Quick updates

I wanted to post a few quick updates.

My car was fixed last week. I had blown out the idle controller and my fuel injectors needed cleaning & repair. It was good to have my car back. I want to take care of this one because I like it and I was allowed to pick it out when I bought it. Jon won't let me pick out a new car this time around so I'm being stubborn and refusing to even look.

Jonnie and I went to a wine & cheese social on Friday night for the Women's ministry at our church. Jonnie had a great time playing with other kids that were there; thankfully the women planning the event were able to get babysitters or I couldn't have gone. I had a great time talking with my friends, meeting new women, and learning about upcoming projects. Jon was at an IDPA match in Michigan Friday and Saturday. He had a good time but didn't do very well. That's all I know.

I realized yesterday when I was out shopping that fall is quickly approaching as I picked out a wreath for my front door with nice fall colors. While Jon and Jonnie slept on the couch during the NASCAR race, I went out and started working on clearing our back wooded lot. Jon had me spray the lot twice earlier this year. He cannot work in this area because there is poison ivy and poison oak and he's allergic. He told me to clear out the area but I never got to it, it was too hot, I forgot....you know. I started working on it yesterday and got quite a bit cleared but realized that I don't have the right tools for the job. Rose pruners and a hatchet are not what I need. I get off work early today so I am stopping at Lowe's to get a bow saw and some heavy duty long-handled cutters. I want to lay black plastic down back in this area and secure it with landscaping pins so that grass and weeds don't grow back . I probably will not cover the plastic this year but I need to do something with it next year. The area is too lumpy for pavers and I don't think I can get it leveled. Jon wants to put a picnic table back there and I'd like to put a swing or hammock back there. I think I might look at the "permanent" mulch that is made out of recycled tires since the area will have foot traffic. There is an edging border that I want to put at the front of the area to separate it from the yard and it's also made out of recycled tires and looks like mulch.

I'd better get back to work. I'm eating lunch and working because it's been a day of meetings.

Take care!

My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?

Jesus uttered these words while he hung from the Cross. Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice for us, feeling abandoned and lonely.

While I am not hanging on a Cross, I am feeling as if God abandonded me. I told my Mom on the phone that I feel like we take two steps forward (selling our old house) and now I feel like we're falling backward down a steep hill.

Jon has a follow-up appointment with his doctor on Wednesday. Aside from regaining the pound that he lost, Jon found a lump in his groin a few weeks ago. Hopefully, it is nothing but a cloud of doubt and concern still remains.

In my last post, I bragged about how well Jonnie was doing with going to the potty. Over the weekend, he seemed to have forgotten that he ever learned how to use the bathroom. He ran into the bathroom like before but I found him standing in front of the toilet with his shorts and underwear still pulled up and completely missing the toilet. On Saturday, he started laughing because he thought it was funny that he went pee on my shoe. I could have cared less about my shoe; it was the hardwood floor in our office that he peed on that freaked me out. What a mess!

My car went from mysteriously being fine to not running literally overnight. We went to Lebanon yesterday for the "Day Out with Thomas" program. Jon asked me if I could drive. I drove 42 the whole way so it was an easy drive. I kept my car around 62-63 for most stretches of 42. I had to pass a couple of Sunday drivers. Everything seemed just fine. I loaded the car for work this morning, Jon had put Jonnie in his car seat (he insists on being carried to the car by Daddy), kissed Jon good-bye, and I jumped in the car to leave. No go. The car will turn over but it will not stay running. Jon tried without any luck. So it was move everyone over to Jon's van only to have Jonnie innocently announce "Mommy's car doesn't work". Thanks, Jonnie.

Although these three situations leave me feeling abandoned, I truly am not abandoned. God works in mysterious ways and he's worked for me by:

1. My friend & co-worker Aaron driving by the bus stop this morning and offering me a ride to work. I was able to get to work before the next bus would have come and picked me up!

2. My Adoration partner Bobbi taking our hour tonight solo so I can get my car towed to a dealer to be fixed.

3. Jon still being at the house so that Jonnie and I could get to work and school.

4. My workplace being a flexible environment so that I can adjust my hours slightly while Jon and I carpool today and tomorrow.

Gee, I felt abandoned 3 times but have been blessed 4. I think that truly proves that although I felt like God abandoned me that he was really there and watching over me as he always does.

Long time, no post!

Sorry that it's been such a long time since I've posted. The last few weeks have been crazy at the Santini homestead. We've had weddings, funerals, and car maintenance taking up a great deal of time. I hope that we are done with all 3 for a while!

Jonnie officially started in the pre-school room at Enchanted Care today. Last week was transition week and the teachers said he was doing really well. Although the teachers at the school know kids in the different rooms, I'm trying to clean up Jonnie's image a little bit now that he's started preschool. I bought him some new clothes to start school and I'm trying to stay away from sweatpants this year. I'm trying to reserve sweatpants for Saturdays when we are at home. Today, I had Jonnie dressed in a pair of pull-on khakis with reinforced knees and a button-down plaid shirt. He looked handsome! He's still wearing athletic shoes because that is what's mostly available for his age group and it's what is most reasonably priced, too.

I have to brag that Jonnie doing much better on the potty training front. He was home last week for an inservice day and I told him that he needed to use the potty because I was not going to put him in underwear. He did really well. He's at the point where he'll get up and running into the half bath downstairs and go potty on his own. If he doesn't announce that he's going to the potty, you still know he went because he drops the lids when he's doing peeing. You can hear that crash throughout the whole house. We're still trying to get him to understand knowing when he needs to sit on the toilet for a bowel movement. That's coming along more slowly but I'm sure we'll get there.

I'll be taking a class starting September 19th that runs for 3 Tuesdays on car care basics. I want to learn more about how to care for my car so I can do more things on my own and so that I understand what I am being told at the repair shop. I was most recently told that my stablizers on my car need replaced and that my frame is out of camber on the left side and I need to have it fixed at a frame shop. So far, about six men that I've shared this with have told me this is a huge load of crap. Jon wants me to get a new car but I don't want to because I like not having a car payment. I feel we have other debt that we need to reduce and/or eliminate before I go out and buy a different car. I'm approaching 52K miles on my 1999 Mercury Mystique so it should still have plenty of life in it. I have co-workers with cars older than mine with twice as many miles that are like me in that they don't want car payments. I washed and waxed my car yesterday and it looks good. I need to shampoo the carpets on the inside because I've had a few coffee spills and I should do a leather treatment on the seats. I have a rust spots forming on the passengers side and scratches on the drivers side. Although I looked at cars online during lunch, I still think I want to put it off.

After I finish my car care class, I'll be starting a Supervison & Management course on October 5th. This class meets every Thursday through November 30th. I'm excited about the opportunity to go back to school. My Dad is excited because I've promised him an "OSU Dad" ball cap!

I'd better get back to work; I've got meetings coming up soon. Take care!