There’s a first for everything right? Well, today I got to sit in First Class for the first time in my entire life. My dad and I were beyond excited (it was borderline embarrassing how giddy we were). We’re a rather frugal family so we always opt for the cheapest travel options. Thus, the First Class experience was completely foreign to me—SO awesome yet so shocking at the same time. I can have my seat back for take off? I can sit in my seat with my legs pretzel-style? Last but not least, multi-course meals?!

What a treat. Thanks, United!

It was a first for Peter too! And he definitely took full advantage of his ticket .

(P.S. we have no idea how we got on the upgrade list. We were too afraid to ask!)

***

More on my flight in a little bit.

I woke up at 7 AM to squeeze in a quick workout. I learned (the hard way) from my trip to San Fran that I really don’t feel good if I skip workouts while traveling/flying. I was actually a bit surprised by how crappy I felt taking just 6 days off from exercise. Hormones and too much food/sugar didn’t help!

I did 40 min. on the elliptical and then 10 min. on the treadmill at 3.8 mph / 5% incline.

I finished packing right in the nick of time! You’d think with the traveling I’ve done recently, I’d have this down pat but nope.

For breakfast, I made Pumpkin Protein Oat Bran

I can’t remember the last time I had oat bran. I like that it takes less time to cook than rolled oats and this morning, bfast had to be quick!

I added some Vega powder for protein along with pumpkin, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Topped with pepitas and coconut.

Sadly, we were out of egg whites and/or almond milk so the bowl didn’t turn out as creamy as I like it.

Photographed next to Peter’s new baby plant.

I finished off the can o’ pumpkin straight up!

***

On the way to the airport, I snacked on a banana and a small bite of a nutty seedy bar I made last night. As you know, I have no such thing as a bar stash so I had to make some at the last minute. Recipe to come!

And then I was handed the golden ticket, which granted me access to the Red Carpet Club.

Sweet!

I started with hot tea, carrots, celery, crackers, and a small butter cookie.

Surprisingly, I wasn’t allergic to the raw carrots and celery. Either it was my lucky day or they were magical crudites!

I also had some Chex Mix and a few yogurt covered raisins.

Then it was time to board the plane and streeeeeeeetch out my legs. I am mildly claustrophobic so this felt glorious.

I soon learned that you can do anything in First Class. Instead of flight attendants pestering you to buckle up, you get served drinks and nuts.

I opted for seltzer water. I think Peter drank enough red wine for both of us combined!

Soon enough, it was time for lunch! Served on a table cloth, mind you.

Tortilla soup (not bad!)

Chicken salad w/ tomatoes, black beans, corn, and cheddar cheese. Not gourmet but still real food–no complaints here.

Plus a side of these crunchy bread sticks.

Dessert? Don’t mind if I do! A warm chocolate chip cookie. I ate 1/2 and gave the rest to the bottomless pit sitting next to me.

I won’t lie, I’m already counting down the years (err decades) before I can fly First Class again. I have a feeling that won’t happen until I turn 90. Oh and I’m pretty sure we have been assigned to the very last row on our return flight.

Ya win some, ya lose some .

Bird’s eye view of Virginia.

***

We just checked into our resort. OH DEAR ME OH MY!!! Photos to come, I promise!

Tell me: Have you ever flown First Class?!

I spent exactly 26 hours in Charlottesville this past weekend (arrived at 12 PM, left at 2 PM). It zoomed by in the blink of an eye, YET with all our shenanigans it felt like I was there for days!

(26 may just be a number that comes after 25 and before 27 but don’t tell that to this girl!)

Sunday morning started off with an oatmeal breakfast….but not just any oatmeal breakfast. We ate the famous KERF oatmeal.

Because really, what’s a trip to Cville without KERF oatmeal?!

Everyone voted for the addition of pumpkin.

Pick your own bowl! This was arguably one of the most exciting parts for me .

We sipped coffee and set up the toppings while waiting for the oatmeal to cook.

Topping choices included: cookies, AllieBars, nut butter, jams, nuts, and granola.

Load em’ up!

My big beautiful bowl.

I got a bit heavy handed with the oatmeal so I had to scale back on the toppings a bit—silly mistake!

Sunflower seed butter, chocolate hazelnut butter, gingerbread cookie, crunchy buckwheat granola, coconut, and cinnamon almonds.

I’m just a bit infatuated with this bowl….and the mosaic table!

Good [early] morning!

The peaceful KERF porch made for the perfect dining spot.

Kath, Cara, Heather, Meghann, Brittany, and Christine

It was great to see Sarah and Josh (my NC buddies) again.

I found this surprise photo on my camera a couple hours later . Looks like somebody thoroughly enjoyed his oatmeal.

During clean up, we all had to do our part licking nut butter knives and spoons. I put myself in charge of licking the Sunflower Seed Butter knife.

The last time I had SSB was back when I wrote my love poem. Far too long if you ask me.

After a few hours of discussing all things blogging-related, we broke out the leftovers for lunch.

The size-of-my-head oatmeal bowl was still sitting in my tummy so I was not the least bit hungry. Holy satiety!

However, I was craving some veggies to balance everything out.

• arugula + spinach
• zuke + squash
• hummus + goat cheese
• and pita chips!

Then it was time to say our goodbyes and hit the road. I miss Cville aka KERFville already!

Mark my words, I will be back.

***

Earlier posts from the weekend trip:

• KERFville Part 1
• Wine Tasting in KERFville
• Celebrating 26+2 Years

It’s nearly 12 midnight and I am just sitting down to blog. Why? I’ve been busy taking care of these two little goobers while their parents are at a wedding! Well, I’ve been exploring the DC area too—so much fun! I started feeling sick yesterday (I must have caught a cold in NYC) so I’ve been doing my best to stay out of the house and take in nutritious foods. Unfortunately, I don’t think getting adequate rest is possible when sharing a bed with these guys.

Last night was the first time I had ever slept in a bed with a non-human animal (make that 2 animals)…not counting the stuffed variety . I think we woke each other up about 10 times throughout the night. Did I mention it’s my first time dog sitting? I’ve definitely learned a lot in the past 24 hours!

Do these pups look familiar?!

After I arrived at Emily and Casey’s house yesterday, I walked the pups and then set out for a leisurely run. I ran 4 miles around Old Town Alexandria to try and sweat out my oncoming sickness. It sometimes helps me to get my blood pumping when I start to feel a little sick. Not to mention, running is always a great way to explore the area.

King Street

The Waterfront

Afterwards, I hit up the nearby Whole Foods for a Siggi’s Pomegranate and Passion Fruit yogurt (I got it for 75 cents with a WFs coupon and sale!). I also picked up a box of Chocolate Almond Biscotti.

I’ve wanted to try this yogurt for what feels like a lifetime. At regular price, it is way too expensive so when I saw they were on sale, I knew it was now or never.

I normally prefer plain yogurt because flavored yogurts are loaded with sugar, but the Siggi’s flavored yogurts aren’t too high in sugar. Plus, they are sweetened with agave nectar.

The yogurt was super thick and creamy.

Irene’s Biscotti was also on sale so i made sure to grab a box. I’ve had the regular and cranberry flavors but I like the Chocolate Almond flavor the most. I ate about 1/3 of the box with my yogurt.

Before I left, I grabbed a Good Morning Muffin from the bakery to eat while shopping around. This muffin was made with carrots, apples, coconut, raisins and walnuts. All my favorites in one big ol’ muffin.

Mmmmmmmmmm….

……mmmmmmmm….

…..mmmmmmmmm.

Must remake!

I’ve been loading up on Emergen-C, Thera Flu, citrus fruit, wheat grass, and a lot of hot tea to try and force this cold away.

I still have ALL of today’s exploring to catch you up on. These dogs wake up at the butt crack of dawn so I got a lot of exploring done today . I’ll probably take it easy tomorrow so be on the look out for a post early afternoon. Unless, this pup starts licking my hand uncontrollably and I can’t type!

Tell me: Do you have pets? Which kind and how many?

No pets for me! I grew up allergic to a lot of furry animals. I desperately wanted bunny rabbits when I was in elementary school, but my parents somehow talked me out of it. I also had 3 hermit crabs but I forgot to feed them and they died. Sad .

The last and final NYC recap post! Finally, huh? These recaps have taken me a little while to write up because I’ve been rather busy and also feeling a bit under the weather. It’s been nice to take it easy with the internet though. I have a tendency to get sucked into the internet sometimes and I’ve actually enjoyed unplugging this week. I haven’t checked Craigslist in a couple days now–can you believe it? I can’t .

Alrighty where did we leave off? Oh yeah. Day 3 of NYC.

Tuesday morning, I got up and met up with Ellie at the Columbus Circle Whole Foods for breakfast. It was a nice one!

P.S. Peter is in love with Honeycrisp apples now, after tasting them at the Union Square Farmer’s Market.

I got a pumpkin spice coffee, raisin bran muffin, banana, and Chobani Greek yogurt. I had a great time chatting with Ellie. She is from Scotland so this was a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet up. I can’t believe we forgot to get a photo together!

Afterwards, my dad and I set out to explore the city.

We walked along 5th Avenue to get a glimpse of the luxury stores.

A cathedral in the middle of 5th Avenue!

Froyo truck. Cool, huh?

For lunch, my dad wanted to go back to Chinatown….again (3 times in 3 days!!). I didn’t mind because I already grabbed something for lunch. He decided to go to Wo Hop, a place we heard about from a friend and also read about in a magazine. It’s one of the oldest restaurants in Chinatown!

They brought out soup and hot tea as soon as we sat down.

My dad ordered…

…and I brought a Vegan Spicy Tofu-Power Sandwich and a Feel Good Energy Cookie from Westerly Natural Market. I picked this up earlier in the day because I knew my dad would want to go back to Chinatown .

This sandwich was fabulous: organic 7 grain bread, tofu, celery, onions, napa cabbage and eggless mayonnaise.

I need to remake this sandwich stat.

This cookie was still warm from the oven when I bought it! Made with rolled oats, spelt flour, egg whites, apple sauce, dried cranberries, golden raisins, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds. It was soft, chewy and muffin-like.

For dessert, I got 2 dark chocolate coconut haystacks from the bulk section.

Westerly Market was SO cool. I could have spent days in there browsing the aisles. They had all sorts of quirky health foods in flavors I’ve never seen before.

Back to lunch. Peter said the food was just alright. Nothing special. He was glad he got to try the food though.

After lunch, we walked to Chelsea Market, the home of many bakeries, eateries and of course, Food Network! I visited back in June but my dad had never been.

I loved seeing the behind the scenes action of the bakeries.

Unfortunately, I didn’t spot any Food Network Stars

Then it was time to walk towards the bus stop. Along the way, we saw this cute little bird.

Ha! It was fake .

Ohhh Peter.

Along the way, we stumbled upon a humongous camera and video store, B&H. I was in heaven!

Be careful, Peter. That camera is expensive…

Wowza!

Finally, it was time to bus it back home. I sipped on this coconut water while we waited for the bus.

And that’s a wrap!

Back to normal posting tomorrow. I hope you have a great weekend!

Tell me: One of your favorite cities to explore

***

Missed the other NYC posts?

Part I: Central Park and Chinatown

Part II: Times Square Day and Night

Part III: Will Walk For Food

Today, my childhood friend got married. You heard me…married. Actually, she got married a couple months ago but put on a low key ceremony for friends and family today. The whole time, my brother and I were repeating, ‘I can’t believe Joanne is getting married.’

This was my first wedding in which I was the same age as the bride and groom. You could say I was feeling a little old! Actually, I was feeling quite young because I’m nowhere near marriage at this point in my life….not even close! Not even close to close. I mean, at the rate I’m going, I won’t be married ’til I’m 80 years old.

…okay, make that 90.

Left to right: me, bride, groom, and my bro.

Triple Coconut Cupcakes as an appetizer–my kinda wedding!

There were also Russian chocolates because the groom is Russian. Oh and that big bowl of Cadbury mini eggs, of which I had more than my fair share.

The food was catered by Whole Foods–score!

I loaded my plate with:

• Spinach and Romaine salad with peppers, feta cheese and mandarin oranges
• Steamed veggies
• Orange glazed salmon
• Mozzarella, tomato, basil crostini
• Orzo pasta with grilled tomatoes
• Asian style tofu
• Dinner roll
• Banana bread with walnuts and cranberries <–went back for 2nds!

With MamaLLE

PapaLLE

Bride and groom with the chocolate and vanilla wedding cake. Can you tell her favorite colors are yellow and blue?

Adorbs.

It was fun to see family friends I hadn’t seen in ages. Kids who used to sit on my lap are now over 6 feet tall–whaaat!?

I suppose this is only the beginning for me–beginning of The Wedding Years. Soon it’ll be The Baby Years. Okay, I just crossed the line…too much growing up for one day. End of blog post .

Last night, I was brainstorming ideas for what I could eat for breakfast this morning. Well, what better way than to flip through my old blog posts? Some posts I completely forgot I even wrote. Some were a bit awkward/embarrassing to read. Some made me grateful to be out of school and some had great breakfast ideas such as…

• waffle mountains
• kefir+yogurt fondue
• pumpkin coconut pecan granola

AND baninis and bananadillas!!! Do any of you veteran readers remember when I had these almost every day? Long story short: my roommate got a panini press and I was unstoppable.

Well, this morning a Bananadilla (banana quesadilla) was on my mind!

First, I spread almond butter on a whole grain wrap and then topped it with banana slices, pecans and coconut.

We don’t have a panini press so I plopped it in our toaster oven and put a pan on top to ‘press’ it down. It worked just as well, although it didn’t come out with any grill marks.

The topping was a honey cinnamon yogurt drizzle.

Actually, I had more than a drizzle. I took full advantage of our tub of Greek yogurt (from Costco) and put a large dollop on each triangle. Kinda like sour cream for a cheesy quesadilla!

The Bananadilla was just as good as I remembered it. Crispy tortilla with an ooey gooey sweet center made up of melted banana and almond butter.

Here’s a peek at what I’m talkin’ about!

Now for the real flashback!

While packing/unpacking this weekend, we stumbled across a box of old photos. Here are some gems (I took photos of the photos so they’re not the greatest quality).

I was a little chubster as a toddler. There was no doubt that I loved to eat. Some toddlers are picky eaters and their parents have to remind them to eat. I was not one of those. I ate everything under the sun.

(Notice, I am grabbing onto the handle of my high chair to properly balance myself as I take a honking bite of cake)

Oh dear.

Are you lovin’ my dad’s glasses or what?

I was a princess one Halloween.

…and my brother was a ninja turtle.

Fast forward 6 years and my baby chub went away . Here I am with a monkey in Thailand.

Decked out in patriotic gear at Disney World.

One of my favorites–a family photo with King Kong at Universal Studios. Wasn’t my brother a cutie?

***

Thank you all for submitting your quotes. I now have hundreds to read through! The winner of the $60 CSN Stores Gift Card is Loren with the quotes:

“Don’t let perfection be the enemy of good enough” –Mark Sisson

“The greatest wealth is health” –Virgil

“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education” –Mark Twain

Shoot me an email, Loren!

I really wanted to title this post: Karat Koconut Keenwah Muffins

I had two ancient carrots in the fridge and a bag of quinoa in the pantry (leftover from when I made the Quinoa Loaf with Mushrooms and Peas). So what did I do? Make some muffs! Reader Sarah R. was the first to guess correctly!

I’ve been thinking…scheming…dreaming…about baking with quinoa for weeks now. Quinoa is a nutrient-packed grain, making these muffins ever so wholesome and filling.

(The quinoa grains make it sort of cornbread-ish…Mmm Mmm!)

Carrot Coconut Quinoa Muffins

Dry Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 cup oat flour (ground oats)
• 1/2 cup spelt flour
• 1/3 cup shredded coconut
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup cooked quinoa**

Wet Ingredients:

• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt (or any other yogurt)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4-1/2 cup agave nectar (or more-see notes)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 T coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*

2. Cook quinoa (about 12 min.)

3. Combine dry ingredients, excluding quinoa

4. Whisk together wet ingredients

5. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until evenly mixed.

6. Fold in cooked quinoa.

7. Pour into baking cups

8. Bake at 350* for 35-40 minutes

9. Enjoy!

Notes:

• Add more sugar/agave nectar if you prefer sweeter muffins.
• Use 2 cups of any type of flour.
• The muffins are very moist, so be sure the toothpick is clean before taking them out of the oven.

There is nothing I hate more than packing. Well, actually I hate unpacking more than packing. Maybe…

I am a pack rat through and through. I can’t bare to part with a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g…not even a single stinkin’ ballpoint pen!

I got this lovely trait from my daddy-o.

I remember when we were on vacation in Italy, my dad and I would save all the little shampoo, conditioner, and lotion bottles from each of the hotels. We had very limited luggage space but we managed to haul them around Italy AND bring them all home with us. We had to hide our shenanigans from my mom because she thought we were ridiculous.

Together we are unstoppable.

(Maybe we’ll go camera shopping this weekend and haul some SLRs with us too…uh huh )

***

I woke up this morning and worked on my paper. I think I was writing at a rate of 1 word for every 10 minutes. In fact, I started typing up this blog post mid-paper. Tee hee.

I fried up an egg and served it on a whole wheat bagel with cheese to get my brain clicking. I ate immediately so I wouldn’t be tempted to go for a run.

The real reason why I’ve been eating so many eggs is because I bought a carton to make Almond Butter Blondies and there was no way I was throwing away local, cage-free eggs.

I mean, come on, I can’t even throw away a ball point pen.

I cracked open this jar of Naturally Nutty CVSB and had several spoonfuls. You know those locks they have for ice cream cartons? I need one for this jar.

Then I got to packing. I ask myself this question every year…how in the world did I live with so much crap for all these months!? HOW!?

I had a Green Smoothie as I asked myself this question over and over again this afternoon….

I also had some random SNAX including biscotti, dried pineapple, tofu, and another fried egg.

Oh and Crack Cookies. Except I probably had ~5 total, not 3.

This post is severely lacking in food, so I will leave you with the recipe for

Carrot Cake Macaroons

It’s actually quite simple.

Ingredients:

Dry:

• 1 1/3 cup coconut (I used 2/3 c sweetened and 2/3 c unsweetened)
• 2 T sugar
• 2 T flour
• 1/2 tsp salt

Wet:

• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup carrots
• 3 T agave nectar

Directions:

1. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside

2. Whisk egg whites until frothy. Add vanilla, agave and carrots. Mix well.

3. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Be careful not to over-mix.

4. Form ‘batter’ into 1 in. balls and place on a cookie sheet.

5. Bake at 325* F for 18-20 minutes.

6. Enjoy.

***

See you at home!!!

I was convinced I wasn’t going to make it out the door for my run this morning. I was in a total daze!! When I finally did, I realized I had forgotten my shin sleeves after traveling ~100 feet. Red Light. So I went back and tried again.

Green Light. I ran to the WaDuke trail and around it once. My body was not feeling it today so I stopped to walk a few times. I ran 4.17 miles and walked 0.6 miles (I stopped the Garmin to walk).

My hips were starting to hurt during my run, which is why I stopped. Red Light. I was just starting to feel good after mile 4, but I knew better than to keep going! I went to the gym to cool down for 15 min. on the elliptical and then streeeeeeetched and foam rolled for a good 20 min.

My muscles were SO tight. I couldn’t touch my toes and I can usually plant my entire face on my legs. After some Googling, I discovered that tightness in the lower back can cause inflammation in the hip area. Well there ya go. My lower back is aching like I’m 90 years old!!

***

I made sure to ice after I got back. Check out my butt implant:

I wanted to ice my hip so I stuck some frozen peas in my shorts . Don’t worry, they’re MY green peas.

I tried taking an ice bath because my hip was in quite some pain….

…but it only works if your bath tub stopper isn’t STUCK. Major Red Light.

***

Post Workout:

Green Light Smoothies.

• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1/4 cup 2% milk
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 scoop Green Superfood

G-Fruit ‘n’ Strawbs

The tropical AllieBar I made last night! Green Light. It was my very first time making this flavor (or any other flavor besides the original). I was pretty happy with them considering they were the first batch. They stuck together well too!

I think in the end, I’ll use macadamia nuts but for this batch I had to use blanched almonds so I could taste them (I’m allergic to mac nuts). I wish shipping weren’t so darn expensive so I could use you all as taste testers!! I made a whole batch with nobody around to try them .

I was thinking of a name for the bars during my run. ‘Aloha AllieBar’ or ‘AlohaBar’? Or any other good suggestions!? Help!

***

Shortly after, I wasn’t hungry in the least bit (don’t you hate that) but I wanted to get in some protein. I had a bowl of cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, 1/2 grapefruit and millet bread chunks.

Green Light.

After some work (okay, fine, blogging), I decided 4:40pm was too early for dinner so I started fingering my jar of sunflower seed butter …in front of the window too. It was pretty raunchy. A total Green Light.

I should get a speeding ticket for how fast I’ve gone through this jar.

***

I held out until 5:30pm for dinner.

Spinach, spring mix, fresh mozz, mini peppers and a tomato.

I got this tomato from a farmstand on campus. It came from a local organic farm. Green Light.

2 slices of faux turkey for protein.

Bubblay!

And another one of these babies.

I’m gonna have a 2nd dinner later tonight since I was a total grandma today. I’m already dreaming about millet bread and cottage cheese .

At my sorority meeting last night, we had one of our school psychologists come in to talk to the juniors and seniors about self-confidence and body image at our school. He touched on some topics that hit close to home for many students here, myself included: trust, control, rejection, vulnerability, competition…

It’s always interesting to hear from someone who recognizes and discusses the aspects of this school that have made my experience less than stellar (to put it nicely). I think I am finally at a point where I can acknowledge what has happened to me the last couple of years and work towards fixing myself, rather than resenting the experience as a whole. He confirmed that this institution is a verrrry special place. I took some notes. Maybe I’ll share them with you one of these days.

***

I felt like there was a rock in my stomach (aka no appetite) while refueling after my run yesterday, but I knew I had to get in some quality carbs and protein for my muscles.

Enter: a green smoothie…actually this was a MONSTER. I’ve found that smoothies are the best for quick post-workout nutrient absorption, especially when I’m not in the mood for solid food just yet.

I didn’t have any protein powder on hand so I loaded it up with Organic Valley Yogurt for some protein:

• 1/2 banana
• 3 strawberries
• 1 cup yogurt
• 1/2 packet of wheat grass
• 1 cup frozen spinach
• Water (to balance out the thickness of the yogurt)

I like having another green besides spinach in my smoothies. I need to start experimenting with some other greens. Brussels sprouts, perhaps?

Haha kidding.

A slice of millet bread with dried figs and almond butter.

I found these dried figs at the salad bar on campus (!!!!!). I got about 15 of them. I couldn’t believe it when I saw them sitting there.

I wasn’t kidding…

I also found a Shrimp Cocktail Salad in the grab ‘n’ go section. I was pleasantly surprised because seafood is so hard to find on campus. These were jumbo and succulent!

After class, I took a stroll through the Duke Gardens. I’m living it up before the pollen starts to coat everything and make it impossible for me to be outdoors .

Enjoy the view!

Ducks (I’ve never seen a white, brown and black duck before):

Bridges:

I popped a squat on a patch of grass to do some relaxing. T’was lovely.

Dinner:

Faux Turkey + avocado sandwich with broccoli.

I purchased these Smart Deli Roast Turkey Style slices over the weekend. I had never tried faux deli meat before and I had a $1 off coupon from The Whole Deal.

One of my favorite combos is turkey + avocado so I couldn’t wait to make a sandwich using these.

They tasted eerily similar to turkey breast!

Plus 1/2 of an apple with Naturally More almond butter:

At my sorority meeting I snacked on this Kind Almond & Coconut Bar.

Afterwards, I was hungry AGAIN. Oof running!

I had chunks of millet bread and the Avocado Banana Bread I baked over the weekend with coconut butter.

Still hungry…. so I had a 2nd round with almond butter.

Then I ate ~10 chocolate covered expresso beans….minus the expresso beans because it was late at night .

***

Sometimes I wonder how different my college experience would have been at another institution. I try to keep in mind that the grass is always greener on the other side. There are aspects of my experience here for which I am very grateful!!

I’ll reflect on this more and elaborate on it sometime….sometime before graduation!!