HCC Graduation

I'm officially a college graduate...with a 2 year degree that gets me absolutely nowhere! But hey, now I have this cool piece of paper to show for all the work I've done over the past 2 years...Oh, well. I'm half way through my college career...at least for now.

Adventures in April

I’m not very good at this whole blogging thing, considering it’s been over a month since I posted anything…but I’m going to use this crazy thing called school as my excuse. It has been totally and completely insane! I *thought* this would be an easy semester since I’m only taking 13 credits, but it didn’t work quite like I had planned. Fortunately, I just have 1 more paper to write and 3 more finals to take. The end is FINALLY in sight!

If you’re easily grossed out or are eating right now, you may not want to read the rest of this…consider yourself warned J Believe it or not, this actually happened. (Yes, I really do have a gift for awkward situations, and this was no exception.)

Random: Last Thursday, I was going to throw some laundry in…and there was a loaf of bread on the floor. One side of the bag was all shredded, but I thought we had a mouse (or more likely, mice) in the house, which has happened before. That didn’t concern me that much since I’m an expert mouse killer J (You may or may not remember how I “took care of” the last mouse I found.) We put out some mouse traps and proceeded with our day, not really giving it a second thought.

That same Thursday, I headed home for the weekend. The time went by way too fast, just like it always does…maybe I’ll have to blog about the craziness in watching 4 kiddos plus Neva, but I’ll save that for another time.

Anyway…I got back to IL on Sunday night. While I was carrying my stuff downstairs, I smelled something horrible…like, really disgusting. I put my backpack on the couch, but when I walked into bedroom…There was poop (literal crap) all over the carpet. So I quickly picked up my backpack and went back upstairs.

Next, I called my mom to find out what in the world I’m suppose to do…and I was obviously completely and totally hysterical at this point. Can you blame me?! (At this point, Grandpa wasn’t home yet.) So I’m sitting in a house by myself with some sort of animal poop on my bedroom floor. When Grandpa got home, he obviously had no idea what was downstairs. Mom had called him to make sure he would be home soon, and filled him in on this “situation”. Once he got back, we cleaned up what we could of the whole mess. We got a piece of something (plywood?) and put it in front of the steps, hoping that this mystery animal would be stuck downstairs. We also put a live trap down there. Grandpa got a flashlight and was looking under/around everything downstairs…and I was on the other side of the plywood! We decided to shut my bedroom door and bathroom door because we were pretty certain that “it” was not in either of those places.

 I started carrying my stuff upstairs (to the main level) because I couldn’t leave it downstairs in a basement that smelled like crap! J

So…I didn’t sleep well Sunday night because we had some sort of wild animal in the house, and it obviously did not belong! Monday came and went, with no sign of the animal. But that all changed on Tuesday J

Grandpa had been in the garage, and when he came in the house, he saw a gray tomcat dart right under his desk (which is in the green room). So, he picked up this metal pipe-thing and was ready to whack it…but it wasn’t under his desk, even though he had just seen it run under there. This cat had taken the register out, and run straight down! Now, we know it’s cat, and we know where it went…but we don’t know where else it can get to or how to get it back out…

When I got home from school, Grandpa tells me that it’s a cat. I thought he meant he had caught the cat, and that it was no longer in the house…but that’s not how it went. So, we shut the door to the green room, and carried in another door to block the 2^nd doorway in the green room. We also put the live trap in there, hoping that eventually he would get hungry and come out the same way.

Tuesday night came and went, but he still hadn’t been caught. (I did sleep better that night because there are no vents in the room I was in.)

Finally, Wednesday morning about 7, the cat got hungry and went in the trap! WE CAUGHT HIM…and that was the end of him! J

Making cookies :)

This afternoon, Neva and I were making cookies. She had been a  good helper, and was eager to eat the chocolate chip cookies, which are her favorite. I let her have 2 while we were getting them baked. Before I put the last batch in the oven...

Neva: I need to eat 1 more cookie.
Me: No, you've had 2. That's enough for now.
Neva: No, this is my 3rd 1 (as she holds up a half-eaten cookie). Three is a very bad number, so I need to eat 1 more. Four is a good number...it's my favorite number.
Me: Ok, wait a few minutes.

2 minutes go by (and I'm going crazy)

Neva: I need 1 more cookie...cuz 4 is a good number, and I've only had 3. Please let me have one more.
Me: Ok, but this is the last one.
Neva: Oh, thank you! Four is a good number.

So I gave her the 4th cookie! :)

Recent Happenings

It’s been over a month since I updated my blog, but I’m not sure if anyone reads this anyway, so perhaps it doesn’t matter?! O well. J

I was on spring break last week, and got to spend 7 whole days at home. Talk about FABULOUS! To kick off my break, I met up with the rest of my family in the Dells. We stayed at the Wilderness Resort. The place was HUGE, and had 3 different waterparks. It’s my favorite place that we’ve ever stayed because there was so much to do.

We also celebrated Emma’s 15^th birthday on Tuesday.  On her birthday, I picked up lunch at DQ and ate at school with her and her friends. That night, Katelyn, Marissa, Emma, and I went to see Gnomeo and Juliet. I loved that movie, and would go see it again! It was a stinkin’ cute movie J Katelyn and Emma’s birthday is the same day, and we had some DQ cake to finish off the night.

The rest of the week consisted of a lot of shopping, eating, and talking. I got back to Illinois on Sunday night, and I’m already anxious for this semester to be over. Neva and I will be in Wisconsin all summer, and it cannot come soon enough!

My life is still crazy, just in case you were concerned it suddenly became “normal”. Here’s a couple “funnies” that have happened since…yesterday J

Neva and I met up with Grandma Judy for lunch at Avanti’s, my fav. Once we finished eating, I gave Neva a piece of gum, sugar-free of course! When we were in the parking lot, Neva gets this weird look on her face, and here’s what went down:

Neva: My gum is stuck under my tooth.

Me: Let me see.  

Neva: I can’t get it.

So I grabbed the gum, and pulled the partial out with it. Neva just giggled like she does. I put her teeth back in, and we went on our way. Needless to say, we got some weird looks from other people in the parking lot. I didn’t think about it at the time, but it probably did look strange J

While Neva and I were walking the lane (for the 2^nd time) this morning:

Neva: My knee hurts real bad

Me: Which knee?

Neva: The left one.

Once we got back to the house (approximately 5 minutes later):

Me: How does your knee feel?

Neva: My knee is fine.  

Me: Does it hurt at all?

Neva: No, not even a little bit. Does your knee hurt?

And there you have it...

Superbowl Sunday

This post has almost nothing to do with Superbowl Sunday, but I needed a title. =) I'm definitely cheering for the Steeler's because...well, I strongly dislike the Packers! I'm looking forward to spending some time with friends tonight, and I know we'll have a blast.

On another note, we sang You Alone Can Rescue (by Matt Redman) in church this morning, and it was an encouragement! This song is an excellent reminder that Jesus is the only One who deserves the highest praise. Here are the lyrics.

Who, oh Lord, could save themselves,
Their own soul could heal?
Our shame was deeper than the sea
Your grace is deeper still

You alone can rescue, You alone can save
You alone can lift us from the grave
You came down to find us, led us out of death
To You alone belongs the highest praise

You, oh Lord, have made a way
The great divide You heal
For when our hearts were far away
Your love went further still
Yes, your love goes further still

You alone can rescue, You alone can save
You alone can lift us from the grave
You came down to find us, led us out of death
To You alone belongs the highest praise
To You alone belongs the highest praise
To You alone belongs the highest praise

We lift up our eyes, lift up our eyes
You’re the Giver of Life
We lift up our eyes, lift up our eyes
You’re the Giver of Life
You alone can rescue, You alone can save
You alone can lift us from the grave
You came down to find us, led us out of death
To You alone belongs the highest praise
To You alone belongs the highest praise
To You alone belongs the highest praise.

A Good Reminder

I’m now 2 weeks into a new semester…my last semester at HCC!  I want to blog about the Passion Conference, but haven’t gotten around to it yet….stay tuned J

Last night, I had the opportunity to get together with a fabulous group of girls from church. We’re going to be studying Louie Giglio’s book The Air I Breathe, and I’m really excited. It also reminded me of where my focus should be. I want my focus to be totally and completely on Jesus...all the time, no matter what. I know, I know…easier said than done! A friend reminded me of these verses.  I have read them countless times, and you probably have to, but here they are again!

25. Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26. Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27. And which of you being anxious can add a single hour to his life? 28. And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin. 29. Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? (31) Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘ What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink’? or ‘What shall we wear’? 32. For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. 34. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

~Matthew 6: 25-34 (ESV)