Becki's Birthday Blog

Here is the Birthday Blog that I have been asked for. Make sure you check out Kimmy's Kitchen as I've started a new place for me to display my cooking fiascos!

•  Forget me Knot ring- Etsy has really cute ones, and you can even personalize them!
•  Victoria Secret Bikini (The sun is coming I just know it!) Bandeau top & Side Rouched Low Rise Bottoms
• Iphone case- Otterbox commuter, Iphone3, Green =)

• White Polka Dot Wingate Hoodie (Size Medium)
• Polka Dot Dishes from Peir One
• Disney Store Gift Cards (they can be used at Disney World in May!!)
• Monogrammed Shower Curtain (A plain bright colored one can be taken anywhere and had a big R put on it! )
• Baking bowls, measuring cups and spoons, spatulas (all in fun colors of course) ;)

Happy Almost Beckuary! 

Am I smarter than a 4th grader?

Currently I have just completed week two of fourth grade. Well, let me clarify. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings I spend my time with a bright eyed red haired ten year old, who happens to be in the fourth grade. Between gymnastics, baking cakes and creating some disgusting concoction I call goop she refers to as something fancy, there is that thing called homework. Man does she tend to have alot of it!

We were working on definitions the other evening as I tried to figure out what to make for dinner that feel in the two groups of food she likes (cheese and noodles, and we'd already had mac and cheese this week) she asked me what spewed meant. Well lets see, yes I know it means um... well I took a pause. I can't used the word in the definition (as she was quick to inform me when I tried to with the word awaken) so I stuttered around with words such as spilled, rained, splattered, and while she seemed content I however was not. Sometimes I suppose we take things like word vocabulary for granted.

Our last challenge for the week (other than getting to gymnastics on time and compromising about food groups) was to study for a geometry test. Since I am fully aware math is not my strong suite, I of course asked Brandon to teach me how to teach polygons and angles. His advice was to use the pre-fixes. UM, the whole point of 4th grade is to teach the pre-fixes (i.e octa means 8). I decided he came from the womb knowing his shapes, colors and angles and make another plan of attack.

When she bounded to my car Thursday after school she happily informed me she got a 94 on her geometry test. I wonder if she thought about me flailing my arms around doing the "octa"pus dance or running around the house practicing the difference between a ray and a line segment. It might take me a little while longer, but I think I can keep up with a fourth grader.

The Tribulations of a Final Semester

I currently have three class. They consist of Theology, Computers 101 and Clay. You would be right in making the assumption that I only have class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. But I am not lacking for things to do. It seems to be in my genes to stay incredibly busy and therefore I also have four jobs. I do not sit still well. Ever.

Theology may be replaced with Making of the Modern Mind but that is still undetermined. I'm looking for something to make me think, but nothing that will be based on arguments and arrogance. It's proving difficult to find. Computers will be a source of amusement and a place to further my date-base of knowledge regarding Word and Excell. Seeing as I'm coming with basically nothing, I should grow exponentially. Look, I'm already using computery words.

The final course of Clay might be the most challenging because it's going to require me to relax and let go of the perfectionism that plagues most areas of my life. Currently I'm suppose to find a piece from the Shang Dynasty and not only attempt to recreate it by the 27th of January, but also write some back story involving an occupation related to said Shang item... I've got two options I'm working with here.

So that is my semester in a nut shell. Between working on and off campus I expect to find time to turn a golden brown as soon as the wintery weather dissipates, and my 21st birthday will occur in a month... Signifying that I will begin trying different kinds of drinks just because I can.

Happy Sunday!

It's hasn't always been my house, but they Are my Home.

When I was 15, the idea of being anywhere but with my family was always close to the front of my mind. But here I am 20 years old and I still hate heading back to school. Don't get me wrong I love living my life down at school and inching closer and closer to the real world...but I get scared. Scared that I won't know every detail of their lives, scared my brothers will be taller than me the next time I come home. Scared I won't be here to help my mom when the "men" of the house just aren't cutting it. And I miss getting to say goodnight every night, it's funny how little things mean the most.

I'm so lucky to live only 2.5 hours away, but sometimes it still seems to far. Too far on the days that I just want my Daddy's chicken soup to go home for it, and too far to make it home to see the twins in every performance. Too far for a quick shopping trip with Mom. It's settled. Finalized. Growing up is everything I ever imagined, and a few things I never saw coming.

I honk three times when I leave the driveway, just a simple reminder "I Love You." She texts me, faster these days, then when she first started texting. "I Love You More." She might be right but I still feel that pang when I get on the highway remembering, home is where the heart is. My hearts always with them, even when I'm a silly 2.5 hours away.

Who I am Today

While I'm not ready to post my New Years Resolutions, I figured I could take the time to evaluate just who I am right now in this moment.

I leave chap-stick scattered everywhere to ensure I'm never without, and my current addiction is Chick- Fil-A's Peppermint Chocolate Milkshakes. It royally stinks that they are seasonal. Recently hired at Planned Perfection, I am now an official intern/assistant to a fabulous couple that's going to help shape exactly what I want to do in the future. I also think I may have just gotten a nannying position. I do not do well with free time, and thrive on filling up my life. If ever I am missing, check my planner it typically has it marked down to the minute.

I am about to begin the last semester of my undergraduate career, the future is lingering a few short months away but in this moment it feels eternal til I get there. The choices seem infinite and limited all at the same time. I am and always will be a Tri-Sigma girl, but I'm hoping this semester brings me back in line with the fun and exciting elements. I need to fall back in love for the reasons I originally joined.

I expect a lot out of the people who have made it this far and surround me in my life. I give a lot of myself to those who I love, and would hope that at this point I have seen some sort of return. I am about to turn 21, and I think this will be my best year yet. I thought I would have more to say as there are moments when I feel meloncholy or upset about making new paths, but today I just feel content. Content with where I've been, and faithfully that where I'm going is exactly where I need to be. Don't mistake that for me being any less high strung or organized than typical, just happy to be.

Updated 101

Okay so red is accomplished, and I figured before I started my New Years Resolution list I needed to check in with this list. Stay tuned for the resolution, and hopefully updates regarding getting more of these finished!

101 in 1001

Physical/ Health

1. Run 3 miles on a regular basis instead of 2; For the past month, I've ran at least a 5k when I run =)
2. Continue going to yoga/pilates
3. Get into hiking or trail running
4. Run the Cooper River Bridge 10 K!
5. Swim a mile as my rule not the exception
6. Try one cleansing / detox diet just to see what it’s like
7. Find one other type of class I enjoy, Zumba, Jazzercize, etc.
8. Use my drive to exercise to benefit others- participate in run/walks for non-profit organizations
9. Go to at least one Crossfit session with Bran!
10. Take and pass the Beach lifeguard physical portion exam
11. Continue taking a multi-vitamin and bump it up with adding Vitamin C and possibly a few others

Education

1. Educate the new members we just brought through their new member period in order to leave behind a good legacy: Members have been educated, and my term has officially finished.
2. Successfully host the Greek 101 program for all Greeks: I think this was sucessfully hosted and completed, October 23rd.

3.Confidently finish my Officer Term with a bit more assertiveness than before: I officially handed over my position December 7th, 2010. I think I'm more assertive...

4..Finish out with a 3.9 overall GPA

5. Get my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology

6. Get into the majority of the programs I applied to for Grad School

7.Obtain my Master’s Degree in College Student Development

8.Get a certificate in Leadership and Organization to better set myself up at as an asset to get hired

9. Learn to speak Thai

Career

1. Get hired as a Head Guard at an outdoor pool

2. Teach private swim lesson full time one summer

3. Hold an assistantship the entire time I’m in Grad School

4. Get hired as a Greek Advisor

5. Find a job near where Bran is finishing his Doctorate

6. Be on an exec. Board at a college to get my foot in the door

7. Begin working my way up through a University that has opportunities for me to advise and organize student affairs programs

8. Write a small piece or column for a local magazine or newspaper

9. Give back in some way whether time or money to Tri-Sigma possibly as a chapter advisor somewhere but not at my own chapter

10. Make the big girl change to a BlackBerry to be able to manage everything on the go

Finances

1. Start paying off my college loans (don’t incur too many during Grad School)
2. Stash money to help with my brother’s college
3. Get someone to give me a freaken credit card
4. Save up enough to do DisneyWorld right: This is an almost, I will be going to Disney in May but it has been financed through someone else so I'm not sure how this one will be dealt with...
5. Have at least $5,000.00 in savings
6. Be able to send money when asked thru Alum Relations for Zeta Lambda
7. Start a small savings account for a house down payment

Domestication

1. Stop being such a chicken and take a baking class; to make cupcakes and cakes like I want to.

2. Make at least 2 meals at home a week

3. Make carrot cake from scratch

4. Make funny bone cake from scratch

5. Plant a garden and grow some of my own vegetables

6. Own my very own palm tree, even if it’s in a little pot

7. Get a kitten when I have a big girl apartment for Grad School

8. Learn to cook Chicken Melanesas

9. Become a bit more fashionable- add accessories!; I just went out with Christmas money and got sweaters and some fashionable accessories.

10. Turn Sigma t-shirts into a quilt

11. Learn to sew well enough to make curtains and fix buttons

12. Buy a pink vacuum

13. Bump up my sheet thread count- ie price range when buying sheets

14. Have decent fingernails that I can actual paint

15. Frame a picture I took from Hawaii to use as a center piece for a room

Personal Growth

1. Find more time for writing, blogging and composing

2. Stand up more often for the little things instead of waiting for a big issue to fight for

3. Discover more about Buddhism (possibly through visiting Thailand)

4. Volunteer at a soup kitchen or a clothing drive

5. Become a Big Sister through Big Brothers/Big Sisters

6. Finish my listography books

7. Stay in touch with my sisters via snail mail

8. Coach a little league soccer team

9. Teach the twins how to drive a stick shift

10. Learn to exhibit more on the outside what’s going on inside instead of assuming others know what I’m feeling without actually saying it

11. Hold others to the standards I hold myself

12. Strive to teach others through action and not lecture

Traveling Shoes

1.Make a trip to visit all the schools we’ve applied to NC State, Chapel Hill, Tennessee, USC etc.

2. Go back to The Big Island of Hawaii

3.Bring Bran to meet the family in Charleston, WV

4. Head to Denver, Colorado (maybe see a Bronco’s game)

5.Go to Fenway Park

6. Visit my Little in Saint Louis Missouri

7. Hike a small part of the Blue Ridge parkway

8. Take a cruise to some exotic tropical spot

9, Drive to Florida for a Vacation

10.Visit mile marker 1

12. Go back to Kentucky and see another Wildcats Game

13. Visit a Spanish speaking country

Pixie Dust Stuff

1. Become Engaged to my Prince Charming
2. Take professional pictures “fairy tale style”
3. Go to a Denver Broncos Game
4. Be kissed in Cinderella’s castle at Disney
5. Eat more exotic fruits like mangos, kiwis and pomegranates
6. Decorate a room all by myself
7. Own a blender for smoothies
8. Make a CD for family of guitar playing and singing
9. Own a yellow pair of rain boots; For our 3 year anniversary Bran got me a pair of these!
10. Get monogrammed towels!; Same here =)
11. Spend a whole evening in a book store getting a bunch of books I’ve always wanted to read but never had the time
12. Get certified in Scuba Diving
13. Bring Bella back from Mim and Pops
14. Ride on the back of a motorcycle just to see what it’s like
15. Get a specific perfume
16. Have a fish tank with some exotic fish
17. Buy a pair of skinny jeans to wear with boots; Over fall break in October 2010 I bought a black pair, LOVE THEM!
18. Go to a wedding! I’ve only ever been to my parents renewal of vows
19. Go out in a rain jacket and rain boots and stomp in a really really huge puddle
20. Find the love notes from Bran from my summer away at camp
21. Start a DVD collection
22. Own and play the piano again. Possible compose again as well.
23. Spend one entire day really and truly playing hooky
24. Learn to water ski/ go tubing
25. See a white Christmas; Christmas 2010 was DEFINITELY a White Christmas. We were in West Virginia and there was 3-6 inches on the ground and more falling =)
26. Get a set of those tumbler cups with my initials in them