A Dreamer*

I'm home!

2009-06-24T06:50:00.001-07:00

We're all home safe & sound. We had some sicklings the past couple days & ayrika was sick the majority of the way home. Poor girl. I was ready to get home thats for sure.. Too much time with people.. starting to eat at my nerves. Anyways, I have to go eat lunch with my sister at camp illiana. I still haven't seen her yet. So i'll post another one later today or tomorrow with pictures! =] Missed you all!

Update

2009-06-19T07:35:00.000-07:00

I need you all to be praying. Today we found out that there are a lot of riots and protesters going on downtown. I guess the haitian elections are this sunday. last time they had elections the ministry here had to cancel church because the government said no private or public vehicles were allowed on the roads. Yesterday one man was killed downtown. He must've got a little out of hand when it came to protesting. The UN shot him and so it's a little violent. Pray for the people here and that they calm their anger. Also that we will be able to have service on sunday. Church in Haiti is amazing. love you all. Only a few more days left in Haiti. Hopefully a post from home Tuesday night.

Haiti

2009-06-18T14:48:00.000-07:00

Just an FYI.. we're here in haiti! I've been trying to get access to a computer for long enough time to check emails & make a post. So here i am on day 4 and got it done! Just wanted you to keep praying and pray for the nannies we're teaching. They are shaping haiti and making a great impact on this country. I love and miss you all!!

My weekend in Louisville

2009-06-01T08:26:00.001-07:00

Derrick, Kev, Sarah, & I had a blast this weekend! It was so much fun. Friday we went down to the IU vs Louisville game. IU should've won but lost it on stupid errors. We ordered pizza & hung out at the hotel afterwards. Saturday morning we got up & walked around downtown. I LOVED the horse statues. We went to Louisville Slugger and bought some cute stuff. I got my brother a wall bat that has pegs on it so Kalen can hang his mit & baseball stuff up. Kirsten gets a shirt that I get to share. I mean I bought it! We went to eat at Joe's Crab Shack & enjoyed the amazing weather while sitting next to the river. Then it was off to the concert! We tailgated with a bunch of people & got a nice tan! =] The concert was AWESOME to say the least. It started at 4 p.m. First was Lady Antebellum, then Miranda Lambert, Montgomery Gentry, Sugarland, then finally Kenny Chesney. Sugarland was my favorite. Even more than Kenny. They were awesome. Kenny Chesney sang the song, "I Lost It." It was the first time in 6 years that he had sang it and it was sooo awesome that it made me cry! Towards the very end of the concert it started raining. That was by far the funnest part. Me & Derrick and Kev & Sarah just danced in the rain and sang at the top of our lungs. Don't worry, sarah & I totally owned the song "We went out last night!" So here are some pictures....
Derrick & I watching the game..I LOVED this horse! =] I wanted to climb up on it & they were like you're gonna make it fall over!! I was like are you calling me fat?? haha. They were convinced that it wasn't very sturdy, but I jumped right on up there! =] I think it's a cute picture. The four of us eating Joe's Crab Shack on the river. It was beautiful out!Tailgating before the concert. So much fun!Dancing in the rainnnn!!! =]

Boat Club <3

2009-05-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was soooo much fun. I can't even explain it! I absolutely love just leaving the house and not worrying about anything. We worked friday evening until 8. I had all my stuff packed in my car, so i drove straight to BC when i got off. There was a decent amount of people that came out friday night. I had fun just hanging out with Derrick & the rest of the gang. Woke up bright & early Saturday morning. The weather was awesome! Me & sarah had huge hopes of getting some sweet tanlines! I already had some from last wednesday. I love the sun! =] Sarah & I left early to go to Delaney's graduation party. We just put shorts & tank tops over our swimsuits. D* loves us & didn't care what we wore. But you know i've been told Ive been talked about ever since. Mom told me multiple people told her what we were wearing. Wow, what's new! People talking about Alyssa Neidigh. I'm used to it. There's always something to say in this small town, but i'm over it! =]

Anyways, we gave her the graduation gifts & she loved them! Had a bite to eat & headed back to the BC. So many people came out Saturday night. Some people I wondered how in the world they found out, but word gets around quickly. Sunday I was in the absolute WORST mood. I woke up & Derrick was gone, sarah was gone.. Nobody was up. They had went to take a shower at Kev's. Ugh... hello! Alyssa definitely needed a shower too! Sleepin in a tent all night & campfire smoke everywhere! I went to Kev's & there they were all squeaky clean & loungin around watching tv. So that started off my bad mood. Stupid I know, but I didn't like being left there! Then Derrick left me again at Kev's. So that just added to it!
Even though he made me mad I still love him. Can you believe this face. I think he had a bit too much to drink, and he thought he was being funny. Anyways, we had a bunch of boat rides & cornhole games that day. The absolute best part was that Alex Myers & Halisa Conley came out to hang out with us! I work with both of these girls. I've known Alex since I was little, but I've really gotten to know Halisa through work. We had a BLAST together. Second thing I was excited about was actually hanging out with Brittany Miller. We've had our rough moments but we've really worked hard to get over it since we've graduated. We for sure made a lot of good memories this past weekend! "I wanna go back to the firefly field!" We'll never forget that line for sure!

So monday came & it rained all day. We were home & unpacked by 10 am. Slept ALL evening after having a huge yummy lunch at Derricks house.

Well I must get to bed. I have a meeting at work at 8 in the morning. Then I have to come home & pack. Derrick, Kev, Sarah, & I are going to Louisville tomorrow. We're going down to watch the IU vs Louisville baseball game. I really don't care much, but I guess IU won the Big Ten so they are in the Regionals. Then we're staying the night & we have a huge concert on Saturday. We're going to see Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Montgomery Gentry, Sugarland, & Lady Antebellum. I've heard rumor the Zack Brown Band is playing instead of Sugarland, because she's been sick or something. Who knows. I'd rather see Sugarland though! =] =] I know we have plans like every weekend. BUT i might as well live it up while I'm young, in college, & not married with kids! There's time for that later! =]

My Sissy's growin up!

2009-05-21T19:42:00.000-07:00

Today was Kirsten's 6th grade graduation. I went to her 6th grade videos on Tuesday. They were pretty cute. It was kind of funny cuz mom was clueless. She said "Alyssa, what's 6th grade videos?" I said, "Well obviously you didn't come to mine!!" Kirsten looked so cute in her new dress and she's turning into a beautiful teenager. They had a dance after the awards program. Oh my, it explained exactly why I could never be an elementary school teacher!! UGH! I literally wanted to beat some kids. They're CRAZY! They wanted to turn the lights off in the cafeteria! I was like "you little brats are already holding hands, so leave the freaking lights alone!!!"
Me, mom, & Kirsten..

Mom & Kirsten..

Well, I hope you all have a very safe and fun Memorial Day weekend! I am so beyond excited to spend the weekend with Derrick & our friends at the boat club. =]

Upcoming fun. =]

2009-05-18T20:35:00.000-07:00

Me & Derrick with the new truck! =] Not a great pic of the truck but he looks cute! ha
The funeral for Derrick's uncle has now passed. It was very sad to see his dad break down as we all filed out of the funeral home. I know Dennis doesn't know this but I love that guy to death. He's become like another dad to me. He & Derrick fix my car when it needs help. He came with Derrick to get me when I broke down on my way back to Purdue one time. It was Derricks fault that it broke down. Long story, but true! =] He's never said a mean thing to me! He taught me how to tie a really good fishing knot & how to put on the perfect plastic worm. Who knew it really mattered which way you put that plastic worm on. I wish he wouldn't have taught me though, because derrick just loves to make me fix his when he gets caught in the tree or whatever! Anyways, he's just a great guy and seeing him break down today was really hard.

I'm beyond excited for this weekend!!! =] Yay! Memorial day. I love memorial day because it means the first official weekend of campin at the boat club. This summer I'm taking my video camera every time we go and I'm going to try to make a cool video at the end of summer. I'll never get that worked out i'm sure, but at least i'll have awesome memories! Me & Derrick have been getting ready for this big campin weekend. We got the tent out today and dug out the old lawn chairs. We washed out the huge cooler. It was kinda gross since it hadn't been used since last summer. We need to go to the grocery store & buy stock up on some hotdogs and all that stuff! I can't forget my pink fishin pole either! =]

The little girl in the picture is Brooklyn. She's Derrick's little cousin and we became best buddies the past two days. She's ADORABLE! She loves to dress up and put on jewelry. We went on two "field trips" while we were bored at the viewing. One was around the block and the other was to the gas station to get some goodies! =]

I spoiled the girl already. She just couldn't believe how much gum she had to chew!

I hate "F" words.....

2009-05-14T20:12:00.000-07:00

FIRST OF ALL: This Saturday the 16th, my family is having a yard sale. It's with Mark and Amy Graber's family. We have one every year before we go to Florida. BUT this time, everything I sell will go towards my Haiti trip. There's some Vera Bradley, Girls clothes from toddlers to Children's large. (Amy's youngest daughter to my sisters age) I have some clothes in there. Hollister & American Eagle jeans and shirts. There's some boys stuff. (mainly my brothers) So if you would like to come. It's going to be at Mark & Amy's house. On HWY 50 right outside of Montgomery, heading toward Loogootee. You can't miss it. Right after the Fuhs' turkey barns on the left. =]

Interesting title I know. I'll explain.
It seems like the past week has just not been such a great one. It's not necessarily the fact that everything is wrong in my life, because it's not at all. It's a lot of people around me that are going through hard times. So my first "F" word is Funeral.
Last week my mom, grandma, & I had to go to a funeral. Dave Parman is from Monroe City and was always a VERY GOOD friend of my uncle doug. They went to Cardinals games together, played guitar with him, and was an amazing christian person in Doug's life. Well his wife, Barb, passed away from breast cancer last week. She was only 45 years old i believe. It was so sad. They have a little boy who is my sisters age and I can't imagine what kind of week he has had and how hard the weeks ahead will be.
My second "F" word is Flu. UGH, i've been plagued. Tuesday I slept in later than normal. I'm usually up by 9 now that I'm done with school. I like to get up and watch Kathy Lee & Hoda on the Today show. =] I slept in until 10:30 and I just couldn't seem to get up. I felt fine, and then noon rolled around. I started getting chills and shaky. Mom has blood sugar problems, so I thought that could've been my problem. I hadn't really ate anything. Well, eating didn't help. I was in that hot, cold, hot, cold mode. Which I knew meant fever. I took a shower because I had to go to work at 4. That didn't help. I got out put my soakin wet hair in a pony, put on sweatpants and a sweatshirt, and I wrapped up in a blanket. I was freezing even though I had a 101.2 temp. I tried to sweat it out but that didn't help much. I was soooo achey and I couldn't get comfortable to save my life. I called into work and finally fell asleep. My fever ended up gettin to at least 102.5 when i checked it later on and it finally broke around 9 that night. I was supposed to work 8 hours for another girl on Wednesday. I got up and felt fine. Went to work and then started feeling bad again. Boss wouldn't let me leave. Well let's just say, when I developed more symptoms, he didn't have a choice. I was SICK! I went home 2 hours early and lounged around.
Then today came along. I feel better but we're back to the other "F" word now. This is because poor Derrick's uncle passed away this morning of a massive heart attack. It's his dad's brother Gary. So now they're going to be planning for a funeral within the next few days.
I guess the only good thing I can come up with is that Derrick is getting a new truck tomorrow!! =] He got a really good trade in value on his truck now. So he picked out this brand new ruby colored, Chevy Silverado. We're going to get it tomorrow around 2. I love being involved in all this stuff! I'll post some pictures soon! =]

UPDATE..

2009-04-29T06:38:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I don't officially hate the bachelor anymore! haha Everyone has been telling me they're sick of seeing that when they look at my blog. I never can find the time to write even though I'm a daily blog reader. Amy Graber, my mom's Amy. Ha It's funny to say that, but there's a reason. First, there's a ton of amy grabers. Secondly, my best friend is Amy Graber and my mom's best friend is Amy Graber. We have to keep them straight! =] Anyways, I was at the campground and she said "Alyssa, you have to change your blog! I check it everyday and it's ALWAYS the same." So, here it goes.....

School has been amazing! I am so glad I decided to come home this semester. Even though it made my christmas break miserable. Mom was mad at me and wanted me to stay at Purdue. That caused arguements literally everyday and there was a constant tension at my house over Christmas. I finally made the decision on my own that I was staying home and it has worked out so well. I have a 4.0 this semester. I LOVE my classes. Math and Physics practically. I know, you probably hate math, but I'm a math nerd. It just works for me. Most people don't like physics either but for some reason I just get it! It's really just a bunch of equations that explain why things happen on this earth and how it works. Its really neat when you can go outside and push a little kid in a swing and know the logistics as to why they move in that motion and how fast they will move. Ok, sorry to bore you!

In the fall I'll be moving to Indy. I'm kind of scared again. I changed my major from Prepharmacy at Purdue to now Electrical Engineering. I wanted to go to University of Evansville, because it's closer and smaller. Mom really wanted me to go to IUPUI. Of course, she got her way. Now I'm in the Purdue school of engineering. Hope it goes better with Purdue this time around. I don't know where I'm going to be living yet, but I know who I'll be with. Her name is Kara Minderman and she went to Vincennes Rivet. She dates Travis Schaffer if you know him. She's one of the nicest people i've ever met. I've never heard a bad thing come out of her mouth. She's very positive and I definitely need that!

ALSO!! I tried out for cheerleading at IUPUI this past Saturday. and......... I made it! =] I even had a huge downfall during tryouts but it still went well. I hyper-extended my elbow on my running tumbling pass. It was awful. I tried so hard to hold back the tears, but it hurt so bad! Then we had a short practice with the new members right after decisions were made, and they had me partner stunting! There's 5 or 6 guys on the team and they wanted ME to partner stunt. I was kind of surprised.

Lastly, I've been trying to work a lot and I'm taking a bunch of hours during May. I won't be able to work much during June, because of my mission trip and family vacation. I'm getting so excited! =]

I'll leave you with a few pictures of things that have happened recently..... =]

Derrick took me and Sarah both on a date to Masons. Kev had to work. He had two girlfriends for the night! =]

I got to go visit my girl, Haili. She goes to IUPUI too and is best friends with Kara, the girl I'm living with. I miss her!

This is all the girls at Lindsey's after the Barr-Reeve vs Loogootee game I guess. Fun night! =]

Abbie, Sarah, and I celebrating Kev's birthday at the mexican restaurant in Bloomfield. Yes, my hair is brown. I colored it so it would go back to my natural color. It doesn't look near that dark anymore. It actually worked and I think with a little bit of sun, I'll be back to normal! =]

Lastly, me and that boy of mine. He wanted to eat and not take a picture. So this is the best we could get! Stubborn little brat!

OFFICIALLY HATE THE BACHELOR!

2009-03-02T20:29:00.000-08:00

So for those of you who don't watch the bachelor, well don't start. This was my first season and I am devastated. UGH! Jason, the bachelor, was down to two girls. Melissa, who is a texas girl, used to be a DCC (Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader), the most bubbly goofy girl ever, and the one who made him soooo happy. Then there's Molly. She was head over heels for him, but we all thought she had a dark side. Well Melissa won! Yay! THEN, the after show came on & it was supposed to be a ton of drama. He broke up his engagement with Melissa and five minutes later brought Molly on and told her he was still in love with her. AND they were kissing, right after he broke up his engagement! MANWHORE?!?!? i think so. So now, we (me, chelsea, brooke, ayrika, ashley, melissa, katie, steph, & rhonda) ALL hate him.
Makes me so sad for poor Melissa. He proposed to her on national tv and broke up with her on national tv. You're probably thinking oh alyssa....
Sorry! we're addicted to this show and after knowing the background of Melissa, and Jason too, it's heartbreaking. Maybe Melissa will be the new Bachelorette! I'm going to bed. That ruined my night! haha

This week...

2009-02-17T16:10:00.000-08:00

I forgot to mention some stuff in my post yesterday. Yes, can you believe it? Two posts in two days from me. Rare event!
Anyways, Ayrika & Chelsea wrote a little about how they are going to Haiti this summer. Well, I am too!! This will be my third trip to Haiti. I miss it so much and I really feel like I need a good spiritual boost. I go to Antioch and it's such an emotional mess there. One week we're looking for a preacher, the next week we have one in mind, and then the next week they aren't coming anymore. I understand the reasonings, but it's frustrating! So I'm going to Port-au-Prince Haiti with New Hope christian church. They have a group of high schoolers, a couple college kids, and some adults too. It's pretty even in ages. It's weird not knowing very many of the people but I'm not alone. There's a little BR group going. Me, Chelsea Miller, Brooke Lengacher, Stephanie Graber, & Ayrika Lengacher. I know ayrika is from ND, but we say we adopted her!
Next business... The Bachelor. haha I used to make so much fun of the girls in high school because they would miss the bachelor night for ball games and such. Then they would come to school and fight over who got to take home the recorded tape first. I was like girls, you're not going to die. Well, now I love it! I wouldn't fight over a tape, but I don't like missing episodes. BTW, Melissa is going to win for sure. We're like a little Melissa fan club on Monday nights at Chelsea's house. It's nice to get together with the girls and not think about school, talk about the most random of things, and eat lots of cheesecake or whatever sweets we can get into!
Last thing... I started my new job today. I'm working as a pharmacy tech, like normal. That's pretty much the story of my life besides my lifeguarding at Camp Illiana. Anyways, I started at Williams Brothers in washington. I'm training and just figuring out the organization and flow of their work. I did pretty well today actually. It helps a lot having background with medication names and an understanding of what is going on.
Well i'm going to get back to the Purdue game that's on now and get ready for American Idol!!! =] Have a great week. Two posts in two days allows me to not post for like a month! haha jk!

2009 thus far..

2009-02-15T18:06:00.000-08:00

I feel so bad because I've had like 3 people say, "Alyssa,!!! you need to update your blog. You never write on it!" I'm just the worlds biggest procrastinator & I always say I'll do it later. I have pictures! =]

Derrick, me, Clay, Gabe, Tye, Meredith, Garrett, & his new gf Amanda, & Derek Clidienst all went skiing a couple weekends ago. Derek tried to teach us girls how to snowboard. I feel sorry for the guy, because I am HORRIBLE! I didn't really try too hard though. I gave up after one trip down the bunny slope. I probably could've got the hang of it eventually.

Derrick & I at paoli peaks.. taking a little break.

Yea... see how good I am at snowboarding.. NOT! good picture opportunities!

I guess my life has been consumed with school, family, my boy, & basketball games. I got a 98% on my physics test, I'm still on an emotional high about that one!! Yesterday was Valentine's day, obviously. Derrick & I went to Terre Haute for a day of shopping. I haven't been up there in ages. I got to Derricks house & he had something for me.. =]

I was super excited... Sad to say it, but yep, i'm "smitten". I had to steal Sarah Walton's word. haha We always tease her saying she's a smitten kitten! She's def happy about her relationship! I was excited to see not only a dozen roses but there were daisies & carnations & more.. I definitely appreciate Derrick. I learn more and more everyday about him & i know he's kind of person I hope to marry. & yes, that's my first roses from a boy! haha.. Silly, i know, but completely worth the wait now that it's from him! AND knowing that he truly has meaning behind it, not just for the occasion. So I took a lot of pics because I have some flower setting on my camera & I don't really get many chances to just go take pictures of flowers! haha

LOVE THEM! Mom told Jason they were from her "other man". He said, "Cool, glad he has money to waste." I said "Hey you shutup, that's not funny!" He thought he was just too funny...

So I guess this is enough for right now.. I need to get to bed... Chelsa, Ryan, & Brycen... you're still in my prayers! Hope everyone has a great week!

Derrick's Birthday

2009-01-20T07:13:00.000-08:00

I'm so disappointed in myself. I'm not a very faithful blogger! I just read them. =[ Anyways, I had some new pictures, so it's a worthy time to post. Sunday was Derrick's 23rd birthday. I keep telling him that he's getting old and making me feel really young! =]

Derrick and I initially were supposed to go out to eat with Kev and Sarah Sunday night. Sarah ended up having to work and I wanted to have a surprise dinner. Derrick had asked if it would just be us four and I said, "Kev is coming for sure, but Sarah may have to work and doesn't know if she'll be back in time." So Derrick calls me and tells me sunday afternoon that he was going to go hunting until dark and wanted to cancel his birthday dinner. I was soooo upset i said, "DERRICK! You're ruining your surprise!" What surprise?? I had to tell him that he just couldn't geese hunt all night because all of our friends were coming to eat too. So the boys decided to pack up a little bit early and we went to eat at 7. Kinda late, but it was still yummy and we had a lot of fun!

Derrick and I after dinner. Getting ready to head out into the Snow..

His face turned as red as the hat!! It was pretty funny. He said he expected it though.

Well I better head to class. This presidential stuff is just too much for me today.

Everything...

2009-01-06T11:31:00.000-08:00

Christmas break. This will be an all inclusive post, i guess. I don't even know where to start! Christmas was good. I knew everything I was getting since I picked it all out, EXCEPT my mom got me a pink Browning car decal. It's like the outline of a deer head. Most of you probably wont even know what that is except Desiree!=] Anyways, mom said, "Wow, the only thing she's excited about is her sticker that cost 6 dollars!" haha. Well yea, because I didn't know I was getting that! I feel like an expert in high school basketball and college & professional football. I've watched enough sports for the next half a year! I even went to my first IU basketball game. My dad got free tickets and gave them to me & Derrick. The poor boy had worked 10 hours that day, but I knew if I didn't tell him then he would be mad the next day!
Oh yea, the best thing so far! My sister decided she wanted to color her hair a little darker. I don't really know why. So I told her I would do it if she bought the color. We went to pick some out and I liked this one color, but she insisted it was no different than what she already had. I said whatever, don't listen to me, do what you want! So that's exactly what she did. Well, she didn't listen to me when I said you only need to keep this in for 5 more minutes either! hahahaha.. oh gosh. She ended up with BLACK hair. hahaha. The next day consisted of washing her hair 15 times with Tide Laundry detergent. Then we let it soak in & wrapped her head in Suran wrap! haha Put the hair dryer on it to pull the color out. It's still rough but looks a lot better.
Oh yea, I got a ring for christmas from derrick. It's super cute and he's so thoughtful. It's a ruby heart, my birthstone, with diamonds around it. =] I was surprised and very pleased!
The last thing... I am going to VU this semester so I can get away from Purdue, and then I will most likely be going to IUPUI in the fall. Well I must get a job since I'm staying home and still have to pay my lease at Purdue. So I'm going to work at Williams Brothers as a pharmacy technician. Suitable since I have experience with pre-pharm school & working in the hospital pharmacy. I had to go take a drug test. I assumed it would be hair but of course it was urine. Well let me tell you, I can't pee under pressure. So after three tries I got that accomplished. That was last monday. The pharmacist called me yesterday and I was like yes, i'm going to get to start soon. NO! The drug test people messed it up, and I had to go take it again. I was sooo frustrated. I wanted to say, do you realize I had to go 3 times!? Now I have to wait another week until I get a reply.

Well, that's plenty for now. I just felt like I haven't posted in ages and i'm sitting at home doing nothing right now. Hope everyone is having a great year so far. I'm looking forward to some really great thing happening and changing in my life this year! Hope that's the same for you!

Blog Awards- Addictions!

2008-12-22T08:48:00.000-08:00

Desiree Knepp tagged me in her post a few days ago. I'm just a little behind, like usual, at getting mine posted! =] We don't really know each other extremely well, except for the fact that she's good friends with my cousing Abby and she worked for my mom right after passing her RN boards! =] We also discovered we both liked hunting.

Here's the rules!
1. You have to pass it on to 5 other fabulous bloggers in a post.
2. You have to list 5 of your fabulous addictions in the post.
3. You must copy and paste the rules and the instructions below in the post.Instructions: On your post of receiving this award, make sure you include the person that gave you the award and link it back to them.

First I will pass it on to:
Chelsea Miller
Brittany Miller
Ashley Rawley
My sister, Kirsten
&&& Lauren Beasley

My addictions!
1. I love to be involved in sports! I never took an extreme amount of interest in the "normal" sports at Barr-Reeve, like basketball and volleyball. I loved them when I was younger and I really wish I would've stuck with them in high school. I probably could've been pretty decent at them! I wish anyway! I love cheerleading and dancing. It was 1. a way to get all my energy out & 2. show my tumbling background without competing. I also liked Tennis & cross country, only because running kept me in awesome shape! ha. It's really not that fun!

2. I am addicted to gymnastics. I'm not as good as I used to be, but it's still a blast. I coached gymnastics at Lafayette and loved teaching the little girls and seeing them grow in their abilities. I remember telling Derrick one time that I was sooo stressed, so I was going to the gym to tumble. He's like what? I don't see anything wrong with that! He likes to go play softball every thursday during the summer, it's a break from work I guess!

3. I'm addicted to M&M's. Yum! I'm sitting here eating Green & Red christmas M&M's and loving it! Well actually it's any kind of chocolate in general. Amazing!

4. I love my family and boyfriend. They're awesome, mom's not so great when she's hounding me about school BUT besides that!!! =] Kirsten and Kalen are the funnest kids ever sometimes. They're mean but actually have a good heart..... somewhere in there, deep, deep in there. Derrick is the greatest. He's changed so much since we started dating a year & a half ago and it's unreal. From the somewhat crazy guy he used to be, to the guy that now loves to be with me and makes sure his friends know that I'm part of him now too. He still has his guy nights, but for the most part I am always right next to him.

5. I'm addicted to the falling price of gas!!!!! It's awesome. Very silly, but so awesome. I drive so much and I love paying less than 20 bucks again! The other day I didn't think about it and went into the gas station and said I just need 20 in gas. I started pumping and thought "Oh shoot!!! That's probably too much. AAhhh Don't Overflow!!!" =] I calculated it out and it was only 20 cents over, so I just topped it off! =]

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope it's great and you have an awesome time with your family.

Purdue vs Duke

2008-12-03T20:35:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, they killed us. BUT i still had so much fun! I didn't even have a ticket & hadn't planned on getting one. I just happened to mention something about the game being that night to my friend that's in my Physics class, and he said I was just talking to a girl who wants to sell her ticket! She only wanted $30! Is she crazy? People were selling these tickets online for over $100. I could've bought it and made AT LEAST a $50 profit, BUT I love Purdue basketball. I had a test at 8 & the game started at 9. I had my friend save me a seat. Well, of course she gets one in the section that is full and you have to have a wristband to get into. The people sitting there had been camping out since noon the day before the game. Remind you, it snowed that day and then the wind is unreal up here, & it gets super cold during the day, let alone at night! Well I was bad & I slid under the railing when no annoying gate watchers were looking! haha. DON'T TELL SANTA! Here's a few pictures from the disappointing but fun night!

Me & Gabby...

Purdue vs Duke! =]

Bootiesss!

2008-11-29T18:40:00.000-08:00

I haven't wrote on here in forever! I'm such a slacker! I get caught up in running around and taking pictures but never posting them on here. This week has been so nice, just being able to leave things back in Lafayette and come home with no worries. Thanksgiving was great and friday was awesome. shop shop shopping!! i love it! i got FOUR new pairs of shoes for christmas. I don't feel spoiled though, because I haven't asked for anything this year! I just don't know what I want, nothing has just popped out and caught my attention I guess. Mom just let me get new clothes. I always seem to have plenty of summer stuff but no nice winter clothes. Explains why I still wear short sleeves and dressy tops when it's 35 degrees outside. haha. So shopping was really fun and I got a new pair of black boots. I just HAD to wear them last night! Mom was soo mad at me! She couldn't believe I was really going to wear my new shoes out. "just remember that's part of your christmas!!!!" I thought a party at stogie and regina's would be fitting to break out the new boots. I arrived and everyone had on boots! Perfect picture opportunity. =]Britt and I had the same boots on! =] Had to pose and show them off for this pic!Cuteness

Love these girls! haha.. Wow, dani, i think we could pass for sisters! lol

Opening Day..

2008-11-17T07:27:00.000-08:00

I got my first deer ever on Saturday! I have been talking about it constantly ever since I dopped that thing! haha Derrick made me promise I would go forever ago, and I was actually really excited about it. I wanted a bow so bad so I could practice and go during bow season, but I didn't get that done. (I think i'm actually getting a pink camo bow for christmas from derrick!) maybe?! Anyways, we went to Deer Camp at Kirkman farm on friday night. I played with Avery all night. (Paul & Denise (Graber) Morris' daughter) I taught her how to use vice grips! hahaha.. We left there about 8:30 and headed hom e to go to bed so we could get up super early. Waking up to NASTY rain & wind was not fun! I got soaking wet, even when I had rain gear on, but I only complained once. That was when I got to the point that I couldn't feel my hands because my gloves were drinched! We saw some deer but they were too far away for me to shoot. We went back to Derrick's & took a nap then headed back out around 3. I wasn't even in the stand & Derrick was getting everything situated before I climbed up & he said "ALYSSA! DEER!" H really freaks out like a kid in a candy store! Well it was a good ways away and kept walking. I was bummed I didn't get to see it. Around 4:30 I said, "I'm getting mad, cuz you got to see that deer and i'm def not gonna get one today!" His reply was "Well, why don't you shoot that one right over there!" WHAT! haha Perfect Timing! I let it get a little closer and I dropped that poor thing! My first words after shooting were "AWW, i'm sooo sorry I just did that to you!" haha.. Derrick was like Get A Life! =]

Yay! my deer. It weighed close to a 100 lb before derrick had to take all the yucky stuff out! ha

One of the many reasons why I love this boy. He drags my deer out of the woods! I know that's kind of nasty looking!

what a terrible day.

2008-11-03T21:01:00.000-08:00

I was woke up in the middle of the night by hysterical crying on the phone informing our family of Jim passing away. I at first thought I heard them say that they had wrecked. (Jason doesn't know how to answer our phone, and he pushed the speakerphone button instead.) So the whole house was filled with the awful noise. So finally after getting ahold of Derrick & my best friends I went back to bed... Mom, Kirsten, and I went to their house around 7 and I stayed the majority of the day.
EXCEPT for when I went to the doctor. I have been having really bad headaches for about a month. Mom thought it could very easily be my eyes. Welp, she was right. I'm obviously on my computer all the time for social and school reasons. I drove home at night & all that stuff, plus i'm texting about every other second of the day! A combination of all these has caused me to be a little bit farsighted, and it's hard for me to focus when I look at things up close. The only good part of my day was picking out my glasses. WELL not so much picking them out because I was trying to do this while my eyes were dilating. UGH that sucks! I started out liking a bunch of the glasses and by the time I got done I was asking the optician if they were cute because I couldn't even really see them!! haha. I had to hold them like a mile away to see what they looked like! So the good part was I got some pretty cute Coach glasses. I was so excited b/c my insurance paid all but $29! Thank goodness for my mom's good insurane! =]
I finally decided I should probably go home and take a shower at about 5 something. All of us girls were still in pajamas and clothes we had worn yesterday evening but we knew Britt sure didn't care. I went out to eat with Janell. I missed her sooo much! She invited me to eat at Knepp's with her mommy. =] Even though it's restaurant amish food, i still love eating it. I don't get amish food ever at purdue! haha. Anyways, i'm rambling, exhausted, and feeling like my head is going to explode from this headache! yuck. So i'm going to bed! Night, good morning, or whichever applies to when you read this! =]

Long weekend..

2008-10-26T13:22:00.000-07:00

I haven't put a post up in close to two weeks & I got in trouble this weekend for it. Three people randomly said "Hey, I read your blog all the time!" Friday Derrick & I went out to eat with my dad and grandma. It wasn't as bad as I expected. I guess my dad told Derrick that he REALLY likes him haha & that he better take care of me. Cute, I guess... Saturday was volleyball sectional! Yay, go Barr-Reeve. I'm soo proud of those girls. We hadn't won a sectional since I was a freshman in high school. My sophomore through senior year, loogootee had taylor wittmer. There wasn't much we could do, they were just a better team! Then last year, well lets just not talk about that craziness! BUT they finally got the job done and i'm so proud of Megan and the way she handled the whole situation. She was so happy and she knew Patrick was sitting right on her shoulder cheering her on! =]Team huddle right after they won and before the kids stormed the court. =]

I left right after the first game and went up to northern DC for the annual Shack Party at the Beasley's. We rode on the rhino all day. I went back for the night game then rushed back up north for the night ride.

Regina & I.... =]
It was a bit windy.. haha.. Derrick and I at the lookout.
Cole and I climbed up on the top railing of the Iron bridge. Derrick was freaking out! I don't know how many times he was like "alyssa! you get off there!!" ok dad!

I stayed at Derrick's & we got up super early to go hunting this morning. =] It was the first time i've went. We hadn't been there very long and Derrick starts hitting me on the leg and was like Deer, deer, ddddeer! lol i was like OK calm down. It was behind us so I thought geez it must be a few or something really big if he's so excited! I turned around and was like omg are you kidding me?!?! It was a buck but the thing was little and looked like it had weenie roasting sticks coming out of it's head. Two spikes with two little bitty prongs at the top. So we obviously didn't want to shoot at it and we got the deer call out to start messin with it. Pretty descent morning for my first time. So i'm going to go study and take a second nap for the day! haha Then tonight will be time to watch the Tampa Bay Rays! =]

I'm def the favorite now.. =]

2008-10-14T19:07:00.000-07:00

I discovered something today! Don't ever let a 10 yr old pick out any picture they want to make for a jack-o-lantern. I wanted to carve pumpkins ALL weekend, but derrick didn't think that was such a good idea. Yea well, now I remember why. It had been forever and I really thought Kalen would love it. I bought two cute pumpkins. A medium one & a really big one, and he was beyond excited. So of course he wants to carve out Ozzy Osbourne. I was like uhh no, get real! Why in the world would he want ozzy?!? So we settled on Mario & I told him I would give it my best shot! So while he played football, by himself?!?!, in the front yard, I slaved away at carving the pumpkin. This is the final product! Don't laugh either, I think it's kinda cute for a not very artistic person who had no real carving tools!

awe.. i think it's pretty cute! =]

haha.. kalen loves it. he doesn't want it to sit outside!

So now that i've spoiled my brother all weekend long, it's time for me to head back to school. yuckkk!

Oh yea, I got spoiled a little this weekend too. Derrick took me to go shootin & to French Lick one night.

Gettin ready.. I guess... love that lil hunting fool!

I was aiming for right above the first R & mine's the one in the red. So not to bad for the first time to shoot that 20 gauge. & I think he was just aimin for the top of the R's, but of course he hits it practically right on the dot. I don't think I really looked I just wanted somewhere close to his! lol oh yea, & we stole Tye's sign for a target.. haha ooops!

anyways.. i'm gonna head to bed. back to purdue i go, in the morning. =[

Finallyyyy. =]

2008-10-13T09:09:00.001-07:00

Mom CALLED me last night! I went with Derrick & his grandma to French Lick b/c they're big gamblers. (Just what I need, NOT!) After we ate and went upstairs I looked at my phone & had two voicemails. I thought surely something bad had happened. The first one was mom saying everything is going great and the generator at the school still isn't working. It has been done for some time now & they think they may get it working this week so they can email us, but everything in haiti just happens whenever it happens. You cant put a time schedule on anything there, because you'll always be late! One of the couples that went down with them had bought international service for just this week. She said in the voicemail it was costing her 1.70 a min. I didn't know that she called from an area number until I returned Jason's call and he said who's 812 number was she calling from?! I looked in my call log & just had to call her back! =] oopps Costs money, but it doesn't matter when you haven't heard from them yet. I talked for about a minute and got off. So pray they get the generator working! Emails would be great to hear how the week is going.

email me already....

2008-10-12T11:22:00.000-07:00

Most of you know now, my mom & sister left for Haiti on Friday. Last thing I heard was they were getting ready to board the plane in Miami and I've yet to receive an email saying that they arrived. Starting to get a little worried. We usually had freetime Saturday evening when we got there and Sunday after church.

Anyways, hopefully the emails come soon. So i'm goin to update on the weekend & for whenever mom gets on here to read whats happening at home. Kalen had basketball practice yesterday morning. I was laying in bed & heard him say Dad, I'm watching tv for 30 minutes and then i'm getting ready for practice because I don't want to be late! It was 7:30 in the morning and his practice didn't start until 10!!! I thought are you kidding me Kalen? Go back to bed! So he went to practice and stayed the night with his friend Mitchell. He has a bad habit of telling me, Jason (my stepdad), or whoever takes him to practice that mom said, "I can stay the night with whoever or I can go play with whoever after practice." Then he goes to practice saying, "hey can I come to your house after practice because I don't have anything to do today!!!" Little brat. He thinks he's sneaky, but we've caught on. He said that yesterday, but I guess mom really did say he could go. =] I left and went to a family reunion with Derrick. It wasn't as bad as he acted like it would be! Then we went back home and shot the 20 gauge shotgun. I'm think I'm a natural! lol. He said yea, we'll see once we get in a treestand and you're shakin like a leaf & won't pull the trigger! OOOHH, Just wait. I'll show him what's up! =]

So that's pretty much it for the weekend, and the Colts are KICKING BUTT today! I know mom would be happy to hear that. =]

Write more later... =]

lots of new info.... =]

2008-10-11T07:54:00.001-07:00

so i haven't wrote anything alllll week! I'll start off with a little bit from last weekend. I spent pretty much my whole time at home building a new dog pen. It's Huck's pen, derrick's dog. Practically my dog, I play with it sooo much more than he does! =]

School went extremely fast for me this week. I didn't get back until Monday night. I have tons of classes on tuesdays, only two on Wednesday, and a few on Thursday. I work Wednesday & Thursday nights after class. During the time in between I do homework & try to eat & study! I don't always get all three done! I got off work at 8:15 Thur. then drove home afterwards. Didn't get home until 11 after having to stop to eat supper & get gas. I would've stayed longer, but my mom & little sister were leaving for Haiti Friday morning. So after getting home at 11:20 and finally getting to bed, I got up at 5:45 to take mom & kirsten to the church. It was so sad. I wanted to go so bad. It was even worse thinking that I'm off school 2 days next week and my teachers for Wednesday would've been very willing to let me do my work ahead of time. The only day I would miss any material would've been Thursday. Only TWO classes, because my other one got cancelled. =[ No class on Fridays. Oh well, too late now!

The team that's going to Haiti. haha Obviously you can pick out my proud mom in that Purdue sweatshirt! =]

So now I'm mom for the next week & the only girl in my house. I took Kalen to the ND football game last night. He liked it, I guess. I thought he would be sooo excited to go. So I said, "Kalen, do you want to go with me and Derrick to the football game tonight?!?" He said, "Well Alyssa, I don't know, I need some time to think about it!" I was like are you kidding me? Really what else would he do besides sit at home and watch disney channel. I finally talked him into it and we went to eat at Essen Haus in Odon. He was pretty excited. Once he started getting his food he said, "Wow, this has like everything I want. I want to come back here in 3 days!" "Umm, why 3 days??" " Alyssa, duh, I don't want to eat the same thing everyday until then!" Geez, what was I thinking?

Kalen & I being silly on the way to the game! Anyways, I got to go get ready for a family reunion with Derrick. I'll write more later... Love & miss you mom & Kirsten.

Jess, you lil rat! she tagged me. =]

2008-10-07T14:21:00.000-07:00

oh gosh... ok..
Here are 6 things i guess.
1. I was super smart in high school... ha BUT then i got to college & became the dumbest! haha no.. not quite.. but somehow, college just isn't working out so great. it's rough! I have learned that I just don't know how to study.. I guess that's the first thing that's on my mind right now, because I don't know how I'm ever going to survive my anatomy test next week!

2. Ok, I'm totally a trader! I go to Purdue now & I'm transferring to IU. That's sooo wrong. Here's a little story about that. I was waiting in line at the Bursars office & saw a friend from last year. She asked how my year was going & I said, well it's alright. Not the greatest, i guess, because I'm in the middle of figuring out my transferring situation. She was like wow really? Where to? Oh, I'm just going to IU. Before she could even reply, a guy in the back of the line (in the bursars office remind you!) YELLS out.. literally YELLS. F*** IU... i was like really? do you wanna start a riot, right here & now.. cuz i'm totally game!!!!! =]
He shutup!

3. I've discovered my new favorite thing is hunting! I'm super excited for this gun season. I'm actually looking for a new Bow for christmas on the internet right now. =] I think i found the perfect pink camo one. =] yay!

4. I feel like I know or am associated with more people than what is humanly possible. I was always hanging out with a different person in high school practically every night. My close friends are always like yea this one girl that you probably dont know was talkin to me. & i'm always quick to say who? of course i end up knowing them!
Another funny story, my friend Megan Knepp is from Sarasota & of course the good ole facebook tells you who your mutual friends are! So one day I said Megan! Oh my goodness, you know Todd Garrett tooooo?!! He lives in Alabama! He goes to school in Tennessee, but went to Hoover High School, famous for the football show Two-a-days! He was actually on the first season. I met him in Florida & she met him because a friend of hers goes to college with him. How random!

5. I love Physics! I really don't know why... welllll i loved physics, then i got my test score back yesterday! haha. it was cuttteeee. not. No, honestly, I really do like Physics. I guess it's because it's just real. Its the reason and the way thing work.

6. oh oh oh... i know my last one. Not many people know this, but I tried out for Colts cheerleading. Even though I obviously didn't make it, it was soooo much fun! I'm considering trying again only because I met a bunch of really fun girls. I definitely don't expect to make it, but it's fun to be able to say that I did it!

hmm... i don't even have that many people that I know on here!
I tag Abbie, of course, & Lauren B.

What a weeekkk!

2008-09-30T18:03:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's only tuesday & i've been soo busy!
Tuesday is my long day, but I had all of my classes plus I had a test tonight. I have one tomorrow too. && I dono if it's just me, but I feel like our lives ALL suck right now! haha. seriously if you think about it, the economy is practically killing us! This morning I was in such a bad mood, and I called my mom like every other morning. All I could think of to say was "I feel like my life is gonna be terrible!" I'm so scared we're going to go into a great depression or something crazy like that. The next ten years of my life will be the most important too. (graduating, finding a job, getting married, building a house, having children, starting to raise them, just becoming an independent person in general) That's scary in itself, but when you think that you're going to be poor all because some people wanted to sign a bailout bill & it caused a 700+ drop in points! Mom just says i'm a pessimistic person, but that's DEPRESSING! haha. anyways, bad days just get you thinking about everything bad! & that has definitely been on my mind.
& oh my goodness, tomorrow is opening day. The day I surrender my relationship to a WOODS. Don't worry, I know i'm gonna have to get used to it like every other girl who comes from Southern Indiana! Actually, I've decided to join in.. I've been taking some personal shooting lessons from that boy of mine! lol. I think i'm doin quite alright too! Well, I'm going to get back to studyin, like usual.. see ya! =]

FINALLY... =]

2008-09-28T08:35:00.001-07:00

This weekend has been interesting to say the least.. Friday wasn't such a great day once I found out Derrick wasn't coming up & he chose to go to the ND football game instead.. Believe me, I called & said a few choice words.. yes, yes, i apologized later! BUT all my feelings just came rushing out later that night. How much time i put into driving home practically every weekend & how i never get the same from him. Plus so so so much more that has been on my heart here recently. I knew it needed to be talked about. so i just got on my computer & just started typing away, a letter that would probably never be read. (or so i thought) He insisted i read it to him once i brought up that i had wrote it. i think it actually has made a world of difference. i knew if he knew what was best & if he meant want he said Friday night then he would be here Saturday. He realizes how much it affects me when i feel like he doesn't want to have a part in my life at Purdue. I mean i know he's an IU fan, but it's really not that bad! To my surprise, at 2:30 saturday afternoon I get a phone call saying, "I'm here, hurry up!" WHAT?! so his gma that spoils the crap outta him rode up with him & she stayed with her sister in Delphi, which is only 20 minutes from here. I was in shock, I couldn't believe he was really sitting on my couch in Lafayette, but I got over that pretty quick! =] He took me out to eat at Logan's Roadhouse and I took him on campus to show him around. He asked questions & seemed interested, so I felt a lot better. We came back & watched football, football, & more football. I think I know every upset from Saturday night football! This morning he was like ummm is there a Gander Mountain around here? haha OF COURSE! We went to Sportsmans Warehouse & then he cooked me lunch. How sweet.. ha So he just left & I am beyond thankful. This weekend started off terrible & ended up being just what I asked for. As far as I know, he hasn't died yet from actually visiting Purdue either. Well now I need to go studyyy :( yuck! i'll write more later!

super happy, excited, ramblingsss =]

2008-09-26T12:38:00.000-07:00

Well i'm so excited about things right now. Most of you probably don't know this but I'm planning to transfer to IU... I finished my application today, just need to send transcripts. I'm so beyond excited. I love it here at Purdue, school sense of things, but not the distance. It's TERRIBLE. I go home practically every weekend, kinda sad I know. BUT i'm staying here this weekend & i'm actually excited about it. I never realized, until today, what it's like to just chill out in my own apartment. I didn't have classes today, so i've been cleaning & putting clothes away, yes for the first time since I moved in here 5 weeks ago!! I figured out I have wayyy too much stuff. Need to get some studying done, I have two tests next week. Yuck! They shouldn't be too extremely bad, Medical Terminology & Physics (which I love). I know you probably think I'm crazy. =] I have a lab report to do, pre-labs, & a project for my easy as can be Vocabulary class. Ok now, don't make fun, I just needed a 1-credit hour class!

AND I don't know for sure, but I think Derrick may be on his way here right now or sometime soon. He had made plans, but most of you know how he is. STUBBORN! & he tries to get out of it like he has for the past year & a half.. BRAT! & a good friend from last year, who decided to just commute from Carmel, IN two days a week, is coming up to visit everyone this weekend! Sam (my roomie) & I can't wait for him to get here! Well just thought I would update on the latest stuff... gotta get back to cleaning & studying...

Here's a pic of me & Sam.. =] thought it was cute & should add it since I mentioned her! <3

Tattoo...

2008-09-23T15:21:00.000-07:00

sooo some of you know i got a tattoo, but a lot of people haven't figured it out yet..

don't feel bad if you didn't know, i didn't really publicize it that much, derrick wasn't so hot on the decision. anyways.. i got it on Tuesday Sept 9th. That was exactly one year since my uncle passed away from muscular dystrophy. He meant soo much to me & my family, and I had to see him suffer through a lot of pain throughout the last six months of his life. so the initials are obviously for his name Brian Douglas Edwards and the puppy prints are because of his love for his service dog, Gina. Gina was EVERYTHING to him and I don't know what he would've done without her. It could've even come to him not living as long as he did. She is now just a pet to us & we don't make her work, but we always think of him when we see her!

The final product.. =]

Yes, it hurt... Talking to my mom on the phone while getting it done. I think I stressed her out!

It's a new thing.. =]

2008-09-21T20:57:00.000-07:00

So... i'm super new to this thing. I had no idea Southern Indiana had been taken over by blogger until almost two weeks ago. I'm finding it quite informative and fun though, actually. I guess a more sophisticated alternative to facebook! Anyways I just wanted to write something short & start this up. I figured this would be a great way for me to keep some of my closest friends at home updated on my whole college experience and future dreams, for the moment. They seem to change quite often here recently, but hopefully it's all going to work out for the best. More about that later.....