Week in review

It's been another wonderful Friday morning! I sewed two sets of placemats for our future cute breakfast table and finished a few other craft projects that were in progress! I think I'm going to make coasters this afternoon out of my scraps...

On Wednesday next week we're flying back to the great state of Minnesota! I have a whole new level of appreciation for Minnesota after living somewhere else, even just for a short time. Minnesota, you are one happening state. What I miss most about MN: the numerous state parks, MPR, community learning classes, people waving at you, emphasis on local foods/agriculture. There are a ton of things I miss about MN. I would be happy moving back to MN someday, maybe not the Alexandria area, but somewhere in MN. 

We went to New Orleans last weekend. We stopped at this fun spice and tea shop in the French Quarter. My thoughtful husband picked out a pumpkin spice blend for me! I made a homemade pumpkin pie with it the other night and it turned out fabulous! 

I've also spent a lot of time thinking about kitchens. Here's what I've come up with. I want my future kitchen to be a nice mix of cottage kitchen meets cafe kitchen with some southwestern flare. Very earthy. Lots of natural light. 

Another thing that has been on my mind: travel. After being on the gulf coast, I think I like the ocean more than I thought I did. But the top two places to visit on my list are still the Himalayas and Patagonia. After that I might add an ocean place?? Haha.

Only 9 days until Christmas! Hope you are eating lots of cookies!

 

Moving across the country in a jeep

I thought I would compile a list of things I would bring with me if I had to move across the country in a jeep again. Well, it will probably happen so this list will be good to look back on. This is what I would bring if we were moving for a short period.

Kitchen items: Everything on the list should fit in one box so we can call it 'kitchen in a box'

2 pots (one large one small)

cookie sheet

pizza pan

good knife

paring knife

mixing bowl

a measuring cup

small skillet

mixing spoon

pancake flipper thing (what's it called?)

two plates 

two bowls

9x9 or 9x13 pan

small coffee pot

dawn dish soap

green scrubbies

kitchen towel

any spice you use on a regular basis 

Bathroom items:

two sets of towels

hand soap

toiletries

toilet paper

Other items:

Mr. Clean

laundry soap

laundry basket

clothes hangers

backpack

one tub of clothes

alarm clock

bedding

rags for cleaning

I'm sure I'll keep adding to the list. Mostly you want everything in plastic tubs and it to fit snugly in your vehicle. I didn't do a very good job packing to be honest. I brought my bike with me and I didn't know how to pack around it so there was more room in the jeep than it looked like because the bike took up more space than in had to. Lesson learned. And there were things I didn't bring that I wish I had. Like a skillet. I made pancakes this morning in the bottom of a kettle and flipped them with a plastic fork. no. joke. 

Have a happy week!

Yesterday was my first 'real' day here. Levi had class all day and I was left to entertain myself! I went for a run along the beach on the boardwalk, worked on settling into my apartment more, and went and had coffee with an Air Force wife from Alexandria that was down here for her husbands graduation! It was super fun and I was glad to hear she felt the same as I did about many things (water moccasins, bugs, the bx, etc...) it was VERY fun. 

After that I went and bought a shower curtain at the bx all on my own!! Now, for those that don't know what the bx is, it's kinda like walmart. It has everything you would need (except apparently a cheap plastic mixing bowl.... grrrr) and is on base. Now for those who wonder why it's a big deal that I bought a shower curtain all on my own: on base... it feels like you're going to get yelled at. So I have these horrible thoughts that I'm going to get to the check out and the lady is going to grab all my items yell at me and throw them on the ground... So I'm taking my time at the bx, walking slow, pretending I need sheets, towels, coffee makers, anything to delay getting to the checkout. Finally I get the the checkout. The lady says hello, asks to see my id, swipes my card, and tells me to have a good day. What?? Seriously? It was that easy? I hurry out of the bx incase she changes her mind and comes after me. Then I went to the library!

The library was really nice. Very quiet. I thought I would include a pic of my apt too. I hope no one super creepy decides to show up here because I posted a picture... I'll take the chance.

Yay, there it is! What have I been doing in my spare time you may ask?

Working on my crochet!! It's coming along. I'm not super good yet but hopefully soon I'll be good enough to crochet whatever I want. I found a table on craigslist this afternoon for 30$ that looked like it was in really good shape. Hopefully we can pick it up tonight and I can get out my sewing too! Boredom, they say, is for people who have no imagination or creativity. So true. Well, I'm off to find the public library (they're supposed to have book club there on wednesdays...) and hit up the commissary (on-base grocery store) for pecan pie items (and maybe chocolate chip cookie items too!)

And we're back!

I've made it to Biloxi! The drive was looonnngggg and very interesting. Day one was short, day two was very long and at the end of the day as I was exiting to find a hotel the Jeep started acting up! So the next morning I took it to the Jeep dealer. EESH! Service in the south has been terrible! I sat at the dealership for 3 hours before they even came and talked to me!! After almost 5 hours of waiting the Jeep was fixed and I was back on the road. So three days on the road.

I pulled in to Biloxi at 4, got my apartment, moved in, showered, and headed to base to see Levi! The weekend has been great! I'm cleaning my apartment and settling in now. Tomorrow we are picking up a bed and hopefully a small table!

I'm so excited that Thanksgiving is this week! Not only does Levi have a 4 day weekend (yay!!) but we'll also be eating pecan pie and other festive foods! And I'll be with my husband which makes me VERY happy. :) (have I mentioned how THANKFUL I am for him??)

Here are a few pictures! I'm sure I'll have more tomorrow!

This is the beach that is just across the road from my apartment!

The long white fence is Jefferson Davis' house. He's about two blocks from me, we're practically neighbors!

This is the pier that is just across the street and down a little from my apartment.

And Levi got a hair cut today! 

And I thought I'd include the next two books that are on my reading list!

  

Tomatoland            and        From the Bottom Up

Off to do some crafting now, and kill some cockroaches I think (ish...)

Hello

Hello,

I feel like we're starting from scratch. Maybe we are.

My name is Ally, I grew up on a small family farm in Minnesota. I married an amazing man on July 2nd, 2010. He balances me out perfectly and is my best friend. Somewhere in there he decided he wanted to join the Air Force. So here we are! Today is my last day in Minnesota. We will be residents of the south! First Mississippi and then Louisiana (at least that's what the AF is telling us for now...). Levi is doing avionics in the Air Force. I'm hoping to start graduate school in Environmental Science in January. I have a passion for environmental issues that are tied to social justice. Together we like being involved in church, walking our dog, being outdoorsy, and making pesto pizza. In my free time (which I will have a lot of for now!) I like to cook, bake, sew, crochet, bike, hike, and read. I also like kicking the soccer ball around, drinking good coffee, hanging out with my husband, and making friends!

I'm hoping this becomes a place where I can record bits of our life, new places and faces, and (soon!?) my newly acquired cajun cooking skills (and disasters). :)

~ Ally

On my mind

This is my 100th post, how interesting. Just thought I would jot a few thoughts down for the evening.

- Being a new military wife has been an experience. I think I've grown a lot in the last few weeks. (More to come on this later this week?)

- I LOVE fall. I love the colors, the pumpkin awesomeness, the friends, the weather, everything

- My poor baby gets declawed on Tuesday :( Poor Harriet!!

- I think we need to become more sensitive to people around us. I know I'm a little (a lot??) tactless at times but I'm going to try and work on this. There are more hurting people than we notice.

- I feel like the American culture has desensitized us to... well... everything. I need to work on my eternal perspective. :)

- God is so good.

- When I'm really tired and my vocabulary fails me I start using noises to describe objects

- I'm ready to put on my cooking shoes again and get back in the kitchen after an extended break. Up for today: flaxseed and hemp protein pancakes! I'll keep you updated

Miss you

Moving galore!

What a rollercoaster of the last two weeks! A brief fill-in is in order! We are moving out of our house! My parents have so kindly loans us their cabin for the next three weeks to bunk out there. Meaning! ALL our belongings are packed and in storage at Levi’s parents house! How odd. It all seems real now, that Levi is really leaving, that we’re outta here in a matter of months. Woot! (And also very sad but tonight is a woot night!) Now praying harder than ever the house will sell!

I got moved at my job from days to nights back to days! I’ll start back on days sometime later this month but thank the Lord the end is coming quickly to working nights. My body, mind, and emotions were fraying quickly, even within this short week and a half.

A friend and I are going to start doing the 4-hour body next week or the week after. Kind of excited/kind of nervous. All you get to eat is protein, beans, and veggies. Eeesh. Should be good for some diet changes though!

I’ve made a fun list of goals to shoot for while Levi is down in Texas. I’m really excited for all of them but here are just a few: Work on my life plan, bike 300 miles between Sept 6 and Nov 6, sew more fun things, go to pilates/yoga as often as possible, cook new fun foods, and try to see as many friends as possible (without over packing my schedule) ((Mel, Kinsey, Jess, and Katie be expecting visits! Yay!)).

Enjoy your beautiful summer day! 

Happenings

A lot has happened in the last few weeks. Sorry to not keep things updated.

1. Levi is leaving Sept. 6th for basic training!! (sigh, excited yes but also overwhelmed at this point)

2. Due to that we have begun a mad-rush packing session at our house. It's been a little hectic (ha!), but it's getting done. (part of the overwhelmed problem)

3. This evening was the first time I really got too emotional about the whole ordeal since finding out last Thursday. It finally really set in: we're leaving our first house, Levi and I will be apart for at least a full 8 weeks, then we are leaving our families and the only area we have ever lived, we are leaving our friends and our fabulous church family. And we'll be on a new adventure that involves weird schedules, being married to the military, and making ourselves at home in a new place (we don't even know WHERE yet!). So far I'm still more excited than emotional but we'll see how long that lasts. :)

4. I have begun reflecting on the last two months and feel I have learned quite a few valuable lessons about future career goals.

5. I got hired at a real job (the type that has things like benefits...) it's been interesting and so far I'm liking it. I switch to nights starting on Friday so that will be.... interesting. I **hate** switching my sleep schedule so we'll see how it goes!

6. I've been making high and lofty goals for the two months Levi is gone. We'll see how many I accomplish but it's at least fun to have things planned. :)

And I think that's about it. Talk about a lot of change in a very short time frame! Yikes! I haven't finished my book for July yet but I'll let you know when I do that too. There just hasn't been enough hours in the day it seems! :)

10 questions from B'ahava

Today I'm following B'ahava and sharing a little about me and maybe learn a little about you! Here are her 10 questions of the morning:

1. what books are you reading?

2. what movies/tv shows are you watching?

3. what’s your favorite color combination today?

4. what’s the first word that you see in the room around you?

5. what’s on your song playlist lately?

6. pottery, painting, or drawing?

7. walking on the beach or laying on the beach?

8. ruth, esther, or mary?

9. matthew, mark, luke or john?

10. get up early or stay up late?

************************************

1. I am currently reading Uranium by Tom Zoellner and Plan B by Pete Wilson. Uranium is a fascinating non-faction book. I'm glad I picked it up!

2. The husb and I have really been enjoying watching an episode of 24 every night or so for the last 4 or 5 months. We love action/adventure.

3. Fav. color combo! Today: green and brown, I'm a sucker for earthy colors.

4. Sadly, there aren't many words. So I guess I'll go with Uranium. 

5. Song playlist lately... Mostly Dave Matthews, a little bit of bluegrass, and a few odds and ends. In the car I listen to MPR.

6. Pottery and painting! I love doing both! I just took a ceramics class last semester and had a blast. I also like watercolor, challenging and beautiful. 

7. Walking on the beach, I tend to get antsy after 10 minutes of laying on the beach. :)

8. Ruth for sure. 

9. John.

10. Getting up early! The morning is so peaceful. (On not hot/humid mornings) I love eating my breakfast outside and listening to the birds chatter.

What are your 10??

It's Official!!!

Cell phone picture, I forgot my camera. BUT Levi is officially apart of the Air Force!! He listed his 7 jobs he wanted and now we just keep playing the waiting game.... (Grrr) They said he will probably leave for BMT (Basic Military Training) in September-ish. So. Far. Away. 

Hooray!!

Ho Hum

It's already June!

I finished my book for May last week and am beginning my book for June which is (drumroll please!) Cleopatra: a life by Stacy Schiff. I read chapter 1 last night on our way to Fargo (more on that in a minute). I think I'm really going to like it. 

One thing I found interesting as I read was how awkward it was to read over some of the words. I found myself reading a few words and skipping a few words. It wasn't that they were hard words, they were words that pertained to a subject matter that I'm not very familiar with. I guess I'll become very familiar with the Mediterranean area and all thing Egyptian and Roman by the end of the book! That will be fun.

And yes, we are in Fargo. Levi is finally signing his papers today for the Air Force! (yay!!!!!) He is also taking his DLAB (?) today to see if he qualifies to go to linguist school. Praying for the best. It's been one of those weeks where you just have to keep saying 'God has a plan, God has a plan, God has a plan...' Everything is so unsure and up in the air. If I didn't have faith in God I'm sure I'd be a mess (or more of a mess than I have been). 

Also, if you haven't seen my facebook by chance, I sewed my very first project!! It's a produce bag, very cute, very simple. I even used it on Sunday to buy apples. It was perfect! I'm working on a skirt but I need a different foot for the sewing machine. Maybe next week it'll be finished. :)

Garden time!

I got a job today!! Yay!! I'm pretty excited about it because I'll be working with plants!! My favorite!

So speaking of plants, Levi ran around town all weekend getting me a variety of plants to put in our very small garden. I decided I would like to have a garden this summer being it looks like we will be here for a bit longer. With my luck I'll put hours of work into my plants and right before it's time to start harvesting someone will buy our place. Just wait, it's bound to happen. :)

So Levi tilled up a small patch for me last weekend and I planted my plants this afternoon. This is what I planted:

6 Better Boy tomatoes

4 Roma tomatoes

6 Bell peppers

2 Cayenne peppers

1 Jalapeno pepper 

2 Eggplants

1 Cantaloupe

1 Watermelon

12 Marigolds

I think that will be plenty for this tiny family. With all those tomatoes the cat and dog might have to start eating them too! And those plants don't include what I have growing in pots around the house (a few herbs, more tomatoes, and lettuce). I still have onion sets to plant and I would like to plant potatoes and cucumbers. We'll see if Levi is willing to give me a little more space ;)

So now to maximize the use of our garden I should really learn how to can this fall so I can make tomato sauces and salsas! I guess we'll see what I have time for!

Cake for Company

We're having company over tonight and I decided to try a new recipe. I went to my handy-dandy recipe book

and made a dark chocolate almond bundt cake. It will be delicious!

Yummmmm!

Hello Tuesday night!

Graduation is over! Saturday was such a fun (and somewhat long) day! Everybody was there! My husband, my parents, my brother, my grandparents, my god-mother, and all my in-laws! I checked all my final grades today and I have a green-light to get my diploma! Woot!! How good does that feel!? 110% awesome.


So today I've had downtime for the first time in what feels like forever. I came home after work and cleaned the house for a bit, read for a bit, and took the dog on a jog. I'm currently in the middle of two books (yay for fun reading!)

             

I've been really enjoying both of these books and would highly recommend either for someone looking for a summer read. The New Eve is about different 'career' decision a woman faces and how to make biblical choices. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is a wonderfully written book about the famous HeLa cells that have been used in many major medical discoveries and the woman behind those cells.

Eesh, Anny and I got back from our jog a little bit ago. We went through the waterfowl production area and now I feel all creepy-crawly. A co-worker was telling me how he pulled some 30+ woodticks off him yesterday after being at the park. I had one on me saturday. Ick! I'm hoping these none on me now.

Time for dinner! I should be at church league softball practice but sometimes it's just too far to drive after a long day.

Chao!

I'm bad at making up titles

I've been studying since 930. I'm not sure how long that is. My brain is going mushy, my emotions are getting the best of me, I can't fit any more in my head. I just want....

food

my bed

a crochet project

a movie

a white chocolate mocha

to bang my head on this desk

my mom

a book

a comfy chair

dinner made for me

a job

a puppy

a vacation

a bike ride with a friend

a new cute dress

I made unrealistic lists when I get this way. When my brain can't function properly anymore. When words are running together and I can't define a transposon, a pseudogene, a splicing cascade any longer. My eyes don't focus quite right anymore, my hand has more cramps then a menstruating woman, my heart is heavy with the words of molecular biology.

But I will press on, for that is all that can be done.

The End.

The last two months have been pretty tough on me. I've been stretched just a little too thin, running just a little too much, thinking about one too many things, and saying yes to too many requests. My brother reminded me in a (somewhat) polite manner yesterday that I don't have to say yes to everything. Something I'll probably struggle with for a few more years. BUT this is the end, the last hoorah, the thing we've all been waiting for! Graduation!!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!! So now I'll have more time to say yes with less guilt!

So now on to serious business being school is over! What to do for fun this summer. We've been working on our house some more lately. Just trying to help make it more presentable to buyers. I'm excited to start crocheting again and my mother is letting me borrow her sewing machine for the summer! And Levi gave me the go-ahead to plant a small section of garden again. :) I want to read two books a month (one non-fiction and one christian) at a minimum. I figured if I set a two book a month minimum then I have to read two but I can read as many others as I would like. I already have a huge to-read list. Hopefully I'll get some read soon. Currently I'm reading The New Eve, which has been good, and I put in my request for The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks at the library. Those will be my May books. Also, I think we're planning a short camping trip out to South Dakota in June being Levi's never been.

I know I mention this all the time, but I need to be a better meal planner. And that is at the top on my priority list.

My brother came home from college on Friday which was great. He's so funny. Levi 'helped' him clean out his room on Sunday. Somehow Levi got a BBgun out of the deal... Wonderful (rolling my eyes) just what we need.

And then it was monday

Ephesians 4

²⁵ Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. ²⁶“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷ and do not give the devil a foothold.

This stuck out to me today as some old hurt crept back into my heart. What kinds of footholds does the devil have in your life today?

Molecular Biology

Dear Molecular Biology,

Please please please amplify our salmon DNA and work for us. Please allow us to move on with our dreaded class and project. Thank you.

Tuesday Green Team

32 days

32 days till graduation! The countdown is on!!

This afternoon I took Anny for a walk. She is being such a pill today. While we were walking I found a new trail that goes off into a wetlands management area. It's always fun to go out on a walk and discover something that was so close and fun that you didn't know about. It's a perfect trail for us and just follows the railroad through the prairie.

Oddly, the prairie has really grown on me in the last 4 years. I didn't live far from the prairie before but since I moved to Morris and have taken a few plant classes I view the prairie completely differently. The grasses are beautiful and there are a nice variety of wild flowers. Not that there is much original prairie left (cough cough farmers...) but I really appreciate what is still there.

Have a good week!

Lunch

I started packing my own lunch a few weeks ago. It feels a little 'old fashion' which I kind of like. By packing my own lunch I saved a few dollars and a ton of calories. And, of course, I pack my lunch in my trendy blue out-doors lunch box.

And there are always pistachios in my lunch box, which makes for a happy afternoon.

Alien Dog!

Yes, she's a little odd. But wonderful. And naughty. And I love her.

Weekend crochet project!

I started this on Friday. I really like it. Its a little too bulky but for a first try I'm pleased!

Pets (Pests?)

Ugh! This is one of those weeks where you wonder why the heck you ever got those stinking pets in the first place. Anny runs away, we can't find her till the next morning, both Anny and Harriet are shedding EVERYWHERE, Anny tipped over the entire garbage and dug it all out, and then to top it off yesterday Harriet dug up my basil, tomato, and pepper seeds AND decided to jump in my box of potted lettuce. SO MAD. There are now four deep depressions in my box of little seeded lettuce. I'm getting over it. Although Levi wasn't very sympathetic (he likes the cat for some reason).

But then there are mornings like this morning where Anny will be so sweet and just sit by my feet as I make coffee and look at me with those big brown eyes. Sigh, then I'm just not so mad anymore. Harriet on the other hand... I honestly don't think there is anything sweet about her. But Levi loves her, which is sweet. A boy and his...cat? Huh. :)

I'll post pictures of how my lettuces are doing soon!

Spring shopping

Spring always puts me in a shopping mode. Off with the old, on with the new. I'll give you a brief glimpse at what I've been looking at. :)

This just got on my shopping radar yesterday. How cute is it?? I could see a multicolored chalk grocery list up on our wall next to the fridge.

After spending more time than I would have liked peeling apples for dinner the other night I added this to my list. A kitchen is not complete without one. At least I firmly believe that, especially after spending many summer afternoons peeling apples with my grandma when I was younger.

This is a comfort item that I have been wanting for a while. A nice whistling tea kettle on the stove just says 'home' for some reason. And between hot cocoa, tea, instant oatmeal, and french press coffee it would get used plenty.

I've also gotten the itch to start sewing in the past month. I don't have time to start learning how to sew now with school and homework but this summer I think I'll get myself a few patterns and start sewing aprons. Aprons are fairly easy (from what I've read) and I really like cooking in aprons.

Ohhh! And last weekend I planted a box of lettuce! They have just started popping up. I'll take a picture and post it this weekend. And I have completed 4 crochet projects since I started learning in January. It's been so much fun! 

Spring Break has come to a close

Good-bye spring break. You were fun while you lasted. Now I must go to work, to class, to homework, to errands, to being busy. You were my last spring break. Good-bye, good-bye.

I'm mourning the end of spring break. But I'll be done with classes soon! Yay!

Cutting comments

Yesterday evening Levi told me that a man (we're not naming names) commented on his facebook status saying something about how he didn't feel like Levi should be serving our country with some of the things Levi 'bemoans' about on facebook. This man deleted the comment so it's not on Levi's status anymore, but I was a bit offended by this... To me it was a cutting comment. I'm proud of Levi for wanting to serve our country. There will probably be challenging things for us and him in the near future so a little support and encouragement would be nice, not rude comments. Also, I'm not sure how facebook statuses predict how you will serve your country...??

The man did delete the comment, but I'm still slightly offended. I guess it just goes to show that you should be careful with your words. Even the simplest sarcastic remark can be hurtful to someone. The world tends to tear people down enough, we don't have to add to that.

Spring Break! and stuff

I am LOVING spring break. I've been a cute house wife, made dinner, seen my parents, worked out with my wonderful husband in the mornings, cleaned the house, played with the dog, crocheted. It's been great. I've started working on some planting ideas recently and am pretty excited for spring! Which, by the way, seems to be on our doorsteps! I'm glad it's warming up here in the tundra. It's quite a relief. And spring fever is setting in!

I need to start my homework for next week soon but I just can't bring myself to do it... I will do it, probably today, but I'm losing motivation... I'm sure as soon as I get to school on Monday I'll be fine but right now it just seems overwhelming. But in May I'll be done done done! Then I'll take spanish classes and plant plants and learn new recipes and have fun. And probably get a job. :) I feel blessed to be graduating debt free. I couldn't imagine having to pay loans as soon as I got done this semester. A classmate mentioned she would be paying off her loans for the next 6 years... SIX YEARS?? My goodness.

 Levi's papers got processed this week for the Air Force! He is so excited. Looks like he just has to lose his last 3 pounds and then go up to Fargo for his physical and ASVAB. I've never seen him so excited to do something and so determined to do it. He even stopped eating pizza to lose his weight. WOW. I'm excited about it too. I think being somewhere new will be fun. As long as we don't end up in Minot or the Southwest. But! I will try to be content where ever we end up. Hopefully we will be stationed somewhere by Christmas.

Anny ate a Netflix DVD this week... Sometimes we wonder why we ever got a dog. I love her, I really do. But there are times that I'd like to give her to someone else. I think Harriet knocked a bunch of stuff off the counter and the DVD was in the stack of things. Anny also ate some mail and ripped the binding out of my favorite cookbook. Between the two I'm not sure who I was more irritated at.

So many things to do, so little time. I think that means I should start homework. :)

Pick-me-up Thursday

Things needed for a happy morning:

Applesauce
Dave Matthews
2011 mountain bike shopping guide to Specialized

Some days

Some days I feel a little irritated. For those of you who aren't in this position it may sound weird or petty. Now first off, understand I love my college, I love what I'm doing, and I enjoy going to work. It's has nothing to do with that. Although, sometimes I blame my frustration on those things.

I get frustrated driving in the opposite direction from Levi every morning. It's not that I'm clingy and have to be with him or near him all the time. It's that I can't go to the gym with him in the morning, I can't text him and catch lunch with him somedays, we can't spontaneously decide to go out for dinner at a fun restaurant in town after a long day at work.

I feel like our spontaneity is reduced down to what's for dinner that night (which has now been planned out the week before so we can't even count that), if we get dessert, or if we get to watch a movie or play a game that night.

Maybe that's just part of life. Maybe someday it'll be different. For now it's just irritating.

We made it to friday!

First of all I think we should all be congratulated for making to Friday. It was a loonngg week. Tonight on the agenda is some fun cooking and family time! We went grocery shopping last night. It's always interesting. Some dialogue from the trip:

"I forgot the lemon juice" A
"Ok, I'll wait here, you go get it" L

"Do you have to buy whole wheat flour?" L
"Thanks for letting me get whole wheat flour" A
"Well it's only because you forced me" L

You get the picture. I like grocery shopping but sometimes it can be a battle. Anyway, groceries got bought, I even got a meat tenderizer. Which I'm a little excited to use tonight. And I get to try a new recipe! Hope it turns out!!

The joy of counting calories

I love counting my calories. Not in a super obsessive way, more of a 'wow, look how I can change my diet' way. I've been counting calories for 3 days now. Not one day have I been over, or even close to being over. I was under my limit by almost 300 calories last night (and that's the closest I've come to hitting the limit). I even had Ben & Jerry's last night. So today I 'beefed' up my lunch a little and added pistachios and a cup of grapes. :)

This weekend Levi spotted these little applesauce packets in walmart and got me some to put in my lunch box (he knows how much I love my applesauce). Anyway, they're called gogo squeeze or something weird and awkward like that... and they are 110% delicious. I got the apple cinnamon ones, yum. Who would have know how delicious applesauce could be out of a squeezable packet? It makes me excited to make my own this summer! There is almost nothing better than hot homemade applesauce over ice cream.

On a side note. Gas prices?? Woah... Ridiculous! So we've decided to cut down on our trips to town and other odd places during the week a bit. So friday instead of going somewhere I'll be cooking chicken keivs (real ones, not the frozen type) and possibly a german apple cake.

9:24 a.m.

It's one of those mornings. Ugh. You have the best intentions and everything goes wrong. Oh well!

I have come to enjoy running. As long as I don't spend the day dreading my run it usually goes pretty well!  I also started using an online calorie counter to take a closer look at what I eat which is both interesting and disturbing. Just knowing that I have to record what I'm eating makes me make different eating decisions. For example, I really wanted a taco yesterday. But I didn't want to have to record that I ate a gross, high calorie taco for dinner. So I ate a veggie sandwich. We'll see how long that lasts but I'm liking it so far.

I've been getting excited about gardening and biking. Two enjoyable parts of spring and summer. Another great part of summer is all the fun clothes! I am loving title nine's recent catalog and patagonia's new patterns! Both places are ridiculously expensive but usually you can wait till it goes on sale or find it at the REI scratch and dent sale. I love that companies focus on cute clothes for active women, it makes shopping so much more enjoyable (I really don't enjoy clothes shopping so that's really saying something!).

Have a lovely week!

Summer wish list!

All this snow (19 inches in Morris just in the last 24 hours??) has got me dreaming of summer. Remember, that time of year when it's warm and green? It's easy to forget what summer is in Minnesota. So a few things that I am looking forward to!

*Running a 10k (it's official, I'm going to do it. I know it's not far but it's a start)
*Planting fun plants in the garden!
*Biking, biking, and more biking
*Cooking with lots of veggies from the garden
*Traveling
*I'm thinking of taking a class possibly for fun
*Reading time
*Learning how to make soap
*Hopefully packing and moving!

Ah, I can't wait! Levi is planning on running his first half marathon in May up on the North Shore, which I'm really looking forward too. I think we're making a weekend out of it to do some hiking! Less than 80 days until graduation and I'll be free! How exciting!

Running?

We bought Levi running shoes this weekend. Not just running shoes, sweet running shoes. Bright orange, light weight, running shoes. They're HOTT. So now I want new running shoes (but I don't need them). I've been running more in the last two weeks than I have in the previous 6 months (due to back pain and lack of motivation). Which is good. I feel better, like I have a lighter bounce in my step and more energy. Running is hard for me, I get bored easily, I have asthma, and it's not something that comes naturally to me. So I feel pretty successful.

I've been looking around on-line at different running things that I like. Maybe I'll get a few things, maybe not. I think I'm going to give running a shot. I plan to run a few 5ks this summer and maybe even a 10k at some point. I have to at least try to keep up (in spirit?) with Levi who already has two 1/2 marathons on his list of to-dos before June... Crazy guy! Running will never be my 'thing' but I could learn to like it a little. A few things I've looked at:

These are actually the woman's version of the shoes Levi got :) pretty snazzy,

A decent pair of running shorts, they're much more comfortable than my long mesh shorts,

And a 1/4 zip long sleeve shirt for spring days outside or sun protection.

Also, not to be weird but a better sports bra is on the list (no picture of that). I would like to like running sometime, and maybe I will. I think I could really like trail running! We'll see. For now I'm going to stick with my shoes that work perfectly fine and my shorts that keep my bum covered. Although, window (screen?) shopping is fun :)

Resume?

I realized today I should be looking for summer jobs. That was an odd feeling. Jobs? Huh. I would like to be an organic farmer for the summer, I think. Kinda take the summer off, relax, own my life (haha). I've sent out one resume and didn't hear back from the people. Maybe the postman lost it or ate it. He probably got confused early in the morning and left it somewhere, or dropped it as he was being chased by robbers. Maybe it spontaneously combusted or got shredded by the HR lady (or man).

Who knows. I guess I'll look for a few jobs this weekend to see what's available in the area. Something should look interesting! If not... then I'm not sure what I'll do. We'll see. I need to graduate first anyway. Less than 90 days baby!!!!

Favorite persons

Somedays when you feel really crappy about life and you just need someone to reaffirm you and smile at you and bake you something and not tell you stuff like "it's going to be okay" "it's just part of life" "tomorrow is a new day" "well you did screw up" "you're over-reacting" you turn to one of your favorite persons. For me that person (who won't tell me all thing things I don't need to hear at that moment) is my brother. He has a way of making the worst day okay.

Here we are goofing off over fall break on year. We spent the day bumming around together. :)

This is a picture from our most memorable family trip. Andy was pretending to shoot the elk on the ridge and I was pretending to be horrified. We like pictures like this :)

Here is a picture from that same vacation. We're pretending to be Lewis and Clark at the Lewis and Clark visitors center. As you can see we are reenacting the sighting of this big rock. 

I tried to upload a few other photos but my computer was running slow and I need to get back to class. Andy and I have a lot in common and I (usually) really enjoy his company. As much as we argue over things we make up for it with many fun times together. He will always be my first choice as a vacation buddy (except for Levi). I couldn't have asked for a better brother, he makes me so proud to say I'm his sister. He's in Iowa for college now but he usually texts me a few times a week and tries to make me feel included in his life. 

I really love him. And he's a pretty good cook. :)

2 o'clock wednesdays

We all know what that means. Ceramics starts in 15 minutes. Thank goodness!

The library

I wanted to take a minute to celebrate the library. I am a huge fan of books. I love holding information in my hand and spending alone time reading. Recently I re-discovered the library. When I was younger my mom took my brother and I to the library every week, sometimes twice a week. Somedays we went dragging our feet but we always had a good time and could easily blow and hour or two digging through books. In high school it started getting harder to find time to make it to the library and read for fun and in college my time has been even more scarce. Over winter break I dusted my library card off and started looking up books again. In no time at all I had books stacked up on the kitchen table, paging through guides on being a better cook, learning to do this, how to fix that, and the occasional guide to (insert fun place here). It's wonderful. Even if you don't love the whole book you can usually pull some idea or inspiration from some part of it. Maybe how to beef up your chili or sew those blinds you've been meaning to put up. There are books on every interest and hobby, there are murder mysteries and good old westerns, children's books and books in large print. You want it, they've got it (or can order it from somewhere). I encourage you to pull your library card out of your wallet and go use it!!

The perfect mug

It was early in the morning. Vacation had been going well. Lots of hiking and even more laughing. The food was so-so but we weren't complaining too much. At the end of the day food was food. Burned out by miles of trail and the heat we were just happy there was something. We were headed to grab some food for the days hike this particular morning, the sun had just begun peeking above the vast glassy Lake Superior. And there it was, sitting on the dashboard of a beat up, bumper-stickered, mountain bike carrying Subaru. The worlds most perfect mug. I was instantly in love. I had to see it up close. The shape looked like it perfectly fit into your hand while still giving you a good amount of coffee. The glazes on it were peaceful and beautiful. I wanted to hold it in my hand, to drink out of it's perfect form. The sun was now shining through the windshield of the vehicle, showering glorious rays down on this beautiful vessel.

From that moment on I knew I had to take ceramics class. I had to be able to form that clay in my hand, to make the clay into something almost as perfect as that mug.

And that is precisely what I am doing.

:)

Hump-day

This week is dragging on forever. But we made it to 'hump-day'. My sr. sem. went well!! I'm just glad it's finished. The rest of the semester should go easy and be fun. Ceramics is AmAzing! There has only been 3 classes but I've been enjoying it! We started working on pinch pots last week and this week we get to work on coil pots and slab boxes. Pretty darn exciting! I started working on a bowl for oatmeal last week. It can be a little frustrating but I'm getting the hang of it!

Progress and waiting

There has been progress in our house this week. I'm almost done with my senior seminar (tomorrow at 5), Levi continues to lose weight (so proud of him!), my last semester of college has begun and I think I'm going to enjoy it, and the real estate lady came to our house last night!!

I thought the visit with Mrs. Real Estate was slightly discouraging. We have so much to do before it is in sellable condition. But she said that recently a person had a lot to do on their house and the buyers said they would do it instead. So we'll see. I guess if we're supposed to move it'll sell. If it doesn't sell we're still moving so whatever happens, happens.

We have some items packed up but it's not overwhelming. Just a books and odds and ends. It gets hard to wait sometimes. It just seems like so much has to be done but we have to wait and wait and wait to do it.

On a side note: Classes look great this semester! I have ceramics this afternoon and will report back tomorrow how it is and how my senior seminar went!!

Wednesday

Just thought I would sit down and write for a bit. My head is jam packed with forest fire data, carbon solutions, and fire problems. I thought maybe writing would clear my head a bit.

Tomorrow I turn 21. That's right, 21. I guess I'm pretty excited. Some friends are meeting us at the local wine bar that I've been looking forward to getting to go to for a while. I think I'll probably order a wine. I'm a bit more of a beer person (not that I drink much at all) but you never see a girl turing 21 and ordering beer... At least I don't feel like that happens often. I really would like to order a martini but I probably don't need THAT much alcohol. So maybe another day. I think martinis look classy and sexy.

Next weekend after my senior seminar is finished (45 min presentation in front of students and faculty) my husband and sister-in-law and I are planning to go down to the cities for the evening or weekend. I want to take a tour of the Surly brewery in the cities. I think brewing beer looks like fun. It's edible art that you can't rush. It takes time to perfect. Which means I would probably be a terrible brewer-ist. I'm not very patient. I like things to be fast-paced so I can stay entertained.

Well, now I need to get back to saving the forests and our world.

Ciao!

2011!

Hello 2011! I just wanted to share a brief list of things I was excited for this year.

*GRADUATION
*Levi (possibly) joining the Air Force (happy and sad...)
*Moving to a new place
*Picking out my very own dinning room table (very excited, you have no idea)
*Learning new things that I find interesting (canning, sewing, knitting, crocheting, cooking, etc...)
*Meeting new people
*Figuring out what I should do with my life
*Having time to read for fun (wow!)
*Reading through the Bible


There are other things I'm excited for as well. 2011 is going to be an exciting, possibly (very) challenging, year. I'm hoping for good changes that help us grow as a couple and with God.

It'll be an exciting adventure!