Yes, I wish I had a Mr. Fix-It at my house. Unfortunately, I do not. Things are looking up (a little) though. My father has agreed to look at something while he is here. I didn’t seem very hopeful, but every little bit helps.

And the lawn is mowed. I had borrowed a lawnmower from my boss and her husband, and I managed to break this one. So her husband and her stepfather came and looked at it. A little clip had fallen out of place. Like I was supposed to notice THAT?!? Anyway, her stepfather put it back in and finished mowing for me. He also looked at my mower. He literally opened up a compartment, wiped off a little dirt, and it started right up! That’s it!

And for some mysterious reason, the breaker that was switching, not allowing me to wash clothes, has decided to behave itself. I have no clue why. Perhaps I should have asked Mr. Fix-It. He probably would know.

So not everything is working around here, but it’s a start.

It’s graduation week, a week of ceremonies, finalizing, and “last times”. My son A is going through it.

I, too, have been growing, changing. In the last couple of years I have embarked on a life-changing journey. I have “graduated” to the role of slave. I have left behind the old life to start a new one. It requires that I learn and grow and change my perspective. It is work, yet it is most rewarding.

My son A finishes the requirements of high school, being sure that he has all the requirements for graduation. He prepares for his future, having found a college. He is securing the needed financial aid and is planning what he wants to do with his college years and beyond. He is quite anxious to move on. He is ready to go! At least in his mind.

And I have graduated from woman to slave. On a daily basis I have to check-am I meeting the requirements of my current status? Am I a good slave? Am I doing what I should? Am I being the best slave I can be? And I also look to my future with Master. I want so much to be with him. Am I doing what I must do to make that happen? Am I preparing myself for the next few years and beyond? Yes, I am getting things in order. Like my son, I am anxious. I want all of the changes NOW! But life does not work that way, not for him, not for me.
As my son A continues his journey in life, so I continue mine. Each of us has a destination. As his life unfolds, he is continuing on to college and the future that is in store for him. And me? I am continuing my journey serving my Master. After all, it is really not about the destination at all. It’s all about the journey.

I am still trying to deal with the whole healthy eating, exercise, dieting thing. My weight has been going up lately. I’m not sure why, but I need to stop it now. What should I do? I don’t think I should cut back on the food any more. So that leaves exercise.

At my work with disabled people we have a man who, like me, tends to eat too much when given the opportunity. To try to counteract that, we have him do 30 minutes of activity every day. That might be going for a walk, riding the exercise bike, whatever we come up with. I have decided that if he can do 30 minutes a day, so can I. When I am at work, I try to take him with me. We can exercise together. For the last several days, I have done pretty well. Since last Wednesday, I’ve made my 30 minutes a day goal.

On Friday, I went over the goal. At school we had a walk for Cystic Fibrosis. We walked for a little over an hour. The route was around 2 miles long, and we set a pretty good pace. Some of the kids complained, but I think we all made it just fine.

The exercise seems to be working. I am now losing the weight that I started to gain. I’m even starting to enjoy the extra activity. So far, so good.

My first request for a Mother’s Day gift was shot down. I asked my children for a clean house. Waking up this morning, I can see that didn’t happen. Oh, well. My second suggestion was that they burn a CD with my favorite songs. My youngest son liked that better. I am working on making a list of songs for him to find so he can put it on a CD for me. I may also ask the boys to help me plant a lilac bush.

I also looked at lilac bushes yesterday. They aren’t terribly expensive. My mother loved lilacs. When I was a child, we used to have a row of lilac bushes along our property line next to us. But then the property changed hands and the lilac bushes were torn out and replaced with a fence. To this day, I cannot see a lilac bush without thinking of my mother. I think planting a lilac bush or two would be a wonderful present for me and a beautiful remembrance of her.

I hope you all have a happy Mother’s Day.

I went shopping yesterday. I took my youngest, M, 13 year old male with me. I made him (gasp!) try on clothes! You see, M has his favorite clothes to wear. I understand that. But he has ONE pair of blue jean shorts that he wears. I bought him several more and told him he MUST rotate them. Clothes are hard to wash when they are on his body.

I also went to Wal*Mart and made announcements for A’s graduation. He probably won’t like them. Too bad. He did say that as long as I didn’t actually invite anyone to come or give him a party, he didn’t care. So I’m doing my own thing. I have made cards using his picture, and I am putting on them a little info about graduation and future plans. I have also included a sentence saying he is not having a party. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the photographer’s written okay to do that, so know I have to have her send them something so I can get my cards. I’ll be going back to Wal*Mart tonight. At least I have talked to her and she will be faxing a release. I will be able to get my cards.