Intro to Us

I am Tessa. I'm a zoo-keeper - or so it feels like most of the time. I have 2 cats, Mickey, 7, and Lucy, 6. I also have 2 Yorkie-Poo dogs, Comet and Starr, 3. The picture on my blog is of Comet. We live in the booming metropolis and capital of Iowa, Des Moines. For those of you not familiar with the mid-west: Iowa is directly south of Minnesota, north of Missouri, west of Illinois, and east of Nebraska. Contrary to popular beliefs we are not the state known for growing potatoes. We do have running water, electricity, and our houses do not have dirt floors or grass roofs. :) We are also home to the Big 10 Iowa Hawkeyes (Go Hawks!) and the Big 12 Iowa State Cyclones.

I fill my days at work and my evenings with my pets - for now anyway. I spend a lot of time reading and writing. Most of my writing is about my life - the truth is stranger than fiction, after all! Some of you reading this blog may know me personally and that's great - I look forward to hearing from you. Some of you may be strangers-to-me, so to you: "Hi there! Nice to meet you!"

A note here about what you will be reading on this blog: All of the things that I write are my own personal opinions, questions, comments, concerns, observations, things that I've learned, things that I'm struggling with, etc. You are welcome to comment, share your own stories, or ask any questions. I welcome all different view points and will enjoy conversing with you - even if we disagree. I absolutely love an intellectually stimulating conversation!

Another, most important note: I am a Christian. I believe that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and His death, burial and resurrection from the grave to pay the price for the sins of all mankind. I believe that this salvation is the only way to Heaven when this life ends. I do not and will not apologize for that belief. Many of the things that you will read on my blog will be about my relationship with and walk with God. Feel free to agree or disagree but you will not change my mind and it's not up to me to change yours, either. That being said: I am not perfect nor do I, or will I, ever claim to be. I have failed in many things - you will read about some of those things here. The point of my story is not to blow my own horn. I will share the things that I believe God has laid on my heart to share with the hope of providing encouragement to others who may be struggling.

I think that's about the end of my introduction. If you have any questions or comments feel free to post them here. This is going to be fun for me so I hope you have fun, too!