Aleks’ Adventure

During the November elections when Aleks was about 8, he seethed that he wasn’t allowed to vote because, as he put it, he probably knew “more about the issues than a lot of adults.”  He was right!

That was around the time that Aleks taught himself Russian (with a bit of help from my father) and changed the spelling of his name (then “Alex”) to Aleks.  It was also about the time that he became interested in Russian and Eastern European politics, economics, and philosophy – something that he has remained deeply interested in all along.

Years later, in 2010, as a Political Science and International Studies major at the University of Washington, Aleks took part in the University's 4-month intensive Comparative History of Ideas program in Prague. 

He fell in love with the city, its people, and the Eastern European region in general, and vowed to return for a longer stay.

And return, he will!  Aleks has just been accepted to the INTERNATIONAL MASTERS IN ECONOMY, STATE & SOCIETY program (with reference to Central and Eastern Europe)!  This is a two years Master’s degree program, with the first year taking place at University College London and the second year taking place in either Prague (his first choice) or in Krakow, Budapest, or Moscow. 

Although Aleks was accepted to the program last week, he needs to wait at least another week to find out whether he is one of the few lucky recipients of a full-ride scholarship for the program.  If not, he will have to defer enrollment and work his tail off (and live at home) for a year to save so he can pay his own way.  Needless to say, cross your fingers that he receives a scholarship! 

I am so incredibly proud of my son! 

I had a feeling his life would take a road in this direction, but I didn’t know it would be such a far-away road.  I will miss him horribly while he’s away – and chances are good that he’ll establish his career in Europe -- but I am fully confident that this is the road Aleks is meant to be on, and I predict that it will bring about all good things for him – and perhaps contribute to a global good, as well.

Addendum: Unfortunately, Aleks won’t be attending the IMESS program next year because he didn’t receive the scholarship. Little did we know that there were over 280 applicants for only 8 scholarships!  You’d think they could have waited two weeks to inform applicants about both acceptance to the program and financial aid status at the same time.  It seems just cruel to notify someone that they’ve been accepted to the program and then make them wait another few weeks, during which time they just build excitement and anticipation, before notifying them about their actual chances of attending.  Just GRRRRRRR!  Mama Bear is feeling angry and protective!

Put four kids though college: CHECK!

We have been paying college tuition for anywhere from one to three children for TEN YEARS SOLID and this June all four of our kids will be college graduates!

I just clicked SEND on the very last tuition payment we’ll ever make as parents!  This has not been an easy ride – for them or for us – but it has been well worth it.   A college education is an accomplishment that no one can ever take away and I am so proud of each of our kids for the hard work and dedication they put into that education.

Hats off to:

Elisabeth, Cal Berkeley, 2006

Peter, Washington State University, 2010

Aleks, University of Washington, 2012

Kat, University of Washington, 2012

Missing in Action

…or rather, INaction. 

I used to blog incessantly, about every little thing, no matter how trivial.  I was constantly amazed that anyone at all visited my blog but somehow over the years I attracted a following of people who, for whatever reason, found my relatively mundane life interesting.

Then I joined Facebook and I slowly stared posting trivialities about my mundane life there instead of on my blog.

Oddly enough, I constantly ask myself now whether a topic is blog worthy – which I never used to do.  And 99% of the time I answer myself with a resounding NO.  So I Facebook said topic instead which, truth be told, simply bores a different audience!

Regardless of whether my loyal readers miss me, I miss blogging!  So I’m making an effort to come back.  Brace yourself more of the truly mundane!

So where have I been, you ask? 

Mostly hanging out here in the Land of Limbo. 

Although my company Sandcastle Educational Consulting is still alive and well (though a bit dormant at the moment), I am looking for full-time work as an Educational Media Specialist (“I create experiences that engage and inspire youth and families”) with my eye and heart focused on one position in particular with Microsoft’s Kinect for Kids.  Just how perfect would THAT be?!

I’ve interviewed twice and now it’s pretty much a waiting game while that team re-structures and figures out what their needs are and where (if anywhere) I’d best fit.  My fingers have been crossed for so long that I have a feeling they’re stuck this way forever – which is fine, because hope and optimism never hurt anyone.

And if that position doesn’t pan out, I’ll do my own re-assessing.  Unfortunately, Sandcastle doesn’t offer great benefits that allow us to save for retirement, which is really where we need to focus now that we’re ONE TUITION PAYMENT AWAY (!!!) from being done with paying for kids’ college – something we’ve done for the past ten years solid!

So instead of waiting until everything is resolved and all nice and pretty, as I’ve been doing thus far, I guess I’ll blog all the ups and downs and ins and outs of my life – just as I did for five years until I… didn’t.

And hey, guess what?  I’m solidly on the road to getting back in shape and finding a new healthy me – or, as I indicate on the masthead of my blog at My Fitness Pal, “steadfastly clawing my way back from the depths of LETTING MYSELF GO.”  This journey is a tough one and has been where I’ve focused the majority of my energy lately.  After almost 30 years of focusing on everyone else’s health and needs, I am finally, finally focusing on my own.  It actually is beginning to feel good and I am actually beginning to look forward to the endorphin rush that I get each day when I work out at the gym. 

I know – that looks funny to me too!  Me?  Working out daily at a gym?  Yup!  I lift weights (a full circuit!), sweat on the elliptical, and swim.  Something every single day.  Me!  Can you believe it?  And for two months now I’ve tracked every single morsel that’s gone into my mouth – which is so easy using the My Fitness Pal app’s bar code scanner!

So ten pounds down, forty to go.  Ugh – that just looks so daunting!  But I’m taking it one pound, one centimeter , one lap, and one carrot at a time, allowing myself a full year to accomplish my goal.  If nothing else, I should feel better this year (my third!) at the Danskin Triathlon… where I plan to actually jog, rather than walk for the first time since breaking my ankle three years ago.

So yeah, that’s where I’ve been.  I promise not to stay away for so long again… as long as you promise that you won’t mind if I go back to posting the mundane. 

Nursedom accomplished!

Just before she graduated from UC Berkeley in 2006, Elisabeth secured a job as a Product Manager with a major medical device company.  Instead of taking a few months off or taking a post-graduation trip to Europe, as some of her friends did, Elisabeth headed directly to an intensive summer of training and then to an intense job in which she travelled extensively and enjoyed some great perks (car, laptop, expense account, etc.), but also worked crazy hours and was headed toward workaholicism.  (I decided that’s a word.)

She stayed in that job until she paid off her fairly intensive school loans and then, just about three years ago, she quit that job and took a job with a much lower intensity level in a women’s health research clinic.  Although she loved working in the healthcare arena, she had decided that she wanted to work directly with patients in a nursing capacity instead of selling medical devices.  Not more than three months after starting that job, the economy went crazy and she was laid off.  And that lay-off allowed her to go back to school, fully funded, to get her RN certificate.  (Kind of like my recent lay-off has allowed me to start my own business while having the safety net of unemployment compensation.)

Last night was the pinning ceremony for the 26 RN graduates.  And next month Elisabeth starts her new job as an ICU nurse at Swedish Hospital’s Neuro ICU.  It’s challenging and intense work in which she works very closely with doctors and the medical teams, but she’s up for it!

I didn’t get a photo of her pinning, but I did get a quick video:

Afterwards we grabbed a few photos:

Elisabeth and “her” Danny – whom we all adore.

Elisabeth and her nana – a mutual adoration.

“The twins.” (I haven’t called them that forever, but for some reason this goofball photo prompted it!)

And this photo of my four kidlets.  Notice how much Peter likes it when I say, “OK, now just a quick picture of the four of you…”  (“Mom – stop with the pictures already!”)

Congratulations, Elisabeth!  I am so proud of you for deciding to make a difference in healthcare, and in people’s lives. 

Gut-wrenched in Seattle

These were both on Post Secret this week.  I find both really sad – especially the first one.  UW is becoming the UC Berkeley of the Pacific Northwest, with thousands of straight-A, highly involved, very capable applicants being rejected this year.

A beautiful day on the University of Washington campus

One of the great things about being in business for myself is that when Kat called me from UW on Friday morning, asking if I wanted to take pictures of the blooming cherry trees on campus before taking her home (to get over this nasty bug that she likely caught from me), I could enthusiastically say YES and not feel that I had to answer to anyone. 

So Shasta and I got in the car and headed across the bridge.  With apologies to the 19,000 students who applied to UW this year and were rejected (of 24,000 total applicants) and with encouragement to the other 5,000 who are deciding where to go to college next year (Bryce Oishi, this means YOU!), I bring you this:

Mom’s Weekend at Washington State University

Mom’s weekend has been a WSU tradition since 1927, but it took us until 2010, the year of Peter’s graduation, to finally find out for ourselves what all the hoopla is about. 

Turns out it’s well deserved hoopla!

We headed east after work on Friday, heading through Snoqualmie in order to avoid Friday afternoon traffic in Seattle.

We headed over the Cascades before dark…

… and got to Pullman just in time to – well, it IS a party school, after all. 

Tom’s sister’s daughter Tina also attends WSU so we used the opportunity to have a mini-reunion of sorts.  It was great to see them!

Yes, those are, in fact, “big red beer cups” because… well, it IS a party school, after all. 

And it WAS MOM’s Weekend!

Let’s just get the “this is how college students live” pictures out of the way right now, shall we?

   

This is Peter and his best-friend-since-third-grade housemate, Scott with their beloved “keg-erator.  “Work hard, play hard” is their motto.

Uh-huh.

Early on Saturday morning, the three girls headed to the Macy’s shoe sale – all shoes for $20 a pair, in honor of Mom’s Weekend!  There was just a wee bit of a line…

…but we cleaned up!

Then we went to go see the bears.  Yes, the bears at WSU.  No, we weren’t drunk; there are bears at WSU!  What do you expect from one of the best veterinary schools in the nation?!  (I agree… not bears!)

After a short nap we took some requisite family photos…

…before heading out to the big event of the weekend, Jay Leno, live!

He was hilarious, of course, but a bit frenetic and he almost seemed to be on auto pilot.  He really could have personalized his show a little bit for WSU.  Sheesh!

After the show we did the whole parents-trying-to-relive-our-college-days-again thing and… well, yeah, you guessed it. 

 

Fun times!

Before we knew it, Mom’s Weekend was over and it was time to say goodbye to Peter and his cute little college house in the cute little college town…

…and head back through the Palouse.

For a good hundred miles it feels like driving through a “whole lotta nuttin’.”

And 100 miles away from WSU it’s still considered “Cougar Country”!

Once you cross the Columbia River…

…things begin to feel more familiar.  Seeing the Cascades loom in the background, I know that we’re close to home.

It was a great weekend!

 Thanks Peter!  Love, Mom