So Freakin' Sad!

Well you may have read about me being in my first hopeful two week wait yesterday, that will learn me. This morning fertility friend took my cross hairs away (cross hairs pin point ovulation), I guess my temp patterns don't make sense. I am so freakin' sad. I know that God is bigger than fertility friend and my body and can do anything but I am still human and totally sad. I had just told V about our potential ability to test next week the other night too. Now I'm sick to my stomach with sadness.

Too Cute (day dreaming again)

Isn't this just too cute!!

Adorable Baby Photography Blog

A girl just posted this on The Bump and had to share: Mila's Daydreams

I QUIT!

I just quit my job, it is hard to believe it even happened. I sat in front of my boss, a man I deeply respect and consider a friend, all teary-eyed, I didn't know how to start or what to say. I had pre-written my resignation letter, it was a formality I knew I would have to do. I took a deep breath and said "I'm holding my letter of resignation." and cried, not the most professonal thing I've ever done but it is what it is, my emotions where real and raw and I cried. I was so unsure how he would react, he half smilled and said, "I understand." Continuing to let tears run down my face I said "I just can't do this anymore, I can't come here everyday wondering if any of us have a job or who will yell at me for doing my job. I can't handle the stress of a sinking ship. I know I can't grow here. I am so sorry. I love working for you, I am not quitting because of your leadership but I just can't do this anymore. I can't work here trying to get pregnant, nor can I imagine handling this stress if I were pregnant. I just can't do it anymore. He reponded again "I understand, please tell me you have something lined up?" me "Yes I do, it's a little pay cut but more chance for further growth." And he smiled proudly, "I won't ask you to stay, I won't offer you anything to stay, I can't do that to you, I am happy for you." *whew*

Like I've said before I'm sad to no longer work for my boss but this really is for the best, I feel like 1000 lbs have been lifted off me. This is a step in the right direction. I will not burn any bridges although part of me would have loved to show up in this first thing this morning:

Leap of Faith and Praying

Well....I have decided to take a leap of faith, I am accepting the other job with lower pay and less stress. I ran the numbers again last week and the new job will have much better and much more affordable health benefits not to mention less stress (this after being screamed at by a coworker last week over nothing) so V and I talked and prayed and decided my emotional well being was worth the small temporary (hopefully) pay cut! *gulp*

And in other news, I think I may have ovulated this month. I won't be testing until I am certain I am late (however I decide to determine that) and so far I am planning to share with you exactly what I know when I know it. I'll keep you posted peeps. In the mean time could you pray for V and I, this is quiet the growing time for us, I've only had this one job throughout our entire marriage and we are so hoping that this is the cycle we get pregnant. And in God's hand, will and timing. Thank you in advance.

Choices, Choices

Life is all about choices. Good choices and bad choices all have consequences, intended or not. Every single day you wake up with a million choices to make and equally as many consequences to handle. Will you make a healthy choice, a good choice, a bad choice, a unfair choice and what will the consequences be? Choices you think are good can turn out to have bad consequences and vice versa. And really you never know the outcome of what you choose to do, sometimes the consequences are not easily seen and may not be revealed for years to come.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, as you can tell since I’m writing about it here and all. I have no many choices to make right now. In many ways I feel so young, the world at my finger tips and while I feel obligated to certain choices, there really is nothing forcing me to make a certain choice. I will always take into account my morals and my husband’s point of view, as I would expect him to do for me. Some choices can/will affect the direction of the next several years. Kinda scary huh? Kinda daunting, isn’t it? I believe that God has it all under control but I also believe we have free will to make a million and one choices in life and we have the ability to royally screw things up. Overwhelming isn’t it?

I have to get out of my job, while it pays well it’s killing me slowly, emotionally….everyday. Even on my best day I struggle to maintain. Every single week I am completely burnt out by Thursday and Friday is a total struggle. I get angry and frustrated beyond belief and I cry, none of these things are professional but I do not work for a company with a good moral compass nor do they treat their employees as human beings so it’s easy for my emotions to get out of control for I too am only human. I know I can’t move up here, nor do I want to. What a horrible time to need out of my job! I’m considering applying at a Big Name Company call center in my town, I’ve heard it too can be miserable BUT I think I can handle it for a while until I can move up and I know I could move up if I can just tough it out. The problem is I would have to work a rotating schedule and I’ve been spoiled for my entire marriage V and I have had identical work schedules. I have a job in the works but they have been all over the radar and it makes me increasingly nervous and it’s a big pay cut (~12% annually), at the same time the benefits are a little cheaper and appear to be better, BUT they are being bought out, heaven knows how that will affect me, will I be unemployed in a few months? What will happen to our baby-making-journey?

I feel sick to my stomach. I know I am not in control but I would really like to know what the answer is or even just a little guidance. I know what you might be thinking, ask V. And while, yes we have talked about it, for the most part V is very easy going and will often say “you are over analyzing this, I don’t know what to say, I support you whatever you choose.” Not the most helpful responses, though they are appreciated. And praying, oh boy am I praying to the point I wonder if the good Lord dreads my voice (I know that isn’t true but you can’t help but wonder).

For the most part I’m a fairly calm person, though I do over analyze things I pride myself on able to remain calm…but right now I’m burnt out, emotionally wounded (by a co-worker, again) and pretty much smack dab in the middle of a 12 hour shift (not normal, I usally work 8-5 but I was volunteered to work an extra 4 to 5 hours, thanks guys not that I pay to take a yoga class on Thursday nights or anything.)

Sorry I guess I just needed to vent.

I loved this so I stole it!!!

Jumping ahead of myself (aka daydreaming)

Today I am as hopeful as ever and thus spent by break daydreaming and browsing baby items....here are a few I thought I'd share (I found most on etsy or cafepress). Enjoy!

I love this style of art for the nursery!

Yep we are those kind of dog people!


Wouldn't it be fun to tell V with this type of shirt?
I don't think I'll be able to hold out long enough to ship it though.

A shirt for me perhaps?

(I don't know why the "A" is there, we'd have to change that)

How stinking cute is this?!

Totally for a boy but still sssooo cute!

Lastly perhaps a way to announce the gender?

Love these shirts!

How do you measure success?

Is it in your professional or personal life, or a hybrid of both, or somewhere else? Is it something you have already achieved and are satisfied, or something you chase after? Do you think it will just land in your lap one day? My bestie and I were chatting the other day about this topic and our conversation got me thinking, what is success? It’s different for all of us because we are all so different.

I feel rather unsuccessful, but that is because I view success almost exclusively in a professional manner. I put myself through college for marketing, never intending to stay in this college town, I even told V that when we started dating…the day we started dating. But then we got engaged (about 3 years later) and his family had become so important to me, I started thinking about when we would have children, I would want them raised close to V’s family. So we stayed, I considered it my sacrifice. V never asked me to, and to this day tells me if I want to leave we can, but I can't. I love his family and want to be close to them, and I’ve fallen more in love with this college town. We have a love-hate relationship for sure. It’s hard to make a life here, anyone will tell you that, LOTS of college kids fall in love with this place and don’t leave thus the going wage is well below the cost of living. It’s difficult to own a home here because the average income is $30k/yr and the average cost of a home is ~ $2o0k (well that is more like starting price on a 900 square foot bare essentials home). It feels like no one really respects college educations here, especially in marketing, they expect you to sell things….no I want to work on your brand and your imagine in the community and that will make your product sell! For a good sized town (when I referenced wikipedia in 2006 we were about 65k people so I'd bet we are more like 75-80k now) we still act like we are more like 2k peeps, people here think word-of-mouth is ALL you need in terms of “marketing”. Sigh. It’s so frustrating, I love marketing. I would LOVE to work in Public Relations but that doesn’t really exist here. Sorry, now I'm just whining.

Don’t miss-read me here, I am happy in my marriage, clearly V and I have a great time together enjoying life here. But I feel compelled to be the bread winner, to provide for my family, and I don’t feel like I can here. I am I’m working as an *gulp, I hate admitting this out loud* Administrative Assistant. Please do not take offense if this is your work position, I am merely saying I put myself through college for 5 long, expensive and stressful years and I truly believed I would have a marketing career. I want so much to own a home.

My bestie was surprised when I told her I feel unsuccessful here, she said “you have a job” which yes I do but I am well over qualified for it, I SHOULD have a job. I know the market is horrible but it’s nothing new to this town, it’s usually horrible, there are always too many over qualified candidates for any given job. I guess I’m struggling to accept that this is success, having a job with benefits (thank the lord for that). I guess for so long I pictured my life differently. I don’t know how or if I can achieve what I had wanted here.

So I guess I am looking for inspiration, where do you see success in your life?

Wordless Weekend Post

Just shy of 100 things

I love these cheesy quizes, because it's really fun to learn more about each other. Here are 99 things about me. I have bolded the things I have done, and made the ones I still want to do Green. The non-bold, black things are still up in the air if I really want to do them or not. So copy and paste this on to your blog, I'd love to learn more about you!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyworld (I interned there!)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightening storm
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (this is actually V’s ancestors since I have no idea where mine are from)35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt (we will this summer)
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie (more like video, it’s for our church but about 2500 people will see it)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (in progress)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check (on accident, I was only 19!)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (does fractured count?)
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car (only 2 years old, as close as we're willing to purchase)
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Back to Blogging about Babies and the Making Of..

I realized tonight I haven't blogged about the whole "trying to make a baby" thing in a while. That is because I'm in a new place, provera gave me a period and now we are hoping I'll ovulate on my own and either get pregnant or have a cycle on my own. Tick Tock Tick Tock

It hasn't been bad though, since using provera I feel good! I feel like I did something, this journey is difficult because there is little within your control, but I feel I'm handling it well, as is v which is important to us. I realize people are going to make comments and mean well but I will get hurt, I'm working on remembering I am in control of my reactions and my attitude. The only thing I have a really hard time with is the women who complain day and night about getting/being pregnant, I vow here and now to you to never be that woman no matter how sore/tired/bloated etc etc etc I am, when I do get pregnant I vow to be the happiest pregnant woman to have ever lived!

On another loosely related topic, it looks like I may have a new job here pretty soon. I was (secretly) terrified to take another job because I didn't want to loose our insurance coverage and have to stop trying to get pregnant and/or go back on birth control for an unknown period of time. Praise God that the position I believe I will get starts insurance benefits after just 30 days of employment!!! It feels a little crazy to even consider taking a new job and trying to get pregnant at the same time but it's what is right for us, and after I take maternity leave I will certainly return to work.

So that is where we are at, just waiting to ovulate. I've started temping in hopes that will help us see what is going on.

I know several of you are on your own baby making journey, how is that going for you?

Family Reunion Get-a-way 2010

Have I ever told you how much I love V's family? If not consider yourself told! The are a-maz-ing people and I am beyond blessed to be a part of them!

This passed weekend was V's mom's side of the family bi-annual reunion. V's grandma is one of 13 children, all of whom are still alive (the eldest is 85 I believe). Collectively they are the sweetest, kindest people on the planet! We were so excited that this time the Reunion was a mere 3 hours from us on a beautiful lake we adore. V. and I took Friday off, Mom-in-law and I got pedicures in the morning (hers are the purple with tiger stripes!) and mid-afternoon we caravaned up to the lake.

It was a beautiful drive and luckily the roads were not too crowded!

We arrived early, got all checked in and unloaded our things into our shared cabin (with mom & dad -in-law). Unfortunately V and I had to sleep on *gasp* separate bunks! It would not have been so bad but the beds were SO squeaky, no loving all weekend :( Good thing the weather and scenery were amazing or it could have been a looong weekend for me! V and his dad unloaded his fishing boat, that thing was such a hit! V had a blast taking different cousins, uncles and such out! Dad-in-law even caught a fish the first night! (a 5lb 24 incher, if you care). Unfortunately that was the only fish they caught all weekend! LOL! Here is a pic from the porche of our cabin, the guys are coming back in from one of many fishing trips.

So it was a beautiful weekend, lots of just hanging out and enjoying the family. I was on cloud nine for most of the time as there was only one toddler and no one had mentioned a thing about babies. Until the black sheep of the family (literally) cornered me and verbally slapped me for "not giving your wonderful in-laws the grand baby they deserve!" I couldn't even look at her, what did she expect to happen? Was I going to suddenly have some revelation about having children right there? Luckily V saw this happening and saved me, essentially telling her it was none of her business! I felt so weak, I had no defense, no way to respond. What could I say to her? I couldn't tell her off as if she were some stranger, though I hardly know her, I will likely see her frequently over the course of the rest of my (and my future children's lives). I was caught completely off guard and it still makes me cry just thinking about it. The worst part is a random husband of someone in the family over heard it, you could tell he had no idea what to say but could tell I was deeply hurt. By the way that lady is a mess, and I greatly dislike her now, she thinks she is the cats meow because she has a 3 mo grand-daughter....really lady? Your not-even 18 year old daughter gets knocked up by her second cousin and gets married and suddenly you are the knower of all things *angry obscenity*

Back to more pleasant things, I so enjoyed playing random games with random family members, sitting around chatting and such. This is the kind of thing I've longed for since I was a child and I know have it more than my heart can contain. I especially love V's great uncle HH. He is almost the eldest and I believe almost or at 85. We've always had a special bond. I particularly enjoyed hang out with him, he recently had surgery and while he's recovering well he hasn't been at the in town family gatherings. Other than that a fair amount of my time was spent just sitting by the lake shore enjoying God's beauty and reading my book. I recently got "Eat, Pray, Love" and I really like it. I love biographies, I love true stories! I like hearing the way other people see things or experience things (like 9/11). I'm fascinated by it. I've read some fiction and don't mind it in moderation but I just find biographies more interesting.

The weekend as a whole went by for too quickly, before we knew it we were packing up our things and looking forward to next time while we passed the time on the drive home. I so hope next time we will have a child to bring with us, not to show up the black sheep lady but because that is what my heart so desires. I would have loved every moment of waddling around with a pregnant belly or my infant/toddler. My time will come though, I know that for certain. All things in his perfect time.

A evening sky, campfire perfect for smores!

Tell me a fun story about someone in your family you love a little extra (such as great uncle HH).

Yoga and comments about it (from others)

So recently I decided to try yoga, luckily a friend wanted to try it with me. I love B, she is so very sweet, the kind of girl that makes you feel lucky to know her. She is also married to my friend and pastor. Yesterday was our first class and it was wonderful! Our teacher is very informative and I can feel the physical effects of the new work out today.

I was so excited to post on my facebook "Jen tried yoga for the first time last night, I really love and an look forward to the next six weeks of class!" (or something pretty close to that). It was only a matter of minutes before I got comments and not the good kind. Allow me to back up a moment.

I am a person of deep faith, I believe in this fella named Jesus and like I've said before I'd love to tell you more but don't believe in forcing my beliefs on anyone. Those people who do force their beliefs on others (think those people with signs at large intersections) almost always fail to show the real faith I believe in. I believe in a loving God that saved me from the pits of hell known as my childhood and loved me so much he willing chose to die for me and forgave my sins. With that said I am still a person, I still like movies with swear words, heck I swear (too much). The point of my faith is that we are sinful messes and we are saved by grace, it is despit our sins that my God loves us and chose us. ::steps off soapbox::

So when I got a comment "you know all yoga poses are acts of worship to other 'gods'." on my facebook I was well PISSED. Not all yoga is religion based and regardless I am mentally strong enough to choose to make my being there a act of worship to MY God. I greatly dislike when people are SO closed minded, now I don't think you should be so open-minded your brains fall out but COME ON! I personally was called to "be a light in an unusual place" in all seriousness I remember considering the missions field and traveling to foreign lands for my Lord and he said "nope, you need to be a light in an unusual place and that is where ever you are right now". So I will choose to live my by faith at work, while I walk my dog, at yoga class, when I'm home alone or with my hubby, when I'm hiking in the woods and as much as possible while I sleep (and at church whoops almost forgot that! LOL). I will choose to do this and fail time and time again and STILL be loved and saved by my God. He will not refuse me because I took a yoga class!!! Grr!

I need to mention before I go that I decided to take yoga to reduce my work-related stress and I feel like my first class helped with that! I walked out of there feeling like I got a good workout and feeling very calm and like for once I had gotten some me time I didn't feel guilty about. So I think it's working, and no matter some one's close-minded comments, I will continue to go.

This is roughly how I looked and felt at the end of the class (in a beginners pose)

Sorry I'm not so certain that was a blog post as much as a rant. Now I feel like I need another yoga class to chill out from those dumb comments.

Where my (blog) name comes from...

I love these little figurines, Vic bought the two on the right for me for Christmas just after we "stopped preventing" pregnancy, I love that the child's balloon says "hope", I find it so fitting. I found the saying at a local craft shop some time ago and fell in love with it because after all that is what marriage is; For Ever and Always No Matter what. And lastly that is (obviously) a pic of our hands, it was taken about 6 months after we were married by a talented friend of ours as a belated wedding gift.

So where does your blog name come from?

Hiking and Deep Thoughts (with pics)

V. and I went hiking on Monday with dad-in-law,since we had the day off and I wanted to share a story and thought with you.

Dad-in-law picked us just before 7am and we headed off into the great outdoors, luckily we live in a part of the country where we don't have to drive all that far to get there! After 30 quick miles on the highway and 28 long slow miles on winding old logging roads that remain unpaved, we arrived.

It was a cool and cloudy day, the high likely only got to maybe 60 degrees with the elevation. First we hiked to an old mine site V loves to explore, also dad-in-law had never been there, it was fun to watch him explore. It's just a old fluorite mine that has been closed longer than V and I have been alive...combined, but it's neat to look at all the sparkle of the remains. Also V thinks he'll find a big crystal one day, good luck honey!

One of the old mine entrances:

We hiked back out a little ways back to where the trail forked so that we could hike to a couple lakes where the guys could fish. I have little interest in fishing, V doesn't want to bait my hooks or get the fish off for me, since we are catch-and-release peeps I fear I will do more harm than good to the fish when trying to "release" them. Thus I take along books and enjoy the great out doors. Anyway it was another 3 rocky miles to the lakes so onward we went. We all had bundled up so the hike was comfortable, thankfully last summer V conceived me to buy a camel-back (a backpack with a bag and long straw you can drink out of, mine holds less than a gallon of water). That little item is a life saver!

After about an hour we arrived at the entry point to the lake, unfortunately it was still steep hike down on washed out trails. Luckily V and I had been here the summer before so I felt comfortable. Finally we arrived at the lakes edge, how pretty! V started me a little fire so I could warm up and he and dad-in-law headed off to fish. I sat happily and ate the snacks I had packed in but soon my little fire was more work than it was worth so I put it out and headed over to the lakes edge with the guys.

Dad-in-law fishing:

I found a large flat rock upon which I was able to sit comfortably and read. I'd read a bit and enjoy the view, watch the guys and talk with dad-in-law, V fished from a area I wasn't comfortable sitting and reading (not enough room) so every now and then I'd hike over and take pictures of his fish and the mountains. The sun would come out of hiding briefly and warm us and return to hiding. I hiked around a small portion of the lake and took pictures of the wildflowers and pictures of the guys, it was a lovely afternoon.

My favorites wild flower (Indian Paint Brush):

Near where V was fishing (can you see all the little purple wild flowers?):

After several hours the guys decided we had tempted the rain clouds enough and it was time to head out, the hike back would take us about an hour and half, other than getting out of the steep lake area the hike back would be fairly easy.

My favorite part of the hike out is a very rocky area, the trail is a ledge along the edge of the mountain with no trees blocking your view of the valleys, it was lush and green and I felt as though I could see forever! I found myself struggling with my asthma at one point on the hike out, towards the end in a steep area. Throughout the whole hike V was in front of me and dad-in-law behind, during the hardest time I found myself staring at V's shoes saying "just one more step Jen" over and over. Then after my struggle was over and we were on a flat part I was still doing that, staring at the back of his shoes! I had to remind myself to look up at the beauty of God's creation all around me. And I wondered to myself if we all too often do this in life. During the hard times we do what we can to cope with a struggle but then the struggle is over and it's time to lift our heads and carry on, experiencing God's beauty but we still have our heads down, focused on just taking the next step, not thinking. Something to ponder. I feel like this is how I should be approaching our TTC journey right now! Stop, look up and experience the Glory of God right where you are because this is exactly where he wants you right now. Whew!

As you can imagine my thoughts preoccupied me and before I knew it we were back at the truck and headed home. There are few things better than a hot shower at home after such a long hike!

A pic of V on our hike out (sorry so blurry):

Until Next Time!
A pic of the rainbow that welcomed us back into city limits:

Our weahter recently

This made me laugh, and with the way our weather has been lately it's totally appropriate so I had to share.

Friday Ramblings

Good Morning!

I'm so excited it's Friday, and I can bet you V is as well....because Flo has left the building! Yippee! I am SO excited for this cycle, my hope it higher than ever! My hope over-flowith (is that a word?)

In addition it's one of my favorites times of the year, celebrating Independence Day!! July 4th has always been a big deal, the town where I grew up in always made a BIG deal of it. While the city V and I live in now doesn't to it up quite the same it's still a wonderful time. What a cool thing to celebrate, think how different our lives could be with out that fateful day in 1776, seriously ponder it for a moment, I'll wait. Had we never fought for and won our freedom from Great Britain ::shivers:: Anyway, there is so much going on, so many different BBQ's planned and other gatherings....I'm not certain which V and I will attend, is that horrible? I think we are those people who don't RSVP and then show up, whoops! For what it's worth I'm a huge planner and typically would be all over an RSVP and plans but I feel for this weekend I feel the need to be more....free of the restrictions of concrete plans.

On Saturday V wants to go sapphire mining, he really loves it, he's a rock hound (if you want to know what that means click here: Rock Hound Info )I will admit sapphire mining has grown on me, although it can be pricey and if you aren't careful you will end up sun burned (or if you are light skinned as I am you end up THIS color, no matter how hard you try). V wants to have a piece of jewelry made for me with some of the larger stones we've found, maybe someday. If we go I promise to take pics for you. He's taken me on some fun little adventures as I learn more about his rock hounding, some are more fun than others but I figure if it's interesting enough that he loves it I can find some interest in it as well, as his spouse I think that is one of my responsibilities.

One last ramble before I bid you fair well for the weekend. That interview I had this week went really well, in fact I was offered the job essentially on the spot....however it's a decent pay cut. While I am not the breadwinner in our home my income is important and we are having a difficult time accepting a cut of over 10%. I'm waiting to see what our health benifits would be with the job change (and if we'd have to put trying for a baby on hold until benifits kick in, very stressful!) If you pray and wouldn't mind could you think of us? I would love to have a less stressful job that is more stable with opportunity for growth, I just feel so conflicted if I should jump at this offer or wait it out. Thank you in advance. While we are on the topic if you EVER need prayers please feel free to reach out to me, I'd love to pray for you!

Have a safe and Happy Independence Day/Weekend Celebration!!!