My Birthday

My mom and I went to Maquoketa Caves State Park and got dirty! I spent most of my birthday underground exploring caves and squirming my way through tight spaces. It was so much fun, but today I can barely move. Every muscle aches and I have lots of bruises, but it was worth it!

I am officially packed for Colorado and I leave for Columbia tomorrow before heading out on Wednesday. I can't wait. I'm really excited but I think I'm also a little nervous. There is a lot of change ahead of me which makes life kinda scary. It helps to know that God is in control and that I can trust Him to take care of me.

Also, unrelated to any of this, my family's new dog has decided that I am his favorite person. I don't think he realizes that I am the girl who doesn't like dogs. Boy, will that be a let down when he finds out. I hope I don't break his little doggy heart.

3 months later

I think I've discovered bloging really isn't my thing. But for those of you who would like an update.....

I graduate in 6 days then I'm going to Colorado to work and be in an awesome project group!! Then I don't have a job, I don't have insurance, and I don't have a place to live. However, it is all being worked out as we speak. And apparently I needed to work on trusting God because all of this leaves me no other choice.

I'm kind of scared but also excited. I'm sad to leave so many people here in Des Moines, but looking forward to being with and meeting new people in Columbia. Basically my life is one huge package of emotions right now and I struggle to even put it into words. God is always working but he is about to do some major renovations in my heart!

Showers

I thought I would take this moment to let you all know that I have figured out a schedule where I only have to shower 2 days a week. It's wonderful!! And if I hadn't told you, you might never have known.

Ok, Christine, You Win

Four Jobs I’ve Had in My Life:
*Ice Cream Specialist at Dairy Queen
*Nanny/Babysitting
*Housekeeping in Colorado
*Prairie Rescue and Restoration

Four Movies I Could Watch Over and Over:
*The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe
*The Polar Express
*Really any movie that makes you think
*or has cool analogies

Four Places I Have Lived:
*Oelwein, Iowa
*Des Moines, Iowa
*Estes Park, Colorado
*There is no fourth

Four TV Shows I Love To Watch:
*Gilmore Girls
*Re-runs of The Cosby Show
*That might be all
*I could easily live without a TV

Four Places I Have Been On Vacation:
*South Dakota, Mt. Rushmore and Custer State Park
*Florida, Orange Bowl Parade
*St. Louis, the arch and the zoo
*Wisconsin, camping along the Mississippi

Four Websites I Visit Daily:
*Email
*2nd Email
*The Iowa Channel for weather
*Estes Park Visitor Center Live WebCam

Four Favorite Foods:
*I can only pick four??
*This is too hard
*I love pretty much every food
*except mushrooms and raw fish

Four Places I Would Like to Visit:
*Alaska
*The Smoky Mountains
*Oregon
*Montana

Four People I Am "Tagging":
*No one in particular
*If you want to do it, go for it

School

Well, I'm not alone anymore; classes are back. And I don't think I was ready for them. I am excited about them this semester though, I think I will be learning a lot of useful and interesting information. If you talk to me in a few months I should be able to name most of the plants and trees I see, and I might have some interesting viewpoints on the topic of global warming and climate change. I will probably also be able to tell you anything you wanted to know about the invasive species honey suckle or garlic mustard, and explain to you some of my own research. Just typing that makes me excited to learn about all of it!! On that note I am going to go eat some breakfast and get ready for class.

Alone

Too much alone time is bad for me. It's not fun anymore. I miss everybody. I don't like how I feel. Goodnight.

Sun

I woke up this morning and the sun was shining!!! Hallelujah! The sun hasn't shone in at least two weeks, so I say today is going to be extra fantabulous. I get to run one mile and I get to talk to Bill and I get to start packing to I can return to Des Moines tomorrow.

Things have been going well over break, there has been a lot of craziness but God has shown me that He can take care of it and will. And even though He can use me in situations it isn't my responsibility to fix things or always make them better. I know I need God and I pray I will simply look to Him in my most desperate and my not so deperate times instead of trying to control things on my own.