Geez it's been a long while since I've posted...anything.

Oh my gosh. Hello bloggers!! So, the past three years have been, well...a little nutty, to say the least.

Let me just list a few events that have taken place over the past three years--nothing too deep into detail; just a few key happenings...in bullet fashion to catch y'all up. Here goes:


- Made it through Grad School! Yes, I can now officially introduce myself as Cassandra Nafziger, MSW.

- Marriage to my love is better than ever these days...we have made it through, amazingly, a rough couple of years and are now stronger than ever and the closest we have ever been. We both made some pretty bad choices over the past 2 years and I don't want to go into detail but it's amazing to me how resilient and strong my husband is and I'm very proud of all that he has accomplished. We have wonderful, awesomely supportive family and friends to thank.

 - I have reunited with my best friend and we are closer than we ever were. I'm so excited to announce that she is pregnant with her second child, and is soon to be married to her love & I CANNOT express in words how ridiculously excited I am to be a part of these amazing events in her life.

- My husband & I both landed new jobs...and we will soon be looking into buying our first home. EEK! What's exciting about my job is that it's in town...it's been many years since I've found a job in town. I've commuted for a long time and I'm looking forward to the super short trip to and from work. Not only is the commute awesome, but both of our jobs offer benefits! We have not had medical insurance for years...and now we have secondary insurance!

-My sister & her boyfriend were married my first year in Grad School but didn't have the chance to hold a wedding ceremony until last month. The ceremony was beautiful and sooooo worth the wait!! I was so happy to be able to finally witness my gorgeous sister walk down the isle. I don't know if she realized how important the ceremony and having friends and family witness such a life event was until the big day.

I have to say, things are looking up at an almost overwhelming pace and I am so thankful for everyone I have in my life and for all of the help, guidance, and love I have all around me. I'm so lucky.

This Past Week...

I cannot believe it is already August...this year is going by so quickly that I can hardly keep up. August is a super busy month for me and my family: we have the hub's bday, my best friend's sister's bday, my sister's bday, and my best friend's bday...all the while getting ready for school by purchasing ridiculously expensive textbooks and school clothes, not to mention I have to pay out of pocket (no medical insurance) for blood tests, vaccines, and drug tests that must be submitted to the hospital in order to clear me for my internship that begins in September. Anyway, here a few things that happened this week (not necessarily in this order):

Made a few cards...

Organized and de-cluttered my scrapbooking/crafting supplies...ignore the carpet that is desperately in need of a vacuuming. 

Got in some much needed scrapbooking and there is only 1 page left to work on in my scrapbook--so this means it's about time to buy a new one! I've worked on this for the past year or 2.

Also worked on a 21st birthday gift for my sister...with my youngest sister, lol. She's going to love it and I can't wait for her to open it in front of everyone at her party! She's going to be excited, embarrassed, and happy all at one time--it's going to be awesome!



I used tape on my big toes to paint stripes in different colors and I love how it turned out! I will definitely use this trick again in the near future.

Birthday pics coming soon!



Life Lately

Because I am soooo bad at blogging about random, daily happenings and things that go on regulary--here is kind of a mix of life happenings lately.

1. Scout--my sister in law's doggie

2. A little lizard I made friends with on a hike

3. Windmills heading down Highway 62 in Desert Hot Springs, CA

4. Chicken--I couldn't decide on 1 seasoning so I made 2 with lemon pepper, 2 with chicken grill rub and 1 with just garlic salt, onion, salt and pepper. They were delicious!

5. My friend Randi and her daughter, Melody--such a stinker!

6. The crafting/coffee table Randi and I were painting. In this pic, we had just finished taping a design on it. We painted the table white so the wood would still show through the design.

7. Me cowgirlin' it up in Randi's backyard

8. Birds waiting for their birdseed in my boss' backyard

9. Me...with bangs that are too short, lol. I can't wait until they grow in a bit.

10. My nightstand that is piling up with books that I need to read--I just can't get motivated lately.

11. Orange, sparkly finger nails! I painted them orange and put glitter as a top coat. I normally dislike things with glitter on them--but I love wearing glitter on my nails!

12. This is the closest our bed EVER gets to being made...usually it's just a big pile of blankets and pillows.

Hope you had an amazing weekend! Any plans for next weekend? Me...uh, not too sure yet but I plan to do a little shopping soon--I must get ready for school and internship!

Morning Views

These are things I see every morning...

If I don't see them, my day is all off.

Yesterday I woke up late so I didn't get to make coffee before I headed out to school--and by the time 1p rolled around, man I had the worst headache! As soon as I grabbed a cup of joe at the kiosk near the library and took a couple of sips--POOF! My headache was gone.

Uhm, coffee dependant? Yes, I admit I have a problem. But I'm a functioning coffee-aholic, so I won't be detoxing anytime soon.

Lol.

Anyway, currently my days are filled with finishing projects and working on presentations.

But, what keeps me going is the realization that I only have 2 more class meetings and I'm FREE--until September. Then it starts all over again. Only it will be more intense with an added internship on top of class work and my regular job.

Life is about to get very interesting.



Catching Up...in Photos

Gorgeous Joshua Tree

 Feet...mine of course.

Creepy Tree... 

Bottlecap magnets and a pin that I've made recently 

Awesome cloudy sky 

Our little friend Beast passed away a few weekends ago. We loved him for about 4 years--we miss him dearly. 

Cute, funky statues at the Off-Road rental place in the lower desert. We stopped by to say hello--

Cory has done some work for the owner. 

Whitewater, CA--gorgeous place, right off the I-10.  

On the way to work...don't worry--I hadn't left the driveway yet. 

 A natural spring on the backway to Big Bear, CA

 A lovely quiche I made a few weekends ago--delish!!

artichoke hearts

squash

garlic

onion

sun-dried tomatoes

mushrooms

pepper jack

cheddar

bacon

eggs

cresent rolls for crust

**sometimes I add diced green chiles, but I completely forgot about that until just now. I guess I'll have to make another one!

Latest Happenings in My Crazy World

Oh my gosh...I'm a terrible blogger. Life has been so crazy this past year--with school especially. It's totally sucked up all of my time and energy. I'm nearing the end (few weeks left) of the first quarter of my MSW program at CSUSB and I'm dying a little bit inside because I wish my life were different.

I'm so tired of being stuck--or feeling stuck. I want my life to start already...I'm probably just being impatient but I don't know if I can mentally handle 2 more years living with family. It's not my family that's driving me insane, it's my own need to have space and to have my own house. I desperately want my own kitchen and the freedom to decorate as I wish. I'm trying so hard not to come across as ungrateful because the invitation to live here has helped me tremendously with school and saving money when I can, especially with the cost of school, my car, and gas. I'm just having a difficult time adjusting to the fact that I can't have a house or live my own life until I'm finished with school (2 yrs. from now) and have an awesome job with benefits. 

Then there are my student loans...

It's never ending. 

And I tell myself that it's not going to be like this forever. It's just for the time-being. But it only numbs the eagerness, despair, and anxiety for a short time. Then once again, I'm beating myself up about choosing to go back to school. But in reality and in the long run, it's the only way I will ever break away from welfare--which my family has lived our entire life on. 

I just want to do everything in my power to do well for my husband and I. And someday, I want to be able to buy a house and to be able to give my family things they have always wanted and could never have. Just little things.

It helps to just get it all out sometimes. 

When I write, I can say everything--without judgement or interruption. I'm sure I'll get out of the slump I'm in soon enough. But it always re-visits me.

Thanks for listening. 

For the time-being...and the next 2 years, I'll continue to spend most of my time on the computer, writing, reading, and working on presentations...as long as I can pay for it. 

Don't even get me started on the issue of student loans and grants that may not be available to grad students in next year or so.  

Awkward Outfit Post

It's been a super long time since I've done an outfit post--and I hardly do them anyway since I'm so awkward...and my timer really isn't working that great on my camera at the moment :(

So, I am super in love with this awesome greenish yellow sweater I found at Target last night for $5.95!!! I couldn't pass it up. Also in love with these nifty new flats from target--but I found them brand new at Goodwill last night also!

I found a few other nifty things at Goodwill but more on that later--I'm off to the dentist, AGAIN for another root canal.

Yay.

Then I head of on my hour + drive to San Bernardino for class.

And somehow I have to squeeze in some reading for homework since I fell asleep last night when I planned on staying up to study. Story of my life at the moment.

Happy Thursday!

New Year...New Quarter...

So, classes have begun...and I felt I needed a mini make-over to start off the new quarter.

Things were getting a bit drab over here.

Love this hair color brand by the way...it smells delicious and it's vibrant!

So, this photo doesn't really show the awesome difference the hair color accomplished...cause it was blurry and then I played with it in photobucket and didn't save the original photo. Ooops. But I love my hair now, that's all that matters. :)

Oh! And even though I got a ton of awesome colored nail polish for Christmas, I went ahead and bought another awesome color: lavender...because I have been craving this color FOREVER.

And, I've really got to stop messing with these photos--you can hardly see the color of the NP.

Now, it's back to my homework...this quarter just may be the death of me. There are non-stop reading materials to study, take notes on and discuss...not to mention some pretty time consuming group projects ahead. Did I mention I'm only in the part-time Master's program?

Yeah, I don't even want to think about what it would be like if I were going full-time.

Yikes!