“Fardiga” is finished in Sweden

I am not official done my child and youth degree program, but I am proud to say that I have completed all of my degree level courses. I am just missing two electives, which I will complete in the Fall 2014 semester, and my 3 month long practicum in the Winter 2015 semester. With that said, I can have a real summer!

This semester has been so busy, but I was able to keep up some fun. I finally completed my research based on children who lost their primary caregiver or guardian by the age of 10 years old. I have been working in this research assignment since September and I am happy that I was able to complete it. The skills learned in this research, methodology and data analysis class was essential for the masters program. I currently don’t have any plans to attend university, but it is nice to have that option.

Here are some highlights in the past few months:

1. I have been attending hot yoga classes at least once or twice a week.

2. Shadow and I set our wedding date (August 1st, 2015) and we have put the deposit to the ceremony and reception venue.

3. Shadow am I have been playing Catan, Bang and etc…with a vast variety of people. There has been many potluck and small get-togethers.

4. I got a new part time job working with the local family services. I will be working with children in care, children diagnosed with low functioning Autism and etc…

5. Shadow and I went to Seattle a month ago to participate in the Seahawk 12K run. The whole run had rolling hills, but surprising I was able to keep up my pace.

6. I am currently participating in a 30-day ab challenge. Only 2 weeks left!

Sea…what? SEAHAWKS!

Shadow and I went down to Seattle for the weekend to visit his cousin. They showed us around town, especially the downtown area. We hung out at Pike Place and went to every Seahawk store we passed. I am not a fan, but Shadow’s cousins are. I am truly impressed with the fan’s enthusiasm and sportsmanship. I give all Seahawks fan, or as I learned, #12 two thumbs up.

Here is what we did:

• We visited Bruce Lee’s graveside.  Shadow really loves kung fu and martial arts and he wanted to pay his respects.
• We explored Pike Place and went window shopping.
• I finally found the famous gum wall!  The gross part of the wall is that you can really smell the gum.
• We went to Crab Pot for lunch and enjoyed their Seafeast.  Basically, the restaurant steams this huge amount of seafood and dumps it at the middle of the table.  You eat everything with your hands.  Beforehand, we got some awesome bibs that we looked stylish in.
• We went to a Seahawk rally and I met Sherman’s mom.
• Shadow’s cousin’s husband and I went for a 45 minute run around a lake.

Not a long vacation, but a small get-away is always relaxing.  I need to get my head away from the clouds and back into my books.

Determination?

It felt like I hit a runner’s wall with my workout today. I was only at the gym for an hour. I just did not have the energy and I think it was because I was hungry. I had lunch at 2pm and I went to the gym at 6:15pm. I did not have any snacks between those times. I will not make that mistake again.

The Peak

I have not done an afternoon/early evening snowboarding run in a long time. I think I have only done it once before. It was pretty neat to watch the sunset from the mountain top and it got really cold. As the sun was setting, the crowd started to thin out so it became very peaceful. At one point, it got kind of creepy because I got separated from my friend and I had to ride the lift back up by myself. There was nobody around me for a long time. Overall, a good experience.

Zumba + Catan = FUN

I attended my first Zumba class this morning with Shadow’s cousin-in-law. It was actually difficult because I discovered I can’t shake my bootie and do footwork at the same time. The instructor was going fast for a beginners class, but I have no other experience to compare with it. After my morning workout, we visited his cousin’s place and played Catan.