Why I Love My Serger

MY mom is very talented in just about anything. She can turn a bolt of fabric into very durable clothes overnight! When I was a kid living in New Zealand some of my most favorite memories were of my mom taking us to the fabric store and letting US choose the fabric we wanted our clothes to be made out of! Looking back now in pictures I'm not so sure it was the greatest idea to let US choose our own fabric because we came up with some wacky combinations! But we loved it! We would kiss her good night with folded fabric on her desk and in the morning she would have CLOTHES at the end of our beds! She brags now that she could make a pair of pants in 15 minutes!

My dad surprised my mom with this serger (pictured above) one day. He went to the a sewing centre in Browns Bay, bought it, and had it out of the box and sitting on her desk when she got home! She was SO excited! She used it to make most of our clothes while we lived in New Zealand! She brought it with her to the states (with a clunky converter my dad had made for her) when we moved and it hasn't had much use since...until a few weeks ago when I went home for a visit! We found it in the basement and mom and I cleaned it up! With some dusting and a little oil it works beautifully! My mom gave it to me and I have been making clothes with it like she did for me twenty years ago! So, this is why I love my serger :)

(Side note: I'd like to name it but haven't thought of one yet, any ideas?)

much love to all of you

15 days

I could bore you with my life as a student and the anxiety of pop quizes, group grades, and the bad self image that comes with being unprepared for a test but I won't do that to you, or to me either. Life is looking up: I have 15 more days until the semester is over...sure I still have to write two papers, a lit. review, take 3 comprehensive exams and continue weekly assignments but I can see the proverbial "light at the end of the tunnel" and it is bright and calling my name! The past few weeks my husband and I have shared conversations that can be summed up by this dialogue which took place last night:
Kyle: "I'm not sure I can finish this..."
Me: "You can too! you'll do great! (pause) Now, tell me I can do it too"
We're both in the same situation which is nice sometimes because we understand each other's needs...but as husbands and wives share stresses and empathize with each other sometimes it feels like a weight of two work loads on our shoulders. I think this is ok though, because in 15 days our feeling of freedom with be magnified by two as well.

my new-old grand dad ted

Growing up in another country from each of my grandparents in different times in my life has made having a decent relationship with either set difficult. When I lived in New Zealand my mom's parents were my constant. When we moved to the States my dad's parents became the norm. I used to think having a relationship with at least one set was better than nothing. Now I see if I don't have a substantial relationship with both of them I lose half of my identity (not to mention really great stories about my parents).

Last year, while I lived in China, my Grandad Ted and I took interest in each other and skyped often (it helped too we were in closer timezones). At first it felt weird and mechanical because it had been so long and we didn't really know each other. With every chat, though, our conversations became more fun and enjoyable. Now I feel very apart of him and his life and I think he feels the same about me. After all of these years I feel like I have a NEW granddad ted and it's exciting! I love hearing his stories and seeing his view of the world. He was a sailor, a captain, then a harbor master and has been all over the world. 7-year-old Rebecca didn't know any of this!

He, in the last few years, transformed his kiwi orchard into a pasture and is raising "steers" - NOT cows - and he has two cats and a little corgi dog.

I'm excited about this new-old relationship :)

I don't want to be a Counselor

As many of you know I am in school getting my M.A. in Counseling at Harding grad. I really enjoy my classes and my professors are brilliant and really care about their students. It has been a good journey for me so far and I look forward each semester getting closer to graduation. The title of my blog post might not make sense to many of you and some might be thinking "why is she getting her M.A. in Counseling and not wanting to be a counselor?".

Basically I look at education as a journey. I made a mistake when I worked towards my undergraduate degree in Special Education...I thought I was working to become a special ed. teacher. Learning so many ideas in school I became a different person: Rebecca, the special education teacher.

Now I'm in counseling school and I don't want to get lost again. I don't want to just be a Counselor. Instead it is my goal to enrich myself with what I learn so no matter what job I have I can help people and not have to have the label of "Counselor" to do it.

So by the end of my schooling I want to be Rebecca - who knows a thing or two about marriage and family counseling and special education; and who is not too controlled by what she has learned to only be able to see life through the eyes of a counselor.