16 Great Things in 2015

I feel like I do this at least once a year.

I do sooo good at writing on my blog for a while. I write at least once a week. I talk about how great things are and how I am doing but then I get busy and it gets pushed off for all of the other things that I need to do first. Since my blog is currently only a hobby, it is hard for me to justify doing this before homework.

So now that the year is already halfway over, for those that use my blog to keep up with me. Here is my update on how my life is and the things that I have done in the last 7 months.

A Realistic Look of 2014 New Year’s Resolutions

The great thing about blogging is being able to stay accountable. I have been making a ton of changes to my blog and I have been reading old posts that I have written over the years. Sometimes, I look back and laugh at them because I have changed so much. I haven’t really done most of the things that I have set as goals, especially since I have 2 or 3 blog posts talking about my goals to lose weight and setting out a plan, but I am still the same weight that I was when I wrote all of those posts. Oh well, I am at a healthy weight, but I could be healthier.

Last year in January I wrote a post that talked about my goals for this year. Looking back at the goals, I have done a good job with some of them, and not so good with the others.

10 Reasons Why You Should Give 50 Shades Of Grey Another Chance

DISCLAIMER: While my blog posts usually do not have this type of content, this is something I feel that it is important to put out there! If you do not want to read about it, then don’t read the post. That being said, I tried to keep it rated at about PG-13. No pictures are included and these are all 100% my own thoughts and feelings.
DISCLAIMER 2: Also, if you haven’t read the books, and I have spoiled part of a book for you, I am deeply sorry because I know how much book spoiling ruins a good book. I tried to keep a lot of the important details from the 2nd and 3rd book out of this post and tried to show it with most of the first book. 
Reading for me is disappearing into an alternate universe. (Hint: Sometimes I really believe that it is books that helped me make it through my years in middle school and high school) It is an escape from reality, where you don’t have to talk to people. I should really focus my blog on writing more book reviews, but then reading becomes a chore instead of my me time. Sometimes, I enjoy reading other people’s book reviews because it gives me another insight as to how someone else perceived the book. I’ve read many books. I enjoy reading and I probably finish one, if not two books a week during the summer.

Crazy Life.

This week has been crazy. We were gone all weekend at the Wisner Tractor Pull, I spent most of the last three days getting things organized for classes and a new job. The house is starting to get semi clean again and I have been working my butt off to get in shape for my PT test in October. I promise that I will get back on my writing schedule after school starts back up, but right now, LIFE IS CRAZY.

I hope all my readers are having a good couple of weeks and I will be sure to be on top of my blog next week!

Here is a great picture of Matt and I on an Air Boat ride at the Wisner Tractor Pull! (: Isn’t he cute (:

Saving Money while you are Abroad!

So, you raised all the money you needed for the trip. You are walking off the plane into a whole new country. Congratulations! But now you have to figure out how to not burn through your entire bank account while you are in the country. I can help! While I was in South Africa, I spent a little more than I had expected to, but I also had the trip of a lifetime. These are the 5 tips that I figured out while I was there!

What Strengths Training Did For Me

I want to apologize to anyone who talks to me on a daily basis for anytime in the future. I have just completed the strengths training through the TeamMates and Gallup partnership! So bare with me if you have no idea what I am talking about or if you think I am a little crazy.

My first reaction to my strengths when I took the strength finder was “My mom has these on her top 5 and I am just like my mom, so why don’t I have them on my top 5.” I didn’t know why I wasn’t a Maximizer and I thought for sure that I would be a Woo. I think that I was almost disappointed with my top 5 because they weren’t what I was expecting, but after reading through the definitions of each of my top 5, I understood immediately what those strengths looked like within me.

5 Ways to Raise Money to Go Abroad!

This summer has been absolutely crazy. After getting back from South Africa I have been trying to focus on getting moved into our new apartment and making it a home. Then I had 2 weeks of military training out in Fort Carson. (Great Time) But I feel like yet another summer has slipped away from me.
I am just getting Thank You’s done from my South African Donors, 2 months after getting home.. Even though they have been on my list of things to do… since I got home. Slowly but surly this summer is coming to an end.
All of that being said, I am finally starting to get some of my study abroad posts up onto my blog! Woo!

Studying abroad is well worth the money. I don’t regret a single penny that I spent on the trip, but I do wish I would have watched my finances a little more closely. Here are 5 Tips for raising money for your trip, because it is no secret that it costs an arm and a leg sometimes. It is hard to pay for an entire trip straight out of pocket so follow these:

All About Me

Hey everyone! I know most of you are regular readers, and most of you are probably family and friends, but for those of you who happened to stumble upon my blog, I thought I would give you a nice, warm welcoming!

African Safari: Day One

   Today, we packed up our bags and headed out for our first overnight trip.We were headed to the Safari. It seemed like a super long drive on the way there, but it was really only an hour or two. As we drove, I couldn’t help but be surprised at how absolutely beautiful the world is.
Ever since the Slave Lodge we have been making fun of Kelsie because the birds and squirrels really love her. In the Company Gardens, the animals came right up to her and were super friendly, which freaked her out. It wasn’t pretty. She also seems to attract the dog at the Hostel very well. Well, the Safari just made her a target for some jokes because we kept saying how we would get to see all of the animals because Kelsie would attract them towards our vehicle.

I can show this one better with pictures than words. Only pictures can explain how truly beautiful Africa is:

Archives and Holocaust Museum

     This morning in South Africa we had a good class about the beginning history of South Africa. We talked about the Dutch coming to form a settlement here, the slave trade and the types of slaves, and the different types of segregation laws that took place.
It was really interesting because Dr. Curry started the lecture by saying that the 1940’s Alexandria, South Africa bus boycotts were happening at the same time as the boycotts in Montgomery, Alabama. She explained how this was the thing that got her interested in South Africa, primarily because when her professor first told her this, he continued with the statement, “Someone in this classroom will want to know if the two boycotts had any influence on each other. He was right. She wanted to know, but he didn’t have an answer for her. So she set out to find it on her own.