Do People Still Blog?

   
     I'm not sure Blogging is a thing anymore but I figured that I would start blogging again even for just a personal history for myself.

     Last night was my first day of Graduate School. I am in the Marymount M.Ed program which will give me my Masters in Elementary Education. If you had told me a few years that I would be getting a Masters in anything Education, I would have outright laughed. I can even remember walking down the hall in high school one of my last days of my Senior year (I can still remember the exact place that I was... outside of Dr. McKee's classroom on the second floor) and having the thought come into my head, Jessica-You should be a teacher. I thought about it for maybe 10 seconds and completely dismissed it. School was really hard for me it wasn't something that I overly enjoyed so the thought of coming back to school as a teacher was something that never appealed to me, that is until I got to teach my first class in college. Sports Psychology was the class. This particular sections was filled just with student athletes and I loved it.

     I wasn't nervous at all to back to school until it all hit me Sunday night. I couldn't sleep and then was just really nervous Monday all through work. I walked into the classroom and the professor was so welcoming. It was really a different experience than I had ever encountered in my education up until that point. It turned out to be a pretty eventful evening.

     I got to class about 10 minutes early and was sitting talking with some of the people around me, making my name tag for my desk with various colored markers and stickers (did I mention its an Elementary Education program) when all of a sudden I hear a huge crash and almost like a popping sound as I see something out of the corner of my right eye. At first I thought a balloon had popped but I hadn't remembered any balloons in the room. I looked over and the window is just completely cracked and shattered. There were some shirtless (yes my grad experience has been really different from undergrad experience) guys playing baseball and the one had hit the ball right into our classroom window.

     Later on during the class, we were in small groups and all of a sudden the girl sitting in front of me stands up and runs out of the classroom grabbing the trash can along the way and starts throwing up in the hallway.

     I didn't damage any school property and I didn't throw up so all in all I feel like I had a pretty good first day of Grad School.

Catch Up

Having a little time to spare, I will catch up with my blogging. August, September, October, November and December have absolutely flown faster than I could have ever imagined and although it seemed to fly, there certainly has been a lot that has happened since the last post.

Katherine is back from the Philippines! I'm so glad to have her back. I was mostly lost without my sister.

I went to a lot of baseball this summer. DC baseball really didn't disappoint this year and I was happy to be at a lot of important games for the Nats...and a few Orioles games as well.

I have a new found ability for craftiness and used it a few times to make baby diaper cakes for friends these past few months.  

J.C. had sinus surgery the week of Thanksgiving which made for an all too quiet holiday. With him recovering and family going in every which way Thanksgiving just wasn't the same. 

I've been able to travel a lot! I went to visit Katherine in Utah for a long weekend, went to visit a friend at UVA in Charlottesville, flew to Oregon for a friends dad's funeral and to see an old roommate, and now I'm currently in the Outer Banks with my family. Every weekend for about 2 months I felt like I was repacking the things I had just taken out of my suitcase the weekend before. I'm been grateful to have been able to be on the move though. The traveling has been a nice excuse to see old friends and has made me better at keeping up with other friends whom I have not seen. 

Thanks to my travels I've seen:

in order of appearance

Katherine

Lauren (and Santino)

Jordan

Rafa (and his parents...love them and the new tattoo)

Amber and friends

Whitney P.

 (thanks so much for hosting me! I had so much  fun and can't wait to do it again soon)

Whitney N. 

Katie 

Kim!!!

Steve 

David

Rafa (again) 

Kelvin

Jess

Kim!!!(again)

Shelly and Stephen

Allie

Tyler

Gaby

I hope I didn't forget anyone and I know I have quite a few more stops to make to keep up with everyone but if you invite me I'll probably find an excuse to come.  

This past week at the beach has been really enjoyable. I can't think of a better way to spend the week before Christmas than drinking hot chocolate by the fire in my room overlooking the ocean. I've been able to relax and rejuvenate before the holiday. I've also taken advantage of the hot tub, experienced hurricane force winds, saw dolphins play outside my bedroom window, did a polar bear swim, watched the sunrise every morning, pet a shark (my favorite part of the whole trip), had delicious food and caught up on some reading. I really wish I didn't have to leave.  

Can't Wait

I cannot wait to watch these guys tonight at the Closing Ceremonies.

What a Way to Start the Week

A man came into my office building this morning and shot and killed himself in the lobby bathroom. 

I have never completely understood when some people say that after a burglary or something of the sort they feel violated but after today I do. To have someone come into your building, a space that you feel safe in, in an unstable mental state and shoot themselves was really scary. We were all very lucky that this man was only interested in taking his own life and not the lives of other's but it honestly makes me sick just thinking about it. I knew I should have skipped work today.

Que Guapo

I woke up at 4:00 this morning to be able to see this handsome little guy swim in his first ever Olympics. I hardly got any sleep last night because I was so nervous and anxious for him to swim but I couldn't be more proud of him for working so hard and am so happy he got to fulfill one of his life long dreams. 

Here's an interview with him talking about the whole experience.

E Pluribus Unum

I love everything American so I was so excited when I got invited to go on a tour of the Capitol today. Despite living here my whole entire life, I had never been on a tour of the Capitol before, let alone the VIP tour. Thanks Shelly!

Summer Time and the Livin is Easy

With the official start of summer come the official summer activities. I feel like a lot has happened already and its only the beginning of July.

 I spent Memorial Day in Connecticut with some friends. We lounged by the pool, got manicures and pedicures, went shopping, and laughed a lot.

We slept under the stars before a day of sailing on the Chesapeake near Solomon's Island and I woke up to this beautiful sunrise. 

I was a little surprised when I got this phone call at my office.*

Got to hang out with this little buddy one night. He is honestly a perfect child.  

The storm of the season blew through town knocking out power for nearly 4 days. With no electricity, no air conditioning and having to boil the water supply, we skipped town.

 This view was waiting for me at Seven Springs Resort in Pennsylvania. 

When I had to head back to the city for work I was lucky enough to stay in a hotel right by my office...and Wegmans....and DSW. New shoes make all the world's problems seem just a little more manageable.

Finally to celebrate my favorite holiday of all time, a bunch of friends went white water tubing down the Shenandoah at Harper's Ferry then watched the fireworks from the Lincoln Memorial. 

Its been a fairly eventful couple of weeks. 

*Unfortunately THE Michael Phelps was not calling my office.