Future Plans

         As most of you who read my blog know, I am a senior at Warner University and if all goes well and I pass my classes, I'll be graduating in May!  I am super excited but also a little scared.  I think that's a healthy thing though.  So, if you were wondering, here are the things that might be coming up in my future. 

         Since the summer between my sophomore and junior year of high school, I have known that I am going to be doing something ministry related with my career.  I finally figured out what exactly that would be just last year.  I am going to be a psychologist.  More softly put, a counselor.  I hope to be employed in a church, or organization, and maybe someday even have my own practice!  Because I want to become a psychologist, I am going to have to be licensed.  And in order to be licensed, I must have a master's degree.  This means another 2 years or so of schooling.  It is a little aggravating to feel that a lot of other people are moving right into their careers after college and I'm moving right into more school, but because I feel such a passion for what I'm being called to do, I am not too worried.  (Liking school doesn't hurt either.) 

         So, in order to pursue my master's degree, I have to go to a graduate school.  I really want to live in Florida after I graduate from Warner, so I have decided to apply to Asbury Theological Seminary in Orlando, FL.  I have applied and I am now in the application process. 



  Now, whether this actually works out or not is dependent upon quite a few things.  These are the things that I ask anyone who reads this to pray about with me.  Ok.  In order for this to all work out, I must find a job, an apartment or living arrangement, and a car.  The hard part about all of these is that I have no idea which should or will come first.  It's like a big ugly circle of needs that all depend on each other.  I need a car to go to my job.  I need my job to get a car.  I need an apartment or somewhere to live while I work at my job. And I need a job to afford that apartment or living expense.  See my dilemma?  I have no doubt that everything will work out how it needs to, but right now, it causes great anxiety when I think about it. Haha

 

 

 

Anyhow, this is what's going on right now, gotta keep y'all updated!! :D  Please keep this whole thing in your prayers and if you find any free cars, bags full of money, or anything like that, send it my way ;) Lol!  

A girl's bestfriend

         That one person that loves you no matter what... who, even if you leave them outside accidently, they won't mind...  Who loves you even if you forget to take the tomatoes off of the taco brought home for them.  That person who tries to jump up on you and won't stop even as you are yelling at them to, because they can tell you think they are adorable. That person who poops in front of your bedroom door as a symbol of favoritism (at least, that's how I'm taking it), who really does eat your homework, who constantly steals your sandwiches that you spent a good 5 minutes making, who helps clean the dishes, who helps dirty the house up a mere 10 minutes after it gets cleaned, and who waits patiently for you to clean off all the mud from their legs once they get done doing whatever they does outside.  

         Lilly, the gorgeous German shepherd-collie mix that my family has had for a good ten years, is who I'm describing.  A few days ago, she hurt her back really bad, and wasn't eating her food (not even a taco!!!!) so my parents decided to take her to the vet to get her checked out.   This morning, Lilly died at the vets suddenly.  I miss her already. 

         She was one of my favorite things to come home to during a college break.  I loved seeing her as I walked in the door and she would come over to me and be all happy to see me.  I'd always leave my door open when no one else was home during those breaks so she could hang out with me.  I remember before I left for college, my parents would joke around and tell me that I had to take her with me.  I said I would do it happily!

         When she was around 3 or 4 I taught her how to growl on command.  It was awesome.  Mom didn't think so though.  Every time after that, whenever she growled, I got blamed for teaching her bad habits. I denied this, of course. I trained her to do it on command.  If she's doing it not on command, it ain't got nothing to do with me!!! lol.

         I remember times when I was sad, or depressed, or heart, or broken, or just needed someone to talk to (or at) lol, Lilly was my main man.  She would lay down on my bed and I'd lay beside her and pet her and talk about everything.  Call me weird, but through high school, she was one of my best friends.  I'll always love my little Lillers . 

What it takes

        Warner University's first football season is almost over, and it's been rough.  We have zero wins under our belts, there have been injuries, some have been out for the season, a lot of players have gotten discouraged, a few have even left, there have been both good and bad attitudes seen on and off the field, but through it all, there have been an exceptional few that have been pretty positive throughout, and those guys are the ones that are making our team better. 
        Shout out to Drew, our QB.  No matter how hard it got, and will be, he is guaranteed to play his butt off for his team.  Another player that I happen to be pretty close to is my handsome man, John.  I still get surprised at how unbelievably hardworking he is for his team and sport.  Call me biased, but I'm pretty sure he is among the top players when it comes to dedication, skill, and hard work.  Because of all these things, his teammates chose him as a captain.  I firmly believe his consistent good attitude has earned him that spot.  That pretty much makes me famous, right?! Haha Just kidding!!  But basically, he has what it takes.  When people can tell you really care and are willing to put in the work, you are a leader, publically chosen or not.  That little bit of insight is free.  You are welcome America.

Anyway, here are some pics of my bf during his first game as a captain:

Coin toss

John, #55, and one of his besties, Travis

The most adorable fist pump ever.



Flashin' back

Lately, or rather, pretty much all summer, I've been having major flashbacks of my childhood.  I've been remembering (and missing) toys, shows, books, little habits, food, etc.  Maybe it's happening because my mind is finally grasping that I'm almost all grown up?  (For me, we will count graduating college as achieving ultimate adulthood.)

One thing that I have always loved about my parents is that they have never hesitated in encouraging me to stay young.  Ok, ok, not always loved, but in the aspect of wanting to collect toy figurines, or buy toy cars, or watch kids movies all the time (even in my teens and twenties), they've never made me feel bad about it.  So I have happily, to this day, still bought Disney figurines or dolls, or movies, or whatever!

Anyway, when I got home about a week ago, I was going through my closet in my old room where I keep all of my stuff from when I lived at home.  I was attempting to clear some stuff out so that when I moved out officially after college, there would be less junk to deal with.  While I was doing that I found all kinds of things that I had forgotten about!!  It just made my heart smile as I remembered growing up and how I entertained myself for hours with all the stuff. 

 Here are some of my toys and things that I had and that I loved enough to keep forever! 

First things first, my Disney figurine collection!!

Click on the picture to see it bigger and better

Here's some closer up:

They just make me so happy! I've no idea why, but I've always been a sucker for little figures like these!  For my birthday, my sister bought me 2 more sets of them!!  She bought the Disney Fairies set and the Disney Tangled set!!

And then there are my Disney Barbies!!  I WAS going to try to collect all of them, but I figured it would just be too much money to do that and they are much bigger than figurines, so more space is required to show them!  Maybe when I have a daughter, we will start her one. Then she can share with her mommy ;)  lol

These first two are my prides!!  Both are collectibles.  Ariel is from the film debut, and Cinderella is a 50th Anniversary special addition.  I don't like Cinderella, but her dress is simply amazing, so I gave in!!  (Plus the person selling had no idea what kind of item they had so they were selling for really cheap!)  The rest are just from the Disney store!!  I love these dolls because the past few years Disney has really been doing an excellent job with resemblance! 

Well, that's my girly collection!!  I've got other stuff, but I'll write another post for those ;)  Some of the toys and books I miss were these awesome Sky Dancers that you pulled a string and it made this pretty little doll with wings go flying in the air.  I had really awesomely illustrated books to go with them!  I also miss all of my Disney story books.  But those are boxed up until I have my own awesome library. See my post here about my future epic library.

Well, I hope I brought back some memories of your own childhood!!  I loved my childhood and I wouldn't ever change it!!  I was very blessed and I thank God for such amazing, supportive parents.  

Senior year = Last year

         To say that I'm excited about this upcoming year of college would definitely be lying.  I don't even know what I am about it....  Am I just a smidge bit excited? Am I nervous? Am I leery? Am I anxious? Do I even want go???

         I've got no clue.  All I know is that time has flown by wayy too fast. I feel like it's only been a couple years, but then when I think about it, it actually feels like 6.  Even though I didn't much write about all the problems I had, every single year was wrapped up in one or two events that really screwed things up and pretty much sucked the joy out of friendships, relationships, and even just myself.  I'm kind of scared that this last year will end up the same way and I don't want that at all.  I know that the main reason for the past 3 years being so filled with junk is because I have refused over and over and over again to just let Jesus be the center of my life. I'd replace Him, and then get hurt, get in trouble, get lost, and do things that were just plain stupid, and still just wonder why.

         Well, I know why.  And right now, I am REFUSING to do anything less than let Jesus be the most important thing in my life.  Senior year is going to be filled with really big decisions. There will be relationship growing and/or letting go of them, choices about Master's programs and schools, future jobs, acquiring a car I can afford along with an apartment to live in, probably drama (not even Jesus could avoid drama), and that's just naming the few that I can think of, and not counting the things that will just pop up.  

         Most of all, I'm worried about people.  The people I don't want to see, the people who might not want to see me, the new people I don't know if I'll even like, the jealousy I'll probably feel about certain things, and the overall lack of true closeness and friendship I have failed to develop these past few years with the people around me, and then the fact that my boyfriend is going to be totally wrapped up in football (which isn't his fault, I get that), but my love language is quality time and I've no idea if I'll get much of it...   

         So here is the age old wish of every single person to ever have lived:

I wish I had more time.

I wish I had more time to spend with these people:

A lot of them have graduated and/ or left and I definitely miss them.  I've always hated shallow friendships and I've been terrible at getting past that and into meaningful friendships.  I'm going to make this year a year to remember (but this time in a good way).   For everyone in these pictures, I love you SO much and I can't wait to hang out again, talk again, or whatever!!!  You are in this blog post for a reason!

Movies anyone??

The people I been living with this summer have a pretty good movie collection.  During the weekends I usually watch a movie, sometimes two.  So the other day I decided to count all the movies that I've watched and it's a pretty legit list!  And I'm pretty sure I'm missing a few, too!  I'm pretty sure nobody really cares, but here is the list!!! (I didn't do alphabetical order because unless it has to do with filing, it's incredibly boring.)

Movies I hadn't seen:

The Cave                                    Invincible
Amazing Grace                            The Lone Ranger
Cloverfield                                  The Soloist
I Am Number Four                       Abraham Lincoln
Man of Steel                               Super 8
Flyboys                                      Inkheart
The Forgotten                             Planet of the Apes
Pink Panther                               We Bought a Zoo
Hachi                                         Iron Man 
The Princess Bride                        Iron Man 2
Valkyrie                                      Human Centipede
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas      Monsters University
Robin Hood                                 The Purge
Megamind                                   Shark Night
The Grey                                     Runaway Bride
Rum Diary                                   Immortals
Oz the Great and Powerful             Rango
The Princess                                Spiderwick Chronicles
Dreamgirls                                  

Movies I had seen before:

Prometheus                                Avatar
Avengers                                    Thor
Despicable Me                             Castaway
Captain America                          Inception
She's the Man                             Treasure Planet
King Kong                                   Nacho Libre
Benchwarmers                            Wall-E
Snow White & the Huntsman  Pitch Perfect
One Night w/ the King                  Jurassic Park
Lost World                                  Ice Age
Warm Bodies                              Tombstone
Amazing Spiderman

That's like.... 60 movies! Haha  I'm awesome.  On another note... I read 6 books! lol   

But anyway, my boyfriend isn't much of a movie watcher.  That is going to have to change. Haha  I'm looking to own a collection like this:

Ive always wanted to have people over when I have my own place, so it would be awesome to have movies!  My favorite ones are the ones with the tragic endings.  My two favorites of the summer were The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (which I may write a separate post about) and Hachi.  Both were heart- wrenching.  Anyway.... yup! :D

I can't stop smiling

I have been so incredibly blessed this summer.  I have been surrounded by amazing people, I've learned so much, and I've had an incredible experience this summer.  And to help prove it, as a 'going away' present, I was given one of one of the art sets that I have been drooling over for the past 7 years!!!

May I introduce you to (drum roll please).............  MEGA BOX:

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils. Set of 132.  Yeah, I drooled, too.

Inside the beautiful tin exterior, it harbors the world's mysteries and the very essence of a rainbow. 

Prepare.... to...... die..... of...... overwhelming....... awesomeness.

I might have to take a trip to the E.R. because I'm going into shock from over-exposure to greatness.  #justsayin

In all seriousness, I am so blessed to know people who just want to bless others, like the one who gave me this little part of my dreams.  Thank you so much! And I PROMISE I will create something awesome! Just for you!!! Thank you!!!!!  AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhh (That was me running in circles because of how excited I am about this!)

Ok, well, I've only got a week left here in Wyoming! I better start packing because time is gonna start flying really soon. 

I miss reading!!

I have to admit, ever since I got into college, I haven't read hardly anything besides textbooks!  I miss my high school days when I would read like crazy.  I used to get so hooked into book series. Any time I had a little free time during class, I would take my book out and read it during class or I would sit in the back and read them under my desk even when the teacher was teaching! Then as soon as I got home from school, and I still remember doing this, I would run into my room, toss my backpack on the floor and then jump fly onto my bed and land with my book open to the last page I read (all in one fluid movement) and then read till dinner.

There are so many books I want to read or reread, but it seems the older I get, the less time I have to do read.  I miss going to Half-Price and buying like 7 books at a time!  I love going with my family. We usually spread out through the store as soon as we walk through the door, but it has been a Saturday tradition when I was growing up, so I always associate it with my family. 

My mom has a Kindle Fire, and I've always been a little interested in the reader tablets, but I love books too much to subject them (and myself) to a forever behind-a-screen existence.  I have always said that when I grow up and I have a house, I want to have a ton of book shelves filled with books.  I love all kinds of books, new, old, colorful, dirty, etc.  Books make me drool.  Yeah, you can quote me on that one. Haha

Have you ever seen Beauty and the Beast?  Do you remember the library the Beast gave Belle for a present?  Good lord, I just want to die every time I see that library.  Here's a picture to jog your memory:

So if I ever get rich enough, I'm going to aim as high as I can for something like this.  But let's be realistic. I'm never going to live in a castle, no matter how much my little heart wants to.  I have ideas, though, for what I could do to my house to make it look awesome. Here are some pictures I found that I absolutely love!

Hopefully my future husband is crafty enough to do something this awesome, or I'm rich enough to pay someone to do it. Haha.  Aren't they awesome??!!!!  I especially love the ladder/ 2 story idea.

Well, with that, I will conclude with notifying all my readers that I'm going to be accepting donations to Kelli's Ridiculously Awesome Library from now till forever. Thanks! :P

My Country Man :)

         So as most of you have noticed, I've got myself a boyfrannnn!!!

         I know all you guys up in Ohio are probably incredibly curious and want to know about this guy who has caught my attention, and I would be happy to tell you all about him!  I would tell you all about our relationship story, but that will come when I write my engagement post (haha just kiddinngggg!!!!.....maybe....)  ;)   Anyway!!  Onto the good stuff!

         We have 4 weeks till we've been together for half a year.  I know it doesn't seem like a lot, but I don't think time is the only judgement of a relationship.  I do think it is definitely a good factor. Believe me, I'm not rushing to get married or anything.  I stand by my past post about time being incredibly important.  Anyway, I have gotten to know this guy really well in the past half year, and we've gone through quite a bit of stuff that has just made us get closer together.  And it is really important to me that everyone else get to now him, too :)

         His name is John Kent, which, by the way, just happens to be the name of Superman's adopted father!  No, I will not name my son Clark. Come on people. :P  Also, I caught myself a baby!  He is gonna be 20 in April. Yeah, I know... I'm a cougar. Trust me, he reminds me all the time. 

         One of the things I love most about him is how surprisingly mature he is for his age.  He is so incredibly funny, but we've had some of the most serious conversations I've ever had with anyone.  He is so goofy, but can be incredibly serious and sincere just moments later.  

          When I first met him, I will be the first to admit that I threw him right into the stereotype of a dumb redneck.  His friends still won't stop teasing me about it.  But the moment I realized that he wasn't as dumb as I originally thought was when we were first texting each other and he was using words that average intelligent people don't even use. I was thoroughly surprised, but I just figured he was trying to impress me.  So having someone who I thought was a dumb redneck, and him being almost 3 years younger than me, I figured he wouldn't have much of a vocabulary, and not a whole lot of intelligence either.  (Just so you know, I was not interested in him at this point. I've got higher standards than that. lol)  Anyway, so when I realized he actually had a really good vocabulary, my interest definitely peaked a bit.  (By the way, his favorite word is discrepancy) Idk why, but it is and he tries to use it whenever he can.


          Anyway, as we started hanging out more and more, I became more impressed every time we hung out.  I quickly came to an understanding the first couple months, after trying to stump him or show off my own intelligence, that he is WAYYY smarter and more intelligent than me. Ok, maybe not more intelligent, but he definitely has more common sense than me (yeah I know what you are gonna say, Mom.  Most people have more common sense than me. Thanks. :P )  And you know what? I don't mind that he is smarter than me!  It drove me nuts when I would be talking to other guys and know that I was way smarter than them.  I like being able to ask him about stuff and get it explained to me.  And he is really good at dumbing things down for me.  He always uses his hands the same way when he explains things to me. It's so darn cute. haha

Ok!  Anyway, one of the most interesting things about my man is that he has his own company!  And he is only 19!! It's called K.O.R.E (Kent Off-Roading Equipment).    He makes bumpers (shown right), brush guards, roll bars, and other truck stuff.  

Don't ask me what he's welding. I've no idea.

He helps with his dad's company, Heli-Art, and so he has been welding since he was like 6. He constantly has people who have been welding 3x longer than him tell him they wished they could weld as well as he does.   



Fun fact about his dad's company:  His dad built the camera boat for Pirates of the Caribbean!!  ****MAJOR BROWNIE POINTS FOR THE FAMILY****


         So, more about John.  He is an Offensive Lineman on our university's football team.  I know nothing about football, but according to him, the offensive lineman is the smart lineman, apparently defense isn't.  HIS WORDS, not mine. :P   He's going to school for Business Management (obviously), haha, and is thinking about double majoring with Agriculture studies.

         He loves to hunt and fish and shoot guns.  I like to fish, and shooting guns is fun too! One time I was at his house out in the boonies (aka redneck country) and I asked him if I could shoot one of his guns and he happily took me outside and let me shoot a couple times.  Simple joys, people. Country is the way to go if you ask me!  I love that he is such a 'manly' man (for lack of a better word).  Everyone who knows me, ya'll know I could not deal with a feminine guy for very long.  If you can't wrestle, if you aren't stronger than me,   and if you aren't a classic gentleman, you can just turn around and go home.  Lucky for me, or maybe... lucky for John, he isn't feminine. At all.  He is so respectful and conservative, but he's not sexist.  He might pretend to be, but I know if I wanted a sandwich, he would totally make me one. Hahaha

My favorite picture :) Our first official date.

         I've always had a bit of a problem opening my heart to people which is why I've always struggled with getting close to people, but even in the first few times John and I hung out, I saw how incredibly genuine his heart was and I just instantly clicked with him. I'm not sure why, but I don't mind. I felt so comfortable and safe with opening up, I knew that our friendship might become something more, and it did :)

         He is a Christian, albeit a fairly new one.  It's been so awesome to see him grow and be able to answer his questions, and discuss things from the Bible, and just watch him really understand more and more what it all means.  I'm praying as the next few years go by, he keeps growing, and myself too.  God does awesome things and Him being in the center of our relationship is important to both of us.

Well, hopefully I gave a little insight for everyone.  You are welcome, and I hope that you guys up in Ohio can meet him someday :) 


         

Colorificccc

         Ok, so here is the bad news:  The Color Run this past Saturday wasn't an official Color Run.  It was a sponsored event by some heart association, and it was actually a little lame. Haha, BUT, you can't tell that from the pictures!!  The four of us still had an awesome time laughing and joking (mostly at the fake Color Run). 

         I will say that because it wasn't a real Color Run, I can't mark it off my bucket list.  I want my Color Run experience to be ridiculously epic and colorific. Hahah so I guess I'll have to sign up for the next Color Run in Orlando!  Anyway, here are some photos from Saturday! 

Okeydokey! That's all for this post :)

Saturday is gonna be UHHMAZINGG

           As most of you are Facebook friends with me,  you've probably seen that I posted about getting to finally do The Color Run.  I have had this on my bucket list for about 3 years now and I finally get to check it off TOMORROW!!!!    The above picture is a picture taken from one of the runs in one of the hundreds of big cities that The Color Run visits every year.  Here is a link to a video to see more about it:   The Color Run

           One of the things you have to do is wear white. I don't have white pants or shorts precisely because I cannot ever seem to keep them white for more than a week.  Ok, that's a lie.  I do have one pair of white shorts.... but now they are more of an off whte/grey.  LIKE I SAID.  Anyway, I'll just be wearing a pair of workout pants.  

           So here is the thing I'm most excited about.  I only brought one pair of running shoes with me, and they are my favorite: Nike Dual Fusion, Neon blue and yellow.  LOVE THEM!!!  And there is no way on earth I'm wearing them during the color fiasco.  I'd never see the color again! Well, I probably would because the color is just made of colored corn starch and it washes mostly off, but I don't want to risk it with my Nikes.  I figured I'd just go to Wal-Mart or clearance from another store and find a cheap pair of tennis shoes to wear.  So today I went to the mall and went into literally every store that had shoes.  Nothing. Too expensive or too ugly. And heck yes I'm gonna be picky, yeah even with cheap shoes.  Good thing too!  My last store I went into was JcPenny's.  I have gotten several pairs of shoes there and gotten good deals.  So I went to their shoe section and started searching.  I found a couple, but they were $50 +  so then I remembered that I had two old giftcards from the store, and by old I mean at least 4 years or older.  I know they are that old because they are the same two giftcards I've been switching between purses and wallets for years. Hahaha.  Anyway, so I go and ask them if they could tell me how much is on each and I figure its probably like a dollar or two on them.  They have to call some place to figure it out because the cards are so old they are showing up as unactivated on their registers. (oops. lol)  As they are making the calls and doing whatever it is that they do, I walk over to a clearance section.  They have 12 pairs of the same Nike shoe.  Black and pink.  Uhhh I'm not a fan of pink, but since it's clearance, I check.  People, this shoe should not have been on clearance.  In my opinion, clearance is 50% or higher off.  This shoe was originally $70 and they were selling it for $60.  Gee. Thank you so much.  I literally shook my head and put the box back on the shelf and walked around the stand again. Then I saw one New Balance box.  I walk over, and it's my size, and they are running shoes.  And what do you know??  They are on sale for $26!  Now THAT'S more like it.  I try them on and they feel good and by now the ladies at the counter figured out what I had left on the cards. $12!!!!  So they give me a replacement card with the total on it, and I decide to get the shoes.  When they ring the shoes up, they come up for $6 less than priced!  So the shoes are now $20 and I have a $12 giftcard. I ended up paying $8 for a pair of awesome New Balance shoes.  

Drum roll please.........................................................

My new shoes!

Since they were only $8 and they are dark, I'll be wearing these to the run.  Hopefully Ill take plenty of pictures there so I can post them on here!!!  Wooo!!

Oh shoot. I'm an adult.

           The other day I had a profound moment. I was here at work and I was just walking out of the bathroom and I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I just had this feeling that made me stop and just stare at myself.  No, I wasn't staring because I was like, "Dang I look GOOOD." Haha! Although, sometimes I really do that.  I mean, when ya look good, ya look good. Ya know?  

        Anyway, the reason I was looking at myself so intently was because I just had this moment of realization of feeling like I finally felt, and looked, my age.  I was looking and I said out loud, "Uhh... Ok this is weird."  I don't know how to explain it, but I just finally recognized myself as an adult and as a 21, almost 22 year old. 

Me, as of 20 seconds ago, and Me, as of about 20 years ago.

        And today, I am alone in the office because Victoria and Drew went with the middle schoolers to Wounded Knee which is an indian reservation they go to every year for missions.  I stayed behind so I can be available to counselors that are in The Healing Place (counseling center located within the church. It's pretty awesome) so that I can kind of interview them and just get a little bit more information on my career path. And as I was walking from the bathroom today, ( I just noticed all my realizations are happening around the bathroom.... that's awkward...) I realized that I had a big girl job, the kind of job I thought about when I was younger.  I sit in an office, read books, type up reports, talk with people, engage in some good conversation, etc.  I know it's an internship, but still, it's the closest thing I have to a big girl job up to this point.  And again, it was weird thinking that I'm not working at a restaurant, or a theme park, or whatever else I did when I was in high school.  This is it. I'm not little anymore, I'm not a teenager anymore.  I have to make big girl decisions and do big girl things.  This is a little intimidating. I'm in my last year of college starting this fall and afterwards, I have to figure out what I'm gonna do with my life. YIKES.  

         Another thing I noticed is that my baby sis isn't such a baby anymore.  I didn't really just notice this, but it fits nicely into the context of this post, so I'll add it in. (Plus I made a before/after pic so I simply HAVE to use it. :P )  Anyway, like I said, she isn't a baby anymore.  She's still a teenager, but she's almost 19 and that pretty crazy.  I used to think people were so dumb for not remembering how old their brothers and sisters were, but now I get it.  I keep thinking she's still like.... 15.  But she isn't! I can still try to boss her around, but  I think it is extremely unlikely that she is gonna listen. 

Kerri & I, about 19 yrs ago,  and then Kerri & I, around last Christmas

         So, moral of the story is this:  Time, man.... This junk creeps right on up behind you, and then attacks you like a mind controlling spider monkey so you've got no idea how or when time caught up with you!  Luckily, I think I age well, so it's all good. I just gotta get my junk together so I'm prepared for what time holds for me!  Just gotta take a deep breath and keep going, because whether or not I choose it, time keeps movin'!