Congratulations Monica!

I have to spend some time bragging on a young lady I know, Monica. I first met her when she was 5.5 years old, at the daycare where I used to work. I began babysitting for the family, and about two years later, became their nanny. Monica's had a passion for singing the entire time I've known her, and from what I hear, she's had that passion pretty much from birth! She joined a by-audition-only choir when she was in fourth grade (I believe) and is still a member. Emily and I went to see her perform last night (one of the last big concerts she'll be a part of because she'll be graduating in June). On top of being very involved in the choir, she's also been taking AP courses in high school, to better prepare herself for college and to have a good looking transcript for college applications. I have to commend her dedication to her future because these classes are NOT easy classes! When you listen to her talk, you can clearly see her passion for what she wants she wants to do "when she grows up", and you really see what an amazing young lady she is. Basically, she wants to be a pediatrician, possibly a family doctor with some OB stuff mixed in (she needs to see what suits her in the end), but she would also dearly love to get established in medicine, and then spend a few years in Africa helping people in need, and helping spread the word on God. She'll be doing some youth ministry stuff (depending on what college she ends up at, youth ministries will either be her major, or her minor). And here's where the hard work starts to pay off for her: She got a call last night from Azuza Pacific University and she's been accepted! Of her two top choices, it's the furthest one away from HOME, so for selfish reasons, we'd like to see her get into her other choice, but we're all so very thrilled for her, and she wanted very badly to be accepted. It's hard to believe she's gone from a little girl into a young lady (18 this coming March!) in what seems like such a short time. And she could throw some whoppers of tantrums, too, so it's been fun to watch her grow into a calm, considerate adult, with a real passion for life and an understanding of what she wants to do with her life. I'm so proud of her!

Congratulations Monica, on the beautiful concert last night, and on the acceptance to APU (you know we support you 100%, but we'll miss you if you go so far away!)