New Look

I decided my blog needed a new look, maybe that'll get me to write more often...I doubt it. I just have nothing to say anymore apparently :P which makes no sense since I talk so much. There isn't much going on anyways. Working and studying and occasionally wedding planning. I may have found my dress in Sioux Falls, but I'm still keeping my options open for now, although I don't think I'm going to change my mind :) I've gone to two bridal fairs with my sister and that's been fun. I think I just want it to get here, because then I'll be able to be with Brian. Being two hours away is not easy at all.

Getting Married!!

I'm getting married!!! I can barely contain my excitement, but I'm doing pretty well at it ;) I get to plan a wedding!! I get to choose all the stuff I want and be all pretty and have my very own special day where it's all about me (and Brian will be there too!) And I already have a good head start on planning. What's nice with a place like Wayne is a lot of my friends and family friends already provide the services I need for the wedding (photographer, videographer, florist, DJ, etc). I don't have to look around for vendors because I have most of it figured out. It makes planning fairly simple, which'll be nice with everything else going on this year too. But I'm still so excited!!!!

Our wedding website: www.weddingwire.com/brianandmarisa

The Job

People have been asking what my work is, so I'll explain, maybe.

I work at Wayne State College now, in the Admissions office, which really means I have a little desk set up in the basement all by myself, with two computers to do my work. I only work part time, but I try to get 30+ hours a week so I can save all of it :P My job is to work with the Admissions office software, called EMAS Recruitment Pro. They've had this software for 5 years, but hadn't been utilizing it the best, that's what I'm supposed to help them do. EMAS keeps track of prospective students, all the information they could need about them: name, addresses, relations, schools attended, scores, interests... And just recently we added an online element, now prospective students can go to a site and request information or apply online. We're trying to go paperless...eventually. So I set up the online portion and help run the software, keep everything updated and clean and help when there are problems or new ideas or projects.

Sometimes I have way too much downtime because there's not a lot going on. Sometimes I have a ton of things to do. Right now we're working on entering in 51,000 high schools...by hand! We can't load them into the system because of records we already have in there, so that's a good time consuming job for me. Except sometimes I get into doing that all day that I don't really do anything else!

It works, for now :)

Apple pie! Apple cider! Apple cobbler! Apple anything!

This last weekend I went to an apple festival 3 miles south of Sioux Falls, SD to do some apple picking. It was my first time picking apples, and when I told mom about it she wanted some so she could make pies (yay pie!), so I attempted to find the best apples I could for her and there were plenty to pick from! And no I didn't pick any off the ground, I just tried not to trip on all of them :)

Home

I’m home indefinitely.  I got home May 14th and started working part-time at Wayne State College on May 18th :)  So I’ve been home almost 2 weeks.  And it’s still weird (there’s so many white people!)  The decision to come home was made within a 24-hour period, and then I had about 6 days to get here, so it was very rushed and very overwhelming.  I am happy to be home, I missed family and friends so much, and my past month in Taiwan hadn’t been going so well.  I just still feel out of place here sometimes.  It’s weird how easy it always is to get back into what feels normal, and yet in the back of my mind I know it’s way different than what I’ve been used to the past few years!  I do miss Taiwan a lot, I had some really awesome friends there and I think I will always be a big city girl, so coming home to Wayne, Nebraska has been a bit difficult (I miss my Starbucks and Dante Coffee shops!!!!)

But at least I have a job, even if it is only part time at the moment, it’s secure for awhile.  And I’ll be working on my MBA at the same time, so I’m excited to be going back to school.  Eventually I’ll get over the lost feelings I hope :)

SORRY :(

I WILL blog more!! Not having a computer has made it very difficult, and I feel bad for stealing my roomies laptop ALL the time :) But not having a job right now should make me get my butt in gear to blog about things. Hopefully soon my mom will send me my new laptop (the old one was to messed up to be fixed according to the Geek Squad!) and then I will post so many new things, you won't be able to read them all in one sitting!! :D Yay!

Let it snow!

I haven't seen snow (in real life, I have seen pictures) since Christmas 2006, so I was very excited to return to a Nebraska with 10 inches of snow.  Plus I was only there for two weeks, which is just long enough to enjoy it and not hate it completely :)  So of course I made sure I had an opportunity to go play in the snow, it's a must.  And I got my sister to go with me, which was extra fun when I got to throw snowballs at her.


Our backyard, where all the snow fun begins.

Momma bundling me up, I don't know how many layers I have on.

I think we're ready, I was starting to get hot in the house.

The snow was to dry to make a snowman

The snow was deep

Snow angels - I hate trying to make them because when I try to stand up it messes them all up!


Winter love


And love for all!