A master at last

I think it has long been my mother's dream for me that I would get a master's degree. I seem to recall many conversations with her when she told me that while I wasn't married, I should get a master's degree because it would be much harder afterward (and nearly impossible once you have kids).

Well, I managed to do all three. I started my program (an M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction with a concentration in instructional technology/instructional design and development and a graduate certificate in eLearning--how's that for a mouthful?) in the summer of 2007--before I was married. Then I got married, and I just kept on working slowly through (emphasis there on slowly)...and then I had a baby, and managed to take about triple the course load at that point so I could just get it done. And now it's official! Yay for graduating! Yay for having a master's degree! Yay for not having to use it right now! Yay for Justin for dealing with me when I had a paper or project that I didn't want to work on!

If you would like to see some of my handy work, feel free to check out my fancy-shmancy portfolio website that I created (that's right, I know how to build a website!): http://portfolios.gmu.edu/bdurham

Look Alike, Part 2

We were at a wedding recently of one of Justin's close family friends. As I went through the line, someone said to me, "I hate to tell you, Bethany, but that boy is all Scott." Since they only know the Scotts, I didn't say anything, but I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. As it turns out, I think this boy is actually all Durham.

My cute cousin Jessie posted some great pictures on her blog of our parents as babies. I take this as proof that Colton really does look like Grandpa Cole. What do you all think?

Sugar-free Tastalicious

Okay, I'm hardly going to claim to be a healthy eater. I don't necessarily even aspire to be (the chocolate cupcakes with peanut-butter frosting that I have on my kitchen table at the moment should attest to that). Come to think of it, in the last week, Justin and I have made (and eaten) yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting, blueberry muffins with struesel topping, and the afore-mentioned choco-pb cupakes. It's kind of frightening when you actually write that out. Anyway, the other day at the gym, my aerobics instructor was passing out handouts, one of which included a recipe for some healthy lemon-coconut-date bars. Since we've already overloaded our dessert intake, I figured I might as well make these ones as well. It turns out they are very tastey!

If ever you are doing some sort of challenge, or aren't allowed to eat treats or sugar or something like that, this recipe would be a great way to get your dessert fix!

1 cup almonds

1 1/2 -2 cups pitted dates (Medjool or other semi-soft date--I found these in the refrigerated area of the produce section)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp sea salt (I just realized I forgot to add this, but they are still quite delish!)

Zest of 1 lemon

2 tbsp lemon juice (I just put in the juice of one whole, very juicy lemon)

1 cup shredded coconut

Put it all in a food processor (you may want to start with just the nuts and process them down to a chunky powder) and process until everything is evenly mixed. Then just press the paste (I'm not sure if paste is really the right word) into the bottom of a pan and chill. Then cut into squares. Yum.

These aren't exactly fat free, but they've at least got the healthy/trendy kind of fat from almonds. But there's not a lick of sugar! Enjoy!

Spring Fail

Dear Claritin,

For years I have turned to you to help me through the miseries of Spring. It hurts that after all this time you would allow me now to suffer without reprieve. Can you do nothing about the tickle in my lungs? Surely you could have some effect on my red, puffy, weepy eyes. And what about the stuffy nose? Please pick up your game or I'm going to have to replace you. That's all I'm saying.

Love,

Bethany

I think Spring is one of the best things about Virginia. So many trees. So many differnt kinds of blossoms. Finally warm weather. It's really quite perfect, except one thing. I think whoever came up with Spring should have re-thought this whole pollen thing. I mean, I know there has to be opposition in all things--experience the bad so that you can appreciate the good. But in this case, I think experiencing the bad is pretty much ruining all that is good about Spring. It's really hard to appreciate cherry blossoms and daffodils from behind a tissue. The end.

Look Alike

It seems like people always ask you who your child looks like. Is it weird that my answer is my sister? There are so many times throughout the day when Colton makes faces and I swear he looks just like Margaret. And, as it turns out, I also think he looks an awful lot like Joshy. Am I wrong?

I guess I should also mention that Colton also bears a striking resemblance to my dad. How is it that the kid can look so Durham-y but not actually look anything like me?

A new 'do

I really need a haircut. I have lived in Virginia almost five years now, and I still get my hair cut when I'm home in Utah. I guess I really should find someone out here. I think I was a lot more picky about my hair before my mission. And then this hairstyle happened:

I looked like a mushroom for a year straight. When something like that happens, you have to disconnect your happiness from the state of your hair. And ever since then, if I have a bad hair day, I can just say to myself, "Well, at least I'm not a mushroom head," and somehow that makes it okay to let my highlights grow out and to let eight months pass before getting my hair cut. But anyway, my hair traumas are really not the point of this post. The point of this post is is Colton's hair trauma--the trauma caused by us giving him his first haircut. His hair was starting to get very long in front. Case in point:

And after seeing how cute his second cousin Drew's hair looked after it was cut, we decided it was time for his first shearing. Looking back, we probably didn't choose the best day because he had been grumpy all morning. But we are fearless, and decided to go ahead with it anyway. Justin's role was to do the cutting. My role was to try to distract him while it was happening. It all started out great:

And then he got angry. I thought food would probably be the best distraction, so I was feeding him yogurt. Note to self: yogurt = sticky. The poor kid was screaming, and trying to eat yogurt, and getting all sorts of little hairs stuck to his face.

But he survived, and as his reward he got to chew on a hammer...which he appeared to accept as due recompense for the previous hair torture.

iPod Shuffle

Margaret tagged me to do the iPod shuffle (and I am in turn tagging Em, Kristi, Asian Keng, Becca, and ML) so here are the first five songs that came up on my iPod:

1. You Got Growin Up to Do by Joshua Radin (Justin's Music, never heard it)
2. Broken Heart by Motion City Soundtrack (Justin's Music also)
3. Like We Never Loved at All by Faith Hill
4. Fight the Good Fight With All Thy Might by BYU Men's Chorus (Another one of Justin's on the more spiritual side)
5. Short Skirt/Long Jacket by Cake (Justin again, although I really like this one)

I'm sad we didn't get any scripture mastery songs in the mix. That would have made me look very spiritual. Also, in doing this activity it has become abundantly clear that my iPod has been hijacked. I should have known this already since A) I had to ask Justin to please bring my iPod in from his car, and B) When I asked that, he gave me a look that said, what do you need the iPod for? Seriously, that iPod did once belong to me.

In other news, I am feeling MUCH better. I'd say I'm back to 98%. I still feel a little tired, but let's be honest, I've felt a little tired as long as I can remember. Now I just have a really good excuse to do a little extra "resting" during the day.

If you have your iPod handy, leave your iPod shuffle top 5 in the comment section.