Whew! I'm tired!

It's been a busy busy week in the Bledsoe house.  Work has been crazy for both David and I--David because of some weather that moved through last week, and mine, well, for reasons that I probably shouldn't list on a public site.  :)  (I do have to say, though, that I am very proud of myself for becoming more assertive, standing up for myself, and not just privately complaining about things that make me mad.  That is certainly a lesson I learned last week!)  I did get to have a fun day, though, because I was asked to present at a middle school career fair on Friday.  I was a little apprehensive about going, but it turned out to be so much fun.  AND, I even had one student come up and tell me that she thought I had the best job out of everyone there!  (I should have asked her to write that down for me, so I could look at it every morning--and especially those mornings that I need extra motivation.)

I was in charge of classes at The ABA Place this weekend, since the director, Jenni, was out of town.  We had some new (ADORABLE) kids join us on both days, so that was a lot of fun.  I am so blessed to be able to work with as many wonderful kids as I do.  And, on top of that, the staff at The ABA Place is just amazing.  What is The ABA Place?  Check us out at www.socialskillsforasd.com.  Awesome stuff!

After class on Saturday, David and I spent a lot of time getting our house ready for my friend, Jennifer's, baby shower.  David is such a wonderful husband, and he really busted his bootie to help me out.  He woke up Saturday morning, and got straight to work without me even knowing!  In fact, by the time I got home from class, he had already completed most of the stuff on the list!  We spent that rest of the day Saturday, getting some shopping done, rearranging our living room, and doing some final cleaning.  Then, on Sunday, we did all the finishing touches.  Again, David was AMAZING with everything that he helped with--without me even having to ask him to do it!  The shower turned out to be a success...with lots of fun, food, games, and laughs.  I am so excited to get to meet Adalyn! Hurry up and get here!  :)

The next couple of weeks will definitely be busy, too, but I am looking forward to them.  This weekend, David and I are going to be helping at a Parent's Night Out event at The ABA Place, to allow parents to spend some much needed time together without having to worry about their kids with a baby-sitter!  And, then, next weekend is my friend, Amber's, baby shower on Saturday in Jackson.  (I can't wait to meet Riley!)  On Sunday, David and I are having a Super Bowl Party at our house, and breaking in the new grill that my mom and dad got us for Christmas!  YAY!  Then, on Valentine's weekend, David and I are going to head out of town for a little rest and relaxation with some good friends.  I think we are both definitely looking forward to that time to just be together.  I know I am!

Life is good for the Bledsoe's right now.  :)  Hope it's good for all of you, too!

P.S. My grandmother did get out of the hospital on Sunday, but she will be spending several weeks in a rehab facility so she can get her strength up.  I think this is the perfect place for her, although I know she misses being in her own house.  Please pray that both my Grandma AND Grandpa make the decisions that are the BEST for them, not just the ones that are the most comfortable.  Also, please pray that my grandma continues to make progress in her recovery.  Thank you!

Update

So, we found out on Tuesday that Grandma's surgery went well, and that, if everything progressed according to plan, she will be heading home sometime this weekend.  Good news!  Thank you so much for all your thoughts and prayers.  They were definitely felt, heard, and appreciated!

This picture makes me smile...

And I needed a smile!  :)

And so it goes...

Well, just when it seems that life might actually be pretty easy for a while, a curveball is thrown squarely in our direction.

It started last week when I got some pretty devastating news related to my schooling.  Thankfully, I will still (hopefully) be able to graduate on August 15, but it's not going to be exactly as I planned.  I wish I could go into more detail about it--it's just that, at this point, everything is still kind of up in the air.  All I can really say is that I am committed to doing ANYTHING and EVERYTHING I can.  This certainly is one of the biggest fights of my life.

The other thing that is overwhelming me is the fact that my Grandma Joy is in the hospital and not doing well at all.  She has been fighting some pneumonia, and was in the hospital for a bit last week.  Well, after talking to my dad yesterday and today, I find out that it's actually much much worse.  She has fluid built up in her lungs, and a pretty big blood clot (and some smaller clots) in her legs.  If the clot travels up to her lung, it will be fatal, so they are going to go in and try to open up the blood vessels (or something like that) so the blood clot won't be so severe.  On top of that, though, her kidneys are failing.  The procedure that they are going to do tomorrow to help the blood clot is very risky because of her kidneys.  Basically, if she makes it through the surgery, there's a very good chance she will have permanent damage to her kidneys.  Either way, it's not good.

I guess I am just asking all of you to please pray.  This is one of the times that our family hates to be 500 miles away from each other.  I know that my dad wishes that he could be up there right now, but my Grandpa keeps telling him to wait.  Please pray that the doctors are able to help my Grandma with as little permanent damage as possible.  Pray that God is with my Grandma during the next day and days to follow, that He gives her the strength to fight through this time, and pray for His healing power.  Pray for my Grandpa that he is not overwhelmed during this time, that he is the rock that my Grandma needs, and that God comforts my Grandpa during the times that he is scared.  Pray for my family that we can all be comforted by God, and that we understand that, ultimately, He is in control and will not lead us astray.

So far, not so good

I know I said that I was going to try to start focusing on all the blessings that I have in my life, and, believe me, I am blessed.  But, for the past couple days, it's been hard to look past the grey cloud of exhaustion that has been hovering over me.  For some reason, I have not been able to sleep lately, and it's about to drive me crazy.  I have been waking up at 2:00am on the dot, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, ready to go for the day.  UGH!  If I had to look for some good out of the situation, though, it would definitely be that my wonderful husband works nights (for once, something that I LIKE about him working overnight)...that means that I can call him whenever I wake up and bug him (I mean, talk to him) until I feel tired again and can fall back asleep.  (See, I guess I CAN look for a blessing!)
As much as I enjoy talking to David, though, I am definitely going to enjoy sleeping through the night much more.

I am so glad that it is Thursday--that means it's almost the weekend.  But, I am also glad it's Thursday because (1) I get to get home at a decent time and relax, and (2) Thursday is the best night of TV all week! AND, tonight is an especially great night for TV because Project Runway premieres.  YAY!  :)  (Can you tell I am a complete TV addict?  There is just nothing more relaxing to me than curling up on the couch under our big white down comforter, with Bailey cuddled up next to me, watching some trashy no-brain-necessary reality TV.  Oh, I love it!!!)

It's a sad day in the Bledsoe house....

Kiffin leaves Tennessee after 1 year for USC

Posted using ShareThis

Oh, you Bledsoes!

Well, I think we FINALLY have David's tooth situation under control.  We went to our family dentist yesterday, and he had some x-rays done, but the dentist said she couldn't tell what was wrong.  (In my mind, I am thinking, "Um...what do you mean you don't know what's wrong???")  Anyway, she referred us to an endodontist (a specialty dentist), and, thankfully, David was able to get in this morning.  As it turns out, he does have to have a root canal, but they can't do it all at one time due to the amount of infection in his tooth.  (The filling that he had done a few years ago evidently wasn't done correctly, because what has been causing all his problems has been a massive infection surrounding the old filling.)  So, today they cut out most of the infection, put him on another antibiotic and some more pain medicine, and told us to come back in two weeks so they could (hopefully) finish the rest of the root canal (they have to wait for the infection to clear up before they can do anything else).  The good news in all this is that it looks like he is on the road to feeling better.  Thank goodness!!!

Ally came and hung out with us for a bit on Friday since her school was closed and so was the University. The three of us went to breakfast, then ran a few errands, and then just spent the rest of the day hanging around the house.  Ally is such a sweet little girl, and she constantly amazes me with the things she says and how smart she is!  She also really LOVES Uncle David.  In fact, I was in a hurry to get to a client's house when Grandma came to pick up Ally, and I really didn't get a chance to tell her goodbye like I wanted to.  So, I called her later that night and talked to her.  I said, "I'm sorry that I didn't get to tell you goodbye!  I had fun with you today."  She said, without missing a beat, "Mmm-hmmm.  Will you tell Uncle David that I said goodbye and that I love him?"  HA!  So much for Aunt Esther, I guess.  :)

There hasn't been too much else going on lately--most of my time has been consumed with taking care of David.  :)  Two of my very best friends are within weeks of having new babies, so we have their baby showers coming up.  I just love planning get-togethers, and planning these baby showers has been too much fun!  Jennifer's shower is next weekend at our house, and Amber's is February 6 in Jackson.  I am excited to see if the girls like their showers, but I am most excited about meeting Adalyn and Riley!!!  Also in the next couple weeks, I have some work events going on, and a birthday party of one of the flower girls in our wedding, Mallie.  Mallie is having a "French Soiree" themed birthday party where everyone is supposed to dress up in their party clothes.  I think it's going to be super cute!  :)  As for work, I was asked to take part in a career fair at a local middle school next week.  It makes me laugh that I am going to be in a career fair--am I really grown-up enough?  But, mostly, I am excited to talk to the kids.  I just love stuff like that!

On a totally unrelated note, I have been doing a lot of thinking lately about how I tend to focus on the negative in life--I mean, it seems that I am always thinking about what goes wrong...kind of a glass half empty type of thinking.  I have decided this year, though, that I am going to try to completely turn around my thoughts...I am going to focus on all the good in my life.  There is sooooo much good surrounding me!  I have an absolutely AMAZING husband, the best girlfriends that anyone could ever ask for, a family that loves me, an incredibly rewarding job, and I get to work with the most wonderfully fantastic kids on the planet.  Who could ask for more?  So, I guess you could say that it's a bit of a New Year's Resolution, but that's not really how I intend it.  It's something that I want to LAST, not just for a few months, but permanently.  You totally have permission to call me out on something if I don't do it!  :)

Bummer!

So, as it usually happens in Memphis, it didn't snow like the weathermen said it would.  I mean, it snowed--like 1/2 an inch, and the roads are icy in places--but, I still had to come to work, and life still goes on.  It's supposed to get colder and colder as the day goes on, with lots of wind.  The new "fear" is that everything that is melting (because of the cars driving on the roads) will refreeze, and we could have some dangerous conditions tomorrow.  The only thing that sounds dangerous to me is the fact that it's going to be 12 degrees!!!  Way too cold for me!

David came home from work this morning at around 4:30am, and he did not look good.  We think he has an abscessed tooth.  His face is swollen, his tooth hurts, and the pain is shooting up into his ear.  We called yesterday for a dental appointment, and we have one today at 3:00pm....I think.  Unfortunately, the dentist cancelled all of this morning's appointments due to the weather (they called everyone yesterday), and they aren't answering the phone this morning--I have been calling since 8:00 this morning.  I was hoping to get David in earlier, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen.  I just hope they come in this afternoon so he can get some relief!  The office isn't open on Fridays, so if he can't get in today, I'm not really sure what we are going to do.

Nothing else too exciting is going on in the Bledsoe Family, which I am considering a blessing!  It always seems that the "exciting" things are exhausting, too!

Let it snow, let it snow....please SNOW!

So, for the past week, the forecast hasn't changed: it is supposed to snow tomorrow night!  Living in Memphis for several years, though, has made me quite the pessimist, and I always doubt such a forecast.  9 times out of 10, if the weatherman says it will snow, it doesn't.  AND, last year, when the big snow of March 2009 hit, David and I were out of town and missed it.  See?  I just have no luck with snow in Memphis.
That means that, tonight, I am doing my snow dance.  (Can you picture me dancing?)  Please, oh please, oh please, snow.  And please, oh please, oh please, STICK.  Is just one day off work too much to ask for??

I can't believe it's 2010!!!

Well, I'm not very good at updating this thing.  BUT, in my defense, that past month and a half has been quite the whirlwind!

David's schedule around the holidays is always kind of crazy, and, this year was no different.  The peak season for FedEx starts the day after Thanksgiving and lasts until Christmas Day, so for those four weeks, I don't get to see much of my husband.  This year, as he has the past several years, David had to work Thanksgiving night...that made spending Thanksgiving with everyone a little tougher.  We ended up spending Thanksgiving day with my mom and day in Humboldt, and then rushing home to spend Thanksgiving night with Justin and Ashley Bradley in Arlington.  We also stopped and spent some time with the family that introduced David and I, the Allens.  (Thanks for the YUMMY pie, Ness!)  Needless to say, David was exhausted before he even made it to work.  :)

On December 5, we celebrated Sara's birthday with an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party, which was lots and lots of fun.  I, of course, played the role of the grumpy elf! :)
The party was a hit, with lots of yummy food, fun games, and good bonding time.  I know Sara had a great birthday!

The end of the semester is always a busy time for me, so the first few weeks in December were no exception.  With finishing up my school work, and finalizing plans with all of the schools I work with, I didn't really have time to breathe!  I am very blessed with my job, though, and was able to take a 3 week Christmas break, starting on December 14.  I treasured this time off, and spent as much time as I could doing nothing.  Of course, that didn't work out very well!  December 16 was David's birthday, and we spent the evening with our good friends, the Bradleys and the Woodalls, having dinner at Firebirds.  YUMMY!  We also were able to spend the day together, just David and I, which is something we don't get to do very often.  I think he had a pretty good birthday this year.  :)

I also spent 2 weeks working the Holiday camps at The ABA Place.  We had 10 kids with different developmental disabilities spend the day with us for 5 days, playing and learning and having fun!  I know that the kids had a blast, and so did we--but, boy were we tired!

In between the camps, David and I squeezed in a trip to Nashville for Christmas.  Because of David's work schedule (he always has to work Christmas night), he hasn't been able to spend Christmas with his family in a few years.  We decided this year was the year to celebrate Christmas with the Bledsoe clan!  We left bright and early on Wednesday morning (after dropping our baby, Bailey, off at doggie camp), and arrived in Nashville to have lunch with David's mom.  That evening, David's sister and brother-in-law made a delicious dinner, and we were able to hang out with some other family.  On Christmas Eve, we went to David's Nonnie's house and opened presents and laughed while listening to some old tapes the grandkids had made.  David and I were very blessed with the gifts his family gave us.  Thanks guys!  We spent Christmas morning with Adam's family, having breakfast and opening more gifts, and then we headed home so David could get some rest before a busy night at work.
On Saturday, we drove up to Humboldt, and had the Plank Christmas.  Again, we were very blessed with the gifts!  Mom and Dad got us a huge crockpot and a brand new grill!  I have already put the crockpot to good use many times (which has surprised David--I actually cook!), and we can't wait to have friends over this summer for some grilling!

We were pretty low-key in bringing in the 2010.  We spent the evening with the Bradleys, watching football and playing Guitar Hero.  It was so nice to have a quiet night.  And, of course, to spend some time with Addison!  :)

David and I are both excited to see what 2010 has in store for us.  Looking back on 2009, it's easy to see that our lives completely changed...for the better, of course.  Everything in our lives has changed so quickly, and I know that we are looking forward to having some time just being the Bledsoes.  I consider myself extremely blessed to be surrounded by all the love that is in my life, and to have such amazing family and friends is more than I could ever ask for.  We pray that 2010 is a blessed year for you!

Happy New Year from the Bledsoes: