2012 Rewind

Happy New Year's Eve one and all! I've decided that people fall into two distinct categories: they either loved the previous year and are hopeful for the new year, or they are totally over the previous year and are hopeful for better times in the new year. Regardless of which camp people fall into, no one ever wishes to stop time. People are always hopeful for the new year, and I am no different.

Here is a glimpse at some of what we've been up to . . .

I set some goals and created a 30 Before 30 List. 

I completed my first 5k.

My sweet husband guest posted and kick-started his blogging career again.

We ventured to Charleston, SC for a few days.

We witnessed my brother graduating from NCSU and his commissioning ceremony into the USMC.

We celebrated our 2nd Anniversary.

I had surgery on my foot to remove a cyst.

We spent a week at the beach with family.

My kidneys relapse, and we tackled the minimal change disease again.

We announced our little family would be growing in the coming year!

And much, much more. Thank you for joining us on this journey!

Just Stop Talking, Please.

This is what I felt like telling someone the other day. Before you think I'm a terrible person, hear me out. . .

The team of teachers I teaches with was sitting at lunch catching our breath for the first time since the kids came back from exploration classes that morning. There was a substitute there for a teacher on our hallway. She found out last week that I was pregnant, so she kindly asked me how I was feeling. She then proceeded to tell me about someone she knew who randomly lost her baby at 5 months. She then went into the details of how upset this woman and her husband were (ya think?!?) and how bad she felt for them (I should hope so!). This was about the moment I wished I could say, "just stop talking, please" but I kindly refrained.

You may think I'm a horrible person for wanting to shut her down when she was telling a story, but I'm sticking to my guns here. What first-time preggers woman wants to hear that when she is already nervous enough?!? None! The worst part is that she just kept going. I politely tried to steer the conversation in a different direction, but she didn't take the hint. Needless to say it was a painful few minutes. I tried not to think much more about it, or let it bother me, but that attempt was pointless. It ended up weighing on me the rest of the day, and truthfully it still is.

Have any of y'all ever been in a situation like that? Any of you brave enough to speak up and ask them to stop?? I have a feeling I'm going to need to toughen up in these next six months otherwise I'm going to hear a lot of stories and advice I wasn't prepared for!

A Message To 13-Year-Old Me

I have the true pleasure of teaching everyone's least favorite age each and every day. When I tell people I teach middle school I usually get a response of, "why?"". Gee talk about an uplifting motivator. The truth is I love it. It can be a challenge, but what rewarding task isn't? Working with these kiddos often has me reflecting back to my own teen years and the angst I felt the need to put my parents through. A few things I wish I could tell myself then. . .

*keep reading*

Who cares if it's not the "cool" thing to do? You enjoy it and are really good at it. Don't let other people stop you from doing what you like!

*it's okay if your butt doesn't fall out of your shorts*

Unfortunately, I think this is a trend that just won't die. I wish I could tell my former self (and all the young girls I teach!) that the booty hanging out of the shorts is not attractive, so please don't do it!

*high school isn't as scary as everyone makes it seem*

With all the big talk from your 8th grade teachers, heading to high school about gave you an anxiety attack. Just breathe. They'll give you a map and after a day or two it won't even matter anymore. Now, college on the other hand is definitely going to throw you for a loop or two. . . 

*the drama isn't worth it

I know it seems exciting now, but stay away from the drama. It will only cause pain and issues later.

*nothing can shock you*

After some of the people you meet and things you encounter you begin to think that nothing can shock you, think again! Life will continue to throw your curve balls and you will continue to learn from them and grow.

If you could go back in time, what would you tell yourself??

Kitchen King

Have you met this man?

No? Well, you should. This is Gordon Ramsay and he is awesome sauce. Te he he, get it? He's awesome sauce and he's a chef. Ah, I crack myself up sometimes. Anywho, we first made Mr. Ramsay's acquaintance two summers ago while flipping through the few channels we have on basic cable. There was nothing else on so we settled in to watch Hell's Kitchen. This is where our love affair began. Since then we have become fans of all the shows he has on Fox- Hell's Kitchen, Kitchen Nightmares, and Master Chef.

I never watched TV series until I met and married David. I never saw the point in it. Then, David showed me that there was more than just superfluous junk on TV and so now we've become "those people". You know the people, the ones who watch certain shows on certain nights. The truth is, I don't really mind being "those people" any more.

Back to the main man, Mr. Ramsay. He is a fast talking, no-nonsense kind of guy. Everyone thinks he is a total jerk, but once you get to know him (yes, I just went there) you learn he isn't a total meanie-poo. Thanks to his wise ways we've actually become more conscious of what we eat and are braver in our restaurant choices. So, before you shut him down as a total tool, check out his shows. I should also probably tell you that watching anyone of these shows will also turn you into a bit of a restaurant snob. . . fair warning!

Sometimes and Always

Today I am linking up with the sweet Megan from Mackey Madness for Sometimes and Always!

Sometimes: I got to the grocery store for a few things.
Always: I come out with more than I intended to buy.

Sometimes: Daisy's incessant whining makes me want to scream
Always: I hold it in because she is precious

Sometimes: I tell myself I'm not going to get dessert
Always: I eat some sort of sweet treat.

Sometimes: I crave takeout for lunch at school.
Always: I wait til the weekend to go out with my hubby!

Sometimes: I have grand plans of not drinking caffeine after lunch.
Always: I end up drinking tea or coffee or both!

Happy Tuesday all!

#firstworldproblems

We've all seen the hash tag on Twitter before. Or, if you're not on Twitter I'm sure you've heard someone, somewhere quote it in regards to a puzzling problem. It's typically used in some sort of humorous way. For instance, a few "first world problems" puzzling the Mobleys these days:

We can never agree on how long our plethora of meat should be cooked at supper time

 Walmart doesn't sell blonde bobby pins

 There are SIX grocery stores between church and home and I can never decide which one to go to

We complain about having to watch commercials on Hulu+

The treadmill wasn't working properly, which means it jostled the iPad while I watched Mad Men

(Yea, I know that one is pretty bad) 

The shower head in the master bathroom isn't detachable which makes cleaning it difficult

I'm sure there are others that I just can't think of right now, but the point is we're being ridiculous. Simply put, we are spoiled. All of the problems I just listed above are problems that people halfway across the world would kill to have, yet we complain about them. I understand it is all about perspective, but why shouldn't all our perspectives be the same? Why is it that we live here with almost anything we want at our fingertips, while others live with next to nothing? At the risk of sounding childish I'm going to say it-It's just not fair!

Before I go all whiny on y'all I'm going to stop. You get it. What happens next is what defines us as people. What do we do about all that we that others don't? Do we continue to whine and fuss or do we do something about it? That is not a choice I can make for you, but it is my hope that David and I can stop this selfishness in its path before we start a family and let it continue.

Things I Just Don't Get. . .

There are always going to be things I don't understand, but in recent weeks it seems that the list has grown. If you can enlighten me on any of the following, please do so! Without further adieu, the things I just don't get. . .

Why despite learning the hard way more than one time, I still go to Walmart on a Sunday afternoon. Really, you'd think I would have gotten the point by now!

Why the princess refuses to go on a walk. Seriously, have you ever met a dog that refuses to go on a walk?! 

Why the weeds in our backyard just keep.growing.back. I have pulled and fought and battled time and time again to no avail. Any gardening secrets I'm missing here?

Why the princess carries her food into the den before she eats it. It's one of the funniest things I have ever seen, but it puts my sweet husband over the edge! After we pour the food into her bowl, she picks up a piece or few and carries them in her mouth into the den. It's like she's trying to figure out if we're poisoning her or not. Only then will she eat her bowl of food. The best part is that she won't eat those few pieces she carried into the den! 

Why people turn their sprinklers on in the rain. I totally get timers. What I do not get is the people who purposely turn their sprinklers on in the rain.

Why students lose their minds a bit when it's a full moon. Has any proven the correlation here because I bet any teacher can offer substantial support to this theory!

Why after months of being on a low-sodium diet my doctor has now told me my sodium levels are too low and I need to eat more salt. What? Huh? I thought the salt ticked off my kidneys and I was supposed to avoid it. . . good grief, I just can't keep up!

Perspective

I usually devote my Thursday postings to the things in my life that I am thankful for. This Thursday I thought I would veer off that course to share something that is on my heart. I tweeted this late last night when I was in a bit of a funk:

My sister responded with:

Wow. Talk about some truth being thrown at you. It was exactly what I needed to hear, though. I have been allowing myself to wallow in self-pity the past two weeks about this pulled muscle. I have been allowing it to bring me down when instead I should be grateful that I have the potential to run again one day. Heck, like my sister said, I should be grateful I can even walk!

How often do we allow ourselves to get caught up in the things that surround us? How often do we let our emotions depend upon others? How often do we let worldly experiences replace the pursuit of eternal life with our Savior? Too often is the answer on my heart.

I am very guilty of complaining about all that I don't have instead of being grateful for the things that I do have. The fact that I have a car to drive each and every day puts me way ahead of most of the world. Yet I can't stop myself from referring to it as the "rattletrap" car and coveting the newer models I see on the road.

What about the emails that flood my inbox with new clothes, shoes, etc? Instead of thanking Him for all that I do have, I still peruse the site to see what's out there. I then pat myself on the back for not actually spending the money. I tell myself I'm a good person because I didn't actually buy that dress. But in all honesty, how am I any better than the person who does buy that dress? I'm still coveting that item.

The truth of the matter is I need to do a better job of thanking Him for all that he has given me. Not just every Thursday for y'all to see, but on a regular basis in my daily conversations with Him. I need to do a better job of praising Him for the multitude of blessings I do have instead of wishing for the things that I don't

Does anyone else struggle with this? I'd love to hear how y'all combat the temptations of this world!

I'm A Big Girl Now

Oh, home ownership, how the fun never ends! I love, love, love our house and all the extra that comes with living in a house versus living in an apartment. I realize how incredibly blessed we are to be in the position we are in, but (there's always a "but") can I get an AMEN on the extra that comes with living in a house versus an apartment?!? One of those big extras happens to be yard work.

I actually enjoy working in the yard in a certain capacity. Emphasis on certain capacity. I enjoy weeding the flower beds. I enjoy planting flowers. I enjoy tackling the monstrous weeds that grow in our pitiful little yard. I do not enjoy mowing the lawn and I can say that with full confidence now because this grown-up just mowed the lawn for the first time. That's right folks, I mowed the lawn for the very first time. I'm still patting myself on the back for this feat.

Let me preface the whole situation by saying this-I never had the mow the lawn growing up. Two brothers and a daddy who takes pride in a pretty yard prevented this from ever occurring. Thank God. I had negative interest in it. You should have seen my sweet husband's face when he learned of this. You'd of thought I just declared myself queen of all the land. It's not that I've ever thought I was too good to do it, I just never had to.

Fast forward to being a grown-up and living in a house. Our pitiful (emphasis on pitiful) little lawn has started to grow. Due to unforeseen circumstances, David couldn't mow the lawn. I informed him I had no intention of picking up this hobby now. I even offered to spend my own "fun money" on hiring someone to do it. You heard that right. I was willing to sacrifice a month of weekly Starbucks treats for someone else to take on this task. He conceded and we started the search for someone else to do it.

I asked my brother who lives close by and apparently college students actually enjoy having a life and he was too busy to do it. I asked the neighbor kids and none of them could do it. I even tried to get my sweet daddy to drive an hour to come do it, but his own house to-do list took precedence. It looked like I was going to have to conquer this beast all by myself.

I am proud to say that yesterday afternoon I beasted our little yard. It wasn't easy (I may have slipped on our hill a few times) and it wasn't pretty (who really needs "lines" in the yard anyway?!) but I did it! I think it is safe to say that as soon as David is able to do it again, he will. My fear of having to do this on a regular basis is not likely to be fulfilled when he sees the ragamuffin job I did.

I know this seems silly, but I am so proud of myself. I feel like such a big kid! Any of y'all ever conquer some silly little task?! PS- I totally treated myself with a large bowl of ice cream. Hey, I earned it with that workout;-)

Manic Mondays

Manic Mondays. . .we all know them WAY too well. I was spoiled the past two Mondays because we did not have school. The first we were out for the MLK Jr. and the second was a teacher workday. After two gloriously productive Mondays I think we just shouldn't have to work on Mondays. I mentioned this idea to a group of my students who were complaining about being tired. One of them kindly pointed out that Tuesdays would then become the new Mondays. Argh. Don't you just hate it when they're right?!? Some uplifting words to get you through this Monday:

 Happy Monday!

Confessions

Some times we confess to clear our minds and consciences. Other times we confess to free ourselves from a burden on our shoulders. And some times we confess just to share news. Regardless of what you are sharing and the reasoning behind it, confessing can be a very cathartic experience. A few random confessions I have to share that are on my mind this week. . .

I'm not keeping up with my Bible reading plan like I want to.

If it weren't for my husband's common sense, I would have 15 puppies romping around.

I go to bed at 8pm on school nights. No shame here!

I want to steal one of the cute mini-horses from the farm I pass on the way to church.

Some times I make sweet treats just to lick the bowl.

I feel guilty spending money on anything that I don't have a coupon for or isn't already on sale. 

I have this irrational fear that they will run out of food when it comes to buffets. This may stem from the fact that I come from a big family and we were always fighting for the last bite of something good!

I enjoy a good rainy day every once in a while.

I am very excited about what this year is going to bring us. In fact, I'm so excited I keep having to remind myself to slow down and enjoy what's around me now.

What's on your mind this week?