Hitting the Highlights

My fiance over at Steve's Corner has asked me to update my blog. Unlike some bloggers, such as our friend Lisa, my blogging thus far has been infrequent. In order to appease the man in my life, I'll list these highlights:

(1) Scott graduated from the Naval Postgraduate School with a Masters in Systems Engineering. We went up to Monterey for the graduation, where we met up with Scott's parents and with members of his cohort. Obviously I am very proud of him and the two and one-half years of hard work he put into the the Masters program. I look forward to his putting that knowledge into action both in his professional life (obtaining lead positions at work) and his personal one (wedding and marriage planning). And of course I look forward to our having more time to spend with each other.

(2) In honor of his graduation, I agreed on a wedding date: the first Saturday in October 2008. He said he'll hold me to it.

(3) I was able to spend quality time with Scott's parents, including a day at the Monterey Aquarium. They are wonderful people and already treat me and my girls as part of their family. My younger daughter has been referring to them as her grandparents ever since last November. The five of us went to the Spaghetti Factory the night before they returned home, which was great because it was the only opportunity by daughter had to see them this trip. They are talking about returning in February for the Dickens Festival in downtown Riverside.

(4) My daughter's volleyball team won its first game. That puts them 1-1. I was thrilled to see her actually get a point by serving. Actually, I was thrilled just to see her serve go over the net. If there were an award for the greatest team spirit that day, her team probably would have won it. They enthusiastically celebrated each point scored and cheered each other on.

(5) I received a Notice of Entry of Judgment letting me know that my maiden name has been restored. I decided some time ago that returning to my maiden name will have positive effects on my mental health. I found out today that the court is a bit slow--the judgments are not Imaged and input into the system until about five days after they have been entered. I was told that I could mail in a request and get the judgment back in two or three weeks. I think I will check back later in the week and then, when I find that the judgment has made it into the system, go down and get a certified copy. Then the real fun begins. The DMV won't do a name change until the change is made with Social Security, and Social Security won't do a name change without a certified copy of the name change document. I need to change my name with my employer, my credit union, my credit cards, the utility companies, everyone who knows me .... And I've been waiting to apply for a passport under my maiden name. After all this hassle, which I last went through about 23 years ago, I think I will be loathe to ever change my name again! (Yes, Scott, after we get married we can be known socially as Mr. and Mrs. H, but I'll keep my maiden name for everything else.)