Saturday, July 31, 2010

Ups and Downs

It's safe to say that it's summer, finally, and with summer comes feelings that I'm now quite familiar with. It's that time of year again, and at the start of every July I think that I'm going to be ok, that this is the summer I'll pull through and not be an emotional mess. Yet by the end of July, here I am, laughing one minute and crying the next.

This is why I haven't been blogging. For some reason this year, I am primarily just staying quiet. She's been frequenting my dreams more these last few nights, which has been nice (and why Arnold Schwarzenegger showed up, I'll never know). What has been interesting is talking to friends and Matt about where I have been these last few summers, and how much I've grown, how much I've changed, and where my emotional state has been. I think this year's summer is the one of true acceptance. And I think the difference for this whole year in general is grief versus missing. I miss her every day, I think of her every day. But for only a few weeks in the summer, I grieve that she is no longer physically here. Does that make any sense? Not that it matters. It makes sense to me. :)

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Year of Gratitude #29

1. My amazing friends. You know who you are (all of you). Words of encouragement. Hugs near and afar. My support network. If I didn't have you, I don't know that I'd survive all my ups and downs!

2. Financial planning/goals. It's actually kind of exciting to see what we can do with our money even with paying of debts. (And I feel so grown-up by saying that!) There are so many options, and we are very blessed to have such a good friend who also happens to be our financial adviser. And luckily, it's not awkward either. It's just exciting, a happy time for us.

3. Our kitties. They bring me so much joy and laughter, even when I'm feeling the most sad and depressed and fat and frumpy.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Year of Gratitude #28

I am frustrated with my life right now, and rather than complain and whine about my difficulties, I am going to try to just focus on the positive so I can pull through and move on.

1. Our amazing house. I still can't believe we own a freaking HOUSE. Perhaps it's because nothing has broken yet, because it's not a fixer-upper, we just need to put all of our stuff away. It's such a beautiful home. And that's the key word. Home. For so long we have lived in temporary housing, wondering where we will be living next. Now, that's no longer the case. We can do whatever, whenever we want. I find there is an amazing sense of freedom in owning a home.

2. Carpooling. I am so grateful that Matt and I get to carpool every day together. Not only does it save gas and headaches, but we get time together every morning and every evening. It makes the drive so much easier. And there is a certain amount of glee in bypassing all those drivers stuck in the "regular" lane driving by themselves. (Sidenote - sometimes it doesn't matter if you're in the carpool lane or not. Yesterday it took us 45 minutes to simply merge onto 405 from 520!)

3. Having a job. These days, with so many people out of work, I am continually grateful that I am employed. Not only that, but I find myself enjoying working at the family business (It's good to see my dad every day and he's so tickled that I'm here) and that I can include "manager" on my title now. I am also releived that Matt has a job where he feels good about himself. Can we say "hooray" for dual income?

Thursday, July 08, 2010

Joys Of Moving

Or rather, joys of the DMV...

Luckily I got someone in WA who was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable. Very patient, answered all of my questions, and was very methodical in all the paperwork she had to fill out. To make a very long story short, my car's title was transferred to CA when we moved, and I have no documentation. Which means filling out a form to request a duplicate tilte and sending it to the CA DMV. Which means waiting 4 to 6 weeks for ONE piece of paper. Which means pay OVER ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS to Washington DMV for TEMPORARY PAPER PLATES so that I don't get pulled over for expired tabs.

So we wait. I marked on my Google calendar to call the CA DMV on 8/25 in case we haven't received the duplicate title by then. Something tells me we won't, and I'll be calling, only to be placed on hold for another 20 minutes.

It's been a long day. I'm going to go home now.

Wednesday, July 07, 2010

Helllooo?? Anyone there?

I signed up for a website counter last week to see if anyone has been reading. According to them, no one, for the last two weeks, has been looking at my blog, which I find hard to believe. I look at lots of blogs, and don't comment. I discontinued my subscription, and am happy to live in my own little world, where I have lots of readers.

I have stopped updating my SLO Life blog on wordpress. My passion for the central coast of California is still there, but now it's time to rediscover the Pacific Northwest. I hope that in years to come, we will have new adventures, rediscovering our home state through new eyes.

Dad came over yesterday and helped me put away all of our china. We have four sets of wine glasses and three sets of china. I guess we have some entertaining to do, and some wine glasses to give away. Anyone need some wine glasses? Brie, Steve, and Catherine came over for dinner last night which was great. I've missed having people over. I made a fantastic salad (and will post the recipe later on) And now that the living/dining room is nearly unpacked, it makes for a relaxing atmosphere. I love that our dining room table is actually a place to eat and talk, and is no longer Matt's office.

A big thanks to Brie, Steve, and Catherine for my own set of gardening tools! This will be so helpful since there's a touch of weeding to do.