Reasons to Love Monday

You seriously cannot possibly imagine how much I love this sweet little girl. And her sister. And their BFF Jorjanne. But this little Jamie is one of my favorite-est people in the world! And I can't help but think she looks a little like Scout from To Kill A Mockingbird, doesn't she?  Yesterday I spent a little time hanging out with the girls, watching them hunt eggs and so forth. It was good to get out in the sunshine and the weather was perfect. Bright but perfect.

 I left Austin the puke-meister at home. He is better, finally, today. He has eaten half a banana and a hot pocket. I'm still praying hard that I won't catch what he had. That was some nasty, mean, violent sick that he had going on! He's missing - yet another - day of school. I reminded him that we really don't know that I'll find another full time job up here where he can continue to go to White County High School if he doesn't graduate. He knows. He knows. He GETS it. (he says). I hope he really does. I'm going to bite the bullet and go ahead and order the cap and gown today. I've been putting it off... just in case.

Today is another absolutely beautiful day. Let's make that my first "Reason to Love Monday" for this week. I had to run into town to handle a few things that I didn't get done over the weekend ....avoiding civilization because of the holiday weekend... because we're in a bit of a tourist area people tend to visit on long, sunny, holiday weekends. I appreciate the revenue that it brings to the area but I dislike the traffic... you know, people who don't quite know where they're going... people who are pulling travel trailers that are too big for their transmission... people on motorcycles who think that traveling in packs makes them immune to traffic laws... that sort of thing. So today I did the things that I would have normally done on Saturday but didn't and it was just about as close to perfect as you can get.

My project for the week is transcribing some family history into a legible format. (What I have is a photocopy of something in cursive that isn't very easy to read.) I'm also working on my application to the Daughters of the American Revolution. I'm eligible through an ancestor, Aaron Cleveland. I've got a copy of grandma's application and also a copy of an application from another relative from 1928!  I just have to enter all the updated genealogy and make it specific for me. The application process is not the least bit user friendly and involves a meeting with the local DAR Chapter but, ultimately, I have so much respect for legacy, history and tradition that it would be a waste for me NOT to do it. Since I have a little free time, I want to go ahead with it. I also want to make it easier for my nieces to do once they turn 18. (One of the requirements is that you are at least 18 years of age). I'll share with you as I'm going through the process because I do think it's more interesting than "the cat kept me up all night" type blog entries. Reason to Love Monday #2 - having time to immerse myself in things that I really enjoy.

I'm going to have to make a journey into civilization this week to make copies of my resume, copies of the genealogy paperwork, etc. We're expecting nice, mild, sunny weather for most of the week so it's a good time to get out and about. I am still battling high blood pressure and swelling but - RTLM #3 - I am feeling incredibly more capable and confident than I was even just a week ago. God is good.

My friend Lisa is on a mission trip to Uganda. Please pray for her safe travels and also for her honey and twin girls back at home. I'm so proud of Lisa and just know that God is going to use her to change lives - beginning with her own - through this trip. That's my RTLM #4.

Austin is just SURE that what he has is fatal. He is soooo my child! Good thing he doesn't know about Dr. Google yet.

I had the opportunity today to talk to a childhood friend of my kids' dad. He was concerned about Robert's well-being and I shared with him a brief overview of his history. He has these cycles of behavior where he drinks more and more and eventually the wheels start to come off and he starts hitting rock bottom and ... he adjusts his behavior. It has always meant (for me) a time of financial hardship because when he stops working he stops paying child support and so on and so forth. From a purely selfish standpoint, it causes interruption in my life but the truth is...if I remove myself from the equation... it's just a very sad thing for anyone to go through and for anyone who cares about him (such as my children) to watch. I told his friend that the difference between Robert and myself is that I have a strong foundation and a strong support system and he just doesn't. I'm no better or worse than he is. I've never been much of a drinker but that is simply by the grace of God, not because I'm a saint. My Reason to Love Monday #5 this week is the fact that I do have a support system... who knows where I'd be otherwise.

I'll be posting a few extra posts this week with the DAR info and I'll include "DAR" in the title of the entry in case you want to skip that kind of stuff. Hope you all have a great week!