SOOOO much to update you on!

First of all, I hope you like the look of my new blog. I decided it was time for a change. I’m not so sure that I will keep it pink…but for now it is fun. I also was able to put up links to all of your blogs again. If I left you out, please let me know ‘cause I definitely want to add you to my sidebar! The newest blog is my brother and sister-in-law’s. Check it out!

December was a good month. I was so proud of myself that I got the majority of my shopping done and wrapped early (I mainly did all of my shopping online – it was awesome!) so I wasn’t stressing at the very end. I went to the Christmas program at Amy’s church in Reedley, which was a lot of fun and a great way to get into the Holiday spirit (thanks, Amy, for taking Jasmin and me!). They did a great job and I’m sure it took a lot of work and preparation. My grandma’s birthday was last month as well so I spent one weekend with her, my mom, and my aunt in San Luis Obispo at the Apple Farm. That place is sooo cute and I loved hanging out there, shopping, and of course eating all of the good food. It is a girly place and I highly recommend it. It has been a female family tradition to do that for the past few years so I was glad to join them now that I am a West Coaster. The following weekend I got the gift that keeps on giving…more on that later.:-) Cheer, Valley Teen Ranch, and family holiday parties kept me busy…and getting Jasmin ready for her first American high school dress-up dance (the Winter Formal) had me hopping. (There is a really long...and frustrating but had a good ending, kind of… story to that and if interested let me know and I will tell you…way too long to write.) I got Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off which meant a four-day weekend. Yay! Christmas was pretty low-key this year…and I really like it that way! I actually prefer staying in Kingsburg as opposed to going anywhere and not having to worry about getting all dressed up and having to be somewhere at a certain time. Santa was very good to me this year and I got more then I imagined. :-) My family was also very, very generous to Jasmin so I know that she enjoyed her holiday as well. Jasmin’s parents emailed me and asked if I would put together their gift to Jasmin for Christmas, which of course I said I would. They are flying me and her down to San Diego to go to Sea World over President’s Day weekend. I was pretty happy to help with that gift.;-)

So the gift I was referring to, that keeps on giving, is my new kitten Jersey. I know I said in my previous post that I was going to name him Clinton, but I didn’t want to have to explain to everyone how he was named after a town I lived in…and not Bill and Hillary. So, I settled on Jersey. I really wanted to save that for my future puppy, but realistically that is years off. Jersey has been so much fun – and is soooo full of it! He is super fluffy and very, very cute. He weighed 1.5 pounds when we got him. He is growing fast and purrs very loudly. But, he only wants to snuggle when he is tired. The rest of the time he is racing around my house and getting into everything. He loves to play and is a very, very curious kitty. I have scratches all over my hands from him "batting" at me. When he is in a cuddling mood he is very sweet. He sleeps on my bed with me and has to be right against my face. If I turn my head he will get up and lie right by my face again. He has been a wonderful addition. I am waiting for him to get bigger before I let him outside. I would like for him to be an indoor/outdoor cat but I am worried about 18th street, which is only one house away. Perhaps that is too busy of a street for him… I don’t know. If (when) I move he will most likely be an indoor cat then, so I wonder if he should just stay indoors. But I don’t want him to get bored? Any suggestions? Come meet him, you will fall in love with him too. He squeaks instead of meows, and has gotten stuck in the refrigerator (by my dad who found out by the muffled meows) and loves to race into any cupboards I open. He is entertaining and a joy…most of the time!!!

I don’t know if I mentioned this but I have been attending First Baptist Church here in Kingsburg. It is the church I decided on when Jasmin got here. Jerelyn usually comes in and goes with us which has been a delight (cause I get to see her every week) and I do enjoy the services there. Several people have mentioned the Well…but I think I am a bit old to go there…I don’t know. But I am going to stick with the Baptist church for Sunday mornings. It has been a good fit…not perfect, but what church is?

Work has been really, really busy. It has kept me very occupied. I enjoy having a full schedule at VTR so I haven’t minded it. I had to remove some kids from a foster home that wasn’t complying with my requests which was the hardest thing I have had to do yet, which for confidentiality I can’t really talk about, but on the other hand I was able to help place 4 siblings who were staying in the shelter downtown in a really great foster home together so that was a great thing to be a part of. My other job, cheer, has been really rough. The majority of the girls are out of control and I have had to discipline them right and left. It just isn’t enjoyable anymore and I don’t know what is going on. To top it off, a mom wrote an email about me and accidentally sent it to me, instead of forwarding it on to whoever, so I got to read about how she “really can’t stand” me. Ugh! I can say in my heart of hearts that I have tried my best and given my all to these girls. Mr. Davis, the athletic director, is coming tonight to practice and I am hoping that he can help me whip these girls into shape. Regardless I have only six weeks left…thank God! If I didn’t need the money so badly, or lived in the town I do where I would run into the girls and their families, I would quit in an instant. It is that bad.

Over New Year’s Jasmin and I went with Young Life on their Winter Blast trip. It left on Dec. 30 and came home on Jan.1. My boss was nice enough to let me have Dec. 31 off and I got Jan. 1 off as a holiday so it worked out really well. We went to Soda Springs for one day and Sugar Bowl for two days and stayed at YL’s Mountain Lodge. I had never been to the Tahoe area so I really enjoyed seeing the sights and being in snow. I hadn’t been in snow since NJ so I was happy to hear it crunch under my feet and fall delicately from the sky. Jasmin had fun skiing and making new friends. I gave that trip to her as her Christmas present and it went over well. Plus it gave her something to do over vacation, which was an added bonus. (Not to mention the most important reason – hearing about Jesus!) I didn’t ski and hung out in the lodge for the three days. (I didn’t ski due to being hurt in Sweden the last time I attempted skiing. I told myself I couldn’t ski until I got lessons. Again, long story which I am happy to tell you some other time.:-)) I didn’t mind hanging out in the lodge because kids were always in and out and it gave me lots of social time with them. I particularly got to know a group of underclassman girls, which was very special.

I spent my first week of January very sick. I came home from Tahoe on the 1st feeling like I was getting a cold and low and behold it was a full blown sinus infection the next morning. I stayed home from work on Wednesday. On Thursday morning I woke up with a nice added issue – the flu. I have not had the flu in a couple of years and it was no fun. I couldn’t believe that I had the luck of having a sinus infection (did I mention my ear infection too?) and flu at the same time. I spent a lot of time in the bathroom, but I think God was helping me get a head start on my New Year’s resolution – losing weight…lol (Which, I must say, I have stuck to so far!) I stayed home from work on Friday and felt much better on Saturday. I went to the doctor on Thursday, (my new insurance is Kaiser) which was my first time to the clinic in Selma and must say that I was pleasantly surprised with the HMO. While I still think that insurance package that VTR offers is crap, Kaiser isn’t nearly as bad as I expected.

Last Saturday we had our annual ADX holiday potluck at my house. I am very glad that I was well enough to host it. It was an adventure as Emily decided to redecorate my office with my gold paint pen. (Thank you so much to the magic eraser and its makers as it totally cleaned it all up!!) Many people showed up which was wonderful as I love my sisters and hanging out with them. It was a full house but we all seemed to manage. I wish we could see each other more often. That night I got to spend more time with Carrie and Kristin and do a bit of shopping. Fun!

This weekend I don’t have many plans. I signed up to help out with my church’s workday on Sat and I think I will go to Fresno and tag along with my mom. Sunday is church and I plan on giving Jersey his first bath and maybe seeing a movie. I want it to be as nice and relaxing as possible as I want to be totally recovered for my trip to VA a week from today. I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am to go back to my beloved East Coast. (I will also be going back over Memorial Day to take Jasmin to NYC.) I haven’t been there in about 8 months. That is too crazy for words. I’m sure by the next time I blog I will either be in VA or home from it.

Well, thanks for hanging in there and reading this very long entry! You now are up to date on the life of Ashley... Love you all!