Shaken but Not Stirred

It probably won't settle for awhile. The car's still banged up. I am okay. I was still able to enjoy my birthday. Maybe even more so because I wasn't so concentrated on what I deserved ;) . We're dealing with insurance (tips, Allison?) now. The other guy is making a claim completely different than ours. He didn't mention the car wasn't his the night it happened nor the alcohol on his breath. We didn't call the police. We probably would if we had to go back now, but at nine o'clock at night in the middle of a dark parking lot I wasn't going to get in an argument with a guy insisting over and over that we not call the police and apologizing over and over for hitting my car. I was so nervous I called B to find out what I should do, he said take lots of pictures, get all his information, and get out of there, which I did. The friend I'd gone out to dinner with was pulling out when it happened so she didn't see it but she was with me during the aftermath and spoke to B on the phone as well telling him the guy was apologizing for hitting me, that he was just concentrated on not hitting the wall.

We had a great time at Sea World. B has been so wonderfully supportive in taking care of everything. He took care of talking to insurance and going back to the place where it happened and getting pictures in the daytime. I was able to go to Sea World and still enjoy my birthday and not worry about anything. I had to give my statement yesterday to our adjuster. I broke down in tears but B was right there and I wrote out notes beforehand so I made sure and said all I wanted to say. I called my friend Jen afterwards and she even added some stuff the other driver had said that I forgot about.

So yippee now we get to deal with that. Really God is teaching me so much more than I could ever imagine I would learn through having my car wrecked!! Our small group Sunday night was about trials and temptations and how God doesn't cause trials but allows them to happen so that we can learn something and that temptations come from the desires of our heart not from God. The conversation Jen and I had at dinner was all about emotional boundaries - not taking responsibility for other's response to things you've said in love which is a foreign concept with me ; ) . Even her comment after it was all said and done, that it really teaches us to take our possessions lightly. Even my preceding desire for some kind of jewelry from B this year for my birthday contributed to the things I have the opportunity to learn here. Hehe if you look at two posts ago the first half was about possessions, which I'm still happy for and totally enjoy, the second half was about my family. The first part I want to enjoy, but not let it determine my happiness and or even what I think I deserve or the way I see myself.

What Doesn't Make Me Happy

Wrecking my car the night before my birthday.

Things that Make Me Happy

*Going to dinner tonight with a friend to catch up and celebrate my birthday!*

*My new computer (did I forget to mention the free iPod nano, free printer, and 15% discount that came with it? There are perks to homeschooling your kids : ) .*

*Mac's format. Soooo much more user friendly than Windows, once you take the four weeks to get used to it and have a Mac lover over your shoulder answering all the questions you spit out about how to open your email.*

*Playing around with Photo Booth on my Mac.*

*My new CHI, my sleek, shiny hair, and my fresh haircut with swept bangs that are long enough to fall across my cheekbones.*

*J enjoying VBS.*

*Volunteering with S for J's VBS and realizing volunteering there didn't require me to do everything. Just escort the kiddos and enjoy talking to them. That and spend time with S listening to the stories, making the crafts, and playing ball.*

*Going to SeaWorld for my birthday!*

*The sweet birthday wishes from my wonderful readers. It's tomorrow which is why I had not mentioned it before the gifts.*

*The adorable flip flops with K's initials in rhinestones on them I got for her birthday.*

*The adorable store The Cadeau I bought them at and the friendly girl I bought them from.*

*The fabulous store The Blue Elephant next to it that is equally as wonderful.*

*Finally finding a pottery place The Mad Potter to paint that doesn't charge an arm and a leg, glazes the whole thing, and has friendly employees.*

*Finding a new yummy kid friendly place to eat. Central Market with a playground.*

*Finding the above four places all in the same place and it's called Central Park. I heart it.*

*Finding my two perfect gift stores where I can find something that works, where one thing is enough, and where they wrap it in prettier stuff than I'd pay $10 for and have it ready to go before I leave the store.*

*S being super excited about my birthday and telling Daddy. "You know one thing? Mommy's birthday is tomorrow."*

*J's book order for school this year being ordered after getting a call that it possibly hadn't been ordered. Sigh of relief.*

*Meeting our host family for same. Which resulted in many fears being eased.*

*Being discipled by a good friend and uber sweet lady at church.*

*Our GREAT talk last night that lasted 2 and a half hours and we didn't even get to the Bible Study we're doing together.*

*Clarification on so many thoughts muddled in my head. A reminder once again to focus on God, be aware of the peace that He gives us, be aware of the order of priorities and how whatever decision I'll be making will affect that positively or negatively, and that everything is for His glory.*

*My husband taking a new direction in his business. Hopefully one that will result in paying the bills.*

*Being able to help my husband in that new direction by doing what I do best. Data management. NOT dealing with people : ) .*

*Hope.*

*Hope that this business is going to work.*

*Hope that J's school is going to work.*

*Hope that we'll be able to do what we need to do to grow as individuals and grow together as a family.*

I'm Four Feet Away from My Computer and I can still see it

That's because it's this.



My birthday present from my MIL.

My Mom sent me a check so I got my CHI. Yay!! I can't find a picture of it. But it's cherry red and I heart it.

B's Dad sent me a check as well. I went tonight to get running shoes with it and the guy tried to sell me on these.


They were really wide in the way they looked though so I'm going to keep looking on those.

In the meantime I've found a strange balance of life and computer and I hope I can keep it that way even with having a new one.

Our Days

Monday was J's day. He chose to go kayaking and to the pool. He made an adorable little list with all his things he wanted to do and when I told him we could only do two or three he crossed off the ones that weren't priority. He drew pictures of each activity and wrote the word next to it. He had Monopoly on there, kayaking, the pool, a volleyball net for K's house, and a few other things. When I find it I'll scan it and post a picture.

Tomorrow is S's day. We're going to go to a fun little town with K and he's also requested we set off the rest of our fireworks. We'll see what else he comes up with. He's so excited.

And yes for those of you wondering Mommy had her day too : ) . It was TODAY. We did go to the pool for an hour and walk up to the business center to play pool and shuffleboard for a few hours but Mommy got a lot of things done she wanted to do. Mostly by saying it was her day and she got to pick what she wanted to do and not get asked a ton of questions. : )

Argh

I STILL don't have my computer back. I've been using hubby's to blog. My social life is pretty much nonexistent right now as a result. The phone is hardly ever used for me, because put quite simply I usually have two very noisy children in the background. When hubby gets home and I can actually use the computer I usually have about 5 minutes before we do the whole night time routine. After that we put a movie in and eat ice cream and fold laundry and at that point my mind is too spent to do emails, so instead I've been spending lots and lots of quality time with my kids. Not a bad thing and really it's the perfect time. They've been really needing it lately because I have been out so much - granted with them most of the time, but still out. Just frustrating because it's summer, a few of the girls I know have the perfect schedules to get together right now and might not in the near future. Sigh. I'm getting over it though and just enjoying chess club, rollerblading, working out, playing basketball, and going to the pool with my kiddos : ) . That and trying to figure out how to plan things via the phone that actually end up happening. I need the visual, this time, this day, and this place you get from email. Get togethers planned via the phone end up not working a good percentage of the time for some reason or another, unless it's last minute which I'm not too great at.

Fourth of July Weekend

Saturday we had a family day and went to Iguana Grill for lunch and then B took J kayaking. S wouldn't get in the kayak for anything so he and I sat on the bank and skipped rocks.

After church on Sunday we headed over to a friend's house out in the country playing volleyball in their professional sand volleyball court surrounded by palm trees. J was so eager to play he kept asking if he could before we even got there and said if he did it would be his first time ever. Of course he did. K, J, B, and I got out there along with K's hubby and her sister's fiancee. B got some exciting diving for the ball shots. Hehe. S sat in the sand and buried Bruja's the doggie's ball in a pile of sand the entire time. Any time we get to any place that has mud or sand, that is where S is. We went strawberry picking when he was nine months old and he sat in the middle of a strawberry row and ate mud and strawberries the entire time. He hasn't stopped loving playing in the sand and mud yet!

We took off just before the evening and headed over to Jen's house for a barbeque and fireworks. Her hubby grilled hamburgers and we sat around and chatted until we headed to the golf course and watched the kids run around and took fun pictures while we waited for the fireworks. They had those fun glow in the dark necklaces you always love as a kid so we bought S and J one and they had the best time making them into crowns for their head, frames for their faces, and figure eights. The fireworks started and S's favorite was the ones that shot into little circles of gold sparkles. He said, "Those ones are gold so they are treasure." J sat there coming up with all sorts of fun ideas they could do for fireworks. Shooting three out of one, making a person, and I'm sure there was more I couldn't hear. B got a shot of him explaining an elaborate plan to Jen's hubby.

After the fireworks we sat around in traffic for a bit and had a good time talking and then headed home as soon as we got back to their place. The kids were sooo tired, J was actually saying he was tired. I've been so busy lately that they just haven't been getting enough down time or time to do what they would love to do so we made tomorrow J day. He's so excited about that that tonight he says, "I'm excited and tired at the same time."

Devil Wears Prada Girls Night

We hit up Fire Bowl for dinner - chicken teriyaki salad, chicken with noodles and edamames (sp?), yummy! The theatre was uber crowded. We had nine of us and found a spot for six and a spot for two. So seven of us squeezed in the six seats and two of us sat behind. Read: I sat on plastic and switched cheeks between Jen's and Linz's(not their full names) seat - two of the girls that I love :) . I only went numb halfway through. Better that than all have to sit apart I figure. Linz offered to switch with me halfway thru and I told her I was already so numb it didn't matter. Hehe. The movie was fabulous and had a good ending - not necessarily what I wanted though!! The colors and fashion were so much fun to watch. We sat around for about two seconds after the movie and decided to head back to the arboretum for dessert.

It worked out with M's sister being there - she had her "plus one" other than me. When we went to the cheesecake factory it was the three of us while the others went to get ice cream. That was a fun night with the two of them as well. L will be moving in with M next month so that was fun to get to go out with her already!

There were seven of us left so we chatted by the lit up fountain and took pictures on the marble cows at night. M and I climbed up on one. My kids always climb up there and make it look easy - SO not easy ; ) . It was much easier conversation than I thought all night long. L and M had a fun time and Jen's friend she brought had a really great time.