Where is Summer?

The past few days have been so cold and dreary. I wish that my summer break would actually start FEELING like a summer break! But enough complaining about the weather... so yesterday morning I got up and did the 30 Day Shred workout with my sister Katelyn. Jillian Michaels always kicks your butt! :) Afterwards I ran to Disc Replay & CD Source, which are used cd stores. Unfortunately, they did not have the CDs that I wanted to purchase so I went to the next cheapest place which was Walmart. I had to go to two different Walmarts because neither one had both of the CDs. I ended up finding both of the CDs that I wanted so that made me happy. :) Shortly after returning home, I had to leave to pick up my sister Corey from school. I then dropped her off and headed straight to my friend Kourtni's house. It was great to see her & catch up. It has been forever since I have seen her... well, it feels like it. I am looking forward to seeing her more this summer! :) Yay for no school!

I left Kourtni's at five o'clock and went to Ben's house for a quick dinner of taco's before Bailey's soccer game. At 6 o'clock we headed to Sportscore. IT WAS SOOOOOOOOO COLD! I thought that I would be fine but I was SO glad that Ben's mom brought a blanket!

Here we see Bailey & Kaleigh with their "Purple" Team getting a pep talk from coach before the game.

Kaleigh & Bailey waiting to go in.

Bailey throwing the ball in to her team.

Ben & I trying to stay warm... we were FREEZING!

Bailey kicking the ball.

Although the Purple team lost, a fun time was had by all. :)

Today, I got up early & Ben picked me up around 9:30 a.m. He then took me to his house & made me bacon & scrambled eggs for breakfast which was DELICIOUS!!!!!!!! :) We then spent the next three hours unpacking his stuff. He helped me unpack yesterday so I figured I should return the favor. :) 

At 4 o'clock today, I watched Oprah to see my cousin & her friend Taylor in the studio audience. Taylor won tickets & was allowed to bring 1 friend so she chose my cousin. Pretty neat! They were shown a lot during the episode which was pretty awesome! Justin Bieber & Cherice were featured on the show that day as well as IYAZ. Not fair! Glad they had a great time though!

Graduation/Mother's Day/Summer Break

Wow. So my junior year is officially over & I am officially a senior in college!!!! How did time fly by so quickly?!? I finished up my finals a day early on Wednesday (5/5) and decided to stay until Saturday so I could spend more time with my roommates (two of whom were graduating) and not make three 2 1/2 hour drives. Spending my final days with Renee, Rachel, & Caitlin were bittersweet but also filled with fun memories. They have absolutely changed my life for the better & I am so thankful for their friendship! :)

Here we see Renee about to walk across the stage to receive her diploma.

So excited!!!!

She was so happy & I was so incredibly proud of her!

Caitlin getting her diploma!!! :)

Renee & I after the graduation ceremony. She has made me a better person & I cannot accurately describe how badly my heart hurt after saying goodbye to her. It's crazy how meeting someone in a math class freshman year can turn out to be your best friend two years later. I love her so much! Needless to say, I am not good at goodbyes. The 2 1/2 hour drive home was spent crying my eyes out. :( After arriving home late in the evening, I spent some time at Ben's house. We ate some pizza & just talked. It was nice to not worry about homework or tests.

On Sunday, I celebrated Mother's Day at Ben's grandparent's house & then later ventured over to my grandparent's house.

Here we see Amanda riding her horse Secret.

Hannah rode Secret as well while her horse Lakota was eating grass.

On the left we see Bailey flying a kite as Uncle Ben looks on. On the right we see the neighbor's horses who were VERY interested in what was going on in the yard.

Beautiful horses. I love summer. ♥

Kappa Delta Pi Induction

Well, last night my roommate Renee & I were inducted into an honors education society at my school called Kappa Delta Pi. In order to become a member you must have a certain GPA & they must invite you to join. Needless to say, we were VERY honored!! Here are some pictures from the night!

Here is a shot of Renee & I in our room before leaving for the ceremony.

Our names in the program... of course right next to each other :)

Dr. Upchurch (Dean of Education) handing me my certificate shortly after being initiated as a group into Kappa Delta Pi.

Part of the group shot of the members.

 A picture of Dr. Upchurch & I after the ceremony

Renee & I were very excited & honored! Here we display our certificates.

Ever since I heard about Kappa Delta Pi my freshman year, I knew that I wanted to be a member. I have worked very hard the past 3 years to keep a high GPA and to display aspects of professionalism in all areas of my life. Last night was an incredible night for myself and many others as well. I can only hope to live up to what Kappa Delta Pi stands for & to truly become a professional influencing lives.

Easter Weekend

**Note: This is an extremely picture-filled post! :)

Well, here I am back at school after a wonderful but crazy busy Easter Break. So... I am just gonna fill you in on what happened over my Easter Break. :) On Friday, Ben's Mom fell off of Hannah's horse & broke the 4th lumbar in her back. :( Thankfully it was not her shoulder! It will take some time to heal but it could have been a lot worse!

That evening, Ben & I attended a wedding reception for Jason & Tiffany. It was at Lino's & we had a wonderful time! Delicious food, good music, & fellowship is always a great time in my book! :) Afterward, we returned to the hospital to spend some more time with Ben's mom as she recovered from the medication that made her sick.

On Saturday evening, I went downtown for root beer at Carlyles with (from left to right; back to front) Stephanie, Elizabeth, (Myself), & Jenn. We definitely had a good time! The biggest highlight would probably be myself spilling root beer all over Stephanie's pants. Oh dear! Haha!

Here is a photo of Corey, Kayt, & I from Easter morning. Our family is always taking pictures & Easter is NO different! :)

Here is a photo of my sisters & I with our grandparents. My grandma & her friend always wear a hat on Easter Sunday.

Here is yet another shot of myself with my family. :)

Here we have a photo of Ben hiding Easter eggs for his nieces and the other children to find at his grandparent's house.

The kids really enjoyed the Easter egg hunt... especially the candy that they found inside!

Here we have Aislynn (above) & Bailey (below) (Ben's nieces) after the Easter egg hunt. They had a lot of fun!

Ben & I had a great time with his family. After eating lunch & enjoying the festivities, we journeyed to my grandparents house for some more family time & good home cookin'! :)

Here is a shot of my family including Ben & my cousin Krista's boyfriend Kevin. We definitely had a GREAT time celebrating the resurrection of our Lord! All in all, it was a great weekend that came to an end all too quickly.

1st Grade Comment of the Day

So today I was helping my cooperating teacher with her lesson on money exchange. We rolled a dice & then counted out pennies. These were then exchanged for nickels, which were eventually exchanged for dimes. I was beating my teacher at this horribly & she told the class, "Miss Anderson is skunking me!" Later on, when I continued to beat her in the game, Joshua (one of the students) exclaimed, "Mrs. Hall! She is stinking you!" We both DIED laughing as Mrs. Hall tried to repeat the correct phrase between laughs!!!! It was pretty much a day-maker! :)

P.S. Yay for Friday!!!!

Spring is... here?

Well, thankfully there is no snow on the ground here yet... but I know my hometown got some snow! The warm weather has been an incredible blessing lately. Being able to drive with the windows down has been a simple pleasure of late. :) Anyways, it's been quite awhile since I have updated my blog. I don't have too much to report. I am still staying very busy with school & with my 1st grade practicum assignment. I must say, my 1st graders are absolutely adorable! :) Last night, I actually got to spend time with Ben. We hardly get to spend quality time together throughout the week. But I guess it makes time together that much more special. So last night we made a road trip to Olive Garden to enjoy some fine dining... and bread sticks. :) It was absolutely delicious!

Sadly, I have quite a bit of reading to do this weekend & no motivation to do it. I know... me? Not wanting to read? Crazy. Hopefully I won't have to spend my whole day reading my book for marriage class. :(

Only thing on my agenda today: buy New Moon. And what a fantastic agenda that is! :)

Date Night

Wow! It has been awhile since I last updated! I have been overwhelmed lately with all of the projects, exams, & homework of college. It has been absolutely INSANE! Thankfully, after a stressful week, I was able to spend some time with Ben tonight. We went to Panda Express for dinner... I always seem to buy WAY more than I can chew... oh well. Maybe one day I will learn! :P Afterwards, we went to go see the movie When in Rome. It was your typical predictable chick flick but it was really funny! :) Needless to say, I am looking forward to a relaxing weekend.