Almost

I cannot believe classes are almost over. Only a week and a half to go! Even though this has definitely been my most busy and stressful semester, I have had so much fun being with all my friends/pod-mates, and getting to feel more included on campus. I will actually be fairly sad when it is all over since I won't be living with my best friends in the fall. But- I will also be really excited when this semester is over since my brother will be here in the fall, I won't be living in a dorm, and I will be headed to Europe in less than a month!!! I cannot wait to experience the different cultures abroad and learn neat things about different places, food, and people.

Other than having to finish up a database project, I am pretty much settling down for coasting through the last week of school and into finals. I have been so blessed and I'm so thankful for the support from my amazing family, David, and also that I have such fun friends that help to take my mind off of the stressful things in life. I am also very thankful for my job. It is amazing to be able to go in to work whenever I want, for as long as I want. There is no way I would be able to work a job right now that had a fixed schedule. God is great.

Today.

So today I am just not all that happy. I'm not totally sure why, I just feel like I'm trying to trudge uphill against the masses or something. I told myself I wasn't going to write a blog that was anything but positive, but I just couldn't help it today. Today is also just one of those days where I have no patience and feel pretty anti-social. It is probably just because school is crazy and hectic right now, and my grades aren't all I want them to be, or that I miss my David terribly and feel kinda lonely.

I know it isn't good to live in the future and wish the present was over, but who wouldn't wish they were at home in the summer with their loved ones instead of being at school struggling to get 3 different projects done this week?

If you read this, just pray for me to have a better attitude about things, and to have patience and love in my heart until the future does inevitably arrive.

Easter

I am so glad I have Jesus in my life. No matter how bad things may get, or how how well things are going for me, I know I will always be blessed with the love and comfort that having a relationship with Jesus gives. Even though my relationship with God seems as if it has become a little weakened this past year, I am taking the time to remind myself to try and make it better and stronger. I love Jesus and believe he can do incredible things in a person's life. Hope you all had a wonderful Easter!

Happy

I feel really happy today, probably because the weather has been perfect all day. I also got my first pedicure today =) It was lovely and now my little toes are lovely too.

I am so glad I get to go home for Easter tomorrow. Just thinking about Easter always makes me think of little kids searching for eggs, a good church service, a delicious lunch, and being outside on a wonderfully sunny day. Yay! I just love hummingbirds, don't you?

Strange

I feel kind of strange today. I really just want to sit outside and contemplate things and relax, but it is a little chilly outside today so I can't really do that. I also have a big project due on Thursday that I wanted to finish tonight, but I have several questions about it, so I have to wait until after I talk to my professor tomorrow afternoon. But I know I will keep having this nagging feeling that I should be working on it.

This is the first semester I have really been stressed about school work. It is also the first time that even though I study really hard, I am not making the grades I wanted. Oh well. I just need to calm down and take a breath... and remember that in 30 years, I will be able to look back on everything that is currently happening and realize it was all ok and happened for a reason.

Home

You know, there really is no place like home. Even though I spend a great deal of time here at college with all of my good friends, I would really rather be at home than anywhere else. I love being with my family and being involved in their lives. It is also pretty hard to have a boyfriend when he lives 180 miles away. But I will say, I think we have mastered the long distance relationship =)

I went home this past weekend, and it was amazing. David and I took Kathryn and Sydney down to the lake on Friday afternoon and it was so much fun. On saturday, my mom cooked me my favorite meals, and I just relaxed with everyone and had a super nice day.

School can be really stressful sometimes, and it is so nice to get away and have things back the way they used to be for a couple days.

Thursdays are always great.

I have always loved Thursday nights at school- they pretty much are just like Friday, except better because all of my podmates are actually in town. I also never have homework on Thursdays.

Today was amazing because:

• My new baby cousin was born!
• My mom drove through unexpectedly and I got to eat a delicious lunch with her
• Work wasn't too bad
• My friends completely surprised me with a pre-birthday dinner! They also gave me a gift certificate to get my first pedicure/manicure!
• I did laundry, packed, took a shower, and wrote a short bible paper all in about 2 hours. I love feeling like I accomplished a lot
• I did a little better on a test than I thought I did
  
• And now I am watching Lord of the Rings with my best friend!

Some days I just feel really blessed and happy to be alive, and today is one of them. Here is a painting from my favorite artist, Natasha Wescoat

Thoughts

• I've decided I really want to take up photography again. I always have been so interested in it and love when other people take really cool pictures!
• I've decided I really like girly things... girly colors, clothes, weird little phrases...
• I had delicious BBQ chicken tonight.
• My room got completely covered with foil today for April Fools. It was amazing. This picture only gives you a small glimpse at the chaos and overwhelming shiny-ness.
• I had a several people ask me if I was sick or told me I looked really tired today. Don't you love that?
• I am so blessed. I have such amazing people in my life.
  

Writing

So last night, three of my podmates and I decided we were going to start writing the whole New Testament, starting with Matthew. We set a goal of writing one chapter every day. I think this will be really cool, because #1, I love writing things. #2, I will actually read the Bible every day. #3, It is something we can do together as friends that is encouraging and fun. We were talking about how it makes us feel like monks who used to write the entire bible with a quill and parchment.

It is freezing outside today! What is with this weather? 40 degrees in the morning to 80 degrees in the afternoon. What is a person supposed to wear?

Craziness.

So today I got my class ring in the mail. It was kinda weird because it made me realize that I really am graduating from college next spring. I will have to get out and find a real job, not just working at Dippin' Dots or at the library on my campus. I will also have to make the final decision about where to go to graduate school and arrange all of that. I'm not really worried about any of it, its just weird to think about because I still feel SOOO young, and I am.

Random thought: While scrolling through random blogs, I noticed most of them were in a foreign language. How socially unaware I was to assume that it's mostly Americans who use sites like Blogger. Going to Europe and learning about so many different cultures will be so good for me.

Doesn't this look delicious and remind you of summer?

Spring!

I am so glad spring is finally here. My mood always gets so much better when it is not cold and all of the trees look dead.

I've decided that even though I have to work today and do a ton of homework, today is going to be a good day. I got to wake up and get pretty for church, go with a good friend, and it is just beautiful outside! I can't wait to go about my day and see what new adventures it brings!

Christmas

Today was the last day of classes! This semester actually went by really fast, and I have finally gotten used to being away from home (after 3 semesters of college. Ha!)

I live in a "pod"- four rooms, each with each two people, all connecting to a living room. And the past couple of weeks, we have all gotten really close, mainly because of a "competition". We started decorating for Christmas in our pod, and then one day, we saw that the pod adjoining to ours had copied our ideas and was trying to have more decorations than us. Well, we definitely could not have that. So for a week now, me and my podmates sit in the living room every night coloring christmas things, making paper chains, and cutting out snowflakes. I feel like I am in kindergarten again. haha. We have garland around all of the doors, 8 stockings on the wall, and lights everwhere. We have definitely won the christmas decoration contest.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!