Me, a Redhead?

Here I am as a redhead wearing one of my mom's very old wigs

Can you believe that after tomorrow's final at 8:00 p.m., Pete will be half-way through with his graduate degree? Well, I can! Especially tonight since some red-headed girl has been calling him every five minutes with a question, but that's a different story we'll discuss later. It's been one hectic year. At times I've felt like a single mom, but knowing that we're on the downward slope makes it easier to approach another year of the crazies.

Just watching my husband pore over the books and work problems that must come from Mars reminds me of my college days. Life was so ME then. I wish I knew how easy I had it; scheduling classes when I wanted, going out almost every night, and working at a stress-free job I adored. I had time to work out at the gym daily, although it was at 6:00 a.m. because of classes and working. On weekends I could take little trips or go to football games (that's when the Aggies were good). I had no idea what people meant when they told me to "enjoy it now because when you get in the real world it's a different story."

Well, I embraced that next stage of my life with the enthusiasm of a middle school cheerleader with ADHD. I acquired a great job before I even graduated (which this month has been ~gulp~ 22 years) and enjoyed my teaching career for twelve years before becoming a stay-at-home-mom.

Now I barely have enough time to do all I need to do, and I'm not working outside the house, I don't go to the gym and I definitely don't "party" anymore. With my writing, mothering, cooking, grocery shopping, laundering, cleaning (kind of), chauffeuring, nursing and everything else I find myself almost dreaming of those college days again. Don't get me wrong- I love my life. It's just... I always wanted to be a redhead working on her MBA.

Through the Years

Here is a picture of my nephew Matt and son Drew. Matt just graduated from Texas A&M in May, and is headed over to the rival (Texas University) where he will persue his Master's degree. Time really flies~not too long ago, I was the one graduating from A&M. I was the one in college, living on my own. I was the one enjoying all that college life has to offer. (Ahem, yes- I did have too much fun at times). So when I got the card from the Association of Former Students informing me that our twenty year reunion celebration would be on Labor Day, I was flabbergasted, to say the least. I quickly did the math, and found that, yes-they are correct.

Am I that old? I certainly don't feel it; I feel just as young as I did back then.

(Picture of me with Katie, her friend and Nini's two dogs.)

But I have mellowed out since then. I no longer party or stay up all night (unless it's with the kids). I am a proud mother of three who put my career on hold so I could be here for my children. I am a wife to the man of my dreams. I am truly happy with my role in life now. Guess what? I was not happy in college. Not down deep, within myself. I felt lost, unloved and confused and searched for other people or things to fill that hole. I did not know God yet.

The past twenty years have been quite a ride. My journey through life has not been lacking of adventure. In fact, the ride has been like a roller-coaster; full of ups and downs, twists and turns. But I have stayed on that ride and don't ever want to get off. God is in control, and He has big plans for me. I can't wait!

Gig 'Em Aggies

College Station, Tx was our destination for the last part of a wonderful spring break. My nephew attends our alma mater, Texas A&M and we wanted to visit him before he graduates in May. I was astounded at how much this college town has grown into a bustling mecca. What once used to be a small country community revolving around the university now resembles a suburb of Houston, with many strip centers and restaurants and fun things to do for families as well as college students. The campus has grown as well, and we had a great time walking around Friday night after dinner, thanks to Matt and his sweet girlfriend, Jen. Shown in the photos are pictures of the campus, Pete and I under the century tree on campus and the George Bush Presidential Library. Under the beautiful massive century tree were lots of rose pedals. Jen told me that girls get proposed to under the tree and it looked like there had been a lot of activity lately. With graduation so close, that doesn't surprise me. Saturday we toured the George Bush (senior) Presidential Library. That place was very impressive. We lucked into a physics festival going on, then toured the museum. Nasa Space Center also had a display in the library, so we stayed for over two hours taking it all in. The presidential library is a trip in and of itself and I highly recommend this educational and historical library for the whole family. We did not have time to do everything I would have liked; after all, I lived in College Station for four years. I guess we will have to plan another trip back to Texas A&M University soon.