Well, that's not what I planned....

So graduation is coming up and I wasn't really sure of what I wanted to do. I was hoping that I could get a nice job some place, or that I would go on a missions trip. Mom and Dad, on the other hand, were suggesting that I go back to school. They had all the right reasons, too. They said that it would be easier to continue going to school instead of taking a year and trying to get back into the groove of things. That I am still single and it is a lot easier to focus on school. My dad especially stressed the last point as he was going to college when my sister and I were little. Mom said that it would also be easy for me to continue here at CSI, since I am still living at home and I don't want to have to pay for school, a place to live, food, and everything else. So I decided to think and pray about it.

So I continued to think and pray about it. I wasn't feeling any direction to go to bible college or on a mission, even though I think both would be wonderful opportunities. And I ended up thinking a lot about going back to CSI in the fall to get a teaching degree.

Now at this point, I still wasn't really sure. So I prayed that if this was the direction that I was supposed to go with my life that when I went in to talk to the Financial Aid people at the college that it would be really easy, and that there wouldn't be any problems and that they would know what to do.

I ended up telling my parents that I had decided to go back to CSI over lunch on Sunday. They weren't really surprised by it and they said that it sounded like a good idea. My dad's only question was if I felt peace about it. Which I told him that I did and I felt like this was a good place to start. Like my parents both say, it is a lot easier for God to work with somebody who is moving rather that trying to get somebody to start going. As my dad puts it, it is like a big motorcycle, it is a lot harder to turn in the drive way when it is stopped than it is to turn in on the street going 30 mph.

This is the thing though, my parents always seem to take my announcements in stride, they never seem to be surprised or act like it was something unexpected. In some ways, it is kind of disappointing, because I always feel like "HEY! LISTEN UP EVERYBODY! I AM ABOUT TO MAKE A MAJOR LIFE DECISION!" and they are always like "Yeah, we know." or "Yeah, we were expecting that." Not in a bad way, but more in a confirming sort of way. I guess that I will know when I make a wrong decision because they will be like "WHAT! ARE YOU SERIOUS?" or "REALLY?" But in the mean while, it is nice to know that they support me.

So today I took myself down to the Financial Aid office and asked them how easy it would be for me to do this. The lady was really nice and she said do this and this and this and there you are. So it will be really easy for me to do this and so I suppose that is a sign that this is where God wants me at the moment. But be warned--subject to change if God wills it. ;)

Retro/vintage paper dolls!

I was reading one of the blogs that I follow: Money Saving Mom and I found this super cute post about downloading paper dolls

They are SO CUTE!!!

Here is the link for Downloadable paper dolls.

End of semester

Howdy folks! I am going to apologize in advance for the small amount and general lack there of of posts and new info. It is crunch time as I hit the end of the semester and (Yay!) graduation. So my schedule is really going to pick up which won't leave much time for blogging. But no worries, I will up the amounts of posts once things get back to normal, well, at least as normal as possible.

Joann Coupons Galore

Did you know that Joann's has text message coupons and alerts? It is really nice. I get two mailers, and an e-mail and usually they all have coupons. I don't have to print off the e-mail because there is a "text it to me" option that I use and the store people are really friendly about it.

I usually use the 50% off coupons because they are the best deals but if I'm really in a pinch I use a 40% one.

Also Hancock Fabrics and Micheal's both take The %off coupons from Joann's! Keep this in. Mind there is something that you really want from those two stores, as well.

Coffee: the liquid of life

Coffee, my day couldn't get started with out it!

Seriously, there have been some mornings were I probably wouldn't have been able to function if I didn't have some coffee in my system.

One important point of coffee is that it ALWAYS smells better than it tastes. It may be the best tasting coffee in the world but it won't taste as good as it smells. Seriously, don't you think so??

Coffee is also really good by itself or with some little treat. Muffins, bagels, biscuits etc.  What do you like to have with your coffee or do you like it alone?

Of course, I am the kind of person that likes my coffee with lots of creamer and sugar. In fact, I would go as far as to say that I would like my milk coffee flavored. My dad on the other hand likes it black (ICKY!) but that's his choice, I guess.

The things you find between cushions

Aren't plush couches and extravagant chairs great? I can't tell you how much I love to curl up in a nice soft chair. But you know what?....the spaces between the cushion and the rest of the chair are NASTY!!!!

Seriously folks, when is the last time you looked at a cushion and said to yourself "hmm...I wonder what's underneath that?" (And if you did say that I bet your name is Martha Stewart! On, second thought, SHE probably doesn't even say that!)

Today I was sitting in a hall with one of my classmates and we were talking about class and all of a sudden she holds up a Life Saver (in a package) and says, "Look what I found!"

All I can say is GROSS!!! Seriously people! Clean out those couches more often!!

Awesome Opportunity

Hey! Check out this awesome opportunity!

Swagbucks is offering 70 free bonus Swagbuck points to new sign-ups this month!

I use Swagbucks all the time! It is just like a search engine and you can earn at least 3 Swagbucks points every day with out a whole lot of work. You can then turn around and use the points for rewards such as Amazon gift cards, Starbucks gift cards, movie posters, and a plethora of other items!

It is a really great website and last year I earned about one $5 Amazon Gift card every month. That's $60 free dollars a year!! WOW!

Sign up today and use code CRYSTAL70 at registration to get your extra points!!

(Seriously good deal!)

Death is a strange monkey

This post is going to be a little more somber than my regular posts. The reason being that is because this past weekend my grandfather died.

Early Sunday morning my family got a call from my grandma. She told us that she went to wake up grandpa that morning and was surprised to find that he was no longer with us. I was quite sad and I did cry a little.

I find death to be an interesting subject that many people shy away from. It can be very sad when it is someone close to you. Some people cry and become emotional when it happens and others refuse to talk about it and shut up like a clam. I happen to be a mixture of the two and I find that I have a really hard time dealing with it. Even more so if the person that died was close to me.

I also found the differences between my two grandpa's deaths interesting. About a year and a half ago my great-grandpa on my dad's side died. It was very tragic to me and I felt his loss quite deeply. (You'll have to excuse me because even as I talk about it now I feel like crying). My great-grandfather's death was very drawn out and very emotional. He was kept alive a lot longer than he should have been and I feel like he suffered a lot more than he needed to.  My grandfather's death on my mother's side was a lot quicker. In fact, we were all shocked to find out that he had died. It wasn't like he was in great health or anything but it was something that we never expected. We all got to see him during Easter, and for that I am extremely thankful, but we never suspected that he would be gone a week later.

It took us about four hours to get to my grandparent's house. It was really hard to walk into the house because the emotion kind of hit you all at once and it was strange to think that my grandpa wouldn't be back. After we ate some lunch my family sat around the table planning out the funeral which will be this Saturday. I don't think, though, that Grandma realized the impact that my grandpa has had on that community.

Grandma and Grandpa have been a part of the Cascade community for about fifty years. They moved there right after they were married. My grandpa started out as a logger and eventually wound up owning the town grocery store, the D9. He was kind to people his whole life and he was kind to all the people. While he was alive I don't think he would have ever guess the amount of people that would show up to his funeral. In fact, my grandma got a call from a relative in Oregon that will be attending the funeral.

All in all, my grandfather was a person I looked up to. We are all sad to see his passing but I hope to meet him again in Heaven and I look forward to that day. I think people as a whole need to also realized that death isn't a punishment for those who love God. I grieve with those around me but I am happy that my grandfather won't have to suffer from this life anymore. Rest in Peace Grandpa and I hope to see you again.

Spring Break: A Torture Device

Spring Break. Ahhh, isn't it nice?? It was so lovely, the weather was nice, I got to rest and relax, and I got to read a lot of fiction.

Then BAM! Back to school. And they expect you to want to be there. AUGH!!!!

I am having the HARDEST time coming back to school this week. Look, it is already Thursday and I haven't even posted to my blog.

I find Spring to be great and terrible at the same time. Great because it gives you a week to relax but terrible because you still feel like you are on break by the time that it is to come back. Boo-hoo.

I hope the rest of you that get to have a Spring Break aren't having as hard of a time as I am.

Well, two more months and then Summer Break. I can't wait! ;)

Book Review: Little Blog on the Prarie

I have often glanced at this book and thought that it looked interesting but I never picked it up and actually read it. So the other day I was at the library and I was hunting for things to blog about. Okay, I realize that that really isn't an original idea for getting a blog post but I was running out of things to talk about, and of course, I wouldn't want any of you lovely people to get board with this either.

Anyway, back to the book.So I just typed "blog" into the computer for searching at the library and lo and behold this title popped up. "Hey!" I thought to myself, "I've been wanting to read that." So I grabbed it off the shelf and read it.

It was a really great book and I enjoyed it to the point of not wanting to do anything else so that I could get back to reading my book. I seriously considered not eating dinner to finish it. Well, at least I did until my stomach really started growling at me. So I did eventually have to put it down and find something to eat. I even gave it to my sister to read when I was finished.

The book is a really good read if your are into frontier and homesteading life stories, or if you like to read about people trying to recreate a historical feel. I would recommend that you read it before you watch PBS Frontier House. It took a lot of ideas from that but it was still a good story.

The main characters development was really great and you could tell what she was thinking.

You didn't exactly feel like you were there in the story but you didn't feel like the narrator staring down into their world either. It had an interesting feel to it. I am the type of person who likes to feel like I am the one interacting with the other characters and I didn't get that feeling as much as I do with some other books.

The storyline was really good and it definitely had direction to it. You felt like the author knew how to get there and was just guiding you along.

All in all, I would have to say that the book was good and I would recommend it to anyone.


If you think of another book that I should review leave a comment. Thanks!