Finally!!!

It has been a LONG road, to say the least. From several years of working on pre-reqs, and working as an LPN at the same time, to competing with lots of other students to get into the program and WORRYING myself silly about getting in, to getting in and making the decision to stop working and make some hard financial decisions this year, to finally being done...that about sums it up, if you leave out all the in-betweens. Obviously they didn't teach me not to use run-on sentences and incomplete sentences, or I didn't listen! :) However, I am thankful for what I did learn, and am more than ready to use my "RN brain" at a new job. I am excited about what this means for our family, and very excited about the opportunity to do Hospice. I have been pulled that way for such a long time. I truly believe that God did everything in His PERFECT timing so that I could do this. He held us up the whole time. In the midst of thirty to forty page care plans, the major stress of tests, and believing that I just might become a psych patient myself, He carried me through! I also would have never made it without the support of Jason, and all the help and prayers from our families. I know that Jason is ready to have his wife back, and in a less crazy state! He has been wonderful. I am so thankful to be surrounded with love. One of the things that I did not expect was to make the incredible friends that I did, and two in particular, as some of you know. They have been sisters in Christ to me, and truly amazing friends. I don't think I've known better, and I am excited about future time spent with them.We have so much in common, and yet, I look up to and admire them for having already traveled some of the life paths that I am just now beginning to go down, and how they handle everything so gracefully. They were an unexpected gift from the Lord. Now, I am just praying about NCLEX, and I know God will take care of me still.       "That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all your wondrous works" Psalm 26:7

Celebration of Mothers!

This weekend marked my second Mother's Day, and we basically celebrated all weekend! We also got to enjoy both Jason's mom and my mom, and spent Sunday together with all the family at church and at lunch afterward. On Saturday, my mom and I enjoyed the Mother Daughter brunch at Lindberg, which turned out to be really fun. We used to go when I was little, but they haven't had one for a while, until this year. My mom sang and played guitar, as you can see from the picture above, which proved to be the highlight of the whole event. Then I came home and was surprised by my husband with a beautiful stepping stone that will hold Drew's handprints, (and hopefully go into a garden at our next house), and a beautiful onyx and diamond ring and necklace that is a Mother's Day/graduation present put together. I was so surprised! This man is good in the gift department! He knows just what I like. Sunday was spent at church and with our folks, and Sunday afternoon we finished planting flowers, and Drew helped. He also managed a face dive straight into the potting soil, which was loads of entertainment:)
Most of all, this weekend reminded me of how blessed Jason and I both are to have the kind of moms that we have. Jason will admit, if you ask him, that he is a "mommas boy". He is extremely close with his mom, and I consider her to be my close friend, also. She is tender and kind, and loves her kids and grandchildren more than life itself. She is beautiful and talented, too, and can really paint and draw, which most people don't know, but she's really good! She is also really funny, and gives us lots of laughs:) It's easy to see that Jason has endless good memories about his mom, and the kind of mom she was when he was growing up. One of the things he said was that she would always fix him macaroni and cheese with hot dogs, and turn on The Price is Right, when he got home from school. (I know, no other child would watch this, but that's just Jason). She always encouraged him in sports, and everything else he wanted to do. He also knew that he could get away with a lot more, if he just asked his mom. He was blessed! I, too, cherish my own mother more than words can express. Mostly because, above all else, she has always lived the kind of life, and walked the walk that I desire for myself. She is beautiful, talented, and incredibly smart, though she would never admit any of those things. She sings beautifully, plays guitar, and can write poetry, and draw really well. She was a stay at home mom, who spent hours reading to her children, playing with her children, and cleaning up after them! She did not push me to be the best, or the most popular, or the wealthiest. She didn't expect me to be perfect, and still doesn't. She did not push religiosity. She didn't push ANYTHING. Instead, she led by example, always encouraging me in my walk with Jesus. She remained faithful to Him, even after a failed marriage, the loss of her brother to cancer, and later her mother to cancer, during the tormented relationship with her father, and through my teenage years when I was such a handful. She always told me I was beautiful, not based on looks, but on my heart. I cannot express enough how incredible this woman is, but she IS. She taught me that "blessed are the humble", and "the meek", and blessed are women who walk with the Lord! Thank heaven for fabulous mothers!