3 years

Man-Cub and I hit the big three year mark!! It's been a great few years together and we've grown a lot. I'm very grateful he's stuck with me even though we weren't at the same school and sometimes it's not very easy. We've had our ups and downs, but I still love him dearly. 

We didn't actually get to see each other on our anniversary cause it was a Wednesday. But we had a great weekend together! Friday we went with some of his friends to see The Dark Knight Rises and it was amazing. (I'm very sad there will be no more Christian Bale Batman movies.) Then Friday night we had a coupon for a fondue place in Manitou so we went to celebrate! It even came with a glass of wine for us both! 

From there, we headed straight to foco for the weekend. It was pretty chill, and we just hung out with Man-Cub's roommate and his girlfriend. It was super fun! We're very excited to go back to school and have couple friends to hang out with. Saturday, after a long time spent debating what we wanted to do, we ended up going to putt putt at Fort Fun! It was a great idea...until we got out there and it was about 100 degrees so each new hole we were all fighting for the shaded area. ;) 

After putt putt we were all ready for an early dinner, having skipped lunch. We headed to The Mayor where we all got some beer and split some delish nachos and a pizza! 

And of course, I couldn't leave foco without having a Rio marg...

And remember the new bar we found with all the smoothie drinks? Well we went there too, but before the night rush so I got a picture of the bar with all the mixers in the back! 

Then we took our time getting back the apartment, enjoying the warm summer evening and the feel of Old Town!

We then went home and mixed our own drinks (the cheap way!) and tried to watch a movie, but apparently the putt putt sucked the life out of us cause we were all ready for bed by 10:30. So Sunday we got up and headed to Snooze! (Of course...) But this trip was extra fun because there was a lady giving out free balloons, so naturally we all wanted one...

And Man-Cub just couldn't help but play with this Spidey on the way home...

It was a great weekend and we were very happy to see our friends again! Here's to a great senior year and a wonderful last three years with the man I love! :) 

manic

Tonight has been pretty low key. Mom isn't feeling well, dad is surfing the channels on the TV, and I had nothing to do. I decided to type in one of my favorite actors into Netflix- Joseph Gordon-Levitt. I wasn't looking for something in particular, just something to keep me entertained. I stumbled across an older one with him and Zooey Deschanel. Because they were so young, I googled it and figured out it was the movie where they first met. Two of my favorites, couldn't be too shabby! 

Then I read the description. The movie is called "Manic" and the description mentioned something or another about a teen psych center where Levitt's character is sent for anger management reasons and he meets Deschanel's character who's there for self harm reasons. Great. Now a psych movie! Even better. Here's the preview. 

I cried. Almost the entire time. 

I'm headed into my last semester of college and will have a BA in psychology. There really isn't much to do with that without further schooling, but I can't do that right now. I'd burn out WAY too fast. Either way, my undergrad studies require internship hours in order to graduate. I already have a third of them done, but was in need of 6 more hours a week for this fall. After calling every Emergency Room in Colorado Springs and northern Colorado, I was feeling a little sad because none of the psych evaluation teams in the ER would let me shadow without any certification. When I began to run out of options, because even the behavioral health center wouldn't take me, they pointed me in the direction of an adolescent residential treatment center. 

This is basically what the kids in this movie are living in. I'm really not sure what I've got myself into. I'm very excited for this experience and I've had friends and professors who have an understanding of what a program like this consists of tell me I will enjoy it and it will be a great experience either way. But seriously. Adolescents is so hard. Add psychological issues on top of that. How are we truly supposed to help these kids? And does telling them they have a legitimate disorder help them any, or just hinder progress? 

I don't know the answer to either of these questions. All I know is we have to try something. My heart aches for the girls battling eating disorders because society tells them they're not good enough. My heart aches for the kid who's mad at life, taking his anger out on anything or anyone because he didn't get to choose who his parents were. My heart aches for the kid who was bullied one too many times that they either hit rock bottom or turned into the bully. 

Truth be told, I have no idea what I'll be walking into this semester. But as much as I'm a little terrified and a little timid, I can't help but be excited. These kids aren't just people to watch and take notes on, determining what medications would work, or deciding what disorder they have. To me, they'll just be kids. Kids trying to figure out how to make it through high school and see that there is hope. That things really can get better. Kids that I get to just go hang out with and talk to for about 6 hours a week. Kids that will make my heart hurt, but maybe just remind me why I was so drawn to this major in the first place.

we do what we can

Hey friends! Just wanted to make a quick update. :)

First off, I just realized I've read 5 books since Christmas break. That's GOT to be a new record for me. So I took a picture of what I think I've spent most of my summer doing...doesn't look too bad, eh?

This book was actually my most recent finish and I am currently waiting for another to grab me. I've started two, so we'll see which one wins. But I enjoyed The Hobbit more than I expected to and am really excited for the movie in December! 

Also. This past week, mom and I went to do what we could with fire recovery. We had to sit through a brief training, but then we got free t-shirts and headed out to sift through the ashes of the homes that were burned. It didn't feel like much after seeing all the destruction, but to the home owners, it meant something. 

We hope to go again one day this week, and maybe grab some more recruits. They asked us not to take pictures of the area out of respect for those who lost everything, but I did get a picture of part of the scars our mountains are now marked with, just so you could see part of what we were walking into.(We were sad we couldn't take more pictures when we learned that we would be wearing masks, protective eye-wear, gloves, and full body zip-up protective suites.) Very sad indeed.

it's a sad day

This weekend was very exciting, but as I've just been informed, turned very sad today. Man-Cub's family was planning on getting a puppy on Saturday morning, so Man-Cub and I went to Chipotle and then puppy toy shopping on Friday night. It was rainy and we accidentally ended up matching. 

So Saturday morning, they went to get the puppy! He was a golden-doodle they named Winston. He was very, very cute and we all fell in love with him immediately. 

He made me feel like this. 

But I guess he had too much "golden" in him because Man-Cub's mom had full blown allergies last night and they had to take him back today. It's a very sad day for their family and I'm also very sad knowing he won't be there next time I go visit. Wintson definitely made an impression in only 2 days and he will be missed. 

 

On  a happier note, Man-Cub and I had a fun Denver Date day yesterday! First we went to our favorite store where we both spent lots of money and came home super happy with all our bargains. 

Then we went a few blocks over and crossed the interstate to the Ale House for some beer and wings. All of which was very delicious. 

Then we walked around down town for a little bit and enjoyed the feel of the city, dreaming of what life will be like when we graduate and enter the real world. 

Hope you guys had a fun weekend too! And a little bit happier of a Monday...

slow and steady

Well friends, this summer has been going by quickly, but not much has been going on. Therefore, the blog isn't updated as much. I like to keep things interesting on here, and with not much going on, it's not very interesting. So here are some random things that have been going on...

Kaylah came home for 4 days. We didn't really see her because of the wedding, but we did get to pick her up at the airport at 2:30 in the morning. 

It's also been unusually hot for Colorado, which has not been fun. 

Not only is it uncomfortable and annoying because we are not in Arizona, it has helped the many fires across our state just grow. One came uncomfortably close to our city and we lost more than 300 homes. Our firemen did an amazing job at controlling it, but here are some shots I got of the smoke, the fire, and the news. 

It has been difficult to watch, but the community pulled together to help and has made a big difference! Unfortunately though, the fire and heat and all caused a major fire ban and that meant no fourth of July fireworks anywhere. So my parents and I drove around to look at the damage and we also saw bits of how appreciative the community has been. 

Even though I got to hang out with these cool guys for some drinks, bbq, and roasted marshmallows from the bunsen burner, it still didn't feel like the 4th. Also, it was a Wednesday so Thursday felt like Monday all over again. 

 But that's all I got to update. On one last happier note, my DVD collection has grown nicely since I've been to visit the cheap electronics store downtown. I'm actually running out of room on my shelf! 

 Hope you have a good weekend!!