Back in the Swing of Things

I like to think that it's true. It really just means that I've been home for a few days now and am back into my regular chaos and chores rather than the surprise kind.

It's been a strange week for me. I know SOME would say that it's not out of the ordinary for me to be on an emotional roller coaster (jerk), but I've been on a wild one for a few days now. Since being home from Texas I feel like I hardly know who I am! Sometimes I feel almost normal... but never completely. There have been at least two days when I felt very, very... hhmmm. Can't seem to think of the right word. Heavy, sort of, but that's not it exactly. Listless and tired, then emotional, then edgy, then confused, --oh, over all just moody, I guess. I mostly just felt like crawling into a hole all alone and not seeing or talking to anybody--just being AWAY. That is soooooo against my normal nature and it really kind of freaked me out! I really, really don't like not knowing what to expect from my emotions and I'm not used to it at all. I greatly prefer the steady temperament that I'm more accustomed to. I have been strangely affected by my uncle's passing and in some ways I feel like I'm not sure I'll ever be the same again--though that sounds way too "drama queen"; something that I would roll my eyes at if somebody else said it. (Go ahead. Eye rolling is appropriate right now. I understand.) I am bothered by things that I never really paid much mind to before, and I'm strikingly aware of and thankful for things that I know I've taken for granted in the past. In any case, I know God really helped me in my devotions this morning and today has been a much better day. I'm hoping this means I'm starting to level out a little bit. I'm sure my family is anxious for that. They've had a hard time finding the Mom on those wanna-be-alone days. Ha!

Let's see if I can give a re-cap of our week. I know that I spent Monday working on the state paper. I had gotten a decent amount done in the van on the way home, so that helped a lot. Finished up on the paper on Tuesday. Wednesday we had some running around to do all over Hoover: Hobby Lobby, Home Depot, Salvation Army (donated some stuff--yea for decluttering!), Pottery Barn, Christmas Tree Shops, the library, something else I'm forgetting, then Olive Garden for lunch--it cost us $5. I just love those gift cards James gets! :-) That night was BTI service, but it turned into a prayer service. It was one of the really bad/emotional/just-want-to-crawl-into-a-hole kind of days for me and I was so, so, sooooo thankful for the opportunity to just PRAY. I'm pretty sure I wasn't the only one carrying a load that night. God knew just what we all needed. Thursday... I don't remember much about. I know we had Ladies' Prayer Meeting that night and it was good, as always.

Yesterday James and I finally installed the cabinet doors in the upstairs bathrooms. It wasn't nearly the nightmare we had anticipated, so that was a pleasant surprise. I had LOTS of paint touch-up to do, along with painting the blue tiles in Katie's bathroom. I painted them a shade of blue so slightly darker than the original that I could have left one tile unpainted and you probably wouldn't have noticed it. It was one of those jobs that was important to James. ;-) I also got the towel hooks hung in both bathrooms and a shelf and a few pictures in the boys' bathroom. James and I rehung the massive mirror in there, too, and finally got it straight and centered. Big improvement. :-) And James hung the light fixtures in both rooms. I think the only thing left to do up there is re-grout. That's an ugly, ugly job. I'm glad it's a man's job. Hint, hint, hint... ;-)

Today I was able to spend most of the morning studying and working on Ladies' Retreat stuff. James had the kids busy working on getting the basement all cleaned up, then removing sticks from the yard so he could mow. He gathered us all up around noon and took us to lunch, then the Post Office, followed by an unscheduled stop at a new thrift store (spent $24 on 10 or 12 items of clothing = score!), then Aldi and Wal-Mart--both of which were the expected day at the zoo they always are on Saturdays. We're having a pot luck tomorrow so I spent lots of time in the kitchen today. I made a double batch of hot rolls (even with all we've eaten today I think there are about 60 left for tomorrow), some fantastical Apple Cider Caramel Cookies (thank you, Pinterest!), a Spiced Chiffon Cake that really turned into more of a Super-Low & Dense-Spiced-Loaf sort of a thing due to the eggs refusal to "peak" (a technique I fear I will never master... or even accomplish once, for that matter) and an English Pea Salad. What makes it English anyway, Mom? I ran out of steam tonight, so in the morning I'll make the glaze for the Cake/Loaf thingie (caramely glaze has to be just as delicious on a loaf as it would have been on a cake, right?) and bake the Corn Casserole. I also managed to make a super fabulous deer stew for dinner tonight, with homemade cornbread on the side. Barley. I added barley to the stew and LOVED it. It just makes it seem so good and hearty and maybe even healthy--something we don't accomplish very often around here! Ha! The only bad thing about the whole deer is that we are now officially OUT of deer meat again. :-(

I'm on to teach Sunday School in the morning and was so relieved to find that the lesson is on Lazarus instead of the Great Tribulation or the Millennial Reign or something like that. This has been a tough quarter in the Junior class, let me tell you! I was SO THRILLED to see next quarter's theme: Building Godly Character. YES! That is right down my alley! I get to teach the kids about things like respecting other people's property and honoring those in authority instead of the mark of the beast or what the pale horse and the fourth vial represent in Revelation. I've been tempted to call in sick a few times in recent weeks, let me tell ya'! Ha! So I'm one happy teacher after having seen the upcoming lessons. ~whew~ What a relief.

I had some pictures of some of Sam's latest Lego creations to add, but I can't figure out the new Blogger. It's all wacky and wouldn't finish uploading everything. I hate change. I'm pretty sure somebody should be fired over this one. Or drug out to the street and shot. That's always my go-to remedy, you know. ;-)