Thankful for a Solid Recall...

One of the last items on yesterday's list was to take little bean for her walk. Weather has been crappy, family in town and she just needed a walk.

On our walk, I smelled it...the unmistakable odor of skunk. My skunk-dar immediately went up. Anyone out was probably really annoyed by me shining an LED flashlight in their face.

As we were nearing home, we passed this one house with a lot of trees...something told me this was a prime hiding place for a skunk. The spirit moved me to shine the blinding light under a tree, and what did I see...evil beady eyes staring back at me. Minor feelings of panic overtook me...and I gave Chelsie a panicked "Chelsie, COME". She came running right to me...and we crossed the street, avoiding the skunk. After breathing a sigh of relief, lots of praise and pets followed. God bless her recall.

Back to work...girls gone. We had a great last day, which included another shot out on the boat. Both girls did amazing on the wakeboard, we were so proud of them. More pictures to come.

Happy Monday and have a great week!

Vacation - Day 3

So, vacation day 3...what a day!

First order of business was mowing the grass. It rained so much on vacation day 2 that my grass was super long - and it is supposed to be less than pleasant tomorrow. That being said, mowing was a necessity. Cousin Michelle volunteered to help, so I took her up on it. Mowing responsibilities at her house are that of the gardner, but today, it was all her. I loved having the help, it took half the time, and it looked great.

Second order of business...getting the girls up on a wakeboard. As you all know, my friends Amy and Gerrie are very generous with their boat. So they took us out...and both girls did awesome. Both popped right up out of the water, and we had them going up and down the river within 15 minutes! It was so fantastic to watch them - they had such a great time and were so proud of themselves for doing it. It was so great to watch them not only stand up and do it, but to watch their confidence increase. We were all incredibly proud of them. For more pictures, see my facebook page.

As is custom, we went to El Vaquero when we were done. Aunt Becky and Uncle Bill came and picked up the girls at the dock before we were done, and they went off to their annual slumber party at GAB and GUB's house. They were so excited to tell my parents about their experience...and were excited that GAB and GUB were taking them to dinner, as they had worked up quite the appetite!

Tomorrow, Michelle and I will enjoy a little shopping time on our own, before heading to Marysville for a family dinner - tacos and the "thing" that Karla makes for dessert. The "thing" actually might be one of the best desserts I have ever eaten. We always ask Karla to make it...it is this salty sweet strawberry jello thing that is freakin amazing..I have not tried to make it, because I am not sure I could ever make it as good as she does...

All in all, another great vaca so far with cousins...

Vacation - Day 1

Um, ok - does anyone know what the heck is wrong with the weather in Ohio this July? We have the coolest July on record so far. I am really annoyed by it, honestly - it is literally going to rain for the next 5 days! Puts a real damper on Cedar Point and boating plans. It has been raining since 4PM this afternoon...the only thing I can think of at this point is what fun it will be cutting my grass when all of this is done...

Anyway..day one of vacation did not start until after 10AM. It was so wonderful to sleep in. My cousin and the kids got her Tuesday night - we went to dinner and somehow, our car happened to detour at Graeters! It has been an early morning, as they had a 6AM flight out of Sacramento, so all were exhausted last night. Because the weather was crappy, we hung out with John, Karla, Kaitlyn and Conor all afternoon, and then headed to Texas Raodhouse for our annual dinner there. After that, off to agility for some COURSES! The girls love to watch Chelsie's agility. Poor Chelsie had a rough day...all this activity in her house - and 2 babies. She got stepped on by Kaitlyn all day, and at 4PM, walked into the bedroom and pretty much passed out. To add insult to injury, she did not get breakfast until 10:30...cuz mom was tired and needed to sleep!

Tomorrow's plans include a trip to Polaris...hopefully, I can find some freakin clothes...here are a few photos from day 1. Enjoy!

Monday's Top 10

Top Ten For Monday, July 20, 2009:

10. My ear drum has officially healed and all is well. Another hearing test today revealed my ear is functioning as it was designed to function! (notice I did not say I can hear everything)

9. I got to see my cute doctor today...

8. My brother utilized the $8 part I bought to fix the shower drain in my bathroom and I can shower in my own shower in the morning!

7. Another day has passed with no major cash outlays required...phew.

6. Productivity at work was off the charts.

5. All my flowers are in bloom right now.

4. I got to hang out with 2 of my good freinds tonight on the boat...and then talk to another great friend tonight as well! Luv ya Amy, Gerrie and Adrienne!

3. I learned to do a surface 180 and board on my "off side" leg today...boarding on your "off side" is best done with only one hand on the line and I did it, by gawd!!!

2. I am on vacation after tomorrow....because.....

1. My cousin and her kids will be here to visit for the rest of the week!


Can Tuesday top this?

More Prayers Needed

After enjoying a brief 5 day stay at home, little Gabby (my friend Kristin and Gio's baby) has unfortunately had to return to the hospital. She has been back in for over a week now, and according to Kristin it "looks like they are there for the long haul". She has not had a good week - her liver is still leaking from her previous surgery and they went in to try and repair that yesterday. The doctors were hoping that would heal on its own, and unless they can stop the leak, her previous surgeries will not help her long term.

Please keep the Sapio family in your thoughts and prayers and celebrate the health of those you love.

Good Samaritans

Well...my good luck continues. Tonight, about 1/2 mile from Cemetary Rd on 270 my tire light comes on. The little monitor showing which tire was low doesn't come on, so I was like "Whatever". That lasted for about 10 seconds. I was getting off the freeway anyway, so I pulled into the lane with a long line of cars - it was the driver rear, so I opened up the door when I stopped and heard the hiss of the air leaving the tire. My inappropriate words slipped out...but at that point, I was just hoping I would have enough air in the tire to make it to the parking lot of Home Depot in Hilliard. I did.

So I call AAA, they tell me sometime in the next hr they will be out - no biggy, I am not on the freeway, which is all I care about this point. I call the Honda dealer to make sure they have 2 tires in stock for the car - I knew I needed 2 new ones anyway, and thank god it was one of the ones I needed replaced that I flattened. Meanwhile, 2 people pulled up and asked if I needed help. I turned the first one down, but the second guy changed my tire and I was on my way. Get the car to the dealer, realize I need an oil change too, ask them to take me home and then I am good to go (Honda dealer 5 min from house and they have a courtesy van). About 8:30, service dude calls and says I need new front brakes. Really? What is another $200 at this point...$500 later, I was out of there.

So suffice to say, I am not sure what else could happen at this point. My savings are significantly less than they were 3 weeks ago, but lets face it:

1) I can't get up in the morning and wonder if I am going to have hot water
2) It is the middle of July and in this household, AC is not a luxury, it is a basic necessity
3) I need to operate a safe car

I thought it was incredibly nice of the people that stopped to offer to help. I didn't want to unnecessarily take anyone's time, which is why I turned the first guy down. The second guy said it was ridiculous to wait for AAA, that he would have it taken care of in 15. He was right - and I thanked him profusely. Proof there are still good people in the world.

If anyone has any suggestions on how to change my luck, I am open at this point....

Reflections of a Year Gone by....

One year ago today, my life took a path I never thought I would walk in my life time, especially in my profession. Hard to believe...one year ago today, I was laid off.

As I sit back tonight and reflect on now and then, I know I am very fortunate to have the job I have and work with some really great people. I also know I am fortunate to have family and friends who supported me along the way. I wish I could say that all of those awful feelings assoicated with being laid off had gone away, but there is part of me that will never be the same.

So much has happened in this last year, both personally and professionally. Some things have been easier than others, some things have left a permanent mark. I have made some good decisions and some not so good decisions. Some days I am at peace with those decisions, some days I am not. I guess all of these things can be chalked to the good old road of life.

If someone would have told me a year ago I would be where I am now, I am not sure I would have believed them. Maybe it is the Lord's way of teaching me to have faith and believe that things happen for a reason. If one more person had said to me "when one door closes another door opens" I might have screamed - easy to say until its your face the door closes in. :) But like everything else in life, things seem to have worked themselves out. I have realized more than ever that the battle I fight daily is not against outside forces, but against myself and my need to be in control of everything around me. One year ago today, I felt as though my world had fallen apart, that everything I had worked so hard for was all gone in a matter of 5 minutes, with no opportunity to stop it. Throughout my entire life, I have always managed to maintain a certain level (all right, probably off the charts level) of control over the big things in my life, but all of a sudden, I was forced into a situation completely out of my control. I managed not only to land on my feet, but to "stick my landing" as they say in gymnastics.

Through this all, the lesson I want to learn the most from is to let go and have faith that things will work out around you - and truly be at peace with this concept. I am not sure what is more important at this exact moment - the concept or being at peace with the concept. I may not travel the path I envisioned for myself and for you adventurous types, this is probably Ok with you. But for you type A planners like me, the road less traveled is a scary place, and I have learned that sometimes, you just have to suck it up, buckle your seat belt and hang on - eventually you will get there. Some days I am at peace with this theory, other days, I go back to wanting the roadmap of what my life is going to look like.

Through all of this, I know I have so many blessings to be thankful for - most of all, my readers - my dear freinds and family who have supported through this process unconditionally. I am grateful for each and every one you. Thank you for always being there to help me get on the path I need to be on - whatever that is.