We graduated. We had a kid. Joe got an amazing job working for a poultry processing equipment solutions business. We bought a house. Now Joe works for a Fortune 500 company. I have been staying at home with Sylvi since she was born, nearly 3 years ago. Our lifestyle has been trying, but worth every bit for the sake of our daughter. The weight on Joe’s shoulders has been great, but he has moved along steadily with gentle feet, for the most part anyway. I am enduring.

Now it is spring. And the past two weekends we have gone to art festivals. First was the Dogwood Festival. This past weekend we did Inman Park Art Festival. Both were GREAT. My mom says she’d like to stay downtown the entire weekend next year. Ha! That would be FUN! This year she bought some sterling necklace charms. One of them was made from some old china, another from some old lace. Still others were made from artsy looking clip art. It made Mom want to learn how to weld.

We have become good friends with our neighbors Brooke and Jason. I think we compliment each other, while being able to maintain healthy boundaries in our relationship. Very refreshing. Makes it easy.

Tomorrow night John and Phil are coming over for breakfast We do love company!

After speaking with my friend on the phone for over half an hour while he was  using the device, I’d say the major phone companies have something to worry about…

Whenever I’m having trouble under-appreciating or over-criticizing Joe, I picture what it would be like to lose him as my best friend, what it would be like not to have such a devoted, loving, and understanding person in my life. I also think of what it would be like to lack someone who loves me enough to tell me I’m wrong. After thinking about it that way, very soon I realize exactly why I’ll always want him as my husband. His friendship cradles my heart.

That said. There are SO many pitfalls concerning differences between spouses! It’s truly a delicate balance! Saying too much or too little, basing our opinion of our spouse’s character on their poorest performances rather than their love of God and willingness to serve others, judging, etc. Also, even in the most ideal circumstances, what couple has perfect communication? Sometimes couples’ personalities differ so greatly that extraordinary measures must be taken to untangle the webs of miscommunication.

Here are a few examples: A long time ago I used to try to forget myself to make the clashes/differences easier to tolerate. That made it far too easy to develop false humility and a martyr mentality. I thought I was HELPING the marriage by telling white lies to myself/Joe! Another trap I’ve seen happens once a couple has been together a while and one or both start(s) to think they know the other one well enough to judge them. More and more faults are exposed over time, which are easily identified. Then, if a couple doesn’t purpose themselves to also learn each others’ assets equally well, the scale is tipped and the whole institution teeter-totters.

I think relationships are like asymptotes, we get closer and closer to “zero” without ever knowing what it’s like to actually be our spouse. That means infinite pleasure and possible growth toward one another, but most likely infinite displeasure to an extent as well. Ignoring or being in denial about negative attributes, whether yours or someone else’s, just isn’t healthy. But judging isn’t necessarily helpful either. So, my way of balancing the affects of negative character traits is to recognize with equal energy those of exceptionally good quality.

The History and Taxonomy of Distilled Spirits is a very informative article that gives you a quick, nutshell version of what you probably care to know about “spirits.”

I came across an artist named Treva Blomquist a number of months ago. I believe I heard her on Pandora. I think I bookmarked her because there are several qualities of her voice that remind me of my friend Ashley (Gard).

September 2006

The Pam Dixon Archive gives tips on how to retain your privacy online during your job searches (e.g. posting your resume online, etc.)

I was recently looking for banks in my area that offer free checking accounts. This may be a no-brainer, but if you Google Bank of America, SunTrust, Wachovia, and Washington Mutual (all banks in my area) and the words free checking you can probably find their free checking offers.

August 2006

When filling out an application, you may be asked how many words you can type per minute. There are many great sites that offer you free tests to see how fast you are. I like a test that was created by Joshua Rennert.

June 2006

claimID is a way to help manage what is out there about you on the web. I don’t know exactly how it works, but I’m sure that a lot of people would be interested. Contactlink has a related service to help people find you.

If I ever get around to writing a book, I found a handy tutorial on how to sell it on Amazon

Having recently found some nice book summaries for David Allen’s Gettings Things Done, it was nice to also find one for Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

Less visible electrical cords around desks and workspaces is nicer to look at.

Make your own granola recipe. Yum!

The article, 10 flagrant grammar mistakes that make you look stupid, made me feel stupid.

I am always looking for more help with procrastination. The Procrastination Research Group has posted some strategies to help.

OptOutPreScreen.com is a way to opt-out of getting the pre-approved credit card offers.

Cooking for Engineers seems right up our alley, incorporating scientific-style methods to recipes.

Randstad has a nice career toolbox to help with career decisions. Some of the links they provide can give you access to resume tips, career ideas, and more.

A quick and dirty mosquito trap could come in handy this year.

“A beginner’s guide to eBay: Confessions from an eBay store worker” offers some good advice about how to make eBay pay.

Thanks. No. is a very blunt site to send people to if they send you a bunch of email you don’t want.

May 2006

I know that when I was in college I was always looking for ways to absorb information quicker. “Six steps for learning difficult subjects quickly” would have definitely come in handy.

I know very little about photography, but I do like taking pictures. PhotographyJam has an easy-to-understand article up about camera basics.

I have heard it most of my life, but seldom followed its wisdom: “It is cheaper to eat at home than to eat out.” One of these days I will learn to submit to this principle. I found a link through the LifeHacker website that gives you advice on eating more meals at home. In the process, I learned about Taste of Home magazine and the Hillbilly Housewife.

April 2006

I haven’t made a whole lot of money the last couple years and have qualified for free tax filing. I have used Intuit’s free services the last couple years, but always forget on how to get to their site for free federal and state filing. The website is statetaxfreedom.com

Jessie has started swimming at Cobb County’s nice aquatic center. The fee to use the facility is not that high, but it is more expensive for out-of-county patrons. I talked to someone from the Cherokee County Recreation and Parks Authority and they said that Cherokee County will be getting their own aquatic center in the near future.

I came across a very helpful article about preparing your resume for emailing or posting on the internet.

March 2006

While trying to determine what we could afford based on our current income we came across these site:

• Affordability Calculator

While looking for some property to rent we came across the following sites:

• Google Base - Look for Housing
• Craigslist
• ajchomefinder.com
• Yahoo! Real Estate
• Homes for Sale by the U.S. Government
• Georgia Housing Search
• Georgia Department of Community Affairs - Rental Assistance
• VacancyList.net
• RentList.com

February 2006

Stop direct marketers from sending you things by registering with national programs to prevent such things.

I hear that Waffle House will now be accepting credit cards. I was somewhat shocked to hear this, seeing as they have only taken cash for 50 years. A quick perusal of their site yielded the official press release.

January 2006

PayPal actually has an 800 number. It is 888-221-1161.

I stumbled across this a month or so ago. It kind of reminds me of the dancing Spiderman that’s been going around. The breakdancing bear is very entertaining. Every team needs a mascot that is this enthusiastic.

Knowing a little graduation etiquette never hurts. I found this information at Party411 about graduation parties and invitations. From what I’ve read there seems to be a lot of sound advice.

Things have been really challenging for Joe and I this summer. We're both very thankful, however, that we've been able to find work, at least for the time being. I'm working as a receptionist and he's working as a shipping clerk for Randstad (a temp agency). The work environments for both of us are pretty good, and like I said, we're just thrilled to be working. Joe has continued his search for work in his field of study, applying for both laboratory and teaching positions. I think he'd really enjoy teaching, because he's so detail and people oriented. I haven't been on the job search, because I plan to stay home with the baby (as long as we can afford to). I will, however, try to do some tutoring.

We've still been attending St. Elizabeth Orthodox Church, despite having some difficulty there the past few months. Overall, we just like going to a church in our community. It's been very nice getting to know some of the parishioners there and of course it's a joy attending Orthodox services.

As far as social things go, we've enjoyed hanging out with Wendy a lot, as well as Lisa and Jordan. Wendy just went back to college, so we'll be in Wendo-withdrawl for a while. Also, Lisa and Jordan recently moved from Marietta to Roswell, and are now about 30-40 minutes away, rather than 15. That'll make it much harder for us to get together. Joe spent some time a month or so ago with Philip and Justin and learned how to play Texas hold'em. We enjoyed playing a few rounds with friends after he taught me. Aileen and Jay seem to be doing well, but we haven't hung out with them hardly at all this summer, mostly because we live so far away and haven't wanted to spend a bunch of money on gasoline. We've talked by phone a good bit though, and were very happy to learn of their engagement. They're setting the date for sometime in October of 2007. Meanwhile, Philip and Kelly were recently engaged too. I think they'll be getting married next summer.

My parents seem to be doing alright. Dad just started working for American General and mom's been working harder than ever for Lockheed. I'm not sure how either of them are doing because they don't really talk to me about these things, but it seems like they're both somewhat content. Their spouses seem to be doing ok too.

I haven't talked to my brothers or sister much lately, but from what dad tells me, they're doing well. Katelyn was tested and got into the gifted program at her school. That makes me very proud and encouraged for her. It sounds like the boys are still very much enjoying sports. It's been really hard waiting so long to see that side of my family. I miss them a lot. Hopefully we'll/I'll be able to go visit them more often once the baby is born.

Joe has still been keeping up with his cooking skills. He learned several weeks ago how to make some excellent fried and sauted chicken recipes. He also learned how to make a drink we had at Megan's wedding, a whiskey sour. That's the favorite drink of summer. I've even had a few virgin sours…Mmmmm good. Yesterday for lunch he made homemade taco salad fixings for Jordan, Lisa and I: guacamole, pico de gallo, seasoned beef, refried beans, sour cream, chopped olives, mixed greens, shredded cheese, and chips. I think taco salad is one of my favorite meals.

Yesterday Wendy, Joe and I celebrated the 4th of July holiday together. We started off by going to Harry’s/Whole Foods to buy some goodies. I bought an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie for Joe and I to split while we shopped (just as good as Cookies by Design). We ended up buying 4 Irish Bangers (fresh, mild sausages), whole wheat buns, and some organic corn. Wendy bought an excellent chicken sausage made with hot peppers. After Harry’s we went to Justin and Luanne Allen’s house to hang out and cook our food. Wendy and I stayed inside, talked with Danielle and Luanne, and played with Justin and Luanne’s 16 month old daughter Madeline. She is so cute! Joe cooked our sausages and corn out on the grill. Then we ate (this combo is a definite do-over). We left to go to Marietta Square around 7:45 pm so that we could walk around and then see the fireworks show. At 9:00 pm we bought some ice cream from SweeTreats (we all agree that it is better than Cold Stone). It took a while for us to sift through the crowd to find a good spot to see the fireworks, but once we found it we were very thankful for the location. It was right across the street from the place the fireworks were being set off, which meant the closest place possible. It was awesome to see the show up close and was not overly crowded. For reference for the future, go to the Krystal’s parking lot! The traffic afterward was murder, but was made easier by some really entertaining music on 91.9 WCLK and 92.9 Dave FM. Joe and I made Wendy Listen to the Gwen Steffani song “B-A-N-A-N-A-S.” Then we made a trip to take care of Tides the cat (Lisa and Jordan Boston’s pet). Tides really liked Wendy. All in all, a very good evening. I would say I can’t wait until next year, but from what I understand, it’s not a good idea to take infants to fireworks shows. It might be a while before I get to see another one.

Once we got to the vet they rushed her off to do some tests. They wanted to keep her overnight and monitor how she was doing. We decided to follow our plans for that night and go to a Braves game with our friends Jordan and Lisa. They had graciously offered us free tickets. On the way to the game, our vet called and said that the X-ray didn’t show any obstructions and that the blood was probably from an inflammation of her digestive track. They were going to monitor her overnight and call us the next day and let us know how she was doing.

The next day they called and said she seemed to be doing fine. Jessie picked her up on Tuesday night. They prescribed some medications to give her. We are supposed to give her one of the medications twice a day until her poop is solid again. The other is an antibiotic. So far she seems to be doing OK. No more blood. She’s lost a little weight, but she will probably gain it back in no time. We have been feeding her canned chicken and brown rice.

While Jessie was picking Hintza up from the vet, she mentioned that Hintza had been having incontinence problems off-and-on for the last year or so. The vet later recommended phenylpropanolamine or PPA. We have been giving her about 75mg day and it seems to be helping tremendously.

All-in-all, it’s good to have Hintza back.

P.S. The Braves game was very exciting. They played the Florida Marlins. The Braves were down 5-0, then they came back to beat the Marlins with a score of 8-11.