Heidi's Old House

Life is what you make of it...

2012-01-30T19:12:00.003-05:00

Occasionally, I need to remind myself of this statement. There are times I don't always appreciate being med school. Like during my 17th hour straight of studying on a Saturday before an exam, or when I get to playing the mind game of "places I would rather be than here on this couch with a book in my lap", or when the tax statement comes showing just how much I will owe for the privilege of attending school.

However, there is a lot of things that I like and reasons why I chose to go. School is interesting -- I get to learn about the magic and mystery of the many organ systems in the human body, the amazing adaptive potential (and how things can go awry). And if I was not interested (and did not find the process somewhat enjoyable)... I would not be able to put in the 17 hour days, or length of schooling.

But, I digress... Today, I just finished the urinary tract domain with a 2.5 hour exam was this morning. It feels good to decompress, and relax a bit after my exam -- taking a nap, watching a movie, having a meal more substantial than Cheerios and milk... I again feel refreshed, renewed, and ready to learn about the next organ system (lung), clean the apartment and fold laundry. Such is the pattern of my life... repeated in 3 week intervals.

Life is what we make of it. For any decision or point in a life, there is always going to be something to complain about or something you don't always care for. Life is what you make of it... choosing what to focus on and the mindset is a big part of dealing with big challenges. I got myself into this "mess", I may as well enjoy the ride and learn something interesting along the way! :)

Summer in the middle of winter

2012-01-15T20:52:00.009-05:00

Our little break to the Dominican was wonderful*. It was nice to relax without the distraction of regular household stuff, and enjoy a bit of sun in the middle of some of the darkest days of the year. I would post pictures... but, Pete took the camera to work before I had a chance to download pics off of it (camera is kept in his flight bag).

Highlights of our trip:
- Spending days next to the pool or beach enjoying the sun, white sand beaches (if on the beach) or random classes/entertainment offered (if near the pool) and a book. Honestly, I can't think of a better way to begin 2012.
- Snorkling and going out on the reef in a catamaran. We saw nurse sharks, manta rays (even held one -- they feel like wet butter), and the usual array of colorful fishes and corals.
- Coffee -- Dominican coffee was great -- but strong. The fruit there was also amazing (and fresh).
- Trying out different restaurants each evening, these were invariably better than the buffets (but not always better than the pizza and fries).
- Meeting random people from all over. Most of the people at the resort were European/Russian/British, Canadian, or Central/South American. We were two of few Americans at the resort.
- Watching in amazement as the hotel staff switched between Spanish, English, French, and German for all instructions to games/activities and answering questions. Given that I know English and a bit of Spanish, I am amazed when people have verbal fluency in so many languages.
- Entertainment in the evening:
-- We always arrived a bit early to get seats, and there was some sort of program put on by little kids before whatever entertainment was planned for the evening. It's interesting to watch a bunch of little kids from all over the world interact with each other. They pair up based off of gender and height (like they do here), even though they were from different countries. Some of the little songs included in the kids program we thought were cute/different than songs we've previously heard are (click on title it should link to song): The Music Man, La musica tren, Veo Veo Que Es (goes through the vowels).
--After the little kids, they would have a ice-breaker type game where they chose people from the audience. It was always entertaining. After this, would be something put on by the resort -- this program was also good.

Getting home was rough -- our flight arrived at 12:30 AM (yes, after midnight) Monday morning. We got home at 2:30 AM after picking up our luggage, dog, and driving about 1/2 way across the state. We both had to be places at 8:00 AM: Pete had work, I had school. As if the little sleep was not bad enough, our hot water thermostat burnt out during our vacation, we had to heat water on the stove that AM to wash up. And, I figured out my cell phone no longer worked (and thus no alarm or calling people) -- so I had that to replace on Monday too.

But, these inconveniences this past week were worth it. I started this semester the most relaxed I have ever been during the first week of school, and I am ready to handle the challenge that is this semester! :)

* If you click on Dominican, it shows a video of where we stayed start around 3:53. and what the Dominican looks like. Not much has changed from when this video was taken. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've got similar pics from the trip. Though we did less exploring of the island.

PSA: Travel to other countries

2011-12-23T16:18:00.002-05:00

If you are planning on traveling abroad, you may want to check the CDC Traveler's Health website in addition to talking to your doctor.

Christmas times a comin', Christmas times a comin',,,

2011-12-22T00:56:00.001-05:00

Despite it looking more like spring outside -- Christmas will be here in a few short days. I can not believe how quickly it has come. And how utterly unprepared I am. Although I have my tree up, there are still many things on my to-do list. We are sticking around the area this year (which makes it so fewer things have to get done in a timely fashion) and looking forward to celebrating with the K and L families!

Outside of Christmas preparations, I have been thinking about going on vacation these last couple days! Pete surprised me with a trip to the Dominican Republic (for Christmas)~ he gave me the tickets yesterday! I was shocked/surprised/happy! This is the 3rd Christmas gift he's given me since we have been married so I really was not expecting it!* I am looking forward to having time together, sand, sun, and relaxing for a week before starting the craziness that is med school! :)

I am also starting to get anxious about going ~ quite a bit of things to arrange before going: digging the warm weather clothes/shoes out of storage, getting anti-malarials (according to the CDC, the resort areas of the DR have high number of mosquitos that carry malaria), sunblock/aloe, bug spray, among other things... It should be a good escape for a few days! For those that have been ~ any advice?

*We don't usually exchange gifts. It works out just fine for the two of us... Things we buy for each other do not make it to Christmas, we are not experts in each other's interests/hobbies, and we buy things as we need them rather than for a specific day.

1 year later....

2011-12-07T11:16:00.004-05:00

A year ago, I was in a bad car accident (click on it and it should link you to pictures, etc.). So much has changed in this last year, but I have so many things to be thankful for today.

1) I am thankful for having so many wonderful people in my life that showed a lot of love and support in the weeks following the car accident.
2) I am thankful that one of the bigger challenges on my horizon is Step 1 boards -- I just scheduled them yesterday for June 18th, 2012 at 11 AM. It's an 8 hour test that determines if I am able to continue onto my 3rd year and do rotations in the hospitals next year. It is also a test where the score matters for application to residency programs. To think a year ago, I was not certain that I would be able to continue on with school or if I would need to re-evaluate my future goals/aspirations. I'm sure I could have been happy doing something else, but I am thankful to be given the opportunity to continue with school and one day be able to help people as a physician.
3) I am thankful that Pete and I had the opportunity to really reflect on our life and make changes conducive to accomplishing these goals. We have since settled into a much more manageable routine between school, work and life. Pete was able to get his pilot's license -- a goal he has had for many years, but never had time to pursue. Life is what we make it.
4) I am also happy to have the chance to realize that I was spread to thin, and be able to make changes to make life more manageable. This accident made me realize that I don't need to attend every social function, or do everything along with being in school. It also made me realize that I did have the option to move out of the house that I loved, and did not need to make a homemade meal at least weekly. School is a big commitment, and it's much more enjoyable to attend when life is made simple. I think this probably applies to most situations.
5) I am thankful that I was put in the opportunity to accept help. This is something that I struggle with from time-to-time often finding things easier to do by myself (as I know the finished outcome once I am done), and stubborn enough to attempt. It's a humbling thing, but also makes you realize how much support you do have.

If you see a car in a ditch or an accident scene without EMS present, please report it to 911/the authorities. There is a good chance that they have not been notified, and the person(s) involved may not be capable of calling.

Catch-up with my life

2011-12-01T21:01:00.001-05:00

So, as the semester is winding to a close... I figured I would post what we've been doing these last couple of weeks -- which have been a whirlwind.

Monday, November 21st -- I finished my heme-onc domain. This is one of the hardest domains (classes) that we have this year, so it felt like a minor victory to complete it well.

After packing and readying the car, we left for Minnesota on Wednesday -- with the driver (Pete) muttering as we were stuck in traffic in Chicago -- "look, there's no traffic back-up 1000 feet above us" or "if we would have flown, we would have been there by now". It certainly did not help that the weather that day was beautiful blue skies and well above freezing. Other than the usual Chicago delay, the ride there was nice and we made good time. It was fun to be able to visit family for a few hours before heading North Thursday morning for Thanksgiving at the Town Hall with the S**** family.

Thanksgiving at the Town Hall was very nice! Most of my cousins, all of my aunts/uncles and Grandma were there, with total attendance >100. It was so much fun to catch up with many people I have not seen in years, and meet my cousins little kids! I was really glad we were able to be there for this event, as this side of my family does not get together like this often and has only rented out the Town Hall a handful of times in the past (each time I remember quite fondly). I will have to post pictures once I figure out how to get them off of my phone.

After enjoying Thanksgiving, we went back to my parents home. My mom, sisters and I went Black Friday shopping early Friday morning -- making it to the Mall of America, and a few other stores. I was surprised that the MOA was not packed with people, but it was fun to visit this old stomping ground and get a few of the Friday deals (as well as a few things that we actually needed). Such a fun day! :)

Saturday was spent visiting a myriad of people -- my husbands family in the morning, and my aunt's and a few others at a wedding that evening. Sunday we left in the morning thinking that the weekend was fun and enjoyable, but passed by too quickly.

That brings us to this week... catching up with studies, laundry, house-work, decorating for Christmas, and the many other chores that come with spending time away.

We also were able to take a short flight this evening -- this was Pete's 1st time up with a passenger since getting his license. And I thought it was fun to sit in the front seat of the plane, and play a bit with the wheel. The setting sun is certainly beautiful at 3000 feet up, as are the street lamps reflecting off the brilliant white snow appearing like strands of pearls.

So what have you been doing? How was your Thanksgiving? I hope you were able to share the holiday with ones that you love, and had much laughter and good food. Merry Christmas!

Pete now has his Private Pilot's License

2011-11-21T18:23:00.000-05:00

Pete is now a Private Pilot! Passed the check-ride on Saturday (that was the last hurdle)... now to find a plane! :) Otherwise, he's a pilot without wings, kinda like being a driver without a car. We are certainly looking forward to all the possibilities that having a pilot's license brings... like being able to go back home and visit without a 12 or so hour car ride, or making a day trips to places that might otherwise be weekend excursions. I am proud of him -- it is quite an accomplishment to get his license, especially with only 40 hrs of "behind-the-wheel"... most people who pass the checkride (kind of like the behind the wheel test for drivers ed) have ~60 hours of instruction/practice time. Although I have yet to go up with him solo -- I am looking forward to sitting in the frontseat and helping him navigate/watch the world pass by below!

What happened to fall?

2011-11-07T09:12:00.001-05:00

This morning started out like any other, a cup of coffee with breakfast, a walk with Hondo, check the mail. However, somewhere in the midst of our morning tour around the block... I realized that the leaves were gone, the skies are grey (ominous for snow or other precipitation), and there is frost on my car windshield. What happened to the bright sunny days of fall made even more golden by light filtering through yellow leaves, crispness in the air, hay rides and apple cider?

One of the benefits to living in an area where seasons change, is the ability to watch in the spring as the land again comes to life -- trees growing buds first then leaves, little buds of flowers and other plants coming out of the earth; spring makes way for summer, and summer gives way to fall and with it crunchy warm-colored (tans, oranges, yellows, reds) leaves, fresh apples, and the slow retirement of plants and animals. And now, it seems fall is making room for winter's white blankets of frost and snow, glistening icicles, and little red berries that remain on the holly plants.

And while I am starting to get anxious for winter's first snowfall -- the one where the world looks white, clean and pristine -- if only temporarily... I am missing the lovely golden days of fall.

Hondo

2011-10-19T18:10:00.000-04:00

This is how Hondo looks most nights -- sleeping below my feet, within the space enclosed by the three walls of my desk. I think he figures its his job to keep his eye on me (horrible pun... I know).

Anyway, this is what he looks like now (one-eyed). We still think he's cute! :)

Siding project - finished

2011-10-12T17:54:00.000-04:00

So, here is the siding project -- finished! With this project done, it feels like most of the major projects are now complete (so that feels good)! :) We are down to a few more minor projects inside (like re-hanging trim in one of the bedrooms, a few paint touch-ups, etc.), and a few things we would like to do outside (like add on to the deck to make it wrap around to the side of the house). This place has certainly been a work in progress!

Photos of the house

2011-10-10T10:33:00.000-04:00

Here are some photos of our house... not yet done, but I am excited to see the finished product!

One more test to go before his pilot's license!

2011-10-01T22:14:00.000-04:00

Last Wednesday, Pete took (and passed) the written exam to get his pilot's license and is now done with ground school! He needs some more hours (both instructed and solo) flying a plane, before he is eligible to take his check-ride and get his pilots license. But, he is now one step closer to being able to do that... and I am looking forward to when he get's his license so I can accompany him and sit up front in the plane! :)

House Projects

2011-10-01T20:53:00.000-04:00

Our house has projects' still, and it's been a while since I had a post about them...

Although we have done quite a bit of work to the house, its not quite finished to our specifications, so we continue to do projects. (Returning there once I am done with school is still a consideration; we both love the house and its location.) This fall we are doing a bit to the exterior. The siding has been repaired (as its cement-Asbestos over traditional clapboard, some of the siding had chipped) and will be painted soon. I am excited, and will post photos once the painting is finished.

We have chosen a grey-blue color for the siding; its a color that we've had in mind for a long time. This should make the white trim (and red doors) look fantastic. Our inspiration, in part, came from experience inside the house. Our first paint job was the living room; painting the living room brown really showcased the transom and trim. Since then, we have used deep colors which provide contrast for the white trim, and have really enjoyed the result. One of the colors (used in my office) was a blue-grey and we decided that when we get around to doing the exterior, this is the color that we want.

Since that time, I have seen a few Greek Revivals painted colors other than all white (most of them in Boston), and have really liked the way that they look (the trim looks great). I am excited for our newest project to get done, because I am excited to see the result! :)

PSA: Vaccines are important

2011-09-24T19:36:00.002-04:00

School takes up a quite a bit of time, and one of the things that we keep learning about are the importance of vaccines. So, I thought I would share. They help prevent infections, and complications of infections. For example, the chickenpox vaccine is now given in order to help prevent shingles later in life and other complications of chickenpox. The whooping cough vaccine (as part of dTP) is given to adults to prevent whooping cough in infants -- which is potentially fatal or could require prolonged hospitalization. So vaccines are important (including the old ones)! :) Additionally, as long as people keep getting vaccinated -- hopefully we can prevent some of the "old" diseases from making a come back (ex. polio, measles, etc.). Unfortunately, some of these diseases (ex. measles, polio) may now be on the rise because of decreased immunization rates.

This past week, I was introduced to this song (The vaccine song): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1xw0Ob5bqs which I found funny/cute. Hope you enjoy!

Pics from Pete's flight

2011-09-19T14:07:00.004-04:00

Here are some pics from Pete's solo flight ~ top one: the coast, bottom one: playing in the clouds!

He had a beautiful trip out, skies were blue and flying was smooth. However, the way back was bumpy!
After hearing of his trip, I am getting excited for when he does get his license in a few months -- it would be neat to accompany him when he goes flying on these longer trips, and check out the scenery from a few thousand feet! :)

Pete flew to the coast and back today

2011-09-17T17:34:00.002-04:00

Pete's flying lessons are progressing, and today he flew his first solo cross-country flight (i.e. >100 nautical miles)! He made it to the coast and had lunch in a little town there! Pictures will be posted later -- once the camera makes it inside! The goal is for him to have his private pilot's licence (PPL) by the end of October or beginning of November! :)

9-11-01

2011-09-11T02:29:00.001-04:00

The day that changed America.

I can't believe that it has been 10 years already. I was just thinking about that, 10 years ago since I started my last 2nd year of college. I can't believe it has been that long.

I remember exactly where I was when I heard that America had been attacked -- I was going through the Physics building at U of MN when my friend G stopped and told me that the twin towers had been attacked in NYC, and people were suspecting Muslim terrorists. My friend G is an Arab-American, a non-practicing seik (a non-Muslim religious group), and he was worried about backlash on campus towards Arabs, Muslims, and others.

[By this time, I had a group of friends that I hung out with at school that were Muslim. I hung out with this group, in part because aside from being a very neat group of individuals -- the way that they practice their religion is not so different from the way that I practice my religion (no drinking, no dancing, conservative dress mostly, etc.), so I felt comfortable around them. Once I realized that the news was real, and America had indeed been attacked on its own soil... I worried about their safety (thankfully, nothing happened ever while I was in school).]

Anyway, at first I did not believe him, disbelief and shock tempered my reaction. However, I then went to join him and many others in the journalism building to watch the news. It was there I saw my friend, Thelma -- a NYC native who had dinner atop the Twin Towers not even a week prior to the attack. I know that she worried about people she knew that could be in those Towers and who perhaps perished on that day. Being around her, made it feel like I knew people and had a connection to the biggest city in the nation.

After I went home, I went to the neighbor's (to babysit for the evening so they could go to memorial services for those that died in the attack) The dad worked in finance, and his brother worked for the financial firm hit hardest by the attacks. Thankfully, his brother had stepped out to get a coffee just before the airplane hit the tower. However, the dad received many emails from those people trapped above where the plane hit and who said good-bye that day. Through their pain, I realized further that though I lived far away from NYC and Washington DC -- the effects of the loss of life on that day were not limited to the East Coast.

About 2 months after 9-11, I visited NYC for a debate tournament at Columbia University. I smelt the acrid air from the still smoldering buildings, and saw the bits of office trash still in the street. Walking around, I saw the memorials outside the firestations -- collections of candles and photographs, commemorating those firefighters that went into the buildings as many were rushing out and never made it back home. And, again it hit me -- America lost a lot that day.

I have since traveled, not back to NYC, but elsewhere. Reminders of 9-11 are seen in the increased airport security, things related to both the Iraqi War and Afganistan war in both located here and in other countries. Joining the armed services is no longer just a good way to get college paid for, it now involves actual risk and likely deployment. Things have certainly changed since that day. The day that the facade of our safety was shattered, and America was rallied to fight a nebulous enemy of terrorism at home and abroad.

Thinking of and remembering all those that lost their life that day or since in either war, and all of their friends/families/loved ones.

It feels crisp in the air

2011-09-06T09:42:00.005-04:00

Yesterday, we headed over to Pete's mom and dad's for a Labor day picnic ~ it was fun to see family, and get out of the house for the afternoon! :)

But, you could not deny the slight crispness to the air... especially in light of the past many days where it has felt like summer. It is starting to feel like fall. A great time of year -- trips to the cider mill for cider and doughnuts, sweatshirt and flannel weather, some yard work (slitting and stacking wood, raking leaves), and a good time of year to be in school. I get excited by the change in seasons! :)

**********************************************************************************
Update on the Hondo: he is pretty much back to normal. His stitches are out, and days that he is not wearing the cone (we take it off him, then he starts to scratch at the eye... so the cone gets put back on) -- he looks pretty much like he used to (well, except the one eye is stitched shut so it looks like he's perpetually winking). He's gotten pretty good at figuring out that he has to turn his head to "eyeball" things, however when he runs into one of us on his left side... he will shriek, because he did not see us. His head is no longer tilty -- I think his eardrum must be healed, and the ear infection seems to be getting better (he will go to the vet this week to confirm). He has resumed all of his usual activities -- going on walks, playing tug-o-war with one of us, going up/down stairs... back to normal, and he seems happy! :)

Pete has taken to teasing the dog -- giving him treats on his left side, and then moving them when Hondo turns his head... and then putting them where he can see them. Hondo just plays along, happy to get something other than his dog food to eat (he is on a diet).

Have a good day!

I am now a Second Year (med student)

2011-08-29T08:58:00.001-04:00

Second year starts today... I am looking forward to again being challenged by school (although, I am not so excited for the large exams this year -- including my first board exam in June). It looks to be an interesting.

Our first domain is neuro... 3 weeks, and about 700 pages of coursepack (with some additional chapters of required reading outside that). In addition to that, we will learn and be examined on our ability to perform a complete neuro exam on a patient. We also have unknown amounts of reading in ethics -- but know that in the next 3 weeks we are expected to produce 3 short 1-pg essays, and a paper on an encounter with a patient regarding advanced directives.

This will be my life this year -- new domain about every 3 weeks, plus some additional classes thrown in for good measure. Majority of our learning is supposed to be self-taught (but we will have lectures and small groups thrown in to keep us on track), and we are supposed to do a 1/2 hr study for boards each day. I am looking forward to it, but am also nervous. Should be a fun year!

Done with 1st year!

2011-08-22T13:32:00.003-04:00

And the title says it all! :)

I took my last anatomy lab exam this morning (with any luck -- still don't know my final score) because I had missed it earlier in the year from my car accident. I am no longer one-exam-away-from-being-done-with-1st-year. I am now simply done with 1st year.

It feels incredible.

Tilty-headed, one-eyed pug

2011-08-16T17:49:00.010-04:00

Last night we awoke to the sound of our little dog in pain. 4 in the morning. Not good. His iris (the colored part of the eye) had ruptured (although of course we did not know that at the time). Pete ended up bringing him into the local emergency vet, and we now have a dog with one eye. He also has a head tilt from a burst eardrum due to an infection -- the eardrum should grow back, and with it... correct the head tilt. But, of course... he will remain a one-eyed pug.

Pete says, we now have a pirate dog, who should bark like, "Aaaarrrrf".
I say, not funny.
But, I would chuckle if this weren't true of my dog today.

Reminders that I am a nerd

2011-08-11T12:41:00.008-04:00

In honor of returning back to school today (to start studying for my last test of 1st year, then a 3 day break before 2nd year starts)... I thought I would post a top 10 list of sorts. All the little things that remind me each day how nerdy I am. And I have come to be okay with my inner nerd, so its all good. These are in no particular order.

10. I now wear glasses, legitimately. I used to buy frames from Claire's in high school and wear them because I wanted glasses. I prefer the type of glasses with visible frames, thankyouverymuch.

9. I own more than my weight in text books, course packs, and school supplies.

8. Last year, I went through over 20 multi-colored permanent markers, 12 colored pencils, ~30 markers, a box of crayons, ~40 pens (multiple colors, mostly gel pens), ~20 highlighters, and ~10 pencils. Reading this, makes it sound kind of like I am in some sort of strange art class.

7. I do not get People or US Weekly. I get JAMA and Reader's Digest (second magazine, admittedly pretty normal).

6. I find it mildly anxiety provoking to be without computer access for a while -- i.e. no internet, email, etc. Strange, right? That's supposed to describe my dear husband! :)

5. I would prefer to read a novel or watch a movie with some fantasy or plausible sci fi element, rather than a pure romance novel or anything else. This means I like books like: Tuck Everlasting, the Harry Potter series, Twilight, etc. or anything by the author, John Darnton. I like them to be an escape from reality.
4. I enjoy a good debate. Debate is not the same as argument. I was on the debate team in college, and found the sport intellectually challenging, and fun.

3. For clothing, I am into what's comfortable. I will take the dog for a walk in yoga pants and a T. I go to school in hoodie and jeans. I wear dress pants and a sweater to church, because its too cold to comfortably wear skirts in the wintertime. I have no idea what's fashionable. I have no clue who the top designers are. I just know that my mood is directly correlated to my comfort, and if I am not comfortable... than I am less agreeable. So, I try to find clothes and shoes that I am comfortable wearing.

2. We own more than 4 working computers, 3 printers, and have boxes of spare computer supplies... for 2 people. Why you ask, because you never know when you might need a new fan, or extra mouse, etc. and 2 of the computers were upgraded for various reasons. (Eta... this was thinned down this past week to: 3 working computers, 1 printer, and 2 boxes of spare computer parts). (3 computers below -- also 3 bookshelves, though these are not by any means all of our books!)

1. Biggest reminder... I am in graduate school, and returned to get additional schooling after an extended break. It took me a while to admit, even to myself, that I really missed school and liked to learn in that environment. But, I do. So here I am.

And, so I am a nerd.

Today felt like 'Good-bye'

2011-08-09T18:34:00.006-04:00

Today felt like a I was saying a long good-bye to our house, and the life that we lived there... Closing the chapter of years well spent under its roof...
Although we still own the house, it is now empty of most of our belongings. The picture is of the last box of stuff to leave the house destined for our apartment. We have no more knick knacks there. The walls have no decor, and are devoid even of a clock. It echos when you talk. I cleaned the rooms, and scrubbed the walls. I burnt the all of the paper meant to start fires in the winter in the hassa -- the remaining water in the tubes, gave a half-hearted gurgle. The few items in the house have a final location identified -- either long-term storage, remain with the house, or someone else's place. It felt good to get the house so cleaned out, but it also felt like I was saying good-bye to the place, cleaning it out for its final time... trying to remove the last bits of us so somebody else (hopefully) can move in and love it just as much.

It's not just that I loved the place, and that somehow its crayola colored walls had become home to me. Saying good-bye also meant that I was closing the door to a myriad of things I loved about the place: hosting overnight guests, having couples over, cooking in the kitchen in the fall/winter, hauling/splitting/stacking wood on crisp fall mornings, decorating for Christmas and the other winter Holidays, spending weekends curled up in front of the fire, watching the garden come to life in the spring (and always thinking that I would keep it weed free this year), and grilling out dinner on the deck in the summer. Although there are many things that I do love about apartment life, especially its ease... there are just some things about the house I will miss.

During our years at the house, we managed to accomplish quite a bit. Although, I think there will always be 'home projects', this place had its own special brand project... One thing I can't fault the house for, in the absence of school... it kept me busy. In our 4 years we:
-tore down the oldest barn in the county (because of a cracked beam) and a chicken coop
-put in a floor in the garage and automatic garage doors
-replaced ~20 windows (all windows) on 2 floors of the house because the ones that were there were single pane, were cracked and did not open
-put in a new wood floor in the living room because the one that was in there... had holes going into the basement (no joke)
-re-did many floors
-painted about every surface in the place
-re-wired the second floor
-put in a water softener... a good thing when your water would otherwise weigh almost as much as solid rusted iron
-chopped up lots of wood from downed trees
-seeded the horse pasture
-refinished the countertops
-added shelving to the pantry and bedroom closet
-gutted and put in a new bathroom
-installed a wood stove
-fixed some holes in the walls
-fixed the trim on the outside of the house, because bats were getting in (we have not had bats in our house in 2+ years)
-among may other projects.

So, I guess it's good bye to the house. It was a good place to live, and a great place to dream. I will miss my time there, but I know that in the future there will be other places to love, call home, make memories in, and dream about other future plans.

Eta: I had to clean it out like this now, because this is my only substantial break until I am done with school. And, if it were to sell or be rented out in the midst of a semester, I would not be able to help out with the move at that time.

My last summer (off) ... ever

2011-08-01T20:33:00.008-04:00

Was a summer well spent?

I think so. However, I did not do anything fantastic or adventurous unlike my classmates; many are in the midst of doing research projects near and afar, attending medical conferences, or doing medical volunteer work abroad with some sightseeing of great places along the way.

Instead, with my 8 weeks of freedom I:
-Spent a week up North
-Spent a weekend on Lake Michigan, fishing, relaxing, and eating ice cream
-Attended the local fair and saw the rodeo/bull riding
-Spent a few weeks cleaning out our house and sorting through our belongings (ongoing)
-Will be spending 2.5 weeks in the anatomy lab starting 8/11/11, studying in order to take my last anatomy exam (with any luck)

Intermixed with these bigger projects and activities, I also saw family and friends.

**Note: I will end up with 3 days of freedom between the completion of my anatomy exam and orientation for school. But, somehow when I was registering my bike (yes, I have another one!), car, and shopping for some school supplies the other day... it was feeling like summer was almost over... feeling like I should be shopping for a few outfits to wear for the school year, thinking about pulling out a long sleeve shirt or two, and being on the look-out for red topped trees in another few weeks.

Reflections on my car accident (part 1 of 3)

2011-07-24T21:00:00.003-04:00

It's been a bit over 6 months since my car accident, and I finally feel like I can write about the accident with some perspective. Perspective that only time brings.

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Background (WARNING -- some people may not want to read):
I rolled a convertible off the interstate while going to class the last week of fall semester. I was found upside down, seatbelted in by a truck driver ~ the roof of the car lower than the level of the steering column. I do not know how long I was alone. I just know that this happened during rush hour in the morning, around 7:30, it took them about 45 min to get me out of the car and 15 to fly me to the hospital; I did not make it to the hospital until 10:30 AM. As it took them so long to get me out of my car, and my car was in such rough shape... I was airlifted to the hospital. At the time the rescue personnel arrived on scene, I did not know my name, where I was going, who I was, my occupation, or anything else about me with any certainty. By the time I arrived at the hospital, I still had not figured out the date.

At the accident scene... I remember being in a fog, and then in a lot of pain (my neck hurt), and finally when they cut my seatbelt off -- very, very cold. Colder than I have ever been in my entire life. When they got me out of the car, in the cold winter air, they cut my jacket off and clothes up (cut jeans above my knees, sweater and shirt above my elbows and in a straight line down to my abdomen) in order to ensure access to veins if needed. They finished cutting my clothes off when we got to the ER and replaced them with a hospital gown.

There are things I remember about the ER -- the absolute chaos when I came into the ER, followed by the absolute stillness once they determined that I was going to be okay. I remembered meeting some people who will have me as a student in the future, and seeing some familiar faces (from shadowing in the same ER earlier in the semester). As my husband was a few hundred miles away on business when he got the call about my accident, my father-in-law came to the ER, and in addition to being a comforting, familiar face; took instructions from the police officer investigating the crash, hospital personnel, etc. and reassured my husband about my status until Pete arrived -- things that I was not able to do in my concussed, confused state, and am so thankful that he was there.

I was released from the ER that afternoon, requiring only 6 stitches behind my ear... pretty banged up, and not quite sure if I was going to be able to continue with school, in part because I could not think straight at that time (a post concussion effect -- took a few days to resolve) and also feared that I had forgotten everything I learned fall semester just prior to all the final exams.

Thankfully, I have been able to continue with school. The effects of the accident have been nil, as far as I can tell... although I have decided not to participate in any contact sports/activities that have a higher likelihood of concussion (i.e. hockey, sledding, skiing, lacrosse, etc.) for the next year. And the academic effects have been almost moot ~ I do have to return to school early (August 11-22) to study and take the last exam in Anatomy, which I missed as a result of the accident.

Reflections on my car accident (part 2 of 3)

2011-07-24T20:30:00.002-04:00

To be entirely honest, not a day goes by that I do not think about the car accident. Not all the time, just moments ~ like when I think about the house or the highway or sometimes during a quiet part of the day or when someone I have not seen in a while asks me directly about the accident. The accident changed our life in so many ways ~ mostly for the better, I think. I am a firm believer that "everything happens for a reason, though not always apparent at the time".

Although, I would never have asked to be in such a traumatic accident and if I had to do this year over again knowing what I know now... We would certainly make the choices we made after the accident in hopes of preventing it from ever have happening in the first place.

However, knowing Pete and I, I think we had to go through the accident and its aftermath in order to get to where we are now... our life is much simpler. More focused. We live with more intention and prioritize what we want to do, rather than trying to do everything that we feel we want to/need to do. That's not to say that we did not think about what we were doing last summer before I started school ~ because we did. We just chose to stay/keep life much the same for the wrong reasons.

There is much good that came out of the accident. Pete loves his new job. I was able to move out of our home in order to live near school (difficult to do when you become attached to a place). Hondo spends more time with me, and is able to on walks during the day. I was able to give myself an evening off during the week (Friday nights) ~ what a luxury ~ so nice to have a bit more time for myself or to spend with Pete. We got rid of all car payments. Pete became available to help me with household tasks (laundry/cooking/cleaning) during the week, and actually acquired enough free time to take up flying... something he has talked about doing for years.

So, all-in-all, the accident was not all bad but just served as a reminder of the fragility of life and that we are not always in control.

Reflections on my car accident (part 3 of 3)

2011-07-24T20:00:00.002-04:00

Misc. lessons learned from the car accident:

1. I avoid telling people who have been in a bad car accident (and perhaps other near death experiences?)... "You are lucky to be alive.". Though true, and despite people's best intentions, this comment never sat well with me. It is an instantaneous reminder that this accident could have had really different outcomes, and made me feel somehow undeserving of how well I fared, like I won some sort of sick cosmic jackpot.

Instead of that comment, I found things like, "thinking of you" or "hope you feel better soon", or "there are easier ways to get out of taking exams", to be more supportive. On that note, I was really touched by all the people who called in the days following the accident, and it was really nice to have Pete around to screen my phone calls/take messages and allow me to rest. It was nice to know that people were thinking of me, without having to interact with everyone individually.

2. I have learned more about something called the bystander effect, and now look for drivers in the ditch/new accidents to report to 911. Despite my accident occurring during rush hour, nobody called to report my accident until the truck driver stopped and held my hand, and I do not know how long I was alone.

3. Having a chaplain call a family member with only bare-bones information (like, "your wife has been airlifted to the ER") and no other details can cause a lot of worry and anxiety for the family member on the receiving end of the phone call.

4. It's good to have a family member/friend come with, to get instructions from the people in the hospital (in addition to being a familiar face)... being in the ER/hospital is disconcerting enough (especially with a concussion)!

5. Time is an important resource in life. We have become more critical of how this resource is being consumed, because in the end that's what life is... time. And how we choose to spend it, is important. And, we may as well spend more of it doing things that we enjoy doing, rather than blindly spending it wastefully... so we have trimmed out things that we don't enjoy that much: most of the commute, cooking, cleaning beyond what's required for sanitation, etc.

And... I think that's all! :)

He made it 3 times around the pattern... safely

2011-07-22T11:29:00.002-04:00

That's... 3 takes offs and 3 landings. And LOVED it! :)

He came home wired, and excited, and happy. It's fun to see him that way! :)

Pete has his first solo flight today! :)

2011-07-21T08:00:00.001-04:00

After 10 hours of instruction, Pete will be taking off and landing a plane by himself this afternoon. He has talked about this day since he started flying, as it's the day that each of the pilot's he's met remembers as the day they were hooked for life (or alternatively, the day some other students found out that flying is really not their thing)!

I think he will enjoy it, but I will be thinking of him the whole time he is up in the air... floating around free, doing his drills... but mostly, hoping he comes down safely! :)

U.P. ~ Summer Vacation 2011

2011-07-18T00:42:00.015-04:00

This past week, Pete and I spent some time relaxing in the UP... the pics below are a few memories from our week off...

Campfire/Wiffleball on the beach with family...

Doing the scenic tour of the UP, including Eagle Harbor... Copper Harbor... Brockway Mountain... and a few other stops with my family...

Spending some time on the water... I noticed these trees from the water and they reminded me of something from a Dr.Seuss book... little tufts of branches at the top.

Outside of the above... we were able to spend quite a bit of time sauna/swimming at the camp where my mom & dad were staying, reading (I got through 8 novels... nothing with any remotely any educational value), and saw a few of our friends too. :) There is nothing quite like the U.P. summer ~ and we felt fortunate to be able to enjoy a whole week of it this year! :)

Public service announcement (PSA) of sorts

2011-07-14T09:13:00.003-04:00

Last week, I took Hondo to the vet for his annual check-up/shots and heartworm test. As I no longer live near my old vet, I went to a local vet teaching hospital and was taught a little bit about how to better care for my dog during the appointment. One of the things I learned, I thought I would share since it rather surprised me...

Prohibited foods for dogs:

Grapes, Raisins, Avocados, Onions, and Garlic.

If your dog is like mine, they sometimes get bits of table food from time-to-time... so, I appreciated them taking the time to go through this list with me. I was only able to say, "no chocolate?" when asked what foods my dog should not be eating.

**********************************************************************************

Outside of that, I was given a few other pointers, that seem specific to a pug/breed with short face and lots of facial folds. I appreciated them telling me how to better care for my dog, because I do not recall anyone doing that in the past with me! :)

Flying with Pete (during his lesson)

2011-07-06T15:59:00.007-04:00

Yesterday I went flying with Pete during his lesson! :) We stayed about 1000-3000 feet off the ground the entire lesson -- doing 45degree angle turns, practicing recovering after stalling out the engine, taking off/landing, following lines on the ground and turning. It really is a different experience than riding in a commercial craft, or being in a car.
Ground appearing to come at us during a 45 degree turn! (All well controlled and in good fun!)
View of fields for most of the lesson ~ peaceful!

First day of Freedom!

2011-07-01T08:19:00.002-04:00

Now to go collect pics of my planned day...
A poolside pic of some sort.
A cup of iced tea with lemon.
And a copy of some novel half finished... taking suggestions on such a novel! Preferably, something quick and easy to follow.

What does one year of med school curriculum look like?

2011-06-14T10:54:00.006-04:00

Getting that I am almost done with the first year and am starting to study for finals/put away books and re-organize the bookshelf... I decided to weigh the material sitting on my bookshelf.

About ~140 lbs.

Note: This is just the text books, coursepacks... and does not count the many volumes of notes that were taken independent of this stack of books, or the stacks of notecards I use to memorize things. Also, does not include the clinical skills supplies or anatomy lab supplies.

2011-06-09T19:15:00.003-04:00

A few misc. updates on our life.

Pete really does have a new hobby. The other day he came home with a Student Pilot Certificate ~ he is officially registered with the FAA and is now working towards getting his pilots license. He has really been enjoying this hobby ~ coming home and telling me about how much he enjoys flying and the freedom it brings... and all about the new skills he is learning. At his lesson this past week, he was able to land the plane by himself. I was able to go up with him (along with a real pilot) about a week ago; it was fun to be in the air. It certainly is different than flying commercial! :)

I am almost done with my first year of school ~ looking forward to June 30th (my last exam), and a few weeks of freedom. Plan to spend a week up North, and no other definite plans yet. :)

If you can't laugh at yourself... who can you laugh at?

2011-05-30T13:05:00.007-04:00

Sometimes, the day just does not go as planned.
Last week, I decided that I was going to bike to school -- its not too far to school, it was looking to be a nice day, and I had plenty of time before my morning class. And biking to school seems like a great way to get exercise & be green to the environment. So, I get on our bike only to realize that the tires were low. "No problem", I thought, "there is a gas station a few blocks away where I can fill the tires.". I arrive at the gas station and get the front tire filled no problem, but the back tire... well, when I was filling it and squeezed it to see if it was getting full... it popped. It did not just quietly pop, nope... it POPPED and TWANGED and the metal around the rim of tire came undone (see bottom picture), loud enough that the gas station attendant inside had to come out and check out what was going on. And my ear closest to the bike rang for a short time.
Seeing as I was only a short ways away from home (like 1/2-3/4 mile) and felt too silly to ask if I could leave the now useless bike there to pick-up with our truck in a few minutes... I decided to walk the bike home, only to realize that the explosion of the back tire caused the front tire frame to heat up in one spot and stick, so the wheel no longer rolled... this meant that I ended up carrying the bike home -- still with my backpack and helmet. I must have looked like a sight to those passing me on their way to work, I can only imagine thinking myself, "Doesn't she know she's supposed to ride and not carry that bike?".

My attempt at biking to school failed, but I did manage to get some exercise in that morning (and I did make it to my morning class on time...)! And the loss of the bike... it was no great loss; it was due to be replaced anyway because it had other problems.

2011-05-20T15:25:00.004-04:00

I think I must have spring fever. You know that antsy feeling that seems to come when the seasons change and nicer weather appears? It seems to have come a bit late this year, perhaps owing to how busy I was with schoolwork last semester... I stopped noting the passing of days (only time until the next test). But, I do have it now. So, I am trying to find little activities to fill my time. Like going for more walks (Hondo likes that one), or cleaning up the apartment (its much cleaner than it has been at any other time than when we moved in), or re-arranging and thinning things... I guess my cupboards like that one.

In other news or what-have-you...
I have now completed 2 semesters and 1 week of a third semester of medical school. About a year ago, I had received my acceptance and was nervous/anxious/excited to start... worried that my seven year break in formal education would be too long. I will say this, returning to school was an adjustment in and of itself... but I think the life experience between my years of schooling has enriched my education. There have been many things I have learned in med school which I have been able to relate to things that I had seen/learned/experienced between undergrad and starting med school. It really has been fun to go back to school and learn, I am grateful to have had the experience and looking forward to starting next school year.

Between Spring semester and my current semester, I had a week break which I used to go to Minnesota. It was so fun to go home and spend time with family there. I was kept quite busy each day, and it was fun to see everyone there! While I was there I went to a cousin's wedding, services in the cities, out for appetizers; to Menahga to visit my Grandma (and thank you to the aunts, uncles, and cousins who also came and visited with my mom, dad, and me!); and was able to spend time at each of my sister's and sister-in-law's homes, as well as at my mom & dad's. It was nice to be able to go for a week and spend a little time at each place! Thank you very much to all! :) I will have to post pictures once I load them on my computer.

Pete has a new hobby... maybe.

2011-03-30T09:56:00.004-04:00

Since our life has become slower recently, Pete has decided he needs to do something to fill his evening time. House and yard projects are no longer an option. And spending time with me... not really an option either... most evenings I am shooing him away to study for my next exam. So, he has decided that he wants to work on getting his pilots license. Yesterday evening, he went up for the first time and was able to take the controls in the air. He had a good time, and came home all excited!

This pic is of him flying around:

You never know where...

2011-03-19T19:23:00.005-04:00

Since entering medical school, I have come to realize that the idea that most people are connected by as few as two degrees of separation (but as far as six degrees of separation) is probably true. Several of my classmates know people that I know (either through church, relatives, other people), and it kind of makes the world seem like a bit smaller of a place.

However, I never expected to meet a relative in medical school... While attending a lecture for an elective class, I started chatting with the person sitting next to me. Turns out, this person is a distant relation (second cousin once removed). As I come from a large family, meeting random people who are relatives is not that uncommon... I just had not expected to meet someone that I was related to in medical school!

Yes, we are nerds...

2011-03-14T18:53:00.004-04:00

Happy Pi day!

In honor of Pi Day (3.14), we had a slice of pie at the local pie shop. As good an excuse as any to enjoy a slice of pie! :)

Spring Break

2011-03-10T00:22:00.003-05:00

As of Friday a bit before noon, I have been off on spring break.

My highlights thus far...

-Catching up on sleep. I was only awake for 7 hours on Saturday, and I was not even sick! :)

-Making a trip to the planetarium near my home. Had never been to a planetarium. Really neat to see the night sky constellations pointed out, and learn about dark matter in outer space. Felt like a middle school field trip!

-Seeing the L* family. They made the trip out to visit us on Sunday and have dinner. It was nice to see them! :)

-Attending a recipe exchange party tonight. It was nice to be able to attend a social function on a week night, and get many great new recipes!

Aside from the above, I have also been resting and trying to get some errands done (taxes, oil changes, and the like). I gave myself a four day break from anything school related, and it felt great to relax!

Misc. Ramblings

2011-02-28T13:48:00.004-05:00

About a week ago, a few of my friends and I met for coffee at a place near my new home. It felt so wonderful to have this type of companionship for an evening, we talked about lots of things and nothing until much past my bedtime... it was certainly a nice and welcome break from school.

This is the beginning of the most difficult week in Block I (first year of medical school). We have 3 exams in 5 days (1 down, 2 to go), one of those being a final exam in a difficult course. Because of this weeks intensity, we missed an out-of-town family wedding over the weekend. It would have been nice to go, but sometimes its not possible to make it to everything. I am really looking forward to Friday -- the last exam of the week, and beginning of spring break!

In other news, its nice and sunny today. Its about 40 degrees... I am really starting to get spring fever and looking forward to days that I can sit outside and study! :) Spring is on its way!

2.5 weeks until spring break.

2011-02-16T14:30:00.003-05:00

I need to keep that number in mind, because the next few weeks are going to be difficult in terms of school work load. During these next few weeks, I have 6 exams, 4 quizzes, 2 patient interviews, and 2 papers (following the 2 patient encounters).

2.5 weeks until spring break.

A Pug in an Apartment

2011-02-09T21:18:00.006-05:00

Pugs are called "Velcro Dogs". Ever since Pete left for China, Hondo (our pug) has been my shadow when ever I am at home; following me from room-to-room (so long as the rooms were on the same level), sitting under my desk when I studied, patiently waiting in the kitchen as I cooked for the inevitably dropped piece of vegetable or crumb. Don't get me wrong, he still likes Pete and is really happy to see him when he gets home. He just prefers me.

I did not think that he could be any more velcro-y (if that is a word). However, now that we are in the apartment, this is most certainly what he has become; putting his head on my textbooks when I sit on the couch and study, sitting by the bathroom door when I take a shower, and waking up and moving to another room if I happen to move. Sometimes, I find this very endearing... other times, it reminds me how much I study (and how little I move around throughout the day).

But, he is a good dog. I am reminded of this whenever we go for walks around the complex/town. Occasionally dogs, will come up and say "hi". Many bark (or yip). Some growl. Others look like they want to attack, and nearly choke themselves trying to get closer. He'll go say "hi" and sniff their nose, and then come sit down by my feet. It certainly makes it much easier to have a dog in an apartment complex, when he is generally well-behaved.

Snow Day!

2011-02-02T09:40:00.004-05:00

First one in years!
Although school was canceled today due to snow, Hondo was still taken outside for his walk this morning. He enjoyed being outside; bounding through the cold,white stuff, making tunnels and occasionally eating the snow! This made me laugh and smile this morning. The sidewalks have not been shoveled, and we expect to get several more inches today. The snow was past his shoulders this morning, I wonder how much deeper it will get! :)

Intersting things learned so far in med school

2011-01-28T16:31:00.004-05:00

Following an exam today (one of many this semester), I need to remind myself of all the cool things that I have learned so far in medical school:

-How to use an otoscope (the thing doctor's look in your eyes with), opthalmoscope (the thing doctor's look in your ear and nose with), stethascope, and blood pressure cuffs... I now even have one of each of these items! :)
-Licorice consumption can lead to low potassium in your blood (hypokalemia) and high blood pressure (hypertension)... this is not talking about twizzlers or cheap licorice candy, but more expensive brands of licorice and items that contain real licorice extract or the compound, glycerrhetinic acid.
-Fat from food flows through your lymph system (and not through your blood).
-Panda's can't taste umami, one of the five basic senses.
-The reason hydration packets contain salt and sugar.
-Mucus contains antibodies, and helps to fight (and prevent) infection.
-Something called an auscultatory gap -- where when you measure blood pressure, there can be a gap in sounds and can lead to an inaccurately low blood pressure reading.
-How a body adapts to different kinds of conditions -- bone becomes stronger or weaker depending on activity (and type of activity) level; your gut adapts to different diets to maximize food absorption; you immune system responds to different types of infections, etc. So interesting, and amazing!

Most days, I do really enjoy being in school again. I feel lucky to be able to learn so many interesting things. Of course, there are days that are stressful, or when I momentarily feel overwhelmed. But, most of the time... I don't realize how much time I actually put in, because it is enjoyable and contains at least one fascinating bit of trivia.

Like, did you know that you secrete growth hormone when you sleep?

Pete's Contraptions

2011-01-22T21:01:00.007-05:00

One trip to the laundromat last Saturday was enough to convince my dear husband that the nearest laundromat, though entertaining to visit with internet access and television, was not going to do the trick. After waiting and paying for 3 dryer cycles, Pete came home annoyed and carrying a few heaping loads of still-wet laundry.We hung the wet clothes throughout our apartment. Every door, chair, and bar (towel bar, curtain rod, etc.)was strung with drying garments. It took about 3 days for everything to dry.

In the meantime, Pete searched for a different solution. And yesterday afternoon, the solution arrived. A very compact Chinese-sized (meaning that the model chosen is very popular in China) washer and dryer . These machines require only a normal outlet electrical hook-up, a faucet for water hook-up, and some sort of drain. After a few trips to Home Depot for parts (extra water hose, teflon tape, dryer vent kit, etc.), Pete got the machines set-up.

The pics below are of his latest contraption: The laundry machine (and Pete -- making sure everything is working).

Bath-tub = laundry tub?
Ignore the mess on the counter-top. The dryer, faucet hook-up and cords going every which direction.

Pete was able to get all of our laundry washed and dried today (in the spirit of trying out his latest contraption). Being married to an engin-nerd does have its advantages at times! :)

Sporting a new kind of "backpack"

2011-01-19T15:08:00.005-05:00

Ever since my accident, I have had 3 main complaints: back pain, neck pain, and occasional dizziness when I look up. I had assumed that these would just go away on their own, and really was not doing much about any of these complaints (aside from taking the occasional few advil, and rest) until last Saturday. The back/neck pain got to the point that I could no longer concentrate on well, anything. So, in I went to Urgent Care.

Turns out, I do have a back/neck muscle injury from the accident. So, I was told to not use my backpack any more, as this will only make the injury worse. I am now sporting a new kind of backpack -- it's actually a black, carry-on rolling suitcase, and it works wonderfully. Seriously, this suitcase holds way more than that little backpack ever did. It rolls across campus with ease. And, I can easily pack both my lunch and coffee thermos inside without having to decide which books/course packs I do not need, or resorting to my usual alternative: carrying the back-pack on my back, lunch box around my shoulders (has a long, purse-like handle), and coffee thermos with my left hand.

Now, if only I could find a way to make the thing quiet (instead of going clickity-clack) as I walk across campus...

ETA: Also, because of this injury, I was introduced to another great thing... rice socks. Take a clean, old, long sock. Fill with long-grain rice (not minute rice). Tie the sock. Put in microwave for 1-2 minutes... Makes a great heating pad, and one of life's small pleasures.

7 minutes

2011-01-13T18:28:00.003-05:00

Now that school is in full swing, I am really enjoying the small things in life... like my new 7 minute commute. I now have an extra 10 hours a week to balance school, my life, etc. That's a whole extra day of studying that I get back. Hooray! Perhaps, I can use this time to get more sleep, spend a little more time with Pete, and go for a few more walks with the dog. It will be nice to have the choice regarding what I want to do with that time, instead of budgeting it weekly to commute to school.

Yes, it has been a while...

2011-01-06T15:46:00.004-05:00

It has been a while since I last posted. I was not entirely sure what I should write. So, I would write something and then delete it, write something then delete it. Today, my goal is to write something and actually keep it up.

About a month ago, I was in a bad car wreck. Since that day, my life has entered another transition state. This near brush with death has reminded me of two things, 1) we are not 100% in control, and 2) gave some perspective on my priorities. Pete and I have since replaced the car, and I now live in an apartment much closer to school. Our home has been listed, hoping some other couple or person finds this house as charming, unique, and wonderful as we have these last few years. I will start spring semester on Monday, and feel fortunate that I was able to finish fall semester before break and will be able to continue with school.

Its odd moving away from your home as an adult. Down sizing and re-aligning your life. When school started, I really did not want to move away from this place -- comfortable surroundings, brightly colored walls, a cozy wood stove, and a lot of family/friends nearby. However, this accident has reminded me of my priorities -- right now, school is higher on the list than remaining at home. So, I needed to move closer to make more time for school and minimize some of the risk associated with driving long distances to/from school each day.

I do like my apartment. I can see myself being happy there. There is a wall painted a browny shade of orange. I like it. Colors make me happy, and so I am happy that all of the walls are not a bland palate of whites. It is also close to many things, and should be easier to take care of and maintain during school.

Hopefully, 2011 will be a less exciting year. I am looking forward to starting school again, and all the busy-ness that comes with each semester. Wishing you and yours a wonderful 2011!

School update

2010-09-28T21:24:00.004-04:00

Life's mysteries explained.

These last few weeks I have been filled most days to the brim with new information. Most of this information would have been very useful the last few years in my last job. It makes it so much more fascinating to learn about the hows? and whys? of body systems in anatomy, biochem and physiology. I can immediately fill in the blanks of my wikipedia based prior anatomy lessons. Every time I learn one of these things... I think, why didn't somebody just explain it that way before?

I am enjoying school. I am consistently amazed at the amount of time and energy it takes to go to class, do the reading, and keep up in lab. I often am so engrossed in the material that I loose track of time -- and hours pass by very quickly. I often feel that there is not enough time in each day to do everything that I used to do. The things that have been sidelined are: house projects, many cleaning activities, social activities, and laundry (especially folding and putting away clothes). I am lucky to have wonderful classmates that I enjoy learning from and with.

On that note, my scrubs (which I wear to anatomy lab) are finished washing. Now to transfer them to the dryer, so that I have clean scrubs to wear again to anatomy tomorrow.

One Week In... Many to go

2010-09-04T18:14:00.003-04:00

I have now completed my first week of medical school.

The material is fascinating. The speed at which it comes is intense.

During orientation it was likened to two analogies, both of which I believe to be true:

Medical school is like, trying to take a drink out of a fire hydrant.

Medical school is like, trying to eat an elephant. You have to eat it one bite at a time.

So far, we have went through about 75-100 pages of course pack material (i.e. lecture notes) in each class. This does not count the many pages of reading required outside of class, just to keep up in class. Additionally, for each of my three main science courses (currently), there have been at least 1 (if not more) additional lecture supplements that need to be watched online.

Med School is not like undergrad. The instructors do not get behind in the course material. If they are not able to cover 1o min. course material in lecture, it becomes an online lecture supplement. It is not covered at the start of the next class period, before moving onto the next planned lesson.

I have my first quiz on Tuesday. Wish me luck! :)

White Coat Ceremony

2010-08-29T21:12:00.005-04:00

Tonight marked the end of orientation... My classes white coat ceremony was held tonight in Grand Rapids. School begins bright and early tomorrow.

The white coat ceremony is a ceremony to mark the beginning of the pre-clinical years (i.e. the first 2 years of medical school, before a medical student starts to regularly see patients) and to remind students of their obligation to care for patients (and not just to treat them). The dean and others in the college spoke, our class walked across the stage and were coated individually by members of the faculty and alumni of the college, we recited the matriculating student oath, sat through a few parting words... and then off to be hugged and congratulated by our family and friends.

This is a picture of Pete and myself immediately following the ceremony. As you can see, this is a happy occasion. I was honored to have not only my husband, but my parents, in laws, both sets of Pete's grandparents, and Kate and Kent at the ceremony. All in all, about 1800 people were present to support the 200 people starting medical school this fall.

Well, now off to sleep... school starts bright and early tomorrow morning.

Eta... It was fun to see my folks this weekend. We spent yesterday and this morning with them. A quick weekend. Spent playing rook, chatting, and making sure I had the necessary things for my ceremony today. The weekend went by so quick!

Home Projects Pictures

2010-08-25T22:35:00.008-04:00

In the last few weeks, we have been able to get a few projects done... It feels good to have been able to get a few projects completed in the space between medical school acceptance and the start of orientation. It somehow makes my home feel more in order, and settled.

Trim has been stripped, primed and repainted.

Curtains have been hung in the living room.

The curtains that I made for the bedroom have been hung up. This is the shade all the way up (looks like a valence... but don't look too closely).

And the curtain down for the night. (Again, do not look closely... my sewing technique leaves much to be desired.)

And Hondo now has a new hiding spot (thanks to my new desk). Hondo follows me around when I am home, and likes to be within a few feet of me (quite literally). Especially when Pete is gone, I find this little quirk quite comforting.

Med School (orientation) has started

2010-08-22T21:00:00.004-04:00

Saturday marked the beginning of my medical school career. It was the first day of orientation, and a very busy day at that... The day was fun, and I met many wonderful and unique people. There is certainly much diversity in my class -- I am looking forward to getting to know my classmates (in addition to the course material).

But anyways, would you have expected the first day of orientation to be tag, a few puzzles, and a game called four-feet (get 4 people from point A-> B using only 4 feet, then 3 feet, then 2 feet... etc.)? Well, it was. I can not remember the last time I have done any of the aforementioned activities (with exception of making a puzzle last winter) in the last decade or so. Evidently, the first day of med school is a lot like an grade school birthday party (without the cake and ice cream)! :)

Tomorrow, starts the first full week of orientation -- many lectures on professionalism, debt management, etc. Wednesday afternoon is devoted to a community service activity, and Thursday afternoon I have my first test (CPR skills test). Friday afternoon, I get my remaining school supplies and meet the second year students. And then, Saturday... my mom and dad come into town... For Sunday's white coat ceremony.

And then... school starts promptly at 8:00 AM on Monday, August 30th. Should be a fun adventure.

Misc. Ramblings (Aren't they all?)

2010-08-08T16:48:00.004-04:00

Pete and I returned home on Tuesday after a lovely, long weekend in the U.P. -- our 1st time returning to the shores of Lake Superior as a couple to vacation since Pete graduated from Tech. We had a wonderful time -- enjoying the sand, waves, sun, and visiting with friends & family. When you don't return to an area for a few years, it is easy to see the passing of time. Since we left, everybody is doing something or is located somewhere else. It's amazing. But, it was so fun to catch up with everyone! We will have to make it back more often than once every 4 years going forward! :)

Tomorrow, I start my last week of work. I think this is the first time I have ever written about work on this blog. Although I am excited to start this next phase (school and new career), and in many ways I wish the second week of school were here already; it feels odd to be saying good-bye to my current job. I will miss the people, and many aspects of my current job. I have enjoyed working in clinical research for the last 6 or so years; perhaps, I will have the opportunity to work with clinical trials again in the future.

Pete returns to Ohio tomorrow. We were spoiled this week -- following our mini-vacation to the U.P., Pete was able to be home. It felt nice to have him around in the evenings. I have been told to expect his weekday absence through October.

Well, wish you all the best in your day.

Books, books, and more books

2010-07-18T07:51:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, I was able to sign up for classes, and received my books/supplies list. It feels good to move toward my next adventure, and know a bit more about how the fall semester will be. And busy, it will be. Next semester, I have exams every week but 2. I have a 1.5 page book list in small font. I have a 3 page equipment list, most to be used starting the second semester. I have 4 chapters of assigned reading due the third day of school for 1 of my 6 or 7 courses this semester. I have enrolled in 19 credit hours. It will be busy. But, many people go through medical school each year, so it is not an unbearable load for majority of those who make it through the intense application process.

I am still excited to be starting school. Becoming both more and less nervous with each passing day. Knowing my courses/books/supplies/etc. is helpful. Having met one of my younger future classmates also was helpful. However, until I actually start... I will not know what school is actually like, and will not know the majority of my future classmates. Orientation begins in 33 days... and counting.

2010-07-12T19:28:00.004-04:00

It is crazy how quickly the summer is going... Already about 1/2 over, and soon Pete & I will begin our next adventure. Getting me to finish medical school -- 40 days until I begin orientation to be exact. 24 days left of work. (Not that I am counting or anything)

Since my last post, Pete & I had the pleasure of camping at Warren Dunes on Lake Michigan for 4th of July weekend with my family & our friends. We had a great time -- lots of time in the water and visiting. Highly suggest this park, although perhaps on a less busy weekend (the park was packed).

On July 5th, Pete packed his bags... he will be gone during the week for about the next 10 weeks, and home on the weekends. We decided that this arrangement is really not that bad. During the week, we both keep busy anyway... however, I do miss him by Friday and it is still nice to see him.

As our free weekends are numbered (we do not know what to expect once school starts), we have been chipping away at house projects.
*I am trying to find/make the remaining curtains needed for the main level & upstairs bathroom. I have a bit more confidence in my sewing skills since I finished our bedroom curtains (which if you see them, do not look close - the sewing is obviously not straight) which work to block out the early AM sunshine.
*Pete is getting the trim painted.
*We are going to be cleaning up some dead trees in the front lawn.

Hopefully, we can accomplish these projects during the next 6 weekends. Take care & enjoy the sun!

Free kittens?

2010-06-27T14:21:00.003-04:00

About 9 weeks ago, our cat had two kittens. 1 male, 1 female. Both tiger stripped, with a solid color stomach. Very cute, playful, and affectionate. If you know of anybody who needs a
kitten, please let me know.

New Office - Check

2010-06-27T13:42:00.007-04:00

In preparation for my return to school, Pete and I decided a few weeks ago that I needed a larger study area. We have been looking for a desk/office furniture. Yesterday, we located the perfect desk set at Habitat for Humanity-- a 4 piece office furniture set. It is in wonderful condition, and certainly large enough for any of my needs.

After we brought the desk set home, we cleaned up the house a bit, and moved Hondo out of his room on the main floor (relocated him to the end of the second floor hallway, next to window and third floor stairs), and moved the furniture into the space. I also went and purchased a few office supplies and drawer organizers -- I am certainly looking forward to starting school!

Here is a look at Hondo's room before:

And my new office after! I still need to get a few decor type items, a laptop/printer/etc., and a desk lamp. I believe Pete may also be making another book shelf or two.

Starting our next adventure

2010-06-13T19:29:00.004-04:00

Pete & I have been working on starting our next adventure... one of us being a student again. It should be an interesting journey! :)

After finding out I will be attending school this upcoming fall, the following things have been done:
-Party to celebrate being accepted to medical school
-Meeting with the financial aid office
-Deciding to stay in our house (instead of moving toward selling our home)
-Notifying my work of my impending departure (last day is August 13th).

Additionally, our summer project list has been updated.
It now consists of:
1) Converting Hondo's room to my office
2) Cutting up a few more dead trees for firewood this winter
3) Re-painting the outside trim, and repairing any loose siding.

Hopefully, we are able to accomplish the above items in the few weeks remaining before school starts. This blog will now chronicle both things -- school adventures & home renovations as both will be projects the next few years.

Accepted

2010-05-17T20:51:00.004-04:00

This morning I found out some news that will undoubtedly change both Pete & my life... I have been accepted to medical school. I was trembly, I was shakey, and I had a smile on my face all day. It is good, but scary, news. And I could concentrate on little else.

I will start school again in August. It has been 7 years since I last loaded up a backpack with notebooks and pens/pencils with the sole goal of mastering a subject and passing a class. I have been told that returning to school is "like riding a bike". Is this really true? Is it really that simple? I hope so, with one caveat... I hope to take school more seriously the second time around. This time, people will one day be counting on me to know the subject matter.

Despite my nervous thoughts, I have been absolutely gleeful all day long; feeling like I did the day I got engaged... like I could not stop smiling! It is a powerful thing to see your dreams start to come to fruition. I am fortunate to have a husband who is very supportive of my dreams and has encouraged me to follow them. We are very excited to begin the next phase of our journey, knowing that in a few short years I will be what I wanted since I was young... a physician.

Busy, busy days

2010-04-20T18:45:00.005-04:00

Our lives are full of fun! :)

Last week was spent enjoying time in Minnesota; Pete with his buddies and me with my family.

We traveled to the land of 10,000 lakes for a wedding -- Pete was best man in his friend Jeff's wedding. It was a very beautiful wedding -- lots of tulips and spring-time colors. True to past weddings (in his group of friends), the bachelor party lasted longer than a single night... Pete got to spend time with Jeff (and others) starting Tuesday through the night of the wedding. It sounds like they really had fun times together!

I spent the week with family, and it was fantastic.
* On Tuesday, for instance, I got to spend the day with my dad. I probably have not spent a day with my father since I moved out of the house. We had a great time talking as we traveled north to visit Grandma S., some aunts and uncles, and stopping at my sister's apartment on the way home.
* Thursday was my sister Kristen's baby shower. I was so happy to be home for this event. When I live so far away, I miss out on so much. It is simply not possible to be home for everything. I have made my peace with this fact, but certainly enjoy it when I can make it to these celebrations!
* Friday, I spent the day at Como Zoo with my mom and Grandma D. They have this crazy toad that looks like a dead leaf... there are so many interesting animals out there!
*After the wedding, on Saturday... my family had a surprise early 26th birthday party for me. It was fun ~ best 26th birthday party I've ever been too! :)
Aside from these things, I was able to get to each of my sister's homes, and spend a bit of time with my sister-in-law!

Other than the above trip... We have been on the road quite a bit lately. Pete has been traveling for work, Texas for the two weeks following his trip to Vancouver/the Olympics, and myself to Marquette for a girl's weekend with the L. family.

In between these trips, we have managed to stay busy with house projects... I have now completed my curtains for our bedroom (which are still waiting to be hung), and Pete has removed the big rocks from the flower gardens (in preparation for mowing them over). Our house project is coming along nicely, and I am looking forward to a few weekends at home this spring!

Olympics

2010-02-27T17:48:00.010-05:00

February certainly flew by...

This month we have made progress on our home -- Pete finished wiring the second floor. With more outlets on the second floor, I have been able to set up a sewing area. And, I have started to make curtains for our bedroom. I have completed 1.75 curtains for our bedroom & am fairly pleased with the way the curtains have turned out -- especially with how they block out sunlight in the morning! I will post pictures when I get all 3 curtains finished.

Pete just returned today from Washington state. He had been there this past week for work. Fortunately, he and his co-worker finished up their project a day earlier, and were able to head up to Vancouver for a day to enjoy the Winter Olympics.

Pete in front of the Olympic flame.

Waiting in line to get into the curling arena -- notice that its through a residential area of town...

Next picture -- China wins the bronze in Women's curling!

Pete with the Finnish bobsled team.

Snow Day

2010-02-10T15:58:00.004-05:00

It's absolutely beautiful today...

There's about 10" of fresh snow on the ground, and as I am stuck at my house (until I get plowed out)... today feels like time has stopped. Granted I have been working on things from home. And granted I have been getting other things done (unpacking from recent trip to Scottsdale, laundry, etc.). It feels cozy -- like the world has been wrapped in a white fleecy blanket. How lovely.

*************************************************************

I went to Scottsdale over the weekend for work. It felt completely amazing to see bright sunshine and feel 70 degree weather (remember short sleeves anyone?). I also had an opportunity while I was there to see an old friend, Emily. It was wonderful to catch up with her -- I have not seen her since college. Funny how time can pass so quickly by!

I used to dread going out of town for these meetings -- I think I have rather come to enjoy it. Perhaps, its because Pete's not travelling as much that these short trips are enjoyable. Or perhaps, I have become more comfortable with venturing out on my own. Maybe, its both. Whatever it is... sometimes spending a few days away can be refreshing.

Hectic to less harried

2010-02-01T22:08:00.002-05:00

I made the decision to quit the play. There is a fine line between busy and crazy, so I quit.

Although I miss acting, really enjoyed being on stage again (first time in a decade!), and met some wonderful people... I am glad that I made the decision to quit. The schedule for rehearsals was becoming increasingly demanding. Late last week, I found out that I am going to Scottsdale, AZ this weekend for a work meeting (with accompanying increase in work due to being out of the office). Additional hockey games were added into my hockey schedule on Sunday. And Pete & I are trying to finish up a few house projects (Pete: wiring, me: getting up the enthusiasm to set up a sewing area to make curtains). It was simply becoming too much. So, I quit. I needed sleep more than something to do in the evenings.

Happy winter!

Productive Day

2010-01-27T16:38:00.004-05:00

Last night, Pete and I returned from Jay Peak, Vermont.

Above: Picture is supposed to be rotated -- trees covered in snow

We went out there for a long weekend to go skiing/snowboarding in the Green Mountains --leaving on Friday, and coming home yesterday.
Today, I managed to...
*Do our 2009 taxes.
*Do all the laundry that accompanies a vacation.
*Unload the car (and all of our associated winter gear).
*Play with Hondo, our dog.

Above: Everybody who went skiing

We had a great time out East. We met up with Pete's family out there, and were able to get in 2 beautiful days of skiing (me)/snowboarding (Pete) before we headed home. The days were sunny, the snow was very white, and the trees were somewhat sparkly from ice/snow build-up on the branches. The weather did not cooperate on Monday (50 degrees and rainy)-- but you can't expect beautiful weather the whole time, right? It felt great to get away, and spend sometime outside.

On a side note, this is the first time I remember being in Canada (there are a few pictures of me at the border when I was real small). Seems strange that I've never visited this near neighbor to the North. :)

Fighting Winter Blahs...

2010-01-07T17:55:00.002-05:00

This winter, I decided to be pro-active about the winter blahs... The winter blahs are the feeling that sets in around Mid-February or March just before the snow recedes, whispers of spring are seen, and winter begins to feel endless. I decided that I needed to get a hobby, outside of the house (outside of hockey) --just to keep busy, and challenge myself.

I saw an ad in the paper for auditions for a local theater company. I auditioned. And I got a part. I will be playing a hospital worker in the Hartland Players production of W;T (http://www.hartlandplayers.org/index.php?view=details&id=12:wit&option=com_redevent&Itemid=5). The play's content is a little close to my real job, but should be enjoyable nonetheless.I am looking forward to the challenge, as I have not acted in a play in a little over a decade. I have my first rehersal tonight, and am really looking forward to it. It should be fun memorizing lines again; helping put together the set, and re-learning how to take stage directions. But, it should not be such a challenge as to be overwhelming... just a fun experience!

On a side note: the auditions allowed me to meet more of my neighbors. Who knew that so many people living within a few house radius would be auditioning for the same play!?!?!

2009 in Highlights

2010-01-01T01:00:00.002-05:00

Taking a nod from Julie's blog... Here is our 2009 highlight reel:

Best Times: 1) Kristen & Todd's wedding -- such a happy time! 2) Having my family out here a few times. 3) My mini, solo vacation to Boston: having dinner with Maria, touring the Freedom trail, and taking long bubble baths. 4) Going fishing Labor Day weekend with Pete's family. 5) Coffee Wednesday nights with the girls. 6) Watching Walter catch his first fish 4th of July time. 7) Having Beth for a few weekends this past October -- it was fun to have some action at our house on the weekends. 8) Trips to the coast this past summer.

Hardest Times: A camping trip in the early summer with our friends. It was a cold, wet, rainy weekend and we were near lake Michigan. Everything was damp, and chilled. I was happy when the weekend was over and I could enjoy the warmth of my own bed. For future years... we will plan the trip later in the year!

Best Restaurant: Any little local place, that's not a big chain.

Favorite Music: In no particular order...
1) "Dance Little Jean" by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCvWdBuJxP0
2) "Very Busy People" by The Limousines (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuXOao6jBoM ) **Words are not appropriate for all ages
3) "Guitar Town" by Steve Earle (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AINUPFbFpqg)
4) "Fireflies" by Owl City ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zr9EKJatJvA )
5) "Runaway Train" by Roseanne Cash (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aApAFwZRxuU)
6) "Beautiful Day" preformed by World Idol winnder, Kurt Nilsen (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKg7SB-tcdA )
Among much other music!

Awesome TV Show: The Big Bang Theory (Of course!) and True Blood.

Best Books: The Twilight Saga. Quick, easy reading. Recommended for those who have not yet read the series! :)

New Favorite Way to Ingest Chocolate: Hot Cocoa made from scratch (combine 2 Tbsp. sugar and 1 Tbsp. cocoa in a glass. Add about 1/3 cup milk. Heat in the microwave to boiling. Stir until cocoa and milk combine. Fill remaining cup with milk. Heat to hot enough in the microwave. Add a small glug of vanilla extract. Enjoy. -- Have with a piece of buttered toast... mmm mmm good.)

Or peanut butter M & Ms.

Favorite Drink: Chai lattes. Or spiced apple cider. Water's good too.

Funniest Memories: 1) Pete & Ed went golfing... long story short, Pete ended up with a mouse in his shirt! Many funny recounts of this story. 2) Kristen & Todd's wedding weekend! Many funny memories from that weekend... Their wedding was beautiful and both parties were relaxed the whole time! :) 3) Learning how to tan my legs for Kristen's wedding from Pete's aunt Karen... (First step, change out of jeans and into shorts)! :)

Favorite Websites: http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/ -Found from Jan's website! This site kept me laughing from time to time! :) **May contain content inappropriate for small children.
http://www.pandora.com/ -- Music to listen to -- learns to play music that you like.
http://www.youtube.com/ -- You can find almost anything on this site.

Funnest Surprise: A few weekend trips to the coast -- nothing better to do on a Saturday or Sunday, so we spent time on the beach!

Goals Accomplished: 1) House projects: Fixing the holes in the living room walls (thank you dad!). Having new windows installed on the first and second floors. Painting Hondo's room. Spending Saturday's cutting up trees in the front yard. Installing a rod to organize items in my closet. 2) Taking the MCAT, and applying to medical school. Regardless of if I get into school for next fall, it is still a big step to apply and I am proud of myself for even doing that.

Favorite Purchase: The eee PC computers Pete bought us last spring. These things have been really nifty -- portable, internet compatible, and able to be used to watch movies/tv shows online.

Guilty Pleasure: Reading. Ask Pete -- when I read, I have very good concentration (for the book and can tune out almost everything else).

Plans for 2010? Learning to play the guitar. Maybe, finally making curtains for my windows. Hunting squirrels out the window. Re-siding and repairing the trim on our house. Perhaps finishing a denim blanket I started the fall Pete & I were first married. Celebrating our 5th anniversary.

Squirrel Hunting

2009-12-26T18:14:00.010-05:00

Season's greetings!

We had a wonderful Christmas, spending the time at home and visiting with family. On Christmas eve, we saw both sides of Pete's family and then had his older cousins (and uncle) over for games -- so much fun and many laughs! On Christmas day, we had lunch at Pete's parents and went over to his aunt & uncle's for some more visiting. Always fun to catch up with everyone! :) I thought that I would share a few photos of our Christmas decor before I dismantle them tonight/this next week:

Cup cupboard

Decor on top of the living room cabinet filled with Christmas lights...

Stockings hung by the chimney with care...

We did not have a Christmas tree... so clean-up is really easy! :)

Today, 1 day after the Christmas festivities... it's snowing (we have had a rain mixture for the last day or two), and looks like winter outside! We have spent today more or less relaxing... sleeping in until late, going out for breakfast, putting the Christmas cards in the photo album, and then... declaring war on the squirrels. This past week, we heard the squirrels in the ceiling of the second floor. So, after breakfast, we bought a BB gun, a few live traps, and a squirrel feeder. The squirrel feeder has been mounted to a tree outside this window -- the plan is: see squirrel, open window, shoot squirrel (who then becomes cat food). After the squirrels are no longer in the house, we plan to re-side the house and repair the trim and thus prevent more squirrels from entering our domicile...

I hope that you had a very Merry Christmas! Best wishes for a lovely 2010!

A week before Christmas and all through the house...

2009-12-19T19:14:00.002-05:00

I am admittedly a Christmas slacker this year. I have procrastinated throughout the season to get the Christmas things done that are supposed to get done.

I got Christmas cards out last week, finally.

Made my first batch of Christmas "cookies" today (carmels & peanut butter truffles).

And have finally decided that its too close to Christmas to put up a tree (sounds like a lot of work for 1 week)....

Somehow, it still feels like Christmas to me. We've went to a few parties, and enjoyed the Christmas trees at other people's homes. This season has been quite relaxing... since I have slacked on the decorating and baking, I somehow have been able to enjoy the seasonal gatherings and others cookies a bit more. But... I am still wondering, is it wrong to enjoy the season without putting up a tree?

(Don't get me wrong -- I hope not to make an annual habit of being a Christmas slacker... but for this year, it sure feels nice.)

Merry Christmasl!

Winter is finally here!

2009-12-07T20:28:00.005-05:00

Alright... so life has been busy here at home, so I missed writing something entirely in November! :)

We had the privilege of watching Beth during the end of October/beginning of November, while her parents were travelling. It was so much fun to have her around, with all of her busy activities! We carved pumpkins, and she had friends over here. She kept us entertained with the stories of her school days! :) I would post a photo or two... but these are on my "old" computer!

Which brings me to my next item... We had a major computer breakdown last month. Both Pete & I lost our computer monitors. So, Pete decided to improve our computer set-up. I was without a computer for a few weeks last month while the necessary parts were ordered, and assembled. Pete built a new computer for himself and set-up network storage. He was so excited to complete his new computer -- it's a solid state hard drive, for those techies reading! I now have his old computer... and it runs much quicker than the last relic I was using...

Shortly after the computer upgrades were completed, we journeyed to Minnesota. We celebrated Christmas as a family on Tuesday -- complete with a fantastic prime rib dinner, trade names, and Christmas decor. A good time was had by all!

On Thursday (Thanksgiving) my mom's side of the family got together to celebrate Thanksgiving -- most of the family was around, and it was fun to see most of my aunts, uncles, and cousins at this dinner.

Black Friday, my sisters, mom, and I went shopping. We were on the morning news (but can not seem to find the clip any where online). Later that day while we were still shopping, a lady came up to us and exclaimed, "I saw you on the news this morning -- you're famous! You all look like so much fun.". It would be fun to see this clip and what exactly was shown... only my mom looked put together; the rest of us were a conglomeration of messy ponytails, and sweatshirts. But shopping with my mom and sisters is always a good time!

I would post photos of our trip to Minnesota, however... I neglected to use my camera.

We arrived home from Minnesota on Sunday morning at 3 AM. As much fun as it is to be away, it always feels good to return home. We picked up our dog, and settled back into our routine. I was happy to find that we still have a cat.

Last Tuesday, however, I came down with the flu. As an adult, this bug certainly packs a punch! I was down for the count through the weekend... today, is my first day out of pajamas and vertical for any length of time.

Sometime during this last week, we had our first snow fall... winter is finally here!

So, tonight... I am updating this long neglected blog, and trying to teach myself to play a few guitar chords by the fireplace. My hope is that someday, maybe... I will be able to play a song in its entirety... but for tonight, I am happy to learn finger placement for the A, C, and G chords.

Happy December to all! I hope to update this more often.

What October means...

2009-10-23T17:26:00.012-04:00

October certainly has been a busy month... It was the end of the regular baseball season, hailed with a the end of the baseball "powerlock" between Pete and his dad. Pete was ahead in the number of games won right up until the end of the season, when his dad made a come back and won. The above picture shows the exchange of the trophy (but does not show the red "carpet" upon which the trophy was presented). Fun for all involved! :)

October also meant a trip for me... I went to Boston for a few days for work. During this trip I discovered the Twilight series, and read all 4 books in a period of 5 days. Seriously good books!

I stayed across from Boston garden and Boston Common. I took advantage of my location -- touring the parks and going on a guided hike of the Freedom trail.

Did you know that Mother Goose was a real person? I saw her grave on the tour... Her headstone is below...

I also found out the Greek Revival style of home (the style of my house) is very popular around Harvard Square... I saw many homes with this styling... Interesting to see them in another color other than white! :)

I also had the privilege of having dinner with this lady when I was out East. She brought me to a fantastic place for dinner called Fire & Ice. It was fun to catch up and see a familiar face! :) Thank you again!

Since returning from Boston, we had a bit of excitement. Last weekend was the Detroit marathon. Unfortunately, all the pictures I took at the marathon are on a non-digital camera (and will not be included on this blog). Congratulations to all the runners & it was fun to see those who came into town for the race.

Sunday after the marathon, Hondo developed an ulcerated cornea. He gets to wear this e-collar for a little while (to prevent him from rubbing his eye and further irritating it). He looks so pathetic, its cute!

Finally, this weekend we get to spend with this little person! We are looking forward to a fun weekend with her! :) I got to pick her up today after school -- she had gone on a field trip to a one room school house and was all dressed up!

Under any circumstances... we have not been getting too much in the way of projects done around the house. Our current project is splitting and stacking wood (from dead trees on our property) -- a physically demanding job that heats us twice (once when we split and stack, and once when the wood gets burned).

Updates on Life

2009-09-14T23:20:00.004-04:00

Since I last wrote... we have celebrated our 4th anniversary, Pete's 26th birthday, Pete's dad's 50th birthday... and I caught a fish! :) We had a great time fishing with Pete's family! :)

We continue to chop wood nearly every weekend. Our wood pile keeps growing; we should be able to heat at least this winter with the supply we have on hand now!

Decisions, decisions... ?

2009-08-21T20:16:00.006-04:00

I recently read a post on Evelyn's blog that inspired me to add this post, about my current plans to apply to medical school.

While in college, I toyed with getting a PhD, or MD. However, shortly after I graduated, I decided to work as I did not want to commit 4 years of time (and money) into an advanced degree when I might not work until retirement age. This year when Pete & I were travelling home from MN on New Year's Day, we discussed future plans, projects, etc. During this car ride, we made a decision that I would (try to) go back to school to become a physician. Obviously, this is a decision that was not made lightly, due to the significant time and financial commitment's involved with this process.

Since New Year's Day, I have been working on trying to get into medical school for Fall 2010. I have taken the MCAT (this test is scored similar to the ACT for admission to college for an undergraduate degree). I got my score back on August 2nd, and was very happy with it. Now, I am in the process of completing the primary application and requesting letters of recommendation from past professors and a few physicians that I work closely with at my current job. I need to complete 2 more sections (essay/personal statement, and finalize my 15-item resume), and confirm 1 more letter of recommendation before I can submit my primary application.

I sincerely hope that I do get into school, however this is something that both excites and scares me. It has been 6 years since I was last in school and regularly took exams, studied, and/or did homework. It has been about 3 years since Pete & I were broke college students living on a single income with school bills. And if I do get in, I am looking at about a decade of time commitments between medical school, residency, and perhaps fellowship before I am "done". But, I do want to be a doctor.

As this is a something in our lives right now, I think I will include bits of my progress from time to time. Maybe, if I get accepted(chance = 33%), I will join the host of students returning to school next fall.

Evidence of a new coat of paint

2009-08-17T19:29:00.008-04:00

Here are the photos -- I could show the shots of me with paint everywhere (including a few dots on my contacts), and a few bruises (from falling off the ladder & bumping into things) for added color... if I had taken the pictures. Or of the off-white flecks of paint that dotted Pete's already white-blond hair, and the camel-colored wood filler dotted on his blue jeans. Or I could just show you our latest projects. Let's go for the last one -- I think it's the most interesting.

The bathroom sink where we washed all of the paint brushes -- note all the lovely paint colors. The photo immediately below the sink, is the newly painted bathroom. Looks essentially the same as it did before -- but the paint job is a bit better.
This is the photo of the primed post. We are in the midst of finishing the trim (stripping and re-painting), in an effort to sure up the house. These little projects keep Pete & I nicely entertained.
The last 2 photos are of Hondo's room. The color is called French Gray -- both pictures lie. The color is neither that gray nor that blue, but a color in between.

Good Morning!

2009-08-17T07:32:00.003-04:00

This is a 2 minute update... Since putting in the windows, Pete & I have been staying out of trouble by keeping busy with house projects. Over the weekend, we finished 3 projects... removal of paint, and priming of the first of four posts around the house; finished painting Hondo's room (ceiling, walls, floor & trim), and finished painting the main level bathroom (trim, walls and ceiling). Hondo's room is now a blue-gray color called French Gray. The main level bathroom remains the same light purple color. It's amazing how quickly a new coat of paint can brighten a room!

In addition to the recent paint jobs, we made a trip out to the coast this past weekend. Sure felt good to listen to the waves, and feel the sand & sun. I will post pictures of the recent house updates soon. Have a good day!

New Windows and Pets

2009-07-24T11:46:00.008-04:00

This week we got new windows on the first and second levels of the house. I am totally enjoying them right now! It feels good to open & close the windows. It also has cut down on the amount of traffic noise that we hear... All good things!
This is our main level bathroom. This probably had the biggest improvement! Before, there was a mirror on the back wall. Putting a window in this room has made this bathroom feel more like a room & less like a closet!
I finally was able to take a picture of our kittens. The top picture is of Hondo (our 2.5 year old dog), and Halo. The bottom picture is of Nala. These kittens get along well with our dog, which is a nice surprise! Also, they are both friendly (and still alive). All good things!
Enjoy your day!

Mid-Summer update

2009-07-19T09:15:00.012-04:00

This past weekend, was spent relaxing (and catching up on day-to-day household projects). But, true to our form... the past few weekends this month were extremely b.u.s.y.... So, lets review.

Last weekend, we spent in MN for Kristen & Todd's wedding. It was a very fun (but short) weekend. The top picture is of the bridal party "honking" (I am having difficulty moving the picture down in blogger), the picture immediately below is of my family, and the 3rd below is of the newlyweds. Kristen & Todd certainly had a whirlwind of a weekend -- Friday they closed on their first home (congrats), Saturday they were married (congrats), and Sunday they went on their honeymoon! Congratulations Kristen & Todd!

Also this month, we celebrated Indepence day. I rarely take pictures when I am not on vacation, but I was glad that I remembered the camera when we went to watch fireworks. Mindy and Aaron were in town for the weekend, and it was fun to see them & their kids. The above picture is of their oldest catching a fish -- he caught his first fish that evening and was super proud of his catch!

Things to look forward to this month...

2009-07-01T17:09:00.003-04:00

July promises to be especially busy this year... but fun busy, not overwhelming busy... you know? This month includes it all: confirmation, a wedding out-of-town, a baptism, and a few get-together's in this area including some family from out of town.

Happy Independence Day to all!

Wall color

2009-06-30T13:38:00.002-04:00

A while ago I was asked for the color of the brown used on our living room walls... the color is Revival Mahogany made by Behr (available at the Home Depot). I finally went to refill the water softener and had a chance to look at the paint can!

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T20:47:00.004-04:00

Happy Father's Day to both of our dad's and the grandpa's! You all certainly hold a special place in our lives and have taught us oh-so-much! Thank you for all that you do! Hope that you have a wonderful day!

Highlights

2009-06-17T20:48:00.003-04:00

I am going to try be a bit more current with my posts... I have bolded the highlights.

Alright, so Pete is (once again)home -- it's nice to have him nearby! :) He returned suffiently exhausted from Mexico -- retiring to bed this evening around 5:30 PM.

Congratulations 2009 graduates!
This past weekend, I went to a graduation party for my brother-in-law, and others. It was certainly fun to catch up with the people at the party, and see a few people that I have not seen in a while.

Congratulations to Ed & Michelle!
The same day as the graduation party, Ed and Michelle had their twin boys. All are doing well! I was able to go see them on Sunday... they are certainly precious! Hopefully, Pete will be able to go and see them this week.

Aside from the above exciting news tidbits... life at our house has remained pretty stable.

The kittens seem to like Hondo, and are probably the friendliest kittens we have had at our house in a while. They like to be petted and purr... a lot. So far, our experiment to house them in the garage seems to be working... they have to date avoided being run over, and the garage seems to be giving them adequate shelter from the yard animals.

I have been studying some... and still socializing. I went out for coffee last night and was able to catch up with some friends. It's always nice to have a girls night!

I have a new phone -- my last phone lasted 3 months after I squished it beneath the wheels of the truck. It stopped charging while Pete was in Mexico. I now have a phone that supposedly will be more rugged... still TBD. The saleslady said I was her first female customer to by the "construction man's" phone. :) I was not able to import numbers -- so I have been manually re-entering phone numbers as I come across them...

We have a family of robin's living on our porch. It's kind of cute to watch the little bird head's peek out of the nest from time to time while the mama bird is out.

Hope all is well with you!

Congrats to Ed & Michelle

2009-06-15T23:59:00.000-04:00

Ed & Michelle had their twins on Saturday morning... 2 little boys! Everyone is doing well ~ Congratulations!

5 minute update

2009-06-08T20:59:00.007-04:00

Right now, I am enjoying the calm before the storm (quite literally). Here are the highlights of our life for the last month:
1. I made it safe and sound to Minnesota and back. It felt really good to be home, and see everyone on a (not-so-hectic) weekend. I was able to make it to Kristen's shower, see the house where Kristen and Todd will be living after their wedding in mid-July, and help celebrate Jaedon's 2nd birthday. Thank you to all who help make the weekend at home memorable!
2. Pete made it back from the fishing tourney in Ill. He did not come back empty handed either! :) We have about 21 dinners of salmon sitting in the freezer waiting to be eaten! Evidently their boat placed well in the fishing tourney, and he really enjoyed the visits with his extended family!
3. Memorial day weekend was spent working outside. I even got tan ~ which is rare for me as I am usually fairly religious about applying sunblock! We bought a log splitter and so far have about 1 winter of wood cut up and stacked in the garage. It's amazing how quickly a large log can be made into burnable pieces with the aid of a machine!
4. We spent last weekend in Luddington with our friends camping. Although, the weather did not cooperate (cold and rainy), it was still a good time. I forgot the digital camera, so no pictures.
5. I now have 2 kittens -- Nala and Halo. The kittens are getting used to their new surroundings, and are starting to warm up to Pete, Hondo, and myself. They are really cute. I have yet to take a photo of our new kittens, but... once I do, I will certainly post! They have lasted ~1 week in the garage, so hopefully this is a good sign of things to come! :)
6. Pete is travelling once again. We pulled out his passport yesterday, and... he has been a lot of places. He is now in Mexico, and should come home next Wednesday. We are both hoping that this project sticks to its original timelines.
7. Pete and I will not be moving to South Korea. He is now taking some class for a different project. This class will take about 1 year.
8. I am now working 4 -10 hour days for the summer. It is really nice to have a 3 day weekend... every weekend.
9. Detroit lost the Stanley Cup.
10. I have a really clean house right now... it feels awesome! :) I even hung up some pictures around the house... its amazing how much decorations can make a house feel more like a home.

Have a good weekend!

And... I'm off

2009-05-15T21:00:00.000-04:00

To Minnesota, that is! :)

I will be in the cities from this evening to mid-day Tuesday!
Have a fantastic weekend.

What we have accomplished so far...

2009-05-13T21:32:00.003-04:00

Since we've been here for almost 2 years, I feel that it is time for a reflection post.

Yesterday afternoon, 2 older women arrived in our driveway, and stood on the porch for a while. Pete went out to greet the women, and inquire why they were at our house. These 2 ladies identified that this was the house that they grew up in... and were busy reminiscing about their childhood. So, Pete invited them in to look at the house... identifying that "This home will never really be ours. We just get to take care of it for a little while.". I think this story sums up our experience so far, this home has history and in 181 years... we've only owned it for a blip.

During this almost 2 year blip, here is what we have accomplished:
-Installed deadbolts and door locks on the 2 main doors leading into the house
-Painted the living room, family room, hallway, main level bath, our bedroom, kitchen, laundry area, and a number of closets
-Made many a Saturday trip to the dump to remove the past family's contents from the barn, garage, and basement
-Put in a cement floor and garage door openers installed in the garage
-Had the chicken coop torn down
-Cleaned out the barn, and subsequently decided to have it torn down
-Made the back horse pasture area into mowable yard
-Removed a number of gardens with a combination of a mower, "Weed-B-Gone Max" and grass-seed
-Took out a bathroom on the main level (consisted of shower and toilet)
-Put in a bathroom on the main level (contains a toilet and a sink)
-Hooked up a wood stove to the fireplace chimney
-Created durable shelving units for the pantry, garage, and our bedroom
-Put in a new wood floor on the main level
-Cut up a few (of many) fallen trees for firewood
-Re-finished the wood floors in the kitchen and 1 of the upstairs bedrooms
-Painted the hallway floor
-Installed a water softener
-Trained a dog and 4 kittens (of which, only the dog remains)

I am sure there are a number of smaller, less consequential projects that have been accomplished over the last 2 years. We certainly feel fortunate to have found this place to call home, and take care of... if only for a little while.

Projects from this past weekend

2009-05-10T16:22:00.003-04:00

Despite that rainy weather, we were still able to make some headway on the projects around the house. The biggest project update from this weekend: Pete installed a shelf and bar in my closet, so I now have a place to hang up our clothes (besides the door frame). I think it looks great! :) See above -- please excuse any mess!

Photos, as promised

2009-05-02T15:40:00.015-04:00

This is the finished transom! My dad & Pete capped off the openings for the pocket doors. And we gave the whole thing a fresh coat of paint.

Anyone who has been over in the last few years has seen the hole behind the woodstove --used to find the opening for the chimney. Well, this has now been repaired & the metal piece used to surround the pipe has been put in place. It certainly feels good to no longer see the brick and inside of drywall behind the stove!
Now this is Hondo's room. The hole in the wall behind his cage has been fixed & primed. I just need to decide on a color to paint the room.

The pictures below are of the flora growing in my yard: purple flowers (violets?), the remaining tulips (not eaten by some yard creature--notice the 2 empty stems around the flowers), the crab apple tree (pink polka dots), a flowering tree that has purple flowers are the base of all branches (picture of both the tree and the flowers) , and the bottom middle picture is of the magnolia tree. Unfortunately, I do not think the magnolia has any flowers!

Promise to post pictures this weekend

2009-05-01T18:18:00.002-04:00

sWell hello! It has been a little over a month since I last wrote anything on here. In fact, today is probably my first time in a few weeks actually plugging this computer in. So, I promise to post pictures of the projects that have been completed since my parents were in town--the divider between the main rooms looks fantastic & the completed wall behind the wood stove looks much more... finished. I am glad to not have holes in the wall in Hondo's room as well.

So, now it is spring! And my yard has a few signs of life. My tulips came up, but I have been sadly watching the flowers disappear each morning. It seems a bunny or similar creature has decided the tops are quite tasty! I am now down to 4 flowers from about 20. My crab apple tree has delightful little pink buds -- I think it looks the best it does all year, right now, just before the real flowers come in. And, I can start seeing the stems on my peonies. I am looking forward to their beautiful blooms!

My goal this weekend is to take a few pictures and share the project that is my house.

Happy May Day!

Accomplished all that I set out to do in March

2009-03-29T17:28:00.002-04:00

I have accomplished all that I set out to do this month -- I feel so productive! :) I just finished the remaining two things on my to-do list from the beginning of the month.
1) I have sorted through our clothes. This feels really good!
2) I just registered for the MCAT. I will take the test July 2. I am sure that date will approach quickly!

So, here's April's list:
1) Finish the MCAT review book that has been sitting around my house since mid-January, and do 1 online full length practice exam.
2) Prime/paint the house projects from last weekend.
3) Spring clean the house (including shampooing of rug & furniture). It always feels awesome to have this done!
4) Help Pete clean up the yard. We appear to have lost more sticks over the winter.

Happy spring! My tulips are starting to poke through the ground. I am looking forward to flowers in the next couple of weeks! :)

2009-03-25T15:01:00.001-04:00

Congratulations Kristen & Todd! We are looking forward to coming to your wedding this July! Happy Planning! :)

Mid-March update

2009-03-23T20:13:00.003-04:00

March, as promised, has been a whirl-wind month! However, thanks to the mid-month arrival of my family we were able to get just a few extra projects started/done this month. Here are the highlights of projects attempted/accomplished this past weekend when my dad, mom, Alex & Emma were in town:
*Holes in the drywall have been patched. I will post photos once these holes have been painted. These holes are in the main family room & Hondo's room, and are from finding the chimney for the wood stove & access to the water pipes during a particularly cold spell during the winter.
*Chandeliers on the main level have been cleaned.
*A piece of wood has been added to the large transom/trim between the two main living areas. This blocks off the hole where the pocket doors previously resided. I will post photos once these are caulked & painted. Previously, the top had trim, left side had another type of trim, and the right side was a hole open to the inside of the walls. Although it would be neat to have the pocket doors in the house... the track inside the wall is busted & the doors would be cock-eyed secondary to the new floor in the living room.
*Removal of links in the light fixture in Hondo's room -- it now hangs correctly and slightly closer to the ceiling for those people taller than 6'.
*Installation of child locks in the kitchen. These are meant to keep Hondo out of the trash can located in the pantry, and limit access to the lower cupboards.

In addition to the above items, I have accomplished the following on my list from earlier this month:
*Taxes.
*Purchase of shower gifts.
I still need to sign up for the MCAT.
I am post-poning my (artificial) deadline for end of March for the curtains. We have decided to get windows and/or siding before the end of next summer, so I plan to wait to make curtains until the new windows are installed.

Additionally, my hockey team came in 1st place. I did not play in the championship game last night because my family was in town and we had not really had a chance to visit with them due to the busyiness of the weekend... so, I stayed home. But, we won the championship! Go Top Shelf!

Last, we have signed up for our "spring" sports (due we sound athletic or what?!?!)! Pete will be playing baseball with the guys, and if there is another team that signs up for the spring women's hockey... I will continue to play hockey (albeit with another team)!

Enjoy the beautiful weather!

Congrats to Bantam B!

2009-03-15T16:21:00.002-04:00

We had a blast watching my brother-in-law's/cousin's hockey team play at the State Championship tourney this past weekend! Although they did not win the whole tourney, they played great hockey and made it to the last game before the championship. We were also able to see some family from out-of-state, and my cousins from out of the area, and enjoy their company at the arena. So, good job boys ~ you had a great season & the tournament was a lot of fun to watch!

Spring is here!

2009-03-06T18:06:00.003-05:00

It's SPRING! This morning on my way out the driveway, I noticed that our magnolia tree is starting to get leaf buds... and so is the lilac, and likewise a few other flora in our yard. Also, it was 70 this afternoon! So, I drove with the convertible top down on my way home from work. I am ready for daylight savings, and I am optimistic that all of winter's white has left!

Happy spring ~ enjoy the fine weather!

March (madness)

2009-03-04T18:56:00.003-05:00

I am really liking the sunshine and the promise of spring these past few days... but, what I really want to talk about is March (madness)!

This month is promising to be busier than ever, which is great [especially during this last long month of winter]. Some highlights:
We had company last weekend, Megan and Eric R. came into town Saturday night. We were also were able to see some of our local friends, which is always fun...
Next weekend, a few more of our friends are coming down (Megan & Aaron)--they will not be staying with us, but it certainly would be fun to see them...
The following weekend, my sister comes into town...
And the weekend after that, my parents (and a few siblings?) are making the trek across state lines to come and stay with us for a few days...
Finally, the last weekend of the month, will be busy with local things...

So, aside from all of this I have the following lofty goals for this month:
1. Finish taxes.
2. Purchase a few shower gifts.
3. Go through our clothes. Figure out what things we need for spring, and purchase. And figure out what we need to donate, discard, etc.
4. Register to take the MCAT this spring or summer.
5. Make the curtains for our bedroom, the bathroom, and the living room. This is a "project" that I have been meaning to do for a while, but now that it is getting lighter out in the morning & I removed the temporary light shields from our room... I need to do this if I ever plan to sleep past 7:30 AM on the weekends.
************************************************************************************
I know that it is Megan and Aaron that are coming into town this weekend... ! :) We look forward to seeing them! :)

Happy Fat Tuesday!

2009-02-23T18:18:00.003-05:00

Happy Fat Tuesday! Above are pictured Paczki (pronounced Poonch-key)'s-- the traditional Polish filled-doughnut served on Fat Tuesday. I picked these up, still hot, Monday night at the local doughnut shop ([town I live in] Donut's). Until I moved states, I had never experienced the deliciousness of a Paczki. This is a day that I can certainly get behind -- Who doesn't like an excuse to eat a doughnut!?! Enjoy your day!

2009-02-22T14:00:00.002-05:00

Our "offices".
True to our techie intro... Pete and I each have our own cubicle-type computer set-up. Over the weekend, we added to our set-up's. Pete got a second (and larger) monitor. I got a more comfortable chair. These computers are separated by a transom; this transom used to house sliding doors used to separate the living rooms. The base of the trim on the transom can be seen in the picture of my office on the right.

Cold + Snow = Nap day

2009-02-21T18:04:00.004-05:00

Although we've had a few tantalizing glimpses of spring recently, I am reminded today that February is still a winter month. It has been snowing all day. Pete ran an errand this morning, and reported that the road conditions were not good. So, we've had a very relaxing day at home.

The above picture shows our favorite napping spot -- in front of the fireplace, on the two ottomans/leather chairs. Pete is napping there now. Our dog has been dozing on the above chairs. I took a nap in that spot earlier, and woke up feeling supremely relaxed.

Stay warm.

Happy Valentine's Day (belated)

2009-02-15T17:57:00.007-05:00

Happy Valentine's day! Here are some little snippets of the day at my house (L : gritty photo-- Fruit & Flowers tea stewing, M- Roses from Pete, R: Angel Food Cake -- served last night @ dinner with strawberries & whipped cream - yum!)

I hope your day was spent with the ones you love!