College

So College has been fantastic, so fantastic in fact that I hardly get a minute to write anything! I have fabulous friends already (most of which are from Virginia for some reason?) and a wonderful dance team!

[Ainsley, me, Katie, and Hillary napping]

[dance team newbies at initiation!]

My hall is very close friends and we all hang out together. We've adopted Mark, Morgan, Gardner, and Kelly so our hall continues to grow. As far as frats go, my favorite so far has got to be Kappa because theres the best dancing!! 

Last Night Home

It is my last night in Ridgefield and it feels very strange. This summer, for the first time in my life, because I didn't go to camp at all I felt like I finally live here. I have lots of friends at home for the first time in a while it's nice to be home and I don't want to leave. I'm putting off packing because of that and as a result I still need to pack my toiletries, desky things such as photos, and my ballet things. 

I got my hair cut yesterday afternoon!

I only took about an inch off but I got it more layered and more angled so it looks a bit more dramatic. I LOVE the woman who cuts my hair. Rubia is fantastic

. I only recently discovered her last spring right after she got engaged. The next time she cut my hair it was a week before her wedding! Yesterday she was a married woman, and promised she would bring pictures when I come home to get my hair cut in December. 

On a seperate note, how FABULOUS is Senator Biden! 

The Obama/Biden combination is unbeatable in my eyes. I'm so excited to vote this fall! I'm glad that my first election is one my generation and so many young people are so involved in. 

Goodnight, next time I write I'll be a college girl!

Beach Cruiser

So I really really want a new bike. I'm looking into the cruiser variety but am a bit put off at the lack of hand breaks. I figure I'm not going to be doing any intense biking, only around campus. Here are the bikes I'm thinking of so far:

I really love the lights and the back racks, but I figure I would be able to purchase those separately. My favorite of all is the dark green, but once again, the coaster brakes make me a little bit hesitant. The mint green comes with a "v-type" break whatever that may be, so that is my winner so far. So many options!

Some pictures from the West

Here are some pictures from my trip out West! I had a fabulous time but I got a new camera halfway though the trip. Now I finally have a small point and shoot! I got the same camera that I had before, but the newer version and I am OBSESSED with it!

Lake Tahoe from the drive home over "the hill" (Mount Rose)

Me and Kate in front of the new RENO sign

A view of the bridge from Crissy Field

Tom, Me, and Grant out for Hookah our first night in the city

Stuck in Another airport

So here I am in another airport. I should have been in the air right now on my way from San Francisco to JFK but once again, not my best luck. There was a lot of fog in San Francisco so all the flights were grounded there. Because of that, I would have missed my connection to JFK. SOOO they switched me to fly to Laguardia and connect in Denver. My flight left for Denver 2 hours later than I should have landed in California, so I had to wait in the airport from 8-11. It's 2 Mountain Time now and my flight leaves at 5ish, three more hours of waiting in an airport. Luckily both Reno and Denver have free internet access! Denver is quite possibly the slowest internet I've ever experienced but internet is internet and I can at least stay amused. 

On a lighter note, my trip out west was FABULOUS. Not going to lie, I was a bit put off when I first landed in Reno because of all the brown and the lack of trees, but I fell in love with it while I was there. We drove to San Francisco with Kim and went to In and Out! Our first night in California we went out to dinner with the gang: Roxanne, Elizabeth, Kate, Moony, Grant, and Tom. We went out for hookah after and got Sex on the Beach and Pomegranate. I would never be a smoker but I love hookah so much, probably not a habit I should continue. While we were there we went to Crissy Field (my field!!) and I took a ballet class in the city with Moony. I also went up to Hillsburough with Tom. We went out to lunch in San Mateo and I saw Malia, form camp,  in Palo Alto. I experienced so much of California while we were there, so fabulous. 

Back in Reno Kate and I went tubing down the Truckee River, swimming and kayaking at Tahoe, visited caisnos, and went to an all you can eat buffet! The West is so beautiful, I love the mountains and the views. Lake Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, the water is so clear. I can't wait to go back in the Winter!!

h8 airports

This has been THE worst morning of my life. Not only did I get in a fight with my dad right before I left for vacation, but the airport is out to get me. Apparently my school ID isn’t enough of an ID? I’ve never had a problem with it before but this time they needed “state ID”. Because I don’t drive, I only have my permit, which doesn’t have a photo on it. I had to go wait through ANOTHER security check ine. Once there, I got pulled aside and they went through all my bags. I had to wait in a little glass room while they went through all of my things. They took apart my bags and the guy was asking me all these questions about my ipod and whether it got GPS or not. No offence, but not really the time to make small talk. Once I was getting ready I couldn’t find my computer! Somebody had put ANOTHER security box on top of it (thanks a ton airport security for respecting my belongings) and didn’t even notice! Onec I found my computer I couldn’t find my gate. It wasn’t printed on my ticket because I did the online check out in advance (a ton of good it’s done for me so far). I was looking on one screen that said my flight number was going to Korea? I almost freaked out completely but found my flight AND a Starbucks. Now waiting at the gate, I need to pay for internet. I think $5 and hour is an absolutely ridiculous charge! I’ll have to post this later, hopefully SFO will have free wifi. Time to board!
Here in San Francisco…. The internet is not free. I managed to find a way onto the internet back at JFK but only on my ipod. All I had to do was watch a 15 second ad and it let me use the internet for 15 minutes! My flight was delayed a good 45 minutes though so it’s a good thing I figured it out. My flight itself wasn’t that bad. I sat next to a really nice girl from Shanghai who will be a senior in high school this year and will be applying to Oberlin’s music Conservatory. I can’t imagine going to school in a different country! It must be so scary to be that far from home. I would be scard something would happen and I would have no one to help me out. Well here I am now waiting, with no internet, again, in an airport. It’s 12:39 now and my flight takes off at 1:45. I could read but the book isn’t very exciting in the beginning. I need something to grab my attention. I can’t believe the airports charge for internet these days. What are we supposed to do while waiting! Oh well, I don’t want my battery to run completely out. I watched West Side Story on the plane and almost cried the entire time. It’s so nice to finally have a computer that won’t die if it’s not plugged in after 4 minutes. This is the first time I’ve been able to watch an entire movie on a laptop not plugged in. Love my mac!

Book Review: A Prayer for Owen Meany

I love to read. When I find a good book, all I will do for the next week is sit alone and absorb it. This week I was reading A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. It was one of the best books I have ever read in my life. It takes place in New Hampshire town, supposedly Exeter where Irving grew up. The story is told through the eyes of Johnny Wheelwright about his best friend, Owen Meany. Johnny comes from a very wealthy, old money family and Owen a blue collar granite family. Owen also is very short and has a strange voice. He thinks he is an "instrument of God" and lives his life to fulfill the duty he has been given. It is a truly beautiful book that covers their entire lives. I found parts later in Johnny's life to be a bit dull and over-political, but I laughed and I sobbed. It has one of the most powerful endings I have ever read. 

The movie Simon Birch is loosely based on the novel. I remember liking the movie when I was younger but I haven't seen it in a long time, and the book was far better than any memories I have of the movie. I highly recommend it. 

Also by John Irving: Cider House Rules, New Hampshire Hotel, and The World According to Garp. Next on my reading list is 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I started it in school in my 20th Century Lit class but we never got to finish it thanks to bad timing from Ms. Tooker. It's a hard read in that all the characters have the same name, but it's a very interesting magical realist book so I hope I enjoy it!

Mac Attack

I got a new computer! I am quite possibly the happiest person alive right now. I love love love my new mac! Not only did I get that, but thanks to the "back to college" sale, I also got a free itouch and free printer/scanner/copier. I am so excited to use all of these things!!! 

Daddy and I had fun with the photobooth application as well 

It's quite a hit in the Mueller household. 

This week off from work has been lots of fun and very relaxing. Sunday night I slept over at Trisha's with Molly, Darcy, and Annie. We dressed up in crazy outfits and went to starbucks at 2am. I found a sprinkler and we all danced in it, next to the highway, in a parking lot. A bit of a crazy night. One of the starbucks girls, Maura, got off work when we finished and joined us in the puddles! It was such a blast. 

Yesterday Mum and I went for a nice nature walk in Devil's Den. It's a beautiful nature conservatory with a pond in the middle. We walked around twice and only ran into one other couple. There is nothing I love better than being out in the woods just quiet with nature. Once Dani gets back from Europe we're going camping with Julie at Hammonasset. It is SUCH a beautiful beach and there are nice campgrounds, too. Even though you aren't supposed to bring Dogs, we always take Georgie up when we're free and the weather is nice. It's such a beautiful beach in the winter with the wind. I love love love it!

I have a home!

You're looking at the new owner of 204 Schaeffer Hall, North Ben Franklin.
I have a room! And a room mate! I was actually so excited last night when I found out I jumped up and smashed my toe. It still hurts now, I think it's jammed or sprained. Anyway, her name is Alexa Moser and shes really nice! We met at orientation and talked a lot while waiting for our language tests. I'm so glad I have somebody I've met before - and liked - and not a complete stranger.

She's the one in the middle. I seem to have a thing for blonde room mates with very blue eyes. Nobody can compete with Kate though. I looked up Alexa's town, which is in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania. It seriously has 619 people in it. That's the size of a grade at Ridgefield High School. And I thought I was from a small town! It's all about perspective.

There was a "meet and greet" this afternoon in the city and I got to meet more people! I feel like I'm just going to be meeting people nonstop for the next 3 months. Carolyn was there so we went around together talking up all the boys. I met some REALLY nice people. One guy, I think his name was Timothy, jumps off of things. That's really the only way I know how to describe it. The people in commercials and movies who run through the city, jump over cars, flip over trash bins? That's what he does. he even showed us a video on his ipod. So bizarre and random, but impressive at the same time.

I can't believe I'm going to college!

Done!

Today was the LAST day of work thank goodness! The girl power show went really well. Cecilia was absent unfortunately but the show must go on! I forgot Johanna's tie-dye in the washing machine and felt so bad! Luckily she got to wear Cecilia's shirt and mum dropped hers off during lunch. Those things are huge when you're 9 years old. I remember 9 was the age when I started feeling old. Looking at those kids now they seem so tiny! I can't believe I was so obsessed with boys and clothes at such a young age. I look at some of them wearing halter tops and TINY shorts and wonder what their parents are thinking. And I couldn't help but wonder (SATC reference!!)... are kids growing up too quickly these days?
For example: a little boy named Dylan won the "So you think you can dance" contest yesterday. As a reward his father let him get a new haircut so he can gel it into a Mohawk and highlights. I personally think that's stupid and wouldn't let my kid do that at all. I realize that I'm old fashioned, but I don't think that encouraging my child to be rebellious is anyway to reward them for something good. What happened to simple things? Rod and I of course got into a bit of a debate about it. He was arguing that his parents never let him do anything when he was younger and that's the reason he's so rebellious now. I however disagree. My parents always encouraged me to be who I am while at the same time steering me into the right direction and always providing an example, my moral compass if you wish. I worry every day that my children won't be normal. I wonder if other single 18 year olds do the same?
Speaking of wonderful children however, I babysat for my favorites tonight! Alex and Casey are the sweetest little boys. They were so well behaved and Casey barely cried at all. I love kids who are well behaved and nice to their siblings. I worry sometimes I'm going to be a totally anal mom and really strict, which will probably be the case. It's all for the best though, right?
I also took this really cool test that found my "personal DNA". The description was right on the nail.

Encouraging Architect

All Sales are Final

So I am obsessed with the Favorite Fit V-neck from J. Crew. I found them on sale last week online and ordered two with this adorable papaya simple skirt. Annoyingly, I already have the shirt in one of the colors I ordered! It looked very different online. So now I'm stuck with two green shirts. The second shirt, in the color I don't already have, didn't even come yet! Frustrating. On a lighter note: I bought a skirt last night at Jcrew that was originally $128, I got it for $27!!!!! I am such a fabulous bargain shopper.

Pay Day tomorrow and only three more days of work! I CAN'T WAIT!

The most wonderful place on earth

I found the happiest place on earth: Woodbury Commons. Today was Dani's birthday so Julie and I took her shopping and had a wonderful (and successful!) afternoon. There is every store I could ever imagine, mum is taking me back before school so I can get all the things I need. So fantastic. I didn't end up buying a lot but I got two things that I had been really searching for and two other fun things :c).

I got these jeans at AG, my absolute favorite place to buy pants. These are The Club fit. They have a bit more of a flare than I'm used to but theyre very cute and fit well. They're a size smaller than I usually wear so I feel skinny, too! They have great cords, I love their Angel fit for school.

I got these pants at Vineyard Vines, by far the most FANTASTIC outlet ever. I got the last ones in Nantucket Red, there weren't that many left in my size. I really wanted this green color but they didn't have it. There's nothing better than a great pair of pants. The store didn't have a changing room which was bizzre so Julie and I just changed in the back. Luckily I was wearing a skirt so I could just pull them right up. They're moving to a bigger store in August so I'm hoping they'll at least put in one changing room!

I got my dad this tie for his birthday in a green. His birthday is Thursday, the same day as Harry Potter! How exciting!! I also got this skirt for class from Gap but it's not on the website. It's just a short yellow/gold courdory miniskirt. Its only a few inches above my knee, not too short.

Wonderful weekend all together. Last night we all slept over at Jack's and had a good time. I feel like all my guy friends (Wilson, Max, Jack) have hot tubs! If I had one that's where I would be right now. I love swimming and being in the water, as long as it's not dark or there are sharks!

Does Your Mother Know

Like everyone else, I saw The Dark Knight opening night at midnight. It was fantastic and our theatre was quite into it. Someone brought a beach ball and the entire theatre was playing with it, trying to keep it off the floor. We were very disapointed when an official came in to take it out. Heath was AMAZING. It's so sad he's passed away, although I can't really imagine him in any role after this. His tounge actions reminded me of Barty Crouch, Jr. from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Speaking of which, it's 10 days until Harry Potters birthday and 2 days until Daniel Radcliffs!!

The highlight of my summer movie experience however has got to be Mama Mia! It was so much fun I couldnt help but sing along the whole time. Even the second time around it was fabulous. Poor Pierce Brosnan didn't get the best reviews, but he wasn't that bad! People in my theatre the second time were laughing every time he sang. I feel so bad because he did the best he could. He's not a singer and people seem to forget this. Everyone needs to be so multi-talented these days.

Third and FINAL session have finally begun. I'm off to a good start teaching Girl Power and Girls of Yesteryear, both repeats. I hope they can live up to their original classes! There are some BEAUTIFUL girls in my classes. It's unbelieveable.

18 days until Reno with my lovely room mate!

Reunion

Saturday night we had a small reunion of Wooster middle school friends. Sadly, a bunch of people couldn't show up. John has moved to North Carolina and Sam was out of town. Max, Ian, and Kyle were simply MIA. Nobody has really seen much of Kyle since he returned from Africa but word on the street is he's back in Ridgfield. It was funny because despite not seeing each other for a long time, we got along just like old times. Srong friendships never really go away, they just go on pause for a bit. It reminded me of camp a lot. Camp friends are the BEST friends even though you only see each other for 8/9 weeks a year.

Daddy and I spent a long time at the dog park today. Georgie had a fabulous time because Karma and Duffy were there.

Newcomb the Fourth

Your Preppy Name Is...

Armistead Clairemont Newcomb the Fourth But most people know you as Kiki

What's" Your Preppy Name?

I thought this was hilarious, not because of the name but because of the website I got it from. I found it on another blog and the comments were wonderful. They were all hating on the names, many of which aren't that strange at all. I know people named Missy, Lulu, Kiki. Kate calls me Cricket, which I read was one of the nickname options. Even some of the last names are familiar. Oh what a big world we live in.

Strike a Pose

My class is fabulous. The Girl Power fashion show was a huge success. The girls loved to model and all brought in three or four outfits. Highlights were camp director Janet coming to visit and official photographer Trisha taking pictures.

My three favorites: Rosie, Dani, and Celia. Rosie gets major points for wearing a Legally Blonde shirt.

In honor of Fashion Day we did some designs of our own. I don't usually consider myself much of an artist but I was quite pleased with what I did. The last art class I took was a quarter long middle school art class at a public school. We spent the whole time decorating and redoing the walls of our soon-to-be torn-down art room. We used paint and Christmas lights for ours, hardly a real art class. My design turned out alright though!

As fabulous a place as camp is, I'm glad it's the weekend!

Underwater Explorers!

Brett is the cutest little boy ever! He loves the ocean and knows just about everything having to do with Sharks. At recess he and his twin brother Connor love to play dinosaurs.

Jillian on the other hand loves gymnastics.

Steven is a self appointed "party animal". Here is his ME sheet from I am special day.

If you can't read it, it says I am special because I know how to party! He drew a picture of himself dancing with a friend under a disco ball. And yes, he is six years old.

Second Session

Second session is in full swing and off to a great start so far!
My afternoon class is the cutest bunch of kids! It's called Literacy through Lyrics and is all 1st graders plus Jilly (in the green shirt) who is only going into Kindergarden! We've been singing and reading these part two days and I'm so proud of all of them. The girls are all so beautiful, Gianna and Olivia in particular. Whenever I work with kids I always wonder how they will turn out in 10 years. One of Rod's favorite lunchtime activities is guessing who will "play for his team" in the future. Silly boy!
This morning in Girl Power was spa day! We did face masks in the library bathroom, manicures, makeovers, and hair! The only down part of the day was being responsible for pedicures. I had to give 11 pedicures to gross little feet. They all loved it and were so excited so it was worth it.

God Bless America

Happy birthday America! My 4th was fabulous. I went to party with my dad and brother for the afternoon in upstate NY somewhere. I'm not sure who was hosting it but my dads band plays the opening set every year so we've become quite the regulars.

It was my first time at the party, and home on the 4th of July in years. They had an ice burg and water trampoline in the lake, strawberry rides, gladiator battle stations, and bungee jumping. I spent most of the party goofing around with my new camera, which is the coolest thing I have ever owned. Later that night the three of us went to the Ridgefield fireworks up at the High School. It was my first time EVER seeing them there! When I was little we would go to New Canaan, and after that we would be on the Cape. For the past 5 summers I've been at camp for the 4th so it was quite an experience. It was a great show and I'm sure you could have heard it all the way from my house! We sat on the upper field and had a great view but the lower field must have been unreal.

Yesterday afternoon I drove up to Colleen's house near Great Barrington for her graduation party. Trisha, Molly, Dennis, and I all made the drive up together and had a blast in the car. We stopped on the way home to take some pictures of trees and cows and raced Cindy and Roger the entire way to Connecticut! We all thought they were going to DIE in a head on collision at one point while passing a car. Top Speed obtained: 90 miles per hour.

Summer at Wooster

First session of camp ended today. I feel like it passed by so quickly! My morning class, Tree House Time Travelers, was mostly boys. It was based on the magic tree house series and every day was spent "at the moon", "down under", or somewhere equally exciting. Today we traveled to Greece and participated in the Olympics! We split the kids into two groups, Greece vs. USA, and USA won by a landslide. Here is Luke, champion long jumper, competing for team USA. The best part of this class however was Harrison. Harrison was the youngest boy in the class, only going into 2nd grade, and was the sweetest kid I've ever met! In all of our drawing activities he would pick pink and purple for his colors. On outer space day, while creating our own planets he made Planet Princess. It was basically a floating princess head, tiara and all. He had a bit of trouble with his Rs but it just made him even cuter. Here is Harrison with my sun hat on.
In the afternoon I taught a class called Girls of Yesteryear. It was based on the American Girl Dolls series and every day we learned about a new time period. I loved the dolls when I was little and have Kirsten, Samantha, and Josefina, and I still think they're all fabulous. Not only are they great dolls with BEAUTIFUL clothing and accessories, but they teach girls about American history without them noticing. Girls in class were talking about Victory Gardens and the Depression, and some of them are in 3rd grade! They were spitting out facts thanks to their obsession with all things dolls. Here are Emma. K and Julia with their dolls, Felicity and Kit. I have loved every minute of camp so far and I hope second session will be as exciting. I'm teaching Girl Power in the morning with Mary and Literacy Through Lyrics in the afternoon. The second class is for Kindergardeners so I'm so looking forward to working with little kids! It's going to be strange not to work with Elyse anymore. She was the teacher for both of my classes and absolutely fabulous. She was so creative and fun with both the boys and the girls. Here's to you Elyse! Here she is with Sarah M watching the model car show in this afternoon. I'm off to Anna's Bon Voyage party and then to some early fireworks. Happy 4th!

Day One!

I have a blog! Let's hope I manage to keep current