Oh I got my lunch pack packed, my shoes tied tight, I hope I don’t get in a fight! Oh back to school,back to school…

Just stopping in to give you all a bit of an update. I am now an official college student. I had my orientation tonight and will have my first class (Student Success) on April 7th. I am enrolled as a full time student taking on 15 credits!!! I am on my way to the life I have dreamed of. I couldn't be more excited.

My first couple of years will be dedicated to business management and then it is off to Minneapolis, MN to complete my music emphasis. When all is said and done I will have a career as a Recording Artist Manager. This degree will also allow me to become a Tour Manager. (I will actually get to use the line "I'm with the band")

Before I was accepted at the school I had to take an assessment test. This exam rates your proficiency in reading, writing, and arithmetic. I scored above average on my reading and writing portions of the test. I am average when it comes to decimals and percentages. It was the fractions that got to me. I scored below average and now have to take an extra class to revisit Mathematics II.

The staff at the school are very nice and welcoming. They are all willing to help with anything they can. My class sizes will be very small at 6- 10 students each. I am taking 3 classes on campus and 2 of them online.

I never thought that I could be this excited to have homework, but I am dieing to dive right in to it! I will keep you all posted.

We're Baaaack!

Yay! We are back and with a few new pics to boot! The super charged time has flown right passed me and unfortunately I do not have much to show for it.

I do, however, have a picture of our trip to the butterfly house. Gracie had a blast and I would have gotten many great pictures. If only I wasn't in such a hurry and forgot to swap the battery on the camera. This is the lone survivor of the 20 or so photos I snapped before the battery died.

Next, we have a picture of Gracie playing with her airplane. Apparently, in her world, ice cream cones can pilot an aircraft.

And last but certainly not least, we have the evidence of the most horrifying experience I have been through since becoming a mother. A moment that, as soon as she was mobile, I new would come in only a matter of time. Grace was watching Dora (all the while singing and dancing along) she stumbled and hit her eye on the coffee table. (Grace may not have been a fitting name, as she is about as clumsy as her mother) We had to bring her in to Acute Care where the doctor was glad to report that the cut was clean and even and would not require stitches. They glued the cut together and about 4 days later the glue fell off and the cut is healing very well. She does have quite the shiner though, huh?

This experience gave me a whole new appreciation for my daughter's strength. That night when we got home, I was getting her ready for bed and the only thing she wanted to do was resume where she left off before the incident.

The girl is a trooper, that's for sure...Stay tuned to see what she will get into next!

Why I Will Miss 2008.

While ringing in the New Year with our extended family of friends, I couldn’t help but think of my beautiful baby girl at home sleeping. She does not yet have the capability to understand why we celebrate the passing of the year and the arrival of a new one. She does not recognize that she has given us reason to commemorate.

How could she possibly know it was her smiles and giggles that have made our year one to remember? That while she was filled with pride from finally figuring out that she can get onto that chair by herself, we were sitting close by stunned by our daughters strength.

Do you think she realizes that even though our year was filled with the terror that is teething, we couldn’t be prouder of that infectious half formed smile?
I wonder if she can feel the purpose she has given us when she points and tells us what she sees. That silly kitty in the book never meant so much to me.

Of this I am sure, to her there is no wrong in the world. The only evils she has seen are those of time-outs and the tantrums in between. But even these can be easily remedied with a great big hug and an “It’s ok, you will see”.

You see, 2008 will always be remembered as the year our precious baby blossomed into this wonderful person that we get to spend the rest of our lives with. We have learned that, though she is small, her love and strength is great. She has discovered that, with a little time and her parents’ guidance, she can overcome her greatest obstacles.

So to you little one, I give thanks. For all the little joys you have given us. We are forever grateful to watch you learn and grow. Because, in all your accomplishments we delight, we know that we are doing something right.

We know that with the passing years, our love for this child will only grow. That every New Year I will reflect on what she has learned and taught us as well. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to celebrate.

Ok ok...I know it has been 2 weeks since you have last heard from us. I appologize, we have been very busy. I still have not found time to sit down and work on the video. Instead Gracie and I went out and played in the snow for the first time. She did not like it as much as i thought she might. Here are a few pictures.

Ok, so the video editing software that came with my camera is horrible. I can't even set music to my video with it. I am able to isolate the audio already on the clip but cannot add anything. Does anyone have any suggestions? I don't need anything real fancy. It actually only needs to have the ability to add music. I am looking for something relatviely inexpensive and extremely user friendly. I will have video up as soon as I find an editor that I like. In the mean time, please enjoy these pictures of my silly litle Gracie.

Since we are new here I thought I would post a few of my favorite pictures of Gracie. These were taken around her first birthday. I hope you enjoy! I am working on some video as well. I have tons of video but have not actually sat down to edit any of it yet. I will get them posted as soon as possible.

Welcome!

This is Grace Noel. Born on May 13th 2007, she is a "by the book" Taurus. She knows what she wants, how she wants it, and doesn't want any helping getting it. She will master most tasks presented to her, as she loves to know how things work.

She can be stubborn as well, it's pretty hard to sway this Taurus child once she gets an idea in her head.

On the other hand, she can be patient and persistent. She has a great love for books and can be found, most of the time, sitting with a book and "reading". She is a compassionate being, handing out hugs and kisses often.

Grace has become quite the little gourmet, trying any type of food placed in front of her and always wanting more. Some of her favorites include yogurt, corn, and anything that you can dip into something.

Our goal with this blog is to document Grace's triumphs and tribulations. Her joys and fears. Maybe even help other parents in similar situations. But mostly to share the greatness and love that Grace offers to the world with our friends and family across the nation.