Graduation Speech : My Twins, Grace And Hope

My decision to go back to school in the fall of 2012 was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made. I’m a stay at home mom of 4 boys with 2 of them being special needs. My oldest was born with a rare genetic condition called hereditary spastic paraplegia and my youngest son was born with a rare condition called Dravet Syndrome that requires 24/7 care. I was at a point in my life where I had lost my identity of who I was and I wanted to be me again. I made that important decision to go back to school for myself with the fear of how I was going to do it, but I knew that it was right. It took me 3 years to complete my AS but with the support of my husband and kids I was able to receive my degree. I worked hard and was able to juggle being

Being a parent transformed me in unexpected ways. I found myself wanting to provide for my daughter and later my son the same security and benefits my parents had provided for me. I found a job at University Children’s Center. UCC provides care for children from the ages of 6 weeks to 6 years and I wanted to be close to my children. I worked with all the age groups but found my niche in the infant program. I enjoyed the close bonds I was able to form with both the babies and their families. I took great pride in creating a warm and inviting atmosphere. I took classes to become Infant Nursery Room Supervisor. Once again, I excelled in my studies and enjoyed the learning process. Bringing the information I learned into the classroom was

I was nervous and excited about starting graduate school. I had been out of college for five years and knew that studying midwifery would be hard work. Upon arrival at Frontier the faculty and staff were so friendly. When I caught a glimpse of the blue and white balloons that read “Welcome Students” my heart filled with joy. I thought to myself “This is it, this is really happening”. At that moment I knew that my life was forever changed.

I was shocked when I first heard I was pregnant. I had recently drifted away from the first cherished, writing husband like a weathered plastic bottle drifting into the ocean. It was a simple good bye; we both knew it would not work out. Five years after the first marriage, I was adamant about finding another person to share my struggles professionally. I felt lonely, suddenly reminded of my nomadic life – my seasonal commute between rural

Good morning Principle Boyd, proud parents, faculty, and fellow graduates, to this extraordinary celebration breakfast, in honor of Our Lady of Grace Catholic School Class of 2017. Yes, I am graduating 8th grade, but I still have to make my bed, be nice to my siblings, do my chores, I cannot drive a car, I must continue putting my Iphone into my locker every night, so that I will not be grounded!  Nevertheless, I am graduating from Our Lady of Grace Catholic School, and I feel like I found a pot-of-gold at the end of the rainbow.

Mid 2011, Linz and I got married, and added to our count of children, when we had twins! The stress of having a family of six was slowly starting to show. We were accustomed to taking care of our eight and five-year-old children who use the bath room without assistance, and for the most part could do most things on their own. Now we had these new twin babies who required a lot of attention that was mainly at night, as well as double the diaper, clothes, and food. We quickly arrived to the realization that we HAD to do more, picking up extra hours at work was not enough. We decided we’d both attend college.

On March 30, as of three thirty in the morning, my life has officially changed. The labor pains had set in and it was time to have a baby. I had never felt a pain so excruciating in my life, and I thought that cramps were terrible, labor pains do not even compare. I climbed the stairs to my aunts room to let her know that it was time to go to the hospital. After watching her run around the room frantically she finally was able to rush me to the hospital. She zoomed through street lights rushing for fear that I may have the baby in the car and she would pass out. Had

As individuals and as a group, we have worked hard, we toiled, we endured, and we have come out better, with more passion and more confidence than when we began. We have survived all the different rotations, shifts, and calls, the sleepless nights and the chaos and adrenaline of the emergency room duty and the rigorous training examinations. I believe we are all proud to have made it to this day. In all sincerity, today represents a landmark achievement for each of us and our families. It is to our loved ones and all those who encouraged us through this long journey from preschool through residency that we owe our deepest thanks. The encouragement from family, friends, colleagues, faculty, staff and strangers have played a vital role in our success.

attending classes for a short time to have a baby boy in September 2004, then returned to finish college.

Our plan was after I healed from my C-section and Malaki was at least 6 months old I would be going back to college. Of course, things do not always go, as we want them to. It was May 28, 2008. I had just had Malaki 13 days before. It was a normal day. I was nursing Malaki and Keith called to say he had just gotten off work and was on his way home. He had a great job installing insulation. As I put Malaki down in his bassinet, I could have never imagined in less than one hour and less than one mile from home my family’s lives and “our plan” would change forever.

I contemplated taking a semester off to have my child and reprioritize my life. However, after speaking my faculty mentor, I received the encouragement I needed to pushed forward and complete my degree. Sadly, I made the ultimate decision to postpone my journey to medical school to care for my family. After graduation, I decided to join the workforce to support my family. As a recent college graduate, I experienced difficulties obtaining employment and this was very discouraging, especially since I was caring for two young individuals. Eventually, I obtained a full-time position at a local community college and have been there for about six years educating minds to achieve their educational

When I signed up for Child Development this year, I brought a BabyCare baby home. This project consisted of caring and assisting a programmed baby. After, I realized how much frustration can be caused and how all my time aimed towards the baby. During the project, I imagined having a baby at my age; all the my years of hard work going down the drain. Also, my softball career, quality time with friends, and wanting a period of relaxation. Additionally, I learned the struggles of having a baby while in school and it helped me comprehend why my parents are so strict with me. My parents helped me with an even better understanding of my project by providing real world examples with an incident that could involve me. I grew to realize, I need to

I took a break from work to stay at home with her and nurse her back to recovery. Focusing on my other interests, I enrolled in a short term visual arts course at Xavier Institute of Communications. Though my final grade was lowered due to attendance, my perseverance enabled me to receive the university award for the best social documentary of the year. The decision to turn a seemingly adverse situation to a rewarding one taught me that difficult times are often instruments for accomplishments and formulation of future goals and helped me discover my passion for the entertainment business.

I began my first semester of school when my daughter was thirteen months old. Up to that point, I was a stay at home mom. I enrolled her into the college’s childcare and would drop her off before class. That was the first time I had ever left her with anyone outside of our family and she was also at the age where toddlers begin their separation anxiety phase. Every morning, I would have to pull her off of my leg and run out the door as she chased after me, completely devastated. Her screams and the look of utter betrayal on her face were the last memories I would have of her before going off to class. This made it extremely hard for me to focus on lectures or recall information and increased my stress levels, especially during exams.

I will never forget the moment my labor began, the moment that marked that step in my journey into motherhood. I can remember everything about it so clearly. My mom, fiancé, and I woke up early Friday morning to make our way to Western Missouri Medical Center. I stood in front of the mirror looking at my belly knowing it would be my last time standing in that bathroom with my baby inside of me still. It was a bittersweet moment that I cherished as long as I possibly could. I was set to be induced that morning and very excited, yet a little bit nervous. I had no idea what to expect. I’d been waiting a very long 37 weeks to finally meet this precious human that had been growing inside me. I had ideas of what he might look like, and what the experience might be like, however nothing could have prepared me for what was in store over the next few days.