New Book!

I usually don't recommend non-fiction books. However, in this case I must make an exception! I usually read during my lunch hour and those books are usually fiction. It is just what I like and prefer. However, I recently purchased fly-lady's new book, Body Clutter. I just read one chapter today at lunch but it is so good!! It is all about the different reasons we eat, not out of hunger, and babysteps to take to overcome these fattening and emotionally painful reasons. I would recommend it to anyone who has struggled with weight-loss, or body image problems. In my struggle to lose weight, it seems as if my biggest struggle is that I want to lose fast and forever. I forget that it took a while to get like this and therefore it will take a while to lose it. I just get overwhelmed and worn out from trying and give up. Flylady helps us to implement habits, so it doesn't seem like so much work! www.flylady.com. If you haven't have heard of flylady then you can check out her website or leave me a comment :) and maybe I can be promted to write a post about that!

Update!

Sorry for the lack of creative title. I just feel very tired and drained right now and I can't think of a good one. We met with the bank today and worked out some details of our loan. Most of it is settled, we think, but we haven't officially closed on anything. Some changes have been made regarding the loan because the bank isn't very fond of our garage/apartment idea. They pretty much don't think anyone else would want it besides us! I guess that is about all that is new. I am having a massage tomorrow, which was Andrew's Christmas present to me. I can't wait!!!

Diet? What diet?

I tell myself, daily, that I should go back on my diet. I don't think that I eat as badly as I used to. I am definitely not losing weight but I don't eat things like potatoes/french fries now. I still feel like I need to lose weight! I now have the temptation of yummy cinnamon rolls and bread from Rosalie. Andrew had a good idea for that, just eat it once a week. I think I can stick to that. Anyway, the trouble with my diet began when I cheated back in October. Yes, that long ago. Once I cheated once I felt like, well I've messed it all up already, guess I can cheat again! Argh! It's so amazing that my mouth is so close to my eyes. You think I would see very single piece of food that goes into my mouth, because of their proximity, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Anyway, I am going to attempt to go on the diet again. I think that I need to just set a date and go for it and . . . oh yeah, get a scale. That might help my motivation a little bit. My temptation is sweet things! So when should my starting date be of no more cheating? Hmm, why would I even ask that question. Tomorrow, of course!

Sterling All Hail to You!

I just realized this weekend what a huge life change that we have both gone through lately. I haven't really noticed lately since we have been so busy. I still find it amazing that we live here. We are getting ready to close on a land/lot deal that will be the future site of our home. This are just moving so fast. That is the way it like it, however. If nothing exciting happens for a while, I tend to feel a bit bored. However, right now I am just feeling a bit bowled over by life.

On Friday night, I had a dream about Sterling. I don't even remember what it was about but I woke up with a very deep longing to be at Sterling again. It's not that I don't like living here, that many wonderful things have happened to us, and that we are daily surrounded by wonderful people but there are just somethings that I miss, and that's ok. I miss the wonderful community of Sterling and the exciting things going on there. I was reading on their website the other day about the dorm building. A terrible sadness came over me that I would be there to see it built or share in the excitement of the Admissions office as they get to show it off to prospective students. Sterling was such a wonderful and loving community.

4862 Maud Hughes Road

We made our offer on the 2 acre piece of land we found on Thursday. The man offered us back on that day. We wanted the offer to be a bit lower so we gave him a new price on Saturday. He accepted! So we aren't officially land owners yet, since we haven't closed on the deal but we are well on our way as long as everything else works out. Yeah! See the link below to view the land.

http://www.henkleschueler.com/displaylist.asw?listnum=974074&mls=cincy

Yeah!

Usurers

Ok, so I attended my first "regular" rehearsal with the May Festival Chorus last night. It was . . . long! It lasted three hours. It would have been more pleasant if the drive hadn't been so rough. It was raining and foggy on the way down and snowy on the way back. I made it. I have definitely hosted thoughts of quitting the chorus. It just feels like I have taken on too much too fast. I can't quit my job, I don't want to quit Sunday School, so the choir seems like the logical choice. Andrew has encouraged me to stick it out. Whenever I am not singing, I feel as if I am wasting my gift and the many years I have spent training. I will stick it out until May and then see if I want to re-audition! Anyone know where I can get a very comfortable pair of shoes to stand in for hours but also look pretty? I am going to look at Steinmart this weekend.

The title of my blog has to do with a word we are singing in one of the pieces in MFC. It is an old fashioned term for Mafia or someone who swindles large sums of money illegally. I just thought it was amusing. We are having a bit of a snow storm here. It's nice to have winter weather!

I need to find that delicate balance between being too busy (which, I believe is NOT God's will for us) and being productive. I believe I am pushing too busy, which I don't like. My point is that we are made for relationships! When our "busy" actions (doing all this stuff to get "ahead") take more priority than spending time cultivating our relationships (God, family, and friends), then there is something wrong. That is what I want to avoid.

American Drivers Need More Credit

Each day as I am leaving work I have to make a left turn onto a fairly busy street. It is only two lanes because this area has grown so fast and developers weren't projecting such heavy traffic flow on that road so no turning lane. On my first day here the Pastor warned me that he thought I ought to make a right turn on the road and just back track a little bit to avoid that turn. I decided that I would just try the turn one day and see if I could make it. Also, let me explain that their is another drive way next to ours as well as a stop light a few yards down the road. This makes traffic back up and causes it nearly impossible to see people coming from the right. I have been so impressed that every single day I have driven out of this parking lot someone who is waiting at the stopped light will stop before the driveway to let me out, watch the oncoming traffic and wave me on when it is safe. Yesterday I even had a lady put a stop me from going since there was a car coming. She continued to wave me on when things were safe. Even though there is a lot of road rage out there, I must say to the drivers on Socialville-Foster Road at 5:00 p.m. Monday - Friday . . . thank you for always allowing me safely to exit the church parking lot! :)

Comments

Life is so busy. I am not used to all the running around. We were busy in Sterling but I guess the difference was that we didn't have a far to travel. It only took us about a minute to get to work and we rode together. I'm busy, tired, and I have a stuffy nose that I haven't been able to rid myself of yet. Our room is a mess and the TV in our room that we were looking forward to watching movies on quit last night. Malfunction is more like it! Anyway, sorry to complain. Life is good. We are very lucky to have a nice, warm, loving home to live in with our own personal chef. Lasts nights ham loaf was so yummy! Our jobs are going very well and Andrew is working away at his Master's degree. Anyway, just a random post since I hadn't in a while. I hope to hear from all of you who may read my blog.

Curse of the High Heels!

One of the things that I enjoy in life is high heeled shoes. Before I met Andrew, I just liked them because they made me feel grown up and beautiful. After I met Andrew they were a source of making myself taller because he was so tall and I was so short. I do believe that the reign of my high heeled shoes will be put on hold for the time being.

I arrived at work today looking forward to the new week. I grabbed my purse and my bag out of the car and headed for the front door. I am usually the first one at work. As I was walking merrily on my way, my bad ankle turned (left one) and I fell flat on my face on the drive way. My bags went flying, my quiche, which I brought for lunch, went flying across the parking lot. Luckily, my body decided to collapse before any more damage could be done to my ankle. I had some very minor scraps on my hands, elbow, and knee. The only severe damage was when I realized that the high heeled shoes I was wearing were probably the cause of my fall!

Friends

So, we are settling into our routines and lives here. I am really enjoying my job and am looking forward to singing in the chorus here. . . what I do miss, is the companionship of friends. That is one thing that we really had going for us. We had a wonderful group of friends! I miss our friends! :(

First Day and the May Festival Chorus

So, my day has been wonderful but exhausting! I got up around 6:00 a.m. to get ready to leave for work. It was weird to drive to work in the dark! I got there a little before 8:00 a.m. and began my orientation with a member of the search committee. He was so organized (I was impressed). He had created a training schedule for me for the week. The church was so excited that I had come to work there. They gave me a welcome card and a gift (journal and stationary), which was very nice! They have also redone the office in which I work. It is fairly large and now has a nice L shaped desk for me as well as a new computer. I was also treated to lunch at an authentic Mexican restaurant with several other members of the staff.

After work I raced down I-71 to Cincinnati to try to find the Music Hall for my audition with the May Festival Chorus. I have never been to Music Hall and the directions I had were for the back of the building. I ended up getting fairly lost in the "hood" of cincinnati but my cell phone and Andrew saved the day. I ended up being about 1/2 hour late for my audition but they were very understanding when I said that I was new and had gotten lost. My audition went very well and I was asked to join the Chorus while I was in the audition! I accepted, even though the time committment is enourmous. They had practice tonight but my terrible headache and sore throat didn't warrent well for three more hours of singing so I asked if I could just start coming to the next rehearsal. That was fine with them. The first one is on Sunday! I hope I will learn my way around before then! :) The evening also ended up with me tipping a parking garage attending about $5 and I walked an extra 3 and 1/2 blocks with heels on (which I shouldn't be wearing due to my ankle but you know that style does matter in auditions). Anyway, it's been a long day so I am going to turn in! I am looking forward to a more relaxing day tomorrow. I was hoping to get to visit Grandpa Myers today and I am sad that I didn't get to so I will do that tomorrow. Please continue to pray for him! Goodnight!

Happy New Year!

We had a wonderful trip to Kansas. It was a little too quick but we enjoyed the visit anyway. We got to see lots of family because we took a little trip to Downs (where the Walter's reside). It was fun to take a trip together (and finally get to see each other again) and to visit family.

My first day of work is tomorrow. I'm not sure what to expect but I am looking forward to it. I was supposed to have my audition with the May Festival Chorus tomorrow evening but I haven't heard from them and was supposed to get a letter. I will call tomorrow and may try to reschedule even though I have prepared a song. My nose is a bit stuffy so next week would be better!

I guess the big news around here is that Andrew's grandpa is very sick. He has a blood infection called sepsis. I don't know much about it but he really needs lots of prayers. He is in the ICU right now. So, please pray for him. Well, that is about all for now. I have several blogs in my mind so hopefully more will come soon!

My most painful day!

So, my plan was to sleep in this morning so I could drive most of the night on our way to Kansas. I did sleep in and got up about 9:00 a.m. As I headed downstairs with Andrew's cousin my foot twisted on the very last step of the stairs. I have never really had blinding pain like that before. The whole left foot completely twisted to one side and I heard several big cracks and pops. Luckily I was able to set Andrew's cousin down before I fell over. The pain was so intense I can't even describe it. I realized that I was screaming but I couldn't really help it. After Andrew's family helped me up and got me whatever my hearts desire was . . . the utter humiliation set in. That was the worst part of the day!! I am so embarrassed that this happened around other people and I am embarrassed that I screamed, but like I said it was like I couldn't stop it. I realized once that I was screaming and so I stopped but then the pain got worse. Andrew tells me it is nothing to worry about. I decided to go and have it x-ray'd because of the popping. It wasn't broken. I was embarrassed that I had to be wheeled around the Liberty Urgent Care! Anyway, I was able to figure out a way to hobble around and I have a pretty badly sprained ankle. That will be enjoyable in Kansas, right?! So, that was my adventure. I must say that I was waited on hand and foot by Andrew's wonderful loving family (aunt and uncles from both sides of the family), and Andrew's grandma took me to Urgent Care (and wheeled me around). Anyway, I must go. We still have packing to do for our trip.

The Second Day of Christmas

Happy second day of Christmas to all. Christmas sort of snuck up on me this year. I had everything done but I guess most of my holiday's are marked by vacations from school or whatnot so it was strange to just keep on going with everyday life and then Christmas came. Maybe that made sense. More later . . . I am going on a trip to Lebanon right now.

Christmas Eve Post

I cannot believe it is already Christmas Eve. It was just a few days ago that we were still living in Kansas. We have had a lot of activity in these past few days and I don't think it will slow down anytime soon. I have been reading a lot these past few weeks and I have a stack of several library books yet to read. It has been nice not to have a TV in our bedroom. I have been doing a lot more reading because of it.

I received a call yesterday from the Cincinnati Symphony Chorus. I had emailed them about possibly getting an audition. They called me back and asked about my musical history and then we set up an audition time for January 3rd . . . . also the day I start my job. I am going to have to spend the rest of the holiday time working on my song.

Sorry this is a bit boring but I don't have much to say! Merry Christmas!

Two days until Christmas

It has been a while since I wrote a post. I really don't have much to say. Christmas time is approaching fast and I am pleased to say that all my shopping is done and everything is wrapped. I really don't know yet when things are going on as far as Christmas celebrations so I am just going with the flow and being prepared for anything. We are taking the dogs (Dewey and Hope) to get washed and nails clipped today, so that should be fun. I am also having tea this afternoon with A's aunts and grandma. Susan gave me a manicure for Christmas and so I believe we are going to try and have those done this afternoon. I guess that is all for now.

Chicago Update

I got back about 2:30 p.m. from my trip to Chicago. I had so much fun and the drive really didn't seem bad. I had a book on tape to keep me occupied. The first night I was up there, I went mystic tanning with my sister and her friend, Neysa. In case you all don't know what mystic tanning is, it is getting sprayed with a tanning solution, no UV rays involved. That was a lot of fun. After that we visited with my sister's roommate and enjoyed a quiet evening. On Friday, we met Sasha downtown to see another SC grad in a Radio play of "It's a wonderful life." It was very good! We all enjoyed it a great deal. During the middle of the show, the performers read off "radiograms" that people in the audience could send to other people. I wrote one to my sister that said, "Dear Jenny, Thanks for being a great host and thanks for encouraging me to go mystic tanning." :)

After the show we went to Geja's for some fondue. Now, I am not a consumer of fondue but that was the best food I have ever had. I thought I had died and gone to heaven when I tasted my first bite of the chocolate fondue. Geja's has been named the 3rd most romantic restaurant in the USA. I am so glad I got to experience that with Jenny and Sasha. After we got done having the time of our lives indulging in food and laughter, Jenny and I dropped Sasha off at her apartment and headed back out to Wheaton.

On Saturday, we went to go get facials at a skin institute near where Jenny lives. That was a very relaxing experience as well. Besides the lamp falling on my face once, the experience was wonderful. Much better than the last time I was there! Also in the evening, I attended a wedding of one of my sister's friends. It was an Anglican wedding so it was neat to experience something different. Despite my tooth getting banged on the communion cup and the poor quality of mints (the Fairchild's are wedding mint connoisseur), the wedding was beautiful.

A good time was had by all!

I have a job!

I can't write long because I am in Chicago visiting Jenny. I just wanted to update all of you that I accepted the job offer at the Lutheran church in Mason yesterday. Their offer was very close to what I thought it would be and I really enjoy the people there. I am having fun here in Chicago. We have already been Mystic Tanning and we are going to go into the city tonight to watch a friend of ours (Ben Dicke) perform in "It's a wonderful life." More details on the trip when I return to Ohio.

T'was the night Dewey ran away . . .

Last Thursday this area had quite a bit of snowfall. It was about 4:45 p.m. and I decided to go shovel the walk ways while I let Dewey outside to use the bathroom. I let the dog outside and then turned around to get my coat. I headed outside and started shoveling the sidewalks. I hollered ("called" is the appropriate word for you in Ohio) for Dewey but couldn't see him anyway. I just assumed he was around the other side of the house. I went to the other side and . . . no Dewey. So I calmly finished shoveling. Rosalie peeked her head out the door and I told her what was happening. She got me a flashlight and a hat. I search all around the farm yard looking for Dewey and calling his name while shaking his treat bag. He will usually come running when he hears that. It is getting pretty dark and it is snowing heavily.

I find some tracks in the snow over behind the house and so I decide to follow them. They looked like a dogs tracks. I followed them in circles in the yard and then they suddenly followed the fence out to the direction of the road. I followed the tracks (by now I am running and shouting). I continue to follow the tracks out the front gates around a tree and down the road a bit. The tracks then cross the road (which is fairly busy) and I think I have lost the tracks. I decided to cross the road anyway and there I find tracks again. They circled around a culvert (which I went slip and sliding around) up and into the subdivision that is across the road. I continue to follow the tracks around the subdivision sign (Yankee Estates) and through someone's backyard. I was hoping that they wouldn't see or hear this lunatic running through their back yard screaming "Dewey" and flashing a light around at the ground. The tracks circled back (must have made about 5 ot 6 circles through the whole thing) and went back out to the road. Just as I was turning around and calling his name, I saw him out on the road. What I also saw was a car coming. I bent down, rattled his treat bag and screamed his name all at the same and luckily he ran off the road and to me. He looked so scared. His ears were laid back and his hair was standing up on his neck. His ears were flapping and flying as he ran towards me. I began to run in the direction of the house so he would follow me, which he did. I had been running this whole time looking for him. He followed me without incident into the house and I could hardly breathe enough to get my story out to the eagerly waiting crowd inside.

As I was running around looking for him, I was thinking about all of the wonderful things I would miss about my puppy if he really ran away for good. Smiling, jumping into bed with me and snuggling for hours after a good lick in the ear, and sleeping in my lap. Fortunately, I still get to experience all of those good things because Dewey was found and escaped without incident. I have been wondering this whole time why he got away. I think he may have been a bit disoriented by the dark and his first big snow. Perhaps he lost his scent for a while or maybe was just chasing something. Anyway, now I don't let him out after dark without a leash and many times during the day I just tie him up outside to his doggie run! So, there is the story of Dewey's escape and recapture!

A little of this and a little of that!

Ok, I had too many ideas to have a post just about one thing, so I decided to just write down lots of things that are going on and that are on my mind.

First of all, the things I am currently missing: One of my favorite things about Sterling was the fun that we all could have together while not working. I loved having Christmas parties (yes, bringing my punch bowl) and going to Christmas parties, and just lots and lots of parties, girl parties, anytime parties, etc. So, I miss going to parties. I know we have only been here two weeks but I don't forsee any Christmas parties on our horizon and I don't have many girls (yet) to hang out with and have parties. Just one party would be nice! :( I wish I could join my former co-workers for their Christmas party which is this Thursday. I will be thinking of them on that day and will be rather sad. However, on Thursday:

I will be driving to Chicago to see Jenny if the weather forecast is good. It is so nice to be fairly close that I can drive it by myself. Andrew thinks it will take five hours and Jenny things a bit longer so I will have to time it. I already checked out my book on tape from the library this afternoon so that I won't be too bored! :) I am looking forward to my second visit to the windy city and hopefully more will follow in the future. I wanted to get a visit in before I potentially start my job. Speaking of my job:

I have a meeting Thursday at 1:00 p.m. with two of my interviewers to discuss more details about the job. I am leaving for Chicago after that meeting. I hope it goes well and that things work out. That is definitely the type of job I have been looking for. Well, I'd best be off to bed. Lots of reading to do before I fall asleep! It has been amazing how much more reading I have been doing since we don't have cable hook up in our room here (we did in Sterling). It has been great!