Stick A Fork In It...

            ...Cause it's done.  I literally never thought I'd see the day.  It doesn't really feel real yet but I turned in my very last assignment this morning and with that, my grad school grandma days were officially over.  These have been the hardest two years of my life but I am grateful to have found a career path that I am passionate about and to be doing something that I really believe in.  Oh yeah and I'm grateful that I actually survived.  Because there were days when I had my doubts!  And to commemorate the fact that we made it through with most of our sanity intact, my classmates and I headed to the SATCo. patio for a much needed celebration of tacos and beer.  Perfection.

Solo pic with the broken finger...love it

            Don't know how I would have made it through without these girls...they're the only people who share my daily fear of traumatic brain injury, know how to build a larynx out of model magic, and understand the importance of the Vagus nerve when it comes to foreplay :-)  And I love them.

Sun Soaked and Back to Reality

            That vacation was just what I needed.  I maxed out on sun time and was parked in a beach chair at the water's edge for much of the weekend.  And when I wasn't lounging with my toes in the sand, I could be found cruising in a kayak, watching the PGA tour in Hilton Head, riding bikes past gator-filled ponds, hugging a best friend for the second weekend in a row, and generally loving the fact that I was on an undeserved, all expenses paid (thanks Mom and Dad!) vacation, just because.

Happy Easter!

            Happy Easter, y'all!  (I'm trying to pack in as many of those as I can in the next week before I head back to yankee territory).  I hope that you are enjoying a beautiful Sunday and are remembering all that this day stands for.  New beginnings.  The chance for a clean slate.  I'm liking those sentiments these days.  Oh, and I really like jelly beans.  A lot.
            And though this Easter will not be spent with family and the usual activities of egg hunting and uppering, I am happy to be spending the day unpacking and repacking and snuggling with the sweet pup that I missed ohsomuch over the past five days.  Kiawah vacation pictures tomorrow - promise!

"Why should I gain from his reward?

I cannot give an answer

But this I know with all my heart

His wounds have paid my ransom."

But Before I Go...

            Some of my Franklin favorites for your viewing pleasure.  If you're into fabulous furnishings for your someday-house, visiting Main Street in downtown Franklin is basically like hitting the jackpot.  And because that's really the only way I know how to explain it in words, I'll just let the pictures do the talking.

Tea party to celebrate the royal wedding?  Don't mind if I do.

Do you die?  I die.

And just for fun...I came thisclose to buying this little headband just for old time's sake :-)

Taking A Time Out

      After spending the better part of grad school completely land-locked, it's about time that this girl dipped her toes back into the Atlantic where they belong.  That's right, I'm headed for a pre-Praxis break at the beach and will be spending the next few days on sunny Kiawah Island, SC.  If you need me, I'll be the bikini-clad girl glued to her beach towel, with a little umbrella drink (okay, and maybe my exam review book) in hand!

See you soon!

Weekend Reunion

            For the past two years, my very best friends from college have been promising that they were going to come visit me in Nashville.  And with only a few weeks left, I honestly thought that our little reunion might never happen...but it did.  This past weekend.  And it was perfect.  Much like when your sister comes to town, when your best friends visit there is no pressure.  Sure, you hope that they have a great time and love your city as much as you do but there are no expectations of a jam-packed itinerary.  Instead, just being together is all it takes.

College/Grad School worlds colliding and I'm loving it.

            And though elaborate plans aren't necessary when entertaining these girls, that doesn't mean that I didn't try to take them to all of the Nashville favorites I could squeeze into our short three days together.  Highlights of the weekend included Silly Goose, Paradise Park, and a shopping trip in Franklin that left us swooning over all of the home decor goodness that we couldn't afford (lots of to-die-for photos to come).  Oh yeah, and there was lots of couch snuggling, "I missed you so much," and "Remember that time" mixed in there too.  Told ya, perfection.

I Like This Day

            For two reasons.  One, because it was in the 70's and sunny and I got to spend my afternoon soaking up some vitamin D with my sidekick on the porch.  And two, because it was free cone day at Ben & Jerry's, which I think makes for a pretty great day all on it's own.

            Here in Nashville, Ben & Jerry's celebrated free cone day by teaming up with Vanderbilt to promote Project Opportunity - a program that provides job training and placement for teens and young adults with developmental disabilities.  Indulging is that much sweeter when you know that you are doing it for a good cause!

Did any of y'all partake in the sugary goodness of free cone day in your city?

Little Moments

            It's weekends like this one that I am reminded of the very reason that I started this blog in the first place and I am acutely aware of the motto for my home here in cyberspace.  To live in the moment.  Be present in the here and now.  And not take for granted one second of this meaningful, joyful life I have been given.

            The many reasons why I love this life I have created here in Nashville were captured in little moments throughout this beauty of a weekend and I have been trying to hang on to them for as long as I possibly can.

Little moments like a hike in the woods with the pup and my partners in crime that left us all teary-eyed at the thought of being separated in just a few weeks.  Or late afternoon popsicle dates in the Tennessee sunshine.  

            Moments spent drinking locally brewed Yazoo on the patio with friends.  Or the moments just before slipping into a food coma after your first Arnold's experience (or an amazing brunch at Margot).

            Or moments lounging in the grass and listening to the sounds of the Vandy baseball in the background.  

And moments when you realize that you are perfectly content just being...right where you are.