Taylor Swift and I

Hi Friends,

Can I just say that I really, really, really like Taylor Swift's music? Because I do. I'm not one of those who really follow the stars but from the few interviews and such I've seen of her she seems like a pretty cool person and that makes me like her music a little more.

Have you heard her newest song? It's awesome. Have you seen the video? It's pretty extreme but definitely her. It's super fun to rock out to in the car. :P


This is probably my favorite song of hers.

This song gives me a feeling of liberation when I sing it. I change the words a wee bit when I sing it and it basically sums up a relationship which I wasted way too much energy on for way to long before finally realizing that it was never going to work. It makes me happy to sing it because I am no longer wasting energy on a dead end relationship. (I know, I know, I'm weird :P)

This was the song that I really liked as a teenager because *dramatic voice* this song captured my teenage angst of not being noticed by the guy who I liked. Okay that is a slight dramatization but not by much. :P

Have you watched this video? It's creepy. No offense Taylor since we are the exact same age so when you wrote this you were going through that awkward creepy teenager phase too.

This song was loved for basically the same reasons as above but it had a happy ending so it was enjoyed more. Except I wasn't in high school anymore so I don't have quite the same excuse to love it. Also you shouldn't covet other people's significant others so I don't know what I was thinking. We'll blame it on it being catchy.


Okay, so those are my top faves but I could throw in others but I think you would be bored and leave this post and that would defeat the purpose of me writing this post.

I had a dream last night that I was really good friends with Taylor Swift. In the dream we loved that we could just be ourselves in front of each other since we were both weird and understood each other. There was no punch line or anything. It was just that an awesome friendship.

Well I was telling my mom and brother Ben about my dream because it's not everyday you are best friends with Taylor Swift. As I was expecting, they thought I was weird but then Ben said something note worthy.

"Did you two write a song together because you both have man problems?"

Thanks Ben.

I told him I don't have man problems, I have lack-of-man problems, and I'm okay with that. Still, that was a good burn. :P

I haven't posted the good things about my life lately and I think I need to do it again.
Here are this week's good things:

1. I am not a parent.
-I don't know if this should count but I watched all of my siblings' kids at different times this week and I love them. I do. But I am always so happy when they are back into their parents' care. I am not ready for parenthood. :P

2. Going to the gym.
-Great stress relief. Greatly needed after babysitting. :P

3. Work went well today.
-Always a good thing. :P

Thanks for reading.

Blessings.

-Veronica

Once Upon A Time

Hey Friends,

I know I haven't written in forever so I'll just give you the scoop on what I have been up to in story form.

Once upon a time there was a teenage girl who was going off to college. She had grand plans to become a veterinarian and quite possibly to save the world. We don't really know because most teenagers have pretty grandiose dreams.

As this girl completed her studies she discovered she did not want to be a vet any more. Not only is Chemistry extremely hard but she would have to take Organic Chemistry as well, something that only the smartest and most dedicated students seemed to be able to pass. So what was a student who liked science but did not love it enough to eat, sleep  (I don't think sleep is allowed in order to pass that class), and breathe it in order to become a vet to do?

Well as this girl grew up to become a young lady she learned some other things about herself. Although she liked animals, she did not want to work with them anymore. She also learned that she liked people and enjoyed psychology and recreation. So what is a student who enjoys science, recreation, psychology, and people to do?

The young lady considered other typical biology type careers such as teaching, nursing, and physical therapy but nothing fit. She then began to consider recreational therapy but she missed the science. This young lady's very smart mom then suggest to her that occupational therapy might be a good fit for her.

This young lady was astounded. She had never heard of this beast. She quickly researched it and discovered that this career was exactly what she had been looking for! Hurray, she finally had a path for her future. Her pursuit of knowledge was now complete.

Haha, She wished.

It was her senior year at a small liberal arts college. There was no fitting in the prerequisites that year.

So the young lady continued on her journey of higher education. Taking a year at a community college to complete her prerequisites and applying to grad school.

Then the young lady got the magical envelope in the mail: her acceptance letter to the Sage School of the Mysterious Occupational Therapy.

The young lady began her studies at the Sage School with the starry eyed-ness that only first year students can have. She then was put through test of sheer strength (of memorization) and determination (stupid lab practicals). She was forced to complete fieldworks where her ability to actually interact with real people was put to the test. She stumbled after her first big fieldwork and struggled during her last big fieldwork but she successfully passed them.

Finally after 7 and 1/2 years and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears (times like a million). She could finally say that her path of higher education was complete. She had completed her masters degree!

If only she could say it was over... (stupid boards :P)

Look for the sequel to learn if she passed her boards...

So there you have it. I have successfully completed both of my level two fieldworks.

Now I get to spend tons of money (it's a really expensive test and study materials are also expensive) and tons of time studying so that I hopefully pass my boards.

Hope you all are doing well! Congrats to all my friends who also completed their paths to higher education this semester!

Blessings,

Veronica

Getting Caught Up

Hi Friends,

Hope you are doing well. I've been plugging along but I've had many times over the past 5 months where I have gotten caught up. Caught up in the moment, about a mistake, about a feeling, about how much work I had to do, etc, etc, etc.

So I just want to pop in to leave you with two quotes that I think may help you as they have helped me.

The first one is:

The second one is: 

That is all I will say for today. Good luck with everything you have to do. :)

Blessings, 

Veronica 

Meh...

Hey Friends,

This has been a meh kind of weekend. It's nobody else's nor any circumstances fault (well any new circumstance anyways). My inner demons came out to play this weekend. My inner demons are really mean.

I wasn't going to post since I don't like to be Debbie Downer but I also don't want pretend that everything is okay when it isn't. This is life. Yes, we should look on the bright side of things and we can choose to be happy or not but it's not always that simple and we are going to have days that are subpar.

I think this quote from Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day sums up the way life goes quite nicely.

Source: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/129548926754941886/

Outside of my inner demons coming out to play it was not a terrible weekend. 

Here are today's good things: 

1. Sleeping in. 

2. Reading a good book. 

-I would go insane if I spent my whole day studying so I spent my study breaks and my time procrastinating with a good book. :P 

Saturday: 

1. Spending time with Amelia. 

-I adore my baby niece and I had the impromptu pleasure of spending time with her on Saturday morning because he brother had a soccer game, my sister was working, and her father didn't want her to catch cold so he asked me to watch her for an hour. She was so good for me. Everyone else in the house was still sleeping and I was busy trying to make desserts for a bridal shower but she sat in her highchair for me and ate a snack and played quietly. She even accompanied me for a quick trip to Dollar General when I decided it was worth my sanity to purchase a new mixer since I could not find the beaters for the old one. 

2. Got to see my Lisa Love. 

-My Lisa Love is my best friend from high school. Saturday was her bridal shower. It was nice to see her and her bridal shower went well. 

Friday: 

1. Got to spend time with Amelia. 

-On Friday I watched Amelia while her mother went to the dentist. She was also good for me on Friday, playing good for me and then taking her nap without too much hassle. She did insist I read her one book 4 times and wanted me to read it a fifth but did not give a fuss when I gently refused. :)

2. Work went well. 

-I really like my job. It can sometimes be really stressful but I have more good days than bad days. 

3. This conversation. 

-Small child: "Veronica, will you drag me." 

Me: "Sure."

Small child's dad: "That doesn't sound very good. You dragging my children around the kitchen floor." 

-So you know, the children sit on their bottoms and I hold their arms and pull them around the floor because they think it's fun. The children's parents are okay with it and the dad joked that it cleans the floor. :P 

Thursday: 

1. Passed my lab practical!!!!!

-I am now finished with the lab portion of my physical rehab class. 

2. Had my last research class.

-Now we just have our symposium on Saturday and I am done with that class. :) 

Wednesday: 

1. Went to the gym.

2. Class was interesting/ I didn't fall asleep.

-We talked about autism in Pediatrics which was really interesting. I also didn't fall asleep or really even feel like I was going to. Double win. 

Now that I've written this post and thought about the good things of the last few days I am in a better mood. Go figure. :P 

Good luck with your week everyone.

Thanks for reading. 

Blessings,

Veronica 

Lookout Crazy, Cranky Grad Student Coming Through

Hi Friends,

I am so so so so so so so so so so so so so ready for this semester to be over. I am supposed to be studying for my lab practical right now but I was supposed to be studying for that earlier and very little studying has gotten done. I'm just so over it. :P

Source: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341429215471716258/

Sorry, I'm in a pretty grouchy mood. It's the final weeks of classes and it's hard to stay motivated. One of my classmates said it best when she said that there is so little time left but still so much that needs to be cared about. :P

Source: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341429215472789098/

My practical is making me really anxious because there is just so much we need to know and be able to articulate and do. The good thing is that when I am done with my practical on Thursday that I will only have my final left for that class.

Please?! :P
Source: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341429215472233208/

Here are today's good things: 

1. Not having an 8am class.

-I hate mornings. :P

2. Went for a walk with Melanie.

-I was way too lazy to go to the gym today but I did manage to make myself go for a walk and convince Melanie to join me (not that she needed convincing, she was as happy as I was to stay away from schoolwork :P ). 

Monday: 

1. Finished homework that was due Tuesday by 8pm. 

2. No afternoon class. :) 

Well there you have the ramblings of someone whose brain is fired. Hope everyone else's April is going well and classes or work aren't treating you too badly. Good luck with everything.

Thanks for reading. 

Blessings, 

Veronica 

Lent, Easter, and Beyond

Hi Friends,

First of all happy Easter. This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. :)

I love the season of Lent and Easter. My family didn't do anything special for Easter but that's okay because that is not the purpose of Easter. Easter represents the story of the resurrection, if not for the resurrection we would not be Christians. Christ died for our sins and he rose from the dead in order for us to have eternal life. It's kind of a big deal but it doesn't require anything lavish just a repetent and loving heart on our parts.

I am going to call this lent season a success. I did not post everyday but I came up with two good things from everyday when I did post. I also read a chapter of the Bible each night, only forgetting a few nights, and getting through the books of Matthew and Mark and 2/3 of the way through the book of Luke.

The purpose of lent is to grow closer to God and I feel that I did. If you can tell from my blog posts, some days it was harder to come up with good things than others. It was the same with reading my Bible, some days I was happy to and other days I had to tell myself, "If Jesus died on the cross for you I think you can manage to read a chapter in the Bible tonight." :P

I feel like I have learned a lot from my lent commitments. Posting the good things from each day has helped me to get back to looking on the bright side of things, something that had begun to fall away from me. Reading the Bible has helped me to grow my relationship with God for obvious reasons. :P Sometimes it's tough to read the Bible because it's not all butterflies and rainbows like you would like it to be but if it was meant to be easy it'd be called your mom. :P In all seriousness though you can't just take from the Bible what you would like which is why I want to eventually read the whole Bible.

Since lent is not supposed to be the only 40 days of the year you try to grow your relationship with God I have decided to continue to write a blog post every few days as I have time to, documenting the good things that occur each day and to continue to try to read a chapter of the Bible each night.

Here are today's good things:
1. It's Easter.

2. The sun was shining.

3. My niece Amelia finally tried to say my name.
-Since she's two and I have a really hard name for children to pronounce I'm not expecting she'll be able to really say my name anytime soon but she didn't call me Mama and it's a start. :P

Saturday:
1. Work went well.
-I had training and regular work and they both went well.

2. Got a lot of sorting done in my room.
-My room is a disaster area from not really living in it just crashing there on the weekends as well as accumulating stuff for when I move out. I was able to put away a lot of stuff as well as pull out stuff to donate.

Friday:
1. Got a warm welcome at work.
-I only missed one weekend with them but the children in the family I work for were extremely excited to see me.

2. Work went well.

Thursday
1. No afternoon class.
-Done by 1pm. It was great. :)

2. Got a warm welcome from my nieces and nephew.
-Again, you'd think I was gone a year.

Wednesday
1. Finished my assignment for peds.
-Took me longer than I anticipated but it's done.

2. No 8am class.
-Hooray for sleeping in.

3. Class went well.
-Our class was a discussion about our individual leadership styles and I thought it was interesting.

I really need to learn to post more often. Hope you are all doing well.

Thanks for reading.

Blessings,

Veronica

Grad Student Presents with Decreased Cognitive Skills

Hi Friends, 

This semester needs to wrap up before I lose too many more brain cells. Over the past week I have forgotten words, forgotten that Friday exists, forgotten simple math, and mixed up multiple words in sentences. Needless to say my brain is shot. 

Not only am I all mixed up but the weather seems to be as well. For those of you who live in New York this is no surprise but to those who live elsewhere you may not experience the "don't like it, wait five minutes" weather we experience. While yesterday was high 70's beautiful warm sunny weather today was gloomy then rainy then eventually snowy. Not only is it snowing but the snow is sticking. *shakes my head* 

Even as I write this I am having to retype multiple words and sentences due to mix-ups so I'd better cut to today's good things.

1. Class went well.

-I knew what was going on, I stayed awake the whole time, life is good. 

2. Got my laundry done. 

-Hate laundry but the alternative is worse. :P

Yesterday: 

1. Was productive.

-Not as much as I wanted to be but still was and I think I did relatively quality work. :P 

2. The sun was shining. 

Sunday: 

1. The sun was shining. 

2. Went for a fun walk with my friend Melanie. 

Saturday: 

1. Was productive. :) 

2. Sun was shining. 

3. Had a fun shopping adventure with Melanie. 

There you have it. Hope it makes sense. Hope your cognitive functioning is higher than mine. 

Thanks for reading. 

Blessings, 

Veronica 

Stuck

Hi Friends,

Sorry about not writing the last few days. I've been busy but on top of that I've felt stuck. If you've ever felt that way you'll know what I mean. It's like you know what you have to get done or want to get done but when you go to do it you just can't bring yourself to do it and end up putting it off again. There is no good explanation for it but it happens. That is how I've felt this week with multiple things.

I hope the rest of you are not feeling stuck and if you are, just know you are not alone.

Here are today's good things:
1. Went to the gym.
-I've been very lazy this week.

2. Finished one assignment completely.
-It's due Monday so that's one less stressor. :)

Thursday:
1. Managed to stay awake through all my classes. :P
-Sad that this is an accomplishment.

2. Lab was really interesting.
-We learned the basics of kinesiotaping which is where you use this special tape to tape the skin in a specific way to help muscles relax or work more effectively. :)

3. Had a fun ice cream and movie date with Melanie.
-We were working on our treatment plan for peds when I got frustrated and asked Melanie if she would like to go buy ice cream and watch a movie. She agreed and we had a lot of fun. :P

Wednesday:
1. Got to see the cuties at the Center for Disability Services.
-Love hanging out with those little miracles. :)

2. Went to the gym. :)

3. Finished my two assignments that were due Thursday. :)
-No all nighters this time. :P

Tuesday:
1. Went to a Christian bookstore in Latham.
-This store was a lot bigger than the one I went to out in my area. I loved looking at everything and I found some nice stuff. Plus I had some self-control when it came to my purchases. ;)

2. Got a lot of one assignment done.

Hope you have a good weekend!

Thank you for reading.

Blessings,
Veronica

Oh School

Hi Friends,

So I've realized that the senioritis that I had a senior in college is nothing to my second year grad school-itis I have now. :P Seriously, I'm over it and so is everyone else in my class. When even the diligent students (of which I am not comparatively) are confessing that they are over school you know that it's bad. ;)

Enough belly-aching though. Here are today's good things:
1. Survived my presentation.
-Two of my classmates told me I did a good job so I hope that means I got at least a B but I am glad to have it done with. :)

2. Talking with my friend Melanie.
-After class today we shot the breeze for a few minutes and it was just nice. :)

Sunday:
1. It was sunny. :)

2. My drive back wasn't bad.
-There was relatively little traffic and it was an uneventful drive. ;)

Saturday:
1. Got up and out the door with no problem.
-I'm not a morning person and I always seem to be running out of time even when I plan for extra time. :P

2. Cuddling with kitties. :)

Friday:
1. Bought super cute dresses.
-If I'm going to spend money on clothes I like to buy dresses. I bought multiple dresses and the ones is super sparkly. Love it.

2. Bought lots of great stuff at the local Christian bookstore.
-I was in love with almost everything in the store. If I had unlimited funds I would have bought more. :P

3. Had a fun time shopping with my mom.
-My mom accompanied me on my shopping adventures. We had fun. :)

Hope you all had a good weekend! Good luck this week!

Thanks for reading.

Blessings,

Veronica

Spring, is that really you?

Hi Friends,

I think spring may finally be here. :) Not only is there basically no snow in Troy, it wasn't snowing when I came home. First time in 3 weeks. Woot Woot!

Sorry I haven't written in a few days but I really couldn't think of anything to say. Today is no different so I will just skip to the last few days good things. ;)

Today:
1. It really looks like spring. :)
-I know, color me shocked. Maybe just maybe spring is here to stay.

2. The sun was shining. :)

3. Today's classes are over.
-Since I literally could not stay awake in class or lab today (I hate boring videos) this is a good thing. :P

Wednesday
1. The sun was shining. :)

2. Adorable children.
-I love working with special needs children. For our Peds class we were at the Center for Disability Services in Albany and got to work with amazing children. These children are little miracles and are pretty amazing. We get to go back next Wednesday as well. I'm excited. :)

Tuesday
1. No class.
-I do not like my Tuesday class so I was really happy not to have it. :P

2. Was proactive.
-I actually worked on homework ahead of time. I never do that. It was nice to be proactive for once. ;)

Hope you have a good weekend!

Thank you for reading.

Blessings,
Veronica

Why are we so hard on ourselves?

Hi Friends,

Why are we so hard on ourselves? The only person who really ever expects perfection from ourselves is us. Yes, this is not true 100% of the time but when it comes down to whose opinion matters most, it's our own.

So why are we so hard on ourselves? Why do we expect perfection from ourselves? Do we expect anyone else to be perfect? I certainly don't, so why do I expect myself to be?

I am in counseling and have been for the last month. I should have probably been in counseling way before this but I kept putting it off. Why did I do this? I did this for a number of reasons. I thought I could make it through my troubles on my own. I thought my troubles, which I thought for other people was an acceptable reason to go to counseling, weren't bad enough. I didn't want to admit I wasn't perfect. I was afraid people would judge me. I'm doing alright right this minute, the last few months were just a phase. There are probably other reasons too. I think I came up with every excuse you can think of not to seek counseling.

One of the main things that my counselor is trying to get through to me is for me to be nicer to myself. This is what inspired this post because I'm sure I am not alone out there. This brings me back to my first question: why are we so hard on ourselves?

I wish I had a good answer for that question but I don't. We are only human and are not meant to be perfect. I know this post sounds a lot like like the one I posted on loving your neighbor but I don't think it can be said too much.

You are enough. You are amazing. You were created by a loving God who made you the way you are. We are not all meant to accomplish the same things. If we were the world would never advance, let alone function. We need you to be you and no one else. You are enough.*

We can always better ourselves but that's not the same as not being enough. It doesn't matter if you never keep your new years resolutions or get that A, you are still great because you are you.

Jenny Layton sums it up nicely.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341429215472405568/

*If you don't believe me check out 1 Corinthians:12 :)

Here are today's good things:
1. Holy Plot Twist
-I watch the online series Emma Approved, a modern day adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma. Today there was a crazy awesome plot twist. I never saw that coming. :P


2. Made myself go to the gym today.
-Exercise helps make my brain chemicals and the rest of my body happy. :)

3. Survived my test today.
-The short answer questions were awful but other than that it didn't seem too bad. Nevertheless, it's done. :P

One final thought that is not my own but I share his or her view ;):

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341429215472378664/

Thank you for reading. 

Blessings, 

Veronica 

Rain Rain Go Away

Hey Friends,

I'm beginning to wonder if spring will ever come. Once again when I was driving home on Thursday it was snowing in Central NY. This confirms my suspicions that Central NY is a godforsaken place (just kidding, well kind of :P). Today it was cold and rainy, the kind of cold and rainy that makes me happy I don't run cross country or track anymore. Hopefully we get some non-winter but also non-cold and non-rainy weather this week.

Since I haven't written in 4 days, am in a damper mood, and should probably get back to studying I will now cut to the good things of the last few days. ;)

Thursday
1. Got a lot accomplished.
-It's always nice to have a productive day.

2. Actually got to bed before midnight.
-I haven't been very good at this lately and I much prefer not seeing the new day until I get up in the morning. ;)

Friday
1. Getting a great welcome.
-It had been two weeks since I had seen my sister and her children. Her children gave me lots of hugs and were genuinely happy to see me. Xander and Amelia's faces brightened when they saw me, Xander cried "Aunt Veronica" and ran and gave me a hug. Amelia, the baby, cried "MaMa" and ran and gave me a hug (she knows I'm Veronica and not mom but we can't get her to call me anything else, trust me, I've tried about everything :P).

2. My doctors appointment went well.
-I hate going to the doctor but my appointment went well and I was out of there in twenty minutes. :)

Saturday
1. Making children laugh.
-I really enjoy making the girl I work with and her sister smile, the best way I accomplish this is by being silly. This week I sang Bruno Mars "Grenade" very badly and was a runaway horse to accomplish this task. ;)

2. Cuddling with my cat.
-This time it was Natasha. She draped herself over my arm when I was on my computer and purred away. :)

Today
1. Not feeling rushed.
-I ended up oversleeping when I had planned to get up so I could study this morning but I didn't feel rushed and like I'd messed up my whole day by oversleeping. :)

2. Not having to go grocery shopping.
-I like grocery shopping but I don't like doing it every week. It was nice to not have to make any stops between home and school today. :)

Hope you had a good weekend! Have a great week!

Blessings,

Veronica  

Two Years

Hello Friends,

Today marks two years since my sister Constance died. My brother Ben said it best when he says it feels like it has been a lot longer.

It's continued to be a rough road to put it bluntly. 2013 was a pretty crappy year, not worse than 2012 by any stretch of the imagination but it was bad. So in addition to continuing to deal with my sister's death, I've had a lot on my plate.

There is a song by Miranda Lambert that I think sums up quite nicely how I feel about my sister's death. Her and her husband wrote and composed it about the passing of his brother.


I wanted to say something great and awe inspiring, not because I want people to think I'm great but because I want to give people hope. I figured it would be something like a quote or a Bible verse but it's not.

I am here today where I am because I get up each day and put one foot in front of the other. Do I sometimes want to give up? Hell yes. Life is hard but life goes on. I've been dealt one awful hand in the last few years and I am still standing. I'm no better than anyone else, there are plenty of other people out there doing the same thing as me. I'm no better than any of you reading this post either. If I can do it, you can do it.

Honestly, I'm not being an annoying cheerleader, I'm speaking from the heart. If I can do it so can you.

To keep with my lent commitment here are today's good things:
1. Finally did my laundry.
-It had been piling up the last few weeks but five loads later and all my clothes are now clean. Many of them are now piled on top of my desk but they are all clean. ;)

2. Washed my dishes.
-We really need dishes that will just wash themselves. ;)

3. Went to the gym.
-That makes it three times in a row this week. First time this semester. :)

4. Made it through today.
-Simple but true. :)

Thank you all for reading. Hope you are all doing well.

Blessings,

Veronica

RIP Constance

6 More Weeks

Hi Friends,

To anyone who doesn't know it (aka anyone who is not in my grad school class) my program only has 6 more weeks of classes! It's exciting but at the same time very nerve wracking since we still have so much to do. So close yet so far away. :P

I don't really have anything that interesting to report so I will skip right to today's good things.

1. Finished my treatment plan that is due tomorrow by 10:30pm.
-My goal was actually to finish by ten but I had trouble finding sources so it took a little longer but I don't think 10:30pm is too shabby. ;)

2. Went to the gym.
-Two days in row. Let's see if I can manage 3 this week. :)

3. The sun was out again and it didn't seem as cold.
-Maybe spring is coming after all. ;)

Hope you all manage to get everything you need to finish done this week! :)

Blessings,

Veronica

Agitated as a Washing Machine

Hi Friends,

Hope you all are doing well! I am currently agitated and have been on and off all day. I think it's a mixture of stress from school and the events that took place between March 23 and March 26 of 2012. I'm not too bad when engaged in class or other activities but give me any sort of downtime or attempts to do my homework and the agitation is back.

Despite my agitation that makes me feel like a wash machine or a dementia patient (agitation is a major symptom of the disease and when I think of agitation I think of dementia) today wasn't a bad day. The last few days were decent as well.

Here are Friday's good things:
1. Got to see my good friend from home Lisa.

2. Got to see Lisa's dog Emma.
-She's my favorite dog. :)

Saturday:
1. I got to go to work.
-I really missed getting to work the last couple of weeks. I was happy to see the family I work for again and they were happy to see me I think. It was a good day at work as well.

2. It was a productive day.
-At least I felt it was productive. I went to work, ate dinner with my family, and drove back to school, all within a twelve and a half hour period. ;)

Sunday:
1. Got my awful annotated bibliography done.
-It was rough but I got it done. It took forever and a day.

2. Got my other homework that was due today done.
-Thank goodness!

Today:
1. The sun was shining.
-That is always good. :)

2. Went to the gym.
-I have been really bad about going to the gym this semester so this is a good thing. :)

3. Classes went well today.
-It was actually a pretty good day as far as classes go. :)

Thanks for reading.

Blessings,

Veronica

Veronica is a Space Cadet

Hi Friends,

I am such a space cadet sometimes. I once went east when I meant to go west on the thruway. Another time I went all the way to Troy (over 2 hours away) only to discover I had the wrong set of keys. Today I somehow managed to leave my computer at school when I went home for the weekend. It was on my bed, next to my bag and I still managed to forget it. Not only that but I remembered to bring my charger home but not the computer. Go me. :P So I am now writing this on my brother's laptop. Too bad this is the weekend I have a ton of homework. Good thing though that I emailed all the articles I spent hours looking for for my annotated bibliography so I can work on that. :P

My life is really not that exciting so I'll cut to yesterday's good things:
1. This Song:

It's a really stupid song in reality but it is also really funny and makes me smile. :P

2. 90's throwbacks with Melanie in the library.
-My friend Melanie and I both love boy band music. We also often study or do homework together in the library. If you take over a study room you can listen to music and fun stuff like that. Last night we didn't get a ton of work done but we had a lot of fun rocking out to the boy band music we like so much. :P

3. Discovering that a song that you rocked out to when you were nine isn't as innocent as you thought. :P

-Melanie and I were jamming along to this song when I stopped and actually listened to the lyrics. It's so funny imagining your little kid self singing songs like this like it's nothing. :P

Today's good things:
1. It's the first day of spring.
-Unfortunately my hometown didn't get the message and we had snow but it's still spring so (*fingers crossed*) we might actually get nice weather soon.

2. Saying something really stupid but really funny.
-There is a song called "Casual Sex" that someone posted on FB and I asked my brother, Ben if he had heard it. He said he hadn't and asked if I knew who sang it. I didn't so I told him just Google "casual sex" that it would surely come up. My brother looked at me and smirked. I then realized that maybe that wasn't such good advice. ;)

3. Classes went by quickly and we got a lot done.
-I dread Thursdays because I'm in class all day. Today classes still went till 4 but they went by quickly and we got a lot accomplished in my research class. :)

Thanks for reading. Hope you all have a good weekend!

Blessings,
Veronica

As Yourself

Hi Friends,

Today I'm going to talk about something I have struggled with for years, "loving your neighbor as yourself." I know that many people wouldn't probably guess that but it's true. Everyone struggles with this from time to time but I most often don't struggle with it in the way that is always emphasized growing up. It's those last two words, "as yourself," that get me.

There are many other ways that Jesus could have phrased it. For example, he could have said, "Love your neighbor for everyone was created by God" or he could have said, "Love your neighbor or on judgement day you will burn." Okay, he probably wouldn't have said the second one but you get the idea. ;)

My point is Jesus wants you love your neighbor as yourself. As Yourself. He is not saying your neighbor is better than you and therefore you must love them. He wants you to love them as you love yourself which means you need to love yourself.

Loving yourself is easier said than done. I know this from personal experience and I know many, if not all of you, can relate. I am really, really good at neglecting myself to attend to the needs of others. I am also really good at just disliking, and sometimes hating myself.

I am, for the most part, good at being nice to people as well as being the bigger person. I try to go out of my way to help people and to make random acts of kindness a big part of my life. Yes, I can be very judgemental (which I have been working on) but overall I try to be nice. Many would say that I am meeting what Jesus commanded us to do but many times I'm not. I'm neglecting the last part of the commandment.

To drive the point home here is a picture I found that helps explain who we are called to love:

Source: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/341429215472534656/

Jesus wants us to love people who are all those things but aren't we all at least one of those things? If Jesus wants us to love those who fit the characteristics above, doesn't he want us to love ourselves too? He does.

One final thought that helps me and may help you also and then I will get off my soap box. If you want to know if you are keeping with the last part of the commandment, think about something you wouldn't judge someone else for doing. Are you judging yourself for doing the same thing? Or think about something you are happy about for somebody else that you have also accomplished. Are you giving yourself credit for what you have done?

This weekend's good things: 

1. Finished an excellent book. 

-I love happy endings that make you smile and aren't sickeningly sweet.

2. Had a decent drive back to school.

3. Hearing about answered prayers. 

-This is a new post by the family I talked about last week. They are a great inspiration. 

http://bensauer.blogspot.com/2014/03/many-mini-miracles.html 

Monday's good things: 

1. Got my obnoxious homework assignment done. :P

2. Hung out with my awesome friend Melanie to finish said obnoxious homework assignment. :)

-All my classmates would agree that that assignment was horrible. It took Melanie and I several hours but we got it done. 

3. Having an an excellent phone-a-friend system in place for working on obnoxious assignments. 

-Our grad school class is not afraid to ask each other for help. Melanie and I ended up texting our friend Meghan who was nice enough to help us on a question we were completely stumped by. :)

Tuesday's good things: 

1. The sun was shining. 

-Maybe, just maybe, spring is coming. :)

2. My lazy butt went to the gym. 

-It's a good stress reliever. 

3. Nothing is due tomorrow. 

-This means that anything I work on tonight does not have to be finished and I can go to bed at a decent time. :) 

Thank you for reading. 

Hope you are doing well! 

Blessings, 

Veronica 

I Made Jesus Face-Palm

Hi Friends,

I have a funny story to tell you. First let me start by saying that I am far from being a biblical scholar. There are certain stories of the Bible I know relatively well, some I know a little about, and some I know nothing at all about. That is why I chose to read the Bible for lent (and hopefully beyond as you will soon see).

I know who John the Baptist is. I remember learning about how Jesus was baptized by him and how they were cousins. I don't remember learning that he was imprisoned. When I read this, I was wondering when he was going to get out. I was reading along when I was stopped by this headline, "John the Baptist is Beheaded."

I cried to my mother who was sitting next to me, "They beheaded John the Baptist?! I didn't know they beheaded John the Baptist." I must have looked quite shocked because my mother told me, "Yes, they did but don't worry honey, it was a long time ago, he's okay with it now." That made me laugh and lightened my mood considerably. ;)

My mom then asked me how I'd missed learning about it and I honestly don't know. I semi-remember learning about someone being beheaded and served on a silver platter but I had no idea it was John the Baptist.

So there you have it. I'm pretty sure Jesus and John the Baptist face-palmed. Considering I went to church school from the age of 3 until I was 15 and then went to a Christian college, I'd say that they did (if any of my teachers are reading this, they probably are too).

I had thought I had read most of the New Testament but I guess I was wrong. :P You can tell I got through Biblical Literature in college by sheer luck. :P

I wasn't going to share this story (since it is embarrassing if you were brought up in the church) but then I thought it might help someone else in some way. Either simply to make them laugh or make them feel better about their biblical knowledge.

Here are the good things about Wednesday:
1. Found out about an answered prayer.
-There is a little boy, Ben, who is the nephew of a college classmate of mine. He has an aggressive brain tumor that in addition to being a threat to his life, causes terrible headaches. There is a whole community of people praying for Ben and his family. His mother posted a blog post about how he is doing and currently his headaches have been kept at bay by his medicine regimen. This is great to hear! On behalf of his family, I ask that you please pray for Ben and his family.
Here is the blog his mother writes if you are interested in checking it out:
http://bensauer.blogspot.com/

2. Having your mom make you laugh even when you feel like a fool. :)

3. Eating a really tasty dinner.
-Have you ever tomato sausage? It's awesome. Last night we had tomato sausage burgers and they were delicious. :)

Today's good things:
1. Found a really nice present for my niece's first communion.
-I went to a local thrift-shop today and there it was on the shelf, waiting for me to buy it and take it home. ;)

2. Eating another really tasty dinner.
-Today we had french bread pizzas for dinner. This is one of my favorite kinds of pizza. It was also delicious. ;)

Hope you are all doing well.

Thank you for reading.

Blessings,
Veronica

Wednesday's Good Things

Hi Friends,

The expected snow came in today leading to a pretty uneventful day so I'll get right to today's good things. :P

Here are today's good things:

1. Shoveling the driveway with Aaron and Benjamin.
-So my brothers didn't think it was important to make sure there was gasoline to put in the snow-blower and therefore we had to shovel the driveway. :P It sounds bad but it was actually kind of fun. It has been years since we have shoveled the driveway together and it was nice to spend time with them. :)

2. Cuddling with the kitties.
-My kitties are such good cuddlers. I love them. :)

Thanks for reading. :)

Blessings,

Veronica

The Sun Is Shining

Hi Friends,

Today was a good day. Went to the dentist, worked at the thrift store, went shopping, it was a productive day. :)

Here are today's good things:
1. Clean bill of health from the dentist.
-No cavities! I think I am just as happier, if not happier, as an adult when I go to the dentist and have no cavities. :P

2. The sun was shining and it was warm.
-A slight taste of spring before yet another snow storm but it was wonderful. :)

3. Had fun shopping with my niece and mom.
-We watched my niece, Amelia, while my sister worked today. Amelia was really well behaved for the most part and she was hilarious at the grocery store. She was talking up a storm, couldn't understand her toddler babble but it was cute. A lot of the other people at the store thought she was funny as well. :P

Hope you all are doing well! Be safe if you have to go out tomorrow!

Thanks for reading.

Blessings,
Veronica

Dear Winter, Go Away

Hey Friends,

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Hope that a bunch of you are in nicer climates than I am. I just looked at the weather and we are supposed to get 10-18" between 7am Wednesday and noon on Thursday so I'm slightly grouchy at the moment. :P So much for hoping spring would come early.

Saturday was a pretty good day. I ended up not having to work because the family I work for was sick and they didn't want me to get it, which I am very appreciative of. Instead I worked in my room for several hours (my room is a major disaster area and I was doing a lot of sorting). That evening I went to my brother's to watch his son so he and his significant other could go out.

Sunday was also pretty good for the most part. I had stayed at my brother's the night before so I didn't have to drive home half-asleep. My nephew, Gage, has a really early bedtime so I don't get to see him much when I get there. Therefore, I like spending the night when I baby-sit (and so do my brother and his s.o. I suspect) because I get up with the baby and let them sleep in.

My nephew, Gage, and I had a great time.

Look at Gage-Man! He's gotten so big.

Taken at an interesting moment :P 

I wanted to get a few pictures of Gage-Man playing but all he wanted to do was take away my camera. :P

Today was an okay day. Today is my other nephew Xander's birthday. He is 7 years old today. Kids' ages are a great gage of how much time has passed. I was a senior in high school when he was born. That feels like a lifetime ago. :P Happy Birthday Xander. :) 

Here are the good things about the last few days: 

Saturday: 

1. Having an unexpected day off of work. 

-I feel bad for the reason but it's still nice not to have to work sometimes. :) 

2. Having the family I work for not having me come to work.
-I know that they appreciate my help and they probably could have used it Saturday with them being sick but I really appreciate that they didn't have me come in. 

Sunday: 

1. Getting to play with my nephew, Gage. 

-Gage-Man is so fun. :) 

2. Getting to play with my nephew, Gage. 

-I don't get to see him very much so it counts double. :P

3. It was a bright and sunny day. :) 

Monday: 

1. Having your gift be appreciated. 

-My nephew was very appreciative of his gift. It's always nice when you are appreciated for what you do or give.  

2. Finishing a good book. 

-Always a good thing. :) 

Sorry for the long post. I will have to try to write on the weekends. 

Thanks for reading!

Blessings, 

Veronica

What a Fabulous Hat

Hey Friends,

Sorry for not writing a post yesterday. I was driving home for spring break. :)

I cannot believe it is already spring break. The semester is basically half-way over. It's crazy.

Here are the good things about yesterday:
1. I washed my collection of dirty dishes.
-I hate washing dishes, we've established this in the past. ;) No matter how much I tell myself it would be easier just to wash the dishes as I use them, I always end up with an accumulation of dirty dishes. : P

2. I made it home safe and sound.
-When it comes to driving home I am a person who can't make up their mind. :P Last night I kept bouncing back and forth of whether I wanted to drive home or not. At almost 10pm I decided that I was awake and I was going to take advantage of it. :P

Here are the good things about today. :)
1. Volunteering at the thrift store.
-Today, my mom, my older sister, and I volunteered at the local ministry's thrift store. I really like volunteering at the thrift store. It let's me embrace my inner organizer without the stress and anxiety that comes with organizing your own stuff. :P

2. Hanging out with my baby niece.
-Amelia is really smart and she is really fun. When she came in my room this morning, she immediately asked for a book since every time she comes in my room she gets to look at a book and/or read to. She was also very insistent I sat down and played with her with the ball toy I got for her. :P When we went down to the thrift store Amelia and I had some fun trying on hats:

"Aren't we fabulous?" 

"Of course we are." 

Hope you all have an awesome weekend!

Thank you for reading!

Blessings,

Veronica

Welcome to Lent

Hi Friends,
I know it's been awhile but I (along with everyone else I suspect) have been very busy.

Today is Ash Wednesday which means it's the start of Lent. I really like the entire Easter Season. Easter is the most important holiday in the whole of Christianity. Had Christ not died for us, Christmas would not matter because then Jesus just would have been a really great guy. The Easter Season represents a lot about who we are as Christians.

Instead of giving up something for Lent, I am going to resume my quest of posting at least 2 good things about each day. Not everyday seems that great but I know I am blessed and I find it helpful to do this. I am also going to begin reading at least one chapter of the New Testament everyday. I know it doesn't sound like much but I don't want to set the bar too high and fail as I have in the past and something is better than nothing (at least in my opinion).

So without further ado, here are the good things about today.
1. Did well on the test I had today.
-My professor already graded them and I am happy with my grade. :)

2. Worked out for the second day in a row.
-I've gotten out of the habit so this is an accomplishment. :P

3. Finishing the homework that is due tomorrow by 10:00pm.
-As I have been a major procrastinator lately, this is also a good accomplishment. :P

Sorry if this post is poorly written. I'm tired and it's been awhile. :P

Thank you for reading.

Blessings,
Veronica

Pain and Moving On

Hi Friends,

It's been awhile since I wrote. In case you are wondering, I did manage to survive all my classes. I actually did better than I was anticipating, it's good to know that  hard work can pay off. This is my last winter break ever so I've been celebrating by doing as little as possible and it's going quite well. :)

Going off the date alone, today is a pretty crappy day. It's been exactly one year since I got in my car accident. My plan was to stay off the roads entirely today but I had to get my mantoux read at the doctor's so I had to go out. I'm not normally superstitious but being it's winter and I have enough anxiety driving as it is, I wanted to avoid driving today.  My mom was nice enough to offer to drive me which was a major relief because the roads were still slick. I have a pretty great mom. :)

Today is also a pretty crappy day because today would have been Constance's 19th birthday. I miss her so much. I still think about her every day.

Sometimes when things happen we feel lost and abandoned by God. It's a completely natural thing to feel. The Bible is full of individuals who felt that way. The truth is though that he never leaves us. He is always there. Bad things happen, sometimes really, really bad things, and I can't tell you why because I don't understand. All I know is that God has a greater plan than any human can ever understand. I can see God in every aspect of my life and that is with my degree in biology. No one will convince me otherwise. Even when I don't want to believe, I still believe.

I hate the fact that God allowed my younger sister to feel the way she did, do what she did, and die but I still stand by my original belief that God's hand can be seen in that situation. It's still a struggle at times to move on without her and I wish the pain would leave but at least Constance is at peace now.

I'm going to share something that helps me on the days that are really bad and I hope it may help you.

There is a hymn titled "It is Well With My Soul." If you've never heard it, it is a very beautiful hymn written in the 1800's. From the title, you would think that everything in the author's life is going well but that is far from the case. The song was written by Horatio G. Spafford who was inspired to write it after losing his four daughters in a terrible tragedy. The entire story can be read here if you are interested:  http://voices.yahoo.com/horatio-g-spafford-story-behind-hymn-is-1620793.html

Spafford was a very faithful man who still had tragedy befall him. To sum it up he lost his first son to scarlet fever, he lost most of his investments in the Great Chicago Fire, his four daughters died in an accident, and his second son also died of scarlet fever. Through it all he still kept his faith.

I won't pretend to be anywhere near as faithful as Spafford but I look to his example. Like Job from the Bible, Spafford kept his faith despite the tragedies that befell him. He is a great example of a good and faithful servant. More importantly, Spafford's song and story give me reason to hope. When things are going bad and you feel like God has abandoned you or is punishing you, He's not. He's still there and He has a plan for us, you just have to have faith. Most importantly, the song reminds us of that plan and the peace that comes with knowing that God has a plan for us.

I hope I didn't scare you all away with my blog post today. I'm not sure if it even made sense. I hope it did. My faith is very important to me so please remember that this is my story. If you don't agree with my post, I respect your beliefs so please respect mine.

To keep with the theme of my blog, here are the good things about the last few weeks.

1. I survived the semester.
-Hallelujah! Worst semester ever but it is now over!

2. Reaching out for help.
-It's hard to admit you need help but I finally took the first step. :)

3. Finally getting time to truly relax.
-Thank goodness! :)

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season! Thank you for reading.

Blessings,

Veronica

RIP Constance, Happy Birthday.