3 Months Later...

...and finally I'm writing a new post!
Does anyone really want a recap of the last 3 months? I doubt it, so I'll just start with now and fill in where necessary.

I am currently smack in the middle of my second semester of school and am struggling a bit. I've continued to work my full-time and part-time jobs and juggle 14 credits (3 online classes and 1 on-campus class), but when I realized that I wasn't completely prepared for my midterms it was a big wake-up call. Just last week, I reduced my availability at the part-time job to Sundays and Mondays only and I hope this will help a lot. Interestingly, the math class that I was so nervous about is turning out to be the class I enjoy the most and am doing the best in. Not to mention, I LOVE going to campus for it. For an added bonus, I ended up knowing one of the other students (she's a friend of Shell's bff who we've seen at parties and such), so we've done some study dates and work with each other during class. This has been a really great experience.

Shell just celebrated her 36th birthday on March 13, so she is now the same age as I am...for the next 7 weeks. I made one of her favorite dinners, chimichangas, and made a coffee cake that she was drooling over when we saw it made on a cooking show. It turned out really great and I will probably be making it again in the not-so-distant future. This weekend, I booked us a room at an ultra-modern hotel to wrap up her birthday. She has no idea so I'm trying to come up with a very creative way of revealing it besides just driving there and saying "surprise" when we pull into the parking lot.

My girl is performing in the talent show tomorrow night. She's singing "Better Than Revenge" by Taylor Swift and I'm so excited to see her on stage again. She has really grown a lot this past year, physically and mentally. She certainly looks like a pre-teen now, but I feel lucky every day that she is still my sweet girl. We haven't had any problems with her; no mood swings, no defiance, nothing. Her brother on the other hand, makes us pull our hair out at times. He can still be sweet and affectionate, but he also argues and pushes back when he disagrees with something. He's certainly testing his boundaries.

We are going to see two concerts next month, one that Shell is very excited about and one that I'm over-the-moon excited about. We are going to see George Strait, Reba McEntire, and Lee Ann Womack on the 1st and Janet Jackson on the 6th. I LOVE Janet Jackson and have followed her since before the Control album. I watched her on Good Times and Different Strokes and Fame, as well as her roles in Poetic Justice, Nutty Professor 2, and Why Did I Get Married. I've seen her in concert once before, in 1990 during the Rhythm Nation tour. Not only do I love her music and the roles she acts in, but I also have a big huge crush on her. She's right at the top of my "people my wife would give her blessing for me to sleep with" list.

That's a quick overview of the current going-ons with me. As is typical of life, there are many other things, but I wanted to get this posted before I found something else to do instead. I've got projects involving pictures that I've neglected at home, so hopefully once I get a handle on that I can get some posted here as well. I hope you are all well and if you are still checking in with me, thank you.