Sock it to Me

Today was an awesome day.

It felt like Spring. 

The weather was gorgeous and I did a bit of a Spring deep clean in the kitchen while Ronnie worked in the yard.

We saved $20 on our Directv today because we realized there is only a handful of channels that we really watch regularly.  So...whack...we went down to the least expensive package and we aren't missing a thing.  Now that I think about it...we did lose two channels (the Western Channel and a fishing/hunting channel) that Ronnie watched sometimes but he said he really did not care.  We can always go back to a package that has those two channels if we find he is missing them too much.

Then, after much consideration, we decided that it is too easy to keep the Netflix movies longer than necessary.  They sit around waiting to be watched or mailed.  So, we saved 11 more bucks by cancelling Netflix.      

If we really want to watch a movie, there are plenty of Red Boxes around with all the new releases.

We may change our minds later, but we will see. 

We finished out the day by making chicken fajita quesadillas (insert Ron saying, "Chickens don't have fajitas") and frijoles a la charra. 

Mom came over to eat with us which was the icing on the "Sock it to Me" cake!!

Here's hoping you had a wonderful Monday too!! 

Saturday Snapshots

As you will be able to tell, we had a pretty lazy Saturday.

Plenty of TV...

  

...and food. 

A little bit of work... 

 and a little more food. 

 Note to self:  have we been eating a little too much fried foods??

 And a little more TV to close out the day. 

Our Jakey-Madillon has developed an aversion to the text notification on Ronnie's phone.  Every time he gets a text, Jake begs to go outside. 

He's a little nutty, but oh so sweet!

Hope you had a wonderful weekend.

May your week ahead be full of blessings!

Remembering

Warning:  This song is set to images from the movie The Passion of the Christ, some of which are very graphic.

Versatile Blogger Award

Many moons ago, a couple of months worth at least, my sweet blog friend Jodi from Simply Inspired Home awarded Casa Causpanic with the

Versatile Blogger Award!

source

Wasn't that sweet?!  Yes!  It was.  And, I greatly appreciate it.  Thank you so much Jodi!

If you have never visited the Simply Inspired Home Blog, it is surely a must.  You will find lots of good posts on intentional design, home and love of community.  Trust me.  You will enjoy a visit there.

So...here is what happens:

1. I will thank Ms. Jodi and link back to her blog.
2. I will share 7 fascinating facts things about me that maybe she did not know.

3. And, I will pass the award on to other blogs that I read and enjoy and inform them of it!

Hmmm...7 things about me. 

• I LOVE the movie You've Got Mail!  When I say love, I mean true, everlasting love.  I watch it all the time.  If Ronnie goes night fishing with my brother or out of town, I put that movie on and just enjoy.  If I'm sad, if there is nothing on TV, if I am not able to sleep,..I put it on.  LOVE IT!
• When we have a family dinner I don't want anyone to help me clean up.  Basically, it's like this...when I invite guests over, I want then to relax and enjoy visiting with the others that are here.  Usually, it is the other women that help clean up and I really want it to be a free night for them.  No cooking AND no cleaning.    
• I have a love for Real Estate!  I LOVE looking at houses.  I love envisioning the potential of fixer uppers.  I love the crispness and beauty of newly built homes.  I just love houses.  Even though the market is not good right now, I do plan on working on a real estate license.
• I have "Move The Furniture Syndrome".  I can't help myself. I can't be satisfied with positioning the furniture in one place for very long.  My daughter by love (aka Ron's daughter) is no longer surprised to find the furniture in a different configuration when they come to visit.  My 4 year old great-niece proclaimed to me the other day, "You changed everything again!  Why do you keep changing things???"  haha.  I hope it is not hereditary!
• I love to sew but I am really bad at it.  I just dont have the patience.  I wish I did, though.
• I was a Band Geek in high school.  I played the alto saxophone.  I loved it!  I made it to State try-outs twice but I choked both times. ha!  The competition was tough!  But, all my band experiences were wonderful and fun.
• Parenthood, Justified and reruns of 'Til Death are my favorite shows at this time.  I just cant get enough of them!  Parenthood reminds me of how our family used to be and it just makes me warm all over.  Justified...Timothy Olyphant...need I say more????  And 'Til Death reassures me our marriage is normal while making me laugh about it at the same time.

There you go.  That's it.  Seven things.  I was just getting warmed up! :)

Thank You, again, Jodi!

Now I am honored to pass the Versatile Blogger Award to the following bloggers:

Mama and Them - This family is so adorable

Living the Sweet Life - You will enjoy the peacefulness of this blog. 

Eco Friendly Homemaking - The name speaks for itself, but it's more than that.  It's a really "home-y" blog.  Wonderful tips, thought provoking questions and beautiful pictures of produce and flowers, family, products....

Dear Lillie - Impeccable style, beautiful products and pictures, and a sweet family.

A Soft Place to Land - Like many bloggers do from time to time, Kimba is taking time to listen, but her blog has many wonderful post for you to delve into and enjoy. 

Becoming... - I just love this young lady.  She is crafty and funny and...well...at the risk of sounding creepy...just adorable.

Adventures in Pinksugarland- I just found this blog in the Family category of Apartment Therapy's Homie Nominations.  I think this blog has a good chance of winning!

If you get a chance to mosey on over to these blogs stop in and tell them "HI".

And until next time...

Love and peace, friends.

Monterrey Jack Ranchero Chicken

Brrrrrr.  It has been chilly here in South Texas. 

Just chilly, though, not crazy cold like last year.

We went to a soccer game on Friday and endured the cold quite well, but yesterday and today, I have been quite worthless.

I gave myself permission to veg in bed all weekend since we had a rough week, not to mention a rough month.  Ok, I'll take it a little further and say it has been a rough year up until now. 

So I told myself, "Take the weekend to recoup and then start fresh on Monday."

As I lay in bed, watching DVR's of all my favorite shows I have been missing, I saw Teresa Giudice from the Real Housewives of New Jersey making Chicken Parmesan on the Nate Berkus Show.

It made my mouth water.  Look at it...     

   

courtesy of the Nate Berkus Show

I bet it made your mouth water too!

The tomato sauce looked sooo delicious.  It made me hungry for ranchero sauce...and Monterrey jack cheese.

So, I got out of the bed to go see if we had the ingredients necessary to make a Mexican style spin-off of her recipe.

I found...

• chicken (in the freezer)
• croutons
• whole peeled tomatoes
• tomato sauce (in the fridge)
• onions
• Monterrey jack cheese (in the fridge)

So, I got to work on what I call Monterrey Jack Ranchero Chicken. 

(NOTE:  I apologize in advance for the quality (or lack, thereof) of the photos.)

First, I did not have bread crumbs, but I did find some croutons.  I just threw those babies in my little food processor and ground them up real fine.  Perfect.

Then, I cut a small onion in half and then sliced it into thin slices.

 

I threw them into a skillet with about two tablespoons of olive oil and sauteed them until they were soft and translucent.

Then I added the can of whole peeled tomatos and the can of tomato sauce. 

You can use diced tomatoes if you like.  We did not have any so I just smashed the whole peeled tomatoes.     

Then I added 1/2 tsp. of salt, about 1/8 tsp of garlic and a dash of cumin.  

Play around with it.  If you really like garlic and cumin add a little more.

Personally, when it comes to ranchero sauce, I just want the garlic and cumin to be there in the background enhancing the tomato flavor.  I want the tomato sauce to be the star.

You could also spice it up a little with sliced fresh jalepeno or a can of Rotel, but I am more of a purist and again, want the tomato sauce to be the star.

Ok, I added about 1/2 cup water and let the sauce simmer and reduce, stirring occasionally.

As it was reducing, I took my chicken breast and placed it in a plastic bag.

And I beat it with the flat side of meat mallet until it was very, very thin.     

 

I had my flour, egg and breadcrumbs on plates in an assembly line.

After I salted and peppered the chicken I dipped it in the flour... 

...then the egg...

   

Then the bread crumbs, or in our case, the croutons. 

Take your breaded chicken and fry it in a pan...

    

You don't have to fry it very long because it is so thin.  As your chicken is frying, go back to your ranchero sauce.  It should be nice and reduced.

Spoon a layer of sauce on the bottom of a baking dish and place your cooked chicken on top.

Then top your chicken with Monterrey Jack cheese and spoon in the remainder of your ranchero sauce around your chicken.

Bake it uncovered at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

I served it with some spanish rice left over from the night before.

It was really good.

I have to say, though...as in Teresa's low fat version of the Chicken Parmesan, I think this ranchero chicken would have been just as tasty even if we had just grilled the chicken minus the flour, egg and bread crumbs and then topped with the ranchero sauce and Monterrey Jack cheese. 

Overall, it was a delicious meal that did not take much time to make.

Did you make anything different this weekend?  How did it turn out?

I am sure it was wonderful just as I am sure your week will be!

Our Studio Changes - The Kitchen

Hello!  And, Happy Saturday!!

Wow!  Things have been so serious so far this year at Casa Causpanic. 

Because of that, I thought I would I would try to change the trajectory of the year and, therefore, the blog.

Even though we are not completely finished with our reno, I thought it was time we share a few of the changes that have occurred.

We are so happy with the studio transformation. 

We thought it would be easy.  Boy, were we wrong.  It took a lot of time and energy, but it was so worth it.

As I reviewed these before photos, I realized we were blessed not to acknowledge the enormity of this task we were taking on.

If you have read this post, you know the building we call "the studio" was first a photography studio, then a bakery.  The building had been unused for a few years and not only did it still have some bakery stuff in it, it also had all of our belongings that made the "purge cut" when we moved.  It was a LOT of stuff.

There was no electricity and winter was soon to be in full force.

When we devised our plan, of course, I created an unrealistic vision of what we could do with this place.  But somehow, Ronnie and our Renovation Heroes worked to make it as close to my vision as possible.

A big part of that vision was the Kitchen/Dining Room.  We knew it would be small and we knew we had to keep costs down. 

This area was what photographers call the dark room when the building was a photography studio.  It was used to develop prints which had to be done in complete darkness.  I used to print passports for my dad for a fee of 25 cents each.  Talk about cheap, child labor.

If you look on the left wall you will see the area designated for dish washing when the building was a bakery.  All the duct work you see at the top of the picture was removed by us and replaced by us.  Our son-in-law, an a/c guy, figured out the loads for us as well as the size and locations of the vents.  We did all the installing and taping.  It was actually fun!

Ok, ok...I actually only did some of the taping and the guys did the rest. 

I cannot tell you how much work my husband put into this place.

There was so little room in which to work.  He moved stuff from this place to that, one day and then from that place to this, the next.  Sometimes he did both in one day.  It seemed the carpenter had the hard job, which he did, but I never realized the depth of work until I saw this picture last night.  I cried.

Thank you, my husband! <3

He is patient and he is kind.  His patience paid off.  Little by little we all made progress.  I thought I did a lot of work here, but when I look at these pictures I realize how little I really did.

 

 

The fruits of our labor. 

We still have work to do.  Obviously AC grates, but also , toe kicks, crown moulding, finishing/transition trim on the floors....

Originally, we wanted butcher block counter tops from Ikea, but they were out of the ones we could afford when we went to buy them.  So, we fashioned our own out of a couple of pieces of Red Oak, $45 a piece at our local Sutherlands.  We love them - the movement of the wood is highlighted by the walnut stain, LOVE it. 

Michael recently installed the floors for us. 

We had not planned on doing them so soon, but the dust was taking it's toll on our sinuses and our pocket books.  Seemed like we were having to change our A/C filter every week.

I promised a post about the floors, but I accidentally deleted all my pictures of that process.  I tell you...my camera and I are not getting along lately.  I think I need a new one :D.  

   

Our dining room is just off the kitchen.  I will post pics of it in the future.  We kept the walls white in the kitchen but went to a blue-grey in the dining room.  

So there you have it...our vision realized. 

Now, I think I will go cook supper. 

I saw Teresa from Real Housewives of New Jersey on a DVR of the Nate Show.  She made Chicken Parmesean.

Made me hungry for a revised Mexican version of something like Ranchero Chicken.  I'll let you know if it was edible!!

Take care and enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

Celebrating a Life

Yesterday we celebrated a life.

 

This is my Aunt Mercy.

Yesterday and the day before, family and friends gathered with heavy hearts to say good-bye to this wonderful woman.

I told you in this post how much she sacrificed for me. 

I had this nagging feeling that something had to be said about her generosity because generosity and sharing WAS her life.  I wanted to remind everyone of how she spent her life serving others.

So, I outlined a few things I thought I might say about how generous she was with her time and any thing else she had.  As we left to go to the funeral home, I went to grab my notes but had second thoughts because they did not seem adequate.

Luckily, my step cousin was able to put together a beautiful speech about this incredible woman.

He spoke of her love of children.

She never gave birth to any children of her own, but my cousins and I and any other child that came along were her children.

I remembered vividly how her house buzzed in the summers with all my cousins.  They would work with my Uncle John at their full service gas station and they would stay with them in their two bedroom house.  There was always room, though.  She would feed them, wash their clothes, love them and even make them soap for their teen age acne!

A few years after my Uncle John died she married my step uncle.  He had five boys!  My step cousin spoke of how she always gave them her best.  She always made sure they had the best.  She nurtured them and treated them as her own.

My youngest step cousins had a friend that had moved here from Vietnam. He and his brother were the only ones here and his brother was moving back to Vietnam.  That would leave the friend here alone, but thanks to my aunt he was not alone.  She made sure he had a home with them.  He lived with them through his high school years and two years into his college career. 

This isnt the best picture but here she is with him (his name is Duk) and my step uncle. 

She made such an impact on him that he recently invited them to an event he was participating in and he shared with the audience how she was the one that nurtured him and encouraged his love for cooking (he is now a chef).  He went so far as to say the she is the one he considered to be his mother. 

I am so grateful he was able to share that with her.  I know it meant everything to her.

My step cousin then spoke of Aunt Mercy's abundance. 

She had an abundance of love.  She had an abundance of compassion.  She spent a few years helping a young mother with her child that had life threatening disabilities.  Even though she knew that baby would be leaving this world soon and her heart would break, she did not let that keep her from loving that baby and giving that baby the best care ever. 

He also reminded us of how she took our great aunt into her home and cared for her the last six months of her life as she struggled with lung cancer. 

She was...well, abundant in every sense of the word.  She never lacked and never worried of lack.  My step cousin shared how my nephew would walk to her house when he was a child, go to her pantry and basically grocery shop.  He would point to things they did not have at home and she would give it to him.  Anything he wanted.  She would laugh and send him on his way.

Even in our last visits to her house, we would never leave empty handed.  Sometimes she sent plastic bags.  Sometimes she sent home made hot sauce.  Sometimes she sent ramen noodles.  We never left empty handed.

There are countless stories of how generous this angel was. 

She was like a second mother to me. 

Aunt Mercy and Mom

When I was a child she had this awesome console television.  When Christmas time came around I would go to her house and she and my Uncle John would let me watch all the classic Christmas cartoons on that then "big" TV. 

When I think of her I dont think of her struggle with severe pain in her last few years of life.

The only thing that goes through my mind is the love that exuded from her heart and the love that filled her being and her home.

I give thanks to God for blessing my life with what was surely one if his Angels here on earth.  And, I thank Him because I know the love she shared with us is never ending.

Good bye my dear Auntie.  I love you and I miss you. 

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I hope it is as beautiful a day where you are as it is here in South Texas!!!

Gorgeous!

This Valentines Day is especially beautiful because I have good news about my Aunt Mercy.

They took her off the respirator yesterday and she tolerated breathing on her own very well.

I have to say I give all the Glory and Thanks to God.  I know He heard our prayers.

They tried to take her off of it on Friday and she just did not fair well.  But it was a different story yesterday.  They are now making plans to move her to a place where she can get some physical and speech therapy for a couple of weeks.  We are so grateful.

So, now on to our Valentine's Day Extravaganza, haha!

We actually used this song on my niece's wedding video. 

This song is precious and cute...

There are many reasons I like this song, but one for sure is that he meets her in a cafe, which, Ronnie and I met at my family's Mexican Restaurant.  Sweet, huh.  Geez.

Here are a couple for those of us that have moved further down the road of love past that initial euphoric phase. 

This is fun one!  Love this hilarious video.

Oh my gosh...I could go on and on but I will end with this one...one of our songs.

I love you Ronnie!

We here at Casa Causpanic wish you much Love on this special day! 

New Normal

Hello My Dear Blog!

I have been away from you for such a long time.  I've missed you.  I haven't been keeping up with my favorite blogs either!

"What's up with that?", you say?

2012 has been...well...just weird, so far.

I keep thinking, "I will get into a good blogging routine once everything gets back to normal."

I've come to discover, though, this is a "new normal".

If you were able to read this post, you know that my aunt has been struggling with some health problems.  And if you read the post that started out about a Thanksgiving Table Setting but ended up as a summary of what a wonderful aunt I have, you also know that she is a very special person in my life.

Her struggles continue.  She is actually in the ICU in St. Luke's Hospital.  Although, it is an hours drive away, I am pleased with the hospital and pleased that she is there.  It wil be a long haul for her.  We are fervently praying for her recovery.

So, in the mean time, we have a "new normal". 

We travel to Houston every other day.  I am sure it will become more frequent as she recovers and becomes more conscious for longer periods of time.  And, if the good Lord is willing, when she comes home she will need plenty of help.

I am hoping to find a place in this new normal to squeeze in a little more blogging.

I miss it. 

Now, I discover that Whitney Houston has died.  Whitney Houston.  So sad.  She had such an incredible voice. 

Rest in peace dear Whitney.

So, Dear Blog, that is my story today.  Just know I miss you and will make every effort to carve out some time for you!

Love,

Jenn

Peace and love, my friends!

Casa Causpanic Exposed

Haha, that sounds so dramatic.

Don't worry...we aren't running a ponzi scheme.

Neither one of us is a politician sleeping with an intern or sending lewd photos on twitter...I dont think.

We aren't embezzling money.

It's just a video of our messy house...dog hair and dried dog-drool  on the floor included.

As you probably noticed in our previous post our dog, Lacey, died on Monday. 

It made for a rotten week.  Add PMS to that and what do you get?  A mess.

Don't get me wrong...our house is usually a mess, but generally I try to keep the floor vacuumed and mopped.  Not this week.

It almost looked like we opted for carpet :D.  Hope you cant tell in the video. 

We had stuff laying around everywhere, laundry that needed to be put in its proper place and an unmade bed.  I even expose the pink neck ring on which I sleep.  I'm blushing!

But, realistically, this could be any ordinary day at Casa Causpanic.  Sometimes, I sleep late and take too much time drinking coffee and reading blogs.  Then, I realize I promised mom we would go visit my aunt, so off I go.  Then I get home just in time to make supper.  By then, I'm tired and I just wanna spend a little time with my honey.  Sooooo...a day goes by and the floors are neither vacuumed nor mopped, clothes are not washed and stuff is not dusted. 

You know how it goes.  You do, dont you?  Please tell me we are normal. Anyway....

If you read this post or this post, you will see that the studio has changed a bit.  We are still trying to discern exactly what functions we want our furniture to serve. But, for now, we have a sofa with two end recliners that we bought from my niece and her husband.  We like the recliners, but I like to lie down on the the sofa while I watch the boob tube, and a sleeper sofa would be a plus. 

I digress....

One of these days I will do a "clean house" video and tell you more about the changes.  Until then, here is what you might see if you dropped in today.  

Isnt blogging awesome?  You can drop in anytime here at Casa Causpanic on the web and it is spotless.  If you decide to stop by in person, just please know, this is what you might find. :D

Peace be with you, my friends! 

Good-bye, Sweet Girl

Rest in peace, Lacey Girl.

January 1998 - January 2012

Blogger's Block

I never thought it would happen.  I've read about it happening to other bloggers, but I never ever thought it would happen to me.

I have Blogger's Block!

What the heck?

Soooo much fun and good stuff has happened this past holiday season that I wanted to record, but I just can't make myself type.

I think it is because I am kind of in a funk. 

Nothing crazy, just life happening. 

Now let me just say...if anyone is reading and you continue to read, don't worry.  I am fine.  I am coping.  We are moving through life and we will all have these challenges.  It is natural to feel this way, sometimes.  As Chris used to quote, "This too shall pass". 

I remember once after Ronnie's knee replacement, my sister in law said to me, "this is just one moment in your life, one small moment.  It isn't going to last forever.  It will pass and life will go on,".  She was right. 

It was that experience with the knee replacement that taught me in all of life's circumstances to praise God.  I don remember it often enough...human nature I guess.  But, when do I remember, I thank Him.  I thank Him for this precious life and for the precious souls he has placed in my path.   I thank Him for sustaining me throught it all...the sunshine and the rain.  He is here.  Here are a couple of really good reminders:

Ok, back to what is going on.  I keep thinking I don't want to look back on this blog and see a bunch of downer stuff. 

But, you know what?  There isn't a bunch of downer stuff.  Our lives are full of so much good and so many blessings and so many wonderful memories.  But life is life.  Downer times are a part of this wonderful life.  For me, the fact that something is a downer means there was, at some point, beauty and love and happiness.

Plus, if I don't sort it out, get it on "paper" then it stays within me and that is not where I want it.  It does no one any good there.

I think it is a good thing to look the realities of life eye to eye, especially when I can thank the Lord for being there.  Like the song says, "Your grace is enough...".  And someday, I will look back on these times and realize how the down times were so few and far between. 

Ok, so let's get this downer post over with.  

First off, one of my mom's cousin's husband passed away last week.  It wasn't so much his death...I truly believe he is in a better place...he had been on dialyses for several years and was ready to move on to his next life.  He was a good man, he lived a good life and I have some very nice memories of the man. 

My brother, Chris, used to take my mom to visit this man and his wife after my dad passed away.  He would take them all out to eat and they would go check out the antiques in the area.  I had no idea how much these visits meant to my mom's cousins.  Here my brother was doing it to take Mom's mind off things and in some way he was bringing light into their lives also.  He was good that way. 

I understand now, though, that they felt his loss as much as we did.  I was told that he felt as if he had lost one of his own.  He and his wife mourned the loss of my brother.    I feel sad that I did not carry on Chris's gesture once he passed.  I feel sad that I did not realize they were also hurting.  I feel sad that we did not know about the man's failing health until it was too late to have one last conversation with him.  Isnt that how death goes?

THEN...my Aunt Mercy went from a spunky, cognisant, mobile (although it was painful mobility) person to one that cannot move on her own nor hold a conversation.  She sees a pain management doctor for her arthritis and he put her on a very, very strong drug.  She is groggy, falls asleep mid-sentence and cant really stand or walk on her own.  They have now ordered her a hospital bed.  I dont like the direction this is taking.  Is this the start of the end?  How can that be?  Although, she was in pain last week, she had mental and physical capacity.  It makes me very sad.  But mostly, I am sad that there is nothing I can do.  She is not my mother, I have no say in her health. 

This wistfulness is sprinkled with a less important (to some) reality, but a reality non the less.  Our 14 year old chocolate lab-mix is struggling.  Like many Labs, she has developed hip problems.  We have had "the discussion" but we haven't made the actual decision to put her down.  It's a hard decision to make, always, but especially because she seems happy and still eats well.  She just cant move around very well.

All of this has brought forth for me the frailty of the human body, the frailty of life.  It re-emphasizes that we must take care of ourselves and our loved ones EVERY DAY, RIGHT NOW!!  What we do today will make our tomorrow.  I believe we can continue to thrive as we age if we make uncomfortable choices today, as far as nutrition and exercise. 

And that is the last thing that makes me sad.  I am so addicted to processed foods and sugar and crap that it is very hard for me to change my diet.  In some ways, I even wonder if it is possible.  I have tried for almost 10 years now and just cant seem to get back to that girl that had control.  Crazy.

As I close I thank God for these times...all of them.  But, mostly, right now, I thank him for loving me...and you...and you and you...and you!!! 

If you are moving through tough times, I pray you remember that!  And, I pray you will remind me when I forget, because I know at some point, I might forget.

Wishing you many blessings today!! 

And Another Begins!

source

The black eyed peas are a-boilin' as we watch the Texans play their last regular season game.

We will be having pork chops, cabbage, rice and gravy and cornbread with those black eyed peas.

We hope you have a wonderful New Years day full of good food, friends, family and love!!

Wishing you all the best in 2012!

We Heart the Houston Texans!!

 

source

Dose of Reality

I painted a nice, pretty little picture in I Bleed Maroon.

Now, lets sprinkle a little reality on that picture because I'm all about keeping it real on this here blog.

My transition to college was not necessarily a smooth one.

First off, I was not the most serious student.

Looking back, I went to college because it was "the next step".

I majored in Finance because all of my pre-college tests indicated my interests would best be used in finance or accounting. 

That was fine with me.  Finance would put me in a career I could use anywhere for the rest of my life.  Plus, working in a bank seemed great (yep, in my narrow teen mind finance = bank).  

Shoot...bankers worked 9-3 back then - or in my fantasy world they did.  They got to dress up everyday, had nice little glass offices, worked Monday through Friday, had holidays off, they seemed to make good money, and well, lets face it...the bankers were clean cut and handsome :D.

It did not take me long to realize I had absolutely no interest in the market, economics, statistics, accounting, nor anything else a degree in Finance involved.

It also did not take long for my grades to reflect that I had no interest in all that stuff.

Adding that to trying to learn to juggle freedom, fun, studying(I never had to study before so I had no real study habits) plus learning how to build relationships and socialize(which, by the way, I never learned) made for a less than stellar first semester, academically.

After my first round of college finals, I packed up all my stuff and gladly went home for the Christmas break good. 

I casually informed my parents that I was not going back.

They casually informed me "oh yes you are!"

So, I went back, equipped with a little experience. 

I still lacked a passion for Finance though, I learned the world would not end if I skipped a class or two or ten.  My grades suffered and I was placed on academic probation.

The Lord put me in the right place at the right time for me to land an awesome job with The Office of University Research so I worked through the summer, taking a few classes and dropping them before they negatively affected my GPA.

My parents had had enough.  The agency funding my education had had enough. 

It was do or die. 

Thank God, for Where There's a Will, There's an A, a study program advertised on late night TV. 

It was a long-shot, but it worked.  I finally learned how to study and how to balance that with a little fun.  I made A's an B's from then on out.  (ok, ok, I did make a C on some programming class.  I wanna say it was BASIC II...yuk).

Plus, I changed my major to Management.  I still had to take more economics and statistics, but I could stomach them a little better because I was enjoying the classes that focused on the operational aspects of business.

So, it was really at that point where I could savor and enjoy the traditions of A&M.

Like everyone occasionally does, I look back and wonder if I could have made more of that time and my degree if I had known exactly what it was I wanted to do with my life at that time.  And, there have been times that I have wondered if that was my last "greatest accomplishment". 

Then...I return to the present.

I return to the present and see that my life is and has been full of love and happiness.  As my husband reads over my post he tells me that everyday he is happy is my last greatest accomplishment. 

For that I am grateful.  And, with that, I look forward to what is yet to come.