As you know, it's been a WHILE since I've posted. Lots of things have passed in these past 4 months and summer has come and, officially (as of today), gone. It's quite unbelievable...and so very sad. I love the summer so much for so many reasons...sunshine, beach, blue skies, warmth, beach, cookouts, long days, vacations, beach...
This summer, however, was sort of a different story; not quite the sun-shiney, happy summer season. My Master's Comprehensive Exam was scheduled for the end of August this summer. My BIG test on pretty much anything I've learned in the classes that I've taken during the past 2 years of studying at ODU. Yes, scary. Very. Scary. Studying was certainly not the most fun thing to do during the summer... I had a very hard time focusing early in the summer with the small amount of time I had while I was teaching in the Anatomy & Physiology exam in May & June. July was then filled with our annual beach trip, out of town visitors, having a little fun, and attempting to re-focus my efforts in studying. July flew by and I instantly and majorly felt the pressure for effective, quality studying to prepare at the beginning of August.
August was filled with library and coffee shop visits, freaking out, hours and hours of reading, thinking of the possible outcomes of my exam, reviewing potential exam material, more studying, becoming overwhelmed, and reading the Bible and praying fervently to the God who created all of the intricacies of the human body that I was studying. (Do you know how amazing kidney and cardiac physiology are? I know that are so very amazing and that only a Divine Creator could ever dream of and form such functional and purposeful, complex cells, tissues, organs, organ systems along with their the perfect coordination to allow us to function as we do. Amazing, I tell you.) :) Not only is he Creator, but He is my Comforter and my Friend, too. Reminding myself and being reminded that He cares for us always and in everything is a truth that carried me through my anxious thoughts and through my exam.
This was certainly one of the most challenging obstacles of my life emotionally, physically, academically, spiritually. I cried (...and cried and cried), I became tired of and from crying and mentally focusing for such long periods of time, I prayed, cried some more, read and prayed again. For some reason, I'm not super (*understatement) at coping with stress or with overwhelming situations and as a result...I cry. I think this very undesired emotional response was amplified exponentially by my anxiety: the unexpected and infinite possibilities questions my professors could ask me, the uncertainty of my focusing/studying the right material, longing for the test to be over, on top of the magnitude my performance had on the entire exam and therefore finishing the MS degree I had started all played into my thoughts. It seemed there wasn't a single moment that passed where I wasn't worrying, studying, or praying in August.
All I can really say is how thankful I am for my God and His placing such encouraging people, mentors, friends, and family during this entire process. I've never read and prayed his Word more specifically or as often as I had during this month and have come to realize how important this way of praying is. I am so very thankful to our Creator for providing exactly what I needed throughout my studying, in my growth and dependence on Him, and especially for His provision during my exam.
I praise God that this part of my life is over with and that my professors were gracious enough to grant me passing grades on all of the sections of my comprehensive exam! With the successful completion of this exam, hopefully I will be finishing my degree either this December or in May; I'm just waiting on credits and paper work to be approved by the University.
Thank you to all of you who encouraged, listened, and prayed to help me through this. <3
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Strawberry Cream Cake!
My mother is quite the woman...the best hostess and cook and baker and funny lady and most lovely and godly woman I've ever encountered and I've always wanted (and still want) to be just like her. :)
In hopes to show her an ounce of the grace and loveliness of what's she taught me (still working on that... ;) ) , starting last year I began inviting my parents over for a special Mother's Day dinner to honor her. Cooking for her is sort of weird being that she's done it for me all of my life and does it so well---it takes me much more thought, planning, time and all-out effort to orchestrate a fancy meal for such a talented lady but it is worth all of that and more for her.
This year I made a Martha Stewart dinner (like last year, too, actually) with Almond-Crusted Chicken, Orzo with Peas and Mint, and Strawberry Cream Cake! The chicken and the orzo were both pretty good. I felt they could've used a bit more flavor (nothing a little garlic or onion powder or butter probably couldn't help), but I would be willing to make either of the dishes again in the future sometime. As for the dessert, I've always wanted to make some sort of layered cake...I've owned round baking pans for almost 3 years now and have never attempted. This year, I finally found a recipe that sounded easy enough to experiment with my pans, super yummy, seasonally appropriate (mmm strawberries), and something I just knew my mom would love! The made-from-scratch cake, whipped cream, and juicy fresh strawberries ended up being the perfect end tp a sweet, special day honoring the sweetest, most special mother ever! :)
Mother's Day Flowers
For the past couple years, I've taken an early morning trip the day before Mother's day to Norfolk Wholesale Florist for Mother's Day flower arrangement inspiration and supplies. I buy several bunches of flowers to put them all together in special arrangements for the sweet ladies in our lives. I made an extra bouqet for one of Robert's grandmas, "Grandnini." Grandnini was in the hospital during Mother's Day weekend and we went to visit and brought her these flowers to cheer her up. :) This year I found pretty pink roses, daisies, irises, carnations, and some baby's breath and purple filler-type flowers--very bright and very springy--just the way I like it!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Shamrock Marathon 2010
On
March 21, 2010, Robert completed his 2nd marathon! After months of training (since about November), he was well-trained, physically fit, mentally prepared and all-in-all ready to go. This year, Robert's little brother, Bryan, who's a senior at UVA, also decided to take on the challenge of running the 26.2 miles down at the ocean front.
At 8am, the gun went off and the boys began to run. I was fortunate enough to pal-around with my father-in-law, Bob, for the morning to hop in the car together, chase after the boys, cheer them on at several mile markers, take pictures, and cheer even louder, and pass grapes and bananas to fuel the men. We were able to catch the boys at the 3, 5, 8, 11, 16, and 19 mile markers. It's always so interesting to see the many different size, shapes, ages, and gaits of all the participants in a marathon...which is quite guilt-laden and inspiring
all at the same time. :)
The majority of the training the boys did was during our very cold, wet/snowy winter. I remember Sunday afternoons when Robert would strap on his running shoes and drive down to Sea Shore State Park to run 18 miles in 35 degree temperatures with ice puddles all throughout the trails. It certainly made me nervous, but I had faith. Bryan did most of his training in Charlottesville, which received feet of snow at a time and has several large hills to begin with. With all that hardcore training, I knew these boys could do it. Unfortunately, race-day was a very, very warm day in comparison to the climate the guys trained in, which made it a million times more difficult than perceived.
All throughout the first 16 miles the boys seemed strong and energetic. They'd smile and wave and keep on truckin'. Come mile 19, things made a turn for the worse... At this point, both Robert and Bryan had walked a little bit, had several cups of water at the stops more than normal, stopped to stretch, and grimaced. I was able to pass off some grapes to Robert at mile 19 (full of water, carbs, and sugar to keep him going!) and Bryan wouldn't take his banana. They both were beginning to cramp up at this point in time. Robert's calves were giving him a pretty big problem, but he persevered. The heat really did a number to the both of them--the water loss with all the sweat must have caused a major electrolyte imbalance which did not make their muscles happy. :(
Bob and I drove around to the 23 mile marker and waited and waited for the boys. Minutes passed, which seemed like eternity, and still...no sight of the boys. We then received a phone call from Bryan telling us he couldn't make it any further--this made me fear the worst for Robert. A few minutes later, Robert jogged to us, chugged some Gatorade, and pressed on. :) Bob & I had to wait around for Bryan to get dropped off at the mile marker we were at for quite some time. Unfortunately, the emergency cart took a really long time and caused us to miss Robert crossing the finish line. Poor Bryan couldn't move and just laid in the back of the car while Bob and I went to go find Robert at the finish-line tent. When we finally found Robert, I apologized to him for missing him cross the finish line, but he assured me "it was nothing to see...really, it was not pretty."
Even though it was a tough run for the boys, I'm so proud of my Robert for running and finishing the whole 26.2 miles this year! He may not have hit his time goal, but simply finishing is exciting enough for me. :) Not sure if he's up for another marathon...only time will tell. I imagine he will---he has his personal record to beat as well as the Gurnee family record to obliterate. Maybe next year?
March 21, 2010, Robert completed his 2nd marathon! After months of training (since about November), he was well-trained, physically fit, mentally prepared and all-in-all ready to go. This year, Robert's little brother, Bryan, who's a senior at UVA, also decided to take on the challenge of running the 26.2 miles down at the ocean front.At 8am, the gun went off and the boys began to run. I was fortunate enough to pal-around with my father-in-law, Bob, for the morning to hop in the car together, chase after the boys, cheer them on at several mile markers, take pictures, and cheer even louder, and pass grapes and bananas to fuel the men. We were able to catch the boys at the 3, 5, 8, 11, 16, and 19 mile markers. It's always so interesting to see the many different size, shapes, ages, and gaits of all the participants in a marathon...which is quite guilt-laden and inspiring
all at the same time. :)The majority of the training the boys did was during our very cold, wet/snowy winter. I remember Sunday afternoons when Robert would strap on his running shoes and drive down to Sea Shore State Park to run 18 miles in 35 degree temperatures with ice puddles all throughout the trails. It certainly made me nervous, but I had faith. Bryan did most of his training in Charlottesville, which received feet of snow at a time and has several large hills to begin with. With all that hardcore training, I knew these boys could do it. Unfortunately, race-day was a very, very warm day in comparison to the climate the guys trained in, which made it a million times more difficult than perceived.
All throughout the first 16 miles the boys seemed strong and energetic. They'd smile and wave and keep on truckin'. Come mile 19, things made a turn for the worse... At this point, both Robert and Bryan had walked a little bit, had several cups of water at the stops more than normal, stopped to stretch, and grimaced. I was able to pass off some grapes to Robert at mile 19 (full of water, carbs, and sugar to keep him going!) and Bryan wouldn't take his banana. They both were beginning to cramp up at this point in time. Robert's calves were giving him a pretty big problem, but he persevered. The heat really did a number to the both of them--the water loss with all the sweat must have caused a major electrolyte imbalance which did not make their muscles happy. :(
Bob and I drove around to the 23 mile marker and waited and waited for the boys. Minutes passed, which seemed like eternity, and still...no sight of the boys. We then received a phone call from Bryan telling us he couldn't make it any further--this made me fear the worst for Robert. A few minutes later, Robert jogged to us, chugged some Gatorade, and pressed on. :) Bob & I had to wait around for Bryan to get dropped off at the mile marker we were at for quite some time. Unfortunately, the emergency cart took a really long time and caused us to miss Robert crossing the finish line. Poor Bryan couldn't move and just laid in the back of the car while Bob and I went to go find Robert at the finish-line tent. When we finally found Robert, I apologized to him for missing him cross the finish line, but he assured me "it was nothing to see...really, it was not pretty."
Even though it was a tough run for the boys, I'm so proud of my Robert for running and finishing the whole 26.2 miles this year! He may not have hit his time goal, but simply finishing is exciting enough for me. :) Not sure if he's up for another marathon...only time will tell. I imagine he will---he has his personal record to beat as well as the Gurnee family record to obliterate. Maybe next year?
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Thanksgiving with the Marshalls
On Thanksgiving day, the entire Marshall clan (Robert's mom's side of the family) got together for a "professional" family photograph. I was volunteered to organize the photo shoot and to photograph the family. Obviously, I couldn't have taken the picture myself as I am in the picture; thankfully, my mom was able to help out that day (amidst baking pies) and took the final shots on the camera for us! The aunts ordered this final photo (edited by cousin Evie) printed on canvas for Christmas for Grandpa & Grandnini and turned out way better than I orignially anticipated. :)
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