Catching up

So,I haven't updated my blog since Mother's Day weekend. I hate feeling behind, especially on something that I don't really have a schedule on but I do like to keep up with what is going on in our lives, if for nobody else but me. So, trying to catch up....

My mom came down for Mother's Day, the guys fixed steaks on the grill and I made baked potatoes and had bought fresh strawberries to have with Angel food cake. It was a really good lunch and a really good day.

I had went to the new boutique in Greenup a few weeks before and bought myself the fabulous necklace. I decided that day, I would need to go there to get Mom her Mother's Day gifts but when I wore the necklace to church that Sunday, she really liked it. I tried to get another one just like it but to no avail. I did however find two more that I thought she would like but with the understanding she could have mine if she wanted it. I got to keep my necklace, she loved hers!

Something else really special happened that Mother's Day. I didn't have any idea he had done it, but Andrew bought Mom a card just from him. Yep, that guy is pretty well perfect in my eyes.

So, the next day, Mom and I went to see my gastroenterologist, Dr. Peterson. He normally is the one who calls me "slightly overweight"; he has lost weight, about 60 lbs. so he was on me to do the same. He is doing the Paleo diet, and going to Crossfit. Well, the nearest Crossfit is Effingham....not happening and when I read the Paleo diet, yeah, that's not happening either. I have made some changes but will explain that later in the post.

Life was pretty calm after that until last Saturday. There was an auction in town that had a really nice refrigerator that I wanted to bid on for Robert. Andrew had the whole day off so I asked if he wanted to go. I may never take him to an auction again. We ended up getting Robert a truck.

Let me backup...Last November, I believe I posted about Robert's Grand Cherokee breaking down. With the house, and the winter and work, he hasn't had time to work on it. He is really going to need help and Garrett is more than willing to help but he is in the same boat as Robert, too many projects and not enough days (like the fact that Garrett is getting married a week from today!) So, he has drove the farm truck all winter. The farm truck is exactly what is sounds like, it was meant to be used to haul water from the creek a mile away, to take seed to the other places on the farm. No air conditioning, and the only way the heat works is when you get the truck up to 60 for about 20 minutes.  You can imagine the winter he had as well as the summer he had planned. And, to top it off, Robert is a coffee person and it had no cup holders, AND it was a manual, so there were times you couldn't just hold a cup of coffee all the way to Charleston.

We were at this auction and nobody was bidding on anything, I got a ton of steals that day. So, we went to see the truck sell and nobody was bidding. Andrew said, "seriously, you should bid on it for Robert", so I did. As I said, nobody was bidding, so we ended up with a truck.

Robert's not going to appreciate me for broadcasting this, but when his dad called him and told him he bought him a truck, Robert thought his dad was talking about a model. When Andrew convinced Robert that is was a really nice, '99 Ford F150, extended cab, complete with air conditioning, Robert cried. He hung up from his dad and called his Nana, he was still crying. He was on his way home from work at the time, so as soon as the truck went, they went in the house. By the time Robert got to the auction, he had a fridge too.

Andrew and I had decided that even if Robert hated the truck, we were way under trade-in value to get something else, no worries there though. Robert loves his truck. It has four cup holders. He has taken coffee to work every morning since he got it tagged. Good things seem to come to those who wait upon the Lord. See, Robert never once complained about the old white truck. We worried it wouldn't make all those trips to Charleston but it did. Andrew said last Sunday night, God may not always give us all our wants, but he gives us all we need. It seems like when you are happy with that, he gives us a lot of those wants as well. Robert being a car guy, there were certain engines that the truck could have had that he wouldn't have been happy with, there were three to choose from and only one that he would have wanted. Guess which one the truck had? Yep, the right one.

So, one more thing pertaining to Robert, his house. They have the entire West wall now restored, new seal plates, new top beams, new actual wall where it needed it. They have all the interior walls out of the west side of the house as well. They found out this week that the seal plate on the south wall will have to be redone as well, they weren't happy but the good news is, the actual wall is good, they just have to get a new board that connects the wall to the foundation under it. It isn't easy but they are getting good enough at this, that they do at least know what they are doing. I really figure two more weeks and all the structure on the west half of the house will be done. We are still looking at him moving in in August.

On the workfront. LIHEAP officially ended yesterday, until September. Lots going on at work, we have a couple of outreach workers leaving so we will be having new faces. I got two out of the three computers that I needed to change to Win7 finished this week. The third has to now wait a couple weeks as I need to talk to Xerox about a program we have on it. I was going to get this done yesterday but the girl I needed was out of the office.

Monday, three of us will head to Springfield for the LIHEAP/ Weatherization conference. We will meet up with some of our Weather guys as well as some others are coming up Tuesday evening for the Wednesday portion of the meetings. I am in high hopes of learning a lot but also, looking forward to seeing my friends from across the state.

We will be back in our office next Friday. Then I am home for a week, work the 16th and the 17th, Andrew and I leave for Kansas City for the National Energy Utility and Affordability Conference. I have said it before and I know it will come up again. I LOVE this conference! It is usually what I need to get my "umph" back into what I do. So many good ideas to help people and gaining knowledge, on a national level of what is going on in the utilities markets. The fact that I get to take Andrew with me is just icing on the cake. He will have Wednesday and Thursday all day to putter around KC, which is something he has never done. I have a feeling it will be good for him too. We will have most evenings to ourselves as well as my conference is over at noon on Friday and we are there through Friday evening. Saturday morning, we are heading northeast to see his Grandma. We haven't seen her for two years. Robert was there, almost a year to the day last year, when he went to get Adam's car.

So, LOTS coming up in June.
Now for my "revelation" of sorts. You all know I've been doing Weight Watchers for almost two years. The first year, I lost about 45 lbs, the second, I lost another 15 for a total of 60. Unfortunately, the last few months have not been good. I couldn't seem to "get in the groove" and I needed a change. Pair that with the fact that I haven't even had time to go to meetings for the last month and we kinda have a "no-go". Andrew already quit a couple of months ago and I quit last Tuesday. Counting points was fine, as well as wearing my activelink and counting points there but truly I was ready to move on, to step it up, so to speak. So, we spent around $45 a month to subscribe to WW.   I spent $80 this week and ordered a fitbit and found My Fitness Pal app on my iphone. You can see, that is less than two months of WW. My fitness pal is just what I needed, it counts calories but also counts percentage of carbs, fat and proteins so I can see what I am doing. It even counts how much of the essential vitamins I am getting. It will sync with the fitbit when I get it as well. I feel like I have graduated to a higher level and the plus side is I'm down 4 lbs since Tuesday!

I started the 1 fit widows 30 day training, but since I started it at a weird time, I may start over or find another one that starts June 1. With it, you walk at least 20 minutes outside every morning and then have a series of exercise that you do sometime each day. I do my morning walk as normal and then do my exercises of an evening. I like it, but as I said, may search around today for something new for June.

That's life in a nutshell.

I have decided to do something at least one evening a week for me, since I am honestly home along most of the time right now.

Two weeks ago, I went to the Jr. High Spring Concert. I loved it, those kids are doing so well. I love the legacy. It kinda made me twinge a little when I realized if Robert has kids, they won't go to Newton to school, but that is a long way in the distance, especially since there doesn't seem to even be time for girls right now.

Last week, I went to dinner with Kathy Walk, a dear friend of mine who does the same job I do  but for CEFS in Effingahm. I didn't really get anything in there during the week this week, but I did get to visit with my friend Patty yesterday when she came by the office and today I am going to have my hair cut, so that's something. Next week, I'm gone all week so that may be hard, but hoping to figure out something with Patty for the next week and then the next week is going to be spent with Andrew.

Life is good. God is good...all the time.

Happy Saturday!