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Wow!  I (and hubby) have made a HUGE decision!

Fall of 2012 I will be a college student once again.  I will be going back to school to get my Undergrad/Bachelors in Massage/Holistic  Studies.  I am so excited to be heading back to school!!!!  I never thought a career could be as satisfying as having a family.  I love what I do at work, I really do.  I hate the fact that what I do is "commission based" aka if I'm not touching a client, I don't get paid.  Sure that's fun if I want to get out of jury duty but not where I want to be career wise.

So friends, the game plan is this..... I apply and get accepted.  (No fear with a 3.5 GPA)  This now gives me a year to apply and win scholarships or grants to pay for this.  If I play my cards right, I might just find a way to pay for all this without taking money out of my own pocket.  If this is the case, when I get my masters, I'm going to have one HELL of a party!!!!!!!!!

I absolutely LOVE what I do and just really want to get better at it.  I know I have been out of the LJ loop lately.  I have been reading but I don't know why I haven't posted in an eon  but to sum the last year up (since Dec 2010) here is a quickly!

• Graduated from LIWS with a GPA of 3.5
• Got our second dog, Neptune.  Now we have two young Border Terriers (Mercury and Neptune)
• Got a nice "starter" job at a local spa
• uliamos came for a wonderful visit in the very early spring.  (And yes, Kel is still asking when you are coming back for a visit.)
• April 2011 Hubby came home from Iraq on disability (don't worry - he's ok physically)
• Spring of 2011 took hubby around to Dr's to help his PTSD/Anxiety  - Something we will probably deal with forever but I'm working under the concept of if the military "broke" him, they bought him - read: they pay for it......
• Went on vacation in May with just hubby to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary.  It was awesome and I didn't want to come home.
• Summer of 2011 - working like crazy but having a blast!
• Got a side job working as an Independent Massage Therapist to the Camden Riversharks. They are a minor league base ball team that is just across the river from Philadelphia.  Yes uliamos , its that baseball field that you saw on the train on the way home from Philly.  I get to work on those guys who are just totally lovely and I am honored to get to come in (and be the only woman in the club house (aka - locker room) and am happy to stay the entire time in the trainer's room.  The Camden Riversharks are the nicest group of gentleman I have ever had the privileged to work on and be a part of the team.
• Ever since I started working with the Riversharks, their record had only gotten better.  I love "my boys" to the end of the world and back again.
• Monday I sit for my National Exam for Massage.  Eek!
• I am really hoping this will all workout to a professional  (and salary) job with a bigger team or a local University.
• Heading to Disney in 2 weeks and Kel is off to kindergarten in 3 weeks.

Whew, just a few things going on I guess.

For the first time in a LONG while, I am home alone.  I've had time alone but all of it had been under an hour until today.  I have a class that is both Sat and Sunday so my wonderful parents took the kiddies for the entire weekend.

I know that when they go to bed, I have time to myself but there is really something to be said about real time alone, not having to worry if someone is coughing upstairs or having to wake someone up in the morning so I can get back to class tomorrow morning.

Its not that I don't like having my kids around.  It's great and we do have fun together.  Lately, the older 2 have been into playing Scrabble with me ever since friends of ours gave us a Star Trek (TOS) version.  Last time we played, the kids didn't realized that Taurus was a proper noun so I ended up winning.  I didn't realized it until several rounds into the game anyway.  (Shhhh, don't tell them.)

Hubby has been back in Iraq for a few weeks now and he's settling in.  The kids are back in school and we are back to our old schedules.  It's weird that it was so easy to fall back into the old routines after he left so the re-adjustment wasn't too bad this time.  The little guy (who will be 5 next month) still asks when Daddy will be home.  He was so cute when he was home, not letting him out of his sight and preferring Daddy to me but I was ok with it.  We still talk almost every day and the kids talk with him several times a week too.

So, I think I'll get myself a glass of wine and relax a bit, enjoy TV shows that I want to watch for a change and chill out on this lovely September night.  Night all!

Hubby is home!  It was amazing how he just fell back into things here.  He saw the kids at their best and worst.  The dog FREEKED out when he came home from the airport.  My dog is pretty excitable but this was above and beyond excitement with him.

He's asleep right now and I hope he just sleeps through the night.  After being up and traveling for 30 hours or so I think sleeping for 12 is not a big deal.

The little guy wants him to wake up.  He's been so cute about it all.  He really missed his Daddy.

I'm sure during this visit there will be great times and not so great times, but we will enjoy our time with him for the time we have. 

Off to vacation in a week!  Can't wait.

A week from now Hubby will be home.  We are all very excited about.  Two weeks from now I'll be on the beach (preferably with some kind of tropical drink in hand).  It will be really nice to get away from it all for a bit.  Too bad school starts up a day after we get home and the kid go back 2 days.  Nothing like a 9am anatomy class right after vacation

I finished that "stupid" art class with an A but I bombed the final.  I guess I just didn't get it or get into it too deep enough for the teacher.  Oh well, and A's and A in my book.

My fall schedule was all screwy for a bit.  They canceled Shiatsu which was a bummer and I need the credits for graduation.  I could take the two other elective classes but I found a conflict between them and 2 other classes I needed for graduation.  Looong story short, I complained to the directors of the programs and somehow Shiatsu is back on.  I wish I could take the other 2 classes as well and I will after I graduate.  I'll need them for CEU's (Continuing Education Units).  I look at my school's course catalog  and I really don't see a single class I don't want to take... still.

Tomorrow is my last advanced clinic (clinic in more of a spa setting) and Friday is my last clinic... ever!!!!  It's not that I don't like clinic but just one more stepping stone to graduation.

Quite excited that Hubby's winder vacation has been approved.  He'll be home on Dec 23rd but we are going to try and keep it a secret from the kiddies.  What a fun surprise for them!  I can't tell them so I'm telling you guys.

So now I need to figure out what to take on vacation with me and the kids and what still needs to be gotten.  It's a shame that we wont have a washing machine at our disposal, like at Disney, but I'm sure I'll get by somehow.

Whoa, stop the presses.  I'm writing.... again.

I've had 3 days blissfully to myself but the kiddos are on their way home right now.  I'm hoping they will be home around 9pm my time but ya never know.  Its been nice but I'm ready to have some extra noise and chaos in the house now.  It will be good to have them home but I have gotten used to having control of the remote control here at the house.  I don't want to watch their shows at all anymore, I wanna watch mine......  Oh well, I'll give it up when I have to keep the calm here at the house.

My family is headed to Cancun, Mexico in August this summer.  I've put off having to buy a swim suit, hoping to loose some weight.  I've lost some but not as much as I wanted.  It's still July and the department stores choices are severely limited.  I hope to find something nice but at least I have my trusty Speedo and I know I can go to the local dealer and just get another one.  I am picky about my swim suits and trust Speedo implicitly.  I know they can withstand swimming, racing, rescuing practice victims and clingy children.  They stay on with out any risk of "unexpected exposure".

So the quest in on to find a non-overpriced swimsuit.  Wish me luck!

Oh and on a side note.  I have started again to post regularly over at KarenManeely.com with chapters of my stories every Monday, Wends, Friday.

Wow, I thing I've posted twice this month!

I'm trying to finish off my last summer class.  It's a online class so its a bit different but so far, I have an A in the class even if all my answers feel like total BS.  At least the teacher is "real" and not having us look a painted white canvas and asks us what the artist was feeling.  (By the way, all I would feel is pist off since I could have done it and gotten the grant money for it.)  Two more weeks to go!

My school canceled my shiatsu massage class which I am very bummed about.  I hope they change their minds and reverse this before the fall semester class begins..... the day AFTER I get home from vacation!

Hubby comes home in less than an month.  His first week home is a whirlwind of dr and dentist appointments for both him and the kiddies.  We need to get everything done before we head off to vacation because they have 2 days after we get back before they head back to school.  In addition to that, we are trying, tooth and nail, to get our youngest into Kindergarten.  He is totally ready but it all comes back to the date he was born (17 days past the mystical cut off date).  We had him tested and the only thing he didn't do well at was cutting with sissors.  Ok, who in their right mind lets a 4 year old use sissors reguarlay.  If I had done that, my curtans and goodness knows what else would have been "experimented" on.  I love my little guy to pieces but he can really be a "Dr Horrible" when left to his own devices.

It is hot as hades right now.  Most days are in the 90's and it is just evil.  Normally, the summer is decent and we hover in the upper 70's mid 80'.  For the next 10 days we are in the upper 80's low 90's with over 50%  humidity.  Hubby is going to "die" when he comes home.  Sure, in Iraq 120 is nothing but the humidity is 7%,  Today we had 2 HUGE thunder storms and tomorrow the humidity is going to be 70% or so.  I don't normally complain about the weather but this is like the massive snow storms we had this winter.  The weather SUCKS!!!! right now.  Oh and my house has no air conditioning at all.  Yeah sure I prefer it that way but days like today, I'd rather pay the amount of a mid sized car to get AC (Air Conditioning) in my house finally and then never leave home again.

Thanks for letting me rant. 

Just a quick note to wish maggi137  a very happy birthday!

I hope this year keeps getting better and better for you.

*Hugs*

Two more weeks of Stress Management!  Almost done this class.  Once that is done, I have Art/Visual Culture but that's an online class so I don't have to haul my butt to the campus for that one.  Online classes aren't as much fun as going in person, but I just want to get it over and done with at this point.

I took the kids up to Massachusetts this weekend for my cousin's High School graduation party.  On my way home I realized that this was the furthest I had driven by myself.  It was odd.  I was a bit nervous because I had the kids with me and there was some heavy duty rain going on but I survived and we got home in one piece.

I also got to meet an old friend for the first time.  It was wonderful and I am so glad I did it.

I'm so tired from the drive.  I had a blast at my cousin's party and meeting Lisa and her hubby though.  It really helped that the kids were REALLY good in the car, especially when I got a bit nervous during the drive. 

I've had the papers since before Hubby left but I have decided to get my Will signed and notarized tomorrow.

Before Hubby left, I made him do it, plus the power of attorney (POA) and medical directives as well.  Last time he was away I also had POA but he didn't have POA on me.

I know why I need a Will.  First I have kids and second I want them cared for by those I choose and I don't want the state taking a single penny more then they have to if/when I die.

So why have I stalled?  I guess its a finality thing.  I am signing a document on how I want things after I leave this world and how I want things taken care of for my children.  I want them taken care of by my family and Hubby is in 100% agreement on this one.  There is no way my in-laws are getting any type of custody of my kids EVER.  They aren't bad people but I don't agree on their parenting "styles".

In about 10 years, I will have to re-do our Wills.  Two of my kids will be legal adults (for several years) and because my parents are not going to be as young as they are now.  I don't know what I'll do or who my executor will be when that time comes.

I both HATE and am DEEPLY honored that my parents named me as their executors for when the inevitable happens.  They both better live until they are 150 years old.  I have to say that my Mom is one of my best friends (her and Hubby are neck and neck... depending on the day) and my Dad is the best in the world.

Man, this growing up stuff is for the birds.

Enough of this rant.... Happy Friday everyone.

I love this weather we are having.  Weather that I can be comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt is perfect for me!

I have survived my first week of 5 weeks of Stress Management.  The teacher is weird and gets off topic quickly.  Not sure if I like him or not.  I guess it all comes down to my grades.  He he he

Big annoucement!  I have decided to make my father a Doctor Who scarf for Christmas.  Sure Christmas is like 7 months away but I think I'll need the time to complete it with school and everything.  He has always said he wanted one too.  I'm doing the original scarf seen in seasons 12-14 according to Doctor Who Scarf.  I ordered all the yarn just a bit ago.  I can't wait to get started on it.  Sure I <3 Doctor number 10 but Tom Baker will always be "my" doctor, much like a cool uncle.

I'll try to post pictures of it as I progress.  I don't have to worry about Dad seeing it because he's not on LJ.

I can't wait to get my yarn in!!!!!