New Job

I started a new job last Monday. So far, I really like it. As a case manager, my role is to work one on one with a caseload of about 20-25 clients to help them recover from addiction and mental health problems. The first week was really busy and I've only met 5 of my clients so far but I really think I'm gonna like it here.

Alongside my new job, the countdown is truly on to the big day. Everything is pretty much set, now we just wait (and pay off all our vendors). I've been planning for August since February and now it's finally here! I'm so excited for the wedding and our honeymoon! Sweet!

I can't wait to see everyone so soon!

Livin it up

Life is pretty good.

Our Camry is running well so far. Unfortunately we have had to get a new windshield already though, after discovering a small crack in it driving off the lot the day we bought it. Needless to say, the crack spread...a lot. But $200 later, our new windshield is installed and hopefully nothing else will need to be replaced any time soon.

I've started applying to jobs. So far I think I've applied to about 10 different places, mostly on Monster.com. The jobs vary between Case Worker, Social Worker, along with some other various job descriptions that interest me. I hope something comes up soon, I always forget how restless I get with nothing to do during the day.

The wedding plans are coming along great as well. Most people have RSVPd by now and we just had our first meeting with the pastor who is marrying us to do some pre-marital counseling. It was a good time and I am really glad he's marrying us. Next on the list is to do the seating arrangements for the reception, pick out a cake top and figure out what I'm doing with my hair for the wedding!

I'm so excited for the big day! Not only am I tying the knot with the love of my life but we'll also get to see some friends that we don't get to see very often.

I would also like to wish a very happy first birthday to my sweet little niece Maiya!

Phil and I went to visit NJ last weekend to celebrate her birthday and it was great to see everyone.

In all, life is pretty good in Pennsylvania. I really couldn't ask for more :)

Our 'Lil Camry!

Phil and I made our first big purchase together (well, besides all the money spent on the wedding so far..), a new car! Well, it's not exactly a brand new car (it's a '99 Camry) but it is new to us so I'm calling it new :) This is our sweet little thing to the right, isn't she sharp? Well, I call it a she but we haven't yet decided on the gender or a name. Let's just say that this is our first 'baby' and we are already protective of it!

We brought it home last Tuesday, June 9th, and I can't tell you how many times I kept looking outside just to make sure it was still there. It is so nice to know that I can just up and run and errand whenever I darn well please! No more waiting until the weekend when we used to rent a rental car.

This car is also the first approval Phil got as far as building credit goes so that's another positive of this whole event. Needless to say, we are pretty excited about it! It's in great shape and was well taken care of. I'm sure most of you reading this will see it in person sometime soon! And here's another shot of it to leave you with...

Graduation.

Graduation has come and gone! It was a good time; the speaker they had for the Psychology Convocation was actually really good! My dad, mom, Gail & Phil came to see me graduate. It was really nice to walk across that stage and actually realize that I am done! It might not have fully sunk in yet though- just the other day I had the split second thought of, "shoot, did I have homework this weekend that I'm forgetting?" Then it sunk in and all was well :)

In other news, I've now moved up to PA and into Phil's (now mine as well) apartment. We spent quite a good bit of time unpacking my stuff and rearranging so my stuff would fit as well. The compromising has begun. I gotta say though that the transition from living alone for 4 years to living with someone else has been really smooth. I guess it helps when that other person is your best friend and soon-to-be husband! Life is pretty great.

Our latest goal is finding a car! This is pretty much priority one right now as I can't find a job before we get a car. We have been to about 4 different dealerships and looked at a few private sellers as well. No car yet. It's an extremely long and annoying process looking for a decent used car and I don't recommend doing it if you don't have to.

After we get a car I can start my (hopefully not too) long search in finding a job!

What I'm leaving behind...and taking with me

The past month or so has gone by so quickly and it's been bittersweet. I will be graduating on May 30th with my Bachelor's and it is going to be a huge change. I have spent the last four years of my life here and it has been something I will take with me for the rest of my life. The University of Delaware has given me such a solid education that I can't even remember how or what I learned before coming here (read: high school). I've learned more about life, myself, and my relationships with others than I could have ever imagined. In light of the fact that I will be leaving this campus in just 9 short days, I just wanted to reminisce on some fond memories that will stay with me forever from the University of Delaware...

Oh the memories from Freshman year...if you are close to me than you probably know the horror stories about my two other roommates from Freshman year. If not, some of the highlights included: almost missing my exam because one of my roommates decided to turn off my alarm the morning of. Trying to sleep through my roommate and 'some guy' having sex underneath of me since I was on the top bunk of the bunk beds. Having to endure "mediators" who tried to help the three of us work through our issues when really it just made the living situation worse. I could go on but this is supposed to be happy memories, so I think I'll stop here.

I should note though that the significance of that hell-ish year was that it taught me to stand up for myself a lot. Those two girls were so incredibly rude and yet I hardly did anything about it (except get a room change). I think about how differently I would handle that situation if it were to happen to me now and I realize that I probably wouldn't have gained as much self-respect if I hadn't gone through it in the first place. Besides, I am quite proud of myself that despite all of that, I still came out with a 3.8GPA the end of that semester!

The Psychology department is another part of UD that I have loved so much. All of my Psyc classes (after getting through prereqs of course) have been absolutely wonderful and have taught me so much about society, other people, and myself. One particular class that really stands out is The Social Self where I learned all about why we interact with others in the ways that we do and how we can change our interactions to better portray what we are trying to say to others. That is the gist of it in a nutshell but I really did enjoy that class and the Psyc department as a whole.

I will dearly miss the friends that I have made here. Before I started college I remember being told that the friendships you make in college are the most solid ones that last forever. I certainly hope that I stay in touch with the friends I've made here because they have gotten me through so much throughout these four years.

You can't put a price on the level of skills I learned while in college, such as reasoning, applying material from other classes to the real world and, sometimes, to other classes as well, and thinking abstractly and in my own way about things. College has helped me to form my own ideas about things and not just soak up every little thing you hear about the world. No. It does you some good to do some research and find out what is really going on.

After all of this, sometimes I wonder how I will ever make it out there in the "real world." I have become a professional student! I am a pro at taking quick notes, studying for exams, soaking up the important material from textbooks and picking out what will likely be on an exam. How can I ever not be a student?!

On the other hand, I am so excited to see what this world can offer me and what I can offer to the world. This is the beginning of a whole new chapter in my life and although I am sad about what I will leave behind, the most overwhelming feeling of all is simply excitement.

Enjoying the process

The past week has been a whirlwind full of wedding planning! I was on Spring Break so instead of getting ahead in my class work, I was in full-on wedding planner mode! I researched photographers, DJs, wedding cakes, invitations...so much more! I must say, although wedding planning can be overwhelming, it is so much fun!

Right now Phil and I have about 50 photographers and DJ e-mails to go through (I posted ads on Craigslist to get some offers..and boy did the offers come). However, there is a lot that we have gotten done!

Just yesterday we spent about 6 hours in Bed Bath & Beyond being treated like a king and queen. I'm telling you, just drop the word 'wedding' and everyone comes running to help you! It's awesome! Everyone in the store was coming up to us asking if we needed anything, did we have any questions, oh and have you seen this latest product that just every couple is dying to have this year?

When we first got there, we were greeted by who I guessed was the manager. Then came Gary. Gary was a God-send! He showed Phil and I all around the store, suggesting certain items but was never pushy or telling us what we should buy, just what he suggested was the better brands and best item for your money. After about 4 hours with Gary as our guide, Phil and I went off on our own to complete our list! It was fun to be able to scan just about anything you can imagine having. Even if you know for sure no one will buy it, it's still nice to dream :-)

Yesterday night, we ordered our invitations! They are super cute, but you will have to wait until you get yours in the mail to see them.

Last, but definitely not least, I bought my wedding dress!!! I am so excited to wear this dress on our special day that I am just bursting from the inside out. My sisters and niece came to visit last Saturday and we spent some long hours in David's Bridal. I absolutely fell in love with the dress I ended up buying..it took a lot to get me out of it :) I also picked out the bridesmaids dresses and Jen and Jes bought theirs that same day.

Needless to say, the wedding planning is coming along nicely! The next step is to narrow down a photographer and DJ...

Oh ring, how I love thee

I picked up my engagement ring on Friday (woohoo!). I looooove it. Seriously, it's as if this little ring was created to eventually become a part of my anatomy. At least, that's how I think of it. It's small so it doesn't overpower my petite hands, yet elegant and shiny. It's, well, perfect :)



Here is a photo of my ring. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a clearer picture than this (I tried about 20 times). I'm not sure if it's my camera or if I just couldn't hold myself still enough but hopefully most of you will eventually see the ring in person.

In other news, Phil and I have decided on a church! We are going to be holding the ceremony in a Baptist church in Hatboro, PA. It's right down the street from Phil's apartment so it's very convenient. We are still deciding on a reception area but we do have a few in mind that we are thinking about.

More to come!

I'm Engaged!!

Sorry about the drought in post updates...I've either been A. Busy or B. Forgetful about this Blog. Since I hardly can think of things to write about in this blog besides "I'm busy, life is good, etc, etc" I've decided to dedicate the blogs following (and including) this one to update you all on my ENGAGEMENT!!

Here's the most up-to-date info so far: My fiance (I still get butterflies everytime I say "fiance" :) proposed to me on Feb 27th in a very romantic and memorable setting. I would write the details here, but most of you who read this already know the story anyway! We went shopping for a ring two days later because Phil wanted me to pick out something I really liked. I found a beautiful ring that we ended up putting a down payment on that day but I, unfortunately, could not walk away with the ring then and there. It was displayed as a size 7 and I am a size 5 so I sent the ring off to be sized to fit my finger! They told me it should be ready for pick-up by March 12th, so I will hopefully have pictures to upload by this weekend! I would link you to the picture on their website at Kay Jeweler's, but the online picture just does not do the ring justice, so I'll just wait!

Ever since the engagement, I have been googling and researching possible places to have our reception, whether it be a reception hall, an area in a church, a park, etc. We are on a semi-tight budget and don't want to take out a loan to pay for our wedding so I'm trying to find the best deal that will give us a nice, but affordable reception. We have a few places in mind, but most of them we still have to go and look at, so I will let you all know when we've got it narrowed down or have chosen a place to hold the reception.

Last weekend, Phil and I went looking for a church where we want to be married in. Catholic churches are simply gorgeous, but neither one of us are Catholic, so that is a no-go. We looked at about 10 churches on Sunday--most of them were closed by the time we stopped by, so we couldn't see the actual sanctuary. A select few were open though and we have a few ideas of places that we are interested in. One in particular (that Phil still has to go see, we're going back this weekend sometime) is gorgeous and has really nice people- the pastor was nice too. Again, when we narrow it down more, I'll give you some more updates!

It seems like we don't have that much set yet, well, because we don't! However, the planning has just begun and I will try to keep writing as we know more. No date has been set yet (that's the most common question I have been getting from everyone) but I will let everyone know as soon as I know.

I look forward to bringing you all along with us as we plan our wedding. Everyone's support has been VERY much appreciated. Please continue to pray that all our planning goes smoothly and that we find a church and reception hall that is nice and reasonably priced :)