So much for the once a month posts...but to be expected when we got back to a slower pace of life in Columbus, MS. Although, it is amazing how time flies and how much stuff I can fill up my days with that make it seem like I'm actually a busy person! : )
It's been a roller coaster from the moment we walked back into our Columbus house after leaving it for 4 months. We came home to a broken fridge and the few things we left in the freezer and fridge completely went bad and I must say that was the worst mold problem I have EVER seen. Although we didn't just have mold problems with our fridge; from the lack of new air movement in the house we found mold in various parts including a rug in the kitchen, a wicker basket in the upstairs bathroom and musty smelling clothes in our closet (all natural materials get attacked by mold first). AAHHH! Oh, and the humidity level was about 30 degrees above what it should have been. So, that was fun to get worked out, but after a month the house is back to normal, humidity level back down and a brand new fridge in the kitchen! Thank you AF!
Then, we (or I should say Michael) encountered another pressing issue which prevented him from flying for over 6 weeks. A medical waiver had just expired that he was told would not be a problem and would be extended, though it was not. It was tough to see him go through the emotions of wondering if he would even be able to fly again if his medical waiver did not go through, and just the waiting process struggling to find a daily purpose that wasn't the job he was trained to do. Thankfully, the waiver went through last week and he's been flying and should be flying with students very soon!
Now, on to my housekeeping business, which is a praise. Praise because my vision is turning into a reality and praise because, though it's been slow rolling, I have one client so far! (I need to remember that a city is not built overnight, so neither will this successful business I had in mind :) It's part nanny work which was not my first choice but who am I to be picky, and it's only every other week that I get the children then the off weeks I clean the house. It's very part time which leaves me room to have more clients which I will hopefully get some soon.
Indiana Jones! He's growing like a weed and he's turning into my little running buddy. It's nice because he's my motivation to get out there and he is now starting to pull me along, aside from the occasional tug in the opposite direction and almost making me trip a few times. It's also great for him because that little boy has some energy! And that boy has some girlfriends! One of his favorites just moved and the little guy doesn't even realize it, which is so sad. I for sure miss the Barnhill's who lived right across the street from us but it makes me even more sad when we walk by their old house and he starts to pull like they're still there. Breaks my heart but excited for this new journey they've embarked on with the B-52s in Shreveport!
Well, that's a good 2 month update for now. Hopefully will do better in the future :)
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
"Cleaning is what I do best."
I was half-joking when I said this to Michael. Then the thought hit me..maybe I was partly meant to clean houses! I know house cleaning is NOT the only thing I am good at but I do enjoy it to an extent, kind of a stress reliever in a way. Which led to another thought…I could start a house cleaning business! I know it’s not what I went to college for but due to the lack of meteorology opportunities there are back in Columbus that I would enjoy doing, I thought maybe I would have a better chance of helping people clean their homes who would actually pay someone to do it…and there are a lot of people who joke, at least, about paying someone to clean their home. Who better to do it than me? J
(Writing about this thought is helping me to seriously consider doing it for real…) I would need to invest in cleaning supplies, put my name out there, on base, in the community, maybe Craigslist. I would probably also want to find someone who loves cleaning as much as me to be my “partner in crime”. It is kind of weird going to someone’s house for the first time by yourself, and someone to share the load with would be nice, especially if I have more than one house I have to clean (haha, wishful thinking, but maybe!).
What’s my experience? I started out as a personal assistant in college, which was mostly cleaning the lady’s house. I run a tight ship at home (so Michael would say), or try to. And right now, of course, being a housekeeper 5 days a week doing everything from inside laundry to outside yardwork and pool maintenance.
What are my chances of finding a job back in Cbus that I’d actually enjoy going in for? Working the hours I want to work? Flexible for when I show up to work and getting time off? Making someone else’s life better and seeing my progress at the end of the day and knowing I did a good job? I’d say all of these things are important to me. I couldn’t think of a better job!
Well, I’m glad I wrote this down because it just might motivate me to follow through. I’m one of those people who, if I dream up a vision, it would take a miracle for it to materialize, or just another person to externally motivate me. Which God knew this, and so placed Michael in my life! He is so encouraging and understanding in how I operate and patient enough to help me look at something from all angles until it clicks or dissolves. He thinks this sounds great but knows I need a lot of encouragement if I want to actually put this desire into motion. So, I guess we’ll just see if anything comes of it…here’s to hoping!
Friday, July 15, 2011
Indiana Jones, Our "Golden" Boy
A long overdue post about the newest addition to our family...Indy. Saying our lives have changed a bit is an understatement and makes me rethink children in the next year or two (having heard that a new puppy is somewhat good preparation for children), but I don't think I would go back to before having him. It's been an adjustment but he's the cutest puppy in the world, and though we love our cat, Miley, there's nothing like having a dog to love you unconditionally and be faithful and happy to see you continuously!
So, on our way to go float the river, one of our weekend rituals, our friends, the Poyser's mentioned seeing a family selling puppies in a parking lot. Michael and I have been talking about getting a dog for a while we just weren't sure exactly when we would get one and we wanted to educate ourselves ahead of time to be ready for when we actually brought one home. Well, that is until we went on a detour to see these puppies that were the cutest balls of fur I have seen, gorgeous Golden Retriever pups and I knew once I held one I couldn't just leave it. I have always said that if I could choose what dog I could have it would be a golden. I was just hoping Michael felt the same way. He's never owned a dog and I really wanted the one we got to be the perfect dog for his new experience. Fast forward to actually bringing "our" dog home that same day, we went to get all the necessities to get us through the next few days, including a book on how to potty train puppies and info on Goldens.
I must say, that first week made me question, "What was I thinking?!" and "Is it too late to find a new home for him?" This is partly where raising a child is different cause you can't just give the child back! A lot had to do with the lack of prior planning (not having the 9 months to prepare yourself mentally for the changes). I also tend to get stressed out easily and I don't know how to raise a puppy. I'm expecting him to know that after I say "no" about nipping my fingers or going for my face a few times that he's going to just know what I'm expecting of him and do it. I didn't really realize the amount of patience and diligence it takes in training a dog. You actually have to work pretty hard with them in the beginning so they turn into that enjoyable, well trained dog who listens to you on your first word and is pleasant to be around. What a concept I'm learning!
It's been a learning curve. But all in all, we love him dearly. We get SO many complements on how cute he is and how smart these types of dogs are. He is learning fairly quickly and is close to being fully potty trained in just 3 weeks! Watching him and Miley interact has been quite entertaining. I do feel slightly bad that she was queen of the house until he got there. But she's a little instigator! He'll be happily chewing on his toy or falling asleep and she'll come meow right near him to get him to chase her which he also happily does but then she turns around and hisses and swats him on the nose and then we tell him to stop barking at her. I think she secretly enjoys when we intervene and he gets the brunt of our commands :)
He started puppy training this last week which was more training for us than for him. I do appreciate learning more positive ways to train him instead of just falling to instinct of losing my patience and trying to force him to obey (which just leads to him being afraid of me rather than joyfully obeying because it pleases him to please us). It also helps Michael and I get on the same page of how we want to train him so he doesn't become confused by our different methods. And it helps Michael because he hasn't had too much interaction with dogs in the past to know how to be with them. Again, just in the first one hour session, he is learning at lighting speed and I'm pretty excited because once we're done with this class I'm hoping we'll have a fully compliant dog...here's for hoping!
I could go on and on about him but don't want make this post a book. So that's our little guy in a nutshell and our first adventures of being new puppy owners!
So, on our way to go float the river, one of our weekend rituals, our friends, the Poyser's mentioned seeing a family selling puppies in a parking lot. Michael and I have been talking about getting a dog for a while we just weren't sure exactly when we would get one and we wanted to educate ourselves ahead of time to be ready for when we actually brought one home. Well, that is until we went on a detour to see these puppies that were the cutest balls of fur I have seen, gorgeous Golden Retriever pups and I knew once I held one I couldn't just leave it. I have always said that if I could choose what dog I could have it would be a golden. I was just hoping Michael felt the same way. He's never owned a dog and I really wanted the one we got to be the perfect dog for his new experience. Fast forward to actually bringing "our" dog home that same day, we went to get all the necessities to get us through the next few days, including a book on how to potty train puppies and info on Goldens.
I must say, that first week made me question, "What was I thinking?!" and "Is it too late to find a new home for him?" This is partly where raising a child is different cause you can't just give the child back! A lot had to do with the lack of prior planning (not having the 9 months to prepare yourself mentally for the changes). I also tend to get stressed out easily and I don't know how to raise a puppy. I'm expecting him to know that after I say "no" about nipping my fingers or going for my face a few times that he's going to just know what I'm expecting of him and do it. I didn't really realize the amount of patience and diligence it takes in training a dog. You actually have to work pretty hard with them in the beginning so they turn into that enjoyable, well trained dog who listens to you on your first word and is pleasant to be around. What a concept I'm learning!
It's been a learning curve. But all in all, we love him dearly. We get SO many complements on how cute he is and how smart these types of dogs are. He is learning fairly quickly and is close to being fully potty trained in just 3 weeks! Watching him and Miley interact has been quite entertaining. I do feel slightly bad that she was queen of the house until he got there. But she's a little instigator! He'll be happily chewing on his toy or falling asleep and she'll come meow right near him to get him to chase her which he also happily does but then she turns around and hisses and swats him on the nose and then we tell him to stop barking at her. I think she secretly enjoys when we intervene and he gets the brunt of our commands :)
He started puppy training this last week which was more training for us than for him. I do appreciate learning more positive ways to train him instead of just falling to instinct of losing my patience and trying to force him to obey (which just leads to him being afraid of me rather than joyfully obeying because it pleases him to please us). It also helps Michael and I get on the same page of how we want to train him so he doesn't become confused by our different methods. And it helps Michael because he hasn't had too much interaction with dogs in the past to know how to be with them. Again, just in the first one hour session, he is learning at lighting speed and I'm pretty excited because once we're done with this class I'm hoping we'll have a fully compliant dog...here's for hoping!
I could go on and on about him but don't want make this post a book. So that's our little guy in a nutshell and our first adventures of being new puppy owners!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Overdue Update
I can't believe how much we have done already in just the past month and a half we've been here! I do not want this blog to be all about listing things we have been doing but life is so exciting right now, with doing stuff, it's hard to sum it all up : )
To start off, most of the things we do are on the weekends and with our friends the Poyser's (Amber and Jon), who are also here from Columbus and a few weeks ahead in training of Michael. We are growing pretty close, doing most big things together on the weekends, and once a week we meet to go through the amazing book "Sacred Marriage" by Gary Thomas. It's such a blessing to be able to talk to another God-centered couple about similar struggles they face in marriage and to encourage each other to "press on" and pray for one another. I also have been meeting with Amber to go through the book complementing this study, "Sacred Influence", about how to be a positive godly influence to our husbands.
So those are our summer buddies and thankfully, established friends to return to Columbus with! Now on to our weekend activities..
I've been pretty good at keeping pics updated on facebook just not details on this blog. Since the last entry we had visitors, our college friends, Jacque and Cameron, drove down from Shreveport, LA to hang out with us for Memorial Day weekend. We are thankful they decided to come hang out, though they are not much for driving, they made the trek to join us for some fun at the beach in Corpus Christi. We also went with the Poyser's and the Bexton's (another FAIP couple - First Assignment Instructor Pilot). It was great to see the Gulf again but it's definitely not the same as the Emerald Coast (FL).
The following weekend we went to the Natural Bridge Caverns. A pretty cool underground cavern system with impressive stalactites and stalagmites, columns and connected rooms. It's amazing to think what is underground that you might never know if it's not a tourist destination like this place!
Last weekend, Michael and I went with Amber and Jon and used our free, once-a-year for military, passes to Sea World. Very thankful for those! Spent all day riding roller coasters, watching shows, having a picnic for lunch (highly recommend to save money) out front of the park, then spent the afternoon at the water park. Tons of fun, especially free fun, except for the parking spot we had to pay for..but not complaining!
And this past weekend, we all went to Fredericksburg. A cute little German town tucked in the hill country about an hours drive North of San Antonio. I never knew, before coming to TX, that there were actual German towns, anywhere in America, but sure enough there are here. After getting an intel brief : ) from the Visitor's Center, we ate at a very German restaurant (relative, due to the Mexican pizzas we ate for lunch), then headed to the Enchanted Rock State Natural Area.
"The Rock is a huge, pink granite exfoliation dome, that rises 425 feet above ground, 1825 feet above sea level, and covers 640 acres. It is one of the largest batholiths (underground rock formation uncovered by erosion) in the United States."
We were pretty unprepared for the hike, wearing sandals, my big dangling earrings, and minimal water, but it was well worth it when we reached the top. It was a little over a half mile - not bad - but it was pretty much a steep climb. I was hoping to get a good view and picture of the hill countryside and it proved the perfect spot. After a quick rinse in the parks bathroom (haha) we then headed back into town so I could get a Christmas ornament to commemorate our time spent in TX, then some delicious homestyle ice cream. We then headed to Wildseed Farms to see some pretty wildflowers, defying the summer heat, took some pictures among the flowers with some I will not post for Michael's sake, LOL, and bought some wildflower seeds to hopefully plant back in MS for next Spring! Our last stop was at the Grape Creek Vineyards where I enjoyed some delicious rose wine. By that time we were pretty much ready to head back home, hot and sticky from our outdoor activities, we headed back to our apt and enjoyed our refreshing pool and delivered pizza. It was a great way to end an exciting day!
That's pretty much our activities so far. But did I mention the heat here!!! We just happened to come to TX in the middle of a drought. It has been triple digits for the past three weeks with a break getting down to 99 or 98 possibly next Tue! Um, HOT is a huge understatement..but again, who am I to complain? This is a paid vacation regardless of the temperature.
Now, on to the big news...the first job I have had since I got out of the Air Force...I am a housekeeper for the summer! It has nothing to do with what I went to school for but that's alright. I am crazy and actually enjoy cleaning (I'm kind of a perfectionist..just ask Michael) and so this job fits me nicely. It's for a couple that have 2 cats and 2 birds who all have famous people names (Siegfried and Roy for the cats - fitting - and Quentin Tarantino and Lucky for the birds). Not a huge fan of birds, mostly because I'm afraid their beaks are going to rip my fingers off, but I haven't had to touch them, so our relationship is working out nicely so far. I also couldn't have asked for a more flexible job that enables me to still do what I want on the weekends and mostly flexible during the week. Michael's happy, that's for sure. This will hopefully increase the rate at which our loans get paid off (if just by a month or two : ).
Well, wow, that's it for now! Again, I hope to be a little more philosophical, or something, but maybe when we get back to the quaint town of Columbus I will have more time to think introspectively. Until next time..adieu!
To start off, most of the things we do are on the weekends and with our friends the Poyser's (Amber and Jon), who are also here from Columbus and a few weeks ahead in training of Michael. We are growing pretty close, doing most big things together on the weekends, and once a week we meet to go through the amazing book "Sacred Marriage" by Gary Thomas. It's such a blessing to be able to talk to another God-centered couple about similar struggles they face in marriage and to encourage each other to "press on" and pray for one another. I also have been meeting with Amber to go through the book complementing this study, "Sacred Influence", about how to be a positive godly influence to our husbands.
 |
| Jon & Amber Poyser |
I've been pretty good at keeping pics updated on facebook just not details on this blog. Since the last entry we had visitors, our college friends, Jacque and Cameron, drove down from Shreveport, LA to hang out with us for Memorial Day weekend. We are thankful they decided to come hang out, though they are not much for driving, they made the trek to join us for some fun at the beach in Corpus Christi. We also went with the Poyser's and the Bexton's (another FAIP couple - First Assignment Instructor Pilot). It was great to see the Gulf again but it's definitely not the same as the Emerald Coast (FL).
The following weekend we went to the Natural Bridge Caverns. A pretty cool underground cavern system with impressive stalactites and stalagmites, columns and connected rooms. It's amazing to think what is underground that you might never know if it's not a tourist destination like this place!
Last weekend, Michael and I went with Amber and Jon and used our free, once-a-year for military, passes to Sea World. Very thankful for those! Spent all day riding roller coasters, watching shows, having a picnic for lunch (highly recommend to save money) out front of the park, then spent the afternoon at the water park. Tons of fun, especially free fun, except for the parking spot we had to pay for..but not complaining!
And this past weekend, we all went to Fredericksburg. A cute little German town tucked in the hill country about an hours drive North of San Antonio. I never knew, before coming to TX, that there were actual German towns, anywhere in America, but sure enough there are here. After getting an intel brief : ) from the Visitor's Center, we ate at a very German restaurant (relative, due to the Mexican pizzas we ate for lunch), then headed to the Enchanted Rock State Natural Area.
"The Rock is a huge, pink granite exfoliation dome, that rises 425 feet above ground, 1825 feet above sea level, and covers 640 acres. It is one of the largest batholiths (underground rock formation uncovered by erosion) in the United States."
We were pretty unprepared for the hike, wearing sandals, my big dangling earrings, and minimal water, but it was well worth it when we reached the top. It was a little over a half mile - not bad - but it was pretty much a steep climb. I was hoping to get a good view and picture of the hill countryside and it proved the perfect spot. After a quick rinse in the parks bathroom (haha) we then headed back into town so I could get a Christmas ornament to commemorate our time spent in TX, then some delicious homestyle ice cream. We then headed to Wildseed Farms to see some pretty wildflowers, defying the summer heat, took some pictures among the flowers with some I will not post for Michael's sake, LOL, and bought some wildflower seeds to hopefully plant back in MS for next Spring! Our last stop was at the Grape Creek Vineyards where I enjoyed some delicious rose wine. By that time we were pretty much ready to head back home, hot and sticky from our outdoor activities, we headed back to our apt and enjoyed our refreshing pool and delivered pizza. It was a great way to end an exciting day!
 |
| Our hiking attire on the Enchanted Rock |
Now, on to the big news...the first job I have had since I got out of the Air Force...I am a housekeeper for the summer! It has nothing to do with what I went to school for but that's alright. I am crazy and actually enjoy cleaning (I'm kind of a perfectionist..just ask Michael) and so this job fits me nicely. It's for a couple that have 2 cats and 2 birds who all have famous people names (Siegfried and Roy for the cats - fitting - and Quentin Tarantino and Lucky for the birds). Not a huge fan of birds, mostly because I'm afraid their beaks are going to rip my fingers off, but I haven't had to touch them, so our relationship is working out nicely so far. I also couldn't have asked for a more flexible job that enables me to still do what I want on the weekends and mostly flexible during the week. Michael's happy, that's for sure. This will hopefully increase the rate at which our loans get paid off (if just by a month or two : ).
Well, wow, that's it for now! Again, I hope to be a little more philosophical, or something, but maybe when we get back to the quaint town of Columbus I will have more time to think introspectively. Until next time..adieu!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Our first adventures of Summertime in Texas!
Got out of dodge just in time! Left Wed, the day of numerous tornadoes that wreaked havoc on the South, including Tuscaloosa which is just 60 miles east of Columbus and Smithville, about 25 miles north. Very saddened to hear of all the devastation but thankful to know God had His hand upon us that day as we traveled from Columbus to TX.
We got moved into our apartment, which we love. It's not too far from the base, very close to PLENTY of shopping, has a great swimming pool area where I spend a lot of my afternoons while Michael's in training, and another FAIP and his wife we know from Columbus are here so I can hang out with her during the days. It took Miley some time to adjust but now she owns the place.
The base here has some of the best amenities I've seen, including the gym, and just the produce section alone of the commissary is about the size of our commissary back in Columbus..amazing!
There is SO much to do here it's almost overwhelming, but a great place to spend our summer. Our favorite thing to do so far is float on the Comal river. We figured buying our own tubes would be cheaper and would pay off in about two trips. Since we plan on going about once a week (we've already been twice), it was well worth it. It's like floating on a 3 mile long lazy river, with 3 fun chutes, packed with people, floating and having a great time. Some other places we have liked have been the Riverwalk, that has restaurants galore along it, and the Japanese Tea Gardens (nice place to go on a date and take pictures). It's pretty exciting to think of all the things we still have yet to do and we have 3 more months to do them!
For our two year anniversary (where has the time gone?!), we attended Michael's cousin's beautiful wedding in Houston, which was a short drive away. It was nice to see a lot of his family, especially his parents and brothers and sister-in-law. The time is always great but way too short with them. While at the rehearsal dinner, we learned to do some country dancing, including the two-step, the waltz and the polka. I think we may be America's next top dancing partners...hahaha.
I am still on the job hunt but not too stressed if I don't get one while out here. Having one when we get back to Columbus is a different story, but the per diem we're going to make while here will be more than enough than to stress about a summer job.
Well, that's a good update for now but more news and pictures are sure to come!
For our two year anniversary (where has the time gone?!), we attended Michael's cousin's beautiful wedding in Houston, which was a short drive away. It was nice to see a lot of his family, especially his parents and brothers and sister-in-law. The time is always great but way too short with them. While at the rehearsal dinner, we learned to do some country dancing, including the two-step, the waltz and the polka. I think we may be America's next top dancing partners...hahaha.
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| Caught a pic of the Bride and Groom while they were still getting ready. |
I am still on the job hunt but not too stressed if I don't get one while out here. Having one when we get back to Columbus is a different story, but the per diem we're going to make while here will be more than enough than to stress about a summer job.
Well, that's a good update for now but more news and pictures are sure to come!
Monday, April 25, 2011
San Antonio...here we come!
Averaging about a post a month...not too bad - for me.
In two days, Michael and I will be headed off to San Antonio. All we have heard from everyone here is how much fun we are going to have when we get there, and saying I'm excited is a little bit of an understatement. Some things I will miss here, though, will be the anticipation experienced with others of where they will be headed off to next come assignment night but, thankfully, facebook is a great reference for status updates which I will be following closely in the months to come! And though I am hoping for some fellow FAIPers, I know God has amazing plans for what everyone will get.
After a crazy past couple weeks trying to figure out where we're going to live while in Texas, we were finally able to get it all sorted to get into our apartment when we get into town instead of going through the headache of finding a temporary place for a couple of weeks then moving into our apartment. But, why do we ever doubt God?! Such a small problem in hindsight but a mountain of a problem (in my eyes) on the upside.
I still need to find a job, preferably, a daytime, M-F, 8-5 job would be ideal. But, who am I to be picky? Our current goal is to pay off loans in the next 1-2 years which will require discipline and an extra income, not to mention, God's grace. So, my heart struggle is, do I take any job, no matter if it limits my play time with Michael in San Antonio, or do I wait for the perfect job that will have the perfect hours, environment and pay..or, is this another seeming mountain that God will reveal in His time? (Phil 4:6) Again, why do I worry?
My goal this summer, one of them, is to be a better blogger. With much more pictures, funny stories, and frequent updates so I'm not so scatterbrained on what in my crazy life to blog about. A noble notion. We'll see how it turns out.
In two days, Michael and I will be headed off to San Antonio. All we have heard from everyone here is how much fun we are going to have when we get there, and saying I'm excited is a little bit of an understatement. Some things I will miss here, though, will be the anticipation experienced with others of where they will be headed off to next come assignment night but, thankfully, facebook is a great reference for status updates which I will be following closely in the months to come! And though I am hoping for some fellow FAIPers, I know God has amazing plans for what everyone will get.
After a crazy past couple weeks trying to figure out where we're going to live while in Texas, we were finally able to get it all sorted to get into our apartment when we get into town instead of going through the headache of finding a temporary place for a couple of weeks then moving into our apartment. But, why do we ever doubt God?! Such a small problem in hindsight but a mountain of a problem (in my eyes) on the upside.
I still need to find a job, preferably, a daytime, M-F, 8-5 job would be ideal. But, who am I to be picky? Our current goal is to pay off loans in the next 1-2 years which will require discipline and an extra income, not to mention, God's grace. So, my heart struggle is, do I take any job, no matter if it limits my play time with Michael in San Antonio, or do I wait for the perfect job that will have the perfect hours, environment and pay..or, is this another seeming mountain that God will reveal in His time? (Phil 4:6) Again, why do I worry?
My goal this summer, one of them, is to be a better blogger. With much more pictures, funny stories, and frequent updates so I'm not so scatterbrained on what in my crazy life to blog about. A noble notion. We'll see how it turns out.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Here to stay...
...for at least a little while longer (about 3 years).
These past couple of weeks have been a blur but with many memorable moments: we found out we are going to be staying in Columbus for Michael's first assignment as an Instructor Pilot, which I admit, at first was a little disappointment to me. I was hoping to be stationed elsewhere to be closer to family but, since we know and trust in God's plan for us we're excited for what He has in store for us here (Jeremiah 29:11)! Plus, there are a lot of pros to staying: no moving; great house; established friendships; great church family; Michael will be home every night, for the most part; great assignment for Michael where he will get a lot of responsibility from the beginning; a great growing in leadership opp for him too; great place to start a family, Lord willing, because of the stability; and many more reasons that outweigh the cons.
Another moment was Michael receiving his long-awaited and hard-worked-for pilot wings, which his parents were able to witness as well. I'm so proud of him and he said this makes one of his top 10 most memorable moments in his life!
And, we very much enjoyed our precious time spent with his mom and dad. Love them and are so thankful for amazing in-laws! We showed them around our quaint southern town of Columbus, including a tour of the Waverly Mansion, which I highly recommend, then toured the Vicksburg Civil War battlefield together and they taught me a new way to play dominoes (however begrudgingly I learned :)
Now he's off to survival school for the next 3 weeks which leaves me on my own, first time since I got here last August. We've had it worse though, and a lot of others have it worse than I've ever had it so I'm thankful it's only 3 weeks this time! When he returns I look forward to our trips to the beach in Florida (while he's doing water survival) and Texas (4 months for his Instructor Pilot training). Exciting days ahead (except for the whole having to find a job part)!
Should have a lot more to blog about in the coming months. Until next time...chao!
These past couple of weeks have been a blur but with many memorable moments: we found out we are going to be staying in Columbus for Michael's first assignment as an Instructor Pilot, which I admit, at first was a little disappointment to me. I was hoping to be stationed elsewhere to be closer to family but, since we know and trust in God's plan for us we're excited for what He has in store for us here (Jeremiah 29:11)! Plus, there are a lot of pros to staying: no moving; great house; established friendships; great church family; Michael will be home every night, for the most part; great assignment for Michael where he will get a lot of responsibility from the beginning; a great growing in leadership opp for him too; great place to start a family, Lord willing, because of the stability; and many more reasons that outweigh the cons.
Another moment was Michael receiving his long-awaited and hard-worked-for pilot wings, which his parents were able to witness as well. I'm so proud of him and he said this makes one of his top 10 most memorable moments in his life!
And, we very much enjoyed our precious time spent with his mom and dad. Love them and are so thankful for amazing in-laws! We showed them around our quaint southern town of Columbus, including a tour of the Waverly Mansion, which I highly recommend, then toured the Vicksburg Civil War battlefield together and they taught me a new way to play dominoes (however begrudgingly I learned :)
Now he's off to survival school for the next 3 weeks which leaves me on my own, first time since I got here last August. We've had it worse though, and a lot of others have it worse than I've ever had it so I'm thankful it's only 3 weeks this time! When he returns I look forward to our trips to the beach in Florida (while he's doing water survival) and Texas (4 months for his Instructor Pilot training). Exciting days ahead (except for the whole having to find a job part)!
Should have a lot more to blog about in the coming months. Until next time...chao!
Friday, February 11, 2011
The Struggle Within
And this is why it has taken me so long to start a blog...I see my friend's blogs and I think, "Wow, that's a great idea, I should do that (write my thoughts about 'life as Michael and I know it' and keep my loved ones informed on our happenings) OR just start one to have a place to write", but then I get hung up on the idea of the effort I would have to put into it, including keeping it updated, making sure that my grammar is correct (which I'm sure 8 times out of 10 there will be something awry), that I write about something that others would be interested in reading, and on and on the anxious thoughts go. On the flip side, not caring what others think, and just write! It may be good for my soul as though I were talking to a girlfriend and the thoughts finally making sense as they're coming out and decluttering my brain, finally! For clarity (to myself), the struggle is write for others or write for myself, or find a balance between the two.
As I read back over what I just wrote it is even confusing to myself but it reminds me of a verse that can often be a tongue twister when read out loud (Romans 7) which is also about the "Struggle Within", although not meant to be a confusing one. It's pretty clear actually, about two desires warring within each person belonging to God. One being our "sin-nature" that we're born with that wants to do everything for SELF and the other our "Spirit-self" we are given when being born again that desires to know and please God at the cost of dying to our "self". It's a constant battle, but thanks be to God that through Christ Jesus, it is not one we have to lose!!! He already fought and won the battle and because I belong to Him, I too, through His Holy Spirit's strength Who lives in me, can be victorious! Hallelujah!
So, all that to say, I am overcoming the struggle within and getting on with it...My first official blog :)
As I read back over what I just wrote it is even confusing to myself but it reminds me of a verse that can often be a tongue twister when read out loud (Romans 7) which is also about the "Struggle Within", although not meant to be a confusing one. It's pretty clear actually, about two desires warring within each person belonging to God. One being our "sin-nature" that we're born with that wants to do everything for SELF and the other our "Spirit-self" we are given when being born again that desires to know and please God at the cost of dying to our "self". It's a constant battle, but thanks be to God that through Christ Jesus, it is not one we have to lose!!! He already fought and won the battle and because I belong to Him, I too, through His Holy Spirit's strength Who lives in me, can be victorious! Hallelujah!
So, all that to say, I am overcoming the struggle within and getting on with it...My first official blog :)
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