News Update

Good morning, world!  :-)

I guess it's about time I submitted another post... And today I have some good news to share, as well. *YAY*  :-)  A few things have happened since last time that I want to tell you about.

First off, as goofy as this may sound to some of you, A and I woke up this morning to see a beautiful sight outside. Guess what it was! C'mon, now, give it a shot!  ;-)  It was rain! *YAY*  :-)  Around these parts, we are happy to see rain whenever we can get it! Oklahoma has been ridiculously dry for the past few years, I want to say, and we are grateful for any rainfall that we get. So, yes, in our opinion, the dark, wet, and cloudy sight that we saw this morning was absolutely beautiful! It stormed all night which made for a great night's sleep. Except for this crazy dream that I had. I dreamed that we were stuck in a tornado and had found shelter in a neighbor's cellar which is kind of funny, though, because we live in an apartment. *HEHE* Weird. But anyway... I am glad that we got some rain around here. It was much needed.

Easter was just a couple of weeks ago and we decided to head on up to Wichita, KS, to spend the day with B's family. In spite of our trip being very short we had a great time. It was fun to get together and catch up with loved ones.  <3  We started our day off by having breakfast at Village Inn (Village, 2013) and then heading off to church. I had not been to church for probably three years at this point! It was nice.  :-)  Even little man liked it.  ;-)  After church we stopped by the grocery store and picked up a few things for that afternoon's barbecue at Grandma C's house. Later on that evening Poppy came by and we all talked for a while. All in all, it was a great day and I am glad that we made the trip even though I was exhausted when we made it home. Here are some pictures to show for it.

Easter Sunday in Kansas:

2013.03.31 @ Grandma C's Easter Egg Hunt

Description: The three photos above are taken at Grandma C's house in Kansas where A got to hunt for eggs in the backyard. The first photo is of Grandma C and A before the egg hunt, the second photo is of A and B while they hunted the eggs, and the last image is A with all of the eggs that he found. The reward was $5 in quarters, divided amongst the eggs hidden for him. He sure was happy to find more coins to add to his piggy bank when we got back home. Thank you, Grandma!

Remember a few weeks ago when I posted about sending off A's and my permanent residency applications (USCIS, 2011)?! Well, we have already gone in for our biometrics appointments and have even received an appointment date for our interviews! *WOO HOO* This is awesome news, y'all! We are so excited! This (more than likely) means that the applications were complete when I sent them off -- saving us about $3,400 in attorney expenses (versus having a lawyer fill out the paperwork for us) -- and that, my friends, is great news. The big day is Monday, May 6th. Let the countdown begin!

For the past year or so I have been a member of the YMCA here in Tulsa (YMCA, 2013) but have found it to be a little too expensive for my taste. Especially because I have not been going very often lately. Not that there is anyone to blame for that other than me. I decided that I would go ahead and switch over to Planet Fitness (PFIF, 2011), instead. I have a premium membership at Planet Fitness now that includes unlimited access to all exercise equipment, tanning beds, massage beds, and more for less than what I have been paying at the YMCA. And these guys are open 24 hours a day which may encourage me to get up early, before work, and check in for a few minutes. I can even take a guest with my each day I go if I like. So today, after dropping A off at school, I stopped by the gym and put in almost an hour's worth of work. That's not bad if you consider the fact that I haven't done very much exercise for a while now. Maybe I'll stay a bit longer tomorrow... I might even tan then, too. I could use some color.

Anybody that knows me knows that I love to take pictures and always carry a camera with me. (Not just the one on my cell phone, but an actual camera, too!) While in Wichita I took a picture of A standing on Grandma C's back porch because I had a vision. I could see this really cool image forming from a shot of little man's boots. After I had put the image together, my mother-in-law said that it looked just like a CD cover. I must agree. It sure could be a CD cover. That picture is on our Instagram (Instagram, 2013) page if you want to see it. It's super cute.  :-)  I also created another image that I later printed onto an 8x10 inch photo at my local grocery store. I then framed it and placed it in my son's room. This is an Icelandic prayer alongside a photo of A taken at the park.

An Icelandic Prayer:

It's already noon so I think I'm going to jump in the shower and get ready to prepare something for lunch. I hope that you have a wonderful day full of laughter and happiness but before I go, I will leave you with this...

The Thought for the Day:

Life is beautiful and don't you ever forget it! It may get tough sometimes but those rough times make the good times so much more enjoyable and help us to appreciate the things that we far too often take for granted. Take some time to tell your loved ones how much you care for them today and make sure to share your smile with others whenever given the opportunity. Smiling is contagious, you know, and it can help brighten someone else's day, even if you don't know them. Be happy and show it! Do your part to help make the world a better place.  ;-)

Enjoy the rest of your hump day.

-- Gigi

References:

Instagram. (2013). The Hadleys on Instagram. Retrieved from: 
          http://instagram.com/the_hadleys

PFIF, LLC. (2011). Welcome to Planet Fitness easy join! Retrieved from:
          https://www.planetfitness.com/EasyJoin.aspx?clubid=10661

USCIS. (2011). U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services: Green Card (permanent 

          residence). U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved from:

          http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a

          7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

          &vgnextchannel=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

Village Inn Restaurants. (2013). Welcome to Village Inn. Retrieved from:

          http://www.villageinnrestaurants.com

YMCA of Greater Tulsa. (2013). Home: strengthening the foundations of community. 

          Retrieved from: http://www.ymcatulsa.org