Dear Readers,
A very kind reader sent me an email this morning regarding my "Links I Love" Page. I have fixed the broken link to "Six Sisters' Stuff" and I have added a link to "The Ultimate Frugal Resource Guide" per her suggestion. Thanks Kathleen for the great resource! I hope others will find it as useful as I have.
Unbeknownst to Kathleen, her email did more than just inform me about necessary editing. She also reminded me that my little corner of the internet is still out there and people still come across it now and again. When I started HWE, I started it as a sort of journal to catalog my life. Well, life got crazy at the end of 2012 and blogging became less of a priority for me. I made the decision to stop adding to HWE for a while and I apologize for not letting you guys know about it.
I am not sure I am ready to blog full time again but I did want to catch you up on the craziness of the past year:
- As you know, we lost a baby due to miscarriage at the end of 2012. His name was Andrew and I still miss him to this day. I don't cry anymore, and the acute pain is gone, but I do sometimes think "How old would Andrew be today?" or "What would _____ have been like if Andrew had been here?"
- In November 2012, I applied for a Leadership/Management Program at work. It was a four month application process and one I unfortunately didn't feel like was appropriate or professional to share in a public forum.
- In the beginning of February 2013, I unfortunately suffered a second miscarriage. I was only 5 weeks pregnant and I was able to miscarry at home. This experience has left a mark on me. I did not forget all the hope and encouragement Andrew's short life and given me but it was a very dark time. It took a long time to emotionally recover and, to be honest, I still have my moments. My "moments" aren't in regards to mourning the loss of the second child necessarily but about the uncertainty of the future. I will always struggle with things I can't control and this is a giant example of needing to "let go and let God."
- While still dealing with the second miscarriage, I found out I had been accepted into the management program at work. All of a sudden my work-life radically shifted. I became much busier and work became something I definitely shouldn't/couldn't discuss.
- Over the next 8 months, I trained my replacement in my old position, transitioned to my new position, completed the program, and was promoted. At the same time, my husband's work became really intense and he started working crazy-long hours. Needless to say, work-life was (and sort of still is) our primary focus in life.
- I have settled into my new position at work and I am loving it. Mark's hours have actually intensified even further at work (12 hour days are standard and there have been a couple 14-15+ hour days). So basically I have decided to be very choosy about how I get to spend the little moments we have together now. I still read obsessively and I still cook every night. These are the things that relax me. I have also made a point to treat myself better and give myself little at-home "spa" days as frequently as I can.
- My birthday last week actually marked the one-year anniversary of my second miscarriage and the end of the "waiting and recovery" period. Despite our history, I am excited to try again to expand our family. I PROMISE PROMISE PROMISE to let you all know if we are blessed in that area.
So that pretty much gives a broad overview of life for me recently. It's been a roller coaster of shifting priorities but I can honestly say I have been happy. 2013 started as the lowest point in my life and ended as one of the highest thus far. I can't wait to see where 2014 will lead us and I appreciate every single one of you for sticking around.
Love,
Jessie
