Silly Conversations

Anyone else get like hyper focused on becoming an author from grades 3-6? Like, you write a 6 page book about some weird fantasy character and then try to write some sequels thinking you were the next big name in fantasy novels? And then you kind of just forgot about them and fixated on some other random passion, like theater, or art, or marine biology? Just me? I don't really know what I am supposed to do with writing. I have a weird calling to write stuff, but like what? I have no clue.  Can I tell you a slightly weird, embarrassing story?  So when I was maybe 7 or 8, my mom was a camp director at a summer camp called Quaker Meadow. It's a camp that she had been working at since she was a teenager and, if I remember correctly, this was the first year I could be an actual camper. I don't have much of a memory from any of it really-- as my long term memory is spotty at best-- but I remember having quite the fun time. It was a church camp, so there was a lot of those typical...

It's been 84 years since my last blog post. Obviously not literally, but anything after March 2020 has its own timeline-- much like a kind of Marvelesque quantum universe. Yeah. I'm out of my league with this line of thought. I should probably just move on.  I want to catch up you up on so many things! (I say to no one reading this).  First of all, Elias and I had a second baby in November of 2020: Uriah Finn. He's awesome, but also crazy. Leo started Kinder in August of 2022. I am still working at the same school. And Elias is working in my district with the IT department. Yes. That's right. Elias is an IT nerd now.  I love having him at our district and on our schedule. Feeling super thankful about all of that. Those are the highlights. Of course, there have been some low lights.  Why did I start this re-reboot now? I've been feeling some feelings. Some sad feelings.  I've been going through bouts of depression again. And it's weird to talk about. I don...

"I am happier than a teacher on summer break!" -someone who has never taught. This is my 6th summer break as a full time teacher. And I should be thrilled to be on summer break, right?! I'm just not though. Here's my issue: I want to do so much. SO MUCH. I want to write. I want to read. I want to plan. I want to study. I want to chill. I want to sleep. I want to work out. I want to hang with friends. I want to teach my toddler things. I want to date my husband. I want to clean. I want to eat healthy. I want to meal prep. I want to start a project. I want to FINISH a project. I want to practice self care. I want doing creative stuff. I want to do some work stuff. And I want to start AND FINISH it all right now! But it's such a huge list, that I get overwhelmed and don't do any of it. I always feel like "I have all summer!" And then- I feel like you don't have to be super observant to know what's coming- SUMMER ENDS,...

How does tragedy shape us? How do bad things grow us? Physical pain, sucks. As I approach the big 3-0, my body is doing weird things. I used to get injured being active and dancing. Now I sneeze too hard, or sleep slightly wrong and I’m in pain for 5 whole days. However, emotional pain has nothing on physical pain. And this is coming from someone who was in labor for like 3 days. Emotional pain is something we have tried to describe. Writers everywhere have tried to come up with metaphors for emotional pain since Biblical times. Although some come close, no one can truly describe how it feels to have tragedy strike and feel the emotional pain. It’s a lesson we as believers have always heard and want to reconcile. We try to encourage those going through hard times with lessons of perseverance, lessons of endurance, of “running the good race” and “fighting the good fight.” We teach on Job, and how he lost everything and still praised God. None of this is new, but it helps. ...

Remember when I kept up with my blog? More importantly: remember when I thought I was going to simplify this year? I told you all I was going to keep things focused on 1 word: simple. My life, my goals, my home, my job, my thoughts- KEEP IT SIMPLE. Have I done that at all? If you think that I have, you must be new here. It's literally one month away from being 2019, and I have been anything but simple this year. I changed schools. We continued to gather clutter. We have yet to get a grip on our finances. I still overthink every little thing I do. My house is a constant disaster area. My new school has been a challenge at every step. Personal challenges and relationships have been a struggle. I have done everything except keep it "simple" this year. In every sense of my "simple" goal, I failed. Sure, I have a month left. So I could get back on track. I could try my best to simplify what I can. But sometimes, I feel like I try so hard to NOT try so...

I’ve seen it for a couple years now- instead of creating resolutions, people have been choosing one word to focus on for the year. Maybe you have seen this, or have done this yourself, but this alleviates the pressures to keep a resolution all year long.  So I’ve been praying about my word for a while now. I started asking myself some questions to best narrow down my word. What do I want to accomplish? How do I want to live? What do I want to focus on? What has been lacking? How do I motivate myself to get the correct word? Where do I even begin? Should I make a list? I’ll google it. Then I’ll narrow down the options. Then for sure I’ll have a word. Should I post it? Should I make like a cool graphic to post in my house? Should it be specific to being a better wife, parent, teacher, or all three?  I started to really “Elisa” the situation. In this sense my name is a verb meaning to over complicate, and overthink something, that is actually pretty simple, to where yo...

You would think that our first Christmas with a baby would be the most exciting, over the top, Christmas ever. And yet, our tree is not up yet. Chock it up to 2 working parents if you must, but I have a strong feeling that it's a little more than that.  The holidays have been a strange mix for me, the last couple of years. I've been equal parts "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" and "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch." It could have been just a getting older thing, it could be because my mom passed away a couple years ago, or it could be that seasonal effective disorder thing people often ignore during this time. It's probably a mix of all 3. No matter what it is, I usually just ignore it and try to focus on the Holly Jolly Christmas stuff. It's hard though, right? There's a lot of stuff going on. I'm not going to bore you with a list, because you all have a list too. We all have a lot of stuff going on. I'm not going ...

I sit here nursing the Bebe, trying to get him to sleep, I can’t help to reflect on all the things God has been teaching me recently. I think about things a lot while nursing. Because, yes it’s such an incredible bonding experience, but it’s also a quiet time of peace for this mama. I can’t help but wonder, how am I doing? Not as a mama, but as Elisa. How am I doing as Elisa Hernandez? It’s a weird question but I’m often wondering about it. Too often I’m just going through the motions. Too often I’m left sinking in the shadows of what my mission is here on earth. I want more than anything to persue my mission here on earth, which is clear to me as a Bible believing follower of Christ: make disciples. What would happen if all those who claim the name of Jesus started acting upon the mission God has called them too? What would happen if we stopped just taking from God, and gave back to Him in our efforts? God doesn’t need us and yet He chooses us. What if we stopped putting God...

Parents. Remember your "exhaustion" prior to having kids? I miss that.  I remember looking at parents around me and thinking, "Dang, they complain about being tired all the time. Can having a kid really be THAT taxing on a person?" Oh, how I wish I could take back those thoughts! And I just have the ONE kid. I can't even imagine more!  Let me back up a little. Since week one, until about month 7, Leo has slept in bed with us. We, of course, did it as safely as recommended by doctors and such. I feel like I always need that caveat because y'all moms and non moms out there trip over the littlest details, I swear. We weren't planning on doing the co-sleeping thing, we just kind of fell into it. It worked with nursing, it helped me not worry too much about his breathing patterns, and it was really sweet to cuddle my sweet boy all night. For those wondering how Elias felt, he actually made the initial suggestion to do it, so there ya go.  So it wor...

Money, y'all. We know that the love of money is the root of all evil. It's a little disheartening to have a 2 income household and still be on the struggle bus with money. And we're pretty thrifty too. I've been trained to go for the best deals, the best coupons, the lowest prices, and to sacrifice quality when needed. Would I love to shop in the organic, all natural section more? Uh duh. But this crunchy mama is more of a crispy mama, due to her budget.  And yet, even in our thriftiness, we have been struggling with money. A couple of unforeseen circumstances came up: After the babe was born, we knew our insurance premiums would go up. But they went WAAAY up. Like, into the stratosphere up. Like, "wow I didn't know they could be that high" up.  We had a lot of medical expenses after pushing the baby out, and we spent a day in the Phoenix Children's hospital after he was born.  I'm a teacher, so I already make basically nothing. I also ha...

Motorola RAZR, Circa 2008 Can you believe that these 2 babies have their very own baby? We met. We befriended one another. We fell in love. We made a commitment. And we had a baby.  Here's a cliche: marriage isn't easy.  We get it. God decides to put two people together that usually have very opposite tendencies, upbringings, and personalities. Sure, maybe you like similar things, but eventually you find that the romantic passion you had for each other becomes stagnant.  And then you throw a baby in the mix?! I'm not saying anything ground breaking here. Anyone who has ever seen any American sitcom is FULLY aware of how a baby messes with a marriage.  Elias and I have been attending a marriage Bible study at our church. It has rocked us in so many ways. Currently we are going through the study  You and Me Forever  by Francis and Lisa Chan. HIGHLY RECOMMEND so far.  We have been challenged through this study to see our marriage as a min...

Why blog now? It’s funny- I had so many thoughts about so many things before I sat down at my computer. Stuff about being a mom, and a teacher, and a wife. But now that I’m here, trying to make them coherent and relatable, I’m coming up short. Maybe there are too many coherent and relatable blogs out there. Maybe, there needs to be someone that says what NO ONE is thinking. Maybe, instead of people “telling it like it is” maybe we need people to just “tell it.” What happened to the freedom we had to just let go. As children, we were encouraged to have freedom in our playtime, our work time, our creative time. Then as we get older, we put boundaries on those things so the are coherent and relatable. But I think we forget to stop the the boundaries before we lose our freedom. Is anyone following me? Am I even following me? I’m honestly not trying to sound existential or transcendent. This is just what happens when I sit down and begin to write. I think it was in thea...