drowning in monotony

that title is not really true, but it feels that way. while i am on hold for MDES, thought i'd catch y'all up and explain my lackluster blogging in list form, because it makes me happy.

1. it's hot. and humid. it's mississippi.
2. i'm getting bogged down with life. work, working out, keeping up with life and the uncertainty that lays before us consume most of my time.
3. we started watching weeds. it's eating my life. i actually went on hiatus last week - it got that bad. plus, i'm a little upset with nancy at the moment, and felt i needed a break to regroup.
4. did i mention uncertainty? job uncertainty is not a good feeling. but it's allowing me to choose God over fear and stress every day, even though i must willingly turn my mind from the "what ifs" that abound hourly.
5. my summer schedule is jam-packed. i'll just give a quick rundown, in order of this weekend to august 13. hometown (shower for sister), hometown (party for sister), two free weekends, vegas (bach party for sister), nola (wedding), jackson (wedding), one free weekend and then sister's wedding here in smalltown. too bad we have to be out of our current home before august 1. yes, that is six events in the next nine weeks. in between that, we must move and find employment. did i mention my mother moved too? life is changing, and fast. i can barely keep up.

i hope i don't get pregnant anytime soon either. wouldn't that be awesome? then i'd be unemployed, homeless and knocked up at the end of the summer.

wednesday wussy, scam edition

i applied for a bookkeeper/accountant position monday. this is the response i received tuesday.

Dear Applicant,

We wish to inform you that the advertised position is not available anymore so we have decided to offer you the position that is currently available and below is the job details for your review.

"We have a mystery shopping assignment in your area and we would like you to participate"Secret Shopper® is accepting applications for qualified individuals to become mystery shoppers. I hereby inform you that there is a chance for you to work with us. We are a company that conduct surveys and evaluate other companies. You get hired to go to other peoples companies and act like customers in order to know how the staffs are handling their services in relation to their customers.

This is an excellent opportunity to work with us and still keep your present job. Once we have a contract to do, you would be directed to the company or outlet which you are to survey and evaluate. You will be given the funds you need to do the job (either purchase things or require services), after which you would write a comment on the staffs activities and give a detailed record of your experience.

Example of details you would forward to us are:
1) How long it took you to get services.
2) Smartness of the attendant
3)Customer service professionalism
4)Sometimes you might be required to upset the attendant, to see how they react to client or customers.

Anyone is qualified to take up this position from any location in the United states and Canada, because Its a very easy job that is not expecting too much of such experience. You don't need to travel and You don't have to pay any fee to get started. You will be paid $250.00 for each company you surveys and evaluate and will be paid the bonus of $3,000.00 monthly. If you are interested in this job offer, Kindly email the below email address at: gmail address immediately for more information so as to start immediately.

REQUESTED INFORMATION:
FIRST NAME:
LAST NAME:
MAILING ADDRESS (P.O. BOX NOT ACCEPTED)
CITY :
STATE :
ZIP CODE :
CELL PHONE # :
HOME PHONE # :
SEX :
D.O.B
MARITAL STATUS
CURRENT OCCUPATION :
E-MAIL :
WORKING AVAILABILITY:
Days/Hours Available
Monday ...open availability _______ to ______?
Tuesday ______ to .______?
Wednesday _______ to ______?
Thursday _______ to ______?
Friday _______to ______?
Saturday _______ to ______?
Sunday .....open availability_____ to _____?
Hours Available _______ To ______?
Best time to call ______ to ______

Awaiting your response soon ....
Sincerely,
BM
Mystery Shopping Consultancy.

really?

cliffhanger post conclusion, wednesday wussy edition

remember that thursday when i told you about that really neat thing that God did for us? i wish i had different words to type, because right now i am thoroughly confused. i thought a wednesday wussy post would be appropriate.

mystery revealed: that post was about jobs - my current one, and a prospective one. see? not baby lang.

i found out that tuesday my position here needed to change to part-time, especially since they already know we are planning to move. we were not expecting that, and really can't afford it. that's when i sent out the mass text to friends, asking for prayer and praising God for His, plan, because i knew He had one. i sent out a few emails that night, and by 3 pm the next day, i had an interview scheduled with a large firm back home, with a bonus offer to help my husband land a job. i just knew that was God, telling us we were in the palm of His hand.

i had a great interview this past weekend. i was promised a job. "we are going to make you an offer on monday" were the words i heard. naturally, i was very excited and just amazed how smoothly and seamlessly God had orchestrated all the details. i mean, think about it: my job here was going to drastically change, the next day i had an interview, the timing gave me plenty of time to take care of my old job, and after the interview i was promised a job offer with most likely way better money, a sense of security and quite possibly an employed law student. i was eagerly awaiting that email, and feeling very satisfied with myself* for stepping out in faith and that God had answered our prayers beyond our expectations.

*insert heaping helping of humility here.

i didn't get that email monday, but i got it yesterday. they did not extend the offer. they have decided to keep it internal and not create the position. i was absolutely shocked, and very upset. not only did this disrupt the plans we had been making and the plan we thought God had designed for us, but it also seriously altered today's blog post. i am supposed to be blogging about how i have a new job that God provided!

epic fail.

so, friends and readers, that is the big update, and it is not at all what i thought was going to happen. and i am finding out just how hard faith is sometimes. i was so sure God was working things out the first time, and really thought i knew what He was doing. i know just as i trusted God then, and knew He was not surprised, i know i have to trust His will and plan today, even thought i am hurt and confused. i know He is not surprised, and He will carry us.

the end.

yep, the end of this little blog challenge thingy. i got kind of bored with it. i'm ready to get back to undictated blog musings that are funny to me, but not necessarily anyone else.

#27 - pets

awww.
of course there is the roxy. but my most memorable pets are my cat cookie,
my dog nellie and my pony almond.

#28 - something that stresses you out

making decisions, like when i'm shopping.
tax season.

#29 - 3 wishes

job for the law student
peace for several friends and their families
that this adult acne thing would quit it.

#30 - a picture

on our way to the honeymoon!

so, there you go. 30 day blog challenge complete.

days 23 - 26

#23 - favorite vacation

boston, probably. on this same vein - realized yesterday's #21 used the same picture as #1.

#24 - something you've learned

i'm not always right, but i think i am.
also, how to correctly use the + and - signs on my adding machine and that i had the alligator and crocodile mixed up.

#25 - put your ipod on shuffle, first 10 songs
this takes too long. veto.

#26 - picture of your family

our little house.

day 13

hello, my name is kissey and i'm a blog slacker.

#13 - goals

i always hated having to list goals, because that meant coming up with goals, and while i have been accused of being a type-A person, my goals are vague and modest at best. it has just never interested me in the least to think of goals and then write them down.

short-term goals - to not get pregnant in 2010, be the wife of an employed husband, control my tongue and to get in awesome, 19-year-old-self shape. oh, and visit graceland. seriously.

long-term goals - to document my life consistently in pictures, walk closely with God, not screw up my kids, paint more, watch my words, and improve my home-decor skill set.

basically, be happy and healthy with a strong family and close walk with God and do His work, all while staying skinny, of course.

new blog!

i want to move to dallas to be friends with these people.

aren't they fun? i may start living vicariously through them.
like taking perfect artsy pictures of us being goofy and being more candid
and witty than i thought possible.

it could work.

note to self: become a picture-taking person.
2nd note to self: get a new camera. snap with abandon.
3rd note to self: convince the law student to go along with it.

perk: being able to see my sissy as well.

that's her.

those are her dogs.
her boyfriend loves them.
like his own children.

plus, dallas would be waaaaay cool.

speaking of, the law student (yes, i'm reverting back to the original name. for now.),
he did get some substantial job leads yesterday.

yay!

by substantial, i mean job leads that did not include such phrases as:

"we're not hiring, but please send us your resume."
"i don't know if he's looking for anyone right now, but email your resume."
"i may know someone. email me your resume."

yay!

sadly, they are not in dallas.
or ashville.
or nashville.
or anywhere really happenin'.

poot.

but more yay than poot.

epic PASS

as most of you already know,

he PASSED!!!!!!!!!!!

SQUEAL!

my retirement party will commence within the year. ha. kidding, student loan holder, kidding.

so, as is required, he has a new name here on ze blog: the esquire. and since so many of you whom i texted "he's an esquire!" responded with "yay! what's that mean?," i have looked it up for you. my favorite part of this definition comes from wikipedia: a term of British origin (ultimately from Latin scutarius in the sense of shield bearer via Old French "esquier"). An unofficial title of respect, having no precise significance, it is used to denote a high but indeterminate social status.

hahaha.

but really. basically, it was used way back when to denote a particular status (or non-status, as the case seems to be) in the english hierarchical system, and has since been adopted by the legal community here in the states.

back to the man of the hour. i couldn't be more proud. law school is no cake walk. i know--i edited many a paper, endured many a lonely night while the law student was at the library, and listened to countless recitations of cases and laws on the nights before exams. talk about your pillow talk. but all the way through, i never doubted he could do it. he moved to LA after only one semester of college to be an actor, and had a good degree of success and supported himself. after 5 years of acting, the man moved back home and finished his undergrad in two years. he studied for the LSAT by himself with enormous discipline and drive. he tutored undergrad students all through law school. he wrote papers, studied relentlessly, passed his exams and even graduated with honors. no small feat. he may have complained, he may have worried, he may have doubted, but he never quit. and now, with the bar exam successfully behind him, we're both ready for the next chapter. and even though the "right now" seems so uncertain, we know the Lord goes before us and makes a way, and His provision these past three years were not in vain.

**i would also like to add that the esquire is now following my blog. finally.

untitled monday post

first and foremost, i would like to publicly thank my new followers, katie and jessica. new followers always make me happy. seriously, if you're secretly stalking me, be brave and publicly follow me. i love to know who finds me mildly entertaining. come out, come out, whoever you are!

me and jess, some years ago--reuniting soon!

so, goings-on with the langs: msu football, miami dolphin football, mother-in-law's birthday (and getting to see sweet niece olivia-bonus!), new small group, the swearing off of hard liquor (or at least whiskey), baby showers, visiting old friends and of course, waiting out the bar exam results. we get them thursday! thank you for all of your prayers and thoughts. i'm more than certain the law graduate passed, but it's nice to know for sure. i'll keep you updated.

i think back about him studying for the LSAT. he was so disciplined! then, he graduated and we got married the next weekend. i quit my job, because who wants to work the week of their wedding, and then after their honeymoon? and then, we just had to get up here to small town, so we packed up our horse trailer (yes, horse trailer) and moved completely in 24 hours. that was when we discovered this town does not sell cold beer. rebels, and hot beer? oy vey.

it was exciting and a bit scary here at first, trying to find jobs and our little niche. if you were my friend then, you heard all about it. but life puttered along here and picked up speed. we found jobs, friends and a church, and all the little secret things i love about this town. and life just sort of happened. the last three years have been great and i think we've both learned a lot--wow, just thinking about it is kind of cool! and now, at the beginning of our 4th football season here (can you tell i'm a happily converted sports fan?), we are waiting. waiting for bar exam results. waiting for a job offer. hell, even an interview would be nice. waiting for...what? i hesitate to say waiting for our life to start, because it already has. three years of school, growing, new friends, life routines, work. all these things happened, and were good, and are valuable and memorable. so while we wait, and i feel like the big door of life is almost open and i too often get caught up in the whirlwind of our future, i struggle to remember that today counts, too. we are not in limbo, we are in motion, and we have two hands and two feet to do the work of the gospel. "waiting for a job offer and subsequent new life direction" is no excuse to be idle. i'm trying to think of this as a time to sow, and to be still, and to learn and prepare.

i've mentioned we are reading the bible all the way through, haven't i? i love it. we get up early, which i hate, and pray together, and then read the chapters for the day, and then pray again. and as much as it physically pains me to get up earlier than i would like, i really crave that time with the law graduate to pray together and be in the Word together. granted, we are a week behind because of football weekends and a certain sleepyhead, but i'm glad we are doing this together. it's hard to stay mad at someone when you have to hold hands and pray with them every day.

hope this monday finds you all well. i'll be back later!

carolina in my mind

once again, i'm back from vacation with a big case of wanderlust and general dissatisfaction with my current geographical standing. however, every time i bring up the subject, the job-searching law graduate ever-so-kindly reminds me that 1) it is more realistic to get a job in our home state, 2) bar exams are expensive and not exactly in our budget, and 3) no one is going to hire him and pay for him to take the bar in a new state. sigh. but not really the point of my post. the real point of my post is to update you on our lastest cross-continential trip.

after a late night and an even later start, we arrived in carolina for a weekend visit with tim, sara and olivia. after about 9 hours in the car, we arrived to a home-cooked dinner and fabulous dessert (i'll post the recipe once i get it) and just hung out. saturday morning was a bit rainy, but nonetheless we drove up a big blue mountain (with limited visibility due to fog and rain) to pick blueberries. we were soaked in a matter of minutes, but the berries were delicious. we did have to abandon our trip out to sliding rock though. we went back home for fabulous italian takeout and a walk downtown. sunday began with church and lunch out. miss olivia did fantastically--hardly got upset at all! we drove to jump off rock to get a view of 5 different states over the mountains. you don't actually jump off though. there's a railing preventing people from being too literal. we went to park to walk around and let olivia watch the skater kids, then came home and cooked out. can i just tell you my fabulous sister-in-law cooked us not only dinner and desserts, but breakfast? i never cook breakfast, unless it's 9 am on a saturday and i have nothing to do. we had such a great time visiting with tim and sara and playing with olivia, we just hated to leave. she's so fun now! she's starting to crawl and has 4 teeth. she's starting to eat table food and will constantly talk to you. she especially likes to walk with you. she's so sweet i could eat her with a spoon! i'll leave you with pictures of the cutest family member:

olivia

2 brothers and a baby

winding down and gearing up

well, summer is almost over. not that i get summer break or anything, and not as if mississippi weather recognizes the passing of months as incentive to adjust temperatures and humidity levels accordingly. it is so hot, and so humid you could drown outside if you break a sweat. hello, august.

the law graduate's social life has come to pretty much a screeching halt. at least while he was studying for the bar he got out of the house a little bit. okay, he only went to the library, but there were other people there. but now his routine is pretty low-key: running the trails with the roxy, job searching, reading sports chat forums, finding new low-budget historical drama series in the on demand, and completing lists of emailed househusband tasks from yours truly. that's. about. it. the couch is involved a good bit in this routine.

we are about to take our last vacation together before the new school year starts. oh wait, no one is in school this year. weird. anyway, we are headed to the hills of carolina to visit the brother-in-law and his family. our niece olivia is, in just the past few weeks, already crawling, teething and pulling up. she'll be in high school by the time we get there this weekend.

olivia

i've enjoyed the general laziness that comes with summer. it's actually too hot to do much anyway. but as it winds down, other things gear up. namely, SEC football (and in-town traffic.)

i'm so very excited. i'm throwing a shower for my friend kayla and her unnamed unborn son, and my very bestest friends, jules and mandi, are both coming to the first game the same weekend.

mandi and jules - party animals

i'm already on the hunt for the perfect game day attire, but there is a serious lack of cute maroon out there. i can't wait to see old friends, endlessly tailgate, cheer on the bulldogs and ring my cowbell illegally. and if you have anything to say opposing that, kindly skedaddle. go dawgs!!!


i've also managed to agree to teaching more pilates and/or cardio classes at the studio. why?? i taught my first cardio class last week. one girl left early, and another almost passed out at the end. fail.

speaking of gearing up, i sure hope the job market does soon. the law graduate would prefer to stay in mississippi (i'm a bit less than ambivalent), but is applying all across the lower portion of the country. right now we are waiting bar exam results (september 16), and will reevaluate after that. stay tuned for more updates.

and last but not least, today is my daddy's birthday! the big 5-5. happy birthday daddy, even though you don't read this blog. i'd love to be able to go to bristol with him this weekend to celebrate, but the niece is just too cute.

she's baaaaaaaaack

and a bit depressed.

i privatized ole blogger here because i was applying for a new job with a GREAT company and thought it would be prudent to keep these random thoughts hidden.

i found out this morning i did not make it to the second round of interviews. suck. so back to blogging it is. small consolation. le sigh. well, i did get what i asked for. i asked for clarification and for the job to open up if it was right, and He didn't, so there. it's still not any fun though. i really wanted that job.

moving on to my next disaster....it's not really a disaster. it is a decision with great risks. and the law student and i are ready for it.

natural family planning.

um, eeeeeeeek.

not to be confused with the less-than-reliable rhythm method.

we (well, i, and the law student went along with it more than willingly, which is a bit (but not really) surprising. ooooh, parentheses within parentheses! squeeee!) have embarked into uncharted (ha! pun.) territory. i feel a bit like i've dived into the deep end of a cold, cold pool. so, i'll finish this post with how we got started down this path.

it really all started with food. as you all know, dear readers, i like organic food. i am down with dirt. grass-fed cattle, chickens and pigs, free-range eggs, milk straight from the dairy, no pesticides on our veggies....aaahhh. i miss summer. so, before i digress into my trip to the dairy, let me get back. the principle is really the same--being careful and intentional about what you put in your body. i have been on the birth control pill for several years now. i have never really had a problem with them--they usually work like a charm and didn't whack me out or anything--but was getting concerned about being medicated with hormones for such an extended period of time. i had read a little about natural family planning and decided i wanted to try it. i really like the "natural" aspect of it.

a little crash-course in nfp--it's just biology. and that kills me. women are not taught how to interpret their bodies, which i think has profound implications as far as personal health. seriously though, it's biology, and it's amazing. a woman's body gives off natural cues relating to her fertility, controlled by the rise and fall of hormones estrogen and progestin. natural family planning (a blanket term for several different methods and just the general idea of it) teaches you the signs to look for and how to interpret those signs to be able to, with more than reasonable accuracy, determine the status of your fertility and use that information to avoid pregnancy (my goal) or obtain pregnancy (not my goal). it's a lot more involved and is backed by a life perspective as well, but this is what i am focusing on here.

and, well, biology is confusing. currently, i am most interested in billings/creighton model, which charts cervical mucus. you can also chart your temperature (in three different places) and the position and feel of your cervix. (um, what?) you could chart one, two or even all three. but that involves more work. cervical mucus is charted by its presence and consistency and color. you have to take your temperature first thing in the morning before you get out of bed or even roll over, or it's off. and if you are sick or take medicine or something like that, it affects your temperature. and the cervix charting has a higher "ick" factor than i am willing to deal with. also, per my conversation with my very knowledgeable friend (and courtney's sister) katie, charting lots of symptoms seems good but can cause confusion if one sign says "fertile" while another says "infertile." so mucus it is. i have a little chart and everything. hopefully i can get the coordinating stickers soon.

also, here's the kicker. if i were catholic, i would have been charting since i got engaged. i'd be a charting pro right now. but i'm not catholic and have been on the pill, so i really have no idea what my body's "normal" is. so abstinence for the first cycle charting is recommended just to get a grip on things. the law student seemed to take this recommendation to heart, as in it does not seem to bother him in the least. i'm a little pissed. and we're on day 6.

so, that's our new adventure. pray we don't get pregnant. i'll keep you posted.

psalm 139:14 - i praise you because i am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, i know that full well.