Spring Blessings

I read my niece's blog a few minutes ago and it made me want to blog. It's only been a few weeks since my last post, so that's progress!

Today is a beautiful Spring day. The flowers began to bloom last week and the grass is lovely. The river is going down to manageable levels without danger of flooding our area, which is another blessing.

I got to video chat with my oldest child today. Having her 10 hours away isn't so bad when I can see her face, even if it is on a video screen.

I've been thinking about changing the name of my blog, but I'm at a loss. Any ideas? Please feel free to respond if you have a suggestion.

Has it been almost a year?

Has it really been almost a year since I last blogged? Well, actually about mine months, but that's still a long time. Especially since I miss blogging. I don't know if I have any readers left out there, but I'm going to come back because it's fun.

This reminds me of my journals. I have several of them started, and I occasionally go back and read them. Most of the entries start something like this: "It's been a long time since I wrote in my journal, but I'm going to be better about it from now on." And then I try to update the highlights of the year since my last entry.

This time is different because I am using an electronic journal. Surely it will be different this time...right?

Graduation

We did it! We graduated today. For some, it was just a couple years. For others, like me, it was closer to five years, and some even longer. It has been a journey that I truly embraced; I loved the classes and collaboration and professors. Every bit of it (well, most of it) has been an excellent part of the process and I'm so thankful to have been given this opportunity. My kids are excited for me that this opportunity is done; my husband is ready to have me home without having to study.

Tonight my six-year old daughter asked me to play a game and I was thrilled to realize that, for the first time, there was nothing else I had to do in that moment. It was a very warm and gushy feeling. To my fellow graduates, congratulations on your accomplishment. I am truly proud of each of you.

Dissemination

Well, we all survived dissemination, and it was actually fun. My husband, parents and oldest child came to support me. My 15-year old didn't want to have anything to do with it, so he babysat the younger two instead.

There were several other students who did studies related to mine, and it was gratifying to see that we came up with similar results.

Almost done!

I just realized that my last post was six months ago. One of the things I am looking forward to doing once I graduate in May is blogging. I have missed posting here, even if no one ever sees it. It is somehow gratifying to see my past comments and even use it as a reference.

I graduate with my master's in Adult Learning and Organizational Performance, which means that I am currently experiencing the birth pains of my thesis. Although I wouldn't have admitted this a month ago, I appreciate the process. I feel that I am a better writer than when I began this process, and for that I am thankful.

Facebook

Greetings! My technology voyage continues; I have recently been getting into Facebook. I have been connecting with people that I haven't seen in years and some that I don't see often enough. I have been able to connect with family members in a whole new way. I assume if you are reading this that you have computer access, so if you haven't set up a Facebook account yet, you should really check it out. There is some measure of privacy available, in that you can set your privacy to allow only friends to see your stuff, your friends and their friends, or anybody who cares to look.

I'm back

Hi everyone - whoever that may be. I have missed blogging and decided that there was no reason I couldn't blog, just because the emerging technologies class is done. If any of you out there have any interest in the subject of collaborative technology, I encourage you to check out the class at Drake University.
Since I last wrote, I have taken the needs analysis and evaluation class and am currently taking Leadership Essentials and Organizational & Political Savvy, both with Dr. Westbrook. There is a TON of work, but it's good stuff. I pretty much work, eat and sleep a little, and do homework. My kids are excited to know that I will be done with homework in 10 1/2 months. Woo hoo!
I have also purchased my first mac since I finished class, and I love it. It has a lot more functionality for the techie stuff I like to do. If you don't have one, you should check them out.
This is kind of lame for a first post, but it's after midnight and my brain cells are rebelling. Good night and blessings to you all.