Christmas Lights

My friend Cameron and I have this tradition: we go to a ritzy part of town and then we drive around and check out the Christmas lights.  I'm not going to lie, we get pretty judgy about what is good and what is not a good use of lights.  **Disclaimer I understand that any effort people make in decorating their houses to celebrate their holiday spirit or cheer is important and that I do appreciate their efforts no matter how judgmental my comments may appear.**
In general these guidelines dictate whether or not I like a house:
1. A consistent theme - i.e. If you use colored lights to frame the windows, you better use colored lights to edge the house and same with white lights.
2.  I generally *dislike* only red christmas lights.  It's a little scary and tends to be demonic looking.
3.  Inflatables vaguely resemble mascots so they make me uncomfortable and are generally not appreciated by me.  (Children love them so I get that)
4.  Changing your flood lights to be yellow/blue/green/or red (see number 2).  It's too much and only really cool if you have those vintagy wooden cutouts to show off!  And I'm sorry, but yellow and blue? NOT Christmas colors...
5.  Tree trunk lights.  Oh boy... This is a big one.  If you're going to wrap the trunk of a tree, please PLEASE make sure that you use the same color lights, i.e. all the same brand and type of white lights or the same color (if you're going to go that route).  Do NOT let there be bald spots going up the tree; it really detracts from what you're trying to accomplish.
6.  Lighting Tree Branches.  If you're going to try this, might I suggest you get the twinkling lights that dangle from the tree?  They don't have to be placed perfectly and they look really nice.  One technique that I particularly dislike is when people just take the strand of lights and toss it haphazardly on the branches.  Also, a new fad this year was to take a whole strand of lights and dangle it from the branches creating a weeping willow effect... also not cool.  Weeping Willow does not say Christmas...
7.  Roof Lights.  I really like it when people light the edges of their roof!  I think they make the whole hose look Christmassy!  In particular, I like the evenly spaced alternating red and white lights for roof edges.  I also really like the icicle lights (not the LED ones though, they're too bright!)

These are my *simple* guidelines for outdoor Christmas lights!  Merry Christmas Eve Everyone!  

Happiness

Remember this post from about 2 months ago???  I was incredibly bogged down with everything negative.  Well around my Birthday I promised myself that  I would be happier.  I don't want to be the Debbie Downer in the bunch!  So I did it, I decided to be way more positive and let me just say, BEST DECISION EVER!!! Reasons I'm so happy right now:
1.  I have one final left that isn't even cumulative!
2.  I am going to Vegas in a few days!
3.  I've been spending a lot of time with a great friend!
4.  I've actually had a social life!
5.  It's the Christmas season!! :)  Nothing beats the Holiday season!!!! :)

Thanksgiving

Happy Belated Thanksgiving!!
Thanksgiving is one of my absolute favorite holidays for a couple of reasons!
1.  It's a holiday that is specifically celebrating Domesticity!
2.  You're supposed to eat a ton of food
3.  Naps are encouraged
4.  Shopping is integral
5.  It's the kickoff for the Christmas holiday season!!!
Some of the reasons that this holiday wasn't spectacular this year is this: work.  I had to work a 14 hour day on Thanksgiving.  A majority of that involved me being on my feet which was pretty brutal.  I got to meet a TON of really neat people while I was serving drinks in the box suite for the Texas A&M vs tu game.  While the game was a joke due to poor reffing, the night was pretty much otherwise enjoyable.
Thanksgiving is just a wonderful time of year because everyone gets together and you all get to express what you're thankful for :)
As one of the children I babysit said, "I'm thankful for everything good!"

Serendipity

I'm normally not a fan of watching Christmas movies before Thanksgiving.  However, I will make exceptions.  Serendipity came on TV this weekend and I absolutely love this movie.  It's super sweet and fills any girl with hope that her Mr. Perfect does in fact exist!  I've had an absolutely fantastic week and this was just the serendipitous cherry on top!  In the first few minutes of the movie, Kate Beckinsale's character simply defines serendipity as a fortunate accident.
I'm a huge believer in Karma and Fate and try to put good things out into the universe so that I get good things back! :)  This week I feel like I've collected all my good Karma points; it's been so wonderful!
I would classify myself as a cheerful and positive person; lately, it hasn't been showing.  My friend Twyla told me this week, "I've never seen you this happy!"

21!!!

Ok so in celebration of my turning 21 finally, (YAY!) I've decided to list 21 things I loved about my birthday week! (In no particular order)
21. All my homework was done for the week before my birthday started!!
20. I got to order girly drinks!!
19. I got Carded!!!
18. I have been absolutely ecstatic all week!
17. I started some more planning for my trip to London!
16. I got to talk to one of my great friends in Utah!
15. I finally got to play pool in college!
14. Strawberry Margaritas!
13. Mojitos!
12. I am starting to reconnect with some of my cousins!
11. I got AWESOME presents from everyone!
10. My friend Ashley did my hair perfectly!!!
9. I got a Birthday Banner and gift from the kids I babysit!
8. I got a ton of birthday cards from my students!
7. The weather was perfect!
6. I didn't have to work hardly ever!
5. I went to my first ring dunk! (it's an Aggie thing)
4. I finally got to tailgate!
3. I got to spend time with Jessica for a girls weekend!!!
2. I didn't get carded!!!
1. Getting to see and hang out with wonderful friends!!!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to MEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!
I lovvvvvvvvvvve birthdays!! They are wonderful and magical and as adults, we tend to forget how magical it is! Last Thursday, I went to my field assignment and all my students were so excited to wish me a Happy Birthday! I got a bunch of homemade construction paper birthday cards and about a million hugs!!!  Then I went to babysit and the kids I babysit made me a HUGE banner that said "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"  Kids just think that birthdays are the most magical thing in the entire world!  And, ya know what?  I kind of agree.  I had a severe case of the "birthday blues" last year.  Not this year!!! :) This year, I am THRILLED to turn 21!! That's right!! 21!!!!!!!!

I know I know

One of my biggest pet peeves is when bloggers don't blog at least semi regularity.  In order to try and blog every day, I tried the 30 days of lists challenge.  Since we only made through about list 14, it's safe to say, that didn't really work.  I hate this excuse, but I've just been INSANELY busy!!! My mentor teacher has been out about one day a week this last month which makes my job a lot more intense when I'm there and the last thing I want to do after having taught for 8 hours, and then working my other job for another few hours, is to get on the computer and blog.  It's a really terrible excuse and one that I am trying to make sure doesn't happen too much any more which should be easier.  Why might it be easier you might ask??  Well that would be because I only have about 3 weeks left of school and it shouldn't be too hectic! I promise to try better with my blogging and keep it up!

List #14

Things I love about........ the FALL!
It isn't ridiculously hot here
My makeup looks fantastic because it doesn't melt off
You can start wearing boots
Also Scarfs
Everyone seems nicer in prep for Santa's upcoming visit
Thanksgiving is quite possibly the BEST holiday: Turkey, Pie, Domesticity CELEBRATED... nuff said
It's finally an acceptable heat to watch a football game in

List #16

Places to see in my town:. College Station
1.  Downtown Bryan
2.  The Century Tree
3.  Texas A&M Campus from the 6th floor of Evans library
4.  Northgate
5.  Any Texas A&M sporting event!

List #12

Weekly Rituals:
Mondays: class, homework, work, homework, sleep
Tuesdays: drive to my 5th grade classroom, teach/observe, eat,work
Wednesdays: see Mondays
Thursdays:  drive to my classroom, teach/observe, eat
Fridays: Lunch with Janet, work, relax

Prettty boring rituals I know!

List #11

Date night ideas:
Not that this happens like ever but if it were, here's my top ideas!
1.  Go to a Hockey Game -
        They're exciting enough to keep your attention if your date isn't and if he is and if your date is interesting, you can talk during the breaks between periods!
2.  Going bowling
        There's enough competition to keep the date interesting. Also a good double date idea!
3.  U Paint it
         Painting pottery together, fun, not too expensive, and you get to see how creative your date is!
4.  Convenience store picnic
         You go to a convenience store and shop together for a picnic!! Sounds a little lame, but it's actually fun!
5.  Game night
         I really love playing games so a night of board games and movies is super fun and casual!!
BAD Date Ideas
1.  Movie at the theater
         If it's a first date this is a no.  You don't get to talk and movies today are just too much to deal with because thy're all so inappropriate
2.  Helicopter rides
        Ok, now I realize that this isn't something normal people do, but people on the Millionaire Matchmaker do this all the time and it's just a bad idea.
3.  Dinner
        This is just a personal thing, I don't like eating in front of other people.
4.  Football games
        If you're so into football that you want to take me to a game, it's not a good idea, I'm not going to be as into it as you.
5.  Family events
       Family events as dates should be reserved for when you're almost engaged or engaged.

List #10

On my Wishlist!!!!
1. Vera Bradley Attache  in Happy Snails
2. Skinny Girl White Cranberry Cosmo - after mid November that is!
3. Bridesmaids on Dvd
4. some sleep
5. Someone to do my homework for me
6. and some more time in the day!!! :)

List #9

My favorite websites and blogs!!
1. QuipsFromAWisenheimer.blogspot.com
2. Jennsylvania.com  - although, I'm starting to lose faith in Jen Lancaster
3. NYandCompany.com - pretty much alllllll of my professional wardrobe comes from here
4. DSW.com  - I do love me some shoes :)
5. MarthaStewart.com - my idol!
6.  Stumbleupon.com - anytime I need to kill a longgg time I start a stumblin'!!
7. Pinterest.com - I still haven't exactly gotten the hang of this site yet, but I'm trying!

SLACKER

I know.
I've been slacking on my lists :(
I'm so sorry!  I taught both days this week that I was in the school, have had about 10000 assignments due this week and then work...  I know that lists don't take too long and I should be able to do this once a day.... I'll be better. I promise!!!

List #8

What is in my bag:
1. $5 in cash
2. Reward cards to: Genghis grill, Ulta, etc.
3. Orbit Wintermint Gum
4. Tylenol/advil/motrin
5. ID
6. My teacher name tag :)
7. Flash Drive

List #7

My blog goals
My goals for this blog are pretty much just to keep a recored of my life!  I'd love to reach others and would be lying if  I said that the fact that my blog has read in 10 countries wouldn't be awesome!  I absolutely love seeing when a new country has been added to my readers list!! :)  I also like to share my life experiences!!

List #6

My least favorite words:
1.  lawyer
2.  Yankee
3.  Patience
4.  retard (the r-word)
5.  moist

List #4

I told you I'd get  back to List #4!! :)
Today's playlist is...
1.  What to do - Demi Lovato
2.  Loving you is easy - Ben Rector
3.  Someone Like you - Adele
4.  White Dress - Ben Rector
5.  Burn it to the Ground - Nickelback - Thank you Victoria for serenading this to me at YAP camp!!
6.  Happy Working song - Amy Adams

List #5

Yeah, I know, I can't count.  List 4 should come after list 3.  But I didn't feel like doing list #4 today, so I'm switching it up a tiny bit!

This Weekend's Goals....

clean the entire apartment

finish 2 papers

make a quiche

spend time with my PUPPIES and PARENTS!!!

sleep

rest

:)

List #3

I am looking forward to...:
1.  Friend Thanksgiving :)
2.  My trip to Las Vegas
3.  My (potential) trip to London
4.  My 21st Birthday (which is only 41 days away now!!!!!)
5.  Having a clean apartment again
:)

List #2

Things I'm good at:

1: baking

2: sewing

3: remembering important events in friends' lives

4: talking about the Real Housewives of New York/Beverly Hills/Orange County/New Jersey/etc.

5: dressing professionally

6: eating

7: swearing

8: hugging

9: cooking

10: being a friend

Lists

Well, I know it's been awhile since I've posted and in order to get better at posting more frequently, I am going to participate in 30 Days of lists!  I got the idea from my Sister\, but she got it from here.  The idea is just to write something every day!  ok so today's list is:

A Few Things About Me:

1.  I'm really domestic

2. I love to cook

3.  I'm a sap for chick flicks and sappy songs

4.  I watch way too much Bravo! 

5.  My favorite color is blue 

6. I've seen every episode of Gilmore Girls and Friends at least 10 times

Hell in a Handbasket

Picture this, my life is the handbasket, and hell has just unleashed its self in my life.  Let me just hit the highlights:
A friend potentially getting divorced
A friend who got dumped while in Iraq
A friend who broke off her engagement
A friend who wants nothing to do with me after a 5 year friendship
A school situation less than positive
A professor who is challenging to say the least
and all the pressure in the world it feels pushing down on me

The one thing i did for myself this week is that i bought the movie Something Borrowed.  This is what my sister and I will be doing on our first free weekend together.

First Day Jitters...

Tomorrow is my first day in a school!  I have been told I can't tell too much info on my blog for security/FERPA/covering my own butt.  Anyway, I really want to tell you about it, unfortunately I want a job even more than that!  I will tell you (I'm assuming there are people who read this, but to be sure, leave a comment!!) everything I can in the most vaguest of terms.  I'll be in a grade observing/teaching/learning etc and I'm pretty excited but reallllllllly nervous, in fact, I sincerely doubt that I'm going to be able to sleep tonight because of the swarm of butterflies flying around my tummy!!!!  That is all I've got for now, I'm sure more exciting things have happened since the las blog, but I can't think of them right this second.....I'll be sure to post soon though! :)

Inspiring

Today I spent the day (trying) to get stuff done.  I went and gave a presentation to a college class this morning, ran some errands and got ready to go to lunch with my friend Natalie.

I've mentioned Natalie before because we're a LOT alike!  We met during our freshman year in this horrible club we joined!  Today, I picked her up to go to lunch and we were talking about what all we have going on this semester.  My list looks a little like this:
Class 8-4 Monday and Wednesday
Observations from 7-3:15(at least) Tuesday and Thursday
Working my job at the call center Monday-Wednesday 5:30-9
and hopefully I'll be working on Fridays as a substitute teacher
Add into that I work all day before football games and that basically leaves me one day a week.
Also, I'm secretary for a professional organization which I put a LOT of time into

And Natalie said one of the kindest things I've ever been told today: "I don't envy you, but I sure do admire you, Hannah."  It made me feel so great.  She also said that I was so upbeat about it.  In my opinion, if I weren't upbeat and positive about my commitments this semester, I'd be in tears EVERY night.

I'm this little engine that could.  I think KNOW I can! I think KNOW I can! I think KNOW I can!

Back Into The Swing of Things, Pt. 2

So it's the beginning of the semester and this is normally the easy part of the year.  This semester, I'm working at the call center still, taking 15 hours of classes and I will be driving to Navasota twice a week to observe in a classroom.  I''m reallllly excited about this semester because of all the hands-on work I'll get to do.  Pretty much all of my classes have assignments that I'll actually get to use and implement in the classroom I'm in!!  As far as difficulty, my classes shouldn't be too difficult, although I am taking a class from the devil.  She's not only super disorganized and has trouble teaching her class, she gave us a pop quiz on Labor Day (yes, my school has classes on Labor day, and yes, it pisses all the students off).  She called it a "Labor Day Present."  Really? No, I think of presents as good things, a pop quiz is NEVER a good thing.  And she's giving us a test the second week of school too.

On a personal note, I'm involved in an organization, Student Council for Exceptional Children, which is a really fun professional organization that I'm currently the secretary for!  I've been really trying to stay involved with my school this year because I understand how important it is to be a part of something bigger than me.

I went to the first football game and had a really great time!  I went with a couple of friends and we had a ball!  The only thing that makes me dislike going to our football is that the student section stands.  For the ENTIRE game.  Which is fine and dandy, I guess, if it's not close to 100 degrees and if you haven't been on your feet for four hours before the game.  But on the plus side, the Aggies brought it home with a win!

Listsssss

So I'm sitting at home.  Alone.  Watching Juno.  I love this movie for so many reasons, but the most important is because it reminds me of my best friend from high school.  We went to see the movie at the theater when if first came out and had an excellent time.  And yes, we both wanted Juno to end up with Jason Bateman's character.  It doesn't make us terrible people.  I promise.
Anyway....
This week I've been thinking a lot lately (one of the down sides to having so much free time on my hands).  Here is a list of all the things I miss from the 'wonder years' (yeah I threw up a little when I wrote that):
1.  My worries about guys were if I'd get asked out on a date, not whether or not I'd end up married or alone for the rest of my life.
2.  I wasn't committed to any one specific career path.
3.  My friends and I were inseparable.  I haven't spoken to Troy since May and even then it really hasn't been since December; Jessica and I really only see each other for an hour or so and talk infrequently; etc...
4.  Classes were a joke, now I have legitimate work
5.  I didn't get paid absolute crap at my job.
6.  Cleaning my stuff consisted of cleaning my room, not a kitchen, living room, dining room bedroom and bathroom.
7.  When I needed a hug, my mom was just around the corner.
8.  My dogs were never more than 10 feet away, not 3 hours away.
9.  I could watch tv shows like CSI, Criminal Minds, Dexter, etc without terrifying myself to death about being a single woman living alone.
10.  My dad would iron my shirts for me.
Publish Post
All of these are all the reasons I miss life when I was in high school.  Readers, (if I do in fact have them) What do you miss from your 'wonder years'?

Weekend Update

Last week, I tried making my Grandmother's Clothespin Cookies.   She used to sell them and they were supposedly delicious!  Well I tried making them and let's just say, it didn't end well.  I tried making them and let's start with the dough takes about 5 solid hours to make.  So when I finally got that done, I moved onto the filling. Well to do that you have to cook pudding but some words of caution: DON'T leave the pudding alone...I burnt the pudding and I'm pretty sure I ruined a pan.  I tried making the filling a second time and it didn't work out then either. Well I initially wrote it off as a bad recipe but it turns out I didn't read it all the way.  I am going to try the recipe again and when it undoubtedly turns out perfectly (wishful thinking) I will be posting away!

Over the weekend, I got to spend time with my adorable puppies, Baxter and Bonnie, and my big sister!! She finally came home from her internship!! I'm not going to lie, I'm not excited about having to share my apartment again but I sure am happy to have her back home!!

Homecoming!!

This week is going to be the BEST WEEK EVER!!! One of my best friends is coming to visit with me and have a slumber party!  We didn't get to talk a whole lot this summer because she was busy frolicking around in Spain and I was stuck here in my boring ol' college town!   Anyway!!! She is coming to visit me on WEDNESDAY! But before that, I get to have a tanning/pool date with a friend from Camp on Tuesday!! Who knows, maybe I'm actually becoming a social creature....!?!?  At the end of the week, I get the BEST end of summer present that I could EVER ask for!!  My seester is coming home from Iowa!!! She's finally coming back!! She's been gone since the end of May and it's the longest we've ever been apart!  Needless to say, as much as I complain about her during the school year, I do miss her dearly!  Maybe remind me about this come November.... :)

Nostalgia

So since I was soo busy at camp, I didn't have much time to miss my sister who's millions of miles away or my puppies and parents back home.  Now that all of that is done and I'm back to my normal schedule, I got a wee bit nostalgic.  When I went home this weekend, I got to spend time with my parents and my puppies.  One thing that I learned while I was home was that my Grandmother on my Dad's side of the family (deceased) was quite the cook.  Apparently she used to make all of these fantastic dinners and would go all out for every dinner.  We kept talking and I found out that she used to sell cookies.  Specifically these clothespin cookies.  I don't remember having ever eaten them or really her baking or cooking that much.  Most of the time our trips to visit them included a trip to Raptis Family Restaurant - A local 'dive' that knew my grandparents by name!  I really want to make the clothespin cookies for my Dad as sort of a surprise or something and so I messaged my cousin to see if she knew who got the recipes.  As it turns out, she has all of my Grandma's recipes and she said that some of them are os old they're nearly falling apart!  My cousin said that she's been trying to find the time lately to get some of the recipes and things together to send to me since she knows that I love to cook and bake just like her!  She even said she'd part with an apron for me!!  It's the little things like that make my day! :)

Whiney McWhinerson

So this is definitely a blog post where you should either call the waaambulance or tell me that I should work for the airport "COME PLANE, COME PLANE!" (get it?)  So if you're not into that, then just ignore this post and check back with me in a day or two!

Some days, you just want to do things your way.  It's like Burger King, "Have it your way."  That's all I want.  There have been quite a few times this week where I've felt neglected, ignored, and flat out forgotten.  My way might not always be best and it might not always be perfect, but there is reasoning behind it.  So could you PLEASSE just hear me out for two seconds?!  All the girl counselors want to dress like gangstas.  Now that's fine when you're a size 2 and want to throw on some baggy clothes and borrow your boyfriend's basketball shorts, but when your a fatty like me, you don't want to have to buy the extra large just to have some extra room and a new pair of shorts that you'll never wear again.  No.  I would like to wear the adorable floral dress that I bought forever ago with my cowboy boots.  I just want to wear something cute, do my hair all sweet and have some pretty make up on.  But no.  ALL of the girls are doing this gangsta thing.  Yet, no matter how many times everyone assures me that everyone is participating, I can't help but feel like it's just some ruse to make me look like a fool.  And ya know what? I don't like the way that feels.

Hiatus

So I know that Camp is all consuming and everything but...... A shooting in Norway, Amy Winehouse dying, something going on with the national debt, AND Borders is going out of business??? Seriously, I leave the real world for camp world for three weeks and THIS is what happens??!?!?!? GEEZE!!
I'll be back to blogging soon!!

This One Time at YAP Camp...

I am going to wholeheartedly apologize right now for the plethora of YAP camp stories that I'm going to be sharing.

So this camp is for Gifted and Talented kids and while I don't want to go too much into the logistics of our camp days and lives, it's basically like this:  We live in an off campus dorm, and each morning we take our kids to their class in the morning for a few hours, then go back to the dorm for lunch, then go back to class for another couple of hours and then come back for some downtime/group activity and then dinner and another activity or something. Then the counselors get together and we meet and then we have free time to dod whatever...a.k.a. sleep and go back home to get the things we forgot.
ANYWAY....
Before camp started, I made cupcakes as a "Welcome to Camp" surprise for the counselors.  This is what I ended up with:

Chocolate Cupcakes with a Whipped Chocolate Fudge Frosting 

I also made a fellow counselor a birthday cake this week.  I did the same chocolate cake that I used for the cupcakes, made the fudge frosting the filling and didn't make it as thick.  Then I iced it/decorated it with the basket weave that I learned as mentioned in a previous post with a blue tinted vanilla buttercream.  It was pretty tasty but I won't be posting any pictures because it was pretty messy.  A word of caution:  when piping buttercream, you want to make SURE that it is thin enough to pipe easily.  If not, you will not only take FOREVER, it'll make your hand hurt ridiculously badly the next day.  You can thin it out with water, or milk.  I used milk but not enough so it was still reallllllly thick.  

HOPEFULLY, I'll be able to post again fairly soon, but no promises because downtime is limited and mostly used for sleeping.

Stress Relievers

What do you do when you need to relieve stress?  My sister goes to the batting cages or goes to a pottery painting place. My mom quilts.  A few friends of mine go to the shooting range.  I've heard some people who swim or run to clear their minds and relieve stress.  Me? What do I do to relieve stress, you may ask. Well, I like to bake.  A lot of people say "The secret ingredient to excellent baking is L-O-V-E."  Well ***NEWS FLASH*** The real secret ingredient to baking is rage.  I do the best baking when I'm stressed and take my stress out in creamy, custardy, creme brulee and chocolate chip cookies.  My desserts come out well when I'm not stressed, but stress elevates it to the next level.  Whenever I get stressed I head to the kitchen and whip something up.  This weekend, I was a tad (read INCREDIBLY) stressed so my great friend Amy brought me to the bakery that she works at.  There, the bakery owner gave us a short tutorial on how to do a basket weave with icing on a cake.  In order to not waste cake, she gave us cake pans to practice on!  Here is my results:

Happy Fourth!

The Fourth of July is one of my most favorite childhood memories.  When I used to be a Yankee (in geography only NOT to be confused with a fan of that damn baseball team from New York), our town used to celebrate the Fourth of July for the holiday it truly is!  We're talking a parade with the LOUD fire trucks, flying candy, burgers, hot dogs, fireflies, flags, friends, families, and MOST importantly FIREWORKS.  I'm not talking the crappy ones you set off in your backyard here, we're talking about a fell fireworks display put on by the city.  Our house was situated in the PERFECT place so all we had to do was grab a picnic blanket or a lawn chair and throw it in the front lawn and we had the best seats in town.  We used to have my Aunt, Uncle and cousins from my Dad's side of the family, the neighbors as well as some family friends.  The kids used to light up sparklers and those popper things that explode when you throw them while the parents did whatever.  We would stay up late to see the full show and we never fought on the Fourth of July.  Since moving to Texas, I don't remember seeing fireworks besides the crappy ones that our annoying neighbors do.  This year, we had burgers and corn on the cob, no fireworks and let the evening pass as if it were just any other Monday night.  Drought restrictions suck :(

Summer Bummer

Ever hit that point in the summer where you get bored?  It's not because there isn't anything to do or because you have too much to do.  It's because you miss hanging out with your friends, or being on your own at college, or are tired of your parents nagging you about your summer reading assignment, or you've seen all the repeats of your favorite shows so much that you're tired of the shows and you're tired of the same food and activities.  I call this phenomena Summer Bummer.  In order to combat the "Summer Bummer," I have died my hair a nice solid brunette color that has a slight red undertone.  I've got plans to take a 'field trip' to the Houston Museum of Art before a wedding in a couple of weekends which I'm pretty excited about!! 

My July is FULL of things to do to kick my Summer Bummer in the bum!  I'm going to be a camp counselor for pretty much the whole month of July!  When that's finished, I'll hopefully be back at work, that is if the cubicles ever show up and our internet calling system starts working.  Oh, the stresses of work!  I will be sure to post all about my July Fourth celebration!!!

Busy as a Bee!

I'm so sorry that it's been a while since I last posted!  I've been busy with a trip to San Antonio, a wedding shower, a new skirt, a really long work week, and tutoring a friend.

I know this is a little late but I'd yet to share it... 2 weekends ago I went home to San Antonio for a really great friend's bridal shower.  Before I went to the bridal shower, I got to go to the sweetest little bakery in Alamo Heights.  The bakery is Called Alamo Sweets (Click here) and PLEASE be sure to check out their blog!  The bakery's owner, Linda, is one of the nicest ladies I've ever meant and my great friend Amy is interning for her this summer.  I was tempted to drop out of college for a minute to intern there myself!! They make such beautiful and TASTY desserts!!  If you're ever in the area, stop by!

I made a fabulous new wrap skirt (pictures to be added later) out of adorable Amy Butler fabric from an adorable little quilt shop in Dripping Springs!

I'm tutoring a friend from work in an online math class and let me just tell you, Calculous is HARD!  I still have all my notes so that's really helpful but it's really just been great to have someone to hang out with at my apartment.  With my sister being gone for the summer, I don't get many nights where I get to hang out with someone and have girl talk at the apartment.

Finally, I am OBSESSED with a new (to me) tv show.  In the late 90s early 2000s there was a tv show called Roswell, it's honestly a ridiculous concept, Aliens living amongst us who look and act just as teen agers do.  It was coming off the cusp of Dawson's Creek so it has plenty of the teen love drama.  If you ever watched Buffy, a lot of the same actors are in Roswell.  The show went on for three seasons and I'm currently still in Season one.  I can't find enough time to watch this show!  And luckily for me I can watch it on netflix!!

Well I think thats enough for one post! Sorry to ramble on!  On the plus side, I believe we're all caught up now!

The Big C

I recently got The Big C from netflix in the mail!  I am LOVING it.  I'm disappointed that I only got to watch the first 5 episodes, but I definitely have enjoyed it so far.  I've enjoyed it so much, that I have taken inspiration from it.  In case you haven't seen the show, it's on Showtime, Laura Linney's character Kathy has cancer: stage 4 melanoma.  She won't tell her husband, brother, son, etc because she doesn't want to be cared for.  She likes to be the one doing the taking care not being taken care of.  I can completely identify with that!  I was born to be a hostess/mother.  I'm nurturing to the point of self neglect and I HATE it when people take care of me.  Well ANYWAY, because of her diagnosis, she wants to start living her life.  She cashed in her rainy day fund did all sorts of lovely things!  Now, I don't have a rainy day fund to cash in on and I definitely am healthy (Thank God) but I have many ways to spice up my life!
I'm always one to stay in at night and curl up with a good book or with a good movie and go to bed early.  Everyday this week (so far), I've done something social!  Monday, I watched the good ol' Fightin Texas Aggie baseball team kick Florida States's ass at the baseball super regionals with some coworkers!  Off to the College World Series in Omaha!!! :) Tuesday I had dinner with my coworkers again which was great because we went to Texas Roadhouse.  And today, I cooked dinner and dessert for my good friend Ashley and also helped her with some math homework for her summer class!!
All in all, I've had a great week so far!! How has your week been???

You Have the Winning Dish...

This morning I woke up and went to work.  It was a real easy day as far as work goes, no running any errands in the company car.... but quiet nonetheless!  I came back to the apartment to have a little lunch and then finish up a quilt I'm working on!  I ended up with my left overs from Ghengis Grill and then taking a nap.  For about 2 hours.... So when I woke up, I popped in a DVD and started sewing!  I got the quilt top finished (pictures to come when it's completed) and then realized that as it's 8:30, I should probably eat.  I do this a lot.  The whole forgetting to eat thing happens quite frequently to me so I decided to use some of the stuff  Igot when I went to the grocery store over the weekend.  

I'm all about delicious food, but I'm also all about easy and quick.  I mean, it's 8:30pm. So I needed to eat soon so I can go to bed at a decent hour since I have to wake up early tomorrow!  So I put a pot of pasta on to boil and started slicing up some mushrooms.  I use an egg slicer to slice mushrooms and strawberries because it's just so much easier - and quicker - than using a knife.  

With all the prep work done, I put a sautee pan on the stove with enough oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan.  Put pasta (I used ravioli, but tortalini or spaghetti or whatever pasta you want) When the oil gets hot, sautee the mushrooms up until they just change color.  Then open a can of pasta sauce and put in enough sauce for your pasta into the pan with the mushrooms.  Heat till its hot all through.  Then drain your pasta and put the pasta in the sauce pan or plate the pasta and then top with sauce!  You could also add turkey meatballs to make it more hearty!!  

Sauteed mushrooms and
Hunts Four Cheese Sauce (I added some fresh Mozzarella and some parmesan to make it cheesier!)

Mini raviolis that I used as my pasta

Finished dish!  (I really like mushrooms so that's why there is a TON of sauce!)

If you try this dish, let me know!! If I had had parsley I would have topped it with parsley but I didn't and it was still DELICIOUS!! :)

Old Friends :)

I'm the queen of getting too consumed with school and work to keep up with some of my friends.  So this semester, I decided to make a better effort to make more time for my friends and communicate better.  One way that I've chosen to do this is by writing letters.  I think it's almost a lost art form.  I think that it's important to keep friends close because as they say, "Friends are the family you choose."

I've also been skyping a lot lately :)  Skype is a lovely invention and it's really allowed me to see my good family friends in Ohio.  This week I skyped with them and talked to Lauren (8) and Andrew (12) about their summer plans and the end of school.  Andrew showed me a pillowcase that my mom and I made for him at least 8 years ago if not more.  So I've decided to send them a nice little care package for their summer.  Have any ideas of what to include??

This is what 8+ years of continuous use will do to a pillow case.  

Another thing that I've been trying to do is meet up with friends and spend quality time with them.  Tonight, I got to spend hours with my friend Natalie.  Natalie and I met within my first month of being a freshman when I looked like this:  

Right after I broke my nose: Sept 2009

We are both INSANELY busy during the past 2 semesters so we haven't gotten to keep up as much as we'd like.  But tonight we got to talk and catch up on all the drama and found out yet again that we are almost the exact same person!  Every time we hang out, we remember how alike we are and how much we miss each other.  I think we'll be hanging out a lot this summer :)  And I'm cooking for her this week!! (I'll post pictures or something when I actually get to making dinner!

My other really great friend Barb is planning a pilgrimage to come visit me!  It probably won't happen until she comes back from her study abroad trip to SPAINNNN but I'm excited nonetheless!  I'm going to help teach her to cook and we'll have a GREATT time watching chick flicks and gossiping :)  Maybe even a pillow fight and french braiding each others' hair!!  

How do you keep in touch with your friends?  

FAQ

I bake.
For anything and everything.  I also cook somewhat frequently.  And one thing I am almost ALWAYS asked is this, "Where did you learn to cook/bake?"  Are you ready for this answer?

I don't know.  I honestly don't remember learning how to cook or bake.  When I was little, I remember being very excited to cook family dinner.  I've always loved wearing aprons and strictly remember wearing aprons when fixing dinner for my family.  These dinners were really just Mac 'n' cheese or butter noodles maybe some pasta.  But I would always set the table and light some candles to create a "mood" and then take everybody's order.  Now I use cooking or baking as a way to celebrate/relax/cheer up/etc.  I can be in the worst of moods and whip up a batch of my great grandma's chocolate chip cookies and I'll be instantly happier.  I'm watching Julie Julia and it's exactly as Amy Adams says, it's like I'm under her influence.  I always feel happier, more content when I'm baking.  It's one piece of her that I'll always have.  This cookie recipe is extraordinarily dear to me.  She never really told anyone how she made the best chocolate chip cookies in the world and so when she passed away, we were at a loss.  One summer, I set out to discover her secret.  And ya know what?  I DID! But I'm not telling! :-P
Last night, I got stood up.  That feeling kind of sucks... a lot.  And I didn't have anything to clean obsessively because my apartment is rather extremely clean!  So I baked cookies and the whole time I was working on the dough, I just got to feeling a little bit better.  Knowing that combining the same ingredients will always create the same outcome: a mixture of a dense cookie with chocolate chips.
Some people run when they need to clear their minds and some people blast music or take a bubble bath.  Me? I spend some quality time with my Kitchen Aid and my apron.  It calms me, it's my zen!

A Big THANKS!

Today is Memorial Day; a day where we reflect and thank the service men and women who fight for our freedoms.  When I was younger, I didn't really understand the importance of Memorial Day.  Sure, we learned about it in school, we did a coloring activity/read a short story/etc.  But now that I'm older, I see how greatly these people and their families sacrifice to fight for my freedom.  My good friend Kathleen's whole family is in the military and they've had to sacrifice birthdays, Christmases, anniversaries, etc in order to keep our country safe.  One of my dearest friends, Kristen, well her fiance is in the military and is getting ready to be deployed for the second time since I've known them.  He's missed her birthday, Valentine's Day, Christmas and all those important times to build a relationship and some how despite all of that, they have one of the BEST relationships that I've ever seen.  Being involved in Special Education, I hear "Bless your heart, that takes a selfless person" and where that is true, it's not near the kind of selfless person it takes to serve our country.  Thank you to all those in the military who fight to keep me and my loved ones safe.  

Just when you thought Jersey Shore couldn't be topped...

Normally when you hear of a popular television show from Britain to the United States you think of a good comedy with dry humor.  Your first thought, or mine at least, isn't a wedding show about Gypsies or as they like to be called Travelers.  So I flip to TLC and this is exactly what's on "My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding."  The best way I can think to describe it is a mix between, Toddlers in Tiaras, My Super Sweet 16, Say Yes to the Dress, and throw a little bit of Jerseylicious in there too.  First of all, I must give credit where credit is due: the show is actually marginally informative about the Gypsy culture.  Like, did you know that Gypsies prefer trailers (mobile homes) sans commode to track houses?  And that being devout catholics, their children at about 8 years old take first communion in dresses that must cost more than I've spent on clothes...ever. And also, they get married young. VERY YOUNG.  I'm talking one girl was 16 and this other girl is 17.  I just learned that women Travelers "would die before swearin in front of a man."  Needless to say, I wouldn't fit in.  The rest of the show is rather trashy.  The one wedding reception that I've seen so far was pretty classless and I'm honestly just shocked that some people wear clothes like that.  A tradition that girls have to worry about at weddings is called "grabbing." My understanding of this tradition is that a guy Traveler "grabs" you and tries to kiss you.  The one girl I saw getting "grabbed" was reminiscent of the opening scenes of Law & Order SVU.  What's worse is her friend walked by the scene and didn't try and help.

I am intrigued to say the least and will probably tune in again...

Weekend Update

This weekend, I spent  all of Thursday, Friday and Saturday watching Grey's Anatomy.  Go ahead, make fun of me.  This coupled with my amazing feats of domesticity (cleaning the apartment and laundry) has made me realize I really am the housewife type.  (unfortunately not the kind of housewife that gets compensated by BravoTV, but a housewife non-the-less).  

With my sister gone (no offense Emma, I know you read this, you may just want to skip to the next part), I can finally clean the apartment to my liking.  I went through the magazines and cleaned our bookcase and I must admit, my (because with Emma gone for 3 months, it is indeed MY apartment) apartment is looking a little bleak.  I'm thinking about using Emma's Silhouette machine and getting some vinyl from Hobby Lobby to make some wall art!  I don't know what I'm going to do yet, but I'll keep ya posted!

I've also been working out!  I try and take a nightly run and do a little cardio from one of the Self workout videos available on Netflix.  I am thinking about trying pilates today or tomorrow... Thoughts??

Ennui

Yesterday I had a case of Ennui.  If you haven't seen Gilmore Girls for the excellent explanation of this affliction, let me explain:  It's when you have an off day and nothing seems to be able to cheer you up.  The thing is, is that I've had these days before but, I can always pinpoint the reason for why I feel that way.  But for the first time, I'm just really happy.  I thought that maybe just taking a nap would help me feel better, but every time I crawled into bed, I couldn't get to sleep.  So I spent most of my day trying to sleep and when I finally did get out of bed I tried to pick up around the house a bit but just couldn't get motivated.  So I talked to my friend Jessica and she said that maybe taking a walk would help.  It was getting late, but I was just going to take a walk around our neighborhood.  I got outside and walking wasn't helping so I decided to run.  Now I am by NO means a runner. I sincerely dislike running.  But for some reason, the run was great!  It was just what I needed to get rid of my ennui.  After my run I was finally able to go to sleep and wake up feeling at least a little refreshed.  Today I'm determined to have a better more productive day!

Simplicity

It really amazes me how the simple things can totally make your day and today was filled with them!  First of all, I worked a full day and honestly, it was incredible!  I had a ton of stuff to do and stayed busy the whole day!  I absolutely love having things to do and staying busy!! When I got out of work, I realized that I have no groceries at the apartment and I needed to fill my gas tank up.  In order to make only one trip, I decided I could get what I need from Sam's Club.  I love Sam's!!  I can get a ton of things and all for a generally reasonable price :)  I filled my tank with the cheapest gas in town and then headed inside.  I knew that I wanted to get some mixed lettuce and this is what I came up with for my dinner:  A Strawberry balsamic salad.  My friend told me that it sounded really fancy, but it's only four ingredients:  Strawberries, mixed lettuce, slivered almonds and balsamic vinegar!!  All you have to do is wash the strawberries and cut the tops off  and then I slice them into quarters.  After the strawberries are sliced, you rinse off the lettuce and put it in a bowl.  Add the strawberries and then put a splash of balsamic vinegar on top.  Sprinkle a few almonds on the top and you've got yourself a nice simple little salad.  While I was slicing up the strawberries for the salad, I cut up a few extras and put them in a tupperware container in my fridge with a couple teaspoons of sugar.  This way, the strawberries will macerate and form a simple syrup that will be great over a bit of vanilla ice cream! :)  I'm looking forward to dessert tonight!  Before dinner, I got a chance to skype with my sister and now I need to just finish (read start) unpacking from my week back at home!

Get it Together. Please and Thanks

A quick true and false quiz:
The sun rises in the East.
The sun sets in the West.
I'm addicted all things Real Housewives.
Boys can be platonic friends with girls.
If you answered True to all of the above, you'd be me, about a week ago.
I'm one of those girls who makes friends with guys, one of my best friends, until recently, was a guy.  I don't think there is any problem with it.  I think that there are occasionally times where boundaries get crossed and friendships get blurred but in most cases I think that women can be trusted to respect if a guy has a girlfriend or not.  One of my best friends would text me all the time and we were in constant communication.  His girlfriends NEVER had a problem with it.  They all accepted the fact that we were just friends and more like brother and sister than anything else.  Now I don't even talk to him because he's too preoccupied with work and school and his girlfriend.  I don't know, and I don't want to presume, if this is because his new girlfriend has a problem with him having friends who are women or if he's just too busy for his old friends.
I'd just accepted this as a case specific incident.  Little did I know that this is a common occurrence. I recently started talking to an ex of mine, completely platonic and no hidden agenda, and we were getting to be really great friends.  I truly love those friendships where you can be totally honest and open with one another and I really thought that's where this was headed.  So one night I got in a fight with my roommate and needed someone to talk to so I called him.  We ended up meeting up and talking for about 3 or 4 hours!  I laughed and cried and laughed some more.  It was great..... Until I got home...  About a half hour after I left I got a message about how "we need to be careful because we don't want anything to be misconstrued." Since when is two friends talking something to be worried about?  And again this happens.  I went to San Antonio and wanted to hang out with a really good friend of mine.  Well he couldn't hang out for long because he needed to call his girlfriend and smooth things over for hanging out with me.
LADIES.  Are you listening???? Because you really need to listen up here.  TRUST YOUR MAN
If he wants to hang out with someone he was friends with before you started dating, you should trust him to respect you.  And MEN.  Are you listening??? Respect your women.  If you don't trust yourself hanging out with an ex tell the ex upfront so she doesn't get all confused.  I'm telling you, I would rather be told "I don't trust myself hanging out with you" or "My girlfriend would rather us not hangout because she doesn't know you"  HOW HARD IS THAT? Not hard.
So PLEASEE GET YOURSELVES TOGETHER out there.  It's very simple.  Thank you!

Growing Pains

This past week we went back to good ol' San Antonio for some much needed R&R.  All semester I've been swamped!  If I wasn't in class, I was at work and if I wasn't at work, I was doing school work at home.  In addition to my classes and part time job, I had a TON of volunteer projects:  I worked with international students for most of the semester, worked as a tutor in a second grade class full of kids that I adore, and worked with Special Olympics in addition to working with the special needs baseball league here in town.  Needless to say, I needed a break.  

One of the things that was completely evident to me when hanging out with my friends is that we're all growing up now.  All of my friends have their crap in order.  I hate to pull the peter pan card out but, I don't want to grow up.  

As my mom and I were cleaning my room out to make it "look like a grown up lives here," I realized, I don't live there anymore; I only live there maybe 2 months out of the year.  Then I got to hang out with a bunch of my old friends and they all have a direction and know exactly what they want out of life.  I feel like I'm there to an extent but not to the same extent that they are.  I know that I want to teach and that eventually I want a family but I still feel like I'm 18 years old.  It's weird to think that I'm in my 20s (a fact that I've been avoiding for 6 months now) and that the next decade is where so many new and exciting things are going to happen.  

Mother's Day

I have officially lost my faith in new moms in America.  With Mother's day quickly approaching, I am all of a sudden thinking that in my card to my mother, I need to thank her for not only being a great mom to me these past 20 years, but I also feel compelled to thank her for naming me appropriately.  I'm thrilled my mom didn't name me after a popular character in a Danielle Steel novel or some popular character from a new movie at the time.  For goodness sakes, Dances with Wolves was popular the year I was born, I could have been Runs With Scissors, or something like that.  You think I'm kidding here but the office of Social Security posted the top ten baby names for boys and for girls this week.  Here it is:

Top 10 Names for Boys

1. Jacob
2. Ethan
3. Michael
4. Jayden
5. William
6. Alexander
7. Noah
8. Daniel
9. Aiden
10. Anthony

Top 10 Names for Girls

1. Isabella
2. Sophia
3. Emma
4. Olivia
5. Ava
6. Emily
7. Abigail
8. Madison
9. Chloe
10. Mia

The top name for both girls and boys, are both from the horribly written Twilight series.  Now, don't get me wrong, I love the name Isabella and the name Jacob.  But come on, if I met you and you told me your child was named Bella/Isabella/Jacob/Edward/Cullen/etc. I'd immediately lose a little respect for you.  I'd still be friends with you and I'd still talk to you but I'd be disappointed.  So this mother's day, make sure that you thank your mother for naming you appropriately.  Happy Mother's Day!! 

(List courtesy of Yahoo! news.  Link to full article click here)

Professionalism

Here is a Miss Manners post for the week.

Professionalism is something that I take pretty seriously because I have always presented myself as a professional individual.  I am frequently in situations that require a certain level of professionalism.

Professionalism Maxim #1:  Dress Appropriately

When I was observing in an elementary school class, I was a student observer and there was a student teacher also in the classroom.  I showed up in professional attire: business pants, nice blouse and flats.  The student teacher showed up in a jersey/cotton dress from Old Navy that was WAY too low cut.  When attending a professional event, do yourself a favor: DON'T wear CFM heels, DON'T wear something too low cut, if you bend over and fall out, change your top, DON'T wear a short skirt.  What is short?  If you have to take caution walking up stairs, change, If the slit is so far up that you have to take caution when crossing your legs, change.

Professionalism Maxim #2:  Be Careful with your Facebook

This rule is two-fold.  First of all - let's use caution when posting pictures and statuses shall we?  A status like "SOOOOOOOOO Hungover from last night.....wish I could remember the night"  is inappropriate.  Convey the same message a little more covertly like this "woke up with a headache, hate when that happens"  people who were with you the night before will know what you're talking about and people who weren't won't think you're an alcoholic.  Also, potential employers are getting more and more access to your facebook.  Just DON'T do it.  It's not cute; it's trashy.  Now with the pictures.  Do you have pictures of you drinking underage on facebook?  Take them DOWN.  Not making you look like a responsible person.  Got pictures of you making out (or more) with boyfriends/exboyfriends/etc. on facebook?  I'm not saying don't keep pictures like this, just don't post them for everyone to see.  Take them DOWN.  Got pictures with you (or others) using illegal substances in them?  Take them DOWN.  Be responsible here people!!!

Second part of this maxim:  LOG OUT.  Always log out of your facebook page when on someone else's phone/computer/laptop/iTouch/etc.  Where as you might be a responsible person, you might be friends with immature people.  I'm not saying don't be friends around them, I'm saying be responsible about it.  When you leave yourself logged in on public computers, you are asking for someone to post something dirty and awful.  And please, PLEASE don't post statuses for other people.  And especially NEVER EVER post statuses having to do with bodily functions that are typically reserved for the bathroom.  It does NOT make you look like an adult.  It makes you look like a child.  Seriously, I don't want to read about it, NO one wants to.

Professionalism Maxim #3: Always Smile

There may be times when you don't particularly love your job.  It may be doing a task you feel is below you or dealing with unsavory people.  Suck it up.  At the end of the day, that is what you're getting paid to do so you might as well do it with a smile and make it enjoyable for everyone else around. Now, I'm not saying that you should approach work as a Stepford employee.  You can certainly go and complain about your day to your boyfriend/fiance/husband/children/girlfriends/etc.  You want to switch up the group every once in a while, because if all your conversations at home turn into you complaining about work, your family will start to tune it out and get annoyed very quickly.  If you go out for margaritas and a complain fest, be careful; you never know if the boss's best friend/sister/mother-in-law is at the next table.  For those really terrible days, think about a girls night in with margaritas to complain about the boss.

Hoppy Easter!

Every Easter, for as long as I can remember, Mr. E. Bunny would leave clues in plastic eggs for us to find our Easter baskets! Waking up on Easter morning was one of the most exciting days of the year for us!  I was always up first to scope out where all the eggs were hidden.  All the eggs had a little note that was quippy and cleverly crafted by my father.  I'm pretty sure that Easter is the only day of the year that I've ever been able to read my father's handwriting because he always tried so hard to conceal E. Bunny's true identity.

I was really bummed this year when I found out that I wasn't going home for Easter.  Between my parents visiting last weekend and me going home this coming weekend, it just didn't make sense to go home for Easter.

I was disappointed that I was going to miss out on things like dyeing eggs with my parents.  Since we weren't celebrating Easter as a family on Easter this year, our Easter celebration started last weekend with our Easter baskets from our parents last week.  I got a Lemon Parfait Vera Bradley beach towel (my mother loves to feed my Vera Bradley addiction!), candy and a few other things!  Then, we got a box in the mail from my Aunt!  She sent us a box filled with easter grass and all these really neat eggs in shapes like cupcakes, ice cream, etc.  Each egg had a piece of candy in it!  The box was a really nice surprise this week!!

To make Easter special for my sister and I, I decided to make a quiche.  Homemade quiche can be a fairly involved task but I thought it was totally worth it!  This morning I woke up super early to take a shower and get the kitchen ready for me to make the quiche!  I used the Pate Brisee recipe from marthastewart.com and it came together pretty well!  I probably could have put a little more water in it but overall it was pretty good! For the filling, I made it up.  I combined a few different recipes and it ended up something like this:

7 Eggs Beaten
1.75 cups of Heavy Cream
1 Medium Potato - peeled and cubed then fried in butter in a skillet
1.5 handfulls of Mild Cheddar Cheese
6 slices of bacon chopped fairly large

Beat the eggs and add the heavy cream and whisk together.  Once crust is cooled, add the potatoes, bacon, and cheese to egg mixture.  Pour mixture into crust.  (I had extra filling and it spilled over the crust into the sides.  To avoid this, either use a larger pie plate and use more crust OR reduce the eggs to 6 and the  heavy cream to 1.5 cups).  I baked the quiche at 400 degrees for 30 minutes and pushed a knife through the top and it was still really runny so I put it back in for another 5-10 minutes.  After letting the quiche rest for 30 minutes, We cut into it and ENJOYED!  My house now smells wonderful and I can't believe how delicious it was! Also, it reheats really well!!!!! Hoppy Easter to all of my readers!

Ignore the messy plate, this was my second piece!!

ACCEPTED!

I've got some thrilling news all!  I mentioned it in a past post but here it is:  I got ACCEPTED to the Special Education program!!! WHOOP!!!!  I couldn't be more excited and will find out all the details of the program at a meeting on Monday!!!!
In other news, The semester is done in about a week and a half!  WHOOP!!!
Also, Tuesday was Pull Out Day! Yes I know that sounds incredibly dirty, but it's not.  Here at Texas A&M, we have this thing called WHOOP.  When something that you like is mentioned or you're happy about something you WHOOP.  This extreme privilege is reserved for upperclassman.  Well, on Pull Out Day, the whole class gets together (I was there in spirit since I worked) and sophomores can officially "pull out" or WHOOP!
WHOOP!!!!!

fRustRaTEd!!!

So I am more than a bit frustrated.  Let me tell you why.  I have some complaints about people on facebook and it's as simple as that.  I've got one person who keeps sending me invites to facebook events and let me tell you, I don't live in the same state as this person.  Also, you're probably thinking, "Just block them from inviting you" well, I've tried that and it's not working for some reason :(  Also there is some super selfish person on facebook who has made it his birthday for the past two weeks straight.  Rude and selfish if you ask me.  Forget about clogging up my new feed with people wishing you a Happy Birthday? It's just selfish.  Then there is a certain someone who posted a facebook status about how thrilled they are to be a part of the class of 2013 at Texas A&M and so glad that they finally have the ability to WHOOP.  But they don't attend this university.  Also, RUDE.  Okay, mid day complaint about selfish people is done.  By the way, I unfriended them all :) So hopefully no more facebook complaints!!

Is Just Too...

I'm working a special even on Saturday that requires me to look nice.  I've got to wear business pants, a nice shirt in the shade of maroon or white and flats.  You'd think I would have all of these things but I most certainly do not.  All my pants are too long because they're meant to be worn with heels and I don't ever wear white because, HELLO! I spill.  I also don't wear flats hardly ever because I like my heels.
My journey for these items starts with a cute edgy boutique: Merge.  I walked into the store and was not greeted.  In fact, I feel like I'm being judged and ignored.  Apparently I was TOO mainstream for them and not edgy or fashiony enough.
Then I see the store Avenue.  I know that it's a plus size store but so is Dress Barn and I loveeee Dress Barn.  So I walk in and was greeted.  I looked around for a few minutes before I was asked "May I help you with sumthin?"  I asked if they had any maroon shirts and the lady said "No, and if you were lookin for yourself, honey, this is a PLUS size store.  None of this would fit you."  Okay, so now I'm TOO thin, TOO young, and she was TOO rude.
I head over to the mall where I'm either TOO broke, TOO classy, TOO pissed, TOO fat, or TOO big for everything.  I ended up having to spend more money than I had planed but oh well I guess. :/  Now I'm TOO buzzed to care so everyone else can kiss it today.
I generally try to keep the self loathing posts to a minimum but work was less than pleasant, as well as I had homework I was deeply trying to avoid.  Oh well, the day is done.

P.s. a post about my acceptance to the special education program is coming!

Sunshine and Umbrellas!

Yesterday my friend Ryan went to downtown Bryan to take pictures with me.  My mom wanted a picture of me printed on canvas and I didn't like any of the ones that I had especially since I recently cut all my hair off.  We (read Ryan) took TONS of pictures and I keep getting to see a few bit by bit.  Here is one that Ryan took and I edited.

We had an absolute blast and there are quite a few more pictures to come!  We took pictures all over, in front of the library, on some stairs, on the railroad tracks, and mannnny other places.  I'll probably post a few more on here later!  

The Waiting Game:

Hello and welcome to the Waiting Game - filled with the possibility of fantastic prizes!  I'm currently waiting and waiting and waiting to find out whether or not I have been accepted to the Special Education Program.  Now, I have two  plans: Plan A and Plan B.  Plan A is as follows:  get into the Sped program and graduate in 2 years and be genuinely happy for the rest of my life (or at least the next week or so).  Plan B: try and pick up a minor in Creative Studies, be miserable for a semester, graduate a semester late (If i get into the program next semester).  Obviously we're hoping for plan A here.  I'm absolutely not sure how this is going to turn out.  My whole future will be determined by the contents of one envelope to arrive in the mail in the near future.  We'll all find out this week at some point and it is terrible knowing that some of your friends and classmates won't get into the program and that if you don't get in there are always going to be others who do get in that you think are undeserving.  I'm pretty sure that I've been giving myself an ulcer worrying about whether or not I'm getting into the program.  Now I'm going to check the mail for the 3rd time today...

The First of Many...

Teachery blog posts.  Okay, so if you didn't know this before, I am at school studying to be a teacher.  In my teacheresque classes, we learn all these different techniques to inspire learning in all these creative ways.  Here is one of the ways for us to help kids when it comes to art: making scribble cookies.
Scribble Cookies are what you do when you have all the nubs of crayons left and they're too little to draw with.  One way to make them is to put the crayon nubs in a muffin tin and put it in the oven on a VERY LOW heat so that they melt, but not catch fire.  Or you can melt crayons of like colors down in a pot on a low heat on the stove and pour them into candy/soap molds.  My friend Twylla came over to make crayons with me and here are the steps!

Step one:  Peel the wrappers off the crayons.  The easiest way to do that is to soak them ice cold water for about 5-10 minutes.

Step two:  Crack the crayons into smaller pieces so that they melt faster and place in a pot (a teflon coated pan makes things easier) Place the pan on a LOW heat.  

Here we mixed colors, It generally works better if you group and melt like colors together.

Step Three:  Once the crayons are all melted, pour into molds.  We used candy molds for our frogs, butterflies and racecars.  The race car molds were meant for chocolate covered pretzels and we had problems with the crayony mixture spilling out the hole for the pretzel though.  We also used Soap molds for the 'girly' crayons.  Both types of molds are easily found at Hobby Lobby, Michaels or Joanns.  After the melted crayons are poured, immediately wipe out the pan with a damp paper towel.  

Step four:  Let the crayons cool in the molds on a flat surface.  After they have cooled, you can put them in the fridge so that they release easier from the molds.  

Step Five:  Pop crayons out of mold and enjoy coloring with your new scribble cookies!!! :)

These scribble cookies are layered like cakes.  

Enjoy!  

Down the Rabbit Hole

Sometimes you just feel like everything is swirling past you while you're falling blindly.  That's how I have felt for the past couple of days.  I'm in the middle of a whirlwind of things going on.  I've got my first rounds of tests coming up this week so I'm slightly nervous about that.  I've only got 18 days left till my application is due for the professional phase of my program.  I've got mixed emotions on the romantic front.  I'm a little frustrated with my friends.  Just got a Long Island Ice Tea of emotions floatin around in my head.  I wasn't in the mood to cook tonight and I'm seriously lacking self-control this week and it's only Monday...  On the plus side, we got a few shifts off of work this week which was really nice and I've got most of my recommendations for my application done.  Oh well... off to a busy week!

Guns & Roses

When I was a sophomore in high school, one of the theater directors wouldn't start rehearsal until the entire cast and crew went around in a circle and did Guns & roses.  If you've never heard of this, You go around the circle/table/etc. and each person says the worst part of your day, gun, and the best part of your day, a rose.  Some days have more guns than others and visa versa.
Today's Guns:
*  Got in a 'tiff' with one of my best friends last night which meant very little sleep
*  Got to class and found out I forgot my cover sheet for my project
*  Figured out that I'm pretty sure that I didn't do my project correctly
*  Found out that there are OVER 60 people applying for the professional phase that I'm applying to meaning that over half of the applicants aren't getting into the program
*  Had an awkward hour to kill between work and class
*  Made two 2nd graders cry and got one of them an office referral
Today's Roses:
*  My second class ended after only 30 minutes
*  Came home and got the living room picked up
*  Got 2 loads of laundry done
*  Folded my sister's laundry
*  Got the kitchen picked up
*  Made a fabulous dinner homemade dinner!

Parmesan pan-fried/oven baked chicken with broccoli cuts and scalloped potatoes!
I got the Parmesan crusted chicken from Arli, the potatoes were Betty Crocker from a box and the broccoli was from my freezer!

Valentine's Day

For an interesting take on Valentine's day, and a view that I share, visit my sister the wisenheimer here!

As for my Valentine's Day, it was the first one that I've actually attended classes on since middle school. I know this sounds ridiculous because who doesn't lovvvvvve Valentine's day right? I don't like this holiday for the sheer reason that I find it a little exaggerated (read a lot). Call me old-fashioned, but I think a romantic evening at home spent with each other is much better than spending a ton of money on flowers and candy and presents. No don't misinterpret me here, presents are always acceptable no matter how corny the holiday is. But I can tell you that getting a thoughtful present on March 16th for just the simple reason that you care about me means a thousand times more to me and us infinitely more romantic than retrieving a cliched gift on February 14th. Obviously, this is just my opinion.

 I spent my day embracing the holiday by making cookies and cupcakes for those poor unfortunate singles who had to work last night. This is what I ended up with: giant heart shaped sugar cookies with royal icing for decoration and applesauce spice cupcakes with an almond scented cinnamon maple frosting. They were a HIT at work! The left over cupcakes went home with a couple of girls to accompany their Valentine's day celebration. As for the extra cookies, I've got the left overs and am planning on taking them to some friends today as a belated Valentine's treat!

Shoot First, Ask Questions Later

Yesterday, I went to Austin with Arli and Phil to go bug collecting!!!  Now, most of you may be thinking "Bug collecting?? Didn't I read a post about how creeped out you are by cockroaches??? Why on God's green earth would you be going bug collecting?!"  The real  reason I went was because I LOVVEE road trips and with all of the work for school, work at work, and field work I've been doing, it leaves very little time to have some fun and hang out.  So we headed out in the mid morning and got back later that evening!  Here are some pictures of our fabulous outing!! :)

Arli's Road Trip Face!! Attractive no?!

This is me helping with the bug 

Look at me!! I'm touching bug stuff!! (OK so it's just a jar with Bug preserver stuff inside but hey, it's a start!)

Beautiful little creek that we trespassed to see.  Also, during this little adventure, we learned that armadillos can hop!  Who knew?

Two Best Friends :)

Happily Married Couple!

Random car door on the bank of the creek...

Arli: "It looks like Mickey Mouse died here..."

This property not only had bullet signs in their "no trespassing" sign, this bus also had the windows shot out....

The two lovely goats and sheep that were chillin when we left!!

 All in all, it was a lovely day and we had such a good time and can't wait for our Spring Break trip to NEW ORLEANS!!!  It's exactly a month away and I can't wait because by then, I will be 100% complete with my application to the professional phase of my program!  Also, we'll be 100% relaxing away from all the stresses associated with my life in College Station!