Holiday Season Challenge

Woah. Another crazy year almost coming to an end. The holidays bring up so many things that I am thankful for. So many things that I don't know how some people live without.

First off, there is my family. To put this into perspective for my readers who don't know me very well, my family is huge. I have 25 cousins (All between the ages of  3 and 26), 6 aunts and 5 uncles (not counting their spouses and all of them are married except one uncle), I have 5 sets of wonderful grandparents. I have been told that I am spoiled with family, and  maybe I am. While I don't normally spend the holidays with one side of my family, I get to spend it with the other 2 sides of my family. I had a ton of fun today and two of my grandmothers did a wonderful job hosting an amazing Thanksgiving lunch/dinner today. I am so thankful for the craziness that is my family. We have strong opinions that we try to keep to ourselves, but for the most part today with them was a ton of fun.

A College Student's Letter to the Younger Generation

So here is my disclaimer: This is my opinion. These are the thoughts that have been going through my head. I am sorry if anyone gets offended. If you don't read anything from this entire rant, at least skip down to my Stop/ Learn. That's the message I really want to send.

Dear Current Middle School and High School Students,
    Hey! College life is great. It is a lot of work, and definitely a struggle, but it is so worth it. But I didn't write this to talk about me. I wrote it to talk to some of you.

Maybe this isn't my place to judge. Maybe it's not my place to talk. But I am tired of seeing it on Facebook. Kids are getting suspended. Kids are into drugs. And having babies.

I read my news feed on Facebook and I see people complaining about school and promoting the legalization of weed all over the place. What happened to playing with dolls or video games?

10 Reasons Why You Should Give 50 Shades Of Grey Another Chance

DISCLAIMER: While my blog posts usually do not have this type of content, this is something I feel that it is important to put out there! If you do not want to read about it, then don't read the post. That being said, I tried to keep it rated at about PG-13. No pictures are included and these are all 100% my own thoughts and feelings.
DISCLAIMER 2: Also, if you haven't read the books, and I have spoiled part of a book for you, I am deeply sorry because I know how much book spoiling ruins a good book. I tried to keep a lot of the important details from the 2nd and 3rd book out of this post and tried to show it with most of the first book. 

      Reading for me is disappearing into an alternate universe. (Hint: Sometimes I really believe that it is books that helped me make it through my years in middle school and high school) It is an escape from reality, where you don't have to talk to people. I should really focus my blog on writing more book reviews, but then reading becomes a chore instead of my me time. Sometimes, I enjoy reading other people's book reviews because it gives me another insight as to how someone else perceived the book. I've read many books. I enjoy reading and I probably finish one, if not two books a week during the summer.

That being said, can you call it a book review, if you haven't read the book?

So many women are complaining about how bad 50 Shades of Grey is. Not the quality of writing, but the content. Things I have read from other bloggers:

It is causing women to lust for someone who is not their husband. 

If their husband allowed them to read these books, she would be forced to let him watch porn. Because they are equivalent. 

It is just proving that money and looks are extremely important.

Ana has really low self esteem and practically no self-confidence.

    

While many people consider these books "Mommy Porn," a lot of people say they are bad for your marriage or relationship. Most of the complaints that I have heard are from people who admit that they haven't read the book. That they refuse and that there is nothing anyone will ever say that will change that. 

How many people have never read a Nicholas Sparks or Danielle Steel? How many people haven't watched a movie with a make-out scene and thought about how good looking a guy is?

Here are 10 things I learned from 50 Shades of Grey that the non-reading book critics won't tell you:

Crazy Life.

This week has been crazy. We were gone all weekend at the Wisner Tractor Pull, I spent most of the last three days getting things organized for classes and a new job. The house is starting to get semi clean again and I have been working my butt off to get in shape for my PT test in October. I promise that I will get back on my writing schedule after school starts back up, but right now, LIFE IS CRAZY.

I hope all my readers are having a good couple of weeks and I will be sure to be on top of my blog next week!

Here is a great picture of Matt and I on an Air Boat ride at the Wisner Tractor Pull! (: Isn't he cute (:

Picture "Canvas" for the Wall!

After getting everything moved in and completing the list of 10 Things to Do After Moving to a New City, I am excited to be getting some home decorating done! I am also so excited about this project! I have done three of them and they have all turned out great! My goal for the new apartment was to decorate and make it feel like home after we finally got moved in. Matt could not care less about what is on the walls, but I do. I love decorating and having everything colorful. I have been working on the dining room and the living room the most, but my next goal is the bathroom and bedroom.

I decided that I wanted to have quotes hanging on the walls, but I didn't want to pay $25+ for the decorative signs that you can find on the internet.

15 Ways to Drink More Water

While I was at AIT, we had this Platoon Sergeant that was hilarious. Everyone always thought that he was joking, but you never wanted to get on his bad side. He always called me the nerd and the baby of the platoon. He would always listen to our complaints and our problems, but if there was really nothing he could do about it, his answer was always "Drink Water." He simply meant that nothing is going to change so you might as well sit back and wait. He said it at least 15 times every day. He was known for this phrase. If something is going wrong, Drink water.

He wasn't far off. As I did some research for today's blog, I realized that water is one of the most under utilized drinks as well as free and the healthiest. All of the times you should be drinking water, are probably taken over by other substances like pop or coffee.

• Make it available. Don't go anywhere without a glass or bottle of water, even to another room.
• Decorate a cool water bottle. Personalize your water bottle and make it fun. (even if you get made fun of for it a little bit.) 
• Drinking from a straw can help you take bigger gulps at a time without thinking about it. 
• Drink a full glass right away when you wake up. This is a great way to start your day off right.
• One Full glass before every meal will help suppress your appetite and make you eat less.
• Drink at least one glass with every meal, also helping to suppress your appetite, but it will also aid with digestion.
• Carry a big water bottle with you. Keep a cup next to you and continuously refill the cup with the bottle. It will seem like you are drinking it quicker and will actually help you
• Set a timer on your phone for every hour and ensure that you have at least drank 4 ounces of water that hour (more if you are doing something active)
• Add some fruit to it. There are a ton of great recipes out there
• If you just can't seem to drink enough straight water, it is okay to get the low calorie, low sugar crystal light packages to add to your water bottles. Because it is better than pop!
• If you don't think you can make it through the morning without a Diet Coke, for every ounce of Diet Coke you drink, try doubling or tripling it in water. I have also seen people who force themselves to drink 3 or 4 glasses of water before they get the pop. (This can also give you time to realize that you really don't need the pop.)
• Tea can also be a good way of drinking water, but try to make it decaf when possible. (Caffeine is a diuretic, which makes you more dehydrated in the long run.)
• Keep a chart with how many glasses you are drinking every day. This can be a good way to ensure that you are drinking enough, but also to create a habit (it takes 21 days to create a habit, 30 days to officially break it) 
• Free apps like Waterlogged keeps track of how much you have drank on your phone. My Fitness Pal has an input place also. 
• Eating something a little spicy will ensure that you down that glass of water before the meal is over. 

Overall, knowing the benefits of water to your body can help you want to drink water as well! Enjoy your water and the benefits like glowing skin, more energy, and weight loss are just a few reasons to keep drinking up!

Are there other tips that keep you hydrated? Please share!

Check out the other Weigh In Wednesdays! 

Easiest Shredded Chicken EVER!

I have spent a lot of time on Pinterest in the last few weeks trying to figure out what to make for supper. I always like having a good idea of the next few days and it is much easier to do all the grocery shopping at once!

  Last week, I made some chicken pot pie filling that called for cooked, shredded chicken and realized that this is one of the most versatile things that you can make in bulk and have on hand for unplanned lazy nights.
   With the shredded chicken, we have made Pot Pies, enchiladas, and BBQ Chicken Sandwiches, but the possibilities are endless.


First I threw the chicken breasts in the crockpot with enough water to cover the bottom of the crockpot. I cooked them on low for about 2-3 hours.

Once they were done, I took them out and put them in the fridge for a little while so they could cool off. 

Once they were completely cool, I took them out and shredded them with my hands. I put a little bit of salt in with it and put it in a tuperware container and put it in the fridge. 

The possibilities are really endless with shredded chicken and it is super easy to freeze and save for later!

Do you make yours a different way? What recipes do you use shredded chicken in?  Please share with me!

Check it out for other Tasty Tuesdays every week!

Saving Money while you are Abroad!

    So, you raised all the money you needed for the trip. You are walking off the plane into a whole new country. Congratulations! But now you have to figure out how to not burn through your entire bank account while you are in the country. I can help! While I was in South Africa, I spent a little more than I had expected to, but I also had the trip of a lifetime. These are the 5 tips that I figured out while I was there!


1. Don't promise people gifts from the country. 
   I know you want to bring every single person you know something back, which is fine if you have the money, but most of the time you don't. I brought stuff back for my boyfriend, my little brother, my parents, and his parents. Outside of that I really didn't bring home gifts for a lot of people. If  you can, see if you can hold them off for birthday/ Christmas gifts depending on when your out of the country. In this case, the gift would act as two gifts in one!

Post 1 of 3: What Strengths Training Did For Me

I want to apologize to anyone who talks to me on a daily basis for anytime in the future. I have just completed the strengths training through the TeamMates and Gallup partnership! So bare with me if you have no idea what I am talking about or if you think I am a little crazy.

This is my first post of the series. There will be two more coming up, so make sure you look out for them!

   My first reaction to my strengths when I took the strength finder was "My mom has these on her top 5 and I am just like my mom, so why don't I have them on my top 5." I didn't know why I wasn't a Maximizer and I thought for sure that I would be a Woo. I think that I was almost disappointed with my top 5 because they weren't what I was expecting, but after reading through the definitions of each of my top 5, I understood immediately what those strengths looked like within me.

Input: People who have a high theme of input have a craving to know more. Often archive all kinds of information.

Learner: These people have a high desire to learn and continuously improve. Typically enjoy the learning process more than the outcome of it.

Discipline: Very focused and pleased by routine and structure.

Significance: Often want to be very important in others eyes. They are independent and want to be recognized.

Achiever: they work hard and posses a great deal of stamina. They take satisfaction with being productive and busy

Now, I have to say that when I first say the significance, I HATED it. I didn't like the idea of needing the approval of others. I didn't want to have significance on my top 5.

After I completed the actual day of training, I realized why I have significance. My mom is a maximizer, which means that good can always be great. This often left me feeling like I wasn't good enough. I was doing so many things in high school. I was working full time and involved in every club in high school, but I always felt like there should be one more thing that I should be doing on top of everything. I still have that feeling, but it is not nearly as strong. Thankfully, my mom being a maximizer led me to a great resume and lots of scholarships, but it also fed my significance strength.

Now that I look at each, individual strengths. It's obvious. I understand who I am and why I do some of the odd things that I do.

Input: I have every single note I have taken since 8th grade science, because I might need that information or someone else might need it. In fact, I just used all of my notes from Freshman Biology and AP Biology during Spring semester this year for my biology class. Conveniently, we did a lot of the same labs.

Learner: I could read for DAYS if people and real life wouldn't interrupt me. I have a list in the back of every single notebook from conferences and discussions of books that people mention for me to read. Will I read them, yes. Maybe some of them. But having that list of books I want to read is the way I am going to learn.

Discipline: Military. nuff said. I crave a day to day schedule and I crave to know what is happening the next day.

Significance.. This mostly relates to my military as well. I go out of my way to do a lot of stuff for people, just for a simple thank you. I often get frustrated when I am not appreciated or my hard work goes unnoticed.

Achiever: This I get from my mom. Some call it a hard work ethic. Some call it an over achiever. I have been called both.


Names that I have been called to make my strengths seem negative:

• Nosy
• Brown Noser
• Know it All, Nerd
• Control Freak
• Too Organized
• OCD
• Suck Up
• Over Achiever.

     The strengths training made me realize that the names that I have been called, are not a bad thing about me. They are a good thing. They are what makes me, Me! (: I am uniquely me.
   I also learned that it is a 1 in 1.33 million chance that you share the exact same top 5 in the same order. That makes me unique.

How would you feel after learning why you do some of the weird things that you do. How could this help you as an adult or how could it have helped you in 3rd/4th grade. What about high school?

Input: Always looking things up

Learner: Blocks that you use to start learning your letters

Discipline: 12 pt Font. Times New Roman

Significance: Biggest font, bright yellow, Underlined

Achiever: A very busy font

If you are interested in this strengths finder, all you have to do is go to this website. There is a fee of a little less than $10, but it is well worth it. After completing the questions, the site will reveal your top 5 and give you the information about them. 

    This is a great thing to use to figure out what your strengths are and how you can use them to benefit you! 

Have you already done the strengths finder? What are your top 5 and how did they help you!?

10 Things I Wish I Had Known Before Starting College

As college gets closer and closer, I keep thinking about all the things that I have learned and worked on since I started college last year. There are a lot of things that I truly wished that I would have known before started college that I didn't think I would need to know. Some of these things are from other people. There are a lot more things, and every person you ask will be slightly different in the things that they tell you, but it is still good to have some idea before walking into class.


1. Write a well versed paper
    Chances are you are going to walk into your first class on the first day and you will learn that you will have to write at least one paper for that class. This is something that comes over time and needs to be worked on. I started developing these skills in high school English classes and realized how thankful I was to have had 3 really great composition teachers over my 4 years of high school. If you lack these skills, take an English class. Chances are you have to take one anyway, but try to take it fall semester of your freshman year. Sit down with your professor during office hours and have them help you.
   Many colleges have writing centers available by appointment as well. You can take a paper into the writing center and they will go over it with you to help you improve it. The goal is not to go in for every paper, but to learn from the changes that they want you to make when you go in there. Try going every 2 months or so, because your writing will change and you will still have room for improvement.
   Also, if you have multiple papers due for one class over the semester, write the first one. Unless you get a 100% on your paper (Super unlikely), go talk to that professor during their office hours. Ask them what they would have liked to see differently and what you could have improved for your next one.
Life Hack: After you finish writing a paper, copy and paste it into Google Translate on English. You will find a ton more errors than you will just skimming it over.

2. Write a thesis
      All research papers need to have a solid thesis for your professors to be able to follow. A thesis sums up your entire paper in one sentence. It is really not hard, but asking your high school English teachers to really focus on your thesis when looking at your papers is an easy way to figure out what you are doing!

Making Fitness Goals

I have always struggled with the motivation to lost weight. I know that I could do it if I actually just focused and put a good amount of effort into it, but every time I start, I seem to lose it pretty quickly. It is super frustrating.

I have decided that by my 20th birthday. I want to be at my goal weight. I want to make these fitness goals.

That gives me 128 days. a little over 18 weeks to accomplish my goals.

I know I am relatively healthy, but I want to be more. I want to be at my optimal goal weight and be able to continue with the things I want to do.

Today, I started my challenge off with a 3 mile run. I got up when Matt was leaving for work instead of sleeping the extra hour that I could have, and went for a run on the path that we typically go on walks. Just as I walked inside from my run, it started down pouring. That just shows that if I were to sleep that extra hour, I wouldn't have gone for a run.

Cookbook!

 
 The hardest part of cooking for me is knowing what to cook. I have started to enjoy cooking over the last couple of years. I know that I have become an aspiring chef in my own kitchen thanks to Pinterest. Let's just say I didn't get grandma's cooking skills, they have been learned instead of handed down. I am slowly working on figuring out this whole cooking combined with grocery shopping thing. I can at least say I am getting better.

5 Ways to Raise Money to Go Abroad!

  This summer has been absolutely crazy. After getting back from South Africa I have been trying to focus on getting moved into our new apartment and making it a home. Then I had 2 weeks of military training out in Fort Carson. (Great Time) But I feel like yet another summer has slipped away from me.
   I am just getting Thank You's done from my South African Donors, 2 months after getting home.. Even though they have been on my list of things to do... since I got home. Slowly but surly this summer is coming to an end.
  All of that being said, I am finally starting to get some of my study abroad posts up onto my blog! Woo!

Studying abroad is well worth the money. I don't regret a single penny that I spent on the trip, but I do wish I would have watched my finances a little more closely. Here are 5 Tips for raising money for your trip, because it is no secret that it costs an arm and a leg sometimes. It is hard to pay for an entire trip straight out of pocket so follow these:

5 Things YOU can do to THANK A BLOGGER!

Sometimes, even if people are reading your blog, and you have page views on them, It can still feel like you are talking to a wall. If no one is mentioning your blog or sharing it with their friends, it can start to feel pretty lonely.
   Even if you aren't talking to a wall, it can the the idea that it isn't very interesting, or no one found your tips that you were offering helpful.

There is a lot of up and coming with blog writing being more popular, but a lot people don't seem to understand exactly how to appreciate the blog! I read another blog post similar to this one and it inspired me to get it out to my audience as well. I thought the way the other blogger wrote it was very insitful and I had never thought about it as people not really knowing what goes into putting together a blog.
     This is probably the think I spend a bigger chunk of my time doing. I spend a good amount of time thinking of ideas for blog posts. If I am not writing it, I am trying to get the perfect pictures for my blog. Or creating cool logos in Photoshop or other such things. There is a lot of little things that go into a well put together blog.

#1500in31

I have done so many of these posts about how I am sick of weighing what I do, but I am struggling to get where I want to be. I am not unhealthy, but I am not as healthy as I could be. To be at my ideal, military weight I need to lose 15 pounds.

    Every time I get frustrated about it at drill, all of the people that I talked to ensure me that the way that military does height and weight is screwed up. They also tell me that the standard isn't really all that healthy.

I know I could stand to lose some weight, but I don't know if I could ever get down 15 pounds. My goal is to get down 10 by October drill. (middle of October.)



So here is my fitness challenge:

All Credits for this image go to
pinkheelspinktruck.com and hairsprayandhighheels.net

Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti

I have touched on this on a couple other posts, but I LOVE to cook. I just hate spending a ton of time in the kitchen for one meal. Not ideal for me, even if I am home most of the time.
    My boyfriend is a huge fan on traditional meals and isn't a very adventurous eater. I typically stick within the boundaries somewhere between meat and potatoes and pasta when I am cooking supper. Sometimes I have to remember that every family has their favorites, and apparently not everyone eats the same things as we do. This being said, I have been trying to copy a lot of his mom's recipes to keep him in his dietary comfort zone. This is one that she has made in the past and I have copied. Thanks Robin!

5 More Money Saving Tips

     Hey Readers! I am so glad to finally be back and writing! The last 2 weeks I was at some military training and I just didn't get all of my blogs written that I had wanted to, but now I am going to be back to writing a post every day, Monday- Friday! At least until I get a job or start college back up! I am back now and ready to share some more great things with you!
   
I have done a couple other money saving posts like these two:
                     Money Saving Tips #1
                     Money Saving Tips #2

But here are just a few more tips that I have found really helpful!

5 Steps to Easy Meal Planning

    Meal planning is a great way to save some money, feed the family, and stay organized in the house. I have worked hard on mastering this skill and overtime I have gotten a lot better at it. It doesn't have to be as complicated as I make it. It can honestly be as simple as writing down ideas for food. Or writing out 6 meals and going to get them from the store. 

    The way I meal plan has cut my grocery spending tremendously. I have gone from spending about $150 per grocery trip (2 weeks) to spending between $60-90. This includes a ton of fresh produce and fresh cuts of meat. I don't buy a lot of frozen/canned fruits and vegetables and I hardly every buy frozen meat (except chicken nuggets, which will always be my fav!)

     I have done a couple posts about this already but I wanted to let everyone know how I actually do it in 5 super easy steps. It takes a little printing for me, but you could easily do everything from your computer screen as well.

I personally have a notebook dedicated to meal planning. I make the meal plans in it. I keep lists of meals that I want to try. This also helps me look back and see the meals that we had last week and the meals that I have groceries for in the house.

Why a Liberal Arts Degree is for Me!

Lately, I have heard a lot of people talking about Universities and how Technical programs are becoming way more efficient. "Liberal Arts is a thing of the past" Lots of people have said that they don't see why people would spend so much money on a degree that doesn't really teach you how to "do" anything.

I know the economy hasn't been great and people don't always find jobs with liberal arts degree, but people don't always find a great job with any degree and you are more likely to find a job that pays more than minimum wage with either a degree, or experience.

I am going to University of Nebraska for a Bachelor's of Arts Degree. My major is Psychology and I have a quadruple minor. My minors are Child, Youth, and Family Studies, Women and Gender Studies, Conflict and Conflict Resolution (Similar to military history), and LGBTQ Studies (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transexual and Queer/Questioning). I have a VERY liberal arts degree.


5 reasons why a Liberal Arts Degree is for me!

1. Liberal Arts broadens your mind.
     I have met a lot of close minded, stuck in their ways people in the past. With more education, comes more open views about the world unless you decide to shut out any existence of truth in the knowledge that you are receiving. There is a lot of information in the world and people tend to only go with what they know. Liberal arts can help you learn more and be more educated about hot button topics. Liberal arts majors are more likely to not be racist, sexist, or judgmental compared to people with little to no education.

2. A Wealth of Knowledge
 In my one year at college, I have learned about women in history, benefits  biking to work, the Trans-Canadian Pipeline, transgender surgery, how plants make food, how to write a poem, statistics, how to code for computers (kind of), Pavlov's Theory, what parts of the body actually cause tolerance with alcohol, the history of South Africa, things that threaten babies lives during pregnancy,   and that is simply one thing per class that I have taken.  You can't say that technical school taught you all of that in great depth.

Name Canvas: For a Rainy Day

I have spent many hours searching for ideas to decorate the apartment walls. I have done some pretty cool stuff this week and I am super excited to share them all with my readers! 

Sometime in April, I did this craft with my TeamMate mentee, but I did my name. Ours turned out super cool and we had so much fun with them! She finger painted hers, but I chose to use a brush on mine so I could hang it in my apartment once I finally moved in. 

Everyday Workout Plan!

I have been going and going for the two months it feels like. Where did June go? It seems like May just started.
This being said, my workout plan has been less than fantastic. I have been watching what I eat pretty well, but I have been craving a super great workout for a while. During drill weekends, we get some pretty good ones and I really do enjoy those.

I always have such great motivation until I get busy and then it seems to all go out the window. I need something that isn't going to take a lot of time out of my day, but that is going to target my trouble spots.

This workout is slightly tailored for me because I put push-ups and sit-ups on every day regardless of the target zone so I could really focus on the PT test aspect!

Finger- Licking Crock-pot Chicken Wings

My very first Tasty Tuesday! I am so excited to have finally started a daily blog plan! I hope this starts to bring more readers to the page! Please, share your favorite posts with your families and friends!

This week we have had a lot of cooking in days! I have been so excited to finally have a kitchen again that I never want to go out for supper anymore. I have started making some more recipes and enjoying the cooking again!

I couldn't really find a recipe that fit how I wanted to make them. I didn't want a bunch of extra ingredients and I really didn't want to have to turn the oven on, but I couldn't find a recipe for wings that you just put in the crock-pot without baking them first. It gets so hot in our apartment during the day anyway because we are on the 3rd floor and we have a huge glass sliding door that makes up most of our light in the living room. I decided that I would experiment with the wings, and if the didn't turn out then we could always order Chinese.

Why I Meal Plan!

I know there is a lot out there on the benefits to planning out meals at least a week in advance, so I thought I would add my two cents into it. I love meal planning, but I don't necessarily do it the way that everyone else does. When I meal plan, I just list enough meals for 2 weeks and then we kinda go by week. I normally figure out what we are having the for supper the night before so I know if I need to prep anything or make sure something is ready to go.

My meal plan for two weeks consists of:
  A few new recipes
  A few "convenience meals" (Hamburger helper, frozen pizzas)
  A few traditional favorites (Spaghetti, burgers)
  Two leftovers nights
  One night out


1. Organization
I will be the first to admit that I go a little crazy when there isn't a definite plan. I like order. I like knowing what time I have to be ready and where I need to be. Also, in the sense of going out, I like to know what I should be wearing for said event.
It isn't surprising that I meal plan. I like to know if I need to start supper earlier, or if I need to run to the store to get one item for the meal. If it is a crock-pot recipe I like knowing that I will be around to check on it if needed or at least there to start it at some point in the afterno
on.

My New Blogging Plan

I have struggled with what this blog is about most of the time that I have had the blog. I have spent hours searching other blog sites and reading all about what they do for their blog to make it work.

I am going to try something new and I hope to keep with it throughout the school year. I may have a few weeks were I struggle to keep up, but I will make sure to at least post every once in a while. I am really excited to start this!

My plan is to have a different theme for every day Monday-Friday. Each day will have a theme but it will be broad enough that I can write about a lot of things that are under that category. Every week will have a different blog post for that day of the week.

All About Me

     Hey everyone! I know most of you are regular readers, and most of you are probably family and friends, but for those of you who happened to stumble upon my blog, I thought I would give you a nice, warm welcoming!

   Many bloggers out there are stay at home mothers who have a couple of kids and have been married for a good amount of time, but I am actually quite the opposite.

I am in a relationship with my best friend, Matthew.
Not married.
No kids.
I am also a college student.
 Looking for a full time 8-5 job.
Always searching for a volunteer position.
 I love writing.
On top of that. I am a soldier in the Nebraska National Guard and I love every second of it.

Off the Desk Paper Organization!

Since I've been at home since the move, I have taken it into my hands to do the house cleaning (for the most part), meal planning, and organizing (again, what I can do.)

I am constantly finding that I don't have a place to put the bills other than under a magnet on the fridge because 1. there are two drawers in our kitchen and they are both taken. and 2. There isn't a whole lot of table and counter space as you walk in the door. (Bonus because our tables don't become a catch all). Anyway, I am always afraid I am going to lose an important piece of paper and not be able to find it when it comes time to pay that bill. Our office desk is less than functional because we have a TV sitting on it to be used as a monitor for my broken laptop.

African Safari: Day One

   Today, we packed up our bags and headed out for our first overnight trip.We were headed to the Safari. It seemed like a super long drive on the way there, but it was really only an hour or two. As we drove, I couldn't help but be surprised at how absolutely beautiful the world is.
      Ever since the Slave Lodge we have been making fun of Kelsie because the birds and squirrels really love her. In the Company Gardens, the animals came right up to her and were super friendly, which freaked her out. It wasn't pretty. She also seems to attract the dog at the Hostel very well. Well, the Safari just made her a target for some jokes because we kept saying how we would get to see all of the animals because Kelsie would attract them towards our vehicle.

I can show this one better with pictures than words. Only pictures can explain how truly beautiful Africa is:

    The drive in at sunset was so beautiful. I was in complete awe with how wonderful this planet is. After the safari, we ate supper together, then headed back to the lounge for some cards and fun. We laughed and played cards until the lounge closed, then headed back to our beautiful cabins.

     Of course, me being the aspiring photographer that I am, I took over 500 pictures in just this day of the safari. I can only wait to see what tomorrow brings.

Words of the Day:

Deb: Infantile

Kelsie: amazing

Amy: Awe-inspiring

Mirvat: Serine

Dr. Curry: stimulating

Me: photographic

Archives and Holocaust Museum

     This morning in South Africa we had a good class about the beginning history of South Africa. We talked about the Dutch coming to form a settlement here, the slave trade and the types of slaves, and the different types of segregation laws that took place.
      It was really interesting because Dr. Curry started the lecture by saying that the 1940's Alexandria, South Africa bus boycotts were happening at the same time as the boycotts in Montgomery, Alabama. She explained how this was the thing that got her interested in South Africa, primarily because when her professor first told her this, he continued with the statement, "Someone in this classroom will want to know if the two boycotts had any influence on each other. He was right. She wanted to know, but he didn't have an answer for her. So she set out to find it on her own.
    South Africa had Apartheid from 1948-1990, which was similar to our segregation, but worse to an extent. Apartheid literally means apart-ness from the Afrikaans and Dutch derivatives. Class was really interesting and I enjoyed finally getting some back knowledge of South Africa. I came into this trip with 4 history majors and a history professor. I am not really sure what I was thinking at the time because I am not a history major. While I do really enjoy history, I am a psychology major, with very little world history knowledge, but it will be fine.
     After class we grabbed some lunch and headed to the Archives. It was so cool because there are so many old records that were there. We got a tour of the records. The guy showed us the old mugshots from South African jails and prisons. They took their mugshots with their hands on their chest so the officials could see if they had a finger missing. It wasn't uncommon for someone to lose a finger while serving time, so the mugshots were their way of showing that it did or did not happen during their sentence.
      Outside of the archives, we decided that it would only be fair if we had taken our own mugshots. We even came up with our own convict names as listed on the pictures. Here they are:

    After the archives we took a stroll through the Company Gardens towards the Holocaust Museum. When I think about history, I never think of South Africa being included in some of it. South Africa was a huge place where Jewish people came to hid from the war. They escaped the war and the concentration camps for South Africa.
     The Holocaust museum was pretty cool because it had a lot of history that is often forgotten. United States history tends to try to make it seem like it wasn't as bad as it really was. There are a lot of things in US history that get pushed under the rug, but South Africa was very open about their history and politics.
    Kelsie had a great knowledge of the Holocaust, so she ended up giving a private tour for Amy and I. She told us a ton of things that weren't on the boards and displays. We spent a good amount of time in there.

   We then headed back to the hostel after getting some supper. We sat around and played some pitch upstairs on the porch. We taught a couple of them how to play and had some great laughs.
    At this point, I am still having some trouble getting used to the rand. For every 1 US dollar it is a little over 10 Rand. I am constantly trying to convert it and figure out how much I am actually spending. Hopefully by the end of the trip, it will get better.


What a great day full of laughter and fun. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.

Words of the Day:

Mirvat: Hidden

Amy: Learn

Dr. Curry: intellectual

Deb: experimentation

Kelsie: interesting

Me: Breathtaking