Homework & Pesky Birds

So for those who don't know me, I was in court reporting school up until just recently. I loved it! It was something I honestly never got tired of. But because of my back, I could not physically do the job once I graduated. I was typing at about 120 words per minute on a stenograph machine and the longer my takes (recorded material you type from) the more pain I would feel. To graduate from school, you have to type 225 words per minute. I had a ways to go obviously, but I just had to face reality and stop throwing money { a LOT of money} into a degree I would never be able to use. I still have a hard time with this.
But here I am now! I am finishing up my last class to have my Associates degree and I have no idea where I am going from here. 
I am taking English 1302. It is a summer course so it is a lot of work condensed into one month. When I say a lot of work I mean I am doing an in depth discussion question and a quiz every day plus my first essay paper. All in one week. 
Because I did not have traditional college courses in CR school, I feel like I forgot everything I ever knew about English. Analytical essays, point of view, style, blah, blah, blah. I am already sick of it because, let's be honest, I will never ever use this crap. Teach me some grammar. Teach me punctuation. Give me something I am going to use. I will never read a book and care what the style of it was after college. I will never wonder what point of view the author used. I will enjoy the book and not take it apart word for word.
I keep telling myself that it is just one month. Work hard for one month and make a good grade and you will be done. Deep breaths!
Then I can stress about what to do next. I will get a Bachelors. I just don't know what it will be in. 

So my herbs I have been attempting to grow on my back patio are now bird snacks. Those little birds think I am growing these herbs for their eating pleasure. I am not. I am just annoyed that they won't stop eating them. 
I found a cool project I may try at some point that will keep those pesky animals away from my herbs. Hopefully I won't fail miserably with the project! As much as I would love to do it now, I have school, my brother's wedding, work, and the gym. Maybe after my brother's wedding and our family vacation, I will get on it! 
 

Dinner, Hair Mask, Aussie

I got adventurous while I was home alone tonight and made a new dish! I had some lentils in my cabinet and I had been wanting to try them for a while. So I took the recipe off the back of the lentils package and went to work!

 

Lentil and Brown Rice Casserole

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, diced

2 cups cooked lentils

2 cups cooked brown rice

2 cups plain yogurt

½ tsp each oregano, ground cumin, salt, garlic pepper, and cayenne pepper

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

In a skillet heat oil and sauté onions. Add all remaining ingredients except the cheese. Mix well and pour into the casserole dish. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Serve hot as main dish.

Makes 6 servings

Lentil & Brown Rice Casserole

I did everything as the recipe said but I added in a zucchini and a squash. I want some more veggie to it so I had to add two of my faves! It turned out really good but one thing I will do next time, add more spice! I do not feel like there was enough spice as I ate it. It didn’t come through very well. So make sure you add some extra in when making it. 

I had to cut it up to show you the inside {and eat!}

Also, I will most likely cut it in half next time I make it because it is only me and my mom in the house. This is not something my brother would even try. He eats like crap. He hates anything green. He is lucky he has the drive to stick to his workout routine!

But overall, I was happy with this new dish and it will go into my recipe box!

Before I started my little cooking adventure, I threw some coconut oil onto my hair! This is my absolute favorite thing to do for my hair. It makes it feel like I just went to a salon and got some sort of deep conditioning treatment. Because I have naturally curly hair, I have naturally dry hair. I got a nice fresh hair cut today so I felt like this was a good opportunity for me to do my mask. 

Those white chunks are just unmelted coconut oil.

I am alone tonight {and tomorrow night} because my mom ran off to good ‘ol Vernon Texas to see her dad. They will be attending my cousin’s 8^th grade graduation tomorrow evening. When she got to her dad’s house I got the most adorable picture ever. 

Meet Lacey.

Lacey May - Mini Australian Shepard

 This is her summer hair cut. She rocks it.

I Am A Slacker

Let’s be honest, I have been terrible at being a consistent blogger but I am going to try and do better and maybe if I add this into my planner I will do a better job.

For Memorial Day weekend, I went to see my dad and step-mom with my brother and his fiancé. The drive is about 5 hours. It is a pretty drive because I get to see green grass and pretty trees but it sure is a long drive. I don’t enjoy making the drive but my soon to be sister-in-law wanted to meet my dad before the wedding. I think she got more than she bargained for when me and my step-mom got into it and I walked out of the room. Ain’t nobody gonna talk about my momma. 

I happily made the drive home on Sunday. The best part was lunch at Rosa’s in Abilene. I tapped into my inner fat girl and ate way too much. I should never go there unless it is my only meal of the day because I think I probably blow my whole day with that one meal.. Like I said “inner fat girl”.

On Monday, my mom and I made White Chili and took it over to my brother’s house to help my sister-in-law finish up her wedding invitations and get them into the envelopes and stamped. It wasn’t fun, my back was killing me, but it was done. 

Today.. well today has been rough. I didn’t sleep very well because I have had terrible back pain the last few days. My job doesn’t require much work {which is why I will be applying for full time} so I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open. I have to try and find work for myself but today I just didn’t have any. I guess I am just too darn good at my job. But after lunch I did go and get my back adjusted and it helped some but it isn’t a fix for me. It is temporary relief but I will take what I can get right now. 

Before I go, check out my new snack bag I found!

Notice my Milton stapler next to my snack bag.

 

I may even double post today to make up for my lack of!

Until next time!

Well Poo

Well poo {see what I did there}, my spray bottles that I used are complete crap. I guess that is what I get for buying the cheapest spray bottles I could find.

My shower this morning was a disaster. I had to basically pour this mixture onto my hair which was a huge waste. My hair felt pretty good after washing. It didn't have the super silky feeling I am use to after using my protein mask type conditioner but it worked. My curls look pretty awesome today. Maybe it was luck, maybe it was the new hair routine – I will know in a few weeks!

I had to run to the store for some salad stuff for lunch so I picked up some more spray bottles from Walmart. Only ONE of those little bastards worked. Seriously? Am I just too dumb to work a spray bottle? I may just give up and buy the bottles used in the beauty shops for color application. Maybe I can figure that out!

I am also going to start doing a weekly coconut oil hair treatment. I love the way it makes my hair feel but I just forget about it. I need to plan ahead and make sure I write this on my calendar so I know I am making time for it!

If you have never tried this before, I highly suggest it! All you need is some coconut oil and a clip. I smother my hair in that awesome oil and then wrap it up in a bun and clip it! I leave mine on for as long as possible. Maybe do some light cleaning or dishes. I have read about some people using heat but I do not want to stand there and hold a blow dryer. Call me lazy. But my poor little arms get so tired. I will admit it, I am weak. My arms never were strong. Even when I was in great shape.

This weekend my mom and I are finishing up some bathroom face lifts. Because I did not start this blog until after I had already started this little DIY adventure, I do not have before pictures. But I will post some pictures when it is all fixed up and try to find some old ones that we took before the previous owners ever moved out.

Her bathroom had a terribly ugly texture so we tried to cover it up to the best of our ability with some joint compound. I think I put on three different coats! Totally worth the time and effort. It looks pretty darn good and I am not even done yet.

We decided to leave the cabinet doors off because it is a very small bathroom and it makes it look so much more open and spacious. We will be running over to Home Goods {I will control myself, I will not go broke, I will not buy the whole store} to look for some cute baskets to go into the open cabinets.

Maybe I will get lucky and we can go get a manicure and pedicure because, boy, do I need some good ‘ol beautification!

And I can’t wait to have some mommy/daughter time! You will quickly learn I am a huge momma’s girl and I always have been. She is my rock and I really don’t know what I would do without her. 

  Me and Mom

Is this a good idea? Sure!

I have thought long and hard about starting this blog and honestly I am still unsure about it but I am going to try it and see what happens. 
This will not be a blog about anything in particular. My brain tends to be a jumbled  mess so you can just expect that from this blog. 
At some point it may become a more specific blog but for now, expect the mess :) 

Something you may find interesting about me, I am a court reporting student {hence the name of the blog}. I am currently in my second year of court reporting school. I started out in a school out of Dallas, TX but switched when I did not feel like I was getting the support I needed. I am now attending an online school which is located in Hobart, Indiana. I am head over heels in love with this school. Live classes, supportive teachers, friendly classmates {not to say I didn't meet some awesome people at my Dallas school}, awesome guidance! I am just working my way up to 225 words per minute, one stroke at a time. *TWSS*

I am going to try something new with my crazy, wild, curly hair. If you have ever heard of No-Poo then you are a step ahead. No-Poo is basically a different way to wash your hair without stripping it of all the natural oils your scalp produces. 
This video below is a great explanation and a how to for those of you that would like to try this out. 

Keep in mind, I am new to this whole blogging thing but I am going to try to keep up with how my hair does with this new method. I hate having to wash my hair every day and my curls have just turned to a flat mess lately. 

So here goes nothing with this new adventure!