August 2, 2013 by Stephanie

Sewing Solo

I had been dreading my first solo attempt at sewing. Threading the machine terrified me, so it stayed in its box for the past six months.

But a great project presented itself to ease me into working with it again.

More or less this mess was taunting me…

This is our spare bedroom that has been like this since I moved down in May. It was time to make something happen with it. We have one storage room off the carport, but that has turned into Tom’s “workshop” so we didn’t have anywhere else to put all this. Into the spare bedroom it went!

So we decided we would clean this up and make a partition to basically hide our storage within the second bedroom. I feel like Monica on Friends…

We bought fabric to make curtains that we could easily slide open when we need to find something. We also wanted to do bright curtains because we are not going to be painting any walls since our time here will be too short lived to worry about the tedious task of painting. It is a great way to brighten up the drab white walls without all the work!

Here is the fabric I bought.

I am really in love with this color combo right now! So cheerful!

We bought conduit tubes and two curtain stabilizers for the rod since it does have to go the length of the room. We decided to make all of our own stuff since actual curtain items are super pricey.

Tom also put a metal rod inside the conduit to stabilize it a little more since it was pretty long and sagged a little bit. (I really failed at getting pictures of this.)

We did have to cut the tube down to size so you will want to make sure you have the right tools that can cut thick plastic and metal. Tom used a hack saw.

I had to sew the top and bottom, but the sides were fine to leave as they are since we used the full length of the fabric. Since it was a straight line with no backing or anything, this was a pretty simple job. Seriously, the toughest part was threading that blasted machine. After some pouting, YouTube searching, and a very patient husband, I finally got the bobbin and thread where it needed to be. I am a little embarrassed now thinking about how long this part of the process actually took, but I conquered it!

On the top, I did leave enough to make a pocket of sorts that the rod could go through. You can see that in the above picture.

It did take out about a third of the room, but that is OK considering we didn’t acknowledge this room existed in the past 3 months.

I am really in love with it. I sat in the rocking chair for a good 10 minutes admiring our work.

Look at how much Army stuff we have! Those file cabinets are full of gear. One drawer is full of all the sets of Eye-pro (or what I call them, Army goggles). And we had more gear a few days ago. Tom turned in a car load of multicam stuff right before we packed this all back here.

And now that I think I know how to sew, there may be some new projects on the horizon. I hope it doesn’t take me six months to get that thing out again!

It was really nice to get this all cleaned up. It is one of those things that just makes you feel good and accomplished! And just in time for our family to come for a visit this weekend!

August 1, 2013 by Stephanie

Blogaventure-Year One

It is crazy to think that my blogging journey started a year ago. I started blogging with the intent to talk about my crafts that were a distraction from Tom’s first deployment. It quickly turned into an all out life blog. Once Tom returned from his deployment and the move was impending, I wondered if I would continue blogging. There were parts of me that said, “eh I don’t need this anymore.” But after some encouragement from my those around me and seeing my blogging community grow, I knew that this blog was something I still needed.

It started out as a place that I could record my crafty side and keep me preoccupied. I remember having a conversation early last spring with someone saying that I may just quit after we move because the crafts will die down. I felt that I had to have a craft every time I posted otherwise I wasn’t being true to the original intent. Sometimes I get so stuck up in responsibility and structure that it becomes a hindrance-but that is a topic for another day. Anyway this person told me that I should keep up with it and talk about life as it happens with the move, the new job, etc. She basically gave me permission to move past just being a craft blog, even though I had pretty much done that anyway from the get go. (I promise the crafts are coming back, they just needed to take a brief hiatus.)

This blog has been a place of reflection when I can’t seem to piece things together. (It’s like grad school all over again…Reflection without worrying about APA format-heck yes!) It has been a place of triumph, celebration, and support. I don’t always say the right things or say the profound thing, but I speak about what is on my heart and about what is happening in my world. And sometimes I just want to show a dog video! (of my own dog naturally)

Writing has always been something I have enjoyed. I am not always quick to verbally say things on my mind, so writing gives me time to process things in my own space and at my pace. And as you can see, I just have at it and sometimes don’t know when to stop.

When I first started it was merely a way to share more with people I already knew. I had no idea the world that this blog would open up to me. I have met some pretty amazing individuals through the blog world. Living in Ames, I was not surrounded by many who understood what I was going through as a military spouse. Reaching out to fellow bloggers gave me a connection, that during the inception of this blog, I didn’t realize I needed. I was able to read others stories and feel their pain as my pain and saw feelings that I had not been able to put into words yet. For me this has turned out to be one of the greatest gifts of becoming a blogger. These strangers opened up to me in a way that made me feel that I was not alone while Tom was gone.

This has been a great journey to help me process life in relation to my role as an Army wife, but also spanned many other facets of my life unintentionally.

So thank you to those who inspired me to start this blogaventure and those that inspire me to continue.

Here are some of my “best ofs” from the past year:

My reaction to base living

Processing my grandparent’s deaths

First anxiety attack of the deployment

Do all that you can

Marriage is Awesome-probably my all time favorite for so many reasons I could not begin to explain.

My version of the ripple effect

Christmas Devotional

Have a little faith

Tom’s home! Goodbye Deployment!

There are more that I really enjoyed, but I will let you peruse through my blog past if you like. Not to be vain, but I think I wrote some quality stuff in the past year. In all seriousness though, I hope you enjoy it too.

And because I have been blessed with a community in the blog world, I wanted to share some blogs that I believe are brilliant. These are also blogs that I have enjoyed reading and feel moved by. These are military significant others, but let’s be honest, that is the whole reason I started blogging in the first place so I wanted to pay homage to those in that world.

http://armyamy.wordpress.com/

http://clickitupanotch.com/

http://armyeverafter.com/

http://sweettea-lemonade.blogspot.jp/

http://www.thenotquitemilitarywife.com/

http://lifearmywifestyle.com/

http://pearlsdiamondsandeverythingelse.wordpress.com/

http://www.wifessionals.com/

http://janelle-and-dan.blogspot.com/

http://jomygosh.blogspot.se/

I follow a lot of other wonderful blogs, and if you would like to see the entire list then check me out at Bloglovin. You can also follow me on there, just click on the on my sidebar.

If you have read me for awhile or this is your first time, I want to THANK YOU for spending some time with my thoughts. The support and remarks coming my way are at times overwhelming, and I am truly humbled by the comments and views.

So here’s to a Happy Blog Birthday!

***I promise the next time I will have a craft. Get excited, I got the sewing machine out!

July 30, 2013 by Stephanie

The Friendzone

Working in Student Affairs you receive material about management and supervision styles all the time.

How to lead
how to motivate
how to create a team
how to create a team that you can lead with motivation
etc., etc., etc…

So naturally going into the women’s leadership series this morning, I was ready to hear how I as a woman could be a better manager.

For the most part I believe I am on the right track. Our speaker said some really great things that made me feel good about my personal views of the workforce and the plans I have for myself. She also shared a lot of the same work ethic philosophies that I had. In all, it was an energizing session to see a successful business woman as a role model, even if you only see her for an hour and a half session.

But I need to unpack some reactions that I am having to one particular statement.

She made a comment that it is very difficult to have friends in the workplace and be successful. This woman explained further that she did not mean she could not have sincere relationships with people at her job, but they just could not be her close friends and confidants.

Keep in mind that she is a “top dog” in her field.

I am 50/50 about this statement.

On the one hand I would agree with this, if the people at work are people that I supervise. These were some lessons I had to learn the hard way when I first became a supervisor. It is very difficult to be real friends with those that you supervise. You need to be able to draw that line for a myriad of reasons. I found that I could not keep them accountable as well if I was always concerned about whether they would like me. I needed to be able to remove myself from that social circle so I could be impartial in all arenas. It is ok to make unpopular decisions if it is the best for the end result, which can be tricky if you are always trying to become friends.

This is not to say that I did not care for those that I supervised. I truly did care about what was happening to them. I would cry with them, laugh with them, and defend them if needed. I wanted them to succeed, and would work to find environments/situations that would bring the best out of them. I was invested in their lives. But I knew when to challenge them and keep them accountable to their job, which was ultimately our relationship. This is just my opinion, but I think having a true friendship can cloud that work relationship. That doesn’t mean you can’t be friendly and show that you care. See how it gets tricky?

I remember telling Tom on many occasions that there were some of my students who would be my friends if we met in different circumstances, but the truth is I was there to make sure a job got done, not to find my new bestie. And this woman reminded me of the why. As a supervisor you need to show that you have the strength to hold things together and be the leader. It is hard to show weakness as a supervisor-I had to undergo the repercussions of doing so on a few occasions. You need to have friends outside of the workspace so you can let loose and be vulnerable so you are able to have that strong mentality while at work. I am not sure I would always be able to be on top of my game and be able to make some tough decisions if I was always worried that it would make our outing that weekend tense and awkward. Your friends are supposed to be people that you have no reservations around, and for me anyway I am not sure this is completely possible with the work responsibilities.

But this is just my own view of supervising students….

So I got to thinking about how this may look from a professional standpoint. Will it be the same as I continue on in my journey in Student Affairs?

To be honest, I am not completely sure this theory of no friends in the workplace can apply to all facets and all fields.

For example, when Tom and I talked about this at dinner, he said, “Yea, that’s not really an option where I work. You can’t big spoon little spoon in a sleeping bag with a business acquaintance.

So I can’t say that I completely buy into that you shouldn’t make friends at work. I don’t know if I would want to work that way the rest of my life. Then it just becomes about getting a paycheck and doing the time, which believe me is extremely boring and exhausting. I think about my profession and look at some of the people who I view as role models and I see them very successful but also having close friendships in our field. And some of my closest friends are those I met at work. I think that is why it has been so difficult to move from one job to the next. But in thinking about it, most of my close friends have been people who are at the same level as I am so there was never a supervision dynamic there.

Then I start thinking about my relationship with my supervisors. Some I respect and think the world of them, some have become mentors and my go to people in a work crisis (and often life crisis), some I don’t like but I respect enough to keep working for them, and some I just tolerate and do what they say to keep my head above water, and some I don’t respect and completely disregard what they say because of their lack of–well lots of things.

But was I ever really friends with them? And did that supposed friendship–or lack there of–impact how I felt about them as a supervisor? My mind is rolling…

I guess my two cents is I think you can have friends at work. I think you need to first look at what your work relationship is and whether or not you can see a personal friendship negatively impacting that role in anyway. Only you can define that for yourself because ultimately you have to live with the decisions you make. You have to think about the risk and rewards and see what you are willing to put on the line and at what cost. I personally don’t believe that I need to be friends with everyone that I work with. I want real authentic friends, and if I find that at work great, but if I don’t I am not going to force it. I will however be friendly and reach out to people that I work with to make sure we are doing what we can for the common good of our institution. But I think sometimes people do mistake this for a need for a true friendship. I will be kind and friendly to you, but we don’t have to hang out every weekend to have a positive work relationship or to create trust. That may rub people the wrong way, especially in a touchy feely profession like Student Affairs, but that’s my truth.

So maybe I do agree with this woman more like 70/30.

Although if you do have friends at work you may just have the newest hit on TV…

What are your thoughts on friends in the workplace?

Can you have them to be successful?

Do you put your supervisors or those you supervise in the friendzone?

July 29, 2013 by Stephanie

Frolic with Grace

My goal in life is to be as good of a person my dog already thinks I am. ~Author Unknown

If you have been following me at all, there is no surprise that I love my dog. So today is all about my little lady.

My parents willed me this chair from my childhood. It is an old beat-up lazy chair, that is slightly pink. So it matches nothing that I own, but I absolutely loved this chair growing up. I spent hours reading books in this chair, so they gave it to me in the great purging of the Glinn household.

Well, it has now become Grace’s chair. She is in it all the time.

She loves staring out the window to our backyard. I originally had the chair facing in a more functional way with the room, but Grace moved it to the side like this to make it more functional for her outside watching.

Like I said, this is no longer my chair. We now refer to it as Grace’s bed.

We have always let Grace sleep in our bed with us, so this chair has left an empty spot in our bed at night. For the most part we are ok with it because she is a bed hog and will pretty much lay on you and not be willing to budge. But there are moments that it is a little sad for us as doggy parents.
And this sparked this week’s episode of “Talks with Tom.”

Tom-I like it when Grace sleeps in other parts of the house.

Me-Why’s that?

Tom-Because when she gets in her chair it is a little insulting because I am right here. She is basically saying she doesn’t want to sleep with me. When she sleeps in other rooms, it’s like she is at summer camp.

Just this morning we marveled at the fact that she slept with us most of the night. Later to find out it was probably because she wanted to melt our hearts a little bit with glee before we found her puddle of pee all over the living room. She was probably embarrassed because this is totally out of character for her.

And just when I made her a new chew toy! The nerve!

I love making Grace new toys out of household items that are worn out. I am all about sustainability and reusing things when I can.

Grace does not allow us to keep nice bedding because we–and by we, I mean Tom–plays and wrestles with her on the bed. Impossible to keep a nice bed made.

So we get holes like this in our sheets.

In my effort to be green and also save some of our green, I cut up the fabric to use for a project that we are currently working on for our bathroom, but I still had a lot of “unusable scraps.”

I cut the leftovers into long strips, knotted, and braided them together to make a new rope toy for Grace. These are her favorites because she likes ripping them.

This is super easy to do and then I don’t feel so bad about throwing away sheets. My suggestion though is to make sure you make them long enough to make lots of knots. This will make them a little more durable to doggie teeth. For this one I made 4 separate braids then knotted those braids like the friendships bracelets we all made as kids.

She perked up from her nap to play with it a little bit! Success!

I have also made new toys out of old socks that have holes in them. I know others who have done this but they commented that their dogs then would grab any sock regardless of toy status or not. I didn’t have this problem with Grace, but just be weary if you do!

We have been considering upping our little family by adding another furbaby. We have been discussing the pros and cons of getting another dog, and right now the pros outweigh the cons. I have already been scouring shelters’ websites to see who our new rescue puppy could be, but we want to make sure that this will be a good decision for both Grace and the new puppy. Ideally, we would want to get one around the same age as Grace, and more than likely the same breed if not one similar. But who knows once we actually go look at a dog and let them meet Grace to ensure compatibility. Any thoughts and comments on the subject of owning several dogs are welcome! We want to be realistic and do the dogs justice if we choose to adopt another rescue, so any helpful advice would be awesome.

For now we are enjoying our time with just our Gracie lady. Here are some fun videos from our weekend. Yep, we are totally those parents…ok honestly I am totally that parent.

That was the first time she played with a sprinkler hose. She had a blast with it!

There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face. ~Ben Williams

July 25, 2013 by Stephanie

Throwback Thursday

This last weekend was my high school ten year reunion.

When did that happen?

10 years. So what do I have to say for myself?

Never. Would. Have. Imagined.

You grow up thinking your life is going to go down this perfect path to happiness. Well, happiness still attainable, but down the path you envisioned and planned for, probably not.

So let me take you back to 2003.

18 years old-adult finally! And I think I know everything, just ask my parents.
moving out of Kansas City-which did not seem like that big of a deal since my parents were divorced and I had become fairly independent going back and forth every weekend since I was 4. And I was ready to be away from my family-what 18 year old isn’t?
ok so fairly independent, but extremely painfully shy. I liked riding the coattails of people into a group. This is probably why I found my home in the arts (band, theater, and photography-I could either hide behind something or was given lines.)
huge dork-when I sat down to look at pictures I made a disclaimer to Tom that if he thought I was a dork now, the stats grow exponentially for back then
going to college for elementary education
I had my first year of undergrad paid for through the dozens of scholarships I applied for, but I was apprehensive of how the rest of the time was going to get paid.
I had just started my first summer at Worlds of Fun, which I thought would be a one time deal.
I did not own a car.

Looking back these things had a significant impact on how the last ten years went.

I acted like an adult and rarely asked my parents for guidance or support like many in college. And luckily my parents were not helicopter parents so they let me have my space. It made me fend for myself and fight my own battles. Don’t get me wrong, my parents were always there for guidance and support, I just learned how to fumble through things on my own first. This helped me learn who I was and how to pick myself up after I made a mistake.

I have lived in several places since then. I have not moved back to Kansas City, and that is still up in the air if I will. At that point [2003], I was so ready to be gone. Now I look forward to my visits home because I have lived far away for so long and I know that I am missing out on things. Most of my family lives in that area, and we have two nieces now that we don’t get to see grow up. We have decided that eventually we will end up back in Missouri so that we can be closer to family. The “where” will depend on job searches.

The shyness is a roller coaster itself. I am still painfully shy, I just have learned how to mask it-for the most part. It is really surprising that I made it through residence life as long as I did. I found when I was in my own element and a chosen environment, I could make it count, with a lot of work and energy. (And then a weekend holed up in my apartment). Over the past few years, I had several staff members comment that they were surprised I was an introvert. I am not sure if that is a compliment or not, but I guess it shows some growth that I can put my shyness aside. It also showed that they were unaware of what extrovert and introvert actually mean-teaching moment. I will say, I definitely have become much more self aware and learned a lot about balance so I could put away the shyness in some parts of my life. (All those personality tests…)

However if it is a new environment or one that I have not chosen myself where I know few people or no one, I still have severe anxiety and become that wallflower I have always been. I will constantly check my watch to see if I have put in enough time. Making friends is difficult to do on my own still, which moving here, just makes it all the more apparent. Housing really spoils you by putting you in forced cohorts. Tom and I recently had a heated discussion about my “preferred” way of making friends in small intimate groups instead of large gatherings. Fortunately and unfortunately, my hubster is a social butterfly and can easily work his way into any conversation. Sometimes he has a hard time understanding my hard time. My awkwardness however makes me feel like I am always 3 steps behind, so most of the time in new situations I just observe. And I hate forced mingling. Navigating socials at conferences always gives me a pit in my stomach and is the reason why I sprint towards a familiar face. So this shyness/awkwardness is still a work-in progress.

But, I am much more confident with who I am, and the shyness has become more of an inner battle. I have become slightly more assertive, although Tom would argue that I still let people walk over me too much. Eh, I can’t give it all up I guess. At least there is growth right? And I am not unhappy about my shyness. I have made many good friends over the years, and wont stop making friends. I just take my time and do it very carefully. Overtime, I have just learned what are the best routes for me, or how to force an awkward smile and excuse myself for a graceful exit.

I am still a huge dork, and perhaps I have sharpened that in some areas. I like to proclaim that I am a classical dork, and I embrace it every day.

While I still found myself in education, I became a statistic when I changed my major. I learned within a month of my freshman year that elementary schools were not in my future. I quickly changed to Social Studies Education, which is what I stayed with. However as things happened thought my involvement and teaching practicals, I learned that I actually wanted to work with college students. I proceeded to get my Master’s in Counseling with an emphasis in Student Affairs.

Now that first year of college, I grappled with the fact I needed to figure out a way to continue to pay for school. I was persistent about applying for scholarships and was fortunate to receive many. This is probably because many people stop applying for scholarships once they actually get to college. Don’t stop! There are sooo many that very few people apply to. I ran a scholarship committee for the last three years, and only one year was there more than six people who applied for a $1000 scholarship. Anywho, I also managed to keep my academic tuition scholarship for my entire career. Whoop being a smarty pants finally worked in my favor! This financial situation led me to work in several areas on campus and showed me that a hard work ethic and determination can get you pretty far. Can you believe I worked for the alumni center phone bank? Seriously this shy girl did make those annoying telemarketing phone calls. I was horrible at it, but it was a fun semester none the less. The two jobs that probably changed the course of my life though were both in housing. I was a Community Advisor for three years and worked for a year as an Office Assistant in the main housing office. Because of these opportunities, I learned that I did in fact love teaching, just on a different scale than I thought. This experience prompted me to change my life plan and go into student affairs which led me to Clemson University for my Masters. And oh the lessons learned from housing….And because of all this, I managed to get two degrees with zero debt. Yep you read that correctly. Toot my own horn yes indeed! I paid everything the moment it was due and have no bills to worry about now. It has made my education very dear to my heart and probably is one of my greatest achievements to come out unscathed by the debt most college graduates face today.

Not only did I work on campus, but I continued to work at Worlds of Fun for 6 years. This was also a defining experience in my life, for so many reasons. Working at an amusement park is an awesome way to spend your summers. You gain some great memories, friends, and leadership experience. You also gain some really random knowledge like the best way to clean up puke and how to run a steam engine locomotive. Who doesn’t want to know that? (Unfortunately, you also get some wacko tan lines but you can relieve the pain by riding roller-coasters all day.) This is also where I met Tom, so we are pretty much in debt to that place. I would love to get my hands on a vintage WoF map to do something crafty with it. Who knew that this temp job [starting in the games dept no less] drastically changed the course of my life?

My parents didn’t get me a car while I was in high school. I had to earn that ’99 Jimmy. They gave me a price that I had to reach on my own before we could look into it. I wasn’t able to do my share until after my freshmen year of college. Saving thousands of dollars while paying for school, is a hefty charge! But I am so grateful that my parents dealt me this hand, even though I hated it at the time. First off, UCM was a suitcase campus. So I was forced to stay at school on the weekends and make friends. Done and done. I joined clubs and had some great experiences that year that were a foundation for the rest of my time in the Burg. Secondly, it taught me a lot about fiscal responsibility and how to save. I have also never had a car payment in my life because of this and my parent’s support/encouragement. I am getting ready to get my third car using this method=just a little more savings to go!

So yea, I guess you could say the last ten years have been pretty good to me. I have learned a lot and become a better person then that scrawny nerdy shy girl who was terrified of the future.

Unfortunately, I was not in a position to make it to the actual reunion in KC. It would have been nice to see all those blasts from the past, and interesting to see how we all have changed. If my little novel of reflection here is any indication, we all probably made some strides.

Here are some visuals from my senior year. Photos sure have upped their game in the last decade!

This was my favorite senior picture. In high school, band was my main identity. I played all through college and hope to someday pick it up again in a community band. I loved that saxophone. I had a luggage cart that I use to bungee cord it to so I could literally take it everywhere. That thing was heavy! Why there is no picture of this, I am not sure. For now just picture a gangly girl pushing around a box that could hold a person while trying not to make eye contact with anyone. Oh and I was probably carrying at least 2 or 3 bags with all my basketball/track gear, music and photography knickknacks, and all my books and class folders. It’s astonishing that I did not have a trapper keeper. Dad used to call me a pack mule when I got out of his truck. Good picture in your head? I said I was a dork. Don’t be hating; I think I came out alright.

Besides some changes due to my braces that I had in college, physically I was fortunate to stay fairly the same. I still own and wear these dress pants. Between you and me, I actually think I look better with the decade behind me! Although I am still just as clumsy…

I was in the senior play “Sabrina Fair” as the maid. My dad still talks about my drunken burping scene. Years of practice finally paid off-on the burping, not the drinking. (I can honestly say I never drank until college.) Acting in this play may have been the start of my infatuation with all things Audrey Hepburn. Sabrina is my favorite after all. Then I played the school “hottie” and was part of the “band” in our musical production of “Grease.” So much fun! These two parts were completely out of my comfort zone and totally not my persona in HS. I remember practicing my “strut” in those atrocious heels for hours just so I wouldn’t fall. It was really fun looking back at my lame attempt of scrapbooking and all the little things I kept. It sparked a lot of memories that I had completely forgotten about.

Who could forget about school dances?! And yes I wore gloves, doesn’t everyone at least once? Seriously though, why are corsages necessary?

I am so glad I don’t have to go though the waiting to be asked and all that drama and pressure of who is taking who. Luckily, my best friend , Ryan was my date to most of them that year. Ryan and I met in 4th grade where he teased me endlessly and made me cry on more than one occasion. I can never look at Sassafras the same.

These ladies were some of my besties throughout high school, or BFFs as we called them in the olden days. It’s hard to believe that most of us are married and beginning to start our own little families. Ok not hard to believe because we are awesome; it’s just when you reflect that it has been 10 years you just think holy cow did we just do that? I wish we could see each other more, but we literally all live in different states and have jobs like grown ups.

We went to DC for a band trip, which was amazing. I would love to go back again since our visit was brief. Plus now with my history background and Tom being military, I think I would be able to soak it in much more than my 17 year old self did.

I was fortunate (or unfortunate some days) to be surrounded by my family my senior year. My brother was a freshmen and my dad was my marine biology teacher. Now while I look fairly the same, (my hair is now flipped under instead of out-but I will have you know that I did have long and permed hair in between), my brother and dad cannot say the same.

My dad has since retired, shaved his mustache, and grew out his hair. He is a long haired salt and pepper man now. Living a wild and crazy life, just like his shirt here.

And my brother grew a lot and now has a daughter. Still crazy! But he is still as stubborn as he looks in the picture above.

I don’t have a recent photo of the 3 of us; we are not really that great at taking pictures together during family time. The second picture is the most recent one I could find with the three of us in it, and that is in 2011 at my wedding. Mental note to make that happen the next time I’m home.

So was this where I envisioned my life 10 years ago? Why don’t we hop on Xanga and find out? Oh goodness, my early days of blogdom.

Times change, and so do we. Hopefully we can look back and say, “Well that was delightful.”

My last ten years have been pretty decent to me for sure. I love my life and who I am with, and I feel blessed every day. Couldn’t have planned it better myself!

Here’s to the next ten years being as fruitful as the last.

And it just goes to show that you have no idea what God has in store for you.

Now what’s next?