The conference itself was awesome. Getting stranded and having to deal with American Airlines was not so awesome. My flights kept getting cancelled, and I spent many, many hours on the phone trying to get re-booked.
But alas, I made it home safely!
Life has been a whirlwind so here's a little update:
- My semester has officially ended! It was a great semester teaching. I got wonderful feedback from my students. I did not, however, make nearly as much progress on my dissertation as I had hoped. That means its time to refocus and re-prioritize. 2014 is my year to finish!
- While I was away, my boys surprised me and put up our Christmas tree. You have no idea how sweet it was to come home to those twinkling lights. I was so exhausted from being up all night and seeing the tree nearly brought me to tears. It was so sweet. Liam is completely obsessed with the Christmas tree by the way. Every morning, the first thing he does is ask me to turn on the lights!
- I love looking at our tree and seeing ornaments from my childhood. Growing up, we were given a special ornament each year. There are so many happy, special memories tied to each of those ornaments. I have continued the tradition with Liam. This year, his ornament is a Cozy Coupe. It's fitting considering how many hours he spent in his this summer.
- Speaking of holiday decorations, I look at this holiday house tour and this one, and I'm completely inspired. This year, however, it's just not in the cards. This year, we kept it super simple with just our little tree and a few other decorations. Perhaps one day, when I'm no longer a graduate student, I'll have the time and energy to really do it up!
- I just started reading this book. I was a vegetarian for several years into my mid-twenties. Recently, I've felt an inclination to return to the lifestyle. I do, however, enjoy eating meat. And my husband is definitely a meat eater. I think this might be the perfect compromise for us. The book is full of really insightful nutritional information. I consider myself pretty informed in this area but he's touched on several things I didn't know.
- I have also recently started doing yoga again. I am using this DVD, which I love! Since this past summer, I have had lower back pain, on and off. I decided to take a break from my high impact, cardio workouts and do something more gentle, in hopes that the lower back pain will go away. I have always enjoyed yoga and have read that it's one of the best ways to combat back pain. In terms of yoga though, I only really like it when it's challenging. I still want to feel like I'm exercising! Ashtanga is a more rigorous form of yoga and I am definitely challenged. Already I feel stronger and more flexible. It's kind of remarkable.
- Liam is totally into Christmas this year. I'm not sure he really understands what is going on, but he talks about Santa a lot! I just got him a few books to help him understand what Christmas is really about. This book is my favorite. I cannot get over how much I love this story....which talks about the trees, the animals and the stars all rejoicing over the coming of Jesus. Truly, a beautiful story.
- I am currently drinking this hot chocolate. So good! Have I ever talked about my love of mint combined with chocolate? I can't get enough.
- Which is why I plan to make these brownies to take to my family's holiday gathering. I hope they are as good as they look!
- And speaking of Trader Joe's, have you ever had Cookie & Cocoa Swirl? Whoa. I don't think I should be allowed to buy this stuff again because somehow, I just end up eating it straight out of the jar!
- Andrew and I just finished watching Under the Dome. I wasn't sold on it at first, but now I'm hooked. The series was renewed for a second season, which means that the final episode totally left us hanging. I hate it when they do that!
- We are happily gearing up for the holidays! We'll be gone more than a week travelling to various locations to be with our families. My grades are done. Our gifts are wrapped. And I'm truly looking forward to spending some quality time with the people we love~!
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