School is back in session...

Well, I started my very first semester in the radiologic sciences program two weeks ago. We had orientation August 21st and 22nd and classes started on the 25th. It's been fun but exhausting so far. I am hoping I will get used to the long days and excessive homework soon. Mondays and Wednesdays are my full days, with classes starting at 7:30am and ending at four or 4:30pm. Luckily, I do have an hour break in the middle to get outside for a minute and have some lunch. Tuesdays and Thursdays are lab days so I only have to be at school for a few hours. I took my first test a few days ago-- for my radiographic positioning class. I'm not sure yet how I did, but I felt pretty good about it for the most part. I also took my very first xray last Thursday in lab. On Tuesday we had learned all about the film processor, the procedure for film processing and got a feel for the dark room, so it was exciting to be able to take an xray and develop it myself. So, my third week of school approaches with even more homework and reading in store for me. (Yay!) :) I shall check in later. . .

Brace-Face No More

Today I took Salina to the orthodontist to get her braces taken off. After two long years and nine months she was super excited to be rid of them.














In the process . . .

Salina checks out her new brace-free teeth. "It feels so weird," she says.

Impressions are taken in order to create her temporary retainers.

The clay stuff they used to make the impressions was "nasty" according to Salina, and she couldn't wait to get the taste out of her mouth. She had to brush to get it all out.

























Her temporary retainers she has to wear for five weeks.

Ta-da! Salina's brand new pretty smile!!

Camp Out!!

This past weekend I headed up to Sagehen Reservoir with Paula's family, Lilli (Paula's dog), Joline, Roxanne, Cathy, John and Mark for a camp out. The cars were loaded to the brim with all our stuff and we had a hard time finding room for the kids to sit, but we managed somehow.

We left on Thursday evening after everyone got off work so that we'd be sure get a good camp site. Unfortunately, out of all four campgrounds around Sagehen, only two sites were still open. We nabbed one right away before it was too late and by then it was almost 9pm. It was a race to get the stuff unloaded and tents put up before it got too dark. Meanwhile, it started raining! Luckily it was a short spurt and we were able to get everything set up and find something to eat rain-free. It started raining again in the middle of the night and rained until morning. I got a little wet because my sleeping bag was touching the side of the tent. It also rained off and on a little on Saturday morning, but other than that the weather was sunny and beautiful. On Friday evening Chantel and Royce made it up there with their dog, Princess, and their friend, Rica. We all had dinner together and then sat around the campfire and talked and laughed.

On Saturday Cathy made us all a delicious breakfast and then the kids went for a walk and a swim. Later that afternoon everyone except John, Mark and I went on a nature hike. I didn't feel good (I have cellulitis in my leg and an infection on my foot and both were hurting) and I knew I wouldn't be able to make it. I went on the hike before though, a couple years ago, and it was a lot of fun and really beautiful. While everyone was gone I had a sandwich and tried to take a nap but never could get to sleep.


After they got back I went for a swim with Cathy, John and Mark and then started dinner for everyone. I had made chili and froze it so all I had to do was heat it up. Yumm! When it got dark Cathy and John took a walk down to the water and heard an animal making noise and walking around breaking branches. John shined the flashlight in that direction and they saw a pair of eyes! They hurried back to camp thinking for sure it was a bear. It wouldn't be unusual since Sagehen is "bear country" as the signs warn. Every year Paula has been there she has heard or seen a bear in camp. So, taking no chances, we quickly cleaned up camp and got all the food into the cars. Paula, Chantel, Rica and Roxanne hopped in the van to go hunt for the bear while Mark and I headed to bed. I was exhausted!

On Sunday morning we slept in a little and then ate whatever food we had left for breakfast. A couple people had chili, a few had cheese quesadillas, others had cup o' noodles and a few had cereal. With our bellies full we packed up camp. It was so quick with everyone working together! Before we left the kids wanted to swim one last time. Royce had tied a rope to a tree near a nice deep spot of the lake and they went to swing off it. On our way to the rope, on the trail along the water, we saw animal tracks and poop piles from what we decided had been a moose. So what Cathy and John saw the night before probably hadn't been a bear after all, but a moose going for a night stroll along the lake.

Anyway, after the kids got in some swinging (and after Joline entered the water too early and scraped her ankle and butt on a tree root) we were ready to head for home. We had so much fun but everyone was exhausted and couldn't wait to go jump in the shower!

Chillin' Out, Relaxin'...

Last Weekend Mark and I went with Missy and her family up to McCall for a relaxing weekend. Missy took a break from homework to let herself have a little fun. We played board games (namely Trivial Pursuit and Scrabble), swam in the lake, played some tennis and visited Ice Cream Alley for (of course) ice cream! Yumm... It was nice to get away and do absolutely nothing productive. :) It was a short trip but we made the most of it and had fun. I didn't even bring my camera though so I have no pictures to show!

Floatin' the River...

On Wednesday Kaitlynn, Salina, Alicia, Roxanne and I decided to float the Boise River. We rented a six-person raft in Barber Park, lathered on the sunblock and set off down the river at about 4:25pm. Boy was that water freezing!! At the first waterfall Kaitlynn got soaked as she was trying to duck down and keep from getting wet! :) On the second waterfall we got stuck at the top when our raft encountered a big rock. Roxanne and I got out and pushed the boat but it didn't budge. Then Alicia got out too and we finally managed to get the raft free. We quickly hopped back in before it left without us and we were back on our way! The third waterfall was fun and very wet. We had to pull over to shore to dump out all the extra water. The rest of the trip was pretty relaxing... Roxanne and Alicia swam part of the way. We got to Ann Morrison park at around 6:15pm where Mark met me to drive me back to my car. After I picked up the girls we grabbed something from McDonald's and headed for home. It was a fun day and we all hope to be able to float one more time before the summer is over.

The Fourth!!

I worked on July 4th, but only until 3pm, so after work I headed over to Missy's house to hang out. Kaitlynn came with me and Mandi and Breezy were there too. We swam and barbecued hamburgers and hot dogs in the backyard. We also played "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?", and as it turns out, none of us are! I even had Kaitlynn on my team who had just finished fifth grade. After all the mind bending we had to do with that game, we decided to take it easy and play "Guitar Hero" on the PS2. Of course, we also had to make time to watch Tristan play "Transformers" in his Superman underwear. :) When it finally started getting dark we ventured outside for fireworks. The kids enjoyed the sparklers and watching Trampus set off the bigger ones in the street. They did some sidewalk chalk art as well. At some point Missy had whipped up a batch of brownies so before we called it a night we all snacked on a warm fudge brownie. Yummy but rich... you just can't eat more than one! Kaitlynn and I got home around midnight and boy were we exhausted. I hope everyone else had a happy 4th of July!!

Summer Daze

Well, the past week brought very hot weather and lots of fun things to do. Last Thursday was Salina's last softball tournament. She's catcher.















Last Saturday Mark and I met up with Missy and Cambri at Kuna High to play some tennis. Well, it wasn't so much a tennis game as it was a basic lesson for Missy. I took pictures while
Cambri practiced her swing and retrieved stray tennis balls.















On Wednesday, July 2nd, I went to the God and Country rally at the Idaho Center. Kaitlynn and Salina came with me, and we met up with Roxanne, Cathy and John as well. There were a ton of people there! It was a very hot day but we cooled off with lots of ice water, sno cones and Cathy's spray bottle of water. The fireworks display was really cool too.

Kids will be kids...

Starting this past Monday, I get to hang out with my little nieces and adorable nephew every Monday and Wednesday while Missy goes to her Chemistry class. On some days I will also have her best friend's boys there too. Cassidi has gym while Missy has class, but Wednesday this week she didn't feel well so I had all six kids (ages 3-8) running around! I don't think I sat down for more than five minutes the whole morning. I love them though and I always have fun. Here are some pictures of my two days with them this week.





























Cassidi dries off Dexter because Cambri thought it would be funny to put him in the pool.

Paula's Surgery

On Monday morning I got up bright and early (4:45am!) to take Paula to St. Luke's downtown for surgery check-in. She had to have her deviated septum fixed and the back of her throat shaved to improve her severe sleep apnea. She was supposed to be there by six for a 7:30 surgery. However, as it turned out, they told us we were early because they had her scheduled for 10:50am! Needless to say, we sat in Surgery Waiting for a while until they took her back to pre-op at eight. At the same time I had to leave for Kuna because I needed to babysit Cambri and Tristan for Missy's first day back to school. Cathy stayed with Paula and told me they didn't take her to surgery until 12:30pm! By the time I got back to the hospital she was done and in recovery, but we still waited for about an hour and a half before we found out what room she would be in. She looked awful and felt miserable when she got to her room. I can only imagine how sore her throat must've been! She said it felt like it was on fire and also felt like she had been punched in the nose.Anyway, she had somewhat of a rough night of little sleep but got to go home first thing Tuesday morning. She's feeling a little better now, but still has a lot of throat pain unfortunately.

My Busy Weekend

Last Friday was a busy fun-in-the-sun day, but not until I got to sleep in until 10:30am! :) First, Kaitlynn, Salina (Paula's girls) and I headed to Roaring Springs to play for a couple hours. We have season passes this year so staying for just a little while doesn't feel like a waste of money! The park wasn't crowded yet so we didn't have to wait in long lines for any of the rides. I decided to brave the Avalanche again since I only rode it once back when the ride first opened. The new rafts they have now seem so much safer. Salina rode with me; we were both a little scared when we reached the top but we toughed it out and were glad we did. After we treated ourselves to a sundae from Wheeler's we went home to relax for a bit until Cathy came to pick us up for the 50th birthday bash for the lady she works with. I helped Cathy grill burgers and hot dogs for everyone while the girls chilled in the pool. At about 6:45pm Mark picked me up to go to a movie. Cathy took the girls home for me from there (thanks Cathy!). Mark and I went to see Get Smart, which turned out to be a very funny, action packed movie with a little bit of romance too. I love Steve Carell!

On Saturday I worked all day but afterwards I met up with Mark, Paula, Cathy and John (Cathy's husband) for dinner at Tepanyaki (you know, one of those Japanese steak houses where they cook right in front of you). It's one of my favorite restaurants; I love the tricks they do and their salad and garlic steak is so yummy. Paula got lucky on her fifth attempt to catch a shrimp in her mouth. John caught one too, but on his second try I believe. I had fun and dinner was delicious, but I was ready to go home and get some sleep.

Sunday wasn't very eventful since I worked another 12 hour shift. Our census was low and not too much was going on so the day kinda drug on. I couldn't wait for seven o'clock to roll around! After work I was too tired to go anywhere but home, where I slipped into my pajamas to unwind.

Me and Tiff

This is not much of a post . . . just a picture really. It's me and Tiff at school in the ILC building during a break between classes. Cathy and I used to see her on Tuesdays after our Chemistry lab but before our Chemistry lecture. This was one of the last days we would get to see her at school and Cathy took a picture because we knew she'd be far away in Alaska soon. :( So, Tiff, I just thought you might wanna see it and remember the good ol' days (you know like two months ago). I miss you!!

My Millie Moo

I realized that in my "About Me" section, I totally forgot to mention that I have the cutest, most loveable pitbull you'll ever meet. Well, if you ever meet her, that is! Haha. Anyway, she is one year old and I have had her since she was born.

She is my baby. . . she follows me around, gets excited when I get home and even snoozes with me under the covers. Her name is Millie, but I call her Millie Moo or Moomie or Moo Moo. Isn't she adorable?!

Sunny Days are here again...

I am sooo glad summer has finally begun! I was getting really tired of all the windy, cloudy, rainy weather! School is out and I am looking forward to relaxing and NOT studying. I worked hard this semester and it paid off . . . I got straight A's! I am going to do some reading of non-textbooks, hang out at Roaring Springs with Missy and the kids, and revel in the fact that I have no homework for the next two months. I am also hoping to pick up some extra hours at the hospital since I am only getting 16 hours a week right now.

Most recently, I had the opportunity to be the photographer at a wedding last Saturday. Paula's daughter, Chantel, got married and I snapped photos the entire day. I was pretty nervous because even though I love taking pictures, I am definitely an amatuer and had never been "the photographer" at a wedding before. Everything went well though and I had fun. By the end of the day, I had taken over 800 photos and my feet were killing me! For the last couple of days I have had fun editing them and playing around with my new Adobe Photoshop program.

The blog party can start, Meags is here!!

Okay, okay, okay.... first Tiff called me "losery" for not having a blog on Myspace, so I blogged. Then Missy started a blog on blogspot and Tiff followed suit. Tiff told me I should start one too. "Whats wrong with blogging on Myspace?" I thought (not that I have blogged since that first time, but still...). I reasoned that I would never have time to keep up with a regular blog so I didn't start one. BUT, now Cathy has one and Missy and Tiff are claiming that they are cool and I am not... and I can't have that! I can't be uncool! So, Tiff, it worked. Here I am. I might as well be a joiner because leadership sure as heck isn't in my future. I suppose I will make time for blogging, as long as people are willing to take the time to read it.