I asked my co-workers what I should write about, and someone yelled out "Pizza!" So here I am, unsure what exactly it is I should be blogging to my friends out there in the real world, talking about pizza.

My favorite kind of pizza is definitely mushroom thin-crust pizza, even though I hardly ever treat myself to such splendid Italian cuisine. Not too long ago, my friends Billy, Natalie, Jeff and I went to Oreganos Restaurant to eat out and talk about relationships ¡V something we do on a weekly basis. We toss around all of our preconceived ideas about boys and girls, love and break-ups, values and families in today's society.

When the waitress came to our table, I expected everyone to order as they normally did. I suspected that Natalie would order a Meatball Sandwich, Jeff would order his Classic Calzone, and Billy would order a thick-crust Hawaiian pizza. Usually, I indulge in a Cesar salad, but I ordered first, and asked for a slice of mushroom pizza. And then, so did Natalie...and so did Billy... and to our surprise, so did Jeff.

The waitress looked puzzled as she wrote down our order. ¡§Would you all just like to share one pizza?" asked the waitress. We looked at each other, thinking it so strange that we hadn't even discussed our order with one another before our cute, blonde waitress had arrived. Well, of course we should share one pizza...

Of course, we decided to share a thin-crust mushroom pizza, since it would save us money and time. But this little story got me thinking about families. When we are with our families around the dinner table, in the SUV, visiting Grandma¡¦s house, we often make presumptions about each others¡¦ roles, just as my friends and I had done with our orders at Oreganos Restaurant. Of course, there were hardly any consequences for Natalie, Billy, Jeff and I - if we hadn't communicated our shift in preference, our change in appetites, we would have been stuck with a larger bill and less food... but the metaphor still applies...

When families get together, we must take notice and honor our loved ones changes. It's easy for us to become comfortable with predictable relationship patters, assigned behaviors, or labels. Some of these might include scheduler, comedian, bread-winner, deviant child, super-star, or lazy bum. When we sit down with our family, when we interact over the dining room table of life, we must do our best to put roles aside to Brother, Sister, Mom, and Dad can move in and out of different positions depending on their emotional needs. Sometimes, Mr. Comedy will want to take a break from creating comic relief in the midst of stressful situations. Allow him to order a Lazy Bum Sandwich once in a while. Sometimes Miss Scheduler will want to order a nice piece of Bread Winner Pie by picking up a temporary job for self-exploration.

When our family systems are too rigid, and inflexible, people often feel trapped in their roles, and don¡¦t feel free to get their full range of emotional desires met due to people pleasing. It might look something like this: "Oh, I shouldn't order mushroom pizza because Billy usually eats the croutons in my Cesar salad... and what will Jeff do with all that extra chicken in his calzone? I usually add it to my lettuce... Uh oh. I shouldn't order mushroom pizza. I should just do what people expect of me to keep the system happy".

When we have the courage to change, despite the approval of others, we give others the permission to engage in change as well. When we have the ability to see where we are depending on other people¡¦s habits, we suddenly forgive them for making changes that are good for them, because we see that what has inconvenienced us is not to be taken personally.

Whoa! The past two months are one big, gigantic BLUUUUUR. Fortunately and unfortunately going to school, working (two jobs) and raising three growing daughters can be a bit hectic and overwhelming at times. The everyday comings and goings of maintaining a household are enough to keep a girl busy. Then you add, end of school chaos, such as, award ceremonies, end of year performances, field trips, exams, finals, teacher appreciation gifts and projects, parties, etc and you begin to spin faster on the carousel of life.
Now, in the midst of this chaos comes a different kind of challenge, an unexpected move, and a move from a home that you have made comfortable for the past two years. This involves A LOT of weeding out, packing up and physically moving, ewwww. Yet, the carousel spins even faster.
Well, needless to say the past two months have had their fair share of activities. Physically, emotionally, financially and mentally exhausting yet so very rewarding because without a little struggle and weary long, dog tiring days I would never know what it feels like to truly appreciate the art of relaxing!
AHHHHHHH, my last weekend was such a beautiful and magical journey of sweet, simple moments that make any hardship so super worth it all. Alongside great company, I got to enjoy a night of no driving ƒº (gotta love public transportation!) down to first Fridays, in downtown Phoenix. What a chill evening, music, food, creative, colorful people, street dancers¡KFUN! Next, Saturday a lazy day that ended at an afternoon movie (without kids!?!?!?!?!) I couldn¡¦t remember the last time I saw an adult movie, with ADULTS¡Kpeople watching at Tempe Marketplace, dinner at the food court!?!?!? The only ¡§out to eat ¡§I do is sit down restaurants, never grab and go in mall food courts. So peaceful and leisurely I had to pinch myself. We finished that evening playing a million games of spades and apples to apples. FUN! Last but not least, another lazy morning that included grocery shopping and finished with cutting fruit for a fruit salad that would be a lovely addition to the carne meat we¡¦d be bbqing at the pool. It was a beautiful day in the pool and sun with my beautiful daughters and really great friends. FUN! Conversation, fun, food, sun and simple moments, all make for just a lovely, lovely weekend!!!
The moral to my story is, no matter how hard things may seem at the time, stay focused, and hold on to the knowing that in time ¡§this too shall pass¡¨ and you will always be rewarded for your effort. Just don¡¦t be so busy complaining and/or groaning that you can¡¦t hear or see it.
Blessed be,
Jodi

Saturday I did a boot camp workout at a gym and it totally kicked my butt. Later that evening I had the opportunity of playing a few basketball games for the first time since high school. I have shot around twice this year, but I have not had the chance to actually play a game. I had so much fun it is not even funny. I was with a group of girls I have known for a good amount of time and they all played basketball at Phoenix College at one time, so the game was on. We actually went to the court and it had people on both sides. We ended up playing against a group of guys and it was so much fun getting back into the swing of things. I hope that we can all start doing this every week now. As soon as we finished playing basketball everyone came back to my house for a nice chill night by the pool with some good conversation. My mom even came out and hung with everyone for a little while. It was nice getting her involved with my friends too. The simple joys of life are beyond incredible and can only get better as time progresses. There are so many ways to have fun with your friends that do not involve illegal activities or activities that involve something negative. I am not going to lie, but it did take me awhile to realize that, but I did and that is all that matters. Life is beautiful and I choose to keep it that way.