Video of the Week:

JUST SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

Imagine:

Watching constant news coverage over bombings, shootings, murders, and the suspects of these events really has me thinking hard today. Over the past couple of days, I've been trying to think of something to say to kind of address what's going on in Boston. I've found myself starting and erasing this blog post a couple different times for fear of not being able to word what I have to say eloquently enough to please my readers.

I will not flood your homepages and news-feeds with my opinions because in the end, my opinions on this bombing won't change yours. But I will say this...

The only way that anything is ever going to be accomplished in this world is if we come together. I realize that people are different and I'm not naive enough to think that everybody likes everybody, but there is no way that our children, and our children's children, will ever live the life that we hope they can if our generation doesn't rise above the differences and the hate and achieve some sort of level of acceptance, the ability to coexist without violence.

There's no place like home... except Gramma's!

Over the past weekend, my mother and I took a quick road trip to Omaha, NE. Seriously, we drove 3 hours there, stayed 28 hours, and then drove 3 hours home. While we were there, I was reminded how nothing ever changes there. Seriously, my gramma has had the same wallpaper in her dining room since I was born, and she still offers me soda for breakfast.

It's nice being able to go back to a place and have things look exactly the same every time, but on the other, it makes me wonder what I'll do when it's not there anymore.

Anywho, here are a few pics from the weekend to show you what I mean:

 

YUCKY WEATHER

Okay, so I admit it... I complain about the weather way more than I should. I have lived in the metro area of Kansas City, MO for my entire life (minus the years I spent in Columbia, MO for college), and the weather has always been this way. I've seen this picture floating around the internet a number of times, and we all have to admit it's true:

It goes from being hot to cold, to freezing, to humid, and back again before you can wear enough clothes to warrant washing a load of laundry here, but it's something we've come to expect (even though we continue to complain about it).

With this all said, I've been trying to come up with a list of things to get me through this yucky weather. Different projects, ideas, etc... and maybe you guys could suggest blog posts you'd like to! Here's a few things I've come up with so far:

• Organizing my closet (this is a never ending task it seems like...)
• Make a list of 25 things I want to accomplish before I turn 25
• Go wedding gift shopping for upcoming nuptials
• A DIY Mother's Day gift?
• WORK ON MY SCRAPBOOK (I'm only 11 months behind :/ )
• Try a new recipe to post on the blog

As always, let me know if there's something you'd like to see here on PDC!

NEW JOB

For those of you who are friends with me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter, you might have heard that I have been presented with a wonderful job opportunity. Basically I just wanted to explain a little bit more about what's going to happen.

I got accepted into the Teaching Fellowship Program at MU. According to the website, "The MU Teaching Fellowship is a rigorous induction program offered by the College of Education and the MUPartnership for Educational Renewal (MPER). Teaching Fellows are first-year teachers who work with a full-time, on-site mentor and complete courses delivered by faculty from the college's Department of Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum to earn a master's degree during that first year."

Essentially what it means is that I will be an employee of the University of Missouri, but working in a school district full time as a teacher. I will work at half salary and the University will cover my Master's tuition. I will earn my Master's by July 2014 from Mizzou.

I have received my placement at Chillicothe High School in Chillicothe, MO. This is about 1 hour and 20 minutes from where my parents and friends live. As far as I've been told, I will most likely be teaching sophomore English. I am only certified to teach grades 5-9, so the district will be paying for me to take the Praxis for this age level. I'm a little nervous about taking another Praxis, but in the end it is to my benefit because it expands my certification for English from 5-9 to 5-12, and I'm also certified in 5-9 Social Studies.

The district is also going to be providing housing for the 4 Fellows that will be moving up there. This is definitely an added perk so that expenses won't be as high, especially with the wedding coming.

Overall, I'm really excited. It's definitely going to be a challenge, but definitely worth it for the benefit of my future!

Go Hornets!

Mini Cheesecakes!

Alright guys, I wanted to share with you a (brilliant) idea that my mom passed on to me. Literally, it's something SO SIMPLE that you don't even think about - but it's delicious and easy.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 box of Vanilla Wafers (off brand works just fine)
• 1 box instant/no-bake cheesecake mix
• 1.5 cups of COLD milk
• 2 mini muffin pans
• mini cupcake liners

The procedure of making this is simple. I start by putting cupcake liners in the 2 mini muffin pans. Then I pop a 'Nilla Wafer into each cupcake spot (as pictured). As far as making the cheesecake, just follow the instructions on the box. We're not reinventing the wheel here, just making it a little easier to do. I used a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon to scoop the mix into the pans. You may want to use a little more or less, just depends on how full you'd like! :)

After you've put everything together, throw them into the fridge for 1 hour and you've got yourself some cute little mini cheesecakes that literally took 5 minutes to put together! Great for parties, dessert, or just someone who has a sweet tooth!

Do you guys have any simple, cheat recipes for desserts??

"To-Do"

I've found myself lately trying to find the time to get everything done. Between school, work, Ben, friends, and everything in between I'm constantly finding myself wishing for more hours in the day!! Not even to sleep, but to do more! Do you guys ever feel like that??

With big changes coming in the year ahead, I can't help but feel like there's something big that I'm forgetting!

Here's a quick list of milestones coming up!

1. May 18 - Jessica and David's wedding (bridesmaid)
2. June - Start summer classes
3. June 15 - Cody and Chance's wedding
4. July 4 - Duvall reunion at the river (still up in the air)
5. August - Start new job
6. August 13 - Turn 25!
7. August 30 - Khea and Kris' wedding
8. October - Send out wedding invites
9. October/November - Bridal showers
10. November 9 - Sam and Ryan's wedding
11. December 27 - Ben's birthday
12. December 28 - Bachelorette party (date subject to change)
13. January 3 - GET MARRIED

Another BRIEF wedding update:

I don't have much to report at this moment. Nothing profound has been done in terms of decorations, food, or even picking an officiant (I should probably get on some of these things....), but something awesome did happen!! Ben and I have officially invited all of our ushers to be, well... ushers, in the wedding! I'm very pleased and excited that they all said yes! Welcome to the party, Isaac and Ryan! So now I officially have the three best, most wonderful, best looking ushers on this side of the Mississippi. I'm pretty pleased! ;)

(Photo credit goes to Isaac himself)

While I've been Away...

Hey guys! Sorry for such a stretch between posts this past week! Things have been pretty busy around here with school and work, then to top it off I flew to Indiana over the weekend for my fiance's sister's wedding! With all the said, there's no sign of things slowing down either!! With one of my very best friend's weddings next month (that I'm in), things are coming down to the wire for everything in terms of decorations and pre-celebrations (bachelorette, etc.) so I'm expecting things to be crazy!! Don't worry though, I promise to still find time to update!

Today, a few snapshots from the wedding over the weekend! I'm blessed to be marrying into such a wonderful, tight-knit, loving family! Yay for the Duvall's!

SUMMER MOVIE QUEUE

Something I've been thinking about a lot lately is that fact that I hardly ever go to the movies anymore! Back in the day (good old 8th grade)... you could find me at the movies almost every weekend! Now that I'm older, life and responsibilities get in the way. This summer though, I definitely want to take some time to hit up the movies and see some of the great flicks that are coming out!

My top 3 picks!

1. The Great Gatsby
2. Now You See Me
3. The Wolverine

What are some of the movies that you guys want to see this summer?!