A 15 Hour Semester is Going Well...

So far that is. I enjoy all of my classes, but I don't really like being at school from 7:30 am until 8 pm. on Monday's and from 7:30 am until 6 pm on Wednesday's. I come home and want to climb into bed even if the clock says 9pm. My Friday class meets every other week with online work to do on the off week. I really like the mix of online and in class time.

This has been an odd semester when considering the weather. So far, the school has closed twice because of snow and ice. I don't mind driving in snow, and will even drive with the ice. However, it's all of the other drivers who are on the road that I do mind. I've seen some really stupid, albeit potentially redeemable people, out driving at top speeds when there is black-ice on the roads. The biggest obstacle is the bridge over the lake; when it's covered with ice, it's dangerous. I'm just glad that the school did cancel on the days I didn't want to take a risk and drive over that bridge. Fortunately, none of my classes are too intense to miss a few days and still stay on top of the schedule.

Okay, so classes are going really well...maybe too well. Anyway, doesn't it always seem that when things go really well in one area, something goes wrong in another? Last Friday, I woke up at 3 a.m. in severe pain that got worst as the hour ticked by. Mike woke up when he realized that I was sitting up and groaning and asked me what was wrong. The pain was so intense at the point that I told him to take me to the emergency room, now! The triage nurse treated me as if I were having a heartattack and the Doctor had me hooked up to all kinds of wires and machines. Two and a half hours, four sticks, an chest X-ray, EKG, and green yucky stuff to drink later, the Doctor came in with some results. The great news...my heart is very healthy! The not so good news, my liver enzymes are elevated. I followed up with my own doctor and the lab results showed the same elevations, so I have an appointment to get an ultrasound on my liver. I have no other symptoms to indicate any health issues, but the liver enzymes could mean something serious or something as simple as a remnant gall stone that got left behind from my 2002 gall-bladder removal. I have trusted God to take care of my whole life and I don't plan to stop trusting Him now. I'll update as I get results. Please keep my in your prayers.

Taking 15 hours isn't as bad as I thought it would be, but the work load can be overwhelming at times. There is a lot of homework and group projects to work on outside of the school hours. However, I look forward to keeping my grandchildren on Fridays evenings (William gets to stay until 10 pm and Kayleigh spends the night). Sometimes, I have to be forced to take a break from school work and grandkids are a wonderful break to take. I'd post some pictures, but it seems that blogger isn't working for posting pictures. I'll have to find another way to post them.

Okay, my break is over and I need to hit the books again.

Spring Semester 2007 Begins

Today is my last day of free/me time. No more playing, reading for fun, watching HGTV, and no more time-intensive home projects inspired by watching HGTV. Tomorrow I begin my first semester working on content for my degree. I’m looking forward to the classes I’ll be taking this semester, but I’m not looking forward to the long days of classes. I keep reminding myself that I only have two more years before I graduate again. I know I can do 15 hours this semester, but I really won’t know what it’s like until I have my routine down with every t crossed and every i dotted.

I did get a lot accomplished while I’ve been off. As I mentioned, we work out at the gym five days a week and twice a month with a trainer. I’m going this morning to work with the trainer, but I’m going to remind him/her that I need to function without being too sore to move for my first day of school. In one month, I have lost about 3 pounds, but I think I’m more toned and have lost some inches. I haven’t taken my measurements, but my clothes are looser.

My kitchen is finished—for now. I textured the walls and painted, re-framed my artwork, and organized everything in the kitchen and utility room. I think it looks bigger and brighter in the kitchen now. The next stage will be granite counters, and then paint and glaze the cabinets, but that will have to wait until after I graduate. I found dark blue granite that will go perfectly with my floors, but it isn’t cheap.

Mike and I went to Louisiana for the weekend and took Justin and his family with us to visit Jason and his family. Traveling in a motorhome makes it much easier when you have kids. Kayleigh sat at the dinette and played, read books, and napped. William is such an easy baby; he slept most of the time going to and coming back. Being able to stop in a parking lot to eat lunch or dinner is especially nice, and it allowed Kayleigh some time to get up and move around, as a two-year-old needs to do. I like having my own bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. Mike played with the big boys (Jason and Justin) while I played with the grandkids. Overall, it was an enjoyable weekend of getting away before I return to school.

Just finished my workout; I did back and biceps and it feels good. After lunch and a shower, I plan to spend the rest of today reading the first two chapters for each class, as I typically do. I’m also going to catch up with talking to my friends who I don’t get to talk to very often when I’m in classes all day.

I expect this semester to be busy, but I also expect that I will enjoy my classes. I do feel this is the year for great and mighty experiences, greater than what we usually ask for. Expect with me all that God has planned for this new year.