Surprise and Space

So this weekend my parents came down from good ol' Missouri for a visit. I was so excited to have family! But what I didn't know was that my 10 year-old niece Kalee was also along for the trek. She completely surprised me!!! She is my absolute favorite person and I miss her SO MUCH! It was the best surprise I could have received and little Miss Sneaky Mc Sneakerson was such a treat to have...I'm so glad my little buddy came to visit me :)

Saturday we decided to go to Huntsville to the U.S. Space Center and Museum. It's almost like a given, that if you live in Alabama you must 1) choose your team...Bama or Auburn (I have opted to choose neither and continue to support the Razorbacks, though I've been recently harassed for it) and 2) visit the Space Center. I must say that after an afternoon of looking and learning, it has solidified why I have never ever wanted to go into space. I admire astronauts and think their job is cool, but you couldn't pay me enough money to do what they do. The first thing we did in the museum was get into the cockpit of an Apollo replica. That thing was so stinkin' tiny, I was feeling a bit claustrophobic. Not to mention it was kind of eerie. The huge control panel with all the buttons is right above you and there's this huge "red button." You know the infamous "red button" that's on all important control panels and machinery. The kind of red button that you always want to push, but know you shouldn't. Well, here was this huge red button that I could easily push because nothing was going to happen, but it was so eerie in there that I couldn't. I know, really strange and not to mention absurd of me to think that, but it just was.

The space center was pretty cool though. The Saturn was massive....never seen anything of that magnitude up close. It was a really cool experience plus it makes me think about how amazing God is. When you walk through and see all the stuff about the Earth, solar system, space, galaxies....it's crazy to think and wrap your head around that we are just a flea sized part of God's masterpiece. He created EVERYTHING and when you're put in a position to think beyond our towns, states, country, and even planet, you feel so insignificant. The afternoon was a constant reminder at how awesome and amazing and really smart our God is :)

Oh and side note....I did better this time...when my family left I didn't cry until after they drove down the street (they didn't even see me). A much better improvement from the first time when I bawled the 15 minutes before and the 30 minutes after they left. I'm growing up to become a big girl! :)

My Shadow

This post is devoted 100% to the Magster...

As a lot of you know, prior to my jump to AL, I got a puppy. I have wanted a Weimaraner for the longest time and decided that post-graduation, and with my move to a new place, I was ready to become a puppy mom. So, I used some of my graduation bucks and bought my dog. I had thought long and hard prior to getting her about what her name would be. Maggie popped in my head and so she was Maggie before I ever saw her. Well, I don't know if some of you know much about Weimaraners, but they're really pretty dogs. Blue or silver gray is the usual choice in breed color. Mags is a blue. Weimaraners can also have very high spirited personalities...Mags is becoming this. Weimaraners also get rather large...Mags is in the process...23 lbs at 11 1/2 weeks. Weimaraners are also very loyal and loving...Mags is 100% a sweet girl.

Well, after being a dog mom for about a month in a half, I can honestly say that I have become one of "those people." Growing up my family never had a dog in the house. We were outside dog people. We had a little weenie dog for a while, and we always had hunting dogs. I made the executive decision that Maggie would be inside with me. My buddy and watch dog if you will. Well, what I mean by "those people" is this. I've become one of those types that a)talks in a baby voice to their pet, ie: said in baby voice, "thas a goood gurl maggie"; b)treats their pet as if it were a real child; c)becomes worried/hysterical/and pathetically highly emotional when something could be wrong with their pet; d)feels that their dog is the absolute smartest dog in the world; and finally e)talks about their dog as if it were a real child. Yes, my dog has basically consumed a very large part of my life. I now understand how "those people" fall into this type of thinking. When you have a puppy who depends on you for feeding, to turn the door knob so they can go out the backdoor to pee/poop, and who looks at you with big blue puppy dog eyes....you get absolutely smitten. I can't help it. She gets all excited when I come home. Wags her tail about 90 miles an hour...it's so sweet. Who knows maybe I need to get more of a life?

Anyway...here's my top 5 favorite things that Maggie does in all her "Mag-a-liciousness."
1. Have you ever watched ballroom dancing? If you have then you have seen the "Quick-Step." I'm convinced Mags could do the dog version of the quick step. When we walk in the park she's so light and fluffy on her feet....looks like the quick step. (if you're laughing at how dumb this sounds, go ahead).
2. When there's dew on the grass, or after it's rained, Maggie hunches down low to the ground and walks real fast licking the water off the grass. It's like her tongue can't lap enough drops of rain off the lawn. It makes me think of Fred Flinstone's dinosaur lawn mower...remember the dinosaur chomped the grass? Mags hunches down like that and licks...it's really funny.
3. She's SO clumsy....imagine Bambi when he first stood. This is Maggie trying to stand up on my kitchen floor.
4. She plays 100%, full throttle, run as hard as you can, will barrel me over for her quacking mallard duck. Though away from Southeast MO...I'm still giving her the flyway education she needs to really be a Howard.
5. Mags follows me everywhere....she will barely eat, drink, or do her business without my overlooking her for approval....thus, she's my shadow.

Thank you Thank you Jenni!!!

Just wanted to thank my cousin's wife Jenni for snazzing up my blog. I LOVE IT!!! I consider myself a fairly creative person, but I'm new to the blog thing and my previous set up was one of the default templates and it was pretty generic (and boring). Jenni's always looks so so cute and she's always adding this and that.....I became filled with blog jealousy and asked her to help me out. Her being the ever sweet relative that she is, she gladly accepted and you are currently viewing the results of her beautiful creative work :) I know, I know....right now you are becoming filled with blog jealousy too.. No worries...contact Jenni...AKA the "Crafty Queen of Blogs."

Bama-isms

Since I've recently moved to a brand new state, I figured I'd share some things that I've recently learned about my new whereabouts.

1. first of all, they're called "Alabamans" not "Alabamians." Didn't know it.
2. Alabama means "tribal town"...word from the Creek Indian tribe. Again, didn't know it.
3. Nickname: Heart of Dixie or the Yellowhammer State. I did know the Yellowhammer thing (weird...how I knew that I'm not sure).
4. State song: Alabama (how original)
5. Dinosaur fossils found in AL (I'm listing this b/c it just makes me laugh for some reason): Lophorhothon and Nodosaurus....never heard of either....what happened to plain in simple TRex or Brontasaurus?
6. State Game Bird: Wild Turkey......surprising this is even listed as a fact...
7. State Flower: Camillia
8. State Tree: Southern longleaf pine (Pinus palustris)....I did not know the scientific name to this......I only state that because oddly I know the scientific names of a lot of trees....point being.....I was a nerd in college.
9. On this fact sheet they have facts about the state nut, quilt, dance, etc.......all things that I didn't even know states made facts about.....odd
10. follow up to #9.....does it ever make you wonder how they come up with these facts? I mean is there someone who's sole purpose/job is to come up with state facts? I know the usual ones, but the facts that are kind of weird......and who votes on this stuff?
***As you can see, I have had ample time to think about this stuff this morning at work......the amount of patients is pretty light currently.
11. soda is not a term (which this I already knew)....coke, what kind? And I do realize that if I have one nuance that labels me midwestern, it would be my calling it "soda." However, I still claim that I am not a Yankee or "midwestern" as I've been called since I've been here by a few.
12. the question, "Who are you for?" is like a top 5 question to ask someone new to the area. I had no idea even what they were talking about until I got my AL football education. AL Crimson Tide or Auburn Tigers....my polite answer thus far....neither....but I do follow up with a explanation that I do support the SEC (go Hogs!).
12. Missouri is considered far far away to some people. A common response to when I reply to people where I'm from....."Wow....you're really far from home." Not really.....SE MO and NW AL.....not that far apart. It's hard for people to remember the shapes of states other than their own. So when you describe my beloved Bootheel and say, "you know MO has the little tail in the corner and it's referred to as the boot?" (a few have looked at me like I'm an idiot), only some can remember MO's shape.
13. Welcome to the state of post hurricane rains......doesn't really happen back home.
14. I finally learned what "War Eagle" means....I was confused for about 2 weeks.

FINALLY......Let me clarify....I'm not typing any of this to make fun, degrade, or snicker at any of my new Alabaman friends. Thus far, the people of Florence, AL have been so warm and welcoming.....one of the nicest towns I've ever been to and so far so good :)

Disclaimer: I refuse to become a Braves fan.......I've been told by multiple sources that if I live here long enough, I'd follow Atlanta. For the record...I will never ever ever ever ever ever ever become a Braves fan. Not because I hate them or anything...just that I will always 100% be loyal to the one and only St. Louis Cardinals.

Patience

So Sunday in our class, Will Bridges (he and his wife Melodie have befriended me---great people!) talked/led a discussion about waiting. We've been studying from Genesis (which I enjoy....the initial meat of the OT), and Sunday it was all about waiting/having patience, etc. We talked about the usual scenarios of waiting in line, icky congested traffic on the interstates, etc. Several people mentioned waiting for the birth of their children, or girls waiting for that pretty engagement ring they've been wanting. You know...things that you are so anxious for but the waiting can be unbearable?! As people were throwing out different things I began to think for myself about what things I had to wait a long time for....like, graduation from optometry school or getting boards scores in the mail. All of mine were mostly school-related :) But then I also (as well as the rest of this week) have begun to think of other forms of waiting that I've really not even experienced in my short almost 25 year old life (my birthday is a month from today!). You know the milestones of my future that aren't even on my radar yet.....marriage, kids, etc. Plus, I began to think of how far I've come along with patience in general. Some people may not know it, but those who do (you know who you are....mom, jennifer, the rest of my family) can tell you that I'm not a very patient person. I'm laid back and easy going for the most part, but some things I've struggled to have patience with. Especially over the past couple of years. And it's not patience in every aspect of my life. It's random little things some times and then really big things other times. Jennifer (my sis-in-law and old optometry school roommate) could see my lack of patience on a daily basis during school, as well as with my personal relationships with different people. It took me a while to grasp and wrap my head around that 1)at whatever point in time I had no patience, that me being fidgety or complaining was not going to make it faster, easier, or better and 2)that I have absolutely 100% no control of some situations that test my patience. I found in my palm pilot a couple of scriptures that I had written a few years ago from James. I used to use it as a daily reminder to work on my patience.

James 1:2-3 Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.
James 1:4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

I read these the other day and you know it's true. No matter what the scenario (good or bad---even though it's sometimes extremely hard to swallow/grasp) a testing of your faith gives you patience. Now, in my case it has had to be a lot of scenarios, but with each one I feel that I have had one chance to feel and experience patience. I can honestly say that I feel that I am a much more patient person than I was 2 years ago, even 6 months ago! God gives us what he knows we can handle (traumatic, minor, simple, hard, earth-shattering, etc) and by experiencing these things we learn to put faith in Him and be patient with Him, as well as with ourselves and our peers. Just thought I'd share my thoughts from the past few days :)

Life Post-Ticks

So here's the post tick scoop...

Saturday I woke up feeling lucky that I only had a few tick bites. Granted I did find the live one in my bed and a few crawling on my arm when I jumped back into my bleach bath, but the bites were few. However, I should have known that it was too good to be true. Sunday I got up with what looks like the worst case of chicken pox you've ever seen on the tops of my legs as well as on the side of my butt....it's quite a sight let me tell you. Well, I thought to myself, "Katie this looks terrible, but it really is not too itchy." I had heard from my friend and he said that their itching was unbearable, so I went about my day feeling rather lucky. Well, this morning I'm changing my tune. I woke up with more and itching like a banche....it is the most miserable feeling ever. I have counted about 130-150 bites on my left leg alone. I also found some on my arms, as well as my back and stomach. I long for my mother right now...there are just some places that I can't reach. So I headed to work this morning, itchy, but still feeling okay. I decided to show my office manager (yes, she's a woman) because I felt that I needed to prove my misery since I've not been able to show anyone. Reaction...jaw dropping and "do you feel okay overall?" Well at the time I thought I did, but that quickly changed. A wee bit later I began to feel rather tired, sluggish, and quite cold. Bits of chill would come and go. So the consensus was that I had a fever...no fever. So rather than sit and feel like crap, I decided to head to the walk in clinic down the street to be safe. Dr. Lumpkins was the recommended doc, and actually a doc that I'm supposed to meet and greet (there are several around town that I'm supposed to introduce myself to as to say "I'm Dr. Howard...I'm new to the area, etc."....good PR, you know?) Well, I just loved the idea of my first introduction and then dropping my drawers to show my ugly bumps. Well, no worries...didn't have to drop 'em. Dr. Lumpkins informed me that viral/flu like symptoms can occur with excessive tick bites. He said that I could spend several hundred $$$ to get a Rocky Mtn. Spotted fever or Lyme titer test done, but that more than likely it would come back negative. So, he informed me that my symptoms can be normal, and decided to prescribe me a antibiotic to be safe and a vaso-dilator to relieve some of my itching misery. Therefore, currently I'm sitting and feeling a little better... drugged up, and not itching too terribly since my last application of Gold Bond Anti-Itch. Hopefully, all will get better over the next few days...pray please :)

PS: Maggie is doing great....as if nothing ever happened....I'm beginning to wonder if Frontline would work on humans???

"I'd like to check you for ticks..."---Brad Paisley

If you would have checked me yesterday, and even this morning you would have found some....let me rephrase that....not some.....A LOT!!! So here goes the story...

Fridays are my day off, and so yesterday I went hiking with a new friend. I wasn't sure about taking Maggie (since she's only 10 1/2 weeks old), but I decided to give it a shot. So, Mags and I got all packed up and drove about an hour south of Florence to meet a friend in Haleyville, AL. Once there, we drove out to the state ground where we would hike. The hike was about 2 1/2 miles, so there was a chance Maggie would get really tired. But they brought backpacks along in case they needed to carry her. So we got there and I fed Mags her lunch before we set out. Well off we went. We decided to not put Maggie on her leash (unless we came to a steep area or ridge), and I'm proud to say that she did AWESOME!!! She had the best time. She always followed the leader, but then would stop after to bit to turn and see if I was coming behind her. She was leary of some logs that she couldn't go under at first, but we'd stand on one side and encourage her to come. She eventually learned to grip with her front paws and jump with her back and made it over a few!

So shortly into the hike, my friend said that he found a seed tick on his hand. I had said that I had put Frontline on Maggie and that she should be okay if they bite her, but little did I know what we were getting into....

We hiked a bit longer and had been going for quite a while and we stopped to rest a bit. Well, we look on our hands and we notice a few seed ticks crawling on us. I then look on my legs and I have A LOT OF SEED TICKS ON ME. I then look around my shoes and THEY ARE ALL OVER MY SHOES!!! Inside my shoes, on my shoe strings, and of course when I take them off, they are all over my socks!!! I was wearing shorts, so I pulled one side up a little bit. Sure enough, they had crawled up my leg and UNDERNEATH MY SHORTS!!! Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I have had a tick before. You know, a fat black or brown one that's crawling that you can mash and kill the little sucker before he embeds into you? Never in my life have I gotten into seed ticks....they are the tiniest little suckers and they crawl into crevices that 1)they are not welcome in, and 2)they are relentless. So upon finding our new hiking buddies, we decided to turn around and head back. I knew that if I was covered in them, Mags would be also. So upon, tromping back to our beginnings, Maggie was playing and nipping at my ankles. Well, I decided to play back and began to run. So we're both running, and like a graceful, elegant swan....I tripped over a tree root, rolled like I was 007 on a secret mission (it was actually an impressive roll I thought), and sat on my knees in embarassment. So, now am I not only covered in seed ticks, I am also mortified. But I can most always laugh at myself, so I took it in stride. Besides, who hasn't fallen before, right? So with a sore hip, a critter infested wardrobe, a scratching puppy, I climbed in the truck and we headed back to town. Well my friend felt bad (and it was SO okay....not a big deal and not his fault), so he took us back to Haleyville's Walmart. Enroute to Wally World, Maggie had fallen asleep in the front seat and my friends noticed that she had seed ticks crawling all over her sweet little ears and head. Poor Mags!!! So we get to Walmart, get some goods to make this better, and begin to "detick" Mags and ourselves. Bless her heart....she was SO TIRED from the afternoon and was hungry and we begin to poke and prod on her. We found that she had ticks down in between her toes. So let me give you a good visual of this.......I am standing outside a Walmart in Haleyville, AL, barefoot on the nasty gross parking lot asphalt, my friend is holding my dog separating her toes as I pour water from a water bottle on her little feet and begin to shampoo her paws with flea/tick killer shampoo....all while people are slowly driving by looking at us like we were nuts! But let's remember it's small town AL, so they're probably used to it :) Well we take care of Mags, I tried to lint roll some ticks off of my shirt, socks, shoes, etc. (which works pretty well by the way), and then put her in the back of his truck to feed her. I decide to head back into Walmart to use the bathroom and as I pulled down my shorts.....yep, ticks all in my underwear, stuck to my upper thigh, and I knew they had to be on my butt too. I did the best I could with brushing them off, but so many had already stuck that I couldn't. Well, we get back to the Piggly Wiggly parking lot

where I had left my car and Mags and I pack up to head back to Florence. Mags slept the entire way home. Enroute I called Mom and Dad and my dad gave me the seed tick/chiggers killing recipe. I got home put Mags in the back yard, stripped down, and jumped into my hot water bathtub mixture of bleach, soap (which I used Dawn...the closest thing I could grab), and vinegar. I soaked in my tub for 20 minutes, sweating like a Banche, and then showered. I scrubbed with a pumice stone, loofa, as well as shaved my legs, scrubbed my hair 3 times, and still didn't feel like they were off. I scrubbed Mags off, vacuumed out my car, sprayed the inside with tick/flea killer, and vacuumed it again. I washed my clothes, towels and the blanket Mags sat on twice in hot water. Then, I went back for another shower and hair washing myself. After all of that, I still woke up this morning with one of those little boogers crawling in my bed!!! So, I started over again this morning. I took another bleach bath where I found another one crawling on me, as well as one embedded in my chest. I had to dig that sucker out and it hurt! So far I've washed my sheets, my clothes, sprayed Mags down with flea/tick killer spray, bleached her kennel, the utility floor that her kennel sits on, mopped my kitchen floor, and sprayed flea/tick killer on the carpet in front of the patio door where I take her out. I have yet to find anymore since then, but these little suckers are relentless....they're not going down!!!

So the moral/lesson of my Friday afternoon of fun.....if you're going hiking in the woods.......WEAR OFF WITH DEET!!!!!!!!!

But in spite of the new little crawling friends I made....I had fun :)

Firsts

Wow!!! So this past week was a week of many firsts...my first official week in the "real world," my first official week of living by myself in my new state, AND most importantly my first official week to actually use my title of "doctor." And what are my thoughts now that it is over (I don't work on Fridays!)??? I AM SO HAPPY!!! What a great week of firsts! Things just seem to be falling into place very nicely, making the transition away from home and being by myself much easier. However, reading my sister in law's (Bonnie) blog got me a little misty eyed (but made me smile from ear to ear too) when I read about my nephew's new favorite things. He is really liking to wrestle right now she said, and he also likes it when Wes shoots his bow. The pictures were so cute and it made me miss home and seeing everybody every day. But, I did receive a envelope yesterday in the mail from my favorite person in the entire world...my niece, Kalee. She sent me two pictures that she and Jackson had colored each, both saying "To KK...We miss you." It made me smile and feel wonderful. She is my best little friend (or way cool buddy as I've called her since she was little), and she made my Thursday afternoon. I love that something so simple by a loving little person, can make you feel so special. Kalee is wonderful!

Workin 9 to 5, What a Way to Make a Living...

Okay, so not really 9 to 5...actually 8 to 5...and really not much "work" just yet. However, yesterday was officially my first day of work. I did not see any patients, nor am I today, but got into the groove of my new office with the flow of how things work. I did get to do an exam on a staff member (my first exam since May....ahh), but I wasn't as rusty as I thought I'd be. I think I'm really going to like my office. Thus far, everyone has been very nice and very efficient. Plus, I can tell that the people of the community who come to Florence Eye Center are very satisfied and really like our office. This was easily seen by observing the patients....I'm VERY EXCITED about what has been done here and what will be continued in the future.

Plus, on another good note...I found out when I got home that I passed my Alabama boards!!! I knew it was coming this week, and I was pretty nervous about it. I'm not the best test taker, plus I didn't feel to solid about one of the sections on the test. There's been a gray cloud hanging over that particular area the past few weeks and I've just pushed it aside and not really thought about it. But yesterday it came full circle and I was about to throw up as I opened my mailbox. Of course it was there....and the results were SO UPLIFTING!!! So a perfect ending to a perfect first day :)!!!!

Oh, and excitement and good wishes continue to go out to my sister in laws, Jennifer and Bonnie. Jennifer is planning on opening her office back home in Dexter on the 25th of this month, with Bonnie as her office manager/optician. Much work has been done and is still occuring in her office and I know that it will all come together perfectly....they are going to do great and I'm very proud of them!!!

Work + Craziness = Moving

So…I’m officially in Alabama! Here’s a recap of the past 6 hectic days.

Thursday, July 31st:
My mother and I left Dexter early Thursday morning to make it to Florence by 1 pm for the final walk through of my house and for the closing at 2 pm. We each had our cars filled to the top. I couldn’t even see out the back window in my car. It’s amazing that even after throwing A LOT of stuff away when I moved back home from St. Louis, I still had that much stuff! I blame most of it on being a woman (lots of shoes and clothes). What can I say? I like to shop J Anyway, we got to my house and took Maggie’s (my puppy) kennel out and began to assemble it on the back patio. I had decided to put her there while we did the closing. As I was putting it together and we were waiting on my realtor, mom looked in the kitchen window and saw that nothing had been moved out!!! I was told several weeks ago that I would have possession at closing. Mom and I had planned specifically for this, so that we could begin cleaning the house prior to my dad, brothers, and my sis-in-laws trek the following day. What happened was basically this…the other realtor had told my realtor one thing and then went back on her word. So, frustration #1. My realtor felt bad and since we couldn’t get into the house until the next day (her mover’s were coming Friday morning around 8), she let my mom and I stay at her lake house on Shoals Creek. So I had to disassemble Maggie’s kennel, put her back in the little pet taxi (that she can barely fit in) and we were going to head to the lake house. Well here comes frustration #2….I have NEVER locked my keys inside my car, and for some reason, that day seemed to be my lucky day….my door was open and it blew shut and locked with the keys inside my car, with it running, and my dog inside…..AAAAAHHHHHH!!!! So, we tried to find a locksmith, but found a better route. The Nissan dealership took my VIN number and made me a new key for only $6. However, since bad luck seems to come in multiples, while we were at the dealership, it began to pour down rain….when the wind blew my door shut, it did not close all the way…just enough to lock, but still a small crack. Well, you can put 2 and 2 together. Frustration #3. I wish at the precise moment of when I finally got into my car, I was soaking wet, my driver’s side seat wet, and my dog (who’s afraid of storms currently), that I had a picture. It was a sorry sorry sad scene. BUT….the glass is always half full…mom and I got settled into the nice lake house, Maggie enjoyed playing on the boat dock, and we tried to relax before the craziness of moving began.

Friday, August 1st:
Mom and I enjoyed our morning at the lake house. I wondered how Maggie would do in a new surrounding, but she did very well. No accidents in her kennel! Since we had our hands tied until the lady was out of her house, I decided we should take care of banking, utility switch overs, and some other things. The lady was finally out around 1 pm, and mom and I were able to unload our cars, I put Mag’s kennel together for the 3rd time, and we went to buy cleaning supplies. The rest of the fam came late Friday evening. We enjoyed dinner together and then got busy moving. One highlight was the moving of my piano. My piano was given to us by my Grandmother. It was the original piano that she learned to play on, and it’s from the 1940s. Wes, David, and I all learned to play on it, but since I took lessons the longest, and kept at it, I got to have it. Kalee (my niece) began taking lessons last year, and it has been at Wes and Bonnie’s house. Since I have my own house, Wes said I could move it. Well, this piano is old and HEAVY!!! It takes at least 3 people to move and each of them have a grimace on their face when doing so. I have a front small room with a bay window in my house. I wanted to make it my office/music room. Well, the doorway and corners made it impossible to move it into the front room unless it was turned up on its side. So basically all of us had to help because the legs are fragile, and it’s so heavy. Well we made it thanks to the boys!

Saturday, August 2nd:
We began painting my living room and to small vestibule hallways. The previous owner was a big fan of pastel pink. I, however, not so much. I have vaulted ceilings so the boys brought the big 12 ft ladder for the high parts. With 6 sets of hands, the painting goes pretty fast. The new wallcolor “Hampshire Grey” (selected by Bonnie) looks great! I’ll post pics below.

Sunday, August 3rd:
We went to church, had lunch, and the boys and Jennifer left. I cried like a baby when they left (and I’m beginning to tear up now typing this). I’m so extremely close to my family and not seeing them every day like I have this summer is sad to me. Yes, I’ve been in St. Louis away from them, and I was in Hawaii for two whole months without seeing them, but I got spoiled the past 2 months. However, Jennifer is planning to come back down Labor Day weekend and I’m already looking forward to her visit! She’s my wingman and she’s going to help me survey the social scene. J

Mom and I got to work and painted my kitchen. It looks SO much better! I’m going to eventually get new countertops and attempt to tile my floor, but it will come later. It’s amazing what a coat of paint can do!

Monday, August 4th:
Mom and I worked on my kitchen until midnight. Monday we unpacked some more, and she began to tear down the wallpaper in my guest bathroom. Well, the wallpaper is the original wallpaper and it went behind the mirror. The lovely mirror was glued to the wallpaper. So well took down the gorgeous light fixture, I took screwdrivers and hammered them behind the mirror, and I broke the mirror in pieces so we could get it down. Don’t you just love home improvement??? Monday night mom and I painted my bedroom. Again, we were late night painters and woke up Tuesday exhausted.

Tuesday, August 5th:
We decided to paint my guest bathroom and the office/music room. These rooms were smaller and didn’t take too long. I really like the color of the music room. It really pops! Yesterday evening I treated my mother and myself to a manicure and pedicure since our nails were trashed from scraping and painting. It was a nice way to relax.

Wednesday, August 6th:
So now we’re up to today. Mom and I cleaned up our previous days messes and work. We made a Hobby Lobby run for our project of the day (slipcovers for my couches), and she left this afternoon. So, I’m officially by myself with my puppy. And yes, I bawled like a baby when she left too. I know things will be fine, it’s just the initial time of knowing you’re all alone. However, I am headed to church tonight and hoping to meet some people. Once I begin my routine and meet some AL folks, it will be much easier. But in the meantime, Mags and I are doing just fine. J

Here are some pics from the moving event: