Lifes Not Always PopTarts and Roses

As many of you know, Jamie and I have been through a major challenge in the last year. We have been trying to conceive a baby for about three years now. And by trying to conceive (ttc), you all really know what that means. It's been way fun for Jamie, not so much for me at times.

The word we are looking for here is "anyway"....

Last November we decided it was time to visit the doctor and see if we could get this whole thing figured out. I will spare you all the wonderful details. And believe me when I tell you that they are indeed, wonderful.

We started testing in November and this went through January. All during the holiday season, we sure were merry. Not to mention that during this time my in-laws moved out of their house that they had inhabitated for the last 35 years. Can't you just imagine all of the merriment and cheer that those months held for us??

After our last major appointment we were riding in the car to go get some dinner at Cracker Barrell (because that's what we do here in the South after major life changing news....we eat). On the way he informed me that the Dr. told him that we have less than a 5% chance of conceiving a child on our own.

Now, one would think at this point I would have gotten very upset and been all dramatic like, throwing my hands up in the air screaming "Why Me!". But to tell you the truth I reacted very, very differently than I would have ever imagined.

I looked at Jamie, shrugged my shoulders and said, "Well you know, Life's not always poptars and roses." And then I'm sure I said something very profound like, so "Are you going to get an extra portion of fried okra at Cracker Barrell?".

Not that the news wasn't big or important to me, because it very much was. But I think that I had prepared myself for that moment for a few months, so when it actually came it wasn't as monumentous as I pictured it.

After I said the life changing statement "Life's not always poptarts and roses", Jamie just looked at me and busted out laughing. I feel like I am blessed with the gift of comedic relief. But the really funny part is that I wasn't trying to be funny. I really do like poptarts and roses.

So you are probably wondering if there is a point. And I'm not sure I can answer that. But what I was interested in was seeing what other phrases comparing life to that we could come up with. Here are two I thought of:

"Life's not always Butterflies and Pancakes"

"Life's not always Squash casserole and Pansies"

I'm not real sure what the connection is with food and nature (or words that start with "p"). But somehow I think it makes good comparisons. What about you?

The Junk Food Was Overflowing and Laughter Didn't Cease!

I did something this weekend that I haven't done in probably ten years. I had a sleep over.

Five of my friends from high school drove all the way to my house out in the middle of nowhere and we had an all girl slumber party. We are 26 and married, but that didn't stop us. No ma'am it didn't.

I started preparing for the monumentous occassion on Thursday with the preperation of all things sugar and carb filled. I made fruit dip (cream cheese, powdered sugar, and cool whip), puppy chow (peanut butter, powdered sugar, chocolate), and salsa. I bought cinnamon rolls, muffins, and fruit for breakfast and the fridge was abounding with sugary, high fat carbonation. It was marvelous.

The first three girls arrived Friday afternoon and we sat in the kitchen and caught up with one another. It was all like, "Guess who's getting married" and "I heard Julie is pregnant" and "Did you know that Marla is building a new house?" and "You'll never guess who I saw the other day and guess what color her hair was."

Then we decided we were hungery and lucky for us I had purchased the ultimate sleepover dinner. Pizza. We had pizza and drank coca cola to our hearts content. It was wonderful.

Then my friend Leah busted out some kind of new card game. You have to spell words with the letters on the cards. You go through 13 rounds and each time you get more and more cards. I thought surely I would dominate at this game because I am good with words. But what I'm not so good at is spelling. So that proved to be mainly the most important. It was the five card round and I was SO SO proud of myself because I was about to lay down the best word and get lots of points. I layed down my cards with a "look at me" kind of laugh and discarded with a slap of the hand. The three girls looked at me and said...."Uh, you spell mantel with a T". I had put down M A N E L. Needless to say, I didn't win that game. But what do they know.

The other two friends arrived later that night and we quickly got them all caught up on the evenings activities. We stayed up until 2:30 in the morning. I haven't had that much fun since watching Monica and Chandler bring home their babies. Have I said how fantastic it was??

Well you just wait right there because it gets even better.

We all got up on Saturday morning and got ready. Which was a littly trying seeing as to how I only have one shower that is finished. Six girls + one shower = a long time getting everyone out the door. But luckily we have grown out of the stage of Rave hairspray and teasing our crown. It didn't take near as long as I thought.

We decided to do what any girl would want to do after a sleepover. We went shopping. We pulled into the parking lot of the Kirklands in Jackson and our small minds could not wrap around the treasure that awaited us there.

A HUGE TENT SALE. Jesus was smiling down on us that day my friends.

My friend Leah started saying as we pulled up, "This is bad, this is really, really not good." My friends in the other car were screaming, dancing, and jumping up and down. It really was fantastic (have I said that yet?)

We had lunch at the Olive Garden and shopped some more. We ended the day with a movie and dinner. We had such a terrific time. I am so thankful that I have "old" friends from school who are willing to drive to spend the weekend with me. We do have a special relationship and I am so grateful for all of them!

I laughed a lot and it was a great, terrific, wonderful, glorious, and any other adjective that is fitting, time!!!

front L-R: me, Amber, Adrienne, Brittney

back L-R: LesLee and Leah

A Serious Side

A friend of mine sent this to me today and it made me think. I think this is a very touching video and very emotional, but for me it's not truth. It truly makes my heart ache for all of the thousands of couples who struggle with infertility and don't know Jesus as their Lord. Not that this makes the journey perfect or that by being a Christian I am promised that all of my desires will be fufilled, but because I know at the end of the day, no matter how upset and emotional I might get about our situation.....my HOPE and my trust is in Christ. He is my provider, healer, friend. He holds the key to my fertility. In HIM I place all trust. I can firmly stand and know that He is in control of my life. My ultimate satisfaction is NOT found in conceiving a child, but in Christ alone.

I am so thankful to Him for carrying us through this time.

I don't think I'll be starting a mowing business anytime soon

Jamie has a crazy schedule in the summer. He works for a company that installs athletic fields. He loves his job and we are very thankful for the job because it was an answer to a lot of prayers.

Anyway....

He is absent from our house for most of the daytime hours. When he gets in he is always very tired. So needless to say the last thing he needs is a nagging wife saying, "You know we could house an entire community of mice in our yard and you would never know it because they would be shaded by all the enormous blades of grass." Translated to him: mow the yard now.

Being the wife that I am, I decided that I would take this small chore from his hands. It might be important to add that we have three acres of yard to mow. Not an easy feat mind you. So I head up to my in-laws house (they live up the hill) and asked if Bob (my father in law) could teach me how to mow on his mower. It turned out to be very easy to operate the machine, lucky for me.

Now, this was on a Saturday. Dear Jamie happened to be at home, but I, of course, had him working through a list of five or seventeen other things. So mowing the yard was on my agenda and I wanted to make sure he saw every minute of it so he would know my ultimate sacrifice for him.

I came riding down the hill on the mower. Jamie thought it would be a good idea to for him "get me started". So he made the first few rounds to mark my path. Then he handed the raines over to me.

Now, I might need to preface this by telling you that we have big crevases (and I'm not real sure how to spell crevases) in our yard. We live at the bottom of a hill and we just built our house last year. So the grass hasn't been around too long. There is a lot of washing going on. Which just added a load full of fun to the mowing experience.

So I hop on the mower. Jamie decided it might be a good idea to watch me the first go around just to make sure I got it right. I started out, really thinking highly of myself for taking on such a manly chore. I turned the first turn, good job so far. I was keeping everything in line. The lines down the yard were looking spectacular if I do say so myself.

Then....I saw the ditch.

I was faced with a dilema. It actually crossed my mind that I could "jump" it. On a mower.

I didn't want to mess up the perfect lines after all. So I made the decision to keep on trucking (or mowing) right over that little ditch. The mower didn't make it.

I sat there with the front two tires of the mower in the ditch. I didn't know what to do, so instead of you know, turning the key off. I just stood up. Because that is what makes the mower quit going. It did make the engine cut off, but it kept making this horrible sound. Good thing for me that Jamie was still outside watching the whole event unfold. Because I'm sure that my safety was the first thing on his mind and not at all how much he was going to make fun of me.

He came to my side, turned the mower completley off and pushed it out of the ditch. Then he looked at me and said, "What were you doing?". I replied "Mowing". He said, "Did ya not see the ditch?".

"Yes, I saw it."

"Then why didn't you go around it?"

"Well, I didn't want to mess up the lines."

Perfectly good explanation in my mind. He warned me that next time I should go around. I told him not to worry because there probably wouldn't be a next time.

Marcie Moment number 126

This is a conversation between my and my very good friend Allie.

me: (after being out at the pool) "I got really pink today"

Allie: "You did. But it will turn into tan. You tan easily don't you?"

me: "Yes, well except for when I burn"

There's a First Time for Everything

Yesterday I did two things that I have never done before.

When I tell you what those things are, it will not seem very glamorous. There won't be applause. I won't win any kind of award. But, they are things that finally make this whole wife and adult business come full circle for me. Be prepared for these small triumphs. For they are truly monumentous occassions.

1. I dropped two shirts off at the dry cleaners.

Now, I know that this may appear like a small feat, but I assure you, it is not. As a general rule, I like to avoid clothes that are "Dry Clean Only". Actually reading those words will cause me to put a shirt back faster than you can say "wow that looks great". Don't even temp me with perfect material and flattering fits. If it's dry clean only, this girl ain't purchasing it.

But, with my trip to New York and all the shopping that it entailed before hand, I had to bite the bullet and purchase clothes that would require trips to the cleaners. I caved. But what was I supposed to do? Cotton t-shirts and jean capris just weren't acceptable attire for the Big Apple.

So I feel like with dropping those shirts off, I have officially arrived into adult life. Welcome me. Here I am. The lady had to walk me through the process and even asked "Is this your first time here". Yes ma'am it is, please handle with care.

2. I sewed a pair of Jamie's shorts that had a tear in them.

I used a real sewing machine and fixed something that had been broken. This, my friends, has never occured before. I have been taking sewing lessons from my friend Hannah for a couple of months. So, sweet Jamie had full confidence in me that I could sew the crotch of his shorts up. I feel like an actual Proverbs 31 woman. My name should have been Martha. Never mind the fact that I sewed a little bit of the short legs together. They still worked though, he is wearing them this very day. Adolescents = 0 Adult Live = 1.

I'm growing up so fast y'all.

I am in Despertate Need of Help

I have a huge dilema. It is a problem that I am 100% convinced that women across America face. And probably if you are a man reading this blog, you should stop now.

Bathing suit season. Do I really need to say more?

I will say that I am forever indebted to the person that decided bathing suit skirts were cool again. That does make the problem slightly better. Skirts for bathing suits are like salsa for tostido chips. Once we've experienced them together, we're really not sure how they could ever be seperated.

But here is my problem....

Do they even make bathing suit tops that don't plunge down in the front? I have a serious problem finding a top that works. All of the ones I have tried on, and just trust me when I say that has been MANY, look like I'm trying to gain employment at H**ters. It's like trying to shove a volleyball into a change purse. It just doesn't work. Going up a size or twelve doesn't help either.

So here is my question....

Why do they make bathing suit tops like this? Do the bathing suit manufactures not realize that most of us don't like being seen in public with our girls hanging out? I am in serious need of help here. I don't have a huge swim suit budget and I need a swim suit that I can actually wear in front of people.

Does anyone know if this even exists? Or would it be like finding a unicorn?

Help!