Well, here we are... blogging!

email. homepage. myspace. message boards. chat rooms.
I guess blogging is the natural progression...

Most people who read this already know me, but for those just popping by, I better introduce myself. After 6-years of dating, I married my high school sweetheart. Not many people get to share their homes and lives with someone they grew up with, this is something we don't take for granted.

After a whirlwind few years of college classes, parties, and making some of the best friends on the planet, we finally settled down in Paradise an joined the grown-up world of mortgages, professional careers and difficult decisions. As a full-time teacher for Paradise Unified School District since 2000, I have grown to become very connected with this community and the families who live here.

Jason and I have experienced the roller-coaster of many unexpected, challenging, and life-changing events over the past 2 years. While difficult to endure, every one of these experiences has contributed to who we are as people, as a family, and have taught us the kinds of lessons you can only learn by truly living life. We have suffered losses, but the blessings hidden in these challenges have surprisingly far outweighed anything bad that has come from them.

Today, we are busy with the most important job of all: raising our two beautiful sons.

James, born in 2004, is the most spunky, social, hilarious, brilliant, stubborn, and inquisitive little boy. Following in his daddy's footsteps, James is very mechanical, good with his hands and so creative. He loves all things "boy"- race cars, motorcycles, and Transformers. "Jennifer's Walk" and "Go Away, Big Green Monster" are his favorite books and retro-Transformers episodes (borrowed from Luke, quoted by James as, "the largest man I know") are, in James' opinion, the best cartoons of all time. Like his mother, James is a social butterfly and would like nothing more than to play with his friends, build with his blocks, and do craft projects all day long.

Owen, our sweet little boy, was born in 2006. This child has brought so much joy to our lives! Full of love and happiness, Owen has a brilliant sense of humor and can make anyone laugh. His wide-eyed, drooly smile with one adorable dimple in his left cheek can brighten even the darkest of days. Always getting into everything, Owen is known as "pesty" around our house. Dialing the phone, pilfering remotes and dumping Cheerio's all over the floor are Owen's favorite pastimes at the moment... Following right behind his big brother, Owen has also recently learned how to climb on top of the table, get onto our bed, and pull any item within his reach off the counter or stove. We've decided it's just his way of asking us to watch him every single second of the day, which we happen to get great pleasure in doing!

These two boys are the center of our family, our hearts & souls personified. When I look at these two blonde, blue-eyed boys, I do not see anything that looks like myself. The funny thing that I've noticed is that when I look in the mirror at myself, all I can see is my boys.

We are also so lucky to have the amazing support of our families. My relationship with my in-laws is unreal, no one can believe how close we are. My parents have been our rock and their love and respect for us has carried us through some very difficult times. My mother's cancer is the only thing in my life I have truly been unable to understand or find any benefit from. I just thank God every day we have been so lucky to have her healthy and cancer-free. So many people have experienced so much worse... I count my blessings for this every day.

No you know my, my past. as for the future... the future is bright for the Behlke family. We are surrounded by health, family, friends, and hope. What more is there to life?