Today I'm grateful for: the technology that let me virtually hang out with the family tonight. THAT was very nice. Thank you!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
How to annoy me
How to annoy me: I forgot to take a book with me, and didn't want to sit there looking like a lonely dork... so I'm back at The Lovely Basement eating cup of noodles. Note to self - keep book in purse.
Latest Milestone
Latest Milestone: Cory got accepted to the Comal Academy!!!!!
I'm so excited! This is an entirely self-paced computer-based learning program that they offer at his high school. When Cory failed two classes last year, he did the summer school version and did PHENOMENALLY well. He tested out of the class he'd failed in a total of 4 DAYS!
When we realized how much he was struggling and at risk of not graduating, he told us that there is a version of that called the Comal Academy. He had to apply for it, including writing an essay about why he wanted to do it and how he thought he'd be more successful with this approach. Those of you who know Cory know he HATES writing but he wrote a very nice essay that same DAY.
The committee met this morning, and he's IN!!!
He has to take two classes, starting from the beginning. A math and a science. And when he's done, he graduates! Which means the rest of the family can come faster!!!
I'm so intensely grateful and excited!!!!
-k
Fun Adjustments
It is cold in The Lovely Basement this morning. And far from annoying me, I went right to the giant basket of knitted items I brought with me, and put on a beautiful set of fingerless armwarmers knit for my by a friend from yarn she dyed for me!!
How to annoy me
How to annoy me: It doesn't matter who you are, where you live, or how modestly you are living... somehow there is ALWAYS a grocery list going. Just started my new one.
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: One day between Michael leaving and starting the new job to just settle in and shift gears. It's real. I'm here now. Time to get all excited for my AWESOME new job!!
Cultural Difference
I thought that one of the largest cultural differences between New Braunfels, TX (where I've just moved from) and Elsah, IL (where I've just moved to) was going to be eating out. New Braunfels has all the major chains, both fast and sit-down, as well as some more exotic fare like sushi, thai, etc. Elsah doesn't have a single restaurant. It used to have a very nice little one but that was years ago. It's only a 15-20 minute drive to Alton - and there are some fast food places there, and even an Applebee's - but that's about it.
And that will take a little adjusting to, but if you know me at all, you know that eating out isn't exactly a driving force in my life. I love to COOK - but eating out is really neither here nor there for me.
Nope, that's not the biggest difference that I can see so far.
It's water.
Illinois and Missouri are water states. Lots of it. Standing in ponds, running in streams beside the major roadways. And of course, the HUGE river - and I'd honestly forgotten just how large it is. There is a lot of industry tied to the rivers as well. Things grow large here. HUGE trees. Lots of ground cover. And just the fact that water is always here and always available makes things totally different here from Texas - which not only has a LOT less water but has also been in the grip of a terrible drought.
And what could possibly have me thinking about this at 7:32 in the morning? AWESOME water pressure in the shower.
-k
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Latest Milestone
Latest Milestone: I just set my status on Facebook to "the Lovely Basement" for the first time. That's what I've decided to call my temporary home. It is a Lovely Basement. It's just lonely.
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: Every moment I got with Michael these last few days and every precious phone call with the kids and my mom. Today was a little rough.
Monday, February 27, 2012
How to annoy me
How to annoy me: This process has been a litmus test for our friends. Some of them have been very concerned and supportive. Some of them have been like "freedom! You should party". To those friends, I've sort of done the O.o thing. You clearly don't know me very well.
How to make me laugh
How to make me laugh: I went to the mailroom to check my new mailbox, and there were several of those laminated slips that say "you have a package too big for your box". I took them to the counter. The kid working the counter said, "You must be Kristen Harrison. I've been wanting to meet you since obviously a lot of people love you." Made me all happy. And ever so slightly embarrassed.
Latest Milestone
Latest Milestone: I have a faculty/staff parking pass. Makes me feel all official and stuff.
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: beautiful weather. Elsah is certainly welcoming me and making me feel at home!
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: a lovely lunch date with the Stringers. An excellent welcome to the area!
Current Craving
Current Craving: my family to instantly teleport up here to be with me. Failing that, a dream job for Michael so that the process goes as quickly as possible would do.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Ok Murphy
Ok Murphy. You win. It *can* always get worse.
Our car is going in the shop tomorrow. TOMORROW.
Bearing in mind that I am supposed to LOAD THIS CAR TOMORROW FOR A THOUSAND MILE DRIVE.
*headdesk*
-k
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
How to make me laugh
How to make me laugh: I say "excuse me, madam" to Katie, but you haven't lived until you hear her say it back to me! And she picks the most hilarious times. Like "Excuse me, madam... I believe someone just used the potty."
Monday, February 20, 2012
Latest Milestone
Latest Milestone: Cory got a MASSIVE hair cut!!
Here's the backstory -
He’s failing 3 of his 4 classes, and snuck out of the house this weekend and got caught. Then he made a deal with me… I kept my end, and he didn’t. I gave him multiple chances to fulfill his end. Then I got out the razor.
I explained it to him totally calmly about three times over the weekend. I gave him multiple chances to make good. Then, this morning I just said, “that’s it, big guy. Into the bathroom we go.” He gave me huge puppy dog eyes, but then he followed me. I think he thought I was just going to scare him but not follow through.
I looked at him and said, “We made a deal. You broke the deal. That won’t make ME a liar. I told you these were the consequences. I’m sorry to do it, dude, but you have to learn to live with the consequences when you don’t keep your end of the deal”. And buzzed it all off.
He looks really good, actually. Except for the pouty face.
I did hate to do it, in all honesty. But he HAS to learn to live with the consequences of his choices and actions/inactions. I'd rather he learned that with a haircut than something much more dangerous/damaging.
And yes, it looks like I murdered a werewolf in our bathroom.
-k
Latest Milestone
Latest Milestone: Last full day with the kids today. No school for President's Day and I leave early Saturday. Trying to treat it like a "normal" day but with lots more hugging.
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: my confidence in Michael's ability to CRAMPACK a car full. My pile by the door is a little intimidating. But it may have to last a while...
How to make me laugh
Ian: When Cory gets married, will she be part of our family?
Me: (stunned silence)
Ian: Mommy, when Cory gets married, will she be a part of our family?
Me: Yes, yes of course.
Ian: When I get married, will she be a part of our family?
Me: Yes.
Ian: If you hadn't married Daddy, would I have been a Lynch instead?
Me: No, dear. If I hadn't married Daddy, you wouldn't have existed.
Ian: (stunned silence)
Me: Well, see, you were born because Daddy and I got married and had a baby. So, if we haven't gotten married, there wouldn't have been a you, exactly.
Ian: Thank you for marrying Daddy.
-k
Sunday, February 19, 2012
The pile by the front door
There's a pile by the front door. It's the things that I'm taking with me in the Sentra. It's my work wardrobe. It's my not-at-work clothing. It's some basic office supplies for a home office. It's some knitting stuff (I mean this is still ME). It's a single basket with some movies in it. It's another basket with hand-knitted items that I'm sincerely hoping it is still cold enough to need for a little while. It is some shoes. It will also have toiletries, and whatever else I can fit in there.
It's freaking me out.
It's freaking me out because this is Sunday night. By this time next week, I'll already be in Illinois. Without my kids. For at least a month. I've never been without them for more than 4-5 days. That seems RIDICULOUSLY long to be apart.
It's freaking me out because I wish I could take more. But how much do you truly need for a month?
It's freaking me out because I am not sure it will all fit.
It's freaking me out because it's making it so *real*.
Yikes! This is so close to happening!
But it's going to be so GOOD. So VERY good. And I have to focus on THAT part.
-k
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: caramel hot chocolate from yes, McDonald's, of all places. I haven't been feeling well. I haven't been eating much. This tasted AWESOME.
How to annoy me
How to annoy me: It's our bed. Not the toy depository. Not the teddy bear hangout. Not the place for that magazine you might read later. PUT YOUR STUFF IN YOUR OWN ROOMS, KIDDOS OR I'M THROWING IT OUT.
Latest Milestone
Latest Milestone: Starting to have Texas lasts. This time next week, I'll be in Illinois. So today was my last big grocery shopping at H.E.B....
Friday, February 17, 2012
Dinner with the fam
Michael was off work today so that we could do a bunch of things in prep for next week.
I sit here in shock, looking at that last sentence.
Today, we took our little old Sentra to get the tires balanced, rotated, and aired up. We had them check out the spare just in case. We picked up some things we needed. Each of the boys got a haircut. I'll get pictures tomorrow.
Then, we met at Mamacita's with the Harrison family for dinner. I was touched that everyone showed up with relatively short notice even with as busy as people's lives are. Also, we are all getting together tomorrow for Matt's 50th birthday, so it was even more startling that everyone could get together tonight.
And they made me wear the sombrero and get happy birthday sung to me.
Yes, Michael got a picture of that. I don't have this picture, but I'm sure it will show up on Facebook.
Still a bunch to do and a crazy mishmash of emotions.
-k
Watching right now and movie review: Apollo 18
Watching right now: Apollo 18
Sufficiently creepy. The concept is that there was another Apollo mission to the moon. And it went horribly horribly wrong.
I won't give anything away.
What I will say is that for a movie with a very small cast and limited special effects, it was well done. And it leaves you with one of those "Oh, that sucks" creep out moments at the very end.
Worth watching, but only once.
-k
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Reading right now
Reading right now: Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire and the Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan
Current Craving
Current Craving: a "new" car to drive cross country in. I'm not sure our poor old Sentra is going to make the drive gracefully and still be reliable once I get there!
How to make me laugh
How to make me laugh: Katie's been under the weather for a few days, but I knew she was on the mend when she started bossing me around about what I should wear this morning!
Monday, February 13, 2012
How to annoy me
How to annoy me: I should have seen it coming. So I'm annoyed with myself for being caught off guard when Ian announced this afternoon that he DID want valentines for his class. Tomorrow.
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: this new opportunity. I've been so focused on the move that I haven't been thinking about the new job. It's SUCH a great opportunity!
Watching right now
Watching right now: some strange reality tv show Michael wanted to watch about jousting.
Current Craving
Current Craving: to see the snow I missed in IL today! I can't believe I'm "so close" but I'm going to miss it!
Saturday, February 11, 2012
HUGE milestone and upcoming milestone
So I haven't talked about it here, but I got a new job!! I'm so excited about it. I'm going to be working in the Human Resources department of the college I attended many moons ago. In fact, one awesome benefit is the fact that I'll be able to work on my degree.
That's not what I wanted to write about though.
I realized this week that I am harboring a double standard and it's eating me up inside.
You see, my job starts on March 1st, and it's in Illinois. That means that two weeks from today, I will have to get in a car and find it within myself to somehow drive away from my children for a while. And it's killing me.
I *know* that this is the right thing to do. We need me to have a job. We are drowning financially. This is a great opportunity and I'm so excited about it. It's a GREAT job for a FANTASTIC employer and our family is really looking forward to this exciting change.
But we don't have a job for Michael yet, and we have to sell our house, and we can't afford two households concurrently. So I have to go by myself for a while, find the smallest furnished place I can find, and work towards reuniting the family as quickly as we can.
(Side note - yes, Cory will get to stay here to finish senior year. Also a tough decision and another blog for another day.)
So what's the double standard that's killing me? Well, if Michael had been the one to get the job first, I wouldn't have thought too much about it. Of course he'd go ahead and get established and the children and I would follow as quickly as we could. I know he wouldn't want to be away from us, but he'd do it and no one would think less of him for doing so.
But my heart starts pounding to think of leaving my children. My chest tightens. My hands get all clammy. Can I do this? Can I actually get in a car and watch them get smaller in the rearview mirror not knowing for certain when we'll all be back together? What kind of mother am I?!?
Well, I'm the kind of mother who is willing to make the tough choices for the long-term. For their sake's, I'll have to find a way to not only do it, but to do it with a smile on my face. Of course, the moment they are out of sight, I think I will wail all the way to the state line of Texas at the earliest.
They are young. They are resilient. The time will fly for them. I'm not saying that they won't miss me. Of course, they will. I've never been away from them longer than 4-5 days in their entire lives. But they'll have Daddy. They'll have Grandma. They'll have familiar surroundings and regular routines. I know that this is the best thing for them - but it physically hurts me just to think about it.
And part of what's upsetting me so much is that I'll have no control over how long it takes them to come up to me. I can't control what happens with Michael's job. I can't control how fast the house sells. All I can do is get up to the new job, live as frugally as possible, and pray without ceasing for all the right answers to be clear, apparent, and for the transition to happen rapidly.
I would expect Michael to be able to do it if our positions were reversed. I have to find a way to do it.
But how can I?
I know that many families make these decisions and it works out. In the long-term, I'm sure it will all work out and looking back on it, it won't have been as long or horrendous as I currently dread. And I haven't been talking about it much because I honestly don't want to hear well-meaning advise about it. This is the hardest thing I've ever thought about doing and I'm not sure I can really listen objectively to anything anyone has to say on the matter.
I know that it won't be all fun and games for Michael either. Working full-time, looking for a job, taking care of the children, and continuing to pack up the house and get it listed. That's a LOT to take on. He has my mother, and she's amazing. Without her, we wouldn't have been able to accept this opportunity. And if there was any way to make it all come together differently, I would. I wish more than anything that I could take them all with me, and have him catch up when he's found a job. But we can't afford to make our house payments now, let alone take on a second house payment in the form of renting a second place big enough for the family on the other end.
We'll both have to be incredibly supportive of each other and what we are doing for the long-term good of the family. It would be easy to resent what the other person has. Our relationship is strong, and it will have to be to make it through this gracefully. Especially the longer it goes on.
We have decided that there is an end date. We have decided the longest we'd stay apart before just biting the bullet and all getting back together. Of course, that's all fine to say, but we can't walk away from this house in any case, nor can he walk away from his job until he has something else lined up. So I'm not sure what that proposed "end date" truly counts for.
In the end, I can't control this and that's incredibly hard for me.
And if I'm just not blogging much, I hope you'll understand.
-l
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Reading right now
Reading right now: Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire and Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan
Monday, February 06, 2012
Warning - sad post
I'll be honest, I don't like to indulge in sadness. So it's hard for me to admit that some of the fun of the blog has just plain drained away since the loss of my Aunt June. She read it every single day. She nudged me if I didn't post fast enough, or enough pictures of the kids, or enough pictures of me, or enough of the "how to annoy me"'s that she thought were so funny. She sent me regular emails about things she'd read. She showed it to her friends and coworkers who always wanted more stories about The Potatie.
She was a complicated person, not always willing to be happy, sometimes rough around the edges in ways that hurt a little, but always go generous, so giving, and always my friend.
And some of the fun of writing for the blog just isn't there since in a very real way it often felt like I was writing it just for her.
I love you, June. You will always be a rock star to me.
-k
Today I'm grateful for
Today I'm grateful for: the incredible beauty that happens when what you want and what you get are actually the same thing!!
Thursday, February 02, 2012
Movie Review: Conan (the re-do)
The only thing worse than a really bad movie is a really bad movie that drastically overstays its already tenuous welcome.
Is there any way this movie *didn't* stink?
No.
Nuff said.
-k
Current Craving
Current Craving: Dark Mayan Chocolate ice cream by Haagen Daaz. But here's the catch. They don't MAKE THIS FLAVOR ANYMORE.
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Reading right now
Reading right now: Fablehaven: Book Five by Brandon Mull and Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
