Family Visit

Last week my sister, BIL, and niece drove up from MO to visit family for a week - I was so excited to see them! They had a long drive {9-10 hours} with a very full car - they also brought their dog Proton with them {Proton = D is a science teacher!}. We had very packed days and although I love seeing them and spending time with them, it is nice to have the house back in order!

Family photo! D {BIL}, P {sister}, Myself, AJ {niece}, dad, J {brother}, A {SIL}

Dad made 'Camp Abby' while we were boating with Grams!

Showing us all how she can tame the wildest of creatures!

The first full day they were here, we went to MOA for Underwater Adventures, Rainforest Cafe, and I took her to Build-A-Bear to make a stuffed animal, aptly named 'Kitty'

PB and AJ at Underwater Adventures {World}


Myself, AJ, and Steven {Teeve}


So cute, she gives out kisses when asked!

Our photo by the 'Camp Abby' sign

I do have to admit that I dropped AJ on her head :-/
We were at Ikea and she was sitting in one of these and I was playing with her, tipping her back and what not and my hands just missed grabbing the handle bars....I felt sooooo bad. Granted, there was a pocket holder full of stuff that broke her fall, along with my feet, and she only fell back maybe three inches. But still. Eeeeek :-/

I still feel bad about it {Sorry PB} :(

It's crazy how advanced AJ is though, already stringing together two-to-three words {She'll be two in November}, pointing at things and connecting them with other things, she can point to us and says our names, knows what things are....it's crazy! She also sometimes signs with a word, which I personally love :)

She's just sooo cute, I can't get enough of her! Pretty soon I'll be down there though and I'm sure I'll see them plenty....haha. They're getting ready to put their house on the market so I'm sure once it's sold and they buy a new one, I'll get the pleasure of packing things into my wagon Bessie, and making multiple trips. Joy. It'll be great once it's all done though...I just hope their house sells pretty fast and we can get them in a new place before Christmas, but I'm kinda doubting that. We'll just have to wait and see!

So it was a busy busy week, but so fun and I'm starting to get more and more nervous/excited for moving time to MO! It's coming up crazy-fast!

P.S. I'm gonna let you in on a little secret....ever get sunburned? I rarely ever get burned, but when I do, I throw the Aloe Vera out the window and use my secret weapon - St. Ive's Vitamin E lotion! It never fails to turn my burn to tan and I never peel when I use it. It's awesome. It even works with wind-burn. Seriously. Best thing ever :)

Dun Dun Duuunnnn!!!

So the past few weeks I have been agonizing over what school to attend, and I've made my decision.....and hopefully it's the right one!


Soooo........I've chosen...............................


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William Woods University!!!!

So excited!! I've sent in my tuition deposit, financial aid stuff, signed up for classes, and sent in my housing form! I just need to figure out my private loan information and hopefully will be getting my "temporary housing" stuff in the mail soon!

It was really hard to decide....and it's going to be so hard to leave my family {most of my family!} and my boyfriend, and animals behind :( :'(

That was the biggest deterrent for me for not choosing WWU sooner, but after i was reassured over and over that everyone would survive without me, I decided to take the plunge. Dun dun duuunnn!!!!

I'm nervous/excited/hopeful/hesitant/freaked out as well as much much more, but as my sister said about how she decided to go to school out-of-state "I was just ready for a change." And I am. I want this new chapter in my life. I feel like I'm ready for this. Emotionally leaving people I love I will never be ready for, but "getting out of Dodge" is definitely something that can happen :)

It will be three more years of school. Three. Aiiii carumba! I'll be 24! But I will also hopefully be able to have a great job that I love after graduating so it will be worth it.

I also got into all of the classes I wanted to take this semester so ASL 3, Career Seminar in ASL, Ethics and Decision Making, English Composition II, and Intro to Mass Media, here I come! Getting into all of these classes means that I do have a chance of triple majoring, if I so choose. I was most nervous to sign up for these classes because I was coming so late to the game, for the rest of the semesters, I'll be one of the first people to sign up so I'm pretty positive I'll be able to get everything I want and to get it done!

With triple majoring I will have five classes every semester with two semesters of six classes {those two semesters would be Spring 2011 and Fall 2011} and I would be majoring in ASL Interpreting, ASL Studies, and Communications with a concentration in Broadcast Journalism. If I decide to double major with a minor, the minor would be Comm, I just need to see how classes are and if I can handle everything. Eeeeek.

They also have sororities and fraternities on campus so I get to decide if I'm interested in that or not. I am interested, but I definitely need to see what they're like before I decide. All incoming new students are advised to go through rush week, just to meet a bunch of people, so I'll probably go through with it, but I don't know if I will accept a bid or not.

Rush week happens Aug. 18th through the 22nd. Even if I wasn't going to do rush week, I still have to be there Aug. 18th for orientation. Classes start the 23rd.

All new, incoming students are placed in temporary housing until the 22nd, when people decide if they will go Greek or not. Then on the 22nd, after bids are accepted or not, everyone moves into the room they will likely have for the rest of the year, with their permanent room-mate. Auuhhhhhhh!! Super nervous!! Hopefully, no matter if I go Greek or not, I'll end up with an awesome room-mate. That's really one of the toughest things about college, the room-mate. Oh well, if it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out!

I just hope that this is the place for me. Where I'll be the next three years for school and that everything works out.

And like my dad and Steven told me, if I don't like WWU, I can always transfer after this year again :)

'Cause it's so much fun transferring!!! Haaaaa.

Week(s) In Review

My summer is not exactly filled with crazy/awesome things, but I like just relaxing and being a bum anyways so it doesn't matter! But that means I typically do not have a lot to talk about {hence lack of posts}...which can be pretty rare for me :)
Haaaaa!

Anyways, since I was able to take a tour of WWU, I was able to con my friend KM into giving me one of St. Kates {she's a nursing major there}! So one nice day KM, her twin sister AM, our other friend K-B, and I trooped over there to take in their gorgeous campus.

It really is beautiful. But they also charge $40,000 a year for a full-time student who lives on campus so I would have been baffled if it wasn't beautiful. Lots of flowers, the buildings were all new or updated and in great condition, and KM even showed us her two hiding spots, haha. I always just assumed that St. Kate's campus was very large and while it is bigger than WWU, it's not that big, which is nice. I'm just not partial to large campuses...for a couple different reasons.

But we toured around, took pictures, goofed off, and had fun :) We also hit up Snuffy's Malt Shop on the way home {yummmm}. It was a nice day and tons of fun {I'll post pictures in a different post....things aren't cooperating}.

Ohhh school...... :)

In other news, 4th of July was nice! My mom went camping that weekend so I got to bring Piper to my dad's Thursday night through Tuesday, boy does he love that dog :D
They are soooo cute together! We just kind of bummed around all weekend, Sunday {the 4th} I can't even really remember if we did anything that exciting...we watched the fireworks on TV 'cause we're cool like that, ha. I didn't really want to go anywhere and neither did dad, plus I wasn't sure how Piper would do around fireworks as it were. I think Friday Steven came over for a portion of the day, we made tacos in a bag {yummmmmmm} and took Piper on a walk, watched a movie. Normal stuff! Saturday I worked all day of course, so that was blaaah :)
Other-wise it was just a relaxed weekend!

And this week I've just been working and figuring out school stuff. My mom went out of town again so after my hair-cut yesterday I picked Piper up again and I'll have to bring her back Monday or Tuesday.

This summer life could go on forever :)

Happy, yet sad.

An old elementary/middle school friend had her baby!

Lisa Devi is so beautiful with a head of shocking dark hair! Congratulations Jenna and AJ, she's beautiful and life will only get infinitely sweeter from here on out with her!

This past year I have known so many people who have given birth or are due shortly, it's getting crazy!

With the baby boom though comes some sadness and my heart goes out for the families who have lost their baby(ies). I'm so sorry and I think about your families every day, how special and important your little one is. I also hope one day soon you guys will all get the Rainbow babies you deserve.

William Woods Visit

Two Sundays ago, dad, Steven, and myself headed down to Missouri to tour William Woods University. We drove all day Sunday, spent the night at my sister and her husband's place in St. Louis, then Monday drove to Fulton to check out the school! Monday night found us back at my sister's and then Tuesday we drove back to MN! I was nervous for the visit, but everyone was so nice and I love the campus!

How nice is that?!

McNutt Campus Center {mail, admissions, cafe, ect}

One of two lakes on campus, this is Junior Lake {people can boat on it and whatnot}

Had to add a picture in of part of the fitness center! {down 20lbs!}

Campus Chapel {non-denominational}

This is Senior Lake

Oldest building on campus {half used to be classrooms, now that half are dorms}

Tucker Dining Hall {they have patio seating!}

Oldest building once again {Dulany Auditorium, this side houses a theatre with classes. The auditorium used to be the chapel so it has beautiful stained glass windows}

The ASL Lab, recently outfitted with new equipment, including Mac computers.

The Library, I think it used to be a stable. It's attached to the academic building {houses offices, including the deans, financial aid, etc}

It's very pretty there and the campus is nice and small. It's situated on about 180 acres and I think there are almost more housing buildings than classroom/office buildings. Most of the acreage is occupied by their stables and arenas {the school owns 157 horses}! Equine science/administration is their largest major. ASL Interpreting is their second largest with 47 students. Altogether, they have just under 1,000 undergraduate students. About 3,000 including graduates and adult learners. So a small campus with a small student population, I like that.

The cost of going to school there including living on campus, tuition, a meal plan, plus all of the other fees tacked on, is just over $25,000. Ouch. But for a private school, that is not that bad at all. St. Kate's, just tuition alone, is over $21,000.

But after looking over classes yesterday, I'm pretty sure I will be in school for three more years :(

I was hoping just for two, but I don't think it will be possible. And that would be for either WWU or St. Kate's. And if I went to Saint Paul College, it is two more years for the interpreting program, but then I would have to add on another year after that to finish my bachelor's degree {at least one more year}. So......six year undergraduate bachelor's degree, here I come I guess!

I might be able to triple major at WWU if it works out right. I've almost completed all of my generals and I need to be a full time student, so might as well get all the degrees I can in that time period!

Hahaaaaa...we'll see. :)

Duluth For Grandma's 5k!

My dad likes to run. A lot. He didn't start until later in life, maybe late 30's? He did Grandma's marathon 8 years in a row, has done Big Sur twice and Boston once. He doesn't really do marathons anymore, but lots of half's, 10ks, 5 ks, whatever he feels like for that day. Two weekends ago now, we were up in Duluth for a day because he ran the 5k Friday night! It was a lot of fun and he did awesome!

My dad's plan, this cracked me up!! We had a busy weekend ahead of us :)

We were able to watch the 'American Integrity' come in

Steven and dad posing in front of the bridge...it's going up!

Skipping rocks into Lake Superior :)

He's all ready to race! Go dad!

Waiting for dad to change and enjoying the gorgeous weather!

After running, dad jumped in Lake Superior, 'cause he's crazy! The water was super cold, but he said it made him feel a lot better! Afterwords, we went to dinner at Grandma's Restaurant and then headed home! It was a great day :)

More Happiness!

I was informed today that I was accepted to St. Kate's now as well! They awarded me with a $7,000 yearly scholarship! I am so blessed!

I'm trying to figure out the cost of attending St. Kate's vs. WWU now....I would be living with my dad if I went to St. Kate's and living on-campus at WWU, so there is a little discrepancy there, but when I tour WWU, they'll probably present my financial aid package to me and same when I go to St. Kate's, so hopefully by the end of the upcoming week I'll have a good idea of what it will cost me to attend either school!

Plus I will also know how many years/credits/classes I will have left at each school....I'm thinking 2-3 years at the most. I have a lot of general classes completed, although each school is slightly different on those. Guess we'll find out!

I am so excited!!!

Surprised Myself!

The past few weeks, I've been working out, pretty moderately. I've been running for about a half hour in the mornings with a 15-minute bike warm-up {stretching in-between...I love stretching} and many days finishing up with 15-minutes on the stair stepper.

Growing up, I played sports year-round. Soccer, basketball, dance, baseball/softball, track and field...I even did a year of gymnastics. High school meant soccer in the summer/fall, danceteam/basketball in the winter, and t & f in the spring, so I was constantly conditioning my body. I did it because I loved playing. I wasn't very good, but I didn't care {until I met certain asshats in high school} and even then I just kept playing. Because I enjoyed it.

Cue college. Because of said asshats, I decided not to play soccer in the fall. I didn't think anything of it until I met a few of the players and then I was kinda bummed I hadn't pursued it more. Oh well. Same with basketball. I did, however, join the pom squad {danceteam} and did t & f in the spring.

Anyways, cue college again. And a meal plan. And buffet-style eating. And three years later, after being introduced to that and not exercising, hellllooooo extra 40+ pounds. Now, I wasn't a small girl to begin with really {although, looking back, I was pretty normal. And what seems skinny to me now!}, I like to say that I have a farm-girl build: big shoulders and big hips, with plenty of natural muscle. Pack on those 40+ pounds and it wasn't good. I was nervous about exercising now because I was afraid my body wouldn't lose the weight easily since it wouldn't be as hard-core as back in the day, plus I was waaaay more into eating and chocolate now.

I was wrong. Like I said, past few weeks I've been working out, four or five or six times a week {when it fits in my schedule} and I've been eating a lot better - smaller portions and healthier options.

So far, I've lost 17lbs! I didn't have a scale and I thought the one where I work-out was broken so I wasn't really worried about it. I just knew I felt better and I thought I was losing weight, so I wasn't too concerned. Well, now someone showed me how to use the scale and I was like WHAAAT! I was pretty shocked. But happy :)

And that same day {Sunday} when I figured out how many lbs, my dad told me I looked like I had lost weight and the next day, a guy at work I haven't seen in a while asked if I had lost weight and said I looked good! Ummmm, cue happiness!!

Now 17lbs is not a lot a lot {to me} but that's also because I would ideally like to get down to about 150/140 {I'm about 5'8"} so I have a ways to go as I'm currently at 193lbs {did I really just post that for the world to see.....gulp}, oh well, now I'll be extra motivated!

Lots of happiness in this girl's life currently!!! :)

Summer Of....

Not relaxing, that's for sure!

It's nice not having homework and exams weighing on the back of my mind all the time, but so far, this summer has still been pretty busy! And the end of June will be the busiest!

We have decided to go to MO the 20th through the 22nd. So get-up, drive for 10 or so hours, stay at P and D's place, Monday tour the University, spend one more night at P and D's, then get-up and drive the 10 or so hours back to MN. A short {hopefully sweet!} trip that consists mainly of driving :)

Fridley 49'er week happens to begin June 24th through the 26th and as a former Miss Fridley, I am on the Miss Fridley Committee.

We've been busy getting things ready for the festival for a while now - we changed directors in the middle of the year - and that Monday that I'll be in MO I'll be missing the Queen's Tea :(
One of my favorite events, it's simply the candidates on-on-one interviews with the judges and a mingle event, but it's so fun and you really get to know the girls, plus catch up with people you haven't seen in a while! I was supposed to be the timer when the girls are in their interviews, but now we'll have to figure out a replacement. Then Tuesday is the girls' fashion show outfit fittings and I was supposed to be a chaperon for that, but I don't think we'll be back in time :(

Oh well, my mom has agreed to work the rest of that week for me, so on Wednesday will be the fashion show, Thursday the parade, Friday the street dance, and finally Saturday, the coronation of the new Miss Fridley royalty {one queen, two princesses}, plus a street dance and fireworks after the coronation. I will be helping out at all of the events and MCing the coronation! Super excited, except I still have not found a male MC and time is running out! I've asked about 15 different gentlemen and all have plans for that night...sadness. Hopefully someone can do it!

At the Queen's Tea, the candidates always receive a "goody bag" put together by the current royalty - typically coupons to various places like the tanning salon or a local restaurant, plus other items that are donated. For our candidates, Princess Megan hooked us up with some scrap booking supplies plus a free piece of jewelery for each candidate, plus all of the various coupons and whatnot we were able to get donated to us! This year, I've volunteered to make a flower clippie for each of the girls. We have nine candidates, so in between working this week and taking the car to get fixed, I'll be making nine red flower clippies with a pearl or two sewn on. I'm hoping they turn out cute and the girls love them! I'll post some pics once I get started on them and get them done! I'll have to have them finished by Saturday so that the girls get them with everything else in their bag!

This week I'll be working extra hours as well, because the normal day person is on vacation so Monday I'll work 8 to noon and then 1 to about 3 or so, I have a orientation meeting at SPC for the ASL Interpreting/Transliterating program! Excited to see everyone and learn what to expect if I stay at school there! Then Tuesday through Thursday, I'll just go in earlier than usual and stay until my normal time - 10 p.m. Friday I might be heading up to Duluth for the day with my dad and Steven, but if not, I might work a few hours.... and Saturday I'll work my normal shift. It'll be nice to make some "extra" money, though it won't really be extra because the week following, I won't be working at all! Hmmm, maybe I better plan on more hours than I originally thought....

Today has been the typical busy Saturday and the clock is moving slow....hurry up 4:30, I want to go home!!!

:)

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SO SO SO EXCITED!!!!

I WAS ACCEPTED TO WILLIAM WOODS UNIVERSITY! WAAAHOOOOO!!!!!!!

And not only was I ACCEPTED but I also received two scholarships from them, a $5,000 and $3,000 which means $8,000 total! When my admissions counselor called me yesterday and left me a message, I thought she said only $1,000, but she cleared that up for me today {and that made me even MORE excited!}. And I automatically qualified for those! This means, if my math was right when I estimated the cost of tuition, room & board, and a meal plan, then right now my cost of going there is about $15,000. Expensive still, sure, but for a private school, that's pretty darn good...hopefully I'm a little high with this estimate and not a little low {fingers crossed}. Hmmmm, perhaps I should have Steven check out the costs and figure it....haha. I'm not the best with math :)

Wow. So happy right now :D

We're planning on going down there to visit either June 21st or 28th. Since my parents are divorced and not on the best of terms, it's going to be delicate to plan this and execute it. I want to go down there ASAP to tour the school because I need to make a decision right away so it's going to be a bit rushed. I'm trying to think of ways to make this easier on my parents to go down there together, it just stinks because I shouldn't have to worry about them, this is about what is best for my future and what I want {jeez I sound spoiled!}.

I'm hoping perhaps that one will opt to stay behind and if I decide to go to school down there, then in July, said other parent and I could go down together to look at the school. If both parents and Steven end up going, it could get pretty crowded because my sister probably wants to go as well. Which is fine, I just don't want it to get crazy like a zoo!

The school is located in Fulton, MO, about an hour and a half away from St. Louis {where my sister lives}. So close enough to family where I can go if I get homesick.

Ha, I sound like I am going there already, but I have definitely not made up my mind! WWU is, in my mind, the better of the three schools because a} the admissions counselor assigned to me is the sweetest and nicest woman ever! Never has another admissions counselor been so on top and in touch with me {this will be the third school I got to, and I've applied to a ton of different schools}. It's definitely showing me that they probably really do care about their students to be so one-on-one right from the start! b} they've been on top of all of my forms and paperwork, unlike {ahem) SPC. And c} the price isn't that bad, as I've said, for a private school. Now, this list may seem lacking, but since I don't know what the campus and professors are like, I can't include them. I just know that my sister has a friend who went there and loved it and the only downfall I can come up with right now is that it is in Missouri. Can I stand to be that far away from most of my family and my boyfriend, my friends, and my cat and dog? I'm just not going to think about that until I'm down there and see what it's like....I don't need to stress out anymore!!

And I have yet to hear from St. Kate's on whether or not I was accepted...which is weird considering that they are right here in town and received all of my paperwork at least a day ahead of WWU, but I suppose they do their admissions differently...or maybe I wasn't accepted! Haha, we'll see when/if I get something in the mail....although it would be nice to tour their campus before WWU. I don't know why, I just think it would!

Now to just hear back from St. Kate's, fill out the FAFSA, tour the schools, pick one, finish up forms, apply for more scholarships, sign up for classes, and then go :)

WWU's move-in date is August 18th with classes starting August 23rd. That's pretty soon!!

STILL EXCITED!!!!!!

That Was Fast...

So as I said in my last post, pops and I have been looking for a vehicle for me and Thursday we thought we might have found one....we went back Friday to test drive, weren't happy with the price, left to stew it over, decided to go back and purchase the vehicle, pulled in, spotted another vehicle to check out, and then purchased both vehicles, one for me, one for dad :)
I had to say good-bye to my trusty Chevy S-10 RC {Rocky Charlotte} and welcome a Ford.

Bye Rocky Charlotte, I'm going to miss you!

Meet Bessie, my new Ford Escort Wagon!

Bessie is a 1997 Ford Escort Wagon with only 66xxx miles! Her body is almost perfect, no rust to be found! Going from a truck to a wagon is going to take some getting used to, but I think I'll like it for the most part!

Last night Steven came over and dad grilled dinner for us - steak for us kids, shrimp and veggie kabobs for himself! Plus corn-on-the-cob {yummmmm} and pumpkin pie with cool whip for dessert! It was soooo good!

I'm trying to come up with some ideas for Father's Day, it's coming up quick and I want to do something extra special for him! He'll be in Duluth that Friday-Saturday and then he's talking about going to my Aunt's campground Saturday-Sunday, so I'm hoping to join him! I work Saturday so Friday I'm hoping to go up to Duluth to cheer him on as he runs Grandma's 5k, then I would head to Eau Claire Saturday after work. But what to get him...hmmmm...guess I just need to brainstorm a little more! :)

Just thought I would throw this pic of Gabby and Steven in....aren't they cute! Haha

I should also mention that when dad and I picked up our new vehicles on Saturday, as I parked mine in front of the house and started walking in, Steven goes "What's that sound coming from your car?" Turns out I hit a screw on the way home! Luckily pops knew someone who could repair it that night and we paid him with an apple pie :)
Two hours later, we were driving in dad's new car and his check engine light came on :(
so I took it back to the dealership today and turns out that he just needs a new gas cap, so I get to pick that up tomorrow!

It's always something....oh well!

Car Shopping

My mother is buying my truck so dad and I have been looking at vehicles for me....he wants to get me something dependable, especially if I will be driving to MO and back occasionally {if I go to school at WWU}.

We spent much of today and the past few days looking for cars that fell within our range and we've test-drove many! Mitsubishi Lancers, Saturn Vues, Chevy Aveos, etc. We're looking to buy by the end of this month....hopefully it happens!

I don't really care what we get....as long as my pops is happy with it, then I'll be happy with it! I do like the mid-size SUVs and they get better gas mileage than I previously thought, but I'll take anything as long as it's a good deal! Also, rear-wheel-drive = not happenin'! It's what my truck is now and I strongly dislike it, especially during the winter!!

All of the dealerships have told us that lately, it is really hard to find a lower-mileage used vehicle for a good price; people are hanging on to their vehicles longer and whatnot, so many prices are high for used vehicles now, boooo. But it's just the economy and how it's going right now, so oh well. Can't do anything about it!

Some Things From My Time Away....

I feel like I am missing some things, but for now, here's a look at what has been going on.....

Last fall, dad and I planted a ton of perennial bulbs and here was the first one that bloomed :)

A family get-together on my mom's side. Me, Grandpa Jim, Grandma Pat, my brother Jon, and cousin Sara.

Steven was a good sport and came with :)

At Steven's Aunt and Uncles' hobby farm, this is one of their llamas, Callica. She's a sweetie!

He's so sneaky....not really!

He's going to professionally show llamas one day, he's already pretty good at it! :)


ANNNND...... STEVEN GRADUATED!!

I think he was nervous, haha.

Walking across the stage and receiving his diploma! :)

After the ceremony, it was extremely sunny out that day!

I can't believe he's done with his undergrad degree....that's crazy. I managed not to cry, but it was hard :(
Time has gone too fast these past 5 years....and since my memory tends to be like Swiss cheese, there are a lot of things I have forgotten, but I hope his next 5 years are amazing....can't wait to see where life is going to take him!

Time Got Away From Me

Whoops, sorry about the break blogging world! Just have been busy with school ending and getting stuff finalized!

I can't believe it's already June ~ where does the time go! School got out about three weeks ago now..it's definitely nice to have a break from homework and exams! I received my acceptance letter into the ASL Interpreter/Transliterator program at SPC and my transcripts are on the way to St. Kate's and WWU, so after I find out if either of those schools accept me, then I get to decide where to go :)

SPC is NOT my first choice simply because the school is poorly run. For example, since the beginning of fall semester '09, I have been placed on financial aid suspension for having an amount of credits that exceed what I need for my program. You are allowed to appeal and I did, although I did not receive the letter informing me of my suspension until the week of. I appealed, they asked for three weeks time to inform me whether or not my appeal was approved or denied, it took two and a half months. Spring semester, same dealio except I never received a response back. However, this time for Fall semester '10, I did not receive the letter until the day BEFORE appeals were due!! And they don't send out e-mails or anything, just the letter. I was mad, but since I already had the letter and just had to change some wording, it wasn't a big deal. They were due Friday and I knew financial aid closes at 3:30 on Fridays so I got there about 2 and there were a ton of people in there working except guess what - they closed at 1:30 that day. WHAT. How are they even allowed to do that when they have paperwork due in from students that day??! I was so mad! Especially because they were all in there....I ended up going to the enrollment office and sort of tweaking and ended up putting my paperwork in their mailbox.....which they probably didn't check, but if they say my paperwork was not received on time, they're going to have a tornado on their hands. AND they never said anything in their letter about closing early the day the paperwork was due. UGH. So frustrating.

So that is one of the reasons why I would like to not be at that school next year :) although, they are the cheapest.....

I have a lot to blog about but I'm finally getting sleepy so hopefully tomorrow I can post some pictures and updates :)

Spring Break 2010

Okay, so March 15th was the beginning of Steven and mine's spring break....we're been pretty lucky in having the last two spring breaks end up being the same week! Like last year, we headed to MO to visit my sister, brother-in-law, and niece :)

This time though we flew:



We've never flown together and I thought it was interesting....I'm not so sure about Steven though...haha.

I'm not the best flier. Pretty much everyone in my family loves to fly and my dad used to work for an airlines which meant flying free by stand-by so we were able to travel quite a lot growing up. Loved traveling, hated flying. And I still don't really like it. Luckily, since we left on St. Patrick's Day, Southwest had a special where everyone on the flight (21+ of course!) were given a free can of Heineken to enjoy:


Pretty sweet deal! And although it was 7 a.m., you can't let something like that go to waste! Plus it was the only drink we had on St. Patty's day.....we're good kids!

So Steven put up with my slight anxiety of flying (haaaa) and got a free beer out of the deal. Not bad, right? (By the way, Steven loves flying. Loves, loves, loves it. Of course.)

When we got there, I was so excited to see my sister P, and niece AJ waiting for us! AJ was of course a little shy at first, she just kept staring and smiling, it was so cute! :)
She saw me at Christmas and P and I skype every few weeks and she "talks" to me on the phone all of the time, but I wasn't sure if she would really remember me. And the last time she saw Steven she was just a little thing, so I was most nervous about her freaking out because he was around (he tends to scare little ones because he's 6' 7"...basically a giant to them!) but she did really good!

We had fun though, went to Purina Farms, went to P's work, went on a walk, blew bubbles, and I made two tutus for AJ - I think they turned out super cute!!

AJ and I at Purina Farms

Steven and AJ at Purina Farms

AJ looking adorable in her pink tutu

AJ's blue and green tutu

Even Teddy got in on the tutu action!

Sad to be going home :(

I don't look that nervous, do I???

Steven and I were also able to go to Anheuser-Busch for their brewery tour and had a really good time! All of those pictures are on Steven's computer though so I'll try to post them later!

It was a great short trip and I'm hoping we can go back this summer....I don't like them living so far away! :(
But we're lucky in the fact of all of these technologies to keep in touch with each other and we do get to see each other quite often, so can't complain too much! My dad heads down next weekend to see them and to run the St. Louis Half-Marathon, I'm sure he's going to have an awesome time!

Another Busy Week Done!

School has just been non-stop since spring break! It's been crazy!

This past week I had been studying for an expressive test that I took yesterday in ASL Fingerspelling and Numbers - I was nervous because the two weeks before spring break happened, our teacher was out of town in Mexico sooooo in the past four weeks, we've had class once! Not good! After spring break, we had the one class (which had a pop quiz...I did really poorly on that quiz) and then it was this week with the test, so I wasn't sure that I would be prepared for it.....but I got through it and she said I did good, so hopefully it turns out OK! I was really awkward during the test because I sign left-handed and the way she had it set up was really crappy for lefties. I sat at the end of the table, but she had that chair at an angle, so my left side was closer to the table then my right plus she had taped down the test at an angle so every-time I signed to her, my hand was in the way and I couldn't read the paper!! Plus my elbow kept hitting the table...it was just annoying. She told me that I needed to move my arm out farther because I ended up signing really close to my body so I wouldn't be hitting my elbow and so I could read what I was supposed to be signing........ummmm hello! I don't think it effected my grade though so if it's the same for our next test, I'll tell her that I want to stand or something. This coming week will be the receptive test.....hopefully that will go fine as well!

I also had a 3-4 page paper due this week for my Eastern Philosophy class. Mine turned out to be 9 pages that I wrote in under 3 hours, haha. I didn't mean for it to be that long, but the topic I had chosen to write about said to "pick several verses" and I probably over-compensated on the number I did. Oh well. She also handed back the book report papers we turned in last Thursday and I was happy to see she gave me an A! Finally! We have a test in EP next Thursday as well, so my week is going to be another crazy one.....plus I have a test in my on-line class too....joy!!

Monday in my ASL Linguistics class we were given our results of the test we took the week before break - we only have expressive tests in Linguistics and this time we video-taped it so our teacher could grade them over break. We then set-up individual meetings with him so find out what we got and go over what we did wrong. Half of the class had meetings before the other half and they were freaking us out because they kept saying that they did bad and he's a really harsh grader, ext, so the rest of us who were having meetings with him Monday before class were super nervous to meet with him! One of the ladies in our class is a CODA (child(ren) of Deaf Adults) and she received a B so everyone was expecting to do worse than her. Keep in mind that for Linguistics and Fingerspelling and Numbers, grading is different and much harder. To receive an A, the percentage is 94% and up instead of 90% and up. So getting a C or even a D might not be that bad because it would have been a B or C. Haha, that's what everyone is keeping in mind to stay positive! Anyways, I had my meeting, he showed me my grade and I almost started crying because I got a really high B. The look on my face must have been crazy because my teacher started laughing at my expression. It's just a relief to have a good grade and be doing good in that class!

Now I just have to finish my on-line homework and turn it in and I'll be done with this week's craziness. Next week will be the three tests and the week after that will be a Linguistics test. Then we start preparing for the end of the semester.....crazy! But I'm ready to be done!

I've been thinking about taking ASL 5 during summer term, but we'll see. I need to decide soon!

The School Situation

Here it is in all it's glory:

Currently I am enrolled in an American Sign Language Certificate Program through Saint Paul College. After this semester is over, I will only have two classes left to complete for the certificate requirements - so close! After I receive it, I will be able to apply for jobs that are looking for people with ASL experience, which I would love to be able to find so I can gain more experience!

If you checked out the certificate link, you might have noticed that there is also an Associates Degree in Interpretation/Transliteration that Saint Paul College offers and might be wondering why I am not in that program since I want to become an interpreter. First, I came into SPC with very little ASL skills and Deaf knowledge. In order to apply for the program, you have to complete ASL I through IV along with both a math and English class. I just completed those classes this past fall semester ('09) and applied for the program this spring; which means I would enter the interpreting/transliterating program this fall (if I get in, haha).

This is not the only interpreting program I have applied/will be applying for though......

Starting in 2012 (the year I would graduate from SPC with my associates) the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf will be implementing a new rule in which any person who wants to become a certified interpreter on a national level (so basically to take the test to become a RID registered interpreter - which is very important) needs to have at least their Bachelor's in any one subject. Right now they only require an Associates - which I would have but it would no longer be valid to take the exam. This is a great idea but for right now it's very frustrating for me as I have to figure out where I will be going to receive a Bachelor's. Yet another change of schools and paperwork to fill out.....endless paperwork....

Sigh.

But in the long run, it's a great idea. I just now have to decide if I will stay at SPC for interpreting while also attending another school for my bachelor's OR attend a school that offers a bachelor's in interpreting. While I love the instructors at SPC, I'm not a fan of how the place is run so I'm definitely leaning towards a school that offers a bachelor's in interpreting.

Here are some of my options: St. Catherine University
Columbia College Chicago
William Woods University
Gallaudet University

While St. Kate's is in my native state of Minnesota, the one major major drawback of attending school there is money. I believe it is roughly $40,000 a year to attend school there. That's a lot of dough. A LOT of dough!!! It is also an all-girl school which means that my ASL classes will most likely be even more female-dominated than they already are....which is sad. Other-wise it is close to everyone except my sister and her family and I would be able to live at home and commute to school (which I already do).

Columbia College Chicago is in (surprise!) Chicago. I've been there only once or twice and have no real collection of it. This school seems really awesome, I would not need a car, it is close enough that I would be able to go home every once-in-a-while, and I could live on campus. It's around $20,000 a year which is really great for a private college!

William Woods University is located in Fulton, MO which is about an hour and a half away from St. Louis (where my sister lives). This is also a private school and the tuition would be about $23,000 a year, but I would also have to factor in either investing in a car that is reliable or plane tickets to come home and see the family. I would definitely spend many weekends at my sister's (which they might not like...) but would probably live on-campus. My sister has a friend who graduated from this school and she speaks very highly of it.

And finally Gallaudet University, the only Deaf university in the nation. Gallaudet is located in Washington D.C. and is roughly $22,000 a year. I would live on-campus, would most likely not have a car, and would have to factor in plane ticket costs. They are extremely selective when it comes to hearing students which is one of the reasons why I am not jumping down their throat to join them - I would most likely not be accepted unless I had very strong backing from my ASL teachers here in MN. When I was younger and first learned about it, I was very adamant that this is where I wanted to go to school and I still do, I'm just being more realistic about being able to attend.

Each of these schools offer a Bach in interpreting and each have their pros and cons. I want to be able to make the best informed decision for my future in ASL and the Deaf community as well as a decision which I will be happy with. I was thinking of applying to Gallaudet for a master's later on but right now, everything is still up in the air.

There are a few other schools with ASL/Interpreting options that I am still looking into, but for now, these four I feel really strongly about.

Monday I have a meeting with Doug Bahl, one of my instructors who is very well-known in the Deaf community. I'm hoping to have positive feedback from him and to hopefully receive help in deciding the best option for my future.

If anything, I can simply stay at SPC and go to Metropolitan University for their major in Psychology or try to get into the U for one of their programs (most likely psychology, social work, geography, family and consumer science, or apparel design....I can't make up my mind but I'm pretty positive I'll also try to get my teaching certificate......argh decisions decisions!).

And one last little wrench that has been thrown into my plans........remember those last two classes I need to take for my certificate? Only one of them is being offered this summer so unless I can somehow convince them to offer both, I will be one class short of getting my certificate. Really?!?!?!? Just one more thing to figure out I guess!

A quote which I will be living by for the next few weeks:

"Courage means to keep working a relationship, to continue seeking solutions to difficult problems, and to stay focused during stressful periods." – Denis Waitley


Wish me luck!

Oops, a Bit of a Break

I can't believe it's been over a month since I've been on! Not good!
So much has happened but I'll just give out some quick highlights:

~*~ I'm now on a "leave of absence" from the restaurant and do not have to go back until the end of May.....if I go back at all (which I don't really want to...)

~*~ School has been going good, I feel like this is the first semester since being at SPC that I have actually had to work at getting good grades and sometimes it kicks me in the butt, I do like the challenge though :)

~*~ Had a dentist appointment and everything looked good! Just have to keep doing the teeth cleaning regimen!

~*~ Spring break happened last week and it was waaaaayyyy too short! Steven and I were able to purchase tickets and fly down to Missouri to visit my sister P and niece AJ.......I'll write a proper post with pictures in the next few days!

~*~ I've applied to the Interpreting/Transliterating program at SPC, now to finish the other school applications....I need to get on the ball with those!

~*~ And I recently found out that this summer, my school will not be offering the one course I need to complete my certificate. Frustrating. And it just complicates my decisions about where to go to school next year even more so.....different post about this later as well :)

Over all everything has been going pretty good! Just another manic Monday with work and classes......which reminds me, I have homework to do...... :)

A Lil' of This and That....

Steven treated me to a movie today, Avatar in 3d.

It was A M A Z I N G.

I loved it. It's no surprise that it's been doing really well in the box office, because I'm sure people keep going back to see it. I know I want too! Hopefully my dad and I can go before it's done in the theaters, I think he will really enjoy it. KM, after watching it, said that it was like "Ferngully, but for adults". I can definitely see a slight parallel and I loved watching Ferngully when I was younger, so I was pretty certain this movie would be good too, at least after hearing that!

And I'm not going to lie, I really like the name "Neytiri", hahaha.

In other news, the Super Bowl (the 44th? I think?) was won by the New Orleans Saints, who beat the Indianapolis Colts. I was cheering for the Saints because not only have they never won a Super Bowl, but they had never been to one either! So congratulations to them, good job!

And some of my resolutions are slowly but surely taking effect. Like I talked about in my previous post, I've started to phase out of the restaurant, and I'm counting down the days! I'm going to try and stay out of the food industry, and am thinking about places to apply, including some quilting shops - which would be soooo much fun to work in! Not only would I be making money, but I could also learn more about quilting and sewing.....we'll see what happens though, they might not even be hiring, especially someone with little sewing experience. And taking better care of my teeth is going good as well, I'm now brushing my bottom teeth for around two minutes, then brushing my top teeth around two minutes - new paste each time. Then I floss, use Listerine with fluoride, and if it's before I go to bed, I put in my retainer. The brushing for four minutes separately was an idea from one of the girls at school who's sister is a dental hygienist. Hopefully I'll get good results! Steven and I also talked about starting p90x, which is a work-out program. Looks like Feb. 22 is the starting date, since I'll be done at the restaurant, giving me plenty of time in the morning to exercise. And he suggested that I start eating healthy now so I won't have such a hard time....probably should do what he says :)
And finally, my taxes are being turned in, so I just have to get hopping with the applications for schools! Little by little, things are getting there....fingers crossed!

And I don't have my test score back from my on-line class yet, but I think I did pretty solid on it. And C, L, and I got together last night to study for our expressive test in Linguistics, I think it'll be okay. I received the rest of my loan money yesterday so I'll put it in the bank tomorrow, purchase the rest of my books, and be all set for the rest of the semester! Finally it will be all organized :)

Have a good Monday!

Big Step

So I've decided to take a big (to me) step. I'm taking a 'leave of absence' from my restaurant job, starting Feb. 17 and ending May 26.

I'm not sure I will be going back.

My excuse is school and after this weekend/upcoming week, I'm definitely realizing how much time school is going to take up this semester. Now I don't feel as bad for using it :)

But really, I had an on-line test tonight, then Monday night we have our 'receptive'* and 'expressive'* tests in ASL Linguistics and same on Thursday for Fingerspelling and Numbers. Plus I will have homework due by Saturday for my on-line class, as well as three discussion posts, and then homework and a rough draft for a paper for my other residential class. I underestimated the time I would need to spend working on each class and I know the demand will only increase.

It's not just not really wanting to work there anymore. It's the constant driving back and forth and watching my gas gauge drop down by about 5 gallons, round-trip. Working at the restaurant is actually costing me money some days, other days I will just barely cover the gas expense. I've worked there for almost four years now and I'm pretty burned out. I don't know how I went to high school, did sports year-round, worked at the dealership two nights a week, and was the closing host every single Friday and Saturday night, often working until 2 in the morning. I worked my butt off and was ranked the #3 employee of the restaurant out of everyone and yet the salary I make there right now is only $7.50 (I started at $7.25). Granted, I moved to the 'car-side' position and yes, to serving (which I dislike) and really, just had no patience for it anymore. Instead of the smiling, happy, and personable person I usually was, I was just done with it. I think I realized (and I'm still realizing) that this is not going to be my job for the rest of my life. I don't want it to be and it won't.
Granted, that was a very short phase where my patience was thin and I'm back to my normal self (pretty much), I think it's because I realized that I was spreading myself thin and for what? I definitely didn't feel like they really appreciated me, rather they found someone who was willing to comply to everything and anything.

I try hard to not feel guilty about leaving, but it's difficult not to.

I'm going to miss everyone (well, mostly) =[

But, I'm probably going to take a few weeks, get some VERY important items taken care of (applications applications applications!) and then probably start looking for a new job. Those few weeks will be really nice, especially for school, but I know I'm going to start feeling guilty if I'm not making more money....and that I'll have all of this free time for a new job......

Hopefully I'll even be able to find a new one! Oh well, I can always just go back to the restaurant after my leave is up and work there until I find something......


*A receptive test for an American Sign Language course is where the instructor will sign the questions to the students who have to write down what the instructor is signing, thus allowing the teacher to see how much the student actually understands and is taking in.
*An expressive test for an American Sign Language course is where the student signs for the teacher, thus allowing the instructor to view how the students' signing skills are increasing.
You will never have one test without the other.