Back to it

I think I am finally in a place where I can get back to blogging more. But really, who knows? Things have been quite busy over the last couple of months so here is a crazy update on what we've been up to.

• We gardened as usual this year and had a great year - we were more on top of the bugs and our unusual spring gave all of our veggies a huge boost. We grew tomatoes, peppers and tomatillos. We also planted our herb garden and it has really taken off.

• We drove to NC for a quick visit and to exchange cars. We bought my mom's 09 Accord and "sold" my wonderfully quirky 96 Corolla to my brother. That's right, I no longer own the car I've driven since my sophomore year in college. It was a sad day but there are some perks to having a working radio and automatic locks and windows! :) And since that old car got me through three colleges, I'm sure it will help my brother make it successfully through his MBA program.

•  We painted the last room in our house! Woo-hoo! I love the color and I'm still amazed at the huge difference the new paint color makes in how the room feels. 

Before and After

 

• We remodeled a closet. Yep, not super exciting but the husband did a great job building the shelves and the closet is super functional for us now. We gutted the closet and added a full wall of shelves and a new clothes hanging area. You can see the closet empty and then filled to the brim below. One of the issues with living in a super hot place is that many items cannot be stored in the attic, thus this remodeled closet holds all of the items we would normally put in an attic.

 

• And most recently we went to an amazing and fun wedding in Houston! Yay for not traveling for a wedding and having friends come down to visit!

The wedding after party decorations - awesome.

Next up this week: A review of our huge upcoming project!

One year

Today represents one year from the day my grandfather died. At times I still find myself experiencing a sadness that fills my whole chest when I think of him. I know that as time continues to pass that those moments will occur with less frequency and linger a little less as well. Grief is a strange thing in deed. On this day, though, I want to spend some time remembering a man I was so fortunate to have as a grandfather. Below are just a few memories I have of him.

He loved candy and Honey never really bought it (I think he wasn't really supposed to eat it) but my mom would always buy a big bag for him for Christmas and his birthday. He would smile his mischievous smile when he opened the bag and then proceed to eat a few pieces.

Honey likes to say that if Pa knew how much she spent on his ties he would have been so upset. He really had no interest in expensive things and often thought they were quite silly.

One of my favorite things about Pa was that he could be mischievous. It wasn't frequent but every once in awhile he would play a little prank on Honey and we would all get a little laugh out of it. The way his eyes lit up and his mischievous grin are often what I choose to focus on when I think of him.

He gave great big bear hugs that felt like they might swallow you whole but stopped just short of it - they are what I miss the most.

The third year

I mentioned in my last post that I felt like the husband and I finally hit our stride in this third year in Texas and we really have in so many ways. Professionally speaking, I have a ridiculous amount of stuff going on right now - which is all very very good and requiring a bit of an adjustment on our part!

• About a month ago I was asked to assist the administration of our department with various activities. I have been involved in different aspects of running the department and our medical clinic. It has been a nice addition to the work I am currently involved in, which at times can be really monotonous. It has also been challenging in a completely new way because I am primarily involved in finance and management activities of which I have no experience. I am really loving the challenge of it and grateful for the change of pace!
• At about the same time, I was offered the program director position at The Grief Resource Center (TGRC) where I volunteered for a few months this spring. I accepted the position and officially started two weeks ago. TGRC was hit pretty hard in the recession and right now I am only working one day a week with them. With several efforts in the works to increase their income, the hope is that I am able to add more days next year.
• Of course, I still have my main job, which accounts for 80% of my time. I will be promoted to faculty as of July 1! This is really exciting for many reasons but I'm especially psyched about getting an office! One other bonus of being promoted to faculty is that I am now able to participate in grants at the faculty level and I have been written into a new grant as a co-investigator and the project evaluator (stats stuff). As far as grant/university work goes, that is a great step for me.
• In addition to those experiences, I have been offered one other position that is based on grant funding. We just heard last week that the department received the funding and so I should know more about what that might mean for me soon.

Describing all of that makes my head spin a little. After what felt like a really long period of uncertainty and an experience in a job that is less than fulfilling, things are finally moving in the right direction. With any change, it has also been a little challenging. After two and half years of the same schedule, adding lots of hours all at once has resulted in a little bit of chaos at our house! But we're making it work and I think things will start to settle down in the next few weeks just in time for us to start the bathroom remodel! Oh goodness! :)

Three Years

Life is funny.

I reread my year one anniversary summary and it reminded me of that. Year one of marriage, which was also year one of Texas living, was hard for me and the hubs. But really hard for me. Year two was a huge improvement in that area. I grew more comfortable with Texas life and together we worked harder to make things in Texas more enjoyable. Sometime late last year I realized that we reached a turning point related to the move here. It seems we FINALLY hit a stride with everything – our relationship, friends, the dogs, the garden, the house, work. It felt really good. That lasted about 2 months and then a new little twist occurred. The only constant in life is change, right? 

And so here we are, celebrating our third year anniversary with new knowledge and that the upcoming year will likely include challenges greater than those we’ve faced in the past. While there remains a great deal of uncertainty in what lays ahead, what remains constant and true through this is the two of us. In celebration of our third year together, here is my annual list!

1. We are both happier when we spend quality time with our friends – the difference after a night out with a friend or friends is tangible. Now only if we could get just a few more friends to move to Texas! 
2. I am more of a risk-taker than the husband. If you know me, this likely sounds a little crazy. 
3. The husband is slowly buying into (some) of my hippie ways (maybe he is getting better at compromising or he gave up and is letting me have my way)!
4. We are improving our teamwork daily. Painting and gardening are two things we’re really good at as a team. Bug killing is another! :)
5. In this last year we’ve started approaching housework a little more based on how much we like or dislike specific activities which seems to work out better (for the most part). For example, I now take more initiative to do the dishes because the husband HATES washing the dishes and I don’t mind. In return, the husband is doing more of some other things like taking out the compost or putting away dishes.
6. The husband is naturally argumentative and enjoys playing the devil’s advocate (which seems more like antagonizing sometimes) and if you know him, you know the depth of this truth. I now anticipate having to defend my opinions and I find myself reading articles, etc with the goal of being able to defend my argument when he “plays devil’s advocate.”
7. As a couple, we hit a bit of a slump last year. It wasn’t until my grandfather’s death that we sort of realized we were both holding onto some things and needed to let them go. We took that experience to heart and have worked on two things since: daily and weekly things we can do to check-in and stay in a good place as a couple and more proactive approaches to dealing with conflict so it doesn’t fester and lead to slumps. It seems to working better for now!
8. Walking the dogs together used to be a pretty regular thing but as our schedules have increased in complexity, we have seen this fall by the wayside a bit. Now, we both really look forward to this simple activity!
9. Related to the last one, as our lives become more complex I find myself feeling more protective of our time at home. Where a year or more ago I would often feel like I needed to do something almost all of the time at home, I no longer feel that way. I now approach our time at home with less pressure and more flexibility. This has been a good thing for both of us.
10. Marriage is still hard but is so worth it.