Just as expected, seeing my Club kids made my week.
The staff for the BGClub this summer visited Reed Elementary yesterday during recess so we could see the kids and publicize for the summer program beginning in a couple weeks. I will share a few of my favorite moments that made me laugh...
We were out at recess with the kindergartners. Keep in mind that these kids were too young to be at the club last summer...so we were complete strangers to all these little ones.
Random little boy with glasses comes up to me: "Hello, what's your name?" (umm...isn't it supposed to be ME that asks for names around here?)
Me: "Hi I'm Maren, what's your name?"
Boy: (shakes my hand)"Michael. Want to race me?"
Me: "Of course, but I must warn you, I'm really fast."
Boy: "That's okay. I'm faster."
So we race several times. Short races. But over and over again. I obviously let him win a few times, tied him a few times, and beat him by one step a few times to keep things interesting. But once after I let him win a couple times in a row, he CLEARLY made sure I won the next one. haha. What a nice little boy. Wanted me to have SOME success. Precious. Then later in our conversation...
Boy: "Maren...when my mom gets here she can get your number and then you can come over to my house and play all day because you are really fun and nice."
Awwwwww. Those little ones just melt my heart.
The most fun was when my 3rd and 4th graders from last summer came out for recess. A couple of my favorite moments with them...
Kaden: "Maren?"
Me: "Yes Kaden?"
Kaden: "Are you done with law school now?"
Me: "How do you remember that I went to law school?"
TJ: "It's easy! You're going to be a lawyer. Duh."
I don't know why it surprises me so much that my kids remembered that. I just don't expect 3rd graders to remember details about my life. Isn't that the cutest thing ever?!
(to one of my 3rd graders with a little mohawk...he thinks he's quite the ladies man...last summer he was juggling several girlfriends, a few of which were like 16 yrs old haha)
Me: "Hey Caden...this is a new hairstyle...I like it"
Caden: "Thanks."
Me: "Well, it's pretty cool...did you do it for the ladies?"
Caden: "Of course Maren."
Me: "So is it workin?"
Caden: "OH YEAH!"
(later he taught me how to raise one eyebrow...a skill he uses to give the little 3rd grade ladies his version of the blue steel look)
hahahaha. Oh man. I know these are probably not as funny to those reading who don't know these kids or aren't around kids much in general...but even writing about them is making me laugh out loud. Can't get enough. That is, until they are driving me absolutely crazy mid-summer. But until then...I LOVE IT!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Sunday, May 22, 2011
I AM: a 2L now....and home for the summer!
Ahhh I am done with my first year of law school! Super weird feeling. When I walked into my apartment after finishing my last final, my 19 yr old roommate says, "You're finished with a YEAR of law school...do you feel OLD now?" Uhhhh....well....yeah I guess now I do! Ughhh.
Being done is such a relief. Two weeks of finals. Five classes that each have a 3-4 hr long essay exam. I was on my second to last final (Property...exciting, I know) and I got so bored sitting there after about an hour. It took everything I had to force myself to focus and get something on paper. I struggled with that exam. On the last essay question I could NOT remember one of the things I needed to remember. I ended up making something up that I was actually quite proud of. Well, proud of for a little while. I made the mistake of going home and thinking "I'm going to check that in my notes really quick"....should NOT have checked my notes. It turns out the B.S. answer I had been somewhat proud of was not something to be proud of after all. So I had about 15 minutes worth of a panic attack before I remembered it's okay to maybe get a C...and maybe it won't even be a C. Sooo...I'm no longer panicking about that. BUT getting that grade just might ruin my summer. Stay tuned.
So after that fiasco I had nothing left in me for my last final. It took me about 2.5 hours and it was scheduled to be a 4 hr exam. Oops. Sorry Prof. Goble, I just didn't care for your exam. Products liability, what a bore. I think I put a couple coherent answers together. I'm hoping for 30 points on that exam. Last semester a 28 out of 200 something possible points got me a B...maybe 30 this semester will get me a glorious B+. A girl can hope! I've only had one grade disappointment/freak out so far in law school and I hope it stays that way. I've surprised myself here and there with grades and I hope I can keep that up. But what a way to ruin a summer...giving us our grades after we're already home and not caring about school anymore. Rude.
So NOW what? Well, I decided to use my first week home to relax, move back in, get situated, write a paper, and read. I thought it would be such a relaxing week. Turns out I NEED structure in my life. This week has been painfully boring and I cannot wait for this next week to begin. Starting this week I will spend a couple days in a law office, just kinda following people around and getting more familiar with things...and then the other days at the Boys and Girls Club, preparing for the summer program. Then next week I'm off to Mesa for my cousin's wedding (LaLa I cannot wait for this...soooo excited!) before coming back home and starting full time at the Club with my kids.
I am so excited to go back to working with my kids. I was going to workout a summer internship/externship in a law firm, but after a couple phone calls from my BGClub boss reminding me how fun it is and telling me they really wanted me back, I decided to spend one last summer getting paid to be a kid :) One of my favorite things is having a bunch of little 7-12 yr olds as best friends each summer. Constant entertainment.
Anyways...that was a whole lot of post for not a lot of exciting information. I'm not even going to read back through it...so I apologize for errors. Editing is not worth my time right now.
Stay tuned for summer adventures!
Being done is such a relief. Two weeks of finals. Five classes that each have a 3-4 hr long essay exam. I was on my second to last final (Property...exciting, I know) and I got so bored sitting there after about an hour. It took everything I had to force myself to focus and get something on paper. I struggled with that exam. On the last essay question I could NOT remember one of the things I needed to remember. I ended up making something up that I was actually quite proud of. Well, proud of for a little while. I made the mistake of going home and thinking "I'm going to check that in my notes really quick"....should NOT have checked my notes. It turns out the B.S. answer I had been somewhat proud of was not something to be proud of after all. So I had about 15 minutes worth of a panic attack before I remembered it's okay to maybe get a C...and maybe it won't even be a C. Sooo...I'm no longer panicking about that. BUT getting that grade just might ruin my summer. Stay tuned.
So after that fiasco I had nothing left in me for my last final. It took me about 2.5 hours and it was scheduled to be a 4 hr exam. Oops. Sorry Prof. Goble, I just didn't care for your exam. Products liability, what a bore. I think I put a couple coherent answers together. I'm hoping for 30 points on that exam. Last semester a 28 out of 200 something possible points got me a B...maybe 30 this semester will get me a glorious B+. A girl can hope! I've only had one grade disappointment/freak out so far in law school and I hope it stays that way. I've surprised myself here and there with grades and I hope I can keep that up. But what a way to ruin a summer...giving us our grades after we're already home and not caring about school anymore. Rude.
So NOW what? Well, I decided to use my first week home to relax, move back in, get situated, write a paper, and read. I thought it would be such a relaxing week. Turns out I NEED structure in my life. This week has been painfully boring and I cannot wait for this next week to begin. Starting this week I will spend a couple days in a law office, just kinda following people around and getting more familiar with things...and then the other days at the Boys and Girls Club, preparing for the summer program. Then next week I'm off to Mesa for my cousin's wedding (LaLa I cannot wait for this...soooo excited!) before coming back home and starting full time at the Club with my kids.
I am so excited to go back to working with my kids. I was going to workout a summer internship/externship in a law firm, but after a couple phone calls from my BGClub boss reminding me how fun it is and telling me they really wanted me back, I decided to spend one last summer getting paid to be a kid :) One of my favorite things is having a bunch of little 7-12 yr olds as best friends each summer. Constant entertainment.
Anyways...that was a whole lot of post for not a lot of exciting information. I'm not even going to read back through it...so I apologize for errors. Editing is not worth my time right now.
Stay tuned for summer adventures!
Monday, April 11, 2011
How Embarrassing...
So…I am sitting in my bed. It’s 10 pm on a Monday night. I have just realized that this day blows. It feels like there has been 3 different days in this one day alone. I don’t know why. Law school does funny things to my brain sometimes. There doesn’t seem to be a whole lot to look forward to here on out this semester…so instead of thinking about that, I decided I should blog. It’s been too long. I apologize to those that have been waiting and requesting…I just haven’t had it in me. But here I am now! And boy do I have some stories for your entertainment (at least…I hope they entertain you…cuz I laugh about them quite often).
This is my “you know you’ve been in law school too long when….” post.
1. One day last semester I was reading what felt like hundreds of pages for torts. I came along a word I was not familiar with… “destined” …I spent a good 3 minutes trying to decide what “de-styned” meant. I was about to google the definition when it occurred to me that the word was not “de-styned”, it was “destined”. WOW Maren. So glad I didn’t get to the googling of the term. How embarrassing.
2. Around the time my trial brief was due, I often found myself not being able to focus on a single task. One afternoon I got to school and parked in one of the front spots by the school. After ONE CLASS (yes, only about one hour later), I walked out to go home and I could NOT remember where I had parked. I couldn’t think about it clearly, so for some reason I walked myself all the way up the hill to the Kibbie Dome lot (not a terrible walk, but definitely out of the way). Welp, then I realized I had parked right in front that day. What do you do when you realize? There are people around and you have to act like you forgot something, or kinda throw your hands up and do an “oh stupid me” look as you turn around and head back down the hill to your car. Oopsie. How embarrassing.
3. I have one pen that I absolutely love. It’s not special…it’s a free pen from some hotel from my volleyball playing days…but I prefer my notes to be written with it. Well one morning I got to class and had a private panic attack…my pen was gone. Checked my bag, went back down to my desk…no pen. I had to use a stupid pen for notes that day. Middle of my second class, I reach up to tighten my ponytail and guess what I found?! My pen. Used it to put my hair up while reviewing notes before classes that morning. Panicked for nothing. How embarrassing.
4. I was watching an NCAA bball tourney game and one of my friends said it was cool that Virginia had several teams in the tournament. She named a few before I added, “WVU”. Yes, I added West Virginia University to the list of Virginia schools. We just looked at each other for a moment and started laughing. West Virginia happens to be its own state. Good work, Maren. How embarrassing.
5. I wrote “do ‘ nt” in my margins instead of “don’t” (I’ve misplaced apostrophes several times in my notes).
6. I legitimately tried to plug in my computer charger backwards (the side that should be in the outlet into my computer, and the computer plug-in into the outlet). Took me a minute to realize why things weren’t working out.
7. I was editing my appellate brief and I made a correction that I no longer wanted there…guess what I did?! I used white-out to fix it. Yes, I used white-out to fix my fixes. Who does that? HOW….EMBARRASSING.
8. At least I'm not alone. My friend woke up one morning and was barricaded into her bedroom. No recollection of how it happened. This is what happens around the time briefs are due. Also...she was reading through her brief and passed right over an important mistake a few times. Luckily she finally caught it. Instead of "Agent Beckett", she had "Action Beckett" in an important heading. Some things shouldn't be looked over...but often are. Seems fine.
This is my “you know you’ve been in law school too long when….” post.
1. One day last semester I was reading what felt like hundreds of pages for torts. I came along a word I was not familiar with… “destined” …I spent a good 3 minutes trying to decide what “de-styned” meant. I was about to google the definition when it occurred to me that the word was not “de-styned”, it was “destined”. WOW Maren. So glad I didn’t get to the googling of the term. How embarrassing.
2. Around the time my trial brief was due, I often found myself not being able to focus on a single task. One afternoon I got to school and parked in one of the front spots by the school. After ONE CLASS (yes, only about one hour later), I walked out to go home and I could NOT remember where I had parked. I couldn’t think about it clearly, so for some reason I walked myself all the way up the hill to the Kibbie Dome lot (not a terrible walk, but definitely out of the way). Welp, then I realized I had parked right in front that day. What do you do when you realize? There are people around and you have to act like you forgot something, or kinda throw your hands up and do an “oh stupid me” look as you turn around and head back down the hill to your car. Oopsie. How embarrassing.
3. I have one pen that I absolutely love. It’s not special…it’s a free pen from some hotel from my volleyball playing days…but I prefer my notes to be written with it. Well one morning I got to class and had a private panic attack…my pen was gone. Checked my bag, went back down to my desk…no pen. I had to use a stupid pen for notes that day. Middle of my second class, I reach up to tighten my ponytail and guess what I found?! My pen. Used it to put my hair up while reviewing notes before classes that morning. Panicked for nothing. How embarrassing.
4. I was watching an NCAA bball tourney game and one of my friends said it was cool that Virginia had several teams in the tournament. She named a few before I added, “WVU”. Yes, I added West Virginia University to the list of Virginia schools. We just looked at each other for a moment and started laughing. West Virginia happens to be its own state. Good work, Maren. How embarrassing.
5. I wrote “do ‘ nt” in my margins instead of “don’t” (I’ve misplaced apostrophes several times in my notes).
6. I legitimately tried to plug in my computer charger backwards (the side that should be in the outlet into my computer, and the computer plug-in into the outlet). Took me a minute to realize why things weren’t working out.
7. I was editing my appellate brief and I made a correction that I no longer wanted there…guess what I did?! I used white-out to fix it. Yes, I used white-out to fix my fixes. Who does that? HOW….EMBARRASSING.
8. At least I'm not alone. My friend woke up one morning and was barricaded into her bedroom. No recollection of how it happened. This is what happens around the time briefs are due. Also...she was reading through her brief and passed right over an important mistake a few times. Luckily she finally caught it. Instead of "Agent Beckett", she had "Action Beckett" in an important heading. Some things shouldn't be looked over...but often are. Seems fine.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
My cousin is BACCKKK!
BRYCE IS HOMEEEEE!!! What a great weekend it was for us Ericsons. Poor Bryce was ambushed by a bunch of crazy siblings and cousins...but he handled it very well. I am so happy to have him back...but super bummed that I'm away at school. And even more sad...both him and his sister, Malea, will head to BYU-I for the summer session in April and will be gone when we are back for the summer. Bummer. But I just thought I'd post a couple pics from the weekend. Cannot wait for an Ericson gathering this summer. COUSINS: Harry Potter party better happen. I will be so disappointed if we don't get it done! I am keeping my fingers crossed for this reunion to happen.
Monday, December 27, 2010
What?! 2010 is over?
Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays/all that good stuff. Man, it's good to be home and with family. I can guarantee that my family is THE coolest, funniest, smartest, most fun, awesomest family ever. It is amazing how much I laugh each day when I'm home. I love them so much and I'm grateful we're all able to be together for the holidays. I love the games, sleepovers, talks, jokes, classic movie watching (the Mighty Ducks trilogy, Heavyweights, The Grinch...you know, all the good ones), eating, and cousin time. Life is good.
Christmas Lights in Lewiston (where Shelly's from)Moscow has been good as well. My roommates and I get along great and it has been a joy getting to know them throughout the semester. It is like living with sisters for sure. We have learned to "agree to disagree" on a lot of things. I am so glad I have them though. Always someone I can come home and talk to after a long day at school. They are so funny and keep me entertained (that is, when I'm not entertaining them with my song and dance skills).
Got my roomies in some BSU gear!
Shelly snapped a pic of me studying at home. This used to be a usual occurrence...then I got bored of studying...so I don't. Usually spend my whole day at school studying and don't do a single thing once I get home.
As for school....it's a lot of work. The nerd inside of me absolutely loves it, but the rest of me gets tired of reading, studying, preparing for class, etc. I think I underestimated the amount of work law school would really be. I thought the content would be harder, but the work would be less. I'm surprised that the stuff I'm learning isn't hard...but staying on top of the work is. I survived my first semester of finals (well...hopefully). We get our grades back mid-january. Soooo lame. We stress for finals, then forget about it, then have to stress all over again when grades come out. I felt alright about 3 of my 4 exams, but not so great about 1. The finals were intense. 4 hours long and they are the ONLY grade we get for the semester. Ahhh! Property is the only exam that i'm legitimately worried about. It was one of those exams where you stare at the questions and the facts for so long, just hoping that something will come to you. I think I ended up doing fine, but I don't feel confident about it at all. I guess we'll see.
It's been an excellent year and I'm excited for 2011. I can't believe I keep getting older and older. Going on the big 2-4 pretty soon. Probably should think about being more mature and adult. I'll get on that. Next year.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
I'm Still Living!
Well, well, well. I've spent only two weeks in Moscow and I feel like I've been here FOREVER. Could we please speed up the pace a bit? I have been through one week of law school. ONE WEEK. There are a lot of students celebrating this fact...but I just wonder why the one week took so long and ask myself why we're celebrating so prematurely. Big whoop people...we've got like 15 ish weeks more til Christmas break. Then maybe I'll celebrate...if I'm still alive to celebrate after finals.
We had about 5 people take off during orientation week, and 1 more this week. Droppin like flies! haha. So I guess it's a good thing that I've only had one snippit of time that I considered packin it up, sprinting out of class, and hoppin in the car to head right on home...don't worry, I stayed in class. Instead of leaving, I just sent up some extra prayers to not get called on for an answer. I guess I sent up plenty of prayer...cuz I didn't get called on once ALL week. Not even when I had my hand raised to answer a question voluntarily...teachers would look straight at me and choose a different raised hand. How rude. Once I even had a super genious comment to share that I considered not sharing...then raised my hand...didn't get called on...at the end of class the professor made the same comment (as his conclusion of the discussion) I would've shared. Not fair. So maybe I should refine my prayers and be more specific. haha
School is pretty much my life right now since I haven't met a whole lot of BFFs yet. I absolutely love my roommates and consider myself very lucky to have ended up with them. I laugh every day about something that goes on at home. It's a great time...and really nice to get away from the law school and the people in it.
I was called today to be a Relief Society teacher. In my life, I have only served in maybe one or two callings outside of the Relief Society. I guess it's just my life's calling. Sheesh. But I don't mind teaching RS. I actually quite enjoy it cuz I get to do the lessons my way.
Otherwise, I'm just truckin along. Still feeling a little out of place...but getting used to things. I just keep reminding myself I've only been here two weeks. Lots of school, stress, studying, and hopefully FUN ahead of me.
We had about 5 people take off during orientation week, and 1 more this week. Droppin like flies! haha. So I guess it's a good thing that I've only had one snippit of time that I considered packin it up, sprinting out of class, and hoppin in the car to head right on home...don't worry, I stayed in class. Instead of leaving, I just sent up some extra prayers to not get called on for an answer. I guess I sent up plenty of prayer...cuz I didn't get called on once ALL week. Not even when I had my hand raised to answer a question voluntarily...teachers would look straight at me and choose a different raised hand. How rude. Once I even had a super genious comment to share that I considered not sharing...then raised my hand...didn't get called on...at the end of class the professor made the same comment (as his conclusion of the discussion) I would've shared. Not fair. So maybe I should refine my prayers and be more specific. haha
School is pretty much my life right now since I haven't met a whole lot of BFFs yet. I absolutely love my roommates and consider myself very lucky to have ended up with them. I laugh every day about something that goes on at home. It's a great time...and really nice to get away from the law school and the people in it.
I was called today to be a Relief Society teacher. In my life, I have only served in maybe one or two callings outside of the Relief Society. I guess it's just my life's calling. Sheesh. But I don't mind teaching RS. I actually quite enjoy it cuz I get to do the lessons my way.
Otherwise, I'm just truckin along. Still feeling a little out of place...but getting used to things. I just keep reminding myself I've only been here two weeks. Lots of school, stress, studying, and hopefully FUN ahead of me.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
World Cup Happiness
Have you been watching the World Cup? I'm not a fan of watching soccer in real life necessarily...but the World Cup is different. It's somehow really exciting. I tense up everytime the ball gets close to the goal...even though it hardly ever goes IN. I guess any game that is played on such a grand stage is exciting.
Okay...this video makes me want to play soccer / dance with Shakira and all her friends. How do I get myself in this video? It makes me happy. I love a good highlight video. Enjoy :)
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