Choices, Choices

Ok.....so this is something I need to decide.

I have a professor who I want to work with for graduate school. I don't plan on going to graduate school until Fall 2014-- a year after I get my bachelors.

So, I have 3 choices.

One: Do Geology 410 spring of 2014 and graduate with my bachelors that June. (Daniel graduates around the same time). I would take a Diatom course this coming spring instead of doing 410 (spring 2013). Then go into graduate school Fall 2014. Classes in the meantime with be going towards my graduate requirements.
One Cons: geology 410 without my friends and the classmates I am use to.

Two: Graduate with my bachelors June 2013. Graduate school Fall 2014. (My current plan) Daniel still graduates Summer of 2014. Diatom course Spring 2015.
Things I am worried about: 
     -That I won't be able to keep up with my education in the meantime
     -That by that time the research I want to do will not be available for me


Three: I take Geology 410 this spring (spring of 2013) and not walk with my bachelors but I will have all the classes done for it. Instead, I will technically be done with my bachelors Spring 2013, but I will continue in school for Fall 2013 and maybe Winter 2014. That way I can take graduate level courses and get most of my coursework done for graduate school. I will take the diatom course Spring of 2014. By the time I start graduate school in Fall of 2014 I will have a lot of my graduate coursework done, diatom course will be done, I will have continued and not fallen behind in geology, and hopefully have a little baby by then. I will graduate from graduate school a year and a half later.

Plans one and three are very similar. The only difference is one I will have my bachelors a year sooner, but I won't have the diploma since I am continuing with school.

Any opinions?

Star Wars Legos

The completed Millennium Falcon and a picture from outside. Enjoy!!!!

Skyping!

I got my ear talked off about legos and Minecraft. I showed my sister and Dirk our apartment and Dirk told me about his house. We also played with our skype effects and the above picture is the result. Elizabeth has no head!!!!! Delilah is absolutely adorable!!!!!


Thanks Liz, Delilah, and Dirk for chatting with Daniel and me!

Done and Done!

Finals are over (for better or worse) and my sister had her beautiful baby girl-- Delilah Marie!

So let me first say how incredibly happy I am for my new niece. The one thing I want for Christmas more than anything is to fly out to MI and to hold that little girl. :(  I won't see her until May or August, hopefully.

Finals weren't bad. I had a presentation on Monday. That went ok. Then my one and only final on Thursday morning at 7am. That test was monstrous, but I only needed a 70% to get an A in the class. I hope I pulled it off. :) Friday I worked a little and fixed the little thing wrong on my hand contoured seismic interpretation. Now I am done! YIPPEE!

That morning I was able to hang with my bestest of friends with only a little bit of school interference on our minds. I have to say that Rachel in particular looked extremely peaceful. Unfortunately, with the school shooting, the day was a bit gloomy. What a tragedy.

Though...I turned to Daniel at one point in the day and said "You know, I don't feel as sad as most people without the Gospel. At least most of them were little children and were not accountable for their sins." Those children will be with our Heavenly Father. Though their Earthly experiences were ripped unfairly from them, they will be in the Celestial Kingdom. I just want to try to see some more of the positive from this terrible tragedy.

We went to see the Hobbit. It was good. The theater we went to was like a furnace for the first half of the movie and they started the movie a good 15 minutes late. And what was with those trailers? The only good one was for the new Star Trek movie. I gagged at the new Stephanie Meyer movie. Why oh why do they keep making movies out of terrible books?!

The Hobbit itself was good. You have to understand going into it that it is not LotR. You also have to understand it is a prequel to the LotR.

I also gave Daniel an early Christmas present. I told him he could open it now or later. I was hinting I wanted him to open it sooner. I think he is glad he did. Now he has time to make the millennium falcon before we head to Washington for Christmas. I have never seen him so excited for a material possession. I know that he has wanted this for years and because of his parents I was able to finally make this possible for him. Thanks Vaun and Margaret!

The final steps

10 steps till I get what I want.


1. To take my last final (almost done)
 
2. My sister to pop out that lovely daughter of hers

3. Visit family in Washington

4. Enjoy Christmas and 2nd year anniverssary

5. Make New Year resolutions

6. Keep resolutions

7. Get through winter semester

8. Think about different insurance

9. Take 6 week geology field course (410)

10.Graduate and move on with bigger better things :)

Structure? Yeah....what about it?

Whooo Hooooo!

So, this semester has been super-duper-incredibly stressful and difficult. I went into the semester thinking it was going to be the easiest semester I have ever had…..but soon realized that because of one of my classes my semester was going to be (pardon my French) absolute hell.

You might be thinking I am over exaggerating how stupid this semester was, but I am not….I am not even going to go into any detail of it because I have talked about it so often with my fellow students that I am sick of the subject. It was terrible.

Note my word use of “was!” It’s over!!!  I officially have done all the insane labs, research, papers, presentation, quizzes, homeworks, EVERYTHING! I am done. 

The professor decided that we do not need a final and asked our forgiveness for some of the things that were ridiculous that he did (like 5 hour lectures and keeping us over time and not giving us breaks during this time). 

I had talked to my professor yesterday for a long while asking him questions I needed answers to in order to give my presentation today (which went well!). We talked about the class itself and I explained how there was so much information I wanted to present on and so little time. In that way I understood why he always kept us over and had “marathon” lectures. 

I explained how I am quiet in his class because I absorb and learn by watching and listening. I apologized for always looking bored in his class, but reassured him that I love geology so much. So much that having kids and going to graduate school right away are nearly equal to each other. If I didn’t have the gospel, I wouldn’t be able to make a decision. Fortunately, Daniel and I have made the decision and I don’t have to wonder what is right….though at times I think of the other option and want it just as badly. 

Overall, I am glad that he apologized and asked our forgiveness. Especially that we don’t have a final. Though, I still feel so wronged by this experience that it may take time for me to truly recover. 

In the end…I did learn in his class. Not as much as I normally would learn. I did especially love the research we each had to conduct and write about. My group did the mouth of Provo Canyon. I didn’t quite enjoy the group part, but I learned so much through that paper. 

I have a seismic project and presentation left. I am a bit nervous about this, but originally I had that and the structure final to work on. Now…just the presentation and my groundwater final (which I love that class and know I will do great!)

I don’t know what the point of this entry was. Mostly I think it was a way for me to realize how grateful I am that structure is done and also realize how much I did learn from the class and the experience itself.

Day 2 whoo!

Day 2 on the diet plan.

We had an egg sandwich for lunch. I woke up too late for breakfast.

For dinner we had a bean and potato side (boiled together with salt and bacon). For the main meal we had turkey with some gravy over it.

Between meals we had carrots, wheat thins, vanilla wafers, snow peas, and celery.

I even have room for a small bit of Tillamook ice cream!!!

And I am still slightly under all my daily amounts.

This coming week will be hard to find time to exercise seeing as it is pre-finals week. But once finals week rolls along, this new program will officially be underway. I am hoping to lose 5 lbs by the time winter semester begins.