Q. What do you call four matadors in quicksand?






A. Quatro sinko.

I love that joke. It's freakin' hilarious. And you can't even say it isn't.

and a pinch of salt...

I've started this post out countless times and erased it, started again. Because it's kind of hard for me to say this. I don't want to offend. I don't want to say this and have you think I'm not grateful. I don't want you to think I don't love it here, when in reality I think it's pretty close to perfect for us. It's just admitting that a situation is hard and gives you a little anxiety is a hard thing for me to do. This gal likes to appear like she got it together at all times. And you are going, "Heh? Really? Cuz I gotta admit- your posts have been all over the board lately." Yeah, I know. It helps to be honest sometimes. Thanks for your understanding.

Sometimes I want to crawl under a rock. Really. There are so many people here. I'm not used to it. We lived on the opposite side of the country for 3 1/2 years and lived a much quieter life. Our social calendar was pretty much wide open. And we come here and are- for lack of a better term- overwhelmed or bombarded by people. They already know who we are. We don't know them. And it's so wonderful, but scary. I feel on edge at all times. I come home and it takes me a couple hours to relax and feel at ease. And I. Love. People. I thrive on being around people. So I don't get this. It's so unlike me. Don't get me wrong, if people didn't come up and welcome us and introduce themselves to us, I would be so lonely. I'm thankful that we are welcomed and accepted, no questions asked. We feel the love, without a doubt. More than once, I have begged my own eyes not to mist up. It's incredible to come into this situation and have people welcome us like this. This isn't what I expected to happen. Never did I think that so many people would be thoughtful enough to try to make us feel at ease. But still. It is so nerve wracking.

As I was chatting with people at a baby shower, my feelings were completely validated. I'm not alone in this. People have been through what I am going through and come out relatively unscathed. Even the ones who haven't still have a good understanding of what it must be like. I'll take the good with the bad. When it boils right down to it, we are blessed beyond my comprehension to have landed right here. Of all the places we could have gone, we were put here. For a reason. And while the anxiety will fade, hopefully the feeling of needing to be here never will.

This one's for the boys

Notice how it has a soft light around it, much like an angel would? It came to save us from the prospect of push mowing the lawn.

And this one's for the girls.

I bought these for Zane and I. For our anniversary last week. I've been enjoying the company of Zaner for quite a few years now. I'll keep him around for another one, I think. (Happy belated to Sabrina and Levi)

Tickets to Abq are now $198/person.
I know this because I miss my friends back there. My heart feels all achy. :'(
Too bad we bought that dumb mower. Sigh.

I'm going to paint my loneliness away... (room #2, the master bedroom) Well, maybe. If I decide the color is right.

GSA

Hi, my name is Mindi ("Hi, Mindi!" you all say in unison) and I'm a Shopaholic. Even Dave Ramsey couldn't crack me. Well, why don't I look like a million bucks? you wonder. Because I don't wear the stuff I buy. Except around my midsection. I'm addicted to grocery shopping.

Seriously!? What's with me? If there's a sale, I'm there. Even if there isn't a sale, I'm there. Today I bought 6 lbs of strawberries. Because Susan said Costco strawberries are the best. Never mind the fact that I already had 3 lbs at home. We have been here not even two months and I have filled the rest of the freezer that we had partially filled, another small chest freezer and the fridge freezer. Fridge? I practically have to duct tape it shut. Cupboards? Lets not start. I could feed a small army for a month and be completely fine. And I'm still not content. I mean, hello! I totally have a $4 off coupon for Meijers- so I must think of something else I still need so that I can use it. Big deal if I'll walk out with at least $50 worth of groceries. At least I'll use that $4 coupon. Which I earned, by the way, by buying 4 million boxes of cereal last time I went in. What? They were on sale. Duh.

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And more cupboard space to store my groceries.

The Backyard.

You asked for it. Or someone did. Pictures of our backyard. I love it. With a few "candywions" (dandelions) for future bouquets from Izzy to adorn our kitchen. I love them, too. Is there anything sweeter than a crumpled pile of weeds, er, flowers from your baby meant to brighten your day?

I remember thinking it would make my mom so happy to get some flowers. So it warms my heart that Bizzizzy would think the same. I tell her I love them and she usually jumps up and down and says, "Oh, good! My mom is so happy! She wuvs candywions!" Too stinkin' cute. So, this is our backyard. FYI: To push mow this lawn with our mulching mower, 4.5 hours will not even get you to the swingset.

Zane bought a rider. (I'll have to put up a picture later. For the male readers of my blog. I don't understand the fascination with lawn mowers and such, but I don't have to.)

This view above this comment is from my sliding glass door. The one below, is the same view from the railing of the deck. In case you wanted to know.

My big life moment

(I collect fabulous friends.)

When I was four I couldn't wait to turn five. Twelve, sixteen. Eighteen. Twenty. I didn't actually want to turn 25, but I did it anyway. (Such a good sport I am.) Unlike most people, I didn't dread 30. I never knew what the hype was. If you look at people in their 30's, they are all finally coming into their own. Comfy in their skin. Confident in their bodies, personalities, intelligence, beliefs. And I wasn't afraid of that. I woke up the other morning feeling like a kid again. It was my birthday! And I was so happy about it. I finally reached the milestone that I actually waited for. And it didn't disappoint. That's it, people! I actually am 30. For realsies. (Yeah, I might have been telling people I was when I actually wasn't.) What? It's not against the law. My twenties were good. They served a purpose. But I was over them. My life, I felt, was better suited for the 30 something crowd. What with my million and a half kids I have. But, I'm here. I made it. Bring on the fine lines and other beautiful signs of age. I'll just be sitting here waiting for the big 40. They know where to find me. I'm not scared.

Well, maybe a little.

*Just in case you were wondering: I actually spelled "intelligence" wrong- spell check caught it. heh.*