Along for the ride.

I am completely aware as to how missing in action I have been. I know that my mom is practically the only one who reads my blog, but more than being heard, I like to write simply to get out of my own head a little and hopefully make my friends laugh and tease me for what a dork I can sometimes be (and by sometimes, I mean all the time). But recently I have neglected to update, and I am blaming this on the roller coaster that has been the past six weeks of my life.

My entire summer was spent "waiting in line" for the big ride - settling in, reconnecting with friends and adjusting to work life in Nashville. And then as the leaves on the trees began to change color, the temperature dropped, and the humidity lifted, I became increasingly aware that the ups and downs of my first few months of "adulthood" were nothing in comparison to what was to come. That time was really just the growing pains of laying a foundation here. And since then I have reached the front of the line, been strapped into the roller coaster, and have been on quite the ride. A ride I realize they call "life" but never fully felt the impact of until I was out on my own.

There have been a lot of life lessons the past few weeks. The passing of one of my best friend's dad has taught me to appreciate my parents and never take for granted the people in my life that I love. The save the date for one of my old high school friends weddings and the recent engagements seemingly all around me have taught me to appreciate the process of love and being patient to wait for the right person. The letting go of a coworker has taught me that your career can shift in the blink of an eye and that work should never be your "everything." A recent health concern (which turned out to be just fine) has taught me the importance of taking care of myself and being responsible for my health. The changing dynamic of old friendships has confirmed that while relationships change, true friends will always be there for you, just maybe in different ways. The ups and downs in general have made me realize that life is never predictable, but that I have the strength to endure the uphill climb and revel in the rush of the free fall.

I have had a lot more responsibility at work creating a much busier daily schedule. I love the purpose I feel from day to day and it certainly makes the work week fly by. My clients and I have formed stronger relationships and I really feel an initiated part of the company, which is comforting. I have also learned a tremendous amount about web sites, programming and design, as well as client interaction that will be valuable skills to have for the rest of my career.


I joined a small group at my church and I am so grateful and blessed for the love, support, encouragement and laughter I get from them. They are such a great group of people who have helped me to strengthen my faith, which has become the core of the foundation I have laid here and what has kept me sane through everything.

I am also becoming a little more of a grandma, which I don't think is necessarily a bad thing. I am making a valiant effort to never text while I drive, to get enough sleep to feel sane, and to drink only one kind of alcohol at a time :) I have been focusing on the good and leaving the bad behind. There are always going to be ghosts in our past that want to haunt us, but instead of harping on them I have been working to let them go. To shoo them away. Halloween came and went (and was the absolute time of my life - another story for another entry), and all of my personal ghosts have gone away too (for now... we hope forever). The past is in the past and my future is far too bright to be worrying about things I can't change or to be reckless with my emotions. 

But now that I am learning how to breathe comfortably again and even enjoy the unexpected dips and highs, I will be writing more often so that you are by my side, along for the ride too.