180 hours

What can you do with 180 hours???? Let me tell you what I can do.......I can finish, complete, and be D.O.N.E. with my practicum hours for this semester. And that means......drumroll please......I am DoNe with ALL my practicum hours! Wow!! Who's excited?? It's me!! So, the next time I lay my hands on a patient, it will be all me. No preceptor standing over my shoulder. A little unnerving, but very exciting. I still have a couple more classes and a couple more tests. Will be done with everything, everything on May 8th.

Now, Easter.....what a great day. Great dinner with friends. Easter baskets for the kids. Still do 'em. I can't stop myself. The boys won't admit to liking it, but they do. But here is what we did different this year. The kids had like 3 pieces of chocolate--and small pieces, at that--in their baskets. And it went over well. I thought there would be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. We are trying to be healthier. Trying not to eat out so much. I think we're doing a good job, so far. So far.....

A Christmas Flashback

My little Christmas village. It gets better every year. The Opera House is the new one for 2010. It is so much fun to plan it out and set everything out. And it is especially fun now that the kids are older and they can help without breaking anything. As we are putting them out, we talk about what was going on the Christmas we got a particular house. Good times.....good times. They have their own closet and this is what they look like all packed away. I shouldn't run out of room for 4 or 5 more years. Then, watch out! I'll be taking over other closets. John will going to college in 3 years, sooo........ I already can't wait to start window shopping for the next new house. BUT I don't want to wish summer away. I'm soooooo looking forward to it. I think we can finally say Spring is here. And thank goodness. It feels so good to be warm.

AND....just in case you're interested....just made an appointment for John to see the doctor on Friday....his BIRTHDAY. Nothing more fun than going to the doctor on your birthday......the pollen is taking over his poor little body without mercy.

Emily's Birthday Party

I do not post pictures fast enough. I'm under the gun if I want to get some posted. John's birthday is Friday and I haven't even posted Emily's bday pictures. I still have some pictures from Christmas to post. Ridiculous, I know. OK, ok, on to Emily's bday party.

We had 4 friends over, went to Swaders. It's like a putt-putt, laser tag, go cart, game room kind of place. Then we came home to pizza, chips, soda, and cake. Well, we, actually, did cupcakes this year. It was very fun! Love to watch the giggling, screaming girls having fun. Can't believe Emily is going to be in the middle school next year. ****heavy sigh****

John's First Formal Affair

He went to a dance held at the Junior High. NOT with a date, I am happy to report. Just to have fun. He can start dating much, much later. He looked so handsome. Not really enjoying me taking his picture, though. It is fun to watch him spreading his wings a little and going off to have fun without us.

I can't believe he is almost 15. Just days away, really. What were you doing 15 years ago today?? I was hugely pregnant, trying to go into labor because I couldn't wait to see this precious boy who got the grave task of being our first born. It has to be a rough life to be the first born. They are such guinea pigs. I have to practice all my parenting skills on him first, then tweak them a little and apply them to Ethan and Emily. The pressure!!

He is at an age where we are really considering all that he will be as an adult. Talking about drivers ed, which I totally cannot wait for. He is 30 years old, really, when it comes to that kind of stuff. When he gets his driver's license, I will have a chauffeur. Looking forward to it! I hate driving. Talking about what he will study in college and which one he wants to go to. It's all very exciting!

Where has all the chivalry gone??

Or just good manners for that matter.   Had a flat tire yesterday in the parking deck of the university.   Seven men walked right past me.   And that's not even counting the men who looked like they couldn't break a pencil in two,  never mind loosen lug nuts on a tire.   I could not believe it.   It's not like we were in a dangerous part of town and they needed to be in fear for their lives.   For shame!  I already had the car jacked up and everything.   I just needed a little muscle power to loosen the lug nuts.   I even asked one guy as he passed.   He wouldn't even acknowledge that I was talking to him.   And as he drove past he honked his horn and set off all the alarms in the cars around me.   Niiiiiiiice!  Moron!  So I called road side service and that guy yelled at me because I couldn't understand what he was saying.   And poor John drove an hour to come save me from all the misery and pulled up just as the road side guy was finishing.  Fun times!  
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Monument Avenue 10K

John came home early from his trip to Mobile to run with me. We made it all the way to the finish line without keeling over. We ARE tough! Do not mess with us! Also do not push on us too hard because we are likely to fall over. It was hard work! I bet the shoe tag is supposed to double as a toe tag for those who don't make it. We only saw one person being taken off in an ambulance though.

Already thinking about signing up for the 5K mud run in May. How much fun will that be? We're going to make that a family participation event. I wish I had taken a better picture of us before the race. We look like we are preparing to enter the witness protection program there. It was a fun day. Lots of high energy. Lots of bands to help motivate you and push you along. The Blue Grass band didn't do much for me though. Not good running music.

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