Wrapping Up and Heading Home!

I am so, so, so happy to be done with school! I was on the phone with my childhood best friend the other day, and we were both griping about the difficulties of junior year (both in high school and college). Finals week was much less brutal than it could have been, but it's so nice to have a few months "off". 

Celebratory post finals salad!

I spent Wednesday catching up with a friend who was in town, and saying goodbye to the kiddos I sit for most often during the school year. It's always hard saying goodbye, especially when the toddlers start to cry :'( (I promise I'll be back, buddy!) Wednesday night we spent some time at the local bars to celebrate a friends 21st. The goal was to hit up as many places as we could. Gotta capitalize on the free drinks whenever possible! There are some interesting folks out on Wednesday nights. It was entertaining, to say the least! 

Thursday morning we went out to breakfast at Walnut Cafe, one of our favorite eats downtown. The staff are so friendly and the food is delicious! Afterwards, I ran home and packed like a maniac. Thank the Lord for my wonderful housemates who helped me get everything together. For a quick packing break, we headed to the greenhouses on top of one of our science buildings for Em's math graduation reception. She won the Chancellor's Award for her phenomenal thesis and it was so sweet to hear all the wonderful words her advisors, professors and TAs had to say about her. We were all beaming with pride. 

Em getting a congratulatory hug from her thesis advisor

After the ceremony we made a mad dash back to the apartment where we haphazardly threw my things into the car and I took off after a few more tearful goodbyes. Because it was commute time, I decided to take Highway 1. It was a terrific decision because... I SAW A WHALE!!!! I've seen a few before, but I was amazed at how close it was. At first I thought it was a boat or something and then its huge tail burst out of the water. It was absolutely incredible. I wish I had a photo! 

California Coast

Today, I went to orientation at the place where I'm interning this summer. We are planning a huge event for the high school seniors in the program who will be heading off to college in the Fall. It was great to see some old friends, make some new ones and listen to everyone's wonderful ideas for the event. Our advisor reminded me of this quote which I had never heard before. I've heard similar things, but for some reason it really struck me. He said, "To get something you've never had before, you have to try things you've never done before." So simple, but so powerful. I left the office feeling very inspired and excited about all the amazing things this summer has in store. 

Tomorrow I leave for Nashville! I will try to keep writing while I'm there, but our schedule is pretty packed so we'll see how that goes ;) 

Jumping Right In: Closing Doors and Opening Windows

The end of the school year is always pretty chaotic. Aside from finals, there's lots of packing, graduations, celebrations and goodbyes. Personally, I'm pretty relieved that this school year is just about over. While it was wildly successful in some regards, it was also incredibly challenging and definitely tested my limits. Between upper division classes, my nanny schedule, volunteer obligations and some daunting personal issues, there was more than one occasion where I felt like I was falling apart at the seams. I spent a lot of time beating myself up, when in retrospect I probably would have been better off if I accepted that some things were out of my control. 

That being said, this year was not all bad. Both the good and the bad came in waves so I either felt like I was on top of the world, or I was trudging through the nine circles of hell. I guess that's what happens when we fail to address our needs and our problems as they arise. While I prioritized my extracurriculars and aiding in the successes of those around me, I "forgot" to take care of myself. I worked out when I had time rather than making time for it and I took breaks when I was burnt out rather than taking breaks to avoid burnout. However, I don't regret anything that happened this year. Am I proud of everything that happened? Nope. Did I learn a lot? Yup. And that's good enough for me! 

On Thursday I will be heading home for the summer, something I'm quite excited about. I will be working at the preschool where I've assisted since 2009 while also taking on a new leadership role for an internship. I'll be traveling a little (flying to Nashville, road tripping to Wisconsin and visiting family), but I'm really looking forward to a fairly consistent schedule and some R&R. It's gonna be a good summer, I can feel it! 

On a totally different note, I took a break from the books to enjoy my last couple days in the Cruz! 

Foggy mornings at the beach

Fresh plums straight from the tree

Flowers from a morning walk

 

And of course, some good ole Snapchattin' :D 

Back to the books I go! 

Hope everyone's having a wonderful weekend! 

Welcome to My Corner

Welcome to my third attempt at blogging! The first one was designed to be temporary (to follow my travels around Europe almost 7 years ago!) The second one was quite fun and lasted for awhile, but I felt like the title was misleading. It became less and less about healthy cooking, and more and more about the ins and outs of life as a college student. So I'm starting fresh and creating a place to share crafty creations, recipes when I concoct them, and thoughts about growing up. 


A little about me: My name is Grac(i)e and I'm a California girl born and raised. I grew up in the North Bay and I'm currently finishing up my third year at UC Santa Cruz. I'm a history major, but I plan to continue my education and pursue a career in pediatric nursing. I'm a people person and I love spending time with kids. I'm getting through college by teaching preschool and nannying. I love community service and I've just wrapped up one of the most incredible years of my life thanks to an organization called Circle K. I love spending time by the water and I am pathetically in love with iced coffee. 


I'll bet you're wondering where the name of this blog came from... Welp, there's no real story: I'm just your average girl, who wears gold glitter flats a little too often and I strongly believe that no matter how old we are, life is better with a little bit of sparkle. 

Pretty much sums me up (cheering with my division at a Circle K leadership conference, Fall 2013) 

And yes, I'm wearing my gold glitter flats ;)