Just a few random thoughts

There is actually really nothing new and exciting happening in my life, but I still wanted to update my blog. It's been sitting on the same post for almost a month.

Work is going great. I am really enjoying the change of pace. It was a little difficult at first, but now that the in-box is under control, I have been able to relax a little and enjoy it a whole lot more. My co-workers are a riot. There have been quite a few "laugh breaks" when we take a break and end up laughing almost the entire time. I really feel so blessed to have found a job I love so much before my last job closed up shop.

Home life is still a little crazy. Lulu is still a little terror. I love her dearly and she's getting a little better, but this child has a bit of a mean streak. She's into hitting an pulling hair. She looks at you with her adorable eyes and grabs a lock of hair and just pulls. Poor Jaelynn has been the victim of this on several occasions. She has so much hair and it's so easy to get a hold of. It's a good thing Jae loves her little sister, otherwise there may be trouble.

Jaelynn is still the best big sister in the world. I don't know how long it will last, but I love that she loves her little sister so much. She still says "Mom, I love being a big sister." That makes me smile. Another thing that made me smile is one of her "kidisms" The other day I was watching T.V. with the kids and told Jae that I would be right back, I just had to go potty. That's when she said "Well mom, since you never get any privacy........We're coming with you."

Rory is doing really well at work. His store looks awesome and he's been "unofficially" named the new training manager. They keep giving him "MIT's" (Manager in training), to train and then set them up in a new store as manager. I say "unofficially" because he has not been promoted, just nominated for the task. He has such a good reputation with his training abilities and his dedication to his own store that they decided he was the best man for the job. Unfortunately, he just earns "kudos" instead of an increase in salary. Too bad.

We still have a full house. Rory's mom and brother are still living with us. It's a bit difficult at times, but I'm trying to be more positive about it and just hoping that I am earning mega points in Heaven. If this goes on much longer I think I'll be a shoe in.

I hope that next time I post I'll have somethig really good to post about and not just a recap of everyday life.

The New Job

This year I started the new year off with a new job. JoAnn's son Al owns a business in West Jordan called Engineered Wall Systems. It's a construction company that puts metal paneling up on buildings looking to remodel or go for a more "retro" look. They also make signs and other fun things like that. I've been hired to take over the Accounts payable/receivable dept., make travel reservations for the guys on the out of stat jobs, answer phones, enter in the time cards for payroll and pretty much do anything they ask me to do.

So far it's been fun. Busy, but fun. I found myself in a situation where I've had to play catch up from the previous girl. Apparently she wasn't quite on top of things and she let a few things slide. I am just now getting to the point where I can breathe a little.

The people at the new place are really fun and really nice. I think we'll get a long just fine. There have been a couple times we've taken a break and just visited and ended up laughing so hard our guts hurt. I think I'm really going to enjoy it. :)

The only set back in my mind is the fact that I'm not used to having to be to work by 8 a.m. For those of you that know me well, know this is VERY DIFFICULT for me. Rory has been a lifesaver. The whole first week on the job, Rory scheduled himself later in the day so he could get the girls ready and off to daycare and/or school. He has been so good to help. THANK YOU, THANK YOU Rory!!!

Anyway, I'm sorry if I haven't been in touch or up to speed with all of you, like I said I am just now able to slow down and take a breath.

Stuff Happens

I want to start off by saying Jaelynn's birthday was a huge hit. Jaelynn was the star of the day! She had so much fun being the Magicians helper. Sometimes Jae is a little nervous and shy when it comes to getting in front of large crowds, but it was her day to shine and she loved it. I will post a couple pictures as soon as I have them in the computer.

As for the title "Stuff Happens", I just found out that Western Travel will be closing it's doors for good! As of January 1st I will be jobless. I know we've been slowing down for some time now, but it's still kind of a shock when it's official. We've made jokes about it for a couple of years, but it still seemed like it was going to keep tickin' for a while.

I started at western travel about 12 years ago. It's been a fun ride. I have been able to take advantage of some pretty terrific deals and have been to some pretty fun places. Places I would have most likely never gone.

I will miss the friends I've made here. Friends that have been through almost all of the major moments in my life right along with me. They were there for my wedding and they were there through both pregnancies. I hope that even though we won't be working together any more, we can still keep in touch.

On a positive note, there have been a few doors opened to me that I will be able to explore. JoAnn has some son's that own their own businesses and are always in need of a little help. I'm not sure what the positions would be but they have both offered to hire me if I need a place to go. I have also been advised of other positions with friends or family that might work out to my advantage too.

I guess it's time to move on to the next chapter in my life and hopefully be able to help provide for my family and find something I also enjoy doing. I'll keep my fingers crossed. Wish me luck!

December Birthday

Can I just say that December birthday's are hard. Jaelynn's birthday is December 7th and she is sooooo excited. I am excited for her but also a little bit frazzled. Everybody is so busy this time of year. We're all trying to recover from Thanksgiving and get ready for all the family Christmas parties. WHEW!
My mom always made my birthday special. I never felt like I was overlooked because my birthday was so close to Christmas, so I want to be able to do the same thing for Jaelynn. This year we decided to hire a magician for her party. (We saw a magician over at Hollywood Connection the other day and she was so in awe over the tricks) It was so cute to see the amazement in her eyes. That's how we decided to look around for one.
I would love for all of Jae's little friends and cousins to be able to come so for those who are free this Saturday, December 6th, leave me your e-mail addresses so I can send you the details. We will be having it in a public place so if the parents want to stay and watch, they are more than welcome. :)

Parent Teacher Conference

I attended my very first parent teacher conference (as the parent instead of the student) last night, and am so proud of Jaelynn for doing so well in her kindergarten class. However, I am completely embarrassed that the only negative mark on her progress report is because of me. She has been tardy for class 16 times. The majority have only been by a minute or two but there have been a couple times she's been pretty late.

I can't believe what a slacker mom I am. I have no organizational skills at all. I used to think I was a pretty good multi-tasker, but I've come to realize I'm completely off my rocker! Maybe I should get the girls dressed and ready the night before and just worry about hair and breakfast the next morning. Hey, it could work. :)

I am determined to get my act together and not let my bad habits become hers.

Great Job Jae!!!

My Favorite (5 year old ) Quotes

Thanks to everybody for the nice comments from my previous post. I decided we're all in the same boat at one time or another, so as long as we all know that we can vent and cry and get advice from each other, we can feel better just knowing we have some support out there!

On a more positive note, I was reading my friend Tyler's blog a while back, and he had made some really fun comments on how his son was asking some legitimate 6 yr old questions. You don't realize how a child views the world until they ask you their curious little questions. It made me smile and think of that show "Kids say the darndest things." I decided to post some of the fun things that Jaelynn has asked me that I promised I would write down but haven't yet.

1. We were driving down the road fall of last year. We made comments about how there were so many leaves on the ground and how fun it would be to rake them up and jump into them. She asked me "Mom how do the leaves get back onto the trees?" I smiled and told her that they grow new ones in the spring. Her reply "Wait, wait, wait...I thought they just floated back up."

2. Jae and I were talking about a doctor's appt. I had to go to. I told her I had to go see the same doctor that delivered Lexie. She said "Delivered?" "Like put her in a box in the back of a truck and deliver her to our house?" (She was there when Lexie was born, so she understands how babies are born, the word "deliver" just threw her off a little." :)

3. We had gone to Red Lobster for Rory's birthday a couple of years ago. Her nose was glued to the glass of the giant lobster tank in the front. A couple days later we were at my parents house and she was explaining to grandpa what she saw in the "crab tank" He wasn't quite sure what she was saying so he asked "What? Crab cakes?" Her reply "No, crab tank." My Dad: "What about crab cakes?" Jaleynn a little frustrated at this point said "LOOK AT MY MOUTH... CRAB TANK!" (When Jaelynn was learning to speak. I told her to look at my mouth to see how I was saying the words.)

4. Just a couple of days ago. I was having a rough day (As most of you could tell by my previous post). We were driving along when Jaleynn says "Mom, I love you". I said "Jae you are such a sweetheart. I love you too." Jae then replied "Am I making your day any better?" I told her "Of course you made my day better. Thank you for being so thoughtful and making me smile." She said "That's what I'm here for. That's what I was made for."...."Is that what kids are made for?"...."I actually don't know what kids are made for, but I like 'em."

5. Jaelynn and I were talking about her old daycare. There was a little boy named Aidan that she had grown very fond of. She told me she and Aidan were going to get married when they grew up. They would play together at every recess even though he was in the kindergarten class and she was only a pre-schooler. She was missing him the other day and said to me. "I miss my friend Aidan. Do you think he misses me?" I said "I'm sure he misses you too. You guys were really good friends." She said "Do you know how we decided to get married?" I said "No. Tell me." She said "Well, we were at recess one day playing in the sand box and I told him that I liked him. He told me he liked me too, so when we grow up we'll get married."....."So, when we both grow up we'll find each other and get married...Okay?" I just smiled and said "Okay."

There are so many fun things she's said, but I didn't write them down, so unfortunately I've forgotten some of them. I've decided that starting today, I'm going to keep a notebook handy and when I hear her say some of those little comments that make me smile, I'll write them down before I forget.

If anybody else has some fun "kidisms" I'd love to hear them.

Am I the only one?

Okay, I'm going to treat this as a bit of an experiment. I just want to find out if it's just me or of other's go through the same thing.
Everybody has situations that come up in their lives that tend to throw them a curve ball and they find themselves making the best of a bad situation. In my mind, the majority tends to keep a good attitude and their lives aren't affected too deeply.
My first dilemma is that there have been a couple financial disappointments in my life (as well as the majority of the U.S., I'm sure) and I know we'll get through it, and I know we'll just have to cut a few corners and go without a few things, but I'm still bothered by it.
Secondly, I have also been dealing with a hard to handle 1 yr old. I love her to pieces, but she is also one of the biggest challenges in my life. She is adorable yet she pushes my buttons on a daily basis. She seems to set the tone for the whole house. If she's happy, we all seem to be happy, but if she's mean and ornery, so are the rest of us!
Third, we have a couple live-in's with us at the moment. Rory's mom and brother are living with us for the time being. Cassie has been with us for about 2 and a half years and Derek has been with us for a few months now. I know they are Rory's family, but they are also taking their toll on my patience.
Work has added it's share of stress as well. I know it's not as busy as it used to be, but that in itself is stressful. If there isn't as much business, there is no reason to keep the doors open. It might not be long before I'm cruising the classifieds....
There are also all those little things in life that we all have to deal with, far too many to list one by one.
So anyway, here's the research part of it........Does anybody else out there feel like they're going to burst at any given moment? Like the pressure of everything around them is just going to push them right over the edge and send them to a padded cell? Because, I'm telling you, I feel like I 'm about to call up the funny farm and make myself a reservation. Do you think that everyday life and dramas can actually make someone crazy? Some days I feel like that stupid bird on the Cocoa Puffs box. Just plain Coo-Coo. Does anybody else out there feel the same way I do?

For my sanity sake please leave a comment with suggestions or advice.

Love you all....That Crazy Lady Lisa. :)