Goodbye March

The temperatures are a little chilly this evening. Though we are grateful that we are not in New England and waiting for the 8-15 inches of snow that they are all expecting! Tomorrow is supposed to be a little warmer here, I am sincerely hoping so!  I am praying for all my friends and family up North, that they stay safe and have safe travel! Hard to believe that today is the last day of March! Looking forward to April, my prayer is that this will be the month that things turn around for the better!

Sense of Humor/Sense of Adventure

We have been asked a lot to post photos of where we are living. I have postponed it mostly due to embarrassment. I bit the bullet and have taken some pictures and am posting them now. Remember we are working on this! We have made considerable progress, believe me! We still have a ways to go! Good thing we have a sense of humor and a sense of adventure! This is us starting over!

Stinky Puppy

Izzy was quite pleased that this morning she figured out how to jump onto our bed on her own! So for the last bit of my sleep I had a dog sleeping next to me! Good grief! No plans again today! I am hoping the weather will be a little better and I can walk the dog! I think Shawn and I are really becoming antsy! We have come to a big stall in the house projects and want nothing more than to be able to finish some of them! I wish I had something a little more exciting to post! Well I had better be careful what I wish for! Maybe exciting is too strong to wish for! More exciting than the big old stinky puppy climbing into bed with me!

Scheming

Been a good enough day! A little more rain, we did see the sun for a short while though! We hung a couple shelves, plotted our steps to complete our projects and after picking Kelly up from school we aided two young ladies having car trouble. Our only other big excitement was window shopping at Lowe's. We can walk around that store for hours plotting and planning and not spend a dollar! We came home and made some pizza and are now watching TV. A good day! I hope all of you have had a good day! Please be in prayer for Kate Lynn; she is at a crossroad and has to really make some choices about what it is she wants to do. Part of that decision is staying here or moving back North. Thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers!

Good Book and a Thunderstorm

I did something last night I have not done in months! I stayed up very late reading a book. The book itself was just OK, the quiet time for myself was wonderful! I had started to finish up my reading just to take my mind off all the pictures of New Hampshire and some of the stories we had been telling about them earlier. I wanted to busy myself before I went to bed and before I knew it I was engrossed in the middle of the book and had to stay up and finish it! I slept with out any difficulties, until I am not sure what time it was, and it wasn't anxiety it was the incredible thunder stiorm outside my window that woke me up! It poured, the lightening was vivid and the thunder at one point set off all the car alarms in the neighborhood! No damage that we could see this morning! It was actually a pretty neat storm!!  Another day without any big plans and a day with some more rain! A coffee and sofa day, I would say a good reading day, but I read my book all ready! Maybe we could go to the library!

Big Back Burner

Shawn stayed home today and finished tearing up the nasty old bathroom floor! We came to a standstill when we did not hear back from the landlord about some things we needed to fix.  We were watching some home improvement shows on TV and Shawn was inspired by something he saw! Now we have side tables with the lamps in them! They are very cool! It also gave some extra place to place drinks, candles or whatever! Quiet night! We ended up pulling some photos and bored Corey to tears with stories about our crazy family!  I think Shawn and I are getting pretty anxious to see more stuff in the house completed. We have so much started and just a little finished. We do what we can at the time and the things we can not do for a variety of reasons go on the back burner. It would seem our back burner is pretty big! It was actually pretty  nice to see a project started and finished! A new idea for something with a set purpose, I love the tables!  (This is the after photo, before it was a silver lamp sitting onto a table! Shawn removed the base, screwed and wired the lamp right into the table!)

Rain All Week

A great night sleep, though we might have a few small projects to do this morning but Shawn is on the phone with Ricky! And if he is on the phone with him this early it usually means Ricky needs something done at his house. It may be a day at home, just Kate Lynn and I. Another rainy, cool day today! It shows a chance of rain for the entire week, good for the plants and grass, not that great for walking! Maybe I will do some more baking, a great way to make the house smell great and take the damp out. Also a good weight to put on pounds if I do not cook light! Kate Lynn is still in bed, despite it being near 9am, guess she needed some sleep! Shawn only slept abouit 2 hours of sleep last night. I am becoming a little concened about him and if he doesn't get some sleep, it can not be good for him! Please be in prayer for him!

Cooking

OK, I cleaned! I also did a whole bunch of cooking! The cleaning never thrills me, however I love to cook! Now we have some blueberry muffins for tomorrow's coffee! Tonight we had some delicous homemade turkey meatballs, ravioli with spinache and alfredo sauce! Yummy! It has been a tough day, Shawn has been quite moody! He does not feel too well and he has not slept very well in a couple weeks! He continues to stay pretty busy despite it! Today was just a whole lot of puttering around, no major house hold repairs. Sometimes it can seem pretty over whelming, we remind each other often that it will all come together and be well worth it! The weather has been pretty rainy and damp the past couple of days! I am really wanting the sun to come back out! Though I suspect that when it does we will need to be mowing. The grass and the plants we planted out front are all doing quite well! On my walk with Izzy this afternoon I saw a white Azhalia bush similar to ours, that one was extremely large, I am hopeful that ours will grow to be at least that hieght. A pretty quiet day over all! No real complaints!

Fixing and Cleaning

It most definitely feels like a Monday! I just did not want to get up! I have such a mess to clean, because of the house projects. It is never ending...fix something, clean, fix something, clean... Oh, well! It will be worth it in the end! First coffee! That is all that is on the agenda, for now! You never know what will come along! All right, clearly I am procrastinating... going to drink my coffee and go clean!

bathroom Headache

Sad to say we did not make it to church this morning! No one could get out of their own way! Shawn and I set out to repair the bathroom floor, a supposed very easy home repair. It turned into quite a nightmare! We have a pretty good start, there is still lots to do! We are quite exhausted now! We had a very nice dinner and have been relaxing in front of the TV. Earlier we had a pretty severe thunderstorm, we may have another tonight. It has helped cool things down a little and I  think lowered the pollen count. I am hoping that we all have a good night sleep! I wish that for all of you too!

Teens!

Up early this morning! Wish I could say well rested! Oh well, bring on the day! It is Sunday morning and it is all ready shaping up like most Sunday mornings in our house! I believe we jinx ourselves on  these mornings! Before the kids are up I am going to enjoy my coffee and quiet. When Kelly gets up I hope she will be in a good mood, I suspect it will not last long. She left a mess in the kitchen last night and despite reassuring it would be cleaned up before she went to bed, it was not! And needless to say the cats made a bigger mess! Teenagers!! Ask them to do a chore and they think you have sold them out for slave labor! And then when it does not  get done it is undoubtedly  your fault! Of course when it does get done, there is so  much drama doing it you would have thought I asked for something more unreasonable than dinner being cleaned up! Funny things if we ask her to help with a construction project we are doing, that is done without a single complaint! The kid will be able to build a house, just not keep it clean! I do believe I need to go make another pot of coffee! Wishing you all a good Sunday!

Hard Work and a Goodnight's Sleep

It turned into a very busy day! We tore up our very nasty rugs and realized that the floor in our bedroom may have been held together by the carpet. At one point Shawn stepped back to tear up a piece of the carpet and almost fell through the floor! What was supposed to be a fairly easy project turned into quite a large project! We had to replace a couple places of flooring! Yes, I even used the skill saw and helped out! So now the nasty  carpet is gone and the floor is all safe! Kate Lynn's rug was nasty, however the floor was safe and sound! I then spent a couple hours removing layers of paint of the beautiful brick hearth! Now you know that it is a hearth and not some weird painted part of the floor! Kelly's room is next on the agenda for painting! Kate Lynn's has to wait until the roof is repaired, not quite sure when that is supposed to happen! I wished I had taken more before pictures, I was very embarrassed by the house and couldn't quite bring myself to do that! I did not want anyone to see the place until we have gotten some work done on it! Right now we are waiting for Shawn to come back inside so that we can all watch a movie.  A good day over all! Hard work always makes for a good night sleep

Saturday at Home

Shawn has no plans away from the house today, so it very well may be house project day! My favorite!We might tear up the carpet in anticipation of the new carpet. We suspect the floor underneath may need some repair. So before they throw new carpet over a lousy floor we are preparing to fix the sub floor. The weather looks a little unsettled for the weekend and it is pretty cloudy this morning. We need a little rain for the lawn and plants! I hope you all have a good weekend!

Learning to Live in the South

This morning I finished the house cleaning and pawned off the painting of the pantry on Kate Lynn. Do not let her kid you,  she loved it! Shawn and I spent the better part of the afternoon at Ricky's working on his truck, with limited success. When we returned home Kate Lynn gave us the awesome news that the carpet guys were here and measured our bedrooms. We were not even sure how the landlord was following up on our complaints about the conditions of the rugs. We are very excited we are receiving new carpets! The old ones look like someone rebuilt a car engine on them! NASTY! The house is truly coming together! I feel badly for Ricky, his truck simply is not running well despite all the efforts! On another note, Kelly is struggling in her English class, she is doing quite poorly and is very upset. I have been in contact with her teacher and am hopeful we can improve things for Kelly in the short amount of time we have! I was fearful her grades would drop due to the move, however this is a little much. Keep it in prayer that we can get things improved. Over all we are adjusting well here. There are most definately things that I struggle with here in the South. The prejudism is huge and it drives me crazy and makes me sad! The driving is aweful! The crime in our area is at times quite concerning! Kate Lynn was stopped today by an undercover police officer when he saw her out walking. Last night we had another shooting in the area, 4th in 2 days. We try to mind our own buisness and be good neighbors. No matter what the color of your skin, it makes no difference to us! The weather has been quite unusual for me, but I am loving it! Overall the good outweighs the bad! I believe in all my heart that this move was right!

Quiet all Mine!

Shawn is off at his friend Ricks', Kate Lynn is out for a walk and Kelly is at school...aahh quiet! A cooler morning this morning, more comfortable for me! My big plans are to paint the pantry shelves, walk the dog, eat some lunch on the porch... just go with the flow! Not to rush anything, it is coffee, some HGTV and enjoying the quiet I have this morning, all to myself!

Crazy Life

This is my second attempt at the post! We have had some Internet problems. Well the good news is the lost puppy has found a new home and has left us! Things are much quieter here, and I believe the cats and Izzy are happy to have their turf back! Shawn, friend Ricky and I went sight seeing around Wetumpka this morning. It is a town bordering Montgomery. We went to see the Dam there and Lake Jordan. We also explored a very awesome antique store. It has been a very nice day! Very relaxing! When we returned home, all of us tackled some cleaning and then watched the History channel's movie on the Titanic. I know all of you are jealous of our crazy life! After late nights and then early mornings, I must confess that I am pretty tired this morning! As a matter of fact, I believe I may go make a pot of coffee!

The Dog that Won't Leave!

Oh my gosh, we still have our foster dog! Everyone wants him, however no one has taken him home! Unfortunately we have  to keep him in the  bathroom at night and that makes me feel bad. Someone has said they will be here tomorrow to pick hime up, we will see! Tomorrow Shawn and I will be going to his friend Rickys'. Shawn will be finishing up some truck work for him.  Not too much else going on! Maybe, just maybe we will have a more pet friendly home!

No Complaints

A late posting; Shawn and I left early this morning, we dropped Kelly off at school and then went and made some small repairs at Moe's. We then went and did some pricing and window shopping at Lowe's. We came home and have a few painting projects in the works. Right now we are waiting patiently for someone to come by at 1:30 to pick up the foster puppy! It has been a busy day, the weather beautiful, though the pollen is quite high and my allergies are terrible! No complaints today!

Still have Two Dogs!

Of course we had projects! Always ways to keep busy! We have been using a pretty ugly nightstand as a TV stand. Tonight, after some serious painting, taking away 1 drawer and making the space a shelve and repairing the 2cnd drawer so it works properly, we now have a very attractive TV stand! I also decorated the completed fireplace mantel. Over all the living room is coming together! We still have the 2cnd dog! The gentleman who was supposed to take him stopped by and asked that we hold him one more night! Shawn and I are a little aggravated! It has not been easy with the two dogs and are ready to be rid of the little guy! Right now if someone shows up between now and tomorrow and wants him, they can take him home! Tomorrow Shawn I are going to Moe's, different location, and doing some small jobs. God always provides! Right now I am waiting to see what time Kelly comes home, she is off at her friends house again working on  their school project. It sounds like they are doing a very good job, can not wait to see what kind of grade they will recieve. I hope you all have a great night!

The Sun has Won

A little overcast this morning, though the sun is working hard to come out and I suspect it will be shining very soon! No plans today that I know of, that can change at anytime! I do know I have some cleaning inside to do and a library book to read. We still have our foster puppy and I am hoping that by later this morning he will  be settled into his new home. We need a little less noise and excitement between the puppies! I believe right now I will take my coffee and go sit on the porch, the sun has won!

New Home for the Lost Puppy

Shawn and I spent the better part of today hanging out with Ricky. He showed us some more around Montgomery. It was a very nice day. When we returned home Shawn completed the fireplace painting, it looks amazing!! We are sitting enjoying a cool breeze from the front door, while waiting for someone to show up to take the pupy we have been holding since Shawn found him on Friday. He is a cute little puppy, but we can not cope with two puppies in this house! He will be going to a good home! Kelly is off at a friends, working on a school project. Over all a quiet evening!

Waiting for Paint to Dry

I believe we all slept quite well last night! Including the furry members of the family! It is just 8:30am and we all ready have a couple projects going! Another sunny and warm day here in Montgomery! Shawn is feeling good today, he also slept very well last night. Nothing is as good as a good nights sleep! This week I think we may focus on completeing some of the started projects. Nothing was started and then left intentionaly. Some of the projects needed some time to dry or harden, like the fire place. The mud has almost completely dried, as has the paint. We have started to make out a list so  that we can stay focused, not easy when the front porch is calling! I hope all of you have a happy Monday!

Happy Spring!

The girls and I made it to church this morning, always so glad when we do! Kelly is actually back there for a youth night. It truly has been a great weekend over all! Shawn and I put a mud technique on the upper walls that tops the fire place mantel. The look is stunning! And was incredibly, incredibly inexpensive! It looks like we spent a fortune, it just took a lot of time and effort! So well worth it! For dinner we through some pork chops on the grill, happy first day of spring!  The only interesting bit to the weekend is the puppy Shawn found and brought home. We keep telling ourselves we are just fostering it! I posted him on the lost and found on craigslist, now we will see if someone calls about him! If not by Tuesday I have to put him up for adoption! Our lab Izzy will miss her new little playmate! But with 1 dog and 2 cats, and 1 outdoor cat, we certainly do not need another dog! Tomorrow Kelly is back to school and we are taking Kate Lynn to job corp to see if she might be able to speak to someone about signing up. Please, be in prayer that it goes well!

God is in Control

Why are Sunday mornings more prone to be more difficult? All four animals in this house were feeling their cheerios this morning! And because I slept poorly and Shawn even worse, we were a bit cranky! Everything is settled down and moods are better now! The girls and I are going to church this morning, I hope!  Over all things are going pretty well!  God has things in His control! Please, be in prayer for Shawn's mental health, he has not slept in many days and he is struggling with some symptoms. This is the time of year he struggles the most with. I am a little concerned! He is keeping himself pretty busy and that is always good! I hope all of you have a great day!

Summer Time

We all left the house nice and early to find some good sales. We found a few and were able to buy some small items we needed for the house, IE: drapes and pruners. We picked up some take out from Moe's, thanks too the gift cards. Mostly we have all been just soaking up the weather in the yard or siting on the porch. I have to  mention we have a little border, Shawn rescued a lost puppy and until we figure out what to do with him he is staying with us! We need another dog like I need a hole in the head! In a few minutes I am hoping to talk Shawn into firing up the grill! Big decision, turkey burger or grilled hot dogs? Despite the calendar still showing winter, it definitely feels like summer here!

Yard Sales!

What a day it has been! I was able to pick up my pay check and while there I made a formal complaint. The District manager was there and the one manager I had no issue with asked me to make the complaint. It is quite clear this store has problems with upper management and they are trying to figure out what to do about it. I then picked up the girls and we went to run errands! After getting done what we needed to, we came home and raked and cleaned up the entire back yard and layed out more mulch in the front yard! As a surprise for Shawn, the girls and I bought a $20 grill and then the girls put it together themselves! We set it out in the back yard, so when he got home this evening we took him out to see the yard all clean and surprise him with the grill. He was quite happy! He had spent the day at his friend Ricky's helping him fix his truck, it took the better part of the day. The girls and I were able to go to a church sale this afternoon and I found some beautiful floating shelves, bought all three for $5. A great day for sales! Now we have places to put books and a way to grill! Tomorrow we are all getting up early to check out some additional yard sales and in the evening we will be having our first cookout of the season! We all love yard sales!

Just Teasing!

OK, I will have to stop the coffee before dinner! I had 3 cups after dinner last night and had the worse luck falling a sleep! I did finally get some sleep and slept fairly well! This  morning I need to get myself going pretty early, I need to see if my pay is at Ross's and drop Shawn off his friend Ricky's, where he will spend most of the day replacing the radiator and flushing that and the transmission in Ricky's truck. It is not the actual work that takes that long, it is Rick and his Regan talking, discussing and indecision!! They are the only two people I know that will discuss for 2 hours the proper technique for changing a light bulb and the correct bulb and tools needed for the job! Shawn, the one actually doing the work and gets stuck in the middle! I do love Ricky and he has been wonderful to us and he and Shawn have been friends for a long time! I mean no ill will! Just poking fun a little! I am just hoping this will not actually be an ALL day event .All right I need coffee and need to get myself showered and dressed! Let us see how this day goes!

A Delicous Day!

It took the better part of the afternoon to complete the meal, but well worth the work! Now we are sitting on the couch, bellies quite full! I still have quite a bit of food left over and am trying to figure out just what to do with it! On another note, I called Ross and inquired about my paycheck and was able to speak with the manager that is like third in command. She offered me an apology on behalf of the other managers and reassured me that my pay would be in tomorrow. She also explained she understood what the difficulties I had were and how the management had some problems! It made me feel a bit better!After I pick up my pay tomorrow I am going to go buy a cooler. Shawn, the girls and I are hoping to take a road trip on Saturday, makes more sense economically to pack food! Look forward to seeing a little bit more of the south! I suppose the rest of the food is not going to put itself away! I had better go figure out what to do with it!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

We have the potatoes cooking for the potato pancakes! I will start baking up some soda bread as soon as I am done here! I stopped by the Dollar Tree store this morning and picked up a few things to set the table for tonight. Everyone is in good humor and ready for the food to begin! We have invited over a few people over for dinner, including Shawn's Aunt and Uncle. I hope all of you a very good day and a very Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Shamrock Cookies

I  managed to keep my eyes open today! I am very tired now though. Tomorrow will be just as busy, I have lots of cooking and baking to do! Tomorrow is St. Patrick's day! We bought most of what I will need, tomorrow morning I have to try my luck at another grocery store to find things I could not find at my nearby store. First thing to be done in the morning is baking soda bread and making the potatoes for the potato pancakes! I bought ten pounds of potatoes, and believe it or not I am hoping that will be enough! I have potato pancakes, Potato Leek soup and Colcannon to make, yep I think ten pounds will do it! If you do not like potatoes then you would not to be here tomorrow, if you do...well, we will have potatoes! Unlike most of you, there will be no corned beef and cabbage here! 2 reasons why; we do not eat red meat! and 2 because years ago we set out to try and set out an authentic Irish meal on St. Patrick's day.  I have gotten many of my recipes off line. There have been some good meals and one that we would rather not relive! I believe I have a pretty set meal, however I try something new every year. The biggest hurrdle has been finding a dessert.Most of the desserts I have found have Baileys Irish whiskey or rubbharb, neither are our favorites! Tomorrow we will have sugar cookies with shamrocks, thanks to Pillsbury!

Sleepy!

A bright sunny morning, after a very chilly night! Our big plans are to go grocery shopping and maybe some more painting. It is supposed to warm up some today and even more as the week goes on! I slept quite poorly! Whatever the plans are, I will be doing them with my eyes half open!

Warm St. Patrick's Day Forecasted

I finished the first coat of painting on all of the fire place. It looks very nice! I then turned in the paper work I tried handing in last week and had so much trouble with, at the Career Center. No issues at all today!  Shawn and I took a nice walk this evening, just the two of us. That is becoming a very nice habit! Tonight I spent a good deal of time preapring my list and recipes for St. Patrick's day dinner. It will be the first big holiday for us in the new house. We are all pretty excited! Tomorrow Shawn and I may finish the touch up painting in our bedroom. We need to do it before it gets too warm, tomorrow is going to be 70 and the rest of the week will be in the 80s! I have never celebrated St. Patrick's day and it be 80 degrees! It ought to be a real treat! Hope you all have a good night!

Clearing Skies?

Last night we had some thunder storms and lots of rain! This morning is cloudy, however the rain has stopped. I am hoping it will clear up some more. I would like to be able to open the front door before I resume painting the fireplace. Shawn is at Moe's repairing their front door. He has Cory working with him this morning. There was a little concern that Cory would show up later than Shawn had asked him, 7:45. Cory, I believe, was here before 7:30! I suspect that made Shawn's day! Besides painting the fire place, I have some cleaning to do and that is about it!  First this morning I will spend some time looking at the news, drinking some coffee and maybe some time in prayer!

Praying for Japan

Had a very nice day doing more yard work with the family today. Shawn and I went for a lengthy walk in the afternoon, just the two of us. That was very nice! Then this evening Shawn and I began doing some work and painting of the fireplace. It looks tons better! The house is coming along quite nicely!We still have much to do, but there have been so many improvements all ready! Shawn and Cory, the young man that often hangs out with us, will be doing some work at Moe's. That means a little income and some gift cards! Money and Mexican food, yay! On a tougher note, Japan is now struggling with a radiation leak. My heart goes out for all those effected. I can not imagine coping with one catastrophe, let alone three! My prayers continue to be for them!

Strong Coffee

The coffee Shawn made is a little strong this morning! I drink enough of this and I will be soaring through the day! On a more serious note, we continue to watch the news about the tragedy in Japan. The situation is so very sad, our prayers continue to be with them!
No big plans on this BEAUTIFUL Monday! I hope all of you have a good Monday!

Peaceful

It truly was a beautiful day! The girls and I spruced up the front porch, cleaned the house and then took the dog for a long walk. Later in the afternoon we all relaxed in the sun! Shawn spent the day doing some work at a friends house. That turned into a God send, as he was paid a small amount. We were able to use the monies to buy some groceries to get us through until the food stamps come in. Tonight we had a very nice, sit down family dinner. Now I am going to fold some laundry while I watch some TV. As always I am reminded that God does provide and that is a peaceful feeling!

Still Hanging Tough

It is a beautiful Sunday morning! Usually we are up and getting ready for church. That isn't the case today! Financially things ae pretty tight! We have no gas in the truck and the cupboards are pretty bare. We have been trying to keep this under wraps, however this morning as I get up to make coffee things are difficult to ignore! You see the job I had only pays every two weeks, there for I do not get my first/last pay until this Friday. Food stamps come in on Wednesday, in  the mean time things are quite lousy. This has been pretty much the case all along. We have found ways to muddle by, this month is going to be a bit more trickier! Shawn's monies at the beginning of the month went immediately to paying bills. And the food stamps I last received was at the beginning of February, I had to stretch them out over 6 weeks! As the months and weeks go by that we work get caught up and figure out how to budget our meager income, it should get easier. I have submitted several more applications. I most certainly have not given up the idea of working! We are in prayer this morning that Shawn might be able to work at Moe's, that will provide us some money to use for gas and some groceries. They had asked him to fix a door at the nearby restaurant and he thought he would be doing that on Saturday and that fell through. I am praying that maybe they will even allow him to fix it today. That is my prayer today! I hope you are all well and have a good Sunday!

Tiles and Tuna

Shawn and I spent the better part of the day at Shawn's friend Ricky's. Shawn installed some bathroom tiles for him. By the time I got back home I was famished! We have just finished dinner, nothing too exciting unless you like tuna helper and homemade crab Rangoon! A very laid back Saturday! It turned into a very lovely day here in Montgomery!

Foggy Brain

The sun is shining and it is supposed to be a beautiful day! Shawn is supposed to go help a friend put I some tiles at one point, other than that we have no plans! If it gets a nice as it is supposed to we will head to a local park and walk the dog!  As for right now, I think I need a coffee! I slept quite well, maybe too well my brain is foggy!

Mexican Night!

Shawn, Kate Lynn and I spent the late part of the afternoon building a walk way out front. As well as cleaning up the yard and tending to the plants. The weather was a little chilly, the sun was wonderful though! It was nice to be outside, enjoying the fresh air! By dinner time we were all famished! Shawn and I went to Moe's and ordered some take out, using his gift card. This evening we all enjoyed some delicious Mexican food, while watching TV. Shawn has all ready retired for the night, very tired! I think we all needed some time away from the TV. Though I did go back online to read up on the afternoon's news on CNN. My prayers continue to be with those in Japan! I hope all of you have a good weekend!

Prayer not Panic!

I have been  sitting in front of the TV, while scanning the Internet! Japan is an absolute tragedy! Hawaii may have gotten away fairly unscathed, praise the Lord! The West Coast of the United States waits to see what will happen there! Indonesia has had a small tsunami! God is doing something all over the world today! We need to continue to pray! The effects of today I suspect will be felt for a long time! This affects all  of us, if not directly today, further down the road for certain. Just the economic impact I suspect will be huge! We do not need to panic, we DO need to Pray! I am not wanting to sound like those you see at the airports with "the end of the world is near" signs! That is most definitely not what I am saying! God is definitely saying something to us and we have to make sure our hearts are right! My prayers are with all those families who have lost someone to the tragedy of today! I will continue to pray for the injured, for the homeless and for the Countries affected as a whole! We need to pray for those in control, that God will guide them and grant them the wisdom and the constitution that they will need over the next days and weeks! And prayer for those that may be able to help, that they will be able to do so and to do it well!

Stop and Pray!

I am sitting glued to the TV and scanning the Internet! The earthquake and tsunami in Japan are unbelievable! And the tsunami warnings from Hawaii, Russia, New Zealand, Chili, Philippians and the US West Coast!! Praying and praying some more! Please, whatever you are doing stop for a minute and pray! God has his hand in this and we have to trust him!

Have a good night!

The meeting at the career center did not go well! First they had me wait for an hour before I actually saw anybody. And the only reason he even called my name is because I went and made a compliant, because I had been waiting so long! So the guy came out of his office with a very big attitude! I have to fill out some paper work and get it back over there by Monday! I am a little more than aggravated! It has been an overall quiet day. A bit on the chilly side! Tomorrow is supposed to be warming, hoping to do some yard work! Looking forward to using the Moe's gift card tomorrow night! Mexican food here I come!

Rude Awakening!

Talk about a rude awakening! Shawn had let Izzy out this morning and when it was time for her to come in, she immediately ran in and dove into bed with me. Remember it poured yesterday! Our backyard is soaked and so was she! Nothing like a wet, muddy dog in the morning! The sun is out and it is looking like a pretty nice day! Shawn is out early this morning, he wants to finish up the projects at Moe's early this morning. Not sure what the plans are for today. I have to go meet with someone at the Career center at one point today. I am feeling better about that today than I was yesterday. I hope all of you have a great day!

Rain Rain Go Away!

It poured most of the day! It slowed and then stopped around 2:30pm. Thank goodness! Our mulch was running away and the plants were looking like they were going to drown! Shawn returned from his day away around 2:30 and he was in good humor! He went to Moe's to discuss the handyman work they wanted done. It appears pretty low key and they agreed to pay him half in cash half in gift cards! Yay! Dinner out! Tonight Shawn, Kate Lynn and I are watching "Face Off", it is a pretty interesting. I have no guilt tonight as I thought I would, quitting my job.I am a little worried about explaining it at the career center meeting tomorrow. I am hoping that after I explain my work experience and what I would like to do it will all be fine!! Hoping the weather will be drier tomorrow! That is all for tonight! Hope you all have a restfull night!

A Laid Back Day

I no sooner dropped Kelly off at school when the skies opened up and it began pouring! We have a severe thunder storm warning. I can not express how hard and how quickly the rain came in! There is definitely going to be some flooding! A good day to hang out inside! Shawn has gone with his friend to St. Martin Lake area for most of the day, it is an hour and a half drive to the north. I pray that they have safe travel. Ricky could not be persuaded to postpone the trip! It is just for fun of it! I am  going to watch  some TV, drink a bunch of coffee and later take care of some house cleaning. A very laid back day!

Beautiful Dinning Room Floor

Today was interesting! Shawn and I (Shawn mostly!) spent the better part of the day jacking up parts of the dining room and replacing the broken floor! It is so very nice to walk normaly through the dining room!! While we were in the middle of the project when our landlord showed up. He seemed quite pleased by the progress. He had come by to offer Shawn some handyman type work, for a friend of his. Shawn can not work, being on disabaility. Our landlord had told his friend that and Shawn just needs to stop by and meet with him. It is actually a nearby restaurant, Shawn and I were discussing maybe they could just give him a gift card for his work! Then he and I can go out for dinner! Win win! We  dropped Kelly off at a friends tonight  to work on a school project and have dinner. They seemed like a very nice family! Now, we are sitting down and watching some "Funniest Home Videos". Tomorrow I need to consider calling and let Ross know that I will not be coming in...ever! By the way, the dining room floor is looking beautiful! All that is left is the painting! I have a very talented hubbie!

Getting Back to What I Know

I slept better than I have in over a week! As I was drifting off to sleep I came to the realization that I need to find out how to earn the Alabama Mental Health certificate. I want to go back to the field that I know best and am very good at. I enjoy working with folks that live with mental illness and enjoy being apart of helping them to live more independently. I have taken over a year away from the field. I thoroughly loved working in the nursing home as an activities assistant, but it is time to get back to what I do best. I believe God gave me this gift to work specifically in the mental health field, so I am going to figure out how to get my butt back to it! This morning Shawn and I are going to tackle some much needed floor repair! Knowing we have a landlord so eager to work with us and that he loves the work we have done also helped with the sleeping too! We are home! The work thing will work itself out! God always provides!

New/Old Job Old/New House

I do not think I am stupid or lazy, however this new job makes me feel like both! And at minimum wage that is truly unacceptable! I give 100% of myself at any job, when I am given the right tools.  Here at this new job there has been a little bit of training, a whole lot of demanding and what feels very much like very little respect! They are just expecting me to know every single aspect of the new job all ready, when I remind them I am still new they get all put out! I worked the register for about 3 hours and today they go and put me in customer service...BY Myself! "Here Sandra, ring up purchases and handle all refunds and exchanges, scan all returned items, retag things as needed, alarm the proper items and then restock every single thing where it belongs!". The last 4 items on that list they asked me to do just 5 minutes before I was too leave! There feeling is that despite when things get busy I should be able to do it and keep customers happy! I have worked at other big retail stores, I have never, ever seen anything like this! I was barked at all day long! I have not even put in a weeks worth of work! UGH! I am sorry for the rant! I went in at 9:15 this morning and instead of getting out at 5:30 I did not get out until almost 6:40!  Though I do have a very big praise the Lord! Our landlord realized after inspecting the house, that we have put some good work into the house nad he has agreed to all of our repair demands. Even going as far as making sure most of all the materials we need were bought and delivered today! He was very impressed by the yard work and all the painting and repairs we have all ready made. He agreed they needed to ensure we had a safe and sanitary place to live and they had some responsiblities to ensure that! Shawn was very, very pleased by the meeting! Now I believe my new job is going to become my old job! Our old grungy house is going to be our new and comfortable home! I will seek out better employement, maybe I need to rethink my options better!

Hoping for Sun

Quite a chilly morning this morning! Up early this morning making sure the house is in order, getting things ready for our landlord meeting, getting Kelly to school and me, getting ready for work! I have to work until 5:30 this evening. Boy, have I grown lazy after being out of work for those few months! I am hoping the sun will come out and warm things up a bit. The new plants and grass seed could also use a little sun! I hope you all have a good Monday!

Late Dinner

Very busy Sunday! Shawn and I finished a lot more of the painting of our bedroom and then I worked this evening. I am just eating my dinner at 9:45 pm, hope I will not be awake all night with heartburn! I have to be up early to meet with landlord and then off to work for 9:30 to work an 8 hour shift. It will be my first long shift, I am not hugely looking forward to it!  I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Nagging Feelings

Can not quite seem to be able to put a single thought to page this morning! Maybe I need more coffee! I am just feeling concerned over some things this morning. I need to give them some time in thought and in prayer! Nothing major, just some nagging feelings! I think part of it stems from me taking the first job that was offered. What else was I going to do, there has been no other offers and I need to work?! I am also concerned about our meeting with our landlord tomorrow morning. I do not have a very good feeling about the whole thing. We will just continue to do what we are best at, muddle right along. At this point in my life I am way past the belief anything come easy!

Rainy Rainy Day

We finally finished the front yard, just in time for the down pours!Good thing we placed some mulch down or else we would be fishing the plants out of the neighbor's yard, that is how hard it has rained at times! The real good news is that we have rain tonight, sun tomorrow and Monday, then rain and this goes on for the next week. Shawn and I think that is prime grass seed conditions. Maybe this time next week we will have some new grass sprouting! Right now we are all relaxing and watching TV. Shawn is really relaxing, he went to bed! Because of the rain, it has really cooled down! Not wanting to turn the heat on and use gas, I am baking a cake! That should heat the house enough until we cam all go to bed and get under the covers! I am looking forward to heading to bed, it is a little too early for me yet. Besides there's the cake!

Rainy Saturday

A very soggy Saturday! A good day to stay inside and drink coffee! After working last night , I realized the shoes I had on are terrible. My feet are still sore , but better than they were last night! I thought for sure I wanted to sit down and cry half way through a four hour shift!  Oh well, I will tough it out! This morning my big plans are to go get some groceries! And despite the rain, finishing putting the last of the flowers in the ground! I hope you all have a good day!

March Flowers !

Watching the world go by was not on the agenda! However a whole lot of yard work and some planting most certainly was! And boy does the front yard look amazing! Our Landlord called to discuss the repairs needed on the house and has agreed to meet with us Monday morning. He was a bit hesitant to agree to anything and seemed a bit put off that we have this list of complaints. We are hoping that on Monday when he sees what we have done he will be more agreeable. I also have been called into work! So after an entire day of yard work I will be working about 5 hours at work! I will have to see if this being called in on weekend nights I am off becomes a habit. I hope not and I will certainly not allow it!Over all a good day! Nothing beats being outside getting your hands dirty and taking in a whole lot of fresh air! Be in prayers that our neighbors will be respectful to the work that we have done in the yard. And prayerful that our Landlord will be agreeable to the repair concerns! Happy weekend!

Watching the World Go BY

Up way too early! This morning we have to get this house in tip top shape. Our Landlord will be by at some point to inspect some issues. This house is not in very good shape, we are willing to do some of the work, but not the major repairs. I had typed up a list of the safety concerns and printed pictures of the issues, Shawn and I brought them to the office yesterday when we paid our rent.I think they were a little taken back by the letter and photos. I believe they expect their tenants just to deal with it. We are grateful to have a home, however we do not have to live with unsafe and unsanitary conditions. Admittedly our Landlord has over 200 rentals, he is what most of us refer to as a slumlord. However, we have had the opportunity to meet some of his former tenants and listen to them brag about not paying rent. We have also seen how too many renters move in the middle of the night, leaving without paying their rent and  leaving a huge mess behind. For any Landlord that has to be difficult. Shawn and I are not those kind of tenants. We want a safe and healthy place to live. We try to always pay our bill according to our agreement, we struggle at times like everyone else. We are trying to put the most professional foot forward with the Landlord in hope he will work with us. We keep a pretty clean house, I just want to be absolutely sure it is sparkly today, then he will see we are trying to truly respect his property. Not sure what else the day has in store! We purchased two outdoor chairs and a tiny table for the front porch yesterday, I may have to sit out there and watch the world go by later!

Chocolate Gooeyness3

Well I am a bit tired and a whole lot hungry, over all my first day of work went well. Then they turn around and give me the next two days off! I think it is going to be a decent enough place to work. Tonight I plan on eating way too much and not moving from the couch unless I have too! Maybe before I implement that plan I shoul run down the street and buy something chocolate and gooey! Yeah, that sounds like a very good idea!

Damp Start

In an hour I should be ready and heading out the door to start my first day back to work! I wish I could say I am good humor, I am not! I slept very poorly last night and to top things off, not one article of clothing dried! I washed and hung everything up yesterday, Having no where to hang them other than my closet, that is where I hung everything. You see I do not have an iron and figured it would be better to prevent wrinkles, by hanging everything wet. They do not have wrinkles, but I can not wear them wet! I am taking my chance with a sturdier outfit in the dryer! Boy, I hope the day gets better than it has started out!

Job Trainng

I was able to pick up 6 full outfits and a couple pair of shoes at the free clothes closet! Some very nice professional wear! So I am ready to get to work! This afternoon I went and finished the last of the paper work and watched a couple training video. I can not say I feel trained and know with confidence I know what I m supposed to do! Tomorrow I am scheduled to be in for 10 am, so ready or not! I still have no idea what to expect for a schedule, but that is OK. If worse comes to worse this will be temporary until I find the job I would prefer. No, I am not quitting before I start. Just keeping some options open! As I said, I am grateful that I now have a job!! Tonight we are enjoying dinner while watching TV. Dinner is usually served at the table, tonight we just felt like bending the rules. Everyone is hooked on catching up on the TV they missed! Most of today we spent outdoors, enjoying the beautiful day!!

Maybe Work Today?

Late last night I received all the paper work I needed for work, through my email. So I was able to complete all the paper work and submit it!In a minute or two I will call to see what the next step is! Maybe I will start some training today! This morning at 10 I am supposed to go to a clothes closet to pick up some clothes. If I start training this morning I may have to leave it up to Shawn to pick out some clothes and shoes for me.He is great with style, not so good with sizes! I will have to be pretty specific for him, I can not complain he thinks I am skinnier than I am! I do love him! So that is today in a nut shell! Will keep you posted on the job front!

Goodbye Poo network!

I hope the first day of March was a good one for all of you! It was a good day here. I still have not started work! There is a computer glitch and there seems to be issues fixing it. I actually was on the phone with the help desk for what seemed like forever! If they do not get it fixed I do not get into their system, that equals no pay! I am not working for free! I am hoping it will be all figured out in the morning! I spoke to the manager at least 5 times and she keeps putting it back on me! I have no idea how their computer system works! If I did, don't you think I would working somewhere else and making good money? Oh well, these things happen! Shawn is quite happy tonight, we had the cable turned on! We have a bundle package that includes Internet and the telephone. The cell phones have been more of an issue than we want, so having a land line maybe a good thing! I have to also admit the girls and I are glad to be able to watch "American Idol" without worrying the antenna will drop the channel! We all feel better we are not using our neighbors internet, for many reasons! The first is because sometimes it just didn't work, 2; it wasn't very honest! And lastly even after 2 months it was hard to admit we were on the "poo network"! (seriously!)

Closer to Working

I just spoke with the assistant store manager and it appears they are still figuring out who is supposed to be sending and how the letter is to be sent I need to begin working. It is clearly more than just a letter. It has forms that I need to fill out as well. I imagine that once they figure things out on their end I will begin work pretty quickly. Until then I will continue to bide my time by helping Shawn paint. All though last night and this morning I had a pretty good headache, from the paint fumes! I can believe we have moved onto a new month,Happy March! We have been in Montgomery almost 3 months now!  And I still believe this is where the Lord has led us! It has been an interesting journey thus far! Once I am back into the routine of working I suspect things will feel even more like home. Nothing like routine to keep things feeling normal!  Now that I am going to be working we need to pray that Kate Lynn will figure out what she is going to be doing. The past couple months she has seem to have lost her direction! I hope she will find it soon! I best eat my bagel and drink some more coffee, I could be doing some training later today!