Dear Souls...October Goals and Things

I'm not 'back' yet...but I am, if you know what I mean.

Your heartfelt words touched me deeply.  I am greatly appreciative of your kindness and your encouragement and your prayers most of all.

I had not realized how tired I had gotten in these weeks past.  I sometimes forget that emotional exhaustion exacts a deeper toll than hard work does. It seemed that so many things were being tossed at me and they lit like screeching monkeys upon my back. It is equally telling that the monkeys themselves were also the hold-up in each situation I was expected to attend to, but there you are.  Monkeys are not known for their reliability nor their acceptance of responsibility either.  However,   last week three major things were accomplished and a fourth task was at least started.  Three monkeys off my back entirely and one calmed down, seems like progress...My to do list is barely shorter but it's shorter by those things.



September has proven to be a busy month.  I've spent more miles on the road than you could imagine.  In the past ten days alone, I've spent roughly 10 of them travelling anywhere from 70 miles to 225 miles. Our gasoline costs have doubled.   Not a bit of frivolous driving in the lot of it.   It is what it is and as John is wont to remind me when I start to fret over gasoline costs, "We have to have it, so no need to fuss."

Katie's due date was originally near Thanksgiving but due to complications she's now scheduled for a C-section November 6. While the pregnancy has gone on normally enough, she is placenta previa so there is a danger should she go into labor, hence the earlier date.  The baby should be just fine.  Kate herself was born at 37 weeks and she thrived once I got her on a bottle.    Taylor has very much wanted a sister, but is resigned to a brother.  After all, regardless of sex, the baby will make her a big sister and that is the most important thing of all.  It is a status worth achieving.

In other news, Bess had her ultrasound this week and announced her baby's gender.  She's expecting a little girl and will deliver sometime in February.  Josh was less than impressed.  It seems that had the baby been a boy, he'd have had a room to himself.   Now that it's established it shall be a girl, the girl will obviously get the room to herself and he shall have to continue to have Isaac as a bunk mate.  Big brother status having long ago been achieved, it was the solo occupancy of a room that appealed to him most.  He got over the fact that Bess didn't bring home Mickey Mouse as requested last time once he saw Isaac and hopefully will be just as delighted when actually presented with a baby sister.  Isaac has no clue what is about to happen to his life, so who knows how he shall react.

Katie had most of the major things for her baby but the little things were wanting and boy little things do add up don't they?  All those came up to a right tidy sum and though I was putting something aside each pay period to buy for baby it was abundantly clear I wasn't about to meet the need.  The blessing came in an unexpected refund check for health insurance costs last year.  I wept like a baby when I opened that envelope and saw the check.  It's been very snug financially here and I couldn't fathom where we might possibly come up with still more money from.  Trust God to know the need and supply it!

About the only things I've really accomplished for my personal goals for September is to lose the five pounds necessary to get into those black jeans and manage a very small amount towards savings deposits for September.   I was pleased to report to John that we shall at least have repaid the one account for what we borrowed to cover the new foundation before we see the first anniversary of the work done, but I do not know if we shall ever meet the repayment of the other account from which we borrowed. This month's electric bill again showed a substantial decrease in usage over last summer.  It's such a pleasure to see that the work is paying off so well but having cold hard cash to put back into the account would be better still, you know?

Instead of pushing savings for vacation we dropped all plans to go anywhere at all in October.  It was a huge disappointment and a great relief all at once. I spent a few days waffling back and forth between emotions before settling down and accepting that this season too shall pass and vacation will be due when it's over.

I have few goals for October.  Mainly I want to get Mother Helper Meals for Katie  prepared and frozen.  She's given me a list of things she'd like to eat and I plan to try and get those made for her.  It won't be onerous or budget heavy as most will be single serves and can be portioned between our household and hers.  I'll just prepare the recipes as part of my menus over the coming month and freeze up a couple of servings for her use as I'm preparing them.

John has three weeks or so off in October and I shall have my hands full juggling his desire to spend time together with all the necessary stuff I must do for others.  That's pressure enough to make me mindful that any further accomplishments will be gravy.

In other news the pecan tree outside my living room window is a deep gold.   The blue Jays enjoy sitting in it and each time I see them I realize I have a living version of this picture on my living room wall:

Leaves fall daily from the trees and the ground is fully covered with them.  It is very much an autumn scene outdoors but it's all deceptive as can be.  Watch from the window and you may long to run find a sweater to pull on, but step out the door and the heat is stifling.  We saw temperatures well over 100 two days last week.  Our cool down spell has been mid-90s.  It's dry as bones outdoors as well but we've no more chance of rain  than we do cooler temperatures in the extended forecasts.  I shall miss the shade of those trees on the western side of the house these hot afternoons.

The propane truck pushed up the hill today and left without putting in a single gallon of fuel.  I was torn between disappointment and pleasure.  Disappointed because we've needed a topping up of fuel every September since we moved here and pleased because it's a savings to NOT have fuel put in and it means that my  savings towards filling the tank can sit in the account.  I'll happily take any relief we can get for our straining budget at this time.

My sole 'quiet day' was not planned.  It took place after I hit a pot hole at edge of the road I was winding down and it bent my tire rim, flattening my tire immediately.  I called AAA for help, as I have in the past but no help ever came.  No, nor did I have any follow up phone calls either.  An hour and a half later, I was rescued by Sam whom I'd called as a back up plan just in case, because I totally lost confidence in AAA when the girl assured me she'd been unable to reach anyone by phone but had 'dropped them an email"...  That little solo time getting more and more anxious was followed up by 2 1/2 hours sitting in the tire store waiting on them to repair the stud that had broken in two while Sam was changing the tire.  I do not like the smell of tires and by the time I left the place, I had a headache that bordered on migraine.  It was not a good day in any sense of the word and yet, I found I was patient enough overall as well I might have been since there was no one interested in hearing me fuss about it all!

So there you have September, as near as I can recount it.  I don't know when I'll be popping in again.  Part of me longs to be back and part of me resists adding even one more thing to the 'to do' list.  TTYL,
Terri