Sink or Swim

It all comes down to this: I have my clinical dental hygiene boards coming up (March 13) and have less than 2 weeks to find a patient, and hopefully a back-up patient as well. These boards are super expensivo, meaning $1,040! And if don't find a patient, or have a patient that doesn't qualify, then I lose all that money and have to figure out how and where I'm going to take the boards again and pay the money again. They are so hard to find a patient for because there are so many requirements needed for the patient:

1. They cannot be allergic to Latex.
   
2. If they need to take a pre-med before having their teeth cleaned, they have to bring in a note from their physician.


3. They have to have most of their teeth with no extensive periodontal problems.


4. They cannot have a lot of cavities.


5. They have to have so much tartar on their teeth in just the right places.


6. The patient has to come in to be screened (once), come in early in the morning on a Saturday and be able to stay for an extended period of time for the actual exam (twice), and finally come in again for me to finish cleaning their teeth if they want (three times, I'm out).

So I've been trying my hardest to find this diamond in the rough with no avail. It doesn't help that it keeps on snowing here! *Patients hear that snow is coming and cancel their appointments days in advance.* I feel like I'm living in a frickin' snow globe!

On a more optimistic note, Monday is the start of a new week and [hopefully] the start of good things to come! And when I have this all over and done with, it's smooth sailing to graduation!

If anyone is around the Morgantown area, hasn't had their teeth cleaned in awhile, and can come see me in the next 2 weeks, let me know! And a big thanks to my friends and family who have been trying to help me out! You have no idea how much it means to me!

Going for the Gold

I haven’t blogged for a while, but during the whole snow-in I blogged a lot so I figured I am even. I have been sorta busy the last week. We had a stupid Dental Law Exam yesterday. And I am probably calling it stupid because I failed it the first go around, but it was stupid. It was a free exam, as in no money needed, except that since I failed it the first time and had to pay $20 so I could take it again. I could take it again immediately after I failed it. I could look at what answers I missed (I missed 3 that were true/false), then take the same exact test immediately after. I passed, of course, the second time but they got my damn money. Roomie and I thought we deserved a pedicure after this stupid exam. Now I have pretty purple toenails with a flowers on them. It’s nice to know that something so simple can make me so happy.

As you can see I changed my layout. Thanks to Miranda for giving me the html for the 3-column design! I changed my background too. Thanks to Jennifer and Angie for leading me to it! I have always thought that I wanted to learn how to quilt. I LOVE QUILTS! My great-great grandmother had made me a quilt when I was a baby and Phil’s grandmother quilts all the time. Maybe I’ll ask her if she’ll teach me. I think it would be better than my attempts at knitting. I only knitted ¼ of a scarf then lost interest and forgot how.

I went home last weekend and went bowling for a family birthday party. This was a new experience to bowl with the family because we usually just sit around, eat, and play board games. My 2 ½ year old cousin is getting so big! Everyone was around eating birthday cake when she says “I am so happy to see all of you today!” and then preceded to say everyone’s name! Too cute! It’s not like Phil and I get to see her very often so when she said our names ,with no prompting, it melted my heart. Valentine’s Day was great too! Phil went the “semi-homemade” route like I did and put together a picture album of picture of us together. He also got me the book “Animal Farm” (one of his faves) so I could read it too. I had painted him a mug at The Wow Factory with fishes on it. And I put a little furry little “Luv Puff” stuffed animal inside.

So I have been watching very little of the Olympics. Every time I turn the TV onto the channel, it is going to a commercial. And me hating commercials most of the time (thanks to at-home TiVo usage) likes to turn the channel and watch multiple shows at one time. So by the time one show grabs my attention, I forget about the Olympics. I did watch all of the opening ceremony. KD Lang was Awesome with a capital A. And I loved the tree scene with all the people dancing. I have caught a few curling “matches” but have not been able to figure out the scoring or anything. I refuse to look up the rules because I like trying to figure it out. Info Tidbit: The 2002 Winter Olympics is where I first heard Josh Groban sing and have been hooked ever since.

Roomie and I watched “The Hangover” for the second time on Thursday. That movie cracks me up with everything that each character says. This makes it one of my favorite movies of all time. I still wanna know where the chicken came from. We rented “The Time Travelers Wife” at Blockbuster yesterday and watched it. It was soooo good! It got kinda confusing, but in a good way that keeps you thinking. Tonight we watched “Julie & Julia” and I loved that movie too! It is what inspired me to blog right now! We are watching so many movies now because I brought my DVD player from home!

I think that is all I had to catch up on… I’ll need to remember this for next time and won’t make my posts so long! Have a good week!

Routine or Not

I am sitting in the same spot on the couch in the living room with my laptop where I spent most of my time the last 4 snow days. I feel like I deserve this laziness today because I actually went to school, but it is also depressing that this is what I want to do. This will probably be where I spend tomorrow as well since I have Wednesdays off from school this semester. Lucky me... ?

It is time now for Hollywood Week on American Idol! I am scared to make my weekly trip to Rachel's for our AI get-together because it is snowing again after it slushed (rained/snowed description) all day today (plus why would I want to leave my worn out area on the couch?). I'm afraid that it will freeze and I will not be able to get home. I'm excited to see how Ellen works out though!

I have a new book that I am reading... lack of studying for school also leaves me plenty of time to read... and it is called "Always Looking Up" by Michael J. Fox. I had read his first book more than several years back called "Lucky Man" and it was an inspiring memoir about his life before and after Parkinson's Disease. This new book continues where the last left off (the past 10 years). I think after this book that I may start reading some of the classics. I've always wanted to read "Lord of the Flies" and have been thinking of reading "Alice in Wonderland" before the movie comes out. Any suggestions?

Question: I want to do a semi-blog remodel but I do not know how to make my layout 3-column. Please help!

McDonalds = Romantic?

So, I got this in an email from my best friend, Adam, today. It had this link to the Herald Dispatch, our local newspaper in Huntington. It is describing how the McDonalds in Kenova, WV is offering a Valentine's Day Special. A meal for 2 for $9.99 all with candlelight, music, and a photograph! Does anyone else find this hilarious but me? I told Adam that Phil would absolutely LOVE this since McDonalds is like his favorite place to eat in the world (besides a BBQ called Little Richards in NC). I am not the biggest fan of Micky D's. All the menu items I've ever liked get taken off. Anyway, I may find myself at the Kenova McDonalds on February 13th from 5-7pm.

I'm watching The Bachelor right now and I'm finding it extremely boring compared to past seasons where there are home dates. I'm rooting for Gia mostly but think Jake is totally enamored with Ali, who I quit liking after she talked about Vienna constantly. Tenley is okay too, but don't think she is ready for such a big commitment right now. Vienna is just annoying. Maybe everything will change in the next hour of the show... it's supposed to be dramatic!

My roomie and I ventured out to the Kroger today to get out of the trailer! I got my favorite Kroger sushi and finally broke down and got the Maybelline Eye Studio eye shadow that I've been wanting for some time now. The color is called Irresistable Ivy and I'm excited to try it out!

I dug my car out today but broke roomie's shovel in the process! I'm hoping school will be canceled tomorrow since we are expecting 8 more inches of snow in the morning! C'mon WVU! What's another day?

P.S. Today has been 1 year since Phil proposed and I said yes! You can read about the proposal here!

My 1st Award!

I got my first award from my friend, and fellow blogger, Amanda at It's Blogworthy!

Amanda I met a few years back when I worked at an animal ER back home. We have kept in touch online ever since! If I could I would give her this award right back!

So now I have to write 7 facts about myself and give this award to 7 other bloggers!

7 Little Known Facts About Me

(you can find out more here)

1. I cannot stand to wash lettuce.

2. When asked what my favorite thing was when I was young and at bible school, my reply was “Bourbon”. What they didn’t know was that was my dog’s name.

3. I was a legal 21 when I first got drunk.

4. Phil and I met online and now we are engaged!

5. Some of my “husbands” include, but are not limited to: Randy Travis, Donnie Osmond, and Harrison Ford.

6. I like to hold onto my paper towels after I use them to dry my hands. You will most likely see them laying around my house when I finally let them go. It’s a bit of an obsession I don't realize I'm doing.

7. I wish that I was born with red hair so it would look good on me.

7 Bloggers

These bloggers are ones I have been following for the longest!

1. Daily Musings From Yours Truly
- this is Rachel who I got to start up a blog the same time I began mine. Rachel is a great friend who I met while in dental hygiene school and later found out we were the oldest in our class together and actually lived near eachother back home! Go check out her page :)

2. Tucci Times Three
- Miranda is a friend that I was in high school band with back in the day! I love reading her blog and seeing the changes her blog goes through. Amanda actually gave this award to Miranda already, but I felt the need to give one to her as well!

3. Bitch Cakes
- Every time I read this blog I am inspired to keep up with WW! She gives awesome recipes and takes you through every step of her weight loss.

4. Daniel McQuade Photography
- Daniel is a friend I met while attending Marshall. We were in some organizations together like the X-treme Fear Club! Daniel is a very talented photographer and shows his pictures on his page.

5. Chronicles of My Momdom
- Michelle is a friend I met in high school band as well! She now has a little girl who she blogs about in a rather hilarious manner! I always want to read more!

6. Our Little Corner of the World
- Carri is my best friend's sister! She is a beautiful woman who has a beautiful family who she enjoys blogging about!

7. Life Around Shepherdstown
- Adam is my best friend. I don't get to see him much, but it is nice to be able to see what he is doing through pictures on his blog! It's almost like his laugh comes through the page to me :)

In other news, WVU is actually closed Monday! Truly a miracle! Now to figure out to do all day long besides staring at this computer!

Snow Day Fun

So I woke up at noon-thirty today after hibernating in my bed for 13 hours! It was amazing. After I got up I looked out the window into a snowy wonderland! This is officially the first snow that I've enjoyed having since living in Morgantown. This is probably because it usually snows on a weekday, when WVU never closes classes, and I had to walk a mile up and down a hill (<-true story, not just getting old) to get to my classes. All of WV has been anticipating this snow so badly that schools were canceled on Friday when it was only raining, and WVU actually canceled classes after 1pm too! That's big time right there. Too bad I only have class until noon, just my luck.

Anyway, today my roomie and I ventured outside to have some snowy fun. We made snow angels, tiny snowmen, and buried eachother in the snow! My car is barely visible too! I do love snow... when there is nothing I have to do. Especially when I don't have to drive.

After coming inside I took I nice hot bath, shaved (no longer that hibernating bear anymore!), drank some hot chocolate (that's my favorite mug I got at the Goodwill a couple years back), watched some QVC (one of the few channels we have right now), and made a Project Linus Blanket to send to Haiti!

Now I feel great! I am just hoping that I can go to sleep at a reasonable hour tonight so I feel this great tomorrow too! Roomie and I are planning on having a SuperBowl party of our own since we most likely won't be able to get out anywhere... who knows if we'll actually watch the game or just eat the food for the occasion!

Idol Night Traditions

Starting last year (The Year of Anoop), my friends and I have started the tradition of watching American Idol together every Tuesday and Wednesday. I thought I would share some of the traditions we have started during this time.

Taking pictures with the TV

Drinking wine and eating goodies Making fun of the judges and celebrity guests (this is the Randy Travis look)Voting!Rewinding and rewatching past performances over and over again!Being nervous waiting for results!Drinking RC

And finally, finding a new musician (or group) to follow!

I am excited to see what this season brings and what new traditions will develop!

Stay tuned...