Welcome!

I already have a blog about my daughter, but I wanted to have another blog to just dedicate to random thoughts that cross my mind. Why?

Well, this is my exercise towards reaching a life-long goal of mine. I have always wanted to write, and a goal of mine is to someday write a book. I don't have a lot of time to devote to this, since my daughter is my main focus in life, but I have attempted to write down ideas when they come to me! I really enjoy blogging about Lauren, and I thought I'd give just random blogging a shot.

A little about me: I have my bachelor's degree in history and political science. I graduated college with two degrees in 3.5 years, a fact that I am proud of! In 2005, I decided to pursue another dream of mine: a master's degree. I enrolled in an online graduate studies program with Norwich University and received my MA in June 2007 - in Diplomacy (which is really just a fancy word for International Relations, although it was a little more specific...my area of emphasis was Conflict Resolution). I really enjoyed this program because it was strictly writing - I spent a great deal of time researching and writing about the genocide in Sudan. My favorite paper, which I presented at my residency, dealt with the situation and my solution to ending the violence in Darfur. I graduated with a 4.0, another great accomplishment of mine!

My dream job would be working for a foreign policy think tank, such as Brookings Institute. However, I live in Charleston, WV and there aren't many opportunities for that line of work! Since I have had Lauren, my focus has turned to making sure I am available for her. I am fortunate to work 30 hours a week (sometimes more) and have flexibility with my job. My manager and co-workers all have kids, which makes it a very mommy-friendly environment. I love getting to spend more time with her than I did at my previous job!

My main mission in life right now is to just be the best mom I can be for her. I want her to grow up smart, independent and strong. I tend to put my interests on the back-burner, and hope that by blogging I can at least spend a few minutes a day working towards a life-long goal of mine. I told my husband I was going to do another blog, and he asked what I was going to write about...and I told him I don't know! I have no set "theme" in mind, other than to just write about what I am thinking of at the time. I'm sure I will have many posts about my daughter, but I am a very opinionated person and hope to spend some time writing about things that are important to me outside of my family.

Other things about me: I am married to my best friend and am thankful to have someone in my life who is supportive of my what may seem at times far-reaching goals. Our daughter is the most important person in our lives and we love spending time with her. I have lived in West Virginia since 2005, but am just now starting to feel like a part of the community. I've been involved with Troy's campaigning, but since Lauren has been born, I finally feel like I'm fitting in. I have wonderful friends, many of whom do not live in the area and I don't speak with as much as I'd like, but I love them dearly! My parents live in St. Louis, so I don't get to see them often. I try to talk to my mom daily. I love reading, and try to do that for a few minutes before going to sleep each night. I could spend an entire summer on a boat and be perfectly content, although I don't get to do that as much lately since I'm now 12 hours away from my parent's lake house! I really enjoy the beach, although not quite as much as my husband who could easily spend 10 hours just lying on the beach. I tend to get restless after a bit - which he likes to point out! We are going to Mexico in FOUR weeks, and I am going to be better about entertaining myself on the beach so he can relax. And, I love shopping. LOVE it. Trying to be better about it. :)

I hope that this will help me hold myself accountable to my dream of writing...we'll see how that works!

Jen :)