I didn't mean to be a creep.

In 2009, right after Carl and I got married, I took a class that I had wanted to take for as long as I could remember.  Sign language.  I had wanted to learn sign language forever, but it was just never in the cards for me to take it.  Year after year in college, I tried and tried to get into a class, but it just never happened.  Classes filled up, schedules were too tight, you name it.  So, in 2009 I was finally able to take this class that I had dreamt of.  And I soaked it in.  Every minute of it.  I adored it.  The language is absolutely beautiful.

Every single following semester, I did my best to be accepted in to ASL level 2.  However, the professor at UF is nationally known (Dr. Sign... I think I've mentioned him here before...) and it was IMPOSSIBLE to get in his class if he didn't know you personally!  I was really bummed out, but I figured I'd just finish my degree and work on sign language after I graduated.

Well, after I graduated, I up and moved across the country.  I've been trying to find signing classes that I could enroll in, but I couldn't find any that weren't on a specific degree tract.  Then, I looked into community ed.  No luck there, either.

Hmm... where could I go to learn sign language??  A deaf person!  But wait, I don't know any deaf people.  Dangit.  Where else could I go?  A sign language group!  I investigated, and once again I hit a dead end.  There were no sign language groups within 200 miles of Turlock (that I could find, at least.)

I had one last option.  Find a church that had a service for deaf individuals to worship, and study with a person there, IF he or she was willing.  After even more googling, I found an entire deaf church in Modesto (the next town over.)  I looked up that church's website and couldn't find it!  Dang it!! Yet another dead end!  I did, however, find a woman's myspace page where she mentioned that she attended that church because she loves sign language even though she was not deaf.  I quickly tried to send her a message on myspace but it required me to log in, and I couldn't figure out my old info.

Overly determined, I looked at her name and I copy and pasted it into the facebook search.  Creepy?  Yes, I know.  I tried not to be.  I even apologize profusely in my message I wound up sending her for appearing creepy.  So, she wrote me back and said she would try to get me some phone numbers.  I am beyond excited!!!!  I might finally be able to learn sign language.  Oh what a joy it would be for me!!!!!  I am just dying to get past level one and be able to really communicate.

I'm so excited.  I really hope this comes through and everything works out.
In my countdown post yesterday, I mentioned being thankful for Melanie not being creeped out.
This was what I meant.

I am beyond excited and I hope and pray this will come through!  Wish me luck!

Countdown

Five Things I Am Thankful For:

• Our new camera.  I purchased the exact same one that I had (that just died) and I'm happy we have a way to capture our memories again.
• Melanie not being creeped out.  (A post will come regarding this issue later...)

• USPS (I know, sounds silly... but I love getting cards and letters in the mail!)
• Emily!  (Hi Emily, if you happen to be reading this!) I'm thankful that there is someone in Turlock that I can trust to watch my little Belle while we go to the mountains next weekend.  Belle will even have two friends to play with (Jasmine and Buster) and I'm thankful they all get along.
• Websites that work.  I'm beyond frustrated with trying to pay bills online when company websites do not properly work.  It's like they don't even want our money.

Three Things I Want To Accomplish This Week:

• Pictures of our home.  People have been asking, and I just haven't gotten around to it yet!
• Learn to take pictures in manual mode on my camera.
• File my whopping stack of papers that came in the mail a few days ago.

Two Things I Am Working To Be Positive About:

• Jeeze, I can't even think of one.  Is that good or bad?  I feel positive and upbeat about everything goin on in my life. I guess that's a good thing.

One Random Thing:

• This week is gonna drag by... we have great plans this weekend!  Mountain trip with friends, dinner with friends, and church as usual.  Life is GOOD!

A little rusty...

Hey friends!  Happy Friday!

My friend Mia sent me a video earlier today and it made me miss signing.  So, I searched through the house for my old notes, popped out the camera, and recorded a story for you.  This is a story of my engagement.  Most of you have heard it before, I'm sure, but I'll share it again.  I told this story when I was in an ASL class and the girls in the class all cried.  I'm a little rusty because of lack of practice, and I don't claim this to be perfect.... but here, take a look if you're interested.

And on another note, while I was trying to upload this, this is an honest to goodness error message I got from youtube.

Don't worry, I didn't do that.

I gotta go pick up the kiddo from school, but happy Friday!  Have a great weekend!

Countdown

Five Things I Am Thankful For:

• Our new church family!  We placed membership yesterday and it feels so wonderful to be back with a great group of people.
• A fridge that works.  (Last week it went out and we lost waaaay to many groceries.  This week we're fully restocked.)
• Our location.  There's so much to do within a couple of hours of our new home!
• Austin meeting new friends at church that are good kids.
• Warm welcomes from new friends and neighbors.

Four Things I Can't Stop Thinking About:

• My trip home that is coming up. (Yep, still the same as last week!)
• FLYING WITH BELLE.  AAAAAAH!!!
• All the errands I have to run today.
• Our trip coming up next weekend, TO THE MOUNTAINS!  

Three Things I Want To Accomplish This Week:

• Every bit of laundry.  It's neverending and I want to have at least one day where I don't have a thing to wash.
• Clean my car out.  It's getting messy and I can hear my mom's voice in the back of my head telling me to clean it! (Love you mom!)
• Purchase and install the wall mount for our TV so we can get it off of our fireplace.  Nope, we still haven't done that.

Two Things I Am Working To Be Positive About:

• My voice.  People cannot hear me half the time, and I am talking as loud as I possibly can.  I wind up with my throat muscles feeling tired after trying to talk loudly when I'm out with people.
• Belle will learn how to walk on a leash by my side instead of pulling.  It's a process, but we'll get there.

One Random Thing:

• So.... Belle has been bringing me her treasured bones lately.  Not the every day run of the mill bones, but the ones that she truly loves and tries to keep hidden from everyone in the house.  She brings them to me and I'm pretty sure they are a gift from her.  If I try to give it back to her, her ears go down and she looks offended.  I asked Carl what I'm supposed to do with the bone and he simply said, "Start eatin'."

Goodnight, sweetheart!

Happy Friday, friends!

Sorry I haven't been blogging lately.  I've been really busy during the days, and nights are reserved for family time.  I hope to have a few minutes to blog soon, but until then, here.  Watch this video.  It's a sure thing that it will make you smile and say, "Aww."

Have a great weekend folks!

Countdown

Five Things I Am Thankful For:

• The sweet card and letter my husband gave me for Valentine's Day.
• The beautiful weather here in the valley.
• You!  Thank you for reading!
• Belle's cuddles since she got a haircut.  Three in the bed makes it a little difficult to sleep, but how she curls up under my chin is worth it.
• I have a phone that I can actually talk on, so I get to catch up with my friends back home.  

Four Things I Can't Stop Thinking About:

• My trip home that is coming up.
• Sammy is a year old now, and I SWEAR it was just yesterday that sweet baby was born.
• My sweet Georgia baby, I don't want her to forget me being so far away.
• Potential jobs.  I've been on the hunt, and I hope I find a job soon.

Three Things I Want To Accomplish This Week:

• Settle down into a church.  We're having a heckuva time trying to decide which one to go to.
• Put pictures in my empty frames.  Seriously, they have been empty for over a year.  Ridiculous.
• Purchase and install the wall mount for our TV so we can get it off of our fireplace.

Two Things I Am Working To Be Positive About:

• The fact that I require more sleep than the others in my household.  I don't know why it is, but I'm going my best to just accept it.  I already go to bed at 9:30 every night and comfortably sleep till 8 when my alarm goes off.
• We have tile kitchen counters.  I do not understand why anyone would make their counters made of tile.  Because it's cheap?  Maybe.  I don't know, but I do know that grout is a bear to clean and I'm constantly lysoling the kitchen (especially after cooking meats!).

One Random Thing:

• This wasn't my idea, the whole countdown thing.  I jumped on he bandwagon from Lori.  Thanks for the idea, Lori!

Hail!

Yesterday, I told Carl how much I missed the Florida rain.

Truth be told, I probably told him about 5 times.

And wouldn't you know it.  

Today, it rained.

It even did more than that.

It hailed.

It's like God said, "You miss the Florida rain?  Let me send you some rainy weather.  I know how you love it so."

It's rare for it to rain here in the Valley.  

Or so I'm told.

Now, I'm not so used to hail, so I filmed it.

I know, dork.

But here, watch anyway:

And for the record, the reason I kept telling Austin to come inside is because I don't want him to be sick on this 5 DAY WEEKEND he gets.  

Not because I'm a party-pooper. 

Notice, he's barefoot.

Silly boy.