mind of a gus: January 2012

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Who am I? - Vintage

This is part of my Vintage Blog Collection.

Who am I?

Stephen Covey has left me contemplating my life a lot lately. One thing that he has helped me to do, is identify my roles.

He wants me to not only answer the question of
who am I but also,who will I be?
So, let's take a look at what roles I will have in my life as Chelsie Akers?

I am a:

Daughter,

Sister,

Friend,

Traveler,

Student,

Employee,

Wife,

and Mother.

These are my roles. I am (or will be) these things. So what do I hope to accomplish with each of these roles?

Daughter- I will make my parents proud of who I have become. I will always have their trust. I will some day some how pay them back for all they have done for me; financially and emotionally.
Sister- Our relationship will strengthen with every passing day. We will learn from each other. We will each have active roles in each others lives throughout adulthood.
Friend- They will always rely on me. I will be a confidant to each of them. We will always have adventures to bring us close when we drift apart.
Traveler- I will see all 50 states in the United States. I will never turn down an opportunity to travel and get to know a new culture. Traveling will never leave my life.
Student- I will get a Masters degree and possibly someday a PhD. I will continue learning throughout my whole life. I will learn from all situations earning an education through life not just a university. Which in turn will make me a teacher in a variety of ways.
Employee- I will only work where I am happy. I will work to grow, gain experiences, and have fun. I will give my all time best at everything possible in order to maintain my dignity.
Wife- Our culture teaches us that one day, we will get married. And my goal, is that if/when the Lord leads me down that path, I will be able to give my whole heart and to be faithful.
Mother- As hard as it is to be typed by my little fingers, if I am a mother some day I want to be the best gosh darn mother ever.

This is who I think I am, but could that really be all I am? And can I really accomplish all of these things? How can a list look so small and inconsequential yet daunting and overwhelming at the same time...?

Thursday, January 26, 2012

LUSH!

My best friend Camille, from Archives of Our Lives, has been ranting and raving about the products from Lush. She gave me a bar of shampoo a few years ago and I liked it but I wasn't sold on it.

The last few months, I have been hating my hair. My bangs have gone through 5 cuts in 6 months because I can't get them to look good. My hair used to be slightly curly and now it won't hold a curl for anything. I decided drastic measures needed to be made.

As I was in Arizona on my last trip, we went to the Scottsdale mall and I walked by the Lush store. I turned right around and knew that this was going to be the answer to my problem.

While in the store I took the advice of the sales lady and bought two pieces of the Trichomania Shampoo, one for me and one for Hannah.

"Creamed Coconut gives texture and substance to solid shampoo and really adds moisture to dry hair. By moisturizing that deeply, you can get better control of curly hair. "

Both Hannah and I love this new shampoo. It lathers great, it has added the curl back into my life (yes, I know that this photo is with straight hair, but it helps both types) and it smells AMAZING!

Monday, January 23, 2012

Dinner Party Please

You have cordially been invited to a

Dinner Party

This event will take place at

My Apartment

And will be held on the

22nd Day of January

The honorary guest of the evening will be

You, the Readers of this Blog

As you walk in, you will notice the array of food set out on the counter

For lack of an amazing table like in Brothers & Sitsters.

Each dish is served in a white dish as to contrast with the black table cloth underneath them.

The menu for this evening will be a honey roasted turkey with roasted vegetables, butternut squash with almonds and vanilla, a green salad topped with strawberries and fresh squoze Arizona lemonade.

You might be asking where are the mashed potatoes/gravy, rolls and jello. Well, I am a selfish host and I decided not to cook things that I couldn't eat, so we have a detox approved meal ahead of us.

As you eat of this succulent meal and participate in small talk, I will fill you in on the steps taken in order to make this dinner.

On a recent sleepless night, I decided that I wanted to make a Turkey. Why, you ask. Well, I have not the slightest idea. I just wanted to. So, I woke up Saturday morning and made my way to the grocery store (even though it was raining cats and dogs, your welcome). Made a few phone calls to my mom for advice, checked out and headed home to dethaw (why do we say de-thaw? Isn't it just thaw?) the thing.

As the turkey thawed that night (yes, it was 2 o'clock in the morning), I got a chopping.

Onions, carrots, celery, butternut squash all chopped and put in the fridge.

I then squoze 4 lemons. I had to do it by hand because I have no juicer. Good thing it was 2 in the morning or I wouldn't have had the patience to squeeze those guys.

I then took a break and got a little sleep. Once I awoke from my nap (you can't call 4 hours a nights rest...)

The turkey got ready for the oven

The vegetables were prepared

The butternut squash was boiled

The salad was made

And the lemonade was mixed up.

I then went to church, came home and took the turkey out. I had never carved a turkey so I followed some online instructions.

Thanks to my mom for taking my bagillion calls and walking me through the turkey process.
Thanks to Giulia for bringing detox approved dessert.
Thanks to Dave, Ryan, Erika and Chandler for eating my food and telling me it was good.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Today, I am introducing a new segment of my blog. I have dubbed it Vintage Blog because I have gone to past blog posts that I loved making and am re-posting them. I do however, go through them and update them, so the few of you that have read them can still get a little treat.

I love to travel.

I love to see things and be places that I have only ever seen on tv, in my imagination, or in a book.

Why else would I have worked in US Airways call center for a year?

Looking back, I know I acquired my love for travel on my first big trip; Alaska. When I was in jr. high, my grandma took me on an Alaskan cruise with her. My grandma had plans to go for months, if not longer, with my grandpa. From the time the tickets were purchased to the week they were supposed to leave, my grandpa had been diagnosed with cancer in his throat and was really sick. He had to have surgeries to open his wind pipe, but other than that, there was nothing that could be done for him. As the time for the cruise approached, he had just gotten a surgery and was breathing, eating and sleeping considerably well. So, he insisted that she go on the trip. Although a hard decision, she went and took me along. (It is widely known in my family, that I am the favorite. haha).

After that, a new Chelsie was born. I then took it upon myself to go everywhere and see everything I had the opportunity to. There are many places that I have yet to visit. However, there is a handful of places I have been.

{this post is juts to tell where I've been, not really why, when, or how...}

26 STATES Down and 24 to Go!