Life with Dylan

Month: June 2011

  • Our Furry Neighbor

    We’ve all seen them scurrying across the street, but how many of us get the opportunity to watch these adorable animals eat just a few feet away from us? Much to our surprise this morning, just outside of the window was this little squirrel. Sitting in the big pine tree … eating his breakfast with us.

    His little hands holding each end of the pinecone just like we hold an ear of corn. Back and forth from one end to the other he nibbled away at the pinecone until there was nothing left. We watched him scurry up the tree, down to the end of a branch and get pinecone after pinecone. Only to bring them back to this same spot and eat away. Such an exciting moment for Dylan. He just loves animals!

  • Another Milestone in Life

    grad·u·a·tion (noun) – the award or acceptance of an academic degree or diploma.


    com·mence·ment (noun) –  the ceremonies or the day for conferring degrees or diplomas.


    I don’t remember my Kindergarten graduation, but know that I had one. I vaguely remember my 6th grade promotion and feeling excited about starting Junior High, yet at the same time worried about changing classrooms and remembering where everything was. 


    Junior High graduation. I was cool. Excited. No longer did I have to say I was in the “blank” grade. Now I was a Freshman. At the time it was great … until I got there and quickly learned I was at the bottom of the bunch. Then a Sophomore. 


    OK, getting better. Now there were people below me. I knew my way around the school and thought this isn’t so bad. Junior year … driving, braces off, had my share of heartache. However, I survived and was ready to hold the coveted title of “Senior”


    High School graduation. I did it. Diploma in hand. I survived the heartache, the tests, the homework, the teachers I didn’t like, the snobby girls, and all that we know as high school. A sense of accomplishment. 


    I was free. Never to do another report (as they are called in high school), no more tests, and no more homework. The world was my oyster to do whatever I pleased. I was not college bound. Didn’t care to be. I wanted to live life.


    Well, after the harsh reality hit I took a few courses at the local Junior College. Not happy. Didn’t know what I wanted to be. What I wanted to do with my life. All I knew was I loved kids and I wanted to be a Mom someday. 


    Flash forward 15 years and I’m a Mom. A single mom. Not quite what I had planned. Happy.


    Flash forward another 5 years. I am now 38 years old with a 5 year old son. Working full-time and raising him the best I can. Haven’t touched a textbook or written a paper (as they are called in college) for almost 20 years. I was a high school graduate … what more did I need?


    I needed to finish college. 
    Not for a job. 
    Not because my parents told me to.
    Not for more pay. 


    But because I wanted to do it. I wanted to be able to tell my son that his Mom was a College Graduate. I wanted that sense of accomplishment and self-worth. To tell my son that no matter what, no matter how hard life is, now matter how many times you feel like giving up … anything is possible.


    Flash forward another 2 1/2 years. Now 23 years since I graduated high school and received that coveted “diploma”. At age 41, I will be walking in a commencement ceremony tomorrow as my family and son witness me receiving not a diploma, but a college degree. 
    Bachelor of Science in Psychology.


    Excited. Yes. 
    Scared. Yes. 


    Am I dreaming? No.
    Will I ever stop learning? No.


    Surreal. Yes. 
    Proud. Yes. 
    Accomplished. Absolutely.

  • Wordless Wednesday – Memorial Day Fun