tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1945181790808286012024-03-13T02:08:26.916-04:00Megan DennisInspiring others to live a life they a life they never thought possible!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10872029112547099159noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-15781653045491807192021-02-22T10:16:00.003-05:002021-02-22T10:18:55.098-05:00My New Life: living in the city, relationship, new job<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWBB0CtRsmpbcXBnquMb8Gd5No5o4b3c4aWJvEKE0kbmIx7MUy1A3vPE2yMyMpmZLAuWjIM9KlWSAhdwzG5WUTXXveMlIkaDIYv74tW6kiT0OB7NtL8Gx_H8gOmV0FJjm_a7K_Sy7iQP3/s2048/harper%2527s+vlogs%2521.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWBB0CtRsmpbcXBnquMb8Gd5No5o4b3c4aWJvEKE0kbmIx7MUy1A3vPE2yMyMpmZLAuWjIM9KlWSAhdwzG5WUTXXveMlIkaDIYv74tW6kiT0OB7NtL8Gx_H8gOmV0FJjm_a7K_Sy7iQP3/w640-h360/harper%2527s+vlogs%2521.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Sometimes life takes you in directions you never would have imagined.</p><p>One day you're lying on the floor wondering what the point of life is anymore and the next thing you know you're waking up in a different state making pancakes on Sunday mornings with someone you've only known for three weeks.</p><p>That's what happened to me anyway.</p><p>For those who don't know, I've undergone some BIG life changes and if you haven't talked to me in the past few months you're probably wondering if I've just fallen off the face of the earth.</p><p><strike>Or chances are you didn't even notice.</strike></p><p>Either way, I'm here to fill you in on all the details. I feel that I've reached the most exciting time in my life and that the next few years are going to be very, very eventful. </p><p>So I've struggled with mental health for a long time. It's not a secret and I have several blogs, videos, and podcast episodes about it. There are times when I feel really good and I am genuinely content with my life, but other times...not so much.</p><p>The past few years I've battled with depression, anxiety, food problems, and other mental health issues. It was never very serious, but I would experience those feelings off and on. When COVID became a thing last year, all of those issues got worse.</p><p>I don't consider myself an introvert or an extrovert, but I do enjoy the company of people. I enjoyed going to my job, going to class, and my other outings before COVID. When everything shut down, obviously all of that came to an end.</p><p>Classes moved to online. I couldn't go to work. I couldn't see my friends.</p><p>Naturally, that did not help my depression and anxiety. I, like many other people during the pandemic, suffered from depression and anxiety throughout the lockdown.</p><p>I have <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onWWTSyiFpY" target="_blank">a video</a> that goes more in depth about what I went through over the course of 2020, but I won't get into all of that here.</p><p>It's a new year. A new slate.</p><p>And fortunately, I don't suffer from any of the problems I had before.</p><p>I met my boyfriend, Tom, on a dating app called Hinge in September. During the pandemic, I got very lonely so I downloaded almost every single dating app I could find. I wasn't planning on looking for anything serious, more of just someone to talk to.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJnNXfKdR1g7w9Ek3tEpyQVHn5jf1k0k5rRAIEWyvdNtXFgx-u2oghXp_9UD0YefhV13hqvJhPghKXIA0tU202BHcg0pM9cKkPD_8Wefeg_bmMBz6t_ndqoZBxvfEXYwh58iua0U2RZ0pg/s2048/IMG_0365.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJnNXfKdR1g7w9Ek3tEpyQVHn5jf1k0k5rRAIEWyvdNtXFgx-u2oghXp_9UD0YefhV13hqvJhPghKXIA0tU202BHcg0pM9cKkPD_8Wefeg_bmMBz6t_ndqoZBxvfEXYwh58iua0U2RZ0pg/s320/IMG_0365.jpg" /></a></div><p>Tom and I hit it off right away. We had a lot in common and were able to talk so easily without any of that awkward "small talk." After what I believe was two weeks of texting back and forth, we finally decided we wanted to meet in person.</p><p>That's when I discovered that he lived two hours away from me. In Ohio.</p><p>What.</p><p>Now I know what you're thinking, and no, I didn't just blindly drive off two hours away to meet this random guy.</p><p>He drove two hours to meet me.</p><p>We met on a Saturday afternoon in Starbucks. I will never forget the first time I saw him. I was sitting at one of the tables outside (the inside was closed due to COVID) and this man is walking towards me with a bouquet of roses in his hands.</p><p>FLOWERS.</p><p>HE BROUGHT ME FLOWERS.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4QXR0AzjHSG6VKOJ5qkvMPS_-if3TUivGwd_hCUmEJ9J6pL5IT65Guuiqc1kOouw5T4s8NGNcWHRChzkhICl9RAu9Gp6AGsSAPVJf7Dhp4uTCr7q_lbLmFMK0CoxUc7owANNYitkgLwn/s2048/20201009_183611759_iOS.heic" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4QXR0AzjHSG6VKOJ5qkvMPS_-if3TUivGwd_hCUmEJ9J6pL5IT65Guuiqc1kOouw5T4s8NGNcWHRChzkhICl9RAu9Gp6AGsSAPVJf7Dhp4uTCr7q_lbLmFMK0CoxUc7owANNYitkgLwn/s320/20201009_183611759_iOS.heic" /></a></div><p>Please excuse my excitement, but listen. I've been on my fair share of dates, but never once did I get flowers.</p><p>We clicked right from the start. We talked the entire time we were together and at the end of the night, I knew I had found someone special.</p><p>Obviously, we kept talking after that, but it became difficult to see each other between work, school, and the fact that we live two hours apart from each other.</p><p>So naturally the only solution we came up with was for me to move in with him.</p><p>After only three weeks of knowing each other.</p><p>Normally I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, but fortunately, I got lucky and it worked out.</p><p>I've been here for four months now and needless to say, I'm probably one of the happiest people alive.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIQlIkqWtjFwLCceEROly1u0RT4drUqYfIlw0sRMNvyGiRbhYGg6SmK43mZrjtZ_cGk093qdVFdjCxqxR8U5xg6Lka3mpNNUiYlHO0raup-XL2pEscRkZn1bp3ZyENON60mHAMrNvE9U2U/s2048/20201102_165504404_iOS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIQlIkqWtjFwLCceEROly1u0RT4drUqYfIlw0sRMNvyGiRbhYGg6SmK43mZrjtZ_cGk093qdVFdjCxqxR8U5xg6Lka3mpNNUiYlHO0raup-XL2pEscRkZn1bp3ZyENON60mHAMrNvE9U2U/s320/20201102_165504404_iOS.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgATn0s9krlk2tR3niCh3WVQXSSd5eRIOnrLGH7Nz_8-5j0Kx1Ja7SeN0NWDAZu98dqtczaq6E0mm9DNlqbCh-FHmc-5PPeFj0jDVP-Fz6ai05cifYmVz9Pwus98ZHa90bQWme7Pdm3ahPQ/s1472/20201107_171427000_iOS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1472" data-original-width="828" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgATn0s9krlk2tR3niCh3WVQXSSd5eRIOnrLGH7Nz_8-5j0Kx1Ja7SeN0NWDAZu98dqtczaq6E0mm9DNlqbCh-FHmc-5PPeFj0jDVP-Fz6ai05cifYmVz9Pwus98ZHa90bQWme7Pdm3ahPQ/s320/20201107_171427000_iOS.jpg" /></a><br /></div><p>Moving from a small town to a bigger city has been quite the adjustment, but I'm so in love with it.</p><p><b>Get this: </b>I could go to Walmart in my Pajamas but no one knows me here so who cares?</p><p>That's just one of the many things I love about living in a city. Oh and also, everyone here is rich so people are a lot more pleasant.</p><p>Seriously, I am still surprised at how friendly people are like I walk into Target and just start making friends with random people.</p><p>There's also a Chick Fil A right down the street which is a huge plus.</p><p><b>Cons of living here:</b></p><p>1. Ohio drivers</p><p></p><p>But, one of my favorite parts about being here is my job. Tom works at a specialty grocery store and was able to get me a position there as well. Let me tell you, I have never had a job that I looked forward to going to. Never. Now, I wake up every day and I'm excited, yes excited, to go to work.</p><p>That's crazy. I never thought that would happen.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI3l03rZcrnwGLMDFVzwzkxTaFRmvIvg9OP05uyaHioAvu-zFmHz-ieEtnVo1wNNqlmm_gtOLEu47jZZKLOZhXqSnFoUuAxcay3NznXHhO1SqBhrhi-wNoZ-BVvZJq_F3NbcJlxxXHNQhq/s1472/20201130_173512099_iOS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1472" data-original-width="828" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI3l03rZcrnwGLMDFVzwzkxTaFRmvIvg9OP05uyaHioAvu-zFmHz-ieEtnVo1wNNqlmm_gtOLEu47jZZKLOZhXqSnFoUuAxcay3NznXHhO1SqBhrhi-wNoZ-BVvZJq_F3NbcJlxxXHNQhq/s320/20201130_173512099_iOS.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">I love everything about my job. The customers, my co-workers, the atmosphere is incredible. I am so so grateful that I am able to work there and it has truly been one of the best parts of living here.</span></div><p></p><p>Next, you're probably wondering what it was like moving in with someone you barely know. It was definitely weird at first, but we worked so well together that there were never any problems. Living with someone changes your whole relationship, but luckily for us it changed in a good way. Tom and I talk about this all the time and we both agree that we wouldn't have the kind of relationship we do if we didn't live together.</p><p>It's like having a sleepover with your best friend every single day and neither of you ever have to leave and go home. Being in a bigger city means there are more opportunities for things to do and places to see. Basically, that means I'm never bored. There's always something to do.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhviaCSyPi5-jjez-uXYDIyTNtyW_1GEy2MxoIRV90Ynkgcciq1LS_MvWeUNIbMrr5vrNaZMANiB2DxpDAB7OaAChKJNL2xSueLQ0H5z60Ccex3dU4_vCaJ0k-8LEKhLI9M0hTOhDr5UuFp/s1457/File_000+%25281%2529.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1457" data-original-width="828" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhviaCSyPi5-jjez-uXYDIyTNtyW_1GEy2MxoIRV90Ynkgcciq1LS_MvWeUNIbMrr5vrNaZMANiB2DxpDAB7OaAChKJNL2xSueLQ0H5z60Ccex3dU4_vCaJ0k-8LEKhLI9M0hTOhDr5UuFp/s320/File_000+%25281%2529.jpeg" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuAWKG3kbyv4kDXfwfUkF402itBfrW9IR5NaoekpWOaIeCbaFM8ob-crhDzzX462w5fR3WpAwYwasYOK4FqeqWV3mOi51CnYTGbCi_xJXDWRE0GpcqsUqyTXgMcYBqOOYr1mL1fmpKwIdq/s2048/20201126_212105145_iOS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuAWKG3kbyv4kDXfwfUkF402itBfrW9IR5NaoekpWOaIeCbaFM8ob-crhDzzX462w5fR3WpAwYwasYOK4FqeqWV3mOi51CnYTGbCi_xJXDWRE0GpcqsUqyTXgMcYBqOOYr1mL1fmpKwIdq/s320/20201126_212105145_iOS.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>It's crazy because I never thought I would leave my hometown. I thought I had the most hometown pride out of anyone and I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. It turns out though that leaving it was one of the best decisions I've ever made and has been the cure to finding joy in life again. We can't hold onto things forever, eventually, you have to let go and see the rest of the world.</p><p>So that's what I did.</p><p>It's funny because people ask me all the time if I'm homesick, and the answer is....no. I'm not homesick. I know I am where I'm supposed to be right now and there's nothing I would change about that. Now that doesn't mean I don't think about home from time to time, but it's not like I can never go back and visit.</p><p>I feel really good about this year. I'm praying it will be full of health, happiness, and joy. At least I hope so because I think we all deserve a break after last year. I know there will be some big things happening in my life, which I can't wait to share with you all.</p><p>But I think that's all for now. Thank you for taking the time to read this and don't forget to follow me on all my other platforms linked at the top of this page.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNAxK56_jhOCYBeEeAiZqzUGhUa9txjzXVgZ6jW8Rb7snOtf3Vf3nd84Ne4PP7n8Q2vn5T04gcKU2O2JTwCuhQFV_8De95-ldXrCznApZ8OreJZnkahiFQRM116ER7UrxuKFcMsQ29n-ne/s500/Megan.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNAxK56_jhOCYBeEeAiZqzUGhUa9txjzXVgZ6jW8Rb7snOtf3Vf3nd84Ne4PP7n8Q2vn5T04gcKU2O2JTwCuhQFV_8De95-ldXrCznApZ8OreJZnkahiFQRM116ER7UrxuKFcMsQ29n-ne/s320/Megan.png" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><p></p><p><br /></p>Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-49990551809362025192020-09-08T16:28:00.001-04:002020-09-08T16:28:34.996-04:00My Summer Internship Experience<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW0_EzPE0Xh2FahTD1qmuajR4nS5GF5XuXO1rWk7u7HblMt6cfjtLRQ9xtJhvDUMFI0LmYKy4PJSEAayUaRqdfW5QJoKXfM7Ev-rrEYb0X2dURnrlGFIelKD8LAGI6-22dVQHgOcJsOTik/w625-h351/Brown+and+Cream+Motivational+Blog+Banner.png" width="625" /></div><br /><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This year has been very unpredictable.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Full of disappointments.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">And to be honest, I’m beginning to think there will never be
a “normal” again.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Just to recap the last 5 months: I turned 19, I wrapped up my
freshman year of college (online) and started a <a href="https://anchor.fm/unfilteredbymegan">podcast</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also had an internship over the summer,
which is what I want to talk about today.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>This will probably come as a surprise to absolutely no one,
but my internship this summer was through my local Purdue Extension Office (the ones who coordinate
the 4-H program.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you’ve been a
dedicated reader for a while, you’d know I spent many years in 4-H; and this
was my first year of not being in the program.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As you can imagine, I miss it a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So, when the opportunity to be a summer assistant came up, I immediately
put in my application.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>This was probably at the beginning of March, right before
COVID really took off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did not hear
anything from the extension office for a long time, and when April came
around I had started to assume either I didn’t get accepted or it just wasn’t
happening due to the pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>Then finally, I got an email asking when I could
interview.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was so excited, considering
at that point I had basically given up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The interview, which took place on zoom, went very well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few weeks later, I had a start date.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>My job as a summer assistant consisted of many miscellaneous
tasks; including helping prepare newsletters, program planning, making social
media graphics, and working on the virtual fair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our normal fair was cancelled this year and
moving it to a virtual format was a learning experience for us all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>Aside from myself, there were two other interns working at
the office this summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was so lucky
to be able to work with Ashley and Hannah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We got along right from the start, and I honestly think working with
them is what made this experience a million times better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before this job, I was used to working with
people who are at least two or three times my age, so it was quite refreshing
to be around some people closer to my age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh235Qp3DbLC8ewY6pPV3feQOW7jDb0L-EFbEajKh_40ZmNv_htZ5aZlaNQFL5czLXr0F-_wqrYDDOo9Cez0dWDUTaXeig_4lI84ls9P0-bvFiPLjap6LcWSQaHLYEy46yTMUzCuQ1pcQs_/s960/117025750_1509234509280565_5374492460591323368_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="662" data-original-width="960" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh235Qp3DbLC8ewY6pPV3feQOW7jDb0L-EFbEajKh_40ZmNv_htZ5aZlaNQFL5czLXr0F-_wqrYDDOo9Cez0dWDUTaXeig_4lI84ls9P0-bvFiPLjap6LcWSQaHLYEy46yTMUzCuQ1pcQs_/s320/117025750_1509234509280565_5374492460591323368_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>Our first big task was putting together a virtual camp for
the mini 4-Hers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve had so many good
memories of being a counselor at mini camp, so I was looking forward to
planning and putting together this year’s camp- which was obviously very
different than usual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ashley, Hannah,
and I spent a full day looking up crafts, science experience, and other
educational projects for the kids to work on at home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We created a google site and put all our
videos and projects on there for the families to access.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Later in the week, we also did a zoom call
with the campers and counselors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even
though we only had two campers join us (and both were very camera shy), it was
still fun to see their faces and play some games with them over zoom.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>After mini camp, we worked on a few smaller projects over the
next couple of weeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of those tasks
was creating social media graphics for the Facebook page.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every year, photos of the 10-year 4-H
members, along with a short biography about them, are displayed at the
fair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because the fair was cancelled
this year, we created spotlights for each of the members (and this year even
non-10 year members were included) to post on the Facebook page.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had about 22 seniors this year, so this
project took a while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the end, I was very
pleased with how the graphics turned out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Judging by some of the comments we received on Facebook, the parents
were happy to see their kids get recognized for their accomplishments.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>The next big project was creating a few more miscellaneous social
media graphics for the Facebook page.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Because the fair was virtual, we wanted to share some tips for
exhibiting in a virtual format (such as having good lighting and making sure
the subject is centered.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was
probably one of my favorite projects we did because it involved designing and
social media, which I love doing and learning about.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>The virtual fair was another experience on its own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our county had never had a virtual fair
before, so this was new to everyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
way it was organized was through a website called Fair Entry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On that website, members could submit pictures/videos
of their projects and the judges could log in to the website to judge
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The system worked well for the
most part, and we received over 800 entries.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>There was much discussion over how we would display the
projects for the public to see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because
it was all closed judging, we knew that friends and family members would want
to view all the projects.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We finally
decided to create a virtual showcase video that displayed all the entries and
their results.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the beginning, I
honestly didn't think it was going to be too difficult.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, after spending one whole week on
just downloading every picture from the website, I quickly realized we had our
work cut out for us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>Because I was the one with video making experience (this is a
great time for me to tell you to go check out my <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJmCoflOlPt2UH5q2V1PNw">YouTube channel</a>), the others
asked me what the easiest way to go about this project would be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my head, I knew I could easily throw the
content into my Adobe Premiere Pro software (the program I use to edit all my
videos) and make a great quality video, but I also knew it was going to be
difficult for the others to learn everything and to be able to do it
quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus, I proposed the idea that
we create PowerPoint presentations, which we would then convert to videos in
Premiere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I figured this would be the
easiest and quickest way to go about it and would not require everyone else to
learn every in and out of the more advanced program.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>I knew making the PowerPoints and grinding out these videos would
be time-consuming; however, I did not expect it to take over 70 hours (and that
was just me, the others worked equally as hard on it.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The most annoying part of the process was
converting the PowerPoint files to an MP4 format because the Premiere software
would not accept the PowerPoints (very technical but that is what set us
back.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Additionally, some of the members
had submitted private YouTube videos which could only be saved by screen
recording, so that took up a lot of our time as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Finally, we were able to insert the files we
had made in PowerPoint into the editor to put some jazzy music with it and render
out the videos.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUf_jmLC2rWjMU0nHKiM7D27m6WI9vEHdBMiDM06ktRHaRshQqElBx7R1Yk-RT3KI9Nk-en0RO5Abiaj9T4ukenqGs03L4hK5VBFujKns9U-wzlT0sOY9A8fNlx5x6F4JzANpLPF7kd1ws/s2048/20200805_205604920_iOS.heic" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUf_jmLC2rWjMU0nHKiM7D27m6WI9vEHdBMiDM06ktRHaRshQqElBx7R1Yk-RT3KI9Nk-en0RO5Abiaj9T4ukenqGs03L4hK5VBFujKns9U-wzlT0sOY9A8fNlx5x6F4JzANpLPF7kd1ws/s320/20200805_205604920_iOS.heic" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>The whole process took about a week, and let me tell you, I
was finals week type of stressed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
such a big project and there were many times when things did not go to plan, so
we had to go to plan B or even C.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Although I was very happy with the end result (and got great feedback
from the 4-H families), I knew if we had more time I could have made them 10
times better (that’s the perfectionist in me speaking.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All in all, I think it was remarkably
successful but hopefully something that will never have to happen again. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>After the showcase week was over, our final project was
putting together awards packets for the 4-H members to pick up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the members still received their
well-deserved trophies, banners, and plaques as they normally would have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Due to the event restrictions, we decided to
have a drive-by pickup to distribute the awards and other goodies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other interns and I spent time putting
together bags for each member and making sure everyone got the correct ribbons
and awards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was a task in itself and
took several days to finish, but it was well worth it when the day came to hand
them all out.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>One of the worst parts of everything being virtual this year
was not getting to see all the kids with their projects or showing their
animals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, I only got to see their
names on a computer screen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I
did have the small chance to put faces to some of the names at the project
pickup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While we requested that everyone
stay in their vehicles, we still got to see the smiling faces of some of the
4-H members as we handed them their bag full of ribbons and other awards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those moments are what made all the hard work
pay off.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span> </span>While this was certainly a different experience than I had
originally anticipated it to be, I still enjoyed myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was dealing with some hardships in other
areas of my life during the same time as the internship, so going to the office
and getting to work on these projects with such amazing people was a huge distraction
for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With all the disappointments this
summer brought, being to do this was such a blessing and I will forever be
grateful for this amazing experience.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiULcPJIF1TJM0WmlqMH9-8x7ii1VPkNBXsNTrt-Gidgh1mH_bZaX5B2tBaKGV61XBhlKPVHhva5zu_mX4zx1Zu56EfXKp_q6BD_EEVnAmdwVbGAUXFSMKUrzwLANxAxhrnFsdTNEGyRGC/s500/Megan.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiULcPJIF1TJM0WmlqMH9-8x7ii1VPkNBXsNTrt-Gidgh1mH_bZaX5B2tBaKGV61XBhlKPVHhva5zu_mX4zx1Zu56EfXKp_q6BD_EEVnAmdwVbGAUXFSMKUrzwLANxAxhrnFsdTNEGyRGC/s320/Megan.png" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span><p></p>Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-44481373899413948572020-06-04T18:33:00.003-04:002020-06-04T19:46:29.470-04:00we cannot stay silent.<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgon5ZPeUqAt-RGruE2DgEfTPwRuVWSyxUf3LZFam794QoXNp8D9lI7G19scV60xyIrD_CJH2gsYCMqb8MaOtyGKfN3FUowqsPfW8My1GcVE6eIc_EXmEBRNxCVv_aCvzCdA2kaxBnSepi7/s560/we+cannot+stay+silent..png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" id="id_c6b_2bbd_72b4_51fd" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgon5ZPeUqAt-RGruE2DgEfTPwRuVWSyxUf3LZFam794QoXNp8D9lI7G19scV60xyIrD_CJH2gsYCMqb8MaOtyGKfN3FUowqsPfW8My1GcVE6eIc_EXmEBRNxCVv_aCvzCdA2kaxBnSepi7/d/we+cannot+stay+silent..png" style="height: auto; width: 560px;" /></a></div><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I first want to preface what
is going to be a very heavy post with the fact that I don’t have a plan </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">for anything
I’m about to say.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">You guys know I am
probably one of the most organized people on the planet and I usually have a
detailed outline for every blog and video I post.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">However, today is going to be a little different.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Today I want to speak from my heart.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’ve taken the last week to watch what has
been going on in the world and collect my thoughts before posting this.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">In case you didn’t know, I’m not one to
publicly share my opinions on politics and other controversial topics.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">There was a season, many years ago, when I was
more open and routinely joined in on Facebook debates.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">After a while, I decided confrontation was not
really my thing and I fell silent.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Despite the fact that I have multiple blog posts about topics such as
gun control and LGBTQ rights, as well as a 20+ page research paper on abortion,
I haven’t shared any of that.</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Many
people around me have said it is best not to share your thoughts on topics like
those where people might judge you and your reputation might get hurt.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Someone once said, “Nothing
will ever change unless you talk about it.”<span>
</span>And right now, we desperately need change in this country.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I am not here to talk about
George Floyd.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I am not here to talk about the
police officer who killed him.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I am
here to speak for every single black life that has been lost at the hands of
the police.<span> </span>I am here to bring to light the
serious issue we face in America, every. single. day.<span> </span>I have a question.<span> </span>If slavery was abolished in 1865, why is
there still a divide between black people and white people?<span> </span>One-hundred and fifty-five years later, I am
still more privileged than a 19 year old black woman.<span> </span>Why is that?<span>
</span>You know, one of the things I hate the most about filling out any kind
of paperwork or survey is when they ask what your race is.<span> </span>Why does it matter what the color of my skin
is?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">That
was a lot of questions, and I’m sure none of you who are reading this have the
answers.<span> </span>But if you do, please enlighten
me.<span> </span>One of the reasons I chose to
discuss this today is for the black people who have impacted my life and inspired
me.<span> </span>I’m sitting here writing this
thinking about the people I know who have influenced me in the best ways
possible, started and run successful businesses, and who are academically
smarter than I will ever be.<span> </span>They are
some of the most amazing people I have ever met and they are black.<span> </span>They have accomplished so much, and yet they
are still treated differently.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I
think one of the biggest issues in this case is the stereotype of black people
that has changed many people’s perception of them.<span> </span>They are often seen as criminals.<span> </span>Think of a time when you have been in a store
and see a black person nearby and subconsciously squeeze your purse or
belongings a little tighter.<span> </span>Why do we
do this?<span> </span>It may be because the media
publishes so many criminal news stories about black people.<span> </span>The media loves to twist our views and
perceptions.<span> </span>Furthermore, we have seen
many black celebrities at the center of media attention.<span> </span>Chris Brown faced charges of battery as well
as robbery in 2009 and 2012.<span> </span>Rapper Meek
Mill was convicted of drug dealing in 2008.<span>
</span>We know this because those stories are the ones that make the
headlines.<span> </span>For some reason, seeing “black
man” in the title makes it more of a significant story.<span> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">But
let’s talk about the fact that just as many white people have criminal
records.<span> </span>We just don’t hear about it as
often; because again, having “black man” (or woman) in the title is much more
significant for some reason.<span> </span>My point here
is that just as we are equal in our strengths, we are also equal in our
weaknesses.<span> </span>There is no denying that.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">While
doing some research to educate myself more on this topic, I read Martin Luther
King Jr.’s famous “I Have A Dream” speech.<span>
</span>I know, it might seem dumb to reference such a widely known speech, but
I highly encourage you to read or listen to the entire thing.<span> </span>When I was reading it just now, this one part
stuck out:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><i><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">“We can never be satisfied as
long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">We
cannot be satisfied, he said, until police brutality is stopped.<span> </span>That was fifty-seven years ago, and we are
still seeing police brutality just as much, if not more, than back in the 1960s.<span> </span>Walter Scott, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Eric
Garner, the list of victims goes on.<span> </span>The
question is this: how many more lives are we going to have to lose before there
is change?<span> </span>When are we going to be
satisfied, as Martin Luther King Jr. put it?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">We
have to remember the reason the police exist.<span>
</span>They are here to protect Americans against criminals and keep people
safe.<span> </span>And as long as they are murdering
innocent American citizens merely because of the color of their skin, they are
not serving their purpose or their country.<span>
</span>The officers that commit these acts of hate are abusing their power and taking
lives that did not deserve to be taken.<span> </span>I
would also like to add, however, that is definitely not the case with all
police officers.<span> </span>In this case, the
officer who killed George Floyd had a dozen complaints against him, which means
he should have been fired a long time ago.<span>
</span>But we cannot place this stereotype on all police officers, just as we
cannot say that all black people are criminals.<span>
</span>It goes both ways.<span> </span>I feel as
though it is important to mention that, even though we are talking about police
brutality, there are so many officers out there who are serving our country in
the right ways.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I’ve
seen many people on social media claim that the protests taking place are not going
to do anything.<span> </span>I mentioned at the
beginning of this post that nothing is ever going to change unless we talk
about it.<span> </span>And that’s where the protests
come in.<span> </span>We show the government leaders
that this is something American people will not tolerate.<span> </span>We show them that we cannot normalize this
kind of hate in our country.<span> </span>We show them
that we will not tolerate the murder of our brothers and sisters.<span> </span>Many are saying that the protests are not
doing anything, but they are.<span> </span>As of
today, after a week of protests, all four officers who played a part in George
Floyd’s murder have been charged.<span> </span>They
are hearing us.<span> </span>So please, keep speaking
up.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">However,
protesting and rioting are two vastly different things.<span> </span>Protesting is speaking up in a civil way to
get the message across.<span> </span>Rioting is the opposite.<span> </span>It is retaliation and destroying property
that is not yours. <span> </span>I do not in any way
believe rioting is going to spark change, but protests will.<span> </span>I definitely do not think rioting is the
right action to take and do not encourage such acts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">I have
been thinking a lot about all of this and just soaking it in over the past few
days, and one thought I cannot get out of my head is how much I don’t want to
raise my children in a world like this.<span>
</span>I don’t want to have to explain to them that it is not right for the
people to treat others differently because of the color of their skin.<span> </span>I believe my generation is the generation of
change and we have the power to make a difference.<span> </span>I believe we can bring a light to this world that
is full of hate and make it a place where we accept every single person no
matter what their race, religion, or sexual orientation is.<span> </span>Because <b>every life matters.</b><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">But there will only be change
if we keep talking.<span> </span>We cannot stay
silent.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij36mZpuq7DFYbxqiEFFYI8N6pWdp0_at8hmu_GgEm-jfmqa7o49uaRtPg7IEoMZhhG_MZdx3LlpnhPDtjaP4FySkI89JrSjTJcS2bBPYgab4sjE6OHmGIVKRuDa6mWw5swzkPFuREI80N/s320/Megan.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="320" id="id_a9f8_817f_34a9_dd4d" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij36mZpuq7DFYbxqiEFFYI8N6pWdp0_at8hmu_GgEm-jfmqa7o49uaRtPg7IEoMZhhG_MZdx3LlpnhPDtjaP4FySkI89JrSjTJcS2bBPYgab4sjE6OHmGIVKRuDa6mWw5swzkPFuREI80N/" style="height: auto; width: 320px;" /></a></div><o:p><b>Resources:</b></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p><a href="https://blacklivesmatter.com/">https://blacklivesmatter.com/</a></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><a href="https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/i-have-dream-address-delivered-march-washington-jobs-and-freedom">https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/i-have-dream-address-delivered-march-washington-jobs-and-freedom</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><a href="https://jenbokoff.com/2020/05/31/13-lists-of-ways-to-learn-and-show-up-as-antiracist-in-this-world/">https://jenbokoff.com/2020/05/31/13-lists-of-ways-to-learn-and-show-up-as-antiracist-in-this-world/</a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><a href="https://medium.com/@courtwrites/where-do-i-donate-why-is-the-uprising-violent-should-i-go-protest-5cefeac37ef9">https://medium.com/@courtwrites/where-do-i-donate-why-is-the-uprising-violent-should-i-go-protest-5cefeac37ef9</a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/ahmaud-arbery/611539/">https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/ahmaud-arbery/611539/</a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-59552481806419908732020-04-29T13:57:00.001-04:002020-04-30T16:04:02.885-04:0012 Activities to Put On Your Summer Bucket List<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I think it is fair to say that
we all deserve to have a good summer, Corona or no Corona.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been trying to remain optimistic
throughout this whole situation, and I really believe your life is what you
make of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can choose to adapt to
the situation in a positive way, or you can take the other route and only focus
on the negatives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes it is just more
difficult to stay positive, especially when it seems like there is nothing good
happening.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">You probably already know this
about me, but summer is my absolute favorite season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love the sun, the warm weather, the good
times, the vibes……everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I freaking
love summer, okay? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">You’re like, “yeah, we get
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now get on with the show.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">So I’ve been thinking about
what activities I want to do this summer, and I came up with this list.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of these things can be done if you are
still in quarantine (again, we are trying to remain optimistic here but just in
case this is still the scenario).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
things can be done alone, or with your friends and family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So basically, I wanted a wide variety of
activities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">1. Have a picnic<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I think picnics are
aesthetic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now mind you, there is good
picnic weather and bad picnic weather.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Good picnic weather is sunny, about 70 degrees, and not too windy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve only been on a few real picnics in my
life, but I think it is such a cute idea for a nice summer day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus, you can even have one in your own
backyard if things are still looking bad.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">2. Drive-in movie<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I have been wanting to go to a
drive-in for the longest time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have
only been once, but I think it would be so fun to go, bring some snacks, and
watch a movie on a warm summer night.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">3. Pool day<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">This speaks for itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When you think of summer, a lot of people
associate it with swimming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is
something I feel like I don’t do enough of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Even if you don’t have a real pool or can’t go to one, you can get a little
one just to dip your toes in, which I have noticed are super popular on
Instagram right now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">4. Bonfire<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Bonfires.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another staple summer activity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is something you don’t even have to
leave your house for and can be done with however many people you’d like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roast some marshmallows, tell some scary
stories (just not around me please), and break out those campfire songs. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">5. Go to a fair<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">You already know how I feel
about fairs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If it is summer, the fair
is the place to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Assuming they still
happen this year (fingers crossed), they are such a blast and who doesn’t like
some good fair food?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">6. Go to the zoo<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Obviously, the reason I go to
zoos is to see the penguins (I heard they have some other interesting creatures
there too).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, going to the zoo is
such a fun time and I think it is a great activity for a nice summer day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">7. Go to the park<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">This probably sounds like a
very cliché and boring thing to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
just hear me out, going to a park and taking a nice walk or having a photoshoot
is a blast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find one that you haven’t
been to before and do some exploring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Just make sure you stay 6 feet apart from any people you may encounter!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">8. Go for a bike ride<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Biking isn’t for everyone, I
completely understand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I personally have
found it to be a very enjoyable activity during the summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of parks have nice trails for biking,
or you can just go for a quick ride around your neighborhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you don’t have a bike, roller skating or skateboarding
are equally exciting and fun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">9. Ice cream<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I’m sure we can all agree that
going to get ice cream is a must.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
always look forward to spring, when all the ice cream places open for the
season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This also makes for a good treat
after a nice walk or bike ride.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Comment
down below your favorite ice cream flavor (mine is chocolate chip cookie
dough).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">10. Road trip<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Okay but I’ve always wanted to
take a road trip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not like a road trip
where you just go to one destination, but one where you stop at several places
along the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t have to be
super far either; in fact, you could do a one-day trip going somewhere just a
few hours away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get major vibes from
just driving with the windows down and listening to music, so going on some
kind of a road trip is definitely on my bucket list for this summer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">11. Tie-dye<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I don’t know if it’s because of
quarantine and people are getting board, but somehow tie-dying has become super
popular.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many things you
can make with tie-dye- shirts, pants, hats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Literally anything can be tie-dyed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Just make sure you’re careful and let everything dry before
wearing/using it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">12. Mini golf<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">You don’t have to be a
pro-athlete to play mini golf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
such a fun thing to do during the summer, even going to an indoor one is fun
for rainy days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s also a great
activity for multiple people, so grab some buddies and go play mini golf this
summer!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">So those are some things that
are on my bucket list this summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
tried to include a variety of things and a lot of these activities can be done
if we are still in quarantine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope
everyone is staying safe and healthy, and I will talk to you guys again soon!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-12359972069611430572020-03-19T19:36:00.000-04:002020-03-19T19:37:10.602-04:00Experiencing A Global Pandemic: surviving the crisis + the impact on mental health<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 32px;">Experiencing A Global Pandemic: surviving the crisis + the impact on mental health</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 32px;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I never in a million years
thought I would be experiencing something like this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I was younger, my biggest fears were
getting kidnapped, my house catching on fire, and missing my favorite TV show.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, I’m currently living with the biggest
fear I never knew I had: a global pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">My
brain is trying to comprehend everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>How this situation evolved to what it is currently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first time I remember even hearing
someone mention the word “coronavirus” was probably back in January, when the
news first broke about the outbreak in China.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To be honest, I was one who thought maybe it would just stay over there
and be merely some “foreign disease.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
was wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn’t take long for this
thing to find its way into our country’s borders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was when I knew it wouldn’t be long
before it came to my state.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it
did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It continued to spread and become
the crisis it is now.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I have never seen gas prices
so low.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I have never seen so many of
my favorite places close their doors.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I have never seen the shelves at
the grocery store so empty.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I have never seen people fight
over toilet paper.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I have never seen so many
lives turned upside down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">But this is our new reality-
for the next few weeks, months, and possibly years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">As a
side note, being a business student, I am quite intrigued with how this
pandemic will affect the economy in the years to come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I am not here to talk about the economic
impact of this situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe the next
post will be about economics, but right now I want to talk about mental
health.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mine and yours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For some of us, this is going to take a huge
toll on our mental health over the next few weeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I personally am not one who is easy going
when it comes to change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Change is my
worst enemy and I have been fighting it for the last several months as I adjust
to the new lifestyle I have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I must
fight it in the face of a global pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">It
feels as though everything is turned upside down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I cannot go to work, I cannot go to school, I
cannot see my friends and the people I love the most.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s hard to believe this is a new reality
for all of us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What scares me the most
is how long it is going to last.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Already
it’s been months, and the virus does not show signs of slowing down anytime
soon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope and pray that is gone by the
time summer comes around, but everything is so uncertain right now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s another thing that is making me
anxious- the uncertainty of the situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I feel very nervous and worried not knowing what might happen next.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I keep telling myself that it cannot possibly
get any worse, but we have been warned the worst is still yet to come.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">However,
despite these thoughts and fears, I am still holding onto a thread of
hope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is always a light at the end
of the tunnel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the meantime, I want
to share with you guys some of the things I have been doing while being self-quarantined.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">1. <b>Get up at your usual time</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Sleeping in is actually not good
for your body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get enough rest, but try
to get up early and start your day as you normally would<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">2. <b>Get ready for the day</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">This was a big one for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have found that I feel better if I still
get dressed and do my makeup and hair as I would if I was going out for the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">3. <b>Work on projects you didn’t
have time to do before</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Now that you have all the time
in the world, pick up a new hobby or do a house project you’ve been wanting to
do for a while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been using this
time to work on my blog and YouTube channel (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJmCoflOlPt2UH5q2V1PNw">subscribe</a> for quarantine vlogs.)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">4. <b>Get outside</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">As long as you social distance
yourself from anyone you may encounter, getting outdoors will help unleash
those stuffy feelings and allow you some fresh air.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">5. <b>Reflect</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I’ve been taking this time to
look back on the last several months and evaluate some things I need to work on
as well as applaud myself for the good changes I’ve made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Use this time away from other people to work
on and take good care of yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I hope this was helpful to
some of you who may be experiencing the same feelings I am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope that we will all be able to return to normalcy
soon; but in the meantime, wash your hands, stay home, and stay healthy.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-43729526810784009612019-10-28T18:46:00.001-04:002019-10-28T18:46:38.152-04:00A College Life Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBSxxH9NCSpBr5tzwfyu1vrqp87gzo9tS1gapTXNWs9EzTTZQWMoykwGAlJyFNeKZV-wRW1SnofJLpT9fTzTckWui_-SK9hFBeaRsFTegnTCMBTY6qsij9kIjEqWHbDdZb-jfI1lCeqV0/s1600/A+College+Life+Update.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBSxxH9NCSpBr5tzwfyu1vrqp87gzo9tS1gapTXNWs9EzTTZQWMoykwGAlJyFNeKZV-wRW1SnofJLpT9fTzTckWui_-SK9hFBeaRsFTegnTCMBTY6qsij9kIjEqWHbDdZb-jfI1lCeqV0/s1600/A+College+Life+Update.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">I
wish every week was fall break.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Unfortunately, it’s only this week, BUT
I am so excited to sit down and talk to you guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I realized that I’m halfway through my first
semester of college (which is crazy) and I haven’t given you an update of how it’s
going, so I thought I would do that today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Many people have been asking (and by many people I mean like 5) how I’m
adjusting to this new lifestyle, so that’s what I’m going to be talking about in
this post.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I had a rough start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not going to candy coat any part of this
because I want to be real.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I sort of expected
the change wouldn’t be easy, but those first few weeks I felt like I was being
thrown into an unfamiliar ocean and had to figure out how to swim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually I did figure it out, otherwise I wouldn’t
be sitting here telling you this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Needless
to say, I had a very difficult time getting started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t prepared for how much time I would
spend on homework and how hard it would be to just find some sort of a balance
between school, work, and having a social life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This semester I am taking 15 credit
hours, which I feel is about the average course load.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The way my school does classes, there are 8-week
classes and 16-week classes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
honestly all very confusing, but to sum it up, 8-week classes are basically 16-week
classes done in 8 weeks, which also means twice the amount of homework.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would say I spend about 8-10 hours on
homework a week, depending on how much work there is/what the assignments
are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s very difficult to tell exactly
how much time I spend on it because my days are full of other things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On top of sitting in class for 15 hours a
week, I’ve also been working 15 and a half hours each week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">It’s
a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why I’m so happy I can
slow down and breathe this week.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I actually don’t mind staying
busy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve developed a pretty consistent
routine, which is what I lacked in the beginning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m the type of person who must follow their
routines, otherwise I don’t know what to do with myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Routines are a huge part of my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took me about a month and a half to
develop a solid routine to accommodate my new busy schedule.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I made a video on my YouTube channel where I
show you what it’s like to be me for a day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You can check that video out <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfIsCZE8LAc&t=721s">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I think one of the biggest things
that’s kept me on track (besides lots of coffee) is staying healthy, mentally
and physically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I use the tips I talked
about in my <a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/10/7-ways-to-make-most-of-your-day.html">last post</a> almost daily and I’m way less stressed when I have my
life planned and organized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been
doing my best to become a morning person (still working on that part of my new
routine) so I can get up, go to the gym, and then come back and get some tasks
knocked out before I have to go to class or work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve also been trying to stay on a healthy
diet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This isn’t easy because I don’t
have a lot of time to make good healthy meals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I try not to eat out more than necessary, and I try to meal prep on
Sundays so I can just grab and go during the week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think for me, staying healthy is super
important to being successful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>On the upside of things, I am truly
thriving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t mean that I’m happy
all the time every day, but in general I’m at a good place in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In college I feel like I’m actually getting
somewhere; I feel like I’m one step closer to where I want to be and sometimes
that’s the only motivation factor that keeps me going.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When times get rough, I have to stop and
think about how far I’ve come already and stay focused on my goals and what I
have to do to get there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes it’s
difficult to stay focused, sometimes I question what it is that I’m really
working towards, and sometimes I just want to quit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When that happens, I remind myself how far I’ve
come and that I’m on the right path to where I want to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>No one ever said college is
easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because it’s not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s hard, it’s stressful, and it’s honestly.
just. exhausting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I know that I’m
doing the right thing and I’m grateful that I am even able to go get further education.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I value education more than almost anything because
I know it’s what will get me to where I want to be in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Thank you guys so much for following
along with me throughout this journey and I’ll talk to you in my next post!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-19878355180303143732019-10-14T18:20:00.000-04:002019-10-14T18:20:28.870-04:007 Ways to Make The Most of Your Day<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 200%;">7 Ways
to Make the Most of Your Day</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Welcome
back!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Ah
it feels so good to be writing blog posts again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you know, I ended my series
<a href="http://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/search/label/%23HowISurvivedHighSchool">#HowISurvivedHighSchool</a> and took off the rest of the summer to focus on my
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJmCoflOlPt2UH5q2V1PNw">YouTube channel</a> and to take some time off before I started *shudder*
college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>College as been an experience
so far, to say the least, but that’s a post for another time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today I want talk to you about my secrets to
have a good day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Let me just start off with a little
disclaimer: it doesn’t matter if you follow all these steps or not, whether you
have a good day or not depends ultimately on YOU.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You get to dictate your mood and decide how
you’re going to go about your day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
tips that I’m about to share are merely just to help motivate you and push you
along if you get what I mean.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#1: Get up early</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>You’ve probably already clicked off
this post after reading this but just hear me out: waking up early is an
absolute life changer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s up to you to
decide what time is right for you to get up (I’d strongly recommend before
8:00.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever works best for you, and
it may take some time for your body to get used to your new routine so try
setting your alarm 15-20 minutes earlier each day until you can successfully
(and by successfully I mean reluctantly rolling out of bed after you’ve already
thought about going back to sleep at least 3 times.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has seriously changed my life and sets
the tone for the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a bonus, if you
get up early enough you can watch the sunrise which is hands down my favorite
part of my day.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#2: Make a plan</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This step is super important in the
formula to having a good day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plan,
plan, plan. I’ve developed a pretty good system for planning since I’ve started
college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want to do a more in-depth
video on how I stay organized on my YouTube channel sometime, but basically, I
have a daily to-do list and a weekly/monthly planner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I make out a to-do list each day (I like to
do it the night before) of things I want to get done each day and then in my
planner I keep my appointments, class schedule, work schedule, and assignment
deadlines for school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve found this
system works well for me, but it’s all about finding one that works for you and
your lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However you choose do
it, make a plan for each day to keep yourself on track.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having a game plan on how you’re going to
tackle all your projects eliminates stress and you won’t be so overwhelmed.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#3: Make Every Second Count <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">If you didn’t know how to multi-task
before, you’re going to need to learn now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This has been my number one motto ever since I started college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t make the 24 hours in a day any
longer or shorter, but you can learn how to make the most of the time you
have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For an example, I do my reading
assignments while I walk on the treadmill at the gym.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That may seem slightly extreme, but it’s
about maximizing your use of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do
you spend 40 minutes driving to school/work every day?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Record your notes/lecture and listen to them
while you drive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You just freed up the
time it would take you to study separately and that time is now available for
another task.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Make your grocery list
while you wait for your laundry to be done in the washing machine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Study during your lunch break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Time management is the key here.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#4: Take Breaks</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Have you ever spent four hours on
something and then end up too tired to do anything else afterwards?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, me too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is why it’s important to take breaks every once and awhile to relax
and clear your head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For an example, you
might spend 45 minutes working on something and then take a 10-minute
break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do this when I study.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s good for your mind/body to rest for
short periods of time before continuing with the task.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can also be helpful to switch up tasks
that require a long amount of time to complete.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Switch over to something else and pick back up on that project
later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The point is, we get tired very
fast if we do the same thing for too long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>By taking breaks and switching tasks, it helps with focus and gives you
some time to step away from the task and recharge.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#5: Do Not Procrastinate </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I repeat: if you want to make the most
of your day, DO. NOT. PROCRASTINATE.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is the weakness of probably every single human being, including
myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The key to not procrastinating
is to get the task over with as soon as possible, leaving little to no time for
your brain to think about it and try to talk you out of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A big part of avoiding procrastination is to
eliminate distractions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Distractions are
people, objects, and noises that prohibit you from accomplishing your
task.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I’m studying or trying to get
something done, I usually sit in my room alone and with my phone out of
reach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That way I’m not tempted to check
it and get distracted from what I’m working on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Find the right space to work and make sure all distractions are
limited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#6: Find Balance</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I’ve recently discovered this is the
ultimate trick to having a happy, healthy life (well, one of the tricks.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Balance is key.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You will get nowhere if you put all your time
and energy into one aspect of your life (school, work, family, friends.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those may seem like a lot of things to balance
but finding that balance is super important in your everyday life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Devote certain times to the different areas
of your life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is where planning
comes in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plan out the time you can
spend on school or at work and also make sure to block out time to spend with
family and friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know your social
life might seem like the least important part of your life, but trust me, if
you isolate yourself you will not exceed at anything else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I learned that lesson the hard way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find the right balance in your life.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Tip
#7: Have A Daily Cut-off Time</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">What is a cut-off time, you might ask?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A cut-off time is the time when your school,
work, and social part of the day ends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
cut-off time is 10:00.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After that, I
don’t do anything school, work, or socially related.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is “your time.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would recommend setting this time about an
hour before you plan to go to bed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is when you are free to binge any show you want, read your favorite book, and
anything else that YOU want to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Have
you gotten the hint that the keyword here is YOU? You need to devote time that
is only for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s also a time for
your brain to unwind from the day as you prepare to sleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe having this time is an essential
part of having a successful day and sets the mood for having a successful next
day.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Those are my tips for how to make the
most of your day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope this leaves you
feeling motivated and maybe encouraged you to try incorporating some of these
strategies into your daily life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you
have some of your own, drop them in the comments below.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will talk to you guys in my next post!</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike></span></div>
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<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike>Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-22439060887566140682019-09-10T17:30:00.000-04:002019-09-10T17:30:05.441-04:00My 4-H Experience<br />
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 200%;">My
4-H Experience</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">A few
days ago, I drove out of the Purdue Extension office for what was probably the
last time, at least for a while, after an exciting day at Kings Island for my
very last Jr. Leader achievement trip. I had just finished up my last <a href="https://youtu.be/diBeiraeM4I">fair</a> as a
4-Her a few weeks prior, so this was really it. It's over.</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I
didn't join 4-H until I was in 7th grade, believe it or not. Every year I would
go to the fair and look at all the cool projects on display and pass the table
with information and flyers.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">
</span></span><span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">My mom thought it was too much work (she wasn't
wrong exactly) so I never joined. When I was in 7th grade some friends of mine
told me about a club called Jr. Leaders that they thought I would be interested
in. I went to my first meeting and felt so out of place and had no idea what
was going on at all. It also happened to be the night they were electing new
officers, and without the knowledge that I could "respectfully
decline" I got elected as the at large officer (one who fills in for
absent officers.) Luckily, I only had to fulfill this role once when the
secretary was absent. Back then I had no knowledge on parliamentary procedure
or how to take minutes. Somehow, I managed to learn how to properly take
meeting minutes (or rather figure it out on my own) while at the same time
trying to keep up with the meeting itself.</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The
first year or two was a bit of a struggle as I tried to get a grasp on what
exactly was going down at these meetings, trying to meet deadlines, and
following the project guidelines as the project manual told me to.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> </span></span><span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">My
first year I can remember sitting at the table days before judging sticking my
pictures onto the poster board and attempting to fill out the pile of papers
that were due along with my project.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> </span></span><span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I
could only hope I was doing everything right as I showed up at project judging
that first year and stood there while the judge critiqued my project. I ended
up receiving a Grand Champion ribbon my very first year (not trying to brag or
anything.)</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">After
that first year I finally started to understand what was going on and was able
to offer up my opinion at meetings as well as interact more at events.
Throughout my 6 years in Jr. Leaders I held the following offices: at large,
devotions, and treasurer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being a part of
the club and being an officer has given me leadership skills I will take with
me into my future career field.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">
</span></span><span class="s1"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">I learned a lot</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> from being an officer and I’m grateful to
have had the opportunity to fill every role.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The club name “Junior Leaders”
certainly implies what I gained from it- leadership.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the most valuable traits I gained from
my 4-H experience was leadership.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Growing up I was always shy and cautious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rarely would I ever try something new or step
out of my comfort zone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That changed,
however, after my first few years in 4-H.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Being homeschooled I wasn’t used to much social interaction and
certainly not speaking in front of groups of people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4-H has given me the confidence and skill to
speak in front of people as well as share my opinion in meetings.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>During my second year, I was asked
by the 4-H educator to assist her in a 4-H presentation at an elementary school
(ironically the same school I attended before I was homeschooled.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was one of the first times I can
remember speaking in front of a large audience (even if it was mostly kids.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t even remember what exactly I talked
about but all I have to say is that thanks to a few more years in 4-H, my
public speaking skills have improved significantly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Also during my second year, I had the
opportunity to lead a photography club alongside another one of my fellow Jr.
Leaders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was probably one of my
biggest responsibilities in 4-H; since we were in charge of planning all the
meetings ourselves with only the help of a handbook as well as teaching every
meeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the little experience I had
with teaching, I have to say it went over pretty well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That experience taught me the importance of teamwork
and being able to teach in a way the younger kids would understand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The summer of my first year in 4-H and Jr.
Leaders I applied to be a counselor for the mini 4-H two-day day camp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was accepted along with a handful of other
counselors and had such a fun time spending those two days with the minis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few of them I’ve gotten to see go all the
way through mini 4-H to “big 4-H” (definitely makes you feel old.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of my favorite parts of my 4-H experience
was getting to know and work with the minis through camp and other various
programs throughout the year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I ended up
being a mini 4-H all six years I was a member and loved it every time.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">A program that was just recently started a few
years ago is the 4-H ambassador program.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As an ambassador, you assist with various 4-H events, with the biggest
one being the school promotions in the fall (similar to what I did my first
year.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was an ambassador for my last two
years of being a 4-Her and I enjoyed helping promote 4-H in the schools and assisting
with events such as the yearly 4-H open house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Again, I was able to expand my public speaking skills and realized how
much I loved talking about 4-H to potential members.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>While the minis have their daycamp
each summer, older 4-H members (3<sup>rd</sup>-7<sup>th</sup> grade) have the
opportunity to go to an overnight camp and join members from three other
counties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I unfortunately never got to
go as a camper; however, this past summer I was able to go as a first- and
last-time counselor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As embarrassing as
this is to say, this was my first time going to an overnight camp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a homeschooler there weren’t many
opportunities for that; moreover, I frankly didn’t like being away from home as
a kid.</span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I am so, so glad I did go this year
though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was 2 days packed with fun
activities, games, and some not-so-great food from the cafeteria.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I stayed in a cabin with 10 campers and three
other counselors from other counties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Going into it I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect but it certainly exceeded
whatever expectations I had.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The weather
couldn’t have been more perfect (as all the activities were mostly outdoors),
and I only came home slightly burnt; but it was one hundred percent worth
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I highly regret not doing this in
past years; however, I’m extremely thankful I had the opportunity to go this
year.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people I’ve met through 4-H are some of
the most amazing people I’ve met in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When you’re homeschooled there aren’t a lot of opportunities to be
socially active.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Moreover, sometimes
they just don’t work out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was a part
of numerous groups and clubs but I never found the right one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or people would come and go, making it hard
to connect with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 4-H though, I
finally found “my people.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Growing up I
was extremely shy and quiet; not exactly the outgoing type.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which meant I usually got left out of a lot
of things because I wasn’t “the life of the party” or anything like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The group of people I was “friends” with for a
while weren’t my kind of people and I never really felt like I fit in.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>4-H gave me some of the best friends
I’ll probably ever have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all come
from different backgrounds and have different interests; yet we come together
as one big (and probably dysfunctional) family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I think through Jr. Leaders we not only learn how to be leaders on our
own but learn how to work with other to accomplish great things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Either way, I’m very blessed to have met so
many great people through this program and I’m honored to call them not only my
friends, but family.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Out of everything I’ve experienced in my life
thus far, I wouldn’t trade the years spent in 4-H for anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My only regret is not joining sooner so I
would have a few more years to look back on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Unfortunately, though, that it not the case and I still have 6 years of
4-H to look back on and treasure. I’ve learned so much and gained valuable
leadership skills in 4-H that will help me in the future (and already have.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve grown as an individual and would
definitely not be where I am today without 4-H.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As sad as it is for me to say
goodbye to something that was such a huge part of my life, it was time for that
season to come to an end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope to
continue to stay involved in other ways with 4-H; however, I’m excited to see
what comes next.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever that may be,
4-H has left a lasting impact on me that I will never forget, and I will always
treasure my years in 4-H as some of the most valuable years of my life.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-46878035709758202552019-06-19T16:32:00.000-04:002019-06-19T16:32:36.779-04:00#HowISurvivedHighSchool Part 6: A Promising Future<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjF3_ki8REn-I6Jg3w2h_tjGkpeOIPxVvUXoVrKdA1Rr4Ets-EzE_zuHsVwR0JP4zYP8kcRscn_FxGqdYuf5Y66tN98iwCi9sPrv8PCn5xTlkxjfpOIre_EfUbjZBIg_UPuZ1brJbA44Pc/s1600/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25288%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="820" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjF3_ki8REn-I6Jg3w2h_tjGkpeOIPxVvUXoVrKdA1Rr4Ets-EzE_zuHsVwR0JP4zYP8kcRscn_FxGqdYuf5Y66tN98iwCi9sPrv8PCn5xTlkxjfpOIre_EfUbjZBIg_UPuZ1brJbA44Pc/s640/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25288%2529.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Welcome
back!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today I will be wrapping up my story
on my high school experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In case
you’re new, I’ll drop the links for the previous parts here:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-1-7-myths.html">Part 1</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-2-were-not.html">Part 2</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool.html">Part 3</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/06/howisurvivedhighschool-part-4-lesson-on.html">Part 4</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/06/howisurvivedhighschool-part-5-building.html">Part 5</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Out of all the parts I’ve done, I
think I’m most excited for this one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
wanted to spend this last part talking about the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you probably know, I’m a daydreamer and I
love to dream about unrealistic scenarios most of the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I’m going to try to be a little more
down to earth and not get too out of hand here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I think it’s important to separate dreams from goals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe goals are things you set in your
mind to do and you continue to work towards them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the other hand, dreams are merely just
things you wish for but for the most part are unrealistic.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So now that we’ve differentiated the
two, I’m going to start with the realistic stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you don’t know already, I plan to attend
community college for two years and get my associates in business
administration and from there hopefully I will transfer to a state university
to get my master’s degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel that
education is one of the most valuable assets you can have in life; so when I
was thinking about what I wanted my future life after high school to look like
I knew I wanted to put my education before anything else.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Aside from going to college full
time, I plan to keep working throughout the school year as well as continue my
online profiles (blogging, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJmCoflOlPt2UH5q2V1PNw?view_as=subscriber">YouTube</a>.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have no idea what my schedule will be like come the school year, but I plan to
post regularly as much as I can.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve
learned throughout these years that there’s no point in having a set schedule
because I feel like it’s important to only put out work that you’re proud of
and I just can’t be proud of something I was under time pressure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I’ve thrown the idea of schedules out the
window and I’ll post when I make something that I’m proud of; whether that be
once a week or once a month.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Many people have asked me about my
relationship status or when I’ll have a boyfriend, get married, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just tell them all that will happen in God’s
timing, not mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Society has changed
over the years and relationships seem to move so quickly these days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People are getting married and having a
family before 25 (which isn’t a bad thing don’t get me wrong), whereas I want
more time to live and enjoy being young without those commitments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that’s where I’m at right now and I’m also
in the midst of working through a lot of personal issues with myself that I
have to fix before I can even allow myself to think about dating.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’m thankful for all the friendships
I’ve formed throughout high school, with both girls and boys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m fortunate to have girl friends that I
know will always have my back and I theirs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Girls that I’m able to talk about things I would never talk about with
anyone else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m also thankful for the
friendships I’ve formed with males.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have guy friends that are almost like brothers to me, who show me how real men
are supposed to treat girls (my only confidence that the entire male population
is not totally screwed.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s been a
blessing to get to know so many amazing people over the years and I’m excited
to meet many more throughout my college years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>People always laugh when they ask what I want my future life to look
like and I answer with “well honestly I just want to do what I love, have a
healthy God-honoring relationship and raise a family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh and can’t forget the house with a picket
fence.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the classic American dream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not anything fancy; I have no desire to be a millionaire
or have expensive clothes and expensive cars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I really just want a low-key life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dream about it
every single day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For right now, though,
I’m content with the life I have now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
enjoying my time being young for as long as I possibly can before I’m supposed
to grow up and have everything together.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As I wrap up this chapter of my
life, my heart is filled with gratitude.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m thankful for all the memories I’ve made, people I’ve met, and
experiences I’ve been able to have in high school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of them are happy, fond memories; others
not so much, but there’s not much I would change about any of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, I can confidently close this
portion of my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m filled with hope
for my future and all the new experience I’ll be able to share with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve never been more inspired to create and
share the memories of my life and I’m forever thankful for every single person
I’ve been able to reach through my writings and videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you for everything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFE1x8OYlYKk-lbrKXTkWiE2-_7vgyDUDnL4EMrmuzhpg93U1aND9SFD5UxJhU4CazwwPq0y5Hp4M6fp5VGalTiFbcRNGjls-6t5JA4MCsU830x_3zSeWLI86nQRQyW8QvS1qYM3jG6MsC/s1600/Megan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFE1x8OYlYKk-lbrKXTkWiE2-_7vgyDUDnL4EMrmuzhpg93U1aND9SFD5UxJhU4CazwwPq0y5Hp4M6fp5VGalTiFbcRNGjls-6t5JA4MCsU830x_3zSeWLI86nQRQyW8QvS1qYM3jG6MsC/s320/Megan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-73366407657539839942019-06-13T19:53:00.002-04:002019-06-13T19:53:52.781-04:00#HowISurvivedHighSchool Part 5: Building the Foundation of Good Repuation<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWRbHCCkTSgH3eeNoNiqmzksRg1P9IP-hSc1HF3efkWE3fYhyphenhyphen8Rwg_yB-J9yEva6KSxOrKi3p4VlpQdyzMqPkdcJSXfLtIjhL4MVRwnUOZHj0xaEpMF7mfPDOm-JbX2LYurBPixKzp4mhX/s1600/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25287%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="820" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWRbHCCkTSgH3eeNoNiqmzksRg1P9IP-hSc1HF3efkWE3fYhyphenhyphen8Rwg_yB-J9yEva6KSxOrKi3p4VlpQdyzMqPkdcJSXfLtIjhL4MVRwnUOZHj0xaEpMF7mfPDOm-JbX2LYurBPixKzp4mhX/s640/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25287%2529.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Hello
and welcome back!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’m so happy that you’re here to
join me for part 5 of the #HowISurvivedHighSchool series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you missed out on any of the previous
parts, you can catch up here:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-1-7-myths.html">Part1</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-2-were-not.html">Part2</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool.html">Part3</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/06/howisurvivedhighschool-part-4-lesson-on.html">Part4</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>First and foremost, before I get
started with today’s post I want to take a minute to say thank you for all the
support I’ve received on my last post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was not an easy thing for me to put out there, but I really believe
God wanted me to share that message because I think it’s a message that’s
important for the young people to hear in the midst of a world where everything
is sexualized and there’s so much peer pressure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I just wanted to say a huge thank you for
all the support and encouraging messages I received after last week’s post.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today I want to talk about something
that’s not only important in high school; but is something that will follow you
for the rest of your life: your social reputation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I want to stress that this is not about
caring what people think of you- that’s not it at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What I mean is building a good reputation so
you can earn respect from people around you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ve spent the last 4 years working on this particular aspect of life
and let me tell you, having a good reputation will serve you very well in years
to come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basically you’re just doing
yourself a favor now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So what exactly does it mean to have
a good reputation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone has
different definitions for what a good reputation is, but to me someone with a
good reputation exhibits the following characteristics: holds themselves well
in bad situations, has good time management skills, and acts maturely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You want to be known for having good
characteristics, not bad ones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can
think of a few people I know who are just outstanding at what they do and
people know them and love them for the good things they’ve done and their
kindness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is a good
reputation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also know a few people who
fall into the opposite category.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
people do not have the characteristics of a good reputation and are known only
for the bad choices they’ve unfortunately made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That is not a good reputation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Why then is it important to build
your reputation in high school?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I
mentioned before, starting now will benefit you later, especially when it comes
to getting decent jobs, applying for colleges, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People who start to drift off to the wrong
direction in high school are more likely to have difficulty with those things
down the road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I see this all the time
in society and I’m sure you have too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People
who are getting out of jail really struggle with getting back on their feet and
living a decent life because their crimes are now glued to their name.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I did a blog post awhile back on
temptation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let me tell you, temptation
is a devil in high school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, if
you can fight it then, it will be much easier to fight it in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think the reason temptation is so present
in high school in particular is because everyone is so easily influenced and
it’s easy to give into peer pressure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember one time a few years ago I took a character development class and we
had to fill out this paper and on it was a list of questions and we had to
answer how likely we were to give into bad situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember filling out that paper and
checking all the boxes that said “not very likely to” and afterwards thinking
“would I actually be able to say no?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think sometimes we can be so naïve and think “if it’s just this one time it
won’t hurt me.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve learned over and
over that no matter how big or small it may seem there’s always going to be
consequences.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>There will always be consequences to
every action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one likes to hear that
and I’m sorry I had to be the one to tell you, but hear me out because I’m
trying to save you now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The worst part
about being a good kid is watching others make the wrong choices and trying to
be the one to tell them they don’t have to or shouldn’t do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m tired of being the bystander to bad
situations, witnessing things I wish I hadn’t seen, and hearing things I wish I
had never heard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s hard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Especially when people are telling you
“you’re so pure and boring, you don’t know how to have any fun.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But to me, five minutes of “fun” isn’t worth
a lifetime of consequences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just
isn’t. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’ve had people tell me before “it’s
okay, sure I messed up but Jesus forgives me and still loves me.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As true as that statement is, it’s not a free
pass to do stuff you know is wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
are lucky to serve a merciful, forgiving God but that is not an excuse to do
whatever we want.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Forgiveness does not
erase the weight of our sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore,
we must confess and acknowledge our mistakes before we can even be forgiven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Acts 3:19 it says, “Repent, then, and turn
to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come
from the Lord.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>If you gathered anything from this
short message, I hope it will encourage you to stray from the temptations of
high school and to not conform to the ways of this modern world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes it feels like you’re missing out on
the fun you could be having now, but I promise in the long run you will be successful
and the people who made the wrong choices will be the ones missing out on
greater opportunities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s very
rewarding, I promise you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-39168977688689194632019-06-05T19:05:00.001-04:002019-06-05T19:05:22.539-04:00#HowISurvivedHighSchool Part 4: A Lesson on Purity <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzXSQuWbcw4IUtpgstozHoqMSa4qtHKvQgHRDok02RHShonEH_wg5NutRUcf3EVLh996R53QPXLR2HPxTSLqgpZm96sAf0QgIp343TspHtph9ZzavCBK-MqE_DeeCzDtko2l3CA5oZSue7/s1600/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25286%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="820" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzXSQuWbcw4IUtpgstozHoqMSa4qtHKvQgHRDok02RHShonEH_wg5NutRUcf3EVLh996R53QPXLR2HPxTSLqgpZm96sAf0QgIp343TspHtph9ZzavCBK-MqE_DeeCzDtko2l3CA5oZSue7/s640/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25286%2529.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-1-7-myths.html">Part 1</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-2-were-not.html">Part 2</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool.html">Part 3</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Welcome
back to the blog,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I don’t think I’ve ever been this
nervous for a blog post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Part of my
personality is to naturally be outspoken about topics that tend to offend a lot
of people and this is probably one of those topics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Okay so I should probably start from the
beginning and say that I first debated and wrestled with my brain about whether
or not I should post this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This post
has been on my list of topics I wanted to write about for longer than I can
tell you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve just always pushed it to
the bottom because frankly I’m scared of the feedback I’m going to get after
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, when I was planning this
series, it just seemed to fit right in with the theme of high school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So today, folks, we’re going to talk about
sex.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Since this a touchy and sensitive
topic for some people, I’m going to remind you once again of my “rules” and
that this will be a PG-13 rated post so please please please click out now if
you feel like you can’t handle the intensity and sensitivity of this topic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I really would not like to receive phone
calls from angry parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Been there,
done that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might be asking, “What
makes you feel so entitled to speak on this topic?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bad experiences, mistakes, and other things I
will get into later is the answer to that question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m 18 years old and this was a huge part of
my high school experience so I believe I should be able to talk about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As weird and awkward as this is for me, some
15 year old girl (or boy) out there needs to hear this message so I’m going to
suck up the nerves and do this for them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">1. This is a 6 week series and a new part will be posted each Wednesday (so mark your calendars.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">2. I am NOT here to call anyone out or speak poorly of anyone I’ve encountered throughout my High School career.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s not my vibe and my intentions of writing these posts are to encourage; not to bring anyone down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">3. I will be talking about certain people I’ve encountered and things I’ve experienced, but please know that NO NAMES will be mentioned; if a name has to be used it will be changed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">4. All the things I am going to tell you are true and are my stories that I have a right to tell.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">5. Please read/listen with open ears and hearts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">6. Some of the topics I will be discussing are mature and very series at times so if you can’t handle the intensity, please feel free to click out at any time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So, where do I begin?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should probably start when I first hit
puberty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was 12, I believe, at the
time when I first began puberty and around that time is when I got “the talk.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not here to explain the situation with
the birds and the bees; so if you have no clue what I’m talking about then you
should probably leave now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyways,
after that conversation all I can remember is wanting to throw up and wanting
nothing to do with sex for the rest of my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>However, your hormones change quite a bit during puberty so obviously my
opinion about sex itself did change as I got older.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I was brought up in a very
conservative household.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was baptized
when I was 8 years old and have been a firm believer ever since.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was basically raised on the rule of
abstinence until marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that was
always my plan until about 2 years ago, my stance wavered drastically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At that point I had never (and still have
never) done anything physical with a guy more than kissing and holding
hands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The thought of anything further
actually made me uncomfortable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I
started talking to this guy, and you know how you can usually spot red flags
pretty easily in the beginning?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well in
this case there was a whole FIELD of red flags and my blind self still walked
right past them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I shouldn’t say blind,
though, because I could see them I was just very good at ignoring them.<br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So I ignored the signs, the red
flags, even the voices of people telling me to get out as fast of possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The thing about me is I like to see the best
in people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want to believe that
despite what other people may say, everyone deserves a chance to prove the
rumors wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately I gave too
many chances this time and he failed every single one of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted to believe everyone else was wrong
and that they were just saying things to scare me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I just ignored it and continued talking
to this guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m so naive sometimes that
I actually scare myself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>About a month passes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things are still going great and I remember
at the beginning there were a few good moments when things actually seemed
somewhat normal- except they weren’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember one day we were talking (all this is taking place through text by the
way, remember the conservative place I came from) and things started to
progress very very quickly and one thing led to the next and that’s when it
went downhill.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whenever I replay all
this in my head, I evaluate each step carefully to see where I could have not
made the mistakes I did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every time it
still ends the same way it did in real life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So you might be wondering where and
how things ended.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though it was the
worst experience I’ve ever been through to date, I can only thank God for
saving me and taking me out of it when He did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I can’t even imagine how bad things would have gotten if I hadn’t gotten
out of it when I did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might be
thinking this is the end of the story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you did, you thought wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Six months went by.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was finally
starting to recover and I had good friends surrounding me that summer so I kept
busy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the beginning of October, I got
a message from this guy again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an
apology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He apologized for everything
that had happened and said he had gotten better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Looking back now it wasn’t enough of an
apology for everything he had done to shatter every piece of dignity and
confidence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">So once again, being the naive person I am, I ignored the signs and red flags.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Just like the last time, things were good at first, although it was very
difficult to be “just friends” with someone you shared such an intimate
connection with.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">It didn’t last
long.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">We fell into the same patterns and
routines as last time, telling ourselves and each other the whole time that we
were “just friends.”</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Just friends with
benefits.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">A lot of benefits.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">As open as I may seem, there were things
going on then and things that we did that were so wrong that to this day I’m
too ashamed to share with anyone.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">That
says a lot because I don’t keep a lot of secrets.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It was me who finally ended it once
and hopefully forever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was fed up with
feeling guilty every day for what we were doing, mad at him for making ME feel
guilty for saying no to him, not to mention he was starting to develop a
drinking problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s been about 3
months now and I finally feel like I’ve let go for good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still wrestle with the weight of my sin
every single day of my life and there’s rarely a day or night that goes by
where I don’t think about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I know
I’ll have to deal with the consequences one day when I have to explain things
to my future husband.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I may have not
given everything away but I feel like a part of me has already been taken away
from what I could’ve enjoyed in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But there’s nothing I can do about that now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I can do is move forward and try to work
on myself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This story was very difficult to
tell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But my hope is that some young
girl can learn from this and not make the same mistakes as me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We live in a sexual world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I feel like there is so much pressure on
girls (and maybe guys too) to look a certain way and do certain things to be
accepted by society and men specifically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every time I open Instagram and see some model posing half-naked on my
feed I just shake my head because there’s a 12 year old looking up to her and
when she sees that she’s going to think she has to look like that or take
pictures like that to have friends, followers, etc. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It’s hard not to fall into the
trap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Especially as Christian women, we
have to be on our guard and stand firm in our beliefs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost made an exception to my rule of
staying pure until marriage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Without the
wise counsel of some close mentors and friends, this post would probably have a
completely different title.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just as I said
a few posts back, surround yourself with people who will hold you accountable
for your actions and keep you from going too far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I danced on that line but I never crossed it
because the people that care about me held me back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And deep down, I knew myself and I knew I
didn’t want to do it but sometimes that isn’t enough.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So girls, listen closely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is some serious girl talk right
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Never, and I repeat NEVER, give in
to something you don’t want to do just because a guy is guilt tripping
you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t fall into that trap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, something to note about men in
general: they are never satisfied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if
you think, I’ll just do this once and maybe they won’t ask again, you’re
completely mistaken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because they won’t
stop asking and before you know it you’ve dug yourself into a hole that’s VERY
hard to climb out of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You won’t have to
worry about any of this though when you find the right person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Real men don’t guilt trip you or play with
your emotions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Real men respect and
won’t push you past the limits you’ve set.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Know your worth and know that you’re worth a million bucks which I can
pretty much guarantee no sixteen year old boy has in their bank account.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Read the paragraph above and flip it
around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I know some of ya’ll aren’t
even smart enough to do that so I’ll spell it out for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s really simple, girls like
attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At least most of us do
anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it’s not the kind of
attention you like to give us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Actions
mean more than words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you say it,
prove it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And appreciate who your
partner is and what they do for you instead of always wishing for more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because one day, if you don’t appreciate your
girl, she’s going to leave you for someone who will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You do the math.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So it’s really not so much about the big
things but the little things that will make your relationship a success like
compliments, flowers, and food (the way to win my heart just in case you were
wondering.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re welcome- that was
totally free dating advice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I just finished watching a sermon
before I wrote this about sex, and according to resources, married couples who
attend church regularly have the best sex.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And you wonder why I go to church every Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m kidding, but for real though, putting
your relationship with God FIRST will help you in your relationships with other
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is why it’s so important to
be with someone who also has a relationship with God because growing in your
relationship with Christ will make you grow in your relationship with each
other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being on the same page when it
comes to your beliefs will save you a lot of conflict in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The worst part is the waiting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m a daydreamer so I enjoy thinking about
the future and what I want my dream life to look like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes it helps to remind myself that good
things come to those who wait.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each time
another relationship fails, it’s just a sign that God has someone better out
there for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know it’s difficult to
believe, but don’t let go of that hope.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After everything I’ve been through I haven’t because I’m holding on to
believe that God has a better future for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ve come to realize that despite the fact that your past cannot be
changed, your future still can.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Lastly, if you’re a girl and you’re
currently facing a situation similar to mine, please feel free to reach out to
me. Don’t go through it alone. My socials will all be linked below and I’d
be more than happy to talk with you about anything I mentioned in this post.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Email: beautyinthisbrokenness@gmail.con</div>
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Instagram: @beautyinthisbrokenness</div>
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Twitter: megan_dennis_</div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-89721028053577111562019-05-29T21:42:00.000-04:002019-06-02T21:29:18.814-04:00#HowISurvivedHighSchool Part 3: The Truth About Friends and Friendships<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKNOVO8fJzQHa6kkq7hyphenhyphenic1hYO5Wcr0NmfyuB-txc0zaTkfXAuSDoIhI-GE5koop5GQOSWVgweR4-DzolP_Y4F5JGCDSOQ2nVRdgXfdI6FO_kLi7bEX62uelyB1EMjIPtaGz9CSbr4WQVK/s1600/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25285%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="820" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKNOVO8fJzQHa6kkq7hyphenhyphenic1hYO5Wcr0NmfyuB-txc0zaTkfXAuSDoIhI-GE5koop5GQOSWVgweR4-DzolP_Y4F5JGCDSOQ2nVRdgXfdI6FO_kLi7bEX62uelyB1EMjIPtaGz9CSbr4WQVK/s640/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25285%2529.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Hi
there, welcome back to the blog!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today I’m back with another part of
#HowISurvivedHighSchool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d like to
know, are you guys enjoying it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is there
anything specific you’d like me to talk about at some point during the
series?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leave me a comment or connect
with me on social media and let me know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Also, if you aren’t caught up with the first two parts, I’ll link them
here:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">As always, I’m going to copy and paste
the “rules” I posted in the first post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s important for me to mention them every time because I don’t want
anything I say here to be taken out of context.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">1. This
is a 6 week series and a new part will be posted each Wednesday (so mark your
calendars.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">2. I
am NOT here to call anyone out or speak poorly of anyone I’ve encountered
throughout my High School career.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
not my vibe and my intentions of writing these posts are to encourage; not to
bring anyone down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">3. I
will be talking about certain people I’ve encountered and things I’ve
experienced, but please know that NO NAMES will be mentioned; if a name has to
be used it will be changed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">4. All
the things I am going to tell you are true and are my stories that I have a
right to tell.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">5. Please
read/listen with open ears and hearts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">6. Some
of the topics I will be discussing are mature and very series at times so if
you can’t handle the intensity, please feel free to click out at any time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">So today I wanted to talk about a very
important part of high school: friends. Friends
play a very significant role in your life so I think it’s important to build
ones that last. Unfortunately I’ve had
very little luck with that, especially in high school, and I’ve learned that
most people are going to come and go out of your life but there will always be those
few people who come into your life and stay for a long time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">I remember at the end of 8<sup>th</sup>
grade I saw this post online and it said “the people you hang out with in
middle school aren’t going to be around for all of high school” and now at the
end of high school I can fully confirm that saying is 100% true. During high school everyone goes through so many
changes and sometimes people don’t change with you. Furthermore, high school is vastly different
from middle school; it’s almost like a totally different world. Everyone is basically trying to figure out
themselves and who they are as a person.
Sometimes this creates tension in your relationships.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">So in high school there are these
things called “cliques.” What that is
essentially is a group of people that gravitate towards each other in large
groups. In a sociology class I took a
while back, we learned that people with similar personalities tend to form
these cliques. However, from what I’ve
seen, cliques are just another way to stereotype. You’ll see where this information comes into
play when it comes to friendships in a moment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Something I haven’t talked about much
on here is my experience at co-op. Some
of you probably don’t know what it is, so I’ll explain quickly. What it is basically is a group of homeschool
families that meets weekly to have classes like art, science, and drama, in
addition to the work at home. I was
involved in my co-op for 8 years.
Looking back, there were a few pleasant memories made, but for me it was
just not a good environment for me to grow up in. Out of all the people that were there and
friends I made, on this current day I am not in contact with any of them. I’ll get to why in a bit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">In my grade there were 3 cliques. The first one was made up of the “popular”
kids, if you will. The second group was the
kids who were the quiet, more introverted ones and the last group were the kids
with disabilities. It sounds so
stereotypical, but for the purpose of this post you need to know. As the years went on and we got older, it
only became more stereotypical. In the
beginning it was easy to do group activities because everyone talked to
everyone, but the “popular group” only became more distant from everyone else.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">You might be wondering where I fit
into these groups. To be honest, I
really didn’t fit into any of them; I just bounced around between all three because
I really tried to get along with everyone.
My longtime best friend was in the popular group so I spent a lot of
time with them, but I didn’t really fit in with them and was often left out or
in the back of the group. No big deal at
first, I still hung around the other groups.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Then something happened in summer of
2014 that changed the course of my friendships with these people. I’m not going to take the time to explain
what happened, but long story short me and one of the populars had a very
public falling out on social media. It
resulted in most people taking sides, and everyone pretty much took this other
girl’s side. The situation itself is not
significant anymore but the tension never left. Life went on though, this girl
and I never reconciled (even after I made 2 attempts) but everyone else seemed to
get along just fine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">There were some big problems with
these people. The popular ones. There is a reason I eventually chose to
distance myself from them. At co-op they
were constantly having attitudes, making unkind remarks to other students, and
just flat out acting stuck-up. There is
no better word for it. There were major
bullying issues and the adults did next to nothing about it. Some of them even contributed to the
problems. People were skipping out of
gym because the teacher always favorited the populars and the other kids weren’t
treated fairly. Some of the behavior I
witnessed from these kids makes me sick to my stomach to this day whenever I
think about it. One time, one of the
said popular kids said to my friend (and I quote) “I’m better than you.” I’m.better.than.you. No other context, just “I’m better than
you.” I will never be able to erase that
from my mind. And her attitude that came
with it, her parents should be ashamed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">One thing I’ve learned after all these
years is that sometimes you don’t realize how badly you’re being treated until
that person is out of your life. The way
things ended with these people was far from good terms, but I’m so happy they
are out of my life because I have people in my life now that made me realize
how bad these people were for me. I
haven’t spoken to these people in two years.
However, I have ran into them a few times in public since then and I
have to say, for people who proudly call themselves “Christians”, their
behavior towards me was far from Christian like. Little or no eye contact, pretending I’m not
even there at all, not even a wave or smile.
It’s really hard to believe they were what I once called my best
friends.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">After going through a very, very dark
and scary period of my life in 2017, things finally started to look up. I wasn’t feeling depressed anymore, I
actually wanted to leave my house, and I met some new amazing people who have
changed my life. People who genuinely
care about me, make time to spend with me, and aren’t ashamed to be seen with
me. They helped me get to a better place
in my life and allow me to be myself. I
thank God for giving me the strength to let the bad ones go and for bringing
better people into my life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">There’s a quote by Alexander Graham
Bell that I think beautifully illustrate this: </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">“</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so
long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which
has opened for us.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">” I like to remind myself of this whenever a
relationship ends or an opportunity falls through. There is always a reason and most of the time
it’s because God is making room for bigger and better things. So if things aren’t going well right now,
just remember that it could be a sign that there are better things coming.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">I
want to be completely honest with you for a moment. I recently celebrated my graduation (which I’ll
be talking about in an upcoming post) and I had three friends show up. Now I had plenty of other people too, but my
point is, you can have all the friends in the world but out of all those there
will only be a few real ones. I didn’t
even think about the people who didn’t come because I’m thankful I have three
really good friends that took the time to celebrate my graduation with me. I’d take that over having many fake friends
any day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">So
if you take away anything from this post, here’s three main points I want you
to remember. First, don’t hangout where
you know you don’t fit in. Second, let
go of those unhealthy relationships in your life! Remember, when a door closes another one
opens. Third, value your close
friends. They are the ones that are
going to be around for a long time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkMAxMLn9lBXhxchQIhdjX0s3kaXqF74CUya-TzW3J0kGL-BRCgUtRgOvYa7h6k8TV8sSfvQSYJJWjXUJSP5OILp7-RuB3EYGNInpE-jtIdlT3GIOwnuVcxrnlfpZ-Nxiwk6Kj5PeEGYaQ/s1600/Megan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkMAxMLn9lBXhxchQIhdjX0s3kaXqF74CUya-TzW3J0kGL-BRCgUtRgOvYa7h6k8TV8sSfvQSYJJWjXUJSP5OILp7-RuB3EYGNInpE-jtIdlT3GIOwnuVcxrnlfpZ-Nxiwk6Kj5PeEGYaQ/s320/Megan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-39565765101035695832019-05-22T17:28:00.000-04:002019-05-29T21:08:25.409-04:00#HowISurvivedHighSchool Part 2: We're Not All the Same<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-VtuDLbSf9ofKTdm5G2rDK2pkdUJzGD7cjRbjLDMAW8rN-GWWo-RLvyq82ZjpkY7JHya1M9EdKiUfqNtzOOM31N25sVYNT_DomoaZ8zZyCoNrAI9coJqaf4vrDHn6DRMaoJlgB0g0Jgp9/s1600/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25284%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="820" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-VtuDLbSf9ofKTdm5G2rDK2pkdUJzGD7cjRbjLDMAW8rN-GWWo-RLvyq82ZjpkY7JHya1M9EdKiUfqNtzOOM31N25sVYNT_DomoaZ8zZyCoNrAI9coJqaf4vrDHn6DRMaoJlgB0g0Jgp9/s640/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25284%2529.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Hey
there, welcome back to my blog!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In case you haven’t heard, I’m in
the middle of a series called #HowISurvivedHighSchool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you clicked on this post and saw the
title, you should already know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this
is going to be part 2, but if you haven’t read part one, you can read that post
<a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2019/05/howisurvivedhighschool-part-1-7-myths.html">here</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In the last post I made some “rules”
about this series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m going to post
them again in every post just so we’re all in the same understanding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today I’m going to talk about some pretty
heavy stuff so feel free to click out at any point.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">1. This
is a 6 week series and a new part will be posted each Wednesday (so mark your calendars.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">2. I
am NOT here to call anyone out or speak poorly of anyone I’ve encountered
throughout my High School career.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
not my vibe and my intentions of writing these posts are to encourage; not to
bring anyone down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">3. I
will be talking about certain people I’ve encountered and things I’ve
experienced, but please know that NO NAMES will be mentioned; if a name has to
be used it will be changed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">4. All
the things I am going to tell you are true and are my stories that I have a
right to tell.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">5. Please
read/listen with open ears and hearts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">6. Some
of the topics I will be discussing are mature and very series at times so if
you can’t handle the intensity, please feel free to click out at any time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today I want to address something
that is becoming a huge issue in our society: the fact that teenagers are
gaining such a bad reputation in society and how I avoided being “one of those
kids”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want to speak mostly to my
younger audience, but I want the older ones to listen with open ears so that
maybe you’ll understand that we aren’t all the same.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So one time I was at
work and just to give you a little background of this story, it was pretty
early in the morning and I hadn't had enough coffee yet to get me going. It was
also the day after the 4th of July and the night before I was up late working
at the county fair so you can imagine how tired I was. Anyway, this lady
sitting at the counter says to me “you look like you were up late partying.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now keep in mind I did know her and knew she
was only joking, but it got me thinking. I thought, “Well that's probably what
most people my age did last night so no wonder someone would assume something
like that.”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I think the reason my
generation has such a bad reputation these days is due to the small fraction
that do choose to go down the wrong paths. Those are the ones who you see in
the news stories. “Local teens vandalize park equipment”, “a group of teens
were found guilty in a drug case”, and so forth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You rarely ever see people my age make the
news for something good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
depressing, really.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While we’re on the
topic, just a small piece of advice: don’t read the news.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It really puts a damper on your potential to
live care free.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So what causes kids to
go down the wrong path?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are many
answers to this question and it all depends on the case you’re looking at.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some possibilities can be mental health,
physical health, bad influences, and family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now I’m not a psychologist or anything but I can tell you almost every
single person I know personally who has had drug/alcohol problems also has
family issues at home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which actually
makes sense if you think about it; compare the divorce rate (40-50%) to the
percentage of teens who have misused drugs (50%) and alcohol (63%.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is certainly not the case with every
teen, but there is clearly a relationship between the two.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Enough statistics
though, I want to tell you a little bit about how this relates to my life and
how it affected my High School career.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>First and foremost, I want to say that I have never misused any type of
drug or drank any type of alcohol during my High School career.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Period.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The short answer is frankly
because it doesn’t sound appealing to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Now let me make it clear that because we’re talking about High School
there is ALWAYS the pressure to “do what everyone else is doing” and to “fit in
with the crowd.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The devil is very good
at filling our minds and ears with tempting thoughts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I along with probably almost every single
High Schooler in America have struggled with temptation at some point or
another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s difficult when you’re
still growing up and figuring everything out and the people around you are
already dealing with adult issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think one of the hardest parts is being in the middle and watching someone you
love destroy their life and their relationships because they gave into the
temptation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One of the biggest
reasons that keeps me from being one of them is because I’ve seen this happen
over and over again to people I know and love dearly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s heartbreaking because they get so caught
up in being on this high and feeling good that they don’t realize how they’re destroying
their life until it’s too late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And you
can’t even help them because they’re so bound to this new lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had someone one time trying to convince me
that smoking weed is good for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
have to be head deep in lies to believe that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I suppose it makes people feel better about themselves if they try to
twist their addiction into something that “benefits their health.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The best thing you can
do in your High School career to avoid being caught up in the same lies as
everyone else is to surround yourself with the right people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It only takes one unhealthy relationship to
develop the same habits as them and I think that’s what happens to a lot of
people in High School.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find people who
will make sure you’re staying on the right path and will hold you accountable
for your actions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is much easier to
go to someone and say “hey, I’m struggling with temptation again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can you help me?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then to try to fight it yourself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">No one prepared me for
some of the issues that I had to deal with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The thing was, they weren’t my own issues but they still affected me
nonetheless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People always taught me how
to say no to being peer pressured into it myself but no one taught me how to
help others who are struggling with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No one prepared me for the phone call I got one night from a friend
after a bad breakup saying they had one too many beers that night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one prepared me to watch someone get
kicked out of youth group because they were high.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only thing worse than dealing with the
issues yourself is being a bystander and watching it happen to someone
else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That will always be enough reason
for me to say no.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I
have too good of a life to just throw it all away for a high that’s only
temporary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve worked hard to be
respected in society and part of that is not involving myself in things that
could potentially ruin the reputation I’ve worked so hard to gain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I hope and pray that this message opens
the eyes of someone who may be struggling with one of these issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because trust me, once you get to the point
in your life where you’re happier than any drug or drink makes you; you won’t
ever want to change that.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">National drug/alcohol Helpline: 1-888-633-3239</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-37611144537366484072019-05-15T16:36:00.002-04:002019-05-15T16:36:55.460-04:00#HowISurvivedHighSchool Part 1: 7 Myths About Homeschoolers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjniUiReFsbXgS4Ace-kjm5GWF363snu9JR_PUUdhD-sp3EQxC8U6R3CwpaLSBAwpT7WgD5viyCiEDksklpZ0dAEVhHgZ4M0DzXGhZ5R0SegA9PoEtyB3gxaev_fT011vIMgenNJhKYyHTh/s1600/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25283%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="820" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjniUiReFsbXgS4Ace-kjm5GWF363snu9JR_PUUdhD-sp3EQxC8U6R3CwpaLSBAwpT7WgD5viyCiEDksklpZ0dAEVhHgZ4M0DzXGhZ5R0SegA9PoEtyB3gxaev_fT011vIMgenNJhKYyHTh/s640/%2523HowISurvivedHighSchool+%25283%2529.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Hi
there, welcome back to the blog!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today I am coming at you with a very
special post/announcement: there is going to be a new series on this blog and
guess what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It starts TODAY.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My apologies for the short notice but I
wasn’t sure if this was going to be a thing or not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had this idea awhile back when I was
contemplating on what kind of post I wanted to do in spirit of me graduating
this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I came up with a couple ideas
and finally decided that there were too many things I wanted to talk about and
it just wouldn’t all fit in one blog post (or it’d be so long that you all
would be sleeping by halfway through it.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So thus was born the
#HowISurvivedHighSchool series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And yes,
the dramatic title was indeed my own original creation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm super excited and also very nervous to
share these next few posts with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
feel like for the last year or so I’ve been a very private person and just
haven’t shared much with you guys so I’m really going to try to be as much as
an open book as possible which sounds totally scary if I’m being honest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Before I get started with part one,
I want to make a few general points about this particular series:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">1. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This
is a 6 week series and a new part will be posted each Wednesday (so mark your calendars.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">2. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">I am NOT here to call anyone out or
speak poorly of anyone I’ve encountered throughout my High School career. That’s not my vibe and my intentions of
writing these posts are to encourage; not to bring anyone down.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">3. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I
will be talking about certain people I’ve encountered and things I’ve
experienced, but please know that NO NAMES will be mentioned; if a name has to
be used it will be changed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">4. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">All the things I am going to tell you are true and are my stories that I have a right to tell.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">5. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Please
read/listen with open ears and hearts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">6. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Some
of the topics I will be discussing are mature and very series at times so if
you can’t handle the intensity, please feel free to click out at any time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Okay so with all that out of the way,
I want to jump straight in to part one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I want to spend this first part telling you guys exactly what I do all
day: aka “Behind the Scenes of a Homeschooler.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I feel like there are a lot of misconceptions of homeschooling in
general and I want to take some time to tell you guys exactly what is and isn’t
true about us “weird kids.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.25in;">1. Homeschoolers
don’t actually study, we just sit around and watch Netflix in our pjs</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This is definitely not true in my
case. I can only speak for myself, of
course, so there may be kids out there that do this but I try to be as
productive as possible each day. Now
there are definitely some days where I’m just lazy but for the most part I like
to wake up and get things done. As you
know, I do have a part time job along with blogging and doing YouTube as
hobbies so I definitely try to balance all of that throughout my week. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Being homeschooled definitely
teaches you a lot about time management.
There’s no bell to signal the start and end of the school day or the
pressure to complete assignments by a certain time. You have to decide all this for yourself;
which is good and bad for some cases. It
took me almost my whole High School career to finally develop a good routine
that works for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">2. You
don’t have a social life<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This is one of the biggest myths of
homeschooling. People automatically
assume that because we stay at home for school that we never leave the
house. If only. No, for me it’s been quite the opposite: I
have too much of a social life. Okay so
I have to admit, I’m not a very social person to begin with. At events you can usually catch me in the
corner, probably eating. So having a
social life has never been an issue for me but again, it could be different for
others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I’ve had people my age who aren’t
homeschooled tell me “I would love to be homeschooled but I would miss the
social part of school.” People who
attend public school definitely have the advantage when it comes to
extracurricular activities. Most school
districts won’t allow homeschoolers to be on their football team, join Latin
club, etc. I would like to see that
change but that’s a whole other blog post.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I really think there are plenty of
opportunities out there for homeschoolers.
I’ve been an active 4-H member for 6 years; I’ve been a part of several
Youth Groups, as well as activities at my local library. So for me, socializing has never been an
issue. There are many activities to get
involved in; it just may require looking a little harder.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">3. You
don’t have friends<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This goes along with the previous
assumption but I wanted to quickly address this on its own. I’m going to talk about friendship in an
upcoming part to this series, but as far as making friends as a homeschooler I
really don’t think it’s that hard. As
long as you put yourself out there (ex. Youth Groups, 4-H, book clubs), it’s
not much different than how everyone else makes friends. The only difference is you don’t go to school
with them every day and sometimes I think that’s a good thing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">4. There’s
no drama <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">FALSE.
I literally have to restrain myself from laughing whenever people say
they think there’s no drama when you’re homeschooled. We live in a drama-prone world where no
matter where you are there’s going to be some type of drama- unless of course
you live under a rock.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I remember when I was younger and I
had just started middle school. I had
such high hopes and I thought once you got to middle school that life would be
so much fun and it would be like in the movies where I’d hang out with friends
all the time, go on fun trips together, etc.
I really can’t explain what my expectations were but I never thought it
would actually be completely different than my vision.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Looking back, I have a lot of
regrets of things I wish I hadn’t done, people I wish I never would have spoken
to, and all the different ways things could have gone better. Every day I think about how I wish people
from middle school could see me now and see how far I’ve come. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, though,
it’s that the best thing to do is let go and move on. It’s a hard principle to learn but you’ll
gain so much if you apply it to your life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">5. You
never leave the house<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Once there was a week where it felt
like I was only home to sleep. However,
people seem to think that we don’t have any kind of life outside of school
which is not true at all. Honestly your
life is what you make out of it so there’s always the option to never leave the
house but I would probably lose my sanity if I stayed home all the time. I think it’s important to put yourself out
there in the outside world because there will definitely come a day where you
absolutely can’t be in your room all day long.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">6. People
are homeschooled because they got expelled<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This assumption comes straight from
what someone said to me just the other day.
We were talking and they said “I think some people are homeschooled
because they got expelled from school.”
What?!?! I have yet to meet
anyone who is homeschooled due to that reason but I suppose it’s always
possible. I had never even thought of
that before, which is why I wanted to include it. So now I’m going to be insecure when I tell
people I was homeschooled because what if people assume that?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">7. That
homeschoolers don’t get to go to college<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Again this is something someone said
to me awhile back but I’ll never forget it.
If homeschoolers didn’t go to college, how would they get jobs? Our economy would literally be failing if for instance everyone was homeschooled but we couldn't go to college. Surprisingly, homeschoolers are more often
accepted into colleges than schooled applicants. Why?
Because homeschooled students spend more time studying what they are
interested in rather than being forced to study the same things as everyone
else.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.25in;">So
yes, we do get to go to college.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Well that wraps up this post! I hope maybe this provides you with a better
understanding of what being homeschooled is like and that we’re not all the
weirdos some people make us out to be.
Make sure to stay tuned for next Wednesday for part 2 of
#HowISurvivedHighSchool.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-43869955314906071792019-04-22T16:02:00.000-04:002019-04-24T08:51:25.133-04:00Prom 2019: ALL THE DETAILS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjA9bIFmLbZ6owrRsaTOjE2xRyxEAiTEajRgN4t9zfgADmOnqfUJlBjwoNxG-1WwjDZm_jfXX6bc4oKHu3a5Ft9oX-khysst0zMCD02KJ8TSm66s9142XBnSM_jLpSSzp2AJ-pvHyvsdk3/s1600/Jules+and+Sam%2527s+Wedding+Celebration+%25281%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjA9bIFmLbZ6owrRsaTOjE2xRyxEAiTEajRgN4t9zfgADmOnqfUJlBjwoNxG-1WwjDZm_jfXX6bc4oKHu3a5Ft9oX-khysst0zMCD02KJ8TSm66s9142XBnSM_jLpSSzp2AJ-pvHyvsdk3/s1600/Jules+and+Sam%2527s+Wedding+Celebration+%25281%2529.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Hello
my friends and welcome back to the blog!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So I’m going to give you all the
truth and that is that my prom was almost a month ago and I wasn’t going to do
this post, but I decided to after all and I figured since other proms are still
going on that it wasn’t too late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
reason I didn’t post this sooner is because I honestly didn’t have a great prom
experience this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you watched my
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFWVfp_r978">prom vlog</a>, you know I was actually sick on prom day so it really didn’t make
prom as enjoyable as before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I decided that since I did a post
like this for the past two years, it would really hurt me not to keep up with
the tradition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also, being that I’m a
senior, this was my last prom so I wanted to share it with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I covered a lot of the details in my video, but
I wanted to go into a little more depth here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Dress<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>THE most important part of prom (if
you’re a girl) is your dress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I
started looking at dresses in December (prom was in March) and I had no
luck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried on so many dresses but I
couldn’t find “the one.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom actually
found this dress and I was a little hesitant at first because it is quite
different than the typical prom dress; however, I tried it on anyway and ended
up really liking it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won’t say I loved
it though, but I don’t think I could have found anything better.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I got this dress from Macy’s (shout
out to my grandma for buying it for me) and originally it was $129.00; however,
I got it for around $100.00.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want to
put this out there for any girls that have been or will be going to prom:
having the most expensive, luxurious dress is not what prom is about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To me it’s super sad that prom has become
this popularity contest with who has the most expensive dress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not about the price and you can get a
beautiful dress (like mine) without breaking your bank account.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Here is the link to the dress: <a href="https://www.macys.com/shop/product/city-studios-juniors-ruffle-trim-embroidered-gown-created-for-macys?ID=5499370&CategoryID=18109#fn=sp%3D1%26spc%3D161%26ruleId%3D78%26kws%3Dblack%20prom%20dress%26ackws%3Dblack%20prom%26searchType%3Dac%26searchPass%3DexactMultiMatch%26slotId%3D9">https://www.macys.com/shop/product/city-studios-juniors-ruffle-trim-embroidered-gown-created-for-macys?ID=5499370&CategoryID=18109#fn=sp%3D1%26spc%3D161%26ruleId%3D78%26kws%3Dblack%20prom%20dress%26ackws%3Dblack%20prom%26searchType%3Dac%26searchPass%3DexactMultiMatch%26slotId%3D9</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>For my shoes I actually ended up
wearing the same ones as last year!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
didn’t feel like buying a new pair of heels (I despise heels btw) for one
night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone ends up taking their
shoes off during dancing anyway (with the price of blisters for the next 3
days), so to me it wasn’t worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
shoes actually matched my dress very well!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Hair and Makeup<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As I said before, I was sick the day
of prom and I was supposed to go get my hair done but being sick, I wanted to
save my energy for the evening so I actually ended up staying home and having
my mom and sisters do my hair and makeup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I went with very simple makeup this
year and I loved how it turned out!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
also wore my hair up because my hair doesn’t hold up very well when it’s
down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m pretty happy with how
everything turned out and I hope I look better than how I felt that day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Date<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The second most important part
besides the dress is your day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Fortunately I found myself a pretty cool one this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So yes, I did not have a date this year (in case
you haven’t picked up on the trend of the past few years I never have a date)
and I’m more than happy because STRONG INDEPENDENT WOMEN DON’T NEED NO MAN
(maybe that’s something I’ll cover in a future post?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stay tuned.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anyways, I went with my best friend and had the most amazing time and
that’s all that matters. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Dinner<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">You
already know, the food at prom is amazing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ve probably raved about the mashed potatoes before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They did not disappoint this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Besides the mashed potatoes there was also a
salad, buttermilk crusted chicken with Dijon, green beans, and sautéed
peppers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh and chocolate chip brownie
with mousse <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>on top for desert (which we
did NOT miss this year.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>YUM.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Needles to say, it was delicious despite the
fact that I could not hardly taste anything due to my cold.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">In
fact, it was so delicious that I forgot to take a picture of it all but here’s
the salad.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Dancing<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Alright
so I have to say I was slightly disappointed with the music they played this
year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Obviously since it is a Christian
based event we can’t be jamming out to Drake or anything but I feel like they
played a lot of songs that only a few people knew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want the classics like “What Makes You
beautiful” and “Party In The U.S.A.”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Overall, prom was fun but I’m
definitely not sad about it being my last one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In my opinion, it’s fun the first time when you’re first experiencing
it, but it kind of loses it’s magic after that, at least for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you haven’t been yet I would definitely
encourage going at least once.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You don’t
need a date or an expensive dress, just go and have fun because from what I’ve
heard, life gets pretty boring after High School.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-48873010044339678332019-03-09T17:08:00.000-05:002019-03-09T21:05:48.623-05:00seventeen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZf2tFKJtlN3OrKftx_oggIydCuJwkeWEPm0JdqnyJoOmOD5pa5829QT7g-8122nPQTwj55RtLziEZnjP-8Yt_5zuYj2y6yq8rPUNYAvCndb3dqrkym4p9HsRKJotJTlpcSz3cNzIyLh6/s1600/Oakbur+Quill+Co..png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZf2tFKJtlN3OrKftx_oggIydCuJwkeWEPm0JdqnyJoOmOD5pa5829QT7g-8122nPQTwj55RtLziEZnjP-8Yt_5zuYj2y6yq8rPUNYAvCndb3dqrkym4p9HsRKJotJTlpcSz3cNzIyLh6/s1600/Oakbur+Quill+Co..png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">seventeen<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 115%;">Hi guys, welcome back to the blog!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So if you’re new here or didn’t read my birthday post
from last year, I did a post for my 17<sup>th</sup> birthday where I share some
of the things I learned at 17. And I thought I would do the same this year for
my 18<sup>th</sup> birthday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tomorrow, I
enter a new year in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A new age,
and this year is pretty special because it’s my 18<sup>th</sup> birthday which
basically means I can’t get any youth discounts and I have to do this thing
they call “adulting.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Before that happens, I wanted to share a few things I
learned and things that happened to me while I was 17.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I honestly didn’t feel any different than
when I was 16; however, I feel like my brain aged by 50 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel like I did the most growing up this
year than I did the past 16 years before that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Regardless of age, though, I just want to jump right into this and tell
you what all I learned when I was seventeen (and I’ll try not to ramble too
much.)<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Patience<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I feel like the biggest thing I mastered maturity wise
was patience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now please understand that
I am not a very patient person so when I say “mastered” I mean most of the
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My whole life, I’ve never been
able to wait.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the latest and
greatest toy came out, I wanted it that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When there was anything I wanted, I wanted it right then and right
now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could not stand waiting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This goes for other opportunities for life as
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have never been a patient
person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year, however, I feel as
though I handled the impatientness much better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ve learned to trust God’s timing for things and understand that even
though I may want something, now may not be the best time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Furthermore, when I’m patient, I’ve realized
there may be better opportunities and better things to come if I’m patient
enough to wait for them. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Be less bothered by the little things</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>This kind of goes along with the whole patience thing,
but let me tell you about another one of my issues: I let small inconveniences
get to me wayyy to easily.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was almost
ridiculous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would get mad after
getting left on read (but who doesn’t?) or if I had to wait on someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the fact that I would get bothered by
those things REALLY bothered me even more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was so bad that I couldn’t even enjoy being around people or doing
fun things because I was so upset over something so little.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is still an issue that I’m working to
master, but I thought it was worth mentioning because maybe you have the same
problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the things I do when I
start to get stressed or angry over something is to just take a minute and tell
myself “this is only one moment in time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Don’t let something so small ruin your potential to have an amazing day.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And most of the time, the things I get angry
about aren’t even worth the energy to be angry!</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Starting a new and healthy lifestyle</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span>This was big for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Basically I wasn’t happy with my life and where I was before I turned
17.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided to change that, and
started taking steps to move towards a healthier and better life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of these steps included: developing good
sleep habits, changing what I eat, staying productive throughout the day,
exercise, and surrounding myself with positive influences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think I’ve said this before, but if you
want to change your life, you have to change your lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You cannot move towards a better version of
your life if you don’t make any lifestyle changes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe the state of your mental health is
dictated by your lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you have
a healthy lifestyle, you’ll have a healthy mindset.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has been true for me because as soon as
I changed the way I was living before, everything became so much better.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Living day by day<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span>“Do not worry about what tomorrow will bring” is a
principle I have been living by this past year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I like to anticipate, I love dreaming up scenarios that will never come
true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem was that I was
focusing on that too much and not taking the time to live for the day and appreciating
what I have now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every day I wake up and
I formulate a plan for the day: what are my priorities NOW?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is important to me NOW?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How can I make TODAY a good and productive
day?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of each day I write down
one thing I’m grateful for that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sometimes its just small things like getting an A on a math test or
eating a good meal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever it is, it
really helps to keep my attention on the present day and being content with
what I have now.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Surrounding myself with positivity <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span> </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">Ever heard the phrase “you
are what you eat”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When you think about
it, it doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So if I eat lettuce does that mean I turn
into a plant?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah probably not, but you
get the idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe the same
principle applies with what you surround yourself with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For an example, I once knew someone who was
sad and at a low almost every single day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every time I talked to them, their negative energy would drain out all
the positive energy I had stored up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Unfortunately, it took a few of those people to figure out what was
happening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ultimately, though, I think
this is one of the key ingredients to the recipe of a happy life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are what you eat, and you become what you
surround yourself with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>All of these lessons, which have taken me years to learn,
have brought me to the happy place I’m at now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most of these things have taken place over the past year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Without any doubt, I can say I’m living my best
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve said it once and I’ll say it
again:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>if you want to change your life,
you have to change your lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
fact is, no matter how many drugs you take or whatever it is that takes you
away from your real world, those things are only temporary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you really want to change your life
forever, you have to make some huge lifestyle adjustments and that’s never
easy, but I did it and so can you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life
is a rollercoaster sometimes, but you just have to hold on until you reach the
end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">And that’s what I learned
when I was seventeen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-22649389728899772442019-02-12T12:30:00.000-05:002019-03-02T09:11:05.885-05:00Why I started a YouTube channel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpvfpFRbS5txcA_PBfy_ScpTjG85dSx2gXKuMrFZfQ-zHWZUr4VhAGaz4kvV7DexjzKuYZLNTQ6EQL_86-tcq9SGUs_rKaYs7LEQumP6RFlOzXuws29SmrS3Tc_KhxbI3zQ-QyP2TAQFm/s1600/The+Art+Exhibit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpvfpFRbS5txcA_PBfy_ScpTjG85dSx2gXKuMrFZfQ-zHWZUr4VhAGaz4kvV7DexjzKuYZLNTQ6EQL_86-tcq9SGUs_rKaYs7LEQumP6RFlOzXuws29SmrS3Tc_KhxbI3zQ-QyP2TAQFm/s1600/The+Art+Exhibit.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">Hey
guys,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">So
as you may (or may not) know, I recently started <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDJmCoflOlPt2UH5q2V1PNw">my YouTube channel</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is something I said I’d probably never
do, so I’m sure you’re probably very confused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Therefore, I wanted to make this post and kind of explain my thought
process and why I finally decided to start one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">First of all, I know what you’re thinking because I
believe I’ve said several times on here that I’d never do YouTube.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can even go back and probably find where
I said I’d never do it, but guess what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sometimes I change my mind (a lot, actually.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The reason why is because as much as I enjoy writing
and blogging, I felt as if I needed another space to create.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Almost as if I was in a room that was too
small and needed to upgrade to a bigger one to have more room.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>For the past few months I’ve been
going through something really strange.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And the reason I say strange is because my life has been so amazing and
everything has been going really well, but it felt as if something was
missing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt like I needed something
new, something to give me purpose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think one of the reasons I felt this way was because the people around me were
thriving in their hobbies, businesses, or whatever they were doing, which is
great, but I felt like I didn’t have anything like that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I know you’re thinking “but Megan,
you have a blog, you write,” and that is all very true and I LOVE what I do,
but my heart just wasn’t in it for a while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Maybe you’ve noticed my lack of posts recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My views have gone down and I think it was
because I wasn’t putting my full effort into my posts, I would just write
something so I would have something to post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was just hard watching other people becoming so successful and I felt
like I was burning out or going the opposite direction.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Now I’ve always enjoyed watching YouTube
videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whenever I have free time I love
watching vlogs, tutorials, and lifestyle related videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I never thought I would ever do
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t comfortable in front of a
camera and I just didn’t know where to start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One day I was watching Eva Gutowski (one of the first YouYubers I
started watching actually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>LOVE her) and
she was experimenting with a new style of vlogging, one that had more cinematic
shots in it (link to that video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QOPsmyIZso">here</a> to explain what I'm talking about.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was super inspired after
watching it and I thought to myself, well why can’t I do that?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And after that, the rest was
history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now if you have already watched
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtwVmQkqB2s&t=89s">my first video</a> (which if you’re here then why haven’t you?), I’d just like to
say I have a long way to go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I filmed
everything myself which took a long time, along with editing which took at
least 4 hours (learning how to edit took the longest.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So yes, my first few videos will probably be slightly
lower quality until I figure everything out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m looking forward to learning more about filming and editing, as well
as investing in better equipment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’m super excited for what this new
project has in store.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have so many
things planned that I want to film (my graduation, any trips I go on, prom
vlog) and I feel like this will help my blog as well because you guys will know
me on a whole new level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of all, I
want to inspire people with this channel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I want to talk about things, share stories, and anything else you guys
want me to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is for me, but it’s
also for you too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’m not sure how often I’ll post and
what not (of course I decide to start making videos and then it rains for literally
a week straight), but I am so excited to be doing this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things might get a little crazy when I’m in
college, working, blogging, and making videos but I’m going to figure it out
somehow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So far I’m enjoying it far more
than I thought I would and I’m so excited to see where this goes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel like 2019 is going to be one of the
best years ever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I’m so grateful for
everyone who has already watched my video and all the compliments I’ve
received.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope my content on my channel
as well as on my blog will get a lot better and I look forward to sharing more
of my life with you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-91578885651951295122019-01-21T17:36:00.001-05:002019-03-01T15:51:05.356-05:008 Healthy Habits to Master In 2019<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 200%;">8 Healthy Habits to Master In 2019</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfvJy9DMX8ugjURWdFY4BHaqG8xQEzHe4LxY8z5vM2Fnj2MPp5CR3T34hx85zTuKNk7UghRJEeKw2VFWYFdULERRv4BLYs76f55o3ZIK5gy4ZX5eFiBiOOXsPt5q4gbDpPsM8NG436UCCF/s1600/Oakbur+Quill+Co..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfvJy9DMX8ugjURWdFY4BHaqG8xQEzHe4LxY8z5vM2Fnj2MPp5CR3T34hx85zTuKNk7UghRJEeKw2VFWYFdULERRv4BLYs76f55o3ZIK5gy4ZX5eFiBiOOXsPt5q4gbDpPsM8NG436UCCF/s1600/Oakbur+Quill+Co..jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Welcome
back, beautiful people!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Guys.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I haven’t posted since LAST YEAR.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How crazy is that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well as you probably know by now, it’s a new
year and let me tell you, I’m super stoked for 2019.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Exciting things are going to happen and it’s
going to be a fantastic year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In my last post, I talked about my
2018 New Year’s resolutions and if I followed through with them or not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought this would be a good follow up to
that post because I’m going to be talking about some ideas for your 2019 New Year’s
Resolutions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope this inspires you to
make some of these your goals for this year because I know I’m going to try
really hard to master them this year and I hope you’ll consider joining me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">1. Drink more water<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">You’d be surprised at the many things
water can do for you. Not only does it
keep you hydrated, it helps regulate blood pressure, improves skin quality,
relieves stress, and boosts energy. I
used to be terrible about drinking water (I’d drink maybe 2 glasses a day), but
I’ve noticed a huge change to my overall health since I started drinking more
water last year. The average person
should drink about 8 (8 oz) cups (about 2 liters.) I recommend investing in a large water bottle
because it helps you stay on track when you don’t have to keep refilling your
cup throughout the day. So this year,
give up the sugary drinks and sodas and stick to water.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">2. MOVE!<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> You guys are probably tired of
hearing me talk about how important exercise is but I cannot stress it
enough. It’s so important to not only
your physical health, but your mental health as well. I like to workout especially when I’m having
a bad day or feeling down. Getting out
the energy helps release all the bad feelings and gives your brain something
else to focus on. Exercising doesn’t
have to be about losing or gaining weight, it’s about staying healthy and
promoting a healthy lifestyle. Even if
it’s just an hour a week, get out and move!
You don’t have to go to a gym to do that either. A home workout is just as effective and so is
going for a walk/run, biking, and swimming.
Whatever it is, find a way to keep your body moving this year.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">3. Cut out negativity <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> This is harder than it sounds
because it took me years to actually do it.
By cutting out negativity I mean any negative people, places, or
influences in your life. These are the
things/people that are preventing you from being your best self and living your
life to the fullest. Only keep the
people/things that are encouraging you and helping you become the best version
of yourself. It shouldn’t be hard to
determine who/what needs to go because subconsciously you probably already know. It’s the people/things you get that “gut
feeling” about. The hardest part will be
cutting them out, but it will ultimately make you so much happier- even if it
takes you awhile to realize it. I can
promise you that this is one of the best decisions you will ever make.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">4. Get a planner and use It<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> This doesn’t even have to be anything
fancy; it can just be a notebook or pad of paper. Whatever it is, find something to write down
all of your appointments, tests, meetings, etc.
Having a place to write down all your events will prevent you from
feeling overwhelmed and stressed. Having
a planner will make it easy to organize your life as well as prevent bad
scheduling. Take time at the end of the
week to go over your plans for the upcoming week and make a schedule for your
appointments and tasks. This will help
you manage your time wisely and if you follow your schedule, you will go to bed
each night feeling satisfied with your days.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">5. Make a sleeping schedule and stick to it<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> I think one of the most important
factors in having good, productive days is the amount of sleep you get each
night. I used to be one of those people
who would completely waste their day by sleeping/being lazy and waiting until
nighttime to start any projects I had to do.
Let me tell you, you will be 100 times happier AND productive if you
have a good sleep routine. Go to bed and
wake up at the same time every day (yes, even on weekends.) It may be a little hard to adjust to at
first, but eventually your body will get into the habit of falling asleep and
waking up at the same time every day on its own. Also, try to avoid taking naps throughout the
day and eating within an hour of going to bed.
These things will interfere with your sleeping routine and make it
harder to go to sleep at night. So, make
it a habit to get into a good sleep routine and I guarantee you will be feel
rested and energized each day which will allow you to be more productive.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">6. Practice self-care<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> Do you ever feel like you’re so
overwhelmed with school or work or things going on in your life? Do you work extra hard to please someone and
make them happy? I think we’ve all been
there and maybe you feel like that all the time, so that’s why I’m challenging
you to make it a goal in 2019 to take better care of yourself. You’re probably wondering “well how do I do
that?” The answer is that it’s different for everyone. Moreover, it doesn’t have to be anything big
or expensive. Maybe it’s just taking ten
minutes out of your day to journal or draw, or taking time to do your
makeup. Treat yourself every once in a
while. For me, I spend the last few
minutes of my day meditating, letting go of stress and forgetting my worries of
the day. I also attend a weekly yoga
class. I understand that maybe the
things I mentioned aren’t for you, but this year I encourage you to take some
time each day or each week and practice some form of self-care.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">7. Build your relationships <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> This is one of my biggest goals for
this year and I hope it will be one of yours too. Instead of giving up and ignoring the
problems in your relationships, learn to work through them. The best way to build strong, healthy
relationships with people in your life is to communicate. By communication I don’t mean texting them
once in a while or sending them memes on social media. Make it a point to set aside time in your
schedule to spend time with the people in your life. Communication is one of the most important elements
in your relationship with your family, friends, boyfriend/girlfriend, etc. So this year try to focus on taking time out
of your week and work on building those relationships with the most important
people in your life.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 200%;">8. Be positive <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> Again, another thing that is easier
said than done. But I think what you’ll
realize is that if you are already doing the other things I mentioned above,
this one will become much easier. It
makes me so sad and unhappy when there are people who always choose to see the
worst in every situation or let small irrelevant things get the better of
them. So this year, really try to focus
on seeing the good in even the worst situations. You’ve probably heard this before, but you
attract what you are. If you’re down all
the time, let’s be real, no one wants to be around that. However, if you make it an effort to stay
positive and uplifting, you’ll be the type of person others desire to be
around. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> I think we all know at least one
person that’s happy all the time. How do
they do it? Well I can assure you almost
100% that there is no one who is happy ALL THE TIME. However, if you do all of the things I listed
above, you will be a changed person. It
all comes down to how you’re choosing to live your life. If you fill it with negative influences and
toxic relationships, you’re bound to have trouble. On the other hand, if you fill your life with
positivity, you’re already on your way to happiness. In the end, then, it all comes down to
lifestyle choices. If you want to change
your life, change your lifestyle. The
results may be slow, but I can promise you that they will change you and make
you the best person you will ever be.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> I hope you will join me in mastering
these goals in 2019. I believe these are
the things that are important for building a happy and healthy life. So let’s do this together and make 2019 the
best year ever!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-80007682581383374422018-12-31T13:23:00.000-05:002018-12-31T13:23:20.820-05:00Twenty Eighteen: Year In Review<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Twenty Eighteen: Year In Review</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Welcome
back!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It’s been awhile, so have you missed
me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Much has happened since the last time I
posted and I plan to do a life update post soon, but not in this post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope your holidays were as wonderful and
tasty as mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been on Christmas
break for almost two weeks now and this is the first time I’ve gotten to sit
down and work on some projects I promised myself I would get done during
Christmas break (weird how that always happens...) Alas, that did not go as
planned but no worries because here I am now, finally accomplishing some things
and writing a new post.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As you may have noticed, another
year is in the books (is it just me or did it go by extra fast this year?)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I really enjoy writing these year end review
type of posts, so that’s what I’m going to do today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hopefully this won’t get too lengthy, so my
apologies in advance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Enough being said,
here’s how 2018 went for me:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>For the first time, this year I made
a list of New Year’s resolutions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Normally I don’t do this, mostly because I don’t want to fail them (I’m
that kind of person.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this year I
tried it out so I wanted to share some of them with you and talk about how I either
failed or succeeded at them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<ul>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Wake
up early</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Eat
Healthy</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Exercise
more</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Read
the Bible everyday</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Start
a journal</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Be
organized</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Read
at least 15 books</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Spend
less time on devices</span></li>
<li>·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Be
more positive</span></li>
</ul>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Waking up early<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>When you’re homeschooled, waking up
in the mornings isn’t so easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could
sleep until noon if I absolutely wanted to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In fact, I used to do that and it actually made me really unhappy
because I would wake up and the day would be halfway over.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this year, I made it a goal to wake up
early/have a good sleeping routine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think it’s safe to say I succeed at this goal because I have a much better
sleep routine and it’s made me so much happier because my days are so much more
fulfilling, versus sleeping through half of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Eating healthy <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’ve never technically been a “bad”
eater.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom was never the mom at the
grocery store with a cart full of junk food with packs of energy drinks hanging
over the sides.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I still wanted to do
better this year and I actually ended up giving up all red meat (pork and
beef.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only for environmental
reasons, but because I never liked eating those foods in the first place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would eat them if they were put in front of
me, but this year I completely gave it up and I’ve never been such a happy
eater in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like to call myself
a “partial-vegetarian” and someday I hope to cut out all meat completely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m extremely happy with the progress of my diet
this year and I hope I can continue good eating habits in 2019.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Exercising
more<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Okay so I already did a post on my
fitness story (you can read that post <a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2018/07/finding-freedom-in-fitness-my-journey.html">here</a>), but I’m really proud of myself for
being a lot more active this year than I was before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I started to enjoy going on walks, bike riding, and
other outdoor sports I never thought I would actually like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fitness has become an activity I like now and
I feel so good after a workout.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
would also like to point out that I’m not working out to gain or lose weight; or
maintain a certain body image.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my
opinion, fitness and exercise should be about staying healthy in general and
not trying to make yourself look a certain way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m definitely proud of the progress I’ve made this year, and although
anyone can look at me and not notice a difference, I can clearly see the
progress I’ve made since I started exercising and that’s what matters to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For those interested, I plan on doing a
workout routine post sometime; however, I like to change my routine up from
time to time so I don’t get tired of doing the same workouts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, I don’t have a “consistent" routine I stay with for a long time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Overall, I’m super happy with the progress I’ve made and I hope to be
even more active in 2019!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Reading
the Bible everyday<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This is also an area in my life
where I’ve made some big changes this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To give you a short summary of my religious background, I was baptized when
I was 9 (I think) at a church I had been going to for a while, but no longer
attend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since then, my relationship with
God has been through some rough patches over the years; and until this year, I
was not in a very good place with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>However, after many years of soul searching and church hunting (which is
not easy), this year I finally found a church where I feel as if I belong and
going there has really helped me deepen my relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have not read the Bible every day as I said
I would, but I have been reading it a lot more frequently and my faith has
become so much stronger this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
are still times when it gets hard, but I’m in a better place with God than I
ever was so getting through rough patches is much easier now that I have a
strong relationship with God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Starting
a journal<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This is where I begin to fail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve journaled off and on for years, but I’ve
never kept up with it as I keep saying I will.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I started out strong this year, but unfortunately I never made it to the
end of January (I know, so far.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At this
point I can probably conclude that journaling just isn’t my thing at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I did start something else this
year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every day of 2018 (minus only a
few days) I wrote down something on a piece of paper, folded it up, and put it
in a Kleenex box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the paper I wrote
down something good that happened that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some days it was just little things, but even if it was a bad day I still
had to write something down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I haven’t
looked back at any of them yet so I’m excited to go through and read them at
the end of the year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For this new year,
I plan to do the same thing but instead of writing them on slips of paper, I got a gratitude journal for Christmas so I’ll be using that to write things down in
there instead of the slips of paper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would highly encourage
you to do this too because it helps you to see the good in even bad days or
situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Doing this has helped me
realize there is always something to be grateful for even if it’s just being
alive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Be
Organized<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I have always been a very organized
person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Physically and mentally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the most part, my room stays clean and
uncluttered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year, I also stared
using a weekly planner to write things down in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Needless to say, it has helped me a lot and now I have an obsession with
planners.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not that I couldn’t remember
things before; however, writing things down helped me a lot to have a plan for
each day as well as remember school assignments and such.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Read at least 15 books<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I wanted to read this year more than
I have the past few years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Recently I’ve
had trouble focusing during reading which had caused me not to read as much as
I used to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year I really wanted to
make it a goal to try to read more, which I did; however, I don’t think I
reached my goal of 15 books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did read
a lot more than I did last year though and I’m pretty happy about that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve recently been hooked on Sarah Dessen’s
books (so cheesy but they make good easy reads.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope to continue reading more in 2019 because
it’s such a good hobby to have and I’ve learned a lot from books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s nothing like the feeling of settling
down to read a good book (and getting mad when your favorite character
dies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Book nerds can relate.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Spend less time on devices<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I, along with millions of other
people on this earth, am guilty of spending too much time on my devices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know about you, but this is something
that annoys me because it can be a difficult habit to control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These days it seems harder and harder to put
down your phone and live in the real world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What do we do when we’re bored?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Check social media.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do we do
when we need to speak to someone?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Text
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do we do when we look
good?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take selfies on our phone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do we do when…okay you get the
point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried hard this year to keep
some distance between me and my phone and I have to say, I’ve done pretty well
but not as well as I would have wished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I could be better about putting down my phone and finding more
productive things to do with my time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
this year, I’m making it a priority to decrease the time I spend on a
screen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I’d like to challenge
everyone to this as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Make it a
point to be present and in the moment because sometimes we miss things
happening in the real world when we’re too concerned about what’s happening in
our digital world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 200%;">Be more positive<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This is probably the hardest and
easiest goal of the whole year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
hard for me because I struggle with staying positive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not the kind of person that’s happy all
the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s times where I’m
depressed and it’s hard to even get out of bed and face the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, those moments did not happen as
frequently this year and it’s probably the biggest change I’ve made all
year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Looking back at how I got to where
I am now, it all has to do with lifestyle choices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Primarily the things I’ve listed above, along
with a few other things which I want to talk about briefly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This year I cut out all negative
influences in my life and people who were not making a positive impact on me
and my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of investing in
these unhealthy relationships, I chose to invest in relationships with people
who are positive influences on my life and that’s probably one of the best
decisions I’ve ever made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can
legitimately say I’ve been genuinely happy this year and probably the happiest
I’ve been in a long time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">2018 has been the year of healing and
moving on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I moved on from things I was
doing and going through that were not healthy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Was it easy?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Definitely not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were times when it got super hard, but
I knew in the end it would and will be worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Healing is a process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m still in that process, taking things day
by day and some days are harder than others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I know to some people it won’t seem like much, but to me I can see every
small change making a big difference in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know I have changed in the best ways
possible and those changes are helping me live a life I didn’t even know was
possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that was the best part of
this year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This year has been one of the best
ones yet!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you if you’re still here
reading this…your support means the world to me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m extremely grateful to be sharing my
journey of life with you (for almost 2 years!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I hope that God has blessed you as much as He has blessed me this year,
and I pray that 2019 will bring joy and happiness into your life and that you
will have a wonderful new year!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-9237553305066344302018-10-10T17:00:00.000-04:002019-03-02T09:06:51.546-05:00A Broke Girl's Guide to Buying Makeup<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A Broke Girl’s Guide to Buying Makeup<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">So
you may remember a few months back when I did a post about my favorite makeup
products (see post <a href="https://beautyinthisbrokenness.blogspot.com/2018/01/my-favorite-makeup-products.html">here</a>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m going to
do something similar to that in this post because frankly, I’m tired of
spending money on expensive makeup that doesn’t live up to its price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if I’m right, so are you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is literally nothing worse than
spending hard earned money on something that doesn’t work or is a bad quality
product for the price you spent on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s what’s been happening to me lately and I’m soooo over it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> So t</span>oday I’m here to tell you about some amazing
makeup that won’t break your bank account.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">Okay
so I understand if you’re making millions of dollars on Youtube and your
clothing line and you have money laying around to go spend at Sephora 3 times a
month, but some of us don’t have that kind of luxury.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Personally I don’t understand why some people will buy the new Urban Decay palate JUST BECAUSE there’s a shade called “pumpkin
spice shimmer”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And can we just talk
about multi-level marketing companies such as Younique and Mary Kay? Makeup is already tempting enough but now you have your own family and friends trying to sell you $100 worth of makeup you don't need. Like what kind of drug dealing is that?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">All
jokes aside, I have nothing against expensive makeup companies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If that’s how you want to live your life, you
do you girl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But for those of you that
are like me and are tired of this makeup nonsense, let me introduce you to some
products that might make you actually like makeup again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">You’ve
heard of the Porefessional primer by Benefit?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Well picture that but for less than half the price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s basically what this primer is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been using this primer for about a year
now, and I can honestly say every word in the title is true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It shrinks your pores AND leaves your skin
feeling soft like a baby's.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also makes
your foundation go on so much smoother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I use this pretty much every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You can also wear it just by itself without feeling like you’re wearing
a lot of makeup.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Maybelline Fit<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Me Dewy + Smooth Foundation</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve struggled in
the past with foundations because of my extremely sensitive skin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So when this product came out about a year
ago, I was curious because I had never tried a dewy foundation before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried it and ended up loving it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At first I was nervous about wearing it on a
daily basis since foundation can make my skin weird and cause breakouts, but
now I wear it pretty much every day and have had fewer breakouts than normal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just for reference, I’ve also tried the matte
version of the Fit Me foundation and now that I’ve tried both I can say I like
the dewy finish much better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
definitely worth the price and looks amazing!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">E.L.F. Beautifully Bare Concealer Stick<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I’ve found that E.L.F. products are either a hit or
miss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of their products turn out
super great, and others don’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this
concealer is definitely one of the better products they’ve made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like concealer sticks because they are
super easy to apply, and this particular one looks beautiful over the Fit Me
foundation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is also great for
concealing blemishes, but I usually just put it under my eyes (to cover the
fact that I never sleep lol).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
one of my favorite E.L.F. products and looks much better than some of the more
expensive concealers I’ve tried before.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Revelon Colorstay Pressed Powder<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span>I’m not even going to lie; I’ve been using this powder
ever since I started wearing makeup like five years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom started me out on this powder and it’s
just always worked for me so that’s why I’ve stuck with it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, it pairs beautifully with the other
products I’ve already mentioned and is so simple to put on, even on a day when
you’re not wearing a lot of makeup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
don’t set my face, so this is perfect to put on top of your foundation and
gives your face a finished look.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">E.L.F. 3-in-1 mascara <o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I’ve talked about this mascara before in my other post,
so I’m not going to say much about it here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I still use this mascara every day and love it so much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looks great and lasts all day without
getting under your eyes so if you’re looking for a good inexpensive mascara, I
would definitely recommend this one.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara <o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>So this is probably the only high brand makeup product
that I actually like and wear on a daily basis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I actually got it on sale for half off at Ulta (I don’t think I love it enough to pay full price).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The way I do my mascara is very specific so
please bear with me for a moment while I explain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First I apply a
thin layer of the E.L.F. mascara and then layer this over the top.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The E.L.F. mascara provides a nice base and
the Better than Sex provides the volume.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The E.L.F. mascara also helps the Better than Sex stay on better and
last longer. People always think wearing two mascaras seems weird or something but I think these two go so well together! If I'm not going out or don't have a lot of time to do my makeup, I just wear the E.L.F. mascara on its own.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick by Kate Lipstick<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYf05S750erVkLRm8w3u6WhHSAwFBR7BhhnpPVDkzyMZIiJkTZhxPac_1oYg6VFa7puGbor5_zUXushAGvtWklhes4y3JdNKxKz-o8oV1RJqjcrlJCHUAJznZkvPYmh0N44LbOAlyMFbog/s1600/61pdazpKPQL._SX522_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="522" data-original-width="522" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYf05S750erVkLRm8w3u6WhHSAwFBR7BhhnpPVDkzyMZIiJkTZhxPac_1oYg6VFa7puGbor5_zUXushAGvtWklhes4y3JdNKxKz-o8oV1RJqjcrlJCHUAJznZkvPYmh0N44LbOAlyMFbog/s320/61pdazpKPQL._SX522_.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I mentioned these in my other makeup post, but these
lipsticks are my absolute most favorite things in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m pretty sure I own almost every shade
because they’re just so amazing!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They
are super cheap and stay on for a long time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They do tend to dry out my lips sometimes in the winter, so make sure
you put on Chap Stick (which you should be doing anyway).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This lipstick completes my look and is
probably my favorite part of my makeup routine.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><br /></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3kbJ1-wTr7lcqya0bE0umvMtb_gYwi6tMsVA-nc6YcshIpAyXE690jGPTyikRA9Id6bcnUfG5hE52nOKJF_v5XTIgTk_gr_FfJDdYtKn4KQR79gtF-S2MfQeJLAsYYsYdabSbZSPgSor3/s1600/CYMERA_20181010_165454.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3kbJ1-wTr7lcqya0bE0umvMtb_gYwi6tMsVA-nc6YcshIpAyXE690jGPTyikRA9Id6bcnUfG5hE52nOKJF_v5XTIgTk_gr_FfJDdYtKn4KQR79gtF-S2MfQeJLAsYYsYdabSbZSPgSor3/s320/CYMERA_20181010_165454.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the finished look! </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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</div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">Some other tips for buying makeup:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>
<br />
<ul>
<li>Always read reviews first</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Look online for coupons</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Don't buy something just because "everyone uses it"</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Shop at Ulta (they have
stores everywhere and always have good deals!)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Make sure you get the right
shade</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Cheap price does not always
mean cheap quality</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Buy whatever you want because it's your life</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 200%;">That’s all for today!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope you enjoyed and maybe even try out
some of these amazing products.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll see
you in my next post!<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0UkJATeM-G7y6H_qRHw7IFeV5ZlBWzk9jWvVf7cmmUolCmMGd4qXROCnp6pWxbPejjCOUPsFzcAhxQtFRlYCxjJ7vKwrJW-dD1LDxo_EQ4WekxpCTVdYXlxsfpFoSMWZmSBuyUhyl34ly/s1600/Megan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0UkJATeM-G7y6H_qRHw7IFeV5ZlBWzk9jWvVf7cmmUolCmMGd4qXROCnp6pWxbPejjCOUPsFzcAhxQtFRlYCxjJ7vKwrJW-dD1LDxo_EQ4WekxpCTVdYXlxsfpFoSMWZmSBuyUhyl34ly/s320/Megan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-5238032709899910342018-09-05T18:20:00.000-04:002018-09-05T18:26:47.143-04:00Updates and Other Random Stuff <br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Updates and Other Random Stuff<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">Hello and welcome back!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">My
last post was in…let’s see…July.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
currently September 4<sup>th</sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
been awhile, so I thought I’d give you guys some updates on what’s been going
on and talk about a few things I’ve been wanting to talk about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this isn’t going to be as structured as a
normal post (laughing at myself because NONE of my posts are ever structured),
it’s going to be a bunch of random thoughts compiled together so I hope at
least some of this makes sense.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Where
I’ve Been<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">First
of all, you’re probably wondering where I’ve been.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish I could say I’ve been traveling the
world doing really cool stuff, but unfortunately that’s not the case (as much
as I wish it was).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been here,
sitting at my desk pretty much the whole summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The reason for that is because I took the SAT
test a few weeks ago and spent a majority of my summer studying for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know, what a fun way to spend your
summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then when I wasn’t studying, I
was working pretty much all the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
doesn’t sound like much, but it’s what I was doing all summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Between the two of those things, I didn’t
really feel like sitting down and writing blog posts.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Why
I haven’t Been Blogging <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I kind of answered that in the last paragraph, but there
is another reason that doesn’t have to do with me just being busy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the last month or so, I’ve sat down three
or four times to write a blog post but every time it just wasn’t my best work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have this thing when I write that if the
words aren’t flowing the right way and I have to force them out, it’s not going
to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I absolutely hate reading my
writing when I feel forced to write or when I’m just not in the mood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s what happened the last few times I’ve
tried to write posts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Another reason is because of my lack of creativity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know I say this like five times a year, but
writers block is real and it happens to pretty much every writer. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This doesn’t mean I don’t try or I don’t have
ideas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do, they just haven’t been
coming out the way I want them to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
haven’t felt inspired by anything to be able to write something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I don’t feel inspired, it’s not going to
happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At least in a way that sounds
good enough to share.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’ve also been thinking a lot about the content of this
blog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I keep thinking and telling myself
that I write too much about myself and talk about me a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many of the posts I tried to write were
things about me and I kept telling myself, “Everything can’t be about you, you
know”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then I said, “No, it can on
this blog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s my blog and my space to
talk about whatever I want”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that’s
been my dilemma regarding what I post.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My goal, however, is to get back on somewhat of a schedule soon so there
will be new content coming.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Mental
Health<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I believe mental health is SO important in a person’s
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just making sure you are taking
care of yourself is important and oftentimes we tend to get wrapped up in the
busyness of life that we forget to take care of ourselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know I can relate to that a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wouldn’t say my mental health is declining;
it’s just a little shaky at the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ever
since the beginning of the year I’ve been in a pretty good place with myself
and others around me- and still am, it’s just getting to the point where I have
to be careful with everything I choose to allow into and influence my life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’m saying this not only about myself, but for other
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve struggled and faced a lot
of challenges this year, most of which I’ve chosen to deal with alone and
silently (I know what you’re thinking, and yes I may sound hypocritical at
times, but I learn from my own mistakes).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But I just want you to know that it’s perfectly okay to take a step back
from something or someone that is preventing you from taking care of yourself
and your heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the key to mental
stability.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Vlogging<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>I’ve had a lot of people ask me if I’ll ever vlog or
start a YouTube channel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer to
that is probably not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although I do
enjoy watching vlogs, it’s never something I would personally want to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve never been super comfortable just
talking to a camera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Making those kinds
of videos takes a LOT of work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am
definitely not saying blogging isn’t a lot of work (it is), but to make a video
you have to have: good lighting (which my house does not), take the time to
film AND edit, plus the most important part which is having something to
film.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not good at just picking up a
camera and filming what’s going on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
lot of times whenever I’m at an event or with someone, I like to take one or
two photos to have, but I try to live and be present in the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think having a camera out all the time
would take away from that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So no, I’ll
probably never vlog or make videos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Words are my specialty and I plan to stick to blogging for as long as
possible.<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Collaborations
and Guest Posts<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </span>The last thing I want to talk about is
collaborations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve wanted to collaborate
with someone for the LONGEST time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
problem is that I don’t know who to collaborate with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want to open this invitation to anyone who
has ANY interest at all in writing or blogging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you are interested, please contact me through email (</span><a href="mailto:beautyinthisbrokenness@gmail.com"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">beautyinthisbrokenness@gmail.com</span></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">),
Instagram (@beautyinthisbrokenness), or through my Facebook page (Beauty in
This Brokenness).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You don’t have to have
any experience with blogging, but if you have any interests in sharing your
writing, I would be more than happy to work with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m open to many topics (ex. Lifestyle,
beauty, health and fitness, mental health); I just request that you stay away
from politics or anything to controversial (we’re just trying to stay positive
around here).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So please let me know if
you are interested at all!<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">I
think that wraps up everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I
said, I’m hoping to resume to somewhat of a normal schedule soon so be on the
lookout for new posts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll talk to you
soon!</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-10537801335232859072018-07-31T10:00:00.000-04:002018-09-05T18:26:36.337-04:00Finding Freedom in Fitness: My Journey<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Finding Freedom in Fitness<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">When I was younger, I never wanted to exercise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t on any sports teams, and because I
was homeschooled I didn’t have any kind of Physical Education class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hated running and walking farther than a
few feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents always encouraged
me to be physically active because I would “regret it later if you don’t start
now”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The state law says that children
aren’t allowed to ride in the car without a car seat until they weighed 100
pounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t weigh 100 pounds until
I was about 10 years old (far behind most girls my age).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I never worried about exercising when I was younger
because I was so skinny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Extremely
skinny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friends that were my age
could pick me up easily because I was so light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I could eat whatever I wanted and not gain any weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I never had a problem with any of this and it
was all great until it came to get new pants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I hated pant shopping, and still do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No pants ever fit me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I was
finally big enough to wear an extra small in the juniors department in tops, I
was still wearing a size 10 in children’s pants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was also pretty short which made things
even worse.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Last fall I got fed up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was tired of being tiny and not being able to wear anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided that I needed to gain weight in order
to be able to wear the clothes I wanted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So I would eat and eat and still not have anything to do with
exercise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t notice any
significant changes and I was still sewing the waist of my pants to make them
smaller.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day, I just thought “what
am I doing?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trying to get fat just to be
able to wear my jeans?” And I realized, what I needed to do wasn’t just sitting
around waiting to gain enough weight, I needed to become stronger and gain more
muscle instead of fat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only way to
do that was to workout.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I watched some videos on fitness to get inspired and
motivated (because honestly I had NO clue where to start).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is when I found Sam Ozkural.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I started watching some of her videos and she
is AMAZING (I highly recommend checking her out).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day in September, I put together an
exercise routine and gave it a try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have
to say, it was hard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My body wasn’t used
to using up all that energy at once.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
after I finished that first workout, it felt amazing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not so much the next day, however.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My legs were so sore I could barely move.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I felt better than I ever had before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">At first, it was really hard to stay motivated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first few months I had a hard time
staying focused and on a schedule.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was hard not seeing the improvements right away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was hard to get through the workouts
because I was getting tired in the middle of them, but I kept going.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kept pushing myself harder each time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Almost a year later, so much has changed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve been working out consistently 3-4 times
a week and I love it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can get through
the sessions now without getting too overwhelmed or tired, and it is sooo
rewarding afterwards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still feel tired
after a workout, but it’s a good kind of tired.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I can endure longer days without becoming exhausted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve noticed changes in my body too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m much stronger now (it’s not super visible
yet but the muscles are there!), my stomach muscles are stronger, and I’m in
much better shape than I was before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Now I look forward to my workouts instead of dreading
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I don’t exercise to gain or
lose weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t obsess over the
models on Instagram and try to look at them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Because I don’t think that should be the purpose of fitness and
exercise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s okay to be skinny or a little
heavier, every body type is beautiful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Because it’s YOUR body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God didn’t
make you to look exactly like someone else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You are unique and special in your own way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of the day, it’s about being
confident about who you are and how you were made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that’s what fitness is about for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">P.S.
I still can’t fit in any pants and that will probably be a struggle for the
rest of my life<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-50036184796749845582018-06-25T07:15:00.000-04:002018-06-25T07:15:11.220-04:00Through Trials of Temptation...<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Through Trials of Temptation…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This post is going to be a little
different than what I usually write about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m not giving you tips on how to live a good life, telling you what to
eat, or what make-up products to use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’m hoping that today we can have a heart-to-heart conversation about a
problem that is very real and persistent in the lives of so many people. I
prayed a lot before I opened my computer to start writing this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I pray that you will open up your soul to
receive the message I’m going to attempt to convey here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The only resource I’m using today in
this post is my Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want this to
speak to everyone reading this, but specifically the young people here like me,
who may be struggling with this issue right at this moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many issues going on in our
world today that people my age are struggling with and maybe they don’t have
anyone to tell them these stories, or maybe they don’t know Jesus at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever the case may be, I want this to
speak to them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Eve was the first human to struggle
with this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God had given her and Adam
one simple rule to follow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That rule was
that they could eat from any tree in the garden of Eden, all except for the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:16).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So God told Adam that he could have the fruit
from ANY tree he wanted except for that specific tree, or if they did then they
would certainly die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had a lot of
options in the garden for food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But one day
after Eve was created from Adam’s rib, a serpent came along and asked if she
and Adam were allowed to eat fruit from the garden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eve told the serpent what God had said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The serpent told Eve that they would not die
if they ate the fruit, but that they would be like God and know good and evil
(Genesis 3:4-5).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">So here she was, in the middle of the
garden talking to this serpent, Eve probably didn’t know what to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She could just ignore the temptation and
follow the rule God had given her and Adam, or she could eat the fruit like the
serpent told her to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, Eve gave
in and ate the fruit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After she ate some
herself, she gave some to Adam (and here we also see Adam being tempted by his
wife, Eve) who also ate the fruit from the forbidden tree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is where sin first began.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Once they had eaten the fruit, what
happened next?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did they die immediately
like God said they would?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, but as you
can imagine, God wasn’t so happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
first humans had disobeyed him and He decided they must be punishment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His punishment for man and woman was not
death as He had first said, but He punished them by giving them physical and
emotional pain that would affect them later in life (Genesis 3:14-19).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Because Eve gave into temptation, sin
entered the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If Eve hadn’t given
into the temptation and didn’t eat from the forbidden tree, could you imagine
what our world would be like?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one
would make mistakes, no one would make bad choices, there would be no such
thing as a crime, everything would be perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not exactly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because when we sin,
we learn from those mistakes and those lessons make us wiser for the future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Let’s take a look at another example from
God’s word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time we’re in Matthew chapter
4, during the time when Jesus was fasting for 40 days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was led into the wilderness by Satan, who
told Him to make stones into bread (Matthew 4:3-4).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus resisted, only to be tempted again by
Satan to throw Himself off of a high point on a temple (Matthew 4:5-7).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, Jesus resisted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After that, Satan told Him to worship him and
he would give Jesus kingdoms and thrones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>By this time, Jesus had had enough and sent the devil away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Jesus did not give into the
temptation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep in mind, He was also
fasting so He was probably very hungry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
Jesus does not give into any kind of temptations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is the example we should live by each time
we are tempted by something in our lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We cannot resist temptation as easily as Jesus, because we are only
human and not perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we can
surround ourselves with positive people and influences that will help us make
good decisions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">If you’ve ever been in a tempting
situation, you know it’s not so easy to say no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In fact, it will probably be one of the hardest things you’ll ever have
to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the one thing you can do is
in that moment, just pray and ask God for His guidance on what you should
do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then all you have to do is ask yourself,
“would Jesus do this?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That should help
you and give you all the wisdom you need to make the best choice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Adam and Eve brought sin into this
world, but you always have a choice to sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We are not perfect and will always make mistakes, but luckily we have a
forgiving father in Heaven who does not judge us by our past mistakes and loves
us even when we do wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
nothing greater than His love and grace and He is with us in every situation we
face.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-68029292118666506982018-05-22T14:32:00.000-04:002018-05-22T14:32:52.498-04:007 Ways to Stay Healthy and Fit This Summer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ysO0xGOkNMOxbrmeJUmr6zwEGd3TbY34-GCIKjv9_lRLdAE0MlDbf5rkjWRvvW4m9wXwW97wcL0U4p0DQcy7WIDerIKC8Mg-805OYIUiJhGEvgZJcIYC6RpyTOiGeEMwPEkejnW3t3PS/s1600/7+Ways+to+Stay+Healthy+and+Fit+This+Summer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ysO0xGOkNMOxbrmeJUmr6zwEGd3TbY34-GCIKjv9_lRLdAE0MlDbf5rkjWRvvW4m9wXwW97wcL0U4p0DQcy7WIDerIKC8Mg-805OYIUiJhGEvgZJcIYC6RpyTOiGeEMwPEkejnW3t3PS/s320/7+Ways+to+Stay+Healthy+and+Fit+This+Summer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">7 Ways to Stay Healthy and Fit This Summer<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;">I
am so excited to finally announce that…SUMMER. IS. HERE.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me this means: a trip to the beach,
staying up late, bonfires, the county fair, and of course the most important
part, no school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although so far my
summer hasn’t been all that exiting because all I’ve done is binge watch 13
Reasons Why Season 2…but that’s not the point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anyway, now that school is out I want to try to post more this summer,
so keep an eye out for more new posts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Summer can be quite busy for some
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Traveling, parties, festivals,
and all kinds of things can fill up our summer days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During all this it’s easy to get distracted
from our healthy habits and lifestyle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So today, I want to share a few tips that will help you stay on track
during these next few months.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">We
all get bored of eating the same things all the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This summer, instead of getting lazy and
converting to a junk food diet, try some fresh new healthy recipes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pinterest has a variety of easy, healthy recipes
that are perfect for summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try some
fresh salads or cold veggie wraps for a delicious, healthy meal after a long,
hot day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">2. Change your workout routine </span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">I
don’t know about you, but I get tired of doing the same workout routine after a
while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Summer is the perfect opportunity
to switch things up a bit and try some new exercises.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or if you don’t want to change everything
completely, try your current routine in a new order.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you keep the same routine for a long time,
a) well it just gets boring, and b) it makes exercising a little more
interesting when you have something new to try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Try a few different things and find what works best for you and your
body!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">3. Spend<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>time outside </span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">It’s
summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The weather is finally warm, and
the great outdoors are practically calling your name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take the opportunity to be outside and enjoy
the season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Buy some yard games such as
corn hole, latter ball, or a badminton set (which you can find at stores such
as Walmart or Target for pretty cheap).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Evenings are the perfect time for having a nice fire in a fire pit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Take advantage or warm weather and don’t
forget to wear sunscreen (because no one likes sunburns)! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">4. Start a new book or series</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">No
more schoolbooks….so that means there’s plenty of time for what I like to call
pleasure reading.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Summer is the perfect
time to spend your days outside reading a good book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Set a goal for how many books you hope to
read this summer and finish them!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I like
to get on Goodreads to check my “to-read bookshelf” and read reviews on books I’m
thinking of reading.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDiIP-0sj_Zf_XUNQClVcFoIBU_3g0tp7ayA0MlmRpe3bxOc-skniuyvyeBP30nI8RzBqVjUAbAOaYv-JzGGGxz1BpKJmZ54iWcFZC4G0kmImDWpD3xK2BXxypMwEMZRCwB6Wnxb9YNVl/s1600/frock%252Bfloat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1102" data-original-width="735" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDiIP-0sj_Zf_XUNQClVcFoIBU_3g0tp7ayA0MlmRpe3bxOc-skniuyvyeBP30nI8RzBqVjUAbAOaYv-JzGGGxz1BpKJmZ54iWcFZC4G0kmImDWpD3xK2BXxypMwEMZRCwB6Wnxb9YNVl/s320/frock%252Bfloat.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">5. Tan naturally</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">The
chemicals used in fake tan sprays and lotions can be harmful and toxic to your
body, so avoid using them. You can get a
tan just by spending a few hours outside.
Just an hour each day can get you a little darker (30 minutes on your
back or stomach, then switch sides). But
make sure you use sunscreen or else you’ll get a bit tanner than you had
planned.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">6. Be active in fun ways</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">Exercising
doesn’t always have to mean squats and lifting weights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can easily stay fit by doing some fun things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try bike riding on some trails, going on
hikes, or even swimming a few laps in the pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These activities keep you active and are enjoyable, plus you’re having
fun and it doesn’t even feel like a workout!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Grab a friend to do these things with to make it even more fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">7. Drink lots of water</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">I know this is something you should be doing all year, but during
the summer, it is especially important to stay hydrated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heat strokes are a real thing, but you can
avoid that by drinking lots of fluids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This summer try to stay away from sugary and energy drinks that are
unhealthy and bad for your body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try to
drink as much water as possible (I usually try to drink 64 oz. a day) and
you’ll be good to go for the summer!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 26.0pt;">That’s
all I have for you today!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope you
enjoyed these tips and if you have any tips on ways to stay healthy this
summer, I’d love to hear from you!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; line-height: 150%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH-S-AEl-gqY1PWJVOxkxn1sUsqmPH3wZxgchPYvNWUTOzieajkCt4fsmj_sZXTb10a8CWo8N_foVFBza0UZPomAgjqluusp4f7CJ7SNMeTdHZ7pWZKrD-YmJ2Ovsa4O7cBOa9UDd6RPN2/s1600/Megan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH-S-AEl-gqY1PWJVOxkxn1sUsqmPH3wZxgchPYvNWUTOzieajkCt4fsmj_sZXTb10a8CWo8N_foVFBza0UZPomAgjqluusp4f7CJ7SNMeTdHZ7pWZKrD-YmJ2Ovsa4O7cBOa9UDd6RPN2/s320/Megan.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-194518179080828601.post-5478249809924047922018-05-14T16:53:00.000-04:002018-05-17T17:39:09.006-04:00My Trip To Washington, D.C.!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsu1YSaaWzuF2n1hISUEz8N6V9I4mS9G1Y-aImco7OJPK2AfZiY7Rhr8V1doVJow14l00xXkc98F1LCXZ-BTUbtN0hUZQ8D1OeID3OAAo8nXkhUo6tub6zYFlcNa_4GtUMetrt1BFn-9Lj/s1600/MY+ESCAPE+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsu1YSaaWzuF2n1hISUEz8N6V9I4mS9G1Y-aImco7OJPK2AfZiY7Rhr8V1doVJow14l00xXkc98F1LCXZ-BTUbtN0hUZQ8D1OeID3OAAo8nXkhUo6tub6zYFlcNa_4GtUMetrt1BFn-9Lj/s400/MY+ESCAPE+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">(Disclaimer:
nothing said here is to “brag” about what I have been fortunate enough to
experience. I wrote this because I know
some people like reading these types of posts.
Please feel free to click away at any time you wish).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 150%;">My Trip To Washington, D.C.!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">What’s up everyone?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope you’ve been doing well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know I’ve been happy to finally see some
sunny days and warm weather, and I’m also happy because guess what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just got back from vacation!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">I’ve wanted to do a travel post for so
long now, but the problem was I didn’t travel anywhere.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>UNTIL NOW.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So now I’m so excited to tell you all about where I went and what I did
while I was there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being in high school,
it’s a little harder to travel because of many factors, but I’m always thankful
for every trip I’m able to go on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of
my goals for in the future is to travel more (maybe visit another country
someday?), so if you like this post please let me know if you’d like to see
more travel posts in the future!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">So without reading the title of the
post (which you probably already have if you’ve made it this far), can you
guess where I went?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you said
Washington, D.C., you win the prize (the joke’s on you though because there is
no prize).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyway, yes I went to
Washington, D.C. for the first time a few weeks ago with my family, for a few
days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought I’d spend today telling
you about my experience there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Day 1 <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">So on the first full day there
(Sunday), we had planned to spend the morning going around and visiting the
monuments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem, however, was
that it was VERY windy (and just for the record, I’ve been to Chicago too and
D.C. was the windiest place I’ve ever been in my life).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So instead, we went to the Museum of Modern
History.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have to say though, that for
a Smithsonian, it definitely wasn’t the coolest museum I’ve ever been to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had some things that were interesting, but
for me it was just another museum.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>After eating lunch there (we packed
sack lunches every day we were there), we headed over to the National Archives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me it was a super cool experience to be
able to see the founding documents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Obviously I’ve read them in school, but it was a completely different
experience to actually see the original documents and read the real
handwriting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t spend a lot of
time in the rest of the building, but it was nothing special anyway.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>After that we spent the rest of the
day going to the monuments that we were supposed to go to in the morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The weather was slightly better (and less
windy) in the late afternoon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of
walking, though, we rode the Metro bus around to each stop (which saved my poor
legs a few steps).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Day 2</span></b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>In the morning, we hit up the Museum
of Natural History.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, I wasn’t too
impressed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did like it better than the
modern history one, however (probably because they had live fish).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We at lunch there then took a bit of a hike
to the other side of town, where we got a glimpse of the White House.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was pretty far away, but now at least I
can say I’ve seen it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>After that we went to what was
probably the coolest place I’ve ever been on earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you go to Washington, D.C., make sure you
go to the Renwick Art Museum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve never
been a huge fan of art museums in general, but the stuff in this place is
unlike any art you’ll ever see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll let
the pictures do the talking on this one….</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">When we got done at the art museum, we
went and ate at a restaurant called “Old Ebbitt Grill”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>10/10 would recommend eating there if you’re
ever in the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I got the turkey
burger (also would recommend) and it was delicious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So that was about it for day two.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Day 3<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Tuesday, on our last full day in D.C.,
we went to the Arlington National Cemetery in the morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While we were there, we got to watch the “changing
of the guard” ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider (and if you don’t
know what that is, I’d recommend looking it up online and watching a video of
it).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many soldiers buried
at Arlington, many who have served in more than one of the wars.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not the most “fun” or “exciting” thing
to see in Washington, but it’s well worth the visit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">In the afternoon, we got to take a
tour of the Capitol building.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was
super cool because even though we didn’t get to see all of it, we got to see
the Rotunda, along with two other rooms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The art and structure inside the building is extremely unique, and it’s
something to definitely try to do if you’re planning a Washington, D.C.
trip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tour is electronic, so it’s
easy to hear the person talking, while looking around at the same time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The last place we visited was the
Library of Congress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was probably
my second favorite part of the whole trip, because the inside of it is pretty
cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are even able to see part of
Thomas Jefferson’s famous book collection, and (through glass) are able to see
the main part of the building.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">That about wraps up the summary of
what we did in Washington, D.C..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While it
wasn’t my favorite trip I’ve been on, it is well worth a visit once in your
lifetime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is an extremely large
amount of history held there, and we barely even saw a fraction of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But overall, I had a great time there and I’m
very grateful to have had the opportunity to go.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Megan Dennishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07892359425884757622noreply@blogger.com5