Great Day

I had the best day ever! I'm half way done with finals which is amazing. And this morning I heard back from my first choice school... I got accepted with a scholarship covering half my tuition!

So I finished an exam this afternoon and decided to boycott studying for the rest of the day. I got to spend the whole evening playing with my son! Wonderful. And I even found the time to read the latest Good Housekeeping and have a glass of wine with hubby. Life is good! :)

Aww

JV: I love you mommy. Do you love me?

Mrs: Yes, I love you very much.
JV: Okay. Hold me and kiss me on the cheek.

Isnt my son the cutest?!

Best Advice Ever:

I was talking to one of my oldest friends about her new teaching career and she told me some great advice she recieved from her mentor.

"Fake it until you make it."

I'm pretty sure this works for everything in life :)

Philosophy Kings

I've gotten to read some amazinggg books being a philosophy major. Here some of my favorite quotes from my undergraduate curriculum. You're welcome. :)

Hope is a waking dream.
- Aristotle

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
- Aristotle

Hmm...

What happens when your admissions interview (for your first choice school) goes flawlessly, but you leave the campus wondering whether or not you even like the place anymore??

Yeah, that's about where I am right now.

AHH!! Curveballs!

Dream Come True v. Happily Ever After

I have done some serious soul searching throughout the law school admissions process over the past year. It seems that being an ambitous woman in my mid twenties has led me to a major fork in the road on my journey through life.

If I take one path, I am promised a life where I can be a stay at home mom who bakes cookies all day and is a domestic goddess. I could have more babies, be a soccer mom, and spend my afternoons at playdates with mom friends and babies. I could join the PTA. I would never have to miss an episode of Oprah (yayy). My husband would be thrilled because I could concentrate on being a good wife (cooking, cleaning, taking care of his...uh... "needs"). My son would be happy because he could spend more time playing with mommy and we could finally give him that little brother he's been asking for.

If I take the other path, then I'll continue chasing the dreams I've been dreaming since as long as I can remember. I'll graduate law school, pass the bar, and settle into a succesful law practice. I will be overworked, stressed out, and have obscene amounts of student loans. They'll be fights between me and Mr. because my lack of attention to his uh... "needs". I'll miss teeball games and important moments in my son's life because I'll be too busy studying or working. I will run myself ragged and have no time for myself, ever. Having another baby will be completely out of the question and people will (continue to) frown when asking me "But how do you find time to be a mom and wife if youre going to law school?"

I must be crazy to want to continue down this path I've embarked on, but I'm starting law school in August anyway. I feel like entering the legal profession is comparable to opening up Pandora's Box for someone who has so many roles they already need to fill. I have an amazing, hot, sweet husband who is more than happy to bring home the bacon while I tend to the kiddies. Most women would jump at the offer. But as much as I love my family, I need... more. I need to be something besides a mother and wife; I need to be true to myself.

I just want to be a lawyer, dammit.

No fair. Why does it feel like I have to give up my happily ever after for a dream come true?

The Good & The Bad

BAD:
1. I just finished catching up with all my paper work from the last few weeks and I am already behind again.
2. The child dependancy case I am working on right now is an absolute nightmare. And to make matters worse, the siblings were just seperated (and placed in different towns) so now I have to drive an hour in oppposite directions for the home visits every other week.
3. Mr.'s car broke down. Again. It may be gone for good this time.
4. I have 3 papers and 3 essays due in the next week and a half.
5. Both of my grandfathers were diagnosed with cancer last week. :(



GOOD:
1. My second acceptance came with a scholarship after all! A renewable scholarship for $12,000 each year. Very nice.
2. I think JV is finally getting the hang of potty training!!
3. I'm done with studying for the night and I just poured myself a very large glass of wine. :)

Accepted!! Again!

Got my second acceptance today. No scholarship this time, but we're so excited to officially have options now! And a friend got accepted here today too. Maybe I'll get to have a partner in crime next year?

Great day. :)

Halloween Decor

Happy Hallowen!!

Great idea for a party!

I love these. And they are cheap and simple to make - definite plus :)

Monogram Jack-o-Lanterns! How cute is this?

Feeling Blue

I'm obsessed with organization. Stacking cubbies (like these in white) are an absolute must for keeping JV's room in order and mommy sane. I'm a big fan of baskets too. Big fan.

This is a little cluttered for our taste, but I really like the desk and shelving. I'm going to use this as inspiration for a new study area at home.

I love, love, LOVE this teal wall color. So beautiful with the white accents. And those curtains are amazing.

Navy and white always looks so classic together.

I want that lamp - Pottery Barn.

The dining room in the new house is painted navy (like in the photo above). We still havent decided if we are going to repaint it yet. Maybe some nice curtains could help?



Mr. and I both love any shade of blue. Powder blue is perfect for a bedroom because it gives the feel of tranquility and serenity. I think the pink roses are a perfect touch, making the room look welcoming and romantic.

I love everything about this bedroom - especially the black and white photos on the wall. Perfect.

So Anxious

Biggest stressors at the moment...

1. My current Child Depedancy case. Holy drama!



2. JV's not so enthusiastic attempts at potty training.



3. Lack of cuddle time with Mr.



4. Not knowing where we will be living next year.



5. Our financial situation - one income for the next three years.

I didn't realize the stress of the unknown could do such a number to my nerves.
I can't believe we are about to uproot our whole lives so I can chase my dreams!! 

Think Different

Love, love, LOVE this old Apple ad campaign...

"Heres to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules and have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify, or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may seem them as crazy, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do."

Date Night At Home

JV was down south visiting my parents so Mr. and I got to enjoy a few quiet nights alone. I seized the opportunity and made us a non-kid friendly dinner of Salmon Cakes, Lemon Garlic Pasta, Chocolate Covered Straberries and Home Made Sangria. Dinner was followed by cuddling on the couch in front of a Sopranos marathon. I love him. What a perfect evening with my insanely hot hubby :)

Human Trafficking

As a member of my county's Human Trafficking Task Force, I'd like to take it upon myself to increase awareness about the serious problem going on in our country right now with - yep, you guessed it, human trafficking. So, here you go...

• Over 12 million people world wide are trafficked annually.


• 80% of human trafficking victims are women and children.


• Human trafficking is the second largest (and fastest growing) criminal industry in the world. It makes $17 billion dollars in profits each year (second only to drug trafficking).


• About $18,000 people report being victims of human trafficking each year in the U.S.


• A report released by the University of Pennsylvania in 2001 cites as many as 300,000 children in the United States are at high risk of being trafficked into the sex industry at any given time.
• An estimated 2,000 children go missing in the United States every day. Of these, only a small number of children are found. Many people believe that a large number of our missing children are falling victim to sex trafficking and enslavement, organized by large, international pedophile rings.


• Since 2007, the Innocence Lost National Initiative and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children have teamed up to combat sex trafficking of children and have successfully led to the recovery of over 200 American children who were previously listed as missing and endangered.

We are in the process of developing an outreach program in our city. It's amazing how shocked people are to hear it's such a problem. Do some research in your area and you'll see a disturbing increase in these crimes. Awareness is the first step in eradicating this issue. 

ACCEPTED!!

I havent written in a few days because I have been too busy celebrating.

SO, Thursday I got accepted to one of back up schools!! I was completely shocked because I just sent my application to them a couple of weeks ago and I never expected to get any decisions back this early in the admissions cycle. I spoke to the director of admissions (who said she was very impressed by my app) and am scheduling a tour of the school for next month.

AHHH!!! I AM SO EXCITED and happy to know that I am going to be in law school next year, even if the school might not have been my first choice. AND they offered me a $14,000 scholarship which covers about half the tuition.

I couldnt be happier :)

First Day of Fall

I love football season -but it's completely sabatoging my school work. I've spent the last month running around town drinking and being irresponsible. I'm actually looking forward to having an off weekend so I can catch up on studying and SLEEP.

Midterms are next week so I guess now would be as good a time as ever to start applying myself.

On a positive note: I've completed 7 of 10 apps and will be sending the rest out tomorrow. I love that the LSAT and application process is (almost) behind me. Now I can just sit back and hope and pray (both of which I'm great at).

:) Now its back to work for me. I have three papers due by the end of the week.

Law School?

Does anyone else make a pros and cons list when making important decisions?!

Reasons to Attend Law School:
- To live out my childhood dream of being an attorney.
- For my parents.
- So we can be financially stable. 

Reasons to NOT Attend Law School:
- So I can have more babies and be a stay at home mom.
- The $100,00 loan we'll have to take out so I can go.
- We'll have to move out of our amazing house and into a new town/city with no place to live, childcare, jobs, family, or friends.
- Because I love my husband and don't want our marraige to be strained by the insanity that is law school.

Well, hello there.

So I guess I should say a little about myself...



I'm 24. I grew up as a princess on a tiny island, moved away for college, joined a sorority, and met Prince Charming (at a keg party).

Mr. and I have been together for five years and have a two year old little man (who we are completely obsessed with).

I'm a senior at a top university and am applying to law schools for next year. It's a scary step. I'm forever trying to find a balance between work, school, and mommy/wifey life.

Any suggestions?