That awkward moment when you are excited about an appliance.

Never in my life have I ever been excited about an appliance. Until now. 

Behold. 

I can hear the angels in heaven singing melodiously. This is the most beautiful washer/dryer set that I've ever laid my big brown eyes upon.  And they even have these cute drawers that store my washer/dryer necessities so that I don't have to keep them up on a shelf somewhere. Genius. 

What's even better? We practically stole these. Except we didn't. We have a friend who was selling them for a ridiculously small amount of money and we didn't hesitate to jump on that bargain. 

We've actually owned them for a few months now, but we've been waiting for our new house with a laundry room (in Jesus' name) to come along.  We ended up having to get them now, (which is not a problem at all!) and we are going to start using them.  They're in our garage, but I plan to clean them daily. I'm that much in love. I think I need help.  They have a bazillion buttons and they make cute sounds when you push said buttons. I'm pretty excited. 

We gave our washer to some friends who are getting married, but they were unable to use our dryer because it's a gas dryer and they have an electrical connection. So...if you or anyone you know needs a gas dryer, we have one! It's free to a good home! It may or may not have my husband's name somewhere on it. I apologize for his need to graffiti random things that we own. He will lose a hand if he decides to "mark his territory" on our new washer and dryer. 

"I can't wait to get home so that I can wash some clothes!" - said no one ever. Except this girl. I'm so excited. 

Enjoy your day!

Rae :)

Book Review: Proverbs Reconstructed

"Proverbs Reconstructed" by Gus Dallas

When I first read about the book, I was excited to be able to dig deeper into Proverbs.  I've always enjoyed reading Proverbs because I feel like it is an instruction manual for how to live my life right.

Upon downloading the book on my eReader, I could not wait to open it and get started.  I was disappointed in the book because I was expecting a chapter by chapter analysis and explanation of the book.  "Proverbs Reconstructed" is organized alphabetically into categories which is excellent for research or a quick reference; however, the verses are singled out and taken out of context.  This can be viewed as a good thing, because it makes me want to grab my bible and continue reading on the subject.  

As a Christian wanting to dig deeper into the bible, this was not the book I was expecting.  On the other hand, this is a good book for reference when needing a scripture regarding a specific subject.  

Gus Dallas did a good job of categorizing Proverbs into items for reference, but after reading the brief synopsis of the book, I was expecting more. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Exams, white coat, spring semester, Boston, and our upcoming vacation!

First of all, I would like to apologize for my lack of blogging.  We've been pretty busy around here lately.

In my last post, I talked about how I've been exercising and eating right.  I'm happy to say I've lost 11 pounds in the last 2 months.   I've noticed a huge change in my body.  I have more energy and I'm genuinely happier.  I feel great!

The spring semester is coming to a close which means several things:
1.  I need to get started on writing my business plan for my practice management class.
2.  I only have 2 weeks left of clinic.  Usually, this makes me happy to get a break, but I'm really sad to be leaving this site.  I've really enjoyed being in private practice and I definitely have changed my mindset about working in private practice.  This is a definite possibility for me in the near future.
3.  I start my one year externship in June.  I'm working on applying for my Audiology Intern license and ABA (American Board of Audiology) provisional certification so that when I obtain enough hours, I can become a Board Certified Audiologist.

In March, all of my classmates and myself took the Praxis exam.  It's a comprehensive exam in Audiology that we all have to pass in order to receive our state license when we graduate and our certificate of clinical competence in Audiology (CCC-A).  I'm happy to say that I passed! I'm so thrilled.  That was possibly the worst test I've ever had to take in my life and I refused to take it again.  So I'm happy I passed!

Two weeks ago, almost the entire Lamar Audiology program traveled to Boston, Massachusetts for our annual audiology convention.  We got there a day early and used it to explore Boston!

Airplane ride to Boston.  It was like 7am.  Don't judge us.  

We went to MIT so that we could become smarter through diffusion.

Beautiful Boston!

Au.D. Class of 2013!

We had a great time, learned a lot, partied hard, got temporary threshold shifts (& tinnitus!) from the ReSound party, and saw a lot of history.  We didn't have time to see everything, but I think we got a good overview of Boston.

Today, several of my family members from Louisiana are driving to Texas to come support me at my white coat ceremony.  What's that?  I'm glad you asked!  It's a ceremony that is given by our student organization to honor the 3rd year students who are about to embark on their 4th year externships.  It's a night of celebration and I'm so happy that many of my family and friends are choosing to come support me tonight.  I don't graduate for another year, and when I do graduate it will be with the entire graduating class of Lamar University.  This is a more intimate ceremony just for audiology students and our family and friends where we can celebrate each other's accomplishments!  I'm so excited!

I'm also terribly sad.

Class of 2013.  AKA - The Best Class Ever.

I've been with these guys and gals for 3 years now.  We've become a family.  Our class has been extremely close since day one and it's going to be weird not being able to see them every week.  We've all accepted awesome externships, but we're no longer near each other.  5 of us are in Texas (3 in Houston, 1 in Amarillo, 1 in Beaumont), 1 is in Miami, and 1 is in Arkansas.  Needless to say, we won't be together anymore.  I can't promise that there won't be tears tonight.  But I know that I will see them again May 18, 2013 when we all walk across the stage and receive our diplomas as Doctors of Audiology!

Last week, Sam and I booked our vacation:

Carnival Conquest

We're going on a 7-day cruise to Jamaica, Grand Cayman Islands, and Cozumel! We leave May 20!      I'm super excited to be going because:

1. It's the week after my birthday.  So it's like a late birthday party.  That lasts an entire week.   It's also just a few weeks before our 4th wedding anniversary.
2. This will most likely be our last big vacation before we have a baby :)

      2a.  I'm not pregnant yet.  So chill out y'all.  But let's just say we're trying to strategically     plan it so that I'm very, very pregnant when I graduate next year.  So I'll be the one happily wobbling across the stage to get my diploma! 

This June, Sam will graduate from the Beaumont Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Commission (BEJATC) school.  He's been a licensed journeyman for about a year now, but he chose to follow through and complete his 5 year program through the IBEW Local 479.  I'm so proud of him - what he's accomplished and who he's become.  I couldn't have asked for a better life partner.  He accepted a position at Valero last October as an electrician and he will be there for as long as he wants.  He's happy and we're taken care of, thanks to Sam's hard work and Valero's awesome benefits.

So with that, I'll leave you to muse the greatness that's been going on in our lives.  As for me, I need to go work out, grab a few things at the mall, and get ready for a weekend of awesomeness!

God is great.  All the time.  Without Him, none of the aforementioned goodness would have happened.

-Rae-

A lifestyle change.

I've recently started working out.  And by working out, I mean about one hour of cardio six days a week.  I would like to lose a little weight; but mostly, I want to tone up and build my endurance.  I want to not only work out, but I also want to eat healthy.  It's not about just working out.  It's a lifestyle change.  You change the way you think about food and exercising and your free time.  Working out has given me more energy.  I'm more motivated to keep my house clean.  I'm more motivated so I don't find myself sitting on the couch for hours watching marathons.  I am more productive in my free time.

What workout am I doing? This one.  It's called Rockin' Body.  It's designed by "Insanity" instructor Shaun T.  I actually saw an infomercial on TV and decided that was something I would enjoy.  It's a dance-based workout, so I just get to dance and know that I'm working out.  But it's not a pansy dance DVD.  It really works.  At first, I didn't think it was working, but every week the workouts seem to be requiring more energy and I find myself dripping with sweat.  What I love about this workout is that I can do it at home.  I don't have to go anywhere.  For me, this eliminates the temptation to stay home.  I set my alarm clock for 5:45am and I usually start my workout around 6.  My husband also gets up for work at 5:45, so it keeps me accountable to get up and start my day if I hear him moving around.

You can get Rockin' Body on Amazon or other sites, but I bought it off of the Team BeachBody Website. With my 7 workouts, I also got a package of Shakeology (protein shake), a workout calendar, and some tips about eating and stuff.  There's also a coach assigned to you who will email to check in.  This is kind of annoying, but it was helpful when I had a couple of questions the other day.

One of my pastors also told me about this app that lets you track your calories and exercises.  You enter your personal information and it'll give you an estimate of how many calories you should consume daily.  It has a pretty good library of foods that you can search for, as well as letting you scan the barcode on your item and it'll give you the info for it.  I use it daily to log my meals and my exercises.  I also use it to log my weigh-ins and measurements.  It keeps me accountable for what I put in my body.

This is working for me because I'm staying consistent with it.  You have to be consistent and disciplined for it to work for you.  You have to stick with it for longer than a week.  I lost weight week one, but I gained a pound back week two, and then lost some week 3.  So it's going to take some time, but it'll work.  If you are trying to choose a workout plan, choose something that you are interested in.  I wasn't interested in building a lot of muscle, just toning up what I had.  So I didn't want to do a big strength training program.  I wanted to do a cardio-based workout that gets me in shape.

I'm nowhere near a pro at this, but I've stuck with it for 4 weeks.  Even if I don't lose another pound, I know that I feel better about myself.  You know that bloated feeling you get when you eat unhealthy food or too much food? I don't get that anymore.  I feel great.  I don't eat as much.  I make smarter choices when choosing what to eat.

Another thing I've learned how to do is push myself.  I used to quit when it got hard.  But when I look on my TV screen and see 7 minutes left or 9 minutes left, I just think to myself "only 7 more minutes and it'll be over" and I can make it through.  I push through because I know what my end results will be.  And because of that,  I can start my day in a good mood and with more energy.

So if you think you want to get in shape or lose weight or whatever your goal is, you can do it.  The outside results aren't immediate, but the inside ones are.  Well, I know mine were.  Pick a workout that you are interested in, and push yourself through it.  Even if you don't feel like working out today, do it.  You won't regret it.

Pushing harder every day,
Rae :)

*Dislaimers
1. I do NOT claim to be a pro. At all.  I'm just letting you know what's working for me!
2. I was not paid by Beachbody to talk up their programs.  There are also other workouts that they offer on their website, including P90X, Insanity, and other ones.

MUTEMATH & all it entails

Hello!

I'm still groggy from my lack of sleep last night - we got in at 2:15 from Houston and I was up early this morning. However, I had one of the best times of my life so I won't complain anymore. Until the end.

We went and saw MUTEMATH last night at the Houston House of Blues.  We left the house around 3:45 because we wanted to make sure we didn't hit traffic so that we could be there in time before the doors opened at 6:30.  We bought VIP passes which were more expensive but you'll see some benefits of that in a bit.

So we get there and go inside the House of Blues. Oh wait, this is a restaurant...are these people going to leave?  Oh, thanks hostess for letting us know we have to go around the side to get to the venue.  These things should be in the confirmation email.

Ok so we're in line now. As I said before, we bought VIP passes so we get to be first-in-line.  We get to go in like 30 minutes before everyone else so we can get all crammed on the first row before they all come in. Cool, I'm excited.

So it's like 7 when we finally get to go inside. We run in, grab a few things and assume our positions on the  FRONT ROW.  I'm stoked. I'm also starving and thirsty. But there's no way I'm moving.  I'm in front of this platform looking thing that I hear Paul is going to be standing on.  More stoked.  Then one of the security guys comes and says that we'll have to split a few times during the show because this thing moves.  Wait...it moves? Where's he gonna go?  Eh...whatever.

Ok so first band comes on. They were weird and the lead singer dances funny.  I laughed a lot.

Intermission time and then here we go!

The set

Drumset

Darren King, the drummer beast.  What's he doing you ask? Oh, he's just duct taping his headphones to his head.  No big deal. (!!!!)

They all come on, but they're coming from the back. My camera was not prepared to take pictures behind me so I didn't really get any shots of that. Plus, I'm short. So it would have been a bunch of other people's heads.

They perform EVERY song from their Odd Soul Album, plus all the other favorites. 26 songs people. 26 songs.

He's. right. there. 

He was standing on the aforementioned platform.
In. front. of. my. face.

Todd, the guitarist.  He just joined the band October 2011.

Roy, the bass player.  He looks straight out of a Beatles promo.

I could touch him. 

So the concert was FANTASTIC! Best concert I've ever been to! Why you ask?

Oh, because WE GOT TO MEET THEM.

I cannot believe we got to meet them. They were all super great and very friendly.  Oh my gosh.  I'm also the owner of two drumsticks now.  Well, together, they probably make one drumstick. Crazy beast Darren shreds drumsticks like a wood chipper so I caught one as it flew near my face and the other I just reached out and grabbed.  Because I was that close. Oh yes.

You'd think the fun would be over here right? Hop in our car, drive home.

The parking garage where we parked our car is LOCKED. I'm panicking.  We can't get in.  We're running around the whole garage and then finally, another VIP concert-goer manages to get inside so he lets us in. We grab the car and now, we can't get out.  The gates are shut and locked.  There are now several people running around trying to figure out what to do.  They somehow stumble upon this magic button that opens the gate.  So we all line up our cars, push the magic button, and haul out of there.

Now that this isn't happening to me right now, I'm laughing about it.  But at 12:30am, it was not funny. At. All.

So, that was our adventurous night! I'm so happy I got to spend it with my husband, because I would have freaked out with anyone else.  He stepped up, stayed behind, and made sure all of the cars were able to get out of the garage before the gate shut on us.  He's such a great man.

I'm off to the hospital to see baby Branson Shaw who's making his grand entrance into the world today in a few short minutes.

Have a great weekend!
Rae :)

oops, my bad.

If you read my last post, you should have gotten a strong impression that I have no interest in private practice.  I shouldn't haven't have posted anything or written my class assignment until I completed day one in my clinic rotation.

I'm working with a private practice audiologist this semester.  Immediately after leaving her office Monday, I discovered several things:

1. She has the cutest office ever.  She proved that audiologists don't have to have boring workplaces. She even painted her sound booth to complement the color scheme of her office.  It's very professional and very welcoming, like you would be going to into her home.

2.  Private practice doesn't mean working 8-5, Monday through Friday.  Private practice means I make my own schedule.  I can have days off if I want.  It's my choice.

3.  I don't have to make a decision whether or not I want to go into private practice today.  Or tomorrow.  I can work for several years before deciding if that's a path I want to take.

My schedule isn't a normal third year schedule (all day Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday).  I go half a day Monday, all day Tuesday, half a day Wednesday, and all day Thursday.  The joys of only working half a day means I can spend the other half doing school work or house/wife work.  I also have time to be more involved in my church, which is something I've had to back off from because of my previous Houston clinic-going.

It's funny how things change in a day.  Sunday, you couldn't pay me enough to go into private practice because I thought it would take away from being a mom, something I'm born to do.  But now, I know that I can be a good mom and raise my kids, and then open/buy a private practice once my kids are in school or even a little later.  The good news is that I don't have to decide that now.  When the time comes, we'll know if it's something we want to do.

In other news, I've been enjoying the mess out of coffee. I learned the hard way on Friday not to drink an entire pot over the course of a day, but I can do a cup or two :)

Also - it's storming outside, and while I'm so thankful to have the afternoon off, my poor Carmella is snuggled with me on the couch trying to hide from the thunder.  She's not allowed on the furniture; however, she forgets the rules when she hears thunder.  She's practically sitting on top of me, which is making the task of blogging particularly difficult.

Later on folks,
Rae

When I grow up...

For my business class, I have to write a paper talking about my interest in running a private practice.  I've been thinking for a couple of days about the potential of me one day owning my own practice.  As I sit here this morning, sipping on my second cup of coffee (I've been up since 6am and couldn't go back to sleep...),  one word keeps coming into my head: children.  I'll come back to the topic of private practice later, but let me catch you up really quick.

I have been going to school since I was 6 - kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, college, and now graduate school.  I've been married for 3 1/2 years.  I took a year off between college and graduate school because I thought I was ready to have a family.  During that time, I realized that I wasn't ready emotionally or financially to start a family.  After talking it over with my husband, I decided to go back to graduate school and get my doctorate.  Then, one year afterwards I started to feel guilty.  Then a year later, and a year later.  I kept doubting myself and the choice I made to get my degree.  My husband has supported me throughout graduate school, but I felt that I was withholding from him the joy of having children.  Even though he was behind me going to school, why did I feel so guilty?  The bible has a few things to say about this:

"Children are a heritage from the Lord" - Psalm 127:3

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above" - James 1:17

"Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God" - Mark 10:14

"Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers" - Proverbs 17:6

"Be fruitful and multiply over all the earth" - Genesis 1:28

"I have no greater joy than to hear my children are walking in truth" - 3 John 1:4

"He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children" - Psalm 113:9

"Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you..." - Jeremiah 1:5

Also, Sarai (Sarah) and Hannah were both barren, but were faithful to God and he opened their wombs so that they could bear children.

Okay, so you get the point.  

I've been reading a book called "Real Marriage" by Mark & Grace Driscoll.  I'm only a few chapters into the book, but one thing that has really ripped on my heart is the chapter on men.  Mark rips on men and the different personalities that men have and how it works in a marriage.  This is not what's pulling at my heart.  What is, however, is the gentleness in the way he speaks of women.  I've never heard someone speak so sweetly of women.  Sure, I've read the scriptures from Ephesians about the husband loving his wife as Christ loves the church, and so on.  But I've never had it right in front of my face in plain English.  As Christian women, we have three main responsibilities: to be a follower of Christ, to be a wife, and to be a mother.  That's it.  

So, back to private practice.  I attend a state-regulated university.  Writing my paper with the response "I don't want to go into private practice because I love Jesus and my husband and I want to honor them by having children and owning a private practice will mean working 12 hours a day and being broke for five years and I don't want someone else raising my children so that I can be a businesswoman and own my own practice and be so stressed that when I'm at home all I think about is my job and how to make money so that my business doesn't go bankrupt" will probably not get me a good grade.  That will also only take up a couple of lines of the many I have to write.  Truthfully,  the thought of someone else raising my kids scares me to death.  I'm not talking about them being in a daycare...I'm talking about me having a baby, being off for 6 weeks, and then going to work 8-5 while my mom or my mother-in-law takes care of my baby until it's old enough to go to pre-k or kindergarten.  No offense to my mom or mother-in-law, because they're both excellent mothers, but I want to be able to raise my own children like they raised their children.  I want them to know me as their mother. I want to witness their first steps, their first words, and all of the joys and pains of motherhood.  

Going into private practice is not my only option.  I can work in a clinic, a hospital, an ENT office, a school, and other places.  I've thought about working full time, part time, or contracting out my services.  All three are good options, and each one has its pros and cons.  But I still don't know if that's the right path for me. 

So what - I get my doctorate and then become a stay at home wife/mom, wasting 8 years of college?  This is where it gets fuzzy.  I have NO IDEA what I should do.  I'm basically taking it one day at a time, and I'm putting the pressure on God to give me the vision of what his will is for me.  Yes, people do have children while they're in college, but traveling to Houston for clinic while being pregnant and having to be off for 6 weeks and then make up the time wasn't something my husband and I wanted me to do. 

This is my last semester of classes.  In June, I will start my one year externship at Lamar University and I'll graduate in May 2013.  Although I've thought about backing out at least twice during grad school, I'm so happy that my husband pushed me to finish and I know that I will be so excited to walk across the stage and receive my Doctorate of Audiology in a year and a half. 

Life is good.  God is greater!

Rae