Pilgrims at Oak Ridge

Just a short post to let everyone know that I, Aubrey, will be at the beach this week. My cute and funny husband had to stay at home and win some bread. (Boooo.) So I'm here with some medical school friends celebrating being done!! Our first day has been gloriously uneventful. That said, there won't be much posting, unless you can convince my cute and very funny husband to write a few posts. Pictures to come later.....

Our nephews keep growing and getting cuter. Here's the proof: Sam is laughing and trying to roll over.... And Jackson turned one!! Just a few more weeks and they're going to be here!!

I realize it is tradition to have a picture of someone on their first day of school. I decided to start a new tradition. Here I am on my LAST DAY OF SCHOOL EVER!! It's the last time I ever have to wear that short, white coat!! And now I can actually start to make money, instead of just spending it on tuition! (I guess you can tell I'm rather excited.)

This rotation, my very last in medical school, has been in dermatology. I've picked up some useful tidbits this month about how dermatologists like to treat certain skin conditions, and I thought I'd pass them along, for A LOT less than the dermatologists charge, too. 1. WEAR SUNSCREEN. I know this seems obvious, but trust me. Sun-damaged skin does NOT age well. It ages very, very poorly. People who spend their lives in the sun without protection end up looking very wrinkled with discoloration and spots on their faces and arms. You don't want to look like that. After spending just a few days in clinic, I decided I was OK with staying the pasty white color I've always been. And when you apply sunscreen, apply lots of it. Very few people actually put enough on to protect themselves, which is why you should use at least SPF 15, if not 30. Here are some brands that the dermatologists I worked with recommend: For adults, Neutrogena with Helioplex - this sunscreen blocks bo...

Yesterday I picked up my graduation regalia. As in the robe I will wear as I graduate from medical school and become a DOCTOR!!! I can't really believe it. These four years have gone by quickly. And now I only have 2 more days in medical school. Just 2 more days of going to the hospital here in Charleston to work. Then the fun begins.

We had a nice restful Sabbath today. We rested and went to a nearby park and watched lots of other people in a not-so-restful activity. The finals of a criterium bike race were in Hampton Park , just a 1/2 mile from our house. We enjoyed the lovely weather, good company, and I was glad it wasn't me out there trying to bike really fast for a long time. Their uniforms looked really cool, though. (sorry for the picture quality - all I had was my camera phone.)

Today a life-long dream was fulfilled. ( OK , so maybe I haven't been dreaming about it my whole life, but it has definitely been a life goal for a few years.) Let me just say that I realize I am a somewhat of a nerd. Or possibly an outright nerd. And I'm completely OK with it. I LOVE NPR. I love to listen to all the interesting talk shows that come on during the day. I love how they find all kinds of interesting topics and invite experts and have lots of thoughtful commentary. When I was studying for my boards, I listened to NPR excessively. I would listen to our local talk station (as in, this one doesn't play classical music during the day, but news/talk shows) ALL DAY. It was great. For years now, I have dreamed of calling in to one of these shows and making a comment on the air. I have even tried a few times. But I was never able to get through. Until today. Today I thought I'd give it another try. The story today was about depression, and this psychotherapist c...

Continuing my recent adventures in bread making, last night I decided to make a Challah! (is it more proper to say "make some Challah?") Challah is a traditional Jewish bread, although in a blind taste test, I might not identify it as particularly Jewishy tasting. But it is delicious. And pretty. It's some of the best looking bread around, it really flaunts its stuff. Between this and bagels I'd say those Jews really know what's what when it comes to making yummy bread products. Here is my Challah before going into the oven... And here is the finished product, see how good looking this bread is? That bread is so pretty its almost hard to tell who is better looking in this next pic, me or the bread. (ok, me by a long shot, but still.. it wasn't a fair comparison for the bread.) Mmmmmm... smells so good.......

I finally got my own pair of actual bike shorts. What I learned today is that these shorts do NOT flatter my body type. Come to think of it, I'm not sure they are flattering for ANY body type. These were obviously invented by a man. I can honestly say, though, that I will proudly don these shorts each and every time I ride, since I have just returned from a short little jaunt and my behind still has sensation. Nice, huh?

It was a little windy this weekend in Charleston. This is the view down our driveway. Yes, that is in fact a stop light which apparently got twisted around. So now we have our own personal stop light for our driveway. I guess now it's safe to leave. Better slow down, since it's turning yellow....

In my recent quest for healthier eating, I've been eating lots of salads. In some ways, I think I"ve become a tasty and healthy salad expert. But I do not want to hoard these ideas, so I will share them with you. Here are a few ideas about how to make your salad better for you, and tastier: 1. Use spinach instead of iceberg lettuce. Since it's bagged, you can just put it right into the bowl, making salads more convenient. Spinach is so much healthier than regular lettuce I just don't see the point in buying the other anymore. It's full of vitamins A and C, and also has some Calcium and iron. Popeye was no fool. 2. Add some nuts. First of all, the crunch makes a pleasant addition. Second, they are tasty. And third, they are full of protein and omega-3 fatty acids, which are the good fats that can help improve cholesterol and are good for the brain. 3. There are tons of very flavorful, low- and non-fat dressings out there. Branch out from the usual ranch or italian. ...

Finally, finally, finally I can post a photo of my best craft ever. I made the first one a long while ago, but only recently did everyone whom I wanted to surprise receive them. So here he is, trying to keep warm in this unseasonably cold spring. But soon, summer will be here and he can hit the beach. He also really loves to swim, but doesn't love when the salt water gets in his eyes. (These are multi-purpose goggles, so he can also use them when he goes skiing.) I really amused myself this time. I created the pattern for this little guy by modifying this one . (And don't worry, Melanie, I already made Sam's penguin goggles and sunglasses, but just haven't stuck them in the mail yet. You'll get them in time for summer, though.) It's going to be sad next year when I don't have as much time to play.

Today I got one of my favorite kinds of saturdays. It started with a somewhat early rise, around 7:15. I actually did a tiny bit of cleaning, then made breakfast. Then Erin came over and went on a bike ride for around 45 or 50 minutes. Unlike last week, there was almost no wind, and so we didn't get passed by anyone, and definitely not by anyone running or walking. Then we did a short, but fairly quick 5K. Even with our bike ride, we still did just over 3 miles in less than 26 minutes. So we were feeling good. Then we went to the Farmer's market, possibly my favoritest saturday morning activity in Charleston, bought some local fruit and veggies, and shared an omelet with tomatoes, pesto, spinach and cheese. And we got delicious coffee. Yum all around. We got to walk through the market and made sure we sampled everything, especially all the different kinds of homemade jams. I didn't try one of the mini-doughnuts that I love, but maybe next week. Now, if I could just get Jeff...

A couple of weeks ago I decided that it was more manly to drink my coffee black rather than dressed up all pretty with cream and suger. This was unfortunate considering that black coffee tastes like hot, bitter sludge. But ne'ertheless, other people had learned to like it, so I figured I could too. I started by slowly weaning myself from the delicious individual serving size french vanilla creamers we have at work. First I started just using half of the little cup o' goodness. It didn't make too much difference, the coffee was still good. I was making good progress. By the end of the first week I was totally off the creamer, and drinking coffee with nothing but a packet of sweet-n-low. I was halfway to improving my manliness quotient. Last week I began the final push. I started by limiting my artificial sweetner input. I would only use half of the little packet. Not bad. The coffee maintained some sweetness, and though I missed the yummy french vanilla flavoring, ...

I spent my Easter a little differently this year. I was given a free ticket to the Masters. The final round. The deciding round of the most prestigious tournament of the year with Tiger Woods in the final group. It was awesome. Even just walking around Augusta National Golf Club was an experience in itself, completely apart from the tournament being played. It is, after all, the most exclusive, most famous, most pristine, most beautiful golf club in the world. Most of the second nine holes I recognized from seeing them on TV. The first nine I'm not so familiar with. We started by walking past the clubhouse and magnolia lane. Then we headed to the practice green, where Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson were taking some putting practice before starting their rounds. Then we watched a few groups tee off on the first, including Craig Stadler, "The Walrus." Then I wanted to see more of the course, so we walked down to number 16, the famous par 3 over water. We watche...

I just watched an ETV documentary about Jim Jones and his " People's Temple ." Scary. And exceedingly disturbing. It's nice to know that it would be extremely hard for someone to get so off base in the PCA that they would talk about how the Bible isn't "a powerful book" and then proceed to throw it like a football across the room. (Which he actually did according to a former member who was one of the 7 or so people to survive the massacre.) And then there is the whole group suicide. Which I'm pretty sure also couldn't happen in the PCA. It seems like at some point, someone would have brought some charges against this guy at presbytery, he would have been booted out and defrocked, without a congregation to continue leading astray. Stories like this one make you really thankful for church discipline and a form of government that gives oversight to lots of Godly men who prayerfully consider issues and try to maintain good, biblical teaching in the ...

He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!

I took my Christmas present road bike out for its first good ride on the highway. (I've ridden a good bit in a park near our house, but never out on roads that actually go somewhere.) Armed only with our helmets and sunglasses, my running buddy and I struck out today and actually went somewhere. We rode across the Cooper River Bridge , and then around the old village in Mt. Pleasant . On our way back, we decided to do what real bikers do and stopped at a little bakery for a muffin and a warm drink. (We did in fact NEED a warm drink, since the beautiful spring weather we've been having disappeared just in time for Easter to give us highs today only in the 50s, so by the time we got to the cafe, we really needed to thaw out our toes and fingers.) Then the fun began. While we were riding around the old village, the wind decided to shift directions. (On our ride out on the bridge, we were riding almost, but not quite, into the wind.) And on our way back, we were riding up a rather ...

Come now, O Spirit of Christ, brood over these bodily things, this bread and this wine. May they be for us your body and blood, vibrant with life, healing, renewing, and making us whole. And embrace us with your life-giving power, that as bread and wine are made one with us, we may become one with you, bone of your bone, flesh of your flesh . So, as we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the mystery of our faith: Christ in us the hope of glory . Amen.

Jeff and I are excited to announce that we found a house!!! We made an offer, and after a little haggling (they demanded that we keep their nice, new washer and dryer), we came to an agreement and we are now under contract!! So we are definitely moving to Greenwood. (Not that it wasn't definite before, but now we will have a place to put all our stuff.) Here are some photos: And possibly my favorite part, the master bath: But first, a reminder of what our current master (and only) bathroom looks like: And now the new: When you compare our future bathroom with our current bathroom, you get a much better idea why I'm so excited. There is counter space! and a nice tub! two beautiful sinks! level floors! new fixtures! natural light! a nice window! a big mirror! that is right behind the sink!! and even enough space to turn around!!! And in our new house we will have a whole two and a half bathrooms!! That's three total toilets, and two showers!!! Jeff and I could both use the to...

Wow...lots has happened since our last post. We've had a very busy weekend of househunting, but more on that later. For the 4th year in a row, I completed the Cooper River Bridge Run. Here are the super speedy Kenyans. I was right up there racing with them, but somehow this picture doesn't show it. :) I guess somehow Jeff just missed getting me in this photo since I was soo fast. (Ok, ok, so there may have been a few dozens (or possibly thousands) of people between me and them.) So maybe I can't quite compete with the Kenyans, but I did get my best time yet for a 10K. In the four years of medical school (which was really when I started running) I've taken 6 minutes off my time. Although I didn't win my division like last year , I think I did pretty well. Sadly, I went to check my time on the website, and for some reason my timing chip didn't work and so I have no official time. But it was somewhere around 54 minutes, which was my goal. It's been a long time...