A Perfect Day

Today was a perfect day.  I have had several perfect days in my life and I spent each one in awe of that fact that things really could be this good or that my soul really could feel as though it is smiling…and thankfully today was one of those days.

This is my last week as full-time nanny for my beautiful niece Harlowe Rose and as I mourn the fact that this is ending I also cling to each second that I get to spend with her, which is part of what made today a perfect day.  She woke at her usual time and took a short morning nap before she and I took the jogging stroller out on an adventure.  The sun was supposed to be intermittent today so I knew we had to take advantage of it while we could.  We walked through the neighborhood, through the park, up and down curbs and sidewalks as she babbled about to passing trees and birds.  For those who do not have immediate access to a babbling infant, find one.  It is one of the most precious sounds possible.  Just as we got inside and opened a few windows the rain came and engulfed the living room with both the sounds and smell of spring.  It was so refreshing.  After eating bananas like a big girl (we are working on this!), Harlowe fell asleep and we took a nap to the sound of the rain…which let me tell you is one of the all-time favorite things to do. 

We spent the rest of the morning and afternoon playing on sofa, dancing around the living room and cuddling up for naps.  It was truthfully perfect and as she fell asleep for one last nap while holding the collar of my shirt I felt like my heart could burst with love for this tiny, precious infant girl who has made such an impact on my life.  Each coo, each snore, each cry and each giggle is so monumental to me and I have loved being a part of this. 

A few months ago when I first started watching Harlowe I wrote a blog post that I never published about the simple pleasures that God obviously intends for His people and I felt very reminiscent of that post today...so I kind of mixed the two which is quite appropriate for how all over the place my brain has been lately. 

Life is stressful.  There are deadlines and planning and planning for deadlines all of which are overwhelming to me at any given moment of my day.  I have decided this week, and in this moment of spring rain, coffee filled bliss that it really can be about the small things sometimes.  One of my many mantras of survival is “don’t sweat the small stuff” but I think of the flipside of this I can say “enjoy all of the small stuff.”  Enjoy the aroma of your favorite bodywash that lingers in the bathroom far after the shower is over, love the change of the weather and focus on the rain or sun rather than the allergies that spring can bring, have the fun of a child for the short time that a child is in my daily routine and I am able to see first hand the fascination of experiencing life for the first time and finally, embrace the love of my heavenly father who orchestrated each of these small moments so that I could enjoy them.  So for now, go enjoy your day.  Whether that be sunshine, rain, stress or carefree, make the most of it because you can!  I hope for you that today can be a perfect day too.



Awesome

Disclaimer: I apologize to those who do not watch How I Met Your Mother..as some of this will make little sense.  In addition, if you do not watch HIMYM...you should :)

Do you ever wish life really was like a sitcom?  If so, what would your sitcom be?  I think that mine would be a conglomeration of a few…most likely depending on the day.  I would love the sarcastic humor found on Seinfeld and the comedic coworkers like Jim and Pam of the office yet today I ask the question because I am interviewing for jobs and the response I wish that I could have when describing myself comes from the oh so eloquent Barney Stinson from How I Met Your Mother.  This sitcom in particular would be legend…wait for it….airy to join as the friends featured are the right mixture of serious and sarcastic, they spend countless nights solving life’s problems over beer and the live in New York City.  I mean come on, it isn’t exactly a hard sell.  That is beside the point though.  Barney Stinson played by Neil Patrick Harris (who is particularly awesome anyway) once created a video resume complete with 3D graphics, archery, boat tricks and a whole lot of awesome.  As I submit my resume over and over again I can’t do it without thinking about a world where fire features really could get you a job and where my response of “I’m Allison…and I’m awesome” would be enough.  It seems so much more complete than simply stating education and professional experience, blah blah blah.  So today, as I submit boring resume after boring resume I leave you with the awesome-ness that is HIMYM.  It will make you want to show up at MacLaren’s and ask them to let you join the group.  Allison Mosby…it has a nice ring right



A Sentimental Celebration



Yesterday I accomplished a major life milestone by graduating from Campbellsville University with my Master’s in Counseling.  Large events in life often lead me to be especially sentimental and introspective and yesterday was no exception to that experience.  I awoke to the memories of undergraduate graduation from Anderson.  To me, that will be the graduation memory that I always hold most dear to my heart as it involved celebrating such an accomplishment with my friends and family standing by my side and graduating with me.  Those last weeks of Anderson life will be some of my most treasured memories…late nights, coffee dates, last minute errands around the booming metropolis of Anderson, Indiana and soaking up every last second of living in a city where the majority population involved my best friends.  I could laugh and cry just thinking about how wonderful that life phase was and how deeply I miss living in that old, creaky, “yellow” house with five women to whom I owe so very much. 

The experience yesterday was much different.  Not bad, just different.  Graduation took place on the main campus of Campbellsville University which is not the campus that I attended, therefore I almost felt like a visitor at my own graduation.  I had the blessing of my parents attending the ceremony and celebrating with me (my parents are fabulous at making a girl feel special) yet that element of camaraderie and walking through a campus full of memories was missing…and I felt that absence.  There wasn’t a valley, or helios in front of Hartung Hall.  Students playing Frisbee golf or hearing the laughter of a group of guys moving out of Dunn Hall were nowhere to be found.  Those elements of life that helped in the creation of who “college Allison” was were not present, yet I was graduating from college.  Strange. 

Now all of that makes it sound as though my Master’s graduation was not wonderful, and that is not true.  As I said before, not bad…just different.  Last night I was greeted by a faculty and staff who were beaming with pride and shared in the joy that my family and I were feeling.  Campus was beautiful and the thunderstorms that were supposed to cramp my style were nowhere to be found which left a gorgeous, spring-like evening to enjoy the festivities.  The ceremony itself was very special and at the end of the day I was very proud of my accomplishment and I felt so much love from my friends and family who have been by my side throughout this journey. 

I guess all of this self reflection is to say that I am truly blessed.  I feel pride in my accomplishment but even more so I feel loved by the large number of people who truly love me, support me and have been prayerfully caring for me through each step of my journey.  It has not always been pretty and there have been night of crying just as there have been nights of joy.  I have never been alone through this process and so on a night were I felt like a graduating class of one it helped me to realize that I am a product of my journey and a product of those whom I love.  To my lemon peel ladies and wonderful (lifelong) friends at AU, thank you.  You helped me develop into the woman that I am today plus you gave me the epic graduation experience that I will never forget.  Thank you to my friends who are like family.  God blessed me with so many non-biological sisters who give care and love to me on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.  You know who you are and you are strong, fearless women who strengthen my desire to be a strong, fearless woman too.  To my family, thank you for your sacrifices, prayer and constant presence that gave me the strength to push through in the hard times.  I am proud to be a Hock and I thank you for giving me so many great reasons to love who I am and where I came from.  God is good and through Him and the amazing support team that He has blessed me with I know that I can accomplish anything.  Okay, this has gotten sappy but I know that I did not accomplish any of this on my own and therefore I feel as though a big, blog hug has been earned by so many, so thank you.  Now on to the next chapter…and the journey continues. 

CU Graduation



Part of the Hock clan







AU Graduation



Sometimes, it is better to just not ask questions :)

Flowers Anyone?

I adore flowers.  This is simple to understand I am sure…they are beautiful, they smell great and so many times they are pink (bonus!).  To me, flowers are just such a fast way to make a room look gorgeous and brighten up a day.  Last week I got the best surprise by having flowers delivered to me!  If I were to make a list of my favorite things, I think receiving flowers would be in the top 5.  When I used to work as a receptionist and flowers were always delivered to me before I passed them on to their rightful owner, my heart would always skip a beat hoping that the card would read my name.  It rarely did, so imagine my joy when I opened the door to find the most beautiful assortment of tulips.  They were perfect and such a fun way to celebrate graduation!  As the week went on, they became too big for their vase and so I had to get creative on how to continue loving my gorgeous gift… so here are some pictures of what I did!  I love the short vases (aka, juice glasses) and now I wish there could be a way to turn these into silk flowers so that they could look like this forever.  That is truly the only downside of fresh flowers is their short expiration date but at least we can enjoy each second that they are fabulous.  Although a picture won’t do them justice…here are the flowers that are brightening my day today. 

Thanks Crystal!

Harlowe Rose

Today my sweet niece Harlowe Rose is 7 months old!  It is hard to believe that time can go this quickly or that I could love her so very much.  I have had the privilege of being Harlowe’s weekday nanny for the last 5 months and let me tell you…if you want some perspective on life spend some time with a newborn.  She is so joyful, playful and cuddly.  Everything that she sees is new and exciting and a hug or playing with a toy can make a bad day instantly good.  Even in her sad moments she teaches me to appreciate what my mom did for me and I am learning all new levels of patience.  In her happy moments (which far outnumber her sad ones) her giggle is infectious and cuddling up with her can melt away any tension, stress or worry from my mind.  In my opinion, she is perfection in human form and I thank God daily not just for her but for the opportunity to spend so much time with her before I start my “real”, grown-up job.  So today let’s all raise a glass to little Harlowe Rose, the queen of the Hock clan!

in honor of her 7 month birthday, she learned

a new trick this week and sticks out her tongue!

Dance Dance

So life can get pretty stressful.  Run here, do this, do that, run there… it feels never ending and then it just keeps going.  On days, weeks or months like this I can be surprised by what ends up being the relaxing moment of the day.  Today that was my weekly drive from Louisville to Indianapolis.  After weeks of commuting in the rain, it was beautiful today and as I rolled down the windows and put in a CD I could feel the stress pour off of me.  On Grey’s Anatomy, Meredith and Christina often dance in their living room to loud music to detox from a busy day and in similar fashion I put on some music that one must dance to and sang out heart out to the upbeat tunes of Florence and the Machine, The Killers, Jimmy Eat World and Mumford and Sons.  It was fantastic.  The sun was setting, the air was warm and all I could do was dance dance my worries away.  Truckers and other passers by most likely thought I was losing my mind but in all actuality I was finding it and gaining a much needed perspective on my day.  So just in case you are feeling as overwhelmed as I was before I began my dance filled journey, put on a good CD and bust a move.  It will do wonderful things for your outlook on life!

 Sunset in rural Indiana

Absent

When I started this blog I had every intention to write daily or at least weekly but obviously I thought too highly of my ability to multi-task.  For the last three weeks I have been devoting every spare brain cell to the completion of my graduate degree.  I have barely been able to pull together a coherent though, yet alone something even mildly entertaining and therefore I have been absent from my creative self. 

The good news is, I am officially done with graduate school and as of next Friday I will walk across that stage and get the most difficult piece of paper that I have ever earned.  It is almost surreal to realize that I have been working towards this goal for as long as I can remember and now I am about to embark on the road after the dream.  I do not even know what this looks like but I am trying my best to be excited rather than terrified of this fact.  I know that I will be a great therapist.  I know that I have fabulous people in my life whom I would not be able to survive without and I know that through all of this I am simply a vehicle for God to lead and His path for me is better than anything I can fret about. 

I guess all of that is to say that I am back and I hope to be able to allow my creativity to come back in full force.  So we shall see!