This week has been crazy. Last week was crazy. Life is just busy right now. Above all other worries, my grandfather is currently in the hospital following some heart surgery. Please keep him and a speedy recovery in your prayers.

Much love and many blessings!

P.S. November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, so take care of yourself and take care of your lungs!!!

Have a Spook-tacular Halloween!
(I like Halloween puns a little too much.)

October is almost over!

I can't believe it's almost the end of October and I haven't written since the beginning of September! School has swept me away in a cloud of homework, exams, and just plain busy work. Right now I'm in the process of preparing for another round of midterm exams and Halloween :)
Actually, I suppose right now I'm procrastinating and have been for the last several hours. Sometimes you just get burnt out, you know?

I have officially decided on a major and am just waiting to hear back about whether or not I was accepted into my program! Also, after this semester I will officially be completed with my minor. All of this is very exciting, considering I've been swimming in a pool of indecision since I was a freshman. It's nice knowing I finally have some direction as to my career. I realize nothing is set in stone and I may end up doing something entirely different than my major may suggest, but once I find out if I was accepted or not, a definite weight will be lifted off of my shoulders!

Just as I stated in an earlier post, Autumn is the shortest lived of all the seasons and every year I am disappointed by how quickly it comes and goes. We had our first snow fall in the beginning of October and just this past Friday we had nothing short of a small blizzard! I truly hate winter driving and Friday I saw far too many cars in the ditches. Be safe on the roads this year everyone! And have a Happy Halloween!!

Busy Bee

Finally, I am settled in my new (old) house. It has so much character compared to my old apartment. It's creaky, slanted, and full of life! I love it!
Summer is coming to a close and fall is quickly approaching. It is my favorite season, but also the most short-lived of all the seasons. I went to the fair yesterday and ate my fill of fried foods, and boy was it delicious :)
My classes begin tomorrow and for the first time in a long time I feel completely unprepared for school. My summer was crazy full and went by really quickly, so my mind isn't exactly in school mode yet. Hopefully it gets there sometime today!
The next time I write I'm sure it will be all about school adventures (or misadventures...we shall see).

Happy Labor Day!

Wish List

I think it's important to make a list of things you hope to accomplish in life.
Here are just a few of mine (I have a larger list, but it is packed away at this moment since I am moving very soon):

1. Ride in a hot air balloon
2. See a moose
3. Skydive--this may very soon happen...my cousin has recently asked me to do it with her in the near future!
4. Travel Europe
5. Learn sign language--this is going to happen in about a month...I signed up for a class!!

And here are a few things that I can't believe I had the chance to do, but I did and can now check them off my list (yay!):

1. Watch a volcano erupt
2. Go whitewater rafting--I sat in the front of the raft!!!
3. Sing karaoke--this may not sound like much, but I can't carry a tune and get immensely shy in front of an audience (I don't even sing in front of my family)
4. Go parasailing
5. Live with a family in a foreign country--I studied abroad and the chance to experience this...it was interesting at times, but completely worth it!
6. Swim at the base of a waterfall
7. Adopt a pet from the animal shelter--this August marks the one-year anniversary of my second dog's adoption and we plan to celebrate with a special dinner of dog food in a can (for the pups of course), a rare treat :)

A Child's Hope

Children are so amazing in miriad ways, but very much so in their unwavering sense of hope. When we're young and constantly discovering new things life seems so open and full of possibility. As we age, we often lose sight of that hope and begin to narrow our lives down and often try to mold ourselves to fit another person's idea of perfection. I work with children and just the other day a child built a duck out of Legos. He came over to me with his Lego duck, quacking, and introduced me to his "rubber ducky." He then asked me to guard it and make sure nobody destroyed it. I was a vigilant guard, but unfortunately play time came to an end and the toys had to be put away.
Later on in the day, while still mourning the loss of "Rubber Ducky," the little boy came over to me and suddenly smiled. He grabbed his swimming towel and told me that it was ok his ducky was destroyed because, "I've got duck spirit." He then made a sort of beak out of his hand and his towel and once again resumed his quacking. His sense of hope was refreshing and brightened my day; I hope it brightens yours as well!

God's glory in a summer sunset.

Hello There!

This year I'm on a mission to squeeze everything out of life that I can because, let's face it, we only get one earthly life and I want to live mine to the fullest. This past November (election night, actually), my grandfather passed away. He meant the world to me, always will, and his passing made me realize what a life he truly lived. Grandpa always had amazing stories to tell, as does my grandmother still, and I realized I want to live a life worthy of stories to tell my grandchildren. My grandparents have been through so much; the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, losing spouses, children, parents, collectively raising 20 kids (between my two sets of grandparents), immigration...the list goes on and on, yet not once have I ever heard any of them complain about the hardships they've faced. All of them have come through those tough times stronger than they were before and full of experience and memories. With the love and support of my faith, family, and friends, I'm determined to start living a life worthy of stories to tell my children, grandchildren, and (hopefully) great-grandchildren!
I think writing this blog will really help me keep track of where I go over the next year. Looking back over old pictures, or even though my iTunes library, I can see different phases of my life, but I think it will be a neat experiment to keep a written record here. I've never been good at writing in diaries or journals, so this will be a challenge. Once school picks up, I'm sure it will be easy to let this fall by the wayside, but I'm really hoping that doesn't happen. This year is going to be a big one for me...I'm almost done with college and have to start making some big decisions regarding my future. I'm curious to see how much (or how little) I grow over this next year. Hopefully I come out on the other side proud of who I am and what I've accomplished in the next 365 days!