Exhausted...

This pretty much summarizes how I feel....

Minnesota Visit

School officially started back up and I haven't had a moment to blog about my trip back to Minnesota. I knew it would be my last visit until Christmas so I tried to fit in a little of everything.


The first night Dan and I went to a baby shower for his friend Keith. It was a perfect night for a BBQ- the kind all Minnesotans dream of in the winter and savor in the summer. If you have ever been to a baby shower with men, then you can probably relate to the humor of the night as well. When it was time for cupcakes someone asked if we were supposed to sing and after the cake, we all shared in toasting with a cake-flavored vodka shot (not the pregnant mom!). It wasn't the typical "guess what baby food this is" kinda shower and I loved it! We had a great time and it was fun to catch up with Dan's friends.


I also managed to get in multiple downtown and SLP runs in with my running group as well as the post-run coffee and "healthy" cookie recovery. We did some house hunting and later some finance homework to balance out the fun. 

smarty prance

Donut burger at the park

Smarty Prance made us a few bucks at Canterbury Park but we spent it all on food (Ice cream in the summer is irresistible). We met up with some friends at the track followed by dinner and the comedy club later. It was a perfect combination of my favorite things (well not the betting part but the outdoor summer activities).

Noah helping with homework

Kate and baby James visiting

Warming up

The best part of the weekend however was seeing family. Dan's sister and kids were in town so we stopped in to visit them and the rest of the Gustafsons. We had a great dinner with my mom while discussing the deficit and  politics. We also spent a whole day on the lake at my dads playing volleyball, swimming and relaxing with my family and best friend Kate. Dan was content because my brothers volleyball skills have improved so we can get some real volleys in. My dad was in heaven because my friend Kate brought her 5 month old baby and I was content just to be surrounded by people I love!

Downtown stroll before the comedy show

View at the lake

Now its back to school and WOW is it going to be a busy few months. I am totally overwhelmed with having 4 classes, a fellowship and a part time job! One day at a time I guess. My blogging is my way to make sure I am still using the right side of my brain to balance out all of the finance and accounting work. I also decided to learn how to embroider! Probably not an ideal time to start a new hobby but I needed something relaxing to do. I only wish I could cross-stitch during accounting to keep me awake for the 3 hour lectures.

My new hobby

Ok, back to work!

I think I can unless I can't!

I started homework today at 11:30 am after running some school supply errands. I worked on Finance up until 5:45 pm when I took a break for a LA Fitness workout. I ran a bit with Lauren after and then came home, made some instant dinner and have been working until now! I only took a few breaks to walk to the freezer for multiple fruit Popsicles (Mango is the best!), checkout for a second on the Internet and stand up to stretch.

I honestly believe I am at high risk for becoming a complete nerd if I keep this up. I had to turn down dinner plans tonight and tomorrow will come home after work to Accounting. I think this MBA is trying hard to remove all of my social skills and replace them with lame left brain thinking!

I want to use my MBA to do non-profit or social business management work but I am pretty sure management requires more people skills than number crunching tools.


Ok...only four more months. I think I can!

The Ripple Effect from the DailyOM

I really liked today's Daily OM (I get them emailed to me everyday) and thought it was worth re-posting. Often  I feel like my impact on the world is insignificant but this lesson"The Ripple Effect" helped me reevaluate what it means to contribute. It also was a good reminder that a negative attitude can work against our wishes to create change and therefore, it is also important to dilute our negative energy and replace it with positive thoughts. Read below for a better synopsis and heres to creating positive waves today!!

August 10, 2011 A Virtuous Cycle   The Ripple Effect The impact you have on the world is greater than you could ever imagine, and the choices you make affect the whole. In a world of over six billion people, it’s easy to believe that the only way to initiate profound transformation is to take extreme action. Each of us, however, carries within us the capacity to change the world in small ways for better or worse. Everything we do and think affects the people in our lives, and their reactions in turn affect others. As the effect of a seemingly insignificant word passes from person to person, its impact grows and can become a source of great joy, inspiration, anxiety, or pain. Your thoughts and actions are like stones dropped into still waters, causing ripples to spread and expand as they move outward. The impact you have on the world is greater than you could ever imagine, and the choices you make can have far-reaching consequences. You can use the ripple effect to make a positive difference and spread waves of kindness that will wash over the world. Should the opportunity arise, the recipient of a good deed will likely feel compelled to do a good deed for someone else. Someone feeling the effects of negative energy will be more likely to pass on that negative energy. One act of charity, one thoughtful deed, or even one positive thought can pass from individual to individual, snowballing until it becomes a group movement or the ray of hope that saves someone’s life. Every transformation, just like every ripple, has a point of origin. You must believe in your ability to be that point of origin if you want to use the ripples you create to spread goodness. Consider the effect of your thoughts and actions, and try to act graciously as much as possible. A smile directed at a stranger, a compliment given to a friend, an attitude of laughter, or a thoughtful gesture can send ripples that spread among your loved ones and associates, out into your community, and finally throughout the world. You have the power to touch the lives of everyone you come into contact with and everyone those people come into contact with. The momentum of your influence will grow as your ripples moves onward and outward. One of those ripples could become a tidal wave of love and kindness.

A trip to North Carolina brings me down memory lane

What a week! My mom flew down to Georgia from Minnesota last week and we had an amazing time shopping along Roswell's Antique Ave and visiting the Chattahoochee River. My brother then joined us Friday and the three of us spent the day relaxing at the pool just like the olden days living on Dogwood Street! I really enjoyed their company and hosting them in Georgia! I felt very blessed this week with great family and lots of laughter. 

For the weekend we drove to North Carolina to visit with my aunts, cousin, uncle and grandparents. Despite the fact that we are all from the North- there are now a significant number of us living down in the South. I definitely understand why after spending more time here enjoying the weather, outdoors, scenery and hospitality. I just need the other half of my family to migrate.

My brother and me eating an edible fruit bouquet

We got to NC around 2pm after a scenic drive through the blue ridge mountains where we did some more relaxing in the pool and on Aunt Laura's picturesque wrap-around southern style porch (with rocking chairs and all!). 

We spent Sunday at my Grandparents. The morning began with Grandpa fixing his traditional egg breakfast for everyone followed by coffee and the Sunday paper (they are very routine!) After breakfast I did a run around the golf course while my brother and Grandpa did some work on my car (thanks again!). 

We were thinking of going to visit the famous sliding rock waterfall but due to the rain we stayed inside. I started pulling out old photo albums as my grandma told stories that absolutely entertain me but apparently put my brother and grandpa to sleep (literally they napped!) as we dug back to the early 1900s.

Dave and Grandpa

Grandma and Grandpa

My Great Grandparents

My mom, grandma and aunts

The Sisters at Aunt Linda's wedding (LOVE their dresses and hats!)

My mom and Grandpa fishing

Me in the hand-me-down sister's dress

Some of the stories I vaguely remembered but I got them mixed up. I always thought I had an great great great aunt that was killed by geese on a farm in Ireland. That story made me terrified of geese all my life but apparently, the 5 year old girl caught fire while cooking, ran to the pond but couldn't jump in due to the geese and died. A little different than I remembered but I guess its better to be afraid of geese than the kitchen! I also heard for the first time of a relative that got gored to death by a bull! Take the running of the bulls in Spain off my bucket list! And, the best part was looking at pictures of my mom and her sisters when they were younger. I LOVED their clothes and wish they still had them so I could wear them or sell them on ModCloth (ps vote for my pic on modcloth FB). Instead, I nagged my mom all week to pick up sewing again since she used to be a very talented seamstress. 

To go with my retro theme..the apron I want mom to sew!

I also really enjoyed seeing pictures of my mom and dad in their younger married days. Despite the fact that they are no longer married, I still enjoy seeing the days when they were happily together. I took pictures of the pictures and then tried to edit some of them for keepsakes.

So, all in all, a great week filled with more amazing memories. Thank you mom and Dave for visiting me and to grandma and grandpa for hosting us! I was so impressed with your perfectly manicured flower garden, tomatoes, and lovely home. I can't believe you are both in your 80s (almost grandma). 

Grandma doesn't look 80!

Love, Krista

PS All of the old pics are pictures of pictures so they are not the best quality. Plus, they are from OLD cameras like the one on my blog!