What traffic taught me...

What time I leave my house completely dictates the traffic patterns that I will encounter on my way to work.  Work is 9.9 miles away and it can take me ten minutes or it can take me 45.  I hate traffic..... now rarely do you EVER hear that people love traffic.  BUT...  having a stick shift car and usually being late makes me hate traffic even more than the next guy.  Especially because of the stick shift car. 

 

But...  lately, I have tried to look at it as a bit of a test.  A forced test of patience for me.  I am stuck there and I choose how I can react to the traffic and the waste of time that it sucks out of my day...  Getting angry isn't going to do any good.  Getting frustrated is not going to make that car in front of me move faster.  SOOOO I have been working on taking a deep breath and telling myself that it's the universe's way of making me slow down.  It's forcing me to be patient. 

 

Patience has never been a real strong quality of mine. 

They say that good things come to those that wait.  But this is in direct contradiction to go out and make things happen.  LOL.  I don't *sit* well nor do I wait well.  So anytime that I'm forced to let things happen on their own time it's hard.  I want to force it.  I want to jump ahead.  I honestly think that this is why I got married the first time... and probably even the second time too.  :-/  I wanted to *be* ten years down the road... established and an adult (now THAT is overrated) that could have nice things and a family and a dog etc.  But I had to realize that I had to go through each of the steps to get there.  Now...  I'm there, well partially... I have the house, the kids and the dog!  And I don't feel 40, (thank goodness) and I still have steps to go through.  God willing, I will always have new steps to go through to better myself.  

 

I trust that with patience great things WILL happen.    Patience forces you to stop and smell the roses.  It makes you have faith in the universe and whatever God you talk to (if you talk to one).  It can slow us long enough to weigh options, make right choices and let prayers be answered or even unanswered if it's the way it is supposed to be.  It can make you appreciate small things, big things and no things at all. 

 

But it's also frustrating and it's scary.  I don't know about you... but I have been taught to control my own destiny.  So being patient makes me vulnerable.  It's kind of like learning to follow when dancing.  I have always tried to anticipate other people's next move.. Daddy taught me that.  And when you're dancing you can't anticipate AND be a follower.  You have to trust that your partner is going to lead you and then just sit back and enjoy and FOLLOW. 

 

So traffic taught me to be patient.  Be patient with the process and just sit back and be led. 

Are you patient?  What do YOU do to work on your patience? 

 



 

 

Change is uncomfortable

 

Someone wise told me recently, (I'm looking at you, Chris Sullivan), that Change is Uncomfortable.  Which is very true but also ironic because life is all about changes.  We change and grow every day.  Sometimes the changes are so small you don't see them until someone points it out to you month's or even years down the road.  And others are huge straight away and then smaller changes happen as a result. 

 

I work in an office of very young women and a few old men.  (ha!).  But with the girls I have talked about how much I changed through my years. 

 

From the age of 21 to 25.  Shoot... I graduated college and got married (mistake #1), started a career, got divorce #1 and moved to Texas. 

 

 

 

From 25 - 30 I followed my dream and went to work at sea.  I started with the kids and within 2.5 years I was Cruise Director.  Not something I ever thought I could do.  I saw things that will forever change my view of the world. 

 

Rio de Janeiro

 

I got to see the "dude with the big hat" ie the Pope in Venice. 

this one speaks to my heart!  This is in the Vatican.  Amazing, huh?

 

Cap Ferrat

 

 Just one of the "Cruise staff" shots on formal night. 

 

But I think about how much change there was during THAT time and wow!  I grew up.  I learned obvious lessons like... there's a whole big world out there full of adventures and challenges and people that have their own changes going on.

I learned that every single person has a story. 

I learned that people really like to be heard. 

 I learned that I can do gangway with a hangover. whomp whomp  

Standing atop Corcovado in Rio with your arms outstretched by the big Jesus statue is breathtaking. 

I learned that people are the best and worst thing about traveling. 

I was taught to stop and breath and recognize where you are (IN China and not Texas at the time) and really to BE present is the greatest gift to yourself.

I learned that you can always learn new dining etiquette and a new way to tie a scarf...And a sarong. 

I learned that grown men DO fight over a game of shuffleboard and that stella will get Sol a cup of coffee when he yells at her across the showroom. 

 I learned what it was like to have a date in Hong Kong and Shanghai... and Rio... and Buenos Aires. 

And...to kiss under a what felt like a million stars. 

I grew up and into the woman I am today.  What a blessing. 

 

 

 

From 30-40...  in case you missed it... 

I bought a house
I got married
I got pregnant
I went to work with my family
I had an amazing little boy
I sold a house
I bought another house
I moved to Fort Worth
And bought yet another house
Learned more about decorative concrete
Watched my sister get married again.
Got pregnant again.
Ran a half marathon
Had my beautiful baby girl
Moved back to houston
Lost my sister
Took over administration of family business
Watched my son start kindergarten
Got separated and later divorced.
Began the process of learning how to be a single parent of two amazing, smart, strong willed, happy and well adjusted children.

 

 

So change, although uncomfortable at times, is necessary.  It's cathartic.  It's what makes us grow into new people.. no!  Not new... but better people.  People that understand that sometimes you have to hurt to move on.  Sometimes the greatest joys are born out of despair.  And each person that we come across ...  they have something to teach us.  No matter the age... no matter the gender... no matter the race.  We can learn something from everyone even if its what NOT to do.  And just because we were a certain type of way in the past... it does not dictate who we will be in the future. 

 

Going forward, I want to remember to be present.  To enjoy and savor my now and recognize that even if it's uncomfortable NOW I will get used to it and I will be better for it.  I like who I am and I love who I will be.  Change...  is fantastically uncomfortable. 

Crossfit Equality & Discovery Green

The weather has been CRAPPY here lately...  but we had a break in all the rain for the weekend.  And we didn't have baseball and we didn't have soccer so we wanted to enjoy the weather.  The kids had gone over to my parents in the morning so that I could do my crossfit workout.

 

 

  The workout was a deck of cards.  For each card you flipped... you had to follow suit. 

  My "team"...  and the girl in the back left was 22 weeks along!  What a champ!

 

 

The kids had a great time playing with the neighborhood kids.  Joe will play ball with anyone and anything for hours and hours and hours.  Seriously...  if it's a sport that involves a ball... he's IN! 

 

But that afternoon we wanted to do something different so Erica and my parents and I packed the kids up and headed to Discovery Green for the afternoon.  As I mentioned, the weather was perfect!!!  We got down there and the flowers were blooming and there was even a dance troop performing. 

 

Daddy and Joe kinda bored with the dancing... lol. 

 LJ is quite a good picture taker. 

 The girls and the "purple flowers"

 

 After that, we went back to my parents and grilled out.  A perfect Saturday. 



Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo 2015

Last Friday was Joe's last day of Spring Break so I took off early and took the kids to the Houston rodeo.  We spent most of our time at the carnival but the kids had a blast.  And we even got to meet up with friends for the latter part.  :)

 

 The kids rode this little tilta whirl type thing and as you can see, LJ had a blast. 

 Some bumper cars

 

 

 A carnival isn't complete without a merry go round and LJ got to ride ALL by herself!

 We rode the ferris wheel. 

 I need longer arms.  :-)

The kids and me & Gabby and LJ

This is the Kite Flyer

 Chris has a sheep named after him... hahahahah

 and no rodeo can be complete without a little mutton bustin.... This is Joe's second year doing this and he did so well. 

The rodeo is definitely not a cheap day's entertainment but the kids and I had a great time.  Next year I will get the "1/2 price rodeo" package that the school offered in the beginning.  I would also go see all of the animals first before going out to the rides.  :-)