Sunday, May 1, 2016

The Hague


April Journaling

1. I went for a doctor’s appointment to fill out insurance forms. Then I napped from the exertion.

2. I did a load of laundry and vacuumed upstairs. Then I napped because I overdid it. Yep, that’s my life.

3. Great day at church today. Our Pastor is such a good preacher. But it snowed today! In April!

4. Quiet day at home, filling out paperwork.

5.  Bible study this morning, then a nap to recover.

6.  Going to see my grandson. I try to get there at least every two weeks. He’s growing so fast, saying a few words. Also lots of baby babble.

7.  Back from Oakville. Quiet day at home, catching up with my Bible studies in Leviticus.

8.  Quiet day, not much energy. Did two loads of laundry. It’s Friday so we usually order in or eat out. We went out for fish.

9.  Since I’ve lost 8 inches off my belly, I bought a few new outfits as a reward. It also helps that our income tax refund came in. But trying clothes on and walking around at the mall wore me out.

10.  Church today. The preaching is so good, and I find Sundays anchor my week and remind me of the essentials. I couldn’t sleep during my nap today for some reason.

11.  All alone today since my husband went to visit his sister and have supper there. I ran a few errands and reviewed my message for Saturday. I’m recycling an old message, which helps with my slow brain.

12. I have to head downtown for a medical appointment. This is my third and final appointment at the Environmental Health Clinic. One of the few places that really “gets” me. They were the ones who gave me my diagnoses of Fibromyalgia/ME/CFS/MCS/EMH.

13. My grandson is starting to speak. Grandma in Finnish is Mummi, and on the phone he said, Bye MaeMae! Stole my heart.

14. We went to pick up our youngest daughter, who is back from finishing her second year of Law school. I supervised and offered moral support but still felt exhausted. She’s home for two weeks and then leaves for her internship at The Hague for five months.

15.Going to visit my grandson for the afternoon with my other daughter. Also, my husband is coming there after work.

16. Speaking at the Women’s ministry meeting, using a recycled message. Then dinner at a friend’s place tonight.

17. My message was well received. I was nervous, but then relaxed after I started. My daughter had 8 friends over for a going away party.

18. Pyjama day. Took a walk with my husband this evening. It’s 23 degrees Celsius. So nice.

19. Made the mistake of booking two appointments on one day. One is more than enough. Now sitting here with legs throbbing. But at least my teeth are cleaned and my hair is highlighted. When I was there, the chemicals made me drift off. I had to stand outside for a while to get air. At least my stylist knows to watch out for me.

20. One of my least favourite things, going to the bank.

21.  So the Queen turned 90 on the same day that Prince died. His music played a big part in my teen years.

22. Going to see my grandson for a few hours so my daughter can say goodbye to them before her trip to Europe. They’ll be meeting in Finland in June. I made the mistake of having a little bit of mashed potato for lunch. I miss it so much, but then I was on the couch with throbbing pain in my legs. When will I learn?

23. My husband ripped out all the dead plants in front of our house. Now I have to choose some perennials to fill the space. My daughter is doing her packing for Holland.

24. Nap flanked by church. The Spanish church hosted a luncheon.

25. We need to do some upgrades on our house in case we may need to sell, so we will probably have some painting done and reface our kitchen cupboards, change the countertops and add a backsplash.

26. Bible study. Then helping my daughter prepare for her trip on her final full day.

27. Our baby is off to The Hague for the summer. She has mixed feelings about it, too because she only knows one person there (another law student) and she’ll be there so long. But it’s a great experience for her, working for the ICTY, with the main judge. Sad for us, though.

28. Getting the winter tires off my car this morning. Our daughter and grandson are coming to spend the weekend with us since her husband is away on a business trip. Also, today is the National Day of Mourning for workers killed or injured on the job. My father was killed in a workplace accident when I was three and my sister was five. Our lives were forever changed because of it.

29. We went to the TBS graduation. It was hard on me, pain-wise, but so encouraging, especially to hear the tributes to two godly women.

30. Today is my birthday. I’m 52, happy to see it, as I know not everyone has the privilege of growing older. My daughter baked me clean brownies, made with cane sugar and I don’t react to it, thankfully, like I do to regular sugar. My daughters paid for my name change, which is still due to come in. My husband gave me a day at the upcoming Christian Writer’s conference. I can only manage one day, if that, but I appreciate it. I wasn’t able to go last year. It’s always nice to be around people who get how unique writers are. The best part was having our daughter and grandson here for three nights. I feel I pushed myself too far and I feel a downturn coming in my health, but it was worth it to wake up to his sweet face every day. He can say Pappa (grandpa) and Mimi which is his way of saying Mummi (grandma). Our daughter is settled in at her residence in Holland, across the street from her workplace.