To Infinity and Beyond!

First – please go to my mom’s blog and look at her Christmas Decorations… she is SO creative!

Second – I am finishing my political work on this campaign this week! YEA!

Third – This past weekend my husband showed that he is the MOST amazing man ever. And no – I don’t think he has even read the blog previous… I haven’t told him about it. :)

Friday we went to his office party in Fairfax VA. (In the D.C. area for those of you outside of VA.) It ended fairly early. I was under the impression that we were just gonna stay in Fairfax that night, maybe go see some of D.C. on Saturday, and have a good weekend… I was PUMPED about the notion.

Late in the week (at packing time.) He said that he had a surprise for me, and that he needed to tell me about it so that I would pack appropriately.

We were going to leave the party in Fairfax and travel the next 4 hours to New York City! We were also going to go ice skating in Rockefeller center. For those that do not know me very well, I have a list of 33 things I want to accomplish before I die. Ice skating with a date in Rockefeller center is one of those things! We had not accomplished one in a while.

So…. Here I am – on skates –

On the ice rink

Under THE Christmas tree

In Rockefeller center.

Ronnie skated too….

He had never ice skated before.

Neither of us fell down.

Even with all these people watching!

We also made it for part of the Today show.

Went to see the Empire State building – I didn’t want to wait in the line to go to the top… maybe next time :)

And yes - - those skies ARE blue in NYC...

Saw Times Square

and THIS made me laugh out loud... as well as the LONG lines waiting outside!

Went to Macys at Herald Square…. Recession??? I think not. Haha

Then after the insanity of that area of town, we relaxed in Central Park for a while.

At first I thought I wanted to take a horse and carriage ride – but they were really stinky – I changed my mind.

Later, we were able to eat at Serendipity - you know, the restaurant from this movie...

There was a 3 hour wait. We put our name on the list and then went to see Grand Central Station... Where we just happened to walk in as they were doing a light/sound show on the walls.


We sat here.....

and watched the show.

We thought about shopping here -

but decided it was probably just due to the recession that the store existed.

We then went back to Serendipity... It was so cool!!!

AND the Frrrrozen Hot chocolate...

yeah - it was as good as the advertised... wow.

We ended by going back through the insane crowds to see this.

Sunday morning Ronnie drove through Manhattan in order to avoid some of the tolls.

We were glad to see this sign - Maybe now we can get some of the stree resolved!

I will do another post maybe tomorrow to discuss the Philadelphia stop as well as Baltimore.

WHAT A WEEKEND!

Gotta be Grateful

Lately, I have been very “me” focused on my blog… so, today – I thought I would share what little thoughts go through my head on my way home from work every day.

Just so you know, I am currently working about 40 miles from our house… the middle 20 miles are through a group of mountains in which I receive no radio signal and no cell phone coverage… During that time, I have made it a habit in the mornings to pray… about whatever there is to pray about…. In the evenings – I think of reasons to be excited to be going home to my husband.

The reason for this should be self-explanatory - - but just to elaborate. Early in this campaign – on a particularly stressed out day – I spent the time driving home mulling over the events of the day, mean calls, mean people, punk reporters, whatever – and in the middle of that, I came up with random reasons to be mad at life in general…. Ronnie specifically.

Of course, when I got home – my mood was even WORSE than if I had just gotten off of work. And honestly, it was ALL my fault. I was creating reasons to be mad at the world…. And my husband.

After that evening, during which I think he asked me 8,714 times “what is wrong?” And every time my response was “nothing.” Which was, in fact, true. He had done NOTHING wrong. I had. I decided that my drive time, where it is just me and God in the car – needs to be spent building things up… not tearing them down.

Have I been perfect at this? No. Have I given it a valiant effort? You betcha! ;)

The result has been that I have been happier to see my wonderful husband every night when I got home! Even in stressful days – where I think this job may just go on forever – by the time I get home, I am THRILLED to see his smiling face!

So – here they are - - a few of the reasons I remind myself of everyday – to be thankful for such a wonderful husband.

Reasons I am thankful for My Husband

-He was not only a godly man when I married him, but he is constantly growing in Christ.
-He is open to discuss with me what he is learning.
-He works so hard to provide for me – even when sometimes it isn’t exactly what he would prefer to be doing.
-He pushes me to be better at everything I do.
-He is open to discussion when we disagree on things.
-He gets up with me in the mornings that I have to be up earlier than him to be sure we have breakfast together.
-He makes my coffee for me on those mornings as well
-He washes the dishes all the time
-He helps me keep the house clean while I am working.
-He fixes things around the house.
-He changes the oil in my car.
-He rubs my feet before I go to sleep at night
-He rubs my feet before I get out of bed in the morning
-Even though I don’t rub his feet…. I know, I know.. moving on.
-He brings me whatever I want to drink when we are watching TV – even if he was not already getting up to get it.
-He cares about helping me reach my dreams-goals.

Now – these are not all of the reasons that I am thankful for Ronnie…. Some are of course just between us – and some I will save for another day. These are the ones that I am thinking about today.

Please also realize that I know that I am spoiled… and proud of it.

Gingerbread men, snow mountains, etc.

UPDATED TO BE INCLUDED ON BOOMAMAS tour of Homes - - Christmas Edition... Please go by there and see all the wonderful homes that are decorated for Christmas!!!



As previously noted – we were supposed to move – on Nov. 15.

We didn’t.

We have boxes stacked everywhere! This was causing a problem when I tried to create my Christmas decoration mental image because one set of those boxes, the ones in the living room, were just in the way!

I refuse to unpack the boxes though.... So, now they are magically transformed to a snow mountain - - decorated with ribbons, glitter, stuffed animals, and a nativity scene..

Why yes - - it is a bit junky looking... but much more festive than a bunch of brown boxes!!


We call it “making the best of a less-than-perfect situation.” One more reminder that we REALLY want a new house - - and I just am praying that I don’t have to unpack one more box until I am in a new house.

We also did our own Gingerbread house this year – My first one!

The last picture is the back of the house... looking amazingly like the front of the house. Its the pattern that came in the Walmart box - I don't know of many houses that have the same print on the front as the back... but these ginger people, I think they get in ruts too easily. They make up for it in their candy coated decorations though.

Ronnie was mostly in charge of decorations – his creativity amazes me. We had to buy extra icing in multiple colors so that there would be enough variety in color options. I wondered if that was the smartest thing to do, seeing as how this house has a history of ant problems. But, so far, so good - - and it made the house so much cuter!

He also roasted his own marshmallows.

And here is the mantle – looking majorly like it did last year.

Here is the tree - -

And one of the FOUR “first Christmas together 2007” ornaments that we have. Not that I am indecisive (well.. maybe) but more because we bought ours and then received three as gifts! Its great to have back-ups for when we break them… it always happens.

Anyway – it helped to get me more in the Christmas spirit – something that has not really happened to this point. Its usually my favorite time of year – this year it seems to be missing something. Not sure why – but just praying that the “wonder” of the season and the amazement at the birth of my Savior will come to be more than just a list of things to do as we go through this season.

Redirect the focus

Update

I have unpacked all necessary items.

The rest of the box-mountain will remain in my living room, as a reminder that we WILL move. For the Christmas season, it will probably become a “snow-mountain” when I cover it with white cloth and put Christmas decorations… nativity scenes, Christmas villages (I don’t have any right now, this seems like a good reason to get some right?), and other Snowy items on the “mountain.”

While it is encouraging that we will still be moving – it is frustrating still to not know what is coming. I am dealing with it though (sometimes dealing by finding reasons to NOT be at home for an evening… out to eat, to the movies, to Target… you get the picture) Ronnie and I like to go out anyway… so, this gives me a good reason.

I appreciate all encouragement from my dear friends here on the blog – as well as those who message me on Facebook etc. You guys are the best…

I think my favorite part of this blog/friendship/facebook junk is that it is this great combination of the blessings God has given me in friends throughout my life. I mean seriously – the encouragement comes from friends that I had when I was in 7-8th grade – touring the west coast as a Jr. in High school – my mentor when I was in college – my coffee buddy that lives in the city with me now – my host mom… ahem… host sister when I toured with Wings – and of course – my mom – who really has become my best friend. I look at the frustrations of my life, and vent them to the world via this open blog about my life… and then watch my comments roll in from people who mean so much to me… now, and in the past… and see that house frustration really means nothing in the long run. I believe I quote from “It’s a Wonderful Life.” When I say – “no [wo]man is a failure who has friends”

All that to say thanks guys…

Uncertainty.

Uncertainty.

This is the definition of my feelings right now.

Uncertain.

I have been working for the last 2.5 months on a campaign. It was supposed to end on Nov. 4. We are now in “canvassing” mode – and we will know sometime in the next three weeks if we will go into a recount situation. I thank God for the chance to work in this capacity. I am learning a LOT. My selfishness though was ready for some free time. It did not come.

Questions I answer every day are…. How long will this last? Who is going to win? Can we pull through? Will we recount? How long does that take?

The phone callers call in with desperate hope in their voice. I return their questions with certain positive answers. We are not giving up hope. We are working hard. At the end of the conversation I must end with a question in my voice though. I have the same questions they have. I can give reassuring answers only so far, and then must admit to myself that I do not have an answer.

Last Friday Ronnie and I took a step that we have waited on for 18 months. We signed a lease on a house. It was a beautiful new house. Two stories. Colonial style. With a dishwasher. With an oven. With a basement. For a decent price!

We reserved the U-Haul for November 15.

That’s tomorrow.

We called our landlord and told him we would be moving.

I started packing. I packed everything that we didn’t need to use between each day and Saturday. My living room is full of boxes, there are no pictures on the walls. My house is no longer home.

That was ok.

I was supposed to move on Saturday! I could handle this for a week with the promise of a new house in days.

Tuesday Ronnie found out that there is a sulfur problem with the water. It smells like rotten eggs. ROTTEN. EGGS. I really don’t want my clean body, clothes, and dishes to smell like rotten eggs.

We researched via Google - it’s all ok, they make a filter.

Wednesday we found out that the rental company would not cover the cost to install the 1200-3000 dollar filter.

Wednesday afternoon we cancelled our lease agreement due to “a material disclosure” that they apparently did not disclose. (lawyer talk). We called our current landlord and told him we do not want to move. I don't think he has called back. I don't know what will happen there.

Wednesday night we came home to a box filled house. I have no desire to unpack in this house. I was supposed to have a new house. With carpet, and a dishwasher, and an oven, and an electrical system that we don’t have to worry about killing our electronic devices. (I don’t have to remind you that our list of dead electronics since we moved into this house is REALLY long do I?.... Two TVs, three telephones, 3 internet motems, a refrigerator, etc. etc. etc.)

Last night I met with a friend at Starbucks. I needed the time with her. She encouraged me more than she will ever realize.

This morning I can’t help but ask – what is coming next? How long with my job last? Will we pull through at the end of this election? Do I really have to unpack all of my stuff in THIS house? Will I have a place for my friend to stay when she comes to visit in the middle of December from Georgia?

The answer I have heard more than a million times since we started actively looking for a house a year ago is this. “The housing market is GREAT for buyers now! You can have whatever you want for whatever price you want.”

Apparently not.

I don’t get it.

I don’t know what is next.

I don’t know how to find out what is next.

We have prayed, waited, prayed, waited, walked through seemingly open doors, only to have them slam in our face. We prayed some more. Here we are. Waiting.

Here is my new theme song by Sanctus Real. I am choosing to believe the words of this song. The chaos WILL fade – there WILL be peace. It is my prayer. Even when I don’t FEEL that God is in control – it doesn’t change the fact that He is.


It's time for healing
Time to move on
It's time to fix what's been broken too long.
Time to make right
What has been wrong,
It's time to find my way to where I belong.

There's a wave that's crashing over me
And all I can do is surrender.

Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but somehow there's peace
And it's hard to surrender to what I can’t see
But I’m giving in to something heavenly.

Its time for a milestone
Time to begin again
Re-evaluate who I really am.
Am I doing everything to follow your will?
Or just climbing aimlessly over these hills?

Whatever you're doing
Inside of me
Oh it feels like chaos but somehow there's peace.
And it's hard to surrender to what I can't see,
But I'm giving in to something heavenly…Something heavenly.

It's time to face up,
Clean this old house,
time to breathe in and let everything out……
that I've wanted to say for so many years,
time to release all my held back tears.

Whatever you're doing inside of me,
Oh it feels like chaos but I believe,
That you're up to something bigger than me…Larger than life…something heavenly.

More fish?

Well, maybe soon I will be able to tell you about going to the Sarah Palin Rally in Salem, VA last night - but honestly, I want to be able to get up pics and stuff from meeting Todd Palin, and the Sarah Palin rally soon...

And - I think this story is funnier

Remember the fish??

Well, it turns out that before the last fish died - he had completed his job of passing his genes along to the next generations.

His partner, is now great with child(ren)!

I started doing some research.

It turns out that Mickey Mouse Platys are able to be pregnant up for 8 times after one time of .... umm... getting pregnant.

Each of those 8 pregnancies can produce up to 85 "fry" (baby fish!)

Each pregnancy also takes about 30-35 days.

Basically, within 8 months we could be the proud owners of up to 750ish BABY FISH!!

I can only have 10 per 10 gallon tank.

So, how many of you want a fish??? I will soon have about 740 to give away. These are nice fish! Cost about $2.99 at PetSmart! Not your average goldfish! They have something looking like a Mickey Mouse head in their tail! Its GREAT for kids....

No, really, if we don't separate the mother from the fish within a few hours of her giving birth (yes, platys are one of the few fish that actually give live birth, they don't lay eggs) - she will eat all of the babies.

Motherhood at it's finest I guess.

And cheap fish food for us! (just kidding. sorta.)

I also, through this research have learned how to tell a boy little fish from a girl little fish. Things. I. Never. Thought. I. Needed. To. Know!

Well, life is never boring around here.

In other stories. My sister is having a boy!

Meeting Todd Palin

Oh but yes.

I had ANOTHER of those moments… you know THOSE moments… this weekend.

Sunday Ronnie and I were at the Martinsville Speedway (not because I like NASCAR that much) and here are the highlights of the day.

Meeting Todd Palin outside the gate.
Going with the Palin entourage into the garages.
Continuing to accompany my Congressman (the real reason we were there) and the Palin entourage into the driver’s meeting before the race.
A trip into the media center… with… yes… that’s right.. the Palin entourage.
Climbing into the pit area – and seeing all the drivers before they went on stage… WITH the Palin group.

Basically, Ronnie and I got to spend about 3 hours walking around with Mr. Palin. He is a great guy! He talked to us, Ronnie got to introduce some friends that were there to Mr. Palin.

Now, I am sure that he will never remember us… but it was awesome to hang out with him before the race.

In true fashion for me and Ronnie - - - we left before they ever started up the cars and didn’t watch ANY of the race. Unfortunately, NASCAR tickets are wasted on us… but it was SO much fun to meet Mr. Palin… and to see the drivers up close so I could get sme pics for my brother and his friends. (The problem was I don’t know who all to take pictures of… so I took pics of everyone I sawJ)

We are also in the pics on the front page of the Martinsville Bulletin (local newspaper) here in the area...

I can’t post the pics yet… will try to get them up soon!

Praying for K

A girl from my dad's church in Alabama is very sick. Please be praying. Here is the email that has been sent out up to this point.

K has been diagnosed with Polyarteritis nodosa. Basically, it is an infection or inflammation of the small or medium arteries in the body that results in weakening and damage to the arteries involved. Often, clotting occurs in addition to the bleeding.
We should continue to pray for wisdom for the medical team and give praise to God for revealing the condition so quickly to the physicians. This quick diagnosis (although I am sure it has not been quick for the family) will allow appropriate treatment to begin immediately.

There will be more information soon.

One fish, Two fish.... you know the rest

I have been prodded.

My friend with the baby – (that is how she will be known until another friend has a baby) – told me in very direct terms yesterday that I need to blog again, it has been TOO long!

So, although it is really hard to write anything that has nothing to do with the work I am doing – I am going to try.

We now have fish. I would post a picture, but I don’t have one yet. I will work on that – maybe.

Ronnie had like 3 fish when we got married, but they just recently moved into our house. Actually, one of the three he had when we got married passed away prior to moving in with the new family. So, then we went and got two snails, (cause I didn’t want to have to clean!) and moved the two old fish into our home. Where our old TVs used to sit. (remember those were broken last year. Both. Of. Them.) So, now we have the fish tank sitting on the TV stand.

Two days later, one of the fish died.

Ronnie said that those types of fish are community fish, so we had to go get new fish.

We didn’t get just one new fish.

We got 5.

So, we then had 6 fish and 2 snails.

Then the two snails died.

Then another fish died.

Now, here we are, with the 5 fish, A rock vacuum, (the new addition to my appliance list), slime coating, antibiotics, etc. etc.

While they are fun to watch, I sometimes find myself asking… why? I mean, even the fun of watching them gets old after about 3 minutes… they don’t do tricks, don’t play fetch, don’t bark to warn us of strange things in the area…. Etc. etc.

Anyway, there – the new post is 100% devoted to fish.

I am still in the campaign – still alive and all that jazz. It’s fun – interesting – frustrating – exciting – and basically a roller coaster every day. I am sure I will have TONS of stories to tell when its all over with. But for today – I will just say – YEA for the fish…. They are the calmest (most calm? Not sure about my grammar there) part of my life right now.

Wild Game Dinner

Well, it is so slow getting things posted right now. Political life is CRAZY! However, I am having a blast.

We went Saturday night to a wild game dinner for the Congressman I work for. It was crazy.

Remember that bear I saw a few weeks ago on Skyline drive?

Next time I see him, I will be able to say "I ain't 'skerd' of you.... I eat bears like you for dinner."

Oh but yes, this little girl has eaten BEAR!!!!! And Snapping Turtle, and Dove, and Elk (GROSS), and Wild Turkey, and well - those were the top items. There were some others that I have had before, rabbit, squirrel, deer, talapia - you know the basics.

Anyway, I had a hard time with some of it. And finally just had to resort to the fried fish, and the veggies - - but not until I had actually tried all the things I had never had before. The bear was actually GOOD! I was kinda surprise because I have heard it could be tough, but it really tasted good. They had shredded it like you would BBQ, so the "toughness" wasn't there... and it had a LOT of seasoning - so I am sure that helped... Salt and Pepper always make things better right?

Anyway - the campaign trail is hot these days, the people are always coming up with new stuff. I am working with TONS of volunteers, stuffing TONS of envelopes, talking to the media (SCARY) sometimes, and MANY random other things. But it's fun.

Hope all is well in your world.
Sorry I am not regular posting. Maybe after the campaign.

some pictures

Here are a few pictures of the beach last weekend...

The hermit crab picture is for Aubrey - - she got her hermit crab as you can read about here... so Ronnie wanted his pic taken with "his" hermit crab in VA. Beach...

my new coffee table...

and me and ronnie before that political event that I referenced here.

A moment from the movies

Every now and then in my life, I have these moments. They don't happen often - I am afraid I would take them for granted if they did... But moments that make me feel like I am in a movie. You know what I mean right? Those things that happen when you just think "this is NOT really happening to me.... things like this don't happen to normal people."

A couple of examples include the moment I lived my dream and stepped off the plane to live in Germany for a year.... a couple moments from when I traveled with Wings... One moment is as I was laying on the beach in Phuket, Thailand - 6 months after the Tsunami of 2004... You know what I mean...

Only a handful of times in my life do these things happen.

Last night was one of them.

I have started my new job on the campaign of my Congressman here in southern VA. The whole week has been quite an experience. I have learned a TON, worked a LOT, and really had some good time getting to know him, his wife, and his sister - all of who work closely together in the office.

Last night, we were attending a fundraiser. There were different "levels" of entrance, but due to the fact that I am on staff now, Ronnie and I were able to attend all three levels... the first level required donations of $2,000 per person to enter... it went down hill from there - but even the lowest level was still a nice donation.

The location was a "farm" out in our county. But this was no typical farm - it is owned by a man that owns the gas company that heats our house in the winter. The house was absolutely GORGEOUS. The fields were landscaped perfectly, the "barn" was a wonderful building that held about 250 people for this event.

The attendees included our State Senator, State Delegate, other political leaders, as well as Attorneys, distributors, etc. etc.

The point at which I realized this was one of "those" moments was when my Congressman got up to speak - he of course introduced his wife first - - then his sister - - thanked the man who owned the home... and then introduced me and Ronnie to this crowd of people as "the newest member of the campaign staff." I waved to the crowd of people, then turned and looked out the door over the fields, past the American and Virginian flag flying in the breeze, realized that my Congressman not only knows me, but I was just introduced to a ton of people by him... It was one of those moments for me. One of those moments that feels it shouldn't happen to me... those things don't happen to normal people!

Later in the evening, our State Senator was talking with us, and said "You guys make such a great team!" That was so exciting to me - I am enjoying this political world that I am in now. I wouldn't be here except for my husband though who has all these contacts set up.... I don't know where all this road will take us - but I do know that as long as we are doing things like this, I want people to see us together - as a team... its nice to be part of a team... So often I think couples do so much stuff separate from each other, that they aren't a part of each other's worlds...

I like being on Ronnie's team.... I like joining his world... I like our team of two - its nice here.

I only post on Monday's now

I guess I am turning into a weekend writer...

My weeks just haven't been very exciting lately - but all that is about to change!

Anyway, we did get to go to the beach this past weekend! I was so excited, and maybe soon I will get some pictures posted. We went to VA. Beach for Saturday all day and most of Sunday. I was a short trip, but one that was needed! I LOVE the beach! It was absolutely beautiful... and even though like 5 million other people were there, we were able to just relax and do nothing with sand and ocean for two days!

Tomorrow, life changes. Again.

Yep, it't true, I have a job.

Remember last year when I had just gotten married, and I began working for the State delegate and his campaign? Remember how everyone wondered what I was doing?

Well.

Here we go again.

I am going to be a "campaign aide" again this year. However, this time it is for our U.S. Congressman. He is the incumbent and I start tomorrow into two months of political insanity.

So, this will greatly limit any public opinions that I might have otherwise posted here on the world wide web....

Anyway, here we go again! If I don't see ya before then, see ya after the election (I do plan to try to post some in between these times... I am just not making any promises.)