snow & ice

We made it to McPherson, Kansas yesterday afternoon.

We left Milwaukee on Friday morning at 8:45 am and arrived in Lawrence, KS at 7:00 pm.

Quite the drive. 

We had to drive more carefully through light rain for the first 3-4 hours, which added about an hour to the trip total.

There were A LOT of cars traveling on the interstate.

It made the drive through Illinois and Iowa slower than we cared for. 

By the time we got to Des Moines the roads were back to normal and we traveled the rest of the trip at the posted speed limit.

We had a great time in Lawrence, even though it was brief.

Got coffee at La Prima Tazza and went out for supper at Free State Brewery with friends.

Then we spent the evening catching up with friends. 

I actually get to see most of them again throughout this week because of Ben's jazz concert and Cari's wedding on Saturday. 

We left Lawrence after having biscuits and gravy at Jacob and Chelsy's house, even though we would have loved to go out to a bar to watch the KU game with them. 

A HUGE storm system was going through the Midwest, so we figured we better get going.

There was a little rain in Topeka, but the roads were clear after that.

We listened to it on the radio as we drove through the Flint Hills instead. 

We made it to McPherson JUST in time. 

It started raining again about 5 minutes from the McPherson exit. 

We watched the rain turn into HUGE flakes, and the snow went on and on throughout the afternoon and night.

We hopped in the hot tub for a bit during the snow storm. 

It was AMAZING.

There is SO much snow outside right now.

The picture below is only right after it started.

Stucky Christmas lunch at Dorothy's today.

Let the Christmas activities begin!

around the house

Where has this week gone!? 

Losing those days to sickness really shortened things up.

But no matter. 

I will have 2 more free weeks after we return to Milwaukee. 

Like I said I would do...

I've been cleaning, writing wedding thank you notes, cooking fabulous Russian borscht, cleaning/preparing the "activities room" for KITTENS!, drinking coffee, and making art.

I also discovered LUSH Cosmetics while doing a little Christmas shopping a few days ago...which is a very horrible thing for my bank account, but it's been pretty wonderful for my hair and skin. 

There's a store at the mall about 10 minutes from our house.

Michelle came over last night and we sat around the dinner table working on art projects, drinking hard apple cider, and chatting. 

Today will be busy. 

Need to pack, run some errands, do some final house cleaning, and then babysit this evening for 3 hours. 

Ben has been transcribing some tunes and practicing in preparation for his jazz concert with his old Bethel friends on December 23 at Mojo's/Bethel.

Should be a lot of great music and people.

I am VERY excited to take off for the holidays. 

Friends, family, and a WEDDING to attend!

WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY RUBBER BANDS.

capital brewery

Successful Saturday trip to Madison!

I was worried about the weather because it was snowing during the morning, but Ben checked the radar and noticed that most of it was sitting over Chicago and not nearing Madison.

We got through the snow buildup in MKE and after a little while on the interstate it was quite clear. 

When we arrived in Madison we took Taylor out for lunch at Manna Bakery & Cafe, followed by a visit to Strictly Discs music store (so Ben could browse the vinyl records), the Capital Brewery tour, pizza at the Roman Candle, and drinks at the Old Sugar Distillery. 

It was so great to see Taylor and hang with the other MVSers. 

A nice reward for getting through my week-long illness. 

Not a lot on the docket for the week.

Just going to do all of the cleaning I wanted to do last week, make some art, and babysit a few nights. 

Then off to Kansas on FRIDAY!

new specs & joy

The new glasses came SUPER fast.

My appointment was on Monday, and they came on WEDNESDAY.

You can't quite tell on the picture, but they have a reddish tint to them that is much more obvious in person. 

I am nearing one full week of sickness, but I'm REALLY close to feeling better. 

Sore throat is gone, runny nose has calmed down quite a bit, and the cough is almost non-existent. 

If I could manage a little more sleep, I think I'll be in business. 

That's my goal for this afternoon and this evening. 

I didn't think I'd be spending all of these days laying around blowing my nose, but what can you do?

We're excited to be in Madison with Taylor on Saturday.

Going on a FREE brewery tour that she won at Capital Brewery. 

It's been a busy last few months for both of us, so it will be nice to spend some quality time with her.

Best part about today so far....Ben got a job!

He'll be subbing for Milwaukee Public Schools starting in January.

His interviewer said that she can never fill all of her sub slots, so if he's not picky about subject matter he can work 5 days a week if he wants. 

We're going to celebrate by going out for soup...which is what my nose needs. 

rest

I am happy to report that my cold symptoms are subsiding, despite sleeping horribly last night.

No matter.

I don't have anyplace to be.

Just been laying around drinking an insane amount of liquids, blowing my nose, and doing random house chores if I feel like it. 

This includes hot chocolate with a shot of peppermint schnapps. 

I DID feel good enough to make Slow Cooker Hoisen Pork Tacos and Broccoli Slaw and chocolate chip cookies...since Ben was willing to go grocery shopping for me.

Cookies are in the oven, and the pork is still in the crock pot.

Once I've deemed myself "all better"(tomorrow or the next day?) I plan on waking up, making myself a good breakfast with a full french press of tasty Colectivo coffee, and FINALLY start cleaning the house. 

Cleaning tends to get pushed off when you're writing papers and reading constantly. 

I also have a few other art projects to work on.

There's a lot of snow outside, but the roads are more drivable now.

And I hear it's supposed to be 34 degrees by the end of the week, so we'll see how long it sticks around. 

christmas vacation

I meant to write a few days ago, but the beginning of my vacation has actually been quite busy. 

We had our last materials class on Wednesday at my professors' private practice studio. 

Afterwards a few friends and I went out for some of the best pizza I've ever had at Classic Slice, followed by amazing coffee at Anodyne. 

While we were eating our pizza I received a call from Andrew, whose kids I babysit. 

Izzy, the 1 year-old, got hand, foot, and mouth disease, so she couldn't go to daycare.

But her dad needed to be at work, and her mom needed to go to a conference.

So he asked if I could babysit her all day on Thursday. 

I said yes, because I really wasn't doing a lot besides finishing up my materials paper.

I ended up babysitting for 10 HOURS on Thursday. 

It was pretty great, actually. 

I watched Breaking Bad on Netflix all day while we played, she napped, and I ordered Chinese take out.

They even bought me a fancy cupcake as a little gift for being willing to work last minute. 

I started going a little stir-crazy by the last hour, but the compensation for hanging out in someone's home with their sick child for an entire day is VERY NICE.

I turned my materials paper in on Friday and received an 'A' by the next day, plus some nice comments from the professor.

My professors grade very quickly. 

The report card should look pretty good for semester #1.

And of course by Friday evening I started to get a cold and a sore throat.

Which has plagued me for the whole weekend, and is now finally turning around.

Yesterday it snowed and snowed and snowed and snowed.

About 4 inches.

It was actually quite beautiful watching the big fluffy flakes fall.

It was also a little treacherous driving around yesterday, but we made it to church and back.

In the picture above you can see Ben shoveling last night.

I JUST walked over to the optometrist this morning. 

They're one block away.

Handy.

I'm getting some new glasses and they gave me some new contacts.

I really needed them. 

I didn't realize it until I popped them in, but my vision is much clearer.

Just one class to attend on Wednesday. 

Otherwise I am done, and will pretty much just be babysitting, cooking, cleaning the house, and hanging with Michelle until we leave for Kansas in a few weeks. 

the head and the heart

The head and the heart are also a band, but this picture is not about the band.

I made it as my final art experiential for my theory/history AT course because today was my last class with Bruce! :(

SOOOOOOO sad.

Definitely more sad than I thought I would be. 

I don't think I'll have him for any more classes because he's slowly transitioning out as he nears retirement.

At the end of each class period he always asked each of us to say what we're taking away from class, but today he had us draw what we're taking away from the semester.

I said I'm taking away new perspective for both my mind and my heart. 

Bruce made a good point a few weeks ago that there are many typical graduate programs that don't ask you to change yourself. 

Art therapy definitely changes your perspective on things.

Bitter sweet.

Only 4 more class periods!

I've maybe said this before, but I'm technically done this week.

However, I STILL have to go to counseling next Wednesday to 

A) be a good student and

B) get my paper back.

That's it.

We're not doing anything of serious worth.

And everyone in that class is holding it against our professor for that very reason.

I am VERY happy to say that my homework list is very near completion.

I have drafts for both my counseling and materials papers.

In fact, I could turn them in right now.

The counseling paper would be fine.

The materials one might be a little iffy.

Tomorrow will be spent editing them...and cleaning the house, because I don't care to edit all day.

I'm even taking on the extra effort of visiting the success center on Friday before I turn in the materials paper. 

I'm starting to think about all of the things I will be doing during break!

Also, at least ONE of you (Alyssa) noticed that I said that we were bringing friends home...and by friends I mean kittens!

We actually decided to postpone the kitty caravan trip until January because we'll be gone for Christmas for two whole weeks in about 3 weeks. 

I was pretty sure that the kittens would be very mad at us for leaving them so soon and poop on just about everything we own in revenge.

SO. 

One more month!

This is good because it gives us time to prepare.

Thanksgiving break was heavenly, so I can't wait for Christmas. 

thanksgiving

I think I've decided that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.

Even more than Christmas.

We made our first turkey at Schmeichel Thanksgiving, ever.

Obviously, we tend to have pork instead of turkey.

We've HAD turkey at Schmeichel Thanksgiving before, but our family has never been the one to cook it. 

It looked and tasted great. 

All of the food was awesome. 

We spent the afternoon sitting around.

I worked on my paper when I got the motivation.

It's looking pretty good.

Almost ready to be edited by someone else, which is nice because I still don't have the information I need from my partner for my 6 page paper. 

I was expecting that. 

I imagine I'll be writing it on Tuesday night before it's due.

It's been pretty cold in SD, but the sun has been shining and I appreciate that. 

We'll hang around tomorrow yet.

We're planning on driving back to MKE on Sunday morning. 

We may be taking some "friends" with us...

strep

Final art piece made in my Materials class "studio day".

Doesn't feel like my migraine was THAT long ago, but here I am back in bed.

I might have strep. 

Not confirmed yet.

I went to the doctor this morning.

The rapid strep test came back negative, but she said that my throat looked bad enough that the culture might come back positive or there is some other infection.

I'm currently hitting the penicillin. 

Those "cold" symptoms I thought I had didn't stick, but around 5 pm yesterday afternoon a knot started building in my throat. By the end of my night class I could barely swallow. Ibuprofen and Tylenol got me through the night, but I knew I should visit the doctor if I was going to get better by Thanksgiving and be able to finish my final assignments.

So sadly, I'm losing a day to illness, but at least I didn't have any plans or class today anyway.

And nothing tomorrow.

I couldn't have planned my illness better if I had tried.

Honestly, I'm not at all surprised I'm sick.

Typical me.

1) Endure a great deal of stress.

2) Get a chance to take a break and rest my body.

3) Boom. Sick.

Some good news: I got the community art center internship for the spring!

She told me I got it by the end of our interview. 

And now I'm going to go sleep some more. 

Have a nice weekend!

gouache

New fun art medium: gouache. 

(gu-ah-sh) rhymes with squash.

Cross between acrylic and watercolor.

Looks and applies like acrylic.

Blends and finishes like watercolor.

(The finger is drawn in ink. Gouache background.)

Final practicum interview tomorrow!

I should have a spring placement decided within a week.

Can't wait for that to be over. 

I'm starting to feel like I'm getting a cold...or it's just the weather change affecting my throat. 

If it IS a cold, hopefully I can stave it off for two more weeks. 

I am SO excited for Thanksgiving and Christmas break. 

There will be many fantastic people to see and things to do. 

I'm essentially down two TWO more assignments.

(Not counting the painting for Emily because it's essentially done.)

Both due after I return from Thanksgiving.

Trying REALLY HARD to get them done the majority of them done before I leave.

The 8-10 pg. paper is on collage, which I enjoy, so hopefully I can do a good job of that. 

The 6 pg. paper will just not be fun no matter how you look at it. 

Career counseling is NOT want I want to do the rest of my life. 

I'm heading off to coffee with my Mennonite women. 

Nice way to end a full day of class.

CATE

- journal article review & presentation (Wednesday, 2 pages)

- career intervention & poster (Nov. 13, 5 pages)

- my life, my plan reflection paper (Nov. 20, 6 pages)

- career assessment, reflection & synthesis (Dec. 4, 6 pages)

EMILY

- psychotherapy/counseling paper (Nov. 14)

- painting (Dec. 12)

CHRIS

- materials paper (Dec. 4, 8-10 pages)

BRUCE

-media presentation (Nov. 18)

sourdough

I am currently enjoying a misty Saturday morning in MKE.

(Not raining yet.)

I've already walked to Rocket Baby Bakery to buy 2 loaves of sourdough.

One for us; one for tonight.

Then I had eggs, sourdough toast, raspberries and coffee for breakfast.

And now I'm deciding what household chores need to be accomplished before I climb back under the covers and get some reading done for my last research paper.

A nice, relaxing day, thus far. 

Yesterday was BUSY, but fun.

Two AT friends came over and we worked on our media project that is due on Monday.

We worked on it 10 am-4 pm, so we were wiped out by the end.

But we LOVED working on it and we're really proud of it.

We drank coffee, ate monkey bread, and other snacks to get us through.

Hopefully I can put it on the blog when it's finished. 

One of our group partners is out of town for the weekend, so we have a few things we need to add from her tomorrow night.

Can't wait to show it on class on Monday morning.

I also babysat last night from 6-10 pm. 

I am REALLY enjoying it because the kids are great, and fairly easy to handle. 

The photo above was actually from Thursday morning when I was making final edits on my theory paper.

That 8-10 pg. theory paper is now done and graded. 

I'm really excited to get the grade back on that one, because I worked really hard on it. 

She's going to give them back to us with corrections, and I can make those corrections and improve my grade if I want to...but if it's good enough, then I don't have to worry about it further. 

I have already started research on my last 8-10 pg. materials paper for the semester.

It's on collage, and all of its therapeutic benefits.

I do a lot with mixed media, so it's interesting to me.

Trying to get everything done that I possibly can before Thanksgiving, because I have a feeling that when I get home I will NOT want to do any homework. 

Tonight we're going to my professors house for a benefit concert/soup supper/fundraiser for the Global Alliance therapeutic arts program in Africa. 

My friends, Ben and I are helping to cook some soup, and then eat it. 

Nice to have my huge projects out of the way and just be able to enjoy myself for the evening. 

light

Red Dot - Our new favorite spot to get poutine 2 blocks from our house.

Light at the end of the tunnel!

Presented my poster today.

Handing my theory paper in tomorrow, which I still need to make a few revisions on, but it's basically finished.

I'll be wrapping that up tomorrow morning, because I'm currently exhausted. 

Wednesdays are long and busy.

So I updated my to-do list below!

It is cold here, so I decided Ben and I need a big bowl of pho. 

After we work out...

I have not been doing a good job staying active this past week. 

Soooo much on my mind and schedule. 

But exercise is part of self-care so I'm going to go make that happen. 

Getting really excited to head home for Thanksgiving!

CATE

- journal article review & presentation (Wednesday, 2 pages)

- career intervention & poster (Nov. 13, 5 pages)

- my life, my plan reflection paper (Nov. 20, 6 pages)

- career assessment, reflection & synthesis (Dec. 4, 6 pages)

EMILY

- psychotherapy/counseling paper (Nov. 14)

- painting (Dec. 12)

CHRIS

- materials paper (Dec. 4, 8-10 pages)

BRUCE

-media presentation (Nov. 18)

lakefront

Lakefront Brewery tour was a success!

A great tour, and so much fun with friends.

Not to mention the fact that we RANDOMLY saw the Regier family visiting from Kansas (Jenny's parents and sister) at the brewery and then they were ON OUR BREW TOUR WITH US.

It turns out that Margo goes to school in Beloit, Wisconsin, so they came to visit Milwaukee for the day.

Crazy!

So I guess I'm back to reality.

Today was SUPER BUSY.

Random note: It snowed today! Started out as rain/slush. Turned into fluffy/pretty snow. Will likely melt in another day or two. 

Registered for all of my classes this morning.

It was a little bit of a mess.

The registration site was not quite working right, some information was incorrect, and I also had to go to the business office right at 8:00 am to turn in a silly sheet of paper so that I could take the hold off of my ability to register. 

I was able to register by 8:05 am, and secured all of the time slots I needed...

including a weekend course about art therapy with Native Americans.

I don't know about my spring practicum yet, but I've basically got summer and fall practicum nailed down.

Looks like I'll be interning at a huge hospital/oncology unit in MKE for both of those semesters.

Not required to have two semesters, but I hear that it really helps if you can get used to the place. 

I think I could use a little stability amidst all of the chaos.

And the supervisor seems phenomenal. 

My friend, Ian, recommended her as a good practicum option.

Some of us went for a tour/visit this afternoon and she was already being a great mentor. 

Can't wait to work with her in that space!

So things are starting to slowly fall together...and after Thursday things should be looking nice and peachy. 

Busy project/paper day tomorrow...but I'm almost there!

chaos

It's going to be chaotic for about one more week. (Which is what the painting above is about.)

Practicum interview on Monday.

Student success center appointment to review paper with tutor & babysit on Tuesday.

(Our professors strongly urge/sort of require us to have our papers reviewed and revised before turning them in.)

I have to create a professional looking poster/presentation by Wednesday.

8-10 page theory paper due on Thursday.

Still have to attend classes somewhere in there.

Amidst all of that business I'll be editing a movie/media group project that is due the following Monday, which is what the picture above is from. 

One week from now things will be significantly calmer.

I just had a practicum site interview this morning.

It went very well, but don't really know if it will be "the one" for this spring.

I have 2 more interviews.

Trying to get one more scheduled.

I'm not really talking about them on the blog because we've had plenty of education and warning about confidentiality and the Internet. 

So I just best not talk about names of the places and too many details. 

First site is with an inpatient psychiatric adolescent unit. 

Second one is an adolescent community arts-based center. 

Last one is an adults/oncology unit. 

I might be able to share small, vague things here and there in the future, but if you really want to know you're just going to have to ask me. 

Don't really know if I will have the opportunity to do all of them, but here's hoping. 

In spite of the practicum/homework stress, I am SO happy that it's Friday.

A bunch of AT students and significant others are going on the Lakefront Brewery tour tomorrow afternoon. 

It will be a WONDERFUL break from such a crazy time in the semester. 

Have a nice weekend!

shaving cream prints

Above is a print we pulled using SHAVING CREAM and tempera paint!!!

It is about the best activity I've learned at school thus far.

Despite getting 9 hours of sleep last night I am pretty tired right now.

Must be school starting to wear on me. 

Had class from 9am-1pm, followed by a trip over to the Bayshore Mall to watch Ben at work with Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra. 

They had ALL of the groups play at the mall ALL day long. 

Ben left at 7:30 am...

It's almost 7:00 pm and he still isn't back. 

Michelle came with me because she lives close to this mall, so we went back to her house afterwards and walked her adorable shiba inu (dog) down to the lake and back. 

I think it was VERY good self-care on our part.

I'm so glad I didn't come home right away and start working on homework. 

I needed a break.

And now I'm going to get back to reading because I've got a busy week ahead. 

Feels like a mad dash to Thanksgiving. 

Good luck to you all. 

superman goggles

Here are my superhero medical glasses that I made in class today.

(I glued comics to the glasses.
I did not draw the pictures.
I DID draw on the puff paint.
Yes, I have a very steady hand.
Thank you.)

Today was Day 2 of my Child/Medical weekend class.

9-4 pm.

Love it.

Super sad and depressing, but obviously there's really good and important AT work being done in hospital settings.

We're lucky that the teacher is amazing and gives us uplifting activities to combat all of the depressing stories.

She makes me wish I was working at her hospital for my practicum...but she requires two semesters, and I want a little more variety. 

(We have 3 practicums total. One per semester, except our first and last semester.)

I am pretty tired because it took awhile to fall asleep last night, and then I had to get up early to be in class all day.

Going to exercise, do some homework, and stay at home and rest, which sounds like SUCH a good plan for tonight. :)

illinois art therapy conference

Hello all.

Yes! Still alive!

The Illinois Art Therapy Conference was fabulous. My professor gave me special recognition in class for attending (because only one other person attended from MMU, and she LIVES in Chicago). 

It was super-informative/interesting, and I met a lot of great people. 

Art therapists are the nicest.

It was also held at SAIC (School of the Art Institute of Chicago), which has always kind of been my dream school.

But I'd have to say that much prefer MKE to Chicago. 

Way less traffic/people/buildings/allsmooshedtogetherjustlikethis. 

MKE has more space, and it costs less to park. A LOT LESS.

And really, the IATC was only a part of a VERY wonderful Chicago weekend.

Ben and I drove in after my practicum fair on Friday. 

Took 3 hours to drive 75-ish miles, because Chicago rush hour traffic is HORRIBLE.

Especially when there is an accident.

It slows everyone down.

But the view of the city is always breathtaking.

But we made it just in time to have a quick supper with Matt, and then off to The Bad Plus concert.
They're a jazz group that Ben adores, and they happened to be playing at University of Chicago...which is where Matt happens to be attending law school.
So he happened to get us $5 student tickets.
It was AMAZING!

The next morning I was up at 6:30 am to head off to SAIC for the conference.

We stayed with good college friend Kelly, who lives a few blocks from Wrigley field, and the Red Line (metro system).

It was a simple 5 minute walk + 25 minute metro ride + 5 minute walk to SAIC. 

SO CONVENIENT! 

Afterwards, I returned to Kelly's by metro and we took the car to meet Ben and other friends for supper.

Can we ALL be super proud of me for conquering anxiety issues and actually driving in Chicago on more than one occasion? 

Not so bad, but not super-fun either.

Anyway, Meredith, Blaire, Matt, Kelly, Ben and I all went to the Jason Isbell concert after eating Costa Rican food (which included an oatmeal milkshake and plantains). 

Everything in that sentence was unbelievably amazing. 

We drove/fought through Halloween crowds while trying to find parking afterwards...we're taking the train from now on. 

On Sunday morning we met all of the previous friends for brunch at Ann Sather's.

Known for their CINNAMON ROLLS. (See top picture.)

There are TWO included in ONE SIDE. 

THAT is how you treat a customer well. 

We napped...because I needed it.

And then ended the evening by attending Kelly's sketch musical comedy show at Second City. 

We then drove back and made it home in 1 hr and 40 minutes...because that is how long it SHOULD take without heavy traffic. (Not 3 hours.)

Monday was a little tough to get through, but we made it.

AND THEN I woke up with a serious migraine on Tuesday morning.

The headache/nausea kept me in bed until 2 pm.

I talked to TWO people who also experienced migraines yesterday. 

Definitely allergies.

Weird.

I feel like I will never fully understand allergies/sinuses/migraines.

And tonight I secured a nannying job! 

Just something a little part-time because I feel bad for not making ANY money. 

A 4-year-old and a 1-year-old. 

Precious!

Their parents seem lovely too.

My Journal Article presentation was crossed off today! (see below)

Little by little!

I don't have it on the list, but I'm currently applying to/interviewing with practicum sites for THE WHOLE NEXT YEAR.

I'm aiming for 3 populations: community art center/nursing home/oncology unit. 

Spring/Summer/Fall.

I'm just going to plunge through all of that and not put it on the list.

Speaking of which, I'm going to go work on my resume....

CATE

- journal article review & presentation (Wednesday, 2 pages)

- career intervention & poster (Nov. 13, 5 pages)

- my life, my plan reflection paper (Nov. 20, 6 pages)

- career assessment, reflection & synthesis (Dec. 4, 6 pages)

EMILY

- psychotherapy/counseling draft (Nov. 14)

- psychotherapy/counseling paper (Dec. 12, 8-10 pages)

- painting (Dec. 12)

CHRIS

- materials draft

- materials paper (Dec. 4, 8-10 pages)

BRUCE

-media presentation (Nov. 18)

hot drinks

Made some hot cocoa this morning when I got up.

I needed some warm comfort...and sugar.

Made some loose leaf tea to sip in class as I worked on my midterm.

We had 10 questions to answer and we were allowed to type as much as we could muster for 3 hours. 

Fasted 3 hours ever.

I was exhausted by the end of it.

And so I made some coffee. 

I could really go for a nap, but I think I should work through it instead.

So I decided that I needed a big to-do list for my last 7 weeks of class...and of course I've added a few things that I could cross off immediately. It's all downhill from here. 

CATE

- journal article review & presentation (Wednesday, 2 pages)

- career intervention & poster (Nov. 13, 5 pages)

- my life, my plan reflection paper (Nov. 20, 6 pages)

- career assessment, reflection & synthesis (Dec. 4, 6 pages)

EMILY

- did I mention how glad I am that my presentation for this class is done?

- psychotherapy/counseling draft (Nov. 14)

- psychotherapy/counseling paper (Dec. 12, 8-10 pages)

- painting (Dec. 12)

CHRIS

- materials draft

- materials paper (Dec. 4, 8-10 pages)

BRUCE

-media presentation (Nov. 18)

I have the rest of October to start preparing for the mess of stuff coming up in November. 

I'm already starting to think about the coming semester, which will bring practicum!

I think I know where I'll be doing my practicum, but I will wait to announce that when it is confirmed. 

Illinois Art Therapy Conference in Chicago this weekend!

Going to see some friends, some concerts, some art therapists, and just have a great time in general.

color run

dynamic views

You'll notice a change in blog layout.
I decided to switch layouts because although the "dynamic view" style blogs were visually appealing, I couldn't read comments that people left.
I think it has something to do with google reader going down a little ways back.
Who knows.
Anyway.
New look.

And by the way, the chocolate cake I listed in the last post is a must-try!
Soooooo moist.
Make it.

relief!

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii......

I'm alive. I made it. 

My class ended about an hour ago and I already have a chocolate cake baking in the oven. 

THIS ONE.

Yes, it's vegan. 

I didn't even realize it until I finished putting all of the ingredients in. 

I did not pick it for health reasons (because if you look at the ingredients, you will see how NOT healthy it is for you).

It's a "that-cake-looks-good-so-I'm-gonna-make-it" cake.

Anyway, we got an 'A' on the presentation.

Glad my standards are higher than my professor's.

And now my crazy week is over!

I guess I have a mid-term on Monday, and a little baby paper due on Wednesday.

But those will be no problem.

The big stuff is out of the way...for now. 

Bigger papers coming up at the end of the semester, but at least I can take a little break first.

Having an assignment due %100 percent of the time is difficult. 

So our Michigan weekend!....

It was fabulous!

You can see Laurie and Chris above. 

The wedding was outside at this beautiful old house that was built in 1901 and is used for celebrations and events... such as weddings.

The weather was PERFECT.

All of the trees were changing colors and the leaves were falling all around us.

Could not have been more lovely.

And it was so amazing to see a bunch of my dearest friends again.

I'll get to see most of them in December for Cari's wedding too!

What a great year of weddings/get-togethers.

We rented a cottage in Grand Haven for 10 people, so we all got to hang out and talk way too late into the night.

We were about a block from the beach.

Grand Haven was beautiful.

I would absolutely go back there to visit. 

The ferry was amazing!

It tops out at speeds of 40 mph.

Way more room to walk around, space to spread out, tables to sit at, a galley to buy food (although we didn't). 

Much better than an airplane.

Except I got a little motion sick on the way back.

I didn't vomit. 

Just queezy and a little dizzy.

In order to distract myself from the mild illness, I drew my motion sickness (below).

Next time, Dramamine.

And here is my painting that was due on Monday.

The background was grey.

I took it to class and noticed that it should really be orange.

So I brought it home and painted it orange.

And now it's a gift for my sister, because I owe her a painting.

And also it makes sense to give it to her because I think she would be one of the few people to recognize mom's geraniums in her white pot. 

So (HUGE sigh of relief). It's felt like I was running a marathon this week...actually these past 2 weeks.

I'm meeting classmates at Colectivo tomorrow afternoon to study/talk about the midterm.

Then hopefully a little video Gchat with Em & Kez.

And then Saturday morning I look forward to running around for 30-ish minutes while getting covered in colorful starchy powder (Color Run). 

I've hit the midway point.

Only 7 more weeks of class!

It's flying by.

train advice

Almost done with the chaos!

I went to class and turned in my painting on Monday, despite the extreme sleepiness hangover from my weekend in Michigan. 

I helped "career coach" 6 freshman at the Milwaukee High School of the Arts on Tuesday morning. Kids have short attention spans...in case you forgot.

Today I turned in my genogram and paper.

Tomorrow is the big one. 

Group presentation in psychotherapy and counseling class.

I was going to go have coffee at Colectivo with the Mennonite church ladies, but there was a problem with the train crossing lights. 

Sat there for 20 minutes and decided to heed the train's advice and go home. 

So I'm about to get back to work on the presentation. 

I will be SO glad when it's over. 

I have a midterm on Monday, but it should be pretty easy, and I have all weekend to study for it. 

Back to the grind. 

I'll catch you up on the Michigan weekend when my sanity is back in its proper place. 

time out

I am RIDICULOUSLY BUSY THIS WEEK.

I have a painting, a paper, and a presentation due next week AND I have to go career counsel high school students for a few hours. 

Each one due on a different day: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. 

That means I am working REALLY HARD to get as much of that done this week as possible because I'll be in Michigan for a WEDDING this weekend!

Amidst all of that I'm turning in a TWENTY-FIVE PAGE PAPER IN TOMORROW!

Yes, I'm being over-dramatic and that sounds way more impressive than it really is.

Only 6 pages of that is the actual paper. The other pages have pictures, raw data, references and the title page. 

SO GLAD I'M HANDING IT IN TOMORROW.

So I'm exhausted (because I was working on it all day today), and I'm going to bed. 

I will talk with you all again sometime next week after I finish all of that stuff.

WISH ME LUCK!

mid-terms?!

Coffee-dyed quilt block for my 7 Day project. Used coffee in one art project everyday for 7 days. 

I guess next week we're half way through the semester.

I can hardly believe it. 

It's just flown by so quickly. 

We only have one mid-term in Bruce's class, and he's giving us a study guide, so I'm not terribly worried. 

 Tonight I start my PTSD/Veterans' Issues workshop. 6-10 pm tonight, 9-4 pm tomorrow, 9-1 pm on Sunday. Should be a good class and a busy couple of days.  

Very sad we couldn't make it to Fall Fest at Bethel this weekend. 

I thought this was gonna be the year where we finally make it back. 

Maybe next year. 

At least Schmeckfest is in the Spring. 

Fingers crossed that no school stuff interferes.

I didn't mention that Bruce gave us our papers back ALREADY on Wednesday.
I got an A on the paper and an A+ on the presentation.
Speaking in Spanish during a presentation will get you brownie points
So I'm glad that's over, but there is A LOT of stuff to do in the next two weeks.
Seriously, if you don't hear from me there are many good reasons.

And FALL is upon us!
Take a look at our street.
It's raining today.
Even more leaves on the ground.
Hope to get out of the city at some point to see all of the beautiful trees.

coffee, chicago, volcanoes

Ohmygoodness!

Look how beautiful Milwaukee is getting!

I am in an exceptionally good mood because I just got back from class where I turned my first big grad school paper in.

I was also the FIRST person (out of 15) to give their 5 minute presentations to the class.

I am realizing that I can definitely be a "let me do something first so there's nothing to compare it to" kind of person. 

Not all of the time, but definitely today.

It went really well. 

I wowed the class by using my Spanish abilities, and people said I set the bar high. 

Good to hear. 

Now THAT'S over and I can move on with my life (and other homework).

October will be a busy month. 

- PTSD/Veterans Issues workshop this weekend

- Laurie's wedding in Michigan next weekend

- Color Run on Oct. 19 (why yes I did convince Ben to run it with me. His FIRST OFFICIAL 5-K EVER!!!)

- Halloween, I guess? 

- Volunteer work at Islands of Brilliance starts

- Illinois AT Conference in Chicago

- and homework all over the place

So I finished my paper up on Friday morning and then we drove down to Chicago to pick up Brad from Union Station.

Ben drove down (he's a hero) and I drove back (when traffic was not as insane).

Meredith and Matt met us there and we all hung out for the evening.

Got coffee, wandered around a park, ate at a POUTINE restaurant (fries with gravy and cheese curds on top. SO GOOD!) and then checked out one of their favorite bars.

On Saturday morning we took Brad to Colectivo and then out to the watchtower at Lapham Peak. 

Afterwards we drove around MKE a little and then ate lunch at McBob's, where we of course got the best ruebens in town. 

Went back to the house to relax and watch TV (while I worked on homework).

For supper we went to Espana Tapas House, only 2 blocks from the Pabst Theatre where the Volcano Choir concert was (the real reason Brad came to visit us). 

Food was fabulous. 

The concert was fabulous.

By the way, Pabst Theatre is GORGEOUS.

Sunday morning we walked the few simple blocks to Rocket Baby Bakery for coffee and pasteries.
Then we took Brad to the train station (in MKE) so he could catch the train down to Chicago (for his other train ride).

And then I realized I had more homework to do.
I'm doing a 7 Day Art Experiment with coffee.
We can choose whatever we want, but I chose coffee.
Because of course I would choose coffee.
And we just have to use it in a different way every day for 7 days, and write about it from a "phenomenological perspective."
Lots of fun. (Not even sarcastic. Seriously)

So I'm a little tired, 

but I'm going to make some coffee (to drink),

do some homework,

go for a run (because exercise actually wakes me up even better than coffee),

and just enjoy my beautiful Wisconsin fall day.