A push and a shove....

"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever."

Sometimes I need a gentle reminder that HE is good. Sometimes I need a shove.

Either way, I'm learning to trust in the Lord and seek him first, not last.

2013 Goals and Resolutions

When I was a wee little one (ok, pretty much until last year) my parents made my brother and I sit down and write out our goals. Let me tell you... these were not ordinary new year's goals. My parents were goal task masters (If you're reading this mom, I'm just kidding). But seriously.

We had to set goals that were realistic, achievable, quantifiable, etc. etc. etc. AND we couldn't just write them out- they had to cover a broad range of categories. Spiritual, physical, emotional/social, and cognitive... I think.

When we were younger, I didn't mind it (probably because I was a chronic over-pleaser). My brother, on the other hand, HATED it. He would mumble off his goals like my parents were making him eat broccoli (they did that too us too).

Now that I'm older, I've made some goals and resolutions for the upcoming year. The funny thing is, they almost meet all the requirements my parents had... and I did it all on my own. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for your training and upbringing. :)

2013 Goals and Resolutions:

Create a Bible reading plan or find a study and do it consistently

Continue community group

Work out 3 times per week- cardio/strength training twice and yoga once

Meatless Monday (one day per week no meat)

Blog twice per month (at least)

Take more pictures AND upload/organize them

Craft more

Continue to check off movies from Best Picture Academy Awards list 

Coming up in the next few weeks, I will let all two of my followers know what I have been up to, just in case they want to read about instead of just living it with me.

On Time

I am once again the proud owner of a working alarm clock! The level of happiness this brings me is slightly embarrassing.... but that's ok.

One morning I woke up feeling rather rested. Apparently, my alarm clock decided to just become a clock... so I got an extra hour and a half of sleep- CRAZY!

Enter the INCESSANT question: "Your cell phone doesn't have an alarm?"

Yes.... yes. My cell phone does have an alarm... but I can't use it because I stress out that there's been "user error" and I am unable to get restful sleep. 

Finding a black alarm clock under $15 was no easy task. Target City didn't have one (who wants to pay $20 for something to nag you to get up in the morning... no thanks), Ross didn't have one, and CVS didn't have one (they only had multi-colored LED lights). If you've tried all of those places in West LA, you've pretty much run out of options.

Enter Big Lots!!!! 

I love you, my little black radio alarm clock with a dimmer. 

AND, it has two alarm settings, for a "Mr." and a "Mrs." if you catch my drift. 

SCORE! 

Wardrobe Malfunctions

Monday: Wore my skirt sideways from the time I got dressed, all the way up to campus, and 1/2 way through my first class.

Tuesday: Wore my shirt backwards THE ENTIRE DAY without noticing until around 10 pm when my neck felt itchy and I saw the tag.

Wednesday: Mascara on one set of eyelashes but not the other.

All things considered, I would say I'm handling my school load pretty well. I even managed to finish BOTH of my papers due this week a day (or three) before their deadlines! Now if only I could get a grip on my wardrobe and grooming habits!

Studying Music and Musicals

Wellll, we're heading into third week here in the quarter system. This year has already been choc-full-of-busy. During the very first week of school when I posted this blog I felt like I was in Week 8. Since we're now in Week 3, that means we're technically feeling like we're in Week 10 and about to head into finals. EEEK!!!

I've been working with some wonderful planners on some wonderful group papers. The "planning world" works collaboratively, so our professors have us write papers that way. Honestly, I think it's a (very smart) excuse for them to grade fewer papers. The thing about partner papers is... they take more than TWICE as long to write.... which is counter-intuitive because you're doing "half" the work, right? Wrong.

All that goes to say, I have been listening to a lot of Pandora lately. I highly suggest the following playlist: The Lumineers with Fun. and Ray LaMontage added in. It's mellow, romantic, and dramatic enough to keep you interested without being too loud.

Here are some of my top picks from Pandora's genius:

A little bit of Ray...

... and The Civil Wars... 

... and The Lumineers...

You're welcome.

On a completely different note, we took a day out of the busyness on Saturday to do rush tickets to see this little gem. 

My favorite line:

"Don't be ridiculous. You can't stop a crazy warlord. That would take something INCREDIBLE"

I'm pretty sure John and I were the only ones that got the joke. 

Carpe Week 3!!!!

Invisible Children is at it again!

In the summer of 2008 I worked for this amazing organization. I believe in Invisible Children's work and their goals. I stand by Jason Russell and the IC team, but more importantly, I stand with the peace-keepers and freedom fighters. I stand with the international community that is seeking to bring Justice to Joseph Kony.

Want to know more about what IC has been up to???

Click here, or here, or here. 

Better yet- let's talk! 

The Very Last First Day of School

I'm a sentimental person and an avid keeper of tradition.

For example...

• A few years ago my parents suggested we get a FAKE Christmas tree and my 20ish-year-old self almost melted into a puddle of tears... how could we live without the threat of a family fight over Mom's quest for the perfect tree, Dad's smiling bobbing head, Stephen's rolling eyes, and my people-pleasing self??? 

or

• John likes to get creative in the kitchen... and I like to try new foods. But DON'T even think about messing with my original pizza toppings... Pizza should taste like pizza, not some fancy-shmancy non-tomato-based circular dish.

or

• Going to the mountains every President's Day weekend and having fresh snow to play in (we have a perfect record thus far). I was a little nervous because this winter was especially dry, but we lucked out and had powder RIGHT after we finished our drive up the "hill"

...I think you get the picture.

As you might be able to tell, growing up can be a challenge for me because I like to keep things the same. For me, part of the allure of tradition is the idea that you can re-create feelings. Over time, I've slowly realized that trying to cram in every old traditions doesn't leave much room for new traditions with new feelings.

This year's first day of school was one of those sentimental tradition moments for me. It was my very last first day of school!

This year will bring a TON of writing/research (hello, client project), lots of work (hello, wonderful GSR job opportunity with an amazing boss/coworkers), and some unexpected surprises (hello, life... I'd tell you what those surprises are, but if I knew they wouldn't be a surprise!). 

After almost years of school, I'll be ready for some change (and a paycheck, and weekends, and....).

And with that... I will leave you with some Mumford and Sons (which is setting the tone for my reading/studying sessions this weekend).