Should Be...

Reading.
Studying.
Stressing.

But, oddly enough, I am doing none of those things. Nevermind that Finals start this Monday and I have 3 comprehensive Nursing Exams and 1 comprehensive Pathophysiology exam. I just don't really feel like studying. This is really weird for me because I'm usually pretty gung-ho about studying and schoolwork. I've worked really hard throughout the semester and am confident that I've got passing grades, so I'm not too worried about my slacking off right now.

Now, on to a much more pleasant and fun topic. Christmas!

I have got a few things on my wish list (several of which I already know are under the tree).



This little puppy is definitely numero uno on the list right now. Being the only coffee-drinker in the house, I would love to have a single-cup coffee maker. Have any of you had any experience with a Keurig? I'd love to know your thoughts.



I've wanted a pretty pair of diamond stud earrings since my birthday in September. Folks, I never knew how pricey earrings were! Matt and I shopped around for my birthday but every pair that had diamonds big enough to see with an unaided eye were way out of his price range. Luckily enough, I snagged this pair on Black Friday for $200 off the regular price. Needless to say, I definitely made Matt's Christmas shopping pretty easy this year.

Zazzle.com has the cutest custom-made Keds. I love these shoes because they are so comfy and casual. Here are a few of my favorite designs.


Vintage Bird Wrapping Paper


Vintage Buttons


Garden Flowers


Yellow Garland

What's on your wish list?

AMAZING!!!

Last night my sister Tarra and I got to see New Moon at midnight.
Talk about amazing! I loved it. The quality of the film was much improved over Twilight and the acting was exceptional. I also thought New Moon had more comedic moments that Twilight did. It also did a great job of depicting the emotions of the characters. I teared up during the goodbye scene and could hear sniffling throughout the theater.

I am definitely back in the "Twilight" craze and can't quit thinking about it all. I'm going to try to re-read the books over Christmas break because I read through them so fast the first time. I'm obsessed all over again.

Now, the countdown is on for June 30, 2010 when "Eclipse", the third book in the series comes out. Eeee I can't wait!

Any fellow, Twihards out there that have seen the movie or have plans to? What did you think?

Better Late than Never. Right?

I know this post is a little on the late side. Okay, alot on the late side.

A few weeks ago I got to meet Pioneer Woman in the flesh.



She was so sweet and the book signing was so much fun despite the long time waiting in line. You'd think that with all the publicity Ree gets, she'd act like the "celebrity" she is. No way. She was so modest and you could tell she was nervous speaking to the few hundred or so eager fans sitting before her.



When I finally got my turn to get mine and my friend Melissa's cookbooks signed it was hilarious to see how she signed everyone's book. She'd just write random things. For instance, she wrote "Beautiful Kids! -PW/Ree" in the cookbook of a woman ahead of me who was toting her two, tired children. For mine, she kept saying "You are so pretty!", which I thought was hilarious.



Now, I've got a plan to try out one of her recipes at least every other week (say goodbye Weight Watchers plan)

First up on the agenda:

Peach Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce, yum!


(Photo courtesy of thepioneerwoman.com)

For all of you PW fans, what is your favorite recipe of hers? Is it the infamous MM Sandwich or her decadent Creamy Mashed Potatoes? I'd love to know!

Going to the Party!

Today is the release of Pioneer Woman's Cookbook.



And, guess where she is having her release party?

Tulsa, Oklahoma.

And guess who lives only a short drive from Tulsa?

Me!

Yep, I'm going to the "Meet Pioneer Woman" book signing party tonight to get my own signed copy of her cookbook and one for a friend.

In other news, I started clinicals yesterday. I'm at a small county hospital so it's not too intimidating. We get to do a Med/Surg rotation for 4 weeks, then I'll be in the ER 1 week and in Outpatient Surgery for a week too. I'm most excited about the last 2 rotations because I already work on a med/surg unit at my job.

Also, I'm sick today. I've been amazed that I haven't had even so much as a cold this season. Not anymore. I've got the classic symptoms, runny nose/sore throat/ swollen tonsils. This morning when I woke up, I spit up some bloody sputum. Not sure what that's all about, but a friend insists I need to get to the doctor. We'll see.

Well, I'm off to do some homework. I'll let y'all know how the PW book signing goes.

Randomness

It seems that my blogging funk is still in full force. I'm having a hard time finding anything to write about so here is a bit of what's floating around in this brain of mine.

Currently I am pissed at my Statistics professor. We do all our exams online. The stated deadline is 11:59 pm on Sunday nights. So, I'm doing my exam Sunday night(because I just got off Fall Break and who wants to do a test over Fall Break???) and it cuts me off at 11 pm. Apparently the prof didn't set the timer for Central time and instead it's running on Eastern time. My solution is to complete the last 5 questions on the late version of the test so my prof can just calculate my grade from both test forms. Is that his plan too? No! He said I should have gotten it done earlier in the week( WTH is a deadline for in the first place???) or I can completely redo it. He said it was my mistake. I am ticked about having to redo the entire test.

Enough whining about that.

Have any of you made Amish Friendship Bread? I made my own starter a few weeks ago and am loving the bread. I bake every 10 days so we have a pretty consistent stock of the yummy cinnamon bread. I also have been adding a Pecan Streusel to it. Simply delicious!

Okay, I have a confession to make. Would you call me obsessive if I told you I bought tickets to see the Nov 19th Midnight Showing of New Moon? What about if I told you I bought them mid-September? Well, I did and I'm stoked! Now I just have to find the perfect Twilight themed tee to where to the big show.

Also, deer season has officially began here in Oklahoma. This means a number of things, including:
1. My boyfriend Matt will continually be "unavailable" during the early morning and evening hours. He can be found in his tree stand with the other love of his life (a.k.a either his bow, muzzle loader, or rifle)
2. I came home Sunday to find my kitchen sink full of raw deer meat pieces (yuck!)(apparently you soak them in water to remove some of the blood and hair???)
3. The smell of Teriyaki Deer Jerky is currently permeating every square inch of our house.

Have a Happy Tuesday everyone!!!

Hello... this thing on?

Hello fellow bloggers!

Life has been pretty crazy around here lately and I have had zero time to keep up with this blog, let alone any of yours that I love to read so much.

A ton has been going on, especially with school. The first four weeks of the semester I had 21 hours a week of nursing classes so that the instructors could cram in all the basics we needed to know to start clinicals the 3rd week of September. Throw two part-time jobs, Statistics and Pathophysiology classes into the mix and I just now feel like I'm coming up to breathe.

I have to keep reminding myself that I did sign up for all of this when I applied to the nursing program.

So, here is a quick run-down of all that's been going on in the past few months since I've checked out

I started WeightWatchers in August and have lost 10 lbs so far. I started at 165 and my goal is 145 or 140-ish. It was much easier to count points before I started classes and have slacked off some. I tried the meetings but had a hard time relating to the women in my group, all of whom were much older than me. Since then, I've just been doing WW online and love all the resources. They have a recipe builder that makes it really easy to count points in the foods that I cook at home. We'll see if I can hit my goal before the year is over.

I finally have my own garden! Matt and I planted corn, cucumbers and canteloupe the first week of August and it's doing pretty good. I picked the first ripe cucumbers this week and am just waiting on my melons and corn to finish ripening up. I doubt I'll have anymore cucs because the deer have all but killed my plants by gobbling up all the leaves. I've heard that spreading human hair (from a salon?) around the perimeter helps ward the deer off. Have any of you heard of any good remedies?

Some big changes are coming up in the next few months. Matt will be graduating in December. His dream job is close to his parent's house and about an hour and 45 minutes from where we live together right now. So, most likely, he will be moving back home. I'm just trying to decide if I also want to move back to my parent's or stay living in our apartment at school by myself. This may not seem like a big deal, but I'm a baby about being alone. I've always said that I never in my life want to live alone. If I do move back home I'll have a 2 1/2 hour commute each day, five days a week. I just don't know if I can do that much driving and keep up with all my schoolwork. Because I'm a worrier and thrive on having plans, I'm going crazy because nothing is set in stone yet. It's all up in the air right now so all I can really do is just wait and see what happens.

I'm babysitting my niece Bailey today and she's smearing her breakfast all over her hair, oh joy!
Gotta go!

The Winner!!!

Okay, time's up for the Sanuk giveaway! Including the bonus entries for being a Follower and a few for posting on your own blogs, there were a total of 23 entries for the giveaway. And the winner is.....(drum roll please)....

Steph of the blog The Adventures of Jon and Steph!!!

I used Random.org to draw the winner. Number five was chosen and that was Steph's bonus entry for posting on her blog :)

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

5
7
4

Timestamp: 2009-07-24 03:13:09 UTC

(Someone please fill me in on how to copy the graphic from the website. I only know how to copy and paste the info I have above.)

I've had some big stuff going on this week and will have to post some details later on. I've worked twelves the past three days and am definitely tuckered out tonight so I'm calling it a day and heading to bed. I'll be on a mini vacay this weekend so I'll see you all Monday!

Have a fabulous Weekend and thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway!