I still think it's 2009

I guess 2009 was a good year, because I am still putting it as the date on stuff. Surely there are other people out there stuck in another year...

Maybe not. I mean, I am now 2 years behind.

I turned 25 last week. It was a great birthday, but I am not supposed to be 25. I am supposed to be 22- 23 at most. I'm not sure why, I just am. 25 sounds so...so... responsible. Like I should have a job and be a contributing member of society instead of the dependent medical student I am.

For my birthday I got a great Timbuk2 bag from Daniel- just what I wanted/needed for school! I got some other awesome stuff, too (from K&M, Mom/Dad, Inlaws...)- I have birthday pics somewhere...

^ I fit my notebook, notes, computer, charger, lunch bag, phone, wallet, make up case, umbrella, and about 25 misc things in this and STILL had room for more. A.Maz.Ing. Good job, Daniel!

I had a big running week. I finally hit the 20-total mile mark for the week! My new running tights came in, and the are AWESOME! I haven't had side/shin pain, and during my runs my knees feel a lot more stable.

I also found that after about 4 miles I get really thirsty... weird phenomenon, huh? Mom and Dad got this for me for Christmas, and it has been working GREAT! The pocket is just big enough for my iphone, house key, chap stick, and an energy gel/bar (just started using those this week). It is supposed sit on your back, but that really threw my center of gravity off so I wear it like a fanny pack (DORK ALERT!)

Runs for this week:

Jan 2: 3.00 in 38

Jan 4: 2.5 in 30

Jan 5: 4 in 47

Jan 6: 3.5 in 42

Jan 8: 7 miles in 1:29!

^ That was yesterday. Today, my knees hurt SO badly. I am relying on anti-inflammatory meds, and they are just barely taking the edge off. I think a trip to the clinic might be in order...

Kacie thinks I can attribute my mental confusion regarding the 2009 thing to running, which she claims is killing my neurons. Possible?

Warning: Read only in case of boredom

This post is probably of no interest to anyone but myself, but I think this is stuff I will have forgotten in a few more years, so I want to write it down now, while I still remember!

I have been on break for an entire WEEK now and already feel like a new person! The last test was a combined cardio/renal exam, and was the worst one I have come up against yet. Daniel and I went to the Med school Christmas party Friday night. It was dark, but we snapped a pic with the iphone. Daniel cleans up pretty well, doesn't he?

We finished up late last Friday (the 17th), but I was playing part of Britten's Ceremony of Carols on Sunday, so I had an early Saturday rehearsal and 2 services on Sunday

morning. In retrospect, I should have probably passed that one up. I was so exhausted that I definitely wasn't playing at my best.

We are getting ready to put our house on the market in a couple more weeks, so I spent Sunday- Thursday cleaning things out and packing. I have made a LOT of progress, and the house is almost finished being cleaned out and "staged". My gracious parents are letting us store things in their garage.

Thursday night my parents took the two of us, along with Kacie and Michael to Brave New Restaurant- what a treat! I had a Filet Mignon and Artichoke salad-WOW!

I gave myself a few days off of calorie controlling. And I bought a new scale. Groan... Moan...

Christmas Eve is our FAVORITE day of the year! On Friday afternoon, the 6 of us went bowling (one day I will break 100), then cooked and ate dinner (prime rib, sour cream and leek mashed potatoes, roasted asparagus), and then OPENED PRESENTS! Daniel and I must have been pretty good this year, because we got some AMAZING presents. It's funny how well my family knows me- everything they buy for me I like more than things I would pick out for myself! Then we watched Despicable Me and ate dessert. It was a perfect evening. I don't normally take picture of my Christmas presents, but I was SO excited when I got home that I couldn't help it. Besides, five years from now I can remember what I got for Christmas!

Note the matching PJs, house shoes, and overnight bag

On Christmas Day Daniel and I spent time together- Monkey bread for breakfast, then presents to each other. He bought me the most BEAUTIFUL Kitchen Aid stand mixer I have ever seen. It is the big kind with the lifting bowl- absolutely amazing. He spent WAY more than he should have on me. I bought him a Bamboo pad (tablet pad-thingie that goes with the mac), and a craftsman tool chest. Daniel's family came over on Christmas Day and for the first time I hosted Christmas dinner! It was a little stressful, but I managed to NOT burn anything, break my crystal or china, or set the house on fire. In my family, that is a successful meal. Anyway, we had a great time together. They all spent the night, so we had definitely had a houseful of company.

Mixer from the Husband of the Century

Still in shock over it. I keep wandering into the kitchen to stare at it....

Cooper got a bath. Pathetic, isn't he?

But he still smelled bad, so he went to Petsmart and got the full grooming treatment so his dog-cousins wouldn't tell him how bad he smelled. He doesn't stink now! But the groomer sent home a note that he tried to escape from the bath. Oops.

I made a Tollhouse chocolate chip pie AND thought to take a picture. I would love to take credit for the amazing-ness, but it was a just a really good recipe.

I actually made my 3 runs this week- but sadly, I don't think that 1o miles counterbalanced the 3 days of eating whatever I saw. When I say that, I am NOT exaggerating. My parents got me a fancy waist-pack that holds a water bottle for long runs, and Daniel got me a great book about training- so now I am READY for some serious long runs!

Saturday (12/18): 3.1 miles in 37 mins

Tuesday (12/21): 5 miles in 1.04 hrs ***

Thursday (12/23): 2 miles in 25 mins (Cooper went with me and slowed me down. He always has to go potty at least once a mile)

*** 5 miles! It wasn't easy, but I did it! And even kept a good pace!

Happy New Year!

Survival of the Fittest

I think it's no secret that I love food. I love cooking it, eating it, looking at it, smelling it, talking about it. I can tell you where to get the best __________ (fill in the blank) food in the area, along with a few runners-up.

For 18 months, this is how I have survived medical school. My study partners and I reward our 12+ hour study days with trips to the Indian buffet, Panera, cupcake store, or Starbucks. It gives us motivation- something to look forward to after memorizing drug lists, writing up H&Ps on our patients, and sitting through endless hours of lectures. And a full stomach- well that ALWAYS makes me happy.

Hi, I'm Katie, and I am obsessed with eating.

Does that mean I have an eating disorder?

The hips however... not making me so happy.

So no waiting for the New Year to set goals, no more "starting next Monday, I will" and no more "after the holidays are over" or "after this test". It started yesterday. Well, actually, it started 10 weeks ago when a friend downloaded the C25k app (Couch to 5K).

I faithfully stuck to the app- on 10/20 I started running- alternating 90 seconds of jogging with 2 minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

I thought I was going to die. It was NOT fun. The app slowly adds time.... by 11/11 I was alternating 5 minutes of walking with 3 minutes of running and not completely hating it. And by 11/28 I was running 25 minutes straight and enjoying it. It's a great app- I highly recommend it.

Last Saturday (12/4) I ran the first real 5K I have done since 2008. Not a great time- right around 36 minutes (earlier last week I ran it in a little under 33 minutes), but I ran against a head-wind most of the way and I wasn't in it for a good time- just for completion! And do you know what? I loved it. That's right. I love running. I don't have to say it and feel like a liar anymore. It is the BEST stress relief in the world. Other than eating. ACK! NO! EATING IS BAD- RUNNING IS GOOD!

It's a process

I have of course been cutting calories- via rules that I made for myself. 2 weeks and only minimal cheating. More on this later. I would post weight loss but well.... my scale is broken. Don't laugh. Seriously. It's not a fat joke, either.

THIS week I bumped things up. I downloaded the next app- bridge to 10k- which picks up where C25k leaves off and works up to a 10K in 6 weeks, but I haven't like it as much. So I have been going to mileage instead.

Wednesday (12/8): 4 miles in 48 minutes. Getting from 3 to 4 miles was SO HARD. I ran the first mile in 9 minutes and the other 3 suffered, I think. My knees also suffered... for 4 days.

Sunday (12/12): 4.5 miles in 56 minutes. Surprisingly easy! I was going to stop at 4, but felt pretty good so I kept going.

At this point, every run is my longest run! I am very slow, I know... but I have short legs. My eventual goal is nothing less than a 10 minute mile for long distances, but that is going to take a while.

Here are the challenges I have been facing and would LOVE accountability/advice:

-turning off the food addiction and "eating to live instead of living to eat". This is very difficult when there are Christmas cookies staring me in the face. VERY. VERY. DIFFICULT.

(^insert confession. I ate 2 Christmas cookies today. Please help me.)

-KNEE PAIN! Thinking about investing in a good pair of running tights. And becoming dependent on Aleve.

-keeping a steady pace. I am like a dumb horse. I can't keep a steady pace without a running partner, but I am slowly learning. It's a challenge, though.

-getting bored with music while I am running. Suggestions? I am tired of the Bee Gees now. So, so tired.

4 years and California

How is it December already? This has been a VERY sneaky year. It seems like it should be October, but well- it isn't. I still have 3 weeks of class, OSCEs (exams over my clinical skills), and a major Cardiovascular/Renal exam ahead, but I am definitely on the downhill slope of Year #2- and keeping the grades up!

A few weeks ago I went to San Diego for an AMA conference (American Medical Association). It was a great trip- and it was warm there. And it was a nice break. By break,

I mean that I didn't study for 4 days and then had to pay the price when I came back. :/

We flew into LA and spent the day at a a good friends house. And went to the beach! It was beautiful.... and warm. And we saw movie stars and all kinds of cool things and ate Thai food and Bobs Big Boy Burgers and seafood.

Santa Monica Pier.

I went to the San Diego Zoo... it was SO amazing! This is my favorite picture:

All

of the koalas were asleep in their own trees surrounded by snack food :)

I got very close to tigers...

And otters....

And hippos! Maybe a little too close to the hippos. They are kind of gross.

No pictures of the conference. They wouldn't be interesting, anyway.

After I came home, we celebrated 4 years together! I don't know how it is possible that we have been together that long, but we have. We didn't do anything super exciting- just went out to eat and then came home and watched and ENTIRE movie together for the first time in... well, I don't know how long it has been. We don't have a lot of free time- we occasionally watch an episode of a t.v. show, but rarely do we have 2 hours to watch a movie! It was very nice.

Lately, our typical evening consists of coming home from school, studying, cooking a quick dinner, then going back to the library to study until it closes (or we fall asleep).

I think they are about to name a table in the periodical room after us.

Walking home in the dark every evening, we tell ourselves that someday we will look back on these days of endless studying with fond memories. But that time could be far away.

We went to Texas for Thanksgiving. It was full of football watching and horseback riding. And eating, of course.

I have been running a lot- 3 or 4 times a week. I really enjoy running- it is such good stress relief. I am doing a 5K on Saturday that I think is going to be a ton of fun!

Next up: Christmas

Paranoia will Destroy-ya

My dog is a punk. He knows I am scared of the dark, and makes creepy noises outside at night to get revenge for me not taking him on the walk I promised during the day. Right now, it sounds like there are 3 grown men on my patio turning things over (there aren't- I checked). It's Cooper.

I keep telling myself I am going to take pictures of things Daniel and I do and post on here, but I always forget to take pictures. I can't have kids because I forget to take pictures and everybody knows that all the good moms follow their kids around 24/7 with cameras. Therefore, I can't have kids.

So here is the last month in words:

First med school test came.... and the computers crashed, systems shut down, and all hell broke loose on the UAMS campus. The test was re-scheduled, giving me an extra 3 days to study. I liked the results :)

Second test came... and went. Third test came... and went. I am pleased with my grades so far, and I think this year is MUCH more interesting than last year.

That covers August and September.

Oh! Oh! I also learned how to suture. That's right. And I am good at it. And if you don't believe me, I have pigs feet in my freezer that I can show you. Actually, I will take pictures of them. My suture lines are a work of art (take THAT all you artsy people who show me up all the time, lol!)

Last week was fall break. I had a blessed 9 days to spend with my family. Mom and I went to Branson for a few days. We shopped and ate and got lost and watched movies and it was great. We stayed on Branson landing by all the stores- PERFECT location!

The day we got home my eye started swelling... and kept swelling... and kept swelling. It has done this before, so I knew what was up and headed to UAMS the next day. I have a virus (the same one that causes cold sores) that is dormant in my trigeminal nerve (it controls muscles of facial expression and cutaneous facial muscles), and occasionally sneaks its way into cutaneous roots and pops up. Usually on my right eyelid. It swells and blisters inside and outside of my eyelid. When it does pop up, I have to start medication immediately because if it ever makes it into the cornea it will eat its way to the retina. Scary, but true. So Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were spent at multiple doctors offices- looking and feeling miserable. My husband is so kind- he told me I was beautiful even when my eye was swollen shut and blistered and I hadn't put on makeup in days.

I told people that Daniel hit me :) It's my dads fault that I am the way that I am.

Even with the eye stuff, I loved being able to be home cleaning and doing laundry for a few days. Things get a little out of control when I am gone for 12-14 hours a day.

By Sunday I was feeling better- just in time to go back to school! It was a pretty interesting week- we are studying blood disorders and I really enjoy that topic.

Today, Daniel and I carved pumpkins. I think they turned out really cute! I will post pictures later.

Last week Daniel got a mountain bike and turned all outdoorsy-sportsman on me. I should have seen it coming. He fixed up my old Walmart bike, and tomorrow we are riding all the way to TCBY. Moral of the story: I will do almost anything for ice cream.

Back to School

Run-down of the summer:

Kacie's wedding in late May

Taekwondo camps in early June

2 weeks of backpacking Europe in June/July

Preceptorship in July

Min-vacation (36 hours) with just me and Daniel in August

Back to school August

4th

I am always SO ready for summer, but it only takes me a few weeks usually to be ready to get back into the routine of school. I thrive on routine, schedules, alarm clocks, and to-do lists. It is as sickness.

Somewhere in between the wedding and Taekwondo camps I was ready to go back to school. Like I said- sickness. I really had a great summer- it was restful, yet full of excitement. The backpacking was less restful and more exciting, as you might imagine. Daniel and I spent SO much time re-connecting with each other and with friends we hadn't been able to spend much time with through the school year- it was a blast!

The preceptorship I did was with a great Family Med. Physician in town- I learned a lot and saw some pretty interesting cases, but it was a definite confirmation that I don't belong in Family Medicine.

Other events of my summer:

-My mac-books hard drive crashed. Sigh. At least I didn't have to much on it yet, and it was still under warranty.

-Babies!!!! Not mine. Or even related to me. Several of my college friends had babies, and I was even in for one the deliveries- so, so precious.

-Daniel and I started teaching the 4 year old Sunday school class at church (when he/we aren't playing on the worship team). At first, Daniel wasn't so sure he and 4-year-olds were meant for each other, but now... well,

it is pretty cute.

-My cat turned into the devil. I don't understand why, but she has.

Proof of this, taken moments before she reached through the blinds and slapped me:

She is now an outside cat.

-Saw Toy-Story 3 in 3-D! Daniel hadn't ever seen a 3-D movie before

-Daniel had a birthday, and got an ice-cream cake from Marble Slab. And boots. And a new iphone. And tools. And many other things. I guess we all like him :)

-I got an iphone. Never thought the day would come. After 4 days of bliss, I don't know how I lived without it. Seriously.

-Cooper and I are back to running.

The only time it is cool enough is at 6:30 in the morning, so if you happen to be crazy enough to also be out that early and see me running down College St. with my Basset hound, please be the ONE PERSON THAT DOESN'T SLOW DOWN AND LAUGH. The embarrassing part is that Cooper is faster than I am.

I am going to post more on Europe later, but there are a few pics I wanted to put up now!

All of my clothes for 2 weeks, vacuum-sealed. When I ran out, I washed them in the sink. WHAT?!?! Yes, I did. Not pictured is my chacos, which I love very, very much.

Proof that there were backpacks involved (Been up over 30 hours at this point- after we got off the plane in Zurich)

Daniel and I in Germany. The country-side was just unbelievably beautiful.

The family in Rome, between the Colosseum and the Arch of Constantine.

Daniel's backpack is still somewhere in the Atlanta airport. 2 months and counting....

Summer Happenings

This week has been full of sleeping late, watching movies, hanging out with friends, and trying to keep my parents from crying about Kacie moving. It's hard work :)

Daniel and I took a little vacation to NW Arkansas to visit family and friends. It was semi-relaxing, and a lot of fun! We got to see a dear friend for the first time in a LONG time, spend some time in the sun on the lake, drive around in a super cool car, and hang out with college friends that deserted us for NW Arkansas. (We are still a little bitter that so many of our friends moved).

I have been enjoying my 2 weeks as a stay-at-home-wife. Don't call me crazy, please. The rest of this year has been so full of studying that I rush around in "maintenance" mode when it comes to house stuff. But for the last 2 weeks I have been able to keep up with cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, cooking, weeding the flower beds- ya know.

We have also been doing a lot of walking together. Daniel doesn't particularly like walking, but I do (and I need the exercise!) so he goes anyway :)

We painted the front door red- and the shutters get painted black-ish tomorrow. I liked the green, but since the new roof is gray it just didn't work. Thus the red.

Now, the BIG thing in my life- we bought a new camera!!!! It's a really big deal for me since I haven't ever had a really nice camera. We have been saving up for it for awhile now, and I kind of wanted a Nikon d5000 but it was more than we were going to spend so I had my mind set on a d3000 (tmi, I know). We WERE NOT going to get it until we had all of the money for it. Anyway, yesterday morning we woke up and he told me to hurry up and get ready because he had a surprise for me :) He drove me to Bedford camera in LR and we looked at a few cameras and he first surprised me by telling me we were going home with one THAT DAY! I thought it was going to be at least 2 more weeks. I finally decided on the d3000. About that time, the salesman pulled out the fancy-schmancy d5000 from behind the counter- already bought and paid for with "Beal" on the side. My sneaky husband had bought it in advance. Is he amazing or what?

No photo labels today- just a few snapshots from this week. Part are from the old camera, and part are form the new. I think it is pretty obvious which ones are from the new one.... :D