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Hi.  My name is Eliza.  It has been 26 days since my last post. 

Sigh.

I am so sorry.  The holidays have passed; our one year anniversary has passed; nearly all of January has passed and I have no blogs to show for it! 

Here’s my recap:

The holidays were wonderful.  It was amazing to have a family of three altogether celebrating Christmas together!  The Mister got me an amazing new camera (I know, I KNOW, there should surely be PICTURES then, shouldn’t there?!?), I got him a new tool chest for the garage.  We bought Flash a fridge and microwave for his dorm room (yikes) as well as some computer parts he wanted.  (Side note: within an hour of the last package being opened, Flash had completely assembled his own computer from scratch. Amazing!)

Celebrating our first anniversary was wonderful, too.  In true martial fashion, we originally planned on a night away and dinner out, but downsized the celebration so we could put the funds into our vacation account for the summer.  Welcome to married life!!  🙂  The Mister sent me the most beautiful arrangement of flowers and cooked us all New York strip steaks for dinner.  I got him…a card.  Yeah, I know.  But the first anniversary is paper, right?!? 

Last weekend was a huge moment in all our lives…FLASH GOT ACCEPTED TO COLLEGE!!  He submitted his application in the middle of October to State and just finally heard last Saturday that he was accepted there.  He’s still waiting on news from two other schools, but at least has the relief that he has somewhere to go in the fall.  (We assured him he was going SOMEWHERE…)

The real reason I am completely AWOL from life lately is grad school.  In a word, grad school is a bitch.  I hate it.  I hate everything about it and everything I have to do for it.  I hate that it’s not something I want to do, it’s something I have to do to keep my teaching license.  UGH!  In any case, I’m almost halfway through the program and the next couple of months are really the most intense, so hopefully I will survive. 

If grad school wasn’t making me cranky, the weather sure would be.  We have had four snow days already and still the potential for more this week with temps significantly below zero.  If you’re reading this from Minnesota, or any location north of Michigan, my hat is off to you.  I have no idea how you stay sane.  The Mister and I spend all our time talking about moving to Kentucky (not too hot, far less cold, still mountains and hills to see…) We would leave today if either of us had employment there. 

So that’s my recap.  It’s not exciting, but I didn’t want to look back years from now and wonder what the void was all about.  Grad school people.  Avoid it at all cost.

Resolutions

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We talked over dinner last night, about our resolutions for the New Year.  Here’ sweat we came up with:

Eliza resolves to:
  – start each day by waking up.
  – not watch baseball (in the off-season).
  – not consume any illegal substances
  – not commit any felonies
  – remain a non-smoker
  – not watch any WWE events on pay-per-view
  – refrain from eating road kill
  – not become an arsonist, a vegan or Hindu
The mister resolves to:
  – not cheer for the Yankees
  – hate Ohio State
  – not eat quinoa
  – end each day by sleeping
  – not buy any curtains, throw pillows or bath towels
  – retain possession of his Man Card
  – not become a referee for water polo, a fashion consultant or a spelling bee judge
  – not throw rocks at airplanes
Flash resolves to:
  – not get arrested
  – drink large quantities of Mt. Dew
  – avoid physical exertion including outside chores, team sports and exercise
  – listen to music, text friends and play video games daily
  – study and do homework only when absolutely necessary and required
  – remain skeptical about all plans and intentions initiated by Mom.
  – not grow a handlebar mustache
We think these are pretty good goals, don’t you?
  
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The Mister: “What are those little birds…”

Me: “you are seriously this bored?  I realize we have one more day until we celebrate Christmas and open presents, but you’re going to start a conversation with me about birds?  You ARE bored.”
The Mister: “No, seriously, those little birds..”
Me: “Wrens.”
The Mister: “I didn’t finish.”
Me: sigh
The Mister: “What are those little birds that need a certain size hole in the…”
Me: “Wrens”
The Mister: “Wren birds?”
Me: “Just wrens, Babe.”
Dear Flash,
Please come home soon.  The Mister is losing his mind waiting for our Christmas to begin.

Things We Won't Miss

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299 days until Flash leaves for college.  In an effort to keep myself from focusing on all the things I WILL miss about my boy, here are some I definitely won’t miss:

 Shaving cream left in the sink.  
 Garbage on the floor an inch from the trash can.
 
 ‘Nuff said.
  The disaster.
The door that is constantly closed.
 Half-consumed cans of Dew all over the house.
Dishes on the counter when the dishwasher is loadable.
299 days until Flash leaves home for his first year at college and my first year in deep therapy.  On my bad days next year, when I’m homesick for my boy, maybe thinking about these little habits will help.  (I have to say, in all honesty, if these are the things that drive me crazy about my teenager, I’ll take ’em.  There could be so many worse things to worry about than these.  That said, I’m wondering how he’ll fare with his roommate…)

A Playoff Math Quiz

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If my favorite team, the Boston Red Sox, play The Mister’s favorite team for the first time in post-season history, and my Bearded Boys win the series and advance to the World Series, how long until The Mister speaks to me again?

a) never
b) if the Red Sox lose the World Series
c) if the Lions beat the Patriots in NFL playoffs this winter
d) if Flash ends up going to State and I have to surrender my Wolverine rights and join The Mister in cheering for the Spartans
e) only if b-c all occur this year
Sigh.  
As a challenge question, anyone want to guess at how much the damages charges are on The Mister’s hotel bill for throwing things at the TV?  
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At the moment, I am a happily married woman whose husband is currently in Dallas for work.  However, Game Six of the ALCS is moments away from starting and Boston is up 3-2 in the series.  Within just a few hours, my husband might not like me so much anymore (or vice versa) and he may or may not change his return flight to…never.  

I will keep you posted.  While I’d love to see my Red Sox in the World Series, I would sure miss my husband.  Especially with snowblower season coming up.
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Our pastor this morning spoke about the difference between being irritated, agitated and frustrated and how it relates to surrendering.  I think I am beginning to understand the difference with the help of The Mister.

When the little red squirrel that chewed two holes in the side of our house last spring returns this weekend for another go at it, The Mister is irritated.  When The mister spends the afternoon pulling off a gutter! cutting and patching together material to permanently block the little bugger from getting back in the new holes he has chewed The Mister is agitated.  When The mister gets out of the shower to hear the sounds of the squirrel chewing in a whole new place on the roof, he is truly frustrated.
The Mister isn’t getting out his tar, his metal, or new boards for dealing with the problem now.  At this point, I believe the squirrel is going to meet The Mister’s gun.  
I would like to recommend to the squirrel that at this point, it is best just to surrender.  And find a new home to chew in to.  

More Than a Promise

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In the mail today was confirmation.  When we moved back to the Midwest 7 years ago, we strategically chose to live in Kalamazoo so Flash would qualify for The Promise.  Seeing the dollar figures associated with Flash’s schools of choice are enough to make a person tremble (or maybe that was just The Mister’s response).  The Promise is what allows Flash to put University of Michigan at the top of his list and for his parents to speak of it as a realistic option.  

We spent our morning at Michigan State, exploring the College of Engineering.  We expect it will come down to being a Spartan or a Wolverine when decision time arrives.  But for Flash, who has worked hard to create open doors for himself, he will get to choose a school based on where his passions lie, and not just based on financial support. 
Thank you, Kalamazoo.