the whilrwind that was september

Well, September, you are just about gone! Real life is turning out to be just as chaotic (in a much, much different way) than my life this summer. I suppose that's just how it goes, right? In any case, lots has been happening around here. But first, I will start with the one thing that hasn't been happening lately: my car. No word from anyone, although JP did think he spotted it on his way home from work the other day and stealthily followed it for a few blocks...alas it wasn't my car, just one of the thousands that look exactly like mine minus the good old MN rust and the snarky bumpersticker. I've let it go for the most part, and the insurance company will let it go as well this Thursday if it hasn't been found by then. Finding another vehicle for me should be interesting, and I am sure picture worthy as well, so don't think for a minute that I would leave you all out of the fun when the time comes.

What else...I passed my CNA recertification exam with flying colors!

Well, since it is just a pass/fail thing, I am left only to assume that the colors were flying, but either way I am done with the anxiety that comes with preparing for a practical exam with just youtube and some hastily scratched notecards. PHEW. The elise-goes-to-PA-school planets are finally starting to align and a job at a hospital is hopefully soon to come! Passing this exam of course just means that it is time to study for the next exam(s), which seem to be never ending. Luckily I am doing alright in my classes, and with no job for the moment I can use this time to start studying for the GRE. The fun just never ends when you are a perpetual student!

In other news, although you already know that I survived Hwy 50 in Nevada, otherwise known as The Loneliest Road in America, this summer, I now have Nevada's gift to me on my refrigerator to prove it:

and on my lapel (if I had one):

As part of the tourism schtick for Hwy 50, you can get a passport when you enter the sate and get a stamp for each of the towns along the route.

Since there was nothing else to do while in that state other than bike forever, I got my passport filled up and after moving and unpacking I found it at the bottom of my camelbak and mailed it in for a present from the state of Nevada. Somehow it redeems the state just a little bit, and it reminds me how proud I was of all of us for making it through such a challenging place in one piece.

Lastly, I have gotten in a bunch of family time lately. A few weekends ago I flew to Ohio for my cousin's wedding and had a great time catching up with everyone and getting to see my parents again for a few days! Weddings are my favorite, and growing up in an Irish Catholic family we went to four or five every summer. I got to see my cousins all the time! It's slowed down a lot since then, and the last wedding on that side of the family was over two years ago. Needless to say, it was a beautiful celebration and a much needed mini reunion of sorts to boot! I also got to see some cousins this past weekend in Boulder for Sep's third birthday! Molly and Phil and their little brood were in town from Chicago and we celebrated Sep's birthday with a picnic and a hike that for some included a bear sighting!

Here we are post-hike, but somehow without catching a glimpse of the bear that we apparently hiked right past..

So that's the compacted update for the past few weeks of settling back in. I am ready for fall to be here, and am getting in the mood for baking pumpkin bread and knitting some christmas presents. I'm plotting out my Halloween costume already, and am really excited about it! Oh, it is going to be great. I'll put up some pictures of the preliminary supplies and crafting soon so you can get in on the excitement as well.