Scared

I received one of those phone calls today that you hate to get. My mom called this evening, and after a short amount of small talk, she said "Grandpa went to the doctor today." Okay... "He had an MRI and they see what looks like a shadow on his pancreas." Okay... "He's being admitted to the hospital soon and having surgery on Tuesday." Okay... "Your Dad and I are packing up tomorrow and driving down to Florida to be with them." I'm so scared. My Grandma and Grandpa have been second parents to me ever since I was little. They are two of my best friends. They are supposed to be invisible or something...not having to deal with serious illness. I pray that what they find is something minor and easily taken care of. For the time being, they suggested I stay in Nebraska, so I will sit and wait way too far away to feel like I'm helping at all.

Laughing

I love to laugh. I have a short story that occurred this past week that illustrates my point. Julie and I were returning from a bike ride. We were in the process of locking our bikes up together when we leaned in quickly at the same time to look at something. Each of us were still wearing our bike helmets, so it wasn't long until we bonked heads pretty hard. The negative part of this situation was that it would have been semi-embarrassing had anyone witnessed our lack of coordination. The positive part of this was that it didn't hurt since we both had helmets on, and it gave us a great reason to laugh uncontrollably for the better part of 15 minutes. I love when a situation catches me off guard in a way that is humerous and deserves laughter. We had several of those moments last night after a late-night game of pitch. Laughing is so great.

Random thoughts and a brief saga describing my recent self-reminder of why I don't drink anymore...

Last night, I was reminded of why I chose to say goodbye to the "party lifestyle" and adopt a more sober way of celebrating events and spending time with friends. It had been quite a while since I drank in excess, so last night it didn't take very much time or very many drinks until I was intoxicated. I was at a friend's apartment and Scott was there to watch over me, but that is precisely why I don't like drinking...I hate it when people have to take care of me. I had fun last night, but the fun was in being with my friends and not with the alcohol. I'm done with that for quite a while again...
A friend of mine got married last night. Hopp and I attended the wedding together. It was great to spend some time with him as he is away for the summer and I have been busy with work. I enjoyed his running commentary during parts of the wedding and reception and it was nice to talk with him about what has been going on in life. Guy friends are great!
I went to church this morning...on one side of me sat my ex-boyfriend and on the other sat my eye doctor....kind of random. I talked with my ex after church for a while. It's hard to explain what I'm feeling when it comes to our friendship. I would be lying if I said I wasn't angry about what happened, but I have moved on. I will be civil to him, but I don't think I consider him a friend.
I had a wonderful conversation with a friend this morning where we discussed what is going on in life and how things seem so complicated sometimes. I went on a picnic for lunch...that was fun! Ryan came over this afternoon and we hung out for a while. I babysat tonight for my favorite family in Lincoln. The kids are so sweet...I want to be a mother!
Okay, time for bed. I wish everyone a wonderful start to your week!

What a day!

Today was very productive and enjoyable. Here is what I did today and have planned for the rest of the day...
-I watched a movie this morning (Finding Neverland---I strongly recommend that movie!)
-I went out to lunch at Wendy's...yummm!
-I mowed my first lawn! I really enjoyed it as it resembles my favorite chore (vacuuming), it's just much more strenuous
-I had a job interview and was offered a position for next fall! :-D
-I hung out at the Student Center for a while and chatted with John and some other church friends I hadn't seen in a while.
-I briefly talked to my roommates.
-I brought dinner to my parent's house.
-I leave to go babysit in a few minutes.
-I plan on making some phone calls after the kids go to bed and catch up on some scheduling stuff.
It has been a busy but a great day! Tomorrow it's wedding time again, so I shall spend the day with my friend Andrew and go to the wedding with him tomorrow night. I haven't seen him in a while, so it will be lots of fun!
Chao and have a great evening!

Hoy ("today" en espanol)

Today was a busy day! I spent the day with the 3 kids I nanny. We went to swimming lessons this morning, read at home, played games this afternoon, and went to the library. After coming home from their house later this afternoon, I stopped by home to get the bike-carrier and then stopped by Scott's house to get my bike. I drove to the apartment and had dinner with Julie. After that, a group of us went to Jazz in June...good times! It was fun because there were lots of people there that I knew from a variety of places. We played pitch and listened to music for a while. I left Jazz in June on my bike and rode home to give my Mom and Dad their anniversary present. I rode my bike back to campus and called Julie when I discovered that they were going to play a game of sand volleyball. Soooo, 3 games later, I'm all tired out. Oooo, Leah and I made sand angels too! What a busy but what a good day! Happy hump day tomorrow everyone! (ya' know, Wednesday--middle of the week--"hump" of the week---yeah)
PS--John, we have your ticket for the Lofte...are you still on for July 8th? :-D

Things that make me happy

1. Laughing with my family
2. Spending time with friends
3. Cheerios, Ketchup, Pickles, Baked Beans (not all together, silly)
4. Sleeping in
5. Playing Piano and singing karaoke
6. Talking to my Grandma on the phone
7. Crocheting
8. Taking pictures
9. Driving with my windows down
10. Listening to the same song over and over
11. Biking and Raquetball
12. Showering after sweating or after not showering for a long time
13. Helping people with their problems
14. Twirling a flag
15. Cooking and Cleaning (sometimes!--don't get your hopes up! :))
16. Going to weddings
17. Traveling
18. Wearing fun socks
19. Sleeping on my futon
20. Smelling flowers

Julie

I spent all of today with one of my best friends. This entry is dedicated to her as today reminded me of how precious of a gift she is. It's a rare experience (at least from my point of view) where I come across someone in life as giving, supportive, and of course funny as her. Ever since we met 3 years ago, something clicked and ever since we have been inseparable. We can read each other's thoughts. We know when the other needs support or when they just need to be left alone. We know how to cheer each other up, and we do so with ease. I laugh at her jokes and she laughs at mine. There is a great comfort in knowing she is here for me and I will always be here for her. I consider myself extremely lucky to know her and be able to call her my friend.

Searching

I'm searching for something. This cannot be seen, but I'm on a quest. I'll write more on this later...it's a deep thought and I'm really tired right now. Have a great Thursday!

Do I have a sign on my forehead that says "PLEASE TELL ME YOUR LIFE STORY?!

I was at the grocery store tonight and had an experience that seems to happen on a semi-regular basis. This phenomenon fascinates me and I do not understand why it happens. Random people start talking to me and telling me things about themselves. I was in line waiting for my pictures, and an older man started telling me all about his weekend. Not only did he describe the concert he went to, but he actually took his pictures out of his pack and showed them to me. I often wonder if I walk around with a sign on my forehead that reads TELL ME YOUR LIFE STORY. I don't mind listening to people talk about themselves, in fact I really enjoy it. However, these occurrances really fascinate me. This happens on airplanes all the time. I once had a man tell me about his marriage that fell apart. He had been married for 20-some years and was recently separated from his wife. I also hear about new grandchildren, health problems, and family reunions. I love talking to random people, just wonder why some people tell me some things.
I talked to my mom tonight. It was great to hear from her...(she's still in California). In the background, I could hear my family yelling "HIII", "We miss you!" It made me cry again...I miss them so much. I love my family.

Dancing

I just returned from a friend's wedding reception. At this event, I was reminded of how much I love to dance. My attempt to dance is pretty sad, but I enjoy it regardless. I figure as long as I'm having fun, it doesn't matter how ridiculous I look. My feet hurt, but it was sooo worth it!

Ready....Set....COMMENT!

I haven't had any comments on my blog lately, so I thought I'd make an entry where the sole purpose is to receive comments. So....pick any topic and tell me your opinion about it. This can be a fun way to see who all reads my blog and what your opinions are on things. Have a great Friday!

I miss my sister and cousins...

I'm back in Nebraska. As it is nice to be home, I miss my family so much. I had a great time with my sister, my cousins, and other extended family out in California. I called my mom tonight and must have sounded kind of down--about 15 minutes later, one of my cousins called...I answered the phone to a "GUESS WHOOOOO?!"...it made me laugh and cry at the same time. I had another nice crying spell, so hopefully that's done. I just miss everyone so much. It's hard being so far away.

Today

I like the list idea, John--so here's my day:
1. woken up by the 4 dogs (each of them is under 6 lbs--you can just imagine how high-pitched their barks are) when the doorbell rang
2. said goodbye to my cousins before they left for school
3. breakfast with my parents and Grandma
4. worked on my crocheting projects (i've turned into a lean mean hat-making machine!)
5. i MUST shower...there is no question
6. going to visit my cousin at work
7. going to the mall
8. going to visit Em at her internship
9. spending quality time with my 4 cousins tonight at home...may finish our game of monopoly or play pictionary (how do you spell that??), or sing karaoke
10. get ready for my cousin's graduation (tomorrow is the big day!)

Peace out and have a great one!

If you were a safety pin, where would you live?

Hi again from California! This trip has been awesome. I miss my cousins so much as we live half a country apart. It is so great to see them and spend some time with them. Today, my younger cousins (well, they're 15 and 16) have school, my graduating cousin (he's 18) has graduation practice, and my other cousin (she's 20) is at work. Right now, it's me, Grandma, Mom, Dad, and the dogs. I'm on a mission to find a safety pin. I need to pin up my new halter top. It's bright green and I really like it, just needs a little pinning. Sooo...if you were a safety pin, where would YOU live?
We're going to chill here today until everyone is done with school and Emily is back from her internship. I must say being around Em has been very refreshing as well. With all the busy times at home, I don't think I appreciated just how much I missed being around her. It has been great. Tonight, we're all going out to dinner for one of my cousin's birthdays. I hope we have some times like last night when we are all laughing so hard our stomachs hurt. I love laughing...and we do plenty of it here!
I hope everyone is having a great week! When I get back into town, I have a friend's wedding, then my Goddaughter will be baptized. After that, it's time to start nannying! There have been many good times this summer and there are more good times to be had. Take care and I'll see you soon!

Hello from California!

I'm blogging to everyone from sunny California! It has been a great trip so far! I arrived yesterday afternoon and had lunch with my sister. Sooo good to see her! Then we hung out with our cousins at their house. Again, it's so good to see everyone. It feels at home to be surrounded by this family that I don't get to see very often. I helped my aunt at her elementary school this morning, went to the mall with my cousin, and sat out in the backyard this afternoon for a while. Watch out...I'm so bronze you may not recognize me! (okay so i'm exaggerating slightly). I hope everyone is having a great week!

Thoughts

I went home again last night to help clean. I don't think I can emphasize sufficiently how much it means to me when I am needed and am able to help. My parents needed help getting the house ready for my Grandma's visit. It made me feel good when they asked for my help with both the housework and asked me to just be around for a while. I have had a great time with my parents for the past 3 days.
I will pick Grandma up at the airport in Omaha today. Yay for time with Grandma! My Grandma is one of my best friends, and I don't get to see her very often being that she lives far away.
I am flying to California tomorrow morning. I get to see Em!!!! I'm so excited to see my family out in California as well. Living so far away from family is difficult, but it makes the times I get to see them all that more exciting. I fly out tomorrow, and my parents will be driving Grandma and their puppy out to California and will arrive on Sunday. My plan for the trip is to crochet and sit in the hot tub. I shall sit in the hot tub and only come out to eat and use the restroom.
Have a great week and I hope everyone is having a relaxing and peaceful summer! (especially those who are balancing school, jobs, and other activities!)