Sunday, November 29, 2009

Checking off my list

Both of my children have sent off their letter's to Santa, and I have discovered my new favorite way to shop.. Its called Amazon. I have never been one to use the Internet to shop, I have always loved to go to the stores and pick out the toys, and presents, but this year I am pulling the pregnancy card! With a husband gone for the next three weeks, I deserve to!
I have ordered and already shipped out of towners presents, with a click of a button.. I have ordered most of the kids presents and they should be here next week..wrapped! All for free shipping, and no impulse buying on my way out of the checkout line.
I am almost done with Christmas shopping from the comfort of my bed,no lines, no rude people, no extra money spent, no wrapping until midnight on Christmas Eve, and I swear I have saved lots of money in the process!
How come no one told me about this before , pregnant or not, I am convinced this is the way to go. I still want to go out to the malls and watch the people scrounge around trying to find gifts, but now I can just sit and relax and enjoy my hot Carmel apple spice latte. I only have one more stop to make, Publix, they have gift cards for every place in town.. It seems strange to be done shopping this early, I hope the mail isn't late.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Swamp Monster

My pool is my biggest Nemesis. I was so eager to have one when we were house hunting, and now I realize sometimes even when you think you want something so bad, and you finally get it 1. Its never as great as it seems 2. You may want it, but probably don't need it 3. If you husband warns you over and over, you will be sorry, you may want to listen to him, because then you spend the next five years hearing,"I told You so!".
Anyway, although its been a hardship for me, my children have spent hours of fun times in that pool,and have had some great parties. But, it has come from hours of mine and Bob's sacrifice of cleaning, chemicals,and scrubbing. And sometimes to no avail, it still will turn as green and slimy as a swamp!
The past month we have been dealing with this thing. And finally today, it actually looks teal! Not clear, but I can see the top step! SOOOO it got me thinking as I stare out my window looking at the pool this morning. It really could be a metaphor for my life!
I spend lots of time in my life putting things into it, things that I am hoping will change the swampiness of it, to clear. It is so hard for me to keep the balance sometimes, that I want to give up, and just call a repair man, so that I don't have to continue to dig into the problem.
Like keeping my pool clean, I want a quick fix with my life, I want to pour something into it, and be done. If I could just add this, maybe some of that, and take out some of this, and whoola! Its back to being the perfect life, I dreamed it would be.
But, in actuality, it takes such hard work, consistency,and fierce dedication that I fall short so much. I peer into my life and see that there is still, maybe not the swamp, but the green and slimy. I know that the ingredient I have been forgetting to pour in, is my Heavenly Father.I know then, that I have been trying to clear my life, with things that will not work, things that will even possibly change the color back to swamp. I realize in this crazy, mean, complicated world, only Christ can change my swampy water into the crystal clear water that I so long to see. Okay, maybe it will never be crystal clear water in this lifetime, but I would, at this point, settle for some light green! I don't know why, I haven't learned this yet,I don't know why I keep trying to clear it on my own. But,maybe that is how it works, your life is clear when you are born, and then slowly because you are not taking the time to nuture it, pray about it, or pour Christ into it,your color starts to slowly turn teal, then green and then swampy. And then we try on our own to "fix" it, and it just continues to get worse and worse,it may even clear temporarily, but until the key ingredient is added, Jesus Christ, we will never clear the water, it is simply impossible.
I know that my pool did not start off as a swamp, but that's what it became. And even though I sometimes get the color to change , I know the moment I stop pouring in the "right" stuff, it will turn again. Its a vicious cycle.
Yes, my pool is finally clearing up,after weeks of working on it. After making 5 trips to the pool store,and 8 gallons of chlorine, Bob and I finally realized we had been leaving out a chemical that we needed, and that no matter how hard we worked, it was never going to change without it.
We put that chemical in last night,and this morning-it finally changed. No, its not the perfect color yet, but we will still continue to add some of this, and take out some of that diligently until we see the bottom. But, we will not forget that main chemical again!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Half empty or Half Full

Complaints you should never admit to a Pilots' wife: These are real women who may never talk to me again.Or maybe they will look at their life a little different:)

1. Your husband comes home from work at 630pm every night instead of 530pm- At least your husband is home every night!
2.Your husbands' ANNUAL business trip, where he may have fun without you-My husband lives on vacation. Yours is once a year, get over it.
3.Your husband wants to watch football or go out with his friends-my husband has a work husband who he is with 22 days a month.
4.Your husband doesn't help with the kids- I am a single parent more than half the month.
5.Your husband doesn't take out the garbage,clean the house, drive the kids to practice-My husband isn't here when the garbage goes out,my husband isn't home long enough for me to clean after him, and carpooling to practice works.
6.Your husband didn't give you what you wanted on your birthday, anniversary,etc.-My husband isn't home on my birthday, anniversary etc.
7.Your husband works all the time- my husband is gone all the time
8.You cant get in touch with your husband while he is working at the office- I cant get in touch with my husband while is is sitting at the beach in some island
9.Your husband has to cancel plans once in awhile- I cant even make plans, because they will inevitable change.
10.You have to go to a party alone- I go to dinner, movies, and couples gatherings solo.

Get my point? Don't complain to me about your husbands.. I will ALWAYS top you. The difference is perspective. I choose to look at the positive in my marriage, my husband and my life. Its not perfect, but it's mine. Even with all the craziness that comes from being married to a pilot, I would never have it any other way. Being married to a pilot is never dull.It's hard work, exciting, exhausting, thrilling,lonely,the most fun I have ever had, but its never boring!Here are a few ways I look at my situations when it gets tough.

1. My husband can be gone ALOT- but when he is home... FIREWORKS!
2. My husband misses many occasions-but when he is home....I am his TOP priority.
3. My husband can go out anytime with his buddies... but when he is home.. he chooses ME.
4. My husband misses activities the kids are in.. but when he is home.. he transports to every game and practice, stays off his cell and watches every minute of it.
5.My husband may not be home every night at 630... But when he is home... he is home ALL DAY.
6.My husband may live on ANNUAL business trips...but home is his favorite vacation spot.
7.My husband may have to cancel our plans... but when he is home he makes new ones, better ones.
Being married to a pilot is a unique lifestyle choice,but for most of us it was a choice we freely chose. We could find lots of things to complain about, and I guarantee our friends would support every single one of them! But, being married to a pilot, builds something inside of you,it becomes a part of you.Its no longer his career, it becomes yours as well. Its so hard to explain the partnership that takes place.The ties that bind you together with your pilot, from the life experiences that you have, that few will only ever partake. You have to look at your marriage differently, you can't take things for granted. This lifestyle builds a strong marriage, it strengthens your character. Like no other career, I know of, this one allows you to live, as an individual, but also as a couple. And their is fulfillment in never losing yourself to someone else, even the man of your dreams.
You don't have the time to fight, or sweat the small stuff, because you only have time to enjoy the now, when he is with you. My marriage keeps my life in perspective, that life is too short,that marriage is hard work(no matter the career),and that at the end of the day, at the end of this career, I want to be sitting on the beach next to my husband, no regrets, with our memories of our life together.