My Other Half

My best friend is Lacey. We met in health class in 7th grade and have been best friends ever since. Lacey is more that just a best friend, she is practically my sister. We have so many memories from our fun times and trips together. She has been boating with my family every summer to various lakes and camping every fall break to Brown County. Lacey was born in Canada so most of her family lives there. Last winter I went to Canada with her family for a few days. Those trips are great, but I think we have the most fun when we just hang out around home or go on our "dates" out to dinner, shopping, or scrapbooking. Lacey and I were inseparable until now. She goes to school at Eastern Kentucky. Since school started I have seen her once. It is really hard not seeing here everyday like I used to, but when we are together it is like we were never apart. I will get to see her over Thanksgiving break and we are going shopping on Black Friday. And for spring break we are flying to San Diego to visit her sister. I cannot wait to spend a week with my best friend. 

What I Love About Winter

Winter is probably my least favorite season because I am not a big fan of the freezing temperatures, but there are still many things that I love about it... first snowfall, sitting by the fireplace, sledding, snow days (they happen occasionally here), Thanksgiving, watching it snow, sitting in the hot tub, Pokagon, Christmas, decorations, music, family dinners, Christmas lights, putting up the tree, New Years Eve party, Winter Break, curling up under a blanket, watching Christmas Vacation and other Christmas classics, Black Friday shopping, ice skating, carriage rides downtown, playing outside... I could probably go on and on, but those are the best ones. 

My Second Family

Along with my amazing family, there is a family that I consider my second family. It is the family that I nanny for. They have 4 little boys aging from 1 year to 8 years old. They used to live across the street from me, but after the third one was born they moved to Carmel, IN. When they lived across the street I would go over to their house after school and help out with the boys. When they first moved to Carmel it was a little more difficult to get there because I did not have my drivers license yet, but Tom, the dad, would pick me up from school and drive me to their house and back home. When I got my license I drove there two days a week and would stay there until 8pm. During this summer I went there two- three days a week and would usually just spend the night there in their guest room. I would take the older boys, Billy and Tommy to the pool, movies, fishing, and sometimes to Chuck E Cheese, or their sports practices. With the younger boys, Jackson and Matthew, I would usually just play outside with them or take them on walks. I have helped at many of their birthday parties, gone to birthday dinners, and was there their first day of school. They have given me the best job I could ever asked for and have made me feel like a part of their family.

Thanksgiving

I can not wait until Thanksgiving. We have a 5 day break which is wonderful. We always have Thanksgiving at my house with my mom's side of the family. My grandparents, aunt and uncle come as well as my three cousins with their wives/ girlfriends. My boyfriend and my sister's boyfriend also come. This year will be even better because there is a new edition to our family. I have a new little cousin Noah that was born this summer and I can't wait to see him again. It's always fun with my cousins because we have the "kids" table and the adult table. Our table is much more fun and we usually just end up making fun of the adults. I'm not a big turkey person, but this is one of the times when I will eat it. We have all kinds of other food too. My dad makes two types of stuffings, and everyone else pitches in corn casserole, mashed potatoes, rolls, pie, and all other sorts of good stuff. After I eat this meal I go to my boyfriends house for my second meal. I love being able to be with my family and his family on thanksgiving. Than there is Black Friday. Last year was the first year that I had really gone out early on Black Friday. I went with my best friend Lacey and can't wait to go again this year. Hurry up and get here Thanks giving Break!

Photography

If I was not an education major, I would probably be a photography major. I love to take pictures. In high school I took 2 years of photography classes. The first year we just used film and developed our pictures in the dark room. Some people hated it, but I did not. I enjoyed it and found it relaxing. The second year we did half with the dark room and half digital. I liked doing both, but never seemed to remember the technical stuff with the digital cameras. I just like taking the pictures and having fun with it. When I am around my two nieces it seems like I always have my camera with me clicking away. I would love to take pictures at a wedding or do a photo shoot with little kids. I then decided that photography was a passion and hobby, but not a career option for me. I was meant to be a teacher, but I'm sure I will take plenty of pictures in my class.

Fall Break

Fall Break is just around the corner and I cannot wait till it is here. I wish we had more than just Friday off, but I will take whatever we get. For Fall Break I am going down to Brown County to go camping like I do every year. My family is there along with family friends and my friends. I don't know what we are going to do there this year, but I know we will have fun because we always do. On Friday the family that I nanny for, which includes four adorable little boys, may even be coming down for the day. I hope that these next three days go by fast and easy so it can hurry up and be Fall Break! I'm also so happy that the weather is supposed to be somewhat warm this week and weekend.

Barbie House

When I was little I loved to play with my Barbies. I had so many, but didn't have a house for them until the Christmas of my second grade year. This house was no the typical pink plastic Barbie house that everyone had. My dad built me this house out of wood and it came complete with furniture that my Grandma made. The house is probably around 4 feet wide and 4 feet tall. When it was closed it looked just like a rectangle house with a slanted roof on both sides. To play in the house you had to unlatch a hook on each side and the front of the house came down to reveal the inside. On the first floor there was a kitchen and family room with a couch, fireplace, rocking chair, and lamp that my Grandma made. I had to pretend there were stairs to get to the second story because my house did not include that. There were three rooms upstairs. there was a bedroom with a big white bed and matching vanity; a smaller room for the little Barbies, and a bathroom complete with a sink and toilet. Of course to make the house even more finished I added my other plastic furniture that I already had. It was the best Barbie house anyone could ever imagine. This present probably got more use out of it than any of my others and it truly a treasure of mine. It is something that I still have and that I plan on keeping forever. I have to admit that when my three and six year old nieces come to visit, I play Barbies with them in my Barbie house.