Introductions

Well, I finally caved and decided to try this blog thing.  Maybe it'll work out for everyone.  I have a feeling it will be therapeutic for me, and possibly even entertaining for a few, and at the very least, in case the deepest fears of my loved ones are realized and I am abducted/caught in drugcartel vs. law enforcement crossfire/forced into sexual slavery, etc on one of my many excursions to Mexico, (yes, just in case) there will be a record of this trying time in my life. 

So, here it is:

Me

I'm Jen aka jenadegracia.  The user name is a play on words, derived from "llena de gracia", Spanish for "full of grace".  Cuz' I damn sure must be full of grace to have made it this far, and even more so to get through this.  I kinda got it from the movie "Maria, Llena de Gracia," which is really worth watching, so you should check it out.
I am in my 2nd-ish year at community college, going for a degree in Digital Arts: Digital Photography.  A lotta good that's pry gonna do me in Mexico, I know.  But hey, at least I have something to fall back on.  And maybe it sounds progressive enough for them to issue me and FM3.  Who knows.
So what's the deal?  Why am I in this predicament?  Well, I guess maybe we can thank

Him

The Man.  Heretoforth known as D or D-cito, or a variety of other cloying pet names ;-)  I've been with him since I was 16.  We've been through a lot.  A lot.  Long story short, he was a permanent resident in the states from age 1 until about 3 months ago... He ran into some trouble.  Nothing dangerous, just stupid.  One way or another, he became exiled to Mexico.  'Nuff said on that. 
I love him.  Had our story been a little different, we would have been married by now, but we're not- not legally anyway.  We're committed though, and of course, we do have

Her

My baby girl.  La Huerita.  You have probably never seen a whiter half-Mexican.  I know the Mexico we've visited hasn't...  She is 2 1/2, and a major handful.  And she misses her daddy.  And she's probably smarter than I am. 

And that's just the beginning... but so is this.  I'm just trying to make sense of this mad world, and mentally prepare for my impending move to "the other side".  It'll probably be about a year and a half, but who knows.  As I know well, life can change in an instant.