Goals

One of my goals this year is to be healthier and get into shape. Part of that includes losing weight. I have gained quite a few pounds since I've been married, and I really want to shed some of that--get back into a "healthy" range.

I joined myfitnesspal to help me. This is a really neat FREE site that helps you track your daily activities and nutrition. There are a few sites out that that help you with this, but I really like this one because it is FREE (of course), but also because you can customize your own foods and activities.

Another site I tried, MyCalorieCounter, only lets you customize if you upgrade to a paid membership. Also, to get your food totals, you need to upgrade as well. This, I found wasn't very helpful. The other site I used to use was FitDay, and it doesn't let you customize your activities, and it doesn't have elliptical trainer in its database. That's what I use more frequently, so I found the site wasn't meeting my needs.

I just discovered myfitnesspal yesterday, and so far I love it! It is very easy to use! It even makes counting calories kinda fun. Hee hee...

Wish me luck on my goal. I'd like to accomplish this by summer, but if it takes longer, I don't mind--as long as the pounds are shed in 2008!

MyFitnessPal - Free Calorie Counter

Well, I'm officially official...

Today, I received my PIN to be able to log into the online Registration system.

I am now registered for 4 classes:

• Circle of Advocates--meets two Saturdays, 2/2 & 4/5
• Education's Place in Society--every Thursday from 4:45 to 7
• Field Experience I--Exploration--not sure how this works, but I need to do 30 hours in a classroom sometime during the semester
• Human Relations & Multicultural Education--every Tuesday from 4:45 to 7

I even went to the bookstore and forked over $292 for the books for these courses!

Ouch!! Thank goodness for student loans! :-)

So I'm all set...now I just need to make it through the weekend, curbing my enthusiasm.

Classes start on Tuesday!!

Wish me well.

Jeff's the One For Me!

Okay, I've been tagged by my friend Lara! I figure it should be pretty interesting to read all about our better halves...so anyone who wants to give it a try. Just leave me a comment on my blog when you've done it so I can come take a look!

 

What's his name? Jeff
How long have you been together? We've been married for 3 years.
How long did you date? Let's see...dated 5 weeks, broke up for a few days, got engaged the following week, and were married 6 weeks after that...guess that would be 11 weeks give or take a couple of days
How old is he? 29
Who eats more? I'm afraid I do.
Who said I love you first? Honestly, I'm not sure.
Who is taller? Definitely, Jeff—by a few inches.
Who is smarter? I think Jeff is smarter about "things," but I think I may be more "book-smart."
Who does laundry? Mostly I do, but every once in a while he'll start a load. I definitely have to fold, though.
Who does the dishes? I do the dishes. Well, sometimes Jeff will empty the dishwasher.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do.
Who pays the bills? I keep track, but we both contribute the finances.
Who mows the lawn? We don't have a lawn!! J
Who cooks dinner? Generally, I do; however, sometimes he will make some Spanish rice and tamales.
Who drives when you are together? Jeff drives, which suits me just fine!
Who is more stubborn? Hmmm....probably me...
Who kissed who first? Again, I'm not sure. It was probably a mutual thing.
Who asked out who first? Jeff asked me over to teach him how to make Hamburger Helper. J
Who proposed? We don't have a good proposal story. I think it was more of a mutual thing. We just decided that we should get married. Although, I do remember one time we were at my parent's home and he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "Do you want to get an apartment downtown with me?" Marriage was implied.
Who has more siblings? Definitely me! I have 11 siblings (mixture of full, half, and step); Jeff only has 1 sister, and 2 brother.
Who wears the pants in the family? Pants?! Who wears pants?! I guess I'm probably bossier than Jeff.

The wait is OVER!!

Last Friday, I received my acceptance letter to the University of St Thomas School of Education! Yeah!

 

My acceptance was conditional. To gain full acceptance, I needed to take the Praxis I test. I just took it this afternoon. The minimums for passing in MN are 173 for Reading, 171 for Math, and 172 for Writing; the highest possible score for any section is 190. I believe that my scores were 182 in Reading and 187 in Math. I am really pleased with how I did. My score for the Writing section will come later, as it included an essay that cannot be scored by a computer. :-)

 

I was kind of stressed about the test, but now I can sigh a HUGE sigh of relief.

 

Now I just need to turn some paperwork and register for classes. Classes start next week already, so tomorrow I'll be turning in that paperwork. Hopefully, it won't take too long for me to be able to register.

 

It will be a little weird to be back in school, but still, I find myself terribly excited about it. Wish me luck!

 

 

Waiting

I've never really been all that great about waiting for things. I know patience is a virtue, but when I know something is coming that is very exciting, it's so difficult to wait!

Yesterday, the final piece of my graduate school application was submitted.

Now comes the waiting...

It should be too long of a wait, though. They keep assuring me that once everything is submitted, it doesn't take long for a decision to be made. I hope that's true because the semester starts in less than 2 weeks!

This is a big deal! Grad school! I never thought I would make the decision to return to school, but after much gentle prodding from my husband coupled with lots of prayerful consideration, I made the decision to return.

I've applied to the University of St Thomas School of Education. It will take a great deal of studying and hard work, but I hope to be a licensed teacher 2 years from now. My licensure will be in Communication Arts & Literature, which is perfect since my undergraduate work was in Communication Studies. My goal is to teach High School English.

I'm so excited to begin this next chapter in my life!

But for now...

I need to wait...

Baby, it's COLD outside!

When I was getting ready for work this morning, the radio kept saying it was 5-degrees outside. Brrrrrr...

So I got all bundled up--winter coat, hat, gloves, scarf, warm clothes underneath--for my 1 block walk to the train. 5-degrees is cold, any way you look at it. My cheeks tingled, and my eyes burned. I don't think it was that windy, just cold, bitter, bitter cold. It's gonna be a fun winter.

Of course, the best part is when I get downtown. I'm all bundled up, remember? Well, I have a 5+ block walk to work. Minneapolis has this incredible skyway system,

so I have the option of walking that 5+ blocks inside. Yeah!

Except....I'm all bundled up for the walk to the train. By the time I get to work, I've generally worked up a pretty good sweat. Today was no exception!

Here's to winter!

Freedom Writers

Jeff and I just watched one of the most powerful movies I've seen in a long time. If you haven't seen Freedom Writers, I highly recommend it.

This movie explores racism in today's society and how everyone has their own battles to fight. It shows the power and influence a good teacher can have in the lives of teenagers.

This movie made me cry, but mostly it made me think. It spurred discussion about public schools and the holocaust and parenthood.

Seriously this movie is a definite must-see!

Fall Leaves at Minnehaha Falls

Living so close to Minnehaha Park, I couldn't resist going on a little photo shoot one Saturday evening.

Here are my 5 favorites:






If you'd like to see more, you can visit my entire album on Picasa: Minnehaha Falls

Where I've Been

A friend of mine put up a map of all the places she'd visited. I thought I'd do the same. Mine isn't nearly as impressive as hers, but here it is...

I only included states that I have actually done something in (not just driven through).



create your own visited states map

Outside of the U.S., I've only been to Canada and the Bahamas, so my world map is even less impressive. I'm not even going to bother posting something like that.

Christopherson Clan

These pics were really fun to come across. I had totally forgotten about this pit stop!



When Brian and family moved out to Boston, they made a pit stop for a couple of hours in Minneapolis. Treva and Trevor couldn't join us because of work, but Tony and Ana brought out all the kids. I think everyone had a lot of fun meeting their cousins and playing by the lake.

At the time, I lived in Minneapolis only a couple of blocks from Lake Calhoun, so we walked down to the lake and played around until Brian and Nancy and clan had to
continue on their journey.

Denise, Treva, Jen & Me

I can't remember exactly the occasion of these photos, but Treva and I met Denise & Jennifer at a Famous Dave's. I do remember getting a birthday gift, so maybe that was the occasion.

Treva & Denise Jennifer & Me
The Girls

Addicted to Blogging??

74%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Mingle² - Dating Site

Today I AM 30!

Well, my big day is finally here! I've been counting down for well over a month.

I have high hopes for this day, but I have no concrete plans as of yet...

As I walked from the train station to work this morning, I couldn't help but walking tall. Today IS special.

I love birthdays! But my 30th...well, that's something to celebrate!

Check out this fun, delicious looking cake! I found it doing a Google Image search. I probably won't get a cake this fancy-schmancy, but a girl can dream. :-)

I cut my bangs!

I cut my bangs yesterday morning!

It wasn't exactly the look I was going for, but I do think they turned out pretty cute. Of course, now I need to get the rest of my hair cut. I think the bangs make the rest of my hair look (and feel) heavy! I'm thinking something kinda short and complementary of the bangs.

Now I'm just debating as to whether I should try cutting it myself or going to a professional.

Thoughts?

Book Review: My Dog Skip

I was inspired to read this book after watching the movie, My Dog Skip. The movie was a sad story about a boy and his dog. Willie was a lonely boys with no friends, so his Mom bought him a puppy for his 9th birthday, in the hopes that he would become his best friend. It worked, of course, and Willie and Skip became inseparable!

The book, however, tells quite a different story! The book, by the way, is a true story while the movie is merely based on the book.

In actuality, the Willie in the book, was quite a popular kid. True, Skip became his best friend, but certainly not his only friend.

Once you get past the completely different portrayal of Willie Morris, this book was actually quite good.

It primarily takes place in a small town in Mississippi during WWII. The description of the adventures that Willie and Skip embarked on is quite vivid. I really felt that I was a part of this quiet little town.

It also was very interesting to read about this particular period of time. A time before video games and the Internet. A time when boys and dogs were free to roam around town. A time when everyone knew everyone in town. It was a very reminiscent account of a time that I am so removed from and that I will never experience.

Working in the IDS Center

I've spent the past few weeks working on the 39th floor of the IDS Center in Minneapolis. Some of you may not know this, but IDS is the tallest building in Minneapolis. The view out of the conference center is spectacular! You can see for miles! You can see 394 and Lake Calhoun and lots of downtown buildings. Gorgeous!

Today there is a storm brewing. It's incredible to watch the storm slowly making its way into downtown. Less than 5 minutes ago, we could clearly see Lake Calhoun off in the distance. Now it is completely gone...lost in the rain...

The rain hasn't hit downtown yet, but it will very, very soon...

I've never watched a storm come in from up so high.

Torchlight 5K--July 18, 2007

This is one of my favorite races of all time! It is always the first Wednesday evening of the Minneapolis Aquatennial--the 10 Best Days of Summer--and kicks off the Torchlight Parade.

This is the third time I've run this race, and it has always been a different route. I really enjoyed the route this year.

It always starts at the Basilica in downtown Minneapolis. The first year, it ended on Boom Island; the second year, it ended at Loring Park; this year, it ended on Nicollet Island.

The race started off bit a rocky.

• I hadn't been able to get a hold of Marla all day, and we were supposed to run this together.
• Around 4:30 or so, the sky opened up and the rains came pouring down. The rain was much, much worse out in Eagan, so Jeff and I decided that he didn't need to come down and cheer me on. He would just pick me up at the train station when I was finished.
• After loafing around the library until a little before 6, I changed into my running clothes. It was then that I realized how much I needed Jeff--to hold my purse and my bag. I certainly didn't want to run a 5K carrying all of that.
• I remember that Jeff mentioned Dave was going to be running the race, so I gave him a call.
• I finally got a hold of Marla! She had just arrived from Denver and was driving into downtown.
• The rains started to fall once again!!
• I registered, got my t-shirt, and finally met up with Dave, John, and Lindsay Christianson.
• Yeah! I got to put all my stuff in their car.
• We met up with Emily Kucera!!
• Brian Hogan and Andy Howard (I think) joined our pre-race crowd.
• Marla finally found the Basilica, parking, and joined our group! Yeah!

As we made our way to the starting line, I set my Garmin to run the 5K in 32:00. Marla and I paced together pretty well...we only missed my goal by 39 seconds!! Also the race turned out to be 3.2 miles (.1 miles longer than a 5K).
I had to stop a walk twice during the race--once during the water stop and once a little further on in the race.
My shins hurt a little during the race, but it was okay. Marla was concerned that I didn't push myself too much.
But you just can't help yourself but to run a little faster and harder during a race!
The race was exhilarating!
The post-race party was fun, too! There was a cheese scupture of Mt Rushmore. Cheez-It(R) was one of the sponsors. Plus, there was a lot of fun food. I had to convince Dave to walk through the food tent, but one he saw the free food, I think it was worth it to him.
I also won tickets for two to the Acme Comedy Club, so I'm excited for Jeff and I to go to a comedy show.

Valleyfair for Emillio's birthday

It is a tradition with my family for us to go to Valleyfair for my nephew's birthday. It used to be the entire family, but as the years have gone by, it has dwindled to only those who truly enjoy going on all the rides.

This year it was Treva, Emillio, AJ, Selena, and I who went. Dan and Jessica came out for a little while as well. It was so much fun! We went on all the scary rides!

The new ride this year was Renegade: Outlaw Coaster. It was phenomenal! It was exhilarating! We rode it twice. We went on a Saturday, so the lines were really long. Renegade was the only ride we were able to go on twice. :-(

While standing in line for Steel Venom, I played around with my camera phone. I discovered some really cool features. My favorite was the sketch feature.

Watch the slideshow below for a few shots from our day at Valleyfair--including some that I took as sketches.

MN Running

Ahh...

It's good to be back in the land of the running. :-)

It's been awhile. Back in April, I posted a blog about my running plans for the summer. They fell by the wayside quickly.

Then came our decision to move back to MN, and running became even more of a challenge.

Now, that I'm back and things aren't quite so hectic, I can resume my running. I'm starting out slow--just 1 mile a day--but I hope to kick that up a notch soon.

My first race will be July 19th--the Lifetime Fitness Torchlight 5k. I LOVE this race and am so happy to be able to run it this year.

Last Day...

Today was my last day at Hartmann & Forbes.

It was with mixed feelings that I said good-bye to those that I worked closely with for the past 3 months.

My first two months at H&F were a bit rocky, but when our receptionist left last month, and I got a few more responsibilites handed to me, I began to really enjoy my job. I felt a lot better about my job! Now the past week, I spent training others to take over all those responsibilites and more!

I learned a few things about myself while working at H&F:
1) I really dislike working in HR. This was at least my 3rd HR position, and I've never been satisfied working in this field.
2) I do not enjoy open-ended tasks.
3) I love maintaining systems, but am not so good at creating new ones.
4) I love working with Excel and learning new functions using that software.

I'm sure there are more things that I learned, but that's it for now.

H&F turned out to be a great learning experience for you. I'm grateful for the things I learned and the people I was able to work with.