Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend was memorial day and we didn't really do anything, but it was great! School has been really tough lately and I've started to get a little burned out, so it was really nice to take a day off and relax. Our weekend started on Saturday. Matt was leaving the house when he met our neighbors from upstairs. They mentioned that they were heading over to Al's Sporting Goods to hit one of their big annual sales, and immediately Matt wanted to go over. So that morning he dropped me off at work and headed over to check it out. I swear the kid called me like 50x that morning about things he wanted to buy!! After work, he picked me up and we went back to look around. Well... needless to say, we got A TON of stuff! We didn't have any camping gear, but we always want to go camping, so we got a lot of stuff. Matt was running around the store comparing prices of tents, looking up user reviews on his phone, and then running back to tell me all about it.

The thing I was most excited about was our tent. We have wanted one since we got married last year, but we just never got it. We started out looking at a two-person tent and I told Matt there was no way we would fit, so I vetoed that immediately. We started looking at 4-person tents, but those were $50 more than the others, which was upsetting. We decided the extra room would be worth it, and we decided we were going to go ahead and make the investment. Matt went to grab it while I stood in line and he was gone for FOREVER! When he came back, he had a completely different tent. I asked him what took him so long and he was like, "Sorry, I had to check the reviews on this tent!" Well... It turns out, he had found a tent that was $15 cheaper than the tent we were looking at, except it was a 6 PERSON tent!! :) We were so excited!

So Matthew ended up using his birthday money from his parents and I used some of my graduation money and this is what we ended up with...

One 6-person tent, 2 sleeping bags, one fishing pole, one hiking pack w/ water bottles, one biking water bottle, 2 headlamps, and... that's all I can think of! In this picture, I am also wearing my new outfit that I bought with my JCPenney gift card Matthew's parents got me for graduation. I love it! So anyway, that was our Saturday adventure. We wanted to go camping this weekend, but the weather would not allow it. Oh well... We have all summer! :)

Monday was another chill day. Unfortunately, I had to go to work for 3 hours, which was kind of lame, but we still had fun. We started out the day going on a run (Did I mention the half marathon is in less than 2 weeks?? Yeah, I'm kinda freaking out...). Let's just say, I wanted to cry, collapse, and curse at Matthew all in one run. Haha It was time for us to run 9 miles, and Matthew decided to choose THE WORST route ever!! We ran the Bonneville shoreline... That probably won't mean anything to most of you, but basically, it is typically a hiking trail, so it is loose gravel and uphill for about 1.5 miles. Seriously, I have never wanted to quit so badly. It sucks that it had to come 2 weeks before race time because my confidence was kind of shattered, but Matt made me feel a little better when he told me the half marathon wouldn't be nearly as hard as the 9 miles we just ran. That trail may have only been 2 miles or so long, but my body was shot for the rest of the run! My knees hurt for the first time since I started training (they still kind of do!), my ankles were dying, and I just wanted to go home! Haha needless to say, I finished and I survived and that's all that matters. Now it's basically smooth-sailing until race day!

Anyway, the rest of the day was more relaxed. We went shopping, went to Cafe Rio and just enjoyed talking and spending time together. Matt then let me redbox "The Vow" (finally!), which totally made my night! I can't remember how everyone else felt about it when they saw it, but I really liked it! I was kind of depressed by the fact that she truly never got her memory back (which happens in real life too), but I thought it was great. I had heard the story of that couple before I even saw the movie, and I was really impressed with their story. There are some things that upset them about the movie (like the divorce) and I can't say I blame them. Anyway, it was great!

So that was our wonderful weekend. As for everything else, life is starting to calm down a little bit. This week is my last week of school... EVER! It still seems so surreal to me, but I am so excited! I am going to start looking for a full time job, so we'll have to see what happens. Matthew has been working on his medical school applications all month and he can/will start turning them in on.... wait for it... FRIDAY! I can't believe we are already to this point. I am anxious/excited/nervous to see what will happen with that in the next few months. We are also coming up on our first anniversary next Monday! WOW! I will probably blog about that next week though. :) Matt is planning the weekend, so I don't know what's going on with that, but I think we are going to try to go away somewhere. We'll see what he has in mind! :)

Until next time.

Graduation!!

Wow! Life. Is. INSANE!! I wouldn't have it any other way because I love being busy... Well, maybe I'd calm it down just a little bit! I am surviving though and taking a break to Blog... First of all, I GRADUATED!! Sort of... Haha On Saturday, May 5th, I walked the walk in the ever so fashionable cap and gown and got handed an empty diploma case. :) It was good and I was grateful for all of my support that came.

My parents and fabulous husband after the first session

My wonderful and supportive in-laws who came to celebrate! I am so grateful to them for all of their love and support and for raising such an incredible son!!

Ok, so the morning started out on the quad where all the graduates met up. I found my HR buddies and we all celebrated together. Then, all of the graduates walk from the quad, through campus, to the Spectrum where we have the commencement. The morning commencement was great! We had a Navy SEAL speak to us and he did a great job! He said a lot of things that I really liked and kept it short and interesting enough to keep me entertained. My name wasn't in the program, sadly enough, but Matthew's was this time! Haha Matthew "fake-walked" last year, but graduated this year due to some additional classes he wanted to take for medical school.

My hubby who has kept me sane through school the past year

In between sessions, we went and got some sandwiches at Jimmy Johns (YUMMY!!) and then actually drove to Smithfield to watch my niece, Makelle, play soccer. It was a lot of fun to be outside in the beautiful weather and see my niece follow in her favorite aunt's footsteps (me of course!).

Look at that game face she has on!

She ran the whole time. Haha even if she didn't touch the ball when she got there, she chased it like a mad-woman! :)

After the game, I had to head back to the spectrum for the business school commencement. That one wasn't quite as entertaining. I sat with my HR folks again (and our friend, Justin, who Matt grew up with), so that was good, but we were all falling asleep. It was a long day and the speeches didn't help much, so I was kind of glad when it was over.. Everyone's gotta do it though, right? It's part of the experience! My sister, Kelsey, graduated the day before and she couldn't come up for mine, but she sent some beautiful flower leis from Hawaii with my mom for me to wear. They made my outfit lots cuter! :) Thanks, Kel!

Justin and I at the Business school graduation

All in all, it was a good day. I was exhausted, and Matt and I just relaxed the rest of the day, but it was a lot of fun. I am grateful for all of the support that my parents, siblings, friends, and of course my wonderful Matthew has given me. I finished! I have no idea what I'm going to do now, but that is part of the adventure, right? I am still in classes 6 hours a day, 5 days a week until June 1st, so maybe I'll finish with that before figuring out the "what next?".

I love my dad! He has been such a great support system to me throughout the years and helped (actually more than helped) fund my way through college. He has always worked so hard to provide for our family and I admire him so much. My education meant so much to him and he really made me appreciate what I was getting. I can honestly say he is one of the main reasons I got through college. He is so great and has taught me more about the value of work than any class could ever teach me! I love you, dad!

My mom has also been there for me every step of the way! We actually started college at the same time, and that was so fun for me! She is going to be done next year and I am so, so proud of her! She is such a hard worker and passed me up on every single test she took. (Thank goodness we aren't in the same major, she'd just make me look bad!!) She was there for everything and I could always call and vent to her about school, work, dumb boys, everything! I love her and am so grateful for her example.

How could I end without something about my best friend and my love, Matthew?? He is the greatest husband a girl could ask for. He got me through my last two years of school and helped me stay focused and motivated when I needed to. Whenever I was nervous about a test, he would always help me study and tell me he believed in me. He makes fun of me for being a business major because it's "easy", but I know he knows I'm smart. He has put up with me, flaws and all, and loved me all the way. I am so proud of him and his accomplishments, and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us now! (By the way, MCAT test scores came back, and my hubby is a smarty-pants!! I love him and am so proud of him!)