I have finally found it!!!

Making my way back to this site after 4 years was an eye opener to me...where have I been???
I'm glad to have begun this blog back then. It was a good outlet & an even better beginning to what I am working on & what I have awaiting me!

Since that profound time of my last visit, I have gone through a total transformation of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual & social identity.

On a personal note: I had moved to Florida in 2008 with my family due to a job transfer, had a difficult time finding employment and struggled to settle my family in their new schools, jobs, while balancing our financial struggles. The marriage of 13 years had been deteriorating for several years, leading to a separation in 2010. My boys faced a lot of major transition & emotional struggles during these past few years & it was difficult for everyone. Finalization occurred in 2012 and with strained, emotional roller coaster relationships, my teenage boys & I have settled into a new phase. Transitions are hard for everyone, but the trials of these past few years have been especially hard on my boys & I am proud of their strength, endurance and stamina. They have overcome, and so have I. 
On a professional note: I gained employment as a school counselor in 2009, faced abrasion, 'let go', and unemployed for four months before fighting my way into an agency that I have strived to obtain & maintain employment successfully for the past two years. I decided to 'up the ante' in my life & began studies for my doctorate at NCU. I look forward to the online coursework consuming my life for the next 5 years until I achieve my Ph.D in Psychology. In the process, I will fulfill the internship hours and test requirements necessary to become a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) for the Department of Health in the state of Florida.
On a spiritual note: My family became members of Riverside Presbyterian Church in Cocoa Beach in 2009. We have been very involved & I have enjoyed & appreciated the spiritual recharge that I receive every Sunday. Since then, I have been assisting with the box office after the first service, became a deacon for the OMEC commission & joined in the new member/member improvement commission for community outreach.
On a physical note: I spent most of 2009 running 5Ks throughout Brevard County, completed my 1st triathlon in 2011, Life's a Beach, in Daytona Beach & enjoyed the challenge of a mud run in Sept 2012 with my family. My workouts are much to be desired due to time constraints, but always enjoy kayaking, swimming, running, lifting, the elliptical machine, tennis, climbing, hiking, ice skating & looking forward to trying paddle boarding with my family soon!
So there I was...and here I am. Four years is a lot of time, but flies by so fast.
My youngest son started at the Jr/Sr high school this year. A scary first few weeks since he didn't know anyone or the campus. He's adjusted well & is doing great!
My eldest son will graduate this year. He asked for his baby picture for the yearbook...reflective pause...He's grown so much! He's taking the working path for his initial plan...back to Ohio to see what he can learn from family trades...from there- the world is his option!

The trials of our lives gives us every opportunity to fully live or run & hide, to learn & grow or break &cry.  My web address: laugh, cry, live - that is what it is. Four years have given me lots of laughs and lots of tears...but no regrets.
My definition of Regret: I can only regret mistakes. Mistakes are something that shouldn't have happened, but if I learned something from it, then it was an important part of my life, of who I am today & I'm glad it happened. I can't regret something I learned from & helped me to become a better person.
Every day is a new day...take from it what you want and leave the rest behind!