Out With the Old: Goodbye 2016!

Wow, well, I didn't expect it to be 11 months between blog posts.  This last year has been I-N-S-A-N-E.  When I left off, we were days away from becoming parents, and I was completely oblivious to what the rest of 2016 would bring for us.  Let's see if I can bring us up to speed here...

On February 15th (yes, I said February 15th, NOT 16th as was shared in my previous post), we welcomed our little “be-ritto,” Bennett Alexander.  He was born at 8:28 a.m., and weighed in at 8 pounds 11 ounces.  We all rested up just fine and returned home a few days later to begin our life as a family of three.   

The adjustment to parenthood (re:  HELLacious nursing experience, to hopefully be discussed here on the blog in a future post...) continued as the days warmed with the season.  I returned to work in May and Bennett began his (short-lived) adventure at daycare.  Meanwhile, Alex traded in a long season of travel with ULM Baseball for Daddy duties and home-games only.   

In June, Alex vacated his position with ULM.  Subsequently, I accepted a position with the V. (edited for privacy) Parish School Board, and thus began the process of relocating to south Louisiana.  Our home was promptly prepared for market and officially listed with an agent around mid-June.    My last day at work was July 8th.  We packed essentials and established a temporary residence at my parents' home.  Bennett enjoyed swimming in Gam and Pop’s pool, and spent many hours wearing his daddy out! 

I began my new position as an Early Interventionist/Kindergarten Special Education teacher at the end of July.  I participated in several staff development workshops in preparation for work within a Kindergarten “combo” (inclusion) class, featuring 17 students, six of which have developmental delays or other disabilities.  There are two teachers and two paraeducators serving within the classroom, and oh does it make for loads of fun!  

Bennett experienced his first airplane trip when he and Alex traveled to North Carolina to visit family and attend a friend’s wedding in September.  The boys had quite the adventure, which included sprints through the Dallas airport and a much-needed nap on the airplane afterwards.  Bennett even returned with a very special souvenir – his first tooth (at 7 months old)!  

With the start of football season this fall, Alex began freelance work with a local newspaper and nearby university.  He covered local high school games on Friday nights and spent Saturdays working for TV crews doing stats during home games for college games.  His favorite part of this new gig was experiencing the excitement that is high school football rivalries in the south.   

In October, our home in Monroe went under contract (exactly 4 months after) on the very same day an offer was made for their new home in south Louisiana.  Despite some last minute hiccups (re: very angry moments), we moved into our new home just before Thanksgiving. 

Bennett received exactly what he wanted for Christmas, his two front teeth (ha!), and we enjoyed celebrating in our very own space.  We hosted extended family for a game of Dirty Santa on New Year's Eve and spent New Year's Day at my aunt's.  Needless to say, we are (mostly) loving being near family and friends again and Bennett is a huge fan of his new stomping grounds, as he continues to master his crawling and climbing (but not sleeping) skills.

Looking ahead to 2017, we hope for a more peaceful and stable year.  We are excited to start planning Bennett's first birthday party, and my 30th is right around the corner, as well.  No doubt, Bennett will be walking, running, and jumping soon enough, and that’s plenty of activity to keep everyone busy!  

As far as blogging goes, I am hoping that I will be getting back in the saddle again now that things are sort of starting to settle down.  We still have zero decorations on the walls, as well as a patio and fence to build, all while working, taking classes, searching for jobs (Alex), and caring for Bennett...in other words, I'm not making any promises. However, I did just realize that I have two or three drafted posts that never published, so I'll try to share those before too long. 

And you...friends...I have missed you SO much.  That's one of the saddest parts about not writing for a year...missing all of you!  Please, share an update on how things are going with your family...I haven't been able to keep up with reading posts either, so I am totally in the dark here. 

What's up?!?
-Lauren

Sh*tty City

Excuse my French.  Sorry, but that's how we currently feel about the good 'ole "Monroe Funroe."  Really, it's our frustration coming out after so many months of living here and feeling like the area has little to nothing for a young professional couple such as ourselves. 

As you all know, Alex and I moved to this area without any real connection to it.  For him, it was a step up professionally, and at a good time personally.  For me, it wasn't necessarily a choice, but one that had its promises.  Promises to bring us together forever, and promises to put me closer to home without putting me too far from my "home away from home."  For us, it was an answered prayer. 

However, to grow as a couple and flourish as individuals, we really do need the city we live in to be more than just a place to lay our heads at night.  We need to feel like this house, this neighborhood, and this city is "home," even if just for a season.  There needs to be some sort of tie to the community and it's people.  To put it simply, we need to have a life here. 

For months, we have tried to make Monroe our home.  When I say we have tried, I mean we.have.tried.  We've made efforts to turn acquaintances into friends by asking them over to our home, trying to coordinate outings, and even eluding to interest in their existing plans with others.  When we ran out of options with people we may have known previously, we looked to coworkers, and even tried to find outside groups to join in hopes of finding success there. 

At this point, we feel like we've exhausted our options.  Co-workers, neighbors, church, and community recreation (sports) leagues have not panned out like we hoped they would.  We continue to rack our brains for new and creative ideas in trying to meet people, yet we keep coming up short.  Just today, Alex told me he's ready to give up because people always seem to bail on us or our efforts fall short no matter what we do. 

I'm worried that we'll "check out" eventually and then become more jaded about this area than we already are.  Truthfully, we miss our friends and while it's nice to be in touch with those we love, it's not the same for them to be so far away when all we really want to do is have a (guys) poker night or (girls) sleepover.  In fact, the other day, I inadvertantly found myself in touchy waters when trying to have a nice girl-talk conversation with someone whom I probably haven't earned that level of friendship-status.  (Yeah, it wasn't pretty.  Insert foot in mouth...)

So anyway, instead of a pitty party, I plead for help, blog-readers.  Please offer your suggestions or tips for meeting and making friends in new places.  It might be helpful to note that this city doesn't offer community recreation leagues (can you believe that?!), nor does our church have any sort of group for young adults.  Like I said, we tried.  ...So yeah, what's a girl (and guy) to do? 

-Lauren

Return From the Abyss

Nearly 7 months later...I'm back.

Now that I'm settling into this new life - new home, new job, new husband - I figure it's time for me to revive the 'ole blog. When I posted my last entry, I definitely didn't expect for it to be so long before I'd write again. Planning a wedding, moving across state lines, becoming a wife, and taking on all things new takes quite a lot out of a person. However, I'm religiously reading blogs again (every day at work, I "allow" myself reading time) and so I've been itching to get back at it again.

It's been so long, and we're all so proficient at social networking that I really don't think it's necessary for me to spend a great deal of time bringing everyone up to speed. It would be nice to document everything over the last few months, but at this point the memories have faded and it would take so much time that I've convinced myself to spare you all the boredom. Instead, I'll make a list and try my best to not ramble...

In the last 7 months:
-We survived the wedding planning, everything fell into place, and Alex and I thoroughly enjoyed celebrating with many of our closest family and friends.
-Our honeymoon cruise to Honduras, Belize, and Mexico was all that we imagined, with a little extra "in sickness and in health" thrown in the mix. Looking back, I'm thankful we cruised BEFORE the 'ish' with Carnival began...
-I changed my name, got a new driver's license and social security number, and unpacked at the home Alex and I now share.
-I began work as the 4-H agent for a small program in northeast Louisiana. As with all new jobs, there are times where the work is hard and the payoff little, but with time I'm sure it will be a very rewarding experience.
-My grandfather passed away in early March, the day before my grandmother's birthday. One of the fondest memories of him I'll always carry is from the day I modeled my wedding dress for him before the wedding. He shed tears of joy despite my Nanna's insistance that he stop crying, but that's okay because it's the last time I got to see him as himself before he became hospitalized and eventually deteriorated completely.
-I turned 26 - no turning back now, I'll never again be eligible to receive health insurance through my parents' coverage. Guess I have to be a real grown up now.
-Alex and I adopted two kittens from the local humane society. Days after we brought them home, they required twice a day medication (antibiotics & a supplement) to fight respiratory infections. Now about a month later, we've begun introducing them to the dog and the outdoors. It's our hope that in not too long (sooner rather than later), they'll be sufficient indoor/outdoor cats. In the mean time, the little furballs of energy are growing like weeds and keeping us busy.

And now, summer is upon us. Work is picking up for me, yet settling down for Alex. I can't wait for him to come home tonight (even if it will be 1 a.m. or later) because FINALLY the travel part of baseball season is d.o.n.e. Soon, we'll get to go home to visit my family, then Alex's mom will be here in a few weeks, and we'll get to make the trip out to North Carolina later in July. In between all of that, I'll have a week at 4-H Camp, and a week at LSU too. Before I know it, it'll be August and football season (*cough*more traveling*cough*) will be around the corner again.

In any case, I'll try to be more regular in posting again. Without a real smart phone, it's hard to post pictures or share the latest news and gossip. I miss all of you out there, so give me a call sometime. And you know, snail mail never hurt either. ;-)

Until next time,
Lauren

P.S. The kittens desparately want to meet all of you as evidenced by their inability to patiently let me type this while sitting in "their" room supervising...seeing as how they can't be left alone without destroying everything in sight.

Three Months

Wow! A lot can happen in 3 months. To even *think* about beginning this update makes me tired. In order to get it all in (or at least start that process), making a list seems necessary.

Over the summer:
A. Alex got a new job.
B. Alex moved half-way across the country.
C. I worked 6 days a week.
D. We drove - a lot.
E. We bought a house.
F. And of course...we continue to plan a wedding.

Gosh, looking back, it seems like so much more... I guess all these things simplified seem fine, but when they occurred all at once, the teeter-totter of life sure did get pick up this summer. So without further ado, let's begin.

A. Back in December, Alex applied for a job at the University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM). He happened to receive his first call about the position on December 29, the day we traveled to New Orleans to visit with my old friends from Nicholls. We joked about how we should get married on December 29th if indeed this job was what ultimately led us to finally being "together-forever." [Now you all know why we chose 12/29/12. :)]

He corresponded back and forth with the people at ULM for a month or two, but things sort of fell off from there, and we decided to accept the notion that this was not the opportunity for which we'd hoped. Fast forward a few months to April 2012. The ULM position was re-posted, so Alex contacted them yet again to inquire about the position. They finally took him seriously, and in fact, called Alex back on the very day that he proposed to me. (Is this fate, or what? Haha.)

A few weeks later, Alex traveled to Monroe for an on-campus interview, and was offered the job that very same day. Needless to say, our world was shaken up pretty quickly. All of a sudden the prospect of seeing each other more regularly and not having to plan visits via airfare was instantly a reality. After much reflection, Alex decided to accept the job. He's now the Director of Media Relations at ULM, serving as the primary contact for football and baseball. WAHOO!

B. With the new job came a big move...half-way across the country, to a whole new time zone and a distinctly different culture. After attending the National Child Life Conference in Washington, DC, I flew down to Spartanburg to help Alex make the 12-hour drive west on Memorial Day. We actually drove to Little Rock, where Alex dropped me off and he continued his drive south the following morning. Continuing the whirlwind that it was, Alex left Little Rock at 5:30 a.m. and rolled into Monroe just in time to begin his new job at 9 a.m. that day.

C. Let's all remember that I work for a camp, which means that summer is the busiest time of the year. And when I say busy, I mean not just "swamped with things to do" busy but also "working weird hours six days a week" busy. I didn't have very much time off; if I was lucky, I might leave work by 1 or 2 p.m. on Friday, and then I'd have to be back by 9 a.m. on Sunday morning. Since Monroe is 3.5 hours away, this made for a tough balancing act with work and all things Alex/wedding-related.

D. In my head, I figured Alex would visit me frequently during the summer because it was his "off-season" with sports. However, that plan fell by the wayside pretty fast. Alex really lucked out to be offered free on-campus housing for his first 30 days in Monroe. Butttt, 30 days isn't a very long time, so figuring out a more permanent form of housing was necessary. For this reason, my dreams of having my sweet fiance there to welcome me after a long week at work (and short weekend ahead) faded fast. He did what he could, but I ended up spending 7 hours on the road most weekends, traveling back and forth on Friday and Saturday so that I could be back in Little Rock before dark and at work on time the following morning. We were forced to maximize our time together and haul "butt" with figuring out housing plans.

E. Thankfully, the staff at ULM were understanding and willingly extended Alex's 30-day housing allotment (which would have ended in late June) to August 6th. In the course of the summer, we looked at many houses...a few that we liked, and even more that we didn't. At one point, I had my heart set on a beautiful house, yet I wasn't "allowed" to have it because it was adjacent to a flood zone (among other reasons). Boo. By early July, we finally found a house we were willing to purchase. However, after a few weeks of negotiations, the owners refused to accept our offer. We were disappointed, but we moved on once again.

At that point, we knew August 6th was quickly approaching and we really needed to make a decision or else Alex would be homeless rather soon. Thinking back to a FSBO (for sale by owner) house we'd visited early in June, we decided to revisit it and see if it had grown on us. Surprisingly enough, it had. Details that had seemed to be "deal breakers" before were no longer that big of a deal. Its status as a FBSO house meant that we had decent bargaining power, and probably a fair shot at getting the paperwork rolling pretty quickly. As luck would have it, we were right!

The owners were very willing to cooperate with us, and they even made arrangements to move their family into an apartment within 3 weeks, just so that we could have the house and Alex would not be "out on the streets." We closed on the house on August 3rd, and got the keys on August 4th! The movers arrived just a few days later with all of Alex's belongings from his house in South Carolina. My parents visited the following weekend and helped us begin unpacking. Of course, this will be an ongoing process as I begin moving my belongings later in the fall, and I'm sure there will be wedding gifts adding to it, as well. Regardless, Alex isn't homeless, and we have a place that will be all our own. :)

F. Speaking of wedding...needless to say, events of the summer weren't super conducive to making process with wedding planning. My mom was off for the summer (she works in an elementary school) and really pressured me to make progress while she had time on her hands to help, but that definitely didn't happen. Balancing everything else (see above!) was enough to keep me plenty busy without thinking about making other decisions.

Now that summer is over and Alex is settling in, the wedding is back on our radar. And in case you were wondering, Alex absolutely loves his job. Last weekend, ULM football "stunned" No. 8 Arkansas, winning 34-31 in overtime. That sent work for Alex into a spin, taking calls for interviews with national media such as The New York Times, Sirus XM, and Sports Illustrated.

Meanwhile, I had a bit of a break at work, but fall weekend camps start next weekend, so things are starting to pick up for me again. As of yesterday, our wedding is just 105 days away. That's 15 weeks (and just a little over 3 months) for those of you who were wondering. ;)

So the moral of this story? A lot can happen in 3 months.
I can't wait to see what the next three have in store!

Until next time,
Lauren