And so it Begins...

Today (Monday) I had an orientation to the program that I will be a part of for the next two years.  I went in feeling optimistic and excited for the day!  ...and then I left wondering how in the world I was going to survive the next two years!  Ha!  It was overwhelming to say the least.  I think our clinic supervisor said it best when she said, "you need to put your life on hold for two years.  Don't plan anything. You can have a life after grad school."

I am mostly overwhelmed by the fact that my schedule is a lot fuller than I thought it would be!  In addition to having classes from 8:30-5:40 on Tuesdays, and from 7:45-3:15 on Thursdays, I also have clinicals in a school district about an hour and 15 minutes from my house on Monday and Wednesday mornings, and another clinical placement that hasn't been scheduled yet.  If you factor in driving time and study time, I'm pretty much going to have zero free time during the week, especially if I substitute teach on my only free days: Fridays.  I am going to cherish my weekends so much in the next 15 weeks!!  

I am so excited about this program.  All the professors and staff are so friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. And all the other students (all 40 of us are women, if you can believe that!) seem very friendly, and I'm sure we'll all become very close in the next two years!  

Tomorrow I'll have my first day of classes, and I'm so excited to begin!

***

I realized that last weekend was my final free weekend before the craziness began.  So I spent it doing lots of fun stuff, and being productive.  Here are a few picture highlights:

 This little one curled up right on my stomach while I was having a little Lost marathon on Netflix the other day.  She is the sweetest cat!

I've been working on some DIY projects lately!  I'm going to make a pinwheel banner for  my mantle, and then if it turns out nicely, I might put some in my Etsy shop!

 I went on a spontaneous shopping trip with my Aunt and Grandma on Friday.  I found these cute chalkboard buckets at Target for $1 apiece!  I'm using them as K-cup holders.  I think they're so cute!

My friend Rachel had a 31 Bits party on Friday night.  It is "jewelry made out of 100% recycled paper by internally displaced women in Northern Uganda."  Check out their website here.  I bought this necklace, and I love it!

I spent a good part of the weekend working on things around the house.  Like adding to my mantle collection, and purchasing new pillows for my couch.  I've been wanting to buy new decorative pillows for our couch for a long time.  I finally got around to it, because I was nesting.   Ha!  No, I'm not pregnant.  But I really had something going on that was very similar to nesting this weekend, because I knew the semester was about to start, and things were about to get crazy!  My mom also helped me make a curtain to cover an awkward shelf area between my living room and kitchen. I'll post a picture eventually. 

Not pictured:  Yesterday I spent the day with my family celebrating my dad's birthday, so that was fun too!

I'm glad I had a fun and productive weekend before the craziness begins!  I have a feeling I'll just be going, going, going, until May of 2014 when I graduate!