Graduation Week Part 1

Well, it's been more than a while since i posted anything on my blog. I would really like to be more diligent with writing on here. Since my semester is over now I will get back to writing, but  i didn't want to write anything for a while there because i wrote so many papers, proposals, and assessments during this last semester. I needed a break. And, since i had been planning Erin's graduation parties and planning for family to come, i had zero time and desire to write anything. But....now school is over, graduation is done, and family that was visiting are all back home. So, it's back to normal around here (whatever that is, lol).

My semester ended in May and I wound up on the Dean's list again ;-).( My GPA is now 3.9). I also gave up my position as President of the Human Services Honor Society, thank God. But, i took the office position of Historian...which is really nothing more than a glorified picture taker. At least i am still an officer, but this way i have, like, zero responsibility. The next semester i will be taking only two classes so that i can focus on Rachel. Since it will be her last year of homeschooling before she will go off to high-school, I feel that i need more time devoted for her and less for me. Once she goes to high-school, i will finish my school full-time and then, hopefully, get a job in the Human Services field. I think i have a year of school and a half-year of internships before i can graduate. Well, enough about me....Erin will be joining me at Del Tech next semester for her first year of college. I can't wait for her to experience college life. I think she will really enjoy the experience.

For those who don't know, Erin graduated high school on June 9th as the salutatorian of her class. We are beyond proud of her! We wanted as much family and friends around her as possible at this special time in her life, so we invited like 15 extra people to come to the graduation ceremony and then had a party for her the following Saturday. My in-laws were scheduled to arrive on Tues morning from Southern Florida and my parents and sister and niece were scheduled to arrive on Tues evening from North-Western Forida. So, the week before they were all scheduled to arrive.....the cleaning began, lol. The house needed to be spring-cleaned anyway, but my parents and in-laws had not been to my house in years and i really wanted to impress them....and wash away like two years of un-spring-cleaned dirt in certain areas. Everything got washed, including the ceilings, which took me like six hours one day. Finally, everything got done (except the window sills, i forgot about them) and the house looked great. I was ready to entertain! My in-laws arrived on time, so i spent the first part of Tuesday with them. It was really nice to see them, since we had not really seen each other for a couple of years. Our last couple of visits were not that great (mostly my fault) and i had some apologizing to do...which I did...and was promptly forgiven :-) So, I truly did enjoy my in-laws, and i'm truly looking forward to more good visits.

My parent's and sister's plane was delayed so they did not arrive until almost 1 a.m. That was not too pleasant, especially since we got a flat tire on the way to get them from the airport, which is an hour away! We were on the side of the highway at midnight, trucks were wizzing past at what seemed like 100 miles an hour, and all i could picture was one of the truck drivers dozing off and swerving off the road and hitting my van while Steve was trying to change the tire! Rachel and I hopped over the guardrail to try to stay safe while we watched Steve start to jack up the van to put the donut back on. The van was almost jacked all the way up and then *bam* the jack breaks and the van comes crashing down! Thank God we are members of AAA and they came and changed our tire only 13 minutes after we called. By the time we got to the airport, it was sooooo late that Dad and Mom already had gotten their rental car and drove off to Uncle Denny's house and Kathy and Erica were waiting outside for us. It was so great to see them, it felt like forever, but it had been almost a whole year since i've seen them. We got them in the van and me and my sister just started talking and talking and pretty much didn't stop until i brought them back to the airport five days later, lol. I didn't get to see my parents until the next day when they came over for dinner before the graduation. It was so great to see them! My only regret is that i really did not get to spend  that much time with my parents :-( but it really couldn't be helped.

Well, i'm tired so i will blog about the rest of the graduation/family week tomorrow. Good night...and i promise, i''ll be back soon and much more often. Till then:
Tonight i am thankful for:
1. My sister, who is my best friend
2. My parents, who i don't get to see near enough
3. My Erin, who always works hard to be the person she wants to be, even when the going gets tough!! I'm so proud of the young woman she has become! Thank you my darling daughter for a wonderful week.

My Two Concerts

Well, the Bon Jovi concerts were both great, but the first one was absolutely awesome! The only thing that could have made it better was if i had my hubby with me. But, being inside the circle (aka, in the "pit"), was the best. I could not believe how great my seats were when i first got there. There were only three rows in front of me, and directly behind me was the the back half of the the stage that the boys would come onto for about 5 songs during the concert. David Bryan, the keyboard player, was like right in front of me, albeit i was staring directly at his backside :-). I mean, i was leaning on the stage! It was incredible! And, on the way back to the main stage, Mr. Jon Bon Jovi SHOOK MY HAND!! Oh man, i thought i would faint! Absolutely incredible. For the next night, Erin had won 2 tickets to the concert, so i got to share my love of Jovi with my eldest. The seats were ALL the way in the back, up in the "nose-bleeds", so it was a little scary at first, but we got into it and i got to watch Tico work his magic on the drums for the first time ever, so that was all good. Now, i see that they are dropping floor seats for the shows at the new Giants Stadium in May, but those seats are like 400 dollars a pop, so i don't think i'll be making that concert. I would like to go to that one with Steve, even in the "nose-bleed" section, I mean going to Giants Stadium to see Jovi is a dream to me, but, finances are tight and we got a lot of things going on, with Erin's graduation, party, and summer travel to think about, not to mention the never-ending medical bills, i may have to wait for next tour. Until then, here are some pictures from my two concerts this tour:

 This is my view of the stage right behind me:

This is how close Jon was to me, too bad the picture is a bit fuzzy:

And this is David:

and Richie:

And Richie and Jon:

And these are the only pictures of the second concert of me and Erin:

It was a great two days!
Have a good week.

The simple woman's daybook for March 22, 2010 (with a Jovi Twist)

FOR TODAY March 22, 2010

Outside my window...Dark and cloudy, it rained all day but it has been getting warm, sunny and beautiful lately.

I am thinking...I am loved by God.....I've had a lot of things going on personally and emotionally that are not pleasant to deal with, and I can just feel the Lord working in those areas of my life that I felt were overwhelming.

I am thankful for...Erin winning Bon Jovi tickets for Wednesday night!!! I had already been so excited because i bought tickets for Tuesday's (tomorrow) show when ticketmaster dropped the price for floor seats and i got 4th row. WOW. Than, when a local radio station was giving away tickets for the next night's show to the 94th caller, i had the girls help me call over and over and over and Erin won them. YaY! Now Erin will be going with me on Wednesday and I get to see two shows when i didn't even think i would even see one, and i get to share my obsession with my daughter. So, yeah, i'm thankful for that.

From the learning rooms...Still doing Roman history, earth science, math, spelling, english and so on with Rach. Will be teaching Rachel how to do a research paper soon. This is a light school week for both of us. I have just one assignment due this week and one meeting on Thursday. Plus, i am missing class on Wednesday, but....priorities and all. (Bon Jovi comes first ;)

From the kitchen...Left overs tonight. Steve made meatball subs last night, mmmm one of our favorites. The crock pot will be going full steam this week.

I am wearing...peach capri's, blue tank, white overshirt, socks. Yeah, peach and blue? I would never go out like this, but this is my pj's.

I am creating...Nothing at the moment. Soon i will be creating a history research paper, a social policy group proposal, an agenda for tua meetings and an outline for the group class i will have to lead. But, that's next week....this week has been reserved for........Jovi.

I am going...Yup, you guessed it, to two Jovi concerts, Tues and Wed. Then on Thursday i have a group meeting in the afternoon and school at night and Friday it's bible study and friend time, and Sunday is for church. Sounds like a great week to me!

I am reading...My history books for class and research, a Ted Dekker book that i don't remember the title of right now, oh and i just remembered i have GOT to read my group class book because i have a HUGE test on Thursday night, so i guess i will have to study for that.

I am hoping...That I will not get lost or nervous driving into and out of the city twice this week, and that i will study enough to do well on that test.

I am hearing...The TV is on, but no one is watching it. Other than that i only hear the keys of my laptop clicking since everybody else is sleeping.

Around the house...I cleaned up a bit this afternoon, and, as noted in a different post, i actually did take a brush to the carpet when my vacuum cleaner once again refused to work, but i am looking forward to spring cleaning very soon.

One of my favorite things...um, having really good seats at a Bon Jovi concert :-)

A few plans for the rest of the week: other than the things already described, I have a pre-op doctors appt. tomorrow and on Friday i am going with Steve to his ENT doctor so that we can discuss getting him another sleep study, which i am sooooo excited about. I have been wanting him to get another one done for years, and now he has decided to do it. More about those doctor visits later.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

 

 What other picture could it have been, lol? From the last concert i went to. I'm gonna get some great pictures this time for being so close.
Have a great week!
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The Simple Woman's Daybook for March 9, 2010

FOR TODAY March 9th 2010

Outside my window...Dark and quiet, but today was a beautiful day with 65 degree temps. Windows open, warm breezes!

I am thinking...I need to go to bed soon, I have a lot to do tomorrow

I am thankful for...Armingers, the place that i bought our 3rd car. They really take care of me down there. My check engine light came on and in order to find out what is wrong and fix it they needed to keep my car for a day or two, so they gave me a loaner car...just like that! I am so thankful that i have a place to buy and fix my cars that i trust to be honest and take care of me. If you live in DE and need a used car, go there!

From the learning rooms...Same old stuff. Rachel is doing earth science in Bob Jones (which we do not like, but we paid for the course, so we need to finish it out) Math is Saxon 7/6 and is her best subject, though i do need to correct her work to make sure she is on the right track. Haven't really done much for history, still talking about ancient Rome. From my learning rooms; i need to finish my Needs Assessment tomorrow and also i need to come up with a topic for a  psycho-educational group that i need to develop and run, but i don't know what to do it on.

I am creating...The written portion of my needs assessment, which should be done tomorrow. A proposal for the Needs Assessment and a Proposal for my psycho-educational group, once i come up with a good topic. Any ideas? It needs to be something i know enough about to teach a group and interesting enough to be talked about for a few minutes within the group setting and by the group members. UGH

I am going...To school tomorrow night, to pick up my car Thursday, to do a fundraiser for TUA Thursday then school Thursday night, nothing Friday since my minor surgery was rescheduled due to insurance reasons. Maybe woman's breakfast at church on Saturday and then church on Sunday, but i'm still debating that.

I am reading...My pre-civil war history textbook, group text book, social policy text book, some of the Bible here and there, some of my bible study book on prayer and a LOT of articles on teen-age depression, which is what i'm doing my needs assessment on.

I am hoping...That my car is not going to cost me anything, that the budgeting mistake that I made today will not bite me in the butt next month, that I will get used to not having any TV to help me fall asleep at night, that the weather will stay warm.

I am hearing...Steve watching something on his computer

Around the house...All is pretty quiet since it is just about everybody's bedtime. House is fairly clean, but a bit dusty, which i didn't really notice until all the doors and window shades were open to let in the warm air :-) and it needs to be vacuumed, but i have the worst luck with vacuums. I thought i fixed the one that we bought only one year ago. I changed the belt, the filter and the hepa thingy, but it still smells like it is burning and is not sucking stuff up. I will NOT buy another vacuum! If i have to, i will pick up each and every hair off the floor myself before i buy another vacuum, lol.

One of my favorite things...I found out that i can watch tv shows that i have missed for free on the internet (why were we paying 70 a month for satellite?) One of my favorite things are-- free things!!

A few plans for the rest of the week: School, home-school, homework, cleaning, cooking, laundry......

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...A picture of me, Steve, Erin and Jess, our new adopted daughter, taken at a Christmas party.

  If you want to blog about your week, go here http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/  and join in.
Today I am thankful for:
1. Having a  mechanic I can trust
2. The fact that this semester is already half way over :-)
3. My mother, who is also my friend