nice transition

A couple of days ago I was moping around the house feeling sorry for myself, feeling a teensy-bit discontent and not wanting to go back to work. 

And I really think work was just what I needed. Plus, God has totally given me a couple of really easy shifts which makes for a great transition back to my job. And having the child tell me she was "re-glad that she loved me" and "re-glad that I came back" (she likes to put 're' in front of words...) helped shed some light on my selfishness and bring things back into perspective. 

Hopefully the maladaptive behavior-free shifts will continue, but either way I can praise God for giving me this job and putting these children in my life. 

wiped

Last week in the midwest was nuts. Amazing. But nuts. Usually 1 social get-together is enough to tie me over for a few weeks...or months. So in 7 days, I literally squeezed in a year's worth of social stuff. 

And it's been 2 days since I've returned to Washington and I'm still recovering - emotionally and physically and spiritually. Talk about going from the mountain to the valley. 

Hopefully in the next couple of days, God will pull me out of this funk, and I'll be able to share some amazing things that happened last week. But for today, I could really use some prayers. And possibly a nap. 

holy moly

In 7 hours my flight leaves... =(

Why am I still awake you ask?????

Because time goes by so much faster when I sleep.

sewing project #2

I'm 98% sure my sister Rachel does not read this blog. If she does...well Rachel, I guess you're going to find out what your grad gift is! 

The last week I have been agonizing over this project that I knew from the beginning I was way in over my head. It's just that sometimes I get this idea in my mind and I can't get it out until I do it. And when I saw a pictures of this bag in "Bend-the-Rules Sewing" I knew I had to make it...even if it lead to my destruction. Which, it almost did.

BUT, thanks to the guidance of my dear friend Becca today, I was able to finish it. Yeah, I know I leave tomorrow. I was preparing myself for an all nighter.

So. Here it is!

I hope to make one for myself in the next couple of weeks. Or months. 

special b-day wishes

Today I was looking through my pictures and I found one I meant to share a few weeks back from my birthday...and kudos to TJ for the most creative gift wrap ever... 

so close I can almost taste it

Less than 12 days until I'll be catching an airplane and flying 1500 miles East. So here is my pre-Wisconsin to-do list. 

1. Birthday gifts for: Dad, Elizabeth, and Grandma

2. Graduation gift for Rachie

3. Bridal shower gift for Jenny

3. Make a rough itinerary of places to go and people to see! (Not enough time there to try and be spontaneous)

4. Drop Ella off at the in-laws (single tear...)

5. Stay focused at work (I feel like I have senoritis. I'm so close to my week vacation that I'm starting to slack...not good for the kids I work with!)

6. Pray. Pray. Pray. Seek God. A lot going on, prayer is needed. 

7. Get vegetable garden going

8. Stay away from the pet stores (there seems to be a plethora of adorable kittens that need adopting)

9. KEEP RUNNING!!!! (I've been a slacker since the race...just as I predicted)

10. To help me with number 9, register for another race. It just needs to be done. 

So there is my top 10 things I hope (need!) to accomplish in 12 days. 

And, as a side note, I felt I owed Yakima a little lovin' for the sweet little coffee shop, Northtown Coffee. I'm sure if I ever lived in Yakima...(please Lord, no)...I would be visiting the shop frequently. 

Bloomsday Finisher

Yesterday I ran Bloomsday. I came in 8,222 place out of 44,490. 

You know, I'm okay with that. 

Yakima is kind of lame

But! The Senate rock.

When TJ and I were planning this little mini-vacation, we never considered that Yakima just might not be that cool. So in absence of this thought, we decided to drive up the night before and spend the whole day in Yakima until the concert started at 9PM. 

So we did a little researching online before we left. We found out there are tons of wineries in the area. For the average person, doing wine tastings would probably be an enjoyable way to spend an afternoon. But for me, who is not so average and does not care for wine, was not super keen on this idea. I just didn't think I would appreciate it as much as the wine lovers and connoisseurs. 

There were a few hiking trails outside of Yakima which sounded like a something we would like to do. But, realistically, neither of us have done any hiking so we just didn't have the gear we needed.

So pretty much we decided just to get there and then figure it out as we go. Not the smartest idea, but this was a learning experience. So what we eventually ended up doing was going to a movie, stopping by an arboretum, and chilling out at a little coffee shop until the concert started. 

So overall, it was okay. We made the most of it despite our poor planning. The music was good and we're going to try and make it over to the Seattle area in the next couple of months to see them again.