Whose Blog is it Anyway?

Over the past few days, as I try to ease my way back into posting... I've been brainstorming: What direction do I want to take Unexpected Fortune? I've never had a clear-cut focus to my blog, but somehow, somewhere it shifted... And now I have no idea where it's headed!

It started as a space to write about the highs/lows of grad school and then quickly changed because lezbihonest... Going to grad school is not exactly thrilling... So reading about grad school? Snooze fest!

Please don't hate me for watching Jersey Shore.

So then I started writing about the 17 Day Diet--What we were eating, recipes we liked, setbacks, weigh-in's, etc. That worked for a long time because it's been a struggle for a long time.

Now?

Yes, I still struggle with proper nutrition/exercise. But I feel like I'm getting in a routine (Hallelujah!!) finally and can move on to the next thing.

What is the next thing?

I'm sure I will always write about health/wellness, because it will be a huge part of my life for the rest of my life. If I were to be honest, though, my heart and my mind are definitely focused on something else...

All of these goals I've had in the past (i.e. obtaining a Master's degree, losing weight, building muscle, finding a church home, etc.) have all been a means to an end:

Motherhood.

For as long as I can remember, being "Mom" is what I have wanted. I want all of it. The pregnancy, delivery, sleepless nights, breastfeeding, moments alone rocking them to sleep, learning lessons the hard way, seeing my parents and in-laws light up meeting their grandchild, seeing my husband become Daddy and all the changes that he will make, watching them take their first steps, say their first words, kissing their boo-boo's to make it all better....

I want it so badly. I think about it daily... often hourly.

So when I open up blogger to write a new post... It's often all I want to write about. And I worry "Will I seem selfish?" "Am I obsessing too much?" "Who wants to hear this?" "I should be thankful for what I have."

And I am thankful. SO thankful. I just know what I was meant to become. Some way, some how... I am meant to be a mother.

And I would like to document my journey to motherhood.

So, for now, I'm going to put those worries aside and use this blog for what it's for..... Me.

To be clear, though... I will talk about all those others things (church, health, exercise, BDR, puppies, etc.) as well. I just feel that this new direction is one worth mentioning.

'Night y'all!

"Driving Slow on Sunday Morning"

Happy Sunday, everyone!

I write this as we get ready to head to church. We haven't been really good about going since the holidays, so we're trying to get back in the habit again.

It's kind of funny, because around the time we stopped going to church was the time we started making good choices for health/exercise. It always makes me wonder... Why is it that not everything can be going well, all at once? Why can't we do really well in one area, without another area falling short?

So we're making a conscious effort to make our spiritual lives be just as much of a priority as our physical well-being. It is, in our minds... But looking at our day to day lives, I'm ashamed to say you wouldn't know it. Occasionally we do well and remember to pray together. And in our hearts, God is number one. But it's so easy to just know and trust in that and not actually build on the relationship. It's like I "check out" on praying, reading devotionals, reading the Word... Because I know Jesus is LORD.... And he knows I know that.... So he knows why I'm not putting time into Him.

Which is just plain ridiculous.

I shouldn't put time into anything else that's not glorifying to Him. And truthfully, the things I'm doing likely are glorifying Him... I just don't regularly take the time to thank Him for it. I need to be better.

I will be better.

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The crock pot is on and cooking away.... This week's menu:

Pesto Ranch Crock Pot Chicken
Crock Pot Fried Rice
Crock Pot Garlic Lime Chicken

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BDR & I took a walk yesterday to the "falls" in our new town. It feels so good to call this place "home". Love this life we have together!!

Well, This is Awkward...

I never know how to start a blog post when it's been weeks or months since the last time I've written. Do you mention the time away? Do you ignore it? Should I feel guilty or should I not feel guilty?

Who the heck knows...

I haven't written because I've just been laying low for a while. As much as I love and appreciate all of the feedback I get from this blog and from facebook, there are some things I just don't want other people's opinions about. Husband and I have made a LOT of changes lately. Things are just starting to calm down (relatively), and I finally feel like we're developing that new "normal" I've been so looking forward to.

But back to being away for so long and then trying to write a post...

I feel like I need to play catch up and explain what's been happening these last few months. But let's be honest...

 

So in a nutshell (because you know how much I love lists): 

•  I'm still loving my job/coworkers/clients. Like, seriously? It's unbelievable, this company I work for. I wish everyone had this opportunity... I feel ridiculously blessed. 
• Our home is still just so perfect for us. We have zero complaints (outside of poor cell/internet reception). I pray that we can stay here forever! 
• Husband is still in the process of finding a job/career he loves. We're both just so happy he's not having to do night shifts anymore. It's doing wonders for our relationship! 
• We found a church home that we really love and were going regularly for a long while. Since the holidays, we're struggling to get back in the swing of things, but hopefully it'll fall back into place soon.
•  I'm finally getting my butt together on the health/exercise front. I see a personal trainer twice a week, which has seriously been so much fun. My trainer is unbelievable and kicks my butt!! I love it!! Total, I work out for an hour 4-5x/week. I've been making tons of crock pot meals each weekend, so we never have an excuse of "not wanting to cook". Since January 4 I've lost 19 lbs. This time around, the weight is not coming off as quickly, and for a while I was worried. But now I see that it is coming off, it's coming off at a healthy/sustainable pace, I'm physically feeling so much better, and I'm just.. happy. It's not easy, but nothing worth having in life usually is.
• Braylen and I are going on a trip to Dominican Republic in September (which is a HUGE motivation on the health/wellness front). After which time, we will start trying to grow our family. This is probably what I'm most excited about and could write 10 posts over, so I'm just going to stop there.
• Last and probably most importantly... The puppies are doing just fine. Luke & Leia love the new house... Big back yard, big windows to bark at the golfers across the street... They love it! 

Luke in his back yard & Leia on her favorite perch

My sweet baby girl giving sad eyes to me.

Luke cooling off from being outside.

Obviously the dog obsession hasn't changed (did anyone realistically expect it to?). 

Life is fantastic and I have no complaints.

I doubt that I will consistently update, as apparently I suck at this blogging thing. So, just as a warning... My posts will likely always be sporadic and random. 

Have a Happy Friday!