Summer 2011: Euro Trip

This summer was a significant one not just for me (graduating from college), but also for my mom, who celebrated 30 years working at the church in June. Yes, she was 6 years old when she started, thank you very much. ;) So to celebrate our dual major life milestones, we decided to take a trip. A big trip. A really big trip. I don't really remember how we decided on our destinations, but I do know that Mom had been to Salzburg years ago and loved it, and several people had recommended Prague, and so a trip was born! I couldn't possibly cover our entire trip in one blog, so I will just hit the highlights of each destination, and of course include a few pictures (since I think we took a few thousand, that shouldn't be a big problem).

First, the cast of characters: Mom and Ricky, Moppy and Poppy, Sean and "Uncle" Eric, Amber and me. We were neither a small nor inconspicuous travel group. But travelling with some of my favorite people was lots of fun.

Destination Number One: Prague, Czech Republic

I had never really considered Prague a "must-visit" place. But several friends (both mine and Mom's) had been and said it was really beautiful. And now that I've been there, I totally agree. There are tons of old buildings that look like they came out of fairy tales:And an amazing castle on top of a hill:


And, my personal favorite, we got to see the home where Antonin Dvorak lived AND his viola!!! That was cool. But alas, no photos were allowed, so you'll just have to take my word for it.
Prague was definitely different (language, money, food) from the rest of the places we visited. And Czech is not a language you just pick up in a few days. But I really liked it and am glad we went.

Day trip from Prague: Dresden, Germany

While planning our trip, we realized we would have an extra day in Prague. So we started looking at day trips we could take using our rail passes, and Dresden won out. We hopped a train and in a few hours were in Dresden! The interesting thing about Dresden is that it was pretty much completely destroyed by bombing in WWII. But they have rebuilt, and it is a beautiful and modern city! The big church, Frauenkirche, was restored and is gorgeous:

Hey, who are those cute kids? ;)

We also went to an art museum to get our culture on, and that was very cool. Dresden has a beautiful walkway along the river, and it was nice to just stroll along (Well, at least until we decided to try to make an earlier train back and had to RACE back to the train station. I seriously thought I was going to die. But we made it. Hooray.)

View from the riverside.

Destination Number Two: Vienna, Austria

Vienna is a HUGE, bustling city. We only had a few days there, but I still think we were able to get everything in that we wanted to see. Our first day we saw the Vienna Boy's Choir perform. They were incredible, and oh so cute. The next morning we visited Schönbrunn Palace, home to the Hapsburg monarchs and a seriously gorgeous place. The inside tour was nice, but honestly the grounds of this place were so much more impressive.

I mean, come on. People actually got to LIVE here?!?

We took a tour of the Vienna opera house, which is also BEAUTIFUL, and then Mom, Amber, and I went back to get standing-room only tickets for super duper cheap-4 Euro each! And the seats were amazing. We felt extremely cultured, and also fancy.

But my very favorite part of Vienna was the ZOO! Now, you might be saying, Jennifer, you can go to a zoo in just about any city you visit; why on earth would you take time out in one of the most famous European cities to visit a zoo??? I'll tell you why: Pandas. Pandas are my favorite animal on earth, and only a few zoos in the world have them. When I found out that there were pandas in Vienna, there was no doubt we were going. It was absolutely a life dream fulfilled. The pandas didn't do much, and actually spent most of their time with their backs to us, but they were still adorable and it was so much fun.

Me with the pandas! (Well, kind of.)

Destination Number Three: Salzburg, Austria

When I complained to Mom that we had such little time in Vienna, she told me that once I saw Salzburg, I would understand why we needed more time there. As usual, she was right. Salzburg was hands down my favorite place we visited. The setting in the foothills of the Alps and the amazing architecture was beautiful, and the whole being the setting of The Sound of Music thing didn't hurt, either.

We of course took the Sound of Music tour, although honestly so many of the places that were used in the movie are inaccessible because they are privately owned or, you know, a monastery. But my favorite part was going to Mondsee and seeing the wedding church. Mondsee is this adorable little Alpine town, complete with colorfully painted buildings, and it is home to the church where they filmed the wedding scene. Only, when you watch the Sound of Music, I bet you never notice that the church is PINK!

Yep. They did some really clever editing for the movie.

One of my other favorite things in Salzburg was when we went up the cable car to the top of Untersberg mountain. This was when I really felt like we were "up in the mountains", and for this flatland southeast Texas girl, that was definitely a new experience. You could see for miles and there was even still some snow! It was absolutely incredible.
















We also took a couple of day trips out of Salzburg, visiting the salt mines and the Werfen ice cave, which was ah-mazing, but the climb to get up there nearly did us all in. It was worth it, though. The ice has created all these amazing formations and it is completely beautiful.

Destination Number Four: Munich, Germany

Now, technically it is true that Munich was our fourth city. As in, we rode the train into Munich, stayed at a hotel in Munich, and all of our tours left from Munich. But if you were to ask me what I saw while in Munich, the answer would be...the street between the train station and our hotel. We didn't spend any time in the city itself. But our day trips were totally worth it. The first day we went to Dachau concentration camp. While it obviously wasn't the most fun thing we did, it was definitely moving and sobering to see where such horrible things happened.

Our other trip out of Munich was to two of King Ludwig's famous fairy tale castles. King Ludwig was a slightly crazy German monarch who built these enormous and elaborate castles in the mountains of Germany. First we saw Linderhoff castle, which was smaller but still beautiful. Then we stopped in Oberammergau, the city where they do the famous Passion play every 10 years. It was a lovely little town. Then on to the piece de resistance, the famous Neuschwanstein castle. They say that Walt Disney based Cinderella's castle on Neuschwanstein, and when you see it you can tell that's true:


It is simply amazing. And the beauty doesn't stop outside. We took a tour inside and the rooms are so ornate and gorgeous. And if that wasn't enough, every room has a view of the surrounding mountains and lakes. King Ludwig may have been crazy, but he knew how to build a castle.

The castles trip was our last day in Europe. In 2 weeks we saw some amazing things that I will never forget. It was the best graduation trip ever!

Summer 2011: Graduation

So. It has been awhile. My inner bad blogger came out to play, and also, life happened. So before grad school really kicks into high gear, I am going to write a bunch of little posts about all the fun, interesting, or life-altering stuff that happened this summer. Let's start with the event that marked the end of the school year and my career at Baylor: graduation.

My graduation ceremony started at 9 AM, so first thing in the morning I put on my cap and gown and headed to the Ferrell Center.


What's that you say? You are a Baylor fan and don't think that picture was taken at the Ferrell Center? Well, you're right. This is one of the grad pictures my friends and I took a few days before, and it is indeed in front of Pat Neff. I know my mother took pictures on the morning of graduation, but I cannot find them. So sue me, and use your imagination.

As for the actual graduation ceremony, well, it was long. And we, as University Scholars, were the last group of undergrads to walk the stage. And my rule-following tendency was in rare form, to the point that I followed a rule that didn't even actually exist and didn't bring my cell phone or purse to graduation. Apparently, judging from every other graduate in the arena, having a cell phone was not, in fact, against the rules. So everyone else was facebooking and tweeting and texting, while I just sat there. Like I said, it was long. But finally, they got all the way through the alphabet and it was our turn! I didn't trip or fall on the stage, and I even remembered to turn and smile at the camera when I was up on the big screen. I shook Ken Starr's hand and got the big green tube that I had worked, bled, and sweat for the past four years to earn. It was a good moment.

After the ceremony, I met my family at the car. We made that plan to avoid the hordes of people who would be running around after the ceremony, and it actually worked pretty well. Here are the pictures we took then.


















My cousin Amber came down, and while it would have been super sweet if she came just to see me graduate, in fact she was going with us to Europe the next day (more on that to come). At any rate, it was fun to have her there.

Basically as soon as these pictures were taken, we packed in our cars and hit the road to Houston. We all ate lunch at Perry's, which was so yummy and very fancy! Then we went home and packed, because the next day we were off to Europe!

It definitely didn't hit me then that Baylor was really over. That didn't come until much later in the summer, when I finally moved out of the Waco apartment. My four years at Baylor were possibly the best of my life, and I will cherish them forever. But now I'm on to bigger and better things, I suppose! Coming up next: European adventure 2011.

When movies say it better...

I've been looking out of a window for eighteen years, dreaming about what I might feel like when those lights rise in the sky. What if it's not everything I dreamed it would be?

It will be.

And what if it is? What do I do then?

Well,that's the good part I guess. You get to go find a new dream.

I love it when a movie expresses what you didn't even know you felt. Tangled = 5 Stars.

Belize: Days One and Two (The "Fun Days")

Last week was Baylor's Spring Break , and I went on a Child and Family Studies Academic Mission Trip to Belize! It was an amazing experience. We worked alongside Teachers for a Better Belize (TFABB), which is a non-profit organization that has been working with teachers in the Toledo district of Belize (the most southern and poorest district) for 15 years. Our professor, Dr. Nuner, has been working with TFABB for about 5 years now, focusing specifically on preschool teachers. We went down mostly to observe in the classrooms to see how preschool is different in Belize than in the States. We also put on two parent workshops to encourage parents to send their preschoolers to preschool, since it isn't mandatory but is very helpful in terms of preparing them for Kindergarten. I absolutely loved my team and the week was wonderful. Now I will attempt to tell our story in pictures!

Our travel day was mostly uneventful, except for a VERY bumpy flight from Waco to Houston that left most of us queasy, and being rushed through the airport in Belize City because we had almost missed our flight to Punta Gorda. We felt like VIPs! Then we emerged on the tarmac and saw the vehicle that was to be our transportation to PG, and were a little afraid:

But it was The Little Plane that Could, because the ride was the smoothest one we had all day! It also gave us some wonderful views of a beautiful Belizean sunset:











We got settled into our hotel in PG (which just happened to be directly next door to the airport-we literally walked!), then went for dinner at Miss Marian's, which was to be our default restaurant for the week. I think we ate there 4 nights, and with good reason-it was delicious!



The first day we were there (Sunday), the schools were obviously closed, so we took a snorkeling trip out to the Snake Cayes.
We saw all kinds of fish and other sea creatures: starfish, jellyfish, HUGE lobsters, barracudas, and a nurse shark (who, thankfully, stayed under his rock!)










But most of us also got VERY sunburned on our backs. It was a fun, but tiring, day.

Monday happened to be a national holiday in Belize (Baron Bliss Day or Heroes and Benefactors Day, depending on who you asked). That meant the schools were closed again, so we took another fun day! We drove about an hour and a half out of Punta Gorda (our base city) to Blue Creek. We hiked out into the jungle...

...and swam into a cave! The water was freezing, so some of us made funny faces:

We had headlamps to help us see in the dark, though (Yes, I'm fully aware of how unattractive this is):

The cave was definitely a "life experience", as Sarah Hall said. I enjoyed it, even though right near the end I slipped trying to cross a big gap and fell about three feet into the water. I smacked my right arm against the wall and it was pretty scary, but our Belizean guide worked some kind of medicine-man voodoo on it (seriously, y'all, he spit on my arm and cracked all my knuckles. In a dark cave. In Belize. Life experience!) and it felt OK. I got a semi-nasty bruise, but will survive.

After our cave-diving adventure, we drove another hour or so to Rio Blanco National Park, where some of us jumped off of cliffs:


Then we ALL followed our guide farther into the park, trusting him not to lead us into danger. Weren't we surprised when he led us to this bridge:



And suggested that we walk across it! It was like something out of Indiana Jones. But we all got across, with varying degrees of excitement and terror. No one fell off, and we were all SO BRAVE!
















So that gets us through days one and two. I think that's all I will do for now, because I have actual school work to do! (I know, what's that, right?)

Some Thoughts on Sing

It's that time of year here at good old Baylor U-the time when girls spend hours curling their hair, boys wear eyeliner, and seeing someone walking around campus in a ridiculous costume is nothing out of the ordinary. Yes, I'm talking about SING. It has been one of my favorite traditions since I came to Baylor, even though I have only performed for the past two years. I am a huge fan of Broadway shows and live performances in general, so Sing is right up my alley!

Last night was the first performance (we will do two more this weekend and then three next week). I thought I would blog what I thought about each of the acts, mostly just so I can come back and look at them later. I will try to be fair and balanced, and not mean, because I know how much work goes into these acts (well, most of them-I'm looking at you, SAE) and no matter how it comes out as long as everyone has fun doing it I think an act is a success!

(These are in the performance order from last night, Club Night)

Unfortunately, we didn't get to see Chamber, Pi Phi, or Pi Kapp, because we were the 5th group and only saw the two before and after us at dress rehearsal. From what I've heard, Pi Phi is amazing and I really hope I get to see them at some point before all is said and done.

Kappa Kappa Gamma-"Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?"

We saw this one at dress rehearsal Wednesday night. I have to say, I LOVE the wolf costumes. They are seriously amazing, and I just overall really like the wolf characters. They're scary and dark, and really set the mood for the act. This act started out really strong; I loved the mixing of 3 songs (To Grandmother's House We Go, Paparazzi, and Every Breath You Take)-it was subtle but it worked. Vocals at the beginning were pretty good. But after a really cool, theatrical beginning, this act just kind of flopped for me. Like I said, the wolves were the best part, but I felt like the song selection was lacking and didn't really help the theme at all. The ending was creative, but dragged on for too long.

Verdict: Possibly Pigskin, also might win People's Choice for Best Costumes

Sing Alliance: "Hip Hip Hooray"

I'm obviously a little bit biased, since this is my group, but I really think we have a strong act. Our choreography needs to get a little bit cleaner, for sure, but with 150+ people on the stage, and with how fast our act is (seriously, it doesn't. ever. stop.) I think it looks amazing. Plus, our energy and joy is almost unmatched, because we all just LOVE SING!

Verdict: Unknown. Seriously, I wouldn't dare jinx us by making any predictions

FIJI: "Murder Mystery"

This is the other act we saw at Dress Rehearsal Wednesday, and then we actually ran back into Waco Hall fast enough last night that we got to see it again. I will say that it was VASTLY improved from Wednesday to Thursday. On the other hand, Wednesday night I watched the entire act and still wasn't sure what the theme was. The music was not bad, I really enjoyed the Pink Panther and "Live and Let Die" (especially the 2nd soloist). But overall, this act was not very entertaining and obviously needed some more theme development (the audience should at least be able to tell what you are doing by the end of the act.)

Verdict: Not good enough for Pigskin

Alpha Tau Omega: "A Case of the Mondays"

I think this theme is really creative. I also think that I would appreciate it a lot more if I had ever actually worked in an office or had a horrible boss. The choreography was clean, especially the part where the boss is treating the employees like puppets. Really liked that part. Overall, it wasn't my favorite act, but I think it will appeal more to the older audience members (or maybe to guys?)

Verdict: Definitely Pigskin, and an outside shot at placing. Possibly a People's Choice for Theme Development

Chi Omega & Phi Kappa Chi: "Bonnie and Clyde"

It is really hard for me not to compare this act to the act Kappa and K-Sig did my freshman year (sailors and girls-like 40's theme). The thing I remember from that act was just the sheer NUMBER of people on the stage the whole time. I imagine it was probably something like people say about Sing Alliance, because our sheer size is just amazing. But while there were a lot of good things going on in this act, it didn't amaze me the way I wanted it to. The soloist at the beginning was AH-MAY-ZING, though, seriously. And I realize that (like with Sing Alliance) having that many people on stage at once makes it really difficult. But we make it work, so these groups should, too!

Verdict: Pigskin for sure, will probably place just based on numbers and really strong vocals. Might win a People's Choice for Best Vocals, too, just based on the opening soloist

Kappa Chi Alpha: "A Kite's Day Out"

I really like KXA personally, probably because I know a lot of girls in the group. They are a much smaller group and don't charge ridiculously high dues like some of the other sororities. Because of this, their resources for Sing are a lot more limited (and I suspect they just have other priorities, to be honest). That said, I really enjoyed this act! It was a huge improvement over last year's Big Apple act. The soloist that sang last year was great again, and I really liked the part where the kite got stuck in the tree ("All By Myself"). Really, I feel like this group has come a long way, and I hope they keep getting better and better!

Verdict: Not Pigskin

Kappa Sigma: "Playin' Around at the Playground"

Let me say first that I really felt like K-Sig was unfairly left out of Pigskin last year-their act was better than some that did make it, in my opinion. I feel like this year's act was even better. Although I was dubious at first about a playground theme (especially from a guy's group), they really made it work for them. The three groups (bully, jock, and nerd) were brilliant, and I especially liked the nerds (the part where the kid pulled out his inhaler nearly killed me. So funny.) The song selection was good, and choreography was really clean. I hope they make Pigskin again, but I know that it might not happen.

Verdict: hopefully Pigskin, but will be fighting it out with several girls' groups so they better keep up their game or even get better

NPHC and Heavenly Voices Gospel Choir: "Dance Train"

This is a new group to Sing this year, and as their name implies, their singing was great. The choreography and theme development just weren't there, though. The dancers looked bored and I think it's probably because the moves were so slow and simple. Overall, a good first effort, and I hope they come back next year even better.

Verdict: Not Pigskin, but could win People's Choice for Best Vocals

Alpha Chi Omega: "Part of Your Balanced Breakfast"

Before we saw this act, I said it could either be really cute or super corny. Well, sorry AXO, but corn is NOT a breakfast food. Changing the words in one of your songs is OK, and even cute, but when you have to do it in every song, it becomes annoying and shows that you didn't really have a manageable theme. People think Sing is all about dancing and costumes, but when it boils down to it, the songs make the act. If you can't come up with songs for a breakfast act, then you don't have a breakfast act. All that said, I thought the costumes were cute and the girls jumping in the "toaster" in the background was a nice touch. I'm just sad that I won't ever be able to hear "Billie Jean" again without thinking about breakfast sausage.

Verdict: Not good enough for Pigskin

Kappa Alpha Theta: "A Golden Afternoon"

A flower act-not really what you would call an original theme. But by adding the weeds and especially the garden gnomes, Theta really did a good job with this seemingly basic, boring theme. I really liked the rose and sunflower costumes (not so much the pansies, couldn't tell that's what they were until the end when the markers came down). The garden gnomes were definitely my favorite, although their dancing was not very clean-a lot like the Tiffany boxes from last year.

Verdict: Possibly Pigskin, but is fighting it out at the bottom with a few other groups

Alpha Delta Pi & Delta Tau Delta: "Don't Stop Til It's Clean Enough"

Now, AXO, THIS is how you alter a song to fit your theme. Do it once, and do it well-then leave it at that. I knew from the first time I hear their title which song would be their "centerpiece", and I thought it was cute. I'm afraid, though, that adding Delt actually hurt ADPi, because I felt like the girls in this act were spot on and really good, but the boys were just bad. The dust bunnies (and "Another One Bites the Dust") were really cute, too. Good song selection.

Verdict: Another one that is on the bubble as far as Pigskin. I really think the guys may have ruined a great act for ADPi.

Delta Delta Delta: "Just Imagine It"

I knew Tri-Delt was going to work really hard this year after not placing at all last year (basically unheard of in recent Sing history). They had a lot more theme development this year, starting off with the little girl and having her mom coming in at the end. That was really well done. I LOVED the peacock costumes, and the monkeys on roller skates were cute, too. I felt like the zebra costumes just looked like re-purposed barracudas from last year, though, which kind of bugged me. Vocals were strong, but choreography was not as clean as it has been in the past. (Of course, last year when we watched them at dress rehearsal I literally was in awe of their clean lines, so coming down from that is not so bad, but still). I feel like they made the choreography harder this year, and then weren't quite able to pull it off at their normal level of greatness. Overall, a great act. I really enjoyed it, even if it was pretty formulaic. It's traditional, pure Sing, and they do it better than anybody else.

Verdict: Definitely Pigskin, strong chance at placing. Possible People's Choice for Choreography, Backdrop, or Costume (or all 3!)

Sigma Alpha Epsilon: "Stay-At-Home Dads"

Since Sigma Chi was kicked off campus last year, SAE is the last remaining group that just obviously doesn't care about Sing and treats it as a total joke. That said, I was actually really surprised that their backdrop was really good! But that's about all I can say in their favor. I mean, they were dancing in boxers and bathrobes, for goodness sake. The rap was amusing, but is kind of old news because they did the same thing last year. Just seems like a waste of space in a show that's already 4+ hours long. Take this one out and give us 15 minutes of our lives back.

Verdict: obviously not going to Pigskin, and they know it.

Zeta Tau Alpha: "Keep On Rollin'"

Aside from the fact that the title of the act is the EXACT same as a Sing Alliance act from 5-6 years ago that is commonly referred to as "The Train Wreck", I really enjoyed this act. First of all, their costumes were adorable-loved that they were not overly girly, since it is a railroad act, but they had a little bit of sequins to add flair. The vocals were strong, especially the a capella trio at the beginning. Choreography was good, if really simple. Theme development was OK, not great but not terrible either. Just kind of "there". Overall, a HUGE improvement over their depressing, confusing act last year.

Verdict: Could make Pigskin, but is fighting for one of the bottom spots. People's Choice for Costume? That's probably just me.

And last, but not least...

Kappa Omega Tau: "The Show Must Go On"

First, I will admit that I built this act up to almost unattainable perfection in my mind before I saw it. Their toy act last year is probably my favorite Sing act of all time, and is about as close to perfection as an act can possibly get. So I was expecting great things. The act is getting great reviews from most people I've talked to/read online. BUT. I didn't like it. Now, let me clarify. As a spectacle, as a performance, as a piece of modern art-it was amazing. But as a Sing act, it just didn't work for me. I know they were trying to push the envelope and do something completely new and different, but for me it was just too far out there. For one thing, the costumes were all completely haphazard (I think there were two of each costume, so probably 30 different ones). This made it look super disjointed, and even when they were dancing well and cleanly, it looked messy. The music was all very rock-and-roll, and I had a hard time understanding most of their words. Also, there just wasn't very much group dancing. I know there is a certain time of group singing that each group has to meet, or we lose points, so I would assume the same goes for group dancing. I'm not sure that KOT had more than 2 minutes in the whole act where the group was all dancing together "Sing style" and doing the same thing. The ringleader character was amazing, and the jester who sang "Circus" was good, too. The blacklight part was incredible, probably my favorite part. But overall, to me it was just TOO different from what a Sing act "should" be, and I can't say that I liked it. I would like to see it again, because I feel like if I wasn't saying "Huh?!?!" the entire time I would enjoy it a lot more.

Verdict: Despite my personal opinion, I'm pretty sure it will place, and probably get 1st. People's Choice for something or several things, I just don't exactly know which.

Wow! If you are still reading, I applaud you. Mostly I just wanted to get down my thoughts before I forget all of them. Here are my final standings:

1st: KOT
2nd: Phi Chi-O
3rd: Tri Delta

Pigskin:
Sing Alliance
ATO
Pi Phi
Kappa
Kappa Sig (what I hope, but will probably actually be Theta or Zeta, or even ADPi-Delt)

People's Choice (Well, MY choices really):
Backdrop: Tri Delt
Choreography: Sing Alliance
Costumes: Tri Delt
Song Selection: Maybe ADPi-Delt? Or ATO? I really don't know on this one. I felt like I didn't know nearly as many songs in the acts this year.
Theme Development: ATO
Vocals: Phi-Chi-O

Counting Down...

Just a few important dates for ya...

7 Days...until Sing begins!

23 Days....until we leave for Belize!

93 Days...until Graduation!

Life is just flying by, it seems!

Snow Day-Waco Style

So, the 30 Day Challenge got the best of me. I just don't have the time to blog every single day, plus some of the upcoming prompts were really lame. There are a few that I liked, so maybe I will just use them as ideas for future posts.

But what I really want to tell you about is the SNOW DAY we are having in Waco today! All week it has been miserably cold (I don't think the temperature has been above 30 since Tuesday morning). I have worn about 5 layers of clothes just to keep warm. To this Houston girl, it has been pretty bad! Tuesday was OK, it was kind of a new adventure to have to go to class in such cold weather. Then Wednesday morning everyone woke up to no power because of rolling blackouts due to an energy shortage. Well, everyone that is except for Baylor-we-produce-our-own-power University. Classes were still on. Ugh! So we got ready by candlelight and drug our sad little butts to class. Thursday was more of the same, freezing cold and windy, still having class because unlike the great majority of North Texas, no actual snow or ice had accumulated in Waco. BUT! There was hope for snow on Friday, so that made everything a little more bearable.

WELL. Long ago, my Belize Spring Break missions team had planned for last night to be our movie/pizza/work on making materials night at our professor's house. Which is about 20 minutes south of Waco. Before I left, I knew there was a chance it would be snowing later that night, but I figured the snow wasn't supposed to start until at least midnight, we would be home well before that. So I went out there and we had a great time. Really good team bonding time, plus cupcakes to celebrate Jason's birthday. Around 9 o'clock, we looked outside and realized their deck was covered in SNOW! We all ran out to check, and sure enough, it was coming down pretty hard. I don't think it had started snowing in Waco yet, because I hadn't gotten any excited texts or facebook updates. Soon after that, we packed up and headed out. I had driven myself, thinking that snow wouldn't be an issue. I had never driven in snow before, so I was kind of freaked out, but I figured I would just go really slowly. It was definitely an adventure. The hardest part was stopping, because every time I started again the wheels would have to find traction again. I slid a few times, mostly closer to home, but I made it, and it was actually kind of cool. I can cross "Drive through a snow-storm" off my bucket list. Although I don't really think it was there to begin with.

So I made it home, tried to park my car sort of between the lines in the parking lot which I could no longer see because they were covered up by snow, and walked up to my apartment. But my roomies were nowhere to be found! At first I thought they had all gone to bed, because only one light was on. But it was only 10:30, and I knew they knew it was snowing! I thought they were crazy-for about a minute. Then it dawned on me that they were probably out playing in the snow! So I called them and went back out on campus to meet with them. We spent probably an hour just walking around campus, making snow men and snow angels, and taking pictures. So much fun.
















Roomies in the snow


My snow angel!

The only downside was, we still weren't sure if we would have school today or not. Once we got home, I read a few chapters in a book I was supposed to have finished by today for my Religion in America class. It's actual sermons and documents from the Great Awakening, so basically, snooze-fest. I read for a while, then decided I was done, and went to bed. When my alarm went off this morning, to my great joy, my phone told me that we did NOT have school! And there was great rejoicing. Except not right then, because I went straight back to bed. Eventually we all woke up and took another walk around campus, through the now-melting slush/snow.

















Gorgeous tree in front of the SUB Snow on our steps-
about 2 inches, I'd say!

Then we went to McAlister's for some yummy soup to warm our cold bodies, and HEB to get supplies for chili and berry cobbler, which we are about to start making. All in all, a great end to a COLD week here in Waco!

Day Seventeen-To Live a Different Life

Who would I want to trade lives with for a day? My answer to this is probably really weird, but it's always been something I've wondered about.

I would love to trade lives with a trucker for one day. Ever since I was little, I've had this fascination with cramming as much stuff as possible into a little bitty space (like the opposite of claustrophobia).

I've always thought it would be fun to have your whole life in the cab of your truck and just drive around all the time for a living.

Of course I realize there's a LOT more to it than that, and I KNOW I would get tired of it really quickly, but luckily this hypothetical trade is only for one day! After that I would definitely want a shower, and probably a real bed.

Maybe there is a trucker somewhere who would let me ride along for a day (Preferably a nice trucker, though. No creepers need apply.)

Day Sixteen-Me, Myself, Yo, Io, Moi, Etc...

Another picture of ME? Well, if you insist!


This is my favorite picture that Mom took of me before my senior prom. Which, yes, means it is coming up on four years old. But all that makeup makes me look older, right? Before prom, I really did not have very high expectations for it. I was just going because I figured if I didn't, I would regret it for the rest of my life, and I wanted to be able to tell my kids someday about going to prom. Plus, I had a boyfriend at the time, so it's not like I had to work really hard to find a date (although there was quite a bit of drama surrounding that, too...material for another post). Anyway, I went, and I actually had an amazing time. It was such a fun night with all my best friends, right before we graduated and our lives changed completely. Looking back, it is one of my favorite high school memories, and I'm so glad I went.

Day Fifteen-My Random Music Collection

First 10 songs to come up when my iPod (in this case, my iPhone) is on shuffle:

1. Here in My Heart, Martina McBride
2. How Far, Martina McBride [I love Martina, but really?]
   
3. The Girl with the Flaxen Hair, Joshua Bell [hey, I've met him!]
4. Real Good Man, Tim McGraw
5. How He Loves, David Crowder Band
6. My Life Would Suck Without You, Glee Cast [guilty pleasure music]
   
7. The Farmer and the Cowman, Oklahoma! 1998 London Revival Cast
8. Overture, Oklahoma! 1998 London Revival Cast [seriously?!?]
   
9. I Don't Want to See You Again, Martina McBride
10. Something Like That, Tim Mcgraw

I have to say, not exactly very representative. I do have more than five artists/albums on my phone. BUT, I am not one to cheat the system and keep skipping until I get good songs. So there you go!

Day Fourteen-Familia

Mom's Side-In London, Summer 2009



Dad's side-At Passion, 2008

I love my family!

Day Thirteen-An Open Letter

Dear Bathtub,

Ouch! You jumped up out of the floor and tripped me. Now I have a big purple bruise on my shin to show for it. That was not a nice thing to do. But since you have mostly been good to me for the last two years, I will overlook your hurtful actions just this once. I just hope you don't do it again.

I hope we can still be friends,
Jennifer

[I am BEHIND on blogging-it has been a crazy week! I'm going to try to catch up tonight, though.]

Day Twelve-Why Blog???

So...why do I have a blog? What got me started in this whole bloggy world?

I started reading the blogs of a few friends/acquaintances waaaaaay back, probably five years ago. One of those was Nancy, whom I didn't really know at the time except that she worked at the church and was one of those silly Mildred and Gertrude ladies. Ha! Now I'm proud to call her a friend, and still enjoy reading her blog. From her blog, I got to clicking and found a few other people I "knew", and then some people I didn't, but whose blogs I really enjoyed reading. Then reading blogs became a hobby, and I finally decided I should start one of my own so that I wasn't only reading, but was also writing something too.

Obviously, I haven't kept up with ye olde bloggy very well, until now. I really want to keep up with blogging this semester and throughout the year because, as the lovely Lindsay points out, it will be a year of great changes and (hopefully) great excitement! On that note, I really need to quit blogging and procrastinating and go finish my application to Texas Tech. I officially HATE the applications process...but it's one of those things we have to endure, I suppose.

Day Eleven-More Friends???

Well, had I looked ahead to this day in the first place, maybe I wouldn't have used all my favorite pictures in the first "friends" post. But here is the most recent picture of all of us, taken in December when we drove down to College Station to see Beauty and the Beast.

I love them!

Day Ten-Songs for Every Mood

I'm not going to lie, this is one of the posts I was most excited to get to when I first started this blog challenge. I love music, and have way too much of it on my computer. So let's try to narrow it down a little bit, shall we?

Music I listen to when I'm:

Happy-"The Best Day", Taylor Swift

Sad-"Fix You", Coldplay

Stressed-"Vienna", Billy Joel

Hyper-"Single Ladies", Beyoncé

Mad-"American Dream", Switchfoot

Confession: this was a LOT harder than I thought it would be. But there you go!

Day Nine-Accomplishments

OOPS! I definitely forgot to blog yesterday. So sorry. I actually started this post and then got distracted doing something else. That would fall under the category of something I am NOT proud of in the past few days. But here are a few things I AM proud of:

• Being ahead of the game (or at least on schedule) with the readings for most of my classes
• Having a productive meeting with my thesis advisor (even though I introduced a completely new idea which is proving to be a lot more work than I thought it would be)
• Keeping up with my one-year Bible reading plan!

Little things, but important things. What are you proud of recently?

Day Eight-It's Good to Have Goals

Today, I am supposed to set some short-term goals for this month. WELL. Setting the goals should be the easy part; actually getting them done will be more difficult.

• Finish grad school applications. Because I would like to have somewhere to go after May 14th, thank you very much.
• Write a third thesis chapter. (AKA What I Was Working On Before I Took A "Break" and Remembered I Needed to Blog for Today)
• Master the choreography for Sing. Because right now, it is kicking my butt. (It's probably toning my butt, too, which is actually OK with me.)
  
• Join the CABC choir for the Prison Trip in March. This one I will (barring any unforeseeable emergencies) accomplish tonight! I'm really excited about singing again!
• Keep blogging regularly!
  

So. There are some goals. Guess we will have to see if I accomplished them come February 19th. For now, back to thesis!!! (Fake enthusiasm goes here.)

Day Seven- Impactful

Day Seven: A picture of someone/something that has had the biggest impact on you.

This is my grandmother. Her name is Moppy. Well, that's not her real name, obviously. But it's all I've ever called her, and actually what a goodly number of her friends call her, too. Moppy has been a constant presence in my life, from my earliest memories. What I think I love the most about her is that she is selfless. If anyone she loves is in need, she will give of herself to help them. I love her so much!(Also, she may kill me for putting pictures of her on the internet, but I don't care. So there.)

Day Six: Favorite Superhero

I am not really a superhero, comic books kind of girl. In fact, I was fully prepared to find some obscure female bookworm superhero and choose her. But THEN, my roomie Rachel reminded me of this:


Well, YEAH. I don't even think this post need any more words.