Believe it or not...

...I really haven't had much to say.

This was a great weekend. Sunday we went to church, and had yet another wonderful sermon from Pastor Clay. I really do love our church. I think I'm going to have to stop attending small group on Sunday morning though. At Wyatt's age, they can only do 1 session of Sunday School. So, of course, he needs to be in there while I'm in my class. Well, that means he sits in the service with me. That is not working out so well. I worry that he may be disruptive to others, but, more than that, I can't focus on the sermon. I really don't get much out of it at all. So, it may be time to say farewell to small group. :(

Yesterday we went into one of the larger towns. We decided, in planning for Wyatt's party, to see if a membership to Sam's Club would be worth the price. I printed out a free 1 day trial coupon, and off we went. They are running a special right now, buy 10 weeks of full membership for 10.00. We went ahead and signed up, then just walked around the club. There are LOTS of deals that made signing up worthwhile! In fact, yesterday, we only got 2 things, but we still saved the 10.00 membership fee, and spent less than 20.00. How do you like them apples?

So, I've done lots of stuff with Wyatt while looking at different styles/sets of curriculum. I have to say, it looks as though he will be doing 2nd grade work for the majority of his homeschooling. That really reaffirms my choice to homeschool. He's in 2nd grade math. He's already started multiplying. As far as reading, well....he's beyond 3rd grade, at the very least. I had been hoping to purchase a box set to make the first full year a little easier, but it doesn't look like that will be an option. I will need to get a little from here, and a little from there. On the other hand, I am sooo proud of little man! He is so smart <3 I am truly blessed

Do I really have to title every blog?

Things are going really well. Wyatt LOVES his new sitter, and, in fact, rarely wants to even come home with me. Yesterday I literally dragged him out of there kicking and screaming! If someone other than me or Randy has to take care of him, I couldn't ask for anything better. She loves his little personality quirks and he makes her laugh, just like he does me. <3

Poor kiddo, last night he was getting mac and cheese out of the microwave when I was out of the room. He spilled boiling water on his arm. It's not bad AT ALL and we cuddled for a while, then we talked about how sometimes it's better to wait until Mommy's there before he helps. I think he was just as disappointed that he did it wrong as he was hurt.

Know what I really really love? When he first wakes up, and he's all warm from being under the covers, and he wants to just be close and cuddle. I LOVE that part of my day. Best thing ever.

Yesterday we were on the way to the sitters, and we had a conversation like this: "Momma, do you know why I pick my nose?" "Ummm, because you're a boy and you're gross?" "(Giggles) NO MOMMA!!! God put super powers in my nose". I tell ya, this kid...he's a trip! I'm so blessed :)

Ahhhh

Alright. Lots to blog about today! (I'm really trying to keep up with this, can you tell?)

First, my baby boy is a first grader. How did that happen? He is amazing. I'm so very very proud of him. He is such an incredible blessing. I will post pictures once I upload them.

Randy and I sat down and really talked last night about the whole decision for school next year. We both ruled out public school. (No offense to any of you, but, well, it's not the right choice for us.) As far as homeschooling, we both know I can do it, and do it well, and I want to do it. The problem is, and this is me being honest, I frequently start things off with the best of intentions, and then kinda let it fade out. I CAN'T let that happen with Wyatt. So, we are going to go to the homeschooling convention and decide from there.

Randy said he wants me to stay home once Wyatt starts school. I told him that makes me feel so guilty, especially if he's in school. He said it shouldn't. For one thing, when I'm working, I get home, and am typically too tired to cook. (Remember, I don't get to sit down at work) We are going to take this summer to see how we do just living on his salary, and to make sure that our marriage is really going to work. (Although, I have to say, KNOWING it's going to work makes a big difference)

Wyatt starts with the new sitter today. I'm excited. I really like her, she seems so much like me. She's so laid back, and I really think that's what Wyatt should have, especially over the summer. I can't wait to see how his first day is!

Zumba....duh

Well, I'm not going to Zumba tonight. Wyatt's Kindergarten graduation is today. I still can't believe it. I'm on the fence about how goofy Kindergarten graduations are, but...it's happening so I gotta deal with it. At least I didn't get him a class ring. Yup, they had Kindergarten class rings. Crazy. Pure craziness. He's my baby, and I want him to stay a kid as long as possible. He will grow up soon enough.

With that being said, I wonder if he really realizes all that he is graduating from. This is his last year at that school, even though it goes up to 12th grade. Randy and I talked about it, and we are going to homeschool him next year. I don't profess to know how long we will be able to do it, but we're going to try. This year has confirmed all the fears I had about sending him to school. He's just...I don't know. I honestly believe he will thrive at home. I have a feeling this will end up being my soapbox, but I'm just not totally comfortable enough with it yet to make it my soapbox topic :-P

Day one back on the diet....

....and I was foiled by a Pina Colada. Ah well, that's what weekly points are for. I'm right back on the bandwagon. I really want this weight off. I have no excuses. At all.

I'm so not ready to go back to work today. We will be busy, so at least the day should go by pretty quickly. I hope. Tomorrow will be completely insane. I work until 5, and Wyatt's Kindergarten Graduation (sniff sniff) is at 6.

I asked the lady in charge of Womens Ministries at my church if there was a homeschooling group. I was surprised when she said there wasn't, but not so surprised when she said that she's had other people asking about one. So I'm going to help (maybe) start one. I'm excited! I told her I really have no clue what I'm doing, but that I know what it's like to feel isolated, so hopefully we can avoid that.

It's already 73 degrees, and it's not even 6 am yet. Today is shaping up to be a hot one! I gotta remember to bring my fan to work.

Can you tell I'm having a hard time with blogging this morning? No clue what to write about. At all. Ah well.

Back on the bandwagon

I've got to do something, so I'm back to counting points. I thought I could do it without, but I didn't lose anymore. I would gain/lose 2 pounds constantly. So I need to stay on track. I can do this! It helps that I'm walking 2 miles every night. Power walking. In the humidity that is Spring in SC. Plus I've been working in the yard a lot, so it all adds up, baby! This week I'll start Zumba on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I *may* even start going to WW meetings. Maybe I'll go to one and see what it's like. If I don't get anything out of it I can't do online, then it would be pretty pointless. That would make me busier than Wyatt! Meetings on Monday, Zumba Tuesdays, Church Wednesdays, Zumba Thursdays, and T ball Fridays. Phew! I'm tired ;)At least it's summer so there are no Wed night bible studies...That sounds so wrong. But we need some family time! At least I do get off work early Wed and Fri, so there's time then. I definitely want to get an eliptical, or maybe a treadmill. Maybe we can start pricing them. I shall watch for them to go on sale!

I've decided next time we're out of laundry detergent, I'm not going to buy it. I'm going to make it myself. We really need to beef up our savings, so it's time to cut corners anywhere we can. I need to get a clothes line too, because despite the fact that my washer and dryer are both high efficiency machines, I'm sure line drying is cheaper! And it's not like we can't practically do it year round here.

I watched Extreme Couponing last night. It seemed like a lot of what they were doing was stockpiling, which is a bit more than I want to do right now, but I can certainly do some of that! I plan to subscribe to 2 of the Sunday papers today. Maybe even see if I can subscribe to the Sunday Washington Post too...I wonder if they have different coupons? I will have to call one of my friends in MD today to see. I also want to look online for couponing sites. So look for a blog with those links. The really good links I will post to my list of frequently traveled places on the web.

My sorta bucket list

A bucket list is things to do before you die. I'm going to do a mini-bucket list. 20 things to do before I turn 35

~Change the decor in this house
~Rent a cabin in the mountains for a week
~Lose about 75 pounds
~Make Wyatt a big brother
~Find a "cause"...a place to volunteer my time...something really close to my heart
~Start working on my "secret" goal
~Make a better effort for meal planning
~Eat at the table as a family 5 nights out of the week
~"Unplug" weekly
~Develop a better relationship with God/Make church a priority
~Have a place for everything in this house!
~Have a flower garden and a vegetable garden
~Start composting
~Have some egg hens
~Finish the Love Dare
~Learn how to make my own lattes
~Make monthly date night a priority
~Get caught up with scrapbooking
~Reduce eating out to a once a month thing (or less!)
~Write a letter on paper once a week, to someone, anyone....(Penpal, family, etc)

You may notice...

I've imported the posts from my old blog to this one. My old blog had so much from when we first married, I want it all here. I couldn't figure out how to do it before, when I changed email addresses. So, it's there. I need to clean some of it up, add labels, but feel free to explore.

Changes

For someone who really really hates change, I sure do post an awful lot about it. But, I think this could be a good one.

Randy and I sat down and talked last night....really talked. I admit, I approached him. We decided to try counseling. We both realize it's no guarantee, but it's gotta be worth a try. And I'm smart enough to realize some of my desire is born simply out of my need to protect Wyatt, but... I think that's a good reason anyway. I've really been feeling a lot lately like God has been speaking to me and telling me to make things work. So, Randy isn't moving. We haven't told Wyatt yet.

I can't really say what the future holds, and I can't really even say what we might do. For right now, we are just taking it one day at a time. (Which, as you all can attest, is not an easy thing for me to do)

We both know changes need to be made. We both have ideas about what some of those changes should be. It's a great place to start, but the bottom line is that we need a little bit of help to get back to where we should be. We've been there before, and I KNOW we can get there again.

Rough night

Boy, last night we did NOT have a good night. Wyatt cried for close to an hour, and believe me, I was crying right along with him. He's terrified that I'm going to move away from him too. No matter how much I promised him that I wouldn't leave, that I would ALWAYS be with him, he was just....heartbroken. The worst part is that I don't know if Randy even knows if he wants to still be in Wyatt's life, so I can't promise him that Daddy will always love him. Even if it's like a bandaid, I can't lie to my son. It will only be worse in the long run.

I admit...I'm at a loss. I don't know how to handle this. When my parents divorced, I took it in stride. We are in the Bible Belt. Only one of Wyatt's friends has divorced parents, and they live very few miles apart. This is such a new thing to Wyatt. I don't know how to reassure him. I know that, really, it's just going to take time and prayer, but I'm so terrified that this will affect him long term. I mean, look at it this way, his biological "father" has nothing to do with him, and the only man he's ever known as Daddy is leaving too. That's gotta stay with a kid. Granted, he doesn't really ever talk about his bio dad, but I remember him telling me that he was sad because his real dad threw him away. He's smart. I've never spoken a word about bio dad in front of him, much less EVER said he threw him away, but Wyatt picks up on stuff. How do I boost his self esteem? How do I reassure him that *I* will ALWAYS be there?

I spent a lot of last night in prayer. I know that noone can really tell me how to walk this path with Wyatt. I never in a million years thought the divorce would affect him like it has. I know that with the help of friends, and lots of prayer, we will get through this. God is good, and He has my back!

These songs really help me: Mandisa: He Is With You and Casting Crowns Praise You In This Storm

Mornin' y'all

We've had a busy few weeks around here. Then again, when don't we?

Wyatt and I went to the beach last weekend with a good friend. We had SO much fun. Wyatt built his first sand castle. He was AMAZED when he took the bucket away and there was a turret! At 5 (and a half, thank you very much) there is still so much that amazes this little guy, and I love to watch his face light up every time it happens. I've missed out on so much before, and I feel like God has given me Wyatt to at least make up for it a little bit. I'm definitely trying harder. We went with an old friend, and it's so nice to stay in touch and that we can pick things up.

Today Wyatt has a field trip. The school library is taking the top 10 readers from Wyatt's grade to Chuck E Cheese. Wyatt is over the moon about it. I love that he's getting positive reinforcement from the school for academics. A lot of people have said the school focuses so much on academics. (This IS the South) I've really been trying to make sure he knows that I'm proud of him, and that I believe he can have the moon if he wants it. He's so smart, and he really can do anything. I hope I've done a good job letting him know that.

I have off all week, Dr Jones is in Mexico. So I have no excuse for not blogging! (Well, except I vow to get this house spotless. Really, I will. And I will plant a garden. Uh huh. I'm gonna do it!)
It's hard to believe that in 2 weeks Randy will be back in PA full time. He's up there now tying up loose ends. I get a little nervous, thinking about doing it all on my own again. I know I can do it. It's just a matter of giving myself limits and rules and sticking to them. Like a budget. I DONT WANNA BUDGET. But, I can. And I will. If for no other reason than to prove to myself that I can do it.

Blah blah

So yesterday I was encouraged to continue the blog. I don't know why, since it's certainly not really terribly interesting. But, since the storm had me up nice and early, why not?

Let's see....the current pet count in my house is up to 13. We adopted a puppy and one of the "spayed" cats had kittens. All in the same week. Would you mind pulling that gray out of my head for me please?

So, meet Tanker. Wyatt has been asking for his very own dog for months. And months. And months. I told him we would start to look, but we wouldn't get one until we found the very perfect one. The first day at the animal shelter, what comes up to meet us but a cute little chocolate lab mix with bright blue eyes. My son has always lamented the fact that noone else in our house has blue eyes. Well, he can't say that anymore.

That brings us to Dixie, my sweet kitten that became a momma. She had 4 kittens that look far too big to have come from her. But she did really well. I, of course, was full of questions, so I asked anyone with even the teeniest bit of animal knowledge about them, and if everything was going right. I'm amazed at how well she's taken to mommyhood. At the tiniest little "mew" from her babies, she's all over them. Wyatt had to wait 24 loooong hours before I'd let him hold the kittens, and he has to wash his hands (with soap!) first. Dixie lets him, but she looks on. These are gonna be sweethearts. And, praise Jeebus! they are all spoken for. Now, this next litter I'm expecting sometime in the beginning of June, I can't say the same thing for. *Sigh* My sweet, misguided boy named the kittens, and it dawned on me that I never told him we weren't keeping them. Well, I promised him he could have 2 total. I didn't care which 2, or from which litter, but he could keep 2 kittens. Shoot me. Or bring me more coffee. Lots more coffee.

Randy went up to PA this weekend for a friend's wedding. Wyatt, who knows Randy is leaving for good at the end of the month, did fairly well. He did have a few rough moments, and they are to be expected, but God, I wish I could save him from this hurt. I really do. My heart absolutely breaks for him. That's part of why I finally caved and got the puppy. Hopefully it will offer some distraction. I hate that he's getting hurt in all of this. But I truly believe, in the long run, it's what's best. I don't want him growing up thinking that what Randy and I had is what a loving marriage is supposed to be. I don't know when what we had went sour, but it did. And now we have to do what's best for all of us, even if it can't be what's easiest