Remember when...

I had a blog. Probably the only person that it has bothered not to read my every thought is my husband who often complains that he still checks my blog every day to find no new post. But not to worry I'm happy to fill him in in person. I've been a bit busy writing and kicking ass on a Master's thesis. I will eventually post part of it here because I'm so dang proud of it but that's a ways off.


I'm in the home stretch of student teaching. One more week. I've got applications in all over Southwestern Virginia and maybe a random one in North Carolina and Colorado. Just for shits and giggles. Graduation is in 2 weeks and then you can officially call me Master Meghan. I get to be "hooded" and everything.

Other highlights of the last several months:
Drew got inked. It is lovely and if possible he is even sexier now than he was before. Next time you see him ask him the story behind it, it is even more lovely than the tattoo itself.

I'm on the 5th Harry Potter book in our book challenge. (Drew hasn't even finished the 3rd book I've suggested to him for the year).

Ike and Drew spent most of their time hiking and hanging out in the woods while I sat in front of a computer screen finishing papers, projects, lesson plans, job applications, e-mails, etc.

Our favorite niece turned 1.

All of our Blacksburg friends are either in the process of moving or expecting babies. Or both.

My brother can officially destroy beat me at 1 on 1 (it was a sad day, friends).

Someone in this house is writing a book but I'm not giving away any names.

We gave up sweets for lent, then foundered on Reese's eggs on Easter.

Drew's had a few guy trips and I had one lovely gal weekend getaway to the lake which was much needed (a return couple's trip has already been scheduled for summer).

One of my friends found man on Farmer's Only, I'm totes serious.

And I got a parking ticket and accidentally drank spoiled milk.

Those are the highlights. I will be back into the blogosphere soon, promise. I have lots of opinions to catch you up on. P.S. This is the view from our roof. Not too shabby.

Up to the Date

I'm on my third Harry Potter book this month while Drew is still trudging through Malcolm X. Did I mention that I've also completed an entire unit lesson plan? I mean it's not like Drew has a job or anything...oh wait. I don't think Drew is going to finish his book in the next 4 days so he will be behind on our book challenge.


I start in my placement tomorrow and I'm like a kid the night before Christmas. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it.

This is my new workspace. The desk just wont' let me spread out like I need.

In other news, I'm afraid our puppy is sick. He's a little mopey. Perhaps, like the rest of us, he's ready for warm weather. Honestly, I'm a winter girl through and through but something is changing inside me. I'm ready to utilize our rooftop outdoor space for the first time. I'm ready to be able to take Ike to eat with us downtown and eat outdoors. And I don't want to have to worry about people finding warmth for the night.


But I'll miss drinking warm beverages all day long and I'll miss turning on my fireplace. And I will dread having to shave my legs. Because full disclosure I've just stopped altogether.


Our Christmas décor is finally down and Drew re-worked our whole storage situation so that we don't have to get a storage unit! Huzzah! Never underestimate the engineering power of a man who is afraid he may have to pay $30 a month to store a Christmas tree.

This is Ike rocking the elevator. He owns this building.

 

 

I'm off to read something about a place called Azkaban. I'm no "Potter-head" as my sister says but I'm learning a few terms. Most of them I mispronounce and don't understand. (I totally thought that a phoenix was an owl. Drew is such a Potter snob when he corrects me).



 



The Haps

We finally got some things up on the walls at the new place. The fact that we have less space called for some creativity. I still had lots of things I wanted to use but with less space we created a wonky collage of all my favorite things above my desk. It's even better than I thought, it makes me smile every time I look at it.

Last night was the season 6 finale of Sons of Anarchy. I haven't cried that much in a long time. I couldn't sleep last night and I did not know I could get so attached to people who aren't real. How does Kurt Sutter do it? My stomach is still sick about the outcome today. I was way too attached to Jax and Tara's relationship. My heart is broken and Charlie Hunnam is to blame, he was pitiful last night. And I hate Gemma and Juice. Done with both of them. And I already miss Roosevelt.


I've had more free time this week which means I can enjoy cooking without all the pressures. I'm not getting carried away but last nights meal was the best we've had in weeks (Roanoke's cuisine leaves something to be desired, or we haven't found the good places yet).

Other notable occurrences:

• Drew peed in a parking garage
• Ike's learned to poop on the sidewalk
• I got my student teaching placement!
• I bought Drew a Christmas present for the first time in our married lives.
• Giving Ike a bath in a shower stall could qualify as an Olympic event. I would not medal.
• I'm wearing a Grinch T-shirt to my final today.
• And I'm ready for a weekend away! Here's hoping for snow in the North Carolina mountains.

Pictures Recently

I have faith that you all can piece together these pictures to figure out what's happening around here lately.

 



 

As you can tell we're super busy with really exciting stuff. But I like this simple life, in two weeks I'll be running around like a chicken with my head cut off.

If you're blessed with free time these last few weeks of summer here are the documentaries I watched this week that I recommend:

How to Die in Oregon
Lost Angels
The House I Live In

Otherwise...

I can't string together thoughts today so here are some that have nothing to do with one another.

• Life now is busy. I started summer classes last week which has been like a job. I have 2 online classes and one class for 4 hours a night twice a week. Luckily, 2 of them are only 5 weeks long but they are brutal. Online classes pride themselves on having you do 10x more work than you would in-class. But, hakunah matata. It will be over soon.

• Our puppy is staying with my parents this week which makes Drew and I both pathetically sad. It is so quiet around the house and there's no one there to greet us when we return home. Sad sad.

• We are trying to make better choices food-wise ever since my run in with one piece bathing suits a couple of weeks ago. Nothing can humble a woman faster. Well maybe it can. The scales at the gyno. I've gained 20 pounds since this time 2 years ago when we got married.

• Although I love summer in Blacksburg it also comes with goodbyes. Next week four of our dear friends will be moving on from this college town. One to the army and his wife to Virginia Beach. And the other couple is heading to Ohio State for him to finish his PhD. We are so lucky to come in contact with so many awesome people here but goodbyes are hard. And they come every year. Next year will be even worse.

• Speaking of which we are beginning discussions about whether or not to move on from here. Most of the friends we have here will all be gone next year and I'm asking myself why we would stay....We will see...

Does this sound a bit depressing? That's because it is. I've been reading about white privilege for my multiculturalism class and man it is rough. That class is forcing me to be all kinds of aware. And I  pride myself on being self-aware but I'm learning about biases I didn't even know existed much less that I held them. But I love the class. I mean I'm kind of in love with it. Plus it sets up some good debates and you know I love that.

That's the haps with us lately. Maybe next time I won't be such a Debbie Downer. wah wah.

Pilgrim in a Time Warp

First of all, how does it happen that every time I'm determined to get writing done for class I end up blogging???

Secondly, the name can only be explained if you have ever played write. draw. repeat. which can be explained by my blogger friend Erika by clicking on her name! We played last night and what started out as Ike became Pilgrim in a Time Warp. It is a blast and even my granny played it so it's fun for all ages!!!

As funny as that statement is, it sort of describes how I feel today. I don't actually feel like a pilgrim but it is almost Thanksgiving so I suppose I could try to muster some pilgrimatic feelings. But I am in a bit of a time warp today.

As I type this I am sitting in the library at the Community College I attended 5 years ago and that my sister now attends. It seems like so long ago that I was here taking classes because my dad forced me to and if I'm being honest, not doing that great in them. I distinctly remember being asked in one of my history classes what I wanted to do and I responded "be a housewife." Oh to go back and punch that 18 year old girl in the face and say WAKE UP! There is nothing wrong with housewives, in fact I was one not too long ago and may be again some day but what I lacked at 18 was foresight.

My sister and I are travelling with our favorite history professor here at MECC from Prague to Paris in May and we are very excited. While I was here they went on trips every year. But I never did. Not because I couldn't afford it, they give scholarships and I was working and my parents would have been happy to help if they could but I was consumed with wanting to be married. In case I have readers who don't know me well, Drew and I planned a wedding to take place 3 years ago.

Why didn't I have the foresight to take advantage of those opportunities? Traveling to Italy, taking classes seriously, being more outgoing. My one-track 18 year old mind thought it wanted to be married but why? Why was I in such a hurry to start the rest of my life? I missed so much. I didn't get to have a college experience. (Don't get me wrong I love marriage and I love Drew but Drew wasn't going anywhere.)

Culture. That's the answer. For the culture in which I was raised I am about 2 kids behind everyone else my age. I commend mothers who are my age, working, and taking care of homes. They have 10 times more going on then I do and always seem to manage their time better.

But as Carrie Bradshaw would say "I couldn't help but wonder...." what was the rush? I have the rest of my life to have babies. Just as Drew wasn't going anywhere, neither is my uterus and neither are adoption agencies.

I sit here 5 years later a different woman. More confident. More focused. More centered. And more self-aware. Those all may sound conceited but sometimes we have to be. We can't help others if we're unhappy. We have to be happy with who we are before we can be happy with someone else.

A friend of mine and I were talking the other night about not being where we thought we would be at our ages. But it is so important to live each day rather than constantly waiting for what's to come. It's exciting to plan a future but live your life today as well. Otherwise you'll wake up years from now still waiting. I will stop short of using YOLO because that's obnoxious but I'm not afraid to say carpe diem. Seize this day and every day.

                                                                      
                                                                      

Recent Happenings, Crockpot Love and Hair Update

It seems its time for a blog that won't warrant serious discussion. I mean perhaps someone will want to discuss whether or not my hair really is naturally curly. Or whether or not the crock pot makes life too easy. Or someone may want to argue that Virginia is not the most beautiful state in the fall. Okay that last one is taking it a little too far. But please let's put our opposing views aside for this incredibly important post.

Curls

First of all: an update on the curls! (not to be confused with the "girls" cause those are just fine).

Some of you may look at it and think, that poor girl with the mess atop her head. But I look at it and say hallelujah, my curls are back. Granted there are still days I go around like this:

Awkward facial expression and all. Eek. And admittedly I still love my "do-rags" as some would say. Others may say bandanna. I like to call it my Rosie the Riveter look. But all in all I'm pleased with my curls when I take the time to fix them.

Crockpot Cooking

 As things have become more busy with school, observation, and research I'm grateful that Drew has picked up another wife to help around the house. Her cooking is much better than mine and it takes her no time to get cleaned up. Frankly, she makes me look bad. Okay, I kid. But using the crockpot is totally like having another set of hands around here to help with dinner. Tonight she is making us chicken and rice. A couple of days ago she made us spinach dip. In the past couple of weeks she's made tomato basil parmesan soup, white chicken chilli, pulled pork bbq, beef roast and deer meat. Please ladies, do yourself a favor and let someone else do the work. There is nothing better than a crockpot meal on a cold night. Pinterest is full of recipes, I'm thinking of starting a whole board just for those recipes I can put on in the morning and have it ready for me when I get home. I'm much more pleasant when I don't have to come home and still make a "home-cooked" meal and this way we still get good home-cooking and I'm not scowling by the time we finally sit down to dinner. If anyone needs some recipes comment or send me a message I would be happy to share my knowledge to make everyone's life easier.

Recent Happenings

A couple of weekends ago Drew's parents came to visit. We headed to Floyd to Chateau Morrisette winery. It was beautiful and we had a great time and I think Drew's parents did too. We had lunch there and it was delicious. (Their wine is amazing also and I know for a fact they carry it at Food City in Wise so go grab some Wise Countians, just look for the black dog on the bottle).

After lunch we explored the winery and headed to downtown Floyd to the Country Store for some ghost stories.

It's truly like going back in time. I believe with all of my heart that Drew and I will live there one day. If you never visit any other small town in Virginia, make it Floyd. And if you can make it on a Friday night all the better. My Appalachian Geography professor plays bluegrass outside the country store every Friday night. I mean not just him, but lots of people. Even you if you want, take your banjo or guitar and join in.

 I took this pic on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Sweet Virginia.

It was a fun weekend and I was glad that Drew's parents got to come for a visit!

 Other happenings have been that I purchased my first bird feeder right before our first snow. We were out buying a propane heater, gallons of water and a Coleman stove in case we lost power. And Drew looked at me like I had 3 heads when I told him we have to help the birds prepare for bad weather too.

 As a bird lover's daughter I know birdies are like people and they love to eat when it snows. It has been out for almost two weeks and I finally saw three eating at it yesterday. The mistake, however, was telling my mom because she immediately quizzes me about what kind of birds they were. And I'm left saying things like "the regular kind" or "small and black" she's never been more ashamed I'm sure.

Other than that excitingness we have just been doing the regular ol' things. My mom asked me the other night if we were "the party house" because we were having people over again. But I love having people here. Granted I have to close off the disaster that is our bedroom right now but I love that people feel comfortable just stopping by or staying the night. So anyone in the mood for a road trip come see us! I hope to have Christmas up in the next week or so, so come one come all. The crock pot will cook us an amazing meal and I will let you fix my hair. It'll be a blast!

Shades of Gray

Do not fear. I have not read nor do I intend to blog about the pornography that is 50 Shades. The Gray (or is it grey?) that I'm referring to is where things in my life are.

It has become increasingly apparent that life is not black and white. There isn't always a clear right and wrong. And for so long my mind took comfort in thinking that I had such a good handle on the concept of "right." Our world is so screwed up. Our system is failing somehow. And direct blame cannot be placed on any individual who has held office. It's just a fact and no one is fixing it.

Drew and I worked at the Food Pantry tonight and people are hungry. HUNGRY. Do you understand that word? There are people in our world, in our country and in our towns who are not getting enough to eat! My narrow mind cannot comprehend what this means and how deep this goes.

How selfish do I look when I complain about going 4 days without hot water this week? Shame on me for ever complaining about ANYTHING!

I don't know why this is coming out of me tonight. Maybe it's the food pantry but I don't think that can be all of it. I don't know what's right anymore. What is the right choice for our country? I don't have that answer and frankly neither do either of the candidates I saw on TV Wednesday night.

How did we get here? How did our world (not our nation I'm so sick of the America shit I could puke) get to this point? Are we not called to be better than this? Whether you believe in God or not you, we have a calling as the human race to be better than we have been.

I don't have a solution I just know so much is screwed up. I hear it in my education classes, I hear it on the news, I'm reading it in articles about Appalachia. We took a wrong turn somewhere and I believe that turn was inward. A turn towards ourselves and what we require. If I sit and think on my selfishness it is disgusting.

Sorry for the negativity but I just felt that I needed a post that wasn't an update of the rainbows and butterflies of my life. The real Meghan is living in a shade of grey (gray?) not knowing right from wrong. Struggling with a lot. Struggling with God. Struggling with coal. Struggling with education. Struggling with myself.

Life as I know it

Well it's been a bit since my last update. I am back in the grind and still trying to grasp the life of a grad student. I am ecstatic about my research. I could cry just thinking about it. Thanks to my amazing advisor and a little of my own doing I feel like we are on the verge of something awesome. I'm not ready to go completely public with it yet but it involves Appalachia so it is so close to my heart. My other grad level course is amazing. It's a class full of women and it is so nice to look forward to Thursday nights to just get to discuss education with all of them. It's great to have so many perspectives. I'm so glad I'm here at Radford. It was definitely the right choice for me. I've met with the App. Studies department and they were the sweetest. I just wanted to sit and talk with them for days. That's the latest with me.

Drew has been a big support system for my research so far. I am so lucky to have someone who gets as excited as I do about research because to be honest I can be a little obnoxious talking about it. He seems to be enjoying his work and is definitely looking forward to hunting season and oddly so am I. I am sooo ready to have deer meat in the freezer and deer jerky in my mouth! Yum!

Ike has been good, except for his mother trying to unknowingly kill him by giving him treats from China. Thank goodness that freak out has passed. However, he was a little puny last night so I'm hoping that was just a little bug.

Ike and I are gearing up for a trip to Pound in a few weeks when Drew heads to PA to hunt. I'm so excited to go home, it has been a little while. Plus, now I have a new face to visit because my dear friend Kristen gave birth to a beautiful baby boy last week. I was so blessed to be able to go see him when he was born but oh goodness I'm excited to kiss his little cheeks off soon. Things with my friends lives are all changing and moving and it's so exciting to watch! Two of my other friends are expecting, one just bought a new house, and my bestie is considering grad school in NYC. Exciting stuff! Oh and I can't forget my dear friend (who I will not name) is about to find her soul mate. I'm a little bit psychic and I just feel it in my bones. And if she doesn't on her own then I will find him for her via Christian Mingle. hehe

Other changes happening in life don't seem quite as fun. My friend Rachel and I were talking the other day about how certain good things in our lives will never be as they once were. It's hard to be away from loved ones, especially when circumstances aren't great. And even being away from friends poses problems for fear of growing apart. I just have to appreciate what God has for me right now and that is here in Blacksburg/Radford. But I refuse to allow that to harm relationships that are distanced.

Okay, enough rambling. My momma is coming to stay with me for a few days next week while Drew heads out of town for work. I've become a bit of a chicken living in our house out in the country. I was fine when Drew would leave me at the apartment because we had on Offensive Lineman as a neighbor. However, I no longer have that buffer. So, my mom is going to come protect me from the boogy man.

Here is sweet Jackson I get a picture of him every couple of days. I'm wondering if I should send Kristen a picture of me to show to Jackson every few days so he will know me too. Too much?? Yeah, I thought so.

Operation: GMCB and life

For those of you who have known me for very long, you know the life-long battle I have had with my hair. I was cursed with blessed with naturally curly hair. I, actually, used to have beautiful curls. However, I have straightened them and straightened them until now I have a fuzzy mess atop my head at all times. When my hair dries naturally it is no longer curly but wavy to a certain point, then straight and very fuzzy.

I recently found, on pinterest, some suggestions for making the most of your curly hair. Admittedly, most of them were things my sister had suggested to me for years and I chose to ignore. But I was inspired. I made Drew hide my straightener and I am in. Whole-heartedly. I have already seen some improvement. But I'm calling this Operation: Get my Curls Back!

This was day one, one week ago. I definitely need to find the products that work best on my hair because the products I had on hand were sub par.

So far the changes I have made:

Not using a straightener. Ever. At All. For any reason.
Not washing my hair everyday.
Rinsing my hair in cold water.
Conditioning! (I never used to do this)
Drying my hair with one of Drew's old T-shirts instead of a towel.

I will keep you posted on the status of my fuzzy mess. I am hopeful that once I find the products I want to use that I can have beautiful hair again. Oh and going home this weekend to get my hair colored to cover the ever-increasing grey. I know that isn't good for my hair but call me crazy I'm not ready to be grey-headed at the age of 23.

In other news, I start school tomorrow! I'm so excited but after 17 years of school, still nervous. I'm feeling better everyday about my decision to do Education. Don't get me wrong, history is still my passion but everywhere I turn I see more reasons to invest in the future of our youth. Watch Waiting for Superman. (you can watch the whole thing on youtube). It makes me want to be back in D.C. like yesterday. My dearest friend in the whole world is in the Mississippi Delta doing her part to bridge the gap and she suggested I watch the movie. I had no idea how hard it would hit me.

 

So, obviously, there are some changes happening around here. In really good news, Drew has been moved to Pulaski which has cut his commute in half! Hooray! He is much happier and so are Ike and I. He gets more sleep and no longer spends more time in the car in a day than he does with us. He is going to be playing softball this fall with Northstar so he's pumped about that. Oh and his boyfriend David is back in town for school so he is happy as a clam.

 

I have been taking Ike to the dog park every day. He has made lots of new friends and is able to run out some energy. He's a bit lazy compared to some of the other dogs and is usually the smallest but he holds his own. Except for when he gets scared and runs over to hide between my legs. He is such a weirdo but I love him. I'm hoping he adjusts to my new school schedule well, he has gotten very used to having me around 24/7.

 

 

That's an update on the happenings here on Bishop Road. Life is changing and moving forward, we're just trying to keep up.

 

 

 

Jesus Never Fails.

 

 

 

 



Humble Life

My parents have  video of me the night before my first day of kindergarten. My mom asks me "What do you think you'll do at school?" And I respond "Learn, play, nap...." but as I run out of verbs my 5 year old mind goes to....."look, find, see." My family and I (and now Drew and I) quote that often and laugh but it is kind of interesting how true it would be.

Maybe not until college did I actually learn to do those last few "action words" but I still try to do them everyday. I'm still looking for something, all the time. Don't mistake constantly looking for something for unhappiness, I'm not looking for happiness. I've found that. I'm looking for inspiration, something that speaks to me. I'm also still finding, finding out more about myself every day. Finding out more about life, God and the world. And seeing, I'm seeing what life is meant to be. And I think I've figured it out: humble.

One of the guys in our small group said a couple of weeks ago "There just seems to be something so right about leading a humble life." How simply he put it, but how hard it hit me. That is all any of us should want. I was raised this way, that what we have really isn't ours. But only recently have I "bought in." There is a popular pin on pinterest that I have seen circulate numerous times, it says: "Remember this that very little is needed to make a happy life." That couldn't be more true.

I have seen, close-up, people who strive for happiness in things here on earth. Putting their very being into their house, car, boat, shopping, etc.  I've always heard that if you want to know how blessed you are, count the things you have that money can't buy. Talk about truth. I have so many amazing people and relationships in my life that I could NEVER put a price tag on.

It is so easy to get caught up talking with Drew about building a house, buying a car, springing for an IPad. None of that is necessary. And those things will fade. Sure they will make you happy for a time but new cars get old. Houses get dirty. And an IPad would have a short life span around the likes of my husband (aka bull in a china shop).  I would rather spend my money to help others and see the world. The car can wait but living my life to the fullest cannot.

In this same small group meeting we kept bringing up HGTV and while I can waste a whole Saturday watching House Hunters, it has done us an injustice. Be happy with what you have. Less is more. That isn't HGTV's motto but it should be.

I am blessed to have a husband who shares these views and (if possible) cares less about material things than I. I don't think leading this kind of life will be easy, keeping up with the Jones' always seems to creep in at some point. But I know Drew and I can keep each other grounded.

And in the interest of full disclosure I also told my mother that night before I started kindergarten that on my "to do" list at school was "get a boyfriend." Not my proudest moment, but sure enough I did.

A time to scrimp and a time to splurge

My husband and I made one of our bimonthly trips to the grocery store this week. Normally I enjoy going to the store because I plan my meals out for the coming weeks and know exactly what I'm going after. However I must admit now that I'm not working I look at prices a little more and will sometimes not buy those things I would normally splurge on (for example ferrero rocher or the 3 new colors of nail polish I've been wanting). But I also find myself trying to determine if the item in question is something we can go generic with, i.e. buy the Kroger brand.

This particular trip I was out of cereal and it is darn expensive so in the name of saving money I opted for the Kroger brand of Frosted Mini Wheats. I figured it would be pretty hard to screw up shredded wheat and sugar (wrong)! My husband warned me against it but those of you who know me will know I always know best. Well the next morning when I fixed my bowl of supposed "frosted mini wheats" I determined I was wrong (for the first time in my life). They smelled funny when I poured them out of the box and tasted even funnier, it put me in the mind of paste....not a food-like paste either like tomato paste just plain kindergarten paste.

Since Drew has been in college we have compiled a list of some other such items that should NEVER be scrimped on:

1. Garbage Bags-unless you like picking up your garbage off of the sidewalk when your bag inevitably breaks.
2. Ziploc Bags-same problem, smaller package
3. Toothbrushes-our gums have still not recovered form the toothbrushes I bough us out of the $1 bin
4. COFFEE-I pride myself on being able to drink coffee almost anyway. strong, weak, black, sugar, no sugar, cream, whatever but Kroger brand coffee isn't coffee at all. It's simply....bad.
5. And the latest....Cereal.

I'm sure there are other things that you all have found (please share them with me so I do not have to learn all of these lessons on my own).

However in the name of scrimping I have compiled a list of things I always buy generic:

1. Pasta-never have been able to tell a difference
2. Contact Solution-my husband claimed his eyes had to adjust to it but again my eyes could never tell a difference (and any eye doctor that tells you different is full of it).
3. Cream Cheese-The Kroger brand of cream cheese is a whole $1 cheaper and to me that's a lot!
4. Bread Crumbs-I recently watched Rachael Ray make her own but it's less work and they are just as tasty from Kroger.
5. Vegetable Oil-cheaper and again how do you screw that up?

I should point out that I'm no Rachael Ray or Paula Deen but I hold my own in the kitchen. I just try to make things easier on myself and my pocketbook. Any suggestions for future grocery store generic shopping are appreciated.