Here is the latest on Jon and I.
Jon: currently studying like mad for the MCAT but it is starting to feel like it is paying off with some good scores. Jon is going to start a phlebotomy course at the end of this month that is 4 weeks long. We are crossing our fingers this leads to a good job, with good hours and fair pay.
Rachel: trying to get back into the swing of things with school. Classes are a bit crazy as usual. I am starting all my supervision for when I actually start meeting with clients. I may be a little over-excited because I signed myself up to do a lot of things, but I really couldn't be any happier. Foster homes, grief camp, and parenting courses, in addition to therapy? Sounds good to me.
Us: We made our home look cuter yesterday. We finally got an area rug for our colorless room, some pictures on the wall and a nice clock. We also made a yummy quiche, thanks to my mom's recipe, and homemade ice cream for some friends. Jon is the best, he is such a good sport with those sorts of things.
Life is happy at the Van Wickle home. I wish you the same.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
New Years 2011
It is about time I write about Jon and my excellent New Years day adventures. New years eve was not all that exciting because Jon convinced me to go to sleep early in order to get up and get going quickly for New Years day.
Well, my birthday this present was a little bit of an IOU. Jon promised me he would take me to universal studios once our finances got in order. With Christmas and all the joy that came with it, we decided it would be alright to indulge in a little fun. I was so excited to go- Jon went quite a bit as a kid but I had never been.
This is the homemade IOU I got from Jon on my birthday- finally turning it in for use! Of course, since we got our tickets during Grinchmas we have season passes, hooray!
We went to get a bite to eat before we entered the park and ended up on the Hollywood walk of fame! This was totally unplanned but a treat for us since neither of us had been in that part of downtown Hollywood before.
We even ran into a statue of the world's tallest man, I couldn't resist a photo-op.
Once we got into the park it was all fun! There were hardly any lines that lasted more than a few minutes. The park got busier later in the day, but for the most part it was easy sailing. Jon was the best tour guide, he really knew the ins and outs of the park.
Jon's favorite part, and definitely one of the highlights for me, is the backlot tour. They have a portion now where you get to see all the cars from famous movies. I think Jon was in heaven. I even got a shot of the Delorian from Back to the Future, one of our favorites!
This is the Desperate Housewives street, Wisteria Lane. I had to take a picture of how bright Eva Longoria's house is! You can't really tell in the picture either, but it is a seriously intense shade of yellow. But of course you would never notice how bright those colors are in the show, you don't even question it. Also, all those flowers in their yards are fake. It was a trip.
Water world was an adventure, Jon was definitely excited for this part. It was kind of a cold day so we stayed clear of the splash zone.
We randomly ran into Jon's college roommate from UCSD and his girlfriend while we were there. It was nice to catch up and see them for a little bit.
The day was complete fun and I am so glad we got to go together. It was a perfect birthday present and great start to the new year. Happy 2011!
Well, my birthday this present was a little bit of an IOU. Jon promised me he would take me to universal studios once our finances got in order. With Christmas and all the joy that came with it, we decided it would be alright to indulge in a little fun. I was so excited to go- Jon went quite a bit as a kid but I had never been.
This is the homemade IOU I got from Jon on my birthday- finally turning it in for use! Of course, since we got our tickets during Grinchmas we have season passes, hooray!
We went to get a bite to eat before we entered the park and ended up on the Hollywood walk of fame! This was totally unplanned but a treat for us since neither of us had been in that part of downtown Hollywood before.
We even ran into a statue of the world's tallest man, I couldn't resist a photo-op.
Once we got into the park it was all fun! There were hardly any lines that lasted more than a few minutes. The park got busier later in the day, but for the most part it was easy sailing. Jon was the best tour guide, he really knew the ins and outs of the park.
Jon's favorite part, and definitely one of the highlights for me, is the backlot tour. They have a portion now where you get to see all the cars from famous movies. I think Jon was in heaven. I even got a shot of the Delorian from Back to the Future, one of our favorites!
This is the Desperate Housewives street, Wisteria Lane. I had to take a picture of how bright Eva Longoria's house is! You can't really tell in the picture either, but it is a seriously intense shade of yellow. But of course you would never notice how bright those colors are in the show, you don't even question it. Also, all those flowers in their yards are fake. It was a trip.
Water world was an adventure, Jon was definitely excited for this part. It was kind of a cold day so we stayed clear of the splash zone.
We randomly ran into Jon's college roommate from UCSD and his girlfriend while we were there. It was nice to catch up and see them for a little bit.
The day was complete fun and I am so glad we got to go together. It was a perfect birthday present and great start to the new year. Happy 2011!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Christmas 2010
Christmas was a little different this year since Jon had to work quite a bit during our normal school break. But we were soo glad to spend time with our families.
Christmas eve was a blast- keeping with tradition we went to church with the Van Wickle's, had a delicious dinner and got into the Chrismas spirit.
Christmas day at the Van Wickle's we went geocaching thanks to mom VW's latest toy. It was a total blast to go to the lake and other local areas to search (but it was mighty cold that day!).
Check out the cool hats cousin Kaitlin got the boys, I love them!
Our beautiful lake... and mom VW way out there searching haha
So sweet, love this pic!
We loved being with all the Tate's together for the afternoon. In the evening we got to see Tangled which was a totally cute family movie.
Since Jon and I are starving students I pinched our pennies this year and made some homemade gifts.
Homemade peppermint hot chocolate for the boys...
Personalized stationary for the girls... this is Jessica's
Christmas was a fun adventure, I was home, back and forth between Redlands and SB many times but I am so thankful for the time I got to spend with family.
Next post...new years!
Christmas eve was a blast- keeping with tradition we went to church with the Van Wickle's, had a delicious dinner and got into the Chrismas spirit.
Christmas day at the Van Wickle's we went geocaching thanks to mom VW's latest toy. It was a total blast to go to the lake and other local areas to search (but it was mighty cold that day!).
Check out the cool hats cousin Kaitlin got the boys, I love them!
Our beautiful lake... and mom VW way out there searching haha
So sweet, love this pic!
We loved being with all the Tate's together for the afternoon. In the evening we got to see Tangled which was a totally cute family movie.
Since Jon and I are starving students I pinched our pennies this year and made some homemade gifts.
Homemade peppermint hot chocolate for the boys...
Personalized stationary for the girls... this is Jessica's
Christmas was a fun adventure, I was home, back and forth between Redlands and SB many times but I am so thankful for the time I got to spend with family.
Next post...new years!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Coming Soon...
Updates on Christmas, New Years, and other recent adventures. Along with a new blog header. But for now... the start of school is keeping me busy. Stay tuned for future blog posts.
Post Edit: Changing our blog header does not mean we are pregnant! It just means that it is no longer 2010. Oh boy, that is how rumors get started.
Post Edit: Changing our blog header does not mean we are pregnant! It just means that it is no longer 2010. Oh boy, that is how rumors get started.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Hello Christmas Break
Finals are over. Whew. I only had three exams, but they were big, ugly and challenging exams. So nice to have those out of the way.
I also wrote many major papers that were due a week or so ago.
There was lots of this going on....
I took this picture to try to capture my need for organization. Each highlight color represents a different section of the paper (left side- paper outline), highlighted parts are research findings that support that section of the paper (middle), and the little screen (right) has my actual paper being written.
I counted up all of the papers I did this quarter. By the end, without counting title pages or references, I wrote 90 pages total. (I believe it was something like 113 with title pages and references included). The good news is my professors think our class is really good at writing, twice we were told we wrote the best papers they have ever read by students! I got full points on my 20 (ended up being 23) page paper and that felt really really good.
So now one quarter is over and I am happy. I feel happy with how I did in my classes, I learned so much and have made some really fantastic friends. Starting in January I will be doing group therapy (through a program called why try) with kids in foster homes and I will be meeting clients from the local community in the school's mental health facility. After this break... I know I will be pumped for this. I can't wait to share stories on the blog.
I am already loving being on break; I've only had one day so far. I've been cleaning the apartment and it feels so refreshing. I am trying to get in the spirit of Christmas and really appreciate this time I have off. I am excited for Jon to get home tonight and I am looking forward to a lot of Christmas baking.
I also wrote many major papers that were due a week or so ago.
There was lots of this going on....
I took this picture to try to capture my need for organization. Each highlight color represents a different section of the paper (left side- paper outline), highlighted parts are research findings that support that section of the paper (middle), and the little screen (right) has my actual paper being written.
I counted up all of the papers I did this quarter. By the end, without counting title pages or references, I wrote 90 pages total. (I believe it was something like 113 with title pages and references included). The good news is my professors think our class is really good at writing, twice we were told we wrote the best papers they have ever read by students! I got full points on my 20 (ended up being 23) page paper and that felt really really good.
So now one quarter is over and I am happy. I feel happy with how I did in my classes, I learned so much and have made some really fantastic friends. Starting in January I will be doing group therapy (through a program called why try) with kids in foster homes and I will be meeting clients from the local community in the school's mental health facility. After this break... I know I will be pumped for this. I can't wait to share stories on the blog.
I am already loving being on break; I've only had one day so far. I've been cleaning the apartment and it feels so refreshing. I am trying to get in the spirit of Christmas and really appreciate this time I have off. I am excited for Jon to get home tonight and I am looking forward to a lot of Christmas baking.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Studying...
is what I should be doing. But sometimes my brain can only handle so much. And sometimes my brain just has an off day.
Today is one of those days.
So I finally caved this evening and started working on some stuff I actually wanted to be doing. I figured there was no reason to keep these simple projects to myself.
Feel free to print these out, use them, share them, send them, whatever you want. I would probably print them out on cardstock or another good quality paper. Even if you print them out in black and white, they will probably turn out ok :)
Just click on the image, they are saved as JPEGs so hopefully the sizing is right.
Tis the season for giving! (If you guys have any other ideas for graphic design projects, please let me know!)
This one is a 3 inch by 5 inch card, prints out at 6in by 5in and then you can fold it in half at the gray line.
This is a 5in by 7in single note card (really recommend cardstock for this). Cut along the dashed lines.
I have been putting my graphic design to good use, making and designing some Christmas presents this year. I find it so relaxing. So, use these if you want. Or not. Whatever you would like.
Today is one of those days.
So I finally caved this evening and started working on some stuff I actually wanted to be doing. I figured there was no reason to keep these simple projects to myself.
Feel free to print these out, use them, share them, send them, whatever you want. I would probably print them out on cardstock or another good quality paper. Even if you print them out in black and white, they will probably turn out ok :)
Just click on the image, they are saved as JPEGs so hopefully the sizing is right.
Tis the season for giving! (If you guys have any other ideas for graphic design projects, please let me know!)
This one is a 3 inch by 5 inch card, prints out at 6in by 5in and then you can fold it in half at the gray line.
This is a 5in by 7in single note card (really recommend cardstock for this). Cut along the dashed lines.
I have been putting my graphic design to good use, making and designing some Christmas presents this year. I find it so relaxing. So, use these if you want. Or not. Whatever you would like.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
What a Week...
Isn't it funny how sometimes we loose sight of what is positive in our lives? There is this term "eustress," meant to define stress that comes from things that are positive. Sometimes it is harder to be understood when you're experiencing eustress, everyone is so happy and excited for you that you feel guilty being.. well... stressed out.
Case in point: We are so happy Jon got a job. But starting a new job is stressful, especially when it is commission based. I am so happy he got the opportunity to go on a business trip to a new sales area during his first real week of being there. But I have been missing him here at home.
But hearing Jon got his first sale? Totally worth it.
School is amazing, I am so blessed to be in such an amazing program. But getting super sick during the last few weeks of class? Yuck. Having seven pages done for a paper feels amazing, but not so amazing once you realize you have to reach 20 pages until you're done.
But I know that when I am done with this quarter, I will have earned my grades.
Totally worth it.
Attitude is everything- especially when things are looking dim. I know the Lord has been looking out for Jon and I, I know we are in the right place, and goodness we are learning a lot.
Thankfully, with everything that has gone on this week, I had this stuck in my head all day...
Grateful
Its really worth a listen.
Case in point: We are so happy Jon got a job. But starting a new job is stressful, especially when it is commission based. I am so happy he got the opportunity to go on a business trip to a new sales area during his first real week of being there. But I have been missing him here at home.
But hearing Jon got his first sale? Totally worth it.
School is amazing, I am so blessed to be in such an amazing program. But getting super sick during the last few weeks of class? Yuck. Having seven pages done for a paper feels amazing, but not so amazing once you realize you have to reach 20 pages until you're done.
But I know that when I am done with this quarter, I will have earned my grades.
Totally worth it.
Attitude is everything- especially when things are looking dim. I know the Lord has been looking out for Jon and I, I know we are in the right place, and goodness we are learning a lot.
Thankfully, with everything that has gone on this week, I had this stuck in my head all day...
Grateful
Its really worth a listen.
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