The phrase you don't know what you have until it's gone has never rung more true. I have told you that my bff is in Gambia, Africa. She has been there for about three weeks. When she lived here we saw each other maybe once a week, a little less than that when we got really busy with our lives, but she was always a short message away. Now I find that I have so many things that I want to tell someone, of course her, and she isn't there to tell. Also, I want to know what she is doing! I have been getting e-mail updates from her parents and let me say when I get those e-mails it is like Christmas! The second I get the e-mail I share her adventures with anyone in ear shot! Sorry for those strangers that hear about my endless stories of some random person you have never know. :)
I think about what she could be doing and then I find myself wanting to know what could be in store for me. I have had the restless, there's got to be something more in this life feeling before. But haven't had it for awhile. Until now, when I know, despite not hearing everyday, she is having adventures everyday! I know she is learning, serving, and sacrificing things I take for granted everyday. I have always wanted to be like her, her determination, her flexibility, and her independence. Now I want to have a heart like her. I want to serve. I want to make a difference. I don't want the repetition of doing the same thing everyday and maybe once in a while feel like it means something. However, on the flip side of that, I freak out when there is change. :) Complicated I know. The worst part is the one person who would actually get all of this rambling, is across the ocean right now. :)
Friday, July 19, 2013
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
A month without...
I have seen on several Pinterest boards that people set a month goal of going without something. For instance the month of January- no pop, February- no fast food, March- no alcohol and so on depending what things you think you need to limit yourself on a little bit. I hadn't found anything because I know if I say a month with no chocolate or candy it's going to be torture and I will not meet the goal. However I do believe that I can eat healthier than what I am and it's only a month, you can do anything for a month right? Isn't that the saying? Oh wait the saying goes you can do anything for a minute which is usually my mantra while running long distances. Well I guess this will be a lot of minutes put together but he I think I can do it!
So I have decided to change it just a little bit. I am going to for the remaining month of July and all of August not shop on the inner isle at the grocery store and I will not get groceries at WalMart or Target- I buy waay too much bad stuff at those super stores.
I feel this will be beneficial because if I want sweets or something I will need to find a healthy alternative in the outside isles which in my mind are filled with more whole and less processed foods. For instance your meat and cheese and fruits and veggies all on the outside of the store. However- I don't know how your Hy-Vee is set-up buy mine has the ice cream isle on the outside near the cheese. Hello to my go-to intense sweet craving- Blue Bunny Personal's -Frozen Yogurt!!
So for those of you that would like to join me on my trip around the grocery store and not through feel free. If you have never heard of this month long challenge that I listed at the beginning- pick a month, pick a pleasure that you indulge in way to much and try to go without it. Let's do this!
So I have decided to change it just a little bit. I am going to for the remaining month of July and all of August not shop on the inner isle at the grocery store and I will not get groceries at WalMart or Target- I buy waay too much bad stuff at those super stores.
I feel this will be beneficial because if I want sweets or something I will need to find a healthy alternative in the outside isles which in my mind are filled with more whole and less processed foods. For instance your meat and cheese and fruits and veggies all on the outside of the store. However- I don't know how your Hy-Vee is set-up buy mine has the ice cream isle on the outside near the cheese. Hello to my go-to intense sweet craving- Blue Bunny Personal's -Frozen Yogurt!!
So for those of you that would like to join me on my trip around the grocery store and not through feel free. If you have never heard of this month long challenge that I listed at the beginning- pick a month, pick a pleasure that you indulge in way to much and try to go without it. Let's do this!
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
One of my many "moments"
After turning 25 this year I feel like I have been having more and more "moments" of forgetful/ridiculousness. This is an example of one a few years ago- prior to the big 25 that I was reminded of today.
If you look at previous posts there was one where I almost caught my apartment that I shared with my best friend on fire. I love to cook but I had a major "moment" of error when I wanted to make beer battered green beans. Since that moment I have been a bit more careful with cooking.
I had to make hard boiled eggs. I put the eggs in the pan with water and cranked them up on high. A few minutes later I heard some "chip, chip chip..." coming from the pan. First though- the eggs I just bought from Hy-Vee have live chicks in them and I am slowly killing them!!!! If you also know me I am not a fan of bird of any kind. This was a pretty traumatic experience at time. Thank goodness I had a roommate at the time and she got home when I was mid freak-out- she is soo good at coming in right at the perfect moment. :) Also thank goodness she is science brained and was able to discuss with me what was happening in my pan. However, this also spurred our conversation and research project on how do you have one egg that is edible and one that has a baby chick in it. Everyone laughs because they think it is ridiculous that two 25 year old educated women were so concerned and confused about this. Before you judge look it up... it is complicated!
This reminiscing of old times was brought on when I was missing my old roommate and while I was making hard boiled eggs- deviled eggs, for a 4th of July dinner with my boyfriends family. Yes, I am no longer an independent, do as I please girl. I've been tied down a bit. More on that later. I've been battling with how to incorporate that into my blog. More of how it's changed my life than who this man is. :)
Hope you had a good little laugh! Happy 4th of July week!
If you look at previous posts there was one where I almost caught my apartment that I shared with my best friend on fire. I love to cook but I had a major "moment" of error when I wanted to make beer battered green beans. Since that moment I have been a bit more careful with cooking.
I had to make hard boiled eggs. I put the eggs in the pan with water and cranked them up on high. A few minutes later I heard some "chip, chip chip..." coming from the pan. First though- the eggs I just bought from Hy-Vee have live chicks in them and I am slowly killing them!!!! If you also know me I am not a fan of bird of any kind. This was a pretty traumatic experience at time. Thank goodness I had a roommate at the time and she got home when I was mid freak-out- she is soo good at coming in right at the perfect moment. :) Also thank goodness she is science brained and was able to discuss with me what was happening in my pan. However, this also spurred our conversation and research project on how do you have one egg that is edible and one that has a baby chick in it. Everyone laughs because they think it is ridiculous that two 25 year old educated women were so concerned and confused about this. Before you judge look it up... it is complicated!
This reminiscing of old times was brought on when I was missing my old roommate and while I was making hard boiled eggs- deviled eggs, for a 4th of July dinner with my boyfriends family. Yes, I am no longer an independent, do as I please girl. I've been tied down a bit. More on that later. I've been battling with how to incorporate that into my blog. More of how it's changed my life than who this man is. :)
Hope you had a good little laugh! Happy 4th of July week!
Monday, June 24, 2013
The pages are turning, whether we are ready to read the next page or not...
The time has come. The inevitable that I cannot stop.
I think back to when I went to college I was sad I was happy. I was out on my own. Freedom was finally mine! After years of acting as if I was an adult the time had finally come. Put on your big girl pants and show the world your determined face. Thankfully when I went into this uncharted territory I managed to have some VERY awesome people enter my life. People sometimes make comments about how much in debt I am due to choosing the private college that I attended, the truth is, I cannot imagine my life any other way. I met so many people that I cannot live without today. My education was priceless.
I met a woman who I think the world of! When we first met I was hanging out with her group of friends because I desperately needed someone in my life. I love being alone and doing things my way, but I knew I wouldn't survive on my own in this world away from my family. So I tagged along. That is exactly what I felt like, a tag along. I didn't really fit in but these people were fun! I wanted to fit in and maybe if I tagged along enough, they would just accept me. The awkward college freshman that I was. :)
Well, about seven years later one of those people just couldn't shake me. I tagged on very closely to her. We were college roommates, we were post college roommates. We are best friends and we have decided since God didn't give me a sister and she could use one more sister, that is what we are. Sisters at heart. Would do anything for, share anything with, be each others right arm if needed.
For the past 5 years she has been my rock. When I would freak out about life, she was there. When I could have unbelievably great luck, she is who I shared it with, When I hit walls, she was standing there ready to bandage my life back together with me. She is so level headed, but also the life of every party. She is brilliant. She either knows the answer or she will find the answer. She is organized and task oriented. Put a task, or challenge in front of her and she will find a way.
I guess that is why this is all happening. (I make it sound like a bad thing. It's really not.) She is off to take on the world. At lease a different part of it. She will be off to Africa to work for the Peace Corps. She leaves today to start the adventure. I am very sad that she is leaving, but I am sooo excited to share her adventures through e-mails, blogs, face time, letters, and maybe even a trip for myself. I can't wait to share what she is doing with the world and be able to say, that is my best friend out there. People say you take on different characteristics of those you are around the most. I won't be around her for the next two years, but I hope I can be just like her. Being fearless, and legen...wait for it dary. :) A little HIMYM humor, one of our favorite shows.
Bottom line, lesson to be learned here. I am so proud of her, she has taught me soo much. I can't wait to see what God is going to teach her in Africa which in turn she will teach the rest of us. I also can't wait to see how God is going to shape me and work in my life now that my rock is floating overseas. These next two years will be a great chapter for her and me.
I think back to when I went to college I was sad I was happy. I was out on my own. Freedom was finally mine! After years of acting as if I was an adult the time had finally come. Put on your big girl pants and show the world your determined face. Thankfully when I went into this uncharted territory I managed to have some VERY awesome people enter my life. People sometimes make comments about how much in debt I am due to choosing the private college that I attended, the truth is, I cannot imagine my life any other way. I met so many people that I cannot live without today. My education was priceless.
I met a woman who I think the world of! When we first met I was hanging out with her group of friends because I desperately needed someone in my life. I love being alone and doing things my way, but I knew I wouldn't survive on my own in this world away from my family. So I tagged along. That is exactly what I felt like, a tag along. I didn't really fit in but these people were fun! I wanted to fit in and maybe if I tagged along enough, they would just accept me. The awkward college freshman that I was. :)
Well, about seven years later one of those people just couldn't shake me. I tagged on very closely to her. We were college roommates, we were post college roommates. We are best friends and we have decided since God didn't give me a sister and she could use one more sister, that is what we are. Sisters at heart. Would do anything for, share anything with, be each others right arm if needed.
For the past 5 years she has been my rock. When I would freak out about life, she was there. When I could have unbelievably great luck, she is who I shared it with, When I hit walls, she was standing there ready to bandage my life back together with me. She is so level headed, but also the life of every party. She is brilliant. She either knows the answer or she will find the answer. She is organized and task oriented. Put a task, or challenge in front of her and she will find a way.
I guess that is why this is all happening. (I make it sound like a bad thing. It's really not.) She is off to take on the world. At lease a different part of it. She will be off to Africa to work for the Peace Corps. She leaves today to start the adventure. I am very sad that she is leaving, but I am sooo excited to share her adventures through e-mails, blogs, face time, letters, and maybe even a trip for myself. I can't wait to share what she is doing with the world and be able to say, that is my best friend out there. People say you take on different characteristics of those you are around the most. I won't be around her for the next two years, but I hope I can be just like her. Being fearless, and legen...wait for it dary. :) A little HIMYM humor, one of our favorite shows.
Bottom line, lesson to be learned here. I am so proud of her, she has taught me soo much. I can't wait to see what God is going to teach her in Africa which in turn she will teach the rest of us. I also can't wait to see how God is going to shape me and work in my life now that my rock is floating overseas. These next two years will be a great chapter for her and me.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Reflecting on past reflections
This week marked the end of my 3rd year teaching in the same school district. Each year has been a little bit different with grade levels and responsibility and that will be changing again in my 4th year, but it makes me a little bit more rounded of an individual in my teaching abilities for the day when I decide to make new leaps and bounds.
We are starting to go 1:1 as a school district meaning every kid will have technology in their hands and we will try to incorporate these devices into daily learning to help mold our kids even more in their future- which will be filled with technology. While at a professional development day I stumbled up on a new tool to use on Google and I found some documents that appeared from out of nowhere. -this verified what I have been told and telling my students "what you put on the web is out there and will continue to be out there. You can't erase all the footprints you leave on the web." Seriously this document that I found was from a Thanksgiving post a few years ago. While I realize it is on my blog and will forever be on the blog I had forgotten about this rough draft that was saved in some random space on the web.
Here is my reflection one Thanksgiving after my decision to take my first ever teaching job.
God then laughed at me a bit and said his plan was a little town of Webster City. Thank goodness He takes care of the details and I don’t need to worry (although yes, I do). I didn't know why he sent me there but I knew after I accepted this job and nearly bounced out the front entrance this was going to be something good. (Yes, I actually remember saying with tears running down my face from fear, excitement and just being very overwhelmed, “this is going to be something good.”) While I was content with the feeling of “something good” I still knew I wanted to know/ find my purpose. Why was I sent here? What am I suppose to be doing? Why, How, When, For how long???? The questions still come but I have my amazing family and friends that remind me not all the answers are there right now and not all the answers will come, even in my lifetime. But as a great friend once told me, in summary of course I cannot remember the actual quote, “My faith in God frees me from needing to know all the details.”
I am still looking for some of those answers but a few have come. Why am I here? Of course for the kids that I have had the privilege of being part of their lives for 180 days. For being near my best friend who could be my support and family in this uncertain chapter. For bringing me to meet the man of my dreams. I still don't know the exact purpose, duration and other details but I do know that this is still "something good".
Year 4 to commence in two months. Maybe in 2+ years I will stumble up on this entry again and have a reflection on past reflections of reflections. either way, life is still chugging along and I am pretty content where God is leading me. :)
We are starting to go 1:1 as a school district meaning every kid will have technology in their hands and we will try to incorporate these devices into daily learning to help mold our kids even more in their future- which will be filled with technology. While at a professional development day I stumbled up on a new tool to use on Google and I found some documents that appeared from out of nowhere. -this verified what I have been told and telling my students "what you put on the web is out there and will continue to be out there. You can't erase all the footprints you leave on the web." Seriously this document that I found was from a Thanksgiving post a few years ago. While I realize it is on my blog and will forever be on the blog I had forgotten about this rough draft that was saved in some random space on the web.
Here is my reflection one Thanksgiving after my decision to take my first ever teaching job.
God then laughed at me a bit and said his plan was a little town of Webster City. Thank goodness He takes care of the details and I don’t need to worry (although yes, I do). I didn't know why he sent me there but I knew after I accepted this job and nearly bounced out the front entrance this was going to be something good. (Yes, I actually remember saying with tears running down my face from fear, excitement and just being very overwhelmed, “this is going to be something good.”) While I was content with the feeling of “something good” I still knew I wanted to know/ find my purpose. Why was I sent here? What am I suppose to be doing? Why, How, When, For how long???? The questions still come but I have my amazing family and friends that remind me not all the answers are there right now and not all the answers will come, even in my lifetime. But as a great friend once told me, in summary of course I cannot remember the actual quote, “My faith in God frees me from needing to know all the details.”
I am still looking for some of those answers but a few have come. Why am I here? Of course for the kids that I have had the privilege of being part of their lives for 180 days. For being near my best friend who could be my support and family in this uncertain chapter. For bringing me to meet the man of my dreams. I still don't know the exact purpose, duration and other details but I do know that this is still "something good".
Year 4 to commence in two months. Maybe in 2+ years I will stumble up on this entry again and have a reflection on past reflections of reflections. either way, life is still chugging along and I am pretty content where God is leading me. :)
Sunday, June 2, 2013
A new found blog purpose
For some reason I haven't had the ambition nor inspiration to blog. Until now. I had thought that I was sick of blogging because #1 who wants to read about me. #2 nothing important is going on in my life. #3 It bothers me that I felt like all I was writing about was my day- I had pancakes for breakfast, or complaining about something- no need for an example on this one. Or I turn this blog into a personal work out keep me accountable thing and then I fizzle out.
So with a new found purpose I will hopefully be blogging more, however not on a regular basis just when I feel moved to do so.
I realized after having a girls weekend that there was nothing special about the weekend, except the people who I was with. That being said I was inspired to take my everyday ordinary life find some transforming, inspirational things and post them.
A quote that has inspired this is: "Do not live on default. Live a life aware of those around you." So instead of just passing through life telling you about my humdrum day. I will seek to look deeper into those days and find meaning for myself and for those around me.
Enjoy!
So with a new found purpose I will hopefully be blogging more, however not on a regular basis just when I feel moved to do so.
I realized after having a girls weekend that there was nothing special about the weekend, except the people who I was with. That being said I was inspired to take my everyday ordinary life find some transforming, inspirational things and post them.
A quote that has inspired this is: "Do not live on default. Live a life aware of those around you." So instead of just passing through life telling you about my humdrum day. I will seek to look deeper into those days and find meaning for myself and for those around me.
Enjoy!
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Sitting back
Well, I have become lazy and therefore I have not posted in a while. Sorry folks. Something about it being dark a little after 5, cold weather and no ambition that have not combined well for this lady. Hello winter pudgy, you are here faarrr too soon!
The few things I have been productive on were a door decoration, and winterizing my apartment (aka putting plastic on the windows, flannel sheets and heat pads are on all beds)
My door decoration was inspired by Pinterest, of course. It was fun, time consuming and it hurt...a lot. You see, I realized after I had begun that I would need a lot of hot glue. I burned my fingers sooo much. However I survived and my door is sooo cute.
What you will need:
Twine
letter of choice- to big it will take a ton of twine, to small and it will be difficult to cover
hot glue
ribbon
felt for making flowers.
Now in additional news. I have a movie review for all of you. Disney's movie Brave was a whirlwind of emotions for a children's animated movie.
However, I loved it! ( partially because I secretly want her bright red, curly hair) I definitely think I will be considering buying it if I ever have a daughter someday. It focuses on the difference of a little girl and her mom and how in the end all are views are correct when taken time to look at the deeper meanings. Also it was my first time ever going to a $1 theater, which was actually $2 due to inflation. :)
Even bigger news.
The few things I have been productive on were a door decoration, and winterizing my apartment (aka putting plastic on the windows, flannel sheets and heat pads are on all beds)
My door decoration was inspired by Pinterest, of course. It was fun, time consuming and it hurt...a lot. You see, I realized after I had begun that I would need a lot of hot glue. I burned my fingers sooo much. However I survived and my door is sooo cute.
What you will need:
Twine
letter of choice- to big it will take a ton of twine, to small and it will be difficult to cover
hot glue
ribbon
felt for making flowers.
Now in additional news. I have a movie review for all of you. Disney's movie Brave was a whirlwind of emotions for a children's animated movie.
However, I loved it! ( partially because I secretly want her bright red, curly hair) I definitely think I will be considering buying it if I ever have a daughter someday. It focuses on the difference of a little girl and her mom and how in the end all are views are correct when taken time to look at the deeper meanings. Also it was my first time ever going to a $1 theater, which was actually $2 due to inflation. :)
Even bigger news.
This crazy kid, not me people, is moving back to Iowa. Wooohooo!! Even better and bigger news the reason he is moving back to Iowa is because of a job, which is 20 min. away from me!! Yup watch out surrounding area, we may be old but we still have some of our crazy left in us. However, those crazy activities need to be done prior to 9 pm. I have a bedtime now. :)
So in conclusion. I may be feeling "lazy" However, it might just be content being confused for lazy. OR the end of my 24th year of life may be kicking my butt and really preparing me for year 25 aka...old age ;)
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