Surprise Party, Graduation, and Biltmore Classic Road Race

Well for starters, I graduated yesterday from NC State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish Education with an ESL licensure. In attendance, were my mom, dad, and Grandmother Kincaid. After graduation we went and celebrated at the Cheesecake Factory.


















Last week I hosted and co-planned a surprise birthday party for Alex, a friend from work. Come to find out half of the surprise was on me. The party ended up being for both of us! He thought the party was for me, I thought it was for him....SURPRISE! It was very thoughtful of everyone who helped (mom, Sara, Hannah) make it a success. I was definitely surprised and it's hard to surprise me! I felt very honored and loved of the GIFTS!









This morning, my dad and I, and Rico, ran in the Biltmore Classic that is hosted on the Biltmore House property. It was HILLY, but very beautiful. My dad did the 5K (3.1 miles) in about 33 minutes and Rico and I did the 15K (9.3 miles). It took me 1 hour and 26 minutes and Rico 1 hour and 7 minutes. I had hoped to do it faster, but was just worn out. Overall it was very enjoyable!

Last Week of college classes as an undergrad!

Amanda and I celebrating with Strawberry Daquires for me getting into grad school...but really for no real reason other than that we had the "mix" to make them!










Last Saturday evening was the Mi Familia Gala. I had a great time getting dressed-up, eating a banquet style dinner, and then dancing the night away with all my Latino friends here at NC State!

Sunday I headed up to Danville, VA to visit with my grandparents. My grandpa cooked us a yummy meal of cubed steak, gravy, biscuits, and tossed salad, and then chocolate cake and apple pies for dessert. Grandma and I each took a nap after lunch and then we all watch the Talladega Nascar Race on TV.










On Wednesday, the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature's Awards ceremony took place. I received three awards, Teaching in Excellence for both ESL and Spanish and then the Malinowinsky Memorial Award for a love of Spanish culture and a love for teaching. My name will go up on a permnament plaque in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature for the ESL Teacher Excellence award, and I also receive $100 for the ESL award and $100 for the Malinowski Award. ...What can I say "Go big, or go home!"

(Pictures: Me, my professor/adviser Karen Tharrington, my adviser Susan Navey-David, Dad)

After the ceremony, my dad took me out to eat dinner at a cute "up scale" Mexican restaurant and then took me too the drug store to buy medicine...because I was sick! I had been feeling achy all day, and was having chills. I not sure what I have, but I have a fever, headache, and sore throat...so now I'm just taking it easy. I'm working on a paper and I write a paragraph or so while sitting in my bed, then lay down for five minutes, then repeat!

Tonight I am suppose to go to the Campus Crusade Senior Dinner (I'm going because of Destino) but that depends on how I feel. Later this evening I am suppose to go get Sushi with the Destino group...but we will see. Tomorrow is an end-of-the-year cookout for Campus Crusade and I probably spend the rest of the weekend studying for exams, finishing a paper, packing, and hanging out with friends.

Happy Thursday!

College ends, but Work never does...

So, I was planning on having a super productive Thursday (I no longer have classes on this day, or Tuesday) but I was called up by a few Destino friends for a spontaneous beach trip to Wilmington (just under two hours away from Raleigh). So, I went. We left Raleigh around 3 on Thursday afternoon, stayed in a beach front hotel that evening, ate out, hung out, took a boat tour of the sound (water way), and headed back on Friday afternoon. It was glorious to be able to just "go"!...I realize that does not last forever. I was reminded of the quotation that says something like "stay up late when you have an 8am class, go out the night before an exam, ...etc..., because college ends, but work never does".

Tomorrow morning I take the ESL Praxis (an exam I must pass to get my ESL license), then tomorrow night we have the Mi Familia End of the Year Gala. I will also be doing lots of work in there somewhere! ....I have to finish two papers and prepare for three exams.

Excitement with a pinch of stress

This week has been an "up and down" week of excitement and a little bit of stress.

Excitement:
-Taught my last ESL class at Leesville Road Middle School on Tuesday. They made me a huge card and my teacher brought me a cool vase back from Peru (where she recently visited). I feel soooo much freer now that I don't have to plan lessons and my Tuesday and Thursdays are wide-open time wise.
- My Philosophy of Law class was canceled for Wednesday and next Monday. My teacher had a death in the family (not so exciting) but I has been nice to have some extra free time. I now only have 3 more PHI of Law classes left!
- In my Spanish Senior Seminar I am DONE with everything except my final paper that is due on May 3rd (and I have already written 5 out of the the 8 pages!!!). My teacher is allotting the rest of the semester in class to working on this paper! ...so basically, I'm done with this class.
- I have been encourage with support raising for Mexico this week. Though I have a lot to raise, people are being very generous with their gifts and people have been great about being interested in what I'm doing and how I am doing...which I appreciate.
-My roommate Allison is getting married in July and tonight (Friday) my other roommates and I are throwing her a surprise batchelorette party! We have about 12 other girls coming, we will be playing games, eating yummy food, opening presents, and drinking virgin strawberry daiquiris! ...see all the pictures!
- I was selected to receive two awards this week from the department of Foreign Languages and Literature. The "English as a Second Language Teacher Education Award" and the "Arlene Malinowinski Memorial Award". There are a series of awards that are giving to seniors in my department and I will receive my awards at an awards ceremony on April 28th. I'm not sure what the second award is for (I do know that she was once a professor at State)...but I'll let you know after I receive it! ****see below for description
- I went out for Tapas (Spanish appetizers) and Salsa dancing with about five of the girls that studies in Spain with me. It's always fun to catch-up with them and reminiscence of Spain.
-Played Inter-mural softball


Stressful:
- My STS (science, gender, and technology) class is probably the worst class I have ever taken here at State. The teacher is new and not very good at clarifying expectations and she used lots of BIG words that none of use understand (she just graduated with her PhD from Duke in History last year...maybe we should remind her she is a State now and those big words are NOT necessary!). We have a finial paper and I STILL do not understand what exactly it is suppose to be about. We have guidelines, but they are very complex and different areas contradict other areas. I have asked her MANY questions, but the more I ask the more confused I get. I think I have decided to just write the paper, take whatever grade she gives me, and just BE DONE! This is really the only thing that is giving me stress as I approach the end of the year.
- I'm taking the ESL Praxis next Saturday. I have to pass this test to get my ESL License...I can take it more than once, but it cost me $150 so I would prefer not too....so, it's just a little stressful!


*****According to my adviser and professor, Karen Tharrington:

The award honors our late colleague Dr Arlene
Malinowski, who served the FLL dept in many
capacities including associate professor,
assistant department head and director of
the foreign language teacher education
program. She was an inquisitive scholar,
a tireless advocate for students, a lover
of foreign languages and cultures, a
dedicated teacher and caring colleague as
well as a zealous promoter of foreign
language education. In her memory we honor
a student in our foreign language teacher
education program who demonstrates
outstanding academic achievements and
leadership qualities as well as a love of
languages and  cultures and a high level of
involvement in academic and extra-curricular
pursuits.

Your high GPA, dedication to the field of
teacher education, high ethical standards,
leadership qualities inside and outside of
 the classroom, enthusiasm for new
challenges and your ability to take
initiative are what made the FLL Dept.
choose you as this year's recipient.

Fun Fun in Asheville

This weekend I returned home once again to run in a half-marathon in Charlotte. I left Raleigh Thursday afternoon (right after my University Supervisor observed me teaching my ESL classes...thankfully that went well!) and headed to the mountains. I arrived home around 4pm and then headed to work at Stoneridge Tavern at 5pm. I am so thankful for my job there. They let me just call them a week in advanced and they will put me on the schedule for whatever days I want. It's wonderful. I chose not to work Friday and spent the day doing some work, relaxing, and running with my dad. Friday evening I went baby Abril's ("April" in Spanish) one-year-old birthday party. I work with Abril's dad (Alberto) at Stoneridge Tavern. The party was so fun with lots of Hispanic families and children in attendance. We had rice, beans, and steamed lamb (this was new for me!), and tortillas. And of course, a yummy tres leches cake ( a three milk cake traditional in Latin American). Baby Abril is pictured above, Sara (the girlfriend of one of my co-worker and I, Abril's cake, and Concho one of my friends, co-workers, and Abril's uncle.

Saturday morning my dad, Rico, and I left Asheville at 4:45 am to head to Charlotte to run the half-marathon. My dad was gracious to drive so Rico and I could sleep in the car. The race was great! Great weather and not too hilly. The race took me right at 2 hours and Rico one hour and 33 minutes (he got third in his age group). Saturday evening I worked once again and then Sunday went for a bike ride (it was glorious!) in the beautiful weather before heading back to Raleigh.


I only have 3 weeks of school and 1 week of exams before I am done with my undergraduate degree....hard to believe!

Yay!... some pictures finally!

My aunt Sherry made this super awesome edible Easter bunny












Here is Ellie always ready to go...











My parents "best" Easter picture yet. (Haha...I just thinks it's so funny...I don't think either of them was ready)














And me with some short hair! It's my spring-do

Spring is in the air!

Spring is definitely in the air. I have been wearing flip-flops to class. I still am wearing pants, but it's finally comfortable enough for t-shirts and flip-flops.

The "I am graduating" countdown has begun. I have 3 papers, two projects, and two exams between me and graduation. CRAZY! As I was walking around campus yesterday I saw a group of high school students and their parents taking a tour of NC State....just like I did my junior year of high school when I was trying to pick a college to attend. It seems like just yesterday I was going on those tours...and now, now I'm about to GRADUATE?!?!? I just can't believe it.

Well, as my need for promptness and productivity always gets the best of me, I will be attempting to write two of those final papers this weekend. The way I look at it is if I write them now (at least a solid rough draft) I will be essentially done with those classes. Wouldn't that be a great feeling! Also, I will be going home next weekend for Easter and then the following weekend for a half-marathon that I'm running in Charlotte. I like to do my "big" assignments on weekends, but I try not to do homework in Asheville, so I need to be super productive this weekend so that I can have the next two "off".

I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I'm playing on an intramural softball team (Thursdays) and flag football team (Wednesday) this semester. Intramural means we play one game weekly and never practice. It's great fun! It reminds me of high school and organized sports. In football I just kind of run around and try to catch the ball in the end zone....where the boys will OFTEN pass me the ball because the team gets twice as many points if a girl scores. And softball I either play out field behind 3rd base or I just play 2nd base. I'm pretty good at batting too. I don't hit the ball that far, but I always hit the ball. Also, I can bat left or right handed...and I like to always be mixing things up for the other team!

Mexico.....some days I am so excited to go and be there, and them some days the thought of raising so much money is overwhelming. It's good to remember that all money belongs to God and He'll get me there on His time in His way. It's also exciting to share with people "Why Mexico?", why I feel called to go there and how this location really matches my heart.

I have decided that student teaching (of which I am student teaching ESL currently) is really hard to do part-time. It's hard to be in student teacher mode and college student mode. I just feel really disconnected from the students when I only see them two days a week. Also, my classes have grown A LOT. My ESL II classes went from 4 and 5 students to 7 and 9 students and my ESL I class went from 8 to 14 students! It's still fun, but I just feel a little disconnected. I will be observed April 8th, my one and only observation, which is a little nerve racking because I only get "one chance", so to speak.

Today I have one class, then my long run, then discipleship, then I'm off to writing papers.
Have a great weekend!