NE Trip: Vermont & NH

From Plymouth I drove north past Boston (where I did get in a bit of traffic but luckily not too horrible), through part of New Hampshire, and over into Vermont. I have no idea how I thought that ONE day in Vermont would give me enough time, because it definitely did not. I needed AT LEAST a week and I most definitely will be going back some day. :)

My best intentions had me hitting up 2-3 lower mileage hikes (under 5 miles), stopping at a brewery, checking out some local farms, exploring Burlington, and looping around through rural highway prior to arriving at my lodging that night. Not enough time :) There would have been so many incredible farms to check out, cider & brew options, and so many hiking trails. I also didn't stop at the well-known coffee nor ice cream factories. Must return!

But here is what I did see in 24 hours or less:

From Hwy 89 in NH/VT, I'd cut over to Hwy 4. This Quechee Gorge was located just on the Hwy and it was neat to see something that reminded me so much of home :) Just shows how so much of nature is similar and holds within it incredible patterns. Hwy 4 takes you through the little town of Woodstock, which had a few farms to investigate nearby, loads of trails, and covered bridges. I only had time for a quick hike however so I headed to the town park and walked up Faulkner's Trail to an overlook of the town:

  

From here, I got back in the car and headed for Long Trail Brewery which was just a bit further along Hwy 4 and going in the right direction. After my late lunch, I headed along the rural highway with every intention of checking out a local farm....only to realize that the "open" hours would end before I could get there :) But the sites from the highway with mountains in the background and so many incredible family farms sprawled across the country side sure made my heart happy. I made it to Burlington about 530pm...and I quickly realized that I would probably love it there. 

Lake Champlain from Burlington. Burlington has a population of 42 thousand, it's a college town, it's situated alongside a huge lake with mountains easily accessible, local sustainable farms nearby, and that path in front of that bench is a running/biking trail. The options seem incredible here. I stopped just long enough to check out this park & chat with a local coffee shop owner who made me some great herbal tea for my throat and suggested a top-rated brewery north of where I was staying (didn't make it though....). En route to my evening location, I drove through some of the rest of the town which had a cute plaza area downtown and lovely buildings! (And I'm just going to mention that the ads alone on the coffee shop bathroom bulletin board made me feel at home :))

This night I stayed in an AirBnB on Camel's Hump, which turned out fine but a bit interesting :) I had a rock fly up off the highway and ding the upper left drivers side windshield of the rental. The rest of the drive was pretty uneventful but the house was definitely located in the middle of no where. It also turned out that this guy is in the process of remodeling his home and the only furnished bedroom is his, so he literally rents out his own bed/bathroom. He was super nice (even offered to cook me dinner) and I didn't have any concerns with being there...just sort of a bit more awkward situation than what I'm used to with this sort of travel. We had a great conversation about my hoped for hike the next day and his little guy who lives in San Diego. 

Camel's Hump is one of the higher peaks that has not been developed in the state and thus it has blown up in terms of the amount of hikers (and preservation groups) interested in the area. (It was great getting a local's views on much of this!) I had a great time going up the first two-ish miles on this trail..... 

.....and then I hit the iced over trail that my host had forewarned me about. I've never had to hike with ice attachments to my shoes before (and I don't own them nor did I rent any for this trip) so at this point I turned around. Luckily I already knew this was coming and while he said I could probably navigate carefully on or around it, I didn't feel like it was worth it to get to the top at this time. Which can I just say that this was a huge example of how much I've settled down? Two years ago I would have hauled myself slip sliding across the ice to the top and shook off any bumps/bruises I gained on the way, but these days I'm okay with just taking life for what it is (and making sure to avoid injury). Besides, the trail run down was pretty awesome anyway :)

I actually had lucked out since I'd stayed on the mountain and had the trail to myself most of the way. As I hit the trailhead, three other couples were headed up and I met SIX other cars as I drove away. I agree with my host....it's getting over populated. 

From Camel's Hump, I turned off and drove through Montpelier. Super cute historical town, but I didn't want to pay for parking so I ended up not stopping for breakfast or more coffee here. From here, I'd had plans to stop on the west side of the White Mountains to do some hiking, but I decided to push on toward my night destination to check-in earlier and then explore the eastern side. (Plus since so many trails were iced over I figured it'd be better to get somewhere where I could ask around.) I drove along a variety of highways and I really enjoyed seeing so much of the "countryside" this way. Ironically it's not really the countryside because it's just the norm of the state. I also spent some time thinking about the lack of grocery stores, the true norm of the family farm, and I would absolutely love to explore more how this region functions in terms of food production and year round access. I have my own guesses, but it's definitely something to look into (and look upon as a model, which so many already do :)).

In New Hampshire heading toward the White Mountains. I stopped near here at the White Mountain Coffeeshop & Bookstore (finally...more coffee!!). It had amazing homemade juices, local food, delicious coffee (maple lattes) and I couldn't resist picking up a few books. I ended up with a hiking book for the White Mountains and I'm thoroughly enjoying reading the short stories found within Mountain Voices. 

It didn't take too long to drive through the bit of the White Mountains and arrive in North Conway where I was staying the night. North Conway is known as a hub for outdoor pursuits and I seriously loved the little room I had here in the historic Kearsage Inn. (Also was the best deal of the trip since it was the off season and a week day....and they had the friendliest staff.) In hindsight I wish I would have remembered to hit up the local outdoor store that the Plymouth host had suggested: IME and I also didn't stop at the AMC information spots. Both would be spots to check out next time. 

I did however head out for Diana's Baths and at the advice of a mountain biker I met (while trying to find the actual trailhead), I ended up getting in a great trail run that evening. There are so many various trails from North Conway and the surrounding region, but this particular evening the trail run was perfect:

Diana's Baths

After a shower and soak in the tub, I headed to SeaDog Brewery (which is actually a Maine brewery) in North Conway for fish tacos (yum!) and a blueberry beer (double yum and with blueberries floating in it!). After food, I made it back to the Inn to grade my online courses and then crash for the night.

Next up: Maine! :)

Whew, Half Way Thru Lent

Honestly, who knew that what I would need to impose for the period of Lent was self-care and SLOOOWING down, but we're three weeks into this period of Lent and it's been extremely good for my grieving process, renewal, and really just learning how to be settled again.

I just downloaded pictures from my phone to the computer from January until now and in doing so it became apparent to me why my body, soul, and mind just need a break from going a mile a minute. These few weeks of slowing down and distracting less have allowed me to purge much that I didn't even know was locked inside of me and has allowed me to start processing through some of the residual thoughts, hurts, emotions, healing, although that will continue to be an ongoing process. At this point, I'm still loading my calendar with fun (FREE!!) things for this spring term but dependent on how I feel at Easter, I might continue the social media ban. Ironically in the time being, I feel like I'm communicating more and on a better level with many of my closest friends and I'm returning to be more engaged with family.

This weekend while jogging along the beach with the dogs I looked at the shells along the beach and realized that currently I feel like one of those sand dollars that's almost whole but has had it's core broken out of it. That might sound depressing but six months to a year ago, I probably felt more like a sand dollar that was smashed into various pieces and scattered along the shore, and I've come to recognize that I'm okay with allowing my sand dollar to slowly piece itself back together. The quieter I am, the more I feel those mineral deposits building upon each other and at some point I feel like I'll be back to a whole (or almost whole) sand dollar. I'm in the process of re-assessing what used to be important to me, what I wanted out of life, thinking about who I have been (the mistakes and the things I'm proud of life molding me into), and trying to decide who and what I want life to be in the future. So far I'm realizing that much of who and what I want to be is pretty similar to who I was at 26 when I got married. I want to find the same partner that I thought I had found back then and I want to built upon the same or similar values as I was back then, but I'm also trying to figure out how to let go of the hurts that occurred in the interim and how to mold two versions of myself into one.

There's been a lot of grieving in the last few weeks. It had been a while since I'd had all sorts of random tears, but they come at random times these days. During the divorce, I think I grieved somewhat about feeling like I had failed by getting a divorce and the issues of underemployment but then I tried to stuff it all aside to move on. A lot of what seems to be surfacing is grief related to the experience of the actual marriage, the disappointment that it wasn't what I thought and had hoped for, the years that I tried to deny all the sadness that I felt, the loneliness and insecurity. I'm also still processing through the loss of optimism and hope in humanity that occurred by living with the infantry, in the south, in a lie, etc. And those are bigger issues that are going to take more time to weed through. There is also a lot of anger and resentment resurfacing. Anger toward my ex for the choices he made and continues to make, frustration with myself for always letting him back in and for choosing self-suppression. But I have made some progress also. I recognize the marriage itself was a mistake and I have been able to acknowledge that we all do make mistakes throughout life. I look around my home and I love what I do have present in my life, and I'm working on fixing my relationship with God as well. I'm aware of the values I had and I'm trying to figure out how to get back to living out many of them.

And I have to say the naturopath I'm working with has been amazing thus far. The dietary changes are hit and miss but I have started weekly acupuncture appointments and it's nice to just weekly check-in with someone regarding the physical effects of what's going on emotionally with me. What she has to say makes a lot of sense about why I'm massively exhausted, my sleep is hit or miss, and I'm hyper-sensitive to stimulus around me. I just started "clearing treatments" with the acupuncture and yesterday there was that moment during the treatment when things "just clicked and aligned." The feeling doesn't stay forever but it was amazing to feel that again...like when you're tuning the radio and how great it is to hit the exact air wave of a good radio station rather than hear any of the static buzz. Additionally there was a hummingbird floating around the pine trees out the window, and it was nice to just lay there and observe nature doing it's glorious thing.

Some other great things:
--I took almost a full week off of running after running the Shamrock Run. I was really happy with the experience of doing the race (my pace was great, the hill wasn't as bad as I thought, and I smiled almost the whole way). I jogged with the dogs at the beach last weekend and then we did an easy, easy jog last night, but really and truly I've just tried to give my body more rest time.
--Yesterday I got a library card. While this might not seem like a completely joyous thing to some...for me it is. The library is one of those positive childhood comfort items and it felt rewarding to finally get a card after living here for three years. I looked up the items I wanted and then found several other items in the same shelves that sounded like needed and good options.
--I plowed through a novel last week. It was the first one I'd read in months and conquering 400+ pages in about two days was rewarding. The book touched on a lot of the same themes I've been feeling and while a fun read was also good processing material. (No wonder Mom had passed it on to me in the summer....). I also finished another book this weekend that I've been reading over the last few months, and last night I read 100 pages in a book about grief (it's been great and validating thus far...and hopefully will help provide direction for how to move forward).
--Did you catch that it's been a full three years that I've lived in this house? This is the longest I've lived consistently in any one location since high school...and the stability of location and the creation of a true home has been good for me. We'll see what the future holds but at this point, if I could finish out five full years in this house, I'd like that...
--Yesterday I spent the afternoon responding to the seven follow-up questions that were emailed out to second round applicants for the full-time faculty positions. Again, there are so many of us part-time faculty that are applying for these positions that I am not banking on actually getting one of them, but the fact that I was considered for the second round was incredibly rewarding. That in itself is almost enough...although of course, I truly would love the opportunity to be a full-time faculty member.

I do hope to still post some of those updates about hiking and other pictures etc, but we'll see how things progress over the next week or so. :)

End of September Randoms

1) So it's been raining/storming in Oregon for days now...days I tell ya! Weather report is saying RAIN til Thursday. It's also been in the 50s, with some nights of lows in the high 40s. I already turned the heat on some to keep my housemates...and the flannel sheets on my bed....and a second down comforter...and it's September y'all!

2) I'm ready for October. Period.

3) Due to said rain, Major the cat wants to sleep inside at night. Major is not allowed to sleep anywhere except my bed or the garage cause he's a lazy feline who will pee (and not use the liter box). (And when he pees, it creates a puddle as if a grown man peed.) Major knows which sliding glass door is for my bedroom. At least 2x a night Major shows up and if I let him in, then he also 2x a night meows later to go out. I feel like the mom of a newborn....and we have some major "go in the dry garage where there is food and warmth" routine to instill.

4) I slept for 11 hours Saturday night. Don't hate me. You don't want to be around me when I'm sleep deprived...and various things have been pushing my late night hours even later. Those 11 hours were needed...and glorious.

5) I finished the book Beautiful Ruins. I didn't want to, but I made myself to do it. Verdict: not my fave.

6) Teaching started last week---first week went alright. I have smaller in person classes than normal and it's usually about week three when you really get a feel for your students. I had my orientation and first class for my own program on Saturday. Ironically the first class I had was pretty much the lecture I gave to my own students this week. Eventually I kept my mouth shut and let other students talk instead of supplying answers, and I talked to the instructor after class. The other two courses start tomorrow and will include....me getting up three times a week at 6am--oh man. :) Tuesdays will be my long day with attending class from 8am-230pm and then teaching my class from 6-9pm.

7) In looking at the schedule for the courses I'm taking, the vacation/breaks from my program never line up with the academic calendar from work, so except for the two weeks at Christmas, there will always be work or studying until next October.

8) My parents are en route to Portland to pick up Granny for the rest of the week. They're also bringing me the hand-me-down treadmill via Mom via my aunt. Refer to the rain in #1. Three times this week I wished I had a treadmill. I feel like a kid on Christmas right now waiting for it to arrive. (And in true form of my mother's parenting from throughout my life...she's already informed me that the treadmill that she got for free is now my Christmas gift....gotta love them....and anyway, I'll take it because it feels like Christmas today anyway...and we all know I'm not a big fan of actual gifts at Christmas....) I'm already planning on my final Sept exercise day....to be running on that treadmill!

9) Although regardless of the treadmill, I'm still going to have to get Roxi out on the streets at least a couple days a week....or else my bathroom trash will continue to be emptied all around my bedroom...as she gets bored and a lil destructive when she's not exercised or loved on to fill her quotas.

10) Since it's fall I've been in mad soup making routine. There was a vegetarian chili that was a mix of two pinterest recipes...and then a improv root vegetable soup. The crock pot is one of my favorite cooking devices in fall. Each go provides enough for two bowls for me, bowls for the housemates, and two servings for freezing. I also made a rhubarb blueberry crisp the other day too.

11) Housemates are going alright. Granted it's only been a couple weeks but I'm hopeful we'll keep trucking along for the next two months. One gal is a huge animal lover who doesn't agree with how I discipline/interact with my animals and she started to try to change their routines. We had a LONG heart to heart and she's finally backed off some and I've relaxed some. Other gal has a LOT of stuff going and....I'm not so sure she actually will be adhering to the usual routines I put out in my ads (ie she goes out and come home late multiple nights a week, stays up super late, apparently talks loudly on her phone during the night while the other gal is (trying to be) sleeping, and apparently already brought a guy home the other night....so we might need a conversation too). Whoo, but two months ain't too long, right?! :) Oh man. Oh and in usual housemate M form....now he's saying he might be back as soon as Dec 1st....go figure.

12) Have I mentioned that I'm glad tomorrow's October?

13) I didn't get the job. I'm glad. After the interview..I didn't want it for multiple reasons. I'm trying to have faith that finances will all work out. Keeping positive as I can.

14) Last week included a day trip up to Tacoma to go check in on my baby cousin who has been having a rough time...and to also pick up some text books from her. It was nice to be able to spend the afternoon helping her out...and to just get out of Portland for a bit.

15) There are all sorts of other family things...and a million other details flying around my brain. Like: needing to finish the garden, getting everything I need for school, redoing my taxes from last year, etc etc. I'm ready for routine...and checking things off lists....and well, again, October :)

Happy October to y'all!

Down Range to Iraq and Back

So this post won't say everything that I want to say. Sometimes there's much that I want to write about regarding the experience of being a military spouse, but I don't because I still believe in protecting the privacy of my ex-husband. Regardless of the struggles of our marriage and the growth that both of us still need to achieve as individuals, I still (or maybe re-)love the crap out of that man for the parts of him that he gave to our nation (and for a variety of other reasons too....)

So I'll just say this to summarize: somehow I can make a positive impact on veterans when it's my job and I'm an outside participant who they want to entrust with their stories and have help them. Being that same level-headed, easy-to-turn-to-person doesn't always apply when you are the spouse of the soldier or veteran however, especially if that individual is not willing to admit to anyone that anything might be troubling him or her. For years I convinced myself and believed that any relationship issues surfacing or changes with my spouse were due to the chaos of his upbringing....and once I finally realized that his deployment probably had incredibly difficult effects for him, many of my friends were shocked that I hadn't seen the signs in my own marriage. We see what we want to see.... And for every veteran and/or soldier I HAVE helped, I also have routinely failed to be able to be to understand and support my own spouse when we were in the thick of it. Granted the veteran or soldier has to be willing to share and/or try, but I think I was naive on how to do so in my own marriage....(and even today as his friend, I still fail to know just how to "get in there.")

A year ago this week while at the funeral of our friend who we lost in action, the CO (company commander...think big, big boss but not executive boss) and his wife pulled me aside wanting to know what had happened between my ex and I (who were separated at the time). The CO's wife is an amazing, yet stubborn woman who had seen her own husband through some hard times (both of my exes CO's and their wives were great supports during this time) and she had suggested the above pictured book to help me with the experience. Through the chaos of the funeral and return events that ensued, I completely forgot about it....but this week, that book randomly arrived in the mail. Even though I'm in the midst of several other books and have become a less-than dedicated reader, I easily devoured it in two short sittings....and I really, really, really wish that I would have known of this book's existence two to three years ago. In fact, in all honesty, I sort of wish that someone would have just sent it to me as a wedding gift....

Do I think this book will change my life? Nope. Do I think I can make my ex read it and actually do something with it? Nope. But so much of what was included in it, explains so much and solidifies so much of what I've worried about and felt in my heart. Some of the info in it I learned in the course of our marriage (for example: you don't wake a combat soldier up from a dead sleep......I was incredibly lucky he recognized my face prior to making contact with me....), but much of it was stuff that I really just needed to read and see in writing while stocking it up in my heart. 

Some of the passages that stuck out to me on today's reading:

And over time I hope to check out some of these other resources:

I'm someone who needs to make sense of things in order to move on, and although aspects of this book absolutely didn't describe our situation or him, there was so much in it that did offer explanations. And as much as we're "divorced," I don't know that I'll ever really be able to turn my back on this man. Everyone deserves to be loved....and maybe our veterans and our soldiers just need continual patience, respect, and some more of that unconditional love.....

If you know a spouse of a military member or a family member who is trying to understand why their soldier/veteran isn't the same way that once were, I'd highly encourage you to suggest this title. As I for one, am incredibly thankful for it randomly arriving in my mailbox this week.....and I intend to pass my copy on to a family member who is married to her own deployed soldier.... 

Happiness Project & FUN

The Happiness Project. Ha after my post last night...sounds like something I should take on, no?

Well it's actually the title of the book I picked up in the Savannah airport on the way home, and I finished half the book on the plane. I have yet to crack back into it...because I've been pondering some of the gems that I took from the first half and wanted the opportunity to write about them too.

Gretchen Rubin, the author, got me thinking about her attempts at being a better partner and better mother. I especially took home the points that all we can really do is control and change ourselves. And that sometimes we have to rely upon other people in our lives to be our intimacy "partners" as our spouse isn't generally capable of being able to do it the way we envisioned...and vice versa---I think this is something that is coming up with more frequency in everyday conversations I'm having too....

Another section stuck out to me when Gretchen developed her own theory about finding happiness....
"To be happy, I needed to generate more positive emotions, so that I increased the amount of joy, pleasure, enthusiasm, gratitude, intimacy, and friendship in life....I also needed to remove sources of bad feelings, so that I suffered less guilt, remorse, shame, anger, envy, boredom, and irritation....Apart from feeling more "good" and feeling less "bad," I saw that I also needed to consider feeling right.

"Feeling right" was a trickier concept: it was the feeling that I'm living the life I'm supposed to lead....."Feeling right" is about living the life that's right for you---in occupation, location, marital status, and so on. It's also about virtue: doing your duty, living up to the expectations you set for yourself...."

And while all of these pieces have stuck with me throughout the last two days....I think the chapter that has stuck out the most is the one about increasing FUN. It was the chapter that made me dig a pen out of my carry-on and attempt to list the things that truly do make me feel like I'm having FUN. There are a lot of things that bring me enjoyment, lots of things that make me feel fulfilled, lots of things that make me happy....but not all of those are truly continuously things that make me feel that they're unapologetically FUN. The things that made my list? Well, many are things I haven't done for a long time, but I also found that I've been pushing myself to engage in quite a few things that are FUN and that many of my goals on my year 30 list line up pretty well to this pursuit of FUN....guess maybe my heart/mind knew that I needed more of it before my analytical part of me did!

1) Cooking/Baking
2) Scrabble over beer nights
3) Exploring new places/things/cultures
4) Dancing
5) Reading Thursday New York Times over coffee
6) Flirting (especially when starting out with Tall D)
7) Helping other people feel good (ex dressing/life improvements/volunteering with others)
8) Visiting old friends
9) Documentary nights on the couch (especially with Tall D)

The first four on the list came easy. The next two came after some thought. And the final three arrived after some more moments. I thought of these next final two but wasn't sure about adding them:

10) Driving the Sorento, especially with happy dog faces in back
11) Singing loud to the radio

And while listing items on the plane, I couldn't really decide if hiking/running etc is something that I truly think is FUN or just something that I do cause it's fulfilling and let's me spend time with others....but yesterday's summit helped me discover that I truly do think hiking is FUN. It was fun in the sense (that the book describes) as challenging fun. I was doing something outside my comfort zone, pushing myself, but also doing some of those things that I do love....like sweating, breathing deep, spending time in nature, moving at my own pace, and bounding along with my two awesome dogs. The 2.5 miles up was a mental challenge at times but I barely stopped moving and just kept on putting one foot in front of the other. I jogged about two of the miles down, carefully picking my way down on the more loose and craggy spots, but supportively surrounded by the dogs with Anna staying about 20 feet max in front of me and Roxi, as usual, right along my heels or showing me the way down a more difficult stretch.....it's always incredible how animals can sense exactly what one needs.

So here are some pictures from yesterday's FUN:

I also had a great early evening "helping" provide insight to a mutual friend of mine and Tall D's. It was fun helping him find new goals and ways to achieve them (#7). I had "FUN" delivering eggs to the neighbors yesterday with cards, ordering gifts for a couple of my friends today, and planning an overnight backpacking trip with my gal T for this weekend. So it looks like I should add the following two items to the FUN list as well:

11) Hiking/outdoor pursuits
12) Showing people I care via little gestures/ways

And on that same note, I'm so glad that I found a new friend in T. Sometimes God brings new people into our lives just when we need them most...and while T arrived (and listened) right as I was entering into this period of mess, she's been a fabulous supporter, ear, happy hour partaker, and outdoor pursuits partner. I haven't met a new friend like her since high school....someone I can say "hey, want to go do x,y,z thing in the next week?" and T always responds with an enthusiastic yes. T also happens to be my only current friend on the west side. Regardless of whether we remain long term friends, I am so incredibly fortunate to have met someone new who provides me with so much of what I currently need...and who seems to feel the same way. Joy: meeting someone new that you just completely connect with.

Ironically in this moment I can think of lots of things that I find FUN....but it's just creating the opportunity to go do them. Case in point: beach bonfires, lazy fishing days, learning new skills, going up in a hot air balloon, conversations around firepits, wakeboarding/tubing, and the list could go on and on....

Lots of additional thoughts and improved venues/changes I'm looking into for the coming month. I still contain the same immense sadness in my heart and soul and it will continue to reside there for months to come...but I'm also enjoying reflecting upon and continuing to seek out the moments of FUN added into my goals.

What do you find to be FUN?!

The Glass Castle

Image taken from here.

I literally just finished our book club selection for August/September...and while I never would have selected to read this book on my own, I have to say it was fascinating! I've read plenty of other books similar to this but there was something about Jeannette's story that left me riveted. I started the book by reading the first hundred some pages yesterday afternoon, read the next hundred or so pages when I couldn't sleep, and finished the last twenty pages this morning. This is the first book in a long time that I would have read non-stop given the opportunity.

It's hard to imagine growing up in a life like Jeannette's and I'm legitimately in awe of the strength and perseverance demonstrated by her siblings and herself. Having worked at child welfare, the reality of her life and the desire of her family to maintain their togetherness hit home all the more...and only further reminded me that their family reality is much more common than many in the American public might like to believe. The love and strength of her siblings and herself is to be applauded and I'm incredibly impressed at their ability to have relocated from Virginia to New York City more or less unscathed, when many more depressing alternatives could have become their reality.

The book also further reminded me of the variety that exists within the homeless population and that for some it is a chosen way of life. This lesson was one I first learned while a social work undergraduate student when I was related a story about a homeless guest speaker who had a trust fund but who also selected to live on the streets. While plenty of homeless do not choose to live on the streets, for some it is a desired choice. The reality is that each homeless individual and their circumstances are different and while it may not be the life many of us would choose, why should we judge others who select or are driven to those circumstances?

A wonderful, eye-opening read---I would encourage you to pick it up and peruse it's pages!

A Lil' Bit of Life: Snapshot (3)

Bullets tonight folks:

---Babies are a lot of work!! I'm loving seeing lil man but I can guarantee you that I will be doubly relishing my late mornings, any lazy afternoons, and the freedom I have for flexibility! My gal D is SUCH a great mom though and she's consistently taking care of his needs while making sure to raise as healthy a child as possible. Girlfriend is schooling me on all sorts of things that I might need to know some day! E's such a lil cutie so here's a picture of him for you to enjoy:

---D's been doing the Couch to 5K so she's been motivating me to get out of bed early in the mornings and run with her. The first day I missed her run time and struggled to get three laps out of her neighborhood circuit without companionship nor music. This morning I finally was able to push myself to a 5k however!

---I've been on a bit of a reading kick this week. On the plane, I plowed through Your Money Counts, which is a book about budgeting from a Biblical perspective. A lot of the information was repetitive from other books I've read about the topic, but a lot of the Biblical insights were applicable to other aspects of my current life thus it was a great reminder of being more steadfast, a better communicator & giver, etc etc. Today I spent most the day wrapping up the last half of Summer Rental by Mary Kay Andrews--an easy summer read about three friends in different mid-30s transitions who rent a beach vacation rental for a month. The book wasn't fabulous but it was fun, and it was a great break from some of the other serious stuff I sometimes read. Next up is September's book club selection The Glass Castle that my mother so kindly mailed here from her already read collection.

---Today I also spent some time thinking about finances and needing to be a bit more mindful about long term goals etc. I took a look at the budget for the next few months, scheduled payments on a few things for the next few weeks, and thought long and hard about my old goals of paying things down quickly. There was a bit of a quasi-shut door in terms of ease of access for me to take classes at the college where I teach, so I've been spending the last few days thinking about what I really want out of this next year.

---I also miss....hub. I hate to put it here but oh well, I'm just going to do it. I truly don't know how things will turn out and sometimes I wonder what exactly is (or can be) reality and what is in my mind about everything, but at the end of the day I know how I still feel inside my heart about the man that I chose to marry. I think my first appointment with the counselor when I'm back will be a very, very good thing.

---I've been nervous about having so much unfilled time in September but there's a chance Katie might be flying out to spend a few days with me and get to know Oregon.....and that alone is pretty exciting! Plus I know my mom's willing to come back up (yea for mom's transition into retirement!) and I'm already scheduling some happy hours with my friends for my return. Keeping busy with any last minute work items, prepping for next term, applying for interesting jobs, etc will also need to be added to any to-do list. And maybe I'll tackle some yard work & house projects and be able to keep this reading kick going! There are still a few other long weekend trips that I've contemplated, but we'll see where my budgeting mind is as the month approaches.

---I've been enjoying many of the local goodness that Georgia has to offer, including the local eggs and cheese that D had and her many organic and delish food items she's prepared. I also was able to pick up some locally roasted coffee from Savannah and some absolutely delicious Georgia beer (Sweetwater Blue), plus my gal Heather gifted me a bottle of local Georgian wine for my birthday. I'm looking forward to another Saturday trip to the local farmer's market and D and I might have to hit up the great tuna melts at that same restaurant too! (Tonight however I did relish every sip of the sparkling red Italian wine that had been sent over from another great milspouse who is stationed in Italy---thanks Ms Maggie, seriously amazing!)

---Additionally last night I had a long-ish chat with one of Tall D's military buddies, who also got out of the Army last spring. The two of them haven't kept in contact much but it was nice to hear from him as I've frequently wondered how he's really been doing. The conversation was great but it also reminded me again of how difficult the transition can be for so many veterans and how difficult it can be for most civilians to truly support and appreciate the life that these men and women have lived. There is no way to describe the reality of the military family.

---While I've been thinking about how to cut back on expenses, there are still a few things I'd like to do before returning back to the PNW: a return trip to Tybee with perhaps an outdoor excursion and a long day trip (at least) to Charleston. I'm still looking forward to seeing more of my gal Heather and enjoying the coming days with D & lil man E....but I also know I have some grading and lots of thinking to work through as well. It's been great to be away from home so much this month, but it makes me appreciate the haven and comfort of home too!

Hope y'all have been having a great first few days of this week too!