We have a new...

Dog!! She is a 3 year old dachsund and her name is Dixie. She is sooo cute!! Holly just adores her. She used to be Leo's Dad's dog but he is moving into an apartment and needed to find another home for her. We are going to try it out for awhile to see if we can handle it. We already have another dog and a cat. The other dog we have is a German Shepherd mix and she is about 12 years old (I think!). She used to be my family's dog and we worked it out with my parents to get her up here from Georgia earlier this year. She is a great guard dog! It's amazing how quickly she has become protective of Holly. If Dixie gets too close to Holly, Sadie (the german shepherd) runs her off! The cat doesn't seem to mind this dog like she usually does when we get a new pet.

So I guess this dog is kind of like an early birthday present! My birthday is tomorrow and I am going to be the big 29. Next year I will be 30 and then I'm gonna hold steady at that age!! :) I don't have anything exciting planned for tomorrow. It just seems to be another day, and I am perfectly okay with that! I hope everyone has a great day!!

Miscellaneous

Well, it's that time again. What time, you say? It's school time again for me. I know you are relieved to know this important bit of information. My next class officially started today. I am taking Microeconomics to get it out of the way while Macroeconomics is still somewhat fresh in my head! Thankfully, I will have a different instructor than I did for Macro as he was not a very good teacher. Practically non-existant actually. But....I am hopeful that this class will go much better than the other one did! Actually, it really is starting well because the first three chapters I am supposed to read, I have already read from my Macro class. YAY!

Have I told you guys how much I miss getting together for the Heart 2 Heart Women's Group. I mean I really miss seeing you all. I get to keep up with a few people through their blogs, but with the summer, most people aren't blogging as often right now either. (Including me!) I can't wait for it to start again but I don't even know when that is! I have been going to the summer study "Is There Really Sex After Kids". The answer is yes.....according to the book! Isn't it always easier in black and white?!! I actually really like the book and I do recommend it to everyone. There is some really insightful thoughts and ideas that can definitely help in your marriage, and not just physically related either.

Speaking of sex after kids :), I keep having this persistant thought go through my head that I am pregnant. It is the weirdest thing. Leo and I have decided that we are ready to take that step and hope that it happens in the near future. But we just recently made that decision and I don't know that there has been enough time to pass for me to actually be pregnant. But I'm telling you, the thought just won't go away. So much so that we stopped at CVS and bought a pregnancy test yesterday. It was negative. To be honest, I was a little upset that it was negative. I know that in due time, it will happen, but a huge part of me wants to be pregnant again. Which is crazy to watch myself type that thought because it wasn't too long ago that I was seriously considering only having the one child and never going through pregnancy again. So I have come to the conclusion that I must be having sympathy thoughts and feelings and someone around me is pregnant. Is it you?!! ;}

Well, I heard rumor today that was not very promising for the position that I applied for. (I know I should really not put alot of stock in rumors, but I feel that it came from a trusted source who is privy to the inside scoop) The rumor is that they are not going to fill the position I applied for until January. Not good. For so many reasons, not good. One, because I don't know if I can wait that long to know if I am even a candidate for the position. And two, because it's that much longer that I will be temporarily doing some of the duties of that position, in addition to my current duties. Ughhh, the suspense is going to kill me!!

I am very excited for my neighbors. They are pregnant and will be going to the hospital tomorrow to have what is called a "version" done (that's not the part I'm excited about:). Apparently their baby is in the breech position and a "version" is an attempt to manually turn the baby to the correct position that is safe for vaginal delivery. If the version works, they are going to immediately induce her so that there isn't enough time for the baby to turn again. If it doesn't work, they have a C-Section scheduled for 9am. Either way, more than likely, their son will be born tomorrow! I can't wait to meet him! I hope and pray that everything goes well for my neighbors tomorrow. They are going to be such great parents.

Well, that's about all I can think of for an update! I hope you are all doing well!

I did it!

Thank you for the advice and support that you guys have given me with my job application dilema. I submitted my application and resume last night. Now it is a wait-and-see game. My thought process is that if it is meant to be, I will be selected to interview. Had I not submitted the application, I would have never even known if I had a chance, or if it was God's will.

Our office had a going away party for my boss. It went really well and it is good to have that stress over with. I somehow was put in charge of planning and organizing the get-together and it seemed like it was during a time that I had too many other things to do! Oh-well, it went well and tomorrow is officially her last day. I am very sad about not being able to work with her anymore because I really admire and respect her. I wish nothing but the best for her in all of her future endeavors.

I'm looking forward to the Elston Carnival on Saturday. This will be my first carnival at the church and I know how great of an opportunity it is going to be to reach out to the community and spread the word about our awesome church and of course about the awesomeness of Jesus Christ. I hope to see you all there!

To apply or not to apply

I have been wavering back and forth on whether or not to apply for a position that would inevitably be a promotion for me. Now, before you say "Is she crazy, why wouldn't she apply for it", let me explain my thoughts. And I guess it would be helpful to give you all a little background, too.

I have been employed at my current workplace since October of 2005. Previous to that, I had nearly 7 years of experience in the Coast Guard, where I was honorably discharged as an E-5 (in non-military terms, I was of supervisory level!) When I first began working in the office that I work now, I started at the bottom of the totem pole. About a year after I began working there, the person that was previously in my current position decided to quit. I applied for and was hired into that position. There were a few growing pains when I became the supervisor of a person that used to be a pay-grade above me, but I think it's safe to say that we are past that now. When I was hired for that job, my supervisor told me that she would expect alot of assistance out of me for things in the office that she needed help with. I have risen to the occasion and am proud to say that I have learned and exceled in my position. (At least I think so!) I am the go-to person during my supervisor's absence (and sometimes even the go-to person for my supervisor :) !) Well, the time has come and now my supervisor is quitting (should I be getting a complex about this?!!) and her job is available to be applied for until July 10th. I feel that I would be able to learn and excel in her position, too. My hesitation is simply the amount of hours that I have seen her put in and still be extremely far behind. I have the utmost respect for this person that is leaving and don't fully know what the situation was that she was so buried in work. I don't want to degrade her efforts and will just keep my opinions to myself, but suffice it to say that I believe I wouldn't face some of the same obstacles. Another reason for my hesitation is that although it will be a nice pay increase in black and white, I will become a salaried employee (I am now overtime eligible, not that I have had to work too many overtime hours) which means that although I will get paid more, with that comes the expectation to put in longer hours, as well.

So, I have talked this over with Leo for quite some time and I have prayed about it even longer. Some days I feel like the little voice is telling me to stay right where I'm at because there are other things in my life that need to be focused on. Than other days, I think I would still be able to handle all of the obligations to family, church and school and still learn this new job as well. I know the option is there to submit my application and then not take the job if that time were to come. But, it would be pretty awkward if I were to get to the point of being offered the job and then turn it down.

What to do?....What to do?....

Whewweee!!

Man, does time ever fly! I had no idea it had been so long since I have posted on here! Sorry guys!! But, I did say that I didn't know if I would have the stamina to keep up with this thing!!

Well, I don't really have anything witty or interesting to write about. Life has been ridiculously busy, as I noticed many others are feeling as well! Let's see what news I have to report:

1. I just learned that beginning in August of 2009, the Montgomery GI Bill is changing for post 9/11 veterans. The new program sounds very exciting and I hope the beginning date to the new benefit stays on track. Basically, the new GI Bill is changing so that it covers full cost of tuition (paid directly to the school on a person's behalf), it will give a monthly stipend that nationwide averages $1400, and a yearly stipend of $1000 for books and fees related to school. That is the full benefit available if a person served for 36 months or more since 9/11/01. If a person has served less than 36 months, the benefit is adjusted by percentage increments based on the total time served. The really good news about this new benefit is that, unlike the current GI Bill, there is no mandatory pay-in amount that could make you ineligible for the benefit if you opted out of paying (which I did because I am a big dummy and couldn't predict how valuable paying $1200 in one year could potentially be in the long run). I have to pull out my records and see just how many months after 9/11 I served to see what percentage of benefit I may qualify for.

2. To add to my official nerd status, I received a notification from my school that I have earned a place on the Academic Honors List. If I can stay on the path that I am on now, I have the potential to graduate Summa cum Laude (3.9-4.0 gpa), Magna cum Laude (3.7-3.89 gpa), or Cum Laude (3.5-3.69). Because I have no idea what those words mean, I looked them up (just in case anyone else was wondering what the heck this all really means) and here is what I found:
Summa cum Laude translates to mean "With Highest Praise"

Magna cum Laude translates to mean "With Great Honor"

and Cum Laude translates to mean "With Praise"

I would be absolutely thrilled to end up with any of those Honors, but am just striving to do the best that I can do.

3. My sweet, precious, and most adorable daughter is going to be 2 years old on Thursday. In so many ways, I can't believe she is already going to be 2. In alot of ways, I can't believe she is only going to be 2. I'm not trying to infer that my child is gifted, but she blows me away, sometimes, with just how intelligent she really is. But then again, look at who her parents are!! ;}

And did I mention how cute she is?!! Here's a picture to remind you!! :)

4. Leo, Holly and I are headed to Michigan for the long holiday weekend. My cousin is getting married and my whole family is going to be there (my dad's side of the family, that is). I get to see my Mom, Dad, brother and nephew also! I am so excited to hang out with everybody and hopefully there will be some relaxation going on too!!

Well, I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend, as well!! I'll miss you all! Take care:)