August to December

So I shut down my blog for several months...long story...but I'm going to try again. I hope to catch everyone up and get back to blogging.

Somebody motivate me...

I miss taking pictures...it is my passion...but over the months that Ryan has been gone I just couldn't get motivated to get out and shoot. On Friday outside of the bank, cools cars were lining up for the Badland Nationals that were apparently in town and I listened to the vroom, vroom's all day...that got my heart pumping, wanting to be out there and photograph...but NO...I had to be inside working. Saturday was too busy of a day for me to go downtown and check it out and today my back is not feeling too great, so I guess my opportunity is over.

Awesome news!!!

My son surprised me on Tuesday. He's home from the Army...YAY. I've been spending the evenings with him and took him out to the commissary today to buy some groceries. He walked into my office and I was in such shock and have been down in the dumps, that I just sat there trying to figure out who he was and how he got there...LOL Then I realized what was going on and gave him a great big hug and wouldn't let him go. Everyone was surprised I wasn't screaming and crying...but when I'm in a professional setting I'm a totally different person. As soon as I got in my car to leave and go home I broke down into tears and cried for quite awhile. I told Ryan that I had a delayed cry and he cracked up laughing. I'm so happy he's home. And I'm so proud of him..he left a PVT 1, graduated from basic a PVT 2 and now that he is back he is a PFC...so he's moving up as quickly as he can.

So...

I either need to close out this blog or keep up with my blogging. I was so into it and I still am...it helps me relieve stress by writing things out, even funny or stupid things.

So much has happened since my last post. I went to Ryan's graduation in Georgia the end of May. It was awesome and it was so great to see my baby boy all grown up. I was able to spend about 16 hours with him and then the next day we ran into each other in the Atlanta airport. That was hilarious, but also made me sad all over again. I also ran into one of my girlfriends from high school and her husband in the airport. Small world!

Soon after I got back, my house was burglarized by 4 individuals. 3 juvi's and 1 adult. I had only been gone an hour and thankfully my neighbor who spends her life being paranoid was watching their every move and had 911 on the phone so my house was surrounded and they caught them in the act. It was a very traumatic experience not only for me, but my poodle and Ry's cat. The cat got over it, Gracie is still having slight issues and has started having seizures which freaks me out. Now I'm dealing with court dates, etc. Pain in the hoosy.

Darnell gave me a surprise 50th birthday party at Cactus, he contacted some of my high school girlfriends, some of my photographer friends and of course my family. The only person missing who I wish could have been there was...you guessed it...Ryan. It was an awesome night though.

July and August has proven to be very stressful in the mortgage lending business. Burning the midnight oil again these days. One would think that after 28 years of being in this business I would be used to it, but lending is so difficult now and since I'm the Underwriter, I have the decision of approve or deny every mortgage loan that comes into our department. My entire career, this is what I've wanted to do and I still do...I enjoy underwriting...just not under extreme pressure...too easy to make a mistake so I'm ultra conservative when it comes to my decision making and the conditions of the approval. Investors are tougher then they have ever been and I'm glad about that...but too little too late. The loans that brokers did a few years ago that got us into this mess has created little monsters in the guidelines. They should have been strict then.

Anyway, I'm off my soapbox...guess I got on it because of the late hours and the weekend hours. Grateful to have a job though when so many don't.

The first of August I moved to Darnell's house. Trying to get used to having another person around is hard and then adding teenagers on top of it...WOW. But I'm happy and that's what counts. We're all learning what makes the other one tick and thank God school is starting...bored teenagers at home all the time does not equal fun times...LOL

Ryan hopefully should be back from Alabama next week. He was delayed by a month because before he graduated in May he broke his collar bone. So he has cleared and is packing...just waiting for his orders. Please pray for his safe return to mommy where he belongs...LOL

Well, thanks for stopping in. I touched on the highlights so maybe I can keep up from here. Toodles!

So feeling blah tonight...

I received a couple of letters from Ryan today and for the most part he is still doing well, but I could tell he wasn't as happy and joyful as he has been. His tone sounded depressed and he's upset that no one is writing him. Of course I have, about a million letters and cards in the month and 1/2 that he's been gone. I try to write him every couple of days, or at least get a card or two in the mail in between letters, today I wrote him a 4 page letter (hope he has time to read it) lol.

I know he's growing up and growing into a man...he'll be 21 in 11 days and I'm happy and proud of him for doing this, but as a mom I still want to run and protect him and give him hugs and tell him it will be ok.

Their platoon got in trouble a couple of weeks ago after the Drill Sgt gave them the afternoon off and told them to get their cell phones and have fun. Well a few took it to the extreme and their wives posted all over facebook how long they spoke to their hubbies and their hubbies sent pics of them through their cell phone. Other wives in different platoons got mad because their husbands/sons weren't able to call and so it went up the chain to the top and we all know what happens from the top...it rolls downhill. Thing is...they were given permission by their drill SGT because they were 1st in 2 competitions and then the whining from spouses ruined it for those few that acted as they should.

I don't see what the problem was for the 1st Sgt except that he received so many complaints from other platoons, therefore Ry's platoon and families are suffering the consequences. Other platoons should have just minded their own business instead of worrying about what was going on in someone else's platoons.

Anyway, thanks for peeking in...gotta snap out of my blahness so it don't last all weekend. :)

TIme to get my butt out and do some shooting...

with a camera that is! Some of us photographer chicks are planning breakfast at Old Mill and then on down to Mulvane to the Tulip Festival. So I'm not into flowers unless I'm receiving them, but I'm anxious to get out and shoot something different. Should be fun. It's a new "only women can join" group that 3 of us have started...we're called "Women with Lenses". All 3 of us are in 2 of the other photographers groups and decided we needed one with just women so we didn't have to listen to them whine about stopping to let us go to the ladies room, etc. What we are hoping to accomplish is to feed and learn more off each other and not be judged if the picture isn't perfect...we've all been shooting for many years and want the women who join our group to not be intimidated thinking we are going to judge how the photograph. We also intend on setting up some short classes and possibly have a speaker come in...something short but just to give us refresher's versus textbook learning. I think it will be fun and exciting and tomorrow's excursion will be the first one. We're wanting to start out small and see where it goes. We have 2 additional ladies that are planning on joining us tomorrow and maybe they will like it and feel comfortable enough they will want to join our girlie girl group.

Thanks for peeking in! Have an awesome weekend.

Happy Easter everyone

Wow, can you believe how fast the time flies? Seems my family was just on our first cruise and I was trying to recover from that and now it's Easter. Things have been busy since the end of January, not only at work but personally. I know everyone will find this hard to believe but I've decided to slow down. This going every day and all weekend must stop.

I've decided to drop one of my photography groups as far as participating in what they do unless it's just something I really want to do. On the social one, I'm cutting down on spending so much time...I'm freaking getting fat from all the eating out. I am going to end my contract in July with mentoring Shiloh..I just can't do it anymore...I'm tired. I found myself getting ready to sign up to volunteer and be on the Urban League...I stopped and said you idiot you are supposed to be trying to cut things out. I, myself and 2 other lady photographers have started a "female" only photography group and I will obviously be participating in that

With Ryan being gone to basic I've been on the go more than I ever was and it seems as though I'm home to sleep and that's all and when I actually have a day like today that I cancelled all meetings...I've just crashed and been lazy..think I finally got out of bed for good about 2pm...LOL

Anyway...maybe I'll have time to catch up on everyone else's blog now. Thanks for always being there even when I'm not. Hope everyone has an awesome Easter.