Happy Halloween!!!!

I can't believe it's already Halloween! Where has the time gone? Tonight Olivia is having a party so we will be Halloweening with them. We almost were not going to make it because I've been sick again. Every time I have gotten off my antibiotics, I have gotten sick again immediately. I've been to the doctor 3 times in 7 weeks. This last time they took a mono test thinking perhaps I had contracted mono some how. Thankfully, the results were negative. If this round of antibiotics do not get me better, the doctor said he may refer me to an ENT or an allergist. Being so sick has not helped with being so stressed with work in school. I've fallen behind in my reading because I've been so tired but hopefully I can use the weekend to catch up.

Today I'm going to go vote! This is my second election to vote in. I feel under informed for local campaigns but it will be ok. I'm pretty sure who I'm voting for locally, I just feel like there is so much discussion about presidential voting, I don't get to hear enough about our local government. I get excited about voting. It must be the historian in me! Steven doesn't get excited like I do. But that's ok. To each his own!

I think it's funny how people assume certain people vote a certain way. You know what they say about assuming, right? hehe....

Emma Mei

A few nights ago my sister called to let us know that they have had to terminate their adoption process due to the increased wait times and loss of net worth due to the stock market. We are all so very sad but we know that God has reason we cannot comprehend. My sister and her family are taking it very well and are seeing the blessings God has provided already, rather than dwell on their loss. This is so wonderfully positive and I am very proud of them.

I was so excited about little Emma and am very sad. She was already real to me, despite the fact that she was most likely not conceived yet. I have always had such an abundance of love for my nephews, I was ready to pass some of it to a niece. But I am still thankful for my sweet nephews and be happy for what we have, instead of worrying about what we don't have, just like Paula and Mark.

I have always had a special place in my heart for my nephews. While I love them all dearly, I love them all differently and have special feelings for each of them. When the first came along, I was so proud. I was only 13 years old when he came into our lives. That's what happens when your sister is 9 years older and gets married young! I was no longer the baby of the family and for once, I had someone to take care of instead of being the one cared for. Paula was so good about treating me the same as everyone else. She showed trust in me by letting me do the "motherly" things like feeding, changing, etc. when they visited. To me, this shrunk the gap between us in a way. I was "Aunt Manda," not a pesky little sister too young to be a part of anything. I loved Zachary so much and probably would have smothered him with love if he had let me. But he was independent from the minute he was born. When I got to talk to Paula after he was born, I couldn't say anything because I couldn't quit crying tears of joy. She probably thought I was crazy! I loved that little baby before ever seeing him. He was my first nephew, sweet, independent, and adorable beyond words.

The next little boy has been special to me in so many different ways. I was blessed to be staying with Paula when he was born. I had come to babysit for Zachary, (see? my sister showed me love in ways I never noticed before!), he had just turned 2 years old. I was keeping him while Paula and Mark had a night out alone before the new baby came and was going to keep Zac the next day while they went for checkup at the doctor. Paula and Mark had their night out, then their appointment, and then went to breakfast. Then they came home and both of them didn't say a word when they came home and just started cleaning up really fast. I thought they were trying to tell me I'd made a mess and they were upset. Then I saw Paula's stomach contract, asked her if she was ok and she said, "We're getting ready to go the hospital; the baby might be coming." WHAT?! I had never been around someone who was about to have a baby! All I knew was what I'd seen on TV - dramatic speeds to the hospital, water breaking, excitement, and rushing around. Paula and Mark weren't even talking to each other! I couldn't believe it! I think they didn't tell me what was going on until they had to because they knew I would freak out - which I did....kinda.

So we were off to the hospital and Mark instructed Paula to reset a timer on their van every time she had a contraction so that we could see how far apart they were. It was so funny to watch their interactions. Paula kept forgetting the timer and the clock would read 10, 12, or more minutes and Mark would say, "Are you really having contractions? Do we really need to go to the hospital?" which would crack me up. He's a pretty funny guy but I'd never want him to know I thought so. :o) Once at the hospital, they wouldn't admit Paula right away because she wasn't quite ready so they made her walk. That just wouldn't do for her. She found a nook in one of the hallways and did some of her aerobic exercises. Before she became pregnant, she was an aerobics instructor at the YMCA and still did pregnancy aerobics. It was hilarious watching a full term pregnant woman in a hospital gown and tennis shoes try to speed up her delivery by "working out."

Anyway, after hours and hours in the hospital and the arrival of our mom, Paula had a precious baby boy. He was so tiny. Everyone wanted to see how Zachary would react to a new baby in the family and his reaction was priceless. He just laid his little head on Ryan so softly and carefully with a sweet smile and accepted the new one as his brother. Much later, after being home for awhile, Zachary would also try to show his love to his brother by attempting to feed Ryan some of his pop-tart. Too funny. From the time he was a tiny baby, Ryan has shown a sweet, cuddly nature with a tendency to be the "ham" in the room. So different from the first and loved in different ways.

I wasn't there for the arrival of my third nephew who is my other sister's son. I have less memories of him as a baby but have gotten to spend more time with him as a little boy than the others. He was a small little baby with hardly an inch to pinch. He was so cute but very much a mama's boy. If mom was around, he didn't want anyone else. This was great for Olivia because since she was a child, all she wanted to be was a mother. In fact, when I was about 5 years old, there was a fire in our dishwasher and my mom called the fire department and told us all to get outside. Paula made sure I was out with her, and then out came Olivia with all of her baby-dolls. They were her kids and she was going to save them. The fire turned out to be nothing more than a wooden spoon that had fallen on the element of the dishwasher and we were all safe - baby dolls and all. So when Olivia had a real baby of her own, she treasured every minute of it. He's a smart little boy who likes to be in the middle of things where the action is. He doesn't like being left out of anything. Perhaps this will be a valuable attribute in his future.

I love my nephews so much that when they were really little, I thought I could never love anyone more. I've been told that when I have my own, I will have a love for them that is unmeasurable. If that is true, my own kids are going to be loved beyond what I could ever imagine because I've loved my guys before they were even born. And though I am sad I won't have a little girl from China as a niece, I sure am thankful I've had 3 wonderful and precious nephews.

Been Tagged.

Ok, my "auntie" tagged me so I have to give 7 random facts about myself and then tag 7 other people. The problem is, I don't have 7 friends who blog and who haven't been tagged. But I'll give my 7 random facts. Here you go:

1. I got engaged to a man who I had only "met" 5 days before. (We were online friends for 6 years and now we've been married for 2 1/2 years!)

2. I am a classically trained vocalist. I can sing in German, Italian, Latin, French, Spanish and English with *mostly* correct diction.

3. I love to cook from "scratch."

4. I was president of my high school Thespian Society and acted or teched in about 5 plays each year.

5. I won several art awards when I was younger in the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

6. I was on the front page of the Houston Chronicle and the Religion section of the same paper for singing Sacred Harp.

7. I took piano lessons for 6 years and was in choir for 12 years of my life.

How fun! Ok Georgia - you're it!

And the verdict is....

I got my last exam back from first rounds and I scored a 97!!!! It was the third highest in the class of 60 people. It feels so good to be doing well again. I haven't done this well since high school. Well, when I was a music major I did pretty well my first year but that was all review. I mean, if I didn't do well in Music Theory I, that would be a shame since I'd been learning it all my life. I always argue with myself. Is that a symptom of psychosis? I hope not!

Anyway, I guess I feel like grad school isn't completely out of the question for me anymore. I'll just have to wait and see. I'm so glad that SHSU has an online master's program. Then I can teach and do the program online so that Steven can finally go to school! But like I said...we'll see.

Did anyone watch the presidential debate this week? We didn't catch it but recorded it and watched it last night. I have a lot of opinions, (what else is new?), but I want to hear what people's impressions are. Let me know if you watched!

Back on Track

A few weeks ago I reported that school started roughly for me and I felt unmotivated. After Hurricane Ike, I felt like I had a fresh beginning with which I could regain momentum for the rest of the semester. Well, apparently my slow start was all in my head and was purely a mental fog. I thought I had done poorly on a response paper for one of my senior level classes because on BlackBoard, our school computer system, the grade noted was a 55. I was so crushed. In the past I've made grades this bad when my dad was really sick or I was going through major (MAJOR) personal crisis, but to make a grade like that now when I have learned so much and come so far was a terrible let down. Instead of whining and complaining, you know, more than a reasonable amount, I emailed my prof to see what I could improve on. It turns out, she hadn't graded mine at all because some how when she printed the papers off, mine was skipped. She didn't know why my grade was posted as a 55 but she said she would grade my paper later in the week and let me know how I did. Well, a week later she still hadn't graded it so I emailed her again. This time she did grade it and I made a B+! I prefer numerical grades but I'll take a B+ over failing any day! And since this was my only grade so far, it is still very possible to make an A in the class.

Speaking of A's, I had some more extremely good news this week concerning my grades. Last week I had a grammar test which was so difficult it practically gave me hives. I was never really taught traditional grammar and jumping into college level grammar has been daunting. My mom helped me understand it all better since she teaches grammar herself which was a lifesaver. She even said the sentences were difficult so I felt validated. :o) Anyway, I got the test back Tuesday and I was one of the only ones in the class to get a perfect score! 100! I've never gotten such a high score on a test in college. This was amazing to me. Until....

Until I checked my grade for my religious history exam I had on Thursday. I stressed slightly over this exam because all history tests are hard and this was an essay test which are so subjective. Since I've never had this particular professor, I wasn't sure how he graded. It seems that no matter how well I write, there is something which can be improved upon in an essay test. For this one, we had to complete 5 identifications of key terms, each a paragraph explaining, when, who, significance, etc. The five came from a list of 30 he gave us as a study guide. Then we had to write a full essay for a question he wrote. I was one of the last to turn in my test because I was afraid of leaving something out which always happens to me while writing essay tests. But, apparently that was not the case this time because I made scored 104! I even got the bonus question right! Unquestionably this is the best grade I've ever made on a history exam. I think a major woohoo is in order. WOOHOO!

I'm still waiting on the grade for my last exam of these first rounds. I should get that back today. I don't think I did bad but I'm pretty sure I didn't do as good as I did on my grammar or religious history exams. Then again, I thought I had made a high B or a low A on that history test. You just never know! This is a major success for me. College has been so rough, especially in my personal life. Steven has helped me so much to see what I am capable of and how successful I can be. Plus, he's helped me learn my limits of how much I can handle at once so that I don't spread myself too thin as I have always tended to do.

Apparently, I'm still on track! Thank God! Now if I could just graduate.... :o)

Home again, home again...

This weekend Steven and I went to visit some of my family in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and had such a wonderful visit! We stayed with my cousin Virginia who I hadn't visited with in several years and I got to meet her two youngest children who are just so adorable. Visiting with her was like time hadn't passed or like we'd never really been apart. It's so amazing how that happens with some people. You're just kindred spirits and you have a connection I suppose.

We arrived Friday and stayed up way too late but we were having so much fun. It's been a long time since I stayed up past midnight. So the next morning we slept in a little, then everyone was up and very hungry! So they took us to a neat little restaurant called "Rise and Shine." They had such yummy breakfast with everything you could possibly want. I had eggs, bacon, a biscuit with real gravy (it didn't taste like powder gravy so it was "real"), and of course, grits. I can't pass up grits. Needless to say, Steven had to help me eat all of that but I tasted everything and it was good! The pancakes that the others got were so huge, they were a breakfast by themselves even though they were considered a side item. And the price was unbeatable. I think when we go back and visit, we may just have to request Rise and Shine again!

After breakfast, or brunch rather since we kind of slept in, we met up with my cousin Angela and her husband and son to ride a train around Fort Worth. I was a little skeptical about the train because I have a fear of open vehicles ever since I had an accident with a golf cart a few years ago. I wasn't driving but that's a story for another time! The train turned out to be really fun and a neat way to see the city and since Steven and I had never been to Ft. Worth, we really enjoyed it.

When we were through with our excursion, we went back to Virginia's house and Paul grilled some of the best steaks I've ever had. They were so good! He shared his marinade recipe with us so we may have to try it out soon. We were so tired from staying up so late the night before, after dinner, Chip and Angela went home and we all crashed. It was a really good day - one of the best I've had in a very long time!

Sunday was wonderful as well. Marina, Genya's oldest daughter, was baptized yesterday which was one of the reasons we were visiting them. She joined the Dixie PBC where my Uncle Thomas pastors but since they don't have a baptistery, they held services as Denton PBC where Elder Vernon Johnson is the pastor. It was Elder Townsend's appointment and he shared the time with Uncle Thomas so we were able to hear two really good sermons. After church we all went to have lunch. I cannot describe how wonderful it was to be with everyone - Uncle Thomas, Aunt Lisa, Genya, Paul, Angela, Chip, Thomas A. and all the kids. I don't even know how long it's been since I've been with all of them at once. It is amazing how wonderful God is. All things are possible through Him. Two months ago I would have said I would never be with them all at once ever again. I am so thankful and overjoyed that this is not the case!

After lunch we went to Angela's house because it was close by. We were only supposed to stay a little while but that turned into a few hours. I had planned on doing homework Sunday evening but ... oh well! Steven was really sweet by driving most of the way home so I could do some reading even though he had driven all the way up there Friday and done all of the driving throughout the weekend. He's so good to me!

So now Angela and Virginia have to come visit us! They said they will and I sure hope they do because we had such a good weekend. Now it's back to the grind but at least it's with a happy heart!