Well, I know there have been a couple of you wondering about my well being since I've been MIA in the blogging land. So, I just wanted to check in and let everyone know that I am doing just fine.
At one point, blogging became an obligation instead of just something I did for fun. I became overwhelmed with the review opportunities. And while I am grateful for those opportunities, I am in a season right now . . . one that does not put my blogging at the top of the priority list. Sure, I miss it. But I felt like I just needed to take a step back. It seemed as though all I blogged about were the bad things that were going on -- which is certainly not an accurate picture of my life. While bad things do happen, the happiness I am blessed with in my life far outweighs the little times of bad. And so, I've backed up and regrouped.
Now, I am about to enter my last term of college, so don't go expecting a whole lot from me just yet. My husband works extremely hard (two jobs) to take care of me and the girls and to give me the wonderful opportunity to finish my college degree. I don't take that privilege lightly. So, as far as priorities are concerned, my Lord Jesus comes first, my family comes in a close second and school comes in third. Just thought I'd throw all of that out there now so we're on the same page.
So, now on to the good stuff - what have you missed? Let's see . . . since numbered lists work really well for me, here it goes:
1) I just finished my school term at Troy. If you'll remember, I was taking Strategic Management, Innovation & Technology, and English II. Man, had I realized the work load of those 3 classes, I would have chickened out of taking all 3 at once. But, now I'm glad I did. And I got through it. Strategic Management was a semester full of case studies, exams and then one big Capstone Exam at the end of the course. This Capstone exam was composed by the College of Business and you have to pass it in order to pass the class. When I added up my final grade in that class, I'm certain I'm in the "A" range. Technology & Innovation was quite challenging too. Every week, we had a big case study, quizzes on all the chapters for that week and a discussion board assignment. We also had a group project that had to be completed by the end of the term. Can I just say that it is extremely hard to complete a group project when your group is spread out all across the U.S. We relied heavily on chat and email. The mid-term and final for this course were both 3 hour essay exams. I feel certain that I have an "A" for the final grade in this course also. English II - well, what's tell there? I had a total of three essays to complete and discussion board question each week. I also had to complete a research paper. I chose the topic of early childhood vaccinations for my paper. I had a fun time doing it and really learned a lot. I received a 97 out of 100 on the research paper. And with that paper, I feel certain that I have an "A" for the final grade in that class also.
2) Maddy has been sneezing a lot and scratching at her tongue. Sounds odd to you right? Well, not to me. You see, Maddy has food allergies and when she eats somethings she's allergic to, the first sign is usually scratching the tongue. Well, the sneezing and itchy tongue went on for a couple of days and I knew she hadn't eaten anything she was allergic to, so I made an appointment with the allergist to have her checked for seasonal allergies. Last week, we went in for the skin test and found out that Maddy is indeed allergic to cats, dust and dust mites. After finding out the results, a light bulb lit up in my head . . . you see, we've just started a weekly playdate with my cousin who just moved back into town. Well, she has two cats in her house. So, there is some of the reason why she's been reacting. However, when we look at the numbers, on a scale of 1-20, Maddy starts reacting at 7. Well, cats are listed at 10, dust is at 15 and dust mites are at a 17. So, dust mites are our enemy. Not only is she REALLY allergic to them, they are rating her as allergic to dust mites as she is peanuts. ACK! So, the doctor's recommendations: She'll be on Allegra for 30 days to see if it helps, I am to declutter her room - basically remove anything that can collect dust, remove all stuffed animals, wash her sheets twice a week in hot water, cover her mattress and pillow with the hypo-allergenic covers and rip up her carpet. Well, that's a tall order for one gal to take care of by herself. My house is pretty clean -- really, I'm not lying, most people remark on how clutter-free our house is and how clean it is most of the time. However, dust is dust. There is no way to stop it. But I set out this week and have been cleaning one room at a time. And I mean really cleaning -- dusting every nook on the ceiling fan, dusting the blinds . . . I mean everything. Now, I can't rip up the carpet - it is just not feasible at this time. However, I can vacuum it 3 times a week. Other than that, I've made a new rule - no shoes in the house and I've purchased two air purifiers for the house. If none of these efforts help and we haven't seen a difference in the thirty days that she's on Allegra, then they want us to go ahead with allergy shots. So, right now, we're just waiting to see what happens.
3) We're putting our house on the market --- this Saturday. Seriously, we are! Frankly, we're kind of out growing this house. And, when we initially purchased it, we set a deadline to move and the deadline is here. We'd like to move about 20 to 25 minutes from our current residence, closer to my parents. Lots of reasons why were doing this -- too many to go into on the blog. So, pray that maybe our house would move. Oh, and while you're at it, if you don't mind, pray that we sell our condo in Galveston also.
4) In less than a month, I'll be meeting my pilot wives friends in Chicago, IL. Yep - that's right. We're having a real life meet up of the wives. I've been frantically planning (along with help from another pilot wife, Jen) a girls weekend. We'll arrive on a Friday night and enjoy dinner and getting to know each other. Saturday consists of spa, Broadway show and night out on the town. And then Sunday, we have a farewell breakfast. I can't wait! I think we're going to have such a great time. And, I'll also be unveiling my brand spankin' new logo for the site at the meet up!
5) The pregnancy -- well all I can say is I just have to trust that it is going fine. The morning sickness is gone and really, I haven't had any other ill effects. My next appointment is on the 19th. I'm a little scared because according to my scales, I still haven't gained any weight. Is that normal? I don't know! But I'll try to check in and let you all know how it goes on the 19th.
6) My new term at school starts on Monday. I'll again be taking 3 classes, however, I'm certain these classes will not be as challenging. This term will end around May 15th. And I'll walk for graduation on June 20th.
Well, I think that just about catches everyone up on the chaos that is my life. Thanks for the concerns and I hope to check in more often.
