"Gearing up" for camping

This coming weekend our church is having a family camp out. Josh and I are going and taking Kafka with us. We are going out shopping today to pick up the necessary camping items that we don't already have. Josh thought I was crazy for making a list of the items we need to pack was silly since we are only going to be there for 1 night and it actually will be less than 24 hours. So, I made the list and then let him look at it and he actually agreed that my list wasn't so crazy after all. I want you to be the judge of whether or not the list is too much.

Tent
Tarp for under tent
Air Mattress
Sleeping bags
pillows
chairs
party grill & propane
Pan to heat water in
pot holder
cooler
flashlights
laundry basket to carry food items
citronella candles
lighter

Paper towels
paper plates
plastic silverware
wipes to clean up with


Kafka's bowls
food for dog
dog leash

First Aid Kit
Bug spray
playing cards
Catch Phrase game

Clothes items
Toiletries


Cheese-its
granola bars
graham crackers
marshmallows
Hershey bars
bread
lunch meat
cheese slices
mustard
mayo
potato chips
milk
coffee singles
sugar
soda- various types
juice- various types
bottled water
ICE


Now, I realize that we are only going for one night but all of these items just seem important to me. I realize people camp all the time with a lot less than this but this really isn't that much stuff, it is just individually listed which makes it a long list.

Generation Y in the workplace

I read this great article in FORTUNE Magazine today. I can totally relate to this, especially the part about having relationships with your immediate supervisors.

The article is called "You Raised Them, Now Manage Them". If you were born between the years 1977 and 1995 this is a great article to read.

Picture

Kelly posted about her family picture from our Mother's Day service. Our church had a photographer come in and take family portraits and every family got a free 5X7. So here is our picture.

A lot of things have been happening with my career search, but nothing firm yet. I am doing well with it though. I totally trust that God will put me in the right place at the right time. I am learning a ton about myself in this process. It has been really good for me and for everyone around me. I have my joy back, and know it is only because I am for the first time realizing that I can do ANYTHING. God has opened my eyes to the endless possibilities for my life.

So I am ready for whatever is coming.

Let's get physical... therapy

This morning at 7:30am I started my physical therapy treatment for my back. When I arrived my pain on a scale of 1 to 10 was a 1. After Doug- my physical therapist had me doing certain movements, my pain spiked to a 5. He was able to tell me good news and bad. He established from my evaluation that the sciatica was stemming from a bulging disk in my lower back. Well, the good news is that I have continually gotten better over the last few weeks meaning that it is healing itself. Bad news is that it could be a recurrent problem. So, we established a body position that allows me to be comfortable since it takes the pressure off my lower spine.

My position is similar to this one only I prop up on my elbows and rest my chin in my hands. I am supposed to do this during the day, every 2 hours for 5 minutes each time. Talk about crazy. But it really does ease the pain and pressure.
At the end of my visit he used the electrodes on my lower back and also covered me with a heating pad. That was a wonderful end to a painful evaluation.
I will be in physical therapy 2 x a week for the next 4 weeks according to my therapist.

The finale has come until Fall comes again

Today was my concert for the chorale I have been a part of for the last 15 weeks. It was a pretty good concert if I do say so myself. The ladies of the choir really rocked it out with our 3 numbers. The concert lasted about 1 hr and 30 minutes. During the concert my feet went numb. I guess it was the way I was standing. But it was really fun. An announcement was made after I dress rehearsal on thursday night, that next week on Tuesday and Wednesday they are having auditions for the upcoming summer season production of Guys and Dolls. I was so excited when they said it, since Guys and Dolls is one of my very favorite musicals. I went to the ACO website and read about auditions, only to find that it requires 4-6 weeks of rehearsal on every weeknight. I just can't commit to that much time. I really want to do it, but I know that I would not be able to practice every night of the week. I have other things I am involved in that require my attendance. So, after much contemplation I have decided not to venture into the summer season of productions at the Arts Center of the Ozarks. So, the finale has come for me and the arts for now!

Whirlwind week and the great closer

This week has been so incredibly busy. I have had Choir practice, preparations for choir concert including dress rehearsal, Couples group, doctors' appointments, interviews, and office testing at staffing agencies. Every day this week I have left my house around 8am not to return to my house until after 9pm. That means I have put in four 13 hour days. Sheesh am I tired. This week has been one of the best and worst all in one. I had a serious breakdown about my job search and my faith. This resulted in me establishing that God was trying to tell me that I am getting in the way of his plans! I also learned that I was very bitter and resentful towards my current boss, and I needed to let that go. I have been slowly working out of this state, and from the point of turning it over to God and apologizing to my boss, I have had numerous job opportunities come knocking. No serious potentials yet, but I can tell that they are only days away. Thank you God, for molding me and helping me to see my faults. The lesson I have learned in all of this has been very difficult to endure, but God never gives us more than we can handle. So, the last two days have really been great. I have really perked up and realized my potential. I am going to be more bold in my interviews and make sure that companies know that they will be sorry if they do not hire me. Oh yeah, thanks to all who wrote reference letters for me.

Now for the great closer... I am going on a date tonight. There is this really cute guy that lives with me and I have been wanting to go out with him for a while but, we have both been very busy. Well, we finally found the time to go, and he is taking me to P.F. Chang's for dinner. I am super excited, because I have never been there. Also, some friends of ours are going to double with us. We are excited about that since we have never gone out with them before.

Have a great weekend all!