The Bible According to Evie, Pt 1

And the duck breaked some things because he didn't want to be with Jesus anymore

I wanted to be with my momma and i can't know about that so i wanted to get some crackers in the cracker box

And then he pulled and pulled and pulled and he never seen'd it before. It's a tree branch!

You know what? I have a present for you, that's why I didn't know this.

So, the turtle bit daddy and we screamed but he disappeared and we had a party in turtle land

Then the boy said Help, Help, Help. And he never goed home so that's why he didn't notice this and he goed to the jellies and they never seed them before and they cried and they never seen that place.

This is not our home, but these are our turtles.

Sigh...

Well today is the big day--paint is going up on the walls. It's really crazy. Our walls were all white stock paint before and as the beige and crimson goes up, I'm amazed at the difference. It's actually starting to look like a home. I hope that when Indy comes home he thinks the improvement is worth the lost sleep.

I look at other couples sometimes and the petty disagreements that they have over groceries or bills. Indy and I have been through a lot together. I think that the problems we've had to deal with have made us a stronger couple. Somehow, we can look at a situation and figure out how to make everything work instead of getting mad or frustrated with one another. I don't even know how we always manage to make things work out. I think it's faith. The belief that things will work out has somehow helped them to work out.

We're young. We had a child, got married, both managed to finish our college degrees with a young child, worried about jobs, and went through a cancer scare last year when I had the minor melanoma. Our challenges have made our love so strong that looking around, we can't understand some of the reasons relationships struggle.

If I had any advice for other couples I would probably tell people to let go of their selfish and petty concerns. When I see people in a tizzy over going out or buying a car, I just want to tell them to grow up. When you've committed your life to another person, you've traded in your two individual lives for one beautiful one. I'm not saying that having personal interests and time is a bad thing--everyone needs their space sometimes, but priorities in life should not be based on bargaining. If one person wins and another loses in discussions, there's a problem with the relationship. Relationships (including friendships) need to be a partnership where compromise and heart is in the conversations.

Maybe I'm on a soapbox, but the most beautiful part of relationships are the challenges--having the opportunity to solve problems as a couple.

Blessed

First of all, I have to say that I'm lucky, VERY LUCKY. It's not often that people have children, get married, and share a dream. In our case, Indy & I have always wanted the other to be happy as we moved forward. We had hoped to be able to afford a house before having a second child, but that hasn't worked out so we're transforming our condo into a home instead of a temporary place that we happen to live.

I will admit that a lot of the projects I'm hoping to accomplish were not his idea in the first place. He's had input, but the frivolity of painting and matching I know he's helping with just to indulge me. He loves me enough that he's trying as hard as he can to help my vision come to fruition.

Tonight, the project is getting ready for painting. I'm thrilled that my mom & gram are coming to help paint. (Actually I can't technically paint because pregnant women are overly susceptible to paint fumes.) I've been taking things down, wiping down walls and furniture, etc. today and Indy has been cleaning the larger items (behind the refrigerator, on top of the cupboards). It's been a long day.

I know that he likes the colors but I hope that when the paint is done, he'll feel like this long day and late night were worth the final result. I feel bad when we sacrifice sleep to make something I was hoping for happen. Truthfully, I'd do the same for him.

An Update

For those of you that don't already know, here's the situation as it currently stands:
I just turned twenty-four in January, I've been married to Indy now for almost three years, I have a three-year-old daughter (going on 23) but she will be 4 in August, and Indy and I are expecting our second child, a boy, in May.

My husband works for the college and I don't really work. I'm going to be a stay-at-home mom at least until Evie (3 currently) enters kindergarten. For part-time flexible work, I tutor for a company called Wyzant (http://www.wyzant.com/1PYBYA) & am also a Mary Kay consultant (www.marykay.com/lkhart). If you're interested in either, just ask me, both are wonderful companies that give me opportunities to help others--I really enjoy it. I hope to start substitute teaching in middle school and high schools when my children are in school, most likely in the subjects of English and History.

Right now, in my seventh month of pregnancy, I'm in what they call "the nesting phase". I have plans to tear my condo from the inside out to prepare for baby--so far a lot of it is working out. We start painting on Monday. I'm so excited!

Here Goes Nothing

Lord knows I haven't written anything for almost a year now beyond a few scribbles in my notebooks. Mindy has been encouraging me to start a blog and so, here I am, starting a blog.

I thought that it would be nice to share with friends and family what's going on in our lives. Although this blog will be from my perspective, I think it will be a great place to share my stories, advice, and don't-try-this experiences from child-rearing to staying in love and keeping a marriage alive. In addition, my rants and ramblings will probably seep in. Life is full of so many miracles and frustrations--I wonder how to keep track and keep up some of the time.

By the way, thank you Mindy :)