That's Life.

If I can say anything about this summer...it's that it definitely didn't go as planned. When I close my eyes, I try to think back to the middle of college when I would try to imagine what life post-grad would be like. Well, this isn't exactly what I had in mind.

I spent most of the summer working at a ridiculous, seasonal job that I mostly loved. I was able to save a bunch of money which I then had to loan half of to my boyfriend to fix his car. I had a health scare that required scary surgery. I had to leave said job over something that really opened up my eyes to "the real world." I moved in with my boyfriend, only to drive back and forth to my parent's house more than ever due to doctor's appointments and, well, concerts. I filed for unemployment. I became an unofficial housewife while my incredibly noble boyfriend took on overtime hours in the midst of two summer classes (geez!) to make extra money for us. I planned a (mostly) free trip to Florida. It seems as though the only thing I have to show for my degree from a Big 10 University is $50,000 of debt which I will be having to pay (thanks unemployment!) any day now. What's wrong with the world!?

Turns out, this has been a blessing in disguise. I love to cook. I love to write, to scrapbook, to watch the news. I love to take walks, to learn new things. I used to hate having free time and now I hate having things to do. I've been given the gift of time! I've been able to cross things off my "to-do...someday" list that I never would have had time to do otherwise. And, because my boyfriend is so incredible, I'm able to apply for jobs I really want and look into doing something I actually care about instead of just picking up a part-time job to make ends meet. I have the luxury of making incredibly jam-packed to do lists and deciding what to do with my time. And, although we are both more irritable and sensitive than usual, I think this tricky time has actually brought Richard and I closer. It's making us be more careful about money, talk about things more and forcing us to really work as a unit. So far, so good, we're really showing everybody what we're made of! I guess when life throws you a curve ball, it's about how you swing. Not whether or not you hit it out of the park.

Some days, yeah. It's really easy to get bogged down by the negative. But not today :)