A little about Me...the Basics

I started this blog about 9 months ago and haven't kept up with it like I should.  I love to write and once upon a time wanted to be an author or journalist.  A demanding job and family will put you on a different course.  No complaints there.  But, I did (and do) want to get back to writing for enjoyment.  I want to share my days as a wife, mother, daughter, etc.  Writing and sharing helps me get my thoughts in order and work things out.  Hopefully you will laugh, cry and commiserate with me.  I don't live a perfect life.  I am not a perfect mom, wife or daughter.  I can be selfish, argumentative, stubborn and mean. I can be blunt and don't always sugar coat things.  But, I'm also happy, supportive, funloving, and proud of who I am.  Us moms, no matter how different we are, need to stick together.  There's no actually manual to being a mother, wife or daughter....it's on the job training without combat pay.  So dive in.  There's no time like the present!

A little about the life I juggle:

1.  I'm 36 years old
2.  Married 8 yrs/together 10 yrs
3.  I have a wonderful 16 yr old stepdaughter who joined my life when she was 6.  I refer to her as SD or SD16.  She stays with us Saturday to Sunday every other week.  Sometimes we see her more and I get giddy inside when that happens.  I feel priviledged that she still comes and devasted when she can't make it. She loves her brother and sister and is an awesome big sister.  I'm proud to call her daughter!  She loves to dance, gossip, and text (ALL day long!!).
4.  My son is 8.  He's DS or DS8.  He's in 3rd grade and is constantly getting in trouble for talking and not staying focused.  He is the bain of my existance some days and I love him to pieces!  He also has minor hearing issues that we still haven't fully resolved.  He gets speech and reading help at school and an ELA tutor outside school once a week.  He's been skating since he was 5.  Playing hockey since he was 5 1/2 and goalie for 2 years.  He's a natural, many people tell them this.  I think he feels pressue from the expectations at times so I remind him to just have fun!  He loves HOCKEY, goalies and the NJ Devils.
5.  My daughter is 6.  I call her DD or DD6.  She is in 1st grade and a cute handful.  She has many friends and the boys are wrapped around her tiny finger.  She is a fast learner and I always worry she is going to surpass DS8 and it will wreck his self confidence.  She's a firecracker and will speak her mind.  I don't think I'll have to worry about her being bullied.  She has been skating since she was 5.  After a year and a half she is at Basic Level 6.  She will be in her first skating competition next month.  She loves school, homework, Webkins and Littlest Pet Shops.
6.  I have been out of work since Oct 2009.  I reinjured (original injury March 2006)  myself at my job and was told to take leave until my doctor cleared me to go back to work.  It's been an uphill battle since then.  I have pains in my neck and shoulder plus a previous back injury to boot (also on the job).  I received a notice just the other day by comp that their doctor says I am fine and should go back to work with no restrictions.  2 problems...my company released me in November and my doctors don't feel I'm ready to go back to full duty until I complete another series of PT that comp won't authorize and a work conditioning program.  So, I live in fear of what is going to happen to my income.  I've been trying to find a job since some work restrictions were lifted back in Jan 2010 and still have yet to find anything.  It's so disheartening and scary.  I live with constant fear that everything is going to tumble down around us.

***So this is a little about me and who I am.  Follow my blog to get a better insight and feel free to offer support, advice and words of encouragement.

My Life...

I thought I'd start out my blog with just a little bit of background.  I hope you can relate to parts of my life, as everyone is inherantly different, yet the same.
I'm 35 years old.  My husband and I will be celebrating our eighth wedding anniversary in May.  I have a bachelor's degree in Communications which I've never used.  This is because I "fell" into the world of retail management as soon as I graduated college.  My simple retail job had an opening for an assistant manager and the pay was great. I was easily making $5,000 more a year to start than if I used my degree.  For a college graduate who needed to pay off over $40,000 in loans it was a huge insentive to put aside my career aspirations for a later daate...which never came.
I met my husband when I was 26.  We were married right before I turned 28.  My son was born right after that and my daughter followed 2 years later.  I also have a wonderful stepdaughter who was 6 when I came into her life.
I've been gotten really good at trying to juggle it all, but it's never easy.  I can honestly say, that as I've gotten older and more has been added to my plate, I get overwhelmed and stressed out a lot more than I'd like.
On this blog I will share the good, the bad, and the sometimes ugly details of my complicated life.  I don't feel it is any more or less complicated than other moms out there...just unique unto itself.  If you can relate please follow along.  Feel free to offer insight and advice.  If  you agree or disagree with me please comment.  I am open to it all because none of us are the same and we learn by sharing our feelings openly with one another!
Welcome!