- I saw my first Cirque du Soleil show, Alegria. Saying that it was and amazing show is an understatement, but it was indeed a phenomenal presentation. I loved every minute of it and was even suckered into purchasing a bag, a bag that I’m sure only cost about $.35 to make. But, I was proud to have my little souvenir.

- I went to Global Wildlife – TWICE! The second time was with my daughter and her class, sans my son. Sometimes, you just need to get a little alone time in with one child at a time. I love our Mother-Daughter time just as much as my Mother-Son time as much as our Family time.

 

 

- I went to Mississippi with one of my best friends. I always find it fun when he calls and says, “Hey, I’m headed to such-and-such, are you riding?” Louisiana’s weather is crazy and this trip was taken mid February. Yes, in February I was in Biloxi, MS on the beach…having a good time, nevertheless.

 

- I bought my first car. Yep. At 23 years old, I financed my own car. I’m still in disbelief that this actually happened, but I’m glad that I was able to do such. My first car, Emma, put me through it and I was not about to waste money on another motor. So, I saved – and penny pinched – and went without a lot of things to save for a down payment. And it happened. I love my 2010 Hyundai Sonata aka The Silver Bullet.

- I visited Atlanta for the first time. And well, I fell in love with Downtown Atlanta. Initially, plans of traveling to Atlanta didn’t look so good, but luckily, everything went as planned. I finally got a chance to gas up the “Silver Bullet” and drive across two states. My sister and I had a great time. We got a really good rate on a room for the weekend at the Marriott Marquis and made it to Atlanta in 6-1/2 hours. (Yes, we broke all kinds of traffic laws.) By the time we made it to the hotel, it took us about 8 hours to finally get up and go somewhere. I could have stayed in bed all day.

 

- The kids, my sister and I drove to Mississippi for a day at the beach. This was the second “spur of the moment” road trip to Mississippi for me. They had a really great time there. We went in early October because it was still very hot.

 

- I went out and participated in my university’s homecoming festivities with friends. I hadn’t gone out in a while and I needed this. I LOVE the Greek shows and going out to party afterwards was a blast. I dealt with the aftermath of partying all night until 5AM and having to work at 8AM, but I had a great time. I slept from the time I got off on Saturday and didn’t get out the bed Sunday morning. O,O

 

- I had two amazing school semesters. Dean’s List of of course. :beep beep: I’m working hard to improving my GPA, which will in turn, create more opportunities for me. I’ve applied for acceptance into Southern University’s National Science Institute and I’m waiting to hear from them when the new semester begins January 17.

- I landed my first internship. I should have had an internship during my Sophmore and Junior years, but I have on nonetheless. What does it entail? Well, I’ll discuss that more in detail when I begin on January 17, 2012.

- I loved again. I did something that I thought I couldn’t do. . that I was scared to do. . that I was too angry and hurt to do after the epic fail that was my son’s father and I. But I did it and it was one of the best moments this year.

 
 

So, did I accomplish what I said I would accomplish from my first post of January 2011? I think so.
After all..

I lived.

I laughed.

And I loved.

I couldn’t find the pole to my larger tree, but this 7′ tree will suffice until I get another one. It’s not as small and frail as I thought it would be so it’ll do since I refuse to buy another tree 13 days before Christmas. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around that.

Anways, to get back into the blogging spirit, I’m going to try to make a Christmas-y post for the Twelve Days of Christmas. We’ll see how that turns out. :)

I think the thing I love most about Mother’s Day and any holiday, are the homemade gifts that I get from my children. They are always so eager to show me something they’ve created just for me. They put their all into their little creation and it really warms my heart. These are the moments that I treasure. And just like my mom, I also keep a lot of the things that my siblings and I have made.

I loved the gift that Jon got for me. It was totally unexpected but appreciated, nonetheless. How can any guy go wrong with shoes? Although the middle part of my Mother’s Day was spent at work, I was able to attend church that morning and I was able to relax for the remainder of the day once I got off. I’ve been working 6 days straight and I’m tired. The Spring semester has ended and I plan on getting some rest in before the Summer semester begins.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother’s Day. =)

But, now it’s time to return to what I do, which also includes school. The start of the new semester is bittersweet for me. I’m ready to get it started and finished but at the same time, I can do without algorithms, c++, php, and all of the math. I must say, it is a bit easier to swallow if I’d just keep reminding myself that I’m a senior. Although I’m not a graduating senior, I’m pretty close to receiving my BA is Computer Science, Information Systems. I’m not sure how long I’ll be in school and to be honest, I’ve stopped focusing so much on that. I have enough going on–I don’t need the unnecessary stress of finishing school within 4-5 years.

As far as my goals for this year, I’ve narrowed them down to three:

• Live
• Laugh
• Love

And that basically sums up what I lacked for the most part of last year. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely didn’t have a bad year, but I spent a lot of the year worrying about things, not having any fun of my own, and partly losing myself in what I began to believe I should only do–be a mother, be a student, and be an employee.

Now, I plan to be among those who live, laugh, and love. Moreover, I plan to be that person who lives, laughs, and loves.

Going into the new year, I’m perfecting a plan that I’ve set in motion earlier this year to prevent some of those unfortunate events from reoccurring. I know that I’d never know what lies ahead, but I’m prepared regardless. Chiefly, I’m focused on enchancing my quality of life. I want to travel and I want to be reaquainted with my spontaniety. I want to have another successful semester (I’m 2 for 2) and I want a better grip on my finances. I’m working on being a bit more organized and I’m working on decreasing my habit of procrastinating. And well to me, that seems like a great start.

For the most part, I’m satisfied with things that I’ve experienced and witnessed this year, and my eyes are w i d e open, as well as my mind and heart, to what is in store in 2011. There is always room for improvement, so I’m keeping that in mind as the new year approaches. I’m really looking forward to what else there is to conquer. I can’t say that I’m going to do a complete 180° turn, but be on the lookout for those 90° movements.

I’ll see you all in 2011! God Bless.