Wow...it's been THREE years?!?

Good grief! It's been THREE years since I last put up a blog entry!

So...updates!

November 2012 - Stephanie went back to live with her mom in Las Vegas. I love her, but that was the best thing that could have happened for me and my sanity. The departure was abrupt and she didn't leave on good terms, so we haven't heard from or talked to her since she left more than a year ago. Some days I really miss her. Other days I'm thankful to have my/our life back. I do hope for Eric's sake that one day she apologizes to him and that they can have a real relationship at some point...

October 2013 - I transferred from the managing a Branch staff of 10, to being the Staff Trainer at the Credit Union. (22 years with the CU as of March 9th!) :) It's been a whirlwind, yet a phenomenal change. Again, I felt like I needed a change and when this opportunity became available, I couldn't pass up the chance to transition out of the Branches and into the "back office" way of life. It's been amazing. My boss is wonderful, the Teller Trainer that I work with is great, too. I couldn't ask for two more wonderful people to work with/for. No more weekends! I'm off every Saturday and Sunday, and I can truly work 9am-5pm. I don't bring work home with me like I used to, but am not afraid to work on things at home if it makes things easier for me while at work. Each trainee I work with has to go through a 4 week training session with me to learn their job as an FSR (Financial Services Representative). It's now March 2nd and I have one more week with my current trainees until they head to their respective branches. As of March 7th, I will have trained a total of 4 new FSRs. I really enjoy it, and hope to enhance the training over the next year.

January 2014 - I'm going to be ... a Grandma! O.o Nothing could have prepared me for this news. I half expected it when Michelle moved in with her boyfriend. I guess I had hoped it wouldn't be this soon. I kept telling her: "I'm too young to be a Grandma!" but I guess she didn't hear me. She's due on September 3rd and there have been complications early on in the pregnancy. Apparently, she was exposed to the CMV virus around Christmas time, when she was likely already pregnant. This causes some concern for the baby's development. Thankfully, we just found out that the insurance company will pay for a treatment option to hopefully prevent the spread of the virus to the baby. She'll need an amnio-test at 21 weeks to be sure, but we're hopeful that the initial dose of the medication will be sufficient to keep the baby safe from harm. Apparently, there can be some serious and severe issues with brain/neurological development if untreated, or potential hearing/vision issues after birth. She has the treatment next Thursday, March 6th, and a follow up appointment with her fetal/maternal specialist on March 10th. I'm getting used to the idea of being a Grandma with each ultrasound and seeing the baby's development progress. I just pray everything will continue on smoothly for her and that the baby is born healthy this fall.

Future plans: May 31, 2014 - John graduates from High School! He plans to attend St. Louis Community College in the fall. I'm taking him and a friend of his to ACEN in May as well. :)

July 15, 2014 - This date marks the 10 year anniversary of Eric and I getting married! :) We decided to take a nice vacation again this year, and started looking at cruises. We quickly found that cruises in July are more expensive than cruises in April, so we moved our trip to the spring instead. We'll be on a Princess cruise ship (the LOVE BOAT!) and will be taking a Western Caribbean cruise with ports in Mexico, Belize, and Honduras. Can't WAIT! Just need our renewed passports to get here!!!

Guess that's all for now! Lots happened in the last couple of years, too much to type out, but that's the most recent news that's "fit to print". :)