Stop — I want to get off!

Remember when you could ask for “do-overs” and when you could demand that the merry-go-round be stopped so you could get off? Well, my family has had a challenging (to say the least) week and I DO NOT want a do-over, but I would like to step off this insane ride for a few moments to catch my breath.

We’ve had three deaths in our extended family since Jan. 2, my computer was eaten alive by a trojan virus and our furnace quit working on the same day the temperatures hit the teens and the windchill took the mercury below zero!

Now let’s back up the truck and I’ll give you more details.

My husband’s uncle died on Jan. 2 from injuries he received in a horrible car accident just after Christmas. He lived in Kentucky, so my husband and his parents made the eight-hour drive from St. Louis to Kentucky late Monday night, returning on Wednesday. It was particularly hard on my mother-in-law, who is close to all of her siblings.

My great uncle also died on Jan. 2 after being ill for some time. He lived in the St. Louis area, so I was able to attend his wake Tuesday night (Jan. 5), but only after arranging carpools for my older children and only with my toddler in tow. It was a challenge, but I’m glad I went for my Mom, who is very sad, and to see lots of family that I seldom see.

On the same day as the wake, my brother’s father-in-law died after a year-long battle with pancreatic cancer. I knew this man before I even knew his daughter, who became my sister-in-law, because he had been my boss at my first teenage job at the Florissant (MO) K-Mart. He was a kind man who my brother had come to love and who was loved dearly by his daughters. His wake and funeral this weekend will be very sad and it will be hard to watch his widow, my brother and sister-in-law and their boys grieve the loss.

Certainly less important, but significantly disruptive, has been the destruction of my computer by a trojan virus. (Remember, I’m a freelance writer/communications professional who MAKES A LIVING AT HOME WITH A FUNCTIONAL COMPUTER).  This happened Dec. 30 and my poor husband has spent countless hours attempting to salvage it (amid all this other craziness), but we finally gave up. It is my intention to save the money to buy a Macintosh — IAM DONE WITH PC’S. But, as a Band-aid (and after more than one three-hour conversation with Microsoft support professionals on the other side of the globe) we’ve purchased a new computer. Now, I’m waiting for my dear husband to get home from work and “make it so.” In other words, I want him to restore all the crap off the back-up external hard drive, and set up all the other systems and processes I need to work. I am tired of working on a slow laptop that doesn’t like me to answer work emails, open attachments, save anything to the hard drive, open more than two Internet windows, blog, update my site, etc.

I should have been back up and running YESTERDAY but the supplier from which we ordered my new computer failed to deliver it yesterday as was promised. We were told it was “backordered” and they could not tell us when it woudl arrive. Unacceptable. We canceled the order and began shopping elsewhere. While doing that, we noticed it suddenly felt very cold in our house. “No honey — that’s not ME being ICY because I’m mad about my computer not arriving. It really is cold in here.” Hhrummpf! Like I could be enough of a witch to lower the temperature of the house!

Anyway, that’s when we discovered that the furnace wasn’t working. Guess what? Heating and air conditioning dudes are really busy when it gets super cold outside and the weather guys are predicting six inches of snow! To spare you boring details — our furnace is “temporarily” fixed while we wait for a part to be ordered that is due next Tuesday. No guarantees it will keep heating the house until then. Just a “let’s hope so” from the furnace dude.

Surprisingly, I haven’t had a complete tantrum yet. I’ve had a few “almost tantrums,” but no complete tantrums. My Beth Moore Bible Study is helping — this week’s lesson was on waiting/patience, neither of which are my strong suits and both upon which I needed desperately to focus. I was reminded that God’s in control, not me. And THAT gives me some peace. So, I’ll stay on the merry-go-round of life and be grateful for it.

Grace in the Small Things Part 8

• A teenager who is independent and self-assured.
• A teenager who can completely pack herself for a trip out of town.
• A son who loves his baby sister with all his heart and who gladly helps entertain her every morning.
• A baby who smiles way more than she cries and who makes me smile everyday.
• A husband who is rational and even-tempered and who balances out many of my Type A  characteristics.

Grace in the Small Things project

Grace in the Small Things Part 7

• Infants Tylenol and ibuprofen.
• My YMCA.
• An easy online experience helping my 13-year-old register for high school (I was really nervous about this and it was no big deal).
• A neighborhood with sledding hills that kept my 10-year-old busy for seven-plus hours today.
• A day of sledding without any injuries to my child or any neighbor kids (as far as I know).

Original post here.

Grace in the Small Things Part 6

• Snow days.
• Easy-to-use/learn Windows Movie Maker software.
• My Flip video camera.
• Nestle Sugar-free French Vanilla Coffee Mate.
• Jello Sugar-free chocolate pudding.

 See original post here.

Grace in the Small Things Part 5

• Sippy cups that are really spill proof.
• Mondays (MAINLY because it’s a new week to do better on my Weight Watchers plan and my weekly points allowance starts over).
• The Grover, MO post office where there is never a wait and the employees are friendly.
• My friend Karen who listens when I gripe and who really gets it.
• Clients who are generous with praise when they’re happy with my work.

See original post here.

Grace in the Small Things Part 4

• A completed pile of paperwork/filing.
• A freshly-washed, recently vacuumed car.
• A baby who uses her sign language to let me know she dirtied her diaper.
• The weekend.
• Freelance work.

See original post here.

Grace in the Small Things, Part 3

• An uninterrupted lunch with a friend and former co-worker.
• Good sushi.
• A friendly, helpful editorial assistant at  a NYC-based magazine where I’m trying to make some in-roads.
• My OBGYN with whom you can call and get a same-day appointment.
• Friday.

See original post here.

Grace in the Small Things, Part 2

1. It’s sunny and 50+ degrees outside in St. Louis on Jan. 22 and it feels like 70!

2. My YMCA is awesome, and the nursery staff seem to really love my baby.

3. My teenager seems to have a handle on her high school registration.

4. My husband will be home in time tomorrow for me to go have lunch with a friend.

5. I’ve got two conference calls this afternoon, which means work is still coming my way.

Original post here.

Grace in the Small Things project

I’ve decided to participate in a “365 Days of Grace in Small Things” project because I think it’s really healthy  and helpful to remind ourselves of the things for which we should be thankful. So, I’m going to start posting a list of two or three (or more) things that have graced my life, either on that day or at any time in my life.  Feel free to join me. You can get the cool badge you see above here.

I suspect it may take me more than a year to complete 365 posts of thanks, because sometimes life just gets in the way of blogging. So, when the 365 Days of Grace category in my sidebar shows 365 posts, I’ll consider it a success.

Grace List (these things aren’t such small things, but they’re a great place to start):

• A wonderful husband who rises at a dreadful hour each day to support his family.
• A cool teen who is growing into an amazing young lady.
• A kind-hearted son who is a lot like Dad.
• An amazing baby who is keeping me young and makes me smile.