Baking!

I have been baking sooo much lately!

My favorite thing to bake has been Pumpkin Spice Rolls.

I made two over Thanksgiving and another tonight for my roommate.

I also made chocolate chip mini brownies yesterday night.

I'm thinking about baking some more for Christmas while in Libby over vacation.

The cool thing about baking is that I feel like it really takes stress off my back.

It was nice to not think about homework or finals and just bake today.

I can really use that to my advantage in the future.

Learning more recipes then hopefully more food recipes in general.

I'll be a self-made chef in no time! ;)

Love and hope you're all doing amazing!

Thanksgiving Day!

I'd like to start off by saying the things I'm thankful for:

My amazing family - my outgoing and hilarious mother,

my quiet and silly father, my wonderful, beautiful, fun sister,

and my intelligent step-dad. My distant family as well - including

my amazing cousin Amanda and her wonderful family and Autumn

and her wonderful family. [I sure do wish we lived a lot closer!] I'm

so thankful for all the amazing friends that I've been given as well.

Thank you all for being my support system and always being there

for me. If you ever need me, I promise to be there for you to the best

of my abilities!

_________________________________________________

I spent Thanksgiving with my family today in Libby.

My dad is home from El Paso for the holidays but sadly to say,

he made a prior commitment to another friend.

We're hoping to spend a lot more time with him before I drop

him off at the airport in Spokane on my way back to Seattle.

On Tuesday, we went to my sister's ultrasound.

She is 19 weeks and we found out that the baby is a beautiful

and very active baby boy :) I cannot wait to meet him on 4/20/10.

I need to get a job so I can spoil the crap out of him :)

Speaking of nephews, my brothers two kids - Ethan & Trevor

as well as him and his wife, Ashely are coming to spend a weekend

with us over Christmas. I'm very excited! We don't get to

spend a whole lot of time with them because they live far away!

Overall, I'm trying to enjoy the short amount of time I have left

before I have to head back home. I sure do miss being around my

Sister, Mom, and Dad! Life is tough after high school!

Yet, I still look forward to the future and the amazing things that

are planned for my life! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Why yes, I DID update TWICE in ONE week!

Autumn might be really proud of me.

Or she might be annoyed by this fact.

We'll see!

I am currently in class - Integrated Info. Design

where we are, YOU GUESSED IT,

creating a blog! :)

I'm excited that schools are "integrated" the

idea of blogs and such into their programs.

It's good way to keep up with technology!

I took my first commute today :)

It took me roughly an hour and a half

to get from Auburn to downtown Seattle.

I arrived to class JUST in time.

I'll be staying in Seattle on Wednesdays

until my night classes are over on Thursdays!

Thus, to save money on commuting as well!

Miss you & love you all!

UPDATE!

Yeah, Yeah, I suck at updating this! It's been quite a long time. I've decided maybe I'll start updating every other Thursday or something! I even marked it on my calendar :)

A lot has happened recently! I took a quarter off from school and worked at Aitken's in Libby for the summer trying to make some money. Needless to say, I didn't do a very good job at saving any of it. I had planned to move in with Kaytee but that didn't work out for some reason or another and so I ended up finding a place in Auburn with two new roommates Kelly (the owner of the really nice 3 bedroom house) and Dana. They're really great ladies. They're both late 30's/early 40's but have such a young spirit! They're both fun & sweet women!

Here are some pics of the place!

It's such a beautiful place! It's 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths and has a 2 car garage. It's also on a cul-de-sac :) (Mandy will be so thrilled! haha.)

Not a whole lot else is going on. I start classes again on Wednesdays. I dropped down to 4 classes in the mean time. Two on Wednesdays & Two on Thursdays - Afternoon then Night classes. I'll probably be commuting by bus because it's so much cheaper and just staying in downtown Seattle with Michelle or Bri on Wednesdays! I'm happy to report that I am beyond excited to get back to classes and I've truely missed it!

Ohhh something else new, for my first year ever, I am going to have trick-or-treaters! Kelly said that a lot of kids come so I am looking forward to handing out candy all night :)

Well, I'm exhausted! Can't wait to see you all again! Loves & see you soon!

Sleeping in Seattle

Moved In.

Loving every bit of Seattle.

Even the rain.

Miss my friends and family.
Excited for the new changes & opportunities that lie ahead.
My room went from a disaster to an empty blur of my past.
My new apartment is a look into my future.
It's neat & tidy.
Everything is kept in one spot.

(Keep in mind the above picture was taken WHILE I was unpacking still)

The view from our room is obstructed
Obstructed by a huge building.
Yet, there is a magnificent splendor in the building.
Lit up by the ambiance of the ocean.
Beautifully Obstructed.

To either side however,
The city is clearly shown.
Cities which hold their own beauty and splendor.
Old & antique like are the buildings.

Even each person holds their own magnificence.
A new roomy being the newest of this type of person.

Katie. A common name. A unique person.

Loud, Exciting, Fashonista.

She's someone new.

Someone different and completely new.

She's great.

Most importantly,

to go along with everything else that is new in my life,

I have a new attitude.

A new excitement for being alive.

A new-found idea of what I want for myself in life.

(and a new-found shirt :))

Overall,
The experience is exactly what I asked for.
I'm enjoying my time here.
I'm enjoying what I'm learning.
I'm enjoying what I'm living.

Miss everyone back home.
Libby is a great place to grow up.
But spreading your wings is much more invigorating.

Mr. & Mrs. Nielson

This isn't fully related to my journey to Seattle.

However, it has given me a new perspective on the love of family.

Cjane (Courtney)'s sister, Nie, and her husband were in a private plane crash on August 16, 2008.

She has since been taking care of their children as well as her newborn.

She has also been faithfully updating her blog, as well as her sister's blog.

This is the true love of sisterhood.
Isn't family amazing?

You're an inspirational and beautiful person Courtney!

God Bless & I hope all turns out for the best!
The Nielson family, as well as yours, are in my prayers.

Goodbye small town, hello big world.

Thus, it begins.

I finish my last day of work on Friday.

Then it's two weeks of packing & volunteering for an art class at the High School.

Then it's bye-bye small town Libby and hello huge Seattle.

Honestly, I cannot wait.

I'm beyond thrilled at my opportunity at this experience.

Who knew that a girl from a small town could make it to such a big place.

I'm excited for all the new people I'll meet, new things I'll learn, and for my new surroundings.

I'm also excited to begin classes.

I've heard a lot of great things about the Professors & I cannot wait to experience the proof.

Goodbye small town, hello big world.