Something I can get behind...

So, I was accepted to be part of an online launch group for Candace Cameron Bure's next book, Dancing Through Life.  (See image below.)

When all is said and done, I think we're supposed to be like 400-strong (out of probably thousands who expressed interest) posting on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media outlets about what we have been able to read of the book.

I've been a fan of Candace's since her Full House days.  That eventually switched to being a fan of her Hallmark Christmas movies.  And then of her books.  And now just as someone I can look up to.  It sounds kind of strange typing that as we were both born in the same year.  But sometimes I think "looking up to" someone does not necessarily have to be someone who is older than you.  Instead it is seeing someone who has a large following, someone who is in the public eye more than I, who holds a lot of the same beliefs as I do and being able to stick to those beliefs in whatever she does.

So, I've been able to read the first chapter of her book - I pretty much got through it in 5 minutes.  It was that good.  It made me wonder why I can't read any of my other "for fun" books like that or my text books like that.  She has a great way of combining her entertainment experiences with her faith.  And for me, that pulls me in.  It won't pull everyone one in, and that's okay. 

Anyway, while I am on this break between classes, I'm glad I'm having the opportunity to promote her book.  It comes out August 1st if you're interested. 

That time I was really proud of my niece...

So in my last post I alluded to another story I wanted to share about my niece.  She is 3 years old, a diabetic, and sometimes is great for me and sometimes gives me a hard time.  And yes, there are times she gives me a really, really hard time.

But this story is about one of those times when she was absolutely superb for me when I was not expecting it.

About a month and a half ago we found out one of our second cousins passed away.  Both sides of my family are getting smaller and smaller so the remaining family that lives in the area we try to stay in touch with and see on a regular basis.  This cousin who had passed away I was able to go visit the day after Christmas in 2014. 

So anyway, my parents, sister, and I were trying to figure things out in terms of going to the wake and funeral as well as the burial while also keeping in mind we would have my niece with us. The wake was the easy part.  My sister was off so she was able to drive down with my niece and take care of her.  I wound up on nap duty because even in the midst of crazyness I somehow have inherited the talent for getting my niece to nap.  The problem day was the funeral.  Both my sister and brother-in-law had to work.  My parents wanted to go to the funeral but were concerned about the drive from the funeral home to the cemetery, which was a good 20 minutes away.  They were offered seats in the limo that would be following the hearse but didn't know what to do with me and my niece, who obviously couldn't ride in the limo.  So I said I would follow in the car, driving my niece...who I had never driven anywhere before...usually I'm the rider!

The day of the wake my niece had an "alright" day.  She was pretty good at the wake, except for fighting the nap.  She was terrible on the way home after dinner.  So I was a little concerned about her behavior the next day.  I even considered staying home but my mom insisted I go, because then I could also drive the entire family home and let everyone else rest.

Can I just tell you how PERFECT my niece was the day of the funeral?  We had a few talks in the car, just her and I, and I explained how we were going to a different church and the people were not used to having children in church, especially for the service we were attending.  (To give you an indication...aside from my niece, I, at 38, was literally the youngest person in the sanctuary.)  She used her "church voice" (a whisper) the entire time.  Which never happens even in our own church.  After the service was over, we got many compliments on what a good girl she was and how no one even realized such a young child was present.  (Of course, I did sit in the back just in case I had to make an emergency exit with a loud child.)

Then it was time to drive to the cemetery.  I talked to my niece the whole way there.  We had to stop at the office once we got there, so I took a quick break to test her blood, give her a snack, and some insulin.  Then we got to the place where the grave was, where I then told her she had to be quiet because we were going to have a small church service outside.  She was a little noisier than in the sanctuary...because there happened to be a train station right nearby so she could hear and see trains which she loves.  Everyone there had been given a flower to throw on the casket before it was lowered into the grave site, including my niece.  Now, any time she is given something she likes to keep it.  She will sometimes give it away if that's what we're supposed to be doing, but then she wants it back and pitches a fit until she gets something to hold.  Do you know that she threw the flower on the casket just like everyone else and didn't make a sound?

Then we all had a late lunch at a place that really didn't have much of anything she could eat.  We had packed a lunch for her, so that wasn't a problem.  But there she sat at a table with her Grammy, Grampy, Aunt Jenn, and 4 other adults who were not used to having such a young child at a table with them at a restaurant.  And through the majority of lunch she was great.  Towards the end she got antsy, but it was past her nap time and I think she had had enough of being quiet - even I would've had enough of it!  So I took her into the car and played videos for her until Grammy and Grampy got back in the car and we headed home. 

Of course, the next day she had one of her bad behavior days, which really disappointed me because she had been so good the day before.  But I guess eventually she will have more days where she listens to those caring for her as opposed to not listening to them.

Later she would tell people she went to another church and it was fun, had pretty music, and Grammy read in front of the people.  It definitely had pretty music but I'm not sure how much fun it was.  But I guess if she has good memories of a sad day that's a good thing.

Three classes down, Seven to go!

It's been another few months since I last posted here.  I was basically slogging my way through a 6-week summer course that really had everything completed in 5 weeks and I am typically used to 8 weeks.  So it's been a little over a month push to finish. 

The class itself (Research Marketing) was very interesting.  But it was a lot of effort to get through it.  We had a textbook that, if buying new, was almost $400.  Luckily our professor required us to read the entire text, so I got my money's worth.  But it was at 3-4 chapters a week.  Plus a 15-question quiz on each chapter.  So if you read chapters 5, 6, 7, and 8, you had a 15-question quiz for chapter 5, a 15-question quiz for chapter 6, and so on.  Except for the last 3 chapters, which we had 1 quiz to cover all 3 chapters.  The first two weeks we had discussions based on our readings.  The last 3 weeks we had assignments due, which were easy enough to complete in the short time frame and our discussions those week were based on the assignments - so for me that was almost really fun.

But now it's all said and done.  And I have to make that break from school mode (which I did not really get out of between my last spring class and the summer class) into relax mode.  I still feel like I should be doing something during my lunch or when I'm home.  But I don't have anything else due.  So now I have about a month and a half (or so) to read for fun.

I'm currently reading a book called Mainstreet to Mainframes which was written about the Poughkeepsie area and how IBM coming in really shaped the town/city and the Hudson Valley as a whole.  The author came and spoke about another book he contributed to at the FDR Library in Hyde Park, NY.  I was interested in the subject because of my job so I thought it would be a good read.  A little hard after slamming through a textbook on research marketing, but it's been interesting so far.

All the talk on my Twitter feed is about SDCC (San Diego Comic Con).  I can't wait until it's over, only because then maybe my feed will fill up with more NYCC (New York Comic Con) talk.  I was lucky to get a 4-day pass this year so I can't wait until the programming starts coming together and I can plan when to go to see panels and when to go to grab free stuff.  (And stand on line at the Hallmark booth to get in.)

There is something else I want to talk about but I want to save it for its own post so either later today or tomorrow sometime.  I hope.