Weekends till Christmas

October 5-7: There is a guys water polo tournament in College Station that I am helping work, and then Renee is going to be in town playing at the tourney so I will get to see her too!

October 12-14: Meghan (camp friend) is going to be in CS, I have a water polo retreat, as well as the famous car-switch so that Kole can drive my car in his license test.

October 19-21: Home to celebrate Kole's 16th Birthday

October 26-28: Michele (camp friend) is going to be in CS, Cho-Yeh Hang Time, and a polo scrimmage

November 2-4: Water Polo Tournament, Cho-Yeh Movie Night, and Chovember Fest

November 9-11: Road Trip to Marshall to spend the weekend with Kasey!!

November 16-18: Emily (camp friend) is in town from Oklahoma, Cho-Yeh is going to the Sam Houston game together, Cho-Yeh Hang Out, and we have the LAST Kyle Field Clean Up of the season!

November 22-25: Thanksgiving Weekend

November 30-December 2: Team YES has a swim meet in College Station, so I will be hanging out with them as well as studying for finals

December 5-9: Dead Days/ Weekend -- Study for Finals!

December 12th: CHRISTMAS VACATION!!!

Literally -- not a single free weekend, every single one has been planned out already! It's going to be crazy, but that's okay! I'm excited for the craziness, and the realization that this semester is already almost half over!

Ezekiel's Call

"... and whether they listen or fail to listen-for they are a rebellious house- they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious house. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you" - Ezekiel 3:22

Wow. God is very straight forward with Ezekiel. He will be persecuted. It will be hard. They will fight him. They will rebel against him. But Ezekiel is to not rebel like them, but listen to what God has told him, and follow His plan.

Why is it that we think our lives our so different? Why do I think that my calling isn't the exact same as Ezekiel's? Why is it okay for me to be scared of rejection, to be afraid of how people will react? Oh yeah, it's not.

We are called just like Ezekiel, to not be afraid of those we are ministering to. We are to boldly proclaim the Gospel. It's so easy for us to talk about Christ in church, and with our "Christian" friends. But why do we let it stop there? If God is with us, which He is, then what could happen if you are spreading His Word? You are given a bit of resentment? You are temporarily persecuted? Great -- that means they heard you and you stirred them to think. And suffering resentment and persecution for the Gospel -- that isn't really suffering at all, but rather fulfilling the very means as to why we are here in the first place.

So, like God's charge to Ezekiel, I am going to be unashamed to proclaim the Gospel. God is for me, I know that. Why would I be scared to share His Word that so that others can join in the family of God?

Ezekiel was called by God to live a bold life for Him, we have the same calling. Be bold.

-ing

Thinking about this 3 hour long online quiz I have to take tonight.

Feeling like a nap might be a great option for this afternoon.

Hoping that enough people come to practice tonight so we can scrimmage.

Struggling with this speech I have to write next week.

Watching Wife Swap on Lifetime... oh my.

Listening to the air conditioner blow out artic air, regardless of how we set the thermostat

Celebrating the fact that it's almost the weekend!

Dreaming of macaroni and cheese. You think I'm kidding.

Anticipating how sore I'm going to be after practice tonight since I worked out with Maddie this morning and will be playing in goal again tonight.

Mulling over how I can get away from the greasy food on campus.

Remembering my first year playing water polo where I nearly shot on my own goalie, and laughing at how much has changed

Pushing myself to be the very best that I can be.

Planning a weekend in October to go visit my friends in Marshall!

Making carbon dioxide every time I exhale... biology is on my mind.

Smelling the carpet shampoo they are using in the hall outside my room

Loving how the Lord shows me His love everyday in a crazy amount of ways!

"... our class average was a 45..."

Calculus class opened up with our TA/professor saying this (in an extremely thick Korean accent that I still can only kinda decipher): "I have some bad news and good news. Good news first. Our class average was the highest out of all MATH 131 classes! The bad news, our class average was a 45!"

Oh gosh. I felt very confident turning in my exam on Friday, and normally when I feel good about a test, I end up realizing I did something dumb and didn't score nearly as well as I thought I did. So when he was announcing the overall results, I began to kinda freak out. Starting the semester off on a bad grade hurts and is hard to recover from -- been there done that!

Well. Drumroll please... guess who got a ONE HUNDRED on her test! THIS GIRL! I can't remember the last time I got an A on a math test, let alone a 100 on a calculus test! Whoop!!!

Take that calculus. You have met your match!

Life in the Goal

Long story short, I have been playing a lot of time in goal this semester. I played a bit in high school and wasn't a fan, but honestly, I don't mind it this time around. It beats sitting through boring drills that we do everyday at times!

Well... tonight I had numerous experiences that I'm just going to entitle "Life in the Goal"... here we go.

• 2 hours of treading. My legs are jello.
• Slamming my hands repeatedly on the metal bars of the cage.
• Taking a backhand to the face. Ouch.
• Kicked in the jaw, while my mouth already hurts. Double ouch.
• "What do you mean everybody is shooting at once?!"
• Got my foot stuck in the net of the backside of the goal. I guess I'm not supposed to sit/lean on that metal bar that holds the net together.
• Both of my arms feel like hammers have been used to beat them up repeatedly. Might

Y'all, this could be an interesting season. I can bet that I might be spending some time in goal during the games, and we will see how that goes!

Why I Enjoy Biology

Going into this semester there were 2 classes I was absolutely dreading. Calculus and Biology. Although I took calculus 1 and 2 in high school, I didn't have a good experience with them and so wasn't too thrilled about reliving those nightmares. And biology is science--science is typically a challenge for me, and I hadn't taken biology since freshman year of high school... no I don't remember much from then!

Surprisingly, calculus has turned out to be fairly easy so far. So easy that I'm pretty confident I aced my first test on Friday!

Biology has also turned into a joy of mine. No, I don't necessarily enjoy the amount of material that we cover and how in depth we go, but I have found motivation to studying!

Biology is all about the itty bitty and intricate details of life. Oftentimes when I am studying, I stop to pause and wonder in amazement about Our God that cares enough to design all of these tiny and seemingly insignificant parts of life that are so fundamental!

God is so big. And that is SO evident through biology! Not saying that I love aerobic respiration, or all of the parts of the cell. It's far from "loving", but I can find purpose in learning the material when I think about learning about what God has designed because of His perfect love for us!

Friends, Teammates, Laughter, Camp :)

This past week was crazy busy! On Wednesday I had a major speech to present, Thursday I had a huge lab report due, and on Friday I had my first test of the semester: Calculus. It was super insane! To say I was EXHAUSTED and ready for some fun as soon as I turned in that test is an understatement!

Luckily, this weekend has so far made up for both of those!

Friday afternoon Carley came into town. We enjoyed just being lazy in my room and catching up, before she met up with some other friends for dinner. The time was short, but it was what we both needed!

After dropping Carley off, I picked up some breadsticks from Fazolis (YUM) and headed over to Jen's for a water polo team get-together. We had a pretty decent turnout for a Friday night -- 14 of us! We made spaghetti, bonded, and played a group game of Fishbowl. So much fun! I love these girls and spending time with them out of the pool is so wonderful. We left Jen's around 11, at which point I came back home. I spent a bit of time just relaxing before showering and getting ready for Saturday morning. Around midnight I heard the start of Midnight Yell begin, and could hear the familiar tunes of the War Hymn from my room. I got in bed and watched a bit of TV before the Yell Practice ceased and I  eventually fell asleep around 1.

5:45 AM Saturday morning my alarm went off. SO EARLY. But, by 6:15 I had picked Emily up and we were on our way to CHO-YEH!!! I spent the morning lifeguarding and the afternoon belaying. It wasn't summer camp, as retreats are significantly different than summer camp, but it was so good to be back at camp. I had about an hour after lunch to go wander around camp and just spend time at the place I love. In the afternoon I belayed on the high ropes course for 3 hours, and enjoyed seeing people overcome their fears and anxieties. By 6:00 we were on our way back to College Station.

Once back at school, I was able to catch the last 3rd quarter of the A&M/South Carolina State football game. At the end of the 3rd quarter I was able to meet Laura and her family outside of Kyle in order to give her their Maroon Out t-shirts that I had bought on campus since the lines are shorter and the prices are cheaper on weekdays. We only decided to meet up about 10 minutes before we did, so that surprise was so exciting and special!

By 9:00 I was back in my dorm and in bed... by 9:30 I was asleep!

What a wonderful weekend! I was able to catch up (kinda) on sleep, and spend time with friends, and go to camp! So wonderful!

Now to tackle the homework and studying that is awaiting me...

Simple Delights

It's falling asleep with all the lights on and your head on your biology textbook, and your roommate coming in, turning off the lights and replacing your textbook with a pillow.

It's waking up and turning on music while getting ready.

It's throwing your hair in a messy bun and not caring what it looks like.

It's sitting with friends in biology class.

It's riding your bike through campus while listening to music.

It's finding the MSC serving macaroni and cheese for lunch. And buying 3 sides of it.

It's getting to spend time with Jesus in between classes.

It's having a new camp video uploaded to provide a study break

It's not having to ride the elevator in the Annex by yourself to turn in the CDs you borrowed.

It's eating candy throughout your 3 hour reading block.

It's getting a 15 minute break halfway through your 3 hour reading block.

It's receiving a text halfway through class from your best friend.

It's actually learning useful information in class!

It's getting a package from Amazon that you ordered, and getting creative juices flowing throughout.

It's coming up to work on a speech, only to realize that it's essentially done and at exactly the right time limit.

It's eating snacks while listening to Jesus music with the lights turned off and lamps turned on.

It's knowing that I'm essentially guaranteed 2 hours of pure laughter tonight at water polo.

It's the happiness of a Breakaway night after practice.

It's the simple delights in life. Recognize them, take advantage of them, let them rock your world.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN!

It all started out with a midnight text saying Happy 22nd Birthday to one of my precious friends on the water polo team, Jen.

Then 22 text messages saying "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" all within 2 minutes.

Then throughout the day, during our texting conversation every text had something to do with her birthday snuck into it. Even something as "thank you Birthday Girl!".

Then Katie and I made a trip to HEB to pick up cupcakes, before heading to the Rec for practice.

Katie and I were sitting in the lobby area inside the Rec splitting a grilled cheese, when we saw Jen walking in, a good 50 yards away. In sync, we both yelled as loud as we could "HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN!" She gave us a glare as her face turned bright red. Supposedly the guy next to her turned and asked her "how did they know? Oh, it's your birthday too..." (Yep, he thought we were yelling happy birthday to him! haha)

Then in the locker room -- HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN!

Then throughout practice randomly Katie and I would give each other a look and we'd both yell "HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN" as loud as we could.

After practice we were all hanging out eating cupcakes, when the entire team decided to sing at the top of our lungs the Happy Birthday Song. 20 college girls yelling/singing the Happy Birthday Song.. yeah, we were pretty loud.

Let's just say, we all had a GREAT time making Jen's birthday something she wouldn't forget. And let me add, I'm SO glad I have a summer birthday so I get to escape payback from Jen :)

Explaining Aggie Tradition: The Aggie Ring

Throughout the course of the next few years, I feel like there could be several blog postings explaining traditions here in Aggieland. Considering it's Aggie Ring Weekend, I figured this would be a great place to start!

In order to get your Aggie Ring you must have completed 90 credit hours, 45 of which were taken at A&M. It's a big deal. The Ring itself is known to have secured jobs just with a handshake. It's pretty awesome!

Yesterday, Katie and Emily received their rings. I went over to the Former Student Center with Katie around 5:15 to see her get her ring. Lots of smiles, excited giggles, and plenty of pictures later, Katie had her ring! Emily had gotten hers a bit earlier, but I was able to see her too while I was there and be excited with her.

Later that night was Katie's ring dunk. Essentially you take a pitcher and fill it with your favorite beverage (most do alcohol of some sort) and drop your ring into the bottom. You then chug the pitcher as fast as you can until you catch your ring in your teeth. It's known to be crazy (and gross).

I had never attended a ring dunk until last night. Oh my goodness. They were right, it is VERY crazy and gross! Katie dunked her ring in Sweet Tea. It took her about 5 minutes, she threw up twice in the middle of it, but eventually she finished the dunk and got her ring back! It was fun to see her dunk, as well as hang out with some of the polo girls outside of the pool.

The Aggie Ring is a fun tradition, and as of right now I should be receiving my ring and partaking in this tradition in the Spring of 2014!

What a Difference 24 Hours Can Make

Wow. I'm completely blown away at what a difference a day can make! Yesterday I was a mess. Within a matter of hours I had convinced myself that I didn't like A&M, that I hated school in general, that I didn't want to be an education major at all, and that I was upset with everything involving college, classes, or school as a whole. I had had a horrible morning with one little thing after another (lets see, in the first 10 minutes of being awake I had walked into a sliding door that hadn't opened, realized my favorite spot on campus for breakfast was closed, and found that somebody had locked their bike to my bike, resulting in me running across campus in order to make my 8 AM). I hadn't slept well the night before, waking up every 30 minutes all night. It just wasn't my day. I cried in front of so many people which I absolutely hate doing. I got into a fight with my best friend, first time that had happened in 2 years. It just wasn't my day.

Today has been a COMPLETELY different story! To start out, I slept a solid 10 hours without waking up once.  I figured out how our biology lab worked and went through the entire biology-filled day without stressing (that in and of itself is an accomplishment!). I hung out with my camp friends for a bit, then came back and spent some much needed time in my room. I did laundry, cleaned, and danced around to some music with a carefree attitude. I goofed around with Rachel. I went to water polo and laughed more than I had all week. We scrimmaged against the guys team, and at one point I had burned my defender and scored on their goalie. Immediately following a "dang that one is fast. And she has a sass to her! I can't keep up." the guy who was defending me switched with their sprinter. All I could do was laugh. Afterwards, Jen and I rode our bikes through campus enjoying the cool weather and the sprinkles before I head back home to work on homework. I reread the chapters for my reading class that has previously given me uber frustration, and then took the online quiz. I think I might have missed 1 or 2, but overall -- I felt good! I then realized I knew more to calculus than I thought I did, and think I might be able to make it through that quiz tomorrow!

Tomorrow is going to be a wonderful day as well. I don't have class until 11:30-- HOLLA! Then I'm coming back and power napping before working on a speech that I have to give next week. My topic for the speech -- Beauty and the Beast! Heck to the yes! Tomorrow night I'm going with Katie to get her Aggie Ring at 5:30, and then supporting her with the rest of the water polo team at her Ring Dunk! (The Aggie Ring is a huge deal here. After getting your ring, it is tradition to "dunk it". Essentially you put your ring in a pitcher full of your favorite drink, and then you chug the entire pitcher to get to your ring!). I'm looking forward to a fun night with some precious friends! It's going to be a blast!

Wow -- what a difference from yesterday!

Of course.

I just typed a very thorough and well-written blog post, only for my internet to randomly shut down and the draft not save before I could publish it.

Y'all this describes my day.

I'm not even going to try to rewrite it.

Roommates: Such a Blessing

Let me just say, living with my roommate this year has been such a blessing.

I'm not sure how much I have blogged about Rachel, so here's a bit of background. She's a freshman civil engineering major from San Antonio, who is a camp counselor, loves kids, and most importantly loves Jesus!

Let me just tell you, living with her has been one of the most uplifting experiences. Our room runs just like camp does -- naptimes are an every day thing, Needtobreathe is constantly playing, our mirrors are always decorated, Scripture is everywhere, encouragement is daily, and God is forever present! Living with somebody who is so uplifting has been one of the Lord's biggest blessings this semester. So thankful! I love living in this kind of environment!!

So Needed

I know it's only Saturday, but can I just say that this weekend was SO needed?

On Friday I got to have a lazy afternoon before driving to the Woodlands where I met up with Laura at the Cheesecake Factory. After plenty of food and lots of chatting, we walked over to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion where we had tickets for the Kelly Clarkson concert. There were 2 bands that played before Kelly Clarkson, and we had a lot of time to just be silly and goofy and laugh at each other before she took the stage, at which point we sang and danced to EVERY song. But seriously. We knew every single one!

I headed back to Houston at that point where I enjoyed getting to sleep in my own bed. This morning Mom and I went to the Berry Center where there was a HUGE craft show, and we both enjoyed looking at all the crafts and figuring out how I could make them for cheaper :). We then headed home and met up with the boys where we ate plenty of bar-b-que from Carl's. I think we all took mini naps at that point until the Aggie game was on TV. For it being our first game in the SEC, I think we played pretty darn well, and within the next two or so years, we are going to be a force to be reckoned with.

After the game we headed to La Hacienda for a quick dinner before I hit the road back to College Station. It was a beautiful evening which made for a perfect drive with my windows rolled down, my radio cranked, and a gorgeous sunset in the sky! I loved the wind whipping through my hair and getting to sing to some awesome Jesus songs at the top of my lungs. I unpacked once I got back, and worked on calculus homework. I also got to have a phone date with Carley for a good 45 minutes!

This weekend was SO needed. I got to spend time with my beautiful "sister" Laura, and enjoy time with my family. I got to drive with the windows down and talk to Carley. I enjoyed good non-campus food. It was just what I needed to provide me the rejuvination to get through this next week which is going to be super busy and chaotic. Here's a glimpse:

Tomorrow I have Kyle Field Clean Up, Church, and LOTS of homework to get ahead for this week. Cho-Yeh is on campus Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, so when I'm not in class during the day I'll be helping out there. Every night we are having get togethers too to meet new potential staffers and just see each other and have fellowship. Water polo also starts this week -- AHH!! :) And on Friday, 3 of my good friends get their Aggie Rings - so that day will be full of festivities and celebrating them. It's going to be a BUSY week, but I'm excited because hopefully it'll be a good busy! If I get as much done tomorrow as I'm hoping, then it shouldn't be too stressful! That's a big "if" though... We shall see!

I Stand Corrected

In reference to my blog from a few days ago entitled "Sleep is a Funny Thing"...

I stand corrected.

7 hours of sleep is great for one or two days. This has been my amount of sleep this week...

Sunday: 2 AM- 9 AM
Monday: 1 AM-8:30
Tuesday: 2 AM-6:45 AM (ouch)
Wednesday: 1 AM- 8:30

7 hours of sleep works wonders until you have a night when you don't get much sleep, aka Tuesday night when I was up studying until 1:45 in the morning and then was woken up at 6:45. Then I had no extra sleep from prior in the week to use as a "reserve" almost to catch up on. Luckily on that one day I ended up getting 3 naps in. But geeze, I was done for that day without those naps!

So, I stand corrected. 7 hours is great, but 8 is okay too. Essentially, as long as I don't get in bed before midnight, then I'm okay. Last week I was getting in the upwards of 9 hours of sleep a night, plus I wasn't doing anything except sitting and studying/ watching Army Wives for hours on end trying to finish the 4th season DVDs. This week I have been at the library, the Rec, Breakaway, Kyle Field Worship... it's been a busier week!

But all in all, I'm still a girl that needs sleep to function.

More Effective

When I was younger, I was never into cleaning. Dusting/vacuuming/cleaning the bathroom -- it just wasn't my thing. When I got into my high school I atleast began to keep my room some what picked up. Once I got to college, I definitely became a lot more organized and dilligent about keeping stuff clean.

Nothing has ever served as more motivation to clean than my biology lab did today.

Last week we were given an augur tray to take home. Once home we were to swab anything that chose, rub the q-tip in the tray, seal the tray, and then bring back to class the next week.

I chose to swab my door handle, and oh my... that thing ended up disgusting. The tray was meant to culture whatever was put inside of it, and I was expecting some type of bacteria. But bacterias, yeasts, and molds? And one of the bacteria was known to cause diseases? Oh gross. Other people swabbed phones, money, toilet seats, keyboards - the list of cultures we had grown in the last week was extensive. And to believe we are constantly interacting with all of those cultures? Gross.

Needless to say, I got back home and thoroughly scrubbed most surfaces in my room. The doorknobs, locks, light switches, handles, rails, desks, fridge, microwave, desks, etc has all been disinfected with anti-bacterial stuff. My room smells lemony fresh!

So, if you ever need a way to effectively motivate somebody to clean, just take a week to show them what cultures and diseases are already present - they will be quick to want to get RID of them!

Honduras on My Mind!

So yesterday marked exactly 4 months until we are back in Honduras! I got WAY excited yesterday, and then kinda anxious as I was realizing everything that had to be done, such as fundraising, gathering prayer support, setting up profit shares, filling out lots of paper work, filing with the Honduran embassy... yeah, there's a lot that needs to happen! But that's okay, because it will all get done :)

But, just a reminder that I have a separate Honduras blog that I update, just because I LOVE having it all in one spot and being strictly related to Honduras. Here is the link just in case you are wanting to know. Those blog posts will become more frequent as the ball gets rolling!

http://heartforhonduras2012.blogspot.com/

Yes, I know the year is wrong since I'm going in 2013, but I honestly had no idea that this would become an annual thing when I started up that blog! Sorry bout it :)

Not a Traditional Classroom

Over the past year I have grown to have two new, yet incredible passions: adoption, and disadvantaged children. At camp this summer I loved being able to work with the kids who hadn't had their fair shot at life, who had been given the bad end of the stick, who didn't have it easy. Some of my favorite kids, and although they were also some of the most challenging, were the ones who came from rough backgrounds - specifically the kids who were in foster care, just because their stories broke my heart into so many pieces.

I've known forever that I wanted to work with kids. Originally, I was going to do youth ministry. Then the idea of education came around, and that was the train I jumped on. And I've loved it. But, I cannot picture myself teaching in a typical, traditional classroom. That isn't where my passion is. Yes, there are several underprivileged kids in those situations, I know that. What has been on my heart recently has been teaching in an orphanage. Although not many orphanages exist anymore, there are several that are Christian based and have schools as a part of their program. It would be as far from a "traditional" classroom as imaginable. The idea scares the poop out of me, but is exciting at the same time.

I don't know if this is what I am called to do, but it has been layed on my heart the past few weeks. Another possible idea (just because I know some of y'all will have a minor heart attack when you read this), was to go teach overseas. All you need is a high school diploma, and many "schools" will hire you. No, I didn't honestly consider this as a possibility, but it did momentarily cross my mind! So when you think I'm crazy for wanting to take the not-so-traveled route in education, just remember -- I've had crazier thoughts!

Polo Season is Almost Here!!!

Tonight we had our informational for the A&M Women's Water Polo Team! We had somewhere between 15-20 new girls attend the informational which is AWESOME! Granted, I know that they won't all play or decide to continue into the competition season, but still... new interest is great! Just talking about everything made me so excited for practices to start NEXT week! It's crazy! I can't wait for practices to start back up so that I can use those as a "study break"... We explained it to the new girls tonight - practice is a lot of work, but it's always fun because we make it fun and we just have a good time. Seriously, we laugh the entire time, and it isn't a rare occasion for one of us to laugh so hard that we swallow a lot of pool water.... resulting in more laughter of course!

I am so ready for this new season :) Let's goooooooo!

Sleep is a Funny Thing...

Sleep is a funny thing sometimes.

Not enough sleep, and we all know what happens. We get cranky. We can't pay attention. We are fidgety and easily upset. Our patience level hits all-time record lows. It's not a good situation.

Too much sleep on the other hand, seems like an okay thing. Wrong. Too much sleep on a night before class means I'm yawning through lectures, I can't focus on what I'm reading, I never fully wake up and so I'm exhausted throughout the day.

I never had this problem growing up because I was always up by 5 for practice, so even if I went to bed around 10, I was still getting 7 hours of sleep. Now, I often don't get up till 9 or so, sometimes even 10 or 10:30, depending on my class schedule. Therefore, if I go to bed at midnight and sleep till 9, that is NINE hours of sleep. Way too much! I guarantee (unless I'm extremely sleep deprived already), if I get 9 hours of sleep before going to class, I will not be awake enough to grasp any of the content. It doesn't seem like it, but it is a real problem.

That explains why I was done studying by 10:00 tonight, and yet it's 12:30 and I'm still up. I won't get up until 8:30 at the earliest tomorrow, therefore I'm making myself stay up till 1 or so that way I don't get much more than 7 hours of sleep. Last night I went to bed at 2 and got up at 9 and have been feeling SO good today! I got A LOT accomplished as far as classes go, but I also got to Skype with Emily, catch up with Jennifer at the library, and enjoy a phone date with Carley. And I spent time for me, watching TV and working on Project Life. Ultimately, I was still uber productive, and also got to spend time doing things that I love. 7 hours of sleep = a pretty dang good day!

Lesson learned: although too little sleep is a bad thing, too much sleep isn't good either!! :)

One Word to Describe This Upcoming Semester?

If I had to choose one word to predict how this upcoming semester is going to be, the word would most definitely be BUSY!

These are the classes I am taking

Reading 351: A Monday/Wednesday class, with an online Friday component. The class itself could potentially be interesting, but the professor is about as interesting as the Charlie Brown teacher... Yeah.

Reading 361: A 3-hour Tuesday block class. I think it's going to be really interesting though, despite the insanely long time sitting in that class!

Communications 203: A Monday/Wednesday/Wednesday class. Yes, I go there TWICE on Wednesday's. I don't think it should be too bad though, just a lot of reading right now and a lot of speeches later on!

Calculus 131: A Monday/Wednesday/Friday horrible, miserable, terrible course. If somebody could explain to me why on Earth an elementary teacher needs to know calculus, maybe then I would care a bit more. But until then, I will probably despise this class. Plus, my professor who has an incredibly thick Korean accent says that he "won't speak English, only math"... uh, what does that even mean?

Biology 113: A Tuesday/Thursday class. Although science isn't my thing, so far this hasn't been too bad. The professor even gave us Dove Chocolate last week to bribe us to do an inclass experiment!

Biology 123: A 3 hour Thursday lab. Once again, 3 hours is a long time to be sitting in class, especially considering it's a "lunch lab" - aka from 11:15-2:00. Outside of being STARVING by the time we finally get out, it isn't too bad.

So yes, I'm in a LOT of classes. And even though technically it is no more than the last two semesters as far as hours and credits goes, none of these classes will end up being blow-offs, which is I think why it feels like so much. Once polo, and Youth Impact (if I commit to doing it) get added into my schedule, I know that my sleeping time is going to go significantly down (ugh!), and my chaos level will increase dramatically. Whooooo!

On another note, my roommate, Rachel, is absolutely PHENOMENAL. She deserves her very own blog post... maybe that will be a study break for tomorrow night!