Four years and 8 semesters ago.......

Soooo.... I had a sudden, random urge to look at my old blog today. Last post: 2009! Yikes! I mean, to be fair,I have been a full time college student majoring in English which means that I am so busy reading and writing papers all the time that writing a blog that no one but my mother in law actually ever read went pretty low on my list of priorities. I was pleasantly surprised, however, to realize that my fellow bloggers are all a few years behind as well. I say blame Facebook. We blame Facebook for everything these days, so why not? Seriously,I rather enjoy thinking about what a future historian will think when they come across artefacts from this period in a thousand years. What will Facebook mean to them? Will there be professors one day saying, "Please don't everyone write about whether the terrorist known as facebook truly brought about the downfall of Western civilization in the early 3rd millennium. That topic had been done to death!"
I don't know. But anyway, here's a post. Maybe another someday soon........

#6~ Grades!

Spanish 1 - B+
Survey of Theatre - A
International Lit - A
Principals of Acting - A
GPA - 3.794!
The joy of having done SO well my first sememster - PRICELESS!!!

I am so happy and so pleased with myself for pulling this off especially with a month-long illness. And all of those wonderful people whose encouraging words I carried with me to campus everyday; they are proud of me too!
Semester #2 - Here I come!
Spanish 2
English 102
Comm 204
Advanced Acting
Principal of Education

#5 Saying Goodbye

Well, I guess even the best years of our lives will also have their sad moments.
My Papa, Earl Walker, passed away yesterday after a long, tough battle with Alzheimer's. He was 81 years old. Now I am a girl without a grandpa. Its rather a sad thing to be.
My Papa was a good guy. He loved Johnny Carson, Benny Hill and The Dukes of Hazzard - all shows we weren't allowed to watch at home. He had a great sense of humor, a contagious laugh and a youthfulness about him. All my life I can remember him having "toys". Sometimes they were real toys like his electric dump set; or grown up toys like his woodworking tools. Even as he began to lose parts of who he was, that youthfulness remained.
I think that what brings a smile to my face most right now, though, is thinking of the special bond he had with my son, CJ. Papa loved his 2 girls. I don't doubt that, but I don't think it is any secret he would have enjoyed having a son too. When CJ was born, Papa became Papa-the-Great for the first time. I noticed a special new glint in his eyes. As CJ got older, he and Papa started having special play days whenever we were in Caldwell. They would go to the park, the airport, and ALWAYS to McDonald's. They were buddies! I can still hear Papa say, "Where's my buddy, CJ?" and a little blond head would come running! How many of us even get to know our great-grandparents? I never knew any of mine. CJ got to be "buddies" with his. What a special gift.
I miss you, Papa. You behave yourself now til we all can join you. I love you! Goodbye.

#4 FRIENDS!

No, all you smarty-pants types, I don't mean to say that this is the first year that I have had friends. However this last year (give or take) has provided great opportunity for me to appreciate true friendships.
Of course, the year started off with my "ROCK STAR" birthday party. A house full of friends willing to wear costumes to celebrate my 35th birthday was probably all the proof I needed that I was loved, but it was just the start! Again, no major moments can be outlined as defining my friendship status, there are just a lot of moments of wonderful people willing to love and be loved that have really touched my heart.
I couldn't possibly name each friend or each moment but, how about a few highlights:
Jen O - Fabulous, fabulous, Jen. She has given me little gifts, more than once this year, just to tell me that she appreciates my friendship. She has trusted me to pray and counsel with her. She even was friend enough to apologize when she - accidentally - hurt my feelers. For 10 years now, Jen has managed to put a smile on my face whenever I see her and this year especially, it has really blessed my heart!
CJ's Graduation - It is only a few kids in our area who will celebrate completion of their 8th grade year. Because of this, I was uncertain of how people would react to receiving invitations to a BBQ in honor of my son's. I was certainly not disappointed. My house and yard were full of great friends! The best part? These were mostly people who first knew Troy or myself, then came to know and love our son because of their love for us. That is a true blessing!
Myndie - I truly believe that there will never be a year in my life from now on in which Myndie - my BFF - isn't a special part! So that means she is a highlight in this year as well!
I could go on and on:
Brother/friends like Matt and Jeremy who trust me to help them in the tough times
Long time friends like Torry, Tami, Becky, Dawn, and Kathy whose friendships seem to gain another layer with each new year.
New friends like Derek who helped make a scary new experience like college easier and so much more fun.
Special friends like Cathlin and Avril who helped me learn about the gift of forgiveness and healing.
And of course, my pukers who have celebrated each new, happy moment with me this year.
I love you ALL, my sweet friends! You make my life a great joy to live!

#3 School!

Of course this is a really big one for me.
If you have known me for very long at all, you will know that being a teacher has, quite literally been a life-long dream for me. Well, I am currently on my third and FINAL attempt at getting a college degree.
I, of course, first began this adventure in the fall of 1992. To sum that experience up quickly:
May - graduated HS
June - dumped by boyfriend who insisted I go to college with him in Lewiston
July - Moved into my first apartment in Lewiston got part-time job
Aug - Started school with 21 credits
Oct - Dropped 6 credits
Nov - Had screaming match with creative writing/poetry teacher (dropped 3 more credits)
Dec - Went home for Christmas, got report card, received 9 credits, decided college could wait.
(The good news being that when I went back to Lewiston to close out that chapter of my life after Christmas, I met my beloved - Troy)
My second attempt at college came when I was about 26. I took two classes and did quite well, but it just wasn't the right time to really pursue a degree. The kids were little and Troy wasn't really on board.

So - attempt #3
I am a full time student taking 15 credits. I am loving every minute of it! The schedule that I have allows a good amount of time for me to do my homework without cutting into family time. I am pulling A's and B's in every class. (might be all A's if I hadn't gotten hit with this illness) Best of all, Troy is totally behind it! He is as excited as I am, and together we've been able to look at the big picture and what this degree will mean to our future!
If I work hard, I'll have this degree before my 40th birthday. Christian will just be graduating HS and Mackenzie just starting. This really seems to be the best time to be doing this. I am so glad that God's timing is so much better than mine!
I have to thank all of my friends and family who have been so encouraging to me in this big adventure. It has really made a huge difference! I have felt your prayers and am bolstered by the confidence that you all have in me!

35! #2

Yeah I know, if i don't get moving, I'll never get to #35 before I'm 36.
So.....

#2 My New Husband!

LOL! Don't worry you didn't miss anything. I'm talking about Troy, just the new Troy. God has really been working on this man and boy has He done a good job. Now, don't get me wrong; for 15 years Troy has been a good man, good provider, good dad, and a good husband for sure. This year God has just helped him grow so much in his faith that he has become even more! Everyday he shows me how much he loves and cherishes me. I can't walk by him without him stopping me for a kiss or just to tell me he loves me. All day long I get text messages from him just to say he is thinking of me. He is spporting me in going back to school. I could list at least a hundred little "sweet nothings" that he has done for me lately. It is such a great joy to be so loved!!!

He has become even more invested in our kids lives. He is now a leader for our church youth group. He pitches in with homework. He makes sure we have family moments.

He has begun to reach out to others with God's love and, let me tell you, take a man who other men already respect and look up to and pump him up with God's love and he can be a real force.

This summer he chose to be baptised and that was such a great example to so many people.

I am not feeling as eloquent as I would like to be as I've been sick for about a week but just to sum up: My husband is awesome! Thank you, Lord for giving me this amazing man!

35!

I've been in trouble with my mother-in-law for a while now for not blogging (I think she is my only real blog fan). So it is time to catch up! I thought to challenge myself to be a better blogger, I would create a "blog series". So here it is:



35! That's how old I am. I know that is hard to believe - I certainly don't look it! LOL! Sometimes i act....... well, no not really I guess.

Anyway, for some strange reason, I had anticipated this year of my life for a very long time. I can't explain why, but I always had this sense that - good or bad - 35 would somehow be significant for me.

Well, I'm pleased to say that, so far, it has been a really great year (just over 8 months into it). So, my "blog series" - 35 - will chronicle 35 things that have made this year special.



1 - Facebook! I know that seems a little silly. Facebook shouldn't be so important as to take the first "blog series" spotlight. But I have to say it has been a real gift to me this year! Through face book i have re-established old friendships, had more regular contact with distant friends, and - most precious to me - had more contact with my family than ever before! I love my family. I have a big one and see none of them often enough. The separation from my family that comes from living hundreds of miles away from them, is bearable in the day-to-day, but can sometimes weigh on my heart so heavily. Now, thanks to this incredible "social network" I can have "conversations" with Uncle Bob about my slinky green dresses, share random movie quotes with at least 4 of my brothers, and get regular updates on when my nieces are going to dance classes, cheer practice, or movie auditions! When I posted a note about going back to school, more than 30 people offered words of encouragement and congratulations! I get to see pictures of my amazing nephew, Joe, living out his dream of being a football player (and hanging out with cheerleaders). My sweet sister, Becca, posts videos and pictures of her sweet baby, Enzo, so regularly that it has become my habit to start my day by looking at his adorable smile.

Last Spring, thanks to facebook, six people drove more than 300 miles to see me in Miss Saigon that had never done that before. - Okay David was already coming this way, but he stopped.

I know we all lived many years without such a thing as facebook, but I am glad that those days are gone.

Huh. In my mind this was a much more eloquent piece of literature. Well, it is nearly 1 am.