Goals for a New Year

Ugh.  My blogging has slowed way down.  The last couple of years took away a lot of steam.  At times, my self-imposed blogging deadlines helped me cope, I imagine, but at other times, they really added stress in an already tough situation.  I've already started quilting like crazy again, though, and I'm ready to rediscover the fun in writing!

Part of the solution is to stop feeling guilty about everything.  We women are the world's worst about beating ourselves up with guilt.  A little guilt can be a great motivator...  A lot of guilt can be a paralytic force of devastating proportions.

In 2013, there were some major guilt issues:
...not spending enough time with the children or not being engaged enough when I did -- perhaps the common lament of every parent everywhere since the beginning of time.
...not having the physical or emotional stamina to do everything for my mother I wished I could have.  (That guilt reached back to 2012 when Daddy passed, too.)
...not getting enough estate work done, or tax work, or house work, or church work, or well, you get the point.
I felt guilty about things I didn't even do wrong, thanks to a few rather harsh critics.

But as if those weren't enough, I even gave myself grief about small, inconsequential blog things:
...not blogging twice a week, then once a week, then once a month.
...writing anything that didn't relate to my blog's sewing and quilting focus.
...writing a blog posting without imagery to accompany it.
...not having time to compose lengthy, illustrated tutorials.
...sewing something for sheer enjoyment without stopping to wait for the right afternoon light to take pictures of the project in-progress.  (Shock!  Horror!)

Eventually, I didn't want to do anything at all, because nothing I could ever do would keep me from being overwhelmed, and therefore, I couldn't shut out the guilt.

And so, as we move well into 2014, I'm going to make a few resolutions:

1.  I'm letting myself off the hook.  It's not okay to wallow or be indefinitely paralyzed by stress and guilt, but it is occasionally okay to have a movie day, a sad day, a lazy day, an eat-all-the-chocolate-and-potato-chips-you-want day, a curl-up-under-an-OliviaFurryBlanket day, a sleep-through-the-rain day or all of the above at once.  There's no more room for guilt when it comes to the arts that have previously brought me comfort-bliss. 

The Bitty Boy with the Gigantic Heart

Sometimes our children say things that simply melt our hearts...

For the last few days, viruses have paraded through our house like they owned the joint.  First, Big Boy brought some kind of bug home from school, then I started catching something.  Through all this, SuperHusband -- with his immune system of steel -- and Bitty sat patiently by while we staggered through the house zombie-like.  Thankfully, mine only lasted one day, but we were careful to temporarily suspend all the hugging and kissing in an effort to keep anything from spreading.

Still, despite our best efforts, I received the call from Bitty's preschool yesterday saying I needed to come pick him up.

Today's Photo Journal: A family business...

It's Memorial Day, and one of those times when I get a little misty-eyed about military service and the way it's defined our lives.  Our military ties influence every aspect of our home, where Airman is a term for both Daddy and Momma, and we've been blessed to know many other couples who've turned military service into a family business.

A rare photo of SuperHusband and I on duty together, posing with The Gambler in front of a C-5 Galaxy...Kenny Rogers confessed later to SH that he thinks I'm a bad driver.  In my defense, your honor, the gentleman had just had back surgery and Dover AFB has lots of speed bumps.

Fair warning:  The photos here are only loosely tied to the posting.  Sometimes I'm a little schizophrenic.  Whatever.  Just enjoy both...?  :)

Interview Tips for the Nanny Applicant

Dear Nanny,

1.  Unless he is here to translate for you, please do not bring your adult son and his child bride to your job interview with you.  One stranger in my home is quite enough.  Thank you.

2.  Please be truthful about your expected salary on the sitter site.  It was a little insulting when I offered you more than your advertised rate and you acted like *I* was smoking crack.

3.  Please do not converse in a language that I do not understand IN MY HOME...at a JOB INTERVIEW.

4.  NO, I WILL NOT HIRE YOUR DAUGHTER-IN-LAW with whom I did not exchange a SINGLE WORD while you were here.  I contacted YOU, based on YOUR listing.  When would I like her to begin?  Seriously?  Sha.

5.  Please do not act surprised that I would expect you to quit your current job and show up for work before 3 p.m. for a FULL TIME NANNY POSITION that YOU APPLIED FOR.

6.  When I say, "It doesn't sound like this is the right fit," that's my nice way of saying the interview is over.  Don't try to keep negotiating me up to your rate or pawning more members of your family on me.

Other than that, you did awesome!  We'll let you know.  :)