It's Been Awhile

Hi friends!

I think it's about time I dust the cobwebs off of the ole blog. I just can't seem to be as consistent with this thing as I want to be. Oh...wait. I'm a graduate student. And it's finals week. Though, that doesn't account for the last 6 months of neglect. Speaking of graduate school....

Life is a funny, funny thing. Without going into excruciating detail, things didn't quite work out at Missouri State. There were definitely things I enjoyed about it, but also things that kind of made me crazy. Ultimately, I decided that the program at the University of Arkansas was best for me, so I contacted the "Man" to see if she (yes, she) would have pity on me and let me back in. Shockingly enough, she did! Ah Fayetteville, how I missed you. Those two months away were just too long. I kid. In all honesty, I truly love Northwest Arkansas. It's so beautiful and, for lack of a better word, eclectic. It's a very unique place. I think that I made the right decision, and I'm sticking to it!

That's basically the last half year of my life in a very, very, very, very, very, very tiny nutshell! I've been going to school mainly, and I continue to babysit every once in awhile.

Oh! And I had a failed Whole30 attempt in the month of September. It was more like a Whole10, and if we're being honest, I'm surprised I lasted that long! More on that later.

Love,

Haley

Natural (Ethnic) Hair

Hello everyone!

I am linking up with Kelly's Korner today for Show Us Your Life- All About Hair. I have never done a SUYL post before, but I've always wanted to, so I thought that this is one I could actually get in on, considering I'm not a mommy or homeowner yet. I also happen to have tons to say on this subject, but I'll try to keep it short. ;)

I have always been a self-proclaimed product junkie/hoarder, and when I decided to transition from relaxed to natural hair, my "habit" multiplied ten-fold. I like to change up what I use on my hair in search of the "perfect" product. Needless to say, I have yet to find them, but I have come pretty close!

One of the things I love most about  my natural hair is the versatility that I now have. I can do all sorts of things with my hair that I couldn't do when I relaxed my hair because it was lacking volume and texture at times. I've been natural for going on 2 and a half years.

Before I went natural, my hair often looked like this:

Straight and pulled back tightly (most of the time).

Or the occasional straightening and wearing it down.

After I went natural, I had many more options. Here is one of them:

This is a two-strand twistout (once I finally got the hang of them).

I don't have many other pictures of some of the natural styles I've tried, but there have been several more that I'll have to share in the future. I look online a lot for inspiration. Good ole, YouTube and Pinterest. What would I do without either? I have no idea. Ha!

On to products.

At the moment, my favorite products for my hair are Carol's Daughter. Target JUST picked them up a few months ago, so there are a couple of their lines of products in the ethnic hair section now. However, there is a much, much larger selection on their website. You can even become a member, and get special discounts and free shipping! And I feel like they are always having some kind of sale.

Pictured here is the Monoi sulfate-free shampoo, conditioner, and hair mask.

THIS collection is my absolute favorite right now. Not only does it smell amazing, but I really feel as though it protects and strengthens my hair. And the great thing about Carol's Daughters products are that anyone can use them! Not just "ethnic" hair types. This post is not sponsored in anyway, I just love their products that much. I also really like their Hair Milk Nourishing and Conditioning collection, but like I said, all of their products are great!

I'm sure many more of you out there agree with me when I say that I absolutely couldn't live without my Chi flat iron. It's a lifesaver. I, of course, used it a lot when I had relaxed hair, but it is still very nice to have when I occasionally straighten my EXTREMELY curly natural hair, too!

That post got a little longer than I expected, but I could talk about hair all day long!

Please leave any questions or suggestions in the comments!

Love ya,

Haley

The Beginning of My Life in Springfield

Hello Everyone! 

I figure it is time for an update. I moved to Springfield last Thursday, June 6. I was extremely excited leading up to my big move. I was ready to get up here and explore the city! Well, growing up in Small(ish) Town, Arkansas...Springfield is a city to me. Thus far, I really haven't done much "exploring" other than hitting up the ice cream/frozen custard shops in my area and trekking back and forth to my classes each day. 

Speaking of my classes, those have gone pretty well so far. I just started them on Monday and I already have a final on next Wednesday! That's right, just 7 class days into the first summer session. Granted, my classes are only 4 weeks, but that is still a TON of information to take in that quickly. I am really liking my class on stuttering, but that is probably because I haven't really learned much about this subject area yet. My class on voice though....snooooooze. My teacher is this cute little old man that tries to make jokes and keep us engaged. Poor thing. He tries ;)

And now for the not-so-good news. I had a mini breakdown on Monday. I guess the change just got to be a little overwhelming for me, and I finally just had to let it all out. I had been fine up until then. I didn't cry when I left Fayetteville. I didn't cry when I said goodbye to the sweet boys that I've nannied for the past 2 years. I didn't even cry when my family left to head back home after helping me move, leaving me all alone in the "big, bad city." Ha! I'm definitely the type to be pretty laid back and keep calm until everything just swells up and I boil over. It isn't my best trait, but hey, at least I'm honest. So yeah, I finally had my little "this-is-such-a-big-change-and-I-think-I-am-having-a-quarter-life-crisis" moment on Monday and called my mommy bawling. I told her that I wanted to come home. She told me I couldn't. It irritated me at the time, but I prayed and calmed myself down and the next day I felt like a new woman, ready to take on the world! I also called two of my besties. I don't know what I would do without them. 

All of this to say that change can be hard, but it is so important to push yourself beyond what you think you are capable of. I really think that I'm going to like it here. I truly believe that growth happens outside of your comfort zone. And because I am a sucker for a good quote, I will leave you with this:

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." 

-- Anaïs Nin

Just some food for thought,

Haley

Last Day of School

Well, today was my last day of undergraduate classes, and I honestly don't know how to feel. I truly have a mix of emotions about it. Part of me is ecstatic because I've been waiting on this day, for what seems like, my entire life. Part of me is sad because it is the big milestones such as this that make you realize just how quickly your life passes you by. Part of me just feels nostalgic about the entire thing. 

What I do know is that I've been blessed to be able to attend such an excellent university for the past four years, and to have most of that education funded for me. I know that my hard work is about to finally pay off, and I am moving on to better things. One of my favorite quotes, in fact, is, "There are far better things ahead than any we leave behind," by C. S. Lewis. I believe that to be true. I can apply that to nearly any part of my life. I am excited to move to a new city, experience new things, make new friends, and go outside of my comfort zone a little. 

There is no doubt that I'm also a nervous wreck at the thought of it as well. This is the furthest and longest that I will have ever been away from my family. I know that I will, of course, come home to visit as often as I can, but there won't be the comfort of knowing that my mom is only an hour away should an emergency arrive. Granted, that hasn't happened the entirety of my undergraduate career, but ya never know. 

Anyway, I thought I would just share some of the thoughts I am having about my last day of classes. I still have finals, and GRADUATION to get through. I'm sure I'll have a much more sentimental post about that. Ha!

Love,

Haley

Oven-Baked Chicken Fajitas

On Wednesday, I made the most delicious chicken fajitas! I believe it was my first time making them. If it wasn't my first time, then the other times I've attempted them weren't very memorable. Lol ;)

I used a recipe from http://www.budgetbytes.com/

These were so easy to make, and I loved that I could just throw them in an oven and walk away without having to stand over them. 

I forgot to take pictures before I had already dug into them, but these are the pictures I did get. They tasted just like my mom's, which was another accomplishment in and of itself. 

Oven-Baked Fajitas:

Seasoning: 

• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tbsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/8 cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tbsp corn starch (I omitted this because I didn't have any and didn't want to buy any for one recipe)

Fajitas:

• 2 small or 1 large onion
• 2 medium green bell peppers 
• 1 medium red pepper
• 1 lb. chicken tenderloins
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium lime
• low-carb tortillas
• low-fat sour cream
• cilantro

For full instructions, see: Oven Fajitas by Budget Bytes

I made a few modifications to the recipe. For example, I omitted the corn starch and used an orange, red, and green bell pepper instead of 2 green and 1 red. I also used olive oil instead of vegetable oil, but I don't think any of that matters. Tweak them as you see fit. You seriously won't regret making this recipe.

~Haley

A little throwback...

This picture pretty much sums up my sentiment of last semester entirely. I took this picture the day my GRE study book arrived from Amazon. As I've mentioned, we were all petrified of not getting into graduate school, and for some of the people in our program, that nightmare unfortunately became a reality. 

"I'll order a GRE study book early." "I'll spend a little bit of time everyday studying for the GRE." "I'll be prepared." "I won't wait until the last minute to cram for the test." "I won't wait until the last minute to TAKE the test." Little did I know, waiting until the last semester before applications were do WAS waiting until the last second. Silly, silly Haley. All of these things I told myself at the beginning of the semester, but the followthrough was lacking because I can assure you…THAT didn't happen. One of my biggest worries was paying for the darn thing. It is one expensive test. I've been able to pay for most everything on my own through my scholarships, grants, and student loans, but a large expense like that is not easy to just drop nearly $300 on when you're a college student. That isn't to say that my mom didn't help me because she's definitely bailed me out plenty of times, but it wasn't something she was able to do all of the time because she is a single mother of three children and I truly respect that.

Needless to say, I was able to pay for it in the end and signed up for it pretty close to the date I needed in order to get my scores back and sent by my graduate schools' deadlines as possible. Stressful, right? I looked at the book every once in a blue moon, and I attended a workshop one Sunday for a couple hours that was put on by the Multicultural Center (which by the way is fabulous on our campus). About a week before my testing date, my anxiety multiplied tenfold. When they say "hindsight is 20/20," they aren't lying! Oh how I wished I had spent the entire semester studying instead of waiting until the last minute. Not only the entire semester, but perhaps the last couple years! 

I decided to not get bogged down in the "could have, should have, would have" of the situation and make the most out of what time I had left. I flew through that book, highlighting everything I thought I possibly could need to know. I took practice test after practice test, and come test day I was exhausted, and barely had any stamina left to even take the test. I felt like I knew nothing of what would be on there. I did a lot of praying that last week before the test to say the least. I should mention that timed, standardized tests aren't my strong suit. In fact, I don't think they are hardly anyone's strong suit. 

All of this to say that if you're reading this, and your schools may require a GRE score or you're planning on taking it…make sure you do the exact opposite of what I did. ;)

Love,

Haley

Springfield, Here I Come!

It's funny how things work out…am-I-right?

I am a strong believer in fate/destiny/what's meant to happen will always find a way, but I was extremely validated in that belief last week. I applied to four different graduate schools, and we began hearing back from them at the middle of last month. We all anxiously anticipated hearing good news from our "choice" school, but secretly hoped that we could get into even just one.

I received my first letter in the mail. I was wait listed. I had a mix of emotions upon this news. Part of me was excited because, well, it wasn't a rejection. However, part of me was disappointed because it wasn't an acceptance either. I just told myself to calm down because I still had 3 more schools to hear from, and some people DID get rejected from there. After all, I still at least had a chance of getting in.

The next school I heard from was an acceptance! I was so excited!!! With this news, I knew that I would at least be going to graduate school, but it wasn't the school I was secretly hoping for. I had heard great things about the program, mind you, but it just wasn't where my heart was pulling me.

I got my next letter. My undergraduate alma mater had accepted me. This was my most exciting news yet because for the past few years, our instructors and professors had done nothing short of scare us to death about not getting in at their school, much less getting in anywhere else. My advisor even told me to not get my hopes set on getting into a "big" school (which I took to mean a "good" school). He also encouraged me to apply at a school no one had even heard of. Ha. No thanks.

My last letter, and the highest ranked school of my choices, finally reached me. I was, again, placed on an "alternative list." Bummer.

I decided to go ahead and accept the offer at the U of A because it was the best option I had from the schools I'd gotten accepted to, and I also interviewed for a position as a graduate assistant because I knew I was about to be out a LOT of money. You should know, I interviewed for one of only two positions being offered to over 20 applicants. I knew that the odds weren't in my favor, but I decided to give it a try and put it in God's hands.

About a week later, I received the news that I had not gotten the assistantship. I was disappointed to say the least. All I could think was, "student loan debt, here I come!" The very next day I got an email from my top pick, asking me if I wanted to remain on their wait list in the event that a spot should come open, and that she could let me know by the end of the day. Well, of course I did! Later that afternoon, I was offered a spot in their program. Ecstatic doesn't even begin to describe!!! Immediately, I felt a wave of heat rush over my body, and I swear my body temperature went up about 10 degrees in a matter of seconds.

I immediately started calling all of my "people," telling them the good news and asking them what in the world I should do. I knew that ultimately it was my decision, but I still needed advice because that's just how I am. Everyone was very encouraging, which was exactly what I needed. I thought about it for about 15 minutes, and promptly emailed the department head back to accept the position. If you know me at all, you know that's probably one of the fastest decisions I've ever made in my life, a life changing one at that. It takes me about that long to decide what kind of bread I'm going to buy at the store.

All of this is to say, that I will proudly begin my graduate studies this June at Missouri State University. I'm excited to see what the future holds, and I appreciate the support from my family and friends more than I can put into words.

Let the apartment hunt begin!

Haley