Monday, September 21, 2009

books and cake

as much as i have enjoyed living in salem thus far, i knew there were quite a number of places that i had yet to explore. i invited abby to come on this little adventure. it was so fun to see downtown salem a little bit more with a kindred spirit. and bonus, i discovered two new favorite places that also happen to be quite close to my house-


a charming bakery, with absolutely delicious cakes. 

a delightful book shop, with new and used books
abby and i discovered many shared favorites, and enjoyed perusing all of the julia child-related books that are currently popular. 

abby & our yummy shared lunch
turkey spread-our light lunch to leave room for cake!
alison & abby-a slice of coconut cake & a slice of mounds cake
more cakes to try next time!

Sunday, September 20, 2009

two answered prayers

answered prayer #1:
i've been getting discouraged about IV starts in the past few weeks. i needed to get signed off on doing so many successful starts during my orientation period while being observed by my preceptor. and although i'd had a few opportunities, i still had three left to do successfully. with multiple chances that hadn't worked out, i was really praying hard that i could conquer this skill. 
this week God truly answered that prayer. a doctor offered to let me practice an IV on him. of course, i didn't want to. who wants the pressure of having to practice a skill that i have recently failed at multiple times on a doctor? but who can say no to a doctor who is offering his arm to poke? but as nervous as i was, i got it on the first try! and then, he offered the other arm. and i got that one too! two curious george band-aids later, i also found out that he was the dad of one of my friends from school! double blessing!
my last IV start that i needed happened on a patient whose occupation was an ER nurse. just as i did not want to start one on a doctor, i also did not want to start one on a nurse who does IVs all day long at her job. but i started her IV just fine too!
i am just praising Jesus for helping me through this challenge! there are many more IVs to start, i am far from being good at them. the prayers continue!

answered prayer #2:
i have been praying for a room-mate all summer long. and despite my many ads placed, i hadn't even found one that was a possibility. that is, until last week, when i found an ad on craigslist. i wrote her back, not getting my hopes up. but then i knew it was a God-thing when she not only responded with great answers to all of my questions, but came with the recommendation of a good, mutual friend! it only became confirmed further when we met. courtney moved in yesterday, and i am so excited that the "room-of-nothing" is no longer full of nothing. =)

AACs & co.

although some have pointed out that denae, scotty, abby, lisa and i are merely "former" AACs, i see no reason to change what we've called ourselves for the past year, or our ability to hang out, for that matter. =) it was such a blessing to have all 5 of us together again!


all of us at oktoberfest!
kevin, denae, scotty, stephanie, ben, alison, lisa and abby
lisa & i demonstrating how confusing it was to obtain these bracelets

the fab five: denae, alison, scotty, lisa and abby
dinner at my apt!

sunshine & sand

molly and i had a grand time at the beach. 

crisp grapes and delicious sandwiches.
nap time.
reading books for fun 
(instead of lugging along my nursing books like last year's beach trip!)
good conversation.
warm sunshine. 
writing in the sand.







a long walk in a cornfield...

last year, martha and i had a magical time in a sunflower field. we were hoping to discover the same magic in the same sunflower field, but it turned out to be quite a disappointment. the sunflowers were a mere row instead of a field, with corn replacing last year's sunflowers. but pictures happened regardless! =)


martha, jacob & alison
acting like corn
sunflower faces!


Friday, September 18, 2009

dancing through life

looks as though they are going to turn wicked into a movie!
check it out here

Monday, September 7, 2009

julie & julia

what a delightful film, julie and julia turned out to be. 


john and i went to see it sunday after church. we were a little concerned at first to discover that the only showing of the film that we could go to was for the hearing impaired. but after the first few minutes of subtitles, the words at the bottom of the screen were easy to ignore especially as the delightful characters began to win our hearts. 

this movie left me hungry, not only for delicious french food which was shown in abundance, but for the loving and supportive marriages both of the main characters had. i found it quite encouraging that two imperfect, but successful marriages were portrayed in this film, where both couples started off happily married and ended happily married. no worries-i am quite content in the single state God has placed me in right now. however, i will have no complaints when God deems it time for me to enter into a new stage in life with a godly man, who loves & supports me. 

all this to say, this turned out to be a delightful and charming film. 
(with the best, supportive & loving use of an f-word in a film that i have ever seen!) 




you make my frown turn upside and now my worries are gone.

meet my new favorite band: owl city. 

with their whimsical lyrics, subtle but profound truths and beautiful melodies, i am hooked. 

listen to one of my new favorite songs: here


the move to salem

let me give you a small tour of my new home in salem...

moving in
taking a break on the hide-a-bed
the first couch picture: paul, john, daddy, mommy, alison & peter
first day of work!

building B! 

my apartment
fireplace
living room





dining room
kitchen

daisy bathroom
my room
my bathroom



other august happenings...

just a few other summer moments...


sibling photo shoot
silliness
relaxing on the lake 
john & alison taking a ride around the lake
fun at mason lake with friends
john got his license!
TOO hot =(