Friday's Letters

Dear weekend, I’m not sure I've ever been so ready to see you.  This week, working two positions, and longer commutes has worn me out.

Dear 5:30am, I have not enjoyed seeing you this week.  I guess we will get to know each other more now, but I’m not happy about it.

Dear Miles, when you wait by the window and run to the garage when I pull into the driveway so you can meet me at the door, just makes my day.  You are too cute!

Dear Miles, I hope you enjoy your play date today! Please run your little heart out, you've been full of too much energy lately.

Dear husband, even though you roll your eyes at me and think I’m crazy, thank you for putting together my composting bin. 

Dear crocs, I never in a million years thought I would ever own a pair of your very strange shoes.  However, last night changed my mind.  My feet have been killing me and I need a good pair of walking shoes, your comfort and price were just what I needed.

Dear 29^th Birthday, like I told my sister, I've been avoiding you like the plague.  I’m not sure if it’s because I’m now a year away from 30 or if it’s because you are bringing more and more gray hair, but I have not been looking forward to you.

  

Wednesday Musings

Just a few thoughts for a Wednesday afternoon...

My grandparents house was listed for sale last week, my mom showed us the listing on Saturday.  At first glance, I was really pleased with how well the house looked and I knew the time was coming to sell it.  But the longer I thought about it and looking through the listing again the next morning it really sunk in that we are selling the house.  I thought about sitting on the couch looking out the window at all the snow.  I thought about how many mornings my grandfather would cook us pancakes in the kitchen or how many thanksgiving meals we sat around the kitchen table preparing (or really dancing and singing) thanksgiving dinners.  And the time when there were so many of us for thanksgiving one year we had dinner in the basement on the ping pong table.  There are so many wonderful memories in that house, too many to count.  But it’s not about the house, it’s about the people we shared those times with, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents. So while I’m sad that we are selling the house, I’ll always cherish the wonderful memories we had there.

We are starting the interviewing process to fill my position today.  I’m actually really nervous about it.  I have never interviewed someone before.  I Googled some good interview questions but I’m nervous that I won’t be able to tell who the right candidate for the spot is.  Thankfully, I’m just giving a recommendation and not making the final decision. 

We are headed to the Hawks game.  The only other time I have been to a professional basketball game was a few years ago when the Hawks made the playoffs and were playing the Bulls.  My mom gave Ryan tickets to the game for his birthday.  Growing up we would watch the Bulls in my grandparents basement but since then I've hardly paid much attention to professional basketball.  I know my husband is thrilled to be going, me on the other hand, I’m more concerned with how late we will be out tonight and missing Nashville.  I’m such a nerd.

An update on my friends mom, she thankfully does not have encephalitis, however she has an infection in the bone in her ear which is causing vertigo and still battling shingles. If you could, please continue to keep her in your prayers. 

Promotions and a Prayer Request

Last Thursday was a big day in the Pace household.  Very unexpectedly, Ryan and I both received promotions.  I mentioned a few weeks ago that Ryan had been studying for his life insurance license and needed to pass to be eligible for a promotion.  Thankfully he passed!  So while, we knew a promotion was in the works, he was quite secretive about the timing.  My promotion, on the other hand, came out of left field.  Monday morning my boss pulled me into his office to inform me of an opportunity that had become available at one of our properties in Buckhead.  So, we were both promoted within a matter of minutes on Thursday, a little surreal. 

I have to brag on my husband a little here.  He worked for Enterprise Rent-a-car for five years.  That is no easy task!  He was promised promotion after promotion with little to no follow through on them.  They treated him poorly, paid him poorly, he worked long hard hours with so little respect and he never complained.  We were so fortunate and thankful to find his current company and we have been blessed with the mutual respect and admiration the company provides.  It really is a dream job.   He works so hard to prove for our family and is so supportive of me everyday.  I am so blessed/proud to call him my husband.

On an unrelated note, my friend's mom has been battling breast cancer for the better part of a year.  She has undergone a double mastectomy and a very aggressive form of chemo. It seems there has been complication after complication and she has ended up in the hospital several times throughout this process.  She finally completed her chemo and we thought she was in the clear and would start radiation shortly.  Unfortunately, she ended up in the hospital last night with shingles which they fear has caused encephalitis; they are currently awaiting results of the MRI to confirm.  I am asking that you lift my friend Jenny and her family up in prayer, I know they could use them. 

Friday's Letters

Here are my Friday's Letters....

Dear 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess: thank you for captivating me this week.  You have truly inspired me, challenged me, pushed me, made me laugh and much, much more.  

Dear icy, North Georgia roads:  please melt before I leave work or be kind to and let me get home, you and I don't have a great history.  

Dear Nashville: thank you for being a ridiculously addicting drama that combines country music and love affairs.  It's the perfect combination and I look forward to watching every week.

Dear GroupMe: I am so glad I we found you.  You have been the perfect app to connect with some of my best girlfriends, all together, everyday.  You have brought great joy to my life this week. 

Not much today, just looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend.  Happy Friday!

Weekend Rewind

Friday was a big day!  Ryan had been studying for two full weeks for his Life Insurance License test.  The test is extremely difficult and covers a lot of material; many people at work do not pass the first time they take it and he was extremely nervous.  He called to tell me how it went and quickly informed me that he did not pass and he would have to take it again.  I had a feeling he was joking, he has a tendency to fool me, and luckily, this was one of those times.  He passed and is hopefully eligible for great things at work.  We are so thankful!  We celebrated Friday night by going out to dinner with my sister, brother-in-law and niece and slept in on Saturday morning. 

Saturday we finally, went to get a new washing machine.  Thankfully, I knew exactly what I wanted and Lowe’s made it quick and painless.  Unfortunately the delivery was not as simple and I am quite disappointed with Lowe’s.  When we were in the store on Saturday the sales rep confirmed that they had the washer in stock and would be able to deliver the next day.  We received a delivery time of 5:30-7:30 PM on Sunday evening.  I was a little perturbed by the time on a Sunday evening but since we didn't have to work the next day and we had a lot going on Sunday afternoon I went with it.  7:30 PM arrived and no washing machine.  When Ryan called they couldn't get a hold of the delivery team, they were finally reached and arrived at my home at 8:15 PM Sunday night.  They were less than courteous and installed the machine with the wrong hoses.  So we now have to go to the store, get the hoses we paid extra for and then install ourselves, which is why we paid for the hoses in the first place, they assured us they would install.  I’m less than thrilled with the service Lowe’s provided.  On a happier note, I am glad to have a working washing machine again and I do like how the new machine runs!

Sunday we had planned to return to our old church because we both are frustrated with the church search.  However, we were out late Saturday night, Ryan celebrating, me at home with my sister and the baby, and we did not get up in time to make the trek into the city.  We did however make a very successful trip to Costco.  My grandmother was still in the hospital recovering from her broken hip so I picked my sister up to spend the day with us.  We watched Ryan coach his basketball team and made it home just in time to watch the Falcons.  There were a few disappointed people in our house after that game.

 I wasn't as interested in the game, so I chased this little one around.  She is growing up entirely too fast!

Monday Ryan and I both had the day off for Martin Luther King.  This is the first time both of us have had the holiday off since our wedding.  Since we didn't get to celebrate our anniversary Wednesday night (he was studying) we took the day for ourselves.

 We watched the inauguration and then took a drive up to Carter’s Lake.  It’s a beautiful, secluded lake in north Georgia.  And because we live so far north already, it was quick drive up.  We enjoyed walking around and taking in the sites, even if it was a little chilly. 

We are hoping for a low key week.  After the run around of the holidays and then a busy start to the new year, it would be nice to have a slow week.

Friday's Letters

I love reading blogs. There are a few that are must reads!  A few of them have participated in Friday Letters, so I finally looked into the blog that started them.  I absolutely love her blog.

So, here are my Friday Letters...

Dear Weekend... you could not have come soon enough!  It was been a very long week.

Dear boss... thanks for letting me start my weekend a little early! It's much appreciated!

Dear husband... I'm so proud of you for studying hard all week to take your Life test next week, I know you will do great!

Dear Christmas decorations that have been hiding behind closed doors... I will finish putting you away this weekend!

Dear washing machine... thank you for breaking right after Christmas, your timing is impeccable.  You will be fixed or gone by the end of the weekend!

Dear third anniversary... it's hard to believe you are next week.  The past three years have been a roller coaster and I look forward to many many more!

Happy Weekend!

A New Year (a little late)

I left 2012 with mixed emotions.  It was a very difficult year, however it was also one of great joy.  We welcomed both my niece and my nephew and we bought a house, but also we lost the most beautiful woman I have ever known, my mom went through two knee surgeries, and I had a lot of internal struggles.  Needless to say, I have high hopes for 2013.  I’m hopeful for change!

And I think we started the new year off just right, with some of my very best friends in Huntsville, Alabama.  It was a low key night, but probably my favorite new years of all time.

I have a few goals for 2013….

Read my bible every day….

I have started  The Daily Bible that has devotionals and reads the bible in chronological order. Unfortunately, I’m already a few days behind, but I have been reading every day.  I have a tendency to fall asleep while I’m reading so I have to complete the day the following day, which puts me behind.  I’m still working to find the perfect time of day to really dig in and get a full daily reading in.

Blog more….

I have debated this blog for a while now.  I've changed the layout, I've changed the name, but nothing really seems to motivate me to actually blog.  I think part of it is finding the time to do it, part of it is insecurity, and how much I want to put out her on the internet.  I enjoy reading other blogs and always feel inspired to write more after reading others, but have been a little insecure about posting.  I’m afraid no one is interested in my mundane everyday life.  But I’m going to put those insecurities aside and blog for me, isn't that what this is supposed to be for anyway?  As a memory to look back on, and like I said, I have high hopes for 2013, so I would like to remember it!

Find a church….

Ryan and I loved our church.  We loved the people we met, we loved the small group, we loved going on Sunday mornings, we always took something away from the message.  But, we moved, and we moved pretty far north.  After spending every day in the car to get to work the last thing I want to do is drive into the city on the weekend.  Plus, I like the feel of community a church brings and being at least thirty minutes from church makes it difficult to participate in things like a small group or Sunday school.  So in the new year, I’m putting my foot down to find a church home close to home.

Eat healthier, Exercise more...

Self explanatory :)

Craft more...

I got a Cricut for Christmas and I can not wait to try it out!

Enjoy life more...

I have a tendency to look towards the future, look for what will change.  I want to live in the moment more.  Stop focusing on what it could be or should be and what it is.

There you have it.  Just a few goals for 2013!  Cheers to a great new year!