I did it!!!

I graduated last night with my Bachelor of University Studies!

Graduation

I will be graduating from college in two and a half weeks. I can't believe it's finally here. Four and a half years ago I was turning 40 and quite unhappy with my life. What had I done? Where was I going? I had a little mid-life crisis.  This is when I decided I wanted to go back to college and figure out what I was going to be when I grew up.

I will be receiving a Bachelor of University Studies. My two majors are Family & Consumer Sciences and Psychology.  I have found that I love taking Family and Consumer Science classes.  They cover a lot of different topics and are quite interesting.  The Psychology part is very interesting too but something I would never pursue as a career. There aren't a lot of online classes that I was interested in but I was able to take enough Psychology to make it my 2nd major.

Now...what do I want to do when I grow up?  I'm still not sure LOL!  I have decided to pursue my Master's degree from the university that I work for (different than the one I'm graduating from). I have the chance to take two classes a semester for free (I pay for online fees and books). I can't pass up that opportunity. I've thought about being a home economist for the Cooperative Extension Service but will see if that is still what I want to do when I graduate.  I need to apply to graduate school and do all that is involved with that but I will hopefully be able to start my new adventure in the fall!

On being a Texan....

My step-daughter and her boy friend recently moved here.  The first afternoon they were here, I went to the grocery store and bought some things.  When I came back, he helped me carry in groceries. I asked if he would carry in the dog food, cat food, and cat litter because they were heavy. I'm not sure if it's how I said it or what but he asked if I was a Southerner.  I replied, no I'm a Texan.  He said, let me rephrase that, are you a Yankee or Rebel?  I said neither, I'm a Texan.  He thought about it a minute and said well Texas is in the South and I said no, Texas is Texas.  We were once our own country. I could tell he still wasn't sure about that but he let it go.  Last night it was brought up again and Neal told him there was no use arguing with a Texan because they will only claim to be a Texan! 

Visiting "Home"

I'm in my hometown visiting my parents.  I don't get to come down here as often as I would like but always enjoy when I can come and spend time with them.  I especially enjoy when I can come when it's not a holiday and we can just do what we want--no preparing special foods or wrapping presents!

I've gotten to eat at some of my favorite places and enjoy some of my my Mom's home cooking.  We've sat around the dining room table and played games and laughed.  I've gotten to see family friends and enjoy their company.  It's been a good visit!

Today we have a "to do list" to finish up.  Things I need to look at or fix.  Errands we need to run and places to go.  I will savor my last day here before heading to my home and enjoy the time I've had here.

Friendships

I still belong to my wonderful group of Mommies that I met online over 13 years ago (what?!? our Moppets are 13 now!).  We mostly communicate in a Facebook group.  Our group is still pretty active but as our kids have grown and are in more activities, we don't post as much.  It's always nice to know that I have a great group of Moms going through the same things I am. We are always there to support each other and share the ups and downs of our lives.

In the last year, I joined a local women's club.  It has been so great for me.  I've always just had a few close friends that I met through work or friends of friends.  Now I feel like I have a great group of friends who I can hang out with or see at meetings/activities.  We've organized several fund raisers to help the children of our community.  Our biggest money raiser was a holiday craft fair.  We now can offer several camp scholarships and hold a summer art camp for children in our village.  It's nice to feel like I belong to a group and am making a difference in the community.  I almost feel like a grown up now ;)

Almost three years later.....

So much can change in a few years!  I am still in school and will be graduating with my bachelors degree in University Studies in May. My two majors are Family & Consumer Sciences and Psychology.  I work three-quarter time as a nutrition educator and love my job.  I'm still trying to decide if I want to continue with school and get my masters degree or stop for now.

My daughter, Kinsey, is in 7th grade.  She plays trombone in the band and is in 4-H.  She loves cats and drawing.  She is amazing at drawin using computer graphics.  She still draws with pencil and paper as well.

Neal and I have been married for almost 14 years and still live in New Mexico. He works at the local Ford dealership. It was a huge change from the work he did before but he is enjoying it.

I guess this will be my update for now. I would like to keep updating when I have time...

Life

Oh how we take life for granted. Everything is going along great then WHAM! you are hit with devastating news. I know I've mentioned it before but I'll do it again--I have an amazing group of friends that I met online about eleven years ago when I was pregnant with Kinsey. I didn't post much to our group when I was pregnant but read every day. After I had Kinsey, I had so many questions and it was amazing to have people who were going through the same things to talk to. Now that we have ten year olds, we don't post to our group board as much but are still involved through Facebook. I have met about fifteen of these woman and wish with all my heart I could meet a lot more!

Recently, one of our Mommies found out that her husband has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and has less than a year to live. He is Neal's age--I think that is what has hit me the hardest-he is MY husband's age. I feel just horrible for this Mommy because she has had a lot of loss in her life and her husband has been her rock--the one who has stood by her and supported her the whole time. They are such a great couple. His wish is that they can go to Disney World before he gets to sick so he can make memories with his wife and four kids. Through a few emails among our group, we have managed to raise an amount that will help them achieve that dream. I know it won't be enough to pay for the whole trip but they won't have to worry as much about money on this trip.

I love this group of ladies. We have been together through so much. We've had "fake" people on our board and thank goodness have weeded those people out. Our core group of ladies are so wonderful. I know if I ever needed anything they would be there for me and I will be there for them. Love you March Mommies!!

Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die.

Neal and I would like to travel to as many National Parks as we could go to. We've been to a few but our big goal is Yellowstone National Park.

Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without.

My Mama and Daddy

Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist

Brad Paisley

Trace Adkins

It's hard for me to pick just one artist or band because I like so many different people for different reasons and songs that they sing. These are two of my current favorite and two that I have seen in concert.

Day 12 - A picture of something you love

Books! Books! Books!

This is just one of my bookcases. This one is double stacked with paperbacks (2 rows). I buy them at the library when they have book sales. My favorite sale is when they give you a plastic grocery sack and say you can fill it for $5. You would be amazed how many books I can fit in one of those sacks! I also have a bookcase with all my cookbooks and another with craft books and magazines.

I'm not a fictional book collector because as soon as I read a book I pass it on. I have only kept a select few of my favorite books. A lot of the books on this shelf are parts of series that I'm collecting so I can read the whole series at once. Others are books I've picked up and thought I would like--I just haven't gotten around to reading them yet. Some of my favorite authors are Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Debbie Macomber, Susan Wiggs, and Sheryl Woods.

Day 11 - A picture of something you hate

I thought quite a bit about this one. Yes, there are things I hate more than needles--like child abuse--but do you really want to see a picture of that? I decided to go with needles because it is one of the things that just gets to me. I can't watch when I (or anyone else) gets a shot. I didn't have blood drawn out of my arm until I was pregnant with Kinsey (30 years old)! I got a shot when I had the flu about 5 years ago and almost passed out at the doctors office. It's just one of those weird things that I hate.....

Day 10 - A picture of someone you see yourself marrying/being with in the future

Neal and I on our wedding day October 7, 2000

Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most

This is my sister Melissa. She is the person I can go to and talk about anything. She's been with me through thick and thin! Love ya Melissa!

Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh

Marley always makes me laugh but this picture is so funny!

Day 07 - A picture that shows your true self

I've really had a hard time with this one because honestly....I'm still trying to find my true self. There are so many things that represent me now.....family, school books, my cameras, fictional books, and so much more. I guess I'm going to pick something that is near and dear to my heart and this project.

My cameras

I have a new little camera that I just bought recently to carry in my purse. The flash on my older camera broke and it would have cost $99 to get it fixed--worth more than the camera. I can still use my lenses for outdoor photography--what I wanted it for so now I have two cameras. One day I would love to have a nice DSLR camera but that will have to wait until later.

Day 6 - A picture of somewhere you've been

We went to the Grand Canyon in the fall of 2003.

Day 5--a picture of your favorite memory

the day Kinsey was born

Day 4--A picture of your night

Stacked (or flat) red enchiladas for dinner

Day 3--A picture of the cast from your favorite show

Big Bang Theory