one of those nights

i was on my way home from work, i picked jeremy up from school, and we headed home.  we had the windows down, blasting our new favorite songs, both singing at the top of our lungs, and loving every minute.  it was a night that i wish our drive home from the city was much longer than the usual 20 minutes. that boy just makes my heart smile, especially when he sings.  it's the small things i suppose, but it was a moment that i couldn't get enough of and i wanted that small moment to last forever.  but i guess life is better than that, because we get to have fun moments over and over again instead.  i sure love it. 

my new dentist

 i had my first dentist appointment with jeremy.  he took x-rays and did an exam.  good news: no cavities.  bad news: i need to floss.  i say he should just floss for me so he can practice.  regardless, my dentist is so handsome.

play day

yesterday we had the day off and the sun was finally shining.  hooray!

so what did we do?  we played, all day long.  

we started the day with some tennis, a sport i just love to play!

i'm glad jeremy likes it, too.  we had some sweet shots and good rallies!

then we went shopping for dress shirts because jeremy had a giftcard to spend.  after a very successful purchase, (he got the two shirts that were my favorite, that's true love right there) we went golfing with some friends.  we went to a par three course to work on our short game because we know mine needs work.  it was a blast as always and the weather was just perfect!  the first couple of holes were kind of rough, but i eventually fell into my groove.  jeremy of course did great.  he's a stud on the golf course, and all the time really.

see the orange ball on the left??  that was my tee shot on one of the holes.  right on the green baby!  woot woot! i even sunk the long putt and had the only birdie of the day.  it was legit!  i don't birdie very often so it was a triumphant moment that involved lots of screaming.  it was pretty awesome!

then we made our way to a BBQ to enjoy some freshly grilled grub, tasty desserts, and good company.  it turned out to be a lovely day off!  i wish we could play all day, everyday.

west of the city

yesterday we took a little day trip to western mass.  i surprised jeremy with a stop at the basketball hall of fame in springfield, massachusetts. the birthplace of the sport.  he loved it!

 

 

it was a cool place!  they had all sorts of memorabilia, fun games, pictures, videos, and a court with tons of basketballs rolling around.  it was a great way to spend half the day, especially when it was non-stop raining outside.

 after our basketball journey, we stopped by a local farm to test out their strawberry milk and then we made it to our next destination: northampton, ma. 

 we wandered around the shops in the rain, ate some awesome burritos, and ordered some ice cream at the legendary herrell's.  it was the first shop to start mixing candy in ice cream.  pretty cool!  and so delicious!

 after that we were sick of walking in the rain and decided to get lost driving in the rain and exploring the little town.  it was gorgeous!  there were tall trees and forests in all directions with windy back roads to secluded houses.  we eventually made our way home.  what a fun day trip!

80 hours

i am now 80 hours into my job...

and i LOVE it.

i can't believe i get paid to do what i do.  it's fantastic!  i look forward to going to work everyday.  i feel like i am just going to hangout with some friends while we take care of people that need us by doing therapy.  it's great.  want to know a big bonus of my job?  i work in the afternoons! i work from 12-8 monday through thursday and 8-4 on fridays.  so i get to sleep-in almost every day (i only wake up to an alarm ONE day a week!!).  it's fun!  jeremy on the other hand doesn't love that i am dead asleep when he leaves for school.  in the mornings he usually nudges me awake, we say a prayer together - kind of... he says it while i lie there ever so reverently, then he kisses me, and i mumble "have a good day. i love you," as he walks out of the door.  my schedule is also forcing us to think about dinners in advance so i can pack a somewhat coherent dinner for work (since i eat with my patients and i am supposed to model normalized eating - balanced meals & proper portioning).  we have been cooking big meals on sundays and utilizing the lovely crockpot on mondays.  it works well because we have TONS of left-overs to last the week.  and we love left-overs!  it has been an adjustment, but after two weeks, i am really loving this schedule and everything about my sweet job!  i am so blessed.

 

real

today i did the exit counseling online for my glorious student loans and things just got real around here.  too real. (it was about the most depressing thing ever!) i was looking forward to spending my first paycheck on something fun and frivolous or at least putting a huge chunk towards my scooter fund... and it looks like all extra cash around here will be going to my student loans. booo!  the hostage holding by debt has begun around here and it isn't pleasant.  at least i am employed, i do feel very blessed about that.  i just find myself wishing that i had some forgotten fortune that would make all my loans go away.  but things are much sweeter when we have to work for them, right? (trying to stay positive around here.  i can totally do this.)

passed!

after 3 weeks of studying, 8 hours of test-taking, and over 2 weeks of waiting, the results of jeremy's second year boards finally made their way to our house.  i was at work when i was notified of the results with a single excited text, "i passed!" and i called him as soon as i could.  we are both so relieved!  here's what i came home to:

one happy boy! 

after he took the test, jeremy was allowed to make his way into the clinic and he is working on REAL people!  how fun is that?! i have an appointment with him next week for an exam and a cleaning.  he was kind enough to give me his business card with my appointment reminder on the back.  he's kind of a big deal these days.  :)

on the course

we hit the golf course early this morning to play 9 holes.

i didn't play at all last summer so it was nice to swing some clubs again. want to know the funnest part of the whole experience?  i beat jeremy!  by one stroke.  woot woot!  you better believe it.  i had some sweet drives!  combine my new found short game (except putting... my putting still needs lots of work) with it being my first time hitting from the ladies tees instead of the mens and my score improved significantly.  it was pretty awesome. i can't wait to play some more this summer!

working girl

yesterday was my first day of work at my real social work job.

and i LOVE it! woot woot!

 i got a job where i interned all year so i get to keep working with patients with eating disorders!  yay.  i really have liked it this year and it's what i really want to stick with.  part of the time i will be working with adults and the other part with adolescents using family based treatment.  i am excited for the change (i worked with mainly adults in my internship).  i feel so blessed!  i get to do individual, group, and family therapy.  also, my co-workers totally ROCK!  seriously, i lucked out.  i'm excited for the adventures ahead, oh as well as the paychecks.  this girl doesn't work for free anymore.  yeah, it's good stuff.

here i am at my fancy new desk: 

it's pretty bare, but i will start sprucing it up pronto.  any tips to keeping a work space organized, but not boring?

late in the night

here is our most recent family photo:

what a handsome bunch! i think it's definitely christmas card worthy.  everyone is in the picture and everyone is smiling which are basically the only two requirements for a christmas card, right?  we obviously have a good time together, even if we aren't actually in the same room.  we got to skype with riley sunday night at midnight boston time.  we were pretty tired, but it was so fun to talk to out favorite missionary.  he's loving thailand!  he's speaking the language like a champ, seeing all sorts of awesome buddhist temples, and holding exotic animals.  he's a pretty cool guy.  he's hoping the next 8 months crawl along, but i'm hoping they fly by for purely selfish reasons: i miss him so!

me, too

even with my mom, his mom, and my grandma with us for mother's day, jeremy didn't forget about me (although, he did insist that we wait until after the real mom celebration).  we made the moms some gourmet lunch (grilled sandwiches, fruit, chips, and brownies) and they opened their presents before they all flew home.  it was fun to have our moms with us for such a special day.  what wonderful women we have in our lives?!  after they left and we were feeling blue (can't we just play forever?), he gave me my present: an alex and ani bracelet.  he knows me so well. i love the one he picked out for me.  such a sweetheart!

best buds

happy mother's day, momma!  

i'm so glad we could spend it together again.

riding bikes in newport, rhode island

you have taught me so many important things in life: to laugh often, to always find the good, to love where you live, to make vacations happen, to enjoy every bit of life - even the hard stuff... i could go on and on.  i have been so blessed to have been raised by such a wonderful woman from my very first breath.  you are the best, mom!  i love you.

xoxo, your favorite daughter

city sights

saturday we (me and jeremy, my parents, his parents, my little brother, and my grandma) explored in the city.  we picked up the freedom trail at the north end to see paul revere's house and the old north church, we found the clover food truck, went to bunker hill, the USS constitution, got tattoos at the USS Constitution Museum (i got an anchor and sam got a mom tattoo in the name of mother's day), took the ferry across the harbor, walked along boston commons and the public garden, had a delicious dinner at pf changs including dessert (yum), and visited the memorial for the bombing.  after all of that, we headed home with our worn out legs. here some pictures of the day:

we just love having people visit!