Each year the Jimmy Carter Presidential Center hosts an Executive Briefing and Presidential Reception for Ambassadors Circle members and friends. In April I was lucky was invited to attend the briefing and reception, which marked the 30^th anniversary of the Carter Center and the 15th anniversary of the briefing.

The two-day event, featuring firsthand updates from the Center’s peace and health experts, kicked off with an opening evening reception which included the premier of film “Dark Forest Black Fly” which documents the elimination of river blindness from Uganda followed by moderate discussion entitled the “Arab Awakening .”  A link to the panel discussion is below:

http://www.cartercenter.org/media_console/Player/player-licensed-59.swf

The second day consisted of two briefings one on health programs and the other on the peace programs, followed by a presentation on the beginnings of the Carter Center and finally a town hall discussion with President and Rosalynn Carter.

Unfortunately I skipped the morning session for a special tour of the Carter Presdiential Library and Archive.  I met with David Stanhope, deputy director of the library, whom gave me a behind the scenes tour of the archives.  The Carter Center is much like other research facilities, however what sets it apart that it handles materials/documents for living president and first lady. The Carter Center shares many commonalities with other research facilities; the most common of which is the trend to digitize materials.

The afternoon celebrated the accomplishments of the Carter Center and looked forwards the future with excitment as the Carter Center continues efforts to wage peace, fight diesease and build hope.   The highlight of the afternoon was townhall discussion with the Carters.  We were allowed to asked any questions we wanted and the Carters responded.   I think my favorite part of the discussion was just how they filled us in on what type were doing, how they were doing, and their family.   Both President and Mrs. Carter down to earth people it was an amazing opporunity to hear them speak and hear how both are working to to help make a difference.

My professional photos with President and Mrs. Carter should in a couple of weeks.

Yesterday I did my first blog post in a really long time.  In doing so I realized how crazy my life has been over the past five months.  So many things changed and yes so many things have stayed the same.  So I thought it was time to life update …

• In early March, my friend Sheryl and I had an adventure over to Cowboy’s stadium for the Texas Home and Garden show.  We had a blast plus it was fun seeing the stadium.
• My dear cousin Jason tied married the love of life Shelly!  There wedding was amazing!
• My mom came up to celebrate her birthday and helped me do something around the house.  We had a ball celebrating her birthday.  I got her a cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes!, a new cake store here in Rockwall.  Mason joined us for dinner on Friday evening and then my mom and had mother daughter evening on Saturday which included shopping, dinner and a movie.
• After being gone for over 6 months… my grandfather finally got a temporary grave marker.   We are still waiting for the permanent grave marker.
• I got to spend a weekend at home enjoying the wildflowers! (Post of Come!)
• Mammie – my dad’s mom – reunited with Papa in heaven.   I think about her all the time but I am glad she out of pain and in heaven with God and Papa.
• Mammie’s death reunited my dad and I.  For the first time in years I am keeping in touch with my dad on regular bases.
• Through a strange twist of events, I was invited to an Executive Briefing at the Carter Presidential Center, which allowed me to spend five days in the Atlanta, GA area and met the Carters. … Additional post to come!
• Due to traveling and crazy work schedule, Patrick has been spending time in San Antonio with his Grandmother and Great-Grandmother.  His Great-Grandmother has been spoiling him like crazy and Patrick is enjoying playing with his friend Molly!

This past Friday I went out with some of my closest friends to celebrate my singlehood. 

 

The past few months have been full of many things … tears, laughter, excitement, anticipation, growth, learning, loss, happiness, new beginnings, sorrow … through all the emotions I have grown into a stronger and more confident woman.  During the past months I have lost loved one and made new friends.  I have had new adventures and learned more about myself that I ever knew.

When I think back to the day I found I out Mason and was gay and think about fearful I was how it would change my life I never thought so many doors would be opened because of a divorce. 

What I learned:

• It’s okay to let go
• It’s okay to be angry
• It’s okay to say no
• Making new friends is a journey that does not happen over night
• Loving someone mean accepting their faults and accepting them for they are
• Reaching out to others is okay
• It’s okay to take time for yourself
• Forgiveness and understanding
• It’s okay to be you

176 years ago, early on the morning of March 2,1836, 52 men braved the bitter cold in the small village of Washington-on-the Brazos, in East Texas to form a new nation. The building had no glass in the windows, and these delegates wore buckskin and homespun. Compared to the gathering in Philadelphia 60 years before that launched the United States, this was a poor and improvised affair. But the men who on that day declared the Independence of Texas knew with every fiber of their being what the price of liberty was. That spirit still guides the Lone Star State today. In the words of Sam Houston, true now as they were the day they were spoken, “Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression, come from what source it may.”

Today, I am thankful these 52 brave men!  I am also thankful for the other Texans who have made this state the great state it is today. 

Saturday morning I loaded Patrick up and we head over to Jack Carter Park in the Plano to spend the day morning at the dog park with some fellow Caviler King Charles Spaniels.

Patrick had a blast and made some new friends.

After his adventure to the dog park he was exhausted and crashed one we got home.

Lent is a season that allows us to open our hearts to a special time of cleansing and refreshment through repentance. The purpose of Lent is not another New Year’s Day. It’s not merely another opportunity to start a diet or to quit a bad habit. The purpose of Lent is to prepare your heart to celebrate God’s triumph over sin on Easter Sunday. He died and was resurrected to give us life—and life eternal. This season of Lent is a time of penitence—it’s a time to examine our own hearts and cleanse ourselves of sin. It’s a time to tell God that we want to be closer to Him… and then to actually make a move closer to Him.

This Lenten season I want to commit  to being true to myself.  Over the past year I have been struggling with loss and change, during this time I have changed, grown and my relationship with God has become renewed and stronger.  During the six week of the Lenten season I want to focus on thing that make myself a whole individual, do things that make me happy and help to continue to grow my relationship with God.

I know that lent is supposed to be about fasting or “giving something up” and committing to being true to myself is not about fasting or “giving something up” but to me it serves the same purpose of turning your eyes and heart upward towards God.  Committing to being true to myself is about giving up the “evil” influences in my life and focusing on what makes me complete and in return my relationship with God and with others stronger and better. Lent is the time of our lives where we are most especially called to reflect on our own lives and ask ourselves, how much do we thirst for an intimate relationship with our loving Jesus who is just waiting for us to respond to His love? It is the time that we must deeply ponder how much do we thirst for a life that is life-giving to others?

This season of Lent I am going to (and encourage you to do the same) spend time every day with God.   I am going let go of my past baggage and come to God as I am.  I ready to allow God to opportunity to reveal His great love.

For Christmas I got one of these ….  a whoopee pie maker

So today I made Whoppie Pies for the first time …

Chocolate whoppie pies with cream cheese frosting…

One of the things I am going to miss most about being married to Mason is traveling.  Mason taught me how to travel and pushed me travel.  I always talked about seeing the world and Mason encouraged that.  I will admit that we more often than not, we traveled to places Mason wanted to go. Mason says that we will still travel together and I hope that is that true.  Regardless if we do or don’t I want to see the world. I hope that I find someone who shares my passion for traveling and the adventure of exploring new places.

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the places I want to travel.  One thing I have realized is that I want to see America – I want to see the places that make America great the National Parks, the monuments which commemorate our county’s history, the natural wonders and recreational places.   Additionally, I want to continue to see the world.  When I am old hope to say I have been to all seven continents.

Here is my bucket list for traveling:

Texas (my home state):

While I have travel through out the state, there are so many places in the Texas left to see.  I want to explore the small town and drive the country roads.  One of my ambitions is to really explore North Texas – I have lived here three year hardly explored my backyard.

• Big Ben National Park
• Big Thicket National Preserve
• Palo Duro Canyon State Park
• Davis Mountains
• Lubbock
• Fort Worth Zoo
• Denton

United States

When I think about it, I have only been to eight of the fifty states.  Of those eight, I have only really explored two of them.  I want to see what makes the United States the United States.  

• All of the Presidential Museums, Libraries, and homesteads.
• All of the Smithsonian Museums
• YellowStone National Park
• Mount Rushmore
• Grand Canyon
• New York City – Time Square, Ground Zero, Central Park, the Brooklyn Bridge, Ellis Island & Statue of Liberty, St. Patrick’s Cathedral and various NY Museums
• Hoover Dam
• Grand Teton National Park
• Massachusetts – Boston, Cape Cod
• Charleston, South Carolina
• Mesa Verde National Park
• Volcanoes National Park
• Seattle, Washington – Cascade Moutains, Olympic Mountains, Mount Rainer,  Space Needle
• San Francisco, California – ride a trolley car, Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf , Chinatown
• Chicago, Illinois – Frank Lloyd Wright Homes, Lake Michigan’s Shore, Millennium Park, The Field Museum, Wrigley Field
• Acadia National Park
• Alaska
• Hawaii
• Colorado – Denver, Colorado Springs, Durango, Aspen, Breckenridge, Vail, Boulder – Garden of the Gods, Pikes Peak, Rocky Mountain National Park
• Appalachian Mountains
• Savannah, Georgia
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – Franklin Square, Valley Forge National Historical Park, The Liberty Bell Center, National Constitution Center, Independence Hall
• Monticello
• Monument Valley
• Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Rest of the World

There are so many countries I want to see.  What I love about visiting other countries is experiencing new cultures, traditions and customs.  Often visiting other countries reminds me of the appreciation I have for living in America and the freedoms we enjoys.  

• Poland
• Australia
• New Zealand
• Italy
• France
• Norway
• Iceland
• Greenland
• Ireland
• Scotland
• Wales
• Russia
• Sweden
• Greece
• Switzerland
• Belgium
• Netherlands
• Egypt
• Costa Rica
• Argentina
• Canada
• Mexico

 Second Trips

There are also several places I have visited that I would love to visit again

• Washington DC
• Maryland
• Germany
• Czech Republic, Prague
• Austria
• England

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end” least that is how the saying goes. I am willing to find out if it is true. So I think now, when I am at the doorstep of a new beginning (read: adventure), is the most appropriate time to re-connect with blogging.

2011 has been a year of loss and rebuilding.  I am currently in a rebuilding phase of my life.  I am not trying not only finding myself but I am learning to live life to the fullest and enjoy every moment a long the way.

This blog chronicles my life…a Texas native, with a passion for photography, home décor, cooking, running, reading, traveling and the outdoors.