(After) Life

As stated earlier, I stressed out for way too long on the title of this blog. I was sitting on the couch watching my husband clean (no joke) and confessed to him my desires for initiating a blog. Saying it out loud really got the motor running - as my Grandpa Jack would say, "now we're cooking with gas." I immediately picked up the ole' laptop, logged on to blogspot.com (the only blogging website I could think of) and registered. After that, I was stumped. I'm not kidding when I say I harassed Adam about what the title of my blog should be. I figure since that turned out to be too much of a headache, I really had to put effort into the blog description. Ahh, the blog description - that tiny caption below the title that compliments the title in such a way as to keep readers intrigued while explaining the blog in a cute play on words, or something like that. Here were some of my initial and AMAZING ideas:

* Life after baby
*Life after marriage
*Life after 25
*Life after graduate school
*Life after school in general
*Life after .....

Get the picture???

Clearly, a theme was building in my boring train of thought. I figure this blog is going to be all about my reflections on life AFTER all of the above. I'm a 28 year old, married woman who decided to plunge into grad school without much thought and while I was at it, had a baby.  With marriage, grad school, a career, and a family, I have my whole life ahead to blog about. I intend to use what I have learned in the past to further shape my future - and, bonus, I intend to blog about it! Furthermore, I hope to sprinkle other thoughts and happenings in with these reflections because, let's face it, everyone loves variety. Well, at least I do. Your part in all of this is to comment. (And I hope you do.)

I will now perform a complete 180 and tell you the top 10 things you should know about me:

10) I am passionate about good food. In fact, I'm passionate about others who are passionate about good food. I L.O.V.E any food/meal preparation show on television which makes The Food Network (channel 36 in my neck of the woods) one of my all time most watched channels. Little known fact: I used to tell my mom I was sick when I was in elementary and middle school in the hopes that she would keep me home. Why you may ask? Only to catch the hour and a half block that the Discovery Channel had on food preparation and write down the recipes. (Graham Kerr was my food god at this point in my life - a sad, sad fact).  Cooking a complicated meal is my form of stress relief. (Especially if a glass or bottle of wine is involved).

9) I abhor cleaning. Seriously, I could probably win the contest for worst housewife. I wasn't joking when I said I created this blog while my husband was cleaning around me. My goal for 'life after grad school' was to become a better housewife. Then I popped a kid out. Uh oh.

8) My passion for food does not surpass my passion for books. I love to read and have this naughty habit of buying every book I read because I have somehow convinced myself that I need to own every book I have completed. Well, becoming a homeowner has helped me curb that habit slightly - all I can say is thank heavens for a little website called paperbackswap.com. Check it out if you want free books and don't mind giving yours away after reading. Really. Do it now. Well, wait until you've finished this post and then check it out. Being an avid reader, however, has not left me with a stellar vocabulary. All I can say is my vocab sucks, I'm no good at Scrabble, and I SHOULD know more words than I do. (This was another stressor before creating the blog but I have pushed this to the side in an effort to let the semi-creative juices flow.)

7) I have an obsession with shopping for jeans. It doesn't matter why or for what I NEED to be shopping for; when I go to the mall, I always end up trying on lots and lots of denim and usually buying a pair. Since having a baby (here's that "life after a baby" bit) I haven't bought but one pair and it was a sad day when they were too big on me because they were the coolest pair of Sevens I've seen in awhile. I only mourned for four seconds though because it meant my pre-preggo Lucky's were back on my hips!

6) I recognize the 4 seasons: summer, fall, winter, spring. There is a 5th season that I would like to propose because it certainly exists in MY world. It starts in early September, goes until early February, and gives me an excuse to do absolutely nothing on Sunday's. That's right folks, football season. I'm not talking about college football on these pages, no sir. I'm talking NFL and I am already itching for this season to begin. The sport is fun to watch and it also helps bridge the gap between two of my other favorite things in life: sweatpants/hoodies, food, and general laziness. Okay, that was 3 things -who's counting?

5) When I'm not watching football you can find me watching college basketball or drooling over the latest tennis hero during one of tennis' grand slams.  I throw a little hockey in the mix every now and again but never, never baseball. It's too fast paced for me.

4) I recently completed my Master's of Science in Nursing with a focus in Nurse Midwifery. I intend to use this degree at some point in my life - but for now, I'm focused on my newest love.....

3) Leyton!  My 5 month old son - my best little friend, my reason for not working full time, for not utilizing my Master's degree, for buying baby food recipe books, for pumping my boobs in the middle of a shift at work, and for not having a full night of sleep. He is the best and although I remember what life was like before him, I wouldn't trade him in. I will, however, gladly allow you to babysit to allow my husband and I some time to ourselves now and again.

2) Adam M. I met this guy 10 years ago, married him 4 years ago, and have fun thinking of the years to come with him. He has been my support through thick and thin, my source of comedic relief, my best friend, my everything.  His generousity in allowing me to be who I am while allowing me to love him intensely has made our relationship one for the books. Adam, I'm in love with us - and look what we made! (See #3)

1) Romans 10: 9-10.  Enough said.

-starr