Summatime!

Don't worry about  c l e a n i n g  your room during finals. There are more important things to be stressed about. . . until you find a cockroach crawling .a.r.o.u.n.d. the floor. Then maybe do a quick 

clean-up.

Finals week for a fashion student <//3

First year of college complete! Happy  s u m m e r !

Rush

I will never doubt my gender again.

I went on a white water rafting trip in Tennessee recently, and as the bus drove us to the beginning of the river, we passed all of the rapids... and they looked pretty messy. Okay, scary. I was so excited to go until I saw them, I became downright fearful. 

When we were introduced to our guide, and SHE turned around, not only was it a tiny woman, but she had to have been 60. Having   t e e n y , tiny, old Janet did not help to settle my nerves, as you can imagine. I was certain we'd all be .f.l.y.i.n.g. out of the raft. Plus, we'd have to do some serious rowing to make up for her tiny arms. How wrong I was!

Once we hit the first set of rapids, I realized it was just down right FUN, and also a bit of a  r u s h . 

Janet was an old pro at this. She has been a rafting guide for 25 .y.e.a.r.s. and knew the river backwards and forwards. She had the best techniques and some serious muscles too. Turns out, we were the only raft in our group that nobody fell out of. My homegirl Janet is a   b e a s t ! 

Don't doubt; just be fearless.

No Change of Heart, A Change In Me

People change during college. Some for the better and some for the worse. For those that have changed for the worse, it may be hard to .l.e.t. .g.o. , but everyone comes  i n  and  o u t  of your life for a reason. You can't keep every person you meet. You have to let them go and move on with your life. Surround .y.o.u.r.s.e.l.f. with the people that can help you change for the good. 

Sometimes it might seem like they aren't out there, but they are. They may just be  h i d i n g . There are good people everywhere. Make sure you are changing for the good. 

If you're having a hard time letting go, try a physical change to  h e l p  you move on.

Children Only Beyond This Point!

What is a grown up?

I have legally been an adult for over a year now. But I don't feel like a "grown up".

As a child, grown ups and adults were all the same thing. Parents, old people, big people. But when do you really become an adult?

- Is it when you turn 18? 

-Is it when you move out of your parents home?

-Is it when you graduate high school or get a job or start college?

-Or is it when you begin to pay your own bills?

I still rely on my parents for so much. A friend asked me to go with him to Atlanta next weekend on the back of his motorcycle. I was .a.l.l.  .o.v.e.r. the idea, but when I asked my parents they of course said no.

I told them I am an adult if if I really wanted to, I could go. 

They said they knew that, but they also knew me and they knew I wouldn't disrespect them or myself.

They were  r i g h t .

So am I a child for asking permission from my parents and then .l.i.s.t.e.n.i.n.g. to them?

I think it'd be more childish to disobey them. I might still be in my teens, but I'm not some rebellious teenager. 

So is becoming an adult a state of mind? Is it an actual day? I feel that one should know when they've reached that  s t a g e . So does that mean I'm still a kid because I don't know? I don't think I'm ready to be "old". I want to be young and .a.d.v.e.n.t.u.r.o.u.s. , to run and play stupid games and have fun. Can adults do that?

Maybe it's knowing when to act grown up. Like there's a time and a place to be a professional  adult  and a time to run free and act goofy, like a child. 

Be an adult but keep the heart of a child: pure and innocent and exciting.

Parking Frenzy

One thing I've had to learn quickly when coming to college is how to

parallel park.

Parking is  c r a z y  in a city, even a small one. 

And meters and parking tickets (not to mention gas) really add up.

If you don't really need a car, I suggest not bringing one. Plus, if you have a car you  w i l l  become everyone's chauffeur. Guaranteed. And people won't offer you gas money or say thank you. Rides will just be expected.

If it wasn't for my church being quite a ways away, I would gladly stick with a bike. Be sure and get one with a basket if you have lots of art supplies like me.

College Cupcakes!

I've learned that a cupcake can make 

anything  b e t t e r .

But three bucks a cupcake can get expensive, so check out what I found!

I bought this  c u p c a k e  maker for $15 at Wal-Mart in the Valentine's section. I've heard they sell them at Target also. It has mini heart shaped indents to bake cupcakes in and they are delishhhh.

PLUS! Thanks to the info-mercial for the Xpress Redi-Set-Go (don't buy, it's 60 dollars), I've learned many other things I can cook in this.

<3

-Brownies

-Cookies

-Cinnamon Rolls

-Pigs in a Blanket

-Eggs

-Crab Cakes

-Any frozen bite-sized foods you want oven heated!

or check out their website and steal recipes.

http://maryannsgtxpressrecipes.blogspot.com/

S e r i o u s l y , sooo ideal for a college student without a kitchen.

It's an excellent friend maker as well (so I'm learning)!

THE FRESHMAN FIFTEEN

Such a touchy subject.

I probably feared this  m o r e  than being alone on the East side of the country. My mom assured me I wouldn't gain any weight with how .l.i.t.t.l.e. I eat and all the walking I'd be doing.

The problem is, even though I was walking often, I began eating even more often. And there is a whole counter top full of desserts in the cafeteria... and I can go to the grocery store and buy all the snacks my parents wouldn't buy... and my meal card is good for buffet style meals when I normally wouldn't eat such a large meal at home.

Plus, I began pigging out at night. For no reason. Just because I could.

I didn't gain the freshman fifteen my first quarter, but I may have gained eight or so...

L u c k i l y  I've lost some of that.

I decided when I obsess over my weight and food, that I gain  m o r e  weight. If I just eat when I'm hungry and try to make a few .h.e.a.l.t.h.y. choices here and there, then my pants tend to fit okay.

Some people get so busy in college, that they FORGET to eat and then lose weight. Others are home sick so they take to eating. And then there's those of us who just love food and it's easily accessible on campus, so we just eat and  e a t .

Just try to be healthy and aware. 

:)