Same Ole, Same Ole

Maybe I do have adult ADD.

I have been in a funk this weekend and I think it's because I'm bored. I have come to believe that my life thrives on chaos and, when things become routine and predictable I don't handle it well.

Case in point--after the "hub bub" of the holidays, I made a journey out to Washington state for business. Then, it was a period of getting ready for Daniel's birthday and then a whirlwind trip down to Orlando with a change of hotel every day. Following that, it was playing "catch up" and sorting through 177 emails as well as mailing birthday cards, doing laundry, getting caught up on work and church responsibilities.

Now...we're back in the routine.

I have a great life...no doubt about it. But, the predicatability of each day gets to you after a while. Even the little things like making breakfast, then preparing a lunch and snack for Daniel to take to school, then working, then picking him up and avoiding small children as they dart in and out of the parking lot all while remembering not to go the wrong way lest I be scolded by the parking lot monitors...then we drive home, he goes down for a nap, I work more...then it's time to figure out what's for dinner... I know there are worse things in life than getting bored. But, I can assure you, if I had to work on an assembly line or a job involving repetitive motion, I wouldn't last a day! Event he silliest of things like taking a shower in the same place, using the same shampoo and soap, drying my hair, putting on make-up. Ugh....it's just the same ole routine that starts to get to me. Isn't that crazy?

Perhaps it's that I am a product of a family that moved so often that we'd joke "oops! the carpet's dirty, it's time to move..." Who knows? What is it about me that abhors the mundane while others take great comfort in predictability?

Anyone else share my disorder? :-)

Katie's Little Addictions: #1

Bath and Body Works Crazy Caramel Corn 3-in-1 body wash, bubble bath, and shampoo. Makes me wanna shower three times a day.

From American Idol last night... reminds me of myself when I was just starting out...

Waiting in Line...

At Disney last Wednesday, we waited in line for the Lion King show.
We stood quite a while so I decided to take some pics
of the scene around us. I'll start off with my favorite...
(click on any photo to enlarge)

Colorful spools of thread for hair braiding...

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A boy plays patiently in the safety of his mother's stance

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I liked the juxtaposition of denim and lace here... (the light was great, too)

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Our new friend keeps an eye on us...

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The clasped hands of the woman waiting in front of me...

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Green crocs and butterflies...

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The all-important sheet of show times and park hours

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Look at me...

...there has to be....something more than what they see.....

So I just finished watching the Grease and my dream part growing up...Sandy.

You know, I always wanted to be a Broadway star...well, also an English professor at a junior college...and a tennis coach. Oh yeah, and I dreamed of being the event planner for the White House. Then, there was that desire to be a photojournalist. Then I dreamt of owning a bed and breakfast. Perhaps I could be a florist? No, it had to be geriatric nursing. So, with that in mind I ended up in Graphic Design and Marketing and became a meeting planner.

Isn't it funny how life twists and turns and pulls itself inside out until you barely recognize the person you started off thinking you wanted to be?

I am content with my career choice; however, every now and then, I imagine myself helping a struggling student understand the rhythm of iambic pentameter in literature or jetting off to a remote photo shoot in Zimbabwe for National Geographic (or, better yet, blasting off to the moon on a space mission!) My interests are many and are so widely varied that it seems slightly comical that one person could have considered so many different career paths and yet end up in a completely different place.

Like some, I struggle with the dreams I never chased...their remnants floating in the breeze like the tail of a kite...still recognizable in the sky but giving way to circumstance, missed opportunity or perhaps something as simple as personal choice. I now try to weave those interests into my life. Instead of teaching English, I choose to pursue my love of the written word with this blog. I plant flowers in my own garden instead of creating FTD bouquets and I try to make guests feel as though they are visiting a bed and breakfast...even if I can't own one! As for the photojournalism, well, my five year old son must be the most photographed human being on Earth ( with the Pitt-Jolie offspring coming in a close second) and the astronaut thing will just have to go down as a childhood fantasy.

My life path is scattered with choices--both wise and not so--but they have all led me to the place I am today. I may not have followed the road map I originally intended for myself. But, let me tell you, it's been one heck of a journey.

Wisdom Beyond His 5 Years

Tonight as I glanced through the Valentine's cards at Wal-Mart, a particular one caught my eye. The title read "Happy Valentine's Mom" and the cover bore a sketch of a woman dressed in striped tights and an art smock with a bandana in her hair. On an easel she had sketched a heart and she was grasping an artsy paint pallette in her hand. Somewhat reluctantly I opened the card and read "thank you for always letting me know that I didn't have to be perfect to be perfectly loved..."

My eyes welled up with tears and I swiftly moved to the self checkout to avoid making a scene with my ill-timed burst of emotion. "You know better than to pick up a card that reads 'To Mom', " I thought to myself. Once I reached the car, I could no longer hold it in and wept for the loss I felt. Daniel asked, "Why is Mommy crying?" Keith replied, "She's just a little sad because she misses Grammy."

With the calm rationale of a man, Daniel's response was, "Mommy...do you remember when we sent that balloon up to Grammy as a present? Well, why don't we buy that card, tie it onto another balloon and send it up to her for Valentine's Day?" And then, ever so insightfully he added, "Don't be sad, Mommy. You know, we'll get to see Grammy again when we get to heaven. So, don't worry...it will all be OK....."

Am I not supposed to be the bandager of wounds? With his sweet words, my newly 5-year old son had found a way to soothe my heart... with a wisdom far beyond his years.

Birthdays Flying By........

2007 ~ 5th birthday party @ Chuck E. Cheese
(with icing all over his mouth! :-)

2006 ~ 4th birthday party at home...
visited Chuck E. Cheese on "real burt-day"

2005 ~ 3rd Birthday party at Crossroads Church



2004 ~ Celebrating 2nd Birthday with friends at work
(made a cake in Daniel's honor...taken 1 week before we met him)

A Boy's Thoughts: February 1

Proof that there must be a manual on "How to Bring Your Parents to Tears" and Daniel's learned how to read with out us knowing:

Keith and Daniel had a "guys' night" tonight and were enjoying just "hanging out" together. Apparently, something came up about adoption.

Daniel turned to Keith and said, "Daddy, I'm so glad you picked me."