had my hitch in and kinda tapped a tree, but neither truck nor tree was injured so I'm not so sure that counts) and really like to make fun of those ladies for their backing issues.

I can't so much do that anymore.

So, I don't know how to explain this to someone who hasn't seen it, but, I guess so the driveway could be level, one side of the driveway is built up with a little curb around the edges. I've been parking in the same spot since we moved here, cuz it's in the shade.

There was this combination of events (kid in my car yesterday so the review mirror was turned funny, somebody parked next to me and parked extra close to the curb, and there's something wrong with the seat where it keeps moving till you push the button and I was trying to fix it) that led me to back up a little far so that when I let off the brake, my car rocked back and fell off the driveway. Yup. Fell right off.

I got out and looked. The rear passenger wheel was off the driveway and just hangin' there in mid air. It was resting on the arm for the independent rear suspension. Which holds the weight for the car anyways, so it wasn't like it was terribly bad for the car, but I couldn't get it to move.

I kinda thought, man, this must be a really bad dream.

There's no way this actually just happened.

But oh no.

It certainly had.

So, I, in my normal calm, cool, collected manner, began calling. I called Robert. I called my Momma. I called my brother. I called Robert again. I called Momma again. I called my brother again. None of them had to work today. Robert had gone to pick up his check from work, but wasn't actually working.

Called them all again. None picked up. So, I called my Daddy. Was he, by any chance, near CS? No, no he wasn't.

Called the round again. Tried my friend that I knew wouldn't be able to help other than to calm my panic. Didn't answer.

Called work to say I'd be late. Racked my brain to think of people in CS that could help and weren't at work ( : ) or asleep) and came up with no one.

Called the round again. My brother answered!!! He'd talked to my Daddy and was on his way over. Talked to my Momma. Calmed down. FINALLY got a hold of my husband. He was at the bank. With cars in front and behind (like George Lopez's "Jack in the Box" there's some language). But was on his way as soon as possible.

Robert beat my brother by a few minutes. We started with his jack and jacked it up as far as it would go. Brother showed up and we used a big, fat rope to tie his truck to my truck. He took the slack out of the rope and then we used his jack to try to get that wheel close to level with the rest of the Explorer.

As we are jacking it up, I kid you not, it began raining. SERIOUSLY. Which did cool it off. But, really. REALLY?! Yup.

Then my brother pulled with his truck and at the same time I floored it and we got me back on solid land. In the rain.

Robert didn't want me to drive it till my Daddy looked it over. So, Brother takes me to work and hangs out around town (buys a tow cable lol) and then takes me home. Daddy checks Explorer out. I drive around the neighborhood. Seems fine.

I need to go pick up antibiotics for my ear infection. I stay on the feeder to be safe, but it seemed completely fine!

On my way home, I saw an Escape Limited blocking traffic on the feeder at my exit. There was a guy walking across the street with a gas can. I'm pretty sure that they, like I, have a miles-to-empty meter. So, at least I'm not that stupid...

But I do feel like a humongous idiot. Really.

I can finally laugh about it, but please, supportive comments about your backing issues, only, please. : )

Bloggy Activities

Just feel like I should add an update.

1. Still love my job.
2. The morning lead is from Denmark. She's fluent in English. Sometimes I forget she's not a native. Like when she didn't know what a Dixie cup was. She also speaks Norwegian, Swedish, German, French, and 2 more languages I forget right now. So these books I'm reading are about Norwegian immigrants and, though it's in English, there are Norwegian names and phrases. So I totally took it up to her and she taught me how to say the words. I knew what all of them meant from context clues, etc. but it was fun to know exact meanings and how to say them. Like this name "Hjelmer Bjorklund" is said "Yelma Biyorklund" and the phrase "mange takk" means thank you very much and is said "mang (short ending) ta(like a schwa, almost an o sound)k" so so so much fun!!!
3. I have already gotten back to driving like a College-Station-ian. So not to get smashed by stupid Aggies. Who are coming back.

Now I am going to unpack/decorate/cook something.

Lists

7 Things I miss about Belton:

1. Being 2 seconds and walking distance of HEB
2. The traffic....or lack there of
3. The allergy nurses
4. Rachael, the girls, their house
5. The fact that there's lots of trees everywhere and it's pretty to drive around most places
6. KKM and all my friends there
7. Dr. Skaggs : (
   

7 Things I missed about CS and can now enjoy:

1. Being close to my Momma and Daddy and able just to go on over when I want
2. Having a place I can go out (Momma and Daddy's) where it's out of the city and relaxing
3. The fellowship of wonderful, Christian friends at a wonderful church
4. A worship service where people actually worship
5. No smoking in any restaurant anywhere, all the time and quite a few other public places
6. More people than just me going at least the speed limit on roads
7. Having a "full time" job I really enjoy

And something else-we've never paid for TV since we were married. In Belton, we could actually pick up CBS (and CW), ABC (and Telemundo and the weather), Fox, PBS (and the Pentagon Channel), and sometimes NBC (and weather). Now all we get is PBS (a weird weather channel and something stupid that I think is called the Research channel), Fox, and CBS (and CW). However, we can probably get TV you pay for if we get it through Dish because Robert gets a discount through work. Though there's other things we have to take care of first. I just wasn't sure how to put that in my list. Plus a list of 7 is better than 8.

Also, please pray for my friend OTT. It's a funny nickname and I'd say more about why she needs prayer if I thought I should, but really just please pray for her and her husband.

There's a lot I should be doing but I am exhausted today. Taking the children outside in the heat today, for only 15 minutes-FIFTEEN MINUTES-sucked the life right out of me. It's crazy hot.

And now I have moved right into the complete rambling stage where I am only avoiding the work I know I need to do...

New Town, New Job, New House!

Alright ya'll. I finally feel like posting. Nothing too blog-worthy has actually happened but I feel I've neglected ya'll long enough. (I love that I actually believe that people are waiting on pins and needles for me to post : ) ) We have internet! Yea! It's the good stuff, too, cuz it's a promotional offer. So I'm writing this post with 7 YouTube videos downloading. And it's not even all laggy. Amazing.

I love, love, l-o-v-e, my job!!! My class is SUCH a fun age! I work with amazing grown-ups, too. I really need this to get my feet back under me. I've had the bad experiences that I just need to have this great job to help me remember what it's really like! My kids are 14-19 months. One of them is obsessed with "a pish" known to the rest of the world as Nemo. Yesterday she started saying "a hoo wa hoo wa ho ho ho." Well, not exactly, but that's the part she was trying to quote. You know, the part where they make Nemo "Sharkbait" (ooo ha ha). : ) She is too funny. We have a new girl who just started and she is too cute. Speaks very clear, potty training, and cute, cute, cute! We have one boy with curly, curly cute blond hair. A little blonde haired girl who is so preciously sweet. And another little girl that we finally coaxed a laugh out of yesterday. I love working with these babies!

Our new house is pretty cute. It's another 2 bedroom but it has a bathroom and a half. It's actually a pretty crazy set up but it totally works. From the hallway, you walk into a half bath-sink and potty, which also has the washer/dryer. From there you can go through another door, which leads to the shower room that also has a potty. This room also has 2 doors. One leads back to the half bath and the other leads to the bedroom via a little vanity sink type area. Then from the bedroom, you can get back to the hallway! Maybe I'll post a picture of a floor plan soon. Anyways, it's overall slightly bigger and not so much run-down like our last place. And brighter. We like it. It's still a maze to get through with all the boxes not yet unpacked and half decorated, but it'll get there! All my stuff is in my kitchen and I actually have space left over. No joke. Which means I can get some of the stuff that mom's been storing for me in my own house! And, when I find the perfect shelves, I can display some of my antique dishes. Or maybe get my husband or Daddy to build for me... Christmas present? : ) Seriously, when I get everything all pretty, I'll post some pics. Which might be next year. You know, right before we move again. Oh, well. I enjoy decorating. Just not packing/unpacking.

Robert started his job this Monday. He's in training which means he works 4-midnight. He thinks he'll like the job, and we'll get a major discount for Dish network, which we might take advantage of at some point. After 4 weeks, he'll actually start and then I guess we'll know what he really thinks!

I am so happy about all the friends I've come back to and those I've quickly become friends with. We have an awesome Sunday School class and I didn't realize how much I missed Bob leading worship music until we came back. It's less him or his style and more that he actually loves what he's doing and is worshiping, too. It's difficult to explain. But I like it and have missed it.

Well, I've got about 2 hours before Robert will be home. I have some food to put away, dishes to do, laundry to fold, and should probably unpack at least 1 box.

Oooo, a tip from me to you? One I'm so excited I came up with? I had one of those drawer organizers that's supposed to be for an office desk drawer that can no longer serve it's intended purpose. I used it to organize my "baking stuff" drawer. I'm so impressed with my ingenuity! And the dishwasher didn't even warp it or anything!
I had to take 2 pictures to really show it. Because I took them with my computer's web cam. It was handy. And didn't have to search for any cords or anything!

And now, I must go accomplish something...

Hello Internet!

We just got internet yesterday! I'm excited that it's possible for me to blog again, but not quite ready to be as posty as I was before the move! I'm still in unpacking mode and have started working. Robert's first day working was yesterday. So it's gonna be awhile before we are totally settled and I get back to my postyness!

Stil Alive!

Still alive. My toe still hurts. Story to come later when I have internet which will be pretty soon!

Branalyn

I know he does, but people like marijana too, and that doesn't mean it's good for them!

No, I will not tell you what that means, but suffice it to say it was a fun quote from a night of fun and laughter and tears that I will miss dearly.

I don't know if you've caught on yet, but we're moving. Soon. Like really soon. This Saturday soon. And while packing wise I'm pretty close to ready, I only realized tonight how much emotionally I'd been kinda ignoring and therefore not ready for moving.

I have friends. Good friends. That live here. And only one of them really has an excuse to come to CS. Beyond that, we're getting to the point of everyone graduating and moving on, so does it really matter that I can come back here and see them? Will they even be here very long?

I'm going to miss them. This was probably my last girl's night like this. I know I have friends in CS and I know I will have girl's nights with them. Most of them are married and will understand this phase in my life a little better than my friends here.

But that doesn't mean I won't miss these girls. So much.

I'm sorry for my melancholy post. I'm sure ya'll didn't wanna hear this (though the beauty of blogging is that I can get it out but if people don't want to hear they don't have to read!) but I needed to vent a little. Tears are good for the soul, but venting is quite necessary also.

Robert and I went to the lake today. We realized we'd only been once and that was before he even lived here. It was sad to know we'd never be able to just decide to go to the lake and do it the next day with no more planning than that. There are things we will miss about living here. Awesome parks where you can just go and hike and then come straight home. And, most of you will think this is silly, but I love the nurses at my allergist's office. I will miss their smiling faces. We are gonna miss this place.

Don't get me wrong, we are excited about this new phase in our lives. Living in CS will open up so many more possibilities for us. It is what we need to do at this point in our lives. But moving sucks. And change sucks. And I'm not good with dealing with either of those.

I am a person who is able to be flexible in one area of my life as long as the other parts are constant. I don't deal well without having some normalcy to fall back on. And the normalcy is being taken away.

As I write that, I feel so insensitive and wrong. I just watched a movie about a girl dying of cancer (My Sister's Keeper the book was better, but made me angrier.) and while I don't know anybody going through that same situation, my Aunt Sandy is doing chemo because she had a brain tumor. My chiropractor, her house was struck by lightening two nights ago and burned to the ground. All the people and animals are OK but all their stuff is gone. And I'm complaining about my stuff being in boxes. Which, beyond that, is just stuff. And I could be living in some third world country where, if I wasn't blessed enough to receive help from someone like Compassion, I wouldn't be able to have the medicine that helps me breathe. And I complain about it costing so much.

I don't know where I'm going with this beyond I'm sad. And I feel disoriented because all my stuff is boxed up and my house feels chaotic. And after putting it down on figurative paper, I feel guilty for feeling that way because it could be so much worse.

I need to be excited that, even though the boat is sinking, at least I get to swim! (Thank you, Rachael for that quote of a quote!) And there is so much to be excited about. And I am excited. I just needed to feel sad for a little while. And that's OK too. (I learned that at the Texas Baptist Church Weekday Education Association's annual statewide training. Well, OK, I knew that before, but I just like to say Texas Baptist Church Weekday Education Association. : ) )

But I think I am done being sad for now. I only have tomorrow and Thursday's morning and afternoon to finish getting ready to move, so don't expect much of a post anytime soon. I even am in a classroom at work Wednesday, so you won't get one of those posts. It could be a while before ya'll get a real post out of me again, which is why I don't want this one to end on a sad note. Because I can be sad for a little while, but joy comes in the morning. : )

Haven't Fallen off the Face of the Earth...

Just been resting and doing pretty much a lot of nothing.

Have a whole lot of nothing plus a little packing/laundry on today's agenda.

However, after today, I have to really get down to work!

Slave Labor Day 5

Well, ya'll, I am done! I actually didn't do much today either. And I have to say I slept better in this hotel than I can ever remember sleeping in a hotel, but there wasn't just enough hours in it! The conference was wonderful. It really was. I love Stephanie Chase, Ann Parnell, Willa Ruth Garlow, Karen Fowler, and all the women on Karen's team. Karen and her team made this weekend happen. Momma is one of those ladies. Stephanie Chase, Ann Parnell, and Willa Ruth Garlow are fairly famous ladies in our circuit. I met them I think about 3 years ago. They remembered me. That I was Cilena's daughter and my name was Branalyn. Ann even asked about didn't I just get married last year? (No, it was 2 years, but still!) Dr. Jean was also there. I did not get to meet her and I really had wanted to use my "in" to get to do that but I'll get over it and her presentation was amazing. She was really excited that she could say "Jesus" on the stage!

So I am writing this on the drive home on my Daddy's computer. To complete our crazy trip, he's gonna drop me at my car in Waco so I can drive it home and he's gonna drive him and Momma home.

Other awesome ladies that made this weekend happen: the ladies on preschool staff and the custodial staff at the awesome church that let us be there! THANK YOU First Baptist Richardson! (Because they will actually read this, you know, LOL.)

I know this is another rambly one and I know I am going to be in and out for awhile and I apologize. I want to try to write consistently and often, and I want to get this down before it's not fresh anymore, but I apologize that it's not so much coherent.

Tomorrow I have church and rest and work; Monday I have TONS of laundry, dishes and resting; Tuesday I have all day to pack; Wednesday I will pack and go to work that evening; Thursday I will get as close to finished packing as possible and then drive to CS; Friday I will attend orientation for my new job, drive with the trailer back to Belton, work my last evening at my current job (I will MISS Kingdom Kids!!!), try again to make sure everything that can possibly be done is done; Saturday we will get up, make sure everything is in a box or a bag, people will show up to help, we will load everything, Momma and I will clean rooms as they are cleared, the boys with the loaded trailers will leave, we will finish all the cleaning and anything else last minute like that, we will leave, the boys will be putting things into the storage and then at Momma and Daddy's house, we will arrive and help, and then we will sleep, I hope.

The next week, I have training. It's gonna be INSANE. That Saturday, Robert graduates. The next week, school starts. I don't know when we are gonna find a place to really live and move again. I dread unpacking. I dread it more because I will be doing it after school has already started. Oh, well.



PS I just want you to know, I did not edit this after I was done. Sorry. : )

Slave Labor Day 4

Well, it really wasn't much of slave labor today as she will be in trouble with the state if I don't get all my hours. But it was long and fun!

Thank you, Melissa and everyone else who is praying for us!!! I feel funny asking for prayer on here, not because I'm afraid to ask or that I would offend somebody, but that I know that no one who doesn't know me reads this and it's silly to ask. But if you are not already praying for us and you would like to, tomorrow is our last day. We need to get all we can get out of the sessions and we need to get home safe! Momma and Daddy and I also need to undo all that we did to get ready so the church cannot even tell we were here when they get to Sunday service. I think the "slave labor" term will fit again tomorrow!!!

I am exhausted (Robert asked, "Why are you talking like such a redneck?" and I said, "Cuz I'm too tired to make myself not!") and have to be up early enough to pack (I'm mostly done), load the car, and get there with the early (in charge) crowd.

My leg still hurts ya'll. I'll have to get a pic up so you can commiserate. It doesn't sound like it would be so bad, but I kept forgetting and crossing my legs and nearly crying right there in front of God and everybody!

Well, I'm going to shower and go to bed now. I'm so so sure I will not post tomorrow!

Slave Labor Day 3

So I was too tired last night to even post, but let me say this. All that stuff we got at Sams? It had to be moved again. Not kidding.

Plus the signs. Oh the signs. The signage was stressful. It was like putting together a puzzle but there were pieces that belonged to a different puzzle, missing pieces, and no picture on top of the box. We finally resorted to tearing the arrows off and turning them to point in the correct direction and writing the missing words and creatively folding things. Did I mention it was stressful? Cuz it was. It really, really was.

Then, the two speakers I actually got to hear talked about change. Accepting it. Liking it. Doing it. And they used the book James. Maybe God is telling me I should read James and be okay with the whole moving thing and the fact that it's a temporary thing and we have this year to plan for the real change. Did that even make sense? It's so so late. And I'm so so tired but felt the need to get this up so maybe I'll remember to make it make sense on another post. And ya'll can ask me to. And then I can process.

So I am here for two more days. And they will begin VERY VERY early in the mornings. VERY.

So I am going to bed now. Because I don't do early even if I've had enough sleep.