Temperatures like we've experienced this week should be what summer is. None of the unbearable heat and humidity that is par for the course for east coast summers. Instead: sunny, warm, a slight breeze coming through with a couple of thunderstormy afternoons (like we're having today) for good measure. I think I would just move into a tent in the yard at that point.

I spent this morning in the stunning (I'm running out of adjectives...) weather - slightly overcast, warm enough to break a sweat - planting my mom's tomato plants.

You have to understand something about my mother: she has all of the best intentions in everything she does. She loves to buy flowers, garden and set up sweet accommodations for the resident wildlife (which consists of birds, squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits and one portly woodchuck. But mostly squirrels.) The problem is, she is such a busy lady. She gets up before 5am every weekday, hops around to her exercise video for a while, sits in a crapload of traffic to get to and from work and isn't home until usually 7pm. At which point she's exhausted and just wants to eat dinner and go to bed. So her weekends get jammed up with stuff that she doesn't have time to do on the weekdays. She always goes to visit her mother on the weekend and almost always has a nap, and by the time she turns around the weekend is over.

Every year she buys tomato plants. Every year, she doesn't get tomatoes, mostly because of pests (cough woodchuck cough) but also because she never waters anything. Once she tried that weird hanging basket thing but squirrels just busted into the basket and made a nest. So when she told me she was going to get her tomatoes this past weekend, I decided that I would take over the tomato scene.

Danny constructed her a pen with metal stakes that hold up a coated chicken wire, about two feet high. Around the base are railroad ties sunk into the ground (pre-existing for my dad's fence) and we figure/hope/pray that it should be critter-proof. This morning I went out and churned up the dirt soil, shoved some composted cow poop manure into each of the four holes and planted those darn plants (which had already begun their death march after being neglected on the patio table for a week. Sigh.) I gave them a good soak (and it should be raining this afternoon) and came back in. Tomorrow I'm going to give them some MiracleGro stuff specially suited for tomato plants. And then I will water them consistently and hope for the best.

Keep your fingers crossed, folks. I have a feeling this won't be as easy as it seems!

Welcome to my 100th(!) blog post. Sit down, have a drink, admire the scenery. I remember writing about wanting to be more consistent in my blogging; I'd say 100 posts is a great milestone. Pat on the back, self.

But wait! There are more things to pat myself on the back for, namely: I got a job offer from the lab animal facility I worked at for three years as an undergrad! Not only did I get a great offer doing lab animal-related stuff like I wanted to be doing, I'm going to get paid a decent amount more than I've ever been paid before! Pat on the back #2.

Pat on the back #3 is that I went for a jog yesterday in the breathtakingly beautiful weather and it was lovely and have been doing well with eating reasonable amounts of good-for-you food. Good first efforts on my June resolution.

Today will consist of going with my sister to shop for decorations for her birthday/graduation party that will be held on Sunday (at the same park that my rehearsal dinner was at, actually), getting some lunch, other small miscellaneous errands and probably more thank you notes. The TY notes are almost done though - you may now pronounce me most organized bride in the history of the world.

I think that's enough gloating for one day ;)

Finally decided to change the template for the blog. I really love the other one but this one feels more springy which is in accordance with the absolutely gorgeous weather we're having today. Sunny, cool, slight breeze coming through...literally a perfect day.

I told myself last night that today needed to be more productive than yesterday because I did not get all that much accomplished. I don't feel quite so bad with the possibility of summer employment becoming more and more likely (but shh, we aren't going to jinx it!) but I still don't want to sit around like a slug all day doing nothing. So I went grocery shopping (food is so cheap compared to PEI - it's glorious!) and used my new "Just For U" account with Safeway. If you haven't signed up for this already, DO IT NOW. They offer you extra savings on top of the in-store sale prices and it isn't just for weird shit that nobody buys, either. I think I literally had a coupon/special offer for everything that I bought today. Woohoo! Then I went to Chipotle because it was in the same shopping center and dammit if I don't deserve Chipotle whenever I damn well please after going months on end without it. The good news is I'm stuffed and don't have the munchies like I did yesterday. Add that onto the healthy food/snacks I got at the store and I'm feeling more optimistic for my June goal.

To maintain today's level of productivity, I'm going to continue making the move to the basement. I want to get everything settled down there before I actually "move in" officially, but my goal is to be down there by this weekend. I'm also going to write some more wedding thank you notes and perhaps water my mom's garden. I also need to order my sister's birthday present and touch base with a friend I might be seeing this weekend. Plenty to keep my occupied, I'd say.

This past weekend was my first full weekend home after the wedding. It was also the first weekend home from school when I didn't have any wedding stuff to accomplish. With these qualifications you would expect it to be a relaxing weekend but it was crazy busy!

Friday night we drove a friend over to "Danny's area" and hung out with said friend and another friend, just hanging out and relaxing. So far so good.

Saturday morning was Danny's flag football playoff game. I went to cheer him on (and make sure he didn't have to get stitches again...) and got to chat with another player's girlfriend that I had met a few weeks before. It was a darn good thing I brought/slathered myself with sunscreen because it was hot and full sun - blegh. I managed not to get burned, though, which was awesome. The less awesome part was that they lost the game, but I think they were kind of happy about it because if they had won, they would have had to play another playoff game later in the day and then a last game (championship). I think everyone was glad to get out of the sun and into the AC - I know I was and I wasn't even running around!

After that, we headed back to "my area" (about an hour away from "Danny's area"). We spent the afternoon running errands and came home for a family barbecue with my sister and parents. The food was excellent and it was fun to play with my sister's Boston Terrier, Trudy. That dog always has something hilarious up her sleeve.

Sunday I thought I'd get to sleep in, but after Danny left for basketball with friends I couldn't fall back asleep. So I got up and helped my mom with her crossword puzzle (I'm so bad at them!) before Danny called saying basketball was canceled. He came home and we went for a run, then headed back to his area for another cookout. We stayed there longer than we had intended (although in good company, to be fair) and then had to drop a weed whacker off at another friend's place before heading home. Well, traffic was awful, mostly because it was raining, so we didn't get home until after 9pm yesterday. At which point we showered, talked and went straight to sleep, haha.

So it wasn't quite the peaceful weekend I was suspecting, but it was still nice to see everyone and eat a lot of barbecue food.

Food reminds me that I have decided on a June resolution (albeit with some hesitation): be healthier. I know, I know! I turned my nose up at such talk when I first unveiled my mini-resolution concept. But I feel like it's something I need to do to appreciate myself and lately I haven't really been appreciating myself much.

Game plan:
Exercise more - run or walk at least 4x/week
Decrease my junk food intake - fruits/veggies for snacks, no ice cream/cupcakes/dessert food
Get back to eating less meat - in one meal per day or less.
Do my very best to get soda out of my life for good - NO MORE than one can per day, then e.o.d.

I'd like to make it a graduated scale where each week I move more and more away from my current habits and closer toward a more healthy ideal but I don't need to type that all out for you.

So I have a busy month ahead of me, and not just because of this resolution. I have a lot of ducks to get lined up and it all starts with making a Master To Do List. In which I will list everything I can think of that needs to be done. Don't think there's much relaxation for me in the future...

I've been thinking about the future lately because I'm a big planner. I try to break this kind of thinking down chronologically from most immediate (summer: employment, time with friends, time with Danny, small events like the community yard sale and my sister's graduation/birthday party), interim (lab animal club organization, fourth year rotations) and longer-term (residency application, moving to wherever that will be, house, etc). That kind of helps my mind's tendency to explode all over the place and start to worry about things that I cannot control, especially at this point. Instead I focus most on the things that I can control and (here's the big one) that are most important for now (like I shouldn't be stewing about a residency until I've found a flipping summer job!)

BUT: Yesterday I got some *tentatively* good news for summer employment. I don't want to spill the beans until it's nailed down, though. I'm trying to temper my optimism but I can't help but feel hopeful that it will work out. Cross your fingers for me, please! What I can share (because it's already confirmed) is that I managed to secure a shadowing day with the veterinary faculty of a large, prestigious lab animal program at the end of June. They have NHP (and a residency program!) and I'm hopeful that even if I only get the one day, it will be a great experience.

So the past day or two have been an excellent exercise in finding the positives in life. Which reminds me that I still need a June resolution. Hrm.

It feels simultaneously like forever and like just yesterday that I last posted here - I don't even want to know how long its been! It has been one hell of a (however long its been) since I was here last, but fortunately all of the chaos is behind me. I got married on May 18th and had a wonderful honeymoon in Charleston and Savannah May 19-26th. Got to see my friend who came home from Afghanistan and his wife while in Savannah and generally had a lovely time in a warm climate. Got home that Sunday night, went to the Orioles/Nationals game on Memorial Day, went to lunch with my sister for her birthday yesterday (well, her birthday was the 28th) and now I can finally say I've made it to the other side of the black hole of craziness that had been looming ahead of me for the last month or so of school. Finals, wedding, honeymoon, all done and out of the way.

I have a lot of stuff still to do for the summer, but the bulk of it has come and gone and I feel (mostly) at peace. To do lists have always been one of my favorite things and now that there isn't wedding stuff or school stuff on them it isn't so bad churning through them.

I'm happy to report that May's monthly resolution of making myself more presentable has been going excellently. I bought myself a new shirt, denim skirt and bright coral shorts and have started to wear some of the nicer clothes that are already in my closet. The only hindrance is money right now - with no summer job whatsoever I have zero income, so I don't feel quite right going out and buying a bunch of new clothes. But I think I've been doing a good job with what I have. No idea about June's resolution yet, but I still have a couple of days left!

One of the ingredients of the chaos stew that I was dealing with through April was having what would have been an amazing summer experience fall through. One of the reasons I was so upset about it was that I'm planning to pursue residency after graduating and from what I understand, it's beneficial to have a demonstrated continual interest in the field. I've got over three years of lab animal work already under my belt, a year of research and involvement in our school's lab animal club, but I was really hoping to continue the trend this summer. So I can't help but feel a bit panicky about having absolutely nothing lined up for the summer after my wedding.

I started hunting around online today and found a couple of options that aren't lab animal and are quasi-research-ish. So I'm going to get my applications done this weekend (in all of my spare time, right?) and cross my fingers. Because I really, really don't know what else I can do.

Busy busy busy!

Got a lot of wedding planning stuff taken care of last night with my parents, but still SO much to do! This weekend is going to be hectic - picking out and planting the flowers for my centerpieces, buying alcohol for the reception (and making a test pitcher of sangria for the rehearsal dinner) and combing Pinterest for some last minute wedding ideas. Nevermind the fact that I have thirty seven billion other things to do in just ten days.

Danny is coming over for dinner and the hockey game tonight - I'm planning to make the beer braised chicken that my mom likes so well for them and hopefully a new black bean cakes recipe I found yesterday for myself. Another new "ingredient" I tried today was a vegan burger for lunch which was OK - not super but edible. I've noticed that even if I'm not crazy about something the first time I can kind of talk my tastebuds around after a couple tries so I think it will be one of those things. Hoping the black bean cakes turn out well - maybe I'll even post an annoying picture ;)

Recently I've been thinking again about going vegetarian. Back in February, my resolution to eat less meat went really well and I've continued to eat less overall, although the amount has probably snuck back up after PEI Burger Love in April and coming home to a distinctly omnivorous household. I realized that eating less meat makes me feel somehow better overall - morally, yes, but also health-wise. I can't exactly pinpoint what it is, but I just feel good when I eat less meat.

So I've returned to considering full out vegetarianism. The hardest part for my February resolution was finding recipes, ingredients and snacks that were vegetarian that seemed easy. Sorry, but I can't really afford to go out and drop a bunch of money on some particular exotic spice or weird vegetable. After I was able to get a few regulars under my belt, though, it became a lot easier. So I think continuing to expand my recipe horizons is a key element. (Fortunately there's a boat load of good vegetarian recipes out there, it's just a matter of sifting through them!)

The other tricky part is that my wonderful almost-husband and the parents that I live with for the summer are strongly omnivorous.  When I'm home, I make an effort to pitch in around the house by keeping my spaces clean, mowing the lawn and making dinner. If I were by myself, making vegetarian dinner wouldn't ordinarily be an issue; with the others around I feel obligated to make something meat-based. I think my solution will be to make a vegetarian entree and then make a "side" of meat that they can add in or eat in addition to the entree. The last thing I want to be is a preachy vegetarian.

Which brings me to my last point...telling people about my decision. I gave up pork in my first year of vet school and when asked, I do my best to be as neutral as possible and just say, "I don't agree with how pork is raised." But (if you remember an earlier post where I went to a CFIA lecture on slaughter), it's past that now. I don't agree with how most meat is raised, transported and slaughtered. In the end my problem is not at all with raising animals to be eaten, or eating animals; it's the way that it's done that I just can't get over. But that's all a bit complex to explain to someone casually asking if you want ribs at your rehearsal dinner.

So I think I'm going to go back to quantifying my meat intake like I did in February (three meat meals per week). After that I may be ready to make the leap!

Hello again everyone :) Finally I'm able to get back to this blog. I'm so sorry for being quiet the past month but it has been a whirlwind few weeks. Wedding planning has become even more intense - it's finally crunch time and I'm going to be running around the next few two(!!) weeks getting all of the little details hung together and coordinating everything. It's a super daunting task but I think with the help of my fiance, family and friends we can pull it off! Mostly I'm excited for the honeymoon afterwards. We're going to Charleston and Savannah and I cannot wait for the warmth and the activities and just getting to be with Danny.

School finished uneventfully - exams went well and I managed to pack everything into the car on Thursday and roll out after pharm/tox on Friday morning. The trip was boring but went well - so nice not to have to worry about it snowing like I do when I come home for winter break!

As you may have already guessed, April's monthly resolution was a bust. I realized that there was no way I was going to be able to focus on a resolution when I had finals and wedding and packing and moving and all that jazz. Just not going to happen. I don't feel too badly about it because instead of trying and failing to complete the resolution, I never really committed to it in the first place. So it wasn't exactly a failure on my part, just a lesson learned that sometimes things like that have to take a backseat to more important things like passing finals ;)

I talked to my fiance yesterday on a ride to a friend's cook-out about how I wanted to try and be a bit more presentable. We discussed and I was pleasantly surprised to hear he feels the same way I do: by entering into our marriage, we're no longer just "representing" ourselves. So I want to put a bit more effort into my appearance as a whole (including wearing something a touch nicer than a tshirt every day, wearing some low-key make up a bit more, skin care, hair care, etc) and the perfect way to start is making it my resolution for May!