Today I received my bachelor's degree! It was a GREAT day!
We rode to Flagstaff with my in laws. Each of the girls coped differently with several hours in the car.
Heather read on her Nook and then watched scenery while listening to her mp3
Emily read half of Pride and Prejudice while listening to her mp3
Megan took a nap most of the way north, but she deleted the picture so I took this staged photo. She also listened to her mp3 and stared out the window.
Not many students from our program graduate in December. Here is the gang I graduated with. I will miss them and everyone else in the program.
Emily, me, Megan, Heather
Me with Mom and Dad
As we were leaving the Skydome it began to snow. I told Heather it would be fun to have a picture with snow in my hair. THIS is the photo she took -- of nothing but snow in my hair! I DO have a face, honey!
This is the make up photo. Please note the snow in my hair! (Only someone from the desert would even care about snow.)
Emily and Megan were freezing. I had them pose for a photo of being cold and Grandpa photobombed them. This is my very favorite photo from the entire day!
Grandma and Grandpa brought us a plate of Christmas cookies! Yum! Papa wouldn't let us eat them in his new car. :-(
Heather fell asleep in Megan's lap on the ride home. Megan got quiet so I looked back and saw her asleep on Heather's shoulder. Too funny!
(Please note they both have their mp3 headphones in, even in sleep!)
Heather LOVES art but isn't sure what to do with it after graduating from high school. She found an art studio workshop at a local art college that teaches computer game design and thought that might be a fun career. The workshop was three days long. Day 3 was a half day and was mostly a parents' day.
Heather was quite excited that they used special laptops that flip down so they lie flat like a drawing board. Students use a stylus and actually draw on the screens and then can flip them back to a vertical position. Very cool. Too bad they are $1,000+ just for the monitor.
Heather had two pieces in the annual school art show this year.
This is called a Zentangle. She drew the picture of her dad in the middle, then drew all kinds of crazy patterns around the outside. She based the drawing on a photograph of her dad and it looks JUST like the photo!
The other piece is a batik. She used wax to protect parts of the picture of a peacock feather, then dyed the fabric. When it dried, she took off the wax, put on more, dyed it a different color, and so on. It is Heather's favorite project this year.
I am so proud of how hard she works on her projects. Her dad and I tell her to put less detail in because she is always pushing the deadlines to finish, but I also love the part of her that refuses to settle for less than her abilities simply to make life easier on herself.
Heather is also taking an art workshop later this month at a local art college where she will learn how to use computer programs to do her artwork. She knows she wants to do something with art after college but doesn't know what field to go into. This workshop will help her explore her options. Who knows? Maybe one day she will display her art at her own art show!
This has been a really hectic semester. Not only am I carrying 18 credits this semester in a program where most classes are in 8-week blocks, but I am writing my senior capstone research paper, being a single mom of three teenagers - one in rehearsals for a school play and one on the school softball team - and dealing with normal struggles of a single parenting, full-time college student, and modern woman. That's a pretty full plate!
I have often felt overwhelmed and stressed this semester, but just when things seem to reach a point where I don't feel I can go forward, something happens to alleviate the stress.
- Class discussions frequently give me new insights into my research topic.
- My ex-husband volunteered to be assistant coach and get our daughter home from practice three times a week, thus lightening my load considerably.
- I attended a conference at school where the keynote speaker has studied my topic for two decades and she willingly sat with me afterwards for 30+ minutes to discuss my paper, my struggles to find sources, and the strengthen of my argument. She gave me new insights, enthusiastically encouraged me in both the paper and my education, and told me exactly which sources would give me the information I felt I was missing. What an answer to prayers!
- Last night some friends "kidnapped" me and "forced" me to eat Mexican food, talk and laugh for hours, and let go of some of the stress that has kept me wound up so tightly.
As I think about the ways each of these, and other, events have blessed me I am reminded that the Lord is aware of me. He knows my struggles. He knows what I need to stretch myself and He knows when He has pushed me to my limits and it is time to provide relief. I admit I have cried and I have been frustrated and I have moved forward without understanding what I needed to do, but I have also grown through these struggles. I will be glad when this semester is over in four weeks, but I wouldn't trade this semester for anything because of the things I have learned, both in school and at home. It has been a hectic semester, yes, but I am SO glad it happened.
In May I graduated from the community college. I had taken classes during the day to complete as many courses as possible as quickly as possible. That allowed me to study while the kids were in school.
In August I began taking university courses. Now I am working part-time from home in the mornings, I take classes at night, and the kids take up all the time in between. I am finding it more difficult to find the balance and to stay on top of the increased reading load. Many of my classes are offered in 8-week blocks, rather than the 16-week semester format. Some weeks I have 3-4 chapters to read in a textbook, and one class has 3 books! I completely LOVE my classes and feel like I am learning so much, but I am also never current on my reading load. I hate that.
When I was accepted into the university program, they said I had 19 classes to complete to graduate. Although they offer classes three nights a week, I decided to only taking classes on two nights. I feel my family needs me at night more than I need to be loaded down with homework. Good choice considering how busy I am as it is! Anyway, I calculated that it would take me 5 semesters to complete the 19 classes.
Two weeks ago the university advised me that I only need 10 more classes, or a total of 14 classes from start to finish. I guess my final transcripts from the community college showed that I didn't need some of the electives they had originally projected. That simple change cut out an entire semester!
I was really excited and talked to my dean. She made an appointment to review my proposed class schedule to make sure that I take all the required classes. During our review, she proposed an internship for my job because it relates to my major. That means.....I can graduate after only 3 semesters!
So I will be graduating in December 2013. I probably won't be a very good blogger in the interim, but it is for a good cause.
Speaking of college, Emily is a senior this year and has started applying to colleges for next fall. This week she received her first acceptance letter! It isn't to her first choice college, but it is one she wouldn't mind going to if the first choice doesn't pan out.
It is crazy to think we will both be in college next fall. She's growing up fast!
I graduated from the community college last week. I am so excited!
Front row seating for the lady with a bad knee. I was the third name called.
Before the ceremony began. Naturally, the picture was taken as I was whipering in Megan's ear!
Shaking hands with the president of the college.
And then a hug from her, as well.
My fan section: niece Stephanie, daughter Megan, nephew Eric, Mom and Dad, and sister Sharilyn behind the camera. Unfortunately, my other two daughters were sick that day.
My friend Sandi and her two daughters came, too, but had to leave because one of Sandi's daughters got sick during the ceremony. So glad I wasn't the one who got sick that day!
I only have 19 more classes to go to get my bachelors degree. I begin classes at the university in August. I can't wait to get started!
I have returned to college to complete my degree. I took a math class last semester and have two more to take. I wore out the erasers on my mechanical pencils so Heather bought me something to help out next semester.
Every great speech starts with a "hook". This was mine.
I gave a speech this week on the origin of cookies, how cookies arrived in the United States, and some history about American-made cookies. I thought I'd share some of my research with you.
- Cookies are thought to have originated in Persia, in present-day Iran, during the 7th century A.D. The Persians were one of the first to cultivate sugar.
- Early bakers would test their ovens by putting a dollop of cake batter on a pan and putting it in the oven. When the little cakes were done, the oven was hot enough to bake the full-sized cakes.
- By the 14th century, cookies were commonplace throughout most of Europe.
- Cookie recipes were first brought to America in the 1600's by Dutch immigrants.
- The word "cookie" is derived from the Dutch word koekje, which means "little cake." Apparently, the little cakes were popular enough that bakers started making a whole panful of them.
- Although cookies remained popular with home bakers through the 1800's, due to the high cost of sugar they were typically reserved only for special occasions.
- In the late 1800's, commerically manufactured cookies became quite popular. Below are a few that you might recognize from grocery shelves today:
Graham crackers were introduced in 1898. They are named after the Reverend Sylvester Graham who advocated a diet that included vegitarianism and eating only whole wheat flour. Apparently, he felt the white processed flour wasn't healthy. Many followed his health plan so Nabisco marketed these crackers following his guidelines.
Barnum's Animal Crackers were first manufactured in 1902. They were named after circus showman P.T. Barnum. He and his circus made a tour of England, where people were enthralled by his animal show. English home bakers began to make animal-shaped "biscuits" to go with their tea. Nabisco decided to follow suit. The crackers were first sold in little boxes with strings so they could be hung on Christmas trees. The boxes still have strings on them today. There are currently 17 different animal shapes available. Can you name them all?
Hydrox chocolate sandwich cookies were manufactured in 1910 by Sunshine Biscuit Company. They were so popular that Nabisco created a similar cookie two years later.
Oreo cookies were an instant hit. They have been the best-selling cookie on the market ever since they were introduced in 1912. Ironically, Hydrox was always considered an Oreo knock-off, when really it was the other way around.
Girl Scout cookies were originally homebaked cookies sold by local troops to earn money. The national organization decided that it was a great idea and commerically manufactured cookies were first sold in 1934. In the following year, they introduced the boxes with the Girl Scout logo with which we are all familiar.
Despite all these yummy cookies on store shelves, most people still agree that homebaked cookies are the best. Of homes where people bake, 90% report baking cookies....and more than half of the cookies baked in American homes are chocolate chip cookies. These popular cookies were created quite by accident in the 1930's by Ruth Graves Wakefield at the Toll House Inn Restaurant in Whitman, MA, while making a batch of cookies that called for baking chocolate. Legend has it that partway through mixing up the dough she realized she was out of baking chocolate so she chopped up a Nestle chocolate bar. She thought the chocolate would melt and spread throughout the cookie dough. Instead, the chocolate retained its shape so chocolate chunks were in every bite.
Her customers loved the new cookies and their fame spread. Before long, her recipe was published in a New York newspaper. Several years later Nestle began marketing chocolate chips. Ruth sold Nestle her recipe in exchange for a lifetime supply of chocolate chips. Her recipe has always been printed on the Nestle chocolate chip packaging. Because of the name of her restaurant, the recipe is called Toll House Cookies.
I actually just set out to find a quote or two about cookies to include in my speech, but I ended up speaking only about the history of cookies. While I typed my speech, my niece baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies, which I handed out after my speech. After all, “A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand."
This summer I am taking two Communication courses. Both classes have numerous activities either in class or as homework that are designed to encourage interaction with other people. Tonight my homework was to find out the BEST and WORST pick up lines people have used or heard. I had a meeting at church and we got some assistance from friends. Below are our family favorites:
My favorite:
Life without you is like a broken pencil….pointless.
Megan's favorite:
While standing side by side, ask “If you were a pirate, which shoulder would you want your parrot on?” Point to the shoulder closest to you and say “this one…” and then reach behind her to point to the other shoulder and ask “or this one?” Slide that arm around her when finished.
Emily's favorite:
Boy: How much does a polar bear weigh?
Girl: I don’t know.
Boy: Enough to break the ice. (Boy then introduces himself and shakes her hand.)
Heather's favorite:
Do you believe in love at first sight or should I walk by again?
Stephanie's favorite (my niece who is staying with us): Ask to look at the clothing tag on her top.After reading the label, say, “I knew it!It says MADE IN HEAVEN.”
Others we liked:
Are you going to kiss me or will I have to lie to my diary?
I lost my phone number. Can I have yours?
Hey, you must be tired because you’ve been running through my mind all day.
Are you from Tennessee? Because you are the only “TEN I SEE.”
Is your name SWIFFER? ‘Cuz you just swept me off my feet.
My name isn’t Elmo, but you can tickle me anytime you want to.
Let's make like fabric softener and Snuggle.
Were you arrested earlier? It's gotta be illegal to look that good.
Do you have a Band-Aid? ‘Cuz I scraped my knees when I fell for you.
Something’s wrong with my phone….your number isn’t in it.
Boy: Can I borrow your library card?
Girl: Why?
Boy: Because I am checking you out!
There’s something wrong with your hand…It isn’t in mine.
Are you a parking ticket? Because you’ve got “FINE” written all over you!
If I could rearrange the alphabet, I'd put U and I together.
And a few we found a bit disgusting:
My love for you is like diarrhea...I just can't hold it in.
If you were a booger I'd pick you first.
The best part of the assignment was laughing and groaning at the cheesiness of each pick up line. Who knew that summer school could be this much fun?
The girls are out of school for the summer. Yahoo! I am as relieved as they are.
On my last day of school I had one of my instructors approach me about participating in a bachelor's degree program at the community college. One of the state universities has a distance learning program on the community college campus, so I can take all of the classes right there without moving.
One of the main reasons for moving was because I was told only 24 of my previous credits would transfer to Arizona. I do not want to repeat 36 credits so I was going back to my old school. However, I found out that universities accept more credits than community colleges do. (That would have been nice to know way back when!!) I had my transcripts reviewed and learned the state university will accept all but 8 of my prior credits (mostly religious ones), so we are staying put. The girls are thrilled and so are our extended family....and our friends.
Yesterday I met with the community college advisement office. I need to complete the state general education requirements before Fall 2012 so I needed to find out what classes would satisfy the different requirements. In addition, I found out that I can meet all pre-requisites for the state program AND an Associates degree by next May! I will have a pretty heavy load for Fall and Spring, but I am closer than I realized. That is certainly good news!
I will be taking two classes this summer, cramming 16 weeks of study into a mere 5 weeks. However, these two classes are pre-requisites for all other pre-requisite courses for the state program. I need them before the Fall and Spring courses can be taken.
I also found out that all my science courses transfer as electives but not as science classes. The differences in state requirements mandate that I re-take two science courses, this time with labs. The other frustrating news is that the labs are two and a half hours long each week....in addition to the normal three hours in lecture time each week. That's five and a half hours of class time for four credits. Ugh! But I am determined to make the most of it. I just have to decide which two classes to take: chemistry, astronomy, or nutrition.
While my daughters are celebrating the start of summer vacation, my short summer vacation will be over this weekend. I start classes again on Tuesday. However, I am excited because every class I need is now mapped out for me and I will be able to see the progress I make. I am so excited to get my degree!
Five weeks ago I returned to college as a full-time student. I had put this off for over two decades and the longer I waited the harder it became. That first week of school was nerve-wracking. I didn't know where I was going on campus. As I attempted to juggle classes, homework, parenting, work, and other responsibilities I felt very overwhelmed.
With a little distance I can put everything in perspective now. All those new responsibilites seemed like a huge mountain that was suddenly plunked down in my path. However, as we start to climb the mountains in our lives we gain strength and endurance. We learn our own capabilities and we gain confidence. School has been this kind of challenge. While I am not yet on top of the mountain, I can look back and see the progress I have made and I am gaining strength and confidence to keep moving up the mountain.
Dolley Madison was the wife of the fourth President of the United States, James Madison. She was an amazing woman, far ahead of her time in many ways. I would like to share with you a few things I learned about her while preparing a research paper for my American History class.
Shortly after her husband took office in 1809, Dolley Madison instituted a weekly "drawing room" gathering. These were social events where she served drinks and foods, such as the new novelty ice cream. Dolley invited politicians and their wives, civic leaders, and others from the newly established Washington City community, as well as foreign ambassadors and other visitors to the new capital city. That doesn't sound like much of a contribution toward strengthening the young government, but in reality she is probably one of the greatest political figures of her time.
Politics is always a very emotional subject, and this was true in the early 1800's. It was not unusual for Congressmen to yell and scream at one another as they voiced their views. In fact, they often became more physical, resorting to whacking members of the opposing party with a cane or challenging one another to a duel because of political differences. Settling differences in a civilized manner was a challenge, to say the least. James Madison's plans for the country involved establishing unity and cooperation. Dolley helped him with that goal by deliberately inviting individuals who couldn't stand one another to attend the same gathering. It is hard to believe that course of action was effective, but it was. She knew that in polite society, political arguments did not take place during a party where women were in attendance...so she always invited the wives to tag along. As a result, these political adversaries had to learn to discipline their emotions and communicate like civilized human beings. She would carefully lead the conversation and helped these strongly principled men learn to compromise and to see the other party's point of view. One historian went so far as to say that through her efforts she may have prevented the break up of the newly formed nation. That is quite an accomplishment in an era where women had no political clout.
Besides playing a part in saving the nation from dissolution, she also played a huge part in preserving the writings of her husband, the Father of the Constitution. During the War of 1812 (which really lasted several years), the British army attacked the capital city. James joined his military leaders at the front line, leaving Dolley alone at the White House. Inhabitants of the city began to leave, but Dolley insisted she was going to stay until her husband returned. Several times James sent messages to the White House, begging Dolley to flee to safety. Each time Dolley refused, instead maintaining a vigil on the roof with her telescope. She could see the smoke from the battle raging only a few miles away but was undaunted. She would have stayed until James returned, but when one of his advisers delivered James's next message he was able to convince her it was time to leave. However, she first packed up all the president's writings and history, all his important government papers, and the portrait of George Washington that hung in the White House. She took everything she feared would be destroyed or taken as plunder. Several hours later, the British army marked into Washington and set fire to the White House, destroying all of her personal belongings, as well as her home and the symbol of the republic.
We don't often hear about the brave and talented women who lived at the time of the establishment of this country so I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about Dolley Madison.
Once upon a time, long, long, long ago, I attended college for two years. One of the things I have always regretted is not finishing my degree. I have spent an extraordinary amount of time lately pondering and praying about this. Going back to school after so long was pretty intimidating. My parents and others have reminded me repeatedly that change is good and provides opportunities for growth.
My biggest struggle has been that taking one or two classes at a time I would drag out graduation. I want to graduate before I am eligible to retire! I was talking with my sister one day and said, "I wish I could just go to school full-time and be done with it." She responded with a question that would haunt me for weeks: "So why don't you?"
What a chain reaction that comment has created! I could bore you with all the details, but instead I will simply summarize:
- I am enrolled full-time at the local community college this semester.
- I have been re-admitted as a full-time student next fall at the university I attended previously in Utah.
- I have been offered a job at that university, working for one of my best friends.
- I will be moving the end of May. The girls will spend part of the summer with their dad here and then join me the middle of July.
I have heard "all things in moderation" so I guess I went a little overboard on the whole "change is good" concept. I have tremendous changes happening in my life right now, but it is exciting and it certainly does feel good.
Last January I went back to college. I have wanted to do this for years and years, but I always thought it would be too hard to do. Being unemployed kind of gives you a good motivator to upgrade your job skills. Ha Ha So I finally took the leap of faith and enrolled in two classes.
Every Saturday I drove downtown for a 3-hour class. It was actually very interesting....and the 3 hours went by very quickly. I really enjoyed the class, the instructor, meeting the other students. It wasn't necessarily easy, but it was definitely easier than I had thought it would be.
I also took a Microsoft 2007 online class. I have been helping a friend deal with a family crisis for the last month or more and got behind on the assignments so I spent a lot of time recently trying to catch up. Other than the nested formula in Excel, I found this class wasn't as horrific as I expected, either. And I learned some really cool stuff tricks. Heather was trying to do something on the computer for her homework and I showed her the tricks I learned. She was very impressed.
So I learned a few things:
1. I am not too old to go back to school.
2. Don't get behind on your homework!
3. Learning is fun. (I knew this but sort of forgot for a while.)
4. It is possible to know something about computers that your teenagers don't know.
I couldn't get into the next pre-requisite course during the summer so I will hold off until fall. But I am done for the summer. Yahoo!
(My girls are jealous. Emily has 8 more class days and her sisters have 5.)
One of my favorite family memories took place a few years ago. We had some kind of family gathering at my parents’ home that included my sister’s family, too. At some point my mom turned on an Elvis Presley CD. Mom and Dad started dancing around the living room. Before long, EVERYONE was dancing around, the music had been turned up, and we were all singing along. It was so much fun! Good music is always good. The same can be said for a good movie or a good book. Some of my children’s all-time favorite movies were made before they were born and some of their all-time favorite picture books are the same ones I read as a child. If a movie or a book is good, it will always be good.
I recently started attending college again. I am taking an Introduction to Law class. One of the concepts we discussed involved this idea of good is always good. Natural laws are those that are universally accepted as being good. For example, everyone knows that it is good not to kill someone else, not to steal someone else’s property, and to have freedom from oppression. These laws use common sense and an inborn feeling of what is right and what is wrong. Unfortunately, sometimes people ignore this inborn moral compass so positive, or written, laws are created to remind everyone what is good. Positive laws usually have a consequence tied to them. People who obey natural and positive laws are generally happier than people who ignore them. They also have more freedoms than the people who disobey the laws and must face the consequences of their choices.
This concept was not new to me. I have heard it all my life as I have studied the gospel. Everyone is born with the Light of Christ to help us recognize what is good. Because some people ignore their internal moral compass, the Lord has written down His commandments, or rules, for us to follow. These commandments remind us what is good and often have consequences attached to them. People who disobey commandments often find their choices limited by the consequences of their decisions. They are often unhappy and frustrated with the direction their lives have taken. People who make good choices are generally happier.
The thing I also noticed is that natural laws and commandments that are good don’t change with time. Good is always good. It is always good to be free from slavery and oppression. It is always good to respect the property and lives of others. It is always good to be morally clean. It is always good to love and serve others. It is always good to pray and to study the scriptures. All of these things that were good 100 years ago, or a 1,000 years ago are still good today. Good is always good.
I love it when my school work makes sense in the real world!
In January I went back to college. I am planning to graduate in paralegal studies. It was kind of scary to go back to school after two decades out of school. I wasn't sure I could do it but I have found it is very exciting.
I love my Intro to Law class, which I attend every Saturday morning for three hours. Our instructor is a practicing lawyer but he explains everything in everyday language. I have found it really interesting. I can't wait to take more law classes next term. (Who would have thought that I would ever say that?!?!)
I am also taking a Microsoft 2007 course online. I installed the Microsoft 2007 programs the day I started doing my assignments, so I am totally new to this stuff. It has been a bit more challenging because I am not familiar with the screens, but so far I have 100%. Slow but steady. Ha Ha
The girls are excited because I have homework, too. (Misery loves company!) They are also excited because their dad Pat volunteered to come over EVERY Saturday while I am in class. He has "encouraged" the girls to do their chores and he takes them places afterwards. It has been good for all of them to have more time together. I really appreciate his support, though the girls are less excited when they are spending "Daddy time" doing chores. Hee Hee
