merry christmas from 226!

i just finished a christmas card that some of my roommates are sending out to friends and family. you are lucky enough to see one from me on here! ;) 

only one "final" to go, and that is just a painting critique tomorrow afternoon. i am almost done, and so pumped. 

i'm sorry it's been so long since i've posted...hopefully more soon! 

 

love,

kara

notes of great importance.

1. i'm on thanksgiving break...for the whole week!

2. Derek comes home wednesday!

3. as of today, i'm officially a certified barista!

4. beginnings of boston are finally up!

5. the dark chocolate espresso trail mix from target is amazing, and it's also on sale!

my roomies and i took some pics the other day.... here's one to share :)

hope you had a great weekend!

love,

kara

brilliant grand central.

brilliant grand central.
Originally uploaded by karajo

this is from my visit to new york in september. derek and i were waiting for the train to head back up to west point at night. the lighting there was incredible.

on to new york.

here's another album! :)

some more.

buffalo, ny.

question...

are you able to see the pictures on that link?

check this out.

so here the journey begins... i am putting all my pictures on facebook, so it should work for you to just click the link and check them out. i only have a few so far, so i'll update you guys as i keep adding pictures to the albums. hopefully it won't take too long :)

the pictures...they are coming.

east coast: here i come!!

So... tomorrow the adventure begins. Four girls hoppin' on a Greyhound, headed who-knows-where...[just kidding, mom]. We do have a plan :)

So this is the most spontaneous-semi-planned thing I've ever done: skip a week of school in the middle of the semester to see the East coast. It's going to be alright...I'm turning all my projects in early. We head out tomorrow morning, out of Chicago, and won't be back til Sunday, November 2. It's all by charter bus (yikes!) but it will be a blast :) We have a quick stop in Buffalo, NY, then spend two days each in NYC, Boston, and D.C.  It will be so gorgeous this time of year! I can't wait to post pics when I get back. Thankfully, we have connections in each city providing us a place to stay. The group includes one of my good friends, her sister, my friend's friend, and myself. 

Please pray for our safety and for nice weather this week! I can't wait to tell you all about it when I return!

three-d fundamentals.

this is my first 3D project i recently completed. we had to take a 8' 2"x4" piece of wood, cut it up however we desired, and put every piece back into a sculpture that we designed. this is how mine turned out...i'm fairly pleased with it. :)

praise the Lord!

i got a job!! i start training at starbucks on friday. i am pumped...mostly because i need an income, badly. but it will just be fun to work there! 

after i'm i'll trained-up, you'll have to come visit sometime :)

color-y.

mostly spools out of great grandma's sewing box. which is now mine. 

the wooden spools are my favorite.

the big two-one.

as of wednesday, october 8, i am now twenty-one years old. it has been kind of a week-long celebration, and a fun one :)

i got to head home last weekend to celebrate my birthday early. the weather was gorgeous, it was relaxing, i didn't have to worry about school, and i got to eat probably my favorite meal...steak, potatoes, corn...and all the other good stuff, plus derby(!) pie. it was wonderful, and i loved being home with family and seeing everyone!

then tuesday night my roommates took me out to eat at chili's. delicious! we rented a movie, came back to the apartment, and brought out this fabulous cheesecake for my birthday dessert...with some fancy chocolate and a gift as well. we had a fun time together and they were so sweet. wednesday, my mom, grandma sauder, and grandma cunningham came to bloomington and took me out to lunch. we had a fun time at biaggi's and they also got to see my apartment! that afternoon i took some dessert to my class...they asked what i was going to do for my 21st that night, go out, party or whatever. when i told them i was heading to Bible study i got some pretty surprised looks and responses. i have been enjoying the navigators ministry at ISU and am excited to start a Bible study with some other girls who attend. it has been a blessing.

thursday my package from derek came, although i had to wait til evening [after class] to open it. he picked out a beautiful white down vest to wear for the next several months as it's getting colder. it will be so warm and cozy. then friday, derek's mom, carolyn, grandma billiter, and cousin jenna met up with me for another birthday lunch. we had a nice time together and it was a great wrap-up to my week. 

i interviewed at starbucks that afternoon and am hoping to hear back from them tomorrow :) thanks to everyone [whether mentioned or not] for making my birthday special! i love you all.

flowers from derek.

i love fall and its colors. i also love it when derek makes me feel special. i am blessed!

meet my roommates.

my roommates and i are doing well.  we all see each other every day but have very different schedules.  we had a little photo-shoot last night...it was the first time we'd all taken a picture together! 

heather | jennifer | jessica | kara

getting started.

well....

since i'm now a college student living away from home, i thought it might be a good idea to create something to keep family and friends updated on my life in normal [illinois]. 

i'm a redbird now (!) which is going pretty well, i guess. i'm not even sure what our football record is, though. i pretty much live in the cva (center for the visual arts), and i really like my classes. i would say i'm enjoying my painting class the most, and although i'm a photography major, i don't have any photo classes yet. 

i did have time to take a few pictures today...it was a gorgeous fall day.