then and now

I emailed Jana this picture asking her permission to put it on my blog.

"You won't like your outfit," I warned her as we both stared at our computer screens.

"I don't like it!" she replied.  "You look skinny, that's why you want to use this one."

"Actually, this is the only picture I have of exactly ten years ago," I protested, "your outfit may be ugly and unflaterring, but your face looks much prettier than mine.  My eyes are squinty."

"I look exactly the same," she said.

"Please look at how small my eyebrows are," I concluded.

Ten years ago.  I was quite a bit smaller.  My eyebrows were minuscule.  I had just said goodbye to a certain missionary a few weeks prior and was living in a bit of a fog as a result.  I was going to UVSC.  My parents were about to sell my childhood home on Littlerock.  Lots of changes.


And now here I am at the beginning of another new year.  My eyebrows have grown out a bit and my babies have given me some extra weight to carry around.  My cute missionary is about to leave me again in a couple weeks and I'm sure I'll feel a little bit of that fog return.  My schooling these days consist of preschool field trips, library books and art projects around the kitchen table.  I said goodbye to my home state and even after a year and a half (almost) I still feel pangs of homesickness, coupled with feelings of gratitude for this beautiful place I get to live.

I always like to make a list of New Years resolutions.  I figure even if they don't get accomplished and are forgotten, it never hurts to try.  Something good may come of that list.

This year, no list.

This year the only thing I'm going to work on is to

survive.

But.

It's me.  And of course I have other things on my mind.

So while surviving is my major.

I'm also minoring in positive thinking, exercise and avoiding hydrogenated oils.

Here's to surviving 2011.

I'm sure it will be a great year. {positive thinking}