Hey there,

It's been awhile. I was busy trying to focus on my last semester of college. It paid off!!! I am now officially a graduate of the Colorado School of Mines (which I learned recently took the number 1 spot for engineering school in the USA)! I am now the holder of a Bachelor's degree in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering. I still can't believe how far I have come in my life. Being a young mom and all the stressful moments we as a family had to push through so that I could get here. The hard and stressful all nighters to the stress it put on my relationships with my family, fiance and friends all led up to this point and I couldn't be happier!

I was very lucky to have an amazing support system. I was able to surround myself with the type of people who wanted more in life and believed that I could be more than just a teenage mom statistic. From the time I found out that I was pregnant I have done everything in my power to succeed in something that would allow me to take care of my family. I never let people tell me how my life should play out...even though they tried and I hope that you never let anyone dictate your life either. I take things one day at a time (not to say that I don't PLAN because I am totally a planner) and have figured out along the way that life is really what YOU make it. Your biggest enemy is yourself. You decide what is too hard or too easy or too stupid. YOU decide whether or not you will live your dream or not. Unfortunately I had no financial help from my parents, but I didn't let that stop me. I received grants (financial aid) and took out loans in order to pay for my education, but I didn't let it go to waste. I cannot wait to start work as an engineer. I have always been a problem solver, someone who could look at a problem in a different light and figure out how to make things work. Solving problems is what I love and when you do something you love, all the stress and money in the world couldn't prevent you from doing it.

In closing I just want to say thank you to every single person who has told me that I can do this, I can make it and who has supported me through it all. I also want to say that you can do anything you put your heart and mind into. Follow your dreams and do something that makes you HAPPY it is well worth it.

<3 Crystal

Politics: Middle Class

Today in the life,
I saw a video on Facebook about how the middle class has been dwindling and how some people were calling it the new normal. How is that okay. I consider myself as middle class and to know that $50,000/yr was the average family income made me sad. That is no where near enough to support yourself let alone your family. I am not one to really focus on politics even though I know I should, but this video got to me. I think I will start to pay more attention to what is going on. Why only let those already in power make all the decisions when the USA is supposed to be a democracy. So my advice to you is to read an article that involves politics, and see how it makes you feel. Then read another one, and continue to stay in the loop. Without the people paying attention and unfortunately too busy to pay attention, politicians can do whatever they want and nobody would even bat an eye.
Well that is my rant for the day! Hope you have an amazing day!

♡ Crystal

Inspiration

Today in the life,
I found inspiration from myself.  I wasn't quite sure what to post today until I looked back at my older posts and found "inspiration."

I have finally listened to my own advice lately which is... that the only person or thing holding you back from what you really want...is yourself. 

My younger sister wanted to get her first job and asked for advice,  so I helped her create a resume and told her the types of questions you get asked. Anyway, she applied to places but didn't get any responses. I advised her to follow up on her applications and to speak to the manager and ensure that they knew she was definitely interested. Well she was nervous and I can't blame her because I am the same way. Well I told her that the worst thing that could happen is that they say they have filled the position or are uninterested because of your lack of experience. All they can do is say NO and you will be in the exact same place that you are now, BUT you will know where you stand with that company and can move on. Sure your ego could hurt a little but know that you are a great catch and can do anything you put your mind to. Just don't give up.

If you don't put yourself out there and start making connections, you can't go any further than you are now.

So today I was thinking back at this moment with my sister and how I needed to take my own advice and put myself out there. The engineering jobs I am looking for are not going to just knock on my door, I have to be confident, apply, and realize that the worse thing they could do to me...is say no and I need to just keep pushing forward. Things always work out the way they should. I firmly believe in that.

So get out there and put your fears aside. A great man in my family once told me that all you can do is your best in this life, if you do your best, you will never feel bad about it. So get out there and be true to yourself. Do your best and make yourself proud and in turn you will make others proud of you along the way.

Have an amazing week!

                             ♡Crystal

Hot Chocolate...Yum

Today in the life,
The snow continues to fall in all its freezing glory. The fam and I took to Burlington's Coat Factory to replenish our seasonal gear for the coming winter. These low temps are no joke. Today was a high of 18 degrees and tomorrow a high of 10 degrees. Like what? 10 degrees is what I have to work with? Lol hence why we went shopping for coats, gloves and beanies galore.

After shopping we couldn't resist some hot cocoa from Starbucks :) Mmm the warm liquid flowing down my soar throat was the best thing ever! We went home and cooked some vegetable and beef stew. It was amazing and a perfect dinner for evenings like this. We watched Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with our kido and hung out the rest of the night while I wrote my report on oil extraction and completed most of my bioprocess engineering homework. Great day with the family today :) Hope you all had an awesome day too!

P.S. On behalf of it being Veteran's Day i have to say I have much respect to those who are serving for the USA currently and to those who have done so in the past. 

♡Crystal

The most exciting time of the year!

Tree of Color: Fall, when the colors of change are upon us.
By: Crystal Lobato

Today in the life,

I have been thinking about Fall and what that means... my son will be turning 8 this year!!!OMG 8 years OLD! Which means I will be 25! Hmmm... a quarter of a century this year. To be honest I was a little sad that I was already going to be 25 and my little boy is growing up before my eyes everyday with his own personality and likes and dislikes. It's absolutely amazing to watch your child grow into an amazing little person. Well... I was first sad and then realized that the last 25 years have been such an adventure! I can't remember ever having a dull moment. I lived my life happy in those 25 years and I can only wait and see what the next 25 years has in store for me!

Many people love that I am so optimistic and I love it too, because nobody wants to live a sad boring life and honestly it will only be sad and boring if you see it that way.

I was pregnant at 16yrs old. I graduated high school in the top of my class. I was accepted into one of the best engineering colleges in the USA. I have been with my fiancé for over 8 years! I am a senior preparing to graduate with my bachelor's degree in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering in May of 2015. So all in all I have to say I have had an amazing ride so far. Thanks to my friends and family, life has been absolutely excellent! Now your homework is, to list at least 7 things that are amazing in your life 😊 Why 7? Well because 7 is my favorite number.

Anyways, besides birthday fun and madness, my anniversary is coming up and who can forget Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas! My favorite holidays ever! Super excited for Fall and Winter.

*Side note: nervous for career day at school next week. Eeeeeeek 300 companies looking for engineers and everyone practically tackling the recruiters for their attention haha. Wish me luck!

Much love,
❤Crystal

Background On...Well...Me!

Hey there,

My name is Crystal and this blog is all about a day in the life of me. I'm just a regular gal, no celebrity status here, but I have been blessed with an exciting and busy life. My son will soon be 8yrs old (Plot twist #1 my fiancé and I were both16yrs old when I gave birth to our beautiful boy). Can you sense the drama we encountered? Being sophmores in high school, scared to become parents, scared to inform our parents with the news (Plot twist #2 my son has been the best gift in my life). 

So there I was, pregnant at 16 and deciding what the best course of action was in order to move forward. Thinking back, this was a critical moment/decision in my life. I held my head up and told myself I wouldn't be another statistic of a young girl getting pregnant and ruining her life. I decided in this moment that I would fight as hard as I could to be successful and take care of my child, not only financially but by being an amazing mom. In order to do this, I knew I needed to finish high school. 

I have always enjoyed learning and up to that point in my life I was in a very good position academically. Therfore, continuing school was a must. I decided to talk to my counselor (for the second time throughout my high school career) and I asked him if I could take online classes in the summer in order to complete the classload I would have had in my first semester of junior year. This way I could stay at home during my last trimester of pregnancy and not fall behind on my coursework. He loved the idea and we set it all up. Throughout that summer I contacted my counselor a few times to take my exams and one day he mentioned that he attended Colorado School of Mines and that I should think about applying there for college. He stated he was unable to complete the degree but with my background in science and math I should check it out. I had never heard of it before. But long story short I applied there and got in! I am currently a senior in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering! Super excited to have only a year left! :) 

Thanks for reading. More interesting stories to come!

♡ CRYSTAL