Precious Moments

Thanksgiving Stuff

2011-11-21T11:18:00.001-07:00

It is almost thanksgiving and we are making many different fall and thanksging themed projects at school. The kids seem to be loving it. Wednesday I think I will bring some baked goods and maybe even a healthy snakc for the kids to eat a pre thanksgiving meal for. Here are some pictures of nice projects they have made:

A well lived life :')

2011-11-17T20:12:00.001-07:00

Our loved ones inspire us to....

2011-11-17T19:16:00.001-07:00

Pet Store :)

2011-07-01T03:16:00.000-07:00

You Are Beautiful!!!

2011-06-18T19:28:00.000-07:00

The days will come when you don't have the strength
When all you hear is you're not worth anything
Wondering if you ever could be loved
And if they truly saw your heart they'd see too much

You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are made so much more than all of this
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are treasured, You are sacred, You are His
You're beautiful

I'm praying that you have the heart to find
Cause you are more than what is hurting you tonight
For all the lies you've held inside so long
And they are nothing in the shadow of the cross

You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are made so much more than all of this
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are treasured, You are sacred, You are His
You're beautiful

Before you ever took a breath
Long before the world began
Of all the wonders He possessed
There was one more precious
Of all the earth and skies above
You're the one He madly loves
Enough to die

You're beautiful
You're beautiful
In His eyes

You're beautiful
You were meant for so much more than all of this
You're beautiful
You are treasured, You are sacred, You are His
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You're meant for so much more than all of this
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are treasured, You are sacred, You are His

JC Penney

2011-06-15T15:03:00.001-07:00

$19 on "sale" in the US, but probably 19 pesos in Mexico!

The first hat is my favorite.

Forever 21

2011-06-15T14:41:00.001-07:00

My favorite clothing store and the biggest in Arizona. It's 2 stories, too!

I want to make a dress like this one.

Our cheesecake

2011-06-15T13:58:00.002-07:00

We first ordered some mango, experimental one that wasn't on the menu; it was awful. Alan gave it one star. We sent it back for the white chocolate macadamia nut one :)

Cheesecake Factory

2011-06-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

Alan and I are waiting for our lunch at the cheesecake factory right now. His mom gave us a gift card back in april when it was my birthday :)

Summer Is Here... Almost :)

2011-05-20T19:39:00.001-07:00

That means that our vacation is getting closer :)

Almost to the finish line...

2011-05-11T00:46:00.000-07:00

I am at the halfway mark when it comes to finishing up finals for the semester!!! So jealous that Stevie and half the rest of the world is done but I am finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. So far I am doing great on everything but the hardest ones are ahead. Send happy thoughts my way if you see this within the next few days. I will post sometime this weekend or next week about how everything goes. I might take a Chem summer class because I love it so much and don't want to loose the info but more on that later on. Back to furiously studying and then getting some sleep :)

Resolutions for the New Year

2010-12-31T13:16:00.011-07:00

1. Get in Shape

l do not really need to loose weight since I am at a perfect weight for my height but I want to get stronger

2. Do well in School

I worked really hard and accomplished a lot this semester and hope to do even better in the next few

3. Take a Ballet Class

I am going to start taking a Dance conditioning class next month and which will hopefully get me in shape so that I can take a Ballet class this Summer or Fall

4. Keep Procrastination In Check

I have gotten much better at this and the last finals round was definitely the least stressful EVER but there is still room for improvement and I just want to keep this in mind

5. Get involved in Youth Ministry

I want to look around for a strong youth group to get involved with in Tucson

6. Volunteer at an Elementary School

I miss the teeny ones they are so sweet :)

7. Help at a Food Kitchen

At least once a month this was one of my favorite activities in high school

8. Learn to Sew

I am taking a class next month and I am totally new to it aside from poorly hemming some pants and attaching some buttons... hopefully this works out since my self teaching has not worked out at all :(

9. Crafts and such

I have been wanting to work on a scrapbook as well as a couple of other projects and painting and I want to work on decorations for the different seasons, and holidays, first up will be St Valentines Spring and Easter I suppose...

10.Devotional Reading

Slowly read trough some sort of spiritual and/or inspiring book a couple of times a week and hopefully blog about it as well

And most importantly I want to RELAX and not STRESS OUT!!! I hope to remember to appreciate the little things in life that make it so amazing even when everything seems so out of my control :)

Fireworks!!! And Roses :)

2010-12-30T21:26:00.000-07:00

It is legal to use fireworks here in Mesa now and Steve Alan and I have purchased a good amount and variety from Walmart and a little stand that was outside of the Albertsons near our house. there is a couple larger ones but not super huge expensive ones and then we got a package of three that come with their stakes. after that there is about a dozen of the mini types that come in one of those small packages. My mom was totally scared because she thinks that they will surely set everything on fire but we of course have promised to be very careful. We are really excited because we have not gotten to use fireworks since we a were kids. Even my dad is really excited. And Alan of course can not wait because he wants to document the whole thing with pictures and video. It should be great fun!!! I will post pictures as soon as possible afterwards. Aside from that I am also really looking forward to the Tournament of Roses Parade which will air on New Years Day.

Church Consecration Cermony

2010-12-23T14:23:00.000-07:00

The Mater Misericordiae Mission has officially consecrated their new church :) Here are a few Pictures from the event December 21, 2010

Church Fiesta

2010-12-23T14:09:00.001-07:00

Last month we had the yearly parish fiesta at Holy Family, there was lost of food, a rummage sale and fun for the kids.

Mariachi Music

Rummage Sale

Train

Fiddle Music

Cowboy Contest

More Mariachi Music

End of the Semester :)

2010-12-23T13:10:00.000-07:00

So school is out for the year, finals are done, so are final projects, and pleasing grades have begun to trickle in. So it is finally time to relax a little and have some fun. We are in Mesa now and it is great to finally get to see my family after a semester long of Saturday classes which did not allow for weekend getaways. I have a Christmas present for my parents and an idea for Stevie's. I am considering baking a whole bunch of Christmas cookies but maybe no since my mom seriously hates it when people mess up her kitchen (seriously OCD) and most of all she hates when people bake, so we will see. Their Christmas tree is up and beautiful and the whole house is decorated in Holiday cheer :) It really feels like Christmas is coming, even the weather has been slightly colder and rainy without being awful like California seems to be right now. What I am the most excited about is the fact that fireworks are now legal in Arizona so they are selling them at the Walmart and the Sam's Club, probably many other stores but I have just seem them at Walmart and heard that Sam's Club has them too. So this year will prove to be a very exciting New Years Eve celebration :) For Christmas we are planning to go to Anthem where my mom's sister lives. For New Years we will probably either spend time with my dads side of the family or do something on our own, either way there will be fireworks involved.

The Human Experience

2010-12-11T14:02:00.001-07:00

Familism - The New Familism

Waiting for Superman Trailer

2010-12-09T12:45:00.002-07:00

An Interesting Notation for Solving Equations

2010-12-05T18:34:00.000-07:00

I just found this via Math Teachers at Play...

Carolin's Notation for Solving Equations

Carolin is a student from Germany. I don't know if it's used in all Europe and this is not how I was thought but it sounds pretty interesting. I like this much better in comparison to the step skipping I always see from teachers and students in the United States.

Basically, you note in "the right side margin" what you're going to do to both sides of the equation in your next step. The "margin" is made by writing a vertical line to the far right of your actual equation solving process.


6x - 5 = 2x      | -2x

4x - 5 = 0       | +5

    4x = 5       | ÷4

     x = 5/4

I just wanted to pass this on in case some of you who are teaching how to solve equations find it useful with students.

A book on education crisis

2010-12-05T18:31:00.000-07:00

I'm just passing on a link that some of you might be interested in. I found it interesting -- a math teacher (Larry Zafran) telling his story of teaching math in an inner city high school in New York in the early 2000s. It appears not much was able to be done but to try to survive and get through the day while presenting the official curriculum topics in class, at least on the board.

http://www.larryzafran.com/education-crisis-book.htm

Fall 2010 Semester

2010-11-20T17:24:00.000-07:00

This semester has been a really busy one, story of my life. Mostly because of school and especially now that my Math and Developmental Psychology classes have begun. For the math class we are using Math for Elementary School Teachers by Bassarear to be honest I am not too impressed by the book, but the class itself is quite good. I am glad to see that they are making the necessary changes to improve the way in with Mathematics is thought as well as raising our expectations from children. They are just capable of so much more that many people are willing to accept. My professor is actually rewriting this particular class for all the schools in AZ and she will be making it a 4 semester class instead of the 2 semester class it currently is. I think that she is right to do this because there is just so much to cover, especially when you think about the fact that we are trying to learn how to teach students from prekindergarten to eight grade, it is grossly unjust to devote only two semesters. It is especially bothersome to hear some of my fellow classmates say that oh well I will only be teaching kindergarten or first grade so I do not really need to know this. It makes me cringe because I honestly believe that they are the ones that will be setting the foundation upon which I will only build in later years. If said foundation is weak then the students will not be prepared for my math lessons and I will be devoting my time to trying to catch them up instead of getting them ahead. And besides if they look at it through a developmental psychology lens they would understand that there are developmental milestones at which students NEED to learn certain things. Which leads my to my super amazing developmental psychology class for which I am reading Invitation to the Lifespan by Berger which is a really impressive book. In fact I love it and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning psychology throughout the lifespan. She has also written another lengthier book on the same subject which I hear is even better and more in depth but so long it is difficult to use for a one semester course such as this. Again it would be great for anyone seriously interested in the subject. The one I am reading is very thoughtful, very well written and engaging never boring at all. For this class I have been doing a lot of reading both from the book and scientific articles assigned as well as finding and reading my own sources for my papers. It is a 8 week class condensed from a regular 16 week class but of course we still do everything we would have done in a 16 week course. Which means that I am reading and writing non stop but not complaining since it is fun and there is no time to complain anyway. I am writing one long essay a week and 4 short papers in addition to two chapter quizzes each week. Interestingly enough I think I spend the same or more on my Math classwork. My nutrition and philosophy classes are also going very well and getting heavier and heavier as the semester goes on so I am relieved that it is almost over! It is interesting how it always feels like we do so much less the first two months of the semester than we do the last 6 weeks. I am hanging on though and really enjoying myself as I do it, there truly is not other way to get through it. My math teacher thinks that I should definitely aim to get a Mathematics endorsement, which I really think I would enjoy, it would mean that I would have to take a couple more classes but it would be worth it. Okay thats were I am at for now, soon I will be hearing back about my application hopefully I got into the grad school and I can start in January :)

Studying this Saturday night and Microbiology Notes

2010-10-02T22:36:00.001-07:00

Alan and I both have test on Monday. His is an actual lecture midterm and mine is a Lab Midterm which is still pretty important. We have been studying all afternoon and here is a nice summary of the first three labs I did. I also did a capsule, spore and acid fast staining. I took my lab practical a week and a half ago and it went great!!! I identified the organism and all its characteristics correctly. However, one hint underline the name of the organism at the end. When handwriting it is not enough to capitalize you also have to underline since when typing you always use italics. I lost points for that mistake although everything else was perfect. It made me feel awful not to get 100% due to overlooking something so simple which our professor had warned us plenty about. Anyway I hope that helps you not do it too :)

Basic Microbiology Lab notes

Bacteria

Bacteria are the smallest living organisms. The prokaryotic kingdom includes heterotrophic and autotrophic forms. Some bacteria are useful, some are pathogens, and some cause stored food to deteriorate.

Classification of Bacteria

One way of classifying bacteria is by its shape:

Another way is by how they group:

These are just the basic examples and each group divides even further.

Most filamentous bactera are photosynthetic. They were previously named blue-green algae, but now called Cyanobacteria
The shape of bacteria is due to their rigid cell wall which contains peptidoglycan (aka murein) made up of molecules of polysaccharides cross-linked by amino-acid side-chains, polypeptides. this cross-linking provides strength, gives shape to the cell and the wall protects against osmotic lysis (which is a plasmolysis-like process)

Bacterial Cell Walls - Another type of Bacteria Classification

The Gram Stein technique can distinguish between two types of bacteria: Gram Positive and Gram Negative.
In Gram Negative bacteria, peptidolycan supplemented by large molecules of lippopolysaccharide protect the cell. The cell cannot retain dyes such as crytal violet. They also are not affected by the antibacterial enzyme lysozyme, which is present in human tears. They are also resistant to penecillin, which is an antibiotic made from the penicillium plants which interferes with the bacterium's ability to make a cell wall, ∴ they cannot divide, and finally die when the cell wall ruptures. An example of Gram Negative bacteria is Salmonella.
Gram Positive bacteria lack lippopolysaccharide in their cell walls. They retain crystal-violet dye. They are more susceptible to antibiotics and lysozyme than gram negative bacteria. Examples of Gram Positive bacteria include Staphylococcus aureus, Strephococcus and Bacillus.

Conditions Necessary For Growth

MicroOrganisms reproduce quickly in suitable conditions - numbers may double in as little as 20 minutes in optimum conditions. Organisms differ in their requirements, usually growing over a range of temperatures and pH values, favouring their optimum.

Nutrients
- Carbon (Usually Glucose)
- Nitrogen (Organic & Inorganic to produce amino acids during protein synthesis
- Vitamins & mineral salts (growth factors)
Temperature
- Growth normally regulated by enzymes. Range of 25-45℃ is favourable for most bacteria. Optimum for mammalian pathogens ~ 37℃
pH
- Most bacteria favour slightly alkaline conditions (pH 7.4) - Fungi prefer neutral-acidic conditions
Oxygen
- Need oxygen for metabolism - obligate aerobes
- Some grow better wih oxygen but can live without it - facultitive anaerobes
- Some cannot grow in the presence of oxygen - obligate anaerobes
  - Clostridium are obligate anaerobes that produce toxins in a wound which destroy body tissue - moist gangrene.

The Typical Sigmoid Population Curve

Lag Phase: Growth is slow at first, while the bacteria acclimatise to the food and nutrients in their new habitat - take up water, produce enzymes and carry out protein synthesis.
Log/Exponential Phase:Once the metabolic machinary is running, they start multiplying exponentially, doubling in number every few minutes.
Stationary Phase: As more and more bacteria are competing for dwindling food & nutrients, booming growth and the number of bacteria stablises. New cell-production rate = death rate, so no population increase. Population reaches carrying capacity, limit to the number of individuals an area can support
Death Phase: Toxic waste products build up, food is depleted and the rate of death is greater than the rate of new-cell production - the population decreases.

Methods of Measuring Growth

Population in liquid culture can be measured by counting the cells {directly} or measuring turbidity (cloudiness) {indirectly}.
Direct cell counts can be a Total Count (Living & Dead cells) or a Viable count (living cells only).

Christian Scientist by Subject

2010-08-18T18:24:00.002-07:00

Acoustics Lord Rayleigh (1842-1919)

Aerodynamics George Cayley (1773-1857)

Analysis Augustin-Louis Cauchy (1789-1857)
Karl Weierstrass (1815-1897)

Anatomy Andreas Vesalius (1514-1564)

Anatomy, Comparative Georges Cuvier (1769-1832)

Anesthesiology James Simpson (1811-1870)

Antiseptic Surgery Joseph Lister (1827-1912)

Applied Science Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716)

Astronautics Robert Goddard (1882-1945)
Hermann Oberth (1894-1989)

Astronomy Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543)

Astronomy, Galactic William Herschel (1738-1822)

Astronomy, Physical Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)

Astronomy, Solar Arthur Stanley Eddington (1882-1944)

Atomic Theory Roger Boscovich (1711-1787)
John Dalton (1766-1844)

Bacteriology Louis Pasteur (1822-1895)

Biochemistry Antoine Lavoisier (1743-1794)

Biogeography Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859)

Biology John Ray (1627-1705)

Biology, Molecular Oswald Avery (1877-1955)
George Wells Beadle (1903-1989)

Botany Otto Brunfels (1488–1534)
Carol Linnaeus (1707-1778)

Calculus Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

Calculus, Infinitesimal Pierre de Fermat (c. 1607-1665)
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716)

Cardiology William Harvey (1578-1657)

Chemistry Robert Boyle (1627-1691)

Chemistry, Agricultural Joseph Henry Gilbert (1817-1901)

Chemistry, Isotopic William Ramsay (1852-1916)

Chemistry, Nuclear Otto Hahn (1879-1968)

Chemistry, Organic Thomas Anderson (1819-1874)

Chemistry, Periodic Table Dmitri Mendeleev (1834-1907)

Chemistry, Physical Josiah Willard Gibbs (1839-1903)

Computer Science Charles Babbage (1792-1871)
George Boole (1815-1864)

Cryology Lord Kelvin (1824-1907)

Cytology Robert Hooke (1635-1703)

Dimensional Analysis Lord Rayleigh (1842-1919)

Dynamics Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Ecology Carol Linnaeus (1707-1778)

Electrical Engineering William Gilbert (1544-1603)
Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
Thomas Edison (1847-1931)

Electrochemistry Alessandro Volta (1745-1827)
Humphrey Davy (1778-1829)
Michael Faraday (1791-1867)

Electrodynamics André-Marie Ampère (1775-1836)
James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879)

Electromagnetics André-Marie Ampère (1775-1836)
Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879)

Electronics Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
John Ambrose Fleming (1849-1945)

Electrophysiology John Eccles (1903-1997)

Embryology William Harvey (1578-1657)

Energetics Lord Kelvin (1824-1907)
Josiah Willard Gibbs (1839-1903)

Entomology William Kirby (1759-1850)

Entomology, of Living Insects Henri Fabre (1823-1915)

Epidemiology Girolamo Fracastoro (1478-1553)

Evolution / Natural Selection Charles Darwin (1809-1882)

Field Theory Michael Faraday (1791-1867)

Fluid Mechanics George Stokes (1819-1903)

Gas Dynamics Robert Boyle (1627-1691)

Genetics Gregor Mendel (1822-1884)

Genetics, Clinical Medical Victor A. McKusick (1921-2008)

Genetics, Population Ronald Fisher (1890-1962)

Geology Blessed Nicolas Steno (1638-1686)
James Hutton (1726-1797)

Geology, Glacial Louis Agassiz (1807-1873)

Geometry, Analytical René Descartes (1596-1650)
Pierre de Fermat (c. 1607-1665)

Geometry, Differential Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855)

Geometry, Non-Euclidean Bernhard Riemann (1826-1866)

Gynecology James Simpson (1811-1870)

Hydraulics Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

Hydrodynamics Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

Hydrography Matthew Maury (1806-1873)

Hydrology Edme Mariotte (c. 1620-1684)

Hydrostatics Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

Ichthyology Louis Aggasiz (1807-1873)

Immunology Louis Pasteur (1822-1895)

Laser Science Charles Hard Townes (b. 1915)
Arthur Schawlow (1921-1999)

Mathematical Analysis Leonhard Euler (1707-1783)

Mechanics, Celestial Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)

Mechanics, Classical Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Mechanics, Quantum Max Planck (1858-1947)
Werner Heisenberg (1901-1976)

Mechanics, Wave Erwin Schrödinger (1887-1961)

Medicine, Modern William Harvey (1578-1657)

Meteorology Matthew Maury (1806-1873)

Microbiology Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723)
Louis Pasteur (1822-1895)

Mineralogy Georgius Agricola (1494-1555)

Mineralogy, Optical David Brewster (1781-1868)

Model Analysis Lord Rayleigh (1842-1919)

Morphology Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

Nanotechnology Richard Smalley (1943-2005)

Natural History John Ray (1627-1705)

Neurology Charles Bell (1774-1842)

Number Theory Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855)

Obstetrics William Smellie (1697-1763)

Oceanography Matthew Maury (1806-1873)

Optics Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Ornithology John Ray (1627-1705)

Paleontology John Woodward (1665-1728)

Paleontology, Vertebrate Georges Cuvier (1769-1832)

Pathology Rudolph Virchow (1821-1902)

Physics, Atomic Joseph J. Thomson (1856-1940)

Physics, Classical Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Physics, Experimental Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)

Physics, Mathematical Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695)
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Physics, Nuclear Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937)

Physics, Particle John Dalton (1766-1844)

Physiology William Harvey (1578-1657)

Probability Theory Pierre de Fermat (c. 1607-1665)
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)
Christiaan Huygens (1629-1695)

Scientific Method Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)

Seismology John Michell (1724-1793)

Stratigraphy Blessed Nicolas Steno (1638-1686)

Surgery Ambroise Paré (c. 1510-1590)

Taxonomy Carol Linnaeus (1707-1778)

Thermochemistry Antoine Lavoisier (1743-1794)

Thermodynamics Lord Kelvin (1824-1907)

Thermodynamics, Chemical Josiah Willard Gibbs (1839-1903)

Thermodynamics, Reversible James Joule (1818-1889)

Thermodynamics, Statistical James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879)

Thermokinetics Humphrey Davy (1778-1829)

Transplantology Alexis Carrel (1873-1944)
Joseph Murray (b. 1919)

Vector Algebra Josiah Willard Gibbs (1839-1903)

Vector Calculus Josiah Willard Gibbs (1839-1903)

Volcanology Athanasius Kircher (1602–1680)

Zoology Conrad Gessner (1516-1565)

Makeshift BookShelf

2010-08-08T23:40:00.000-07:00

I started unpacking most of the kitchen supplies Friday as Alan and our friend Jorge and during that time I realized that our closet is really really tiny. I mean the size of a small coat closet (Alan's clothes barely fit in it let alone my own). In comparison to the big walk in closet at our old apartment it was a tragedy. The worst part was that there was no linen closet!!! Which well we don't have very much of that but the problem is that that is were I stored my dozens of books in our old apartment. I knew that the clothes storage could easily be solved by using my dressers but the book problem was a tragedy. I imagined that I would either have to keep my 9 boxes worth of books stacked in a corner OR buy a bookshelf that cost 100 dollars at least (which knowing me it was not about to happen) OR try to find something a a goodwill or so. Mind you I am not even considering Alan's 3 or four boxes of books since he has a bookshelf that holds them perfectly. I told Alan my sad news and he had a solution.... lets make a bookshelf, and that was what we did. We headed out to the Home Depot and bought some cinder blocks, wood, had it cut there for free, and took it home to construct. We paid about 20 dollars, it is very stable and most importantly it holds both of out books.

The friendly Home Depot Employee cuts our wood!!!

Alan places the wood in our cart!!!

I had to stack some of mine horizontally and I put some photo albums under it because well we are true nerds and need a bigger bookshelf!!! We already went to the library and I checked out one book and he checked out a whole pile so tomorrow we will probably go back to the store and buy materials to add an extra shelf or two :) But I love this thing it really already made my weekend even with the horizontal books stack of DVDs on top which also did not fit...

The Bookshelf in our living room :)

His side!!!

My Side!!!

Our checked out library books!!!

More Moving Pictures

2010-08-08T22:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of all of our belongings minus my Precious Moments packed into the Moving Truck.

A closer look so you can get an idea of just how super packed it really was :)

Alan standing right next to the our stuff.

Me pointing you towards our stuff.

The moving truck closed and ready to hit the road as we say farewell to our apartment turn in the keys and get ready for the drive!!! Phoenix heat be gone (for now)!!! Oh yeah I do not know were the 19.99 ad in the back of the truck comes from because we paid 200 dollars to rent it to move from Scottsdale to Tucson which are less than 3 hours apart...