Family

My child brought this home from school today. This is our family. This is the family he has known most of his life. We have other family members, but he has not known most of them, most of his life. It saddens me, just a little. I have parents, and so they are his grandparents. And he knows them, and has spent time with them. We live far away from them, but that can not be helped. We had to move to become the people we are today.  Even when we lived closed to them, we did not see them often. Schedules just don't always permit that. That is just how life can be sometimes, I guess.





I grew up with a Mom, Dad, and two brothers. That was my family. I had a LOT more family that I hardly ever saw. I have family, including sisters, cousins, aunts, and uncles, that I have only seen once or twice, my whole life. We grew up in our own little world, it seems. We did not do big family dinners on holidays but once or twice my whole life. We had family who lived in the same town that we only saw occasionally. As an adult, I do not quite understand that. I moved away when I was 17, and I met a family that spent lots of time together. They saw each other as often as possible. They had Sunday dinners, they had weekend barbecues. They really knew each other. They loved to spend time together. I did not get to spend much time with them, but I enjoyed the time I did. 



I have so many cousins, on so many levels (seconds, thirds, fourths), that I do not know who all of them are. I have met some on Facebook that I have never met in real life. I have learned of others that are no longer on Earth, that I did not even know existed until it was too late. I know some people can't fathom this, but this is my life. I grew up in Florida, and many of my family members grew up in Texas. We did not go to Texas but a few times when I was a child. Schedules and/or finances didn't permit it. That is just how life can be, sometimes.




I now have Gavin, who does not know any of these relatives, the same ones I did not know growing up, and schedules, and finances have not permitted us to meet them. I hope someday we get to meet them, before they are no longer on the Earth, or neither are we. I am so happy we have Facebook, and texting, and phones, and Skype. We are able to keep up, a little, with what is going on in each others lives. I hope someday to be able to meet, and allow Gavin to meet, his family on my side.



Gavin has two sisters, they share a father. Well, they share a father's DNA. They are both AWESOME women, and I am proud to have them as a part of Gavin's life. They accept him, and love him, and accept me, because I am his mother, and that makes me happy. They have a family, on THEIR mother's side, who accepts Gavin as part of their family, although "technically, biologically", he is not. They are awesome people, as well. They have invited us to Atlanta, to spend Thanksgiving with their ENTIRE family (HUGE), which only gets together, all together, for Thanksgiving every few years, because of their size, and distance from each other, and their other sides, with marriages, and what-not. We REALLY want to go to this family gathering.




We are planning to rent a car, and drive to Atlanta the night before Thanksgiving, after I get off work. It is about 7 hours, so it shouldn't be a problem. The only problem, so far, is coming up with all the money to get there. Gavin's sisters' family is raising a lot. And, they are doing a great job. I am also trying to raise some, as much as I can, to cover the trip. The only money I need is for the rental, gas, and maybe a meal on the way, and one on the way back. I have a place to sleep, and food provided, once we get there. I am praying that God permits a way for us to go. I am hoping this great opportunity doesn't pass us by. If anyone knows a way to raise some money, please let me know. My schedule is pretty full, between work, school, and Gavin between now and Thanksgiving. I am trying to come up with ways to raise some of the money on my own. The family is doing a great job, and I want to try and match their efforts. If you can help, in any way, please send me an email at mcd.mel74@ymail.com



Thank you for reading.



Mel

Writing Assignment

This is a writing assignment I did for my Writing I class. I just had to share it.


Prompt 3: Describe someone who is important to you, such as a friend or relative.




My son is the most important thing to me. His name is Gavin, and he is five years old. He brings light to my life when I am encased in darkness. I can honestly say that I would die to save his life. I cannot say that about anyone else on this entire planet.


Gavin is a very bright little boy, with, I am hoping, a wonderful future. He remembers everything he learns, sees, touches, and tastes, and can describe it months later as if it happened the day before. He is in kindergarten this year, and he is taking it all in. He comes home daily with descriptions of his day's activities, making sure to detail everything for me. He can be so descriptive with his words, I feel as if I was in the classroom with him.


Gavin was premature and weighed less than five pounds at birth. He has Cerebral Palsy and Epilepsy. His CP is very mild and only affects his leg muscles, for the most part. He is completely ambulatory on his own, but wears orthotic braces. This being said, he is a regular five year old. He gets bumps and bruises, just like any other little guy. He does not realize he is any different from any of his friends, with the exception of the braces.


My little guy is obsessed with super heroes. He likes them all, and does not have a favorite. From day to day, his focus shifts from one superhero to the next, as he “becomes” his superhero of the day. He has several costumes, and most nights, he substitutes his costumes for pajamas, and wears them to bed.


His physical description is simple. He has blonde hair and brown eyes and the biggest smile of any child. He is small statured, and very thin. When he meets someone, they are usually hooked. Most people draw close to him after the first meeting, because he just exudes light and happiness. I am not only saying this because he is my child. Feel free to ask anyone one else that knows him. They will describe him the same way.


I knew when seeing the title of this prompt that I would be writing about my child. I am sure many parents would write about their children as the most important person in their lives. Gavin is important to me, because I was told I would never be able to carry a child to full term, and although he was not full term, he was the closest I had ever become. He is my miracle. He has been my whole world ever since, and everything I work for, I do because of him.

Checking In..

I made it through my first day of being a college student. Haha! I signed in yesterday and my class information was waiting for me. I opened up the syllabus and read through it, looked at the class assignments, and printed out the information. I had to make a calendar to remind me of when everything is due for both classes. I will get my actual assignments for the next class on Monday. I am actually okay right now. I am not too freaked out like I thought I would be. I have a lot to read and a lot to remember before my first quiz on June 8. 

This next couple of weeks are going to be busy. I have some things to take care of at home, and I also have VBS (Vacation Bible School) all next week. I have volunteered to be a teacher's helper, and Gavin will be attending, plus I will have work and school. And Gavin. I ask for prayers that I will make it through next week. I know I can do it, it is just going to be tough. I will try to update, but I might miss a post next week. I am sure I won't be on Facebook or Twitter much, either, unless I am able to sign in while at work. 

School Daze...

As some of you know, I went to school a couple years ago and nothing ever came of it. I could not find a job in my field, because of lack of experience. The school had no internship program for ‘Accounting Specialist”, so I basically have a certificate that is kind of useless. Although, it does look good on my resume for future endeavors, I suppose.

Well, I decided, after much deliberation and prayer, to go BACK to school, and so I am. I have enrolled in online classes for the summer semester and will start on campus in the Fall. My first online class begins on June 1. That is less than a week away. I am starting to get a little nervous, as I have not ever done traditional college, and online classes (in the summer) may have been a poor choice. I only say that because I already have to get used to school, and of course, summer classes are shorter, so require a lot of extra effort. My first classes are Intro to Music and History of Kentucky. This is an interesting combination, since they are basically both history-type classes. Well, The Kentucky History class is definitely history, but the music class has a lot of historical references. I ask for a lot of prayer over the summer, for both myself AND Gavin, because I am hoping to be able to organize my time well enough to make sure he still gets lots of my time, as well as work, and school. I am working on organizing, and prioritizing right now, and hope I have it figured out, somewhat, by the time I sign on to my first class on Tuesday.

So, that is school in a nutshell. If you did read this, please let me know. I just want to know if anyone actually reads anything I write. God bless everyone and have a great summer. Look for more posts soon!

It Has Been Too Long....

Well, I didn't follow through with my commitment. At all. On anything I committed to. I have not written since February, when I had made a commitment to write at least one post a week. I have not been exercising like I should be, although I made a commitment to myself to do so. I have also been eating whatever I wanted, although I made a commitment to myself to NOT do so. So, here I sit, feeling worse for wear, because I didn't follow through. 

If you know me, you will know that is one of my worst attributes. I have a real problem with following through. I try and try and still I always mess up somehow. I even joke that I couldn't even make it through a full-term pregnancy, because my son was almost 7 weeks early! 

My life is at stake here, when it comes to the exercise and eating better, and I still can't seem to get a hold on that. I have been feeling awful the last few weeks, and finally someone mentioned I might be lactose intolerant. So, I decided to just perform a little experiment. I am trying non-dairy or lactose free foods for a week, and see if I feel better. It is only the first day, so we will see how it goes. My blood glucose has been good the last few weeks, and I hope that continues to stay that way. I will be out of strips to test it soon, so I won't know. Just praying that I can keep up.

One more thing, and I will dedicate an entire post to this subject, but I am going back to school. I begin online classes on June 1. Like I said, I will write a post about that soon. 

Back to my commitments. I am re-committing to post something AT LEAST once a week, even if it is picture or youtube video or something. Even if it is one line saying hi. I commit to exercising for at least 30 minutes a day AT LEAST three times a week. I know, that isn't much, but it is a start. I also am going to attempt to eat better. I will let you know how all of this goes in my next post. Be on the lookout for it. Until then, be blessed.


Mel

A New Beginning....Again

I have always heard people say "This book changed my life", and always wondered how that could happen. Well, now I know. I set off to read this book, by Sherri Shepherd from The View thinking I would get a good laugh out of it. Well, it turned out to be much more than a few laughs. She woke me up. 

If any of you reading this know me personally, you know I am very overweight. Even if you don't know me personally, you may have seen a picture or two that reflects that. Well, I also have Type 2 Diabetes and am on oral medication for it. Also, if you know anything about me at all, you know I have an AMAZING five year old son, named Gavin. He has broken through some great obstacles over his short life, and I am more amazed by him every day. And, I am all he has. I am a single parent. I have no help from anyone else to take care of him, and that is how it has been since Day One. The reason I bring that up is, because if I weren't around, he would have no one. I always knew that in the back of my mind, but I just kind of ignored it. Until I read this book.

Sherri Shepherd is a stand-up comic, actress, Co-host of The View and also a single mother with Diabetes. Her son was premature (just like my son), and has some delays. She wrote this book and in it describes her struggles every day to eat right and exercise, because she wants to see her son grow up. I really could relate, and I decided to do something about it. I prayed about it. Sherri is also a Christian, and in her book she talks about God a lot. I asked God to help me make some major decisions. I joined a gym, and I have started eating a little better. I am still not eating like I should, but I am taking steps toward it. I am taking my medicine as I should. I have made a commitment that on days my son is in school (Monday through Thursday), I will be at the gym. I have not skipped a day, yet. It has only been a few days, but I feel a little bit better. 

She writes about many other things in this book, and I think all women would get something from it. Check it out, it is a very good read. This woman shows lots of strength. She is a human being more than just a celebrity. This book is available all over, so look it up. I got our local library to get it, before I had even read it, and before I started working there. I am so glad I did. I hope it changes others, or at least makes people think.

I just wanted to take the time to thank Sherri for writing this book. I know that God gave her the words, and He led me to read them for a reason. This book has changed my life.

Worth The Wait

I am still not on the road, and this has been a hard time for me. The waiting is driving (no pun intended) me absolutely crazy. I have looked in the mail every day for my car title, and it has not come. I am still relying on others, and it is getting harder to ask for help. I did have some good news this week.

I got a job yesterday, and I start on February 15. I am going to be working part-time at the public library here in town. I am very excited. It isn't going to generate a huge income, and after my rent is adjusted and other parts of my income will be changed once I begin receiving work income, it really won't be much. But, it will be something, and I will feel better about myself for doing it. I have not worked since April of last year, so it has been 10 months since I received a paycheck, and I look forward to my first one.

I still have a few things to do to prepare. Gavin will be going to daycare three days a week, so I have to get him enrolled. I have the enrollment form completed, and I still need to drop it off. I also have a few other things to take care of. I will be working on those over the next week. I hope and pray I have my title to insure and register my car before several days before I begin work. I need to take Gavin to the daycare so he can meet the staff and they can meet him, because the first day he will be dropped off by the school bus right after school. I am trying to get all my ducks in a row. I will be working 4 days a week and one of those days is a Saturday. Gavin will have a sitter on Saturdays. This is a big step for me, since he has never had a regular sitter. He gets along well with everyone, though, so he should be fine. 

I completely give God the glory for all that is going on. I have been walking in faith, and I am reaping the benefits of that. Things are working out. I need to continue praying and living for God and things and be okay with whatever He dishes out!  That is my prayer, that I will be okay with whatever comes my way.