Long time coming.....

Today is finally the day......

I haven't blogged in over a year now. It's crazy to think about how much has happened since I wrote my last post:

-Graduated from college finally

-Began (and now halfway through) my deployment to Afghanistan

Sure, it may not seem like much, but in all reality a lot has changed for me.

Right now, I'm sitting in my RLB listening to some music with headphones on cause my roommate is asleep. RLB is code for "really little bedroom" in my opinion. However, I've made my side my own. I have a wall filled with pictures of friends and family that remind me of why I'm here. I miss my family more everyday, but I try and remember how amazing it will be when I see them in the spring time. One main thing I've learned since being here is how important quality time is with those you love. I will not be taking that for granted when I get home, of this I'm sure.

One wall has my lovely calendar for a countdown that Renee made from the family before I left. I flipped it to December a couple days ago which brought a huge smile to my face. One more month down. My friend Jarrod sent a red stocking with an "A" on it thats hanging up. My parents are amazing and will be sending me a little tree too to decorate. 

Ok, I've probably said too much about my RLB :P  

The unfortunate thing is, I can't really explain or describe anything I'm doing here for security purposes. 

Either way, I decided to write because I know my mom will appreciate this. She has been amazing since I've been here. She sends packages, letters and I get to skype with her every now and then. I love you more and miss you so much mom. 

My whole family has been a great support system since I left. I will be overjoyed when I get to see them all again. It brings a smile to my face when I think about all the great conversations and family games that will happen when I get home. 

I'm going to wrap things up for now. Things are going well here. I will continue to try and better myself and I hope to come home a better person after experiencing this. 

Gorgeous Sunrise over the mountains

I took this in July when the flag was at half mass in honor of the marine that was killed.

All geeked out in my gear :)

my attempt to protest the new burn pit near by that I breathe in everyday :P 

Awesome blanket made and sent by the one and only, Katie Warden 

Everyone back home says my hair is super long......I still want it to be longer :P 

just chilling in my room

Snuggled up with my favorite stuffed german sheppard, Ranger

Merry Christmas! 

Long Overdue!

Well I was told by a certain sister in law of mine that I should probably blog......so here it goes:

A lot of new things have been happening in my life. I was blessed at the end of July to find out that I had received a last minute slot into the Skills program in Brooklyn Park. For those of you that don't know, Skills is all of the theory and hands on training that students have to go through to become a police officer in Minnesota. I started at the end of August and have been loving it thus far. Many of my classmates are awesome people, so it's been easy to spend four nights a week with them :)

I'm deploying in 7 months! Talk about time going fast! Over the next few months, my unit will be getting administrative work done for soldiers deploying and also get our qualifications up to date. We will probably start our validation training in January. I still feel like it's a ways off, but I must say my mom had a point when she said "it will be here before you know it". I'm looking forward to the experience and spending that time away with many friends.

Other than those two things, there isn't much happening. I'm running my first marathon in 2 weeks and don't feel ready even a little bit. :S However, I trust that I have the stamina to make it to the finish line! I'm still living with my lovely brother and sister in law, Adam and Renee, and enjoying it very much. They are so much fun to be around, along with Milo, the pup.

Well, I probably should get back to studying. Until next time....... :)

P.S. my hair is getting super long and I'm very happy about that. Just thought I would let you all know :)

My love for school has turned into hatred........Two exams next week, one of which has a 40 page study guide. Yes, 40 pages. Need I say more?

Ok so it's been a while........Life has been pretty insane with school, work and just life in general. I've been looking forward to some much needed time off school (aka, spring break baby!) and I made it! I'm off for spring break this whole next week! Unfortunately, I'm not going anywhere warm for this lovely break, but just having some down time will be nice.

I'm enjoying school for the most part. I'm learning a lot in a couple of my classes, and the stuff I'm learning is going to be very useful once I'm a cop. I'm still pretty excited to graduate in May though. Skills is going to be fun and I'm definitely ready to start on that journey.

Totally random, but I've been thinking about taking a language course this summer. Pashtu is the official language of Afghanistan. As you all know by now, I'm going to be spending a year there on a deployment. There is a part of me that really wants to get in touch with the language and culture before I go. I feel like it would help me acclimate when I get there and have a better understanding of the locals that I'll be working with.

Work is going ok, although I haven't been there much because of school. There is a possibility of me going on orders to work with the MN Honor Guard team. They do all military funerals in the state: the folding of the flag and the 21 gun salute. It's a job that would be an honor and a privilege in my opinion.

Well, thats the new buzz guys. Until next time :)

2011: The year of the Bus

Hahaha I know I know, I'm a dork with the title, but I can't help but be overjoyed that I now have FREEDOM!!!! Well, sort of at least. :P I bought a bus pass yesterday so I can make my way around without bugging my sis every ten seconds to use the car! It was one hundred bucks, but it will pay for itself in no time. It's a "college pass" so I now have unlimited rides on the bus until May 31st!! Isn't that rad?!?! I mean trust me, I would love to have the freedom of having my own car, but right now that just isn't possible. So instead, I'm going to ride the bus as much as I can, to where ever I need to go.

So I started my adventure today after I got done at work. I took the bus from my house to uptown. I walked a couple blocks to a local coffee shop on Hennepin (Spyhouse: if ya haven't been there, make it a priority coffee shop to go to!). I worked on my Psychology homework for a couple hours at the "coffee bar" they have. I started to get a little side tracked, so I asked the lady working if there was a library near by.

Of course there was! haha I walked about 6 blocks south on Hennepin to the Walker Hennepin Co library. I stopped in at a computer store on the way to find out about getting iWork for my laptop. I was excited to hear I can buy it on itunes for 50 bucks cheaper! BOOYAH.

I studied at the library for a while and then went across the street for a quick sub. Now, I'm sitting at the sbux close by my house (I took the bus back over to my digs). Needless to say, I'm dorking out about the bus now. It's super convenient, I just have to search for routes and stuff online until I get the hang of it. I'm also really excited to become a lot more knowledgable on the Minneapolis area.

I'm looking forward to "forced down time" as Lisa calls it :P The stupid picture above is of me with my awesome bus pass :P (oh yeah those are my new specs too! I got them in the mail yesterday!)

Anyway, I'm done ranting about my exciting news. Until next time peeps.

So, I made my super secret squirrel recipe yesterday. It was a dud unfortunately. I got the recipe out of my sisters cookbook "clean food". Needless to say, when some people say that whole foods are gross and bland, this is one of the recipes they were talking about.

Black beans are tasty. There tasty in my chipotle burrito bowl, in salsa and several other things. However, no one should EVER make them into patties. There were several other things in the patties, but they just didn't have any flavor. I made a pineapple guacamole with the patties, and THAT was good, but even putting that on the patty did not help.

You live and you learn right? I've really enjoyed cooking at home. I'm starting to get the hang of how much spice or oil you need for cooking. I picked up my friend Katie from the airport and made dinner at her house with her husband and little bundle of joy Addi. Lemon Chicken, grilled asparagus, and seasoned red potatoes. They said it was amazing! I was fairly proud of myself cause I didn't find it too difficult to accomplish!

Anyway, I'm sitting at school in the Veterans lounge right now, putting of reading my textbooks. I should probably get to the learning. Until next time friends!

Operation "Whole Foods" in full swing!

Last week I spent some time thinking about ways to quicken my weight loss........I only came up with on task; however, I knew it wasn't going to be an easy one at that. Eating healthier. Isn't that the answer to many things whether it's weight loss, happiness, or health issues? People say it, but I feel like most people don't explain it or don't want to go through the trouble of research. Not to mention the trips to the grocery store that are much more difficult (and a lot more expensive unfortunately).

I've decided I'm going to change the nasty cycle.

Well, for two weeks at least :P I'm going to eat ONLY whole foods for the next 12 days. (I already started yesterday so I'm closing up on day two right now! No, seriously, I'm sitting at the table eating a clementine and pumpkin seeds as I write this.) It's not going to be easy to resist my normal caramel high rise at work along with the occasional banana chocolate chip muffin (which I must say are A-mazing). However, I know that I will be working for the good of my body in the long run. (oh running, how I miss you)

My lovely sister, Lisa, is a health nut and is helping me with what I can and cannot eat. She lent me one of her cookbooks "clean food" and I'm going to be making a couple meals from the book that call for all whole foods.

I'm really excited about this. Today I totally geeked out at the grocery store. I was almost on a first name basis with the lady stocking in the organic section as I asked her question after question about different products. :P Anyway, as I know you all love photos, I continued my geekyness when I got home and took some photos of my groceries:

All my lovely groceries for the next two weeks. And yes, I displayed my reusable bags proudly!

Beautiful!

veggies for my recipes I'm excited to try out!

THIS WEEKS FEATURED PRODUCTS

(ok, thats code for my favorite buys)

Steel cut oats! I have NEVER made actual oatmeal. I've always made instant!

And the only bread available in the store that was made from whole food.

Well, that the exciting new stuff in life right now.....I'm sure I'll be updating when I make my lovely whole food meal (it's super secret squirrel stuff right now) on Thursday! Until then!