Holiday Time

Just another quick note. I begin finals in just one week, so this will be my report for now.

Because the holiday season is spent hunkered down in my cave until finals are over, my study group girls and I got in our jollies early. I invited everyone to my place for the Christmas Secret Santa Sleepover Spectacular! We ate (of course) and sipped on hot cocoa and just relaxed. It was a great time had by all.

One of my study buddies suggested a really fun gift exchange. You draw names for secret Santa, then buy a toy that reminds you of that person. After the exchange, the toy is donated to Toys for Tots, a charity that donates Christmas presents to less fortunate children. We had such a blast picking them out, and the joy will be passed on to a child who will really love the gift.

And, there was Crafty Time. We made these adorable ornaments. See the pictures above and enjoy. And remember to take time to enjoy the holidays. If you hear from me before December 23rd, it will be because I'm procrastinating on studying :)

Over and out,

Kelli

Simple pleasures

Yesterday, in the midst of a rather dreary meeting of Tax class, I saw a glimmer of hope. I noticed 2 red Starbucks cups a few rows down. Red Starbucks cups=holidays. And holiday drinks.
I practically skipped with my friend Marit to Starbucks as soon as Tax ended. As I burst through the door, I saw what I had hoped for: I shouted "Yay! Eggnog Lattes!!!!", while boisterously thrusting my hands in the air. I actually scared the barrista. I apologized, and she chuckled about my excitement. And then, I sipped my Eggnog Latte and the world was right again.
Just had to share what's making me happy these days.
all my love always,
Kelli

Halloweekend 2010

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To access these photos on my Shutterfly share site, the password is: kelliandandy

This is a quick overview of my Masquerade in the Catacombs that my friend and I threw together to celebrate my upcoming birthday. I've always had to compete with Halloween, and this year I decided to just embrace it!

Enjoy the photos!

Kelli

home?

I just got back from my visit to Colorado. Being in the arid, blissful, crisp cool weather was like wearing my favorite pair of jeans. I had forgotten what it was like to need to wear lotion. Or to have my hair air dry. Or to wake up not looking like Bride of Frankenstein (although that does give me an idea for Halloween that I had overlooked.)
I also got to spend some time with my favorite people. I had a truly fabulous time. So I wondered, did I leave home or come home when I landed at the Minneapolis airport? Well, for at least 16 more months, even if home is where the heart is, my life is here in the Twin Cities. To cope, I spent some more time in my garden and readied our lives here for the cold weather.

here's things in my life in snashots:

the centerpiece on my coffee table (cool tray compliments of my Aunt Barb as wedding gift)

This means it is finally cool enough for snuggling at the Riley house. Andy managed to get Marcelle to sprawl across his lap so that she could snuggle with her favorite pillows. Yep, we're those people.

I picked up a bunch of autumnal jar candles at Michaels wildly marked down, and then bedecked this one for a hostess gift for a friend that had us over for a fall-themed potluck. Cute, no?

Did I ever mention how outrageous our herbs were in the garden this summer? This is the final gleaning. Peppermint tea, anyone? Perhaps some herbs grown with love to spice up your Thanksgiving bird and stuffing?

So, we had some really cool weather + blight that took out most of the garden (thankfully, missing most of the herbs.) I saved what I could a few weeks ago. When I went out to pull up the herbs this morning, I found some surprises!

We didn't have great luck with the garlic, but I thought it looked cute in our kitchen warding off vampires :)

Well, that's an overview. I will be posting the pictures soon from our trip to Duluth soon (maybe even tomorrow!)

Oh, I did not make the negotiation team. I whooped up, though. The top four scores made the team. Guess, just guess, which place I scored? Fifth.

Another small victory. Okay, maybe not that small. I got a perfect score on a paper I submitted for my Professional Responsibility class. The course is focused on preparing us for ethical lawyering. I wrote the paper on a ethics rule that prohibits lawyers from giving financial assistance to their clients. I argued that there should be an exception (as there is in Florida and Louisiana) for attorneys who help their clients with "humanitarian aid" for necessities like food, medical care and shelter. My professor was impressed, I guess.

Lots of Love always,

Kelli

Where have the last 7 weeks gone!?

Ah! I hate this. I swore when I started a blog that I wouldn't write posts like "I'm sorry it's been so long since I've written!" Well, we're there. There's a pretty obvious reason, too. My second year of law school, as I now understand is common, has been insane! I'll do this post kind of like those 30-second recaps at the beginning of shows:
"Previously on KelliRR:"
-I applied for 23 jobs, interviewed with 3, and ended up with none. I'm getting over it.
-I started a weekly Christian worship at the Law School that has been going really well.
-I did my first couple of Law Journal assignments. Editing is very, very hard and time-consuming, but incredibly rewarding.
-I LOVE my Tax class! I know, crazy, right?
-Andy and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary in Duluth. I promise I'll put up pictures soon.
-I sat in on a merger meeting with my mentor and was fascinated by all the ways employment law can be applied, even in business mergers! More on this if I get time later this week.
-I tried out for the Mock Trial team, and I'm trying out for the Negotiation team tomorrow. Stay tuned for the results.
-Somewhere in here my friends at school staged an intervention to tell me I was overdoing it. They were right. I've reeled myself in a bit.
-I am going to Colorado in one week to enjoy my Fall Break with family and friends. Frankly, it's strange that my semester is half over.
-I have made some outrageously delicious food. I've been doing cooking therapy. I've been avoiding "cleaning therapy."
-I have eaten the best meal of my life at a new, chic, secret restaurant. It requires an entire blog post of me verbally drooling over the magic, so stay tuned on that, too.
That's pretty much it. Well, there's more, but this is the important stuff. More soon.

Love always,
Kelli

Words of Encouragement

Law school is back in swing, and I am spearheading a group that is offering opportunities for students to reflect on their lives, and how that fits into the world we live in. Specifically, what is God calling them to be? More on that later, but for now, here's what I've been up to this week:
Yesterday was the first day of Orientation for first-year students (I don't start classes until next week.) We hosted a panel of students who talked about how they integrate their faith into the practice of law. It was really interesting to have students of different faiths talk about their perspectives.
Today, we had a student who serves in the US Army come speak to students about the challenges of serving over-seas and how words of encouragement help. We prayed for our troops, our country, the families that are left behind and for peace. Then we took a few minutes to write letters to soldiers.
Then, there was the "bedazzling." Naturally, the crafty card-making was my idea. Everyone wrote letters, then the crafters among us took to decorating them. Here is a small sample:

Yes, all of those yellow ribbons were hand-painted by me. All 45 of them. Crazy, but worth it. For a full slideshow, you can visit my photo-share site: http://kellisfotos.shutterfly.com/

As always, the password is kelliandandy. Go to What's New to see the new album.

More still to come this week, so stay tuned.

Much love always,

Kelli

Last dregs of summer

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