Reflections

Eight years ago today, I went to my first day of work at Carolina First Bank.  One year ago tomorrow, I worked my last day there.  So I worked there almost exactly seven years.  Isn't it funny how that worked out?

I was reading in my journal today from a year ago.  I always had so much to do at work and was frankly dreading when I'd have to get ready to go on maternity leave and get to a "stopping point" and leave it all in someone else's hands.  The ward campout was Friday, Oct 7th.  I was hoping to go down on Thursday to camp, so I had requested PTO for Thursday and Friday.  I worked late on Wednesday prepping my desk and work for being off for 2 days.  I had everything on a list for my boss that she might need in my absence and was fairly caught up with everything.  I actually didn't camp on Thursday and spent the day at home "supervising" my dad while he started working on our shed.  It was a nice relaxing day.

We had a great time at the camp out.  Slept well that night despite having to get up twice to go to the bathroom.  When we got home on Saturday we went to Goodwill where I bought some supplies for a Halloween craft that I saw in a magazine (which, by the way, never got done last year and is now sitting on my kitchen table waiting to be done for this year : ).  Sunday was good.  Choir practice that evening.

Around midnight Sunday night:  Pre-term labor started. You can read all the rest on my blog post from a year ago...but you don't actually have to...I'm just not going to repeat it here.  http://southernscgirl.blogspot.com/2011/10/32-weeks.html

Anyway, it was just interesting to go back and read all the things that were happening when I thought I still had over a month before Rylee would be born.  I'm the kind of person who gets...sentimental?  Not sure that's the exact word I'm looking for, but whenever change is coming, I "like" to think to myself "this is the last time I'll...*fill in the blank*.  When they moved us to the Woodruff Rd building, "This is the last time I'll go to work downtown."  I was prepared for a lot of happy "This is the last time I'll have to make this dumb 30 minute drive across town for 12 weeks" type things when I had Rylee.  I didn't get any of those with how things worked out.  And I'm glad.  I needed a clean break even if I didn't realize that's what it was until weeks later.

I can hardly believe it's been a year since I went to work at a full time job.  That's crazy after doing a 9-5 job for 7 years.  It's sure gone by faster than any of the years in the past 7 years.  I don't miss it one bit!  People sometimes ask me if I still love being a stay at home mom and my answer is a resounding YES!  This really is my dream job.  I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.  Sure things are way tighter financially, but we pay our tithing and have been blessed over and over.  I've had blessing from tithing before, but probably never so much in a year's time.  Checks in the mail appearing just when we need them, selling the treadmill the day before Jonathan had to buy text books and only being a $2 difference between the two.  Just to name a couple.  There are many more.  Of course, my parents have been a huge blessing, too, often buying things Rylee needs.  I do believe that if they didn't help us out we'd still make it work somehow, but I equally believe that they are part of the blessings.

Someday Jonathan will be done with school (I have faith! lol) and get a better paying job and maybe we can be a blessing to others like we've been blessed.

Alrighty...just somethings that have been on my mind this week.  Thinking about how things were before Rylee came and how much better they are now that she is here.  It's been an awesome year!  We are so blessed and I am so grateful for Jonathan and how hard he works so that I can stay home and take care of Rylee.

29 weeks...1 1/2 weeks before I went into the hospital

34 weeks, 4 days...the day before I had Rylee

Halloween...Rylee's Birthday! 

Rylee - 11 Months