Relief? Eh, probably just tolerance

A few weeks ago, I wrote that I was searching for relief, peace and balance.......

Hmm.....well I wouldn't say I've achieved peace or balance....but I guess my tolerance has built up a little for the the stress I was feeling and lately, I've been feeling a lot better. I'm able to take more deep breaths and focus on the situation instead of just feeling totally overwhelmed. I like it. It's a good thing, I think.

Nothing too terribly exciting going on in my life. Bff bought a house, closed last night and already started moving in! It's a great house, I like it. And it's super close to my house, which makes it 1,000 times cooler.

Fam is good. My little baby girl, Bailey, is going to be 6! I can't believe I've had her for 6 years. It blows my mind. We're having a birthday party for her next weekend, but it's really just dinner with the parents. Ha ha.

so, Happy birthday to my sweet, sweet love. And here's hoping the peace and balance continue to find their way into my life!

"dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole"
-roger caras

Haiti and Team Rubicon

If you follow my tweets, then you've probably seen some of the information I've been tweeting about Team Rubicon and Jake.

Yesterday, Team Rubicon posted a blog stating what they needed and what supplies they were running low on. One of the posts was related to needing Blackberrys so that they can communicate with their family and each other while in Haiti.

Seeing as my hubby works for T-Mobile, I immediately called him and begged him to help me figure this out. We're still working on the details, but it's starting to look more and more realistic.

My heart still aches for Haiti, but it is a little lifted knowing that we might be able to help these men and women do what they do and save and treat people in Haiti.

I'll keep you posted!!!

"heroes take journeys, confront dragons, and discover the treasure of their true selves"
Carol Lynn Pearson

update update update update update update update update update update
Mission Accomplished!!!!!!!!! We were able to get three blackberries donated by people who wanted to help, including Dustin and his boss, Jeff Jenkins. Because of their hard work, the phones are being shipped tonight and should be in Fayetteville tomorrow morning to meet up with the second group of Team Rubicon. I know it's not medical supplies, and it's not $10,00, but it's something that they needed that we were able to get for them! I'm so proud of the hubs!!! He really busted his rear to get this taken care of for them and for that I am grateful!!!!

Searching for some relief....

To say that 2009 was a bad year would be an understatement. It seemed like everything just kept coming at me and there was no way to take a breath before the next thing hit. It was almost like constantly being under water and not being able to find a float to pull yourself out of the water. No lifeguard. No one walking near by to save you. Just you. And the water.

I was not sad to say goodbye to 2009. Sure, it was another year of my life that I was grateful for because I was alive and my family was healthy. My friends were amazing as they always have been, but it wasn't the kind of year that I would ever wish on anyone. I know a lot of my friends went through and are still going through some similar sufferings and this suffering has only made our bond of friendship that much stronger. I'm grateful for that.

I thought 2010 would be a new start. A fresh new look at the world without all the pain and suffering of 2009. Today is day 15 of 2010 and I'm already feeling overwhelmed, under water, and panicked.

I recently took on some additional roles at work. While they're not necessarily stressing me out, in and of themselves, the stress is definitely more significant than it was before. I was glad to accept the challenge and I'm still glad to be working on it and doing what I do, but I'm finding myself having a hard time focusing on what I need to focus on and finding my groove within both positions. It's proving to be more difficult than I thought it would be and that in and of itself is adding to the stress.

This week started off with making a $7,000 payment to a heating and A/C company because both our outside and inside units needed to be replaced. We're still not 100% sure why this was the case, but we've got new units and so far there is a noticeable difference. If nothing else, the units were old and needed to be replaced. This took all the money I was saving to go to Maui this year. We've only got another year or two of travel time before the babes get here (we're not trying yet, but we've got a plan) and so this year was going to be the year for Maui! Next year, Alaska!

Looks like this year will be the year for stateside travel, or road tripping through Texas instead of big fancy vacations. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make, but it sure would have been nice to go to Maui!

I think all of these stresses added together are creating the perfect storm. I feel utterly overwhelmed and exhausted. I have literally tried to think of plots and actions that would take me away from my life for a little while. Albeit not healthy, it's made for some amusing drives home.

I'm ready for some relief. I don't know yet when or where this relief will come from. I'm thinking I'll start with the gym. That always seemed to work in the past. But I hope that eventually I am able to find balance in my life again. I'm also hoping to become enlightened this weekend and find my path to peace and balance and all that is calm :)

"Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm, and harmony."
Thomas Merton

A Call to Arms!!!!

The thing I've always loved about having a blog is the freedom that you can say whatever you want about whatever you want. It's your space to make comments that you want to make or to express views that you want to express.

Recently, some of my friends, as well as I have taken heat for things we've written on our blogs and to appease those around us, we've either deleted what we wrote or completely changed it up so that it no longer resembles the original post.

I think that we should stop editing our blog based on what other people think. I think we should be able to say what we want, when we want, however we want. If other people are offended or hurt by what is written on our blogs, then they can choose to no longer read our blogs. If they want to call us rude or say that we put on a different front than who we really are in real life, then that's fine. Deep down, we know that we wrote what we felt, what we wanted to write. We exercised our freedom of speech.

So, I know I've said it before, but I'm no longer going to edit what I write or delete something because someone may not agree with what I say. Sure, I'll attempt to avoid hurting anyone's feelings, and I'll try not to come across as rude or fake, but in the end, it's my blog and I'm going to say what I want.

I encourage all you other bloggers, friends and foes, to be honest with yourself and with those around you and to speak your minds! This is your space to write what you want, what you feel, what makes you angry, etc! Do it loud and do it proud!

"Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself."

SALMAN RUSHDIE, London Guardian, Nov. 8, 1990

A fun, easy lunch

So I'm not big on cooking. And I'm really not big on things that involve recipes.

This however, I love. And there really isn't a recipe, so it doesn't cross any boundaries for me.

You'll need: a whole wheat pita, kindey beans, pepperjack cheese, and a tomato.

Spoon out about 1/2 can of kidney beans. Chop half of tomato.
Put peperjack cheese on pita.
Put kidney beans on pita.
Put tomato on pita.
microwave for 1 minute.

it's delicious. I don't have a picture of it because I ate it. However, here are the remains of one that I made before. Picture it not almost all gone and ooey and gooey from the microwave!



"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."
~Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story