Professor Contracts: definitely old school and believes in the Socratic method. When called on, you have to stand and give the details of the case, as well as for all the ensuing questions that arise. He asks many questions and gives few answers. Oddly enough, this is one of my favorite classes … which may change once I am called on.

Professor Torts: likes to read to us from the book and it did not take long to realize that he enjoys detailing the notes in between the cases. Torts is like the gym class of law school, and while I thought going in this would be my favorite class, it’s not.

Professor Criminal Law: A genius that is a huge proponent of literacy – far and away, the heaviest reading loads that we have. He goes back and forth between calling on people and straight up lecture.

Professor Civil Procedure: Great professor with a sense of humor that is brought to the classroom. If he calls on you, the entire case and every question will be on you. This has meant that one person was “on” the entire class. I like the teaching style and the format very much and is probably my favorite class. Of course, this too may change once I’ve been “on” for a class.

Professor Writing: also doubles as an english professor, so grammar and style counts. This is a small class and is getting more in-depth. I’ve written my first paper for this class – an opinion on whether or not a group of people who kill and cannibilize a fellow member of their spelunking group when they are trapped in a cave for over 20 days should be convicted of murder. See what fun law school is?

The atmosphere is competitive, but friendly. I’ve not heard any rumors of hidden books from the library, pages being ripped from reference books, or hard drives wiped clean. The faculty and staff take a genuine interest in the students and seem to want to equip us for practice.

Well, that’s my overview of my classes for you. I would go more indepth and give more detail, but I have a Torts book and a Criminal Law book that need my attention.

So what or who is God? If you were asked to answer that question, what would you say? He is so many things! Father, conqueror, teacher, the Alpha and Omega, deliverer, and rock. And then, there are the emotions. So many people sum it up by God is Love and yes, that is very, very true. God loves each and every one of us. I think that He may not like us all the time, but He loves us in spite of the stupid things we do. If you view God as someone whose lap we sit in while He reads us a story, is that really accurate? Revelation tells us not totally – He comes in a kicks butt!! Not only that, but how many times is our relationship with Him one-sided if we think He’s the one who loves? How do you treat people that love you? Not always the best, especially when we feel like we are unloveable. There have been times in my life that I’ve treated the people who loved me the absolute worst. I think it is us that needs to fall in love with God and strive for that deep emotion of falling in love with Him each and every day. What happens when you are falling in love with someone? You want to be with them all the time, you constantly talk about them and you’ll do just about anything to be in their presence. Is that your relationship with God? I can honestly say that it’s not mine. I slack in my quiet time & reading His Word. I’ve tried to do things my way instead of letting Him take the control.

I’m not preaching at anyone by writing these words, nor am I telling you what to do. These are simply thoughts that came to me this morning.  I don’t think that God should be put in a box. We are made in His image, so look around and see the differences in each of us. So, I guess if I had to say what/who God is, I would say, “God is EVERYTHING”.

• Our area is somewhat like Wild Kingdom. I see deer and geese and was stopped on my way to church to let goats cross the road.
• Our neighbors may be invisible. I have yet to see the other people that live on our floor. It is not as if I am a recluse who stays behind her own 4 walls. I do go in and out quite frequently, at varying hours. You would think that I would at least see them at some point, but so far – no see. Maybe they are the recluses.
• I am all in favor of princess parking, but when you cannot get a princess space – parking in the handicapped space is not acceptable! (Unless you are indeed handicapped).
• I like living in the smaller space and love our apartment!
• Living in a city and visiting it are two very different things.
• A county that makes headlines for a Council member e-spying on the County Administrator and sending out emails under a false name in order to install spyware on councilmember’s computers really isn’t that bad.
• Counties can go bankrupt, have hundreds of “uncategorized” workers that are furloughed, close offices, cut law encorcement budgets, and yet  build a dome.
• When you need to register a vehicle, do not rely on information you find on the internet. You will need more than what is covered there and things you would never anticipate.
• In order to get a driver’s license and tags, you will stand in lines for over 5 hours. Thank goodness, if your husband is with you, it isn’t all bad.
• Said husband may drop the “F” bomb if you don’t have said documentation not listed on said website.
• Being a woman of leisure sucks and there is no way I could be a stay-at-home wife and not lose my sanity. I have respect for those women who can, I’m just not one of them.
• I have no idea what to wear for a “casual” kick off to orientation picnic.

Do not get me wrong – I love Birmingham so far but right now, I am glad that we did not buy a home here and know that everything works out for a purpose. After all, God has promised “I know the plans I have for you…” I try every day to live those plans and let Him guide me.

Thanks to the wonders of Facebook, I am getting to know some of my classmates. Hard to believe that orientation kicks off in two weeks. I am very excited for classes to begin. This is the first time in many years that I have not had a job to go to and I’m getting antsy with the time on my hands. I am one of those people who even calls in to the office and incessantly checks email, even while on vacation.

The one thing that is taking a hit during this move is my running. I went out last week for a 3 miler and yesterday, Jeff and I went into Crestline and walked/ran a little bit. He’s not run since April 26, so I was pleased to get out with him again. This week, I definitely plan on getting that back on track.

So, here I am … living my dream. I am blessed beyond measure and excited to turn over to the next page of the story of my life. Stay tuned…

On Saturday, we had a crazy, busy moving sale. Again, we were blessed with selling off almost everything we needed to get rid of. After all, moving into a 2 bedroom apartment does not leave room for the insane amount of “stuff” we have acquired over the years. I believe that brass went out as decoration in the early 90s, so why it’s been boxed up and moved from house to house, I don’t know. At first, it was very freeing – the “stuff” no longer controlled me. This was a way of organizing my life and getting down to the bare minimums. What can I live without for 3 years? I can assure you – more than I ever thought. I got emotional carrying my prayer bench out to the driveway to sell. This bench saw me through the pain of my brother’s cancer diagnosis, fight and ultimate death. I remember the night before he passed away, on my knees face down on the bench praying for God to not let him suffer anymore. To this day, that was one of the hardest prayers I’ve ever prayed. It also saw me through heartache of failed relationships, disappointments of life in general, and happiness when I met Jeff. But see, there’s not room for my prayer bench in the apartment and it truly is one of those things I can live without. I can get on my knees in any space, I don’t need a pretty bench for prayer. I can cry out to God anywhere that I am, I don’t need a fancy cushion.

Saturday night, we spent time with family at Fluor eating BBQ and funnel cake, and watching the fireworks display. I looked at my family – my wonderful husband, my beautiful daughter Heather, my brothers, sister-in-laws, niece and nephew and realized how good life is. We are all healthy and they have been a tremendous support system for me and my mom. I know in the coming days and months, my mom is going to need them and they will be there for her.

On Sunday morning, we went to NewSpring’s Anderson campus. It was almost 2 years ago that I first walked through those doors. How much has changed in those 2 years. Jeff got saved and baptized, Heather got baptized, and I know that my entire family has grown in their faith and relationship with God. Once the worship music started, all 3 of us got teary, knowing that it will be awhile before we get back. Yes, it’s on the internet and we will watch, but it’s not the same as seeing the intensity of Lee McDerment’s face as he sings from his heart, or the joy of Elizabeth Embler as she worships from the stage.

Sunday night was the family cookout. We had a great time and were happy that Robin and Eric Longino joined us. At the end of the night, each person gave us a hug and that’s where the emotions started. I was okay with the first batch as they left- after all, this is my stepfamily and some of them I just don’t know as well as others. At the end came Rob, Pam, Cody and David. I’ve grown very close to this family over the past two years. Often my partners in crime, we have fun and they are always there when I need them. I love them so much and it hurt my heart when Cody hugged my goodbye. I love that kid! I got in my car and the water works started again, only this time really hard.

Today was the worst hurt of all. Heather stayed with us this weekend and we took her home this afternoon. As she packed up her bedroom and her bathroom to take with her what she wanted, I had to leave the room and take a lot of deep breaths. I didn’t birth Heather or Chelsea, but I don’t think I could love them any more if I had. I know this separation is temporary and we will still see them as often as we possibly can, but that ride to Boiling Springs sucked. In the driveway, Jeff & I took turns hugging Heather and it ripped my heart out. I witnessed the sacrifice my husband is making for me to live my dream and a part of me feels so selfish. But not only is law school for me, it is also to be an example to the girls that they can do anything, at any age. It is so my family can have a good, comfortable life. But if it meant losing my family, I would give it all up in an instant and take law school off the agenda for good. While law school will fulfill me professionally, there is nothing that fulfills me or makes me more complete than Jeff and the girls and my friends and family. I am so happy that Jeff is excited about this adventure and knows that the pain is temporary and a speed bump to get the ultimate prize.

I know that the next few days are going to be hard, but I am excited to begin this adventure called law school. My job with the County has ended and I’ll be working these next 2 weeks to organize and pack. Much planning has gone into this over the last year and a half and logistically it appears the details are being taken care of. However, none of the planning prepared me for the feelings I have about leaving my friends and family and the only home I’ve known for most of my life. But, as long as my new home includes Jeff, it’s the only home I need and I know that I’ll quickly make new friends – not to replace the ones I have currently, but to extend my network even further.

I’ve been asked so many times about the house selling and the “What if it doesn’t?” question. My answer was always, “It’s going to sell. God hasn’t brought us this far to just stop now”. It was hard to keep that faith sometimes and I admit that at times I faltered. After all, the house showed one time in 3 months. I continued to pray that God would bring the right buyer and when there was a showing, I prayed over the buyers and the agents. Last week, God came through just as we knew He would. On Tuesday, we signed a contract on the house and the closing is set for July 15. We had the inspection on Monday and are waiting for the termite inspection to be done and then the list of repairs will be provided. The inspector did not go into detail, but did say that he didn’t find anything he wouldn’t expect to see in a 6 year old house and it appeared to be some minor repairman type items. It’s kind of funny how God works… I kept telling everyone that we were going to be in Birmingham over the weekend and it would be nice to have a contract in place so we knew exactly what we could look at in terms of rent. BOOM! That’s exactly what we had. So here we were, contract in place and it was time to find a place in Birmingham.

If you follow this blog, then you know the first time Jeff & I looked at apartments, I had a complete meltdown. But, after putting the numbers on paper we knew that this was the only way – we were going to have to rent an apartment. Jeff is making so many sacrifices so that I can go to law school, the least I could do is put on my big girl panties and live in an apartment. We had four more on the list that we did not look at the first time. I knew that if those 4 didn’t pan out, we could go back to the two on the list from the previous visits.

So, I took off last Friday morning and drove to Birmingham by myself (Jeff was flying into Atlanta and would meet me in the afternoon). This was the first time I had made that drive and it was mostly without incident. The most major thing was leaving my cell phone charger at home and being down to one cell. This was easily remedied after a lunch stop at Olive Garden with a side trip to Best Buy.  No Olive Garden doesn’t sell cell phone chargers, but stick with the story… it’s how my brain works, everything has to be in order. I met Jeff off the Liberty Park exit and we zoomed over to the Colonial Grand at Liberty Park. This is a beautiful area just north of Birmingham. As we drove up to the apartments, I began to get excited. It was a great complex, very well maintained and off the beaten path. If you didn’t know it was there, you would not find it. Amanda showed us the model unit and told us that there were 2 units available for our time frame, both overlooking the 7 acre lake. We had her hold one for us for 24 hours and continued our search. The next complex, we drove into and right back out of, not bothering to stop. On to the third… I thought this one may have some potential and many of my future classmates are living there. We went into the model unit and what can I say? Jeff and I realized then that we were silver spoon and were going to compare everything to the first one. While the unit was nice, we just didn’t feel it. In doing our due diligence, we drove through the parking lot of the fourth unit, once again not bothering to go in. On Saturday morning, we went back to the Colonial Grand at Liberty Park with a rental application in hand and signed the paperwork officially making us residents in July. We’re going down on the 8th to sign the lease, paint accent walls and hang window treatments and then the official move in will take place on July 11. We spent about an hour measuring and mentally placing furniture and had an excitment that I don’t even think we had when we moved into our current house.

As hard as it’s been at times over the past few months, it has all fallen neatly into place. Now the chaos begins of getting thins ready for the moving sale (June 27, if you’re interested) and then packing everything up. Going from our home to a 2 bedroom apartment means that we are selling more than  we are taking. And actually, that’s a pretty freeing thing. Stay tuned, it’s about to get FUN!

We decided to move the weekend of July 10. That will give us a month to set up the apartment and familiarize ourselves with the area more before my classes start. Oh my God! I’m going to law school!!! I can’t believe that this is really (finally!) happening.

After many twists and turns with our realtor (I almost fired him several times), the market picked up on June 1. It was like suddenly the light switch turned on and our home started showing like crazy. This made Jeff & I very happy, even if I did live in Swiffer hell for awhile. Yes, in the 4 1/2 months on the market, I had come to resent making the bed every morning, Swiffering the floors almost every day, wiping down counters and mirrors almost daily. Especially when we weren’t having any showings. I just wanted one day to leave a cup on the counter, a messy unmade bed, or shoes in the middle of the floor… just once. We had a showing yesterday morning and I cleaned like a mad woman before work, even coming in late. In my OCD (it’s better being C-D-O because the letters are in order), I went back to the house twice to check on things. Jeff called me around one and let me know that the same agent was coming back between 3 and 4. We viewed this as a good sign and likely the same buyer. By 6:30, we had a contract signed, sealed and delivered. And not just any contract, a CASH contract with a closing date of July 15. Whoo hoo!! God had a plan and He worked it all out. He’s awesome and amazing and does things that are immeasurable.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in teh church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever, Amen!” Esphesians 3:20-21

We still have a home inspection to get through, but do not anticipate anything major.  So, here we go on our next big adventure, just like PeeWee Herman without the masturbation in the theater. We go to Birmingham this weekend to finalize where we are going to live and have 3 more apartment complexes to look at. My last day with the County will be June 26. It’s all wrapping up and I am a mixture of many emotions – happiness, joy, saddness, anxiety, fear and excitement.

This morning when I woke up, I thought God meets our needs when we trust and rely on Him to do so. The hard part is being patient and waiting for Him. I wanted to enjoy the moment and as I looked at the bed with the sheets going one way, the blanket in the other, I smiled a rebellious smile thinking “This is the day”… and then I walked over… and made the bed, wiped down the counters and came to work. Hey! Some habits are good to get into.

We were leaving on Friday the 15th to make part of the drive up to VA. Jeff volunteered at the BMW Charity Pro-Am on Thursday and Friday and needed to see his doctor before leaving, so that put us somewhat behind, but still with plenty of time. After his appointment, we got an Rx filled, stopped to pick up Christina and hit the road. We had an absolute blast driving up to NC, stopping at Johnnie Carinos to eat and pulling into a Sleep Inn in Creedmore, NC for the night. I knew that Jeff did not feel well at all, but he had a good time too, laughing and telling stories.

On Saturday morning, we got up and continued North. Jeff had a rough night with a fever starting causing chills, but was still holding out hope for what he referred to as “a miraculous recovery” so that he could participate in the half marathon. We got to the Expo in time to hear a nutritionist read her PowerPoint slides (with her back turned to the audience) and waste about 30 minutes of our time. Dang! I was actually looking forward to that part! The Expo was not very large, but I made a few purchases and we went in search of food. Thank goodness our friend Ryan met us there with his handy Blackberry and was able to locate a Chipolte for me. I think Chipolte may be my new favorite place to eat. Well, there and Blueberry Frog, but I’ll save the Frog for another blog. We went downtown and walked around for a little while. It was the first historic courthouse I’ve seen that looks like a church. We decided that still full from our late lunch, we would skip the pasta dinner and headed to the hotel. Christina & I later walked across the street to Wendy’s for a baked potato and a Frosty. Yes, carb loading at its finest.

The morning of the Half, I slept in to the absolute latest minute I could. I think that makes Jeff nervous. We left the hotel and there was a slight mist. I was nervous … more nervous than I’ve been for any recent races. We got stuck in traffic and had a difficult time finding a parking space so Jeff dropped Christina and I off as close to the start as he could get. This would be weird for me – running a half without my husband. But, I knew that he did not feel up to it and was still fighting a nasty infection. The rain continued to lightly fall, but no one was going to let that damper the spirit of excitement present. The race staff really made waiting for the start very fun. We weren’t lined up for too long before the gun went off and away we go… 

There was huge spectator participation all along this course. I saw Jeff around the one mile mark and it was good to see him as I got started. I knew that this route was mainly flat with a few hills the first 10 miles, but miles 10-13 were uphill. I wanted to go slow and save it for those last 3 miles. With each mile, we were getting faster, but both Christina and I were very comfortable and able to carry on conversations with each other so we just decided to stay in our zones. As we came into downtown Fredericksburg, the bottom dropped out and it started pouring rain. All we could do is keep on running and laughing, even though our shoes were weighed down with water and we were slogging along. At each turn, Marines marked our way. It was pretty funny that at mile 7.5, they were saying “You’re halfway there”. Now I am the fine product of a top-class Anderson County education, and I even know that 7.5+7.5=15 miles, not 13.1. Thank God for my Garmin!! At around mile 8, Christina and I parted company, she was feeling great and I was slowing down, so I told her to go and run her race. The next 5 miles involved some walk breaks, but I ran as much as I could. I was somewhat disappointed in myself that I couldn’t make it the whole way. After all, that was the point of this half – do the 13.1 with no walk breaks. I really have to learn to push past the mental wall that goes up. As I came upon the Finish Line, I heard 80s music marking the way. All of a sudden, “Footloose” came on and dang! I wanted that to be my finish line song! I tried to kick it up as I remembered high school memories of Crystal, Tina, Susan, Tracy and myself going to see that movie at the Old Colony movie theater in Easley. However, it must have been the American Idol 2-minute version of Footloose because I couldn’t quite make it. I heard my name and looked to my right and there were Jeff & Christina. Christina ran out and ran back across the Finish Line with me. That’s a true friend right there – one that ran 13.1 miles and then go back to run more. It meant a lot to me. I was happy that I had a new PR – 2:35:03. And in case you are wondering, “Dancing with Myself” was my Finish Line song.

Our initial plan was to go into Washington DC that afternoon, but it was cold and rainy and Jeff felt miserable. We talked about it and decided to drive back home. After a long hot shower, we packed up the car and came back to home sweet home with one more medal for the wall.

Jeff & I went back to Birmingham to look at more housing, run the Statue to Statue 15K and attend the Spring game. The housing remains an issue and after evaluating our options, putting a writting budget in place and knowing more about the taxes, insurance, etc. that comes with home ownership, we have decided to rent an apartment. At Cumberland there is no discount for in-state vs. out-of-state tuition so it makes more sense financially to rent. We may have found an apartment, but have yet to look on the inside. The Statue to Statue 15K certainly earned its title as South’s Hardest 15K. The hills were huge and there was no flat road anywhere on the course. I finished and wasn’t last (almost!), so I’m happy about that. The race will be marked off my “To Do” list and probably won’t return anytime soon. It was tough, took a lot out of me physically (I swear it shredded my quads from the constant uphill/downhill) and mentally. I’ve struggled on my long runs since that time, especially when I get to hills. I just want to stop. I’m working past that and hoping to get it pushed through before the Marine Corp Historic Half Marathon coming up this weekend. While we were in Birmingham, I received a letter from USC stating that I am on the waitlist.

On May 1st, I pulled off the ultimate coup and held a surprise party for Jeff’s birthday. This had been in the works since February, so I was glad that he was completely surprised. We are so blessed to have such good friends and family surrounding us. Although he was in tremendous pain with his IBS, he was a champ and handled the evening so graciously and even had a good time to boot.

On May 2nd, I experienced a few firsts… I met up with Christina at Furman to run a new route for our 11 mile long run. Neither of us had run the Green Valley route and Jeff had printed off a map for us. The map was hand drawn and he went over with me some of the trickier parts. We stashed our water and took off. The first 3 miles were fast, but the humidity was very high and we agreed to slow down the pace some. We made a wrong turn, asked a lady if she knew the street we were looking for (heck, she couldn’t even understand us! We were looking for Sweet Gum and she asked, “Furman”? ) and made up the one extra mile trying to find freakin’ Sweet Gum street. Thanks to the couple of golf attendants who gave us directions and second-hand smoke! So we make our way up Sweet Gum and manage to find the rest of the way to Travelers Rest okay. As we came out of TR, it all went to heck. Suddenly we were faced with Highway 25, a 6 lane highway. I really didn’t think it could be correct that we run on the highway, but know that sometimes race directors will close down a lane of traffic for races so we embarked on the shoulder of the highway, trucks passing us, cars whizzing by. There were times when Christina and I would just look at each other and laugh. I think my favorite line from that day was Christina saying, “If we weren’t running on the side of the highway, they would never see all this” gesturing to her body. So see, we were doing the people a favor. How funny we must have looked! We got to a road that we at least saw on the map and were faced with another dilemma – which way to go. We crossed the street and took off. Soon into that venture, it was clear it too could not be right. We saw no people, traffic, animals. There was a church with a sign announcing Missions Week. I was tempted to go in and explain that missions begins at home and we needed a ride back to Furman. Undaunted and convinced we were close, we just continued walking. Finally, we decided to turn around. As soon as we got back to the initial intersection, I felt like a goober because I immediately saw the road we should have turned on. So, our 11 miler turned into probably a 15 miler and took 3 1/2 hours. Be aware – if you get the Green Valley Road Race map from the Track Club website and don’t know where you are going, it’s not going to help!

I finally broke down and called the University of Alabama Law Admissions Office last week. My application has been complete since November 4 and I’ve been pending since January. So to me, this equals more than patient. They were very nice and told me I should know something by the end of the month. However, they also said that there is early admissions so I may hear sooner. Huh? Early admission? Yes, I know that I had indicated an interest in that and still am very interested. However, that class begins on May 26. Yep, less than two weeks from today and here I sit still not knowing. Little stresssful? You think? You betcha! Jeff and I are trying to work out a plan so that if I do get the call and need to go pronto, I can do it. It helps that my position has been replaced at work and I can leave here when I need to.

The house is still on the market. A price drop and incentive offered has brought one showing. It is positive that 22 brochures are gone in about 10 days. We at least know that we have traffic and some interest. We are trusting and praying that it all works out and we know that it is going to. It may be crazy these next 2 weeks but buckle up and hang on to your fork, the best is yet to come!