kindle touch

I am debating buying a Kindle Touch. When I am in Turkey I will be spending large amounts of time on a bus. We are planning on taking a 30 hour bus trip from Istanbul to Rize and then into old Georgia! With that being said, I would rather not waste precious packing space with books. The Kindle Touch is $99, which I think is a great deal because I would have had to buy around six books for my trip. Six books at $15 a piece = $90. A Kindle just seems much more convenient for my travels. If anyone has a Kindle please let me know what you think of it!

I leave for Turkey in FOUR WEEKS!

it makes me happy

I took an online class this semester, Conservation of the Environment. My professor assigned us to read 11 chapters in a book I didn't want to read and to watch a movie. Once we were done with that there was a quiz. I watched the movie... Decided I didn't want to spend all day reading. Took the quiz. There was not a single reference to the book I was supposed to read. I got 100% on the quiz!!

little things that make me smile

It shocks me sometimes that the littlest thing can make me smile for a whole day. Today it was the sun. It has been raining for the last week nonstop. But now it is finally supposed to stay sunny for the whole week! When I wake up the first thing I do is open my blinds. Today when I crawled out of my lofted bed and opened the binds there was sun! 

That's how I know today is going to be a wonderful day :)

Obsession

My current obsession is the tv show Breakout Kings. I stole Alex's PS3 so now I can watch the old seasons on Netflix :)

My life now

A photo my professor took in Istanbul last year. 

My biggest dream is to travel the world. I am headed to Turkey in 33 days and my excitement is becoming uncontrollable. The reason I decided to become a journalism major is because my mom planted the idea of becoming a travel journalist in my brain. She knows how much I love people and learning about other cultures. I have told my mom many times that I want to move out of the states. When I told her this, I never thought it could really happen. It is becoming more of a possibility daily.

Big news: I am declaring a second major. That's right, I am double majoring. It is going to be stressful and I am going to hate it at times, but I know that it is worth it. My second major will be in Women's Studies, something that I have become overly passionate about the past 9 months. The struggles that women face daily are so interesting to me.

So lets talk about how my two majors go together. I want to write. I want to talk to women about their lives. I want to travel. Ideally, after school I will travel the world while talking to women about the struggles they face in their countries, and write about it all to educate and enlighten others. I want to instill this passion I hold in as many people as possible.

Even though I am headed to Turkey, that isn't enough. I have a list of places I want to go. Currently the top of the list is India. Following India are South Africa, Brazil, and the Netherlands. I just want to experience the world and write about it.

On my heart tonight.

I just read an article in my campus newspaper about chalk on sidewalks. On my campus, organizations like to write notes to people as they are walking. This is normally all fine. But lately there have been religious arguments taking place on the sidewalks.


Examples
"Atheism doesn't promote hate  or condemn people to hell."
"Charles Darwin is Lord."
The Christian Fish symbol with evolve written inside.
Poking fun of the "WWJD" acronym.
"This just in: There are more religions than Christianity."

All of these messages are, in my mind, intended to criminalize Christianity. While I respect all religions, I do not see this as acceptable. I should not feel that my religion is being mocked while I am walking to class. I am sure that other people on this campus have a problem with these lovely decorations. As a Christian I would never think to write messages similar to these aimed at Muslims or Jews, so why must atheists mock Christians? Atheists also claimed that "Atheism is the WAY" and "COEXIST" (of course with each letter as a religious symbol). I don't understand how they expect everyone to coexist if they believe that atheism is the only way and constantly attack Christianity. Doesn't seem like we can all coexist if they only want their way. What do you think?

piled up

I am so close to being done with classes. I would be a bit more excited about this if I didn't have a list a mile long of things I have to finish first. Stress is piling up.

ehh

Yesterday it is 70-something degrees... Today it is snowing. What is going on?!

One month left!

Homework overload today! I have one month left of school so it is getting to the point where every professor is throwing work as me. I am really stressed as I am also trying to figure out all of my summer plans so I won't have to worry about it while in Turkey. EEKKK!!

On the grind

Today has already been wonderful. I woke up next to my amazing boy, went to the mall, got some groceries, got new running shorts and spandex, and I am now relaxing. I have to babysit tonight so that is kinda a bummer.

I have been trying to run on a regular schedule. I pulled my quad last Monday during my soccer game so that has set me back a bit. I bought new Nike's a couple weeks ago. I love them so much, they make me want to run. When I buy new work-out clothes it makes me want to work out! Money well spent.

food obsessions...

I am currently obsessed with carrots, chai tea, and shrimp. 

whoops, I forgot...

I have (again) had such a busy week. I guess my plan of posting every day isn't quite working out. But anywho, a lot has happened in the last week. I decided my major, went home, spent the weekend with my boy, painted my nails a color other than pink, memorized a TON of Turkish words and decided I am going to eat even healthier than I already did.

Last Thursday I met with my adviser about declaring a major. I AM NOW A JOURNALISM MAJOR! I am very excited as it is something that I will love to do. Ideally I would love to be a travel journalist because of my passion for learning about others and the culture they live in. My minor is women's studies.

It was Easter weekend so I went home. I have been home way too many times this semester. Last semester I went home 3 times over 16 weeks. I think I already hit that number this semester and I am only at week 11. But I went home and I took the boy with me. We spent most of our time exploring the cities which was great. Finally met his older brother!

 I painted my nails a color other than pink. This rarely happens. I just love me some pale pink. Right now they are this really pretty sea blue color.

Turkish... Not going too well. My professor gave us two lists of words to memorize for a quiz and I just cannot remember the words for the life of me! I am trying though. One of the girls I am going with made online flashcards so that has been helpful. 

I went to the doctor on Monday morning to get a CT scan because I have been having stomach problems since December. The scan showed that everything is normal which is good! But we still don't know what makes me feel sick. So I have been trying to eat healthy thinking that could help me feel better. I has been working! I don't feel sick nearly as often, and when I do it is for a much shorter time period. At the grocery store I bought a ton of fresh veggies and a couple (hehehe) containers of yogurt. I eat so much yogurt it is insane. Current addiction :)

futbol!

My day has been wonderful! I woke up early to go tanning. Figured it would be a good way to start my week. Then had classes. Oh I had a math exam. I MAY have failed it. WHOOPS!! After classes I came back to my room and took a wonderful nap. Woke up and went to play soccer! I have played soccer my whole life. I started when I was 5 and had to quit 2 years ago because I have bad hips and knees. I missed it so much so this year I decided that I was going to play because I am only young once. I joined an intramural team and am back on the field! It was such a rush to put my cleats on again after two years. I had two games tonight and now play every Monday until the beginning of May!
And as promised, here is the picture for today. My post-game look.

TOMS

As I have said before, I am obsessed with all shoes. My latest obsession has been TOMS. They are beyond comfortable and are helping the world. I ordered these TOMS from Nordstroms online. I love the pattern. Perfect with a pair of capris and a plain shirt. I ordered them from the youth section as I have small feet and youth shoes are always cheaper :)

Sometimes you have to doubt everything to realize how much it means to you.

This week has been crazy busy. I forgot how stressful school is and how much time homework takes. I am really excited for tomorrow because I am headed to the Twin Cities to go to a mosque. This will be a great experience for me to prepare me for Turkey this summer.

I have been eating really healthy lately. For the past 3 months I have been having stomach problems. The past couple days I have been watching what I eat and my stomach has been feeling better! Now I eat like 5 small meals a day. I also have been drinking A LOT of water. I love spring and summer because I get fresh fruit! Obsessed with raspberries at the moment!

I promise I am back :) I just wasn't thinking about blogging the last couple of days. Posting what I wore today as it is (hopefully) the last time I will be dressing for the cold. It was very cold and windy today. After beautiful weather for the past two weeks it was quite a shock when I walked out the door this morning. 

 This is what I wore today. My shirt and scarf are from H&M and my jeans are from American Eagle. 

I got these shoes on sale in the kids section at Target but told myself I wouldn't wear them until all the snow was gone so that I wouldn't ruin them! Well all the snow is gone and I am now in love with these shoes. Yay to my shoe obsession!

Behind me in these pictures is my wall of pictures. I put this wall up so that every morning while getting ready I would see the people that are most important to me. I really love the memories all of the pictures bring back. Constant reminders of where I have been. 

uhh ohh

So I did an oops... I forgot to post. An amazing boy ended up coming back to school early to spend time with me so I wasn't really thinking about posting. An update on my life... The boy I mentioned and I had been having some troubles. This was really keeping me down because I knew that I still really liked him, he just didn't think he felt the same. Things have changed thanks to his friend. She sat him down and told him that he needed to get back with me before he lost me. She saw that he still cared about me. He followed her advice because he realized he does want to be with me. It just took someone else pointing out the way he smiled when we talked. So boy and I are back together, hopefully with no more troubles :)

holding strong

I am nannying over night tonight and forgot to post before I left this morning! Whoops! Lately I have been really happy, but I miss being home. There are moments when I wish I had stayed in Minnesota for school just so I could be closer to everyone there. I was just getting into a routine at home and then I moved here. I am searching for my place here but it is hard. So my picture for today won't be happening, I'll post an extra tomorrow :)

I am obsessed with shoes. Especially Minnetonka Moccasins. They are unbelievably comfy and go with almost everything. I have 6 pairs of these moccasins. Proof...

The white and purple ones have been my favorites in the past :)

Busy yet relaxed day today. I had to nanny this morning. After that I came back to my room, got ready for the day and went tanning. Then I ran some errands and got some more groceries!
I know that tanning isn't the best thing for my skin, but I feel so much healthier when I am tanning. Another reason that I am tanning now is because I know I wont get much of a tan in Turkey as I am not allowed to wear shorts or tank tops.
Once I came back from running errands I cleaned my room. After I sprinkled carpet cleaner all over my room I discovered that the vacuum for our room has a broken belt. So I had to vacuum the whole room using the hand hose. I love cleaning because it makes me feel so organized :)

The picture for today is from after my cleaning spree. I got rid of all of the clutter that was on my windowsill and added some pictures of friends! I am also so excited because of how green it is outside!!

is this how i'm supposed to feel?

It is my spring break week, but I only got to spend three nights at home. I only got to sleep in my bed one night as my mom and I took a short trip down to Iowa. It was so great to see my family. I miss them so much and wish I were closer so I could spend more time with them.
I had to come back to school yesterday because I have to nanny this week. Although it is a bummer that my break was cut short, I need all the money I can make right now. I am saving for my trip to Turkey!

I am going to start something new on my blog. In order to remind myself to savor the little things in life, I am going to post a picture a day. I bought a new camera a couple months ago and haven't taken more than 20 pictures. I want to start taking more pictures so I have more to look back on in the future.

I went for a walk this evening. By myself, through the woods. Loved every moment of it. 

It is officially spring! I slept with my window open and woke up to the birdies chirping! Now going to eat some breakfast and go for a run. There are two classes standing between Spring Break and I. Today couldn't be any better :)

you found me

So much happiness. I have decided I want to be nothing but happy. I have started running again and signed up for an intramural soccer team! Can't wait to get back to soccer, I have missed it so much. Running is such a great break from life. Just loving my mood right now :)

looking up

I am back at school. Had a great weekend at home, other than the funeral.

Another image that is helping me through...

I am headed back to school today. A lot has changed in he past week. But I am determined to push through and make it work out for me. I booked my flight to Turkey yesterday and I cannot wait to be there.

Just a quick image that is helping me right now...

My mind is racing. So much to think about.

These thought don't include the 6 page paper I have to write by Sunday about the geography of Iran.
So many more important things to think about.

home.

I am home. I had a rough week so I decided to skip out of classes a bit early and head home to my family. One of my really good friends dad died on Monday, so that is taking a toll on me. Just two weeks ago a girl I graduated high school with died in a car accident. It has been a time of mourning. 

So yeah, I am home. I needed to be home. I needed to clear my head. I needed to rediscover myself and my happiness. 

Best I ever had.

It has been such a good day! Finally figuring out my plans for Istanbul this summer! Trying to get the cheapest flight booked has proved to be very stressful, but I want to save as much money as possible. I have been really productive the last day. Homework is a daunting task, but I am getting it done! I have a lot on my mind these days. I recently moved into a new dorm, so I am still in the process of adjusting to that, as you can tell by the mess of clothes behind me.

This is my natural hair, it is so crazy sometimes!

Lately I have been really motivated to start stepping up and making a difference. I still don't know what I want to do with my life but I do know one thing: I want to help those that need it. That has been my life goal for quite awhile and I fully intend to do it. Below are some of the quotes that are inspiring me right now.  

I'm back!

Totally forgot I started this a year ago. I am back and will be blogging regularly!

There have been many changes in my life in the past year. I decided to go to school in Wisconsin, which was a good decision. Although it can get boring here, I love the school! I have an amazing boyfriend, he treats me like his princess and I couldn't be any happier. I have been so happy with my life, even though it is not what I had planned. I am studying abroad in Turkey this coming summer and can't wait! I have been nannying and babysitting often to help pay for my trip!