Bullet less Bullets

So I have some very random points I plan to share today. I've decided to forgo the bullets because, well, I just feel like it, I guess.

Some of you have asked me what I am writing in the Wedding Magazine. The Editor gives me stories. She also provides me contacts. Not all Editors do this. The contacts are wonderful. My stories are about (1) Tailoring a meal to a couple (2) Unique outdoor locations. It's nice to believe she is asking me becuase I am such a stellar writer, but quite honestly, dependability int he business is even more important. A writer who doesn't come through will never be utilized again. So I guess, more than being a good writer, I am reliable. That's not too shabby.

I am becoming much more comfortable with the phone. The one month sabbatical of our Director of Communications at the RLS Foundation has left me as her primary back-up. Recently, there have been a few key news stories on RLS that have left many people interested in doing articles on RLS. The phone is ringing a lot. I also called all six contacts for my Wedding Magazine story yesterday and left messages or set up interview times. This is always the hardest part of writing a story for me.

Scrubs does not like his new crate. Our new friend down the street, Heather, sold us a crate she used to use for her two labs. (Well, I think only one lab used it at a time.) Scrubs' little crate is really little. He can't stand up in it anymore. (He's growing soooo fast!) His big crate must feel too big for him because he barks like the dickens. We've been letting him sleep at night in the little crate for now just because we don't want him barking like the dickens at 1 in the morning. He's basically sleeping through the night. Last night was the first night in a week that he barked to be let out at 3:30. He went out and then trotted right back in to his kennel. I want everyone to meet my puppy! In order to get him to go into the crate, I am smearing peanut butter on his chew toys. This helps relax him.

If you didn't read the comment on my post from a few days ago from a "fellow adoptive mom", you really should. I was really educated about how much paperwork is actually involved in domestic adoption. While the paperwork is different, it is still intense -- much of it associated with the birth mom having the opportunity to choose you. Thanks "fellow adoptive mom"!

Tonight we are going to attend a home fellowship at one of the third year resident's, Tristan. He attends this new church we tried and liked on Sunday. I know that finding a "service" on Wednesdays is important as we don't know how often JB will have off to go on Sundays. However, I have to say that I am hesitant to give up any of my limited time with JB in the evenings. I know we will have a great time, but I really miss John when he is gone all day. I know we are going to the fellowship together, but still ...

JB is going to drop the Saturn off in Pensacola tonight and get a rental car. It really needs a tune-up. Our air is measly, the brakes are squeaking, and we have to leave the key in the ignition because it gets stuck so much. (Yeah! For real!) Oh, and it needs an oil change too. Unfortunately there isn't a dealership here in town, and we really want to stick with just taking it to the dealer.

Can you believe Tara's bike seat got stolen? Read her bog to read the real truth! How ridiculous is that?!?!

We found out John gets mileage reimbursement for these trips to Pensacola. Great news since we figure it is costing about $100 a week to make that drive. Apparently you will actually make some money in the whole deal.

We still do not have a "set" income coming in for JB. Apparently this is pretty usual with the Air Force. It takes them awhile to get your pay correct. As a result you may be receiving too much or too little, and they are going to correct this eventually. One guy last year got $11,000 too much so they deducted $1,000 each month for 11 months! Now, I have to be honest. I really don't get why this is so hard. Here's how much he needs to make. Just pay him that amount? As a result, we still can't set our budget which is a bit frustrating for me, who really desires structure in our spending.

I went out for lunch with my friend Jenny. She took me to "The French Quarter Restaurant" in Valparaiso. (Joia, you got to try this. It's right down the street from you.) I am not really a huge salad eater, but I got a grilled chicken, banana, and orange salad on spinach. It was FANTASTIC! Seriously, probably the best salad I have ever had. Go there locals! Jenny is moving to Texas with her fighter pilot husband Tim, their dog Riley, and their new son Jackson (who hates riding in a car!) I will really miss her.

I have decided to alter my exercise a bit. I am having some discomfort when I run. My left foot is still bothering me and my knees are bothering me as well. I think it was probably the combo of bad shoes and a new surface to run on here. In addition, I really do not have time to go on a jog and then take Scrubs on a walk (and the boy needs to walk a lot so that he doesn't jump off the walls!) So I have decided to change to walking for a bit of time. Tiffany goes in the mornings sometimes. She does a 3 mile track. Scrubs handled it fine yesterday and slept the morning away when we get back. Tiffany also has long legs too so she walks fast like me. I also have a 2 mile track to the water park and back that Scrubs seems to like. So we are starting each morning with a big hefty walk. We also break for 2-3 shorter walks (a few blocks) as well as about 10 minutes sprinting around the driveway. I also take some breaks for toning exercises. So this is working well. I really miss the running, but my body and my time needs a change for just awhile. I hope, when Scrubs is older, that I can return to it.

We hope to get together next week with this new family in the area who adopted from China. How cool is that?

The wives are meeting once a week for lunch. This week, Tiffany is hosting.

My parents are coming into town for Labor Day! JB has the whole weekend off that weekend as well which is very unusual. That will be so fun.

To view an update on Matt, CLICK HERE.

That's all I got today folks. Hope you enjoyed the bullet less bullets.