What was the sweetest thing that happened all weekend?  When I asked, "What do you want for our anniversary?" And he said, "Another year."

TEN random things about me:
10.  I drink a ridiculous amount of Diet Pepsi each day.
9.  I can't wink.
8.  I am very eclectic.
7.  I really like music now that I'm not forced to enjoy it.
6.  I LOVE jewelry
5.  I started reading again!  Seriously, until recently...I hadn't read a substantial portion of a book since junior high.
4.  I obsess over my size.  You probably already knew that.
3.  I LOVE cinnamon rolls.
2.  My first music instrument......the kazoo.
1.  I'm very emotional.  You probably already knew about that, too.

NINE ways to win my heart:
9.  Listen to me.
8.  Love me.
7.  Be there for me
6.  Tell me I'm beautiful.
5.  Show/tell me me that you care for me.....because otherwise I won't know.  I'm oblivious.
4.  Don't be reckless with my heart.
3.  Have patience with me.....if you push me you will lose me.
2.  Make me laugh.
1.  Make me smile.

EIGHT things I wanna do before i die:
8.  Have a house built.
7.  Open a studio in that house.
6.  Get married.
5.  Have at least one child.
4.  Travel to foreign countries.
3.  Go on a cruise.
2.  Pay my parents back in some way for all that they have given me.
1.  Parasailing (maybe...I'm kind of afraid of heights, but it sounds exciting)

SEVEN things that annoy me:
7. Hipocrites
6. Mean people
5. People who don't put themselves in other peoples' shoes
4. When people won't accept "no" for an answer.
3. Myself (at times, haha)
2. Bad drivers
1. People who won't do things because they are "too busy" haha.

SIX things I wish for:
6. I'm not sure I want to share that with the entire world right now.
5.
4.
3.
2.
1.

FIVE things I am afraid of:
5. the dark... no joke
4. driving in the winter
3. heights
2. strangers....really
1. failure

FOUR of my favorite items in my room
4. my box that I keep all my memorable stuff in 
3. letters/drawings from my students
2. my picture of my dad and i on the tractor
1. special things my mom has made for me

THREE odd things I do everyday:
3.  I check my alarm before I got to bed many times.
2.  I drink an insane amount of diet soda.
1.  I check my purse a lot to make sure everything's still there!  I don't know how I would lose stuff when the zipper is still closed.....but I worry about it! haha

TWO things I want to do right now:
2. I want my room to be clean but I don't want to do it, does that count?
1. Go to BWW's haha!

ONE person i want to see right now:
1.  Chad!

The Chancellor canceled all classes and said that only essential employees need to report to work. That hasn't happened in about 50 years (so I've heard)! I should be sleeping right now....but my phone kept ringing!

I finally feel like myself again. This is nice. I forgot how nice it was. I feel good; I feel great.

I got to spend the weekend with Andrew in Carbondale!!!!!! Sadly, the weekend is going to come to an end today. Oh sad. He's such a sweetie.

I'm going to go cherish the rest of the morning and early afternoon with my honey.

An update.

It looks like I will have a good job very soon.  :) :) :)

Since I'm in between jobs right now, I've got a little mini-vacation.  Haha...by "vacation" I mean sleeping it.  It is glorious.

Since our family is planning a wedding, I really want to get in shape.  However, despite the wedding plans, I find myself with less motivation than ever.  I find that very odd.   I really need to find that motivation....

Ok, this entry isn't as interesting as I thought it would be, so I'll let you go now! haha.

It's shaping up to be a pretty good Christmas. We celebrated Christmas tonight with my mom's family, and it was really nice. Stacey and Eric are engaged! Fun! Lots to plan!!

I have a new, fun, and exciting job at the Christine Rich Studio, Dance and Performing Arts Academy. I really enjoy it.

Today I got new clothes for my new job. Yay!!!

I got much needed Andrew time. Hopefully we'll get more time together tomorrow night.

Tomorrow is the family Christmas!!! My brother is home, too. I've missed him so much.

I really should be in bed....I am tired....I just don't want to go to bed...

And the question of the day is.....who is Janis and why do I have her number on a post-it on my desk???

41 of the MOST Random Questions Ever


1. Where were you 1 hour ago? Vince's apartment at the Atrium

2. Who will be your next kiss? ANDREW!

3. Is there anything pink within 10 feet of you? My fuzzy slippers I'm wearing/

4. When was the last time you were at the mall? Friday with Andrew in Carbondale and Marion.

5. Are you wearing socks right now? no

6. When was the last time you went out of the state? I don't remember...maybe August when I went to see Chad.

7. Have you been to the movies in the last 5 days? No.

8. What was the last thing you had to drink? Diet Caffeine Free Pepsi

9. What are you wearing right now? comfy sweats!

10. What was your last purchase? Ice Cream from Walmart

11. Last food you ate? left over pizza

12. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Laura

13. Have you bought any clothing items in the last week? No.

14. Do you have a pet? no. sad. :-( But I'm not responsible enough for pets, nor can I afford them.

15. What's the last sporting event you watched? I went to an Illini game during Thanksgiving break.

16. What is your favorite class? last semester? none.

17. If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be? Cuddling with Andrew!

18. What is the last thing you purchased online? a book from Amazon that one of my teachers said I wouldn't be able to find. I think that's pretty much the whole reason why I bought it - the challenge of finding it (which was really easy....)

19. How old are your parents? Age doesn't matter!

20. What's your favorite soup? Ohhhh Chili....also Salsa Stoup (recently discovered) is wonderful, and Grandma's cheese soup is great - I love soup!

21. Do you miss anyone? Chad and Clover

22. Last play you saw? I think it was Guys and Dolls

23. What are your plans for the day? the day is over - sleep is next

24. Who is the last person you messaged on myspace? Not sure - probably Erin.

25. Ever go to camp? ohhh yes. many times.

26. Were you an honor roll student in school? yes

27. What do you know about the future? actually, nothing.

28. Are you wearing any perfume or cologne? Clinique Happy

29. What is your favorite thing to do? sleep, crochet, play music FOR FUN, shop

30. Where is your best friend located? well right now he is at his mom's house.

31. Do you have a tan? no

32. How old do you want to be when you have kids? I don't know - can't think about that right now.

33. Do you collect anything? sort of - tea sets, piano stuff

34. Do you have any tattoos or piercings? ear piercings

35. Have you ever drank your soda from a straw? ...yeah.

36. How do you like your soda? Diet Pepsi!!!!

37. Do you like hot sauce? It depends...is it alone, in chili, on a taco...?

38. Last time you took a bath? Maybe a little over a week ago to de-stress.

39. Who do you like? Andrew!

40. What is your mood? tired, giddy

41. What's the last TV show you watched? Laura and I were flipping channel's at Vince's - we couldn't make up our mind.

Other than the survey I posted yesterday, I don't think I've had a real update since August sometime. I can't guarantee that this entry will be interesting, though, because this is a blog.....of course it isn't very interesting!

I am SO glad that the semester is over, as everyone else is, too. This past semester was the most exhaustive semester I've ever had. The semester was definitely rewarding because I proved to myself some things that I never thought I could have done. However, I feel I should take a break from school in order to reacquire my love for certain things in life.

Hey, last weekend I went down to EIU to visit the old gang - and I miss them soooooo much! It was such a great time. Awwwhhh they're all so great.

Christmastime is here!!!! Happiness and cheer!!! Ohhh I am soooooooooo excited! I can tell that this Christmas is going to be VERY eventful!!

Hello, Friends.  It has been a long time.

I just had a few thoughts I decided to share.

===

Me:  Let's play "Song about cats."  Do you like cats?
Student: They would probably hurt my little sister because she can only crawl about .4 miles per hour.
Me: Oh....yeah, they could hurt your sister, so you probably couldn't have one.  But do you like cats?  Or do you like dogs?
Student:  Well, I try to recycle, but I just get confused about what goes where.  It's just hard to keep things straight.
Me: Ok!  Let's just try the song.

===
I went to the coffee shop to get my "free" mug with a mocha (new student coupon).  I'm pretty sure they didn't ring up the coupon and I got charged for the mug....at least I like the mug.  Anyways, I worked on my philosophy statement amongst all the "cool people" with their laptops on the comfy sofas they have.  As I was writing....I realized something about myself....

I avoid writing in pen....because I make mistakes when writing all the time.  And I want things to be neat and clean in my notes.  Well...why is it that I never use the eraser?  I always just scribble with the pencil and keep writing.  Strange...that's me.

===
Ok, I'm writing, I might as well do a little update.  School's in full swing.  I'm teaching 4 classes.  4 classes that I've never even taken.  Scary.  I'm taking 14 hours of classes.  Classes are going to be really challenging.  And then I have more students than I should (as usual, but I love that). 

My first lesson with my new teacher is tomorrow!  I hope it goes well.

I need sleep.  I've been drinking so much coffee that there's got to be a hole in my stomach this semester already!

Oh, it's a lot easier to make yourself practice when the building is air conditioned, the pianos are half-way tuned (or better!), oh, they have 88 keys that all work, and then almost all are Steinway.  Yeah, pretty cool.

Yeah, bed, soon.

Today was my last day at the Foodbank.  I couldn't wait for it to get here, but then, all of a sudden, I didn't want to leave.  I realized that leaving my summer job meant that summer was over!  Ah, well, that's how it goes.

I was a tad depressed with the end of summer, so I desperately wanted to go shopping.  I'm proud of myself for holding out, though.  I did go to Walmart to get something a little fun, but also useful.  I got an organizer thingy for my desk.  Hopefully I really will keep my desk clean.  I know, I say that all the time, but now that I am not in the dorms I feel like I have no excuse.  In the dorm I didn't have enough room to put everything away...there just wasn't enough room!  But now I have a very nice, spacious apartment.  I should keep it clean so that it continues to look as nice as it is.  Plus, keeping it clean will give me a sense of order which is much needed.  Ok, enough of this nonsense...it's boring.

I am excited for this new school year.  I've been craving changes and new challenges.  It'll be a lot of work, but I need it.

Ok.  Bye now!

I'm pondering something.....how in the world did I get soooo lucky to have such a wonderful boyfriend?  And on top of that....he loves me!   I'm so lucky.

We leave tomorrow morning after breakfast with my brother. I'm really gonna miss this place, especially Chad and my little Clover!!! I am ready to go home, though. I'm not ready to jump back into the responsibilities, but I do need to get back into a schedule, and get off of sleeping on an air mattress! haha.

The other day I found TWO sand dollars!!! Two bad I broke one in the car, haha. But I still have one sand dollar. The other day we also saw a whole starfish in the water! That was kinda cool. We didn't go to the beach yesterday and today - we decided we had enough sun....and I've had enough sunburn! Even with lotion that is SPF 30 sweatproof and waterproof, I manage to get sunburnt. haha.

Clover is the sweetest puppy in the world!!!! If I had a dog I've never get anything done.

Looks like mom and I might go back to Lakewood Ranch after lunch to do some more shopping. Maybe we'll think of something else for our last evening in Florida, though.

See you all soon!

And a drink in my hand!

Greetings from Bradenton, Florida!!! The trip is going pretty well. I was nervous about this trip as some of you know, but, so far, it has been pretty good. I haven't done a bit of studying yet!

I'm a total beach bum. Well, until about noon. It gets too hot after that, so we get some lunch, and then we shop. I think I have a cool birthday present for the roomie....still haven't found something for my sister's birthday. Today we took a break from the beach - I'm fried! My shoulders are burnt....my skin needs a day off. It hurts even with aloe gel on. Oh well, maybe it will calm down into a nice tan!!!!

Clover is the cutest puppy EVER. My old puppy was the cutest puppy ever, but Clover is high up there; maybe higher. Clover is sooooooooooo sweet. You wouldn't know that she is a puppy because she is so well behaved. I think I have become her favorite aunt. I guess that wasn't much of a contest considering the fact that my sister does not like animals AT ALL. But still, she totally attacks me when I get up in the morning or get back to Chad's from an errand. Ohhh I love it. I have come to the conclusion that I can't have a puppy, ever, because I would never get anything done!

I was a little sick yesterday, but I'm feeling better now. Gosh, we're eating all the time. So much for the diet. I think I'm actually just going to give up on the whole dieting thing. It's too much to think about. As dad says, "We're on vacation!!!"

Hello, Friends.  How is life treating you?  Things are pretty good here.  I can't believe that the end of summer is so close.

Two things I love most about the apartment: my papasan chair and the ability to light candles!  I'm not so sold on the setup of my room, but I don't really think I can change anything because my huge desk, keyboard, and bed will only fit in here so many ways while still having access to the balcony.  I need to clean in here.  Maybe that would make me feel better.

I'm feeling kinda down; I think it's because summer is going so fast.  I have so much to do!  And I'm dragging my feet the entire way.

This afternoon I dreamt about the foodbank.  I hate it when jobs occupy so much of your life that you dream about them.

I'm gonna go clean now.

What's new? Not a whole lot.  Just enjoying the apartment. 

I haven't been updating because I just don't feel like there's that much to talk about!

Later.

So we are all moved into the new apartment.  I must say, it is adorable.  It took a lot of work, though!  We were lucky to get a fairly clean apartment to start with, but we still did a lot of cleaning to make it even better.  Stop by and see us!  Hang out for awhile!  We don't quite have everything finished, but for the most part, it is.  Plus....right now it is really clean!  I hope we always keep it this clean, but you know how it goes when things get really busy.

I'm getting really stressed about school!  I need to stop.  I wish it was that easy.

I'm still exhausted from the move.  Time for bed here, real soon.  I wish I could update with some more interesting info, but I'm sorry, this is all you're gonna get out of me tonight!

I'm moving tomorrow. I won't have internet for a few days, so if you wanna reach me, you better give the cell phone a ring!