Day-By-Day

There’s Really Nothing to Report

Falling leaves
(NOT my picture. Puh-lease. I wish).

What a beautiful day! ………. To stay in and get some chores done.

*sigh*

I didn’t want to. I had to. Since we’ve been gone these past three weekends, my house was looking like something out of a horror movie – only with more color and fewer ghosts. But I prevailed, ladies and gentlemen, I got everything on my to-do list done this weekend.

Laundry
Bathrooms
Dry mopped the hardwood floor
Mopped the kitchen floor
Straightened up the bedroom (which really means I put MY laundry away. Kevin always puts his away).
Blogged

Wait. As I’m sitting here writing this I’ve noticed one thing I didn’t get done today – my desk. Is gross. And I WILL get MY corner cleaned up before the end of the day.

As God is my witness, I SHALL clean this corner up today! (Just channeling a little ‘Gone with the Wind’ there).

Anyway. I feel like I actually accomplished something today, which is more than I can say for MOST of my weekends, thank you very much.

We have one more band weekend coming up. We’ll be making a one-day trip to Columbia Missouri next weekend -that’s Jazz’s last band competition. It’s at Mizzou and hopefully our kids can take 1st place. We’ve done really well this season, but it would be the icing on the cake if we brought home a 1st place trophy.

I’m sort of glad the season is winding down (I bet you are too). Though I have SO MUCH FUN traveling around and cheering them on, it’s exhausting. Especially when you start a new job in an industry you know nothing about and are trying to focus and learn as much as you can in a short amount of time that your brain is mush by the time you come home and it’s all you can do to keep your eyes open to finish dinner with your family.

So. Yeah. The job is going well.

πŸ˜€

No really. An email was sent out to the clinic on Thursday letting everyone know that I was “ready” to take charge of two doctors. This means I’m in charge of these doctors’ patients and anything schedule related comes to me. I’m getting all sorts of voicemails from patients wanting to either cancel appointments, reschedule appointments or, they want to make an appointment, which requires research on my part before I can make those appointments. For you see, I work for a group of neurosurgeons and they are not like primary care physicians – you can’t just make an appointment to see them for every little ache and pain, there are certain things that I have to look for in order to make that appointment. And if those things are not present, then I have to “flag” the nurse (which is like an instant message system) and ask them if it’s okay to schedule them.

Because I’m a peon and am only paid to do what I’m told. Which is FINE. I’m OKAY with that. I just have to be careful how much initiative I take on.

So I’m learning a lot about this medical field and picking up new terms and learning about new procedures and tests every day. I have to say, it’s damn interesting and no two patients are alike as far as what they need done. It’s challenging and completely absorbs my focus and attention and I really love it.

And I’m not just saying that – I really do LOVE my job.

I’m starting (and only JUST starting) to get a handle on my new routine. My energy level is starting to slowly catch up with my duties and I’ll be used to this new lifestyle in no time. The one thing that I have the hardest time with is the fact that I’m isolated from my family. It’s like I’ve been sequestered and I’m quite literally stepping into a whole new world, separate from them and definitely out of my comfort zone.

But it’s exactly what I needed. I felt like my brain was going soft and it feels SO GOOD to be using my brain again.

Or what little brain matter I have, that is.

Even though my shift starts at 8:30, I’m going in at 8:00 for the next three mornings to make up for the time I’ll have to take off Thursday morning to get my tooth fixed. (I broke it last weekend). I’m thinking I’m going to regret making my appointment for so early in the morning because this means I’ll have to go to work with a numb mouth and will likely be talking weird.

Oh well. I’m getting used to coping with obstacles, what’s one more, right?

Update on my guys:

Kevin has been on a mission to get Dude out in public more. Dude is still going to the office every day and they go out to lunch twice a week. They go shopping at various places whenever they go out – they even went out to the driving range and hit some golf balls. (I have a video of that coming soon). Dude is a very introverted individual and Kevin is hoping that by getting him out and around people more, he’ll loosen up a bit and not be so freaked out whenever he gets a job. He hasn’t had any more interviews but it hasn’t been for lack of trying – he’s been applying someplace nearly every day and Kevin keeps track of his spread sheet and makes him re-apply at places. It’s just a matter of time before the kid gets a job. But it might not be until this crappy economy turns around and I’m predicting that won’t happen until Obama is voted out of office.

*ahem*

In the meantime, Dude has been getting his documents ready to submit to a vocational college. He’s planning on taking two computer classes next semester, so that will be enough to keep him busy until he gets a job. It’ll be interesting to see how he juggles his schedule whenever he gets a job AND is going to college.

Kevin is pursuing some client leads and has been doing well. The word is getting out and he’s becoming more and more busy. It’s just a matter of time before his business really takes off the ground. If you know of anyone who needs a good accountant, give him a buzz! He specializes in elder care, so if you have an elderly person in your family that needs some accounting help (not just taxes, but paying bills, etc), he can help! (http://kkacct.com)

Jazz is finishing up the first quarter. He’ll be getting rid of the following classes: History of Baseball (which he actually enjoyed, believe it or not) and Math Functions, which is a pre-Calculus class. I’m not sure what classes are coming up, but the kids really seem to enjoy switching out classes every quarter and semester. Our school district is considering getting rid of the 4-block schedule set up and I think that would be a HUGE mistake! Having only four classes per quarter is a lot more manageable than having the same SEVEN classes all year long. We’re only one of two high schools in our district that is set up this way and everyone has really loved it. It would make a lot of parents and students upset if they eliminated it.

So. All of this to say, we’re doing well.

Relationships

Is Happiness a Moral Obligation?

“We are as happy as we decide to be.” – Abraham Lincoln

This quote implies that we are in control of our happiness. I believe that is true.

Moral obligation might be pushing it a bit, but I think we do owe our fellow human beings a pleasant demeanor and a happy face, even if, scratch that, ESPECIALLY WHEN we least feel like it.

Happiness is a state of mind. We can DECIDE to be happy or DECIDE to be unhappy. It’s all in how you view the world around you.

Bad things happen to everyone.

EVERYONE.

Regardless of race, sex, or bank balance. The key to life is how you handle the bad situation. And it’s not fair to take our bad mood, or crappy circumstances, out on the people around us. I preach that lesson to my boys all the time. It’s not MY fault that you woke up on the wrong side of the bed – get over it. And I don’t care how grumpy you feel, force yourself to smile at people. And you want to know the weird part? If you force yourself to be happy, guess what happens.

YOU FEEL HAPPIER.

Don’t believe me? Try it.

I dare you.

Happiness is not about ME, it’s about making OTHER people happy. It’s about what I can do for other people, not what can people do for me. (Sound familiar?)

Happiness is not about being selfish. Though it’s important to find things that make us happy, it’s equally, if not more so, as important to help other people feel happy, too.

Home Movies

Father Prowess

Another example of Kevin’s awesome daddy skills.

Check out Kevin’s expression at 3:13 mark. That’s his “I’m getting tired of humoring you and that camera” look. He got pretty impatient with me taping the kids doing nothing for so long.

Course NOW he’s glad I did all of that because they’re so fun to look back on.

And speaking of expressions – check out Dude’s expressions as Kevin plays the guitar.

Babies are fascinating, aren’t they?

At least MY babies were. HA!

Life

Biding Time …

Actually, I’m not. Time is definitely not something I have a lot of nowadays.

Right now, right this very minute, I’m sitting here waiting for my in-laws to show up at our house. We’re getting ready to drive to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma for the second of four out-of-town marching band competitions. We went to Tulsa last weekend and I still need to write about that one. And I will. As soon as I catch my breath.

I’m a little worried about the weather. If you read this any time soon, check out radar – see that wicked looking line of storms right smack dab in the middle of the country? Yeah – we’ll be under that tonight if it stays on its current course. HOPEFULLY the rain will hold off until our kids can perform. It would be a BUMMER to travel all the way there only for them to be rained out and have to come home without strutting their stuff.

And their stuff is worth strutting, let me tell ya.

I promise I’ll write more about the competitions soon. I also have some pictures to show you. I plan on sleeping, catching up on household chores and blogging a bit tomorrow. Kevin and I went grocery shopping last night so if all goes according to plan, we won’t even have to leave the house at all tomorrow.

I need the down time.

Work has been great. I’m not just saying that. I LOVE what I do and I REALLY like the gals I work with. We’re all gelling and I feel like I fit in. Even though I still don’t know what the hell I’m doing most of the time, the pieces of the puzzle are finally starting to fall into place – I learn a little bit more with each patient I help.

I also promise to write more about my job, or as much as I CAN write about, but suffice it to say, it keeps me super busy and I’m so focused all day long that by the time I go home, my mental coffers are completely empty.

I mentioned I wanted to participate in NaNoWriMo next month? Yeah. About that. I honestly don’t think it’s going to happen. Not only do I NOT have any energy left over when I get off work, one of the gals I work with is planning on taking a vacation around Thanksgiving, which means me and the three OTHER girls I work with will be picking up the slack and OMG, it’s busy enough with four girls, it’s going to be INSANE with just three.

And did I mention I’m still maintaining nine school websites? That means I come home to a MINIMUM of 15 emails every night that need to be taken care of.

At any rate. I’m alive. I’m well. And I’m having more fun than I’ve had in quite some time. I honestly love being busy and I’ll get a handle on this new pace soon.

Right now? I’m treading water and wearing nothing but a huge grin on my face.

How’s that for a visual?

Life-condensed

My Nephew – The Film Student

One of my nephews took a chance and went to New Zealand for a year to try and work on the new “Hobbit” movie. Though he didn’t land a part as an “extra”, he WAS able to help out with the production crew. He hasn’t told us all the details yet, but I’m looking forward to hearing all about his adventures.

I’m also looking forward to watching more of his documentary.

Aren’t you?