Monday is Here!

 

Making the Most of a Monday ❤️

Good morning, friends!

Well, here we are again. Monday. Somehow Monday always seems to get a bad reputation before it even gets started. I think sometimes we let the thought of Monday overwhelm us before we even give the day a chance.

So yesterday morning, I decided I wasn’t going to do that.

I told myself that I was going to make Monday the best day I could, even knowing it was probably going to be a busy one at the call center. And with the holidays getting closer, I knew our members were probably going to be especially concerned about their money.

Our bank draft members have their billing taken on Fridays or Mondays, and this time of year, I completely understand why people want to hang on to every dollar they can. Christmas is coming, expenses are piling up, and sometimes people are dealing with circumstances that have nothing to do with the holidays at all.

Some have lost a spouse. Some have lost a job. Some are simply struggling financially or dealing with a personal hardship.

I understand that.

And that’s where I have really been trying to remind myself of what my job is. My job is to save my members, but I don’t want to be that pushy person on the other end of the phone. That’s just not who I am.

Instead, I want to help them understand the value of their membership and the benefits they have. Sometimes that means moving their billing date out. Sometimes it means sending them information about their benefits so they can look everything over. Sometimes it means taking a little extra time to explain exactly what their membership covers.

And sometimes it simply means listening.

Yesterday, I laughed with some members. I experienced some of their sadness with them. I listened to their concerns and tried to help however I could.

I really felt like I gave it my very best.

And when I left work at 3:30, I had 15 total saves! 🎉

Most of them felt like really good saves to me, too. Not just numbers on a scoreboard, but people who I felt like I had genuinely helped.

That made me feel pretty good about what I do.

Not every phone call is an easy one. In fact, some of them are downright difficult, especially when someone is dealing with a personal hardship. But I think yesterday reminded me that I don’t have to be pushy to be good at my job. I just need to listen, explain, help, and not give up too quickly.

And apparently, Monday and I got along just fine. 😊

Dinner and Making Memories

After work, Mr. C. and I headed out for dinner with Brody, Savannah, Lane, Landon, Sophie, Alisha, Elizabeth and Charles at Tequila Plata Mexican Restaurant.

It was one of those completely random little plans that just happens, but honestly, I love things like that.

We were simply getting together for dinner, visiting, laughing, and spending some time together. But I think those are the moments that become memories.

Especially for Mr.C. and his grandchildren.

I feel very blessed that we are able to do things like this together. I know there are so many families struggling financially right now, and I don’t ever want to take for granted the fact that we can occasionally go out, enjoy a meal, and make memories together.

And let’s talk about the food because… YUM! 🌮

I would definitely go back.

There were a few little hiccups with the service. Mr.C’s  meal was supposed to come with beans and rice according to the menu, but they didn’t come with his meal. I also ordered a small queso that never made it to the table. And I wouldn’t say the service was the friendliest I’ve ever experienced.

But you know what?

I can work around that.

The food was delicious, the prices were good, and they had a ton of choices. And I even got myself a margarita. 🍹

If you know me, you know I am a margarita girl, so that definitely made me happy!

We visited, laughed, ate, and enjoyed being together. The boys behaved themselves, Sophie was her adorable little self, and eventually it was time to head home, get ready for bed, and call it a night.

And honestly, when I think back over the whole day, I have to say it was a good day.

A productive day.n

A day where I worked hard, helped people, spent time with family, enjoyed a good meal, drank a margarita, and made a few memories along the way.

What more could I ask for from a Monday?

So maybe that’s my little reminder for today: Don’t let Monday decide what kind of day you’re going to have.

Sometimes we just have to decide for ourselves.

I hope your Monday was as blessed as mine was. ❤️

And if you drop a comment below, I’d love to know…

What did you have for dinner on your busy Monday?

Thank you so much for stopping by and reading my little corner of the internet. It truly means a lot to me that you take the time to peek in and see what I’ve been up to.

Until next time…

Cheers,
Karen ❤️🌮

Happy Mail

Friday, Christmas Trees & Making My Mailbox Happy 🎄💌

Hello everybody, and happy Friday!

I am so grateful it is Friday! There is just something about knowing that two whole days of weekend are sitting right in front of me. I am definitely looking forward to it.

When I get home from work tonight, I am going to pick up dinner for us. I haven’t decided where yet, but I will figure that out before I leave work. That way, Mr. C doesn’t have to worry about cooking anything tonight. Sometimes dinner tastes even better when nobody had to cook it! 😂

We also need to bite the bullet and make our grocery list. We have been putting that off for several days now, and it is definitely time. I am planning to do my grocery shopping on Sunday, and while I am out, I want to stop at TJ Maxx and Burlington to look for a few Christmas gifts. So Sunday may turn into a little grocery-shopping-and-Christmas-shopping adventure.

🎄 It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Saturday is going to be a fairly busy day around here because we are putting up the Christmas tree!

Mr. C actually pulled the tree out yesterday while I was at work and got it standing up. We have a pre-lit tree, but unfortunately, the lights decided they had retired from Christmas duty. 😂 So he cut the old lights off, and now we need to find our Christmas lights.

The trick is that I want the ones with green cords so they blend into the tree. I am pretty sure I bought a couple of strands from Hobby Lobby last year, so now we just need to find them!

Once we locate the lights, we will pull out all of our Christmas decorations and get to decorating. I really want to get the tree finished tomorrow. It shouldn’t take too long, but I am ready to see that Christmas tree all lit up in the living room. 🎄✨

And because apparently one project at a time isn’t enough for us, we are also going to work on the sunroom.

I really want to get that room completely back in order. That probably means I will have another load of donations to take to Goodwill, which is actually a good thing. It means we are continuing that decluttering journey we started earlier this year.

We may not be moving at lightning speed, but we are still moving forward. And honestly, I will take progress over perfection any day!

📞 Friday’s Work Goal

As far as work goes today, my goal is to save at least 12 members.

I saved 10 yesterday, which was my daily goal, but I really need to do more today. I know I am behind quite a bit, so every save over that 10 gets me just a little bit closer to my monthly goal.

So…12 is the number I am going to keep in my head today. One call at a time. One save at a time. Let’s see what Friday brings!

📸 Getting My Blog Groove Back

I have to admit that somewhere along the way, I feel like I lost a little bit of my blogging momentum.

One of the things that has made it harder is that I used to be able to write my blog posts on my tablet and then immediately add my pictures. Somehow, my tablet isn’t letting me do that anymore.

I don’t know if it was me, an update, or some setting that changed, but now I have to put the blog post up first and then go back later using my newer, much bigger laptop to add the pictures.

So basically, I have turned one step into two. 😂

And sometimes I just don’t have the time or, let’s be honest, the energy to go back and do that second step.

But I really do want to get back to adding pictures because my blog has become more than just a blog to me. It is becoming an online journal.

I want to be able to look back years from now and remember what I was doing, where we went, what we were working on, what the grandchildren were up to, what I was reading, what we were celebrating, and all those ordinary little moments that are so easy to forget.

The pictures are a huge part of that.

So I am going to keep working on getting back into my blogging rhythm. Maybe it won’t be perfect, and maybe I won’t post every single day, but I want to keep documenting our little corner of the world.

💌 Bringing Back the Happy Mail

I brought five Christmas cards with me to work today, along with my labels and my Please Deliver To labels.

My goal is to get all five cards filled out and sent off over the weekend.

I am still thinking that I would like to send around 30 Christmas cards this year. I have already sent a couple in the mail this morning, along with a few others over the past week, but I have decided I am going to start keeping track of the cards I send.

And then I had a thought…

What if I tried to send a Christmas card to all 50 states? 🇺🇸🎄

And maybe even receive one from all 50 states?

Now, I don’t know if I am ready to commit to that this year. December can get busy, and between work, family, grandchildren, Christmas, and everyday life, I don’t want to turn something fun into something stressful.

But I have to admit…

It would be pretty cool.

Maybe that can be a goal for next year.

I know several of my pen pals actually have pen pals in all 50 states, and I have to say, I don’t know how they do it! There is absolutely no way I could keep up with 50 pen pals. 😂 That is WAY too many letters for me.

But I am really happy that I am getting back into sending and receiving happy mail.

It just makes the mailbox a little more exciting.

Because really…who wants to open the mailbox every day and find nothing but bills?

Why not make a trip to the mailbox something fun? 💌

A handwritten card, a little note, a postcard, a sticker, or a letter from a friend can turn an ordinary day into something special.

And I think we could all use a little more of that.

❤️ Here’s to a Good Weekend

So that is what is going on around here as we head into this Friday.

Work today.

Dinner tonight.

Grocery list somewhere in there.

Christmas decorating tomorrow.

Sunroom decluttering.

Goodwill donations.

Christmas shopping on Sunday.

And hopefully a few Christmas cards making their way to new mailboxes.

It sounds like a busy weekend, but it also sounds like a good one.

And sometimes those are the best kind.

I hope you have a wonderful Friday and an even better weekend. I would love to hear what you have planned! Are you decorating for Christmas yet? Are you doing any Christmas shopping? Maybe you have a quiet weekend planned, which honestly sounds pretty wonderful too.

Whatever you are doing, I hope you find a little time to enjoy it.

Have a blessed day, friends!

Cheers,
Karen ❤️

Getting closer to Surgery

A Little Rain, A New Printer & One Day Closer

Hello everyone! It is Wednesday, October 14th, and I am on my way to work on this beautiful, rainy morning.

Well… I say rainy morning, but it actually only rained for about three minutes. 😂 It had just started raining when I left, and I knew we were supposed to get some, but I honestly thought it had gone around us. Other areas of Oklahoma got quite a bit of rain last night. Elk City got around six inches! Meanwhile, we barely got a drop here.

And let me tell you, we need it. We have been so dry for months, so I’ll gladly take whatever rain Mother Nature wants to send our way.

My New Printer Has Been Getting a Workout

As you may remember, I recently ordered myself an HP Smart Tank 6000 series printer, and I have to say… I LOVE IT!

I cannot even tell you how much I have been printing lately.

I’ve been printing stickers that I am fussy cutting, along with all kinds of fun stationery and journal goodies from the Stationery Corner Facebook group I’m in. There are so many talented ladies in that group who generously share their creations, and I am having a blast using them in my journals.

I’ve mainly been using everything I print for my journaling, and I recently started a new journal swap that begins in November. I’ve already started filling in some of the pages and gluing a few things together, so I’ll have plenty of places to use all these fun little stickers and embellishments.

I just ordered a pack of letter-size sticker paper, and I’ve probably already used half of it.

Twenty sheets.

Gone.

😂

No complaints here!

And let me just say… when people tell you that you get what you pay for, sometimes they are absolutely right. I went back and forth about buying a more expensive printer versus buying one of those $40 printers that I like to call a “throwaway printer.”

I decided to spend a little more, and I’m so glad I did.

The print quality is fantastic, and being able to print my own stickers, journal pages, and other crafty things whenever I want has been wonderful.

I’ve been reading reviews about the HP 32-pound paper, too, and apparently the heavier paper can help with ink bleeding through. So I’ll probably be ordering some of that soon.

And then I discovered they even make sticker paper in different colors!

Well, apparently my printer has officially opened the door to a whole new level of crafting. 😂

I’m also hoping that, once I’m feeling better, I can print a couple of pictures I have of Kendall and see how they turn out. I’m curious to see just how good the photo quality is.

One Day Closer to Surgery

And then there is the other thing occupying a pretty big chunk of my brain right now… my surgery.

Unum called me yesterday, and I may have mentioned that in yesterday’s post. The person who will be helping take care of me throughout this journey is April.

She was very nice, and we had a good little conversation. She told me that if I have any questions, I can call her, and of course I can also send questions through my patient portal.

She also mentioned that if I end up needing a hysterectomy, she would be the person working with me through that process as well.

But we’re not going there yet.

For now, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the D&C gives us the answers we need, that the test results come back negative for cancer, and that Karen will be good to go.

That’s the plan.

That’s what I’m hoping for.

And I’m choosing to focus on that.

I will admit, I was not expecting my out-of-pocket expense to be around $3,500. That’s a pretty big number to suddenly add to the budget.

But sometimes you just have to do what you have to do.

At first, I thought maybe I would spread the payments out over a year and a half or even two years. But honestly? I don’t want to do that.

I’d rather tighten up the budget and work really hard to get it paid off in about eight months if I can.

I’d much rather be extra budget-conscious for eight months and get that bill marked PAID than have it hanging over my head for years.

So I may do a little number crunching today and see exactly where I’m at and what I can realistically put toward it.

I originally told the hospital I was probably going to put $300 down, but I’m thinking I may try to put a little more down if I can. Every little bit will help.

A Much Better Wednesday

The good news is that I’m in a much better place mentally today.

Yesterday was just one of those days. I was grumpy, stressed, and probably making myself even more stressed because I was stressed. Does that even make sense?

Sometimes we do that to ourselves.

Today, though, I’m looking at things a little differently.

I just have to get through today.

That’s it.

Get through Wednesday, go home, and then I have several days off to recover.

So far, I think the hardest part of this entire surgery journey has actually been the paperwork, phone calls, figuring everything out, and trying to get all the little details taken care of.

The actual surgery hasn’t even happened yet, and I’ve already completed enough paperwork to qualify for a small degree. 😂

I also called my BFF, Cherrie, yesterday to ask if she had been able to take off work on the 15th for my surgery.

When she started talking, I could tell she hadn’t quite processed that the 15th was basically here.

I had called her Tuesday.

I’m like, “Girl… we have Wednesday and then surgery!”

And she’s like, “Oh my goodness!”

That girl works way too much. She’s working six days a week and doing everything she can to keep her head above water.

My friend Nancy even stated she would take me if needed. But she has her hands completely full with her autistic son Liam.

Thankfully, Mr. C and I had already talked about everything. He told me that as long as my surgery was in Duncan, Oklahoma, he didn’t mind taking me.

So I’ve got that covered.

And now I’m just ready to get through today.

Tomorrow is surgery day.

Today is work day.

And after that, it’s time to rest, recover, and hopefully get some answers.

One day at a time.

That’s all I can do.

And honestly, that’s enough.

Send good vibes and prayers my way!

Karen❤️