Two weeks until the end of the semester...so its crunch time. Therefore blog posts will be short and sweet.

I discovered these beauties the other day. It was love at first sight. Too bad they don't come out until June.


You bet I will be the first in line to buy these...if I haven't spent my life savings in Greece.

Speaking of Greece, a little over a month and I will be living the life on Paros Island. So much to do and so little time. Ahh but so worth it in the end.

Until next time

Kitty

Ever since I moved into my apartment, I had noticed an orange cat running around. Starting in January or so, it began living under our stairs because my neighbors were feeding it. Little by little, its house got bigger and bigger. There were boxes, beds, blankets, and bowls. Basically, it was the most spoiled stray cat ever. I am not the biggest cat person ever, but I began really liking it and even began feeding it and calling it "my cat." I used to go down and sit with her and pet her. She was such a sweet cat. I started to notice that her belly was rather large. Everyone who lived around us thought she was just fat because it was getting fed so much. I realized, though, that she was pregnant. She started staying around her "house" more and more. One day, I couldn't find her so I looked in her box and what do you know, kittens! Four tiny black and orange kittens nestled under her. Those kittens immediately had a place in my heart. Everyday I would go down there and sit with the cat while I fed her tuna. She did not want to leave her kittens so I knew she was starving. One day I went to visit her, and she was gone. My neighbor had taken them to her grandma's house. I was sooo sad. I wanted to see the kittens grow. But, maybe they are in a better place now. And maybe another stray cat will make a home under our stairs.

Ups and Downs

Lexie's life has been a little bit crazy lately. On the 28th she had her first birthday! For her birthday, Jake and I bought her lots of toys, bones, a cupcake, and a beneful beef stew dinner. Kelli Jo bought her an awesome UK bandana, just in time for the biggest games of the year. Overall I think she would agree that it was a great day.
Last weekend, though, something very sad happened. On Friday, I got home from work to find that Lexie had chewed up a bottle of Bayer Aspirin and I was pretty sure she had eaten some. I called the vet and they said that aspirin is toxic to dogs and that I should rush her to the ER. They admitted her to the hospital and later called me to update me on what was going on. They said that they had done blood work and discovered that it was very likely she had ingested some of the aspirin. They then told me that they would have to keep her on liquids and do a charcoal treatment for 48 hours. That night we went and visited her. It was good to see that she didn't seem like she was in any pain. She did have an IV attached to her and that was really weird to see. The doctor told us that in cases like these, if they catch it in time, recovery is 100%. We were very relived when we heard that. We visited her a lot over the next few days. It was hard because I could tell she did not like being there and just wanted to go home. Finally, on Sunday night, they called and said I could get her in the morning and that she would be completely fine. The next day I went and picked her up at 6 am. She was so happy to be home, but very sleepy. She still had a little pink bandage on her leg and no fur from where they had to shave her. Kind of funny because she has very spotty skin under her fur. $1300, 48 hours, and 3 sleepless nights later, we are on to our next adventure. Lets hope no more scary things like this happen again!
look at her funny spotted skin! Emily thinks that I should shave her to see what it looks like. I think she would look like a spotted rat, so we are not going to try.

Lexie, I love you with all my heart. You sure do keep me on my feet. I love having you around. I missed you while you were gone and I realized I cannot imagine life without you. When I am down you know just how to cheer me up. Sometimes you drive me crazy. Like when you drop your ball on my face when I am trying to sleep or make the saddest, loudest noise ever when Riley is outside without you. You have been extra snuggly lately and I have enjoyed it. I wake up in the morning and you are curled in a little ball by my head or knees or resting your head on my back. I think you get cold at night because sometimes you sleep under the covers. Most people would not let their dog do this, but lets be honest, you are special. I forgive you for being the biggest shedder ever. People are always commenting on how I have white fur all over me. I just try to tell myself that you are just making sure I have a little piece of you with me wherever I go. I'm sure my roommates don't enjoy it, though. Even though it is sad to admit, I am pretty sure you get more excited to see Jake than me. Whenever you hear my phone ring, even if you are dead asleep, you pop up and run to the door. You get so sad when I tell you he's not coming over. When he is though, you run out and watch out the window, wagging your tail uncontrollably. When he gets here, you go nuts. I have never seen anything like it. I guess you just like him better than me. But thats ok, I know its just because he gives you lots of treats. Lexie, you are the greatest. I don't know what I am going to do without you when I go to Greece.

until next time

BIG BLUE NATION!

So, I have come to the conclusion that I go to the best school in the nation. NO. DOUBT. ABOUT. IT.

Need proof?



Ok, so we may not be the best school, but we have the best fans. Hands down.

You need to see the chaos in Lexington last night to believe it! There are no words to describe it.







want to see more?




Is this real life?

Can't get enough? Go here, here, or here!

I cannot believe that the UK wildcats have made it to the NCAA final four. Everyone, cats fan or not, better tune in at 8:49 pm on Saturday to watch the Cats face UCONN in Houston, Texas. This year, regardless of the outcome, will be one for the books. So proud to be a wildcat : )

until next time

Starbuddy Spring Break

This year for spring break I brought 3 of my friends from Starbucks to Charleston with me. It was a lot of fun and great to see my wonderful parents!

first day at the beach

starbuddies!

We had a lot of fun with mere's macbook!

Birthday Girls!

Can't wait to live with you all next year!

birthday dinner!

outlet shopping

new camera! king street, I love you
forever 21 did not disappoint
froyo!
Thanks for having us, Mom and Dad!

until next time

3 and Counting

Yesterday was Jake and I's three year anniversary. Crazy. What a life-changing, fun, exciting, exasperating, 3 years it has been. I did not make this blog to talk about how great my boyfriend is, but I just want him to know how much I love him. We are so busy that our big anniversary plans were him visiting me at work and sharing an employee meal chicken caesar salad, sooo romantic. But, that's just how our lives are right now; hectic, and not much time to spend with each other. I would not change a thing, though. He did send me the sweetest text saying that he was sorry we couldn't do anything special but what matters is that we love each other. It was cute and very true. Jake, I love you very much. I am so lucky to have you in my life.Thank you for all of the sweet things you do for me and being there for me all the time. You truly are the best!

until next time

Education

disclaimer...This post contains lots of opinions and might possibly be boring to those of you who don't care about my opinions or the education system.

On the 7th, I found that I was accepted into the teacher education program at UK. The application took a long time and I was very nervous, mostly because I did not have a back up plan, but I can give a huge sigh of relief now. My life has a direction, a plan, and it feels so good. I am beyond excited to begin my in depth education classes and to work hard towards being the best teacher I can be. I already have my schedule mapped out for the next 3 semesters. Yes, I did say 3. I plan on graduating a semester early to save money and time. So, in about a year and half, I will be a certified elementary school teacher, and I could not be more excited. Often when I tell people what I plan on doing with my life, I get one of three different responses. The first one being, "You will be such a great teacher!" This, obviously, is the one I prefer. The second one is, "Oh I could never do that, I don't have enough patience." This one bugs me a little bit, because some people are under the impression that teaching requires babysitting skills when it is so much more then that. Third, and my personal favorite(not), "Well you won't make much money doing that. Have you thought about that?" People tell me this like I am unaware of how much a teacher makes. Friends, blog stalkers, I am here to tell you that I do, in fact, know exactly how much a teacher makes. I did not decided to be a teacher because I thought the salary was great, it would be an easy major, or because I thought that I could just get tenure, slack off, and never be fired. I chose to do this after much consideration and soul searching, because I honestly and wholeheartedly want to teach. Nothing more, nothing less. I want to set a foundation for young children and instill in them a passion for learning. I want to change the lives of students and make an impact on the education system. I'm not in it for the money, if I was I could have chosen many other majors and been just fine.When I thought about which career path I should pursue, I realized that in order to be happy,I needed to find something that I would enjoy doing everyday for a long time. Even though there will be days that I will go home in tears or want to give up, I know that I will always enjoy it and in the end it will be very rewarding.

This semester, I am taking a class called Education in American Culture. It has been, with out a doubt, my favorite class at UK so far. This class is for one, organized completely differently than your average class. There are no tests, no meticulous note taking, or busy work. This class is a interactive, debate driven class, set up for students to learn about education in our country through conversation. We are given articles to read and topics to think about, and then, we discuss our opinions in class. I have learned so many valuable things and my passion for education has grown tremendously. I think more classes should be set up this way. Anyway, in this class we watched Waiting for Superman. I highly recommend it. So go to redbox or netflix and get it right away! You won't be sorry. This documentary is sad, but very enlightening and very well done. It shows the overabundance of issues in our education system. It focuses on charter schools and failing school districts and how much kids suffer because of the quality of our schools and the opportunities that are absent in lives of some children. It also sheds light on the problem of the quality of teachers. Teacher's unions and the tenure system do not allow schools to have the best quality teachers possible. This issue is screaming for reform, and someone needs to do something. While watching this movie, I realized that I honestly do care about education. Not only do I want to do my part by being the best teacher I can be, I want to bring reform to the education system. This may be a lofty goal, but I hope I can somehow do something to help the nation's education system is some way, shape or form. For now, all I can do is look into my options and be as knowledgeable as possible.

So here is to all of the wonderful teachers that I have had and to those teachers out there who are striving to be the best they can be. I encourage everyone to do their part when it comes to their child's education. Go to education board meetings, know what's going on in their school, volunteer. Education is so important to every child's future and the future of our nation.

until next time