Jill Victoria

I have had some big and fun happenings in my life as of late.

Last week I made the decision to go back to school and get my degree. I had originally planned to go for my Associates in Paraprofessional Education, but after talking to some people (mainly my financial backers, parents, fiance and a close friend) I decided today to change my focus on Elementary Education. It will open up more doors for me in the end and I do believe that it will pay off.

I’ll start going online to the University of Phoenix (again) towards the end of July. I wanted to wait till then so I could get through Campmeeting without having to worry about going to school. I already took off the days from work I needed to go to Campmeeting. I can’t believe it’s only 17 days away! My aunt Ellen, first cousin Rachel and her kids (Lucie, Jack, Joey, JJ, Lillie, Jacob and Jonathan) are all coming down for the week of Campmeeting, which I’m excited about! I really hope I can go with Rachel and Lucie to look at bridesmaid and flower girl dresses together.

My brother Matthew is now back in the States and stationed down in Savannah, GA. He came home on June 20th, had ten days off and left Monday for Ft. Stewart. It’s a comfort to know he’s back home in Georgia and away from that crazy Kim Jong Il. I just wish that his girlfriend was home from South Korea as well. I worry about her being there.

As of writing this, there are 102 days till David and I get married! It really is getting down to the details now. I went and picked up my wedding gown last Thursday. I’m super excited to finally have it! I have my fitting for alterations this coming Thursday; which also means I need to go pick up my bra (finally) from Silver Lining. Plus sized ladies, Silver Lining is a great place to go and find your wedding garment needs!

This past Saturday, David and I booked our honeymoon! We will be going on a five day Carnival Cruise to the Florida Keys and the Bahamas! It’s my first cruise and I’m really excited about it. Krista told me all about her cruise experience and it sounds like something I will really enjoy. David is a past cruiser, but he says he will have more fun on this one since he’s an adult now… plus the whole honeymoon part. Hehe.

Over the weekend, David and I went to the lake house on Jackson Lake twice. Kris and Gabe came Saturday, along with Matthew and his friend Cameron. We all went swimming in the lake and then Kris cooked us dinner. As usual, her food was delicious!

Sunday Krista and Spencer came with us and we went swimming that day as well. Krista and I swam close to half a mile trying to help us get in shape for both our upcoming weddings. Spencer and Krista decided to move their wedding date from next July to this September. Krista is now feeling more of a wedding rush than I am!

For dinner that night, we went to a place called Frank’s. I thought it was pretty good, but it had nothing on Longbranch in Fayetteville!

We did make a surprising discovery when David and I got to our future home Saturday. A tornado that came through earlier had snapped a medium sized sweetgum tree in two and it fell on our deck. Luckily for us, the only damage was to the railing (which was knocked over) and the plastic patio furniture was destroyed. My dad is going to come over and chop up the tree with his chainsaw once he gets the blade sharpened.

This weekend is the Fourth of July. I’m going to try and cram a lot into three days. Friday David and I made plans to go back to the lake house with Krista and Spencer. Dr. Frank rented a pontoon boat for the day also, so hopefully we’ll also be able to go out on the water in it. That all depends on some family matters first.

Work is going well. There are days when it’s a lot of fun and there are days that drag on forever. Cheryl from work stopped by the lake house right before we got there Saturday. She told me about it at work on Monday.

Life is changing and moving faster than I can keep up with at times. At least all these changes are for the better. School on top of wedding planning? I must be crazy! Keep me in prayers for when I start classes. I’ll need them when I get to the math part!