Take a Seat

The title of this post is exactly what I would like to do.
Of course, I would sell our furniture the week before the big snow hits. It's been nine days so far that we have been sitting on a bungee chair and a hope chest in the living room. Monday, January 25 was another day stuck in the house due to snow, yet no furniture to set on.   Worst Timing Ever.
By dinner that evening, I couldn't take the cabin fever any longer. We slid out way all the way to Chili's for dinner.
On Tuesday, January 26, I decided to start working on our dreaded tax paperwork. It was snow day #5. I also got a massage. Hot stones feel good in this kinda weather.

By Wednesday, January 27, we had living room furniture. That delivery day felt like forever.

During my snow days, Iv'e also took some time to add lighting under my bed.

On Thursday, January 28, I dropped Kenny off at the animal clinic to be neutered. Not sure if he got the memo, but if he is gonna be a member of the Hayes House, then he has to be fixed.

...And I spent the rest of the day taking my mom on errands. 

Saturday, January 30, was Devin's 20th Birthday.  Whoa!

We celebrated at O'Charley's for dinner with some family. We had cake at home afterwords. He never seems to like the gifts that we pick out, so Stroker took his car and filled it up with gas. I got him a new Eddie Bauer jacket, and Brooke got him an electric shaver.

She also had a sweet little instagram post dedicated to him.

We also attended a wedding on Saturday. Michaela and Austin Haney. 

There are not many people that can cry harder than I can, but today, I found two more people in the world that are of kindred spirits with me.  

Brookie and Mackenzie made a few pictures together before we headed back to Cookeville.

 How is it that I attend a wedding and come back with pictures of my daughter instead of the bride and groom?  

Just the Two of Us

Stroker and I had a great day together on Saturday, January 16. We drove through Carthage and Gordansville. We went to see the dam and drove through the park. We quietly sat at some "overlook" and just took in the view. We of course had lunch at a random "mom & pop" restaurant. 

We had a fun day, and we should definitely hit the back roads more often.

Carthage TN

 Banana Chimichaunga

 Scenic overlook of Cordel Hull Lake

 Us...enjoying the drive.

I worked the sound booth at church on Sunday, January 17. After church, Devin and I went to visit daddy for a while and visited with mom.

Monday, January, 18 was Martin Luther King Jr. day, so Brooke had the day off school. Brooke, her friend Morgan and I spent the day shopping in Lebanon and Mt. Juliet.  Honda finally finished fixing my car, so I got it picked up Monday too.

By Wednesday, January 20, we had snow falling....and eventually turned back into rain...and then froze on the roads.

I drove Devin to work on Thursday, January 21 because the roads looked like ice.  By 5:45 pm, I had to go to bed. 

By Friday, January 21, we had 7" inches of snow. Enough snow that All State offices were closed. Yay!

 Time to break out my "Fresh Sparkling Snow" candle from B&B

The roads were so deep in snow on Saturday, January 23, that they shut down FedEx.

We heard no complaints from Devin. He stayed inside where it's warm.

 The rest of us enjoyed our snow day out in the cold.

 Even Kimba wanted a snow day selfie.

V.I.C.T.O.R.Y.

Dinner at Dipsy Doodle again on Friday, January 8. It's beginning to be routine. 

Stroker had to work on Saturday, January 9, so I spent the day visiting mom, daddy and even had time to cook dinner at home for a change. 

We went to lunch at Lee and Judy's  on Sunday, January 10 after service. We spent the rest of the day resting at home. Love.

Monday, January 11, was the final game of Brookelynn's cheer career. Bitter-Sweet.

 

Another year closer to being all grown up.

On Wednesday, January 13, Stroker added some "Engine Restore" to my oil to help with a leak.

American Crime season 2 also began on Wednesday :)

When I tried to take Brooke to school on Thursday, January 14, I thought we were going to end up stranded on the side of the road. I managed to make it to Stroker's work to switch out my car with his truck. I guess "Engine Restore" was a bad decision. 

The Cheer Banquet was Thursday night. Ms. Drummond decided to hold it at Logan's Roadhouse. She just passed out agenda's with instructions on them instead of making speeches or passing out awards.

Stroker and I both took a day off work on Friday, January 15 because we thought we were going to have to go car shopping. 

Ultimately, after dropping our car off at Honda, we decided it would be more practical to pay $600 one time to get it fixed than to pay $400 per month over the next few YEARS on a car payment. Honda gave us a loaner for the weekend while ours was in the shop. 

We spent the day in Lebanon shopping. 

A family came by to buy our couch and love seat Friday evening, so we also went furniture shopping. 

 I finally decided on a taupe couch and loveseat from Ashley Furniture. Brooke and Stroker claim that it looks just like what we had, but in a different color.  I thought the only issue Stroker had with the old one was the color...He should be happy now. This is the color of our new one that we ordered.

 

The bad news is that we have to wait a couple of weeks on delivery instead of just loading the one at the store and bringing it home.  Uuuggghhh.

The Cats Meow

Well, after all the uproar of finding "Hank" a home in December...a new cat showed up on Wednesday, January 6. We awoke in the wee morning hours to the sound of Kimba yelping and a commotion behind the house.  We jumped straight out of bed and ran to the window to look out. 

After just a minute or so, we seen the situation. A blonde, feisty, cat had helped itself over our fence and into our yard. 

I guess Kimba's first reaction was to attack it, but after a quick swipe of the claw in Kimba's face, she learned to just leave it alone.  I tried putting him back outside the gate several times, but he just kept coming back in.

So now it is official...we have a cat.  I named him "Kenny". 

He makes my eyes itch a little, but I still like him. 

I had an eye appointment on Thursday, January 7  to see if glasses would help with my headaches. The optometrist also found a weird "freckle" in the back of my eyeball.

Shee dilated my eye which left me helpless for the next four hours. 

I also had an appointment with my primary doctor too. It was mostly a pep talk though. He is real big on "healthy lifestyles".

 We had 8th grade night at ATMS for basketball season on Thursday night too. Thank goodness I could see by then. Ms. Drummond didn't want to let the 8th grade cheerleaders be honored that night since "they were honored at the football 8th grade night".  uuuggghh   She finally came around and decided it would be okay. 

We finished the evening at El Tapatio with some other 8th graders and their parents.

Bank Heist to Cereal Killer

So, there has been this tree that has been bothering me for years. It's the neighbors tree, but it is growing right into our house. The weather was mild for Saturday, January 2, so we got out the saw and the ladder...and cut off the big branch that all the local squirrels have been using as a bridge to our roof.  I know it seems like no big deal, but I have such a feeling of accomplishment by getting that done.

I also scrubbed down our bathrooms today. They could use a good scrubbing a lot more often, but bathrooms turn into a lot of work, followed by a shower because I feel gross after cleaning bathrooms.

We visited an Open House at a new bank here in town after church on Sunday, January 3.  They gave out keys to everyone and if your key opened the chest, you got to grab a handful of money to take home.
Stroker's key opened the truck so he got the biggest fistful of coin's that his little hands could grasp. I think he wound up with $14-$16. You could tell by the look on his face how proud he was to be carrying around that ziplock bag full of loose change.

I finished off that Sunday with a hair appointment.

Katey surprised me Monday, January 4 with a box of Count Chocula. That was a great surprise since I had dwindled down to my last 1/2 a box at home. I wish they still made it year round. There is no good reason for Seasonal Cereal.

Everything You Go Through, Grows You

So, I spent the first day of 2016 doing what I love most...organizing.  I've always felt the need to have my belongings in order. I wouldn't call it OCD,... just the need for order.  I think maybe I feel that if all my belongings were in order, that my life would feel "in order".  Not so. I can have everything I own alphabetized, color coded and in chronological order, but it is never going to help me control my chaotic life.
I'm optimistic though. More than I used to be. I have embraced the fact that my children are their own person. I cannot make them be the person that I have envisioned them to be. My husband also has his own mindset on what is right and wrong with the world. Coincidentally, we don't agree on that either. The thing is, no one can make anyone become someone they are not.   Does that even make sense?...Well, It does to me.
It's not that I have given up on having the picturesque family that we all dream of, it's accepting that sometime life just isn't organized.
As a matter of fact, life is rarely organized. If your life is organized and your family is everything that you ever imagined, embrace it while it last. Fact is, we are all growing into different people. Sometimes better people, sometimes worse.  Every thing we go through in life grows us into to someone different. It's inevitable.   If you can spot your weaknesses, begin working to correct them ASAP.  I've learned that bitterness, negativity, and grudges slowly sucks the joy and contentment right out of life.
Don't let your vision of what life should be overshadow the blessings of the life you have.  Don't dwell on what's missing, but be grateful for what's present.  Happiness is a choice. Every morning when you wake up, choose happy. Even when your day begins to crumble, choose happy. Learn from mistakes, make good choices.

Do We Have to Make Resolutions?

Resolutions!?

Why not make resolutions that we are more likely to fulfill? 

For Example:

• Gain an extra 10 pounds
• Work More / Rest Less
• Spend money that I need to save
• Say things that I will regret
• Get upset over something stupid

Seriously...One resolution that I hope to keep.