Happy New Year!

This post title pretty much says it all, folks! I hope each one of you are enjoying this holiday with the ones you love. This year is almost over and a new, blank year is about to begin. Last year was full of ups and downs, and next year is full of uncertainties. Things are, I think, looking up and it's both exciting and scary to see what lies ahead. May your next year be full of blessings and joy.

Until next year, ciao.

The 100th Post

It is with great joy that I publish the 100th post to this blog. It's hard to believe that I've been able to keep it up this long. Less hard to believe when you consider the sizable lack of images I've included in my posts. :) At any rate, I thought I would just give a recap of where things stand right now.

I am finishing up my Master's degree next week. I'm still in the process of typing up my final paper, filling out forms, and jumping through other hoops, but come next Tuesday that will all be done. I can't decide if I'm relieved that I made it or sad that it's over. I'm definitely happy that I was able to get it done. So much of my life has revolved around school that sometimes it's hard to exist without it. However, this summer was blissfully free in the evenings so I had a lot more time to pursue hobbies, watch TV, exercise, and get together with friends. I'm looking forward to knitting more, going to the gym more regularly, not stressing about school deadlines, and having more time to focus on taking care of my house. I think Spencer's excited because it might mean that I will start cooking more. Please note the "might." It's still hard to work until 5 and then come home and make dinner. It really just sucks up all your time and energy.

Spencer is finishing up his last month of vacation. He's got a few interviews scheduled down the road and his rotations will start up again next month. From what he tells me though, they will be relatively easy. It's crazy to think that he only has 5 more moths of medical school. It seems like we were just starting not too long ago.

Perhaps the most exciting event in our future though is The Match on March 17th. 3 months exactly from today. I. can't. wait! I've got a lot of mixed feelings about what could happen. We might stay here another 4 years, or we might be moving. We might even be moving to a place I don't want to live in so much. Or we could be moving somewhere that I think I'll like, then hate. It's really up in the air. We have about 0% control over it (besides how we rank things) so it's incredibly frustrating. But I'm still excited to find out.

**Update: the inventory reduction sale is now posted on the page labeled "BeautiControl." Check it out for some great end-of-year discounts!

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Days 19, 20 & 21

When I started this challenge, my goal was to blog every day about the things I was grateful for. For the most part, I've stuck to that goal, but somewhere along the way I decided it was getting a little bit boring for the readers and wanted to spice it up. So for the last few days of the challenge I decided to do it gradually and post when I felt I had enough reading materials to keep everyone entertained. After all, how interesting can it be to read about the laundry list of things I have to be grateful for. I also wanted to save my 100th post on this blog for something a little more interesting which also necessitated less posts or double posts in one day (not likely to happen). So without further adieu, I give you the last of the gratefulness posts (for now) before returning you to your regularly scheduled programing tomorrow.

I'm grateful for BeautiControl. Selling is not exactly my strong point. I have a hard time asking for a price and not feeling guilty about selling something for that price. However, being a BeautiControl consultant and going out and doing the parties has allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and develop some new skills. I wouldn't say that I'm anywhere near a great salesperson at this point, but I have gained a lot from the experience. I'm also grateful that Spencer has been supportive of the endeavor even though I haven't always been very good at doing the business, working full time, and going to school. I bring this up today (Saturday) because I was at an open house this morning. Business wasn't great, but I did enjoy the company of the girl in the room with me and was able to make a little money. I'm grateful that I was able to do this.

I'm grateful today (Sunday) to finally have been released from my calling as ward organist. I was promised release last year this time and it has taken nearly a year to happen. I'm grateful that it finally did and that I was able to sit with my husband in church for once without having to worry about the next song or how I was going to play it. I'm grateful that I have a new calling now in the relief society activities committee to start working one.

I'm grateful today (Monday) that I will only have to be at work 8 more times this year (counting today). It's so exciting to be headed home and I'm grateful that we had the vacation time and the funds to do so this year. I'm grateful that I will get to spend Christmas with my sisters and parents and Spencer. I'm grateful that we will get to enjoy each other's company for the first time in over a year. I'm also grateful that when I come back to work, I won't have school to deal with anymore and I will be able to just sit back and go to work and come home for a while.

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Days 17 & 18

This is somewhat of a catch up post as I spent my evening lounging, then shoveling snow like mad until almost 10. After that, I think I pretty much fell asleep sitting up talking so I'm not really sure if I had remember to post it would have even been coherent. Long weekend, anyone? Unfortunately for me, no. I will be at Osborne Family Chiropractic tomorrow morning doing another open house. Wish me luck!

Side note: if you are still looking for holiday gift (for yourself and others) I am marking my BeautiControl inventory waaay down. I'm cleaning house for the new year and trying to downsize in case we have to move. I'll post more details in a separate post...and who knows, maybe even in a separate page if I get creative enough!

On to the gratefulness. I'm grateful that Milwaukee always has a "White Christmas". It's my favorite Christmas flick of all time and nothing says Christmas more than a fresh blanket of newly fallen snow. I'm grateful that all that snow is reflective and white. At night it seems to catch the street lamps, the moon, and the Christmas lights and turn the darkness we usually get into a warm, but still night-like, glow. It's a great thing to see in a place where dark comes at 4:15--almost an hour before I get off work.

I'm also grateful today because my final paper/project/whatever was approved and successfully submitted which means I get to graduate! No, I'm not completely done, but I only have one paper to write now! I'm grateful that while the process was long, it wasn't really all that hard. I'm also grateful that I was gifted with the ability to write with ease and a faculty advisor that always got back to me right away so I could get done quickly. It's great to be done (excluding that last little push) and I'm grateful I don't have to worry about it or obsess about it any more.

21 Days of Gratitude: Day 16

I am grateful today that I got my paper defended successfully. It means that I am officially done with my Master's program (with the exception of the final for my class). It was a lot of work. I have been working on it off and on since August and for a while I was concerned if I would ever get it done. I'm grateful that my adviser was so helpful and quick to give me feedback so I could get it done on time.  It's been a long road, and I still have one more paper to go, but it's been worth it. I'm grateful it's almost over and I'm grateful that I got to do it. I'm also grateful that I got to meet so many great people by taking those classes. I've made some great friends through it.

On a related note, I will be walking next May with Spencer for graduation. We got to walk together when we graduated from college. Our families are coming out and it should be a great. It will be great to show off Milwaukee to everyone. If anyone else is interested in checking it out, we'd be happy to show of the area. One warning: it was 10 degrees today. You might want to wait until summer. 

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 15

I'm grateful for spending time with Spencer tonight just laughing out loud as he read all the funny autocorrects people get when using the iPhone. It's great to just sit together and laugh at the end of the day. If you haven't read them, you should check it out: www.damnyouautocorrect.com. 

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 14

I am grateful to be able to live so close to where I work. In grateful that I get to walk each day instead of having to find parking. I'm grateful for the amount of money we save on gas each week by having this luxury. I'm grateful that I was able to find a place so close to where we both spend a lot of our time. I'm also grateful that we have had steady employment for the past few years and that Spencer will finally start making money next July. 

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 13

I am grateful for candles. They bring such a warmth and pleasant aroma for things. I wasn't always that into them, but it's really nice to light them on a cold Milwaukee evening when the temperature dips below 20 degrees. I am also grateful for lazy Sunday afternoons. My weeks are so busy that sometimes it's hard to stop and enjoy things for a bit. I'm grateful we got to just laze around today and enjoy the day. I'm grateful for my husband and his support of me as I complete my degree. I'm grateful that he makes me dinner and offers to do the dishes. I'm grateful that while our house is messy, it's not really dirty. I'm grateful that in another couple of weeks I will be done with my degree and ready to take a more equal part in the household duties.I'm also grateful that I was able to get that degree. It's been both a lot of hard work and a blessing.

21 Days of Gratitude: Day 12

Today I'm grateful for Milwaukee winters. It snowed last night, leaving the landscape blanketed in a beautiful white covering. I'm grateful that our neighbor that moved in last year brought a snow blower with him. I'm grateful that we got to sleep in this morning, make breakfast together, and clean up a little. I'm also grateful that Spencer offered to do the dishes since he knows that I'm busy. I'm grateful that he also shoveled the driveway without any prodding from me. I'm also grateful that I've been getting things done around the house today, and that I have time to work on my school work. I'm grateful that we have so much and have been able to get so much out of our time in Wisconsin. I'm also grateful that my cold is finally going away and that I no longer feel sick.

21 Days of Gratitude: Day 11

Today I'm grateful for my Wisconsin friends. We've been really busy for the past few months (or at least I have) with school and all of the other things going on so we haven't always had the time to get together with friends like we would like to. However, tonight we had a chance to get together and just hang out like we used to. I'm grateful that we had a relaxing night out with them. I'm also grateful that Christmas is just around the corner and that I will get to see my family again. I haven't been home in over a year and half so I'm grateful that I will get to be there this year. I'm also grateful that my formal schooling is coming to a close. I'm grateful that I only have to write two more papers before I graduate and that I've been on top of it enough to get the first one drafted. I'm grateful that we don't have any plans for tomorrow and that Spencer and I can just laze around the house and get things done.

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 10

So I'm not sure if this is exactly kosher, but I fell asleep last night in an illness-induced coma before having a chance to publish this post. Thus, I am back dating this post to last night because blogger lets you do cool things like that.

I am grateful for sudafed. And ibuprofen. And tums. And all the other wonderful treatments that modern medicine has given us, even if they can't cure the common cold. I'm grateful for tissues, microwaves, and those bottles of lemon juice you can buy from the store. I'm grateful that my husband has made me dinner for the last couple of nights, gone grocery shopping, and generally let me veg in front of the TV after work because I feel so lousy. I'm grateful that I have about 8 pages of my final paper done, and that I only need about 2 more before I pretty it up and defend it. I'm grateful that I also only have to do one more paper by the 21st before I can officially be considered a "master" of bioethics, and I'm grateful that my employment at MCW means that with the exception of a few loans, my graduate education has almost totally been reimbursed by my employer. I'm also grateful that when my lender sent me a statement earlier this week, they told me that I won't have to start paying things back until March of next year. I'm also grateful for a job that lets me take sick time, though I am not taking advantage of it right now because I've taken so much vacation time recently that if I don't go to work, I won't get my projects done on time. And once again, I'm grateful for my comfortable bed.

21 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 9

I'm grateful to be back in Wisconsin today even though it meant the inevitable return to work. I'm grateful that the weather wasn't too cold, but just on par with Utah. I'm grateful that I was able to get a number of things on my to-do list accomplished like filing for graduation (even though I didn't work on my paper like I was supposed to). I'm grateful for cold medicine, too, because I'm getting a rather large one right now. I'm grateful that tomorrow is Thursday which means there will only be 2 more work days this week. I'm grateful that Spencer made me dinner tonight and that he can even cook at all. I'm grateful that we have enough to eat, a roof over our head, and warm clothes to wear. My morning shower also reminded me how grateful I am for things like hot water as well because we forgot to turn up the water heater when we got home last night and boy was it frigid this morning. Burr! I'm also grateful that I have been able to stick to my goal of posting things I'm grateful for each day. There are only 12 more official days to go, but it's a habit that I will keep up well past this challenge. It's easier to see the good when you actively look for it and easy to get bogged down by the "bad" when you don't. We have so much to be thankful for compared to so much of the rest of the world. May we all be a little more mindful of that each day.