The process begins.

Between two very active children and working on my book, I had no time for the blog. I have been using every moment of free time for the book because I was determined to finish it before I start the Education Program. I can now say that I have!!!

Unfortunately, that means nothing at this point. I now have to work toward acquiring an agent. I wanted to document this journey, so I have created a new blog that is geared completely toward this journey. I also plan to post some excerpts from my story on there. If you would like, check it out! I would love the feedback.

http://christinaeason.blogspot.com/

Since I will have more free time now, hopefully I will be more active here as well. 

Grace's Dance Performance!

Grace is completely done with ballet now. We decided not to do the actual recital because she was begging to go back to gymnastics, and if we did the recital, she wouldn't have been able to go back to gym.
We decided that instead of paying the numerous fees that went with the recital, we would just let her do the mall show that was the weekend before the summer session of gymnastics started.
She is currently back in gymnastics and LOVING it! But I figured I would share the video of her performance here.

They danced to Doh Wah Diddy. I think she did very well, especially since the last few weeks of class were like pulling teeth to get her to actually dance.

And, the tutu of the costume isn't connected to it, so she'll be able to wear it with other things! I'm pretty happy about that since the costume cost us $50!

1890's Day

Our first summer adventure (even though it's not technically summer) was 1890's Day, which is a fair/craft show type thing our town holds every year. We met my mom and sister there.

Here the kids are watching the parade.

After the parade, we walked around for a bit, then we were planning on going home to get some rest before going back to 1890's Day a little later. As a parent, I should know by now that whatever I plan is not going to happen. Just after walking in the door, Brentley and slammed into the corner of our TV stand. He was bleeding pretty bad, so right back out the door we went to the ER.

Here he is waiting for the doctor. 

Boy, those people must have been convinced we did it to him. Two different nurses, a medical assistant, and the doctor asked us what happened. The doctor said he would need stitches if it didn't stop bleeding. Luckily, it did, so they were able to glue it instead. It's healing up quite nicely now. 

He was acting perfectly fine later in the day, so we decided to go back to 1890's Day after the sun was going down. 

Grace got to make a sandart bottle!

Here they are looking at the stars while they were waiting for the fireworks.

And here they are waiting for the fireworks.

Aside from the trip to the ER, we had a really fun day!

*I should be posting a video of Grace's dance performance soon, so keep an eye out for that one :) 

Relief.

I knew I would get accepted, but it feels so good to have confirmation!

Writing.

This is sort of a brain dump/getting out my frustrations post. 

            As you all know, I have written a novel. It started as more of a hobby, but I now have intentions of attempting to acquire an agent. Just beginning this process is proving to be difficult. I can write 324 single-spaced pages (30 chapters and over 95,000 words), but I'm having the hardest time condensing that into a hook line, which is one sentence that sums up the entire book.

            I can't seem to figure out the perfect details to include. And it must be PERFECT. This is the first thing the prospective agents will see. It must "hook" them in and make them want to read more. If it does, they will read the synopsis. And if they enjoy the synopsis, they will request anything from a chapter to the entire manuscript.

            It's not that I don't understand my novel well enough to come up with a hook line. "A seventeen-year-old girl lives in a dystopian society in which everyone has a supernatural ability and these abilities determine their worth as humans." See, I can describe it in one sentence. The problem is, I understand my novel all too well. I understand that that sentence is merely a description. There is so much more to my novel than that. Somehow, I have to come up with a sentence that reveals enough to make someone want to read it without revealing too much. I must have written a thousand hook lines by now...

"When seventeen-year-old Her Name, who lives in a dystopian society in which the worth of the citizens is determined by their supernatural abilities, learns that she is destined to take on a role of fighting in a rebellion, she must overcome her fear of the government that oppresses her and break down the barriers that prevent her from trusting those who aim to help her in order to discover what she is truly capable of." 

-(Yes, she has a name, but I'm not yet comfortable with posting it).

            I feel like this is the best one yet, but would this make any of you want to read the book? I feel like there is so much more to the book that could draw people in, but I have no idea how to fit into one sentence. I suppose I will just have to keep trying until I feel it's right.

            Even if I never get an agent or never it never gets published, I will still be glad I wrote it. Writing a novel is like reading a book in which everything happens exactly how you want it, even if you never expected it to happen that way. Trust me when I say, I have surprised myself with some of the choices the main character makes and where the story takes her.

           In all honesty though, would any of you read something like this? Be honest. I'm not afraid of criticism. 

Mother's Day 2013.

Our Mother's Day turned out to be more than one day. 

On Saturday my mom brought my sister over for her to stay the night while my mom went to Atlanta with a friend.
I took all three of the kids to a craft store and let them pick out scrapbook paper to make cards for my mom, then we went to the park and had a cookout.

The kids were worn out by the time we got home, so they all fell asleep pretty quickly. And the next morning (Mother's Day), we loaded the kids up to go meet my mom in Atlanta. 

Brentley and Cheyenne slept most of the (2 hour) drive. Grace played with her shoes. She has such an active imagination that anything can be fun for her. 

We all ate lunch and got a special treat... 

This is my mom with all the kiddos. She finally let me take a picture of her! She hates having her picture taken.  

We also went to the Mall of Georgia, which... wow! That is a nice mall! 

Then we drove back home. Which, can I just say, I HATE traffic. Chris was driving, which is fortunate because I had about 500 minor heart attacks on the way there and back. I was literally panicking and on the verge of tears. I had to cover my eyes. People in Atlanta drive like maniacs! Luckily, Chris is a good driver, so he was able to keep us from getting hit. 

Then, this morning, my mom took me to get a mani-pedi with her. It was very relaxing. I'm not thrilled with my nails because the guy didn't understand what I was wanting, but it was still nice to get to spend some one-on-one time with her. 

And later, she watched the kids while Chris took me out. He took me to eat at TGI Fridays, then we walked around Downtown for awhile. And then we ended up getting some ice cream before going to get the kids. It was very nice to spend some time with him because we haven't been out on our own in forever!

Yeah, the sun was in his eyes.

I'm terrified of heights. It doesn't look like it, but we're high up here. My hands were shaking.

So we went to play in the water by the Aquarium instead. 

                                     

This is my foot compared to Chris's lol.

He was swinging from the trees :p

This ice cream was amazing! Cookie dough... my favorite!

                                   

I'm a very bad blogger.

I know I haven't been on here in weeks.
But this is why...

Straight As!!!!!
After three years of college, my GPA is at a 3.8. I miss my 4.0, but I'll take a 3.8!

And also, because I passed all of my classes this semester, I officially have an Associate's Degree in Early Childhood Education!
It hasn't been processed yet, but the paperwork is in. All they have to do is send me my degree!

According to the statistics, only 1% of those who were teen moms earn a degree by the age of 30. It might have taken me an extra year, but I'm only 21. I'm in the 1%!
And I'm not stopping here. I will be returning in the fall to pursue a Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education. I'll know by the end of the month if I have been accepted into the program, which there's no reason I shouldn't be.
By 2015, I should have two degrees, and I'll only be 23!


Oh, and I hit another milestone. I officially had my first creeper professor this semester. But that's another post for another day.
I promise I will try to be a more active blogger now that the semester is over! I have a free summer, so I should have plenty of time to post!

Score!

I decided to put some stuff in a local consignment sale so that I could go to the early sale (before the regular shoppers). I really like this sale because they sale juniors stuff, which I can fit in, so it's a sale for me, too!

Today was the early sale and I found some awesome stuff!

Top left is Children's Place, top right is Gymboree, and the dress is Carter's.

Top left is a swimsuit cover, top right is from Gymboree, and bottom is a 3 piece set from Children's Place. 

Top is from OshKosh. And two pairs of super cute shoes!

The shirt is from Carter's (it was $1!), I just liked the shorts, and the shoes are practically brand new (also only $1!).

Top is from OshKosh, both of the bottom are Carter's. 

I have been needing a new purse forever now, and I hit the jackpot! I love them all!

American Eagle jeans and an Old Navy dress. 

Brown North Face jacket and an Old Navy top.

I'm pretty excited about everything I found! I got that North Face jacket for $8. They're $100 new. I'm so glad I spent the time to put stuff in because I know all the nice stuff would've gone quick! And I'll be making some money at the end of the sale, so that's always a plus!

Ellen's youngest fan!

Brentley absolutely LOVES The Ellen Show!

We DVR it every day, and every time I turn it on, he goes running to the TV screaming, "Ellen!" And whenever she dances, he HAS to dance with her. It's so darn cute! 

So, we made this video to show his love affair with Ellen. Enjoy!

What lovely weather we've been having... finally!

It was so nice out today that we took the kids on a picnic and let them ride their bikes!

Brentley didn't quite understand how to work the pedals, so Chris was helping him. Grace had it going, though! Even after Brentley decided that he was done, we put him in his stroller and followed her all over the park!

Grace was also dying to ride the carousel.

Brentley was not a fan at all, though. We had him on a horse, and as soon as it started moving, he panicked. Bless his heart.

And, just for your viewing pleasure, a few scenic shots I captured. I've always loved the architecture of the downtown area.

Chris and I had our first official date on this bridge. We walked across just talking about anything and everything. And at the end of the bridge, he insisted on buying me a (grape) slushie from one of the vendors. Then we walked back across, sharing the slushie, as it was getting dark. After we made it back to the other end we stopped at a spot near the water and looked at the stars for awhile before he took me home. Yes, almost six years later, I still remember every detail. 

Happy Easter!

Okay, Easter was yesterday, but I'm posting about it today :)

We didn't do anything super special. We had my mom and sister and Chris' mom, brother, and step-dad over while the kids hunted some Easter eggs.

I wasn't sure if Brentley would really understand/be in to hunting eggs, but he was all for it! Whenever he saw an egg, he would scream "EGG!" and run to it. He actually found about 12 eggs all on his own.
Grace and Cheyenne had a blast running around looking for eggs, as well.

We attempted to get some family pictures, but I couldn't get both of the kids to stay still at the same time. They wanted to run around. None of the ones with Chris came out good. These two are the only ones even worth showing...

Also, I'm loving my new camera. I found out how to make the pictures come out looking professional...

I'm still getting the hang of replicating it, though. And it's harder to take a picture this way than it is to just snap a quick picture. I guess practice makes perfect. 

We also did Easter "presents" this year. I didn't feel like buying big baskets when we could just buy some bags. I painted letters on them to make them more personal. 

Now, if it would just stay warm, the kids are ready for swimming season! 

Our future home.

We're not planning on buying a house until a. we can afford one we want to live in for the rest of our lives, and b. we know if I'll be able to get a job in this area.
So this is me planning WAY ahead. Although, I always do that, right?

Through Pinterest, my future home is coming together. I'll be all set to decorate once we actually have a house!

Our bedroom:
I'm obsessed with yellow and gray together, which is strange because I'm not a big fan of yellow by itself. But when these two colors are together, it's just so beautiful!

Painting circles is easy enough, right?

 I really like the first bedspread. Simple, yet elegant. I also like the pictures above the bed. However, I like the yellow walls in the second picture. Basically our room will be the first picture, but with pale yellow walls (minus the chandelier).

The living room:

I LOVE the color of the walls. I picture lighter floors and dark brown couches/chairs, though, with throw pillows that accent the walls.  

The kitchen:

I can't really find much that I would want for my kitchen. I think I would have to actually see it first, but I really like this color scheme. I could definitely see my kitchen being these colors!

Back yard:

We WILL have this in our backyard. 

There will also be a grill and patio furniture. We love to eat outside when the weather is nice. 

Kids' rooms:

This will mostly depend on how old they are/what they are into at the time. I have a ton of neat ideas pinned, but I can't say that I would definitely use them. 

I did find one thing that I think I could incorporate no matter the theme or colors...

I would do one for Grace and one for Brentley. I think I might actually go ahead and do something like this... maybe as a Christmas gift or birthday present? 

Now, here's my random quirkiness coming through... I think it would be really neat to have quotes from books randomly placed throughout the house.

Like this...

Or this...

I showed this one to Brittany... I think it would fit in our bedroom. 

These are just a few. There are lots of others, but I plan on putting them in places where they fit with the room. And mostly only quotes that are meaningful.

And yes, I am taking over the decorating. Chris said he didn't care how we decorated our future house as long as he had a garage or "mancave" that he could do whatever he wanted to. I'm totally fine with that lol.