Election...

OMG, I can't stand it anymore-- as Wyatt on the John Stewart Show said last night-- can we please just get this over with already!?! I am SOOO ready to know who is going to be our next president, and am SO nervous it won't be Obama. OH PLEASE OH PLEASE OH PLEASE!!!!
Jeff and I are going door to door tonight to volunteer for the campaign.

Target sandwich review

I love most things Target, as you well know, but today i ate an Archer Farms warm-up-in-the-microwave-sandwich that was just yuck. It was a breakfast sandwich, so maybe that has more to do with it than anything. Maybe it was just the taste of the french bread it was on, or the undercooked egg in the middle... I'm not sure. I was disapointed and now very hungry.

Camp Michelle

Camping Post

So, above is a link to my sis' website regarding our camping trip this weekend with pics included. Nothing like posting pics of yourself the worst you look ever after sleeping in a tent/sleeping bag without a shower!

No really, it was so good. I got to make a new friend-- Lindsay W. and spend time with some good friends roughing it outdoors. A bit of "CAMP MICHELLE" came out of me. She is an alter ego that enjoys making fires, cooking over a fire, and basically all things fire and camping. She's sorta a take-charge (when am I not that way though, I need to get a hold of myself) kinda gal.

Anyway, other than that have been enjoying the fall weather and "engaging my abbs" as I do anything thanks to my new Pilates class.

Happy Fall everyone!

this weekend and next weekend...

This past weekend I went to Iowa City with my husband to see the Hawkeyes beat Wisconsin at home. It was a good time. Jeff's two brothers and sister were in town, so that made it extra fun for us. Every time I am there I just itch to get some time at the town's ped-mall (if you've ever been to Boulder, CO., they have one too...) and go shop in some of their unique stores. I got to for a few minutes Sunday morning, but not enough to really truly get satisfied. We're going back over Thanksgiving so I will for sure be hitting up AKAR, White Rabbit, and Revival.
Ps. I took in some jeans that I recently bought and don't fit (le sigh) and exchanged them for some way cool Biviel shoes at Revival. They are awesome (and were really cheap compared to the original price of the suckers).

In other news, this weekend I am going CAMPING with my girlfriends. I cannot wait!

Give a little love

Here is my heart to share tonight-- but I have to preface it a bit for understanding. I have this group counseling class that I have been going to this semester where we actually have group counseling in our class. Its been really powerful for me because I've used it as an opportunity to get some counseling. I have bumbled around a lot in it-- been pretty vulnerable and have put myself out there in a way that might be "too much"... but here is what I thought after tonight's session:

I am not so much going to title each section—what I am learning about myself, others, and about groups—but try to touch on each one throughout this reflection. I need the limitlessness of that in this moment, I believe. I hope that is ok. Tonight’s class (Yes, I was so moved by this group that I am writing as soon as I get home…) was good for me. I’ve really appreciated this group in my life right now as an outlet for me to share all the junk that rolls around in my head each week. I might only share part of it, sections really as I feel like I might explode with everything that lies in there if I don’t limit myself a bit, but I am learning so much from those sections I do share and am learning even more from others’ reactions, my reactions’ to their reactions, and others’ sharing of themselves too.
I have this need to know and be known. It’s like this driving force inside of me that won’t let me stop at simple pleasantries with others. I want to get behind people’s eyes, I want to connect with them, and I want them to connect with me, too. I think that is why I was so angry tonight with (no name here) for saying he didn’t really need to get into his feelings with others. I find it so hard to understand. I know, I know—I am differently wired than a lot of people in this area—I guess what I am trying to say is that I know I need to understand this about other people better; my response in anger is only because I want to feel validated in my own need to have others understand me. I am afraid of what it might say about me if others can control themselves to protect and choose when to open when all I want is to burst out with who I really am and get to the heart of all things (maybe too quickly). To me, life is just too short. I don’t want to go through this life not ever affecting anyone or letting others affect me—or protecting myself so much that I don’t feel anything. I want to feel everything.
God is really moving in me. This doesn’t have a ton to do with group—but it is on my heart at the moment so I am sharing. He really is. I don’t have any idea how or why or what—I just know he is doing something inside of me. This weekend my husband and I talked a lot about how we are seeing him move in our hearts and how we have no idea how to follow him or what we’re doing, but we both know for sure that giving up control to him is more important than anything that we try to do to connect with him.
I guess that is sort of like where I am at in this process with group. I see that we’re at an impasse of really opening up to each other—to really confronting ourselves and who we are—and I can’t wait to see how it plays out. If I give up this need to control and push us to the next point it will all play out so beautifully and I’ll feel better about my part in it all instead of guilt over “talking too much” or whatever. (I think talking is my own way of protecting maybe--interesting thought.) Letting go—feeling it all, letting God take the reigns—is so important to what I need right now.

These lyrics in a song by Noah and the Whale I am listening to really touched me tonight. Makes me think of what God is saying to me:
Well if you are (what you love)
And you do (what you love)
I will always be the sun and moon to you
And if you share (with your heart)
Yeah, you give (with your heart)
What you share with the world is what it keeps of you

smile like you mean it

I love the coffee ethic. I really really really love it. I can come downtown to hang out by myself on a Friday night to do homework and still feel cool while I am here. The title of this post is only because it is the song I am listening to at the moment while I am sitting here (procrastinating doing more homework).
So, there really hasn't been much to report lately. I started back to work this week and have been BUSY again. I now remember why I was so miserable before I hurt my back-- I live a busy life! Geeze.
OKay now they are playing my favorite Radiohead song-- can it get any better?!?
While I have been here I got to run into two people I only sort of know that I wish I knew better-- Trevor and Abby. They use to live next to a friend of mine and then moved away. Now they have a new little baby and I'm sure don't have time to hang out, but they seem like people Jeff and I should be friends with and Jeff and I need friends. At some point tonight Jeff looked at me and said "Oh Mitchy, what are we going to do about getting friends?" All of his have moved away (except Mr. Jenkins who is infinitely busy). Know of anyone we can be friends with?
I am sitting next to my bestest friend Miss Winnie, btw. I love her. She is dating someone now. Super excited.
What else?

much better...

...today. NUTELLA!

attractive?

I'm not gonna lie, I just have been feeling icky lately. Not sick-icky (although I haven't been able to shake the cold/flu thing I caught last week completely) but ugly-icky. I go through these spurts sometimes where I feel a lot bigger than I really am--although I know I am not actually overweight. I want to go on some sort of diet and not eat much but then when I eat less I get so hungry. Anyway, we'll see. Maybe its that my hair is short and I want it to grow out. Maybe its because its a new week with long days and its hard to go from here to there and feel awesome. Maybe I'm just getting older and having a harder time staying in shape. Maybe I want to run but I can't so I feel lazy. Maybe its the Nutella I just bought and can't stop eating.

Maybe I want to go to bed. Goodnight.

pumpkin spice latte

Well hello! I am so finicky about this thing that I'm not sure if I'll keep blogging or not, but here I am at the moment nonetheless. I am going to post some before and after pics of the guestroom I just re-did in our house. Its awesome. I was actually motivated enough to do something! THen, well, I got sick these past two days and have been mostly sleeping. At the moment though I am settling down with Jenn in a lawnchair at my parents' house drinking a pumpkin spice latte and about to go watch the Cubbies in their first playoff game of the season. Fall, ahhhhhh.....