Here I Am, This is Me...

Hello, computer world. My name is Jen, and I love paper...

That's probably a wierd way to start off a blog, but let me explain. I live off of my paper calendar-tried to go electronic several years back but met with disaster so back to the paper I went. I love notebooks, notepads, to-do lists, good old-fashioned letter writing. I grew up on it, and I've had no desire to change my ways.

Out of all my paper-loving, probably the greatest love of all is journaling by hand. I love it! I love getting my thoughts down on paper, for a crowd of people or no one's eyes but mine and God's. However, my life started to get in the way of my paper-loving. I'm the mom of two lovely, active, dramatic kids. I'm a full-time mom, part-time teacher, part-time vocalist, part-time student, full-time wife, housekeeper, and kiddo valet. By the time I crawl into bed at night, totally wiped out from the day, even the most exciting events and God-breezes (thanks FlyLady) get shoved to the side in favor of limited, blissful sleep.

Thus enter blogging...

I have to thank my dear new friend Shelley for this habit-she is a woman after God's heart. She has a passion for the word, her family, her friends. She has a heart of gold, and I'm honored to call her my friend.

So....here I am. This is me (thanks Bryan Adams). I'm 30 years old, a native of Illinois, married for almost 9 years. My diva daughter is almost 7, and my divo son is almost 4 (yes, diva and divo can be a good thing). I'm a professional vocalist, singing mainly classical/opera and Christian music. I'm a private voice instructor, and I'm very passionate about vocal health and good sound vocal technique. I love bringing joy to people through my singing and my teaching.

I'm the oldest of three, a child of divorce, raised to work hard and strive to do her best in everything. I found my way back to God through music, and I hope that my story can help others to do the same. I want to continue to grow in my relationship with Christ-I'm definitely a work in progress.

I'm shy in new situations (hey, I'm an opera-loving 30-year-old, so I know I'm wierd), and it takes me some time to feel like I can open up and be accepted.

Right now I'm studying to become a Singing Voice Specialist, which means I can help people with injured singing voices. I may start a doctoral program in a few years-we'll have to see where God leads, right?

Hmm...maybe this computer thing will start to grow on me. Welcome to my musical journey!