Babies.
Babies, babies, babies.
Bundles of joy.
Peas in a pod.
Diaper fillers.
Beginning a little over a year ago, friends of mine have started having families. Most got married/engaged right out of high school. Some people like to criticize the decisions they made at such a young age, but my friends seem really happy, which is all that should matter.
My mom has always told me that I’m not allowed to get married until I’m 30 (or after), but I don’t think age is the issue with me (after all, that clock starts ticking by 30), but rather it’s all about timing.
I want to wait until after I graduate from college. That is my biggest and most important goal right now. I have already traveled to many places, but to travel a bit more before I am tied down is another dream of mine. I want to be comfortable and independent and learn to be entirely responsible for myself financially. That could tack on a few extra years due to the times.
Most importantly, I want to be married a few years before children come around. Marriage is only the gateway to the rest of your life. It also takes time to still get used to constantly being around your spouse. When you have a baby that needs constant care, you begin to feel trapped. Then one day, you wake up at age 35 with 2-3 kids and you think, “Where did my life go? Where did my 20s go? I missed out on so many opportunities.”
I don’t want that to happen to me. Timing is everything, I can wait to have children of my own.
Update on My Life
So, this has been a tumultuous spring/summer. Here’s a overview of how my life has been the past several months.
I applied to UGA for the fall 2009 semester and was rejected due to the fact that they did not accept my spring 2009 grades from KSU. A major setback, but ultimately even more of a reason to persevere and work hard to make it to Athens by spring 2010.
My sister graduated from high school in May; we had lots of family over to celebrate the occasion and the fact that she was accepted in to Georgia Tech!
However, it was during this visit that we discovered my grandmother had a stroke. Over the next 2 months, life was a blur. She changed hospitals and rehabilitation centers back and forth, and had good days and bad days, but ultimately, she never recovered. Regretfully, my maternal grandmother, Mary Therese Como passed away at the age of 79 on July 19, 2009.
The two weeks following were filled with a scrambled assembly of family members for the wake and funeral, last-minute arrangements, and coming together to celebrate her long life, and lay her to rest.
After the funeral, we returned back to Atlanta. I played catch-up at work, my mom had friends from England visit for 3 weeks. The house didn’t fully belong to us again until about 2 1/2 weeks ago.
During that time, school started back. My sister is still getting acquainted with college lifestyle at Tech, I commute to KSU, and my youngest sister is now a freshman in high school.
Recently, I made the decision to quit my part-time job at the library. I’m sure people have their criticisms, what with the high unemployment rate and other national troubles, but rest assured, I have my reasons.
Because I go to school full-time, but only have classes 2 days a week, I plan on using my weekly 4-day weekend to travel, exercise regularly, and take day trips and acquire new experiences. Sticking around at a job that pays minimum wage with minimum hours with a schedule like mine is throwing opportunity out the window. I am thankful for the support of my parents and friends.
The catalyst for this idea was that I was accepted to UGA for the spring semester 2010. I am actually excited to go to college for the first time, even though this is my 3rd year attending university. Classes start January 7th, so when I stop working, I only have 2 months to accomplish my goals before I prepare for life in Athens. I am really excited, and I am looking forward to new experiences and meeting new people.
So, that brings the update up to present. I will try to update more as I travel around the country in the following months.
For day-to-day updates, follow me on Twitter (via @MollyLambeth).
The Lambeth girls + Russell at UGA
Meet Russell!
Meet Russell, our new dog. 
Russell was found by my mother running along highway 92 at nightfall about 2 weeks ago. She didn’t want him to get hit, so she scooped him up in her car and drove him to her work, where they could check to see if he had any ID.
Russell was wearing a nasty, beat up collar with no tag. He was infested with fleas and not in good shape. Our neighbor, who is involved with the county Humane Society, took him in for a few days while my parents searched for any clue as to who he belonged to.
It was ulikely that my family would be able to keep him, even though he was a fully trained, 3 year old dog. We have 6 cats, and didn’t think having a dog would mix well with our household (namely the cats). My mother had found a rescue group that specialized in Russell’s breed, and they were willing to take him on. However, my dad had been spending a significant amount of time with him, and quickly grew fond of Russell’s relaxed nature and good behavior.
My father had grown up with dogs, and my grandfather had worked as a trainer for military dogs for many years, his life’s work revolved around animals of all kinds. My father knows a substantial amount about dog training and care, and the possibility of keeping Russell seemed more and more tangible to him.
When it seemed evident that nobody would claim Russell, my father (as well as the rest of our family) had become quite fond of him, and decided to keep him as part of our family.
We have been enjoying his presence with us very much (though I can’t speak for the cats when I say this…), and he is a well-behaved and good-natured dog. I’m glad we have him, if only we could have had a dog like him sooner! I feel like I have missed out on having a dog for all of these years, but I am glad he is with us now!
