Midweek Message

Usually, when I’m feeling that sense of being stressed out start to creep over me, it doesn’t take long for God to step in and alleviate those tingling worries. This is my second day of work at the new Express office, and already I’m feeling quite overwhelmed by the fact that literally every little detail of processing daily operations is performed differently here, and not necessarily in a way with which I agree.

The downside of being trained by a developer is that now I have ridiculously high standards for others who probably aren’t following protocol.

Soooo, with that being said, I also met another enemy [for now, at least] today:

nasty coworker.



Meet the Avaya phone system. This little jerk invention here would be fine functioning in a household, but not in a business – at least not the model & setup we have. His name is Avaya 5410, and as of today, we are not coexisting well. Rumor has it, he’s made enemies with most of the other staff here, too. Well then.

Anyway, with work frying my brain to near crispy, I went home and joined the husband and we headed across the backyard to church for our first dose of Wednesday evening church service here at Towerview.

Pastor Ron did a great job. His message this upcoming Sunday is going to be based around the song I presented to him last night at dinner. It’s very flattering to have that kind of recognition, and apparently I’m in line to sing this Sunday. Talk about a welcome!

Guess it’s time to dig out that accompaniment track…

xo | cmd

Back to Work

One of the best farewell parties I’ve ever had came from my Express friends back in Cincinnati before I left. My experience with the company up to this point has been nothing but positive, and I see honest opportunity for growth both individually within this company, and as a whole.

So, today I stepped into a different Express office for my first day as a “transfer.” It’s always interesting being the new kid in the office, but it’s even more challenging when the new kid has actually been in the game longer than the majority of the class. I’ve transferred from an office in which the newest staff had been there no less than 3 years, to an office where the senior staff [owners not included] are just approaching their 1-year mark. Hmmmm.

Let’s just say, it’s different here.  There is a copious amount of room for growth here, and I’m confident I can relay some of the things I learned coming from the office of an area developer. Fingers crossed.

With day 1 out of the way, I was ready for some relaxation and good company. Good thing, because Joe and I met up with our new church’s pastor and his wife [Ron & Debbie]. They had invited us to dinner to get to know us a little better, and I couldn’t be happier that we went. It is because of them that Joe and I discovered Eckert’s, which is a farmer’s market/orchard/country restaurant. It’s pretty amazing. They’ve got deep fried biscuits, which I’ve never seen or tasted, but in their defense, I’m glad I did. Not the healthiest thing I’ve ever eaten, but de-licious.



eckert's | fried biscuits

We had a great evening with Pastor Ron & Debbie; we spent nearly four hours sitting, eating, and talking. We are so very fortunate to have so quickly found such an energetic, passionate church with equally enthusiastic leaders. While I truly miss our home church family in Cincinnati [New Harmony!!], I am excited and eager to get involved here.

Oh, and high five for a four-day work week. J Back to it tomorrow!

xo | cmd

July Fourth = Drive Forth.

Happy July 4^th!

To sum it up, we spent the majority of today driving. After an[other] incredible breakfast whipped up by my mother, we loaded up everything except for Sydni’s gear and prepared to reluctantly head back to Illinois.

Sydni spending a full week with my parents at least every 4-6 weeks had become a habit, but with the distance between increasing by about 5 hours, we all agreed that two weeks would be a better arrangement, both for my parents as well as for us traveling back again to get her. It’s going to be very different sans baby for two whole weeks; I’m not sure I’ll know what to do with myself. Not to mention, I’m going to miss her much more than I’m going to let on. [There, I said it.] So she’s there, and we are now here, back in Illinois.



fireworks

We parked outside our place after the grueling commute back, and were greeted by all sorts of fireworks: large, brilliant displays off in the distant, and tiny, homemade shows that popped up in various spots around our neighborhood. I’m not sure what it was, but those little flashes of color seemed to dull the exhaustion of driving and even calm our nerves about leaving Sydni for two weeks.

Oh, and did I mention I go back to work tomorrow? J
Express Edwardsville, let’s do this….

edwardsville express

xo | cmd

Last Day in the Vern



kobi

Today was our last day here in Mt. Vernon. I woke up today a little sad that we would be heading back to Illinois tomorrow, but not before we had another great day with the family.

I finally got to spend a little time with my cat, whose current residence is here in Mt. Vernon with my parents. This was originally a temporary arrangement, but after six month, my mom persuaded me to let her stay. She’s a sweetie, and while I miss her, I’m glad she’s fitting in here.

We of course had to go to the late service at Faith Baptist, my parents’ church, and the church in which I was a member at the time I was officially saved. [Amen!]. After the service, we did lunch at Ruby Tuesday’s and headed back home.

Dad & Joe loaded up to hit the golf course, while I stayed back with mom & Syd. We spent an afternoon enjoying the sunshine outside and watering the blooming gardens in the front yard. I suited Sydni up in some swim gear so she could play in the sprinkler. I was also amazed at how long a 2-yr-old can stay entertained with a bucket of water and some plastic cups. It makes me wish I was a kid again.



water fun!

When the men were finished golfing and back at the house, we all cleaned up and got ready for an early dinner. We’ve been very diligent over the past several months on praying before meals with Sydni. We pray as a family before bedtime, and I am here to proudly say that not only does she understand that it is something we all do together, but she will remind us if we for some reason forget. These are some of the things that, as a mother, I find more gratifying than anything else. Even though she’s entering into a new phase of toddlerhood [whining, clinging, bossing, claiming….], it’s things like this that I know that Joe and I as parents are managing to do right. The rest, well, we’re working on it. J

*Sigh.
Tomorrow morning we pack up and head back to Belleville. Oh Yippee.

*Bye again, Ohio!*

♥

xo | cmd

Holiday Picnic!

In my opinion, the best way to spend a holiday is with the people you love. I wish Joe’s family had been able to be a part of the weekend celebration; they are my family now, too, and I love ‘em. Here at my parents’ house, we were joined by my sister & her family, my cousins, a few close family friends, and the first pastor that I can clearly remember. It was a blast, as usual.



cornhole | sister&family| couples | pastor chuck & darryl

my love | my mama's cookin' | beautiful sister | daddy&syd

fetch! | sydni | emmie | babies with water buckets

bathtime girls | sydni's sparklers | sparklers | imitating mama



 Happy Holiday!

xo | cmd

Fossils | Festivals | Friends | Fireworks

My parents’ house sits on a very large, very foliage-covered piece of land. As kids, the natural place to find us was usually rustling around somewhere deep in these woods. We built forts, swung on grapevines, and fished crayfish and salamanders with our bare fingers. I decided that it was time my husband caught a glimpse of what I considered the home behind my home.

What I did NOT encounter as a kid, ever, [thank goodness] was a trail of massive bones littering the creekbed for nearly a half mile. In my adulthood, I realize that currently, I’ve seen one too many episodes of NCIS, CSI, etc. to be okay seeing things like this without the creepy suspicion that dirty business has transpired.

Relief: white tailed deer carcasses. Well, relief compared to what they could’ve been.

Disappointment: Hunters hunting, stripping, and dumping on our property = illegal. 



bones | white-tailed deer | :(

 Strange. We headed back to the house shortly after to shower and clean up.


One thing I will forever love about my hometown is its nostalgic feel and the fact that each time I visit, I uncover something or someone I’ve somehow managed to elude for more than just a few years.

Today, my parents, Joe, Syd and I headed to downtown Mt. Vernon for some sort of pre-holiday festival. I’m not exactly sure what it was technically named, but I do know there’s just something about these little events to which I’m drawn. I can’t explain it, but either way, I’m glad we went.   



jasmine

Anyone who attended St. Paul’s Episcopal Church as a kid in the mid-90’s should remember Farm Week. I know I do… well, for the most part. What I primarily recall is a hoard of youth swarming all over an outdoor haven: river and all. From the time I was finally getting all my adult teeth in, this girl has been there doing stupid and crazy things with me. She finally moved away to another bordering school district in the midst of our high school years, but we’ve managed to keep in touch and I love her to pieces.  



krystal

This is a tribute to a girl I befriended somewhere in the middle of middle school. I’ve always been fairly adaptable, but I do distinctly remember how displeased I was [ok, fine, I was actually terrified] that I had to leave elementary school and start the big bad 6^th grade in a whole new building. This girl is one of the first people I met in my quest to survive middle school. I recall she even accompanied us on a family vacation to VA Beach once. Ironically, her family moved to Missouri just as we were entering high school; now that she’s back in Ohio, I’m the one [almost] in Missouri. Timing was never our thing, but she’s still one of my oldest and dearest friends J

Oh, yeah, and there were fireworks.

Mount Vernon loves fireworks.

Sydni also loves fireworks.



family fireworks outing



Actually, this was Sydni’s first experience with fireworks. She did well, considering how loud and flashy they were at times.

Tomorrow = family picnic. I can’t wait!

xo | cmd

Ohio Bound!

Oil Change: check.
Diapers: check.

Stroller: check.

Dog: check.

Daddy, Mama, Baby: check. check. check.  

And we were [all] OFF!

-- Mount Vernon bound to go and spend the July 4^th holiday weekend with my family back in north central Ohio. We had anticipated something like a long drive, but we hadn’t figured it would take us nearly 9 hours to get from point A to point B. Next time, we’re going to manage something better, because we know it shouldn’t take that long. Yeesh.

silly little stowaway

At least the youngest member of this excursion didn’t mind the commute much, save for the last 2-ish hours [understandably].

We just landed, and it’s freakin’ late.

G’Nite.

xo | cmd