Graduation

In August of 2011 I began an educational journey at Drexel University Sacramento.  I had returned back to school in order to pursue a Masters degree in Public Health.  Well, the journey came to an end this past Saturday as my classmates and I graduated.  It was such an exciting day.  My fiance came down for the graduation ceremony and it was wonderful to be able to spend some time with him.  The event was held at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, CA and was amazing.  I am so glad that I continued my education and I am looking forward to finding a job to put my public health skills to work.

Long time no post

I guess life has been pretty busy.  I just logged in and realized I haven't posted since last November.  That is a long time and so much has happened since.  I'm graduating with my Master in Public Health degree in two weeks.  I am so excited.  I've learned so much and gained so many good friends through the MPH program at Drexel University.  I'd highly recommend the program to anyone who is looking at public health.  The time flew by so quickly.  I received my cap gown and hood in the mail last week and of course I had to try it on.  The hood confused me at first but after a few YouTube videos I figured it out.  Here's a picture of me imagining what graduation might look like.

On an even happier and exciting note, I'm getting married.  My long time friend and now fiance Joseph Harrington and I will be sealed for time and all eternity in the Sacramento, California Temple at the end of this month.  I can't stop smiling I'm so happy.  He proposed on Easter and it has been a whirlwind of activity ever since.  I was finishing my thesis and wedding planning at the same time.  Made for lots of fun and a little stress.  But the thesis is finished and the wedding is planned and all is wonderful.  

I am so excited for all the adventures that are ahead of us.  I don't know where jobs will take us but I'm so excited that we will be able to make the journey together.

Sacramento California Temple

Thanksgiving

So it has been quite a while since my last post.  I decided that Thanksgiving would be a good time to start fresh. 

I started off the holiday by waking up really early.  Why you might ask?  Well let me tell you.  My friend Alicia and I decided that we would participate in the Run to Feed the Hungry event this year.  It is a 5k or 10k run held on Thanksgiving morning.  All proceeds go to the Sacramento Food Bank to help those who are in need.  I drove to the venue and quickly found my school team from Drexel University.  We took a team photo, which I hope to post in the future once we get it.   The President of the Graduate Student Association came in the school mascot outfit which was way fun.

 This was my first official race and I was so excited even though I new I'd walk since I failed to train.  It was so fun to see all the people and how excited everyone was.  The news reports stated that there were 28,000 participants this year, more than last year. 

Alicia and I Pre-Race

This group was having so much fun.  Love the hats.

Alicia and I wanted to take some of these balloons home.  They were impressive.

Lined up and waiting for the start of the race.

 

 

So the announcer blew the air horn and the race was on.  We started off slow.....with thousands of participants it is difficult to move very quickly.  It was at least five minutes before the pack of people opened up enough for us to move a little more freely.  We walked and then Alicia turned to me and asked "Are you warmed up yet?"  I looked at her and wondered what she was up to.  Neither of us had done any training.  So she talked me into wogging.  We walked a bit then ran a bit and repeat.  I thought we were running a minute and then walking two.  About halfway through the race she confessed that we were running one and a half minutes and walking one.  I gave her the evil eye and told her she was fired.  We made pretty good time.  It was definitely hard to find an open lane to go at our own pace.  We had to keep changing course and going around people as we picked up our pace.  I had so much fun.  We made it across the finish line in 45 minutes.....which wasn't bad considering we hadn't trained and we walk/jogged the course.  I would definitely consider participating again next year.  If I do I will make sure to train ahead of time. 

 

 

After the race I drove to my Aunt's house for Thanksgiving dinner.  It was so nice.  Turkey roast, rolls, mashed potatoes, green beans, etc.  As part of the festivities we thought it might be fun to get a craft ready to entertain the younger crowd.  So from pintrest came a couple of cookie ideas. 

It turns out that the turkey was a little more complicated than we expected so after we prepared the samples, we decided that we'd just give them to the younger crowd as a special treat.  Safer for our sanity that way.

 

We had a wonderful dinner followed by great dessert.  I love pumpkin pie.  Then a movie.  Avengers is action packed. 

 

The next day my Aunt let me play with her new pottery wheel.  First we had to wedge the clay.  A lot harder than it looks.  It takes a lot of kneading and shoulder and arm strength.  My Aunt wedged three pieces in the time it took me to wedge one.  Then it was off to the wheel.  My Aunt demonstrated first the entire process.  Then it was my turn.  Centering the clay wasn't as easy as it looked.  I think I was scared to mess up.  My Aunt kept telling me that I had to apply more pressure.  If I thought centering was hard, then it was time to cone the clay up......I had trouble not turning the clay into a column.  Then it was time to clay down.  My clay kept ending up more of a mushroom shape rather than a cake.  Finally with lots of help I finally got to the point where I could begin to shape.  All in all my first attempt wasn't too bad.  It resembles a very sturdy bowl.  I got to try two more times.  I tried to do more on my own under my aunt's supervision.  My second attempt resembled a more delicate wider bowl.  My third attempt was much more eventful.  My walls ended up terribly lopsided.....way thick on one side and way thin on another side.  It fell apart so I cut off the walls and tried again.  I ended up with a cute little bowl.  Not perfect but cute and with lots of character.  I love learning new skills and was so grateful that my Aunt was willing to share her talents with me.  I can't wait to visit again soon so I can glaze the bowls.

 

First attempt

these are the three bowls

My Aunt trimmed the bowls for me since I had to come back home.  She sent this lovely picture.  I'm so excited to see the result after they are fired.  I love it.

 

 





 

 

Other recent adventures

I thought that I'd post some of the photos I've taken over the last few weeks.  I've had the chnce to go to the zoo and work in the garden.  Fourth of July fell in there somewhere too.



Exploring the coast

I took a short vacation from work and school.  I went to visit a good friend of mine.  We explored some of the towns in sonoma county.  We also drove to the coast.  I'd never been out on highway 1 before.  It was an adventure.  I loved being by the sea.  It was relaxing, and quiet, and so beautiful.  We even got to see some seals.