Introverted and Loving It

I am constantly amazed by the little miracles that I see when I take the time to stop, sit back and smell the roses. Yesterday my son asked if he could sit on my lap while he was playing with his Leapster. He is so smart! I took some time just to sit and watch him because his childlike wonder captivated me. His eyes would twinkle when he did something right and his little nose would scrunch up when things didn’t go his way. During the day I am so busy doing, that many times I neglect to watch the little things. It is my hope and prayer today that I can stop, look and listen for the little miracles around me.

I am thankful for

…doing well with my dental surgery and that God was with me the entire time.

…my wonderful husband, his understanding and patience mean the world to me.

…my son and his endless questions…he keeps me on my toes.

…the wonderful week I spent with Heather last week. I had a wonderful time and miss her already.

…the fact that God is becoming the forefront of my life and that His hands are on everything I touch.

…the opportunity to be home with my family each and every day.

I’ll leave you with a picture of the little cutie.

I often get asked, “Aren’t you embarrassed or ashamed to publicly call yourself an introvert?” My reply is always, “Are you ashamed of who you are?”

In my research I found several famous introverts who I highly doubt are ashamed of themselves and who also share my personality type of INFP. They include John F. Kennedy, Jr., Julia Roberts, Lisa Kudrow, Helen Keller, Tom Brokaw, Dick Clark and William Shakespeare. The accomplishments of each of these individuals is great and do not fit, in any way shape or form, what the general public views as introversion.

Ashamed of myself? I think not! Heck I’m in the same brotherhood as JFK and Julia Roberts.

I miss Roanoke and Heather, but I’m glad to be home and in my own environment. We had a great time there despite the issues with my tooth…which reminds me, I have to call the dentist now.

On a lighter note, I am 3 lbs lighter!! WOOHOO!! For a grand total of 24 lbs lost!! I am very excited but I don’t have a goal weight in mind so I will work on that during this week. I am keeping to my wheat/gluten free diet and am adding walking to my routine so hopefully I will see some greater results in the near future.

Congratulations to everyone who is participating in Tales From The Scales May Day Challenge. You guys rock!

I can spell relief in two words P.E.N.I.C.I.L.L.I.N. and L.O.R.T.A.B. I’m so excited that God gave the medical profession the wisdom to create these drugs.

My wonderful husband took me to the dentist this morning and they were absolutely wonderful. The dental hygienist even handed me a tissue when I started blubbering over the pain. There really wasn’t much they could do for me today because the tooth was so swollen and abscessed. I got two prescriptions…one for the infection and one for the pain. The first question out of my mouth was, “When will I feel relief?” The doctor told me that I should feel some relief once I take a pain killer but that I should feel much better by morning. I took the first dose few hours ago and the relief is starting. The final dental bill and prescription costs did not make me have a heart attack…which was an added bonus.

Today I think I’m going to take most of the day off for some rest and relaxation.

I am one thankful little chickadee this week. God is good all the time! If you would have heard me yesterday I was singing another song.

My tooth is killing me and it still is. I started a round of antibiotics and am sucking down Orajel by the tube (I switched from Anbesol because I think I was getting immune). But I am now thinking clearly. I have never been through childbirth (I adopted my son), but I think I would rather give that a try than live with this incessant toothache. Today this verse keeps running over and over through my mind:

Jeremiah 29:14 – I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

I am being held captive by my pain today. I need to be joyous for the Lord because He is my healer. Lord, I pray for a healing. I know you heal in many ways, spontaneous and through doctors and medications. Today I pray Lord for your healing touch and guidance. If you care for the birds of the air, how much more do you care for me. Thank you for being the Lord of my life.

I want to give special thanks to God this week for:

…meeting the members of Heather’s church. I’m excited to see where this church is going!

…my husband and BFF putting up with me in my miserable state and all my glory. They both have the patience of a saint.

…watching a movie with my son and the ability and flexibility to do so because my husband is an awesome provider.

…getting a renewed fervor for my business.

…how much better I feel since switching to a wheat free/gluten free diet.

…the love of my friends “in the box”.

…the fact that Jesus died for me.

Becki

Today is one of those days where I am just blah. Nothing profound is coming out of my mouth today, unless you count barking out orders as “profound”. Here I am sitting in Virginia surrounded by my family and one of my best friends and I can do is sit back sullen because I want take a huge set of pliers to my tooth. Man does it hurt. Ambesol is no longer rescuing me from this incessant pain. It’s not their fault that I’m not feeling well, yet I seem to be taking it out on them. What a friend/wife/mother right? Why was I blessed with the gift of making the lives of my family and friends a living…I won’t go there. But seriously I am not a queen, contrary to what I may think. I am just a simple person who has the ability to at times treat the people I care about the most like crud.

I recently took the Enneagram and scored as an Individualist or Number 4 which basically characterizes what I wrote above. I’m thinking back to an old episode of Seinfeld where Jerry had to go on the Today Show to promote his comedy tour, but Kramer’s girlfriend, the quiet talker convinced him to wear a pirate shirt. Jerry whines over and over again, “but I don’t want to be a pirate!” I hear myself uttering over and over again, “but I don’t want to be a number four!”

Tomorrow is another day. I’m off to apologize to my family and my BFF.

Today is weigh-in day, but unfortunately I cannot get an accurate reading. I am away from home visiting Heather and her scale is well…let’s just say unreliable at this time. Maybe I’ll buy her a present before I leave. But I am just a little, teensy, tiny bit glad about the scale being “inaccurate”…we are partaking of the most delicious wheat/gluten free brownies ever made and wheat/gluten free lasagna…

As of last week I was down by 21lbs, so I can only hope that I’ve maintained or lost a few more. I feel wonderful compared to a few weeks ago! Now just to inter-mix exercise and I’ll be good to go. For some reason I don’t think that sitting in front of a computer typing constitutes exercise.

I survived the presentation and survived well. A big sigh of relief.

I have spoken at numerous events using many different arenas including telephone, VOIP, text chats and in person. Surprisingly enough, at least to me, I much prefer speaking either in person, using VOIP or via telephone because I can definitely think faster than I type. Because introverts like to think before they speak and formulate answers to questions before speaking many introverts seem to shy away from the telephone. There are many times that email and IM can be misinterpreted and misconstrued, which is one of the main reasons why I prefer the telephone or in person. Why I went off on this tangent, I have no idea.

Right now I am decompressing and seeking my sanity that has been lost over the past couple of weeks. We arrived in Virginia yesterday and we’re staying with Heather. As we drove South this weekend it began to feel like “home”…not necessarily Roanoke, VA but the South in general. We will definitely be praying to find out where God is leading us.

The weather is great and the company greater. We are looking forward to doing fun family things like miniature golf and the zoo. We’ve been there before…walked around the zoo twice…in an hour and a half. But our son loves it!

In just a few short hours I will be totally out of my comfort zone. That oh so comfy place that I live on a daily basis…how I’ll miss you…at least for a short period of time.

My name is Becki and I’m an introvert and I have a passion for helping business owners succeed in business, with my heart in business leaning towards introverts. I love talking with business owners, individually (keyword here) by telephone and IM, but today I am presenting to a group of about 20 at the OIVAC Convention. It’s an online convention so I can change the environment around me to make me a little more comfy. I speak to groups on a somewhat frequent basis, so it’s nothing new (except I am speaking on a brand new topic), but a little panic always sets in. This is true whether you are an introvert or extrovert. However I know that I will be totally drained after this experience. So think about your fellow introverted friend today…I’m going to need it.

Introvert Solutions

Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone on occasion. It’s ok and it stretches you. You are not pretending to be an extrovert, you are growing.

Wow! Another Thursday is here…where does time go? I am thankful for so many things that I could write a book.

I am thankful for (in no particular order)….

- The opportunity to see Heather next week (for a whole week). This is the first time that I have seen her since her conversion experience, so I am excited to see what God is doing in her life.

- That I am starting to realize the purpose of this blogging endeavor and the great things that are in store for it.

- The opprotunity to present at the OIVAC Convention this week. I am passionate about helping others succeed in business.

- The opportunity to be a wife to an amazing husband who inspires me everyday.

- The opportunity to be a mother. He didn’t “grow” in me, but “grew” in my heart.

- The nudge from a dear friend to pray about a situation that I was trying to control on my own. I know now through prayer my answer.

- My additional 6lb weight loss (21lbs and counting).

Becki