Happy All Saints' Day....Happy Thanksgiving....Merry Christmas.....Happy New Year !
All of these holidays have occurred since my last post ! Where did the time go ?! My last post was right after I had returned from NY, visiting Elliot and the Grand Dogs. And guess where I am now? Yep...NY....visiting again ! I guess I just don't have much time to blog between my vacations. I get into the routine of life in NC...work...caring for the kids and dogs...and there just isn't enough of me time. However, that's totally OK...I love my time in life with my kids !
So....what's been going on since my last post? Let me think....
Well...while in NY in October, my Leader at work contacted me and advised me that a 2nd shift schedule had come available and wanted to know if I was still interested in moving from 3rd shift to 2nd. For most...it would be an unattractive schedule (working Friday - Monday and off Tues - Thurs), but with Andrew still living at home and in high school and the pay differential for working double day weekends, I decided to go for it. I had been on 3rd shift for over 8 years now. I had finally come to the conclusion that 3rd shift was no longer healthy for me. I have poor eating and exercise habits..and then my sleep schedule is another story. Therefore, I took the opportunity. However, due to staffing issues, it took 2 months for my 2nd shift schedule to take effect. I have only worked 3 days on 2nd and then I went out on vacation...lol...
After getting back from NY in October, I made the decision to stop attending church for a while. It had nothing to do with College Park Church....It's a wonderful church. However, I'm not a believer in being a "Sunday Morning Pew Warmer". I believe being apart of a church is where true Spiritual Growth occurs. Whether on 3rd shift or 2nd shift, I am just unable to be apart of the life of the church. I was frequently invited by folks to come to dinner, go to gatherings, etc...but 95% of the time, I had to decline due to my work schedule. It was so frustrating. Therefore, I have chosen not to attend. I have emailed a few friends there and emailed the pastor. In due time, my schedule will become more "normal" and I can be active in church.
Funny thing...I can't remember much in November until close to Thanksgiving. I have made an attempt to reconcile with a cousin of mine with whom I have been very close until my "coming out" in 2005. Since, this cousin has had nothing to do with me. I contacted this cousin and had a pretty direct conversation. Initially, it seems things are better. I went to this cousin's birthday dinner in November. Close to Christmas I had she, her husband and her mother (my aunt), along with the kids and my parents over for a Christmas Dinner. I am attempting to bring healing between the 2 of us. We may just have to agree to disagree on some life issues. Additionally, we are getting older and I don't want to live life without her. However, I shouldn't have to conform to her thinking for us to be able to love one another and spend time together. Only time will tell.
The latter parts of November and December, I had several small dinner parties with my parents, and some aunts and uncles. My family is getting older and I want to take some opportunities to spend time with them. My mom has 5 siblings still alive. Her oldest brother (my uncle who lives next door to me) is now 85....my mom's oldest sister, Aunt Dot is 84. Uncle Harvey gets around pretty well, but is obviously slowing down. He now walks with a cane most of the time. Aunt Dot we moved into an Assisted Living Home in 2009. Her Parkinson's has worstened and her health has had a marked decline since 2008. Another one of my mom's older Sisters, Elsie, is doing well...However, she has quite a bit of hip and back pain. All of these were apart of the dinners I had. I find that I need to take the opportunities to spend time with the ones I love, before the opportunity is no longer there.
Christmas was nice and quiet. Mom, Dad, Uncle Harvey, Aunt Margaret were over for Christmas Eve Dinner with the kids and I. Beef Burgundy...Broccoli with Cheese and a Coconut Cake was the menu. On Christmas Day, Aunt Dot came over with Mom and Dad. The kids slept in a bit. We had our traditional Christmas Lunch...Afterwards, we opened presents. It was very relaxing.
Elliot , Nong and the 6 Grand Dogs came home on Wed, Dec 30....They were supposed to have arrived on Tueday night the 29th, but his job prevented him from leaving any earlier. It was great to have "MY Family" all together. It was cold and rainy the whole visit. New Year's Eve was laid back....We watched the ole ball drop at Times Square and drank Champagne.
I rode back with Elliot, Nong and the dogs on Saturday, Jan 2. It was freezing cold from NC to NY. When we arrived, Elliot's boiler had broken and there was no heat or hot water...It was 34 degrees in the house. I was ready to head for the nearest hotel ! However, he plugged in some electric heaters and it finally warmed up enough we could stay in the house. I had the bright idea of hanging a blanket between the opening of the dining room and Den and it actually got warm in the Den. YAY ! Sunday was frigid...and it snowed off and on most of the day. The "Boiler Guy" came out and we finally got hot water...but no heat ....bigger issues....but no worries...the electric heaters work fine now.
On Mon & Tuesday, I have hung out around the house...relaxing and catching up on movies....blogging (as you can tell ) and emailing old friends. It's Wednesday and I plan on finish up this blog ! and do some napping and reading.
Any who...More later.
