Oh yeah, and. . .

My Drivers License expired on my birthday. . .so. . uh. .if I'm gonna successfully rent and drive a rental car when we get to Portland, clearly I also need to go get a new drivers license!!!

To do before Wednesday!

Wednesday, Jacob, Mom, and me leave for Portland for seven days. There is A LOT I have to do before then. Thankfully, I finished up my assignments for that class I was in. . .hopefully I'll get a B. Ok. . .so I'm gonna make my list:
1. Make a list of what I need to take for us
2. Pack that stuff!
3. Purchase presents for: Sebastian/Sean/Lucero/J/T/Z/C/M/D/G
4. Clean Jacob's room REALLY well!
5. Clean my room REALLY well!
6. Work on my stuff in the garage
7. Grocery shop for Grandma
8. Take stuff to Goodwill/Recycling
9. Work on project for BE at school!!!!
10. Continue house-training Choco
11. sweep/mop kitchen/dining room
12. work on living room
13. Think about my "best friend" . . .
So. . .yeah. . .lots to do. . .there's probably more!

Last Paper

I am currently delaying writing my last paper for my second to last class. I need to get started. Thankfully, 90 % of it is to be basically copy-pasted from earlier assignments - to create a case study of the child that I tutored for this class. I still am having a hard time getting started. ONE MORE CLASS AFTER THIS, then I am DONE! Yay for that. . .and the subsequent pay raise! Life is going extremely well right now, so I need to just suck it up and write the durn paper! :)

M&M

Jacob's New Toy Poodle

Jacob's New Puppy

"Home for the Holidays"

Jacob

Ummmmm. I think maybe I've made this face before. . . the unimpressed, "yeah, whatever" look. :)

Learning about Life in 2008

As this year comes to an end, I am hoping to be able to process the lessons that I have learned this year. It has been an amazing year. Friendships have been established, maintained, and redefined. . . .including the one with myself. Declarations of hopes, wants, feelings, and intents have been made and acted upon to various results. I, for the first time really, have begun to love putting time and effort into myself. . .for me and for others. I am beginning to understand that I truly DO deserve to have the experiences and life that I previously thought was out of my reach.

My 29th Birthday

Grandma, Jacob, and I went over to Mom and Dad's to have a small birthday party. After that, I headed to the Overpass restaurant to meet up with Jessica, Tracy, Saundra, and Debra for dinner, after which Tracy, Jessica, and I made a Walmart run.

My birthday cake.

Modeling jewelry from Jacob!

Dad

Grandma

Grandma and Jacob

Mom

Gingerbread House with Jacob!

More Thanksgiving Pictures

Me ready for my multiple Thanksgiving festivities

Jacob looking awesome, as usual.

First attempt at a pic of me and Tracy. Oh yeah. zoom. Whoops.

Take 2

SAM!

Sam and Bryant! I babysat them when they were babies!

A trifle I made to take to Teresa's