7 Hectic Little Things

So, we made a huge life decision recently, and it changed everything pretty quickly.  Honestly, it suits us to make a huge decisions on a whim.  I love the spontaneity of this particular adventure, and it mirrors other decisions we made together - decisions liked getting married, taking vacations, or quitting jobs.  Perhaps we're starting to establish a pattern.  Perhaps God created us both to need a new adventure from time to time because He knew that we one day be involved in ministry, and our life may never be stable or permanently settled.  We will experience one adventure after another, and it's amazing to think about how perfectly a lifestyle I was terrified of really fits us and our personalities.  Mr. Robinson and I were both starting to feel a little restless here, and thought buying a home might be the answer.  We contacted a Real Estate Agent and looked at several homes, but nothing seemed to fit.  Moving to Charlotte for Mr. Robinson to attend seminary fits.  We're moving in less than a month and while we couldn't be more excited to start this new adventure, a big move like this brings lots of other emotions to the surface, as well.  We have so much to do in a short period of time, and we're trying to get everything accomplish while cramming as much life into these next few weeks as possible.  Both of us want to savor our last month in this place we love and spend borderline excessive amounts of time with people we'll be sad to leave.  Needless to say, our life is hectic right now due to several little things.           

  Little Thing #1

The air conditioner units in our house broke over the weekend - both the downstairs and upstairs units.  We were going to try and make do, but when the ceiling fan in our bedroom stopped working we went to stay with my parents at their river house.  This meant that we weren't able to pack or work at the house for two days, which is frustrating when our to-do list seems miles long.  However, it worked out great because we were able to spend some extra time with them.  Mr. Robinson played PS3 and jumped in the river, so he was happy.  I loved having morning coffee with my parents on their front porch, as it reminds me of the summer before our wedding.  I lived with my parents for a few months, and every morning we had coffee together by the river.  It was fun to step back in time like that, so we didn't really mind that our air conditioner was broken for a few days.  :)
Little Thing #2

Every night this week, my mom & I are teaching the 2 and 3 year old VBS class at church, and VBS starts at 6.  I work until 5, so I get next to NO down time, which tends to make me a little grumpy.  Saturday, we'll take VBS to the projects in town and cram it all into one day.  Did I mention that I'm just not a kid person?  Being around children just causes me stress, and VBS reaffirmed that God didn't give me the talents required to teach or work with children.  Meanwhile, Mr. Robinson has been getting some work done around the house, but he is sort of at a loss for what to do without me there to help.  He's not one that's able to look at a situation and determine on his own what needs to be done, and I'm too busy this week to really work on packing or cleaning... so not much is getting done.  I come home at 9:00 at night exhausted and utterly frazzled, and this week is just dragging by.
Little Thing #3
Next week, my husband is going to Atlanta with my dad and some guys from church.  They're going to see a baseball game and will be gone for two days.  These plans have been in the works for while, and I'm glad my husband and my daddy will get to spend some quality time together before we leave.  It warms my heart to see the two of them loving each other.  I just hope Mr. Robinson doesn't spend too much money while he's away, haha!  The upside is that my husband will be gone for one full night, and I'll hopefully get a chance to get a lot of work done at the house!  :)  But I'll miss him terribly... 
Little Thing #4

Since Daddy is going to Atlanta, my last day working with him will be July 17th...next Tuesday.  That makes me sad.  Even thought we don't spend quality time together at work or engage in long, meaningful conversations daily...I do get to see my Daddy every day.  I'll miss working with him...I'll miss just knowing he is always in the next room.  My last day of work is July 19th, which is a Thursday.  Thursday's are the one day a week my mom comes to work to help with payroll, and I go out to the lunch with her and my dad.  It's our special, weekly date and I'll miss it terribly.  I love chatting with them about what's going on in life, at church, or at work.  I love the added face time we get by just having lunch together.  Sometimes my sister comes with us, and it's just...it's like the old days.  Not to mention that my dad's parents live right across the street and are always in and out of the office.  Being at work means being surrounded by family...and leaving my job means leaving all of that.  It means leaving the life I'd always planned on having.  It's hard to pretend like all of this doesn't hurt my heart ... but it's a little easier if I just don't think about it.    
Little Thing #5
We leave for Mexico on July 21st, and return home on July 28th.  I've vacationed in Mexico several times, and it's probably my favorite place in the world thus far.  I love the culture, the weather, the scenery, and especially the authentic food.  Not to mention that it's a full week to spend not working & with my husband + my parents + my sister (and her friend).  I'm SO excited to travel... but, it's another 7 days we won't be home packing.   
Little Thing #6

  Speaking of packing... we have a lot of packing to do, in case I haven't mentioned that minor detail.  When I say we have lots of packing to do, I mean that we currently live in a huge house and we're moving into an apartment (pictured above) that could almost fit inside our back porch.  We have to sort, downsize, and pack and we have a million "little things" going on right now that are taking up our time.    
Little Thing #7
Mr. Robinson's first day of school is July 30th, and he'll have to go stay with a host family until we can move into our apartment on August 2nd.  I'll stay behind and work on washing clothes and finished up packing, before taking a car load of things up to Charlotte on the 2nd.  We'll sign the lease, and then move all the big furniture stuff over the weekend.
Busy, Busy, Busy. 
And I just want to soak up every little moment until we have to leave.  I want to appreciate everything about this place - I want to smell the grass the men are cutting outside; I want to notice the smile lines on my grandma's face; I want to know drag my fingers through the dust on my daddy's desk; I want to feel the sounds of a truck backing into the loading dock; I want to smile at every stranger who waves to me; I want to burn the images of every field of corn and tobacco into my brain; I just want to be here before I can't anymore.  

I've left here before, obviously.  I haven't only lived in this tiny little corner of the world, but the circumstances under which I moved were different.  Last time I left "home" it was because I didn't want to be here anymore.  But "the plan" was to be here for the rest of our lives ... and we could do that and be perfectly happy.  But God has a plan for us better than anything we could ever imagine - and we want to experience it.  We want to be obedient.  
Anyway...I'm sure you can sort of see what life is like for us right now.  It's hectic and there are so many different emotions.  We are excited about the move and about our new adventure.  Thanks to everyone who has offered us love & support during this hectic little time.  :)  I hope to get back to blogging regularly soon!

Lists

I am very much so a "list" person.  You know the kind.  To-do lists, shopping lists, lists of places I've been, lists of songs to download, lists of meals for the month, lists of daily exercises to complete, lists of things to do at work, lists of people to talk to, lists of people I've already talked to, lists of blog post ideas, and the list goes on and on.  (Ha)   So when I see lists like "101 in 1001" and "30 under 30," something inside of me wants to make a giant to-do list for my life.  Or, you know, for the next few years.  
But it's so overwhelming!  There are so many things I want to do...so many things I want to do with my new husband but they aren't really "unique" at all.  So I worry the list would seem dumb.  I think this is my favorite 101 in 1001 list I've seen because it's so thorough and diverse.  Would it be bad to just make a copy of her list?  Haha!  I would change a few things...but for the most part, her list covers the bases I want to round some day.  
Or maybe I could make some mini-lists.  Or lists by the year, going with a "365" theme.   Maybe lists for different seasons of my life?  I could do a Newlywed List, a list of the middle years, a list for retirement?   I've also heard of literal seasonal lists - a list for spring, summer, fall, & winter.  Wash, rinse, repeat.  Maybe.  When it comes to life lists, there are so many options.    
I want to spend some more time pondering this idea..coming up with something similar but also something just different enough to fit my life exactly right.  Like a favorite pair of jeans.  Or like a favorite pair of Spanx.  :)   It'd also be fun to make a list with my husband.  Maybe we could do a vlog about it?  Haha!  =)  On the other hand, there are some things I'd like to do that don't involve him....like dying my hair a crazy color or getting something pierced to make me feel young again.  Not that I'm old...I'm 23.  I'm sure many of y'all just rolled your eyes at me.  And yes, I'm 23 but when I look at some of the things my "peers" are doing, I feel old.  I feel like as much as I love my life and my husband and my God, I've lost a part of the girl I was for 22 years.  I'm not crazy spontaneous anymore because I have responsibilities - I have a job I will probably stay at until I retire and I have people I am answerable to.  It's a wonderful life to have, but it means I don't just answer to myself anymore and it means I have to consider others before I act.  I didn't always do that, and it made life fascinating and interesting.  It also made for a quite sinful life and ultimately a lonely life, and I don't miss that part.  Nobody wants to grow old with a selfish person, you know?  I just don't want to lose my spontaneous and wild spirit.  If that makes any sense at all...  And maybe some long, crazy list would help me hold onto the FUN parts of who I am.  And drownd out the responsible voice in my head from time to time.  That makes me sound like I want to be irresponsible, and I don't.  {I'm rambling.  Sorry.}         
Maybe one day you'll see a tab up at the top indicating that I've made such a list.  I promise you one thing, though.  If there ever is a list, it'll be legend.....wait for it...

Every Other One {Happy & Sad Thoughts}

Sometimes things are just not good, you know?  Not bad....just enough "not good" stuff to make you feel down in the dumps.  This blog is a journal for me....the "blog" side makes me want to write about happy & funny things.  But honestly, don't we all hate those girls who only write about happy & funny things?  In an effort to be both...both a girl that's loved and hated...I'm going to tell some stories & complain a lot in this post...but every other one will be a happy story.  Because no matter what's wrong, I have so much to be thankful for. ---[happy]

In March, God put this crazy idea into my head that has slowly become a reality.  An amazing reality.  Our church is planning a two-day conference for the lost women in our community.  I'm in charge...and it's so scary.    But things are coming together in such an amazing way that makes me so thankful to serve a living God.  The conference will be June 8th & 9th.  It's my prayer that this will be a step toward making our church biracial... we'll be talking about issues like sexual abuse, drug & alcohol abuse, depression, and being a single mom.  It's going to be amazing...and feeling the Holy Spirit use little ol' me to make it possible is quite an amazing feeling.  Next Sunday I'll be addressing our congregation to fill everyone in on the event (most people still don't know about unless they're part of the planning) and to ask for monetary donations to help us make the conference a success.  It's scary...but God is so good.  

[sad]

I'm way behind on highlights.  My hair looks a hot mess and I wish I had the guts to try dying it myself.  But my hair is waist-length.  I can't risk messing up that much hair.  Why do I have to love having blonde hair so much?  It's so expensive to keep up.... sigh.  

[happy]

We had revival last week.  It was so great!  I hope that our church is revived so that we can spread the revival into our community.  One little boy got saved.  My grandma came to church every night.  She even brought her Bible.  That's quite out of character for her and I hope that she will continue to step outside her box and get close to the Lord.  =)  

[sad]

Mr. Robinson hasn't made any money yet with his new job.  He's getting very discouraged and worn down. He's thinking of looking for another job...but I know God led us here for a reason.  I feel like I'm running out of ways & words to encourage him, but it's my job as his wife to constantly encourage him and build him up.  But that doesn't mean my words erase the what he experiences daily...I wish I knew what to do.  I pray that he will start making money very soon.  But you know, it's not even really about the money...I just want him to start feeling successful.  I hate seeing him down in the dumps. 

[happy]

Zombie is so cute. 

[sad]

  It's hard not to miss the money of two steady incomes.  We're officially one month behind on the house payment we give my parents every month...which isn't really a big deal.  They're very understanding and we're blessed to have them as our lender instead of a bank.  We're going to have to start cutting corners somewhere....maybe we'll have our satellite cut off?  Mr. R's birthday is coming up...he says he doesn't want anything but he deserves a nice birthday present.  I just don't know what I could get him that is within our budget & still something he really deserves.      

[happy]

 I spent some time Saturday in the Man Cave...sprucing things up and making it more manly for my love.  I'll give y'all a tour soon.  The cutest thing EVER was hearing my husband "brag" about it to my daddy.  I knew he appreciated the effort by his excitement when I showed it to him, but to hear my hubby brag on something I did for him makes me happy.  I'm happy to have done something that made/makes him happy.  =)  His Man Cave has a ton of stuff from his childhood in it...it's like a museum of his past life.  I'm surrounded by my childhood memories since we live in the house where I raised.  Now he has childhood memories in our home, too.  :) 

[sad]

It's almost time to go grocery shopping again and it's hard to spend money when the amount coming in has decreased.  I loved grocery shopping when it was a carefree experience...now I feel guilty, no matter how much money I spend.  It'd be so much cheaper to just eat hotdogs every night (which we both love) but I can't eat like that!  His favorite foods happen to be very inexpensive, and while I love a good hot dog or burger or slice of pizza, I gain weight when I eat like that.  So what do I do?  What's more important?  Saving money before we run out or buying double food because I want to eat healthy and he refuses to eat healthy.  What a choice.      

[happy]

 I was fooling around in the kitchen on Saturday and found that I can use butternut squash in place of noodles in pasta dishes.  That's a pretty exciting healthy alternative discovery!   That puts pasta back in the game!  

[sad]

I've been struggling lately with modesty issues.  I feel like modesty should be practiced everywhere...  (At church) I don't want my attire to get in the way of someone worshiping God.  (Everywhere Else) I think it's tacky and disrespectful to their husbands when women dress provocatively.  My body is not my own - it's my husband's.  I don't want any other man looking at a creation meant only for the man I was created for.  But...what about everyone else?  What about all of the girls who wear short dresses and low-cut tops that get the attention of my husband?  My husband is imperfect and attractive girls showing lots of skin catches his eye, even if it is in a bad way.  Sometimes I'd like to take modesty out of the picture and dress in a way that catches his eye, too.  But I know it would be sinful and dis-respective... but I still fight it.  Soon, this will get a post all on it's own.

   [happy]

 This coming weekend, Friday - Sunday, I'll be stayed with my mom and grandma to attend a Christian conference.  I'm so excited because (1) it's my first conference that I'm attending because of my own desire, and (2) my grandma is going!!!!!!!  This is no small victory.  This is the same grandma who came to revival every night.  I hope this really signifies a change in her....we pray it..

[I don't have any more "sad"'s, so I'll end with 3 happy's]

 [happy]

 My husband is thinking of joining a bush league to play baseball!  I'm so proud of him for his bravery.  Maybe y'all don't think it's brave, so let me explain.  He's never played baseball, he has no idea who these people are, and he still wants to do it.  Um....yeah.  The last thing in this world I would do is join a team of people I don't know to do something I don't know how to do.  In my book, that's bravery.  

 [happy]

 My alcohol convictions are changing...without me really having a say in it.  That's "happy" because it's a sign that God is working on me even when I'm not looking.  I've been thinking a lot lately about bars and how I don't think it's an environment I want to be in anymore.  I've been thinking about how I don't want to be in a bar when Jesus comes back.... I'd rather be doing something that glorifies God.  But that wouldn't really stop at "being in a bar," would it?  What if He came back while I was watching a really vulgar movie or a million other things that would honestly embarrass me?   Another reason to cut off our satellite.  Save money and it would "give" us more time to spend in The Word.  It's cool when God changes your convictions without asking, haha.  Not that He has to, I'm just saying.  Y'all know what I mean.  :)   

 [happy]

 I'm working on getting back to making weekly meal plans & choosing exercises to do on those days.  I know some of y'all are probably guilty of the same things.  You plan to get on track on Monday, but then it's Monday night and your hungry and you don't know what to fix so you spend 30 minutes figuring it out, and then you have to cook...and so on and so forth.  So, my idea is to assign meals to certain days.  I

ve got a list of 7 different exercises - I'll do one a day and have a day off.  This way, I won't get bored with my routine.    THEN, figure out how much "time" I'll have to do an exercise & assign a routine based on what I'm cooking that night....does that make sense?  Maybe.  I'll write more on this later. 

Actually...I'll probably write more on most of these topics later.  I've had this window up all day, adding to it a little at a time.  I started out in a bad mood this morning, feeling like everything was going wrong.  By the end of the day, I had more happy thoughts than sad thoughts, and I realize that my sad thoughts were pretty trivial.  I have so much to be thankful for...this post kind of helped put that into perspective.  =)  If you've made it this far...thanks for reading my ramblings.  

What makes you happy & sad today?  

Coo Coo Kachoo, 

Mrs. Robinson