Change is good

First things first - sorry for my lack of recent postings! Bad Anne. Last week was quite busy and unfortunately, blogging got pushed to the back burner. My apologies to my loyal followers…all two of you - thanks, mom and dad. ;)

With all that last week brought, one resounding theme kept popping up…excitement for new beginnings and experiences. I’ve always thought of myself as a ‘glass half full’ kind of gal, so my ranting in this post probably won’t come as much of a surprise to most of you. Here goes…

Optimism is the name of the game! And what better time to be optimistic than when presented with the onset of springtime. This is the time of year when everything is “waking up” from its slumber and new opportunities and experiences are presenting themselves. Last week’s (and some upcoming) activities serve as great examples of all there is to be excited for that we sometimes overlook in the fast paced lives we live: A college graduation celebrating the start of a new and wonderful career, an upcoming high school graduation marking the start of adulthood and “figuring oneself out” (usually through many mistakes and many cases of beer – ha!*), a 30th birthday party commemorating the start of a new decade and another year wiser, and a new marriage celebrating the start of a new family and a lifelong commitment.

That reminds me of something else new….the new last name I’ll soon have! While I’m very excited to change my last name to match that of my soon-to-be hubby’s, I must admit that I think it’s going to take a little getting used to. I’m sure anyone that has changed their maiden name knows what I’m talking about. It’s going to be odd not having what I’ve grown so accustomed to my whole life….22 years is a long time! ;) To prepare myself, I went all sixth-grade-style while listening to a less than riveting conference call at work the other day and practiced writing my new name. Don’t judge me and my 12 year old ways. ha! I successfully made it through about six or seven full signatures before I had the inevitable screw up and reverted back to using “Schwartz”. Whoopsie! (This was an intention choice of Stefl words - found it fitting due to the topic. Most of you are probably confused right now…) Anyway, I blame my screw up on the “S” that threw me back into my autopilot ways.

As a side note, another upside to changing my last name will be the luxury of trying to forget the childhood nicknames and monikers that I’ve endured over the years. Schwartzenegger (it’s not a tumor!) and “May the Schwartz be with you” were classics through the years. Oh, kids and their torturous, playground ways.

In other news, how awesome is it to find cash?!?!? I was at Mayfair not long ago just minding my P’s and Q’s when suddenly, I look down and there’s a dollar bill! Score. I know it’s just a measly buck, but I don’t care! There’s something about finding free cash that brings such joy. Now fast forward to this morning when Eric walked into our office at home with his fist outheld asking if I wanted what he found on his morning run. At first I was a bit apprehensive to take what his sweaty palm had to offer, but I figured what the heck. And what the heck was right!!!! It was a five dollar bill!!! Oh man…a hubby that gives ME the free cash he finds??? This is a match made in heaven. HA! I tried to do the polite, ”Oh, you should keep the money you found…” (all the while hoping he’d decline, which always the gentleman, he did.) Nice.

*Disclaimer: I, in no way, condone the practice of consuming alcoholic beverages until the legal drinking age has been reached. And NO – you cannot ask at which age I consumed my first ‘beverage’.

~as