Bloom Where You're Planted

Sometimes there are things about our lives that we don't like, but that we just can't change.

For me, that is living so ridiculously far away from our extended family.

Sometimes I get so focused on how much better life would be, how much easier things would be, how wonderful it would be if we just lived near the fam, that I make my current situation into something I'm just bearing.

Get that?

Sometimes I treat my wonderful, amazing, current life, with my kind and devoted husband and my sweet darling girl, as if it's something I have to put up with.

Sigh.

So, I've been telling myself a new phrase for the last few days. It's really rocket science, if I do say so to myself.

"Bloom where you're planted."

I don't think it's cured my homesickness for our family. But it's helping a little.

And where we're planted is a really cool town, actually. Today we visited the public library, took a drawing class, had some amazing mango frozen yogurt at Local Yogurt, checked out the fall schedule of classes at the Little Gym, and found a really neat unfinished furniture store that I fell instantly in love with.

Blooming in progress.




What's something hard about your life that you're learning to accept right now?

By the way, this photo is of Flannery in the garden behind our old house in Athens. See why I miss it so much?

There's Regular Sick, and There's Homesick

This week, I have really felt the tug of homesickness.

As my daughter says sometimes, "I miss the green house." (that's it, our old house back in Athens, in the pics)

Maybe it's just because I've been "regular" sick, and I don't really have a good support system here yet for times when I'm sick and my hubby has a ton of deadlines at work.

Or maybe it's because I'm missing a baby shower this weekend, of a friend back home in GA whose wedding I had to miss because I had just moved. And another friend is about to go into labor at any moment. And I'd love to have been preparing the perfect vegan dish to take to her after the baby comes. But, oh, that's right, she lives states away. And another friend has gone through some trying times this week, and I would've loved to have dragged her out for a fancy coffee and a long chat. But, instead our phone conversation got inadvertently cut off when my cell phone suddenly had no signal, in my own home. And I'm tired, and have been sick, and it would've been a perfect weekend to let Flanna hang out with her grandparents for a few hours while I caught up on the laundry or maybe took a nap. But, yeah, you guessed it, said grandparents are states away. And then I kept meaning to call my sister every day, but then it was suddenly 11 pm every night, and now I haven't talked to her in eons. Seriously, eons.

Hummph.

Homesickness is sometimes worse than regular old sickness.

But, on a positive note, my hubby won an award today for having the best "poster" at a networks conference at Duke. Which is really neat. That boy's a smarty. And it's worth occasional bouts of homesickness to get to see him flourish professionally.

Worth it, but I do still get to say, "Hmmph."




Have you always lived in the same general area, or have you made big moves in your life? How have you juggled maintaining old friendships and making new ones as you've moved through your life?