Never Miss the Dance

Last May I adopted my adorable baby rat, Shirley Templeton, from the cage she was living in while waiting for her roomate--a snake--to get hungry enough to eat her. So, I know that in nature, snakes eat rats, etc. However, I had/have a hard time with people who capture animals and trap them into being food. It's not really right either way you look at it. Anyhow, I brought 'Templeton' home with me. In the beginning I was more excied about her name than anything else; I had no idea how in the world I was going to raise a rat! What would I do with a rat??!! The first weekend was hectic--she escaped from her cage and I was way too scared to touch her so I actually tried sweeping the poor girl into a dustpan in a desperate attempt to get her back in her cage.
There are many stories I could share about having a pet rat, specifically having a pet rat as special as Templeton has been to me, but that would make this post way longer than it will already be. When I first brought Templeton home with me I researched as much info as I could about pet rats so that I could provide for her what she needed. During my research I learned that rats prefer living in pairs. Well, that makes sense, because I know as a human I like having another human to communicate with most of the time. So, when Templeton started acting "depressed" last week I chalked it up to her being lonely and I tried spending a little more time with her. However, I also noticed that she had really stopped eating most of what I gave her and when I put her cage on the floor she wouldn't even leave. Sunday she started taking a turn for the worse, however, last night it got really, really, bad and I wouldn't have been surprised if she had died. This morning I called the vet and nonchalantly scheduled an afternoon appt. for her. Thank God I was early to the appt. because when they got her back to the room she was barely breathing, her hands and feet were blue, and in that moment I realized that I would probably have to make my first adult decision between life and death. The vet gave her three shots, a steroid, cortison, and an anti-biotic in hopes that she would get a little better. No promises. I brought her home and have been giving her TLC all afternoon and a few hours after I got her home she started to thrive a little. She's been eating and drinking, which are all great signs.
I know some people say "she's just a rat", "who cares", etc. I respond by saying that "I care". No where have I ever been taught not to love someone or something. No where have I read that God doesn't want me to do unto others as I would want someone to do for/to me. If I were all alone in the world in my final days, I would want someone to hold me, love me, show me compassion, and show me that they care.
I'm glad I got to raise Shirley Templeton. She has been the sweetest pet, she is so smart, and has been a good companion.
When I get to the end of my days, I will be able to look back and recognize that I did what I could for those that I loved.

Weekend Ramblings

I've been doing a lot of reflection on circumstances and life this week...and tonight I'm going to pray about it. But I've started to feel content and at peace as I can feel God's plan for my life. It's a scary feeling, because really I feel that what I want now isn't what I'm going to have in the future. But at the end of the day, I realize that I've overcome so much that I didn't feel like I could get through...and I only came out better. When all is said and done, we can not settle for less than we deserve. Sometimes, we need to recognize that people who come in and out of our lives may only be there for their own selfish reason(s).
Now, on to the weekend. I don't have much planned, FINALLY! Tommorrow morning I think I'm going to take Max to the lake before it gets too hot and enjoy the morning sun with my little sidekick. Also, I've had a project that has been plaguing me for about a year. As an almost-historian, I have notebooks full of historical notes, dating from the beginning of the world to present-day. I have been wanting to transfer the handwritten notes onto a flash drive so that I can pull notes off of them when I prepare my future lesson plans. I've been telling myself to hire someone to complete it for me for a small fee...but, I actually started typing the notes myself today! I'm sincerly hoping that I can get the rest of the notes transcribed before the fall semester starts!
How do you get motivated to complete daunting tasks? Are there any special software programs you use to make the process easier and keep notes organized?

Welcome Wednesdays :)

So, what are Wednesdays good for? Reminding us that we're halfway through the work week or reminding us that we're halfway to the weekend??? Really, I don't mind Wednesdays too much, it's just another day of the week for me. What is 'Welcome Wednesdays'? It's my post of mid-week catch up & randoms.
Today, I went to the pool for the first time this summer. I had started thinking, "it doesn't really feel like summer to me. I haven't done anything summer-y yet this summer!" Well, I am definitely not the type of person to let life, or the days in-between, slip past me. So, as I got ready for the day this summer I told myself to DO SOMETHING! So I did! In between working, I cleaned up a little, re-arranged a few things, went to the pool and did a little pampering on myself. Ahhh, life is good. I think this is just one more reason why I'm meant to be a teacher...summers off :)
I stopped by PetSmart today to pick up some treats for Max, as we left his treats in Oklahoma. They're the only treats that he hasn't stopped eating even after a couple of years. Here they are:

I don't know what it is about these treats, but he even knows what the bag sounds like when he's about to get one. I love Max!
I don't know if anyone reading this has ever watched the tv show Hoarders, but I find it so sad that these people live their lives this way.

Tuesday, Tuesday.

Oh Tuesday, you were so much better to me than Monday was ;) So, this weekend was wonderful and I was so sad (as always) to be leaving. Oklahoma summers are wonderful-well, they're really the only other summers besides Kansas summers that I've experienced. I'm hoping for future beachy summers for the rest of my life after May 2012! I told my mom, "no one can say 'one more year', now is the countdown of 11 months, 10 months, etc!"
On Saturday, mom and I shopped almost the whole day at Penn Square mall! OMGoodness, it was exhausting but we got so many good things! Bath & Body Works was having their semi-annual sale so it's safe to assume that we stocked up on some necessities! Also, Victoria's Secret had their Garden Lotions on sale 10/$40!!! Wowzers! Yankee Candle had some amazing deals, as did Lucca and Express! Mmmmm, how I love shopping, but I vowed to myself on Sunday to begin loving my money so much that I just don't want to let it go anymore...well, for a while!
Sunday, I hung out with Jo and Hayden and my mom at the park where we played on slides and had sno cones. Probably the best sno cones ever I might add. Afterwards, mom and I went to Sprint where I got my first smart phone EVER! It's the new HTC Evo and I am in love! This thing lets me voice-text, chat face-to-face, navigate via voice or text, explore...and I'm thinking I could even travel to planet Mars with this phone! Then was lunch with my super cool bro in OKC, and afterwards, a 4 hour drive back to Kansas. Oh well, one more year and I'm hoping that at least then I'll like traveling back from "home" to the new place I'm calling "home" one year from now:) Tommorrow-wednesday ramblings:)

Weekend Wonders

Whew, this will definitely be a full weekend for me! I started Friday morning off by going into the Mayor's office (where I'm currently interning), and speaking to a group of high school seniors, all-girls, from small towns throughout the state of Kansas. First, it was an honor to be invited to speak to them. Second, it was fun to answer questions that they had about my involvement in politics, what I plan to do with my life upon graduation, and what college is about! These young women were all so smart and interested in the world around them, which I admire. Academically, I am a late bloomer. However, I'm 100% okay with that because I have truly found my path in life vs. graduating at 22 and returning to school a couple of years later to get a different degree. After I was done speaking, I flew(and by flew I really mean drove excessively fast) to the other side of town to have lunch with my dear boyfriend, before going back to the other side of town for a work meeting. Yeah, this all happened before noon!

After my work meeting I headed home to pack! What for?!? Well, I planned a surprise visit to Oklahoma for the weekend to see my sweet mother and blow all of my dinero shopping. This is one of the only weekends I will be able to come down this summer, so I did! I called my mom just as we (max and I) were walking up to the doorstep and asked her what she was doing. Mom said she was watching some crazy movie on netflix. I rang the doorbell and her dog started to bark, she said "sounds like somebody is at the door. I'm not going to answer it, I'm not expecting anyone", I said, "answer it, it could be someone important!". She looked out through the blinds and saw me...she squealed! hahahah.

Well, I've planned multiple shopping trips for the short day and a half that I'm here, and hopefully a lot of Braums ice cream...yummmm :)

It's Monday Y'all!

I hope that everyone had a great weekend. I definitely enjoyed having some time to rest and get over the muscle/flu plagues I came down with. Today, I feel like I'm finally getting back to 100%! On Saturday I went to Eric's football game-which I'm pleased to say that they won! Whew...their last two home games literally came down to the wire and I have seriously felt like having a heart attack. I was happy to wear my new football shirt too :)
Sunday didn't involve much of anything except for the debate of 2-bedroom townhome that has a full basement and huge kitchen or saving a couple hundred bucks and going for the 2-bedroom apartment that I'm in love and more comfortable with.

On Sunday, I also got this clay mask from Clinique:

I used the mask for the first time last night and I actually (like, really) notice a difference in my skin. I have been plagued by  acne since I was a young girl so I'm constantly on the lookout for good products to help me control it. However, almost every time that I feel I've gotten the problem under control-there it is again! I'm hoping to try this mask for a couple of weeks and see how good it is to my skin.

I've got a busy two days ahead of me so here's to hoping that they literally fly by! Have a wonderful week, y'all!

Weekend Wonders

Hmmm, that has a "catch"-Weekend Wonders...maybe I can do a post every weekend?!? I'm getting some inspiration here! So, it's friday and the weather should be nice here all weekend, finally! No major plans going on yet though, as my back problems have kicked back up again and all of the fun problems that has brought along<---Insert sarcasm here. There is a carnival in town and I've been begging Eric to go. The carnival has special meaning for me and our relationship, because that's where we went on our first date one year ago. Eh, he's really not digging it this year, so maybe if I beg enough he will give in!???
Tomorrow, Eric has a football game! Yay, I love watching him play because I know how much he enjoys playing this game called football that has been his life practically his whole life! I picked up a Kansas Koytes shirt today-which I'm really excited about. I had his last name put on the back of the shirt with some fancy lettering...the best part???? I had a little heart put behind his name. Just cute! The other reason that I really love going to Eric's games is because of the excitement of the fans! They just love these players and after every game they go down to the field and get autographs. I'm talkin' signing random shoes, arms, shirts, papers, books, etc. You name it! Anyways, I hope you all have a super weekend :)

Us After A Game