Rainy weekend

We didn't make it to TN this weekend due to snowy weather in TN. Turns out we may get bad weather here too, so it's probably a good thing we didn't go. But it is sad that we didn't get to celebrate Anna's 30th birthday with her. Maybe in the spring when the weather is a little better.

It's been nice to have a free weekend to catch up on errands and have down time. I'm actually blogging on a Saturday night. I can't think of another Saturday evening when I've done this. We finished up our wedding album proof for the photographer. We should have it in a couple months. The proof looks really nice, so I can't wait to see what it will look like in person.

Anyway, just popping in to post an entry. Maybe I'll feel inspired to write more tomorrow! Night, night all.

Skating boarding at 2 am

Don't you love it when you're awakened at 2:30 in the morning by kids skateboarding and yelling outside your bedroom window? Sure enough, that's what we experienced last night. UGH! After a few minutes, Isaac put his shoes on and went outside to tell them to leave. UGH again. (He knows how I have a tendency to turn into an alien when I don't get my sleep!) Poor Isaac didn't get back to sleep the rest of the night. : ( so I'm sure it will be early to bed tonight. (Next time we'll call the police, it probably wasn't the greatest to confront them ourselves in the middle of the night. You never know these days...)

Which brings me to my next point, we aren't going to TN this weekend. : ( Unfortunately, it's probably going to snow in TN and Asheville over the weekend. Isaac's family is in a pretty rural area that doesn't get snow plows or salt. So if it snowed, we could be stuck for a good while. We're going to try to go another time, perhaps in 2 weeks when Isaac has unpaid leave from Eaton.

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

Updates

A couple of updates for you!

• Maybe my hair is a little too short--or maybe I'm not used to it yet. Still like it, but getting 4 inches cut off is a little shocking. But it will GROW! : )
• Pool running is out. After my PT appt today, I learned that I essentially reverse the good my air cast does if I over do it in the pool too. I thought 45 minutes in the pool wasn't bad, but my PT looked shocked when I told him. Another lesson learned--I can do the stationary bike, but no spin classes. I might need therapy after missing so much exercise... I think exercise is a form of therapy for me.
• New York City! We are headed to NYC for Isaac's birthday next weekend. This weekend we're heading to TN to celebrate Anna's (Isaac's sister) birthday. We're a traveling crew. While in NYC we'll get to visit my FAVORITE psychology professor from seminary. I can't wait to catch up with him.
• MULA--ever heard of it? Otherwise known as, Mandatory Unpaid Leave of Absence. Isaac and his entire company of 70,000 employees are all being forced to take 1 week of unpaid leave. And his company is suspending their 401(k) match. And no raises for the year. Yuck! We'll be fine, but it certainly is an adjustment for our family. Isaac's handling it REALLY well though.
• MBA school for Isaac? Maybe. He's thinking about applying to the evening program at NC State (that does NOT mean we'll be Wolfpack fan, sorry everyone). I'll keep you updated on this one. GMAT studying is already in progress. FUN FUN!
• FRANCE. We're going to France over Memorial Day in May. We can't wait. Although we felt a little guilty spending when our economy is so unstable, this might be our "last hurrah" before we start the rest of our family. : ) (And we got a REALLY good deal on our plane tickets.)

Hair cut

I got my hair cut today and I LOVE IT. It's back to the way I usually wear it, a chin length bob. It feels so much lighter and it love how it feels to have the hair off my neck. Isaac is slightly less thrilled--he likes my hair long--but he hasn't seen it yet. But I am sure he will like it fine. (He said, "I'd love you even if you had no hair on your head.")

And I actually got it cut in Raleigh, only my second hair cut in Raleigh since I moved here 3 years ago. It was too stressful trying to figure out time to drive back to Winston when Kimberly was working to get it cut. Plus, I didn't cut it as often as I should have. I wish I had a picture to show you. I need to figure out how to upload pictures from our new camera... that'll be next on the list of things to do!

Pool running

So since I can't really do any cardio exercise except in the pool (because of my bad achilles tendinitis), I tried pool running last night. The YMCA has these belts that you strap around your waist and it keeps you above the water (probably up to your shoulders.) Then you just "run" in the pool. I managed about 40 minutes in the pool before the water aerobics class took over the lane. I was a bit bored, but seeing the water aerobics people made it a bit more interesting (including a woman that is blind and is able to do water aerobics--really neat).

I think I'll be able to keep with this. It's a nice change from swimming laps, which can also be monotonous. I can tell you I felt MUCH better going home at the end of the evening having had some exercise. : ) If anyone wants to try it with me, let me know. I'd love the company (and I have free guest passes to my Y!).

Nice weekend

We had a really nice weekend. We had dinner close to our condo, and saw The Wrestler in preparation for the Oscars on Sunday night. Then I got to see my dad and spend time with my niece and nephew on Saturday. Had friends over for dinner on Saturday evening and had a great time playing Trivial Pursuit Pop Culture. And then finally had time to rest on Sunday after facilitating Sunday school and going to church. Whew!

I managed to swim a little on Saturday. Sometimes the chlorine gets overwhelming, but I hung in there. That's really the only thing I can do to exercise at this point. Just a few more weeks of the aircast. I can't wait till it comes off. I start physical therapy (essentially getting some steroids to the achilles tendon transdermally) this week. That will make work days a bit more hectic running to PT and back to work. But, I'll put up with it for a couple weeks in the hopes of getting well. I am going to go back to the Y after work and swim some more. Maybe I can do some upper body weights too (I'm so weak!).

Well, need to head off to work. Hope you all have a great week!

How to relax?

Isn't this crazy--the idea that I need to learn to relax? But it's really true! Last night, as I was thinking about the upcoming weekend, I realized that I was filling up my days with errands, work, organizing, etc. And I though, woah, I'm not even looking forward to this time off! What's wrong with that picture?

Last Saturday, the only day I can truly sleep in b/c of work and church, I woke up earlier than I usually do and started worrying about filling out a life insurance application. For the life of me, I couldn't let it go, so I got out of bed and filled out the darned application. By that time, I was up so on I went to other tasks that have been neglected recently.

I realized I'm doing the same thing for this weekend... we need to hook up the new dishwasher, then there's that will and power of attorney I need to get to, then grocery shopping, and house cleaning, and the list goes on. It's ridiculous. I need to accept the fact that some things might always go undone. It amazes me that most days Isaac and I have 12 hour days. By the time we go to work, go to the gym, prepare, eat, and clean up dinner, it's usually been over 12 hours. EEK! There isn't much time for anything else. (And I worry about what will happen when we have children, but that's another story.)

I tend to be a pretty high strung person anyway. I just wonder if it getting worse? Maybe it's the "aliens" that are causing this (our way of referring to PMS--sorry if that's too much information)? So, I'm going to try to do a little work after work today and maybe that will help me for the rest of the weekend. I want to relax and just BE. Calgon take me away! : )

Things I'm Thankful For

• My sweet, thoughtful, caring, and compassionate husband Isaac.
• For my parents who made major sacrifices for me throughout their lives so I could have the numerous opportunities I've had.
  
• That I have good health insurance and can afford to get treatment for my achilles tendonosis.
• My Sunday school class and church. It feels more and more like family every day.
• For my best friends Julie and Alan who make me laugh, have been there in very tough times, and who will take us camping this summer.
• That my older sister lives a little more than a mile away with my sweet niece and nephew, Maia and Alex. My BIL is fantastic too.
• For wonderful in laws who love me just as I am.
• For Nana (Isaac's grandmother). Her faith inspires me, and just being in her presence makes me smile.
• Books! I love them! (Now I just need some book shelves.)
• My twin sister and Haley. They are such a bright spot in my life. And "Munch" as I call her is growing into quite a wonderful young lady.
• That I get to visit with my favorite psychology prof in NYC when we visit next month.
• For morning coffee my sweet hubby brings me every morning.
• For Amy, who inspires me with her strength and grace.
• UNC basketball! It's awesome that we've had such a great season.
• My sister in law who is COMPLETELY amazing, and my brother who is inspiring and amazing in his own right, and my sweet Lily and Andrew.
  

The list could go on. But I'm feeling especially thankful today. "From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another." (John 1: 16)

Are we willing?

Our pastor gave an amazing sermon this morning in Mark 1: 40-45. I'll copy a shortened version for you here:

"A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, "If you are willing, you can make me clean."Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured."(Mark 1: 40-42)

Our pastor pointed out the big difference between having the ability to do something and the will to actually do it. The leper seemed to understand that Jesus had a choice on whether to heal him or not. And as usual, Jesus followed through and ministered to those in need.

It makes me think more about my ability to serve those that need it most: the hungry, broken, poor, and abused. And I'm grateful to my pastor for pointing out that we all have the ability to love others... and we need to focus on using those gifts, just as Jesus would have.

God is good, and once again I am grateful to be a part of First Presbyterian Church in Raleigh.

The Race

Hi all. Things went really well with the Run for the Roses on Sunday afternoon. We could not have asked for better weather--about 70 degrees and sunny. We had 80 volunteers who came out and made things run so smoothly. Papa John's, Great Harvest Bread Company, Trader Joe's, and Whole Foods provided yummy food. And a chiropractor who sponsored the race even brought a massage therapist, so I got a free 10 minute neck and shoulder massage. It was awesome.

I really enjoyed the race this year. I had a good time (with the exception of the scoring chaos at the very end...). And the weather, support of my sweet husband, and great volunteers certainly contributed.

In the end, we had 400 runners and raised at least $2500 for the Run for the Roses. And probably at least the same for the NC Roadrunners Club. I'm happy with those results, especially in our current economy. This is my last time as race director. I'm passing the torch on to someone else. It's a rewarding experience, but boy does it require a lot of work (and stress).

So, I'm off to the massage therapist this afternoon to treat myself for getting through the race. Maybe it will help the residual muscle tension from stressing about the scoring! : )

That's all she wrote folks!

I have THE BEST husband in the world!

Seriously people, I have the best husband in the world. I was greeted this morning (still in bed) with coffee and heart-shaped pancakes. How sweet and awesome is that? Picture to follow as soon as we have time to download the picture! It's race day, and Isaac was trying to make the day as nice as possible. I am so blessed to have such a thoughtful and wonderful husband.

Things are all ready for the race. As of last night, we had about 260 people registered, and I expect another 100 today (hopefully!). The last thing we have to do is pick up the roses for the female finishers (thus, Run for the ROSES). I'll post again after the race to let you know how things went.

Ta-ta for now. : )

Taking a 1/2 day off

Granted it's to do laundry, go grocery shopping, work on taxes, wrap up race stuff, and prepare for early packet pick up tomorrow from 2-6... but it's still a half day off! It's been very busy at work, and I'm juggling a couple projects already in progress, plus trying to plan for the rest of the year. It will be nice just to get some of MY stuff done so I don't go back to work on Monday feeling like a disorganized mess. I'm a little OCD about organizing when I'm feeling stressed. Cleaning and straightening up actually relieves my stress a bit. Weird? Well, a least I have a reasonably clean house. : )

Tired but happy!

It's 3 days till Race Day. I'm starting to feel the effects of the race on me... feeling a little tired from the last-minute running around this week, packet stuffing, and trouble shooting issues (like my online registration not working, eek!). But, I'm happy!

I drive by the race start location every day when I go to work. As I passed by this morning, I thought, "Wow! I'm actually excited about the race this weekend." This is much improvement over last year when I was just terrified about the race the whole way through--afraid we wouldn't have enough people show up, afraid of losing money for the club, fearful that key people wouldn't show and we'd have big problems on our hands. All of these things could happen this year. But, I'm not worried. I simply came to the conclusion that I've worked hard and done my very best. Now I get to enjoy the fruits of my labor. Sounds kind of weird when I put it like that.

If you're near Raleigh this weekend, come on out to the race. We're having Papa John's pizza and yummy bread from Great Harvest Bread Company. And if you run and happen to be the 100th, 200th, 300th, etc. runner across the line... you'll get some fancy prizes from Blue Water Spa. I'm tempted to run the race just to see if I can get one for myself! Then again, maybe I'll just treat myself as a reward for finishing another race. YAY.

No snow

We'd didn't get any snow this time, but it was fun hoping for it! We were both up in the middle of the night looking out the window to see if there was snow... just like when we were kids! : )

UNC beat Maryland last night, so that made us happy too. We even stopped watching mid-way into the 2nd half to go read. My book Bridge of Sighs is really good, and I'm probably 50 pages from finishing it. And Isaac's been enjoying the latest installment of the Star Wars book series. Did you even know there was such a thing?

I've been thinking about my work friend who lost her boyfriend in a car wreck 2 weeks ago. They were very close, and it's been very difficult for her. From a positive perspective, I was in our Greensboro office a couple weeks ago and ran into her... the day before the car accident. So that gave us a chance to reconnect. Then she shared the news with me the following week, and I've been able to use some of my counseling skills to help out. I love how God makes these divine appointments just when we're needed.

My mom lost her high school boyfriend, Jimmy Moses, in their senior year. He also died in a car accident. I think they probably would have gotten married if he survived. His mother sent my mom Christmas gifts for years after that... we're talking some 30 years! I think it's sweet that she stayed in touch for so long.

I'm glad that God is using me even while I'm reassessing my career goals. Hope you all have the nice sunshine we have today. It's cold... but the warmer weather is coming. It may be 70 degrees on Sunday--RACE day!

Control Freak

I'm convinced there is a direct correlation between my anxiety and tendency to control things. I know it's my nature to be controlling. And the reasons are many (including growing up with 2 alcoholic parents). As my stepmother once told me, "You're exactly like your father." What does that mean exactly? Another question for another day...

It seems that my anxiety has been greatly increased lately. I was definitely pretty anxious around summer/fall last year. But I attributed it to wedding planning. And I've been pretty anxious in the winter and I attributed it to holidays and race planning. But the pattern here is that it's always here. And when I think back, I think I've felt this way for a long time. Although I've been able to cope with it better from time to time.

There is usually a lot going on in my life, so sometimes I wonder if there will be a time where I'll ever feel less anxious. Isaac is so much more laid back than I am, and it's a VERY good thing. But the juxtaposition of our personalities is interesting. It makes me think I'm even more anxious than I think! : )

So, back to the subject of the post... controlling behavior. When I feel anxious, I immediately try to control the situation. Case in point, when I was at Lowe's over the weekend with Isaac, I was extremely stressed. The lady helping us clearly didn't know what she was doing, and then when she told us our project would cost 6 times more than it actually would... I really felt anxious. Isaac was as cool as a cucumber through the whole thing. Yay Isaac! So, we start to walk to another area of the store and I start telling Isaac that I want him to talk to my brother in law (who installed my floors in the kitchen) and also bring him back to buy the materials with him. I realize what I'm doing and I say to Isaac, "Does what I am saying make you feel like I don't have any confidence in you?" And he graciously says no. But I know the answer is yes. I wanted to take control of the situation to lessen MY anxiety... even though I could think of this project as "Isaac's project" and therefore be completely hands off.

And then the other side of the coin is this: controlling has made me a very successful person in some ways. Hey, there has to be a good side to this! I've steadily climbed the career ladder, completed half marathons and a marathon, worked full time and gotten a graduate degree, yadda, yadda, yadda. But I think the real answer is BALANCE... which I'm not good at.

So, maybe this self awareness will help? I just don't want my controlling behavior to hurt those I love, or to send me to the edge of anxiety. Maybe I need to go back into therapy. Maybe everyone is like this? Who knows! Solutions may come on another day. Thanks for reading. It helped me get this out.

Great weekend!

Isaac and I had a great weekend. We made dinner together, watched TV, read books, went to a friend's fun 40th birthday party, took a long walk outside together, went to church and Sunday school, and watched the Super Bowl. I got to cook 2 meals on Sunday (chicken enchiladas and then chicken lettuce wraps for Super Bowl snacks). Good times. And we're really thankful. I didn't start feeling panicky about the race till Sunday evening. But this is an upbeat post, so I'm choosing to focus on the good things about the weekend. : )

One of our outings this weekend was to Lowe's Home Improvement. I almost had a heart attack when the lady told us we needed 23 boxes of hardwood flooring to cover our dining room and hallway. I knew that wasn't right. Isaac, the amazing mathematician and engineer, quickly did a little math and figured that we need 5 boxes not 23. Pretty big difference, huh? We'll probably start that project in the near future. Isaac's going to install it himself. If anyone can do it, he can. I love having such a handy and detailed husband!

The race is this weekend. Tomorrow will be my busiest day until Saturday and Sunday when we do early packet pick up and have the actual race. I've done most of the work to this point, so I'm hoping just to check a few more things off my list and wait for race day. Sounds easy, right?