Catch up.

(Holly here)
Well, oops. Out of the four of us, we have definitely failed at blogging this past month+. Sorry about that, 5 people who actually read this thing :)!

Well, over the past month A LOT of homework has happened... as well as some fun stuff thrown in there. Two of those "fun" things include sticks and hair.

I donated my hair about 2 years ago to Pantene Beautiful Lengths and have been talking about doing it again... I mean really, people. When your hair gets stuck under your arm pits and in your elbows, it's time. So, we were talking about the possibility of doing it right before Christmas break but me being me was feeling spontaneous so I chimed in and said "Let's do it right now."

So, once we figured out that Great Clips was open for a while longer, we got the pony tails, ruler and scissors and went to work.

We kind of had a funky measuring job and ended up clipping a wee bit more than the required 8 inches.... but that's okay. Because a woman who has had to endure the process of cancer and treatment will get to have longer hair from the process. 

There they are... two pony tails in all their glory... all 10+ inches of them! 

(I look thrilled, right? This was right after I realized how much it actually was!!!) 

Our SECOND little project-o that involves STICKS was inspired by Pinterest (if you haven't found it yet, be careful... it's addicting!). We have been brain storming about what we could use to display what we were thankful for for quite a while. And finally, we saw something on pinterest that we loved. 

Behold, the Thankful Tree. 

We took a little nature-walk... collected sticks and rocks and then made a little fake tree out of it :)... we bought some fall colored paper and had hemp-twine to make little leaves and write what we are thankful for! 

Isn't it fun? Currently we are only thankful for each other..... but, that will change once we all start our creative juices a flowin'. 

What are you thankful for? We'd love to hear... and we can add it to our thankful tree in your honor! 

Happy November, Blogging-World! <3 The A-typical Apartment. 

Welcome to the Sick House.

(Holly here... I'm on "isolation" today until my antibiotics kick in... hence why I have time to blog in the middle of the day.)

Hello blogging world.

Well, as is obvious by the title... our little a-typical apartment has some yucky-germs spreading like wild fire.

First, poor Anna came back from HoneyRock this summer with Pertussis. [100 day cough... still going strong :(.]
Then, Haley got some nasaly-congestion-ish beaut...
And then, Holly dropped with strep-throat...
Followed by Ally and her new found cold/congestion.

Sickness is sick, you know. It's like those little blobs with faces from TV commercials are sneaking all around our apartment dropping little drips of disease on every light switch and door handle we have! Those little rascals.

That is to say, we have made some yummy smoothies lately... because half of us can't swallow and those of us that can can't taste unless it is ROBUST flavors running over those taste buds... last night was the best one:

- Banana
- Raspberries
- Peanut Butter
- Chocolate Chips
- Vanilla Fro-yo
- Vanilla Milk

= SO GOOD --- highly recommended... sick or not sick!

Anyway, I hope you all have wonderfully restful weekends.... We will (hopefully) be out enjoying the beautiful weather before mother nature smacks us in the face with the freezing winter!

Black Bean Salsa!

Ally here--I just wanted to put up a recipe that has become a favorite in our apartment. I got it from my Aunt Ellyn, and she got it from the Ro-tel can...but no matter what the source is, it's super easy, and super delicious!

Black Bean Salsa
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (10 oz.) Ro-tel, drained
1/2 cup corn, canned or frozen
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup cilantro
fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

chill for 30 min and serve with chips! (or whatever you want!)

enjoy! let me know if anyone uses it!

Four Minus One

That is our equation this week. I (Holly) am house-sitting this week... so, sadly, I am not living in the apartment. It is a sad reality to wake up to a fuzzy little muzzle rather then the smiling faces of my roommates! But of course, peace and quiet is good for the soul. Over here in Wheaton land (not on campus land) I have spent a lot of time with el perro and lots of time listening to music and studying. It's so much easier to focus! (I say that and I just spent an hour surfing the intra-net... oops).

Anyway, I took el perro for a little run to the park yesterday to get some fresh air, exercise and entertainment. As a border collie, this pup has A LOT of energy. So, after a couple miles and lots and lots of ball-throws, we came home. I have definitely spent all of my life NOT being a "dog-person"... but, I will admit it's kind of nice to have a little companion around. The fur and slobber might outweigh the positive though. He comes outside with me in the morning to hang out with Jesus, he follows me all around the house and plants himself at my feet, it's kind of cute, I guess :)!

On another note... I talked to my Dad the other day (Hi, Papa M!) and he challenged me and my apartment mates to make a list of 100 things we are thankful for. Stay tuned for that here in a couple posts. I have to think before posting that!

Off I am to finish reading Plato's Phaedo for some Philosophical edu-ma-cation.
Happy Tuesday!

Here is another little snippet into our year last year. This is Anna, Haley and I in a tree on the first snow-day Wheaton has had in over 50 years! SO fun! 

L'Angoisse

L'Angoisse.  That's what's been on my (this is Haley) mind lately.  I'm assuming that none of you know what this word means, so I'll tell you.  It's French for anxiety.  If you know anything about me then you probably already know this, but for those of you who don't know me too well, now's the time that you learn- I worry a lot- even about things that don't deserve to be worried about, which usually ends up being served to me on a big platter with a steamy hot side dish of l'angoisse.  In my mind, the things that I have been anxious about lately actually qualify as things that any normal person would be anxious about, but still- I wish I could stop worrying all the time.  One of the things that has been on my mind lately is next semester.  If things go according to plan, I should be spending 16 weeks in Aix-en-Provence, France with other students from Gordon College.  When I think about this potential reality, part of me is so nervous that I could throw up, and the other part is so excited that I could, well, throw up.  While I know it's an incredible opportunity, and I know that I will probably LOVE it, part of me can't help but wish I could just stay right here in my little 1057 A4 bubble with people that I love and who I know love me, too.  I'm worried that I'll miss too many things if I leave, things that I might never get to experience again.  I know that Wheaton campus is pretty subdued and not too many crazy exciting things happen, but it's the little everyday things that I'm going to miss- pillow talks with Anna, laughing with Holly over the ridiculous things we attempt to do, hangin' with my homeboy James, singing in the Gospel Choir, tutoring at Dearborn, seeing familiar faces when I walk to class- they're all things that I love but that I'm choosing to give up...?  Sounds crazy to me.  I guess another part of it is I'm worried that I'll feel inadequate once I get to Aix.  I mean, I've been studying French for basically 7 years now, and I feel confident that I know enough to get by, but this is going to be totally different.  I'll be taking courses at a French university that are taught in French with other French students, I'll be living with a French host family, and I'll have to get by on my own when I decide to go be a part of civiliation in the city.  I know that the immersion will be fantastic for my speaking abilities and that I'll most likely be fluent by the time I get back to the States, but it's the in between time that worries me. 
Another thing is that the application process is hideous.  I started applying over the summer, and I still don't think I'm halfway done.  I have to get a bunch of recommendations, apply for and actually get a visa, figure out what classes I'm going to take while I'm there, figure out financial and course credit junk...it seems like an insurmountable pile of things that just have to get done, and I'm feeling overwhelmed, but I know that it will all get done, and I can only pray that everything works out in the end.  I don't know...maybe I just need to suck it up and take it like a man (figuratively speaking, of course).  All I know is that I am terrified.  I am terrified, but I am strong and I can do this.  So, ready or not...here I come.

p90NExT!

Hello everyone- It's Haley again.  So, Holly and I have been doing the p90x challenge for, oh, 6 days now.  It. Is. KILLER.  I honestly don't know how we have lasted this long.  First of all, the people who lead the workouts are already ripped as could be.  They have biceps the size of small children and can probably breathe underwater. And of course they make everything look so easy.  It ain't.  I am a living testament to that.  Today we tried a new workout called "Core Synergistics."  It should be called "Sure GonnaRipThis" because, honest to Pete, I could swear that something is going to rip, tear, break, fracture, or shatter every second of that excruciating 57-minute long workout.  Don't get me wrong, it's a great workout, but I think a small part of my sanity gets taken away each night, and I'm starting to wonder if it's worth it...
By the end of it, it's a real struggle just to lather, rinse, and repeat in the shower.  And let's not even mention trying to muster just enough strength in my legs to stand long enough to clean off the pints of blood, sweat and tears.  If it's a shaving day, well, let's just say it WAS a shaving day.  Adios smooth and shiny legs!  Hello to the start of that winter coat...4 months early...
Anyway, I just wanted to give y'all a little taste of what's currently going on in this "A-Typical Apartment"of ours- there's never a dull moment, that's for sure.  My brobro is waiting to Skype with me, so I'm gonna run.  Here's to rock hard abs, Gaston-approved biceps, and hoping that I can walk to class in the morning.  Good night!

Yogli Mogli

Hello blogging world- Haley here!  This is my first time posting on a blog EVER, so I'm pretty excited, but I feel kind of foolish at the same time.  Who am I even talking to when I write this?  I guess my mom, seeing as how she's the ONLY person currently following us.  That's okay though because she's awesome.  Hi Mom! :)  So, there really is no point to this...I just wanted to add a little spice to our page/profile/blog...I don't really even know what it's called.  I guess I'll take this time to sneak in a little promotion for Yogli Mogli, a new froyo place in Wheaton.  It's super good. Like having-your-roommate-crack-your-back good.  I speak from experience.  So good.  We will be adding pictures and other exciting things to our blog in the near future to make it a little more interesting, so stay tuned!  It's time for this mothalicka to hit the sack, though.  Good night moon.  Good night Wheaton.  By the way, the picture has nothing to do with this either...just wanted to put some faces to the names :) (Left to right- Me (Haley), Holly, Anna)