I see the sun!

For real... that big, bright, shining thing in the sky! I was beginning to think it no longer existed. I've had enough of April showers to last for awhile... I am loving this first sunny, semi-warm day in seemingly ages! Birds chirping, buds on the trees, dandelions everywhere, me not in 20,000 layers of clothing. I like it.

As usual when it is remotely nice outside, I am camped out on the back porch working on a term paper and a visual response journal for my art class. Thought I'd share a pic of my favorite work station, as well as my newly shortened hair.

I had to have an "emergency" hair cut this morning because I haven't had my hair cut since December (whoops, so much for that ideal 6 weeks between cuts) and I got a call on Tuesday that I had an interview TODAY for student teaching at Lakeview. My shaggy mop was not going to work, so luckily I squeezed in a cut this morning between practice and my interview. The interview went great! The principal and I talked teaching for awhile and then by the end it had turned to sports, so I left feeling a lot better than when I went in. I definitely got the placement, so this fall I'll be teaching a five minute walk from my house... love it! It is the same school where I volunteered during undergrad, so I really like the vibe there, the staff, and the kids.

Where Gearry is...

Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday through Wednesday hanging out with his friends Tim and Yuri. A nice little "mancation."

Spring! (except it is supposed to snow tonight...)

Today started out with a perfect spring morning, although the weather forecast is calling for thunderstorms changing to rain/snow showers overnight! Ewwwww! Gearry and I got up at a reasonable hour and took the puppies for a walk around the neighborhood. Afterwards, we ate breakfast out on the back porch. Then, as yet another way to avoid all the homework I need to do today, we played an hour of tennis. Right now we're elbow-deep in some spring cleaning, including folding the approximately 10 loads of clean laundry that have been sitting in our chaise for a couple weeks now, and then I must, must, must get to lesson-planning and paper-writing.

I'll take another break tonight, though, when we go out to dinner to celebrate... Gearry's promotion! He found out yesterday he is now head chef (chef de cuisine) of 1875, the flagship restaurant at French Lick Springs Resort. I am so proud of him! He has worked very hard and he deserves it. It's a big step for both of us and opens the door to a lot of possibilities. Exciting stuff!

Zoey waiting patiently under the table for non-existent breakfast scraps.

Kisses for Bailey!

Faithful Sidekicks

My handy research assistants are laying here keeping me company on the back porch as I hammer out a research assignment, a paper, and a unit outline on this warm but breezy and overcast Sunday afternoon. This is their favorite chair. I don't like it because they chewed up the corners and it doesn't match the rest of our decor, but I think they would be crushed if it disappeared so I let it stay around. They are as sad as their mommy that it is going to be back in the 20s and 30s by the end of this week. They are also sad that "Mommy" will be leaving Saturday to go to Clemson for spring training for a week. But it's supposed to be much warmer there, so "Mommy" isn't as sad as she probably should be.

I made quiche!

It might be the coolest thing I've ever cooked. My cooking skills are not exactly on par with my husband's. It tastes pretty good, too.

And she returns... briefly...

I don't have any time to update this thing regularly this school year, as you all well know. Plus, even if I did, it would pretty much say the same thing every day: "Today I went to class, coached, studied, ate, and slept." So maybe it's a good thing I don't have time to update...

But I DID get really excited this afternoon when I booked Gearry's and my summer vacation flights and accommodations and wanted to share the awesome pictures of where we'll be staying, even if it means I'm not doing the lesson-planning/paper-writing/researching I should be doing right now. We're headed to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for 7 nights, 8 days in mid-to-late June, just to relax and have fun and celebrate our 2-year wedding anniversary (can you believe it?!). I can't wait! I have never before needed a vacation this badly!

We rented a one-bedroom condo -- we generally go the condo route when traveling, rather than a hotel, because we like having a kitchen and a little more space -- on Playas Gemelas (Twin Beaches), with a view of Los Arcos, one of Puerto Vallarta's well-known landmarks (a rock formation in the ocean that includes several small islands offering reefs, tunnels, caves, and arches and is known as a haven for a wide variety of sea life, from sharks and rays to octopus, sea turtles, and lots of fish). Gearry and I went snorkeling on our honeymoon in Key West and had a great time, so we're excited to take advantage of this awesome snorkeling opportunity.

South Beach of Playas Gemelas

Pool at Night at Our Condo, Looking Down from Balcony

Los Arcos at Sunset, from Balcony

Condo Balcony, View of Los Arcos in Distance

Inside Condo, Looking Out

Recovering

Uggg... New Year's Eve was fun... but left me feeling pretty rough this morning... haha! Gearry and I woke up at 9:00 a.m., ate breakfast, and then fell back asleep, finally waking up again at 1:00 p.m. I think I'm done with the whole sleeping thing for the day, but you never know... a nap might creep its way into my schedule later.

The rest of today is to be spent packing for Tampa! I leave tomorrow for our winter training trip and have a lot of packing to do since we'll be gone for 8 days. It's going to be an incredibly busy trip, but I am hoping that we get in lots of good water time, mileage, team bonding, etc., etc. It will be the first chance I've had to work with the novice when they are not fixated on the stresses of school since we are between semesters, so I'm thinking it should be really productive and hopefully fun! And WARM :) Yay! Coaching in shorts and a t-shirt beats coaching in two layers of pants, four layers of tops, gloves, a hat and a scarf any day!!

Happy 8 Years... Dang!

Today marks 8 years since Gearry and I went on our first date... incredible. Eight years? That doesn't even seem possible, but I've stopped trying to understand how time passes so quickly.

We spent Wed., Thrs., & Fri. in Columbus, Ohio visiting Hillary, Chris, hanging out, shopping, and going out to eat. Therefore, staying in tonight seemed most appealing, so Gearry is cooking a tasty dinner and popping open a bottle of wine, and I'm pumped for the IU basketball game and The Hills finale! Haha... yes, I'm serious. We need a chill night, 8 years or not.

Break has been going well so far, although I've kept busy. I'm still helping one of my undergrad professors with research and I've been doing lots of cleaning, organizing, cooking, and shopping... pretty much catching up on everything I neglected this past semester. Oh yes, and sleeping!

It's hard to type because Bailey is passed out in my lap and has his head laying over my right arm. Little guy had a big day... he had a vet appointment this afternoon because of his allergies. He probably didn't mind too much though, because I went through the Starbucks drive-thru on the way and he got a "puppy latte" and then I went through the bank drive-thru and he got a dog treat. And no shots at the vet, so I don't think he would complain too much, if he could.

Heading home to spend a few days with the family tomorrow afternoon... If I don't post again before Christmas, enjoy the holiday and enjoy every moment with your family and friends!

Is it Christmas Yet?

Hmmmm... Know how I said I needed to spend all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday working on various final papers and projects for school? Well... I didn't. And I am paying for it today with a hellacious, labor-intensive Sunday. But that's my own fault. Nevertheless, today's post is short.

Gearry and I had a great day yesterday. After Gearry went for a run and I finally got out of bed, we went to town to grab a few things, chiefly among them Christmas tree ornaments! Thanks to Gearry being decisive (since I am the queen of indecisiveness) we finally walked out with a variety of brown bulbs (glittered, dark brown, light brown, textured, milk chocolate brown), which fit right in with our usual decor and look very subtle and awesome on the tree!

We even played Christmas music while we decorated. Cheesy greatness! Later we watched a movie (a great documentary I've been waiting on to come out on DVD, Spirit of the Marathon), took the puppies for a long walk, made some tasty dinner (nothing like grilling out in November) and capped the night off with the second in the Jason Bourne trilogy that we bought a few weeks ago. A lot more sitting on my butt than I'm used to, but it was a nice, relaxing day.

And today... Well, let's move past today. Eww.

Ahhhh, the Holidays Have Begun :)

Just a quick note to say that my Thanksgiving with my family was wonderful and I hope that yours was too! I got to see many of the family members that I unfortunately see for the most part only on holidays and spend some quality time with Gearry's family as well. I also got in a nice bike ride with Josh on Wednesday, a good run on Thanksgiving morning and a couple sweet naps.

Now it's time to go back to reality: Writing papers and studying the rest of the weekend.

Gearry is off tomorrow and needs a break after a very hectic Thanksgiving week at work, so we're planning on hanging around the house, taking it easy and decorating for Christmas! I got new stockings for us and the puppies tonight, as well as new stocking holders for the fireplace, so I put those up tonight, but we'll put up and decorate the tree tomorrow. Don't worry, I'll post pics!

Love you all!