I'm back from tax season and it was a doozy this year. Set a new personal record for hours worked in the second to last week and then also the last crunch week. Noticed actual dark circles under my eyes but by that time had given up on make up so who cares. Wore high heels today for the first time in a few weeks and it felt good. Turns out 13 hour days plus 3-4 inch heels don't mix well. Who knew?
Anyway, it's been a while since I have blogged and I feel strangely awkward about it, like we need to get reacquainted again. So in the interest of catching up on my typical ramblings that have been missing for almost three weeks, I hereby commence rambling...
1. Our foster care plans were supposed to start back up again with an intro meeting with DFPS on April 8th but it was moved to May 13th. We are on pause yet again and I cried real tears at work after I got off the phone with the very nice lady at DFPS who informed me of the change. I'll write more about this later, promise.
2. I took up church van duty on Sunday mornings to pick up and drop off some of our kids that don't have rides otherwise and I. love. it. so. much. I feel like mama bear gathering her cubs into the big van. And since I named the van Whitey Bear a long time ago, that fits quite well in this analogy. Van duty pushes my wake up time earlier, our lunch time later and nixes my previous Sunday Solitude habit, but I don't care. I belong in that driver seat.
3. Also related to church vans...driving a 15 passenger van during Rush Minute traffic is way different than deserted streets on Sunday morning. Eesh. Slow and steady wins the race...and doesn't roll the church van.
4. Contrary to my belief, which was all I had to go on since I don't own a scale, I did not gain weight this tax season...not sure how I pulled that one off. But I weighed at Jazzercise yesterday and it's true.
5. Our yards decided to grow
6. When word started going around the office on Monday about the Boston Marathon explosions, I was sickened by the inhumane tragedy. Then, only a few days later, the sick feeling hit way, way, way closer to home. Only about 20 miles from home. Trent and I were hollering at teenagers to regroup in the youth room to close out youth group at 7:50 pm Wednesday when the fertilizer plant in our little neighbor city of West exploded. We had no idea. Said our normal prayer, kicked the kids out the door to their parents' cars, made a van run for those who needed rides home, then came home and checked facebook... For a while we scrolled through status updates, fielded texts from concerned loved ones who had seen the news and heard "near Waco", fielded texts from youth who wanted to round up the group and go up there to help, but knew that at that moment the best thing we could do was leave the area clear for ambulances to get people out of there and...pray. These few days since have provided lots and lots of ways to help and have shown how much this area cares. You can donate to relief funds here, here, here, here. I've never had a tragedy hit this close to home. I've got coworkers, former coworkers and clients in West. Thankfully they are all accounted for and are ok. For some of them, their houses are destroyed. The only school that wasn't damaged (or leveled) is the elementary school. I played hookie from work this afternoon (sorry employer) and joined Trent and our pastor, Brian, out there to move stuff around and help them try to make room. I'm personally praying for calm and creativity when the city resumes school Monday with all grades in one school building which, by the way, still doesn't have running water... [Update 4/20/13: Primary school is ok and highschoolers will meet there. Middle school will merge with a nearby district for the rest of the school year and K-6th will meet at the elementary school.] My heart breaks for this little town, but I saw first hand this afternoon that it is a resilient little town and there is a LOT of care and support headed its way.
7. Trent and I have some big changes coming up in a few months, and not foster care related. More on that later...
It's good to be back.
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