What have you done?!

I thought I had posted this earlier this year, but it said I only had it as a draft. So I thought that today seems fitting to post this. AS 2009 comes to a close I have accomplished 16 of the 100, maybe by 2011 I can add another 10 or so! Happy New Year's Eve!!

What have you done?!

RULES: There are 100 statements and you bold the ones you have done. Grab it and play for yourself!!

1. Started your own blog 2. Slept under the stars 3. Played in a band4. Visited Hawaii 5. Watched a meteor shower 6. Given more than you can afford to charity 7. Been to Disneyland (World) 8. Climbed a mountain 9. Held a praying mantis 10. Sang a solo 12. Visited Paris 13. Watched a lightning storm at sea 14. Taught yourself an art from scratch 15. Adopted a child 16. Had food poisoning 17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty 18. Grown your own vegetables 19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France 20. Slept in an overnight train 21. Had a pillow fight 22. Hitchhiked 23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill 24. Built a snow fort 25. Held a lamb 26. Gone skinny dipping 27. Run a marathon 28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice 29. Seen a total eclipse (solar) 30. Watched a sunrise or sunset 31. Hit a home run 32. Been on a cruise 33. Seen Niagara Falls in person 34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors 35. Seen an Amish community 36. Taught yourself a new language 37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied 38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person 39. Gone rock climbing 40. Seen Michelangelo’s David 41. Sung karaoke 42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt 43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant 44. Visited Africa 45. Walked on a beach by moonlight 46. Been transported in an ambulance 47. Had your portrait painted 48. Gone deep sea fishing 49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person 50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris 51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling 52. Kissed in the rain 53. Played in the mud 55. Been in a movie 56. Visited the Great Wall of China 57. Started a business 58. Taken a martial arts class 59. Visited Russia 60. Served at a soup kitchen 61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies62. Gone whale watching 63. Got flowers for no reason 66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp 67. Bounced a check 68. Flown in a helicopter 69. Saved a favorite childhood toy 70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial 71. Eaten caviar 72. Pieced a quilt 73. Stood in Times Square 74. Toured the Everglades 75. Been fired from a job 76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London 77. Broken a bone 78. Been on a speeding motorcycle 79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person 80. Published a book 81. Visited the Vatican 82. Bought a brand new car 83. Walked in Jerusalem 84. Had your picture in the newspaper 85. Read the entire Bible 86. Visited the White House 87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating 88. Had chicken pox 89. Saved someone’s life 90. Sat on a jury 91. Met someone famous 92. Joined a book club 93. Lost a loved one 94. Had a baby 95. Seen the Alamo in person 96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake 97. Been involved in a lawsuit 98. Owned a cell phone 99. Been stung by a bee 100. Read an entire book in one day.

Oh the Resolutions

So I have a few resolutions for 2010 and I figure if I write them down maybe I will keep them or I will be able to go back and look at them throughout the year to stay on track. So without further rambling .. here they are.

1. Lose 25 lbs
2. Give up ice cream (yep, thats right! i'm giving up ice cream and frozen yogurt for a year!! well .. hopefully!!)
3. Read the Bible cover to cover
4. Run the St. Jude 1/2 Marathon on December 4th or if I don't make it there some other 1/2 marathon

As of today, I think that is it. I am not one of those big resolution makers because I feel as if it is setting yourself up for failure, but this next year is going to be different in a lot of ways!!

What are your resolutions?

Catch up

(This is what caught my attention and the whole reason I came in to see what the costume was about!)

So I haven't blogged in awhile. I have just been sooo busy with school, packing, and all that other fun holiday stuff. Life has been fun and interesting! So in order to completely catch up until now I will probably do a list.

1. Finals are sooo over, and I am so thankful! Only one more semester and I will have a Master's in Public Health!!

2. I went to NYC a couple of weekends ago to see the city at Christmas and to see the tree. The tree was gorgeous and so was the city, but the weather was horrible - snow, sleet, and rain!

This was a restroom done up by Charmin in the middle of Times Square. It was such a fun experience. You could dance off with people in order to get to go to the bathroom first, all bathrooms were cleaned after each use, and every bathroom had a tv, ipod, or something to the sort. It was the Disney of restrooms. There was a ball pit and even the opportunity to take a picture on top of a giant toilet. If you are ever in the city you should make sure and stop here.

This is the tree in Rockafeller Center. Beautiful until the weather went downhill!! There were a lot of people in NYC that day.

The store fronts are also fun to see! This store front was in front of Macy's. They had all of their windows with cute set ups on mailing santa a letter.

This is my car as soon as I got back from the city. We received a lot of snow for just being gone a couple of hours. The snow continued through that weekend. I asked the snow to hold out until I came to Texas but it didn't. It came one week to early!

3. Challenge 3 is officially over as of today! I didn't do as well as I had hoped, but I have taken up running and I workout ten times more than I ever did. I didn't meet my goal this time, but I didn't gain any weight. My goal is always to keep losing and never be back higher than my start weight. I have gotten lots of compliments since I have been home and that is exciting too! I can't wait to start Challenge 4!! Let me know if you are interested.

4. Erin came and visited me for a couple of days and that was fun! We did 8 miles in the course of two days while she was here. We were also able to go to the Beauty Dinner. That was lots and lots of fun as well!

5. I didn't take any pictures but I also got to meet up with Amanda and her fiance for dinner on Sunday and it was fun to catch up. It reminded me of our fun times in Lubbock. Saturday I went to a baby shower. That was lots of fun as well. I have known her since I was 16, we worked in the same classroom together at the church daycare.

6. I ordered a bodybugg this week and I am sooo excited about it.

7. There isn't really anything else that I can think of, but since I have no school maybe I will be more diligent about blogging!!

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays and the reason for the season!!

I'm a slacker

I haven't blogged in a while because I have been sooo busy! But I am alive and I will be home so soon! I will officially be done with school for the semester starting next Tuesday. Until then, I have a test tomorrow, a test Friday, a paper due next Tuesday and the ability to answer a question for extra points on Monday. Phew! I wish next Tuesday would hurry up and come .. actually I wish Friday would come so I can be in Texas!

I don't know who is up to it, but there are 14 days from the end of Challenge 3 until the beginning of Challenge 4 and I am going to need to keep myself on track (especially since I am home with my eating partner). I am going to do a mini-challenge. 14 days - 14 workouts, 14 days of praying for the next year, 14 days of really really looking at what I put into my body. While I am at school I sometimes mindlessly eat out of boredom, frustration, etc. But at home I will not have any schoolwork and will be able to give exercise 110%. I want to start January 1st in the right mind set and healthy.

Pre-Tanna, Cold Stone Loving Picture

Pre-Tanna (May 2008)

Before or During Challenge 2 (June-ish 2009)

Pre Challenge 3 (August 2009)

In the midst of Challenge 3 .. Yay! Go us!!

So as you can see a lot has changed in a little over a year, and I hope to put an even more amazing picture next April when it will be a year from the start of the very first challenge. So school is going, only 2 weeks left (actually 11 days!! ) Yippee!! Now if only I could get done with school so I can dedicate more time to working out. (I know excuses, excuses .. but the last two weeks before finals are always the no sleep, high stress times.)

Job

I knew there was a reason for me to go to a different church on Sunday, but I wasn't sure of the reason and these past couple of days have helped me to understand. On Sunday the Pastor preached about Job and how God lets you go through certain situations because you are mature enough and because they help you to grow. The devil can only impact so much in your life, but the one thing he is not allowed to touch is you physically.

This week I have been tested so many times and it just helps me to think about what I learned on Sunday and keep those words and scripture in my heart and mind. I keep telling myself I am in NY for a reason and at this school for a reason and all the trial and tribulations that come with it are necessary. Both yesterday and today I have been frustrated and normally I would go and eat my frustration away. Both days I went and worked out instead. It felt good to relieve my frustration in a different manner!

In honor of Thanksgiving I am going to list 6 things I am thankful for:

1. God loving me and the mercies he continually shows me,
2. My family - They may be far away but it makes going home for the holidays more enjoyable and manageable.
3. My friends both new and old- my friends who have helped keep me sane while I am away in NY and my friends I have "met" through the challenge. What a wonderful blessing and opportunity.
4. My health - I am healthy and alive.
5. The Gill's - They have made my time in NY so much more enjoyable. They continually go out of there way to make my experience 100 times better then last year.
6. Tanna - For starting the challenge. Without this challenge I would be a lot heavier and still dealing with unhealthy habits.

Happy Thanksgiving!! What kinds of things are you thankful for?

30 Posts in 30 Days

I am working on this 30 posts in 30 days business and recently I became oober busy and it became harder. But life is still going. I have been running on the track at the gym and I like that a lot and I added in some weights through this cool circuit system the gym has that tracks everything for you. So other than that I am just trying to get through the rest of the semester.

3 Papers (individual and group)

1 Presentation/Project (another group)

2 Finals

Case studies to become certified for Sexual Assault Counseling

That is a lot to have done in 3 weeks!! The case studies by Monday, and the presentation and group paper by the following week. There is just so much to do and so little time.

I did get an email yesterday that said 178 days until graduation and that made me happy!!

Really Really Back on Track

Last Thanksgiving Break .. At the American Girl Store in NYC

So I used to weigh myself every day and this helped me because it held me accountable throughout the day seeing that I had made a success from the previous day/days. Recently I stopped weighing myself every day and went back to the once a week for The Challenge. For some reason I decided to weigh myself and I am just about back at my start weight. But, I am okay with that because I have made so many other different improvements. It's funny because I made this blog to capture my life in NY and now I am capturing my struggle and success with weight loss. I think having these things in writing help me and any one else who is changing their lifestyle know it is possible.

5 lbs 5 weeks

Five pounds in five weeks is my goal for the end of the challenge. I need to step it up, get out of my comfort zone and finish strong. I will be at the gym bright and early tomorrow (5am) and hopefully every day this week working strong and hard. I figured out my weakness today and that is saying no to food when I am full, so this week I am going to work on that. We are so conditioned to eat 3 meals a day at the same time every day even when we are not hungry and I think that is a problem. We should just eat when we are hungry and stop as soon as the hunger cues come, so that is what I am going to do this week.

Push hard buddies and finish strong!!

Oh Saturday

I wish today had been a day that allowed rest and relaxation .. but instead it was spent on school work and work work! I had a group meeting in the morning, a group meeting into early evening and work into late evening. {Yikes} I am tired!! Only 4 weeks left of this gruesome school schedule and I will get a break in Texas!! SO I started off my day eating good - a banana, strawberries, carrots, chicken chili- then I came home to make dinner and had rolls and red or jollof rice. I told myself no dessert or you will need to use a cheat but I didn't resist temptation {sigh} such is life. I think that for these past couple of weeks I have let myself have sugar just about everyday and I need to break that habit!!

I didn't get into Teach for America, and I am okay with that. I guess it wasn't meant to be. Pray that I can find a great job in the DFW area, pray that I can come to a conclusion on what to do with my life, pray for answers about my future. As I took a moment to just stop and think today I realized that I was okay. This time last year I was depressed and boy have I made strides. I'm okay and I will be home soon!

A loooong day

I worked from 8 am until 930 pm tonight .. {yikes} We went to NYC came back and then I worked my second job! What a long day that made for! A plus to my day is that I bought some books!! Yay!! 3 books!! I am excited to read for fun!!

I started looking for a job yesterday. Hopefully I can find one at home!! I am excited to be at home!!

Thank you for all the encouraging words about the challenge. I am re-dedicated and excited about finishing strong.

Time to go to bed .. today has been long and tomorrow will be long as well!!

Back on track!!

Although I used all of my cheats for Challenge 3 {yikes} I am going to get back on track with my eating starting now. I have been working out hard but eating what I want and now I want to finish the challenge strong. I saw this idea on another blog and thought I would post something similar.

Reward List: Nov 13 - Dec 13

Workout 5 times a week - I can buy a new strap for my camera

Use no more than 6 cheats for the last 6 weeks - buy new music to work out to

Drink 8 cups of water at least 6 days a week - new water bottle

Meet my goal challenge by the end of the year - a massage

Things I Say To Keep On Track

1. Look how far you've come

2. Every little thing adds up

3. Taking the stairs will get easier

4. Nothing tastes as good as thin feels

7 Things I Hate About Being Overweight

1. Not being able to wear a cute bathing suit in the summer

2. Getting tired when walking up stairs

3. Not always finding cute clothes

4. Having a sister who is smaller than be

5. Being over 200 lbs

6. Not being able to trade clothes with friends

7. Not always having a towel that wraps around your body completely

10 Thing I Love About Getting Healthy

1. I feel good

2. I am happy

3. I am more confident

4. I fit in smaller sizes

5. I don't mind working out as much

6. I can run a mile on the treadmill without stopping (not all the time, but more than before)

7. Getting compliments

8. Buying more clothes

9. Thinking about what I eat before I put it in my body

10. Meeting wonderful people through The Challenge

I am so easily distracted ..

• Today was supposed to be my day to sleep in and enjoy the day, but instead it was jammed pack starting at
• 8 am with meeting my group at the library! Yikes!! Too early for me on a day off!! Then I stayed at the library to finish working on this paper!!
• I started buying the gifts for the angel tree kids at church in the midst of that i bought some fabric for this present i am making.
• I worked out today and got set up with this cool workout system
• I got a phone call from a friend today asking me to be a bridesmaid in her wedding!! I was so excited and so happy! I am glad they chose for me to partake in their special day!!
• I played on facebook.
• All of these random bullets all to say that I haven't read the article that I need to read for class tomorrow!

Friday is "To Write Love on Her Arm Day" .. go here to find out more .. http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=180283055427&ref=nf

You should do it! I did it last year. Sorry it's blurry its from my cell.

NoGoJoe

So .. I don't know what to say .. Everything happens for a reason but it still stinks!

Monday

Today was a Monday ..

Sundays are relaxing

Since I finished my paper last night I got to use today as a day to relax. I got up and went to church and then just came home and sat. It was so nice! After that I thought I was just going to help out at a birthday party for fun, but I ended up getting paid! The biggest plus about the birthday party was the cake .. red velvet cheesecake! Yum! My piece is in the fridge waiting for tomorrow. On my way home from the party I spoke with my friend Jennifer and this is our churches week to fast so I will be fasting all week! I am excited for this week, a lot is going on. I find out about TFA on Tuesday, Wednesday I have off from work, Thursday my paper is due. God is truly good and I am thankful for my life!!

The 6 Layer Cake is Only 5 Layers

So .. I had to make today a day "dedicated to Dr. Hoff" my health management professor since I have a paper due on Thursday. Good news, great news .. I finished the paper!! Yippee!! Now I just have to do some editing!! I am so glad that it is done and I believe and pray that I will get a better grade on this paper. So after 6 hours of working on this paper I decided I wanted to bake a cake ... but not just any cake .. this cake.

Here is my study station for most of today

So here it goes ..

I bought all of the supplies

I mixed the first 3 colors

I mixed the next 3 colors

My poor green layer split .. even after it had been cooled in the freezer

Final product .. not so pretty but it has character!!

All the colors minus green

6 layer Rainbow Cake

I am finishing up the last two pages of this paper and making a rainbow cake!! A 6 layer rainbow cake at that!! Pictures to come!! :)

Shopping

Today I went to Gap to replace some pants that I bought 2 weeks ago and they got a stain, I tried to remove the stain and now they are bleached!! So all I went into Gap for was the pants, but they didn't have them anymore. But instead they had all these good deals for $1.97. SO I went shopping and bought so much stuff for me, my brother, Erin (since she is in need of some new pants), and for a women's shelter! Fun day!! Now I need to get in bed because tomorrow I have to put my brain to use!!

Really hard and really amazing

::The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself::

I love this quote and just thought I would share!! :) Many times we strive to be the same weight as someone else or to find that "perfect weight" or we strive to be "perfect" in every aspect of our every day lives but that is not what is meant for us. We are meant to be ourselves and to love ourselves. In the process of striving to be someone else I have learned to find myself. There are so many things I can do now that I couldn't have done before striving to be the "perfect" that others wanted me to be. So when someone projects their thoughts and ideas on what you should be "perfect" at you should tell them thank you, but no thank you. Life is too short to be anything but happy.

I love taking pictures and baby M always makes for a good subject!! She is always fun to play with! So I thought I would share a pic from our trip to the apple orchards.

I am so very thankful that it is Thursday night! This means that it is the weekend!! Yippee!! This weekend my one goal is to finish writing my 6 page paper. That is all!! I want to be done by Sunday. Oh-I also have to do allll the reading for my class in which the paper is due because he said today that he will be calling on people next time. {sigh} I did work out today and had spaghetti squash for dinner again!! yumm!! And I packed some for my lunch tomorrow. Life is good .. I can't complain. I ran 1/2 a mile without stopping and then did the elliptical. I am bound and determined! It takes 14 days to form a habit and me and the gym are on the way to forming a very health relationship!! :)

Quick Quick Quick

I haven't read for my class tomorrow so I can't blog long .. today was good, worked out, got some more stuff together for my paper. I hope to do some more pages of my paper tomorrow night, and work out tomorrow as well. I am trying to replant this habit of working out into my body! I had too much halloween candy today .. like 6 pieces! yikes! but other than that my salad was yummy, my chicken and veggie pizza was yummy, and the pumpkin oatmeal bran flax seed muffin was great too!

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Running and Paper

• I ran 1 mile today in 14:26. (that's without stopping)
• Tomorrow I will run again!
• I got 2 pages of my 6 page paper done!!
• I had halloween candy in moderation.
• I worked out an hour on the cybex machine!!
• I will meet my challenge goal!!
• I will work out tomorrow!!

One year ago

Over the past year I have made some better choices towards my health. I think that people come into your life for a reason and God has everything set out so that it works out in due time. The Challenge coming into my life has been the difference. It has helped me to choose better. I may not make the best decision all the time, but I am working towards a better me. A year ago around this time of year I was depressed and hated NY. Now I may not want to live here forever, but I will survive living here until the end of May. What a difference a year makes towards everything in your life. I am so thankful for this experience. I have made great memories and learned many lessons that I would not have been able to make otherwise. I believe everything does happen for a reason and it is helping me to understand life more and to keep going.

This week I MUST finish this paper!! And I did go work out today. I went tonight so I could work out and watch One Tree Hill. I am on a salad kick and I am loving it!! Yum Yum!! Before the new year I want to have reached my challenge goal and I will succeed!! :) Only 5 weeks left of school!! :)

Yay for November

I am so glad that it is November!! The semester is almost over .. yippee!! So my wrap up for this weekend is a good one!

• On Friday I went with the family I babysit for as a extra hand to a birthday party and they had a haunted trail for adults that you had to go on individually! So fun! I love the thrill of being scared and not knowing what is around the corner! Then I went to a pizza night at the apartment of some girls from school and then came home and did homework and went to bed.
• Saturday I worked in the morning and took the girl that I work with to Malloween. It was fun to see all of the kids dressed up. A woman in the mall walked by me and was quite angry! She yelled out trick or treating is for outside. I think she was upset because she chose the wrong day and time to come to the mall! After that I went back to the mall to see if the pants that I ruined were at Gap. No luck! I did get some khaki's and $2 pants though! Then I went and went trick or treating with the family that I babysit for and to a friends house of there's who they always go and hang out with on Halloween. It was very fun! I had never been trick or treating and it's a fun experience! No wonder kids love it!! it was raining which was a bummer, but kids were out all over. One house had popcorn, apple cider, marshmallows to roast, cookies, and you could even knock on the door and say trick or treat! After this we went and hung out and had dinner! Yummy Mac and Cheese for dinner with even yummier wings! What a fun night! Albany is very much more enjoyable this year than last year.
• And today I went to my Financial Peace University class and then I worked out and then I did about 4-5 loads of laundry! It surely was a chore!! But while my laundry was going I got to learn how to make hummus! It was sooooo good! I had hummus and salad around 4 and I haven't been hungry for dinner since then. So I got to bring home the dinner I was going to eat tonight to eat for dinner tomorrow!! Yum! I also worked on that paper that I will make a passing grade on!! (we have to alll speak this into existence) Now I am baking pumpkin oatmeal wheat bran flax muffins to take to work tomorrow and then I am going to put up my laundry and get in bed! I will wake up to work out in the morning, I will wake up to work out in the morning!! :)

Laundry and Pre-Weekend To Do's

Sorry for the bad quality in this picture (I took it with my phone) but this is all my laundry that I need to do. I have a basket, a bag, and a pile on the floor {sigh} It will get done eventually! Hopefully before Thanksgiving!

This weekend I need to get all of the research for my paper done (please pray that I have understood what my teacher expects out of me, this paper needs to be done wonderfully to make up for the last one), a write up for my program evaluation class on the program that we are evaluating, work out, eat right, and work with a consumer on Saturday. And .. Rest, Rest, and Rest. I am going to use this weekend to catch up on rest and fight these headaches. I will be back on Sunday to post about all the "to do's" that I hopefully did!!

Happy Weekend!!

Full

So my headache did go away today! What a relief!! My eating for today was not up to par! I did so good until I got to Sexual Assault Training tonight was our last night and we had cookies, donuts, brownies, carrots and chocolate as options! Yum Yum! So today I had half a croissant for breakfast, soup and salad from Olive Garden with a piece of Lemon Cake for my birthday. I didn't have dinner because I am still soooo full!! The people I work with at my internship took me out to lunch after the last session of the conference. I was so thankful! Then I had 2 to many cookies at training. {sigh} My alarm is already set for 5 tomorrow morning to get my workout on. I was kind of rejuvenated into working out after I went to a session on obesity in children. It was very very interesting. Now I must go read and read and read for my class tomorrow. It's almost the weekend though and that makes me happy. This weekend I must conquer the loads and loads of laundry I have to do, start working on a paper, and some group project stuff.

I took this picture and decided I would do something different with it! And I like the turnout!

The picture is supposed to be 4 different squares, but for some reason it doesn't show all of them ..

Headache

This pesky little headache is still in my life!! I went to the doctor yesterday and they gave me a shot of motrin x 10 and that seemed to solve the problem temporarily but that's about it. Erin and I tried to figure out why I could possibly be having these headaches and only two things have changed in my life. I took the flu shot and I stopped taking a medicine I have been on for a long time. We think the latter is the reason! This headache business stinks the big one!!

Tonight is the last night of Sexual Assault Advocate/Counseling Training and I am soooo uber excited to get my Tuesday and Thursday nights back and for sure my Saturdays back! As a new day starts I am thankful to be alive but also thankful that I am one day closer to December 11!!

Have a good day!!

*13 days left until I hear from Teach for America on whether I have been accepted!! :) Pray that I am accepted. I so badly want to do this!!

Anxious

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6

For some reason I have been very anxious recently. I am not sure why, but I need to pray, pray, pray so this feeling goes away. It is not the most pleasant feeling.

It is getting cold and the trees are getting sad. When the trees look like this it means that winter is around the corner just waiting to surprise us with too much snow!!

If you have never been to a Stew Leonards you should go there as well. It was a lot of fun for a grocery store.

All of that fun stuff was going on in the grocery store. I need to remember to bring my actual camera instead of my phone for the next time we go back! It was such an experience!!

Life is going and going and going. Today I had a great salad at the WIC conference and some grilled chicken for lunch and for breakfast I had some kix. I did workout yesterday, but I do not know if I will get a chance to go tonight. I have homework and sexual assault advocate training.

Everything may not be perfect in life, but I sure to enjoy the good days much more when I stop to think about the trial I have gone through. Last week I didn't think I was going to make it because of all the tests and such, but I made it. Only a few more weeks left in the semester and then I am home bound and homework free!!

Busy Sunday

So, I said I would document what I ate .. here it goes.

I had honey nut cheerios for breakfast, a slice of spinach pizza for lunch, and some brown rice with a bean salsa for lunch. I did have a cookie as well, but turned down the offer for more than one to take home with me. I also made sure to get in my workout this morning before life got busy and I was able to do a little over 3 miles. Woo Hoo!! I am going to try and get my 3 miles down to 30 minutes eventually.

The WIC conference started today and I am lucky to be able to attend that so far so good. I love how passionate people are about eating right, breast feeding and all of the other topics that surround women, infants, children and their caretakers. The conference is for most of this week so I am excited to learn and meet new people.

As far as school goes I need to do an assignment for my program evaluation class and some stuff for my management class as well. If I can do those things the week will go smoothly. I love Fridays because it means I am one week closer to coming home for the holidays!

I must go do homework and get in bed within the hour so I can work out in the morn! Have a good week!!

It's almost over

I am so thankful to be halfway through the semester!! I cannot WAIT to go home and to leave this frigid city! I have 3 papers, a presentation, another presentation, and 2 finals until the semester is over.

If you have never been to a Stew Leonards you may want to go and check it out! It was the most fun grocery store experience ever!! It was quite entertaining and enjoyable. It was like a amusement park

I have been slacking with The Challenge. It is always a challenge for me once I get about halfway through. I stop counting my cheats and just go on with my life. I have 4 (maybe even 5 after this weekend) pounds left to reach my goal of 10 and I need to meet my goal this time. So I am going to try and blog what I eat and what I do to exercise so that I can be held accountable by the however many of you read this. So, starting tomorrow I am going to be totally honest about what I am eating and doing! I did get up and workout today I did 1.50 miles on the treadmill before I went to babysit and work. I have a very busy day tomorrow, but I am going to try and fit in a work out after church.

For now, I am going to go do some school work and get in bed early.

Procrastination

I would like to thank Brooke for giving me a reason to quit studying and take a break (not that I need a break since I have been half-way studying for about 2 hours now)!!

So you're probably wondering why I haven't blogged recently and it's because I have been super busy!! I had my final Teach for America interview on Tuesday ( I hope it went well, I think it went well). I started one of my midterms on Monday and I have to finish the 2nd portion tomorrow. This particular midterm Biological Basis of Public Health has me practically memorizing a novel so that I can regurgitate it back onto a piece of paper tomorrow. I have another midterm in Evolutionary Bio of Human Health tomorrow morning and I have only skimmed what I need to be studying. It only has 7 or 8 questions .. short answer questions. Makes me nervous!

I am so tired .. I just want to sleep and sleep! My sleep schedule has been crazy because of studying. I hate to complain about things like this though .. because I am so thankful to have another day to live!

Tomorrow is my golden birthday!! Yippee!! My sister turned 16 today! Yippee!! Reading Brooke's blog makes me want to go to the Cheesecake Factory.

I have done more exercise this week, better than last week. I may actually reach my goal to be below 200 before the New Year.

I am almost done with Sexual Assault Counseling Training.

About 6 or 7 weeks until I will be back in Texas!!

Fat Talk Free Week

Come on let's all do this together!! This week be happy being you. There is no such thing as a perfect weight!! Everyones body is different and rightfully so! God created us as unique individuals!!

Quick Post

I have to go to class in a few minutes but I just thought I would give some quick updates!

• I got an email inviting me to the in-person final interview for Teach for America!! Yippeee!! I am so oober excited about the interview and this wonderful opportunity!
• I finished my super hard paper with 3 days to spare!!
• I have been struggling with eating right .. :/ but I will get right back on track!!
• I have been working on the Couch to 5K program this week! What a work out!!
• I have gone apple picking and many other things!!

Here is a picture from apple picking and then I have to run!!

Life is definitely keeping me busy

This past week I have been extra stressed and I didn't know what to do with my self. This week I am determined to not be as stressed and just hand everything over to God. I need to go make myself a heart box like Tanna did, but I haven't had time to do anything really relaxing recently.

My training to become a sexual assault counselor is going great and I never would have thought that there would be so many Christians God has placed in my life within the past week. I know that each of these individuals is placed in my life for a reason and I am thankful.

So, I have been wanting to run a 5k for a long time and it is on my bucket list as well. I was very sad I didn't get to run with the beauties this morning because I am in NY, and sad I didn't get to run with Erin because she's in Lubbock. An opportunity has come up for me to start training to run a 5k the first weekend of November and I think that I just may have to take this opportunity. I am not in the best shape, but I am a work in progress and I am in better shape!

If I get this paper done tonight then I can go apple picking tomorrow. I am working so hard to get it done. I have about 4 1/2 pages and it has to be on the 6th page. So I am close.

Other than that life is life. School is keeping me busy and so is my internship and everything else. Midterms start next week and on Tuesday I find out about Teach for America. If you could/would please keep me in your prayers this month will be very busy and hard with school work. I need to keep my sanity and not stress out.

Kreative Blogger Award!!

I checked my email today in class to notice I had a comment on my blog nominating me for this award!! Yippee!! Stephanie nominated me and I am so thankful! This is my first ever, so thank you thank you Stephanie!!

So here are the rules:
1-Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
2-Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3-Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4-Name 7 things about yourself that people may not know.
5-Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers.
6-Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7-Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they've been nominated.

Seven things you may not know

1. I really really (just of recent) started thoroughly enjoying red velvet cupcakes.
2. I also really really like salads, but mostly only when Marjorie makes them. There is just something about all the stuff she adds. Yum!
3. I enjoy working out most days! :)
4. I don't do my laundry nearly as often as I should.
5. Sometimes thinking about the future makes me nervous.

I am nominating

1. Loren - a friend from high school
2. Tanna - the beast :)
3. Erin - one of my bff's
4. Renee - she does wonders with her large family
5. Katie - she has such a passion for her family and her kids
6. Laura - a fellow beauty in Boston
7. Brooke - another beauty
8. Laura - another fellow beauty in Texas

Prayer

I saw this on a blog and it is something I needed to read .. I need to improve my prayer life.

The painful thing is what my weak prayer life says about me. Here’s the ugly truth. My lack of prayer proves…

I underestimate the power of prayer and overestimate my own ability.

I’m not really as hungry for the intimacy with God I so regularly publicly declare as a desire of my heart.

While I would like to know God’s will for my life I’m clearly more committed to my will, my plans and my agenda.

I’ve bought into the illusion that there are more important things to do than spending time with the creator of the universe.

I’ve reduced prayer to a list of things I think I want or need and I currently don’t need to “use” God for anything.

100th Post

Well, things here have been very hectic! I just got done with my Teach for America phone interview so hopefully, prayerfully, I will make it to the next round of in person interviews. I find out October 6th! I am so nervous!

Life now-a-days:

School is taking up a lot of time this semester with 3 group projects! Which means a lot of meetings.

I work in the nursery on Sunday and then attend Financial Peace University afterward so that is lots of time on Sunday to keep me busy.

I work with a young girl who has developmental disabilities once a week.

I start training to become a certified sexual assault counselor this week. That training is 12 hours a week for the month of October.

I work out about 5-6 times a week.

I work 20 hours a week for my internship.

I babysit part time during the week.

I have a ton of reading for school, not for fun!

My weeks are so full. My mind doesn't really have time to miss Texas. This is a much better year in comparison to last fall!!

I am very grateful to be a busy bee this semester!

I am officially down 10 lbs since the challenge started!! Only 11 a way from my 199 party and I hope to be in the 190's by the time I go back to Texas in December! I am oh-so-excited! I wore my new pair of size 14 jeans the other day!!

Life is good. I can't complain. I can't believe I have blogged 100 times!!

Two days until Thursday

Today I ate: Breakfast - Nothing, I wasn't hungry and woke up late, but I ate as soon as I got back from my hour class. Lunch - Chicken and Chickpeas Dinner - Stuffed sun dried tomato and pesto chicken (Yum!!) Today wasn't very hard. Eating went well .. the work out on the other hand not so much. My body is tired and I ache all over. I went to the gym for Zumba and it was boring and no fun so I only lasted 15 minutes then came home to get in bed. I think my body needs a day or two to rest and recharge. I have worked out diligently this past month since I have been back to school.

My 1-4 class today was sooooo long and so boring. It was hard for me to make it the entire time. I chewed gum like crazy! Two days until I find out about TFA ..

I love fall because of pumpkin bread and candy corn!! If you want to send me either or I would love it! Next week I will have to buy both! The one thing I like about NY is the changing colors of the leaves, so pretty.

Carb Free Week and FB Chat not working

Since Facebook Chat isn't working I think I may blog instead. For some reason yesterday I just started crying and couldn't stop. I went to bed instead. I think I was just stressed, homesick, and mb my hormones were off? Idk that has never happened before. I was totally okay and then out of no where.

I started my internship today and it seems as if it is going to be soooo much fun! I am definitely excited. I started a carb free week today. Breakfast - eggs, lunch - salad, dinner- taco soup. Today was yummy but I sure wanted to go get some frozen yogurt! I started a book last night "Same Kind of Different As Me" so far so good and I read it while I worked out this morning. It made time go by so fast! I don't think I have started anything else recently, but now I have to go start reading for my hardest class this semester.

Starburst Jelly Beans

I will have to admit I am up to 4 cheats now! 2 of which I accumulated today and yesterday. Yesterday I went and got Coldstone, yum yum! That was definitely a planned cheat. Today I was babysitting and they had jelly beans! I had 3 to start with and was like I might as well enjoy them and make it a cheat and so I did!

This weigh in also proved to be very successful. I have been working out hardcore and so I was glad to see that in a month I have lost 6.6lbs. Yippee!! Only 16 pounds left until my 199 party! This year I have been almost as high as 240 .. ugghh! Slowly but surely I am getting down. I was very excited to try on pants for work and I picked all size 14!! :) Hopefully by my birthday I will be extremely close to 199 maybe in the 200's and then by the time I come home for the holidays in the 190's.

As of now I am enjoying watching the Tech vs UT game!! Go Tech!! :)

I keep thinking about Thursday and how I will find out if I made it to the next round of Teach for America. I am oh-so-very nervous!!

Tomorrow I have a nap, workout, and school reading planned and Monday I start my internship.

The weekend is almost over ..

You Capture - Up Close

I was visiting a fellow beauties blog, and saw that she had participated in a You Capture-Up close weekly photo challenge. I love to take pictures and sensed and awesome opportunity! This weeks challenge was to get some up close photos! Here are a few:

I was very flower happy! :)