miss gudgel

pretty soon that will be me!

in january i will be starting the process of getting my teaching credential and i can't wait! i've wanted to be an elementary teacher for quite a while, but the timing was just never right. but i really feel like it is now and i'm so excited to get started

it will be about a year and a half process, and most likely i will be student teaching all of next school year. then will hopefully have my own classroom the following year! that feels like a long way away right now, but i'm sure it will all go fast.

but for the time being, i'll be working full time still and going to school full time as well. a little intimidating but i can do it!! i have a goal and i'm excited to work towards it! :)

and soon enough i'll have my own one of these!

ohhhh anne.

so the pioneer woman, a close personal friend of mine, gave me a few tips on blogging.

actually i've never met her, i'm just an overly obsessive fan, but she did post some blogging tips. and one of the big points was to blog often, whether you have anything to say or not.

i definitely don't blog often. but maybe i'll work on it! no promises though.


however, i DO have something exciting coming up.

i'm turning 25 on friday. that is not the exciting part. i dislike birthdays. actually, i like birthdays in theory. but in reality, i tend to be disappointed on my birthdays, which leads me to dislike them. particularly this one, 25, because i feel old. and single. and nowhere near the married with children i desire. but that's another post for another day! :)

so, for this birthday, my mom and i are taking a trip.

a trip to prince edward island!!!

now i adore anne of green gables. i have often wanted to be anne of green gables. that first kiss on the bridge between anne and gilbert at the end of anne of avonlea after they talk about marble floors and sunbursts...

(sigh). enough said.

so between being an anne fan, and also a fall fan (fall on prince edward island is supposed to be gorgeous), i am extremely excited for a girls getaway/birthday trip on the island!

3 days an counting...

making moves.

i moved into a new apartment last month. i absolutely love it! once it's all decorated i'll put up some pictures. but it's looking super cute!

i'm living with my best friend since childhood, caitlin. which is great. we each have our own junior suite with our own bathroom and walk-in closet attached to our rooms. there's a fireplace in the living room. a balcony. a dining area. and a great kitchen! i've also been cooking up a storm lately which is fun!

i am also thinking pretty seriously about beginning the process of getting my teaching credential started in january. i'd keep flying while i'm taking classes, which is totally doable. but i really just can't wait to have my own classroom!!!

i've been going through a lot of emotional ups and downs lately, and dealing with some big decisions... but I am excited to see where God is going to take me next! and i'm learning and being challenged more and more everyday to put my trust in Him!

i've been gone.

sometimes i am a very bad blogger... oops!

i've been very busy lately...

flying places!

and not flying places...

and learning to be betty crocker.

and going to dodger games

and of course, spending time with these little guys!

so things have been good! but, i HAVE missed my blogging world.

hopefully i'm back! :)

disney world!

so my family had some RCI points (time-share type thing) that were going to expire, which meant it was time to book a vacation! so my parents and i decided to do a last minute trip to orlando! it was a lot of fun. i definitely missed the rest of the family, especially those two little boys i love who were constantly missed. it would have been fun to experience everything through their eyes. but just the same, it was a great trip!

we went to disneyworld, the kennedy space center, and just spent some days relaxing. it was a nice break from the busyness of life.

here's my mom and i at the magic kingdom.

i am so thankful that God has blessed us with the opportunity to enjoy vacations. it's something i take for granted a lot. and i am even more thankful that He has blessed me with a life i love, and am excited to go home to.

:)

packing up.

well i'm in the process of packing up my pasadena studio apartment. i'm going to be moving in with some girls over in redondo beach. i will be both closer to work, and saving money. so it's a good thing. but i'm not gonna lie, i'm sad to leave.

i have loved living here. i have loved having my own little place in the world. all mine. not to mention how freaking cute it ended up being!

i felt so much pride whenever i would have a new guest over and they were so impressed with what i had done with the place. my place.

i've only lived here a little over a year, but so much has happened. my first time living alone. finding a job i love. so many guests and friends and memories. i feel like i've grown up more in this little apartment, on my own for the first time, more than i ever had before.

and while i am excited to see what God has in store for me next... i'm really gonna miss this.

comfort food.

comfort food: food that is simply prepared and gives a sense of wellbeing; typically food with a high sugar or carbohydrate content that is associated with childhood or with home cooking.

i wonder what it is about comfort food that makes it so... comforting.

for example, sometimes when i'm stressed, i just "need" a big greasy bacon cheeseburger and fries.

even just looking at it makes my mouth water a little bit. i could care less how many carbs, or calories, and fat is in it. i just LOVE it.

i wonder what your comfort food is...

circus love!

now some of you may know this about me, but when i was little i was obsessed with the circus. i kid you not. in my mind, if i could somehow convince my family to join a traveling circus and spend the rest of my life traveling and performing, i would have been the happiest kid in the world!

my favorite tv show as a child was "dumbo's circus". for a flashback, go here.

i incessantly searched for a kids circus camp i could attend, to no success.

i dreamed of the circus convoy unexpectedly rolling into town and setting up their tents for a show full of animals, entertainers, "freaks", acrobats, and girls in sequins standing on elephants and waving at me. 

but alas, my circus dreams never quite came to be.

HOWEVER... today i discovered hollywood aerial arts!!! i can take trapeze classes! i think i'm gonna get a group together and set up a class for one saturday next month.

maybe my circus dreams haven't died after all... :)

update from the bell.

well i'm pretty much settled into my simple little life here in bellingham, wa. so far i haven't worked much, well one day total. but it's looking like i'll be working much more the second half of the month, so i'm enjoying getting paid to just sit around for the time being.

my days consist of continental breakfast, quiet time, the gym, and then lots of free time. which i've been spending either watching tv shows online, working on my book, or reading. it's been extremely relaxing. i wish i had remembered to bring my paints so i could do that, but c'est la vie!

one of my best friends ashley is up here visiting me right now, and we've been having a lovely time. she's always been my kindred spirit. so obviously this morning we decided to watch anne of green gables/anne of avonlea. LOVE anne. she inspires me. anne that is, but ashley too. :)

"Isn't it splendid to think of all the things there are to find out about? It just makes me feel glad to be alive--it's such an interesting world. It wouldn't be half so interesting if we know all about everything, would it? There'd be no scope for imagination then, would there?"

i do miss LA though. surprisingly more than i thought i would. sometimes i guess you have to get away to realize how much you actually appreciate the things you have. i'll be excited to be back!

a little dose of change.

those of you who know me know i am a bit of a change addict. it's not something i'm necessarily proud of, but when the going gets tough, katie gets a-changing. this has frequently taken the form of me moving to a new place, new state, or perhaps just a new hair color. change. it's my greatest vice.

soooo, i have been working really hard the last year to not use change as a cop-out when i'm feeling discontent, etc.

but i found a little loophole!

with my job, i can actually get PAID to move somewhere new for a month and live in a hotel. what?!? seriously. i can! and then afterwards i'm right back in my normal life. (okay, actually i'm moving when i get back, but only across town and it's a good thing financially.)

so for the month of february i will be living in bellingham, wa! i'm excited.



things i am excited about:

1. bellingham is located conveniently between vancouver (where the olympics will be) and seattle (where friends will be).
2. day trips to the above mentioned, plus the San Juan Islands and wineries!
3. RAIN! i love rain.
4. It's the Pacific Northwest, where twilight takes place. i'm a complete nerd, i know. but i'm excited to read the books while in the setting!
5. free continental breakfast every day at the hotel (with bacon and eggs and everything!).
6. time alone to read, reflect, write, work-out, and just focus on ME.


i leave in 2 days!

a girl for all states.

i don't talk about my job a lot because, well i work a lot. so it seems boring to me. but lately i noticed a pattern that made me laugh.

people always want to claim me as one of their own!

what i mean is, when my passengers are from iowa, they tell me i MUST be an iowa girl cuz i'm just so sweet there's no way i could be from los angeles. then when they are from montana, i MUST be a montana girl. as far as i can remember, this has happened for washington, montana, iowa, arkansas, colorado, texas, and probably more.

and they never believe me when i say i'm from los angeles. born and raised! i guess we really have a bad rep here in LA. silly!

but i love my passengers! especially my montana passengers. i'll be a montana girl any day! ♥

get carried away!

have you seen the new sex and the city preview?!?



and in honor, one of my favorite carrie quotes...

maybe mistakes are what make our fate... without them what would shape our lives? maybe if we had never veered off course we wouldn't fall in love, have babies, or be who we are. after all, things change, so do cities, people come into your life and they go. but it's comforting to know that the ones you love are always in your heart... and if you're very lucky, a plane ride away.

♥

goodbye 2009. hello 2010.

the last year has been a big one for me.

the main events being that i moved into my own studio and i found a job that i love. but more then those, i think i'm a bit more comfortable in my own skin. i've learned to better accept the fact that life is messy. and whether i like something or not, it is what it is. i can't control every detail, but i can control what i do with what is.

this year has definitely had a lot of ups and down, they all do really. but i'm doing the best i can. and i'm getting better all the time. and i'm happy. and that's a lot, really.

i'm so thankful for my family who truly is my strength every day.
and my friends who love me completely just as i am.
and my God. above all my God,
who's unfailing love and forgiveness continue to humble me daily.



we get one chance to make the most of what we've been given. i always want to make sure i'm doing that.