Live .. Laugh .. Love

2012!!!!

2012-01-02T00:22:00.001-05:00

Twelve Things I hope to accomplish this year ..1. Pray and listen more2. Get accepted into some type of graduate program3. Lose 30 lbs4. Complain less5. Take more pictures 6. Live by Phillipians 4:11-137. Be more mindful of the power of the tongue8. Be more purposeful in relationships9. Send more paper mail - especially birthday cards10. Let others know ow special they are 11. Dress up more often 12. Work out as more of a lifestyle Happy New Year!! I pray that In 2012 you are content where you are and understand you are there for a reason! :)

Temporary Hiatus

2011-05-17T23:33:00.002-04:00

I am on a temporary blogging hiatus while I study for the MCAT, fill out applications and do all stuff med school related. See y'all in a few! :)

Pray for me while you're at it!

Oprah was Amazing

2011-05-03T22:34:00.002-04:00

So I am back from Chicago and my trip was amazing! I love going to the Oprah show and since my friend's aunt worked for Oprah we didnt have to wait in line. We were able to go right up to the offices and sit in the lobby until it was time to be seated. We go to meet one of the co producers, had reserved seats in the audience and had an overall good time.

I forgot that it was cold in Chicago, so I didnt dress appropriately. I have lots of pictures to share, but haven't uploaded them to my computer yet. Shania Twain was the guest and she spoke about her life. We won a trip to TN for the Country Music Awards Festival so that should be fun. The studio was freezing, Shania's people kept putting hair spray during commercial breaks, and the lady behind me fell asleep and was snoring! Haha!

I was able to go up in Sears Tower and sit in the skydeck boxes. They are clear plexi glass type boxes that go out on top of the city. It was kind of scary. We walked all around the city. Went to Millenium Park, The Field Museum, walked Michigan Avenue for shopping, tried some Chicago pizza, road the train, and shopped in the Oprah store. Ooh and I also got to pet Oprah's dog Sadie since she roams the halls.

Overall it was a great trip. Oh and I ended up wearing a purple shirt that is kind of mesh with a purple tank top underneath and a flower bow in my hair. It was cold.

What to Wear to the Oprah Show!!

2011-04-26T09:23:00.002-04:00

In a couple of days I will be going to the Oprah show and I just don't know what to wear. I had an outfit sewn for me earlier this year that I havent worn that I thought about wearing .. but other than that I am at a loss.

I also cannot believe this is happening because I put it on my 101 in 1001 list a long time ago and never believed it would come true. I settled for going to the Live Your Best Life Weekend Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4. And added to my list see Oprah as well so I would be able to cross off either one. Any this week I will be able to have truly crossed it off!! Yay!!

I guess I'll go shopping tonight!! :)

Zoo 5K

2011-04-10T23:20:00.003-04:00

So .. I Kristi just registered for my first 5K!! Woo hoo!! I have been putting it off for weeks because I was sooo nervous and afraid I couldn't do it. But its done and paid for now! So Saturday is the day! And did I mention its at the zoo!! :)

This weekend was pretty amazing! I love meeting new family and I feel like that's what I did all weekend. I met a cousin I never knew I had. I re-met cousins I had met while I lived in NY and didn't even realize it. My family is filled with very smart and good looking individuals!! haha

I love ..

2011-04-09T00:53:00.003-04:00

1. Seeing my family (minus one brother) all dressed up

2. This dress. My favorite one yet!

3. My siblings (minus one brother)

What a fun night! Connecting with old relatives, meeting new relatives, dressing up. It couldn't get any better! :) And I got off work early today!!

On purpose

2011-04-02T01:18:00.003-04:00

I love that every moment, every breath, every step we take is already predestined.
I love that God has placed certain people in my life during certain seasons for specific reasons.
I love making new friends especially out of the blue.
I love even more that we have an awesome Creator who knows what we need and when we need it. All of my daily steps have lead me up until now and just sitting and thinking and looking back tonight I don't think I would trade any of them. One trading of a day couple possibly impact my whole future and I wouldn't be who I am today or where I am today without the past.

This month I would love to run my first 5k, pull my big or small camera out of the bag and use it more, buy a new Bible, choose a book in the Bible and study it, lose 5 lbs, not complain as much, and be intentional in my relationships and actions.

For the first time EVER

2011-03-31T22:40:00.002-04:00

For the first time ever .. in my life .. I ran/jogged two miles around the park without stopping!! Woo hoo!! I have run/jogged two miles with my coworker/friend, but I always have to stop. Tonight I didn't have to stop and I wanted to cry when I finished I was soooo excited!!

Reading this made my day!! http://www.mywesttexas.com/sports/article_05859a06-5985-584e-ac84-75ddcc0535c6.html#axzz1IBXCy9S2

"Have you ever watched rain fall on a lake? Each raindrop creates its own ripple.

When you combine the millions of raindrops and the millions of ripples that each singularly creates, you have a countless number of overlapping ripples that all have an effect on one another. The cool thing about this is that each raindrop ripple has an effect on the other ripples in the lake, even if it's just in a small way. This is how people operate on a daily basis. We are individual raindrops in a huge lake.

Of course each of us has our own ripple, but our lives are primarily made up of other peoples ripples crashing into our own. Many people like to think that our ripples crash randomly into each other without purpose or reason. Maybe that's true, but then again maybe it's not true at all. Perhaps I can help you decide. Maybe this story is the result of many ripples just coincidentally crashing into each other. Or maybe each ripple was ordered, measured, weighed, named, and timed perfectly to synchronize with the others to save a life."

That gave me goosebumps!

And this ..

"The easiest thing in the world to do is quit on something. Quitting takes zero effort. Quitting can even be justified with excuses and legitimate reasons at times. When someone quits at something they can even lie to themselves by saying that what they quit on wasn't that important. To those people with that mentality this is what I have to say. If it was important enough to start, it is important enough to finish. Don't quit. Hold on, cling to what is yours until your fingers cramp; and once your fingers cramp switch hands."

I need to apply to medical school and quit making excuses and feeling like its an impossible task.

101 Update

2011-03-30T22:16:00.001-04:00

Pretty sad that on my 101 list was making my bed for a week straight. This is one of those things I started over and over again and two weeks ago I can say that I made my bed for a week straight! Now - it hasnt been made since then, but I completed the task!

I need ..

2011-03-30T22:09:00.002-04:00

I'm in a funk and am not quite sure what I need. But I do know that I need to be studying for the MCAT, reading my Bible, folding the pile of laundry on my bed, working out more regularly (this week I have been off), and not eating as many sweets (again, this week I have been off).

I think I may just do some praise and worship and call it a night. I'm ever sooo glad that it is almost the weekend. And that I didn't kill over while running today.

To live you must first die

2011-03-29T23:21:00.002-04:00

Everyone claims that they don't want to die, but the only thing that keeps them from dying they constantly push away.

Ooooh sucker punch straight to the gut. This is so true and so so so true in so many ways. My walk with Christ is a constantly growing think. I must constantly die to my flesh to live and that is a daily struggle.

Weight Loss Slump

2011-03-27T20:35:00.002-04:00

Since I started Weight Watchers 6 weeks ago I have lost about 9 pounds and I have only lost the last two in about 3 of those weeks. It's like my body has hit a wall :/ I've been doing personal training too. Yuck! So my goal for the next 6 weeks is to lose another 10 lbs and drop a pant size. If I do that I will be about 5 lbs away from the weight I was when I moved back home last May.

My life is a lot more manageable when I set small goals for myself so that is what I am going to do.

I want to be able to finish the 2 mile run with my friend from work without feeling like I am dying or yelling at her in my head.
Lose 10 pounds.
Drop a pant size.
Workout 6 times in a week.
Finish a 5K.
Limit my sweet intake to one a week.
A non weight related goal - balance my money and set a budget.

22 pounds and then ..

2011-03-22T00:05:00.002-04:00

So I tried my Couch to 5K program today and it was a slightly epic failure! I ran all of the first 3 minute interval, 4 1/2 minutes of the 1st 5 minute interval, 1 minute of the second 3 minute interval, and 30 seconds of the last 5 minute interval. It was like my body had hit a brick wall! Yikes!!

After that unsuccessful running I went to my personal training session and got my butt kicked so I didn't feel so bad. My eating today was unsuccessful and the mass amount of WW points I used was ridiculous! Who knew donut holes had so many points! :) Good thing you get to start fresh tomorrow!

My first mini goal is 10 pounds and then my next not so mini goal is a total of 30 pounds. So once I reach that 30 pound goal (I have 22 pounds left as of this morning) I plan on getting my nose or cartilage pierced. No tattoos because they are so permanent.

Other than that .. work is work. We moved into a new office and I am excited. They are much more positive and happier than our old office mates. And I am supposed to go on a jog with one of my work friends Wednesday. Ha! We will see how that goes after today.

Workout Addiction

2011-03-16T23:23:00.002-04:00

So recently I am just beyond obsessed with working out! I loooove to make it a part of my day. On my 101 list is running a 5K and a 1/2 marathon so if I keep up with my new jogging hobby I should be good. I'm kind of slow like I walk at a 3.0 and jog at a 3.8 but thats better than nothing. I have been doing the Couch to 5K program and I am noticing that I can go a lot longer. Today wasn't a Couch to 5K day, but I was able to jog for 10 minutes without stopping!! Yippee!!

My mom asked how much weight I had lost to day, woo hoo! That means there is a noticeable difference!! I was also able to wear this polo today that I bought a long time ago and couldn't wear because it didn't fit!! Things are looking good in this weight loss department!!

My short term goal is 30 lbs by the summer (May 1st) and I am 1/3 of the way there! :)

Updates to 101 in 1001 - 63

2011-03-13T10:36:00.003-04:00

I have 63 things left on my 101 list and I have until September 30th to do them. Some of the things like working out for 24 days in a month, making my bed every day, and cooking 5 new recipes in a month will be next on my to conquer list :)

1. Read the Bible cover to cover

~~2. Live in Texas again~~

3. Milk a cow
~~4. Go to the Oprah show/see Oprah~~
5. Visit at least 10 of the 50 states (preferably with Erin :))
~~6. Buy a meal for a stranger behind me in a drive thru~~
7. Take at least 5 angels from the angel tree
~~8. Become involved in Children's/Young Adult Church Ministry~~
9. Lose 50 lbs
10. Register and finish a 5K
11. Run a 1/2 marathon
12. Take a picture a day for a month
~~13. Find a job I thoroughly enjoy~~
14. Apply to med school {eek}
15. Take the MCAT again
~~16. Take Physics II~~
17. Learn to sew (with clean lines)
~~18. Foster (put on hold)~~
~~19. Graduate with a Master's Degree~~
~~20. Go to top of Statue of Liberty/visit the State of Liberty~~
21. Susan G Komen 3 Day Walk for Breast Cancer
~~22. Watch Erin graduate from nursing school at Tech (She watched me graduate)~~
23. Sing in the church choir/praise and worship team
24. Get a new lens for my camera
~~25. Go through my closet and make a give away pile~~
~~26. Be on time to work~~
~~27. Buy a stranger a meal~~
~~28. Go back to Lubbock and visit the Hughes~~ and the Jacksons

29. Do a devotional
30. Buy 10 crosses for my cross collection

31. Meet a blogger friend

32. Make Erin's dog Sissy a blanket

~~33. Go to a Texas Tech Football game~~

34. Go to a farm

35. Go to Six Flags

36. Bless someone without them knowing its from me

37. Work out 24 of the 30/31 days of a month

38. Buy new sheets

39. Grocery shop according to a list and not deviate

40. Take a multi-vitamin every day

41. Play tennis

42. Be truly happy with my body

43. Watch one movie a week at the movie theatre for a month

44. Eat the recommended value of fruits and vegetables for a day

45. Cook 5 new recipes in a month

46. Find a church small group

47. Take some pictures for a family

~~48. Go without ice cream for a year~~

49. Bake cupcakes from Martha Stewart's book and deliver to the daycare

50. Visit a Senior Citizen Center

51. Have a picnic

52. Go to the Dallas Zoo

~~53. Volunteer with an organization~~

54. Make my bed every day for a week

~~55. Actually do my reading for school~~

56. Take my winter coats to the dry cleaners

~~57. Get a pedicure~~

~~58. Keep a check register (i do online banking now - so no use)~~

59. Make a better quilt

60. Remake Jennifer pillow cases but nicer

61. Buy a sewing/embroidery machine

~~62. Get my car detailed~~

~~63. Replace the back window handle on my car from when someone busted the windows~~

~~64. Buy a new clicker for my car~~

~~65. Pick eggs from a chicken coop~~

~~66. Eat the eggs picked from the chicken coop~~

~~67. Buy some new jeans~~

68. Buy a new swim suit

69. Leave a large tip at a restaurant

70. Muddy Buddies

~~71. Go to a friends wedding~~

~~72. Be in a wedding~~

73. Be below 200 lbs

74. Be below 190 lbs

75. Be below 180 lbs

76. Do morning work outs for a week

77. Have morning quiet time with God

78. Pray before my meals

79. Go camping in a tent (with Erin)

80. Go hiking (with Erin)

81. Go white water rafting (with Erin)

~~82. Go without my cell phone for a day~~

~~83. Pay it forward~~

84. Workout with Tanna

85. Go to the beach with my brothers and sister

86. Help my sister redo her room

87. Go to one of my brothers football games

~~88. Help make my sister a mum or garder~~

89. Tithe over and above

90. Make all of the Christmas presents I give out

91. Paint pottery

92. Buy gerber daisies to put in a vase

~~93. Memorize new Bible verses~~

~~94. Not complain as much~~

95. Plant a flower garden

~~96. Plant a vegetable garden~~

~~97. Plant a fruit tree/plant~~

~~98. Find a new hobby~~

~~99. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge~~

~~100. Pack up apartment in New York~~

101. Love unconditionally

Iron Infusion

2011-03-10T20:59:00.002-05:00

Today was a very important day for me, I finally got some work done on my blood. For as long as I can remember I have craved ice and been tired, but I just thought it was normal.

Back in July I had my blood taken before I started my job and they found out I was severely anemic. My doctor herself called me and said it was bad enough to need a transfusion. They immediately put me on medicine to see if it would help. For about 7 months I have been taking medicine and it didnt help.

So, I went to a hematologist per recommendation of my PCP. They said that I would need to get iron put in my body via IV. It was an experience. It took the lady two tries to get an iv, and on the second time I started gushing blood. But finally I was hooked up. I had to be flushed with IV fluid for about an hour and then I got some iron to make sure I didnt have an allergic reaction. Then I got flushed again and all was well. After that I did the rest of the iron I needed to take and then got another flush. A total of 5 hours to get the right amount in my body that needed to be there. The man who sat next to me was so nice and made me laugh the entire time. He got sick at the very beginning of his chemo and it made me cry. It was soo sad.

I got to have lunch with my friend Amanda to start off the day and then my friend Jennifer came and sat with me in the treatment room all day. So I had a good support team!

Thanks to everyone for there thoughts and prayers!! I should feel totally different and have more energy soon! :)

Preparation and Random Thought

2011-03-05T17:00:00.004-05:00

I feel as if God is preparing me for some big things. I have this like {tingling} in my spirit and sometime I feel as if I am going to explode with joy :)

My thought process on life has changed ..

My thought process of life has changed ..

My thought process on relationships has changed ..

My desires for myself have changed ..

My passions for life have changed ..

My passion for ministry has changed ..

My ability to listen has changed ..

My ability to respond has changed ..

I'm just sooo excited.

Since this blog is for my memories I just thought I would write what someone told me the other day that blew (literally and figuratively) my mind ..

They said "Your parent's shouldn't have ever let you go to Tech" and "You need more friends who look like us."

Funny thing is I love my friends and I loooved the time I spent at Tech. My life has already been predetermined and my steps ordered. I know that I was at Tech for a reason and I know that I have my friends for a reason. Friendship is not about the color of your skin, but what's on the inside. I wouldn't mind a yellow best friend as long as we both shared something and loved the Lord.

I have lost 7 pounds (in 3 weeks) since starting Weight Watchers!! :) I would love to be down a total of 30 by the summer.

I have a iron infusion on Thursday and I am pretty nervous. I hope I don't have an allergic reaction and I pray for the hands of all the people who have to stick me with the IV, prepare the IV, and take care of me during this time. I have to sit for about 4 1/2 hours while it is dripped into my body, but I should feel better after.

I saw a mouse yesterday on a home visit .. interesting.

EVERYONE and there mother is getting married! I can't wait to get married and have kids!! :) All 6 or so that I want!

I started my garden! I will have to blog about that soon!

I am working on finishing some of my 101 in 1001 list!

Now, I am going to take a nap!! Happy Saturday! :)

Two Snow Days

2011-02-01T21:40:00.002-05:00

Apparently Mother Nature wants us to stay home from work and school for two days or God is telling us to slow down and spend time with our families and with Him. Maybe God is telling me to slow down AND to do my physics homework. Tomorrow I will do that Physic homework and tonight I will finish watching tv and chatting on facebook and praying about the praying that I am supposed to do at church on Sunday. My biggest struggle with praying on Sunday, and this may sound weird, but the first thing that came to my mind is "I don't pray the way they do." But none the less I will be praying on Sunday and I have been praying that the Holy Spirit will be the one speaking and not myself. I have also been praying for the right words to say and to be effective in my prayer.

We started The Challenge yesterday and so far so good. I also started personal training yesterday, and today ouch!! But a good ouch! I've gotten my water in and avoided sweets! :)

Life is good, I can't complain. I am enjoying the season that God has me in and preparing for the next.

Maybe ..

2011-01-22T00:38:00.002-05:00

Maybe one day I will blog more frequently .. but as for now I am just hanging out

Hanging out and enjoying life .. Working, working, working

Working on school, working on working out, working on loving, working on relationships

A relationship with my Creator, not a religion, a relationship

A relationship with the people around me and a relationship with myself .. just learning

Learning to accept things as they, learning to accepts things as they come, learning seasons

Seasons come and seasons go and in all of them we are able to experience something

Something exhilarating, something new, something sad, something to define our purpose

Purpose for living, purpose for sharing, purpose for our purpose driven life

Life .. well it's just about hanging out .. and one day I will blog more frequently

I prayed for an answer

2011-01-09T21:23:00.002-05:00

I prayed for an answer and God sent someone to tell me to pray for wisdom. I prayed for wisdom and my eyes were opened.

It's funny that I was praying, praying, praying hard for God to just give me an answer and to show me a sign. And then I was talking to a friend at work about praying and she said why don't you pray for wisdom. It was like an "aha!" moment. I had never thought to pray for wisdom. I prayed for wisdom and my eyes have been continually opened since then. It's hard to accept change and new seasons no matter how dreary the past season has been. It's hard to do things that are uncomfortable, but when it's time to step out things start to fall into place. And my final "aha!" moment was when the pastor preached about joy today.

I am ready for this new season! I am ready for joy! Things are looking good!

In 2010 ..

2010-12-31T17:38:00.003-05:00

Dear 2010 you have brought me much to remember ..

I graduated with my Master's in Public Health
I moved out of New York and back to Texas
I moved in with my parents, hopefully only temporarily
I took a class to improve my science gpa so I can apply to med school
I interviewed for a full time job
I was in a friends wedding
I attended many, many weddings
I went to a Texas Tech football game as an alumni
I started going to a wonderful young adult ministry on Friday nights that has taught me more than I could ever imagine learning in 6 months
I started going to a new church
I ended the year about 10 pounds heavier than my heaviest
I spent Thanksgiving with my family after 2 years somewhere else
I bought my first car
I started working full time
I stood in line at Walmart for black Friday
I went 365 days without ice cream (and I have already bought some to eat at 12:01 tonight)
I learned about myself and what I really see in the future
I learned that if you are going to pray there is no use in worrying and if you are going to worry not to pray
I learned about myself and the importance of a season of singleness
I got to attend my brother's football and basketball games
I saw how syrup is made

2010 has had sooo many positives for me and so many changes. I know that 2011 is a year where many of my prayers will be answered and I am thankful in advance. I hope your 2010 has been great and I pray that the Lord keeps you into 2011 and for many more years to come. The best is yet to come!

Oh how He loves us

2010-12-22T23:17:00.002-05:00

He is jealous for me,

Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realise just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all

I just get tears in my eyes when I hear this song and actually listen to the words.

He is jealous for me.

4:46am

2010-11-30T20:10:00.002-05:00

Oh my! 4:46 am is becoming a time that I am coming into contact with more often. I hope that this proves fruitful. The amount of weight I have gained since I moved home is crazy ridiculous. I have got to do something about it. So waking up at 4:46 is what I have to do. It's what I have done for two days in a row. It takes 14 days to make a habit and thats what I keep telling myself!

Lucky for me I will be in NY this weekend and will be able to do afternoon work outs. I am looking forward to this mini vacation and attending Nathan and Marisa's 2nd and 4th birthday. I have missed those kids!

101 - 26 = 75

2010-11-20T14:16:00.002-05:00

I only have 75 things on my 101 list left to complete! I have pictures for most of the ones that I have done recently, but that will be a whole other blog post. Recently crossed off..

2. Live in Texas again - I have lived back in Texas since May!

8. Buy a meal for a strange behind me in the drive thru - recently I have just been buying meals for people behind me at Chicken Express. One lady came up to my window after I bought it for her and said she felt like it was confirmation from God telling her that what she had been telling her coworker was right. I am glad I could be used to help her.

16. Take Physics II - I registered to take Physics II yesterday! This is the last class I need to apply to medical school!!

18. Foster - I put this on hold because I plan on going back to school within the next two years, but I will definitely put this back on my list in the near future since I have a passion for this.

33. Go to a Texas Tech football game - Two weekends ago I went back to Lubbock to go to a football game with my roommate from Senior year. It was Texas Tech's homecoming and they won the game. It was so fun to be back in the college football atmosphere!

55. Actually do my reading for school - This semester I actually read for school! Woo hoo!

57. Get a pedicure - the weekend after my birthday I went and got a pedicure with Carly!

65. Pick eggs from a chicken coop - My uncle saved eggs for me last week and I was able to pick them from his coop!

66. Eat the eggs picked from the chicken coop - My uncle brought over the eggs from the coop and we have been eating them! Yummy!

87. Go to one of my brothers football games - I was able to go to my brothers middle school championship football game! They won!!

88. Help make my sister a mum or garder - For my sisters homecoming this year we made a mum! We waited until the last minute and we were up until 12am, but it looked great!! :)

Woaah! That was a lot!! I am alll up to date on my 101 list!! Only 75 more left to go!

101 update minus the pictures!

2010-11-20T14:07:00.003-05:00

1. Read the Bible cover to cover

~~2. Live in Texas again~~

3. Milk a cow
~~4. Go to the Oprah show/see Oprah~~
5. Visit at least 10 of the 50 states (preferably with Erin :))
~~6. Buy a meal for a stranger behind me in a drive thru~~
7. Take at least 5 angels from the angel tree
~~8. Become involved in Children's Church Ministry~~
9. Lose 50 lbs
10. Register and finish a 5K
11. Run a 1/2 marathon
12. Take a picture a day for a month
13. Find a job I thoroughly enjoy
14. Apply to med school {eek}
15. Take the MCAT again
~~16. Take Physics II~~
17. Learn to sew (with clean lines)
~~18. Foster~~ put on hold due to my plans to go back to school! :)
~~19. Graduate with a Master's Degree~~
~~20. Go to top of Statue of Liberty/visit the State of Liberty~~
21. Susan G Komen 3 Day Walk for Breast Cancer
~~22. Watch Erin graduate from nursing school at Tech (She watched me graduate)~~
23. Sing in the church choir/praise and worship team
24. Get a new lens for my camera
25. Go through my closet and make a give away pile
~~26. Be on time to work~~
~~27. Buy a stranger a meal~~
~~28. Go back to Lubbock and visit the Hughes~~ and the Jacksons

29. Do a devotional
30. Buy 10 crosses for my cross collection

31. Meet a blogger friend

32. Make Erin's dog Sissy a blanket

~~33. Go to a Texas Tech Football game~~

34. Go to a farm

35. Go to Six Flags

36. Bless someone without them knowing its from me

37. Work out 24 of the 30/31 days of a month

38. Buy new sheets

39. Grocery shop according to a list and not deviate

40. Take a multi-vitamin every day

41. Play tennis

42. Be truly happy with my body

43. Watch one movie a week at the movie theatre for a month

44. Eat the recommended value of fruits and vegetables for a day

45. Cook 5 new recipes in a month

46. Find a church small group

47. Take some pictures for a family

48. Go without ice cream for a year

49. Bake cupcakes from Martha Stewart's book and deliver to the daycare

50. Visit a Senior Citizen Center

51. Have a picnic

52. Go to the Dallas Zoo

53. Volunteer with an organization

54. Make my bed every day for a week

~~55. Actually do my reading for school~~

56. Take my winter coats to the dry cleaners

~~57. Get a pedicure~~

58. Keep a check register

59. Make a better quilt

60. Remake Jennifer pillow cases but nicer

61. Buy a sewing/embroidery machine

~~62. Get my car detailed~~

~~63. Replace the back window handle on my car from when someone busted the windows~~

~~64. Buy a new clicker for my car~~

~~65. Pick eggs from a chicken coop~~

~~66. Eat the eggs picked from the chicken coop~~

67. Buy some new jeans

68. Buy a new swim suit

69. Leave a large tip at a restaurant

70. Muddy Buddies

~~71. Go to a friends wedding~~

~~72. Be in a wedding~~

73. Be below 200 lbs

74. Be below 190 lbs

75. Be below 180 lbs

76. Do morning work outs for a week

77. Have morning quiet time with God

78. Pray before my meals

79. Go camping in a tent (with Erin)

80. Go hiking (with Erin)

81. Go white water rafting (with Erin)

82. Go without my cell phone for a day

83. Pay it forward

84. Workout with Tanna

85. Go to the beach with my brothers and sister

86. Help my sister redo her room

~~87. Go to one of my brothers football games~~

~~88. Help make my sister a mum or garder~~

89. Tithe over and above

90. Make all of the Christmas presents I give out

91. Paint pottery

92. Buy gerber daisies to put in a vase

93. Memorize new Bible verses

94. Not complain as much

95. Plant a flower garden

96. Plant a vegetable garden

97. Plant a fruit tree

98. Find a new hobby

~~99. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge~~

~~100. Pack up apartment in New York~~

101. Love unconditionally

End of Medical School Prerequisites

2010-11-19T18:03:00.002-05:00

I just registered today for the last class I need to apply to medical school!! Another thing crossed off my 101 list!! :) I am sooo excited about being done with my prereqs and just needing to take the MCAT.
At work this week they split up our current positions into two different positions and re-assigned people. I was initially really stressed about the situation, but I was blessed and favored to be given a position that would be one I am truly interested in.
Next week I have two days off of work and school and I am beyond excited for some time to sleep!
I am pretty obsessed with cake balls and I have made at least 100 this week.
I saw For Colored Girls this week. It was interesting. It opened my eyes to the people around me and how much as a society we deal with in the quiet of our home. I pray that my eyes and ears will be opened to those around me that need help.
I also pray that I can pay off this stupid bill for fixing a car for my sister. I know this too shall pass but it will be a good memory to look back at and help me remember not to be stressed about so much.
I start working with the youth at church on Sunday! Woo hoo!! That I am excited about. I finally found a church I love and now I will be able to plug myself into a ministry that I am passionate about.

Happy Weekend!! (:

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 6

2010-11-16T17:47:00.008-05:00

I know that I have been slacking in my blogging lately. I have been just soo busy with work and school. I'm in no means complaining because I do enjoy my life. I am just super busy!

I have heard through the grapevine that I need to update my blog .. so here I go!! I am not saying these are the only things that make me happy, but here are quite a few! Some things that will make me happy in the future will be finishing this A&P class, taking Physics II next year, retaking the MCAT and getting into Medical School. These are some of the bigger things I hope to accomplish on my 101 list.

Day 6 - A picture of something that makes you happy

my family at the last Thanksgiving I participated in (due to being in NY) 2 years ago

I looove taking pictures and my camera's

I love pink and zebra!

I love my God daughter! and the ridiculously cute outfit I bought her!

I love to watch Oprah. I got DVR just for the purpose of being able to watch more episodes!

I love gerber daisies!

I love the Hughes kids. The first kids I ever nannied for

I love my friends!

I love being able to go on mission trips to mexico and other places to share the love of Jesus!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 5

2010-10-25T23:03:00.003-04:00

Day 5-Your siblings

There's four kids in my family. I'm the oldest followed by my brother Tony - who is about to be 22, my sister Josephine who's birthday is a day before mine and is 17, and my youngest brother, DJ who is 13. I love to go back and look at pictures! Pictures are some of my most favorite things! I love taking them and looking at them!

23rd Birthday

2010-10-24T16:56:00.003-04:00

My 23rd Birthday was so much fun and such a success!! Some of my closest friends came together to celebrate me and I loved it. We went and had dinner at Mi Cocina and had such a good time.

I have such good friends and I am so thankful for all of them!

Saturday was so fun too!! I got up and went and had lunch, shopped and got a pedicure with Carly. This weekend was more than I could ever ask or imagine!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 4

2010-10-24T16:50:00.003-04:00

Day 4: Your Parents

What can I say .. these are my parents! They are both from Nigeria and have lived in the United States for over 20 years. This is the most recent picture I have of them from a wedding we went to this summer. Life would not be the same without them. Actually I would be non existent without them.

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 3

2010-10-24T00:44:00.001-04:00

Day 3: Your First Love

Eh .. Love ..

I often times think we use the word love so loosely and forget to reserve for those things and people that mean the most to us. Soo .. I don't really get to blog on this day 3 topic because I do not feel as if I have had a "first love" yet.

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 2

2010-10-23T01:43:00.001-04:00

Day 2-Meaning behind your blog name

Well .. this one is kind of no fun! I have always loved the phrase "live, laugh, love" and I thought it would be a good way to grasp what I am doing while I was in NY. But .. everything happens for a reason!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day 1

2010-10-21T23:50:00.003-04:00

Day 1: introduce, recent picture, and 15 interesting facts

Hmmm .. so how do I introduce myself? My name is Kristi, I will be 23 tomorrow and I currently work with children birth to age three with developmental delays or disabilities. I lived in Texas all my life up until two years ago when I lived in New York. I love pink, I love zebra, I love ice cream and I love babies. I really really love Jesus and my family too! :) I eventually want to get married and have a whole house full of laughing children - some natural and some adopted. I'm really weird about taking medicine and being "all natural" in a sense. To know me is to love me!

OnE: I am a neat freak and like everything in its place.

TwO: I love how peaceful the week is after going to church on Sunday.

ThRee: I want to get married outside and have hot pink and orange something or another.

FoUr:Certain textures bother me and make me gag.

FiVe: I skipped two grades when I was little, so I started high school at 12, college at 16 and my master's at 20.

SiX: I love shopping for clothes.

SeVen: I love to give to other people.

EiGhT: I have a really really cute God-daughter.

NiNe: I really really enjoy the color pink and zebra print.

TeN: I love pedicures.

ElEvEn: I could read for fun for hours.

TwElVe: I slept in my car on the side of the road in 10 degree weather.

ThIrTeEn: Sometimes I worry about never finding a husband and getting married, but then I remember what an awesome God I serve who is always working in my favor!

FoUrTeEn: I don't like chocolate.

FiFtEeN: My birthday is in 1 hour!!

30 Day Blog Challenge

2010-10-21T23:47:00.001-04:00

So .. I've read quite a few blogs that are doing this so I thought it would be fun to join along! :) Plus it will be good for the memories when I decide to go back and print my blogging.

So here is how it works ..

Day 1-Introduce, recent picture, 15 interesting facts
Day 2-Meaning behind your blog name
Day 3-Your first love
Day 4-Your parents
Day 5-Your siblings
Day 6-A picture of something that makes you happy
Day 7-Favorite movies
Day 8-A place you've traveled to
Day 9-A picture of your friends
Day 10-Something you're afraid of
Day 11-Favorite tv shows
Day 12-What you believe
Day 13-Goals
Day 14-A picture you love
Day 15-Bible verse
Day 16-Dream house
Day 17-Something you're looking forward to
Day 18-Something you regret
Day 19-Something you miss
Day 20-Nicknames
Day 21-Picture of yourself
Day 22-Favorite city
Day 23-Favorite vacation
Day 24-Something you've learned
Day 25-Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs
Day 26-Picture of your family
Day 27-Pets
Day 28-Something that stresses you out
Day 29-3 Wishes
Day 30-a picture

Lying

2010-10-15T23:04:00.002-04:00

I would be lying if I said I had a perfect day. This morning I packed a whole days worth of snacks and meals. All healthy and I didn't say no to temptation twice. I ordered something when I went through the drive thru at Taco Bell. This didn't put me over my calorie limit for the day. It was the two pieces of chocolate cake I had when I got back to the office. I don't even like chocolate if you want me to be honest. But if I only made 3 bad choices out of all the choices I had to make today regarding food I am okay with that. I am one choice closer to taking back that control. The challenge starts Sunday and I am ready for that. My goal is 15 pounds by January 1st and I am excited for this challenge. I am also thankful for all of the help, suggestions, and encouragement that come my way.

If you see me eating something I shouldn't be, just ask me how many cheats I've had. And if you see me just hanging out, ask me if I've worked out. Every day won't be perfect, but everyday is a learning experience!

Taking back control

2010-10-14T22:12:00.004-04:00

I recently, aka today, watched a segment titled "How Junk Food Affects the Body" (you can watch part 1 if you click the link) and went to the doctor yesterday. I have gained 8 pounds since I moved home and I just can't keep living unhealthy like I have been.

My relationship with food is not only unhealthy it's unrealistic. I can't continue to eat like this and expect to lose weight and be healthy. Soooo .. I am going to make a change and document my journey here. The good, the bad, and the ugly. I also plan on adding workouts to my schedule and just taking control of my life.

I may not be able to control some other things in my life, but I can control how often I work out and what I put in my mouth. Here's to tomorrow and starting new.

Update on my 101 in 1001

2010-09-25T11:15:00.004-04:00

So since starting work I have been oh so busy. Work, school and trying to work out is A LOT harder than I anticipated. But .. since we are starting a new week tomorrow and a new month soon I thought I would give myself some goals to try and accomplish! :)

37. Work out 24 of the 30/31 days of a month

54. Make my bed every day for a week

76. Do morning work outs for a week

77. Have morning quiet time with God

78. Pray before my meals

88. Help make my sister a mum or garder

After re-looking at my list I get to mark some things off!! :)

99. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge - I did this with Carly!

100. Pack up apartment in New York

71. Go to a friends wedding

72. Be in a wedding

I was able to do both of these in one weekend thanks to Amanda and Adam!

I think this finally catches me up on my list. Hopefully this week I will be able to add more like making my bed for a week, hehe!

Happy rainy Saturday!

Gone for soo long

2010-08-29T20:59:00.004-04:00

I have been gone for so long, but now I am back to blogging. :) I got the job I wanted after sooo many interviews and I couldn't be happier with this decision. I know everything happens for a reason and this job lets me flex my hours so I can take the last two classes I need for medical school!

Yes, thats right. After much prayer I have decided that I will not give up and continue with the last classes I need and apply maybe not this cycle but the next. I was given this job for a reason and I will take my flex schedule and use the blessing I have been given to get things in order.

Other than that life is life. I have been sooo busy with weddings, reunions and everything else in between but I am grateful for all of those opportunities. In New York I wasn't as social/didn't really have as many people to hang out with and I feel as if my prayers have been answered. I go to an awesome young adult ministry once a week and after this weekends picnic have made lots of friends who are in like minded faith as myself.

I was so ready to be done with school, but now I am going back!! I know roll your eyes at me! First class tomorrow so I am going to try and get in bed early!

Wedding 1

Wedding 2

No other pictures for like the other 7 from this summer.

Long time no blog

2010-07-02T10:26:00.002-04:00

Hi my name is Kristi and I am a bad blogger! I know it has been such a long time since I have blogged and I have been sooo busy with interviews and looking for a job. As soon as I have all of that figured out I will be back on the blogging bandwagon. Not too much exciting is going on here - just life! :)

Happy 4th of July weekend!

Graduation

2010-06-17T10:33:00.004-04:00

May 15th I graduated with my MPH (Master's in Public Health) Woo Hoo!! And here are all the glorious pictures to show for it!! It was soooooo long!! A politician spoke and basically just promoted his campaign and said "government is not the problem/enemy" .. we all rolled our eyes and just wanted him to get over with it. Either way - I am soooo glad to be done and to have survived the semester. It was probably the hardest yet most rewarding.

Heres me and N. I babysat him and his sis for the two years I was there.

My advisor and the teacher who made our lives literal hell this semester!

My roommate for the past two years.

Me and Allie.

Me, Selina, and Natalie.

Me, my dad, Marjorie and Nathan. I love his face in this picture. He was doing it on purpose! Haha!

Me and my dad.

Me, Allie, Charlotte, and Hayley.

Crossing the stage!

Walking in.

The small stage we crossed - haha.

Now that I am done - I am on to bigger adventures. Who knows what, but either way I will enjoy them as long as they don't require me to move to a new state with no one I know. At least not for a good while! :)

Live your Best Life Weekend (Day 4)

2010-06-17T10:24:00.005-04:00

Our last day in NYC was spent doing some sight seeing. I have always wanted to go to Liberty Island and see the Statue of Liberty so we got up and did that. What I really really wanted to do was go to the top of the crown but you have to book 3 months in advance to do that. So we went had fun and took lots of pictures.

After that we met our friend at the MTV studios because that is where she works! We also rode the elevator with this guy from some show either the city or the hills.

All in all a great trip with a great friend!! Glad we were able to have such a fun time before I moved.

Live your Best Life Weekend (Day 3)

2010-06-06T00:34:00.006-04:00

I think after this post I will be one post away from being caught up. So here is the last day of the LYBL Weekend and what me and Carly did after the run that day. We got up waaaay to early for a 2 mile run along the river and ending in Times Square. At the last minute we decided not to run but to instead take a taxi to Times Square and wait so that we could be close to the stage. In our attempt to leave we got stopped and ended up in a good position because we got to take some great photos of some of the celebrity's who were there - Dr. Oz, Jennifer Hudson, Mary J Blige, Suze Orman, and Gayle. After all was said and done with the walk we went home and took a long rest and got up to go walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. This was on my 101 in 1001 list. So we did that and got some amazing photographs that I can't wait to frame. Then we went and had the best pizza ever at a place right under the bridge. Never did we think we would have to wait in line for pizza, but we did and it was worth it. The atmosphere in side was great. All of the tables were right next to each other so when you were seated you were so close to the next table. It was great because we were able to have good conversation with people on both sides of us. I highly recommend walking across the Brooklyn Bridge at getting pizza at Grimaldi's if you go to NYC.

One more post about our trip to NYC, a graduation post and then I will be caught up! I am only a month behind! :)

Live Your Best Life Weekend (Day 2)

2010-06-05T13:54:00.004-04:00

Saturday was a day of sessions and Carly and I chose to go to Dr. Oz, Nate Berkus, and I forgot what the 3rd one was because I went around the Galleria to see what was going on up there. Up there I was able to hear Suze Orman speak and do some other fun things. The ladies there were CRAZY!! They were cutting in line, yelling at each other, running for seats - it was intense. I enjoyed all of the sessions and that night we got to hear Oprah speak about her life at Radio City Music Hall. They said no camera's so we didn't take any pictures but everyone there had cameras.

We got a nice purse, shirt, make up case, and some other free stuff in the bag. It was lots of cool stuff.

Live Your Best Life Weekend (Day 1)

2010-05-29T12:08:00.007-04:00

So I know its been soooo long since I blogged but I am trying to catch up to graduation so that I can have my blog printed into a book to remember the past two years.

The weekend after class finished one of my best friends from undergrad came up to NY and met me in the city for Oprah's Live Your Best Life Weekend. It was loads of fun to spend time in the city. We had a great time. Here are pictures from our first day. We went to Macy's, checked in for the event, and then went to Serendipity. Carly flew in and I took the megabus - which a really cheap way to get around the northeastern part of the United States. I thought it would be a quick walk from where the bus dropped me off to the hotel but it was actually 2 miles. I was sweating and tired having pulled my huge suit case through town. But we both arrived at the same time and enjoyed lunch at Cafe Metro.

Us outside of Serendipity.

Police cars in Times Square

Inside Serendipity. It was nothing like what we anticipated and it was filled with junk.

Carly got a frozen hot chocolate.

I got a frozen pink lemonade

Inside my first taxi ever in NYC - when I have gone in the past I mostly take the subway

Where we checked in.

Flower center pieces for the reception.

Pictures.

Banners hanging outside.

Macy's is 9 floors high and the length of a block. It was super intense.

I had heard so many good things about Crumbs Cupcakes - so when we passed one in walking we stopped by.

Crumbs even had a special Oprah Cupcake.

This was just the first day. We were so pooped by the time the day was over. Serendipity was our last stop then we came back to the hotel and crashed!! Apparently the fire alarm went off in the hotel too, you could not hear it from our room. Good thing it wasnt a real emergency!!

Graduation Day

2010-05-15T08:33:00.004-04:00

Today is the day I graduate with a Master's in Public Health. It has been a long road coming, but I am sooooo excited for the newness that is in store. :)

Thursday night the school held a graduation dinner and it was great catching up, saying by, and hanging out!

Woo Hoo!!

2010-05-11T19:19:00.003-04:00

Update: My class that was literal hell this semester grade was just posted and I got an A-. Woo hoo!! Little to no sleep, and roughly 450 pages of 3 different assignments. This class pushed me further than I have ever been pushed before!! Soooo thankful that it is over!!

So I should be blogging so that I can remember these significant moments in my life, but I have been so extremely busy this past week.

Last week Monday was my last grad school class and our group got to present first and I think it went great!! Going first was such a stress reliever because we got to watch the other groups go and just sit for the next 3 1/2 hours of class. Now I am just waiting to walk across the stage on Saturday. Tuesday I went home for an interview with CPS which was on Wednesday. Unfortunately, I did not get the job. Although I am okay with that because when one door closes another opens and I think one that I will leap through will be opening soon. Thursday I flew back to New York because Carly and I had booked tickets month ago to go to Oprah's Live Your Best Life Weekend (which will be a post in itself because it was on my 101 in 1001 list). So we were in the city (NYC) for 5 days and got to do that which was lots of fun. Now I am back home and getting ready for graduation this weekend and moving back to Texas. Life has been extremely busy and unpredictable. I will be traveling for about the next month, but I am excited about it!!

Greatness!!

2010-04-25T21:31:00.004-04:00

So on Monday when this week started I proclaimed that it was going to be a good week, and it surely has been a great week!! I got an email about a job and filling out a pre-assessment. That pre-assessment was kind of hard, my english/grammar skills could use some sharpening. Then on Friday they called me to come in for an interview! Woo hoo!! Hopefully it works out since I am flying all the way to Texas for it about two weeks before I am moving back for good.

Saturday was Marisa's baptism and I am one of her three godmothers and it was such an honor to be a part of her big day. I will surely miss the whole Gill family when I move back to Texas. But I vowed to visit very often. I think Marjorie made me a godmother so that I would be forced to come back to New York to visit!! :) And her mom made some to die for chicken and dumplings tonight for dinner. Yum-oh!! They are for sure making my decision to move back to Texas hard. As school gets closer to being done I get sadder about leaving them. They have made my life a million and one times better, and I know that God put them in my lives for a reason!!

Speaking of God. I didn't get to go to church today because I had to work on a group project and on my way driving to school I passed a woman who was walking. Something in my heart told me to pick her up, but I just kept driving. So I make it to the end of the street and I turn around because I knew that I needed to turn around and get her. So it's raining pretty steadily at this point and I turn around to go and ask her where she needs a ride to. She needed a ride to the Indian temple and she said it was just around the corner. Unfortunately, we were never able to find the temple, but she had been walking for over 2 hours and I was able to give her a ride and just listen to her spill her heart. Everyone has a story to tell and sometimes they just need someone to listen. Thankfully by picking her up I wasn't robbed or harmed. :) She has been through a lot and I will add her to my prayer box.

Playing in the baptismal sink

Trying hard to get back in the sink

Marisa and her three godmothers and brother

Marisa in her baptism outfit with no bow in her hair since she refused

The front of the necklace I got her .. (turtles are her favorite)

The back of the necklace with one of my favorite verses Jeremiah 29:11

The cake for the brunch after

Because numbers have meant a lot to me recently

2010-04-18T02:38:00.003-04:00

This post is in honor of all the numbers that have meant a lot to me recently ..

100 - the number of pages my project that is due on Monday is supposed to have, hence the reason I am still awake

98 - the amount of dollars it cost me to mail home 4 boxes8 - the number of pages I have left in this project

29 - the number of days until I move back to Texas

29:11 - the numbers of the verse from Jeremiah that I had inscripted on Marisa's baptism gift

27 - the number of days until graduation

19 - the number of days until Carly and I get to see Oprah

15 - the number of days until my last graduate school class is done

7 - the number of days until Marisa's baptism

6 - the number of days until my poster presentation

5 - the number of days I get to spend in NYC with Carly

2 - the number of days left until the project is over

So, my lack of blogging is due to my overwhelmingly busy schedule. I have been finishing up my internship with WIC, where we finally chose a new logo for NYS WIC. So exciting and so fun. Since this has been my project for the past two semesters I had to present to the director of WIC, to the director of the bureau for food (it's really some other name), the public affairs group, and the central office staff.

Before the semester can be finished I have to:

Give a poster presentation on my internship experience

Present our grant proposal to the class

Take my Family and Community Health final

Turn in my individual 100 page paper

Finish and turn in our group 100 page paper

Give presentation as group over paper

Undergraduate graduation pictures from 2 years ago

Even if I walk through a very dark valley

2010-04-11T20:29:00.003-04:00

I should be working on my project (100 pages) that is due next Monday, but I am still processing what the Pastor preached about today and I am so very thankful that I got to sit there and hear that sermon this morning.

I have had Psalms 23 memorized since I was a child. My mom used to make us open our Bible to Psalm 23 when we had bad dreams and put it under our pillow and go to back to sleep. Until today I had never really thought about what the verse was saying.

"Even if I walk through a very dark valley, I will not be afraid, because you are with me."

Many times I don't praise God as often because I am in a valley or I complain because I am in that valley, but being in a valley is more reason for us to praise God. The verse says that we walk through the valley and not that we will stay in the valley. And the great thing about walking in the valley is that we are not alone.

I would have to consider most of my time in New York as a valley for me. This valley may have lasted for two years, but I can see the end. New York was much more bearable once I found a church, and kept praising. As I finish my time up here in New York I am not fearful of what is to come or of any more valleys I may go through because I know that You are with me.

Only 35 days until I am back in Texas, sooo close.

These pictures are from a wedding we went to last week. And yes I have a fake smile in both of them.

Some things are getting marked off my list!!

2010-04-07T23:06:00.002-04:00

So, I decided today would be a good day to re-evaluate my 101 in 1001 list after I had a conversation with someone at work today. So here are some of the things that I will be able to mark off soon ..

Go to the Oprah show - My friend Carly and I are going to her Live Your Best Life Weekend in NYC

Live in Texas again - This will be happening next month (and I am sooo excited)

Visit at least 10 of the 50 states - 2 weeks ago I went to Vermont and it was beautiful!!

Graduate with a Master's Degree - Graduation is next month!! Woo Hoo!!

Go to top of Statue of Liberty - I am hoping to do this when I go to NYC in May

Watch Erin graduate from nursing school at Tech - I will also be doing this in May

Go back to Lubbock and visit the Hughes and the Jacksons - I will be able to do this in May

Go to a friends wedding - thanks to Amanda this will be happening soon

Be in a wedding - again thanks to Amanda for making me a part of her special day :)

Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge - Hopefully in May

Pack up apartment in New York - I have started already!!

Some of the things I am working on ..

Go without ice cream for a year - I have made it over 3 months now!!

Love unconditionally - It's a learning process

Maple Weekend

2010-04-03T17:57:00.005-04:00

These pictures aren't in any particular order because I am too lazy to fix it, but I had a wonderful time last weekend seeing how maple syrup was made. I went to Kents Sugar House and learned all about it. It was about a 40 minute drive outside of Albany and a pretty drive up. I was about 30 minues away from Vermont and went ahead and crossed over so that I could add that to my 101 in 1001 list.

The different amounts of maple syrup you could but. Some people even buy the largest which is a gallon.

This is what the sugar house looked like.

These are the holes they drilled in the tree to take the sap out.

They place these things in the tree and the sap drips out into buckets. It takes like 48 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of maple syrup. They even let me taste it and it tasted like water. He said that only 2% was sugar.

The man was bottling the syrup while I was there.

He let me see the different grades of maple syrup. All of the different colors taste different.

Here is the syrup coming out of the machine that develops it.

This is the actual machine.

Here is a picture of part of the tree where several sap holes had been made.

The bucket again.

And the sign on the building. Apparently, Maple Weekend is a big deal up north and I was very glad to be given the opportunity to participate!!

Alive

2010-03-30T23:22:00.002-04:00

I am alive .. but every time I have tried to blog my pictures won't load so it makes me sad. But, I am alive and 47 days until I move back to Texas!!

I recently saw how maple syrup was made. (these are the pictures that wouldn't load)
I made a trip to Vermont - so pretty. (this is on my 101 in 1001 list)
I have two more 100 page projects.
I am working out again.
I am living life to the fullest.

I'll be back this weekend to blog for real and try to upload my pictures again!!

It's only Monday!!

2010-03-15T21:56:00.005-04:00

Today is only Monday and the past 3 days have been filled with so many exciting things!!

Carly and I got tickets to go to Oprah's Best Life Weekend!! Woo hoo!! Last year the tickets were sold out in 4 minutes and we were so nervous that we wouldn't get any.
Saturday Marjorie asked me to be one of Marisa's Godmother's. I felt so honored to get such an exciting opportunity. On Thursday when I was over there babysitting I got the fortune cookie fortune in the picture and how true it was!!
Yesterday I babysat again haha and me and Marisa played on photo booth on my computer.
I ate so healthy all day .. and then I ate some of these!! :? They sure were good though!!

The Disney of Grocery Stores!!

2010-03-12T21:48:00.005-05:00

What a wonderful grocery store experience for everyone who goes!! What kind of grocery store do you go to and get greeted by the mascot!! :)

The rice cakes are sooo yummy here! Not like any other rice cake I have tasted.

And they make them fresh in the store. The machine in the picture below shoots them out!

The meat section has a singing butcher on top. All the kids in the store were just so smiley and happy!

The Poland Spring tree!!

The meat singers above the meat section :)

The singing head of a cow! A mom was using this moment to teach her child the cow sound! It was cute.

The singing chickens, right next to where I tasted some amazing naked chicken!

The button to get the banana to sing.

Not only did she sing, but she did a little dance!

Look at all of the apples and how yummy they look!! All of there fruit is sooo amazing and sooo fresh!!

What good is a store without red velvet cupcakes!! Even though I love love red velvet cupcakes I opted out of this purchase and bought strawberries and oranges instead.

Overall a fun trip!! If I am ever in NY again I will definitely stop by! This is for sure a grocery store to visit once in your lifetime!!

Other happenings this week

2010-03-12T21:40:00.002-05:00

I am packing up my room .. so sad BUT soooo exciting!!

All of my clothes have been taken out of my closet because I have to mail some home and ship some home in my car. I don't know what to do with all of my pink, black, and white hanger!

The weather was so beautiful this week!! We were able to go to the park and swing and just have fun!

This turned over toy just signals the start of spring! It makes me sooo excited!!

The trees are turning green and life is growing since the snow is starting to melt!! I am oober excited fro spring and the Tulip Festival!!

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

2010-03-12T21:30:00.002-05:00

I somehow got lost in my days of pictures, but I know that I have taken some every day this week. I took some of the smurf because my room was dirty .. hehe

The eggs I kind of burnt because I was too busy on the computer ..

and the treadmill I did momentarily but the computer usage I did for over an hour! {eek} Yes, that is a treadmill in my living room that I use .. almost never!! But I have already given myself a pep talk about getting back on track tomorrow. I want to lose 10 lbs by graduation, so I have 8 weeks! I was also running 1 1/2 in December and can now barely do 2 minutes!! I need to change that ASAP!!

The past few days in pictures ..

2010-03-07T21:20:00.004-05:00

I forgot where I last left off in my picture extravaganza :) but here are the ones I have taken. I just havent been able to blog because this paper has CONSUMED my life!! I am so excited to go to bed on time tonight and to be able to wake up and work out!!

Friday night this is the time I shut my book from working on this project. Ick!! I probably didn't fall asleep until 5am.

I have to put a dark blanket over my window so that I can sleep in the morning. If not the light shines through my window and I wake up way early. Don't mind that it's zebra!!

Saturday I worked on my project some more!! All day to be exact. This is the book that is consuming my life!

And today, Sunday I packed a little. Since I am shipping a lot of my stuff back to Texas I want to start mailing it now - and this is the first box! My pots and pans!!

I am finally done with my paper and I am forever thankful that I made it to today!! It was lots and lots of hard work, but only 1 more individual one and one group one until the semester is over!! And then graduation!! woo hoo!!

Trip to Harlem

2010-03-04T22:13:00.004-05:00

So I got up this morning and put on my nice clothes to go to the WIC clinic and do a listening group for participants in Harlem. What's a nice outfit without nice shoes? Zebra shoes!!

And who wears zebra shoes without little miss mismatch socks?!

It took us oh about 4 1/2 hours to get to the site we were going to when it should have taken only 2 1/2. There was lots of traffic, people double parked! {How does this even work when the other side wants to get out?}

Parking garages where we couldn't find attendants ..

And where we were eventually told it was full :/

Through all of this while in the car I was able to get some pictures of the wall art {or what others may call graffiti}

What a beautiful place filled with so many different people. Although I may not want to live in the city I would love to make a yearly visit! We didn't end up going to the best grocery store of all times, but we are scheduled to go their next week Friday!! So I'll have pictures then! Off to work on my paper!!

I am ..

2010-03-03T19:51:00.004-05:00

I am pondering going into the city next weekend to go to the open casting call for the biggest loser.
I am in love with zebra print if you can't tell by my glasses.
I am going into the city for work tomorrow and to the {coolest} grocery store EVER!! I am taking my camera so I will post pictures.
I am done with my only midterm for the semester.
I am still working on my monster of a project.
I am running on very little sleep, no exercise, and not very good eating habits.
I am only a few weeks away from living in Texas!! :)
I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
I am growing out my hair without a perm. {I think}
I am thankful for all my friend in real life, beauties, and blogging.
I am thankful for my family.
I am thankful for His mercies and blessings in my life.

What are you thankful for?

Random Shopping Trip

2010-03-03T00:05:00.002-05:00

This is what I purchased on my sporadic trip to the grocery store tonight. I went to school to work on my project and the school closes at 11 so I went to the store after that. I only went there for starburst jelly beans but bought a few other things too!! Hehe!! :)

So in March

2010-03-01T22:33:00.003-05:00

For the month of March I have decided to take a photograph everyday that tells about me and my life. I don't know if I will really take a picture everyday, but I sure am going to try. So here's todays pics!

So I'm normally a lot cleaner, but school has overtaken my life and packing has as well. Hopefully after my paper is turned in I can clean up a little! Haha!!

Snow Day and Hair Day

2010-03-01T22:20:00.003-05:00

One wouldn't think you could sit and watch a plow for 30 minutes, but I sure did. It was pretty entertaining actually! Haha and it allowed me to diverge my mind away from what it needed to be doing. {Kind of like right now when I should be writing a competitor analysis I am writing a blog post on hair and snow plows} .. but anyway.. back to the story. It was pretty loud and there was a lot of snow for him to plow.

The next day I decided I would take my hair down. I started at like 6pm and didn't finish until 1:52 am! Yikes!! This is again another point in time where I should have been working on this project but instead I decided to work on my hair! Oh life!!

Then I had to brush out my hair! Yikes was it time consuming and you would think I lost like 1 lb in hair based on the picture below - but after a trip to the hair salon my hair is back to normal after a good deep conditioner and straightening.

One week from today

2010-03-01T14:23:00.003-05:00

Based on the title of this post you would think something extraordinarily was happening .. but no. My 50-75 page paper is due actually and I am so very thankful of this! My brain will be able to rest until April 19th when the next one is due!

I spoke with a midwife today about doing volunteer work with her and I am super super excited!! It's not set it stone, but it sounded like a good potential when I spoke with her.

I spoke with my teacher about said project and he seems to think that I am on the right track {cross your finger, pray, spin in a circle and hold your nose, do what you have to do to wish me luck}.

And .. whats a post without pictures??

Amanda is getting married in August and I am a bridesmaid! It's going to be a really fun wedding and I am super excited!

What I read today

2010-02-27T14:52:00.002-05:00

Today while I was getting my hair done I read this verse .. 1 Peter 2:19 for God is pleased with you when you do what you know is right and patiently endure unfair treatment. God was surely speaking to me because as soon as I read that verse my heart started racing and someone came to my mind. I know what is right to do and I am going to do it ..

I'm actually better today

2010-02-24T13:41:00.002-05:00

I am actually much better today then I was yesterday. I have figured out some solutions to some of my problems. I have given myself until Sunday to finish my project. I decided to just ship my car home for my parents to deal with. I will put some of my stuff in the car and ship the rest little by little. All of my other stuff desk/mattress I will sale and put the money towards new stuff when I get back to Texas. About having a car to use - I just won't have one until I get back to Texas so I will just manage with asking for rides and things like that.

So, maybe it was a good thing that I was able to get all of that off my chest yesterday.

Happy Hump Day!! :)

Thought Process

2010-02-23T22:20:00.002-05:00

So lately my mind has been going 90 miles an hour and it is quite overwhelming. So I figure I should write it down, thanks Tanna for the courage, so that I can look back at all of the situations and see how they were taken care of. *My car is still broken and this is my number one constant stressor. You would think getting a new car would be easy, but its a hard process especially when you live a trillion miles away from your family/parents. Getting around sucks without a car and depending on others sucks even more. My eyes are watering just writing this down {sigh}. To just be back in Texas again. People dying gives me bad anxiety. Our old children's church pastor just passed away another reason my mind keeps going and going. I know we all are on earth for a purpose, but death in general scares me/gives me anxiety. I have been reading my Bible and it isn't as bad, but still it causes me pain. This project for this class is overwhelming and time consuming. I don't even like management so 50 - 75 page projects cause me stress. And 3 of them in 8 weeks causes me more stress. I just want to graduate and move back to Texas. Eight weeks until my last school thing is due, so close but yet so far. I worked out for real on Monday and my whole body is sore. It feels as if I were hit by a car. I guess thats a good thing though. I've been having slight headaches, but I think it's because I'm stressed/anxious. I just want my brain to slow down to at least 50, 20 would be better. I just want things to work out and be normal. I want my car back or a car that works and can get me back home. I want someone to sublease my apartment so I don't have to pay for an empty room all summer. I want to find a job close to home. I want things to work out. And I know all things in God work for the good of those who love Him. I really want faith. Not just any faith, but the Hebrews 11 faith.* Time to get back to this project ..

Simply Love Swap

2010-02-15T12:35:00.004-05:00

I wish I could say that I have a picture of all the goodies I got, but I was sooo excited that I forgot to take pictures and ate them all up!! My Simply Love Swap partner Gina did a fantastic job of making a girl smile!!

In my pink envelope was a rather large assortment of my favorite things:

There was some of this

and this

and 2 of these

And some lovely earrings from Target. I couldn't have asked for a greater box of goodies!!

Thank you so much Gina for all of the fun things and the pink envelope they came in!!

Cause there's a million things to do

2010-02-15T01:45:00.003-05:00

Well

If you want to sing out

Sing out.

And if you want to be free

Be free.

'Cause there's a million things to be.

You know that there are.

And if you want to live high

Live high.

And if you want to live low

Live low.

'Cause there's a million ways to go.

You know that there are.

You can do what you want.

The opportunity's on.

And if you find a new way

You can do it today.

You can make it all true.

And you can make it undo

You see.

It's easy.

You only need to know.

Well

If you want to say yes

Say yes.

And if you want to say no

Say no.

Cause there's a million ways to go.

You know that there are.

And if you want to be me

Be me.

And if you want to be you

Be you.

Cause there's a million things to do.

You know that there are.

I recently watched a movie, Harold and Maude, for class. And what an interesting movie it was. I recommend watching it and stepping out of your normal every day life and examining your own life as an outsider looking in. Are you enjoying life? Are you doing what you want to do? Are you letting others determine what you should and shouldn't be? In a weird sense watching this movie kind of liberated me. It liberated me from people that were hindering my life and things that were hindering my life. I don't know that I would have been able to easily recognize this without having watched this movie to get my attention. I don't want to give away the movie so I can't really say much, but the people in our lives are there for a reason. Treasure the moments with those in your life now because it is only a season and no one knows how long that season will last!

I want to: sing out, be free, live happily, be me. There are a million things to do, so I don't have to choose one I can do them all!!

Numbers 62 - 64

2010-02-08T22:15:00.003-05:00

~~62. Get my car detailed~~

~~63. Replace the back window handle on my car from when someone busted the windows~~

~~64. Buy a new clicker for my car~~

By no choice of my own numbers 62 - 64 have to be crossed off since my car is no longer with us, even though I had bought the back handle almost a week before my cars death. Sad day. My car will truly be missed. She has been with me since undergrad and she was my very first car. BUT hopefully I will be able to find an even better car to take me through the next couple of years of my life :)

Updates on life

2010-02-07T16:37:00.007-05:00

My poor car is no more. Last week Saturday when it was 2 degrees outside my belt broke and since then my car has had more problems then ever. In NY it will cost almost more than it cost to buy the car to fix it. Sad day. So I am just trying to make the best of the situation.

I love my prayer box!! It has helped me to "Let go and let God." Things have been tough since I have been back, but I am praying for the best.

When I completed #27 on my list one of the big guys from Mr. Subb found out about it and mailed me a gift card. He was thankful that I passed it on. So for anyone else who comes upon a stranger who needs a meal you should help them!! Pass it on!!

Here I am just playing with my camera. The more I play with my camera the more cool features I find!! :)

The sun is shining, but the cold is here. Last weekend it was 2 degrees outside!! Just 2 and that was when I woke up at like 11 am! Haha. So needless to say that when it became about 30 outside I thought it was warm!

I've been babysitting and it has been so much fun M, N and I enjoy our twice a week play dates!!

And to end my blog for the day .. here are my favorite sayings I heard this week.

When God laid out the plans for out lives, He lined up the right people, the right breaks, and the right opportunities.

When you're down to nothing God is up to something.

#27 Buy a Stranger a Meal

2010-01-28T14:34:00.003-05:00

So far I have completed two things off my 101 things in 1001 days. Today I bought a stranger a meal and what a great feeling it was! I was leaving Auto Zone and at the corner a lady was holding a sign that said "Homeless Veteran, please help." So I rolled down my window to see if she was hungry and if I could buy her a meal at a nearby restaurant. She said that would be great, so I turned around back into the shopping center and had her meet me at Mr. Subb. I let her choose the sandwich she wanted and made it a combo meal for her. She seemed genuinely thankful for the sandwich meal.

So I asked her where she served, seeing that she was a "veteran" and all and she told me Afghanistan. How much of that I believe, I don't know but to each there own. I almost asked her if I could take a picture with her since I happened to have my camera and had made plans to blog today, but I thought that might be rude! haha

Now I can cross something off of my list - ~~#27 Buy a stranger a meal~~

As I Sit Here at School

2010-01-27T16:50:00.002-05:00

As I sit here at school waiting for my class to start so many things run through my mind. The number one thing that constantly stresses me out is finding a job. I keep telling myself that God has a much better plan than I do, but I just don't want to live in New York much longer. I think that everything happens for a reason and for a person to grow you must be taken out of your comfort zone. I have been taken out of my comfort zone and then some. Deep down in my heart I desire to move back to an area where I will truly enjoy life, church, friends and family. That is my prayer. So, maybe instead of praying for a job I will pray for those things and know that a job is only a small piece to the puzzle. I would love to move back to Texas, specifically the DFW area, but that may not happen. I pray for it, but am understanding if my prayer isn't answer specifically as I would hope for.

I also sit here and think about the two classes I have this semester and how I long to pass them with FLYING colors! Hoff's class is going to be hard, really hard. But I will push harder than ever before in order to get amazing marks. Families in the Community will be interesting and should be fairly easy. I am almost done with my master's degree!! Yikes!! :)

Lastly, I think about how I went to give blood today and I couldn't. My iron wasn't high enough - not enough red meat. It's hard to be healthy because it seems as if one part goes well and another isn't. I eat more veggies, but not enough red meat. {As I think about all these things I realize that God does not desire perfection, but my best. He desires for me to work hard at what I do and honor Him in it all. I may stumble and fall but He's always there.}

Oh life!

2010-01-26T16:45:00.003-05:00

So I just thought I would ramble real quick before I start studying {blah}.

Pray for my semester! One class will be fairly easy while the other will not be .. not in the slightest!
I already completed something on my 101 list!! I will blog about it later this week!
I haven't work out this week {eek!} So I made a date with the gym for 7!! It's a must!!
Only 15 weeks until graduation!!
I've been taking a multi-vitamin everyday!!
I made Taco Soup the other day - yummmmmmy!! And very few calories!! I will be able to eat soup for at least two - three weeks!!

Well, I think thats all my brain can muster up right now. I need to go read!! Happy Tuesday!! :)

101 in 1001 finished!!

2010-01-24T11:46:00.017-05:00

Yippee!! I finished my 101 in 1001!! If you would like to join me on any of these adventures please feel free to let me know!! It will be great to do some of these things with other people!!

So without further ado, Kristi's 101 in 1001 days!!

1. Read the Bible cover to cover

~~2. Live in Texas again~~

29. Do a devotional
30. Buy 10 crosses for my cross collection

31. Meet a blogger friend

32. Make Erin's dog Sissy a blanket

~~33. Go to a Texas Tech Football game~~

34. Go to a farm

35. Go to Six Flags

36. Bless someone without them knowing its from me

37. Work out 24 of the 30/31 days of a month

38. Buy new sheets

39. Grocery shop according to a list and not deviate

40. Take a multi-vitamin every day

41. Play tennis

42. Be truly happy with my body

43. Watch one movie a week at the movie theatre for a month

44. Eat the recommended value of fruits and vegetables for a day

45. Cook 5 new recipes in a month

46. Find a church small group

47. Take some pictures for a family

~~48. Go without ice cream for a year~~

49. Bake cupcakes from Martha Stewart's book and deliver to the daycare

50. Visit a Senior Citizen Center

51. Have a picnic

52. Go to the Dallas Zoo

~~53. Volunteer with an organization~~

~~54. Make my bed every day for a week~~

~~55. Actually do my reading for school~~

56. Take my winter coats to the dry cleaners

~~57. Get a pedicure~~

~~58. Keep a check register (i do online banking now - so no use)~~

59. Make a better quilt

60. Remake Jennifer pillow cases but nicer

61. Buy a sewing/embroidery machine

~~62. Get my car detailed~~

~~63. Replace the back window handle on my car from when someone busted the windows~~

~~64. Buy a new clicker for my car~~

~~65. Pick eggs from a chicken coop~~

~~66. Eat the eggs picked from the chicken coop~~

~~67. Buy some new jeans~~

68. Buy a new swim suit

69. Leave a large tip at a restaurant

70. Muddy Buddies

~~71. Go to a friends wedding~~

~~72. Be in a wedding~~

73. Be below 200 lbs

74. Be below 190 lbs

75. Be below 180 lbs

76. Do morning work outs for a week

77. Have morning quiet time with God

78. Pray before my meals

79. Go camping in a tent (with Erin)

80. Go hiking (with Erin)

81. Go white water rafting (with Erin)

~~82. Go without my cell phone for a day~~

~~83. Pay it forward~~

84. Workout with Tanna

85. Go to the beach with my brothers and sister

86. Help my sister redo her room

~~87. Go to one of my brothers football games~~

~~88. Help make my sister a mum or garder~~

89. Tithe over and above

90. Make all of the Christmas presents I give out

91. Paint pottery

92. Buy gerber daisies to put in a vase

~~93. Memorize new Bible verses~~

~~94. Not complain as much~~

95. Plant a flower garden

~~96. Plant a vegetable garden~~

~~97. Plant a fruit tree/plant~~

~~98. Find a new hobby~~

~~99. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge~~

~~100. Pack up apartment in New York~~

101. Love unconditionally

Now, I have until September 30, 2012 to complete my 101. If they do not all get completed oh well, but it's fun to have a lists for life to be able to cross things off. This was A LOT harder than I thought it would be! But now instead of wishing I had a list like a lot of others I can now say I have one! What things would you like to get done?

30 of my 101 in 1001 days

2010-01-23T18:39:00.007-05:00

So I thought about my list today and have figured out a few. When my list is done I will begin the countdown and have an official end by date.

Read the Bible cover to cover
Live in Texas again
Milk a cow
Go to the Oprah show
Visit at least 10 of the 50 states (preferably with Erin :))
By a meal for a stranger behind me in a drive thru
Take at least 5 angels from the angel tree
Become involved in Children's Church Ministry
Lose 50 lbs
Register and finish a 5K
Run a 1/2 marathon
Take a picture a day for a month
Find a job I thoroughly enjoy
Apply to med school {eek}
Take the MCAT again
Take Physics II
Learn to sew (with clean lines)
Foster
Graduate with a Master's Degree
Go to top of Statue of Liberty
Susan G Komen 3 Day Walk for Breast Cancer
Watch Erin graduate from nursing school at Tech (She watched me graduate)
Sing in the church choir/praise and worship team
Get a new lens for my camera
Go through my closet and make a give a away pile
Be on time to work
Buy a stranger a meal
Go back to Lubbock and visit the Hughes and the Jacksons
Do a devotional
Buy 10 crosses for my cross collection

Woo .. that was a lot harder than I thought :) Only 71 more, haha! Happy Saturday!!

Challenge Update

2010-01-22T23:48:00.002-05:00

As far as Challenge 4 goes I am down 3.4 lbs in 3 weeks. Not stellar, but I will take it. I just repaid for another gym membership and will be able to start a steady routine this week. My hope is to get in at least 4 workouts a week until I reach my below 200 goal. I started a bucket list today while I was at work and milking cows, the Bible, Oprah, and weight loss are some of the things on that list.

I have been seeing this 101 in 1001 on lots and lots of blogs recently so I think I will start working on my list this week. As soon as it is complete I will post it on here.

Only 15 weeks until graduation and I plan on being a lot lighter than I was for my undergraduate graduation!!

Rambling

2010-01-17T22:30:00.002-05:00

Only two days left until I return to NY. I still need to pack, A LOT! I need to find out about trying this protein shake tomorrow morning. I love Texas weather. I need to work out this week. My future 1/2 marathon is getting closer and closer! Only one more semester in Albany.

Happy Birthday Jennifer

2010-01-13T10:08:00.003-05:00

(Jennifer, Kristi, Dana)

Yesterday was one of my best friends birthday. I have known her for like 12 years which is more than half my life, haha! So yesterday my food intake was not so good. I have been wearing my bodybugg and have had a deficit almost everyday, but not yesterday. Yesterday I took in almost an extra 1,000 calories :/. I also used a cheat! I hadn't planned to use a cheat, but my Sprinkles cupcake sure did taste good!

But, I will not dwell on yesterday. Instead I will get up and work out even harder today to ensure weight loss for this weeks weigh in.

In happier news, Erin is here!! Yippee!! She will be here until tomorrow and I am excited to workout with her. She always pushes me to a new level. :)

Happy Wednesday!! Hope you had a great birthday, yesterday, Jennifer.

Simply Love Swap

2010-01-12T01:20:00.001-05:00

Katie at Loves of Life is holding a Valentines swap! What an exciting way to meet new blogger friends and get some fun stuff in the mail!!

Go on over to Katie's blog to check it out and join!! :)

Almost Time to Go Back

2010-01-10T21:32:00.003-05:00

So, it's almost time for me to go back to school and I am strangely ready to get back into my routine. This week has been a whirlwind and so busy. I couldn't even tell you all the things that I did, ha! I just know that I was busy. Because I love lists here are 6 things since there are 6 days left in the week.

Challenge 4 has started off with a bang! No cheats used and 3.2 lbs down! woot woot! I do have at least one if not two cheats planned for this week.
I go back to NY a week from Tuesday and I do not have any snow boots. :/ I need to work on that.
I need to leave at least one suitcase worth of stuff here in Texas. I came to town with two full suitcases and need to go back with just one.
I graduate in May and get to come home and start a new chapter of my life!!
I am debating getting a MD or PHD .. What do you think I should do?
Tomorrow morning I will be getting up to work out and work out hard! Have you read any good books lately? I highly recommend Redeeming Love. Please go get it ASAP!! I know where you can find it for $5. Let me know if you want a copy. It is the best book I've ever read, and I've read a lot!

Happy Sunday!!

[Look how young I look! I pulled this out of my archives :)]

Challenge 4

2010-01-04T18:55:00.004-05:00

My belated birthday dinner with good friends! We had such a good time!!

Today is day 1 of the 4th Challenge and it has been a semi-challenge. I forgot what it was like to not put everything in my mouth {sigh}. BUT my body will be re adjusted by about this time next week. It's all for good though. I am pretty excited about this challenge and my main goal is to not run out of cheats!! :)

I have started my one-year Bible reading and am enjoying the book of Psalm.

Now .. I just need to get to the gym!! Ready, Set, Go ..

What have you done?!

2009-12-31T10:18:00.002-05:00

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

2009-12-28T11:28:00.002-05:00

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.

Lose 25 lbs
Give up ice cream (yep, thats right! i'm giving up ice cream and frozen yogurt for a year!! well .. hopefully!!)
Read the Bible cover to cover
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

2009-12-18T10:40:00.005-05:00

(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

2009-12-07T17:49:00.002-05:00

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

2009-11-30T22:43:00.003-05:00

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

2009-11-24T18:13:00.002-05:00

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:

God loving me and the mercies he continually shows me,
My family - They may be far away but it makes going home for the holidays more enjoyable and manageable.
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.
My health - I am healthy and alive.
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.
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

2009-11-19T11:13:00.002-05:00

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

2009-11-17T09:06:00.003-05:00

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

2009-11-15T20:43:00.002-05:00

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

2009-11-14T23:28:00.003-05:00

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

2009-11-13T21:47:00.002-05:00

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!!

2009-11-12T23:39:00.002-05:00

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 ..

2009-11-11T21:24:00.003-05:00

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

2009-11-10T23:43:00.002-05:00

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

Monday

2009-11-09T23:23:00.001-05:00

Today was a Monday ..

Sundays are relaxing

2009-11-08T22:09:00.002-05:00

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

2009-11-07T20:38:00.003-05:00

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

2009-11-07T17:59:00.001-05:00

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

2009-11-06T21:43:00.002-05:00

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!!