Feeling Stuck Again...

"Some people drift through their entire life. They do it one day at a time, one week at a time, one month at a time. It happens so gradually they are unaware of how their lives are slipping away until it's too late." -Mary Kay Ash

This post is mainly just to get my thoughts out because I have too many thoughts roaming in my head that need to come out cuz they have been there for too long... so just a fair warning. I'm not sure what has been up with the last few years of my life but they have just been so incredibly blah. It is pretty hard to describe how it has been, but struggling with depression has really caused me to be just so lifeless. I feel as though I am on autopilot all the time... wake up, get dressed, go to school, go home for an hr, go straight to work, get home from work and do homework and repeat. I truly feel as though I am just existing and not living... which are two totally different things. I need something in my life to make me come alive and for some reason I haven't been up to find that. I have seriously been stuck in like a 4 year rut. No joke. And I wish I knew what would make me feel alive again :( It is just beyond frustrating to be stuck in your own body knowing that you are not truly living.   

I know I am definitely having a case of the "winter blues" which of course graces me with its presence everyyy winter. And it sucks. It is supposed to be the happiest time of the year but it is definitely not for me. I have finals coming up, I have work that I have to go to with a happy face on, I can't afford to buy any Christmas presents (everyone will be getting pretzels)... or any Christmas decorations for my house to get me in the Christmas mood, I have to attend 75 (slight exaggeration) Christmas gatherings within a period of about 5 days since me and Cole both have divorced parents, and oh yeah the holidays serve as a reminder that your family is broken and has been for quite some time now... so Christmas is not the most merry for me. The main thing is... I don't have time to enjoy anything... I'm completely overwhelmed and sadly for me I always have to be an overachiever so of course I don't try to half ass anything. Sometimes I just need a breakkkk! Anyone willing to send me to Tahiti?

I'm not sure why I am so uncapable of handling life sometimes.  I literally crumble when it comes to living my day to day life, and that's sad. I'm not sure what will make me truly come alive, but I am definitely searching high and low for it... let me know if you come across it. 

I am very sorry for venting, I am just upset and wanted to release it. I feel bad even putting this in writing because I KNOW that there are people that are wayyy worse off than me... I know my problems are fairly miniscule, but I am just unable to get past anything right now, I am stuck and have been for years. But I am going to turn this mood around now... or try to... I was reading online this blog called Tiny Buddha and came across an article about really living. This is how the article began "Sometimes it takes us years to realize we’re not really living. We’re going through the motions–getting up, doing work, and playing nice–but we’re not really feeling a sense that we’re engaged and empowered in the world." As soon as I read it, I thought they had read my mind. Later on in the blog it says to make three goals that make you excited so that you have something to live for, so I am going to set three very simple goals, but very do-able ones... 

1. Exercise at least twice a week... exercise gets endorphins going!

2. Learn italian & buy books about Italy... I want to make the most of my trip to Italy! It will allow me to daydream until May arrives.

3. Make a new friend... I think this one will be the most difficult because of my overbooked schedule, but I will make time.  

Let's hope this gets me going for now at least. Maybe this will be my jumpstart to climbing out of my rut? Let's hope... I don't want to look back 10 years from now and be disappointed in my lifelessness of my past. I have somewhat wasted 4 years already, I can't waste anymore! Here's to hoping for a better tomorrow... and a tall ladder to help me climb out of my rut.

My New Endeavor

"Stitch your stress away." -Author Unknown

One of my biggest stresses is money. So I'm stitching that stress away by making scarves and selling them! I mentioned that I was wanting to do this in one of my last blogs, and I finally got to make one, so here is how it turned out :)

I'm pretty proud of myself for sewing it! And it was pretty simple. So if you know anyone that is interested in having one, then send them to me! Lord knows I need to sell like 50,000 in order to make some money, but any little bit will help. Don't forget Christmas is around the corner and think of all those people u need to buy for... they need to stay warm this winter with a nice, cute scarf :) I mean, you wouldn't want them to be cold outside and develop the flu lol. I will be posting more pics as I get them done. And ya know, I could always do custom orders! hahah. Can u tell I'm desperate to make some money?? ;)



Halloweekend

Happy Halloween!

Hope everyone had a good halloween- I sure didn't lol. 3 tests and a project due is NOT my definition of a fun day. But, I had a somewhat good weekend, so that's all that matters! So, for Halloween, me and my friend Ashleigh dressed up as Taco Bell Hot Sauce Packets! Here we are:

I saw this costume idea on Pinterest and thought it was so cute, so naturally, i stole it! We made these all by ourselves, and they look pretty good, if I do say so myself. Ashleigh was having a Halloween party at her house Friday night, so we got to show off our costumes to everyone :) I had a little tooo much fun that night, but it was much needed!

The rest of my halloweekend was spent in Houston,  interning at a wedding for Kat, the event planner that I usually work for. I was only able to work the reception part of it for her, but it was so fun! This was my first wedding to work with her and so I enjoyed running around taking instruction from her and learning how she organizes everything.  I have come to realize that my favorite part of working events is the free sweets that I acquire after the night is over :) They had amazingg swiss cookies, and I probably ate like 10 that night hahah and omg the cake was to die for... sooooooooo moist. I am loving getting to know Kat more as well as one of her sidekicks, Ingrid. They have taken me under their wing, and I'm thankful for that.

On the way home from Houston, I got to stop in the Woodlands for a lunch date with Lauren & Ashley (two great friends & former co-workers) to catch up on life and all. It was great getting to see them, we used to see each other all the time between work and hanging out, but now we are all so busy that it is difficult to arrange a get together! After the lunch date, I sadly then went home and studied until 2 AM for the 3 tests I had today. Which brings me back to my un-fun Halloween haha. Guess that's part of growing up... I wish I could just go dress up and trick-or-treat like the good ol' days and get free candy so that I dont have to rummage through the after-Halloween sale candy in order to feed my sugar addiction. Oh well, happy halloween!

Looking Ahead

"When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds. Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be." - Patanjali 

Today, I became inspired! Recently, my mind has  been on my future in school because registration is right around the corner.  I've been attempting to crunch in as many hours each semester from here on out in order to graduate by May 2013. I've pretty much been decided on majoring in marketing and just doing a minor in accounting. I can technically make it all work so that I am out after my 4th year of school, buttt today I got thinking. In order to major in accounting, I would only need 5 more classes (after the minor), which means 1 full semester... um, hello... why shouldn't I do that? That would mean I would be a double major in marketing and accounting... i like the thought of that "Megan McFarland.... BBA in Marketing and Accounting" :) lol

Although I have been extremely eager to graduate and get a job making REAL money, I've been thinking that it'd be better to stay in school for an extra semester for the following reasons:

1. I don't have to be in the "real world" a semester sooner

2. There really aren't that many jobs out there anyway. I do NOT want to graduate and have to resort to accepting any job just to get me by in the meantime

3. My tuition and all would still be covered for me (I can't even explain how gracious my great grandpa is for helping us grandchildren out)

4. Even though I'd be making "real money" if I'd graduate sooner, I'd be having to pay "real bills"

5. I don't wanna grow up :(

So, I think it would be justified if I extended my stay at Sam Houston. I think that double majoring would be awesome so that I have so many more opportunities for me out there (hopefully). Yes, it sucks to be a poor college student for that much longer, but I actually do like school (call me crazy), so why not do it while I don't have many obstacles in my way. Just need to keep my momentum and finish strong. I have a feeling by the time I get to this time next year I will just be saying get me out of here, I don't care about having 2 majors, but hopefully I'll motivate myself to keep on keepin' on. 

Random Writings

"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole." -Roger Caras

So, I know I talk about Ralph entirely too much but it really is crazy how happy he makes me, like foreal. This weekend, he stayed one night at my dads and it was the loneliest night ever for me :( Baby Ralph always cuddles with me every night, so it was a little sad to not have him by my side. Anyways, tonight when I went to HEB I finally came across Frosty Paws- the dog ice cream! And let me tell ya, it's a hit with Ralph. Poor thing was shivering and shaking from his head to toe as he was eating it, but he couldn't keep himself away. He's addicted now. But at least I can eat ice cream and not feel so guilty since he's eating it with me :)

I found a couple scarf ideas on Pinterest that I want to make come to life. (Anyone that is not on Pinterest should be... go to Pinterest.com) Everyone should stay tuned because I will be posting pics of the finished scarves as soon as I can figure out how to thread a sewing machine haha. I learned how to sew like 10 years ago with my grandma, but somehow I have totally forgotten how to even thread the thing. Anyways, once I get that worked out, I will make these scarves and they're adorable. I'm hoping to make a few and sell them for extra money... that'd be nice! 

So school is pretty stupid as usual. I think that all of the professors have a meeting at the beginning of each semester to plan all of their tests/assignments to fall on the same days so that they can see who's standing at the end. I will be standing at the end, but I will probably not have a smile on my face lol. When it rains, it pours, right? That's whats happening. I have 3 tests and 1 project due on Halloween... who does that? Speaking of Halloween, me and my friend Ashleigh have the cutestttt halloween costumes planned, but I don't want to give it away so you will also have to stay tuned to see what we are :) I'm excited about it! Other than doing all this schoolwork and testing and all, this weekend I'm interning with the event planner that I usually work for. It's my first wedding to intern at so I'm excited, shall be fun. As long as I'm not sitting there stressing out about all the tests I should be studying for, which I probably will be doing, knowing me. Idk why this post has no continuity, maybe its cuz my brain has been working for 12 hours now and I can't put together complete thoughts because I'm still thinking about how to calculate the amount to record to the bad debt expense account from the % of credit sales. Yuck. 

Siamo In Italia!

"A man who has not been to Italy, is always conscious of an inferiority, from his not having seen what is expected a man to see." --Samuel Johnson

"I've never been out of the world... wait... I mean, the country" -- Me hahah

I haven't written in so long! My life has been so entirely busy since school started... sometimes I don't even feel like I have time to tie my shoes. I'm working 2 jobs and taking 16 hours of school... not fun. Andddd me and Cole are about to try to put up Christmas lights for extra money starting in November, so add 1 more job to the mix. I think I've always been a little used to having a lot on my plate... just maybe not this much lol. BUTTTTTTTTTTT it's all okay, ya know why? Cuz I'm going to ITALY IN MAYYYY! I can't wait :)

223 more days until I take my first international trip EVER and I can't believe that it will be to Italy because that has always been the #1 place I've wanted to visit. Ok, so let me give u the details... Me, Cole, Abby, and Reid (Abby's bf) will be going to this beautiful country in May for 10 days after me and Cole finish the Spring semester. From our tenative plans, we are going to be staying in Venice, Florence, and Rome and other than those places, we will visit the island of Capri, and then maybe Milan... but I'm not sure about Milan, I can't remember. Anyways, since the day I found out that I would be going there, I have been researching, dreaming, and learning :) I downloaded a bunch of apps on my phone that help with language translation, so before long I will be speaking Italian (but not fluently) hahah. Oh, and for the purpose of the trip, these are our new names: I am now Messalina, Cole is Colmazio, Reid is Renzo (that one's my fav) and Abby is Abbondanza (but I might change her name, cuz it's a mouthful). Needless to say, I MIGHT be a little excited...

You know what my #1 HAVE TO DO THING is while I'm in Italy? This: 

Riding in a gondola in the canals of Venice. Like, you can feed me all the amazing pasta and incredible gelato, and take me to see the Colisseum, but if I leave Italy without riding in a gondola I will be sooooo disappointed. Idk why, it's just always been a dream of mine.

So yes, aside from riding in the gondola, we will be.... visiting all the main "must see" sites of Italy, eating all the carbs we can handle, drinking wine (and hopefully visiting a winery), shopping little markets in the cute cobblestone streets, biking in one of the towns (and i totally think we should rent a mo-ped as well), seeing world famous art and buildings, eating cute little pastries and of course, eating gelato!

The only problem with all of this is... I've gotta focus on school and work in the meantime. But that's ok, because whenever I have downtime I will be imagining that day in may where I embark on my 16 hr flight overseas to visit the place of my dreams! :)

Opened Doors & Closed Doors

"Whenever one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us." -Alexander Graham Bell

I think this quote pretty much summarizes my life. I am always looking at the closed door and thinking of what I did wrong or "what if I would have done this" or "I should have stuck it out longer"... and I think about these things so much that I can't embrace the opening door (opportunity) that is right in front of me. I would love to say that I can close a door and not think twice about it, but I find myself doubting my decision to close it for so long. This has always happened to me, I feel like. I have closed the door on big things in my life like gymnastics, Baylor, and finally my last job and to this day, I STILL question my motives for doing so. I mean, there are plenty of things that I have left and it was so easy in doing so, but I feel as though the trouble with the gymnastics, Baylor, and my last job is the fact that I put my entire self into these things. Maybe not so much with Baylor, but definitely with gymnastics and my last job. I would have done anything to succeed, I would work at either of these things day after day hour after hour because they were something that I enjoyed doing and I didn't mind putting ALL of my effort into them, however the day came where I no longer enjoyed these things as much as I used to and I decided to shut the door. 

So I guess it would seem kinda evident that the closed door I'm struggling most with now is my previous job. I do not miss the drama at all, but I do miss my actual job. I loved every part of it and would have gone above and beyond to make things happen there, but the environment was so incredibly toxic to me. I had probably stuck it out longer than I ever should have in the first place. So in all of this, I am really just trying to find closure. I am trying to make myself realize that even though the job was awesome and I loved what I did, there were things that far outweighed the good and I did make the right decision. And in my mind, I do know that i truly made the right decision for me. It's just hard knowing because that was my life... my work and my school. 

But on the positive end, I'm pretty certain that I have another job headed my way... and it is doing the same exact stuff that I did at my last job. I am waiting on the offer letter, but have already interviewed for it and all. So I am pretty excited to have this opportunity since it is doing what I already know that I love to do. It is still in the apartment world that I am comfortable with and it is still involving event planning. :) The funny thing is, I was given the opportunity to have this job about 3 or 4 months ago because I was unhappy with my last job and had sought this one out, however I was ensured that things were going to get better at the Arbors, which never really happened after all. So I ended up turning down this job... and regretting it in the end. But to my surprise, they had one more opening at this time and saw if I was still interested... and turns out I am! So I am very glad that I am being given a second chance. :) 

Being given this second chance has got me thinking that maybe things DO happen for a reason. Right when I quit my job, I got the chance to intern with an event planner.... something that I never would have had the chance to had I been working. And I got a 3 week long summer, that I wasn't expecting, but has turned out to be pretty nice. The stars have finally aligned in the right way and things just may work out after all... or at least I hope lol :)

Intern Opportunity #2

"Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong." -Ella Fitzgerald

I got back yesterday from Houston where I have spent the last couple of days interning for Kat (the event planner again).  This event was a little more stressful than last because it was kind of a big deal, but as Kat kept saying "You have to go through the guts to get to the glory." And that's exactly what happened. The event was so flawless and not to mention gorgeous! She is SO great at putting masterpieces together.

The event that I helped with was a "Cocktails and Connections" party that was hosted by The Knot Wedding Magazine for all of vendors in the Houston wedding industry. I was asking Kat how she got picked to be the event planner for such an important event and she said that she had to apply for it and go through a big interview process and everything so it's awesome that she got the job! And I felt pleasured to be helping her with it!

At the event, I got the opportunity to meet some University of Houston students that are wanting to pursue event planning as well. They attend the Conrad Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management and are in an organization that is called "NACE" which is National Assoc. of Catering Executives. The organization is not just for caterers, but also event planners. Anyways, they have to volunteer at events for their degree program, so I got the pleasure of meeting them! It was nice to talk to someone that is interested in the same field as me and the way they talked about the Conrad Hilton College made me intrigued... maybe something I might look into later on! 

All in all, I had a great time and got amazing experience. I hope to keep working with Kat because she is just awesome. It made me so happy to be at this event and to have people recognize me from the last event that I helped her with... interning with her will  benefit me sooo much! I'm glad this opportunity has come up when I have been able to take advantage of it... maybe things DO happen for a reason...

Internship

"The vision must be followed by the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps- we must step up the stairs." -Vance Havner

A couple of days ago, I got to internship with an awesome Houston event planner (named Kat) and was so ecstatic about this opportunity! I got to help with a cocktail party... and upon arriving I didn't know what the cocktail party was for, but once I got there and found out that it was for the "Who's Who" vendors of the Houston Bridal Extravaganza I could have died and gone to heaven... this was the PERFECT thing for me. I was surrounded by people that are in the field of work that I am interested in pursuing and so meeting them was very beneficial. I was sooo so grateful that Kat introduced me to people and acted like I was a longtime employee of hers, even though this was the second time I had ever even talked to the lady! 

The venue was amazingly beautiful, the "vintage garden" theme was so cute, and the atmosphere was just so fun (they even had a photo booth to take pics in :)). My favorite part of the event was enjoying the yummyyyy desserts (of course). They had the most amazing cake balls I had EVER HAD IN MY LIFE. Omg I would give anything to have more of those... the sad thing is I had to throw a bunch of them away at the end of the night... do you understand how hard that was for me?? 

I am so grateful that this internship opportunity came at a time that I was able to take advantage of it. Kat mentioned me helping with an event that The Knot wedding magazine is hosting next Wednesday and I am looking forward to helping! I feel so lucky to have these opportunities right now because they will help me soo much in the future! Event planning has always been a dream for me, but getting a taste of it is making this dream come true.

Letting go & getting it all out!

"When one door closes, another one opens..."

So a TON of stuff has happened within the past week. For those of you that don't know, i made the decision to put my two weeks notice in at my job and with that I had to move out of my apartment since my rent was paid for by my job. So now I am living with my dad.  It's funny because usually a big decision like that would take me weeks to figure out, but this one took only a few hours after a dramatic series of events took place within my office. Although I put in my two weeks and was supposed to work until August 11, I got "let go" after working a 12 HOUR SHIFT because "I'm too much of a perfectionist." Yep, thanks for USING ME. The good thing is that I never have to deal with some of those sorry people ever again :)... or their bullshit.

Although all of this was so hard to swallow, I've already gotten over it and the "letting go" all happened yesterday. It surprises me that I am no longer upset about it, but I think it's because I know how ABSOLUTELY ridiculous the situation was, and I am glad that I am out of that place and able to move on with my life. I no longer have to deal with all that mess every single day ever again. I put all of myself into that job, and to be treated the way I was shows me just how poorly that place was ran.

I'm very thankful to all of my friends and family for all the support they have given me within the past week. They have kept me sane when I was completely down. They all dropped everything to help me and I'm blessed to have the people in my life that I do. THOSE are the people that really matter in life... not the ones that bring you down. And it's funny how the best person for me within the past week has been my baby Ralph... funny how a dog can be the one that keeps you going, but he has!

Although the past week has been a huge change for me... moving out of my apartment, quitting my job, and moving in with my dad... I'm excited for what's ahead of me... which is also strange for me to be saying so quickly after all of this mess. I have been more optimistic today than usual... someone check my temperature lol. But I guess I'm growing up and learning how to move on.

So, for the happy part of my story... I am going to intern tomorrow for an AWESOME event planner in Houston. I met her at the Bridal Extravaganza in Houston (I went to it not because I am wanting to get married anytime soon but because I want to be an event/wedding planner) and she was amazing... so personable. We have been emailing back and forth and now I get to intern for her tomorrow at a cocktail party :) I'm very excited to get a taste of what I want to do later on in life... and maybe this is just the career this "perfectionist" needs because the clients will appreciate that I want their event to be as perfect as possible!! And then other than that, I will be spending time with my mom later on in the week, which is long overdue since I have been working so much, and then I will take a mini-vacation with Cole this weekend to either Galveston or New Braunfels. I'm sure not letting anyone rain on my parade. And I'm not gonna let myself stress about getting a new job until next week... I deserve to let myself have a break for a bit!

So, here's to SLAMMING that last door shut and opening a new one. I hope that behind this new door I will find an easy-going job that satisfies me and I hope that my positivity holds up!

Wedding Fever

"Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe." -Gail Devers

Ok, so don't freak out cuz of the title that I have typed. I can assure you that I am NOT wanting to get married anytime soon at all, I promiseee. I've just been having wedding fever lately because I want to be a wedding planner SOOO bad. Recently I have found the best magazines with the cutestttt wedding ideas in them and I want so badly to plan a freaking wedding! But not mine (yet) lol. 


The sad thing is whenever I plan my wedding, I'm probably going to be depressed after the wedding day is over. Sure I just got married and all (no big deal), but no more planning the decorations and coordinating the theme and picking the dress, how sad :( 


Anyways, if you know of anyone wanting help with planning their wedding, I'd love to help! Hahaha. When I tell people that I want to be a wedding planner I usually get a response like "Oh, but then you'll have to deal with Bridezillas... blah blah blah." And the thing is I know it'll be annoying to do that but I feel like the joy of planning such a tremendous event would overcome the annoyance of the bride. I just gotta keep my dream alive and see where it takes me...

St. Simons Vacation

"Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone."

-Author Unknown

I can't believe how long it has been since I've last written a blog! I guess i was too consumed with finishing up the semester and being busy with work. Anyways... since then I've been enjoying my 2 1/2 week long summer before summer school starts :( Although 2 1/2 weeks is way too short for a summer, I've enjoyed it! I have seen lots of family, hung out with friends, and most importantly took a vacation to GEORGIA!! 

Two days ago, me, Cole, my mom and Steve got back from St. Simons Island, Georgia. For those of you that don't know, Steve goes there once a month for business, so this time, me and Cole got to tag along! I was excited to go because I had been before, about 4 or 5 years ago, and I just had fond memories of it because it is such a beautiful, peaceful place. Cole had never been to Georgia... or St. Simons more specifically... and he fell in love. He talks about how he wants to move there after finishing school. 

While we were in St. Simons, we got to do all sorts of fun stuff! We shopped at the village (which is sooo cute), we kayaked (thank you mom for not tipping us over :)), we rode bikes all around Jekyll Island and St. Simons, we laid on the beach (and got tan!), we painted pottery, we ate tonsss of food and most importantly...we relaxed! It was so nice just to take a vacation and enjoy new scenery. Two or three times during the trip, I stopped to thank God for giving me the opportunity to be there enjoying life... that's how you know life is good! I was glad I had time to "stop and smell the roses." 

Here's a pic of me and Cole biking around St. Simons Island. It was my favorite thing to do there :)

I'm sad that I'm not "on island time" anymore and relaxing, but at least I got the opportunity to go there! I'm trying to get back into the swing of things, but its not so easy :( 

Decisions, decisions...

"The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn."

-David Russell

This quote is pretty much my freaking life story. Any of you that know me well know that I absolutely HATEEEEE making decisions. Whether it be an important decision like choosing which school I want to go to or even something silly like deciding if I really want to buy this shirt... or if i should wait and get that other one I saw at the store before (and then I decide to buy both and then I regret it and end up taking one back because I shouldn't have spent the money in the first place). Anyways, you get the point that I hate decisions.

My mom is STILL probably annoyed at me for how long it took me to decide if I wanted to quit gymnastics or not lol. Gymnastics was MY LIFE and for me to decide between quitting and getting a different life or staying in it to pursue college gymnastics was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I know I drove my coach and my mom nuts cuz I went back and forth every other day (or hour... or minute) with my decision.

Ok, remember I am a girl that has to go back to a single clothing store like 3 times (and try on the shirt once... ok, or let's be honest... twice more) before deciding if I should get it. Yeah... imagine that girl trying to make a decision about something that actually mattered!!! It's tough... let me tell you lol. My friends and family will be the first to admit that I am decision-making-challenged.

Anyways, decision making has knocked on my door once again... I won't go into the details of what I'm deciding between because its not really necessary, if you know me you probably know what it is. I'll just say that I'm basically deciding whether I want to continue on in something that frustrates me to no end every single day or take a risk and go for something that sounds so much better but will change a lot of things for me (but those changes might be for the good). Let's just say this will be difficult for me (of course) but after reading this quote below, I feel a little different about things because the only reason I'm afraid of taking the leap to the better sounding option is because of exactly what i just said, the "I'm afraid" part. Life shouldn't be lived in fear though. Read the quote and see what you think...

"Not all of your decisions will be correct. None of us are perfect. But if you get into the habit of making decisions, experience will develop your judgment to a point where more and more of your decisions will be right. After all, it is better to be right 51% of the time and get something done, than it is to get nothing done because you fear to reach a decision."

-H.W. Andrews

Finals=Sick Megan

I don't have a quote today :(

Soooo finals MUST be approaching... not that I can tell because of finishing last minute assignments and all... but because I'm sick! EVERY time finals come around I happen to get sick.    During last year's fall semester, I got swine flu... during this year's fall semester, I got a 24 hr stomach bug... and now that finals are approaching I'm getting sick again... I can feel it in my scratchy throat and runnnnyyyy nose! I'm already predicting chicken pox for next fall semester lol... just kidding. I don't understand why my immune system always lets its guard down around finals time but I'm beginning to think that I should be exempt from all finals. SHSU should understand and not compromise the well-being of one of their students to some silly little tests!

Comfort Zones

"Progress always involves risk. You can't progress to second base and also keep your foot on first." 

-Christie Mason

I feel like all my life I have had problems with stepping outside of my comfort zone. In my younger days, I didn't want to quit gymnastics because that's all anyone knew me for and if I quit then I didn't know what else I would do. At the end of my gymnastics-ing I HATED going to practice everyday for four hours. I HATED being there, but I was comfortable there, so it made it ok i guess? Then when I went to Baylor, I hated being there for the most part, but I was comfortable there so I didn't wanna risk going to another school. I don't understand why I stick with stuff that frustrates me like no other. I guess I really am afraid of getting out of my comfort zone. I really do want to keep my foot on first while progressing to second because I'm afraid of risk. I'm not so much afraid of being challenged, because I like a little push. I'm just afraid of trying something new and not liking it. I mean, I won't even try a new snow cone flavor because I don't want to waste a freaking $1.50 and not enjoy it. Isn't that silly? Here's to me TRYING to step outside my comfort zone from now on... it's gonna be difficult, but why should I just try to make myself be content with something that I absolutely hate? That's ridiculous! We'll see how this goes....

Canton=Happiness

"Whoever said money couldn't buy happiness simply didn't know where to shop." -Bo Derek

(They should shop at Canton.)

This past Saturday, me and Cole ventured to Canton. For those of you that are unaware of what Canton is... it is basically heaven. Thousands of booths with all sorts of stuff for sale... but the stuff that i enjoy most is the clothes and jewelry and shoes and accessories :) You can find almost anything and everything that you could dream of. I could spend everyyyy last penny that I have at Canton on all sorts of goodies.

Cole had never been to Canton, so I had to de-virginize him haha. I've had to do that alot... but not in the bad way that you might be thinking of that you shouldn't be thinking of lol... I mean he had never been to Kerrville, or Schlitterbahn (crazy, right?) or even the San Marcos Outlet Malls. That is what i de-virginized him on... not other bad stuff lol. Anyways, I think he had a good time. I think mainly he had a good time laughing at me when I saw cute dog stuff for Ralph and I'd go crazy. I just love that little pup and buying him stuff :)

Even though Canton kinda ate all the money in my bank account, I still had fun looking at everything. I bought lots of cute clothes... including 2 pairs of Miss Me Jeans (i wish i wasn't so addicted to these million dollar jeans, but they're so cute... and I must give credit to my way too sweet to me boyfriend who bought one of the pairs :)... please don't try to steal him from me) and I got a cute shirt that says make cupcakes not war... very fitting for me! All in all it was a great trip! Anyone who has not been to Canton must go! Best place to shop, EVER!

Making Mondays Matter

"Everyday may not be good, but there is something good in everyday." -Author unknown

I know Mondays are not the favorite day of the week, but are they really that bad? I was looking online for happy Monday quotes and most of them were negative quotes about Monday. I couldn't even find a positive one about Mondays that I liked. One even said "Mondays are a lame way to spend 1/7 of your life." What makes Monday sooo bad?? Sure, the weekend has just ended and you now have to get back to the grind of work and/or school, but it could better be thought of as a fresh start. Each Monday we are given another chance to live and breathe. Isn't that good enough?

Try to imagine Mondays as just another day of the week and not as the "lame way to spend 1/7 of your life." Make your Mondays Matter! If everyone threw away their Mondays because of the "lameness" of it, then 52 days of your life would be gone. That's a waste. Instead, make those 52 days worthwhile. I mean, look at ESPN, they are a good example of this. They made Mondays positive by instituting "Monday Night Football," which gives football fanatics something to look forward to every Monday! haha :)

Taking Things For Granted...

"When something does not insist on being noticed, when we aren't grabbed by the collar or struck on the skull by a presence or event, we take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude." -Cynthia Ozick

Today made me realize how spoiled most of us really are. The hot water in four of our buildings at the apartment complex was out for maybeee 2 hours and the phones were ringing with people that were annoyed of the outage and they were asking when this problem would be fixed.

Some people don't even having running water in their house. In the grand scheme of things, isn't it silly to complain about your hot water being out for a maximum of 2 hours? I mean, I can't lie, I'd probably be annoyed if my hot water was out too, but today for some reason it made me think of how lucky we really are and how much we take for granted. I'll be the first to admit that I don't wake up in the morning and think "Oh, how blessed am I to have running water, an opportunity for education, a car to get me places, etc." But how much greater would our outlook on life be if we all just tried to be grateful for the little things?  Just a thought...

How do you want to be remembered?

"The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money or the most awards. They are the ones who care." - Unknown

Take out a piece of paper and a pen. We're going to take a quiz... well more like 2 quizzes. I have this book that I absolutely love titled "Where will you be five years from today?" and its just an inspirational book. I came across this quiz in it and it opened my eyes and I'd like to share it with you. So here we go... I'm serious about you getting out a piece of paper and a pen!

See how you do on Quiz #1:

1. Name the 5 wealthiest people in the world.
2. Name the last 5 Heisman Trophy winners.
3. Name the last 5 winners of the Miss America contest.
4. Name 10 people who have won either the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.

Ok, now draw a line across your paper and try Quiz #2 below it:

1. Name 3 teachers who aided your journey through school.
2. Name 3 friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name 3 people that have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Name 5 people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Name 3 people that you enjoy spending time with.
6. Name half a dozen heroes whose stories have inspired you.

How'd you do? Hopefully Quiz #2 was easier. The point is: "None of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are not second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners." Now re-read my quote at the beginning... its true :)

Spring Break

"The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely, or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature."

- Anne Frank

Well, spring break is almost to an end :( But I've enjoyed it, so I can't complain. Me and Cole decided to take a mini-vacation to the Kerrville/Fredericksburg area. And although it was not the typical spring break vacation to Miami or South Padre, I still loved it. It was nice to just relax and spend time with someone I love.

While we were in Kerrville, we got the chance to go to Mo Ranch which is a church camp I've attended for several summers. It is my absolute favorite place to go to because it's so beautiful and I have such happy memories there. I showed Cole all around the camp and showed him all my favorite places. We had such a good day just being surrounded by nature. We sat at the rapids for a while, we canoed down the river (it took us a while to figure out how to steer lol), we played tennis, we walked the labryinth... we had fun. It was gorgeous weather and it made me happy to just be outside all day.

Other than going to Mo for a day, we just hung around Kerrville and Fredericksburg. I think I looked at EVERY store in Fredericksburg and said "Look how cute this is Cole" about everything I saw. They have such cute little shops on Main Street. I could've spent every dollar that I had. All in all though, we had a great time. It makes me happy that I have a boyfriend that enjoys spending time with me no matter what we're doing. Most people would think that going to a sleepy town in the hill country would not be the ultimate spring break trip, but we enjoyed relaxing and taking in all of the beauty that surrounded us. It was great :)