All I Want is the Puppy...

The title of this post was a sentence I actually uttered at work last week.

We were looking at a house design magazine we found in the waiting room, and one of the ICC girls was oohing and ahhing over the furniture - it's all the super fancy, uncomfortable chairs that look like they are just meant to be looked at, not sat on - and the only thing I liked in the entire picture was the puppy that was sitting by the chair.

Lately, it seems like all I want is what I shouldn't have. There's no room for a puppy in my teeny, tiny apartment. There's no room in my budget for dinners out with friends, not even the small treat of coffee. I have this "I want, I want, I want" craving, an itch I am just not able to scratch. I want to travel the world instead of studying for finals. I want to get more tattoos without disappointing my family (yeah, right).

Sometimes, though, you just have to forget the "want" and focus on the "have." I have the stuff to bake away my stress, I have friends who just want to chat, and I have a crush. Turns out, I'm a pretty good "have." I am relearning to appreciate my little treasures, to fall back in love with the little things that make me who I am.

I may have lost my way for a good long while, but I'm getting it back. I'm even relearning to love school, to actually put effort into my assignments. One excellent way to keep reminding myself to keep working?

Keep staring at this baby:

No, it's not my diploma (not yet, anyways). It's actually a Outstanding Student Service Award from the English department for all my work on the Oregon Rhetoric and Composition Conference. I was so shocked to win! I didn't even know this award existed, so I'm a little ecstatic!

Mama(s) And Me

Every time Mother's Day rolls around, I can't help but think about all the different types of families out there. Safeway has FINALLY started to make more than just Mom cards - they have aunt, sister, and grandma cards for more than just kids now. Somehow, they still haven't caught onto the "stepmom" card yet - nobody has! I don't really get it, but oh well.

Now, last year I did a round up of my moms- mom, stepmom, and grandma. You can learn all about these wonderful women here. I still cannot express just how important these women are to me. Words just can't cut the mustard on this topic.

Surprisingly, I also have a lot of friends that are mothers. Not so much at school - I only have two or three there, but a lot of friends from back home (family friends, not high school!) and coworkers.

I actually admire mothers. The good ones, who care for their kids every day of every week, making sure to take the time to really be with their kid. I can't stand the idea of being a mother myself - I prefer the return policy that comes with being an aunt - but I do admire mothers. It takes a strong woman to bring life into this world. Not every can do it, and there are some people (myself included) who really shouldn't.

To me, mothers (and fathers) are the superheros of the world. Moms love unconditionally, and heck, they have to have superhuman strength to carry us around for nine months and then give birth! Ouch. So, moms of the blog world, thank you.

Thank you for loving your children. Thank you for raising the next generation to the best of your ability. Thank you for struggling to sleep, for making sure there's food on the table and a roof over head, for being a mom.

It's a Wonderful Spring

Now that Oregon has FINALLY decided to catch up with the seasons, we get to enjoy some gorgeous sunshine and man is it making studying for midterms hard!

This week I've got two ten page papers due and a midterm that is gonna break my brain tomorrow afternoon. Luckily, Natalie at a moment of wonderful hosted A Spring into Something Wonderful gift swap, and my gift arrived this afternoon!

My present came from Gretchen in Georgia. I always wonder what people think of when they think of Oregon, and she confirmed my guess: RAIN! She compiled a rainy day survival kit for me, and I absolutely LOVE it!

Sorry, my camera phone is an old flip phone, so the quality isn't too great.

The note that came in the package said:
 "An umbrella w/ cheery colors (to maybe distract you from the gloomy rain) and then some tea and a candle. So the umbrella can get you safely home where you can unwind + have a relaxing moment with some tea."
(I figured a quote from Georgia required the Georgia font)


The umbrella is a button-open rainbow (so nice!), the tea is Tazo Zen Green Tea with lemongrass and spearmint (That plus Staci's giveaway tea is gonna be a good way to ease myself into tea drinking) and a Chesapeake Bay Mandarin Berry candle (I can't find it on Chesapeake Bay Candle's website, but oh my yummy smell!)

Thank you, Gretchen, for the rainy day cure! I love this gift swap, and I can't wait to do the next one!