Obligatory holiday post.

Yesterday was Easter, so DH and I headed to Nashville to meet up with my mom. She had my niece Lil for the weekend, and after church we went to spend the day with Lil's other grandmother, Connie. (Also known as YiaYia.) It was so much fun! I never thought I'd get such a kick out of watching a little kid hunt for eggs. Lunch was also fantastic. Connie is a great cook, so it's always a treat getting to eat a meal she prepares. After the egg hunt, Connie looked at me and very pointedly said, "I hope Lil doesn't get too used to being the only grandchild hunting for eggs." I couldn't help but laugh, because we hadn't discussed anything related to TTC yet. After a while, when it was just ladies left in the room, we sort of eased into the conversation and I learned that Connie actually knows Ina May Gaskin, and worked at The Farm for a while. I almost fell out of my seat.

The day before Easter, my MIL and FIL came to our apartment to celebrate my BIL's birthday. They always give us new clothing for Easter, and I was semi-excited, because I've been needing some new stuff since I've gained a few lbs. MIL told me she had tried on the dress, so she knew it'd fit me. She and I used to be the exact same size, but she knows I've gained a little since then. Once they left, I tried the dress on...and it was too small in the waist. Talk about hurt feelings. Part of me feels a tiny bit bitter because she KNOWS I've gained weight. She knows I'm bigger than her. She should have gone up a little in size to compensate, and the fact that she didn't makes me feel like crap. She texted the next day to ask "Did the dress work?" and I just didn't text back. I kind of feel like she KNOWS it didn't work, and is asking so that I have to admit to her that I'm fatter than she is now. Grrr. Maybe that's just all in my head.

Job interview this evening! I guess I should get a shower and make myself presentable, but the lazy part of my brain says, "I've got plenty of time!" DH is using his flex hours today and getting off of work at 2, so I get to spend a bit more time with him than usual. Always a plus.

Viewing the past through rose colored glasses

For some reason today, I'm thinking about our time overseas. A year ago at this time, we were living in St. Etienne, France, far away from family and comfort. At the time, we hated it. Absolutely hated it. I cried so many times, wanting to just come home. People told us so many times that we'd look back and have fond memories, and I honestly wanted to throat punch them every time they said it. But I'm kind of starting to feel that now. I can look back and see how much of a blessing our time there was. We grew so close to each other. We learned to rely on ourselves and be a cohesive unit, instead of our parents doing everything for us. I think I truly became an adult in France.

I think the thing I miss the most is my cher amie, Charlotte. I don't think I've ever bonded so instantly with anyone else. (Except DH.) We were so close with her that we decided we would name our first daughter after her, and we've never wavered on that decision. She is my dearest friend, and one of the most incredible people I've ever met. She recently participated in a challenge called 3 Peaks-3 Weeks. 11 women from around the world joined together and climbed the three highest mountains in Africa to raise money for three different causes: education, poverty, and AIDS awareness. Charlotte also lived in Tanzania for three years, working for a school called St. Jude's. They provide education for children living in abject poverty, and Charlotte loved it. She speaks Kiswahili, English, and French fluently, and has some German under her belt as well. (Can you tell that I absolutely adore her?) I'll end this with a picture of my favorite friend. Tu me manques, mon amie. Bisous.

*yawn*

So it's...um... 11:46 at night. I'm normally in bed right now, sleeping soundly. (Ok, that's not true. I'm normally in bed right now, being woken up by DH snoring, and I'm rolling over to elbow him and tell him to shut up.) But I digress.

Why is it that whenever I'm geniunely tired, my brain refuses to shut down? I was just laying there, running over a million things a minute. Example: I suddenly remembered that it was really warm yesterday, and that I had put my orchid on the back porch. Crap. We had a crazy storm last night (hail included) and a freakish cold snap tonight. Poor orchid. So of course, I had to get out of bed and go rescue the pathetic little thing from the artic outdoors. Part of it already looks kind of brown and dead. I officially do not have a green thumb, or green toes, or green anything. I'm brown. Just plain, crusty, shrivelled brown.

Someone, please give me magical tips for sleep. I would just dose myself with Ny-Quil, but one shot of that stuff puts me out for far longer than it should. (And yes, I have a little bit of a sinus infection, so the Ny-Quil wouldn't be completely unjustified.)

A bientot.

Tuesday, twosday.

I'm super ready for dinner today. We're having DH's cousin Ethan over, and I gotta say, I absolutely adore this kid. He's going to be 16 this year, and is one of the sweetest, kindest guys I've ever met. (And he thinks I'm an awesome cook, so that rocks, too.) I grew up being hours away from my family so I think I appreciate DH's enormous, close-knit family even more. Is it wrong for me to like my husband's family more than mine? Because I do. I occasionally have some issues with my MIL, but even she and I tend to get along fairly well, most of the time. Our biggest disagreement is on the topic of TTC. She thinks we should wait at least five years after we've been married...and I think it's not her call. Oh well, no family is perfect, and if that's the biggest of our issues, I'm a lucky girl.

It looks like we're going to have to get some work done on DH's car. There's something wrong with the ignition; the key keeps locking up when you try to start the car. Sometimes you can fight with it and get it to turn, but sometimes it says "Screw you!" and refuses. I've googled it, and apparently it's a super common problem with our model/year of that car, but Ford refuses to issue a recall. *eyeroll* It'll probably cost us at least $300 to get it fixed, but it's not an option to NOT fix it. Once we have children, that'll become the family car, and we can't afford for it to not be functional. I can just see myself sitting in a hot parking lot, trying to get a stubborn key to turn, with a screaming infant in the back seat. No thanks.

I think it's snack time. Lunch was a slice of bread with peanut butter on it, so my stomach is nudging me and saying, "Um...did you forget about me?"

A private, public journal.

That's pretty much how this blog feels. A place for me to tell the world what happens in my life, but without the intimidation of people actually reading it. I started this blog when we lived in France, and updated it a grand total of two times, so that tells you how good I am at journaling. I have a paper journal as well, and it hasn't seen much action, either.

It's far later in the day than I realized. I haven't showered, so I'm going to get that done before DH gets home so he can have a clean, attractive wife who cooks him dinner and smells nice in the process.