— 1 —

I made it to school! My flights to IL were uneventful, and I sat behind babies on both 🙂 It was just fabulous taking a hike through the Chicago O’Hare airport too! No….it wasn’t. I was so sweaty when I finally made it to my gate. But I made it safely! My drive to school was uneventful too, except for when I gassed up and my bank thought my card had been stolen. Haha. It was very nice to have a radio, and I jammed all the way for about 5 hours. Yay. It is lovely having a car.

— 2 —

Speaking of school, it’s going to be an interesting year. Here’s the lowdown on my classes:

Principles of management: I like this one. It’s almost like a psychology class about understanding how to manage and lead people. Do you know what the book’s definition of management is? “The art of getting things done through the efforts of other people.” Haha. I definitely want to keep the book after, because I think it’s going to be very useful.

Quantitative Analysis: This is not as bad as I thought it would be. It’s pretty basic math, which my professor said we know most of already. We started with exponents and polynomials, and I am happy about that because my brain can handle it. For now.

Childhood Development: Love it! I have my same teacher from general psych, and I love how she uses technology. She shows us cases and videos of what she’s talking about, which is awesome, and has those fancy-schmancy iClickers.

Macroeconomics: If any class is going to kill me this year, this one is going to be the culprit. I’ve never really studied the economy. And this class started by throwing these lovely diagrams on the board.

Well, isn’t that just peachy? This is going to be a toughie. And just think, I get another semester of it with microeconomics in the spring!

Accounting: So far, this doesn’t seem too bad. My professor is a character, and has been a CPA for 21 years. And there’s a tutor just for this class! I will probably take advantage of that as time goes on.

Concert Chorale: We have a new director for this, and he seems pretty knowledgeable. We have 7 rehearsals before our performance of some epic Disney mash-ups.

— 3 —

I like living in a suite. The rooms are bigger, and for the first time I can remember, I’m not sleeping in a bunk bed! We have plenty of shelf space, and it’s really nice to have a separate place for chilling. And look at our comfy new couch!

There are plenty of shelves and closet space. We have tons of kitchen supplies, so that’s awesome for cooking. And we’re on the ground floor. Hallelujah! I hung up this lovely vinyl saying my parents got me (which had to go on a poster board because hello cinder block walls that don’t hold anything).

Do you notice how it’s on my bed, not the wall, though? Yes. That is because it fell the other night and I forgot to pick it up and now it is bent. How nice! Now I gotta figure out how to un-bend it.

— 4 —

Last night was the ministry fair where freshman go to sign their lives away to all the awesome programs on campus. And I did my part by being there for Ravens Respect Life! There was a great response (especially from freshman), and I am super excited to have our first meeting. Us officers are going to have fun putting that together 🙂

— 5 —

It’s really hot here. Well, really it’s just humid. As in…I can’t walk 20 feet without looking like I just ran a marathon. Hmmm, that’s probably not 100% true, though, since I’ve never run one and don’t know what I would look like (dead, perhaps?) but I’m just saying…I live at the top of a hill now, and so hello sweat. Good thing I have a shower right here! I guess California must be super dry.

— 6 —

All that put aside, though, it’s good to be back. I love seeing monks and nuns around campus, and seeing everyone again. College is good, despite the challenges. I haven’t gotten into a routine yet, but should be figuring that out more this next week. I know this year is not going to be easy (ha, it already isn’t), but challenging me with something I could fail at is an invitation for me to prove that wrong. Granted, I’ve never failed a class (or come deathly close to it). And I don’t think I could fail at RRL stuff. I’m so excited about it all, and I’m sure you’ll be hearing all about it as the year progresses!

— 7 —

To end this on a light note, have you heard about Duck Dynasty? I’d heard just a little, then read about them recently when this article came out (awesome, right?!?!). When I got to school, some of my friends wanted to watch it, so why not? (At least it’s not Dr. Who) Dude. It’s hilarious! It’s this “reality” show about this redneck family who invented duck calls (right? like what are those?). They’re just a bunch of hillbillies with a crazy uncle. Nothing about it is isappropriate, and they have respectable christian values. They even end each episode by praying together as a family. So go do yourself a favor and watch an episode (doesn’t matter if they’re in order)!

Have a happy weekend! For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary.

— 1 —

This was a great summer. I didn’t end up working as much as I expected (which is kind of good and bad), spent lots of time with family, had delicious food, and prepared a lot for the coming school year. Of course I have no idea what the school year will actually be like, but I feel as ready as I’ll ever be. I’m leaving tomorrow morning!

— 2 —

Packing is tough. I’m almost done, but the weight limit is killing me! I finished packing my check-on bag all nicely, and then bam. It’s a half pound over (after being 7 under yesterday, what happened?!?!). Which means I now have to get over 2 pounds of things out. Nooooo!

— 3 —

Guess what? I actually finished Jillian’s death sweat yesterday!

I think it’s probably the first exercise program I’ve completed. It was hard, to say the least, but it feels awesome to have done it. And now that I think about it, it’s not the hardest workout I’ve participated in. That medal would go to the step classes I went to at the YMCA a while ago and would nearly die during. Whew! Music makes it much better though! I’m planning to continue this during the week back at school. We’ll see how that goes. Maybe I will eventually be able to not do the girl version of some of the exercises! I do know that I’m just in a better mood, eat better, sleep better, and am a more motivated person in general when I exercise. So not exercising is really a disservice to myself and people I interact with. I’ll be interested to see how my routine ends up.

— 4 —

I’ve been thinking about ways to save money. I have a 12 meal plan (2/day on weekdays, 1/day on weekends), and will be providing breakfast for myself during the week. I’ll be making at least one dinner each weekend with my suitemates too. For breakfast I’m planning on doing oatmeal, which seems pretty affordable. Beans are pretty cheap (and I have a crock pot) so I’m planning to make my own refried beans. If you have any ideas, lemme know! I’m also still using baking soda and apple cider vinegar to wash my hair. I’ve packed a couple medicine bottles of each to bring back already. Feel free to comment with any money-saving ideas!

— 5 —

I need to get going on packing now (and hope that everything will fit).

— 6 —

— 7 —

And what post wouldn’t end well with an adorable bebe?

Have a great weekend while I’m traveling across the country! For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

— 1 —

Today is my last day of work for the summer! I’ve worked for several different pro-life organizations over the past two years, and am finishing up my second internship with a Catholic crisis pregnancy center. It’s been a big learning experience, and I’m excited to take what I’ve learned back to school. I plan to be moving on to bigger jobs in the future, and am just thankful for my time here. It didn’t end up being what I expected (what does?), but I know what I’ve learned in invaluable.

— 2 —

I’m leaving in 8 days. To pick up my car. What?!?!? It’s about to get real!!!! I can pack things pretty tight, but my bag would be way over 50 pounds if I fit everything I could. Annoying, huh? I’ll just have to ship some stuff. And I’ve recently gone through my wardrobe and gotten rid of quite a lot, so that should help. I can’t wait to get back and see my BC friends again, but man, is it going to be weird not to be a freshman. Now there are tons of people younger than me on campus! I am just so pumped, though, and am SO EXCITED about hitting the ground running with Ravens Respect Life. 

— 3 —

If you know of any particularly good life-affirming songs or videos, could you please send them my way? I’ve started compiling a YouTube playlist, but don’t have too many yet. I was happily surprised by what I’ve found already though! Here is one of my favorites which basically pretty much made me tear up. The guy who sings it was conceived in rape, and was adopted after his mom chose life. He is an inspirational speaker, and testament to why we shouldn’t have exceptions for abortion.

— 4 —

Hallelujah! I just finished Rediscovering Catholicism! It was a fantabulous book. I really enjoyed how he stressed the importance of striving to become the-best-version-of-yourself. The only complaints I have are: why did he have to use dashes between each word for that phrase? and oh my gosh, not enough commas. Maybe I use too many…I don’t know. Obviously those are rather small things to get annoyed about, so the book really was great. And inspiring. I could probably read it 10 more times to really grasp it. So I just underlined a ton, and probably could have underlined and quoted almost every sentence. I highly recommend it!

— 5 —

I finally figured out why my phone had been so slow! It would seriously take about 5+ seconds to do anything after I clicked on it because…..I hadn’t turned it off in months. Go figure. This is something I’m really bad about with my computer too. It hibernates when I shut it, which is what I usually do between use during the day, and when I’m done at night. I know it’s bad for it, but the reason I do it is because I usually have unfinished tabs open I intend to do something with. I should probably work on changing that.

— 6 —

Guess what? I regained a little bit of sanity this week. Sometime about a week ago I had a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad night sleep. I just couldn’t fall asleep because I kept remembering a hundred things I needed to do. And I knew I wouldn’t remember them in the morning. I happened to find myself around a dollar store a couple days later with some time to kill, so I picked up one of those fat mini notebooks and named it “Laura’s Book of Sanity”. I now keep it in a place I’ll remember (with a pen), and write things down in it as they come to mind. That way I don’t have to remember them all at once, and I can fall asleep knowing that I don’t have to remember so many things. Plus, isn’t it fun to check things off as you finish them?

— 7 —

Isn’t it fun to hear about Catholics who are tech-savvy and using it to further the faith? I recently found this website, Yo Foreal,  that is made by the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal who explain things about the faith in a fun and engaging way. Go check it out!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary! Have a beautiful weekend as summer comes to a near end!

— 1 —

It’s been kind of quiet around here lately….probably because the summer is coming to a close and I’m coming to terms with the fact that real-life college is going to start soon. I’ve ordered my books and am working hard to get everything in order.

— 2 —

Recently I’ve seen a lot of bloggers write about how some “keep it real” while some highlight the joyful parts of life – both of which other people get mad about. Some people are depressed by the keepin’ it real folks, and others think the joyful people are faking it. Well, I don’t really write about my own life very much. But many of my past posts are focused on debunking dumb pro-choice people and things. I made a conscious decision recently to write more about positive things, and to really focus on that more. Personally, I get tired of writing about negativity. And I don’t think there’s much of a point to it, since we know the world is messed up already. So I’m going to stick more to building up the positive instead.

— 3 —

I am REALLY excited about being president of Ravens Respect Life. It’s the largest student-run organization on Benedictine’s Campus, and tons of people usually come to the first meeting of the year…which means I better get my stuff together and get ready. Our goal is to educate, empower, and inspire our fellow students to be the light of the pro-life movement. It goes along with BC’s theme of “Be the Light” this year, which is pretty cool. I know it’s going to be quite the experience, and will certainly require me (as it already has) to develop my leadership skills as I learn how to work with all kinds of people.

— 4 —

I am almost done with Rediscover Catholicism! After only like three months…It really is a fabulous book which I would recommend to Catholics and non-Catholics alike. I’ll have a review up of it in the next week or so.

— 5 —

I have finally gotten back to doing the Jillian workout.  Day 24 is over now, and I’ll finish it before I leave (IN ONLY 16 DAYS!!!). It is NOT a good idea to take a three week break, folks.

— 6 —

I’ve been washing my hair with baking soda and apple cider vinegar for weeks now, and will be sticking with it! It’s cheap and really does clean my hair. No, it doesn’t get all frothy and silky like with shampoo and conditioner, but it gets the job done. Thankfully my hair isn’t super hard to deal with. If you want to try it, just mix a tablespoon of baking soda with a cup of water, and the same (separately) for the apple cider vinegar. I put it in water bottle, but some sort of squirt bottle would be better. Try it!

— 7 —

Next week is my last week of work of the summer. I have to say that it has not turned out as wonderfully as it could have, but I know it’s valuable experience nonetheless. This next semester is going to be extremely tight money-wise, so I’m gearing up for craziness and trying to make and save money however I can. It dawned on me recently that I could hand wash all my clothes (since it costs $2 per load) but I figured that would be too much 🙂 Whatever is to come, I’m looking forward to the challenge.

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

— 1 —

This week flew by because I was away in Southern CA with extended family! We had awesome, huge, get-togethers (that’s what happens when your mom is one of 13 kids) and chilled at the beach. We had a silly photo shoot, roasted s’mores at a bonfire, got to visit with people we hadn’t seen for a while, ate delicious food, and just enjoyed life. The beaches down there are SO much better than here. It was nice to not have much to do, and to get through more of Rediscover Catholicism. I now have less than 100 pages left! Yay! I also got a terrible sunburn on the back of both legs because it didn’t occur to me that we’d be out for so long that I might get burnt. I never sunscreen my legs, so yeah. Ouch. Thank you Kansas for making me this pasty pale candidate for sunburns.

— 2 —

Contrary to what I wrote last week, I was not 100% off technology while away. There was so much down time I did log in a few times. It was nice be on less though. And I’m working on figuring out how to cut back more on computer time. Being without sure shows you how unnecessary most of it is!

— 3 —

In almost exactly 3 weeks, I will be heading back to school! There is quite a bit I need to accomplish before then, and the last slice of my summer will be jam-packed. I can’t wait to be back!

— 4 —

Speaking of school, I’m probably going to rent a couple books for the first time. They are just too darn expensive for me to justify buying them (since they’re not super interesting ones I’ll have to mark up – macroeconomics, anyone?). I love owning books, but I figure my library won’t hurt because of it.

— 5 —

I’m getting down to the wire here.….11:43 PST, and I need two more!!! I should have thought about this during the drive home.

— 6 —

Well, I did think about things I have to do! I have one of those hamster brains that works oh so well when I want to go to sleep. Last night there were so many things I need to do going through my brain, so I got out my phone and wrote myself a memo. Whew! I think I’d be far worse off if it weren’t for lists.

— 7 —

And now, it is getting closer to Saturday, and I didn’t think about this much, so just enjoy your weekend. The summer is flying away and soon enough we’re all going to want to wish back the lazy days and corn on the cob. So enjoy it while it lasts!

And if you have a chance, try out this cool water balloon slip ‘n slide 🙂

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!