CRAZINESS!!

It always seems as though things that go wrong happen in clusters! Why is that? I know god must have a good reason, but I wish he would let me in on it! ;). This is the first time since we have had children that I have been working full time before a MAJOR vacation! Things were going along smoothly and then May happened! First was Bryan's diabetes, then I had to have surgery(minor, but surgery none the less), then I got sick, sinus/ear infection and strep throat! There has been some drama at work that I have been dragged into and I feel like my family is traveling in 4 different directions! Now today, Eric swallowed a lego of all things...a quick call to the doctor and I felt better but GEEZ, nothing like "checking" for the lego now to make me even sicker!! I am hoping all of this means that our vacation to my favorite place on Earth Walt Disney World will be smooth, tranquil and full of family making memories! It is THIS very thought that has kept me from losing it the past few days, just 22 short days away!! So thank you lord for the strength to persevere and the support to guide me through! Come on June! :)

Inspired!

I have been active my whole life, I have always loved being outdoors and participating in sports. In the last year I have gotten LAZY! It is something that I am not very proud of. I was just very unmotivated and uninspired! Starting this past February I began to exercise although not as much as I should have and I easily fell back off "the wagon" when I got sick in mid March! Well I am happy to say that it has been about 2 weeks now that I have started exercising regularly again and I am INSPIRED! My body is starting to feel stronger and it has done wonders being able to finally exercise outside after all the crummy rain we have had around here lately! I only have a little over 5 weeks until our trip to Disney World and I don't want to feel bloated and yucky while I am there! I know exercise and diet is a lifestyle change and not a quick fix but for the first time I think I truly "get it". I realize it won't happen overnight and that it will take alot of work. I am excited for the challenge and happy to finally be inspired to get there!

Bad things do happen to good people!

A little background story. My husband, Bryan has terrible family genes when it comes to illness and disease, this is especially true with high cholesterol and diabetes. Bryan has tried to be as health consious as possible. He runs 4-5 miles 5 days a week and lifts weights 3 times a week. His weight is within the normal range too. Well despite his very best efforts, he was given devastating news today! He is diabetic. I was so stunned, the signs have been there for a few weeks but I chalked it up to many other things (denial at its best). I feel so helpless, this wonderful man is struggling. We are grateful that he doesn't need insulin but none the less a devastating diagnosis at the young age of 42. Bryans father died in September of 2007 at the age of 66. It was VERY sudden. Although his dad was a diabetic and had some heart issues he was deemed healthy enough to go on a cruise in Sept. of 2007. Having retired just 5 short months earlier this was Bryan's parent first retirement vacation. Sadly, Bryan's dad dropped dead of a massive heart attack, literally as he was stepping off the cruise ship at the end of his trip! Bryan's uncle also died recently at the age of 63 and his grandfather died in his 60's too. Of course this is all weighing on him. He is just sad, a trait I have never seen out of him for more then 5 minutes. I pray to god to give me the strength to pick Bryan up and make him realize that this is not a death sentence. We have always leaned on one another. I LOVE my husband and I can't bare to see him so upset!! In time I know there will be acceptance and together we will forge ahead and make the best of such an awful situation. Thanks for listening!

Mixed Blessings!

What a crazy life this is! I have quickly learned to just enjoy every moment. Life is full of mixed blessings! Yesterday I had the honor of attending my son Matthew's Mothers Day Tea in his classroom. What a beautiful afternoon we had. The students made their moms placemats, a gift and a card. In the card was written what we like to do together, why I am the best mom, what I am good at, my favorite color, my favorite food, etc. There were tears everywhere as these beautiful children expressed there love for their mommy's! then it happened, the moment that reminded me of how blessed I am. One little boy in Matthew's class lost his mom this past December, two days before Christmas to be exact, it was a tragedy and completely unexpected. To see this little boy up in front of the classroom reading about his grandmother because his mommy was now in heaven was almost too much to take. Then he says at the end "My grandma is the best grandma because she knows how to do everything JUST LIKE MY MOM!" What a beautiful, special child this is and I am certain that god is paying special attention to that family! I felt so incredibly lucky as I stared across the desk at my beautiful, healthy son and remembered just how fortunate I am!

Happy Mothers Day to all you moms out there and take an extra moment to feel grateful for this life no matter what mixed blessings may come your way!!

Life Changes!

I am a newly working mom. I am a certified elementary and physical education teacher. This past February, after spending 8 years as a stay at home mom, I went back to work. What an adjustment. The change was felt by everyone. The boys, my sons, Eric 7 and Matthew 9 had to now go to before school care. My husband, Bryan changed his work hours to accomodate the boys and my new work hours. I had to get used to getting up at the extreme early hour of 5:40am! Everyone handled it really well, except for me.................... I had this guilt about not being home in the morning to make sure the boys had a good breakfast before they went off to school and that their hair was combed just so and their clothes were not wrinkled, etc. I was no longer the one packing their lunches and I couldn't wish them a GREAT day and send them off to school! Bryan is a very involved dad and loving husband and he completely took over the morning routine with no problems which is why the transition for the boys was a piece of cake but for me it was so hard to let it all go! I eventually got used to the "new" way things were going to be and after awhile, I saw that I was going to be OK!

Lots of other changes were in the works too! We had to find a new balance of household chores, carpooling to the boys activities, grocery shopping and all the other little things that make a family work! Wow was that hard! It took alot of communication but we finally have it all worked out!

Another big change was our family time together. This has always been VERY important to both Bryan and I. In the past we would spend our weekends ordering in a pizza and watching a movie all together or going for a bike ride or just finding ways to spend time together. Once I began working, alot of the "household chores" were put off until the weekend, which ate into our family time. Pretty soon we were feeling disconnected...not a great place to be! Bryan and I came up with a list of things to do and decided to try and get more done during the week, freeing up our weekends to just do whatever we wanted. It has really worked out great, of course we hit little bumps in the road now and then, but overall we have found a pretty good balance!

Right now we are very much looking forward to the school year being over and our family trip to Walt Disney World! We were fortunate enough to buy into Disney's Vacation Club last summer and we will be taking our very first trip as members this June! We also feel blessed that the Vacation Club will be there for us to build family memories for years to come!

Thanks for following along!

Diane