I did it!

First off, documenting the most exciting news I have to share:

 

I'm officially apart of the incoming class this fall at Pacific University! When I last wrote I was so drained from the application process, and I am so grateful the hard work paid off. Their Speech Language Pathology program is excellent and I'm so excited to start this next phase of my life with the team they have there.

In sadder news, Colin did not get into any of the programs he wanted to. He will be taking the next year to jump back into the working world, and do some more exploration to find the best path for meeting his long term goals. I have such faith in him that no matter what step he choses to take, he will be an asset to that field. I'm looking forward to see the opportunities that come his way this next year. I won't lie, I would love to see him eventually end up in academia (my own bias) Because he does has an amazing gift for teaching and mentoring people, and his innovative ideas align with research so well. I feel lucky to be married to someone so awesome!

Colliegate cycling season has winded down and I have my weekends mostly back now. I am sad that between my post-bacc program, neurotic Mimi, and not enough commitment on my part led me to just be a bystander this year. But, what a year to be able to watch! Colin really blossomed in the role of president and helped foster a bonded strong team. So strong in fact that they won their conference! I felt so lucky to be able to photograph their championship weekend:

Now all that's left is getting through the rest of this quarter, which its been increasingly harder to sit in a classroom when the weather has been so beautiful here in Portland. But luckily my classes this quarter are interesting and keeping me motivated. Plus I get to hang out with this cute guy when I'm in lab:

Hopefully I will find some time to write again before finals. Until then, everyone enjoy the sunshine!

 

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Mission Accomplished!

My last post I wrote how I wanted to eat at home more, and guess what? I did it! I made all the recipes I posted. Using the crockpot was so fun, and reinvigorated my love of cooking. Here's some proof of the recipes:

1) BBQ chicken sandwiches w/ improvised crumbly cheesy broccoli dish

2)  Taco Bake topped with guac and sour cream

Not pictured: Ranch tacos (so amazing that I didn't waste time photographing and just scarfed them!)

For my birthday I think I'm going to ask for a crockpot that has one of those "auto-switch to warming" modes, since so many day I end up gone for 9 hours, which is far too long for most chicken recipes in the crockpot, even if they are on low. 

The rest of life is being spent trying to get as much time in studying as I can and helping out Colin since he just started the cycling season at school. We are also starting the talks of "what to do next year if we don't get into to graduate school." Not exactly the most fun conversation to have, but it does need to be had. Mostly those nitty-gritty details of "how exactly are we making our car payment this summer?" need to be hacked out, but I am hopeful it will all work out. 

Which speaking of graduate school, that's sure been a grueling process. Whatever confidence you have going into it - it's definitely gone by the end. Anyone who's talked to me knows how committed I've been in the last year to working on my post-baccalaureate in speech pathology. I've spent more hours studying than I have for anything else. It's mostly because I really love the material. I want to do well, and I want to receive the best education I can get access to. It's been a hard process to get rejected from schools I admire and respect. I know that I will end up where I am supposed to, but it's hard to not feel torn apart after reading the "It is with great regret..." email after email. I know that I am a nontraditional student applying to the field. My undergraduate education is in women's studies and psychology. I am passionate about practicing speech pathology, but my real passion is research. I feel like that last part either makes people get excited about me, or creates doubt. There's a huge shortage of researchers in the SLP field, and I believe there is a place for me. The doubt probably comes in that I haven't taken statistics since I was 19. When I did take it, I survived, but my grade wasn't anything to brag about. I do know I could take it now and conquer it, but lack of funds makes it difficult. I also know I lack some of the straight science education, but I'm facing the same problem of limited funds. But my passion and commitment? It's stronger than those people I'm competing against. I only hope that it comes through and reaches whatever school I am supposed to be at. I know I am a bit of a round peg trying to find make my way into a bunch of square graduate schools. But I believe I am a risk worth taking, and hopefully eventually one them will think the same too. 

Food Inspiration

Something I've slacked on lately? Everything. Okay, to be more specific: cooking. I love cooking. Well, to be more accurate I love baking and I really enjoy cooking. With school in full swing our food choices have been less than stellar. I'm trying to inspire myself by writing this and finding a weeks worth of food that looks delicious, easy to make, and affordable. Here are my plans below:

Meal 1: Layered Taco Bake via Simple Bites

Meal 2: Chicken Ranch Tacos via Do you smell that

Meal 3: Crockpot BBQ Chicken via SemiHomemade Mom

Meal 4: Slow Cooker Asian Glazed Chicken via Six Sisters Stuff

Hopefully I'll write next weekend and replace these with photos of me making all of them (or at least some!)

Missing my besties.

As much as I love living in an amazing city, 

I can't help but miss my best friends.

2013

A good relationship is life changing. When I met Colin it changed the way I saw life. It was the first time I was every able to be completely transparent with someone. Some people claim they like to have a "mystery" element to their relationship, but for me? I want to know what to expect. But past that, Colin was the first person I ever met that wasn't phased when I said something shocking/different. Our dinner table discussions are all over the place: medicine (gory stuff included), current events, social taboos or what I'm watching on reality TV. I absolutely love him for that.

He was also the person that convinced me I didn't need to get out of the shower and slam makeup on my face before I would even exit the bathroom. He told me he thought I was cute in sweatpants or a fancy dress. He convinced me sleeping in an extra thirty minutes was way better than getting up to straighten my wild curly hair. He allowed me to see food as something that wasn't to be feared and avoided, but enjoyed. 

A lot of good things came from our relationship. But it also had some backlash. I gained ~10 pounds for every year we were together. I was relieved when he agreed with me that the extra hour of sleep was way better than doing my makeup/hair. I settled for a hoodie and jeans instead of picking out an outfit everyday, because it was easy because it required so little effort.

Don't get me wrong, I love indulging in some of those habits. But I embraced them maybe a little too much. When I my weight gain peaked, I didn't have any desire to try to like myself/my body. I hated the way I looked in clothes, and I had even less of a desire to get dressed up or do things that made me feel good about myself. 

I've come a long way since my weight peaked at 187 two years ago. I've changed a lot about my life, but I always feel like I have more room to evolve. And 2013 is the year I want to focus on embracing myself more. This is going to mean incorporating some of those things back into my life on some level. 

It will mean some more of these things:

(left) skirts, jewelry, and trying out new hair/makeup.

(right) i'm still too broke to go to a spa, but i can indulge in some Lush masks. 

and it will mean reserving sweatpants and hoodies for evenings at home and laundry day. 

So here's to 2013! What are you all working on this year?

Winter Break

Well, I applied to graduate school.

OK, I still have a few more steps to finalize applications (pay more fees, submit a couple supplemental applications), but it's 90% done. The entire process was draining, overwhelming and scary. I can honestly say I hope I never have to do it again.

That whole ordeal consumed my life. In the brief moments of free time I visited my family. It gave me a chance to recharge and breathe for a few seconds. I can't wait till I am in a place to move closer to them.


Here are some snapshots from my trip:



We opted to drive down the coast so that we could avoid the snow. Mission accomplished! It was a beautiful drive. Those tiny dots are all ELK! I've never seen elk in person before and they were insanely large and gorgeous.

Redwoods - totally breathtaking....

We opened presents the night before "Christmas." We suck at waiting...

I visited my mother-in-law, which meant I got hang out with her awesome pups

I also got to see my Dad's doug, Maud, who is so stinkin adorable... 

Colin and I explored some new Antique shops in Chico. We found one vendor who sold what seemed like an endless amount of cowboy boots. I was in love...

I contained myself to only having In&Out TWICE. I am so proud.

We took I5 back home and saw some snow, luckily it was all on the side of the road (no chains required!)

December CHAOS.

It's one of my favorite times of year! This year I'm in a unique position of having to hold off from sprinting down to the basement to get my Christmas decor because I am trying focus on finishing my personal statement for graduate school, study for finals, and prepare for the GRE. Yes, somehow I came up with the awesome idea that I would put all the stressful stuff in the same week. My thought process was why spread out the craziness over several months? Just make it one really insane week! I'll let you know how that plays out.

My quietness around here has correlated with this quarter being an amazing experience! I absolutely loved my Language Disorders in Children class. It kept me constantly challenged and forced me to take information from a book and apply it in creative real life ways. My audiology class was a bit more a challenge because my way of learning didn't always align with my professor's way of teaching. It was okay though, it just made me approach my studying in a new way.

Colin has heard gotten one interview so far at a school in Southern California. Although my 18 year old self insisted that I would never move back there, I admit I am excited by the idea of sunshine after living in a city where it rains ~150 days out of the year. We should hear from most of the schools by the end of this month. Keep your fingers crossed!

I'll close with some of the happenings of my life via instagram:

im lucky to have an awesome roommate who has an equally awesome cat.

thanksgiving in california with my family

california bowling memories with my sister and her husband (the newlyweds!)

my family giving colin a surprise early birthday cake and presents :)

visiting my favorite monoglian bbq resturant in california!

studying for the with my childhood pup 

studying for the gre on the 10 hour ride home

starring at this adorable face while studying (again!)

and as always, being the cat whisperer. count that - THREE cats. 

(Two of which hate each other)

Enjoy the holiday season! I'll be back post-GRE (December 9th!)