i'm going to dental school!

It's been a long and crazy couple of months with interviews, essays, and lots of waiting, but I've finally made it!  Out of the 5 interviews I went to at Michigan, Pitt, LECOM, Detroit Mercy, and Colorado, I received first-round admissions offers from all five.  I narrowed my choice down to Detroit Mercy and Colorado, and after LOTS of thinking, praying, and tears (yes, it's been an emotional process!) I've decided to attend Colorado!  I'm still not sure it's the most realistic decision, as the tuition is twice that of Michigan, and it's very far from home, but I really need it.  I need to get out of Michigan and start over. I'm so excited to leave my past behind me and start a new life out west!

University of Colorado-Denver School of Dental Medicine, Class of 2017!

thoughts as a curly girl

As a child, I was teased for being the girl with the "afro."  My mother never knew how to style it and ended up brushing out my locks in a frustrated attempt to get me to school on time in the mornings.  As I grew into adolescence, I begged my mom to buy me my first flat iron one day on a trip to Target.  Of course I had no idea what I was doing and would end up really only straightening the front, leaving the back of my head a nappy mess, but I was thrilled with the results.  Over time I became more skilled with my Conair, while my hair gravely suffered the consequences.  In eighth grade I finally asked for a new straightener for Christmas and began my research.  The stylists at my salon used the brand HAI and I was in love.  I found I could buy the exact same one here (it's currently on sale!) and that was the end of the story!  I absolutely adored my straightener, and we spent 5 happy years together.  When it finally died, I re-purchased an identical one, and took it with me to college.

Although I loved the versatility that came with straight hair, and experimented with different styles, it wasn't until I really did some deep soul searching before I learned to embrace my God-given curls.  Now, I haven't touched my flat iron for over two years, and my hair is healthier and happier than ever!

I hope all you readers can learn a thing or two from this post, to love yourselves for who you are, because you're all truly beautiful on the inside!

My super-long straight hair in high school

Me with my best friend freshman year in college.

Me today, embracing my natural, God-given, curly girl pride :)

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end-of-summer updates

This summer has been wild, crazy, fun, and above all, super busy!  Between working full-time at the dental office, applying to dental school, running, and maintaining a social life, I've been going non-stop.  I've never embraced my decision to take a year off of school more than after this summer!  I got to spend a lot of time with friends, spend days off by the pool, run run run, and finish my dental school apps!

Now I've finally moved out of the Animal House (I'll still miss you, 1115!) and into my beautiful, clean, spacious, and fabulous new apartment with one of my good friends and previous roommates.

Dental school update:  I accepted an interview at LECOM Bradenton!  I'll be heading to Florida in mid-September for the interview, and I can't wait!  My fingers are crossed that I'll get more interviews as admissions boards have a chance to review my application.

Ann Arbor Half Marathon

Although it has nothing to do with fathers, I celebrated Fathers Day this year by running the inaugural Ann Arbor Marathon (I ran the half).  Since this was the debut of a (hopefully!) city tradition, the whole town was flooded with energy!  Locals came out to watch and cheer us on, and there were many volunteers for refreshment stations.  The energy gels they gave out were clutch, too!  The course was beautiful, as it wound through some of the best sights Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan campus have to offer.  I highly recommend any of you readers to check it out next year, if you happen to be in the midwest region!

Anyways, I PR'd by SIX MINUTES so I'm absolutely stoked about that!  I finished strong and energetic at 1:56:08.  Despite the heat and humidity from the threatening storm, I felt great throughout the run.  Miles 8-10 were the toughest for me, as they looped around the mall and there weren't nearly as many spectators cheering us on, but it seemed like everyone was feeling the same way, so we cheered our fellow runners on to head into the final 3 mile return to finish.

Unlike my last half, I had no joint pain after this one.  However, around mile 7 I started feeling a pretty gnarly blister forming between my toes and the ball of my right foot.  The endorphins eased me to the finish, but I'll have to take a good week off of training to let it heal properly.

My plan now is to continue running and finish the Woodstock Full Marathon in September!

What are your favorite races?

pizza night!

On Saturday I got lunch with a friend at a great little pizza restaurant in Ann Arbor, called Silvio's.  I ordered the vegan pesto pizza and was pleasantly surprised at how good it was!  Ever since, I've been craving a good vegan pizza, and decided to make one of my own, using Silvio's version as inspiration.

I love using pita bread as a crust, rather than buying pre-made crusts, or God help me.. make one myself (let's face it.. i'm not exactly a chef and I have about 2 square feet of counter space in my kitchen).  The following is my recipe:

Vegan Pesto Pita Pizza

1 pita loaf

2-3 tablespoons of pesto sauce (I used Williams-Sonoma basil pesto)

1 small onion, sliced

1 small roma tomato (I had a large sandwich tomato, so I took slices off of that)

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup vegan mozzerella

Bake at 450 degrees for 8-10 minutes, until cheese turns a golden color

If you haven't tried the Williams-Sonoma pesto sauce, you should.  It's honestly the best pre-made pesto I've ever tried... and I've tried many!

¡Hola!

My graduation gift from my mom and stepdad was a mother-daughter vacation to Florida!  I counted down the days until we left, left for the airport at 3am, and anticipated paradise!  Upon arrival to Chicago O'Hare, my mom told me to look up the gate for our transfer flight.  Scrolling down the screen for Flight 445, my eyes landed on our destination:  Cancún!  That's right... I was punk'd.

Our resort was about an hour down the coast from Cancún itself, between Playa del Carmen and Tulúm right on the Riviera Maya.  The resort itself was seriously the most beautiful place I've ever seen in my life!  Off the street and down a long driveway was the main lobby: a giant open-air Palapa.  The rooms were organized into separate buildings and scattered throughout the jungle, with a stone pathway leading to each one.  Our building was the closest to the beach, and a 5 minute walk to the lobby.  On the way to our room, we passed by a beautiful cenote, and came across many different species of native Mexican wildlife.  How cool?

The pool, beach, and spa were all fantastic, and the food selections were all incredible!  The resort is adults-only and all-inclusive, with incredible service and the most beautiful views of the Caribbean I've seen in any picture.

There were all kinds of activities, such as free scuba lessons (!!), pool aerobics, beach soccer/volleyball, and zumba!  The activity leaders were sourced from an Italian company, so the people-watching was pretty dreamy :)

On Wednesday, my mom and I took the ferry from Playa del Carmen to the island of Cozumel, where we took a taxi to the Chakanaab national park and went snorkeling.  If you know me, you understand that this was a serious feat for me to accomplish.  I have a crippling fear of fish, but aside from a few instances (such as being followed by a school of creepy-looking silver fish, to encountering a barracuda, face-to-face) I was totally fine.  The water was absolutely beautiful and the coral reefs were stunning!

Today was our last day in this beautiful place and I'm very sad we're leaving.  Hopefully I can make it back to this beautiful country (and the land of my ancestors!) someday soon!

The beach!

In the jungle, walking to our room.

The beautiful cenote we passed each day, walking to/from our room.

Don't worry--I wore lots of SPF!

Sipped on daquiris, piña coladas, and tequila sunrises all week!

Cozumel, from the ferry.

The ferry dock at Playa del Carmen