Family Day at the National Cherry Blossom Festival

The Annual National Cherry Blossom Festival took place the last few weeks (March 20 - April 14).  Tourists form other states and countries waited around for the blossom peak positions to come to fruition around April 4-6th, but nature said otherwise.  I wanted to take a trip down to the National Mall myself to snap photos of the beautiful scenery, but in light of the peak date, I waited until the last week to visit.

I invited my mom, sisters, and nieces and nephew for a family day at National Cherry Blossom Festival on last Saturday (April 13th), and boy, what a beautiful day it was!  My mom and older sister didn't have to work, my cousin from DC joined us, and we even got my little sister to come - who originally was going to stay at home.  I had the chance to spend time with family, see the Cherry Blossoms, and take beautiful photographs.

Here's how our day panned out:

Photos on the Mall (while waiting for cousin to arrive)

Visited the Museum of Natural History (for the kiddies)

Decisions: I Finally Made Up My Mind!!!

Making a decision on where I want to be and where I am supposed to be for the next 5 to 6 years is a big deal and is not an easy decision for me to make. As many of you all know, I am a recent graduate from UMBC and I applied for PhD programs for the fall of 2013. Entering the graduate school realm at a place far away from home (out-of-state) is very scary. I'd basically be starting fresh completely on my own. I know in my heart I'll be fine though. Many people have done it before me, right, and they made it out alright?

Here's the story. Mid-February acceptance letters and rejection letters started rolling around and decision time began getting shorter and shorter by the second. It seemed like forever before I started hearing back from the schools that I really was considering attending. Fast forward to mid-March, a few rejection letters later (from schools I thought I'd get into), and I finally narrowed my options down to 2 schools: Virginia Tech and the University of Pittsburgh.

Both are really amazing schools, but two major factors are costs and environment (distance from included). After many hours of comparing schools, chatting with family and friends, praying, and fasting, I went back and forth on where I wanted to go. In reality, I was asking myself the wrong questions and not thinking in the right frame of mind. What I should have been asking myself is where does God want me to go or where am I supposed to be. Today, after talking to my academic advisor, who is also a man of God, I got my answer. It was like the icing on the cake.

By the grace of God, I am elated to share that I have finally made a decision. Now I can smile without worrying what the future beholds. Wherever I go I know I will be taken care of and I will make the most of my experience. With the power vested in me, I now pronounce myself as a Hokie!!! I will be attending Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University otherwise know as Virginia Tech!!!

Let me soak that in. Whew, that was long overdue, but I had to wait on God to tell me where I was supposed to go. My patience has really been tested these past few months. Now I can move forward and proceed with filling out paperwork, applying for assistantships, and fellowships, and simply doing my part and letting God handle the rest. God is good all the time!

And with that, I can say that my decision making wasn't so bad after all.  It was all worth it in the long run.

My Favorite Fashion Colors

If you check out my Tumblr blog, you will notice that amongst all the random techy-, home design-, and faith-based things that I reblog, I like and reblog many photos of fashion ensembles.  You can take your wardrobe wherever you want if you have the following colors in your palette: Teal, Fuschia, Coral, Merlot, Grey, Green (Lime), Turquoise, Mustard, Neutral (Beige, Gold, Tans, Browns).

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the photos presented in this blog post, but you can find the original source by clicking on the links below each category.

Clothes are a powerful tool for displaying your personality and geting your point across without saying a word. It does not matter what you wear or how much you wear, but how you wear it. Confidence is everything. As long as you feel comfortable in the skin you're in, use clothes to accentuate your inner and outer beauty.

What are your favorite fashion colors?

Teal: soft, delicate, and serene

Sources: Teal 1, Teal 2, Teal 3

Reason(s) to Smile

I have so many positive and uplifting things going in my life. God is really doing wonderful works. I won't settle for allowing something or someone to steal my joy and happiness. Always take something negative and turn it into something positive. Even when things aren't looking the best, I know that everything will be alright in the end.

Attain Success Without Them & Prove Them Wrong

This is my first and by far the worst rejection letter I've ever gotten. My thing is I'm not even upset that I did not get into the school program itself. What bothers me the most is how the rejection letter is phrased. This particular excerpt rubbed me the wrong way.