Furbabies

I am a mama. My babies simply have four legs and a little more hair than yours. Yes, I really love my babies as much as you love yours. I pick up scattered toys, I clean up puke, I potty train, I soothe away fears and I want to pull my hair out when they are underfoot sometimes. I pay for food and shelter, healthcare costs and the like, I reward their successes and scold them for their misdoings. In these ways, I am just like you.

I teach my babies good manners, when we are in public they know they must behave. When they misbehave, I correct their behavior or remove them from the situation, I don’t simply ignore the disturbances they are creating for other people. My babies are not allowed to play unsupervised, creating havoc for those not responsible for them. In these ways, I may not be just like you.

I will not pass judgment on the money you spend for violin lessons or soccer gear. I will expect the same courtesy for the money I spend on daycare or playgroups. You may find the clothes/accessories my babies have as laughable, but stop and consider that I might find the way you dress your children laughable too, I am just too polite to say so. It is not my place to question the depth of your love for your children. Until you know what it’s like to hold your little furry one in your arms as they draw their last breath, you cannot question mine.

“If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.”—Francis of Assisi

Comfort

Awe... isn't she sweet? I mean just rotten... The downstairs of the townhome is often a tad bit chilly in order to keep the upstairs bearable, so since I my lil' furbabies have practically no fur (ironic?) there are always an abundance of blankets for them to snuggle under. This weekend, while straightening up the living room (which really should happen multiple times a day with a dog that will chew anything) I finally realized something. I started to fold up the assorted throws that were scattered about and fluff and straighten the throw pillows... then it occurred to me that it really was pointless. I mean, if I do this, one of the dogs will inevitably sit and nudge at the stack of blankets until they tumble over or will curl up somewhere looking cold and me or the roomie will spread the blankets back out. Yes when company stops by, I'll take 5 minutes to fold up the throws and arrange the pillows (and hopefully have enough of a heads up to vacuum!). However, in the meantime, I think it's better to just let things remain comfortable. It's not that I don't appreciate an asthetic looking living room, but I also want it to be a living room that you can... LIVE in. This is also why, when you stop by, you'll notice that there is a gigantic dog bed crammed into the small space between the couch and the entertainment center. I'm the first one to admit... it looks cluttered, and I've moved it to other spots... but you see... my furbabies apparently love to snuggle in the bed, crammed securely into that tight spot. When the bed gets pulled out from the corner, they manage to drag it back... I've taken the hint... they live here too, it makes them happy, I can deal with it.

It's not over after 30, It's just getting started

I've taken a significant blogging hiatus and I'm hoping that I can now get back to it. Over the past several months, I've found interesting things I want to blog about, just never seem to manage to take the time to sit down and start typing.

I figured I'd start back up with an update on a goal that I shared awhile back. Back at the end of '08 (doesn't that sound like a long time ago) I shared that I had decided to go back to school. True to my word, in Jan of '09 I was back in school taking classes. In December of '09 I actually completed my Associate's Degree! It was odd, because from the minute I started back to school, I hadn't really given my Associate's Degree much thought. I was (and still am) focused on my Bachelor's degree. However when I received my Associate's Degree in the mail, I felt such a sense of accomplishment. I was greatful for that feeling because this past semester has been a struggle for me. Not academically, in terms of grades, I completed the spring semester with flying colors, but their were just a few snags at the beginning of the semester with my textbooks getting lost at the warehouse and stuff - not to mention that I had been going to school (after being out of school for just over 10 years!) for a year straight, including summer, with no breaks... so I was reaching a burn out.

I finished out the spring semester and I am actually enjoying a summer off. I debated taking a summer course, but after struggling to keep some momentum during the spring and knowing that the fall semester was going to be a hard one, I decided that taking a couple months to catch my breath, relax and re-focus.

Now I have my sights set on my Bachelor's degree. In the fall, I will be attending Northern Kentucky University (via online... I love that!) for either 3 or 4 semesters (I'm shooting for 3, but that may prove tricky) to finish out my Bachelor's degree in Organizational Leadership. I'm also starting to contemplate what I want to complete my Master's Degree in. I've been tossing around a few different ideas, but I think I'll wait until I'm closer to finishing my BA to make a final decision.

One thing that I've thought about alot as I've been back in school is how much I wish I hadn't taken time off the first time around. Once I stopped, it just seemed easy to not go back. It would be nice to already be finished. However, I don't think it was without some benefit. I've found that the work and life experience I've had over the last 10 years have given me much to draw from for my classes. Especially in the last semester, since my classes were oriented towards aspects of professional life. I don't think I would have gotten as much out of those classes the first time around. Of course, I wouldn't have been pursuing this degree the first time around. Perhaps that is why it has happened the way it did, because it's really hard at 18, with no real life experienc to decide what you want to do with the rest of your life!

So, that's where I am... a little over halfway through my BA, taking the summer off to enjoy other things, like READING for pleasure (I'm hoping to share some reviews on some of the books I've been reading). Stay tuned for the next step in this journey.