Restarting Again

Boy has it been a very long time since I sat down to post in Deb's Dabbles... so much has happened over the last years I hardly know where to begin but while listening to Chelsea Brennan’s podcast today I realized that it didn't matter WHERE I started I just HAD TO START!! I have and have had so much going on in my life and inside this crazy ecclectic head of mine that I need to tap into this creative outlet to share it even if it's for no one else except myself.  The last 5+ years have been a wild ride with  huge changes that have included going back to work prn then going through a divorce and returning to work full-time while having custody of the kids all but a couple weekends a month and trying to establish a new normal that some days feels too heavy or impossible to bear.  I've dabbled in remodeling my kitchen and getting the flooring in a number of rooms redone while also working on overhauling the paint throughout the house.  I even managed to get the roof replaced courtesy of my insurance carrier thanks to some severe hail that fell earlier this year.  And did I mention that it is now 2020... just the mention of this year will forever elicit thoughts of forest fires, the Covid 19 Coronavirus pandemic amidst great loss of human lives and senseless debates about masks, social unrest and injustices, Trump/Biden election, a new Conservative justice on the Supreme Court, hurricanes for days, a fight to save the planet and the fight over whether Global Warming even exists, and other countries not allowing us to travel inside their borders (just to name a few of the issues that will forever be the mark of 2020).  

This year has been trying for everyone.  I'm definitely no exception to this.  My oldest is at community college and has been mostly remote learning all year while working as a receptionist.  My younger two are in 6th and 7th grades and have been in what has now been commonly referred to as hybrid learning. Interpretation: they go to school Tuesday, Thursday, and every other Friday which allows for 50% of students to be in a classroom at a time allowing social distancing.  This means that they are home all but 2 or 3 days a week and do the majority of their homework at home unaided by a teacher other than myself.  I, on the other hand, am overwhelmed with work as a home health registered nurse and am away from home 50 hours a week.  I spend my days in people's homes, including those that are Covid positive, and then come home and play teacher while still trying to cook and clean and do laundry and everything else that being a homeowner single mom to three entails. In small leaps and bounds, I've been prepping to take my Wound Care Certification Exam and am just at the point that I'm not prepared but I'm going to take it just to get it over with.  It's been a wild ride to say the least.  I've also developed a passion for all things finances and can honestly say that I've not turned on the radio in my van to listen to music in probably 9+ months, because I love to listen to podcasts and books on CD. I have learned SO MUCH and often have internal dialogue of obsessive financial talk and my dreams get bigger by the months.  I guess I can thank Covid for helping to reign in some of those dreams because the overwhelming nature of how much life has changed and the increased level of mental health imbalance has helped me to put my priorities back in the proper order and keep my dreams from being as much of an obsession. Unless you want to hear me ramble or be ready to get in the hotseat for questioning, you probably don't want to talk finances or budgeting around me. It’s probably the equivalent of talking about books around me when I used to have time to read daily lol. 

My boyfriend Zach and I had planned a big 2 week trip around Scotland and Ireland for June but that was cancelled thanks to this Global Pandemic.  Thankfully we received refunds or credits for almost everything but it also has created such a strong desire to travel that I'm not currently able to tap into. Since my last post we went to London and Paris (2019) and have so many more destinations that we're dreaming of taking. Our week trip through Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas this last summer was lots of fun and a much-needed get away but it didn't begin to scratch the travel itch. 

Despite trying to stay afloat in every area of my life and trying to juggle more balls then I care to focus on most weeks, I'm continually longing to complete my half-finished home improvement projects and work on creating small side hustles. There's so much in my head that I want to expand on and share my insights on... everything from travel hacks and wisdom to sharing great places to see to home improvement how-to's and why the heck everyone should have a budget with automated forces in place to make your money work for you without the effort. Please buckle in and enjoy the ride... there's so much to share and so much we all can learn from each other!! 

PS just decided to take the plunge and buy my second domain name... atwhittensend.com and now debsdabbles.com are now mine!!  Let the fun begin 💛