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$350 poorer

So today my sister and I went to get our books for this upcoming semester. Seriously, I was appalled at how much a textbook costs these days. Seriously, it has gotten way out of hand. I do not see the need to pay over $150 for a math textbook. What are they teaching us, rocket science? So after I bought a math textbook, CPR and first aid training books, and my history book, my total came to almost $350! My sister only bought two books and a bag which was also totaled at around $300. How can they expect us to pay so much for textbooks when we are going to school to get a better job so we can have more money? I am jobless and if it was not for my financial aid, I would not even be able to afford to pay for my books. I swear, college is expensive!

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Go Trojans!

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of USC. All opinions are 100% mine.

Since going back to school, it has been really hard for me to find a job. Obviously, I haven’t found one yet since I’m still unemployed, but one day I hope to find a job that is willing to work around my crazy school schedule. It has now come to the point that I have been looking for online courses for my degree. Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of options for a teaching degree, but I did find a very reputable online teaching degree program offered by the University of Southern California.

Honestly, there are so many benefits of an online degree, especially while earning a Master of Arts Teaching degree at a school that is internationally renowned research institution. USC has had a stellar 100-year history of educating teachers to be agents of change which fully fits my education philosophy. I like how their school not only teaches you the basics, they also teach you how to go above and beyond which I believe every teacher should do. The program also caught my eye since USC has been ranked #22 in the United States and #9 among all private universities by US News & World Report as being on of the best schools.

At first, I really thought this program would be too good to be true because how would I get field-experience from a college all the way in Southern California when I live all the way in Georgia? Lucky for me, the program features a lot of interactive online learning with field-based experience in your local area. Not only would I be getting the information I need, I’d also get field experience as well which is very important. The school also have tuition reimbursement programs designed exclusively for graduates which in this horrible economy would be greatly needed. Another great benefit to this program, aside from being taught by some of the biggest contributors to modern education, is that anyone enlisted in their program receives all the status and benefits as any other USC student and is eligible to participate in commencement ceremonies along with free lifetime Alumni Association memberships. So even though I’d be located in Georgia, I’d still be a member to the Trojan family!

I’ve already sent off for their program information. I also talked it over with the hubby who also believe it’d be a great opportunity for me since it’d allow me to work full-time and go to school in my spare time. Right now, I really need a job so I can help pay bills and hopefully save up for our own house.

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School time again!

Next week marks the beginning of Fall semester 2010 which means this blog will be taking a backseat to my school work. I have planned out my schedule so I am able to continue to blog as well as go to school full time. I also have signed up for a time to submit my application to become a substitute teacher for this school year. I purposely scheduled my college classes in times that would allow me to also substitute which will give me a lot of experience in teaching. Hopefully this fall will be a great semester and I will get a lot accomplished!!

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Security is a must

My grandfather’s health has been deteriorating lately and he has a bad case of Alzheimer’s disease. Around Christmas, he would remember almost all of us without any hesitations but after the first of the year, he hasn’t been remembering anyone lately. Right before Jonathan and I got married, he got really bad. He didn’t remember his own wife. He told my step-grandmother, Alice, that he didn’t know who she was but she better get out of his house and tell Ann to come to him. Ann, my Nana, has been dead for quite some time. I know it hurt Alice’s feeling but honestly, I could care less. Alice was a predator when my Nana died and has done everything in her power to put a wedge between my grandpa and my family. I personally don’t care how my grandpa is since we don’t have a relationship at all but I still don’t want someone targeting him. That’s still my grandpa, ya know? Even though he did something horrible and unforgivable to me, I still wouldn’t wish Alzheimer’s on him!

I visited my dad yesterday for Grayson’s party and my uncle Kenny was there as well. When we arrived, my uncle and his family decided to leave but not before I heard him and my dad talking in a loud whisper. Evidently my grandfather is getting even worse and now they are wanting to put a security system in as well as a video recorder and voice recorder. Evidently, Alice purposely leaves the doors unlocked and encourages my grandpa to run away. My grandpa, dad, and other uncle all live on 150 acres of land so you can imagine what would happen if my grandpa got lost on our land. Also, there is a busy highway near the farm as well. I really believe Alice is waiting for him to pass away so she can take over the land and give it to her family. Ever since the conversation I overheard between my dad and uncle, I’ve been researching security systems and reading consumer reports.

I want a system that is reliable and will alert us if he tries to leave the house. We also prefer a security system with hidden cameras and a voice recorder. We’d like to know exactly what she is saying and doing to him. They also think she is over-medicating him but that is almost impossible to prove that she was doing that on purpose. We’re in a no win situation. Since I can’t help with what she is doing, I’ve been busy researching security systems online. I honestly don’t care who the system is through even though I’ve mainly been checking out Home Security Team and also been piddling with the site http://www.broadviewsecurity.com/. Hopefully if I can gather some research, I can hand it over to my dad and uncles so they can make the decision. I don’t want to be in on the decision but I will do whatever I can to provide them with adequate information since I am a lot more tech savvy than any of them. I just want the situation to work itself out. I just don’t want to see my dad and uncles hurting because of how someone is treating their dad.

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Financial Woes

Coming from a household of seven and sometimes eight, you can imagine how hard it can be to feed, clothe, and house all of us. Our bills have recently become outrageous and like most people, we’ve been living outside of our means. We haven’t meant to but money is a lot tighter since my step-dad lost his job almost a year ago. He has vigilantly looking ever since and has put in an endless amount of applications with no call backs which makes my heart go out to him. One of the things we’ve done to cut back on our monthly expenses is reducing our cable package down back to basic plus HBO. We were going to go back to basic but it equaled the same amount with HBO since our DVR was included in that package. We also looked for cheap car insurance since our current auto insurance was getting to be ridiculous to pay. Thankfully we found a great deal through Progressive and have enjoyed paying almost $100 cheaper with our new plan! We also have been eating more cost effective meals, too. Hopefully, we will find even more ways to save money!

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Adulthood

Gone are the days where I could sleep until noon and then veg out all day. Gone are the days where I could eat when I wanted and what I wanted and not have to worry about gaining a pound. Gone are the days I could stay up all night looking up whatever I wanted on the internet such as term life insurance quote. Adulthood took a lot away from me but it also has given me a lot more. I would not trade my life for anything in the world. I have an amazing family with an even more amazing mom. I swear, my mom, husband, and sister are all considered my best friends. They are three people I can count on for anything. As I mentioned, I have a husband who I know wants to give me the world and if he could, he would. I know we have our ups and downs but what marriage doesn’t? With my amazing marriage came an even more amazing son. I love him to pieces and know that God must have smiled down on me for putting such a precious child in my life. I know I am destined for great things with such a positive support group behind me. I also have had a much better relationship with my father lately which I am thankful for. I truly love my dad and have enjoyed seeing him interact with Grayson. I just know if I keep pushing on, life can only get better from here!

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Our plan

My sister and I have been talking a lot about our plan to lose weight. My mom and husband have also gotten involved as well. We plan on making our goal a family goal since we want all members in our family to be healthy. We even plan on involving my younger siblings as well to get them more active and away from the television so much. My doctor has already prescribed phentermine for an appetite suppressant since she wants to see me lose as much weight as possible so I can hopefully start trying to have a family of my own in a year or so. I just am confident that I can do this even though I know this journey will be very hard and very long! Anyways, time to go prep for Grayson’s party!!

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