Take Care of me

I have had the busiest weeks lately. I am making every attempt to keep my head held high. My issue is that there are just not enough hours in the day. Yesterday we tried for the 2nd time in a row to get RJs SSN changed due to her name change. We weren't able to get in before Darlene's eye appointment. Bummer deal. Getting a passport for her is proving to be super difficult.

Everyday I head to take Charlie for a run. I love it. I really do. My only issue is my stupid hamstrings. Right now they are not cooperating. So it makes it less fun for him. Sorry pal. I get there 145-2p, and I'm there 230-245p. That gives me 45 minutes of free time. Typically it's spent in a produce aisle picking out that nights dinner. What vegetable have we not eaten lately? -_- ALL of them, my family says. haha. We could never be vegetarians. Ok so 45 minutes to drive from Charlie to the store. Then leave to get the kids from school. I get RJ at 350-4p. Then take 2 kids from the school home. We get about 415-420p. I get RJ started on homework, and I start on dinner. If there are any dishes in the sink, my plans are almost foiled because I refuse to start dinner with dishes in the sink. So here I am washing dishes. Then I start dinner only to realize I am almost late to getting Dar off the train. I get to our stop and get her. Stop to pick up any prescriptions or last minute grocery items, them head home. By now it's 530p. Depending on whether or not RJ is done with homework, someone will get in the shower. Then dinner is completed. Then served. It's now 615p. Homework wrap up and maybe some kid free time. By 7p I am washing dishes, my wife is doing laundry and packing up the leftovers for tomorrows lunch. Then I hit the showers, she puts RJ to sleep and by 730p I get to look at her and ask how her day was. At this point I have been in "go mode" for 15 hours.

Then we need to talk about life. How much money are we willing to spend on our summer vacation? How much is RJs Bible camp? How much is RJs summer camp? How much is the Denver trip going to cost in June? Will you have time accrued to take an international trip in July? Are we still going to D.C. to see Mill? Did you finish your passport name change? What do you need for that? Passport photos? Great let's go. It's only 8p and I don't have to be up until 4a.

I need a vacation. I experienced my first burn out in a super long time the other day. I need a revitalizing trip. Something to make me feel new. I need it. Super bad. I'm exhausted. And we are trying to take care of families in the process. Taking them food and items they may need. Helping them with day to day things. The savings account is dwindling and I am tired. Surprise! Your struts are bad. Surprise! Time for new brakes. Surprise! Your flight tickets are on sale, purchase NOW or suffer the consequences.

This sounds like complaining. I'm really not. We are SUPERIORLY Blessed. And I know that. Sometimes I just need a day to do absolutely nothing. A day to just us. Somewhere beachy preferred

End of Rant. .

Life as I know it

These past months have been super hectic. Full schedules and lots to do at all times. The good news, Darlene can finally reduce the amount of prednisone. This is such a high achievement as she feels like it has been destroying her body. If it keeps her vision, I'll take the puffy face. Her vision seems to be steady and she has even driven a bit. As long as she feels confident, I am not going to tell her no. The bad. The entire house is sick. RJ has had it for what seems like a month now. I got it, tried to get rid of it. Thought I did, then nope. Then Darlene got it. It's super bad if Darlene gets it. She is immunosuppressed. That means no immune system to fight for her. The common cold could turn into pneumonia. We are praying that it doesn't get there.

Right now I am walking Charlie 5 days a week so that RJ has a ride to school 4 days a week. It's weird that I am in my good friends home 5 days a week and don't get to see them. I am thinking of starting to leave them notes. Even one liners to make it a little less detached. Luckily for me running Charlie means that Darlene doesn't have to find a way to get RJ to school. That's such a big challenge when you're not driving daily. The train has been so good for us and it drops Darlene right in front of her job. Thank you God for making a way.

I really love spending time with Charlie in the afternoons. Running with him has been great. Although I am not able to do that right now. Since this cold is kicking me in the butt I cant get the energy or my sore throat and fatigue to cooperate. So for now, I just take pictures and walk him all around the park.

 

He is definitely a good boy but needs some manners for people and dogs. He likes to get in their faces. Never aggressively, but instead of curiosity. We are working on that. As you can see, when he knows there is a treat involved, he will sit and stay. He's patient and listens fairly well.

 

 

While walking him I ended up finding a brindle Chihuahua wandering the streets. We picked her up. Bathed her and posted fliers online and in the neighborhood. A week later the owner came forward. I was sad and happy about it. Sad that she was going home. We were getting into a groove I felt and she was becoming a part of the family. Happy though that she is at the home where she belongs. The owner was really happy about it and I was told that he had been crying since the day she was missing. Makes me happy to know there are dog owners like us out there.

 

 

These next few weeks are going to be challenging. We do have summer break to look forward to. I am hoping that we can find a good program for RJ to partake in. Get her active and having fun. We have Summer church camp lined up which we are super excited for. Both Taurus birthdays around the corner and a trip to LA in less than 2 weeks. It's going to be hectic. Work. School. Play. House. Side business. I'm overwhelmed, but we are going to make it. God is good.

 

Happy Monday folks.

 



Updated

Things have been a little crazy lately. Darlene went back to hurt this past Monday. She has about 30% remaining vision. It's scary but she is just such a trooper. She could accept defeat. She could quit and say that she cant do it, but she's the strongest woman I know. I am so lucky to have her as my wife.

Last year we hustled so hard and was able to pay off $20k in debt. This year will be no different. With her working again this means that we will be able to pay off my last looming debt. Once that's complete for the remaining $18k we can move on to student debt and have them handled before the end of 2017. This would be absolutely debt free.

2016 will be the land of many businesses. eBay is doing well for me. Always paying off the Southwest Gas bill and I am so grateful for that business. On the flip side, I am going to get this lamp business off of the ground. In addition, I am going to solicit people to help me with it and start a side business. I need something to pop off, and it's going to happen this year. I can feel it.

I feel like I have been taking on so very much emotional stress lately. I'm lucky and so very little of it has to do with my personal life. My only fear is for my wife not having vision. That's such a small worry in comparison to previous relationships. Praise Jesus for my wife!

Thoughts that circle my mind on days like this...

How is it that you devote yourself to being an example of someone who is generous, kind, forgiving, and patient. Yet you are so unkind, unforgiving, and impatient to the people who devote their heart strings to you? How could you be such an advocate for those things on social media, but in the real world you don't live that way? Explain this to me. Not because I deserve your personal explanation, but how do you plan on being an advocate for humanitarianism yet cannot inspire without insult to the people closest to you? Last I checked, growth starts within and blooms on the outside. It cannot be faked, it cannot be artificially grown. It takes dedication, and the right ingredients to make something flourish. Learn the steps or get out of the stairwell already.

If you can turn your love for someone on and off like a light switch, someone needs to rewire the hell out of you.