Some snow and some negative temps in PA

Much like my last few posts, this is a pretty random jumble of my thoughts. Things have not really changed since my last post and I haven't seen anything exciting but as I said before, sometimes I just need to write a post....

For those of you in Alaska and over on the West coast, I thought I'd share with you our weather that we've been having and those of you in PA and the surrounding states, well, you already know. It seems just like last winter, that Mother Nature is somewhat confused on where certain types of weather are supposed to be. My whole life we've gotten snow, occasionally some really big snow storms, but this weather has been pretty darn cold and full of snow days. I remember the first winter I was in Alaska, we got a significant amount of snow in Port Heiden and it also got fairly cold. The lowest actual temp that I saw, not including wind chill, was -7* and although that was really cold, it wasn't unbearable. I also clearly remember people telling me that that wasn't as bad of a winter as they usually get. Then, last winter in Manokotak, I'd Skype with my parents and they'd tell me that there was another stretch of snow coming through PA and I'd look out and there was absolutely no snow at all. So strange! Now this winter when we're having the same issue, I get some VERY strange looks when I tell people that PA had a worse weather than I did in Alaska last year. It's like people don't want to believe me! I have to promise them I'm not lying. Rivers didn't freeze very long last year and what's usually a very traveled few hour path from Manokotak to the bigger village, Dillingham, was not frozen and hardly traveled at all because it was so unsafe. Now here we are a year later and I've got negative temps and piled up inches of snow on the ground while parts of Alaska, including Manokotak, are getting rain. 

Completely changing the subject, I can now say that I am half way to 50. Last weekend I turned 25 and it was the first birthday in 2 years that I did not spend in Alaska. That made me sad and just like most things do now a days, it made me reminisce on my Alaska days. However, thanks to my wonderful friends here in PA - I brought in my birthday at midnight surrounded by all of them. After a good, crazy night of celebrating with my friends, I had a quiet dinner with my parents and some greasy cheese pizza! Not too bad of a start to 25 and I can't wait to see what this year has in store for me! I'm hoping for big things.

Mace is still a happy, crazy pup. She is enjoying civilization just as I am. We are enjoying the luxuries of having grocery stores down the road which relatively cheap food - cheaper than a village store - and of course restaurants. Mace is loving the treats that she gets often from her grandma. ;) Since we've been home she's gained roughly 30lbs. I know that sounds like a lot, which is it but she also turned 1 and has filled out. She's not too overweight, I promise. :) 

She's living the life, no matter what state she lives in. :)

A few pictures from my birthday! 

Mace & I hanging out by the wood stove on a snowy, cold day. I wish I would of had one of those in Alaska!! 

The picture on the left is one that I found the other day of one of her first days with me. The glass float was bigger than her head basically. Naturally, I made her pose with the glass float again so we could see the change in size.... just a little different in a year and a half! 

Our walk next to the frozen river today. Today it actually reached about 40* and felt so warm compared to our last few days of single digits, so Macy and I took advantage of it and went down to check out the river. 

If I haven't posted it already, this is my new Jeep! I love, love, love it and am so thankful for the 4 wheel drive. It's been so great to have this winter! If I already posted it, thought you wanted to see another photo of it. :) 

The other morning I woke up and checked the weather before I crawled out of bed. I wanted to know what I was getting myself into when I took Macy out. Yup...... that RealFeel was fun. Luckily, I love the cold and the snow so I don't complain. I pretend I'm in Alaska!

Well, until next time I get the urge to post. Take care and sending love across the miles! 

  

2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY & 10 degree weather

I feel like it's a good time to post an update on here given that yesterday marked two years since I first started my journey to Alaska. (And the fact that it's about 10 degrees and windy outside - much like a lot of my days in AK). Not knowing what in the world I had in store for me, I got on a plane - the first of many ahead - and headed for Anchorage. To refresh your memory if you've followed along for the past two years, I was supposed to go for a short three month stay. At that point, I thought three months was so long and I wasn't quite sure how I was going to handle it. Little did I know, I would extend that stay by many, many months and many more memories. 

My first thought about Anchorage was that it was amazing and I'll tell you that that thought hasn't changed. I'm not a city person, not at all, but being in Anchorage is different. It's unique and doesn't I've off the same "city" feel as so many other cities I've visited. The people there, whether visiting or living there, are unique and individuals... they don't care what people think, if they want to walk around with pink hair, they will. I'm not saying that everyone in Anchorage walks around with pink hair, I'm just using that as an example. The style is different, once again, unique. I love the feel of Anchorage and I always looked forward to going to "town". Not just because I needed some town time outside of the village but also because it's just such a comforting place to be. You walk out of Walmart and there is a breathtaking view. You drive down the highway and you have to stop for a moose to cross all four lanes. I would love to get back to Anchorage... I'd be ready tomorrow if I could make that happen. From my first experience two years to my feelings now, not too much has changed. Although, now, I could tell you some of my favorite restaurants, my favorite shops to visit, where the mall is and what hotels I've stayed in, etc. 

People still think it's crazy when I start talking about my grocery shopping while living in the village. What do you mean you have to shop for your food and mail it to your house? You can't eat fresh fruit and salad there? You paid how much for those grapes? It's definitely something you don't really understand until you're forced to do it. I got to be a master at packing totes to ship to my house. What different things can go together in a tote and not break, how much bubble wrap and grocery bags need to be wrapped around jars - if you have to have them, etc. I will tell you from experience, don't ever mix some cleaning supplies with certain foods, like bread. You will end up with bread that tastes like Clorox - not good when that's the only bread you have for months. Sometimes I still can't believe I did that... I really shipped a flat of boxed milk and a case of Coke in the mail? Sure did and I would do it again in a heartbeat. 

I know that there are a ton of different villages that I could have lived in and I am sure that I would have been happy in pretty much any of them, however, I think I got pretty lucky to be able to call two different amazing villages, home. Port Heiden will always have a special place in my heart. It'll always be my first home in Alaska. That's where I first fell in love with the state (well besides Anchorage). That's where I went on my first adventures, where I first got to experience native food (anyone remember the fuzzy looking caribou stomach?), and to avoid getting into a long list of sappy reasons, just know I love Port Heiden always will. :) The same goes for Manokotak... it may not have been my first home in Alaska but it's where I had my first classroom and experienced a lot of native things, even more native than in Port Heiden... ie. the Maqii (naked steam bath?). Once again and just like every where I went in AK, the people were amazing. My family away from PA. 

This post is pretty much as random as it gets. It's a ramble that has no sequential order and really does not make any sense... but I'm reminded of Alaska every day in all sorts of different ways, so I wanted to reminisce on some memories with you. :) 

 A look back at my first time next to the Bering Sea. A few months later and I ended up jumping in that with whales not too far from me. Yup, I swam in the Bering Sea. 

 My absolute favorite picture of my entire time in Alaska I think. I was lucky enough to see Caribou almost every day in Port Heiden but on this particular day it was -7 degrees out and we went outback from the school and I was able to snap this picture. We were so close to them. So peaceful and beautiful. Ever since I took it, I wanted to get this made into a canvas and I've just been putting it off, but I'm thinking it's about time that I do that.... 

 The view from the front of the Alyeska resort. So, so pretty.... 

My favorite animal - a moose. Lucky for me I got to see them every time I went to Anchorage. 

I learned a whole lot about myself during my time in Alaska. I know I've said it before but not only has my time living there taught me so much but also my time traveling to and from. I won't go into all the details again but man, if I reflect back on my time, I have changed so much and my thought process about certain topics are a lot different, too. 

One thing that sticks out to be tremendously is that I always want an adventure. I always am ready to travel somewhere. By leaving my small town (that I never thought I'd leave) I realized that there is so much more that this world has to offer and I want to see it all. I want to travel, travel and travel some more. 

I saw this the other day .... very true. :)

 And, incase anyone is wondering, Macy is doing wonderful. She's crazy, stubborn, energetic and just as happy as always. She is much chunkier than she was in Alaska - she's up to 50 lbs now!! She's still my little baby. :)

You never know when the mood will strike and I'll post another long ramble.... Until next time, missing AK. 

Life in PA and a much needed ramble...

Much like I started my last random post, I'll say that I'm not even sure how many people, if any, still check this for updates periodically but I thought about this the other day and realized that I miss posting. I also just got done Skyping with Kasie back in Port Heiden and it has me thinking back on my time. I really enjoyed writing and posting about what was going on with my life while in Alaska and it was nice to be able to almost vent and relive what I'd been doing. I stopped since I've been back in PA because I really don't have anything near as exciting to talk about. No whale watching on the shores of the Bering Sea. No moose or caribou or bears roaming around or being shot, etc. Life in PA is fairly quiet most of the time. The only excited with wildlife we encounter is with deer. Each night I take Macy outside and for a long while since I'd been home, I was able to not put Macy on a leash (She doesn't use a leash throughout the day anymore) even when it got dark. Well, since it's gotten cooler out, the deer have been making their way closer and closer to the backyard. They are venturing out of the field and into the yard to eat the acorns or fight the deer decoy we have under the apple trees in the back. The one night we went out and Macy spotted the deer for the first time..... needless to say, they took one look at each other and they were both off into the field. Pitch dark and I was basically in my PJ's, standing there panicked because I didn't know if Macy would come back but she was a good little puppy and came right back after some calling. Thank goodness! From then on, once it gets dark out Macy is on her leash! 

We're both pretty well adjusted to being back in PA. I'm lucky that I have a wonderful family because the family that I have and being around for all of our family gatherings, Sunday football dinners or just little outings with them make me know that I'm supposed to be close to home. I guess my friends help with that a little bit too. ;) I've been able to see my friends regularly, go to haunted houses and concerts and football games, etc. All of the things that I missed while being so far away.... it's nice to not miss out on things here at home. 

With that being said, I can also say that there is not a day that goes by that I don't think about Alaska. Most days I end up talking about my time there for some reason or another and a lot of days I end up thinking that I wish I was back there. I miss the way of life that I had up there. It was so simple. Other than school, getting to the Post Office or store before they closed or crossing a river and watching the tide, there was no real need to be anywhere on time. If we wanted to go out on the Hondas but got distracted looking at caribou for 20 minutes before we actually started to suit up, that was okay. I even just miss being able to go out and explore... take a honda ride out to the beach and ride around, take a walk and admire the beautiful scenery or go on the snow machines. Even just hop on the Honda for a weekly trip down to the store to get that bottle of soda that I'd been craving for so long. I miss all of that. I love being able to go out and explore new things or just enjoy the things that I already love. Right now I'd give just about anything to be able to take a Honda ride on the beaches of Port Heiden.... running parallel between the Bering Sea and the bluffs while the Bald Eagles soar above us and the foxes are running around. Or while the whales are out swimming with the seals under an amazing orange, yellow and red painted sky. I've gotten the taste of what that life is like and it's so hard to not be able to do anymore. It's a battle that I struggle with often. I know there's a reason for it all but I wish so much that Alaska and PA could be closer to one another. I am so happy at home with my family and friends but I so badly miss Alaska and the family and friends that I made up there, so much. I miss that way of life. It's gotten to the point that I almost cannot even watch the shows on the Discovery channel because they make me miss that beautiful state so much. After talking to Kasie, it makes me realize how much more thankful I am for the friends and family I've made up there and how lucky I got to spend all of that time with great, great people in both villages I lived in and all the people I met in between. 

It's hard to believe that this January will make two years since I made my first trip up to Alaska for what I thought would be a quick three months. Never would I have thought that that decision would impact my life the way it has. This was probably a cheesy post to most of you, if there's anyone that is still reading this, but it's just these thoughts I have running through my head that I wanted to share.... :)

One of my favorite views even after traveling to Alaska will always be my backyard.....

Jade and Macy are also adjusting to life in the same house. Macy had an easy time adjusting... she loves Jade and thinks they're friends - she just wishes Jade would play more. Jade on the other hand does not enjoy Macy's energetic self most of the time! 

This crazy pup has gained quite a bit of weight since we've been in PA. Some people think she just filled out due to turning one. I think it's because of all the treats she gets here. :)

Until the next random post comes along....

"You get a strange feeling when you're about to leave a place.... like you'll not only miss the people you love but you'll miss the person you are now at this time and at this place, because you'll never be this way ever again."

Wedding weekend!

I don't know that any of you are still reading this... Or checking this, I should say, but I have to say Congratulations to two people that influenced my time in Alaska so much. Two of the greatest people I've ever been fortunate enough to meet, got married last weekend. Not only was I fortunate enough to meet them but I got to live with them and spend so much time making awesome memories and on countless adventures. Yes, if you've followed this long enough, you'll know who I'm talking about! Kasie and Derek got married!! I am so, so thankful that I was able to be there for their special day. They got married out towards Pittsburgh so it was about a 2 1/2 hour road trip for me to spend a few days with them, their families and their friends. 

It was an awesome, amazing time and I couldn't be happier for them. My time in Alaska was made even more special because I had them. I love them both very much and can't wait to see what their future holds. 

I just thought I'd share a picture or two. One of which, I borrowed from a former LPSD teacher that was at the wedding. Believe it or not, there's a handful of LPSD staff members, past and present that live in Pittsburgh or on the East coast and they were all able to come. It was pretty awesome having a group from Alaska there. :) 

Alaska!

My best friend made a beautiful bride.

Myself, Kasie, her mom, sister and her best friend all got our hair done for the wedding. Sucha fun group! 

For those of you that may be wondering, I'm still waiting to hear about jobs here in PA. It's a tough job market and so I keep praying something will come sooner than later. 

Until the next random post.... Missing my second home. <3

A whole lot, wrapped into one post.

What a crazy, crazy couple of weeks. Last day of school, tears, packing, mailing, flying, reuniting, camping, family and fun have made up my last couple of weeks. I'll start from the last day of school and I'll work my way to now.... giving a little bit of details here and there! 

The last day of school was a whole lot harder than I could've imagined. It was an early dismissal day and we got out at 1. I held it together really well all day. I made the kids a movie that was about 20 minutes long that had pictures from the entire year on it to music.... we watched that three different times and I managed to hold in my tears throughout those viewings, too. Considering that I cried while making it for months, that's a big deal. Then, around 12:55, I hit a wall and the tears started coming and they did not stop. I, however, blame my kids for that because two of my girls started crying first and then before you knew it, my whole entire classroom was silent except for the sniffling and the sobbing - myself included. I wrote each of them a note to end the year and so I gave them out with a hug on their way out the door. Those are some very, very special kids that I had and the tears that they cried and the hugs that I got going out the door for the very last time are the greatest gifts I'll probably ever receive. So thankful for them, more than they'll probably ever realize. 

After the last day of school came lots of packing and cleaning. I think I wrote before about how I ended up with Bronchitis the last week of school which put me down and out for a few afternoons/evenings and then one whole day. Because of that, I didn't get my apartment or even my classroom done as fast as I would have liked. Thankfully, I have some great coworkers and friends that helped me pack up and clean my place. They also took my leftover food and stuff off my hands. I was supposed to fly to Dillingham on Sunday morning after working on Saturday, and then fly over to King Salmon and then down to Port Heiden either Sunday night or Monday morning - whichever they could do. Well, things changed and because I had one of the teachers' husbands flying me to DLG in his personal plane, he offered to take me in on Saturday night and I spent the night with LeEsia in one of the hotels in DLG. Macy, however, could not stay at the hotel so luckily for me and once again, thank goodness I had some great coworkers, she was able to stay with one of the teachers and her family who just moved to DLG that day. The whole traveling process really makes me realize how lucky I am to have the great friends in Alaska that I've made over the past 2 years. Anyways, the next morning after saying goodbye to LeEsia and trying not to cry, the Special Ed director in the district (you can add her to my list to be thankful for, too) took me to pick up Macy and then drove us out to the airport. We waited there for awhile and then we were off to King Salmon! 

Once we landed in King Salmon, I was hoping that I'd be able to get down to Port Heiden and wouldn't have to find some place to stay and it all worked out better than I could have imagined because Kasie flew in to KS from a different village earlier that morning so I landed and before I knew it, she was at the airport!! Man, it was good to see her! As it always is. And it was good to be back in KS with her, too. We took a quick, quick run to the little store down the street to get some food and a soda and then headed back to the airport to wait for our flight down to PTH. I also got to see Caleb who's a friend from LPSD and Rick who works for LSPD. I love how everyone makes me feel so welcoming and how great everyone is. I know I seem to say that in every post but I don't think I can say it enough.... the people I've met during my time in Alaska are some of the best people I've ever met and I know that I'll remain in touch with most of those people for the rest of my life. Soon we were off to my first Alaskan home with my best friend! I couldn't of been happier to be headed back! 

They still had school Monday and Tuesday and then a work day Wednesday but I was over hanging out in school with them and the kids and visiting. It was so good to be back in that school. It was a little different without the Mannings and Jeff there but I still loved it. Just made me miss them and think about what they're doing. It was great to see the kids and then Monday night was the school picnic for the end of the year. Lucky for me, it was postponed from the previous week so I got to be there with all of them down near North River. There was great food as usual and a bonfire while the kids played in the river next to us and dogs ran around. We didn't take Mox and Macy but I'm sure they would of loved it. They loved eachother.... they'd run around the house wrestling and since Macy was bigger, she'd bite him and get him on the ground and then he'd bite her lips and not let go. They had a great time and I'm certain that Macy misses her Mox and I do, too. While we were there, Macy accomplished a whole lot. She got to run around with Mox and two of the other dogs (the one teacher, Jerry, his two dogs are Bones and Spike) outside without being on a leash all week! She LOVED it and to tell you the truth, I did too. She was running around and exploring, chasing the birds and diving into the swampy areas. She did so good! 

We went down to the beach a time or two and Macy dove right in the Bering Sea to follow some birds.... she loved it but it gave me a heart attack. She was swimming in the waves and I'm sure it was freezing. She took a few swims in North River the night we went camping, too. She eventually had to go on her leash because she was scaring me too much swimming against the tides and making it to the other side of the river. This puppy mom can't handle all that so she was eventually on the leash. Kasie, Derek, Jerry and I took all four dogs and went camping my last night in Port Heiden. It was a beautiful night and awesome to just hang out. It was the first time I'd been camping in so long.... I'm always wanting to camp but seems there's never anyone to camp with. I think I'm going to have to start making more of an effort to go, although it won't be nera as fun as camping along North River in Alaska. Macy did awesome sleeping in the tent with us and she seemed to enjoy the camping experience for the first time. Sometimes I think about how crazy it is that her and I are experiencing all of these awesome things. She's been in the Bering Sea, she's travelled across the country three times now, she's spent 4 days in a hotel room in Chicago, she's done so many things and I'm so glad that I've had all these experiences, too. Still seems unreal most of the time. 

That morning Kasie and I got up with the dogs early and headed back to the house so I could do laundry and pack since we weren't entirely sure what time my plane would be coming. The guys stayed and fished for awhile before heading back. I really miss that place and each time I fly away from there, I leave a little piece of my heart. I loved living in Manokotak, too, and am beyond thankful for all of the amazing people in that village that made me feel at home and welcomed me in; Port Heiden has a special place being that it's the first place in Alaska that I called home. Each of my experiences in Alaska have taught me different things and given me different perspective on things but my first time in Alaska, in Port Heiden in particular, changed a whole lot for me and I owe that place a lot. 

Well, back to my adventure. Macy and I ended up leaving PTH around 6:15 and got to KS an hour later, just in time for them to RUN Macy and my bag onto the plane and we made it for our 7:30 flight to Anchorage. I was thankful for that extra long day in PTH with Kasie, Derek and Mox but I could of done without the running and rushing to the plane. I landed in ANC and Lauren and Susana (the VPSO's wife and daughter and friends of mine who actually lived in PTH last year when I did, too. I unintentionally followed them to KMO ;)) picked us up and we were off to the hotel! We stayed in ANC from Friday night until Monday night/Early Tuesday morning when we flew home. While in ANC, we shopped and ate all the good food and drinks - enjoyed civilization basically. We took Macy to a park right on one of the side streets in Anchorage. It was nice, made you forget you were in the city and it was right along the water! We also took a drive out towards Girdwood/Alyeska (for those of you that have been with me since my first couple blog posts, Alyeska is the resort I stayed at when I first ventured up to Alaska with LPSD for meetings and stuff). It took about 45 minutes to an hour. That drive from Anchorage up there is rated one of the top 10 drives in the country.... it's gorgeous. Right on the water and mountains. Pure Alaska. However, because of the numerous wildfires in Alaska that are burning so fast, the smoke really clouded the view and the mountains were hard to see the entire time I was in town. It's a shame really, that the wildfires are spreading so quickly and that so many people and animals are being effected. If I'm correct, I think that the fires are about 2 hours from Anchorage, it just goes to show you how fast and how far the smoke can go. I was bummed that the view wasn't as it usually is but I'm grateful that I've gotten to do that drive before and that I've seen the most amazing views in Alaska. I felt terrible for the people that have waited for so long to get to Alaska and that was the week they were there, waiting to see the views and take in the sights that leave you breathless, because while that smoke was there, it wasn't the same at all. I was told that it got better the day after I left and I'm praying that the wildfires are soon put out and everything can start to repair. 

Now, I've been home for a few days. I've been catching up on sleep and seeing some friends and family. We celebrated my moms birthday and I've made it to the races and took Macy for her first walk down to the river where she LOVES to swim. Her and I went out on the boat with my dad and Scott. It's been beautiful out - a lot hotter than I was ready for! Macy is adjusting and she's been working on playing outside without being on a leash like she did in Port Heiden.... she's been doing better. We're working on it. 

So here on out you'll be bombarded with pictures. The pictures of Prom and Graduation that I've been promising and also from the last days of school until recently. So I apologize for that now..... : )

Graduation for the 10 Seniors and promotion for the Kindergarteners and the 8th graders!

Myself with Governor Parnell, Katrina, LeEsia, Kirk and Dana.... and Ryan in the background!

One of the last days with my kids. Love & miss this crazy crew.

Deb, LeEsia and I at Prom. What would I have done without them this year? They helped me with so much! Both inside & outside of school and I'm very thankful for them both.

Prom: A night on the red carpet.... the gym turned out beautifully!!! We were pretty proud of it, haha.

Dancing the night away on the dance floor! Ryan did an awesome job hanging the lights!

Moxie & Macy in Port Heiden. They loved each other. Rare moment that they were laying together. Most of the time was spent wrestling around on the ground. I love this picture!

Missed my roommates so much. It felt so good to be back in Port Heiden with them and staying in my room that they put back together for me!! Yes, the curtain and Christmas lights were even back up... they're too good to me!  

My little fur nephew.... Mox!

School picnic meant that I got to see everyone again. Missed my PTH family!

Feeding my friends. Mox, Macy, Bones & Spike. Bones and Spike were one of the teachers, Jerry, dogs! Such sweet boys!

And Port Heiden never fails to amaze me. I'm back a day or two and there's already a momma bear and her two cubs out on the beach. They were pretty far out on a sand bar during this low tide. Along with these bears, I got to see a fox, a seal, so many eagles, sand hill cranes, etc. It was a great trip!

SO HAPPY TO SEE THIS LITTLE MAN! My little baby Tate that I used to steal out of his car seat every day after school last year is now up and walking. He is so sweet and smiley. AND I'm so glad that I got to catch up with his sweet parents, too.

Macy and I on the beach for Macy's first time. This was right before she dove right in to chase some birds and give her mom a heart attack. Crazy dog!

She LOVES birds and when she sees them, she's off and she forgets that she's supposed to listen. She was loving life, the birds, not so much!

My best friend and I back together. Someone said to us "The dynamic duo is back together". Made me smile!

<3 <3 <3

North River.... last time I saw this place, I was floating down it on Relda Jean with Kasie before we jumped in the ocean by accident, haha. Oh the memories!

Selfie with my girl!

So many eagles out and around and I finally have my good camera to capture some nicer pictures. Now I just need a zoom lens ; )

They love each other... and sticks.

No words!

She loves her Auntie Kasie. This is how the slept in the tent the entire night, haha.

You've got to have the storms to find the treasures. And this time we found another float with water in it. Only the 2nd one of those I've seen. Pretty fitting for my trip back.

Alright, Kasie, now we can make that 19 blog posts that I've done since you've done your last one. Time to get on it lady! You've got people (aka ME) waiting not so patiently. ; )

** Last day of school!

It's the last day of school here in KMO! Bittersweet day. 

But before I go into that, I have to say that I have typed up a super long post about Graduation and Prom and the days leading up to it, TWICE now and it's gotten deleted both times so then I gave up for a few days. After I gave up, I found out I have bronchitis and had to take a trip to the clinic and missed a day of school (all this week) but here I am.... last day of school and surviving, for the most part. 

So, I apologize for not updating so quickly like I said I would. But hopefully within the next few days I can do that for you! 

Can't believe this time of year is here again...... see everyone at home SO SOON. :)

Time to enjoy this last half day with my kids whom I'll miss like crazy.

Happy Mother's Day!

I just wanted to say Happy Mother's Day to all the moms in my life. Whether they're friends or family, near or far, or whether their an actual mom or not. Happy Mother's Day to any one who plays the role of a mom, who loves and nurtures and does whatever they can for the children in their life to be happy and successful. I think being a mom is the toughest job in the world and they all make it look so easy. I don't know where we'd be without them. I know particularly for me, I wouldn't be half the person I am today if it weren't for my mom and for my grandmas and aunts and other motherly figures in my life. I'm thankful for them today and always. 

Happy Mother's Day! I hope it's as amazing as all of you are. I wish I was home to be with my family BUT only a few shorts weeks and I'll be back with them. :) 

I'm recovering from a weekend of Graduation and Prom so today as I'm trying to get things packed up and cleaned, I'm going to also try to get a blog post written about the weekend! Stay tuned! :)