Friends. Work. Impulse Shopping

Oh the joy of the weekend! Something that everyone looks forward to. This weekend wasn't going to be my best. I had to work at the Marbeck front Desk. This meant that I would get to sit at the desk for 13 hours. My friends went home, or had other plans and I was to sit there. Yes, I was getting paid.. but still. Well I still worked the desk, but it wasn't as "awful" as I thought. Lets start at the beginning...
Friday night. My only full night off of work. I wanted to do something good. But what? My best friend left, I had homework up to my eyeballs, and the MAD weekly event didnt seem interesting to me--(playstation). My roommate wanted to have an easy night, I wanted to do something and Hope and Becca had no where to go. 4 girls that didnt seem content. Combine them together and get a great girls night. We wanted to make cookies... so we did. We went to the store for butter... and came out with.. pop, butter, milk, cookies, graham crackers, toothpaste, and a magazine. Impuse shopping. I hate it and love it. When you go in without knowing what you want you find things.. which leads to spending money. :) So we made cookies, coffee and hot chocolate and watched The Holiday. (wonderful movie) The best part was that my roommate could just lay there and watch the movie--her easy night-- I began making cards and crafts--keeping me busy-- Becca and Hope found things to do, and we got to do it together! :)

Saturday was a bit different. We slept in(10:30 for me). I wanted to enjoy the aspect of sitting on my futon with a cup of coffee and TLC's What not to Wear before going into work. I made sure that I had enough to do while sitting at the desk and soon left for work. Saturday went by quickly because I was able to keep myself busy with homework and odds and ends.
Today. (Sunday) I am currently at work as well. I have studied for an exam that I have tomorrow and will begin reading for a class. I get off at noon and will (maybe take a nap) Getting up at 7:15 is not as easy at it looks! :)Tonight I get to babysit fot 3 wonderful kids. My boss's actually! Last time we danced to the Lion King soundtrack and went to bed. Today.. maybe we will play some games! :) I love kids!
So after a weekend of girls, work, and kids... classes don't seem as appealing as they should... :)

Oh yes. Today is also the first day of Fall! :) I LOVE FALL! The smells, leaves changing, and apple cider- who wouldn't love it! :)
So enjoy the fall weather--
God Bless-
Anna

Northern Ireland.?

So I have been very confused lately about what I am doing with my life and what I am doing with my major. I am currently a Social Work major and very sure I will stay a social work major. Lately one topic has been floating around in my brain. This topic is Northern Ireland.
This is a semester program that Bluffton allows for students to take as their cross cultural experience. We are able to learn about the Peace and conflict happening with Northern Ireland right now, and study the history that has happend before. It is something that has been on my mind a lot lately because it would mean being away from home for a semester, being away from friends a semester, and being away from Bluffton. 3 places/people I feel very safe with.
This week the director of this program Mervyn, is coming to discuss about the program, and his personal struggles that have happend throughout his life. I have been looking forward to this because it gives me a time to ask questions, and to really get a feel for the culture.
I am going to give you a PRO and CON list to this...(or at least my feelings of it)
PRO:
I am studying abroad in another culture.
I get to see part of the UK.
Peace and Conflict studies.
I am going to be in a safe environment because of the program.
Internship.
It is beautiful.


CONS:
I will be away.
Without two best friends.
Without family.
Every part of my being will be tested. (faith, stability, actually living alone)

This isnt an easy decision. And the hard part it that I need to turn in my application by the end of October. One month. WOW!I have been able to talk to some of the past students who have gone, and they encourage it!! :) two of my closest friends are there currently and understand the process that I am going through right now. They have helped with explaining the life there and love it as well.

After thinking about what to do, I am actually leaning toward this decision. It will be an experience of a lifetime. How many people get to say they have been to Northern Ireland and studied in one of their schools?? --
Who knows... maybe next year you will be reading my blog about Northern Ireland.??
So much to think about. --

God Bless,
Enjoy the beauty of today,
Anna

Yet another weekend! :)

Once again Sunday has made its way back to me. I can't believe that we are beginning our 4th week of school. Things keep piling up and I feel like I never have the time. This weekend was my time to catch up. Well... almost catch up! :)
Friday night, Shining Through had our first get together. It was bonding night for the group! This was something that I was thrilled about! After the audtion process getting to see the group together is so rewarding!! We went to St. John's Mennonite Church to do this bonding! We started with little games and ended up playing volleyball, and sardines. Sardines was something that they play every year. It is backwards hide and seek. One person goes and hides and the whole group splits up and tries to find the one person. Once you find them, you hide with them. This is the challenging part. You have to find a spot to fit 20 people. This can be an difficult task for a large groups of people in a smaller church. But as a groups.... we make do! :)
After bonding for 4 hours, we all went back to campus. I had enough time to run to Marbeck for MAD. This weeks event was MAD cash giveaway. MCB gave away $500. We would have to win tickets by playing rock,paper, scissors or by playing black jack. Then they would enter their ticket into a bucket and hope that their name would be drawn! :) This was such a busy event! Who doesnt want to win money?! Friday night turned out to be one of the best nights ever! This was becuase of the friends that were there with me!
Homework.study.homework.study.
That is what my Saturday consisted of. Since I let all of my homework catch up with me, I needed to find time to work on it. That was my Saturday schedule! My best friend and I sat on our futon and did homework for a solid 5 hours. It was a long afternoon, but we accomplished things! :) After homework, we rewarded ourselves to a homemade dinner. We set off the fire alarm, but the food was delicious! :) Chicken, pasta, green peppers.. yum! :)

Today: (Sunday) -- Ashley, Hannah and myself are going to Journey in Findlay for church tonight and then to Cold Stone for dessert. It is one of the only times that the 3 of us will be able to spend together! We all are so involved we never have much time to see each other. :) That is the best thing about friends... we always find time to laugh and have fun! So yet another weekend at Bluffton has turned out for the better! :) Even after all of the homework! :)

GodBless
Anna

The Bluffton Life! :)

It has been two days since I've posted online. My last post was filled with a lot of thing, I now dont know what to write. Yesterday was Monday, which seems to mean that after a wonderful weekend classes are back and running. From reading to quizzes this week seems to be even busier. Now Profs are getting close to quizing us and are feeling comfortable in classes to open up discussions and go over the reading less. (because we are supposed to read it on our own) Monday's are one of my busiest days. I have 4 classes. One is a night class. This is for 2 hours and 45 minutes but only once a week. I enjoy the class so far but sitting for almost 3 hours is somewhat crazy. -- After night class, we had Bulk Bingo. This event was so fun because the prizes were bulk food from Sam's club. A lot of people showed up and it was my very first event. (I am currently on MCB) People had a lot of fun with this. Whether it was yelling out Bingo or searching for the correct number. I was very proud! :)
After Bingo was homework time. I sat on my futon reading for classes, and getting ready for today.
Tuesday. hmmm. I had my first field trip for class today. For Human Behavior and Social Environment we traveled to the local hospital to learn more about babies. I need to take this class for my Social Work major. We learned about birthing and differnent medicine used. In the end they brought in a baby born on Monday. SOOO CUTE!! After class we had Forum. This happend every Tuesday at 11am. We have different speakers come in and discuss a topic that is familar for them. Today we actually had our President of the Univeristy give his Univeristy Forum Address. It discussed the environment of Bluffton and how our campus actually formed into what it is today. It is so different to think about the campus being any different back when it was founded than what it is today. Not having all of the trees or buildings. This campus is so beautiful now and learning that it was different then suprises me.

Whether it be through activities on campus or just the beauty of it, it is very worth while! :)

Relax!!

So there are always days that we feel totally drained. There are days when we just need someone to come and take away that stress. I have been so lucky this weekend to have people do that for me! :) This past week I have been so busy. Whether it be with classes, meetings, or homework, I have barely had time to think. Finally when the weekend showed up I was so happy to be able to breathe. It was a weekend filled with laughter, sleep, and lots of hugs!
Friday night MCB (campus activities) held their first MAD event. (Marbeck After Dark.) This week it was a Dutch Blitz tournament. My best friend from Bluffton and I entered this tournament with very high hopes for ourselves. We thought that we would win the whole tournament. Spending a Friday night screaming "Blitz" was going to be the best. Well we actually didn't win but technically we would have been in 5th place. (This was out of 32 teams) We still had a lot of fun!!
Saturday. Rainy. Yuck. Three words that make me smile still to this day! At home I have been blessed with two of the bestest friends I could have asked for. The only problem is that they dont live at Bluffton. So on Saturday I had two visitors!! They showed up and the fun began. I was able to introduce them to all of my "Bluffton Friends" and we were able to relax. This was a time for each of us to catch up on our lives and relax together. Playing ping pong in Bob's Place, or touring the campus we were able to keep ourselves busy. :) It was so fun to be able to enjoy two of my best friends company and in my familiar setting of Bluffton!



On Sunday, I went to church with Hannah. We have been going to Bluffton Baptist which is downtown. This church has made us feel very at home in Bluffton. We are welcomed by the members and feel very free to worship with them. This has been something very important in my life the past few days. Making a connection in a church away from home allowed me to feel comfortable!! After church my parents made an impromtu trip to Bluffton. This meant a free meal outside of Marbeck!! We were able to catch up on what is happening at home and eat Mexican Food (from the new place downtown)- We also got takeout and came back to watch football! This was a time for fellowship together! (the Browns lost by the way) :( But seeing family and friends this weekend was something that was able to take away my stress. I was able to smile, hug, and laugh with some of the people that I love! :)
Bluffton is a very good place and sharing it with people I love makes it even better! :)
Enjoy the beauty of each day!! (Friday night we saw a rainbow after all of the rain. It wasnt this picture.. but it reminded me of it!)

God Bless,
Anna

Back for More...

So the new school year has started. Wow! Summer went by so quickly. After battling the flood waters, move in day, and every other activity planned for the first years everything seemed to go by smoothly. So smoothly that it is already the 2nd week of class. CRAZY!~ This year I am living in the "theme housing" in Riley Court. I am lucky enough to live with 14 of the best girl friends ever! :) But enough about that.

I am the co-coordinator of our Music Ministry Team on Campus. This is one of the best things that I could have ever been a part of. I am able to be involved on campus and I am able to worship God with my friends. The one stressful thing about this group is that this year I have to be the one to pick and choose who I think should make the team and who shouldn't. THIS IS CRAZY! I love the job! I love what I am doing, but how can I tell someone ...Sorry, but we cant accept you.!~ Well right now this is my struggle. Tomorrow are try-outs and they find out next week whether they make it or not. It has been a very stressful week with more to come I am very sure. Tonight MCB (a student lead organization) put on a concert with the group Inner City All Stars. This was a time to listen to different cultures of music, different styles, and dance the night away. And I did dance. My feet will feel the outcome tomorrow.! :) This was such a good oppourtunity to come together with friends and new students to hang out!!! It seemed kind of gross to dance on a gym floor sweating in the heat with a bunch of friends, but it is something that I will remember for a long time! That is what matters to me, is that Bluffton provides an oppourtunity to make memories and to take pictures and to become your own person! It is a place to run through waist high water to protect a science building from flooding, and a place to walk to classes.


If you have ever heard of the song, "Everybody has a laughing place" --Bluffton is my laughing place! And being able to share it with people and the experiences make me even happier! :)

So after having a stressful day and getting to dance it all away I am able to realize that things will work out. So for tonight.. I will relax with a cup of coffee and fall asleep to the sound of the TV. :)
Happy Tuesday!!!
GodBless,
Anna

Cooking, best friend, fun?.. yes please!!

FINALS. A word that I will forever make a face at. It is finally the end of the year and it is time to study. But thinking about it.. finals week is also the best time of the year as well! You dont go to class and have at the most 2 finals a day. So you can basically study for 3 hours and then do whatever the rest of the day! For example today I woke up at 11:00 (ish) and then studied after lunch and now I am bored out of my mind. But it was a great day!!! There are very few times in which you can get enough down time. But when you do.. oh man it is amazing!!


Last night was the beginning of our last weekend. What to do?? hmmm well. Hannah and I decided to make our own dinner. We drove to Community Market and bought chicken, pasta, veggies and decided we deserved something other than Marbeck. It was a "date night" for best friends!! We laughed and danced and just sat down for some good girl time! This was a big relief and very stress-less. Which is a good thing when thinking about the week that I am about to endure! ;) After that we went downstairs in the lobby around 10 and watched some friends play trivial pursuit. This was the fastest game of trivial pursuit that i have ever seen. It was done in about an hour. Soon after we all just sat and played cards until around 2 am. It was a hard core game night! :) Such a good night to spend with friends! This weekend is almost over and exams are about to start. The ending outcome of this next week is going to be summer at home. Thinking about home I cant imagine 3 months without the people that I have lived with for the past 8 months. It is going to be an adjustment but it is going to be some good time to rest!!

There is a book that I got before graduation... it was called Oh the Places You'll Go-
Whenever things get stressful, i know what is going on in my brain. I just need to take a time to breath. The best thing is that Bluffton has given me a person to breath with. I have found my best friend here! This is the best feeling ever!


Well.. Finals.. here I come!~
GodBless
Anna