Monthly Archives: September 2015

Control and the Daily Grind

Over the last two weeks life has really picked up.  Not only did Faith and Wilson started a new school two weeks ago, but this week I began to work at the preschool.  As a result, I have driven around town more than I have ever cared to drive.  I leave our house at 7:15am, drive 25 minutes out of town to the kids new school, and then turn around and drive 40 minutes (past our house) towards uptown to my preschool job.  Anyone that knows me well knows that I don’t like to drive more than fifteen minutes in any one direction.  I typically stick to a 6 mile radius and consider anything above that, “way too far away.”  Over the last two weeks I have had to drastically change my opinion of “too far”.

I am sure that I will eventually get used to the new activities and schedules, it just seems a bit overwhelming at this point.  Of course, every time I drive to Metrolina I think to myself, “If we lived at the new house we would be at the school by now.”  All of this driving has really made me want to move even more.  We have not found a new buyer for our current home which means that we cannot buy the one we want yet.  We have been given an extension by the owner but we only have until the end of September and then we lose the hold on the house that we want to buy.   It is a bit stressful, to say the least.

I don’t like being in limbo with out a plan. I find myself constantly checking my phone to see if there is a showing or an offer on our house.  It’s like deep down I somehow think I will get an email stating that I have won the lottery or something.  Like some magical email will come along and change everything.  Today I literally had to tell myself, “There is nothing in this phone that will change your life.  You are looking in the wrong direction.”  Instead of looking to my phone for answers or for a distraction, I need to be looking up towards the heavens.  I need to be praying that my house will sell or that the Lord will give me a clear direction or path.  I need to take some time to read my Bible and to be still.  I cannot continue to spin my wheels and think that I can make things change just by being busy.  It says in the Bible to “Be still and know that I am God.”  I need to be still.  It is very hard for me to sit still, ever.  I am constantly doing something, even if it doesn’t need to be done.  I feel like I am in control if I am working.  In reality, we are in control of very little in our lives.  My dad’s analogy is that we are like an ant on a log that is going down stream, thinking that we are steering the log.  We all like to be in control – it makes us feel strong and secure – solid.

Today I realized that I need to relinquish control to the Lord.  He’s got this.  I am so blessed to even have these problems.  I am not going to worry about or try to plan out my next few months.  I am going to drive all around town and be thankful that I have money for gas, a good school for my kids, a house that I like, and a job that I enjoy.  I will “be still” more often and be in the presence of God throughout my day.  I know that God has a plan for our family – I just have to trust each step that He tells me to take..and then walk.

Labor Day at the Lake

As you can see, I am two weeks delayed getting this post written.  It is a sign of how things are going around here.  Busy, but good….

Labor Day weekend was amazing.  We were invited by my middle/high school friend, Mavis Wu Davis to her lake house outside of Raleigh for the weekend.  Mavis and I laugh about how we became friends in PE class in middle school because we were lined up next to each other – Wu and Wilson.  Then we were in the same youth group together at Bible Town church in Boca Raton, FL.   Like all friends, we drifted apart for many years, but have remained friends all of this time.  It helps that our parents are friends as well – together they prayed for us for many years!

We had an eventful weekend and had many, many toys at our disposal.

The first afternoon the kids played on the neighbor’s lake trampoline.  (Miller ended up swallowing lake water and threw up a few times in the middle of the night.  The Wu’s were amazing – they didn’t even flinch.)

I learned how to paddle board.  It seemed effortless at the beginning, once I got my balance, but when I finally get back to land my legs were like spaghetti.  Of course, we also used the paddle board as a shuttle and a play toy….

I was able to wake board after 12 years of not being on water.  I got up immediately, but my back hurt for two weeks.  The pain was worth it….

Mavis and Faith went for a very long tube ride.  I think they talked the entire time…

And then the kids fished….

and fished…..

and fished….  

and fished…..

They fished so much that they actually started to put the fish in buckets.   They would collect four fish, dump it out and start over again.  One morning Wilson went down to the dock and started fishing at 7:00am.  That was fine, but I was not yet in the mood to put slimy worms on the hook and then take the poor fish off of the hook and throw it back in the water.  Not  what I wanted to be doing that early in the morning, but spending that time with Wilson was worth it.

We kayaked a bit…

and at night ate huge meals prepared by Mrs. Wu, Mavis’ mom.  Delicious! 

Faith waterskiied as well.  I was so proud of her!  She is typically afraid of new activities, especially ones in a lake.  But she did it!  She got right up the first time and then did it two more times!  I was a very proud mama.

Faith and Parker became good friends.  They were very sweet together and really enjoyed each others’ company.

This is how we all felt at the end of the day….

Where was Tom the entire weekend?  He was out on the waverunner.  He would either go by himself or take one of the kids along.  They loved to drive the waverunner and Tom did a great job teaching them how to do it….
  

It was a nearly perfect weekend.  Did I mention that my parents came up on Sunday and Monday?  It was a big Wu/Wilson reunion.  The Mr. and Mrs. Wu and Mavis and Jeff were the most gracious and generous hosts.  It was a weekend that we will not soon forget and hope to repeat sometime in the near future.