I think I may have figured out why I've been feeling so tired lately. This reasoning may sound strange but hear me out: I've been getting too much sleep :) I've been going to bed around 10/11pm and getting up at 7 so I've been getting between 8 and 9 hours of sleep every night. Lately, it's been harder and harder to fall asleep. So, I've been staying up until I'm tired - around midnight. And I feel more awake. Getting between 6 and 7 hours of sleep somehow makes me feel more lively, active and engaged than getting 8-9. Peculiar but...I guess my body is changing and that's the change it's decided to make: I need less sleep.

I have a dynamics GR tomorrow but I've been studying a lot - doing all the homework problems, doing at least one problem from each section, rereading the chapters the GR is based on, etc. I'm hoping that it'll pay off and I'll do well on the GR - or at least, not bomb it like I did last time. At the very least, I'm hoping that my brain doesn't freeze up like it did and I can actually do work on most of the problems.

My left eye keeps watering which makes me think there's something on my contact but I just took it out and rinsed it so...idk. They're kinda old so I guess I'll throw them out after today and just wear a new pair tomorrow... I'll take them out after class, when I get back to my room. I can wear my glasses for the rest of the day - it's not a big deal :)

We had our halloween formation today. Some people had some pretty sweet costumes but others were just silly. There were a TON of people dressed in morph suits, which was really silly. However, a couple people dressed up like LMFAO and played their music from a boombox they carried around - it was sweet! Best part, we didn't even march, we all took the hill....

Josh and I realized the other day that there are...nine pictures of the two of us. Apparently, we don't take pictures together at all... It's kinda strange considering most couple take tons of pictures. We've been dating 9.5 months (almost exactly) and we have 9 pictures together. I wish we had more pictures but that would involve either finding someone to take a picture of us, hiring someone or awkwardly taking pictures of ourselves... Whatever...maybe we can figure something out. I mean, it's honestly not a HUGE deal but still...I would prefer more pictures of us. I guess, maybe, we'll take some over Christmas...

Speaking of Christmas, I'm pretty excited and have already started Christmas shopping. It's so much work but also oh so worth it :) Figuring out what I'm going to get Josh, however, has been quite difficult. I don't really want to get him anything that has to do with the Air Force or aviation because I feel like he's probably been getting those sort of gifts for the past....four years at least. So, I'd rather get something more personal. If he moves into an apartment of his own, I'll get him some stuff for his apartment but idk. I also really like this picture of a spitfire which I would love to get for him but (a) it's rather large and I'm not sure how I would get it to him, etc. and (b) it's slightly expensive. (Because if I get it for him, I'm not getting him the little 12x14 one or whatever, I'd get the other one with the nice wood frame, etc.) So, then it's down to other things and I really can't think of what he'd like. I could get him stuff for his apartment (as I mentioned) or...I have no idea. He's pretty much impossible to buy for...and I have to think of not only a Christmas but a birthday gift as well.

He keeps talking about how excited he is for me to come out for New Years. And, I am excited too. But I'm kind of...nervous. He keeps talking about all these places he wants to go and visit and things he wants to do with me. "We'll go to downtown Seattle, and sailing, and around my island, and here and there and everywhere" It'll be fun but I'm so much more focused on getting him a present that I really can't think of anything else...

Ugh, my contact is being so annoying - I'm going to go take it out.

I love my car. :) It's so much fun :)

So, I took Josh out for dinner on Tuesday night. It was quite fun and I really enjoyed it. I got to dress up in nice jeans, heels and a nice sweater :) I definitely loved it...

On another note, it's Thursday (finally!) and I am ready for the weekend. 7 classes, 1 EI session, a run and physical therapy between me and my weekend :)

I must say, I had quite the marvelous weekend. I purchased three of my fourteen necessary Christmas presents and began thinking of the rest. I only stalled my car once (twice maybe?) and am getting much improved in my driving. I seem to be remembering that not only can you upshift but you can also downshift AND you can coast in neutral, as long as you put the clutch in before you try to slam it into gear. It doesn't like it much when you forget the clutch ;)

I also had my car detailed this past weekend so it's marvelously clean, sparkly and waxed. I may end up investing in wax myself such that I can continue to give it the clean look it deserves. Plus, it's such a lovely blue color, I want it to be noticeable!

Baked cookies and left them at Josh's house but he brought some for me this morning. Which means I had an excuse to go see him during first period when he was the only one in the room he works in. Which means I got to hug him even though we're both in a uniform.

Also this morning, I was squadron commander for morning marching. It wasn't terrible but I would've been lost had it not been for the 3* helping me out through out the marching experience. Apparently I didn't do TOO horribly although I was out of step for a good portion of it...which was slightly problematic. Especially when you're calling commands based on which foot you have on the ground, etc. Fun times...

Two more classes and then I'm done for the day. Goodie!

The weekend needs to get here stat. I need a nice long nap. 7 classes, a run and it's here.

I can' t wait :)

So, I bought my plane tickets to go visit Josh in Seattle over Christmas break. I will be flying out on 28 December at 8am and landing in Seattle at 1:30pm. I'm pretty excited but it's 68 days until I go home and then 12 days until I go see him. It's funny - I'm excited to go see him and it's not like I'm not even seeing him hahahaha...

I spent the weekend with Josh and went out to buy a car. My car, a Blue Topaz 2012 Chevrolet Cruze LT, has been called LT by me and Elsie by everyone else. :) We had a great weekend hanging out, driving, soaking in the hot tub, etc. I had fun. And then, when I drove back to USAFA, he followed me back so he could take me up to the cadet area.

When I went down this morning to move my car from one parking lot to another, I ran into Josh and he drove me back up again. He's absolutely amazing :)

36 days until I go home for Thanksgiving!

6 days until the weekend! :)

We have a football game today. It's going to take forever. I have school at random hours all throughout the day and then a football game. Just how I want to spend my day. And then we have stuff ALL day tomorrow. Ugh. I just want a break. It'll be such a late night tonight.

I guess the nice thing is that tomorrow I finish all my stuff at 1315 but can't leave until 1600 so I'll have 2.75 hours worth of studying I can complete. I plan on taking a textbook or two with me to the game so I can get some studying done then too. Pretty sweet, right? Not really, not my idea of fun but I've gotta do what I've gotta do. Studying is very necessary to me.

A paper to right, two outlines to form, 2 GRs to study for...life's good. :)

So, I took Josh home with me for the weekend. He had a chance to meet my three younger siblings, which I think was good.

The results are in:

Adrian told me "he holds his head high" which is code for "he's a good guy."

Allison "thought [I] should know, [she] approves :) "

Ian "approves of [my] boyfriend."

And Susan, of course, hasn't met him.

Josh says he'd really like to meet Susan because apparently that'll give him the key to understanding the very depths of my soul or something morbidly poetic like that. Whatever... I don't necessarily agree.

CE was pretty stupid today at school. But that's kinda because my squadron was ahead for CE. The captain in charge of CE entered our class after it was finished and told our instructor that we'd be going back to the old way of doing CE where our own AMT/AOC teaches the classes. That makes me really happy because that was absolutely the best way of doing things.

Annnnnd, I really really really can't wait for the weekend. I want to be done with all my homework so I can just go over to Josh's and relax. I think it'll work out in my favor with the no-class on Friday thing going on. Hopefully, I can just study all day on Friday and have Josh take me home with him whenever he leaves. :) And yeah. *but* Josh doesn't have work on Friday so he might have to come back and get me...

EI tomorrow for dynamics - it'll be good as I plan on doing a bunch of my homework problems in EI so it'll work out (haha...work out...homework...LOLZ).

Thermodynamics now. :)

Free at last, free at last! Thank God almighty, I'm free at last!

I've officially left the debate team. Although I imagine I'll be back in the spring, I have left the team for now. It's pretty nice to know I don't have to go to practice, etc. It's pretty sweet.

Time to study and get off academic probation too. Hopefully I'm not ordered to attend regular EI because then I can count EI as WACQs and hopefully sign out sooner on the weekends. The way it is right now, I would do homework from 3:30-10:30 on Fridays and then be able to sign out from Saturday to Sunday.