Saturday, December 31, 2011

Gone, But Not For Long

Bloggy land, I am gone but will be back shortly, no worries! I have very limited internet access while at my parent's house (the joys of living in the country and having dial up internet).  I will be back in a few days to update Christmas happenings and some exciting news about 2012. 

Happy New Year to all, and I hope 2012 is the best yet for all of you!

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Elfing

Or at least that's what my family calls it when we get ready for the holidays! I've been a busy bee in the kitchen, and I'd love to share photos but some people who read this blog are possible recipients, so they will have to wait- sorry folks!
In not so great news, I walked out to my car to go to the gym today, and found some footprints and a significant dent on my hood.  Great, just the start to break I needed.  I called the police, they filed a report and I guess I am going to turn it into insurance and get a new hood on my car.  Sigh, let the paperwork begin.  I just cannot fathom why people would want to walk on the hood of a car, rather than move 2 feet in front of it, or walk the 5 feet around it.  The lack of respect for my car makes me most upset about the whole situation.  I drive a fairly nice and somewhat new car, so this will not be cheap to get replaced either.
BUT- some upsides to my weekend: I won my first ever blog giveaway! Thanks to Chambanachik for hosting her Christmas giveaways.  I'm looking forward to my giveaway prize.  This was a great email to brighten my mood.
In some other awesome news, boyfriend and I officially booked our vacation! We decided to go light this Christmas, and instead spend some money on treating ourselves.  We are going to be spending a full week in the Bahamas on my Spring Break, and celebrate our 7 year anniversary together on the beach, along with my golden birthday!!  It's going to be a "happy anniversary, Birthday, Valentine's Day and everything else" vacation.
Not my photo- thank you Pinterest.
 I'm beyond excited for some relaxation! We are renting a condo to avoid the whole resort crowd and so we can do breakfasts and lunches on the cheap side, followed with going out for some fancy dinners.  I may be booking him a special surprise while we are down there, but I'm not going to spill until we come back.  Best way to plan spending my tax return yet.  So, the 3 month countdown to the beach begins! 3 months to get the beach body going as well, I cannot wait :)

Friday, December 16, 2011

Christmas Spirit

I should be cramming for my last final tomorrow, but a blog sounds like WAY more fun than Psychoacoustics and Sound Perception :)  I have just the one final left and then I'll be able to go to full Christmas prep mode.  I just have a few little things to pick up, and then my shopping will be all done! I have some baking and decorating still to do, but that is the goal for this weekend :)
I have seen this floating around and thought it would be fun to share.


1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I love paper, something about the tearing and making ribbons just says Christmas to me.
 
 2. Real tree or Artificial? Real all the way, well at my parent's house at least.  I don't have room in my apartment for much more than my 3 ft table top tree, so I settled this year.  When I get home next week my family will do our usual redneck tradition of cutting down the tree out of our backyard.  We planted the trees when I was younger, and pick one out for Christmas on Thanksgiving and shape it in the weeks that follow.  I just keep hoping we don't end up like the Griswolds and have a squirrel end up in the house, ha!

3. When do you put up the tree? We usually do this a week before Christmas, once my sister and I come home from college.  The day after Thanksgiving I also usually help decorate the tree with Boyfriend and his family, they do an artificial tree and enjoy having it up for a few weeks.
 
4. When do you take the tree down? January 1st.  We like to keep it up for a few days to enjoy it since we usually put it up so late.  We also do Christmas with my mom's side of the family on the day before New Year's Eve, so its nice to have the house still decorated.
 
5. Do you like eggnog? Can't say I do, but I may try it again this year.  I'm more of a mulled wine girl.
 
6. Favorite gift received as a child?  I think the year I got my American Girl Doll, I still have Felicity and all her clothes tucked away in a trunk in my parents house.  I remember being so excited because I finally got one, and I loved reading the books since I was in 2nd grade.  My sister got one as well, so that year we had fun dressing them up and playing with them together.
 
7. Do you have a nativity scene? Nope.
 
8. Hardest person to buy for? My Dad.  This year we got him a rocking gift- I'll be sure to post photos and the back story to go with it :)
 
9. Easiest person to buy for?  Boyfriend.  I stash my ideas all the time.  This year, I thought about his gift before he even came home, and on homecoming day he mentioned he wanted to pick one up.  It only took 3 times of telling him not to buy one before he put it together haha.  

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail!
 
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I can't really think of one.  As I get older they get more and more practical.  Last year I got a new trashcan, which to some people might seem pretty awful, but it's a Simple Human one and it has a lid that works unlike my last one, so I was pretty stoked :)

12. Favorite Christmas Movie?  It's A Wonderful Life.  I watch it every Christmas Eve with Boyfriend.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually after Thanksgiving or if there is a great sale.
 
14. Ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes, but it was for an anonymous gift exchange.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? My family's fudge recipe, its so delicious and I make several batches every year in traditional chocolate, mint, peanut butter and while chocolate with peppermint.
 
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear, it is so elegant and modern.  However, my family usually does colored so I get both between my two trees this year.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Tough one, I have favorite albums: Elvis, Harry Conick Jr, Michael Buble, Vienna Boy's Choir, and my N'SYNC album is still a guilty pleasure.  

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Travel between Boyfriend's and my parents' houses, so a whole 8 miles :)

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Sing it with me: you know Dasher, and Dancer, and Prancer, and Vixen.  Comet, and Cupid, and Donner, and Blitzen.  And the most famous reindeer of all: Rudolph!

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Glitter star.
 
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?  Well, I have Christmas with boyfriend and his family every Christmas Eve, then my family and Dad's side on Christmas day- so both!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?  The acts of charity and kindness don't last forever, I wish more of the altruism during the holidays would last year round.

23. Favorite ornament, theme, or color? I love modern and bright combos- my apartment tree is silver and hot pink glitter ornaments, while my parents do a tree with all the homemade ornaments from my childhood.

24. What do you want for Christmas this year? Time with boyfriend and lots of photos together.  A Kindle wouldn't hurt either :)

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Tinnitus and Military Service

Hello lovely bloggy world.  I'm procrastinating/taking a break from writing furiously on my 15 page tinnitus paper, and decided to go all AuD geek on you :)  I don't know if anyone Audiology related swings by my little corner on the web, but I thought I'd share. 

This is kind of milie and audiology related- yay for cross over!  My paper for my tinnitus is on the VA and how they are on the forefront of tinnitus management- go VA on this one.  There is no cure for tinnitus, but many medically accepted ways to manage it.  There is also no formal clinical protocol nationally, but the VA is doing OODLES of research into their current method, and it appears to be really flippin' awesome.... aaaaand end the nerding out.  We shall see, but I'm hoping for my 4th year placement to work at a VA and help with some of the data collection for their studies, how crazy would that be?

I think I may have found some of my passion I've been lacking lately in my school work, this paper is really getting me fired up about military audiology and helping vets.  Don't get me wrong, I love the kiddos and little bitty babies still, but man oh man is this tinnitus stuff interesting.  I know that as the service members keep coming back from overseas they are going to need some help, and current estimates show that anyone with military service (ranging in age of 20-89) is about 2.5 times more likely to experience chronic tinnitus in their lifetime than the normal population.  Wowza.  I wish this wasn't the case, but I hope in my time as an Audiologist I can help with implementing good proven management techniques.   

And finally, on the tinnitus forefront, there is an online podcast I listen to for Audiologists and they just did an entire hour long segment into tinnitus and talking about the VA protocol, talk about amazing timing for my paper.  If you are interested, you can find the podcast here, and it's called "Ringing in the New Year".  *groan* on the title.  Well, hope this helps any AuDs that pop in here, if not it's also good info for you fellow milie girls :)

Ok, enough chatter and back to writing and studying.  Can it be the 16th yet?

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Formal Photos Are In!

I'm in the midst of finals, 2 papers due tomorrow, along with a presentation, then final on Tuesday and 15 page paper and final on Friday.  Follow that up with a 15 page group paper on Monday and a final on Friday, oh and clinicals and a meeting about my clinical experience this semester.  So, when no one hears from me for a week or two- you know what happened. 

I'm running on an IV drip of coffee, tea and living off of granola bars and take out.  I'm just so ready for the semester to be over. 

BUT, the formal photos are in from the ball and I thought I'd share.  I think they look ok, the pose they had us do was a bit strange and I appear to be missing an arm.  Other than that I'm pretty happy with them.  Its nice to finally have a full shot of my dress and to see boyfriend wearing his spurs :)

I think I'm also not a super huge fan of the all white background, it washes me and boyfriend out a bit.  Next time I'll just ask to take photos without the chair.  Any maybe ask boyfriend to relax his hands a bit :)

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Bloggy Date

Today I had my first in person bloggy meet up!  I met up with Julie, an Army Wife, from When Your Feet Don't Touch the Ground.  We grabbed a cup of coffee, and talked all things post grad and Army life.  I don't think either of us stopped talking the entire hour we were enjoying our coffee.  We shared ball stories and how blogging is a great way to reach out to others in the military community, especially when you are not living near post. 

It was awesome to meet another blogger in real life, and she is in a very similar place in her life as I am.  We're both doing the medical profession thing, and loving our boys in the Army.  They even currently have similar jobs :)

So, you should follow her if you don't already, she's pretty awesome!  And Julie, here is to more coffee dates in the future!    Sorry for no photos, bloggy fail on our parts.

Monday, November 21, 2011

The Squadron Ball

Where do I even begin??  The evening was fabulous, lots of dancing, too much wine and lots of new friends were made :)  The evening started with getting ready at boyfriend's house.  My dress was a surprise, so I made him stand in the living room and wait until he could turn around and see me.  What can I say, I'm a sucker for the jaw drop :)  He then finished putting on his jacket and I got to admire the full uniform, stetson included, for the first time in 2 years.  His jacket is a big snugger than I remember, and it was interesting to see his dress shoes with spurs, but he did look quite dashing. 

We arrived, went to the social hour and starting chatting it up with other couples and learning more about what boyfriend does on a daily basis.  His guys were really funny, and one even ran up and gave me a hug and boyfriend a big high five, saying "she is real!"  Oh goodness.  The guys in boyfriend's platoon thought I was made up because they had never met me before, so now they have proof I'm real!

Seating began, we watched some rough tributes to those that were lost during deployment, saw Order of St. George presentations (it's a Cav thing) and got dinner while listening to the guest speaker.  He was really good, and had a jolly good time during the grog ceremony.  Also, the grog was amazing and knocked me on my butt for the evening.  I'm going to need to drink it slower next time, if I even drink it at all.

After all the festivities, the dancing began!  I had a blast and boyfriend and I got to dance together for the first time in a long while.  He was so sweet with singing along to songs and whispering in my ear the whole time.  We ran into some of his buddies so they gave us plenty of grief all evening.  We ended up getting a cab home and stumbling into the house, were I spent the night putting boyfriend to bed.  He then managed to wake me up at 7 am all bright eyed and feeling great, and I was ready to throw things in my hungover stupor.

I suppose I should get around to showing some photos huh??  I'll have the formal ones to post when we get them.  Those will also be full length, the only full length ones I have didn't turn out well, it was too dark to get a good look.  Enjoy! (*edit sorry this took so long, I was having issues with iPhoto*)

Before we left and minus the Stetson.
Taking a knee for the "Order of the Garter"
Cute one with the Stetson.
Sometimes he has to get his Stetson back with a kiss.
And then it ends up on my head.
My "Order of the Garter" certificate.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Putting on my dancing shoes

Today is the ball and I'm so beyond excited!!! My dress is hanging up, fingers and toes are painted and now all I have to do is some odds and ends before starting to get ready. 

This last week with school has been INSANE with clinicals and classes, and I still have a ton to get done in the next 3 weeks.  I'm trying to not think about it at all, and just enjoy the weekend with my soldier.  We have a great weekend planned, with some trail running, hiking, date nights cooking together, and lots of snuggle time.  Once he has to go back to work Monday through Wednesday, then I'll park my butt in the library and get some of my work done.

When I got to his house yesterday, I beat him home and walked in to find a dozen roses sitting on the table waiting for me :)  He is such a sweetheart.  We grabbed some food and ran to the liquor store for some wine, and found our favorite- Francis Ford Coppola Shiraz.  If you haven't tried it, you seriously need to, it's my new favorite red!  I can say it's also the most expensive bottle of wine I've ever bought, haha. 

Well, I'm off to run a few last minutes errands, finish laundry, and start the primping process!  I'll be sure to post tons and tons of photos on Monday when he has to go back to work.  Have a fantastic weekend bloggy friends :)

Monday, November 14, 2011

JT and the USMC Ball

I'm sure many of you remember the youtube videos that went viral awhile ago asking celebrities to attend the Marine Corps Balls and many of the celebrities agreed to go.  I read JT went to the ball this weekend I was really touched by the response he put on his website.  It was great to see a celebrity that was humbled and proud to attend the event.  I just wish there were more photos!

I'll admit I teared up reading his response and reflections on the evening.  He was humbled by the service members and their sacrifices.  I think what got me the most however, was the line where he stated "To all of you that serve every day for us... Ensuring our freedom, I say: My deepest gratitude to you. I've met so many of my heroes... From Michael Jordan to Michael Jackson. And, nothing makes me feel more honor and pride than when I get to meet one of you. Last night changed my life and I will never forget it."

Here is the link to the article: Read here.
Did anyone else read this?  What were your thoughts?

Monday, November 7, 2011

It's that time of the semester

Yes, the one where all your assignments are due and you have so much stuff to get done in the next month it makes you want to cry.  I could go on and on about all the papers and projects but I'm just trying to keep my head above water.  Also, next semester I was getting very excited to only have 1 full semester course and 2 8 week courses, well the program decided to add another course for me to take.  Argh.  I can take it next year, but I think I'd rather get it over with.  I'm still going to have a much better schedule than in previous semesters but I was really looking forward to only having 2 night classes by the time spring break rolled around.

Thankfully I'm going to have a vacation for SURE in March, I managed to score a volunteer slot/scholarship to attend the national convention for Audiology!  It is going to be in Boston this year and I am beyond excited.  My classmate is also going with me, so we will be able to have lots of fun together.  The volunteer slot/scholarship covers the registration and some meals, but not airfare or hotel.  I did manage to book flights on southwest for $180 round trip so that's pretty cheap!  I already had to purchase those, so my November/December budget is completely blown. 

I'm just fighting to get everything done that I need to before the ball in a week and a half! I keep looking at my dress and shoes in my closet and getting so excited!  I've been hitting the gym more regularly to relieve stress and also tone up my arms and back so they look fabulous in my dress.  Here is to hoping I accomplish that!  I've also been tanning a few times just to get a little color and also because it clears up my skin a bit.  I'm not getting super dark thankfully, I've been limiting it to 5-7 minutes at a time. 

Anyways, I cannot wait to share photos with you after the ball!!  This Thursday my fellow RA/military girlfriend and I are going to have a pinterest day, with dinner, desert and drinks all compliments of pinterest.  I am seriously addicted to that website! If anyone knows of some cool stuff to do in Boston, let me know!  My classmate and I have a night where we are going to explore the city a bit.


EDIT:  I accidentally deleted the post but lost my comments :(

Saturday, October 29, 2011

I got crafty!

Occasionally I'll try and save a little money and try making things that would normally cost $60 or more.  It all started when I picked up my milball dress from the tailor.  It looks amazing and I can't wait to show you all!  You have to wait until after the ball to see it though, I'm being sneaky.

I had the dress made into a sweetheart neckline, and was considering adding a brooch or something to the top, but decided against it because I love the simplicity of the gown.  So, I wanted to find some sort of hair accessory.  I looked at some bridal shops, and most of the hair pieces I loved were about $60.... ouch.  That was more than the alterations to my dress! I did manage to find a brooch for $15 at David's Bridal and thought I could convert it into a hair comb.  So, here is how it turned out.

At the start.  The brooch before.
My wire and hair combs I bought for $2 each at Hobby Lobby.
Once the wire was wrapped around I kept going.
Finished product from the back.
Finished front view.
How it looks in my hair.  I'm pretty satisfied for $20!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Another one bites the dust!

Why yes I am referencing my friends that are getting married left and right :) Hence why I dropped off the face of the planet, I was busy doing school work so I could enjoy the weekend and all the driving around.  It was a 6.5 hour drive each way, but thankfully I had good company with another military gf in the car.  She's a Navy girlfriend, so it was interesting to hear more about a different branch. 

The bride this weekend is active duty Army, as is her husband (whoa weird to say husband).  It was nice to see them together, I had never met her husband until the wedding day but I'd heard all about him for the last 3 years.  They've been through opposite deployment schedules, living on opposite coasts and now they are finally married!

I officially survived my first catholic ceremony, all 2 hours of it.  Mostly that was due to the priest translating everything into Vietnamese as well as English.  So, it was quite the eye opening experience.  The dinner was fabulous, and we danced the night away.

I got the bouquet by default, they started playing "single ladies" and asked for all the girls to come forward, and I stood up and slowly realized I was the only one there.... cue awkward laughter.  The bride laughed her butt off and said, "hmmm, I wonder who this is going to be for?" and proceeded to chuck the bouquet my way.  At least we had some fun with it!  I just had to laugh, that made it the 2nd bouquet I've caught in a row... yikes!

On the trip back I managed to stop and have lunch with a bestie in STL and catch up with her for a bit, I've missed her so it was much needed.  I also got a Panera fix, which is always a fantastic thing.  Love some broccoli cheddar soup with a panini- perfect lunch!

Some photos from the weekend:
LOVE her dress and bouquet.

Beautiful church.

I believe this is the part where the priest forgot the "you may now kiss your bride"

First dance.  I teared up a bit.

Bride and I.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Ball Season!

I'm so excited, I just found out I have about a month until I get to go to my first non-ROTC military ball with boyfriend :)  You may remember the dress I bought this summer (photos can be found here), for a steal of $25!  Well, now that I have a place to wear it, I'm finally getting it altered. 

I'm having the neck line changed to a sweetheart, adding a brooch I have from an old dress, taking in the top a bit, and having the drop waist taken up to look more proportionate with my torso.  All in all, I think my $25 dress is going to change to a $80 dress... still not too shabby.

Now I just need some input on hair.  This is what I did on a Saturday night instead of studying or doing something productive, haha.  So, I came up with two possible styles, I'm unsure which one I'll end up doing, but I'm leaning toward style one.  I recent cut my hair much shorter than it's been for awhile so I didn't think I'd be able to do much of anything at all.  In a few weeks when it's actually ball time it'll be longer too so the curls might be more defined.

Style 1, curled and pinned back.

Back view. I need to find darker bobby pins.

Side view, again need different pins.

Style 2, very poofy. 

I call this, the "my hair is so big all I'm missing is the Ms. Something sash".

Very poofy.

I don't think I'm going to use the headband, but I'll be picking up a hair accessory of some sort.  I have a few things to get taken care of, but it'll still be cheaper than paying someone to do my hair :) Let me know your thoughts, and I'll be sure to add photos once we go to the ball!  Here is to hoping for the best!

Friday, October 14, 2011

Baking Adventures

After a crazy week of midterms, what's better than baking and drinking with friends? Honestly, I can't think of many better things to relieve stress! My fellow mili gf down here and I have a standing Thursday night tradition of drinking wine, trying to bake yummy things together, and hang out.  It's fantastic and a great time to complain about school and long distance relationships.  This week we elected to make cake pops!  We didn't have the candy melts though, so we improvised with chocolate chips melted with a little milk.  Here was the inspiration:
From Pinterest.
And here was our process!  We made the cake, added the frosting and let it chill.  We then rolled it into balls and dipped it in the chocolate.  The chocolate was a little thick, so they needed some more milk.  Overall, they turned out amazing! They taste even better after they've been chilled overnight :)
Who doesn't love a wine called Menage a trois? It was delicious by the way!
Having too much fun shredding cake.
Cheesing together.
Finished products.
I think next week we are going to see if we want to make something else, possibly attempting a homemade dinner.  Thanks to pinterest for the inspiration.
Link to the recipe.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Sometimes, I need some good trashy reality TV

After my awful midterm today, it is certainly one of those nights.  I'm working on a take home exam while getting caught up on Teen Mom, Dance Moms and other guilty pleasures.  Hey, sometimes I like to not think about what I'm watching.  A good trashy TV show does wonders for the fried student brain.

I meant to blog this weekend, but a little distraction arrived thanks to a 4 day weekend!  Boyfriend managed to squirrel away for a few days and help me to relax.  He was only in town Friday evening until Sunday afternoon, but we definitely made good use of our time! Friday we just had a chill evening in with a Redbox and a surprise for his place.  I was planning on sending a care package, but he told me he was going to come to visit, so I elected to wait until he came to give it to him.  So he got some cute new photo frames and pictures to go in his new place.

Saturday, we did it all. We woke up early-ish, went for a 2 mile run and had fun looking at all the changing leaves.  He kept remarking how much he missed the fall leaves last year.  It's funny to keep hearing him say. "I haven't done that in so long" and realize it really has been a long time since he's gotten to do a lot of things.  Poor guy also had a firecracker incident that showed the effect of a deployment.  Needless to say, I think my neighbors are royal jerks for lighting them off at 1:30am.

We went for a picnic on Saturday at a lake outside of town to get away from campus for a bit.  We went hiking, walked around the park and just cuddled up on a blanket and talked for a few hours.  It was a nice few hours to get away from it all.  We also made the journey to the local apple orchard, which was crazy crowded! Needless to say we high tailed it out of there after picking up our treats and picking the perfect little pumpkin. Later we did date night at a fabulous little Italian place and Lion King 3D!  Perfect date night for sure :)

Sunday was just lazy and spent sleeping in and making apple pancakes from the apples we bought.  Fabulous weekend before the reality of midterms came crashing back.  One down, 3 to go! I should be typing away at my two take homes but bed is calling me after my shows are finished up.
Some photos from the weekend!  I really need to start asking people to take photos of the two of us or start making boyfriend use his long arms, I promise I was there all weekend!

Beautiful day for a picnic, eh Boo Boo?
Someone was being dramatic about the little pumpkin.  I believe the was the face made after saying "it's just a little fella!"
Why you should never mention punkin' chunkin' in front of a soldier, they will want to try it.
Pumpkin was not chunked, and is now two face! His creation.
And hers!

I elected not to carve my pumpkin because I have a feeling it would get smashed pretty quickly if left alone on a college campus.  I elected to color it instead with paint markers :)

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Never fear!

I am still alive, just getting swallowed by midterms this week and next. I'll be back next week, so please forgive my absence.  I have a paper calling my name, so here is to hoping I can crank out another 6 pages and get to bed by midnight tonight.  Here goes nothing!
But before I take off, a photo to share:

A photo from a recent football game.  My mom drove down and we had a blast!
Big thanks to my Dad's coworker for the amazing free seats :)

Monday, September 26, 2011

My Day Thanks to Pinterest

A cancelled class equals 3 hours of me time! So I decided to try a few things I've been pinning away.  Here is what I accomplished:

The workout started with a 1 mile run at a 9 minute mile pace, walk one lap, then do the work out.  My workout partner and I then walked a lap, got a drink and did it all over again.  Those wall sits are brutal!! A good long stretch and some serious hydration will hopefully keep the pain to a manageable level.
Ouch.  I'll be hurting tomorrow.
Delish!
Then once I got home, I decided to make a new tasty treat.  This was perfect because it was single serving and quick to make.  It was delicious! I may have overcooked it a little bit, but next time I'll use less time on the microwave.  It was super simple to make: mix 1 egg, 3 tbsp brown sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1 tbsp softened butter, then add 3-4 tbsp of chocolate chips into a coffee mug.  Toss in a microwave for 1.5 minutes and then enjoy!! It would be amazing with ice cream, but I decided to not get too crazy ;)

So yes, this was my Pinterest inspiration for the day.  I'm totally addicted and spreading the wonder that is pinterest to many friends.   Feel free to message me if you want an invite.

Friday, September 23, 2011

I-L-L-I-N-I!


I guess I’ll be switching to Thursday and Sunday updates.  Yay school for crapping on my life.  At least on Thursdays I’m at placement.  Unfortunately it’s been really slow with doctors out and some of the Audiologists as well.  There is also a student from another local-ish school so we spend a lot of time fighting over patients and getting hours.  Needless to say, it’s been interesting.  She’s a 3rd year so she’s seen pretty much everything so I get the leftovers during the day.  It’s been a slow few weeks, but I’m learning a lot and seeing a lot of different things.  At least I’m using the extra time to get going on homework and get caught up on reading.  I’m going to start bringing my computer so I don’t have to fight the hospital firewall all the time. 

I’ve delayed on posting because a certain boyfriend was being a fun distraction early this week.  He was in town for about 5 days and we had a blast being together.  I think he was tired of spending time with his parents after a week and a half.  While he was home he did get his fancy new truck and some kitchen stuff, you know- those adult things haha.  He was also a nice subject for some cerumen management and enjoyed watching me geek out when we ran him as a subject in our evoked potentials lab.  He survived the mild abrasions (skin scraping with very fine sandpaper to get rid of dead skin) we had to do for the electrode placement- and still had some hair left, ha!

While he was in town we did dinner and a movie night out, went to a football game and walked around campus quite a bit.  We also tailgated before the game at a local bar and had a really good time with my classmates.  It was loads of fun and I had entirely too much to drink.  But, fun fact… my friends think boyfriend is a keeper.  Gee, so do I! We also had dinner with my cousin one day when she was driving through town on her way home.  It was good to catch up with her after staying with her all summer.  I also got to take a ride in her fancy new car.  There must be something in the water with all these new car purchases going on! Better than babies, haha.

But here are some photos to check out- Go Illini!! We won and beat a ranked team! I guess this is the first time in 10 years that U of I has started out 3-0 on the season.  Let’s hope they can keep this up when the start playing other Big 10 teams, that’ll be the big test.   My Dad actually called tonight and managed to score seats for this weekend's game as well!  Guess I'm going to yet another game! 

Oh hey Memorial Stadium! 3rd row end zone seats :)

Once a band nerd, always a band nerd.

Football under the lights!

Block I!

Halftime show.

Taken via the monitor.

Huddled up.

Final knee before the clock ran out.

Illini win!

Sometimes he's super adorable.