Back in the saddle again!

And why not....because do ever really have a better choice?!?  

I have been thinking about my long lost blogs over the last few weeks and thought it might do me some good (as it always does) to sit down with a nice cup of coffee, my Mac, and get started again.   Funny how I haven't written an entry or ridden my bike since IM Lake Tahoe!!  Are they correlated? Maybe....but one step at a time.  Write first.......ride....soon!  Not ready for THAT saddle just yet....

So, I got hitched (never say never...right?) and added yet another "J" to my string of initials.  Jeanne Jones Jenkins......J-cubed.....from j-squared to j-cubed??  Does it have  the same ring to it?   Is that really where I will end up?!?   The name game is a funny one....and I am not quite sure I know how to play it.  I am also not sure I want to drop Sajben from my name--given my Dad is pretty much my hero and I have significant pride in my heritage...after all, how many Hungarians are actually in Texas?!?  Perhaps drop the Jones... its not who I am any more really.  I am proud to be part of the Jenkins clan and my girls will always know I am their momma....so......we will see and time will tell.

Name changes and nicknames are low down on the list of exciting things and merely a side effect of the bigger blessing of our new family---our "blended" family.  The whole phrase--"blended family" seems so cliche but it is what and who we are now.  And while most of the time its very, very good...sometimes its very, very different.  We are ALL figuring each other out..our schedules, our preferences, our moods, our likes, our dislikes, our food preferences, our flexibility....and the list could go on and on.  But the highs outweigh the lows and with each day that passes, things continue to get easier and even more enjoyable....for everyone (including me) :)  

The house remodel continues but is slow and like everything else right now requires a lot of patience and gratitude for what we are building.  I think the funniest side effect has been the relaxed way with which I receive guests into my house of rubble.  Ten years ago I always felt like my house needed to be like a model home...all the time....for everyone!  That Jeanne is long gone....if you want to come hang out..you are ALWAYS welcome as we have a FABULOUS place to relax and enjoy.  I'll fix great food and I guarantee a good time...just ignore the dust, the clutter and overall disorganization.  LOL

And finally the new job search begins!  Yes.....looking again as I was laid off before the wedding. Oil prices are great at the pump but not so great for the economy and jobs.  Many have been laid off from Willbros as the company faces possible bankruptcy.  While I loved the work I did and many of the folks I worked with....the environment was never great as the organization was in a constant state of upheaval.  I thought I would take March/April to get married, get moved, get remodel underway, get all situated but its time for me to find a job.  Its the first time since I was fifteen years old, that I have not been working.  And it isn't easy....it requires a different kind of patience and redefinition.  However we are already halfway through May and I am feeling ready to go to work.  I have never been good at being "dependent" but perhaps that's what God is trying to teach me...its okay to accept help and support.  Its temporary...and the work needing to be done at home has been plentiful! I have begun the search and still contemplate and question what the best move is...I am sure it will come to me...as with all other things right now....in time.    What DO I want to be when I grow up??

So...many elements of this new chapter.  I contemplated a new blog under a new title...but after much consideration realized regardless of where I am or where I go, in the end I will always be Just Jeanne or j-squared because that is where I am happiest.