Spring Break Update

I had a great, much-needed spring break. Unfortunately, like most other breaks, it went much too quickly for my liking! Here's a few things that happened over break...

-I mentioned that Mimi finally came home from the hospital, just after celebrating her 95th birthday. What I didn't mention is just how much she is loved in her community and everywhere else. Not only were hordes of people storming the heavens, praying for her recovery, but she also received a total of 101 get well/birthday cards!!! I've never heard of anyone getting that many cards, ever, so that was pretty mind-blowing to me! Just when I was amazed by that, I also found out that she received an official citation from her state house representative, congratulating her on her 95th birthday! How awesome is that!!! :)

-I had a good day with Cody & Kyle on Wednesday. Thank heavens it was nice outside so that they didn't have to be cooped up all day! It was nice to spend a little bit of extra time with them, since I rarely get to see them between our school schedules.

-I mentioned on Tuesday that I was recovering from my stomach crud that plagued me for the better part of last weekend. Wouldn't you know that as soon as I started feeling like a human again, my allergies kicked into overdrive, rendering me almost useless for the rest of the break. I had high expectations of things that I wanted to accomplish over break, like cleaning my bathroom...yeah, that obviously didn't happen! I have been through various stages of congestion, nasal pressure, and coughing up phlegm. I guess I should be thankful that the brunt of it (I hope) was during break, when I didn't have to be in public. I also lost my voice at some point, though it has somewhat rallied after coughing up the aforementioned phlegm, which definitely isn't an attractive thing, but an absolute must if I ever wanted to improve my condition! Here's hoping that it clears up mostly before Wednesday, because that's when I will draw the line and go in to get an allergy shot from my doctor...no waiting this one out!!!

-Yes, my birthday was this past week, and I had a great day, allergies notwithstanding. I received lots of birthday wishes from my Facebook friends, which are always nice. What I liked more were the texts I received, because it was a little bit more personal, even if they did see it on FB first. Even more than that, I loved the calls I received from my dad and from Gina & Wyatt. My dad serenaded me with his rendition of Happy Birthday, and I got a gleeful "Happy Birthday!" from Wyatt, while Gina served as a translator, due to the lack of my voice. The best thing, though, was spending all day with my mom and seeing my family that night! Among my gifts were a wax warmer for my dorm room, perfumes, an OSU lanyard, and OSU shirts, because I am in dire need of more orange in my wardrobe! :) Earlier in the week, I also got a Vera Bradley wallet from Liz and her family, which I loved, also! I changed things up this year, big time. Usually, it's a long, drawn-out affair that includes a supper of chicken alfredo, garlic bread, Caesar salad, and green beans with pink lemonade and an Italian cream cake for my actual cake. This year, I decided to just have supper with my parents, which was bratwurst with baked beans, chips, and Crystal Light. Everyone else came over later for cookie cake, which was lovingly made &decorated by Gina, and ice cream, which was graciously provided by Emily! It was a nice change of pace. I have now entered into a new decade of life, and cannot wait to see what this decade of life has in store for me!

All of the older boys (and Andy's bear, Beary) helping me with my candles!

-Friday was my birthday celebration with Tonisha and Mary. We originally planned to go out to eat, then go to a movie. Well, that plan changed slightly when I discovered that the movie I wanted to see wasn't in theaters anymore and I didn't care to see anything else that was out. So, we amended our plan to go out to eat, then rent a movie and watch it at Tonisha's house. That actually worked much better, and was less expensive, so it was a good deal all around! I had my heart set on eating at Chili's, so that's where we went...too bad everyone else in the tri-county area had the same idea. Since we weren't on a time schedule, we waited about 30 minutes or so for a table, which wasn't the worst thing in the world. We had a great time, and they surprised me by paying for my meal & the movie rental! Tonisha also fueled my new addiction of Baby Lips chapstick by getting me two new colors! (If you haven't tried it, you should...I LOVE it!!!) What a great evening!

-I tied up a few loose ends over break, too. After a month or so of hemming and hawing, I finally finished my t-shirt quilt by putting the binding on! The only real hold-up in this process was the fact that I didn't know how to cut out the binding, so I enlisted Gina's mother-in-law, Mary, to help me. Thanks to her, I finished it up in a couple of hours...much shorter work than I anticipated! If you look closely enough in the pictures, you can see the flower quilting pattern that my cousin decided to use...how perfect! I'm ready to make my next quilt now!

Also, since I kept my promise to myself of consistently working out until spring break, I went and ordered a new pair of running shoes today! After some contemplation I decided to stick with the Sauconys I'm used to, and I went with this awesome new pair of Kinvara 3's! I could've walked out of the store with a mostly-white pair, but, really, who in their right mind buys white tennis shoes, when you'll be running primarily on red dirt...yeah, not this girl! Also, I've come to love having bright, fun-looking running shoes, so it works :)

-I finally found out what I made on my Diff Eq test...and yes, I did make the 97, like the guys in my class predicted! I am proud of it, because it's a big deal to me! It was pretty well-earned though, because I worked my tail off on that test, and on all of the homework/quizzes preceding it. Honestly though, that is literally the only way to have any sort of success in math classes, and I am glad that I learned that virtue early on! Also, it is much easier to keep my head above water, since I don't have this class every day and am not constantly bogged down with homework. Regardless, I'll keep on keeping on, and hopefully, my success will continue!

-This weekend is Easter, although it seems way early. I know it isn't, by all technical terms, but still. I really hope that the weather warms up some by then, because it is unseasonably cold right now! In a good news/bad news situation, Mass is still late, and we didn't really have much opportunity to weigh in on the matter, because our priest has been gone for the past two weeks, and kind of sprung it on us. Oh well, the good news from the situation is that our rent-a-priest, Fr. Creider will be back for the entire Triduum and I can't wait to hear his homilies, especially if they're anything like the ones he gave last year! AND...there will be a creation story! That is honestly my favorite part of that horrendously long Mass, even if it isn't a required part. It's what sets our rural Catholic church apart from the others, and is always endearing to the various priests who get to witness it! So, hopefully, all will go well!

I hope everyone had a great break, and a great week ahead...enjoy!