Introduction

Hello, my name is Melody Evans and I am a return student to Utah Valley University. I received my Associates several years ago, right before getting married. I have returned to school to get my Bachelors now and I am hoping to complete it over the next year and a half. I love going to school more than ever now that I have had a long break. I used to feel burdened by learning because I was so burned out, but not anymore! I am a Project Management major in the Digital Media Department. I am interested in Human Resources as a career, even if my major is not specifically directed toward it. I am hoping this class will give me some more clarification for the direction I would like to take in my career.
I live in Sandy and absolutely love it! I also took a few classes at Salt Lake Community College before returning to Utah Valley University because of the closeness in proximity and lower costs. I am now into only upper division classes and am hoping to keep my grades as high as they were at the Community College. I have children who are still very little and they keep me busy, but my window to do homework is between their bedtime and mine.
I worked for the Home Builders Association prior to my graduation from school, for about five years. I loved every minute of it. The Home Builders Association was a huge network of Builders, Subcontractors, Bankers, Title Companies, and Insurance Companies. I met a lot of people and learned how important networking is. I also helped the company develop a Software Program that was Beta tested by us and then sold Nationally to nearly all the HBA's in the country. I was proud to be a part of many decisions they made when developing the software. I love Business and I love technology. My Associates degree was in Business Communication and Office Technology. I think that is the perfect foundation for what I am continuing to learn in my degree and also for the various career paths I could take with it.
I come from a very large family and I also have my own little family. My parents had 7 children of their own and soon after, my parents adopted my 7 cousins, whose mother had passed away. And so, we were a family of 16, which has now, through marriages and grandchildren turned into a family of over 50! It was a fun experience growing up with so many siblings. I enjoyed going to High School with several of my siblings and also graduating with my brother.
Another thing my husband and I have done is to have family and students come to stay with us. We are currently housing some students from Brazil. Two 15 year old girls, who are learning about our culture, and I am learning a lot about theirs. I now realize that when they are staying with us I can cook a lot of American staples, but also that they like a lot of meats and starches, and not many fruits and vegetables. They don't like spicy food, but they absolutely love fast food and any novelty like candy or ice cream.
I have also lived in a couple of different places outside of Utah. My husband manages a Branch for a Pest-Control office each summer. We lived in Florida for a summer and then in Texas for the next, and will be returning there this summer. I enjoyed getting to know all of the various ethnic groups in these areas. I make friends easily, especially with women. I would say I have made a whole lot of friends in my lifetime, but I usually choose to stay exceptionally close with only a few of them. I wish I could stay close with everyone, but life is busy and keeps on moving. Luckily I have Facebook to check in with everyone occasionally.
Good luck to all of you this Semester; I'm looking forward to this class.