Every year around this time, when the cold has gotten completely to me and I am tired of the dreariness that is the late winter, early spring, I get nostalgic for Texas. If you ask most of my friends, they will quickly tell you that I am not a fan of Texas. And it's really not that I dislike or hate the state where most of my side of the family lives, it's that I hate the heat. I hate that almost everywhere requires you to get in your car and drive. All that being said, spring is a beautiful time in the state of Texas. The bluebonnets in bloom. The early morning coolness. The smell at dusk. Yes, I miss Texas. There I said it.
I try to visit my Dad at least once a year, however I haven't been since April of 2010. My hope is to be there this summer, maybe the fall. I do miss my little sister, my friends, and of course my entire family. Fortunately, my Dad, Step-momma, step-sister, and step-sister's cousin are all coming to see us in a few short weeks. James and I are incredibly excited to have everyone here. I sometimes think James is more excited than me.
We love the Spring. It means the start of grilling weather for James. It means being able to sit outside at night and look at the stars (not as bright as the country in Texas, but still bright for this area). Spring allows us to leave the girls outside while we are at work. This spring we are especially excited because we will have a new deck and I have plans to try to clean up the gardens, with the help of my dad and friends.
The Cloud Geeks is doing well, we have several new clients, and have started branching out into web design. We are so excited with the success we've had and what the future has in store for us.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Take Just A Little Time
This week seems to have just flown by. I was honestly expecting it to take a lot longer because we are at 54% capacity at my full time job, but here it is Saturday already.
I am happy to report that the news on my MIL isn't as bad as we were expecting there are still options and she's determined to fight this as long as she can. My word of the year is Hope, her's is Courage and my goodness she is the most courageous woman I know.
Not much going on for us at the H camp this weekend. I am busy cleaning the house today and working on laundry. I am hoping to finish the wedding scrapbook and album today so I can mark that off my to do list and free up the kitchen table again. J is busy working on some new contracts with our business partners. So it's me and the pups just chilling at the abode. I might take Spaz out to the park here in a little bit to go play and go for a walk. She gets awful cabin fever, yes, she is a dog, but she LOVES going on car rides and exploring with her momma. Don't know what I would do without my 3 fur babies. Love them to pieces.
Well hopefully more to report later.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Catching up
It's been a little while since I've really had time to blog for me or for us. The past couple weeks have been a whirlwind of activities, work, and life in general.
The hubs mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer 9 years ago, in 2003. She has battled the disease courageously, never losing sight of her hope and her faith. On January 13th, she was hospitalized with pain and a CT scan showed the cancer had spread. Now J found out that night, he didn't bother to tell me until Monday the 16th. My mother-in-law and I are incredibly close. I often consider her one of my best friends and she is often one of the first people I call when I need to talk about something. I love her to pieces. So when J told me his momma was in the hospital, I dropped everything I was doing and went to the hospital to see her. As always, she was in good spirits, joking with J's dad and me, telling me about their brand new wedding bands they got for their 41st wedding anniversary. The doctor came in shortly after J's dad left to go take care of some stuff at home, so Momma and I had a few minutes to catch up before the doctor came in. The prognosis wasn't good. I wasn't paying much attention to what was being said other than they had written and order for her to be switched from intravenous medication to oral medication, but it hadn't gone through (she would have to be able to tolerate the oral medications before they would release her to go home). I heard the nurse and doctor ask about in-home health care and end by saying the would discuss treatment options at her next appointment.
With sad eyes and heavy hearts, we sat for a few minutes in silence. In the 15 years I have known this woman and in the 9 years she has fought this disease I have never seen her look so defeated. Scared and worried, the boys (J and his dad) came to the hospital and Momma told them the news. 4 days have never felt so long in my life. They are going to continue her current chemotherapy treatment and do a scan at the end of the cycle to see if it's working. Thankfully her doctor feels like they still have a few options left. We are hopeful, but cautiously optimistic.
I think my biggest fear is that my beloved mother-in-law won't be around to see her grandchildren. And that breaks my heart in more ways than I can even begin to express. I am also afraid of J completely shutting down, because he does that when he doesn't want to deal with his emotions. I hate seeing my family as heartbroken as we all were this week. However, I am looking forward to more time with my mother-in-law and continue to pray that something does the trick. I know she will never be fully cured and that this disease (unless they find a cure soon) will probably end up taking her from us, but I am glad for all the years I have been able to call her my friend and happier still for her being my mother-in-law.
In more positive news, The Cloud Geeks, have officially launched their new website. Additionally, we are getting more and more clients. We just signed a new client and he has referred us two more clients. J, our business partners, and I couldn't be more excited. We need a bunch more clients before we can start paying ourselves, but it takes baby steps and word is getting around.
The hubs mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer 9 years ago, in 2003. She has battled the disease courageously, never losing sight of her hope and her faith. On January 13th, she was hospitalized with pain and a CT scan showed the cancer had spread. Now J found out that night, he didn't bother to tell me until Monday the 16th. My mother-in-law and I are incredibly close. I often consider her one of my best friends and she is often one of the first people I call when I need to talk about something. I love her to pieces. So when J told me his momma was in the hospital, I dropped everything I was doing and went to the hospital to see her. As always, she was in good spirits, joking with J's dad and me, telling me about their brand new wedding bands they got for their 41st wedding anniversary. The doctor came in shortly after J's dad left to go take care of some stuff at home, so Momma and I had a few minutes to catch up before the doctor came in. The prognosis wasn't good. I wasn't paying much attention to what was being said other than they had written and order for her to be switched from intravenous medication to oral medication, but it hadn't gone through (she would have to be able to tolerate the oral medications before they would release her to go home). I heard the nurse and doctor ask about in-home health care and end by saying the would discuss treatment options at her next appointment.
With sad eyes and heavy hearts, we sat for a few minutes in silence. In the 15 years I have known this woman and in the 9 years she has fought this disease I have never seen her look so defeated. Scared and worried, the boys (J and his dad) came to the hospital and Momma told them the news. 4 days have never felt so long in my life. They are going to continue her current chemotherapy treatment and do a scan at the end of the cycle to see if it's working. Thankfully her doctor feels like they still have a few options left. We are hopeful, but cautiously optimistic.
I think my biggest fear is that my beloved mother-in-law won't be around to see her grandchildren. And that breaks my heart in more ways than I can even begin to express. I am also afraid of J completely shutting down, because he does that when he doesn't want to deal with his emotions. I hate seeing my family as heartbroken as we all were this week. However, I am looking forward to more time with my mother-in-law and continue to pray that something does the trick. I know she will never be fully cured and that this disease (unless they find a cure soon) will probably end up taking her from us, but I am glad for all the years I have been able to call her my friend and happier still for her being my mother-in-law.
In more positive news, The Cloud Geeks, have officially launched their new website. Additionally, we are getting more and more clients. We just signed a new client and he has referred us two more clients. J, our business partners, and I couldn't be more excited. We need a bunch more clients before we can start paying ourselves, but it takes baby steps and word is getting around.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Whoops
Long time no blog from the world of the Hathcock's.
Things are starting to slow down for us. The holidays are usually busy for us, I work a second job and this year the hubs started a new job!! After 3 years at his previously employer he had maxed out on what he could learn with the little leadership he had and this new position offers a lot of opportunity for him to not only learn but also grow within the company. We are very excited and happy, although the commute is another story.
Our first holiday as a married couple was fantastic. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to decorate the house. I usually put the tree in front of our bay window, but we have a chest in front of the window that needs to be moved, however it is currently a printer and monitor stand until we can get hubs a desk for his home office. In terms of gifts, we were blessed by many wonderful things from family. He wanted an espresso machine and shortly after Thanksgiving I found the exact model his BFF has and bought it for him along with a bunch of stuff to go with it. He was very pleased, usually he out does me at Christmas, however this year we both admit that I outdid him. I got some awesome Bath and Body works stuff, figurines, and a new ornament for Christmas. Oh and some nice comfy pajamas, someone is tired of me always stealing his. Whoops.
Like I said, things are starting to slow down, I am working on finding a second job that I can actually tolerate and that is closer to home. I spend roughly 1/3 of my total monthly income from my second job in gas. What I would really love to do is write part time, so I've started posting more to my personal blog, primarily our struggles with IF and then lately I've been doing some food blogging to help keep myself accountable for what I am eating. Soon I hope to have my skills back to the caliber they were when I was in college. I know my vocabulary has diminished and although grammar is very important, it is suffering in some areas.
We are super excited for what 2012 is going to bring us. The year is off to a great start and it's only going to get better. I am sure of it.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
I am a very crafty person, and that might even be an understatement because I work at a craft store just for the discount on supplies. So when I saw several of my Facebook friends adding their pins from Pinterest to Facebook, I knew I had to get on that and quick.
Suffice to say it is my new obsession. I love cooking, healthy, whole cooking. So I have found a ton of recipes I've pinned. But most importantly I am pinning ideas for our house. We need a new head board, and I absolutely fell in love with this idea. So as soon as I have some money, I am going to go buy some fabric and fabric markers to do this.
J's birthday is Friday, so I know we will be there then. I am making my manicotti for him. It's become a birthday tradition for him. I usually make a red velvet cake for him because that is what his grandmother did for him every year while he was growing up, but I don't think I am going to have time to do it this year with a training tomorrow night and then I'm working Friday at the 2nd job.
I have the weekend off this weekend, so I am planning to finish up the scrapbook between loads of laundry and cleaning the house. We will hopefully have our new sofa in this weekend! So I am sure J will either be watching football or plugging away with K on TGC stuff, but probably both. If we're not camped out at K's like we usually are on the weekend.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
WE DID IT!!!!!
JUST MARRIED
10-22-11
Newark, DE
After years of waiting and years of thought, we got married on October 22, 2011 in a small intimate ceremony in J's parent's backyard. It was perfect, we were surrounded by our family and a few close friends and could feel the presence of those not present and those who are no longer with us. We couldn't have asked for a better day, well maybe a little warmer. The weather said it was supposed to be partly cloudy and it seemed as though the sun came out just for us as we said our vows. We did not do the traditional vows; we struggled to find an officiant, so I wrote the ceremony before contacting several ordained ministers, including our own vows. Luckily we found the perfect one, Lorraine, and how perfect is it that her name is my grandmother's name?!My parents (mom, dad, and step-mom) all came into town for the event and my dad was around most of the week following showing my step-momma around the East coast. It was nice having everyone there, though I do wish my sisters could make it. I really enjoyed the time with my dad and step-mom, I am a daddy's girl and despite the differences we have had over the years I am glad to see our relationship has grown stronger.
In the weeks leading up to the wedding, I spent a lot of time preparing a scrapbook of pictures of J and me growing up and then of us together when we were younger. It also served as a guestbook and some of the comments left made us laugh and made us cry. I can't wait to add more pages to this book of pictures from the wedding. I don't think either of us has stopped smiling in the last week and a half. I truly believe our love for each other, despite how difficult it has been, has grown and we are truly excited for the next stage in our life together.
In August, I booked our mini-moon, in fact it is pretty much what started the idea of getting married. There was a cute Bed and Breakfast in Henniker, New Hampshire advertising for a two-night stay on LivingSocial. I have never been to New England, and thought "this would be perfect!" So I booked the trip and for the last two months anxiously awaited to go. We arrived on Monday afternoon and pretty much slept the entire afternoon. The room came with a complimentary bottle of Chardonnay (and I hate Chardonnay but this was the best I'd ever had), we were surprised to see that my dad and step-mom had ordered us flowers and a cheese tray for our arrival. So we snacked on that for "dinner" before both passing out and sleeping pretty much until the next morning.
I wish I had taken a picture of the food. Our breakfast each morning was AMAZING, and that is a gross understatement. On Tuesday morning we had Espresso French Toast with a Mocha syrup. Then that night we ate at the inn and I had a lobster stuffed chicken breast with some of the best squash I've ever had and J had a fillet minion that was cooked to perfection. Wednesday morning we had cranberry apple pancakes. If I could live there I would be quite happy.
Unfortunately, due to the recent storms in the area many of the fall colors have blown away. I was able to get a few pictures and will edit this post as soon as I take the time to get them off my camera.
Thank you everyone for your well wishes and support. We are very blessed to have some of the best of friends and truly blessed to have a wonderful family. It means so much to us to have you all there in thought.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Moving Along
Things are moving along well with the wedding. We have 24 days left!!!
Everything is falling into place quite nicely. We're hoping for amazing weather, and can't wait to see some of our closest friends and family. We booked our caterers last week and they do rentals, so we are very excited with how everything is working out.
This week I bought stuff to finish our centerpieces. We have 4 tables of 8 and then a sweetheart table. The centerpieces are oil lanterns and mason jars with candles. I need to get some fall gems and beads to fill some of the mason jars to add some dimension to them and I also need to find Christmas lights to string up. Other than that, rings have been ordered, other decorations bought, food and catering ordered. Things are going quite smoothly. I believe James and his parents are going to meet the caterers for a walk through of the backyard tomorrow and then we hope to get to Mt. Hope Winery for our wedding favors this weekend or the weekend of my birthday.
The past few weeks have been a struggle for me. I have SAD and the weather has been very dreary, so that isn't helping any. Couple that with the fact that I have a minor outpatient surgery tomorrow and I feel like I have been a basket case. We have had some really nice sunny days the past few days though so that is helping a lot.
For those of you who don't know what Seasonal Affect Disorder is, it is basically a specific form of depression that is heightened during certain times of the year. Mine just so happens to occur in September and towards the end of February into March. It's not fun to deal with and I am beyond grateful to have people in my life who understand and try to help me out.
James has some exciting news to announce soon, and I can't wait to announce it. We are very excited and happy about the latest developments, as it impacts not only his future but our's as well. I wish I could say more, I really do, but we're kind of keeping it under wraps at the moment until we, well really he is ready to go public with it.
It's exciting time in the Hathcock Household.
Everything is falling into place quite nicely. We're hoping for amazing weather, and can't wait to see some of our closest friends and family. We booked our caterers last week and they do rentals, so we are very excited with how everything is working out.
This week I bought stuff to finish our centerpieces. We have 4 tables of 8 and then a sweetheart table. The centerpieces are oil lanterns and mason jars with candles. I need to get some fall gems and beads to fill some of the mason jars to add some dimension to them and I also need to find Christmas lights to string up. Other than that, rings have been ordered, other decorations bought, food and catering ordered. Things are going quite smoothly. I believe James and his parents are going to meet the caterers for a walk through of the backyard tomorrow and then we hope to get to Mt. Hope Winery for our wedding favors this weekend or the weekend of my birthday.
The past few weeks have been a struggle for me. I have SAD and the weather has been very dreary, so that isn't helping any. Couple that with the fact that I have a minor outpatient surgery tomorrow and I feel like I have been a basket case. We have had some really nice sunny days the past few days though so that is helping a lot.
For those of you who don't know what Seasonal Affect Disorder is, it is basically a specific form of depression that is heightened during certain times of the year. Mine just so happens to occur in September and towards the end of February into March. It's not fun to deal with and I am beyond grateful to have people in my life who understand and try to help me out.
James has some exciting news to announce soon, and I can't wait to announce it. We are very excited and happy about the latest developments, as it impacts not only his future but our's as well. I wish I could say more, I really do, but we're kind of keeping it under wraps at the moment until we, well really he is ready to go public with it.
It's exciting time in the Hathcock Household.
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