Letting Go

I went to the dentist's office yesterday as I was waiting to pick my husband up from his appointment.   Brought some cookies in for the front desk assistants.  They do a lot and it was Administrative Professional Week.  

The two that I see there are always very nice to me.  And we actually chat a lot while in the office.  One of them is an individual going through so much with her husband.  He went in for some check up and they found a large sized tumour at the base of his neck.  They've done several surgeries on him, added a metal plate and basically, for the last 2 years, still cannot eat, has been house bound and cannot take care of himself.  

For this woman, she takes of herself and him.  No questions asked.  Has her faith and strength been tested?  Absolutely.   Time and time again.  

As I asked her about her husband, she told me he was going in for surgery again on Monday.  He'll actually be getting a metal plate removed as it's somehow obstructing his airway.  I asked to make sure she had supports so that she knew she didn't have to do things alone.  

And thank goodness she does.  When asking about her, she said she had let things go.  Come what may.  She cannot control this and she just needs to soldier on.  That indeed she does as she has no choice.  And that much I know we have in common.  

That's the thing in life. No matter what the "movie is in our heads," no matter how well we plan, there will always be something that affects what the end result will be.  Chances are, things that we don't have control over.  So plan what you can plan and let all the uncontrollable things go. 

Wishing this lady's husband a speedy recovery on this surgery and to life.  

Croatia Bound

In just over 8 days, I'll be heading to Croatia.  Never been!  Has been on my list of things to do but I just thought it would be one of those places I dreamt about rather actually getting to visit.  

I've rented an apartment for the first 3 days.  It's fully furnished and right on the "downtown" strip.  That way, I can't get too lost.  =) 

Will I miss my family?  Absolutely.  Part of my heart aches leaving them.  I've never been away from them for this long.  And I think my husband is having a small panic attack. He has to figure out how to feed the kids.  I don't think he's thrilled about it.  But I keep reminding him that he is a trouble shooter and he'll figure out something.  I wasn't sure how to do things at first and then I figured it out.  He will too.  

But as much as my heart aches, I'm ready for an adventure and I need some "me" time.  Selfish?  Perhaps.  But I think it's important to take care of myself too.  I'm no good to anybody if I am not healthy.  

I am getting excited as I love new adventures and meeting new people, especially those from a different country.   And I anticipate that this is a long enough trip that it will change me in some way.  Trips always do that and I'm grateful for it.  

But before I go, lots to take care of!

Documents

My documents for Croatia finally came in.  Basically all my paperwork to head to this beautiful country is in.  

I should be more nervous, but I'm not!  I'm so excited to head out of here.  Not sure if it's because I won't have to cook for numerous days.  But it just brings back all the wonderful reasons why I love travelling!

The neat part is that I get to be by myself in a furnished apartment by myself for a couple of days, get grounded and just be by myself.   Discovering things on my own is fabulous!!  

And I won't be alone for long.  It's been a while since I've done a tour and I'll be on one.  I believe there are some single travellers too.  Regardless of that, I'll be meeting new folks.  The neat part about travelling is that all of us are doing it because we want to.  That already bonds new friends together.  I've made some great travelling friends along the way and can't wait to make more!

Until then, try to focus on work and my life here.  

Small Taste of Freedom

It is Spring Break and my kids will be heading off to my in-laws for a 5 days.  The kids actually chose this activity, not me.  They have daycamp, but they thought hanging out with their grandparents would be a ton of fun.  I think it will be fabulous for all of them to spend some time together!  

My husband will also be away during this time due to training.  That means, I'm all by myself for the entire week. 

When I initially heard this, I was a little sad.  I'll miss my family.  But then, the more I thought about it, I realized that this is a small vacation that I've been wanting and didn't even have to even ask for it!  Just think, the only meals that I will have to make are for me...if I decide to make it!  I can go out and not even have to worry about returning on time.  Quiet?  I vaguely remember that!!  

Being a mom is fabulous, but there are a number of demands on me in terms of my energy.  And work, commuting, being a wife and everything else in between can take a toll on me.  Not that I regret it.  Not that I would make any different choices.  

But my goodness...ME time!  There it is!  No guilt, no restrictions, whatever I want!  As I was telling a number of other mothers (who are all travelling to sunny destinations and having incredible adventures), they all said that I had the best Spring Break plan.  I think they're right!  

So besides work, I'm filling it with meeting with friends and family that I haven't seen for a while.  Not cooking one night of dinner.  Have plans for quiet activities once I get home.  OMG.  Maybe take a long luxurious bath and read a book?  

I'm going to fill up my bucket this week so that when everybody returns home, I'll be more than ready to have them back.  

Purses

I'm on a local bidding site and I happened to see a purse I liked.  It was a brown fabric one. Nothing fancy...nothing amazing.  But I guess I was naive in thinking that.  

Here's the thing, people are bidding on the item and there is an end time.  The post is only on for 24 hours.  Whoever is the highest bidder within the 24 hours is the winner.  But sometimes it's very close because people are all waiting to the last minute so they can be the last bidder. 

And that's exactly what happened with this purse.  I bid, and kept bidding until I thought it was over.  But there were so many bids in at the last minutes that it was hard to tell who actually won. 

Because it was so close, I asked the seller if they could clarify who won.  Then, the claws went out with a ton of women.  Holy smokes!  One person said that I had won (fabulous).  Another one said they weren't sure and started to personally attack the one that said I had won.  Then a fight ensues online about who won, who is actually an administrative person, who sets the rules, who is a trouble maker, etc.  

Ladies.  It's a purse.  You can go buy one at a store if you'd like.  Go to a garage sale.  Go on Craigslist.  I'm saying that there are many options to go find a purse. 

But maybe I'm saying that because I won the auction. 

New Love

I am just giddy.  GIDDY.  Can you hear me screaming it?  Oh, I love hearing about new love. 

But what is making me extremely giddy is me setting up two people and seeing it work.   It was like I had borrowed Cupid's arrow and gave them both a shot.  

These two people are my friends but they knew nothing of each other.  But for whatever reason, I just thought they would be the best match.  And they both were open to it and allowed me to be part of this matchmaking.  

The best part is that this guy is so sweet and a romantic.  Very mindful.  And she just loves this type of old fashioned romance.  They started off with letter writing.  LETTER writing.  I didn't ask him to do it, but he thought it was a nice gesture.  It escalated to a the phone.  

And fast forward to today...they finally met in person.  I was expecting a short date...but a whole day later, they are both smitten as can be.  

I think I should start looking for a dress to wear to their wedding. 

Sochi Olympics

I am obsessed with the Olympics.  Always watching it every moment I have.  When the 2010 games were in Vancouver, it was the same time zone so it was easy to catch events.  But with them being in Sochi, the time zones are terrible!  

But it doesn't matter, that's where social media comes in.  I get to see and read all that is happening right there and then.  And when I finally watch the event or the medal ceremony, it doesn't matter that I know the results.  

Still love seeing all the greatness that comes with athletes.  Yes, there are some heartbreak moments when all that training an athlete does is down to that one performance and something bad happens.  That's life.  

And those commercials.  My goodness.  Pulling at every heart string I have.  

Kleenex and the tv are my favourite friends until the Olympics end.  

Radio License

Woohoo!  Got my radio's license today!  Thank goodness it's a lifetime license so I don't have to retake the test again.

Allows me to talk to the ground and air towers when flying.  I've done it before but under someone else's license.  This one is mine.  Better get some practices in as I'll probably be going flying soon.  

I'm pretty stoked as this is a great transition into my advanced co-pilot class.  Will be doing more navigational work and more radio work too.  

Though, as much as it is awesome to be able to officially to talk to the different towers, I find it so frightening.  The last time I did it, I found it totally nerve wracking.   I know the flow and the process to get into the air and to land...but have you ever heard these tower people?!  OMG.  They talk so fast!!  

But better to get as much practice as possible.  Only way to learn!  

Can't wait to get back into the sky....

January

It really is hard to believe it's the end of January.  Time has just flown by!  Good, bad?  Not so sure except that it really is whizzing by.  

The holidays were good seeing friends and family.  But it was so busy.  Some days, there were up to 3 visits.  It was great to fit everybody in but I have to admit that I was getting tired.  I actually ended up with only day where I didn't have to do anything.  Literally, the house looked like a bomb had gone off.  But I didn't care.  I needed to rest from activities.  Lame, I know. 

However, over the holidays, I did find out that someone had passed.  I went to their wake on January 2nd.  Can't say this was the best way to celebrate the new year.  But it is what it is.  Got to see a bunch of people I knew, but it was weird.  "Hey, Happy New Year...so sorry for your loss."  But because it was a celebration of life, it wasn't somber.  Lots of wonderful laughs remembering a great person.  

And in between, there was work.  Lots of things going on keeping me busy.  But in a great way.  The days go by fast and before I know it, it's back home. 

This year is also my 40th.  I have a lot of things to look forward to.  I have 2 major trips coming up and a number of smaller ones.  I love travelling so this is PERFECT!  I also have my advanced co-pilot's course so I'll be flying a plane later this year.  That's just the start.  I plan to have a good time celebrating 40 rather than going through a mid life crisis.  

It's all good.