back to the blog.

It's been too long. But here we are again. I've been wanting to get back into blogging for several months now, but I keep coming up with silly excuses. While I was student teaching, I had that as an obvious excuse...teaching full-time + class + TPA + working part-time...it was madness. But since the beginning of December, that hasn't been an issue. I've just continued to make up excuses to not blog. My life seemed boring, regardless of the fact that since I last updated the blog, I have gotten married and pregnant with my first babe.

It's been so long since I updated this blog that I even forgot what the blog was called...

The biggest reason I wanted to update was because I felt like talking about my day.
Just talking.

For one thing, we had a giant snowstorm last night, leaving the roads a horrible mess this morning.
I had to work today, but not until 12:30, and by the time I got out there, the roads were alright (the driveway was terrible, and I almost got stuck).
As I was driving past the mall, an SUV almost pulled out into the front of my car. I managed to swerve and avoid it, but my legs were shaking for a long time after.
Since I had been worried about the roads, I had left home early, and ended up pulling into the parking lot 15 minutes before my shift.
As I pulled into the parking lot, I got a voicemail from my manager...telling me to not come into work.
So, I called my husband (who was at work) and he told me I should come over and get some coffee and talk to him.
Because of all of this, I finally got to spend a few hours of quiet, semi-alone time in a coffee shop. It was glorious.

 I also got to try a delicious rose and chocolate latte. And since I was there for so long, I got seconds and thirds of the whipped cream on top :)

six months...

And here we are, almost exactly six months since I've posted a thing. I have an excuse. Actually, I have plenty of excuses, but none of them are nearly good enough. Suffice it to say, I went through a bit of a lack of creativity.
But here we are in December. And not only should I have more things to say about school, but I should also have more creative and good things to say about my wedding planning. Yes, legitimate wedding planning. For my legitimate wedding. This wedding will occur on June 16th, and I will be marrying my best friend and love, Andrew :)
So friends, I plan on blogging much more. I plan on blogging about school and about my students and about my adventures during my first year of living on my own and most importantly, I plan on blogging about my wedding and my planning and how great and stressful that will be.
I am so excited. But for now, I will merely post a picture of myself and my fantastic Andrew.

This photo was taken at a Halloween party. He was dressed as Ron Swanson (of Parks and Rec) and I was dressed as a Capitol Citizen (from The Hunger Games).

10 reasons i can't wait until fall...

 1. legwarmers...

2. tights...

 3. cardigans (backwards...










and regular)...

4. oversized sweaters...

5. hats...

6. layers...

7. socks...

8. jackets...

9. scarves...

10. and, my most recent fashion discovery that i haven't been able to try yet: tights and shorts!...

making a grocery tote.

i've been thinking for a while that i need a reusable grocery bag, and as a knitter, i have wanted to make one of those awesome knitted grocery bags. so today i did some research and found three patterns that may be possible for me to make, considering my limited knitting skills. all three also look purty nice too :)

this is actually my favorite looking. the pattern
can be found here

this is my second favorite
and the pattern can be found
here

of the three this is my least favorite
looking. additionally it does
not seem like it would be as effective
because the handles are ribbons,
which would make me extremely
nervous. but this is also the
easiest as far as stitches, etc.
the pattern is here

i would like to make a decision about which one to make before tomorrow night so that i can run to the store after work to buy the supplies to get started. but i can tell you now, i think i'm going to take a risk and try #1, just because it is so gorgeous :)

wondering...

so...here's what i've been thinking about lately:
since i'm moving to canton in a few months, i will be very close to places...within walking and bike riding distance of places.
i've been thinking for a while about getting a bike and riding around to work and school every so often. but also having a car in order to have the freedom to drive places whenever i need to. like my parents house, which is a half hour away.
but today my dad came in to talk to me about this idea. he suggested that i invest some money in a good bike and take some bike safety courses RATHER than buying a car.
i honestly love this idea for a variety of reasons.
firstly, riding a bike everywhere would help me stay in shape...it would be exercise that is included in my necessary daily routine.
secondly, i don't like being reliant on oil companies for my transportation.
thirdly, biking is good for the environment
fourthly, i'd save a ton of money by doing this...not buying a car, paying for insurance, paying for gas, etc.
fifthly(?),  i would very much be reinforcing everyone's view of me as a hippie :)

so now some downsides:
firstly, weather...what about the days when the weather is really crappy? (my dad suggested just riding the bus on those days...which would be better than riding the bus all the time, which i was considering for awhile).
secondly, what about when i want to visit my parents (for food) or my grandparents (for free bread)...i guess i could always bum my boyfriend's car from him whenever i need to do something and he doesn't need it. i don't know. only if he lets me.

so...what should i do?

OR.....

fairest of them all...

yesterday my parents took my siblings and i to a water park. it was great fun, especially since i hadn't been to a water park in several years. it was a lot of fun, really. here's the thing: i have extremely fair skin. the last few weeks i have been trying to get some color on my legs by just not putting sunscreen on them. so yesterday, although i put sunscreen on my back, arms, face, etc. twice, i didn't put any on my legs. every safety break, i would lay on my stomach to try and help my legs. this plan probably would have been alright, except that i accidentally took an hour-long nap...

now the back of my legs are super, super red. and on fire. i don't think i have ever had a sunburn this bad. i'm literally hobbling around my house like an old woman. i know this is gross, but i feel like i have giant scabs on the back of my knees, which makes stairs and sitting incredibly painful.

this said, i'm trying to find some natural relief for sunburn. i usually trust aloe with my life, but when i used it this time, my legs stuck together. unsticking them was so, so, so painful.

just to let you know, googling natural relief for sunburn is rather confusing because there are far too many things to choose from. the two things i settled on: black tea and this weird mixture of water, vinegar, lavender oil and tea tree oil (found here), which smelled SUPER weird. i'm really not sure how well either of these things worked. my legs are feeling slightly better right now, but still not great. i think i'm going to try avocados tonight. maybe. for now i'm just sitting in bed trying to not move excessively. i'm really sad that i can't run or really do many other productive things today, but it is really not fun to move. and of course, i have to work tonight.

oh well. at least i'll have some color on my legs now :P

SUMMER TO-DO LIST

1. make some moolah!


2. get a job for the school year.


3. pack up my stuff (down-size too!)


4. make purty things:

make a gorgeous maxi dress

a crocheted shopping bag...

a ribbon necklace

earring hanger

paint chip calendar...dry erase!

glue and fabric flower pots

5. buy a super awesome vehicle.

6. buy college textbooks.

7. sell college books

8. start an online store!

9. spend some wonderful time with arch-man :)

10. visit New York 

11. BLOG MORE...