Family

Christmas has come! Christ is born! Let us all celebrate his birth! For through Him, we are saved, both now and forevermore. SO AMAZING!

But I titled this Family, why? Because my family, my parents, are the ones who have brought me up and raised me in this truth! Our strong relationship is because of this little baby that was born to save us all! I can't fathom it most days, but when were are all together in the same room on Christmas day, passing gifts to each other and laughing about what we all have received, love floods my soul. Yes, LOVE. The little word that sends some people screaming for the highlands, but also brings people together and is a vehicle to express happiness and good things. 

Love? Why is she talking about Love? This is sappy and lame. (you must all be thinking this)

Because I am a girl. And love is how I can express my gratitude and thankfulness to those around me, who care about me. It moves me. Love moves me. In my crazy noggin', love and family is so intertwined. When I think of family, love is right there. When I think of love, family comes to mind. 

Ok, ok. Enough. I think you get the picture. Yet...

Think of a heart, and the word Family written inside of it...  Ta da! That's what love looks like to me. 

I don't know how I will ever repay my parents for what they have done for me. My heart is filled with appreciation, and all I want to do is give back to them. But all I can do right now, (until I magically become filthy rich as a doctor(maybe?) and can fly them to the bahamas) is share a strong relationship in Christ and love with them, because that is what they have always shared with me. 

If you are in arms length of one of your parents today (or a brother or sister or grandparent or aunt/uncle for that matter), suck it up and give them a hug. I know I would. : D I'm sure they will appreciate it. (If not, kudos to you for getting within arms length of a relative!)  

FOOD

Baking. Its one of the things that has kept me from going insane lately. Seriously. I've had a couple of loooong days at work the past two weeks, and one of the things (besides someone whose name begins with a C) that has really helped, is baking glorious food (for said person whose name begins with a C).

Make some gingerbread, it's the holidays

Gingerbread cookies (adapted recipe from the most glorious baker of all, Betty Crocker)

1 cup cold water
1/3 cup of shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 cups of molasses
1/4 cup of honey
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
7 cups of flour
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. garam masala

Combine first five ingredients and beat them together really well. If you cream the brown sugar and the shortening first, it works a lot better to add the wet ingredients gradually. Then you just beat that to oblivion. Add the spices and salt and baking soda, and finally the flour. I did it in groups of 2 cups at a time, so I wouldn't over mix it. At the end, you have to use your muscles to kind of wrestle it all together. You will have gingerbread coming out of your ears. But don't fear, it's delicious.

Divide the dough in two, wrap it up, and refrigerate it for two hours. (If you're in a hurry like I was, stick it in the freezer til its cold) Then, pull out one section at a time (otherwise you just defeated the whole purpose in refrigerating it) and roll it out onto a floured surface to your desired thickness (the thinner it is, the crispier the cookie). Make sure the surface is REALLY floured. Otherwise the dough will stick and be sad. Then, use fun cookie cutters to make awesome cookies. Bake at 350 for anywhere from 7 to 10 minutes based on the thickness of the dough.

Frost with your fave frosting and sprinkle on some happiness.

Yay for delicious eats. Try them, you will have to eat at least 5...

Lacking

 Who has heard the phrase, "to be found wanting." ?? Any takers? Well, what about "to be found lacking". Bet no one has heard of that one. I just made it up. So humor me here, and keep reading. I'll explain.

  Countless times I have found myself going through the every day life, not sad, but not feeling like I'm truly living. Taking each day for semi-granted and not feeling that extra oommph, hoostpa, vvavoom! Ya know what I mean? Anyways, I feel like I've been "found lacking." Lacking passion and appreciation for everything and everyone around me. Until this morning...

  So I was "studying" in the living room with my roommate last night; she was working on a project. In typical Andrea-fashion, I totally passed out on the floor, for two and a half hours. It was 12:30am. Great. I had to get up at 5:45am to go for a yog before work at 8am. Lame. So, I stumbled all the way back, in the creepy darkness to my room, and flopped on the bed, only to be wide awake. Seriously? Seriously??? oh well. For some reason my body is ridiculous and my legs were twitching even before my alarm went off at 5:45am. Fine. I rolled out of bed, threw on running garments, (yesterday was a bit nipply, so i bundled up a bit more) and hit the streets. In total darkness. Woooeeee.

  Sorry, you're probably thinking, "get on with it! what's this lacking biz-nass?"

  It was glorious. My run was absolutely glorious. Dark, as if in the middle of the night, stars shining, and quiet. So quiet. I ran up from my apartment, and kept going up. Up to skyline and over to Enger Tower and Piedmont, then down down down to the highway and into Canal Park and back to my apartment. As I was up on the ridge, looking over Lake Superior, and the slight purple/red-ish bliss of the ever approaching sunrise came into view, I lacked nothing. Absolutely. Nothing. Supremely glad I was alive and running. So blessed to have the ability to do so. And I said a prayer of thanksgiving. A thank-you to the One who has created it all, who sent His Son for ME. The weirdo who is running in the dark on the side of a cliff at 6am. Yep, even for me.

  And when I got to work this morning? My email devotion, guess what it was about? Lacking. How I, as a believer, am lacking nothing because of God's undeserved love for me. This is my confidence. This is my "ooomph", my "hoosstpa!"

  "To be found lacking." <---- needs never to apply to me. :D 

Civil Wars

I got to go to a Civil Wars concert in the cities last night. Have you ever heard of them? If you haven't, sprint to a computer. Yes, sprint! It will pay off in the long run because you will hear delicious music that will calm your ridiculously beating heart, since the last time you sprinted was, never? Anyways, get to this music fast. It's phenomenal.

Soul-music. Not Kentucky Fried Chicken soul-ness, but grasp at your heart, stomp your feet and sing at the top of your lungs, soul-music. It is. That is why it is amazing. That is why I wanted desperately to go hear it. To be moved, to have my soul rocked, to ache for more, scream, whoop, holla, DUDE! It was fantastic. I could hardly stand to sit in my seat. I was wiggling and slappin' my legs, clapping my hands, moving my head, jamming. Completely jamming. It was at this BEAUTIFUL theater in the cities too. You know the ones that are stadium seating, with plush chairs, and big bold architecture that makes you feel like you just walked into the early 1900's? Yeah, that sort of place. So there was no 'area' to dance in, you sat in a plush-cushy chair. And listened, and yearned for more.

I went with a great friend who was just as excited as I was to hear the music. I think that is most important. To go with someone that is also going to feel moved, tugged in the direction of the stage, begging to play just one more song, please?!? It was great. Music and friendship. Huge emotions, yet simple. Just listening to music. Nothing more. But there wasn't anywhere else I wanted to be.

In. The. Moment. All the way. Find a way to be in the moment today. You will thank me later.

Bounce

I have really curly hair. Like really. curly. hair. And I have always kept it long. Long, luscious, curls. But not any more! I chopped it all off! Muah ha ha ha. Now my hair bounces. Everywhere I walk. Bounce. bounce. bounce.

I decided I wanted to donate my hair a while ago. I work in a Cancer Center and walk through a facility where people receive their chemotherapy treatment through an IV. I walk through all the time to get water and ice from a dispenser in the back. I walk past people that have no hair. Every day. Every single day. So I felt the urge to do something. Some people looked so sad. Or I felt they were looking at me longing, for their hair to grow back, like mine. Pretty life-changing, life-tugging, emotional glances. I also walk by a room that is filled with wigs. Filled! And I wanted to help. I wanted to give something of me, that could be life-changing for someone else. Hair. As simple as that. Cut it off. Donate it. Give. Share the curls. Let someone else be able to bounce down the hallway. Spring in their step with confidence that they have luscious, curly locks. Yep, sign me up.

Hands DOWN one of the coolest things I've done in a LONG time. I walked in to the Salon, (I went to a woman named Adeline, she is FANTASTIC! check her out the next time you get a hair-cut, if you live in Duluth.) pretty nervous and timid. Sat down in the hair-chopping chair, about to pee my pants in terror. But Adeline totally knew what she was doing. Before I even had time to process what was going on, my hair was in a pony-tail, then it... wasn't. Gone. GONE were the locks. Still in a pony-tail, but not on my head. WHOA! Totally crazy/awesome. Then she went to work, sculpting a bob of bouncy curls. Phenomenal. My favorite part was braiding the now cut-off pony, and putting it into a puffy package to send to Wigs for Kids. A non-profit that relies on donations to make wigs for children who have cancer or some sort of disease that prevents them from growing hair. So great. So. Great.

So now I get to bounce. My inner-happy-bouncy-nature can express itself wherever I go. On a run? Most definitely, wind in short curls, bouncing all the way. In the kitchen? Oh yeah, bouncing around making bread like a champ. On the way to work? Well, who really wants to go to work. But now I can bounce around to get my ice water, knowing that soon, someone else might get to feel just like me. Bomb diggity.

Great job, parents! Thanks for the curls. Truly blessed

Motivation

HELP. My motivation has been misplaced. I can't seem to find it anywhere. I've looked for it at work. Nothing. I've looked for it at home. Nope. Under the couch? Nah. On facebook? Big fat NO. So where is it hiding? Where, oh where!, can my motivation be??

   I've been pondering this all day, as I sit in my cubicle. I need a jolt. A lightning strike of super power multi-tasking bliss. There is just a huge list of things that I want to accomplish, but am lacking motivation. Studying for the MCATs is a LARGE BLINKING LIGHT at the top of my list. I want to start. But I'm afraid? Tentative? Hesitant? Freaked-out? WORRIED THAT I WON'T REMEMBER ANYTHING? And cry in the corner while I'm tempted to run for the hills? Yeah, I need to start. Enough whining.

   So who has motivational tips? Who has the answer to my being freaked-out and scared? Hmmmm, I wonder....
   In my daily devotion, I found the answer.
      "Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55: 6-9

   Lightning bolt? I think so. Just when you feel like there is nowhere to turn. Or that you're trying so hard to plow forward in one direction, you realize GOD IS THE ONE WITH THE PLAN. His thoughts are WAY BETTER than my thoughts. His ways are WAY BETTER than my ways. I don't have the capability to fully understand anything because I have a sinful brain. His plans for me will always be better. So I don't need to worry, or panic, or be afraid, because He totally knows what He is doing. He will help me find my motivation. It may seem completely lost to me at the moment, but it will come back.

    Trust in Him.

First Wave

I did it. I ordered the first round of MCAT study books. I have my lovely Gold Standard, that I so lavishly talked about in one of my first posts, but there is more. Oh so many more books...

Exam-Krackers. Doesn't sound like a book that is really going to help me. Sounds like something that I would rather put my smoked fish on that I got at Applefest this weekend. (cracker, haha, get it?) But really, this means I have to start studying. I have to pick up these kracker books and infuse the knowledge in them into my brain. I can't hide anymore. Studying will commence. The first wave has begun.

Despite me kind of wanting to study for this lame test of death, a friend of mine keeps errking me about it. He keeps poking my thoughts about how I'm feeling now and where I'm headed. He wants me to find happiness in my current work situation, or DO something about it if I'm not. Lame, right? Yeah, such an awful thing to think about, right? Anyways, it's like having someone bang those stupid large plastic blow-up tube things that you can get at a major league baseball game, that you smack together and they make a SUPER ANNOYING hollow banging noise. Yeah, you know what I mean. That's what my friend is like. It's kind of hard to ignore. Hard enough for me to ignore, to actually get me to buy the first stupid wave of books. He currently has a broken foot. I kind of wanted to kick the thing, but that might be a tad harsh....

Well, who wants to come study with me? I will have enough books to go around for like 10 people. They will be on my door-step in 3-14 days. Whoever decided that was an appropriate time to ship books? They may arrive by Friday, but they most certainly will be here by Halloween.

This shall be epic?... Maybe by the time the books arrive I will have a better attitude... : )

Smack

I'm clumsy. There, I said it. People who know me understand this. They have seen the carnage. For those of you who don't know me, I fall. A lot. Usually when I'm running in the woods. I mean, it's a little trail, covered in roots and rocks, people fall, right? Ha. Apparently I'm an exception. I asked a friend once, when we were blasting our way down some trails in Hartley. 'Hey dude, how many times would you say you fall in a week?' He looks at me and goes, 'Are you crazy? I can't remember the last time I've fallen.' I about fell over laughing. At that time, I had already fallen twice that week. I think it was a Tuesday.

     This past weekend, I went running in the woods. Seeing as it is Fall leaf-changing season here, the trails are riddled with leaves. Leaves covered everything. The trails, especially. It was beautiful, no doubt about it. But there should have been a large, blinking red stop sign posted where I hopped onto the trail that said, 'CAUTION, TRAIL IS COVERED IN LEAVES. MAKE SURE YOU ARE CAREFUL. YOU COULD FALL.' Not saying I really would have paid any attention to the large, blinking sign, but I might have thought twice before plowing forward.... Needless to say, my dainty running skills were nowhere to be found....

    I was running along, enjoying the gorgeous afternoon, totally happy and free in the woods. My favorite. But then, SMACK. It was like my left foot hit a brick wall. Boom. I am DOWN for the count. Practically fell on my face, but somehow I grabbed a random wimpy tree next to me and kept myself from going head first into a large rock. Did I mention I was wearing my Vibram toe shoes? The ones where each toe fits into a certain spot like a glove? Yeah, pretty sure I thought I left my left pinkie toe somewhere behind me. Like I was going to have to turn around and go scrape it off of the rock that I just smacked. Man alive, my whole foot was numb! I proceeded to continue jogging (because what else was I supposed to do, I was in the woods) and after a while I pulled off my shoe and examined the carnage. My toe was already swelling up. I could feel it pulsating. And when I went to put the shoe back on, it was tight. Gosh. Darn. It. Well, I managed to half run/half gimp my way back home. In one piece, just a tad worse for wear. 

   The best part now? My toe and foot are purple. Yeah. Gorgeous coloring, I must say. Sort of reminds me of the leaves changing color. Red to purple to yellow. Beautiful. 

   I will leave you with this: Take caution in the woods. And don't kick rocks. 

Cookie Baking Weather

So I said this blog would include some tasty recipes. I won't disappoint in that department....

Oatmeal Butterscotch and Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks room temp. butter
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. ginger
2 extra large eggs, also room temp. (This is a secret. This is why cookies are good. If you use cold eggs, you just defeated the purpose of creaming together the butter and the sugar. In cooks terms, this tip is worth at least $20. If you see me, and you made these cookies, fork over the moola because I'm sure you reaped the benefits of this tid-bit.)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups flour
2 cups oatmeal
1 1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup milk chocolate chips

Pre-heat the oven to 375.
Cream the first 8 ingredients together. Make sure to really, really get it soft and light colored. Whipped up into a deliciously smooth consistency. Makes a HUGE difference in the dense-ness of the cookie. You will have to scrape the bowl down occasionally. I know, use your guns. Then add in one egg at a time, along with the vanilla. *Make sure you stop and take a good whiff of everything you just combined in the bowl.* (You will be happy you did.)
Then add in the oatmeal and flour about a 1/2 cup at a time. Don't over-mix. Never over-mix. Sad news bears when you over-mix a cookie dough recipe. You will get hard cookies. I promise. I've found out the hard way.
Once everything is combined, stir in the goodies. My friend really likes butterscotch chips, so I added some of those. But you can add whatever you want. I think cinnamon chips would have been good in these too.
Drop by regular spoonful onto a cookie sheet and bake around 10-12 mins. I would keep a close eye on them. My first batch, according to my friend, were a little on the 'done' side. I stuck out my tongue to that. Whatever, they tasted good to me. I turn my pans in the oven half-way through. I think it helps bake the cookies more evenly. *I know, sounds annoying, but it works. I promise.*

Then, once they are done and cooled, stuff your face. Eat a lot of them. They are good. Really, really good.

So, enjoy this wonderful little fall-weather recipe. My roommate had a tummy-ache, so I brought one of these in to her room when it was still warm, and she felt better. So these cookies inadvertently cure tummy-aches. Awesome. Make them. You will be happier after you did.

Yip Yip... On By... Ha... Ge...

   In a past lifetime, I would have been a sled dog. Hands down.
Beautiful, strong, and fast. Ready to run, happy to run, in the freeeeezzzing cold, and on trail. Running for hours and never getting tired. Running when the sun goes down, and running when the sun comes up.

Yep, I would have been a sled dog.

So I got to experience this magical land called the U.P. this past weekend. That would be the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for anyone who is deft enough to not know what that is. If you live in northern anywhere, you know what the U.P. is. I, unfortunately, had never been there. And man alive, what a happy day it was when I realized I could now join in on conversations about this glorious land! Before I simply said, yeah, I've heard its awesome. Now, I can say with confidence, the U.P. is the bomb. Totally, ridiculously, fantastically awesome. Dream land. This is where you want to spend an extended amount of time if you love the woods and towns where animals out-number people. And where the alaskan husky dogs/puppies run and run and run some more.
Imagine being on trail, back in the woods with 14 dogs pulling an ATV in neutral, during the fall color leaf-changing season.That is where I spent the happiest moments of my weekend. Besides giving some love to the fantastic dogs, watching them run is by far the next best thing. They are amazing! I want 20 of them. Well, actually, I want 40 acres of land in the forest only accessible by 4-wheeler where I can keep 20 of them, to be exact. Yeah, without a doubt, I found that my soul-mate is covered in hair, has a wet-nose, big beautiful eyes, a long wagging tail, and winter running instincts.

My good friend, who graciously took me to the land of woods and dogs, will now have to put up with a girl who is jumping out of her skin to head back... whooops... She definitely should have thought twice about finding me my soulmate... : )

Cheers, U.P., you are are quite spectacular! Can't wait to return to your woodsy ways.

Run fast

I can run again. I can run, and run fast again.

    So, I fractured a bone in my foot during the middle of July, and was in a walking boot for 6 weeks and didn't run for 8 weeks. It was torture. Absolute torture. I tried LOTS of different kinds of exercise, and nothing worked. Nothing felt the same as running. I swam, and biked, and rowed, and tried to keep doing p90x.(Upper-body stuff at least) But I always came to the same conclusion... Running is the ultimate work-out of all time and nothing will ever compare.
    Needless to say, God threw the bone fracture in my path as a way to say, stop taking running for granted. You have two gloriously wonderful feet that will take you many places, but now, you must rest and get to know what life is like WITHOUT two gloriously wonderful feet. Lesson learned. I will never, EVER, take the simple act of running for granted, ever again.
   This morning, I got up and put on my fall weather running garb. (This requires my special felt headband that I got at Target from the little kids section for $2.) I slipped on my vibrams ('toe shoes') and bounded out the door. I proceeded to blast into the early morning darkness and immediately feel 'home'. Really, I felt all the most ridiculously cheesy things that you could come up with, all rolled into one. Free, happy, giddy, peaceful, excited, soothed, flying, strong, brave, fierce, whole. I felt together again. Like all of my thoughts clicked together, into a straight line. Nothing was hounding me in the back of my mind. Nothing was keeping me from experiencing the act of moving one foot in front of the other. I was in the moment. Running with a clear conscience. I was savoring the chilly morning. I wasn't taking it for granted.

   Such a blessing. I know I'm being sappy, but too bad. I will be sappy happy for as long as possible.

The Gold Standard

  The Gold Standard? What is that? A nice level to reach in one's job? An example of how to treat others?

    No. no. noooo.

    It's an MCAT study book that weighs, eh, give or take, 20 pounds. It's ginormous! Bigger than my biggest cook book. (By like 10 pounds!) I felt like I was drowning in a sea of thousands of potential paper-cuts. It's one of those books that you would look at, and push as far across the room as you can. Hide it under a blanket, and then take that blanket and bury it in your backyard. Yes, one of thooose books. So, I planted myself on the couch last night to give it a little love. Maybe try and give it a shot instead of running in shear horror from the room.
    Needless to say, I made it through a handful of pages and immediately fell asleep. Zonked. Out. Possibly drooling on the book? Who knows. My roommate even looked terrified when I brought the book out to the living room. She fled the room. Don't blame her. It's scary-looking.
    What I came to realize very quickly, is that this whole 'studying' thing shall never happen after eight o'clock at night. If I do pull out the book of death, it has to be in a location where immediate sleep will not occur. Granted, this will take some time to figure out. I can pretty much fall asleep anywhere. Couch? No brainer. Living room floor? five minutes. Kitchen table? Eh, give or take ten minutes. See? This could be challenging! But I will find a study location. It will happen. It must happen. Sometime. Soon...
    The Gold Standard. Maybe the hideous book is telling me something. It's telling me to open it up. Read. Research. Study. Learn. Because I will find hidden nuggets of gold between the thousands of pages. Nuggets that will help tackle each mountain of chemistry, biology, physics, and organic chemistry that lie ahead.

    So I will keep the beast close. Even though it's ugly. And big.... So that I can be reminded of the large, beastly mountain of studying I have ahead of me. And that the sooner I use it, learn from it, and explain contents from it on a daily basis, I can wrap it in a blanket and bury it in the backyard.

The Journey

Hello!

  Everyone has a story. Everyone has a journey. But who is brave enough to share it? I've decided to start writing my own story down, not because it is anything spectacular, but because it just needs to be recorded. How long am I going to remember how I felt in my early twenties? Living day by day, or week to week because anything beyond that is just too much to think about. If I can put down what I am feeling right now, then maybe I have a better shot at helping someone else in the future.
  So here it begins. The tales of a girl who loves Christ, loves her family, loves good food, and loves to run. Without any one of these things, I would not be a complete person. But together, these passions of mine have shaped me in to the person I am right now, and am driving me forward.

  Posts to come will feature running adventures, delicious food recipes, and the never ending shenanigans of someone trying to get into medical school. Stay tuned. It's going to be epic...