Finally, what else I did...

My parents have been home for a number of weeks now, but I never finished my series on what I did when they were away... so here's the ending! :)

I ate the other half of the pack of steak and grilled me some tators! yum!

I made a hot chocolate milkshake, which was pretty much a vanilla malt. more yum!

Remember how I said I went to Ohio? Well, on the way home my friend and I stopped at the Steelers training camp.

Unfortunately it was the day before the first preseason game so there was no public practice. boo

I went shopping and got all kinds of goodies!!

I made an earring holder...

here it is! not the best picture since the background is the same color, but you get the idea.

I started cutting patches for my next project: a blanket! :)

And that's about it... I picked some flowers and welcomed them home. It's been fun....

Parents Gone, Part 2

Some more things that occupied my time "alone".......

I finally fixed a dress. I had ripped some of the threads in the ruching before I got to wear it out:

I also went shopping and got a new dress! :)

After working a nearly 12 hour day cleaning teeth, I thought I deserved to grill myself a steak.

I didn't think to take a picture 'til after it was gone!


I went to Ohio, but alas! did not take any pictures! :(




short post.... more to come soon!

big picture

sorry that my picture is HUGE! i'm not trying to be vain, i just don't know how to make it smaller. help!

Things I've Done While the Parents are Away....

To catch you up on where I'm at these days.... I found a boards patient. That whole situation was quite an ordeal... one where I was forced to trust God, and one that he rewarded me for.

I aced my boards, graduated from HACC's dental hygiene program, passed my next 2 boards, and got my license. I found a job 4 miles up the road from my parents house, which is where I am currently residing.

I LOVE the working life. It is just as magical as I hoped it would be. I am not just speaking of the joys of cleaning teeth, but the most wonderful part.... Going to work, coming home and doing whatever I please. I have no other obligations! It's so wonderful to not have to bring your work home and work on it some more to be ready for the next day. All I have to do is make sure I have a clean pair of scrubs! :) I still haven't gotten my first paycheck yet though, so... I still feel like a student in that area.

Moving on...

My parents went on a cycle vacation to Colorado for 10 days. That means I rule the roost! I decided to blog about what I'm doing while they are away and don't force me to make them supper. (my least favorite duty). So here we go...

First, I of course had to make a list of things to do:

I picked some flowers for some indoor nature-beauty:

I decided to try to highlight my hair from a box:

I kind of felt like Medusa, though the thought of snakes coming out of my head makes me queezy

The end result in my typical hairstyle. I'm not a huge fan of it, but the box was cheap.

I thought maybe Greta would want some highlights too... You know, for some added dimension.

I removed the last of the wallpaper in my bedroom:

Some parts are really gross.

I discovered that my dad's grill is really easy to use:

He told me to stay away from the steaks.

I really hate dragging the photos to the bottom of this post in increments so I think we'll make this a multi-part post. :)

More adventures to come.....

I heart The Farming Momma

OK.... So I follow this blog called The Farming Momma. It's really well written and is usually quite funny. I found the blog through my sister's blog- Shades of Grey - and after I had been reading it for a while I asked Karla who The Farming Momma is... Turns out I've actually met her. Anyways... there are many funny stories about all of this but most likely, if you're reading this you've already heard them.

WELL..... the Farming Momma has recently mentioned me by NAME in her blog... for which I feel most honored. (i won't mention the fact that she listed all the bloggers she could think of...) HA! Ok so I think I'm supposed to blog about this award she "gave" me. Since I'm always struggling for something to write (note that this is only my 10th? post in over a year) - I'm gonna do it. So thank you from the bottom of my heart, Farming Momma, for this great award!

..

Because I've received this there are a few things I must do:

- Add a link and a note of thanks to the person giving the award
- Pass the award on to 15 bloggers whose blogs you have recently discovered that you love
- Share 7 things about yourself

Seven things about myself:

1. I love to scale stain off of people's teeth

2. I love yellow rubber ducks and giraffes

3. I only have 36 days left that I have to go to school. (wait what?!!? wow! that's amazing!)

4. Our thermostat in our apartment is set at 57 degrees.

5. I love to be in the woods, in the mountains, and/or by a body of water and can't wait to get out of this small town where I have to put a lawn chair in my parking spot to save it after I've shoveled the snow out.

6. Sometimes I wear spandex, sweatpants, a tshirt, long sleeve tshirt, and a sweatshirt to bed. And that's under 6 blankets.(refer to number 4 if this sounds bizarre)

7. I am really good at remembering birthdays and phone numbers.... even my elementary school teachers and friends. Here's proof: Miss Ranck, 3rd grade, Feb. 14th. Miss McGinnis, 5th grade, April 29th. Rachel Lusby (bender) 593- oh wait... i probably shouldn't post that on here. haha well her birthday was Feb. 6th anyway.

So now I have to find 15 bloggers....

1. From the Guest Bedroom -friend from HS

2. Jenny's Endeavors -friend from Elem/Middle School

3. Shades of Grey -big sister

4. Robyn in Burundi -friend from VA

5. Revelling, Reckoning, Rambling -friend from HS

6. Live.Laugh.Love -friend from work

7. Life of 2 Kings -they don't actually blog anymore.... but my 2nd cousin

8. Simply Serving -also doesn't blog anymore -friend from church

9. The Lehman Family -friends from.... school/church/life

10. I guess I can't count the Farming Momma -friend of big sister

that's actually all I have... time to go get ready to clean my momma's teeth!

Resolve to Rely

So I've had this blog for a little (very little) over a year now... and I only made 7 posts!!! As suspected from the beginning, I'm not a good blogger. Most likely, you read many interesting, funny, and witty blogs every day. Well... Allow me to be your source of boringness.

I started a blog post a couple weeks (or was it months?) ago, but I was too tired at that moment to actually make it a real post so I just jotted some notes and a copy of a conversation I had with my boyfriend. I meant to finish it in the next day or so, but end-of-semester demands are quite.... demanding. Then with all the Christmas traveling and festivities, I haven't had a chance to... or at least, that's my excuse.

So here it is...

Ok... well I was having some difficulties with school and I was trying to fix things and figure things out on my own, worrying about them and the like... when ...

My devotional said something to the effect that when things build up, God is seeing what our reaction will be and if we turn to him for help or just try and do it all on our own........i usually do the latter

I then was talking about this with my boyfriend... mentioning how I usually try to do things on my own until I fail and give up... then I turn to God. Andrew challenged me to stop before failing (i think i was on the verge) and turn to God first. Before, I was complaining about my troubles... and he said to let God handle them... and I responded with...

i actually thought about that - it's funny you should mention that. the thought danced quickly through my mind amidst my worries - "if things were all easy i wouldn't need faith - i should just rest and let him handle this"

the thought was too fleeting. but thanks for bring it back! it is easier said than done.

A:how easily it is to forget.........i hate that

A:prone to wander

Then I remembered something from my class at school that day. We were talking about lesson plans and teaching hygiene in schools and adult groups...

it's like our lesson today in class- positive reinforcement and negative consequences- we give negative consequences so that a bad behavior becomes extinct - but sometimes it takes multiple consequences for the same behavior before someone learns

that's what my instructor said and i thought about how frustrated i would be with myself if i was God!!!

I suppose my New Year's Resolution will be to let the bad behavior-- not relying on God-- become extinct. Wish my luck!

treatment plan my shower?!?!

Oh dear.... I have so much to do tonight, but I just have to share this little thought dream I had in the shower about 10 minutes ago...

For those not experiencing dental hygiene school, let me give a brief summary about one portion of our enormous requirements....

For every patient we have a treatment plan. This treatment plan includes every detail of what we plan on doing, what we have done, and the modifications that exist. We need to estimate how long each process will take. So for example, starting out on a new patient: HIPAA - 2 min, Informed Consent- 2 min, Med Hx- 15 min, Med/dent hx review- 20 min, instructor check- 10 min, EIOE-25 min.... etc etc...

this isn't really anything like what i just described..... but i needed a picture. :)

Ok.... there's your background!

I was reading my dearly loved Real Simple magazine this evening while waiting for my scrubs to dry at the laundromat and I read that showers should not last longer than 10 minutes because you will lose your natural oils & lipids on your skin. At the time, I thought to myself... Good! I only take 10 minutes.

Well... I was in the shower tonight and I desperately needed to shave my legs... which got me to thinking... How do you really expect me to do additional things in the same amount of time? I was having the same attitude that I get towards my instructors because that is exactly what happens. It gets worse... I then began thinking of all the tasks I complete in the shower... shampoo hair, conditioner, wash face, shave pits, soap up... then the optional shave legs or pumice heels, shave arms, etc. Then I was thinking that I should write out these tasks and figure out how long each one takes so I can ....... GASP!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT AM I DOING?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! I CANNOT treatment plan my showers! Horror of horrors..... School is invading my life even more than I realized.