This is long overdue...

Update time! Oh my goodness, life has been going a mile a minute these past few weeks. So much happening... so many things to do, people to see, etc. I'll break my life down into categories to facilitate the process of bringing you all up-to-date.

Work

I love love love working at Aero! It is by far the best job I've ever had. The managers and other associates are all so sweet and funny; everyone gets along very well. We work hard and stay professional but still have fun and it is NEVER stressful! My last day for a long while was Sunday. Until next summer, I'll only be working random weekends and holidays, which is a bit disheartening as I'll miss it a lot. However, Matt (my boss) is going to contact the manager of the Evansville Aero and see about me transferring down there during the school year. He said he would put in a good word for me and see what she thinks about me working a couple nights a week and weekends. I'm really praying that situation will work out. If working at the Evansville Aero is even half as wonderful as working at the one in Edinburgh, I will be one happy camper.

Also, I've been in contact with my supervisor from the job I had last year, working as a Spanish tutor in the language lab. We're going to compare availabilities and see about me resuming that position this semester. It would only be 4 or 5 hours a week, but it's the easiest job in the whole entire world and a little extra money would be very helpful.

Finances

That "little extra money" phrase was a good transition into this next category... I just have to throw this out there. This past month has been the most stressful time of my life in terms of money. Between my cell phone bill and car insurance and getting ready for school and buying new plates for the car, along with a few other random fees and fines, there were more than a few instances where I just broke down crying because no matter how many hours I got at work, there were always more bills to pay, more things that needed buying.

I was constantly panicked and even though I prayed often, asking for peace of mind and a solution to my problems, I never really thought things would fall into place. But they did, slowly but surely. First was my amazing cousin and his fiance putting together a "little care package" for me, which consisted of a HUGE box of food and two big cases of Capri Sun drinks... Seriously, that food is going to last me well over a month. I am beyond grateful for that. Sarah (I know you're reading this, I noticed yesterday that you're following me on here! haha) and Billy- I love you guys :)

Their gift saved me tons of money that would have gone towards groceries. That, along with my dad offering to work through two of his vacation weeks at work and me randomly getting $80 direct deposited into my bank account from last year's tutoring job (I still have NO idea where that came from!), proved to be a definite answer to my prayers. God never fails to amaze me.

I'm still not able to breathe easy in terms of finances. I'm behind on my cell phone bill and won't have much spending money once I get settled in the new apartment, but I'm not nearly as stressed now as I would have been this time last month. God knows what He's doing, even when I can't see it. Plus, I have two potential jobs lined up for when I get to Evansville. Things will be okay.

Family

As excited as I am to get started with my sophomore year of college, I'm missing my family already. Especially my baby sisters. It's not that I love them more than my parents or my other siblings, but they're babies, so they grow and learn and change at breakneck speed. I can be away from home for two days and come home to them doing or saying something completely new, or even looking a little different. But I'm going to be gone for much longer than two or three days this time around, and it'll be hard to not be there with them every day.

Columbus friends

Same as with the family... I miss them all already. I've been spending as much time as possible with my besties lately, because I know it'll be weeks or even months before I get to see them again. That is definitely college's biggest downside for me: the distance it puts between my friends and I. Specifically the DGFC and my best friend, Kirsten. Aside from Erin, who I will see tomorrow (she's helping move her younger sister down to USI tomorrow, so I'll get to see her before she heads back to Columbus- woohoo!), I've said my last "see ya later's" to everyone. I'm already counting down the days until I get to see them again.

(I had to title this category "COLUMBUS friends" because on the other end of the spectrum, you have my equally wonderful friends who make up my USI family. I will be seeing them all very soon, which is kinda surreal after being apart for three months.)

-----

I think that's all I've got for categorical updates... Gosh, I write a lot. Hugs to anyone who's still reading! Get comfy because I'm not done yet, haha.

Tonight was my last night in Columbus. Kirsten, Amber and I took Ringo (the new puppy! I'll dedicate a post about him later on) out to Kirsten's so her mommy could meet him. Sharon fell in love and it was decided that Kirsten's family is now Ringo's godfamily. After leaving Kirsten's, we dropped Ringo off at home and went to DQ for ice cream. (It was yummy but so not worth it, as my tummy was killing me a few hours later.) Finally, we came back home to watch Make It or Break It, which is my current favorite show (tied with Huge) seeing as how Glee is off-season.

After our show was over, Kirsten helped me finish up the packing process. She stayed until almost 2 in the morning helping me go through my tons of crap, carry it out to the driveway (it was really dark outside), and fit it all in my car. Have I mentioned how wonderful and fabulous my best friend is? She's my favorite.

Speaking of packing up my car... I am so nervous about driving down to Evansville tomorrow! It's so jam-packed that my visibility will definitely be limited. I'll take pictures tomorrow and post them later, so you can see how much stuff is crammed into my little Chevy. It's also my first time making the drive all by myself. I've driven it many times before, but always with someone in the passenger seat to keep me company... This should be an experience! Keep me in your prayers.

Well, it is now WAY past my bedtime, considering I need to be up in a few hours to shower and toss some last-minute items into my car. The goal is to be on the road by noon... We'll see how that goes!

Oh, and I promise to start updating more regularly again. It'll be much easier once I'm all moved into the new apartment and things have settled down for the first time in ages.

-Jeremiah 29:11-