Pi Alpha Alpha

Today was my honor society luncheon at Drake. Libby Jacobs was our key note speaker and she, along with one of Drake's most beloved professors, Dr. Meyer, gave wonderful inspiring speeches. They talked about giving back to your community, loving others, and spreading joy and peace within ourselves and those we surround ourselves with. It was a very nice program and I even got a pin and certificate of achievement for my GPA. Thinking back to my years at the U of I, oh how times have changed!

Horoscope

I came across my horoscope last week and thought it was very fitting: "Life requires a lot of physical exertion. You may not think you have any excess energy or aggression to work off, but get moving and you'll find out that perhaps you do."
I sure hope so! Now that my spring classes are done until the end of May, I'm going to try to up my workout routine!

Best show on TV

The new set of episodes have been hilarious! I can't get enough. And hello, who doesn't love an upcoming proposal?!

Substitutes

I have to face the hard truth. I have to learn to like substitutes. Butter buds instead of REAL butter, 100-calorie packs instead of chocolate candy bars, Diet pop instead of REAL Mt. Dew... I can see this is going to get ugly. We can put the man on the moon but we can't invent a Diet Mt. Dew that doesn't taste like cat pee?

On the wagon...

The Weight Watcher's wagon that is!
WW is being offered for 17 weeks at my workplace starting next week. If I lose at least 1 lb a week, I'll get reimbursed by my company for the cost of the program. You can't beat that! So I'm bound and determined- I'm putting this out into blogosphere- I WILL lose 30 lbs by July 29th -a.k.a. VEGAS trip!
Please say a little prayer for me that I can put down the chocolate long enough to eat a carrot. Amen.

Tagged!

A- Attached or Single: Wonderfully attached! Our one year anniv. is coming up!
B- Best Friends: Andy, my mom, Alyce, Adrian, Annette, Jen, B....I'm so lucky to have so many amazing family and friends in my life!
C- Cake or Pie: Um hello, they're desserts. I'll take both! White cake/White frosting or key lime pie.
D-Day of Choice: Any weekend in the fall- it's my favorite season!
E-Essential Item(s): Coffee, a hug and a good belly laugh from Andy, foundation/mascara
F-Favorite Type of Music: Anything Hip-hop, dance, or anything on 106.3FM
I-Indulgences: Desserts, a good glass of wine, a mani or pedi, shopping!
J-January or July: One is too cold and one is too hot! :)
K-Kids: None yet but trying!
L-Last movie: Dan In Real Life- it was good!
M-Marriage Date: May 5, 2007- woohoo!
N-Number of Siblings: 1 older brother and 2 younger step-sisters
O-Oranges or Apples: Apples- especially dipped in caramel!
P-Phobias or Fears: Spiders, not being in control of a situation, death of loved ones
Q-Quotes: "Do work." -BB
R-Reasons to Smile: Being with my family and friends, graduating with my Masters, having a good job that pays the bills.
S-Season: Fall - I love turtlenecks and jeans!
T-Tag: Jen Larsen
U-Unknown Fact About Me: ?? It's still unknown to me too!
V-Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animals: I was raised 'country'- give me any kind of meat! :)
W-Worst Habit: According to my husband, 'leaving newspapers and magazines on the couch.' Personally, I would say credit cards.
X-X-rays or Ultrasounds: Ultrasounds, in fact I'm ready for one in the next year or so!
Y-Your Favorite Food: Any dessert from my mom, any kind of pizza, any type of candy
Z-Zodiac: Aquarius

Got Pole?

What a BLAST! This class was amazing- everything from the awesome studio to the great instructor to the wonderful friends and yummy snacks/drinks! 3 hours just flew by and I can't wait until we do it again!

Not yo Mama's exercise class...

So a few weeks ago, a lady was featured on the news who teaches 'pole-dancing' classes. My girlfriends and I decided to sign up for a class! For $20, I get to learn a 2-minute dance routine and take home a pink feather boa. Not a bad deal! The class is 2 hours long and we will also go over some other types of exercises. I'm excited!

Now if memory serves me correctly, the last time I was around a pole was in the 5th grade and I ended up on crutches... maybe I shouldn't wear high-heels Friday night.

Happy Birthday Nette!

Annette is a person that I am so blessed to have in my life. We've known each other for 6 years and over those years Annette has been such a wonderful supporter, listener, and friend. She just 'gets' me and I always say- she's good for my soul! She keeps me laughing and is such an inspiration to me. It's so important to have a role model and Annette is mine! Happy birthday girl!

Time for the Tropics...

I've been addicted to Tropical Lifesavers lately- love the fact that they are fat free and have just a teeny tiny amount of calories. Great afternoon snack and the Pina Colada makes me nostalgic for a tropical getaway! Since that isn't going to happen anytime soon, I should go out and get myself another bag...

Giving Back

I will readily admit that I had a picture-perfect childhood. I was raised in a small town, had a wonderful mother who always supported me, went to a safe school, had a roof over my head and food on the table. It's so easy to forget not to give back. It's easy to fall into the habit of taking things for granted. I really try not to do that anymore.

5 years ago, my mother-in-law invited me to attend a 'Wild' girls group meeting at the school she teaches at. The Wild girls (who have since changed the spelling to Whyld) is an after-school program that helps middle school girls realize and recognize their dreams. This group has done so many good things for themselves and their community. They may not have such a great home life, but they put their troubles aside to work on bettering themselves.

Every fall and spring they host an annual fundraiser and last night Alyce and I attended. It was so great to see these girls put so much work into this program. And it's really neat to see the young girls I first met 5 years ago, all grown up and now serving as mentors to the new girls that come into the program.

It's not much, but I donate when I can. Hopefully, their Web site will be up and running soon so you can check them out too! This is such a great program to support. If any of you want to go to a Whyld girls hook up with me and Alyce this fall, let me know!

www.whyldgirls.org