P52 - Week 5

Another busy week in my wacky little world. But thankfully, I had several opportunities to dust of the camera and have some fun. More of that later.

This week marked my 20th year as an employee of TAMU. Seriously, 20 years. That boggles my mind in so many ways. Nearly half of my life.



I'm not going to rattle on about the things I've seen in the last 20 years. Nor am I going to number the many positions I've held in that time.

What I do want to mention is that there is a reason for 20 years with this establishment. This place is my home. I felt it from my first days as a freshman lost on campus. I like the general pace of life here. And I feel blessed to have found a work home that allows me the many opportunities I have been afforded over the last 20 years.

Here's hoping the next 20 are more of the same!

mi familia

You've probably picked up on it by now, but there is nothing more important in this world to me than my family. Mi familia. Even just taking a moment to think about my boys is enough to bring a smile to my face. Glancing at a picture of the 2 of them together, laughing, playing, will settle my heart rate and lower my pressure. I'm an incredibly blessed person to have them in my life.

Gushing. I know. You should be used to that by now, right?

So ... where is this going? Well ... I'll tell ya ....

We had a kinda quick need for some family photos. Our first impulse was to just set up at home and try to get us ALL involved ... mom, dad, boy, and dog. Emphasis on dog. D.O.G. (can you tell her name is still mud with me?) *sigh* What's that old saying about the road to hell? ANYWAY ... good intentions or not, family pictures with D.O.G. did not materialize. And the whole experience left us feeling pretty flat.

But we needed our pictures. Take 2.

This time we abandoned the idea of including D.O.G. After the disastrous efforts of the night before, none of us felt up to trekking across town to our favorite photo spots, so we decided to explore our own little neighborhood to see what we could find. I'm so pleased to say that we were NOT disappointed this time around. We really do live in a pretty little subdivision with lots of great places to snap a pic or two.

Now that the assignment for which the photos were needed is complete, I had a little time to play around with a few of my favorites from the day.



I'll admit it. I love seeing us all together (even if it means sprinting back and forth from the tripod hoping I beat the timer - I really need to think about a remote). It warms my heart and gives me a visual remind of the things that truly matter to me. I've already got some of these photos up in my office and already they have made the place more like home.

Here are a few more from the whole experience (minus the ones with D.O.G. ... I just can't face those right now):











That's my family. My world. My life.

momma ME

I don't usually share pictures of myself. Just not something I'm overly confident about, but I'm going to break out of my mold for this occasion.



Yep ... that's me. All 39 years of me. :+P

And while I did truly feel SIXTY NINE after the tournament, I'm so glad I decided to compete. The win-loss numbers don't mean much to me. It's just about getting out there. Trying my hardest. Overcoming my nerves. Putting the techniques I've practiced over and over again into play. Finding out what works for me and what doesn't. It's about being there with my family and hearing their cheers and condolences. It's about holding up my head and not being ashamed to say, yes, I'm 39 and STILL doing this crazy stuff!