Christmas Surprise

I have the best husband and family and friends ever.

Seriously!!

Marc spent over a month leading up until Christmas organizing a massive Christmas surprise for me.

He contacted all the family and friends he could come up with the contact information for. He set up a gift registry at Williams-Sonoma and had everyone send the gifts *ie support* to our friends house along with notes of encouragement. On Christmas day he made me wait to open a jewelry shaped box from him until Tom and Jaime showed up. When I opened it, there was a note inside that took me on "The Amazing Chase." Tom and Jaime stayed with the kids and Marc and I wandered through the neighborhood finding clues and deciphering codes. Tom met me with a embroidered chef's coat *Yay!* and my final clue. We headed back to the house and there were all the gifts lined up in front of the tree. I was blown away by the love and support everyone showed me. I am well equipped now to begin this wonderful journey I never thought I would actually be taking. I definitely got choked up reading everyone's wonderful notes. I cannot tell you how much it touched me to have everyone do that for me. My husband is the best husband in the world and I don't know how I got so lucky as to find him on my first *and only!* try at marriage. I appreciate his thoughtfulness and his complete and total support of me in this endeavor and I am so thankful he made that initial contact with the school. Thank you to everyone who participated in my wonderful, best Christmas EVER, surprise!!!!

Student ID

I went and paid my enrollment fee and got my student ID today. It's really happening! It still is hard for me to believe. I still won't LET myself believe it. What if something goes wrong? It won't!!! I have to keep telling myself that. Nothing will go wrong. This IS happening and I DO deserve it.

I am thankful, once again, for Marc being so willing to help with kids and entertain them while I was running around the school to get this stuff done.

Schedule!

I got my schedule over the phone from Becca today!! It makes it so much more real! My schedule is amazing. I could not have asked for better time slots.

Monday 8-12 Sanitation and Safety
Tuesday 9-11 Dimensions of Culinary Education
1-2 Computer Literacy *I know, I know*
Wednesday 7-12 Fundamentals of Classical Techniques
Thursday 7-12 Fundamentals of Classical Techniques


No classes Friday.

This works so perfectly because Marc works Monday-Wednesday in the evenings so I'll have plenty of time to study on those nights and then he also works Saturday night which gives me time to study the things from Thursday's class. I'm sure I will study more than that, but the days work out well and that gave me a little thrill.

It's also great because Harmony is in preschool during those times so I really won't be missing out on much time with her. I think it will be good for Layla to spend more time with Marc and he's shown that he is really good with working with her. He is working on potty training and colors with her and it's really going well! I finally feel comfortable leaving Layla with anyone other than me. Anyone who met her when she was an infant or even fairly recently will understand that statement. She was an extremely high needs baby who had an attachment to me that I have never seen a child have with a mother before. I honestly think it had alot to do with her birth. With complete and total devotion to making sure that she felt secure as an infant, she finally has started to not freak out when strangers look at her, and even is ok when they talk to her now. She doesn't freak out when I leave the room or even the house anymore. She loves spending time with Daddy and going out with him by herself. I am so thankful that we have come to this point and that I am not feeling guilt at going to school and leaving the kids with Marc. I struggled with that for a bit, but this schedule makes me feel better. I still get to spend the whole afternoon and evening with the kids on school days.
I can't wait to get started!

All the i's and t's...

...are dotted and crossed!

I am officially enrolled in The Art Institute of Jacksonville's Culinary Arts program! My projected graduation date with an AA is December 2011 and then it's one short year to my bachelors degree. All the paperwork has been filed, they have received all my transcripts, and I have signed everything I need to sign. I still can't believe it. My head is spinning and I can hardly breathe. :D