Happy Birthday to ME!!!

Well, I am now officially 30 years old. Wow! I have come a long way in 30 years. I was the product of a teen pregnancy and marriage by two people who had no business being involved in either. I was then greatly abused until my aunt and uncle adopted me at the age of 5. My teen years were marked with rebellion and struggle and I was sure that life would get easier when I became an adult. Little did I know that the struggles we encounter in adulthood are just as difficult as the ones we encounter in childhood.

I was married at 19 to a guy who was everything my little heart could desire...remember, it was a 19 yr old heart which means the desires included tall, wrangler wearing, cowboy, muscular, funny etc. etc. My list didn't include kind, caring, loving, patient, etc. but I guess those must have been there, as well, since we celebrated our 10 yr anniversary in December. After marriage, we did the normal young couple things...first got pets...then had babies...bought a house and a car. I graduated a couple of years ago with a M.A. in Communication and started teaching at a local junior college.

Through all of this, I have never been exceptionally happy. In fact, life has been rather frustrating. I feel underappreciated by my husband and my children. I feel like the role of the wife and mother has somehow become confused with slave. So, in response to these feelings I did what any self-respecting woman would do...I got a tattoo for my birthday! (The one pictured above...Justin at Happy Dragon did an awesome job!!!) My parents paid the money...which just makes me laugh. It is almost as if they are aiding in my rebellion against the world. Because, you see, 30 yr old women, who teach college classes, and have two children should not go and do things like this...or so that is what is going on in my head right now. For my birthday, my friends that I have picked up from all the different areas of my life...church, teaching, scrapbooking, barhopping, etc...are joining me for an evening at a local Mexican restaurant known for their margaritas. I am betting that we will have a wonderful time...or at least a time that will fill my rebellious need, kindof like the tattoo!

--Jessica