Apparently I can't blog and be in school at the same time

Unfortunately being back at NKU means writing 800 papers, which then makes me not want to write anything else - ever. Well, that's a little extreme. I just haven't had any motivation to write on here because I spend so much time on my laptop and I don't want to spend a second more on it than I have to. Even my Pinteresting has come to a severe decline. However, I suddenly had a burst of motivation to write a quick update blog. I think this happened because I have less than a month until I'm done with the first half of my Junior year :D 

I really like being back at school, but I'm not sure how long that's going to last. The rest of my friends who didn't graduate last May, graduate this May. And I've found that the social college life I enjoyed before my deployment, isn't really what I'm looking for now that my deployment is over. I just don't have a community in college and I'm not necessarily looking for one. I'm married, I'm not a huge party kind of person, and I'm 23 with most of my High School and early college friends already done with their college career. So I'm kind of ready for summer break. Actually, I'm VERY ready for summer break. 

The last two summers have kind of sucked. The year before last I was counting down my days with friends and family before I started pre-deployment training and then last summer I was obviously in a desert. I think now is a good time to make a list of things I'm excited for this summer (I love lists). 

1) Laying out at the pool. Now, I should explain that I actually did this last summer. There was a pool at Camp Taji and I frequented this pool on my day off. But now I don't have to look at ugly dust, worry about Incoming alarms, or be outnumbered by males 10:1. Also, I can enjoy the pool with Matt AND it's not a mile away and its not 130 degrees outside. God Bless America (Except the parts that resemble Iraq). 

Pool times!

2) Grilling out! There is nothing that says "It's Summer Time!" like the smell of freshly grilled meet, veggies, pineapple, whatever-the-hell-food-you-want-to-grill! Matt and I don't have a grill and we aren't permitted to have one because we live in an apartment, but I'm pretty certain our friends and family will be grilling out a few times this summer :) <--- Emoticons replace punctuation. 

Just a stock photo of grillin' out

3) Lake-house! My best friend, Melissa, has the most awesome lake-house ever. Well its not just hers - her dads side of the family owns it. But we always have the most amazing time going out on the pontoon, drinking mixed drinks, driving the jet-ski (before we've had the mixed drinks, of course) and TUBING.  There is literally no cell phone reception, internet, or even a Starbucks nearby. It is the perfect getaway and I LOVE it.

 <3

4) Experimental Cooking! For my birthday, Matt got me two awesome cook books. One was a binder filled with recipes I grew up with. He asked my mom for my favorite home cooked meals and so now I have that little part of my past to take with my into my future. He also got me my very first official cookbook called Clean Foods  by Terry Walters - It's a seasonal guide to eating close to the source. It's mostly vegetarian and it gives you recipes based on the seasons and what is naturally growing in winter, spring, summer and fall. I love it. Matt and I made the decision a few months ago to go pseudo-vegetarian. Basically, we're just limiting the amount of meat we eat. We've stopped buying meat from the grocery, but we have no problem enjoying it at a friends house or when we go out to eat. There was a lot that went into this decision so I'll have to save it for another blog. 

Get it! 

5) More time to  play with Boswell, tan, work out, and spend time with the people I love! Working, going to school full time, and trying to make meals that are healthy instead of eating out all the time is very time consuming. But when I'm just working part-time, I'll have a chance to really rejuvenate and get back into a work-out schedule! Matt and I took Boswell for a little run the other day and he did great! I'm thinking I've found my new running buddy when Matt isn't around :) 

This is Boswell. He's my favorite. 

So that's the update/the plan for the summer.

In a quick summation - life is good, school is good, lots of papers, can't wait for summer, got a dog, and I'll hopefully be updating more often in a month!