Weekend Fun and New Opportunities

The last 10 or 11 days have been somewhat of a whirlwind.  Two weekends ago we had our first overnight guest!  This is always exciting for me.  The best part is having the entire house super clean for a couple of days.  Allan thinks I'm crazy, but I like being a good hostess.  My long-time friend, Scott, was headed home after spending a few days up north and stayed with us one night to break up the drive home.  He got to meet and hang out with some of our new friends in Athens.  It was really fun and we can't wait to have more visitors. 

That same weekend, Ole Miss beat Auburn!!  I can't imagine how much fun it would have been to be there.  Did you know that it was our first SEC win since Oct. 2, 2010?  We lost 16 SEC games in a row!  I didn't realize how bad we actually were.  Hopefully we can keep it up!!  Before the game started we went to the Lickskillet Arts Fair downtown.  I had in my mind that it might be like Double Decker, but I was mistaken.  It was fun, but small.  The highlight of the fair for Allan was the macaroni-and-cheese food truck. 

We've been visiting FBC Athens pretty much since we moved here.  This past week they hosted families through Interfaith Hospitality Network.  I think this program is excellent and is exactly the type of program the church should support and be involved in.  I worked at the Day Center one morning which didn't require much more than being there.  For me, getting involved in volunteer opportunities within the church has been a great way to meet people.

Saturday we took a little day trip to Ellijay, GA.  They are famous for their apple orchards.  It was our first time to pick apples.  It wasn't necessarily cheaper to pick your own apples because you are paying for the "experience", but it wasn't too much more than buying apples at the store.  We fit 21 apples into our bag that cost $10 + $4 to get into the orchard.  The orchard had a country store where you could buy all kinds of jams, honey, produce, and baked goods.  We opted for the fried pies (apple for me, strawberry/cream cheese for Allan) and a muscadine slushie.  So good!  After picking apples we headed toward downtown Ellijay to check out the Apple Festival.  There were a few arts and craft vendors and we looked in a few of the shops.  It was a cute little town that I'm glad we took the time to visit. 

In the last week I've made a change in jobs.  Rite Aid offered me a full-time, salaried position with benefits.  I went to an interview, accepted the position, filled out all paper-work, and have officially been hired.  I go in tomorrow for some computer training modules and I start on Thursday.  I'm really excited.  It's been 3 months since I have worked and I am  ready to get started here in Athens.  I hated to leave my previous job before it started, but unfortunately it was not full-time and had no benefits.  This is going to be a good thing and I'm grateful that this door was opened. 

Yesterday,  I had to drive to Marietta to fill out some paper work for the new job so I decided to make a trip to Ikea in Atlanta since I was close.  We need furniture for the master bedroom and a couple of bookshelves for the "office".  I've never been to an Ikea, so it was definitely an experience.  I was shocked at how big it was.  I was very glad that I had already done my "pre-shopping" online.  Three hours later I finally made it to the check out line.  We will be getting our new furniture next Thursday!

Tonight we are going to a neighborhood gathering.  A family down the street is cooking 8 pots of chili and we are all carving pumpkins.  We haven't been very good at meeting a lot of the neighbors so hopefully this will be a good opportunity to do so. 

Have a great week, friends!

Fall Decor

It's time for me to go back to work.  I've resorted to crafting.  Our new house has a fireplace, so I needed something festive to spruce up the mantle. 

 My first creation:  pumpkins made out of a roll of toilet paper wrapped in strips of burlap with sticks from the yard as the stem and tied up with a copper colored ribbon. 

 Next up are the chevron printed pumpkins.  I wanted them to be perfectly lined, but painting a chevron on a pumpkin is not nearly as easy at it seems.  I used masking tape and spray paint.  They're good enough I suppose. 

 Finally, I dotted another pumpkin with some black glitter glue and tied another one up with a black toule bow. 

 This fall decor will be great until it's time to decorate for Christmas!!  

M-I-Crooked Letter-Crooked Letter-I...

It's been about nine weeks since we made the move to Athens.  We both have been missing home, so a trip to Mississippi was in store.  Allan cut class on Thursday afternoon (shame, shame) and we headed to Byram.  Every time I go home to Byram there is always something different about it.  It's a growing little city!  This time, it was sad to see Super D closed.  That place holds a lot of great memories.  It was my first real job and was the place where I decided that I wanted to be a pharmacist.  Who gets to work with all of their best friends from high school at the same place?  Fun times indeed.  We were in Byram Thursday night and all day Friday.  Pooja came over to hang out for a few hours.  We had a good time chatting and catching up.  I miss her!  The only thing I miss about pharmacy school is seeing my friends!  My mom made a feast Friday night that was suitable for Thanksgiving/Christmas dinner.  Some of my aunts and uncles came over and it was great getting to see everyone.  I'm glad momma got to take a break from the craziness of nursing school to spend some time with us. 

 Saturday, we made the trip to Oxford for game day!  I miss the Grove!  Unfortunately, the weather wasn't so great and we spent a majority of the day huddled under the tent, but where there's food and friends, there's always fun.

Ann Katelyn and I

Allan and I with Lindsey, Julianne, Julia, and Chris

A glimpse of the Grove on game day

After being rained on and freezing.  Lucky for us, Chris is always prepared.

I was poorly prepared for the cold, rainy weather, but thankfully we had an Eagle Scout in our midst that brought enough sweaters and jackets for everyone!  Thanks, Chris!!  The rain moved out just as the game began.  We played so well!!  I really thought we would win against Texas A&M, but they scored the winning touchdown in the last minute and a half of the game.  It was so disappointing.  Oh well, I've grown to expect the heartbreak associated with Ole Miss football.  One of the best parts of the game was half-time.  Being an alumna of The Pride of the South, I always enjoy listening to the band and I always think they do great, but I have to say, the Aggie band was phenomenal.  I couldn't look away.  It was seriously the most entertaining band performance I've ever seen.

The team charges the field after Joel McHale from "The Soup" starts the Hotty Toddy cheer

Sunday, we had lunch with Craig and later took Daisy on a walk to the Square.  Lindsey was sweet to let us stay with her in our old house.  The thing I love most about that house was the location.  One of our favorite things to do was walking Daisy to the Square.  We took a few pictures at the pumpkin patch at St. Peter's.  Later that afternoon we headed to Allan's parent's house for dinner.  It was good to see everyone.  We especially miss playing with Benjamin.

So, a 1000 miles and 17 hours in the car later we are back in Athens and exhausted.  Allan went straight to class and Daisy went straight to her place on the couch.  I've been unpacking and getting things back in order.  Hopefully I will start work this week!  I'm ready to hit the ground running!

I knew today would be a good day

I woke up this morning with a feeling that today was going to be great.  Why?  Because we met our quota of bad things in the early morning hours.  At about 3am the barking began.  Daisy acted like someone was trying to break in and chop us up into tiny little pieces.  We could not figure out what in the world was bothering her.  The aggressive barking continued in spurts throughout the night.  Needless to say, we slept very little last night.  This morning we figured out what all of her hooping and hollering was about.  Someone either drunk or very sleepy plowed their car through our mailbox.  They completely took out the post, mailbox, and bricks surrounding the landscaped area.  What a mess.  Hopefully the property owners take care of stuff like this.  The second culprit of Daisy's psycho bark fest involved a living creature trying to come down the fireplace.  This morning as I was having breakfast the commotion started up again.  It was really freaking me out.  Something was trying to get in and it wasn't Santa Clause.  I hope a bird is not trying to build a nest.  What should we do?!?!

So, because the night was so eventful I just KNEW today would be great!  I had an interview with the Health and Wellness Market Director for Walmart today.  It went well and I am happy to say that I will officially be working for Walmart!  I will start out as a floater doing fill-in work until a full-time position opens within a drivable distance from Athens.  I am so excited to start working again.  This housewife stuff is not for me.. oh, and we have bills to pay.  God has truly blessed us.  His hand has been in every aspect of our move to Athens.  He is constantly reminding me that there is no use in the excessive worrying.  He always provides.

Yellow Snapdragon

I've been a crafty little lady!  I bought a desk from the Habitat for Humanity Restore here in Athens.  I sanded it down, cleaned it up, and painted it.  For $18 + paint + 5 hours of work I have a brand new desk!  It's going upstairs in our "office" room.  I really didn't want to go out and spend a ton of money on office  furniture when it may be easier to buy something cheap, use it for the next few years, and then donate it when we move again. Typically, I prefer more neutral colors for the home, but I always like to have one room with lots of fun colors.  Check it out!

Before

After

We are still on the look out for some used bookshelves.  This is my pinterest inspiration.  The backboard of the bookshelves will match the desk. 

Pinterest Recipe Successes

Greek Dip:  I made this on Labor Day for a little get-together with some new friends from church.  It is really yummy and healthy!  It's a layered dip and here's the order:  hummus on the bottom (I use store bought, but you can make your own if you are feeling like a rock star), next is crumbled feta cheese, then top with a mix of chopped cucumber and red bell pepper.  You could also add black olives, but I'm not a huge fan.  Use whatever ratios you prefer.  I serve it with whole wheat pita loaf toasted and cut into small pieces.  It is very easy to make and requires little preparation.  Enjoy!

Bruschetta Chicken for Two:  Tonight for dinner I tried out this recipe.  It was fantastic and I can't wait to make it again.  Ingredients: 

     1.  1/4 cup of flour
     2.  1 egg beaten
     3.  2 chicken breasts
     4.  1/4 cup parmesan
     5.  1/2 cup crushed garlic croutons (italian bread crumbs would probably work too)
     6.  1 tbsp melted butter
     7.  1 large tomato diced
     8.  1 tbsp basil
     9.  1 tsp minced garlic
   10.  1 tbsp olive oil
   11.  salt and pepper

Cover chicken in flour and then egg.  Place in dish.  Combine 4-6 and cover chicken with mix.  Bake at 375 until chicken is done.  Combine 7-11 and cover chicken with mix.  Cook for 7 more minutes and you're done! 

Flea Market, Creole, Puppy Pals

Since moving to Athens, Saturday has become our day to explore.  Allan heard about the "flea market" from a friend at school so we had to check it out.  I've never been to First Monday in Ripley, MS, but according to Allan the flea market we went to was very similar.  We spent three hours scouring through four big warehouses full of stuff and lots of outdoor tables.  You can pay $10 to set up a table and sell your own stuff, kind of like having a garage sale that is not at your house!  Items ranged from live chickens to those puffy dresses the little girls on "Toddlers and Tiaras" wear.  Our loot consisted of an assortment of local fruits and vegetables, a small bookshelf for the kitchen to put my cookbooks on, and some Star Wars figures to add to Allan's collection. 

For lunch we stopped by a little mom and pop diner that is walking distance from our house.  It's called "Sisters Creole Market" and it specializes in Cajun cuisine.  I got the fried catfish poboy and sweet potato tots.  Allan got the jambalaya that he said was the best he's ever had.  We give them two thumbs up!

We took another trip to the dog park because last week it started raining soon after we got there.  Daisy had fun playing, but she is a little shy around large groups of dogs.  We have to walk her into the group to make her play and we have to stay in her line of vision or she gets nervous. One lady had four smooth collies and they were so cute!  We think Daisy is half smooth collie so it was really fun to see them all playing together.

Later Saturday night I made some muffins that I found the recipe for on pinterest.  I don't know about you, but I feel like the stuff I find on pinterest is very hit or miss.  I made some pretty gross stuff from pinterest recipes, but these muffins were definitely a win.  Three simple ingredients:  1 box of sugar free chocolate cake mix, 15 oz can pumpkin puree, 1/2 bag of chocolate chips.  Bake about 25 minutes at 350.  Makes 18 muffins weighing in at a whopping 130 calories each!     

The Next Chapter

After 2 months of zero posts, it's time for an update.  This has been ONE CRAZY SUMMER.  I feel like I have never been busier in my entire life.  Between working 32-40 hours a week, preparing for four licensure exams, packing our entire house to move, a garage sale, weddings, and last goodbyes to family and friends, I stayed busy 24/7. 

I passed the NAPLEX and MS MPJE making me a licensed pharmacist in MS!  At some point in the future I know we will come home to MS and it is much easier to get licensed on the front end rather than later down the road.  I passed the GA MPJE and just took the practical last Thursday.  I have to wait 4 weeks to get my scores back.  Until then I'll be patiently waiting.. ha!

Allan and I both said goodbye to our jobs at the end of July.  I know it was especially hard for Allan to leave the art department at Ole Miss.  A job that was only guaranteed to last 6 months lasted 5 years.  I've never met another person that loved going to their job so much than when Allan was working at the art department.  I definitely miss Walmart in Oxford.  It was a great internship and I got to work with some great people.   I learned a lot and it was a really good experience. 

The weekend before we moved was Ann Katelyn's wedding.  I was honored to be a part of her special day.  I loved our little pharmacy girls reunion too!

 We've officially been in Athens for two weeks.  Allan started classes last week and is already working so hard. I've gotten the house mostly unpacked and we are slowly settling in.  I LOVE our new house.  I was a little worried that we signed the lease without being able to come see the house first, but it is honestly better than I imagined it would be.  I think we will be very happy here for the next 3 years.  We are looking for a church and have met some very nice couples already.  We had a good weekend of art show openings at the galleries at UGA, farmer's market, and a visit to the dog park.  We are quickly learning our way around.  I'm just ready for this "transitional" period to be over so that we can feel like we live and belong here.

So, until I get my scores back from the practical to get licensed I get to play housewife.  It's been five days and I'm ready to go back to work.  I shouldn't complain.  Who wouldn't want a break from working to cook, clean, work-out, sew, read, watch tv, socialize, etc?  I just find myself being very lazy when I don't have a routine.  I hope to make the most of my little break and maybe I'll even blog more!

Firsts, Fourths, and Twenty-sevenths

Notable events from the last 3&1/2 weeks:

1.  Nashville:  Pooja and I took a little trip to Nashville to go to Christina and Andy's wedding!  Neither of us had been to Nashville before so it was fun exploring the city!  We went to Centennial park and checked out The Parthenon, visited the County Music Hall of Fame Museum, walked up and down Broadway where we stopped in Hatch Show Print (I got a cool print for our kitchen and t-shirt for Allan), had dinner with my aunt and uncle followed by a mini-tour of really cool, historical places in Nashville (and got to see Reba's house), went to the zoo, walked around the inside of the Opryland hotel and gardens (beautiful!), did some shopping at Opry Mills mall, and last but not least went to the wedding!

Pharmacy girls with the bride and groom

2.  On the last day in May we celebrated our four year wedding anniversary.  I can't believe it has already been four years.  I guess the craziness of pharmacy school really made the time fly.  It has been a great four years.  Allan was very supportive during the last four years of my being in school and now it is time for me to return the favor.  I'm excited about our future and the new adventures that await us in Athens.

3.  First big girl paycheck:  The second I saw it I instantly knew the last four years of stress and craziness in pharmacy school were worth it.  Does that sound bad?  Obviously, I like being a pharmacist for other reasons, but hey.. somebody's gotta pay off these student loans!

4.  Authorization to test:  NAPLEX (June 25), MS MPJE (July 13), GA MPJE (July 30), practical exam for GA (August 16).  It's gonna be loooooong summer.  Prayers please!

5.  Welcoming 27:  Happy Birthday to me!!

6.  Byram:  So glad I got to spend some time with my family!!  We took our nephew Benjamin with us so he could play with Chance.  We saw the dinosaurs at the Natural Science Museum and went to the Children's Museum.  It honestly is the COOLEST place ever for kids!  If you have children, you MUST take them.

Natural Science Museum

Their favorite activity at the Children's museum- picking up logs with the claw and moving them.

 7.  Celebrated Allan's granny's 93rd birthday.  She truly amazes me.  She is completely independent!  I hope I'm like that when I'm 93!

8.   Tomorrow we are signing a lease!!  We found the perfect house for the two of us and Daisy.  I think it is so cute and has a lot of character.  It's 4-5 miles from UGA which is perfect for Allan.  This is it!

Erin Innman, Pharm.D.

A week ago today I graduated from pharmacy school!  It was such a special day.  I was blessed to be surrounded by family that have supported me along the way.  It was bittersweet to say goodbye to friends that I will not get to see as often as I would like.  It has been a long journey and it is finally over.  On to the next chapter!

 It still doesn't feel real!  I don't think it will until I have that license hanging on the wall.  Too bad four tests stand in the way of getting that license.  I'm getting licensed in GA and MS so I've got the NAPLEX, 2 MPJEs (one for GA and one for MS), and a practical exam for GA to look forward to.  Getting licensed in another state is somewhat of a challenge so I probably won't be licensed until the end of the summer.  Until then I'll be working at Walmart Pharmacy in Oxford (grad-intern!), studying, and preparing for the big move. 

Can I just say how nice it has been to be at home today!  I cannot remember a Saturday when I was home with no plans.  It seems like every weekend I'm either working, doing something, or going somewhere.  Not that I don't love going on trips and having fun with friends, but sometimes it is really nice to just be home (even if the day has been spent studying).  On that note, I'll leave you with a day in the life of Daisy.

Double Decker 2012

What a wonderful weekend this has been!  We kicked it off by celebrating Lindsey's birthday at one of the local Mexican establishments (there are so many in Oxford that I honestly can't remember the name).  It was great seeing everyone!  Julianne, Chris, and Julia were town so it was like a little reunion of sorts.

Lindsey and Nate

Next, we headed to the Square to listen to Iron and Wine.  They were in town playing for Double Decker.  Beautiful music.  Sam Beam's poetry is very different and almost nonsensical, but it works.

 Saturday morning Danielle and I participated in the Double Decker 5K run.  I finished in just under 37 minutes.  It was hot, but it felt good to run.  I have to admit, I haven't been pushing myself enough since the half-marathon.  We had a good time and even ran into Melanie.  Pharmacy girls represent!

Danielle, Melanie, and I after the race

Double Decker was so much fun this year.  Allan had some work in Southside Gallery, so he didn't have a tent.  Instead of working, we got to enjoy the festival!  The day was made complete by great friends, a "big as yo' head ice cream sandwich", and some super cute finds:  two handmade bracelets, a Christmas ornament, and a dish towel on which an art student screen printed the phrase "many hands make light work".

 After lunch today, Julianne and I sewed headbands.  They turned out really cute and were easy to make.  I got a sewing machine for Christmas and haven't really broken it in yet.  Hopefully once all of my board exams are over and we get moved I can really pick up sewing as a hobby.  We shall see! 

Tomorrow begins my LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL EVER!  I'm super pumped!!!!!!!!!!!

The Bachelorette

Since my last post I have started my eighth and final rotation for the year.  In three short weeks my time in pharmacy school will come to an end!  May 12th will be such an exciting day!  I'm so proud of my invitations that Allan made in his letterpress class. 

Thursday night was the annual pharmacy school crawfish boil and Friday was awards day.  It was good to see classmates that I haven't seen in awhile!  This weekend we celebrated Danielle's upcoming wedding with a lingerie shower/bachelorette party in Bay St. Louis/New Orleans.  It was so much fun!  The French Quarter Festival was going on this weekend so New Orleans was packed out.  Here are a few pictures from the weekend!  I can't wait to do it again for Ann Katelyn in a couple of months!

The French Quarter

Ann Katelyn, Pauline, and Ashley at dinner!

Mikki, Danielle, and I at dinner

The Last Spring Break

This past week was the last spring break I'll ever have and honestly I don't think that's anything to complain about.  I'm so ready to be done with school that the idea of never having another spring break doesn't bother me not one bit.  Nonetheless, since it was in fact, spring break, a small trip of sorts was in order.  Pooja and I went to see Melissa in Ocean Springs for a few days.  We ate, shopped, went to the beach, watched movies, hung out, and ate some more.  It was such a fun, low-key, relaxing trip.  Thanks, Melissa and Josh for being great hosts!

I also got to spend some time with my family for the first time in a few months.  I got to see sweet Megan and her pretty engagement ring.  I got to kiss Ava's cheeks at church today and bid Natalie farewell before her and Andrew's big move. I got to see Julianne and her parent's new house in Madison and I had a great dinner with Danielle on the Square.  All in all it was a great spring break, but I'm glad to be back home with Allan and Daisy.  Last rotation starts tomorrow! 

Sardis

Allan has a new hobby.  Metal detecting.  It makes me giggle just thinking about it.  Tonight we took a little family outing to Sardis.  Allan hunted for "treasure" while Daisy and I played on the beach.  She had the time of her life running all over the beach and chasing a stork.  She even jumped in the water which she usually would avoid.  The weather right now is amazing and it felt good to take advantage of it.  In just a few weeks we'll be sweating to the oldies even after the sun goes down.  Here are a few pictures to commemorate our little family outing. 

Sunset at Sardis

Diggin' up junk!

She's so happy!!

P.S.  I've been trying to "follow" everyone's blogs and blogspot won't let me!  It's driving me crazy!  I keep adding people and then if I refresh the page, the people I'm following disappear from my dashboard.  I know I'm not retarded because I got Allan to watch me do it to make sure I am doing it right.  For some reason the only two blogs that stay in my dashboard are blogs that I was following with my gmail account before I even had a blog and I don't remember how I started following them.  Tips?!

Girls Weekend

This weekend some of my girlfriends and I took a road trip to Birmingham to celebrate Christina's upcoming wedding.  It was the first time in forever that we have all been in the same place at the same time and we couldn't have been more excited to be together! We spent the weekend shopping, eating, showering Christina with gifts, and talking.  We LOVE to talk.  We've had many 3 hour dinners over the course of our friendships.  I'm going to miss these girls so much when we graduate and all go our separate ways!

Laura, Pooja, Courtney, and Christina

Me, Courtney, Ann Katelyn, Christina, and Pooja

Another exciting thing that happened this weekend was my brother's engagement.  I'm so excited about my new future sister-in-law!  Megan is one the sweetest girls I know and she will be an excellent addition to our family! 

Daniel and Megan at MSU graduation

Now I will go back to my PBS special:  The Broadway production of The Phantom of the Opera.  It never gets old.  I've seen it live twice (once on Broadway in NYC and once at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.) and it was phenomenal both times.  I'm patiently awaiting the Masquerade scene.  It's my favorite!  I hope everyone has a great week!!

Oxford Art Crawl

On the last Tuesday of every month Oxford has an art crawl.  The Double Decker bus takes people around the city and throughout the University to visit all of the art galleries.  It always proves to be a fun date night - great art, free food/beverages, and good company. If you've ever had any desire to go to a gallery opening (or even if you haven't) you should try the art crawl.  I don't think you'll be disappointed.  Most cities have something comparable- find out what it is and go! 

Random:  Tonight we got to meet the famous pianist, Bruce Levingston.  I always love meeting people with successful art careers. 

In other news, Allan is taking a letterpress class and I've commissioned him for some projects:
1.  Graduation invitations
2.  Thank you cards that say "Thanks Y'all!"

Race Day

Race day has come and gone and can I just say how glad I am that it is over!  I'm so glad I did it, but it was ROUGH!  I finished the half-marathon in 2:59:15.  One day I'll be all hardcore and run it in under 2 hours, but for now I'm just excited that I was able to do it!  Not many people can say they've run 13.1 miles!  My biggest advice for anyone deciding to train for any type of race is to have realistic expectations.  In November I couldn't run a quarter of a mile without feeling like I was going to die.  I've never been a runner.  So for me, this was good and I'm pretty proud of myself.  

Before the race

610 people ran the 5K and half-marathon races

After the race with my medal!

Later that afternoon we relaxed with friends at Swayze Field!  It's baseball season!!

Thursday, the School of Pharmacy dedicated its new building on the UMC campus.  The new facility is amazing and I'm a little jealous our class missed out on using it, but not jealous enough that I would actually consider going back to PY3 year.  Enjoy future PY3s!!

Keynote speaker:  Senator Thad Cochran

Ribbon cutting ceremony

I should blog more often so that my posts are shorter.  I'll try harder.  Now I must fight the urge to watch yet another episode of Gossip Girl on Netflix to read the hypertension guidelines for my "topic discussion" with my preceptor tomorrow.  Happy Sunday!

Athens, GA

After graduation we are moving to Athens, GA!  Allan has been accepted into the Lamar Dodd School of Art and after our weekend visit we decided Athens could definitely be a place to call home for the next three years!  If you ever lived there or know someone that does or did we are open to suggestions on places or areas to live! 

Valentine's Day No. 9

Tonight, in celebration of Valentine's Day, the Allan and Erin dream team joined forces in the kitchen and made the best meal ever!!!  Over the last year or two Allan has become quite the sushi chef.  He came up with all different kinds of rolls made with different combinations of crab, shrimp, cream cheese, avocado, and mango.  I made crab and cream cheese wontons for the first time ever and if I do say so myself, they were pretty amazing.  Allan said they were the best he's ever had!  The boy loves food!  Allan always gets me flowers for Valentine's Day, but this year he got his granny some too.  Such a sweet man. =)

The last two weeks have been rotation, journal club, rotation, work at Walmart, rotation, patient case presentation, rotation, help with student interviews for pharmacy school, work at Walmart, and more rotation.  Whew!!  Two more days left of Rotation #6.  I filled out my diploma application today.  Graduation just keeps getting closer!

We are visiting Athens, GA this weekend.  I'm super excited!  Hopefully, we will have our final decision made on where we will be after graduation within the coming weeks.  Until then, just keep praying!

Half-marathon update:  So, in the last few weeks I have become very discouraged over this process.  My knees have been hurting really bad.  It makes me so mad!  I feel like it is completely outside of my control!  I haven't been able to run farther than 10 miles and it has nothing to do with my legs hurting or being out of breath or my heart feeling like it's going to beat out of my chest.  Those were problems I had to overcome when I first started running.  Now it's knee pain.. and I feel like there is nothing I can do about it.  I'm just worried about the race.  Two more weeks...Maybe on race day my knees will magically work the way I want them to?!  On a more positive note, I got some cute running clothes this weekend.  I've been running in junk clothes made out of cotton that were literally rubbing me the wrong way, so now I'm good to go!  Buying new clothes is always exciting!

Just Waiting

Allan is done with the application process for graduate school!  Now we wait!  At least 2 or 3 times a day I get asked about our future after graduation.  In case you haven't heard and might be interested, the schools Allan applied to include:

1.  The University of Georgia (Athens, GA)
2.  The University of Missouri (Columbia, MO)
3.  The University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN)
4.  The University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK)

Hopefully he will start hearing back from the schools around March so we can decide where we will be living and I can start looking for a J-O-B!  Keep us in your prayers!  This is a big decision!

This past weekend we traveled to Byram.  Home Sweet Home.  There's nothing like being around people that love you.  I always feel so refreshed after spending a weekend with my family and church family at FBC Byram.  We took our nephew so he could get some play time in with my little cousin.  The weekend was filled with a baby shower, wedding shower, Cub Scout car race, and time with family and friends.  Saturday night my mom made tacos for some of my friends.  It was just like old times in highschool... hanging out at the Floyd house eating my mom's good food.  At the same time it was different because now we have a nurse, engineer, doctor, soon-to-be pharmacist, Appalachian trail hiker, and two additions (a baby and a husband).  I can't belive it's been almost 9 years since we graduated highschool!  I was so excited that Pooja got to come over too and meet everyone!  I love when friend groups can mix and have a good time. 

Half-marathon update:  I am now up to 10 miles!  My knees hate me, but I'm feeling good!

Run, Forrest, Run

In six weeks I will be running the Run for Hope half marathon in Oxford (God willing)!!  I signed up for it during a brief moment of insanity.  I kid.  Sort of.  I'm not gonna lie.. I hate running.  It makes me sweat way too much, my sinuses start flowing like Niagra Falls, and afterward my knees feel like that of a 90 year old.  I hope I am on point as far as mileage goes for training purposes.  I never really found a training guide that I liked online.  All of the BEGINNER guides expected you to be able to run 3 or 4 miles from day one!  Umm.. when I first started I could barely run a quarter of a mile.  I've come a long way since November.  Today I ran 6.5 and walked 1 mile.  I think over the course of 6 weeks I can manage to run at least 6 more miles.  I'm nervous because I haven't been running as much as I should have over the last few months even though I've been on break.  We start rotations back tomorrow and between them and working at the pharmacy in Walmart I'll only have about two days off out of every fourteen.  I'll just have to make time for running I suppose.  I think I can, I think I can!  I just wish I was faster!  I'm anticipating it taking me close to 3 hours to run 13.1.  Too slow! 

Momma and Daddy Santa brought me new Brooks for Christmas.  I love them and the people at Fleet Feet for helping me pick them out.  If you need some really good shoes visit them!  They watch you walk to see where you put pressure on your feet to help you pick out the best structured shoe for your feet.  They also recommend getting shoes one size bigger than normal to run in.  I love my new shoes.  They definitely make a big difference. 

A friend told me about gmap-pedometer.  This is such a big help when planning routes.  I previously had been driving around Oxford in my car clocking the mileage on my odometer.  Using gmap is so much faster and easier!! 

Random:  Ever since I've upped my mileage I have been craving bananas.  In the past, I have hated bananas!  I didn't like the smell or consistency.  Now I eat one everyday.  I guess my body really wants that potassium!

Pray for me people!  I'll definitely need it! 

San Francisco

San Francisco was amazing!!  We had a great time and saw so much in the three full days that we were there.  We started the trip off with a Tower Tour.  The first stop was Muir Woods.  The redwood trees were breathtaking. The tallest tree was 258 feet high, with the oldest being 1200 years.  I couldn't believe this National Forest was so close to such a big city. 

 Next stop, Sausalito.  We only stopped here briefly, so we grabbed lunch (fish tacos for me, fish and chips for Allan- YUM!) and admired all of the boats on the bay. 

Then, it was on to the Golden Gate Bridge!  I was so excited that we actually got to see it up close.  It was massive.  I feel for the locals that have to drive across it everyday being that the toll to cross is $6.00!  Unbelievable!!

Next, was definitely one of the highlights of the trip.. Alcatraz!  The tour was really interesting.  It was home to some of the worst and most dangerous criminals.  It was built to be impenetrable, but there were many escape attempts.  Only one attempt may have been successful.  The three men that escaped were never found.  Some think they drowned and some think they could be living in South America (all three men had been learning Spanish before their escape).  The prison closed in 1963 and was occupied by American Indians a year later to get the government's attention in order to save their tribes.  Not only was the history and mystery of the island captivating, the island was absolutely beautiful and there could not have been a better view of the city's skyline, Golden Gate Bridge, and Bay Bridge anywhere else in the area.

  

Wednesday, we hiked the hills of San Francisco to find "the crookedest street" (Lombard Street).  They constructed the street to be almost impossible to drive down in order to decrease the amount of traffic in the area, but of course, the opposite occurred.  Everyone wants to be able to say they drove down the crookedest street, so there are constantly people braving the curves!  We couldn't get the best picture, but this is what it looks like.  We continued on to Fisherman's Wharf via the cable car (so cute and fun).  This is a very "touristy" area, but it is totally worth the trip just to get ice cream in Ghirardelli Square and watch the sea lions sunbathe at Pier 39.  At times, up to around 200 sea lions can be seen at the pier.  No one really knows why they choose to congregate at Pier 39, but the tourists (like us!) love it!  That night we explored the downtown (Union Square) area and did a little shopping (H&M!!).  

Thursday, we rode a bus to see the "Painted Ladies" or "Postcard Row".  I love these Victorian style houses and the view from Alamo Square was worth the slightly sketchy bus ride there. 

The rest of the afternoon was spent in Chinatown.  I love my new sushi plates ($1/plate!!), chopsticks, and Pashmina scarf.  I've never seen goods priced so cheap.  If you go to San Francisco and want to bring something home, go to Chinatown!  We stumbled upon the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory.  Cool, but strange (sort of what I would picture a sweat shop to be like?!). 

Finally, the reason we went-- The 1st Annual Supersonic Electronic Invitational at Spoke Art!  The show was really cool.  There was a lot of illustrative work and it was very different than work that I've seen in galleries around MS.  I loved both pieces Allan submitted for the show.  He sold the lego piece which was really exciting! The show was definitely a great networking opportunity.  We met some really great people and everyone was so nice and welcoming.  Everyone seemed amused that we were from Mississippi.  It was almost as if Mississippi was this mystical land that everyone had heard of, but didn't think actually existed.  Hopefully we represented our state well.  We remembered to wear our shoes!  =)

Hopefully, many more trips like this one are in our future!