Deem Family Update

Hello again, fellow bloggers. It has been quite a while! There are way too many things to cover since my last blog (10 months ago) so we're just going to start anew. BJ and I are finishing up the semester at SLCC and soooo ready for the summer! (Well, at least I am. BJ will be taking 2 or 3 classes in the summer, but I'm giving myself a break). By the end of fall semester BJ should be ready to apply to nursing programs. He's doing very well considering his work and school loads -- taking 10 credit hours and working full time at night. Yuck. He's a great husband and daddy and is doing all he can to support his family!

I've changed my major to Music (instead of health science), which now I'm kinda goin... DUH what took me so long to figure that one out?! I've only been playin the piano since I was 6 years old and I've always loved to sing. I actually just had my first recital performance on Monday. I sung two songs, 'I Can't Make You Love Me' (Bonnie Raitt) and 'On My Own' (Les Mis). I cannot tell you the mental strength it took to overcome my anxiety about singing in front of an audience bigger than just my vocal teacher. But, I did it and it was so much fun! I can't wait to have to have the chance to perform again. (And I NEVER thought I'd say that! :) ) I really had a wonderful teacher this semester, Kathryn, who is such a sweetheart and so extremely talented -- I know I couldn't have had the confidence to perform without her encouragement. She and I have actually become good friends, for which I am very grateful! She is a great person and so much fun to be around!

Now, for Braden. Man, what to say about that little stinker. He is now 28 months old. He is so so so much like me, it's exhausting. BJ's Grandma John always says, "You pay for your raising by raising," and I'm finding that she was definitely not kidding. My mom always said that she was outwitted by me from age 2. Braden is going to be my challenge because he is so smart and advanced for his age. He keeps me on my toes 24/7. My biggest challenge with him is going to be keeping him busy and channeling his energy in the right direction. (Please, let me clarify, I'm not looking to brag - he is extremely bright, I'm really looking for sympathy here since I have no idea what to do with this kid!) He is talking in 7- to 10- word sentences, knows how to count to 20, knows his ABC's, sings to every song on the radio and on my iPod, and is working on being potty-trained. He probably would already be potty-trained if it weren't for his parents :). So umm.... WHEN DOES PRE-SCHOOL START?!

Okay, now for pics....

This is BJ's Grandma Ila Mae John. She's the sweetest lady you'll ever meet in your entire life. Last week we found out that she has terminal cancer in her liver and brain, so we're spending every moment we can with her. She's staying at BJ's Aunt Leona's house - which is next door to BJ's parents' house - which means she's only 5 minutes away from us! We're very lucky to be so close to the family during this precious time.

Well, BJ just called from work and told me to QUIT BLOGGING and to get ready to go root on the Jazz at Jordan Commons, so off I go! I shall post more pics tomorrow!