SCHOOL!

Greetings and salutations from the Sunshine State! Hope this post finds you well. Today marked the last day of a job Nikki and I both had taking photos of newborns at hospitals here in Orlando. The job itself wasn't that bad - I enjoyed the cute little newborns when they weren't crying, pooing themselves, not cooperating, etc., and I learned a lot. I'm not afraid of babies and can dress them really fast now! :) Anyway, no money was made at this job, so it was time to move on. To celebrate the ending, we went to Magic Kingdom, where it was quite crowded and hot, so we rode 2 rides and came home. But we specifically went to ride my very favorite ride - Splash Mountain - and it was so fun! I love that ride!! :)

As awesome as Disney is, (and even though I've been living here almost a year, my heart still smiles whenever I get to a park!) this post is not about Disney. It is to let you know about some decisions I have been making regarding school and the near future. So here goes!

In previous posts, I have mentioned my desire to go back to school to get my Masters in Counseling. As time has gone by, this desire continues to grow, and I am truly excited to get started. I had applied to two schools here in Orlando - one is a seminary and one is a Christian school, but not a seminary. Both have excellent programs, but the programs look very different. My personal preference at the beginning of this process was to go to the seminary, but from the beginning, I have been asking God to lead the way. I know He sees the bigger picture and as I can only see what is right in front of me, I asked that He open and close the necessary doors so that I would end up where He knew I needed to be, even if it was for reasons I didn't know. And He has done just that! In ways that I never would have predicted, He has made it very clear what the next path for me is. Therefore, I am excited to announce that I will be starting my classes at the end of August and am an official student at....

...Palm Beach Atlantic University, here in Orlando! One of the perks of this school is that the classes are at night, so I can work during the day to continue to pay my bills and then go to school at night so that I can get my degree to pursue what I really want to do. I was also offered a full time job at Chick-fil-A! I will continue doing their marketing for them but then also work as a manager to make up 40-45 hours a week. This will allow me to pay my bills but also give me the flexibility to attend school and do what I need to do with that. God has definitely provided with this job, and I am very thankful!

Not gonna lie - never thought I'd end up back at the Chick one day, but I am very excited that I can make enough to live while going to school at the same time. I'm having some fun with it too. I figure if I have to wear a ponytail everyday, then I'm going to have some fun ribbons to put in my ponytails. Here are a few samples... :)

There will be many more posts to come regarding school, but I wanted to let you all know what I am up to. Thank you for your prayers over this last year. It's been a crazy journey, but I feel like I am exactly where I am supposed to be and am looking forward to moving into this next chapter and seeing what God has in store. I'll keep you posted! For now, have a great week!