REALLY?????

OK, so here's a confession: (I'm Catholic, you have to deal with the guilt I have!)

      I eat.  I eat a lot.  A LOT.  This is weird for me.  I was dipping down weight-wise here and there throughout my weeks, and wondering what was up.  I went on a website where I figured out my Basal Metabolic Rate - based on my body and multiplied by my activity level.  I'm supposed to consume around 2500 calories a day to maintain.  NO JOKE.  Even if I am "conservative", it's still more than 2000 a day!  My metabolism is really ramped with all my exercise.  This is a good thing, right?  Here's the best thing: I've learned good habits, so when I eat all these extra calories, I'm not filling it with junk.  Don't get me wrong, I have my treats.  I had Swenson's for the first time in over a year this past week and enjoyed every bite - but I saved points for it!  (And actually, ended up feeling pretty cruddy after the grease and some cookies after - really isn't what my body is used to!) IS THIS CRAZY?!?!?!????  Seems like it just couldn't even be right!  Thoughts????  My active friends????  Anybody????

     So as far as our life goes, I have no 100% clear cut answers yet, but I will clue you in since you've all been kind enough to keep us in your prayers.  Stow, the district I teach for, is making cuts.  It appears I'm going to be one of those cuts.  I was supposed to find out about this for sure this past Thursday, getting my RIF letter, but it didn't come.  The union is asking for documentation that proves they have justification to cut the position in the music program.  However, from what I hear from my union president, they are sure they have it, and I will be cut.  Now, before you sit there in "horror" for me - not so fast.  I found out that this was a possibility about 2-3 weeks ago.  I know that our district is in real financial trouble.  So the fact that cuts are coming down was not a surprise, but it was a shock that "it could happen to me".  Cliche, I know, but of course it feels that way.  Within a good 4-6 hours of hashing things out with Matt, friends and family, I realized that this might not be so bad at all.  Stow is a 30 minute drive one way when there's no traffic.  In traffic, I normally look at around 35-45 minutes per commute, twice a day.  In addition, I direct 4 supplemental choirs - 4 mornings a week - on top of my normal teaching schedule.  This job is very stressful for me, even though I do love it.  I have known for a while that there was a good possibility I would leave Stow for a job closer to home at some point, I just always thought it would be on my terms.  However, God doesn't work that way - sometimes it's on HIS time.  I have come to the conclusion over the past weeks that this could be such a great thing for Matt and I.  Yes, it will be a hit to us financially, but I have paid into unemployment and can collect while I get on my feet.  I am applying to Walsh University in their Counseling and Human Development program - in School Counseling.  I was planning to take a class or two each semester while teaching, but assuming this goes forward, I am planning to switch to a full-time status and focus on my degree.  Maybe God wants me to slow down. . .maybe it's His way of helping me de-stress so we can have a successful pregnancy when we're ready.

      Like I said, please don't be horrified.  Please don't tell me how sorry you are.  Just say prayers that we can keep our heads straight, our pennies in order and that things go well with my Walsh application. I think this could be a great life change for us, and I'm not only beginning to accept it, I even starting to look forward to it.

Thanks for reading.  Don't forget to keep up with my weigh-in and miles updates on the right!  I up my daily "short" run miles up to 1.25 a day this week.  I try to get 4-5 of those runs in a week.

Thank you for your prayers these past weeks.  Keep them coming!