I Officially Graduated!

I wanted to post on here my quirky graduation story, becuase I finally officially graduated! I attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo starting in 2002 (Cuesta College and Sonoma State before that--six years altogether--and I thought it was only supposed to take four for a bachelor's degree), studied English, and "unofficially" graduated in June 2005. I attended the ceremony, walked with my class, recieved my "diploma," and even had a graduation party. But I never actually graduated. Thanks to a minor detail I call "Senior Project," I never got my degree. This is what happened: I had originally decided to create a website for my senior project, and then about a month before I was supposed to graduate I realized, what? I don't know the first thing about how to make a website! and so I changed my senior project. Of course, I had to get this change approved, and come up with another project. Lucky for me, I was just finishing a brochure that I had designed and created for The Family Care Network as part of an internship. So I made that my senior project. My advisor approved the change, but wanted me to write at least a ten page paper describing the process. I wasn't going to finish the paper in time, so he gave me an incomplete, which meant I had one year to write it. I figured that was plenty of time. Little did I know that I was going to move, get married, have a baby, and move again within that year. Needless to say, I didn't finish. I was working on the paper in that time, though, writing a little bit here and there to get it done. I had to email my department chair (to make sure I could still graduate) and found out my senior project advisor had left Cal Poly and that I had to work with a different professor who knew nothing about my project or situation. I finally finished the paper in March of this year (two years later), and sent in my project. It was approved, but I only heard of this two days ago because he has been busy. (That was another stresser.) So he's sending in the paperwork in the next day or two and so I'm anxiously awaiting my real, official diploma. Mostly though, I'm glad to finally be done, to have that stress gone, and my mom not bugging me. I can now call myself a college graduate! Yay!

7 Meme

Okay, so a while back Brianna tagged me for this 7 meme thing. And since pretty much everyone I know has been tagged, and those of you I know that weren't wouldn't do it anyway, I'm not going to tag anyone. I'll just give 7 random facts about myself (and these are not in order of importance):

1. I'm a twin. I think most of you know that, but for those of you who don't, I have a fraternal twin and we look nothing alike. We look pretty much opposite of each other, so growing up, and even now, most people didn't believe that we were sisters, let alone twins. I have blonde, stick-straight hair, brown eyes, and very fair skin. She has brown, wavy-curly hair, blue-green eyes and olive skin (which tans so much more than mine--not fair).

2. I can't cook. I'm pretty bad at it, so I guess I was pretty lucky to marry a guy who is a really good cook. Tim cooks most of our meals. I'm still working on learning so he doesn't have to cook as much. But it's hard to want to learn when his food tastes so good!

3. I've always wanted to write children's books. I've always loved to read, and even now, some of my favorite books are books that I read (and still sometimes read) when I was a child and teenager. I have several ideas for kid's books, but have yet to actually start writing. Hopefully soon I'll try to organize my time so that I can start writing.

4. I've wanted to dye my hair dark brown for awhile now. Since I've always been so blonde, a big part of me wants to see what I would look like with dark hair. I think the dark/fair combination can be really pretty, but it'd be a drastic change, so I haven't tried it yet.

5. I get addicted to those competition reality tv shows really easily, so I have to be careful which ones I start watching, cause once I start, most likely I will end up watching the whole season! And I know they're a total waste of time, but there's something so addicting about them. (I'm currently very excited for the new season of 'So You Think You Can Dance?' to start!)

6. I'm a BIG procrastinator! Give me something to do, and guaranteed I will wait till the very last minute to do it. In school, I was always up the whole night trying to finish a project, and in college there was many a time when I didn't finish a paper until 5 minutes before class was starting. I don't know why I am that way, but given something to do that I'm not very excited about doing (like a project/paper) I just can't start it early. I would end up sitting in front of the computer for hours with no ideas, nothing happening. But if I only had a few hours left, my hands would be flying on the keyboard and thoughts would just pour in. I guess maybe I work better under pressure. The only problem is that I never save time for revision. So all the papers in high school and college could've gotten much better grades if I had just given myself more time.

7. I'm shy, but I love to talk! If I'm in a large group of people I don't know very well, I'll be pretty quiet and reserved. But if I'm in a small group of just a few people, even if I don't know them too well, I'll be the one talking. And if I'm one on one, especially with someone I really connect with, I could talk all day.

San Diego trip

We had a lot of fun this last weekend in San Diego, celebrating my Grandmother's 95th birthday. Unfortunately, the weather was a bit dreary most of the time, but at least it wasn't hot! Kaylin did really well on both of her plane rides, to and from San Diego. She slept most of each way, and when she was awake, she didn't seem scared at all. So we have a good little traveler! After we arrived on Saturday, we spent some time in Old San Diego, shopped a bit and had lunch with some old friends we hadn't seen in awhile who happened to be in San Diego for a graduation. (For those of you who know him it was Shant and his wife Jen, and his parents and aunt.) So that was a nice way to start the weekend. On Sunday, we spent most of the day celebrating my Grandmother's birthday. It was a special time with lots of family that we hadn't seen in quite some time. It was fun catching up and sharing stories. Monday we decided to go to the Wild Animal Kingdom before we caught our flight home. It was a bit cold, but still a good time. Kaylin is just at the age where she is excited about animals (and I think somewhat perplexed by them too), so it was fun watching her as she took in all the new sights. And I think she said the word "duckie" too as we were watching them in one of the big ponds at the zoo. (Of course, it sounded more like "duh ee." We've been working on that one with her.) We kind of had to rush through the park, but it was pretty neat seeing a lot of the animals up close. (Below I posted a picture of a really weird/ugly bird we saw.) We didn't get to go on the safari ride, because of the lack of time, so hopefully in the future, because I think that's what the park is mainly known for. All in all, a good weekend, with lots of activity jammed in, so I'm proud of Kaylin for not getting too overwhelmed or irritable. She did really well for having her schedule changed so much--she's such a good kid! I hope you all had a good weekend.

Just having fun...

Here are some pictures I thought were cute that I wanted to post. The first is Kaylin in mommy's hat, the second and third are some funny half handstands she's been into doing lately. (She especially likes it when I come up behind her when she's in the pose and peer at her through her legs--she thinks it's funny and starts giggling!)
The last pic is Kaylin standing by herself. She's getting better and can sometimes stand by herself for several seconds,sometimes more. I think she actually got up by herself (without pulling up on anything) yesterday, but I'm not sure. I think she's almost there. Walking seems a little farther off though. She cruises well, but hasn't attempted any steps by herself, and she doesn't seem all that interested. I think she realizes she can move around a lot faster by crawling, so she's just going to stick with that for now. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. We're going to fly down to San Diego for my grandmother's 95th birthday. We get to see lots of family, many that we haven't seen for quite awhile (and most haven't seen Kaylin), so that will be fun. I'm a little nervous about the plane trip, (It's Kaylin's first) but it's only an hour, so it'll probably be fine. We're staying through Monday to make it worth the trip and are trying to figure out if we want to go to Sea World or San Diego Zoo, or maybe just the beach. (I don't know if we want to pay the exorbitant amount of money it costs for the parks, especially Sea World, when Kaylin won't even remember it.) It'd still be fun though, and Tim's never been (Sea World). Whatever we do, we'll have fun though. It's nice that Kaylin is usually well behaved and doesn't usually get too fussy on outings. So we'll have lots of pics to share when we get back!

Mother's Day

Had a fun day celebrating Mother's day with both Tim and my families. We went to brunch after church, where of course, Kaylin was the star with her pretty pink dress and big bow. (And she was so well behaved!) We came back to our place and exchanged some gifts. Kaylin gave me a beautiful portrait that she painted all by herself (well maybe with some help) along with the onesie she wore while creating it. It was the cutest thing, and I can't wait to hang the picture on the wall! Such a neat idea (thanks hun!). Tim also let me sleep in this morning, I haven't changed a single diaper, he made me a yummy dinner of salmon and rice! And to top it all off, he gave me a full pedicure! I am so spoiled! I hope all of you mom's out there had a wonderful, relaxing day!

Invitations

I finally finished Kaylin's birthday invitations; they're nothing special, but since it took me so long to make them (partly because I'm constantly chasing after a baby), I wanted to show them off. We decided not to do a particular theme for her party, so I just went to Michaels (I love that place!), found some blank card stock in a color I liked, some ribbons and matching buttons, and just went from there. It's funny how even the simplest creations can take a lot of work! It was fun though, and I realized I missed being creative! Creativity is releasing and energizing to me at the same time. I love it, just wish it were came more easily to me and that I had a little more time for it. What are some hobbies that you guys enjoy?

Sponsoring a child

It's been on my heart lately to consider sponsoring a child. A friend and I sponsored a child together back in highschool, and ended up doing it for seven years! Unfortunately moving and life changes caused us to stop sponsoring her (at least on my side). But it was such a great thing, and it really didn't take much on our part to do it. We'd receive letters every once in awhile telling us how she was doing and what she was learning in school. I'm sure it meant so much to her and her family. And it was nice knowing we were doing something to help, even in what felt like a small way. Anyway, I can't remember what organization my friend and I went through, and I'm sure there are a million online, but I want to make sure it is a Christian organization that is really giving the money to children in need, and not some scam. I was wondering if anyone has a specific organization that they know and like and could recommend?

Update

I wanted to give a little update on how Kaylin is doing. Her fever broke last night, and she finally slept much better. Today she had all her energy back (in fact, so much so, that I just got her down for her first nap at 2); she wanted to keep playing! She still has some diarrhea (sorry if tmi), and we'll see how long that lasts, but overall, she seems to be much better. Thanks to all of you who kept us in your prayers. We appreciate it!

Jumped the gun...

Okay, so I guess I was a little bit quick to celebrate Kaylin's newly acquired sleep habits. Last night was about as opposite as you could get from sleeping through the night! Yesterday, after having a nice long nap in the morning (also a rarity), I went to change her diaper, and she felt really warm, so I took her temperature. Turns out she had a fever. She wasn't acting any differently, still had plenty of energy and a good appetite with no other symptoms. The fever wasn't too high, so I didn't call the doctor and decided to just watch her. Her temperature stayed about the same throughout the day, so I gave her some Tylenol drops, which brought it down a little bit. No other symptoms ever showed up, we gave her some more Tylenol before bed, I nursed her and tried to put her in her crib. That's when the fun began. She woke up everytime I put her in, and didn't want to be held or rocked. I tried giving her to Tim, but the same thing, she pushed him away too. Eventually she fell asleep, not in her crib, but back again in our bed, where this whole unwanted sleep pattern started several months ago. She didn't sleep well at all, kept moving and crawling around (which meant we didn't sleep well either), so Tim put her back in the crib eventually. She lasted awhile, but woke up a couple of times (I didn't know, I was too tired to wake up, I guess.) Tim took her out into the living room and held her on the couch until she fell asleep. She woke up again at 6:30; I thought she was going to sleep longer since she didn't sleep well, but guess not. She still has a slight fever this morning, but again, is acting normally. I have no idea what she has! Part of me thought maybe she's teething (she still doesn't have any teeth) but she has no sign of any coming through--no drooling, no swollen gums. Anybody have any ideas of what she might have? I'll just have to watch her, and if she has the fever still tomorrow, I'll probably call the doctor. Poor thing!

Yay for sleep!

Okay, so I just wanted to report that Kaylin slept through the night last night, without waking to nurse even once! This is about her third time in about a week and a half that she has done so, and I'm so grateful for the sleep--I just hope it lasts! Of course, she's been waking up at 6:30, so if that keeps up, I'm going to have to adjust to the earlier mornings. But, yay for her improved sleep!

Figuring things out

Like I titled my blog, I feel like now is a time in my life that I am really trying to figure things out. I haven't posted in awhile because I was trying to figure out what I wanted to say. I have been inspired by others' posts of late, which I feel have opened my mind and heart to several important topics. It's so easy for me to get caught up in my world of family and small community (and myself), especially when I spend most days inside with my daughter. I catch the news on t.v. and online, but in reality, my world has become small. I forget that millions are hurting, and that I could do something about that, even in just a small way. (And that's another thing that I'm trying to find some direction in.) How does the Lord want me to use my time and energy? I'm here for a purpose; there's a reason that God created me and put me here, and for a long time, I have felt that I am not fully living up to my purpose. (Does that make sense?) I look at my daughter and I know that she is a big part of my purpose, as is being a good wife to Tim, but I feel that there must be more. Like the topic of Kate's post, I feel too that Tim and I are in transition and I'm just praying that the Lord will start revealing his plans for us. I know there's a reason that we are in Davis right now, I'm just waiting to see what it is. The world is so much bigger than just myself and my family, and that is easy to forget. I feel like I am rambling, and I'm still trying to piece everything together in my head. But I wanted to share what was on my heart, especially after several similar post topics.

Food + Baby= Very Big Mess!

So we discovered tonight that Kaylin is able to feed herself with a spoon! (Okay, but she still needs lots of help!) Tim and I were eating dinner, and Kaylin was in her highchair next to me. Usually when we have dinner, the two of us eat and take turns feeding Kaylin her dinner so we can all eat together. We feed her stage 2 or 3 Gerber baby food, not our dinner since she doesn't have teeth yet. Well tonight we were eating late because I had just gotten home from the gym, and Tim had gone grocery shopping, so we were eating our food more than feeding her. I left the jar and spoon on her tray, and I guess she gave up on us feeding her and decided to feed herself, because I looked over and she had gotten the spoon out of the jar and (mostly) into her mouth! Needless to say, most of the food did not make it into her mouth, but rather, all over her, her chair, and the floor. Because she hasn't done too much self-feeding, her meals are usually pretty clean, definitely never as messy as in these pictures! I think she enjoyed the experience of feeling "all grown up" as she spoon fed herself, as well as the texture and feel of the food all over her! (Good thing her bath was next.) Lately she hasn't been as interested in her baby food, and I figured she was outgrowing it and was ready for more lumpier solid foods (I think that's part of it) cause she usually only eats a little before she starts refusing it. This time though, she ate almost all of the six-ounce jar (with our help) and I think it was partly because she felt that she was doing it. (So I know that most of you with young kids have already had this experience and so it may not be as exciting, but as it was our first, I wanted to share pictures.)
"I can't get all the food out, so I'll try this"

Kaylin attempting to feed herself