Retirement

I’m a structured, goal oriented person. I like routine and knowing what is happening on what day and  at what time. 

I’m married to the exact opposite type of person. He is spontaneous, spur of the moment, fly by the seat of your pants person.

He’s good for me and I’m good for him. I’ve learned to be spontaneous and he’s learned to be structured (somewhat!)

My whole life has been pretty routine so far. I went from school, to being married, having kids, homeschooling, then working.

Now I’m retired. Right now, I have somewhat of a schedule going to the grandkids 2-3 days a week. But I’m struggling with what to do on the other days. We will be leaving in the fall and I’ll have every day free then. 

I’m usually a good manager of my time. I volunteer or manage my household or minister in some way. 

But for some reason. I’m struggling now. Maybe it’s because I know we won’t be in a place for very long (rv life is awesome by the way) or maybe it’s just because I’m older? Or tired? 

I really don’t know. But this stage of life is strange. I am loving the flexibility of it and the relaxing part. 

But I don’t really want to have a job again. 

I want to be available to my kids and grandkids and hubby.

But what to do on the daily. I have no idea.

Pray for me as I’m in this transition!

Big changes!

Big changes in the last few months for us!  We've bought an RV and hit the road!  We are spending the summer in Colorado and hanging with the grandkids!  When the fall rolls around, we will get on the road again and see what happens!  

Life changes quickly!  We sold most everything. I've retired from my job.  Larry continues to work remote.  We leased out our condo.

I'm excited about the RV life!  We are learning so much!  How to hitch, how to dump the tanks, etc.  Still figuring out reliable internet. 

But life is short!  The grandkids grow up so fast.  We have a window of time here to be part of their lives for now and we decided to jump on it!  My grandparents were a huge part of my life and I want to be that to all my grandkids.

Plus, you really can't beat Colorado in the summer.  Although, we haven't seen too much of the summer yet!  We had snow as of last week!  brrrrrr!  But when summer does arrive, we will be enjoying the beauty of Colorado!  

Life goes so quickly!  You have to enjoy the ride!  

Anyone lived the RV life?? Tips?  Youtube has helped us so much on everything!  If you are in the area, we'd love to visit!

2018 year in Review

Well, 2018 is almost over and really--good riddance.  It's been a tough year.  We lost all our parents this year.  My mom died early in the year and my dad died after Thanksgiving.  Larry's mom battled a lot of sickness and after a successful move to an assisted living by us she passed away in September.  It's really surreal to be the oldest ones in the family now.  We have no grandparents and now no parents.

We battled some medical things ourselves.  I had a kidney stone. Larry had shoulder surgery.  I had a weird infection in my elbow.  We both had some unusual sickness at the beginning of the year.  I had some eye surgery. (Post on that later) and I started Invisalign too!

But it hasn't been all bad.  We got to go on a cruise in April to the Caribbean with great friends!  We had some beautiful California Closets installed in our condo. We got to go see our son in San Diego twice! We got to see some wonderful friends in Virginia. We spent a great weekend in Corpus with my daughter and her husband and the grand baby!  I got to spend several weekends this year with my dad coming over.

So as we turn the calendar to 2019, I'm anticipating good things!  We will have another grand baby in January!  And a new baby is always a happy way to start the year!  Annabelle will be 2 next year!  My son will be finished with the Marines in March and will be starting some new exciting career.  We will be celebrating our 30th anniversary and we are looking at a trip to Croatia!

There's lots to mourn for last year but lots to look forward for the year to come.

So my word for the new year is RELATIONSHIPS.  Trying to think of my relationships with people.  Not just my jobs or duties to people but what am I doing for the relationship?  How do I build that?  How do I grow and encourage those?  Lots to work but I'm praying God will guide me in this next year.  

Happy New Year everyone.

The Road of Life

Ever been on a road trip across Kansas? It's about the boringest trip ever! You can see for literally miles and miles! The road is straight. There are no turns. You know when anything interesting is coming up because you can see it ahead for hours. You tend to nod off a lot because there's nothing to see! Just put the car on cruise and go.

Then there's other roads we travel on. Like in the mountains in Colorado. The road seems to wind and wind. It goes up and down, around and round. You have to continually look at the road because you are never quite sure what is up ahead. Or what will jump out in the road! The passengers seem to be hanging on for dear life with seat belts securely buckled.

Life can be like these roads at times. Sometimes we wake up every morning knowing exactly what's ahead of us. Year in and year out life stays pretty much the same. It's safe and secure. You can see any problems up ahead and have time to prepare for them.

Other times it feels like you never know what to expect! You look up and suddenly there's a huge curve in the road.

The last few years I've felt like we've been driving on the curvy, windy road. I've never really known what the Lord is planning for us up ahead. There have been many twists and turns. At times I've held on tight and pulled my seat belt tighter and closed my eyes and said "Oh, Lord! Really? do we have to go this way? Isn't there an easier road?" But He gently reminds me that He's the one driving. He knows the way and He will get me there safely.

If I quit looking at the hairpin curve. If I quit looking at the speedometer. But instead turn my head and look out the window, I will see the beauty of the mountainside! There is an incredible scene spread before me! There's incredible people and places to visit along the way!

Sure, I could be driving through Kansas and see nothing but cornfields...but it's not near as beautiful as the windy mountain path.

I just need to remind myself that at times.