dwindling

Well folks, my time of endless vacation and relaxation is rapidly coming to a close.  It's been unbelievably wonderful to have this time off, and as was expected, it went by far too fast.  In general I am not very good at relaxing, or not having a schedule to keep to, but these past six weeks have been different.

I'm learning to appreciate the expanse of a day stretching before you with no responsibilities.  I've been pushing myself to explore more, and do more of the things that I have missed in the past two years.  I've been on my bike every day, which is one of my favorite places to be.  I've taken myself on solo picnics to the prom, the cemetery, the beach(es)!  I've been connecting with friends both old and new, and almost none of our conversations related to medicine, or exams, or studying. I've caught up on mindless guilty pleasure television shows, listened to all the podcasts that I've missed, and watched movies with JP late into the night.  I've read three novels and started sewing again.  I thrifted, and wined, made homemade ice cream, and played both pool and ping pong.  We camped and grilled, boated and swam.  I've been realizing more and more just how much I love this beautiful city, and just how fortunate I am to have been brought right here.

And so, tomorrow morning I start on a brand new journey.  It's a daunting one, one that I have been dreaming of and preparing for and sharing about for a very long time.  A big part of me is scared (and pessimistic, and doubtful, and feeling small), but another big part of me is excited. I know I will stumble a lot, and I know it will be difficult, but I think I am finally ready for the next step.  It's sure gonna be a big one!

oh baby girl!

Almost impossible for me to wrap my brain around, but my extraordinarily strong, smart, talented, amazing best friend brought a most beautiful life into this world this past weekend!!  I hovered by the phone trying not to text or call too much while she labored for over 40 hours!  See what I mean about extraordinarily strong?!  I am so proud of her, and so excited for their new little family!

I've left explicit instructions with your parents to not let you grow too much in the next month.  I can't wait to meet you Layla Grace!

moving day!

In my real life, I always forget the parts of moving that I don't enjoy.  Given enough time since my last move, I can just repress all those memories of muscle aches, and heavy boxes, and unwieldy objects stuck in awkward twisty staircases.

I always think about how much I just love moving!  I love the excitement of change, the new possibilities, the fresh start.  I love the unpacking and reorganizing, all the newness of everything!

Not so much the grunt work, the heat, and worst of all the dreaded cleaning.  Blech. I probably write the same blog post every time I move, so I shall spare you the details.  You all know exactly what sucks and elevates during moving!

I will say though, that we have sworn off third floor apartments in buildings that don't have an elevator.  I literally lost five pounds over the weekend we moved, which I attribute solely to the ridiculous amount of stairs I climbed.

We are settling nicely into our first floor digs, especially the pups who now have full access to viewing the outside world at dog-head heights, and our legs are thanking us silently every day.

Here's a couple more shots of our new place, we've got plenty of room for visitors! 

And a bonus sneak peek at some wedding bunting I've been busy sewing!